4

A peaceful interlude.

‘All right,’ said Tanis, glaring at the man who sat so calmly in front of him. ‘I want answers. You deliberately took us into the maelstrom! Why? Did you know this place was here? Where are we? Where are the others?’

Berem sat before Tanis in a wooden chair. It was ornately carved with figures of birds and animals in a style popular among the elves. In fact, it reminded Tanis strongly of Lorac’s throne in the doomed elven kingdom of Silvanesti. The likeness did nothing to calm Tanis’s spirits, and Berem flinched under the half-elf’s angry stare. The hands that were too young for the middle-aged man’s body plucked at his shabby trousers. He shifted his gaze to glance nervously around their strange surroundings.

‘Damn it! Answer me!’ Tanis raved. Flinging himself at Berem, he gripped the man’s shirt and yanked him up from his chair. Then his clenching hands moved to the man’s throat.

‘Tanis!’ Swiftly Goldmoon rose and laid a restraining hand on Tanis’s arm. But the half-elf was beyond reason. His face was so twisted with fear and anger that she didn’t recognize him. Frantically she tore at the hands that gripped Berem. ‘Riverwind, make him stop!’

The big Plainsman grasped Tanis by the wrists and wrenched him away from Berem, holding the half-elf in his strong arms.

‘Leave him alone, Tanis!’

For a moment, Tanis struggled, then went limp, drawing a deep, shuddering breath.

‘He’s a mute,’ Riverwind said sternly. ‘Even if he wanted to tell you, he couldn’t. He can’t talk—’

‘Yes, I can.’

The three stopped, startled, staring at Berem.

‘I can talk,’ he said calmly, speaking Common. Absently he rubbed his throat where the marks of Tanis’s fingers stood out red against his tan skin.

‘Then why pretend you can’t?’ Tanis asked, breathing heavily.

Berem rubbed his neck, his eyes on Tanis. ‘People don’t ask questions of a man who can’t talk. . . .’

Tanis forced himself to calm down, to think about this a moment. Glancing at Riverwind and Goldmoon, he saw Riverwind scowl and shake his head. Goldmoon shrugged slightly. Finally Tanis dragged another wooden chair over to sit in front of Berem. Noticing that the back of the chair was split and cracked, he sat down carefully. ‘Berem,’ Tanis spoke slowly, curbing his impatience, ‘you’re talking to us. Does that mean you’ll answer our questions?’

Berem stared at Tanis, then nodded his head, once.

‘Why?’ Tanis asked.

Berem licked his lips, glancing around. ‘I—You must help me—get out of here—I-I can’t stay here—’

Tanis felt chilled, despite the warm stuffiness of the room. ‘Are you in danger? Are we in danger? What is this place?’

‘I don’t know!’ Berem looked around helplessly. ‘I don’t know where we are. I only know I cannot stay here. I must get back!’

‘Why? The Dragon Highlords are hunting for you. One of th-the Highlords—’ Tanis coughed, then spoke huskily. ‘One of them told me that you were the key to complete victory for the Dark Queen. Why, Berem? What do you have that they want?’

‘I don’t know!’ Berem cried, clenching his fist. ‘I only know that they have been chasing me . . . I have been fleeing them for-for years! No peace . . . no rest!’

‘How long, Berem?’ Tanis asked softly. ‘How long have they been chasing you?’

‘Years!’ Berem said in a strangled voice. ‘Years . . . I don’t know how long.’ Sighing, he seemed to sink back into his calm complacency. ‘I am three hundred and twenty-two years old. Twenty-three? Twenty-four?’ He shrugged. ‘For most of those years, the Queen has been seeking me.’

‘Three hundred and twenty-two!’ Goldmoon said in astonishment. ‘But—but you’re human! That’s not possible!’

‘Yes, I am human,’ Berem said, his blue eyes focusing on Goldmoon. ‘I know it is impossible. I have died. Many times.’ His gaze switched to Tanis. ‘You saw me die. It was in Pax Tharkas. I recognized you when you first came on the ship.’

