spoke with him. He understands now. Hurry. Others will eventually come.
The dragon understood? Vereesa wanted to ask the wizard more, but knew by now that he would give
her no satisfactory answer. Still, he had somehow done the impossible, and for that she had to thank him.
She replaced the chain around her neck, letting the talisman once more dangle free. To Falstad, the
ranger simply said, “We are to move on.”
Still shaking his head at the sight of the dragon, the dwarf followed after her.
Krasus remained true to his word. He guided them through the abandoned mine, leading them at last
down a passage that Vereesa would have never thought led the way into the mountain fortress. It forced
the pair to climb a tight and quite precarious side passage, but at last they entered the upper level of a
fairly spacious underground cavern.
A cavern filled with scurrying orcs.
From the ledge on which they crouched, they could see the fearsome warriors packing away material
and filling wagons. On one side, a handler put a young dragon through the paces, while a second handler
looked to be preparing for imminent departure.
“Looks as if they're all planning to leave!”
It seemed so to her as well. She leaned over for a better look.
It worked . . .
Krasus had spoken, but Vereesa knew immediately from his tone that his words had only been meant
for himself. Likely he did not even know that he had said anything out loud. Had he planned somehow to
make the orcs depart Grim Batol? Despite her surprise at the wizard's handling of the dragon, the elf
doubted that he could havethismuch influence.
The one dragon readied for flight suddenly moved toward the main mouth of the cavern. His handler
finished strapping himself in and readied for flight. Unlike in combat, this dragon was laden with supplies.
She leaned back again, thinking. While in many ways the abandoning of Grim Batol meant great things to
the Alliance, it left too many questions and more than a few worries. What need would the orcs have for
Rhonin if they departed here? Surely they would not bother to bring an enemy wizard along.
And did they really intend to moveallthe dragons?
She had waited for Krasus to give them their next steps, but the wizard remained eerily silent. Vereesa
looked around, trying to decide by which path they might quickest find where Rhonin was being held . . .
assuming all along that he had not already been slain.
Falstad put a hand on her shoulder. “Down there! See him?”
She followed his gaze—and saw the goblin. He scurried along another cavern ledge, heading for an
opening far to their left.
“'Tis Kryll! Can be no other!”
The elf, too, felt certain of it. “He knows his way around here well, it seems!”
“Aye! That's why he led us to their allies, the trolls!”
But why had the goblin not let them be captured by the orcs? Why turn them over instead to the
murderous trolls? Surely the orcs would have been interested in questioning the pair.
Enough wondering. She had an idea. “Krasus! Can you show us how to get down to where that goblin
is heading?”
No voice echoed in her head.
“Krasus?”
“What's wrong?”
“The wizard seems not to be responding.”
Falstad snorted. “So we're on our own?”
“For now, it seems.” She straightened. “The ledge over there. It should take us where we want to go.
The orcs would want the tunnels to be fairly consistent.”
“So we go on without the wizard. Good. I like that better.”
Vereesa nodded grimly. “Yes, we go on without the wizard—but not our little friend Kryll.”
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