by Dan Willis
With the Disir off balance, Bradok brought his sword down onto its back with both hands. The blade bit into the armor, and black ichor spewed out from the wound. The Disir kicked out, catching Bradok in the gut and sending him flying into a column of rock.
Bradok gasped for air as he struggled to his feet. The Disir turned, lurching under the burden of its wounds. Bradok brought his sword up just as the monster collapsed, its limbs pawing the sand. There it lay, bleeding to death from its wounds.
“No time for that,” Much said as Bradok paused to catch his breath. “There’s still more of-look out!”
Much shoved Bradok hard, causing him to stumble away. In the sand, right where he’d been, a Disir blade arm had gouged a trench in the sand. The creature whirled to focus on Much, who was backing away. The old dwarf gripped a short sword, but Bradok doubted Much or his weapon was any match for the hulking monster.
“Here,” Bradok yelled, clanging his sword down on the stone of a nearby column. “Over here, you big dumb bug!”
The Disir turned and, with a speed Bradok didn’t fully expect, lashed out with its swordlike arms. Though its arms pointed downward, they were longer than one would expect. Bradok barely had time to duck behind the column of rock before the chitinous arm slammed into it, gouging a deep cut out of the stone.
Bradok hacked at the arm, chopping off the tip. The creature retaliated, reaching around the column and slashing Bradok’s left arm, driving the tip of its remaining good arm into the dwarf’s side. Bradok cried out with pain and fell backward with the force of the blow. His sword went spinning out of his grasp as the Disir rose above him, ready to impale him.
Bradok rolled as the creature’s gleaming arm came down. Pain whipped across the side of his face as the arm slammed into the sand, grazing him. Blood ran into his eyes, blinding him.
The Disir pulled its arm back for another strike. Frantically wiping the blood from his eyes, Bradok scrambled back. A shadow swept past him; then Thurl was there, wielding Bradok’s sword. The Daergar assassin easily parried the Disir’s arm, knocking it aside and running the enchanted blade straight through the creature’s torso.
The Disir reared back, and Thurl jerked the blade out of its chest. The dying creature lunged at Thurl, its massive maw spread wide. Thurl sidestepped the creature with a grace that seemed impossible. As the Disir fell, Thurl brought Bradok’s sword around and struck off its head.
Bradok tried to rise, but a piercing pain in his side sent him crumpling to the ground. His shirt and cloak were soaked in blood. Bradok unclipped his cloak and wadded it up, pressing it against the wound in his side to contain the bleeding.
“Stay down,” Thurl said as two more Disir emerged from the hole in the ground. “I’m starting to enjoy this.”
Thurl advanced on the creatures easily. When the blind monsters lashed out at him, he methodically cut off their limbs, literally disarming them with repeated slashes until he could step in and deliver a fatal blow. He moved with the smoothness of a dancer performing an intricate ballet of death. Occasionally a Disir would strike him a glancing blow, leaving a trail of red over his scarred flesh, but his wounds were superficial.
“Lay down,” Tal said to Bradok, suddenly at his side. Without waiting for cooperation, he pushed Bradok down hard and tore open his shirt.
“Hold this to his head,” Tal said to someone Bradok couldn’t see. “He’ll lose that ear but it can’t be helped. I have to tend this other wound first.”
“What about the Disir?” Bradok croaked, wincing at the pain as Tal cleaned his wound.
“They’re all dead,” Rose’s voice answered.
“It looks like it was a small scouting party,” Thurl added, coming into Bradok’s vision. “Only a dozen or so.”
“They’ll be missed, then,” Bradok said. “They’ll send more to find out what happened to the scouts.”
“Not for hours, if we’re lucky,” Thurl said.
Tal pressed his silver flask up to Bradok’s mouth. “That means we have to hurry and get you patched up and ready to travel,” he said. “Drink this.”
Bradok tried to protest, but Tal forced the flask into his mouth. Whatever was in there had a sweet, sticky flavor and burned all the way down into the soles of Bradok’s feet. Almost immediately his vision blurred and a heavy, contented feeling swept over him.
