Dragonlance 15 - Dragons Of A Fallen Sun (43 page)

was waning! They thought I had something to do with it!" Palin

gave a bitter laugh. "And do you want to know why they let me

go? Because they realized I was not a threat! Just a broken old

man who could do nothing to harm them or hinder them."

"They might have killed you, sir," Gerard said.

"It would have been better if they had," Palin returned.

The two were silent. Gerard looked do~n at the floor. Even

the kender was quiet, subdued. He had quit wrigglng.

Palin gave a soft sigh. Reaching out his broken hand, he

touched Gerard's arm.

"Forgive me, Sir Knight," he said in a quieter tone. "Pay no

heed to what I said. I am quick to take offense these days. And I

have not yet even thanked you for bringing me news of my

father. I do thank you. I am sorry for his death, but I cannot grieve

for him. As I said, he has gone to a better place.

"And now," Palin added with a shrewd look at the young

Knight, "1 am beginning to think that this sad news alone has not

brought you all this way. Wearing this disguise puts you in great

danger, Gerard. If the Dark Knights were to discover the truth,

you would endure torment far worse than what I suffered, and

then you would be executed."

Palin's thin lips formed a bitter smile. "What other news do

you have for me? It can't be good. No one would risk his life to

bring me good news. And how could you know that you would

find me?"

"I did not find you, si4" Gerard said. "You found me."

Palin looked puzzled, at first then he nodded. "Ah, I under-

stand. The mention of the artifact that once belonged to my Uncle

Raistlin. You knew that would pique my interest."

"I hoped it would do so, si4" said Gerard. "My guess was that

either the elf posted at the bridge would be part of the resistance

movement or the bridge itself would be under observation. I

trusted that the mention of an artifact coupled with the name

Majere would be carried to you."

"You ran a great risk in trusting yourself to the elves. As you

found out there are those who would have no compunction in

slaying one of your kind."

Gerard glanced at the two elves, Kalindas and Kelevandros, if

he had heard the names right. They had not shifted their eyes

from him once, kept their hands on the hilts of their swords.

"I am aware of that, sir," said Gerard. "But this seemed the

only way to reach you."

"So I take it there is no artifact?" Palin said, adding in a tone

of bitter disappointment. "It was all a ruse."

"On the contrary, sir, there is an artifact. That is part of the

reason I came."

At this, the kender's squeaks started up again, louder and

more insistent. He began to drum his feet on the floor, and he

rolled about wildly in his sack. ;,

"For mercy's sake, shut him up," Palin ordered irritably. "His

screeching will summon every Dark Knight in Qualinesti. Carry

him inside."

"We should leave him in the sack, Master," said Kalindas. "We

do not want him finding his way back here."

"Very well," Palin agreed.

One of the elves picked up the kender, sack and all. The other

elf glared sternly at Gerard and asked a question.

"No," Palin answered. "We do not need to blindfold him. He

belongs to the old school of Knights: those who still believe in

honor."

The elf carrying the kender walked toward the back of the

cave and, to Gerard's intense astonishment, continued right

through solid stone. Palin followed, placing his hand on

Gerard's arm and propelling the Knight forward. The illusion of

stone was so convincing that it was all Gerard could do to keep

from wincing ashe walked into what looked like a wall of sharp

and jagged rocks.

"Some magic still works apparently," Gerard said, impressed.

"Some," Palin said. "But it is erratic. The spell can fail at any

moment and must be constantly renewed."

Gerard emerged from the wall to find himself in a garden of

wondrous beauty, shaded by trees whose branches and thick)

leaves formed a solid curtain above and around them. Kalindas

carried the bagged kender through the wall, deposited him on the

flagstone walk of the garden. Chairs made of bent willow

branches and a table made of crystal stood beside a shining pool

of clear water.

Palin said something to Kelevandros. Gerard caught the

name, "Laurana." The elf departed, running lightly through the

garden.

"You have loyal guardians, sir," said Gerard, looking after

the elf.

