The Map Maker's Quest (15 page)

“I think this party is just getting started,” Jane laughed. She and Jacob strode hand in hand through the crowds smiling and waving to everyone they recognized. The mixing of beings was complete around the fires. Puck's goblins laughed and told jokes to humans, dwarves, and a few elves who had survived. Here and there the massive form of a minotaur stood head and shoulders above the rest. There were even a few fairies that appeared from the woods and immediately joined in the festivities.

“I think the crowd is still growing,” Jackie said. She and Carvin were sitting on a log about half way up the hill. Across the fire from them Jane and Jacob leaned on a boulder. They were all looking out across the city and it seemed true, as the sun began to set, the crowds seemed to have tripled in size. Puck's goblins were everywhere hooting and laughing. Bella was surrounded by at least a hundred fairies now and they treated her like a queen.

Eriunia had gathered a host of almost two hundred elves, and they sat quietly watching the festivities, smiling at those who approached them. She was talking to each of them and seemed to be laying plans for something.

Jane could see the massive form of the giant sitting quietly just north of the city and he seemed to be waiting patiently.

“What of him?” Jane asked Tasker when the dwarf walked over to the fire.

“He's seeking his family,” Tasker replied. “Stone giants can sense others through the earth.” He stopped for a moment and then shook his head, “I don't know if any of his kin survived in this area.”

“What happened to them?” Jackie asked curiously.

“When a giant sleeps it's for many years,” Tasker explained. “They become part of the landscape around them. Dirt collects and trees grow on them, this area was rich with iron mines. Giants are also different from us in one other way, iron flows through the veins. Many of those mines were fallen stone giants buried by the rest, some of those mines were sleeping giants. The people mined them until they died.”

Jackie shook her head sadly as she watched the great creature's head turn to look at them. His eyes were intensely sad as he watched the festivities going on in the city. Tasker was sitting across the fire from them, and he finally cleared his throat and motioned for silence. As if on cue Eriunia rose from where she was sitting and joined them at the fire.

“I see everyone is here,” Tasker said. He looked around the fire at the circle of faces. His heart was bursting with pride. This hand-picked group had performed beyond his wildest expectations. Still there was more to do and more surprises in store for them. Eriunia was quiet and reserved, the very picture of an elvish princess doing what the elves were born to do, fight evil. Flying Cloud seemed so alone where she sat across the fire from him but her face showed that she had accepted the fact the Jacob was not for her. Jacob and Jane sat close to each other holding hands as did Carvin and Jackie.

“We need to move, and we need to move in the morning,” Tasker said. He knew he was asking much of this small group but he felt they were up to the task. “I met with Puck a few minutes ago and already we have begun moving our forces.”

“But we just secured Duluth,” Jane protested. “These people need a rest.”

“No, we dare not rest,” Tasker insisted, his voice strained. “I've read the history of your country, Jane. What if your great leader Washington had decided to stop fighting when he had the British army trapped at Yorktown?”

Jane snapped her mouth shut and narrowed her eyes as she considered his words.

“Cain is on the ropes, but he still has a powerful force at Manitoulin Island,” Tasker continued. He needed Jane to believe that this was the last chance to stop Cain, because in his mind it was their only chance. “Right now, at this moment, we outnumber him and with the captured cannon we are just as well equipped. We have powerful allies, and we're determined to win our freedom. This is our chance to show the places that live under the boots of the Adherency that they can throw off that yoke.”

“What do you have in mind?” Jacob asked finally. It was the question on everyone's mind.

“There is a high hill outside of the capitol on Manitoulin Island,” Tasker said. He drew on the ground for a moment and a rough sketch of the island took place. “There is a hidden mushroom circle atop that hill, Puck has spent every free second since he returned growing it and keeping it safe. This hill is the perfect defensive position. If we were to move the cannon to the top of it, we can strike at most of Cain's home base.” Tasker paused and let what he was saying sink in. “If we move the cannon to the top of the hill and open fire we would force Cain's remaining troops into a battle on our terms.”

“What do you need us for?” Jane asked. “It sounds like this is turning into a war best fought by armies.”

