Uneasy Alliances

Chapter 2

Noph stirred and started suddenly awake. His mind poised, swooped, and remembered: the fight with the doppleganger, the struggle in the dark cell as the water rose higher around him, his rescue, and the journey through the dark tunnel to this place, wherever this place was. His heart was pounding as if it would beat its way through his chest. His chest… He glanced down, puzzled that he seemed to feel no pain from his wounds.

"Easy, lad. lie easy." Trandon pushed him down gently. "You lost a lot of blood."

Noph looked up at the silver-haired warrior, trying to find the courage to formulate his suspicions. Then, with a sigh, he gave up and sank back against something soft, warm, gently rounded. Long silky hair tickled his ear, and moist, gentle lips brushed enticingly against his cheek.

"Sharessa!" Noph half-turned, meeting the dark, dancing eyes of the she-pirate.

"Well, Noph, how do you feel?"

Noph considered a moment. "The pain is gone." He looked down at his chest, his ragged shirt revealing the flesh beneath clean and unbroken. Tm healed!"

"Aye. He did it." Shar gestured toward the golden figure of Kern, who stood across the hallway deep in conversation with Entreri. Turning his head, Noph saw Ingrar, sitting cross-legged in the middle of the floor, gazing with unseeing eyes down the passage into the blackness beyond the torches.

Shar continued. "We rested here. You've been asleep half a day. That much rest was enough for the paladin to cure your wounds. But you must still be careful. Trandon's right; you're too weak to do much." Her eyes sparkled wickedly. "You'll have some lovely scars. Fm sure girls will want to examine them very closely."

Noph relaxed and let his head rest against Shar's ample bosom. Despite the strangeness of their surroundings, he felt an odd sense of peace and fulfillment, as if some raging conflict within him had been stilled. Shar stroked his head, humming an old song of sailors and the sea in his ear. He could feel her heart softly beating.

"I see the patient is awake and comfortable." He looked up to see Entreri staring coldly at him. The assassin and the paladin had evidently reached some sort of conclusion, for they called the party to gather round. Noph sat up, feeling weak but alert.

Kern spoke. "Master Entreri and I have agreed that until we find the bloodforge, which is the source of all the madness around us, well cooperate." He spoke without emotion, but it was clear to Noph what it had cost him to make this agreement with a man whom he despised.

"When we find the bloodforge, however-"

"Aye, when we find it," interrupted Entreri briskly. "Time enough to think of that when it happens. Right now we need to be moving; we've wasted enough time here." He glowered at Noph, who blushed and tried to sit up straight.

Entreri turned back to the group. "Now, then. Does anyone have any idea where we are?"

Trandon shrugged. "Probably some other part of the mage-king's palace." He gestured down the corridor. "Fifty feet down that way, there's a fall of stone blocking the corridor. It probably came down when Aetheric broke out of his tank."

Entreri nodded. "Very well. That makes things simpler. There's only one way to go, so well go that way." He gestured in the direction opposite that indicated by the elder man. "Ingrar, you and I go first. Trandon and Kern form the rear guard."

"Hey!" cried Noph and Sharessa simultaneously. Entreri did not even spare them a glance. "In the middle." His mouth drew in a sour line. "Since you seem to have so much to talk about, keep yourselves entertained and stay out of trouble." He drew his blade and took Ingrar's arm to guide the blind pirate. "Right. Come on."

Sharessa sucked in her breath with an angry hiss and scrambled to her feet. "What's he doing in front?" she asked irritably, gesturing toward Ingrar.

"Ingrar seems to see blind a good bit better than the rest of you do with eyes," returned Entreri calmly. "I don't know what's going on with his sight, but as long as he can sense danger, he might as well be where he's going to do us some good."

Ingrar turned to Sharessa. "It's true, Shar. I can feel things I couldn't before. I… I don't know why." His voice faltered.

Shar was silent for a moment, then flung an arm around his shoulders and gave him a squeeze. She looked at the others. "Come on, the rest of you. Follow the blind man."

