“Elves,” said Thrang, shaking his head and poking at the fire. “You’re almost as bad as Alex. If you don’t want to say what you’re doing, fine, but don’t tell us how nice it is to be out in the fresh air.”
“You asked,” said Arconn with a smile.
“How deep is the snow as you move toward the mountains?” Alex questioned.
“Five or six feet in most places, deeper where it has drifted,” Arconn answered after some thought.
“You had a package with you when you came in last night,” Thrain said, suddenly turning to Alex.
“Yes,” said Alex.
“Then you’re going to face him soon,” said Arconn, stating what everyone else in the room was thinking.
“I was thinking of going today, if the weather is bad,” said Alex, trying to sound hopeful.
“If the weather is bad?” Thrang questioned.
“Bad weather will make it harder for Nethrom to see me coming. I’ll need every advantage I can get.”
“And how will we get up the mountains in six feet of snow and bad weather?” Kat asked.
“You won’t,” Alex answered.
“If you think you’re going alone, you’ve got another thing coming,” said Thrang in a defiant tone. “I forbid you to go by yourself.”
“That is something you have no say in,” said Alex. “But I thank you for the thought.”
“I will come,” said Arconn. “The snow is not a problem for me, and I can help you defeat this evil.”
“No,” said Alex, his tone almost a command. “This is something I must do alone. I know that you would all go with me, even if I did not ask, but I must go quickly and alone. That is the only hope I have to defeat the necromancer.”
Arconn refused to accept Alex’s decision, and none of the others were happy about being left behind either. They all knew they could not go into the mountains in bad weather, not with so much snow already on the ground, but Arconn was inflexible in his decision to go along.
“At least, if you fail, I can bring word to the others,” Arconn argued.
“If I fail, you will see the dragon,” said Alex, reaching for the long cloak Turlock had given him. “There will be fire on the mountains, and you will know the curse is broken.”
Alex walked quickly to the door, wanting to get on with his plan. The others followed him out of the common room, continuing to argue against his decision.
“If we all went, Nethrom wouldn’t know who to attack first,” said Nellus, but unconvincingly.
“And one of us might be able to attack him. Or at least distract him long enough for you to break his power,” Barnabus added.
“No,” Alex repeated. “I must go alone, and I must go now.”
“How will you manage in the snow?” Thrain questioned.
“I will be as the snow,” said Alex. “I will move like the wind and arrive at the necromancer’s cave without being seen.”
“It is too dangerous,” Thrang argued. “Couldn’t you ask your dragon friend to take care of this, or at least go with you?”
“Dragons care little for the troubles of other races, even the good dragons like my friend,” said Alex. “He has promised not to let me be used by the necromancer, and that is as much of a promise as I will ask of him.”
The others were silent as they moved through the city, but Alex knew they were all trying to think of ways to make him change his mind. When they reached the city gates, he was surprised to find Turlock waiting for him.
“Volo said you might be going today,” Turlock said, bowing to Alex. “I thought I would wish you luck, as I have little more than that to offer.”
“It is enough that you have come, Lord Turlock,” said Alex with a bow.
“Is there anything I can do for you before you go?” Turlock’s eyes were full of sorrow.
“Watch after my friends while I’m away,” Alex answered. “One way or another, the curse will be removed from Neplee before I return.”
“Then I will thank you now, and thank you again when you return.”
Alex smiled and walked to the gate. The guards bowed to him before swinging open the giant stone doors, and then stood back to let him pass. An icy wind rushed into the city, snowflakes swirling with it.
Taking a deep breath of the cold, clean air, Alex turned to look at his friends. “I will return as soon as I can. If I am not back before spring, don’t look for me.”
“Don’t say such things,” said Thrang gruffly.
Without another word, Alex turned and stepped into the snow, vanishing from sight in an instant. It was a spell he had been practicing since the first snows began to fall, and he knew it was his best chance to reach the necromancer’s cave undetected. Whalen had warned him about wasting his strength trying to reach the necromancer, and moving up the mountain without fighting whatever monsters the necromancer could send against him seemed like a good idea.
Becoming a gust of wind was not terribly difficult, but it was dangerous. When Alex had first worked the spell, he’d had difficulty returning to his own form. The wind was so free that all of his worries slipped away. It was only when Volo had started yelling at him for almost blowing out his forge that Alex had returned to his own natural shape.
Not wanting to lose himself in the shape of wind, Alex focused his attention on the land around him and began working his way into the mountains. He had only a general idea of where Nethrom’s cave would be, and he was worried it would take a long time for him to find it. He didn’t want to remain a gust of wind for too long, but he also didn’t want to become vulnerable on the mountainside in his own shape; and he didn’t want to start fighting until he had to.
By midmorning he was well into the mountains, and he let his mind search the land around him, looking for any wild creature that might help him find the necromancer. The land was empty, and Alex wondered if it was the winter weather or the necromancer that had driven away the wild creatures. He continued searching as he moved higher and deeper into the mountains.
It was late afternoon before Alex saw something moving in the snow below him, and he drifted closer to get a better look. He stopped himself from touching the creature’s mind when he realized it was one of Nethrom’s undead creations. A giant bear, making its way down the mountainside in winter was out of place, and Alex was glad he had taken the form of wind and could remain hidden. Alex followed the bear’s tracks deeper into the mountains.
When the last gray light of day was fading, Alex stopped in a large grove of trees. He checked to make sure that none of Nethrom’s creatures were nearby, then he changed back into himself. After a quick meal, he studied the trees around him. Slowly he let his mind slip into the thoughts of the trees, and with a simple command, he changed forms once more, this time becoming a giant pine in the middle of the grove.
It was in the shape of the tree that Alex discovered where to look for the cave of the necromancer. The tree’s thoughts were slower than his own, slower than any living animal. The trees were very much alive, however, and they knew things about the undead land around Nethrom’s cave.
When the sun touched the mountainside once more, Alex changed back into the wind. The new day was bright, and the clouds that had covered the mountains for weeks had blown away in the night. It was easy for Alex to see where he was going, and with the knowledge he had gained from the trees, he quickly found the entrance to the cave.
For a moment Alex thought about entering the cave as the wind, but then he thought Nethrom might notice the breeze and possibly capture him before he could change back into his natural form. Instead, he stopped a short distance from the cave’s mouth and returned to his own form on the wind-blown path. He looked around at the crushed and packed snow around him and suspected that Nethrom had recently sent a great many creatures out of the cave.
Moving toward the entrance of the cave, Alex paused. A large treelike creature was rooted in the center of the path in front of him. At first, Alex did not realize what it was. He had only noticed the strange creature because there was no snow or ice on it. As he approached, two great serpent heads swung around to watch him, their red eyes shining brightly in the cold morning air. Without waiting for the creature to attack, Alex sent a ball of fire toward it, but it bounced off, hissing loudly as the fireball sank into a nearby snowdrift. He thought about freezing the creature, but since it didn’t seem bothered by the winter wind, he didn’t think a freezing spell would have any effect. Moving forward carefully, he drew his sword. If magic could not harm this creature, perhaps the edge of his sword could.