All Shadows Fled - Ed Greenwood [56]
A blue mist raced out from her body to swirl around them all. It rose, growing thicker and winking with small flashes of blue light… light that was suddenly blinding, blotting the world out in an shifting, drifting swirl… that faded away to show Faerun again.
They were in a different clearing-a larger space littered with felled trees and stacked firewood. To the north was daylight, where the woods gave way to the first fields of Shadowdale. Through the cloaking trees, they saw the stone bridge over the Ashaba, where a watchful guard always stood.
A guard of three frightened old men, whose spears trembled in their hands as they shouted in alarm at the sudden appearance of so many horsemen. Florin took his hand from Merith's horse to raise it in a reassuring salute.
Jhessail shuddered and collapsed silently onto her husband, the stone falling from her mouth.
"Is she-?" Belkram and Itharr said together, leaning anxiously down. Merith cradled her as he reached out, plucked up the stone that was Sylune, and held it up to Belkram.
"Drained, not dead," the elf said softly. "A mass tele-port is something far beyond her Art. Though Sylune gave direction, my Jhess worked the spell."
"We must still make haste," Nelyssa reminded.
Illistyl frowned. " Florin! Come back here!"
The ranger, who was halfway to the bridge, acknowledged the relieved greetings of the dalesmen before he turned questioningly.
"I haven't Art to equal Jhess's," the younger sorceress said, "but I can manage something you should use now."
Florin was already hurrying his war horse back to her. Firefoam had paced restlessly back and forth behind the lines of the battle yesterday, and was eager to get into a proper fray; he snorted and tossed his head as they approached Illistyl, fearing he would be relegated to stand and watch, again. The diminutive sorceress stood looking up at him as his great muzzle lowered to her nose.
"How would you like to fly?" she asked softly.
Firefoam's bugle awoke echoes from the trees around and made many of the other horses stamp and whinny.
"Fly ahead," Illistyl said, looking up at Florin, "and see where we're needed. Rally folk, and return if you need us anywhere in particular-otherwise, we'll just charge on up the road and kill Zhents!"
"A shrewd grasp of tactics," Captain Nelyssa said dryly.
Illistyl cast her spell with deft speed.
Florin scooped the limp form of Jhessail from Merith's arms and settled her against his own chest.
"Done! Get you gone!" Illistyl cried, waving her hands; Florin smiled his thanks and saluted as Fire-foam bounded aloft-and was gone across the sky, heading for the distant Tower of Ashaba.
As they hurried across, Jhessail asked the first old farmer on the bridge, "How goes the battle?"
"Not well," he rasped. "Too many Zhents!"
"A problem we're familiar with," Torm agreed grandly, urging his horse off the bridge.
An instant later, the ground rocked and thundered. Riders fought to control snorting mounts and stay in their saddles as they gaped at a huge ball of flame that rose up, up into the sky over Shadowdale.
"The tower?" Illistyl gasped, white to the lips. " Florin?"
"Not the tower," Jhessail said, shaking her head. "But close by, west and south."
"The temple of Lathander," Rathan grunted, "or I'm an idiot."
"You are an idiot," Torm pointed out.
Rathan's reply was a certain wordless gesture with his mace as he hauled on the reins, taking his horse to one side of the cart road and gaining room to gallop. Torm cast a quick look back to see all the Riders doing so, and pulled his mount to the left, catching a glare from Kuthe for his tardiness.
"Ready, all?" Captain Nelyssa asked crisply. "For-wardr
At her yell, they nudged their mounts into a gallop and swept north into the heart of Shadowdale.
The smoke lay like a haze in the air here, drifting out of the trees to the east, and the fields around them were green and deserted. Up ahead, they could hear the swelling sound of shouts and screams and the clangor of steel on steel. Here and there a blade flashed as it