The Dragons of Bone and Dust (Tales from the New Earth Book 7) (20 page)

“
Thousands,
my dear wizard. Thousands. The dwarves have had not contact with your
kind or the surface world since the gods, both good and evil,
retreated from this universe.”

“
But why
build something like this in the first place? Were the ancient
peoples of the Earth, humans and dwarves, so close that they felt the
need to make these connections between the underground and the
surface?”

“
Perhaps so.
I have no real knowledge of the dealings of the two races with each
other. Maybe you should ask Shandon Ironhand when you see him?”

“
Yeah, maybe
I will.”

The sounds of Kronk hopping down the
steps had faded and Simon wondered if he had finally reached the
bottom.

They continued downward, turning and
turning. The dust on the steps became thicker and Simon coughed
violently several times to get the heavy stuff out of his lungs.

“
Damn, how
much further?” he wondered wearily. “Good shape or not,
my legs are turning to jelly.”

“
It can't be
much deeper, my dear wizard,” Aeris said from behind him. “I've
counted six hundred and seventy-two steps so far, which means that we
are very deep inside the world now.”

Simon stopped abruptly and looked
over his shoulder at the elemental, who was hovered a few feet behind
him.

“
Hang on;
you're actually counting each step?”

“
Certainly.”

“
Why, for
God's sake?”

Aeris shrugged.

“
Gives me
something to do, I suppose. This whole thing is rather tedious, don't
you think? I needed some diversion.”

Simon coughed to clear his throat and
began walking again.

“
You really
are a child at heart, do you know that?” he said. “Or you
have a bad case of OCD. That's possible, I suppose.”

“
Excuse me?”

The wizard was saved from answering
by a call from below.

“
I have
reached the bottom, master.”

“
Thank God
for that,” Simon said with heavy relief. “I really need
to sit down for a few minutes and have some water.”

They found Kronk waiting at the
bottom of the stairs. The room that they emerged into was a duplicate
of the one at the top, except that there was a square doorway sealed
with a heavy iron door.

“
The exit, I
assume?” Simon asked and nodded at it.

“
Yes master.
I wanted to wait until you got here before opening it.”

“
Can we open
it?” Aeris wondered.

He floated across to the large,
imposing door and grabbed the thick handle that protruded from it.

Simon watched, amused, as the glowing
elemental heaved and tugged at the door. Nothing happened.

“
Well,
that's it then,” Aeris said in disgust. “We'll have to go
back. A shame to have come all this way for nothing, but that's life
sometimes.”

Kronk snorted and crossed the floor.
He slipped his stubby little fingers in the crack where the door met
the frame and pulled steadily.

“
Why are you
wasting your time?” Aeris asked him. He flew down and landed
next to Kronk. “If I can't open it, then...”

With an ear-splitting screech of
rusted hinges, the iron door began to open, inch by stubborn inch.

Aeris looked flabbergasted.

“
How?”
he stuttered.

“
Instead of
asking how, maybe you could give him a hand?” Simon said
pointedly.

“
What? Oh,
yes. Right. I'll do that.”

With both elementals working
together, the heavy door finally seemed to give up the fight and
opened wide with a last, weak squeak.

“
Good work,
guys,” the wizard told them with a smile. “I'm assuming
the door hasn't been opened in a very long time.”

“
I agree,
master.”

Kronk moved into the doorway and
stared out at the darkness beyond.

“
A hallway,
master. Perhaps fifty feet long. I can sense the underground highway
beyond it. If you can wait until we reach it, I think it would be a
more comfortable place to rest instead of this dusty room.”

“
Thanks,
Kronk. I'm sure you're right. Let's go.”

The tunnel was straight as an arrow
and the air was stale and dry, smelling only of dust.

Simon shivered suddenly. It felt like
they were entering a long lost tomb.

He sent the light globe ahead of them
and it illuminated Kronk as the little guy skittered along, obviously
oblivious to any fear of the underworld around them.

Lucky guy, Simon thought.

“
The exit,
master,” the earthen called out. “We have arrived at the
dwarven trade roads.”

“
About
time,” Aeris said irritably. “Let's hope your magic isn't
so impeded by all of this blasted rock that you can't Gate us home
when we're done down here.”

“
Don't be so
impatient,” Simon replied. “We may be underground for
quite some time. God only knows how far away Kingstone is.”

“
Delightful
thought.”

They emerged from the passageway into
the massive tunnel system of the dwarves. Simon directed his light
upward and it brightened as it ascended, lighting up the entire area
for fifty feet in all directions.

The tunnel soared twenty feet over
their heads and every ten or fifteen yards, a sturdy arch helped to
reinforce the walls and ceiling, keeping them from collapsing from
the weight of the rock around them.

There were deep grooves worn into the
surface of the road, proof that at one time a lot of traffic and
commerce traveled the highway from city to city.

“
Any signs
of recent activity?” Simon asked Kronk as he took off his pack
and sat down with a weary sigh.

The little guy walked along the road
examining the ground. He was mumbling to himself, something that
Simon couldn't remember Kronk ever doing before, and he watched him
curiously.

A few minutes later, the earthen came
back and sat down a few feet in front of the wizard with a quiet
thump.

