“If that baby cries, all hell is going to break loose,” Much said, nodding at Thurl.
“We have to try it now,” Corin said. “We have no choice.”
Still, Bradok hesitated. “All right,” he said finally, praying it was the right decision. “Chisul,” he said, “you and Kellik gather some small rocks then meet me at the water’s edge.” He turned to Thurl, clapping him on the shoulder. “Get yourself in position then give me a sign. We’ll do our part. Good luck to you.”
Thurl grinned, showing his pointed teeth, as he stole over to the edge of the water. He moved so stealthily, Bradok could have sworn the scarred dwarf was gliding above the ground.
Thurl waited until the Disir had turned back toward the far end of the pool before slipping slowly through the curtain of water. He raised his hand then dropped it, giving the signal. Simultaneously, Chisul and Corin hurled fist-sized rocks through the waterfall and into the pool near where the monster stood.
The Disir snapped to attention, raising its bladed arms and looking around the pond for the source of the splash. At that very instant, Thurl darted forward from a different angle. The Disir was significantly taller than Thurl, so the assassin had to swing Bradok’s enchanted blade high over his head, then down in a glittering arc, landing right on the joint where the upper and lower body joined.
With a crack that echoed through the chamber outside, the Disir snapped in half. Its lower body staggered for a moment then seemed to just plop down on its four stubby legs. The upper body hit the ground with a loud thud. The Disir opened its mouth, perhaps attempting to cry for aid with its last breath. Thurl didn’t give it the chance; he stepped forward and kicked the upper body into the pool, where the stricken creature sank like a stone.
“Chisul, Kellik, Corin,” Bradok commanded. “Get out there and see if there are any others about.” As they went, Bradok heard a slap and the sound of a baby crying. He turned to the survivors.
“All right, everyone,” he announced loudly. “We’re leaving right now. Pick up your gear and our new mother and move fast.”
The cave erupted with activity, everyone bustling at once, gathering their gear or helping to move Lyra, who was nursing her newborn, onto the stretcher. The fresh sounds of combat pulled Bradok back around. Corin and the others had left the cave and joined Thurl, who was attempting to fend off two more Disir. One of the enormous creatures was slashing down at the assassin with its bladelike arms. Thurl screamed and fell back to the edge of the pool.
“We’re ready,” Rose said, coming up beside him.
Reluctantly, Bradok tore his eyes away from the fight as Corin, Kellik and Chisul stepped between Thurl and the Disir. The survivors stood silently. Their gear had been packed and stowed, and four volunteers carried the stretcher on their shoulders.
Bradok reached into his pocket and pulled out the compass. The Seer pointed to an opening in the near side of the outer cavern. He handed the compass to Rose, closing her hand over it.
“Get going,” he said. “Don’t stop. Don’t stop for anything.”
“What if there are turns or side passages?” she asked. “How will you find us?”
Bradok unslung his pack and dug around in it hurriedly, coming up with a stick of chalk.
“Mark your path,” he told her.
“But the Disir-” she started to say.
“They are blind,” Bradok reminded her. “Now go and make sure someone holds a cloak over Lyra so she doesn’t get wet and sick.”
Bradok turned, scooping up his battered pack. A ragged cry came from outside. His comrades needed help.
“Tal, you’re with me,” he said and walked as quickly as he could through the curtain of water, Tal at his side.
Outside, Chisul, Kellik, and Corin were busily chopping the last Disir into bits. Each had bloody wounds, though none seemed too serious. Strewn on the ground around them were the bodies of two more Disir. Thurl lay, pressing his cloak to a wound on his leg, and Much knelt by the lake, apparently clutching his stomach.
“You all right?” Bradok said, putting his hand on Much’s shoulder.
The dwarf straightened up and opened his cloak, revealing a bloody stump where his right hand should have been. “Not so good,” he said.
“Tal, get over here,” Bradok yelled.
“I’m sorry, lad,” Much said as pain crossed his face. “I tried to do my best.” He grimaced again. “I guess I’m just too old.”
“Don’t kid yourself,” Corin said, panting heavily. “If you hadn’t distracted that Disir when you did, it would have been my head he took off. I owe you.”
Tal knelt by Much, examining his wound.
“There isn’t much I can do right now about an injury like this,” he said, pressing a bundle of rags into Bradok’s hands. “Make sure the wound is clean and wrap it tightly while I help Thurl.”
Bradok did as he was told, peeling Much’s shirt away from the bloody stump and packing the wound with rags. He wound a long strip around the wound and up the arm, keeping it tight. Last, Bradok tied the remaining strips of cloth into a sling. All the while, Much grimaced and quietly groaned with pain.
Thurl’s wound was also serious. The Disir had made a deep slash in his calf muscle, and Tal had to stitch it up before he wrapped it.
“He’ll be all right to walk a little,” Tal explained. “Though it’d be better if he had a walking stick or cane.”
Corin picked up Bradok’s sword and used it to chop one of the Disir’s swordlike arms free. He cut a piece off the bottom of his cloak and tied it around the severed end to serve as a pad.
“How’s this?” he asked, carefully passing the makeshift cane to Thurl.
“Practical,” the ex-assassin said as Tal helped him to his feet. He gripped the wrapped top of the cane and stabbed the point against the ground, testing his weight. He took a step then whipped the cane over his head. “Very practical.”
“We ought to get going,” Chisul said. “They’re going to send someone back to check on these guys sooner or later.”
“All right, but let’s push their bodies into the water,” Bradok said. “Maybe they won’t find the bodies right away and that’ll buy us some extra time.”
As Corin, Chisul, and Kellik shoved the pieces of the dead Disir into the pool, Bradok realized the black ichor that made up the Disir’s blood was all over the floor of the cavern. There was no way to hide that, but Bradok hoped the absence of bodies would confuse any returning Disir. They couldn’t see the blood, of course, but no doubt they could smell it.
“All right,” he told everyone once the bodies were gone. “Let’s go. We need to move as fast as possible, but don’t push it.” That last was directed at Thurl.
At a brisk walk, they followed after the main group, leaving the lit cavern and passing into a dark passageway that angled slightly upward. Bradok told them about Rose and the chalk, which sent Corin scrambling back down the path. The Daergar returned with a glowing mushroom. “It’ll be hard to see the chalk marks in the dark,” he said with a grin, holding up the light.
Bradok hadn’t thought of that. Their darkvision worked well enough, but dwarves saw things in the dark mainly in a fuzzy black-and-white. A chalk mark would elude them.
They pressed on, following Rose’s occasional marks. There seemed to be many more side passages than before, and Bradok was glad she had Reorx’s compass showing her the way.
“I think we should pick up our pace,” said Thurl. “I hear noises behind us.”
Everyone stopped, each straining to hear. There, so faint as to be on the edge of hearing, they could hear echoes of the clicking and chirping language of the Disir.
“There’s no way we can outrun them,” Chisul said.
“They don’t know which passage we took,” Corin said. “They’ll have to send scouts down all of them. That’ll delay them.”
“Leave me behind,” Thurl volunteered. “I’ll go down one of the other side passages. Once they find me, they’ll think I’m just a straggler from the main group. I’ll fight them, and no matter what happens to me, they’ll follow the wrong path a while.”
