The Wealth of Kings (25 page)

Yet, the rest of the body was most definitely humanoid. The bare, extremely white skin rippled with human-like muscles. The demon held a spear in its right hand and an axe in its left. Al waited until it crossed the width of the chamber and disappeared behind another row of natural columns. Then he signaled for his warriors to charge with him.

They ran down the last portion of the hallway leading into the shrine with the crystal as quickly as they could. Al assumed that with the demon’s wolf head, it would hear them or smell them coming even if they tried to sneak along, so it was best to charge in and go for the crystal.

Unfortunately, he had misjudged the demon’s abilities.

The ten-foot-tall demon appeared out of thin air in the midst of the dwarves. He drove his spear through one of the warriors and cut another down with his axe. Al and the others turned in to attack, but he vanished and the dwarves caught only air.

“Spread out!” Al commanded. “Don’t bunch together and give it easy targets.”

The group spread out as much as they could in the tunnel and resumed following Al as he made a straight line for the blue crystal.

The demon appeared in the middle of the shrine and hurled his spear with great speed and accuracy. Al managed to jump aside, but the spear skewered two more hapless warriors and carried their bodies several yards to crash into the far wall of the tunnel behind them. The spear then reappeared in the demon’s hand and the middle head began to laugh.

Al narrowed his eyes on the demon and felt a rage boil inside of him. Without turning around, he commanded his warriors to each go for the crystal and leave the demon to him. A couple of them protested, but Al wasn’t listening. He ran for the demon.

The painfully white creature vanished only to reappear behind Al. The eagle head screeched loudly while the ogre head laughed and the wolf head snarled and growled ferociously. The dwarf king turned and ducked as the axe sailed over his head. He then jumped up and twirled to the side as the spear struck out at him. Al swung with his hammer, but the demon vanished before the weapon could connect. The momentum of the attack caused Al to spin and lose his balance. He stumbled out toward the wall, but quickly regained his footing and turned to run toward the shrine once more.

The demon appeared in the center of the shrine again. This time it launched the spear and the axe. The dwarves all tried to dodge the flying weapons, but the axe caught one and the spear stabbed another. The weapons disappeared shortly thereafter and the demon vanished as the ogre head laughed again.

Al held up his hand, signaling for everyone to stop. He turned and commanded them all to swing as he aimed for the empty space in the middle of them all. Most of the warriors were confused by the order, so only two others lashed out.

The demon appeared, right where Al had predicted. He drove Murskain’s spike into the demon’s left thigh while the two who had followed his orders managed to score minor hits on the demon’s buttocks. The monster howled and vanished.

“Now throw!” Al shouted. He turned and launched his weapon with all of his might toward the crystal. This time, all of the other dwarves obeyed. Spears, swords, and axes flew through the air. The demon reappeared where he had the previous two times. Murskain pummeled the demon in the chest, while the other weapons pelted the creature with varying degrees of success. The wolf head howled, the eagle head screamed, and the ogre head shouted in an unintelligible language.

Al and the others charged into the shrine, fully expecting the demon to retreat.

Again, they misjudged it.

A blinding light tore through the shrine and a deafening thunder shook the walls and floor around them. Dust fell from the ceiling as cracks split the stone. When the light faded, there stood three giant creatures, not one. A massive ogre, a black wolf larger than any of the lurkers in the upper chambers, and a gryphon.

The wolf lunged in and seized a dwarf in its massive maw, crunching down on the armor and shaking its head violently. The gryphon launched its attack second, pinning two dwarves against the stone wall and biting at them with its beak.

Two dwarves charged the ogre, scooping up their weapons from the floor and attacking the massive creature’s legs. It took the cuts and stabs, staggering back toward the spring of purple liquid. It stumbled into it, flailing its arms as the dwarves finished it off.

Al rushed in and picked up Murskain. He then turned on the wolf and delivered a massive hammer-strike to the creature’s ribs. The bones boke, snapping loudly and bending inward. The wolf collapsed on the ground and Al and the others were able to finish it off without much more hassle.

The dwarf king barely heard the flapping wings before a tremendous force knocked him onto his back. He bounced across the stone floor, skidding to a stop just a few feet away from the stone altar below the blue crystal.

“Go for the crystal, Sire! We’ll handle this,” one of the warriors shouted.

Al looked up to see the dwarves battling the gryphon. He then glanced down to his chest and saw an open gash across the outer layer of his armor. He wasn’t sure if the gryphon had managed to cut all the way through, but he also didn’t have the time to stop and evaluate it. He need to get the crystal, and then he had to find the nearest portal out of here.

Al jumped up to his feet and ran to the altar. He clambered atop and used Murskain to hook the hovering crystal and bring it down. It wasn’t as large as he had thought, just the size of an acorn squash, but it hummed vibrantly with incredible energy. Just touching it invigorated his body and soul. He gripped the middle of Murskain’s shaft in his right hand and tucked the crystal into his left elbow.

He started running out of the shrine.

