Delver Magic I: Sanctum's Breach by Jeff Inlo (read novels website .TXT) 📕

At first the reader appeared to wish to debate the matter. He shook his head ever so slightly as Mappel spoke. He did not, however, blurt out a response upon Mappel’s conclusion. He rose from his chair behind his desk and began to pace the room with his hands behind his back. The heels of his shoes clicked hollowly against the stone floor until they hit the mat which covered the center. The soft woolen floor covering silenced his steps until he reached the far end of the room. Crossing beyond the border of the mat and on to the stone, again his shoes snapped out a light crack.

“I must agree,” Matthew finally answered with a defeated groan. “The return of the magic is mind boggling in its scope. Much smaller events have been prophesied and interpreted for us. It is mystifying as to why this event was not foretold.” He turned and faced the elder elf. “Forgive me if I appeared reluctant to accept your words at first. It’s just that I had hoped for a moment that I might still rely upon the prophecies in this matter. I so want to believe that the plan of Godson as told to us will unfold without intervention. I wish to remain as faithful to this as possible, but I cannot overlook the obvious. The sphere appears beyond that plan.”

“Your reactions are not foreign to me. I expect I am doing much of the same,” Mappel admitted. “I keep reaffirming that there are other powers at work here, coming to our aid. I have made such a claim when Lief came upon Ryson Acumen and again when I found you here in Connel. It lessens my own concerns to hope that we are not left alone to face such a dreadful task, but I must face the cold facts. Elflore is lacking in guidance. We face this matter with but our own wisdom. Perhaps it is but a test to prove whether we are worthy for what might come in the future. Perhaps the same is true for your people as well. If you are to see the plan of Godson unfold, then you must deal with this particular danger with your own spirit and power.”

Lief Woodson began to speak, but his voice cracked. He cleared his throat quickly. His expression made it clear he felt uncomfortable speaking of such weighty matters. It was not his place. Yet, he could not resist speaking of his moment in the presence of Shayed. “I claim no vast knowledge of elflore or of Godson. I know only of what I have seen these past days. As I have told Mappel, the great Shayed spoke of the threat we face. She also spoke of the prophets. The power of the sphere seems beyond them. I don’t believe you will find the matter addressed in either the book of Godson or elflore. According to her, what we face now, we face on our own. If any of us wish to save the land, we must destroy the sphere by our own doing.”

Mappel placed a hand on Lief’s shoulder. “My good elf. You speak with passion, but we must always hope that we are not alone. I agree that we will do what we must do, but we must never forget our beliefs, our hopes, our faith. I will not dispute what Shayed has spoken to you, but what of the powers that sent her back to us? Yes, she said the sphere resists the foreshadowing of the prophets, but it has not resisted the greater powers which I believe exist in this land. Say what you will, but I believe we will not be alone when we enter Sanctum.”

Silence filled the chamber. Lief shifted his gaze uncomfortably to the floor. He stood motionless.

The reader felt reassured by Mappel’s words. He might not have found the script in the book of Godson to ease his insecurities, but the presence and the words of the elder elf brought his own faith welling up within him. He honestly believed that with such faith, even conquering Sanctum was not beyond his reach.

“Speaking of entering Sanctum,” the reader questioned with renewed vigor, “have you any plan for this undertaking? Obviously it must be done, that is why you are here. You have made it clear that the spirit of Shayed requests that the sphere be destroyed. You yourself say that the magic still contains the taint of poison for the elves and that it will soon affect us all. If you plan to destroy the sphere, which seems apparent, you will face many obstacles. First, you must enter Sanctum. Our own book of Godson speaks of Sanctum and the five tiers. The tiers were constructed to prevent exactly what you hope to accomplish.”

Mappel returned his empty wine goblet to the desk of the reader. He grasped his staff with greater resilience as he professed his intentions. “At the moment, I have no intricate plan, no detailed design for what we face. I simply look to the ultimate objective. The first order of business is to realign the races, make everyone understand what we face. It is thus I have sent messengers to the dwarves and algors. With my apologies, I admit that I have requested that the representatives meet here, in this very church. I know I should have consulted you, but time has become a factor. From Ryson Acumen’s testimony, I believed you would be the most helpful to our cause. With members of each race in attendance, I will explain everything I know. I will hope that each race will understand the dire consequences. I will pray that the secrets of Sanctum are revealed so that together we can devise a scheme to overcome these obstacles.

