Delver Magic Book VII: Altered Messages (42 page)

"I'm not sure that makes me feel any better. What was it that Holli said? She said that making poor choices was just as bad as being manipulated. I don't want to make a mistake just to surprise the serps. This is starting..."

Jure stopped suddenly. He quickly realized the real mistake was questioning the delver and his plans.

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said that. I agreed to follow you here, so I shouldn't be doubting you."

"Don't worry about it. I'd rather have you speak out now... before it's too late. What are you worried about?"

"I'm worried we might be creating a bigger problem than the one we currently have. If we go through with this, we could be starting the very conflict Enin wanted to avoid."

"That could be, but how smart is it to leave that choice in the hands of the serps? I don't care what kind of deal they have with Enin, when it suits their purposes, the serps will use Bol Folarok in any fashion they want. All I want to do is take that decision out of their hands. I don't know about you, but I'm sick of them dictating every issue. Maybe it all blows up in my face, but then again, maybe I can finally do something I know the serps can't influence. Whatever happens, I'll know it's by my hand, not theirs. I can live with that kind of failure, can you?"

For the most part, Jure had been on the sidelines of the conflict. He saw the flood raging toward Connel, but everything else came to him from secondhand stories. He heard from Holli what happened in Portsans, and it frustrated him. He heard from Ryson of Okyiq's assault on Burbon, and it angered him. While he might not have agreed with Ryson's methods or his logic, he could not argue with the delver's intentions. The serps were creating chaos and conflict to suit their own selfish desires, twisting events without regard to the people they hurt or the damage they caused. It was the worse form of abuse he could imagine, and he wanted it to end.

One last time, Jure considered the possible consequences of their actions. The delver's plan was wrought with problems of its own, but they were challenges based on truth, not deception. They were going to force the issue out into the open. It was a dangerous path, one that might lead to all out war, but it was a course that broke the bonds of serp influence. Jure saw both the benefits and the risks. He knew failure might be monumental.

Could he live with it?

He answered with absolute certainty.

"Yes, I can."

"Then let's find Bol."

"I can't guarantee finding Bol," Jure warned. "He's not the one I'm going to be looking for. Dwarves are resistant to magic, and trying to find him underground would be like trying to locate a candle flame in a burning fire pit. But if the serps have someone watching Bol, then they're probably using a connection that flows over the magic. That'll stand out, unless of course they were bluffing about it. "

"I don't think they were," Ryson offered. "It's not that I think they're above lying, but this was too big an issue for them. The whole deal with Enin hinged on keeping Bol away from the algors. I don't think they could afford to make that kind of bluff."

"Well, there's only one way to find out."

Jure looked down the dark shaft of the abandoned mine, but he didn't use his eyes to seize his intended target. He reached out to the magic that flowed across the land. The energy pulsed through his essence, and he could follow along strands both thick and thin. His perception allowed him to pick through the magical vibrations, find variations within the energy. He could sense unique flows and mystical intentions, even far underground.

As he allowed his perception to race through the currents, he deftly plucked at the strings, hoping to discover a slight trace of serp manipulation imbedded in the magic. He did so with subtle care, flowing serenely with the streams. He left no mark of his own within the currents, nothing that might disturb the magic and alert others to his presence.

His greatest challenge involved restraining his focus to the energy streaming below the surface of the land. Across Uton, the magic flowed in billowing waves. Pure in form, it contained varied elements connected to vast foundations of particular brilliance. A great surge of power called to him from the west. It was beyond his sight, but he knew its source.

Though he achieved the ability to cast in pure white, his initial connection to the magic centered upon the blue essence of water. Jure might have reached equal proficiency in all hues, but the deep blue folds of mystical energy would always remain the inherent base of his power. So close to the western ocean, he could feel the vast accumulation of its intrinsic energy. If not for his disciplined nature, the pulsating call of the great sea would have overwhelmed him.

Carefully picking through distinct streams, Jure ultimately found the variation in power for which he searched. The energy was not imbued with a specific casting, but it held the clear distinction of dominance. One single strand of magic became a conduit for the sharing of information.

Jure took delicate hold of the strand. He took great care not to impair it in any way. Without  revealing his presence, he placed a small portion of his consciousness into the flow, and he allowed his perception to travel through the conduit to its final destination.

He did not cast a sight spell, so he could not see with perfect detail, but the shadowy image of several dark creatures in a large cavern tumbled into his mind. The magical stream gave him an exact position, and he knew he could reach it.

"There are swallits below us," Jure revealed to the delver. "Three of them, deep underground. It's a large cavern... very large."

Ryson had dealings with such creatures on previous occasions, and it did not surprise him. Swallits were intelligent beings, able to communicate and utilize magic. They were also very powerful, and three would have been enough to counter the strength of the dwarf king.

"Makes sense," the delver offered. "Three of them could physically overpower Bol and they can cast spells. If they decided to take hold of him, they could teleport Bol right to the algors. It all adds up. Bol is probably near enough for them to keep an eye on him."

"So we've probably found him, but what's the plan?"

"It's a simple one. You teleport us down there, and we deal with the swallits. We don't kill them, just convince them to leave or force them away from Bol. Our main objective is keeping the swallits from taking Bol away from there. I want him with us. I think we can handle that, don't you?"

"Bol is going to be resistant to magic, so there's not much I can do in that regard. Whether he comes with us or not is going to be up to him. It's not like I can just cast a teleportation spell on him."