Two more dwarves fell by the gryphon. One had his head bitten off, helmet and all, and the other was cut down by the large talons of the gryphon’s front feet. That left only three dwarves fighting the creature. They did their best, hacking and stabbing at it, but Al knew they would not be able to defeat it. The gryphon was so fast and nimble that they had yet to land any hits on the creature.

He ran past, mentally thanking his warriors for their sacrifice.

He heard the gryphon screech out an ear-splitting cry and then a cacophony of metal crashing against stone erupted behind Al. He knew at least one more dwarf had been killed, but he couldn’t stop to look back now.

He hooked around the left and sprinted toward the curve leading to the main tunnel. As the light from the shrine dimmed, the crystal he held glowed brightly, lighting the way for him. In a matter of seconds he rounded the next corner and then made the difficult run up the ascending tunnel.

When Al reached the half-way point, a lurker came around the entrance and reared up on its hind legs, snarling and hissing at Al. The dwarf king prepared to launch a savage blow with Murskain, but fortunately a group of seven dwarves tackled the beast a moment later and put it down before Al reached the top of the tunnel.

“My king, this way!” Benbo shouted.

Al was beyond happy to see the commander. The seven dwarves formed a wedge and began sprinting off to the right. The scene around them was not a pretty one. Lurkers and demons swarmed the area. Fireballs and blasts of lightning were zipping through the air. Dwarves were tirelessly fighting through it all, cutting down as many enemies as they could.

A lurker lunged at Al, but one of the seven dwarves with Benbo jumped between them and took the creature’s attack for the king. Al had to turn away as the lurker ripped into the dwarf and sent blood spraying out over the floor.

The wedge reformed, tightening due to the loss of a member and pulling Al closer into the center of the protective wall.

Shouts and cries went up through the remaining ranks of warriors as they realized that Al had the crystal. So too, did the demons shriek and wail when they noticed it. In seconds, lurkers and demons were pressing in toward the wedge.

“To the king!” Benbo shouted. “To the king!”

Dwarves did their best to consolidate around the path that Benbo was leading Al over, but it wasn’t flawless. A lurker leapt over several dwarves and grabbed the dwarf right beside Al, leaving a gaping hole in the wedge. A moment later, a flying demon of some sort shot through the gap in the wedge and grabbed at the crystal. Al smacked the creature in the face with the top of his warhammer. Blood shot out from the monster’s skull and it flopped to the ground as Al wrenched the crystal free and kept it safely tucked in his arm.

“Here,” Benbo shouted to Al. “Just a few more yards!”

Al looked through the crowd of thrashing bodies to see a faint, pink glow upon the ground. They had almost reached an addorite mound.

The king knew that if he crossed through the portal before the others, they would be trapped in the alternate plane, and that meant they would be slain by these monstrous abominations. He couldn’t have that. “Retreat!” he shouted. “Retreat! Get back into our world!”

Al smiled when he saw two dwarves nearest to the mound leap over it and disappear back to Terramyr. Others gauged how close the king was to the mound before jumping into portals themselves. Benbo, and the other dwarves in the wedge were not about to abandon Al, though. They fought off attacks and pressed forward.

A terrible shriek erupted in the air and Al couldn’t help but turn around.

He could see the dark outline of the gryphon flying through the darkness. It shrieked again, but this time there was a force in the scream that knocked Al to the ground. His ears stung and his head rang sharply. A muffled voice called to him and several hands reached down to pull him up. Al shook his head, barely able to cling to his hammer and the crystal as he struggled to make his feet work. His eyes flicked around and noticed that many of the others had been knocked to the ground as well, including lurkers and demons.

The gryphon was closing in fast. Al shook off the sluggishness and forced his feet to move.

Benbo was shouting something, but Al couldn’t make it out. The commander pulled and tugged on Al’s arm. Another dwarf grabbed Al’s other arm, and a third pushed him from behind.

The mound was three yards away.

The gryphon was diving, talons out and beak open as it screeched once more. Al turned to look at Benbo. The commander yanked Al onward and then pointed his sword toward the gryphon and leapt directly into its path.

There was a powerful force that lifted Al from his feet and propelled him forward. He flew through the air, landing hard on the stone floor and losing his breath in the process. His lungs flattened, sticking together and burning for air as Al gasped and sucked for breath. The crystal fell out of his arm and he lost his grip on Murskain.

Something grabbed him and lifted him up. His hearing was still muffled, but his senses were starting to come back to him as he fought against his enemy, swinging his arms and striking out with his fists.

Voices called out to him, but he couldn’t make out the words.

Then, his lungs reopened and air flooded into them. He made a horrid gasping sound and everything started to make sense again. He realized there was light all around him. It was then that he knew what had happened. The dwarves protecting him had thrown him through the portal to get him home.

He looked around and saw a group of ten dwarven warriors standing around him. They had been the ones who had picked him up. Al turned around and saw the crystal lying on the ground. The mission had been accomplished.

The dwarf king then looked back to the mound of addorite. Benbo was still inside, as were so many others. Al turned and reached for the crystal. He scooped it up and started for the mound again. The other dwarves swooped in and tried to block his path.

“No, my king!” one shouted.

“You can’t reopen the portal!” another added.

