BACK THROUGH THE TUNNEL
August 28/29
The Dragonfly neared the Silver Gate and Electrum leaned over the rail. He swallowed the last drop of tea from the acorn cup and dropped it into the water. It bobbed on the surface. Mist from the Silver Gate closed around the ship turning everything into vague, blurry shapes.
He turned to sit down. A pollywog stumbled over the basket and staggered against him. A bundle strapped to his back thumped against Electrum and shoved him into railing.
“Sorry,” the sprite mumbled, and disappeared into the mist.
Electrum felt along the deck and found the basket. He pushed it against the railing and put one arm protectively around it. When they emerged into the Silver Realm, the deck was filled with pollywogs, but none of them were carrying bundles. Other ships emerged from the gate and the captains called to one another as they headed into port.
Electrum picked up the basket, and gold sparkles fell from the handle. Must have fallen off the bundle, though that seemed untidy. Everyone is in such a hurry, he thought.
He strolled toward the palace. Once under the trees, he stepped into the shadows under an overhanging bush. All was quiet. He took off his disguise and stuffed it into the bag. He was ready to climb into his hammock.
Electrum woke late the next morning and looked around the barren room. It was much the same as when he had moved in years ago. Except for the bag and the basket, it could have been anyone’s room.
He grabbed the flask out of the window. It was warm in his hand and seemed to be getting heavier each morning. He placed it on the empty shelf and covered it with the lily petals. They were wilted and turning brown, but they still blocked the sunlight.
He took one of Mirta’s packages out of the basket. Breakfast. Amber’s letter was nestled between the jars of thought dust.
He dressed while munching on the pastry roll scattering crumbs everywhere. Only two days left to tie up loose ends. He pulled on his hat and checked items off a list in his head.
Scroll with instructions for using the changeling plant. Mixing basin. Amber’s bag to carry everything. Pack the few remaining items, including the hammock, and ship them out. Deliver letter to Silverthorn.
Gently he pulled out the letter, dropped the cloth back over the jars, and hurried out to find Silverthorn. He whipped around the corner and crashed into Sterling’s solid form. His feet slipped. As he fell, he threw up his arm cracking his elbow against the metal breastplate. Pain shot up his shoulder, and he landed on the floor in an undignified heap. He glanced around for the letter. Sterling was picking it up.
“In a hurry this morning, Grand Pookah?”
Electrum struggled to his feet. Still a little off balance, he reached for the letter. Sterling caught his arm and steadied him.
“It’s a little perilous working with children. Always creating a stir and often irresponsible. Practical discipline is what makes the difference.” Sterling turned the letter over and ran his finger across Amber’s seal. “Unfortunately part of growing for some sprites is having a few fantasies. It’s a shame they have to experience heartbreak, but perhaps it’s the only way they learn the realities of the world.”
“Like discipline and respect for other’s property and privacy?”
“Privacy is all well and good when it doesn’t interfere with the security of the realm. I tried to get the King to cancel this ridiculous eclipse celebration. It only weakens both realms. All my guards will be on duty though.”
“Guards? What kind of trouble are you expecting?”
“One never knows, but it’s my job to be prepared. As a practical sprite, I haven’t read all the old stories and don’t possess an active imagination. You’re a Grand Pookah. Maybe you could give me some insight on what unnatural things might occur during an eclipse.”
Electrum frowned. “I don’t recall any stories of unnatural happenings.” He reached for the letter, but Sterling turned, moving it out of range.
“Some think it is unnatural for gold and silver sprites to communicate. One could reasonably argue that trade between the worlds is unnatural.” He held out the letter.
Electrum snatched it and the guard chuckled.
“Deep thoughts for this morning,” Sterling said. “Your hat is slipping.” With one finger he tapped the brim and a thin stream of dust slid off the side.
Electrum stepped back. “If you’ll excuse me. I would have thought you would still be conducting morning lessons for the prince.”
Sterling smiled. “You seem to have overslept. Class was over sometime ago. He seemed quite eager to finish his drills today. I believe he was headed to the library. Spending quite a bit of time there lately.”