“Hold him down,” Tal said, his voice seeming to come from a great distance away.
Pain shot through Bradok’s side, but he didn’t seem to have the willpower to care. He could hear Tal and Rose talking as Tal labored on Bradok’s wound. He seemed to be stitching it together like a tailor would close a rip in a shirt. That didn’t make any sense to Bradok, but his foggy mind couldn’t make sense of anything.
“Just wrap up his head,” Tal said after an indeterminate amount of time had gone by. “Hurry,” he added as Rose lifted Bradok’s head. “There are others we must save.”
Eventually, the stinging sensation in Bradok’s side and head began to fade. At the same time, he began to feel the world gradually coming back into focus. When at last his vision cleared, he found Rose sitting beside him. Her hands and arms were stained with blood, and she was scrubbing them with sand.
“I … we …” he said, struggling to form words.
“Lie still,” Rose said firmly. “You need to rest now. We’re going to need to travel in a few hours, and you have some healing to do before that. And then it’s still not going to be pleasant.”
Bradok opened his mouth to speak, but something caught his eye. He reached out and grabbed Rose’s arm. She tried to yank her arm away, causing Bradok to cry out as pain shot through his side.
“Stop that,” Rose said, letting him see her arm.
The gray patch of skin had grown considerably and glowed a sickly yellow color. A tiny mushroom protruded from the center, and Bradok could see several more forming just below the surface.
Bradok swore.
“I didn’t want to bother you with what’s happening to me,” she said, withdrawing her arm after Bradok released it. “I’ve been putting the moonwell water on it, but it’s still growing. I’m going to have to leave soon, or I’ll become a danger to everyone.”
“Book,” Bradok croaked.
“What?” Rose asked, wrapping a fresh bandage around her arm.
“Metal book, from Starlight Hall,” Bradok said. “Maybe the metal book has a cure.”
“Bradok,” Rose said hesitantly. “I don’t need false hope.” But her face showed that it was something she hadn’t thought of.
“What’s he doing awake?” said Tal, coming up to them. “He needs to sleep at least four hours before he can travel.”
Something was pressed to Bradok’s lips, and more of the burning liquid ran down his throat. He preferred to stay awake, to reassure Rose, but the strength of the liquid was not to be resisted. The world faded to black, and Bradok knew no more.
CHAPTER 21
Dance of the Mushrooms
The pain woke Bradok-a dull, throbbing ache that seemed to run from the top of his head to the tips of his toes. He didn’t mind the pain so much; after all, it meant he was alive.
He lay in that half-waking dream state for what felt like hours. Just beyond the reach of his senses, full consciousness waited, but there seemed to be no hurry to rush there. Bradok knew when he finally woke, the pain would be more real and more bothersome.
As his mind drifted, he gradually became aware of sounds. Confused at first, the sounds resolved themselves into snatches of garbled conversation and the weeping of children.
Bradok tried to force his mind awake, but whatever Tal had given him to sleep made it impossible to focus. He needed something to hold on to, something to use as an anchor to pull himself into wakefulness. The conversations were too vague, and he couldn’t ever seem to understand the words. Finally, he became aware of an odor-not the smell of blood nor the smell of the caves, but something far more pungent.
Wi
th a jolt, his drifting mind caught hold of the name he’d been seeking to put to the smell-rot. The odor was the stench of death and decay.
“Rhizomorphs,” he gasped, remembering, his eyes popping open.
He lay on the sandy floor of the great cavern, looking up at the fading light shining through the hole in the ceiling. Gritting his teeth, he tried to sit up but flopped back onto the sand immediately as white-hot pain tore through his side. Involuntarily he gripped the wound, only to have his hand pulled away.
“Don’t do that,” Rose said. “You’ll start bleeding again.”
“But we’ve got to go,” he insisted, trying to sit again. Thurl’s bandaged hand pushed him down. “Don’t you smell that?” he asked, pushing at Thurl’s unmovable hand. “The Rhizomorphs are coming. We’ve got to get out of here.”
