Part 8 (2/2)
”What Boffly here means,” the Court Wizard of Fizziak said in a gravelly voice, ”is that you have been geased, enthralled, and otherwise tampered with to a.s.sure that you'll either see the mission through or die in the trying. If you so much as turn aside you'll be stricken with pain, a burning itch, and far worse if you attempt to deviate further!”
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”But what is the test?” Gord demanded. ”n.o.body's bothered to tell us!”
”Oh. no, my son,” the Good Prtest Boffly said with a tone of hurt fatherliness in his voice. ”We have taken great pains to instruct each of you In all matters pertaining to the test. You will recall them as time and circ.u.mstances demand.”
Bristling beard thrust forth, the Wizard of Fizziak interjected, ”What Boffly means is that you'll know what you need to know when you have need to know it - and not a moment sooner! We don't want you wandering about spilling everything in the meantime, so we have used various forms of dweo--mercraefting and priestly spell-tinkering to lock the knowledge safety away until proper events trigger it forth.”
”Unkindly put,” the priest said with a long-suffering look upon his benign countenance, ”but quite; true, nonetheless. By means of my inspired powers and a bit of help from the arcane craft that Wizard Phompton here manages tolerably well, you are safely directed and protected. Go about your test with the blessing of St.
Trowbane upon your undeserving heads!”47 As the wizard scowled at Boffly, and the cleric returned the glare with mild triumph expressed on his features, Gord, Chert, Pinkus and Maheal looked at each other blankly. It was immediately apparent that none of them had the faintest idea what they were supposed to do next. Before any of them could say so, however, the wizard saw their confusion.
”There, Boffly, is another sign of your incompetence! You failed to give the initial command, see?” Phompton stood with long arms folded in hauteur, stressing his point.
Somewhat deflated. Good Priest Boffly allowed a tiny frown to cross his mild countenance. This was instantly replaced by a cheerful smile and with a wave of dismissal he said, ”Good boys! Go get 'em!”
Resisting the urge to let his tongue hang out of his mouth, Gord turned obediently and headed for the door. The others were following without question. Each of the four knew that they were leaWng Castle Fizziak and heading north. There was little else to worry about.
”Coercion of this sort is ign.o.ble!” Maheal said as he scratched vigorously at various parts of his body. As this particular scene had been repeated several times previously, everyone else paid no heed whatsoever to the complaining and rode on In silence. This didn't deter the young n.o.bleman a Jot. He kicked his mount to hasten its pace and came alongside the huge horse ridden by the ehjure.
”I say, Pinkus! You have magical powers, I'm sure of it Do something to remove this blasted compulsion and the base effects of disobeying it!”
The eight-foot-plus ogre looked down his pug nose at Lord Maheal in a manner which the most vain dandies would have been proud to ape. ”Get away from me, minimus, or else I'll boot your a.s.s clean over your palfrey's head.” As he said this, he swung one leg free of its stirrup and made threatening motions with it ”Savage!” Maheal cried as he quickly got out of the way. ”You must be addlepated.
the lot of you! From the way you're all acting, one would suppose you were eager to enter this dismal wilderness and meet a coven of warlocks and witches!”
After getting well clear of the grand count's ma.s.sive stronghold and the attendant settlements, the four had known suddenly that their course was not 121.
CORD THE ROGUE ::.
northward at all. Maheal had exaggerated when he claimed to dwell in Rel Mord.
Fizziak lands bordered Relmor Bay on the south and ran northward about a hundred miles. This was a place quite removed from the capital of Nyrond. And the test was to take place elsewhere - specifically, about forty leagues to the west. They were to cross the Duntide River and enter the Gnatmarsh area. Fortunately, they had been allowed to take all of their possessions when they left - all except Cord's and Chert's fortune in jewels, of course. Weapons, provisions, and horses they had aplenty. Even the reluctant Maheal was bristling with an array of weapons. It was probable the szek would have trouble finding the pointy end of his sword, but that was another matter entirely.
That they had been carefully instructed through mental messages hidden magically and triggered automatically by certain predetermined events was certain. So too was the power of the dweomer that forced compliance with the test if any of their numbers chose not to heed the mental promptings. Pinkus had. in fact, attempted to leave the group and head off on his own. Gord and Chert just ignored the defection, not caring much for the company of the ogre-magus anyway. Pinkus had returned in an hour, groaning from stomach cramps, complaining of a burning rash, and having trouble uncrossing his goggling eyes. Neither Gord nor Chert had considered swerving from the terms of the so-called test. Far more weighty than possible' consequences of the sort the ogreling was suffering was the fact that Lord Fizziak held their wealth!
Both of the young adventurers had guffawed at the sight presented by the errant ogre-magus as he returned. It was made funnier still by antic.i.p.ation, since the desertion of Pinkus had prompted Maheal 122.
to do the same. No sooner had the ogre-magus been out of sight than the Nyrondel n.o.bleman had airily waved a cerise-gloved hand at the two adventurers and said.
”Well, so much for all this nonsense - I'm off for Dohou-Yohpe. The grand count will forgive me after a time. Imagine - sending his own flesh and blood off on such a dangerous missionl”48 Chert had only stared in distaste at Maheal. but Gord tried to reason with him.
”Remember what Good Priest Boffly told us. If you try to s.h.i.+rk your duty, there'll be unpleasant consequences!”
