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not speak.
Bardon—
He abruptly looked away. “May we ask what your mission involved, Lady Allerion?”
Kale consciously took a deep breath. Bardon’s question had released the overwhelming
grip of fear that had squeezed her lungs.
“I gathered information, which I sent to Paladin, and I encouraged those few poor souls
who follow Paladin in secrecy in that region. Of course, I was imprisoned during my
entire service.”
Kale gasped. “Imprisoned?”
“Yes, a nasty place. But it was the most wonderful place to foil Cropper’s plans and, of
course, Risto’s.”
“I don’t understand,” said Regidor. “If you were in jail and could not move around the
country, how could you be of use?”
“All the information came to me. Right under Cropper’s nose. None of our underground
workers had to figure out where I was. I was always in the same place. Cropper’s soldiers
guarding the prison also were a fount of information. Don’t forget that I mindspeak.”
“Didn’t they realize you were a wizard?” asked Toopka.
Lyll laughed. “I told them I was Lyll Allerion, a great and powerful wizard, but then
when they asked me to do something to prove it, I…well, I just never did. So they
thought I was a bit loony. To them I was a meddlesome old lady who liked to visit all the
other prisoners.”
“But why did you have to stay there?” Sympathy crumpled Toopka’s face.
“Because, as wonderful as Paladin’s army is, they’re woefully inadequate in
communication. But then Risto’s forces have the same problem.”
“Why did you get out?” asked Toopka.
“Because Crim Cropper is brilliant, but not very focused. His wife, Burner Stox, is not
quite as smart, but more practical. The last time she visited the southern castle, she
noticed me. That was the end of my usefulness.”
“And the last job you had to do before you could be rescued?” Regidor tilted his head.
“Arrange for my replacement to be accepted by my network of contacts.”
A thought invaded Kale’s mind, and she tried to shake it off. She looked to her mother
and saw the woman watched her closely.
“Leetu Bends?” Kale whispered.
Lyll nodded.
Kale shivered. She rose to her feet and pulled the moonbeam cape closer.
“Ugh!” said Toopka. She pointed to the reeds growing at the edge of the pond. “I saw
something ugly in there.”
Everyone turned to look. The water on this side of the pond glinted black like a sheet of
rippled ebony. The water on the other side sparkled blue under the sun’s rays.
The entire pond was dark before, but not as black as it is here.
Metta, from the nearest bentleaf tree, called out a shrill warning. Gymn echoed the alarm.
Lyll rose from her seat. “Mordakleeps.”
Regidor shed his clerical robe and drew his sword. Kale and Bardon also unsheathed their
weapons. Lyll took two steps forward, twirling as she did. Her dress transformed into
formfitting leggings, tunic, and shirt. Oddly, these garments suited for fighting were still
the blushing pink color.
Kale stared at her mother. Lyll held out her arm as if ready to wield a sword, but her hand
held nothing.
Three creatures sprang out of the water. Black, huge, and menacing, they covered the few
feet of grassy bank in a bound.
“Cut off their tails,” shrieked Toopka as she dove over the back of the bench.
Regidor and Lyll each fought a monster. The third rushed at Bardon. Kale and Bardon
fell into a pattern of synchronized attack. Bardon attracted the mordakleep’s attention and
angled it around so that Kale could wield a savage blow to sever its tail. The huge body
dissolved into a puddle and disappeared into the ground.
Another monster loomed out of the pond. Kale ran to confront it. This time, she managed
to maneuver the creature so that Bardon had a clear swipe at its tail.
Regidor danced around his opponent. He flipped into the air, landed behind the monster,
and severed its tail. The mordakleep melted away.
With the stance of a fencer, Lyll approached a mordakleep intent on the o’rant woman’s
demise. The lack of a sword diminished her credibility as a warrior. Kale tensed, ready to
rush to her mother’s side.
Lyll leapt forward and swung her arm. A gash appeared on the mordakleep’s hand. Its
mouth opened in a soundless roar. Lyll skipped back and circled to the left. She plunged
the invisible sword into the monster’s side, then withdrew and circled to the left again.
The nightmarish creature turned with her, keeping its tail away from the swift and deadly
blade it could not see. Lyll twirled with blurring speed to the right. Her arm swept
downward over the snakelike tail. It fell away from the mordakleep’s body. Both the
deadly creature and its separated tail oozed into the earth.
Two more mordakleeps surged out of the watery reeds.
Kale and Bardon took on one, and by the same method of distraction, killed it. Lyll and
Regidor dispatched the other. The four warriors moved to form a group. For a moment
they stood alert and ready.
Toopka peeked out from behind the bench. “Are they gone?”
Lyll answered, “For now.” She took out a cloth from a small satchel attached to her belt
and made the motions of wiping a blade. It looked as though she laid the sword carefully
across her chest, cradled by the other arm. She whirled. When the blur became
recognizable again, she wore the dress she had donned that morning.
Regidor turned to look directly at Lyll and bowed with the same grace Dar often
displayed. “I admit I held some doubts as to Lady Allerion’s ability. I beg your pardon.”
She nodded graciously.
He paced to the edge of the pond and peered into the reeds. The sandy bottom showed
through the water now sparkling and clear. “Although we know the enemy is encroaching
upon this territory, with no bodies it will be difficult to convince our hosts that danger is
imminent.”
47
WAYFARERS
The companions returned to the tavern. Fenworth and Cam had taken over the kitchen
where they created elaborate culinary delights. Mistress Meiger muttered that she didn’t [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]