Azure bonds - Kate Novak [110]
Dragonbait shook his head.
"It's no use arguing. I'm not leaving. There's no sense in both of us risking our lives. Someone has to warn the world." Akabar did not bother to consider that Dragonbait had no voice to raise such an alarm. He shoved the lizard toward the city wall and moved toward the battle, circling to keep in sight the "face" of Moander that held Alias.
Dragonbait loped from the pit. He stopped a short distance away and turned to watch the battle.
The Abomination of Moander, singing its name, tore through the ruins, overrunning the camp of the Red Plumes. Akabar screwed his eyes shut and muttered, fast and furious, the opening lines of the spell. When he opened them, the beast had turned back toward the pit to clean up the stray humans it had left behind. It was almost on top of him, its fanged mouths smiling and the eyes that clustered about Alias all fixed on his body. Akabar aimed his spell square on those eyes.
A pool of light blossomed across the god's "face." The eyes turned a blind, milky white or shut tightly to shield themselves from the brightness cast over them. Akabar grabbed a tendril and hauled himself up the hulking body.
When he reached Alias's side, he drew his dagger. He began hacking furiously at the roots which bound her to the monster. The blinding light would not last long, and he did not stand a chance once an eye spotted him.
There was movement along the garbage hulk. Akabar looked down to discover the source of the disturbance. Dragonbait was using the jagged teeth of his sword to saw through the thicker tentacles entrapping Alias.
Annoyed but not surprised, Akabar shouted, "You should have followed my orders." Dragonbait finally got one of Alias's legs free and moved up to work on the restraints about her arm, but he suspected he was fighting a losing battle. Tendrils were regrowing already, and Akabar had to slash them back, keeping him from making any progress toward liberating the swordswoman.
An eye opened near Akabar's hand. He stabbed it and it shut up, tearing yellow ichor. Below him, a large branch, as thick as a boa constrictor, reached for Dragonbait. Shouting a warning, the mage launched himself over Alias's body and kicked the lizard to the ground. The tendril caught the mage's wrist and snaked up his arm. At its tip was a venomous-looking flower shaped like a great, yellow hand that groped blindly toward the mage's head.
Dragonbait watched in shocked horror. Akabar shouted, "Run, damn you, run!" before the foul blossom curled over his face. Akabar was dragged into the heart of the pulsing mass. Tendrils grew over Alias's body.
Dragonbait fled toward the city wall. The heaving monstrosity shambled after him, swords and half-eaten bodies stuck out at all angles from the boundaries of its oozing flesh. There was no sign of the mage. The light Akabar had cast was fading, and only the hot blue glow from the warrior woman's buried arm revealed her position.
Diving through a hole in the city wall, the lizard curled himself into a tight ball and rolled down the slope of the mound with reckless speed. A shower of brownish vines and tendrils shot out after him but fell short of their mark. Shouts came from the far side of the wall-more mercenaries alerted to the Abomination's presence. The whine of missiles, ordinary and magical, reached Dragonbait's ears.
The lizard stood up and dashed down the mound. At the bottom, he turned to check on the monster. The city wall, already weakened from vears of abuse, began to give under the pressure of the god's bulk. Part of its body oozed over the wall, crushing beneath what it could not push aside.
Dragonbait turned again and ran toward their camp, chased by the shrieks of the soldiers dying in the city. He did not weep for Akabar; all his tears had been spent on Alias, and he had no time to make more.
*****
Olive Ruskettle turned in her sleep and moaned softly. A shadow passed through her usual dreams of wealth and fame and food and wine. Phalse's