Hederick, The Theocrat (d-4)

by Ellen Dodge Severson

  Two humans, both men, stood behind Gaveley. Their manner and guise contrasted sharply with that of the more elegantly attired half-elf. One man was nearly as tall as Tarscenian, but far huskier; he had the crushed ear and flattened nose of someone who was no stranger to tavern brawls. The other man was small and slight and so ordinary-looking as to be overlooked in almost any crowd-which was probably to his advantage, Tarscen shy;ian thought.

  "What is this?" Gaveley said in a hostile voice, almost a hoarse whisper. "What is a stranger doing here? Mynx …" His hand went to the ornate sword at his waist.

  Mynx stood to introduce Tarscenian. She sketched in the events of the afternoon and evening. "He wishes to join us. To my mind, he has some promise. He fooled the high priest and the temple guards handily in the refugees' quarter, Gaveley. You should have been there. Look."

  She dug Dahos's ring out of a pocket and handed it to Gaveley, who accepted it with a half-smile.

  "Still," he rasped, "you overstepped yourself in bring shy;ing him here of your own volition."

  Mynx muttered an apology, but Gaveley was already circling Tarscenian. The older man turned with him, hand on the hilt of his sword, warily noting the position of the other thieves.

  Suddenly, Gaveley's sword was out and poised at Tarscenian's throat. "You're rather old to take up our company, stranger," Gaveley whispered. "Are you cer shy;tain you're not a spy for the High Theocrat? He'd love to get his pudgy hands in our coffers, I'll warrant." He nod shy;ded toward the two men. "Xam, Snoop-check the area for Hederick's henchmen."

  The two left without remark. The hulk of a man, Xam, cut through the den and disappeared through a back portal. Snoop wheeled and vanished back in the direc shy;tion from which he had come.

  "You understand that I cannot be too careful, old man," Gaveley whispered.

  "Tarscenian."

  There was the sound of the rock again. In that instant, Gaveley's concentration wavered, and Tarscenian acted. His sword, held in a firm grip, swept up and clanged against Gaveley's. An instant later, Gaveley's weapon lay discarded on the floor, and it was the half-elf who was staring down a blade.

  Tarscenian's voice was edged with anger. "I may be old, Gaveley, but I have learned much in my time."

  Xam and Snoop, entering, froze. Gaveley, held at the point of Tarscenian's sword, flicked his gaze toward the smaller man. Snoop said simply, "All clear." Xam nod shy;ded as well. At that, Gaveley released a breath, stepped back from the swordpoint, and casually retrieved and sheathed his own weapon. In the light of the lantern that illuminated the hideout, he regarded Tarscenian with a cold half-smile.

  Gaveley's more relaxed attitude signaled something to Xam, Snoop, and Mynx. All three helped themselves to the carafe of wine and took up comfortable positions around the room, waiting for what would happen next.

  "We will see, Tarscenian," was all Gaveley said to the older man.

  Mynx brought Gaveley a goblet of wine and poured another for Tarscenian. The older man refused with a shake of the head. Unlike the human thieves, who gulped the wine as though it were water, Gaveley sipped his drink elegantly. He leaned against a stool, glaring down at Xam and Snoop. "Report, you two," he rasped.

  "I know where to find Von Falden," Xam said. "I expect to bring him in tomorrow."

  This meant something to Gaveley, for he gave a satis shy;fied nod. "Splendid. Pantrev upped the bounty to two hundred steel yesterday," he said in his hoarse voice. "That was a tough assignment. Good work, Xam."

  The bounty hunter grunted. "Years o' practice," he said and proceeded to down the rest of his wine.

  Gaveley turned to the small, nondescript man. "Snoop?"

  The spy shrugged. "Still looking. I know there's some shy;thing up between the young lady in question and the head of the weavers' guild, but proving it …" He shrugged again.

  "Keep at it," Gaveley said. "It could mean hundreds of steel in blackmail-from each of them. If you can't come up with something solid, we can always bluff our way along, but blackmail always has more teeth when you can offer a bit of irrefutable evidence."

  Gaveley's gaze fell on Mynx. "And you?"

  She smiled lazily at him. There was a casualness between the two that suggested to Tarscenian that they'd once been much more than colleagues.

