"If I had known you were going to hide up here in the hills I would have brought more supplies," said the merchant with a look around at the meager accommodations.

"We're not hiding really," said Lousa. "The mayor thought it would be best if we kept it away from prying eyes in town."

"It?" said Tanner.

"Don't pretend you haven't weaseled the information out of Humbort by now. The Staff of Naught."

"Where's the spirit?" shouted Shalalee as she looked up from the ground where she brushed Ariana's hair.

"Khemer comes and goes," said Lousa. "He claims to be searching for a way to destroy the staff but he hasn't given us any concrete ideas."

"And we do want to destroy it?" said Tanner.

"That depends on what you have to tell us," replied Lousa although she kept her distance from the man. She had tied back her hair in a neat bun instead of flowing freely around her shoulders and b.u.t.toned her dress to the neck.

"It's not pleasant, but it seems to jibe with everything Shamki's told me," said Tanner with a nod to the big half-orc.

"Go on," said Lousa.

"It's some sort of artifact that has to do with undead, but I suspect, judging by the stories Humbort tells, you were already aware of that."

"What about that shipwreck?"

"It's pretty much like Myris was saying back at the meeting. Hey, where is he?"

"Myris had an episode during the retrieval," said Hazlebub while Ariana and Unerus both began to giggle and poke at one another.

"An episode?" asked Tanner.

"Suffice it to say Myris is not currently part of the project nor do I suspect that he will be again," said Lousa.

"I see. Well, this artifact, the Staff of Naught?"

"Right," said Lousa with a nod of her head.

"It has power over undead creatures and priests of Smyrnala have spent the last thirty years infiltrating the Great Salt Fen in search of it."

"Why the fen?" asked Hazlebub as she came over and stood near Tanner.

"It's the tidal patterns," said Tanner. "After I spoke with a Fen Druid ..."

"You talked to a Fed Druid," jumped in Unerus suddenly deeply interested in the conversation.

The merchant nodded his head slowly for a moment and gathered his thoughts, "Dredogastus was an odd old bird, but I checked out some of the things he said and they're true. The tidal patterns send water from up here at the point north to the Great Salt Fen. I think water running over that thing you've got has been slowly acc.u.mulating in the fen for the last thirty years. Now that you've liberated it from the wreck those priests and priestesses are going to start looking elsewhere."

"I don't like the sound of that," said Lousa. "Have you spoken with the mayor about this yet?"

Tanner looked at the young woman, her green eyes turned stormy in the dim light of the cave, "I came straight here with Shamki but Mayor Shumba is going to hear about my wagon being on the road. We pa.s.sed any number of travelers on the way and people know me."

"That's true," said Lousa, tapping her chin with her forefinger. "Why don't you head into town with your family and tell him everything you told us. Hazlebub, you deal with those Fen Druids now and again don't you?"

The witch nodded her head and smiled to show the few remaining teeth she still had, "I've never heard of no Dredogastus but I deal with them on occasion. They have many strange roots and plants growing in the fen and they are plenty good for spells, potions, and the sort."

Tanner walked over to his wife and put his arm around her, "Gather up Tylan and Shalalee and let's get into town. You'll be safer there anyway. I don't want them getting too involved with the staff thing."

The plump woman nodded her head and walked over to where the two children watched intently although silently. "Come along you two, let's go into town and see what we can sell."

"I don't want to go!" said Shalalee. "I want to stay with dad and I want to see the staff."

"I won't go either, I want to stay," said Tylan. "I'm old enough to drive the wagon, shouldn't I be old enough to stay?"

"Enough out of you two," said Tanner and folded his arms over his chest. "You're going into town with your mother and I'm not going to hear another peep out of either one of you."

"Why can she stay," said Shalalee and pointed to Ariana, "she's younger than me."

"What did I just say," asked Tanner his eyes narrowed and his chin jut out.

"I'm older than Unerus," said Tylan.

"Am I invisible?" asked Tanner "Oh dad," said Shalalee her eyes rolled back.

"You two listen to your father," said Almara.

"But," started Tylan.

"No buts," said Almara. "Pack up your stuff and let's go to town."

The two children gathered up their things and said goodbye to their new friends and within a few minutes the cave was less three people.

"All right, Hazlebub," said Lousa and turned back to the old woman. "Do you know anything about the worshippers or Smyrnala and the fen?"

