The Shattered Land_ The Dreaming Dark - Keith Baker [11]
“No, no … I’m sure it’s nothing. I’ll just go and check on him.”
Pierce released his flail and retrieved his book, a history of the kings of Galifar. If he’d been human, he would have shrugged. “As you wish.”
Lei sighed as she made her way up the stairs. She considered Pierce to be one of her closest friends, but somehow … things hadn’t been the same between them these past few months. When they’d first arrived in Sharn, Lei had been forced to fight Pierce and had almost destroyed him. She still had nightmares of that moment, of shredding his lifeforce with her touch; while he didn’t seem to harbor any ill will toward her, she still felt the guilt. There was something further—a dream she’d had in the wake of the battle. The memories were vague, but her parents had been there, with a handful of warforged—including Pierce. Was it a true vision of the past or pure delirium? The dream had left her with a strange sense of dread, of a terrible secret just out of reach. She knew she should ask Pierce about it, but somehow she couldn’t; it was as if the secret refused to be let loose.
Daine’s door was shut, and she rapped on it with her staff. “Daine?”
No answer.
She knocked again, louder. “Daine? Are you sleeping?”
She waited for the acerbic not now that would typically follow such a question, but she received only silence. Frowning, she tried the door. It was barred.
“Daine! Answer me!” She struck the door again. No response.
She closed her eyes and drew on the reserves of mystical energy bound within her green and gold jerkin. She visualized this power flowing into her right glove and quickly wove the glittering strands to form a charm of opening. Studying the door, she struck it with her hand; there was a brilliant flash and the door sprung open, the wooden bar clattering to the floor.
Daine was lying just inside the door, naked save for his breeches. The first thing Lei noticed was his awkward position; he’d fallen unexpectedly and hard. She dropped to her knees and put a hand on his back. His skin was still warm, and she could feel his breathing. She opened her mouth to call for Pierce, but then she saw the other body. Sprawled across the floor in the center of the room, this stranger was completely hidden beneath a dark hooded cloak. For a moment, Lei froze. She opened her mouth to call for Pierce—and a hand grasped her throat.
Lei had been trained in defense, but her eyes were on the intruder. The action was a blur; she was thrown off-balance, then an iron vise caught her neck and slammed her into the ground. A knee came down against her chest, driving the air from her lungs. As she struggled to draw breath, the face of her attacker came into focus: Daine, no sign of recognition in his wild eyes. She gasped, trying to speak, but she couldn’t form the words.
“Daine.” The voice was cool and clear, even over the sound of her beating heart. “Let it go. Come back from the darkness.”
There was a woman standing over Daine, a blurred phantom wrapped in the night. She placed a pale hand on the side of his head, and slowly the pressure eased on Lei’s neck. The madness faded from Daine’s eyes, and they focused on Lei’s face.
Recognition washed over him, and he leapt up, backing away from her. He gazed down at his hands, as if he didn’t know whom they belonged to. Lei drew a deep, ragged breath.
The stranger was standing over her, green eyes glittering in the darkness. She held out her hand. “Get up, Lei,” she said, holding out her hand. “I’m afraid this nightmare is just beginning.”
The darkness slammed into Daine like a wave of tar—thick and fluid, yet charged with a terrible chill. He was thrown back off his feet, and in that instant it was all around him. The physical pressure built with every passing second, but the mental agony was far worse. He could feel the shadows seeping into his mind, slowly sinking into his thoughts and melting them away. Emotion, will, all was dissolving in the cold. A few more moments