Magic Astray (The Llandra Saga) (17 page)

Berry clambered up into Randall’s lap, and began purring softly as Nia rocked them both back and forth. The action did nothing for the pain shooting through his temples, but he still felt comforted. He had no way of knowing how long the three of them sat together on the forest floor. Eventually, the pain eased, leaving Randall with a screaming headache.

“Berry says it’s a side-effect of the aether-blindness,” Randall said once the pain finally subsided. “He says that I pushed myself too hard at Horsehead Tower, and that I almost burned myself out again.”

“You will need to be careful with your magic until you are better then,” Nia said sympathetically.

“No magic,” Berry chittered sternly.

“No magic at all?” Randall asked incredulously. “For how long?”

Berry tilted his head in a shrug and began picking through the forest floor looking for lunch.

“Thanks,” Randall said grumpily. “You’re a fat lot of help. Well, there’s no point hanging around here and waiting for the elves or Kirsti’s men to find us. Let’s get going.”

“That’s one good thing that came out of you pushing yourself as hard as you did,” Nia mentioned. “Any hunters spying near the tower would have missed our passage completely. It’s possible that they have no idea that we’ve even gone.”

“Well at least we have that going for us,” Randall said as he stood up and brushed the dirt off his breeches. “I notice that none of us bothered to pack a travel sack.”

“Where are we going, anyway?” Nia asked. “Do you have some kind of plan?”

Randall chewed on his lower lip for a moment before answering. “Well, the way I figure it, Rhys is going to head straight to Ninove. That’s where Aiden had his base of operations, and the best place to find the Summoning Device. He’ll have to figure out how to get across a couple of rivers, and that will slow him down, but he’s still several days ahead of us. So, I have a different idea—but I’m not sure if you’re going to like it.”

“What is it?” Nia asked dubiously.

“We’re going to cut through the Ironpike Mountains. It’s a straighter shot, and I promised Berry that we’d visit the dwarves after I came and saw your people.”

“Rock children!” Berry chittered excitedly.

“Are you crazy?” Nia asked heatedly. “Straighter shot or not, it could take us months to travel through the mountains, and we certainly don’t know how to find the dwarves.”

“If there is a path through the mountains, the dwarves will know of it. I made a promise to Berry, and I trust him,” Randall said, folding his arms. “You need to learn to trust us both.”

Nia shook her head. “Where you lead, I will follow,” she said resignedly, but Randall could tell that she wasn’t convinced.

Chapter 17

“We are never going to find our way,” Nia complained for what seemed like the hundredth time.

They had been in the foothills of the Ironpike Mountains for nearly a week, and Nia’s demeanor had grown steadily worse as the group traveled further away from forests and grasslands. Randall didn’t really blame her, though—he was beginning to believe that he had made the wrong decision coming this way.

According to Erliand’s map, Ninove was almost due east from Horsehead tower, but the group often had to double-back or change course due to impassable or difficult terrain, and every switchback or canyon seemed to take them further to the north and away from the capital.

“What about your friend? Doesn’t he know which way to go?” Nia asked peevishly. Her constant complaining was beginning to grate on his nerves like fingernails on a chalkboard.

“Well, Berry,” he asked. “Which way do we go?”

Berry tilted his head in a shrug. “Never been here before,” he chittered.

Randall suppressed an urge to groan. “He says we’re close now.”

Berry tugged on Randall’s hair angrily, and chittered loudly into his ear, chastising him for the lie. The young man fought down the urge to wince as the donnan continued to harangue him for several minutes. Everyone’s nerves were at their breaking point, and Randall was afraid that if Nia learned the truth—that not even the imp knew where they were going—it would be all the excuse she would need to turn back.

“Well, I’m taking a break,” Nia declared petulantly. “I am not used to all this climbing. My legs are sore and we haven’t had a decent meal in days.”

It was true. Randall didn’t know how to hunt game in the mountains, and it was clear that Nia didn’t either. Berry seemed to be doing just fine dining on the various bugs and flying insects that inhabited the region, but the last real meal that they had actually cooked had consisted of a large ridged lizard almost a hand-span long that Hunter had caught as it sunned itself on a rock. It had provided only a couple of bites of meat, and had tasted terrible besides.

