Pathfinder Tales: Lord of Runes (30 page)

“Let’s get back there,” I said.

There was a surprise waiting for me. Everybody except for the boss stood around a table, leaning over books they’d left open.

At first I thought someone new had showed up, an elf standing a full head taller than Janneke. Her eyes were a lightning-scarred sky, her skin the battered bronze of storm light at dusk. Even though I knew she had to be the dragon, she looked soft enough to touch.

Svannostel turned as we approach. She raised an eyebrow and looked right at me. “I suppose there’s something to be said for consistency of purpose.”

“I didn’t do anything.”

“It’s what you were thinking of doing.”

I tried not to think about her soft blue lips and white hair, light as corn silk. Svannostel’s eyes widened. I was only making it worse.

“Come on, I can’t help it. Why don’t you look like a dragon instead?”

“My claws are hard on books.”

“What were you thinking?” Zora poked me in the arm.

“Never mind,” Svannostel and I said together.

“Say, Radovan,” said Eando. He pushed a few pages across the table at me. “Would you mind taking these notes to Jeggare?”

I looked at the parchment. He and Illyria had made some notes for the boss. “He might have questions for you.”

“He’s less likely to tear a strip off of you,” said Illyria.

“Such fearful little creatures!” Svannostel snatched up the pages and walked across the library toward the boss.

Eando looked after her, but I caught him glancing at me before he pretended to go back to reading. Illyria soon did the same. Kazyah and Janneke just sat there trying not to look like they’d stopped talking when I showed up.

Svannostel came back a few minutes later, a blue blush on her cheeks. She was mad as hell. “No mere half-elf dares speak to me in that manner. To be so reckless, he is farther gone than we thought. The stones of the Crown activated as soon as I drew near. I could feel the rings humming with power. He has charged them with spells.”

Kazyah stood. “Then it is time.”

“Time for what?” I said.

“Radovan,” said Illyria. She came to me and put her hand on my arm. “Come with me. Let’s all retire to the gallery so as not to disturb the count.”

I shrugged off her arm, but I followed her. We all did. I took a seat on one of the benches. Zora sat next to me, but the others formed a little half circle.

“We know how loyal you are to Count Jeggare,” said Illyria. “We need you to help us help him.”

“Forget it.”

“You don’t even know what we’re suggesting.”

“Whatever it is, you should tell it to him. I don’t like this secret meeting stuff.”

“He’ll never find a way to break the curse in the
Tome
, or either of his other cursed books for that matter,” said Eando. “He’s not even searching anymore. He’s spent all this time trying to learn the spells.”

“Good!” I said. “Maybe one of them can destroy the book.”

“You know he won’t destroy the book,” said Svannostel. Her face darkened. She grew taller, wings unfolding from her shoulders, what had looked like patterns on her gown spreading out to become her scales. In a moment, she towered over us. “He is giving in to its seduction. He will become the runelord!”

“Then get the book away from him.”

“No one can do that,” said the dragon. “You’ve seen how it hovers near him. The book is bound to its master.”

“But the boss took Eando’s book away.”

“Not exactly,” said Eando. “I could feel it back in Kaer Maga, when we each held one. It wasn’t Jeggare taking it from me. It was the
Codex
calling to the
Grimoire
.”

“Besides,” said Illyria, “if it’s true that Varian is descended from Runelord Zutha—”

“It is true,” said Kazyah. “I asked my ancestors.”

“—then even a more powerful wizard might not be able to take it from him.”

“Besides,” added Eando, “there’s no fourth part of the book. It’s complete.”

“But we do know that Professor Ygresta escaped the curse through death,” Illyria said.

“Sure, but he had someone ready to bring him back from the dead.”

“So do we,” said the dragon. She arched her neck over Kazyah, pretty much the one thing I could imagine making the shaman look small. “The Night Bear has scrolls.”

“The oracle was entrusted with them in case a great hero of our people should fall,” said Kazyah. “He passed them to me.”

Once I’d seen a cleric use a magic scroll to bring a fallen general back to life on a battlefield. It was a rare and expensive spell, so I knew they’d never do one for me. The boss was rich and important back home, but we were a long way from there. I sensed a catch. “The boss isn’t a great hero of your people.”

