Death of the Dragon - Ed Greenwood [61]
Nalavara wheeled around, glancing off the wall and filling the cavern with an enormous crash. Knowing his light spell would draw her eye like a beacon, Vangerdahast dropped to within a foot of the iron scarecrows, making wide erratic turns in both directions. The ploy failed miserably. As he neared his goal, a stream of fire shot past overhead and filled his escape tunnel, forcing him to dodge to one side and duck into a nearby hole.
For a moment, Vangerdahast dared hope it would not matter. The passage was as narrow as the first and packed even more densely with the same iron scarecrows. He streaked twenty paces forward-then was forced to pull up short when he came to a gray dead end.
The ground rumbled, and the wizard knew Nalavara had landed behind him. He dropped down among the iron scarecrows and jerked one out of its base, then thrust it toward the entrance and began a spell.
Vangerdahast had barely started the incantation before Nalavara's snout blocked the mouth of the passage, her nostrils already boiling with fire. He rattled off the final syllables, sighed in relief as a thick wall of iron sprang up before him-then shrank away as the dragon's fiery breath crashed into his magic barrier.
The roar continued for what seemed like several minutes. An orange circle appeared in the middle of the wall and slowly spread outward, pouring so much heat into the tunnel Vangerdahast thought he would burst into flames. The iron began to melt and drip out, and long tongues of flame poured through the hole, licking at the tunnel's end and turning the bauble racks white with heat. Vangerdahast pressed himself to the side of the passage and crept closer to the iron wall, where he would be more sheltered from the flames.
Finally, Nalavara's breath gave out, leaving a huge circle of white-hot iron between the wizard and his foe. He remained pressed against the wall, confident as ever that he would survive but trying desperately to find some way to turn this to his advantage.
"Sir Magician?" rumbled Nalavara's voice.
Vangerdahast thought about remaining silent, then decided he would be better served by confidence. He took a deep breath and stepped in front of the hole.
"Still here, Nalavarauthatoryl." He tipped the counterfeit Scepter of Lords briefly into view. "I understand you have been looking for this? Feel free to come and get it."
A ghastly chuckle rumbled through the cavern outside, then Nalavara tipped her head, blocking the mouth of the passage with one of her huge eyes.
"I think not, wizard. You have proven more… challenging than I thought."
"Shall I take that as a compliment?" Vangerdahast asked. Seeing no sense in allowing his foe more of a chance than necessary, he tipped the scepter out of sight. "Or have you decided to surrender?"
Again, Nalavara chuckled. "You are not that stupid. But you are dissatisfied. I could satisfy you."
"I trust your proposition is not a carnal one?"
"Hardly. You know what I have planned for Cormyr, so your dream of ruling that particular realm is impossible."
"I see you have been eavesdropping."
"More than you know, wizard." Nalavara's eye was replaced by a half open mouth filled with teeth as tall as men. "But there will be a realm left when I am through-a realm free of men but in need of a ruler nonetheless."
"How very generous of you," Vangerdahast said. "So you intend to give Cormyr to a bunch of goblins? No wonder Iliphar's ghost rose against you."
"The Grodd will defend the Wolf Woods!" Nalavara hissed. "They will not yield it to a band of murdering humans." Her voice grew calmer. "And you… you will be their ruler."
"I will?"
"If you give me the scepter."
"And if I don't think that's a very good idea?" Vangerdahast asked.
"Then destroy it yourself." The dragon lowered her eye, again blocking the passage. "It is all the same to me."
"All I need do is pick up the iron crown?"