Wizardry - The Wizardry Quested Part 2

Listlessly he wiped his Breath fog from the diamond panes with his sleeve. He probably should have been with the other wizards but he couldn't concentrate. Instead Danny was handling things. Nothing had happened for hours.

aExcuse me, My Lord.a Bronwyn, the castles chief healer, was standing behind him. Her square face and brown eyes were grave, but then Bronwyn always looked serious.

aHow is she? I mean, how is the dragon?a aI think 'she' is most appropriate for now,a the chief healer said. Then she paused to pick her words. aLord, such things are not unknown. Wizards have inhabited others' bodies by similar methods before. The adepts of the Dark League more commonly, but even the Mighty of the Norm have resorted to the tactic on occasion. As a result we know a good deal about the condition and its effects.a Wiz brushed all that aside. aBut is she going to be all right?- aHer spirit and her intelligence, her ka, if you will, are safe for now,a Bronwyn said.

aFor now?a The healer fixed him with her steady brown eyes. aA human in a dragon's body is not a natural combination. Still less when the dragon is not yet full-grown and intelligent. Such mixtures are not stable.a aMeaning what?a aIf it is allowed to go on long enough, deterioration sets in. The personalities become mixed, degenerate and the level of intelligence descends to match the body. Once that happens there is no restoring the human personality even if it is returned to its body.a Wiz's breath caught in his throat. aHow long have we got?a Bronwyn shrugged. aWeeks, perhaps a pair of moons. Moira's personality is strong, so that works in our favor. But the dragon is an alien animal and not intelligent in his own right. That works against us.a Wiz turned from her and slammed his fist into the stone wall. He left a dark smear of blood where his knuckles. .h.i.t but he didn't notice.

aWe are doing everything we can, Lord.a aI know you are. Thanks Bronwyn. Uh, how's Jerry?a aI think he will be well. We think the things attempted to do the same thing to him but you foiled them by your attack. For now he sleeps the enchanted sleep. He will awake in his own time, but we do not know now long it will be. Several days at leasta aWell, thanks.a He turned back to the window.

aMy Lord, there is something else you should know.a Wiz turned and looked at her.

aTelling you this violates a confidence, but you are party to the situation and I do not think Moira will tell you herself.a The healer hesitated. Clearly violating a confidence did not come easy to her. aShe wasa"isa"pregnant.a aWhat?a Bronwyn regarded him soberly. aShe is with child, perhaps two moons along.a aBut I didn't know! I mean, why didn't she tell me?a aShe wanted to be sure. Then she intended to tell you, after the fair. She did not want you to worry during the festivities. Nowaa"Bronwyn shruggeda"aI do not believe she is thinking clearly.a Wiz sank back against the stone wall. aOh my G.o.d. Oh my G.o.d.a The healer watched him closely but did not move toward him. aI know it is a shock to find out like this. Still, it is best that you know.a aWe'd been tryingaa was all he could get out.

With a healer's instinct Bronwyn ignored his tears. aAs you well know it is uncommon for a witch to become pregnant. The practice of magic drains the vital energies and makes it hard for a magician to either father or conceive a child. Still, with patience, persistence and a little luckaa The healer shrugged.

Wiz nodded dumbly. Moira had consulted Bronwyn several times in her efforts to conceive. He remembered the earlier byplay between Shauna and Moira. Now he understood.

aWhata what should we do?a Bronwyn shook her head. aLord, this is beyond my experience. All we can do is to do the best we can to reunite Moira with her body.a She paused. aI have no reason to believe that the separation will harm the child.a Wiz sat heavily on a bench beside the window. aThanks, Bronwyn.a aIf there is aught else I can do? Something to help you sleep perhaps?a aNo, I'll be all right. There's things I need to do.a The healer nodded and withdrew, leaving Wiz to his thoughts.

Night and fog closed around the Wizards' Keep, black, damp and almost palpable.

The lamps burned in Bal-Simba's workroom where the leader of the Council of the North sat and thought.

There was a single knock at the door. Bal-Simba gestured and Arianne entered.

aAny sign?a the giant black wizard asked.

