A Dragon's Ascension - Ed Greenwood [108]
At the far end of the room, a woman was weeping bitterly.
Scaled faces smiled coldly down at Sendridi Dudijack. "As a certain bold mercenary said before another throne, not so long ago," one of them sneered, " 'No, I think not.' You need us-but we don't need you. You've served your purpose, Bloodblade. The Serpent thanks you; die comforted by his approval. Die now.
The priest smiled coldly, and added, "There are so many fat, decadent, arrogant fools of barons, aren't there? Better to be rid of them all, and their king with them-whichever idiot of a sword-swinger that may happen to be. The Serpent should rule from the River Throne, bringing true glory to all Aglirta."
"No!" Bloodblade cried despairingly, trying to parry that great warsword and failing. "No!
"Serpent-priests, behind all! I might have known," Hawkril said grimly-and drove his blade home, stabbing right at Sendrith Duthjack's chest. His warsword struck sparks off the thick breastplate of Blood-blade's grand armor and ran up that shaped steel, shrieking along in a shower of sparks, to catch the edge of the would-be usurper's gorget, and go up-and in.
The man called Bloodblade staggered back, eyes wide with pain, gargling on his own blood, and stared despairingly into Hawkril's flinty stare. The armaragor took a step to the side, to where the side seam of Duthjack's armor could be reached-and then Hawkril Anharu lunged with all his strength, piercing the lighter plate and running the dying Bloodblade through.
"I should have known!" Craer added darkly, hurling a dagger. "Who else so hates Aglirta as to unhesitatingly ruin it in their strivings to conquer it?" The Serpent-priest who'd told Bloodblade his doom waved a hand, and its fingers were suddenly a writhing forest of hissing snakes. The procurer's razor-sharp blade sliced off more than a few of their heads as it flashed towards its target-but it was snared and brought down before it could find the holy scaled throat, beyond…
Embra Silvertree knelt in all the blood and cradled Glarsimber's head in her hands. Sightless eyes stared past her, and more blood drooled from the baron's slack mouth.
Blackgult and now Brightpennant… Two brave barons dead, in the space of a few breaths. Her father was gone, and Flaeros with him, blasted by some magic because he'd given her his Dwaer, and left himself defenseless… oh, Lady Above, there was no laughing deliverance from this sorrow…
Hawkril shook Bloodblade half off his warsword, and then twisted it and drove it home again. Dripping blood, the would-be usurper staggered and threw up feeble hands in a beseeching gesture.
" 'Tis just a little late for mercy," Hawkril told him softly, in a voice that trembled on the edge of tears, "when Aglirta lies scarred by your hand, all law broken and the king gone forever and so many dead because of your deeds. I would slay you once for each death you've caused, if I somehow had the magic to bring you back to feel each and every slaying!"
Bloodblade reeled off the dark, slick end of Hawkril's blade, eyes glazing over-and the hulking overduke sprang forward with the roar of an angry lion and swung one gauntleted fist as hard as he could. Duthjack's neck broke with a horrible splintering sound, as the warlord's feet left the floor for one last time.
"For Aglirta!" Hawkril Anharu shouted. "And for us all!"
Overhead, another Serpent-priest finished hissing a long and intricate spell, and lifted one scaled hand.
In answer, something black-like smoke that somehow glistened- boiled up from the floor of the throne chamber, sprouting wherever no bodies lay or blood was smeared, and roaring up into… serpents! In moments there was a black, rising wall of snakes, hissing and biting the air and curling out to snap their jaws hungrily at anyone nearby.
"Embra!" Tshamarra Talasorn screamed, shaking with revulsion. "Embra, help!" Snakes were hanging down from the ceiling and boiling up from the floor, between her very legs within her gown! Shrieking, she sprang away, kicking and slapping, and landed hard on tumbled stone,