The Dream Spheres - Elaine Cunningham [143]
Before an answer came, the ghostly elf faded away. Arilyn finished the battle and sprinted to Elaith's side.
"Any way out of here?"
The return to practicalities steadied him. Elaith used the points of his daggers to prod people out of the way. The two elves made their way to a back room. He threw aside a small carpet and opened the trap door hidden below.
They dropped into the opening and fled in silence through the tunnels. When finally they stopped for breath, Arilyn got right to the point.
"What do you have to do with these dream spheres?"
Perhaps it was the appearance of Thassitalia, perhaps the sight of a moonblade raised in his defense. "I have them," he said frankly, for he suspected that there was little she did not know. "When presented with the opportunity, I took it. In a way, this is self defense: I am using them to set my enemies against each other."
"Do you realize the implications of what you have done?"
"Things may have gotten out of hand." The elf felt more vulnerable and open than he had for many years, and he described some of the truly ugly dreams that had recently been coming through the magical spheres. "I can't begin to fathom where some of them are coming from."
Arilyn thought this over. A suspicion that she could not entirely grasp came to her. "Let me see the Mhaorkiira."
When the elf hesitated, she drew her sword and threw it aside, following it with the knife in her boot and the hunting knife in her belt. "I am unarmed," she said. "You can easily take it back."
"That was not my concern," Elaith said.
"I know what your concern is," she snapped. "A moment's contact won't corrupt me, even if I'm wrong."
The elf's face was deeply puzzled, but he produced the ruby from a pocket of his jacket and handed it to her.
Arilyn studied the stone, turning it over carefully and running her fingers over the glittering facets. It was a beautiful thing, deep red and perfectly cut. Magic vibrated through it-even she could sense that. All the same, she was certain that this was not the dark stone of legend.
"How much did you pay for this?" she asked.
Elaith looked startled. "Six hundred gold. Why?"
"That's a lot for a piece of crystal."
The elf looked as if he wasn't sure whether to be puzzled or outraged. "Explain," he requested coolly.
"You're still alive," the half-elf said with a faint, cold smile. "You know what I am-what I have been. There is enough anger in me to give the Mhaorkiira a foothold. I wouldn't need much of an excuse to kill you.
"More importantly, Dan is still alive. You even came to his aid. I doubt you would have done that if you were under the influence of the rogue stone."
His answering smile was bitter. "You do not know the entire legend, Princess. If there is a seed of evil, the rogue stone will make it grow, but creatures beyond redemption can handle it with impunity. I am still clear of mind and will, quite capable of making decisions that suit my whim. What does that say of me?"
Arilyn had never seen such emptiness in living eyes, or such despair. If anything, that only convinced her she was right.
"It is a counterfeit," she persisted. "Take me to the fence you bought it from and I'll prove it."
The elf conceded and led the way to a shop in Castle Ward. Arilyn stalked up to the one-eyed man and placed the stone on his table. "You sold this gem."
The man's gaze flicked from Elaith's face to Arilyn's as if seeking permission to speak. The elf nodded. "That is so," the fence said. "Why?"
"It's a fake. A crystal."
He drew himself up, outraged. "I know precious stones. That is a ruby. I stake my life on it."
"A bad choice of words, considering the company," Elaith said pleasantly. "Convince me."
The fence took up