“I stake my life on it.”
Dauroth raised his hands and sang a single word. Thunder boomed so loud that the other Titans had to clutch their ears.
The sarcophagus exploded, shards flying everywhere. Dauroth sang another word, however, and the shards abruptly slowed as if whirling through honey. They then stopped completely and fell with a harsh clatter to the floor.
And as they did, the beautiful figure they had once shielded shriveled and aged. The unmarred skin wrinkled, dried, and peeled off. The perfect face became that of a horrific ghoul, with the aged flesh continuing to rapidly turn to dust until there remained nothing but the white skull beneath.
Immediately, Dauroth gestured. A blue haze fell over the skeleton and its shredded finery.
The decay ceased with the bones still intact.
“Safrag! Kallel! I leave it to you to remove the bones cautiously. The spell will keep them from turning to dust, but I wish them unmarred.”
“Yes, great one,” Safrag quickly replied.
“Hundjal, attend me.”
The senior apprentice stepped next to Dauroth, observing with him, for the moment, the fastidious efforts of the other two Titans in following the leader’s orders. “These are perfect, my master. Bones untouched, the magic in them still fresh.”
“Yes, a pity about the lack of signets upon her, but the remains will prove invaluable once they are prepared.” Dauroth gazed around at the other treasures. “And there may yet be a signet among the other relics. I want to know that before we leave the chamber.”
“You distrust some of the rest of the Talon?”
Dauroth pursed his lips. “I trust no one but myself … and you, naturally, my favored pupil.”
Hundjal bowed his head ever so slightly at that great compliment. “There may be a few individual traps among these riches. I did not dare perform a sweeping spell for fear that I would damage the casket’s power and let time reduce the body to complete dust. I knew the value of the bones, after all.”
“The brethren will just have to be extra cautious.” Dauroth turned to the rest. “The signets are the prime objective now. However, if you find anything so unidentifiable that you deem it may be of interest to me, summon me.”
The seven other Titans moved to various pedestals to begin their cautious inspections. Dauroth watched Safrag and Kallel at work then, satisfied by their meticulous labors, indicated that Hundjal and he should begin their own searches.
It did not take long to verify that the female buried there had indeed been a personage of high esteem. There were intricately created talismans among the artifacts, whose purpose promised years of intriguing research for Dauroth. There were parchments that could be gingerly opened that suggested spells that could be altered to fit the more modern arts of the Titans. Other writings revealed details of High Ogre life that Dauroth looked forward to studying and implementing into his future plans.
One of the other Titans used his power to open a small, emerald-tinted box. He peered inside just as Dauroth glanced in his direction.
The lead Titan frowned. “Beware such, Varnin! That has the look of a soul trap there-”
“I sense nothing within, great one! Absolutely-”
His reply turned into a chilling howl that froze the other Titans in the midst of their tasks. Dauroth, however, did not even bother to raise his hand and cast a spell, for it was already too late for Varnin. Instead, he watched and waited-with clinical interest-while the soul trap played itself out.
As the Titan’s howl spread through the chamber, something white and gauzy spewed from the hapless figure’s mouth then his nose, his ears, and even the tear ducts of his eyes. It struggled as it spread over and around the Titan, its vague outline reminiscent of Varnin himself. At the same time, the spellcaster’s physical form became more and more emaciated.
Then the gauzy form shrieked, shrieked as not even Dauroth could have imagined. Even the leader of the Titans felt his heart pound faster.
The ethereal figure was sucked into the box.
The box shut itself immediately after. The physical Varnin, his expression terrifying in its absolute deadness, its emptiness, collapsed then suddenly as if boneless.
Some of the others edged toward the corpse and the box.
“No one goes near!” shouted Dauroth. He alone approached the pedestal. After a brief study of the fallen spellcaster, Dauroth took the box and placed it in a pouch at his waist.
“Varnin has offered a lesson to you all. Open nothing that you cannot identify. Eagerness has its costs.” To Safrag and Kallel, he added, “When you are done safely transporting the bones back to the citadel, see to the removal and disposal of his remains.”
Safrag bowed. “As you command, great one.” The apprentice and his companion had finished setting the bones of the ancient Titan in an organized pile. The shreds of clothing, no longer protected, had become ash. “We are ready to take these away.”
“I will assist.” Dauroth joined the pair. The three stood facing the bones of the ancient. At the lead Titan’s signal, the trio sang the spell.
Black tendrils arose around not only the bones, but Safrag and Kallel as well. The two lesser Titans ceased their singing, enabling Dauroth to seize control of the spell. Safrag placed one hand over the remains.
And he, they, and Kallel vanished.
“It will take them a few minutes to prepare the container for the bones,” Dauroth blandly informed Hundjal, who stood nearby. “Now come. I rely on you as much as myself to see that nothing such as Varnin’s fate befalls the rest of us.”
All but kneeling, the senior apprentice replied, “You may trust in me utterly on this or any other matter, my master. I am and shall always be your most faithful servant.”
In that brief moment when Hundjal turned his gaze to the floor, he could not see the dark look that Dauroth flashed at him. All the younger spellcaster saw, when he turned his eyes up again, was the pleased expression that he expected. “I would expect nothing less of you, Hundjal, nothing less at all.”
“And to prove myself further, my master, I think in another day I shall give you something far greater than this discovery, something to assure the Titans’ guidance over our race.”
Dauroth had expected that. His smile widened, the sharp teeth well displayed. “For that, you shall receive a reward such as you would not imagine, good Hundjal … such as you would not imagine … ”
XIX
Despite the determination of a ji-baraki stalking an injured amalok, Khleeg could report no progress on the investigation. The ogre officer kept his head low, fully expecting punishment, but all the grand lord did was nod thoughtfully. That only served to make Khleeg more nervous, for not only did his master’s favorite meredrake lay chained to the wall near where the warrior stood, but the beast had not yet been fed. Its hunger was surely made the worse by the great copper bowl of raw amalok placed just out of its reach, according to the grand lord’s bidding.
“The ogres were said to be loyal, yet they attacked the Solamnic right here in my palace. Strange. The matter will have to be pursued, yes,” Golgren finally said, speaking Common, as he was determined to do in private and public from then on. He would prove even to himself that he was properly civilized. “But other matters must not fall neglected because of it.”
“Yes, the crowning,” Khleeg grunted, grateful for the change in topic. “The crowning is serious matter. Dangerous time, Grand Lord. Dangerous time. Assassins come then.”
“Nay! A glorious time! Grand khan and lord chieftain I will be!” The ogre leader leaped from his seat and snagged some of the raw meat, tossing a gobbet toward the meredrake. The huge lizard strained at the chains as it snapped up the morsel. “And better able then to deal with Shok G’Ran and Uruv Suurt.”