The Watchers can find nothing. Not even sign of anything unusual.a aTo be expected, I fear.a aLord, you know that Moira was pregnant?a Bal-Simba nodded. aBronwyn told me.a He sank his chin into a meaty palm. aI wonder if that was what attracted this creature to her?a Arianne's eyes went wide at the thought. Then she bit her lip. That implies somewhat unpleasant things about our enemy,a she said neutrally.

aVery unpleasant indeed.a He sighed. aBeyond the fact that it was Moira, this business has aspects I do not like at all.a aOur enemy seems powerful.a aPowerful, strange and malign,a Bal-Simba agreed. aSince the Sparrow has been among us we have seen the magic of elves and even things not entirely of this world. But never magic of the sort I saw today.a Arianne, who had stayed at the Wizards' Keep to organize the defenses c.o.c.ked a questioning eyebrow.

aHave you ever dealt with a viper?a Bal-Simba asked. aSomething small and mindless yet full of menace and the single desire to harm? That was what those things were like.a aYet even a viper has reason,a Arianne said. They act so to defend themselves or because they are frightened.a Bal-Simba gave her a tired smile. aAnd in understanding the viper we become able to deal with it. We may hope that these things act with reason as well and that by understanding their reason we can learn to deal with them.a He didn't say it with a lot of conviction.

Both of them were silent for a moment. aWell,a Bal-Simba sighed at last. aIf then the Watchers cannot find anything, best to resort to other methods. Have my scrying bowl brought to me. If it will not show us Moiraa" and I doubt very much that it willa"we can at least learn where this new magic lairs.a aOh, and Ladyaa Arianne turned, hand on the door handle.

aWe need not mention our speculations to the Sparrow. Certainly not yet.a aOf course, My Lord.a Someone edged into the room. Looking up, Wiz saw it was Malus.

aExcuse me, My Lord,a the pudgy wizard said. aI just heard what happened. I wanted to offer condolencesa" and whatever aid I might give.a aThanks, Malus. I appreciate it.a aI was going to ask you about my spell.a He drew the roll of parchment from his sleeve and looked at it ruefully. aIt seems so trivial now.a Wiz held out his hand. aGive it to me.a aNow, My Lord?a aI've got to keep busy,a Wiz said grimly.

aOh, of course, My Lord. And if there's anything I can do, anything at all.a Wiz clapped the fat little man on the shoulder. aThank you, Malus. You're a good friend.a After Malus left, Wiz spread out the parchment strips and arranged them on a bench beside the window. Like all spells it was written on parallel strips so the spell would not be activated by the act of writing it Wiz stared at them for nearly five minutes before he realized he had the strips out of order. With a sigh he picked them up and stuffed them in his belt pouch. Then he wandered down the hall toward the programmers' workroom.

He found Danny hard at it. There were at least six listings in different colors above his workbench and two emacs below them giving more magical commands. As Wiz entered, his young colleague whispered something to a third emac seated cross legged on the floor and the demon made a note with a quill pen on a strip of parchment in its lap.

June was in the corner with Ian nestled wide-eyed and clinging in her skirt. Her other hand stayed near her knife. She hadn't let her husband or son out of her sight since the attack.

aHave you been able to get a line on the spell?a Danny turned toward him and made a face. This thing is real cute. First, you were right. It was done with something based more or less on our magic compiler.a aWhich version?a aI said more or less. It's been hacked, moby hacked. There's stuff in there I've never seen and I've got no idea what it does. There's other stuff that goes back to your original quick-and-dirty interpreter, in a couple of cases stuff we took out of the later versions because it wasn't stable. Then there's stuff that's just been fine-tuned.a He gestured and another screen opened, showing another listing. Here and there lines of code stood out in brighter fire.

