by Jean Rabe
"Kill it!" the enchantress ordered, pointing at the plant. The skeletons plodded forward, unmindful of the pollen bursts that quickly spurted out toward them.
The bony fingers of the undead skeletons tore into the vines, tugging at the pulpy tissue and pulling the tendrils free from the centaur and the druid. Brenna watched as the plant fought the skeletons, extricating its own roots and using them as whips against the undead creatures.
The plant's attacks were futile. While it could knock one or two of the skeletons down with a flailing vine, the undead creatures quickly rose again and began to beat upon the plant once more.
Galvin blinked his eyes, roused from the plant's power by the sound of clinking bones. For a second, he stared at the scene, then dashed forward with his blade.
It took nearly half an hour for the skeletons and Galvin to kill the plant. Even after it was dead, the undead creatures persisted in pulling it apart and pummeling it until Brenna called them off. Wynter had remained like a statue throughout the battle, oblivious to the plant and his rescuers.
Galvin picked his way through the pulpy mass to the centaur's side. The druid reached up and pushed the centaur's helmet from his head, revealing a bloody circular patch on Wynter's temple. Green ooze was mixed with the blood, indicating that the plant had made the wound.
"Wynter. Wynter!" Galvin urged. The druid ran his hand along his friend's long back, then nudged the centaur's arm.
The centaur slowly blinked and cast his face down sluggishly at the druid. "Who-who are you?" his deep voice queried.
"Wynter, don't you recognize us?" Brenna hurried to the centaur's side. "I'm Brenna, remember? This is your friend, Galvin. Are you all right?"
The centaur reached his hand up to his wounded head, his fingers feeling the blood. "Galvin? Brenna?" he repeated in a childish tone.
"Yes," the druid coaxed. "Don't you remember us?"
"Are we going to play? I'd like to play now."
"Wynter!" Galvin barked. "Snap out of this!"
"Don't yell. I'm sorry," the centaur apologized sheepishly. "Can we play later?"
"Yes, later," Brenna cut in. "But you have to come with us first. We have work to do. We'll play later."
The centaur seemed satisfied and reached his hand down to take Brenna's. The enchantress led him from the orchard, with Galvin and the skeletons falling in behind.
When they had rejoined the undead army, Brenna mounted her horse and looked back uncertainly at Galvin. The centaur stood behind the druid, a silly grin spreading across his face as he scrutinized one of his gauntlets.
"Let's get moving," the druid said in a businesslike manner, his concerned expression contrasting with his tone. "We'll have to watch Wynter closely; he's like a child. Gods, what made him wander off into that orchard?"
"The plant," the sorceress said simply. "He must have caught a whiff of that pollen."
"Then we need to be doubly careful. Maybe there are more of the things nearby." The druid glanced forlornly at his Harper friend.
"I've seen spells do things like this," Brenna offered as she scrutinized Wynter's face. "They make people feebleminded, cause them to loose their sanity, become useless. The spells are usually only temporary."
"And this…?"
"I don't know," she said uncertainly. "If he doesn't come to his senses, maybe we can find someone in Amruthar to help him."
"And if not?"
Brenna frowned and shifted position in her saddle.
The procession resumed its march toward Maligor's tower.
High in a tower room, Maligor was too preoccupied to magically cast his vision about looking for the reactions of others to his gnoll troops. Had he not been so preoccupied, he might have received a hint that Szass Tam was sending an undead army to Amruthar. He was taking for granted that the gnolls' presence was causing the city's wizards to add to their own defenses. He hoped all the nearby Red Wizards were paying attention to his gnolls.
Delirious with himself, excited about this night's activities and his impending control of the Thayvian gold mines, Maligor was unable to stand still. He paced in his library, twirling a long strand of black hair around and around his right index finger until it hung alongside his face in a limp spiral. He wanted to relax… needed to relax. But he also needed his wits about him, so he kept away from the wine cabinet-a most difficult task.
