Threadbare - Complete Trilogy, page 83
A long gallery, low, with golden plaques glimmering on the walls. Each one had a name. Each one had a clan sign. And each one had a simple slot engraved in it, just a small lip, sticking out of the metal.
Looking down the hall, which stretched a good way back into the mountain, Threadbare could see that perhaps half the plaques had their slots filled, each by a single silvery coin.
The center of the hall was packed by dwarves, older dwarves, some standing with canes or with the help of others who were obviously family. They faced the front of it. Faced the King, who had parked the Kneelchair next to a series of tubes that ran down the wall and opened up next to him.
TONG
An unseen bell chimed, and the tube rattled. The King sighed, and reached a large, emaciated hand out, taking a cylinder from the opening in the tube. He opened it, and coins cascaded out, followed by rolls of paper, falling onto the sheets that covered his vehicle.
And the crowd murmured in dismay. An old woman in back started sobbing.
King Grundi unrolled the scroll, and bowed his head. “Agni Durable,” he said, and the crowd sat silent. The Kneelchair ground and clanked as he rolled down the gallery, next to a plaque. There he took one of the coins, and placed it in the slot, with trembling hands. Then he read the next name on the list. “Jasper Motherlode,” and moved across the hall, fumbling another coin out. Three more names he read, and then-
TONG
Another cylinder clanked in the tube, and the crowd groaned.
“They’re the dead,” Cecelia whispered, and Threadbare grabbed her, hugged her as she held him back, as the ancient king read the names of the dead, and gave them their final due. All this while their relatives, the ones who couldn’t fight, who had stayed behind, stood and waited and hoped against hope.
Some sobbed. Some cursed and wailed, or stomped away flushed with anger, pulling beards or biting back tears. But almost worse than that were the ones who were silent. Who reacted when they heard a name, but simply stood there, watching, as the hope drained from them. Left them hollow, like dwarf-shaped outlines in the world.
Four cylinders came down the tube in total. Each had perhaps fifteen to twenty names, all told. And when it was done, and the crowds had gone to grieve or enjoy the relief that their kin were still alive and hadn’t been named, only then did the King clatter up to them.
“My son thought peace possible,” King Grundi told Cecelia. “He fought with that hope. And he fell with it.” The King’s hand stretched, out to point at one section of the wall, with two plaques.
GRUNDI EMBERGLOW DHURLEM EMBERGLOW
And in Dhurlem’s plaque, sat a coin.
“So no,” said King Grundi, “There will be no peace. We will win or we will die here. Do you understand me, she who was Princess Ragandor?”
“I do,” she said. “And I’m sorry. But more death won’t help you or your son or your people.”
“No, but about seven will. King Melos. His Hand. And that thing wearing your mother’s face. Will you help me with that, Cecelia?”
“Kill my father…” She looked away. “I…”
“Mm. No, it is too much to ask.” The old dwarf’s face twisted with compassion. “Tell you what. Help me handle the others, and you leave him to us. A trial and justice if we can take him alive, and death in battle if not.”
Cecelia let out a long breath. “He killed Caradon. His own father in law.” Behind her, Hidon’s eyes widened and he pulled out the abacus again. “Yes,” Cecelia decided. “I won’t kill him but he has to answer for his crimes.”
“Good. What do they have so far?” The King asked.
Hidon handed Gudrun another slip of paper, and Grundi looked them over. “Hm. Decent start. You, Cecelia. Steam Knight? You’ll need new armor, then.”
“Yes, but our bodiless refugees are the first concern. We need to get them settled before we help ourselves.”
Grundi smiled. “You would’ve been a good queen for your people. Tell you what…” He rolled the Kneelchair up to the Emberglow plaques…
…and as his ministers gasped, he took out his son’s coin.
Cecelia caught it by sheer reflex, as he flipped it to her. “This should cover the components she needs for a new Steam Knight suit. And if it doesn’t, talk to the tallyman and take mine.”
“Sir… no…” whispered Bazdra.
“My heir’s dead, I’m the last of my clan here, I’ve got no blood who might need it after I die,” Grundi snapped. “What are two pieces of Adamant in the face of all that, hm?”
“Adamant!” Garon shrieked, and stared around the room. At the hundreds of coins, filling hundreds of plaques. Just sitting there, next to the candles… “This is… the cost must…” He snapped his mouth shut. “This is the safest room in the hold, isn’t it?” He said, conversationally.
“Oh yeah,” Hidon confirmed, recovering from his shock. “Little doll girl, I hope you know the honor the King just paid you.”
“Why?” Cecelia said, staring down at the coin, and up to the King.