Those things we met in the square are very loosely based, maybe 'inspired' is closer, on our searcher system. The highlighted parts were probably lifted verbatim. But each of the things in the square is considerably more complex than our searchersa"and a lot more lethal.a aHow do they work?a I'm not quite sure. What they do is to suck the Me force out of their victim, like a bunch of magical vampires. But there's more to it than that and I'm not sure what. Lake I say, some of this stuff is just real strange. Some of it is beautifully tuned, some of it is d.a.m.n crude and a lot of it doesn't look like it does anything at all.a He paused. aYou know, I think I saw something like this once on the net. A guy kept posting stuff to alt.c.sources. He was a really good programmer only he was going psycho and in his last articles before they took him away he had this same kind of mix of off-the-wall brilliant and just plain off the wall.a aThis guy's too strong just to be crazy. Where's this stuff coming from?a Danny shrugged. aBal-Simba and some of the others are working on that. I've been concentrating on trying to understand what we're up against.a Wiz was still looking at the code when the door banged open and Malkin strode in.

The tall thief looked like grim death. Her lips were pressed into a hard bloodless line and her dark eyes glinted dangerously. Clearly she wanted to kill someone. Wiz could sympathize.

aWord reached me at Heart's Ease,a she said by way of greeting.

aJerry's in your apartmentaa Wiz began.

aI know. I have already seen him, much good that it did me. Now I want some answers. Then I want someone's head.a aI bet you think those are original ideas,a Wiz said bitterly.

Malkin softened. aI know they are not, My Lord Your loss is much greater than mine and I am truly, deeply sorry.a Then her jaw clenched and her eyes flashed again. aAnd it gives me one more reason to want this one's head on a pike.a Even through his own misery Wiz was impressed, and a little awed. Normally Malkin was almost obsessively cheery, even in the face of utter disaster. He had never seen her this angry beforea"not, he thought, that she'd ever had this kind of reason beforea"and the effect was definitely impressive. More accurately, it was downright scary.

Malkin let out a sigh through her teeth and seemed to relax through a sheer effort of will. aNow then, tell me what happened at the fair this day.a Talking in s.h.i.+fts and interrupting each other, Wiz and Danny filled her in on the attack.

aSo,a Malkin said as the programmers wound down, adoes this thing come to us or do we winkle it out of its hole?a Danny and Wiz looked at each other. Neither of them had gone that far in their thinking.

aI think we need more information,a Wiz said. aWe don't know where this thing is from, how many of them there are, how their magic works or even much about how they operate.a aWhat he means is we're still in the fact-gathering phase on this one,a Danny said. aWe gotta get our information together and work out a strategy.a Malkin snorted. aAnd once you have done all that? What then?a aThen,a Wiz said grimly, awe are going to lack some serious magical b.u.t.t.a All three of them were early for the council meeting but they found Bal-Simba already in the council chamber with an elaborately chased bronze bowl before him.

aMy Lords, My Lady,a the big wizard greeted them as they entered.

aHave you found them?a Malkin asked, noting the scrying bowl on the table.

aWe are not sure, but we have located the place where the effect is most powerful.a aWhere?a Wiz, Danny and Malkin demanded as one.

In response Bal-Simba gestured. The water in the bowl darkened and then the image sprang up bright and clear. The image of a ruined black city on the slope of an extinct volcano.

The City Of Night!a Wiz breathed.

aSo it would appear,a Bal-Simba said grimly. The force is strongest in the caverns and tunnels beneath the place.a aWe should have wiped it off the face of the earth,a Wiz said bitterly. aIt's been nothing but trouble since the Dark League built it.a aDo not be so eager to upset the balance of the World,a Bal-Simba told him. aStill, we have been remiss in how we watched the place.a Theoretically the City of Night was deserted, save for occasional roaming monsters left over from the Dark League's reign. Part of the city had been destroyed in the climactic magical battle in which Wiz and the Council had broken the League's power and killed many of its members.

In practice the place had needed the attentions of the Council twice since, once when Wiz was kidnapped there by a remnant of the Dark League and once to lay the slaying demon Bale-Zur, who had been the League's most potent weapon. Since then the Council had watched the place by magic and occasional patrols of dragon cavalry but otherwise left it alone.

aWhat do we do now?a Wiz asked.

That is for the Council to decide, I thinka aHmpf!a said Malkin, in a tone that left no doubt about her opinion of the Councils decision-making ability. Wiz tried to ignore her and look on the bright side.

