Return of the Sorceress (15 page)

“You don’t need that lantern, you know.”

Elidor didn’t respond to Shiriki’s statement. Leather strips bound her hands and a rope was tied around her wrists for good measure. Elidor held the other end of the rope, his captor walking behind him as if she were some sort of trailing pet. They’d disarmed her, and Elidor wore her sword along with his own. Both elves hung back from the rest of the party. For one thing, being too close to the lantern light hurt their eyes. For another, Davyn wanted to keep the others out of Shiriki’s reach to discourage her from trying to attack them. Just because she had no weapons didn’t mean she still wasn’t dangerous.

Elidor got the job of guarding her because he was the only one whose reflexes were fast enough to match hers. Besides, Shiriki had said that she would only submit to a fellow Kagonesti. “Even if he is a half-breed,” she’d added.

“Our vision allows us to see in the darkness,” she continued. “I don’t understand why you permit yourself to be limited by the others’ weaknesses.”

“And I don’t see how you could ever work for scum like Bolthor.”

Shiriki shrugged, and even this simple movement was made graceful by her elf nature. Her lips formed an amused half-smile, and her eyes shone with wary intelligence mixed with mischief. Strange, but he hadn’t noticed how attractive she was until now. Perhaps that was because she’d been trying to kill him the last two times he’d seen her.

“Bolthor paid us,” Shiriki said. “It’s as simple as that.”

“That’s not a good reason, not for a Kagonesti. Money is an invention of the civilized world.”

“Which of course is why you’re a thief,” Shiriki said with a smile. “Because money means nothing to you.”

“How did you know I was a thief?”

Another shrug. “I guessed. You fight like one who is used to relying on stealth and speed instead of brute strength. Besides, what honest work is there for a half-breed such as yourself?”

Elidor’s jaw clenched at her use of the word
half-breed.
All elves found the idea of interbreeding between clans to be distasteful at best and obscene at worst. Only in human lands could Elidor ever be just an elf, instead of half Kagonesti and half Silvanesti.

“My ‘stealth and speed’ were enough to get the better of you in battle,” he said.

“You are not without some measure of skill, but do not delude yourself. If I hadn’t needed to go to my cousin’s aid, I would have defeated you in the end.”

Elidor glanced ahead to see how the others were doing. Surrounded by the gauzy halo of lantern light, they continued walking, Catriona and Davyn in the lead with Ayanti following, still carrying Sindri on her back. The kender was so exhausted from the enchantment that he’d worked that he could barely sit upright.

Elidor turned back to Shiriki. “Speaking of your cousin, you don’t appear particularly bothered by his demise.”

Shiriki’s lips twitched, but when she replied, her voice remained cool and even. “We both fought in what some have come to call the War of the Lance. As warriors, we accepted that death could come to use at any moment. I’m sure that Kuruk would’ve preferred to die on the battlefield rather than in a rockslide, but who among us has the luxury of choosing the exact time and method of our end?”

“I’m certain your cousin’s ghost is comforted by your detached philosophic view of his death,” Elidor said wryly.

“I am Kagonesti. To our people, death is as natural a part of existence as birth. If we do not fear the latter, why should we dread the former?” Her eyes narrowed. “Though you are but half Kagonesti, I am surprised you do not know this.”

“I spent only a short time with my father’s tribe. While he was … tolerant of me, the other members of his tribe were not. Eventually, in order to preserve the peace among his people, he asked me to leave.”

Shiriki snorted. “If you were truly Kagonesti within your heart, you would’ve fought for your blood-right to stay.”

“Perhaps.” Elidor fell quiet for a time as he contemplated unpleasant memories. Eventually, he looked at Shiriki once more. “You said that you and your cousin fought in the War of the Lance. I take it from your association with Bolthor—not to mention your less-than-sunny disposition—that you didn’t battle for the Light.”

“I serve Takhisis, the Dark Queen.”

Elidor had guessed as much, yet it was still a shock to hear her admit it. Even more shocking was the pride in her voice.

“Whatever on Krynn for? I may not be an expert on the ways of the Kagonesti, but I know they revere life and strive to live in harmony with the natural world. Why would one of—” He’d been about to say “our people” but he caught himself. “Why would you ever serve the Dark Queen?”

When Shiriki answered, her tone was defiant. “Because the Dark is just as much a part of the natural world as the Light. Because Paladine and the other so-called gods of Good are intent on controlling our world and forcing us to live by their laws. Takhisis wishes only for us to have the freedom to choose how we shall live. ‘Do as you will’ is the whole of her law. What could be more natural than that?”

“What if what
your
will is to kill me? Is it not evil to deprive one of life for no reason?”

“What if
your
will is to steal something that belongs to
me?”
she countered. “A lesser evil than murder, I grant you, but still an evil nonetheless, no?”

Elidor was confused and more than a little ashamed, though he wasn’t certain why. He was saved from having to come up with a reply to Shiriki’s point when Davyn held up a hand and said, “Hold, everyone.”

Davyn glanced back over his shoulder. “Elidor, come join us. And bring our prisoner, too.”

The others parted to make room for Elidor. When he stepped to the front, he saw that they had come to a chasm thirty feet across. He peered down into complete darkness. Who knew how many feet it was to the bottom? The tunnel resumed on the other side of the cavern, but the entrance was blocked by rubble.

“Did we cause this?” Ayanti asked as she gazed upon the chasm.

