Gravis,
a dwarf who works in Drumindor, is being fired by Lord
Byron, who is the president of the Port Authority Association.
Gravis begs for his job, but Lord Byron states that due to city
safety, it is a security threat to allow dwarves to operate
Drumindor. Gravis finally accepts his fate, but threatens that if he
does ever return to Drumindor, the city will be destroyed.
At
the Traval Estate, Lady Lillian Traval awakens to find the
assassin, Royce, at the foot of her bed. She is having an affair
with Baron Edmund and Royce has been hired to kill them.
Lady Traval tells Royce she can pay more, and Royce agrees to take
her money and report back to her husband that she was alone in bed.
As Royce is leaving the estate an old man with red hair surprises
him, asking for a book. Royce believes him to be a shadow sent by
Lord Traval and cuts his throat, though he is bothered by the lack of
blood. Royce goes back to the nearby village of Roe where his
partner, Hadrian, has been drinking. Royce collects a drunk
Hadrian, and they start on their way back to Medford. The next
morning they arrive and go to Medford house, where they notice a
coach parked out front. They enter and find Albert Winslow, Gwen
DeLancy, and Arcadius. Albert explains that he has lined up a
new job for Royce and Hadrian. They have been hired by Lord Byron to
travel to Tur Del Fur and prevent Gravis from tampering
with Drumindor. It is decided that all five will make the trip south
for the job and Albert explains that the coach out front is there to
take them.
The
five ride in the coach, which is driven by Shelby
Hanson and Heath Hanson. Hadrian sits up-top with the
drivers, while the other four converse in the coach. Once they are
almost to Colnora, they are stopped by guards demanding a fee to
pass. Hadrian humilaties the guards and they are able pass.
In
Tur Del Fur, Gravis is drowning his sorrows in the Scram
Scallie, a secret dwarven bar. Baric offers his condolences
to Gravis on the death of his wife, Ena. Gravis is still upset
over his firing from Drumindor and starts an argument. He speaks of
how the dwarves should rise up against the humans. Sloan, the
bartender, attempts to cool things down, but other dwarves speak up
about how they are treated poorly. Sloans brings up the possibility
of resisting the humans by staging strikes to make them realize that
Tur Del Fur can't run without dwarves. Gravis goes back to his shack
where he used to live, and recalls how he had lived there for
hundreds of years, and how Ena had died there only days before. He is
no longer allowed to stay there though, and thinks about how he can
get back into Drumindor.
The
coach stops at a stage house in Kruger and the five
passengers enjoy a meal while the drivers restock and switch horses.
Royce confides in Hadrian that he doesn't know what to do with Gwen,
even though it is clear to Hadrian that the two are in love. Royce
notices movement from outside the house and goes to investigate. He
find the same red-haired man he thought he had killed only days
earlier. The man calls himself Falkirk de Roche and says he
wants his diary back. Royce attacks and beheads the man. The coach
then resumes its journey south, Royce taking the spot up top and
Hadrian riding inside and immediately falling asleep. When he awakes
they have almost arrived in Tur Del Fur, starting the descent into
the cliffside city. As they arrive, the passengers gawk at the city,
including the scantily clad people, the giant towers of drumindor,
and the presence of Ghazel. They depart from the carriage and
Albert goes to meet with Lord Byron to find out where they are
staying, Royce disappears, and Hadrian, Arcadius, and Gwen wait.
Albert returns and he and hadrian make their way to their temporary
home, the Turquoise Turtle. Along the the way they meet the
dwarf, Auberon, who owns many of the Rolkins, including the
Turquoise Turtle. Royce finishes scouting for Falkirk and returns to
where Arcadius and Gwen are still waiting, and finds two men he
believes are harassing them. He almost starts a fight with the men,
but Gwen stops him and explains they were only offering to help with
the bags. Hadrian returns and the all go to the rolkin.
At
the Turquoise Turtle, they take in their new dwellings with glee.
Royce confides with Hadrian that he isn't good enough for Gwen, and
Gwen is still nervous around Royce. That night they go out to
the Blue Parrot for dinner. After ordering wine and
toasting Gwen, she and Hadrian leave the table and she confides in
him that she shouldn't have come, as she is ruining the trip for
Royce. Hadrian, and a very friendly cloackroom clerk, console her.
