Summoner 15, p.16
Summoner 15, page 16
“Do you really think the old man is trustworthy?” Nia asked with a worried frown. “It sounds too good to be true.”
“It’s way too good to be true,” I chuckled. “That Vincent guy is probably one of Veopa’s lackeys. He thinks he will be able to just show us to our prison cells without us even realizing we’re captured.”
“So, why did you agree to go with him?” Varleth groaned and rolled his eyes. “We could just leave now. Why bother bringing the others here if it’s a trap?”
“Trust me,” I replied, and I winked at the surly gypsy. “Have I ever led you astray?”
“Um, yes, yes, you have.” Varleth answered quickly with a pointed look. “Remember that time when you were my tank, and I ended up in a cage?”
“Okay, okay,” I pleaded with my hands raised to ward off the sting of his words. “You’re right, sometimes I make mistakes, but in the end you know I’ve got your back, right? My gut is telling me we should follow this guy even though I know he isn’t our ally. He’s the first true lead we’ve found, and even if his intentions aren’t pure, I have a feeling that he’ll give us some information, even if he doesn’t mean to.”
“Maybe you’re just hungry.” Nia shrugged. “Your gut could think the old man will lead us to food, or something.”
Varleth let out a dry, barking laugh, but then he quickly regained his composure and gave me a serious look. “You know we trust you, Gryff, but I’m not sure about this.”
Suddenly, Braden’s king gryphon appeared in the air above us where empty blue skies had been a moment before. As the large half-eagle, half-lion armored monster swept down from above with several people on its large back, Phi and Freya seemed to blink into existence behind my roommate’s summons. Then Kalon chirped as she spiraled down from high up in the clouds, and Cyra clung to the silver dragon’s back.
I rubbed my eyes with my knuckles as I processed the sudden appearance of my friends, but then they were standing in front of me, so all I could do was wave as my shock faded.
Once Arwyn and Mati climbed down from between the flying monster’s large, eagle-like wings, Braden recalled his king gryphon, and he cast a wary glance around the empty street. Kalon shrank down to her miniature size, and then the pink-winged monster resumed her customary position on Cyra’s shoulder.
“I’m not sure if the translation was correct,” Arwyn started as she strode toward me with long steps, “but I think Freya said you found the library. Is it true?”
“No, not exactly,” I said, and I gave the red-haired healer an apologetic look. “We met an old man inside this tavern who claims to know where the library is.”
“What did he say?” Arwyn’s eyes narrowed as her amber eyes leapt to the building behind me, as though she could discern the shapeshifter’s character through the walls of the tavern.
“Something about Veopa locking it up to protect the village idiots from false information.” I smirked. “So, I’m pretty sure he is working for the Archon.”
“So, what did you say?” The healer frowned. “Shouldn’t we be getting far away from him?”
“I think we should go with him.” I grinned.
“You can’t be serious.” My red-haired lover’s eyebrows shot up as she gave me a scrutinizing look to determine my level of sanity.
“I can’t really explain it,” I replied. “My gut is telling me to do it, I just have a feeling we will find something important.”
“Walk straight into a trap on purpose?” Varleth drawled with a disbelieving shake of his head. “What could go wrong?”
“Remember who you’re dealing with,” I laughed, and I planted my hands on my hips as I looked around at my team. “We’ve got an Archon with us, for example. I say we follow the old man into whatever trap or ambush is ahead, turn the tables on him, and then find out why Veopa is hiding the library.”
“Mmm, Gryff, you’re so cunning and deceptive,” Phi moaned. “Once the mortal betrays you, can I eat him?”
I shot the Archon a warning glance, but I ignored her bloodthirsty request.
“This is crazy,” Mati argued. “You want us to knowingly go with an enemy spy to some mysterious location. That has to be the definition of crazy, right? What’s next? We march straight up to this shapeshifting goddess and say hi, here we are?”
“Uhh, he’s actually done that before,” Varleth sighed.
