Free The Magic Of Krynn by Various Page B

turned his gaze back to the harbor.
    The prisoners were being marched off the wharf by the troops and the hobgoblin officer.
     The last prisoner in the coffle was the tailor, a gray-haired, elderly man with a wrinkled
     face. His eyes were dull with fatigue. Thin and tall, about six feet in height, the tailor
     had stooped shoulders from years of leaning over his nee- dles.
    The guards may have been careless, for the leg irons around
    Old Tom's ankles were loose. Suddenly, without attracting attention, the tailor stepped
     out of
    the leg irons and bolted from the shuffling line of prisoners. His escape would have been
     successful, if he had not stumbled over a rope and fallen to his knees.
    “Seize him!” cried the hobgoblin officer.
    Now, Tom the tailor was up and running across the weathered boards of the wharf, heading
     for the street ahead. There was a moment's confusion among the guards before they began
     running after the old man, so Tom had a head-start.
    Even so, one soldier began to overtake the tailor. As William, Sintk, and Harum El-Halop
     watched helplessly, the grim-faced draconian thrust its hand out to grab the tailor's
     flapping tunic. The tailor stopped abruptly, spun around, and swung his fist at the dra-
     conian.
    The force of the blow knocked both the tailor and the draconian off their feet. The tailor
     fell back on the cobblestones. The draconian weaved to a halt on rubbery legs, its hands
     clawing at its injured throat.
    Within moments, the desperate tailor got to his feet and fled up the street, past the
     Missionary's Downfall, where William and his friends were still standing, mouths agape. A
     second later, he vanished into an alley. Two soldiers pursued the fleeing prisoner.
    Harum the minotaur grinned in derision as the hobgoblin officer in command bustled past,
     his fat belly bouncing like jelly above his wide leather belt. The hobgoblin noticed his
     audience and stopped, his face twisting with anger. Ignoring the powerful minotaur, he
     focused on poor William and drew his sword, pressing the tip of the blade against the
     front of William's throat.
    “Maybe you'd like to come along with us instead,” the hobgoblin snarled.
    William trembled. He shoved his shaking hands into his pockets to hide his fear from his
     friends. His stubby fingers closed over the coin as he prayed fervently for deliverance.
    If only . . . “I'm waiting for your answer,” sneered the hobgoblin. William made a
     grunting noise like the excited squeal of a
    frightened piglet. The hobgoblin cocked his head for an instant, looked at Sintk and
     Harum, then lowered his sword. He chuckled as William's body shivered with fright.
    A sudden shout came from the alley. Then, two draconian soldiers came out of the lane with
     the tailor held fast between them. He jerked and twisted to break free of their grasp. The
     hobgoblin
    officer sheathed his sword and walked away to join his troops. “Close,” whispered Sintk.
     “Poor Tom,” said William. Harum El-HaIup stood quietly with his arms folded over his
    chest. He watched imperiously as the troops prodded the coffle of prisoners toward the
     castle. Then the minotaur shrugged and slapped William on the shoulder.
    “Every dog has its day,” Harum said. “Old Tom should have known better. I told him to mind
     his own business, keep sewing, and not get ambitious with his thinking. But, my friends,
     let us slake our thirst and forget about having those reptiles in town. And some-day we
     will throw them over, and you, William, will be our leader.” He laughed.
    Accompanied by Harum, William and Sintk walked gloomily into the murkiness of the
     Missionary's Downfall. The bar was crowded with dwarves, humans, hobgoblins, and a group
     of hard- looking draconians drinking in the back. Several half-elves were noisily testing
     their mental prowess with a game of riddles. A drunken hobgoblin lay passed out beside his
     chair. Two