He continued to pace, mentally rehearsing his impending sermon to the gnolls. He had decided last night that he would address them all prior to their upcoming battle. Asp was out of the picture as far as his gnolls were concerned. The spirit naga had served her function in the army, training the gnolls well. The army was to her credit, Maligor forced himself to admit. She was so power-hungry that she saw disciplined troops as a way to improve her own image and increase her standing. And the Red Wizard was certain she believed that taking another wizard's land for Maligor meant she would be tossed some juicy scraps.
"Simpleton," he said, thinking of the beautiful naga, who was oblivious to what was transpiring around her. He would enjoy putting Asp in her place while using her to complete the greatest scheme in Thay's recent history. Nagas were usually creatures who dwelled in ruins, caverns, and other such desolate places. The mines would fit her well and remind her of her place in the workings of the country.
"What is going on?" Asp hissed, slithering through the doors she had forcefully thrown open, leaving two startled guards shaking behind her. "The gnolls aren't following my orders! They refuse to march! The army was to move this morning!"
Maligor glared at the guards for allowing his meditations to be interrupted. Then he turned his anger on Asp.
"What is going on is none of your concern, naga!" the Red Wizard barked. "I don't take into my confidence snake-women who have no respect for me, who burst into my room uninvited. I warned you before about your audacity. Now you will suffer for it. Because of your recent tantrums, I have decided to take the army away from you. You won't be leading them anywhere."
"Nooooo!" Asp's scream cut through the air like the cries of one of the wizard's tortured prisoners. "Maligor, no! You can't mean this! Look at everything I've done for you!"
Her shrill voice drew the attention of the guards, who entered the room prepared to defend Maligor. A stern glance from the wizard kept them at the ready, yet they did not move. In the hall beyond, the Red Wizard heard the pounding of footsteps. More guards were coming to his aid.
"The gnolls! They're battle-ready! I'm responsible for that! I've taught them how to fight, how to defend themselves, how to wage war with something besides their filthy claws! You have one of the best-trained armies in all of Thay! And it's my doing. My doing, Maligor!"
Maligor smiled thinly at her tirade and let her rant on until she was nearly out of breath. Her once porcelain-pale face was red with rage.
"You know nothing about war!" she ranted, spitting out the words, her reeking saliva spattering on Maligor's robes. "You can't take away the glory that is rightfully mine!"
More guards streamed into the room, a dozen of them with their longswords drawn. They held their position and watched Maligor and Asp, waiting for the naga to attack him.
"I've earned the right to lead them! You can't take that away from me! Maligor, please!" Asp had difficulty forcing the last word out from her throat; it made her appear weak in front of the Red Wizard's guards. "Don't do this to me."
"Don't worry, Asp," Maligor said in soothing tones that coaxed some of the pink away from her cheeks. "Don't think that I would take all of that away from you.
"I've already done it."
"Nooo!" she screamed again, rising on her snake's tail to her full height.
In response, half the guards rushed forward, grabbing her hands and tail. She struggled, sending two of them flying across the polished marble floor, then stopped, knowing that even if she defeated the guards, Maligor could kill her.
"Leave us," the Red Wizard ordered the guards. "But stay close at hand in the
event the snake-woman presents a problem."
Asp's chest rose and fell quickly, and her eyes narrowed in hatred to paper-thin slits. She eased back on her tail so she would be shorter than the wizard. It was the only token of respect she was willing to afford him at the moment.
The wizard paced in front of her in slow, measured steps, then turned abruptly and his hands shot forth from his robe. A green bolt of light ran from the middle finger on his left hand to the chamber's door. The door frame glowed softly.
"These words are not for the guards. The spell will keep them from hearing anything," Maligor explained. "My plans are for your ears only. It is time to let you in on my true goal."
Asp blanched, and her eyes widened with a dawning of comprehension. "But the gnolls…?" she began.
"Are just a ruse," he finished. "Although I actually am quite pleased you trained them so well. They definitely are a convincing deception."