“Wait, what? How?”
I ignored the talkative banisher as she continued on with her rhetorical questioning, but I held Arwyn’s gaze in my own until the red-haired healer sighed and looked away.
“I can’t believe I’m even saying this,” the professor confessed, but her amber eyes twinkled with excitement as she gave me a look of surrender, “but I agree. We should follow the elder into the trap.”
“Maker help us,” Varleth groaned, but he took a deep breath, and then his expression turned unreadably neutral. “Alright, I guess you can lead the way, goat man.”
“Ha!” Cyra snorted. “I’ll go anywhere if the goat jokes continue.”
“I love you, too,” I teased.
The dark-skinned summoner stuck out her tongue and then winked at me.
“It is odd,” Nia remarked before more goat-based humor could be had, “I had the same feeling as Gryff with the old man. Even though I couldn’t understand what he was saying, he made my skin crawl, but I still think we are on the verge of something big.”
The elementalist mage’s comment surprised me. I’d expected her to argue against my plan more, but she seemed calm and determined as she tossed her ashen colored ponytail over her shoulder.
“That settles it.” Arwyn nodded firmly. “We will find out what this old man is so excited to show us, and figure it out from there.”
“I have a feeling we will know where the library is before the end of the day,” I assured my beautiful red-haired lover in a confident tone. “Wait here, and I’ll go let him know we are ready.”
I reentered The Drunken Tiger and emerged a few moments later with Vincent in tow. As the old man hobbled down the steps, I noticed the weasel-like tail peeking out from behind his long gray tunic.
That figures.
If I hadn’t already been suspicious, I would have been skeptical of the weasel-man’s integrity just based on what I already knew of the mischievous animals.
“This way,” Vincent instructed as he took off down the street with shockingly quick steps for such an old man. “Follow me. Quickly!”
My friends and I hurried to keep up with the weasel-man as he led us through the maze-like streets of Vyguard. We passed by a city block full of tall, brick houses with manicured lawns, and sculptures of various animals filled the gardens between the buildings. Then we turned onto a street where there were no houses, and instead, shrines and altars lined the cobblestone path. Beautifully pruned shrubs, flowers, and ivy grew everywhere I looked, and I spotted stone benches and fountains tucked between the bushes and greenery.
The air was cooler here from the combination of plant life and the shadow of neighboring buildings, but it wasn’t uncomfortably cold. Then we neared a huge stone building at the end of the street, and my breath caught in my throat as I took in the twenty-foot-tall statue of the faceless, hooded goddess. The carving seemed to be created from a single piece of rock, and I marveled at the skill involved in such an endeavor. At the bare, feminine feet of Veopa’s likeness, a circle of animal carvings were frozen in an eternal bow of respect.
“This is the library?” I questioned Vincent with an innocent expression.
“Not quite,” the weasel-man replied with a mischievous grin, and he couldn’t have been more obvious if he’d blatantly told us he was our enemy. “Please, just a little further. This way!”
Then the shapeshifter darted around the side of the temple, and we rushed to follow him. Vincent stopped in front of a thick stone door at the back of the building, and the old man heaved against the handle with all his might. I couldn’t help but feel bad for him, so I stepped forward and added my strength to his, and a moment later, the sound of scraping stone sent shivers down my spine.
“The library is down there,” Vincent explained as he gestured into the darkness beyond the portal. Spider webs clung to the ceiling, and the smell of death, decay, and mold wafted up from the shadows.
“After you,” I said with a grimace, and I flourished my hand diplomatically toward the entrance.
“Very well,” the old man said in a hesitant tone, but then he ducked inside and disappeared from view.
“Here we go,” Varleth muttered as he followed me into the dark tunnel.
We were surrounded by complete darkness, but the outline of the entrance shone like a beacon of light behind us. Nia shuffled through the group to stand by my side, and then the elemental mage extended her palm until a flame bloomed into life above her hand. The ashen-haired mage stepped in front of me and held her light above her head to illuminate the pathway, and I gave her a grateful smile as we moved forward.