"They belong to the household of the Queen Mother," Palin

replied. "They have been in Laurana's service for years, ever

since her husband died. Sit down."

He made a motion with his crooked hands and a fall of water

began, streaming down in front of the illusionary wall to splash

into the pool below.

"I have sent to inform the Queen Mo~er of your arrival.

You are now a guest in her house. Or rather, ~ne of the gardens

in her house. Here, you are safe, as safe as anyone is in these

dark times."

Thankfully, Gerard removed the heavy breastplate and

rubbed his bruised ribs. He laved his face with the cool water and

drank deeply.

"Let the kender out now," Palin ordered.

Kalindas untied the sack and the kender emerged, flushed

and indignant, his long hair covering his face. He sucked in a

huge breath and wiped his forehead.

"Whew! I was getting really sick of smelling nothing but sack."

Flipping his topknot back over his head, the kender looked

around with interest.

"My," he said. "This garden is pretty. Are there fish in that

pool? Could I catch one, do you think? It was certainly stuffy in

that sack, and I much prefer riding a horse sitting up on the

saddle instead of lying down. I have a sort of pain here in my side

where something poked me. I would introduce myself," he said

contritely, apparently realizing that he wasn't conforming to the

mores of polite society, "but I'm suffering from"-he caught

Gerard's eye and said, with emphasis, "I am suffering from a

severe bump on the head and I'm not quite certain who I am. You

look awfully familiar to me. Have we met?"

Palin Majere had said nothing through this diatribe. His face

had gone livid. He opened his mouth, but no words came out.

"Sir." Gerard reached out a supporting hand. "Sir, you should

sit down. You don't look well."

"I have no need of your support," Palin snapped, shoving

aside Gerard's hand. He stared at the kender.

"Quit the nonsense," he said coldly. "Who are you?"

"Who do you think I am?" the kender parried.

Palin seemed about to make an angry rejoinder, but he closed

his lips over the words and,' after drawing in a deep breath, he

said tightly, "You look like a kender I once knew named Tassle-

hoff Burrfoot."

"And you look sort of like a friend of mine named Palin

Majere." The kender was gazing at Palin with interest.

"I am Palin Majere. Who are-"

"Really?" The kender's eyes opened wide. "You'r~ Palin?

What happened to you? You look terrible! Have you been sick? And

your poor hands. Let me see them. You said the Dark Knights did

that to you? How? Did they smash your finger bones with a

hammer, 'cause that's what it looks like-"

Palin drew his sleeves over his hands, moved away from the

kender. "You say you know me, kender? How?"

"I just saw you at Caramon's first funeral. You and I had a nice

long chat, all about the Tower of High Sorcery at Wayreth and

you being he~d of the White Robes, and Dalamar was there, and

he was Head ot~he Conclave, and his girl friend Jenna was Head

of the Red Robes~'and-"

Palin frowned, looked at Gerard. "What is he talking about?"

"Don't pay any attention to him, sir. He's been acting crazy

ever since I found him." Gerard looked strangely at Palin. "You

said he resembled 'Tasslehoff.' That's who he claimed to be, until

he started all this nonsense about having amnesia. I know it

sounds odd, but your father also thought he was Tasslehoff."

"My father was an old man," Palin said, "and like many old

men, he was probably reliving the days of his youth. And yet," he

added softly, almost to himself, "he certainly does look like

Tasslehoff! "

"Palin?" A voice called to him from the far end of the garden.

"What is this Kelevandros tells me?"

Gerard turned to see an elven woman, beautiful as a winter's

twilight, walking toward them along the flagstones. Her hair was

long and the color of honey mingled with sunlight. She was

dressed in robes of a pearly diaphanous material, so that she

seemed to be clothed in mist. Catching sight of Gerard, she re-

garded him in disbelief, too outraged at first to pay any attention

to the kender, who was jumping up and down and waving his

hand in excitement.

Gerard, confused and awe-struck, made an awkward bow.

