He hit the roof like a blunt spear, hard.

The thin weed could not withstand the force of Kleg's impact. The driving selkie tore through the material as a needle pierces cloth.

Such was his speed and force that Kleg pa.s.sed through the weed and more than his own body length into the air. He fell back and flopped onto the Sarga.s.so much like a beached fish.

Quickly, the selkie a.s.sumed his man form. He was safe from the eels, at least, and mayhap they would give the monster something to worry over.

The leather sack and strap had survived the impact and still hung safely around his neck. He was naked otherwise, his clothes having been shredded and lost when last he had Changed, but that did not matter. The air was warm above the weed and he needed no protection from the weather. That was the least of his worries.

The Prime selkie trotted away from the hole he had torn in the weed, hurrying in the direction of his master's abode. Perhaps the eels would kill the thing chasing him. Perhaps not, but in either case, he was not waiting to see.

Chapter TWENTY.

Conan led the five Tree Folk across the matted Sarga.s.so, moving cautiously. There were many places where the uneven surface dipped or rose enough to block the Cimmerian's view for any distance, and he avoided these spots as much as possible. Additionally, he had several times put one foot down on patches of weed that started to give under his weight. Only his quick reflexes saved him from falling through the weed into whatever might be waiting in the water beneath.

They were skirting a wide patch of this thin weed when Cheen stopped and closed her eyes.

"The Seed," she said softly. Then, louder, "It is no longer under the water. It is ahead of us, there!"

She pointed straight ahead.

Before Conan could stop him, Jube lunged forward. "Where? I will retrieve it!"

The man only managed three steps before he sank from sight through the weed. "Aahh!" Water sloshed up through the hole he had made.

Conan moved to the edge of the broken weed and dropped onto his belly to spread his weight. He reached down into the gap. "My arm, take my arm!"

Jube came up sputtering, thrashing at the water, and shot a panicked hand upward. By some good fortune, he managed to clasp his hand around Conan's wrist.

Conan had him now. He began to edge backward from the hole, using his feet and free arm. This was a danger averted

Suddenly Conan felt sensation grip him, a feeling unlike any he had ever known. It was somewhat like the way his hair sometimes stood on end on a cold and dry day, but that was as close as he could come. His body tingled with a cold fire, his muscles felt as if they belonged to another man, and he convulsed in a spasm that jerked his entire frame, flinging him backward and away from the hole.

Jube's grip was broken, and well that it was so, for the man's fingers had become with the tingling as powerful as a wooden clamp. The sensation stopped when contact ended.

Jube screamed, and his body contorted, his arms shaking. For only an instant his shriek lasted, then he slid back into the hole, and the black water covered him.

Conan was paralyzed; he could not seem to gather his strength to rise. A strange, buzzing sound came from the hole in the weed. After a moment, it stopped.

Cheen and Tair rushed to help Conan to his feet. Brushing them aside, he arose on his own, feeling shaken but otherwise undamaged.

"Crom, what was that?"

He moved back to the hole, carefully, and peered down into it. As he watched, Jube's body floated up to the surface. Tair would have reached for it, but Conan held him back.

"Nay, hold a moment."

"He will drown!"

"Touch him and you may die also. Here, let me have your spear."

Tair tendered his weapon. Gingerly, Conan prodded the body with the wooden b.u.t.t of the spear. The sensation he had felt was either gone or did not travel through the wood. He pushed the end of the haft under Jube's leather belt, heaved, and managed to lift the man half out of the water. Another tug, and Jube was clear, lying on the weed.

Conan released the spear and reached out to touch Jube with one finger, very carefully. Nothing amiss now. He rolled the body over onto its back.

"He is dead," Cheen said, saying aloud what Conan already knew."

"Aye."

"There is not a mark on him, no wound, nothing. How could this be?"

The man's face was contorted into a grimace that indicated he had died in great pain.

"He looks just like old Kine did after the lightning hit him," Tair said. "Only his face is not black."

"Lightning does not strike underwater," Cheen said.

"Perhaps it does in the wizard's domain," Tair said.

Conan, meanwhile, had edged back to the hole and now peered into the water. Something was moving under the surface. He raised the spear and suddenly jabbed downward. The point struck something, and Conan flipped it up into the air, slinging it free of the spear. For the brief time that the spear had been in contact with the thing, he felt another of those shivery cold fires dance in his hands, but considerably weaker than before.

The thing fell onto the weed, and Conan went to examine it, followed by the others.

"What is it, a snake? Was he bit?" That from the boy.

Conan squatted next to the wriggling creature, being careful to avoid touching it. It was as long as his arm, and the thickness of his wrist. "Not a snake. An eel."

In truth, while the thing looked more like such a beast than anything else, it was not exactly like any eels Conan had seen before. Still, the name was as good as any.

"I have never heard of an eel with poison," Cheen said.

"I have," Conan said. "But I do not think Jube was bitten. This thing contains some power. Kin to the lightning, perhaps. I think that just touching it is worth your life."

The eel's wiggling slowed and grew less, until finally it stopped altogether.

"Well," Conan said, "magic or not, it can be killed. But we had best be certain to avoid falling into the water."

They all turned to look at the unfortunate Jube.

Blad led the way, testing the weed with his spear and hesitant steps. Rayk followed, and Thayla was behind him.

"Husband, I would not have you think me critical-"

"Hah! "

"-but," she continued, ignoring his interruption, "what is it you think we are going to do when we arrive at yon castle?"