Tanis felt a strong hand clutch his shoulder, shaking him out of his rapt horror.
‘Tanis! Where’s Raistlin?”
Tanis turned. For a moment he stared at Caramon without recognition, then he shrugged.
“What does it matter?” he muttered bitterly. “Let him die where he chooses-”
“Tanis!” Caramon took him by the shoulders and shook him. ‘Tanis! The dragon orb! His magic! Maybe it can help-”
Tanis came awake. “By all the gods! You’re right, Caramon!”
The half-elf looked around swiftly, but he saw no sign of the mage. A cold chill crept over him. Raistlin was capable either of helping them or of helping himself! Dimly Tanis remembered the elven princess, Alhana, saying the dragon orbs had been imbued by their magical creators with a strong sense of self-preservation.
“Below!” Tanis yelled. Leaping for the hatch, he heard Caramon pounding along behind.
“What is it?” called Riverwind from the rail.
Tanis shouted over his shoulder. “Raistlin. The dragon orb. Don’t come. Let Caramon and I handle this. You stay here, with them.”
“Caramon-” Tika yelled, starting to run after until Riverwind caught her and held her. Giving the warrior an anguished look, she fell silent, slumping back against the rail.
Caramon did not notice. He plunged ahead of Tanis, his huge body moving remarkably fast. Tumbling down the stairway below decks after him, Tanis saw the door to Maquesta’s cabin open, swinging on its hinges with the motion of the ship. The half-elf dashed in and came to a sudden stop, just inside the door, as if he had run headlong into a wall.
Raistlin stood in the center of the small cabin. He had lit a candle in a lamp clamped to the bulkheads. The flame made the mage’s face glisten like a metal mask, his eyes flared with golden fire. In his hands, Raistlin held the dragon orb, their prize from Silvanesti. It had grown, Tanis saw. It was now the size of child’s ball, a myriad of colors swirling within it. Tanis grew dizzy watching and wrenched his gaze away.
In front of Raistlin stood Caramon, the big warrior’s face as white as Tanis had seen his corpse in the Silvanesti dream when the warrior lay dead at his feet.
Raistlin coughed, clutching at his chest with one hand. Tanis started forward, but the mage looked up quickly.
“Don’t come near me, Tanis!” Raistlin gasped through bloodstained lips.
“What are you doing?”
“I am fleeing certain death, Half-Elf!” The mage laughed unpleasantly, the strange laughter Tanis had heard only twice before. “What do you think I am doing?”
“How?” Tanis asked, feeling a strange fear creep over him as he looked into the mage’s golden eyes and saw them reflect the swirling light of the orb.
“Using my magic. And the magic of the dragon orb. It is quite simple, though probably beyond your weak mind. I now have the power to harness the energy of my corporeal body and the energy of my spirit into one. I will become pure energy-light, if you want to think of it that way. And, becoming light, I can travel through the heavens like the rays of the sun, returning to this physical world whenever and wherever I choose!”
Tanis shook his head. Raistlin was right-the thought was beyond him. He could not grasp it, but hope sprang into his heart.
“Can the orb do this for all of us?” he demanded,
“Possibly,” Raistlin answered, coughing, “but I am not certain. I will not chance it. I know I can escape. The others are not my concern. You led them into this blood-red death, Half-Elf. You get them out!”
Anger surged through Tanis, replacing his fear. “At least, your brother-” he began hotly.
“No one,” Raistlin said, his eyes narrowing. “Stand back.”
Insane, desperate rage twisted Tanis’s mind. Somehow he’d make Raistlin listen to reason! Somehow they would all use this strange magic to escape! Tanis knew enough about magic to realize that Raistlin dared not cast a spell now. He would need all his strength to control the dragon orb. Tanis started forward, then saw silver flash in the mage’s hand. From nowhere-seemingly-had come a small silver dagger, long concealed on the mage’s wrist by a cunningly-designed leather thong. Tanis stopped, his eyes meeting Raistlin’s.
Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113