Descent into the Depths of the Earth

of Cinders, hoping he hadn’t eaten too much brown coal before blowing her hair dry. Polk ran past herthrough the kitchen holding plates of surprisingly glittery-looking meat. There was whiskey in the jug and a fire in the grate. All in all it seemed the village offered them a cheery night.

* * *

With the kitchen now deserted, an eerie quiet fell. Outsideon the roofs, the stirges hooted plaintively for blood. Ashes hissed in the stove, and an old brown tea kettle leaked steam into the breeze. Above the stove, there was a subtle stir of motion. A wisp of smoke in the chimney swirled then crept out into the light to hover just above the floor. A single eye solidified in the smoke, and then a long trunk-like snout sniffed and snuffled at the table top. The smoke creature drifted carefully along the table then flowed down onto the floor. It sniffed at the giant wine barrel with its cloudy water.

A scent caught the trunk’s attention. The eye swiveled,blinked, and the creature hovered above Escalla’s deserted bath. The trunksniffed deeply at the water while the eye carefully examined the old rusty pot.

A single golden hair lay floating in the water. The smoke creature carefully picked up its find, examined it carefully, staring at it inch by inch, then gripped the strand tight.

A sudden noise came from the door. The smoke creature made a splash as it tore across the room and shot back up the chimney, fleeing into the night. Padding into the kitchen with an empty bucket hanging from her mouth, Enid blinked, then put down her bucket and frowned. She lumbered into the room, sniffing carefully and following a smoky trail that wound across the table and over toward the baths.

Escalla’s voice pealed in from the taproom behind her. “Enid!Come on, hon! We have to rinse all this gem powder off the food before it sets!”

Her freckled nose snuffling, Enid creased her pretty brows into a frown. “Wait! There’s something here!” The cat-woman peered suspiciouslyat the chimney. “Something’s up the chimney.”

“It’s just a stirge. Don’t worry. I blocked the chimney witha metal grate.” Escalla, still resplendent in a pair of little towels, poppedinto the room. “Come on. Let’s clean off this fried rabbit or whatever it is,then we can beat Polk with a stick!”

Reluctantly Enid filled a bucket from Jus’ bath then turnedto go. With a last look behind her, she padded back to the taproom to join her dinner and her friends.

2

Morning stole over the old, bleached giants’ bones and creptcat-footed through the tavern windows. Ashes cracked in the tavern fireplace. Huge and fuzzy, Enid slept beside the fire, flexing her huge talons in a feline dream. Polk snored like a sawmill, curled protectively about a big stone whiskey jug and muttering occasionally in his sleep.

The Justicar opened his eyes slowly, carefully searching out the room. Curled against his ribs and bundled in an old beaver skin, Escalla slept happily. She made little chipmunk noises, unwilling to keep quiet even in her sleep. Propped above them on the back of a chair, Cinders grinned his crocodile grin, keeping watch over the room. All seemed quiet. All seemed still.

Something was wrong.

Cinders’ ears stiffened. In perfect rapport, Jus and thehell hound listened to the air currents in the quiet room. Jus could sense no movement, no presence hovering in the room. Cinders had given no warning of illusions, invisible creatures, mysterious scents or noises, yet-

There was a sudden sense of movement. In a blur, the Justicar’s sword hissed through the air above Escalla. The black steel cloveemptiness, and the room seemed still once more.

“Cinders?” Sitting in bed, his huge sword gleaming in hishand, the Justicar breathed slowly as he sensed something strange in the air.

The hell hound sniffed at the air, his red eyes gleaming dangerously.

Magic!

“Where?”

Gone.

Jus rose and began jamming on his clothes. Beside him, Escalla rolled into the warm space of his abandoned bed. Jus slid into his black armor, the straps simple, well tended, and efficient.

“You were asleep?”

Cinders snooze. The hell hound cautiously searched theroom, seeming annoyed at himself for sleeping. Magic soft. Didn’t smell.

“That’s all right.”

It might have been a scrying spell. Certainly there was no physical presence. No creature mortal, immortal, or undead could sneak past Cinders. Jus buckled his helmet into place, swept the pelt about his shoulders, and settled the hell hounds head atop his helmet.

The big man nudged at Escalla with his foot and whispered, “Escalla?”

“No one wears underwear with these, Dad! I swear!” The littlefaerie sat upright, a look of blank wonderment upon her face.

With his attention on the windows, Jus moved carefully over to one wall. “Escalla, there’s something spying on us. I’m going to investigate.Wake the others and stay alert.”

Silent and grim, he went hunting.

“Yeah,” replied Escalla sleepily. Her eyes were wide open asshe sat in her bed of beaver fur. Jus gave her a glance, nodded as he saw her awake and alert, then slipped stealthily into the dawn like a wolf upon the prowl.

Behind him, Escalla stayed upright in bed, eyes staring blankly at the wall.

“…but if it was orange, how would they put wheels on it?”The faerie fell backward, continuing her rather strange little dream. At her side, a fresh bouquet of flowers suddenly gleamed in the light-delicatechampagne roses, still frosted with dew.

Escalla turned over in her bed and breathed the scent of roses. Tucked into a ball, the little faerie smiled and hugged her pillow in her sleep.

In the cold light of dawn, a soft mist filled the villagestreets as sunlight warmed the nights dew. Even the old gray thatch on cottage roofs seethed with steam as the warmth of morning set in.

The Justicar stalked carefully, scanning for the slightest marks upon the silver frost. He walked only in the lee of the buildings where the dew lay thin and unfrozen. He kept low, moving as stealthily as a rustle in the breeze.

To the north, somewhere along the old weed-grown road, smoke was rising slowly in the dawn-light, clean smoke, probably kitchen fires. Jusfiled the information in his head, never once ceasing his careful search of the ruined village. Pausing at the huge skull of a long-dead giant. Jus watched the empty streets.

Magic. Cinders let the air run across his nose, his earspricked up into wicked points as he searched for signs of life. On the roof, one house to left. More magic-house roof on right.

The grass outside the tavern dripped. Something had brushed the frost and set it melting. The Justicar knelt, scanned the roofs above, then carefully examined the grass.

One shutter had been opened-just a tiny slit scarcely largeenough to admit a cat. Caught on the wooden shutter, a thin silken thread drifted in the breeze. Blue and almost metallic in color, the tiny thread now hung like a microscopic banner. Jus left it where it lay, narrowed his eyes, then faded behind a stand of dead, dry weeds.

On the rooftops above, nothing moved, but he could feel something there. Traveling with Escalla had taught him the knack of seeing the faint ripples where an invisible creature passed. On the thatching, the neat array of