The Hammer of Fire (34 page)

“You’re wrong, old man,” said the youth and
again shook his head vigorously. “We’ll do what it takes, and when
it comes time to pass out rewards you can get in line and hope we
don’t forget.” With that he and all but two of the other young
dwarves turned and walked away speaking animatedly to one another
as they went.

“Uncle Borrombus,” said one of the two
remaining young dwarves as he came close and put his hand on the
shoulder of the older dwarf. “There is nothing that can be done to
stop them. They’ve been speaking with Corancil. You’ve met the man.
You know how persuasive he is. His talk of the best and brightest
and how empires are born is impossible to resist.”

Borrombus nodded his head and scratched his
beard covered cheek, “You are right enough about Corancil, he’s not
much to look at, that one,” he finally said after a pause. “But
there is power in his words. He means not to conquer the world but
to unite it. He’s naïve though, he thinks rewarding those of merit
is the solution to all the world’s ills but he has never lived in a
tradition soaked place like Craggen Steep. The elders, even in
their lazy stupidity, command respect. We have to take things more
slowly.”

“It’s too late for that,” said the young
dwarf with the large black eyes as he stared directly at Borrombus.
“It’s too late. Maybe if Uldex was here ….”

“Your brother is a fierce one,” said
Borrombus with a smile. “He might have kept the other youngsters in
line but, on the other side of the axe blade, he might have been
the one to lead them to insurrection. That’s why I sent him away.
You’re more level-headed than he.”

“So that is why you sent him to retrieve the
hammer?”

Borrombus nodded his head, “One reason at
least. Do you think you could take the thing from Delius?”

The young dwarf snorted, “He’d break me in
half and never change his expression, uncle. He’s always been an
odd one but good with his fists and the axe. Do you think it
possible he can slay Gazadum?”

Borrombus laughed and his expression suddenly
became one of mirth, “Of course not. Hopefully Uldex will take the
hammer from his dead fingers and that way we’re rid of multiple
problems at the same time. If only Uldex would get back here with
the hammer we’d take control of the mountain and lead the dwarves
out under the banner of Craggen Steep as Corancil unites the world.
With our money, the discipline of our soldiers, and his leadership,
nothing could stand against us.”

“But Uldex isn’t here,” said the young dwarf
and clenched his fist under Borrombus’s nose. “I’m here and we have
to do something. If we let the others take on the Firefists and
Drawhammers by themselves they will be destroyed.”

“That’s true,” said Borrombus. “And we’ll
lose most of our allies in the battle.”

“Exactly,” said the lad. “So, what do we
do?”

Borrombus sighed, which caused his heavy
belly to jiggle a bit and then he shook his head, “I don’t see a
winnable solution. I don’t see a way to win. Those damn pompous
Firefists. They have the Golden Pikemen and the elite guard and all
we have is the dregs.”

“There are a lot of dregs,” said the young
dwarf although even he looked to the ground when he said it.

“It’s not about numbers,” said Borrombus.
“Numbers don’t hurt but it’s about will, desire, and passion. If we
can’t inspire that in the lesser families then we can’t win this
fight.”

“So, how do we go about inspiring them?”

Borrombus took his finger to his many bands
and tapped one gently, “Corancil is an inspired speaker. If we
could somehow get him to speak to the masses ….”

“The High Council will never allow it,” said
the young dwarf with a rueful smile and a shake of his head.

“It’s not a matter of allow or disallow, it’s
a matter of twisting the rules to our advantage. Those old windbags
live and die by the letter of the law, and if we somehow find a way
to get Corancil inside Craggen Steep to give a speech he might even
sway some of those old codgers. He is convincing in his own way.
You’ve met him.”

The young dwarf nodded his head, “I saw him
speak once and I’ve seen the effect he has on people. Even you must
admit that his ideas have merit. Everyone advancing on their own
merits instead of whose family they belong to or how much they
pay.”

“You say that despite having every advantage
of a Blackiron here in Craggen Steep?” said Borrombus turning his
eye towards the young dwarf.

