The Ruby Knight

tone and manner were adult, and she ordered him around like a lackey. Even more surprising was the fact that he automatically obeyed her. Sephrenia was right, he decided. This little girl was in all probability one of the most powerful magicians in all of Styricum. A disturbing question came to him. Just how old was Flute anyway? Could Styric magicians control or modify their ages? He knew that neither Sephrenia nor Flute would answer those questions, so he busied himself with cooking and tried not to think about it.
    They awoke at dawn, but Flute insisted that they wait until mid-morning before they attempted to ascend the ravine. She also instructed them to leave the horses at the camp since the sound of their hooves on the rocks might alert the sharp-eared Troll lurking inside the cave.
    The ravine was narrow with sheer sides, and it was filled with dense shadows. The four of them moved slowly up its rocky floor, placing their feet carefully to avoid dislodging any loose stones. They spoke but rarely and then only in whispers. Sparhawk carried the ancient spear. For some reason it seemed right.
    The climb grew steeper, and they were forced to clamber over rounded boulders now in order to continue their ascent. As they neared the top, Flute motioned them to a halt and crept on ahead a few yards. Then she came back. ‘He’s inside,’ she whispered, ‘and he’s already started his enchantments.’
    ‘Is the cave-mouth blocked?’ Sparhawk whispered back.
    ‘In a manner of speaking. When we get up there, you won’t be able to see it. He’s created an illusion to make it look as if the mouth of the cave is just a part of the cliff face. The illusion is solid enough so that we won’t be able to just walk through it. You’ll need to use the spear to break through.’ She whispered for a moment to Sephrenia, and the small woman nodded. ‘All right, then,’ Flute said, taking a deep breath, ‘let’s go.’
    They climbed up the last few yards and entered a bleak, unwholesome-looking basin choked with brambles and dead white snags. On one side of the basin there was a steep overhanging cliff that did not appear to have any openings in it.
    ‘There it is,’ Flute whispered.
    ‘Are you sure this is the right place?’ Kurik murmured, ‘It looks like solid rock.’
    ‘This is the place,’ she replied. ‘Ghwerig’s hiding the entrance.’ She led the way along a scarcely defined path to the face of the cliff, ‘It’s right here,’ she said softly, laying one small hand on the rock. ‘Now, this is what we’re going to do. Sephrenia and I are going to cast a spell. When we release it, it’s going to pour into you, Sparhawk. You’ll feel very strange for a moment, and then you’ll feel the power starting to build up inside you. At the right moment, I’ll tell you what to do.’ She began to sing very softly, and Sephrenia spoke in Styric almost under her breath. Then, in unison, they both gestured at Sparhawk.
    His eyes went suddenly dim, and he almost fell. He felt very weak, and the spear he held in his left hand seemed almost too heavy to bear. Then, just as quickly, it seemed to have no weight at all. He felt his shoulders surging with the force of the spell.
    ‘Now,’ Flute said to him, ‘point the spear at the face of the cliff.’
    He lifted his arm and did as she had told him.
    ‘Walk forward until the spear touches the wall.’
    He took two steps and felt the spear-point touch the unyielding rock.
    ‘Release the power – through the spear.’
    He concentrated, gathering the power within him. The ring on his left hand seemed to throb. Then he sent the power along the shaft of the spear into the broad blade.
    The seemingly solid rock in front of him wavered, and then it was gone, revealing an irregularly shaped opening.
    ‘And there it is,’ Flute said in a triumphant whisper, ‘Ghwerig’s cave. Now let’s go and find him.’

Chapter 25

    The cave had the musty smell of long-damp earth and rock, and there was the sound of water endlessly dripping somewhere off in the darkness. ‘Where’s he most likely to be?’ Sparhawk whispered to Flute.
    ‘We’ll start in his treasure chamber,’ she replied. ‘He likes to look at his hoard. It’s down there.’ She pointed at the opening of a passageway.
    ‘It’s completely dark back in there,’ he said dubiously.
    ‘I’ll take care of that,’ Sephrenia told him.
    ‘But quietly,’ Flute cautioned. ‘We don’t know exactly where