‘We came out of the main gate,’ said Gulamendis. ‘It has a small door to let people in and out without opening the big gates fully. There was no one in the yard; we just opened it, walked through, and closed it behind us. It may still be unlatched.’
Pug nodded and said, ‘I think over there,’ and at once they appeared on a slope opposite the main gate. If anyone was on the wall or in the tower, the chances of being seen were high, although Pug was confident he and Magnus could deal with anything likely to emerge from the half-abandoned fortress.
No alarm was raised, nor was there any movement on the walls as they crossed the open area before the gate. Pug stopped for a moment and knelt. He poked at what appeared to be a fibrous plant, knocked down by falling rock and ash. ‘This plant was nearly four feet tall.’ He stood. ‘No one has cleared this area for a while. You always deprive an attacking foe even the most modest cover.’
Gulamendis said, ‘I suspect this place was abandoned years ago and only reoccupied by the demons recently. Parts of the keep we passed through had layers of dust on the floor.’
‘Any tracks?’ asked Magnus.
‘We just didn’t worry about them,’ said Gulamendis. ‘We judged that if no one has used the rooms for years, they were unlikely to start using them immediately, and that if anyone did explore them…’ He shrugged. ‘We planned on being far from here by then.’
Pug said, ‘Logical.’
They walked to the door within the massive gates and Pug pushed it open. ‘Apparently they had no idea you visited.’
They slipped through the gate, staying within the deep shadows along the walls. Moving quickly, Gulamendis led them into the corner then over to the side of the shed. He glanced around. There was no hint of life.
He led them to the stairway leading down to the door into the basement and found the door refused to open. He pushed, but despite his strength, it simply wouldn’t budge. Magnus whispered, ‘Let me.’
The younger magician moved to stand before the door and held up his hand. With a short motion and a single word, the door moved in balky fits and starts until it was open enough for them to see what had blocked it.
‘Bodies,’ whispered Magnus.
The stench of decomposing flesh rose and even Brandos swallowed hard.
Sandreena said, ‘What happened here?’
‘We won’t know until we get inside,’ said Pug. He spoke in a normal volume, without displaying any concern about being overheard. ‘I think the demons have quit this place and decided not to take the prisoners with them.’
Magnus waved his hand again and the door flew off its hinges and into the room. The large chamber that led to the dungeon was littered with corpses: human, elves, and dwarves all piled on top of one another. It was clear a good number of them had been trying to reach this door, and were cut down from behind. The wounds were mixed: some smooth cuts, from sword or knife blade, others torn and ragged as if made by fang or claw.
Once they had cleared a way through the pile of bodies, Pug knelt and inspected them more closely. ‘I recognize some of the clothing,’ he said softly. ‘I think this dwarf here is from Dorgin, perhaps a companion of Kendra’s. That pattern in the weave of the tunic is common there. But these elves…’
Gulamendis said, ‘They are unknown to me, but until we found Home…Midkemia, we knew only the taredhel.’
‘I don’t think they’re from Midkemia,’ said Pug. He felt the torn shirt of a dead elf and said, ‘I do not recognize this material. It’s not silk or linen, but it’s so light.’ He stood and said, ‘Too many mysteries. Too many distractions. Where is the tower?’ he asked.
‘That way,’ pointed Gulamendis.
Sandreena and Brandos had seen their fair share of battlefields, yet both appeared pale and shaken by the carnage and were glad to leave the room.
The light was faint and at the end of the hall, Magnus raised his hand to create a bright blue-white glow that illuminated their surroundings more efficiently than a lantern. They reached the bottom of the tower stairs and moved quickly to the top.
The door was still unlatched and once they moved inside, Pug said, ‘I can feel it.’
‘Grandfather?’ asked Magnus.
‘Yes, though how long ago…’ He shrugged. Reaching up, he pulled a book off the shelf at random and glanced at it. ‘I have a copy of this in my library.’
Magnus came to his side and said, ‘I will gather anything that I don’t recognize.’ He started with the volumes on the desk and quickly tossed duplicates of those already on Sorcerer’s Isle, to the floor.