I'll Be Dog-Gone (22)

"I'll send to the Smith Hall." Robinton says. "It'll be here by the time dinner is over." A tiny, bronze-colored miniature dragon flies into the room with a roll of parchment clutched in his tiny claws. Robinton write a hasty note and hands it back to the creature. "Take this to Fanderel. The big one." The lizard rises into the air and vanishes.

<sigh> Kitten pats him on the head "It's okay...I think we better put her on your head so we don't loose her..." and without another word Kitten grabs a mouse sized Artic by the scruff of the neck, setting her on Elvis-puppy's head for safe keeping.

"Ouch! Watch the claws Kitten!" Artic rubs the back of her neck "I knew I should have trimmed your claws before we left." Talking to no one in general, she continues "I sure hope Ragnar's gizmo thingy works...otherwise...though I don't know why all of you are here...just how did you get Ragnar to let you come along?"

A look of horror crosses over Artic's face "Does it hurt?" Louie shakes his head 'no' "Oh...just one thing...when we get out of the backpack...PLEASE take your tail with you...I don't want to get any unpleasant surprises out of my backpack at a later date" Louie nodded his head in agreement.

*Yeah...what you said* Kitten frowns as Thor chuckles at her mistake. Not wanting Artic to ask anymore questions (she can't very well tell her about blackmailing Ragnar with 'Shelby Loven') so Kitten starts a fight with Thor *Shush up! You...you...LIZARD!*

Gandalf laid a hand on Drum's shoulder, raising his other to stop Artist and Chryse as they tried to follow. "She is not your concern anymore. If we can heal her, we will. There are others who heard of your coming...and what you have done." he paused, letting the implications of what he said sink in. Drum swallowed, and nodded.

"You know that would only make things worse than they already are. You must face up to this. Perhaps they will be merciful." Gandalf turned and walked away following the stretcher. "And I would be careful, ArtistStudio. Memories run long and deep here. They have not forgotten you either." Gandalf disappeared into the shadows of the Hall, leaving the door open.

"I suppose someone will come and find us. Maybe tell us where we're supposed to GO!" Artist said, the last word coming out louder than the rest. He was more irritated than anything, not worried about the guild's reaction towards him, so much as the fact that he remembered how much they loved their laws and rules. Their holier than thou attitude. This was going to be rough on Drum, rough on him as well. He didn't intend to sit by while the council did their worst to Drum. And he knew they'd surely try.

"If it is needed. Gandalf and Merlin will probably be able to handle it on their own...if they can stop fighting with each other long enough to do it. I'm..." her lip gave only the barest hint of scorn on her ageless face,"backup. Now I must go. I will find you later. Be careful. Everyone here knows you are back, and what the young mage did. You are both in danger, him more than you, but be wary. Your lady there," she indicated Chyrse with a nod of her head, "Might be safer exploring the Tower. Lan is around. I'll have him come fetch her." And with that, Moraine whirled away, her skirts rustling as she strode down the hall.

Artist patted her gently on the arm. "Chryse, there isn't really anything you can do. But if you don't want to stay with Lan, I'd suggest exploring. You'll be safer in the Tower without us around anyway. And no harm will come to you while you're here. That's one rule no one will break. No harm without just cause. Only they have just cause, in their minds anyway, to do Drum and I both harm. You need to keep away from us one way or another, or you'll get dragged into this more than you'd want." Chryse pouted slightly, but she realized Artist was right. She needed to keep away from their company...but that didn't mean she couldn't keep her eye on them anyway.

"He might find you." Artist shrugged, "He might not. Go on, and don't worry. Drum and I will BOTH see you later." he winked at her, and watched her walk away. He was confident he could handle anything the Mage's council threw at them.

Ragnar looked up at the sky. "Geradan flew off that way." he pointed, "So that's the way we'll go." He tried to keep the thoughts he was having out of his mind. WHY did they always have to tag along? Now he had more to worry about. Keeping Mouse, Spyral and Sun out of trouble. *Sigh* He was really going to have to look into some kind of leash...

Ragnar put his head in his hands. What had he done to deserve this...? It would have been so easy, if they'd all gone off to Pern like they were supposed to! He didn't want to tell them that he had no idea if they were going in the right direction or not. He hadn't been sure for hours. And he'd only packed food for himself...