They all return to the table for the meal and eat. Arcadius gets
Hadrian to leave with him so that Royce and Gwen can be alone, though
Hadrian soon returns and finds Albert with Countess Estelle
Ridell at the bar. As the three drink, Millificent
LeDeye comes to the stage and starts singing. Hadrian is
enthralled by her. Royce and Gwen take the opportunity to dance. and
finally kiss. Once the the song is done, Hadrian goes backstage to
find Millificent. He finds her but is quickly kicked out by two
men, Alessandro and Andre. Albert tells the other to
not wait for him as he will be spending the night with Estelle. After
a brief conversation at the table, Hadrian, Royce, and Gwen leave to
return to the Turtle. When they arrive, they find the home torn apart
and Arcadius gone. After searching around and not finding anyone,
Arcadius finally returns and they all retire for the night.
The
next morning Gwen and Hadrian clean up the Turtle. Albert returns and
he and Gwen go out shopping. Once Royce awakes, he and Hadrian go out
to start their job by searching for Gravis. They stop at a food
vendor, Angelius, for lunch, and discuss Royce's bad mood. They
learn from Angelius that Gravis has been threatening the city in
every alehouse, and that less dwarves have been seen in the city as
of late. The pair return to the Turtle where Gwen has returned with
food and Auberon is inspecting the damage. They ask Auberon about
Gravis, and he gives background information on Gravis, his firing,
and the death of Ena. Gwen and Auberon then prepare a meal for dinner
and they all sit down to eat.
That
night, Royce keeps watch over the city from a high vantage point. He
spots someone watching the turtle and ambushes them, putting
a alverstone to their throat. A second man, Vigus,
pulls a crossbow on Royce, but Auberon appears and shoots Vigus with
a crossbow. Auberon wants to kill the first man, Ellis Pratt,
but Royce convinces him to let the Ellis live in exchange for
information. Ellis tells them that they were sent by Cornelius
DeLur to look for the missing book that everyone seems to be
looking for. They let Ellis go, and Royce interrogates Auberon about
who he really is. Auberon vaguely states that he wasted 400 years of
his live doing something very bloody.
In
the Scram Scallie, several dwarves are gathering for a meeting. They
discuss how the public utilities are starting to degrade without the
dwarves fixing them, but that their strike is not having enough of an
impact. Auberon appears and states that they need to make their
presence known in Tur, then he leaves.
Royce
and Hadrian go out to inspect the towers of Drumindor. Royce states
that he believes Gravis is probably hiding in Drumindor and that they
will tell Lord Byron to search the towers to find him. That night,
Royce, Hadrian, Arcadius, and Gwen to to the Blue Parrot. Albert
arrives with Baroness Constance Constatine. They discuss the
dwindling capabilities of the city's utilities given the recent
absence of the dwarves. Conversation turns to the murdered courier
and what he was carrying. Lady constance said there are rumors it was
a treasure map to King Mideon's treasure. Another patron, Tim
Blue, recognizes Gwen while passing by and praises her and her
accomplishments as a businesswoman. Just then, Hadrian believes he
sees Pickles in the crowd, who then exits the Parrot.
Hadrian rushes outside, but runs into Millificent, and they decide to
walk together to the Cave. Pratt then enters the Parrot, along
with several associates, and tells Royce that Cornelius DeLur would
like to speak with him at his estate. Royce leaves with him. Once Tim
and Gwen are alone, he reveals that he is in dire straits, as he
borrowed 100 gold tenants from the bank of DeLur and cannot repay it.
His wife has been taken and will be sold into slavery unless he can
pay. Gwen decides to try and help him by going into the casin with
the four gold coins she has.
Hadrian
and Millificent walk toward the Cave and she tells hadrian about how
she was born in Melengar, and after hearing about Tur Del Fur, had
stown away on a ship to get there. She worked in a Danthum for a time
before getting a chance to sing on stage, and transform from Mullie
Mulch to Millificent LeDeye.
Royce
arrives at the DeLur estate and Cornelius tells him that he wants the
courier's stolen book. He explains that the courier was bringing him
the book from his son, Cosmos DeLur, when the courier was killed
and the book stolen. Royce says he does not have the book, but does
tell Cornelius about his run-ins with Falkirk de Roche.
Back
at the Parrot, Tim and Gwen enter the casino. The guards attempt to
stop Gwen, but she uses her power for foresight to tell the guards
information about themselves and they allow her to enter.
As
Hadrian and Millificent walk, it starts to rain and they take cover
in a doorway. She states that she needs money to make her dreams come
true, and that Cornelius DeLur is offering a handsome reward for the
return of the stolen book. She reveals that she was sent by Andre to
get the book from Hadrian, but says that they can instead escape
together to use the book, which she believes is a treasure map.
