Delver Magic: Book 06 - Pure Choice Read Free

dismiss as mere chance. He faced
the prospect of finding a connection between the incursion of river rogues with
other occurrences happening around Burbon.
    He considered all the activity at
Pinesway. The neighboring town had once been abandoned and became a haven for
bandits and thugs, but that was no longer the case. It was being rebuilt by
dwarves and humans. The criminal element had been forced out, and settlers
continued to repopulate the area. Humans were even logging again just beyond
the outskirts of the town.
    Sy believed it was possible a
handful of rogues might have been alarmed at the increased activity... and
especially the presence of dwarves above ground. River rogues might have been
willing to hunt down humans, but the sturdy underground dwellers were another
matter. Sy assumed that previous contact between rogues and dwarves had been
limited at best. River rogues preferred hiding in the tall grass by the sides
of waterways and dwarves remained below ground.
    The captain pondered river rogue
activity and their more likely adversaries. With that thought, he mulled over
another prospect that troubled him, gave him an uneasy feeling like listening
to an out of tune instrument played by an intense amateur musician. It had been
several days since he had received any reports from the elves of Dark Spruce,
and elves and river rogues were natural enemies.
    When the magic first returned to
Uton, elves and humans appeared to have the easiest time in reestablishing
relations. Communication between his town and the elves of Dark
Spruce Forest
started out sporadically, but it had become more constant over the past few
seasons. There wasn't any official treaty between them, but a casual agreement
to share information had burgeoned into a fairly stable structure of
cooperation. He believed the elves, and certainly his own forces, benefited
from the shared intelligence.
    For some reason, however, all
contact with the elves had ceased. He had sent scouts out into Dark Spruce, but
he knew that elves could avoid detection if they chose to remain hidden. They
had done so for countless cycles of the seasons when the magic was absent from
the land. Avoiding human scouts in the deepest sections of Dark Spruce would be
a simple task.
    The question was, why? Why would
the elves break off all communication? To Sy's knowledge, there had been no
hostilities between them, not even a minor misunderstanding.
    The loss of reports from the elves
was more than a slight inconvenience, it quickly became a substantial concern.
He wondered if the situation with the elves had anything to do with the
appearance of so many rogues. To his dismay, he had very little information
about any dark creature activity in Dark Spruce and his town was suddenly
inundated with monsters. He didn't like the implications.
    When he reached the barracks, he
ordered several messengers to different outposts across the town. The guard
station would serve as a temporary command post, and he would ensure he received
sufficient information. He also placed a signal guard on the roof to establish
immediate communications with each tower. He quickly reviewed the contents of
the adjoining armory and then waited for the return of his sergeant and the
delver. They arrived quicker than he expected.
    "I found him outside the door
of the tavern," Klusac explained. "He was guiding people inside while
guarding the entrance."
    Ryson Acumen moved lightly into
the barracks with ease in his step, like a light breeze flowing down a mountainside.
There was no stress in his eyes, no tension in his body, and no apprehension in
his movements. Still, anyone who knew the delver recognized a raised level of
vigilance.
    "I heard the disturbance and
I saw the signals," Ryson acknowledged. "The sergeant told me about
the rogues. How do you want to handle it?"
    Sy looked dead in the face of the
delver and offered what he felt was the best way to approach the situation,
though he already knew Ryson