“It’s not like I have the healing talisman to keep my strength up,” she complained as she pulled of her boots to shake the rocks out.

“Oh yeah, the talisman! I had forgotten all about it,” Randall said guiltily, fishing the artifact out from within his tunic.

He turned the square of metal over in his hands, eyeing it critically. The surface had already taken on a reddish hue and had started to flake around the edges. He might only be able to empower one or two more times before it became worthless.

“Master Erliand’s talisman might not have been as strong as mine, but his sure lasted longer,” Randall said. “But there’s no reason why I can’t make another any time I like. Why don’t I work on making one for you while you rest? You still have the bits from the blacksmith, right? I still have the stylus.”

Nia nodded, looking grateful. She dug the metal squares out from a bag at her hip, tossing them in a pile at Randall’s feet. Randall sat down cross-legged, and pulled a blank from the pile. “I’ll draw, you charge, ok?” he asked, looking over at Berry.

Berry snorted and clamped his mouth shut, jutting his jaw out and folding his arms across his diminutive chest. It was clear that he was still upset about the lie that Randall had told about him. The donnan looked back and forth from the pile of scraps to the exhausted elf, and his expression softened. Finally, he nodded and scrambled over to sit next to the pile as the Mage worked.

Randall worked until late in the afternoon. The pause was a welcome break from the trek, though it proved to be short-lived. Randall managed to produce a working talisman on his third try. He still hadn’t figured out why sometimes the runic magic worked for him easily at times, but not others. Shrugging, he passed the device to Nia. The tension in her shoulders visibly eased as she tucked the talisman into her tunic.

“I’m sorry I didn’t think of it sooner,” Randall said sheepishly.

“It’s all right,” Nia said, picking at a pebble embedded in the sole of her boot. “Thank you.”

“I guess I just got so used to taking care of myself that I didn’t think about it,” he said. “But since you and I are stuck with each other, I’ll try to do better.”

Nia didn’t reply, but Randall thought he saw the hint of a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

“Why don’t you rest here a bit with Berry and I’ll see if I can find us something decent to eat,” he said, pushing himself to his feet.

“Don’t be gone too long,” Nia said. “I’m already beginning to feel better. We shouldn’t dally here.”

Randall nodded and began walking generally eastward. He didn’t have much hope of actually finding any kind of game animal, but he needed some time alone.

Since leaving his house in Geldorn, he had grown accustomed to being alone, doing whatever he wanted without having to think about anyone else or take their feelings into consideration. Berry was a fine traveling companion, but he tended to go along with whatever plans Randall came up with, without too much fuss or complaint.

On the other hand, Nia was strong-willed and had no trouble voicing her own opinion. Butting heads with her was frustrating, it didn’t help that she was right as often as not.
More often, really
, Randall was forced to admit to himself. But wrong or not, he loved his freedom, and the thought of Nia being his constant companion, second-guessing his every move, terrified him.

Randall was so distracted by his thoughts that he didn’t notice the large precipice in front of him until he nearly stepped over the edge.
Just great
, he thought.
Another detour. Nia will be thrilled.

Dropping to his belly, he inched forward and peered over. It wasn’t a cliff so much as it was a huge crater gouged out of the earth, hundreds of yards across. The cliff face dropped down a good twenty feet, but afterwards it was shaped into a distinct and regular pattern, like a staircase made for a giant. At the bottom of the crater were several square blocks of granite, ten-feet on a side, stacked neatly near the center. This was no natural formation. Judging from the extent of the work, someone had been using this site to excavate granite for a long time.

Randall whooped with excitement and hurried back to camp, ignoring the bumps and scrapes he got along the way rushing over the unsure terrain. Nia jumped up as he ran into the campsite, breathing hard. Her eyes quickly scanned over him, and then turned to the direction from which he had just come.

“What is it?” she asked, her hand moving toward the blade at her hip.

“I found them!” Randall gasped between gulps of air. “I found the dwarves.”

The worry fled Nia’s features, replaced with a broad smile. “Well, what are we waiting for, then?” she asked as she hurriedly began packing their gear.

“Give me a second,” Randal said, bent over, his hands on his knees. “I have to catch my breath. I ran all the way back.”

