The Child Prince (The Artifactor) Read Online Free Page B

otherwise he’d bumble into the wrong places later and cause havoc. “He used to be just a mountain, but when I was about three I started playing in the caves up here with Kip. I decided one day that it would be more fun if the mountain could play with us and he did.”
    Bel’s eyes were so round that they were in danger of falling out of his head. “You made a mountain a sentient being?”
    “Can you keep up with the conversation?” she asked dryly, taking a left turn. “Anyway, his name is Big. Big will respond to most requests that you ask, as long as it’s something he’s capable of doing. He’s made a room up for you. But there are times when the doors won’t open. Don’t try to force them if that happens. Big will re-route the tunnels on occasion and it’s dangerous to be outside of a room when he’s doing that.”
    “Why would he re-route the tunnels?”
    Patience, she reminded herself. She had to be patient and explain things. With a deep breath, she answered. “If there are intruders or someone that I don’t want to see, he changes the tunnels around so that they just get lost in here and can’t find me.”
    “Oh.” There was a merciful moment of silence as Bel mulled this over. “That’s quite clever, actually.”
    Sevana shot him an approving look. “Big is smart,” she agreed. “But he makes mistakes. Sometimes, if he knows that you want to talk to me, he’ll arrange the tunnels so that you can go directly to me. But if I’m in my workroom, do not go inside. Don’t knock loudly either.”
    “Err…I take it that’s dangerous?”
    She favored him with a withering look.
    “…Right, I won’t knock loudly,” he agreed rapidly. “Anything else I need to know?”
    “Starting tomorrow, you’re going to be in training.” Sevana paused at a crossroads and looked around her. Now where had Big put the new bedroom? There was space on either end of this hallway for one.
    “Training?” he repeated blankly. “Training for what ?”
    “On how to be a king,” Sevana answered absently. “Big, where’s his room?”
    The tunnel shifted slightly to where the right branch sloped at a downward angle. Ah, this side, huh? She turned, hand still firmly gripping the kid’s arm, and followed the silent cues that Big gave her.
    Bel had to lengthen his stride to a near run to keep up with her. “You mean political training?” he panted out.
    The prince had no stamina, not that this was surprising. Being locked up in a room for ten years didn’t do much for the body after all. “That and fighting ability, governing skills, economics, trade skills, and anything else I think you need.”
    Big opened the door for them, letting the wooden portal swing inwards. Sevana stepped just inside and released the prince’s arm. She looked around and nodded in approval. Big had moved a bed, dresser, and a trunk in here from one of the storage areas. He’d even put in more effort than usual in making the floor smooth and the walls more angular.
    While the prince stepped inside, looking around curiously, she continued her explanation. “Big will show you where anything is as long as you ask him. The floor will have a slightly downward slope that will show you which direction to go. He’ll make a training space for you inside.”
    “As you will.” Pointing a finger upwards, he asked, “How do these lights work? It looks like a written incantation….”
    “It is.” She spared a glance upwards, for the first time in three years actually paying attention to them. She’d been stuck for ideas when she first moved into Big on how to have proper lighting. The water didn’t prove a challenge, as Big could create his own stone pipes and route water wherever he wanted to. But light was a different story. She’d finally designed a special incantation, infused into the metal of a fallen star, and attached it to the ceiling of each room. It didn’t look like much, as it was a simple metal ring the size of a grown