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.Arilyn pulled a knife from her boot and hurled it into the creature's open, snarling mouth.With a strangled gurgle, the beast stopped dead.The chain kept whirling, however, wrapping itself around the lizard man's arm with a cracking of bone.To Arilyn's surprise the monster merely spat blood and switched its weapon to its other hand.Danilo's wild ride brought him too close to the axe-wielding brown lizard.The monster hoisted his weapon and swung, slashing the nobleman's silk sleeve from elbow to wrist and drawing blood.Danilo galloped several yards away, then reined in his horse and regarded his ruined garment with dismay.He jabbed a finger at the lizards."That's it.Now I'm angry," he informed them.The lizard men roared and continued to lumber toward Danilo, chain and axe raised for the kill."When in doubt, run," Danilo announced to the marsh at large.He wheeled his horse around and headed to the north.The lizard men fell in behind him."Oh, no you don't," Arilyn shouted at the monsters.For lack of another weapon to hurl, she snatched up a stone and threw it."Stand and fight, you overgrown sacks of shoe leather!"The missile struck the axe-wielding lizard man in the back of the head.Bellowing its fury, it threw its weapon aside and thundered back toward Arilyn.The beast lunged forward in an elemental frenzy, its fangs bared.Arilyn stood her ground until the last moment, then she dove to one side and rolled safely away.The charging lizard's jaws closed on air, and the monster skidded to a stop, arms windmilling wildly as it struggled to maintain its balance.Arilyn came in low and sliced the lizard man cleanly across its throat.The beast crashed nose-first into the ground.With a brief nod of satisfaction, the half-elf headed off at a run in the direction of Danilo and the final foe.She easily overtook the wounded and slow-moving beast, and stomped hard on its tail to distract it from its overdressed prey.With an incongruous squeak, the lizard spun around.Ignoring Arilyn, it dropped its chain weapon and gathered up its tail and draped it over its wounded arm, gazing mournfully down at the tip and emitting pitiful, chirruping whimpers.Involuntarily, Arilyn's sword arm lowered.Suddenly the beast stiffened.It hissed, gurgled, and slumped twitching to the earth.A sword protruded from its neck at a hideous angle.Behind the fallen lizard man stood Danilo Thann.Not bothering to advertise his intent, the dandy had quietly skewered the monster through the back of the neck.Arilyn felt a sudden and unreasonable flash of anger."Where are the goblins?" she demanded, thinking it better to vent her rage on them than on her hostage.Danilo pointed.To Arilyn's surprise, all six members of the goblin hunting party lay in a bloody pile.Breathing heavily, she held the moonblade up before her.Its light was almost gone, a sure sign that the danger was past and the battle over.She sheathed the weapon and turned to the nobleman.For a long moment they regarded each other silently over the dead body of the brown lizard man."You had to kill him like that?"Danilo recoiled, blinking in surprise."Whatever are you talking about? Him who? There's a lot of dead 'hims' out here to choose from, you know.A few 'hers' too, I would imagine, although I'm no expert on lizard anatomy."Arilyn raked one hand through her sweat-soaked black curls."Forget it.Where's my horse?""She won't be far away," Danilo said.He placed one boot gingerly on the brown scales of the lizard man and yanked out his sword.After fastidiously wiping it clean on a clump of marsh grass, Danilo took the reins of his mare and went in search of the other mount.Arilyn trudged after him.They hadn't far to go, for Arilyn's horse milled just inside the walls of the ruined keep.Danilo produced some sugar lumps from his magic sack, and coaxed the mare to him.The horse sniffed, then its rubbery lips folded around the sugar in Danilo's outstretched palm.The dandy smiled and scratched the white star on the horse's forehead."The sugar should sweeten your temper a tad, my pretty," he said.The horse nickered softly and nudged at Danilo with her muzzle."It worked!" he said.He cast a speculative look at Arilyn, then with a sly smile he offered her a sugar lump.Arilyn blinked, her mouth dropping open in astonishment.Then her worn face lit up unexpectedly and she laughed."I shall accept that as an apology," Danilo stated, an expression of delight flooding his face as he surveyed the loveliness of her usually stern visage."Quite a fight, eh?"His frank admiration disconcerted her, and his casual approach to battle defied her perception of him.Danilo Thann was not quite the helpless, shallow dandy he appeared.He was dangerous, in more ways than one.Arilyn's smile faded, and her eyes narrowed in suspicion."The goblins are dead," she observed.Danilo quirked an eyebrow as he surveyed the carnage around them."You have a firm grasp on the obvious.""How?" she persisted, ignoring his teasing.He shrugged lightly."You know goblins.They're always fighting among themselves and.""Enough!" Arilyn snapped, rounding on him."I am not a fool.I do not enjoy being treated like one.""You get used to it," Danilo interjected mildly as he adjusted the angle of his hat."To which, no doubt, you can attest," she noted with asperity."Whatever else you may be, though, you can fight.Where did you learn to fight goblins?"He grinned disarmingly."I have five older brothers.""Very amusing," she said dryly, crossing her arms over her chest as she studied the man."That is not enough to explain your skill or your confidence in battle.""All right then, would you believe six brothers?"Arilyn's shoulders sagged in defeat."This isn't getting me anywhere," she muttered to herself.She straightened and addressed the young man in a brisk tone."All right.Your secrets are your own.You saved my life, and I owe you.You have more than earned your freedom."From beneath the brim of his hat, Danilo gazed pointedly around the forbidding landscape."How lovely," he drawled."Now that I'm no longer strictly necessary to you, you no longer require my company.In compensation, I get to pass some time in the Marsh of Chelimber, taking in the sights, conversing with the natives.A bargain, by my eyes.Tell me, am I to undertake this suicidal journey on foot?""Of course not," she retorted."You'll ride."Danilo lay one hand on his chest, a dramatic gesture of gratitude."Ah, the lady gifts me indeed—freedom that I could have taken for myself and one of my own steeds.They are my horses, by the way.Truly, I'm overwhelmed."Arilyn gritted her teeth and silently counted to ten.With sorely tested patience she spelled out her intent: "At daybreak, we head south.Both of us.Once we find a merchant train, I'll leave you in their care.Now do you understand?""Ah.Thank you for the kind thought, but no."Exasperated, the half-elf sank onto the ground and dropped her weary head into her hands.It would seem that the fop had something of the merchant in him after all; judging from his tone, he was prepared to barter like a Calimshite peddlar."I take it you have something else in mind?" she observed
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