The lad nodded his head, “It’s worse now than
when you were an apprentice,” he said with a firm mouth and steely
eyes. “You should see the morons who get the best promotions and it
doesn’t matter if they have any skill or not. Nothing burns more
than seeing some incompetent promoted over you because of his last
name or his father’s gold. Even we Blackirons get the short of it
now. Besides, if things keep going the way they’re going it will be
nothing except driveling incompetents on the Council and then we’re
doomed anyway. If we don’t join Corancil then Craggen Steep will
eventually fall to him anyway.”

Borrombus nodded his great head and tapped at
the bands that held his beard in check. “All you say is true and if
Corancil could speak to the masses that might be enough to convince
even the Elite Guard to change sides. They have to want to set out
into the world and test their blades. But how to make it happen,
how to make it happen? Go, nephew, go to the library and find
council procedural books, the dustier the better. I’ll talk with
that stubborn First Edos again and see if he can’t try and trump
the council in some manner or another.”

“No one listens to him since the Council
banned him from chambers, he’s finished. As soon as Cleathelm gets
back they’ll make him First Edos.”

“Cleathelm,” snorted Borrombus, “not even the
Firefists would be stupid enough to put such incompetence in the
First Edos’s chair.”

“They can and they will, Uncle,” said the
dwarf lad with a sad little shake of his head. “It’s gotten very
bad down in the apprentice chambers. You don’t know what it’s like.
Cleathelm isn’t even the worst of the bunch.”

Borrombus shook his head, “You’re probably
right, nephew. I’ve been circling with the exalted ones for so long
I’ve lost touch. Your brother helped me in that regard but I was
probably fooling myself in thinking I knew what was happening in
the upper chambers with the common folk. I’m as bad as the other
members of the High Council. But in the end it doesn’t matter. Find
those books and let’s see if we can bring some ancient rule to
light that will let us bring Corancil into Craggen Steep. Then
perhaps we can lead an army out of the Gates of Faferdum and onto
the field of battle.” With this he looked up at the towering gates
above them and their magnificent arches and carvings. “The
Elementals built these,” he said in a quiet voice, “long before we
came to this world.”

“What was that, Uncle?” said the lad as he
turned around.

“Nothing,” said Borrombus with a shake of his
head. “Just the musings of a tired, fat old dwarf.”

The boy stood for a moment and looked at
Borrombus with wide eyes.

“Go on, go on,” said the fat dwarf with a
wave of his hand. After the young dwarf scurried off, Borrombus
turned and looked up at the towering gateway one last time. There
were four of them in total, the main entrances to Craggen Steep.
The Gates of Gazadum, The Gates of Korakdum, The Gates of
Glangaldum, and this one, the Gates of Fafardum. Fire, Earth,
Water, and Air. The four ancient creators of the world and now
young Dol Delius was going to try and kill Gazadum who had ruled
here for who knows how many years. “Maybe it would be best if Uldex
took the hammer before Delius attacks,” he mused to himself. “The
elementals have been long quiescent but their power, their ancient
power, does it hide or does it wait?”

Milli sat on a heavy wooden chair with her
face barely above the edge of the oak table and stared across the
room to where Dol busily chatted with a pair of young women. One of
them wore a loose fitting top that showed a great deal of her
breasts and the other giggled at everything Dol said. “It’s
disgusting and where is that girl with my booster seat,” said Milli
and rolled her eyes at Petra who sat next to her.

Petra shook her head, smiled, and said, “He’s
a man like any other.”

“He never acted like this before,” replied
Milli glaring at the trio. “And where is stupid Brogus? He said he
would have dinner with us but he’s been doing nothing but sleeping
and drinking and chasing girls since we got here.”

“I haven’t known him as long as you,” said
Petra with a shrug of her shoulders. “But the only men I know whose
heads aren’t turned by pretty girls have different tastes.”

“You’ve known him since we left Crag … our
home,” said Milli, carefully looking around at the other patrons of
the tavern. “You’ve been with us long enough to know he’s changed,
don’t pretend.”

Petra shrugged her shoulders again, “I
suppose you are right. He’s changed even since you three first came
into my camp. It seems like years ago but it’s only been about a
month. It has to be the influence of the hammer don’t you think?
But then there are the physical changes, the apples in his hair and
beard turning red. That’s not something the hammer could change, is
it? And there are so many of them now. Even a month ago they
weren’t so plentiful and they weren’t red like that.”

