Heirs of Prophecy - Lisa Smedman [118]
"Gods curse Maalthiir-and his wizard Drakkar!" Doriantha exclaimed. "That's why they're insisting all of the elf forces march toward Essembra. They hope we'll leave the rest of the forest unguarded."
Leifander's eyes had a thoughtful look. "Drakkar," he said slowly. "Maalthiir mentioned him."
"What did he say?" Rylith prompted.
"Something about the mist that caused the blight. He said Drakkar could dispel it."
"All of it?" Doriantha asked. "Impossible. It's spread throughout the forest, over an area of many miles."
Leifander shrugged. "Maalthiir made it sound as though Drakkar could dispel all of it at once with a wave of his hand."
It was Rylith who made the connection. "The poisonous mist," she said slowly. "It must be Drakkar's doing."
Leifander shook his head. "It's no mere spell," he said. "The mist came from wands-like the one I captured."
"Wands that must have been made by Drakkar," Rylith said, "and imbued with a spell that made their effects permanent." As she said the latter, she glanced at Larajin's foot, then away again.
"Drakkar is at the root of this war," Larajin said grimly. "He wormed his way into the Hulorn's confidence, and got him to persuade Sembia's Merchant Council to use the wands. He knew it would provoke the elves."
"I suspected as much," Rylith said, "but there's more. The choke creeper 'infestation' that prompted the use of the wands-it too was deliberate."
"You mean, someone planted the stuff?" Larajin asked.
She shuddered, remembering how the creeper had nearly strangled her.
As Rylith nodded, Leifander's eyes widened.
"The Sembians!" he exclaimed. "It must have been them. When I carried the druids' message to Thamalon Uskevren, in Selgaunt, I saw choke creeper sprouting in
his garden. I thought it was a weed he'd foolishly overlooked, but now I see the truth. He must be involved in all of this." His lips curved in a sneer. "It makes me feel dirty, to have this man's blood in my veins."
Larajin's cheeks flushed with anger as Leifander talked about Thamalon Uskevren-her father-like a common criminal, but it was Rylith who reprimanded him.
"Leifander! I will not have you speak this way. You are not thinking. The Sembians have nothing to gain from this war. It has cut off their trade with the cities of the north. You are wrong about your father. Thamalon Uskevren is a friend to the elves. The choke creeper was in his garden because he was trying to help us-he was trying to find a way to exterminate it without using the wands."
Leifander's mouth opened. "You knew this all along? Why didn't you tell me?"
"I wanted you to draw your own conclusions about your father," Rylith answered.
In the uncomfortable silence that followed, Leifander's face colored. He stared into the distance, then slowly nodded.
"You're right," he said at last. "I wasn't thinking. There is only one person who has anything to gain in all of this."
"Maalthiir," Doriantha spat. "All of the strands of the web lead back to him."
A brief silence followed, broken only by the sound of Goldheart's wings rustling as she worried a frayed feather with her teeth. Doriantha held up her dagger. Her eyes glittered as brightly as its polished steel.
T say we kill the spider," she said. "Maalthiir must die."
She started to rise, but Leifander caught her arm.
"Don't!" he exclaimed. "You'll only be playing into his hands. Make an attempt on his life, and he'll have an excuse to turn on us." He gestured in the direction of the Red Plumes's camp. "Maalthiir has already tricked us
into permitting hundreds of his soldiers to march into the heart of Cormanthor. He's hoping for a falling out- maybe not so soon as this, but eventually. If an incident doesn't occur on its own, he's planning to cause one."
Grudgingly, Doriantha sank back down again.
"Something has to be done," Ryhth added, "but Leifander is right, Doriantha. Even if you succeed in killing Maalthiir, it will not stop this war. It will only throw tinder on the flames and force us to fight on three fronts: