Read Online Crypt of the Moaning Diamond by Rosemary Jones - Free Book Online
Authors: Rosemary Jones
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potions. How about that ring of yours, Zuzzara?”
The half-ore held up her bare hand, displaying a heavy gold ring with a crystal set within the band. “There’s only one spell left.” She sneezed. “Shouldn’t we save it?”
Ivy looked them over. Gunderal looked like a carving made of bone, her complexion more yellow-white than its usual pale pearl. The tip of Zuzzara’s nose was turning a nice shade of purple to match the deep gray shadows under her eyes. Mumchance huddled down into the collar of his armor like an old turtle trying to disappear into his shell, while Wiggles shivered at his feet, a miserable bundle of soggy fur. Only Sanval and Kid weren’t shivering. In Kid’s case, the heat of his ruddy skin was causing the water to literally steam off with a smell like wet goat and sulfur combined. Sanval, of course, stood like a carved post, apparently oblivious to the water dripping off his shiny helmet, streaming across his bright breastplate, and pooling around his well-polished bootheels.
“We need to be dry,” said Ivy. “If only to get rid of that stink that Kid is giving off.” With a little pointed grin, Kid clattered his hooves and flapped his arms to encourage the cloud around him to drift over the others. Zuzzara sneezed again.
“Zuzzara should save that spell, especially since I can’t do
anything,” argued Gunderal, but she shivered as soon as she spoke. “We may need her ring later.”
Zuzzara shook her head. With a worried glance at Gunderal, she replied, “No, we’d better use it now. Your magic will come back quick enough.” The half-ore twisted the ring around on her finger and muttered the words needed to set off the spell.
The spell smelled like roses and felt like a desert wind, a long warm breath that blew across them. Heat, dry heat, surrounded them. The whole group was caught in a mini-tornado of hot, whirling air.
The warmth of the spell slid right down into Ivy’s bones. She sighed with pleasure. Dry and warm was the best feeling in the world, Ivy decided. And the cleaning that went with the spell was rather nice too. At least one or two layers of grime had disappeared from her armor, not that magic could ever give it a polish to compare with Sanval’s breastplate.
The rest of the group looked as happy as Ivy felt. Kid’s curls tightened around his horns, Gunderal looked more pink than white, Zuzzara stopped sneezing, Sanval’s armor practically dazzled the eye in the lamplight, and even Mumchance’s scanty beard had curled back up around his chin, instead of dripping down his chest. Wiggles danced on her back legs, obviously delighted to be a white fluffy dog again instead of resembling a drowned white rat.
“Love that spell,” Ivy said to Zuzzara.
“Good,” said Zuzzara, “you can pay to recharge the ring next time. You know how much fire and air spells mixed together cost?”
“What was that?” asked Sanval, holding up one arm to examine with bemusement the regained brilliance of his armor.
“Couple of spells, combined, and caught in the gem,”
f
f explained Gunderal. “One spell dispels the water and dries you
off. Another warms you up. And your clothes are cleaned in
the process.” She gazed with satisfaction at her silk skirts, once Ś again swirling like flower petals around her dainty ankles.
i: “You only stay warm for a bit,” said Zuzzara, “but you stay >’Ś dry until you fall into another river or snow bank. Gunderal thought it up for a winter campaign.”
“It was the most horrible, miserable time of my life,” murmured the wizard with an exaggerated shudder. “I was not just wet and cold all the time. My clothes were muddy and stayed dirty. There was no place to take a hot bath or clean your things.”
> “That wasn’t so bad.” Ivy shrugged. “But having your feet i wet and cold all day and all night is never fun.”
“So I thought of a way that we could combine a few spells to clean us all up,” said Gunderal
The half-ore held up her bare hand, displaying a heavy gold ring with a crystal set within the band. “There’s only one spell left.” She sneezed. “Shouldn’t we save it?”
Ivy looked them over. Gunderal looked like a carving made of bone, her complexion more yellow-white than its usual pale pearl. The tip of Zuzzara’s nose was turning a nice shade of purple to match the deep gray shadows under her eyes. Mumchance huddled down into the collar of his armor like an old turtle trying to disappear into his shell, while Wiggles shivered at his feet, a miserable bundle of soggy fur. Only Sanval and Kid weren’t shivering. In Kid’s case, the heat of his ruddy skin was causing the water to literally steam off with a smell like wet goat and sulfur combined. Sanval, of course, stood like a carved post, apparently oblivious to the water dripping off his shiny helmet, streaming across his bright breastplate, and pooling around his well-polished bootheels.
“We need to be dry,” said Ivy. “If only to get rid of that stink that Kid is giving off.” With a little pointed grin, Kid clattered his hooves and flapped his arms to encourage the cloud around him to drift over the others. Zuzzara sneezed again.
“Zuzzara should save that spell, especially since I can’t do
anything,” argued Gunderal, but she shivered as soon as she spoke. “We may need her ring later.”
Zuzzara shook her head. With a worried glance at Gunderal, she replied, “No, we’d better use it now. Your magic will come back quick enough.” The half-ore twisted the ring around on her finger and muttered the words needed to set off the spell.
The spell smelled like roses and felt like a desert wind, a long warm breath that blew across them. Heat, dry heat, surrounded them. The whole group was caught in a mini-tornado of hot, whirling air.
The warmth of the spell slid right down into Ivy’s bones. She sighed with pleasure. Dry and warm was the best feeling in the world, Ivy decided. And the cleaning that went with the spell was rather nice too. At least one or two layers of grime had disappeared from her armor, not that magic could ever give it a polish to compare with Sanval’s breastplate.
The rest of the group looked as happy as Ivy felt. Kid’s curls tightened around his horns, Gunderal looked more pink than white, Zuzzara stopped sneezing, Sanval’s armor practically dazzled the eye in the lamplight, and even Mumchance’s scanty beard had curled back up around his chin, instead of dripping down his chest. Wiggles danced on her back legs, obviously delighted to be a white fluffy dog again instead of resembling a drowned white rat.
“Love that spell,” Ivy said to Zuzzara.
“Good,” said Zuzzara, “you can pay to recharge the ring next time. You know how much fire and air spells mixed together cost?”
“What was that?” asked Sanval, holding up one arm to examine with bemusement the regained brilliance of his armor.
“Couple of spells, combined, and caught in the gem,”
f
f explained Gunderal. “One spell dispels the water and dries you
off. Another warms you up. And your clothes are cleaned in
the process.” She gazed with satisfaction at her silk skirts, once Ś again swirling like flower petals around her dainty ankles.
i: “You only stay warm for a bit,” said Zuzzara, “but you stay >’Ś dry until you fall into another river or snow bank. Gunderal thought it up for a winter campaign.”
“It was the most horrible, miserable time of my life,” murmured the wizard with an exaggerated shudder. “I was not just wet and cold all the time. My clothes were muddy and stayed dirty. There was no place to take a hot bath or clean your things.”
> “That wasn’t so bad.” Ivy shrugged. “But having your feet i wet and cold all day and all night is never fun.”
“So I thought of a way that we could combine a few spells to clean us all up,” said Gunderal
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