Into the Heart of Evil Read Online Free PDF Page A

turned and began walking down the passageway
toward the entrance to the room beyond, the ivory of his horns standing in
stark contrast to his dark scales in the shadows.
    Manebrow adjusted the rucksack on his shoulder and
followed.  He was surprised to see five other rucksacks and several weapons
lining the entranceway of the chamberlain’s home.  It was starting to dawn on
him that perhaps he wouldn’t be gathering the five warriors after all.  “How’s
that friend of yours doing? Arloch, if I remember correctly?  You two always
seemed inseparable during the training.”
    Ardan laughed. “Ask him yourself.”
    Turning to the right, Manebrow entered the large
open foyer that was the main room of the chamberlain’s quarters. The light of
the fire blazed in the hearth and several kobolds were seated in chairs and on
the large stuffed couch, all facing in a U-shape toward the fireplace at the
far end of the room.  Standing next to the hearth was Lord Karthan’s
overly-muscular chamberlain, Khazak Mail Fist.
    “Welcome, Master Trainer,” boomed Khazak Mail
Fist.  Seeing that Manebrow was not fully sure what was going on, he continued,
“Perhaps I should say, welcome Elite Warrior.  Come!  Meet your team!” 
    With that, the kobolds all stood up. 
    Manebrow laid his rucksack and axe to one side and
stepped forward to grasp the hand of the kobold nearest to him.  “Arloch, I
thought you had to be around.  Where there’s smoke, there’s fire, it seems. 
How many years has it been?”
    “Several, Manebrow.  Too many since we last saw
each other and not enough since I was one of your trainees,” Arloch laughed.
    “Aye, but you’re a better warrior for it.” 
Manebrow grabbed him by the neck and shook him.
    “True!  True!  But I’d not willingly undergo it
again, you know.  I’m enjoying my time with the caravans too much.”
    “Good to hear,” Manebrow said as he moved to the
next pair of kobolds.
    “Tohr… and Kahn!  How good to see you both!  How is
the Deep Guard treating you?” he asked as he grasped the twin brothers’ hands.
    The same crooked smile crept across both kobolds’
snouts.  “A little too well, it appears.  We must be doing too well for them to
pull us out for such a mission as this,” Tohr answered.
    Kahn continued, “I doubt it, I think they pulled
us out because you’re going to be needing the best climbers the Deep Guard has
to offer.”
    “Still just as cocky after all these years, I
see,” laughed Manebrow.  “Well, I’m glad to see you’ll be with us, no matter
how you were chosen.”  Turning to face the last of the five kobolds, Manebrow
continued, “Terrim!  How’d they get you for this?” 
    The youngest of the group, and not best of friends
with any of the rest of them, Terrim’s face lit up as his former trainer
addressed him, his tail unwrapping from his leg.  “Oh, well, you know.  They
asked for volunteers and everyone else stepped backward faster than me.”
    Arloch laughed. “That’s not how it went.  You
could hardly contain yourself as they were reading the mission, you wanted to
volunteer so much.” 
    Terrim gave a sheepish look as he glanced away,
his tail wrapping around his leg again protectively. 
    Cuffing him on the shoulder, Manebrow remarked,
“I’m glad to have you in this group.  Your skill with that spear of yours will
come in handy, to be sure.  And I’m sure we’ll make much use of your skill with
the dogs!” 
    Terrim smiled and looked at Arloch as if to say ‘I
told you so.’
    “Well met, then, it is,” interrupted Khazak Mail
Fist.  “Come, the preparations will take some time, and there are celebrations
to be attended before that, so let’s be short about it.”  He had the group’s
undivided attention.  “As you can see, I took the liberty of having the five of
them gathered for you, Manebrow.  Since we’re not sure what you’ll be up
against, we picked out a team with a wide variety of