A/N: A few days ago we were left with an interesting conundrum: How do we split up the Majere's in a similar manner to the original Dragons of a Summer Flame, but not kill any of them so that the Abyss/Meeting of the Gods scene was relatively the same? We hope our answer is a good one...

Chapter Eight
The Lost City

Raistlin woke to the sound of lightening strikes. Tanin and Sturm were already up and their armor on. Tanin helped Raistlin to his feet and quickly helped him into his. Raistlin grabbed his Staff and they ran outside. Raistlin inwardly groaned. The Knights of Takhisis, supply line as destroyed as it was, had still been able to call in their reinforcements.

Tanin asked him, "I don't suppose you had enough time to memorize any spells, did you?"

"No," answered Raistlin. "Oh, I still have a few memorized, but nothing like I had yesterday."

When they could see the Brutes in the streets, Raistlin herded them to the Temple of Mishakel and they brought down the gate to it. Noticing that those of the city who had been able to had also fallen back into the Temple, Raistlin said, "Kalaman is lost, nephews."

They set their lips in a grim line. "What of Gilthanas?" asked Tanin. "He is Lord of the City."

Raistlin watched as the Knights ran by, then took them to a cleric, "Is there a back way out of here? Perhaps to the palace?"

The young cleric shook his head, "Not to the palace, but there is another way out."

"How?" asked Raistlin.

When the cleric pointed down, Raistlin inwardly groaned. The catacombs were not a place he wanted to be going with little to no spells memorized. But Tanin and Sturm were already heading down, and Raistlin followed after getting vague directions from the cleric. Just before he disappeared down the stairs, the cleric said, "Archmagus, may the Veiled Lady guard your steps."

Raistlin was rather surprised considering the Veiled Lady was another name for Lunitari, but he said in turn, "And the Lady of Mercy protect yours."

With that he followed his nephews into the catacombs.

Steel Brightblade was not a superstitious man by nature. But when the Nightlord had told him that his Uncle and cousins were in the city, and fighting against them, a little chill had settled over his own heart. He didn't relish the thought of killing family. It was repugnant, dishonorable. Especially when said family did not even know he existed. Steel sighed, and Blayze, his blue dragon rumbled in question, "What bothers you, Steel?"

"My Uncle Raistlin is somewhere below us, in Kalaman."

The blue dragon was silent for a long moment before answering, "I will endeavor to take him alive, but he is a very, very powerful wizard."

"Who hasn't been given time to memorize his spells," pointed out Steel. "I hope."

Raistlin led the small group of four through the catacombs, following the wan directions. At the first junction, he stopped.

Four?

There should only be three...

He turned to regard the latest member of the small troupe. The small kender woman looked up at him. "Hi! I saw you cast magic, so I thought I would tag a long. After all, I was ordained as a cleric..."

"You? A cleric?" asked Raistlin in disbelief.

"Yeah! I asked one of the clerics if I could, and I hung around for so long that they finally told me that I could be a cleric if I left with the first group of adventurers that came through," she smiled brightly. "That would be you!"

"Oh really? Well you left with us, now you can go back the way you came," stated Raistlin coldly.

"Aw, come on, Uncle Raistlin, she could be handy," Sturm pointed out. "Besides, we could use the entertainment."

Raistlin looked up, rolled his eyes, and said, "Fine. What's your name, anyway?"

The kender looked up at him and said, "Juniper Thistlebead, and yours?"

"I'm Sturm Majere, this is my older brother Tanin, we're Knights of the Crown, and this is... our Uncle Raistlin Majere, who is a Knight Auxiliary," introduced Sturm.

The kender turned to Raistlin in wide-eyed wonder, "You're really Raistlin? But what happened to your gold skin and eyes? Wasn't your eyes hourglass shaped, but now I see they're blue! Oh wow, they're an angry blue... are you mad at me? I hope not, all I want to be is friends. Gee, that's really nice armor you have... oh, you met the Dark Queen! What's she like?"

Raistlin jaw slowly dropped, and the two Majere brothers had to stifle giggles at their uncle's vague look of frustration, confusion, and back to frustration again as the kender kept rambling. Finally Raistlin answered, "It's armor, broke the curse, yes, I'm upset, but not at you, I don't need another kender for a friend, I have one too many, touch the armor I turn you into a frog, and She has five heads that tried to eat me, and not in the pleasant way."

