Song of the Saurials - Kate Novak [44]
"Unless Grypht took her along with Nameless," Breck suggested.
"Kyre didn't mention seeing a halfling," Mourngrym pointed out.
"A halfling could easily hide behind such a beast," Breck replied, "Kyre might have missed seeing her in the excitement of the moment."
"Or perhaps Kyre mistook Olive for an imp," Alias said with a hint of sarcasm.
Breck glowered at the swordswoman. "Grypht was a denizen of the Nine Hells," the ranger growled. "It had horns and scales and claws and a tail."
"I think," Morala interjected calmly, "that whatever Grypht is, it is not as important as where it took Nameless."
"If your grace will excuse me," Mourngrym said, "I'm going to have a second look at Nameless's cell. Alias, do you want to come along to see how Akabar is doing?"
Alias glanced anxiously at Morala.
As if she could read the swordswoman's mind, the priestess said, "I think Alias should stay here to keep me company until I recover sufficient strength to scry for Nameless. Breck, why don't you accompany Lord Mourngrym? Maybe the halfling left some tracks you could follow or something."
Breck sensed Morala was dismissing him, but he shrugged indifferently. Searching for a halfling would be far more interesting than watching the old priestess fuss and chant over a bowl of water.
The ranger and the guard, Shend, followed Lord Mourngrym out of the courtroom.
When the two of them were alone together in the room, Morala motioned for the swordswoman to have a seat near her.
As Alias pulled out a chair from behind the table, the priestess sat with her eyes closed, absentmindedly humming an A-minor scale, at the same time brushing her fingertips along the golden embroidery of her robe. Alias noticed specks of gold flaking from the robe. Suddenly Morala started visibly and snapped her eyes open, as if she'd been napping. Alias wondered if perhaps the ancient priestess's wits weren't beginning to flake away like the embroidered decorations on her ceremonial robe.
"How much longer until you're rested enough to scry again?" Alias asked the priestess.
"Not long," Morala replied, smiling at the swordswoman's impatience. "Perhaps, in the meantime, you could tell me if you know anything about these disappearances."
Alias stiffened. "You think this was a plan of mine to rescue Nameless, don't you?" the swordswoman asked, unable to keep the anger from creeping into her tone.
"No… not really. I've been told you are a good woman. However, we must investigate every possibility before we can rule it out," Morala replied calmly.
"So tell me, child, did you have anything to do with Elminster's or Nameless's disappearance?"
"No, I didn't," Alias answered hotly. "If I had wanted to free Nameless, I certainly wouldn't have involved Elminster, and I wouldn't have needed help from some wizard or whatever this Grypht is. And I wouldn't admit it to you, anyway."
"Yes… I can believe that," Morala said with a chuckle. "But then, I've cast a detect lie spell on you."
Alias's eyes narrowed angrily. She was unaccustomed to having her word questioned, let alone magically analyzed. She was even more annoyed that she hadn't caught on to Morala's spell. The old priestess hadn't been drifting off to sleep after all; she'd been concentrating on her spell. "I should have realized. Milil is the lord of all songs. Music is a language, too. That humming was actually your spell chant, wasn't it?" the swords-woman asked.
Morala nodded. "Nameless taught you well," she said. For a few moments, she studied Alias's face. "You may look like Cassana, but there is nothing of her in you," she said.
"Did you know Cassana personally," Alias asked, "or are you merely comparing me to the character in the opera about her and her lich lover Zrie Prakis?"
Morala chuckled. "I knew her. I wrote that opera."
Alias's eyes widened. "You did? I… I didn't know. I've never heard it sung.
Elminster told me about it. Why did you ever want to write an opera about Cassana?"
"At the time, Cassana's evil was a danger to