The old woman shook her hand and puckered her lips before giving out a long "Hmmmm," and then stood silently for a few more moments. Everyone around the cave stared at her, waiting for some reply but she rewarded them with another long, "hmmm."

"I think ...," started Humbort and at that moment the old witch immediately interrupted.

"Them death priestesses have been around the fen for a while now is what I heard," she said in a rather low voice as if in a whisper and yet loud enough for everyone to hear. "I'd be cautious about bandying that name around too much with that thing," a nod of her head to the back area of the cave, "just around the corner. They say she hears everything spoken where the dead can hear and if that staff ain't dead then I don't know what is."

Humbort's eyes opened wide and he clapped his hand over his mouth.

"She's a girl, this Smyrna person?" asked Ariana with a yawn and a stretch of her arms.

Everyone looked at the girl for a moment before Lousa answered. "Yes, she's a woman, but why do you ask?"

"It's just that most of the G.o.ds are men it seems like and being G.o.d of death seems like a boy job," said the girl and shrugged her shoulders with a sideways glance around the room.

Shamki looked hard at the girl for a moment and opened his mouth as if to say something but then closed it again.

"Yeah," said her brother. "Since when do you care about the G.o.ds?"

"I don't," replied the girl with another yawn. "I was just asking, no reason," although it took every bit of her willpower not to look in the direction of the terrible staff. "Come on, let's go play catch as catch can, c'mon Humbort, Hazlebub?" With that she jumped up and grabbed her brother and Humbort by the arms and marched out of the cave.

Hazlebub stayed behind for a moment with Tanner and Lousa and gave them a look before she headed out to join the others.

"What do you make of that," asked Lousa of Tanner.

The merchant shrugged his shoulders. "It seems like a legitimate question. Most of the G.o.ds are men and I've often wondered how ... she ... became ruler of the dead. I mean, I know she has always and forever ruled the dead but it just somehow feels wrong. I can't put my finger on it exactly but just like ... I can't really say."

"I suppose so," said Lousa and scratched her head. "I don't know much about her or her worshippers but there has always been something ... wrong with it. It's just that Ariana was the one who carried the staff first and I've seen her looking at it like she has some sort of connection. That thing was underwater for thirty years and she was the first person to touch it. She's just a little girl and that thing is powerful."

"Speaking of that thing," said Tanner. "I haven't had the privilege yet."

Lousa pointed to the back part of the cave where the small alcove kept the thing out of sight, "Help yourself."

Tanner walked with steady strides all the way up to the corner and then slowed his pace, taking the last few steps as if he walked through water and leaned forward to peer at the staff. It rested against the wall, apparently the forearm of a man ending in a clawed grip. At first glance it actually appeared to be skeletal remains but sinews and muscles filled the gaps between the two major bones. Tanner had served in the Hakor'lum war ten years previously against the big hobgoblin creatures and knew what the interior of the human body looked like. The artifact was an excellent representation as best he could remember and the sight of it brought back a few terrible memories that caused the merchant to shudder violently. He took a deep breath and moved closer to the thing and began to examine it minutely and so did not hear the tiny footsteps of Lousa as she moved in behind him.

He put his hand to within inches of the thing but there was no aura of cold or sickly necromantic magic that he had seen before from Priests of Smyrnala during the war. The clawed hand was clearly meant to hold something about the size of an orange but there was no evidence to suggest what it might be. He turned around and found himself almost in the arms of Lousa who had moved in behind him. "Oh, sorry," he said and backed up almost hitting the staff.

Lousa grabbed him by the arm and he felt an electric shock at her touch. "Careful," she said with a nod and he realized how close he had come to the thing. After a moment she released her grip and backed away. The two then walked slowly back to the main room.

"Little Ariana was the first to touch it?"

"I regret it now but the situation was dynamic and there wasn't time to make a better decision. Unerus tripped the skeleton that was carrying it, Ariana grabbed it, and Hazle, Shamki, and I fought off the skeletons and covered her retreat."

"I'm not sure I like the idea of her being around the thing," said Tanner. "And now that I've seen it I certainly don't want my children anywhere near it."

"We all want to destroy it but that d.a.m.n ghost can't seem to remember how to go about it."

