Masquerades - Kate Novak [16]
Mintassan stroked the tiny skull almost reverently. "My own," he declared, but a moment later he looked just a little doubtful, "I think," he amended. The sage picked up the tanar'ri head, looked around with a frown for another empty flat space, and finally set the grisly trophy in an empty crate labeled, "Spell keys and other darks." From Finder, who had traveled in other planes, Alias knew those were planar slang for magic components and mysteries.
"Please, have a seat," the sage said as he pushed all the remaining junk on the table to one side. "Excuse me while I get the tea things together." He disappeared into a side alcove, leaving Alias and Dragonbait alone with Jamal.
"Planar travel has scrambled his wits, but he's really sweet and harmless," Jamal said matter-of-factly. There were eight completely mismatched chairs set about the table. The actress flopped into an overstuffed chair of worn and tattered brocade and put her feet up on a rocker of woven cane.
Alias settled into a wooden chair with a wolf skull mounted atop its straight, high back. Dragonbait's choice was limited by his massive tail, so he perched on a three-legged stool carved from ruby quartz.
From the alcove came the sound of rattling pots, the squeak of a hand pump, and a magical cantrip, followed by the whooshof an enchanted flame igniting. Mintassan was singing a bawdy version of "Lie Down, Ye Ladies" in a passable baritone.
An uneasy silence had settled over the occupants at the table. Jamal watched Alias with the attention of a fox watching a wolf. Alias held her smile until it felt like a brittle, dried leaf.
Jamal tilted her head from side to side, studying Alias. Finally, she said, "I remember you now."
Alias felt her chest tighten. "You do?"
"According to Ruskettle's tale, you're the one who popped in over Westgate with the mad god Moander, chased by your friends, riding a red dragon."
Alias felt her heartbeat slow to its normal rhythm.
"I saw that battle," Jamal declared. "Moander puffed up like an overproofed loaf of bread. The dragon spat flame at it. Boooom! Fried dragon and chunks of rotting god rained on the city. Took out a piece of the city wall, the Dhostar warehouses, and a lot of the northwestern slums."
Alias felt the heat return to her face. "It was an accident. If there was something we could have done to avoid damaging your fair city, we would have. Cassana and her crew jumped us right afterward, and after we killed Cassana, we ended up in another plane, so we never got a chance to apologize."
Jamal laughed raucously. "Apologize? Whatever for? That crash shook out this town like a dirty rug. The town's merchant nobles thought a new Flight of Dragons had arrived! There was total chaos while they all tried to save themselves and, of course, their merchandise. All of them had egg on their faces when the furor died down, especially Ssentar Urdo. Family Urdo called in a marker with some old Thayan necromancer to protect its docks. The necromancer was inebriated at the time, centered his spell too low, and teleported a squad of skeletons into the dock itself. Little rib cages and arms and skulls waving around, trying to pull the rest of their bodies through the wood. Mintassan collected a specimen as I recall. He really wanted the dragon's skull, but someone else snatched it up before he reached the scene of the crash. He was so disappointed."
Alias shuddered to think what someone in Westgate would want with the skull of the dragon Mist. While the ancient wyrm had been an ally at the time of her fiery demise, the beast had hated Alias. The swordswoman would have preferred to hear Mist's remains had been laid to rest in their entirety.
"Kids were playing Dragons and Warriors' in the streets for weeks afterward," Jamal continued, "and everyone talked about what cowardly leeches the merchant nobles were when push came to shove."