Crown of Fire - Ed Greenwood [31]
"My eyes, man! Cast a healing on me, by the Black Altar! I cannot see!"
As quietly as he could, Delg clambered over a tangle of grounded spears and the contorted bodies of dogs in order to reach Narm. With a grunt, the dwarf rolled a dead canine aside and dragged the stillgroggy wizard to a sitting position.
"Up, lad!" he said sharply, slapping Narm's face. "Up, and take this!" He thrust his belt dagger into Narm's hand; startled eyes fell on it and then rose to meet his.
"Awake, lad? Good. Guard your lady; I've work to do." Delg pointed out where Shandril lay, clapped Narm on the back, and set off through the smoking ruin to where the Zhents clustered.
Only five still stood there-the priest, the blinded but still-blustering warcaptain, a swordmaster, and two warriors. The last three had swords in their hands, and the swordmaster was snapping orders at the men to gather lanterns and make ready to look for the lass.
The dwarf went forward slowly, keeping his axe low and behind him, lest its blade flash back light and warn of his approach. Smoke still drifted lazily amid the blackened trees, but it seemed Shandril was not fated to burn down Hullack Forest this night.
Good. Thank all the gods for that. Now, if they'd just spend a skybolt or two to deal with five Zhents…
Perhaps he'd not been devout enough. Or perhaps as a dwarf, he thought wryly, he was expected to act for the gods. Whatever, no bolt came from the sky. Delg grinned savagely at the thought of what spellfire must have seemed to the Zhents who'd run. Oh, there'd be tales of tanar'ri or gods making the rounds of the Moonsea North before long-unless the owlbears and wolves were thorough tonight.
Delg's boot found a stone, painfully. With iron control, he halted and bent to feel it. Small enough.
Good. Setting aside his axe, he took up the stone, leaned back almost to the ground with the rock in his raised hand, and came upright in a throw sped by all the weight of his stout body. The hurled stone sailed up into the night-and crashed down in the brush behind the Zhents.
"Who's that? By Bane, answer!" Silence gave the warcaptain the reply he feared. "It's one of them, getting away-swordmaster, see to it! Bring him down!"
The swordmaster looked about helplessly, caught the priest's cold and level gaze, and reluctantly took up a lantern, tersely ordering the two warriors to his flanks.
A moment later, they waded cautiously into the brush, swords raised. DeIg, axe held ready, used the noise they made to cover the sounds of his own cautious advance. He crept to the lit area w?here the warcaptain was pleading with the priest to heal him, and the priest was insisting that the helm come off first.
"It won't," said the big man, voice approaching a sob. "I've tried… it feels stuck to my skin. Gods!"
Keep sniveling, the dwarf thought savagely. Just a breath or two longer, and I'll The axe came up quickly as Delg rounded the last tree, but it was impossible to move silently in the bad light. The priest saw and heard-and was very fast. He shoved the warcaptain into Delg and fled cursing into the darkness.
The fearful Zhentilar felt the impact, heard the priest's fearful oath, and concluded something was wrong. He lashed out.
Delg had stumbled clear-but not quite far enough. One of those war-gauntlets caught him square in the ribs. He grunted and sat down with a crash. The stout dwarven mail held, but the breath had been driven out of him, leaving a searing pain behind.
The sightless man reached forward. He sensed where his foe lay. Delg dropped his axe and rolled aside, pivoting on his own knee to come in close to the warcaptain.
Those blindly grasping gauntlets triumphantly closed on the axe handle and used its blade to flail at the ground. Delg winced as his axe struck sparks from more than one rock-and then his reaching hands found the man's belt dagger and tore it free.
The Zhentilar turned at the tugging, and Delg climbed the arm that swept around to strike him, clambering up it to drive the short blade hilt-deep through the helm's eyeslit and the unseen