“
No signs,
master. The gravel and rock dust that has fallen from the ceiling
over time has not been disturbed. At a guess, I would say that no one
had used this section of the tunnel in many, many years.”

Simon nodded. He dug out his flask
and drank some water. Then he opened up a packet of dried peaches and
ate a few.

“
Which way
do we go to reach the capital?” Aeris asked as he bobbed up and
down over their heads.

He was turning in a slow circle with
his head cocked to the side, apparently listening intently.

Kronk pointed to their right. The
tunnel descended in that direction, gently heading deeper into the
bowels of the earth.

“
It is that
way. But the trip will be a long one. It is many, many miles away.”

Simon drank some more water and
rolled his shoulders, working out the kinks.

“
Ah well,
it's not like it's a surprise; we figured it would be quite the hike.
Aeris, do you feel like doing some scouting? Now that we're on the
main highway, Kronk doesn't have to lead anymore. Besides, no offense
to our friend here, but you do move a lot faster than either of us.”

“
No offense
taken, master,” Kronk assured him. “You are correct.
Aeris is a very good scout.”

“
Why, thank
you,” the air elemental said with a smile. “It's nice to
be recognized for one's talents. And yes, I would be happy to scout
up ahead. There are many more dangers wandering the world now than
there were the last time we traveled these roads.”

“
Thanks
Aeris. If you see anything dangerous, get back here immediately.”
Simon shook a finger at him. “No heroics.”

Aeris rolled his eyes, gave them a
wave and flew off; his glowing body looking like a comet as it
disappeared into the darkness.

Simon watched him go and then put his
flask and the rest of his food back in his pack. He stood up, picked
up his staff and settle the pack over his shoulder.

“
Shall we?”
he asked Kronk.

“
Yes master,
let us follow Aeris. There is a long road ahead.”

They walked for hours along the deep
road. Aeris would return every hour or so to report in, but it
remained uneventful. And just when Simon had decided to stop for the
day, the air elemental came back to tell them that there was a way
station up ahead.

“
Way
station?” Simon asked wearily.

“
Yes.
Remember we found one once before? There is a well with good water, I
checked to make sure, and the room it is in has been used by
travelers before. At least, it looks that way. I think it would be a
good place for you to spend the night.”

“
How far?”

“
Another
half-hour's walk, I'd say.”

Simon adjusted his pack again and
nodded.

“
Okay, I
think I have that much energy left in me. Let's go.”

The way station, or whatever the
dwarves called those little rooms that they had built in the distant
past, was a good place to camp for the night. It had a well with
clean water, an even floor where Simon could unroll his sleeping bag
and lay down comfortably and stone benches carved into the walls to
sit on. It was practically a hostel.

“
Good find,
Aeris,” Simon said when they arrived and explored the area.
“And just in case something nasty comes stalking out of the
darkness, this doorway is narrow enough to defend easily.”

“
Yes, I
thought so too. And that little alcove off to the left there will be
useful as well.”

“
Why? What
is it?”

The wizard poked his head into the
small room, which wasn't much bigger than an old-style phone booth,
and looked around.

“
Wow. It's a
latrine. Yikes, I wonder how deep this hole is?”

Aeris flew by him with a chuckle and
looked down into the darkness.

“
As long as
it is separate from the well, which I'm sure it is, it doesn't
matter. Do try not to fall in, won't you?”

“
I'll do my
best,” Simon told him dryly.

He got settled in, hauling up some
fresh water to use for washing and drinking. He missed having a fire
to heat the water for tea. And the liquid was extremely cold, so his
clean-up was a quick effort. But all things considered, it was an
excellent place to stop.

He was sitting on one of the benches,
chewing on a bar of dried berries and thinking random thoughts, when
Aeris floated into the room. Simon's eyes were getting heavy and he
was ready to get some sleep. Kronk was sitting next to the low rim of
the well.

“
Well, I'm
off,” Aeris said abruptly.

His comment was so sudden that Simon
jumped a bit and almost fell off the bench.

“
Cripes,
Aeris, don't do that. Where are you off to?”

“
I'm going
to scout ahead a few miles, then return and patrol the tunnel around
the camp for the night. Can't be too careful down here.”

“
Are you not
being just a little bit paranoid?” Kronk rumbled. “We
have seen and heard nothing down here except ourselves. And I feel
nothing through the stone that could be threatening to us.”

Aeris shrugged and flew back to the
doorway.

“
It never
hurts to keep an eye open, right? I'll check in when I get back.
Sleep well, my dear wizard.”

And he was gone.

“
He's bored,
master,” Kronk said with a shake of his head.

“
I know. But
he's right too. Better safe than sorry.”

“
I suppose
that is true, master. I will go out and keep watch in the tunnel.
Call me if you need me. Good night.”

“
Night,
Kronk.”

It was impossible to tell what time
it was when you are underground. Simon slept when he was tired, ate
when he was hungry, and just continued walking toward the capital
city in between.

The deep road seemed unending. It
undulated, rising and falling, twisting to the left and right
seemingly at random. At times, it felt to Simon like he was traveling
in the belly of some monstrous snake.