Claws of the Dragon (14 page)

CHAPTER 35

Nath took off at a sprint after Pepper.

Halflings are fast, but giant halflings are even faster.

No longer shackled, Nath ran like a horse down the hallway before finally catching up with Pepper, who had ducked out of sight in an archway. Nath skidded to a stop. His toes hung over the edge of a bottomless pit. “Sultans of Sulfur!”

Pepper caught his arm and pulled him back. “Don’t fret. It’s not so bad as it looks. They say it’s a hole from one side of the world to the other.”

Gaping with his back pressed against the wall beside the doorway, Nath stared into the black expanse. There was nothing except a lone light more than two dozen yards away. It looked like a tiny doorway.

“I think I’ll take my chances with the giant.” Nath turned and found himself face to face with the cyclops stabbing at him with a sword. He sidestepped the blade’s edge. “Gah! That was close.”

“Oh my,” Pepper said, sliding up behind the much taller cyclops. He tapped him on the shoulder. “Get away from my prisoner, one-eye!”

The cyclops grunted and unloaded a hard chop at the halfling.

Pepper skipped away and stopped with his heels on the edge of the crevice.

The cyclops spoke. “Your fun and games are over, Pepper.”

The halfling cupped his ear. “What?”

The cyclops lunged.

With the ease of a dancer, Pepper back spun around the blade’s edge. He fastened his hand on the cyclops’s thick wrist and, using its momentum, flung him forward over the edge.

Shocked, Nath listened to the cyclops’s outraged and fading scream. He studied Pepper. “Aren’t you going to get into a lot of trouble?”

“Nah. I never liked that one-eye much. A big complainer, he was.” Pepper dusted off his hands. “Besides, I’ll just blame it all on you. Prisoner escaped, and that ugly feller died trying to catch him. Now, where to?”

“You’re asking me?”

Scratching his head, Pepper said, “I see your point. Uh, where did you want to go?”

“I want to get out of Urslay, but I need to find my sword first.”

“Sword, you say? What’s so special about a blade? There are plenty of those around here.”

“No, not like this one. This one is a friend.” He recalled what Eckubahn said. “They took it to the Chamber of Contest.”

Pepper made a leery face. “Ooh, you don’t want to go there.”

“I insist, Pepper. And you know what, you aren’t having too much trouble hearing me now.”

“What?”

Nath waited.

The halfling shook his head no. “I’m not helping you. I serve the giants. Yes. Yes. Serve the giants.” He teetered back into the hall. “Come on, the coast is clear now. I’ll show you to the Chamber of Contest, but I warn you, there are much safer paths out of here.”

Nath caught him by the elbow and fixed his eyes up on the halfling’s. “Pepper, why are you helping me?”

The giant halfling tried to pull away, but Nath held him fast. Finally, with a huff, Pepper said, “Everyone who knows good is obligated to do it.”

In his heart, Nath knew that Pepper was good and truthful. “You couldn’t be more right.”

“What?”

“Just get me out of here.”

With a confused look, Pepper shook his head. “Let’s get you out of here.”

On ginger feet, the giant halfling led him back into the stone carved corridor designed for giants as big as thirty feet tall.

They ran for minutes, and Nath marveled with every stride. There weren’t many things that made Nath marvel, but this did. The world he’d known so well had become bigger and deadlier than he ever imagined. He’d taken too many things for granted. He was used to really tall trees, but he wasn’t used to so many men bigger than he. It bothered him. Giants were rare, but apparently not as rare as he thought. Perhaps, long, long ago, the giants had dominated the world of Nalzambor.

“You know, we ought to be out of here by now,” Nath said.

“Almost.” Pepper stopped in front of a door and pushed it open. Inside was another storage room, abandoned and dusty, with a stairwell at the far end. “This will take us up into the city. Just below the Chamber of Contest that you seek. I don’t recommend it though. The worst of the worst giants will be there proving themselves. It wouldn’t surprise me a bit if they swallowed you whole. They eat a lot.”

