Eleanor (28 page)

“They’re taking her to their council. Someone is coming to collect us,” Will said eventually.

“What happened?” Conlan asked.

“The Dwarf with the sword stabbed her in the chest because she didn’t answer his questions quickly enough,” Will said. “It’s just a flesh wound, she’ll be fine,” he added hurriedly, hearing Conlan’s sharp intake of breath.

Will opened glazed, distant eyes. He stood up, swaying slightly; Eleanor stepped to his side, steadying him.

“It’s tricky being in two places at once,” he murmured.

Eleanor gasped as his meaning became clear. “You’re not just in Amelia’s head, are you? You’ve gone past her defences, you’re in her mind.”

“She couldn’t grasp the Dwarfish, so it was the only way I could talk for her. I need to concentrate on Amelia, so please make sure I don’t walk off any cliffs,” Will said, closing his eyes again. Eleanor wrapped a reassuring arm around his waist.

A while later, through the rocks at the base of the mountain, a lone figure walked towards them. Eleanor had expected a short, old, stocky, bearded man, with lots of armour and a battle-axe.
Conlan’s right, I watched too much TV.
The Dwarf walking towards them was young, clean-shaven and a little taller than she was. Shaggy, shoulder-length brown hair fell over sharp, brown eyes. His lean, toned body moved under a tight-fitting shirt and breeches, and a sword swung at his side.

“Conlan Baydon?” the Dwarf asked as he reached them. Conlan nodded. The Dwarf continued. “I am Remic, you and your party will come with me.”

Conlan gave Will’s expression of intense concentration a brief glance.
 

“Is Amelia well?” he asked Remic, glaring at him, daring him to lie.
 

Remic held his gaze with a steady one of his own for a moment before answering.
 

“The Avatar of Air is tired and sustained a slight injury while she was questioned, for which we are sorry, but she is otherwise well. I will take you to join her.” Satisfied with Remic’s answer, although not looking especially happy about it, Conlan nodded and they followed the Dwarf back the way he had come. Conlan walked in front, at Remic’s side, towering over their guide. Eleanor followed with Will and Freddie brought up the rear, leading Rand. Remic led them through a maze of canyons, stopping before what appeared to be a solid rock face, and waited patiently. With a grinding rumble, a large part of the rock face began to move back, revealing a dark entrance way.

“These guys really don’t want to be found,” Freddie muttered.

Eleanor stepped into the near dark with trepidation. There were lanterns hanging from the walls of the tunnel they had entered, but they only seemed to enhance the shadows. She jumped as the wall closed behind them; the noise stopped and a shiver of fear ran up her spine. Several figures came out of the dark and Eleanor pressed herself against Will.

“You can leave your horse here, he will be well cared for,” Remic said.

Freddie handed Rand’s reins over to one of the Dwarves that approached him, after Conlan nodded his permission, and they set off again, following Remic. It seemed the whole mountain was dark and strangely warm. They were in a long tunnel, insufficient light coming from the lanterns on the walls.
 

“It is very dark, how do you see?” Eleanor asked.

“We are a race of the earth, but we have different eyes to those of humans; while we can function in daylight, we prefer subdued lighting and we are also able to see quite well in minimal or no light,” Remic replied.
 

They moved through several twisting, turning tunnels and up several flights of stairs, all carved into the rock. Eleanor caught glimpses of rooms and further tunnels off the ones they walked down, and she noticed the occasional whispered voices and puzzled looks of other Dwarves they met, but nobody stopped them.

“Conlan, can we go faster?” Will said in English, his voice tight and worried. “Amelia’s in trouble.”

“What sort of trouble?” Conlan asked.

“No time to explain,” Will snapped. “We need to go faster.”

“Does he require something?” Remic asked.

“Could we get to Amelia faster, please?” Conlan asked. “Freddie, help Eleanor,” he added in English. Freddie slipped his shoulder under Will’s other arm. Remic nodded and set off at such a ground-eating run down the tunnel that Eleanor had to push herself to keep up with him. Will ran with them, his eyes still closed, trusting her and Freddie completely.
 

“No, Amelia, no, control it,” Will moaned. Freddie cast Eleanor a worried glance and they ran faster.