He smiled, sad then, eyes misty. “Because he, too, believed in peace.” He glanced over to Gudrun. “Get them settled. Bazdra, keep them alive. The rest of you, come with me.”
*****
Two hours later, in a simple chamber decorated with hand-woven rugs and tapestries ranging from children’s first attempts to masterpieces that must have taken years to finish, Graves and the golems and their cats stretched out behind a closed door and huddled together to discuss matters.
“So we’ve pretty much got free run of the place, so long as Bazdra or the other ministers are with us, right?” Kayin asked.
“Yes,” Threadbare said. “Though we need to be careful. The Lurker is probably going to try to kill anyone of us he can catch.”
“He can try,” Zuula said.
“He can do more than that,” Garon said. “If the Hand are actually the remnants of the Seven, then the Lurker’s probably what remains of Graham.”
“Oh shit,” Madeline said. “That’s wahse than just assassination.”
“What’s worse?” Fluffbear squeaked.
“Graham was a con man, a grifter for the greater good,” Cecelia said. “The first one to unlock the gambler job… well, in Cylvania, anyway. He favored range attacks, bluffs, and cons that usually put the Seven’s foes in a bad tactical position. If the daemon has any of his skills, he’s going to come at us using people, and in a way that we won’t be expecting. He was also a master of disguise.”
“Can he disguise himself as a doll?” Graves asked. “If there’s size limitations we might be good.”
“Except for you,” Zuula pointed out.
“Right.” Graves sighed. “Groups. Nobody does anything alone until this is over.”
“That’s going to be a bit rough,” Garon said, glancing toward Zuula, then quickly away before she could see him. “I mean, some of you have valuable jobs to montage, and armor to build, but some of us won’t have much to do. I… I’d really like to help here, but I don’t know how.”
“I’ve thought of that, actually. I think there might be a way you could help, you all could if you’re willing,” Cecelia said. “I’m going to be stuck putting together my new armor, and montaging.”
“I’ll be montaging as well.” Threadbare said, then frowned. “Maybe not. I taught you golemist.”
“You did, though I’ve barely used it. But I see where you’re going with this.” Graves nodded. “I could montage it to other people easily enough.”
“I’m down for being useful,” Glub said. “Beats staring at the walls.”
“Good.” Cecelia leaned forward. “Gudrun tells me the two coins will cover the Steam Knight armor and the reagents to golemize most of our dead, but there’s about forty or so left-uncovered. So we need a lot of money… or we need more sources of reagents. And since we’re free to roam the city, we’ve got every legal reason to enter the dungeon that they’ve got down here.”
“Wait, whoa, dungeon?” Garon said, leaning forward. “I’ve never heard of one here.”
“Oh yeah. It’s a well-kept secret outside these halls. I only knew about it because of the Lurker’s intelligence reports. It’s legal to go in, unlike a lot of the Crown-controlled dungeons were. The downside is that it’s way more dangerous than Catamountain was. You know how that one was all about cats? This one’s themed around giants.”
“Worth a shot,” Zuula decided. “Ogre went down pretty easy, all t’ings considered. How hard giants be?”
“Mind you, that’s also going to be a lure. We’ll raid in and out of the dungeon, and try to tempt the Lurker into ambushing us when he thinks we’re weakest-emerging from a dungeon.” Cecelia explained. “But I’ve got an ace to play, there.”
“Yeah?” Kayin said, scooting in closer.
“I couldn’t say anything before, because there were too many people listening, but we’ve got an old friend, one who’ll probably be happy to help us. If she’s alive, and if she’s here. But I can’t imagine she WOULDN’T be here.”
“Oh?” Garon asked. Then, “oh.”
