At the Gates of Darkness Part 18

Walking back to the keep she pa.s.sed Brandos, who took one look at Sandreena's determined stride and then another at Amirantha sitting on the ground and broke into a broad grin. Coming to stand over his old friend, he reached down and helped him to his feet. 'You'd better do something to help that girl get over you, or she's going to kill you.'

'Any suggestions?' asked Amirantha, wiggling his jaw and hearing it pop in and out.

'Kill her first or marry her, are the only two that come to mind.'

'Marry? She'd rather marry a demon. Not to mention she's just been promoted to Mother-Bishop.'

'No wonder she's so cranky,' observed Brandos. 'Well, I guess marriage is out of the question. Unless you think you'd like temple life?'

Amirantha gave him a look that would wither fresh flowers. 'You wanted something?'

'Yes. Pug sent me to fetch you. Gulamendis seems to have found something in that book you stole...retrieved from Queg.'

Amirantha put aside his annoyance, and confusion over Sandreena and followed his friend. Brandos led him to the entrance to the tower, and said, 'Let me know if it's anything interesting.'

'Things have hardly been boring around here lately,' said Amirantha moving quickly up the stairs.

Reaching Pug's private study, he knocked once and heard Pug say, 'Come in.'

Amirantha entered and found the magician sitting at his desk with Gulamendis seated in a chair opposite him. Amirantha said, 'You sent for me?'

'Yes,' said Pug. 'Gulamendis has interpreted a few of the pa.s.sages that seemed to have caused you some problems, and we have, if he's correct, a very different situation than we antic.i.p.ated.'

'Really?' said the Warlock, sitting in the empty chair next to the elf.

'Yes,' said Pug. 'I'll let him explain how he arrived at these conclusions, but in short, it seems that things in the demon realm are not how we imagined them to be.'

'I thought we understood that Belasco subverted our demons when Villa Beata was sacked.'

Pug visibly tensed at mention of the destruction of his home, where his wife died.

'Sorry,' Amirantha said softly. 'No disrespect intended. What has changed?'

It was Gulamendis who spoke. 'I want to go over this with you in detail, Amirantha, but unless I have been misled, my brother and I witnessed part of a very nasty civil war in the demon realm.'

'Civil war?'

'We know Maarg is dead, but someone is keeping alive the notion that he's still around, still in command. But he's not. Pug saw his corpse on the world of Shila, and the demon king we saw on Telesan was an illusion. Even if his essence returned to the demon realm, it will be some time before he could rise to power again, if ever.

'That leaves us with two questions: who's pretending to be Maarg, and why?'

'Three,' said Amirantha. 'Who are they fighting?'

'Four,' amended Pug. 'What has any of this to do with Midkemia?'

The three sat back, thoughtful as they realized that for every question they had answered since the Demon Legion started threatening Midkemia, they now had two new ones.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN - Slaughter.

PUG SIGNALLED.

Magnus followed Gulamendis's instructions and suddenly they found themselves standing in a vast chamber. The Oracle of Aal rose above them, her magnificent dragon form made all the more impressive by the multifaceted jewels adorning her body, the result of a magical fusion that took place during a battle with a Dreadlord over a century before.

'You come uninvited, Pug,' said the Oracle, though her tone was neutral; it was a statement, not an accusation.

'I face the unknown, Lady,' answered Pug. 'A great danger approaches, and I would know what you can tell me.'

The Oracle was silent for a while, as if weighing the question, then spoke: 'There are too many futures, most of them dire, some ending life as we know it. Too many nexuses of possibility.'

'Is there anything you can tell me to enhance the possibility of avoiding the most dire of consequences?'

'Two waves: the one you see and the one behind it. You remember, from your youth.'

Pug was startled. No one knew of that moment; he was almost certain he had never spoken of it. It had happened on the day he had first spoken with his old teacher, Kulgan. He had been knocked over by a wave on the beach and as he was attempting to rise, a second one had swept him under. 'I remember,' he said. 'It was a lesson I've remembered all my life.'

'You must seek out the hidden wave. The wave before you is designed to distract, to bleed your resources and scatter your focus.'

'Can you tell me any more?'

'Shadows hide deeper shadows. There is a void from which no light emerges, and into which none may see. Those who seek to destroy all you love lurk within.' The ma.s.sive figure then said, 'Seek more knowledge before you act, for once begun, this conflict can only end in complete victory or utter defeat.'

