The Wrathful Mountains (19 page)

“Don’t try to
move,” Tashi said. Though her own arms were scraped bloody, she attempted to
comfort the injured sorceress.

Kaiya’s eyes did
not miss the fact that her companion was also injured. She placed a hand on the
woman’s arm, but no magic came. She could not heal the cuts, nor could she
provide any comfort for her pain. Accepting her failure, she lay back in the
snow and closed her eyes.

Believing the matter
to be finished, Tashi allowed the sorceress to rest. Ignoring her own
discomfort, she knelt in the snow and stared up at the sky.
We did it,
Annin,
she thought. Her niece would be safe. The Gawr would return to
sleep. Stretching herself next to Kaiya, she rested her eyes.

Twitching in her
sleep, Kaiya saw visions of fire. Malice pierced her heart, the form of a giant
haunting her dreams. With one hand it controlled fire, in the other it coerced
the wind. The earth rumbled, obeying the whim of the ancient behemoth, the
rivers running backward in reply.

Kaiya awoke with a
start, her eyes glistening with silver magic. “We have to get back to the
mines,” she said, hopping to her feet. “Now.”

Groggy, Tashi
rubbed at her eyes. The two had slept away an entire day. “What’s so urgent?”
she wondered. The Gawr had been dealt with. Surely now there was time to rest
and regain some strength.

“The Gawr is still
awake,” she said. “It attacked us with that wind.”

“How?” Tashi asked,
standing. “I thought activating the runes would put it to sleep?”

“They will hold it
asleep after I finish the ritual,” Kaiya said. “I have to seal the magic
against the Gawr, and force it back to its prison.”

“And that is in the
mines?” Tashi asked.

“It’s as deep as I
can go,” Kaiya replied. “That means it’s as close to the Gawr as I can get.”

Nodding, Tashi
asked, “And this has to be done each cycle?” How could the Ulihi have fought
off this terrible creature in the past? Would they be able to fight it in the
future?

“No,” the sorceress
replied. “As long as the runes are kept active, no one will have to face it
again.”
Assuming I survive the encounter,
she added silently.

“The runes will
have weakened it for you,right?” Tashi asked.

“I think activating
the runes has made it desperate,” Kaiya replied. By renewing the ancient magic,
she had forced the Gawr’s hand. Now it would fight harder, making a last stand
to protect its freedom. This would be the fight of her life.

E
scorted by a
blustery wind, the travelers made a final push for the mines. Tashi’s knowledge
of the area proved invaluable, leading them along unseen paths. Her shortcuts
often resulted in treacherous travel over uneven ground, but still they
journeyed on. After two days without a pause, they succumbed to fatigue and sat
with their backs against boulders, weathered smooth through the millennia.

Neither managed to
sleep, the gravity of their task forbidding it. Instead, they sat for an hour,
catching their breath and massaging their aching feet.

“Do you believe
your village is safe?” Kaiya asked. Ulihi architecture was primitive, far
inferior to dwarven construction. Could the village have survived the Gawr’s
onslaught?

“Yes,” Tashi
replied with confidence. “We build in sheltered areas. The rockslides will not
have affected my people.” The Ulihi had lived among these mountains since time
began. If the situation grew dire, they would simply migrate to another
settlement. They would survive.

Wishing she could
be as certain as Tashi, Kaiya’s thoughts turned to the question she had feared
to ask. Projecting her mind to the wind, she asked,
Does my family still
live?
Not an answer, but an image flashed before her eyes. The farmhouse
stood, untouched by the destruction that had visited the mining settlement. Her
brothers worked the fields, her mother sat on the porch with Flip perched
proudly on her lap. Her father puffed his pipe, a blanket draped over his legs.
Doozle snoozed at his feet. All was as it should be, as if the Gawr had no
effect on her home.
Thank you
, she said to the wind.

Her eyes wet, she
slowly pulled herself back to her feet. It was time to face her enemy, to be
rid of it before it could damage the one place dearest to her—before it could
crush her already troubled spirit. It was time for the Gawr to slumber once
more.

By the following
morning, the pair stood within sight of the settlement, the silence of the city
overwhelming. Before their eyes, they witnessed the devastation wrought by the
Gawr’s wrath. Buildings were leveled, entire streets buried beneath piles of
mud and stone. It was far worse than they had seen from above.

Kaiya’s heart
nearly stopped as she looked upon something newly constructed, a cemetery
complete with freshly chiseled headstones. These were her kinsmen, dying at the
hands of an angry monster. She bowed her head, her eyes stinging.

“Too many have been
lost,” Tashi whispered, her hand placed over her heart. Guilt rose in her, her
stomach clenching. Fighting back the urge to be sick, she renewed her vow to
see this through to the end. Though she alone could not finish this. It had to
be Kaiya, for Tashi lacked the power. “You must get to the mines,” she said,
gently patting the dwarf’s back.

