It was nearly midnight when Val and his two pa.s.sengers had made it back to Kar Lodihr. The trip had been smooth and uneventful, following the failed ambush by the goblins. A part of Val felt relieved that they were so single-minded as to commit wholly to their attack. With all of them dead, no one else would be attacked by that same group. Goblin behavior remained strange to Val, whether they simply lacked the intelligence needed to a.s.sess danger, or they simply did not understand fear; he was not sure. Val a.s.sumed they had survived so far by sheer numbers and their recklessness working out in their favor more often than not.
The rest of the convoy had continued on towards San Rafael. Val had convinced Asha to adjust their course so they would stop by on the way to the Aurulian capital. With the bike, the slight detour south was slightly faster than the more direct route, owing to the presence of interstate highways.
Val pulled up towards the gate, he did not even need to show Harken"s token to the sentries before they called out to the gatekeepers. He wore a wry smile, remembering the circ.u.mstances of his departure. Evidently, they recognized the pair and the bike.
"Just couldn"t give up Dwarven hospitality, eh?" Durnham walked out of the opening gates, glad to see them alive and well.
"Ha, something like that." Val reciprocated the offered grip as he stepped off of his bike. Asha stretched and grumbled quietly, though she did not have a pleasant mood.
Durnham raised a bushy brow. "What"s eating Miss Alevriasha?"
Val turned serious. "We"re heading to Boldir"s, can explain over a drink if you"d like."
Durnham studied the three, noting Muninn also wearing a look of concern. "Aye, leave your fancy toy to my men, let"s get going. If it"s enough to worry these two, it"s something we need to know as well."
The trio followed Durnham as a few guards eagerly took the bike over to the guardhouses. They were all marveling at it, though somewhat disappointed when it did not work as Val had taken the keys. Val felt a bit odd returning to the fortress city. Perhaps due to the combined efforts of the magic rich location of Kar Lodihr contrasted against the magic depleting effects of the Draug, Val could feel the difference this time. He felt as if he would be in top form no later than the end of the next day.
Curiously, when they arrived at the Chimera"s Den, the sign hung outside was flipped for the first time as far as Val had seen. He did not need to be able to read the Dwarven language to understand the meaning.
"He"s closed?" Val asked dubiously.
Durnham nodded. "As far as food and drink, yes, only the rooms are open right now. He suddenly closed up shop temporarily for "renovations" early this morning." Despite the guard captain"s explanation, he nonchalantly pushed the door open and invited everyone in. Boldir was behind the bar as usual and nodded at them as they entered. Huginn sat on the bar with a bowl of water.
Val returned the nod. "I take it, Huginn"s caught you up to speed?"
The barkeep grunted. "Yes. Rare as it is, I wish I had been wrong."
Over the next half hour, they discussed what they had found in Seattle. Val had remained light on the details of the actual battle, focusing more on what he had seen and the quant.i.ties. Huginn and Muninn provided details from their prior experience with the Draug and, for the most part, what they remembered and how things were now lined up.
"Well, nothing for it now. Gotta meet with the Senate and go from there."
"Indeed, first thing tomorrow, I managed to pull some strings and get a hearing summoned. I don"t suppose you have anything to wear that is less... "Red"?" Boldir scanned Val up and down, noticing the bloodstains on his jerkin that he had made ineffective attempts to remove.
Val"s attention was drawn uncomfortably to his current state of dress. It had not been so evident before, but in the bright lighting of Boldir"s tavern, it could not be more transparent.
Durnham chuckled. "Maybe it"ll spur those old coots into action."
Boldir held a grim gaze as he pored over some doc.u.ments. Among the many papers strewn in front of him, was a roughly sketched map of the Pacific Northwest. "Maybe... I"m not even sure what to make of this. We won"t know where the battle lines are drawn for another month at least. But we can expect one to be in the far North, near the Elves. The city you described... Best to consider it lost if you ask me, low alt.i.tude, surrounded by the coast on both sides... They will take it long before anyone can deploy their forces."
Val sighed. "I sort of figured as much. There"s an island just off the city"s coastline— about ten miles. The soldiers suspect it to be where they are currently set up in the area. If they control that location, rooting them out won"t be easy."
*Also what the h.e.l.l?* Val eyed Boldir curiously. The barkeep and part-time information broker seemed all too comfortable with topics such as troop deployment and war strategy.
Boldir stroked his beard, oblivious to Val"s gaze. "Yeah... We need more information, fighting these things in a city with poor visibility will be a mess."
"Mmm. I"m not sure what the Queen"s army is comprised of, but my abilities are not very useful in that mist. For somewhat obvious reasons, few among us practice much by way of fire. The few who do are mainly scholars preserving ancient magic..." Asha was all but crippled by evident concern, she had been mostly silent during the last leg of the ride.Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.
"That"s not much of a problem. If it"s torching these b.a.s.t.a.r.ds, we have plenty capable of that." Durnham beamed with pride, though Val looked at him weirdly, imagining a bunch of pyromaniac Dwarves.
"I should remind you that the odds of the Senate deploying a real force against the Draug are slim to none. They pose no threat to us in the near term, and we can reestablish different trade routes to the North." Boldir spoke with a reprimanding tone.
"Err, right..." Durnham slumped slightly in his seat.
"Hold on, isn"t there a military alliance between the Elves and the Dwarves?" Val asked, looking back and forth between Asha and Boldir.
Asha"s somber mood darkened further. "It"s virtually toothless. We don"t partic.i.p.ate in wars, neither do the Dwarves unless attacked. No one in a thousand years has attacked Kar Lodihr. There was a war declared by Aurulia over "one-sided trade practices," but it fizzled out with no battle ever taking place. That agreement was put in place with the a.s.sumption that it would never be exercised; it merely looks pretty."
