The Dragon God

  The rat tried to change back to its original size but was unable to do so, backed into the corner of the confined area. It was desperate to get away. Rozelle moved in for the kill. Her senses were heightened and she could smell fear. It didn’t take long for her to swipe the rodent a few times with her paw and then grab hold of it with her teeth at the back of its neck. She tasted blood and felt its body go limp.

  A sleek black cat emerged from the opening that led back into the storeroom with the rat dangling from its mouth. Skath and Myers pointed their swords. Everyone was speechless, waiting to see what was going to happen.

  Rozelle laid the rodent on the ground. It suddenly materialized back to the two-foot tall creature they had originally seen. Rozelle then shape shifted back to her gnome stature and joined Trillius, proudly clutching his arm.

  “What is that thing?” Captain Elsbeth questioned.

  “It’s called a devling,” Raina responded.

  “A what? I’ve never heard of such a thing. Why is it on my ship?”

  “It is following us,” Raina said. “Devlings are used by mystics. Apparently, someone is keeping an eye on us.”

  “What are we to do with the gnomes?” Skath asked the captain.

  She eyed them carefully before responding and then walked closer.

  “What were your intentions, little-ones?”

  Trillius quickly chimed, “We overheard Raina speaking of ‘the Pearl of the Deep’ and thought we could…help.”

  “When did you hear this?” Raina questioned.

  “Well, before we even came aboard this ship of course, otherwise, how would we have known which one to hide out on?” Trillius smiled, thinking his ploy had worked. He looked around the room confidently at each of the heroes.

  “Put them in the brig,” Captain ordered.

  Trillius’ expression changed to shock, “What? Surely helping you kill a spy should garner some leeway?”

  “I think not,” Skath said as he grabbed the gnome.

  “Captain Elsbeth, I wish to hire these gnomes,” Raina stated.

  Everyone froze and looked confused. El’Korr, Elsbeth, and Trillius simultaneously exclaimed, “What?!”

  “We are in need of someone of their caliber. Yasooma did not keep things out in the open, so I suspect we will need some skullduggery skills in acquiring the items.”

  Trillius stumbled over the words, “Yes, skull-doog-eerriie skills.” He then whispered to Rozelle, “What does that mean?”

  “She said you’re a thief.”

  “And now it seems it is a paying profession,” Trillius responded. He turned back, “I require ten percent value of all the loot we partake in on our little excavation.”

  A low growl alerted Trillius, and he turned to look over at El’Korr. The dwarf glared at the gnome and, to Trillius’s eyes, he seemed to resemble a fire giant with his orange hair and beard ablaze. “Or whatever you deem is fair,” his voice a higher pitch.

  Captain Elsbeth began to walk out of the hold, “As you wish Raina, but I ask that all items are returned to my crew and any further ‘skull-doogery’ that happens aboard my ship will be your responsibility.”

  Raina nodded in acknowledgement of Elsbeth’s demands. Skath and Myers followed their captain and headed back to the deck. Xan, who had kept his charge out of the way until he knew it was safe, now allowed Lufra to enter the room to get a better look at the creature and the gnomes.

  There was a short span of silence as everyone looked each other over.

  “I’m Silly Samuel and this is Rozelle.”

  “You look familiar to me,” Xan professed while scrutinizing Trillius.

  “Seen one gnome, seen ’em all,” he laughed.

  “A druid, I presume?” Raina said.

  “Why yes I am,” Rozelle proudly stepped forward.

  “You were very lucky to take on a devling by yourself and live to tell about it.”

  “If you say so. It tried to revert back to its original shape but it was too small of an area. I guess it was stuck as a rat.”

  “Well, I don’t know about you all, but I sure could use some fresh air,” Trillius began to walk toward the door.

  “Where do you think you’re going, Trillius?” Xan asked, emphasizing the gnome’s true name.

  He turned back to the elf and began to respond to the question, raising his hand with his index finger in the air. “Well, I—” Trillius held his gaze and froze in place as he realized he was caught. “Dammit!” he brought his hand back down, taking in a deep breath and then exhaling. “Rozelle, maybe one day you will understand what it is like being famous. It’s lonely at the top.”

