Black wizards - Douglas Niles [116]
"How did you know they were there?" asked the Calishite.
"Cyndre told me. They were supposed to be for an emergency." His gaunt face twisted into a cold smile. "I would call this an emergency."
"Now, we should move on," urged the prince. "We don't have a lot of light left. Besides, if Cyndre remembers that you know about this place, we might have some unwelcome company before long."
"You are very right," agreed Alexei. "Come – this way!"
The mage, obviously filled with fresh confidence, led them from the chamber back to the original cavern. Here they continued to descend, moving much more rapidly than before. But the torch had burned to a tiny stub, and soon even that would be consumed.
"It's going to get dark soon," said the prince, indicating the fading brand.
"Perhaps I can take care of that," said the mage, unwrapping one of the scrolls. He looked it over quickly, setting it aside to reach for another. He apparently found what he wanted, for he began to read to himself, whispering strange words. As he read, a small portion of the scroll in his hands appeared to burst into flames. The bluish fire flickered across the page, burning the letters of each word as it was read, though the parchment itself was unaffected. When he finished, one section of the scroll was blank.
But the stub of the torch glowed with a cool, white light that was far more brilliant than the fading flames had been.
"That's nice, for a start," admitted the Calishite.
Alexei nodded and tucked the scrolls under his arm. They started down the cave, and their progress improved even more, since now they had adequate illumination for the path.
But still they went down. Several times they even had to scale small cliffs as the cave began to drop even more steeply. Tristan grew more and more concerned about their distance from the surface; they had to be a half-mile below Caer Callidyrr, not to mention a similar distance under the surrounding sea. Was there any safe way out?
Only when his companions stopped in amazement did Tristan notice that they had entered a large chamber. He could not suppress a low whistle of surprise.
This vast cavern dwarfed the room with the chest. The rays of illumination from the light spell could not hope to reach the far corners.
But they didn't have to, for this chamber was filled with its own source of illumination. The floor of the area was covered with huge mushrooms, some towering higher than Tristan's head. Several of these fungi shed a pale green luminescence. Close to the men, it was almost invisible, but across the chamber the area was lit in a ghostly green glow.
A mist of water hung in the air, and they could hear – and faintly see – the plume of a cataract spilling into the cavern. It fell hundreds of feet, splashing down the far wall from an unseen source to an invisible destination. Mosses and molds lined much of the cavern walls, giving the place the look of a dark jungle.
"This is amazing," said Daryth, awestruck.
"I can't believe all these plants can live this far underground," added the prince. "With no sunlight."
Alexei turned to them, concerned. "This was not here, years ago, when I last saw this place. I do not believe a lush garden such as this could have sprung into being without some kind of help."
"You mean gardeners?" asked Tristan.
"Precisely. And we would do well to avoid them. They must be here with Cyndre's knowledge and approval."
They found wide avenues laid, as if by plan, among the huge fungi. They followed the straightest of these across the center of the chamber, moving as silently as possible. The eerie green glow began to seem sinister, but that was their only illumination now, as Alexei had quickly stuck the glowing brand under his robe.
The ground was spongy underfoot, and they realized that the floor of the cavern was lined with thick loam and covered