Forge of Ashes Read online

  The same blue mold continued down this tunnel and every one that branched off it, lighting their path. Izthuri took several quick turns, and then paused at a junction. She sniffed the air.

  "They come. Hasten."

  "I'd listen to her," Selvia muttered.

  Izthuri darted down the left tunnel and they hurried after. This led into a larger chamber where the ground rose in stacked limestone tiers, creating a rough cone in the center. The top tier contained a luminescent pool of what Ondorum guessed to be water, ten feet across. Mounds of the glowing mold surrounded it, making this room the brightest yet. Holes of varying sizes honeycombed the uneven walls, most too high to reach.

  Izthuri snapped a hand at the holes."I get. They come. We fight." She dashed to one of the lower holes and grabbed at the darkness inside. She came out holding a sack of bones, which she threw aside with a clatter. Using the hole as a foothold, she clambered up a few feet and reached inside another. She withdrew a rusty, child-sized breastplate and held it up.

  "This armor?"

  "You've got to be joking." Akina raised her voice."Iron and leather armor with a maulaxe. Like a hammer and axe in one. My size. Not trashed."

  "Iron. Leather. Hammer. Axe." Izthuri flung the breastplate to the ground, where it crumbled into scrap."I find."

  "We should already be gone," Selvia said, glancing around.

  Akina glared her way."You're not the guide anymore."

  A rabble of high-pitched voices made them turn as a horde of the white-eyed creatures swarmed down the hall. Ondorum and Akina backed up, moving around to one side of the tiered mound to avoid being surrounded right away. A dozen of the beastly things poured into the chamber, spreading out as they brandished everything from spears to small crossbows to an odd weapon that looked like a metal hook on a club with a long rope attached to the other end. A few held large chunks of crystal that had been chiseled into fist-sized wedges.

  The duergar sighed."You really should've listened to me."

  Ondorum stomped and pounded his staff to keep them back. Akina held the vials poised to throw. Selvia edged away, not quite at the limit of her bonds.

  The creatures held back. Ondorum remained steady but Akina kept twitching beside him, anticipating an attack at any moment. At last she hollered,"Right! What're you bastards waiting for?"

  "They wait for me."

  The speaker strode from the tunnel with regal bearing. He looked much like all the other warren denizens, but with slicked-back hair and a more devious gleam to his bulbous eyes.

  "Who're you?"

  He flapped back his purple and green robes and swept into a deep bow, one foot pointed in front of him, an arm poised over his head like a court dancer."I am Nullick. I lead this warren." He twirled a full circle and then waved up at the dark figure halfway up the wall."Greetings, Izthuri. Finally woke up, did you?"

  Izthuri hissed down at him, but didn't stop rummaging in the latest hole she'd reached.

  Nullick performed a little tap-dance around until he faced the duergar."And greetings, Selvia. Sorry to see it come to this."

  Selvia's eyes flashed in fury."We had an agreement. The commander will have your scalp."

  Nullick continued to spin about as he spoke, and Ondorum wondered how he didn't dizzy himself."Our arrangement with Commander Vaskegar does not extend to you personally, and we've already seen your authorized representatives through to safety. I'm fully in accord with our compact."

  "Who's Vaskegar?" Akina asked."What agreement?"

  "A mutually beneficial arrangement," Nullick said, stopping mid-spin so he looked at a wall, his back to them."We kept a few ways to the surface clearer than most, and also eliminated any evidence of duergar passage so long as they brought us the occasional specimen."

  "You mold-sucking spore rat," Selvia said."I'll turn your skull inside-out."

  Nullick tsked."Name-calling? Such a bore. You know what I do to boring things, yes?"

  The duergar's eyes widened."You wouldn't dare—"

  Nullick twirled, arms above his head. Then he snapped one down and flung a hand her way. His fingers glittered as crystalline shards sprouted from them and spewed at the duergar. Selvia tried to dodge, but she was already at the end of her leading rope, which jerked her back into place. Ondorum dropped his end too late. The cone of shards struck across her upper body, the crystals knifing into her flesh. Two larger chunks embedded in her chest and forehead. Blood streaming from dozens of gashes, Selvia flopped to the ground.

