And Peace Shall Sleep

And Peace Shall Sleep is the ninth Magic novel. It was published by HarperPrism in May 1996. It is written by Sonia Orin Lyris, and is set on Sarpadia. It is actually an expanded version of the writer' short story The Going Price from the 1995 Tapestries anthology. The name of this book is a reference to the line "And peace shall sleep with Turks and infidels" from Shakespeare's Richard II.

Plot
Reod Dai was being paid big money - elf money - to stir up trouble along the Icatian-goblin border. And the Havenwood elves were getting their money's worth. Dragon eggs are ideal weapons in the hands of someone like Reod, who knows just what to do with them.

But when the elves abruptly cancelled his contract, Reod found himself low on funds and lower on options. He set off on his way to Havenwood in a desperate attempt to reason with the elves, because he couldn't very well reason with dragon eggs. And those eggs have to be used soon.

Or else...

In the Crimson Peaks
The wizard mercenary Reod Dai meets an emissary of the Havenwood elves in the Crimson Peaks, to discuss the renewal of his contract. He has been paid by the Elves to stir up trouble between the kingdom of Icatia and the orcs and goblins, in order to distract the Icatian government from the trade between the elves and the Ebon Hand, sworn enemy of Icatia. However, the contract is cut abruptly. Now, Reod needs time and funds in order to stop the huge army of orcs and goblins he created from becoming a real threat. Earlier, three dwarven women - Melelki and her daughters Tamun and Sekena - had provided Reod with several dragon eggs that can be used as explosives, so he decides using the eggs in a desperate gambit to convince the elves to give him time and money. However, Melelki isn't satisfied by the price for her dragon eggs, and decides to bring them to the peak where she found them. That night, a dragon hatches prematurely and starts destroying the dwarves' hut. Reod Dai is able to save them by causing the dragon whelp to explode. He then tries to use a simple seduction spell against Tamun, in order to convince her to give him the remaining eggs, but the dwarf is in heat and the spell backfires, causing the two to fall in love. Since the dwarves lost their house, they decide to accompany Reod Dai in his journey to Havenwood, with a cart full of dragon eggs.

To Havenwood
On the road, they pass by Kalitas, a dwarven town which has been destroyed by the orc-goblin army, and find out that the army is now marching against the dwarven city of Teedmar. Later, they encounter an Icatian patrol, who Tamun and Reod are forced to kill. It's revealed that Reod was an Icatian soldier, born Robin Davis, who, disillusioned by the oppressive and fanatical government of Icatia, defected to the Ebon Hand, involuntarily causing the death of the soldiers who followed him.

When the group reaches Havenwood, Reod Dai tries to blow up the Thallid farm of the elves: the elves has in fact been breeding new sources of food, using the dark secrets provided to them by the Ebon Hand. However, the farm is protected against magic and two dragon eggs hatch without explosion, leaving Reod with two dragon whelps. This leaves Reod with the only option to go directly to the elves' fortress in order to reason with them. That night, however, Sekena, who has a strong connection with the dragons, is sick of seeing dragon eggs explode, and intending to fight at Teedmar decides leaving the group, much to the dismay of Melelki.

Reod, Melelki and Tamun reach the fortress and bury the eggs all around the buildings, before being spotted and captured by the elves. Reod manages to convince the elves to let the dwarves go and accompany them to Teedmar, while he himself is brought before the elves elders, which declares that they don't have anymore need of Reod Dai's work. Reod is put in prison, from which he manages to escape with the help of an unsuspecting elven child, not before blowing up the buried eggs, causing a great fire.

At Teedmar
Meanwhile, Sekena and her two dragon whelps have reached the Crimson Peaks, where they find a great dragon. The dragon is tamed by Sekena's smell, and invites her and the whelps to live in his cavern. At Teedmar, Meleki and Tamun start working in a forge, just as Reod arrives in town. It's revealed how his intention was to create an enemy for Icatia, in order that the Icatians would have been united against a common enemy and not fall to kinslaying. To accomplish this he had intended to hinder the efficiency of the orc-goblin army, in order not to create a real threat. However, in his absence the orcs and goblins had seemingly found an easier enemy to kill: the dwarves.

Reod is unable to find Tamun amidst the thousand dwarves and Icatian soldiers in town. Among the latter, Reod finds Eliza, his long time friend, now a Farrelite. Reod and Eliza are ambushed by an Ebon Hand wizard, which tells Reod that the Hand is pleased by the damage he caused to the elves. It's revealed that Reod Dai magic has caused Thallids to gain sentience and they are now rebelling against the elves. The Hand wants Reod to create "goblin eggs" (Goblin Grenade) for them. It is also revealed that they had caused the volcano near Teedmar to erupt, in order to kill the dwarves for selling weapons to Icatia.

While the volcano erupts, the wizard teleports Reod and Eliza to Achtep Keep, stronghold of the Ebon Hand. Near Teedmar, Melelki and Tamun have stumbled upon a goblins warren and are fleeing the goblins, just when Sekena, alarmed by the eruption, arrives with her dragon, saving her family. When they finally return to Teedmar, they find the city buried under the lava and starts helping out the survivors.

At Achtep Keep
At Achtep Keep, Reod is brought before Genkr, his teacher when he was an acolite, who tries to convince Reod to reveal the secrets of goblin eggs. When Reod refuses, he and Eliza are locked up in a cell by the Thrulls. Reod has a lengthy talk with the Thrulls, inciting them to rebel against their creators. When he is brought in the torture room, he understands that his gambit has failed. Gnekr announces that the council wants Reod Dai dead for his betrayal and starts torturing him in order to find out information on goblin eggs. Meanwhile, Eliza finds that some thrulls have been really convinced by Reod words. She storms the torture room, saving Reod. The thrulls kill the members of the Ebon Hand and Reod promises them to return and aid them in their revolt, before riding towards Teedmar with Eliza.

When they reach Icatian lands, Eliza leaves Reod, telling him that she will the Icatian leaders of Reod's actions, hoping that he will be pardoned. When Reod reaches the destroyed Teedmar, he fears that Melelki and Tamun are dead, until a dwarf tells him that the survivors, helped by a dragon, have fled to Gurn Keep.

At Gurn Keep
Reod has hope that Tamun has survived and rides toward Gurn Keep. When he arrives, he sees that the keep is surrounded by the orc-goblins army. He reaches the keep gates, thanks to his influence among the orcs, and is brought before Hamon, the dwarf elder. Reod agrees to help the dwarves with their resistance, all the while searching for Tamun. When he sees a band of goblins (who have breached Gurn Keep defenses) surrounding Tamun, he commands them to stop. This causes suspicion: the dwarves think Reod is a spy and they lock him up in prison. Without Reod directing them, the dwarves are unable to put up a working resistance and the keep is invaded by the goblins.

Reod escapes his prison and brings Melelki and Tamun on the keeps wall. Fortunately, Sekena has brought her dragon to the keep and carries the three away. Safe on the dragon peak, Tamun tells to Reod that even if he caused much suffering to Sarpadia and the dwarves, she still wants to marry him. Reod permits himself to be at peace for a moment, even if his promise to the Thrulls is already calling him away.