"Knaak, Richard A - Dragonrealm 04 - Shadow Steed" - читать интересную книгу автора (Knaak Richard A)

You will raise me a demon.

The words were seared into Drayfitt's mind. The chilling
visage of his monarch haunted him still. There had never been
any doubt that the king had been serious. He was a humorless,
bitter man who had, over the last nine years since his horrible
disfigurement, become everything that he had at one time
despised. The palace reflected that change; where once it had
been a bright, proud structure, it was now a dark, seemingly
unoccupied shell.

Yet, this was Drayfitt's ruler, the man who represented what
he had sworn his loyalty to more than a century before. Thus,
the gaunt, elderly man had simply bowed and said, "Yes, King
Melicard."

Ahh, Ishmir, Ishmir, he brooded. Why could you not have
waited until my training was complete before you flew off to die
with the other Dragon Masters? Better yet, why did you have to
train me at alt?

The chamber he occupied was one of the deepest beneath the
palace and the only one suited to the task at hand. The seal on
the door had been that of Rennek II, Melicard's great-great
grandfather and a man known for dark tastes. The chamber had
been cleaned so that Drayfitt could make his marks, etch the
lines of the barrier into the floor. The cage, a thing of
enchantment, not iron, filled much of the room. He was
uncertain as to what dimensions a demon might possess, and

RICHARD A. KNAAK

much of what he did was guesswork, even with the aid of the
book Quorin had located for the king. Still, Drayfitt had not
Хoutlived most of his contemporaries by leaping blindly into
things.

The room was dark, save for a single torch and two dim
candles, the latter necessary for reading the pages of the tome.
The flickering torch raised demons of its own, dancing shadows
that celebrated the coming spell with gleeful movements. Drayfitt
would have preferred the place brilliantly lit, if only for his
own nerves, but Melicard had decided to watch, and darkness
preceded and followed the king wherever he stalked. Shift-
ing, the ancient sorcerer could feel the strength of Melicard's
presence behind him. His lord and master was obsessedЧ
obsessed with the destruction of the Dragon Kings and their ilk.

"How much longer?" Melicard's voice throbbed with antici-
pation, like a child about to receive a favorite candy.