The spirit naga gritted her teeth. "You used me! How could you have let me put everything into training the army, to let me think I would lead them in battle? How could you do this to me? I'm loyal to you, and not without power. I thought you cared about me."
"My dearest Asp, it's true that I care about you-as much as I am capable of caring. And I certainly care about your abilities."
He padded to the room's largest window; it afforded an exquisite view of the land on which the gnolls were encamped.
"They do look magnificent." He spoke to her as he continued to watch his soldiers mill about. "And… perhaps they will be successful fighting a lesser Red Wizard, and I will win all the way around. Although if they win, I have promised Szass Tam a share of the spoils."
"Szass Tam is involved in this?"
"No, not really. He's just interested. He's been watching the gnolls, and I led him to believe the gnolls were going after someone's land. I think I recall offering him half if he didn't interfere."
"Then if I am not to lead the gnolls, what do you intend for me?" she hissed softly.
"You will play a role," he stated evenly, still watching his troops.
"And if I choose not to?" she posed nervously.
"You have no choice-at least not if you wish to live and have any power in Thay. I need you, Asp, and I don't want to kill you, because in a way I am fond of you. But if you won't help me willingly, I can find a magical way to force your cooperation. Then when my plan is finished, I will have to eliminate you."
"Of course," she agreed. The spirit naga knew Maligor couldn't afford to release someone who had been in his confidence for several years. "It seems I have no choice. I will help you. But I do not have to like it. Or you."
The Red Wizard moved away from the windows, drew the curtains closed, and strode to a stiff-backed, carved wooden chair. He unceremoniously sat in it; his younger body didn't require being pampered by soft cushions. Asp slinked to his side like a petulant child.
"It will be glorious, beautiful Asp. My plan is golden." He straightened himself, placing his shoulders squarely against the chair back. "Do you know much about the tharchions in Thay? Their influence, positions, appearances?"
"I know about some of them, Maligor-from reputation and pictures only. I am more knowledgeable about the other Red Wizards and their forces."
Maligor noticed that the naga had dropped the "my lord" when she addressed him. The lack of respect bothered him, and he would correct her attitude later. For the time being, he would let her be, knowing she had lost enough pride and dignity for one day.
"There is one tharchion in particular to concern ourselves with. He is nearly forty and squat, but he has a broad and sturdy frame. His body fits his place of work. The tharchion has a husky, barrel-like chest. Although he is clean-shaven on his head and face, wisps of black hair can be seen under his arms and just above his breastbone." Maligor's description was detailed and precise.
"Despite the tharchion's high position in Thay, he chooses to paint his head, like many of the women in Amruthar and Eltabar, rather than suffer permanent tattoos. The principal design on his head is a pale orange, four-taloned hand."
"The symbol of Malar, the Beastlord," Asp interjected.
"He wears other symbols, too," Maligor added, "but I'm afraid he was sweating rather profusely, afraid of my gnolls and of being in my dungeon. Unfortunately the paint ran and I couldn't make them out."
"You have a tharchion in your dungeon?" The naga was astonished. She was keen on Thayvian politics and goings-on, far more knowledgeable than she would admit to Maligor. But she hadn't heard of any tharchion disappearing.
"Had. When I was finished with him, the gnolls ate him. His bones are scattered along the escarpment. So, no, I don't have a tharchion in my dungeons. Now, to continue with my description.
"His clothes were well made and in good repair, but they were dirty, covered with dust and powdered rock from walking about in the mines."
"The tharchion the Council of Zulkirs assigned to oversee Thay's gold mines! You killed him?"
"I need you to look like him." Maligor waited a moment to let Asp absorb everything. "In fact, I need you to look just like him-close enough that you could fool his wife, the slaves under his charge, and the mine workers. I know you have the ability to do that."
Asp glared at him. "There's been no news of the tharchion's disappearance. Someone has to know."
"I don't think so," Maligor continued, pleased with himself. "You see, the council thinks he's outside of Thay. Well, his bones are, at least. Let's see what you can do."