‘You did die when the rocks fell on you!’ Tanis exclaimed. ‘But we saw you alive at the wedding feast, Sturm and I—’

‘Yes. I saw you, too. That’s why I fled. I knew . . . there would be more questions.’ Berem shook his head. ‘How could I explain my survival to you? I do not know myself how I survive! All I know is that I die and then I’m alive again. Again and again.’ His head sank into his hands. ‘All I want is peace!’

Tanis was completely mystified. Scratching his beard, he stared at the man. That he was lying was almost certain. Oh, not about dying and coming back to life. Tanis had seen that himself. But he knew for a fact that the Queen of Darkness was exerting almost all forces she could spare from the war to search for this man. Surely he must know why!

‘Berem, how did the green gemstone get, uh, into your flesh?’

‘I don’t know,’ Berem answered in such a low voice they could barely hear him. Self-consciously, his hand clutched his breast as if it pained him. ‘It is part of my body, like my bones and my blood. I—I think it is what brings me back to life.’

‘Can you remove it?’ Goldmoon asked gently, sinking down onto a cushion next to Berem, her hand on his arm.

Berem shook his head violently, his gray hair falling over his eyes. ‘I’ve tried!’ he muttered, ‘Many times I’ve tried to rip it out! I might as well try to tear out my own heart!’

Tanis shivered, then sighed in exasperation. This was no help! He still had no idea where they were. He’d hoped Berem could tell them . . . Once more, Tanis looked around their strange surroundings. They were in a room of an obviously ancient building, lit with a soft eerie light that seemed to come from the moss that covered the walls like tapestry. The furniture was as old as the building and in battered, shabby condition, though it must have been rich once. There were no windows. Nothing could be heard outside. They had no idea how long they’d been here. Time had grown confused, broken only by eating some of the strange plants and sleeping fitfully.

Tanis and Riverwind had explored the building but could find no exit and no other signs of life. Tanis wondered, in fact, if some magical spell had not been laid over the whole thing, a spell designed to keep them inside. For every time they ventured forth, the narrow, dimly lit hallways always led them inexplicably back to this room.

They remembered little about what happened after the ship sank into the maelstrom. Tanis recalled hearing the wooden planks shattering. He remembered seeing the mast fall, the sails rip. He heard screams. He saw Caramon washed overboard by a gigantic wave. He remembered seeing Tika’s red curls swirling in the water, then she, too, was gone. There had been the dragon . . . and Kitiara . . .. The scratches of the dragon’s talons remained on his arm. Then there was another wave . . . he remembered holding his breath until he knew he would die from the pain in his lungs. He remembered thinking that death would be easy and welcome, even as he fought to grab hold of a piece of wood. He remembered surfacing in the rushing water, only to be sucked down again and knowing it was the end . . ..

And then he had awakened in this strange place, his clothes wet with seawater, to find Riverwind and Goldmoon and Berem here with him.

At first Berem had seemed terrified of them, crouching in a corner, refusing to let them come near. Patiently Goldmoon spoke to him and brought him food. Gradually, her gentle ministrations won him over. That and—Tanis recognized now— his intense desire to leave this place.

Tanis had supposed, when he first began to question Berem, that the man had steered the ship into the maelstrom because he knew this place existed, that he had brought them here on purpose.

But now the half-elf wasn’t so certain. It was apparent from the confused and frightened look on Berem’s face that he had no idea where they were either. The mere fact that he was even talking to them gave an indication that what he said was true. He was desperate. He wanted out of here. Why?

‘Berem—’ Tanis began, getting up and pacing about the room. He felt Berem’s gaze follow him. ‘If you are running from the Queen of Darkness, this seems like it might be an ideal place to hide—’

‘No!’ Berem shouted, half-rising.

Tanis spun around— ‘Why not? Why are you so determined to get out of here? Why do you want to go back to where she will find you?’