After
assisting Tim win the 100 gold coins he needed in the casino, Gwen
sits at the bar and Duke Ibsen immediately tries to seduce
her, but Lady Constance appears and saves her. The two women sit and
talk about themselves. Royce then returns to the Parrot and is
followed by his shadow, a man that Cornelius assigned to chaperone
Royce while he is in Tur Del Fur. Just then, a group of dwarves enter
the Parrot, sing the Belgric Royal Anthem, and then leave.
Hadrian
has dropped Millificent off at the Cave and is heading back to the
Parrot. He hears a commotion and finds pickles hanging from a roof
with a man, dog, and some rats trying to attack him. Hadrian saves
him from the attacking beasts. Pickles says he has been cursed.
Falkirk then enters the lumberyard and demands his book back from
Pickles.
Gravis
is on the beach, north of the towers and city. He thinks about the
terrible dreams he has had since Ena's death, where something is
calling to him from beneath Drumindor. He finds the broken hull of a
fishing boat he has been sleeping under. He hears footsteps and
Falkirk arrives and states that he can give Drumindor to Gravis.
Hadrian
and Pickles return to the the Turtle where everyone has stayed up
waiting for Hadrian, along with Royce's "ghost" who has
been assigned to watch Royce. Since Hadrian and Royce believed
Pickles to be dead years ago, they wait for Arcadius's explanation.
Arcadius tells the story of why he had to frame Pickles's, whose real
name is Rehn Purim, death. Hadrian and Royce are both upset, and
Hadrian walks outside. Rehn comes and apologizes and then goes back
inside. Royce appears and Hadrian tells him about what happened with
Falkirk.
The
next morning, Albert is in a terrible mood as he states that
Drumindor is locked and they have been fired by Lord Byron. Royce,
Hadrian, and their ghost, go down to the towers to inspect them. Once
they reach the south tower they meet Oscar Tiliner and Ernesta
Bray, who know Royce's ghost, whose name is Baxter. They also
see a flag with symbols hanging from Drumindor. Royce cannot find an
entrance to get into the tower. They decide their only option will be
to climb the towers to get the the bridge that connects them. They go
back to the Turtle where Auberon has arrived. They describe the
symbols to Auberon and he states it is a message to dwarves telling
them to leave Tur Del Fur before the the next full moon. Royce,
Hadrian, and Baxter go to Cornelius DeLur and Royce tells him how
Drumindor was built on top of the volcano, Mt. Druma, and
because of the pressure of the volcano, once a month Drumindor must
vent the pressure. He believes Gravis is planning on stopping the
next venting and blowing up the city. Cornelius agrees to extend
their job in order for them to help find a way into Drumindor. The
trio return to the Turtle, and notify them that their job has been
extended. Royce reveals that Gravis entered Drumindor with Falkirk,
and asks Rehn and Arcadius about the book, AKA Falkirk's diary. They
explain how it was stolen 2 years ago, and how Rehn stole it from the
courier a couple days ago. Rehn explains what he read in the book,
which was about Falkirk's travels with Dibben and Bran.
Over
the next 2 weeks, the people of Drumindor attempt to gain access to
Drumindor, but all the attempts fail, leaving only 4 days before the
full moon. Royce, Hadrian and Baxter are at the south tower after
another failed attempt, when a large group of dwarves appear to plead
with Gravis not to destroy the city. That night, the group all return
to the Blue Parrot for one final evening. Mr. Parrot gives
a speech about this being the last night for the danthum. Tim arrives
with his wife who he has now freed. Hadrian speaks with Millificent
and warns her to leave the city while there is still time. They both
head to the Cave to get her gold she has stored there. Back in the
Parrot, Gwen is thinking about how she changed the future by saving
Tim and Meredith. She is worried this could have changed the future
she saw for Royce. Hadrian and Millificent reach the Cave and Hadrian
is ambushed. Rhen, who has followed Hadrian, warns Hadrian of a
crossbowman and saves his life, but is shot by another crossbow.
Hadrian manages to fight off and kill most of his attackers.
Millificent, Andre, and Alessandro all escape though. Hadrian brings
Rhen back to the Turtle and a dwarven doctor, Koll Rudd, is able
to save him. Gwen and Auberon convince the doctor to pretend the Rhen
has died so that Hadrian won't have any reservations about climbing
Drumindor with Royce.