“We smell it,” Rose said, gently. “Tal is still tending some of the wounded. As soon as he’s done, we’ll all move on, together.”
Bradok tried to push Thurl’s hand away again. He noticed the scarred ex-assassin was missing the ring finger on his left hand.
“I got cocky,” he said in response to the questioning look Bradok gave him. “That fancy sword of yours makes a dwarf feel invincible.”
“All right,” said Tal from somewhere nearby. “You all know your jobs. Let’s go.”
“This is it,” Rose said, reaching under Bradok’s shoulders. “Give your right hand to Thurl.”
Bradok did as he was told, and Thurl slowly pulled him up, with Rose lifting from behind. Exquisite pain tore through Bradok’s body, and he bit his lip to keep from crying out. When he finally reached his feet, he wanted nothing more than to lie down again. Thurl slipped Bradok’s arm over his shoulder for support.
After a moment, the dizziness passed and Bradok found he could stand on his own, albeit a bit wobbly.
“You lost a lot of blood,” Rose explained. “If you feel dizzy, lean on Thurl.”
He nodded and gently ran his hand over his side and shoulder. Both wounds were on his left side, so someone had tied his left arm into a sling. He reached up to his right ear and felt a thick bandage there as well, wrapped around his head.
“Tal couldn’t save your ear,” Thurl said.
Bradok shrugged, glad simply to be alive. “A man can live with only one ear,” he said.
He looked around for the first time. A line of dwarves were moving to the side of the cavern, toward the exit passage. Some wore bandages; others bore simple scrapes and cuts. Even before he thought to count, however, Bradok could tell there were fewer dwarves ready to move on than there were before.
“How many?” he gasped, taking an unsteady step after the group.
“Fifteen,” Rose answered, not meeting his eyes.
“Who?” Bradok said, not really wanting an answer but knowing he must be told.
Rose recited the names. Some Bradok didn’t recognize, and some were losses he took personally. Old Marl Anvil had fallen while defending his grandchildren, leaving the eldest, Starlight, to lead the family.
Along with the dead, many were wounded. Corin and Kellik had both been slashed badly, Chisul had been stabbed like Bradok, and Perin had lost two toes on his left foot.
Bradok walked on in glum silence. The price for survival was getting higher all the time.
As they passed a side passage, the air currents shifted, and suddenly Bradok absorbed a whiff of fresh air. He’d gotten too used to the stench of decay, but the fleeting fresh air reminded him.
“How far are they behind us?” he asked, trying to control his stomach.
The assassin shrugged. “No one really wanted to go back and look,” he explained dryly.
“We’re hoping the hive confuses them,” Rose added. “It is pretty much a mess.”
“Omer, Much, and Tal stayed behind to brush away our tracks as much as possible,” Thurl said.
Bradok staggered, and Rose moved to steady him. He grunted in pain as her hand touched his wounded side, and the light-headedness he felt struck him like a wave. His feet dragged on the ground behind him as he used all his will to force them to work.
“Have him drink as much water as possible,” Tal said from somewhere not far behind him.
A waterskin was pressed against his lips, and he drank. Gradually the world around him came back into focus, and his errant feet began to obey him again. Bradok didn’t know how long he’d been delirious, but it must have been quite some time. When he came to himself fully, however, the stink of decay was gone. Apparently they had moved far enough away from the Rhizomorphs. He breathed deeply, relishing the good air and the respite from danger.
Over the next few hours, Bradok fell into the rhythm of slow but steady walking. After a few miles, his body seemed to cooperate better and he didn’t need Thurl’s support as much. No one said much about the catastrophe they’d experienced, and Bradok was grateful for that. Sooner or later, they’d have to deal with their losses. Someone would have to say something about the dead ones, and he knew it should be him. Still, such things weren’t easy for Bradok. He didn’t know how he would face Starlight Anvil and her siblings. The compass had led them to that cavern; he had to take that responsibility and offer what comfort he could.
When they finally stopped for the night, no one seemed to feel like talking. Bradok’s whole body ached, and he felt bone-weary as he eased himself down onto the stone floor. He wanted to go straight to sleep, but Thurl pressed a large hunk of mushroom into his hands.
