Amos Daragon_ The Mask Wearer - Bryan Perro [42]
Beorf did not know what to do.
“Decide quickly!” Karmakas said, pushing the blade against the skin of the young gorgon.
Medusa howled in pain.
Unable to see his friend suffer, Beorf shouted, “All right, let her live and I’ll give you the pendant. Swear that you won’t hurt her!”
“I swear,” the naga answered. “I’ll wait for you here, ssss, with her, ssss, to be sure that you come back. Retrieve my, ssss, pendant and hurry. My patience is running, ssss, thin.”
Beorf morphed into his bear form and left the cavern in one leap. He ran as fast as he could to Bratel-la-Grande’s cemetery. On his way, he tried to come up with a solution, a way to outsmart the sorcerer. If only Amos were here! he thought. He would find a way to keep the pendant and save Medusa. One thing was clear to him: the gorgon had to be saved, and he would do all he could to keep her alive—and close to him. He was ready to sacrifice his own life to rescue her.
Once in the cemetery, Beorf approached a vault belonging to a prominent family in the city. He moved one of the stones that had become loose over the years and recovered the pendant quickly. The beorite breathed a little easier with the precious object between his paws. His thoughts were confused and his fear of losing Medusa was torturing him. He was trapped! There was no reason for the naga to spare their lives once he got the pendant back. Beorf had done everything he could to keep the pendant from falling into the sorcerer’s hands. Now he had no choice: he had to face death with dignity, hoping for Karmakas’s mercy. With these somber thoughts, he walked back holding the pendant between his teeth.
When he reached the cavern, Beorf took his human form again. He was perspiring.
“Here is your pendant!” he told the sorcerer, who was still threatening Medusa with his weapon. “Now, spare us. If you really have to kill someone to satisfy your anger, take my life, but let Medusa live. She has nothing to do with this. It’s between you and me!”
Karmakas grabbed the pendant. He let out a monstrous laugh. “Very well, ssss, I will take your life and, ssss, let Medusa live. You agree, ssss, to this?”
Resigned, Beorf took a deep breath. “Yes, my life for hers!” he said solemnly.
The naga seemed to enjoy Beorf’s predicament. He put his dagger aside and removed the hood from Medusa’s head.
“You see, ssss, my beautiful child,” he said, addressing the young gorgon whose back faced Beorf, “how, ssss, everything ends well for you!”
Medusa hugged Karmakas and kissed his cheek.
“You told me once that beorites were stupid and sentimental,” she said. “You were right! It was easy to make him talk. So easy. Thank you for believing in me, Father. I think I played my part rather well.”
Beorf stared at them openmouthed. He could not believe his ears or his eyes. Karmakas looked at him smugly.
“Let me introduce my, ssss, daughter Medusa,” he said. “Every gorgon is, ssss, my child. We are, ssss, a large family!”
Medusa brought her hood down over her eyes and turned toward Beorf.
“Did you really believe that you had become my friend?” she said to him. “I hate hairy creatures. They disgust me! You stink like a wild beast and I find you repulsive. I don’t like you. In fact, I hate you. If you used your mind more often than your stomach, you’d have understood that I was not sincere. It was so simple to make you believe that I was your friend. I don’t deserve my father’s praise. You are stupid, Beorf!”
Beorf held back tears. “I really loved you, Medusa,” he said. “And even if I know now that you lied and that I’m going to die, I’ll never regret the time I spent with you. They were the best moments of my life.”
“Be quiet!” cried the gorgon. “You’re pitiful. But I will do something for you. In exchange for the stupid doll that you made me, I’ll grant one of your wishes. I’ll let you see my eyes. They will