CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Rocks exploded like newborn suns throughout Wurnna. Even when Iron Tongue and his few remaining mages began the chants, made the spells, exerted all the power possible, the rain of stony death continued. Eventually the barrage stopped, not because of their action, but for lack of projectiles high atop the mountains.
" We have conquered them!" shrieked Iron Tongue, one fist waving at the sky. The other sorcerers backed away from their leader, shaking their heads. They knew the truth. They had failed; only fate had intervened in their behalf. Most of Wurnna lay in ruin. Left in command, Iron Tongue would soon allow all of it to be smashed into oblivion.
None questioned his right to rule. None dared oppose his wishes. None wanted the full force of his persuasive powers turned against him. Through the years they had seen strong men throw themselves on their swords at Iron Tongue' s command. Women had ripped the throats from their infants because he had ordered it done. The voice- the Voice- was too strong. Even if he were insane, he ruled Wurnna.
Lan Martak saw and accepted this, but he drew aside Inyx and a few of the others for a quiet conference.
" When Claybore' s troops get enough rock assembled again, the barrage will annihilate us. How long do you think it' ll take to get the rocks assembled? Noratumi? Rugga?"
Jacy Noratumi glanced up at the heights and shuddered.
" This place," he said, " should never have been built here. Why mages thought it could be defended is beyond me."
" We defended it well until Claybore came along," said Rugga, an edge to her voice. " We were many and strong. None scaled the heights without feeling the full force of our magics. And if we weakened, Iron Tongue urged climbers to simply step off to their death."
Noratumi shook his head. All read his expression: A poor way to defend a city.
" You' ve not done so well protecting your own city- state," added Rugga.
" Bickering won' t help," said Inyx. " We need action. Lan thinks the spiders might aid us."
" Never," scoffed Noratumi. " We need action, all right. We need to put a sword through the heart of every grey- clad bastard on those mountain slopes."
" He' s right. The spiders will never leave their valley, even if they held any good feeling for us. Which they don' t." Rugga' s voice almost broke with emotion. She stared over the stony crenelation along the walkway and down the valley where all prior attacks had been mounted. Now only smouldering pits formed by the power stone rockets scarred the land. Claybore' s troops had withdrawn beyond the effective range of Iron Tongue' s Voice and let their numbers on the mountains do their work.
" Might I make a suggestion?" piped up Krek. " While I am most doubtful of assistance from Murrk, it can do no harm to inquire of him. Also, friend Jacy Noratumi is accurate in his appraisal of the situation. Continued rock- throwing will destroy the city long before any rescue might be made by my fellow arachnids."
" So?"
" I propose we follow both schemes. One group scales the peaks, an easy task it seems to me, and removes the elevated danger. Force Claybore to send reinforcements. In that time, Lan might have persuaded Murrk to send aid."
Lan Martak thought it over. He ran fingers through his matted, dirty brown hair and absently wiped the grease and grime he encountered on his tunic. His mind sailed ahead, considering the options.
" Krek' s right. Claybore is using a minimal amount of effort to destroy Wurnna. We' ve got to make him work harder if he wants to take us out."
" He cannot have many mages," said Rugga. " And he cannot do all this by himself."
" That' s an avenue, also. Those remaining in Wurnna might attack at the periphery of Claybore' s power, finding his assistants and badgering them. Drive them from their tasks, make them waver and be uncertain. Inyx, you and Jacy try the cliffs. Stop k' Adesina and her soldiers. Krek and I' ll try to make it to the valley and back with some help."
Lan swallowed hard after he said this. Sending Inyx out with Jacy tore him in different directions. Emotionally he disliked the idea of their being together, fighting together, depending on one another, but he knew they forged the strongest team for the assault. His dealings with Krek and the spiders made him the most likely candidate for presenting the humans' case. Krek was his friend, but he didn' t trust the arachnid to make the strongest case possible for the humans; Krek' s thought processes often took bizarre turnings.
" Let Krek go alone. Stay in the city and aid us, Lan." Rugga' s fingers tightened on his sleeve. He saw the game she played. If he wanted to send Inyx out with Noratumi, then they could remain together.
" We do it as I outlined." He saw momentary tears well in Inyx' s eyes, then they vanished as she stiffened to her task. In less than a minute she and Noratumi had left to find a small band of trustworthy fighters able to climb and fight.
" Krek? Let' s go."
" Take me with you, then, Lan." Rugga' s grip tightened on his arm until the fingers dug into his flesh. He placed his hand gently atop hers.
" Wurnna needs defending. Your place is here. If we can save this city, we will."
" And if you can' t?"
" I' ll be back for you." He was taken aback by the intensity of her kiss. His lips tingled and his head spun as he pulled away and left Rugga on the battlement.
At the postern gate, Krek finally spoke.
" You humans do have the strangest mating rituals."
Lan said nothing. At that instant he would have gladly traded Krek and a million spiders for the chance to accompany Inyx and fight beside her once again. The gate slammed behind them with grim finality. He turned and once again traversed the tunnel through the mountains.
" This narrow draw," Inyx said slowly. " It looks suspiciously dangerous to me."
Noratumi stopped and motioned for the twenty warriors with them to halt. Silently he studied the vee- cut in the rock. Inyx lightly touched his arm and pointed. Tiny growths dotted the top of the rock with their spiny stalks.
" It grows naturally in the mountains," he said. " I see nothing."
" I don' t see anything. I feel it."
" You' re no mage."
" I don' t have to be a mage, dammit!" she flared. " Being in enough fights makes you sensitive to situations that are wrong. I smell a trap ahead."
" It' s a good place," he agreed, " but I think you' re wrong. We' re wasting time. Any trouble we encounter will be at their base camp at the foot of the cliffs."
Inyx held back as Noratumi signaled for an advance. She took aside one of the archers and whispered in his ear. His face contorted in a mixture of fear and confusion, but he did as she ordered. He nocked an arrow and waited.
The trap was sprung almost immediately when the lead scout entered the notch in the rocks. The spiny plants she had noticed erupted out and downward. The scout had lightning- swift reflexes. His sword flashed out and speared the plant on his left. The one falling from the right skewered his arm. His agonized shriek pierced the cold silence of the mountain range.
The man turned and thrashed about, vainly struggling to pull free the plant. He was dead before his fingers even closed about the stalk.
" Poison," said Inyx, not in the least happy that she' d been vindicated. The archer pulled and released in a smooth motion. His arrow caught another clump of poisoned spine weed in midair, knocking it from its path toward Noratumi' s head.
Jacy Noratumi backpedaled quickly, avoiding another flight of the deadly plants.