Tales of Uncle Trapspringer ll-3 Page 21

  "They'll be expecting us to travel toward Palanthus, " Halmarain said. "We'll never escape them. No, we'll go where they least expect, in the direction they were traveling. "

  "Great! We've been west. Let's go someplace new. But what about a wizard to help open the portal?" Trap asked.

  Ripple was not satisfied. "I don't understand, " she complained.

  Halmarain sighed. "I'm not sure I do either. There was something strange about your capture. Kobolds don't take prisoners, treat them reasonably well, and transport them long distances unless they are ordered to do so- ordered by someone they have reason to fear. "

  "Gee! Wow! You mean someone wanted us to visit them?" Ripple asked. "Why didn't they just invite us, we like meeting people. Why, I can't think of anything I like better. "

  "If I'm right, you would not have wanted to meet your host, " Halmarain said softly. "The emanations from the black cloaked man suggest he's undead-a death knight- and that means he was brought back from the dead by a black-robed wizard; their order studies necromancy. I think someone knows you have the gate stone. "

  "Undead! Big jiggers!" Trap's eyes widened with interest. "He's died and come back to life. I'd sure like to talk to him. "

  "Make good tale, that. " Grod nodded.

  "Gee! It would!" Trap said, thinking of his stories of Uncle Trapspringer.

  Halmarain glared, appeared to reflect, then sighed. "Who would be more interesting, a death knight or a wizard? Death knights can do magic, but he won't make illusions just to please you. "

  "Why can't we just talk to him and then see the wizard?" Trap asked, wondering why the little human was always trying to take the fun out of everything.

  "Because if you talk to the death knight first, he will probably kill you and you'll never get to see Orander. "

  "Oh, " Trap was dubious, but he had not liked the aura of evil that emanated from the dark rider. "You're sure we'll be able to talk to a wizard? I mean, we could talk to the death knight and he would be so interesting, and we're not. It wouldn't be fair if we didn't get to meet a wizard after we give up the opportunity to talk to someone really interesting. "

  "I think I know who raised the death knight. " Halmarain said. "If I'm right we need the help of someone more powerful than the wizard in Palanthus. The trouble is, I know I could count on help if we go north, and I'm not sure of-the one to the east, though he has the most power. "

  "Who are these wizards?" Ripple asked. "Why won't you tell us about them?"

  Halmarain gazed at the expectant faces of the kender and sighed. "I suppose I'll have to. If I don't I'll never get any peace. I'll tell you what I suspect and why. Perhaps it will help you to understand the danger. When we first saw the death knight, he was leading the kobolds. When they captured you they hurried east, which makes me think he was leading them, but their orders came from someone more powerful than the undead warrior. "

  "Who?" Trap asked.

  "Master Orander often spoke of a black-robed wizard of great power, Draaddis Vulter, who lives east of here and the wizards who serve Takhisis are skilled in necromancy, an art white and red-robed wizards seldom use. "

  "And they were taking us east, " Ripple said.

  "If I am right, the death knight is seeking you on orders from Draaddis Vulter. He has great power. We must find a wizard as powerful as Vulter to help us. The only one I know of is Master Chalmis Rosterig. He lives further east than Vulter. Understand, I can only seek the help of the wizards I learned about from my own master. Master Orander used to say Chalmis Rosterig would probably lead the wizard's council one day. He's widely known as one of the most powerful wizards on Krynn, but then so is Draaddis Vulter. "

  "This Chalmis Rosterig that lives east of here; can he do a lot more magic?" Ripple asked, her eyes sparkling. "Then let's go east. "

  Their direction decided, they rode through the valleys between the higher foothills at the northern tip of the Garnet mountains. They found an overhang that was sheltered from prying eyes and made camp for the night.

  The next morning they awakened to rain and a cold wind. Shortly after dawn the rain stopped but the wind whistling through the valleys was still unseasonably chilly. They hunched in their saddles, nearly as dour as the weather.

