The Doom Brigade
Page 31
The dwarves gripped their swords and advanced on the chest.
The eggs hatched. The dwarves couldn’t count them all, but there must have been a hundred tiny draconians trying to stand on wobbly legs, their tiny wings, still wet, clinging to their backs. At the sight of the dwarves, the draconians opened their mouths, begging for food. The spell which had protected them all these years was broken. They were helpless, vulnerable as any other newborn.
The dwarves lifted their weapons.
“Freeze!” came a deep, grating voice from the behind them. “Don’t move a muscle. The first dwarf who so much as twitches is a dead dwarf.”
The dwarves halted, weapons wavering in their hands. They looked back over their shoulders.
Fifteen draconians stood at the entrance to the chamber. Each draconian held a sword in his hand.
“Back off,” said the big draconian, who appeared to be their leader.
Vellmer snarled in anger, ready to defy them. He faced around, his sword in his hand, holding the sword above the hatchlings.
“Do your damndest, draco! We’re trapped down here, we’re dead dwarves anyway! But I’ll see you fiends dead at least!”
“You’re not trapped,” was the unexpected reply. “Throw down your weapons. Back away from the chest. Leave the hatchlings to us, and we’ll show you the way out.”
“Stop! Vellmer! You fool!” Selquist hurled himself at the dwarf. Grabbing hold of Vellmer’s sword arm, Selquist wrestled the weapon out of his hand. “Did you hear what they said? They’ll show us the way out!”
Slowly, the other dwarves lowered their weapons. Reluctantly, they turned to face their longtime foes.
“How can we trust you?” Vellmer asked the big draconian.
“Trust them, trust them!” Selquist whispered in his ear.
Vellmer ignored him. “We give up our weapons, and you just kill us all, feed us to your evil spawn.”
“My name is Kang,” said the draconian. “I command the First Engineer Regiment. We are tired of killing. We want only to take these, the children of our race, and live in peace. I give you my word.”
Vellmer sneered. “You’ll live in peace all right. You’ll live in peace until these lizard-women grow up and you mate with them, and then there’ll be more of you lizard creatures and you’ll overrun the valley. And what will happen to us then? What will happen to our people?”
The other dwarves mumbled low-voiced agreement.
“It would be better for our people if we all died down here,” Vellmer said grimly. “Every one of us, rather than see that terrible day come about. And, Master Kang, if you’re as honest as you claim, you can’t tell me it wouldn’t.”
The big draconian was silent, thoughtful. The dwarves were grimly silent, ready to fulfill their leader’s promise and die. The other draconians were silent, ready to kill the dwarves, if ordered. All that could be heard was the squeaking and chirping of the hungry hatchlings.
“You are right, dwarf,” said Kang, his voice heavy. “I couldn’t guarantee that what you have said will not come to pass. I know my people. By nature we are ruthless and aggressive. We would want to expand and you would be in our way.” He lifted his sword, took a step forward.
The other draconians crowded behind him.
Vellmer started to edge near the hatchlings. He could probably kill a great many before the draconians jumped him.
Selquist saw all his hopes, his dreams, his castle in Palanthas, crashing down around him. He made one last desperate attempt.
“You could move!” He blurted out the first thought that occurred to him.
Kang halted, gazed at him. “What did you say?”
“You could move out of the valley!” Selquist repeated. The idea suddenly seemed a good one. Not surprising, since he’d thought of it. “Yes, move! Somewhere. Anywhere. North, maybe?”
Another draconian, standing behind Kang, said, “That’s an idea, sir. What with the war going on, amid all the confusion, we could slip away northward through the mountains without anyone finding us.”
“There’s lots of prime real estate available, especially around Neraka. Abandoned cities, just waiting for some enterprising person—such as yourself—to walk in and lay claim to them. Urban renewal programs. Maybe you could get a grant! You could expand all you liked! Well, is it a deal?” Selquist asked eagerly.
Kang considered, then said, “Yes, it is a deal.”
“Vellmer?” Selquist asked.
