The Witching Hour

Ch. 20

Avalonna, Dwarven Kingdom of Terraheim

Drow and Avalonna woke up with a start. They both had no idea what time it was but soon realized they were still in their cells as a dwarf with a war hammer waited nearby and stood guard. They were in a small hallway where each cell was separated by vertical metal bars and the walls and floors were stone and brick. Flames lit up the room which gave everything an eerie appearance.

"What...what happened?" Drow asked sleepily.

"We needed to put you under, make sure you weren't undead or shape shifters. Congratulations, you're not, doesn't mean you're free to go." The dwarf muttered as Drow tried to look nonchalant. The dwarves must have only been able to tell if a person was in a different form, not if a person could change to a different form.

"We need to get out of here, sir, time is of the essence." Avalonna pleaded.

"I've heard that one before. Humans live shorter than us but not that much shorter, ok? You two aren't going anywhere." The dwarf said roughly, though with her other experiences with dwarves today, Avalonna assumed that was the only way they could speak.

"First, we need to find out how you found us. Second, we will decide what your intentions are. Third, we will act accordingly." He said flatly, placing his heavy hammer on the ground. The resulting thud echoed around the cells.

"We came here to seek aid." Drow said.
"We plan to go against the Red King himself."

The dwarf snorted and even began to laugh, which sounded slightly like loose gravel.

"Don't make me laugh, kid. You two plan to take on the whole Red army? Just who do you think you are anyway?" He said with a smirk and picked up his hammer.
"How did you even know to come here in the first place?" He asked and tapped the hammerhead on his palm.

"It was me." Drow said, shifting the attention to himself.
"I am a traveller and heard tale of this kingdom."

"Even if I believed that were true, why would two humans go out of their way to find mythical dwarves? That would be like looking for a leprechaun by a rainbow." He said with a sneer.

Avalonna frowned slightly at the fact that now she knew leprechauns did not exist.
"Sir, we are not just ordinary humans." Avalonna added. She figured since the dwarves would find out soon anyway, she might as well tell them now.

"Oh, is that so?" The dwarf said sarcastically. He seemed more interested in his hammer than in what they had to say.

"Yes, sir." Avalonna continued,
"You see, this is Drow and my name is Avalonna Bishop, I am a-" she was cut off by the dwarf who suddenly raised his hand up to stop her.

"Wait... Bishop? Did you say Bishop?" He questioned. His gaze went from Avalonna's eyes to her necklace and then to her ring.

"Yes, I did. Why is that important?" She asked, not sure what her surname had to do with anything.

"Wait here." The dwarf commanded and left abruptly.

"What was that about?" Avalonna asked, still trying to use magic to escape her gauntlets.

"I'm not sure, but I am just glad they did not test me correctly. Although, it's not like I could shape shift with these things on." Drow replied, gesturing at the gauntlets.

Avalonna concentrated but she simply could not use her natural instincts to come up with the energy or words to cast a spell.

"These gauntlets are horrible." She stated plainly, glaring at the stone blocks on her arms.

Within a few moments, the guard dwarf came back in, however this time he was followed by two more guard.

"Come with us, both of you." The guards said as they opened the cell doors. These two guards had axes instead of hammer and chain mail armor.

"We don't get much of a choice, do we?" Drow muttered and followed behind Avalonna.

Avalonna noticed that both guard wore the same emblem on their armor, a hammer and shield.

"'Tis the crest of the royal family." One of the dwarves said as he noticed Avalonna staring.

A moment after he said that, a younger dwarf in very fine made armor and clothing came towards them from nearby. His beard was not quite as rough and long as the others, which lead Avalonna to believe he was much younger.

"I am prince Norran, of Terranheim." He spoke with a deep, heavy voice,
"My men have told me your surname is Bishop, is this true?" He asked

"Y-yes." Avalonna stuttered in reply. She had no experience with royalty and she wasn't in the best of situations to begin with.

"Years ago, a man and a woman with the surname Bishop helped my father through troubled times." The young prince spoke.
"The dwarves were in a civil war and the Red King was already starting to gain much power and influence. Lucian Bishop helped with dwarves trials, that human knew more about Dwarven laws than just about anyone. He was quite a smart man. His wife, Meredith, along with the 13th Council helped us to hide from the King using her magic." He paused and stroked his beard.

"If you are truly their daughter, then we owe you a great debt. I shall listen to what you have to say." He stated.

"How do you know we're telling the truth?" Avalonna asked and immediately cursed herself for her stupidity.

Norran smiled slightly and pointed to the gauntlets on her and Drow's hands.
"These gauntlets are made with a mystical stone material, enchanted so supernatural abilities are surprised and lies are smothered." He answered.

"I see." Avalonna replied softly.
"We came here in order to hopefully find aid." She began.

"The Red King had my parents, your friends, murdered years ago. Since then he has tried to eradicate magic, even putting your kind into hiding. Well recently my brother and I have discovered we too have magic, and we decided we need to stop the Red King and Queen. What they have done is monstrous and cannot go unpunished. We came to find you dwarves to receive aid.

We are only a handful, no match for an army and whatever else the Red King may have. With your help and numbers, maybe we can win against them. May we count on you to help?" Avalonna asked, looking Norran sincerely in the eyes.

The dwarf prince wore a serious expression and stroked his beard once again. He paused and after a moment, took off the gauntlets that were on Avalonna and Drow.

"You are asking me to put my army, my kin, against another army in a war that is not directly my own. Usually I would not suggest such a thing, but this may be our best shot. Because the Red King does indeed pose a threat to us all, not just in Aster but in every kingdom, I will make sure you receive aid from us. Magic must live on in this world, the evil of the king and queen must be stopped."

He said and reached out to shake Avalonna and Drow's hands. Avalonna smiled widely and shook the prince's hand. This was the first piece of good news for them in a long time.