  "I remember grandfather's stories about Solanthus, " Ripple said. "I wish we could go back so I could see the city. "

  "We could, " Trap replied. "Halmarain could put Beglug under a spell and make him behave until she reached this wizard. She really doesn't need us. " He glanced back over his shoulder, throwing a dissatisfied look at the little wizard. As usual, she led Beglug's pony and the pack animal on long leads while Ripple led the gully dwarves' mounts.

  Because of the rain, they were all huddled in their blankets, worn over their heads and shoulders like cloaks. At first Trap, after his casual glance, thought the little wizard and his sister had somehow confused the mounts they led. Then he realized he had mistaken the huddled figure that was Beglug for one of the dwarves. The merchesti was growing.

  And Ripple had told him the merchesti was getting meaner every day. Neither she nor Trap could blame him for attacking the kobolds when they beat him, trying to make him walk through the streams of cold water. Still, according to Ripple, once the little fiend had discovered he could kill the kobolds, he had attacked several with no provocation. That was why they had tied several ropes to him, to prevent him from wreaking more havoc.

  "And he was sly about it, " Ripple said. "It seemed as if he was enjoying it. " Both kender shook their heads over the idea.

  "No, we can't leave Halmarain, " Trap said with a sigh. "Even if she can control Beglug, she still can't saddle a pony. If you want to, you could go back to Solanthus. I'll return as soon as I can. "

  "If you're staying with the wizard, so will I, " she sighed. "We'll go back together later. " She gave him a small smile. "Dumping manure on more dwarves would be fun, but not without you. "

  Trap smiled back. He understood his sister's feelings. They had grown up together and had shared most of their adventures. They had spent most of last evening telling each other tales of what they had done while they had been separated. A chance remark in their conversation reminded Trap that the kobolds weren't the only ones on their trail.

  "I'll climb that hill and see if the dwarves are following, " he told his sister.

  While she led the string of ponies east through the valleys between the hills, Trap rode up a steep slope and dismounted near the top. He climbed to the summit where he could check their back trail. In the distance he could see the road that led south from the gate of Solanthus into the mountains. It was hardly more than a track, used only by hunters and dwarves, but it was not empty. Six small, stocky figures sat on their ponies and appeared to be in an argument. They were waving their arms, pointing in several directions. While he watched, three of them started riding south, two seemed inclined to head east, and one wanted to go west, but after some hesitation they followed the first three.

  From Trap's position on the heights he had a good view to the east. The morning rain had left the air crystal clear. He was standing on the last steep slope. Two miles further on the hills gave way to rolling country. For fifteen miles, most of the area ahead appeared to be range land. Further on, they would enter a dark forest if they continued directly east.

  "We should travel as fast as we can, " Halmarain said when Trap brought her the news about the dwarves and the terrain to the east. "The dwarves will learn their mistake quickly enough. Then they'll be on our trail again. "

  "Why don't we just give them their necklace?" Ripple asked again. "It isn't right to keep other people's property. "

  "That from a kender, " Halmarain sighed. She reached in her bag and pulled out the string of disks. Ripple called it a necklace, but the little wizard didn't think it had been created to be a piece of jewelry unless it was meant to be an emblem of rank.

  "Can I look at it?" Trap had turned in the saddle and eyed the disks wist
fully.

  "Just don't put it in your pouch by mistake, " the little wizard said as she handed it to him.

  Trap fingered the disks, enjoying the feel of the metal in his hands. The drawings were intricate, and on many disks he could not tell which were sketches and which were runes. He looked at each disk, flipping it over to see a different drawing on each side. He was so intent on his inspection he had not realized Halmarain had ridden on ahead leading Beglug's mount and the pack pony. Even Ripple had passed him.

  "Grod see. "

  "Gee! Sure! Why didn't we think of you. Yes, you look at it and see what you can make of it, " Trap said. "You're a dwarf, maybe you can make sense of it. "

  "Pretty, " Grod said and removed his helmet. He was attempting to put the string of disks around his neck when the kender stopped him.

