Astral Threads, Ch 20: Dwarven Council (Patreon)

Twin rows of towering Sky Guards accompanied Sam and his parents as they approached the twenty-foot tall, iron-bound doors of the dwarven council chamber. Nine golems on each side of the group made for an awe-inspiring escort, their forms like black diamonds filled with swirling stars.

They could have left the golems outside, but they had all thought it best to arrive with the full representation of their new power so that there would be no mistake as to who the dwarves were dealing with. They intended to speak with every courtesy, but power demanded a courtesy all its own.

The eighteen Level 200 golems marched with an unquestionable force, their movements as fluid as anything living as their wings furled tightly against their backs, giving them an intimidating breadth in the corridor. Just half of the escort was enough to raze Highfold to the ground, much less the full company of 120 who now guarded the relic.

Sam walked at the center of the group, his horns reaching the same height as the Sky Guards. His broad form and height made the golems look more normal, while his eyes burned like a star that was brighter than theirs. Beside him, his parents contrasted the golems like two more flames in the dark, with his father a silver blue and his mother a golden white.

Jeric’s muscular form had gained another few inches from his evolution, putting him at over six and a half feet, so that he came up to Sam’s chin as he walked on the left, but his shoulders were nearly as broad as those of the Sky Guards. His piercing blue eyes shone out with bright attention and his silvered hair gave him an aura of authority that felt natural and calm, balanced by the easy smile on his lips.

Aemilia walked on Sam’s right, her steps light as she kept one hand on his arm. She had always been statuesque and after her evolution she was nearly six feet herself, but she was far more slender than the others. With her golden hair and white dress, she was a ray of light at the center of the formation.

Only the three of them had come for this meeting. Even Krana had shaken her head and waited outside the cavern after giving them directions. They were here to make an official impression as the new High Council of the Moonlight Relic, a force that had not been seen in the world for ages. Their levels were still low for the position, but they needed to do it on their own.

They planned to meet with the council and establish a strong connection, which was why they had brought the golems. With so many Level 200 golems and Sam’s presence as a powerful unknown, the strength would be clear.

Nonetheless, Jeric and Aemilia were both hiding their worry, since their future relationship with Highfold might be based on their actions today. Garild was the governor, but he only dealt with taxes. The council here was the true authority in the city.

Even if it went poorly, they would still have the support of the Ice Sylphs, but the council had access the majority of craftsmen who lived in the area, and their assistance would speed up the repairs of buildings, farms, and other areas that were not directly connected to the relic’s enchantments.

The tunnel they’d entered was hundreds of feet below the city, cutting down deep into the earth where the dwarves carved their homes. The entrance was braced by vast bars of some darker metal that secured the doors to the walls and the floor, creating a defensive portal.

Until now, the tunnel had been silent except for the slow hum of mana flowing through the stones, a steady current that resonated in Sam’s bones as it moved through enchantments the dwarves had laid here. The entrance was ceremonial here, but the dwarves built for defense and for their creations to last through the ages.

As they reached the end of the tunnel, a louder rumble sounded as counterweights shifted and the doors swung open in welcome, pulling back into the stone to either side. They were two massive triangular wedges that met in the middle, only giving the appearance that they were flat when closed. Any battering ram that tried to hit them would find them as immovable as a mountain.

From that opening, a rolling cadence of young dwarven voices came out, higher pitched than Sam had expected, filling the tunnel with a song. His attention swept through the area with Crystal Focus, and his eyes widened in surprise. There were nearly two hundred dwarven children gathered near the open doors, singing to them in welcome. In their hands, they held glowing mushrooms and crystals that turned the entrance into a rainbow of subterranean colors.

Mountains steep and quarries bright

that wind down past the bones

to chasms deep with ores in sight

that flow beneath the stones.

It wasn’t a song so much as it was a rolling chant, the beat ringing like a hammer on stone. Their words were young and soft, but rumbling with the strength of dwarven lungs, and there were smiles on their faces as they stood in front of their elders, holding up their sources of light.

Behind them, a slow rolling drum began to beat, rumbling through the cavern as it supported the song. It was one of the clan drums that had echoed across the valley during the alignment, its sound thrumming with power that vibrated across his skin and soothed his soul. He couldn’t help but stop and listen, looking around as he tried to figure out what was going on.

The earth is slow and stone is fast

and forges sing this song.

The drums that beat are solemn bells

that tell our soul belongs.

We work the stone and melt the ore

and hammer the steel fair.

We'll bind the earth beneath its vault

in caverns vast and spare.

Beneath the mountains, our song rings out

in vaulted cavern halls.

The sky is vast and clouds are fair

on dwarven cavern walls.

