The eerie emptiness of the plaza surprised the entire group as Holli had warned them the mansion stood near the very center of the city. They did not wish to bring attention to their arrival, but Enin insisted on a direct approach. Sneaking through Ashlan would not assist their cause and only delay their objectives. They expected greater activity near Prilgrat's home and prepared to meet with inferns or human soldiers on patrol. Even Jure, who held Heteera in his arms, was ready to cast a defensive spell if they were attacked upon arrival. To their relief, and also bewilderment, such conditions simply did not exist.
The calm and quiet surrounding the mansion, however, was in direct contrast to activity throughout the rest of Ashlan. Ryson noticed it first, heard and smelled the violence across the city. The indications of pure chaos assaulted his senses and swelled across him from every direction, battered him like a barrage of hail and sleet. He heard the screams of fear and shrieks of fury. He smelled the smoke from fires and the dust of destruction. He felt the rattle of an angry mob surging through the entire city and the desperate retreat of thousands trying to flee.
"Oh no," the delver cried as he looked up and down the empty street, and although the road he stood upon appeared a peaceful refuge, he knew turmoil raged everywhere else. It all felt so unreal, to be standing in relative peace while surrounded by total havoc. It was as if they had found the single sanctuary elevated over a raging flood of brutality, like a bird landing on a large boulder perched over a river of lava.
"What's going on?" Jure asked.
"The goblins… they're rampaging across the city."
"He's right," Holli confirmed.
Although she was unable to see the diminutive monsters, she could not deny the revelations of hostility. Her elf eyes spotted the clouds of smoke hovering over different sections of the city. Her hearing could not match the depth of the delver's, but the chaos rang clear in her ears as well. It was not the roar of battle she heeded-no clang of iron or shout of battle cries-but the pandemonium of monsters wreaking havoc. Wild shrieks of bloodthirsty mayhem filled the air. She could only imagine the devastation as the entire city trembled against the riotous goblin mob. From grinding groans within the ground itself, Holli could feel the pulse of pure anarchy. It did not stop-did not even pause-instead, the rustling vibration of chaos rattled endlessly. Ashlan was not simply under siege, it was beset by madness.
Needing to understand the depth of the calamity, Enin acted instantly. He closed his eyes and placed his hands above his head. He focused his energy on the need to see beyond the limits of the city.
External magic continued to flow down and around Ashlan. It rushed overhead with a force that might prevent spell casters of lesser ability from breaching the city, but it could not stop Enin's will.
Two rings of pure white magic encircled his wrists. He released the first circle of energy with a desire to reach out beyond Ashlan and to touch the skies across the Great Valleys. Once the first ring of magic reached its intended height, streaks of lightning bolted outward in all directions of the compass, branching out in seemingly never ending jagged lines. Though the lightning contained substantial power and the corresponding rumble of thunder shook the buildings nearby, it was never intended to strike any target. It simply allowed the wizard a platform that stretched far and wide across the skies overhead.
He sent the second ring following immediately after the first. The pale energy burst across the sky in the same manner, but it used the lightning as an anchor. It was the power of sight, and it followed the previous path of magic, utilizing it to send reflections of areas far beyond Ashlan back to the wizard. Enin let the images flow into his consciousness as he witnessed alarming events in several neighboring towns.
The ghastly visions revealed to him were much the same in every direction. Goblins raged with a violent lust that sickened him. They struck with an anger that had been bottled up for many seasons. They raced about furiously, burning and destroying, pillaging and killing. They brought devastation with a delirious frenzy.
In some areas, the goblins moved as a great horde-a dark gray mass that rolled forward like storm clouds with deliberate evil intentions. They choked out any opposition with frightening efficiency, suffocating the ground with the sheer swell of their numbers.
In other regions, goblins scattered across farms and small town streets like shrapnel disbursed by some horrid explosion. They darted about creating confusion and panic-starting fires, smashing doors and windows, stealing food and valuables.
The response to the assault was dismal. The humans failed to come together. Small pockets of resistance were quickly overrun. Individuals who found the courage to stand and fight could not match the sheer numbers of goblin attackers that swelled about them. Most of the people took to flight, and while they did not appear to retreat with a clear direction in mind, the goblins seemed determined to press them to the west.
Enin saw the method of the dwarves deep within the madness of the goblins. Fleeing people were being herded together, sent in the same direction in one massive stampede. It would take days and many would be trampled, die of exhaustion or dehydration, but they would all be pushed through Pride Gap and sent into the central plains. Lack of hope and shelter would force them onward until they flooded into the lands that rested beneath the Colad Mountains. They would inundate Connel, Burbon, and Pinesway.
The panic of the humans washed over Enin while he peered across the region. As he saw pure desperation in their faces, the overwhelming emotion that generated such expressions took shape in his own spirit. It was more than sympathy, or even empathy, it was a torrent of anguish and fear rippling back across the magic. He cancelled the spell and turned his attention back to his companions.
"You were right," Enin said to the elder wizard. "The goblins have been released. It has begun, and it is a nightmare."
"What should we do?" Ryson demanded, not wanting to simply stand idly by.
Enin did not wish to advise patience during such a crisis, but rash action was not an alternative he would allow.
"First, we find Prilgrat. We can't simply base our decisions on assumptions. We have to know for sure… know if draevols are linked to this evil. Then we shall act."
Enin threw open the door to the mansion and stepped angrily into the great hall. He peered about, searching for any movement, but there was nothing-no guards and no servants. He wondered if Prilgrat might have abandoned his home, forewarned of the catastrophe. As he set his magical senses upon the inner space of the mansion, however, he noted the attendance of humans… and something else… something sinister in nature. It was not a presence, certainly not a draevol, but something like the shadow of a dark sin committed just moments ago.
Uneasy over the sensation, the wizard called out to anyone who could hear, but at first, no one would respond. Unwilling to be denied, he cast a force spell that shook the very foundation of the house. He warned his next spell would bring the building down as rubble if he was not met immediately. Two stunned servants stepped reluctantly into the hall with apprehension etched upon their faces.
"Where is the steward… where is Prilgrat?" Enin demanded, his fury obvious.
"He can't stop this," one of the servants cried. "This isn't what he wanted."
"I'm not here to debate you. Where is he?"
"He's upstairs, but he's sick."
"Which room?"
The servant advised the wizard of where to go and Enin climbed the stairs with growing disdain. He reached the proper room and forced open the door with a magical blast. He sensed no demon behind the door, but the stench of evil had grown stronger and he wished to make his sentiments clear.
Prilgrat was exactly where the servant said he would be, but the steward was unable to greet them in any fashion. He lay stricken on his bed, unable to even lift his head. With a feeble twist, he rolled his body over slightly in order to face the wizard. He did not recognize Enin, could not sense the magic, but the blast of energy made it clear the stranger in his room had power. The once influential, even jovial regional steward made an immediate request, but it fell out of him with all the persuasion of a dying gnat.