Free The King in Reserve by Michael Pryor

he'd been feeling it through the soles of his feet long before his ears were aware of it. It was a drone – a deep, unsettling hum that set his teeth on edge. 'I don't know.'
    'Doesn't sound good,' Targesh said. 'Weapons?'
    'Yes.' Adalon shifted the lantern to his left hand and drew his sword. A thrill ran up his arm and he straightened, smiling. He heard faint sounds – whispers of glory and whispers of cruelty – but he shook them away.
    He stood, his tail thrashing, and lifted the lantern high. Ahead, the flagstones were broken and buckled. His stomach tightened, but he edged forward, looking for any stones that were ready to tilt or crumble.
    Every nerve on edge, Adalon led the way – a handful of cautious paces, testing each step. The droning had grown louder, deeper and even more unsettling. Adalon had visions of a swarm of monstrous insects and he grimaced.
    Simangee let out a cry. Adalon jerked his head up, startled and ready with his sword. The lantern light bobbed and wandered, but it showed that the tunnel widened and led through an arch of silver bricks. Adalon peered and saw that the bricks were marked with the distinctive A'ak script.
    Before Adalon could stop her, Simangee pushed past and hurried to the arch. She ran a hand over the harsh, angular characters. 'Just like we saw at the Fiery Isles.'
    'You've been to the Fiery Isles?' Gormond said, eyes wide.
    'We'll tell you that story another time,' Adalon said quickly. He restored his sword to its sheath, stepped through the arch. On the other side, the tunnel changed. The ceiling was two or three times higher. Shafts of dim light descended from tiny holes, like bars stretching from roof to floor. Irregular projections of stone thrust from the floor and walls so the chamber looked like a rocky forest.
    'Listen,' Targesh said.
    The droning noise had changed, rising to an eerie hooting that made Adalon shiver.
    Simangee sniffed. 'I can smell the world outside. This is the way.' But she shook her curved crest impatiently.
    'What's wrong?' Adalon asked.
    She grimaced. 'That noise.' She screwed up her face. 'It's not good. It's wrong.'
    'It sounds irritating,' Gormond said, 'but that's all.'
    'No.' Simangee was firm and Adalon noticed his friend was trembling. 'It's unwholesome.'
    'A'ak stuff?' Targesh asked.
    'Yes.'
    Adalon knew that her brushes with A'ak power had made her sensitive to its force. 'Perhaps there's another way out.'
    'No,' Simangee whispered. 'We must go this way.'
    'We go with care, then.' He drew his sword.
    'This is not a matter for swords.' The droning rose sharply for an instant, and Simangee winced. 'The A'ak have tried to sour the music of the world.'
    Adalon put a hand on his friend's shoulder. 'It causes you pain?'
    She nodded, her eyes downcast. 'The Way of the Crest is helping me endure it.'
    The Ways of the other saur folk were always strange to Adalon, brought up as he was to follow the Way of the Claw and its lessons for living a worthy life. Simangee had tried to explain the Way of the Crest to him, but it had baffled him endlessly. Perhaps it was that much of the Way of the Crest was wordless, relying on intricate melodies and shifts in pitch that bore deep significance to Crested Ones, attuned as they were to music. Adalon enjoyed music as much as the next saur, but preferred a claw-tapping jig or a simple round rather than the braided harmonies that the Crested Ones wove when contemplating a worthwhile life.
    'Do you know what's making the noise?' he asked Simangee. He peered ahead through the shafts of light. He felt a breeze on his face and it smelled fresh.
    'I think so. Let's see.'
    She took the lantern and led the way. The breeze grew stronger, making the lantern flicker until Simangee sheltered it with a hand. Adalon followed. The tunnel was broad enough now for Gormond and Targesh to walk by his side. Gormond looked around as if he was in a wonderland. Targesh was grimmer, and he held his axe two-handed in front of