The Queen of Stone by Keith Baker

Author:Keith Baker
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Fantasy, Fantasy fiction, Fiction, Science Fiction, General, Eberron (Imaginary place), Epic
ISBN: 9780786950096
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
Published: 2008-11-04T02:53:07.256592+00:00

Gnolls were a tough lot, and Ghyrryn rose to his feet. He picked up his axe and prodded the body; the beast was dead. He looked at Steel, and Thorn raised her hand. Return, she thought, and the dagger pulled free from the corpse and flew to her fist. “Smaller than a crossbow,” she said. She gingerly rose to her feet, waiting to see what the gnoll would do.

Ghyrryn knelt over the ogre for a moment, his fingers working at its jaw. He grunted in satisfaction and threw a small object toward her. A bloody tooth landed on the floor and skidded into her foot. “Take it,” he said. “He waits for you in the world to come.”

It was the tradition he’d told her about on the first day of the journey … keeping trophies as a way of placating the spirits of the fallen. She reached down and picked up the tooth.

“You fought for me.” Blood dripped from his mouth as the gnoll removed his damaged armor.

“You defended me at the Korlaak Pass,” Thorn said. “You saved my life.”

“True,” the gnoll said. “Explain your purpose.”

Thorn studied the wounded gnoll carefully. She could feel Steel’s presence buzzing in the back of her mind, and she sheathed the dagger before it could speak.

“I’m searching for a statue,” she said. “And I want to know where Queen Sheshka resides.”

“Describe the statue.”

She’d kept the golden tome hidden in her left gauntlet throughout the journey. Now she drew it forth, flipping through until she found a picture of Harryn Stormblade.

Ghyrryn studied the image. Then he looked at her. For a moment both were silent, the bruised and bloody gnoll studying the Dark Lantern. Then he spoke. “The statue was on display. It was moved, at the request of a warlord. Where, I do not know. We will pass Sheshka’s quarters on the way to your own.”

Thorn gestured at the bodies around them. “This … what will you do?”

“I will speak to my brothers. The Children of Zaeurl do not sleep when the moons are high. This will not be known.”

“But why were they going to kill you?”

The gnoll made a gesture with his hand, palm flat and horizontal. “You have saved my life, and I yours. I care nothing for a statue. But I hold the honor of my brothers, and this I cannot speak of. There is a …” He paused, searching for a word. “Disease, the darkness that spreads. I do not like what I see. But it is not my place to challenge the rules of war.”

Thorn inclined her head. “I thank you for my life, noble Ghyrryn.”

“We have shared blood.” He glanced at her. “You need new clothing. Take what you will from this place.”

Thorn was surprised, but she wasn’t going to argue with this good fortune. The gnoll knew what he was doing. He wouldn’t reveal secrets, but he seemed willing to trust her. She searched the footlockers until she found a hunter’s uniform that would fit her, with a sack to hold it.

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