But Alessa's deepest dreams were troubled, deep in that voiceless part of her mind and will that remained her own. For she understood the implications of all that she was told, and she did not see how Thelvyn could escape the trap that awaited him.
CHAPTER FOUR
Thelvyn drew himself cautiously through the tight passages of the deep cavern that had been the lair of the renegade king Murodhir, following behind his companions as they made their way out. They had spent a long day in a thorough search of the lair, and they carried with them not only Murodhir's hoard but also everything else they could find. The traitorous Fire Wizards had paid Murodhir for various services, not the least being the theft of the Collar of the Dragons and the attempt to assassinate Thelvyn and Solveig. Thelvyn had hoped that something the wizards had given Murodhir would also give some hint about the location of their secret stronghold, but they had found nothing'. Of course, he had never placed much hope in that, and so he was not greatly disappointed. Byen Kalestraan had not been one to share his secrets.
The wizards had not paid Murodhir particularly well for his work, judging by the rather humble proportions of his hoard. Although Thelvyn had slain Murodhir and could now claim his treasure and his lair, it was also the custom among dragons that he should share a part of the renegade's hoard with those who had accompanied him into battle. He gave Kharendaen, Marthaen, and Jherdar each a third of the treasure. The two male dragons were both leaders of their own bands, and they shared part of their third with the young dragons who served as their bodyguards. Dragon clerics were not in the habit of accumulating treasure, nor did they often have the chance, so Kharendaen welcomed her portion. Since Thelvyn already owned the vast treasure and the lair that had belonged to the renegade king Kardyer, he was content.
'I'm done here,' he said as he emerged from the entrance of the cavern, following his companions into the clearing beyond the ruined wall that had guarded the lair. 'Will you be heading east now?'
'That depends upon what you plan to do next,' Marthaen answered.
'Well, I certainly didn't learn very much here,' Thelvyn said as he settled back on his haunches in the soft grass, facing the others. 'Murodhir obviously had no idea what the Fire Wizards did with the collar. I'm not even convinced the little he did have to tell us was the truth.'
'Are you sure?' Jherdar asked. 'He impressed me as being too frightened to lie.'
'No, I can't be sure,' Thelvyn replied. 'I keep thinking of how he suddenly went mad with fear and attacked me when I suggested he lead us to the place in the wilderness near Braas-tar. He should have been encouraged that he would not be put to death at once and might possibly have an opportunity to escape. Yet he wasn't trying to break free of me. Instead, he was attacking me.'
'That is cause for wonder,' Marthaen agreed. 'Why would he bring the collar to the Fire Wizards there in the wilderness?'
'That's one of the few parts of his story that seems to ring true,' Sir George said, moving forward to address the dragons. 'When the Flaem first came into this world, they arrived somewhere near Braastar. That was where they built their first strongholds. The wizards moved to Braejr later so that they could more easily study and protect the Radiance. I've always wondered if their secret stronghold was somewhere near
Braastar.'
Thelvyn lifted his head suddenly and stared at Marthaen. 'Tell me about your search for the collar in Alphatia. I recall that your search was a condition of your first truce with the Alphatians, and it took you a couple of weeks to conduct it, but that hardly seems time enough for a thorough search.'
'Our sorcerers conducted the search,' Marthaen explained. 'They have the means to detect the presence of the collar if they could come reasonably close, even if the collar were shielded magically or locked inside some interdimensional hiding place. By the same method, we've always been fairly certain that the collar is no longer in the Highlands.'
Sir George looked indignant. 'You mean you had me search half the world for that thing, and you could have saved me half my trouble?'
Marthaen looked down at him. 'We didn't know that it wasn't in Alphatia until after we had invaded the Highlands. And you were looking everywhere except the Highlands as it was, so that hardly mattered.'
Thelvyn considered that briefly. 'That seems to support our suspicion that the stronghold of the traitor wizards is not in the Highlands, which is what I have always suspected. Then that decides the matter for me. I had considered going to the forests near Braastar to search for the place Murodhir described, but that seems pointless now. My only other option is to return to Braejr, to discover if Alessa Vyledaar has learned anything else.'
Later that day, as the sun was setting beyond the wilderness far to the west, the dragons spread their wings and leaped into the darkening sky. While the others were returning to Wind-reach, Thelvyn and Kharendaen collected Sir George for their rather short flight back to Braejr. They would be passing across the vast eastern plains and light woods of the central Highlands, the most heavily settled region of the realm. While the northern frontier was the land of timber and mining, the east was a land of pastures, where cattle and sheep grazed in peace and fields of wheat were stirred by the soft winds of a gentler climate than that most of the Highlands endured.
Thelvyn hardly knew whether he dared to hope that Alessa would be able to tell him anything that would help in his quest to find the Collar of the Dragons. Alessa was supposed to be exploring new leads, but he had no idea of the nature of her discoveries, and so he could not begin to judge whether or not they would bear fruit. All he knew was that Solveig had come to trust Alessa completely, and Thelvyn trusted Solveig. But he had to admit that his trust did not yet extend all the way to the sorceress.
As the two dragons drifted on silent wings over the lights of Braejr, Thelvyn found that his instinct for direction was finally beginning to serve him better. Although one dark building looked much the same as the next from above, he found that he was drawn unerringly to one part of the city. Kharendaen remained in the lead, guiding him to their destination, but he thought that he could have found his old house without her help.
But his delight at his new talent was brief. As the dragons descended quickly out of the night toward the paved court, they were surprised to find that the old warehouse seemed to be full of griffons. The beasts were aware of the dragons as well, struggling and calling out fiercely in fury at the approach of their one natural enemy. Sir George leapt down from his saddle at the very moment Kharendaen settled to the ground, and both of the dragons hurried to release their leather straps so that they could change form and put an end to the uproar in the warehouse.
Thelvyn tossed his harness aside and immediately began to change his form, but in his haste, he failed to recall that he needed to rise to his hind legs as the transformation began. When he assumed human form, he was rather embarrassed to find himself on his hands and knees on the dusty paving stones of the court. Kharendaen changed form a moment later, in a more dignified manner, and the griffons within the warehouse began to quiet grudgingly.
Thelvyn turned to see Solveig and Korinn Bear Slayer hurrying across the yard from the house to join him. He was more embarrassed to have them see him pick himself up from the stones, until it occurred to him to wonder what Korinn was doing in Braejr. He realized at once that good news could not come from such a remarkable event, especially with the added curiosity of a warehouse full of griffons. Apparently messen-iters had been descending upon the Highlands in flocks.
'I hadn't expected you back so soon,' Solveig said, needlessly helping him to stand. 'Did you find the black dragon with the gold earring?'
'We did, for all the good it did us,' Thelvyn said a bit sourly. 'Is there some kind of trouble?'
'There's trouble of the worst kind,' Korinn said. 'But I'm pleased to see you again, all the same. Doubly