Four hours later it was abundantly clear that Malkin had been looking on the bright side.

aSo we are at least agreed, are we not, On the need for action?a Bal-Simba rumbled wearily. That produced a general murmur and nodding of heads all the way down the table. Of course, Wiz noted sourly, some of the older heads were nodding because they were having trouble staying awake after going around and around over the same issues.

aOh, certainly,'' old Androclus said from his seat halfway down the table, abut,a he waggled an admonitory finger, awith caution.a aCaution be fornicated,a growled Juvian. aWe must act before this thing strikes again.a He traded glares with Androclus, they being opponents of long standing.

From his seat next to Bal-Simba, Wiz looked over at Malkin sitting against the wall. They exchanged looks of complete sympathy. If some of the older members were having trouble staying awake at this late-night session, Wiz and Malkin were having trouble keeping from strangling the council members. Danny and June had taken Ian to bed a couple of hours ago when it became abundantly clear where this session wasn't going. Wiz and Malkin had stayed and fretted and fumed.

aMy Lords,a Bal-Simba said. aI think we need to sleep on this before we decide further. aLet us meet again at mid-day tomorrow. By then perhaps we shall know more.a That produced the strongest agreement Wiz had heard all evening and the meeting broke up without having decided anything at all.

aWell,a Wiz growled to Bal-Simba as they left the room, athat was a complete and utter waste of time.a aBecause we did not set out on crusade this evening?a the big wizard asked. aYou judge too quickly, Sparrow.a In reply Wiz drove his fist into the stone wall beside them. The scabs on his knuckles broke and blood marred the smooth white limestone.

aSpeaking of wastes of time,a Bal-Simba said mildly.

aYeah, but it's so frustrating! We're spinning our wheels wasting time and Moira doesn't have much time.a aA wizard must be the master of his frustrations. If you let them master you they will lead you to disaster entire. Besides, we learned several things this night.a aName three,a Wiz snapped.

Bal-Simba ticked them off on his fingers. aWe learned that none of the Mighty has ever encountered this thing before, nor, as far as we can find, have the hedge witches or any other human magician. That means that it struck first at the heart of the human lands. Which in turn means what happened was not some chance encounter but a planned attack with magic we have never seen. That suggests in turn that this thing has been biding its time while it honed its powers elsewhere. And thata but there are your three, Sparrow, and several besides.a aSo what are we going to do about it?a aScant choice in that, is there? We will fight this thing and I hope we shall defeat it. As to the detailsa"a Bal-Simba shrugged aa"those we shall decide in Council.a aI wonder if that bunch will ever decide anything.a aUnjust, Sparrow. True, the Council is a deliberative body but would you rather we dash off heedless and ignorant against an enemy who is clearly prepared for us?a Wiz looked at him narrowly. aYou're not real unhappy about the way things went tonight, are you?a aThere are worse paths to follow than to gain information before acting. As we know more I think the Council's position will become more definite.a And the worst of it is, Wiz thought as he turned down the hall to his quarters, he's right. In spite of his loss and anger, Wiz understood Bal-Simbas caution. They desperately needed to know more about this strange enemy and there really was no good strategy that could be formulated until they knew more. From his time on the Council Wiz also understood that Bal-Simba had deliberately let the meeting drift so the Council would not commit foolishly to a plan. He knew all that, he understood the need for it and he didn't like any of it. He opened his door and nearly tripped over his wife's tail.

The dragon jerked its head upright with its neck taut. Then the eyes seemed to soften and the body relaxed as Moira a.s.serted control.

aI'm sorry, love, you startled me.a aSorry. I was thinking about something else.a The dragon slithered around to face him. aIt did not go well?a Wiz forced himself to look into the reptilian eyes. aWell enough, I guess. The Council didn't decide anything, but at least they're not going charging off on a wild goose chase. Why didn't you tell me you were pregnant?a Moira started at the change of subject. aI meant to, but first I wasn't sure and then with the Winter Fair coming on, I didn't want you to worry.a aI wish you had told me.a Moira sighed, a great sulfurous sigh. aI wish I had too.a Instinctively Wiz moved to take Moira in his arms, but the only part of her he could get his arms around was her long scaly neck and that put her head well above his. She lowered her head and he adjusted his grip to just behind her ears but found he couldn't look at her that way. He settled for dropping into a chair and Moira resting her head in his lap.