Berem cringed, huddling back down in his chair. ‘I-I don’t know anything about this place! I swear it! I-I m-must get back. . . . There’s someplace I must go . . . I’m hunting for something . . . Until I find it, there’ll be no rest.’

‘Find it! Find what?’ Tanis shouted. He felt Goldmoon’s hand on his and he knew he was raving like a maniac, but it was so frustrating! To have what the Queen of Darkness would give the world to acquire and not know why!

‘I can’t tell you!’ Berem whimpered.

Tanis sucked in his breath, closing his eyes, trying to calm himself. His head throbbed. He felt as if he might fly into a thousand pieces. Goldmoon rose to her feet. Putting both her hands on his shoulders, she whispered soothing words he could not comprehend, except for the name of Mishakal. Slowly the terrible feeling passed, leaving him drained and exhausted.

‘All right, Berem.’ Tanis sighed. ‘It’s all right. I’m sorry. We won’t talk about it anymore. Tell me about yourself. Where are you from?’

Berem hesitated a moment, his eyes narrowed and he grew tense. Tanis was struck by Berem’s peculiar manner. ‘I’m from Solace. Where are you from?’ he repeated casually.

Berem regarded him warily. ‘You-you would never have heard of it. A-A small village outside of . . . outside of . . .’ He swallowed, then cleared his throat. ‘Neraka.’

‘Neraka?’ Tanis looked at Riverwind.

The Plainsman shook his head. ‘He’s right. I have never heard of it.’

‘Nor I,’ Tanis muttered. ‘Too bad Tasslehoff and his maps aren’t here . . . Berem, why—’

‘Tanis!’ Goldmoon cried.

The half-elf rose at the sound of her voice, his hand going reflexively to the sword that wasn’t there. Dimly he remembered struggling with it in the water, its weight dragging him down. Cursing himself for not setting Riverwind to guard the door, he could do nothing now but stare at the red-robed man who stood framed in its opening.

‘Hello,’ the man said pleasantly, speaking Common.

The red robes brought Raistlin’s image back to Tanis with such force that the half-elf’s vision blurred. For a moment he thought it was Raistlin. Then he saw clearly. This mage was older—much older, and his face was kind.

‘Where are we?’ Tanis demanded harshly. ‘Who are you? Why were we brought here?’

‘KreeaQUEKH’ the man said in disgust. Turning, he walked away.

‘Damn!’ Tanis jumped forward, intent on grabbing the man and dragging him back. But he felt a firm hand on his shoulder.

‘Wait,’ Riverwind counseled. ‘Calm down, Tanis. He’s a magic-user. You couldn’t fight him even if you had a sword. We’ll follow him, see where he goes. If he laid a spell on this place, perhaps he’ll have to lift it to get out himself.’

Tanis drew a deep breath. ‘You’re right, of course.’ He gasped for air. ‘I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I feel tight and stretched, like the skin over a drum. We’ll follow him. Goldmoon, you stay here with Berem—’

‘No!’ Berem shouted. Throwing himself out of the chair, he clutched at Tanis with such force he nearly knocked him down. ‘Don’t leave me here! Don’t!’

‘We’re not going to leave you!’ Tanis said, trying to extricate himself from Berem’s deathlike grip. ‘Oh, all right. Maybe we’d all better stay together anyway.’

Hurrying out into the narrow corridor, they started down the bleak, deserted hallway.

‘There he goes!’ Riverwind pointed.

In the dim light, they could just see a bit of red robe whisking around a corner. Walking softly, they followed after it. The hallway led down another hallway with other rooms branching off it.

‘This was never here before!’ Riverwind exclaimed. ‘There was always solid wall.’

‘Solid illusion,’ Tanis muttered. Stepping into the hallway, they looked around curiously. Rooms filled with the same ancient, mismatched furniture as in their room opened from the empty corridor. These rooms, too, were empty, but all lit with the same strange glowing lights. Perhaps it was an inn. If so, they appeared to be its only customers and might have been its only customers for a hundred years.

