Legends of the Dragonrealm, Vol II - By Richard A. Knaak Page 0,197

concept he was still having trouble comprehending. After the second interruption, he angrily dropped his queries and went back to the enjoyment of what, to him, was an exciting story.

When the tale was finished, Dru sighed. Even if Darkhorse only saw the theory as a great story, at least he understood most of what had been said.

“I have told you again and again, friend Dru, that this is your world! It may not be the location you desired, but this is where you asked to be taken!”

Dru gave in, knowing the futility of arguing. Perhaps later he would broach the subject again.

“And now,” Darkhorse was continuing, “where do we find this ‘goal’ of theirs?”

“Find it?” The sorcerer had not had time to consider that. His mind was only now becoming organized enough to plan the future… and an important aspect of that future was finding a way back to Nimth, Darkhorse or no Darkhorse. Still, if the avians believed that what they sought was so important, then it might hold some key, for certainly, if anyone had ever known about the veil and Nimth, it would have been the builders of this edifice. Straightening, Dru smiled grimly. “Yes, let’s find it. They thought it was in here, but I don’t think that’s the way to go about it.”

The shadow steed had an eager gleam in his unsettling eyes. He was all ready for another game of discovery. “And how shall we go about it?”

“I can’t sense the distinctive areas of power that you can and I doubt if the Seekers can, either. Tell me, are they in a pattern—a circle or something?”

Darkhorse shook his head after a moment. “They have no pattern. Their movements show judgment, but not a regular path.”

The Vraad did not like the way his companion spoke of the power as something with intelligence. Darkhorse himself was difficult enough to accept. Dru was still getting used to the entity.

He considered further. “Is there any one area they tend to avoid or congregate near?”

When the wraithlike stallion answered, Dru’s hopes rose dramatically. “There is a place they move near and then away from. There is no place they seem to avoid completely. They…” The blue orbs dulled a touch.

“They what?”

“I do not know. It escapes me for now.”

Curious but also cautious, Dru asked, “Have any of those… concentrations… shifted near us?”

“They have all crossed this place since I arrived. Some have even passed through this very chamber while we spoke.”

“What?” The sorcerer’s mouth fell open and remained that way until he was able to force his next question to the surface. “Why didn’t you—?” Dru clamped his mouth shut and berated himself. Darkhorse was an innocent in many ways; the manner with which he had dispatched the two avians had made the human forget that. “Forget it. You didn’t tell me because I didn’t ask and you felt it was nothing dangerous, correct?”

“On the contrary! I only recalled when you asked me. For reasons I cannot fathom, my recollection of many things has become faulty. Is this what you termed ‘exhaustion’?”

“Possibly.” The worried spellcaster doubted such was actually the reason. From what he had seen, his companion from beyond did not suffer exhaustion as others did. Once again, the shrouded realm itself was acting against the outsiders.

“Shall we go to this place, then?”

“This—” Dru had forgotten about the location the black horse had mentioned, the one that the sorcerer suspected might house whatever it was the Seekers had wanted so desperately. “You know where it is?”

“Little Dru! I can find it easily! It has an aura of its own, one far different from that which surrounds this place.”

“Does it?” That interested Dru. He started to move again, eager suddenly to be on the trail, but his body protested. “I need to rest a little. I don’t think that I have the strength to go climbing over more wreckage just yet.”

“There is no need for you to do so if it wearies you! Simply climb atop my back and I will carry you to our destination.”

“Your back?” Memories of the two Seekers swallowed whole were enough to make Dru reject such a mad plan without further thought. “That would—”

Darkhorse laughed. “Poor, simple Dru! Of course my backside will be solid! You are too good of an entertainment for me to take you as I did those others! You are my friend!”

Mounting the shadow steed proved a bit difficult for the tired sorcerer, partly because Darkhorse had no bridle or