Son of Khyber_ Thorn of Breland - Keith Baker [89]
Drego shrugged. “Tell that to the pit of fire.”
Thorn had been studying the molten lake. “How solid is that crust? Could we walk across it?”
Drego shook his head. “The crust might not crack immediately, but it would never support all of our weight. It hardly matters, though. The heat is more than our shields could take. Even if you didn’t end up in the molten lava, you’d still sear the flesh from your bones.”
“It couldn’t support all three of us …” Thorn said. “But just one of us might have a chance.”
“You’re not listening,” Drego said. “The heat—”
Thorn raised a hand, and Drego fell silent. Her thoughts were racing. “Daine. You have the bag of holding?”
He nodded, but he wasn’t smiling. “It’s not a safe form of transport. There’s a limited supply of oxygen and no means to open the bag from within.”
“Which means I’d better move quickly.”
“Wait,” Drego said. “You want us to climb inside the bag and then run across the firepit while carrying us?”
Thorn grinned. “Exactly.”
“I’d always heard Brelish were mad, but—”
“She’s right.” Daine threw the bag to Thorn. Once again, there was something in his eyes—an emotion she couldn’t quite read. “I believe in you. You’ll make it across. Just keep moving. Don’t stop for any reason.”
Thorn nodded and glanced at Drego. He sighed. “Well, at least as I’m suffocating I can tell myself ‘it could be worse—you could be burning to death.’”
“I’m glad I have your confidence,” Thorn said. She spread the mouth of the magical sack as wide as it would go. “Climb inside.”
Daine disappeared into the bag without a moment’s hesitation. Drego paused. “Whatever you do, just keep moving. Don’t stop for any reason. Just keep moving forward.” To her surprise, he actually smiled. “See you on the other side.”
Moments later, she threw the sack over her shoulder and readied for the run. Even with both of the men inside it, the bag only weighed about twenty pounds … but the thought of that extra weight on her back didn’t help her confidence. She studied the cracked surface ahead, searching out the most solid-looking path, and breathed deeply through her nose.
And she ran.
The stone shifted as soon as she set her weight upon it, cracks spreading from the point of impact. But Drego was right—as the crust collapsed, Thorn was already moving forward. It was a sickening, disorienting experience, with the rock splitting and sliding below her, shattering stone revealing the molten lava below.
She could see the passage now, another tube on the far wall, coming close with every step.
Almost there …
Then the stone split beneath her feet. She struggled to find footing, something to push against, but it was too late; her legs were already sliding into the lava below.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
The Depths
Lharvion 22, 999 YK
Thorn refused to panic. As her feet slid into the molten stone, she swung the heavy bag forward. The weight and momentum pulled her flat against the stone ahead, and mercifully, the impact didn’t shatter it. She drew Steel with her free hand and slammed the blade through the porous crust. This time, the surge of inhuman strength answered her call, and using Steel as a piton, Thorn pulled herself forward, dragging her legs out of the lava. She was ready to crawl forward, but she found that she could still stand, that there was still strength in her legs. She loped forward, barely thinking as she crossed the last few yards to safety. As soon as she was safely in the tunnel, Thorn collapsed to the ground, waiting for the agony to come.
But it didn’t.
Thorn was amazed that she’d even been able to walk. Her clothes were smoldering from where she’d fallen against the crust. She assumed that the intense heat had burned away the nerves, and she had to force herself to look down at her legs. What she saw was a shock. Her boots and the lower legs of her pants were tattered and burnt, almost completely destroyed. But the skin below was completely untouched. She could feel the rough stone of the tunnel beneath her feet.