Lifting her head,
Kaiya’s throat tightened. Could Galen be among the dead? He had made it through
the earlier avalanche, but what might have befallen him after she activated the
third rune? The Gawr knew her power, and it could see her mind. Those she loved
would not remain safe, if indeed they truly were.

Clenching her
teeth, she made up her mind. There was no time to search for Galen. She would
have to trust in the wind. Her eyes searched the vicinity for a way to the
mine, anything capable of bearing her faster than her own legs. There, munching
grass as if the world’s evil had no effect on him, stood a bighorn.

Running toward the
creature, she jumped onto its back and dug her heels into its flank. The
bighorn obeyed, spitting out a mouthful of greens and bleating. Nimbly it
climbed over the rubble, its powerful legs unhindered by the mountainside.
Higher it went, never slowing, bearing the sorceress to her destination. It
stopped outside the mine’s entrance and stamped the ground with a forefoot.

Patting its neck,
Kaiya thanked the creature for its assistance. Though she did not look behind
her, she could feel Tashi’s desire to join her. The priestess was coming,
though she could not run as fast as the bighorn. With her mind, she reached out
to her companion.
Don’t follow,
she instructed her.
Remain outside
the mine, no matter what you hear. If I don’t survive, find Galen and get help
from the elves.

Not waiting for a
reply, Kaiya took a deep breath and stepped inside the mine. A sense of dread
slammed into her chest. The Gawr’s power had grown. Darkness enveloped the
sorceress, the only sound the hammering of her heart. One glance at the
entryway mirror revealed its destruction. She would have to find her way in the
absence of all light.

Her fingers shook,
her feet lead weights.
You will get only one chance,
she reminded
herself. The absolute stillness of the mine would not allow her magic stores to
replenish. She would have to be quick and efficient.

Through great
effort, she steadied her breathing, but each breath was too hot and her throat
was too dry.
You can do this
, she tried to convince herself as she
clenched and relaxed her hands. At the first platform she fidgeted with the
rope, tangling it. With shaking fingers, she managed to work it out and
descended deeper into the mine. A rumbling echoed through the expansive cavern,
reminding her that her enemy was not yet asleep.

Chunks of rock
worked their way loose from the ceiling, crashing to the bottom of the mine.
One struck the platform, sending it careening toward the next level. Kaiya
landed hard, the wind forced from her lungs. As she attempted to pull herself
up, she could not. Her leg was pinned beneath the fallen rubble, and she lacked
the physical strength to lift it. Trapped in the darkness, she considered her
options. Was this worth the magic she would have to spend to free herself?
Would she then have enough to face the Gawr? Groaning in frustration, she lay
back in the darkness.

* * * * *

“Was that Kaiya?” Daro asked, jogging
toward the mine’s entrance.

“It was,” Tashi replied. Though she had arrived
too late to see Kaiya enter, she had no doubt the sorceress had made it to her
destination.

“What’s she doing? Did you find all those rune
stones?”

“We did,” the priestess replied. “She has to go
deep to seal the magic.”

As she finished speaking, the ground shook,
sending both of them to their hands and knees. A cry of alarm echoed from
inside the mine. Splintering wood announced the destruction of the elevator
platform.

“She’s in trouble,” Daro said. He took a step
toward the entrance, but Tashi grabbed his arm.

“She warned me not to follow,” the priestess said.
“It is too dangerous.”

The echo of falling rock, and the groan of an
obviously injured woman sounded from the mine, stabbing Tashi through the
heart. “She’s hurt,” she said. “I’ll go after her.”

“That platform’s gone,” Daro said. “Let me climb
down.” The Ulihi woman was slight of build, and the foreman believed himself
far sturdier. Her thin arms would never see her safely to the bottom.

“No,” Tashi said. “I’m lighter. You can lower me
with a rope.”

Daro agreed, fetching a length of rope from a
nearby crate. Fashioning a makeshift harness, he stepped inside the mine.

Affixing the harness around herself, Tashi tugged
at the rope. It felt sturdy. “Fetch your men and wait at the top for us,” she
told him. “We might need your help, so keep your ears open.”

The foreman nodded and lowered the priestess over
the ledge. Ignoring the discomfort of the rope, Tashi descended into the vast
emptiness. When her feet struck the bottom, she did not hesitate. Freeing
herself from the rope, she stumbled into the darkness, her eyes slowly
adjusting to the gloom.

Hearing footsteps, Kaiya propped herself up on her
elbow. “Who’s there?” she called.

“Tashi,” the priestess replied, moving toward the
voice. Dropping to her knees, she reached for her companion.

“My leg is pinned,” Kaiya said, a note of shame in
her voice. Her magic could have blasted her free, but she hesitated to use it.

Using her staff as a lever against the rubble,
Tashi gave her friend the room she needed to wiggle free.

