The Siege by Troy Denning Page B

sure their destruction cannot replace what you lost, but know that they will pay for it with more than their lives.”
    “So Melegaunt promised, and so am I here,” Aris said. “Thank you.”
    Malik astonished Galaeron and—judging by the gasps of surprise—everyone else by appearing out of the gloom behind Aris’s legs. “I also come bearing gifts,” he said, reaching beneath his robes. “The One has charged me—”
     
    “Stop!” Ruha was instantly rushing toward him, tossing sand at his hidden hand and uttering some kind of Bedine nature magic.
    Before she made it far enough for Galaeron to infer what spell she meant to cast, the Most High gestured in her direction, and she was entwined in half a dozen murky tendrils. Her veil continued to flutter as she spoke her incantation, but the only thing that came out from beneath it were clouds of dark vapor.
    “Did Hadrhune not warn you, Harper?” the Most High asked. “What Malik does here is no concern of yours.”
    Malik smirked in the witch’s direction, then, still holding his hand beneath his robe, turned back to the Most High. “As I was saying, the One—”
    ‘Tour gift will have to wait until later.” The Most High moved away from the little man. “Hadrhune will arrange a time. Now, I really must start with Galaeron. If you others will excuse us, Rapha and Mees are waiting to tour the palace with you.”
    So saying, he turned and vanished into the murk.
    Escanor motioned Vala toward the others. “Feel free to enjoy the tour with the others. Galaeron will be fine with us.”
    Vala stepped closer to Galaeron’s side. “That’s not going to happen.”
    “It is.” As polite as was Escanor’s smile, it was also filled with fangs. “You have no need to worry while he is in the company of the Most High. The shadow has not been cast that Telamont Tanthul cannot tame.”
    “Tanthul?” Galaeron gasped. “The same as Melegaunt Tanthul?”
    The prince nodded. “And Escanor Tanthul,” he said. “All the Princes of Shade are Tanthuls.”
    Telamont’s sibilant voice filled the murk around them. “Escanor!”
     
    Escanor bowed briefly to Vala, then took Galaeron’s arm and led him away.
    “Galaeron?” Vala called.
    “Ill be … fine,” Galaeron said, choking on the last word. Whether he was excited or frightened even he could not tell, but his heart had risen so far into his throat that he could barely draw breath around it. “Well meet back at the villa.”
    “When?”
    “When he is finished,” Escanor said. “I will bring him myself.”
    They passed the statue and vanished into the darkness, then emerged a dozen steps later on what felt like the mezzanine of a very high, very large atrium. Through the hole in the center, he saw what looked like half the continent of Faerűn lying spread out beneath him, from the Sword Coast in the West as far east as the great Shoal of Thirst in the desert Anauroch, from the ruins of Arabel in the south to the High Ice in the north. At the moment, most of the land west of Anauroch lay hidden beneath storm clouds, while all to the east was brown and parched with an uncharacteristic drought.
    “I have brought you to our war room to show why Shade Enclave is moving away from Evereska,” said Telamont Tanthul’s wispy voice. “You wished to know.”
    “I do,” Galaeron said.
    “You suspect us of betraying my son’s promise,” Telamont continued.
    Galaeron bit his tongue, fighting the urge to say that he knew they were.
    “Speak freely,” Telamont urged. “In the war room, no opinion is dismissed lightly.”
    “Very well.” Galaeron’s throat was so dry that the words stuck at the bottom. “As Netherese, you lost Anauroch to the phaerimm once.”
     
    He paused there, trying to sort out what he believed from what his shadow believed—but Telamont was in no mood to wait.
    “And you believe Melegaunt intentionally loosed the phaerimm on Evereska so that Waterdeep and the rest of Faerűn would be