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Sent Kobold

Chapter 14: Faith's Illusion

On a task for one of the representatives of the divines, Serhis will be tested at this task in not how strongly in what he believes, but for what reason.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The rush of tropical sea air blowing past, the sounds of carved timbers straining against the waves, and the hectic rush of sea combat assaulted Serhis' senses as he took cover behind the railing of the Cast of Onyx as a new hail of projectile fire crossed over the width of the ship. A few of the sailors were caught in the crossfire and went down, sending Serhis scrambling over to drag the injured to safety. He could barely hear anything with his heart beating in his ears and the chaos of the battle, but one overriding thing always filled the air throughout the fight.

"Eat troll shit you inbred bastards of hags! It's the only way you pin-heads are going to be filled with anything smarter than those lumps of puke you call brains! The reason you shit bags can't figure out how damned stupid of an idea it was to come at us is because your drooling, moronic prick of a captain is an even bigger idiot than the lot of you turds! Get closer you bunch of barnacle incrusted assholes so we can drag your crap filled, fart breathed, infernal bodies behind my ship on a piss long fishing line by your oversized codpieces as kraken repellant to make you learn that messing with the Cast of Onyx was a huge fucking mistake!"

As Kreetchn had promised, when things went wrong, Captain Jamiso Harel unleashed his fury. Serhis was amazed that after all that shouting, the human still had his voice, not to mention keeping the same volume throughout the battle that he was sure the other ship could hear it. The string of cursing was impressive too, in its own unique way, since he hadn't once repeated a particular insult or threat. As the captain turned the wheel of his ship for a new angle, he looked down on deck. "Oy! Kobolds, dragon! You said you could fight, get to it damn quick!"

At the very least his tirade wasn't so focused when referring to those on his own ship. Rhasalis was already adding her bow to the fight and firing at the opposing ship a hundred meters away, the range hampering her accuracy a bit and Baous was next to her, using a borrowed crossbow as best he could. As for the other sailors, they shot projectiles of their own, a ballista supporting their fire.

"Whatever you're doing Xet, you could hurry it up!" Iskdiwercaesin shouted, he could only sling small missiles of magic at this range. Xet climbed out of the hold, clutching a scroll in his hands after going down to rummage through their collection.

"I'm on it, I'm on it!" Xet unrolled the parchment on the deck of the ship, muttering the arcane spell written within. As he finished, the enemy vessel was shrouded in a veil of heavy fog.

"What the hells are you doing?! We can see anything in that stew of a mess!" the captain demanded.

"Not to worry captain, I think I know what he just did," Iskdiwercaesin relaxed. "It's a trick we got from a few pirates. The hard way."

Serhis recognized the tactic as well and he couldn't help but smile. "It looks like you've took a few lessons from my tales to heart," he said to his hatchmate.

Shrugging, Xet stood up from the now disintegrating scroll. "I thought this sort of thing was common on the ocean. I bought this before we left port incase this happened."

The hostile ship had stopped firing now that they were within the solid fog, unable to find a target. Even better, they had been stopped dead in the water. As they closed the distance, Xet burned off a few more spells, dropping another cloud into the mix, this time one of nauseating gas, and a few fireballs to make the enemy crew worry on top of nearly retching their breakfast. "Ha! Their captain must be shitting his pants brown now," Captain Harel took the opportunity to turn his ship towards the cloud, putting his ship in a far better position. When they were close enough, Iskdiwercaesin started randomly breathing into the cloud, distressing their foes even more as their own ship circled around them. There were a few shots towards where Iskdiwercaesin or Xet last launched their attacks, but the returning fire was sporadic, blind, and widely off the mark. By the time the fog dissipated, the hostile ship had run up a white flag to surrender.

A cheer resounded throughout the Cast of Onyx as the crew started to secure the other ship, though they were wary of any treachery. After Captain Harel had a few choice words with the enemy captain before sending him to the brig, he went to the group. "Heh, thanks for the help, you really screwed them up good," he complimented them.

"Glad to help," Serhis nodded, his task of helping the wounded finished long before the fog had faded. As the crew secured the other ship, he looked at the vessel they were latched onto. "Pirates are problem here, yes?"

"Hmph, this lot of scum aren't pirates in the regular sense," the captain huffed. "They're rivals. Members of another trade house, and it looks like they've gotten a bit too annoyed by my success," Captain Harel grinned as Kreetchn walked towards them.

"Captain! The Steel Line has been searched and all of their crew has been accounted for. What are we to do with the ship and the crew?" she asked.

"Put a prize crew on it, we're bringing their ship in with us to port. I bet we can sell it for a price. As for them, toss their wart-covered asses into the brig too. If their employers want them back, it's going to be for a sum," Captain Harel sounded far more cordial now that they were out of battle and part of the winning side. Kreetchn nodded and set to her task as he looked back at the group. "Anyway, I'm grateful some of my crew got patched up real quick and your help during the fight. I'll arrange a proper funeral for the ones that didn't make it, but at least there will be more to attend it rather than being the bodies being honored. How about I wave the fee for the trip, as thanks for helping bag this prize?" he pointed a thumb over his shoulder.

"How about we pay the fee, but get a share of the loot?" Iskdiwercaesin suggested instead.

"Eeh, hard bargainer, aren't you? Fine, a share, but you're not going to get it right when we get to Jiak. It's going to take a while to sell the ship."

"That's fine. We'll be staying in the city for a while," Baous nodded. He wasn't much interested in getting a reward for surviving a fight, but he wasn't going to reject it.

"Ah. If you're staying, then I recommend you go to an inn called the "Swift Sands". I hear from my first mate that you're looking for someone. If you want to keep ears open, there's a good place to stay, and I know the owner, so I'll put in a good word for you," the captain tipped his hat before heading off to deal with the business of running his ship.

"Full shares for each of us!" Iskdiwercaesin yelled to the captain before he got out of earshot.

"Ugh, I'm glad that's done," Xet wobbled on his feet, still not used to the open sea. "Is anyone hurt? I don't see any bleeding, but I've got to ask."

"They didn't hit me," said Rhasalis as she leaned against the railing of the ship, adapting to the choppy sea very well for being her first time on the open ocean. The others checked themselves to be sure, but none of them had suffered any injuries aside form exertion. As the grapnels from both ships were removed, the ships drifted apart and started sailing with the sunset to their backs. She watched the growing night they were sailing towards, "so we have someplace to stay. But do we have someplace to go?"

"We won't find out until we reach Jiak tomorrow," Serhis shook his head. "Nadia hasn't appeared to anyone else, has she?" Again, everyone shook their heads.

"All I know is that this had better be worth it," Iskdiwercaesin muttered.

"... Iskdiwercaesin, you're sure you want to go on your own way when we're done?" Baous asked.

"Like I said, I'm considering it," the wyrmling replied. "I don't have much of a reason to stay with any of you. You're good in a fight and getting out of tough situations, but I've got my own problems to fix. It's whether or not any of you are coming with me is the question."

Serhis didn't have an answer. He wanted to make sure Dianekesswhedabkeari didn't start conquering the land while they were the few that could foul up his plans, but Iskdiwercaesin wanted to deal with the issue as soon as he could rather than discovering an opportunity.

"For once, I don't feel hungry. I'm going to bed. Or rather those swaying hammocks that barely count as beds," Iskdiwercaesin went towards the stairs to the lower decks. With nothing else to do, they're presence on deck perhaps a disruption to the operation of the ship, the rest of the party went down as well, their bodies tired from the fight.

As they slept, their ship sailed ever closer to its destination.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Waking up, Serhis had gotten use to the sway of the hammock not to fall as he got out after so much sea travel. The same couldn't be said for Xet as he tumbled out.

"Oof! Ow. We're there, right?" Xet rubbed his backside.

"I hear seagulls and someone trying to sell something. Either we're close to port or we've fallen into a mermaid's seagull pet shop," Iskdiwercaesin's claws ripped the hammock he was sleeping in slightly as he got out.

Baous and Rhasalis seemed to have gotten up before them, their hammocks empty. As Serhis looked around for them, Baous came down from the stairs. "Hey, I was about to wake you all up. We're here," he informed them.

Following Baous back up to the top deck, they also saw Rhasalis waiting for them, scanning the city with her spyglass. "We're going to have some problems looking for one person here," she said, the spyglass still raised to her eye. Looking at the port city, the others were inclined to agree.

Jiak may be considered a small city, but that's still a large quantity of buildings and people gathered in one place. It was similar to Arcwell in some ways, sharing the qualities of a port with docks lining the coast, but there were many differences. Jiak was a walled city, stone either imported by sea or taken from a significant distance by land ringed the entirety of the place. The architecture was also different, the main building material here seemed to be clay as most of the buildings varied in shades, but it seemed the more important or richer ones were still made of stone. None made it more clear than a grand palace in the center of the city, on a small hill surrounded by an inner wall that rose high over the nearby buildings, four towers of the palace rising even higher, three towers at the points of a triangle as the fourth, the highest, was secure in the center. It also sat near a river that flowed through the center of the city and into the ocean, a long swath of green by the river reaching beyond Jiak and into the hills of sand beyond, where nothing but long stretches of sand reach to the horizon. However, the otherwise flat horizon was broken with a large mountain partially blocked from their view by Jiak, likely the source of the river. The city also had some color to it, roofs of rusty red or yellow, awnings of various dyes, and dots of green where small gardens grew, fed by water from the river. As the ship and the newly captured one sailed into port to make berth, past the bobbing ships and boats already present, they could see the tan sandstone roads near the port, lined with workers and carts.

The Cast of Onyx moored at the docks and all of the crew started unload the necessary equipment. Captain Harel was talking to the ship's purser, a pudgy halfling, instructing him to go to shore and find the best price they could sell their cargo at. As for Kreetchn, she was directing the crew; among the first things unloaded was the group's wagon and horses.

While a dock crane lifted the wagon out of the cargo hold, Serhis approached her. "The inn your captain recommended for us, the "Swift Sands", where is it?"

"It is past the docks, on that street," she pointed towards one of the roads. "It is likely you will see some of our crew there as well when on leave. If you want to know the status of selling our prize ship, you may ask one of them, or perhaps myself if I am there."

"It looks like a lively place," Baous commented as he saw the hustle and bustle on the docks.

"Lively isn't what I'd call it. More like nervousness," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"Why do you say that?" asked Baous.

Iskdiwercaesin observed a few of the people, pointing out a few clues. "Don't you see how they're all slightly tense? How some of them look over their shoulder or glance into every alley they pass? Some of them even have clubs or knives that they can easily grab on their belts or have their hands resting someplace near a pocket or sleeve, probably because they have something hidden. Something's going on here that's putting them on edge. It almost feels like I'm in the Underdark again with the Drow."

"You would not be far off the mark. You were in the Underdark?" Kreetchn looked at the green dragon.

Waving his hand, Iskdiwercaesin brushed off the question. "Not important. What is, is why they're like that. Is something going on you haven't told us yet?"

"Perhaps it is because you did not ask. You seemed so focused on searching for Tomond. You don't know about the situation in the city?" she asked.

"We'd like to know. Tomond is our first priority, but anything about why the people here are like that would be helpful," said Rhasalis.

While they were talking, Kreetchn was still directing the crew with the unloading, her arms motioning for where the cargo was to go as she spoke. "The current situation has been decades in the making, so this may take some time to explain."

"We're not in a rush. We haven't even gotten a lead yet," Xet replied, having used his spell again to understand Common.

Nodding, Kreetchn seemed satisfied as a stack of crates was being stowed in a warehouse across from the ship. "My knowledge of this place is not complete, so don't I don't know everything. From what I've heard, the trouble began about a decade and a half ago, when the ruler of this kingdom died. His eldest daughter was to be his successor, but the second eldest, her brother, contested her claim. A month after some brutal arguing and threats, the third child announced that his bickering siblings were not able to rule the country, and that he was to inherit the throne. The quarreling broke those with the most influence into three factions, each supporting their own claimant, and fighting broke out in the streets between these three. However, a month after that, all three of the successors were dead. The first heir was found with her throat cut and the third child died of poison, but while the eldest son was standing on the palace balcony proclaiming that he was the new king, he was struck by lightning. On a clear, cloudless day. Some suspect that the fourth and final child of the old king was responsible for that, but there have been doubts, considering she never vied for the throne or claimed it when her siblings died, and as she has since disappeared, it is nothing more than speculation and rumor now."

"If that was ten some-odd years ago, how does that affect now? What happened after that?" Baous asked.

"With all the claimants dead, the three factions have since dropped any kind of pretense that they were supporting a rightful ruler. The leaders of each have declared that they are best suited to ruling, but none of them wished to continue the bloody struggle, otherwise it would destroy what they were fighting for. That was made clear when a large fire broke out in the South-Eastern region that almost consumed the city. The three other major cities of this country were similarly embroiled in the fighting, but have suffered minor damage compared to that. A truce was made and some semblance of governance was established, the three factions becoming the ruling households today. Things are still tense, assassinations and blackmail is almost expected every year, and there are minor scuffles at times. It is difficult to do any business at this port without the right connections to the right house."

"Humph. Every place we seem to go to has some kind of weird history," Iskdiwercaesin grunted.

"History is made by as people live, and where they live. No place is without something special happening," Serhis gave a little wisdom to him.

"Then we're lucky we only have to hear the first ten years and not for however long this city has been here," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"Eeugh. I don't think I want to deal with any more politics. Once is good enough for me," said Baous.

"... as much as I hate to say this, but I think we might have to," Serhis shared Baous distaste for such underhanded and bloody politics, he liked it better when people expressed their opinions openly, even if it did lead to conflicts, but at least it left no doubts about where they stood. As the others looked at him for further explanation, he elaborated. "We heard that Tomond is somehow involved with these ruling houses. As far as I can tell, he's using them for some purpose while advancing or hindering their agendas. We might have to know who's doing what. I'd rather we didn't, but if we have to," he shrugged.

"How about we learn about them so that we don't have to deal with them? Finding how to avoid them is a way," Rhasalis suggested.

"Whatever works. Let's hear it," Iskdiwercaesin said to Kreetchn.

Satisfied that the rest of the crew could handle the rest of the unloading, Kreetchn gave them her full attention. "The most dangerous house is currently the one that backed the eldest daughter, House Ihthei. Its strength comes from their main supporters and leadership, most of the old king's army. So far, their policies have been expansionistic and towards their own military, and have been known to but I don't know much more than that. The second strongest is House Aeig, who supported the third claimant. Their power comes from their large financial assets; most of their members are wealthy merchants, owners of large workshops, landowners, and other influential citizens. They are the ones I know most about; we do business with them practically every time we come here. The leader used to be the steward for the king before throwing his lot behind the third heir, and so far his experience has shown in the policies he's made. Tariffs are about the same as standard, that is what we care about most. They may not have the strength of an army to back them, but the money they have could potentially buy one out, and they've used those assets and influence in a large way during the crisis. As for the third, House Eieagh, they have since fallen on hard fortunes since the death of the last claimant. However, that does not mean they are without power. Of the three, they may not have strength of arms or wealth, but their members are the most numerous, a large number of peasants and the common folk count themselves among its members, all the workers and farmers at least trying to have a say in their governance. I would be wary in dealings with any of the Houses; the brief struggle more than showed that all of them are capable of ruthless and harsh measures."

"Anything else? Like who we'd want to talk to? Who to avoid? Anyone who'd know more about Tomond?" asked Iskdiwercaesin.

Kreetchn's antennae flicked, then her head shook, perhaps the antennae a more subtle cue before she remembered she wasn't dealing with someone who could read it. "All of my contacts are mainly for business transactions and some to keep me up to date on what's happening."

"It's kind of helpful. Thank you," Baous shrugged. "I think that's all our stuff out of the hold. Should we go to the inn now?"

"That would be good. Goodbye," Serhis and the others waved to Kreetchn as they disembarked. After securing the horses to the wagon, they made their way to the "Swift Sands".

The "Swift Sands" looked like a modest inn, very similar to Baous' sister's. Two stories high, paned windows, and constructed from local stone. The architecture was different, mainly to deal with the heat of the desert and take advantage of the sea air. Tethering the horses to a post outside, they entered to rent a room and stalls in the stables for the horses and wagon since they were going to be here for some time. After Iskdiwercaesin finished taking every scrap of gold and jewelry out of the wagon, they went back into the inn and checked their room.

As they passed through the ground floor, Serhis looked into the tavern to see who were the patrons. The owner of the inn and tavern, a male elf, saw them come back in and paid them little attention, focusing more on appearing interested to the plight of the drunkard halfling in front of him, the small being pouring his heart out about a personal relationship, to the ironically deaf ears of his listener who occasionally gave some platitude in consolation. They had come in the morning, so the place was rather empty, a few humans scattered around, a pair of half-orcs arm wrestling on a table, a gnome smelling of alchemy materials having her breakfast, and a cat folk and a gnoll in conversation over some drinks. Seeing that none of the humans fit the description of Tomond, he continued to their room.

"Hoping to find Tomond early?" Iskdiwercaesin looked back down the hall.

"It's unrealistic to think that he would be right there, but it would have been nice," said Serhis.

"I wish. Do you have any way to contact that archon?"

"I have a message spell prepared. I don't know if a short message will be enough to get the information we need," Serhis closed the door to the room.

"What are you going to say to her? We know what he might be wearing, but a definite location or his objective would be helpful," said Rhasalis.

"A greeting would be nice," the clear voice of Nadia spoke next to them, startling them all.

"Whoa! Where you waiting for us?" said Xet.

"I made sure that I would be aware when you entered the city," said Nadia, the archon's pure white clothing reflecting the soft light coming from the window she stood next to.

Considering that Nadia could teleport, Serhis didn't think that it was too much of a surprise. "Greetings Nadia. I guess you know why I'd want to contact you if you're already here."

The archon nodded, shifting the large trumpet she held in her hands. "Information for your task. I will offer what guidance I can on the task I have given you, as you will act as my hand in matters I would not normally be able to intervene."

"Not just information about Tomond though," Iskdiwercaesin spoke up. "I'd like to know what we're getting out of this when we're done. As well as an update on what's happening in Tiichi de Soves."

"The situation in Tiichi de Soves is the same as when I last appeared before you. Dianekesswhedabkeari Nocudithroden continues to build his strength and influence, his army steadily growing, his spies finding more weaknesses. He does not possess sufficient power to begin his campaign soon, it will take many months before he may feel that he is in the best position. I will keep you abreast of any changes in the situation if you wish."

"Oh yes, I'd very much like to know. Especially if one of those tidbits is how I can kill him," Iskdiwercaesin hissed.

"First things first though, Tomond?" Baous asked.

"Where should I begin? His past? His current activities? His goal?" she asked taking a seat next to a stone table in the room and laying the trumpet in her lap.

"Why would his past be important?" wondered Rhasalis.

"It is what gives him his strength and weaknesses. It may give you insight to his objectives."

"Okay then. Start there," said Xet.

"His full name is Tomond Shaviayear, a human thirty-eight years of age, possesses brown hair and gray eyes, has a medium-heavy build, a hundred ninety centimeters in height. He spent the first fifteen years of his life in a small town named Keshaba, his father a member of the local clergy and his mother a farmer. He took to his father's profession as he grew, a cleric of to the god of magic, Boccob, but decided to journey out into the world instead of staying at home."

"A cleric to Boccob, hmm? Odd, why would you, an archon, want to mess up whatever search he's doing?" Iskdiwercaesin asked.

Serhis wondered that as well. Boccob was generally a neutral deity, uncaring about the affairs of mortals and the battles between good and evil. A common misconception was that he was the source of magic, but that is not the case. The Archmage of the Deities was simply the most connected to the ebbs and flow of magic, not its maker, and was mainly concerned about its development and research. The few times Boccob involved himself, it was because it threatened the balance of magic.

"Allow me to continue, it will become clear that not all is what it seems," said Nadia. "For ten years, he traveled to various locales, seeking knowledge, expanding his power, and focused his magic. As time passed, something changed about him. I am unsure of the details, but his actions gave more impression to his intent. On his twenty fifth birthday, he strode into a temple of Boccob and spoke blasphemy, declaring not only Boccob, but all the deities false, all their servants fools, and demanded that all that were in the temple to destroy it, then every other temple to be found. The deacon of the temple, incensed by Tomond's words, demanded what made him say such words. Tomond replied that the deities should stay out of mortal affairs, which mortals should never rely on those who remain so aloft. He then repeated his demand and further threatened that if they would not do so, he would by himself. The clerics of the temple refused, the deacon himself threatening that if Tomond did, he would be stripped of his power by Boccob for such an affront. Undeterred, Tomond replied that he had already accepted that when he set foot in the temple and even welcomed it, to be rid of his god's influence. Then, Tomond carried out his threat. He prepared for this assault, having carried many items of magic and never using the powers granted by Boccob. For each spell, he carried a counter, for each defense, something to breach it. Though Boccob may be the god of magic, he cannot control all of where it goes or who it empowers. The temple fell, the clerics who tried to stop him rendered unconscious, those who used deadly force themselves perished from Tomond's hand. Of all ironies, his best defense was that no magic would affect him, and went onwards to purge all other temples he could find. As expected, Boccob denied Tomond the use of his divine powers, but it was for naught, it did not dissuade him from his course. For one year, he continued his purge, striking at any temple he found, whether the deity was good, evil, or neither. For each temple that fell, his power grew as he took whatever artifacts of magic they stored, despite being denied his god's powers. Eventually, his rampage had affronted too many gods, enraged too many goddesses, and they demanded that Boccob put an end to his former cleric. In this, all were in agreement, but such as the nature of deities, death would not be suitable enough retribution. They wished to make a lesson of Tomond, to warn of any who would try such again. On Tomond's next birthday, the wrath of so many of the divine fell on his head. His body was forced to endure all the magic he possessed taken out, each wound that he had taken and healed by magic was put back, and even his soul was not spared being stripped bare. They left Tomond alive, if only barely, and he soon learned why. Every item of magic he owned would not work for him, no potion worked to seal his reopened wounds. He crawled to shelter to recover, and when he did, he discovered the full extent of the deities' wrath. No magic would work for or on him, whether arcane or divine. Any items he possessed would be little more than mundane trinkets, any spell either from himself or directed towards him would not work, and his own soul had been deemed forsaken, so that should he die by another's hand or of old age, he would not go to any plane owned by a deity, but forced to endure the nothingness and fade away slowly into that nothingness, fully aware of the passage of time."

