Free Delver Magic Book VII: Altered Messages by Jeff Inlo Page B

another matter entirely.
    The large goblin did little to hide his tracks. There were few turns, only slight detours to avoid deep streams or over encumbering brush. Pru never lost Okyiq's scent, either. Following the trail was as easy as tracking a goblin horde through the snow, even as the half-delver kept alert toward potential threats.
    Pru never pressed ahead into a full sprint, as he had no intention of blindly walking into a trap or failing to notice other hazards stalking the forest. Shags, river rogues, and bloat spiders all called Dark Spruce home and nearly every monster had learned how to take advantage of a careless adventurer.
    Pru understood the threats, and even as the delver portion of his heritage enhanced his senses to help him avoid danger, he also used magic that was more willing to bend to his human side. He cast spells more than most other delvers—certainly utilized magic far more than Ryson Acumen—and he sent out waves of magic to help identify dark creatures waiting in the forest.
    There were none hiding along the trail he followed, of that he was sure. That in itself confused the half-delver. Pru would have guessed that Okyiq would have begun assembling a new goblin army or at least set obstacles to cover his tracks, but nothing interfered with Pru's progress.
    As the race continued far longer than Pru expected, he had to face other considerations as well. The half-delver was pushing the limit of his own endurance. Soon, he would have to stop to rest. He could accept that, but he could not accept that a goblin of any size could sustain the pace needed to keep ahead of him for so long. Okyiq should have collapsed long ago, and yet the chase continued. His quarry was receiving aid, probably magical aid.
    "I thought Okyiq didn't cast spells," Pru grumbled to himself, remembering Sy's estimation of the goblin's abilities. The half-delver could no longer accept such assumptions. There was no other way the goblin could have kept moving so fast for so long. "Well, this is going to cost them more."
    While the pursuit continued in an almost endless fashion, Okyiq's trail ultimately led to another surprise. It appeared that the big goblin's destination was as bewildering as the extent of the journey.
    It wasn't his magical spell that alerted Pru to the appearance of the dwarf guards. Dwarves were magically resistant and the half-delver's spell failed to detect the stout warriors. He spotted them with his sharp eyesight before he himself was seen. He pulled to a halt and used a large pine tree to hide his presence from the sentries.
    Trying to comprehend the situation, Pru gauged the direction of Okyiq's path from his secured position. He could see that the goblin's footprints created a trail directly toward the dwarves. The dwarves, however, showed no sign of concern. They were simply mulling about.
    Nothing made sense. Pru couldn't understand why a goblin would wish to head directly toward dwarf guards. Even more perplexing, the sentries appeared totally unfazed by the situation. They couldn't have missed the goblin, and even if they had already subdued Okyiq, Pru would have expected greater signs of alert or at least some indication of a light struggle. To the half-delver's amazement, the dwarves appeared totally disinterested in their surroundings.
    Pru was baffled. With nothing left to lose and no where else to turn, the half-delver called out to the sentries.
    #
    The gluuns received the message through a magical link established by the serps before they were sent to Dark Spruce Forest. They knew it was time to free the elf.
    They crept out of the empty cell and moved silently to the only occupied chamber in the dank dungeon. The dwarf guard who manned the prison post had not yet returned from a scheduled patrol, and so, the gluuns could move through the corridors without worry. The iron door was locked, and even though the gluuns could have easily picked it, they did not wish to waste the effort. There