Read Masks of Scorpio for Free Online Page A

kingdom; out here what the local lords said went — double. This river, running between the two kovnates, was neglected. Once it was brought under a single control it could bloom and produce amazing riches.
    Trouble was — who was to rule, Kov Apgarl na Malpettar or Kov Pando na Bormark?
    “From what I’ve seen,” said Pompino, giving a twirl to his whiskers, “I wouldn’t back either of ’em with a single copper ob. If you want my opinion, the man to put the money on is our villainous Strom Murgon—”
    “What!” exclaimed Dayra. “You’re backing our enemy?”
     
    She was trying to fit into her new part, then. Until recently Strom Murgon had believed Dayra, with Zankov, to be his staunch allies against everyone including their homeland of Vallia.
    “Not with any pleasure, Ros. But I’ve seen little of this Pando our Jak here knew as a young man.
    Murgon — well, he’ll get more money—”
    Dayra, Ros Delphor, half-lifted her hand. Her face looked stricken.
    “What is it!”
    “Why,” said Dayra, “why — the treasure the witch melted, that disappeared — it will—”
    Pompino jumped up and down. His whiskers bristled. He looked incensed past all bearing.
    “Of course! By Horato the Potent! The devils!”
    I must admit that with all the experience we had of sorcery we’d been slow in arriving at the obvious conclusion. That striking white-haired witch in the body-hugging gown, whoever she was, would not just melt down the gold and let it run into the sea, wisp away, vanish. Oh, no. No, she’d collected it up through her thaumaturgical powers. That mass of gold and silver coins once more rested in the coffers of Strom Murgon.
    “May the obnoxious and pestiferous odors of the Divine Lady of Belschutz overwhelm them!” roared Cap’n Murkizon. “Then it is all to do again!”
    “We will, Cap’n,” said Pompino, with a snap. “We will.”
    “It is not quite the same this time, though,” I said.
    “True. Maybe I spoke a little too harshly about your friend Pando.” Pompino was not going to apologize for a trifling matter like this. “If the chance affords itself of sinking a blade into Murgon, that we’ll do right merrily.”
    Naghan the Pellendur walked up, perhaps a trifle more relieved that the ship sailed quiet waters with green land on either beam. He still tugged at his whiskers with the same nervous violence. “Pettarsmot, horters,” he said. “My advice would be that if we sail in we will not be received in any friendly spirit.
    Quite the contrary.”
    Pompino said: “My thought, exactly.”
    “We’re from South Pandahem,” objected Murkizon. “They won’t know we have the welfare of Kov Pando at heart.”
    His words should not have surprised me. When a fellow signs up to do a job one may sort the leems from the ponshos. Murkizon was a ship captain, temporarily without a command, employed by Pompino.
    He was not quite the same as any of the other mercenaries. Yet they shared this common feeling. I truly believe that what they had witnessed of Lem the Silver Leem had wrought marvelously upon them. They shared our dedication. Dayra had seen that, too.
    “So we land on the Malpettar bank and march in, a normal group of travelers. If we tried to enter the town from the Bormark side we would face more awkward questions.”
    “That is the best.”
    So, that is what we agreed. Captain Linson was most heartily pleased and relieved. He would keep most of his crew and they’d return downriver. As to what he did then...
    Cap’n Murkizon was not prepared to push his opinion after the disastrous — to him — decisions he had made before we fought the Shanks. Anyway, it seemed best to us all to try to handle the forthcoming day or two with cunning and quietness rather than violence. That, we all felt, would come later, and in plenty.
    Well, as you shall hear, we were right, well and truly right...
    Naghan the Pellendur told us that Mindi the Mad, who was with Pando at Plaxing,