Dragons of Winter Night - Margaret Weis [146]
The knight’s eyes studied Elistan curiously. Gunthar hardly knew what he had expected to see in a purported cleric of Paladine, perhaps a weak-eyed aesthetic, pale and lean from study. Gunthar was not prepared for this tall, well-built man who might have ridden to battle with the best of the knights. The ancient symbol of Paladine–a platinum medallion engraved with a dragon—hung about his neck.
Gunthar reviewed all he had heard from Sturm concerning Elistan, including the cleric’s intention to try and convince the elves to unite with the humans. Elistan smiled wearily, as if aware of every thought passing through Gunthar’s mind. They were the thoughts he answered.
“Yes, I have failed,” Elistan admitted. “It was all I could do to persuade them to attend the Council meeting, and they have come here only, I fear, to give you an ultimatum: return the orb to the elves or fight to retain it.”
Gunthar sank into a chair, gesturing weakly with his hand for the others to be seated. Before him, on a table, were spread maps of the lands of Ansalon, showing in shades of darkness, the insidious advance of the dragonarmies. Gunthar’s gaze rested on the maps, then suddenly he swept them to the floor.
“We might as well give up right now!” he snarled. “Send a message to the Dragon Highlords: ‘Don’t bother to come and wipe us out. We’re managing quite nicely on our own.’ ”
Angrily, he hurled on the table the message he had received. “There! That’s from Palanthas. The people have insisted the knights leave the city. The Palanthians are negotiating with the Dragon Highlords, and the presence of the knights ‘seriously compromises their position.’ They refuse to give us any aid. And so an army of a thousand Palanthians sits idle!”
“What is Lord Derek doing, my lord?” Michael asked.
“He and the knights and a thousand footmen, refugees from the occupied lands in Throtyl, are fortifying the High Clerist’s tower, south of Palanthas,” Gunthar said wearily. “It guards the only pass through the Vingaard Mountains. We’ll protect Palanthas for a time, but if the dragonarmies get through …” He fell silent. “Damn it,” he whispered, beating his fist gently upon the table, “we could hold that pass with two thousand men! The fools! And now this!” He waved his hand in the direction of the elven tents.
Gunthar sighed, letting his head fall into his hands. “Well, what do you counsel, cleric?”
Elistan was quiet for a moment, before he answered. “It is written in the Disks of Mishakal that evil, by its very nature, will always turn in upon itself. Thus it becomes self-defeating.” He laid his hand upon Gunthar’s shoulder. “I do not know what may come of this meeting. My gods have kept this secret from me. It could be they themselves do not know; that the future of the world stands in balance, and what we decide here will determine it. I do know this: Do not enter with defeat in your heart, for that will be the first victory of evil.”
So saying, Elistan rose and left the tent quietly.
Gunthar sat in silence after the cleric had gone. It seemed that the whole world was silent, in fact, he thought. The wind had died during the night. The storm clouds hung low and heavy, muffling sound so that even the clarion trumpet’s call marking day’s dawning seemed flat. A rustling broke his concentration. Michael was slowly gathering up the spilled maps.
Gunthar raised his head, rubbing his eyes.
“What do you think?”
“Of what? The elves?”
“That cleric,” Gunthar said, staring out the tent opening.
“Certainly not what I would have expected,” Michael answered, his gaze following Gunthar’s. “More like the stories we’ve heard of the clerics of old, the ones that guided the Knights in the days before the Cataclysm. He’s not much like these charlatans we’ve got now. Elistan is a man who would stand beside you on the field of battle, calling down Paladine’s blessing with one hand while wielding his mace with the other. He wears the medallion that none have seen since the gods abandoned us. But is he a true cleric?” Michael shrugged. “It will take a