“Quickly, now, come along!” Vincent’s tail wagged excitedly as he trotted ahead of us.
“What’s the rush?” Cyra muttered as we struggled to keep up.
“He’s trying to make us hurry before we figure out we’ve been duped,” I whispered.
“How nice of him,” Varleth commented dryly.
“Veopa thinks she’s so clever,” Phi chuckled as she craned her swan-like neck to gaze at the old man ahead of us. “Let’s see how smart she feels once we rip her little toy to pieces.”
I glanced around as we headed deeper into the tunnel, and as the floor began to slope down under my feet, I realized we were underground beneath the temple. As Nia’s light illuminated the stone walls, flashes of murals covering the stonework came into view in random bursts. From my brief glances at the artwork, it looked like they depicted battle scenes between various animals. A pale blue diamond shape appeared in numerous designs, and I assumed from my limited knowledge that it was a symbol for Veopa.
“We are beneath the temple,” I informed my team in a hushed voice. “If you look at the walls, you’ll see a bunch of murals honoring the goddess.”
“It smells like a cemetery,” Mati complained.
“I believe it is a crypt,” Arwyn supplied as she switched effortlessly to the demeanor of a professor. “There are likely tombs and burial chambers ahead, and judging from the elaborate nature of this temple, I would assume the people buried here would have been very important to the local culture, and probably close to the goddess in some way as well.”
“We could find out some vital information about Veopa and her followers,” I observed.
“Absolutely,” the healer agreed in a soft voice.
Suddenly, Vincent stopped a few paces ahead of us and gestured to a door.
“Beyond this door is the library,” the weasel-man proclaimed cheerfully. “Come, look for yourself.”
I gave my team a pointed look, but then I stepped past the old shapeshifter and ducked into the room. My team followed behind me, but the apprehension on their faces was obvious. Then, as soon as we were all inside the dark room, the weasel-man jumped back into the hallway and slammed the heavy wooden door shut, and the sound of a heavy metal lock jamming shut echoed through the stone room with severe finality.
The trap was set.
Vincent cackled maniacally from the other side of the portal, and the sound made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
“You fools!” the old man chortled. “You have walked right into the lair of the goddess, and now you belong to her!”
“Yeah, thanks for showing us the way,” I replied in a casual voice. “We knew you were going to betray us, but we wanted to come here, so we let you believe you had us fooled.”
“Thank you for all your help,” Freya added in a falsely cheerful tone.
Vincent fell silent, but I could sense his presence still, so I held my tongue and waited.
“Y-You wanted me to bring you here?” the old man stammered in a stunned voice. “How could this be? I tricked you!”
“I’m sorry,” I said through the door, “I guess I’m not easily tricked.”
“I must warn the other shamans!” Vincent gasped, and then I heard the sound of his footsteps on the stone floor of the tunnel as he ran away.
“Well, he just admitted to being Veopa’s shaman,” I informed my Mistral friends. “Our analysis was spot on.”
“I could easily demolish this weak human obstacle.” Phi sniffed. “Do you want me to break down the door, lover? The rat man won’t make it far, and then I’ll bring you his head as a gift.”
“He isn’t a threat,” I replied with a dismissive wave of my hand. “Let’s look around first before we worry about the door. By the time we see what’s down here, the old man will probably be back with other shamans, and you can do what you want with him, then.”
“Perfect,” the Archon purred, and she licked her fangs with her long tongue as she eyed the locked door. “Hurry up, I am anxious for the taste of his blood.”
“I’m even more confident in your intuition than I was before,” Arwyn interjected with a warm smile. The reflection of Nia’s flame danced in her amber eyes, but then she turned to scan the room we were in. “Let’s look around and see what we can find. This room appears to be an individual burial chamber, so we can start by identifying who is entombed here.”
