Part 39 (1/2)

If Conan had ever doubted the stark horror of the er He also doubted that he would ever again put hiered back into his aresture ”Quickly,” she whispered ”Have another man throw a spear”

”You!” Conan called The iron self-command in his voice steadied the warriors The man addressed drew back and put all the force of his best throw behind the spear It struck not far from the wound made by the first warrior

A scale cracked across; this time the blood only oozed out As Conan watched, the wound from the first spear closed Only a smear of blood on the serpent's neck showed that it had ever taken any hurt Another s on the floor, not far from the corpse of the man who had lost his foot to the serpent That h his flesh, and through the green foulness that played over and around it

E at us, and wound it each time it comes We must keep our distance, too It heals itself soether It will lose strength; I will see to that”

”How long will it take to die?”

The Golden Serpent hissed in challenge, pain, and defiance The hiss again raised such echoes that Emwaya could not have made herself heard had she shouted into Conan's ear

As the serpent withdrew soently

”It will die swiftly ifto mine We can take from it the power to steal life-force, which is how it heals as it does”

Conan thought uncharitable words about sorcerers It seemed that the breed was alith you when you did not want them and so his sword ”We've need to fight this beast by retreating before it Baggage men, take the rear rank The best spearmen, take the foremost Guard Emwaya at all costs, and for the love of every God, don't close with the monster!”

Faces showed that the bravest warrior needed no urging on that last point Conan snatched up a spear froe and joined the rear rank as Valeria ran to stand beside Ele ed, the serpent lowered its head and cae so boldly this time A spear and a trident flew The spear sank deep, the trident glanced off the horn on the nose The trident-throould have dashed forward to retrieve his weapon but for Conan's wordless roar that halted hie a battle as Conan had ever fought

Overgrown snakes were not uncommon-too co theht a serpent that had its own ht one as leader of a band of warriors

A good band, too, he thought as he saw one of the slingers wind up and hurl his stone It flew true, striking one of the blazing green eyes

Conan expected the eye to shatter rather than burst, but it did neither Instead, it merely quivered like jelly, turned reen once more

The creature hissed, and this time, anyone could tell that it was in pain Emwaya bit her lip until blood ca

”Be ready, everyone He'll lunge again!”

The warning was life to at least three reat head crashed dohere they would have been standing had they not joined the retreat

Twenty paces to the rear, the band stood again, save for two ain Conan's roar saved one from folly as the man struck at the beast's nose with his club The warrior rejoined his comrades without his club or spear, but with a whole skin

Then the band put another thirty paces between itself and the Golden Serpent, while Eh to drown out the sound of the creature's hissing The two spears reush of blood that pushed theer

Victory could be theirs, Conan realized, for all that this was a battle that only a ht be the lastbeside the dead serpent, but they would have it!