Behind the children, older dwarves began to appear with more glowing mushrooms in their hands, these in deeper colors. Their clothes were formal and some of them wore armor, but they were all smiling as they joined the crowd, walking forward by age, youngest to oldest. There was no sense of danger coming from them, just welcome.

As they approached, the adults stomped their feet on the stone to create ringing hammer beats and began to hum with a deep vibration, their voices creating a resonance that supported the children’s song and carried it higher, making the young voices sweeter and lighter.

Gems are sleeping in the earth

And long our song will last,

as solemn bells ring out to us

like hammers falling fast.

The sky is vast and song is deep

in dwarven cavern halls.

The mountains fair are ten miles high

on dwarven cavern walls.

Behind all of the gathered dwarves, the cavern walls came to life as magical crystals lit up across the cavern and began to blaze in golden, red, and blue, giving life to intricate murals carved deep into the stone in every direction. There were impressions of dwarves working in the caverns, of the far peaks of the Western Reaches, of forges, and of orchards full of trees, every inch of the walls carved with an artistry that made them seem to come to life as the light played across them.

The carvings soared into the distant heights of the cavern, stretching upward for two hundred feet and more, until they reached the ceiling, which was carved with lines of blowing wind, a sun, and ice drakes soaring in the clouds. Here and there throughout the carvings, square runes glowed with mana, each of them humming with their own magical signature that tied together into a vast enchantment. Below, the children’s voices rose higher, until they filled the entire cavern with their song.

We'll sing and dig and mine and swing

until the ages pass,

and stone turns dust to ash and mud

where dwarven caverns last.

With beer and ale and mug in hand

we'll toast the friendly skies.

We see them from the deepening vast

their visage fair there lies.

The dwarven hall with open walls

will guard the gates of morn.

We'll see the skies that open there,

from molten ore we're born.

And then slowly, on the last rumbling lines, the voices grew quieter until they fell silent, leaving the cavern humming with the echoes of their song. It left Sam smiling as he looked at the rows of children and their glowing lights. They were grinning but disciplined, clearly pleased with themselves as they shifted from foot to foot and waited for their guests’ reaction.

“Well done!’ Sam laughed as he applauded them, his parents joining in. They had clearly been waiting for them, but Krana hadn’t warned him at all. He would have to ask her what was going on with the song later. The children’s faces brightened and their grins got wider, but they didn’t move. Their parents behind them also began to smile.

Then the crowd parted as a group of older dwarves stepped forward, moving through the ranks like the prow of a ship across the ocean. There were nine of them, five males and four females. The beards of the men were wintered with age and the women’s hair was turning silver, but they were all still strong and broad across the shoulder, their backs straight. They were also smiling.

Sam had spent enough time with Garild and Krana to recognize the Dwarven Council, but he still didn’t have all of the details. Unlike Krana, who had golden brown eyes, these dwarves all had eyes as blue as mountain ice, reminding him of the Ice Sylphs and his father’s transformation. Their Ice affinity was clear and it made him trust them a bit.

All nine of them were wearing ornate metal armor, square bracelets, and rune-embroidered cloaks. Axes and hammers hung on their backs and from loops on their belts. The clothing beneath the armor was of a high quality and in different colors, which seemed to indicate which branch of the clan they were from, since they all had a different insignia on their chest.

“As the Council of Highmount, we welcome the Horned Hunter of the Moons and his people to Highfold.” The one in the lead spoke, his voice tinted with the deep resonance of age as he raised his hands to show he held no weapons. “The children’s Song of the Caverns is traditional to welcome honored guests, and to show you that we have only good will, so much that we have brought the children here, where we know there will be no battle. It’s a simple song, but it shows who we are.

“I am Belanos, eldest of the council, and these are my fellows.” The dwarf raised his hand to his left and then his right, indicating his companions as he introduced them one by one. “This is Archias, Girlan, Poras, Nalen, Teolo, Beturin, Revala, and Kiroto. Each of us is appointed to the council by one of the nine branches of our clan, and together we oversee the governance and welfare of the city, both above and below.”

He reached up to his shoulder and touched a pouch that was hanging there, and a moment later a small keg of ale about two feet long and over half that wide appeared in his arms. He tucked it under one arm as he pulled out a tap and hammered it into the free end, and then he pulled out a stone mug and began to fill it.

When it was full, he passed it to Sam and then filled more, handing them to Jeric and Aemilia, and then to each of the council members beside him. Before long, everyone present had a mug of ale. Even those in the crowd had pulled out their own kegs and poured mugs.

“We welcome you to our cavern!” Belanos raised the mug of ale and as soon as Sam and the others did the same, he drained it in a single long swallow. As the others began to drink, he smashed the mug on the stones, letting the stone shards fly in every direction.