Moments later, they found themselves at the outskirts of the quarry, looking over the edge. Nia took in the scene thoughtfully, but appeared to be less excited about the discovery than when Randall had first burst into camp with the news.

“That’s not natural. It’s obviously been cut,” Randall pointed out, motioning toward the peculiar features of the cliff face. “It has to be a quarry.”

“Mmmhmm,” she agreed. “Let’s have a look, then,” she said. “There appear to be steps dug into the far side.”

Now that she pointed it out, Randall saw them, too. The smaller staircase was so small and roughly-hewn that he hadn’t noticed it in his haste to bring the good news to his companions. He was so excited that he wanted to rush to the other side and down the stairs as quickly as possible, but was held back by Nia’s hand on his shoulder.

“We should go carefully,” she said, looking over the quarry site.

What is her problem, anyway?
Randal seethed to himself. After all the complaining she had done about his failure to find the dwarves, she should be excited. Instead, she was carefully picking her way among the rocks, occasionally pausing to peer down into the quarry.

Berry chittered impatiently and leapt from Randall’s shoulder and scampered on ahead. Hunter’s flanks twitched as the donnan scampered off, but he remained at Nia’s side, his tail swishing impatiently back and forth.

Nia smiled down at the big cat, reaching down to scratch him behind the ears. “I know you are hungry,” she murmured to the animal in elvish. “We will find food soon enough. Go. Scout,” she commanded, and the panther bounded down the quarry stairs, sniffing eagerly behind rocks and boulders as it scouted out the quarry floor.

Nia followed slowly, keeping her eye on the big cat, as Randall followed behind. He couldn’t understand why she was making such a fuss over a big empty hole in the ground.

“What are you looking for?” Randall asked when his frustration had reached the breaking point.

“Do you see any dwarves?” Nia asked flatly.

“Well, of course not,” Randall shot back.

“Nor do I. Why do you think that is?” Nia asked.

“I don’t know,” Randall said, growing annoyed. “Maybe they took the day off, or maybe they only work at night. But they have to be here.”

“I am not so certain,” Nia replied as they reached the bottom of the quarry. “Look here, there’s still a chisel jammed into the rock here.”

Randall looked closer. The tool was more rust than metal. Large sheets flaked off in his hand as he examined the implement.

“I think that this site has been abandoned for a long time,” Nia observed as Randall brushed his hands on his breeches.

Randall looked around the quarry more carefully, taking note of details that he had missed in his initial excitement. There were other tools scattered around the quarry, but all of them were badly weathered.

“I guess you’re right,” he admitted. “Where do you think they went? They sure did leave a lot of stuff behind.”

“I cannot say,” Nia said with a shrug. “But it’s certain they did not leave this place because they ran out of stone. We should be wary, in case there proves to be a more sinister cause.”

At that moment, Berry began chittering excitedly from one side of the crater. Nia and Randall both jumped nervously, wheeling to face the source of noise. Randall laughed at how tense they both were, and put his hand on Nia’s shoulder.

“It’s just Berry. He says there’s a door over there. If we’re going to find the dwarves, that’s the way we’re going to have to go.”

Nia nodded, and the pair made their way to where Berry excitedly pointed. Set in the side of the granite wall was a rusty iron door, a little over four feet tall. There was a small window inlaid with thin iron bars set into the door, right at head height for a dwarf if Randall had to guess. Peering within, all he could see was a short tunnel curving away to the right. Curiously, there was a slight air current through the window; outside air was being drawn into the tunnel at a constant rate.

Randall tried the handle experimentally, but it was no use. The hinges had rusted together. “I guess that’s why they call them dwarves,” Randall joked as he squatted down to the height needed to fit through the portal. “Now if only we can get it open.”

Randall and Nia took turns tugging on the door, while Berry urged them on, pacing back and forth and chittering angrily while shaking his fist at the stubborn portal. They even gathered some of the rusted tools they found around the quarry site to try to leverage the door open, but they were in such poor shape that most of them simply snapped when enough pressure was applied. The iron bars were set close enough that only Berry could get his hand between them, but his arm wasn’t long enough to feel for locks on the other side.