Delver Magic: Book 05 - Chain of Bargains Read Online Free Page A

by certain circumstances, any hostilities had been settled. Still, he
was not at all familiar with the dwarf before him, and Dunop was a great
distance to the west.
    The dwarves of the Oachets were of
another city, another region. He realized tales of a delver carrying the Sword
of Decree were spreading, but he remained uneasy over such fame—and uncertain
on how to react to his growing prominence among strangers.
    "I guess so."
    "You guess? Are you not the
delver who destroyed Ingar's sphere? Though we dwarves are not thrilled with
the return of magic, we understand how you saved all the land. Did you also not
save the dwarves of Dunop from the shadow trees? And did you not work with
those same dwarves to save the humans of Connel and build growing relations
between the two races?"
    "There are others that had a
lot to do with all of that."
    The dwarf released a hearty
chuckle.
    "Ryson Acumen, now is not the
time for modesty. You're in a strange land, greeting a dwarf warrior you have
never met. Are you a friend of the dwarves or not?"
    "I've always thought so,
well, at least for as long as I knew dwarves existed."
    "We have always
existed," the dwarf laughed a bit harder, "but I understand. The time
before magic remains in most of our memories, even if it now seems a distant
thought. My name is Ulet Bulharp. I am a battle commander in the dwarf brigade
of Sterling."
    "Pleased to meet you,"
Ryson responded.
    The smile remained on the dwarf
warrior as she turned to the elf, but it diminished a degree or two.
    "And may I ask the name of the
elf who accompanies you?"
    Holli introduced herself, but
stood firm and made no other acknowledgement.
    "I am Holli Brances. My
original camp was of Dark Spruce
Forest—among the elves that oversaw
the region below Sanctum Mountain.
I am now in the service of the wizard Enin of Burbon... and Connel as
well."
    The dwarf's smile drifted away,
but she responded with respect.
    "Holli Brances. You also
entered Sanctum in service of the land. Now you work side-by-side with the
great wizard, and the deeds of Enin are almost as legendary as that of Ryson
Acumen."
    The dwarf warrior then placed her
hands together and rubbed them strenuously as she announced her intentions.
"I wish to speak with both of you, but not here. There is a cave entrance
to Sterling just to the
southeast... near the base of the neighboring hill. I would ask that you follow
me there. It is a more secure area. Agreed?"
    Holli would have preferred to stay
in their current location. The trees remained in reach and there were only
eight dwarves before them. Moving into a tunnel that served as the entrance to
a dwarf city would definitely alter the advantage and limit her options, but
she had to accept the fact that she and Ryson were the ones traveling through
dwarf territory. She did her best to appear congenial but also acted in a
fashion to mitigate the potential hazards.
    "I would ask that we do not
move far into any tunnel. I am uncomfortable in confined areas."
    Ryson appeared somewhat surprised,
but the dwarf appeared unfazed by the request.
    "I understand. We shall stay
at the entrance. I'm going to leave six of my party here to keep watch over the
pass."
    "Can you have them take that
sack with them?" Ryson asked, as he pointed to a large bag that exuded an
overpowering scent of goblin. His delver curiosity almost made him inquire as
to the contents of the bag, but then he feared they might open it to show him,
and he believed the stench might render him unconscious. He never asked.
    The dwarf warrior agreed and gave
her orders to the surrounding dwarves. A half dozen moved off to the north with
the foul smelling sack in tow. Only one other dwarf accompanied Ulet, Holli and
Ryson, and the dwarf commander bade that sentry to guard their flank.
    Ulet Bulharp led the delver and
elf across the clearing and into the woods of the adjoining hill to the south.
Once past the thick brush that filled the border between the pass and