[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
.“Mercy for my lord!” Ande the death-witch knelt at Korvo’s mighty feet.“My dark powers cannot defeat your majesty! I will give you anything that you ask, only spare Pelnus!”Korvo smiled.“You, then, my lady,” he said.“You are my prize for mercy.Do you consent?”“Why… why of course.Great Lord.” Ande’s smile smoldered and she licked her lips.“In truth, I am relievedPelnus is just so unworthy … and so stupid.And poor in the bedchamber.”“What a surprise.”“Oh please take me now, dcmonlord!” Her clothes burned away like paper and her hands traced her slim, perfect body.“How I burn for you!”“Naturally,” he said, shaking loose his perfect mane of hair to show his glorious horns.She pressed herself tight against him, whispering the promise of great treasures in his ears …Then he realized he was gnawing on somethinghis teeth crunched on boneand he looked down confusedly to see Ande’s arm in his mouth.He tasted her flesh, and it was good.“Oh, my lord!“Ande cried.Korvo started awake from his dream, sweat streaming down his face.His heart was hammering and the tastethat sickly sweet taste and texture yet on his tongue.A body stirred on the bed next to himan arm slithered along his chest.“Oh,” he said.“Sorry I woke you, Andc.Just a nightmare.”She made a sound against his belly like a purrhalf of pleasure, half of hungerand he felt a sort of gnawing pain in his middle.“Ande?”Her face rose from his torso, lips smeared with tiefling blood, tongue lolling, eyes shot with red and bugging out at him in terrible lust.“Feed!“the ghoul cried.Korvo started awake from his second dream.He was leaning against the wall of his darkened bedroom, clad in a white shirt that stuck to his dark reddish flesh.He panted in the hot, muggy air and tried vainly to repel the saturating reck of decay that filled the room.Something had died and was rotting in this place, and he hoped to gods it wasn’t him.He realized he was not alonesomething heavy was leaning against him.Slowlytremblinghe glanced across.Beside him sat Ande, fully clothed, propped against the wall, a red leather book open on her lap, her head perched on Korvo’s arm where it had fallen in sleep.Beside her on the floor rose a stack of tomes: Kandigar’s Reanimaiion, Tales ofMiltiades, Guide to the Walking Dead.Also there was the black tome of Myrkul perched on the edge of the bed.She slept like the dead, he thought, and only the slightest stir of her beautiful chest indicated she was breathing.He reached out to check by touch as welljust to be sure then thought better of if.Satisfied that she would not spring to unlife and start eatinghimand trying to forget the taste of her dream-selFs fleshhe focused on the sensation of her head against his arm, and how her touch sent little shivers through his insides.His arm was numb, but he didn’t much care.Well? His inner devil asked.She’s right there.Act.What? No!She burns for you, the voice purred, does she not?Heart thudding, Korvo considered this.Tragically, just as he was about to rouse her from blissful sleep with a righteous (or devilish) kiss, the sackcloth bag in the center of the floor started rustling.Smacking soundsas of fangs on fleshemerged from the bag, and Ande stirred.She looked up at him confusedly, and Korvo realized he had one instant to say exactly the right thing to make her love him.Instead, he said.“Well met.”“Did I doze?” Ande sat up and pressed a hand to her forehead.“Oh, I must have.”She smiled awkwardly at Korvo, and he thought Tymora must have smiled and given him a second chance to say the right thing.Then came that gnawing sound and her gray eyes flicked to the bag on the floor, which had flipped over in its occupant’s rustling.“Oh,” she said.“Best see to that.”Thrice-damned luck!Missed opportunity.His inner devil smirked.Ande scooted away, rose, and stretched.He tried not to think about her queen of darkness self, though it was difficult not to in view of her gorgeous back.If only she’d lose the dress.…He looked instead at the book she had discarded in rising and gaped.“My Unlifeand Times}” he said.“By Szass Tarnthe Szass Tarn?”“Probably fictional.” Andc rolled her eyes.“Far too romantic.I meanthe dead just don’t do that.”Ande opened the bag and the ghoul climbed outfirst onearm, then the other, then a head.It hit the floor, skittered away, and looked around dazedly.Its clothes were mostly gone and bloodsome red, some blue, some greencovered it head to clawed foot.The ghoul’s mad eyes went first to Korvo, then Andc to linger and hold.Its toothy mouth curled.Then it sprang at Korvo.The tiefling sucked in breath for a cry, but the creature flew out of its leap, blasted by a bolt of force from Andc.The ghoul crumpled against the wall with a disappointed Teh!” sound.“Korvo?” Andc looked at the tiefling expectantlydubiously.“Arc youf“Oh.” Korvo remembered and curled himself into a ball of feigned, shared agony.“Oof!”Andc gave a yelp and hurried over to his side, kneeling on the bed and touching him gently.“I’m so sorryI forgot.Are you well?”“Not to worryalmost forgot myself.” He did his best to act hurt, which wasn’t difficulthe’d had plenty of experience with the real thing.“The binding’s still there, eh?”Ande looked over at the ghoul, which had backed against the wall, hissing at them venomously.“Hmm.” she said.“There seems to be a delay of some sonthe pain takes a heartbeat to pass to you.”“Aye.” Korvo resolved to remember that.His head was starting to ache, trying to keep it all straight.“I was reading all night, trying to find a like case.” Ande shrugged.“Nowhere do the texts speak of a sympathetic bond between a living person and an undcad creature.”“Bother,” Korvo said.Mystery was helpful in his cause.It would keep her interested.Ande pursed her lips.“Of course, if Lord Doln were a vampirewell, that would be different.” A queer hungry lookcame into her eyes, and Korvo had to wave to get her attention.She looked back at him and blushed prettily.“Ahem.We’ll have to do aught about that.”The ghoul’s glittering eyes followed a rat that had scurried into view.The rodent approached, nose sniffing, but the ghoul did not moveit sat still as death.Just when the rat was about to flee, the ghoul snaked out a foot and crushed the hapless creature between its toes.The ghoul’s tongue lolled out of its mouth and it passed the dead rat from its feet to its hands.Then it paused and looked to Ande courteously.“Feh?” the ghoul asked.“Urn,” she said.“Urn, go ahead
[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]