Bladvaneer

  The guards knew what this was about. They also knew they wanted no part of it. As if by unspoken agreement, every guard stepped backwards. Except one. Grallen smiled.

  “Ah, brave soul. Come to me.”

  The guard didn’t move, but also had nowhere to run. The other guards, seeing that they had escaped an unfortunate fate today, lifted the unwilling sacrifice by the arms and brought him forward. Grallen began chanting. He placed his hand on the guard’s shoulder as he did so. The torch began to change shape. It lengthened, and became covered in flesh, followed by clothing. In a few moments the guard was nothing but a pile of dust, and Fogos stood before the priest of Krot.

  “Welcome back,” Jord said.

  “What’s going on? Where am I?” Fogos asked.

  “All that can wait. For now we must go,” Tarquin said, and turned to leave.

  No one could help but notice Grallen’s expression as Tarquin said this, but no one commented on it either. Instead they waited for Grallen to leave, and then followed him.

  Outside Tarquin was met by his two warriors, and they headed back the way they came. The others soon followed.

  Inside their stone tomb, the three heroes had finally recovered from being electrified but were now suffering from lack of air.

  “Can’t someone do something?” Maurya asked, each word a chore to speak.

  “I don’t think I can even lift my sword,” Klavin said.

  “Even if I had the strength, I don’t have a spell that can break through that much rock,” Simko added.

  They all assumed it was an effect of their injuries, but they heard a voice from the other side of the wall telling them to stand back. They managed to crawl as far against the rear of the room as they could. There was a flash and the wall crumbled before them. They took in deep lungfuls of air. When they had recovered they saw Rand and Clegg standing in front of them.

  “What are you doing here?” Klavin asked.

  “I know you told us not to get involved, but when they told me that Tarquin was a part of that group I thought you could use a hand. I’m assuming you weren’t expecting him,” Rand said.

  “No, but we probably should have figured he’d get involved in this sooner or later.”

  “Well, we’ll get you out of here and you can get some rest.”

  “There’s no time for that. We’d appreciate it if you’d patch us up, but we have to get out of here. There’s only one Elemental Warrior left, and getting to it is our last chance to stop Grallen’s plan.”

  “Don’t go out there. You won’t stand a chance against Justyna,” Clegg warned.

  “I wouldn’t be so sure. On the way over here I had a few thoughts about how we all might be able to get out of this mess. I assume you have supplies,” Maurya said.

  “Of course. Any supplies we had in town shrunk with the rest of us. Just tell us what you need,” Clegg said.

  “Good. And I believe you said something about having acid earlier …” she continued.

  Meanwhile, Grallen, Tarquin, and their mixed groups arrived at the entrance back to their own world.

  “You should have killed them,” Tarquin scolded.

  “They’ll never get out of that tomb,” Grallen retorted.

  “You know they will. They’ve managed to survive everything so far. They’re going to keep getting in our way, and eventually they’re going to get lucky.”

  “So what do you want to do? Go back and make sure they’re dead? Or would you rather wait for them here? If they’re alive they’ve got to come this way sooner or later.”

  “No, not yet, and not here. There are a few things I’ll need to take care of first. For now, we need to get out of here.”

  Grallen nodded his head in agreement. They stepped through the crack and found Justyna sitting in her chair reading.

  “She doesn’t even realize we’re here,” Grallen said.

  “We’re an inch tall. She can barely see us. But we’ll get her attention,” Tarquin responded.

  “What are you going to do? Hit her with one of your lightning bolts?”

  Tarquin laughed. “She’d never even feel it. But I’m willing to bet she’ll see this,” he said, and began casting.

  Fireworks went off in front of Justyna’s face. They were making loud noises as well, but to her they were like whispers. She saw the group that had stepped through the crack and walked over to them.

  “I guess you want me to return you to normal size,” she said playfully.

  “That would be nice, yes,” Tarquin screamed, hoping she’d hear him.

  “Are you sure? I could just leave you like that and make you my pets. It wouldn’t be that bad of a life for you.”

  Tarquin pretended to consider this. “No, I think we’ll just return to normal size, thank you.”

  “You’re no fun. Oh, very well,” she said smiling, and touched her necklace. In a few moments they had been returned to size.

  “I have to admit I’m surprised. I was sure you’d make us beg,” Tarquin said.

  Justyna smiled. “I’ll admit I considered it. But I figure I can have enough fun with the other people who are coming out. They are coming out, aren’t they? Sometimes they stay inside, the little cowards!”

  “Oh, they’ll come out. Trust me. They’re too dedicated to give up now. But it’s time for us to go. I’m sure we’d all like to thank you for your hospitality.”

  Tarquin looked around at the others. None of them looked particularly grateful.

  “I said, ‘I’m sure we’d all like to thank you for your hospitality.’”

  The others mumbled their thanks. Justyna beamed.

  Everyone left except for Tarquin, who stuck his head in the door one last time.

  “Oh, and please send me some type of message to let me know when you’ve killed them.”

  Justyna put on an innocent face. “What makes you think I’m going to kill them?”

  “Enjoy,” Tarquin said without answering, and left to catch up with the others.