“History and customs are also an intricate part of his education.” Electrum tried to step around the guard, but Sterling smoothly sidestepped into his path.
“Perhaps your influence is stronger than you realize,” Sterling said as he looked down at the shimmering thought dust on the floor.
Electrum dragged his foot through the dust and hurried down the hall. He could feel Sterling watching him as he entered the library. It was a relief to let the door tapestry fall into place and escape from his view. The room was dim. Someone was bent over the table reading a scroll by the light of a partially shielded glowstone lamp.
“Silverthorn?”
The sprite looked up and waved him closer as he closed the scroll.
Electrum glanced at the title. Eclipses From the Beginning of the Gates. “Studying the thoughts of the ancients?”
Silverthorn slid the scroll aside. “I’m more interested in your thoughts.”
“Some sage words of wisdom from your old teacher?” He was flattered.
“I’d be interested in anything you have to say,” Silverthorn said. He leaned forward and whispered, “But I was referring to your thought dust for the boy.”
Electrum felt a twinge of disappointment, but forced a smile. “Completed and packaged.”
The prince relaxed. “Did you visit the apartment? Did my crate arrive?”
“Yes, it arrived while I was there.”
“I wasn’t sure what all I would need.”
“Apparently you packed everything. It took four husky sprites to carry it in.”
Did everything fit in the apartment?”
“I didn’t unpack it. I didn’t even open it. You’ll need to get used to doing things for yourself, unless you’re having second thoughts. It’s not too late to change your mind.”
Silverthorn looked surprised. “I wasn’t expecting you to wait on me. I just wondered if the apartment was to your liking. Anything you picked out will be fine with me.”
Electrum wasn’t sure if his annoyance was with Silverthorn or that he just felt unsettled. Maybe he was too old for this drastic a change, but he was in too deep now.
He dropped the letter on the table. “A love note from Amber. I have things to settle before tomorrow night. Let me know if she’s backing out.” Electrum left the prince staring at him dumbfounded.
He had only gone a few steps down the hall when he heard Sterling’s voice coming from around the corner. Not wanting to encounter the captain again he paused to listen.
“I’m not exactly sure what we’re looking for,” Sterling said. “Just anything unusual. I could only get vague ideas from the thought dust. The pookah smeared it leaving the ideas jumbled.”
“What kind of ideas?”
The voice had the timber of youth and strength with a touch of arrogance. Tanner, Electrum thought.
“Eclipse, secret plan, sealed jars, a changeling.”
“What do you mean, a changeling?”
“I can’t be certain, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it was something from the Tween World.”
Electrum fumed. How dare he shift through my thought dust. Does he think I’m a threat to the kingdom? Then he shivered as he realized he probably was a threat to the kingdom. He was after all helping the prince defect.
&nb
sp; “I should have kept the letter,” Sterling said.
“The prince is in the library.” Tanner’s voice was smooth and soothing in a cunning way. “You’re the Captain of the Guard. You have the right to claim information that affects the security of the realm.”
“You’re right. We need to know what that merchant girl is planning.”
“If you can’t read the letter, perhaps the Grand Pookah could share more of his thoughts.”
Sterling’s laugh infuriated Electrum, but he knew he was no match for the guard. Not waiting to hear more, he ducked back into the library and dropped the door tapestry into place.
“Sterling,” he hissed, but the warning fell on an empty room. A small pool of lamplight lay on the open scroll that Silverthorn had been reading, but the prince was gone. Slipperier than a river stone these days, Electrum thought. He hadn’t come through the door. The only other way out was the tunnel.
He grabbed the scroll and his eyes darted around the room. Sterling must not see what Silverthorn had been reading. He shoved it onto the bottom shelf and put a generic lesson plan in its place on the table. Footsteps were coming down the hall.
With trembling hands he grasped the rope handle and yanked open the trapdoor. Bounding down the steps to the platform he lowered the door over his head. Seconds later the floor creaked under heavy feet and he heard muffled voices.
“Lessons on commerce,” Sterling snarled. The scroll rattled as it was dragged across the table. “Bah! His time would be better spent on refining his skills with a sword and bow.”