  "I fulfilled my assignment, Gav," she said archly, "as you well know. And …" She unfastened a pouch from her waistband and spilled its contents onto the shelf. "And I have two purses, a copper bracelet decorated with what seem to be amethysts, three rings-including the high priest's, but I suppose I really can't take credit for that-and a hair clasp made of polished steel. Very pretty." She fondled the last-named item. "Can I keep it, Gav?"

  "And risk running into the owner?" Gaveley laughed gruffly and extended his goblet for a refill. "Besides, Mynx, nothing could tame that lion's mane of yours."

  "Coupla hours with a comb wouldn't hurt," the spy Snoop cracked. Mynx socked him in the arm with her fist, then turned back to Gaveley, who shook his head.

  "You know the rules, Mynx. Everything to the fence. We can't risk having our goods surface in Solace. Better Haven or Gateway or Caergoth."

  She accepted Gaveley's mandate without protest, and Tarscenian realized the banter between the two was a longstanding routine.

  Then the leader was addressing Tarscenian. "And you, old man? Now is your turn. Why are you here?"

  "I want help stealing something," was Tarscenian's curt reply.

  The half-elf leaned forward. The movement parted his dark hair, revealing the pointed ears that proclaimed that his mother or father was a Qualinesti. Gaveley licked his lips like a man about to set upon a fine supper. "Something valuable?" he asked

  "Quite." Tarscenian spoke tersely. He had no money to offer the group. They'd not help him unless they knew the artifact was worth something, but he had no inten shy;tion of revealing just how valuable the Diamond Dragon was magically. He described the artifact in more mun shy;dane, but financially attractive, terms.

  "Steel, you say," Gaveley murmured.

  "With dozens of diamonds," Tarscenian added. "And ruby eyes."

  "Too distinctive," Mynx said.

  The half-elf nodded. "It would have to be melted down. The diamonds alone would be worth a fortune, though."

  Tarscenian said nothing. He would have to find some way to prevent the thieves from keeping the dragon arti shy;fact, but at this point he was better off pretending his motive was the same as theirs-pure greed.

  "What do you want out of this, Tarscenian?"

  "My share of the take."

  Gaveley regarded him dubiously. "And where is this marvelous piece of jewelry?" he asked.

  "Around Hederick's neck." Tarscenian held his breath, expecting some explosive reaction.

  He was wrong. Gaveley, Xam, and Snoop continued to sit stoically. Only Mynx perked up, her eyes sparkling. "What a chance to get even with the old goat!" she crowed. "You say this piece of jewelry is especially important to the High Theocrat?"

  Perhaps revenge, rather than greed, was the tack to take, Tarscenian thought. "Tremendously so," he said. "He's had the Diamond Dragon with him for decades. He believes it's a gift from his gods."

  Mynx turned to the others. "Here's our chance to avenge the kender," she said excitedly.

  "But to steal something the High Theocrat always keeps on his person?" Snoop protested. "With all those guards and goblins around? Mynx, you've got talent enough to do it, but…"

  "Let me try, Gav," Mynx pleaded.

  "Well…" Gaveley paused. Several emotions seemed to be warring in his contorted expression. Finally, a bland mask dropped over his features. "I need time to consider this. Mynx, escort the old man to his lodgings."

  Mynx looked at Tarscenian. He shrugged. "I just arrived in Solace. I have no lodgings. I'll sleep in the woods."

  "You can't do that," Mynx objected. "The goblins can espy things in the dark. And they'll be looking all over for you. I know where to hide you."
/>   Kifflewit Burrthistle leaned away from the back door of the thieves' den and considered. First the kender had had to evade the huge man and the tiny, ferretlike one when they'd come out in search of spies-as if Kifflewit would allow any spies nearby! Then he'd had to pick a lock specially created by thieves to keep out other thieves. They'd set it up with a latch-pin keyed to a needle, daubed with poison that the kender was sure was fast and deadly.

  But kender grew up learning how to pick locks. One of the first sayings a young kender learned was: "The most interesting things are behind locked doors. So get mov shy;ing." If one thing set off kender from the rest of Krynn's creatures, it was their overwhelming curiosity. That and a total absence of fear.

  So there was never any question that Kifflewit Burr-thistle would do a little eavesdropping on the thieves.

  But Mynx and Tarscenian were coming out now. Kifflewit was torn between staying at the den and hearing some more tantalizing talk or dogging the steps of his earlier acquain shy;tances. Excitement had followed Mynx and Tarsceniari once before, and it might again. He'd not had as much fun in a long time as he'd had shinnying up that rope in the refugee section.