“Partially, yes,” Tasker admitted. “Myself and Puck will direct the defense of the hill and the battle but it will be a hard battle. Many of the men who fight for Cain do so because their families are held hostage, also under the palace is an extensive dungeon filled with Cain's enemies.”

Jane smiled.

“You want us to break into the palace while the battle is going on and free those held there,” Jacob said as he realized where Tasker was heading. “Cain would lose the city behind him and be trapped between the city walls manned by the freed prisoners and your forces on the hilltop.”

“Exactly,” Tasker agreed.

“But what's to stop Cain from attacking the instant you are spotted on the hilltop?” Jackie asked. “He'll realize immediately what you're doing and take steps to stop you.”

“He will try, yes,” Tasker admitted. He turned and waved to a shadowy figure standing near the ruined entrance to his old workshop. “Dwarves are the greatest builders and excavators ever created. This is one of my oldest friends. He grew up in the same Delvehold I did. He now rules it.” The dwarf that stepped into the light of the fire was a solid figure with broad shoulders and a great bushy beard. His eyes were coal black, and he wore rough spun trousers and a short sleeved shirt that showed arms heavy with muscle. “Since his dwarven name is hidden and impossible for anyone but a dwarf to pronounce you can call him John.”

“John Henry?” Jacob asked with a smile. Immediately the song started playing in his mind.

“Who was he?” Tasker asked curiously.

“Steel driving man . . .” Jacob laughed and then stopped and shook his head. “Never mind, I guess it's like the door handles on my car.”

“John has agreed to join us. They will move first,” Tasked explained. “Five hundred of his fellows are already moving into place to build fortifications. They'll be rough, but by the time the sun rises we'll have two thousand soldiers in place and half a dozen cannons. By my count, we have about five thousand who have joined our cause. By tomorrow night we'll have them all dug in atop the hillside and all twenty cannons in place. I'm willing to bet my life that, within two days, Cain will be marching out of his fair city to try to stop us. He will send everything at his disposal.”

“What of the troops at the Isle of Lakes?” Jackie asked.

“Puck brought word that they had been reduced to a token force, and he sent five hundred of my goblins there to harass them and keep those that remain in place,” Tasker said.

“How will we get into the city?” Jane asked. It seemed that she was being corralled into this but she still wanted to know the details.

Tasker slowly stood and walked to Jackie, “Jackie, there was a reason I was watching out for you and a reason Cain took you.”

“Whoa, I'm no map maker,” Jackie exclaimed. She arched an eyebrow as she looked at him and wondered what he was talking about.

“No, you're not,” Tasker replied. “But you are just as special. You are what I call an Engineer. Jane can make small changes to her map and these changes are mirrored in the world around us. Those changes fade quickly and can cause horrible disruptions. You're different. An Engineer of Maps can make a change to a map that is permanent.”

There was a clamor of voices and exclamations as shocked looks filled their faces.

“But,” Tasker interrupted, “this is not without limit and cost from what I've gleaned from the oldest texts and books about this skill. You are totally exposed on every map while you're working because what you do is reflected on every map that touches the place. Every map maker and Runner nearby will know someone is at work on their maps and actively work to stop you. Also, all the laws of physics apply, if you remove a pillar from a building and the other supports cannot take the weight, the entire building will collapse. It's this reason not many engineers have survived to share their craft. Lastly you can't create materials from thin air. If you're building something of stone you need a source of stone. This is one of the greatest laws I discovered—matter is never created or destroyed, only changed from one form to another.”

“I can do it,” Jackie replied. “I wonder if that's why I felt such a pull to go into drafting and engineering when I went into college. I know how to support buildings and create things that will survive.”

“It's a skill that's been used to great effect in ancient times,” Tasker admitted. “Some of the things no one can explain on your side of the Divide have been the work of talented engineers. The pyramids, Machu Pichu, Stonehenge, and a thousand other great structures that seemed to have risen in old places and far from the source of their building materials are all because of the engineers.”

There was a shocked silence around the fire and no one knew what to say. Finally Tasker continued, “I made these for you.” He walked over to Jackie and handed her a golden pen and an anchor that looked like a pick and a hammer. “Your anchor can be attached to any map, but you must use this power with great caution until Cain is defeated.”

