Albrek's Tomb

“I’m sure they were about to charge us when the wall of flame appeared,” said Barnabus. “If your spell had been a few seconds later, I doubt we would have survived.”

“I shouldn’t have left the group,” said Alex bitterly.

“No harm was done,” said Thrang. “And you saved Kat from those foul creatures.”

Alex could tell that Thrang and the others wanted to hear about how he had rescued Kat and destroyed the hellerash. He suspected Kat had told them what had happened while he had remained with his fallen friend, but he knew they still had questions. He was grateful that none of them asked about it, and the conversation trailed off quickly.

They moved down the hill toward the spot where Shahree had fallen, and a fresh wave of sorrow filled Alex. He noticed Kat glance at him as if she wanted to say something, but she quickly turned away.

“A fine monument,” said Thrang when they reached the spot Alex had hoped to avoid. “And never a truer statement has been carved.”

“‘A True Friend,’” Arco

Kat made a strangled, sobbing sound and hid her face. Alex thought for a moment that he’d seen tears in her eyes, but he couldn’t be sure. Turning away from the monument, he wished the hollow feeling inside him would go away. The pale morning light shined on the open land in front of them, but in several places Alex could see where the stones and grasses had been scorched black.

“It appears that there were quite a few of them,” Arco

“And now there are none,” said Alex, starting off across the open ground without looking back.

Arco

His companions hurried after him, not saying anything more about the monument he’d created or the spell he’d cast. They fell into line behind Thrang and Arco

Alex’s own sorrow melted away like ice, and he suddenly found himself concerned about Kat’s worries. Shahree’s death had not been Kat’s fault, and Alex could not blame her even if he’d wanted to. She had told him to leave her behind. She had warned him that her weight would be too much for Shahree to carry.

For one long, terrible moment, the images of Shahree’s death rose once more before his eyes. If Alex had been a little quicker or if he hadn’t frozen when the hellerash had charged him, then Shahree would not have had to sacrifice herself to save him.

But Alex knew that he was not to blame either. The only person to blame was the necromancer who had called the hellerash back from the dead. It was the necromancer who had killed his friend, and it was the necromancer who would pay for that death.

Alex wanted to say something to Kat, something to ease her troubled thoughts, but her sorrow seemed almost as deep as his own, and nothing he could think to say sounded right in his mind.

“I don’t blame you,” Alex finally said softly.

“I know,” answered Kat, looking at him for the first time since the night before. “But I blame myself.”

“Don’t,” said Alex forcefully. “There is only one person responsible for what has happened, and he will answer for it, to me.”

“A dangerous attitude,” said Kat in a lowered voice.

“No, not really,” said Alex, forcing a weak smile. “I do not wish to take his place or steal his power. I will simply call him to account for what he’s done, as I must.”

“And if he is the stronger?” Kat questioned. “Necromancers are said to have a great deal of magical power.”

“Then he will go on,” said Alex with a sigh. “Though I think my dragon friend might put an end to him, if I were forced to summon him.”

“You are set in your course, then,” Kat said flatly. “You will summon the dragon to destroy you before you let yourself be used by the necromancer.”

“Better to die once in flame than live forever in the half-life of the necromancer,” said Alex. The words were not his own, and he was a little shaken by what he heard himself say.

Kat gave him a puzzled look for several seconds before she turned away.

As the day wore on, they began to look for any sign of a dwarf city or possibly even a party of dwarfs on the road. The road, however, remained empty, and for all they could tell there were no cities anywhere nearby.

“Can you sense anything, Kat?” Thrang asked as the afternoon was wearing away. “Anything at all?”

“Sadness,” Kat answered slowly. “There is great sorrow near, but I ca

“Perhaps because of the hellerash,” Arco

“Yes, that would make sense,” said Thrang, looking at Kat, his expression clearly hoping for more information.

“To the east of the road,” said Kat, a pained look on her face. “East and south of us, at the base of the mountain—there is a city.”

“Are you certain?” Nellus questioned, looking from Kat to the southeast and back. “I see no sign that would indicate a city.”

“And you wouldn’t,” said Thrang. “The dwarfs of the Lost Mountains are careful to hide themselves. We could walk right past a city and never see it if the dwarfs living there didn’t want us to.”

“I doubt that,” said Alex.

“Well, perhaps not right past,” Thrang admitted.

“In Vargland, many of the smaller cities are hard to find, even if you know what to look for,” said Thrain.

“The same is true here,” Thrang added. “But we have several things in our favor. We have a seer who can lead us, a wizard who can sense things others ca

“Then we should be able to find this city quickly,” said Barnabus. “And I hope they have horses for sale, because—”

Barnabus stopped quickly. For a moment they were all silent, and then Barnabus cleared his throat.

“Forgive me, Alex. I did not think.”

“You have done no harm,” said Alex, trying hard to smile. “And I really don’t want to walk all the way across Thraxon.”

As darkness gathered around them, the road began to bend toward the mountains, but when it became clear that they would not reach the city that night, Thrang reluctantly ordered them to make camp. The memory of the hellerash attack was still sharp in all of their minds, and only Alex was certain that there was nothing to fear.

As Barnabus prepared their meal, Alex found a comfortable spot and sat down. He knew he should write to Whalen—he needed his friend’s advice—but he didn’t really feel like writing down everything that had happened. Just then, Barnabus called them all to eat, and Alex was grateful that he could postpone writing a difficult letter, at least for a little while longer.

“We should reach the mountains tomorrow,” Arco

“And what then?” Nellus asked.

“What do you mean?” said Thrang, looking around at them all. “We go on with the adventure, of course.”

“Yes, of course,” said Nellus quickly, glancing at Alex.

“You are thinking perhaps I will leave the company to chase the necromancer,” said Alex, looking at his food. “I have already said that if the necromancer should flee, I will complete this adventure.”

“And if he does not flee?” Arco

“Then I will face him sooner rather than later,” said Alex.