  “Will she be able to do it?” Grallen asked.

  “Of course she’ll be able to. The question is whether or not she’ll actually do it. If we don’t hear from her within an hour, we’ll move forward with my plan, because it means she’s failed.”

  24

  Standing in front of the crack, Simko voiced his concerns about Maurya’s plan.

  “I still think this is suicide,” he said.

  “We don’t have any other choice,” she replied.

  “Of course we do. I already told you, my familiar is out there somewhere, full-sized. I can get him to come here, and he can help us.”

  Maurya laughed. “Your familiar won’t even listen to you when you’re bigger than he is. If you call him here now, he’s just going to think you’re lunch.”

  “I still think it’s safer than your plan.”

  “She’s never even going to know I’m there. Look at her.”

  They did. She was still lounging comfortably in her chair, reading. They noticed there was a towel in front of the door, obviously to keep any tiny people from escaping. That would have been a problem if they were planning to go outside.

  “Look, all I have to do is climb up the back of her chair. These pitons I got from their store will help with that. Once I get to the top I’ll slip behind her neck and use this acid they gave me—“

  “Are you sure that thing’s safe? Won’t the acid just eat right through it?” Klavin asked.

  Maurya held out the metal ball containing the acid.

  “Rand insists it’s safe. He said he used magic to reinforce it. Once I get to where I need to go, opening it should be as simple as cracking an egg. I’ll use it on the back of her necklace, and it should eat right through the clasp. The gem should fall to the floor, and then you can use Bladvaneer to cut right through it. Simple … I hope.”

  “I should be the one climbing up there. Instead of hoping that acid stays contained and then works the way you want, I could use th
e sword to cut through the chain. I have no doubt it can do that.”

  “That’s fine, except you’d never be able to get back down to the floor and use the sword on the gem before she realizes what’s happening. And remember, the sword is the only thing that might be able to cut through it. Do it your way and all she’s going to do is catch you and simply pick up the fallen gem. Besides, no offense, but you’re a librarian. Simko’s a wizard. I’ve been trained for things like this.”

  “You’ve been trained to climb the back of a giant chair and cut a giant necklace off a giant woman?” Simko asked.

  “You know what I mean. Look, we can’t argue all day. Either we do this now or we just make the decision to stay in here forever. I think we have to take the chance.”

  The others nodded, and Maurya headed through the crack.

  “Are we really just going to stay in here and watch?” Simko asked.

  “There’s not much point in us going out there where we can be spotted. We can keep an eye on things from in here. Besides, let’s be honest. If Justyna catches her, exactly what could we do about it?”

  Maurya made the long trek across the floor. Every so often she’d check to see if Justyna had noticed her. If she did, she was covering it well. She must have been very confident that there was no way to escape, so didn’t feel the need to keep checking to see if they had come out. After what must have been at least ten minutes of walking, she found herself at the front of the chair. On the way over she had noticed Justyna constantly shifting her feet, so she wasn’t about to stay for long. She knew that with the slightest movement she could wind up nothing but a stain on the carpet.

  Hurrying to the back of the chair, she looked up. It seemed like it went on forever, although that definitely wasn’t the case. She wasn’t looking forward to this climb, and wasn’t quite as confident as she’d let on to the others. She stroked the material. It should hold the piton. The problem was that she was facing a climb straight up a relatively smooth surface with absolutely nothing to hold onto should she make a mistake. She tried to get that thought out of her mind as she took out one of the spikes, pushed it into the chair, and began her climb.

  “Can you still see her?” Simko asked.

  “Not anymore.”

  “I hope nothing happened to her.”

  “Well, Justyna hasn’t moved, so I’m pretty sure she hasn’t even noticed that Maurya’s out there. She’s probably safe.”

  “But you don’t know.”

  “No, obviously I don’t know.”

  “I think we should head out there.”

  Klavin considered this. He nodded.

  “You’re probably right. Hopefully Maurya will get to the top of the chair and be able to get that necklace off, but if we’re in here when it happens, Justyna will probably be able to pick it up long before we can get to it. Then there’ll be no hope of us surviving this.”

  “I don’t have a whole lot of hope as it is.”

  Klavin and Simko headed through the crack, deciding to follow Maurya’s path and hope that they didn’t get seen.

  Maurya continued her climb. She never considered herself to be afraid of heights, but this was really bothering her. Perhaps it was the knowledge that the danger of the climb was nothing compared to what awaited her at the top.

  After what seemed like hours, she reached the top of the chair. She braved looking down, and was glad she wouldn’t have to go back that way. Either she was going to succeed at her mission and be able to walk out a normal-sized person, or she probably wasn’t going to walk out at all.

  She stared at the soft red wall in front of her. She knew she weighted practically nothing but was quite sure that if she tried to navigate through Justyna’s hair she’d be felt. The only course of action seemed to be to climb down this side of the chair and get to the back of her dress. If she could hold onto the fabric she should be able to get to the back of the necklace. Unfortunately, if she wound up touching the back of her neck or brushed against her hair, Justyna would almost certainly know she was there. With a sigh, she pushed a piton into the chair, tied a rope around it, and began her descent.