"To earn the anger of so many deities, he must be insane by now," said Serhis.

"He must be crazy brave," said Iskdiwercaesin, Serhis looking at him in surprise. "If this guy's got enough guts to willingly piss off a lot of gods and goddesses, it's either that or he's suicidal. Though that's if he hasn't been turned into a gibbering mess by now, but I kind of doubt that since he's still making enough problems that you're here," the dragon inclined his head towards Nadia.

"Whether Tomond is insane or not is a matter of perspective. That he continues his campaign is without doubt. He spent months recovering, some of his wounds ran deep, both in flesh and spirit, but when he did, it seemed that the retribution of the gods only increased his desire to deny them. No longer able to directly attack his desired targets without being overwhelmed, he changed his methods. He found use for being someone damned to never be touched by magic. Rather than reaching for many targets at once, he concentrated towards a single person. He began involving himself in more subversive tactics. Since he was no longer able to be detected or affected by magic, it became hard to track or make defenses against him."

"Making him completely immune to magic didn't have the affect the deities intended, huh?" Xet asked.

Nadia shrugged, a disconcerting thing from a being that was supposed to be unambiguous in her messages. "That is unknown. Whether they had a purpose to this aside from vengeance, I am not privileged to know."

"I bet because they were going to blast every bit of magic out of him, they can't tell any of his possible futures after that happened," said Xet.

"A valid theory, but it is ultimately speculation. He has become a bane to those who rely on magic, his activities hidden unless by normal eyes, and Tomond takes extreme caution about his secrecy."

"Not so much even you don't know where he is?" Rhasalis asked.

"Unfortunately, that is the case. I know he is in the city, in this region, but nothing further."

"Well, there goes one of the questions I was about to ask," Iskdiwercaesin muttered.

"Does this mean that the reason he's in Jiak and hunting for this treasure is because it has something to do with deities? What is it?" Baous asked.

"It can't be something of a magical nature. From what Nadia said, it wouldn't do anything for him," said Xet.

Nadia's expression turned grim, he words taking a very serious edge. "What I am about to tell you must remain hidden from all others. Should knowledge of this spread, it would mean suffering and chaos for many."

Her words weighed heavily on their minds, the way she said it was with a unwavering certainty. Looking at the others, Serhis knew that all of them could be trusted to keep their word. "I swear in Bahamut's name, the secret you pass on to us will remain among only us."

"Then that is all that I can ask." Nadia closed her eyes, as if focusing, then opened again. "Wards have been placed, no eyes or ears outside this room can see or hear what I will say, for a piece of a god lays in these lands."

"A piece of a god? How can that be?" Baous asked.

"A relic of the Second War, a consequence of the battle that shook the foundations of reality as much as the First, if not greater. What Tomond seeks is no less than a piece of a lost god."

"That- that's definitely something that'll get me worried," Iskdiwercaesin nodded, actually surprised at how this turned out.

"Can you be more specific? When you say a piece, do you mean literally? Like Vecna, god of secrets, whose hand and eye somewhere out in the planes of reality?" Serhis inquired. The Hand and Eye of Vecna were two of the most infamous relics ever known, cut from the lich-god himself in battle. Any who were determined or mad enough to use them needed to cut out their own before replacing it with either in order to gain a not so insignificant measure of his power. However, that power comes at a price and no one knows where the relics go after that, because soon after the located relics are found and used in a swath of destruction, they disappear, only to be found again at a much later time. To have something similar raised deep concern.

"A parallel can be drawn, but only just. The god I speak of is dormant and sealed, but still alive. His name is Vocos, former god of the desert tribes, and he was sealed during the war by his enemies. A great measure of his power has been stripped from him while he has remained inactive, but what divine power remains can still be harmful. The relic that Tomond is searching for is an anchor to the prison, a piece of a god's soul locked in physical form."

"But like Xet said, how would this relic help him? I'm guessing it might subvert what the deities did to him," Rhasalis suggested.

"For what exact purpose, I do not know, only that he hunts for it. Possessing such power would grant him many options. Tomond might awaken the dormant god, use it to restore his connection to magic, or study the prison so that he may use it on others. The dormant god's power is likely to be so weak, if Vocos were to awaken, he would pose little threat to any other deity. Despite this, a measure of a god's strength compared to a mortal's is hardly a comparison at all and if Tomond learned to tap that power while remaining immune to retribution, it is without doubt that he will cause destruction to any deity's mortal servants. Should you learn his goal during your search for him, inform me so that I might make plans to hinder them."

"Stopping someone from gaining the power of an imprisoned god. Not exactly what I had in mind when I wanted to come along, but this sounds good," Xet smirked.

Baous seemed to ponder on the news. "I understand why you'd want us to stop him from getting the relic, but how? It sounds like he's a dangerous and unstable person, but does that mean we have to kill him?" he asked, sounding uncertain.

"What I am most concerned about is that the relic remain hidden and out of anyone's possession. Fortunately, Tomond is also interested in maintaining the secret if only so he doesn't have competition. Whether he lives or dies is up to your own decision. He kills only when he is threatened with death, keeping to his own code of morals," said Nadia.

"Okay, I wanted to make sure," Baous relaxed. Even though he had to kill others to save his own life and those of his friends, it felt better to have an option rather than being required to cause someone else's death.

"It's kind of a moot point if he's going to still hunt for the thing even if we beat him senseless," Iskdiwercaesin noted. "Tomond keeps on sounding like he's determined finish to any goal he makes. I bet those deities that cursed him want him dead now."

"The deities involved have remained silent about such," said Nadia.

"Hmph. I bet they simply don't want to admit they made a mistake."

"Then what about the relic? Perhaps we can move it, take it someplace far away while he continues his search here. Even if he find where it is last, he won't know where to go afterwards. That way, we don't even have to confront him at all, we remain anonymous to him," Serhis voiced his idea.

"A valid idea. However, I cannot provide you the position of the relic unless it is strictly necessary, only if Tomond certain to have found its location. He has spent months searching for it discretely, his progress slow, but that may change. It may take him months to find it or perhaps weeks, but if he continues unhindered, he will find it," Nadia said with full certainty.

"If we can't remove it and subduing him would accomplish little, our options are going to be limited," said Rhasalis.

"Come on, you've probably thought up of something better than that after waiting for us to get here," an annoyed Iskdiwercaesin to Nadia.

"There are a few things you could do. One is that you misdirect Tomond in his search. Convince him that the relic is elsewhere, that his research has led him astray. You could also attempt to deny him the resources he needs, severing the trust of his contacts, draining what money he has. Another is to convince the ruling parties of this city that he must be removed. Without access to resources or information, Tomond will be forced to abandon his search, as searching the area on his own would lead to his demise."

"If we find any other way, I suppose we could try those as well. We'll use whatever works," Serhis thought practically.

"So long as he desists from his path," Nadia nodded.

"So we've got our options. That's good to hear. Now how about a reward? It sounds like we're getting into something big," said Iskdiwercaesin as he tilted his heat towards her.

"There is more here than sand and dust. If a god has fallen here, imagine what else lies buried beneath. For your efforts, I shall tell you of a trove hidden in the city. Or would you prefer your just due in less earthly materials?"

"How about some actual help in killing Dianekesswhedabkeari?" said Iskdiwercaesin. "Because right after I'm done with your job, I'm going to be doing anything I can to take him down. Otherwise, I'm heading to the Underdark for whatever I can get from the Drow."

"I will provide some of my protection, should you choose to confront him. That has been my intent since the beginning, so you may still find out the treasure I direct you towards. I cannot fight beside you. What aid I can otherwise offer will be yours," Nadia replied.

"Hmm, I've heard that you trumpet archons have some powerful protection spells. Stuff that's definitely of a higher grade than what any of us can conjure up. Alright. Both treasure and some divine support. I can accept that," Iskdiwercaesin nodded.

Serhis nodded as well. Though he himself didn't require such a full reward from Nadia, it would certainly help in his efforts in lessening the misfortunes of others. "You might not know where he is exactly, but maybe you have a lead we could use?"

"You are already well on your way to finding him it seems. This inn is a popular destination for both travelers and the informants of the Houses that rule this country, so that their might listen to news of far off lands. Seek one of them out and perhaps he may guide you to Tomond," Nadia placed one end of her trumpet on the ground, using it as a staff to stand up.

"Wait! Before you go, I wanted to ask you something," Serhis extended a hand. "Well, more than one thing. It's about necromancers."

Nadia looked at Serhis. "What concerns do you have about them?"

"During our travels, we've been encountering them in increasing numbers. Twice before me or Baous met you, another in the town of Tiasvern, and also my hatchmates. It's strange that we've been finding so many of them. Is there something happening that is causing this?"

Nadia considered the question. "I also have been finding that their activities have been on the rise. I did not realize that you had encountered so many of them as well. Did they have a central agenda?"

"No, they seemed to be independent of each other. At least, I think so. The things they were doing didn't seem to have an overarching theme," Serhis considered the necromancer's motivations. The only clear one he knew of was Faresterear's.

"I trust in your discretion in these matter. I have others that also do as you do, aid me in my campaign against evil and they also have been encountering these desecrators of the fallen. The spirits of the dead have become restless, their souls more malleable and easily manipulated by those who wish to disturb their passage to their fated destinations. Not only the spirits, but the land itself. There are those that seek these places, aiming to tap into the potential energies within. If they succeed, they can use that power to sow more destruction and death."

"That might be why that one was out in the middle of nowhere," Xet said his thoughts aloud.

"Wait, if the spirits and the land have been disturbed, something must be causing it. Do you know what it is?" Baous asked.

"I cannot say with full certainty what it may be. There are some indications what could cause this and none of them are to be taken lightly. However, this is my task, and there are more immediate concerns, ones that can be altered," said Nadia, head tilting slightly up as she considered the implications.

"Before you go, I still have one thing to ask," said Serhis quickly before she vanished again. "It's... it's about my hatchmates," he glanced at them, already seeing how Xet and Rhasalis stiffed up. "When they fought against one of those necromancers, I think they were cursed. A death curse. Please, if you can help them in any way, I would take that for my reward instead of riches."

Nadia turned her eyes to the two, who looked back at her with an expectant look. "A death curse is not made lightly. Those who are mad enough to use them must have their own souls to empower it, they are forever lost. It is the use of this soul that prevents the curse from being lifted by conventional means."

"Does that mean you can't help us?" Rhasalis asked, a bit of fear creeping into her voice.

"Such curses are varied, depending on the soul that was used to craft them. Nevertheless, they can still be lifted," Nadia answered to the hatchmate's evident relief. "To lift them requires learning how it was used and I am able to helping that regard."

"Then we'll help you with your task," Serhis affirmed, nodding as he clasped the star of Bahamut in his hand. "I swear it on my life."

"I await news of your victory," Nadia replied as she stepped away from the table and into the morning light shining from the window, fading from view as she disappeared.

"Okay. Let's find this Tomond and run him out of town," Xet eagerly reached for the door.

"Hold on, we have to have some sort of plan," Serhis advised. He felt relieved, even elated, that they could learn more about the death curse, and better, a chance to banish it. He was just as motivated to help his hatchmates, but he didn't want to wildly rush off.

"I don't know, I think going out right now is the best option," said Rhasalis as she walked next to Xet. "We don't have a clue where Tomond is, what he's capable of, or what we can do against him. Until we find out, I don't any plan we make is really going to work."

As Serhis thought about it, he had to admit that she made sense. "Okay. We'll find out what we can first," he said as he went to the door as well.

After everyone left the room and locking it behind them, they went back towards the inn's main room. "I say we talk to the innkeeper first. He probably knows who's who around here," said Iskdiwercaesin.

Going back to the innkeeper, Serhis knocked on the counter to get the elf's attention. "Hello? Excuse me?"

The innkeeper looked over the counter down at him. "What? Is something wrong with the room?" The halfling was still in front of him, quietly sobbing to himself.

"No, it is not that. The room is nice, but we wondering if you know someone named Tomond," Serhis inquired.

"I haven't heard of anyone by that name," the innkeeper said dismissively.

"Do you know someone who might?" Serhis asked.

"Check with some of my patrons. The ones that are with the Houses might, if you're lucky," the innkeeper tilted his head towards the people eating and drinking, then refilled the empty tankard the halfling held up before, the ale was gone as quickly as it was poured.

Inspecting the tavern patrons more closely, Serhis was a bit surprised to see that a few of them did have some form of emblem on their sleeve or on the front of their shirt, but of three different types. He wasn't sure what any of them meant or who they belonged to, but as far as he could tell that meant they were from the three different Houses, he had thought they were more inclined to stay away from each other, and yet they were all here civilly. If in a small way. It didn't take him long to see that the ones with House emblems were watching the other every now and then, cautious and wary. A trio of humans had one brand, the pair of half-orcs another, and the gnoll also had one, though he was alone now, the cat-folk having left while the group had been upstairs. Serhis wasn't sure if she had the same emblem.

"Hmm, who do you think we should talk to?" Xet looked around.

"I don't think it even matters. We don't know which Houses they belong to or if they know Tomond," Baous shrugged.

The half-orcs had engaged in another contest, this time stabbing a knife blade between the spaces of their fingers, occupied with their own activity. Serhis made a mental note to check up with them later, his healing may be needed. Looking at the gnoll, he seemed unoccupied, so Serhis nudged his friends to approach him. Getting closer, the gnoll directed his gaze at them.

"What do you want?" he said gruffly.

"Hello there. I and my friends hoping to ask a few questions. We new in the city and heard that maybe this is a good place to gather news," Serhis said.

"Then why are you bothering me?"

"Uhm, sorry. If you want, we go away then," Serhis was about to go, but the gnoll held up a paw.

"Wait. If you offered something up in trade for info, then we can work something out," he said with a smirk.

"What? Like money?" Iskdiwercaesin didn't sound like he liked the prospect of spending his gold for questionable information.

"Of course. Aren't dragons supposed to be loaded with gold and silver? I'm sure you can spare a bit. Of course, that depends on what you want to know," the gnoll tilted his head.

"That also depends on if you actually know what we're looking for," Rhasalis replied. "We're looking for a man named Tomond Shaviayear."

The gnoll looked at the lot of them, then he stood up from the table. "I think if you want this conversation to go any further, hand me a hundred gold pieces."

"A hundred!?" Iskdiwercaesin yelled in outrage.

"We can afford it," said Serhis. They could more than afford it, it was miniscule compared to the wealth they each carried, but he did feel somewhat irked that he had asked so much just to keep talking. Serhis didn't want to say anything about having so much money, it might make the gnoll ask for more. "We have to pay."

"Fine," Iskdiwercaesin grumbled, taking a few coins out of a pouch. The others did the same, each putting up twenty until they had the total amount.

Scooping up the pile of coins, the gnoll stood up from the table. "You might want to follow me if you want to hear what I know." Skeptical on what the gnoll intended, the group followed him out of the inn, feeling the gaze of other eyes at their backs. As they walked into the morning light, the gnoll went down the street. If he had any destination in mind, they didn't know. "The name's Keianc," he introduced himself.

"I am Serhis, these are my hatchmates, Rhasalis and Xet, and my friends, Baous and Iskdiwercaesin."

"So what does a bunch of kobolds, a dragon without wings, and a... I don't know what you are. You look kind of like a gnoll, but weird like. And you smell weird too." Keianc's nose scrunched up as he took a sniff.

"I'm a canine kobold." For once, Baous was relieved he didn't have to correct someone about his species and instead inform, and now that he could compare directly against what he was commonly mistaken for, he had to admit the similarities were there, but so were the differences. Keianc looked like a typical gnoll, a bipedal creature similar to a hyena, but with longer, coarse fur compared to Baous, a differently shaped muzzle, and a different fur pattern.

"O-kaaaay," Keianc didn't seem to believe it, but he didn't press the matter. "What are all of you looking for a troublemaker like Tomond?"

"We-"

"We want him to do something. And we're going to find out if he's going to do it for us willingly," Iskdiwercaesin quickly interrupted Serhis. He wondered why he took the initiative in the conversation, but didn't say anything further.

"And how are you going to do that?" Keianc asked.

"That depends on how cooperative he is," he replied ambiguously.

Now Serhis realized that if they revealed their true intentions for Tomond, it might complicate things later on. They had no indication which Houses might be allied to him or his enemy, and from what Kreetchn said, that position shifted. They had to learn what the current situation was between them all.

Keianc seemed to notice how evasive Iskdiwercaesin's replies were. "There's something you should be telling me, isn't there?"

"I could say the same for you. We're the ones who paid you to talk, remember?" Iskdiwercaesin eyes narrowed disapprovingly.

"Fine, fine. Then what exactly did you need me for?"

"We hoping that you know where Tomond might be or know someone who does. Also if you know what he been doing lately," said Serhis. As they walked, he and the others were keeping aware of their surroundings. They seemed to be walking deeper into the city, but as for a specific destination, that was unclear.

"This conversation is starting to go above what I'm allowed to talk about to outsiders," said Keianc.

"Then you better get to the stuff you are allowed to talk about or bring us to someone who can," said Iskdiwercaesin. "Otherwise, I want my money back."

Keianc looked over his shoulder towards the group, as if sizing them up. He shrugged as he responded. "How about this, I tell you what I can and when I get to my boss, she can fill you in on the rest, if she wants to."

"I suppose that will have to do," said Baous. "But why aren't you allowed to talk about him?"

"It's a complicated thing. First off, Tomond, I've only met the guy once. Luckily, it was when he was working for us, not against us, so I didn't get smacked down by him during the fight we were in. He fights like a demon, but I'd say he's more blessed than anything, all of the enemy mage's spell just fizzled when they tried to fry him or something, doing complete shit to him. Oh, if I could get my hands on whatever item or spell that lets him do that, I'd be the one who'd be giving everyone a case of nervous fidgeting. Tough guy too, he took a few cuts and he refuses to be healed."

Serhis considered what he just said. It sounded like not everyone here knew the whole story behind Tomond's past or his current condition since Keianc seemed to be under the impression that Tomond could change if he was affected by magic at will. "I guess am not supposed to ask what you were doing at the time. If you fighting with him, does that mean he has good relations with you?"

"Hah, I barely met him, and he barely knows me. If you mean in House terms... I guess? I don't know, that was about a month or so ago. Beats me what's happening to him now, because three months back he messed up one of our training camps out to the South. I don't know what he did to convince the bosses for him to start working with us, but it must have been something big."

"In other words, you don't know much about him at all," Iskdiwercaesin sighed.

"I know enough to be worth the gold," Keianc jingled his fatter pouch. "Nobody I know has heard from him after that fight, he sort of disappeared. If that means he's still on good terms with the House, well, that's up to my bosses too."

"Which House do you belong to?" Serhis asked.

"Ah, right. Newcomers. I'm part of House Ihthei, part of the winning team! Most of the gnolls around here are as well, unless their idiots and are part of the losing ones," he boasted with a smile. "From the looks of it, you picked the right guy to talk to about this."

"A House mainly of gnolls?" Iskdiwercaesin couldn't hide an expression of puzzlement.

"Wow, you guys really are new to this place. House Ihthei was mostly made from the old king's army, and a good part of them are gnolls like me. Sure, you have your humans and goblins and whatever, but we're the best," Keianc gave a classic hyena smile.

"What about the other two houses? What do they mostly do?" Xet asked.

"Since that isn't related to Tomond, I'm afraid you're going to pay more to find out." Before Iskdiwercaesin could voice his displeasure, Keianc turned around, hands out. "Joking! Joking! For a hundred gold, yeah, I can say what I think about those wimps. Hells, give me a thousand, and you can get me to do pretty much anything. First off, House Eieagh. They're lead by this bunch of goblins that say they've got the common folks interests in mind, but I say they're too busy filling their own pockets. The big head of the whole group is this goblin female named Broun Hecha, who was the old king's economic advisor before the fighting happened. Yeah, I know what you're thinking. Goblin? Economic advisor? Well, it just goes to show that anyone can be anything if they're good enough at it. That House knows where to ship the goods and stuff where it's needed, but they're not much in a fight. As for House Aeig, nothing but a bunch of sneaky underhanded politicians, the lot of them! Especially their leader, Jonathan Tanner. He was the king's seneschal, then he threw his hat in the ring when all the royals bit it. It's amazing the House is still around, but, they're the ones with the gold," Keianc closed his eyes and raised his hands in a shrug.

"We've been hearing a lot about this deceased king. What's his name?" Baous asked.

"King Kaleck Lheacki, but does it really matter? He's dead, and so are the heirs. Well, most of the since that last daughter might still be alive. I'm not one to say it's good to run from a fight, but she's got good sense to have stayed out of that bag of worms. If she's also the one to turned her brother into a stick of ash, even better. He probably would have tried to kill her too to make sure he didn't have any competition," said Keianc.