Noph rose, his knees shaking. The others spread out their formation and, without a word, followed the assassin and the mercenaries.

The corridor ran forward for some way, then bent to the right and ended at a large double door. The party gathered before it, and Entreri pulled the handles in vain.

"Locked." He shrugged. "Kern, you and Trandon have a go at it. This is a situation that seems to call for more strength than brains."

Kern snorted angrily, but he and the fighter pulled at the massive wrought-iron handles. The doors, however, remained obstinately closed. Shar and Noph joined the effort but without success. Finally Entreri turned to Ingrar. "Can you do anything?"

The young man stepped forward, his fingers running delicately over the ironwork tracery that covered the doors. He touched the lock, tapped it once or twice, then bent, putting his ear next to the metal. "Shar, give me a hairpin."

Silently Sharessa drew a long, lethal-looking pin from a pouch at her belt. Ingrar accepted it and thrust it into the lock, probing carefully.

"Hurry," urged Entreri.

Ingrar gestured irritably. "The less noise you make, the more I can hear and the faster this will go."

Noph shivered. He felt a creeping sense of unease. He strained his eyes, staring back along the corridor they'd come from. Beyond the bright circle cast by their torches, he could see nothing, but the sensation of dread increased. He noticed that Trandon was also staring into the darkness, a look of intense concentration on his face.

Sharessa had taken a torch from Artemis and stood near the door, holding it high. Entreri stood near her, his shadow streaming along the floor.

From the blackness of the corridor, a piece of the darkness detached itself and leaped upon Entreri's shadow. There was a deep gurgling sound, like a thirsty man taking a deep drink of ale. The assassin's shadow darkened, solidified, and rose.

A second Artemis Entreri stood in the torchlight staring at them.

Noph couldn't tell if the startled cry had come from his own throat or from one of the others. The false Artemis matched it with a wild scream of battle fury and, drawing its sword, rushed upon its diminutive double. The master assassin barely had time to parry in a flash of skirling metal. The twin figures circled each other again and again, blades flickering in the torchlight in a deadly dance. The rest of the party stood silent, as if paralyzed.

The duo broke apart, one with a thin line of red trickling down one cheek. "Damn you, do something," he shrieked at his companions.

Sharessa, standing closest to the battle, had already drawn her sword and brought it to the guard position. Now she stood hesitating, staring at the double image before her. Sweat trickled down her brow.

"Damn it!" she muttered. "Which one's real?"

One Artemis shouted, "Come on, Shar! Finish him!" Shar's sword came back in preparation for a sweeping stroke, then halted again. Now the other Artemis chuckled.

"Good judgment, Sharessa. Now take care of him and well finish this."

Again the female pirate's muscles tensed, then slackened. The others in the party stood silently watching her. Noph marveled at the brilliance of the swordplay between the two Artemises. It was plain that the shadeling had imitated Entreri's prowess as well as his appearance. The two fighters closed in a tight circle, neither willing to give ground. The echoes of their blows resounded weirdly down the corridor into an unfathomable distance.

Now the two broke apart again, each searching for an opening. But this time, Sharessa hesitated no longer. With a deep breath that was almost a gasp, she brought her sword across in a deadly, graceful arc. The head of the Artemis on her right leapt from his shoulders. His body stood upright for a moment, a fountain of blood spouting from the neck. Then, in a thin shriek, it dissolved into darkness. Noph thought he saw a dim patch of shade fleeing into the blackness beyond the torchlight.

The other Artemis sank to his knees. In addition to the cut on his cheek, his left sleeve was soaked in blood. He tore a strip of cloth from his shirt and bound the wound, using his teeth to pull the bandage tight. Then he glared at Shar, who hadn't moved since her victory.

"That was cutting it rather fine, don't you think?"

Sharessa started, as one coming out of a trance. "I couldn't tell which one was really you."

"How did you know which one to kill?"

The shapely pirate looked Entreri full in the face. "I didn't." She turned away to stand by Noph.

Ingrar had turned back to the door. There was a sudden snap as the lock gave way, and the young man stepped back, anticipating a possible trap. Nothing happened, however, and after a moment, the blind pirate gestured to Entreri.