"Where?" he whispered, not looking around. Sun nodded her head slightly to his right, and Ragnar looked into the woods. Was it his imagination or...were those eyes? He felt for his axe. He wasn't sure if the others knew all the dangers that lay in these woods. "get ready." he hissed at Sun, who already had her pulse rifle out.

"Whoever you are, come out now!" he called into the woods. "If you're friendly, you won't be harmed." He watched the eyes blink, then start forward. A large black panther seemed to melt out of the shadows, padded up to Ragnar and sat down, licking his paw.

"No." came a voice from behind and above them. They all turned to see the man in the tree. He was leaning back aganst the trunk, perched on a limb, one leg swinging. He lept down in a graceful arc, and bowed before them, his arms across his chest. "My name is Drizzt Do'Urden. I am a Ranger. You are not from here are you?" he asked. Ragnar realized the man meant not from Fantasy Land at all.

"A Drow Elf, yes, but not of my people anymore, so there is no cause for alarm. My former people were vicious and cruel. I am not so. Now, I serve the people and the woods as guide and protector." Drizzt said, pushing his hood back as he spoke. His skin was almost as black as the panthers, his hair white, and his eyes a startling shade of purple. Two scimatars hung at his side.

"I can do better than that. I'll take you there tomorrow." Drizzt pulled a large sack out from behind the tree he had sat in. "But I think I heard someone ask for dinner?" He smiled at them as he pulled food out of the sack. They began preparing for dinner.

"Gwenhwyvar. And I think he likes you." the elf said. They all sat down to eat, and Ragnar leaned back, sighing. This wasn't exactly how he had planned it, but now that the elf was here, perhaps...well, it was good to have someone who knew where they were going...whether he admitted he had gotten them lost or not.

The voices of the mages came from a great distance to 6th - it was the first thing she clearly understood since the bar fight in the Old West. Her confusion was lifted - but she was so very weak - she could not even find the strength to open her eyes.

Drumheller in tow. Only the mightiest wizards enter this hall. Drum figits uncomfortably - only a journeyman - and that only two years. And Artist not even a wizard - but something else. Drum feels terribly vulnerable. Despite his guilt, he is glad Artist is there - radiating confidence.

Rastlan, the Grand Master of the Wizards Guild, presides over the enormous inner chamber on a seat high above the marble floor. Different colors of marble describe a vortex on the floor - like looking down into a tornado. 24 large seats are arranged in a spiral around the room - each surrounded by a number of desks for the support staff of each wizard of the Guild Council. At the high end of the spiral is Rastlan's seat. Of the others, only the seats reserved for Gandalf, Merlin and Morraine are empty.

The mightiest of wizards glares down on the illusionist and journeyman mage as they enter his sanctum. "Drumheller!" he says - "The Guild has considered your crime and pronounced you guilty of heresy, insubordination and criminal misuse of your journeyman status. Given the circumstances, I hereby sentence you to de..."

Before the mighty wizard can complete his spell, a great roaring fills the hall - disrupting all spells being cast in the room. Drumheller stumbles backward, released - reprieved for a moment from a spell which would have taken his life. Artist closes his mouth and the hall is filled with silence.

"So! You will have your sentence first..." Rastlan begins another spell - as Artist completes a simple cantrip. A conundrum equation appears described in smoke in the middle of the room. Before the smoke can dissipate, Rastlan's magnificently disciplined mind easily spots the problem with the equation - a division by zero. In the split second his attention is diverted, Artist completes a far more complex spell. Every wizard in the room feels the magical snick of a trigger spell snapping into place.

"You are the guilty party, prideful one," Artist says. Rastlan remains silent, not knowing what will trigger the spell Artist just completed - nor what that spell will do. He decides to let the young fool ramble while he carefully seeks whiffs of magic - trying to defuse whatever magic the illusionist has set in motion.

"You hold this journeyman to a standard which you never told him exists. You removed section 14 from chapter 8 of the Guild Manual. Tell me, chapter and verse, how is Drumheller guilty of heresy? What techniques were presented to him to avoid a misuse of power?"

Rastlan laughs - "How soon you forget! Chapter 1, section 1. If it's not in the manual, you CANNOT use it! That means Drumheller - and that means YOU, Artist! Your sentence is next and this spell you have pending will not guarentee your safe release from this place." The wizard stands, his black hair and beard crackling with electricity as he hammers down his final point...