“I’ll help Nia with the light,” I offered with a smile. Then I grabbed the crystal for one of my fire imps from my bandolier, and I crushed it between my fingers.
“What do you mean?” Nia asked, and the ashen-haired mage shot me a questioning look.
Before I could respond, my monster erupted with a spark of light and a burst of smoke, then hovered near my shoulder with his leathery wings flapping noisily. So, I pulled on my bond with my summons, transferred the imp’s pyrokinesis to myself, and answered my blue-eyed lover’s question with a flame of my own.
Nia’s brilliant blue eyes went wide as she took in my new skill, and then a determined look settled upon her delicate features.
“I’m always going to be better at elemental attacks than you,” the talented mage informed me in a proud tone. “Get whatever monster abilities you want, the kind of precision and control an elementalist has requires years of practice.”
“Fair enough.” I smirked. “Just don’t be surprised when I’m suddenly better than you and you can’t explain how.”
“Can you two make flames stick to the stone walls for a short period of time?” Arwyn asked, and I could see the wheels turning behind her intelligent amber eyes.
“I can.” Nia sniffed as she tossed the flame in her hand at the wall, and the small ball of fire clung to the rock as it continued to burn. “You just have to concentrate it in on itself to make it burn continuously for a longer period of time.”
As the elementalist created more flames and threw them around the room, I pulled on my mana to channel it through my imp’s fire ability.
I wasn’t about to let Nia Kenefick have all the fun.
So, I furrowed my brow in concentration as I mimicked her gesture, and I grinned as my flame also stuck to the stone wall. I didn’t waste any time summoning another small ball of fire, and a few moments later, the small room was well lit by several torch-like blazes.
Once I could see everything clearly, I scanned the room we stood in with an observant eye.
The wall across the room from the door was covered in words carved into the stone, and a shelf at the base was lined with urns. A long sarcophagus sat along the far end of the room, and a mural covered the third side. The floor was littered with bones of small animals, and the smell of death filled the stagnant air.
I stepped up to the painting on the wall to the right of the wooden door, and I gasped as I recognized a depiction of my ochremaun. Then I noticed the faceless silhouette of a woman at the center of the artwork, and painted monsters lined up across the mural below her.
“I think this is showing Veopa’s personal summons,” I told my team as I took a closer look.
Next to the reddish-brown clay monster was something that looked like an octopus, and a black, flying creature was painted on the other side.
“Fascinating,” Arwyn breathed as she stepped closer to appraise the mural. “I didn’t expect the shapeshifters to worship the monsters under the Archon’s command. I wonder how this has affected their culture overall.”
“Horgwyn, the village elder in Vysion, referred to the ochremaun as Veopa’s servant,” I mused thoughtfully. “Maybe they twist it somehow so they don’t have to admit to themselves that they’re worshipping monsters.”
“Why would there be pictures of shadow beasts on the walls?” Freya asked me as she tilted her head to the side with bird-like curiosity. The warrior princess gazed at the mural thoroughly, then her gold-flecked eyes flicked to my face. “Why didn’t my people ever know about the servants of the goddess?”
“I think Veopa wanted to keep your people separated from the mainlanders,” I explained with a thoughtful frown. “It is easier to control all the shapeshifters if they are divided and afraid of each other.”
“So, what do these words over here say?” Braden asked as he stared up at the carved stone behind the wall of urns.
I crossed the room to stand beside my large roommate, and I squinted up at the old marks. I wasn’t as familiar with reading the language of the shapeshifters as I was with speaking it. So, I beckoned Sera into the forefront of my consciousness with a wave of my will, but before the dark-winged Archon could translate the carved words, Phi rushed forward.
“I know that look in your eyes,” she informed me. “Why call on my sister when I can do anything she can do?”
“Alright, then,” I chuckled. “Go ahead and read what this says.”
“The door is locked, the key is swallowed,” the swan-like Archon spoke out loud as my team listened attentively. “The truth lies and your soul is hollow. The knowledge you seek is buried in shadows.”
