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live.
Sister Hana glared at him. There was no life in her eyes, only dead
darkness. The madness of hatred had almost completely devoured her.
 I will give myself into your hands, Kang continued, desperately.
 You may slay me where I stand. I will not try to stop you. Slith, are you
there?
 Yes, sir, said Slith.
 You are in command. My final order and one that I expect to be
obeyed is this: When I am dead, you will take the men and the children
and leave. These sisters are to be allowed to remain in this temple in
peace. Do you understand?
 Yes, sir, said Slith quietly.  I understand.
 Now take the men out of here, Slith.
 Sir 
 That s an order, Slith!
 Yes, sir.
Claws scraped, weapons were sheathed. The draconians slowly and
reluctantly climbed back up the stairs. Kang was on his own, he and the
children and the human females.
Kang placed his sword and his armor, his boot knife and other
accoutrements on the floor. Walking forward until he stood within a sword
thrust of Sister Hana, he lowered himself to his knees before her and held
out his hands in submission.
 I offer my life in exchange for the lives of the children, ma am. Let
them go. Let them have the choices I never had. I would warn you of one
thing, though, ma am. When I die, my bones will explode. You should
order the other sisters to leave now and allow them to take the children to
safety.
Sister Marsel started forward, reaching out her hand toward the babies.
Sister Hana blocked her, cast her a vicious glance.  Don t come near!
 Don t do this, Sister Hana! Sister Marsel begged.  In the name of
Paladine be merciful. Or has everything you taught us about Paladine been
a lie?
Sister Hana smiled then. A terrible smile.  Yes, she cried.  It was a
lie. It was all a lie! The god lied to me, didn t he? He said my children
died for a reason, and then he left. He betrayed me, he betrayed them.
Death take us. Death take us all!
She swung the sword.
Kang lunged to avoid the stroke, which would not only kill him but
everyone trapped in the cellar, the babies included. He rolled over, to try
as best he could to fend off the next attack.
He watched in astonishment to see Sister Marsel jump in front of him.
She grabbed hold of Sister s Hana s arm, struck her a blow on her wrist.
The sword fell to the dirt floor with a dull clang. Sister Hana sank down
beside it, sobbing in anguish, her hands clenched.
Sister Marsel gathered up the female in her arms, cradled her, began to
rock back and forth, murmuring soothing words.
Kang stood up awkwardly.  Sister, he began, trying to find words to
thank her.
Sister Marsel looked up at him and shook her head.  You better go,
she said.  Take the children.
* * * * *
Support Squadron carried the children out of the cellar. First Squadron
raided the goblin camp, picking up food and weapons left behind by the
fleeing goblins. They returned to report that they now had supplies enough
to last a month. While the rest of the regiment prepared to march out,
Kang and Dremon took the babies into the upper room in the temple and
released them from their snug prisons. The babies looked around in
amazement at their freedom, then perked up and began to play. Some
discovered their wings for the first time and began to jump about the floor,
delighting in their ability to fly for a few short hops. Others climbed up on
the bunks and took to leaping off, causing Kang s heart to lodge in his
throat. He valiantly fought back the desire to stuff them all back in their
sacks again.
The draconian troops allowed the children to play until they were tired,
then fed them hot soup made of the remnants of yesterday s venison. The
babies ate well and were now content to return to their sacks, where they
soon fell sound asleep.
Late that afternoon the First Dragonarmy Field Engineers lined up in
the temple courtyard, prepared to move out, to continue their march. Snow
had started falling again, but this time Kang welcomed it. The snow would
hide their tracks, throw off pursuit.
Kang had a debt to repay. He could not leave without first thanking
Sister Marsel. He found her in the temple, standing before the statue of the
platinum dragon.
 How is Sister Hana? he asked.
 She ll be all right. The others are with her. Sister Marsel crossed her
arms over her chest, shivered. The fires had gone out. The temple was
cold.
 You shouldn t stay here, he warned her.  The goblins might return.
 I know, she replied.  We should have left long ago, left when the rest
of them left. But Sister Hana said that someday Paladine would return and
he would be disappointed to find us gone. There s a village not far from
here. They ll be glad to take Sister Hana in and give her and the others a
home.
 What will you do? Kang asked curiously.
Sister Marsel smiled wanly.  I need to climb out of my warm fur sack,
don t you think, Commander?
Kang shook his head. She seemed very young and very fragile to go
roaming about a world that was becoming darker and more dangerous
every day. It was not his part to say so, however. The choice was hers.
 Good luck to you, Sister, he said.  And thank you for what you did
for us. We are in your debt, all of us.
 If Sister Hana had carried out her threat, then everything Paladine
taught us would have been a lie. Sister Marsel raised her eyes to the
statue.  It isn t. I know it isn t. I m going to find the truth.
Kang shrugged. He had already found his own truth. He left her
standing beside the statue of the platinum dragon.
It was odd, but when he turned around to glance at them both again, the
dragon didn t look all that forlorn. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]