The vortex on the floor comes to life and engulfs the room. All the minor functionaries and servants fall to the floor in terror - falling into the vortex. More than half the members of the Guild Council fall with them. A few others hold their place by flying - then fly out of control to smack themselves against the ceiling.

Only 9 of the wizards are unaffected by the extraordinary illusion that the great hall has become - and they are suddenly busy holding together the minds of the many people in the room who are overcome with fear of the roaring vortex.

"You made that rule, Rastlan. You wished this hall to become a place only the greatest of wizards might enter. Be careful what you wish for! This is a permanent illusion - and there are other spells embedded in it. Only a minor wish spell will dispel it - and that will also dispel the other embedded spells..."

The King lays his hands on 6th, leans forward and kisses her forehead, and softly calls her name. In spite of herself - all her pride - in spite of all her belief that she is above the cliche - 6th finds her heart racing - filled with life - flowing with the power of The King.

Tears of joy roll from 6th's eyes as The King walks away, accepting the thanks of Morraine and Gandalf and Merlin with a regal wave of his bejeweled hand. At the door he turns and blows her a kiss, bows with a flourish of his sequined cape and says, "Thank you, thank you very much..." then dances lightly out the door.

The dogs became very excited and joined in the fun. The dragged IQ and KaraS over hill and dale, through forest and field, and not stopping until they reached a river; on the other side of which was a fox who was licking his chopps and smiling contently.

shining across her, Kay lay for a minute thinking of what had happened so far in this place. How amazing of Jilla to be able to communicate with the dragons and inhabitants. Even the wonderful people they had met last night seemed surprised at her ability. Not knowing when she was expected to be up, she jumped out of bed, and then shivered. It was still very chilly. She quickly washed up with the pitcher of water and bowl sitting on the stand in her room. Dressing once again in the warm clothes she had been given for the journey, she opened her door and peaked out. Not knowing what to excpect in this place, she tiptoed across the hall to knock on Jilla's door. Jilla will know where to explore and how they might get word of Sixth. She had a sense of well being, and a big smile when Jilla opened her door.

entertainments in the Hall are always the best on Pern, and tonight, putting on their best faces for company, is no exception. Rae happily sings along to the songs she knows, and claps to the ones she doesn't. However, she consistantly declines the offers to dance.

Robinton gestures to an Apprentice who runs off and returns a few minutes later with a battered, camoflauge attache-case. With a quick thankyou, Rae opens it and begins shuffling through a pile of sheet-music, searching for just the right song. *Too many references to Terra... Too convoluted... Too fast... Too adult...*

The band strikes up, and the audience looks up in shock, obviously unused to songs with such fast tempos and so much brass. Rae stands up and begins singing, magically amplifying her voice and providing her own backup.

After being dragged by a hoard of dogs IQ and KaraS finally managed to calm the dogs down. They knew two things for sure; first, that they had no idea where they were; and second, that they weren't going to get back to the Longboat before nightfall. After setting up camp, IQ went to look for firewood.

F'lar appears, as if by magic to lead them to breakfast. Asking if the girls slept well, he was assured by both that they had, indeed. Once they arrived in the dining hall, they were greeted by the others, and invited to sit and enjoy one of the most interesting breakfasts that Kay had ever seen. Kay listened with fascination, as Jila discussed the 'Hatching', and other events in Pern with the others at the table. Intrigued, and proud that her friend was treated with such respect and some awe by the people here, Kay felt a little shy. But, Jilla's enthusiasm was contagious, and the day promised to be a very interesting one. Lessa, seated next to Kay, asked her if there was anything in particular that she wanted to do. Kay hesitated briefly, and then spoke softly to her. Lessa, smiled, and nodded, and then spoke quietly to F'lar, who looked at Kay, and bowed slightly to her, with a smile of his own. "Thankyou very much", said Kay, and turned back to the conversation around the table to see what Jila and the others had in store for them today.

Chryse was wandering around a bit, killing time as she waited for Artist and Drum to be far enough away from her before she started following them. She walked around the magnificently kept grounds of the Tower and thought that it was even better looking and awe inspiring than the books described them. Her thoughts about architecture, landscaping and the menfolk were abruptly interrupted when she walked into a wall. Or what she thought was a wall... it turned out to be a rather tall, well armed, severe looking older man!