  Akina cried out and ran over to check the body. A glance determined Selvia wouldn't be explaining anything unless they found a way to summon her spirit.

  She shouted at the warren leader,"Damn you to the Abyss! I needed her alive."

  Nullick tucked hands into his sleeves and rocked from foot to foot."Fortunately, you three remain of keen interest to me. Take Izthuri, for example. She's been with us for a while now, yet remains one of our more promising subjects. Do you know her people can subsist on forms of light? It's fascinating. A true challenge for my intellectual prowess."

  "So many big words," Akina said through clenched teeth.

  "I find another cure for boredom to be a contest of wills." He resumed prancing in place, making her think of a manic child."Do you like games?"

  "Let's say we do."

  "Then we shall play one. My people are quite fond of finding ways to survive in all environments we encounter. So why don't we engage in a game of survival? If my people can kill you before your new friend up there finds your gear, I win. Vice versa, you win, and will be allowed to leave."

  Ondorum scowled, knowing this mad creature only meant to extend their suffering and feed his cruelty.

  "Izthuri," Akina called without taking her eyes off Nullick,"want to speed it up a bit?"

  "Yes."

  "Good." A cock of her head."That means you're going to, right?"

  "Yes."

  Nullick hopped, clapping."Oh, I do love to play." At last, he collected himself and smoothed his robes down."There is one rule."

  Ondorum tightened his grip on the staff as Akina asked,"Which is?"

  "I get to cheat."

  Nullick raised hands that blazed with purple auras.

  Chapter Eleven

  Unfair Advantage

  Choke on your magic!" Akina snapped a vial straight at Nullick. He vanished, and it passed through the space he'd just occupied, striking the creatures behind. The glass shattered and green gobs sprayed in all directions. Those struck screeched as their skin sizzled and melted.

  "Good start," Nullick said, voice emanating from several directions."I appreciate your zest."

  The rest of his minions attacked as one, waving their weapons wildly. Ondorum's staff hummed as he spun it, knocking aside an initial flurry of crossbow bolts. The closest creatures took staff strikes to the chest and face, sending them tumbling.

  Akina landed the other two vials in groups of charging creatures, taking down two more with the foul discharges they created. She leaped aside as one of the crystal wedges shattered at her feet, but slivers struck her face, stinging fiercely. She came up to see a spear-wielder charging her, crystalline tip rising to aim for her chest.

  Her bellow drowned out all other noises as she raced in. She jumped and stomped on the spear shaft, pinning it. She grabbed the wielder's throat and yanked it in for a headbutt. As the creature fell away, cross-eyed, she stepped off the spear and snatched it up.

  Several bolts of bright purple energy slammed into her side. Akina gasped and staggered, planting one hand to keep from falling.

  "I'm winning," Nullick cried. He cartwheeled into view from the other side of the tiered mound, waved, and vanished again.

  She stood and rammed the spear halfway through a creature running up to hack at her. The body dangled as she swept the spear around, knocking aside two other attackers. With a keening whistle, one of the hooked clubs shot through the air, but the hook embedded in the dead creature instead of her. The rope o
n the other end snapped taut and yanked both body and spear away.

  Akina rounded on the one who'd made the snatch-and-grab. As it tried to pry the hooked weapon out of its comrade's body, she sprinted over and threw herself into a full-body slam. It raised an arm in futile defense. A few seconds of pummeling left it gushing blood out of every facial orifice.

  She crushed its ribs with one last pound. Jumping to her feet, she loosed another bellow, stoking the blaze in her blood and bones. Let it burn everything here to cinders and—

  Nullick appeared before her, holding a miniature storm cloud in his hands. A lightning bolt crackled out and struck her in the gut.

  The world flickered black and white. When the sickly blue glow faded back into being, Akina found herself sitting on the floor. Smoke rose from her middle. She tried to move, and every muscle cramped. She fought to remain upright as a creature crept toward her, sickle in one hand, shortspear in another.

