Kathir's Redemption (Book 6) (30 page)

The others nodded and entered the great hall under the elves
’
strongest concealment. The group slipped into the great hall silently and froze, unable to do anything but stare at what lay before them.

The great hall was ruined. Every scrap of ornamentation had been torn from the walls. Priceless tapestries had been ripped, leaving only threads hanging from their hooks. Carved tables had been broken up for firewood. The walls were blackened with soot. What had once been a cherished meeting place for the dwarves had become a filthy ironworks for the orcs. Metal forges burned hot along one wall, and endless racks of crude weapons hung along another.

Skemtun gasped, and Bolrakei started sobbing quietly.
“
They
’
re melting down all our weaponry and armor
—
those pieces were priceless!
”

Tallin frowned. His eyes stung from the acrid smoke of the fires, and the whole space was uncomfortably hot.

Groups of orcs were grinding, sharpening, and hammering the weapons into shape. Other orcs stood at the far end of the hall, testing the finished weapons. In the open space in the middle, more orcs were carving away at tree trunks, wrapping them in iron bands and covering the ends with iron. They were making battering rams. Two orcs working on the floor were shaping wood so that it could be for a ballista.

“
They
’
re getting ready for another siege,
”
Tallin whispered.

“
So soon?
”
asked Skemtun incredulously.
“
How? They couldn
’
t possibly have enough soldiers to mount another offensive so quickly. We killed thousands during the siege!
”

“
Tallin is right,
”
said F
ë
anor, frowning deeply.
“
Nar may be too ambitious for his own good. For orcs, this level of organization and preparation is unbelievable. Nar must be getting ready for another assault. He must be stopped.
”

They stood and stared in horror and awe.

“
Look at this place. It
’
s a disaster! They
’
ve taken all the statutes out of the hall,
”
Skemtun said.
“
Those statues were priceless
—
they were thousands of years old. Where did the orcs put them?
”

“
They probably melted them down for scrap
—
to make more weapons,
”
said Tallin.

“
What?
”
Skemtun
’
s jaw dropped, but then he paused. He knew it was probably true.

“
This is hard to watch,
”
Mugla said.
“
They
’
re destroyin
’
our history.
”

Bolrakei shook a rigid finger in Mugla
’
s face.
“
What do you care?
”
she said angrily,
“
You and the Vardmiters left us to fend for ourselves! You
’
re probably happy about all this, you traitorous witch!
”

Mugla
’
s nostrils flared with anger, and she opened her mouth to respond, but she stopped when the noise in the hall ceased. King Nar had entered.

He came in through the door that used to lead to the dwarf kitchens, accompanied by twelve large, brutal-looking orcs. All were armed with a collection of huge knives, and their chain armor had iron spikes sticking out of the shoulders. One of them spotted another orc with his back to the king and shoved him so hard that he flew into the wall.

“
That
’
s King Nar
’
s royal guard,
”
whispered F
ë
anor.
“
Each of the royal guard has a symbol on their armor that identifies them. Those twelve greenskins are his protectors as well as his closest advisors. When the king finally dies or is replaced, his royal guard will follow him onto the funeral pyre so that they can serve him in the next life.
”

King Nar stood in the middle of the group. He was barrel-chested, and his body was corded with muscle. His plate armor was blackened with soot and grease and was adorned with skulls taken from his defeated enemies. The skulls hanging from his fur cape and chest plate were a grisly reminder of the destruction he had wrought. Around his thick waist hung a sheathed broadsword. A coiled whip hung from his left shoulder, and a huge dagger hung from a strap around his chest.

The darkness made it impossible to read Nar
’
s face, most of which was covered with black paint. He strode into the room with confidence and poise. When he reached the center of the room, he stepped up onto a stump of wood and roared.

All the orcs stopped their work, and the hall fell completely silent. King Nar began to speak in the guttural tongue of the orcs.

“
What is he saying?
”
Skemtun asked,
“
Can any of you understand his language?
”

F
ë
anor nodded.
“
I
’
ll translate. He
’
s saying,
‘
My people! Listen and obey with your heart, and pledge yourselves to me. I am your king, and my wrath is terrible.
’”

Tallin stared at the elf. F
ë
anor
’
s eyes were glazed over, as if he were in a trance.

“
I am pleased with the growth of our army,
”
he continued.
“
We took this mountain, and we shall take everything else that we want.
”

The orcs responded with cheers.

Nar looked like a great general before a battle.

