as well.
'Indeed,' Arvin agreed, touching the crystal at his neck in silent thanks, 'but Karrell's in deep trouble. She's still in the Abyss. In Smaragd.'
'Sseth's domain,' Pakal said.
'Yes.' Arvin shuddered, imagining Karrell alone there. Giving birth. Vulnerable. 'This Ts'ikil person will know how to get her out, right?'
The dwarf shook his head. 'There is no escape from Smaragd.'
'That's not true,' Arvin countered. 'I've learned there's a door that leads directly to Smaragd from this plane, a door that can be opened with the Circled Serpent. We can use it to reach Karrell, to rescue
her, and we won't have to worry about the serpent god getting free. He's apparently been bound by his own jungle.'
Pakal stopped. He turned to face Arvin, a wary look in his eye. 'Who told you this?'
Arvin decided to tell only part of the truth. Pakal didn't need to know the details of what Zelia had forced upon him. 'The woman in the rooftop garden- the one who attacked us after we escaped from Sibyl's lair. Her name is Zelia; she's a yuan-ti. Her agent-the human woman you killed with the dart-had also snuck into Sibyl's lair to look for the Circled Serpent. Zelia hopes to use it to open the second door, the one that leads to Smaragd. Like Sibyl, she hopes to free the serpent god.'
Pakal's eyes narrowed. 'Why would she tell you all this?'
'She didn't tell me,' Arvin said. 'I used mind magic to pull the information directly from her thoughts, after I defeated her.'
'Where is this 'second door?' '
Arvin shook his head. 'She didn't know.'
'This Zelia recognized you,' Pakal continued. 'Why is that?'
Arvin smiled. That one he could answer with the truth. 'Our paths have crossed before. She's an old enemy. She tried to kill Karrell and me when we were in Ormpetarr.'
Pakal considered that.
'When I contacted Karrell, she told me to find Ts'ikil,' Arvin continued. 'She said that Ts'ikil would know what to do. I assumed that meant that Ts'ikil would help us use the Circled Serpent to open the door to Smaragd and free her.'
Pakal folded his arms across his chest. 'The Circled Serpent must not be used. Dendar must not be set free.'
'We won't be opening that door,' Arvin protested.
'If there is a second door, the Circled Serpent may cause both it and the one that would free Dendar to open at once.'
'What if that isn't the case? What if the Circled Serpent only opens one door at a time?'
Pakal gave a firm shake of his head. 'Ts'ikil will not allow it to be used. We cannot run the risk of Sseth emerging as an avatar. That would be as perilous as allowing Dendar to escape. The Circled Serpent must be destroyed. That is why we have been searching for it. Why Karrell was searching for it. Karrell herself would insist that this be done.'
Arvin didn't like the sound of the word 'destroyed.' Maybe getting Pakal to take him to Ts'ikil wasn't such a good idea. He threw up his hands, exasperated.
'I thought you cared about Karrell, that you'd want to help rescue her.'
'I do care about her,' Pakal said, an intense look in his dark eyes, 'and I would like to rescue her, but the life of one woman-even one to whom you owe your own life-does not negate the risk opening that door poses.' He sighed and spread his hands. 'This is an empty argument. We only have half of the Circled Serpent, and half cannot be used to open any door.' He gave Arvin a level stare, as if warning him not to try anything.
'I know who's got the other half,' Arvin said. 'Dmetrio Extaminos.'
Pakal's eyebrows shot up. 'The yuan-ti prince from Hlondeth?'
It was Arvin's turn to be surprised. 'You know him?'
'He claims to be on our side-to want to destroy the Circled Serpent. Why would he not tell us that he has-'
'Dmetrio is in Chult?' Arvin guessed.
Pakal gave him a look that made Arvin wonder if he'd spoken a little too enthusiastically.
'It's just that he disappeared from Hlondeth nearly six months ago,' Arvin continued. 'No one's heard from him since. I'm truly surprised to hear he's still alive. Everyone in Hlondeth thought he was dead.'
'He's not dead,' Pakal answered. He paused. 'When we reach Ts'ikil, you must tell her what you have just told me.'
'I will,' Arvin agreed, uncertain whether he'd be able to keep that promise.
If Pakal was right about Ts'ikil not wanting the Circled Serpent to be used, maybe Arvin should grab Pakal's half and try to get to Dmetrio before the dwarf and Ts'ikil did. He was suddenly very glad of Karrell's ring. If the dwarf did turn out to have the ability to read thoughts, he wouldn't like what was going through Arvin's mind.
Arvin glancod up the path. 'The portal is somewhere up above us, right?'
Pakal nodded. 'Only a short distance ahead, but there is no hurry. The Talos worshipers are not following us.'
'They're not what I'm worried about,' Arvin said. He rubbed the scar on his forehead. It tingled again. 'When I left Hlondeth, one of Sibyl's constructs was following me: a cobra, made of iron. I killed it, but my mind magic is warning me that Sibyl may have more than one of these constructs. If we don't get to the portal right away, it may lead Sibyl straight to us.'
Pakal just stared at him.
'What?' Arvin asked.
'There is a problem,' Pakal answered. 'The portal can only be used at sunrise.'
'Ah.' Arvin thought for a moment. 'We'll stay awake in turns until then and keep an eye out for the cobra. Maybe you can turn us to gas once we reach the portal. It may not be able to find us then.'
'That I cannot do.'
'Why not?'
Pakal sighed and spread his hands. 'Thard Harr grants me only so many blessings each day. I can gain no more until I have prayed.'
'Can't you pray now?'
'If I did, Thard Harr would not hear me,' Pakal said. 'The prayers raw t be said in daylight. The traditional time is when dawn first breaks.'
'That's unfortunate,' Arvin said.
He knew how Pakal felt. Arvin too was close to the limit of his own powers, already. His muladhara felt flat, a hair's breadth away from being utterly depleted. He needed to meditate.
He turned and stared down the mountainside. The stormlord and his worshipers were walking back to their temple, carrying the injured. Beyond the temple, the road vanished into darkness. Somewhere below, he was certain, another iron cobra slithered toward them.
CHAPTER 6
Arvin bolted awake, his heart pounding. 'Karrell!' he shouted. 'No!'
It took him several moments to realize that it had been a dream. A nightmare. Not real.
He could remember every detail. Sibyl, sending out waves of magical fear that turned into lava and burned the flesh from his bones, leaving him a walking skeleton that reeked of seared meat. Zelia, cracking open enormous eggs and slurping out the screaming infants they contained, her neck bulging grotesquely as she swallowed them down. The marilith demon, hacking open Karrell's pregnant belly with its swords-inside was a nest of dead snakes tied in an intricate knot.
Sweat trickled down Arvin's temples, and he wiped it away with a shaking hand.