They heard the sounds of chaos, running and screaming, long before they reached the huge, dome-topped chamber. They stopped in the entranceway, staring at the sight before them. A powerful wind was moving like a tornado around the chamber. It appeared that anything not nailed down, animate or inanimate, had been picked up and was whipping round. Furniture slid along the smooth, polished floor, making harsh scraping noises before the wind lifted it into the air, crashing it into walls, the splinters joining the spinning, churning nightmare. The wind had caught most of the lanterns that had been placed around the chamber, but in the dim light that remained, Eleanor could see frightened faces staring from the chamber’s other entrances. At the centre of the vortex, under the apex of the doomed roof high above, stood Amelia. In front of her, included in the oasis of calm she inhabited, was a raised dais on which sat three clearly terrified Dwarves on ornate stone thrones.

“I need to get to her,” Will yelled over the noise. His eyes were open, but they held the glazed look that indicated he was still in Amelia’s head.

“You can’t go in there,” Conlan yelled back. “Whatever you have to do to talk her down, you have to do it from here.”

Will glared at Conlan. Pushing Eleanor and Freddie away from him he took a step towards the battering, whipping wind. Conlan moved in front of him.
 

“Dying won’t help her, especially when she finds out she’s responsible!”

“She’s not listening to me.”

“Then try harder!” Conlan insisted.
 

“Yes, boss,” Will bit out, before closing his eyes again.
 

Very slowly the wind began to drop, the noise subsided and the air in the chamber cleared as the debris being flung around dropped to the floor. Eleanor saw Amelia sway, then topple to the ground. Silence. Will shoved Conlan out of the way, and moving as fast as he could through the disaster area he headed for Amelia’s inert body.
 

Eleanor, Freddie, Conlan and Remic followed a little more cautiously. The damage was extensive – wood, metal, stone, paper, candles and bodies were strewn across the floor. As the other Dwarves entered, bringing lanterns with them, moving among the fallen, Eleanor realised that what appeared to be carnage was not as bad as she feared. With assistance, many of the injured were sitting and some were even standing. Will knelt before Amelia, pulling her into his arms. Distracted, Eleanor tripped over something and sprawled on the floor, coming face to face with a pale, unconscious Dwarf. He was pinned under what looked like the marble base of a statue. Eleanor moved to his side, heaving the heavy stone off him. There was a long, deep gash across his shoulder, seeping an alarming amount of blood. Eleanor felt his neck for a pulse and was relieved when she found one. Pulling her jacket off, she made it into a pad, pressing it hard into his wound, the bones beneath her hand moving in an unnatural fashion.
Broken shoulder or collar bone… or both?
The silence was filling as more Dwarves began pulling themselves up, helping each other. Other Dwarves rushed into the chamber, bringing light and first aid to those unable to move. Eleanor looked around; there did not seem to be too many life threatening injuries, and of the ones she could see, the unconscious Dwarf at her side seemed to be in the worst state. Amazingly the three Dwarves on the central dais were unharmed. The Dwarf in the middle appeared to be a woman, with a man on either side of her. They were all old; the men had beards and they were all dressed in rich, colourful robes. They observed in silence as several Dwarves, swords drawn, anger on their faces, circled where Will knelt, cradling Amelia’s limp body to his chest. Will watched passively as one of the Dwarfs stepped forward to rest the tip of his blade against his throat.

“
Stop
!”
 

Conlan’s command carried such authority that everybody froze. The silence seemed to rouse the older Dwarves sat on the dais. The female in the middle stood, moving her attention from Will and Amelia to Conlan as he marched towards them.
 

“Alum, who presumes to give orders in
my
council chamber?” she snapped.
 

The Dwarf holding his sword to Will’s throat turned his head to her. “I believe this is Conlan Baydon, High Lady.”

“Apologies for my presumption,” Conlan said, although the soft snarl he gave to the word ‘apologies’ implied unacceptable behaviour on their part, not his. “But knowing how important the law is to your people, I knew you would want to give your prisoners the chance to defend themselves before you did them injury.”

“Conlan Baydon... Alaric’s heir. Why do you come here?” the High Lady asked. Conlan looked at the female Dwarf in wide-eyed shock. Will caught Eleanor’s eye and she knew the surprise on his face was a mirror image of her own. She felt an energy string and pulled it in.

