Arvin’s breath caught. Would she kill him now? Then he realized that Naneth was bluffing—trying to make Arvin sweat a little. As if being trapped in an egg wasn’t doing that readily enough.
“Lord Wianar knows better than to trust you,” he countered. “But he trusts me.” He paused. “What can you offer me, if I help you?”
“Your life,” Naneth said, relief evident in her voice, “and the gratitude of a god.”
“That’s a good start,” Arvin agreed. He rapped on the inside of the egg with the hilt of his dagger. “But I’m not going to negotiate from inside an egg. Let me out of here, and we’ll talk.”
Arvin was jostled back and forth, and a seam of light shone in through a rip in the egg. He saw Naneth’s pudgy fingers—impossibly large—tear the egg, widening the rip, and felt the liquid drain away. Suddenly he was breathing air once more. The egg parted into two halves, and he fell. The floor of the but rushed up to meet him….
Before it struck him, he returned to his full size. His feet hit the floor with a thud. He staggered then regained his balance. As he looked up, he saw that the rainbows were gone—and that Karrell was hanging from the ceiling, just behind Naneth. She was swaying back and forth, hissing softly. No, not hissing, whispering the words of her charm spell.
A spell that, Arvin knew, would have no effect whatsoever on Naneth.
Reacting to the hissing, Naneth whirled to face Karrell.
“Naneth,” Karrell hissed. “I have an urgent message for Sibyl from the ssthaar of the Se’sehen. Where is she?”
Naneth’s eyes narrowed. One hand was behind her back; with it, she began a complicated gesture that could only have been the start of a spell. Karrell, under the impression that Naneth had been charmed, didn’t seem to have noticed. She just hung there, swaying, about to take the brunt of whatever spell Naneth was going to cast.
The time for bluffing was over.
Arvin leaped forward, seizing the midwife’s hand and clamping a hand over her mouth, but Naneth twisted her head aside and spat out a one-word incantation. Electricity shot into Arvin’s hands and surged through his body, throwing him backward. He landed heavily on the floor, heart rattling in his chest, gasping for breath.
Naneth turned away, ignoring him. “Tell me your message. I’ll convey it.”
Karrell’s head swayed back and forth. “My message is for Sibyl’s ears alone. Where is she?”
Arvin, listening, knew that Karrell’s attempt to pry information from Naneth was doomed. Under the compulsion of a charm spell, the midwife might have overlooked the extremely coincidental arrival of a messenger from Tashalar, asking exactly the same question “Lord Wianar’s spy” had just asked. Without the charm, everything Karrell said was an obvious lie. Naneth was toying with Karrell, buying time to cast a spell. Once again, her hand was behind her back, her fingers working.
Forcing himself up off the floor, Arvin threw his dagger. It spun through the air, striking Naneth in the back. But instead of penetrating, the weapon fell harmlessly to the floor, deflected by magic. The midwife spun and leveled a pointing finger at Arvin.
Karrell hissed sharply, glanced between Naneth and Arvin, and sank her teeth into Naneth’s shoulder.
Naneth’s eyes widened. She jerked away, clamping a hand to her injured shoulder. Barking out a two-word incantation, she vanished.
Arvin clambered to his feet.
Karrell dropped from the ceiling, shifted into human form, and rose gracefully to her feet. Despite the urgency of the moment, the sight of her, naked, took Arvin’s breath away. Her words, however, were harsh. “Why did you do that? In another moment she would have told me where Sibyl was.”
“No she wouldn’t; your charm spell didn’t work,” Arvin said, rising to his feet. “Naneth is shielded against spells that affect the mind. She knew you were lying and was about to cast a spell on you. I was afraid you’d be killed.”
Karrell’s eyes softened. “I thought the same… about you.”
“I know,” Arvin said, touching her cheek. He let his hand fall. “I’m sure whatever spell Naneth was about to cast wouldn’t have been very pleasant. But at least we won’t have to worry about her anymore. Yuan-ti venom is… pretty potent stuff, right?”
“My bite is not venomous.”
“Oh,” Arvin said. He frowned. “We’d better get out of here, then. As soon as Naneth figures out she hasn’t been poisoned, she’ll be back. And she won’t be happy—with either one of us.” He peered outside the door. The satyrs had obeyed Naneth’s instructions and were waiting outside, but they looked agitated. They were talking in low voices, and pointing toward the hut.
Arvin beckoned Karrell to the doorway. “Do you have all of a yuan-ti’s usual magical abilities?” he whispered.
She nodded.
