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facedown, and stared with astonishment into Kiva's stony face. An arrow shaft
protruded from the warrior's back. The elf already had another arrow ready.
"She was an honorable warrior," Andris said with quiet fury. "You will answer
for this!"
"Not now, and never to you." The elf snapped her bow up into firing position,
letting fly as she shouted, "Behind you!"
Andris whirled as the arrow whizzed past him, instinctively lifting his daggers
into a defensive X. A thick staff slammed into the crux of his weapons. His
attacker was a black-bearded man with clerical vestments, a warrior's fierce
scowl, and arms as sinewy as a sailor's.
With all his strength Andris pushed up, thrusting the captured staff higher.
Pivoting on his left foot, Andris kicked out hard with his right. His boot connected
hard with the man's gut. The priest folded with a grunt, and Andris brought the hilt
of one dagger down sharply on his neck. The man fell, stunned but alive.
The jordain glanced around. All of the guardians were dead or subdued.
Several small fires flickered here and there, remnants of their defensive magic.
The dome of light surrounding the Azuthan revelers was fading fast.
One of the elves hurried toward Kiva. A sack stuffed with spellbooks and
artifacts hung heavy over his shoulder, and he cradled a pair of small dark
spheres in one hand. Kiva seized the spheres and hurled them at the protective
dome. Delicate crystal shattered on impact, and a viscous black substance
began to slide over the rounded surface. The elf woman nocked another arrow
and dipped the head into one of the small fires. The arrow caught and blazed.
She swept her bow up high and loosed the flaming missile at the dome.
The arrow struck in an explosion of light and power. Fire flowed down like
lava, swiftly engulfing the protective dome with a curving wall of flame.
Rage blazed through Andris, matching the heat from the burning dome. He
followed the elves' retreat, stopping only to hoist a wounded elf over his shoulder.
Two of the elves took their wounded comrade from Andris and disappeared into
the trees.
Andris sprinted over to Kiva, who stood studying the blaze. "You will kill them
all!"
She regarded him with a supercilious smile. "Efficiently and quickly. Your
plan was excellent, as far as it went, but I required more."
"Why?" he demanded, gesturing toward the fiery dome. "We could have
subdued the guards, raided the library, and fled before the protective barrier
could be dropped. No one needed to die!"
The elf woman did not respond. Andris was not even sure she heard him, so
intense was her scrutiny of the dying flames. Reluctantly, he turned to see what
had so captured Kiva's attention.
The fire faded almost as quickly as it had flared. The protective sphere
disappeared as well, revealing the carnage within. Revelers lay in twisted,
tormented postures, their festive garments blackened and smoking.
Andris walked forward as if in a dream. He crouched beside a fallen priest. A
glance was enough to know that nothing more could be done for him.
A soft whimper caught his ear. He rose and whirled toward the pool. On the
banks lay a young woman. Light from the scattered fires danced over her pale,
naked form, and bedraggled wings hung limply from her shoulders. Her face was
twisted with pain and bewilderment Instinctively Andris shrugged off his cloak
and moved toward her.
Kiva darted to the girl's side, speaking soothingly in Elvish, calling for the
shaman. The two elf women bent over the confused girl. Kiva poured a potion
into her mouth while the shaman chanted a prayer of healing. At last the shaman
helped the girl to her feet and led her gently away. Andris seized Kiva before she
could follow.
"An undine," she explained. "The pool was no doubt her home, and hers the
face that pilgrims saw in the water. The Azuthans were either fools or charlatans,
blessing Mystra for these signs of her 'great favor!' "
"You knew!" Andris said with suddenly certainty. "You knew that an undine
lived in the Lady's Mirror. Why else would you set that fire but to draw her out of
the heated water and into the air?"
Kiva's gaze swept pointedly over the grim battlefield. "Scores lie dead-
wizards, magehounds, priests of Azuth. By my measure, this was a good night's
work, even without the spellbooks. Which of course I also intend to take. Our
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