"Shamki mentioned the ghost," said Tanner and looked around. "How do you know it's not here right now listening to us?"

"The thing glows blue," said Lousa with a shrug of her shoulders. "You can usually see it pretty clearly even as it's coming through the walls. That's not to say it has to glow blue, it might be able to control its aura, I don't know. I'm not even sure it really wants to destroy the staff."

"What do you mean?" Tanner whispered and moved closer, so much so that the lingering aura of her perfume came to his nostrils that flared a bit.

"I'm not ready to share my suspicions with anyone at this point," said the woman as she carefully watched his face and whispered in a husky voice and let her breath blow over his ear.

"Well, I ...," said Tanner with a shake of his head as he moved back several steps. "I ... can understand being cautious. This whole episode has gotten way out of control. Has anyone checked on all those skeletons back at the coast?"

"All lifeless," said Lousa. "We looked into that right away. They dropped where they stood right after we brought the staff up here."

"Why didn't they chase you?"

"We don't know that, we're relying on Khemer to give us information but the ghost is around less and less. We might need to bring in a priestess of death, but if they learn about the staff they will surely want it for their own."

"That's a bad idea," said Tanner. "I'm afraid me asking questions in Lycidas probably already alerted them to something going on and when they notice the water flow isn't carrying whatever signature that thing had they will know it's been found. We don't have a lot of time to figure out what to do."

"No, the mayor will want to use the staff for his own ends, not destroy it," said Lousa.

"That might not be the worst idea in the world," said Tanner.

"If that happens it's just a matter of time until agents of the queen arrive and then who knows what will happen. Destroying the thing seems like the best idea to me but I'm not sure we can rely on Khemer to give us accurate information."

"And we can't talk to the priests of death," said Tanner, his hand first rubbed his chin and then scratched in front of his ear.

"I know it sounds traitorous," said Lousa, "but I've been thinking about Tarlton and Seymour the Bright."

"According to my sources in Lycidas he was very interested in catching that ship and being granted salvage rights," said Tanner. "He might be after the staff. If it is an artifact of death, and right now I can't believe it is anything but, then it would stand to reason that Seymour would want it destroyed."

"It makes sense but what if he wanted it for its power?" asked Lousa. "And if we give him a powerful relic we are traitors to Doria!"

"What other choice do you have?"

Lousa put her hands on her hips and stared at the merchant for a long moment, her eyes moving back and forth in their sockets, "None, I have no other choice except to run away and leave the thing to somebody else. Little Unerus and Ariana could come with me ... but, no, they would track us down."

"You've grown fond of those two haven't you?" asked Tanner and looked down on the beautiful woman whose eyes immediately seemed to become emerald green although her face tensed into a mask of impa.s.sivity.

"I've ... I've always wanted to have children but elf blood is notoriously barren. Not that I'm above trying with a handsome man now and again," she said, moving her hips in a slow circle and licked her upper lip while slightly arching her back.

Tanner blinked several times and took a few more steps backwards, "Speaking of those kids maybe I'll talk with Ariana and I've got to head into town to see how my wife is and talk to the mayor. He'll be wondering what we're discussing up here out of his earshot. He's a smart man, Mayor Shumba. I'm surprised he hasn't been up here to visit and check the thing out."

"I've been wondering that myself," said Lousa.

Chapter 11.

Mayor Shumba sat at his desk, covered with papers and the two thirds devoured remains of what looked to be a chicken, writing something down with a quill pen when the knock came on the door. "Come in," he said without a look up.

Tanner entered the room with quick movements and stood before the mayor a moment later, "I'm sorry I didn't come right away but you did say that Lousa was running this project."

"I completely understand," said Jorum, leaning back in his chair with a wide smile, and spreading his arms out to either side. "Who wouldn't want to see Lousa after a long week on the trail with your wife and kids?"

"I went to see her because you told me she was in charge of the project."

"I said I understood completely," replied the mayor again with a wide smile. "I understand you ran into Shamki and Humbort on the way into town?"

Tanner nodded his head, "Yes, they came out to find me so that I would know where Lousa was holed up."

"So," said the mayor. "You're here now; shall we get on with your report?"

"Of course mayor," said Tanner and started towards the smaller chair that sat in front of the desk, "May I?"

The mayor waved his right hand palm up and bobbed his head a single time.