Temple Hill - Drew Karpyshyn [80]
Still, he didn't have many other options. "What…" he gasped, "what do I have to do?"
"Very good, Corin," Azlar said. "I'm glad you are not so stubborn that you refuse to see reason. Many people are blind to their own best interests when they hear the words Cult of the Dragon. You will learn that we are not unreasonable. We merely want you to perform a simple task for us. And in the process, you may be able to save your little friend."
"One job? And then we're done?"
"One job, and you need never deal with the Dragon Cult again. A fair deal for you, I think. A bargain, even."
Despite the assurances, Corin still had his suspicions, but he left them unspoken.
"The horde that attacked us are working for someone named Xiliath. This individual has been operating a small underground crime syndicate in Elversult for the past year. We know something of Xiliath's operations, but we know very little about the leader himself. Xiliath always deals through middle men and underlings. Rest assured, if we knew his true identity, or where to find him, the cult would have disposed of this upstart long ago.
"However, we do know that Xiliath runs his minor empire from the safety of the smugglers' caves carved out beneath the city streets. I'm sure you've heard rumors of their existence?"
Corin nodded. Every citizen of Elversult knew something of the legendary smugglers' tunnels, a vast network of passages and caverns carved out beneath the city long ago by those who wished to traffic goods away from prying eyes. According to legend, over the centuries the tunnels became so infested with traps, monsters, and other dangers that even the smugglers themselves were no longer able to safely operate from them. Well over a hundred years ago, the labyrinth had been abandoned by the very smugglers who had created it.
Despite the almost universal knowledge of their existence, the citizens of Elversult knew almost nothing of the tunnels beyond the bards' tales and ancient myths. The exits to the main streets were well hidden, and the rumors of deadly traps and horrific monsters left behind when the smugglers deserted their underground bases were enough to dissuade most people from seeking them out. Those few adventurous souls who did set off in search of the legendary caverns beneath the city never returned.
"As you must know," Azlar continued, "the maze of tunnels has never been fully explored, and sending our men in to flush Xiliath out was never worth the risk or the bother. In the past, the Cult of the Dragon regarded Xiliath as nothing more than a minor annoyance; far less troublesome to our cause than the Purple Masks, or Yanseldara's she-bitch Vaerana Hawklyn and her Harper allies.
"But with the theft of our package, Xiliath has become much more than just a minor nuisance. The time has come to destroy his operations, if not the man himself."
"How does this concern me?"
"Through means that do not concern you I have obtained a map of the tunnels. Specifically the section that makes up Xiliath's lair. We will use this map when we move on his underground stronghold. However, given Fhazail's recent treachery, I am reluctant to risk my men until I know the map is genuine."
From his robes Azlar produced a rolled scroll. "Here is a copy of our map. You will infiltrate Xiliath's base and verify the map's accuracy for me."
"How does my scouting help Lhasha?" Corin asked, slowly unrolling the map. According to legend the tunnel system beneath Elversult was vast, but the complexity of the document before him was staggering, and, from what he could tell, this was only a small section of the entire network.
"As I said earlier, Xiliath's men collected all the statues from the ambush and brought them back to their leader's stronghold, including your Lhasha. If you look on the map you'll see a particularly large cavern in the heart of Xiliath's tunnels. This area has only one entrance, no doubt heavily guarded. The smugglers who built the tunnels used it as a storage room for valuable merchandise. Here, Xiliath keeps those