  Beyond them, Ondorum struck down the last crossbow-wielder and plowed toward an attacker who kept snapping his hooked club out and back. A streak of blazing green struck the oread in the back, and he stumbled. Nullick's cackle filled the chamber. The hooked club caught the staff on the next throw and tore it from Ondorum's hands. He planted his feet as the creature before him whirled its weapon and sent it whistling out again. Raising a forearm, he caught the hook on it, grabbed the club portion, and yanked. The minion holding the rope forgot to let go and found itself soaring toward the oread's waiting fist.

  Akina smiled even as she smelled the unappetizing stench of her own cooked flesh. Then the creature advancing on her blocked the monk's ongoing fight. She strained again to force her stubborn limbs into motion. Right as her would-be-killer stepped in for the strike, an object slammed into the top of its head, crushing half its face and driving it to the ground.

  Akina's maulaxe clanged down beside her. A clatter of armor pieces fell after it, with her ram's helm as the last to land.

  Izthuri's call rang out."Found it."

  Akina grabbed the maulaxe handle and pulled herself up."Lady, whatever you are, I like your timing."

  Ignoring the rest of the armor for the moment, she slapped the helm over her head and hefted the maulaxe in trembling arms. Screaming wordless defiance, she ran for the nearest of Nullick's warriors. One flung crystal wedges at her as it backed away. Two wedges shattered as she ran past, spraying her with slivers. The third clipped her arm and spun away. She threw her maulaxe ahead, and it struck one of the little monsters aside. As the crystal-flinger drew another shard, she drove it to the floor and clamped a hand on its wrist. It struggled with wiry strength, but she flexed its arm until it gasped and dropped the crystal. She grabbed the wedge and crunched it through the waiting neck.

  Nullick laughed."Such a good game. But you've only found one set of gear and I've summoned more to play on my side. Shall we try for a second round?"

  Akina looked around. Those who'd come with Nullick lay dead or dying. Ondorum stood by the entrance, leaning on his staff. Izthuri clambered about, shoving arms into one hole or another. The warren leader remained invisible, no doubt with reinforcements coming as claimed.

  Akina retrieved her maulaxe and poised it."Ondorum, any ideas?"

  Ondorum held still for a moment, scanning the ground until his eyes locked on a particular patch of mold. Akina eyed this and spotted what he'd noticed: a few footprints well away from any fighting, where no one had been standing. Just as she noticed this, Ondorum sprinted at an empty patch of air near the top of the mound.

  "What?" Nullick's voice wavered."Get back!"

  Ondorum lashed out with the staff, spinning and thrusting it this way and that. He appeared to hit nothing, but he kept advancing while Nullick's wails rose to shrieks.

  "No fair! You're cheating!"

  All at once, Ondorum gripped his staff lengthwise in both hands and flung it out in front of him. It bounced off an unseen object, followed by a cry of pain from Nullick. Ondorum dashed forward—not bothering to catch the rebounding staff—and grabbed at that space. His arms locked around an invisible figure.

  "No!" Nullick appeared, fighting to break the monk's hold. He scrabbled and bit and kicked, all for naught. Ondorum kept jerking him this way and that, disrupting his spellcasting attempts.

  Akina bounded up the tiers. She grabbed Nullick's hair and Ondorum let go as she tore the warren leader loose. Nullick tried to writhe free until she smacked his stomach with the maulaxe.

  She dragged him toward the pool."Like I said before..." She slammed him against the lip, sending ripples across the surface."Choke on it."

  She plunged Nullick into the water and held him under until he stopped thrashing.

  Chapter Twelve

  Death's Stench

  Akina didn't relax until the last of the blue-glowing tunnels faded from sight, replaced by the raw stone of uninhabited Darklands. They'd bumped into just two creatures while escaping the warren. Izthuri had hissed something in another tongue-clicking, tooth-gnashing language, and the others had bolted. Akina and Ondorum followed her, as she indicated she knew a safe place to rest.

