half.
The wizard's body, though, was not as strong as his will, and he collapsed to one knee. Tanis nocked another arrow and took aim. Balcombe spied the soul gem he had prepared for the sea elf, miraculously still intact and ready to accept a person's essence. Perhaps he could still escape into the gem…
As Tanis fired, Balcombe dived toward the gem. The arrow passed through the wizard's shoulder above the bone, then struck the wall beyond.
Shafts of red light lanced out of Balcombe's body, filling the chamber with a brilliant glow. Everyone turned away from the dazzling display, shielding their eyes. Within moments, the radiance faded away. When they looked back, Balcombe was gone.
'Where'd he go?' asked Tas, blinking. Cautiously, Tasslehoff, Flint, and Tanis approached the altar area. Tas searched right and left, forward and back, looking for the corrupt mage. Aside from bloodstains and two broken arrows, there was no sign of Balcombe.
'It looks like we failed, and the fiend got away,' snarled Flint angrily. 'I would have enjoyed sending him to meet his vile god.'
'I think we've done well to get this many of us out alive,' said Tanis. Flint grudgingly agreed with a nod as he cut Selana loose.
The sea elf knelt next to the giant's scorched body, but Blu was dead, slain by the wizard's lightning bolt. Wiping away a salty tear, she touched it to his forehead in a traditional Dargonesti tribute to fallen warriors. Near his body she noticed the copper bracelet made for her brother and slipped it on her wrist.
Meanwhile, Tas had awakened the phaethons. As everyone prepared to leave, Tas poked through the scattered debris around the altar. He picked up the two-faced coin, now quiet. Then he hefted the ruby, one of the largest he'd ever seen; he almost thought he could see something inside its multifaceted surface…
Selana directed them to the chamber's main entrance, which bypassed Balcombe's lab and the stone minotaurs. Everyone else was filing out of the chamber when Flint looked over his shoulder and saw the kender absorbed in something at the altar. The dwarf hollered, 'Leave those things alone, you fool! Do you want to get killed?'
'Relax,' called Tas. 'What's the harm?'
'They're
'Oh, right. Good point,' agreed Tas. He quickly set the ruby into its niche on the altar and turned to go, just as a shaft of moonlight touched the gem.
Tasslehoff thought he heard a faint scream, followed by distant, wicked laughter. Looking around he saw nothing and shrugged, chalking it up to the recent battle.
Minutes later, they were outside the cavern, watching the gathering glow on the eastern horizon. Suddenly the hillside trembled from an underground explosion and smoke billowed out of the cave mouth.
Tas smiled, remembering the missing vial. 'I think, those golems finally got through that locked door.'
Epilogue
The four companions stood on a sandy stretch of beach on Newsea's western shore, the setting sun at their backs. Standing at the waterline, Tanis idly skipped flat stones across the smooth expanse of water, stained pink and orange by the setting sun. Tasslehoff, his leggings rolled up to the knees, chased squawking sea gulls, stopping now and then to pick up interesting-looking seashells and place them in his pouch for later inspection.
A safe distance from the water, Flint sat next to Selana on a large section of gray driftwood, boots uncharacteristically off, thick, hairy toes buried in the moist white sand. His wounded shoulder, tightly bound in clean muslin under his loose blue tunic, throbbed only slightly now, thanks to an herbal poultice from the phaethons. In one hand was his carving knife; the other held a length of soft driftwood, which he was fashioning into the likeness of a gull.
Only two days had passed since the fateful battle with the mage. Tas, Flint, Tanis, Rostrevor, and Selana had returned with the surviving phaethons to their spire village. There, the winged creatures had cremated their dead warriors in the traditional twilight ceremony, their brave souls offered to the setting sun. After a night's rest, and with many rounds of thanks, they had left to escort Rostrevor back to town and Selana to the sea.
'Red sky at night, sailor's delight,' mused the dwarf now, commenting on the reflection of the sky in the water. ''Means tomorrow will be a beautiful day. Haven't seen it miss yet.'
The sea elf watched her new friends. 'I'm almost sorry I won't be seeing it,' she said, her finger tracing the outline of the gems on the copper bracelet at her wrist. She thought of her brother, Semunel, and the joy she would bring to her family when she returned with the bracelet. There would be much to tell them. 'Almost,' she repeated.
'I must go soon,' she said softly. 'The tides and all…'
Flint stopped whittling. 'Yes, I suppose you must.' He held the driftwood seagull up for inspection. The dwarf flicked a loose shaving off and handed the piece to Selana.
'It's not much-not my best work by far-but I'd like you to have it, to remind you-' He stopped, thinking she might not like to remember the past days' events.
Smiling, Selana held the fragile little bird up in her palm. 'I would be honored to have a genuine Fireforge of my own. I won't be keeping the bracelet myself, you know.'
'Thank you, lass, for not-'
'No, thank you. You have taught me much in a short time.' Selana further silenced the dwarf's apology of sorts for losing the bracelet with a kiss to his ruddy, whiskered cheek.
Sighing heavily, the sea elf pushed herself up from their makeshift bench and untied the too-short, coarse- spun cloak the phaethons had given her to replace Balcombe's flimsy gown, and let it drop to the ground. She tied the carving to the drawstring of her tunic.
Flint stood, wincing slightly at the jarring of his shoulder. 'Tas, Tanis,' he called, 'Selana is leaving.' Tanis turned and waited nearby at the shore.
Tasslehoff skipped up to where they stood, his expression sad. 'Must you go so soon? We haven't had a chance to do much but kill monsters and escape death.'
Selana smiled at the kender.
'Of course she must go, you doorknob. Her brother- the whole Dargonesti kingdom-is waiting for her,' said the dwarf, his sadness making him even gruffer than usual.
'Say, maybe I could go with you!' said Tas, his face suddenly lighting up. 'I could drink another potion!'
'I don't think so, Tas,' said Selana. 'I have a long, tiring trip ahead of me, and you could never keep up. Besides, it's a turbulent time in our kingdom.' She saw the kender's wrinkled face fall.
'The world is a very small place sometimes, Tas,' she said gently. 'If anyone could just drop by for a visit, I have a hunch it would be you.'
Tasslehoff beamed at the presumed compliment.
'Let's get you on your way,' said the dwarf, taking her arm in a fatherly grip and leading her to where Tanis waited.
Half-elven and sea-elven eyes met. In the unspoken way of all elves, Tanis told her of his newfound admiration and asked her forgiveness of his earlier intolerance. Selana thanked him for helping her to see the error of her willfulness.
Impulsively she reached up and stroked his cheek. 'So beautiful.' Blushing profusely, Tanis took her hand in his and smiled.
Selana swallowed the lump in her throat, and, without looking back, stepped into the tepid water of the Newsea. She walked until the orange-and pink-stained water lapped over her head.
'Look!' cried Tas a few moments later. Flint and Tanis followed Tas's finger to a point near the horizon.
There, a dolphin arced high above the water.
The three newly met friends watched in silence until the dolphin disappeared, then one by one they turned away.
'Well, now where shall we go?' asked Tas abruptly, hands jammed into the pockets of his leggings. His