“He shall be,” said Kazyah. “If he can destroy the book and ensure that Runelord Zutha never returns to rule our lands, the Skoan-Quah will sing of his deeds.”

The boss might like the singing-his-praises part, but I wasn’t sold. “I don’t like the idea. I’m his goddamned bodyguard! The whole point of my job is not to let him die.”

“Only long enough to break the curse,” said Illyria.

“Fine. Tell it to him.”

“He won’t hear it from us.”

“You think I can talk him into letting you kill him?”

Suddenly, none of them could look me in the eye, and I realized what they were saying.

“You want
me
to kill him?”

“It would be quicker,” said Eando. “Easier for him.”

“I would do it myself,” said Svannostel. “But it would be kinder and, frankly, less destructive to his corpse if you did it.”

“You think you can take him now?” I snapped. “You said yourself, he’s powered the rings and stones. I’m thinking maybe you’re afraid of him.”

“I am not afraid,” said Svannostel. “I am only sorry that a man who seemed noble has fallen to such a dreadful curse. When I kill him, it will be with regret. It is a kindness to offer you the opportunity to do it yourself.”

“You can all go straight to hell.”

“Indeed,” said an eerie voice even higher than the dragon’s head. “And if you seek to harm me, I shall speed you on your way.”

The boss came into view as he let go of his invisibility spell. He glided down from the gallery ceiling, clutching the
Gluttonous Tome
to his chest. Rings glowed on every finger. The Azlanti stones spun faster and wider around his head. Some threw rippling fields of energy around his body. Others twitched like war dogs eager to slip the leash.

Eando put a hand on his sword and stepped back. “Jeggare, be reasonable.”

“You entreat me to reason while conspiring to assassinate me?”

“We only want to free you from the curse,” said Illyria. “Kazyah was going to restore you to life.”

“Is that what she is preparing to do?”

Kazyah spun on her heel, dragging her earth breaker in a circle around herself. Pebbles and dust jumped from the rock beneath her feet.

“Drop the book, Count,” said Svannostel. “Remove the rings and stones. Then we can discuss our options.”

“I will never bow my head for execution.”

Arni came running from the library, hackles raised. He stopped beneath the boss, looking up at him and back at the rest of us, confused.

“There may be another way—” said Eando.

“I heard it all,” the boss said. “I heard you implore my henchman to betray me.”

“Now, boss…”

“Fear not, Radovan. I also heard your refusal. Let us deal with these betrayers so I can return to my preparations.”

“Stay back, Radovan.” Illyria pointed at the boss. “I’m sorry, Varian.”

The next words out of her mouth were magic, but the boss was quicker. Before Illyria could finish the spell, a red tendril burst from her cheek and sewed her lips shut.

“I see now why you favor that spell,” said the boss. His mouth twisted in a sneer.

Janneke raised her crossbow.

“Back off!” I put myself between her the boss. “We don’t need a fight.”

Eando feinted to one side before dashing in on the other side. He hissed, “Radovan, help us with—” before I put my heel in his breadbasket.

The boss started casting a spell of his own, one I’d never heard before. Before he was done, Kazyah finished casting hers.

A huge lump of bone-filled earth and stone rose up beneath Kazyah, bigger than any of the statues. Its eyes glowed like molten amber. Kazyah balanced on its shoulders, raised her earth breaker, and pointed at the boss. “Take him!”

Svannostel opened her mouth. Lightning blinded us all. When I could see again, a statue behind the boss was scorched black—except for a circle where he’d been hovering. One of his Azlanti stones skittered like a drop of water across a hot skillet, but it kept circling his head.

Svannostel roared. Inside the cavern, the sound was so loud I expected to feel blood trickling from my ears.

Amaranthine squawked in sympathy as Illyria used a sharp knife to cut the stitches that bound her mouth shut. She sputtered blood and gasped for breath.

Janneke’s bow snapped. The cylinder flew toward the boss. A shimmering field deflected it. The cylinder broke open, spilling an empty net to the floor. Without missing a beat, Janneke fired two bolts. They bounced off the boss’s magic shield.

The boss finished his spell. Even as the stone spirit marched toward him, a bony arm broke out of its body to clutch Kazyah’s leg. The fleshless dead began climbing out. One after another, they fell like new-foaled calves or clambered up toward the shaman. Hunks of earth and stone fell away, but that didn’t stop the elemental. It moved toward the boss.

