Legends of the Dragonrealm, Vol II - By Richard A. Knaak Page 0,435

the Aramites noticed her. Kalena, though, ignored his silent command, instead eyeing the movements of the three guards.

Fool of a girl! the drake wanted to shout. Run! Save yourself!

It was one thing to use her feline hunting skills to sneak up on individual sentries, but another to try to take three armed and armored men—never mind that one was wounded—in a place like this. The Aramites had not conquered a continent and become the fearsome legend that they were because of ineptitude. Even the Dragon Kings, separated from the wolf raiders by an ocean, had given them much respect, even dealing with them as they had no other humans.

The guards remained oblivious to her presence. One watched the front entrance while another stood near the prisoners. The injured one cleared away the remnants of the meal.

Kalena stepped to her right, apparently seeking a better venue in which to study all three. As she moved, however, her feet, all but hidden by the cloak, stirred up a small bit of dirt and dust.

The trickle of falling sediment made the injured soldier glance up in mild curiosity.

“There!” he roared. “Up there!”

The other pair instinctively reacted, rushing the stairway with weapons drawn. Eyes wide, Kalena hesitated, clearly stunned by what she had done.

“Run!” Morgis shouted. “Run!”

His cries stirred her to action. She fled down the hall and out of sight. The wolf raiders, however, were already more than halfway up and closing.

Brandishing his sword, the remaining Aramite angrily approached the drake. “Be silent you! I’ll—”

But as he neared, Leonin, who had remained subdued all this time, pushed himself up on his feet and charged into the guard.

They collided with a heavy thud and despite Leonin’s tied hands, he managed to bowl over their captor. The two fell in a desperate jumble, the guard’s helmet rolling away.

Morgis was right behind him. Also unable to use his arms, he came around the Aramite and kicked at the other’s now-unprotected head.

With a groan, the Aramite stilled.

“Can you reach his sword or dagger?” the drake asked of his comrade.

“The dagger would be better! And if I can’t, nobody—aah! You see? Turn around!”

Turning away from Leonin, Morgis waited tensely. Behind him, he could picture the human, his own back to that of the larger drake, trying to sever Morgis’s bonds with the procured blade. With Leonin’s own wrists still tied, the work was difficult. Morgis expected the other guards to return before the deed was done, but at last the bonds loosened, finally falling to the floor.

Spinning around, the towering drake dealth with Leonin’s ropes, then seized the sword dropped by the Aramite. His companion hurried to where the wolf raiders had deposited the captured weapons, locating his own beloved blade.

“We go after Kalena?” Leonin asked.

In response, Morgis simply headed toward the stairway. The cat woman had risked herself for them when escape had already been hers; they could do no less.

He had no doubt that with her claws she had climbed up the back of the crumbling structure and in through a window, but doing so in secret was a lot easier than trying to descend safely while being pursued. At the very least, if they chose not to follow her, the Aramites would drop whatever they could on top of Kalena, more than likely ensuring her death.

He and Leonin paused at the top of the steps. “I don’t hear anything,” the human declared anxiously. “Do you think—”

“We can only hope not.”

They entered the room where they had last seen the Aramites heading. The chamber was so dark that even Morgis, who could see better at night than Leonin, could not even make out the back of his own hand.

“We need light, Morgis. I’d better grab a torch.”

“It would not be good to separate—”

The bearded fighter backed out of the darkened chamber. “They’re still out searching the landscape. I won’t be a moment.”

The drake hissed. “Just flee, Leonin. Take your horssse and ride fassst! Alert others to what we found!”

“And leave the reward for our friend D’Kairn all for you? I’ll be right back! You do what you can, all right?”

Nodding wordlessly, Morgis watched his partner hurry down the hall, then turned to confront the darkness again. Kalena and her captors had to have gone this way. But where were they then?

As he stepped cautiously into the room, it seemed to get even murkier. A chill wind coming from well ahead wrapped around him, making the drake hiss again. An uneasy feeling crept over him.

His foot struck