Delver Magic: Book 05 - Chain of Bargains (11 page)

"What do you think?"
Ryson asked.

Holli watched the man move and
believed she knew exactly where he was going.

"He is returning home."

"Are you sure?"

"Reasonably. They could not
find us. It is late. What would he do? Issue orders to continue the search and
alert him when they find us. He would not stand around with his guards. Look at
how he walks with the soldiers following behind him, how he wears that cloak
like the cape of a superior. He thinks he is above them. He will go home because
he is too important to wait around."

"Should we hit him
there?"

"I would prefer to question
him on the streets where he would feel much more vulnerable. I just do not wish
to do it in front of three guards."

"How about one?"

Holli looked to the delver as she
deduced his meaning.

"That would be acceptable, if
you were there to keep the remaining soldier under your guard. You will remove
the other two?"

"Done. Just keep following
them. When you see me take out the second guard, you can make your move."

Ryson waited only for a heartbeat
to note Holli's acceptance of his plan before sprinting silently to the back
side of the rooftop. He swung down a drainage pipe to the ground and then raced
around to the street. Hiding behind a corner, he watched the four men continue
to walk hurriedly down the well lit avenue. Once they made their first turn
onto a darker side road, he headed back down the alley and made several twists
and turns through side streets and narrow paths.

Ryson didn't know how far the
captain lived from the jail, so he wasted little time. He had memorized the
layout of the nearby streets and alleys from his previous position on the
rooftops. He used them to his full advantage. Gauging the position of the
guards, he rushed down alleys in a flash. He created just enough noise to be
heard as distant footsteps and raced through just enough light to be seen as a
darting shadow, nothing more.

The guards stopped when they heard
the first disturbance. They looked to the source but saw nothing other than a
flash of movement. Before they could investigate further, another burst of
motion caught their attention down a different alley.

As they stepped cautiously
forward, they heard footsteps above them on the rooftops and then a clamor
behind them. Bursts of movement seemed to come from everywhere at once. None of
the soldiers could get a clear glimpse of the subtle commotion. It was all
shadows, rustles, and flashes, like an eerie wind blowing from all directions
or a phantom in the distance never quite taking full shape.

The man in the red cloak stepped
hurriedly away from the center of the street and placed his back to the brick
wall of a nearby building. Visibly shaken, he issued two quick orders.

"You!" the captain
ordered as he nodded to one of the guards. He attempted to convey strength and
authority, but his voice trembled. "Go back to the station and get
help."

The guard captain then pointed to
a second guard. "I want you to scout ahead and see what's up there."

The guard frowned, but did not
hesitate. He moved cautiously down the street and then turned out of sight.

"You and I will hold this
position," the captain stated to the remaining guard.

The soldier, at first, seemed
thankful for that task. The furtive disturbances had stopped. There were no
more dashing shadows down alleyways, no more mysterious footsteps overhead or
behind. There was only silence, but just for a moment.

They heard what sounded like a
stifled grunt behind them and then some indiscernible shuffling—nothing like a
conflict or great struggle—but certainly a commotion of some sort. The sound
died away, leaving the captain and soldier more wary than ever. That concern
doubled when a loud thud echoed out from streets ahead of them.

The soldier looked to the captain
for direction, but the man in the red cloak simply stared out into the
darkness. The guard wanted to abandon the officer, but he couldn't take the
risk. He didn't even draw his weapon as he waited for an order that never came.

The captain proved even less
decisive. He wanted to yell for help, but he couldn't find the nerve to call
out. He would never be sure if it was pride or fear that held his tongue, but
he would delude himself into believing it was courage. That courage ended up
being tested severely, and it was found lacking of any depth.

Another flash of movement brought
the encounter to a head. Two nimble figures darted out of an alley and took
strategic positions next to the captain and his last guard. Ryson's hand
streaked forward and grabbed the accompanying soldier's sword, disarming him
without a struggle. Holding the blade menacingly to the guard's throat, Ryson
bid him to remain quiet.

Holli glared at the captain. She
did not disarm him or draw her own weapon. She simply bore down on him in a
dramatic display of will. A spark of emerald magic lit up each eye and they
glowed like those of a prowling cat.

"Your men have been
neutralized. No help is coming," Holli stated coldly. She wanted the guard
captain to fully understand the bleakness of his position. "You know who we
are and what we can do, but you seem to underestimate the power of magic. I
cannot have you make that mistake with me."

She held her hands out in front of
her and turned her palms to the night sky. The emerald magic at her command
danced back and forth from one hand to the other. It did not glow bright.
Instead, she muted the light of the energy so it would burn much dimmer than
any of the lamps on distant poles. Still, the presence of magic could not be
denied as the green energy suddenly flowed off both palms and formed a rotating
sphere in front of the captain's face.

Holli did not explain the purpose
of the spell. She let the glowing orb mesmerize both the captain and the
soldier and allowed their imaginations to conjure their own worst fears. She
watched with satisfaction as the guard captain grew pale, obvious even in the
emerald light.

"You will answer my questions
and you will do so truthfully." She didn't wait for a response. "Why
were we placed in jail?"

"I wanted to question
you," the captain stammered, but he did not delay in answering. He clearly
feared the magic, as well as the two figures before him.

"Regarding what?"

"Why you were here."

"How did you know we were
here at all?"

"I got a dispatch two days
ago. It said to be on the lookout for you two. It gave your descriptions. I
gave it to my men, and you were spotted on the streets walking through
town."

"A dispatch from who?"

"Regional Steward Wes
Prilgrat."

Holli understood enough of
politics in the Great Valleys
to realize that a regional steward held significant influence. One of such
power could certainly issue an order for a town commander and expect it to be
followed. She was surprised, however, by how quickly the guard captain revealed
the name of the person responsible.