”Nonsense! I am a Peer of the Realm, and no one would dare to inflict such Ills upon my n.o.ble person!” So saying. Maheal had reined his steed around and galloped off to the northeast.
It was only minutes after Pinkus came back that they heard the sound of another horse approaching. There was Maheal, all right, reeling in his saddle and crying out piteously. At first Gord and Chert laughed, but then they could not help but feel compa.s.sion. They helped the feebly moving n.o.ble from his mount and laid him carefully down. To have lasted as long as the ogreling under the pangs of en-thrallment and geas brought new respect for Maheal in the hearts of both humans.
Later, the Nyrondel told them he had pa.s.sed out from the pain. That, and his combination of whining and continued attempts to break the dweomer sent all high regard iar from them. It was clear that the young n.o.ble was a fool, a coward, and a dolt. They were, however, stuck with him - and Pinkus as well ”Is it the curse of that benighted artifact we stole from Nerull's temple?” Chert asked crossly, accusation lurking behind the query.
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”With the situation as it is,” Gord replied, eyeing the foppish Maheal and the ehjure sulking along beside each other, ”I'm not certain that this so-called test Is anything other than retribution,” he admitted grudgingly to the hulking barbarian.
”Nonetheless, I am determined to turn the tables and get both our just compensation and revenge!”
”Compensation?” the young n.o.bleman echoed.
”Revenge?” Plnkus growled as he glared at the three humans.
”Curdling curds of catoblepas c.r.a.pl” Chert expostulated as he turned away and rode off to scout ahead for possible trouble. Gord. suffering from boredom and tired of the company he and his barbarian friend were currently compelled to keep, fervently wished he could go with him. but the young thief knew that it would be most ill-advised to leave Pinkus and Maheal alone together. Hunching his shoulders, Gord resigned himself to a long trek with the ogre and the whiner. It seemed like days before the hlUman returned, although he was gone but a few hours.
When a small company of bandits attacked them from the rear the next day, everyone but Maheal welcomed the encounter as a pleasant diversion. The outlaws evidently had a minor spell-weaver In tow, for their a.s.sault was preceded by a streak of sizzling fire that impacted squarely upon the ogre-magus. Whatever differences he and his less-civilized kin who dwelled on Oerth had, resistance to magic was certainly one no one in the party would find objectionable. The spell was most likely meant to create a fiery globe to incinerate the group, but when it came in contact with Pinkus, the flames fizzled and went out. The magic-user who cast the spell had no opportunity to attempt further harm.
Where a hot, glowing streak had been a split- 124.
second before, there now existed a line of pale blue. Icicles appeared along it and fell tinkling to earth in the same moment. A m.u.f.fled shriek came from a clump of flash-frozen brush, and Gord could see crystalline flakes of snow gently descending on the area. Although the spell-slinger was thereby put out of commission, his a.s.sociates pressed the attack. As Gord, Chert, and the ogre-magus turned to stand their ground against the outlaws, Maheal spurred his horse on ahead, leaving his traveling companions for behind.
”Mind the arrows!” the barbarian shouted as a dozen barbed missiles buzzed near.
Gord screamed a wild oath as if In reply. One shaft grazed his horse, and several others had come close enough to hear, but the young thief was unscathed. ”Surrender or die!” he shouted as he struck right and left at the startled bandits crouch-Ing amidst the newly frozen brush.
Chert and the ogre-magus were likewise laying about them with vigor. In fact, as soon as Pinkus was among the outlaws, he threw his huge body from the back of his destrier, sweeping up a trio of brigands as he crashed to the ground. While the hulking hlllman whirled his axe, Brool, in b.l.o.o.d.y arcs, Pinkus discarded outlaws'
broken bodies left, up, right, and down as if a cyclone had struck in the midst of49 these hapless ambushers. It was all over in a few minutes.
”Who Is your captain?” Gord demanded of the dozen prisoners.
”Cob the Crazed - but he lies dead there,” one wounded outlaw managed to reply.
Chert, meanwhile, was chipping the ice from the frozen corpse of the spell-caster who had foolishly. sent his dweomer at the ogre-magus. It seemed that a backlash had occurred when the spell struck Pin- 125.
kus, and an opposite effect had been Inflicted upon the sender, who was caught off guard and did not act fast enough to avoid it. The fellow's surprised gaze looked blankly forth from a globe of slowly melting ice several feet thick. The barbarian, who thought that the dead Cob might be carrying something worth salvaging, was using his axe to whittle the stuff away to speed the natural process.
”Don't eat those bodies. Pinkus!” Gord called to the ogre-magus. The ogreling growled and grumbled but left off his prodding of the dead bandits and smacking of his lips. Gord wasn't certain If he had been doing this to further intimidate their captives, or whether the ehjure had actually been planning to eat one or more of their fallen attackers. Whatever the case, the effect upon the survivors was amazing.
”Please keep him away from us,” the spokesman for the prisoners pleaded to Gord.
”We'll tell you anything you want - Just keep him from us!”
”Gather up all the valuables, then,” Gord'ordered, ”and be certain that your own wealth is in the pile. If I find so much as an iron drab has been held back. I'll give the offender to Pinkus for his next meal!”
The ogre-magus clicked his fangs fiercely and rolled his goggling eyes. There was a mad scramble to comply, each outlaw attempting to be the first to divest himself of his money and valuables.
”Get the stuff from the bodies too!” Chert shouted, and another rush ensued.
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