Daughter of the Drow - Elaine Cunningham [161]
As the dragon neared his hiding place, Fyodor leaped into the cavern and pulled his sword. With all his strength he swung, bashing the creature between the eyes. Pharx pulled up short, shaking his head and huffing in astonishment. The blunt-edged sword had not broken through the dragon's armor, but for a moment the dragon was dazed and cross-eyed.
Zz'Pzora seized the moment. She spread her wings and leaped at Pharx like a pouncing hawk. Her claws found a foothold on the male's vertical plates of belly-armor, and her wings enfolded his spiked back. Her two heads dove in for his throat. Nothing but a dragon's teeth could pierce a dragon's armor, and Pharx, despite his enormous size, could not shake the smaller female. One head he might have dislodged, but not two. Locked in a deadly embrace, the enormous creatures thrashed and rolled. Zz'Pzora's wings were pierced, then shredded, by the male's spiky armor, but still she clung-teeth grinding and two heads tossing violently as she sought to rip through the male dragon's scales.
Fyodor circled the titanic battle, watching for a chance to strike, but so entangled were the two creatures that he could not hit one without harming the other. Finally Pharx's tail thrashed out, away from the clinging Zz'Pzora. The Rashemi leaped, hacking at the scaly appendage. It was not much, but perhaps it would distract the beast and give Zz'Pzora some small aid.
Pharx's enormous maw opened in a roar of rage and pain that shook the cavern. Then the creature lowered his jaw toward Zz'Pzora's back and exhaled deeply. A noxious, crimson mist flowed from the dragon's mouth. It clung to the female's back, and wherever it touched scales melted away like snow in a spring rain. Both of the female's heads screamed, and Zz'Pzora lost her hold on Pharx's throat.
The Rashemi stepped in, sword leading. His black blade dug deep into one of the holes Zz'Pzora's teeth had worried open, and he leaned in hard until the sword struck bone. Fyodor gripped the hilt with both hands and threw his weight to one side, wrenching the sword in a deadly arc through Pharx's throat. Blood poured from the creature's fanged mouth, quenching the strange fire that ate through Zz'Pzora's scales.
The female disentangled herself from her dying mate, and the fierce joy of battle shone in her four eyes. "Let's go," she rumbled, leading the way unsteadily from the cavern. "Liriel is in there. No sense letting her have all the fun!"
Slowly and at great cost, Iljrene and her forces made their way down the tunnel toward the hoard room. The tiny priestess had been cut more than once, and her garments were wet with mingled seawater and blood. Yet she did not falter, did not seem to register pain when she was wounded, or when one of her sister priestesses fell. She had a mission and she would fulfill it. Once the ship was breached and the drew children rescued, Qilue would lead a band of drow into the merchants' stronghold. Iljrene planned to ensure they did not walk into overwhelming odds.
Liriel looked up as Zz'Pzora ducked her way into the hoard room. "Got the wizard, I see," the dragon's left head observed in a slurred voice "Pharx is dead, too."
The drow smiled. "We make a good team, Zip."
"That we do," the dragon's heads agreed in unison. The creature seemed about to say more, but her left head swayed, then drooped, sagging lifeless onto her bloodstained purple scales.
The right head looked down and grimaced. "I was afraid of that," she said, and plunged down faces-first into the pile of gold.
Liriel's eyes widened at the horrible wound on Zz'Pzora's back. The scales had melted away, and the flesh looked as if it had been eaten away by some corrosive acid. The drow darted forward and gathered up the lifeless head of her