Serhis was starting to get the feeling that Keianc may not have the most accurate information, but he could be reflecting the most common opinion that most of the city held. "How do the other Houses feel about Tomond? Where are you taking us?"

"I guess they've got a bur stuck in their fur about him, same as us. Well, I guess House Aeig might have it in for him more now, since it was them we gave some grief," Keianc chuckled. "As for where we're going, to the local House building. If you want to know more about Tomond, you can ask my boss."

With nothing more to ask, the group went deeper into the city, past the open streets and some barren lots of land. They then found they were heading towards a large three storied building, banners bearing the emblem of House Ihthei adorned parts of it. Now that they could see it in better, they saw the details of the emblem. It looked similar to a backwards S with arrowheads pointing up and down along its length, a horizontal line drawn at the bottom tip of the S crossing its length. Whether that emblem carried a deeper meaning, Serhis didn't know.

"Here we are. Follow me inside and I'll see if she's in. If not, I suppose you can wait around, but I'm not sticking with you," Keianc opened the door to the building. There were some people hanging around the place, rough and burly types, slightly over half of them were gnolls. They glanced at the group as they approached, when they saw Keianc, they returned to their previous activities, talking to one another as a smaller group was playing dice on a table. Going inside, what struck them all was the smoky odor that filled the room. It smelled of tobacco smoke and potentially stronger substances.

"Ugh. I think if we're going to wait here, I'm going to stay outside," Baous nose wrinkled as he covered it, his eyes watering slightly.

"Then where are you going?" Iskdiwercaesin asked Keianc, ignoring the smoke.

"I'm going to be spending a hundred gold pieces," Keianc turned his head to smile, meeting Iskdiwercaesin's frown, and went to knock on a door.

"What? Who's out there?" said a voice muffled by the wood.

"It's Keianc. I've got a bunch that wants to see you."

"What for? It better be important Keianc or its your hide for bothering me," Keianc's boss sounded annoyed.

Lowering his voice enough that it could be barely heard through the door, Keianc muttered. "They're here about Tomond."

A brief silence was all that was heard for a moment, then the sound of a chair sliding back on the stone tile floor. The clicks of two locks followed that before the door opened, revealing a female gnoll that stood slightly higher than Keianc. She was dressed in better quality clothes than the average person, if somewhat mismatched, a pink shirt and a long yellow skirt, but they stunk heavily of smoke. "Get in here," she demanded, stepping to the side so that they could pass through. The group entered, looking at one another with an expression of perplexity.

Locking the door behind them, she turned to look at them with a serious eye. "Keianc, you better explain yourself."

"This bunch knew about Tomond and were asking around about him. They're not from around here, so I thought maybe you could be interested," said Keianc.

"Interested how?" Serhis asked, wondering what Keianc was up to.

"Hmm. Maybe. What do they want with Tomond?" she asked, Serhis' question brushed to the wayside.

"Don't know. They seemed very curious about where he might be or what he's doing," Keianc informed her.

Iskdiwercaesin thumped his tail on the floor to get their attention. "We'll keep this simple. We're looking for him because we've got a problem with him. It doesn't have to involve any of the Houses or whatever you're working on. From what I can tell, it's not like he owes you any loyalty and neither do you for him. If you know where he is, then we'd like you to tell us." Serhis was surprised that Iskdiwercaesin would tip his hand by revealing his intentions, if not completely clearly, but he didn't object.

The female gnoll gave a hard stare at the group. Serhis wasn't sure what she could be thinking or what her response could be. He doubted she would do anything violent or call for help to bring them down. Nevertheless, he kept on his guard. "What's your problem with him, exactly? Does he owe you money or something?" she asked.

"You could say he has annoyed the wrong sort of people and we're the ones that get to clean up after his mess," Iskdiwercaesin only gave as much information as he felt comfortable giving. They also had their oath to Nadia. "They don't necessarily want him dead, but any plans he has are going to be ruined and his life made a lot harder."

"I can bet he's annoyed too many," she walked over to her desk, the top cluttered with papers and various random objects. One of them was a hookah which she used, taking a slow drag. "The name's Rahsh, and I think I might be a bit of help here," she introduced herself, smoke coming out as she talked.

"And I suppose we'll be some help to you too?" Iskdiwercaesin asked with a neutral tone.

"You had better be of some use, otherwise I wouldn't waste my time talking," she pointed the hookah pipe at him. "Lucky for you, I happen to want Tomond out of our business. Ever since he walked into town, he's turned up so much shit that I'm surprised he isn't under some sand dune as worm food. I think he's got some blackmail material on some of the big shots, all of them. As much good as he's done for us, he's way too unpredictable. There's no way for our House to plan anything without worrying that he's going to spoil something."

"Okay, so we both need him out of Jiak. That is agreed?" said Serhis.

"Heh, I wish it was as simple as that," Rahsh stuck the pipe in her lips as she talked. "Like I said, he's got probably got blackmail stuff on the bosses, mine included. Add that to all of them starting to turn chicken shit and rejecting any of my proposals, we've been stuck doing nothing unless it's on Tomond's say so," she said in disgust. "If it isn't blackmail, then it's money. If it's not money, it's something else. Whatever, all it means is that I'm stuck in this crusty old building doing nothing! It's driving me crazy!" she huffed, a cloud of smoke rising over her desk.

"How does all of this involve us?" Rhasalis asked.

"I want you to find out what it is! If Tomond's got my bosses by the balls, then fuck-all of anything is going to happen! I need to find out how he's got them twisted around his finger and if I can get them off the hook. That'll mean they've got to be pretty damn grateful to me or I can hang them out in the breeze and cut out the deadwood," Rahsh grumbled. "You help me out that way, not only are you helping yourselves by making sure he doesn't get to pull certain strings, but I'll be sure you'll get some help from my end when you need it."

"That doesn't sound like a bad deal," Baous shrugged.

"That depends on the help we get," Iskdiwercaesin pointed out. "Okay Rahsh, I get it. You've got a problem with Tomond too and we can trade favors, but that doesn't mean much if we don't know where to start looking. I'm certain you've already tried something on your own."

"You'd be right about that. One thing though. We do this, if you do find out how Tomond is cheating out of getting a thrashing in the street by our guys, see if you can find out how he's coercing the other House members. I could use that info," she smirked around her pipe.

"If you've got something worth the extra effort," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"It's a deal," Serhis walked forward to shake her paw. Not getting up from her seat, Rahsh shook with Serhis. "We help each other to find a way to get Tomond out of Jiak."

"Ha! I knew this bunch would be useful," Keianc grinned. "Do I get something out of this too?"

"That depends if you do any actual work," Rahsh stood up and turned to open a drawer filled with stacks of paper, the hose on the hookah stretching taut and almost tipping it over, but she seemed to know how balanced it was, the brass object teetering on the edge of a flat rim. Turning back around, it made a small clapping noise at the same time a pair of small scrolls were laid out. "Here, these are the places where some of our guys see Tomond," she pointed out on one scroll, a map. She indicating three places, a market, a dock warehouse, and a street near the palace. "But it wasn't like I could do much without my bosses noticing. If they or Tomond figured out I wanted him gone, no way I'd be able to do much."

"So you need us because we aren't in the Houses," Baous puzzled it out.

"Yep. Not the same rules for you. Although that just means you're going to have different problems if you get caught. Keianc, make your lazy ass useful and help them. If they're new here, I don't want them messing up because of some stupid mistake."

"What?! But-! This isn't what I had in mind when they paid me!"

"It doesn't matter, I'm your boss, I pay you already! I suggest you get your money's worth out of him," Rahsh said to the group. "If you prove that you can do this, then maybe we can work on more decisive actions."

As Serhis thought about this, he was starting to feel some reservations. They might be getting themselves too involved in the rivalries between the Houses, and they hadn't known anyone here for any length of time. The problem was that if they backed out now, any other leads were just as likely to involve the politics of the city or involving themselves in other people's business. He looked at the others, their body language suggesting that they had reached the same conclusion. "What if we don't find him?"

"Then start looking into the bosses, or at least the ones I think are Tomond's little puppets. Maybe one of them has him visiting. Try checking in on the other House's bosses first though, I'd rather that mine don't figure out I'm spying on them," she growled.

"Make sure you get us something useful for this," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"Yeah, I will," Rahsh said idly, puffing out small clouds of smoke.

Before they went back out the door, Keianc held up a paw. "Hey, meet me at that market."

"I thought you were coming with us," said Xet.

"I am, but I was thinking we'd split up and meet up there. I've got some business to take care of first, I didn't plan on getting wound up in all this, and it'll be good that we're not seen with one another unless we have to. If Rahsh wants to do this all sneaky like, we don't want to make it too clear that we're working with each other."

"Okay then. We'll see you at the market," Baous nodded as he opened the door. After the rest of the group exited, he closed it behind him, glad to be out of the thick pall of smoke. "That worked better than I hoped," he commented.

"Really? For a hundred gold coins, I'd say it was what I expected," said Iskdiwercaesin.

Following the map they were given, they went towards the market at a slow pace, partially because they needed to wait for Keianc, mostly because they were unfamiliar with the city. Even with a map guiding them, they weren't acquainted with the local landmarks and streets.

At they walked, Baous seemed to have something on his mind. "I suppose we're going right to the plan where we have the help of one of the Houses to get him out of here."

"Potentially. If not, at least we're finding ways of depriving Tomond of influential contacts," said Rhasalis.

"That's if those gnolls can do anything about it. Maybe they can, maybe they can't. All I'm wondering about is how come she was so eager for our help. She pretty much jumped at the opportunity for us to help her," said Iskdiwercaesin.

That had also been bothering Serhis, Rahsh had been quick to make the offer. "I don't doubt that she has some kind of ulterior motive, but I don't think it'll do us any harm. We've just met her, she doesn't bear us any ill will or provide her some opportunity other than what we've agreed to do."

"I'll believe that after this is over," Iskdiwercaesin said dismissively.

Passing through thicker crowds, the group could see the market up ahead. Stopping near a fruit stall, they spent a few silver to snack on a few as they waited. As Baous chewed on a banana, he still seemed to be thinking on something. "Serhis, what do you think about Tomond?"

"Hmm? Why do you ask?" Serhis said as he ate a few grapes, then spitting out the seeds.

"No reason really. I was thinking that since you're a cleric and he's got this grudge against deities and anyone following them, I don't think he's going to be polite if you're around. He won't listen to us about giving up on his search I think."

Twisting another grape off the bunch, Serhis nodded as he bit it. "Considering what Nadia told us, you may be right. He has to be very unstable to have a vendetta against all the gods."

"I wouldn't say he's insane. Well, maybe a bit, but he might not be completely off his nut," Iskdiwercaesin said as he came back from deeper in the market. Unlike the others, he smelled something cooking and was now holding a juicy kabob. The tantalizing smell of chicken, tomatoes, lamb, and goat made them even more hungry. "He could have some very strong convictions behind this."

"We're of different minds then. If he was targeting a single deity's shrines and temples, I might consider that, but he's attacking all of them indiscriminately. Denouncing all of them only convinces me about that. While some of them might be cruel and unjust, there are those that want to do good in this world and many more. Why would he deny them a chance to do that? Because they are more powerful and control forces we cannot comprehend doesn't mean they mean us ill or see us as minions or tools," said Serhis.

"I don't know. I think I might have to go with Iskdiwercaesin on this," Baous replied.

"Really?" the wyrmling quirked an eyebrow.

Serhis looked at Baous in befuddlement. "What makes you say that?"

"Well, for whatever reason he's doing all this, he seems to be in control of himself. He doesn't kill others if they don't try to kill him and it sounds like he follows a code. If he's insane, it's a little bit."

"I'm with Serhis on this one. If he's cut off from using or feeling magic, he has got to have cracked by now. Add what's going to happen to him after he dies, whoa, he's probably totally batty," said Xet.

"Losing the connection to magic doesn't mean he has to go insane. His motivations are suspect, but he's way too methodical to be a lunatic," Rhasalis gave her impression on the matter.

"And maybe having your soul disappear can be pretty scary, but it hasn't made me lose my grip," said Baous. Xet looked embarrassed, having forgotten about that.

"Really though, him being insane or not doesn't matter too much. What really has me bothered is that he's going to be unaffected by any sort of magic," said Iskdiwercaesin as he chewed.

"Yeah, that has me worried as well," Serhis agreed.

"Who said I was worried? I'm saying that it's going to be unusual if we get into a fight with him or we're not able to use something that would have worked on someone else. That rod or any of the wands I have isn't going to be able to do anything to him and Xet's definitely going to have trouble. At least I have my claws, teeth, and acid to count on."

"Keep in mind it works more in our advantage. Like you said, harming him with magic in a fight is going to be impossible, but that also means he will have no enchantments to bolster himself and any injury he takes is going to stay, while Serhis can heal any wounds we might take," Rhasalis pointed out.

"That all really depends on us finding him first. If we could, I'd having scrying spells tracking him." Iskdiwercaesin finished the last of the meat on the kabob and tossed away the bare stick.

"The thought had crossed my mind before we talked to Nadia, but we don't have the needed components to use it," said Serhis.

"Actually we do. I've still got that mirror from... what's his name again, ah, right, Otrin," said Iskdiwercaesin, patting his bag.

"What? When did you get it?" asked Serhis. He also had a bit of difficult recalling the name immediately, they had more dangerous foes at the time, between a bard who swayed the crowd easily with his words and a mind-affecting succubus.

"After our fight with Lilthian. You didn't think I'd leave something like that behind if I had a choice?" Iskdiwercaesin laughed.

"But everything they had was supposed to be sold back to pay the people the council extorted money from or hurt," Baous protested.

"It's not like anyone else had a use for an expensive mirror. Not unless they'd want to use it for scrying as well. So I took the mirror, a few other things, and stuffed them into my bag of holding in case we needed it later."

Serhis sighed, somehow not surprised at Iskdiwercaesin's almost packrat habits. It might have some use later. "That's why we need to track him down the usual way. We need to find out if he regularly meets with anyone or where he frequently visits. Scrying might be useful on that front," he said.

"Exactly what I was thinking." The group turned as Keianc strode up to them, the gnoll still smelling of smoke from his boss' office. "I think a lot of people were sorely disappointed when they saw that they couldn't scry anything on him."

"Now that you're here, where do we look?" Serhis asked.

Taking out the same two scrolls from the office, Keianc read the one with writing. "It says he goes to an alchemist's shop from time to time. I know we've asked the guy who runs it what he buys and some of our own alchemists guess at what he's cooking up, but he doesn't know where he comes from or goes. Never bothers to ask." Rolling up the scroll, he started taking them towards the shop.

"Hmm, alchemy, huh? Not magic in the true sense. I suppose he's working around that limitation. That might mean he's not completely out of tricks," said Xet privately to the others. Alchemy could replicate the effects of some minor spells in a very limited fashion and at some cost.

Navigating the street as people shopped at the market, Serhis and the others kept pace with Keianc. "I suppose you don't mind working with us?" Serhis asked.

"It's more than I bargained for. Literally," Keianc said dismissively.

"I'd say that as well, if your boss hadn't decided you'd go with us," said Iskdiwercaesin. "It can't be all bad though if you're getting something out of this as well."

"Hah, not much is likely. She might be chaffing from being in that room doing nothing all day, but I like having just that. Nothing, all day, except for those few times of excitement where I earn my pay," Keianc shrugged.

"What do you do though? Are you an enforcer of some sort?" Rhasalis asked.

"No. Well, not exactly, I don't do it often. I'm more often checking in on who knows what and where somebody or something goes. Keeping my ear to the ground and my nose downwind, so to speak."

"An informant. It makes sense she'd tell you to come with us," she nodded.

"I guess I can be called that. What about all of you? Is tracking someone down your usual work?" Keianc turned his head to glanced at them. "I mean, look at you all. Three kobolds, a green dragon without wings, and a canine that claims he's a kobold. I've got no idea what you all do for a living."

"You seem rather interested in us now," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"That's because before I thought I was handing you over to my boss and you weren't my concern anymore. Now that I have to work with you all, I'd like to know what you can do or if you're actually helpful."

"I suppose you could call us adventurers," said Baous.

"But that's so generic. Adventurer doesn't tell me much. I need something more specific," said Keianc.

"I'm a cleric of Bahamut, so I regularly use medicines and mend injuries," said Serhis, then nodding his head to indicate the others. "Xet is a sorcerer who is also practiced in alchemy, Rhasalis can work mechanical devices with her nimble fingers, Baous has knowledge in botany, can handle horses, and I guess a bit of construction, and Iskdiwercaesin is also a sorcerer, who... Hmm." Serhis' flow of thought was interrupted as he tried to recall any practical skills the wyrmling possessed.

"I'm a dragon sorcerer. I remove any obstacles in our path and can scare the crap out of anyone who opposes me. What more do you want?" Iskdiwercaesin grumbled.

"That's rather situational though. Not very useful in situations like these," Keianc earned a scowl from Iskdiwercaesin for his comment.

"If you'd like, I could teach you a thing or two I know about alchemy," Xet offered.

"Why should I bother? You know it already," Iskdiwercaesin huffed.

"Speaking of alchemy, we're at the shop," Keianc stopped the group in front of a building, the place smelling faintly of too many different substances to give an accurate description. A small sign hung over the front door, labeled 'Reregan's Alchemical Supplies', and the wide paned glass window displayed numerous potions and reagents for sale.

"I just realized. What if we're not the only ones looking for Tomond. I expect the shop is under watch from others already and they may be observing us right now," Rhasalis kept her voice low, her mouth moving as little as she could make it while she spoke.

"Oh I knew that already. That and practically everyone also looking has asked Reregan about what he bought. I know two guys that have tried to tail Tomond, best trackers I know, and they can't find him at all after a few streets. That, and they bumped into one guy from another house trying to follow him as well. There were probably even more than that!" said Keianc.

"Then what's the use of coming here?" said Iskdiwercaesin.

"I don't know, you're the ones looking for him. You try and find another way."

"Then we better not stand out in the open when you know someone's watching up. Let's go inside," Baous opened the door for them. Try as he might not to, he kept glancing around, up at the windows and roofs of the nearby stores and shops.

"Come to think of it, we do need to stock up on alchemy supplies," Xet walked into the shop. As Serhis walked behind him, his nose was assaulted by the full aroma inside as vast quantities of dried plants, exotic earths, organic material preserved in fluids, and whatever else could be used in the process of alchemy threatened to shut down his sense of smell for hours. Immediately he pressed back into Baous, trying to spare his sensitive nose. He was too late by then, the canine's eyes were watering and a hand clamped over his nose didn't stop a storm of sneezing.

"Uh, hello? Can I help you?" a slightly old human man with round spectacles, a brushy salt and pepper mustache, short trimmed hair, a periwinkle shirt, and brown apron came out from the back as he heard the sneezing. He then saw Keianc. "Oh no, not again. I've already told all you House members, I don't know where he goes and it is not my business to know. Furthermore, I don't know what he intends to use the ingredients he purchases for either!"

"Ah, I was here to buy some supplies," Xet spoke up as he stood in front of a shelf, inspecting it for whatever materials he needed.

"Oh, that's different then. Still, what is a House member doing in my shop?"

"Well, we're still looking for Tomond, but we don't need to bother you about it," Keianc informed the shop owner.

Shrugging, Reregan went over to the shop counter and started grinding something up with a mortar and pestle as he waited for Xet to make his purchase. Keianc unfurled the scroll again, looking up and down at it as he put it on a nearby table. "Here's what he's bought for the past few weeks. A lot of it is something he only bought once or a few times, but there are some that he's been buying constantly."

"You mean he's buying the actual components? Not the finished product?" Xet asked as he looked at the list. Serhis had only a limited understanding of the science of alchemy, and he couldn't make heads or tails of any of the listed items. Xet's ochre eyes scanned the parchment, then shook his head. "Most of this stuff could be used for basic equipment. Everburning torches, anti-venom, whatever. Now this stuff," he points to the what Tomond bought regularly, "it's not for anything I know. At least, not as is."

"So this place is a wash, huh?" said Keianc.

"Not quite. You see, even though using the stuff doesn't rely on magic, the process of making some of it is."

"So Tomond's has a little bit of spell casting on the side. No big deal, I've never seen him use anything and he's more dangerous without magic anyway," said Keianc, still under the impression that Tomond could change whether he could use magic.

"That's not what he means. How does he even make it if he can't use magic at all?" Baous connected the dots.

"Someone's helping process the ingredients," Serhis reached the same conclusion. "Has he been seen contacting any other alchemist in the city?"

"Not that I know of," Keianc shook his head.

"Write that down. It's a potential lead. For now, we should go to the next place," said Rhasalis.

When Xet finished picking out what he needed from the shop, they left and headed back towards the docks. As they went out the door, Serhis was sure that he saw someone in the house across the street watching them. Arriving at the dockside warehouse, they weren't surprised to see that Tomond wasn't around.

"Trying to observe someone here is going to be much harder. The warehouse faces the sea. Unless someone's on a boat across from it, they'd be spotted more easily," observed Rhasalis. Almost as if proving her words, she nudged her head towards a halfling sitting on a cider crate not too far away. He didn't have a House emblem and wore the plain clothes of a sailor, but there was the sense that he had glanced their way. Since none of them were Tomond, he turned his attention elsewhere.

"I'm guessing that you've checked inside this warehouse as well," hazarded Serhis.

Keianc shook his head as he looked at the wide wooden double doors. "Not me personally, but yeah. It says this place belongs to someone named 'Mark Porlane', not that it means much. We're thinking that Tomond uses this place as either a drop point to pick stuff up or a meeting spot. We've also tried following him or listening past the door once he's inside, but the place is sealed as tight as a drum, and a lot less loud. I've heard some Eieagh hotheads thinking that they'd impress their bosses tried to jump him while he was inside. I'm not sure of the numbers, but what I know for sure is that most of them ended up dead and the ones that didn't were in a heap of trouble, especially the one that thought it up. I'm pretty positive that Tomond used his contacts in the Houses to arrange the punishment."

