“Enough time to congratulate later. Let’s finish this job and get out of here before they come back to check on us.”
As we turned towards the door, a quiver ran through the floor. Then another, stronger shake that jangled the remaining helictites.
“Jh’amos! They know we have won out here. They seek to complete the ritual now, though it will be slightly weakened!”
“Oh, no they don’t!”
Into the room we ran. There were some guards now, running to stop us in these last desperate minutes, but this time I had the pistol out and was shooting. It probably wouldn’t kill them, but the impact of the slugs startled them, knocked them off balance, broke armor where it hit. I ran past, kicking over a tall stone with an intricate crystal atop it, and then I saw him—like Rokhaset, bigger than his subjects, surrounded by crystalline structures, mumbling incomprehensible sounds. His personal guard swung at me, but I bowled him over and grabbed the Lisharithada ruler, swinging him right up against the wall. “Rokhaset!” I shouted. “Tell ’em to cut it out right now, or I’m about to break their king in half!”
Rokhaset and the Lisharithada exchanged hurried words. “They say it is all over for them in any case, now that you monsters have found them. They might as well take us all with them.”
“It’s all over! Tell ’em, Rokhaset—we only got here because you showed us, and we ain’t told anyone else!”
A shattering sound told me Jodi was finishing off the crystals. The Lisharithada king struggled desperately in my grip; then, as the sound of crashing crystal faded, went limp.
“It would seem, Clinton Slade, that he has recognized a losing position, now that Jodi Goldman has destroyed the channeling crystals.”
I dropped the king. “Okay. So they can’t do the earthquake now?”
“No, Clint. It will be a long time before they can regrow such a mass of channeling crystals and even attempt such a ritual again.”
“Good. Let’s go get your stuff, Jodi, and go home.”
The Lisharithada king suddenly whirled around, yanking a long staff of stone capped with a green-glowing gem from its hiding place in the depression from which I’d yanked him. I threw up my hands instinctively, but the gem hit me like a wrecking ball combined with a cattle prod. Concussion and seething energy catapulted me backwards, twitching.
The room erupted in renewed combat as the king directed his next attack, a sickly emerald bolt of energy, straight at Jodi. She tried to block it with her steel rod and had no more success than I had. Seeing her collapse, I tried desperately to get up, but my legs and arms wouldn’t move.
Rokhaset roared something I couldn’t make out, and there was a confused exchange of lightnings, red and green clashing as though the rainbow was having an internal debate. A glittering, three-crested head loomed above me, then fell as Rokhaset’s own scepter came down on it.
Everything was dim, silent. I wondered why it was growing so dark, realized that I must be losing consciousness.
“Clinton Slade! Can you hear me?”
I made a supreme effort, managed to force out the word, “Yes.”
“It is over. Their ruler is dead, they will have to select a new one, and we can escape.”
“Guess . . . over for us . . . too.”
“No, Clinton Slade. We shall bring you home.”
I felt strong, slender rods of stone . . . Nome arms . . . slide under me. “Jodi . . .”
“We have her too. Save your strength.”
I tried to tell him that I wasn’t lying down here while Jodi might be hurt, but my lips wouldn’t move. The light faded, and then everything was dark and I fell away into nothingness.
15. Some Slight Side-Effects.
Consciousness returned in fits and starts. I vaguely remembered shouting Nomish voices, and a feeling of sudden comfort overwhelming me as we entered Nowëmosdet again. Darkness giving way to light and Mamma crying. Being forced to drink something that stank like rotten eggs and tasted . . . well, it was a good thing I couldn’t fight it then or someone woulda gotten hurt.