  After another long climb, Maurya found herself clinging to the fabric of Jusytna’s dress. Smiling with satisfaction as she realized that her presence still hadn’t been discovered, she began navigating around the neckline. As she moved she suddenly found herself overwhelmed by the giant woman’s scent. Despite herself, she could understand the attraction the others had felt for her. Snapping herself back to reality, she continued the journey. She got within reach of the necklace and, seeing no other choice, jumped for it. Just managing to get a hold of the chain, she became eternally grateful for her current weight, or lack thereof. The necklace was able to support her, and hadn’t moved a bit when she caught it. Reaching into her pack, she pulled out the orb containing the acid and, wrapping one of her arms around the necklace, cracked it open like an egg. As its contents fell onto the clasp it began to sizzle and burn, and with horror she realized the flaw in her plan. If the necklace fell now it would most likely land in Justyna’s lap, and Klavin would never be able to reach it in time. She cursed herself for missing something so obvious.

  She watched the acid eat away at the metal, realized there was only one course of action, and drew one of her daggers. She doubted this would really hurt Justyna, but it would definitely get her attention. Besides, she’d enjoy doing it. She plunged the blade into the back of the neck.

  Instinctively, Justyna both rose to her feet and grabbed at the back of her neck. Her fingers wrapped around Maurya, whose hand was still holding the knife, and brought her in front of her face. Justyna smiled.

  “I knew you’d come out eventually. I just didn’t expect you to deliver yourself to me like this. Thank you for that, by the way,” she said. Looking around, she added, “And where are your little friends? They must be around here somewhere.”

  “You’ll never catch them! They’re long gone!” Maurya screamed in an effort to be heard.

  Justyna laughed. “You and I both know they never could have gotten out of here. If they could have, then you would have gone as well. Very well, I’ll just have to content myself playing with you for a while.”

  Maurya felt Justyna’s fingers tightening around her. She couldn’t even take a breath to scream, and felt herself blacking out.

  “Oh no, don’t give up already. I haven’t even begun to have fun with you yet. And how sad it must be for you that your little friends would continue hiding while I’m torturing you,” Justyna taunted, continuing to exert the pressure on her tiny captive.

  At that moment the acid finally did its job and ate through the clasp. The necklace unraveled and fell.

  “What did you do, little girl? You should have known that would only make things harder on you.”

  Justyna bent over to pick up the gem just as a tiny man ran out from under her chair, brandishing a sword. She laughed at his effort.

  “Don’t think I’m surprised that you know the secret of my power. I was sure those worthless little townspeople would tell you everything, not that it matters. You might as well give up. Your weapon isn’t going to have any effect on it.”

  “Are you sure!?” Klavin screamed, raising his sword.

  Justyna wanted to laugh, but couldn’t. Something in the little man’s confidence shook her. She found that she could only watch as he lowered his sword and it cut right through the gem. There was a flash of light, and she was thrown clear across the room.

  She struggled to her feet just in time to see a full-sized Klavin and Maurya walking in her direction. Simko was still on the floor, lying next to an overturned chair. He had apparently grown back to normal size while still underneath it. Justyna forced a laugh.

  “Just because you’re my size again doesn’t mean you’re a match for me. By the time I’m done you’ll wish all I had done was step on you!”

  Justyna began casting. Klavin held Bladvaneer in a defensive stance, hoping to defl
ect or absorb whatever spell she was about to throw at them. After a few moments, he realized that nothing was happening. She seemed even more surprised than he was, so she tried it again with the same results.

  “Uh oh,” was all she could say, as she stared at her hands.

  The door flew open and several townspeople, led by Rand and Clegg, stormed in. It looked like the rest of them were milling about outside.

  “I’m sorry to have to do this to you,” Rand said, rolling up his sleeves, “but I have to make sure you can never do what you did again.” He began casting.

  “Please …” Justyna pleaded.

  “Maybe we shouldn’t,” Clegg said.

  “The whole time we were her prisoners we said we’d do this if we ever got out,” Rand replied, the spell lost as his concentration was broken.

  “That was different … I think. Now that it’s actually happening …” Clegg hesitated.

  “Well, I’m pretty sure she can’t hurt you anymore,” Klavin said.

  “What makes you say that?” Clegg asked.

  “Because from what I can tell, she’s powerless now. If she wasn’t, she probably would have killed us before you even got to the door,” Klavin responded.

  Clegg looked at Rand.

  “Could that be true?”

  “It’s possible,” Rand admitted. “Justyna had been using that gem for such a long time, it’s possible that her innate powers became linked to it. When the gem was destroyed, it took her abilities with it.”

  “Then maybe you don’t have to do … that to her,” Clegg said. It was obvious that despite everything he still loved her.

  Rand shook his head. “Clegg, I know you’re hoping that all can be forgiven and forgotten, and we can all just go back to life as it was before all this happened. But you know that can’t happen. You know what she did to us. We can’t even imagine what she might have done to others. I’m sorry, but there has to be a price for all that. And even if I thought she should get off scot-free, I’m pretty sure they wouldn’t agree,” he said, indicating both the townspeople in the room and the ones surrounding the house.