"Not important. He comes here for a reason. We should go inside to look," said Rhasalis.

"Then where's the owner? We can't get in, we don't have a key or his permission," Baous pointed to the padlock on the doors.

"That hasn't stopped me before," Rhasalis strode on the wooden planks and took what looked to be a lock pick from her pocket. They could see the halfling look their way again as she fiddled with the padlock. In a few seconds, the padlock was removed and she opened the door.

"I'm not so sure we should be doing this," Baous muttered as Rhasalis went inside.

"We came here for a reason too. Go on, get in," Iskdiwercaesin nudged him in.

When they were all in Keianc closed the door. "Good luck finding anything in here. I mean, we'll find whatever this warehouse has, but looking for whatever Tomond has stashed in here, if he does keep anything in here, is going to be almost impossible," the gnoll waved his arm at the rows of crates.

"We'll look for where he might go. If he can't be heard from the outside, then it has to be somewhere near the center," deduced Serhis.

Even if he had been right, there was no indication of anything linked to Tomond in the center of the warehouse. The crates were full of goods, ores, and miscellaneous objects, yet nothing showed that they had anything special about them.

Putting the lid back on the crate he had been searching through, Iskdiwercaesin looked very skeptical about the whole thing. "The more I think about this, the more I think we're being fooled."

"What do you mean?" Serhis asked as he and Baous pushed back the crate they had been looking through.

"Tomond sounds like a smart guy. He's got to know that someone's trying to watch him, especially after he got attacked. Keianc, did he keep coming back here after that?"

"Yep, still does. Last known sighting here was four days ago."

"If he's keeping something secret in this warehouse, he's not doing a very good job of it," Iskdiwercaesin mused. "He's being seen here because he wants to be seen. It's a false lead."

"How can you be sure of that?"

"I can't be. Still, he either has to be stupid or sloppy to keep coming here. Since he's still alive, I'd say he's neither."

"Hmm, then there's also the possibility that the alchemy shop is also a false lead," Serhis considered the implications. "Then again, maybe not. Maybe he comes here to pretend that he has something secret at this location, but he doesn't really hide that he goes to buy alchemical supplies."

"What about the third location? It might also be a false lead," said Xet.

Serhis shook his head. "It's all speculation now. Second guessing ourselves isn't going to help a bit, but Iskdiwercaesin's got something. There doesn't seem to be a good reason for Tomond to keep coming to a compromised 'secret' location."

"We better leave if we're not going to find anything here," Baous opened the warehouse door and the others quietly went out. When they did, they saw that the halfling was no longer there.

"Think whoever that was is going to make trouble for us?" Rhasalis asked.

"Depends on which House he belongs to," Keianc replied.

"Or if he reports to Tomond. It could be he's using to place to watch the watchers," Iskdiwercaesin made another hypothesis. "Let's not stay here any longer."

Leaving the docks district at a clip pace, they again followed Keianc to the next position on the map.

As they went through a narrow empty street, Serhis matched his pace with the gnoll. "I need to ask you about the Houses. I heard that you're no longer in open war with each other, but it still sounds like there's a conflict."

Keianc held up a paw as he looked down both sides of the street when they reached an intersection, then behind them. Confident they weren't being followed, he kept going as he spoke. "The war 'officially' stopped, yeah. We've got a system of government in place, taxes are collected, services rendered, blah blah blah. The money still goes somewhere and most of it goes into making sure the other Houses don't make more than we do, which is pretty damn hard with House Aeig, they're good at those trade deals, loans and balances, whatever they're called. Since we're all spending money on wreaking each other's shit in one way or another, you could say we're in a closed war then," he laughed.

"You're taking that all in good stride," Serhis said skeptically.

"Why not? From what I'm getting, my side is winning," Keianc grinned.

Serhis shook his head in confusion. "That doesn't make much sense. A 'closed war'? When we saw you in the inn, there were members from the other Houses in there with you. How do you know that whoever you meet that is in another House doesn't want to attack you on sight?"

"We don't. Not exactly anyway. It all depends on if you can get away with it."

"You're saying if we get spotted in this alley and no one else can witness it, they'll attack?" Baous looked around in renewed caution.

"Nah, you don't have to worry that much. Most of the time it's when they think it's someone important or they're carrying something expensive. If you look too tough for them to handle, they'll keep off our backs. Uh, you guys are going to back me up if we get into a fight?" Keianc turned his head to look at them as they walked.

"If someone makes an unprovoked attack, do we have a reason not to?" Baous replied.

"For one thing, we'll get more mixed up in this mess of a government's problems. I'd still give whoever that's stupid enough to try a good whack. It's never good form to let whoever's helping you take a beating," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"Oh. Good to know," said Keianc. "To keep it simple, no you don't have to worry too much about someone trying to ambush you unless you're higher up the food chain. Well, not literally, you're a dragon, you're at the top of most... you know what I mean. That's why most of the bosses have bodyguards near them. Since I'm just a lieutenant for a low boss, unless someone's really desperate and kind of not right in the head, you're not going to get attacked for hanging around me." As he finished speaking, they reached the last marked location on the map, a side street a few blocks from the palace. It wasn't particularly special in away way aside from leading in and out of a cul-de-sac.

"Does the report say why Tomond is seen here regularly?" Serhis asked.

"This time, no. Nothing at all," Keianc turned the parchment around for them to see. "All that we know is that Tomond passes through here and whenever someone tries to tail him, they lose him a few streets away."

"What about the buildings? Is he visiting any of them?" said Baous, the view of the cul-de-sac partially blocked by some of the homes at its entrance.

"It says that he's seen entering this street, but it doesn't say which building he goes into. Either someone's writing a bad report or they can't track him in a dead end, which is rather sad really."

"We should still check them out," Baous walked into the cul-de-sac, turning around to see each building. Many of them were high-end townhouses, three stories tall and embellished with plants and statues. Servants swept the street and kept the sand out of the halls while some elderly folk sat at benches and tables, talking to one another or relaxing in a small park in the center of the cul-de-sac.

The rest of the party looked around as well, while Keianc looked at the map. "This place is owned by a few nobles and well-to-do merchants and landowners. There's no way we're simply going to walk into any of their homes and ask if Tomond has been visiting."

"I suppose this is why Tomond comes this way. A lot influential people all in one place," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"We should leave," Serhis urged the others. Even as they stood at the entrance to the cul-de-sac, he could see how the people here looked at them. The elderly, the servants, a few guards posted near the homes, and some of the children playing around looked at them in an odd manner, a look that told them that they didn't belong here. Without a word to one another, they left quietly and quickly.

"Well, I think I know why your informants couldn't stay around to see which building he went into. One way in means there's it's easy to spot if you're being followed and they can't stay around for an extended time without being noticed. The guards probably would approach anyone that did loiter around," said Rhasalis when they were past the intersecting street.

"That doesn't tell us much. Unless someone here gets struck by some divine inspiration, we're left with little more information than we started," said Iskdiwercaesin.

Serhis picked up the Star hanging around his neck. "As much as I'd be honored to hear the voice of Bahamut or one of his heralds, I doubt I'm worthy-"

"That was a figure of speech. But you know what, go ahead, try it anyway," Iskdiwercaesin said half-heartedly, though Serhis didn't start whispering prayers. "What we're left with is alchemical supplies for we-don't-know, a warehouse that's meant to lure out people who are too nosey and too stupid to realize it, and a dead-end street with a dead-end lead. I'm stumped."

"It could be that one of the nobles or merchants in that street is the one who's helping Tomond," Baous suggested.

"That's true, but we can't go in there and start asking who that might be," Serhis closed his eyes and nodded his head.

"We could try searching their homes and go looking for a connection or blackmail material, but there are too many homes to search through, too many ways to get caught," said Rhasalis.

"If you did that and did get caught, there's no way I'd be anywhere near here. Or knew about it. I didn't even meet any of you, because my House wouldn't be involved in a home break-in," Keianc said with a grim face.

"And what would happen if we did find something that linked Tomond to them or that they did something highly suspicious and illegal," Iskdiwercaesin said inquisitively.

"Depends on a lot of stuff. Such as if it belonged to someone from the other Houses, we'd have a full investigation and my boss would praise you for your diligent work."

"Typical. Cover your ass one moment and kiss it when it suits you," Iskdiwercaesin snorted with disdain.

"Ah, but the whole point is that I get to keep mine," Keianc laughed.

"Is there any place else you can think of going to? We still have most of the afternoon left," Serhis briefly checked the sun's position. From guessing, he estimated that it was four hours after noon.

"You could try checking back at that inn you're staying at. I usually stay there to pick up info as well. It's all second-hand, but it sets me in the right direction most of the time. I wasn't there listening for anything about him, but I guess I could start digging," said Keianc.

"I want to see the rest of the city first. Even if we don't find anything about Tomond today, we can still learn something about this place that could be useful later," recommended Baous.

"Words of wisdom," Serhis agreed. "If it's not related to Tomond, it may make staying in Jiak an easier prospect."

"Alright then. I'm going to go back to my boss and give her an update, tell her that we should avoid getting near the warehouse again. You know where to find me," Keianc tossed them the map as he turned and waved behind him, leaving a trail of paw prints in the sand.

"I'm not too sure that guy is useful," Xet voiced his thoughts.

"He's got some use for being a House informant or whatever he's called. Not much though," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"Is there a place we should go to first. It's not as if it's any more likely we'd spot Tomond there than anywhere else," Serhis fully unfurled the map for all of them to see. The map was of average quality, a typical work for a cartographer looking for a decent source of income. The city was divided into seven separate districts, the palace, the docks, heavily traveled trade area, and four residential zones. It had been clear before that the search was going to be hard, but looking at the city map proved how daunting it would truly be.

Their first destination was the market to order to restock on supplies and needed goods. While they shopped Serhis kept a watchful eye out. As he did, he got a better feel of the city, or at least one part of it. What he earlier took for a sense of fear was more like utmost caution, an actual assault on anyone would have pushed it into full blown paranoia. This was not city in anarchy as guards patrolled the streets, merchants could safely display their wares in the open, and the roads remained open, but there was an underlying current of suspicion and subtle shifts for power. The guards they saw patrolling the market did so in well-armed groups and they never saw any with different emblems patrolling the same street. In this case, they mostly saw Ihthei emblems adorning the guard's shirts. This wasn't the only sign of the Houses' influences throughout the place, merchant stalls had marks that showed they were licensed by the different Houses, mostly of the Aeig mark, and craftsman's tools were stamped by House Eieagh. The whole of Jiak was essentially owned by the three factions and it was clear from Keianc that none wished to share power, that they only abided the other because they had to.

Muttering about the strange compulsion for certain surfacers and their need to put taxes on everything, Serhis returned to the group after purchasing a pair of healing potions. "Okay, I think that's everything I need."

"I think that's it," Baous hadn't actually bought anything much aside from foodstuffs and had been waiting for the others. The only other thing he did buy was the fan he was using in an effort to cool himself off. The heat wasn't as intense as the desert crossing to Arcwell, but it made the canine kobold more than a little uncomfortable as he wore his armor.

"Do you need more ice water?" Serhis asked. He would have recommended that Baous take off his armor, but considering their situation and the nature of their task, he himself was wearing his chain mail underneath his vestments. For now, they had to endure.

"No, no. I wouldn't mind going back to the inn now though," Baous answered.

"I thought you were interested in exploring this city," said Iskdiwercaesin, more as a tease towards Baous than complaint.

"We could go through a different part of the city as we go back," Baous suggested as he pointed down another street. From what he could recall from the map, they could make a curve from their current position back towards the "Swift Sands". "I don't know if Keianc is back there yet. I don't think he's exactly waiting for us either."

Finding no reason not to, they took the scenic route back towards their lodgings. As the left the awning filled markets and past streets of houses that looked like they were long overdue for renovations, they reached a different district on the map. When they did, all they saw was desolation. A long, wide stretch of the city looked like it had caught fire some time ago in this district, a huge swath of burnt timbers and skeletons of charred stone houses could be seen for entire blocks. Serhis was surprised to see people moving among the wrecks of buildings, some shifting timbers or shoveling away the remains of the homes. Most simply sat in the wreckage, curled up with their heads pressed against their knees or laying down next to a low wall with nowhere else to go. Ash and sand mixed with misery.

Serhis recalled Keianc mentioning something about a fire. He had assumed that any damage would have been cleared up by now. As his feet stood in the warm sand, his heart felt chilled at the sight. "These poor souls..." he whispered.

They continued on their path through the district, the place looking like it had done little to recover or reconstruct. Humans and goblins seemed to be the majority of the population here, gnolls perhaps being the next largest. As they walked, they saw small gangs amongst the rubble and the alleys, watching them with hungry eyes. "We shouldn't be here long. Those types look dangerous," Rhasalis advised quietly.

"They'd also have to be stupid if they think they can take me on," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"Or desperate. No one should have to be that desperate," Serhis' voice was filled with sympathy. He saw that a few tent camps had been set up here and there, but there were few and looked decidedly disorganized and very unhealthy. The stench could be smelled even as they skirted the edge of destruction. "Why isn't something being done?"

"Why? Are you going to do something about it?" asked Iskdiwercaesin with little seriousness. As if in answer, Serhis went towards one of the tent camps. The others looked a bit startled, yet with little surprise, they went after him. "I should have expected this. Not that we have anywhere to be, but do you really have time for this?" For Serhis, that answer was obvious. He might not be able to alleviate much of the suffering he suspected was here. It didn't stop him from going towards its largest concentration.

They barely set foot fifty meters from the camp before they were beset by a horde of beggars. While some of the shadier figures kept their distance with Iskdiwercaesin around, the presence of a dragon seemed to encourage the beggars as they pleaded for any gold coins the wyrmling could spare or trade.

"Hey, shoo, shoo! No, I don't want to buy your shoes. Cheese is not suppose to be that color! Don't get that close to me! And that isn't have any magic essence!" Iskdiwercaesin kept close to the others as the beggars kept asking for money or holding up trinkets.

"Please, settle down everyone!" Serhis asked in a loud voice, almost overpowering Iskdiwercaesin's and was suitably grateful for Xet's ability to translate through his magic. "I'd like to offer my healing services , so please, if anyone here is in danger of dying from an illness or wound, show them to me."

His offer for healing didn't go unheard as a few that had crowded around Iskdiwercaesin broke away and came to plead to Serhis. They had originally been asking Iskdiwercaesin for money for medicine and now they had a chance to go right to the source. The rest started to get the hint that Iskdiwercaesin wasn't in a charitable mood and reluctantly went their own way.

As they followed the beggars into the tent camp, Iskdiwercaesin looked curiously at Serhis. "I don't see what you're hoping to get out of this. Most of this bunch doesn't look like they have a bit of silver or gold and I very much doubt any of them know about Tomond if you're looking to fish for information," he muttered.

"This isn't for money, I simply want to help them," Serhis replied.

"Ah. Charity work. A mix between wasting time and doing something barely productive."

"It's hardly wasting time if I alleviate unneeded pain," said Serhis.

"It is if what you're doing doesn't last. By this time tomorrow, I'd bet someone around here catches a nasty flu or drank bad water and it won't change much. You're better off saving your energy."

Serhis wanted to scold Iskdiwercaesin for that, yet he kept his quiet. Deep down, he knew that the dragon's word contained a grain of truth. Unless something changed fundamentally about the conditions these people lived in, anything he did today wouldn't last. "I'm still going to do what I said and help the sick," he said weakly.

"Fine, fine, have it your way. It's that I'm not getting why you're sticking your nose into this mess. We see this place for the first time and you come rushing in."

Serhis shrugged, he didn't have an explanation for it. It was a compulsion for him. "Why are you so irritable today?"

"Me? Irritable? Not for any particular reason. We spent half the day chasing our tails and nothing to show for it. Then again, this does look like it's going to be a long search," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"We could get lucky and someone here does know a bit about Tomond," said Baous, though he looked like he had his doubts about that as well.

As they progressed deeper through the camp, following the beggars, they noticed that not all of the buildings had been burned down. Amongst the tents were buildings with blackened walls that looked otherwise intact and a few that seemed to be in the center of the tent camp looked to have survived unscathed. While those buildings have remained, the improvised wall surrounding them certainly didn't look like they were originally there. They saw mean looking thugs stood in front of the walls and the one gate as they passed, discouraging any of those in destitution from staying around. The buildings behind the wall of scrap and toppled stone likely held just as unpleasant individuals.

"We're here only to cure the sick, then we're leaving, right?" said Baous.

Serhis nodded slowly. He couldn't abide the thought of leaving without doing something to aid, but such poverty on a massive scale was beyond his ability to help. They reached what looked to be a tent for the sick and the conditions that they saw were appalling. There were no proper beds, all of the sick and injured had to make do with laying on clumps of rags which was little better than the bare sand. Flies and insects buzzed in the confined space, the stink of rot from some of those in the back told Serhis that a few were already beyond help. The best they could do for them was to remove the bodies so that they wouldn't give the people around them an even worse disease that would lead to the same result.

As the three beggars pointed out specific individuals, Serhis noticed that someone here was actively tending to the sick. Wearing robes of white and gold, a healthy, if now rather haggard, man in his thirties with a trim beard leaned over one of the sick, inspecting some form of wound. The gold symbol of a sun around his neck marked him as a cleric of Pelor, a god whose domains incorporated of light and healing.

"Holton, Holton," one of the goblin beggars spoke to the cleric who was still inspecting the wound.

"In a moment Sevwa. If it's about your sister, her condition is same as yesterday, but unless I get a new shipment of medicine, it's-"

"No, look! Someone's here to help!" the goblin pointed at Serhis.

Finally looking up, the cleric startled at seeing the group. "Oh my! Oh, oh. Uhm, greetings?"

"Greetings fellow cleric. I am Serhis, cleric to Bahamut. I was passing by and had offered my assistance to the beggars."

"Awfully kind of you. You were passing by and came just like that?" the cleric of Pelor asked.

"I wish there we had another, better reason too," Iskdiwercaesin muttered, drawing the cleric's attention to him. The cleric of Pelor looked at the wyrmling for a while before returning his attention to Serhis.

"Yes. My abilities aren't much compared to what I have seen. I still wish to do something for the worst cases," said Serhis.

"Then let me just say that I, Holton, cleric of Pelor, am glad for it, as will be the people you heal. I've done my best, but like you've heard, my own supplies are limited. So what is a cleric of Bahamut, and a kobold no less, doing out here? I assume that dragon is your master?"

"We're more like associates with a mutual goal in common," said Iskdiwercaesin. "Sir goody-goody over here wanted to stop by out of the kindness of his heart."

Baous took a brief sniff, he was even able to smell the sickness in the air. "Shouldn't this place have some wind blowing through it?" he asked, having picked up the trick of good ventilation from Serhis.

"I wish I could, but with so many tents in the way and there being hardly any space, it's not like I can get much. I'd move this place further out, but that would put the only source of fresh water out of reach, so that's not an option." Holton looked very much the part of an overworked healer, blood and bile staining the tips of his sleeves and a constant sweat on his brow that wasn't brought on by the heat.

As Serhis approached the nearest patient, he looked around before he began diagnosing the symptoms. "Are you working by yourself? For this many people, they must need more assistance."

"You're the first bit of help I've gotten in a while. Some of the locals around here try to help, but they're not well versed in medicine or surgery. Add the fact that I don't have the materials necessary for them to give out, any aid they give me is limited," the fellow cleric emphasized the point by lifting the covers on one patient, revealing a deep cut in the gnoll's arm that was professionally stitched, though the wound was weeping puss. Disturbingly, a few maggots had finished feeding on some necrotic flesh and the pair of them cleaned them out. At this point, Xet and Rhasalis decided to go outside, both out of the cobblywebs wracking their minds and partially because they could do little to help. Baous looked a bit green as well, but since he had assisted Serhis on multiple occasions, he stayed. Iskdiwercaesin stuck around as well, more out of a sense that he shouldn't be unnerved by the sight of maggots. In the back of the dragon's mind, it both grossed him out and fascinated him in the way only five year olds could about wriggly things.

"Certainly there should be other followers of Pelor around the city. As well as other clerics that can heal," Serhis spoke as they worked.

Sadly, Holton shook his head. "Even in the best of times, there were only three or four of us. When the fire finished burning, there were many more, but things have taken a turn for the worse by then."

"How could that be? From what I've heard the fire wasn't recent, it was ten years ago. Some recovery must have happened," said Serhis.

"You're correct about that, although you don't have the complete picture. I suppose you just got off the boat?" Holton asked.

"Yes. We landed his morning. We've been collecting information about the city."

"What for? As much as I'd like to think strangers from foreign lands come to this city only to help the needy, I get the impression that you came here for a different purpose if you're so interested."

Holton seemed the type to ask many questions, an inquisitive man, which was very suitable since most were reluctant patients were to reveal too much to a physician without some prodding unless they knew without a doubt that they were sick. Serhis was willing to deal with some of those questions, though leaving the main purpose out of his explanation. "We're seeking a man named Tomond Shaviayear in order to disrupt his plans and schemes."

Pausing as he redressed a woman's bandages, Holton gave the kobold a strange look. "I wish you luck in that. The man's presence has disrupted my own plans."

Iskdiwercaesin had been distracted as he had been looking at a pile of empty medicine bottles and inspecting their names. His attention was caught by Holton's comment. "What do you mean by that? You know about him?"

