Serpent Mage by Weis, Margaret

The eyes opened again, their light eerie. The eyes were huge. It seemed he could have walked into the black, slit pupils without ducking.

“The Royal One bids me give you welcome and say to you, ‘The time is at hand. Your enemy is awake.’ ”

“I don’t know what you mean, what you’re talking about,” Haplo said warily. “What enemy?”

“The Royal One will explain everything if you will honor him with your presence. However, I am permitted to speak one word that may quicken your interest. I am to say, ‘Samah.’ ”

“Samah!” Haplo breathed. “Samah!”

He couldn’t believe what he’d heard. It didn’t make sense. He wanted to question the creature, but, suddenly, his heart began to pound. The blood rushed to his head, fire filled his brain. He took a step, staggered, and pitched forward onto his face to lie still and unmoving.

The green-red eyes glittered, slowly shut.

CHAPTER * 12

ADRIFT SOMEWHERE THE GOODSEA

So NOW WE’VE GOT THIS HUMAN, THIS HAPLO. I WANT VERY MUCH to trust him, and yet I don’t. Is it just the prejudice of a dwarf against any of another race? That might have been so, back in the old days. But I would trust Alake with my life, the same with Devon. Unfortunately, my life appears to be not in their care, but in Haplo’s.

It will be a relief to write down how I really feel about him. I can’t say a word against him to Alake, who has fallen for this man deeper than a dwarf in his ale mug. As for Devon … he was suspicious of him at the beginning, but after what happened with the dragon-snakes . . . well, you might have thought an elven warrior of ancient days had come to call him to arms.

Alake says that I am only chewing sour grapes because Haplo made me see that we acted like fools, running off to give ourselves to be sacrificed. But we dwarves are naturally skeptical and suspicious of strangers. We tend not to trust anyone until we get to know them several hundred cycles.

This Haplo has yet to say anything about where he comes from and who he is, and, beyond that, he’s made one or two extremely curious statements and has behaved most peculiarly in regard to the dragon-snakes.

I admit I was wrong about one thing—Haplo is obviously not a spy sent by the dragons. It is difficult to see inside the man. A shadow covers him and his words. He walks in a darkness of his own creation, using it, I would guess, for protection and defense. Yet, sometimes, despite himself, the clouds are rent by a flash of lightning, both frightening and illuminating. Such a flash came from Haplo when we told him about the dragon-snakes.

In fact, thinking back on his reaction, I begin to see that he went out of his way to convince us we should try to seize control of the ship and flee to safety. Which makes what happened later all the more strange.

And I must give credit where it is due. Haplo is the bravest man I’ve ever met. I know of no dwarf, not even Hartmut, who could have walked down the dread corridor and into the steerage.

We kept behind, waiting for him, as he ordered.

“We should go with him,” Devon said.

“Yes,” agreed Alake faintly, but I noticed that neither of them moved a muscle. “I wish we had some no-fear weed. Then we wouldn’t be afraid.”

“Well, we don’t. Whatever it is,” I whispered. “As for wishes, I wish I was back home!”

Devon was that faint color of blue-green elves turn when they’re sick or afraid. Sweat glistened on Alake’s black skin, and she shivered like a leaf. I’m not ashamed to say that my shoes were as good as nailed to the deck. Otherwise I would have done the sensible thing and run for dear life.

We watched Haplo enter the steerage. Blackness covered him, swallowed him up whole. Alake gave a little cry and hid her face in her hands. Then we heard voices . . . Haplo’s voice talking and another answering.

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