Song of the Saurials - Kate Novak [54]
The bard groaned softly.
That might be the most reaction I get out of him, the halfling thought. Quickly she turned his head sideways, unstoppered the potion, and poured it past his lips. "Swallow," she ordered. To her great relief, he did.
After a few moments. Finder stirred, then croaked, "What?"
"Finder, come on!" Olive implored.
The bard shook himself and wriggled forward slowly. Olive backed away, tugging on his tunic encouragingly. Finally they both reached the other side and rolled down the pile of rubble.
Olive could hear the orcs arguing among themselves in some unintelligible tongue. Then the grate rattled loudly.
"I'll light a torch," Olive said. "It'll just take a mo-"
"We don't need one," Finder muttered.
Olive felt the bard take her right hand in his left. With his poisoned right hand, he felt along the wall, leading her through the maze of passages. She could sense he was limping.
The next cave-in was easier to crawl through, but it took Finder several minutes to negotiate it. Olive put her hand on his back after he'd managed to pull himself through. His shirt and tunic were drenched with perspiration.
"Do you want to rest for a minute?" she asked.
"No," the bard growled. "Keep going."
By the time they reached the cave-in below the stairs. Finder's breathing was strained and shallow, and his skin was cold and clammy. Olive wasn't sure he'd make it up the slope of the tunnel they'd dug. When she finally crawled out into the shaft of sunlight pouring down the stairway. Olive was exhausted, but perhaps the knowledge that it was the last stretch gave the bard more strength.
He clambered through the tunnel and, with a great beastlike roar, tore up the stairs, passing the startled halfling.
Olive muttered as she was forced to use her hands to help her scrabble up the steep steps. Once she'd reached the top, she slammed the stairway door closed and threw the dead bolt. Her companion had a key to lock it as well, but he was in no condition to use it.
Finder lay on the stone floor of his ruined manor house, silent and motionless.
Olive bent over the bard and shook him gently, whispering his name. The bard didn't answer. He had a bolt in the back of his right shoulder and another in his left thigh. He was either very lucky, or the orcs were lousy shots, Olive thought. Very gently she eased the weapons from his flesh. Blood seeped from the wounds, but at least it didn't gush out profusely. The wounds weren't serious enough to have made him pass out.
It's still the damned poison from the damned needle trap. Olive thought. The potion she'd given him wasn't strong enough to counteract the poison. All she'd accomplished by pouring it in him was to prolong his dying for a few hours.
8
Grypht
As Alias was leading Dragonbait and Zhara from the Harpers' courtroom to Nameless's former cell, Dragonbait halted suddenly and sniffed the air. No doubt, the swordswoman realized, the saurial can smell Grypht. She turned around and explained to him. "Something teleported into the tower-some creature, probably a wizard-and kidnapped Elminster and Nameless, maybe Olive, too"
Dragonbait shook his head as if confused, and his tail twitched with nervous excitement. Alias didn't notice. Her attention was attracted to the sound of thumping coming from the corridor that led to Nameless's cell. She hurried through the passages, anxious to see what was going on.
Lord Mourngrym and Breck stood outside the door to Nameless's cell. Breck was hacking furiously at the door with a battle-axe, but for all the ranger's strength and the weapon's sharpness, the door wouldn't give.
Alias heard Lord Mourngrym say, "It's