Hadrian
takes Rhen's death badly and the next day they take his coffin to
the Ellis Far, the ship they will be taking to escape Tur Del
Fur. Gwen talks to Royce and talks him into climbing Drumindor in
order to save the city. Royce and Hadrian stay in the city while the
rest of their group leave on the ship. The pair, along with Auberon
and Baxter, go to the north tower to scout. They find that the north
tower has been partially eroded away by the constant battering from
the sea, making it easier to climb than the south tower. Royce
realizes he doesn't have any climbing equipment which he will need,
and Auberon states that the dwarves could make what he needs. Auberon
take them to the Scram Scallie. When they arrive, Sloan is outraged
that Auberon has invited humans to the bar. Auberon explains how
Royce and Hadrian are going to climb to north tower and the dwarves
agree to help them. Royce accompanies several dwarves to Bristol's
foundry where Royce sketches the equipment he will need and the
dwarves get to work creating it. Back at the Scram Scallie, Hadrian
is discussing the nightmares everyone has been having recently and
dwarven history.
The
next day, Royce and Hadrian go to meet with Cornelius DeLur who is on
his ship, the Crown Jewel, which will soon depart from Tur Del
Fur. While on their way they run into lady Constance and Estelle, who
inform them that Millificent died the night before, along with Andre.
The pair continue on to Cornelius, where they make a bargain that if
Royce returns Falkirk's diary to Cornelius, they will receive a
permanent Key to the City. The Crown Jewel sets sail and Royce and
Hadrian go back to the Turtle. Auberon arrives with several dwarves
and the new climbing equipment. Auberon takes the chance to talk to
Hadrian about Hadrian's self-reproach for Rhen's death. That night,
Royce and Hadrian head to the north tower.
Gravis
is on the bridge of Dumindor watching the sunset. He thinks about how
Falkirk had killed all the guards when they entered Drumindor, about
the evil that is below Drumindor trying to escape, and about his last
moments with Ena. From below he can hear dwarves singing the funeral
song Hagen Ere Brock, begging him to stop.
Royce
and Hadrian reach the base of the tower and are in awe of the quality
and ingenuity of the climbing equipment the dwarves have created for
them. They begin their climb. After some time, the come to a gap they
cannot climb across in order to reach the bridge. Royce believes can
jump the gap. Hadrian goads Royce a bit and Royce attempts, and
succeeds in his jump. Hadrian attempts to swing across with the help
of the rope that Royce has secured, but the anchor breaks and Hadrian
falls. He is saved by the rope, but hits the tower and is knocked
unconscious. Royce bandages him up and, using the dwarven pulley
system, pulls Hadrian up the rest of the tower. Hadrian regains
consciousness just as they reach the bridge. The stone door on the
bridge that leads into the north tower is closed and over the next
eleven hours they cannot figure out how to open it. Royce figures out
that the runes around the door can be pressed in a certain order
corresponding to a date in order to open the door. After a long time,
and thanks to what Hadrian had learned about dwarven dates, they
manage to correctly open the door by entering the date Ena had died.
They
wander around the inner of Drumindor, choosing turns by instinct.
They finally enter a large room with six walls, all covered in
paintings. Gravis appears and locks them in the room. Royce and
Hadrian study the walls and realize the paintings are the prophesies
of Beatrice and one wall includes the pair climbing up the
north tower. The rest of the panels include the world being formed,
the first war, Drumindor being built, a dwarf becoming king and the
end of the world. Gravis decides to speak with the pair and they
point out that all three of them are on the paintings. Gravis enters
the room and realizes that he needs to help them. They head down
towards the Master Gear which they need to unlock and towards where
Falkirk is waiting. Once they reach the master gear, Falkirk speaks
about Chaos and the destruction of the world. Gravis tries to get
around Falkirk to unlock the Master Gear, but Falkirk attacks and
mortally wounds him. Hadrian attacks Falkirk, but quickly realizes he
is outmatched. Royce attacks and managed to knock Falkirk's diary
free, which Hadrian grabs. Hadrian throws it to Royce who sprints to
the exit. Royce runs down the stairs towards the Haldor Gigin,
the massive forge beneath Drumindor. Falkirk continues to attack
Hadrian who cannot reach the Master Gear. Hadrian notices that Gravis
is still alive and is attempting to unlock the gear. The ghost of Ena
pushes Gravis as he attempts to save Drumindor. Royce finally reaches
the Haldor Gigin and throws the diary into the lava. Falkirk is
killed and Gravis succeeds in unlocking the Master Gear, allowing
Drumindor to vent the volcano. Down in Tur Del Fur, Rhen and Gwen,
who did not leave, watch as the moon rises and the city is saved.
Hadrian and Royce emerge from the south tower to the celebrating
citizens of Tur Del Fur.
Seven
days later, the Hanson stagecoach arrives back in Tur Del Fur. Rhen
turns down offer to return with them as he has taken a job working
for Auberon. Royce returns from a meeting with the Triumvirate, where
it was decided that dwarves will be granted full citizenship in
Delgos. Royce, Hadrian, and Gwen begin their trip back to Melengar.