Then their uncle turned around and stalked off down the corridor and they all had to scramble to keep up with him.

Raistlin, when he finally found the door that was promised to take them outside stopped when his ring started to glow. "Shit, not now," he cursed under his breath as his skin turned to his gold color.

Whatever was on the other side of the door was probably something that could kill them all. "Shirak."

The staff lit and Raistlin poked it in to light up the chamber. A set of eyes mirrored the light back. They didn't look friendly...

Caramon and Tanis were catching up with old times when Tanis saw the messenger materialize out of no where, then fall down from exhaustion. They ran over and helped the young boy to a sitting position. "What happened?" asked Tanis.

The boy answered, "I have to find Lady Laurana..."

"I'm her husband," said Tanis.

"Kalaman is under attack, likely fallen by now. Lord Gilthanas tried to hold off the Knights of Takhisis as long as he could, and..."

"...And?" prodded Tanis.

"Oh, it was amazing, but terrifying," said the messenger. "We thought we were lost on the first day when this wizard stepped up and blew the Dark Knight's supply line and a quarter of their forces to the Abyss. I've never seen the like- first there was thousands upon thousands of Dark Knights surrounding the city, then their supply line was taken out, and then at least a quarter of them. They even retreated a little. We thought we were saved. Granted, the wizard nearly collapsed right after..."

"This wizard, did have companions, Knights of the Crown?" asked Caramon urgently, begging, Please, Paladine, let it not be them...

The boy nodded, "Two young Knights. Majere."

With that the boy passed out and Tanis and Caramon looked at each other, "Raistlin."

The wizard and Knights in question were locked in a life or death battle with a creature not seen for a very, very long time. There was a few times where Raistlin nearly called on the Staff to Teleport them all out of here and back to his Tower, but he didn't. He wanted to save that last resort until he found Gilthanas and could get him out of here too.

Given that they had the doorway as a way of protection, Raistlin was pretty sure that they could defeat the shadow on the other side of the door.

As his staff sailed through the creature without actually hitting, he was beginning to wonder though.

Once, Tanin's blade struck, and the creature with one cry faded from the land of the living permanently. They sighed a collective sigh of relief as Raistlin faded back to normal and his ring stopped glowing. "The danger has passed, for now," he stated as he walked through the door.

They walked in and climbed the ladder to the street grate above. The kender wriggled through and used the combined leverage of the Staff of Magius and her hoopak to slide the grate off so that the other three could climb out of the sewer. Raistlin looked around the corner, and saw the City Manor that housed Gilthanas. So far the Dark Knights had not penetrated the city deep enough to take the manor. Raistlin looked up, and saw the blue dragons flying over.

The Staff in his hand seemed to thrum. Patience, he told it. Your time will come.

The power banked, but was still very, very ready to use if his magic senses were as accurate as they always had been. "It's clear, but don't dawdle," he told them and then they ran across the square just as the first of the Brutes came around the corner.

He could hear cries of rage and challenge as the spears bounced off the flagstones too close for comfort. A few seconds later, all four were within the safety of the manor and the doors slammed shut behind them. The kender, his nephews, and he were ushered into the central council chambers and then those doors clanged shut behind them and were barricaded. Raistlin stood before Gilthanas. "Raistlin."

"Gilthanas."

"I was a bit worried that you had been captured," said Gilthanas, then he looked down at the floor. When he looked up, there was regret in his eyes. "It was a good try yesterday, old friend. It bought us time if nothing else."

"Indeed," agreed Raistlin, equally as regretfully. "So, this is where we make our last stand."

Gilthanas drew his sword as did the other Knights. "They will not take us alive."

"I would rather not be taken," pointed out Raistlin as they all faced the last great stone door that held back the Dark Knights.

It was only a few mere moments that seemed to take an eternity. The silence in the Council room was almost alive, and the smell of fear was palpable. Finally, the attack came when the Knights began to take down the door. The great stone doors shuddered, and the Knights with lances knelt and set them against any who would charge inside. As there was only five Knights, not including his nephews, Raistlin was skeptical about their chances.

