Amulet of Souls (The Sentinels of Wizgrad Book 1) (11 page)

“What the hell is going on?” Plode asked.

“The moment you and the rest of the Commanders left, Morgoth and his army took the place by force. He barged through the wall back there to this prison that I didn't even know existed. A couple of weeks later Iris and the others turned up” Mr Pannett said.

“It's good to see a friendly face if only it were in a better place,” Iris said to Plode.

“So what brought you to Haven Plode, why come back so soon?” Mr Pannett asked.

“I was actually sent here to speak to you sir, The rest of the Commanders have set out to ask their kin for aid against the upcoming war, I came here with the intention of asking yourself, but it seems that is no longer an issue,” Plode explained.

“Indeed...” Mr Pannett said with sadness.

“Plode your brother...he is still...” Iris started to say.

“I know.”

Plode stomped over to the bars and pulled with all his strength, but they did not move. He then prepared to cast a spell. He wanted to get out one way or another.

“Don't bother Plode, save your energy,” Mr Pannett said. “These cells are sealed with some kind of spell protector, I have already tried” he continued.

Plode attempted to pull on the bars once more but gave up and slumped down in a huff. “Someone said something about Iris’s cell being the key, what was he trying to say?” Plode said.

The four of them paused in thought when someone approached the cells. It was Efrundle and a fully cloaked man close behind. Efrundle walked into the cell next to Thorley and closed the door.

“Stop controlling my body!” Efrundle yelled.

“You of all people I would hope would understand my reasoning. One day you will understand, I do what I must because I have to” the cloaked man explained.

“I will never agree with you!” Efrundle argued.

The cloaked man walked up to Iris’s cell.

“Am I going to have to do the same with you?” The cloaked man said. Iris had no idea what this man wanted, or why he wanted to take Iris from her cell.

“I don’t wish to be controlled again,” Iris said. The cloaked man did not reply straight away, shocked by her reaction.

“I will hold you to that, but you will have only one chance” the cloaked man replied.

Iris nodded “I understand.” The cloaked man unlocked the cell door and Iris walked out of the prison.

“So I believe it was not that long ago you found out about your real parents?” The cloaked man said it in such a way that Iris was unsure if he wanted to try and anger her or if he had a genuine interest.

“Yes, it was a bit of a shock” she replied. Iris had walked to the end of the old Elven ruins and waited to be directed. The cloaked man walked past and took the lead.

“I knew your parents well, both of them but I want to show you something first,” the cloaked man said.

He took Iris outside Haven itself to the vast empty fields that spread for miles and miles. It would be a great chance to try and escape, but Iris would never be able to outrun him. The cloaked man walked further out into the field several miles away from the entrance to Haven. He did not speak a word on the way and Iris thought better than to say anything.

He stopped at the top of a hill, the grass had been worn away many years ago and the trees around them had been lumbered. In front of them was a large flat rock, grey in colour, covered in some strange symbols.

The cloaked man pulled down the hood, which covered his face. Iris turned to see it was a Dark Elf, which looked just like the man in the painting on Efrundle’s wall. Iris stared directly at him.

“You look like the man in the painting,” Iris said out loud. She covered her mouth in response to accidently speaking out.

The Dark Elf grinned “That's because I am the man in the painting.”

“That means...your Astrid,” Iris said to herself.

“Does he know?” Iris asked in regard to Efrundle.

“Yes I told him, but he would not believe me. I can’t blame him.”

Astrid pulled the cloak back over his head. He did not at all seem aggressive or evil and by his facial expression, he seemed happy to be out of Haven.

“Do you recognise this place, Iris?” Astrid asked. Iris was puzzled by his question.

“Only from when I first came to Haven” Iris answered honestly.

“You were born here Iris, along with Efrundle, on this very spot. It was barely a week after that the village and everyone residing in it was destroyed” Astrid said.

“What happened?” Iris asked.

“I was told about a very powerful amulet. We were at war and we desperately needed something to change the tide of our battles. Little did I know the evil of the amulet then, nor was I strong enough to control it. The moment that thing went around my neck, I lost all knowledge of who I was. It wasn't until I was stopped by Hofton, and the amulet was taken away from me that I realised who I was and what I had done. I had single handily killed my entire village and my beautiful wife” Astrid confessed. Iris did not know what to say in response to something like that.

“It was only by luck that Biren had taken you, Efrundle and your mother away from the village.”

“Does that mean my birth mother is still alive?” Iris asked.

