The Secret Of The Unicorn Queen -The Dark Gods Read Online Free Page B

head. 
         "Here, Dian," the healer murmured. "Drink this potion. It will revive you.” 
         Sheila bit her lip. What had happened to Dian? Her clothing was dirt-stained and disheveled, and the usually neat dark hair hung about her pale face in a wild tangle. 
         And what about Dian's unicorn? wondered Sheila, her heart racing. Swiftfoot would never willingly abandon her rider. Where was she? 
         Dian's eyes fluttered open. For a moment they were glazed and blind with terror, but then they focused. Seeing the worried faces before her, she gave a shaky sigh of relief. 
         "Pelu. Sheila. Illyria." 
         ''Yes, Dian.'' 
         Illyria's voice was so cool that Sheila looked at her in surprise. 
         "We're all here," the Unicorn Queen continued. "Come, now. Try to sit up." 
         Dian took one last sip of Pelu's potion, then obeyed. 
         "I-I think I can stand now. I'm not hurt, really. I just I've been running all night and I-I just couldn't go any farther." 
         "I see." There wasn't much sympathy in Illyria's eyes. "Can you talk now?" 
         Swallowing convulsively, Dian nodded. 
         "Fine," said the Unicorn Queen emotionlessly. "You are one of my warriors, Dian. I don't take kindly to desertion." 
         "It wasn't . . . I didn't 
         "No? Then tell me what it was—what you did do." 
         "Illyria," Pelu began, but the Unicorn Queen shook her head. 
         "If she is to remain one of us, Pelu, she must act like one of us. Come, Dian. Speak." 
         Dian sighed. "I didn't mean to desert, truly. I didn't mean to run off like that at all. What happened was… Well, I had a fight with someone last night. Someone I thought cared about— Never mind." She shot Sheila a quick, spiteful glance, but added, "I would rather not say with whom I had the fight." 
         Illyria waved that off impatiently. "I believe I can guess. But forget that for now. Continue your story." 
         "Oh. Yes. Anyhow, the fight made me so angry, I guess I just stopped thinking. I just wanted to get away from there, so I…” 
         "Rushed heedlessly off?" Pelu prompted gently. 
         Dian nodded. "Oh, I left a note. I didn't want you to worry about me. Then . . I didn't bother with a saddle. I just jumped onto Swiftfoot's back and rode. I didn't know where I was going. And I really didn't care. We rode on and on, I'm not sure how far. Pretty soon Swiftfoot started insisting she wanted to go back. And I . . . Well, by that point, I had forgotten all about being angry. I just wanted to get back to the estate, too. But I couldn't find it!" 
         "Why didn't you simply let Swiftfoot find the way?" asked Illyria. 
         "I tried that. But she didn't know which way to turn, either." 
         "Come, now, I can't believe-" 
         "It's true! You see, even though the night had been clear up to that point, all of a sudden, there was a weird fog all around us, a thick, dank, evil-smelling fog." 
         "So," murmured Illyria, and Sheila shuddered, recalling Cam's account of that vile fog. "Continue." 
         Dian bowed her head submissively. "Ahead of me I could hear voices. I wanted to call for help, but . . . something made me hesitate. Instead, I rode cautiously forward through the fog. And suddenly I realized the truth: those voices belonged to King Kumuru and his followers!" Dian broke off with a sob, staring fearfully at the Unicorn Queen. 
         Fearfully? thought Sheila. That's funny. She looks scared, all right. But her eyes are so—so blank! Nobody else seemed to notice, though, so Sheila didn't say anything. Dian continued, trembling, "Oh, Illyria, I overheard all their plans! Kumuru has worked some sort of mighty sorcery. He's opened a magic portal in the stone circle, a sorcerous doorway."
         Sheila tensed, thinking of Dr. Reit and the "magic portal" that had first brought her to this