  “This must be the place the old villager woman spoke about,” Dulgin announced.

  They studied the slightly tilted granite column, towering above the heroes, adorned with carvings of dwarves and ancient symbols. The old marker stood at the base of a sheer-faced cliff. Prairie weeds dotted the area while fragments of sharp chipped rock littered the ground.

  “Do you know what it means, Master Dulgin?”

  He studied it for a moment and then said, “It’s old.”

  Spilf scoffed, “That’s it? I thought you knew a lot of history.”

  Dulgin clenched his fist, “I know that you are going to be history in a second, Stubby.”

  “Spilf, have Lester and Ross check it over,” Bridazak jumped in.

  “I don’t think there is anything here, but it’s worth a try.” Spilf withdrew his simple leather wrap and revealed his rusty thieving tools. Lester and Ross were once a sacred secret to the Dak, but since their heroic escapade with the Orb, Spilf had shared the mystery with his comrades, including ‘Grumpy,’ as Lester and Ross had titled Dulgin. The brothers appear not as rusted items, but instead truly as magnificent magical instruments, pure bronze in color with enlarged round eyes, but only to whomever wields them. Lester and Ross blinked often throughout their use, adding to their innocent appearance, as they telepathically linked minds with their owner.

  “Hello Master, so good to see you again,” Lester chimed in his metallic sounding, slightly echoing voice.

  Ross’ greeting was high pitched and squeaky, “Hi Spilf, I just had an amazing dream.”

  “You can dream?” Spilf quickly formed the words inside his mind.

  “Yep, and it was a good one.”

  There was an awkward silence for a few seconds before Lester yelled, “Well, what was it?”

  “What was what?”

  “Your dream, you pick-head!”

  “Oh, you do care about me after all, Lester! I knew it even though you said awful things to me those hundreds of years ago when we were trapped inside that scary coffer in the lair of—”

  “Would you shut up and just tell us your dream for a lock’s sake.”

  “Yeah, okay, the dream. Well, it had a beautiful golden lock that gleamed my reflection and I don’t know where you were Lester, but I was in charge this time and I had this mechanism figured out. It had never been opened by anyone, as it was legendary. It was constructed inside a monstrous stone door. Come to think of it, I can’t remember who my master was during this dream. Oh well, it doesn’t matter cause I opened it and I was the hero.”

  “What was on the other side of the door?” Spilf asked.

  “Beats me, but wasn’t that a good one, Lester?”

  “Yeah, great. Remind me not to ask you about your dreams next time.”

  “Okay, I will.”

  Lester changed the subject, “Master, what can we pick for you today?”

  “I want you both to try to find something hidden amongst this old dwarven marker.”

  “Easy enough. Okay Ross, let’s do our thing.”

  “Oh no, not dwarves,” cried Ross.

  Spilf maneuvered his magical tools from top to bottom and circled the ancient pillar, until his trusted items alerted him by revealing hidden writing. The mysterious gold lettering running straight down the frame of the granite, materialized before h
is eyes. “Can you read it?” Spilf questioned.

  “Yep, we can read it, but are you sure that is a good idea?” Lester inquired.

  “Yeah, reading the ‘Grumpy’ language is never a good idea,” Ross added.

  “Guys, I need to find my parents, and this could help us.”

  “Master, I’m sure it is not important. Dwarves are barbaric and brutal, probably a warning to stay away from their gold.”

  “Yeah, they are a scary race, just look at Grumpy, he has that nasty scar on his face, you know, the kind that you just can’t stop staring at but you also want to look away. Oh no, I’m looking at it now. He has me under his ugly web of ugliness, Lester. Help me.”

  “Just read it!” Spilf charged.

  Lester and Ross quickly mumbled through the guttural language, but nothing happened.

  “Master, I detect an enchantment which requires a dwarf to speak it aloud.”

  “Lester, how do you know that?” Ross asked.

  “I’m using my pick-brain, Brother.”

  “Wow, I’m impressed.”

