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"You sound as if you know our course," said Ellery

Athrogate poked his hand Arrayan&039;s way "She said she found that book out here, over by where thatfor that, if I&039;ht"

"We were indeed," said Mariabronne "But that is only a starting place We don&039;t truly knohat the book is, nor do we know if it&039;s still there"

"Bah!" Athrogate snorted

"It is still there," replied a quiet voice froard Arrayan, who seemed very, very sate barked at her

"The book is still there," Arrayan said She stood up a bit straighter and glanced over at Olgerkhan for support "Uncle Wingha"

"Then perhaps you should," Canthan replied

"The tower all of this, was created by the book," Arrayan explained

"That was our guess," Mariabronne cut in, an atte her hand up to quiet the ranger

"The book is part of the castle, rooted to it through tendrils of ic," Arrayan went on "It sits open" She held her pales turn of their own accord, as if soical breeze to blow across the next sheaf"

As Canthan suspiciously asked Arrayan how she lanced at each other, neither surprised, of course

Entreri sed hard, but that did not relieve the lump in his throat He turned to Arrayan and tried to think of so to say to interrupt the conversation, for he kneas co and knew that she should not adyi&039;s book," she said, and Entreri sucked in his breath "Uncle Wingham bade me to inspect it while Mariabronne rode to the Vaasan Gate We hoped to give you a erkhan shifted nervously at her side, a movement not lost on any of the others

"And?" Canthan pressed when Arrayan did not continue

Arrayan stuttered a couple of times then replied, "I do not know"

"You do not knohat?" Canthan snapped back at her, and he took a stride her way, see and powerful than his skinny fraan to read What happened next?"

"I" Arrayan&039;s voice trailed off

"We&039;ve no tiirl," Canthan scolded

Entreri realized that he had his hands on his weapons and realized too that he truly wanted to leap over and cut Canthan&039;s throat out at that moment

Or rush over and support Arrayan

"I started to read it," Arrayan ad it said - I don&039;t think it said anything - just syllables, guttural and rhyate interrupted, but no one paid him any heed

"I remember none just that the words, if they ords, found a flow in my throat that I did not wish to halt"

"The book used you as its instrument," Mariabronne reasoned

"I do not know," Arrayan said again "I woke up back at erkhan piped in, stepping in front of the woainst her "The book cursed her andus take you along?" Canthan said, and his voice did not reveal whether he was speaking with co

"You can all run froerkhan finished

"You are certain that it is at theto be understanding and gentle, there was no e at the back of his voice

"And why did you not speak up earlier?" deoyles and fiends forever? To what end?"

"No!" Arrayan pleaded "I did not know - "

"For one who practices the ical arts, you seeerous and foolhardy coet nowhere constructive with this bickering What is past is past We have new information now and new hope Our enemy is identified beyond these animates it uses as shields Let us find a path to the keep and to the book, for there ill find our answers, I aer," Canthan spat at hi Gareth&039;s banner before us and hire truer and sarcas no less, set everyone on their heels Mariabronne furrowed his brow and glared at theto Jarlaxle and Entreri was the reaction of Ellery

Far from the noble and heroic coht between two forces far beyond her

"Relation of Dragonsbane," Jarlaxle whispered to his co wasn&039;t quite what it see and difficult run," Pratcus intervened "We gotta be gathering our strength and wits about us, and tighten our belts&039;n&039;bandages We knohere we&039;re going, so where we&039;re going&039;s where we&039;re goin&039;"

"Ye said that right!" Athrogate congratulated

"A long run and our only run," Mariabronne agreed "There ill find our answers Pray you secure that door above, good Athrogate I will scout the northern corridor Recover your breath and your heart Partake of food and drink if you so need it, and yes, tighten your bandages"

"I do believe that our sadly poetic friend just told us to take a break," Jarlaxle said to Entreri, but the assassin wasn&039;t even listening

He was thinking of Herabalus

He was looking at Arrayan

Jarlaxle looked that way too, and he stared at Entreri until he at last caught the assassin&039;s attention He offered a helpless shrug and glanced back at the wouous voice He turned away frouard

An amused Jarlaxle watched him every step of the way

"A fine flute you crafted, Idalia the monk," he whispered under his breath

He wondered if Entreri would agree with that assessment or if the assassin would kill hirand manipulation

"I would have a moment with you," Entreri said to Arrayan as he approached

Olgerkhan eyed him with suspicion and even took a step closer to the woman

"Go and speak with Commander Ellery or one of the dwarves," Entreri said to him, but that only made the brutish half-orc widen his stance and cross his ar at Entreri froerkhan is my friend," Arrayan said "What you must say to me, you can say to him"

"Perhaps I wish to listen more than speak," said Entreri "And I would prefer if it were just o Go away," he said to Olgerkhan "If I wanted to harerkhan bristled, his eyes flaring with anger

"And so would you," Entreri went on, nota beat "I have seen you in battle - both of you - and I know that your ive erkhan strained forward and see you, stealing your life," the assassin said, after glancing around to an a process from which you cannot easily escape"

Both of the half-orcs rocked off-balance at the words, confiruess "Noill you speak with azed at hio off for a few lowered at Entreri for a mo at the assassin every step of the way, he , then found that you could not stop," Entreri said to Arrayan "Correct?"

"I I think so, but it is all blurry to ht that I had constructed enough wards to fend the residual curses of Zhengyi, but I rong All I know is that I was sick soon after back in haham insisted that you come into the castle with us"

"There was no other choice"

"To destroy the book before it consuue the point

"You were sickly, so you said"

"I could not get out of my bed, nor could I eat"

"But you are not so sickly now, and your friend" He glanced back at Olgerkhan "He cannot last through a single fight, and each swing of his war club is less crisp and powerful"

Arrayan shrugged and shook her head, lifting her hands up wide

Entreri noticed her ring, a replica of the one Olgerkhan wore, and he noted too that the single gemstone set on that band was a different hue, darker, than it had been before

Froan stalking back across the room

"Take care how much you ader half-orc arrived "If the book is draining you of life, then it is feeding and growing stronger because of you We will - we ic, but one way seee friend to enjoy"

"Is that a threat?" Arrayan asked, and Olgerkhan apparently heard, for he rushed the rest of the way to her side

"It is free advice," Entreri answered "For your own sake, good lady, take care your words"

He gave only a cursory glance at the ierkhan as he turned and walked away Given his experience with the lich Herabalus, and the words of the dragon sisters, the answer to all of this seemed quite obvious to Arteyian construct at its heart He blew a sigh as he realized that not so long ago, he would not have been so repulsed by the idea, and not hesitant in the least The o left Arrayan dead in a pool of her own blood

But now he saw the challenge differently, and his task seemed infinitely more complicated

"She read the book," he infor her would be the easy way to be done with this"

Jarlaxle shook his head through every word "Not this ti the lich would have defeated the tower"

"So Ilnezhara and Tazmikella told me, and with certainty"

"Arrayan is this construct&039;s lich - or soon to be," Entreri replied, and though he was arguing the point, he had no intention, if proven right, of allowing the very course he was even then cha

But still Jarlaxle shook his head "Partly, perhaps"

"She read the book"

"Then left it"

"Its ic released"

"Its call unleashed," Jarlaxle countered, and Entreri looked at him curiously

"What do you know?" asked the assassin

"Little - as little as you, I fear," the drow admitted "But this" He looked up and swept his arms to indicate the vastness of the castle "Do you really believe that such a noviceall of this?"

"Zhengyi&039;s book?"

But still Jarlaxle shook his head, apparently convinced that there was so more at work The drow remained determined, for the sake of purse and power alone, to find out what it was