Upon waking up and hearing the plan, the twins were exited to be visiting the Dwarves. “It’s been years since we last saw Duke Hogarth,” Emily said. “And he always came to the castle for us.”

  “We’ve never been to one of his cities,” Henry agreed eagerly. “Are they really giant towers, all underground?” he asked Anna.

  “Well, they aren’t entirely underground,” Anna said. “Lots of them open up into the valleys throughout the mountains.”

  “None open up into the Iron Valley, do they?” Peter asked.

  Anna nodded. “And none in the Green Vale, either, though there are quite a few close to both. The place where I first met Halcyon was just on the other side of the mountain your village was built next to, remember?”

  “Where exactly will we be going?” Andrew asked, taking out their map. He laid it out for Anna, who looked it over. She traced her finger down the mountains until she reached the headwaters of the Jet River. “One of the main entrances to the underground should be just north of the river… here.”

  Andrew nodded and rolled up the map. “Then let’s not waste any more time,” he said.

  It took them a little less than a day and a half to reach the mountains. Through Peter, Anna had Jarnvaror keeping an eye out for a road that wound up through the shallow valleys into the mountains. When the dragon spotted it, he turned to follow it north. The Jet wound up next to the path. Here it was only a thin, shallow creek winding down the mountains, for all in the east it was powerful enough to cut through most of the canyons around Woadrok. But as the path doubled back, it crossed the stream a few times. Each time the bridges got smaller, until finally it was only a few boards laid across the banks.

  It would have been another few hours on foot to reach the entrance to the underground from the plank bridge. From the sky, it was only a few minutes later.

  A doorway the size of any castle gate was set into the mountainside. A pair of statues stood on pedestals to the side of the gate, depicting Dwarven warriors with long cloaks and heavy helms as guards to the entrance. Real guards equipped in similar fashion, though less than a quarter the size, stood in their shadows before the entrance.

  They didn’t flinch as Jarnvaror landed before them. They didn’t move much at all, either to hale them or call to their companions. Anna knew they had companions. She guessed any other guards were likely in a room somewhere inside the mountain over the gate, with a window allowing them to observe without being seen.

  “They’re not saying anything,” Peter said.

  “Of course not,” Anna told him. “We have to approach them, first.”

  “Flying right to the doorstep isn’t approaching?” Andrew asked.

  Anna didn’t reply. She undid the straps across her legs and slid out of the saddle, then took a few steps toward the gate. “Hello,” she called. “I’m Anna, and these are my companions. We’re seeking refuge in Highkrag.”

  The two guard’s exchanged a glance. Then one replied. “Wait here. A creature like that requires special permission if it’s to enter our… stables.” He paused before the last word, as if he’d just realized that there may not be enough room in any stables for a dragon. As Peter translated the phrase, Jarnvaror hissed.

  “I’m sure it’s fine,” Peter said. “I’m sure they’ll have a great spot for you.”

  One of the guards disappeared into a side door next to the gate. About thirty minutes later, he returned with four other Dwarves in mail and carrying pikes. “Duke Hogarth would like to speak with you, Wisp Seekers and,” the guard turned to Emily and Henry, “your Highness and your Majesty.”

  Anna exchanged a glance with Andrew, who shrugged. They knew they would need to tell the Dwarf lord who they were. The fact that he already knew something might be concerning, but there was nothing for it but to go on.

  The large doors opened, revealing a tunnel just large enough for the dragon if he were to crawl on his belly with his wings crammed into his sides. He hissed and spat at the idea of going underground. Peter tried to convince him, but to no avail. So he turned to the guards. “He’s… well he’s going to wait for us here.”

  “You can’t convince him to try?” Andrew asked.

  “No. that tunnel is not built for dragons.”

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  “Of course not,” said one of the guards. “We don’t want the ones that live around here to force their way in.”

  “If he doesn’t want to come in, that’s no skin off our noses,” said another. “There’s a spot dragon’s like to rest up that away,” he added, pointing up a mountain to the west. “Hopefully the others won’t be too territorial.”

  Peter explained this all to the dragon, who seemed to like the idea of waiting for them out here, where he could watch the gate. So they removed Jarnvaror’s saddle and placed it in the care of the Dwarves. Then the group moved into the tunnel.

  The tunnel was consistent, large enough for two carts to travel side by side, and not much taller. The walls were smooth stone, reinforced every ten meters or so by thick posts of wood. The ground of the tunnel, unlike those farther north closer to Anna’s hometown, was paved with tile stones that made the shallow descent into the heart of the mountain smooth.