“Your mother died in battle. She sacrificed her life healing an entire army in one of our final battles and was the turning point for the war. Without her sacrifice, we would not have won.”

“If we won, why are you fighting us” Iris questioned.

“We may have won the battles, but the war is still not over. It's complicated, but I am on your side and this is the only way I can get close to our enemies leader. We must go back, he will suspect me if we are any longer. Remember don't mention anything spoken out here. He has ears everywhere.” Astrid warned Iris. They walked back in silence to the cells and Iris entered her cell.

“You Monster!” Efrundle yelled, “You should be the one rotting in the earth, Monster!” he shouted again. Astrid did not reply. He walked past the cells and left.

“What is he talking about? You actually believe his lies?” Efrundle shouted at Iris.

“He was telling the truth,” Iris said. She had a gut feeling he was a good man, but from the things he had done Iris was unsure.

“What are you talking about? What spell did he cast on you, what has he done?” Efrundle said. The others also looked at her with a look of disbelief.

A small bird then flew into Iris’s cell and sat down next to her. The little bird lifted its leg and there was a note attached. Iris gently took the tiny note off to read:

What happened? Where are you? Zelkith is ok

Mireylon

‘
How am I supposed to respond?’
Iris thought to herself when the Wren then lifted his other leg. Iris looked at the little blue bracelet that hung from its leg in confusion.

“It’s a magical Jenny,” Mr Pannett said, “Just squeeze the blue bracelet and anything you are thinking will be stored inside it magically. It will then fly back to its owner,” he explained.

Iris squeezed the little bracelet and with a tiny pop it lit up in a bright red. She tried to relay everything she could in her mind. Plode, Efrundle and Astrid were in Haven. Morton was still alive. The wrinkled man from the cavern who now has the amulet. She ran out of thoughts and the bracelet glowed a gentle green. The Wren grappled the bracelet and took off in flight out of the cells.

One day later the Wren reached Mireylon, who still waited for a verdict from the Elves. He took the bracelet from the Wren and enclosed it gently in his hands. He opened them again and it had vanished.

Mireylon squeezed the bracelet and thoughts of Iris flowed into his mind. His head now rushed with the information from Iris. He dashed to the Elder Council and barged through the doors.

“I need your answer now!” Mireylon demanded.

“What is the meaning of this intrusion,” one of the Elves said.

“Explain yourself,” said another.

“The enemy is already one step ahead and has an army ready to attack. We must act now!” Mireylon announced.

“We will not just join a war because of your concerns about a Legion,” the Council argued.

“This war will affect all of us if it is not stopped,” Mireylon pleaded.

“The Elves have lived undisturbed for thousands of years, this is not different to any other battle between races,” the Council said. The Council all looked around the table and in turn, each nodded their heads.

“We will not aid you unless you have definitive proof that we are in immediate danger,” the Council said.

Mireylon stormed out of the building and raised his arm. He shot a red light from his wand into the air and Roseflame landed in a field nearby.

Mireylon had hesitated before he spoke, “we must rescue Morton, he is at the Dragons Tower in Icethorpe.” Roseflame did not speak but gave Mireylon a concerned look.

“I know, I'm sorry that I must ask you to go there, but this is a foe that not even we can defeat. We need Morton’s help” Mireylon insisted.

“As you wish,” Roseflame said. She leapt into the air and flew towards Icethorpe over the vast seas. They made most of the journey in under a day. Roseflame landed on the coast, it had started to get dark, and they needed as much daylight as they could get.

“You know I detest the cold, and that place...it brings back bad memories,” Roseflame said.

“I know I have never asked, but as we are going there I need to know...just what happened there?” Mireylon asked.

“When I was a young Dragon, we were not as rare as we are now, we used to live amongst nature with all other creatures. I had a big family, brothers, sisters, parents, hatchlings...it was men who drove us back. Their greed took our homes and lands. We did not retaliate at first because we wanted to live peacefully. Over time, we were forced to live on the island of Glunenroe, which is where are now. When our Queen was frozen to death, the elders and adults retaliated. All those years of rage and pent up anger from being driven from our homes exploded. We destroyed the nearby towns in a massacre,” Roseflame explained.

Mireylon listened attentively. Roseflame continued, “I was too young to see just what happened, but the humans retaliated. They used powerful witches and wizards, but the Dragons crushed them with ease, but there was one wizard who was different. This wizard had mastered cold magic and had no allegiance to anyone. He walked straight into our main home, the Dragons Tower, he toyed with us, waiting until every Dragon was back to the keep. My parents got me far away from there for safety, as did a few others. When the wizard was at the heart of the Dragons Tower, he cast a spell that was so powerful that it altered the entire island. Those few of us that survived dared not return, any that did never came back.”