Finally, he saw the answer and he turned to Gilthanas and handed him the Staff of Magius. He could sense the question in the Staff, and he answered in a low whisper, "Protect them as you have me."

The Staff lit itself dimly in answer. It would do as he asked, but not like it at all. "Tanin, Sturm," he said. "It's over. Stand by Gilthanas."

They looked at him in confusion, but did as told. He hugged them both and said softly so that only they could hear, "Always remember that you protect those you love most by finding a way to have them live."

He held out his hand and asked Tanin, "Can I borrow your sword?"

Tanin handed him his sword in confusion, and Raistlin answered, "You are not going to need it where you are going."

As the door fell with a crash, and he ordered the Staff, "Now!"

Tanin and Sturm had no time to move away, as Gilthanas touched the required rune on the Staff that glowed in readiness. The room faded from sight and then they were gone.

Raistlin turned to face the fallen door as the first of the Brutes stupidly charged the set lances. When they went down, the Dark Knights came in. Dropping their lances, the Solamnic Knights stepped back and drew their swords. With a salute from either side, the fight began.

Even Raistlin knew they were going to lose. Kitiara may have taught him how to use a sword (in fact, that had been the first of the lessons beaten into him by her before they all had learned of his magic...) but even that knowledge would not save them. He was mostly out of spells.

He spread his hands into a fan like shape and with Flaming Hands managed to bring down a few of the Brutes. One was still standing, but flailing blindly with his sword. It was practically nothing for Raistlin to smoothly step out of the way and finish him off with one clean slice that separated his head from his shoulders.

It got to the point that all he had was his cantrips, then he didn't even have those. At that point, he was thanking his elder sister for those forced lessons in Solace as it was the only thing keeping the Brutes at bay.

But the Brutes were not Knights and the Dark Knights, after finishing off the Solamnics that would not surrender, surrounded him. The same Nightlord that he had taken on verbally the day before strode in, took in Raistlin in his defensive posture, sword held high in a graceful, but very basic stance. "Stand down. It's over."

Raistlin let the sword drop to the floor with a clatter. "So it would seem."

Tanin, Sturm, Thistle and Gilthanas materialized in a dark room. Gilthanas wrinkled his nose in disgust at the smell even as his mind recognized what it must be. "Wow," said Thistle. "This place is sure dark. Where are we?"

Tanin looked around in the gloom. It was a place of magic, that much was certain, but he noted that it was not his uncle's lab. So, where were they? The door opened and a man's voice said, "I rather thought I sensed new arrivals."

They turned to face the Head of the White Robes, Dunbar Mastersmate. Gilthanas gave a respectful bow. "Master Dunbar, please forgive the intrusion."

"Prince Gilthanas of Qualinesti?" asked Dunbar in thinly veiled surprise. "And Tanin and Sturm Majere! Where is your bother, I see Gilthanas has his Staff..."

"I thought he was your Uncle?" asked Thistle in sudden confusion. "Does that mean you have two Raistlin's in your family?"

Dunbar looked from the kender to the Majere's and back to the kender again. "I think you owe me a bit of an explanation..."

Raistlin was paraded out of the Central Palace and into the city square before the citizens and other Knights. "Where now is your so-called savior? Out of spells and captured, like the rest of you. Submit now."

He could see the effect that this had on the people as the pall settled on them all. A Knight, came up and held a sponge soaked in some sort of fluid on it. It reeked, and the smell made his head swim. The Nightlord said simply, "You may be out of spells, but you are still a threat."

With that he passed out.

Steel was left in charge of watching the man. Looking down on his Uncle's face in the forced slumber, he found himself finding more family resemblance in that face that even that of his other uncle, Caramon. The Nightlord looked at him, barely hidden hunger in her eyes, "I never expected him to be rather pleasing to the eye. This is better than I had planned. Find him suitable clothes. He is no White Robe, nor even Red. He is evil, and surely the color Black is more his color? Make sure they are a fine robe, remember that as the Master of the Tower of High Sorcery in Palanthas he is considered a noble Lord. Find something suitable for that status," she told a squire who nodded as he memorized her orders and went to do as told. Running a finger down his jaw, she said, "Finally, you are mine."

Steel had to suppress the shudder at the thought...

