Delver Magic I: Sanctum's Breach by Jeff Inlo (read novels website .TXT) đź“•
"Yes, yes," Consprite said quickly. He turned a pen in his fingers. "This is very true. We would not waste time or effort in the less lucrative areas. Any delver worth his salt would surely give us a great advantage." He looked up with a nod of acceptance. "I heartily approve."
"I oppose the measure," Cofort said sullenly. "I do not trust delvers. They always require large payments and no one can ever really tell if they do what they say they do. No one can follow them, no one can check up on them."
"I realize that delvers are expensive," Consprite admitted candidly, "but that's because no one can do the job they can do. I realize that it is difficult to check on
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Mappel blinked his eyes in bewilderment. He could not fathom what had happened before him. Even as Stephen returned to his seat, he had no idea of what to say or do next. Nothing had been settled, but it seemed as if all debate had ended. Stephen had advised Tun to hold onto his doubts until the dwarf himself had seen clearly to release them. He looked about the table in confusion.
“What is it we must do to remove your doubts, Tun?” the elf finally asked.
“I don’t know,” the dwarf responded with less combativeness in his voice. “But I still hold to them. The return of the magic is very unsettling to me. As such, I will not rush headlong into any decision which involves destroying the sphere until I am certain that it our only option.”
“If Shayed’s word can not convince you of that, I don’t know what can. It seems as if we are at an impasse. Do you suggest we simply wait here until you have a change of heart?”
“There are others still to arrive. Is that not true?” Jon asked, initiating the conversation for the first time.
“Yes,” Mappel replied. “Ryson Acumen will bring representatives of the algors.”
“Ryson Acumen is the delver you spoke of?”
Mappel nodded his head.
“Then I suggest we wait until their arrival. Their input might affect what is to happen next.”
“So you are saying we should just sit here and wait?” Lief now asked incredulously.
“I can not abide by such a waste of time either,” Mappel added. He searched desperately for a way to end the deadlock, a way to bring Tun into the light of understanding. He grasped upon the symbol of his dilemma. “There are enough gathered here right now for us to make significant strides to achieving our goals. The secrets of Sanctum have endured hundreds upon hundreds of seasons. They must now be revealed. At this moment, we already have the ability to reveal three fifths of the mystery. Perhaps if I begin by revealing what the elves have placed in Sanctum, I will gain the trust of Tun, and he will see that …”
Stephen Clarin stopped him with a wave of his hand. “It is still not yet the time for that. With the grace of Godson, the algors will be here shortly, and with them, the delver Acumen. We should wait for their arrival. Let the dwarves listen to the words of Ryson. He has been at the forefront of all of this. It may be his role to bring them to understanding.”
“I agree,” Tun said with a nod. “I do not wish to hear the elf secret of the tiers at this moment. Such information is dangerous. The arrival of the algors may mean nothing to us, and I will not so willingly reveal the secret which keep the dwarves safe from evil magic unless it is as the interpreter says. I will wait for the doubts to be removed from my mind. For me, that will be the only time I will reveal the dwarf secret of Sanctum.”
“Then we have nothing more to do than wait,” Mappel said with an almost painful shrug. He hoped the suggested inactivity might force someone into compromise. Instead, it allowed the interpreter a moment to make an unsuspected announcement of his own.
“There is something I have to do,” Stephen spoke as he stood. “Something has been nagging at my thoughts which I must see to. It has a lot to do with what is happening here, but it is not yet clear to me. I have to leave but I will be back shortly.”
He left abruptly with no further explanation. Every other pair of eyes watched him leave.
“It is good to see you safe, Ryson Acumen.” Mappel extended a hand. As the delver responded in kind, the elder elf allowed a small smile to grasp his lips. They stood alone in Matthew’s private chambers. A host of others waited in the basement meeting room, but Mappel requested they speak alone before the delver was brought before them. It was the elder elf’s wish to explain the occurrences of the past few days, but he began by asking the delver about his own journey.
“When Holli brought the algors here, she told me what had happened in the hills. Mountain shags.” He sighed lightly. “I can not believe that only a short while ago even I doubted Lief Woodson’s word when he warned us of the danger in the air. Now we face so many things, so many uncertainties, including mountain shags. But by your appearance now, I can assume that all went well?”
“I handled the shag alright, but I can’t say my trip back wasn’t without its problems.” Ryson’s expression bordered on exasperation. “Things are starting to fall apart out there, and fast.”
Mappel waited for the delver to continue with an expectant, yet curious expression.
“It seems vampires are now loose in the land and goblins are making raids on towns,” Ryson explained with heavy emotion. He coughed after he spoke as if the words left a bad taste in his mouth. “I don’t know how this will affect any of the plans you’ve made, but I can tell you the people and guards in Burbon are near total panic. I would expect the same in Pinesway. They’re closer to the forest. I don’t know how the people in Connel have reacted to your presence here, but I doubt you would be welcome in either of the other two towns. They’re edgy about anything that looks even slightly out of place. Trust is stretched to a limit. I apologize for how this will sound, but if they saw you for what you are, they’d lock you up as a threat, or worse.”
