Pools of Darkness - James M Brown [114]
A huge, scaly creature stood blocking his way. The beast was humanoid in shape, but bore the head of a lizard. The sickly green face hissed at them with a forked tongue as it swung a trident taller than Ren.
"Puny human, I am resistant to magic and weapons! I cannot be defeated in battle! Choose your fate-die fighting, or bow and serve me!" The creature stamped the butt of the trident on the cold floor.
Ren stopped short. He gripped his sword, hesitating, deciding his next move. Then a hot green streak blew past his ear. A blinding flash struck the lizard-creature, melting it into a puddle of smoking green ooze and scales. Evaine materialized behind Ren, grinning.
"The dumb beast thought you were alone. Monsters are like traveling peddlers, ranger-their talk is always better than their merchandise. C'mon. Let's keep going." The sorceress darted around the stunned warrior, sprinting down the stairs.
Completing another spiral, they met a second lizard-creature who spouted the same speech. Evaine yawned. Ren raised his sword, but as the beast finished its words, the monster hurtled over backward, smashing to the floor. Gamaliel materialized on top of the thrashing beast, his great jaws wrapped about its neck. A spurt of greenish black blood spewed forth, then the monster's writhing ceased.
Gamaliel looked up proudly and communicated to his mistress. I converted to a cat while the clod was babbling about his power. Pthew, this one tastes bad. The feline shook his head and turned down the stairs. A few steps down, the stair opened into an archway leading to a darkened chamber.
This is it, mistress, the cat told Evaine. The pool is right in the center. I can see its noxious glow.
Evaine reached into a pouch and drew out some brightly glowing coins. She blindly hurled them as hard as she could toward what she guessed were the four corners of the room. As the discs clinked to the floor, the chamber was filled with light. Ahead, in the dank stone cellar, lay the pool of darkness.
Evaine and Ren tiptoed forward. Gamaliel silently stalked up to the pool and hissed.
"It's the same shape as I remember," Ren noted, "that odd, jagged crescent. But ten years ago, it was filled with clear water. Yecch-I don't even want to know what that vile goop is."
Ren warily circled the crescent to examine it. The lights of the room revealed an oily, glistening fluid that seemed to recoil from the light. "See those little indentations around the rim? When I last saw the pool, it had magical ioun stones inlaid in those holes. Now, they're just filled with that same foul liquid." The ranger sighed as he thought of Shal, Tarl, and himself fighting dozens of battles to kill hundreds of monsters all over Phlan. He desperately wished his friends were with him now. He would have been happy just to know they were still alive.
Evaine was already unloading a backpack. "I need five uninterrupted minutes to weave my spell and destroy the pool. Make sure I'm not disturbed." She set out the magical brazier Miltiades had provided and held her breath as she lifted the cap. If the flame lit, it might hasten the spell and buy some time. For a few seconds, the brazier was still. Then a poof sounded, and the flame sprang forth. The sorceress arranged a half-dozen vials of strange liquids in front of her.
Before Ren could warn her that he might not be able to protect her during a lengthy spell, she was lost in concentration, kneeling before the viscous waters of the pool.
With little else to do, the ranger scanned the walls for possible hidden entrances. Gamaliel sniffed out the perimeter of the chamber, but neither found any hint of secret passages. Eventually Ren took up a post out of sight of the entry, clutching five of his throwing daggers. Gamaliel stood guard on the opposite side of the archway.
Evaine had been deep in concentration for nearly two minutes when the echo of running steps was heard on the stairs. Weapons and claws ready, Ren and Gamaliel were relieved to see Miltiades and Andoralson burst into the