“Radovan, look out!”

I dodged aside, but Zora had already tripped Eando with her flagstaff. He stumbled across the place where I’d just been. I hooked his ankle, and he went down again.

Arnisant barked and jumped against the earth spirit. “Don’t hurt the dog,” said Kazyah. “Grab his master.”

I moved toward the boss, but my first step went right out from under me. I slid across a slick mess on the floor.

“Stay down, Radovan,” said Eando. Still on the floor, he’d just finished some magic gesture creating the greasy stuff. “Stay out of this, if you won’t help us.”

Kazyah’s earth spirit loomed over the boss, but it stopped about five feet short of grabbing him. The rocky thing had no face, but it still looked confused.

The boss clenched a fist, and a yellow gem flared on one of his rings. The spirit shuddered, clouds of dust pouring off of its limbs. The orange glow of its eyes turned bloody red.

The boss pointed at Kazyah, who was still standing on top of the elemental. “Crush her!”

Now obeying the boss, the elemental grabbed Kazyah by the leg. Surprised, she swung her earth breaker a moment too late. The spirit threw her across the room. She hit the wall. We all heard the sharp crack of her bear hat.

“Boss, don’t!”

I stayed low to keep from slipping on Eando’s grease, but I had the big knife in one hand and a couple darts in the other. Illyria was casting another spell. I threw the darts, but I held back at the last instant. None of them even went close to hitting her.

“Are you with me, Radovan? Or are you against me?”

“We don’t need to kill anybody.”

“With or against?!”

“Desna weeps!” I choked. “I’m with you.”

Another blast of lightning hit the boss, and this time his shield didn’t hold. He fell to the ground, and for a second his halo of stones sagged. He stood up from a crouch, his clothes singed and his hair smoking, his face scorched red and black. Still holding the
Tome
, he drew the Shadowless Sword and looked up at Svannostel. His purple eyes gleamed dark as hers blazed bright.

They both called out spells.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Janneke raise her double crossbow. I threw a few stars her way. They missed the bow string, but they sank into the wood. I pointed at her and said, “Don’t!”

The dragon finished her spell. A magical weight settled on me. Arni wobbled as he felt it too. My limbs moved like I was floating in molasses. Svannostel had slowed me and the dog, but the boss didn’t seem the least bit bothered.

He gestured with his sword, and a black ray shot into the dragon’s breast. She trumpeted in pain and surprise. Her wings slumped, like the ray had ripped something out of her.

Thrusting his sword forward, he screamed a magic word. Everybody else screamed with him. Their bodies twitched and folded in pain.

Kazyah screamed too, but her voice sounded like a rockslide. I caught a glimpse of her bear cloak vanishing as she transformed herself into an earth spirit to fight the one the boss turned against her.

Illyria shook a wand at the boss. Blue-black bolts shot toward him. With a wave of his hand and a flash from one of his rings, he threw them back at her. She cried out as they sank into her chest. She stumbled back and fell over a stone bench.

Amaranthine flew at the boss. Arni jumped up and woofed, but he stopped short of biting the drake.

With a casual swipe, the boss slapped the drake out of the air.

“Don’t hurt her!” choked Illyria, still doubled over in pain.

“Boss, let’s get out of here,” I said. “You’ve got the book. We don’t need anything else here. You’ve won. It’s over.”

“Nothing is over until I am satisfied.” He took a step toward Amaranthine and raised his blade.

Arnisant stood over the drake. He whimpered, but he didn’t budge.

“Arnisant, move away!” The boss raised his sword.

“Boss, you don’t want to do that.” I let a riffle scroll slip from my sleeve into my hand. Thumbing the edge, I felt the cold magic run up one arm and down the other. On the way across, it left a chill in my heart. I stepped in front of Arni.

The boss pushed me aside.

“Boss.” I put a hand on his shoulder, steady as a rock. My grip shifted on the big knife.

He turned, eyes wide in anger. “How dare you?”

Guided by the magic of the riffle scroll, my hand drove the big knife straight into his heart.

The boss opened his mouth, but only a dark red bubble came out. For a second his eyes locked onto mine. Then they shifted focus to something much farther away.