By Blood Betrayed (The Kingsblood Chronicles) by David Houpt Page B

which remained, redistributing the dust, after he’d opened the door and entered the chamber beyond.
    Once he was through, he asked, “Do I need to reseal the door now?” As he awaited Lord Grey’s reply, he propped Gem against the wall and fumbled for the wand that Elowyn had made for him. He put it in his mouth and reclaimed Gem.
    “No,” answered the skull. “The Tower will remain Sealed until you order it to Unseal.”
    This room, too, was powdered with fragments of the statue, and he concentrated on the wand’s enchantment. His progress left no traces behind, and a small whisper of magic from Gem eradicated the prints closest to the door.
    He realized that he’d been in the Tower for some time now, and it was imperative that he find a way out before Rishak’s mages managed to get reinforcements in. Rishak would know that some hostile entity was in the Tower, just not what or who.
    He noticed that the room he had entered appeared to have been some sort of audience chamber, as he moved through it and into the next room. There were more statues here, but they were all shattered, and the pieces lay scattered forlornly about the room. Lian, concentrating on the wand’s magic, picked his way through carefully, not wishing to lose his balance.
    The room was actually a grand hallway, with three doors. Choosing the far door randomly, he slowly opened it. Inside were more statues, most of them intact, but these were different from the ones he’d seen before. They were of several different varieties of creatures, predominantly winged, and didn’t seem to be of the proper proportions.
    Lian stopped concentrating on the magic of the wand, and fumbled it back into his pouch. “Carvings?” he asked.
    “Enchanted, whatever they are,” replied Gem.
    “Agreed,” said Lord Grey with a smug tone. “They are enchanted most strongly. They will provide the way out, My Prince.”
    He moved among them, examining sculptures of dragons, great birds, and unfamiliar creatures he assumed were conjured beasts. The floor was littered with debris, for some of the statues had evidently been broken, their pieces strewn about the chamber. The thought occurred to Lian that there weren’t enough pieces to account for statues of the size represented here, as if the statues were mere shells containing . . . what?
    Lian, absorbed in his inspection of the beautiful carvings, lost his footing on one of larger broken pieces. His hand flew out reflexively to check his fall, and Gem fell from his grasp.
    “No!” cried Lord Grey and Gem together, but too late, for his hand landed on the statue of a gryphon.
    Musical, crystalline tones belled from the air around the statue, followed by a flare of electric green light. The statue cracked in a thousand places, like a hard-boiled egg rolled on hard rock. Bursting forth from its apparent imprisonment, the gryphon leapt from its pedestal. Its head was that of a great eagle, richly feathered in white. Its body was enveloped in shimmering golden feathers, and the talons on its forelegs gleamed. Its lionine hindquarters were a resplendent gilt, and its powerful tail lashed.
    It hissed and fixed its eagle eyes on Lian, who hurriedly picked up his sword.
    Narrowing its eyes, it glanced about briefly, then advanced toward the young man.
    “Stop right there!” Lian commanded, fervently hoping that either the gryphon’s bindings or the Key of Firavon would afford him some authority over the beast. Gryphons were immensely powerful, equaled only by the dragonkind for sheer physical might. They were also highly resistant to magic; as a result they were difficult to summon and even more difficult to control.
    It did stop, and cocked its head, as if waiting for sorcerous reinforcement to the command. None was forthcoming, so it continued its approach, moving with an agile, cat-like grace.
    “Gilaeshar, don’t eat the boy. I believe he can get you out of here,” said Lord Grey, impatience apparent in his