"Moiraine? Oh, you must be Lan. Yes, Moiraine mentioned something about you. Thank you, but I don't think I'll be needing your assistance," said Chryse, hoping it would be enough to drive him away, although with what she knew of Warders, she didn't have high hopes.

Something about the tone of his voice, friendly as it was, told Chryse that she had no choice but join the Warder at the Tower. With an internal sigh, she smiled her acceptance at his offer. Together, they toured the grounds of the Tower. Chryse was pleasantly surprised by the depth of the knowledge Lan had about the place and was enjoying the tour.

He was about to lead them inside when a sudden commotion caught their attention. It seemed as if all of the wizards and apprentices were suddenly rushing toward the Hall. Without a glance at her companion, Chryse turned about and sprinted toward the Hall, worry about her friends creasing her face.

Lan had immediately followed the bard as she turned to run. He was briefly amazed at her speed but was able to keep her in sight as she ran. Knowing that she had arrived with the 2 outcasts, Lan knew well where the elf was going and what she thought was happening. He wondered what he would do if Chryse was in a position to get hurt. Moiraine had simply asked him to look after her, but had left the extent of that care to him.

Chryse had just managed to gain a vantage from where she could see inside the hall when the fireball passed through ArtistStudio. She gasped as she thought her friend was about to die and then nearly laughed in relief as she saw the illusion. Then she saw the look on Drumheller's face and realized in horror that HE was not an illusion.

"It's not really him, just another illusion. Artist is in no danger in there. As far as I can tell, he created that vortex. I just can't believe that he let Drum in there with his image! We've got to help him and quick!"

"No, most of the wizards in there aren't able to handle whatever that vortex is generating. We certainly won't be able to fare any better than they. We need some way to pull Drum out. Even out here, I can feel the effects of the vortex. It's pulling in anyone who isn't a great wizard and driving mad anyone with very little power. I can't believe Drum has been holding out this long."

Quickly, she explained her plan to Lan. He disappeared briefly and reappeared with a length of stout rope and tied one end around Chryse and the other around himself. Chryse took out her lute and began strumming a melody. Lan opened the doors of the hall and quickly ran around pillar and braced himself. The bard walked into the hall playing her lute, no one could hear it but her; the roaring in the hall drowned out all other sounds. All the wizards were distracted by her entrance, but she paid them no mind as she played her song. She strode straight toward Drum and shouted at him to hold to her. Drum could just barely hear her but obeyed. As soon as he touched her, the roaring quieted and he could hear the lute. Slowly, the pair struggle against the force of the vortex and with Lan pulling on the rope, made it out of the hall.

"No problem Drum, and his name is Lan, Moiraine's Warder. But right now we need to get out of here and find Artist. I'm going to skin him alive for allowing you to get into that, " seethed Chryse. "Lan, thank you. I know what you risked for us. I hope you don't get into trouble for it."

"No, Mistress Chryse, I have not risked anything. Moiraine Sedai asked me to look after you and aid you while you were here. I have merely done as she asked. Now, let's find your errant illusionist," replied Lan, uncharacteristically smiling.

The drow elf spoke with calm applaum, brushing aside a low hanging limb. They were on a high overlooking ridge line and the cacophony of sounds from below was a steady crescendo, rising with everystep closer they took.

So Kara and IQ headed off across the cloud after them. As they rounded a bend, a gigantic castle came into view. Kara and IQ were just in timeto see all 12 dogs disappear into the castle through a half open door. Running at top speed, Kara and IQ raced u[p to the door and peeked in. The gigantic room, containing a giant table and chairs, was empty. There was not even the hair of a dog in sight. Quietly, they crept through the door, looking around.

hit the back of Mouse's throat like a lightening bolt. She was expecting wine, and the cider was so strong that her eyes opened wide, watered, and she started to choke. "Here, let me help you with that," murmured Spyral, as he took the wineskin from her hand and hit her gently a couple times on the back. He then smelled the cider, and tentatively took a sip. It was pretty good, so he took another, longer sip, and decided that he liked this stuff. At that point, Sunny and Ragnar decided to try some too. Mouse was still a little overwhelmed by the strength of the cider, but quickly got over that and realized she, too, liked the taste.

