The Dragon God (Book 2) (26 page)

Abawken, shaking off the effects of his crash, called, “Master Dulgin, can you make it?”

“Not if you are going to be blabbing the entire time. Help the others.”

With nothing more that Abawken could do to help Dulgin, the human ran off to assist Bridazak and Spilf. The dwarf had made it through the invisible wall, and was on his way to touching the gem.

Spilf was surprised when a lizardman fighter miraculously blurred into view as it parried the goblin’s sword that came down to strike the ordakian. The new visitor, wearing nothing but a leather loin cloth, blended into the environment like a ghost, but when steel met steel, the defender materialized. Its slithery tongue hissed and its scaled tail swished back and forth as it brought up its longsword and shield.

Bridazak cried out, “It’s okay Spilf, it belongs to Abawken!”

Spilf backed away as the goblin and lizard creature battled it out. Bridazak looked for the reeg once more, but the shadowy wisp had vanished. A chill ran through his body in remembrance of his encounter with the evil lord, ruler of Kerrith Ravine, within King Manasseh’s cell.

“C’mon, let’s get to the tunnel and make sure none of the other goblins escape.”

They met up with Abawken who had arrived at the tunnel the same moment they did.

“Where is Dulgin?” Bridazak asked.

“He is getting the Sky Diamond, something he must do on his own.”

At this point, the lizardman, with mucus blood dripping off of its blade, sleekly walked up behind them and waited for his next orders. Abawken held up his hand, indicating it was to hold for the time being.

“Thanks for the help,” Spilf said to Abawken, who nodded.

The sound of muffled echoes of distant fighting further down the tunnel, informed them that the goblins and the rock elemental were close to the screamer.

Bridazak sighed, “I hate to say it, but the goffen got away. He is injured, but there is no telling how long we have.”

“Let’s go after it, then,” Spilf suggested.

“Too dangerous, Master Spilf. Our best option is to retrieve the Sky Diamond and get these people back into the castle to set up defenses.”

Just then, a high-pitched, ear-splitting screech reverberated around them. They quickly clamped their hands over their ears as they winced in pain and backed away from the entrance to the tunnel. Stones along the edging vibrated and then the walls cracked. In seconds, the entire structure collapsed into a debris-showered pile of rubble, sealing it off. Clouds of dust poured from the tunnel and enveloped the heroes. A wooden sign fell at their feet, the single goblin word carved into its surface proclaimed what had happened, and exactly as they’d hoped:
crash
.

Coughing, Bridazak said, “It’s up to Dulgin, now. C’mon.”

Beads of sweat trickled down Dulgin’s brow, dripping through his red bushy eyebrows as he climbed another foot closer. A determination to free the people still mindlessly slaving below brought him an inner strength. With weathered hands, he navigated the rough stalagmite, feeling the uneven indentions with uncertainty, and using his leg muscles to clamp and help push himself higher and higher. It was slow going, but he was getting a feel for the rock tower as he approached the tapered pinnacle, where the Sky Diamond shined brightly.

Dulgin’s heart stopped in shock when Abawken, hovering just outside the protective invisible shield, said softly, “Master Dulgin, we know you can do it.”

Dulgin gasped, “Damn you, Huey! Don’t be sneakin up on me like that.”

Suddenly, the reeg that Bridazak had spotted earlier materialized between Abawken and the rock climbing dwarf. Its yellow eyes glowed within its shadowy blurred outline, glaring at Abawken.

“Master Dulgin, reeg.”

“What? Where?”

“Move with haste, Dulgin!”

The reeg, still too far out of reach to attack, continued to stare at Abawken behind the shield, which would not hinder the creature from launching itself at him. However, it did not. He noticed that this reeg was different than the others he had encountered. Its features were similar to the shadowy beings, but this one had a stronger pull of evil. Abawken felt despair rising inside and his heart quickened with heightened thumps. The eyes of the assailant burned a bright yellow with a tinge of red and the black smokey substance that formed its body appeared thicker and more tangible. Abawken thought,
“This isn’t me.”
He resisted the sudden bout of fear and he felt the burden on his shoulders and chest lift away. Abawken realized this reeg was the demon, Shiell-Zonn, the dwarven king spoke of.

Dulgin glanced quickly over his shoulder and then hollered, “Holy orc-shit!” He shuffled around the cone shaped rock, where he found a larger palm sized opening to grip firmly. Only a foot’s distance now separated him from the prize—the Sky Diamond.

Suddenly, the reeg, moving in and out of the dimensional plane of shadows at will, a creature unhindered by material objects, faded away before Abawken’s eyes. “It’s gone,” the human announced. Bridazak and Spilf searched desperately for an opening in the shielding below him.