  "No. Stop. It's not for wearing. Look at it and tell me what the drawings mean. "

  Grod frowned, replaced his helmet and began inspecting the disks. He worked at the task for ten minutes and removed his helmet again.

  "Stop that. I told you. I said you couldn't wear it, " Trap snapped, impatient with the dwarf. "We need to learn about the drawings. "

  "Only know one, " Grod said, handing the string of disks back to Trap.

  "You know one? Show me. " The kender gave the necklace back to the gully dwarf. He didn't really believe Grod could understand what he could not, but even Aghars were dwarves of a sort.

  Grod listlessly flipped through the disks. "Only see high place like ball, " he said, pointing to one of the disks.

  "High place like ball… " Trap took a grip on the disk that the gully dwarf showed him. He squinted at it and grinned. "You're right! It's one of the mountains we saw near the southern tip of the Vingaard Range, " he said. "Why would they put that picture on a disk?"

  He flipped the disk over and inspected the back. Another tiny drawing was of a cliff they had passed when they had rounded a spur of that very mountain. He remembered the striations on the rock, and on the disk some were darker, as if outlining a door.

  They had passed close to the entrance of a dwarf mine and had not even known it! Trap urged his pony to a trot and rode up to pace Halmarain.

  "I know what one disk means, " he told her and showed her the drawing of the mountain on one side and the hidden door on the other. Honesty demanded he give Grod the credit for discovering the secret.

  "Of course I would have recognized it right away, but I was working my way through the drawings and I hadn't come to that one. "

  "I think the rest of the disks are the same, with mountain peaks on one side and entrance details on the other, " Trap said. Once he understood the purpose of the disks they were not too difficult to read.

  "That's not good news, " the wizard said.

  "What? Why? I think it's wonderful. We could visit lots of mines and caverns and-"

  "That's why its not good news. Dwarves are jealous of their secrets. We can't even give the disks back. Those Neidar would believe we had memorized or copied all the information and could raid their mines if we wanted to. Returning the necklace would not save us. They'll kill us if they can. "

  While she was speaking they followed a little valley out of the hills. Beyond lay the rolling grassland. Halmarain urged her pony to a trot.

  "You said there was a forest ahead. We must reach it before the dwarves find our trail. Our lives and the rest of Krynn may depend on it. "

  "Gee, riding at full gallop would be fun, " Trap said.

  "No, I'm wrong, " she said, shaking her head decisively as she reined in her mount. "We shouldn't travel across that open country in daylight. There are too many people on our trail. "Let's find a place to camp, rest until sunset, and cross the plain tonight. "

  "But-"

  "Don't argue with me, " the little wizard snapped. "Somewhere ahead is danger greater than you can imagine. If I'm right and Draaddis Vulter is behind our troubles, he will have spies everywhere. "

  Chapter 27

  Trap found another sheltered valley and the group slept through the day. Twilight found them threading their way through the hills and they reached open country just before dark.

  "A lot of things can see in the dark, " Ripple had told Trap while they were saddling the ponies. He had grinned at her and said nothing, because Halmarain had arrived with her bedroll.

  But by the middle of the night Trap decided traveling at night was even more boring than plodding along during the day. As far as he could tell, the grassy plain that stretched east from Solanthus to the border of Lemish was completely empty.

  From time to time, just to relieve his boredom, Trap reached out to pluck a leaf from a bush as he passed it. He twirled the stems in his fingers, raised them almost to his nose to get a better look and threw them away when he lost interest. As he passed a particularly large clump of shadows, he reached down to pluck another leaf.

  "Oops, " he said as he felt something that was definitely not foliage. He had plucked a feather.

  "Aawk!"

  The "bush" came to life and stood up. Beside him stood a frightened 'wari. The huge flightless bird stood six feet tall, three feet of which was taken up by sturdy legs and thick, clawed feet. The heavy body sat like a flattened, feathered ball on legs and above it stretched a long neck and a small head with a wicked-looking beak. Trap raised his head and found himself looking into a whirling, gold and black eye.

  "What is it?" Ripple called out.

