Crypt of the shadowking - Mark Anthony [59]
Morhion sat at an uncluttered table of polished rosewood, sipping his wine calmly. The mage was a handsome man, one of the handsomest Mari had ever seen. His features were fine and noble, and his golden hair fell about his broad shoulders like a lion's mane. Yet his deep blue eyes were so cold and calculating that Mari found it disturbing to gaze at him for any great length of time.
"You have come seeking something, Caledan," the mage said. "Perhaps you can stop for a moment and tell me what it is before your pacing wears a hole in my floor."
Caledan snorted in disgust and sank down into a leather armchair, glaring at the mage. "That's one thing I never did like about you, Gen'dahar. You always pretended you didn't understand things you knew perfectly well. You know why we're here. It's the book, the one you took from the monastery of Oghma in the Sunset Mountains."
The mage nodded. "The Mal'eb'dala? I suspected as much."
"What do you want with it?" Caledan asked accusingly.
"The same as you, I imagine," the mage answered, unperturbed by Caledan's tone. He stood and walked to a narrow window, gazing out over the city. "Ravendas seeks something buried deep beneath the Tor, and in the past she has shown an interest in The Book of the Shadows. It is not so difficult a connection to make. I had hoped the book might hold the secret to defeating Ravendas, to driving her from Iriaebor."
"Why should you care, mage?" Caledan asked, gritting his teeth. Morhion turned to regard Caledan with his unblinking gaze, and Mari noticed that even Caledan could not bring himself to meet the mage's disturbing eyes.
"This is my home," Morhion said simply. "My life is here, such as it is." Caledan looked daggers at Morhion, but he did not contest the mage's words.
"Have you read the Mal'eb'dala?" Mari forced herself to ask. "Have you learned what it is Ravendas is searching for beneath the Tor?"
"I believe so." Morhion pulled a heavy tome bound in black leather from a high shelf and set it on the table. Mari and Caledan bent over the book as the mage turned to a page marked with a ribbon of black satin. The writing was clear, but Mari could make no sense of the words, written in the ancient Talfirian tongue.
"Well, what does it say?" Caledan asked in annoyance. The mage ignored him, directing his words to Mari.
"The Book of the Shadows is an encyclopedia, of sorts. Its author, whoever he or she was-and indeed, there may have been more than one over the centuries-describes many mysteries forgotten since ancient times. Some entries describe terrible creatures, abominations of magic, while others discuss swords of power, or enchanted rings and the like. But there is only one entry that Ravendas would be interested in." He touched the page lightly. "This is it."
The mage began to translate the passage. '"Long ago,'" thе mage read in his resonant voice, "'in a land east of the mountains and west of the sea, there dwelt a king named Verraketh, a ruler both feared and mighty.'" Morhion flipped the page. The tale of how Verraketh became a king goes on for some time. It is not particularly relevant to what comes after." He ran a finger down the page, then started again. "Ah, yes. This is it. 'Skilled above all men was Verraketh in the art of sorcery, but such was the power of his dark magic that slowly it did consume him, flesh and soul. Verraketh was changed until he appeared as a man no longer, but rather as a being most hideous, his maleficent heart filled only with darkness. Thus it was that Verraketh came to be called by a new name-the Shadowking.'"
"Sounds cheerful," Caledan noted wryly.
Morhion shot him an unfriendly glance but continued reading. "'For a long age did the Shadowking rule over his dusky realm, but ever he hungered for greater dominion. Many were the lands that fell…'" Morhion paused. "I am afraid the ink is blurred on the rest of this page,