“Yeah. Once things are quiet, let’s break out the dollseyed mice, Threadbare, and do some exploring. And if we’re very, very lucky we might be able to track down Beryl Wirebeard…”
THREADBARE’S CHARACTER SHEET
Name: Threadbare Age: 5
Jobs: Greater Toy Golem Level 15 Cave Bear Level 12 Ruler Level 12 Scout Level 7 Tailor Level 11 Model Level 10 Necromancer Level 11 Duelist Level 6 Animator Level 12 Enchanter Level 10 Golemist Level 14 Smith Level 11 Sculptor Level 12
Attributes: Strength: 125 Constitution: 140 Hit Points: 335(435) Armor: 52(65) Intelligence: 226 Wisdom: 204(211) Sanity: 430(584) Mental Fortitude: 42 Dexterity: 147(154) Agility: 118(125) Stamina: 275() Endurance: 62 Charisma: 120(149) Willpower: 211 Moxie: 331(460) Cool: 20(48) Perception: 125 Luck: 92(99) Fortune: 217(324) Fate: 15(22) Generic Skills Brawling - Level 43 (+14) Climb - Level 13 Clubs and Maces - Level 9 Dagger - Level 9 Dodge - Level 9 Fishing - Level 1 Magic Item 1 - Resist Fire 13 Ride - Level 8 Stealth - Level 17 Swim - Level 5
Greater Toy Golem Skills Adorable - Level 32 Bodyguard - Level 7 Gift of Sapience - Level NA Golem Body - Level 28 Innocent Embrace - Level 14 Magic Resistance -Level 16
Cave Bear Skills Animalistic Interface - NA Claw Swipes - 26 Darkspawn - NA Forage - 13 Growl - 2 Hibernate - 37 Scents and Sensibility - 20 Stubborn - 9 Toughness - 20
Ruler Skills Appoint Official - Level NA Emboldening Speech - Level 19 Identify Subject - Level 10 It’s Good to be King - NA King’s Quest - Level 14 Noblesse Oblige - Level 30 Organize Minions - Level NA Royal Audience - Level 22 Simple Decree - Level 15 Swear Fealty - Level NA
Scout Skills Alertness - Level 3 Best Route - Level 3 Camouflage - Level 13(20) Firestarter - Level 10 Keen Eye - Level 10 Sturdy Back - Level 13 Wind’s Whisper - Level 15
Tailor Skills Adjust Outfit - Level 4 Clean and Press - Level 15 Recycle Cloth - Level 1 Tailoring - Level 53(68)
Model Skills Adjust Weight - Level 14 Call Outfit - Level 4 Dietary Restriction - Level 50 (+100 to all pools) Fascination - Level 8 Flex - Level 20 Makeup - Level 10 Self-Esteem - Level 20 Sexy Pose - Level 2 Strong Pose - Level 15 Work it Baby - Level 50 (+50% to raw item bonuses) Necromancer Skills Assess Corpse - Level 12 Command the Dead - Level 28 Deathsight - Level 8 Drain Life - Level 7 Invite Undead - Level 12 Mana Focus - Level NA (+11% to sanity) Skeletons - Level 19 Soulstone - Level 45 Speak With Dead - Level 24 Zombies - Level 3
Duelist Skills Challenge - Level 9 Dazzling Entrance - Level 17 Fancy Flourish - Level 13 (20) Guard Stance - Level 19 Parry - Level 10 Swashbuckler’s Spirit - NA (+14 to cool) Swinger - Level 2 Weapon Specialist - Level 29 (Brawling +14) Animator Skills Animus - Level 36 Animus Blade - Level 10 Animus Shield - Level 4 Arm Creation - Level 7 Command Animus - Level 19 Creator’s Guardians - Level 27 Dollseye - Level 18 Eye for Detail - Level 20 Magic Mouth - Level 18 Mend - Level 40
Enchanter Skills Appraise - Level 30 Boost+5 - Level 14 Boost +10 - Level 2 Disenchant - Level 7 Elemental Protection - Level 9 Glowgleam - Level 26 Harden - Level 32 Soften - Level 31 Spellstore I - Level 25 Spellstore V - Level 4 Spellstore X - Level 1 Wards - Level 2
Golemist Skills Clay Golem - Level 2 Command Golem - Level 24 Golem Animus - Level 47 Golem Guardians - NA Invite Golem - Level 12 Mend Golem - Level 29 Program Golem - Level 42 Toy Golem - Level 56 Wood Golem - Level 12
Smith Skills Adjust Arms and Armor - Level 7 Refine Ore - Level 13 Smelt Down - Level 6 Smithing - Level 50
Sculptor Skills Detect Clay - Level 8 Mend Ceramic - Level 5 Refine Clay - Level 16 Sculpting - Level 58
Equipment Journeyman Tailor’s Apron of fire resistance (+6 Armor, +10 Tailoring, Resist Fire 9)(+3 Armor, +5 Tailoring, +4 Resist Fire from WIB) Okay Quality Bling Ringtail Master’s Coat (+5 CHA, +5 LUCK, +5 Armor, +5 Fate)(+2 CHA, LUCK, Armor, Fate from WIB) Rod of Baronly Might (+5 CHA, +5 WIS, +10 Cool)(+2 CHA, WIS, +5 Cool from WIB) Sneakypants (+5 Camouflage)(+2 Camouflage from WIB) Yellow Belt of Bravado (+5 AGL, +5 DEX, +5 to the Fancy Flourish skill)(+2 AGL, DEX, Fancy Flourish from WIB) Toy Top Hat (CHA +10)(+5 CHA from WIB) Inventory A Folded-steel Dagger (Dagger Level 10) Tailor’s Tools A small jewelry box, now empty. 1 bead of Mend Golem (Level 15) 1 bead of Silent Killer (Level 10) Minorphone (Enhances voice and social skills focused through it twice per day) Quests
Unlocked Jobs Berserker, Cleric, Cook, Cultist, Grifter, Spirit Medium, Tamer, Wizard
Give the Dwarves Their Due 2
“You’ve been awfully quiet,” Cecelia remarked to Threadbare, as they sat waiting in the darkness of Madeline’s pack.
