Calling on Dragons - Wrede Patricia Collins (книги онлайн читать бесплатно TXT) 📗

Trouble's ears pricked up in interest. "Sounds amusing," he said in a tone that tried to be casual and failed. "I'll do it."

As he walked off toward the castle, Morwen hid a smile. Now that he'd realized he could get inside, it would take more than wizards to keep him from satisfying his curiosity. She turned her attention back to the main conversation as Amory said, "... doing very well when we got here."

Kazul snorted. "You're being generous. We weren't doing well at all."

She looked at Cimorene. "It's hard to fight when you're having an allergy attack, and with all those wizards' staffs in one place every dragon for miles was sneezing so hard they could barely see straight."

"I understand perfectly," Cimorene said. "And thank you both for trying."

Kazul must have heard something in her tone that everyone else missed, because she lowered her head almost to the ground so she could look at Cimorene eye to eye and said, "It will be all right, Cimorene. If he's not dead-and if Morwen says we'd know, then we'd know-then he's probably perfectly all right. All we have to do is get him out of the castle."

"And how are we going to do that?" Cimorene said crossly. "The sword is the only thing that can get rid of that shield, and he's the only one who can use the sword."

"We'll think of something," Kazul said.

"In the meantime, what are you going to do about him? "Brandel asked with a dark look in Vamist's direction.

"If he's a wizard, I'm sure I can find someone to eat him once you're finished with him," Kazul offered. "Everyone can't be full yet."

Vamist turned white, making the cat scratches on his head look even redder. "You can't do this to me!"

"Why not?" Morwen said. "It's traditional for dragons to eat people, isn't it?"

"Princesses!" Vamist said in the tones of someone grasping desperately for a straw. "It's traditional for dragons to eat princesses, not people."

Cimorene frowned. "Princesses are people. Some of them aren't very sensible, but they're still people."

"And anyway, dragons don't eat princesses," Kazul said. "We never have. I don't know how that silly story ever got started."

"I'm afraid you're mistaken, madam," Vamist said. "Rathenmor Quil-len says quite clearly in his Observations of Magical Beasts that-" "Rathenmor Quillen was an idiot," Kazul said. "And so, it seems, are you!"

"Got it in one," said Scorn. "He's as dumb as that rabbit."

"I'm not dumb," said Killer. "I'm hungry. I just thought I'd mention it, in case you'd forgotten."

"Rathenmor Quillen, an idiot?" Vamist's outrage got the better of both his terror and his good sense, and he drew himself up stiffly and glared at Kazul. "How dare you say such a thing about the greatest scholar of the past two hundred years! Who do you think you are?"

"I say it because it's true." Kazul smiled, starting slowly and letting the corners of her mouth draw back farther and farther until all of her sharp, shiny silver teeth were exposed in a fierce grin.

"And I'm the King of the Dragons."

"Ah, er-oh, ah-" said Vamist, deflating abruptly.

"Cimorene, when you're finished with this fellow, whoever he is, I believe I'd like to see how he tastes," Kazul went on. "Unless you want to save him for later, of course."

"I don't know," said Cimorene. "He's certainly caused a lot of trouble, but I'm not sure he deserves to be eaten."

"He hasn't got any manners," Kazul said. "That's enough for me. And I could do with some dessert."

"Could you stop talking about food?" Killer said plaintively.

"So if you haven't got any better ideas…" Kazul said.

Morwen smiled suddenly. "I think perhaps I have one that's more . . . appropriate. If you'll forgo your dessert, Kazul, I'd like to-" "what dessert?" asked Trouble, strolling into the center of the group.

"I thought all the wizards were gone. Oh, and does anyone want to know what I found in the castle, or are you busy with other things right now?"

21

In Which Nobody Is Satisfied

No one except Morwen and the other animals-Killer, Kazul, Scorn, and Horatio-understood what Trouble had asked, but everyone, even Vamist, could tell by their reactions that it was important.

"All right, hotshot, what did you find in the castle?" asked Scorn, switching her tail in annoyance at having to admit to so much curiosity in public.

"One moment, please," Morwen said. Quickly, she explained to Cimorene, Telemain, Brandel, and Amory where Trouble had been and what he had just said. Cimorene bit her lip, glanced at Vamist, and turned to Willin. "Willin, can you keep this fellow under control and out of the way? He was working with the wizards, and I don't think he should hear this."

"He may have some insight to offer, Your Majesty," said the elf.

"However, if you wish it, I will do my best."

"I'll get his insights later," Cimorene said grimly. "Get him out of here."

"I'll help," Amory offered.

"Me, too," said Brandel. "I'd be quite happy to help, in fact."

Vamist looked at the two fire-witches, who were eyeing him the same way Murgatroyd and Chaos tended to eye a particularly plump mouse, and blanched.

"Thank you," Cimorene said to Brandel. "Just leave enough of him for me to get some answers out of later."

"I think we can manage that," said Brandel.

Willin bowed and the three of them marched Vamist off into the forest.

Cimorene turned back to Trouble. "Morwen…"

Morwen nodded at the cat. "Go ahead now, but slowly, so I can translate."

"Couldn't you just let them wonder?" asked Trouble. "Oh, all right.

The castle is empty, except for the usual furniture and a couple of gooey wizards' robes. I'd guess Mendanbar melted a few of them before they got him."

"Got him?" Cimorene said after Morwen's translation. "What does he mean by that, Morwen?"

"If she doesn't interrupt, I'll tell you." Trouble was plainly enjoying all the attention. "I didn't see any trace of Mendanbar, so I asked the gargoyle in the study-the one that answers the magic mirror-if it knew what happened.

Apparently, the wizards didn't notice that it was intelligent, so they did quite a bit of talking in front of it."

"What did they say?" Killer asked with the air of someone interested in spite of himself.

"Oh, this and that. Most of it wasn't very interesting."

Kazul put one forearm down next to Trouble and flexed claws that were almost as long as the cat's tail. "Little one, tell your story without these digressions, or I may lose what little patience the Society of Wizards has left me."

"If you insist." Trouble stretched, to show that even a dragon couldn't impress him, then went on. "The gargoyle said I was right about the robes: Zemenar and his group lost four wizards before they managed to corner Mendanbar. The gargoyle knew about it because they all came into the study afterward to decide what to do next. Seems that the wizards found out that they couldn't kill a King of the Enchanted Forest outright without messing up what they were doing to the forest. And Zemenar didn't want to just hold him prisoner, because he was afraid we would come back any minute." Trouble shook his head in admiration. "You know, Mendanbar's almost as good as a cat."

"At what?" asked Morwen. "Oh, never mind. What did they do with him?"

"Zemenar put him in storage," said Trouble.

"What does that mean?" Cimorene asked once Morwen had translated this.

Trouble shrugged. "He sent Mendanbar somewhere where he couldn't make any difficulties while the wizards finished up with the forest. 'I'll put him through a door and then hide the door,' is what the gargoyle heard him say. Too bad Zemenar didn't work the spell in the study where old wooden-head could watch, or I might have been able to tell you what it means."