One side of Wiz's mouth twitched up in what might have pa.s.sed for a smile. aSome technical problems here.a aI Know,a Moira said sadly. aI'm afraid the bedroom is a mess. When I got back my first thought was to throw myself on the bed and cry. But the bed was not made to support this body's weight and I am afraid we shall both nave to sleep on the floor tonight.a aThat's all right.a Moira twisted around to look at him. aDo you know dragons cannot cry? No matter how sad they are, or how miserable or how frightened, they cannot cry.a Wiz felt the tears flowing down his own cheeks. aI guessaa He took a deep breath. aI guess I'll have to do the crying for both of us.a Then his head came up. aI swear I'll get you back. I don't care who's behind it, I'll get you back and make them pay!a aI know you will, love,a Moira said simply and snuggled her head into his lap.

Wiz wasn't sure how much either of them was lying for the other's benefit.

The late-rising winter sun was just a dull glow through the fog and low-hanging clouds, but already the programmers' workroom was full. Jerry was still in a coma, but Danny was hard at work at his desk. June was sitting in the corner with Ian more or less asleep in her lap. Malkin was in another corner, very ostentatiously touching up the edges of a double-edged dagger with a bit of fine-grained stone. Beside her lay a swordbelt with a cup-hiked rapier. Moira was off attending to what she delicately referred to as adragon business.a aAnything?a Wiz asked as he strode into the room.

Danny didn't take his eyes off the screens. aNot much. Mostly it just confirms what we knew last night. I've got a little more on how this spell works, but boy is it peculiar. I wish Jerry was here, this is more his kind of thing.a He turned to face his friend. aDo you want to take a crack at it?a aNot right now. I've got some other stuff to do.a Malkin tested the dagger's edge against her thumbnail, paring off a nearly transparent sc.r.a.ping. aLike what?a aLike a little scouting expedition. The one thing we do know is that the Enemy seems to be headquartered at the City of Night. The other thing we know is we need to know a lot more about him. So I intend to go poking around and see what I find.a aWhat you are likely to find, Sparrow, is more trouble than you can handle.a Wiz turned and saw Bal-Simba standing in the doorway. aThis enemy is dangerous enough on our ground,a he continued as he came into the room. aHe is likely to be far more dangerous on ground he has made his own.a The big wizard settled into his over-sized chair. aI met Moira in the corridor,a he said by way of explanation.

aShe said she believed you had formed a plan last night and begged me to discover it.a aIt's kinda hard to get any sleep when you're sharing a small bedroom with a dragon,a Wiz said.

aAnd it is not wise to plan great matters when you are fatigued,a Bal-Simba responded. 'This idea of yours does not seem to have much to recommend ita aRelax. I'm not going to take this character on alone. All I'm going to do is get the lay of the land so we'll have a better idea what we're dealing with.a Bal-Simba raised an eyebrow and said nothing.

aLook, you said it yourself. The Council won't move until we know more. We're likely to find out more by scouting this guy than sitting around here. I've been in those tunnels more than anyone else. Once when I rescued Moira from the Dark League, then when I was kidnapped back there and then when we went back to lay Bale-Zur.a aWe didn't go into the tunnels that time,a Danny said. Wiz glared at him.

aAnyway, the point is, I'm the logical one to scout it out because I know that place.a Bal-Simba's skeptical silence reminded Wiz just how untrue the last bit was. Wiz had seen only a tiny fraction of that giant maze and, being the kind who loses his car in a supermarket parking lot, he couldn't remember much of anything about the layout.

aAt some point we're going to have to scout, and nowas the best time. Besides, we can't just react. We've got to act and information is the only thing that will get the Council off dead center. Besides,a he added after a brief pause, aMoira doesn't have time to waste.a For a long while Bal-Simba said nothing. Then he sighed. aIf I could forbid you I would. But we both know I cannot and giving commands which you cannot enforce is unbecoming of a leader. So go if you must, and we will contrive without you.a Malkin stood up and jammed her dagger home in its sheath. aYou'll have to contrive without me as well.a Wiz shook his head. aSorry, this is a one-man show.a aI have a stake in this,a Malkin said, jerking her head back toward the room where Jerry lay. aBesides I've got a feeling you're going to need the best thief you can get.a aMeaning you?a Danny interjected.

