Tak

The Gem Lords - Part 6

     There were clerics of Caroli in the city, but they shared the common belief of the time that all wizards were evil and undeserving of the Goddess's blessings, and so the five former thralls had to resort to potions of healing to treat their injuries. They only had a limited supply, however, and didn't know how badly they would suffer battling their way through Khalkedon's defences, so they emptied two potions into a wine glass and divided it between the five of them, keeping the others in reserve. The small quantity of potion did little to ease the pain of Tak's broken collar bone, but it restored some of his strength and vigour, enough to allow him to go on.

     "I hope we don't have to cast too many spells," said Barl as he led them to the corridor that he believed led to the rak King's ark. "I used up most of mine on our beloved master."

     "We all did," replied Talpha-Ja, "but I suspect that if we have to battle our way through with spells, we're dead. Khalkedon has had plenty of time to construct the most impregnable defences he can imagine. We're going to have to think our way past them, not fight our way past."

     Tak thought the green eyed wizard was probably right and he felt a shudder of apprehension at the thought of trying to outthink a three hundred year old man. You could make and correct a lot of mistakes in that time.

     They paused in the doorway for a long time, therefore, staring down the innocent looking corridor, trying to guess where the traps would be. "The flagstones," said Barl, indicating the heavy squares of polished stone covering the floor. "Some of them'll be pressure plates. You tread on one and wallop! A ton of rocks lands on your head."

     "Too obvious," replied Talpha-Ja. "Or, if they are there, they'll just be decoys. An intruder discovers a pressure plate, thinks he's discovered the corridor's only trap and plunges headlong into the real trap. No, it'll be something subtle, or something so obvious we simply won't look at it."

     "You still don't think it's something magical, then?" asked Tak. "Don't forget Gannlow was able to mask the auras of magical artifacts. Khalkedon might be able to do the same thing. This corridor might be full of magic spells and we simply wouldn't sense any of them."

     "The Reveal spell I cast just now is considerably more sophisticated than a wizard's magic sense," replied the green eyed wizard. "I'm not aware of any magic that could hide from it."

     "Just because you can't imagine it..."

     "Yes! Yes, I know, but if he's capable of that we might as well pack up and go home right now. He wasn't all powerful. He was more powerful than us, I admit. Much more powerful, but not all powerful. He had his limits, just as we all do. We have to assume that he's not able to hide spells from my reveal spell. It's the only chance we have of getting through this."

     "Just so long as you go first."

     "I will," agreed Talpha-Ja, eyeing Tak seriously. "I will put my faith in my magic."

     Half an hour's further study of the corridor revealed no new insights, and so they decided they had to take the chance and just go in. Talpha-Ja went first, as promised, and he tapped each flagstone with the tip of his staff as he advanced, inch by cautious inch. After six feet he paused in front of a flagstone that appeared to Tak no different from any other, but the green eyed wizard tapped it over and over again, listening intently to the sound it made, as if hearing something none of the others could hear. Then he waved the others back and took a step back himself, holding his staff out in front of him.

     Looking back to make sure the others were well out of the way, he whacked the flagstone with all his strength, jumping back as a barrage of tiny darts shot out of holes in the walls so tiny that none of them had noticed them. When it was over, the green eyed wizard bent down to pick one of them up, holding it carefully by the blunt end. He showed it to the others, pointing out the tiny smear of white on the point. "Some kind of poison, I'd bet. I've heard of poisons so potent that the tiniest scratch and you're dead before you hit the ground."