I looked at the girl. She shrugged and backed away.
It looked like I was going to have to fight all of them. Me and the dragon. Terrific.
I remembered my skinning knife. It wasn't much, but it was all I had. As casually as I could, I reached behind me and tugged at my shirt, trying to pull it up so I could get at the knife. The knife promptly fell down inside my pants.
The wrecking crew started forward.
Chapter Twenty:
"With the proper consideration in choice of allies, victory may be guaranteed in any conflict."
-B. ARNOLD
"GET'em, Gleep!" I barked.
The dragon bounded into action, a move which I think surprised me more than it did my assailants.
It leaped between me and the advancing rat pack and crouched there, hissing menacingly. His tail gave a mighty lash which neatly swept the legs out from under two of the flanking members of the party. Somehow, he seemed much bigger when he was mad.
"Watch out! He's got a dragon!" the leader called.
"Thanks for the warning!" one of the fallen men growled, struggling to regain his feet.
"I've got him!" came a voice from my left.
I turned just in time to see a foot-long dagger flashing through the air at the dragon's neck. My dragon!
Suddenly I was back at the practice sessions. My mind darted out and grabbed at the knife. It jerked to a halt in midair and hovered there.
"Nice move, handsome!" the girl called.
"Hey! The shrimp's a magician!"
The pack fell back a few steps.
"That's right!" I barked. "Skeeve's the name, magik's the game. What kind of clod did you think you were dealing with?"
With that, I brought the dagger down, swooping it back and forth through their formation. I was mad now. One of these louts had tried to kill my dragon!
"A dozen of you isn't enough!" I shouted. "Go back and get some friends... if you have any!"
I cast about desperately for something else to throw. My eyes fell on the dung heap. I smiled to myself despite my anger. Why not?
In a moment I had great gobs of dung hurtling through the air at my assailants. My accuracy wasn't the best, but it was good enough as the outraged howls testified.
"Levitation!" the leader bawled. "Quanto! Stop him!"
"Right, boss!"
One of the plug-uglies waved in affirmation and started rummaging through his belt pouch.
He had made a mistake identifying himself. I didn't know what he was about to come up with, but I was sure I didn't want to wait and find out.
"Stop him, Gleep!" I ordered, pointing to the victim.
The dragon raised his head and fixed his gaze on the fumbling brigand. With a sound that might have been a roar if he were older, he shot a stream of flame and charged.
It wasn't much of a stream of flame, and it missed to boot, but it was enough to get the brigand's attention. He looked up to see a mountain of dragon flesh bearing down on him and panicked. Without pausing to call to his comrades, he spun and ran off screaming with the dragon in hot pursuit.
"Okay, shrimp! Let's see you stop this!"
I jerked my attention back to the leader. He was standing now, confidently holding aloft a stick. Yesterday it wouldn't have fazed me, but knowing what I did now, I froze. I didn't know what model it was, but apparently the leader was confident its powers would surpass my own.
He grinned evilly and slowly began to level the stick at me.
I tried desperately to think of a defense, but couldn't. I didn't even know what I was supposed to be defending against!
Suddenly, something flashed across my line of vision and the stick was gone.
I blinked and looked again. The stick was lying on the ground, split by a throwing knife, a black-handled throwing knife.
"Any trouble here, Master Skeeve?" a voice boomed.
I spun toward the source of the voice. Aahz was standing there, cocked crossbow leveled at the pack. He was grinning broadly, which I have mentioned before is not that comforting to anyone who doesn't know him.
"A Pervert!" the leader gasped.
"What?" Aahz swung the crossbow toward him.
"I mean a Pervect!" the leader amended hastily.
"That's better. How about it, Skeeve? You want 'em dead or running?"
I looked at the rat pack. Without breaking their frozen tableau, they pleaded with me with their eyes.
"Um... running, I think," I said thoughtfully. "They smell bad enough alive. Dead they might give the Bazaar a bad name."
"You heard him," Aahz growled. "Move!"
They disappeared like they had melted into the ground.
"Aahz!"
The girl came flying forward to throw her arms around him.
"Tanda!" Aahz exclaimed, lowering the crossbow. "Are you mixed up with that pack?"
"Are you kidding? I'm the bait!" she winked bawdily.
"Little low class for you, isn't it?"
"Aah ... it's a living."
"Why'd you leave the Assassins?"
"Got tired of paying union dues."
"Um ... harrumph...." I interrupted.
"Hmm?" Aahz looked around. "Oh! Sorry, kid. Say, have you two met?''
"Sort of," the girl acknowledged. "We... say, is this the friend you were looking for, handsome?"
"Handsome?" Aahz wrinkled his nose.
"Well, yes," I admitted. "We got separated back by the...."
"Handsome?" Aahz repeated.
"Oh, hush!" the girl commanded, slapping his stomach playfully. "I like him. He's got style."
"Actually, I don't believe we've met formally," I said, giving my most winning smile. "My name is Skeeve."
"Well, la-de-dah!" Aahz grumbled.
"Ignore him. I'm Tananda, but call me Tanda."
"Love to," I leered.
"If you two are quite through... ." Aahz interrupted, "I have a couple questions...."
"Gleep!" said the dragon, prancing up to our assemblage.
"What's that?" Aahz demanded.
"It's a dragon," I said helpfully.
Tanda giggled rudely.
"I know that," Aahz barked. "I mean what is he doing here?"
Suddenly I was hesitant to supply the whole story.
"There are lots of dragons at the Bazaar, Aahz," I mumbled, not looking at him. "In fact, there's a stall just down the way that...."
"What is that dragon doing here?!"
"Gleep!" said the dragon, rubbing his head against my chest.
"Um ... he's mine," I admitted.
"Yours?" Aahz bellowed. "I told you to look at the dragons, not buy one!"
"But Aahz...."
"What are we going to do with a dragon?"
"I got a good deal on him," I chimed hopefully.
"What did you say. kid?"
"I said I got a good deal...."
"From a Deveel?"
"Oh. I see what you mean."
"C'mon. Let's have it. What were the terms of this fantastic deal?"
"Well... I... that is...."
"Out with it!"
"I traded Quigley's pendant for him."
"Quigley's pendant? The one that sees through spells? You traded a good magical pendant for a half-grown dragon?"
"Oh, give him a break, Aahz," Tanda interrupted. "What do you expect letting him wander off alone that way? You're lucky he didn't get stuck with half the tourist crud on Deva! Where were you all this time, anyway?"
"Well... I was... urn...."
"Don't tell me," she said, holding up a hand. "If I know you, you were either chasing a girl or stuffing your face, right?"
"She's got you there, Aahz," I commented.
"Shut up, kid."
"... so don't get down on Skeeve here. Compared to what could have happened to him, he didn't do half bad. How did you find us, anyway?"
"I listened for the sounds of a fight and followed it," Aahz admitted.