The little man, still preoccupied with bandaging his arm, nodded to Kern. "Go ahead, paladin. Forward, in the name of Tyr!"

The golden knight straightened at the sound of his god's name, even in jest. "Forward, in the name of Tyr!" He drew his sword and pushed open the doors.

A warm current of damp air swirled about them, stirring hair over damp brows. The breeze had a strange, musky scent, redolent of a room long unused, in which some unnameable thing had been left to rot. Kern stumbled over a piece of furniture and gave a low exclamation that, uttered by anyone else, might have been taken for a curse. Then Trandon came through the doors, a torch in his hand, followed by the rest of the party.

They were in a large room, though one clearly abandoned for some time. Its walls were hung with rich tapestries, but they had been left to the tender mercies of rats and worms. The furniture was sturdy-looking and comfortable, but when Noph, still feeling weak, leaned against a chair, it collapsed with a crash. The room seemed to have been fitted out as a bedroom for someone of high estate, but clearly no one had slept there in a long time. Over everything was a cloying miasma of damp and decay.

On one wall, near the antique bed, was a portrait of a man in the flowing robes of a Doegan high official. Dark hair, tinged with streaks of white, was swept back over a high forehead. Deep, dark eyes looked out from the canvas and seemed to follow the intruders about the room.

Shar joined Noph before the portrait. "That's him again," she whispered.

"Who?"

"Aetheric. I saw a carving of his face in the corridor."

Noph shook his head. "No, Shar. I've seen his face, too, but he's a monster, not a man."

Sharessa shook her head vigorously. "You don't understand, Noph. Aetheric wasn't always that way. The bloodforge made him into what he is. At least, that's the story." She shivered. "When I was a little girl, my father used to tell me stories about him. I think he liked to frighten me."

Noph stared at her. "Why would he want to do that?"

Sharessa shrugged, as if pushing away an unpleasant memory.

"I don't know. I didn't like my father very much. Anyway, he said that when Aetheric first began to rule, he was a man. But after a few years, he withdrew into the palace and no one saw him anymore. Fiends attacked the kingdom, and Aetheric's armies fought them off. But still nobody saw him. Father said the emperor had gone mad from using the bloodforge. But when I got older, I heard other tales that he was deformed." Her eyes widened in horror. "I never dreamed he'd become what we saw behind that wall." She looked around uneasily. "I wonder if at one time this was his bedroom."

Noph sank onto the floor, which was covered by a finely woven rug whose designs swirled before his eyes, combining and recombining into a thousand different forms. He felt dizzy.

"Noph?"

Shar laid a hand on his shoulder. He looked up gratefully, only to see her stiffen and look toward Entreri and Ingrar, busy against the far wall of the chamber.

Entreri turned back to the others. "There's a door here. Come on." Kern came to his side. Noph struggled to his feet as Ingrar pressed against a hidden spot in the paneling. A door swung silently back, and they found themselves staring into the face of a young guard dressed in the livery of Aetheric III.

The guard's eyes widened at the sight of a motley crew of pirates and paladins, some in ragged clothes and one-Artemis-streaming blood from a dozen small cuts about his face and body. He opened his mouth to shout, and then Shares sword was slanting up at his throat.

"Not one word, not one syllable," the pirate woman purred. She backed the guard cautiously into the room, followed by the others. Trandon, the last to enter, shut the door behind them, and they heard a soft click, as of a hidden latch falling smoothly into place.

"What is this place, boy?" demanded Kern of the guard.

"A-An anteroom of the ch-chamber of Aetheric, Lord of E-Eldrinpar, ruler of Doegan, E-Emperor of the Five Kingdoms," recited the boy in a singsong voice. His teeth were chattering in fear. He stared at them and wet his lips.

"I was standing at my p-post, when there was a huge c-crash and shouting. The other guards ran, but I–I stayed behind. I've been here for ages now… My captain h-hasn't come back. I don't know what to d-do."

"Why are you guarding this room?" asked Trandon.