"Don't hog it all," Sunny said to Spyral, trying to snatch the wineskin out of his hand, but he held it high over his head, and feeling playful, wanted Sunny to jump for it. Ragnar solved that problem by walking up behind Spyral and taking the wineskin out of his hand. Ragnar took a long drink, and then handed it to SunAeryn, who took a tentative drink too. She expected by this time that the wineskin would be empty, but somehow, it was just as full as when Mouse tried it first.

Artic wandered over to see what all the commotion was about, with Louie, Thor, Elvis, and Kitten hot on her tail. Artic looked at the gang all going for the wineskin while the elf looked on, amused. As it passed hands from Mouse back to Ragnar, Artic made her move and looked at Ragnar. "Give it up, big guy, or I'll sic my kitten on you!!" She laughed. Ragnar, on his way to feeling no pain, happily passed the wineskin to Artic, who took a taste. Finding it to her liking, she took another sip and passed it on to Sunny, who was doing a little dance near the fire, which Mouse had started once it was established they couldn't go any further or help 6th just yet. Mouse and Spyral were intent on keeping Sunny out of the fire, but when the elf pulled out a tin whistle and started to play, they all started to dance a bit. Ragnar bowed to Artic, and Spyral bowed to Sunny and they began to lightly dance around the fire.

Mouse took the opportunity to try some more cider. The funny thing about the cider was although it was "hard" and really tasty, it lightened up the mood without the usual, sometimes nasty effects (and after-effects) of alcohol. So their senses were still with them, but their mood was considerably lightened, and it didn't require more cider to stay that way. Mouse asked the elf if he'd like to dance, and he looked startled at that suggestion. "I'm playing!" he said, offended, and Mouse guessed that not many women had asked this particular elf to dance before! "Oh well, you're loss," she said airily and cut in on Sunny, who in turn cut in on Ragnar, leaving Spyral and Mouse to dance, while Artic sat by the fire, petting the big cat that had curled up nest to her.

The kitten crawled up on her lap (Artic tried to make sure to not let the Kitten fell jealous) but Artic didn't notice the sneaky way in which Kitten was eyeing the wineskin. Kitten pounced on the skin, and bounced, rolled, and pulled it (in her usual, playful style) over to Elvis and the others. Louie went to stick his head in the opening, just to have Kitten pull his leg, which caused him to turn around and let Kitten take the first sip. She backed up, trying to decide if she liked this new taste. That gave Thor a chance to stick a paw into the mouth and try some also. Louie followed, as did Elvis.

However, the hard cider did NOT have the same properties with the animals as the humans. Almost immediately they started feeling strong, tall, and invincible. Combine that with a T-Rex and a Kitten with delusions of grandeur (already) and the night was about to get more interesting...

Artist watched in shock as Chryse, a rope tied around her waist, playing on her harp, strode across the room, grabbed Drum, and left. *What was she thinking?* Though he admired her courage, this was not exactly what he had in mind.

"You." the word flowed over him like an icy river, and Artist found he could not move. Raistlin moved forward to glare into Artist's eyes. The illusionist found he could not look away from the golden hourglass eyes of the mage. "You remember about my sight, ArtistStudio." Raistlin said, saying Artist's name like a curse, "I see death everywhere, in everyone. Yours I see coming quite immenently." Raistlin's eyes narrowed, and Artist began to wish he could swallow. Or blink. But he stared death in the face with little choice to do anything else.

"Yes," Merlin interrupted, "We memorize a spell, and can only use it once, then when we use it, it takes some of our strength away. The more spells you cast, the weaker you become, until there is nothing left to do but rest."

"Of course he didn't." Moiraine said, putting her arm around 6th's shoulders and giving her a hug. "But he is young, and he did not know that such a mind link with you would have such an effect on his casting spells. You couldn't have been expected to know either. You are no mage. You only wanted to help him." 6th stared at the Aes Sedai.

"So what's going to happen now?" 6th looked at the three of them. "I mean, since Drum didn't mean to hurt me, and it was all an accident, and he only cast the spells to save the gang from disaster, how could they punish him?"

"But they don't know all the facts!" 6th said. "I'm the star witness here! They don't know that I pushed him to do what he did, encouraged him. I didn't know it was bad, and neither did he. And how he saved us with his power!"

"Frell all of that and come on!" 6th growled, "If you think I'm going to just sit back while some of your people try to do anything to my friends!" and without a backward glance, she walked out the door. Merlin, Gandalf and Moiraine looked at each other.