  Besides, Tarscenian might spill a little more informa shy;tion about that Diamond Dragon. The desirable object certainly seemed as though it would be worth a closer look!

  He decided, and let the door swing shut. Absolutely silently, of course.

  Few creatures can be as stealthy as a kender.

  "So why don't we grab the old man now? And turn him right over to Hederick?" Snoop demanded as soon as Mynx and Tarscenian were out of sight. "Five hun shy;dred steel for a bounty! That's not someone I'd like to leave walking around loose. Not with plenty of other people willing to collect that kind of money."

  "Mynx'll hide him well enough."

  Snoop rolled his eyes. "But when do we turn him over and collect, Gaveley?"

  The half-elf didn't answer right away. "Maybe we won't," he finally said.

  "What?" Xam and Snoop erupted at the same time.

  Gaveley swirled his wine in his goblet, watching the

  pattern form on the chalice in the rosy light. "Not right away, at least," he whispered. "I want to learn more about this Diamond Dragon."

  "But…"

  He cut them off. "We've got to be flexible to get by. You know that."

  Xam and Snoop exchanged glances. Then they shrugged. "You're the leader," Snoop said, and smiled ingratiatingly. "And what's more, you're usually right."

  "What about Mynx?" Xam asked. "Are you still going to hand her over, too? She's a good thief, one of the best we've had."

  "She made her choice," Gaveley shot back. "She could have accepted Hederick's offer, but she turned him down flat."

  "She can't forgive him for killing the kender," Xam said softly.

  Gaveley fixed a hard glare on the big man. "He was a kender. And Hederick caught him sneaking into his temple, remember. If Hederick thinks kender don't belong in Erolydon, I'm not one to argue. The High Theocrat offered us a lot of steel to bring in Tarscenian." He placed his wine glass on the shelf next to the little statue that operated the door mechanism. "Mynx refused to help out of stupid sentiment. There's no room for emotion in this business."

  Snoop spoke up. "But she's been with us for a long time___"

  "She opted out," Gaveley said stubbornly. "We can't trust her. She's got to go."

  Snoop frowned, then nodded. But Xam kept on staring at Gaveley. "But…" Xam shook his head.

  Gaveley cut him off angrily. "That's enough. We'll turn them both over-after they steal this Diamond Dragon for us. If you don't want to go along .. . Well, wouldn't it be ironic if a bounty hunter ended up with a bounty on his own head?"

  They locked stares. Then Xam lifted his huge shoul shy;ders and let them fall. "Oh, well," he said with a sigh. "I'll miss her."

  Saying nothing, Mynx passed stairway after deserted stairway in the darkness. Tarscenian glanced upward at the web of walkways crisscrossing overhead.

  Mynx answered the unasked question. "I prefer to keep my feet on the ground when I can. Too easy to get ambushed on the bridges." She halted and ran her fin shy;gers back through her hair without speaking. Her eyes were troubled. "Tarscenian, all that you said about that dragon artifact-it was all true? It's that valuable to Hederick?"

  Tarscenian nodded. Everything he'd said was true; he merely had left a few things out.

  "I could help you," Mynx said. "If Gav says it's all right."

  "Thank you."

  "Don't thank me," she snapped. "I wouldn't do it for you. I'd do it for the money … and the kender."

  They continued on for quite some time without speak shy;ing. The vallenwood canopy admitted no light from moons or stars. Tarscenian could tell when they were passing beneath a home in the treetops only by the slight thickening of the darkness.

  "Tell me about Gaveley," he finally said.

  Mynx snorted. "You saw him. He loves fine clothes, and he goes about dressed like a nobleman-as if 'noble shy;man' means anything since the Cataclysm! But his mother was the daughter of a rich man here in Solace, closest thing Solace has to nobility. She got in trouble with an elven trader who was passing through, and her family cast her out."

  She tried to untangle the lapis-and-silver earring from her hair as she walked, but only succeeded in making the snarl worse. "You know how most people treat half-elves-as not quite human, not quite elf," she continued. "And Gav's mother raised him to despise the rich. He loves nothing as much as stealing from the wealthy. Not that many people in Solace fit into that category any shy;more." The thief fell silent.

  "And you?"

