She was holding a necklace of brightly colored coral and shells, all reds and purples and blues.
'Sure,' the lieutenant said, certain that he still had several hours to use his water-breathing magic. 'I can travel with you for a little while,' he said. Then he frowned. 'Though I can't swim nearly as well as you, and without Arbeenok to carry me, I may just sink.'
'This will help,' Serille said, holding up the necklace. 'It has some powerful magic that's perfect for you.' She handed the jewelry to Vambran and said, 'You won't need those,' brushing her hand against his still-wet clothes. 'In fact, the magic of the necklace is much better if you take them off.'
Vambran looked at the sea elf askance, trying to determine her motives, but the look she gave him was so innocent that he couldn't be sure what she thought. Shrugging, he sat down and slipped his waterlogged boots off, then quickly got out of his breastplate and the rest of his wet clothes. He laid them on a rock shelf to dry, though he wondered why he bothered. Then, when he was as naked as Serille, he looked at her expectantly.
She came to him and motioned for him to bow his head, and she slipped the jewelry around his neck. Immediately, Vambran could feel a change come over him. He gasped as he felt his hands and feet alter, elongating and growing webbing between fingers and toes. He suddenly had an urge to dive into the water and swim, knowing that it would feel like the most natural thing in the world. He reached up to feel the necklace and his hand brushed against gills along his neck and breastbone.
In a sudden panic, Vambran wondered if the transformation was permanent, and he yanked the necklace off again. At once, his body returned to its human anatomy, and he breathed a sharp sigh of relief. He slowly slipped the necklace back into place and felt the aquatic adaptation happen again.
'We have one for your companion, too,' Serille said, 'but we can give it to him later. He looks content.'
Vambran looked over at Arbeenok, who had chosen to meditate, and saw the alaghi sitting very still with his eyes closed. He had to agree with the girl's assessment.
'Come on,' Serille said, trotting toward the water. She looked back at Vambran.
The mercenary hesitated, turning back and reaching for his sword. 'I don't feel right without this,' he said, but he had no idea how to swim with it in his hand, since he no longer wore its scabbard.
'Leave it,' Serille instructed. Instead, she took up a trident, one that had been borne into the cavern by another sea elf. She handed the new weapon to Vambran and said, 'Can you use this?'
The lieutenant considered the aquatic weapon for a moment and gave it an experimental thrust, then nodded.
'Then let's go,' the girl said, and laughing, she turned and splashed into the water.
Vambran followed her into the ocean, wondering what it would feel like, swimming with webbed hands and feet. It took him a moment to acclimate to his natural buoyancy and to learn to thrust properly, but soon enough, the mercenary was scooting through the water, able to keep up with Serille most of the time. Occasionally, she would swim circles around him, tickling him, and he would find it difficult to keep her at bay. Then, once she swam away, leaving him behind, he would stroke hard to catch up. When he realized that he had lost her, he began to worry, wondering if he could find his way back to the cave, but at the next moment, she popped up from behind a rock, laughing at him.
The most wondrous thing about the necklace, Vambran soon learned, was that he could speak with the girl and hear her speak.
'This way,' she said at last and swam toward a large forest of the green plants growing from the ocean floor. It was a fairly flat place, and the plants grew thick and tall.
'What is this?' Vambran asked as they drifted among the treelike growths.
'It's called kelp,' Serille answered. 'Isn't it beautiful?' And she darted away, vanishing, beginning a game of hide and seek.
Vambran tried to keep up with the girl, but he kept getting his trident tangled in the kelp, and finally he called out, 'I give up! You're too good!' Serille poked him from behind with her toe. When he spun to look at her, she swam to him, wrapping him in a most suggestive embrace, and kissed him.
CHAPTER 11
'Getting to House Darowdryn should be quite an adventure,' Pilos said. The Abreeant, Edilus, and the mercenaries had pulled the wagon into an alley near the store where Emriana and, to their extreme surprise, Xaphira were hiding. They were all circled around the trussed up form of Lobra Pharaboldi, who was scowling at them, her mouth stuffed with cloth. 'I can't believe you're here,' he said, beaming at Emriana.
The girl returned his smile, but there was a sadness in it he had never seen before. 'Tymora smiled on us a few times last night,' she said.
'What happened? How did you get free?' he asked, eager to hear of the girl's exploits.
Emriana shook her head. 'Not now, not here,' she said, still in that soft, sad voice. 'We have to get her off the street before someone sees her.'
Pilos nodded, though he did not understand and wanted to. Later, he decided. She's obviously been through a lot.
Horial was doing some quick rearranging in the cart. 'All right, lift her up here,' he said after making room next to Grolo.
Lobra thrashed and kicked but Emriana gave her one hard smack across the cheek and the woman stopped struggling. Adyan and Edilus hoisted the bound prisoner up off the cobblestones while Pilos kept a nervous watch over their surroundings. The last thing they needed was a city watchman strolling by at just the wrong time.
In the end, the two Matrell women had to ride on the cart, sitting on Lobra, who was pinned under a blanket beside the still-unconscious Grolo. Along with Edilus, they looked like some sort of traveling carnival, and a dirty one at that.
As they set off, Pilos suddenly remembered. 'Em,' he said, pulling a satchel out from under the seat of the cart. 'I think these are yours.'
Emriana eyed the bag in puzzlement for a heartbeat, then her expression brightened immeasurably and she grabbed at it. 'Hetta!' she cried, digging into the satchel. Finding the ring, she slipped it onto her finger and turned all her attention to something unseen. Pilos smiled, happy to have cheered the girl. After a moment, she removed the ring and held it out to Xaphira, who stared at it with wariness. 'Go on, take it,' Emriana said. 'She wants to speak with you.'
Gingerly, Xaphira took the ring from her niece's hand and slipped it on. Her eyes glazed over and she stared at nothing, and Pilos knew she was in silent conversation.
Emriana leaned forward and gave the young priest a tight hug. 'Thank you,' she said. 'Thank you for bringing her back to me.'
Pilos smiled. 'It was more like her bringing me back, but you're welcome.'
The girl dug around in the satchel some more, then gasped in delight as she pulled out her opal pendant. 'I can contact Vambran!' she exclaimed, slipping it over her head.
Emriana took hold of it to make use of its magic, but Xaphira reached out and stopped her. 'Wait,' she said. 'Wait until after everyone has heard each other's stories. He'll want to know as much as we can tell him.'
Emriana frowned for a moment, then nodded. 'All right,' she said, tucking the pendant away.
They rode on in silence for a time, partially because it seemed to Pilos that Emriana did not want to talk, but also because he was concerned that palace guards or the city watch might still be looking for them. At one point, Xaphira turned to Emriana and said, 'Quill is dead.' Pilos watched as her niece reached out and took Xaphira's hand, squeezing it in a comforting manner, but Pilos wasn't sure from the older woman's expression whether she was grieving or gratified. She remained silent for the rest of the ride.
The united group succeeded in reaching the Darowdryn estate without further trouble. As they rolled through the gates of the estate and word was sent ahead that they had arrived, Pilos felt himself finally relax. He could sense the others reacting the same way. At the front steps of the house, Ariskrit immediately took control of the situation, sending servants scattering in every direction and ordering every one of the new arrivals into baths and clean clothes. There were no complaints.
After everyone refreshed themselves, the entire group convened to discuss events. Pilos stifled a big yawn as
