'He led the way up the oublietteshaft. They came in from the sea caves.'
'Are there tunnels beyond thesecaves?'
'Yes, but I doubt anyone could findthem. The tunnel openings will be blocked and the stone walls willbe seamless. Dwarf masons do extraordinary work.'
'How many dwarf masons are wetalking about?'
'Nine.'
'That's all?' Rhendish soundedrelieved. 'Did you find out why they were working with thethief?'
'Fox and the young dwarf werefriends. I don't know the how and why of that. The other dwarvesfollowed the youth.'
'I see,' he murmured. 'And what doyou suppose they'll do now, assuming their leader isdead?'
'If they stay, they'll clear a fewold tunnels, eke out an existence. More likely they'll return tothe mainland.'
'Did he tell you what broughtdwarves to Sevrin?'
'No.'
'But you know, don't you?' the adeptpersisted. 'I sense there's more to the tale.'
The old man shiftedimpatiently.
'Some years back, I heard rumors ofa scandal,' the elf said. 'A dwarf lord, king in all but name,rules the vales and mountains on the sunrise side of the forest. Hehas five sons. Another king sent his daughter to wed one of thelord's sons in an alliance between their two clans.'
A bitter smile curved the old man'slips. Dwarves and elves took alliances very seriously. No one knewthis better than he.
'Making the match was put in thehands of the second-eldest son, who acted as the heir's steward.Apparently this dwarf had little talent for his role. The fifthbrother was loyal to the heir but considered the stewardunreliable. To prove to the heir that his steward lacked judgment,the youngest brother challenged him to a game of chance. When allwas said and done, the steward had gambled away the princess'sdowry.'
'Among humans, this would mostlikely lead to war.'
'Among dwarves, it leads tomarriage,' the elf said with dry humor. 'The princess Hedvigdeclared that since the dowry had changed hands, a match was made.She declared herself betrothed to Delgar, the youngestbrother.
'The steward convinced the heir thatthis was evidence of Delgar's ambition. The heir took the secondbrother's advice and sent Delgar away. Hedvig remains in theclanhold. Everyone involved wants her to wed the heir, but she'ssaid to be stubborn even by the measures of dwarves. She declaredher intention to wait out the exile.'
'So these nine dwarf masons willreturn to bring news of their young lord's death so that the clanalliance can be concluded.'
'That is my assumption, yes. If helives, he'll finish out his exile and return to hisclanhold.'
'Good.'
Silence fell. Lingered.
Soft footsteps approached the oldman's alcove. He was about to dart back into the hidden passagewhen he heard the window latches snap. The creak of shuttersfollowed as the elf swung them open to let in thestarlight.
'The lamps are lit,' Rhendishpointed out.
'Then call one of your guards andwe'll begin.'
The old man edged the curtain asidejust in time to see the adept's jolt of surprise. 'Why?'
The elf turned to face him.'Removing the metal from my body will require time and effort. Youmight decide the process is more trouble than my service is worth.Once we start, you'll have a knife in my arm. One flick is all itwould take to sever the veins.'
'If killing you was my intention, aclockwork guard couldn't prevent me.'
'No, but it could make sure I don'tdie alone.'
The adept huffed. 'Few people dotheir best work with a sword pointed their way.'
'Will you call the guard, or shallI?'
The adept gave a single terse nod.In moments a metal guard clanked into the room and drew asword.
Rhendish sent the construct adisgusted look and reached for a small, curved knife. The elf tooka chair and laid her arm on the attached metal table.
The adept dipped the tip of hisknife under one of the stitches on the elf's arm, flicking asidethe threads one by one. She did not flinch, and when the knife sankdeep into living flesh, she did not scream. Not when he clamped offthe veins to slow the flow of blood, not when he removed tiny boltsholding a metal bone in place, not even when he pulled the bar freewith what appeared to be more force than was strictlynecessary.
A metallic rustle filled the room asthe clockwork guard shifted, raising its sword for a sweepingcut.
'My arm, your head,' the elf saidsoftly.
Rhendish removed a slender crystalbone from the skeleton, the smaller of the two forearm bones. Thestarsong humming through the crystal faltered. The elf's eyesglazed as the magic sustaining her fell silent.
The adept's head came up sharply,like a wolf scenting blood.
Metal clattered as the guard's swordarm dropped to its side. Its metal head turned from the elf to theadept and back, as if it were uncertain where its loyalties shouldlie.
Without thinking, the old manreached out to Honor.
Starsong filled the room with silentmusic. The elf gathered the silver threads and wove them intostrength and magic, life and youth. The old man doubted she wouldthink to ask what had repaired the severed connection. Starsongcame naturally to her kind, and like a beating heart requiredneither thought nor choice to do its work.
Color crept back into the elfwoman's pallid cheeks. Her eyes cleared, hardened. Her gaze flickedto the clockwork guard, and it raised its sword again.
Rhendish frowned and lifted hisknife. The wonderful, terrible work began anew.
The old man sank down on the windowledge, stunned beyond thought. His hands trembled, but when heregarded them by the light of the stars, they seemed less palsiedand frail than they'd been this morn.
For ten long years, he'd tried totake power and magic from the elf woman. It had never occurred tohim, not once, to
Starsong was a shared thing, flowingfrom one elf to another as need arose. The old man had known thatonce.
He'd been away from his kind for fartoo long.
Chapter 9:Stormwall
Rhendish and Volgo stood inwhat was left of Muldonny's workshop, gazing through the openingthe explosion had made in the southern wall.
Before the raid a walkwayhad connected the main fortress with the cliff-side tower. Most ofthe stone, both the walkway and the arch that had supported it, hadshattered and fallen into the sea.
'That won't be easilyreplaced,' Rhendish murmured.
'No need to bother withit,' the captain said. 'It has no tactical value. Shore up thewalls, fill in the shafts and tunnels. That'll keep the masons busyuntil winter.'
The adept nodded absentlyas he moved over to the oubliette shaft. According to Honor, thethieves had come up through this passage. But the workers who'dgone down on ropes to clear the rubble and retrieve the bodies ofMuldonny's men had reported finding a smooth and solid floor somethirty feet down.
Either Honor was lying tohim, or the young dwarf lord who'd befriended Fox possessedstoneshifting abilities beyond anything Rhendish had thoughtpossible.
'This wall will go upeasily enough,' Volgo said, running a hand along the jagged edge.'When is Mendor taking possession?'
'First thing tomorrow, Ibelieve. The sooner, the better, in my opinion.'