Malkin spread her hands, smiled slightly and shrugged.

as.h.i.+ara does say she is as good as she herself was in her prime,a Bal-Simba put in.

as.h.i.+ara's not giving her enough credit,a Wiz said sourly, remembering Malkin's escapades as his aa.s.sistanta in the Dragon Marches.

aSo you need me. I'm coming.a Then her face softened and her eyes sparkled. aBesides, it should be a tremendous adventure.a And if it's not at first, you'll make sure it is. His previous experience had left him all too familiar with Malkin's taste for excitement. He looked over at Danny for support but June was beside him, clutching her husband's arm.

aI'm in this too,a he said.

June paled and bit her lip. Then she took Danny's arm. aAnd me,a she said simply.

aWhy doesn't that surprise me? Why don't we just take every wizard in the North?a aYou cannot do it alone, Sparrow,a Bal-Simba said mildly.

aThis is supposed to be a surgical operation. The bigger the team the harder to hide.a Malkin and June just looked at him.

aOkay,a Wiz sighed. aWe're four.a aFive, I think,a said Bal-Simba, looking over Wiz's shoulder.

Wiz looked hard at the big wizard aYou too?a aNo,a came a voice from behind him, ame.a

FIVE - A QUESTION OF COMPANY.

There was a dwarf in the doorway. A rather young dwarf with a large and very gaudy sword slung over his shoulder.

Wiz wasn't good at telling dwarves apart, but in all the World there was only one sword decorated in such hideously bad taste.

aGlandurg?a aI told you once, Wizard, the day would come when you would need doughty fighters. I promised you then-that on that day I would stand with you.a aUh, thanks,a Wiz muttered. He and Glandurg had never been formally introduced. That had something to do with the fact that Glandurg had spent most of their acquaintance trying to kill him. This had been the result of some kind of deal between Glandurg's uncle, a very minor dwarf king, and a gang of trolls. That had been patched over, but to say that Wiz wasn't thrilled to see the dwarf again was to put it mildly.

Glandurg reached over his shoulder and patted the gem-encrusted hilt of his weapon. 'The sword Blind Fury has dispatched one of your enemies. Now it shall sing in battle against your new foes.a That was the other thing. Blind Fury was not only decorated in eye-searingly gaudy style, it was enchanted and no one could withstand its blows. But like its present wielder the spell was seriously lacking in ept. The sword had indeed slain an enemy programmer-magician by slicing through a suit of heavy power armor like it was soggy toilet paper. However, the blow had been aimed at Wiz, and Craig, the programmer, had the misfortune to be standing next to him.

Wiz cast a look of mute appeal at Bal-Simba. The big wizard simply spread his hands. aIf you will excuse me, Sparrow, I have other matters to attend to.a With that he rose and left.

aNow then,a Malkin said, striding toward the center of the room, flipping her dagger into the air and catching it by the point, awe need to get this expedition organized.a Wiz sighed. This was going to be a long quest.

Two hours later Wiz met Bal-Simba at the turning of the corridor. The big wizard looked at Wiz as he fell in beside him and raised an eyebrow in unspoken question.

aI think,a Wiz said brightly, athat I may scream. In fact I'm on my way up to the battlements to do just that.a aI am not unfamiliar with the feeling.a aWant to join me?a aI have never found it a particularly productive exercise.a Wiz made a face. aHas it ever occurred to you that trying to exercise leaders.h.i.+p around this place is like herding cats?a aQuite recently,a his companion said dryly. aSparrow, you already know what I think of this enterprise.a aAlmost, I'm coming to share your view. Almost.a aConcerned about your companions?a aWouldn't you be?a He ticked them off on his fingers. aJune's crazy, Malkin's a kleptomaniac adrenaline junkie, Danny's still kind of wild and Glandurg is just plain dangerous.a Bal-Simba didn't argue. aEven so, they will be at your side in this business, and if you are determined to do this thing it were best if you counted their strengths rather than their weaknesses. None of them is without skills which you might need.a Wiz thought about it for a minute and looked up at the big wizard.