The spirit naga backed away from his chair and concentrated. It was difficult for her because her mind was filled with questions. The transformation took longer than usual. All spirit nagas possessed the innate ability to change their appearance to human or demi-human bodies, although Asp only did so on Maligor's orders. She found the forms distasteful and at a disadvantage because they had legs instead of a tail.
Her beautiful features dissipated, running from her body like melting wax. She stood before Maligor a faceless, limbless column of flesh that began to take on new features. A head emerged from the column, bald and with pudgy cheeks. Eyelashes sprouted from the flesh over emerging, round eyes. Bulges appeared on the face and molded themselves into ears, a nose, and pale, bulbous lips. An age spot materialized below her left cheek-Asp remembered seeing that on a painting of the tharchion.
The transformation continued down the length of her body. A chest formed and became broader. Flab appeared along her midsection, and patches of black hair sprouted just above the breastbone and beneath the figure's flabby arms. The column of flesh separated below the man's groin, becoming stocky legs ending in short, wide feet.
The physical changes made, the naga created clothes-plain but functional, trappings she imagined someone like the tharchion would wear in the mines. The clothes looked like cloth and would feel like material to the touch, but because they were part of her body, they could not be removed. If necessary, she could polymorph them to appear different-sweat-stained perhaps, or of fine quality if the tharchion had to meet important guests.
"Excellent!" Maligor crowed with delight. "That's very close. You'll have to make a few adjustments here and there. His earlobes hung lower, I recall, and his fingers were shorter and thicker. I'll give you a mental image of the man in a little while, and you can make the necessary changes before we leave."
The naga had recovered a fraction of her pride and enough courage to pursue answers to her questions. "Tell me what this is about, Maligor. I know now it has something to do with the mines, but if you take the gnolls up there, they won't have a chance. Every wizard in the area will put his forces against you, especially the other zulkirs. The mines have been set up so no one wizard can control them. Your gnolls won't have a chance."
"You don't listen well, do you, dearest Asp? I told you the gnolls are after a wizard's land. There are enough gnolls to attract the attention of the nearby wizards. The gnolls will keep everyone occupied while we make our bid fo
r the mine. No one will even notice."
Then Maligor told her of the multitude of darkenbeasts that would leave at dark when all eyes were on the gnolls.
"We'll leave with them, you and I. It will be truly glorious."
"A wonderful plan," Asp admitted with a hint of sarcasm. "But you will eventually be found out. If you take control of the mines-and even if you set me up as the tharchion-someone will notice when the gold goes into your pockets and the country gets nothing. Then you'll be undone."
Maligor beamed. He had been waiting to unravel the meat of his scheme.
"The country will be undone. But it will take time. Dear Asp, if everything goes well-and I am certain it will-no one in Thay will be the wiser that there has been any change in the operation of the mine. You see, with you in place, business will go on as usual, and the country will continue to have a steady stream of gold filling its coffers. However, during the next several years, we will skim the mined gold-in increasing amounts as the next decade draws to a close. You will claim that the veins are beginning to thin out, and all the slaves and workers who will be in my control will agree with you. And if any zulkirs care to investigate, we will use magic to hide certain rich tunnels. They will believe you, and we will become rich.
"Nor do I intend to stop there. You see, the wizard Maligor will not have made any bids for power during those years, possibly crushed from the defeat of his gnoll troops in their attempt to wrestle land from a young illusionist. Of course, I will have to fabricate another story if they really do take the land. Perhaps the wizard Maligor was satisfied with that expansion and has no plans for any other."
Asp continued to listen, fascinated by the scheme that was sounding more and more plausible.
"However, the wizard Maligor will have been researching magic-alchemical spells that will turn lead into gold. The research will be successful, using our pocketed gold as proof. And my alchemical achievement will be a boon to Thay's economy. The country will have gold once more. Of course, to get the gold, other Red Wizards will have to come under my influence. In the end, I will be the most powerful Red Wizard in Thay. Nothing will stand in my way."