"Hah, me and about every cleric in the city," the cleric of Pelor laughed with no humor in his voice. "The man's a menace, whether you follow any deity, good, evil, or neither. I suppose I didn't need to tell you that, after all you're pursuing him. I wouldn't mind if he was only heckling hidden temples dedicated to the Hater of Life or any of their ilk," he referenced Nerull by one of his titles. "If they weren't so hidden, I'd like to see that they've been getting as much trouble as we have."

"Hmm, I'd like to know if Keianc knew about that. He probably does know, so more accurately I'd want to know why he didn't mention it," Iskdiwercaesin said to Serhis and Baous.

"We can ask him when we see him again," Baous played the role of assistant to the clerics.

Holton didn't seem familiar with Keianc's name, he kept on with his work. "What do you intend to do to Tomond if you find him? And who's Keianc?"

"We'll decide that when the time comes. We prefer he leaves the region peacefully, though I suspect we're going to have to coerce him to do that," Serhis answered. "We've met two of the members of House Ihthei. Keianc is one of them who's helping us about finding Tomond. If you or someone else knows where to find him, we'd be grateful."

"Oh he's been making all sorts of trouble for us all. That doesn't mean we know where he goes either. He comes storming into a temple, raises nine kinds of hell and thirty two levels of the abyss, then gets out of there when the people there try to stop him. He's a nuisance, but the real problem is his followers."

"He has followers?" Iskdiwercaesin was even more agitated. "What else has that so called informant not been saying?" he muttered.

"Yep. Fanatics like him spouting on about how the deities should leave us alone. Tomond might be a pain in the rear, yet he's only one man. The loons that follow his example aren't as destructive, but they're more numerous," Holton washed his hands in a pail of water, which Serhis noted was very dirty and likely as infected as the patients.

"We should have that replaced with fresh water," Serhis took the pail. Before he could bring it out to dump, Holton waved for him to stop.

"You can't! I have no more water if you toss that out, not until tomorrow," said Holton.

"No more water? I thought you said that the main reason you couldn't move was because you have access to it here," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"I didn't say we had a lot of it. Most of it goes to the patients for them to drink, but what's left I have to converse," Holton explained. "I either have to save money for water or medicine, I don't have enough for both."

"You have to buy water?" Baous asked.

"Around here, the answer is unfortunately yes. There's always the river if anyone feels like walking, but unless they know where they're drinking from... Some of the poor souls here did try drinking directly from there and turned up sick here."

"But still, you have to pay for a safe drink?" Baous was perplexed by that.

"Ah, I've got to remember that you're not around from here. You noticed the walls before you came in, yes? There is a well behind them and the gang that rules there makes sure that no one gets near it. If you want a drink, it's a copper per bucket."

"That's cruel. What right do they have to do that?" Serhis asked.

"They don't have any. Before the fire, that well was for public use, it's actually what saved those buildings form being burned down. It stayed open for a year, then the walls started coming up, the owners of the buildings said they were getting concerned about the 'criminal element' that was coming around. Not that they're incorrect about that, crime was on the rise in the neighborhood. It's that they've become criminals in their own right," Holton scoffed. "Listen to me prattle on. You're here about Tomond, so one problem at a time."

"Yes, getting back to that, what about those fanatics?" Iskdiwercaesin inquired.

"They come around from time to time to harass me. Fortunately some of the beggars around here are grateful for what I do, so they make sure they don't do anything more than blow hot air in my face. Other times they go to the temples and cause as much of a ruckus as they can before the clerics can catch them."

"Tomond has followers. Why is it that people of his sort attract more?" the dragon sighed.

"I don't see the appeal either. Perhaps if you find one of them, they might tell you what you need, though I doubt any of them will tell you because you ask nicely," Holton wiped his hands on a ragged piece of cloth. "They're in the walls along with the gang. I'm not sure what their arrangement is since they're together in there," he shrugged.

There wasn't much more to talk about after that, Serhis and Baous helped Holton with what they could, which was considerably more than what Holton could do alone. This proved especially true with the worst of the diseases as Serhis could cure them with divine magic, Holton could fix broken bones and sprains, but not disease. Adding to the fact that Serhis could conjure water, Holton seemed especially relieved. Xet and Rhasalis checked inside from time to time to see their progress. After two hours, Serhis could do little more.

As one of the beggars who had been on the brink of sickness induced delirium thanked them profusely, though he regarded the kobolds with a strange look and kept staring at Iskdiwercaesin, as if the wingless dragon were a lingering hallucination. "For a random act of kindness, you've done a lot," said Holton.

"Yet it's not nearly enough," said Serhis.

"Still, accept my own thanks and compliments," Holton pushed back the tent flap for them as they left.

Standing outside, they looked at the walls of rubble and debris. "You heard?" Serhis asked.

Rhasalis nodded. "I wouldn't mind cornering one of those fanatics and learning what he knows about Tomond. I doubt the fanatic will have has his exact location, yet he might still have something useful."

"I guess going up to the gate and asking to see them isn't going to work," Baous noted.

"I'd rather we corner someone else, a gnoll in particular that isn't telling us everything," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"He might have his reasons." Serhis wasn't completely sure of that himself. He was still willing to give Keianc the benefit of the doubt. Leaving the destroyed district, they went back to their original route back to the inn and found Keianc back at the same table.

"Why hello there. I'd have thought you would have gotten back before me, so-" he paused and took a sniff. "You went to Kovsto District, huh? You might want to check your pockets and don't be too surprised if you're missing anything."

Baous nodded. "The smell of all the ash and some rot."

"What were you doing over there? Digging for more stuff about Tomond?"

"That, as well as a mission of mercy," Iskdiwercaesin glanced in Serhis' direction. "We did learn something very interesting. Like that Tomond has followers that share in his hatred for the gods. Something like that sounds like it could be important," his words carried an accusing tone.

Keianc didn't like that implication. "If you're thinking that I knew that beforehand and didn't tell you, you'd be right, if only because it's information of little value."

"How's that?"

"For one thing, they might say they're his followers, except he doesn't seem to want to have anything to do with them. We've kept watch on any of them that seems to be in charge, which is hard since it doesn't look like they have any formal organization, and never once have we seen them come in contact or receive a message from Tomond. Well, the messages we intercepted beforehand."

Iskdiwercaesin didn't seem all that happy about that explanation, but he seemed to accept it. Serhis was more willing to forgive that slip of a detail. "We would like if you told us everything related to Tomond, even if it seems irrelevant or a dead end."

"If you say so."

"Then tell us now. And I don't suppose you found anything while we were gone?" Serhis asked.

Keianc shook his head and took a sip of ale. "Aside from the cult and what I've already told you, there isn't anything else I can think of. If there is, I don't know of it and neither does Rahsh. If she does, she's not telling me, but," the gnoll's ears faced the tables where the other House members sat. They didn't appear to be focused on their table, though he kept his voice as low as he could regardless, "we did get something new today. It's not much, but it's got the scent of something with more substance than what I've been getting for the past few weeks. A gnome that we think is one of his contacts keeps getting spotted at a certain street and we think he's got a drop point or meeting place nearby where he does his deals."

"Okay, this sounds promising. What else?"

"Unfortunately, that's it. The guy who told me couldn't hang around any longer after spotting the gnome before he had to turn tail from a guard patrol. He was in Aeig ground at the time."

The more Serhis learned about the situation between the Houses, the more it sounded like a fight between very powerful gangs. "Can he or someone else follow this gnome again?"

"Actually, I've been thinking that you'd be the ones to do that. Since you're new here and have no House affiliations, none of the others are going to have much of a reason to hassle you. The patrols out will still be asking why you're there if they see you, especially at night when the gnome goes there, so make a good cover story."

"But we've already been seen with you, by them," Baous' eyes flicked to the sides and didn't move his head, indicating the other House members. It was a good guess that they were also informants of one type or another.

"We can take care of that detail now. I don't suppose any of you have a hundred fifty gold coins on you?" said Keianc.

"What for?" asked Iskdiwercaesin.

"We'll make it look like you were only here to buy something special. We trade stuff, then I'll go on my way."

Rhasalis nodded. "Then what about this gnome? Where do we find him and what do we do once we have?"

"You still have the map I gave you? Look for the intersection of Ghal Road and Libisicu Street around midnight for him. His name's Alevin Goldbrow and I'm told he doesn't like wearing the same clothes every day. Neither would I with all the sand. He does have peculiar taste in accessories and jewelry though, like ivory tusks shaped like an elephant or a necklace made of clam shells and amber. Again, he doesn't like wearing the same thing every day, so you'll have to use your judgment on that. Follow him and find out what he's doing. If you want, find out what he knows too. If you do that and tell me whatever he's doing and knows and it has something to do with Tomond, I'm sure Rahsh is going to be more than happy to lend us more support."

This seemed sound to Serhis. "How do we contact you again? If we keep meeting you here, the others will suspect something."

"I'll handle that detail. You just don't approach my table anymore, because if I disappear after we talk, that's going to tip them off too. You can wave at me or say hello, but no more long conversations. Looking like you're avoiding me would also give them hints," Keianc's cunning was explained to his profession as an informant.

"That's smart. What are we 'buying' then?" Baous asked.

Searching through his pockets, Keianc produced a pearl of no outstanding feature. "This, for a hundred fifty gold coins."

"A hundred and fifty?! You have to be joking!" Iskdiwercaesin exclaimed. His voice was so loud that it startled the group as well as the other people in the tavern, especially the ones with emblems. If Keianc's goal was to impress on them that the reason he and the party were meeting was for this pearl, Iskdiwercaesin's outburst might cement that impression

Seeing how much attention was placed on them and understanding the quickly made ruse, Iskdiwercaesin quickly formed a response of his own. "A hundred twenty five," he lowered his voice to the nearly the same level that they had been talking at, though slightly louder and with an agitated inflection for their more interested listeners.

The pearl danced in the gnoll's paw as he rolled it around. "A hundred and fifty or no deal."

Playing along with the charade, Serhis spoke up as well. "We need that no matter what. Pay him and be done with it," he matched Iskdiwercaesin's tone.

Grumbling, the dragon didn't seem like he was acting, he was truly unhappy about both paying more for anything as well as parting with gold when he didn't need to. As the money was placed on the table, Keianc gently handed him the pearl as if it was more than some ordinary bauble. The transaction and act complete, Keianc scooted out of his chair. "If you have any other business, you know where to find me," he gave a conspiratorial wink at them as he left. As he asked, they remained at the table as he left the inn.

"That had better have not been a real trade. I want my money back later," Iskdiwercaesin hissed under his breath, clenching the pearl in a tight fist.

"I'm more concerned about how he's going to keep in contact with us. I doubt we ourselves are being watched. I wonder what method he might use," said Rhasalis, keeping her voice low and using whatever reflective surface in the inn to indirectly observe the others.

"We have the message spells, but we know that's not always the best way," said Xet.

"He said he'll handle that problem. We'll have to wait until then," said Serhis.

"His lead about that gnome had better actually go somewhere. We don't have much to begin with and from what we've got today it's not going to get any easier finding out more," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"You don't trust his information?" Serhis had some of that same concern.

"More like I don't trust him, or at least not by much. Not mentioning Tomond's followers may have slipped his mind or he really did think it isn't a solid connection, but I know he and his boss have some kind of angle. They're not helping us because they feel like it, they've got something in mind. I think the best way to put it is that while I'm not worried about what he might do, but what his bosses might want him to do to us."

Though Serhis didn't share Iskdiwercaesin's mistrust of nearly everyone in the world, he had to agree with the dragon's assessment of the situation. They made it very clear that they wanted to indirectly harass their rivals, it was a question of how they were planning to use the kobolds and dragon to do it and that Tomond was one of their problems. As he was about to get off of his seat, he noticed some movement out of the hallway that went towards the rooms.

A flash of brightly colored clothing and jewelry caught his eye and those of the others, but what got their attention were the faces that wore them, a red haired human and a slightly less showy half-elf with a flute next to her, and both were walking towards them. "I thought I heard a familiar voice booming through the walls," Veri grinned.

"Greetings Veri, Vincentia," Baous smiled at them. "Wow, I didn't know you were in Jiak."

"We could say the same for you," Vincentia replied. "I thought you were a lot further to the West by now for a search."

Serhis turned in his seat to better talk to them as they stood next to the table. "We have new business that came up. We got to Arcwell and rode a ship from there to here." He was surprised as the rest of them that their former traveling companions had ended up in the same city, let alone the same inn. "What are you doing here? Weren't you on a hunt for some old texts?"

"We found what we were looking for. How about yourselves? Was your search for family successful Baous?" the singer asked.

Baous had to think fast for an answer that didn't violate the geas. He could have lied, but it didn't feel right to do that to them. "We found some things that could bring us to other areas were more of my kind might be," he evaded the main answer of yes with a more ambiguous one.

"Ah. I wish you better luck towards that," Veri nodded. "Our own search was rather fruitful. There were many old song and tales preserved, though a few were too far gone to recover. As for why we're here, we figured it was time we came back here to visit a few friends before we move on again. Another city, another chance to catch up with the people we know there, pick up a few coins along the way, and it's off to the next destination."

"Arcwell, hmm? Were you there for the Carnival of the Solstice?" asked Vincentia.

"Yes, we got there just in time to enjoy it," Xet replied.

"Oh, you can speak Common now?"

"With some arcane assistance, yes."

"That's obvious from the way his mouth moves and his words don't match," Veri noted. "We've been there during one of the Carnivals two year ago. It was the Summer Solstice as well. We should go there again for the Fall Equinox," she said to her fellow bard.

"Here's something I'd like to know. How'd you get all the way from the mountain range over to here? I know it's been a few months since we last met, but you must have been traveling extremely quickly to get from there to here," Iskdiwercaesin was content to socialize with them until either Keianc discretely got in touch with them or when it got near the time to stalk a certain gnome. In the meantime he ordered a light snack of a whole tuna.

"Now that's a secret," Vincentia said playfully. After allowing a second for the dragon to draw breath for a reply, she laughed. "Not really. I'm messing with you. We teleported."

"Teleportation? How? That must be a dangerous way," Xet was incredulous. He knew the dangers of teleportation well and was doubtful either of them were mages of sufficient power for a safe teleportation.

"These help," Veri rummaged through her pack, showing a small gray disk the size of her palm with two arching lines running through it. "They allow us to go from place to place."

Iskdiwercaesin immediately looked at the disc as if her hand had suddenly sprouted an eye. "How did you get that? And what do you mean 'they'? You have more than one?"

"What is that? Is that what teleports you?" Baous assumed.

"One question at a time. Yes, it's an arcane device that functions as a method of travel and it has the same capabilities as an archmage, teleporting us to within a meter of where we want to go. Unfortunately, it only works on places we've already been to and seen in detail, which is why we still need to go on the road. It also works only once a week, so we're better off if we keep traveling and only using it when we need to," Veri answered.

"But how'd you get it? To think that you'd something that rare and powerful..."

"A lucky break I suppose. We found it at the bottom of a well in a forest, beats me how it ended up there," Vincentia shrugged.

"You simply found it!?"

"That's exactly what we're saying. What? Do you think we got it from the archmage who made it in the first place?" Veri snickered. "Sometimes people find the most interesting stuff in strange places, there's no reasonable explanation. Like those old stories of amulets that are randomly given to heroes that seal off gates to the Hells or rings dredged out of the bottom of a river that can spell doom for the poor fisherman that finds it. Of course, there're also the times we go through a lot of hard work to get somewhere and find nothing but mud and dross."

"How fortunate for you."

"That means you've been here before. Maybe you can help us, we're looking for someone and so far we've only got a ghost of a scent to track him," said Baous.

"I suppose I could send you towards one of the people we know around here. It's not like we could help too much, we're only going to be here until the week is out and the disk has recharged," said Veri.

"It could be enough," said Serhis. "We're looking for a man named Tomond Shaviayear."

Veri didn't appear to recognize the name from her impassive expression, but Vincentia seemed nonplused. "You don't ask for much do you?" she shook her head with a sarcastic remark, "okay, I think I might know someone around here that might know. I also know that she's in need of a few favors done, so that'll help."

"Could you please give us her name?" Serhis asked.

"Her name's Rahsh Grahhi. She's a gnoll that works with one of the Houses. She can be a bit rough, but-," Vincentia noticed how the others were looking at her with different reactions, mostly a mix of surprise and a tired sigh.

"We've already met with her. She has given us some help, but so far we're grasping at straws," said Serhis.

"Oh. Well, if one of my other friends might be able to help, then I'll let you know," Vincentia replied. "I doubt it though; Tomond isn't the type to be easily found."

"That much we've gathered," Rhasalis looked out the door of the inn and saw that there was still plenty of sunlight left. Relaxing, she shifted in her seat and made herself comfortable. "How'd you learn of him?"

"From Rahsh. It seems like he's making all sorts of trouble for her and she keeps asking us if we could be of any help. Of course she asks our help for a lot of stuff," said Veri.

Nodding, Rhasalis beckoned for a server to their table. "Well, I suppose we can talk about it later. We've been on the road, or the sea, for some time and we can catch up on what has happened to us since we split up." The others nodded, liking the idea of some rest and good food before their stake out later that night. Sharing what they could with each other, they waited for the sun to set.

As sundown approached, the bards plied their trade after asking the owner if he was interested in letting them play. The group stayed for the performance, and then a while after the pair went to their room to sleep as the night grew long. At an hour from midnight, they walked out into the cold streets of the city.

Having studied the map in detail during their wait, they had some knowledge in what direction they were supposed to go. "So our plan is to simply follow this gnome and see what he does? It's not much, is it?" said Rhasalis as they neared their destination.

Iskdiwercaesin nodded. "You said it yourself; we can't really make any sort of strategy if we don't have any information to use."

"We can still tip things in our favor. We should look around the street and find out which paths might be blocked, good vantage points to see from, and routes we could take if we need to run."

"Run? From who?" Baous asked.

"If we get spotted by one of the patrols Keianc mentioned, we'd probably have to make up a clever story to explain why we're there. I doubt they'll attack us, but it's always a good idea to have an out. Besides, even if we didn't have the patrols to worry about, there may still be other things we'd have to watch out for."

They found the street after referring to the map once. It was wide enough to allow a single wagon to pass through, but little more aside from that. The stores and homes that lined it were built of stone with wood lattices higher up, this part of town home to skilled craftspeople and merchants and it reflected that. The streets weren't dirty, but they weren't completely clean either and they saw a beggar walking through, looking around for scraps of refuse or a dropped coin. Taking Rhasalis' suggestion, they scouted the area as best they could, then waited in the dark. The sliver of the crescent moon gave little of its light in Jiak and the stars provided little else more with their cold glow. For beings able to see in total darkness, they were not hindered. They didn't know exactly how long they waited, watching every passerby on the street, though a short figure with a strange hairstyle shaped like a upward cone adorned with gold pretty much told them that they had found Alevin Goldbrow.

"He fits the description. That has got to be him," said Baous.

As he was about to follow, Rhasalis grabbed his leg. "Not yet. Let him go on a way, and then I'll go after him. I can stay out of sight and shadow him, but it's going to be much harder if we're all in one group. Stay in the dark and keep as quiet as you can. You'll be following me more than him."

The group nodded and let Alevin continue further down the street. Trusting her judgment, Rhasalis stepped out of the side alley they had been hiding in. As she followed him, she watched which way his head turned and how fast he was moving. The gnome gave off subtle hints of a person wary about being followed, if out of caution rather than actual suspicion. He looked over his shoulder at times and she had to be shock still in the side of a building's shadow or the nook of a store front. The others kept their distance, following Rhasalis as far as she was to the gnome. Continuing to tailing Alevin, she watched as he got to the end of the street and at the gates leading to the city reservoir next to the river. Looking behind his back one more time, he opened the lock and slipped inside. Serhis and the others caught up to Rhasalis near the corner of the intersecting street, kept an eye on Alevin as he went further in.

"It looks like we found the spot. What now?" Xet looked over his own shoulder back down the street they had just come from.

"This isn't good. It's too far to see what he's doing over there and it's too noisy to hear anything if he's meeting with anyone over there," said Iskdiwercaesin. With the river nearby, listening to any whispers over the water was nearly impossible and if they tried to get any closer, they were sure to be spotted in the open area between the reservoir gates and the street.

"I can get closer if I'm careful. I'm not sure about the rest of you," said Rhasalis.

"We all don't have to follow. We just need to find out what sort of connection he's got to Tomond. We can wait here," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"What about the gate? I saw him lock it behind him," said Xet.

"Then I'll be careful and quick," Rhasalis peeked around the corner to see if Alevin was still in sight. The gnome was at the corner of a low wall, himself peeking out to check the street.

"We can wait here while you go ahead. If he leaves somewhere else, we can follow him," said Serhis. Nodding, the others waited near the alley as Rhasalis went directly towards it.

Waiting for Alevin to check the street once more, once she saw his head go back behind the wall, she rounded the corner and went out of the shadows as quickly as she dared while trying to make as little noise as possible. Traversing the open street almost at a run, she looked down both sides of the street before she took out a lockpick from her pocket. Nervously gritting her teeth, she had to steady her hand while scrapping the inside of the lock, her red eyes darting to the side to see if the gnome had seen her. Breathing out as she heard the bolt slide out, she immediately cringed as the gate made a low groan as she opened it. Her eyes went to were Alevin was waiting, her heart beating in her throat. Fortunately, the same river noise that prevented them from listening to him also stopped him from noticing. Slipping inside, she pressed against the wall next to the gnome, and remembering to breathe after holding it in. Barely five meters away from Alevin, she tried to relax and wait to find out what he was here for.