“
The humans think that they are safe in their cities,
”
King Nar shouted.
“
They believe their walls will protect them. They think that we shall not strike them, because they have a few dragon riders to protect them. Yet the dwarves had walls, and were they safe? No! We crushed them like ants!
”

There was a rumble of excited chatter around the room.

He raised his fist into the air suddenly.
“
We crushed the dwarves, and we shall do the same to the humans!
”

The orcs roared.

“
We are only days from success,
”
Nar went on.
“
Even now, more of our brothers are arriving from Mount Heldeofol. We are stronger now than we
’
ve ever been before! Soon, our armies will sweep down on Morholt. We shall crush all those who stand against us. Morholt shall fall before our armies. We will crush the humans
—
squash them like mice! No one can stop us! Soon, the whole continent will be ours!
”

Each time Nar spoke, the crowd roared their approval. They bellowed, they shouted, they shook their fists.

Tallin looked at the others.
“
We should go. We
’
ve heard everything we need to. It
’
s time to get out of here.
”

They slipped back out of the hall, retracing their steps through the tunnels. They were all quiet as they retreated along corridors and through caverns, looking for the way back out. They made it out of the main area and headed back toward the tunnel that led to the exit. It was only when they were almost at the chamber full of magma that they heard clicking sounds behind them.

“
Orcs,
”
Kathir said.

“
Worse. Drask,
”
said Tallin.
“
They caught our scent
…”
he shook his head.
“
We
’
ve been stupid. The concealment spells masked our scent only while we were using them. We
’
ve left traces behind us inside the mountain. They
’
re tracking us. Our scent trails will lead the drask right to us.
”

They hurried for the exit. Bolrakei, who had been hanging back for most of the way, was suddenly jogging at the front of the group. Amandila and F
ë
anor started to cast their concealment spell again, but Tallin stopped them with a gesture.

“
Don
’
t bother
—
it
’
s too late for that. Our scent is already all over this area. Save your strength instead
—
we need to be ready to fight.
”

They rushed back toward the magma and were pleased to find that their stone bridge was still there; it was narrower than before, but it still spanned the width of the flow. It was only wide enough for them to cross one at a time. Bolrakei rushed across it without even waiting to test its strength.     

“
I guess it
’
s still safe to cross,
”
said Tallin, testing the bridge with his foot.
“
Hurry!
”

Komu went next, followed by his assistants. Councilor Delthen and Druknor also hurried across. Tallin drew his sword, watching as Druknor and his dogs picked their way over the bridge. The elves went next. The clicking got louder.

“
Get ready,
”
Sela said, raising her hands.
“
They
’
re almost upon us.
”

“
Skemtun,
”
Tallin said.
“
You go next. I
’
ll stay behind with Sela so that the rest of you can cross. Get to the safety of the spellcasters
’
quarters. The orcs won
’
t be able to enter those chambers as long as they
’
re warded.
”

“
I
’
ll stay and fight too,
”
said Kathir.

Skemtun opened his mouth to argue, but Kathir silenced him by pushing him onto the bridge. Skemtun ran across. Then the orcs arrived. There were ten of them. A pair of drask hissed and snarled beside them.

An orc threw himself at Kathir, and the mercenary parried the attack, digging in his heels to keep away from the edge of the magma pool. Tallin also traded strikes with another orc while Mugla made her way across the bridge.

“
Go, Elias!
”
shouted Tallin as he shot a blue firebolt at one drask.

Elias blasted one of the orcs with a fireball, and then jumped across the bridge while Tallin covered him. Kathir spun and cut down the orc he was fighting before engaging another orc while Druknor pulled back.

Sela flung one of the drask across the cavern with magic, slamming it against the far wall. The other snapped at her, but she jumped back onto the bridge, and Tallin distracted the beast with a stroke of his sword. Kathir killed another orc but barely missed getting bitten by the drask.

“
Don
’
t let the drask touch you!
”
yelled Sela.
“
Their bite is deadly!
”

Kathir nodded and went back to fighting. Sela crossed the bridge. Now only Kathir and Tallin were fighting on the other side of the bridge.

“
Go,
”
Kathir said.
“
Go. You
’
re a dragon rider
—
they can
’
t afford to lose you.
”

Tallin stared at him for a moment before running across the now failing bridge. An orc ran up on Kathir
’
s left, but a fire bolt from Mugla hit it in the chest. More magic flared around Kathir, and several more orcs died. He thrust his sword through the heart of another one of the attackers. Then the drask was on him.

“
Don
’
t let it bite you!
”
Tallin yelled from the other side.