"I don't know. We-we've always guarded it." The boy shook his head vigorously. "Our orders come from high up. Maybe from the m-mage-king himself."

Noph smiled at the boy, who was, he guessed, probably Noph's own age. "What's your name?"

"Althgar." The boy managed a feeble half-smile in return.

"Well, look, Althgar. We were in the dungeons interviewing a prisoner when the fiends attacked."

"An attack from outside?" The boy's eyes went wide. "B-But that's impossible. The city is warded. The m-mage-king himself set those wards in place."

"That doesn't matter," said Noph impatiently. Besides, the mage-king was busy elsewhere." He glanced at the others. "The point is, we were trapped and only got out in the nick of time. We need to get out of the palace." He lowered his voice impressively. "We're on a mission from the mage-king himself. He wants us to bring him the bloodforge."

Althgar stared at him, lips trembling. "Th-the bloodforge? But why?"

Noph lifted a finger to his lips and winked. "Can't say. Top secret. Very hush-hush. But take it from me, the safety of the whole kingdom depends on our getting to the bloodforge as soon as possible. And I'm sure His Majesty would be very generous with rewards for those who help us." He paused for a moment to see the effect his words were having. The boy was thinking hard, something he was evidently unused to. "So. Do you know where it is?"

"Well, it's a secret, you know." Althgar suddenly grinned conspiratorially at Noph. "But 111 bet I've figured it out. See, I've watched where the priests go, and I've listened to the stories that get told around the palace. The others don't pay any attention, but I do."

"So where is it?" demanded Entreri impatiently.

Althgar looked at him doubtfully. "It's all right," said Noph soothingly. "You can tell us."

"Okay. It's-" Suddenly he clutched his head with both hands and bent almost double.

"What's wrong with him? Is he sick?" asked Entreri coldly.

The guard moaned softly. "He's always there now. I can feel him behind my eyes. He wants to look. He wants to see. He wants to see everything." His voice rose to a shriek of despair. "No! No! Get out of my head!" He shook violently and collapsed, groaning, to the floor.

Noph stared at the writhing figure in horror. "What's wrong with him?" he asked Trandon.

The fighter made no reply but bent closer to the guard. Suddenly he started and drew back with an oath. "By Holy Tempus! Look at his eyes!"

The boy's eyes, blue when they'd first seen them, had rolled up into his head. Now they came down again and slowly focused on the faces before him.

They were golden, with deep, dark pupils and no white showing round them at all. Noph stared into their depths, his breath coming in fast, thick pants.

The eyes of the mage-king.

The mad eyes of Aetheric III.

In a swift motion, Entreri drew a dagger from his belt and slashed it across the guard's throat. A spray of blood splashed his clothing in red, and the boy's eyes went blank and fluttered closed. Noph could have sworn that just before they did so, he saw the pupils turn a deep blue again and that Althgar looked at him with a questioning stare. Noph turned away from the group and was violently ill.

Entreri calmly wiped his dagger on the boy's sleeve. "The mage-king must be psychically linked to his guards, or at least to some of them. Probably makes it easier to keep track of what's going on in the palace. And now he knows for certain that we're here, and he knows what we're after. We'll have to hurry."

"You bastard!" Noph stared at the little assassin. "You cold-blooded bastard!"

Trandon put an arm on the youth's shoulder. "Come on, Noph. It's-"

Noph shook him off furiously. "Don't do that! I'm the only one of you who cares!" He glared at Entreri and raised his fists. "Come on, you son of a-"

Entreri cuffed him across the mouth, knocking the youth to his knees. He looked calmly at Noph and spoke to him with no appearance of anger.

"We have no time for this. Behave yourself." He turned away.

Noph rose. His stomach ached and his breath smelled sour. He badly wanted a drink of water. His face ached where Entreri had hit him, and he felt a trickle of blood down his chin. Trandon and Kern stared pointedly away from him.

Noph looked at the stiffening body of the guard, then at Sharessa, hoping for comfort and sympathy. She, too, was gazing at the body, but Noph saw, to his surprise and dismay, that she showed no emotion. She turned away and slapped Ingrar's shoulder in a comradely gesture.

