Siege of Shadows by JA Andrews

Author:JA Andrews [Andrews, JA]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-04-09T22:00:00+00:00

Douglon led them at as fast of a trot as the tunnel would allow. Even with mosslight lanterns hanging around their horses’ necks, the way forward was barely visible. The tunnels were smooth dwarven passages though, and the horses moved quickly, the echo of their hoofbeats on the stone floor almost deafening.

Sini rode behind Douglon, who kept up a constant stream of muttered curses and threats directed at the High Dwarf, the surgeon, and anyone else he could think of.

Her eyes strained into the darkness, growing gritty with exhaustion. Alaric called for Douglon to slow, and the dwarf snapped back that they were welcome to fall behind if they thought they could navigate the tunnels on their own.

It must have been long past midnight when the first hanging lantern came into view and they trotted out into a wider, taller tunnel. Several dwarfs stared in shock at the six horses running into the light.

Douglon hurried on, careening around corners, scattering groups of dwarves, until he raced into a huge open cavern. Dozens of tunnels of all sizes opened out of it, and the ceiling stretched higher than Sini could see. Hundreds of lit windows around the walls looked like shopfronts on a city square. Small stone buildings were clumped together, encroaching into the cave from all sides and creating winding narrow alleys.

Douglon rode diagonally across the huge cave, the hoofbeats echoing more quietly and more chaotically off the distant walls. Dwarves scrambled out of his way. He galloped down a wide, straight avenue between larger stone houses until he reached a bright tunnel burrowing into the wall of the cavern. He swung out of his saddle and called for Sini to hurry.

She climbed down on aching legs, unsteady after the long ride. She leaned against her horse until Douglon shouted for her.

The tunnel was bright with a mosslight much more yellow that what they’d been using. Sini squinted into it and followed Douglon’s angry voice. The floor and walls of the tunnel were smooth, showing a perfect reflection of the hallway. Sini’s short hair was wild and disheveled, her face tired. Douglon stormed ahead.

Huge wooden doors lined the tunnel. Guards at one near the end bowed at the sight of Douglon before pushing open the door. Douglon glowered at them and entered. “That one is with me.” He gestured back at her. “And a pack of other humans. Let them all in.”

The dwarf guards at the door were big for dwarves, but no taller than Sini. They watched her with stern, disapproving glares, but let her pass. The chamber beyond was enormous and opulent. Columns of black rock rose along the wall, interspersed with huge, richly-colored tapestries. The stone floor was inlaid with a pattern of stars in grey and white. A carved stone bath large enough for ten dwarves sat along the far wall, and jutting out into the middle of the room was a four-poster bed, each post a stone column wider than Sini’s body, carved with fantastic creatures and inset with gems.

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