Mireylon had never read anything like that in Dragon history. It seemed so strange that such an important event was never mentioned in the history books. Mireylon thought that they slowly dwindled away naturally.

“It is of no surprise that the books you read omitted this, as they were no doubt written by humans,” Roseflame hissed.

They rested how they could for the night and the next day they left for the Dragons Tower. Their flight was bitterly cold and Mireylon took shelter behind Roseflame’s spike on her back, but it wasn't really much help. It had taken several bone-chilling hours before they spotted the Dragons Tower. There was no way that Iris and the others would have made it this far.

“Do you have any spells for wind?” Roseflame asked.

“I have, but it's not very good” Mireylon responded.

“Climb onto the back of my neck and when I say, cast the most amount of air you can toward that massive door of ice,” Roseflame said. She started to fly quickly down towards the base of the tower.

Mireylon scrambled onto her neck and got ready to cast.

“Now!” Roseflame yelled. She took in a huge breath and out spewed hot lava and flames towards the door. Mireylon cast his spell, which added heat to the fire. The once welcomed heat soon became unbearable and they plummeted at tremendous speed towards the entrance of the Dragons Tower. The flames and lava ahead of them melted the ice quickly, but it was not quick enough.

“Hold on!” Roseflame yelled. She arched her body and with a great crash they smashed through the doors of the tower and into a vast hall. The moment they entered the cold hit them like a wall. Once Mireylon got his bearings, he turned to see that the door had completely sealed itself with ice already.

Mireylon wrapped his arms around his body to try and fight off the cold. “Let’s find Morton before we freeze to death”, Mireylon turned to see Roseflame totally still.

“Rose!” Mireylon yelled. He pushed at her head, but she had become entirely blue and ice had begun to form on her body.

Mireylon cursed out loud. He used a spell that wrapped himself in tree bark to keep the cold off him. The inside of the tower was frozen over with ice and it was slippery with every step. Tall, elegant towers made from dark pearl glistened through the ice in all directions.

All around him were frozen figures of dragons. Many frozen dragons peered out from various holes in the walls that rose the entire height of the tower, but they looked calm in a non-threatening posture. Stood at the lower part of the tower were two men. One man was completely covered in ice and was holding a long staff up into the air. Mireylon ventured a guess that it was him who cast the cold spell, which froze the land.

The other man was sat next to him. His arms and legs were crossed and he did not look frozen. Mireylon carefully approached and he saw that it was Morton in some meditated state.

Mireylon was not sure how he could wake him, it was a spell he had never seen before. He made a shelter out of wood and used a flint he carried with him to start a small fire. He pondered on how he could restore Morton back to his original self. With no Roseflame to ask, he was on his own.

<<          >>

“Hathor, you must ready the troops immediately!” The Gnome Chieftain ordered. The Dwarf King looked at the Gnome Chieftain with a look of disgust.

“We have discussed this already!” The King said angered.

“No you don't understand, the Dimensional Scope Defensor, it's under attack and at this rate it won't hold for more than two hours!” The Chieftain said in a panicked tone.

“I heard that you wanted to be separate from the dwarves and that you do not appreciate the work we have done to associate you with our home,” The King argued.

“That's not the current issue, if we don't ready any troops, or evacuate, there won’t be any of us left at all,” exclaimed the Chieftan.

The King lifted his head up high “We will not help you. You and
your
kind are not welcome here anymore!” The King turned and walked away.

“Come, master Dakho. I will not let us perish here under his arrogance!” The Chieftain said.

The Chieftain ran down a series of halls and stormed into a large house. “Ponzepen!” he shouted, but there was no response. He rushed into one of the back rooms and frantically searched through several piles of paperwork. He found what he wanted and crumpled it up into a roll and stuffed it under his belt.

He then pulled open a drawer and took out a wand. “Let’s go,” he said. He picked up a large amount of the papers and threw them into the fire nearby. They stood outside and the Chieftain took out his wand. He swiped the wand down which pulled down one of the wooden bannisters that held up the building. With a crash, the entire building came down.

The Chieftain led Dakho down the caverns to a nearby tavern. There was one person left in the tavern, who was a female Gnome that was stood behind the bar. The stools and tables were all knocked over and drink spilt over the floor.