“If I use this power quickly and at the right time we can sneak into the city, can't we?” Jackie said quietly.

“Yes,” Tasker replied. “One other thing. You can build with your talent, but you can't erase. Jane can erase, but it won't last unless you both work in concert. Together you can dig a tunnel and make it permanent. A tunnel, perhaps, that would lead us directly into Cain fortress and enable us to free those he holds.”

That night passed slowly for Jane and Jackie as they sat up talking late and then finally lay down on a makeshift bed on the ground and dozed off. For Jane, the night was restless and she awoke feeling tired.

 

Chapter Fifteen

The Battle Is Joined

A
re you all right?” Jacob asked. He was leaning on a boulder with his hands folded behind his head.
“Yes, I think I'll be fine,” Jane replied. “This is just so much to process.” She looked around the city and suddenly realized how quiet everything was. The hundreds of rebel soldiers that had camped out in the open the night before were gone, and few of the locals were moving around outside their dwellings. Tasker and Puck were near the ruins of Tasker's workshop, and they waved to Jane and Jackie when they saw the two moving about. Slowly Jane gathered her things and the four of them walked to where the two were waiting for them. Bella joined them as they walked. She gratefully accepted a spot on Jacob's shoulder. Eriunia was nowhere to be seen, and Jane wondered where she had gone.

“Are you ready?” Tasker asked. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and tried to shake away the cobwebs from his mind. He needed to be sharp even through the exhaustion so he finally reached into his pocket and slipped a small plug of an odd looking mushroom into his mouth. Dwarves were masters of the depths and they knew that there was a mushroom for every occasion. Immediately he felt the energy surge back into his body, it would last for a few days and then he would need to sleep.

“How are we traveling there?” Jane asked. She accepted a piece of bread and a slice of cheese from one of the few rebels who remained and bit into the food.

“I think the mushroom circles are safer then maps right now,” Tasker replied. “I don't want you to use your map until the very last moment and for the least amount of time possible.”

“I would rather be safe than sorry, I guess,” Jacob replied. They all joined hands and a moment later the circle of light erupted from the mushrooms at their feet and they were sucked down into the ground. This time the trip took about five minutes and when they erupted from the ground Jacob stumbled trying to hold to his footing.

“Wow,” Jane muttered. She landed nimbly on her feet and looked around. Less than a half mile away were the walls of a grand city. Alarm bells were ringing, filling the air with their cries, and she saw people scurrying everywhere. Around them the hillside had a terraced look, and everywhere soldiers dug furiously at the ground. Others hauled great stones torn from the back of the hill and used them to re-enforce the protections facing the city. Atop the hill at the edge of a small cliff twenty cannons had lined up, and she jumped as several of the cannon barked loudly. Seconds later about a dozen shots roared towards the city.

“You did all this over night?” Jackie asked incredulously.

“I told you, dwarves are masters of excavation and building with stone and earth,” Tasker muttered. “Give me a day and I can build a fortification, give me a week and I will build you a castle, but give me a month, and I could make this hilltop the envy of any race and impossible to take.”

The cannon fire left plumes of smoke rising above the city walls, and in one spot a tower slowly collapsed on itself as a series of shots tore at the walls supporting it.

“You should prepare yourself,” Tasker said to them. “Rest and be ready; Cain will gather his forces just north of the city and march to the west around the city wall to engage our front. If he does not, we will slowly shred his city to pieces. When the battle is joined, you will jump to the eastern side of the city and open a hole in the ground and go under the wall.”

“Can't we go through the wall?” Jane asked finally.

“I would not advise it,” Tasker responded. “Cain has built cold iron into every section of the wall, it will leach away your attempts and leave you open to attack.”

“All right,” Jackie replied.

“Once inside, make your way to the fortress and enter it,” Tasker instructed. The dungeons are just outside the palace and the entrance is inside the royal guards barracks. Once inside, I think you can figure out what to do.”

“We'll gather what weapons we can find and make our way to the walls,” Jane reassured him. “We won't let you down.”

“I believe you,” Tasker replied. He paused as another round of cannon fire roared overhead and struck the city walls with resounding explosions. This time the blasts did very little damage other than shake the impact areas.