“You’ll kill us all!” a third yelled.

Someone wrapped their arms around Al’s legs and the dwarf king fell to his knees, just a few short feet away from the mound. Tears filled his eyes and he called out for Benbo.

Year 3,711 Age of Demigods, Late Winter.

2
nd
year of the reign of Aldehenkaru’hktanah Sit’marihu, 13
th
King of Roegudok Hall.

A familiar tug came at Al’s armor. He looked down to see his cavedog. He reached down and pet the scaly lizard.

“Your cavedog has been loyally waiting for you this whole time,” one of the guards said.

“How long were we gone?” Al asked.

“Just under two months,” the warrior replied. “I came in only after these others came back from the portal and sent a runner up to me.”

“Have you been here long?” Al asked.

One of the other warrior’s shrugged. “We came back through the tunnel a couple days ago.”

Al nodded and glanced back to the mound of addorite. “It was a struggle for me to get back through,” he said. “Come, we should tell the others that it’s over. I’ll go on ahead and report back to Hiasyntar’Kulai. Bring everyone up from the mines, let’s take the next week to rest and mourn for our fallen kin, and leave the mine for a later time.”

Al hopped onto his cavedog and rode up to the mithril gate.

The cavedog seemed as excited as he felt while he held the blue crystal in his arms. The lizard zipped along faster than Al had ever ridden it before. As he came within one hundred yards of the gate, the other guards began shouting.

“It’s the king! It’s the king!”

“He’s alive!”

“Open the gates!” Al called out.

The mithril portcullis was raised quickly and Al rushed through, holding the large, blue crystal high over his head for all to see. The miners and guards clapped and cheered as he rode past at a blinding speed, riding straight for Kijik, who was dutifully manning one of the large ballista launchers.

“Hail!” Kijik shouted.

“Hail to the king!” others echoed.

Al stopped his cavedog and held the blue crystal out to Kijik.

Kijik furrowed his brow and reluctantly held his hands out to receive the blue crystal. “Why do you give this to me?”

Al placed it into Kijik’s hands and looked the Commander of the Home Guard in the eyes. “You command the Home Guard. That means your highest responsibility is to protect Roegudok Hall. This crystal creates a magical field called the Mystinen. I cannot take it up into the main hall, for it would change the infrastructure of the mountain over time. I also can’t give it to the Ancients, for it would harm them. So, I give it to you. I want you and your men to create an iron cage. Line the inside and outside layers with mithril and then bolt the cage down to the wall right there,” Al said as he pointed to the wall behind Kijik. “Until the power fades from this crystal, we can continue to mine addorite, and as long as the crystal remains safely guarded inside the metal cage, none shall ever again be able to open the portal back to where the demons came from.”

“I understand, Sire,” Kijik said. He turned and began barking orders. “You heard the king. Bring me iron, steel, and mithril. We are going to make a cage for this!” Kijik held the crystal high in the air and the others cheered.

Al clapped Kijik on the back. “I will see you tonight in the main hall.”

Kijik nodded eagerly and proclaimed, “We should make a feast.”

The dwarf king then mounted his cavedog and made haste through the tunnels.

If the cheering had been loud and joyous in the tunnels, it was deafening when he reached the main hall. The entire marketplace came to a halt as merchants and craftsmen stopped to praise the king. He raised Murskain high over head as he urged his cavedog onward toward the exit tunnel and shouted repeatedly, “It’s over! The demons are gone!”

As he drew near the gates at the end of the three-mile-long tunnel, his heart was bursting with pride. His excitement amplified as the gates opened and the light of a later winter morning greeted him. He rode out and didn’t even mind the cold as he leapt down from his cavedog and walked toward Hiasyntar’Kulai.

The great dragon raised its head and smiled. “The king has returned,” he said joyfully.

“I have the crystal,” Al said. “I have ordered it to be kept in a metal box near Demon Spring so we can continue to mine in the depths for addorite and the Mystinen shall remain stable.”

“Wise,” Hiasyntar’Kulai commented.

Al bowed low and then set the head of his warhammer down in the snow. “How long will the crystal remain active?”

Hiasyntar’Kulai emitted a throaty growl and then turned his head to a slight angle. “In the alternate plane, it would have survived for eons, or possibly forever since time is so much different compared to time as we experience it. However, even here it should last for a few hundred years.”

“Well then,” Al smirked, “I should be able to mine all the addorite you could possibly want.”

“It is well,” Hiasyntar’Kulai replied. “Now, go inside. Feast and celebrate with your people. A new era of prosperity has begun. I dare say that the glory of Roegudok Hall shall be brightest under the reign of Aldehenkaru’hktanah Sit’marihu.”

Al bowed low, and then he bade the Father of the Ancients farewell. He turned and mounted his cavedog once more and entered the long tunnel leading up to the main hall. The feasting lasted for forty days and nights, ceasing only when the first flowers of spring began to poke through the melting snow.

It was the beginning of the third year of the reign of Aldehenkaru’hktanah Sit’marihu, and the dwarves of Roegudok Hall had never had so many reasons to be joyous since the beginning of time.