The Wealth of Kings (11 page)

He felt confident that the cavedogs would make short work of anything that would dare come out of the depths again. Now he needed to solve the riddle of the Wealth of Kings. He needed a space to think. There was a balcony adjoined to his bedchamber that overlooked much of the valley beyond. It was peaceful and, best of all, secluded from any visitors or advisors.

*****

Hiasyntar’Kulai moved his tired wings just enough to maintain his altitude as he soared high above a deep chasm that scarred the land between great, forbidding mountains covered in lush vegetation and teeming with animal life. He followed the canyon’s path for several minutes, propelling himself quickly over a dozen miles.

As he banked to the north and soared over the top of a rocky cliff, his eyes caught sight of a sparkling in the distance. It was hard to see at first, but the sunlight reflected off of it so brightly that he was sure he had finally reached his destination.

A large spire was the first shape Hiasyntar’Kulai made out clearly. It was green, with golden trim shining in the sunlight. Even with all the wonders the golden dragon had seen, this was his favorite construct in all of Terramyr, for it reminded him of his home on Kendualdern. As he flew up over another small incline that broke out into a wide plateau, the dragon roared and smiled at the magnificent castle of green glass before him. There were no walls around the structure, but the castle’s keep itself rose up into the sky more than fifty feet. The tops of the pointed towers ascended many stories higher still, with golden crests that reflected the sunlight with a fiery intensity that warmed the golden dragon’s heart.

He flew to the castle and stopped to land in front of the grand double doors that boasted hinges made of solid gold. A long handle bar was affixed vertically to each door and was made of the same, bright yellow gold as the hinges. However, the gold was not what the dragon admired most. Of course the gold called to him, singing its healing melody, but it was the clear sheets of thick glass that he appreciated the most, for they were formed from a special crystal that added its song to the gold and literally invigorated the mighty dragon with its melodies. From a distance the glass appeared green, but that was only because each sheet of glass was so thick that the crystal panes appeared green if viewed from specific angles.

The dragon closed his eyes and a golden sphere of light enveloped him. He felt the strange, tickling sensation as his body shrank down into a human-like form. He was not human, but he had the power to assume a smaller shape while in this particular palace.

As he opened the doors with a wave of his hands and passed beyond the doorway, the doors swung shut, creating a vibration through the hallway that was felt reverberating through his chest.

From the inside, the glass was so thick that he could only see through one wall at a time, meaning that rooms deeper within the palace were hidden by a screen of beautiful green. There were no lamps, torches, or candles. The palace itself radiated with its own light.

He was surrounded by many people, or spirits rather, as they were all dead. Being a dragon, he could see the ghosts easily. They were all dressed in fine silk robes of white, red, green, blue, and yellow. They were all busy walking through the palace, some carrying books, others engaged in deep conversation. However, when they noticed him, they all stopped and looked at him expectantly.

“Go on about your business,” Hiasyntar’Kulai instructed. “I have matters to tend to down below.”

The spirits obeyed silently, moving into rooms filled with bookshelves lined with books and scrolls, or sitting at tables as they continued their conversations. The dragon watched some of the people gather inside of a small room and grab a couple of books from the shelves. Then, the dragon saw the old, familiar light blue energy flowing through the glass, humming sweetly and creating additional light within the room where the spirits were reading from the books.

Hiasyntar’Kulai began to walk again, but was stopped by a stout dwarf spirit.

“My king,” the dwarf greeted. “There have been stirrings in Roegudok Hall. Might I be permitted to go and lend aid to the king of the mountain?”

The dragon nodded slowly. “See that you do not interfere more than is necessary. We can whisper words of aid and subtly guide, but we cannot intervene in the lives of mortals.”

The dwarf spirit nodded. “As you say, my king.”

Hiasyntar’Kulai watched as the spirit of Al’s father walked away quickly, disappearing around a corner. The dragon smiled then. The dwarves had had a long disconnect from the Ancients, but things were being put back together now. The Father of the Ancients felt a burgeoning hope that everything would work out in the end.

His mind returned to the current dilemma of finding the addorite. He knew he could go to Roegudok Hall and request the dwarves to look for it, but he wanted to spare them that fate if possible. If he could find the addorite Tu’luh had stolen, then at least he would have something to work with without risking the dwarves. He turned down the first corridor on the right. He walked for several hundred feet, passing chambers and rooms on either side of the hallway. As he glanced through the glass he saw groups, or sometimes individuals, deep in study. At the end of the hallway, he opened a door that led to a stairway spiraling down into the ground.

As he descended the stairs, the light from the light blue energy flowed through the walls, the stairs, and the ceiling above to illuminate the area. That was why the dragon liked the crystal from which he had formed the glass slabs that made the palace. It was a perfect conduit for the energy that flowed through the palace, offering not only light, but actual wisdom and knowledge to those who sought it.

He descended deep into the mountain. The air remained warm and dry as he walked downward for nearly thirty minutes before finally reaching the bottom. He put his hands on the door, which had so much energy flowing through it that it appeared nearly solidly blue in color, and pushed it open.

The door moved silently as it glided open.

His eyes were assaulted by an exceedingly bright light, far whiter than anything he had experienced elsewhere on Terramyr. He raised his arms up to shield himself from the brightness while at the same time he felt an inviting warmth wrap around him.

He walked through the doorway and heard a powerful roar. He moved his arms enough to peer around them while still trying to adjust to the light. The giant chamber was so large that he could not see any walls except the one behind him. About thirty feet in front of him stood a massive dragon. Its legs were blue and gray. Its snout was covered in shiny scales that only accentuated the sharp fangs protruding out from under the lips. A thick pair of horns grew up and back from the rear of the skull, ending in sharp points that would put any spear to shame.