Dulgin had no time to keep track of the reeg, and kept his focus on holding tightly. A bitter cold gripped him as the spectre from Kerrith Ravine slowly materialized within the stalagmite. Its glowing eyes, showing through, stared directly into Dulgin’s face. His hands began to shake and lose strength as he tried to back away. The infernal beast was draining the life from Dulgin’s body. It pulled on his energy. He could not hold on much longer. His friends could do no more than watch in horror. The dwarf bellowed as one hand lost its grip and fell away from the rock. He dangled from his last good grip. The shadow crept over the remaining hold. Anger swelled within the dwarf. He pulled out his father’s axe with his free hand and hooked the edge at the top of the naturally formed column. The reeg edged out further, making contact with the dwarf’s chest and arms. Dulgin roared and fought through the draining effect, pulling himself higher until he was close enough to reach the diamond. The shadow immersed itself inside Dulgin, who barely held on. With one hand on his axe, he
quickly reached up and snagged the valued treasure. The reeg screeched an unworldly cry as the light of the Sky Diamond, now in a worthy dwarf’s possession, incinerated its murky outline. Dulgin crashed to the ground, and tumbled into a roll, adding another dent to his armor. The invisible shield crackled away, and his friends were quickly by his side, rolling him over to face them.

“Are you okay?”

“I hate climbing.”

His friends chuckled with a sigh of relief.

“Can you stand?”

“Yeah, help me up.” As they assisted him, Dulgin winced in pain. “My lucky rib is broken again.”

“Lucky?” Abawken questioned.

“Lucky it was just one,” Dulgin responded, bringing more laughter.

“Hey guys, look! Everyone has stopped working,” Spilf alerted them.

They gazed about and saw that the mining had ceased and the simple tools had fallen to the ground. The denizens slowly returned to their natural state. Bewildered faces, followed by a sea of murmurs of, “Where are we? What happened?” echoed as clusters of former slaves formed.

Dulgin held up the Sky Diamond, the beacon of light. Enslaved frost dwarves’ strength returned, icicles formed on their soot covered beards and hair, and a blue hue crept out from under the layers of dirt on their faces and bodies.

Bridazak stepped up and yelled out, “We need to head back to the castle. The horde of Gock-Turnin will be coming.”

Not a soul flinched from his announcement. Dulgin blared, “Get movin!”

A few raspy, dry voices sounded in several directions, “This way!” The throngs began their march through the endless tunnels and back into the fortress. Frost dwarves took over commanding the masses more and more as their senses returned.

“Master Dulgin, your axe,” Abawken said as he handed him his inherited weapon after retrieving it atop of the stalagmite.

“Many thanks, Huey.”

After trudging through the tunnels for the better part of an hour, Spilf, out of breath as he still adjusted to the elevation sickness, said, “My parents are amongst these people. How are we supposed to find them?”

Bridazak, smiling, clasped Spilf’s shoulder, “You will see them soon, my friend. We did it. They have to be here. Once we return the Diamond, then we can find them.”

They had reached the castle wall that led to the many barracks of King Morthkin’s keep, but smiles turned to concern when heightened voices sounded in front of the heroes; gurgled screams, muffled yelling, and clashing of steel echoed off the tunnel walls. A crowd surged toward them as they fought to see what was causing the commotion. They finally broke through and saw a black armored knight, wielding a two-handed sword. He was surrounded by frost dwarves.

Manasseh pointed his blade’s tip toward the heroes and his booming voice resounded, “It is time for my revenge, Bridazak.”

E
l’Korr, Rondee, and Xan were joined by Trillius and Rozelle as they surrounded Raina the Sheldeen mystic, who stood with her arms tightly at her sides as she bowed her head in preparation. The powerful ritual she was about to begin would transport the entire group to a new location within the realm. A hush fell over the crewmembers of
A Pinch of Luck
as they watched the magical feat with great anticipation.

Raina, with her eyes closed, took a deep breath and then exhaled slowly, raised her arms to the bright blue sky and chanted, “Alu thornec fehu trechts gaar.” Eerie whispers echoed her words as she continued, “Urus fe, gewareda haal noths.” Crackling energy manifested and encircled the gathered band. The soft glow shifted to a deeper yellow and blurred the outlines of the individuals inside. “Ezec eis quairtra daz!” A perfect sphere of topaz encapsulated them and then instantly imploded. The distant sound of thunder rumbled and faded. Light ocean spray and calm winds remained as the crew stared wide-eyed in wonder as the adventurers teleported to their next destination.