The floor vibrated and the door sagged as Sterling moved, then all was still.
Electrum hesitated. Had they left or were they waiting? Although the swinging steps made his stomach jittery, the tunnels were the only other way out. His jaw tightened. If Sterling didn’t know about the trapdoor, he wasn’t going to pop out and show it to him.
He placed his foot on the first hanging step and spread his wings for balance. They bumped against the walls with a soft brushing noise. He cringed and listened. Lamplight trickled across the crack.
Gripping the rails he began his descent. By the time he reached the dirt floor, his muscles were stiff and he took a moment to stretch his wings. The sigh of relief caught in his throat as a beam of light from above skittered over the walls.
The ropes creaked. Someone heavy began to descend the steps. Electrum dashed down the tunnel, the dirt floor absorbing his footsteps. Silverthorn must have come this way, but there was no sign of him.
When he reached the small room, it was empty and the door was bolted as before. A quick look through the window showed sprites in the storage yard stacking empty crates against the fence. Shielded from their view, Silverthorn crouched behind a crate in the shadow of an overhang.
Two of Sterling’s guards landed in the yard, and marched toward the door. Electrum held his breath until they passed the prince’s hiding place. The guards were only feet away from the door when Silverthorn silently slipped out behind them into the open. Gracefully he floated up and flew away over the fence.
Muttered threats and sounds of clinking armor drifted down from the passage above. A loud crack of splitting wood was followed by an angry yell.
Electrum ducked back from the window and scanned the room for a sign of the hidden door. As his eyes searched the walls, one section shifted slightly in and out of focus. He plunged through the opening and fled up the dim side tunnel.
Remembering the crate, he slowed his steps. Shouting and thumping echoed from behind. Cringing he rounded the corner. The noises faded. Chips set into the walls at random intervals gave the tunnel a dreamlike glow.
The crate was gone, but there was an outline in the dirt where it had set. The ground was softer here and several sets of booted footprints led down the tunnel. They were the first prints he had seen. Either made by fat sprites or they were carrying something heavy.
The slope became steeper and he hoped there was a way out at the end. He didn’t like the idea of meeting Sterling down here alone. Bits of rock began appearing on the soft walls and soon the dirt had disappeared completely.
When he ran his hand over the rock, it left his fingers moist. A drop of water fell on his nose. Squinting, he looked up. The ceiling was stone, veined with cracks where water droplets collected.
If his sense of direction was not confused, he was heading toward the harbor and might already be under the river.
The tunnel leveled out. He shivered in the dampness. With his next step his foot slid forward on a smooth surface and he squeaked in surprise. The dirt floor had changed to wet flagstones. Twisting and flapping his wings in an awkward dance he managed to keep his balance.
For a moment he stood listening, but all he heard was his own heavy breathing. The skin on his back prickled with anticipation. At any moment Sterling could appear behind him.
He minced across the slippery floor toward an arched doorway where a rainbow of light shimmered on the floor like spilled water. He stepped through into a vaulted chamber.
This room was brighter than the tunnel. Colored lights traced an intricate design on the domed ceiling, but it wasn’t a pattern he understood. The lights emerged from the rounded top of a pedestal that stood like a tall mushroom in the center of the room. Clear crystals were positioned at intervals on its base and seemed to be collecting light from glowstones in the wall.
There was something odd about the wall. Some sections seemed to be crumbling and the stone had a strange texture. It was riddled with holes, and some were filled with glowstones.
It tugged at his conscientiousness like something familiar he should remember. Then, like waking from a dream, he chuckled. The rough texture was a picture cut into the soft stone. It was worn and faded and the glowstones distracted from the image, but his eyes scanned over the picture picking out details. It gradually came into focus. The holes made it look moth eaten, but the scene was the same one Mirta had used for her tapestry.
He turned to look at the rest of the room and stopped in amazement. There on the other wall hung Mirta’s tapestry. It was finished and glittering with glowstone chips. He stared with mouth open. Hadn’t it dissolved with the Salamander? How did it get here?