aDo you really think they'll help?a aThe point, Sparrow, is that worrying about them will not help either. A positive att.i.tude can give you an advantage and I think you will need every one you can find.a aAll I wanted was a simple little scouting expedition, to probe around the edges a little.a aLife does not always give us what we want,a Bal-Simba told him. aVery often we must choose to accept what it gives us with the best grace possible.a aIsn't the sun ever going to break through?a Wiz growled as he looked out the window of the castle's great hall toward the west.

aNot today,a Bal-Simba said, looking over his friends shoulder.

It was afternoon, but the low clouds and deepening fog had made the day even dimmer than the dawn. The sullen gloom beyond the window reflected Wiz's mood perfectly and that, he thought, was one thing he didn't need right now.

Most of the rest of the party shared his mood. Not entirely, of course. Malkin was bouncing around like a fox terrier, happy at the prospect of actiona"not to mention slitting a few throats and perhaps lifting some purses. Glandurg struck a grimly heroic pose. Danny was just grim and June was, well, June.

Wiz kept looking out the window. aA blizzard coming on?a aPerhaps. But I think something more than thata aWhat?a aI do not know,a Bal-Simba said, abut I suspect we shall find out after you are gone.a The way he said it indicated he didn't think they'd like what they found.

Wiz turned away from the window. aLook, I know you don't like this, but I have got to do what I can to save Moira.a Bal-Simba continued to look out the window. aYou must act according to your nature, Sparrow. Only consider what a victory it would be for the Enemy if something were to happen to you.a Wiz bit his lip. I'll be careful I promise.a As he said it, he rubbed his right ring finger, bare for the first time in months. Lake the others he was leaving his Ring of Protection behind. The spell, which froze the wearer into invulnerable immobility when facing a mortal threat, had not protected Moira. What's more, Wiz's experience in the Dragon Marches had proven that the spell could be used against the wearer by freezing that person through the simple expedient of keeping up the threat Wiz knew the rings wouldn't help on this expedition, but stilla Bal-Simba turned from the window. aThe time draws near.a The scouting parry all wore traveling cloaks and each of them carried a pack. They were armed and armored, each in his or her appropriate fas.h.i.+on. For Wiz and Danny that meant their wizard's staffs, since neither of them was proficient with this world's weapons. Glandurg had a mail byrnie to his k.n.o.bby knees and Blind Fury slung over his back Malkin had a s.h.i.+rt of light mail and her rapier and daggera"plus who-knows-what concealed about her person. June had her knife.

Since they would be sending themselves along the Wizard's Way rather than being sent there was no need to start from the great hall. However the cavernous hall had enough room for the people who had come to see them off, plus the dozen or so of the Mighty posted at strategic points around them in case something nasty tried to come in as they went out.

Among the others were Shauna, holding tight to a tearful Ian. And of course the dragon that was now the body of Wiz's wife.

Moira stepped close and pressed her scaly lips to his. aPlease be careful.a Wiz manfully ignored the dragon breath and hugged her as best he could. aHey, we're only going for a look-see, remember?a He looked around one last time. aOkay, I guess we're ready.a With that they took their places, close within the circle. Wiz raised his staff, gestured and spoke and with five small pops of displaced air they disappeared along the Wizard's Way into the stronghold of the Enemy.

SIX - DUNGEON REDUX.

abackslash light exe.a The darkness around them was replaced with a cold blue light and Wiz and the others got their first look at the dungeons beneath the City of Night.

For the others it was a first. Wiz had been in the multi-layered labyrinth beneath the city of the Dark League during the great magical battle that broke the Leagues power forever.

Not that he recognized a thing. His only memories were of endless tunnels of dirt and stone separated by doors of oak and corroded iron, and strange furtive movements in the shadows. He hadn't liked the place when he had been here then, he hadn't liked it when a remnant of the Dark League had kidnapped him back to the now-ruined city a while later and he certainly didn't like it now.