“Have I?” Threadbare asked.
“Yes,” Zuula said. “Dis whole time we down here talking wit de dwarves.”
“Oh. Well…” He turned in Cecelia’s arms, snuggled in a bit as he stared up at her from an inch away. “This was pretty much your idea. I figured you had matters well in hand, and you did. The King was very impressed by you. And I used the time I didn’t have to talk to look at people.”
“Okay. That’s good.” Cecelia snuggled him closer.
“Looking at people. Yeah.” Garon said, tossing his hatched up and down and catching it one-handed. The overall effect, given the proportion of his size to his weapon was of a minotaur juggling a greataxe. Threadbare supposed it was good for his dexterity, if nothing else. “The Lurker’s out there somewhere, probably wearing a friendly face.”
“Or an unfriendly one,” Threadbare said. “Those ministers are pretty highly placed officials, with lots of things to keep them busy, aren’t they?”
“Yeah. I caught that too,” Cecelia said. “And here we get FOUR of them. I initially thought it was him showing us good faith, showing that he was taking us seriously, even with the problems in my plan, and the downsides I hadn’t foreseen. But it’s not that at all, is it? He doesn’t trust his ministers. Not completely.”
“Oh. Oh shit, I think I see it. Goddamn, that’s clever,” Garon said, catching his axe and sliding it back into its harness. “He’s doing three things at once. He is showing us good faith. At the same time he’s putting four of the most likely ones to be false in a place where they’ve got three others and us watching them at the same time. And to top it off, he’s tempting the Lurker to take a whack at us, rather than one of his people.”
Zuula whistled. “Okay, dat’s almost orky. Zuula approve.”
Cecelia sighed. “I’m liking the idea all save for the last part. The notion that it’s a minister makes a lot of sense. The reports I saw were from about this level of official. Any of them could be compromised, or worse, replaced. A legendary grifter and master of disguise could easily be a dwarf for a few months or more.”
“It could also be a test of us,” Threadbare mused. “To see how we handle the situation.”
“Well, how would dwarves handle the situation?” Cecelia asked.
“They’d shut up, get on with their business, and try to survive the Luker’s sudden-but-inevitable betrayal,” Garon said. “Dwarves are Sturdy, and if you want to impress them, you have to take hits and not complain.”
“Hand,” Zuula said.
“Yes, we know the Lurker’s with the Hand,” Cecelia said.
“No. hand.” Zuula said, pointing.
And indeed, a gloved hand had entered the pack. None of the toys recognized it. It dropped a single piece of parchment, and withdrew.
Threadbare hopped out of Cecelia’s embrace, and went and read it. “It’s Beryl. She says not to resist or try anything funny or we’ll get our… heads blown off. There’s more words than that but most of them are not very nice.”
“Yep, that’s Beryl,” Garon grinned. “I’ll go first.”
The hand returned. Garon plopped himself into it, and vanished.
A minute crawled by. Then two. Then three more.
Zuula was practically vibrating with impatience and frustration by the time the hand reappeared, and beckoned. They went along peacefully, one at a time-
-and reappeared in a room full of junk.
A purple-haired dwarven girl who had to be Beryl was there, talking with Madeline off to the side…
…and there, placing him gently on the ground, with Garon riding on his shoulder, was a tall, green-skinned man with solid yellow eyes. He was clad in leather from head to toe, most of it a greatcoat broken up by bandoliers, with metal contraptions hanging off of it. He had a short, floppy hat that looked a lot like Mordecai’s old hat to Threadbare’s eyes, and he was looking down at the three of them with amazement at friends and family he’d thought long gone.
“Hullo Mom,” Jarrik said, swallowing hard. “Long time no see.”
“Jarrik!” Zuula leaped into the air, grabbed his shirt, and buried her face in it.
“Give us a few, okay?” Garon stage-whispered to Threadbare and Cecelia.
“Of course.” Cecelia smiled, and headed over to Madeline’s side.
“Motherfucking shitcrackers,” Beryl shook her head as Cecelia strolled up. “I guess this is an occupational hazard for animators, huh?”