Ten minutes passed, she heard the sound of a paddling and Alevin moving away from the wall. Risking a glance, Rhasalis watched as Alevin went behind the wall and towards the area where the reservoir connected to the river. On the river was a rowboat with a figure slightly smaller than Alevin sitting in it, holding on to a post so that he or she didn't float away in the current. It couldn't have been Tomond and she quashed whatever bitterness she felt. She waited to see what they would do.

"You're early. Has something happened?" Alevin said to the other person. He wasn't even whispering and Rhasalis could barely hear him.

"---" The rower's reply couldn't be heard at all. Staying low, she couldn't see much of a way to approach, the path between the wall and the river was too open and the channels that brought water into the reservoir limited her path even if she tried. Realizing that she had to get closer no matter what, she steeled herself as she stuck a leg in the water and bit back a curse as the tepid water sent shivers through it. Caught between going slowly to avoid any noise while enduring the cold or plunging right in to get over the shock quickly, she picked the latter. The sound of churning water was unnoticed by the others, much to her relief. The chilly water that drenched her from the neck down didn't. Clinging to the side of the walkway, Rhasalis shuffled towards the two, using her hands to drag herself through the channel.

Getting closer, she heard Alewin's reply to whatever the other had said before. "No, I'm sure this time. I was being watched by a gnoll, but not for the past few nights. I'm pretty positive that it was one of those Ihthei bunch." Rhasalis made a note to warn Keianc that his own spy had been found out. It paid to have someone like him owe her a favor. On the other hand, it made her task that much harder, they knew to look out for people following them.

"How sure?" the boatman asked.

"Well, not completely."

"Why not?"

"... I'm not the best judge of faces. It might be that I'm seeing a different one each time..." Alevin's sounded as unsure as his words.

"Hmph. You better do something about that, or you're going to find yourself back in debt. I want to be sure I've got a safe and secure courier in you and I can't have you mucking it up because you can't remember a face."

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Look, if I see him again, I'll be sure to remember-"

"I'd rather you didn't see him at all. We're changing meeting locations after next week, when I'm sure the new place is totally secure. Do you know the taphouse downriver from here, the one that serves that spicy rum?"

"I've been there once or twice when I'm visiting a friend, but really, all the way over there? I'll have to walk halfway across the city to get back home."

"If you want to keep going back to your fancy new home, you better do it. Now where's the package I asked for?" As she listened, Rhasalis could feel the water numbing the bottom of her legs and she couldn't even feel her feet anymore. If she wasn't careful, the cold would slow her down. The last thing she needed was to mess up because she got sluggish and sloppy, or even worse, the cold made her drift into sleep. Flexing her muscles, she decided to get closer to the pair, hoping to see who Alevin was speaking to. If she had a face, the ordeal could be worth the trouble. Nearing the two, her claws slipped on a smooth, wet stone, making a small splash. The two looked her way, the boatman pulling up a crossbow from the bottom of the rowboat and pointing at the source of the noise. They saw nothing, and after a minute of tense silence, the boatman put down the weapon. "I hate this place, it always has those weird noises." Rhasalis poked her head above the waterline and let out a halting breath out of her abused lungs, relieved that she hadn't gotten the full penalty for her slip up.

"Don't you have anywhere else we could meet? It doesn't have to be that taphouse, does it?"

"Yes, it has to be that one, so quit your bitching. You could use the exercise. Where is that package?" the rower demanded. Taking a paper wrapped package from a bag, Alevin carefully handed it over to him. As he did, Rhasalis had gotten as close as she dared, but she still couldn't see his face until he reached out to claim the parcel. The rower was right about one thing, the ability to recognize a face was essential to secrecy. In this case, she saw the face of the halfling from the docks when they were investigating the warehouse. This proved to be a double-edged sword since he could recognize her and the others as well if he saw them.

Alevin extended a hand, as if waiting for something in return. "My payment?"

Opening the package slightly, the halfling appeared to inspect something in it before wrapping it up again and tucking it under the seat of the rowboat. Satisfied that he had the goods, he placed a pouch that sounded full of coins to Alevin. "Tell him that it'll be done. Also, there's been a few more snooping around the warehouse again, and they're the strangest one yet. It's the same gnoll I've told you about last time, but he was with a dragon, his kobold cronies, and some kind of exotic gnoll. They don't look like they're anything special, but I'll keep an eye on them if they come around again. It could be that they're there for something else, I'll be sure next time."

Rhasalis would have immediately thrown a dagger at the both of them by now if she could trust her shaking arms. Between the cold and holding herself up in the channel, even with the water buoying her, the strain of holding herself was tiring. It was more likely she'd cut herself reaching for the blades. Better that she had a chance later.

"Nice doing business with you," Alevin tipped his head to the sailor and started back the way he came. Rhasalis had to cling on to the ridge of the walkway by the tips of her claws to avoid being noticed, her head submerged in the river water. The shock of the cold hitting her face helped to wake her up slightly. When she saw that the gnome had passed, she brought her head up and struggled not to gasp too loudly for air. To her right, Alevin had reached the gate. To her left, the halfling sailor was rowing away, downriver towards the others.

As Alevin went back around the wall, Rhasalis commanded her arms to lift her back up onto solid rock, her arms suffering spasms that pained her as she dragged herself onto the walkway. Dripping wet, she went after Alevin, the sound of wet feet on stone making soft *plaps* every step she took. No longer able control her own breathing, each gulp of air was a shuddering gasp while her wet clothes only seemed to amplify the cold desert night and she dearly hoped that the gnome didn't have good hearing. From the sound of the gate lock, he hadn't. With another click, he locked the gate behind him and went back down the same street he had used earlier. Only when he was a long ways off did she round the corner of the reservoir wall. The others waited until Alevin had also passed by their hiding spot, then came silently and quickly to the gate.

"Rhasalis, what happened?" Xet looked at her worriedly. "Did he see you and push you into the water? Did he try to drown you?"

"Nnn, no, no," she stammered, the cold numbing her tongue as badly as her body. The amulet of warmth she wore helped a little, a pool of warmth radiating out from her chest, though it would take a lot more time before it could warm up her drenched clothes. "G-got close as I could wi-without themem, seeing me. We, we should keep following h-him."

"No, not when you're like this. Here, I'll use my bedroll sheet to dry you," Serhis put down his pack, pulling out whatever he could that would absorb the water. The others helped to dry her as well and she was no longer freezing where she stood, if still damp.

"You said them, that means he was meeting someone over there. We didn't see anyone go through the gate," said Baous as he helped to dry.

Rhasalis was glad she could feel her heart no longer racing. "It was a halfling sailor on a rowboat, using the river. He was the one we saw earlier on the docks. I didn't hear them mention Tomond, but if they're working for him, he thinks we might be looking for him like the others. Alevin handed him a package fifteen centimeters square and half that tall," she remembered her training, describing what she observed in as accurate detail as she could. "He'll be back at the docks tomorrow to see if we're there for some other purpose. After he handed Alevin what looked to be a pouch of coins, he went back out of the reservoir, heading downriver."

"Downriver, hmm?" Iskdiwercaesin glanced down the alley they had been hiding in, seeing the river edge not too far off. "So we know he's up to something if he was spying on us. If we want to see that package, I could follow him instead of Alevin if I go right now. I can tip the boat over. He'd fall into the water and I can keep him under. No one would know, it'd look like an accident. A very convenient accident for us," he chuckled darkly.

Serhis shook his head. "We'll try to do this without killing anyone. He hasn't done anything to us to deserve that."

"He has a crossbow in the rowboat with him. It's safe to say he's willing to kill to keep their secrecy," Rhasalis shared Iskdiwercaesin's need to dispose of their enemies as quickly and efficiently as possible. Making it seem like an accidental drowning sounded good to her.

"You said that he would be at the docks again tomorrow. How about we go back there in full view of him and act as if we were searching for someone or something else? We could make up a fake name and talk amongst each other. If he reports back to Tomond, it'll look like we aren't there for him," suggested Serhis.

"I'd rather we didn't give him a tip off at all," Iskdiwercaesin replied, then reconsidered. "Then again, having one of his guys drown in the river could clue him in too."

As they talked, Rhasalis tried to open the lock, her hands fumbling the lockpick. Xet clutched her hands in his to help make them warm. "Thank you. Hmm, I think observing them will have to do for now. Keianc suspects that they might have a connection with Tomond, but I want to make sure of that first. While they were talking, Alevin mentioned that he noticed being followed by a gnoll, but he wasn't sure if it was the same one each time and the sailor said that their new meeting point would be a taphouse downriver that serves spicy rum. Maybe if we searched there, it would give us a better lead."

"There's a lot of ifs and maybes here," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"With so much secrecy in this city, I don't think anything has a guarantee," said Serhis.

"I'm for what Serhis says. We keep this sailor off our trail, but we still go to the taphouse he mentioned," Xet spoke his thoughts. After some consideration, the others agreed.

Her hands warmed, she picked the lock and passed through the gate. "It will also help if Keianc has anything for us tomorrow. We certainly held up our end of the, bargain with what we learned tonight."

As she put the lock back in place, Baous' ears perked up and he sniffed the air. "We have to go. A group of people are coming this way, I think it's a patrol."

Rhasalis twisted the lockpick and the gate was sealed once more. With that done, they went down the street and away from where Baous thought the patrol might be, back into the shadows of the city.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

As dawn broke and light poured through the barred windows, Serhis yawned and stretched, thankful for a good night's rest. It had been tense waiting for Rhasalis in the alleyway, every minute that passed a worried thought crossed his mind about how she could be in trouble and they wouldn't know. As tense as it was, he knew that Rhasalis must have been in tenser straights. Looking down at his hatchmates sleeping next to him, he put a finger to Rhasalis' temple, making sure she was warm and her breathing was regular. From the way she her hands were shaking, he was afraid of hypothermia setting in. Relieved to know that she was okay, he shuffled out of bed for his morning prayers, careful not to jostle either Xet or Rhasalis. Iskdiwercaesin was still asleep and he was likely the last one to rise, as usual. Somehow Serhis suspected that the dragon might be the last one to rise, but not the last to awaken. Baous was sleeping fitfully in his own bed, curled up and sleeping between his front and side. Opening the window to the North side of the room, Serhis was about to settle down for his prayers when a gnoll head poked up in front of his face.

"Gah!" Serhis yelped, his finger about to press on a certain trigger near the window he had set up last night. When he saw that it was Keianc, he took his claw off and tried to still his nerves. "Don't pop up like that!"

"Jumpy bunch, aren't you?" Keianc chuckled as he looked into the room. Everyone was up from Serhis' cry of alarm and with a weapon of some sort on hand, Baous with the hammer that he kept next to his bed, Rhasalis and one of her daggers from her belt, Xet and Iskdiwercaesin pointing a finger at the gnoll with half-finished spells on their tongues that died away as they also saw who it was.

"We've had trouble in inn rooms before," Baous spoke from experience.

"Yeah, the room service is terrible I bet," Keianc wise-cracked.

"What are you doing here? Have you learned something about Tomond?" Serhis got his thoughts in order.

"I was about to ask you the same thing. Well, about Tomond, not why you're here. I've got something for you, if you've got something for me."

Serhis nodded, understanding the trade of information. "We followed Alevin as you told us to; he went into a reservoir and met with a halfling sailor that came from the river in a rowboat. He was the same sailor we saw yesterday on the docks that was sitting around."

"Ah, that might be a problem. So the reservoir was a meeting spot, huh? What did they say?"

"They had more than just a few words. Alevin gave the sailor a parcel containing something, we couldn't find out while he gave the other money in exchange," Rhasalis went next to Serhis to explain. She then told him about what the halfling and gnome had discussed in secret, as well as their own counter-plans.

"Hmm, looks like I'll have to tell Viyny to lie low for a while. And to keep out of sight next time he tails somebody," Keianc muttered to himself more than to the others. "Thanks for that. Anything else before you lead the scallywag into murky depths?"

"What about what you know?" Iskdiwercaesin demanded.

"Don't get antsy, I'll tell you. Okay, to build up on what you just told me, I know the taphouse they were talking about, fifteen blocks down the road, then follow the river downstream. It's called the 'Smoldering Wastes'."

"What a delightful name," muttered Iskdiwercaesin.

Keianc must have had good hearing. "Yeah, you're not kidding. The name's as close as it comes to truth in advertising. The place is a dive. I've been there three times and each time I fractured a bone or two."

"How did that happen?" Serhis asked.

"When I slammed my claws too hard into someone's face," Keianc laughed ruefully. "Seriously though, fights don't break out all the time there, but I just get really unlucky whenever I visit. I get what I need, then I get a lot of attention that I don't. Fights probably happen once a week there, more or less, but it's like I get the short straw and it happens right on the hour I come in. A word of advice, keep a tight claw on your money and another on your weapons if you decide to visit."

"Is there a reason we should go there at all if that's the case?" Xet asked.

"If there's a reason that sailor thinks that place is a secure location, it should bear some investigating," the informer advised them. "Now though, I've got to figure which one is closer down the line to Tomond, either Alevin or the sailor. Either way, that's not why I'm here. I've been doing some digging about those followers of Tomond since you seemed so sure they had something to do with the man. I'm still sure that they're not directly in contact with him, but it also looks like they've been doing some searching of their own to find him. For different reasons than us of course, but I'd bet that they've got something we haven't come up with yet."

"How is that any help to us?" Iskdiwercaesin asked pointedly.

"Now you've got two ways to get more intelligence about him, which is a whole lot better than one. I don't know how you'd get into the followers' compound behind those walls, so I'd go with the taphouse lead. Then again, those nutcases have probably a lot more going for them than what some flunky for Tomond has. Your choice."

Serhis considered the options. "Thanks for telling us that... will you be showing up every morning like that?"

"No, that's just for today. I'll have other ways to talk to you, it's that I'm in the clear today here. See you some other time," Keianc waved a paw at them before the gnoll informant went on his way past the window.

"Hey wait, my gold! Take back your stupid pearl!" Iskdiwercaesin tossed the bauble out the window. A moment later a gnoll paw put a stack of coins on the windowsill.

With Keianc gone, Serhis settled down to meditate, though his thoughts now included planning their next step. Similar thoughts were passing among the others as well.

"Since we're all awake now, I guess we can start thinking about what we're going to do," Baous set his war hammer back down and sat on the edge of the bed.

"First, we're going to have breakfast," Iskdiwercaesin said with mild irritation, not taking kindly to being woken up unless it was on his terms. "Next, we're going out to the dock and settling that sailor's suspicions."

"I know that. I meant about which place we're going to afterwards. The taphouse sounds like a rough place and I remember Holton saying how the people who idolize Tomond are staying behind their walls. It doesn't sound good either way."

"I'd have to agree with you there. Both aren't likely places where Tomond hides out," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"Considering everything, I'd say we go to the taphouse," Rhasalis spoke as she fitted on her armor and weapons. "Keianc may consider it a dangerous place, but it wouldn't be hard to get inside. The walled street makes any infiltration difficult and we'd have to contend with a gang and those followers if we're spotted."

"But what would we be looking for? Are we going to be searching the place from top to bottom looking for secret rooms and hidden passages? That's no way to go looking for Tomond," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"I was thinking that we'd case the area. I want to find out what measures Tomond or that sailor has taken to secure their secrecy there. Maybe if we found out what they've done or who they've paid off, we can backtrack the money or favors. Also, why did he want their next meeting in a week rather than the next night? If there's something significant about that specific day, I want to know why," Rhasalis laid out her reasons.

"Rhasalis' suggestion is rather sound. If we don't find anything there, then we can try learning what the other group might have found," said Serhis, speaking with his eyes still closed.

"The only problem with the plan is if we get spotted by the halfling sailor while we're there. We don't exactly blend in and it'd be too much of a coincidence to take that we're there after he sees us on the dock."

"Unless we tell him exactly that..." said Iskdiwercaesin.

"What do you mean by that?" asked Xet.

"You'll find out when we get there. Just play along with me," Iskdiwercaesin plotted.

There was little else more to say, so they prepared to leave the inn. After a light breakfast and a brief chat with the bards, they left for the docks. They reached the waterside warehouses as the fishing boats set out for the day, a throng of vessels bobbing on the waves as the sun barely crested over the horizon. The halfling sailor was spotted sitting on the same barrel as yesterday, again his gaze not on them when they were looking. Instead of Iskdiwercaesin talking to the others about some other person to throw the sailor off their scent, he marched directly up to him and outright asked if he had seen a half-elf with a certain set of features and a name he had probably made up right on the spot. The sailor was nonplused, asking Iskdiwercaesin why he would know of such a person to whom he replied that since they had seen him the other day; the sailor might have spotted that fake individual since he seemed to be a regular around the dock. The sailor replied that he hadn't seen anyone like that, and at that point, Iskdiwercaesin huffed and stalked away, acting as if he was frustrated.

"Bring me to the place where they said he was spotted. Bring me to the next spot we heard he's been spotted. If he's hiding, he's going to be in places like that to lay low. Take me there! " Iskdiwercaesin pointed at Baous as if he were a guide. The shock in Baous' face from the force of the command probably helped the act as Baous ahead of the others.

Out of the corner of Serhis' eye as he turned back, he could see a look of bafflement spreading over the sailor's face. They didn't even find out his name, they had come and gone so quickly. "That was it?" he whispered quietly.

"Fast and confusing. I bet he's going to be wondering about it way too much to even consider that we're going there because we spied on him," said Iskdiwercaesin out of the corner of his mouth.

"He's following us," said Rhasalis as they rounded a corner.

Iskdiwercaesin tried to hide a smirk. "Good."

"You want him to?" Xet was as confused as the others.

"I don't really need him to follow us, but it works out better this way. I want to see who he talks to and where he goes," Iskdiwercaesin enjoyed the feeling of manipulating the halfling. It was a small enjoyment, he would rather be whispering in the ears of powerful kings, but having anyone unwittingly do as he wished had an appeal to him.

Baous kept in front of the group, recalling Keianc's directions. As they met the side of the river, it was a short walk downstream before they got to the taphouse.

As Keianc had said, the place was a dive. The smell of rancid beer and smoke could be smelled twenty paces from the front door, among other odors the added to the mix. The sight of someone's leg sticking out of an alley didn't help matters, a quick glance revealed an orc nursing his head either from a bad drink or a club. The taphouse was made out of the local stone and it may have been fortunate for that, scorch marks near the windows told of a fire some time ago that was hastily and sloppily repaired, since a wooden taphouse would have burned straight to the ground. Then again, Serhis considered the possibility that it was unfortunate that it hadn't.

"I wonder if the name came before or after the fire," Xet said.

Looking around, Serhis saw that they weren't that far from the burned out section of the city. An ember on the wind would have set off a fire easily. If the river hadn't been nearby, Serhis doubted the stone structure could have survived. "After. Look up," he pointed. Swing above their heads was a charred sign, one of the chains holding it up broken and leaving it dangling in the air. The lopsided, ash covered sign read, 'The Oasis of Paradise'.

Opening the door, the smell increased in intensity. Serhis wasn't the sort to judge by first impressions, he had been on the receiving end of that far too often, but the people he saw inside made it clear that a first impression was the only thing anyone got. The second impression usually involved a fist to hammer the first one in if that didn't work. Weapons hung to the sides of everyone there within easy reach, some right on the tables. He wondered where the weapons he wasn't seeing were hidden.

Not wasting any more time, Iskdiwercaesin strolled inside like he owned the place. The others went in after him, following him to an unoccupied table near the center of the room.

"This isn't a good place to be, it's too open," Rhasalis whispered.

"All the good spots near the walls and corners are taken. Unless starting a tussle to clear the cockroaches huddled in there out works for you," Iskdiwercaesin replied.

Serhis shared his hatchmate's apprehensions, but kept his quiet. He could feel hungry eyes watching them, either marking them or dismissing them. If he'd been alone, he had no doubt he'd feel his money pouch considerably lighter by now. If he was with the other kobolds, he doubted that the heavily armored Baous would have deterred any thefts. He would have probably attracted more attention than deter. It was probably Iskdiwercaesin that gave the taphouse's clientele pause. Every thief and cutpurse was probably waging a mind game of risk vs. reward with both ends heavily stacked. If they, meaning both the group and the thieves, were lucky, they'd assume the risk would weigh more on their minds and stay away. It was at these times Serhis was thankful for the fearsome reputation that dragons garnered. That they merited that reputation wasn't contested, Iskdiwercaesin would be guaranteed to maul anyone who tried to steal from him.

"Was he still following us?" Iskdiwercaesin asked Rhasalis.

She nodded. "He saw us coming inside."

"Perfect."

"How is that perfect? I thought we didn't want him to know we were coming here. Wasn't getting spotted here by him going to make him suspicious?" Xet asked.

"It will, but now we've got an advantage. We didn't mention we were heading to this place and he's the one following us on his own accord. People like that are very suspicious, they're very cautious around people who they think are hiding a secret, but since we're the ones going around asking questions, looking for other suspicious people, he's going to be hard pressed to think of why we'd want to have anything to do with him. Since we thought he was useless, he knows that if we see him coming after us, we'd be the ones wondering why he's here instead of the other way around. He's the one who followed us. And now, he's probably thinking of a way to watch us while staying out of sight. We can move out in the open instead of scurrying around like him," Iskdiwercaesin explained. The others nodded, slowly grasping the idea. In a weird way, it made a twisted sort of sense for Serhis.

"Then we should go around and start looking before he comes in," Baous was about to get out of his seat before Iskdiwercaesin's tail clipped his feet, making it look like the kobold had shuffled in his seat, if rather heavily.

