Read Online The Devil's Deuce (The Barrier War) by Brian J Moses - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Brian J Moses
Ads: Link
Perklet Perkal of the Green Facet as he was
properly named, was about as fierce as a baby rabbit, and made about as much
noise as one, too. Birch could probably count the number of times Perky had
spoken to the group on his fingers.
“Alright, I’ll see if I can’t be a bit more social with the
both of them,” Birch said. “I didn’t even realize I excluded them.”
“Nobody realizes it,” James said with a dismissive wave of
his hand. “That’s why I pointed it out. I didn’t think you were being
deliberately insensitive.”
“Well, thanks for that at least.”
“No charge.”
James turned and walked back to help Moreen load supplies,
leaving Birch alone with his thoughts.
Chapter
4
Language is a necessary evil for communication among mortals. Its very
nature is to share knowledge and understanding, yet to ascribe a word to
something in anything less than totality is to limit your understanding of that
thing to the degree it is not that word.
- Knerry Raltin ,
“Forms of Communication” (102 AL)
- 1 -
When the time came to depart, Birch was the last of the
paladins to board the ship. James found him in the main hall of Den-Furral
staring soberly at the throne. The majestic chair had once held a dwarf who was
not only king, but also a paladin of the Blue Facet. Herrisan Stoneblood was the first and only paladin to ever
hold a position of national authority other than an adviser, a position usually
occupied by a Yellow paladin. The king’s daughter, Jerissa Stoneblood , was still a young dwarf, but already she
showed a strength and pride that belied her few years. She would make an able
leader, Birch knew, and had shown a marked maturity as they cremated and buried
her father only the day before. She had yet to assume the title of queen, but
she was already acting in that capacity among the dwarves that had survived the
massacre.
Sal had killed her father and destroyed the seat of power
for the dwarven nation, but word would soon spread that Jerissa had survived and was leading her people to a new home. Dwarves were notoriously
superstitious about death-related taboos [10] – especially those relating to murder –
and rather than cleansing and refurbishing the mountain city, they were
abandoning it and searching for a new place to call home. Den-Furral had been
closed off as though preparing for a siege, with stone blocks filling every
window and unbreakable locks securing every external door. From the outside, it
was almost impossible to tell anything existed there except a sheer mountain
face.
The dwarves doused every stone hallway with flammable
liquids and cremated the dead where they lay. Only the great hall remained
untouched, and the passageways leading to the outer city and the docks. Those
would be done last, when the fortress was sealed forever.
When they found a new place to settle, dwarves from all over
the world would flock there to take part in building a new home for their
people. That was assuming, of course, there was a world left in which they
could make a home. Lately, Birch had the ominous feeling that something
terrible was on the horizon, and he was about to take the first step in what
would soon become a mad rush toward survival.
“It’s time to go, Birch,” James said, walking up behind him.
“The tides wait for no man, no matter how fierce or faithful.”
Birch turned and James just avoided meeting his eyes. During
their voyage to this island, James had looked into Birch’s eyes while he was
remembering part of his time in Hell, and the Yellow paladin had felt some
small – yet terrifyingly vivid – part of Birch’s experience. He’d seen
something there that had frightened him, Birch could tell, but he’d never asked
James what it was. Now the leader of the jintaal avoided Birch’s direct
gaze just the same as everyone else.
From somewhere out in the hall, a gruff, barely intelligible
voice grated out, “ Cem on, Branch. Jams. Lois geta the shep . Thir
properly named, was about as fierce as a baby rabbit, and made about as much
noise as one, too. Birch could probably count the number of times Perky had
spoken to the group on his fingers.
“Alright, I’ll see if I can’t be a bit more social with the
both of them,” Birch said. “I didn’t even realize I excluded them.”
“Nobody realizes it,” James said with a dismissive wave of
his hand. “That’s why I pointed it out. I didn’t think you were being
deliberately insensitive.”
“Well, thanks for that at least.”
“No charge.”
James turned and walked back to help Moreen load supplies,
leaving Birch alone with his thoughts.
Chapter
4
Language is a necessary evil for communication among mortals. Its very
nature is to share knowledge and understanding, yet to ascribe a word to
something in anything less than totality is to limit your understanding of that
thing to the degree it is not that word.
- Knerry Raltin ,
“Forms of Communication” (102 AL)
- 1 -
When the time came to depart, Birch was the last of the
paladins to board the ship. James found him in the main hall of Den-Furral
staring soberly at the throne. The majestic chair had once held a dwarf who was
not only king, but also a paladin of the Blue Facet. Herrisan Stoneblood was the first and only paladin to ever
hold a position of national authority other than an adviser, a position usually
occupied by a Yellow paladin. The king’s daughter, Jerissa Stoneblood , was still a young dwarf, but already she
showed a strength and pride that belied her few years. She would make an able
leader, Birch knew, and had shown a marked maturity as they cremated and buried
her father only the day before. She had yet to assume the title of queen, but
she was already acting in that capacity among the dwarves that had survived the
massacre.
Sal had killed her father and destroyed the seat of power
for the dwarven nation, but word would soon spread that Jerissa had survived and was leading her people to a new home. Dwarves were notoriously
superstitious about death-related taboos [10] – especially those relating to murder –
and rather than cleansing and refurbishing the mountain city, they were
abandoning it and searching for a new place to call home. Den-Furral had been
closed off as though preparing for a siege, with stone blocks filling every
window and unbreakable locks securing every external door. From the outside, it
was almost impossible to tell anything existed there except a sheer mountain
face.
The dwarves doused every stone hallway with flammable
liquids and cremated the dead where they lay. Only the great hall remained
untouched, and the passageways leading to the outer city and the docks. Those
would be done last, when the fortress was sealed forever.
When they found a new place to settle, dwarves from all over
the world would flock there to take part in building a new home for their
people. That was assuming, of course, there was a world left in which they
could make a home. Lately, Birch had the ominous feeling that something
terrible was on the horizon, and he was about to take the first step in what
would soon become a mad rush toward survival.
“It’s time to go, Birch,” James said, walking up behind him.
“The tides wait for no man, no matter how fierce or faithful.”
Birch turned and James just avoided meeting his eyes. During
their voyage to this island, James had looked into Birch’s eyes while he was
remembering part of his time in Hell, and the Yellow paladin had felt some
small – yet terrifyingly vivid – part of Birch’s experience. He’d seen
something there that had frightened him, Birch could tell, but he’d never asked
James what it was. Now the leader of the jintaal avoided Birch’s direct
gaze just the same as everyone else.
From somewhere out in the hall, a gruff, barely intelligible
voice grated out, “ Cem on, Branch. Jams. Lois geta the shep . Thir
Similar Books
