The Fifth Magic (Book 1) by Brian Rathbone Read Free Book Online Page B

come for the engineer," said a deep voice, and the plumed helm of Trinda's elite guards preceded a face Martik recognized. Keenan was a good man but entirely devoted to Trinda and entirely too proficient with his weapons. There would be no leaving now--at least not yet.
    "We'll have to finish our game another time," Martik said to Strom and Osbourne before following Keenan and another guard away from Strom's quarters.
    "That went well," Osbourne said.
     
    * * *
     
    Dragonhold had been in the dark for eons until Trinda Hollis arrived. Benjin and Wendel may have rediscovered the fortress, and Catrin began cleaning her up, but Martik knew it was Trinda Hollis who breathed life back into this magnificent hold. For that reason, he could not fully dislike the girl. She had done some positive and amazing things, and had recently taken mercy on Master Edling by allowing him to leave his cell. Any threat he posed was long gone, and Martik wasn't certain how much of a kindness she had granted the man, but at least he was free from his cell. It had to be an improvement, except that many would be given their chance to seek vengeance.
    Behind him stood a slope made from an uncountable number of hewn stones. High above, the mound stretched from valley wall to valley wall, forming a sort of bridge, which Sinjin, Brother Vaughn, and Trinda had used to escape the demons years before. A giant's bones had been found not far from where Martik stood. They had been picked clean. The light had chased many things away or left them to die without their favored darkness. Much of the hold was still dark, and Martik suspected there were things hiding in the shadows. It gave him the crawls.
    Amber crystals, far larger than any natural specimen he'd ever seen, shed a jaundiced light on the immense stone wheel he faced. Around the wheel was a city created in a way no one could guess. There were no straight lines--anywhere. The place was all curves, imitating nature's gracefulness and including symmetry and patterns Martik had seen in the world around him. Men had been exploring the city for weeks. It appeared no people had ever actually lived there. There was only the detritus left by whatever had lived in the darkness.
    All that was just a distraction to Martik. The wheel beckoned him. It was a puzzle waiting to be solved, and he was the perfect person to solve it, yet he had to question his motivation when Trinda was the beneficiary. Whatever mighty tool or weapon the ancients had left them, he would be delivering it into the hands of one plotting for war. That did not sit lightly on his gut. He didn't have much choice but to guide his crew closer toward freeing the giant wheel. When the crew retired for the day, he would make good his escape along with Strom and Osbourne. Together they would find their way to the Firstland. It all felt like a crazy dream, far from what his childhood on the family farm had prepared him for. In other ways, that life had prepared him for everything. It had taught him to be a problem solver, and that was what he did best.
    His men struggled with mining tools to clear the debris from the wheel, and progress was painfully slow. They had originally thought the job would be easy since everything had been laid out for them. The wall leading up to the stone wheel was taller than three men, but it had circular holes alternating from side to side, providing toeholds for easy climbing. They soon found the rock cylinders strewn across the valley floor. Each one appeared to have been cut to fit within the holes along the base of the wheel, but his men had been able only to get them to slide part of the way into the holes. This had created a convenient ladder and platform once a few planks were added. From that point, they had all been grateful for the holes and cylinders but paid them little more mind.
    Martik took Wendel Volker's advice and looked at the entire construction from a different perspective. Where else were there