"Where is this Wes Prilgrat
now?" she demanded.

"He lives in Ashlan, the
regional seat to the north. That's all I know."

"What were you to do with us?

"We were to hold you and
alert Prilgrat. I don't know why he wanted you captured. We just do as we're
told."

"But
you
wanted to question us," Holli reminded the captain.
"Why?"

"I told you. I wanted to know
why you were in Huntston. Prilgrat may not care about that, but I do."

That made perfect sense to the
elf. The captain had an obligation to his town that might have been disregarded
by a regional steward.

"Why do you think we're
here?"

"I have no idea, but I think
you're dangerous." The captain nodded to Ryson. "His sword..."

He didn't complete the sentence,
but Holli wouldn't allow him to escape the issue.

"What do you know of my
friend's sword?"

"The dispatch stated it was
enchanted and dangerous and that we should not handle it unless it was
covered."

"Have you sent any messages
back to Prilgrat involving our appearance here?"

"Not yet. I wanted to make
sure I had the right ones."

Holli believed the man was telling
the truth, and yet, the situation lacked clarity. A regional steward knew about
her and Ryson's presence in the Great
Valleys—even ordered them to be
held—and she had no idea why. More questions arose; who was Wes Prilgrat, why
did he order her and Ryson captured,
 
and
what did any of this have to do with the growing chaos throughout the valleys?

"Where are the goblins?"
Holli asked, quickly addressing concerns of another matter.

The sudden turn in questioning
caught the captain off guard. For a moment, it almost appeared as if he
swallowed a large, nasty insect.

"Wh... What are you talking
about?"

"Goblins come in to town.
Your men let them enter. You know about it. Where do they go?"

"Why do you care?"

"You seem to forget who is
asking the questions and who is answering them. One last time. Where are the
goblins?"

The captain gritted his teeth,
didn't wish to discuss the matter, but feared the elf too much to withhold
information.

"There's an old warehouse,
western side of town, not far from the bridge that empties directly on to the
town's main avenue. It's the first large building after the guard shack. They
go in there."

"What do they do in
there?"

"I don't know... you think I
go in there?"

Holli ignored the question and
quickly asked another one of her own.

"Why do you even let them in
town?"

"Prilgrat's orders."

Prilgrat again. The regional
steward was becoming a central figure to the mystery. Holli accepted that the
guard captain would follow certain orders from a politician with power, but no
self-respecting soldier would follow reckless orders without some explanation.

"Why does Prilgrat want
goblins to enter towns or to own farms?"

"I don't know and I don't
want to know."

"Then why do you listen to him?"

The captain did not wish to
answer. He looked away from the elf's glowing emerald eyes. He looked down from
the green orb of magic. His body went rigid, but he sunk into himself as if he
could withdraw from the encounter by slightly crouching, hunching his
shoulders, and trying to turn away.

"Answer me," Holli
growled, not allowing the captain to slink away. Her eyes penetrated the man
before him as if the green energy was flowing out of them and into the
captain's face.

"Prilgrat!" the captain
gasped. "He said the goblins would enter the town one way or the other. If
we didn't let them in, they'd overrun us."

It didn't make sense, not to
Holli. She understood goblins far better than the captain realized and she made
the point clear.

"And you would not even put
up a fight? You have a defensible position! You are situated between two
rivers. Your only weak spot is the forest to the south, but you have a
sufficient clearing to build several bulwarks. You could erect walls and
towers, even dig a moat to connect the two rivers and allow the flowing waters
to form yet another barrier."

As Holli watched the captain, she
saw something more than fear or incompetence in his reaction to her outburst.
He kept looking to the guard next to him, worrying much more about his presence
than Holli's rebuke.

"You thought of this,"
Holli confirmed while reading the man's expression. "You knew you had a
choice, but there is more to it. You could have defended the town against the
goblins that entered, but you decided not to. He is paying you! Isn't he? This
Prilgrat has purchased you and you sold out the town you were supposed to
protect!"

She almost slapped him. She wanted
to, with all her heart. Her fury burned with deep personal emotion. She had
been an elf guard. She accepted that duty as if it was a covenant with a divine
being. The responsibility of protecting her camp became her purpose and her
identity. She devoted her being to that responsibility and never looked upon it
as a sacrifice.

In fact, sacrifice became a foreign
concept because there was nothing in the land that meant more to her than the
honor of her position. She achieved all she could possibly desire, and thus,
there was nothing left to forgo. The only thing that forced her from that duty
was the knowledge that it was the only way for her camp to survive. In an act
of
pure sacrifice
, she gave up
everything for her duty. She ceased being an elf guard to her camp. It hurt her
more than she could ever reveal, but she accepted it as would any true elf
guard, and here was a man who could be bought with a few handfuls of shiny
metal, nothing more.

Being in his presence disgusted
her.

"We are leaving your
town," Holli growled. "Be satisfied with that. Do not attempt to
follow us and send no message to Prilgrat. Inform your men to disregard this
event... that our capture was a mistake. Do you understand?"

The officer nodded, but said
nothing. The response was insufficient and Holli made her meaning clear.

"Then understand this, just
because I have left does not remove me as a potential threat. Magic can strike
from a great distance. If you know anything about me, you know I have power
beyond your imagination at my disposal."

Before they released the captain
and his escort, Ryson made one last demand of his own.

"The man you sent forward is
unconscious in an alley. The guard you sent for help is tied up around the
corner. See to them."

Drawing the magical energy back
within her essence, Holli ended the spell that was only a light show, a
harmless incantation to impress children, nothing more. As the green orb
disappeared, she turned from the captain, quickly chose a side alley, and
motioned Ryson to follow her. She leapt away with the grace of an elf.