“Ponzepen, the...” the Chieftain started to say.

“I know, we must hurry,” Ponzepen interrupted. She pulled down one of the alcoholic taps but instead of alcohol it opened a door hidden in the stone behind her.

“Quickly!” she said. The Chieftain and Dakho both walked through the door, immediately followed by Ponzepen and the stone door closed behind them.

Inside were hundreds of Gnomes in a massive cavern. It was lit by a large crystal at the top that was far too bright to look at. The moment Dakho was seen by the Gnomes they all raised their wands at him with hostility.

“What is he doing here!” shouted one of the Gnomes in anger.

“Lower your wands!” The Chieftain pleaded.

“And why should we trust you” shouted another Gnome, who was then backed up by a strong agreement from the others.

“You're too close to that fat King. This could be a trap!” said another voice.

“Please let me explain,” The Chieftain argued.

“Let you explain how you betrayed us?” one of the Gnomes shouted. The Gnomes all started to argue amongst each other and the noise quickly escalated. Dakho questioned whether he should leave before something bad happened.

“SILENCE!” Ponzepen shrieked. The room fell silent, the Gnomes knew better than to argue with Ponzepen.

“This is Dakho, A commander of the Legion of the Silver Snake. He has come to seek aid in an imminent war. This war is likely the reason for the attack on us. He has agreed that with our help, the Legion will help us build our own town.” The Gnome Chieftain explained. The crowd did not respond and the room stood in an awkward silence.

“We have no time to argue, we must hurry,” Ponzepen said.

“Is everyone here?” The Chieftain asked.

“I think so, we don't have long, we must start moving,” Ponzepen said. There were not many children and vulnerable people that needed to escape. However, the journey would be challenging for everyone.

The Chieftain ordered his people to move down into a small cavern that was a secret escape in case of an emergency.  The tunnel was only big enough to fit two people in at a time. Ponzepen sealed the entrance to the tunnel behind her. They walked down the narrow set of walkways and stairs carved into the stone. Below the walkway was a vast cavern which fell too far for the eyes to see, but the sound of crashing water could be heard. The walk was not a far, but it took a long time.

Dakho wondered why it took so long. The path was small, but it was flat and even. Dakho then arrived at a little waterfall that trickled over the path.

The walls and floors had eroded from the stream of water over the years and it left a small slippery gap. Dakho was bigger than the Gnomes and needed some help to get across. One of the larger Gnomes at the rear of the line stretched out his hand to help Dakho across. Dakho slowly edged closer and he felt unsteady on his feet.

The mountain shook like an earthquake and Dakho lost his balance. “Oh damn!” Dakho yelped and he fell into the chasm below. A horrid screech blasted from a device on the Chieftain’s wrist. The Chieftain pulled a tiny part off a gadget from his wrist and threw it down into the chasm.

The device flew past Dakho and with a bang it erupted a bright purple web, which stretched the length of the gap. It caught Dakho as well as a couple of the others that had fallen with the quake.

“We must hurry, they have broken through!” The Chieftain shouted. He ordered the strongest to help get the fallen out of the web and back up onto the path. Once the others had been rescued, everyone scrambled quickly and in a short matter of minutes, they started to arrive at an enormous elevator. They began to get inside when they heard a loud crack of stone behind them.

The enemy had arrived and they had already got through. In a panic, the Gnomes piled into the huge elevator which caused even more panic.

The Chieftain tried his best to calm everyone. He knew that the enemy would struggle to get them on the dangerous paths. What he did not anticipate was a small swarm of Puck, which ran along the sides of the cavern like spiders. Dakho and The Chieftain were still too far away to get inside the elevator before the Puck would arrive. Dakho stopped in his place and turned to face the Puck.

“Master Dakho what are you doing?” The Chieftain exclaimed.

“You must hurry and get your people to safety, I will hold them off!”

The Chieftain hesitated, he needed to get his people to safety, but he also wanted to help Dakho.

“Just go!” Dakho shouted. He took out his sword and thrust it into the stone at his feet. He then touched the crystal on the bottom of the handle.

Dakho’s skin started to harden into an unnatural pearly white, his skin turned into the stone and minerals from inside the rock. He pulled the sword out from the wall and noticed the Puck’s attempt to flank around him so that they could attack the Gnomes directly. He closed his eyes and cast a spell that created a wall to block the Pucks path and send them towards him. The wall worked and to Dakho’s demise, the Puck now hurtled towards him.