Jane watched Tasker walk away and realized how much the small man had sacrificed to this cause. Suddenly she was glad he was on their side now. Everywhere he went he bolstered the spirits of those who were gathered for the battle. Someone had found a supply of blue coats and most of the rebels seemed to be wearing either a coat that was blue or a hat, or in a few cases just an arm band.

They sat for a while away from the cannon watching the tiny crews scurry about the weapons reloading them and firing away at the distant walls. At first it seemed the city was immune to the blasts but now and then, the wind got under a shot and it slid over the walls and struck the inner parts of the city. At those points fires broke out, and they could see small clouds of steam rising where the fire crews were fighting the blazes.

“Wow, look at that building,” Jacob said suddenly. He fingered his jumper's ring anxious to leap into the battle. “It's going to fall.” Sure enough a minute later the grand structure started to topple and a cheer rose from the rebels watching. Suddenly, a lone cannon from the city that barked at them, followed by several more. Everyone scrambled for shelter. Immediately the gunners on the hilltop began a fierce attack on the spot from which Cain's men were firing from and the city defenses fell silent.

The stalemate continued for much of the day and part of the night. Jane and the others slept when they could. When morning came, the firing resumed. By noon numerous shouts came from the northern flank of the rebel fortifications. The wind had been blowing out of the west all morning and most of the rebel fire was getting over the walls.

“The Adherents have moved their army out of the city,” Tasker said breathlessly. “Get ready. When I give the signal, I want you to move to the far side of the city and form a tunnel inside.”

Jane ran to where Jacob and Jackie were standing, and Carvin, Eriunia and Flying Cloud soon joined them. Bella sat quietly on Flying Cloud's shoulder, and they stood anxious for Tasker's signal to move. They waited until the Adherents were within a hundred yards, and the rebels were firing their weapons furiously into their ranks.

“Must be thousands of them,” Jane muttered. They were sheltered behind a boulder watching as Cain's forces crept closer and closer.

“Go!” Tasker shouted to them. The battle was grinding down slowly and the Adherents were unable to move closer.

Jane waved to him and turned to the others, “All at once and on my map. Let's go.”

They all vanished at the same time, and Jane picked a spot on her map and marked it for the others. She had drawn in the fortress and island in detail, and she marked a place as close to the walls as she could.

“Everyone's here,” Jane whispered. She crouched near the base of the massive stone wall and looked around. Thankfully no one seemed to notice their presence, and this side of the city remained quiet.

“I'm going to slowly erase a tunnel from here to the big building that Tasker said was the fortress,” Jane explained hastily. She pointed to her map where the outlines of the building had taken shape over the last couple hours. “You will be in my map with me and you can arrange the braces to keep the tunnel in place.”

“Are we sure about this?” Jackie asked. “All we have is Tasker's word that this will work.”

“He's telling the truth about this,” Bella piped in. She walked over to Jackie and Jane and smiled up at them, her one good wing flapped furiously but she remained firmly planted on the ground.

“Let's do it,” Jane finally said. She dove headlong into her map, and a moment later a second presence joined her. Jackie seemed to be standing right beside her but when Jane looked around all she saw was a hazy outline of her sister. Pulling her mind back to her job, she zoomed in close to the map and used her pen to etch in the simple outline of a tunnel. She moved the tunnel slowly towards the fortress and watched as Jackie started sketching in the outlines of heavy support beams and steps leading down into the ground. Amazingly the outline of her tunnel remained instead of fading like it had before. When the tunnel reached the inner fortress, she and Jackie emerged from the map. In the ground next to them waited a square mine entrance. Jane was not sure how long it had taken them, but she knew a good bit of time had passed from the position of the sun overhead. Great wooden beams supported the earth and a wide stone steps led down to the lower part of the passage.

“Let's go,” Jacob said. He pulled his sword from its sheath and held his shield ready to block any shots if an Adherent managed to spot them. Hurriedly they descended into the tunnel and grabbed torches off the wall.

“Nice touch,” Jane said. The torches were lit already and it amazed her that her sister had managed to create this by drawing on her map.

