Lord of Stormweather by Dave Gross

Author:Dave Gross
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Mystery & Detective, Fantasy Fiction, Juvenile Fiction, Fantasy & Magic, Fiction, Fantasy, General, Games, Epic, Role Playing & Fantasy, Forgotten realms (Imaginary place)
ISBN: 9780786947867
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
Published: 2008-02-05T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 16

THE HUNT

Thamalon leaned heavily upon the marble railing, panting in the rain-cooled evening air. His heart galloped in his chest, and he was fairly sure that some of the lightning he saw bursting against the night sky was a reflection from within his pounding head.

What was I thinking? he berated himself silently-because he had no breath to speak aloud. I didn't think I was too old for this.

For a man of his years, Thamalon considered himself fit and hale. He still enjoyed a long stroll or a vigorous ride on horseback. While his weapons of choice were the contract and the ledger, he had lately proven that he could still wield a blade with the best of them when necessary.

But there he was, about to expire from climbing a long stairway.

Earlier in the evening, Thamalon heard the same haunting tune that had welcomed him to the bleak streets surrounding the castle.

"What is that song?" he'd asked a servant.

"Lady Malaika calls the skwalos."

"But where is she?"

The servant pointed upward and said, "She sings from her observatory in the uppermost chamber of the west tower."

The guards at the base of the stairway didn't turn him away, as Thamalon had half-expected. Instead, they suggested he take advantage of the mechanical litter attached to the railing. At that moment, Thamalon considered the device the sort of novelty reserved for invalids and ladies who avoided any risk of perspiration. When he spied a faint smirk upon the lips of the servant who offered him the conveyance, pride demanded he refuse it.

Soon he felt the smug guard had outwitted him, and a mere flight of stairs threatened to do what none of his enemies had yet achieved with assassins, poison, and magic.

Thamalon didn't much appreciate that irony.

Somewhat defensively, he noted that there was nothing "mere" about the titanic stairway. He must have climbed more than twice the height of the tallest tower in his own home, and still he'd arrived only at the lower balconies of Castle Stormweather. Even from that height, he could barely perceive the giant bonfires that sizzled to either side of the grand entrance to the stronghold. From the balcony, they looked like fireflies drowning in a murky pond.

Another wave of thunder rolled in and broke against the castle walls. Thamalon felt the vibration in the air. The wind swept the rain into the sheltered balcony, and Thamalon stepped back. A sudden vertigo swirled in his head, and he nearly stumbled as he reached out to lean against the wall.

"Father?"

He turned around but saw no one else standing on the landing. Torchlight danced upon the wall stairway walls. On the wall opposite the balcony, a long tapestry stirred in the breeze. Upon its rippling fabric, elves danced among deerlike creatures while strange birds and colorful jelhes floated in the trees above.

"Who is there?" Thamalon said.

The voice had sounded like the Sorcerer-or Thamalon's own eldest son.

Lightning briefly illuminated the dark corners of the landing. Still, Thamalon saw no one.

"Hello?" the voice called.

It seemed to emanate from behind the tapestry.

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