“However, I am not so blind that I don’t foresee great difficulties. The mistrust between all the races has had centuries to grow and fester. The dwarves themselves will be reserved against revealing their own secrets of Sanctum. It may well be that each race will refuse to unlock the secret of their tier. In such a case, I will be faced with dark prospects, but they will not stop me. I have no choice. The sphere must be destroyed. All elves will eventually see that one pure fact. Every camp, even enemies, will join to fulfill the request of Shayed. I will send an army of elves to their deaths if need be and send another army after that. Our people will die anyway, an attack on Sanctum will at least give us a chance.

“I will make demands of all the races, as well. I will request that the dwarves push themselves beyond the point of exhaustion to tear Sanctum apart stone by stone if that is the only way to get to its heart. I will demand the industry and the great multitudes of the humans be used to accomplish our task. I will send delver after delver into Sanctum to scout the dangers until I can find no more. Whether any race agrees to help is beyond my power, but it will not stop me from making each demand.

“I realize that many lives will be lost if this is how we must enter the mountain and this will be my plan of last resort. First, I will attempt to break the mistrust between the races. I hope that I will convince each to reveal the secrets of the tiers before any die needlessly within Sanctum. If we all reveal our secrets, we may yet determine a way to move unimpeded to the sphere.”

Matthew’s hope faded ever so slightly. He sat back down in his wooden chair behind his desk. He considered Mappel’s words and again his hand found the cover of the book before him. He peered down upon the collection of words which represented his faith. A sorrowful expression shadowed his face. “That is a mighty request. I will be honest with you. Even if I knew the secrets of Sanctum, I don’t know if I would simply give them to you now.”

The reader reflected upon his own answer before continuing. “Call it a lack of trust if you will, and in all honesty it does shame me, but I just don’t know if I could reveal such a secret. Oh, I understand the need for trust at this time. I clearly see that if we must destroy the sphere, such information is vital. But would I have the right to simply divulge such information on such short notice, with such little information? Here in the face of all of this, I don’t know if I could simply reveal a secret of such magnitude without greater assurances. I imagine having knowledge of Sanctum carries with it great responsibility. Were it my responsibility, I might remain honor bound to maintain secrecy until I was absolutely certain there was no other choice.”

Mappel shifted his weight as he changed the angle in which he held his staff. “I understand all too well what you speak of, for I have that responsibility. I can only tell you that I would be willing to reveal what I know to increase our chances of success.”

“But will others be so willing?” Matthew persisted voicing his doubts. “The five tiers were constructed so that no one might enter to regain the power of the sphere. What you will ask of all the races is in direct opposition of this.” Matthew looked up at the elder elf and began to speak quickly. “Please understand, although I know I’m not explaining myself well. It’s just that you present more than a request. The tiers represent a sense of safety for all the races that understand the legends. It is so that no power might use the sphere. I realize the sphere now becomes a danger and the tiers are now an obstacle in ending that danger. It is difficult, though, to simply free myself of the covenant of the tiers. If such skepticism rests within me, how will you convince all the races?”

Mappel addressed the question with understanding, but with no less resolve. “I am already aware of such difficulties, but there is no other way. It will be my task to make all understand that there is no other choice.”

Matthew exhaled deeply. He crossed his hands atop his desk over his book. “I am glad I won’t have to make that decision. In all honesty, I do not know what the humans placed in their tier, but I know who might.”

At this, Mappel’s eyes widened with interest as well as hope. “There is a human in your church that might have this information.”

“He’s not a simple member of just this church. He is a blessing to all of those that follow the word of Godson. I will do my best to get word to him. Until then, I can only suggest we focus upon other problems.”

Lief found it refreshing to face something other than the sphere, elflore and the book of Godson. He gladly seized upon the opportunity to deal with other matters. “What problems may that be?”

Matthew spoke with a heaviness that revealed a deeper shame, a shame of how his own kind might react to the sudden presence of such beings as elves, dwarves, and algors. “If you plan to bring representatives of other races to Connel, you will have to give previous warning to the residents of this town. We may be able to hide their presence for a while, but as more come, it will be difficult to keep such a thing a secret. Such a thing might cause a panic. If we do not address this now, we might face a greater problem when we need it least.”

“What is it you recommend?” Mappel questioned, regarding such matters with serious conviction.

“I