“Thanks,” Kaiya said. With a sigh of relief, she
admitted, “I’m glad you came.” Here in the dreary underworld, it was comforting
to see a familiar face. She had dismissed Tashi too quickly, and she regretted it.
The priestess had proved herself invaluable, and her presence might mean the
difference between success and failure since it allowed Kaiya to preserve her
magic.

A sharp pain shot through Kaiya’s leg when she
tried to stand. “Ah!” she cried as she nearly fell. Luckily, Tashi was there to
catch her. Leaning some of her weight against Tashi, Kaiya attempted to walk
through the pain.

The movement did Kaiya some good, and by the time
they reached the second platform, she was able to walk on her own. Down they
went, Tashi working the ropes to lower themselves with ease. Only the creaking
of the platform could be heard, the light fading into complete darkness.

Blindly they moved on, trusting their feet to
follow the path. Disorientation swept over them, but they reached for each
other in the dark, steadying themselves whenever needed. The third platform
awaited, a gentle rolling thunder sounding beneath it.

“Are you sure you don’t want to turn back?” Kaiya
asked. Tashi had no magic to protect herself, and Kaiya would not be able to
spare any to shield her. The priestess had already done enough. Without her,
Kaiya wouldn’t have made it this far without using magic.

“I am with you until the end,” Tashi declared.
Grasping the ropes, she lowered the platform, her eyes fixated on the glowing
green dots of light.
Such beautiful creatures hidden from the world,
she
thought. “Do those creatures use magic?” she asked.

The true source of their light was unknown to her,
but Kaiya sensed no magic in the glowworms. Though she couldn’t see her
friend’s face, she could sense the wonder in her voice. Rather than dash her
spirits, she replied, “I don’t know, but if they have magic, let’s hope they
use it to aid us.”

“I think they already have,” the priestess
replied. The mere presence of such beauty reassured her that evil could not
taint every inch of the world. Even here, where the dead god’s wrath was
strongest, it could not thwart the magic of these tiny beings.

Setting foot on the lowest level, both women could
feel the presence of evil. A faint red glow appeared in the distance, near the
end of the mine where Kaiya had stood before. Unable to spend magic on light,
the sorceress did her best to guide her companion from memory. The earth
groaned its dissatisfaction as they reached the mine’s end.

Flattening herself on the cold floor, Kaiya’s eyes
burned with silver magic. Spreading her hands flat on the stone, she focused
her mind to the spell that would seal the Gawr to its prison. Tashi recoiled at
the sight of the magic burning at her feet, the sudden illumination painful to
her eyes.

As the magic spread, the ground rumbled. Steady at
first, it crescendoed to a deafening roar, forcing the priestess to cover her
ears. The vibrations resonated throughout her body, her teeth chattering and
head throbbing. Concerned that the sorceress would be forced to abandon the
spell, she kneeled at her side, but Kaiya showed no sign that she was affected.
Her years of practice with meditation made her focus difficult to break,
despite the Gawr’s efforts.

Silver light stretched along the cavern floor,
extending itself into the walls. Tiny deposits of painite glowed red in
response. Tashi saw them as bleeding hearts, the lifeblood of her people and
the dwarves. Lives would be saved, or all would end here. Though she had no
magic, she projected a powerful message to the dead god.
Sleep, evil, and
leave the world in peace.

Her mind in close proximity to the Gawr, Kaiya
could feel its power. It was far stronger than before, its will to destroy
greater than ever. With all its being, it fought her, attempting to break
through her spell. The ground shook, knocking loose chunks of rock and opening
fissures in the floor. Still the sorceress held fast. If she lost her
concentration, she wouldn’t have the power to start over. With no wind
available to her, the air could not be replenished, nor could her magical
stores. This had to work.

With an earsplitting crash, three fractures
appeared in the walls nearest the sorceress. Though dizzy from the constant
rumbling, Tashi steeled her courage. Through the openings emerged three stone
beasts, each stumbling on four legs. Despite their clumsy movements, they
closed in on Kaiya, who refused to drop her spell to deal with them. All she
needed was a few more minutes.

Tashi would give them to her. Reaching for an
abandoned mining pick, she gripped it tightly in her hands. Swinging with all
her might, she attacked the nearest stone beast, sending rocks flying. Spurred
on by her success, she hacked away, focusing on its legs to render it immobile.
Without pause, she moved on, swinging her pick at the second beast. Forcing it
away from Kaiya, she hacked at its feet, which were little more than a jumbled
pile of rock.
You should have built a better monster,
she wanted to say
to the Gawr.

The floor quaked, shaking the entire cavern
violently. Midswing, Tashi had no time to steady herself. Her awkward position
left her top-heavy, and she plummeted to the ground, striking her hip and
shouting out in pain. Seeing an opportunity to rid itself of a threat, the
third stone beast closed in on her.