"Not yet. I want to wait until he comes in and learn who he goes to or where, so keep an eye out. Let's order a few drinks first and ask a few questions about that half-elf," Iskdiwercaesin said. Taking his advice, they sat around and asked a few discrete, if not completely subtle questions. Serhis was surprised to hear from one of the men he questioned saying that he had seen such a person and would lead the kobold to the room he was staying in, as which point Serhis immediately and politely refused, stating that he only wanted to know if he was even here and would deal with him later. He suspecting the man was probably going to have the friends around him follow soon after to club the cleric down and steal everything he had.

This felt like the dealings he had between Kaeis and Yelec Searflint, the situational politics and secrecy made him unsettled, but it also felt different. There were the Houses true enough, but they felt more in the background rather than the two scheming lords directing their moves. This was more in the vein of espionage, where they had to see past the layers of secrecy that Tomond wrapped around himself while maintaining their own cover. Politics always had espionage, yet it wasn't true the other way around.

"Serhis, you've got that look on your face again."

Blinking, the kobold looked to his side to see Baous holding a mug under his nose. Taking it out of Baous' hand, he looked down at the mug. "Oh, sorry. I was thinking."

"I know, that's what I meant about that look," Baous replied. "About what?"

"Nothing important," Serhis sipped the mug and tasted alcohol. It was strong, too strong for Serhis' liking. "The spicy rum?"

"Yep. Everything else looked funny," Baous took a sip of his own. That much Serhis understood, the stuff the barkeep had was either cheap or expensive, and the cheap stuff must have been so watered down it was practically swill. As he was about to take another sip, his nose twitched as he sniffed the air, but didn't move his head.

Iskdiwercaesin also took a whiff. "He's here."

Serhis also remained still, refraining from turning around to look. He had been seated across from the door, he would have seen the sailor walking in. That meant the fellow had sneaked inside using another way. From his field of vision, he couldn't see the halfling.

"By the door to the back, shadow by the window," Rhasalis said tersely. It was outside Serhis' field of vision so he had to trust his hatchmate's observations.

"Sit and wait, watch who he goes to. In a place like this, he's going to hang around people he knows so he can watch us. Anyone else would likely knife him for being so sneaky," Iskdiwercaesin said.

It was an awkward situation for them. They knew they were under observation, yet they had to observe their observers without revealing that they knew. Half an hour passed as they remained in the taphouse, watching the shadows and listening to whispers.

"He's going to the back rooms," Rhasalis said out of her mug. She had been raising it to her lips every now and again, but she had never taken a sip, instead saying something to the others that was minor and inconsequential. It kept her from looking out of place while making sure she wasn't inebriated from the drinking. Baous' tolerance ensured that the one mug he had wouldn't even buzz him and the others also took the barest of sips.

"You're going to follow him, right?" Baous asked.

Rhasalis nodded. "You'll have to stay here, it'll look too suspicious to his friends if we all go right after he did."

"Actually, I think we can," Serhis said as he sat up. "We go, we kept half-elf waiting long enough," he said in Common, his voice low, yet still audible enough for any eavesdroppers to hear them with minor difficulty. His would be muggers had offered him a nice enough excuse. They had no fear that someone had overheard their previous private conversations. Even if they did, they couldn't make any sense of it, as they all had one advantage. They all still spoke the language of the canine kobolds, a language all but lost to the outside world. All anyone would hear would be nonsensical noises.

Entering the cramped hallway behind the door, they saw a set of six doors to their right hand side. "Which one could he be in?" Iskdiwercaesin wondered.

"I can locate him," Serhis said. Normally, he would be using the spell to find veins of iron, copper, and other metals, but it could be attuned to any type of object or material. Visualizing the suit the halfling wore, he sensed it up ahead with no risk of mistaking it for another's. There were certainly sailors in the bar that wore a similar outfit, but none were his size. "He's... below us?"

"Get as close as you can, we have to follow him before we lose him," urged Xet. Serhis moved to where he felt the sensation strongest, behind the fourth door of the hallway, but it was still below. Serhis was about to reach for the handle before Rhasalis tugged his hand back.

"Wait. If he says this place is secure, he has a reason," Rhasalis said. Nodding, he took a step well back from the door as she examined it. After a thorough search, she took out a specialized set of tools. "I figured as much. I'd do the same thing myself. It's trapped, the keyhole sticks out a needle into anyone who tries to use it while it's locked or uses the wrong key." She didn't need to mention it was poisoned, everyone could assume that much. Carefully, she picked the door while avoiding setting off the trap in the meantime. A soft click made the others tense, they weren't sure if that meant the door was open or she had set off the trap. From the way it swung backwards, she had been successful. "We've lost some time, we've got to keep going after him."

Entering the room, they shut it quickly behind them. The place was cramped, more suitable for storing mops and brooms than a place to sleep. Aside from a well-worn bed that was likely infested with several species of insects and parasites, the only other thing in the room was a chair and a candle. There weren't even any windows.

Their search was quick, they knew that the sailor had entered through a secret passage somewhere here and they found the false floor panel near the edge of the bed with no problem. Down it went, a ladder leading into a tunnel that went far beneath the surface.

"They must have dug beneath all the sand to get to bedrock. That must have been a pain," Xet observed. Serhis agreed with his assessment, the tunnel wall were heavily boarded up so that the sand didn't come pouring in. Still, he saw a pile of sand accumulating at the bottom of the shaft.

"Hmm, following him isn't going to be hard. Even if the tunnel is straight, he's not going to see much outside the light of his torch," Rhasalis said. The tunnel looked to be pitch-black, though the faintest glow told of a light further inside. Holding onto the sides of the wooden ladder, she descended quietly, followed by the others. Their footsteps muffled by the sand at the bottom, they could see the dim glow of the torch as it went further ahead. The others followed, thankful for the shoddy workmanship that allowed the sand in to cover the noise they made. They also silently cursed whoever made it as well, every creak of timbers made them nervous about a wave of sand sweeping down on them.

"Where do you think this goes?" Iskdiwercaesin muttered.

"We're following the river towards the docks," Serhis replied with full confidence, his ability to stay oriented underground was unimpeded even as the tunnel curved and turned around boulders or unsafe areas the miners had dug around. Though they were underground, every step the reptilian kobolds took told them that they were slowly ascending, the slant of the passageway going more upwards between each dip and climb.

"Water, I hear running water," Baous' ears turned to the front.

"It wouldn't surprise me if whoever made this broke into the river at some point. It must have flooded a part of the tunnels until the tunnel rose above water level and they had to dig around," Serhis said.

"No, it's not river water," Baous sniffed. "I smell salt. And fish." The sound of lapping waves instead of rushing water told them the rest and that the tunnel opened out near the sea. "Where is that sailor going?"

"I don't know, but we're going to keep following him. He's got to be concerned about us being here. Still, what about the others, the ones he talked to?" Serhis said.

"We'll concentrate on them if he's only taking this way to get back to the docks. Otherwise, I'm very interested in where he's going," Iskdiwercaesin said.

The torch light they had been following stopped, then flickered and died ahead of them. The whole group didn't move, afraid that the sailor had noticed them. They strained their hearing, either the halfling would start running away or he would come towards them to investigate. Instead, a stream of light poured in, the silhouette of the sailor framed against a door as he opened it to pass through. The light was unexpected, but brief as he quickly closed it behind him.

Seeing that they had reached the end of the tunnel, they raced ahead to the door, not wanting to fall to far behind while the halfling was out of sight. Again, they found another locked door barred their path. Again, Rhasalis made sure it wasn't an issue. Opening it only slightly, she peeked out to see if the sailor had been watching. "It's clear."

Pushing the door further, they found themselves underneath a large pier with light filtering down through the planks above. They could hear the footsteps of people as they walked up above, lines of shadow crisscrossing the light as they passed.

"I'd wager they use this as a smuggling tunnel," Iskdiwercaesin idly noted.

"Where is he? I don't see him," Baous said.

Focusing again on the sailor's uniform, he sensed it traveling away to their right. "There, that way, he's walking on the pier above us." They once more were on his trail, remaining underneath the sailor's feet as they went under the pier and walking on wet sand. Then he suddenly stopped and turned around, looking for anyone following him. Fortunately for them, he wasn't looking down. His caution satisfied, he walked into an alley towards a grimy looking door and proceeded inside.

As he went in, the others went up, getting looks from passersby as they climbed up. "What's the plan now?" Iskdiwercaesin's claws dug into the wood as he went up.

"You're asking us? I thought you had one," Baous replied.

"I'd have one if I had any idea what's inside," Iskdiwercaesin said. "For all I know, he's gone inside to sleep, meet with someone else, or set up a trap. Maybe Tomond is in there with him for all I know. Hells, he might just be stopping by to visit his mother and have a spot of tea! All I know for sure is that I'm getting tired of following this guy around."

"I wouldn't mind going in after him and making him tell us what he knows," Xet said.

"Now that's more like it," the dragon grinned.

Serhis was uncertain about making the sailor tell them what they wanted to know, if he really knew anything, but at this rate they would keep finding nothing or be discovered. "I want to see if he'll tell it to us without conflict first," Serhis said.

"Heh, I doubt that's going to work, but if it does, the more power to you. I, on the other claw, am going to be circling around and will be looking for a back door when he starts running the other way," Iskdiwercaesin said as he went further down the street.

"I'll check around and see if there are other ways in and out as well," Rhasalis went the other way, leaving Serhis, Baous, and Xet in front of the alley. After letting some time pass to allow Iskdiwercaesin and Rhasalis time to do whatever they needed to do, the trio marched down the dim space.

Knocking on the door, Serhis waited by the entrance. The door had a small eye slits, one at average human height and one at halfling height. The lower one slid open as a face pressed against it, the eyes looking upwards, then down, surprised to see someone at his level. "What the- what are you doing here?!" the halfling sailor demanded. "I told you I don't know where this half-elf you're looking for is!"

"We not looking for him. We looking for Tomond," Serhis declared. The reaction from the sailor was immediate, his eyes widened before he slammed the slot closed and then feet rapidly retreating. "Baous, open it!" Serhis yelled. The larger kobold was already reacting, the war hammer coming down hard by the time Serhis had said his name. If the sailor was behaving like that at the mention of Tomond's name, they knew he was directly connected to him.

Clanging metal and splintering wood resounded in the tight alley as the war hammer smashed the handle, then the bang of the door knocking against the wall as they pushed through to pursue. The hallway they entered was as narrow as the alley, but it branched out in many directions. Serhis led the others, still able to sense which way the halfling had went. Going through several intersections and passing through several rooms that held various worn furniture and various objects with dressers and tables knocked down and flipped over to slow them, they saw that they were catching up to the sailor just as he tried to open a door in a hallway ahead. Instead of escape, it led him towards the open jaws of a dragon as Iskdiwercaesin roared in his face, sending him reeling back in terror. What the sailor didn't know was that if Iskdiwercaesin really did want him dead, he wouldn't have a head and upper torso by that point. With his second exit blocked and the kobolds quickly gaining ground, he raced down another hallway and into a smoky room with windows that had their shutters nailed shut. That didn't dissuade him from jumping into it and crashing out into the street. And into the waiting traps Rhasalis had used to secure the perimeter.

Before Serhis jumped out of the window himself, he stopped himself as he heard a wet *splot!*, his arms bracing himself against the frame as he abruptly slowed down. Lying face-down on the street was the sailor, his entire front covered in tanglefoot fluid. As he was trying to tear himself away from the sticky substance, Serhis saw the brief movement of a shadow from up above before Rhasalis landed squarely on the halfling's back, driving him all the way into the goop and knocking the air out of his lungs.

Sure that the sailor had been incapacitated, she looked at the others gawking from the window. "I had to be positive he couldn't escape," she shrugged.

"Whatever works," Iskdiwercaesin shrugged as he stepped through the shattered window frame. Serhis, Baous, and Xet followed as well, though by now all the commotion had drawn lots of attention their way. All down the street, people were looking and pointing at them. Certainly the sight of someone diving out of a window would have gotten through the local rumor mill without much thought, but add that he was being chased by kobolds and a dragon, Serhis knew without a doubt that anyone wanting to tell an interesting tale would think of this.

Rhasalis hopped off of the halfling's back, noticing the attention they were getting. "We should get him inside. Wait for a while, the liquid should be solid soon," she said. Tanglefoot liquid stiffens in contact with open air, which was why it is commonly used to slow down pursuers or immobilize horses. After a while, it hardens enough that it becomes brittle, which allowed Baous to pick the sailor up.

"Personal business between us and the sailor. Go on, shoo, the excitement's over," Iskdiwercaesin waved for the crowd that was starting to gather to go away. The people did start going back to their own business, though they still looked back towards the party as they departed. Not wanting to stay out longer than they had to, Baous carried the sailor back inside, though using the back entrance rather than the window again. They waited for Rhasalis to gather the other traps she had set at the other windows before closing the door.

By now the halfling could start breathing without worrying that he was going to cough squashed lungs out. "...urgh, what happened?" he groaned as Baous set him down.

"You did something stupid. If you want my advice, you shouldn't do anything else stupid. Like making us irritated, not telling us what we want, or running away. Hard advice to follow maybe for you, but I'm hoping that there's a chance that you aren't a complete idiot," Iskdiwercaesin spoke in a conversational tone to the sailor. "Here's a simple question that you can answer right away. What's your name?"

"Cobbler Bermham," the sailor answered. As he tried to stand up from the floor, Iskdiwercaesin pushed him down by the shoulder, putting Cobbler into a sitting position.

"It'll be healthier if you sat down for now," Iskdiwercaesin said.

"While you're getting what we need out of him, I'm going to look around this building. It looks like a hideout. If it is, there could be letters or objects connected to Tomond," Rhasalis said in Kobold.

"Be careful. We're not the only ones who use traps," Xet said. Nodding, she went out of the room.

"W-where's he going?" Cobbler asked, a bit of fear creeping into his voice as he began to realize how completely bad his situation had become.

"Normally, I'd say it's none of your business, but since it's your place, it actually is. She, not he, is going around to see the place, making sure nothing's hiding around or that there are any unexpected surprises. If there is, you better say something now, otherwise when she gets back and found that you weren't be entirely truthful, I'm not going to stop her from being ticked off," Iskdiwercaesin warned him.

"No, no, there aren't any traps or anyone else here, it's me, it's just me," Cobbler said quickly.

"Why you run away from me? Where did you think you can hide?" Serhis asked. The first question he could guess, but it didn't hurt to be thorough. As for the other one, if Cobbler had other places to go, knowing those locations could be of some use.

Licking his dry lips, Cobbler examined Serhis. "You came around asking about Tomond. It doesn't do me any good if I stay put and get caught just because you asked me to stick around. At least if I ran, no one would say I just gave up and sang like a songbird," Cobbler said.

"What about where you were going? If you lost us, were you going straight to Tomond?" Baous asked.

"What? No way! I'd only go to him if I had to, and that's only when he tells me where he is for a meeting. Most of the time I've got no idea where he's holed up, so just to tell you now, no, he doesn't have a meeting set up so you can drop in later tonight. And since everyone out there saw us, I kind of doubt he's going to be asking for my services any more. Good bye easy money," Cobbler sighed.

"Great. We get the one direct connection we're looking for and when we get him, he's worthless," Iskdiwercaesin growled, then picked up Cobbler by the neck. Serhis took a step forward, he wanted to pressure the man into giving them information, but not by torture, but held back from saying anything when he saw that Iskdiwercaesin gave Cobbler enough slack that he could still stand, if only barely by the tips of his toes. He wasn't being strangled, but it certainly gave the halfling the impression that the dragon wasn't playing around. Especially when he was barely a hair's width away from Iskdiwercaesin's teeth. "For your sake, you better have something for us or I'm going to find out if you follow your namesake after I bake you and stuff you full of apples."

"Okay! Okay! Don't eat me!" Cobbler's feet wriggled frantically in the air, the tips of his boots scrapping the floor. Again Serhis was somewhat appreciative of the reputation dragon's had. If Cobbler had known what the symbol around Serhis' neck represented, he wouldn't have so afraid about that since the kobold didn't feel Cobbler warranted getting stuffed and eaten. There was also what the ritual had done to Iskdiwercaesin, but even after all these months Serhis still didn't know if the ritual had dimmed the dragon's taste for halfling pie was a safe bet or not.

"Start talking! The more your mouth opens, the less I have to," Iskdiwercaesin lowered Cobbler so that he could stand, but kept a tight grip on his neck. "What was it that Alevin handed to you last night? Does that have anything to do with Tomond?"

The expression on the halfling's face spelled every thought that crossed his mind. Mostly it involved a sinking feeling when he realized that they knew something they shouldn't have. "How do you know about Alevin? Did you get to him too?"

Iskdiwercaesin opened his mouth wide and turned his head. If he bit down now, he wouldn't take off Cobbler's head, but it would take a skilled cleric to get his nose back. "That wasn't an answer," Iskdiwercaesin said.

Cobbler didn't know that Iskdiwercaesin could only partially maim him, but from his vantage point in front of the dragon's throat, it looked like he could bite his whole head off. "Ahhh!!! A letter! It was a letter that I was supposed to give to Tomond!"

"That's better. Rhasalis! Did you hear that?"

"It would have been hard not to. I've got a desk full of letters in front of me. Which one?" she shouted down the hall.

"The, the one in the right drawer, under the paperweight," Cobbler said.

"Found it! I'll keep looking for other stuff."

"Glad to see that you're cooperating. Anything else you'd like to offer?" Iskdiwercaesin asked.

"No, not really. Uh, are you looking for Tomond or that half-elf? I'm not sure anymore," said Cobbler.

"Of course we're looking for Tomond."

"Look, let me go, will you? There's no way Tomond's going to get near me now, not after what everyone out there just saw!"

"And why do you think that?" Serhis asked.

"He's got to know, he's going to find out that you got to me. So if I tried to meet up with him anymore, he's not going to show up. I'm practically poison to him now."

"No, what everyone saw out there was us tackling you and dragging you back for unknown reasons. Since you were kind enough to follow us into the taphouse, would you mind telling us what you asked while you were there?" Iskdiwercaesin chuckled.

"I asked about you. And... the half-elf... you were looking for..."

"Ah, you're starting to get it. Once people start adding things up, they think we nabbed you because of the alleged half-elf, not Tomond. I'm betting that you didn't tell your friends there much of anything either, like if you really did know about this half-elf, so if you walk out here with only one arm and half a leg, they'd probably think you lied to us and paid the price. Well, not walk, but you get the picture," Iskdiwercaesin laughed darkly.

Cobbler nodded, very much painting one in his mind. "You're not going to do that, right? I can still be useful, yeah, that means Tomond might still see me."

Iskdiwercaesin smiled, but for more reasons than one. The sailor had claimed that he was worthless to them and now he was doing his best to be helpful to them as he could be. "Oh, but what are you going to say to him if he asks? No, better that you have some proof that we came after you because of something unrelated to him. Hold still," Iskdiwercaesin lowered his jaw towards Cobbler's arm with unnecessary slowness.

"AAAAHHHH! Wait!!! You don't have to do that! Have your gnoll beat me up or your kobolds scratch me! Don't bite!" Cobbler thrashed frantically.

Satisfied that he had frightened Cobbler enough, Iskdiwercaesin pushed him onto the seat of his pants. Everyone wished they didn't hear a wet noise as his pants connected to the floor. "Then I want everything you know about Tomond. Where he goes, where he stays, what he's doing, how he contacts you, even what's his favorite color."

Cobbler's head went up and down as quickly as his neck would allow, agreeing to anything the dragon wanted. "I don't know where he stays! He never meets me at any inns or hostels and even if he did, I think it's to throw others off track. He, he gets in touch by leaving notes at drop offs, two of them. When I get the two notes, I have to decipher them and find my way to the meeting spot and I usually have to run to get there. You're not serious about the color thing, right?"

"If you do, I still want to hear it. What does he have you do and what for? You haven't told me that yet," Iskdiwercaesin circled around the halfling, like a wolf around a frightened sheep in a clearing. Serhis, Baous, and Xet had backed off to let Iskdiwercaesin interrogate Cobbler, but not without some dramatic effect. In the low light of a nearby candle, they knew the sailor could see their eyes from the shadows as it reflected the light.

On one level, Serhis felt a little uneasy about interrogating Cobbler like this, resorting to intimidation and threats to ensure compliance. From the little glances he got from Baous, he wasn't the only one. Yet, he didn't know what else was an option, Cobbler didn't seem to be the sort that would help them out of the kindness of his heart and from what Rhasalis had said earlier, he was also willing to kill to keep his activities secret. What they were doing wasn't evil, or at least he considered it not to be. If he had encountered anyone who did violent acts, what choice did he have but to force it to stop? But that didn't stop the nagging voice in the back of his head. What Tomond was doing wasn't evil in the conventional sense, he acted on his own code and did not kill unless threatened with lethal force himself, yet he was intent on disrupting the cosmic order regardless of the consequences. Serhis by no means saw the world in black and white and Tomond's acts fell into a gray area that he knew he had to oppose, but then, their own actions were also shrouded in that misty gray. The one thing he knew for certain was that he wouldn't allow Iskdiwercaesin to torture Cobbler for information.

Fortunately, Cobbler was still cooperative enough. "Uh, I don't know anything about any favorite color he has, but he has me running small errands for him from time to time. Stuff like checking up at the dock warehouse to see who's snooping around and picking up packages from the other guys."

"We know about Alevin, but what do you mean 'other guys'? I'm very interested in hearing about them," Iskdiwercaesin had stopped circling the sailor and was standing behind him, placing his clawed hand on Cobbler's shoulder.