*Ah... Well, that explains her mood...*
Huginn spoke in a grave tone. "Indeed. The decision of the Senate is of critical importance because the Queen has made her move so quickly. It is a gamble— a reckless one. If Kar Lodihr does not march to war, the Elves will have their forces split, alone and outnumbered on both fronts. The trade between them is better for the Elves than it is for the Dwarves."
Val balked. "Surely you"re all joking? The Draug *want* this land, this one! Where this city sits, it"ll be a problem for the Dwarves before too long."
"Easy. This is politics muddled with personal business interests. The Senate is comprised mostly of people who are convinced Kar Lodihr can never fall. The Draug are little more than fiction as far as they"re concerned." Boldir poured a gla.s.s of strong whiskey and offered it to Val as if to calm him, though it did little more than annoy him further.
Durnham clapped Val on the shoulder and pushed the whiskey to him. "Aye... I"m with you on this one, boy. But the seat of the High King has remained empty for over a century. All of the Dwarven strongholds and enclaves answer only to themselves now. We still hold ancient alliances and treaties but have not needed to exercise them in far too long."
"What about the other Dwarves?"
"Truthfully, Kar Lodihr is the only bastion of our kind for quite a distance. Across the ocean, in the East, there are more of us, but they are too far to call upon. Aside from your own people, and Aurulia, the rest are scattered settlements. In the far South, perhaps we might find allies, but they are as likely to kill us as they are to join us. Those lands hold some fearsome warriors, though our relationship is not exactly... Peaceful." Durnham explained, eying Boldir"s map.
"Fine, guess we won"t know until after tomorrow. Might as well turn in early." Val marched up to the second floor in a similar mood to Asha, now understanding her worries.
Val woke early the next morning, quickly getting dressed and ready even before Asha. Boldir was already downstairs, still closed up, again poring over his doc.u.ments. Not even ten minutes later, Asha was up and dressed. Durnham arrived not long after that with a small retinue of Dwarven soldiery, to escort them to the Senate. No one spoke very much while they traveled through the city as the nighttime businesses of the city switched places with the day. To some surprise, Boldir did not accompany them, mumbling something about it being better he did not show himself.
Val noticed something odd about Durnham"s a.s.sociates. They did not look like ordinary guardsmen, much how Durnham himself stood out a little. These Dwarves were closer in age to the veteran-turned-guard-captain, covered in a similar number of scars, and several of them bore the same runic tattoo on their shoulder.
Durnham spoke up as he shifted places in the group to walk next to Val. "Miss Alevriasha knows this already, but when the Senate convenes, there will be opening remarks, then you four will get a chance to make your case. Nothing too elaborate, but fair warning, this ordeal can take all day, so try to be patient. These people are among the shrewdest of our kind, and they are not necessarily fond of entertaining humans. Oh, and whatever you do, try not to draw your sword this time."
Val raised an eyebrow. "This time?"
Durnham simply chuckled as they walked up the steps leading to a ma.s.sive hall across from the towering spire in the center of the city. With the sun beginning to reflect off the spire, the white marble used in the support pillars and overall construction of the Senate"s hall appeared to glow. As soon as they entered, Val spotted a familiar face.
"Harken?"
"Good morning Val. Miss Aleriasha, always a pleasure." Harken bowed slightly, wearing a polite smile and a sharp gray suit.
"Mmm." Asha mumbled something dismissively, clearly focused on the hearing ahead.
"Are you in this hearing too?" Val asked.
"Indeed. I heard my new a.s.sociate was going to try and prod some Dwarves too old to remember war, into action. Wouldn"t miss it for the world, and neither will most of the mercenary leadership of the city."
Harken joined their group, weaving in close to Val and speaking in a low voice. "Boldir was light on the details, but this is related to my request, I gather."
"Yeah, didn"t find your team, but I did find the cause. We"re convinced there"s going to be a war in these lands."
Harken narrowed his brows. "Hmm, I think the last thing these codgers want is to be involved in a war."
"So everyone keeps saying, and that"s what we"re afraid of."
Before Val and Harken could continue their conversation further, their procession reached a s.p.a.cious congress hall with several floors. A surprising number were already seated in the overhanging second floor, which by a rough count of seating could fit a few hundred. Fifty or so seats were nearly filled at the ground level, before a stage where Val and the others were led.
Luxury decorated the gilded hall as Val eyed the senators carefully. They were all dressed similarly, but various accents on their robes and the occasional gaudy display of jewelry set them apart. Directly before the stage sat seven chairs that were larger than the rest, each ornamented with gems and markings comprised of the Dwarven language. Before them sat a long table extending across all seven chairs.
Of the seven seated before the stage, Val recognized the one on the far left. He turned to Durnham to whisper quietly. "Durimarr is a Senator?"
"Aye, not only that, he"s on the Council of Seven. They hold a bit more clout than the rest of the Senate. If they are unanimous in support of a decision, they can overturn the remaining forty-three."
After another half hour of people filing into the hall and taking their seats, an elderly Dwarf in the center of the Council stood, and everyone quieted down respectfully. "We are convened today, in deference to Her Majesty Ivarielle, Light of the North, Queen of the Ljosalfar host, to hear her words. In my hands, I hold a missive that has been penned with great urgency. In place of Her Majesty, Lady Alevriasha of House Evenwind stands witness to our deliberation and our answer. I, Hreidarr, Prime Regent of the Council, will read her words to you all now."