“I understand.” Mappel’s attention momentarily fixed upon the staff in his hands. He stared at the fine grooves as if each represented another factor of the present dilemma, another external force trying to exert its own influence upon them all. “The land is in turmoil and it seems most humans with it. It is probably no surprise to any elf that the humans would treat us with the utmost mistrust. Their ignorance of the past has led them to their own confusion. While it would not justify such actions, it would not be unexpected. I would have to agree that revealing ourselves in such places would remain inappropriate at this time. Thankfully, however, our path does not end in Burbon or Pinesway. It will lead us from Connel to Sanctum.”
“How have you fared here?” Ryson asked with a raised eyebrow.
“The magic has been slow to reveal itself here,” Mappel offered with a look of relief. “What has happened has been kept quiet. Connel’s own location has also helped serve to this end. With other border towns closer to the wilderness, there are more inviting targets. I imagine that the dark creatures have also not forgotten Connel’s history. The ancient wall would remind them of their greatest loss. I doubt any goblin party would hasten to raid this town.”
The delver found such theories less encouraging. “Even if there hasn’t been a raid here, I know word is spreading. Soon, people are going to start hearing stories. Everyone’s going to start looking for an answer. When I came in to town this morning, I saw everyone looking over their shoulders. I also saw guards on horseback at the town limits.”
“I can not deny the truth in your words,” Mappel conceded, “but for now we remain hidden, even the algors were brought to us without raising a single suspicion. Our presence here has been kept a secret, helped oddly enough by Mayor Consprite. He does not know of the dwarves’ presence, but he knows of mine and the algors. Those guards were his men, and they helped escort the algors here, keeping it as quiet as possible.”
“Consprite did that?” Surprise and suspicion edged Ryson’s words and the tone was not lost upon Mappel.
“I am perplexed by the man myself. He has kept his distance, yet has made it clear he wishes to be involved. His men did as promised, yet they appeared more elusive than helpful. Through Matthew, we have been sending him information, telling him only of what he needs to know. I doubt it satisfies him, but he appears content, at least for now. I do not trust him. Am I misjudging him?”
“I doubt it,” Ryson responded in earnest. “I’ve only spoken with him a few times, but I never met anyone who was more ambitious. If he wishes to be involved, it’s probably because he believes he can benefit.”
“Of that, I am certain, but we will all benefit if our mission is successful.”
Ryson shook his head with a near sorrowful expression, as if it pained him to discuss the subject of human greed and overabundant ambition. “That’s not want I mean. The mayor won’t see anything advantageous in a general gain for the land. Consprite will want to gain personally. It’s not beyond him to take advantage of another’s misfortune.”
“Then, my initial judgment has been correct. I can not dismiss the perceptions of a delver, especially upon a subject I know so little about. The mayor will be dealt with only as needed and always warily.”
“Good idea,” Ryson nodded.
Mappel moved on with urgency, as if it pleased him to leave behind discussions of Mayor Consprite. “What about the vampires you spoke of?”
Ryson hesitated. The thought burned his mind like acid. He tasted the bitter anger on the tip of his tongue.
“It’s not a pleasant story,” he finally admitted. He told the sequence quickly and briefly, speaking in short pointed sentences. He gave an adequate account to be accurate but refused to recount anything with great detail. He spoke of the most important specifics, being followed by Evan Chase, Chase’s demise, and the final conflict with the vampire herself.
The mention of Evan Chase and his reasons for following the delver cast the discussion back upon the mayor. Mappel displayed more than a hint of annoyance. “So Consprite sent out a tracker to find what you had been doing. I do not like that. It indicates he may not accept our decisions. I should like to treat him with as much care as we would treat another vampire.”
“That reminds me,” Ryson interrupted and his attention descended to his belt where the Sword of Decree hung sheathed. “It’s time for me to return this now. To tell you the truth, it’s the main reason why I came back to Connel. Had it not been for the sword, I might have stayed at Burbon to help protect them against goblin raids. But I knew it was important to you, so I knew I had to return it. I’ve learned how special it is, and I understand why you made me promise to look after it with such care. I wish you would have told me of its other powers, though. It does more than burn an enemy; it can free your mind. That in itself saved me from the vampire. I can’t explain it, but I knew what to do as soon as I grabbed the handle.”
The statement confused Mappel. He sifted through the words as if a puzzle, or a mystery where the perpetrator was known but not the crime.
“You are certain?” Mappel questioned with a wrinkled forehead.
“Absolutely.” Ryson returned Mappel’s questioning looks with a confused demeanor of his own. “Didn’t
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