“Let our hospitality never be rescinded!”

As his words faded, the rest of the council raised their mugs in the same toast, drained them, and shattered them on the floor in a rolling crash of welcome.

The ale flowed down Sam’s throat like molten fire as he drank. It burned there, deep and resonant, like a volcano simmering in the earth. It was rich with Earth and Fire mana, its taste a mixture of bright spices and layers of mushrooms, stone, and alcohol more potent than anything served in the city above. If anyone with a weak Constitution drank it, it would probably count as a poison.

“Let our axes never cross in battle,” Sam agreed as he hurled his own mug at the floor, making sure to use enough force that the shards exploded in every direction. His parents repeated the same words and shattered their mugs a moment later. This much of dwarven traditions they knew, since Krana had made sure to walk them through the customs.

Drinking together symbolized trust and shattering the mugs was a way of warding off bad luck, so that the shared drinks could never be undone and no one could claim that the ale had been left undrunk by a guest, even a drop. They were specially made of a fragile stone, so that not even weak guests would have trouble breaking them. The mugs and anything remaining inside were given back to the stone from which the dwarves and the vessels were formed.

Belanos grinned as he pulled out standard mugs and filled them. He passed them out and then raised his own to drink again, this time more sedately. He studied the group and the golems around them with curiosity, his eyebrows raised.

“Marvels of enchantment there, and I am ashamed to say I don’t recognize the material,” he said with a thoughtful grunt. He didn’t seem upset by the presence of the golems, even though they were weapons in their own right, now that the toast was complete.

“Very impressive. It seems we have much to share with one another, so now that we have met, why don’t we talk?” He waved them to follow as he turned around. If he had been younger, he would have looked excited, but his age turned it into a graceful curiosity.

“I understand you are looking for craftsmen and you have enchantments and powerful magics in your grasp. Come. Let us see what agreements we can make.”

The council chamber was deeper inside the cavern, past another heavily fortified door, which made it obvious that it was designed as part of a layered defense. As they walked, the clan drum continued to vibrate in the background, releasing waves of mana as it calmed down.

“I have wanted to meet you for months now, Horned Hunter,” Belanos added as they walked through the doors and found seats around a large round table. It was big enough that it could have fit twice as many people.

The golems took up guard along the walls, falling still until they resembled ornamental statues except for the slow movement of light inside their crystal bodies. The dwarf shook his head as he looked at them, and then he turned toward Sam and his parents.

“I am glad that you have come, and we are thankful for your presence in the valley. I thought you were a World Spirit at first, but I hear that you have denied it. I also hear that the three of you have awoken the ancient ruins there and I would like to hear more about that. You have brought a great deal of change to this valley, but over the long years of my life, I have found that change is an opportunity for growth...and for trade.” Belanos grinned as he spoke, his features shining with good nature even behind the braided beard that hid half of his face. “So tell me, what can my people and Highfold do for you?”

“Your people and the Ice Sylphs have a long history, and they are already our allies,” Sam rumbled in agreement. “I believe the same will be true for your people and mine. We have only to work out the details of how we can help one another.

“As for World Spirits, I am not one, just from a race that is not commonly seen and has a connection to the old ruins above us. Allow me to introduce the other two members of the High Council.” He raised his hands to indicate his hands to indicate his parents at his side.

“This is Jeric and Aemilia Hastern. Please treat them as though they were my own parents, since that is how I see them.”

Belanos raised his bushy eyebrows at that, but there was a satisfied twinkle in his eye as he turned toward Jeric and Aemilia. He had done his best to treat Sam without blinking, but he was clearly more used to speaking with humans.

“I am in charge of the logistics and rebuilding of the relic, as well as its defenses,” Jeric said with a companionable smile. His silvered hair and eyes were similar enough to Belanos’s own that the two of them looked almost like brothers, if one was tall and the other short and stocky, although he was much younger than the dwarf.

“My wife is in charge of its history and teaching people about what it once was, while the Hunter is in charge of the enchantments that bring it to life. The lights that came from it during the alignment were his work.” Jeric continued to explain and Aemilia spoke up here and there to answer questions.

Before long, Belanos was better informed about the relic than nearly anyone else, even Garild, and his following questions were insightful and pointed.

“I can see the pattern you are carving on the wall.” Belanos rubbed at his beard as he spoke. He paused now and then to tug at it thoughtfully as he looked into the distance. “Your presence will change the power structure of the valley, even if I do not help you. It seems the sylphs have already given you their blessing, so I have no grounds to resist your presence. Some may be unhappy, but I am old enough to know when a battle is unwinnable.