We? Elidor thought. You mean Sindri, don’t you? He glanced at the kender. Sindri sat upon the centaur’s back, his hands around her human torso to help steady him. He looked bleary-eyed. Elidor wished they could take the time to allow Sindri to rest and recover, but they couldn’t. Nearra needed them.

“This looks old,” Davyn said. “My guess is it was created by the Cataclysm. That’s one of the reasons why Maddoc has had such a hard time exploring the tunnel system. Too many of the passages were damaged or destroyed during the Cataclysm. Others are blocked, sealed off by wardspells placed by Asvoria. Maddoc has been able to nullify some of her spells, but most have proven too strong and complex for him.”

“I never thought I’d say this, but good for Asvoria,” Catriona muttered.

“So what do we do now?” Elidor asked.

“We saw no side tunnels along the way,” Davyn said.

“And we can’t go back to where we started,” Catriona added.

Sindri spoke for the first time since they’d started traveling through the tunnel. “I’m still too weary to attempt to move those rocks on the other side, let alone levitate anyone over.” The kender slumped against Ayanti’s back.

“I might be able to jump that far if I got a running start.” Ayanti eyed the chasm more carefully. “But even if I did, I’d still have to find a way to deal with all those rocks blocking the tunnel entrance.”

Elidor looked at his companions. He had the sense that they were trying to tell him something, but he wasn’t sure what.

“Oh, for oblivion’s sake!” Shiriki said. “You can’t possibly be that dense! You’re an elf, stronger and more agile than any of them. They’re hinting that they want you to climb down into the chasm and see if there’s another tunnel farther down below. They’re reluctant to ask you straight out because they’re your friends and they know it could be dangerous.”

“I hate to admit it,” Davyn said, a sheepish look on his face, “but she’s right. If these tunnels are artificial—and Maddoc believes they are—then perhaps they line up. If so, there might be another tunnel below us, one that’s not blocked by rubble.”

Elidor didn’t relish the notion of climbing into the darkness. Even with his elf eyesight, he couldn’t see very far down. He looked at Shiriki. She had a mocking grin on her face.

“Afraid?” she asked.

Elidor knew better than to do something because of what someone else—even a very beautiful someone else—might think of him. Especially when that someone would slit his throat in an instant if the opportunity presented itself.

Nevertheless he handed the other end of the rope that bound Shiriki to Davyn.

“Watch her closely,” he said, though he knew he didn’t have to.

“Let me get a safety line for you,” Catriona said. She slipped off her pack and began rummaging around in it, but Elidor saw the derision in Shiriki’s eyes.

“My thanks, but I won’t need it,” he said. “It would only get in my way.”

Catriona frowned. “I really think—”

“I’m an elf,” Elidor said. He hoped that would prove enough to forestall further argument.

It did. Catriona nodded and slipped her pack back on again, though she didn’t look at all happy about it.

“I’ll be back shortly,” Elidor said. I hope, he added mentally. Then he knelt at the chasm’s edge, swung his feet over, and began his downward climb.

    E
lidor was glad to discover that the surface of the rock wall was hard. He wouldn’t have to worry about chunks falling off as he climbed. But on the other hand, the same hardness had kept the surface relatively smooth, and there were few hand and footholds to choose from.

Elidor took his time, gingerly testing each depression in the rock before putting his full weight on it. In this fashion, he slowly descended the chasm wall, feeling like a blond-haired spider with pointed ears.

If only Mother could see me now, he thought. Hanging here in the darkness, trying to find an underground passage into the keep of an evil wizard. She’d disown me all over again.

His mother was a Silvanesti elf. The Silvanesti tended to be conservative and traditional. Seeing her son behaving like a common adventurer would’ve dismayed her to no end.

And his father, he would’ve berated Elidor for taking such a foolish risk just on the chance there might be another tunnel opening close by. But inwardly he’d be proud of his son for rising to the challenge.

But more than mere distance prevented his father from being here. He had fought with the armies of Light during the War of the Lance, and he had paid for helping preserve Krynn’s freedom with his life.

Elidor’s left foot slipped and he nearly fell. He cursed himself for allowing his thoughts to distract him. After all the dangers he had faced since joining Nearra and the others, it would be a cruel irony if he died as the result of simple carelessness.

He couldn’t believe he’d been stupid enough to forego using a safety line
and
that he’d done so solely to win Shiriki’s approval. The woman was evil, and she’d kill them all if she could. But then again, even though he knew it was impossible to win Shiriki’s respect, let alone desirable, he hadn’t been able to keep himself from trying.

Elidor felt around with his left foot, but he couldn’t find any purchase, just empty space. A thrill of excitement ran through him. Perhaps he’d found another tunnel entrance! Then again, perhaps the chasm wall merely curved inward. He climbed down far enough to confirm that it was an opening, and one large enough for them all to fit through, including Ayanti. Still, just because there was an opening didn’t mean the tunnel was intact.

He climbed into the tunnel and followed it for several dozen yards. The tunnel showed no signs of blockage, and structurally it seemed sturdy enough. It appeared to curve around to the right and angle downward. Elidor didn’t know if this tunnel would eventually take them in the direction of Cairngorn Keep, but they would have to give it a try.

Of course, with our luck, the tunnel will probably take us straight down to a nest of demons, or something equally as nasty.

Elidor turned around and headed back to the mouth of the tunnel so he could tell the others what he had discovered. He decided it might be better not to mention the nest of demons, though.