Dragonspell - Donita K. Paul [123]
“It is hopeless, little Allerion. Hopeless.”
I stand under Wulder’s authority.
Metta caught up with them. Kale wondered how long the effect of the purple dragon’s song would keep the guard immobile.
Better to hurry and not waste time wondering.
Kale could feel in which direction the masses of Risto’s minions were gathered. She figured she could avoid pockets of concentration. She needed to go higher as quickly as possible to reach a tunnel leading outside. Her plan was to avoid meeting anyone and move upward at all times.
At the first corner she met a parade of people moving down the hall as if they all had a common gathering place in mind. Few of these citizens of the underground stronghold were soldiers. The smattering of high races among the bisonbeck women and tradesmen puzzled Kale. She watched for a moment or two before turning back into the tunnel she’d already traveled. She’d have to find another, less crowded passageway.
“You see, o’rant girl, not all your people are so stubborn. Some embrace the benefits of joining me in my efforts to make the world a more pleasant place to live, an easier place, a place where individuals struggle less.”
I stand under Wulder’s authority.
I won’t listen to Risto. If those people are so thrilled to follow him, why aren’t they smiling? Those poor people looked as mesmerized as the guards did when Metta sang to them.
Granny Noon said never to mindspeak with one of the evil ones. They get a foothold in your mind that way. I won’t listen to him.
I stand under Wulder’s authority. I stand under Wulder’s authority.
After several false starts, dodging people, backtracking, and hiding, Kale found herself trudging down a stone hallway with branches sprouting off every few yards. Small niches in the wall where boulders had crumbled and fallen into the corridor offered places to hide. Kale was ready to jump into one at any moment. The feeling of a great populace of bisonbecks nearby made her edgy.
Gymn and Metta flew for the most part instead of riding on her shoulders. Grateful for their vigilance in spotting trouble, Kale also longed for them to be constantly near.
“I walk beside you, dear o’rant girl.” Risto’s voice came rich and warm into her thoughts. “I am not in the habit of sending my friends into dangerous situations alone. I find it reprehensible that you must face these hardships without proper training, without comrades. Who prevented you from going to The Hall? Who allowed your friends to be hurt and captured?”
Before Kale could repeat the words that closed off Risto’s intrusion, Metta and Gymn darted back around the corner. Kale scrambled into one of the stone pockets in the wall behind fallen boulders and flattened herself on the floor. She knew as long as she was still, the cape would cloak the egg from sight.
Kale held her breath as the bisonbeck soldiers stopped a few feet from where she hid. She could see something of their movements between two rocks. Two argued vehemently over whether or not the men had time to go to the alehouse before evening duty. Three men, waiting for the arguing two to come to a decision, leaned their massive shoulders against the walls and rested. One man came and sat on the boulder shielding Kale and her friends.
Kale felt Gymn trembling within his pocket-den. Her own heart pounded. She clenched her fists, willing herself to stay still.
“You see the peril you are subjected to. If you were under my command, these men would be no threat to you.”
Leave me alone!
“But I don’t want to leave you alone. I care about what happens to you. Ask yourself, Kale Allerion, who is beside you in this time of trouble? Paladin? Wulder? No. I am. I offer help.”
Again Risto’s tone of voice, smooth and coaxing, slipped on the name Allerion. A bitter edge poisoned the sweet, persuasive speech.
Kale gasped. She had been listening to him. I stand under Wulder’s authority.
Just as she felt the heavy presence of Risto leave her mind, a strong hand grasped her shoulder and jerked her out of hiding.
“The o’rant girl!