  The bird's alarm had not been nearly as loud as Ripple's shout. She, as usual, was bringing up the last of the line. She knew Trap had disturbed something. Her shout brought the clumps on the hillside into action.

  More than a hundred 'waris leapt to their feet, squawking and running in circles.

  "What have you done?" Halmarain squealed over the racket. "Get us out of here!" She kicked her pony into a gallop and went charging by Trap.

  "They're 'waris, " Trap said, undisturbed by the panicked birds. 'Waris were huge and wild, essentially stupid and easily startled. They could be pesky, but they weren't really dangerous.

  "We woke them up, but if you'll stop shouting and racing around they'll go back to sleep again. " He urged his pony forward to keep up with the little wizard. Behind them he could see Ripple urging her mount to a gallop, trying to catch up with the others. He immediately located her by the long blond curl that bounced up behind her. Grod and Umpth were bouncing in their saddles. Behind Halmarain, Beglug, who had been sleeping in the saddle, woke up, noticed the excitement and started swinging his newest tree branch, trying to hit everything in sight.

  "We can get killed in a 'wari stampede, " Halmarain shouted back and urged her pony to a full gallop, pulling Beglug's mount and the pack pony along with her.

  In the darkness, the huge flightless birds seemed unable to distinguish one of their own from the shadowy forms of the mounted group. More than a dozen 'waris stopped their aimless panicked circling and followed the little wizard.

  "Hey, how did you get them to do that?" Trap joined the chase, kicking his pony into a gallop. He had not traveled a hundred yards before he too had an escort of the huge birds. So many crowded around him, he could only cling to the saddle and hope his mount kept to its feet. The thudding of the birds' big, horny feet over-rode the sound of the galloping hooves.

  Smaller birds flew up out of the grass and bushes and circled overhead as the stampede of 'waris, carrying the group along with them, charged across the plain.

  Trap kept a tight grip on the saddle as he allowed his pony to find its own way in the stampede. He stood up in the saddle to look around, thinking this ride was the most fun he'd had on the entire trip. Rising above a fast moving mass of 'wari bodies, the slender necks of the 'waris moved back and forth, each bird setting it's own special rhythm.

  He twisted to see a more solid shape among the birds behind him. He waved and Ripple waved back. She was also standing up, looking around. Ahead he could not see Halmarain. Behind her the birds occasional
ly parted as they avoided the swing of Beglug's tree branch.

  Trap's pony splashed through two small streams the kender could not see. In the distance he could see the shadowy eaves of the forest of Lemish. The dark line of the forest became blacker as they approached it.

  Halmarain, at the front of the stampede, gave a scream. Trap, who had nearly lost his balance at the last stream and was sitting in his saddle, stood up in the stirrups again. He could barely make out the little wizard. Pacing her, and not twenty feet away, was a creature he could not quite identify. Clearly it was a tall humanoid, but it could not be one of the larger goblin kin because it was keeping pace with-even outrunning-the 'waris.

  "She would have to be in front, " he groused to himself and his surrounding companions.

  Trap stretched to see what sort of creature was outrunning the large birds, but he could only make out indistinct shapes in the darkness. They were bearing off to the right, trying to get away from the birds, he decided, but the 'waris were having none of it. They followed the strange creatures. Halmarain, leading the pack pony and Beglug's mount, was being carried along with them. The stampede topped a rise, and at the bottom of the low hill, the kender could see the glow of a campfire.

  "More people, " he told his galloping mount. "Maybe this trip will turn out to be fun after all. " He could see nothing but indistinct shapes as the campers scuttled around their fire.

  "And if we don't stop there, it should still be fun, riding through the forest with all these birds, " he told his mount.

  The huge flightless birds charged straight down the slope toward the camp. They gawped and squawked as they became aware of the fire and Trap expected the entire stampede to veer north or south. Wild animals and birds usually fled any flame.

  The 'waris were clearly aware of the fire. The ones in the center of the stampede were veering to the right and left. In their fear and stupidity, the birds on the outside of the group were pressing in, seeking comfort from their companions.