"You have brought a Dark Knight here, Palin!" Laurana

turned on him in anger. "To our hidden garden! What is the

reason for this?"

"He is not a Dark Knight, Laurana," Palin explained tersely,

"as I told Kelevandros. Apparently, he doubts me. This man is

Gerard uth Mondar, Knight of Solamnia, a friend of my father's

from Solace."

Laurana looked at Gerard skeptically. "Are you certain, Palin?

Then why is he wearing that foul armor?"

"I wear the armor for disguise only, my lady," Gerard said.

" And, as you see, I have taken the first opportunity I could to cast

it aside."

"This was the only way he could enter Qualinesti," Palin added.

"I beg your pardon, Sir Knight," Laurana said, extending a

hand that was white and delicate. Yet, when he took it, he felt the

calluses on her palm from her days when she had carried a shield

and wielded a sword, the days when she had been the Golden

General. "Forgive me. Welcome to my home."

Gerard bowed again in profound respect. He wanted to say

something graceful and correct, but his tongue felt too big for his

mouth, just as his hands and feet felt big and clumsy. He flushed

deeply and stammered something that died away in a muddle.

"Me, Laurana! Look at me!" The kender called out.

Laurana turned now to take a good look at the kender and ap-

peared astonish~d at what she saw. Her lips parted, her jaw went

slack. Putting her hand to her heart, she fell back a step, staring

all the while at the kender.

"Alshana, Quenesti-Pah!" she whispered. "It cannot be!"

Palin was watching her closely. "You recognize him, as well."

"Why, yes! It's Tasslehoff!" Laurana cried dazedly. "But

how- Where-"

"I am Tasslehoff?" The kender looked anxious. "Are you

certain?"

"What makes you think you're not?" Laurana asked.

"I always thought I was," Tas said solemnly. "But no one else

did, and so I thought perhaps I'd made a mistake. But if you say

I am Tasslehoff, Laurana, I suppose that settles it. You of all

people wouldn't be likely to make a mistake. Would you mind if

I gave you a hug?"

Tas flung his arms around Laurana's waist. She looked con-

fusedly over his head from ~alin back to Gerard, asking silently

for an explanation.

"Are you in earnest?" Gerard demanded. "Begging your

pardon, my lady," he added, flushing, realizing he'd come close

to calling the Queen Mother a liar, "but Tasslehoff Burrfoot has

been dead for over thirty years. How could this be possible?

Unless-"

"Unless what?" Palin asked sharply.

"Unless his wl)ole wild tale is somehow true." Gerard fell

silent, pondering tHis unforeseen development.

"But, Tas, where ~ave you been?" Laurana asked, removing one

of her rings from his Rand just as the ring was disappearing down

his shirt front. "As Sir Gerard said, we thought you were dead!"

"I know. I saw the tomb. Very nice." Tas nodded. "That's

where I met Sir Gerard. I do think you ~ght work to keep the

grounds cleaner-all the dogs you know~and the tomb itself is

not in good repair. It was hit by lightning when I was inside it. I

heard the most tremendous boom, and some of the marble fell off.

And it was awfully dark inside. A few windows would sort of

brighten the place-"

"We should go somewhere to talk, Palin," Gerard interrupted

urgently. "Some place private."

"I agree. Laurana, the Knight has brought other sad news. My

father is dead."

"Oh!" Laurana put her hand to her mouth. Tears filled her

eyes. "Oh, I am sorry, Palin. My heart grieves for him, yet grief

seems wrong. He is happy now," she added in wistful envy. "He

and Tika are together. Come inside," she added, glancing about

the garden where Tasslehoff was now wading in the ornamental

pond, displacing the water lilies and terrorizing the fish. "We

should not discuss this out here." She sighed. "I fear that even my

garden is not safe anymore."

"What happened, Laurana?" Palin demanded. "What do you

mean the garden is not safe?"

Laurana sighed, a line marred her smooth forehead: "I spoke