All right, so they couldn't hear her. Maybe Mynx could make her presence known some other way. The kender must realize she was here, but he couldn't be relied upon. Mynx pinned her hopes on the centaur.
She braced her hands on the sides of the dragon and rocked to one side. The artifact wobbled slightly. Encour shy;aged, Mynx pushed even harder the other way, and the Diamond Dragon tipped so far in that direction that Mynx lost her balance on the slippery bottom and tumbled to her knees.
"Blast this thing to the Abyss!" she shrieked, then had to cover her ears again from the resulting reverberations.
Then a huge hand-did that monstrous palm, those fat fingers, those imposing nails really belong to a little kender? — crashed into the pocket, swept under the Dia shy;mond Dragon, and carried it and its occupant out of the pouch and into the light. Mynx leaped to her feet and rocked back and forth again, harder than before. The cen shy;taur had to notice something odd-the artifact was mov shy;ing of its own volition.
"See what I have, Phytos?" the kender chirped. He wrapped his fingers around it securely. Mynx fumed, but kept up her strenuous efforts.
Phytos did not look up from arranging the items in his pack. " 'Tis time we continued, little one. We're not even out of the vallenwoods. We have many leagues … By the gods!" The centaur's head was up now, violet eyes star shy;ing. "What is that thou holds, kender? It glows like light shy;ning! 'Tis magic! Is it evil?"
"It was Hederick's, Phytos. He gave it to me, back at the temple."
Phytos clucked. "Did he, kender? And could it be that the High Theocrat is unaware that he gave thee such a precious bauble?"
Kifflewit faltered. "I… I don't remember." He bright shy;ened. "Anyway, I'm keeping it for him. Until he needs it again."
"Let me see it."
The kender opened his hand. Mynx held her breath. New fingers, slender and strong, cradled the artifact. The cen shy;taur's angular face, with those piercing eyes, came into view. Mynx jumped and waved, rocked the Diamond Dragon, and shouted Phytos's name until she was hoarse. The slim fingers closed firmly around the quivering artifact.
"By the gods, kender, the bauble glows so that I am nearly blinded! It seems to tremble with magic. Put the thing back in thy pocket and keep it safe. If 'tis Hederick's, it may prove useful to us in the coming war."
"War?" Kifflewit's voice held new interest. He replaced the Diamond Dragon in his pocket. Mynx slumped to the artifact's bottom, disconsolate.
"Hederick's forces committed an atrocity against my race," Phytos told the kender. "His minions slew four of my companions. It is highly likely that my tribe will choose to retaliate, little one."
Kifflewit's voice went even more shrill with excitement. "Centaurs, go to war with humans? Wow! Has that ever happened before, Phytos? Is that…"
"I neither know nor care, little one." The curt reply was followed by a soft, "Come, Kifflewit Burrthistle. Tis time we left. My glade lies outside the vallenwoods, and we've a way to go."
Inside the Diamond Dragon, which remained inside the kender's pocket, Mynx beat her fists against her knees and howled.
"The revelations went well tonight, Your Worship," Dahos said.
Hederick grunted noncommittally as he arranged his scrolls in the room of his quarters. He had summoned the high priest, then refused to speak to him or dismiss him. He'd learned an important lesson from Venessi, his mother-that silence is the worst prison imaginable.
Hederick half-smiled. Let the priest suffer for fear of los shy;ing his neck, he thought. The Plainsman had erred twice in the preceding day. First with the centaurs. Then he'd allowed Tarscenian to escape once more. Did Hederick have to oversee everything to make sure things were always done correctly?
The High Theocrat had no doubt that if he, Hederick, had been leading the guards against Tarscenian this after shy;noon, the old fool would have been executed and out of the way by now.
Still, the half-elf Gaveley had had some valuable infor shy;mation for the High Theocrat. Tarscenian was planning vengeance against Hederick, Gaveley informed him, although exactly what form that vengeance would take the half-elf had professed not to know. Hederick had paid him well for the warning.
"As if there were any doubt that Tarscenian continues to stalk me," Hederick muttered. "Tarscenian won't rest until he sees me dead. He's supremely jealous of me."
"Your Worship?" Dahos's voice held a spark of hope.
Hederick said nothing in reply. After a suspenseful wait, the high priest sagged.
The High Theocrat stifled a chuckle. Suddenly he felt a twinge in his upper torso. He clasped a hand against his breastbone, moved his beloved leather-swaddled pendant aside, and gingerly probed a tender spot. He'd felt odd intermittently since this afternoon, when he'd ordered the black-robed mage executed.
The mage had injured him, but the god Sauvay had healed him before hundreds of people. Hederick wished he could remember exactly what happened, but his mem shy;ory seemed impaired. Still, he had seen and noted wit shy;nesses of his miraculous revival. There could be no greater sign of Hederick's favor in the eyes of the Seeker gods.
For a moment the High Theocrat considered unwrap shy;ping the leather covering and admiring the Diamond Dragon. But, no, he'd nearly lost it once-then a second time this afternoon, his aides told him. No telling when Tarscenian would attempt his evil-doing. Hederick would keep the treasure under cover, close to him.
"Sauvay smiled upon me today," Hederick said
suddenly, momentarily abandoning his oath to shun the high priest.
"Yes, Your Worship," Dahos returned quickly. "It is truly…"
"How are your plans coming for the reconsecration ceremony, Dahos?" Hederick cut in.
"They are … going well," Dahos replied carefully. "We should be able to conduct the ceremony in three or four days. I have sent word to the Highseekers Council that…"
"Hang the damned Highseekers Council, you dolt!" Hederick snapped. "This is my temple. I don't need that batch of old women and sinners snooping around Eroly-don. I can conduct my own ceremony, myself."
"But the Praxis says …"
Hederick's voice took on a new edge. "I am the judge here of what the Praxis says, Dahos. Don't overstep your shy;self. It could be a fatal mistake."
"I …. "
"Yes, High Priest?"
Dahos swallowed and stood taller. "Nothing, Your Worship."
Snoop cursed his luck as he crept along the shoreline, spyglass in his left hand, dirk in his right. It was growing dark, and he knew pitifully little about the area where the land met Crystalmir Lake.
Snoop hated the outdoors-all bugs and poison ivy and fanged creatures with no sense of civilization. The bucolic folks who frequented the area outside Solace actually enjoyed stalking animals and birds and killing them-and for food, not even for a meaningful bounty! And as for fishing, well, the day that Snoop would be found trying to lure a slimy fish onto a hook so that he could skin it and cut out its entrails and cook and eat it would be the day he'd… well, the day he'd eat dirt.
No, give Snoop city life any day. True, Solace was a bit small for Snoop's liking, but Gaveley had made it worth his while-for these last few years, at least. Snoop had chafed lately.
With the Diamond Dragon, though, Snoop hoped to set up his own thieves' ring. Someplace far from Gaveley, it was certain, but that was fine. He'd heard tales of many cities stuffed with riches that beckoned a clever thieves' ring such as the one Snoop longed to run.
He'd be cursed if he'd settle for his measly cut of Tarscenian's bounty. Not when he could have that Dia shy;mond Dragon free and clear, all his own.
Snoop tripped over a stone in the gathering dusk, and swore aloud. There was no sense to Gaveley's latest plan. Why order Snoop to follow Tarscenian when everyone in the ring knew the stranger was bound to head straight for Hederick? The question rankled in Snoop's mind, eating away at him until he thought he'd go mad. It was an unfa shy;miliar feeling. He'd never questioned Gaveley's methods before.