“I’ll manage, somehow. Pepper, I have a question. Do you know where the hive of ugly dragons is, the wurmers?”

“What?”

“Dragons!”

Pepper’s face turned sour. He shook his head no. “No, not taking you there. There is death.”

“Tell me where, then.”

“No, you just need to leave. Get your sword and go. You’ve caused a big enough stir already.”

“Just a hint, please!”

“The eastern part of the city. There is a nest. But those things, brrr, are nasty. I’m nosey, but not that nosey. Beware. They will pick the flesh clean off of you.”

Nath patted Pepper on the back. “Thanks. Every bit helps.” He jogged for the stair and bounded up several steps then stopped and turned. “Aren’t you coming?”

“By the giants, no. I have to round up a search party.”

“A search party for what?”

“To find you.” He saluted. “Got to go. Good luck, flame hair. I aim to not see you too soon. And if you make it, come back to where you came in to get out of here.” He vanished through the doorway.

Where I came in? Strangest rescue ever.

While Nath was rushing up the steep flight of stone steps, an unseen force jolted him.

Bang!

Nath doubled over. His senses were jangled. Blinking, he searched all around him. It was just him inside the lonely stairwell.

What was that?

Clutching his chest, he resumed his climb and raced up the steps.

Bang!

He fell to his knees. Searching all around, he didn’t see anything.

But he heard something.

It was the sound of metal hitting metal, but it wasn’t any kind of metal. There was a unique sound to it. Almost like a tuning fork being struck. And the sound was echoing down the staircase from above.

For some reason Nath searched his feelings. Like a hard punch in the gut, he felt it again.

Bang!

His eyes widened. He realized what was happening.

Fang!

CHAPTER 36

“Drink your potion,” Selene ordered Brenwar.

“What? Why?”

She pointed at the giants coming their way.

Shirtless heavy-eyed brutes were eyeballing and harassing the line of people trying to enter the chamber where the banging was coming from.

Reluctantly, Brenwar slipped into a storage alcove filled with cut stone. He took out the vial and drank the potion down. His stomach turned. His skin and bone stretched. The blocks of stone lowered in his sight. He slumped back against the wall and shook his head.

“Are you well?” Selene asked.

Brenwar steadied himself and looked at the slender hands that hung out of his once-too-long sleeves. “I’ve been better.”

“You look much better, aside from the beard.”

He looked down at her. “I wish I could say the same for you. Let’s go.” Brenwar made his way out of the alcove and merged with the crowd of people heading down the street toward the banging sounds that echoed throughout the city. Half a head taller than Selene, he led the way with a lengthy step and swagger to his gait. He kept his chin down as he approached the giants.

One of them, a ten footer with a fuzzy red unibrow, shoved him in the shoulder. It eyed him and said with a sniff, “You smell bad.”

Head down with his fist balled up at his side, Brenwar replied, “Er, not everyone can smell as good as you.”

The giant’s head reared back, and a deep scowl formed on his ugly face. “You jest with me?”

Selene wedged herself between them. “Forgive him, master. My brother is addle-minded and not in the city much. He meant it as a compliment. He admires the giants. Pure admiration.”

“I can speak for myself,” Brenwar said.

Selene elbowed him in the chest. “Be silent.”

The giant’s hand went to a hammer at his side, started to remove it. “No, still don’t like him. I think I’ll crush him. It’s been days since I’ve crushed anybody. And he smells funny.”

“I’ll crush—
umph
!” Brenwar’s mouth was sealed by Selene’s hand.

She then said to the giant, “My, you have such marvelous shoulders. I am a seamstress, and I could fit you in a most handsome cloak. You know, a little gold-and-silver trim. I have some leftover material that I could share with you if you spare my ignorant brother.”

The giant stuck his face in hers. “I’ll crush your brother, and you’ll make it for me anyway.”

