The Justicar moved forward slowly. As he drew near the alcove, Cinders began to growl, the fur rising up all along his shoulders. Jus cleared his sword out of its scabbard in a single flawless blur, his weapon suddenly hovering in midair.
“Out.”
Cinders’ flames seethed, and a sinister little tongue offlame lit the alcove. A shadow against one wall stirred and moved as the Justicar’s sword point whipped toward its throat and stopped a hair’s breadthaway.
Sir Olthwaite the paladin-pale, filth-spattered and much theworse for wear-edged into the light.
“Greetings, fellows! Well met, well met.” The man raised ahand in wary greeting. “If you will forgive me, I thought you might be some ofthem.”
Polk made a sound of joy and stamped his foot, splashing his inside leg with dungeon soup.
“Sir Olthwaite! It’s Sir Olthwaite!” The teamster slapped Jushard on the back. “Now we’ll go places! We’ve got a real hero for thisdungeon!”
“Polk, sir! My dear chap what a pleasure to see you well!”The paladin made to advance and embrace, only to be halted by the Justicar’ssword at his throat. “Yes, quite well…”
His face shadowed by the hell hound’s twisting flames, theJusticar did not sheathe his sword. He held the point directly under the paladin’s jaw and asked, “Where is the rest of your party, Sir Paladin?”
Clearing his throat, Sir Olthwaite gave a little shrug.
“There were only three of us: myself, the magician, and thepriestess of Geshtai.” The man gave a genteel nod of his chin back toward thesphinx. “That way. The western tunnel. We met wights, two of them. They took afair amount of defeating.”
The Justicar’s sword remained poised for an instant kill, hisstance low and spread.
“Yet you managed to survive.”
“Not unscathed, I fear.” The paladin managed to look a littlepale. “They seem to have left me a tad drained of life. I’m not my old selfquite yet.” The knight swallowed and tried to move the rangers sword point asidewith his fingertips. “Look, well met on the trail and all that! Forgive andforget-what?”
Cinders’ growl became almost audible, his fur rising likeporcupine bristles as his barred teeth ran with flames. Escalla popped into visibility between Cinders and the paladin, resting one hand upon the dog’s wetnose.
“Cinders, down boy! Enough!”
Burn!
“Not now!” The faerie coiled close to the hell hound andwhispered in his ear. “Let him take hits from a few dozen monsters first, thentoast him from behind!”
Unhappy, Cinders drooped and muttered canine curses in the air. Escalla fluttered brightly over to the paladin, inspecting the man by the glow of her magic light. Her tilted eyes shone with innocent surprise.
“So here you are! We were sooo worried!” The girl used onefinger to lower Jus’ sword.
“Jus, ease it back a bit just for now…” The faerie keptherself carefully out of reach of their newfound friend. “So you went down thewest tunnel, huh? What was there?”
“Wights, my dear, as I said.” Sir Olthwaite took his chanceand moved closer to Polk, patting the pleased teamster on the shoulder. “Myfriend Polk here can tell you that underground exploration has its dangers.”
“Really?” Having just polished off a vampire single-handedly,Escalla clasped her hands in mock concern. “Do telclass="underline" What else was down there?”
“A pit trap and a corridor that heated metal as you enteredit.” The paladin scornfully adjusted the coil of rope that dangled from hisbelt. “It’s of no consequence! Come. I can lead you back there. We can pass thetraps and find the missing weapons!”
Posing like a confused little girl, the faerie put her finger against her chin. “Oh, but since we’re already partway down this tunnel, whydon’t we keep going?”
“There are no weapons down this tunnel!” The paladin’svoice snapped like a whip. “We have a job to do!”
“Yeah?” Escalla pivoted slowly in midair. “But my good friendEnid tells me that each of these three tunnels has a weapon at the end of it!”
Bristling in indignation, Polk tottered forward beneath his huge backpack full of gear.
“You listen to Sir Olthwaite! Veteran adventurers get a nosefor treasure!”
“But I’m a girl, and girls are just sooo curious!”Ever suspicious, Escalla’s sly eyes gleamed as she flew circles about the party.“I wanna go up this tunnel!”
Sir Olthwaite flexed his fingers.
“There is more profit to the west. We used a spell to tell usso.”
“Oh?” Escalla flew down to pluck at the burnt end of thepaladin’s rope. “But your gear seems to have gotten all scorched and scratched!North seems so much safer.”
The Justicar had heard enough. With his sword still out, he jerked his head toward the end of the northern tunnel.
“Move out. We’re going north.” The ranger shifted his grip onhis sword. “And the great adventurer can show us how it’s done. Polk, give him atorch.”
“A torch?” The paladin bridled. “Why must I carry a torch?”
“Because you’re leading.” His sword held deceptively light inhis hand, Jus nodded down the corridor. “Be my guest.”
Sir Olthwaite took a light from Polk’s lantern, spared anunfathomable glance for the Justicar, and then moved down the passageway. Escalla flicked Jus a glance, smiled, and popped swiftly out of view.
Polk was left glaring at Jus in bitter disappointment. The teamster shook his head slowly from side to side like a judge passing sentence.
Jus ignored the man and walked on.
“Keep that hammer safe.”
“It’s safe.” Polk sniffed in disdain. “Son, I’m disappointed.Disappointed! A knight of the Silver Dragon walks among us, and do you pay him the slightest mind?” The little man swelled up like a puffer fish inindignation. “I suppose you don’t care to hear what I think?”
“No.”
Sir Olthwaite had reached the end of the corridor, where his torchlight showed an open room. The paladin lifted high his light, and Escalla came whirring beneath his arm, her passage shown by the scent of magic in her wake. Coming steadily forward, Jus paused in the doorway and looked out over a great waterlogged room.
A wide expanse of water glittered in the light. Polk’slantern beam searched out the limits of a large, echoing chamber. At the far side of the room, a stairway led upward into a new corridor. The whole place echoed to the lap and swirl of water, and algae-stink made the air as thick as rotting blood.
Jus lifted his own light to carefully inspect the ceiling, then took a careful, responsive grip upon his blade. Cinders’ voice suddenlyflickered in his mind.
Deep water. The hell hound went suddenly stiff.Motion!
Jus whipped his sword up to cover the dark water, and the paladin followed suit. Algae all across the water’s surface rippled into life.Escalla a squeaked as she flew hastily aside.
The center of the room was far deeper than the verge. Water-weeds surged up out of the depths and boiled with life. Moving fast as thought, the dank strands wrapped themselves into a weird parody of human limbs.
The weeds shimmered with magic, the weedy textures disappeared, and quite suddenly two bodies swam happily in the water. Two stunningly beautiful maidens waved eagerly to the men. The girl on the left had long dark pigtails, and the costume of a minstrel girl clung wet and transparent against her curves. To the right, a voluptuous, bright-eyed elfmaid swam stark naked except for a little necklace of flowers.
“You’ve come!” The minstrel girl yearned upward with big darkpuppy eyes. “We’ve been so lonely!”
“Yes!” The elf girl reached up dripping arms. “Lonely! Stuckhere pining away for companionship!”
The minstrel girl swam imploring little circles. As she pleaded, the elf girl echoed her every phrase.