Page 59 of The Night Prince 3
“You act as if it is obvious that the Night King would have any knowledge or understanding of our affairs!” Darcassan tossed his head. “I know what the others said but really that’s so unlikely–”
“Vex knows,” Snaglak nodded sagely.
Darcassan’s eyes narrowed. “What would an orc know about the Night King exactly–”
“Keep your voices down. They’ll hear you,” Helgrom growled, still not taking his eyes off the walled dwarven city in the plain down below them.
“What are those things?” Elasha whispered as she looked through the break in the rocks at the scaly winged creatures that soared over the metal towers and silent forges of the Draesiwen.
“Australs,” Helgrom answered. “Don’t let their delicate appearance deceive you. Those wings are coated in poison. One strike of their claws brings disease that will overtake you in an instant. And if you touch your allies, they too will come down with it. Blackened skin. Eyes popping like egg yolks over a hot fire. You dissolve in agony.”
One of the Australs–a dusky blue one–jumped off the impressive wall that surrounded Xrdatha and spread its arms. A thin, skin membrane attached from wrist to ankle and the creature glided in the heated air that was created by the many waterfalls of magma that surrounded the Draesiwen capital. Snaglak was pretty sure he could hit it if he threw his club, but that would mean he would only have his hands to fight, which would be bad. Orcs didn’t get sick, but the Australs’ skin hurt to touch.
“Are they the creatures that defeated the Draesiwen and took the city?” Elasha asked, curiosity overcoming her clear dread of being in the Under Dark.
“No,” Helgrom grunted. He hesitated then added, “Or more like, they were part of the horde, but it was not an Austral-led invasion.”
“Didn’t the Night King come himself and strike your ancestors down for betraying him?” Darcassan asked with a bored huff at the end. He had his slender arms crossed over his chest and was tapping his foot.
“No,” Helgrom’s dark eyes flickered to the Aravae for a moment. “You don’t understand at all how the Under Dark works. Yet you were willing to come here and try to pillage it. Typical.”
“The Under Dark has the best weapons,” Darcassan answered, looking as if Helgrom had pulled his tail. If he had a tail.
Snaglak considered pulling Glom’s tail. It swished so near him. Glom narrowed his eyes at Snaglak. Snaglak pretended to be staring at his fingers. The naki narrowed its eyes further.
“At least you know that much, but did you ever wonder why we focused on weapon-craft?” Helgrom lifted a bushy eyebrow at the Aravae.
Snaglak regarded the dwarf. Helgrom had a temper as all dwarves do, but it was usually slow to ignite. Yet it was closer to the surface than usual. Snaglak understood. The scent of old blood and older grief hung heavy around Xrdatha and any Draesiwen who smelt it would remember the cause of both.
Darcassan shrugged. “The races here are violent–”
“Because resources are scarce,” Helgrom interrupted with a tcha at the end.
“But a city like Illithor existing in such a place proves otherwise,” Darcassan insisted pedantically.
Helgrom let out a curse under his breath. “Young one, you must understand that what Vex and Ailduin accomplished was nothing less than a miracle with Illithor.”
“Was Ailduin such a great part of all this? There are no stories told to us of his acts here,” Elasha said.
Helgrom did not respond to that. “The truth of the Under Dark is that there is not enough for everyone. If you are going to survive, you must be prepared to fight for what you need and then to protect what you have. Countless civilizations whose names have disappeared into the annals of time have risen and fallen due to this fact.”
Elasha moved to touch Helgrom’s armored forearm, but stopped herself at the last minute, unsure if it would be welcome. “Like the Draesiwen?”
“Yes… and no.” Helgrom’s mouth moved under the bushy beard. It was unclear whether he would say more.
“I’m sorry. We don’t need to talk about this if it upsets you,” Elasha quickly offered.
Helgrom let his head fall back and he stared up at the twinkling ceiling of the cavern far overhead. He said nothing for a very long time. But finally, he let out a breath and explained, “The Draesiwen allied with Vex from the very beginning when neither had anything. Through blood and sweat and agony, they carved their respective kingdoms. Together. They fought for each other and that alliance allowed both to flourish. But…” The dwarf rolled his expressive lips together. “But there came a time when they had to say ‘no’ to the Night King.”
“Because he was asking something of the dwarves that went against their interest? Going against the Sun King, you said before? Supposedly,” Darcassan looked bored.
Snaglak considered urging Glom to bite his butt. Glom was certainly considering it from the look on its scaly face.
“I suppose I should not be surprised at your ignorance,” Helgrom said with a dark look at Darcassan. “Your people have purged all the books of this time from your libraries. Those old enough to talk about it stay mostly silent. Your wish to forget is strong, but truth is stronger.”
“Why would we wish to forget? The Kindreth are our greatest enemy. We should remember all we can about them,” Elasha said with a faint frown. “And there are plenty of books that speak of their atrocities–”
“Aravae and Kindreth friends,” Snaglak said simply.