“Sure, sure,” she said, “go ahead and crush him, them. He’s nothing but trouble.” She winked at the giant. “I’ll just need to explain to Eckubahn what happened to my assistant.”

The giant swallowed and said with a stammer, “Go, go along. I will drop this matter.”

“No, please, it’s not a problem. Smash my brother. I’ll make you a cloak so fine that everyone will notice.”

“Go away!” The giant moved on down the street with the other one in tow. Neither looked back.

“My, you really want to get rid of me, don’t you?” Brenwar asked.

“It’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

“Ha ha.”

Following the throng, they finally entered through the archway that led into the massive chamber big enough for hundreds of giants.

Brenwar got his first eyeful of a ten-foot-tall orc and a nine-foot-tall goblin. He nudged Selene. “By the Sultans, what in their fiery flames is going on here?”

“Indeed, it is strange.”

Brenwar knew all about the giants. There were cyclopes and ettins. Earth giants, stone giants. Those were the rare ones. Normally bigger than the rest. Then there were the others. They lived in clans. Brutish men, crude and hairy. The dwarves considered them pure bloods. The others were abominations of flesh and magic.

Now it seemed there were giant races too. Orcs, goblins, gnolls, bugbears, the biggest he’d ever seen. It didn’t make sense. What could be causing this? He hated the idea of a world filled with giants. He relished the idea of killing them.

Bang!

The sound of metal on metal jolted Brenwar. He picked his way through the crowd toward the front.

Several giants stood inside a grand ring. Its flooring was a dark-red tile. In the middle was a huge anvil, bigger than a mule. Fang lay on top of it, like starlight in a night of grime. Hovering over the sword was a balding brute of a giant missing one eye. The twelve-foot pure blood held a blacksmith’s hammer in two hands. Sweat dripped down his face. Packed with thick muscle, the barrel-chested monster brought the hammer down on Fang.

Bang!

The crowd cheered.

Bang!

Sparks flew. Face filling with red rage, the giant hammered away.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Sweaty lips puffing and broad chest heaving, the giant dropped the huge hammer on the ground. Another giant, a little bigger, walked up with his arm swinging. He was chuckling under his grubby beard. With a sneer, the first giant drew back his fist and punched the second one in the face, knocking it down to the ground.

The people erupted with feverish excitement.

“I like it,” Brenwar said in Selene’s ear. “Let them kill each other.”

As the pair of giants slugged and wrestled, a third giant took center stage. With one hand, he picked up Fang and eyeballed him.

Fang was a big sword, with a two handed pommel. He fit in the giant’s huge hand like a glove.

Suddenly, the giant’s pupils turned into huge pearls. His hand smoked. His skin sizzled and fried. He dropped the sword on the anvil with a clatter and let out a howling cry. He ran around holding his smoking hand, knees pumping and screaming.

The audience laughed.

Brenwar found himself caught up in it as well. There was nothing quite like watching a giant making of fool of itself. As stupid as they were, they could still be entertaining. He guffawed and guffawed and guffawed.

Over the next hour, the giants tussled back and forth in odd contests. They punched. Tugged. Head butted each other and the anvil. For the most part they beat themselves senseless and dizzy, all to the thrill of the crowd. But not a one of them could make a mark on the sword.

With a straight face, Selene said, “So glad you are amused. Need I remind you why we are here?”

“Of course not.” Brenwar swiped his thumbs over his eyes. “We just need a distraction.”

Someone jostled him.

Brenwar turned.

A pure bred giant stood behind him. It wasn’t as stout as the one bragging and brawling front and center.

Not thinking, Brenwar blurted out, “Watch yerself, giant!”

The monster man looked down on him with an astonished look in his eye. Its nostrils flared. Muscles in its jaws clenched.

Astonished himself, Brenwar watched the angry giant get bigger and bigger. He looked up at Selene.

Her violet eyes filled with surprise. “Oh, no.”

The giant screamed, “Dwarf!”