Noph found Kern at his side. The paladin looked at him and then, catching Noph's eye, looked awkwardly away again.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

Noph nodded. "I… I guess so. It's just that when we killed before, it was us against the fiends. The only humans I've seen die were Anvil and… Harloon."

Kern nodded slowly. "I know. It's never easy to see men die, even those whom you don't know."

"He was so cold about it." Noph stared at Entreri. The little man was now exploring the far end of the room with Ingrar and Sharessa. "He didn't pause for a minute. He just…" He shut his eyes, as if trying to squeeze out the memory. Then he opened them wide. "And Shar. She could have killed Artemis back there when we were fighting that shadow-thing."

Trandon, coming up behind Kern, snorted and lowered his voice. "Not a bad job if she had. That'd be one less problem in our way."

Noph turned on him hotly. "Don't say that! Haven't you seen enough death?" His eyes filled with tears. "I thought being an adventurer was supposed to be glorious and exciting, not dirty… and…" His voice faded as he looked at the body of the guard.

Kern shrugged his broad shoulders. "Noph, adventuring is about duty-about doing your duty and keeping an eye on what needs to be done. It's about doing what's best in the eyes of your god." He looked contemptuously at Entreri and the pirates. "For a pack like that, the only thing that counts is profit. And if that means betraying your friends and companions, so be it. Master Entreri would kill anyone or anything if he were paid for it."

He turned away from Noph and said over his shoulder in a voice that carried throughout the room, "And don't lose any sleep over trying to keep in the good graces of Master Entreri. When you were wounded, he was ready enough to slit your throat and leave your carcass to the fiends."

Noph started and stared at Artemis, who looked at him stolidly and said nothing. Shar moved toward the young man. "Noph-"

"No, Shar." Noph turned away from the beautiful mercenary. "I'm sorry. I guess I just don't have what it takes to be a real pirate. You see, I care about other people."

He walked away from her. Shar stood motionless, her dark hair framing a face drained of blood.

Another low rumble came from beyond the room, and the floor shook. In the distance came the sound of faint screams and a shrill, ululating shriek. Trandon stepped to another door set in the chamber's west wall and listened intently.

"Fiends! Coming this way!" He drew his sword. Kern and Shar ranged themselves alongside him. Noph pulled a dagger from its sheath and stood behind them, feeling lost and very alone.

"Any suggestions?" Kern barked at Artemis over his shoulder.

Entreri, busy with Ingrar probing the eastern wall of the room, half turned. "You could go shout the name of Tyr at them. Or perhaps read them one of his holy books. It might bore them to death."

Kern's face turned red, and his mouth opened to make a powerful reply when Ingrar said quietly, "Here." He stood next to a tapestry on the north wall, his blind face laid against it.

"What?" Entreri joined him, moving swiftly and as silently as a cat.

"It's this way. The bloodforge." Ingrar gestured to the tapestry.

Kern quickly stepped to the wall and pulled back a corner of the hanging. "How do you know? I can't see a thing."

Ingrar shook his head. "I–I'm not sure. I just… know! " Не pressed his fingers against the wall, tapping and listening.

"Are you-" Kern started to ask.

Ingrar gestured imperiously. "Quiet!" Such was the force of his confidence that the paladin lapsed into silence.

There was a sudden snap, a click, and a grinding sound, and the outlines of a hidden door were revealed. Kern pushed it open and cautiously stepped through.

"There's been a partial cave-in," he called back to the others. "We'll have to go carefully."

The rest of the party left their posts near the far door and crowded after Kern. Noph lingered, looking back at the body of Althgar.

"Are you just going to leave him for the fiends?" he asked Artemis bitterly.

The little man stared at him a moment, as if surprised at his depth of feeling. "Yes. If I could give him a decent burial, I would. But sentiment and survival have nothing to do with each other. Now go on." He thrust Noph through the hidden door, then stepped through himself, pulling the panel shut behind him.