They made their way through broken corridors and vast pillared halls. There wasn’t time to investigate their surroundings, not while trailing the red-robed man, who was proving remarkably quick and elusive. Twice they thought they had lost him, only to catch a glimpse of the red robes floating down a circular stairway beneath them, or flitting through an adjacent hallway.

It was at one such juncture that they stood for a moment, glancing down two divergent hallways, feeling lost and frustrated.

‘Split up,’ Tanis said after a moment. ‘But don’t go far. We’ll meet back here. If you see any sign of him, Riverwind, whistle once. I’ll do the same.’

Nodding, the Plainsman and Goldmoon slipped down one hallway while Tanis—with Berem practically tripping on his heels—searched the other one.

He found nothing. The hallway led to a large room, eerily lit as was everything else in this strange place. Should he look in it or turn back? After hesitating a moment, Tanis decided to take a quick glance inside. The room was empty, except for a huge round table. And on the table, he saw as he drew closer, was a remarkable map!

Tanis bent quickly over the map, hoping for a clue as to where and what this mysterious place was. The map was a miniature replica of the city! Protected by a dome of clear crystal, it was so exact in detail that Tanis had the strange feeling the city beneath the crystal was more real than the one where he stood.

‘Too bad Tas isn’t here,’ he thought to himself wistfully, picturing the kender’s delight.

The buildings were constructed in the ancient style; delicate spires rose into the crystal sky, light sparkled off the white domes. Stone archways spanned garden boulevards. The streets were laid out like a great spider web, leading directly into the heart of the city itself.

Tanis felt Berem pluck nervously at his sleeve, gesturing that they should leave. Even though he could talk, it was obvious that the man had grown accustomed to, and perhaps even preferred, silence.

‘Yes, just a moment,’ Tanis said, reluctant to go. He had heard nothing from Riverwind and there was every possibility this map might lead them out of this place.

Bending over the glass, he stared at the miniature more closely. Around the center of the city stood great pavilions and columned palaces. Domes made of glass cradled summer flowers amid the winter snows. In the exact center of the city itself rose a building that seemed familiar to Tanis, though he knew he had never been in this city in his life. Still, he recognized it. Even as he studied it, searching his memory, the hair prickled on the back of his neck.

It seemed to be a temple to the gods. And it was the most beautiful structure he had ever seen, more beautiful than the Towers of the Sun and the Stars in the elven kingdoms. Seven towers rose to the heavens as if praising the gods for their creation. The center tower soared into the skies far above the rest, as if it did not praise the gods, but rivaled them. Confused memories of his elven teachers came back to him, telling him stories of the Cataclysm, stories of the Kingpriest—

Tanis drew back from the miniature, his breath catching in his throat. Berem stared at him in alarm, the man’s face going white.

‘What is it?’ he croaked in fear, clutching at Tanis.

The half-elf shook his head. He could not speak. The terrible implications of where they were and what was going on were breaking over him like red waters of the Blood Sea.

In confusion, Berem looked at the center of the map. The man’s eyes widened, then he shrieked, a scream unlike any Tanis had heard before. Suddenly Berem threw himself bodily upon the crystal dome, beating at it as if he would tear it apart.

‘The City of Damnation!’ Berem moaned. ‘The City of Damnation.’

Tanis started forward to calm him, then he heard Riverwind’s shrill whistle. Grabbing Berem, Tanis hauled him away from the crystal. ‘I know,’ he said. ‘Come on, we’ve got to get out of here.’

But how? How did you get out of a city that was supposed to have been blasted off the face of Krynn? How did you get out of a city that must lie at the very bottom of the Blood Sea? How did you get out of—

As he shoved Berem through the door of the map room. Tanis glanced above the doorway. Words were carved in its crumbling marble. Words that had once spoken of one of the wonders of the world. Words whose letters were now cracked and covered with moss. But he could read them. Welcome, O noble visitor, to our beautiful city.

Welcome to the city beloved of the gods.

Welcome, honored guest, to Istar.