Steel and Stone

way.'

'I willlll… killllll youuu… slowwwllly.'

Kitiara whispered, 'How can we slay it?'

'It can die by the sword, but we have to kill it without letting it touch us.'

The thing drew closer. 'You willllll feel much painnn, huuumanzzz.'

Tanis and Kitiara held their swords before them. Both had their daggers drawn as well.

'Would an arrow kill it?'

Tanis nodded.

'Imagine the fearrr, humanzzz. Think about yourrr deathsss.'

'You're the bowman, half-elf,' Kitiara said. 'The sword's my weapon. I'll cover you.'

'Youuu willlll struggllle… for aim, huuumanzzz. Youuu willlll pannnic.' The thing floated still closer. 'Halfff-elfff. Youuu willll die firrrrst, I thinnnk.'

'It's trying to unsettle you, Tanis. Remember, you have Kitiara Uth Matar at your back.'

Tanis whispered, 'Keep it distracted. When I shoot, hit the ground.'

Kitiara was silent, motionless for a brief time. Then she pivoted to face the will-o'-the-wisp. She set her boots in the soggy peat.

'All right, beast,' she snapped.

'Yessssss?' The sibilance echoed in the dangling moss, reverberating off the quicksand's surface. Out of the corner of Tanis's eye, he saw a bog spider creep from the shadows onto the flattened peat.

Kitiara's voice was haughty. 'We hold no fear for you, beast!'

Something like sibilant laughter throbbed around them. 'My sssenssess telllll mmmee otherwissse, huuumannn. Indeeeed, I'mmmm feeeeeding quite wellll on yourrr terror. I will ssavvvorr yourrr ttasty deathsss.'

At that moment, Tanis slipped an arrow from his quiver and, in the same motion, dove for his bow. He rolled away from Kitiara and the will-o'-the-wisp, sending the spider scrambling back into the grass. Then he nocked the arrow and let it fly. Kitiara was already down on one knee, her sword outstretched. Her dagger carved circles in the air.

The arrow arced through the night and nicked the edge of the pulsating ball of light. The thing disappeared in a small white explosion.

There was silence.

Then more silence. Tanis and Kitiara looked at each other. 'That was it?' Kitiara asked disbelievingly.

'I don't know,' the half-elf said, rising. 'I've never fought one of these things before.' He nocked another arrow and moved toward Kitiara. She kept her battle stance. Her gaze flicked from side to side.

Suddenly another explosion rocked the clearing. Purple, blue, and green lightning fizzled in the grass.

'Halfff-elfff!'

Standing next to the quicksand, Tanis swung to meet the new threat and fired off another arrow. The shot went wild, and the will-o'-the-wisp bore down on him, flashing deep blue lightning bolts into the air. Tanis heard Kitiara shout, 'Don't let it touch you!' and then he leaped out of the way. The thing whooshed past as he jumped.

The instant his body hit the cold, black surface of the quicksand, the half-elf knew he'd done exactly what the will-o'-the-wisp wanted. He started to thrash in the sticky muck until he realized that his struggling was only drawing him deeper into the deadly sand. Already he was submerged to the waist, out of arm's reach of the edge of the pit.

Kitiara shouted a battle cry, and Tanis saw her slash at the will-o'-the-wisp. He struggled again but only succeeded in sinking farther.

He lay back against the muck. Above him and off to his right, the battle raged on. The will-o'-the-wisp, sparking green and purple, attacked and withdrew, obviously hoping to push Kitiara toward the quicksand, but the swordswoman refused to comply. She maintained her position amid the scattered bones, weapons, and coin pouches on the wide path. Tanis shouted encouragement; Kitiara smiled grimly and fought on.

The half-elf caught sight of a branch overhead, silhouetted by Solinari. If he could just reach it… Tanis stretched. His fingers brushed a few twigs. He tried not to think of previous victims who'd tried the same escape. He stretched again. His right hand clenched a twig and pulled; the twig broke off in his hand. His left hand managed to catch a slightly larger twig, and he pulled the branch toward him; this time it held.

Finally Tanis hung by both arms from a branch the thickness of his thumb, which, while not enough to stop his sinking, did slow it. That might buy enough time. Stouter branches, ones that still had leaves, bobbed a foot above the small one, but that short distance might as well have been a mile.

The will-o'-the-wisp still battled with tenacity. The swordswoman fought back with dagger and sword, darting, feinting, slashing at the bobbing ball of light. 'Come on, you insignificant firefly!' she taunted. 'I've seen bigger sparks from steel and stone!'

'By the gods,' Tanis whispered in awe, 'she's not afraid of it!'

The will-o'-the-wisp flared at Kitiara's taunt. When it subsided, it had diminished in size. Tanis realized Kitiara's stratagem. If the will-o'-the-wisp fed on fear, maybe it could be weakened by experiencing the opposite emotions. As Kitiara continued her taunts, Tanis shifted his grip on the branch.

His left hand brushed against something furry.

Tanis looked up, and his breath caught in his throat. A poisonous bog spider, larger than his fist, crouched on the branch right next to his hand. He tried to shift to the right. His movement pulled him a hand's span deeper into the quicksand, and the purplish creature followed him along the branch.

'Kit!' he shouted.

The swordswoman looked over, grimaced, and doubled her efforts against the will-o'-the-wisp. But the bobbing creature swooped away and halted just above the branch where the half-elf hung.

'The will-o'-the-wisp is growing larger on your fear, Tanis!' Kitiara yelled. 'Don't feed it!'

The purple spider reached out a leg and caressed Tanis's little finger. 'Vallenwoods,' the half-elf murmured to himself.

'Solace,' Kitiara added. 'Rope bridges. Spiced potatoes and ale at the Inn of the Last Home.'

The will-o'-the-wisp hovered lower; the poisonous spider placed another leg, then another, on Tanis's hand. The tiny claws at the end of the legs pricked the skin on the half-elf's hand. He dared not move; he tried not to think of the spider's venomous fangs, but the will-o'-the-wisp's color deepened and flared.

'Flint Fireforge,' Tanis muttered desperately. 'Spiced potatoes.'

Kitiara shifted her handhold on her dagger; her strong fingers now gripped the blade instead of the hilt. The will-o'-the-wisp was still, only a foot from Tanis, apparently concentrating on the half-elf. Kitiara squinted, aiming. Then, with one fluid movement, she flung the dagger, shouting, 'Tanis! Let go!' at the same time. Tanis plummeted into the quicksand, followed by the spider.

Kitiara's dagger flipped end over end through the air, through the place where Tanis had hung, and caught the will-o'-the-wisp in the exact center.

The air was filled with the force of the explosion. This time the creature was gone for good.

Chapter 3

A Complication

'Amazing how a bath and clean clothes can improve a man,' Kitiara remarked the next day while she and the half-elf inspected the teeming Haven market. 'You little resemble the slimy creature I pulled from the quicksand, half-elf. Dauntless barely knew you-once we caught up with him, that is.'

Tanis smiled. 'The horses are enjoying oats and mash at the livery and could use a day's rest. We have the will-o'-the-wisp's treasure to spend, a sunny day, and time to enjoy it.' He inclined his head. 'May I buy you breakfast, Kitiara Uth Matar?'