The dragon growled, but not in a menacing or threatening way. Then it turned aside and bowed its head.

“Garek, nice to see you again. Still keeping watch?”

The bowing dragon replied with a simple, “As always, my king.”

There were dozens of dragons. All shapes and sizes mixed in together in the giant, seemingly endless chamber. There were blue and red skytes darting about through the air like sparrows. There were wingless drakes that walked upon all fours and breathed fire and wisps of smoke. There were greater drakes that had wings, larger dragons, and then there was a group far in the distance that appeared to be as large, or much larger, than Tu’luh the Red, but none were as large as Hiasyntar’Kulai’s dragon form.

Hiasyntar’Kulai moved further into the chamber and transformed back into his natural form. He beheld the hundreds of dragons all bowing to him and addressed them in his loud, booming voice of thunder. “My fellow dragon-kin, over the last five centuries, we have been here, unraveling very threads of time and fate, interpreting them and creating prophecies of the future. Now that Nagar’s Blight is no more hanging upon the Middle Kingdom, it is time to return to our full capacity. I would have you again spreading out through the world and giving your dreams and visions to good men and women who would use the knowledge for the betterment of Terramyr.”

A mighty chorus of roaring dragons shook the chamber.

Hiasyntar’Kulai tapped his talon on the stone floor and then there was silence. “I will select three of you for a special assignment. Tu’luh has committed yet another crime against us. He has stolen addorite that was hidden away in Valtuu Temple. You all know how important that substance is for what we need to do. I ask for three volunteers who will search for a tribe of goblins who have taken the addorite from Tu’luh and hidden it deep within a network of caves far to the west. The rest of you shall resume the duties you performed centuries ago, helping to guide the mortals of Terramyr.”

The first three dragon spirits to volunteer were given a vision of the conversation with Tu’luh and sent out to discover whether any of the addorite remained.

The rest of the dragons launched into the air and flew up through the high ceiling, disappearing from view and resuming their sacred work of guiding the blessed races created by Icadion and the Old Gods.

Hiasyntar’Kulai watched the great dragons leave, and then he turned to the drakes and wingless dragons still in the chamber with him. He set them to be messengers and laborers throughout the palace, a station which they had occupied prior to the existence of Nagar’s Blight.

Then he turned to his left and moved toward the far wall. He blew on the glass and the blue energy rippled through the wall until there appeared a doorway large enough for him to walk through. He entered his secret chamber where he read the signs and omens of the stars to help understand the future.

There, upon a black pedestal of stone sat The Infinium.

Hiasyntar’Kulai felt a nagging, persistent sadness whenever he saw the book, for he had personally known its author. The Aurorean, a dragon composed entirely of light that always shifted and changed, and who had held the total sum of wisdom and knowledge known by any being in the universe. He was the one who wrote The Infinium. The Aurorean was also the creator of all dragon kind. As mighty and powerful as Hiasyntar’Kulai was, he considered himself as nothing compared to The Aurorean.

He approached the book and sighed. The Aurorean had written it so that others might know the secrets of the universe. How it works, how it can be controlled, and how it can be saved. The problem, was Hiasyntar’Kulai had read all he could without suffering the damaging effects of its power. He opened the cover carefully with one of his talons. The blue light in the room intensified even more, sending actual tendrils out from the walls of the chamber to flow into him as he scanned the first two pages.

A green vapor rose up from the book and then formed into a thin, string-like column of light that waved and danced under the dragon’s breath. A spark emerged at the top of the string of light. A second string, this one of violet light, extended out. A third one soon appeared and glowed bright orange. Hiasyntar’Kulai watched in wonder as four more limbs grew out from the spark. Each of the limbs was a brilliant color, and they shifted and danced in a slow, methodical rhythm. He watched for several moments, admiring the sliver of self that The Aurorean had managed to put into The Infinium, and then he closed the book.

“We must find the addorite,” he said aloud. “Otherwise, I shall need to command the dwarves to reopen the mines, and that will only bring them death.”

Unbeknownst to him, the stirring in Roegudok Hall mentioned by Al’s father’s spirit, was created by the fact that the dwarves were already doing just that, unaware of the dangers it would bring down upon them.

*****

Al stood on the jagged balcony overlooking the plains to the north and took in a deep breath of fresh, mountain air. Between the many meetings over the last several days and then the rescue operation that yielded some treasure, but was ultimately unsuccessful in saving any of the miners in shaft thirty-seven, he needed out. The weight of the crown was wearing on him.

Roegudok Hall was bustling with activity now. There was a lot of restructuring to do. There were vacancies to fill in the court, trade routes that needed to be reestablished, and mining to be started. Al took in another breath of air.

There was also the accident.

He had to settle that, and quickly.

The only problem was he wasn’t sure what to do about it. The dwarves needed someone with more experience. They needed his father back. The dwarf king sighed and turned away from the view. He knew he had stayed out too long already. He needed to return to his duties. Chief among those duties was the riddle of the Wealth of Kings. If only he could solve that, then all of his problems would be solved.

That’s when Al saw him.

A stranger standing between Al and the doorway that led back into the mountain.

He wore a green, shimmering robe and carried a long spear. Al was put on edge immediately. How could a human have found him here? The tunnel was a secret that ran straight to this stone balcony from the king’s chambers. No dwarf would be caught dead allowing a human to walk around freely through those areas.

That could only mean one thing.

An assassin.

Al pulled his war ax and held it up. “You won’t find me an easy mark,” Al warned.