“With the sylphs’ support, there is nothing Highfold can do to you except refuse to help, which would only slow you down. Any attempt to directly confront you will eventually end in exile from the valley or at the hands of your own defenses.” Belanos nodded to the golems standing silently along the walls. “But you have come here speaking of benefits for all, which means you have another idea in mind

“So, this council will hear you out. I hope you understand how many lives depend on the flow of trade through Highfold. The people here are not self-sufficient, except in the most limited sense. The era of a few farms that helped the Ice Sylphs to grow food in the valley in exchange for protection is long past.” Belanos tugged on his beard, his expression troubled as he continued.

“We can still grow enough food for the city, but these days our true wealth comes from the mountains and the mana that gathers around them, especially the cascading flows at dawn and dusk There are mana-infused gems and ores here that only occur because of the intensity of those mana flows from the peaks. Certain rare ores, elemental herbs, monster cores, ice wine, and barrels of spirits also benefit from the mana and make up a large percentage of trade.

“On the other side of things, we import a great deal of fine goods, luxury items, southern wine, and enchanted items. Our local enchanters have always been weak, since most of them only come here to study the ruins. Few stay to set up a real economy, especially when there are cities that are far more advanced in the profession than us. Trading for these things is why we allow the king’s governor here. It gives us access to them without crippling tariffs.” He tugged on his beard again as he looked between Sam, Jeric, and Aemilia. His eyes eventually settled on Jeric, the one who had been doing most of the talking until now.

“So, how can we aid you, so that we both profit?”

“In time, the relic will be far larger than Highfold and potentially have more people, but it will take it a long time to get there,” Jeric said with a serious look. “More importantly, it has the enchantments to protect those people, if the Hunter is able to repair them, which will make it a refuge for Highfold as well, defending more than half of its border. We want to increase the population a little at a time as the repairs advance. That will also give Highfold and the trade here time to adjust.” Jeric paused as he nodded to Aemilia, letting her take over the explanation.

“What we really need is two things,” Aemilia said warmly. “First, we would like you to arrange a number of craftsmen and others who need work and who are seeking a better future, perhaps a few hundred for now, but more later on as things pick up and the first group learns how to work on the relic. In return, we can offer an education that they won’t find anywhere else in the world and allow them access to rare materials, which will give them a clear progression through their crafting classes or professions.

“Second, we would like your clan to assist with restoring some critical parts of the relic, especially its workshops, farms, and teleportation areas, in order to make it liveable as quickly as possible. When I ask this, you should know that the relic is a vast artifact that is favored by the World Core. By helping with these areas, you have an opportunity to do something that will benefit Aster Fall.”

“But, because trade is based on fair exchange,” Sam added when his mother paused, turning to the main hook they had prepared for this deal. “If you do just these two things, I will give you a set of enchantment patterns, ones that you have not seen before but that apply to armor crafting, metal, and stone: heating, shaping, hardening, and imbuing protective enchantments. They will cover everything from the Basic to the Epic tier of enchantment and together they form a complete heritage.”

Krana had helped them to come up with this plan, since her insight into the council’s ability and what would appeal to them was far greater than his. From her description, while the dwarves here had plenty of high quality ores, they were better at mining them than at forging them into powerful items.

“If you use them well, it will allow your people to become one of the greatest armor-smithing clans in the kingdom. You will not need to sell your ores to other clans and then buy their enchanted items. They will come to you.” He looked toward his parents and then back at Belanos as he summoned a sphere of crystal flame into his hand. It glimmered as runes floated through the surface, reflected from his eyes that were burning like stars. “The relic was once a great school for fighting against Outsiders, and it holds many records of enchantments for strength and defense.”

“Our offer does not end there,” Aemilia said as she took over speaking again, with a glance at the flame in Sam’s hands that drew Belanos’s eye. Her eyes flickered with rainbow light as she called on the powers of her class and looked into a distant past. “Help us to bring Highfold into the work of repairing the relic, led by your council, so that the people here feel like the relic is theirs. We want them to see it as their home and to support it.”

Her voice echoed with truth as images from Amaris’s library flickered through the air, revealing the spines of manuals, suits of armor with gleaming pauldrons and breastplates, slender longswords engraved with runes down the center, bright axes with a long beard curling beneath the edge, and runes from sprawling crystalline enchantments that had once existed in the relic. Behind her, the golems standing silently along the walls added proof to her words.

“If you can do that, and if you make a contract with us as allies, we will share smithing and combat techniques with you that the world has not seen in thousands of years, ones that will raise the strength of your people to an unknown level.”

Belanos’s eyes widened as he saw the images. The designs were nothing like anything in the modern world, and his interest was immediate. Even if there were no enchantments, it was clear that Aemilia was showing him the wealth of an entire civilization. All around the table, gasps of surprise echoed out from the council.

After that, it didn’t take long to come to an agreement.