  Spilf ignored Ross and Lester’s bantering and turned toward his awaiting friends. “There is a dwarven language magically hidden, but they think it needs to be read aloud by a dwarf.”

  Everyone turned to face Dulgin. He quickly put up his hands, “I don’t see nothin to read.”

  “I have an idea,” Bridazak smiled.

  “I never like those kind of smiles you give,” Dulgin responded.

  “Well, it has everything to do with you, my dwarven friend.”

  “That is what I was afraid of. What is this idea?”

  “Well, you are going to hold onto Lester and Ross so you can see the writing and read it to everyone.”

  “What did he just say?” Lester charged.

  “Spilf, send us away, I can’t hear this. I want to go back to my golden lock dream.”

  “What happens when I hold those things?” Dulgin cautiously asked.

  “It is harmless. You will have a telepathic link with Lester and Ross. It will only take a minute and then you can give them back to Spilf.”

  “It better be harmless. I don’t like all this magical shenanigans.”

  “Spilf, please gift Lester and Ross to Dulgin.”

  Spilf heard the crying and screaming pleas from his trusted picks and looked forward to the interesting encounter forthcoming. “Dulgin, take care of them,” he said as he handed them over. The mind link faded with their combined yelling of, “No!” as he passed them to the dwarf.

  Dulgin’s mind instantly flooded with the echoing cries of Lester and Ross inside his head. The once rusty, non-impressive tools now shifted to the illustrious crafted animated items only revealed to the one who owned them. The oversized eyeballs of the picks stared in pure horror at the situation as they gazed upon the burly, red-bearded giant.

  He spoke aloud and held them out away from himself as if the distance would lessen their voices, “Keep it down ya blundering fools!”

  “Use your mind Dulgin,” Spilf said.

  “He doesn’t have a mind, Spilf!” Ross yelled.

  “Ross, Spilf can’t hear us, we now have a new master, the dwarf.”

  “We are doomed, Lester!”

  “Would you two pick-squeaks shut your metal mouths. I don’t like this anymore than you, so let’s get this over with.”

  “Lester, did Grumpy, I mean—Master, say something intelligent?”

  “Yes Ross. Let’s do our job and show him what he needs to see. Master, move us closer to the stone structure so we can show you our discovery.”

  Dulgin did as instructed, holding the tiny tools as best as possible in his ruddy and battle-hardened hands. Bridazak, Spilf, and Abawken smiled and nudged each other at the sight of him wielding Lester and Ross in an awkward fashion, unaccustomed to such items of finesse.

  Dulgin saw the dwarven writing flare to life before him and then read it aloud, “Mey sheiz temmey denohrt tasheiz burs lhaz kelohrt markul hallazku sekk frukat.” The rest of them waited for the translation, but Dulgin seemed shocked by what he read.

  “What does it mean, Master Dwarf?”

  He looked at each of them with concern and said, “My crest will announce my arrival, I’m a symbol in battle and I defend all who seek shelter.”

  “It’s a riddle,” Lester announced inside Dulgin’s mind.

  “I love riddles,” Ross followed.

  Dulgin mentally responded, “It is not a riddle to dwarves.” He then handed them back to Spilf.

  “That could be a lot of different things,” Bridazak said. “Any ideas?” he looked around.

  “Maybe a flag or a sword?” Abawken ventured a guess.

  “Or maybe armor,” Spilf added.

  “It’s a shield,” Dulgin announced, matter of factly.

  Everyone nodded as it made sense. “This is an ancient dwarven proverb, but only used by the frost dwarves of old,” Dulgin continued.

  “Here we go. It is history time once again,” Spilf said.

  “This is not just any shield my friends, this is the Shield. We call it te Sond.”

  As he spoke the name in his native tongue, the cliff rumbled and began to shake, first gently and then more violently. Rocks tumbled down, bouncing off boulders and impacting one against the other with a clattering of stone against stone.

  The group moved quickly from the area, covering their heads for protection.

  After much shaking and buffeting, the cliff-side groaned loudly and the air was filled with the sound of granite grinding as the bluff wall ripped apart and formed an opening revealing a small pathway of rough stairs leading into the mountain.