“Thanks,” Jackie replied. “Tasker told me to try and include as many details as possible. So I thought we would need a way to see where we are going.”

They hurried along the tunnel and it seemed to stretch out forever. Finally a second set of steps led them up and a waft of smoke greeted them as they emerged.

The fortress was quiet when they climbed out of the ground, and Carvin paused just long enough to make sure his repeater was armed and set to stun. The castle grounds were perfectly manicured. Each hedge and flowerbed seemed to have been carefully thought out. In front of their tunnel along the wall was a long low building. Jane heard the huff of horses from inside. Across the grounds and the flowerbeds and between a double row of white stone columns stood a bigger building three stories tall and almost square.

“I bet that's it,” Jacob said. Suddenly he crouched and motioned for them to be quiet. Two Adherents stepped out on the paving stone in front of the building and looked around. They seemed to be arguing about something for a time and then they went back inside.

“Is it clear?” Jackie asked.

“Wait,” Jacob watched. One of the men emerged from the building leading at least forty armed Adherents, and they marched off until they had vanished out the main gates. “No time like now.”

Jacob hurried around the corner and motioned for Carvin to cover the building as they ran across the open grass. Jane and Jackie paced alongside him, and Bella held tightly to Jane's shoulder. They reached the front of the marble building and crouched next to the doors. Inside Jacob heard an argument going on. He motioned for silence.

“You can't take the last squad out to the walls,” one voice whined. “Who will watch the prisoners?”

“They are all locked in and the outer gates are closed,” a second voice answered. “Just don't open any gates until we return and we can sort out any issues later.” A scrape of boots moving, and Jacob waved them all back. They huddled around the corner out of sight. After a last protest that seemed to have fallen on deaf ears, a third squad of twenty adherents emerged from the building and marched away.

“Let's get inside and see if we can free some support,” Jacob whispered to Carvin. He hefted his shield and motioned to Carvin's repeater. “I'll block any shots. You knock them out.”

“I understand,” Carvin replied. They crept around the corner of the building and stopped at the door. Carefully Carvin pushed the door open an inch with the barrel of his gun. Inside was a lone Adherent sitting at a desk and looking nervously at a barred gate that guarded a set of stairs leading down into the ground.

“Three, two, one, go!” Jacob said. Together they stepped into the entrance, and a look of surprise covered the Adherents face. He scrambled for a pistol but Carvin's shot caught him in the chest and sent him rolling back into the far wall.

In a rush their small group entered the main room and barred the door behind them.

“Here,” Jane said. She grabbed the pistol from the floor and tossed it to Jackie. ”Can you guard the door?” She searched the unconscious Adherent until she found a large ring of keys. Then they tied him securely and tossed him into a closet.

“I found the armory,” Jackie called. She opened a door across from the desk where the lone watcher had been sitting and pointed inside. Many of the racks were empty but about a dozen of the repeater guns remained and she grabbed two more and handed them to Jacob and Flying Cloud.

Jacob walked to the iron door, it was cold iron but he knew his sword would pass through it easily. One swing later the lock fell away and they pushed the gate open. Beyond the first gate, a set of steps led down into the ground, and they descended into the depths.

 

* * * * *

  

Tasker waved his hand to
try to clear the smoke but it didn't help. The battle was just too fierce. He and Puck were crouched atop the hill and things were definitely going poorly for the rebels. Unlike the Adherents in the outer areas these Adherents were well armed and better trained. The dwarves had dug a three-line defensive perimeter, but already the first one had been lost.

“How long has Jane been gone?” Puck shouted over the dim of the battle.

“Almost three hours!” Tasker called back. He looked down at the battle. Thankfully a breeze slipped over the carnage and cleared the smoke for a few moments.

“The second line is holding so far,” Puck said. They both looked down and examined their situation. “We should re-enforce the southern flank. The Adherents have almost made it around the far edge of the defensive line.”

“The dwarves will handle it,” Tasker said. He motioned to a spindly-armed goblin and gave him the orders. The moment he was done speaking the goblin bolted for the southern section of the hilltop where the few reserves were still waiting. The Adherents had charged the rebel lines three times now, and on the third attack they entered the first row of trenches and forced the rebels to retreat with heavy losses.