  Back in the warren, Izthuri had scrounged up Ondorum's robe, boots, and stash of iron chips from another hole in Nullick's little treasure trove. Other random items got dumped from the holes, including a tattered traveling pack, more rusted armor and weapons, moldy scrolls, and a bundle of rags. Akina grabbed the bundle up and stuffed them inside her armor for later. Then she checked Selvia's body for the maps, but Nullick's creatures must've removed them when they captured the group.

  Izthuri continued searching until, with a raspy cry of joy, she drew out a blade unlike Akina had ever seen. It looked forged out of a piece of night itself; not a glossy obsidian, but a congealed darkness that made it feel like the blade leeched the sight from her eyes whenever she glanced at it. When the caligni—as she called herself—held it, they seemed to become a single form. When she paused and pressed against a wall or into a tunnel niche, her figure uncannily blended with the environment until she moved again. An eerie effect, and Akina wondered how she'd ever been caught by Nullick in the first place.

  They hiked for a few hours, taking what would've seemed like random turns except for Izthuri's lack of hesitation. Then they entered a stretch where the tunnel ceiling sloped upward until it disappeared, making it feel like they walked at the bottom of a deep trench. They hurried down this until Izthuri stopped and patted the wall.

  "Here."

  The caligni pointed out a set of near-invisible hand and footholds set into the rock, leading up. She went first, climbing like a spider until she vanished over a ledge that otherwise couldn't be seen from the tunnel floor. Akina followed, jamming fingers and toes into the holds until she reached the ledge as well. When she peered over it, she started and nearly dropped, as Izthuri had crouched down to put their faces just inches apart. After an awkward moment, Akina hauled herself up over the edge.

  "Why're you looking at me like that?"

  Izthuri drew another long sniff."You smell like him."

  Akina brushed by her to study the small hollow. It went back a few yards, offering just enough sitting space.

  "Who?" she asked."Ondorum?"

  "One I hunt. One who threatens my tribe." Izthuri sat, arms and legs jutting at awkward angles, marking her look like a giant grasshopper."He came down. Woke evil among us. I come up to end him."

  Akina frowned, but any questions stalled as Ondorum vaulted over the ledge. They shuffled about, trying to find the most comfortable arrangement. It wound up being Ondorum at the back, pressed into the curve of the wall, with Akina to his left and Izthuri on his right. Once the noise of their movement died off and they steadied their breaths, deep silence flowed into the gap. Akina felt like she would hear things miles off if they so much as kicked a pebble. Must've been the point of this hollow—to give someone not only a place to hide, but also a vantage point for any oncoming threats.

  She scooted closer to
Ondorum."Loosen your robe a bit, hm? You took some nasty hits back there."

  He gestured for her to do the same, and she grudgingly complied. The tight quarters made it difficult to maneuver, but Akina managed to unbuckle her vambraces and leather pauldrons and set them aside without too much clatter. She rolled up her mail sleeves, refusing to wince as pain started to poke its head out, asking if it was safe to emerge. The worst came from the crystal wedge that had clipped her shoulder. A flap of skin hung below her shoulder, but it proved a wide, shallow cut, rather than anything threatening the arm as a whole. She drew out some of the rags she'd salvaged earlier and let Ondorum bind the cut.

  For himself, Ondorum slipped the robe back over his shoulders and let it pool around his waist. He bowed flat over crossed legs, letting her inspect his back. A fist-sized circle of blistered skin sat where Nullick's spell hit him. Acid of a sort, she guessed. Good thing he had such a tough hide. If he'd been human, the spell might've eaten straight through him. The wound might scar, at worst. He didn't flinch as she probed the bubbling's waxy texture. When he sat up, she spotted several rows of gashes on one side of his ribs, where a portion of his crystalline growths had gone missing.

  She reached for this, but he caught her hand. With his other, he made a circling motion over the wounds and then patted them gently.

  "They'll grow back?" she asked."You're sure?" He nodded, but she clenched fists."Wish we'd stayed for another round." He gave her a chiding look, and she bared teeth."What's wrong with a bit of blood for blood? Would've taken a hundred of them to make up for each piece they carved from you. And you saw what they did to all those others."

  His face darkened and one of his hands curled into a fist as well. Akina gripped this in both of her hands, though she could only cover a few knuckles on either side.