Forgotten Realms - [Double Diamond Triangle Saga 06] - Conspiracy Page 8

  Still in the corridor, Entreri took the blind man by the arm and ushered him toward the dungeon cell.

  “Why me, Master Entreri?” asked Ingrar. “Why did you choose to have me along?”

  The assassin replied coldly. “We’ve a palace of wreck­age to sniff through. The bloodforge is there.”

  It was, indeed. But we were there, too. And we would defend the bloodforge with our very life.

  Epilogue

  Confederates

  I’m mesmerized by you.

  By all of you.

  There you are, Kern, golden-haired with eyes of blue skies. Holy. Your hands bring healing fire into the tat­tered remnants of my chest. Your fingers lace together ribbons of flesh. Your faith binds tooth holes, each one large enough that, if you wanted, you could reach in and tickle my heart.

  And, then, there is you, Master Entreri, my rival. If I die, it will be your back that carries me out of this ruin. You will hide me away until I can be placed in the sea. You will light the torch that burns away my boat, my body, that falls on me like a dying star.

  And what of you, Sharessa, the Shadow, the shapely Sharker? You’re a promising stream, full of life, that sinks and dies in desert sands.

  And Trandon, there you stand. The once-bright gem you wear fades. It is as if what you once believed in is slowly abandoning you. I know how you feel. And yet, still, you stand there. Is that what it is to be grown up? To embrace not faith but doubt, and still stand?

  And you, Ingrar—the Seer. If I live, you will teach me to gain in what I have lost, as you have gained new eyes for old. Eyes that see past double walkers and doppelgängers to the truth beyond.

  And finally you, Mage-King Aetheric III—you, who have risen above your palace and your poison to become more than you were.

  Let me, likewise, rise with thee.

  WELCOME TO THE UTTER EAST!

  THE DOUBLE DIAMOND TRIANGLE SAGA

  The story continues…

  The bride of the Open Lord of Waterdeep has been abducted. The kidnappers are from the far-off lands of the Utter East. But who are they? And what do they really want? Now a group of brave paladins must travel to the perilous kingdoms of this unknown land to find the answers. But in this mysteri­ous world, nothing is ever quite what it appears.

  Look for the other books in the series

  The Abduction

  J. Robert King

  The Paladins

  James M. Ward and David Wise

  The Mercenaries

  Ed Greenwood

  Errand of Mercy

  Roger E. Moore

  An Opportunity for Profit

  Dave Gross

  Uneasy Alliances

  David Cook with Peter Archer

  Easy Betrayals

  Richard Baker

  The Diamond

  J. Robert King & Ed Greenwood

  More from the Double Diamond Triangle Saga

  By David Cook with Peter Archer

  Paladins and mercenaries have joined forces to defeat an attacking army of fiends. Now a powerful new weapon, the bloodforge, comes into their hands. But some suspect that their leader's plans for the weapon are less than honorable. Can they undermine his hidden motives, while holding off the fiendish army?

  By Richard Baker

  A mixed company of paladins and mercenaries race back to Faerûn after the object of their quest is revealed as a threat to peace and order throughout the Realms. But beware! The evil will lead them on a chase that ends in the last place any of them expected.

  By J. Robert King & Ed Greenwood

  The quest has taken two parties across the Realms. Now the heroes gather at Waterdeep, where it all began, for a final celebration. But there are still a few loose ends to tie up….

  About the Author

  J. Robert King is the author of several Magic: The Gathering novels, and has walked paths leading through Forgotten Realms, Dragonlance, and Ravenloft. In addition to Mad Merlin and Lancelot du Lethe, which he wrote for Tor Books, J. Robert King is the author of Blood Wars, an award-winning Planescape trilogy. He lives in Wisconsin.