He might again."
They rode in silence for some time, the cold creep- ing into the wagon, chilling the elf to the bone. "
Prison of Souls. Has anyone ever broken the spell before?"
"The incarceration spell?" Lyam asked, and consid- ered it. "There's no breaking it. Not before it wears off.
It's been tried, believe me."
"By Bardic Magic?" Naitachal countered.
Lyam considered this carefully before answering.
"To my knowledge, that has never been attempted.
But then, Bards have never been allowed in Suino- men. They've always been turned back at the border."
Not this time. Perhaps we will have that chance to try Bardic Magic, Naitachal thought, seeing a slight glimmer of hope in the situation. No one knows that we are Bards; they think that I am a Necromancer and the boy is my apprentice. Their spells may not be ready for our power. Alaire has invoked the magic once already, when he brought Kai back. Can he do it again, to save his own hide?
Can I?
Under armed escort, Naitachal and Lyam were introduced to their new quarters in the palace dun- geon. The elf had expected dirt floors, but these were lined with stone and mortar, and had no furniture. In the center of their cell was a large iron loop, to which their shackles were padlocked. One of the guards adjusted his shackles so that he didn't have free move- ment of his hands. This was unfortunate, since the padlocks were simple, and easily picked if his arms hadn't been pulled so tightly behind him. I still might be able to do something, though.
The dungeon cells were built in a semi-circle, fac- ing a group of guards stationed at a table. Naitachal counted four guards, with a fifth who went on a walk- ing watch shortly after they arrived. They put Lyam in a cell opposite his, chaining him to the floor in the same fashion. The elf had hoped they would be close enough to assist each other out of the shackles, but this was not to be.
In the cell directly between the two Naitachal saw another prisoner.
"Prince!" Lyam exclaimed. "You're still here."
Kai was crestfallen when he saw who his two pri- sonmates were. "Aye, I'm here all right," he said, his words empty, without hope. "Since you're here that must mean Alaire's captured."
"I'm afraid so," Lyam said. "Sir Jehan had us followed, I suspect. Something gave us away. At any rate, he was waiting for us at the docks. We didn't have a chance."
Kai turned his gaze on Naitachal, obviously dread- ing the next question. "Is Alaire in the Pris Souls?"
Naitachal didn't know how to answer; Kai clearly cared far more for the bardling than the elf had expected. In fact, he was surprised. The Prince's own situation was grim, yet he was worried about Alaire.
Kai moved closer, glancing at the table of guards, who had brought out flagons of wine and were playing cards. They were paying no attention to their prisoners.
Naitachal chose his words carefully. "I was blind- folded, so I didn't see what became of him. According to Lyam, the Swords took him. That's all we really know."
"You don't have to sweeten the answer for me. I know what's happened to him. And it's all my fault!"
Tears welled in Kai's eyes, and a drop splashed on the rock floor. "He did it to save my life."
"Yes, he told me," Naitachal said simply. "But you mustn't blame yourself. Something like this was likely to happen to us, given the situation we walked into.
I'd known a fraction of what I have learned abou Jehan and his machinations, I would have ask King to send someone a little more skilled in difficult diplomatic situations than I." Or I would have asked him to send a practicing Necromancer; someone who would not have hesitated for a moment to strike these people dead with a single spell!