Delver Magic III: Balance of Fate by Jeff Inlo (best free e reader TXT) đź“–
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“It is not my choice alone. I came here to be your guard, thus my first duty is to you. If you do not want me to go, if you don’t see the need, then I would stay here. I have to answer to my duty, and that is to you.”
“No, your first duty is to yourself.” Enin looked about at everyone in the room. “I know all of you don’t think to highly of me right now, but perhaps this will help explain, even if it is only slightly.” The wizard turned back to Holli. “I’ve spoken at length about choice and not interfering. You have a choice, as does everyone in this room. If you believe it is important for you to go with them, then I would never stand in your way. I will not take that choice from you. Everyone here wants me to solve this problem. I’ve tried to make it clear that there are consequences in that action. I know my arguments seem weak in the face of what everyone is talking about, but you all need to decide for yourselves what you must do.”
Enin turned and walked to the door. “I still want you as my guard when you return, but more importantly, I want you to do what you think is right. Good luck to all of you.”
Without waiting for anyone to respond, he walked out the door.
Sy did not let the silence last. He had already begun working out his plans and he now wanted to move quickly. “How long do you think it will take for you to get to Dunop, convince the dwarves to help get the tunnels cleared, and get into Connel?”
“Getting to Dunop is easy,” Ryson answered. “Not sure how long it will take for us to see someone of authority to convince them to help us. That’s the true unknown. When I left last time, Jon Folarok was basically comatose. He had withdrawn in the wake of Yave’s rebellion against him and he showed no sign of coming out soon.” Ryson turned to the elves. “Do either of you have an idea of what’s going on down there?”
Lief spoke up first. “When we delivered Petiole to the dwarf city, Jon Folarok was still king. There appeared to be order in the city and we have heard no further rumors about the dwarf separatists that wished to end the rule of the monarchy.”
Holli concurred. “Every report I heard revealed stability has returned to Dunop.”
“Well at least that’s good news,” Ryson replied with a show of relief. “Just about every dwarf down there is going to remember me and my sword. I ran around the whole city to kill the shadow trees, so I don’t think there will be a problem getting in. Once we’re in we need to accompany the dwarves to the tunnels to Connel and allow them time to clear them.”
“Dwarf construction is a marvel to watch,” Lief added. “It will take little time for them to clear a path.”
Ryson made a quick calculation based on that. “Dunop isn’t that far from Connel, so if everything goes smoothly, it should only be three or four days.”
Sy nodded in satisfaction. “I’ll give you a couple of extra days as a buffer. I’m going to need time to assemble the forces I need to take care of my part. I’ll organize the guard here today, determine what I need and what I should leave behind to guard Burbon, and then we’ll ride for Fort Nebran. With their aide, I can have the force ready to move on Connel in three days. It will take another day to reach Connel from the Fort.”
Sy tapped his fingers on the desk in a counting fashion before continuing. “We will begin our attack during the evening, right before nightfall, six days out from today. You should already be under Connel at that time. When you hear us attacking and you believe its dark enough, you can begin. Get topside and start sending as many people as you can to the tunnels. Hopefully, in the cover of darkness, Sazar’s attention should be focused on us. If they do spot the humans fleeing, they will think they are seeking shelter from the coming battle. I doubt Sazar will care about them.”
Sy tried to play out the battle in his mind. He considered the sequence of events and revealed his own hopes. “I honestly believe we can raise enough of a force to surround Connel. That will be more than enough to keep Sazar focused on us. Whatever happens during the battle, we won’t make any attempt to move toward the inner sections of the city until daylight, if at all. Some of this is going to depend on how Sazar reacts, but all of our assaults will be focused on the outskirts of the city. As we attack, it should draw more of their forces to the city’s outer boundaries. With just the three of you, you’re going to have to move fast, but I’ve seen you all move and if you coordinate it well, I think you have a good chance of getting a large portion of them out of there. Is there anything I’m overlooking?”
Lief pointed out one potential problem. “We must all be wary of the hook hawks and the razor crows. With their ability to fly over the city, Sazar will have eyes that can see great distances.”
“Good point. Not sure if there’s anything we can do about them, but I’ll work on it. Anything else?”
Holli offered what she knew. “Bloat spider webs are difficult to cut, but they will burn. They will not burst into flame, so the surrounding structures should not be in danger of catching fire, especially with the current cold in the air. The problem is it takes time for the smoldering strands to break apart, by that time, the spider is aware of your presence and will attack.”
