Elaine Cunningham - The Best of the Realms, Book I

She scowled and brought up her fingers, touching thethumbs together and holding her open palms toward the guardian. She mumbledwords Szass Tam recognized as one of the first spells he'd taught her, and icyshards sprang from her hands. The shards flew true and imbedded themselvesdeep into the breast of the thing. But the attack proved ineffectual, theguardian oblivious. It pulled an arm back to swat her. Frodyne leaped to theside, and the guardian's hand found her companion instead. The sharp metalnails pulled the man's chest open. The wizard was dead before he hit theground.

"Please, Master," Frodyne begged. "Helpme. I'll do anything you ask."

"You destroyed my army," Szass Tam spat."Your soul can rot here for all I care."

Frodyne raised her hands again and mumbled. Asparkling blue globe appeared in front of her. She blew at it, propelling itmagically toward her ebon attacker. The globe impacted just above the thing'swaist, popped, and squirted acid on the black metal. Crackling and sizzlingfilled the chamber, and the guardian bent its head to look at its meltingstomach.

"You wield magic well, my sweet," the lichsaid icily.

"But I need your help to beat this thing!" she cried as she fumbled in the folds of her robe and withdrew a handful ofgreen powder.

Szass Tam slowly shook his head.

"You stopped my skeletons all by yourself. Youstopped my plans for having you rule Thay at my side. Surely you can stop thiscreature."

His voice was gravelly and showed no hint of emotion.

Frodyne started tracing a symbol in the powder in thepalm of her hand. The lich turned to watch the construct, which was somehowrepairing its stomach. Before Szass Tam's eyes, metal flowed like water to cover themelted section. In an instant, there was no evidence it had been damaged. Ittook a step toward Frodyne, its massive footfall rocking the cavern andcausing her to spill the powder she had intended to use in another spell.

"It could kill her," the specter at SzassTam's side said simply. It wore the face of the young man. "But she cannotkill it. You cannot kill it. It is Leira's guardian, and it will continue torepair itself until the end of time. It has looked into her heart anddiscovered she does not honor the black goddess. It cannot rest until she isdead."

"And can it see into my own heart?" the lichposed. "Or perhaps it cannot even see me because the shriveled organ in mychest does not beat."

Frodyne's scream cut off the spirit's reply. Theguardian swatted her like an insect, and she flew across the cavern to land onher back. Her red robe was shredded, and blood oozed freely from gouges in herflesh. Her face was frozen in terror, but still she did not give up. The lichhad taught her well.

Frodyne withdrew a bit of pitch from the pocket of herruined garment. Placing it in her bloody palm, she raised her hand until it wasin line with the guardian's four eyes. A black bolt of lightning shot forthfrom her fingers and struck the creature on the bridge of its nose. Theguardian stumbled backward from the impact, but was not damaged.

Szass Tam coaxed her, "Think, my lovelyapprentice. Cast a spell that will keep it from reaching you. Buy yourselftime."

She drew what was left of her robe about her and struggledto her feet. Words gushed rapidly from her mouth, and she pointed her indexfinger at the cavern floor. The stone beneath the guardian's cloven hooveswavered for a moment, shimmered in the meager light of the chamber, then turnedto mud. But the guardian did not fall into the muck. Rather, the gray constructhovered above the great muddy patch, its hooves dangling inches above it in themusty air. Beneath the guardian, the mud hardened and cracked like a dry riverbed.

"This cannot be!" Frodyne screamed.

She turned to glance at her mentor.

Szass Tam's hands glowed a faint blue, his longfingers pointed at the ebon guardian. An evil grin played slowly across hisface as he returned Frodyne's disbelieving stare. He flicked his wrist, and theguardian floated forward and came to rest on a patch of rock near Frodyne.

"You! You kept it from becoming trapped!" she cried, as she twisted to the side to avoid another blow.

The lich nodded and thrust his hand into the air, mentallysummoning an ancient parchment that lay in his tower. His fingers closed aroundthe curled scroll as the guardian reached for Frodyne. Staring at his terrifiedapprentice, Szass Tam carefully unrolled the parchment.

"I promised you immortality, my dear, a rewardfor your loyalty. You shall have it."

The lich began to read the magical words, and the constructgrabbed Frodyne around the waist. Szass Tam read faster, while the constructlifted her until she was level with its four eyes. The lich finished theenchantment as the guardian squeezed the breath from her lungs and droppedFrodyne's lifeless body like a child would discard a ruined doll.

The parchment crumbled in Szass Tam's fingers, and hisapprentice's dead body shimmered with a pale white glow. A moment passed, thenFrodyne's chest rose and fell. She took great gulps of air into her lungs andstruggled to her feet. She glanced at her mentor, then at the construct, whichagain reached out to grab her. The thing's fingers closed around her once moreand squeezed harder, and Frodyne realized what Szass Tam had done. He had givenher eternal life-of a sort.

"No!" she shouted as her ribs cracked andshe fell lifeless a second time.

The construct stepped back and waited. Again, theyoung Red Wizard was resurrected from the dead. Again she struggled to herfeet.

"Enjoy your immortality, Frodyne," the lichhissed, as he watched the guardian deliver another fatal blow and witnessed herrise again.

He was pleased Leira's construct would busy itselfwith Frodyne and leave him alone.

"The relic," the lich pressed the specter."Show me where the crown is."

The specter gestured to a stony recess. Szass Tamstrode to it and look in the mounds of coins and gems. Perfectly facetedemeralds, sapphires, and diamonds glimmered from every cranny. A crown dottedwith rubies sat atop the mass. The lich quickly snatched it up and felt theenergy pulsing in the metal band.

"Leira's gift," the spirit declared."The prize of our temple."

Stepping from the alcove, Szass Tam placed the crownupon his head then doubled forward as pain shot through his chest. The lich wascaught off guard by the icy hot sensation. He pitched over and writhed on therocky chamber floor until his frantic movements knocked the crown free.

The painful spasms ended, and the lich slowly stood.

"What manner of power was that, priests?" the lich gasped.

The spirit wore the face of the old woman when itanswered, "The power of eternal life. The heart of he who wears the crownwill beat forever."

Szass Tam's human form melted away, revealing hisskeletal frame and pinpoint eyes.

"My heart does not beat," he said flatly.

"So instead, you felt pain," the womananswered. "The Lady of the Mists is indeed more treacherous than you.Leira lured you here. The priest who tempted your favored apprentice with therelic was merely a pawn."

The lich kicked the crown across the floor and glaredat the specter.

"Again the Patroness of Illusionists and Liarsstruck when your apprentice betrayed you and sought the crown herself. Then mygoddess triumphed once more when you lost that which you held dear, a beautifulsorceress who would have spent eternity at your side." The ghostly imagepointed at the struggling Frodyne. "You've lost your army, your woman,your ability to trust others. And the prize at the end of your quest was something you cannever possess. Who is the more treacherous, Szass Tam?" The lich threwback his head and laughed, a deep, throaty sound that reverberated off thewalls of the cavern. The lich roared loud and long as he padded from thechamber and climbed the stairs.