Delver Magic: Book 05 - Chain of Bargains (29 page)

"You know there's quite a few
goblins down there."

"I do, but it is worth the
risk."

"Can I ask why?"

"As I said before, goblins
are not miners, they are thieves. Though some of this makes sense, it also
creates other questions. Why would goblins mine precious minerals just to give
them away? Why wouldn't they keep the treasure for themselves?"

"Maybe they are. Maybe we're
wrong about the payoffs."

"We are not. Look at how the
treasures are being divided and crated. This matches human organization, not
goblin desire."

Ryson couldn't disagree.

"So we need to know what's
really going on down there," Ryson allowed. "Should we wake up some
of these other goblins first... question them as to what they're doing?"

"I would rather obtain more
information first."

"Okay, but I'm not too
thrilled about going into a dark shaft where they could ambush us from any
point."

"I agree, so we will take a
precaution. I'm going to cast a sleep spell into the mine." Holli saw
Ryson's enthusiasm with the idea and tempered his expectations. "It is not
a spell I like to use. It takes a great deal of energy and only works under
certain conditions. Outside, it is almost pointless, unless of course you have
Enin's level of energy and his control. I do not come close to that, but it can
be effective in enclosed places with little air flow. Anyone touched by the
mist will drift off into sleep, but they are not unconscious. They can wake if
we are careless. The spell is a mix of water, air, and light; none of which are
my natural power. The spell can be offset easily, but for our purposes, it
should keep us out of harm's way."

Holli bent her head and stared
down into the gloomy shaft. She could see the ladders anchored to a flat
platform directly below. A tunnel formed that led off toward the west and
angled downward out of sight.

Focusing her magical powers on the
sleep spell, she phrased an incantation from the powers of light, air and
water. A green octagon formed around her wrists as she pressed her palms
together in front of her chest. While lowering her arms slightly and pulling
her palms apart to press them down over the hole, the magic turned to a light
green mist that sunk deeply and quickly into the shaft. Within moments, all of
the green energy separated itself from Holli's wrists and traveled into the
depths of the mine.

Realizing the spell was complete,
Ryson wondered aloud as to how long they would have to wait.

"How fast does it work?"

"Upon contact. The water portion
of the spell will force the mist to sink to the lowest point of the shaft, but
eventually it will dissipate." Holli watched the green fog float further
down the tunnel, leaving the platform below clear. "It should be safe for
us to descend now."

Ryson moved to a ladder, but then
focused on a new concern.

"What if there's another
spell caster down there... one that can counteract the spell?"

"Goblins are not normally
efficient with magic."

"What if there's something
else down there that is efficient?"

"Then we would be in trouble
regardless."

"I guess that's true."

"Remain quiet and
careful," Holli advised.

Ryson almost laughed. He
appreciated the concern, but he certainly wasn't going to be loud and careless,
not while descending into a deep cavern filled with goblins. He checked his
emotions as he moved as silently as a shadow down one of the ladders. He did
not, however, allow himself to become a target. He slid down using the rails as
opposed to stepping upon the rungs. He hit the ground as silently as a feather
but with much greater speed. Once on solid footing, he twirled about and used
his keen delver vision to peer down the mine shaft. He spotted several goblins
upon the ground, apparently sleeping. He motioned to Holli that the area was
secure.

The elf guard moved with less
speed as she inspected the edges of the break in the ground that led down to
the tunnel platform. Upon completing her descent, she moved quickly to the
stone walls of the shaft and placed her hands upon the rock. She rubbed her palm
across the stone gently at first, then with greater force.

Stepping up beside the elf, Ryson
turned his curiosity upon the rock as well. The break in the ground that
allowed access to the deeper tunnel was defintely of different construction
then the mine shaft itself. The walls of the lower tunnel were almost smooth.
The quality of the work was beyond anything a human could have completed, let
alone a goblin. Ryson didn't wish to speak, but he felt compelled to whisper
his observation.

"Dwarf mine."

"I know," the elf
replied. "It's not very old, but the access hole is newer and that was dug
out by goblins."

Holli frowned but said nothing
further. She motioned for Ryson to follow her as she stepped lightly down the
shaft deeper into the mine. As she passed several sleeping goblins, she checked
on them carefully to ensure the sleep was deep. Satisfied with the spell, she
knew the goblins could be wakened, but it would take an effort.

Continuing to stalk down the
tunnel in dim light, Holli examined many areas of the shaft. She inspected the
ground they walked upon and the shaft ceiling overhead. She noted the support
beams and the tunnel offshoots that led to mineral deposits of silver and even
some diamonds. None of the deposits were vast, but the mine itself continued on
for untold lengths. The digging around the veins of silver were inefficient and
not the work of skilled dwarf miners. Holli believed that the dwarves might
have started the mine, but had abandoned it, which allowed the goblins to take
control.

At least one of the mysteries was
now coming into focus. It was true goblins were not miners, and they hated to
toil, but digging through dark corridors to obtain easy riches was something
within their character. They didn't have to excavate the shaft—that work had
already been performed for them. They simply had to steal what was there for
the taking. Goblins were not patient creatures, but if a number of them spent a
full cycle of the seasons exploiting the mine, they could have extracted
substantial wealth.

Believing she understood the
purpose of the goblins in Huntston, Holli was left with the chore of linking
the mining operation to the other issues within the Great
Valleys. She did not believe in
luck or coincidence. The goblins were directed to the mine, perhaps by
Prilgrat. She couldn't conceive why, but there were many inconsistencies about
the regional steward.

Still, if she could link Prilgrat
to the Huntston mine, she might finally have leverage over him. It was during
these considerations that Ryson took hold of her arm.