“Good to know, anything else?”
No one responded. Sy offered his last sentiment. “We know what we have to do. As Enin said, good luck to all of us.”
“I don’t want to seem like an ungrateful person,” Linda began as she spoke to Enin alone in his library. “I asked you to go to speak to Tabris and you did. I was grateful then, and I still am now. The problem is I need to know why you did this.”
Enin began to speak, stopped, fumbled with his hands, and started over. “I did so because, as you said, you asked me to. I believe everyone in this town owes you a debt of gratitude.”
“You told me that last time. I appreciate it, but there’s something missing, something you’re not telling me.”
“How do you mean?”
Linda circled about the room as if she was getting her words in order before she spoke them aloud. “Before Ryson left for Dunop, he told me what was going on. He told me Connel had surrendered to Sazar and that with Tabris’ power Sazar was now a great threat. He also told me how Sy and most of Burbon’s guard are riding out to Fort Nebran to get aide so they could try and get Sazar out of the city. From what I’m hearing, we’re all in a lot of danger, from Burbon to Fort Nebran and maybe beyond that. Many people are going to risk their lives again.”
“Are you worried about Ryson’s safety again?” Enin interrupted.
“Actually, no, I’m not. He told me he was going into the center of the city through the dwarf tunnels. That he was going to help people escape from Connel, not fight the goblins. I guess if I’m worried about anyone, I’m more worried about the soldiers that are going to have to fight. They’re the ones that are going to be in the most danger.”
“I’m not sure I’m following you,” Enin admitted. “What is it exactly you want to know? Is it why I warned Tabris or why are so many people in danger?”
“Actually, it has to do with both.” Linda did her best to come right out and say what she knew. “Ryson told me you wouldn’t help the people of Connel; that you said it would be interfering.”
“That is very true,” admitted Enin sadly.
“Then why did you help me?” Linda stepped closer to the wizard and looked straight into his eyes so he could not avoid her. “Why did you warn Tabris not to hurt Ryson? Isn’t that interfering?”
Enin for all his magical power did not know how to answer that question. He stood and looked back at Linda, would not avoid her stare, but he could say nothing.
Linda pressed him. “You tried to tell me that Tabris couldn’t kill Ryson, that I had nothing to worry about, but I persisted and you agreed to help me. It seems to me that more people need your help now, but you are not as willing to help. You’re telling people they have to deal with their own problems. If that’s true, why didn’t you tell me I had to deal with my fears?”
Enin struggled for a moment and then did his best to convey his own understanding of what he did and why he did it. “I did not truly interfere when I warned Tabris. It is not within her to kill Ryson, it’s just not a possible course of action. When I went to warn her on your request, I told her something she would have found out on her own. She even told me as much. Nothing I did by going to the desert affected anyone’s choice.”
“That’s not true,” Linda said firmly. “It affected my choice. I could have simply listened to your advice and tried to deal with my fears, but I didn’t. I insisted you go, and you did. Why would you do this for me and not help the people that are trapped in Connel? And please don’t tell me it’s because I’m the reason Ryson stays in Burbon. I know that’s not the whole story. You did this for another reason, something that has to do with me. I know that, and I need to know what it is.”
Enin folded his hands in front of him. He would not try to avoid the matter any further. As Linda had done her best to speak directly to the point as possible, it was now his turn.
“You know you can not touch the magic?” Enin asked.
This simple question forced Linda to look away. Enin, however, was now the persistent one in driving the conversation.
“You wish to know why I helped you.”
“Yes,” Linda answered in a trembling voice, “and yes I know I can’t touch the magic.”
“You are an amazing force in that manner. It is beyond being resistant. You are immune to it, you actually repel it. I do not think it can affect you in any way.”
Linda attempted to end the discussion of this particular topic. “I don’t want to talk about how I can or can’t use magic. I want to talk about why you helped me.”
“That is what I’m talking about. I’m trying to explain why I felt it was necessary to go to Tabris for you. Because you have this special gift, there are things…”
“You call it a gift?” Linda interrupted him.
“Absolutely, just as I am gifted to use the magic in extraordinary ways, you are gifted to be completely immune to it. That means it can not harm you. In this new world we now live in, that is a tremendous advantage. Think about that for a moment. Magic is a powerful energy. It is making sweeping changes across
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