Elminster's Daughter - Ed Greenwood [103]
"I've seen enough," the Red Wizard murmured in Rauthur's ear, "and shall take my leave of you. Conduct me to where it's safe to depart."
Huldyl Rauthur nodded and led the way quickly back down the steps to the passage, and along it the way they'd come. Halfway along the corridor he paused beside a door and muttered, "Lord Starangh, within are some of the floating eyes and flying hands that I know how to attune and activate. Would you like to use them to, ah, see farther through the sanctum than we've walked, thus far?"
The Red Wizard smiled. "How thoughtful-but no, thank you. Not this time. You've been very helpful and useful, Rauthur-and I trust shall remain so." He clapped the War Wizard warmly on the shoulder and added, "For of course, to betray me is… to die."
With that last whispered word ringing in Huldyl Rauthur's ears, the War Wizard found himself suddenly alone, staring at-the empty passage.
Mother Mystra, he's gone right through the wards! The wards it took Vangerdahast days of fighting just to modify!
Huldyl Rauthur shivered all over, like a wet dog, swallowed with an effort, and hurried back to the garden room, to restore the silence shield.
So this is what true fear feels like-and everything up to now has been mere… apprehension.
Gods, deliver me.
Sixteen
A BUSY DAY FOR WAR WIZARDS
Then my spell burst among them, and-behold!-there were flamebroiled WarWizards all over the place.
Morthrym of Selgaunt
Sixty Summers of Spellhurling:
My Career As A Mighty Wizard
Year of the Turret
The forest rocked again, and a flaming branch toppled into the trail, bounced once, and rolled over. Malakar Surth strode up to it, smiling confidently, and looked down at a curved shard of war-helm that was slowly spinning to a halt.
"This," he said, hefting the next gewgaw and admiring its gleam, "is-transcendent. Simply transcendent."
"Easy, too," Aumun Bezrar agreed from right behind him. "That's over a dozen now, hey?"
Surth looked up at the leaf-hidden heavens. "Fourteen," he said icily. "No thanks to you."
"Hey, now, b'gads! I blasted five of 'em!"
"Could you have done it had I not shown you how to vanquish these… these enchanted suits of armor? Bah, don't bother to parley and cavil-we must go forward."
"Uh, aye. Forward." Bezrar frowned as he watched Surth stride on down the trail into what seemed to be even deeper, gloomier stands of trees. Shadowtops and duskwoods, as old as realms and as large as cottages, soaring up into unseen gloom with moss-cloaked vines hanging here and there like gigantic spiderwebs…
"Uh, Surth, uh, just one thing: why?"
The tall, thin dealer in scents, wines, cordials, and drugs froze for a moment then said without turning, "I know not. We'll find out when we get there."
He walked on, and Bezrar hastily shuffled after him, wheezing along for a goodly way before he stopped and asked, "Uh, Mai?"
Surth rounded on him with a snarl. "Don't call me that!"
"Uh… ah, aye, of course, Mai. I-just one more thing."
"What?" Surth snapped icily, hefting his shining oval device in his hand as if he meant to hurl it at his longtime partner.
Bezrar held up his own gewgaw. "Uh… ah.. what happens to us when we run out of these things?"
Malakar Surth opened his mouth angrily-but when he saw Bezrar's stare go fearful and rise up over his shoulder, he shut it again and wheeled around.
Three helmed horrors were floating in menacing unison through the trees ahead, converging on him. They bore huge battleaxes rather than swords this time, and they were holding them raised and ready to strike.
"Tymora and Mystra both, be with us now!" he snarled, and flung a gewgaw desperately. Malakar Surth didn't know what would happen to one of the shiny ovals if he ever missed with one of his throws-and as he saw more armored forms drifting out of the treegloom, he told both goddesses