“Eat,” Thurl said.
“You don’t have to be my nursemaid, you know,” Bradok said grouchily, taking a bite out of the stale mushroom.
“Yes I do,” Thurl said good-naturedly, cutting off a hunk of mushroom for himself.
Bradok shook his head. “I saved your life; now you saved mine,” Bradok said. “I’d say we are even. Any debt you once had to me is canceled.”
Thurl smiled, and the scratch on his cheek began to bleed a little as the facial movement dislodged the fresh scab.
“You risked your life to save me,” Thurl returned. “You didn’t have to, but you did.” He took a bite of mushroom and shrugged. “I would have fought the Disir anyway,” Thurl added with his mouth full. “You were in trouble, so I helped. I am still in your debt.”
Bradok wanted to argue, but he just didn’t have the energy. Corin had told him that assassins like Thurl had to be attached to a wealthy house or government body to ensure their skills were used wisely. While Bradok had no use for an assassin, he wondered if maybe having Thurl around close to him wasn’t such a bad idea. At least that way, Bradok could keep an eye on the Daergar.
He finished chewing his mushroom and slumped back on the stone floor of the passage. He wanted to ask about the others, about the dead, the wounded, about Rose, but before he could even form those desires into coherent thoughts, sleep overcame him.
Weeks earlier, Bradok had finally gotten used to sleeping on the hard ground. He could bear it with ease. Unfortunately, his wounds made it nearly impossible for him to be comfortable. He slept fitfully, wanting to toss and turn and regretting the impulse when searing pain accompanied any attempt to roll off his back. Worse, his dreams kept his mind busy with terrifying images of black, chitinous heads with glowing blue bands shining through their eyeless faces. The killer insects seemed to burst out of the darkness, to fall upon the dwarves in their sleep, yet every time Bradok started awake, fully expecting to see the living nightmares swarming over him, it was only a dream.
When Much announced that the time had come to get moving again, Bradok felt as if he had barely slept at all. Rose helped him to his feet, and they started walking again.
“Nobody died last night,” she said after a mile or so. “Everyone seems to be on the mend. That’s good news at least.”
Bradok had been dreading that report, and he breathed a sigh of relief. “I never asked,” Bradok said, thinking out loud. “How many of us are left?”
“Twenty-four,” Rose said.
Bradok’s heart sank. They’d started with fifty or so, and they’d lost more than half. His face fell.
“None of it’s your fault,” Rose said softly with a sweet look.
A sickly smell suddenly washed over Bradok, strong and pungent. Rose noticed the smell too.
“The Rhizomorphs,” she said, her nose wrinkling up.
“Go spread the word,” Bradok told her. “Send every available fighting man to the rear, and tell the others to double their pace.”
He took out the compass and pressed it into her hands. “Take this just in case,” he said.
“In case of what?” Rose demanded. “You’re too sick to fight. You have to go to the front with the other sick and wounded.”
“Go,” Bradok said in a voice that made it plain there was to be no argument or debate.
Rose gave him a dark stare but turned and went.
Bradok reached for his sword then wished he hadn’t. The mere motion of reaching across his body ripped at the wound in his side. Gritting his teeth, he grabbed the hilt with the tips of his fingers and gingerly slid his blade free of the scabbard.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Kellik asked, coming up quickly from the rear guard.
“Don’t turn down any help cheerfully offered,” Chisul’s friend Vulnar said. Maybe Bradok imagined it, but he thought he saw Vulnar wink; whether the wink was intended for him or Kellik, he wasn’t sure.
“What’s the situation?” Bradok asked determinedly.
“The situation is you are in no shape to fight,” Corin said, materializing close by.
“They definitely know we’re here,” Kellik added. “But I think we’re still pretty far ahead of the main group.”
“Then where is this stench coming from?” Thurl said, tying a handkerchief around his face. “It feels awful close.”
A wet, squishing noise answered. Down the path where they had come, a dozen forms shambled into the light. They moved faster than Bradok remembered, pressing up the path toward their quarry.