Vellmer wrestled with the concept a moment, then said grudgingly, “If they’ll agree to move out of the valley, it’s a deal.”
The dwarves lowered their weapons, stepped back away from the chest. The draconians lowered their weapons, stepped away from the dwarves.
Selquist, who had been holding his breath until he had nearly turned blue, was able to breathe again.
Kang walked over, bent to look at the newly born draconians. Cupping his hand, he carefully lifted one from its nest. Bits of eggshell clung to the baby. The little beast squirmed in his hands and opened her mouth to be fed. He gently put the female back into the chest with her sisters.
“The fire dragons are destroyed,” Kang said. “Our Queen willing, this means that the heroes will be able to defeat Chaos, and the world will be safe. For the first time in our history, there is hope for our race. When we die, there will be young to take our place. Now that we have a future, we can begin to take joy in the present.”
Other draconians came up behind their leader. Reaching down, they picked up the tiny hatchlings. The babies nestled against the adult draconians, seeking their warmth.
“Look, sir,” said one. “I think she likes me already!”
The big draconian nodded, too choked with emotion to speak.
Even the dwarves were touched, it seemed. They shuffled their feet and looked askance at each, gruffly pretending that they didn’t care, but all the while watching with smiles which they were careful to hide in their beards. The draconians hadn’t been bad neighbors. Not really. And they’d be much better neighbors a few hundred miles away.
The draconians, gently and with great fondness, tucked the babies back into their nest of straw.
Kang gave orders for the disposition of the chest. Two of the draconians hefted it.
“Prepare to move out,” Kang said. “You dwarves can follow us.”
Vellmer stood scratching his beard, looking somewhat embarrassed. He then said, abruptly, “I’m sorry about burning down your village.”
“You are?” Kang was surprised.
“Yes,” continued the brew master. “And if, in the future, you ever need any dwarf spirits … well … just let me know, and I’ll make you a fair price.”
“Thank you for the offer, sir,” said Kang gravely, “but we have new responsibilities now. I don’t think we’ll be needing any more dwarf spirits. If we do, however,” he hastened to add, not to be outdone in politeness, “we know that yours are the best, and we’ll be sure to trade with you.”
Vellmer flushed, pleased with the compliment.
“The secret’s in the mushrooms,” he told Kang, as they walked together out of the treasure chamber. “You’ve got to pick them at midnight. And then you …”
He continued on down the passageway, accompanying the draconian, enlightening Kang on the fine art of distillation.
The rest of the dwarves packed up, prepared to leave, carrying as much treasure as they could possibly manage and then some. Pestle could barely move; he jingled when he walked. Auger, draped all over in precious gems, was endeavoring to decide which valuable necklace to give to which girlfriend. All of them were nearly bent double with the load, except Selquist.
“Auger?” he began. “Would you give me a hand—”
“No,” said Auger. “You can carry your own this time.”
“Pestle,” Selquist tried his other friend. “It’s not much—”
“Absolutely not. I’ve got all I can manage.”
“Mortar.
It’s my back. I think I wrenched it—”
“Pooh!” Mortar said and walked off.
Selquist stood in deep thought for a moment, then approached a draconian.
“What’s your name? Gloth? Well, Gloth, you’re a big strapping draco, aren’t you? I bet you could pick up that chest of steel coins without any effort whatsoever and probably carry it all the way to Palanthas without ever feeling the strain. Now, I happen to know of this abandoned city that would be perfect for you and your new little brood. It’s southwest of Nordmaar. You carry that chest for me and I’ll tell you how to get there.
“You see,” Selquist continued, “I have this map …
About the Authors
This is the first joint novel for TSR, Inc. by Margaret Weis and Don Perrin. Weis is the co-creator of the DRAGONLANCE® Saga epic series. Weis’s two DRAGONLANCE trilogies and her hardcover sequel, Dragons of Summer Flame, all written in collaboration with Tracy Hickman, have sold more than thirteen million copies worldwide and have been translated into twelve languages.
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