Magnus said, 'It's not the first time we've been faced with that option.'

The Oracle said, 'Wave after wave, young magician, that you must realize. This struggle started before you were born, before your father was born, before even I was born. It is not yet apparent, but all is connected. Be cautious, be wise, seek more intelligence is my counsel.'

The dragon's ma.s.sive head slowly lowered to the floor and the men and women who had been standing in the shadows-the Oracle's companions-moved forward to meet any need she might have.

Pug nodded to his son and suddenly they were back in his study.

Magnus asked, 'Father, did that help?'

'Somewhat,' answered Pug. 'Before we run down to Kesh to look at Sandreena's big hole in the ground, I think we need to retrace the elven brothers's route, and find that lost castle.'

'What do we seek there?'

'Knowledge, as always. There are dwarven, human and elven prisoners there, so we should free them. And there's also a room full of books I wish to bring here.'

'Books?' said Magnus. 'What sort of books?'

'We won't know until we fetch them.'

'Why are they important.'

With a wry grin, Pug said, 'Because it appears that the fortress was another small den of your grandfather's.'

Magnus visibly sagged. 'Macros.'

Pug reached over and pulled a book off the shelf, handing it to his son. 'Look at the mark on the first page.'

Magnus opened the volume. 'It's grandfather's glyph.' For a painful moment, Pug looked lost and he said, 'I just wish I knew what your mother would say right now.'

'Something scathing, no doubt,' said Magnus and he laughed.

Suddenly Pug laughed too. 'No doubt.' It was the first time either of them had been able to laugh since Miranda's death and they looked at one another. They needed to put the past behind, for the coming struggle was fast approaching, and they needed to be at their best. Pug pushed aside a rising fear: when will I lose my son? He had never resigned himself to the bitter price that G.o.ds were exacting for his return, but that didn't mean it would happen now, or even soon.

'I think we need to find Gulamendis and start back to that world with the volcanoes.'

'Who else?'

'Amirantha and Sandreena; we need all the demon knowledge we can bring to this, and Brandos, because we could use a good sword and he's faced his share of the creatures.'

Magnus said, 'When do we leave?'

'As soon as you gather them all here. No time like the present.'

Magnus nodded and hurried out of the tower. Pug sat in his chair, lost in his thoughts. Fear over his last child's fate threatened to rise, but instead of succ.u.mbing to it, he forced his mind to dissect the Oracle's riddle: the hidden wave; an enemy hiding in a lightless void. He could feel his mind almost comprehend something, but as always with the Oracle the mix of simple fact and metaphor often confused things. He focused on her predictions as he waited for the others.

It took some time, but they eventually discovered the source of the brothers' last rift. Pug had spent the better part of an hour searching the clearing on Sorcerer's Isle in which they had appeared, using his powers to seek out any lingering effects of the magic. It was a faint trail, but with calculations and patience he finally decided he could reach the point of origin.

'Everyone, stand back,' he instructed. 'Magnus be ready to get us out of here if needed.' Rifts could be very unstable and destructive, and while no living man knew more about their nature than Pug, he was still cautious when constructing one to a new location.

Pug closed his eyes for a moment, then with a quick incantation he formed the rift.

He was pulled forward a step, as if seized by a ma.s.sive invisible hand, then fell back, as if that same hand pushed him away. Brandos steadied him, keeping the sorcerer from falling on his backside.

'That was unexpected,' said Pug.

'What was, father?'

He looked at Magnus and said, 'That rift was formed with a great deal more energy than I intended. It was as if someone was helping me construct it.' He turned to the others and said, 'Best be ready for anything when we step through.'

Pug led the way. When the others came through they found him examining the gate used by the elven brothers. Brandos and Sandreena coughed as the air was thick with smoke and its acid stung their eyes and noses. 'There must have been a recent eruption,' observed Gulamendis. 'It wasn't this bad when we left.'

Magnus came to stand beside his father and instantly understood what held his father's attention. 'I've never seen its like.'

'Neither have I. Look at this.' He pointed to the impressions where fingers were to be placed.

Magnus put his fingers there, closed his eyes, then they opened wide as if he had been surprised. 'Those controls...'

'Masterful,' said Pug. 'If this is one of your grandfather's designs, it surpa.s.ses anything I've been able to construct. If it's someone else...'

'Who?' said Magnus quietly.