  Everyone watched, dumbstruck by the magical feat they had just witnessed.

  “I guess you figured out the answer to the riddle, Master Dulgin. And it looks like we have a new direction to head.”

  “You don’t understand,” Dulgin stated, “This is the Shield, the same location that my brother El’Korr is bringing his army to.”

  “Are you certain?”

  “Bridazak, this is the Shield.”

  “Then it appears our fates are entwined more than we thought.”

  Spilf peered into the open cliff. Cold air embraced the adventuring dak. Rough cut stone steps went up beyond his vision, “Where does this go?” his voice echoed.

  “Up, ya blundering fool. Let’s go.”

  The heroes gathered on the deck when the crow’s nest called out, “Pirate’s Belly ahead!”

  Their ship sailed onward toward a massive, sheer faced cliff wall. Protruding volcanic rock caught incoming swells of water that washed over the top and then receded back to start the process all over again. Elsbeth stood resolute, holding the wheel as her vessel continued to glide forward. El’Korr exchanged a concerned look with Xan, who raised an eyebrow.

  “Do you know something we don’t?” Xan asked his sister, noticing she seemed amused.

  “It appears we will be going through it,” she stated calmly, not taking her eye off the spectacle.

  Rondee rubbed his eyes and blinked frantically, and then positioned himself between his King and the impending disaster. El’Korr asked, “How are you going to protect me from this, my friend?” Rondee shrugged.

  “Half sails!” Skath ordered. The crew moved quickly and efficiently and the speed of the ship lessened. Elsbeth turned the wheel slightly and moments before an impact, the optical illusion of the jutting cliff was revealed; the slight shift in angle unveiled an enormous cave entrance beyond. The hidden cavern swallowed the ship and the bright blue sea quickly transformed into a turquoise green. The sounds of the open ocean faded away.

  Trillius yelled from the railing of A Pinch of Luck, “Trillius has arrived!” His voice echoed off the walls. Trillius glanced back and was startled to find El’Korr standing right behind him, arms crossed over his armored barrel chest, and glaring at him. The gnome flashed a fake smile and then went to stand next to Rozelle, as if she would protect hi
m somehow.

  Fingers of light from small openings above reached down and touched the water, revealing the deep colors of the calm ocean. The humongous pirate harbor catered to over forty docked or anchored ships of various sizes. Most impressive were the intricate docks themselves—multi-level platforms and walkways weaved back and forth along the rock wall of the cave, rope and wood, appearing a chaotic, jumbled mess, but actually quite functional, connected it all together. Small vessels littered the lower wards that jutted out just above the waterline, while large galleons lined tall stilted docks toward the center of the lair. Lit torches adorned the edges of the railed walkways. A glow permeated from deep within the cavern beyond the docks, and soon the heroes could see a main street that shot straight back into the rock.

  “That is the Alley,” Captain Elsbeth announced.

  “Looks like fun-land to me,” Trillius chimed.

  “Not a chance, Gnome,” El’Korr quickly retorted. “You are staying on board with me.”

  He pouted, “Great, fun-land just turned into boring-land.”

  The Alley was comprised of vendors, shops, taverns, and repair services; provisions could be found there to meet any traveler’s needs.

  “How is it that they allow you entrance, Captain? This is not a pirate ship,” Raina asked.

  “Let us just say, it can be good to know people.”

  Urlin Thoom, Elsbeth’s mystic, stepped out of his cabin and approached. He had not been seen for days as he studied his books within his quarters. “Are you ready, Captain?”

  “Yes, you may proceed.”

  He stepped back and closed his eyes as if going into meditation. Lifting his robed arms, he waved them around slowly and mumbled words of the arcane. Suddenly, everyone felt a noticeable shift in the movement of the galleon. It was now under Urlin’s control.

  “So this is how you dock instead of anchoring,” Xan stated.

  “Yes, I don’t like ferrying people back and forth. It makes things much easier.”

  The large ship slid into its spot along an open part of the railing. Elsbeth’s crew quickly threw out rope lines and tied it down, using the many bollards. Shouts and hollers from old friends began to spark up between other crews aboard neighboring ships and along the docks.