bifurcation of colors was the sea's primary gift to her creatures. Dark on top, they couldn't be seen from above. Light on bottom, they were hard to see against the brightness of the surface.

She was a rare beauty, even among the alu Tel'Quessir, as the sea elves called themselves, because she possessed flashing silver eyes and a long, vibrant mane of red hair that swirled down to her generous hips. Neither of those colors occurred very often among the alu Tel'Quessir.

Her gaze held both displeasure and defiance. One hand wrapped the haft of a trident made of chipped obsidian. A silverweave net rode on her left hip, and she had an obsidian knife strapped to her lower right leg.

She wasn't alone. A dozen other sea elves floated behind her, males and females. All of them were armed, Half a dozen dolphins circled the area. The dolphins were companions to the rangers among the sea elves.

Not exactly a welcoming committee, Rytagir thought as he looked over the sea elves.

'You are human,' the sea elf woman accused.

Rytagir sheathed his long sword. 'I am. My name is Rytagir.'

One of the younger male sea elves spoke to the woman in their native tongue. Rytagir spoke that language as well, but didn't see the need to reveal that as yet.

'I have heard of him, lady,' the young warrior said. His green eyes never left Rytagir. 'He's a seeker among the humans. They say he means no harm to undersea folk.'

Rytagir was aware of his good reputation. He'd worked to have it and to keep it.

'What are you doing here?' the sea elf woman demanded.

'I'm a scholar, lady.' Rytagir pointed at the shipwreck. 'I've come to document the final days of that vessel.'

She arched an eyebrow. 'It was attacked by sahuagin and sunk. Surely your people knew that.'

'We did. But we didn't know where the cargo had gone.'

'If you surface dwellers were more careful with your things,' one of the male elves snarled, 'then you wouldn't be fouling our waters with your unwanted refuse and things you have lost.'

'Not all the things that have been lost have been unwanted,' Rytagir pointed out. But it was true that ships that were no longer serviceable were scuttled. Refuse from cities also poured out into the sea from rivers and from garbage scows. 'I'm here today representing people who want this thing back.'

The elf swam to within inches of Rytagir. 'Once something is down here, human, it belongs to us. Even the gold aboard that ship. You can't have it back unless we decide that you can. Or unless you pay us to release it.'

Rytagir knew that was true. Though the alu Tel'Quessir didn't value gold the same way the dry world did, gold still had value on the sea floor as building materials. Stories were often told in taverns of entire sea elf cities made of gold.

'I'm willing to negotiate,' Rytagir said.

The male swam around Rytagir contemptuously. 'We're not fools, human. We know the worth of gold in the surface world.'

'I'm not here for the gold.'

'Then what are you here for, human?' the female elf asked.

'For the story. To let the families of these men know what happened to them.'

Mocking doubt showed on the young elf woman's face. 'Three hundred years after the ship went down?' She shook her head and her beautiful tresses floated out into the water. 'I doubt there are any left alive who care. Your people tend to be as shortsighted as you are short-lived.'

'There are important documents aboard.'

'You came for those documents? Not for the gold?'

'I came for the documents. The captain of the ship above came for the gold. That was my deal with him.'

'And you claim none of this gold for yourself?' Her raised eyebrows indicated how doubtful she was at that.

'I'm going to take my share of gold. I'd be a fool not to. And expeditions like this one aren't free.'

The alu Tel'Quessir around them laughed at that.

'What if we chose to take a share of that gold?' the elf woman asked.

Rytagir glanced at them all. 'Perhaps we could come to an amenable agreement.'

4

'I don't see why we have to share,' the sea elf male snarled. 'If we choose to, we can sink their ship and drown them all.' He glared at Rytagir. 'Unless you choose to run.'

'Greedy surface dwellers don't run,' another male stated.

Rytagir hardened his voice. 'There is a ship's mage aboard the vessel. And he has an apprentice. Both of them stand prepared to defend the ship as well. They've sworn their life's blood to do that.'

The alu Tel'Quessir knew about ships' mages. Charged with caring for the crew and the ship, all of them knew how to repair minor damage done to the ship and preserve wood, but some of them could quell storms, hurl fireballs, and summon the wind. Others, at least so Rytagir had heard, could call down lightning strikes, summon whirlpools, and raise tidal waves that could smash ships on rocks.

The sea elves had a healthy respect for magic. Still, they could be damn stubborn. Rytagir hoped to make negotiating more attractive to them.

'What bargain would you strike, human?' the female asked.

'I want the salvage from this ship.'

'I would not see this ship moved,' she replied. 'It has become home to many sea creatures.'

Rytagir understood the woman's feelings. His father tended to believe, after the same fashion, that change, unless natural, was not a thing to ascribe to. Disruption of an environment was never to be tolerated.

'I've sworn to protect the land and the seas that have been assigned to me,' the sea elf woman said.

'I'm not here for the ship,' he said. 'All I want is the cargo, and the documents if I can find them.'

'What would we get in return?' the male asked.

'If you simply allow this, I'll give you ten percent of what we recover.'

'Never expect a fair deal from a surface dweller,' one of the other elves muttered.

'I'll give a fair deal,' Rytagir countered. 'But I'm not going to let you rob me. If you help me with the transport of the goods to the ship above, I can make your share thirty percent.''

'So you would want us to be your pack animals?' The male grimaced.

'Let me speak, Rasche,' the woman said.

Reluctantly, Rasche backed down.

'We want fifty percent,' she told Rytagir.

Rytagir smiled coldly. 'We have to transport and arrange payment for salvage. That takes more time and effort. And more investment. We'll take sixty percent. That's as generous as I can be.'

'Except you,' the sea elf said. 'If you find the document you seek, you still stand to make a profit. I know that wizards often pay well for spellbooks, and collectors pay for unique pieces of writing or art.'

'Lady, I swear to you by all I hold holy that I'm not here for that kind of profit. I seek only papers and documents that will reveal more of the lost histories of some of the lands around this place.'

The maid smiled. 'Then I will pray for Deep Sashelas's pleasure that we will all find something worthwhile.'

Deep Sashelas was the god of the undersea elves. He was known as the Knowledgeable One and the Master of Dolphins. Many undersea folk, and even some human sailors, worshiped him. Rytagir had a more than passing acquaintance with the altars dedicated to the Dolphin Prince.

He looked into those silver eyes and asked, 'May I have your name, Lady?'

'Don't you dare transgress, human!' Rasche said, and shoved his spear toward Rytagir's face.

Вы читаете Realms of War
Добавить отзыв
ВСЕ ОТЗЫВЫ О КНИГЕ В ИЗБРАННОЕ

0

Вы можете отметить интересные вам фрагменты текста, которые будут доступны по уникальной ссылке в адресной строке браузера.

Отметить Добавить цитату