Page 21 of Paladin's Hope

“Here we go,” said Thomas. “Down the steps here. Watch your step, it gets very slick.” He led the way down a set of roughly mortared brick steps. Piper, having had to learn to mortar a brick wall in recent memory, was pretty sure that the craftsmanship was the work of a fellow amateur. Rope threaded through two iron rings on the wall served as a crude railing.

The steps went down perhaps six feet, and then stopped. The floor was damp and layered with sacking and loose boards. The whole area smelled of algae and rot.

Thomas lifted his lamp and shined the light down the hallway. Galen stopped and Piper nearly ran into his back. The paladin let out a low whistle.

“This is what I’ve been studying,” said their host proudly.

Piper had to crane his neck to see around Galen. It was a short hallway, perhaps ten feet long, though the ceiling was very high. But it was the door at the end of the hall that had captured everyone’s attention. Earstripe’s ears strained so far forward that it looked painful.

Piper recognized the door at once. He’d seen one like it before, on the other side of the brick wall in the tunnel that ran by his workroom.

Unlike that door, this one was open.

Eleven

“This is something made by the ancients,” said Piper. “Like a wonder engine.”

“Yes, exactly!” Thomas beamed at him. “You recognize it?”

“I saw a wonder engine once,” said Piper. “The one in Moldoban.” Galen noticed that he didn’t volunteer anything more about the door in Archon’s Glory.

“Oh, yes,” said Thomas. “I haven’t been there, but I’ve heard of it. This isn’t a wonder engine though. It’s a series of corridors.” He waved toward the door. “The builders put a wine cellar right next to it two centuries ago. Another three feet to the left, and they’d have found it. Or rather, they’d have found a wall, and then you follow the wall down far enough and you reach the door. But here, here, come inside!”

The corridor beyond the door was about the same size as the one before, the floor made of something that looked like stone, the walls the same pale ivory as the door. On the left side stood another closed door, and at the far end, an open one.

There were also a half dozen perfectly normal barrels lined up along the wall.

“Lamp oil, water, and food,” said Thomas. “In case the door were to close on me.”

“Does it close?” asked Galen warily.

“Hasn’t yet. But I prefer to be safe rather than sorry.” Thomas tapped one of the barrels, which had a box of unlit tapers atop it. “Anyway, it’s just easier having it here rather than having to go dig around in the cellar. If you’ll leave your lantern here, though, Doctor? This next bit is really more impressive without too much light. Mister Earstripe, would you take a candle, though? I don’t think I’ll drop my lantern, but this isn’t the sort of place that you want to be completely in the dark.” Earstripe grunted, but lit the candle from the lantern. Piper set his lantern down on the ground.

“You see why I worry about arson,” said Thomas. “If the house were to burn down on top of this…”

Piper and Galen both nodded. Fire was the only thing that seemed to destroy the ivory material, and only a strong, hot fire at that. A burning building might well do it. “Where does that door go?” asked Piper, nodding to the one set in the wall. The closed door looked almost exactly like the one he knew.

“I have no idea,” admitted Thomas. “It doesn’t open. I haven’t figured out a way to get it open, short of trying to burn the whole place down. Maybe when I’ve explored all the rest of the tunnels, I’ll come back to it, but there’s so much to see and do already…” He ran his free hand through his hair, beaming with childlike glee. “I can’t wait to show you! Hardly anyone understands about the ancients!”

He stepped through the door at the far end, and the others followed. Piper stopped dead, then whispered, “Oh, sweet gods…”

It took Galen a minute to realize what had impressed the doctor. It was much brighter in this hallway, but it wasn’t until he saw the lack of shadows on the floor that he realized why.

The walls were lighting up. Against the ceiling, spaced every foot or so, were triangular patches that glowed with a soft, diffuse, almost watery light. The light grew as he watched, growing brighter and brighter, until it outshone Earstripe’s candle.

“It’s working,” breathed Piper. “From so long ago, and it’s still working. It’s glowing.”

“Yes!” Thomas swung around so excitedly that he threatened to splash lamp oil. “It’s still working! You understand!”

“The wonder engines still work,” said Piper, “but something like this…I’ve never even heard of such a thing.”

“Oh, there’s more!” Thomas was practically vibrating in place. “Wait until you see!” He hurried down the short corridor to another door set in the wall. This one was closed, but there was a large block on the wall beside it, protruding out about half an inch.

“Once I open the door, you’ll have about thirty seconds to come inside,” said Thomas cheerfully. “I suggest you don’t linger. And once you’re in, do not, under any circumstances, step away from the wall.”

Galen looked at Piper. Piper looked at Galen. Earstripe’s ears eased backward.

“Is this dangerous?” asked Galen.

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