How do the Dwarves know?
Will asked.

Eleanor shrugged and Will turned his attention back to the dais. The High Lady was laughing, a dry bark.
 

“Just because we do not make our presence felt in the world, Conlan Baydon, it does not mean we are unaware of what happens within it.”
 

Conlan’s shock rendered him momentarily speechless.
 

“How do you know, High Lady?” Will asked, speaking for him.
 

The High Lady glared down at Will.
 

“Who are you?”
 

Still holding Amelia, Will got to his feet. Alum allowed him to rise but kept the blade tip at his throat.
 

“I am Will, Avatar of Water.”
 

Again, Eleanor was struck by the difference in height, as Will looked like he was being threatened by a well-armed child.

“Another Avatar?” The High Lady looked surprised. “How well do you know Mydren’s history, Avatar of Water?”

“Do you mean the official version or the real one?” Will asked.

A smile spread across the High Lady’s wrinkled face, her dark-brown eyes full of amusement. “We offered
galdener
to the murdered king’s granddaughter, and we have watched over the bloodline ever since.”

Will, what does galdener mean?
Eleanor asked.

Sanctuary.

They hid Fraya with the Dwarves?

So it would seem.
 

As Will pulled his energy free, the Dwarf next to Eleanor moaned softly, his eyes flickering open. Eleanor could see the agony in them. He struggled weakly, gasping as it intensified his pain, then lay still, panting.

“You have a nasty injury, try not to move,” Eleanor cautioned.
 

“I am Cander,” he whispered.
 

“Eleanor,” she offered back. Cander smiled until another spasm of pain forced his face into a grimace. Pushing her hand harder into his shoulder, Eleanor gently stroked his head in an attempt to offer what comfort she could. Remic came to crouch at Cander’s side. He felt for a pulse as Eleanor had done, his face blank, horror in his eyes.

“He has a wounded shoulder and I think broken bones underneath,” Eleanor said quietly.

Remic nodded, not looking at her. “Why did she do that? We were not hurting her.”

Eleanor glanced at Amelia’s limp body. “I am sure it was an accident. She is a sweet, gentle, loving person,” Eleanor said. Remic did not seem convinced.

The High Lady was looking at Conlan again. “I do not like repeating myself – why do you come here?”
 

Conlan stared blankly at her for a moment before forcing himself to address the question. “We believe you hold the diamond, the Talisman of Earth, and we have come to claim it.”

“The Avatars of Air and Water, the Talismans… Our reports are true, you are attempting to recreate the power of The Five,” the High Lady said as gasps and whispers echoed round the chamber.

Conlan nodded. “Yes.”

“You must be very sure of yourself, Conlan Baydon, to risk my wrath by allowing your Avatar to destroy my council chamber… with me in it!”
 

“
Our
council chamber,” said the Dwarf sat on the High Lady’s right, his tone mild. The High Lady ignored him, glaring at Conlan.

“It was an accident,” Will said. “You asked her to prove she was the Avatar of Air. She tried to do that, but her abilities are new to her and she lost control.” He winced as Alum shoved his sword forward, breaking the skin, a thin trickle of blood running down his neck. The High Lady watched the blood for a moment before she responded.
 

“I do not recall asking you to speak, Avatar of Water.”

Again, the Dwarf to the High Lady’s right spoke. “The Avatar of Water raises a valid point, High Lady; we did ask the Avatar of Air for proof of her claims. Thankfully, nobody seems to have died. The Avatar of Air looks like such a lovely young lady, I am sure she did not mean any harm.” His comment carried through the entire chamber, and he regarded Will and Amelia with interest. The High Lady’s mouth pinched into a thin line of anger.
 

“Very well, we will accept the Avatar of Air’s attack on us as an accident. It is irrelevant anyway, as even Alaric’s heir, Conlan Baydon, has no rights over the Talisman of Earth – only the Avatar of Earth can claim it.”

“Then the Avatar of Earth claims the diamond,” Conlan said, a small, smug smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. A collective gasp ran round the chamber, the hum of voices dropping to surprised silence.