Darrow halted suddenly, crouching and sniffing. "Smell that?"
"They're coming," said Tal. Feena already had her hands on him, casting a spell that made his skin prickle all over.
"Wait," she said. "One more, for each of us."
She intoned another spell, reaching out to touch Tal and Chaney on the face before pressing a hand against her own cheek. Tal felt a cool, slippery sensation. No, it was more like a thought than a physical feeling.
"What does that do?"
"If we're lucky," said Feena, "it will hide us from these spawn Darrow described."
"What about him?" said Chaney, jerking a thumb toward Darrow.
"What about him?" said Feena coldly.
"Hurry," said Darrow, hastening toward the Grand Promenade. Tal followed, with Chaney and Feena trailing behind.
The Promenade looked empty at first glance. Tal had never seen a room more beautiful nor more bizarre. The illuminated stream cast rippling shadows on the walls and ceiling, and Tal followed Darrow's example by casting his eyes up there for any sight of Lord Malveen's minions.
"How many are there?" asked Tal.
"At least two," said Darrow, running past the inner fountains. "Maybe more. Hurry, the gallery is on the other side."
Tal waited long enough for Chaney and Feena to catch up with him, then followed. All four had just rounded the grand pool when Tal spotted a black figure running spider-like across the wall.
"There!" he pointed. The thing scuttled away into the shadows, but then several things happened at once.
A dark, wet figure fell onto Tal from above. Even as he heard Chaney's shout of warning, a tremendous thunderclap exploded around Tal's head. All the prickling of his skin turned to hot needles wherever the thing touched his body, and a flash of light blinded him completely for a second. Tal heard his attacker fall to the marble floor nearby and moved in to strike as his vision returned.
Blinking away the stars in his eyes, Tal saw the stunned monster writhing on the floor. Once it had been human, but its clawed hands and feet were flat paddles now, with fingers half the length of a man's. Its naked skin was the darkest purple, nearly black, glistening smooth as a slug's body. Beneath round black eyes, its face consisted of nothing but a wide, lipless jaw studded with short, sharp teeth. Its mouth moved in a weak, involuntary spasm. Whatever magic Feena had cast on him hurt the thing far more than it shocked Tal.
Without hesitation, Tal severed the creature's head from its body. Perivel's blade cut through flesh and bone effortlessly, leaving a scar in the floor.
The spawn's body melted into a puddle of oily black liquid, spreading at first into a wide circle. Within seconds, it moved intentionally toward the pool, pouring itself into the clear water. Where it filled the lighted pool, darkness covered the ceiling above.
Behind Tal, Feena shouted, "Back! By the power of Selune, I command you!"
She held her holy symbol defiantly toward another of the spawn. The monster hissed and recoiled from its place on the wall, but the talisman caused it no visible harm. Beside Feena, Chaney stood guard, his eyes searching the upper reaches of the hall for another attack.
"Over here!" Darrow called to them from an open door. Beyond it was a dark room.
Dark hands reached down from the shadows to grasp him by the head, pulling him up. Darrow screamed and struck wildly with his sword. Tal ran to help him, leaping up to catch his flailing legs as he rose into the shadows. He fell back to the floor holding an empty boot, while Darrow's screams grew louder and more frantic.
Feena sang out another prayer, her voice steady and bold. Her talisman flared more brightly than ever, shining steady rays of sunlight in all directions. The shadows flinched like living things and fled from the holy light.
The spawn within them squealed horribly and fled from Feena. One burst into flames as it fell from the high ceiling. It grabbed futilely for a long tapestry as it plummeted, tangling itself in the thick fabric and setting it alight. Another trailed smoke as it fled the River Hall. Orange light flickered in the hall where it had fled, and Tal knew it would not be back soon.
Darrow's sword clanged on the floor near Tal. Soon after, a snarling gray wolf fell heavily beside it. The beast jerked and twisted violently, still trying to bite at an opponent who was no longer there. Its red eyes met Tal's, and its nape bristled as it growled at him.
"Calm yourself," warned Tal, raising his massive sword.
The wolf whined and turned in a circle, lowering its head to the ground briefly before shifting form. The change came in awkward spurts, and when Darrow's human form crouched low before him, Tal saw the terrible wounds on his back and head. Deep black scars covered his head and shoulders, but the blood barely oozed from the wounds. The flesh surrounding them was already hardening and turning a dry, necrotic gray.
Darrow hissed and grimaced in pain. He looked ten years older, his features drawn and wan. He blinked away the tears of pain and said as bravely as he could muster, "Stings a bit."
"Feena?" asked Tal.
Before he could voice his request, she was already beside the wounded werewolf. Where she ran her fingers over Darrow's wounds, they closed under a trail of silver light, leaving only gnarly gray scars behind.
"That's the best I can do today," she said. "The life they stole will have to wait until tomorrow."
Thank you," said Darrow. "I know I don't deserve your-"
"Don't speak," warned Feena, but her tone was less venomous than it had been earlier. "Just show us this secret passage," said Feena.
Her voice was urgent but surprisingly gentle. The fight had shaken her more than Tal realized. She had trained all her life to fight werewolves, but the undead were another matter entirely.
"That wasn't so bad," said Chaney. "Now that we're ready for them, and you have that light, this will be a snap."
"We'd better hurry," said Tal. "I smell smoke. The one who got away must have fled to the upper floors."
"Just don't be overconfident," said Darrow. "Lord Malveen is probably down there waiting for us, and he is no mere vampire."
"That makes us even," said Tal. His face was flush with excitement. Despite the horrors of the place, he had never felt so confident. "I'm no mere werewolf."
Chapter 21
Tarsakh, 1372 DR
Darrow led them through the secret panel and down the winding stairs. Years of Malveen family trophies stared down at them from the walls. The images unnerved Barrow, who found them eerily similar to the skulls mounted in Rusk's sanctum back at the lodge. He was still trembling since the attack of Lord Malveen's minion. Whatever else it had drawn out of his body, it took some of his courage with it-and he had precious little to start with.
"It's that smell again," whispered Talbot, sniffing. "Or something like it."
"Lord Malveen," confirmed Darrow. "He's down here somewhere. I wouldn't be surprised if Radu is nearby, too. Let's just hope they haven't-" Darrow couldn't finish the thought.
"They haven't," said Talbot. His confidence helped sooth Barrow's fears, but only slightly.
Chaney tugged on Talbot's arm. "I'm just going to hang back a little," he said. "But don't worry. I'll be watching your back."
"I appreciate it," said Talbot.
Feena covered her shining holy symbol in both hands, but the daylight still shone brightly through her fingers. It was too valuable to extinguish, but it meant there was no hiding their arrival in the baiting pit. As they entered, Darrow saw that they were expected.
The stone sconces all danced with green flame. In the pit below, the great iron portals were raised to reveal the cells beyond. All but one were empty. Maelin sat on the floor near the heavy bars, looking out into the dueling pit, which was empty except for a row of weapons planted in the sand and the fanged pit in the center.