Milli nodded her head just as an attractive
young girl, likely still in her teens with her brown hair tied into
a single braid that reached half way down her back, came over to
the table. She carried a little seat and smiled at Milli as she
came over, “Here you go, little girl!” and started to put it under
Milli.

“What?” shrieked Milli and snatched the seat
from the teenager’s hand. “Little girl?”

The teen smiled and patted her on the head,
“I can see you’re all grown up with little boobies and
everything.”

Milli’s eyes almost popped out of her head,
but Petra reached over and put her hand against the halflings’s
wrist, “It’s okay, Milli. We don’t want to make too much of a scene
now, do we?”

A sort of strangled little snort shot out of
Milli’s nose but then her eyes turned cool, “No, of course not,
Petra. Thank you for the seat,” she said to the teenaged server and
placed it on the chair and sat down. After the girl wandered off
Milli turned to Petra and snarled, “I’ll tear her eyes out!”

Petra laughed, “It was an honest mistake,
Milli,” said the older woman and continued to pat her on the wrist.
“They just haven’t seen many halflings around here I’d guess. Maybe
they don’t have halflings this far south. We haven’t seen any, have
we?”

“I guess not,” said Milli pursing her lips
tightly and pulling her hand back and away from Petra. “Still, it’s
not right. I don’t like this place. I don’t like what it’s doing to
Dol,” and she glanced at the tall dwarf who had his arm around the
waist of one of the girls while she toyed with the apples in his
hair. “I don’t like Brogus sleeping all the time just because the
beds are comfortable.”

“They are quite nice though,” said Petra
while raising her arms over her head and yawning luxuriously.

“Let me finish!” said Milli and stomped her
boot on the hardwood floor of the tavern. “I’m not a little
girl.”

“Go on then, Milli,” said Petra leaning back
in her chair and looking around the inn. It was the second place
they tried after Dol’s temper tantrum and apparently the highest
class around although the payment was a pittance compared the gems
and gold they carried. Even that first overpayment of gold coins
they gave her could have seen her stay at this place for a year or
longer.

“I just want to get to the Five Sisters and
get this over with,” finished Milli with a humph.

“What then?” asked Petra and leaned forward
in her chair. “We’ve still not made any decisions on what happens …
after.”

Milli paused for a moment and then smiled,
“Dol’s right, we’ll be famous I suppose. People will want Dol,
Brogus, and me, and you too Petra. They’ll pay for us to come and
solve their problems.”

Petra didn’t reply for a time as she sat and
watched the plates of food and drink that came and went to
customers of the tavern. “I think I might not go all the way with
you,” said finally said..

“What?” said Milli, her voice raising an
octave or two. “Of course you’re coming with us. We’re in this
together, to the end.”

“Maybe you should think about letting Dol do
this on his own,” went on Petra as she stared deeply into Milli’s
eyes. The old woman lowered her voice, “The ancient elementals,
Gazadum. There’s a good chance everyone will die. I’d say more than
a good chance.”

“First off,” said Milli. “I would never
abandon my friends and secondly it probably isn’t Gazadum anyway.
Just some old fire elemental that no one remembers. Besides, Dol
has the Hammer of Fire and that was made from the essence of
Gazadum as I understand it. Who can stop that?”

“Gazadum,” said Petra with the same level
eyes and clear tone of voice.

“What can I do to convince you?” said Milli
and held her hands out towards the woman. “We need you. None of us
knows how to find food or make shelter or anything like that.”

“You’re not far away from the Five Sisters
and then it will be done one way or the other,” said Petra with a
shrug of her shoulders. “You can buy plenty of supplies to get you
there safely enough, and if you kill the beast it will be as you
say, you’ll be famous and you won’t need me anymore. If you all die
… well, you won’t need me then either.”

“But,” said Milli and reached across the
table to take the woman by the hands, “we still will need you no
matter what. I mean, not if we’re dead, of course,” this with a
little laugh, “but I mean other than that. And if we’re going to be
rich and famous don’t you want to be that with us? Besides,
Corancil will be down here with his army in a few years and you
remember that messenger of his. How boldly he spoke and how
handsome he was?”