Amirantha said, 'The wind is rising!'

Pug looked around. It was impossible to tell exactly what time of day it was, as ash and smoke formed a canopy in the sky. The air was thick with stench from the distant volcanoes, and ash covered everything in sight. 'Yes,' he said, 'I think you're right; there's been an eruption recently.'

'None of this ash was here when we left,' Gulamendis said. Glancing around, he said, 'At least the darkness will help mask our approach.'

The ground rumbled as if to accent his observation and a hot tower of flame appeared above one of the distant cones. 'I wonder how long this has been going on,' said Amirantha.

'Ages, no doubt,' said Pug. 'These volcanic regions can go through very calm periods then suddenly become active again.' He pointed to the sloping ground. 'The lava flow fans out at the bottom of the cone and forms these relatively flat surfaces.' He then pointed to the distant eruption, 'But a big explosion can lift this and drop it...' He shrugged. 'I want to take that gate back with us, if we can.' He turned to Gulamendis. 'But first, which way to the fortress?'

Pointing north, he said, 'That way. About half a day's walk.'

'We'll get there a little faster than that.' He motioned for them to stand close. Sandreena and Brandos stood beside Magnus, while Amirantha and Gulamendis stood beside Pug. They all joined hands and suddenly they stood on a ridge a mile north of their previous position. 'Don't let go,' Pug said, and another jump took them to a plateau. They could see the fortress rising in the distance. 'What's the best way in?' asked Pug.

'We came out of the main gate,' said Gulamendis. 'It has a small door to let people in and out without opening the big gates fully. There was no one in the yard; we just opened it, walked through, and closed it behind us. It may still be unlatched.'

Pug nodded and said, 'I think over there,' and at once they appeared on a slope opposite the main gate. If anyone was on the wall or in the tower, the chances of being seen were high, although Pug was confident he and Magnus could deal with anything likely to emerge from the half-abandoned fortress.

No alarm was raised, nor was there any movement on the walls as they crossed the open area before the gate. Pug stopped for a moment and knelt. He poked at what appeared to be a fibrous plant, knocked down by falling rock and ash. 'This plant was nearly four feet tall.' He stood. 'No one has cleared this area for a while. You always deprive an attacking foe even the most modest cover.'

Gulamendis said, 'I suspect this place was abandoned years ago and only reoccupied by the demons recently. Parts of the keep we pa.s.sed through had layers of dust on the floor.'

'Any tracks?' asked Magnus.

'We just didn't worry about them,' said Gulamendis. 'We judged that if no one has used the rooms for years, they were unlikely to start using them immediately, and that if anyone did explore them...' He shrugged. 'We planned on being far from here by then.'

Pug said, 'Logical.'

They walked to the door within the ma.s.sive gates and Pug pushed it open. 'Apparently they had no idea you visited.'

They slipped through the gate, staying within the deep shadows along the walls. Moving quickly, Gulamendis led them into the corner then over to the side of the shed. He glanced around. There was no hint of life.

He led them to the stairway leading down to the door into the bas.e.m.e.nt and found the door refused to open. He pushed, but despite his strength, it simply wouldn't budge. Magnus whispered, 'Let me.'

The younger magician moved to stand before the door and held up his hand. With a short motion and a single word, the door moved in balky fits and starts until it was open enough for them to see what had blocked it.

'Bodies,' whispered Magnus.

The stench of decomposing flesh rose and even Brandos swallowed hard.

Sandreena said, 'What happened here?'

'We won't know until we get inside,' said Pug. He spoke in a normal volume, without displaying any concern about being overheard. 'I think the demons have quit this place and decided not to take the prisoners with them.'

Magnus waved his hand again and the door flew off its hinges and into the room. The large chamber that led to the dungeon was littered with corpses: human, elves, and dwarves all piled on top of one another. It was clear a good number of them had been trying to reach this door, and were cut down from behind. The wounds were mixed: some smooth cuts, from sword or knife blade, others torn and ragged as if made by fang or claw.

Once they had cleared a way through the pile of bodies, Pug knelt and inspected them more closely. 'I recognize some of the clothing,' he said softly. 'I think this dwarf here is from Dorgin, perhaps a companion of Kendra's. That pattern in the weave of the tunic is common there. But these elves...'

Gulamendis said, 'They are unknown to me, but until we found Home...Midkemia, we knew only the taredhel.'