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."The curse," he muttered breathlessly.As far as he could tell, this red mist worked to exaggerate one's emotions.Apparently the curse had found a hold in Ivan's sincere grief, a chink in the tough dwarfs magic-resistant constitution.Cadderly feared that it was taking hold of Ivan.The dwarfs blubbering increased with each passing moment; he could hardly draw breath, so violent was his weeping."Ivan," he said quietly, moving over to put a hand on the dwarfs shoulder."We can do no more for Pikel.Come away now.We have other business to attend."Ivan snapped an angry glare on Cadderly and smacked his hands away."Ye're wanting me to leave him?" the dwarf cried."Me brother! Me dead brother! No, I'm not going, never going.I'll stay by me brother's side.Stay here and keep me Pikel druid warm!""He is dead, Ivan," Cadderly said through his own budding sniffles."Gone.You cannot keep the warmth in his body.You cannot do anything for him""Shut yer mouth!" Ivan roared again, reaching for his axe.Cadderly thought the dwarf meant to chop him down, feared that Ivan blamed him for what had happened to Pikel, but Ivan never even found the strength to lift the heavy weapon and instead tumbled back down over Pikel.Cadderly realized that he would get nowhere reasoning with the grieving dwarf, but Ivan's outburst incited other ideas in the young scholar.There was one emotion that could overrule even grief, and Ivan seemed all too willing to let that emotion take charge."You can do nothing," Cadderly said again, "but repay the one who did this to Pikel."Suddenly Cadderly had Ivan's full attention."He is down here, Ivan," Cadderly prodded, though he didn't like leading the dwarf on like this."Pikel's killer is down here.""The imp!" Ivan roared, looking around wildly for the creature."No," Cadderly replied, "not the imp, but the imp's master.""The imp's what poisoned me brother!" Ivan protested."Yes, but the imp's master brought the imp, and the curse, and all the evil that led to Pikel's demise," replied Cadderly.He knew he was taking license in drawing such conclusions, but if he could get Ivan moving, then it would be worth the deceit."If we can defeat the master, then the imp and all the evil will follow."The master, Ivan," Cadderly said again, "he who brought the curse.""Ye brought the curse," Ivan snarled, fingering his two-headed axe again and eyeing Cadderly suspiciously."No," Cadderly quickly corrected, seeing his conniving tactics taking an entirely different light."I played an unfortunate role in its release, but I did not bring it.There is one down here-there must be-who brought the curse and sent the skeletons and the imp down here after us, down here to kill your brother!""Where is he?" Ivan cried, springing up from Pikel and clasping his heavy axe in both hands."Where's me brother's killer?" The dwarfs eyes darted all about wildly, as if he expected some new monster to appear at any moment."We must find him," Cadderly prodded."We can go back the way we came, back into the tunnels I remember.""Go back?" The idea didn't seem to please Ivan."Just until I remember the way, Ivan," Cadderly explained, "then we'll go forward, to the room with the cursed bottle, to where we shall find your brother's killer." He could only hope his words were true and that Ivan would relax by the time they found the room."Forward!" Ivan yelled, and he scooped up one of the barely glowing torches, whipped it about frantically to refuel the flame, and stormed off back the way they had come.Cadderly checked to make certain that he had all of his belongings, said a final good-bye to Pikel, and ran to catch up.They had not gone far when they came upon the first group of skeletons, five monsters wandering down a side passage.The disoriented skeletons, refugees from Druzil's disastrous battle, made no move to attack, but Ivan, blind with rage, turned on them with a fury that Cadderly had never before imagined."Ivan, no," Cadderly pleaded, seeing the dwarfs intent."Let them alone.We have more important…"Ivan never heard him.The dwarf let out a roar and a snarl and rushed at the skeletons.The two closest turned to meet the charge, but Ivan overwhelmed them.He launched a mighty side cut with his axe that cleaved one in half, then shifted the weapon's momentum as it whirled behind him and drove it straight over his head, coming down on top of the second skeleton with enough force to shatter the monster.Ivan let go of the weapon, entangled once more in bones, and caught the third skeleton with his deer-homed helmet, lifting the monster dear of the ground, shaking it wildly for a moment, then slamming it into the wall.The attack damaged the skeleton, but it also dislodged Ivan's helmet.The clawing fingers of the fourth skeleton found an opening in the dwarfs defenses and dug into the back of his neck.Cadderly came running down to help, readying his walking stick for a swing at Ivan's newest attacker.Before he could get into the fray, though, Ivan took things into Percival own hands.He reached around and caught the skeleton by its bony wrist, then pulled and spun for all his life.Cadderly dove for the ground, nearly sliced by the flying skeleton's legs and feet.Ivan picked up momentum in Percival twirl and soon had the skeleton spinning straight out at arms' length.He let the momentum build for a moment, then shuffled a step closer to a wall and let the bricks do Percival work.The skeleton slammed against them and broke apart and Ivan was left holding an unattached bone.The last of the skeletons was on the dwarf then, and Ivan, dizzy and a bit disoriented, took the monster's first clawing hand squarely in the face.Again Cadderly started to help Percival friend, but one of the other skeletons was back up and closing, still bearing Ivan's helmet entangled in its ribs.Ivan slammed a forearm into his attacker's ribs.The dwarf's stubby legs pumped wildly, driving the monster back toward a wall.When it pressed in, Ivan did not stop.His every muscle tensed and then snapped, launching him forward and bringing the only weapon he had available, his forehead, to bear.He slammed the skeleton in the face, and the creature's skull exploded in the crush between the rock wall and the dwarfs equally tough head.Bits of bone popped out to the sides, other pieces were ground into dust, and Ivan bounced back, Percival head badly gashed.Cadderly smacked at the remaining monster with Percival walking stick and snapped Percival spindle-disks into its face once and then again.The stubborn creature came on, slashing its bony fingers and forcing Cadderly into retreat.Soon, though, Cadderly felt the wall at his back and had nowhere left to run.One hand had latched firmly onto Cadderly's shoulder.The other slashed at his face
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