  It didn’t take long for the tunnel to open up into the great cavern of Highkrag. Anna had been here a few times, and the place still amazed her. She wasn’t at all surprised by Andrew’s intake of breath or the expression on Peter’s face as the two realized what they were looking at.

  The cavern was almost like a gigantic bubble in the earth, supported by three pillars. There were a few structures between the pillars, mostly homesteads for farms that grew hardy root vegetables that didn’t need much sunlight, a few industrial buildings, and the watermill that sat in the center of the river that ran between the pillars. The Pillars themselves were covered in hundreds of tiny glowing dots. Windows. Most of the city resided inside the pillars rising up, supporting a ceiling that looked like it should be quite unstable, given the sunlight poking through half a dozen long, thin cracks.

  “What did they do, build the mountain itself?” Peter asked, looking at the cracks.

  One of the guard’s chuckled. “Not too far off,” he said. “We added a few of those cracks to grow food down here better. The cave itself is natural, though. Only that pillar,” he pointed to the far pillar, closest to the cavern’s center, “was here when our ancestors found the place. We made the other two, though.”

  The Wisp Seekers and the royal twins were led to that central pillar. Though Anna had never been inside this one, it reminded her a lot of the other two. The pillars had been filled with homes and businesses of all sorts. The layout of this tower was the same, where half of each floor on the pilar was living space, while the other half held the businesses. In this pillar, though, those businesses were city magistrates and military barracks. The pillar was almost a fortress unto itself, even without the mountain surrounding it.

  On the fifth floor of the pillar, not even a third the way to the top, the guards took them into a high ceilinged hall. It was mostly empty. The walls were carved with rising arches, supporting the ceiling. Torches were lit everywhere, casting the whole room in amber light, with deep shadows at the bases of the arches. From it’s size and curvature, Anna could tell the back wall of the hall was the core of the pillar. A chair was set into it, where sat the only figure in the room as they entered.

  “Hello,” came the low voice of Duke Hogarth, lord of the Dwarves.

  Anna had only ever seen him once, when she was young, and she hadn’t known who he was till her father had pointed it out later. White streaked his red hair and beard now. His hair, was cropped a little shorter than Andrews, but it still curled a bit around his ears and the silver circlet he wore. His beard was much longer and twisted into three braids. Anna couldn’t read his expression as they approached.

  “Hello!” Henry replied to the Dwarf lord. “It’s been a long time, Duke Hogarth.

  Hogarth nodded, but waited until the others were closer before replying. Anna curtsied, and she heard Andrew prompt Peter to bow next to her. The Dwarf lord raised his hand for them to relax. “This is a rather unexpected visit,” Hogarth said.

  “We’ve been through a lot, Duke Hogarth,” Emily said.

  “I’m sure,” Hogarth said. “Flying off from Borac after an international incident with the suspected instigators before the war started? Yes, I would imagine you children have been through quite a lot.”

  “War?” Andrew, Henry, and Emily burst all at once.

  “Instigators?” Peter and Anna burst at the same time. The duke’s eyes fell on her, and she only just managed to hold his gaze.

  Hogarth smiled. “Possible instigators, yes. That is how it was described to me.” He turned to look at the royal twins. “The word is that foreigners and rebels used Wisps to cause an attack during the tournament, allowing the famous Wisp Seekers to take control of the Scepters with magic and kidnap them when they were found out.”

  “They saved us!” Emily said.

  “Do we look brainwashed to you?” Henry asked. “And what’s this about a war?”

  The Duke lifted his arms in a gesture of uncertainty. “No, you look like yourselves. But then, what do I know of mind control and Wisps? The creatures don’t come into our tunnels that often, nor to our above ground settlements much as other places.”

  “But you don’t believe we kidnapped them, though?” Anna said.

  “Of course he doesn’t,” Peter said. “He wouldn’t meet us without an army of mages if he thought we’d done that.”

  Duke Hogarth’s smile broadened. He raised his hand up and gestured, as if beaconing. Half a dozen dwarves in dark robes stepped out of the shadows on either side of the hall. Anna saw Andrew give Peter a venomous look as the group drew closer together.

  “I’d have to be a fool to meet you without security, regardless of the rumors,” the Duke said. “But you are right, boy. I don’t believe those reports.”

  His gaze swung back to Anna. “Miss Anna. Your father came to me when you first set out on your journey to tell me what you were doing. I wasn’t sure I believed him at first, until I heard the reports about the Wisp Seekers. Then… Well, having gotten to know your father and heard the beginning of your tale, these rumors sound rather odd, indeed.”

  At this, the Duke leaned forward, his expression turning very serious. “I believe I should know the truth of what happened in Borac. You tell me your side, and I will tell you the rest of what has been going on.”