Free The Crystal Sorcerers by William R. Forstchen Page A

Gradually the world grew dimmer, as the light from above shifted through the red of the setting sun, to be replaced by the golden glow of the twin moons rising together to the east. Switching on their crystals, they continued to explore the bottom, looking into crevices and then into a vast array of caverns that dropped away into darkness.
    A gentle game of tag developed as the two lovers would break away and lazily chase each other. Ikawa found that he enjoyed the chase almost as much as the catch, as he skimmed behind Leti, watching her lithe naked body twisting and turning through the water.
    Before them, a sheer wall suddenly loomed up. Having crossed the length of the lake, they came to a stop beneath the vast cliff, which soared straight upwards to the towering battlement of Sarnak's keep. The wall before them was dotted with caves.
    "Close your eyes, turn off your sensing, and count to ten," Leti commanded. "Then practice trying to find me."
    He felt a vague uneasiness, but the playful mood still held sway and he followed her command. She was gone when he opened his eyes, so he used his sensing ability to sweep the area--first out behind him, but there was no one there. He shifted his attention forward, scanning the caves.
    Nothing.
    Suddenly there was the slightest flurry of movement to the right, at the mouth of a cave right on the bottom.
    "Got you," he cried, and zoomed for the entrance. The narrow opening closed around him, plunging him into blackness lit only by his crystal.
    There was movement straight ahead, and eagerly he pushed forward. The cave doglegged to the right, and he slowed to turn the corner, ready to reach out and grab her, for he could sense her presence lingering just on the other side.
    Ever so cautiously he came up to the edge, turning his beacon down to a narrow slit of light so as not to betray his presence. Lying on the bottom, he reached around to grab her by the legs. His hands grabbed something smooth, rounded, and cold.
    A scream of horror escaped him: In his hands was a human skull, shreds of flesh still dangling from it's face.
    The water swirled around him. Recoiling backward, he kicked out blindly, the water boiling around him in his frantic struggle.
    A demon that was the sickly pale white of a rotting corpse rose above him, its phosphorescent green teeth bared and its yellow eyes glowing with malevolence.
    Instinctively he raised his hand, a slash of light snapping out. The water boiled as the bolt of energy slammed through, catching the demon in the arm.
    The demon roared in pain and fury, its voice hollow and ominous in the watery depths.
    Pushing away, Ikawa rolled and twisted as the webbed talons cut through the water, catching him on the leg and pulling Ikawa toward his gaping maw.
    Curling up in a ball, Ikawa aimed another shot, catching the demon full in the face. The booming scream abruptly stopped as the beam tore its head off. The hold loosened and he kicked away, bolting for the pale light of the cave entrance.
    Half-blinded by terror he shot from the hole.
    "Ikawa!"
    Leti swung in alongside, a look of horror in her eyes as she saw the blood trailing from his leg.
    The caverns around them seemed to explode in a maelstrom of enraged nightmares.
    Leti fired three quick shots, each ripping a demon's body asunder. But still they came on.
    "Can you swim?" she cried.
    "I'll make it!" Ikawa grated, and the two raced through the water, two dozen or more pale forms swinging in behind them.
    "Leti, Ikawa, what is it?"
    "Get out of the lake!" Leti shouted. "Water demons!"
    "We're coming over," Mark yelled.
    "Ikawa, head for the surface," Leti cried, her voice full of concern.
    Ikawa shook his head. The panic was under control and now replaced by a grim anger at having been caught so off guard.
    The two continued to retreat, pulling the demons in behind them. Looking over his shoulder, he could see them swimming, their webbed hands and feet moving with smooth muscular strength, the