Dunbar sat down after hearing the tale. He wasn't he only one after the emergency Conclave was called. Ladonna, who although no longer the Head of the Black Robes was still a member of the Conclave, said, "I don't believe it."

"Well, I certainly do," said Jenna, the new Head of the Red Robes, and daughter of the late Justarius. "As you remember, my father even said there was something off about Palin upon his return. Now we know what that was- he wasn't even Palin!"

Dalamar remained silent as the eyes turned to him, and Dunbar pointed out, "You have nothing to say, or are you not even all that surprised?"

"He knew," said Tanin.

Sturm elaborated, "When Uncle Raistlin sent me back to his Tower, Dalamar was told to treat me as Raistlin's guest while I was there."

The wizard's eyes returned to Dalamar who merely shrugged, "I merely did as my Shalafi told me. I saw no harm, and the minute he fell back into old habits I would have reported it. But he never did."

"Then the next question is what do we do about this knowledge," stated Jenna. "Do we allow Raistlin to live as member of the Conclave, or do we still call him renegade and hunt him down?"

Tanin objected, "Wait a minute, did you not hear one word? He did it for us. He didn't want us to grieve. And he's been trying to live as Palin would have. He gave up his own identity. I can't imagine what that would have been like. Could you do the same to protect anothers honor? I'm not even sure if I could!"

The wizards leaned back in their chairs, some looking at each other in helplessness, a few even believing what Tanin said. But Ladonna said, "Remember, this is Raistlin Majere. He used a cleric of Paladine to open the Portal to the Abyss so that he could take on Takhisis, and nearly destroyed us all in the process. Remember how he deceived Crysania, with the same words, the same method. He made her believe he was redeemable! And now, listen to his nephew. Does that not sound the same?"

This brought on a whole other set of murmurs and Sturm leaned over to Tanin, "Now I know why he didn't want anyone to know he was still alive."

Tanin, his brows forming a worried crease, "I now understand that as well. I don't like the way the tide of their opinion is turning. If this keeps up, he'll be hunted down like an animal..."

Raistlin woke to a feeling of motion. As he picked up his head and looked over the side of where he was tied to the saddle, he saw that he was a long distance from the ground. His hands were tied behind him and he was secured by the waist to the dragon's saddle. His spell component pouches were all gone, as was his armor and the tunic and breeches he preferred when traveling.

In fact, he wasn't even in the white outer tunic.

Looking down, he saw that he was in heavy and extremely rich and well made black robes. They were just like his old robes, heavy in velvet and soft to the touch. He could see the hem was done in a rich and dark blue, and had a sheen like silk.

He was a prisoner, but he was a well-kept prisoner. In fact, it looked like he was back to his old clothes again. As familiar as this all felt, he didn't feel like he belonged in them anymore.

Well, at least they had left him with the Blue Star, but then again, the stone was turned into his palm and therefore looked, and felt, like a plain gold ring lacking any magic.

"You're awake," said a man's voice. "I was wondering if they overdid it, Archmagus Majere."

Raistlin looked up to regard the man, and nearly caught himself mid-laugh. "I'm afraid you have the advantage on me when it comes to a name."

"Sir Steel Brightblade, Knight of the Lily," he answered.

Oh, the irony here... send him to Takhisis and deliver him by his own nephew. This Nightlord had a sense of humor, he could see. "So, where has she sent me?"

"She sends you to Neraka," he stated. "You will be brought before the Dark Queen. There you will be given the choice of either submitting to her will and receiving your part in her Vision."

"Or?"

"Or you will be sacrificed to her," he finished.

"I don't like either choice, quite frankly," snarled Raistlin. "I am not her puppet to have my strings pulled for some God's idea of what they would like happen. In fact, I am no one's puppet. And I will not allow myself to be sacrificed either."

Steel shrugged, "I would like to see how, considering you have no weapons, nor any spells memorized."

Raistlin smiled. "I have my ways."

Excerpt from the next chapter:

"I thought you had honor, but now I see you are as capricious as all the Gods of Evil," stated Sturm. "Now I see why the Knighthood rightly called you all evil. We will not support your decision, and will defend our Uncle to the death, if that is what it comes to!"

See you all in about a day or so!