"That means the swallits won't be able to, either. Like I said, they'd have to take physical hold of him first. That's what we prevent. Then we talk to Bol."

"What if he doesn't want to talk to us?"

"I really don't care," Ryson responded with all candor. "He's a big part of this problem, and he's going to have to accept that, whether he likes it or not. Anything else?"

"What about the serps? They're manipulating the swallits. That's how I found them. There's a magical connection between them all. When the swallits see us, the serps are going to know we're there."

"Let them. This isn't about stealth anymore. I want them to see exactly what we're doing. Let them start to see they can't control it all; let them worry about that for a while.  I also want to keep them distracted. I'm a lot less worried about us having to deal with three swallits than I am over what Holli is going to have to face."

#

Just as Jure had followed the streams of magic to find the swallits, Holli wove her magical essence through a web of energy to locate her own target. Her physical presence remained in Connel, but a narrow portion of her consciousness traveled over a direct line of magic. The elf placed the barest whisper of her perception into the magical connection that linked her with Enin. She then directed it through the channels that led back to Neltus, and from there, she seized upon links to the serps in Portsans.

Cunningly analyzing the energy, she found the common links between them all and then located a similar thread. It was that stream of energy that led back to Burbon and the massive goblin, Okyiq.

Once she obtained a definitive point that created the anchor between Okyiq and the serps, she cast an insubstantial sight spell that hovered near the goblin leader but did not disrupt the magical energies that led back to Portsans. With the spell cast and connected to an anchor that continuously remained with the massive goblin, she could constantly observe Okyiq's movements from a quiet spot in Connel without ever being detected.

The elf placed her entire focus on maintaining careful surveillance over the goblin leader. She separated herself from all distractions as she watched and waited. She continued to spy on the goblin long after the delver and wizard left for the western coast. It wasn't that she lacked concern for Ryson and Jure, but she could not allow their mission to interfere with her own.

In order to successfully eliminate Okyiq, she had to wait for him to be vulnerable. She knew the moment would arise, but she could not guess as to when it would occur. She needed to be ready to act at a moment's notice.

Isolating herself, she kept a stoic watch over Okyiq's every movement. Even as the loathsome creature carried out the mundane tasks of searching and securing Burbon for his own purposes, Holli waited with undaunted patience. She did not eat, she did not sleep. She only watched and waited.

Eventually, her determination was rewarded. Just after
midday, she saw the goblin leader stake out a modest house near the eastern edge of Burbon. The monster ordered all of his minions to watch the exterior of the residence, but they were not to disturb him. A smile crossed the elf's lips when the massive goblin entered a small bedroom and threw himself on a simple cot. The time had come for Okyiq to pay for what he had done, and Holli was more than eager to avenge the death of a soldier she had held in the highest regard.

#

Before Jure teleported himself and Ryson deep underground, Ryson pulled the Sword of Decree from its sheath on his back. The blade burned bright, reflecting and magnifying the rays of the early afternoon sun.

"That's going to attract some attention," Jure noted.

"I want it to," the delver replied with a half-smile. "I want them to know exactly who we are the moment we arrive. It's also going to be dark down there. Might as well magnify any light that's coming in through open shafts. It will give us the edge.

"It's alright with me. Are you ready?"

Ryson nodded and Jure cast a spell of teleportation. Rather than just compress space and time to create a conduit, Jure opened a passage through an overlapping dimension. By combining the layers of two separate realms, the spell allowed a clear path through the very same space that was occupied by solid rock in their own dimension. The force of magic propelled both the wizard and the delver through the mystical channel and delivered them into a vast cavern far below the surface.

The delver's senses adjusted immediately to the change in environment. Even with his sword glowing, the amount of light decreased dramatically. His nose filled with new scents and his ears picked up the echoing vibrations of every sound. With gliding swiftness, he turned immediately upon three figures that stood silently in the shadows. He wasted no time with introductions. He allowed his glowing sword to reveal his identity, and he made his demands clear.

"Time for you to leave," Ryson commanded of the three swallits.

Each of the swallits stood upon all fours. With their long curled horns, they appeared like ordinary buffalos until the light of Ryson's sword bathed their dark green coats. The thick, matted vines that comprised their hides swayed with their movements. Two of the creatures simply grunted in disgust. The third addressed the delver with obvious recognition.

"The Delver Acumen surprises us with a visit. This was... unexpected."

Ryson wasn't sure if the swallit was acknowledging his strategy with all due respect, or humoring him with sly sarcasm. It was entirely possible the serps had foreseen the move and warned the swallits of a possible incursion, but in the larger scope of Ryson's plan, it really didn't matter.

"This is just the start. I'm here for Bol Folarok."

"Here to take the dwarf king to safety?"

"What we do with him is really not your concern," Ryson replied. "All you have to worry about is leaving here before you get hurt."

"The passive delver is actually threatening us? Yet another surprise."

The swallit who engaged in conversation stood up on its hind legs and took several steps away from its companions. As it walked carefully into a clearing, it eyed the delver's human counterpart with distrust.

"It is a powerful and perceptive wizard that can ride the waves of magic right to our position. Do you threaten us as well?"

"I'll do what I have to."

Upon hearing that simple phrase, Ryson realized he, too, would do what was necessary. He would have liked to have given the swallits the opportunity to leave of their own accord, but he understood that they were already under the influence of the serps. Why else would they remain underground in an empty cavern watching over an exiled dwarf king? He decided to base his actions as if he was dealing with the serps directly.