  Mynx gave him a hard look. "For all that it's none of your business, stranger, I've been a thief for as long as I can remember. Joined Gav's ring when I was ten. Before that, I was on my own. Gav took care of me and taught me my trade. That's something to appreciate when you've got no family-or at least none that wants to admit knowing you."

  A faint snarl, quickly muffled, reached Tarscenian's ears. He and Mynx halted at the same time. Within an eyeblink, his sword was ready, as was Mynx's dagger. They proceeded carefully, taking as wide a berth as pos shy;sible around shadowed vallenwoods and stairways.

  They covered some ground without incident, and Mynx relaxed. "Maybe we were just imagin-"

  "Look out!" Tarscenian shouted. He whirled-and dove to the ground as a mace hurtled over his head. He heard Mynx curse and hit the ground next to him.

  She rolled and was up on her feet in an instant. They were being attacked by something, but in the dark it was hard to tell what.

  "What is it?" Mynx panted, peering into the darkness, "A bear, in Solace? And with a mace?"

  "A bugbear," Tarscenian replied, moving cautiously to put the monster between him and Mynx. "Not a bear, really, although it looks like it. More like a goblin. Smarter than it looks, but not too bright. Sees in the dark-at least, a little."

  "Magic?"

  "None that I know of."

  "Good." ,

  The monster suddenly materialized in front of them, towering over them, a warhammer hanging from one paw and a spear balanced in the other. Its eyes were pale, its fur coarse and dark. Wedge-shaped ears rose from the top of its head, and lips wrinkled back from long fangs. It grunted and snarled as it jabbed at them with the spear.

  Suddenly, the monster roared and swung its hammer at Mynx. She took advantage of the beast's outflung paw to leap forward and slice its forearm from elbow to wrist. It squealed and thrust the limb under one of the hides that protected it. Its mismatched armor clanked and jangled in the still night. It whirled, forcing them back to avoid the needle-sharp edge of its spear. And all the while it kept shrieking.

  "It'll soon bring the guards down on us, if it doesn't kill us first," Tarscenian hissed.

  "We'll have to kill it, then," Mynx said calmly. Without hesitation, she ducked and dove under the whirling spear. Then she leaped again, burying her dagger to the hilt in the bu
gbear's side. The bugbear moved quickly, though, and caught the thief in the abdomen with a clawed paw, flinging her high over Tarscenian's head.

  The movement left the creature exposed. In an instant, Tarscenian thrust his sword into the bugbear's belly and wrenched the weapon to one side. The creature stood for a moment, entrails spilling onto the ground, then it pitched forward with a horrible scream.

  Tarscenian whirled. Mynx was just sitting up behind him, rubbing her head and rearranging her skirt and blouse. "Come on!" Tarscenian shouted. "Before any guards get here!" He pulled her to her feet, mindless of any injuries she might have suffered.

  Mynx shook her head to clear it. "Next time I go hunt shy;ing bugbears, I won't wear a skirt," she muttered. Then she raced over to the dead creature, pulled her dagger from its ribs, and sprinted into the trees. Tarscenian fol shy;lowed a few paces behind. He could hear the cries of an approaching phalanx of guards.

  They ran through the underbrush beneath the vallen-woods until their sides ached, then dove behind the huge trees to conceal themselves until blue-and-gold-clad guards pounded past. Despite the noise, the walk shy;ways remained deserted above them; no one ventured forth from the safety of the tree-homes.

  Tarscenian paused at a fork in the path. Mynx skidded to a stop. "What is it?" she hissed.

  Tarscenian pointed to the left. "They're coming from that way. And the other way, too. And from behind us as well." He bounded off the path into the underbrush, bur shy;rowing beneath thick ferns. He hoped she had the sense to follow and hide herself.

  The three groups of guards almost collided where the paths met. The air filled with oaths as each contingent accused the other of missing the quarry. Finally an authoritative voice cut through the rest. "They could be hiding anywhere around here." The leader ordered the guards-two dozen or so, as near as Tarscenian could guess-to fan out. "Beat the underbrush," the leader ordered.

  "Who are we looking for?"

  "Whoever killed the bugbear, you idiot."

  "Fine, but who's that?"

  The captain answered with curses. Tarscenian heard him muttering as he and his partners began to wade through the ferns and bracken. It would be only a matter of moments before one of the guards stumbled over Tarscenian or Mynx. They'd have to make a stand.