"We have to get out of here
now!" He kept his voice as low as possible, but in truth, he was no longer
worried about waking up any of the goblins around them. They would all be awake
in a matter of moments.

It wasn't fear that Holli saw in
Ryson's expression, but there was clearly a desire to run. The elf didn't wish
to ignore the delver's alarm, but she needed to understand the severity of the danger.

"What is it?"

"Goblins... hundreds... maybe
thousands, coming at us very fast."

That was all she needed to hear.
She took the lead as she raced back up the shaft toward the platform under the
warehouse. They moved faster than any goblin ever could, but she soon
understood Ryson's overwhelming need to escape the cramped tunnels. When she
reached the ladder, she couldn't see the goblin horde, but she could feel them.
The tunnel shook and dust began to fall from the walls. She climbed the ladder
as if it were on fire and the flames licked her heels.

Ryson followed her. He continued
to glance down the angled decline of the shaft, but thankfully the mass of dark
creatures he knew was coming remained out of sight. He had seen legions of
monsters before. It was never a heartening sight. How there could be so many
always left him questioning his sanity.

Upon reaching the top of the
access hole in the warehouse floor, both he and Holli pulled violently at the
ladders. They had to break them from anchors but they managed to release them
and pull them all up out of reach of the coming horde. They threw them against
the far walls of the building, hoping to keep them as far out of reach as
possible.

"That will only slow them
temporarily." Holli advised. "They will climb upon each other to
reach the top. We have to get out of here."

Before she left, however, she
grabbed one of the bound and unconscious goblins they had left topside and
threw it over her shoulder. She quickly raced to the door and broke out into
the open. Once outside, she scanned the area for guards. She saw them in the
distance, still at the bridge. She could not locate the guard captain, but she
imagined he was near or on his way.

Ryson nodded to the guards as
well.

"Do we warn them?" he
asked.

"By the time we explain what
happened, the horde will be within their sight. I do not wish to lose this
prisoner, so we head to the trees to the south."

Ryson didn't like leaving the
soldiers without any warning, but he knew Holli was right. The guards weren't
going to act with any efficiency. He knew that from their past encounter. They'd
ask questions and the delay would waste any good intentions. Better for them to
see the horde and act accordingly rather than dispute what might have happened
within the warehouse.

Ryson and Holli raced over mostly
open ground between the buildings that covered the southwestern section of
Huntston. They moved with haste, but they continued to peer over their
shoulders to watch the warehouse behind them. They both waited for the
inevitable rush of the horde through every door and window of the warehouse, but
such an eruption never occurred.

"They're not coming
out," Ryson noted.

Holli allowed a few more moments
to pass, but even she had to agree. The monsters had ample time to extract
themselves from the mine and exit the warehouse, but they remained out of
sight. It didn't make sense, but not much had.

"Perhaps they are satisfied
with securing the warehouse," Holli offered. She couldn't explain why, but
she certainly wasn't going to go back to find out. Rather than agonize any
further over the issue, she focused on her newest objective. "Let us get
to the trees."

The horde never exited the
warehouse. Even as Holli and Ryson made their way across the southern clearing
that separated Huntston from the trees, they kept watch on the area by the western
bridge. They listened for conflict with the guards, as well as for unrest among
the townspeople. No commotion erupted. Not a scream of fear, not a shriek of
hysteria, not even a curse of anger. The town remained as it had been when they
entered... under control.

Ryson couldn't believe what
happened. He knew the horde had barreled up out of the depths of the mine.
While running from the building, he could hear them climbing up into the
warehouse and filling the very rafters. He wondered if the walls could hold
them all, but not a single goblin exited the building.

"What do you make of
that?" he called to Holli.

"They were willing to protect
their sanctuary, but not willing to invade the town. It seems as if certain
areas remain off limits to them, as do certain behaviors."

Holli offered no other explanation
as they crossed into the trees and she turned her attention toward finding a
secure spot to question her prisoner. The goblin over her shoulder began
thrashing before they made it into the Twin
Rivers Forest
and it was struggling against its bonds. Disregarding the frantic movements,
Holli selected a tall white elm and hoisted her prisoner high up into a tree.
With near disregard to the goblin's safety, she flung it onto a thin branch.

The goblin's hands and feet
remained tied. It could not take hold of any surrounding branches to secure its
position. Losing its balance on the thin limb, it tottered to one side and
almost plunged to the ground through numerous branches that would have
shattered its bones.

Holli reached out and held the
monster in place. Her stare bore into the creature as she made certain it
understood its position.

"A fall from this height will
kill you, but not instantly."

She then let go and the goblin
began to tremble as it slowly lurched to one side. It could not right itself
and shrieked for help. Holli took hold of the creature again and turned it to
make sure it faced her directly.

"Where does it all go—the
silver and diamonds you are stealing—where?"

The goblin understood the circumstances
of the interrogation and the consequences if it failed to answer.

"All over," the monster
hissed.

"Names."

"Don't know," the goblin
offered in a muffled cry.

"Nonsense. You know
something."

"Some to captain right
here," the goblin offered.

"I already knew that. Who
else?"

"Don't know names, just
places."

"Tell me."

The goblin listed several nearby
towns and cities. The number was somewhat surprising, but not the name of the
last city.

"And Ashlan," was the
final name on the goblin's oral list.

"What is it for?"

"Don't understand."

"What are you paying
for?"

"Everything. Weapons, food,
access."

"Access to what?"

"Everything."

"You already said that."

"We get into towns. We take
farms. We go into stores. We get everywhere."

"What are you after?"

The goblin believed it had been
cooperative enough based on the circumstances. It decided it was time to risk a
negotiation.