"Ed Greenwood - Band of Four 04 - The Dragon's Doom" - читать интересную книгу автора (Greenwood Ed)

better and is carrying it awake and aflameтАФfor a light in a dark place, sayтАФI
cannot see it. If I touch not the powers of my Stone, and keep it hidden,
someone using another Dwaer to seek it could stand beside me and not know I
carried it. Some tricks offer themselves to anyone who can use two Dwaer in a
search, but even then, must be very close to a sought Stone."
Tshamarra nodded. "More than that: One can only see raw Dwaer-power from
afarтАФif its wielder uses it only to power spells of their own casting, one
sees nothing."
"What if we sat you in a tower somewhere, guarding and feeding you, and you
spent days using your Dwaer to search?" Craer asked.
Embra gave him a smile that held little mirth. "My Stone would be awake all
that time. SomeoneтАФor somethingтАФwould almost certainly see me, and come to
snatch a Dwaer and slay."
"Thereby coming within our reach," the procurer responded triumphantly, "and
allowing us to choose the battlefield!"
The Lady Talasorn sighed. "I doubt they'd herald their arrival, my lord.
They'd watch and see just where we all were, and how best to slay us. The
first you'd know of any battle would be a Dwaer-blast separating you from your
bones."
Craer looked at herтАФand suddenly beamed from ear to ear, saying brightly,
"My, but the Vale's lovely this time of year! I feel a sudden longing to take
horse and ride."
Blackgult had said nothing, and continued to do so, but he didтАФ
almostтАФsmile.


2

Stones Hunted, Trouble Found



The blacksmith shook his tongs to make sure of his grip, lifted the cooling,
darkening bar, and thrust it into the bucket of oil. There was a roar of
hissing smokeтАФinto which he spat thoughtfullyтАФand he set his hammer down,
straightening with a grunt. "Be ye ready?"
Two men looked up from their last tightenings of the straps and buckles that
held the great draft horse. "Aye, Ruld. He's in the harness."
The smith nodded. "Well, then, let's be about it. 'Riverflow stops for no
man,' as they say."
"Aye," both farmers replied, completing the saying more or less in unison: "
'Not even if the Risen King commands.' "
Ruld snorted as he strode across his cluttered smithy. "Some 'Risen King'!
Risen and gone, like that, an' some fool lad sitting the throne in his place.
If they were going to choose any green youngling standing by, they'd've done
better to pick a farmerтАФan' at least have someone who knows crops 'n' harvest
and such."
"Aye! Better a Sirl peddler than this boy king," Ammert Branjack agreed,
patting the vast flank of his horse in a manner that was meant to be
reassuring. "They might as well have chosen a farfaring merchant from half the