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need to walk with his back close to a wall a solid wall that he had already
checked for deadly traps and secret portals.
It had all happened so fast, in the course of just a few months. Street waif
to lieutenant in the Basadoni Cabal, one of the most powerful thieves' guilds in
Calimport.
Yet as he looked back over the road that had brought him from Memnon to
Calimport, from this muddy alley to the polished marble halls of the thieves'
guild, Artemis Entreri began to wonder if, perhaps, the change was somewhat
less miraculous. Nothing really happened so quickly; he'd been led to this
seemingly remarkable state by years spent honing his street skills, years
spent challenging and conquering brutal men like Theebles, or the old lecher
in the caravan, or his father....
A noise from the side drew Artemis's attention to a wide alley where a
group of boys came rambling past. Half the grimy mob tossed a small stone
back and forth while the other half tried to get it away.
It came as a shock to Artemis when he realized that they were his own age,
perhaps even a bit older. And the shock carried with it more than a little pain.
The boys soon disappeared behind the next shack, laughing and shouting,
a cloud of dust in their wake. Artemis summarily dismissed them, thinking
again of what he had accomplished and what heights of glory and power
might still lay before him. After all, he had purchased the right to dream such
dark dreams at the cost of his youth and innocence, coins whose value he did
not recognize until they were spent.
BLOOD SPORT
Christie Golden
"I understand you're used to being on the other side of these iron bars,"
said the woman called the Shark. Her black eyes were hard as she gazed
through the barred window into the Mistledale prison cell. "Weren't you once
captain of the Riders? They called you Rhynn 'the Fair,' right? Oh, but that
was before you turned traitor to the people you were sworn to protect."
Inmate Rhynn, an indigo-haired moon elf, did not reply. Only her clenched
hands, their slim wrists encircled by metal shackles, betrayed her tension.
The Shark opened the door with the key given her by the new captain of
the Riders. She leaned her tall, well-muscled frame casually against the cold
stone of the cell. The elf's glare grew more hostile, though she trembled
violently. A malicious smile spread across the Shark's tanned face. Her
functional, masculine garb wool tunic, breeches, and cape kept her warm,
even in the middle of the month of Hammer. Rhynn Oriandis was clad only in
a shabby tunic that dozens of prisoners before her had worn. Her skin, pale
as that of the quarry the Shark had been summoned to hunt, was covered
with gooseflesh.
The Shark knelt and brought her tawny face within an inch of Rhynn's. "It's
all come out, Rhynn. I want the vampire."
"I don't care what lies you've heard. He deserved to go free."
"Ah, you elves do protect your own, don't you?" The Shark's lips curled in a
sneer. "I've never heard of an elven vampire before. I'm looking forward to this
case."
"Race had nothing to do "
"It had everything to do with your actions!" the Shark interrupted. "What you
forgot is that this creature is not an elf any longer and therefore did not
deserve your misplaced protection. He's a vampire. They are things of purest
evil. They know no race, and the only thing they 'deserve' is a stake through
the heart. Give me the information I want, or I'll simply take it from you."
Rhynn's eyes remained steady. "Torture me all you like. I won't break."
"I wouldn't be so sure. They call me the Shark because I'm the predator's
predator. I've fought twenty-two vampires and countless humans, and I've
always made my kill." Pride colored in her words. "Now " her hand was a
swift blur as she tangled strong fingers in Rhynn's hair " cooperate, and you
come out of this with your sanity and maybe your freedom. Fight me " she
tightened her grip until Rhynn gasped softly " and you'll have neither."
The Shark chanted an incantation, blunt-nailed fingers digging into Rhynn's
skull. Rhynn arched in pain, her shackles rattling furiously, but she could not
resist. The Shark's spell tore open the elf's mind.
The woman's emotions had obviously been confused by the vampire's
magical charms, for she saw him as a being devoted to good rather than the
monster he was. The Shark had probed other minds in this manner before,
and always, in the victims' memories the blooder was a veritable saint. The
Shark concentrated on the elf's appearance, his name, his destination, even
as Rhynn tried frantically to secret the information. In her weakened condition,
Rhynn could not bear the mental violation. Her mouth opened in a soundless
scream, then unconsciousness claimed her.
She's luckier than she knows, thought the Shark; had she resisted further,
the struggle to protect the vampire would have destroyed her sanity.
Triumphant, the Shark released her hold on Rhynn. On a whim, she tossed
the keys within the elf's reach. Rhynn might revive and free herself before her
captors realized it. Maybe she'd escape. Maybe they'd kill her. It didn't really
matter. The Shark slipped the hood of her cloak over her head and vanished,
thanks to the cape's enchantment. With hardly a thought, she walked out of
the small prison and passed the two guards. Her horse was waiting for her
behind the jail, out of sight of the guards. Quietly she mounted. Snow muffled
the hoofbeats as the Shark headed toward Mistledale's single main gate. The
idiot guards there noticed nothing.
According to Rhynn, the monster wanted to return to Evermeet, the elven
homeland. The Shark snorted with contempt. Did the blooder actually think he
could cross water? No, he'd be stranded along the Sword Coast, probably in
Waterdeep. He already had a three month head start. She'd have to ride hard
to catch up with him.
The Shark turned her mount westward, toward the place that was
becoming known as the "City of Splendors," and kicked the animal savagely.
The hunt was on.
* * * * *
A bawdy song spilled out of the Orc's Head Inn. The Shark, clad in demure
feminine attire and appearing deceptively fragile, entered the noisy tavern.
She brushed snow off her cape as she observed the noisy, slightly drunken
crowd, then unobtrusively seated herself in a shadowed corner. The blooder
wasn't here yet, but her sources had assured her he would make an
appearance tonight.
She had only been seated a moment when a pretty young barmaid plunked
a foamy tankard of ale in front of the Shark. The girl was small but full-figured,
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