Glancing nervously at the claws next to his head, Cobbler tried not to move too much. "Well, I know two others. One works near an alchemist's workshop down by the leatherworks, the other in the Ashes as a spy. C-can you let me go now?"

"Not yet, not just yet. You haven't told me everything I wanted to know yet, so don't bother asking for me to let you go until I say so. When I do, you can walk or run away, and I might not go chasing after you if I'm bored enough," Iskdiwercaesin clamped his other claw on the opposite shoulder. Cobbler whimpered meekly, even if he was completely unbound. The fact that the dragon behind him didn't care if he tried to get away probably put more fear into his legs than iron manacles. "I know about the alchemy ingredients Tomond has been gathering, although they don't seem to be for anything we know of. What's the other stuff you're taking to him? What's he using it all for?"

"I don't open the packages, at least not anymore. The first time I tried, it looked like some kind of dried up stuff. Since I didn't know what it was, I resealed it, but somehow Tomond knew and warned me not to do it again. I swore I wouldn't, he looked at me like he was going to gut me right at that table. After that, I didn't ask anything else, I've got no idea what he's using it for."

"Curses, I hoped he knew one or the other," Xet muttered to Serhis and Baous. "Preferably the latter, but even a clue would have been nice."

"You're getting more and more useless by the second Cobber," Iskdiwercaesin warned the sailor, his claws tightening just enough that it snagged onto Cobbler's clothes He had been allowed to see a number of drow interrogations and even participated in a few. It normally involved a fair deal more sharp objects, a few blunt ones, a mage for the tougher ones, and perhaps a few insects and arachnids for the squeamish and religious ones. He didn't have any of the more wicked blades to display, he had to do with the ones he had, and he knew Serhis wouldn't be part of anything involving them. More than likely the cleric of Bahamut would sooner melt them down if he learned what they were for. Even as he was being as imposing as possible, he knew he had to be careful not to press the halfling too hard, both physically and mentally. He had seen how most would start babbling before anyone so much as touched them, how when they began limiting their own options down to their own lives or those of others, they chose their own and sell out everything else for a chance to live. But that was it, they had to see it was only a slim chance. If he pressured Cobbler too much, he might see it as having no chance. At that point, Iskdiwercaesin had seen prisoners with nothing to gain by losing their lives refuse to break because they thought their fates sealed and would seal up tighter than the best locks on the planes of Mechanus. It was strange how he recalled those experiences. It wasn't that he was recalling them now, he could see the connection. What was strange was when he remembered the determination and pain etched on those prisoner's faces, he felt pangs of... Sympathy? Discomfort? Admiration?

Regret?

Iskdiwercaesin banished those thoughts, they had no place at this place and time. But like a terrible nightmare, the more he tried to push it away, the more it made a place in his mind.

Cobbler, unaware of the dragon's state of mind behind him, stared straight ahead at the kobolds, though that was because it was better than looking at Iskdiwercaesin. From the look in his eyes, a thousand thoughts were going through his head, most of them being about how to appease the dragon without becoming an appetizer. "The other's name is Jacqueline Elands, a human that's in with those loonies!"

"You mean the followers of Tomond?" Baous asked.

"Uh, Tomond told me never to call them that. He calls them 'lost seekers'. I don't know what he means by that, he simply calls them that. He has a spy with them because he's not happy about them trying to find him. He wants every lead they've got reported, then he cuts it off before they get close. I don't know what Tomond's got against deities, but if he's not wanting the help from those loonies, it's his own reason."

"How does that help us? We want Tomond, not his spies," said Iskdiwercaesin. "We want that next meeting spot. When you're done getting the pieces together for the next spot, I want to hear it."

"I'm trying to explain! Jacqueline's the one who tells me the spots to go to. If anybody, it's her that's closest to him. She'll be the one to tell Tomond that I've been caught by you, she's good at hearing things all over the city and even if by a really bad chance that Tomond still thinks he can still trust me, she's going to be the one that'll know for sure. If, if you get to her, then she can lead you to him, not me."

"She had better. I'm going to give you a warning now. Be thankful it's only that and not more, like a limb," Iskdiwercaesin tilted Cobbler so that he was directly underneath the dragon's head, so that Cobbler looked directly up at Iskdiwercaesin looming over him to see malice and danger. "Tomond's nowhere as dangerous as me. If you've lied to me and try hiding, I'll find you and burn down everything in my path to get to you. If you try to run away, even sailing to the far reaches of the world won't save you. I'll hull the ship you're on and watch as you flounder in the water, and then I'll make you pay for making me look for you by having a few sharks over when I collect my due."

Meekly, Cobbler nodded, his hands trembling and his feet numb. "I, I understand."

"If you get a call to a meeting with Tomond before we get to Jacqueline, you tell me. Go to a gnoll named Rahsh, she's at a House Ihthei building near the market."

"I know the place," Cobbler said quickly.

"Now about Jacqueline, where exactly is she in that place? What's her cover in there? How do we get to her? How does she contact you?"

Swallowing, the lump in Cobbler's throat couldn't go away. His voice sounded strangled. "She's, I don't know exactly what she does, I think she's been made one of those in charge of inducting new recruits. I can't help getting you to her, I really can't! We only saw each other one time, and that was by accident, I saw her at a drop-off when I got there earlier than usual to pick up anything new. If she sees me anywhere near there, she'll know something's up! I don't even know if that's her real name!"

Iskdiwercaesin looked down at Cobbler, and then released his hold, pushing the halfling away. He had broken Cobbler's will, but what the halfling could offer was less than satisfactory. "What does she look like?"

"She's got brown, curly hair and green eyes, wears a veil that covers her nose and mouth so it's hard to recognize her, but has this thin scar that goes under her eye and towards her nose. That's all I remember," Cobbler whimpered as he turned around.

Having done an extensive search, Rhasalis came back into the room with a stack of scrolls in one arm and a pair of pouches in the other. "So far everything he's said matches with the letters," she said as she laid the objects out on a table before taking out the same parcel from the night before. "This wasn't much help, it's what Alevin is reporting to Tomond about what some merchants are doing. The letter on top of it was for Cobbler. It wasn't signed, but from the smell of it it's from the alchemist he was talking about asking for more money for his materials."

"Oh, oh no you opened all of them. He's going to know when he sees it, he's going to know," Cobbler stared at the full opened parcel.

"Then you better hope that when you deliver them we get to Tomond before you do," said Iskdiwercaesin. "So you're no good for getting us near Jacqueline. Pray that you can do better than that when I see you again. Let's go guys," Iskdiwercaesin beckoned for the others to follow him out, leaving a shaken and relieved Cobbler in his home.

Leaving, they started making their way back towards the 'Swift Sands'. When out of earshot, Serhis spun on Iskdiwercaesin as they crossed a street. "You had better not be serious about those threats! Cobbler had done nothing to deserve them!"

"I might have embellished some of them. Hulling an entire ship? Nah, I'm more subtle than that. Besides, it made him talk."

Grumbling, Serhis knew that Iskdiwercaesin did get what they needed. It had unnerved him to stay silent as the dragon put as much fear into the sailor as he could. Ensuring compliance through fear was never a good solution, but as for a temporary one in the face of none, it worked. "What's our next plan? Go back to the taphouse and interrogate the people he spoke to?"

"That was my thought earlier, but we'll have to scratch that. I don't mind changing my plans quickly, especially when things like this pop up. Somehow, I get the feeling that those other guys in the taphouse are going to be nearly as compelled by my charms as Cobbler," Iskdiwercaesin ruefully smiled.

"We're going after Jacqueline then," Serhis said intuitively. "If what Cobbler said is true, she's the spymaster of the group."

"That's my impression as well. Even if she doesn't cooperate, she must handle lots of information that we can comb through," said Rhasalis. "But we're going the wrong way."

Iskdiwercaesin pointed at the 'Swift Sands' as they went onto the street. "First though, Keianc's going to have to do some work. While we're figuring out a way into that complex, street, whatever that pile of junk they call a stronghold, he's going to be looking into the alchemists, because damn if I know what Tomond is brewing up or if it's even relevant to finding him. So while he's looking into a possible source of information, we'll be looking at a confirmed one."

Coming back to the inn, they saw Keianc sitting at his usual spot at a table, reading a stack of parchments. As they had agreed, they waved at him as common courtesy, but didn't approach. Entering the hallway and into their room, Serhis sent a spelled message. "New information, please meet us." For once, the twenty five word limit wasn't extreme. It was a short while later the knock they expected at the door came. Who was standing there wasn't.

"Veri? Vincentia?" The two bards waved at Serhis as he looked at them puzzled. "Did... you need something?"

"More like what do you need? After all, your message did say you had something for a mutual friend," Vincentia winked. Getting the hint, Serhis allowed them enough room to get through before he shut the door.

"Serhis, I thought you sent the message to Keianc," Baous gave confused looks at the bards.

"I did. It would seem like they know Keianc as well as Rahsh," said Serhis.

"You got that right. After all, it pays to know one of the better informants in the city," Vincentia pulled up a chair and sat on it astride backwards, her arms leaning on the backrest.

"This... may be a problem. We were hoping to get some more information out of him," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"No need to worry about that. He filled us in about what you've done so far. And as that goes, it is barely getting a trace of Tomond," said Veri.

"You can tell him that it's more than a trace now. We've some people he's going two people he should be interested in," Xet said hurriedly. He didn't trust Cobbler in the slightest, even if he was scared to the point that he would betray others. In his mind, they needed to act quickly and confront Tomond without any delay. "He should be looking at an alchemist that works near the leatherworks. We had a few words with a halfling sailor named Cobbler, he'll know who we're talking about. Cobbler was working as a go-between for Tomond and whoever else is working for him, one of them we're going to be tracking down next. We're going to find a way into the walled place in the... what do the people call that district? The Ashes?"

"Ah. The Ashes. A tragedy that should never have been allowed to go so far," Vincentia shook her head. Apparently both the district and the event that caused it went by the same name. "Why are you going in there? Is that where Tomond is hiding?"

"No, but someone named Jacqueline is working directly for him. We're getting inside to find what she knows."

"How are you going to accomplish that? By asking nicely?" Veri questioned them. "She'll be on home ground, surrounded by forces hostile to you. She only needs to hold out long enough to summon reinforcements if there's trouble. Even worse, even if she was compelled to tell you, leaving is going to be just as hard." Except for Vincentia, the others looked at Veri with inquiring looks.

"You seem very familiar with these sorts of things." If anything, Rhasalis seemed to sound approving to the criticism instead of wary.

"Bards tend to either have a reputation for being aloof entertainers or the ears that listen closely to the walls of courts and kings. You don't mind if we let everyone else keep on guessing."

If anything, explained why Keianc had involved the bards. Or were the bards involving themselves in this mess? Serhis didn't know which, but it didn't matter. "We'll think of something after we scout the area. The place likely has many holes in its defenses, either physically or subversively. The thugs guarding the gates likely take bribes."

"Since you're in this with us, mind explaining why?" Iskdiwercaesin asked.

Vincentia shrugged. "We've known Rahsh and Keianc for a while and we've traded favors. Technically, no one's asking anyone to do anything here, but it helps to maintain a relationship. Favors are the lifeblood in our line of work."

It wasn't hard to piece together what they meant. By doing tasks unrelated to themselves, it could open doors to things that they wanted to keep close tabs on. "To get back on topic, do you have anything or know anyone that'll help?" Iskdiwercaesin asked.

"With the Followers of Tomond? No, I doubt anyone who would willingly join them would do anything for us. There is the gang that practically runs that place, but I'm... reluctant to call on the person I know is in with them." Vincentia rested her chin on the back of the chair, her tone as grim as her words. "He might be trustworthy, he might not be. It's been a while since I last saw him. Years now. Living in the Ashes might have made him... less willing to help," she seemed to carefully select her words.

"Any help inside would be appreciated. If money is the issue, then I'm willing to pay for it. That way it'll be more subtle than a bribe," said Serhis.

"No, money might be tempting to him, but he'll demand more than that. Like me, he works with favors and deeds, they have more weight to him than gold. He'll work with you because you know me, but beyond that, it's between you and him. My words won't sway him."

Serhis nodded. "I'd still like to know. Please ask him to come to us, we'll work out an arrangement."

Vincentia sighed as she stood up, Veri opening the door for them both. "We'll tell Keianc what you've said and keep working as a go-between for you. We'll be back after we talk to him and then our own contact," said Veri.

"Thank you. If anything, we owe you a favor now," said Baous.

Vincentia laughed a little. "A small favor, not too big," she said as she passed through the door. Quietly, she closed it, her footsteps softly fading away, leaving the kobolds and dragon to wait.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

As the sun set, the group still hadn't seen the bards. They had waited a while after Veri and Vincentia had left before they went out of their room. Keianc had left by that time, likely gone to capitalize on what he had been told. With nothing else to do, they stayed at the inn, keeping busy by reading or working on maintaining their gear. It was only after the sun had dipped below the horizon when the bards returned.

"Welcome back." Putting away his tools, Serhis eagerly greeted the two. "How did it go? What did he say?"

"It went about as well as we thought it would," Veri sighed. "And a little worse."

"Worse?"

"When we found him, he tried to threaten us for money," Vincentia laughed, though it was completely devoid of any humor. "When he did recognize me, he wasn't even the least bit guilty that he tried."

"Oh. Does that mean he's not going to help us?" Serhis asked.

"No, he'll help. As we expected, he's asking for both money and for you to do something for him," Vincentia replied, but not before turning to the barkeep and ordering a hard ale. "One thousand gold coins to take you inside and to take something out of the Follower's compound when you get inside."

"A thousand?!" Iskdiwercaesin sputtered.

A sum that large even made Serhis a little uneasy. Though he wasn't as close-fisted as the dragon, they still needed money to maintain their cache of supplies and the materials they used. Considering how much they had to use ditherbombs to literally alter the playing field, it was a blessing even to have Xet continually be able to make them, and the materials were not cheap. He did not like the prospect of them having to continue spending at that type of rate to continue their search. "What does he want us to take?" he asked skeptically, leery of stealing. The Followers of Tomond didn't sound like the friendliest people around, but theft didn't sound like the best way to leave an impression.

Vincentia shrugged, then as the barkeep poured the tankard the ale had barely finished pouring before she gulped half of it down as fast as it was poured in. "Haaah. Beats me. That's all he told me before telling us to find him in the tent camp, near the line where they pay for water, then running before the guards that heard us yelling earlier got there."

"Are you okay?" Serhis started to get concerned. They might have known each other for a short while, but it didn't take much to recognize that Vincentia was taking the meeting with what sounded like an old friend very hard.

"No, she's not. I've told you before, you shouldn't be drinking like that Vincentia," Veri made to take the tankard of ale away, but Vincentia snatched it off the table and held it at arm's length away from her partner. "*sigh* I'm not going to be the one to hold your hair up while you get reacquainted with your drink as it comes back."

"Hah! It could use a good washing," Vincentia took another drink, though not as much at once this time.

Feeling like this was a personal issue, Serhis wanted to focus on the main point. "Did he say when?"

"Sometime tonight. Preferably after my drinks."

"You're coming with us?" Baous was starting to get uncomfortable. He liked his drink as much as the next dwarf, but the way Vincentia was taking it in wasn't for taste or fun. If anything, the way she was going it was only going to amplify her despondent mood.

Vincentia's eyes were downcast, she was talking into the tankard. "We are. He wasn't to make sure it's us that sent you to him. He's always been the cautious type. Probably why he's still alive."

"Okay. Finish that mug and we'll go now," Baous stood up from the table. Serhis also got up with some haste. The faster they got out of the inn, the less chance that Vincentia got to a second pint. Or a third. Or more.

Tilting the last of the alcohol down, Vincentia got up, not yet inebriated. Veri gave the group a thankful look for taking the initiative. "I'll meet you outside, I'm going to get us something warmer to wear." Mouthing the words "keep an eye on her," she went to their room.

As they went towards the Ashes, curiosity started gnawing on Serhis. There had to be a reason why Vincentia was upset, but at the same time he wasn't sure how to approach the subject without making her feel worse. He himself could be blunt at times, but when it could potentially make someone feel sorrow, it was hard to ask.

Iskdiwercaesin wasn't so restrained. "So, what's his name? Got a past with him?"

Serhis cringed, watching for how Vincentia would respond. "You don't have to say anything if you don't want to... but I was wondering as well."

"Sure, I'll tell you. You're going to be trusting him, so why not?" Clutching her forehead, she mumbled, "I need another drink," as they passed a small crowd making its way towards the 'Swift Sands'.

"What's his name?" Iskdiwercaesin asked. Serhis looked behind to see if Veri had caught up yet, but she hadn't come out of the inn yet.

"Corson Holder. He's about my age, a little older, but his face... it's like he aged twice as fast as I have since we last saw each other... Dark tan skin that's a little wrinkled and brown eyes. He used to have a face that looked like he always smiled. Not anymore. The upheaval must have really hit his family hard."

Sighing, Serhis didn't see any other way but to follow Iskdiwercaesin's example and be direct. "You must care about him a lot to be this way after seeing him."

"Of course I do. I mean, not in that way, I'm not in love with him," she firmly asserted, the alcohol not affecting her that heavily. "But when an old friend has fallen so far to threaten and rob people... I knew him since we were kids, he would have been the one to stand up and punch someone in the nose if someone tried that."

"I take it that you grew up here then," Xet guessed.

Vincentia nodded and started to say something else as Veri caught up holding a thick pair of woolen coats. "Vincentia, mind your voice," she in hushed tones. "We can trust them, but I'd be mindful of others."

"Wait, why the secrecy?" Iskdiwercaesin said with renewed interest.

"For the same reason Corson's living in complete destitution, despite having been a baron's son. There're old enemies that would bring misery on us, fools of foibles and folly, for wrath for rivalries sake and feud to fuel with blood and toil," Vincentia's melancholy poem seemed to be spoken from deep within.

"A baron's son? How'd you meet him? I kind of doubt you were a serving girl he made friends with in his mansion, especially if someone around here has some kind of grudge. You were a noble as well, aren't you?" Iskdiwercaesin hazarded, to which Vincentia nodded. "Let me guess, with our luck you're the missing princess."

Vincentia smiled, though only a little. "Nope, you're wrong about that. Then again, you're close too. I know her personally. A strong woman, but it broke her heart to watch her brothers and sister fight amongst themselves. She wouldn't have gone away from here if she had a good choice. Which she didn't."

"Wow. I guess it's a lot harder living now that you have to travel around," said Baous.

"A little, but it's a lot more freeing. Back then, me and Veri had to always be acting, always being 'just so' to keep up appearances. Now, when I act, people know I'm acting on stage, not because it's necessary."

"You knew Veri when you were young too? Was she's a noble as well?"

"No, I was her caretaker and tutor," Veri answered. "Her mother wanted me to instruct her in everything she needed when as she grew up, but we've grown past simply being teacher and student to good friends."

"Hah! When she instructed me in music, I didn't realize it would become my profession. I just thought it was something to impress the other nobles. I loved singing and dancing, but for its own sake rather than for their entertainment." As they she kept talking about it, Vincentia's mood seemed to lighten even as they reached the outskirts of the Ashes.

Sadly, Serhis had to focus on their purpose. "How'd you know Corson would be able to get into the walled streets?"

"Because that's where his family's manor is. It's got one of the wells in the Ashes, that's why it survived the fire. I didn't know if he still lived there, the gang that controls the place probably kicked him out, but he knows the people there and how to get in and out. That's why I thought about him when you mentioned the Ashes." Hugging the coat closer, Vincentia passed through the blackened sands as a harsh wind blew over them. The specter of the tent camp was outlined by moonlight more than the small fires inside, a cruel irony that even flammable wood needed to keep warm had become a precious commodity in the burned-out part of the city. As they passed by tents, those without shelter huddled together by small fires that threatened to blow out in a stiff wind if their bodies didn't block the breeze.

Seeing the makeshift gates, Serhis had to ask the most important question that came to his mind. "Can he be trusted to keep his word?"

"... If it wasn't me asking him or me saying it, I'm afraid I would have said no," Vincentia shook her head. "It's a horrible thing to say. And yet, because it's me, I think you can trust him. If he still thinks we're friends after all this time, because he let me go the moment he saw that it was us, then I believe he will lead you in safely."

It wasn't the guarantee that they wanted, but it would have to be the one they would take. As they neared the gate, a shape near a pile of junk moved into the light.

"Vincentia?" a man's voice asked from beneath a cowl, eyes hidden in the dark scanning around. "These the ones that want in?"

" They are," she nodded.

Corson stretched out a gloved hand, obviously wanting something. Grudgingly, Iskdiwercaesin took out his share of the payment with the others. Corson poured the gold into a pocket sewn inside his vest, never letting his eyes off the others. "Remember the other part of the deal."

"What is the other part of the deal?" Serhis asked cautiously.

"While you're going to piss off those cultists, you might as well nick some of their stuff. I hear they take artifacts from temples to piss the places off and lock it away in a vault, so I'm not opposed to bringing it all back. For a fee, of course."

Serhis clamped his jaw shut, not liking the sound of it already. Temples dedicated to evil deities weren't exactly public knowledge, so it was likely temples belonging to other, more benevolent that had been raided. Proper compensation for recovering stolen objects was one thing. This felt like making a ransom. "We make no promises. Considering what they believe in, they are just as likely to destroy those artifacts."

"You better hope they didn't, because that's my fee for getting you back out. And if they did, then I'm not at all opposed to more money coming my way. Probably less work too."

Iskdiwercaesin was not pleased to hear that. "Great. Either we go looting stuff we don't get to keep or pay again."

"Don't like it, don't come with me inside."

"Fine. Lead the way." Striding past them towards the gates, they were sure the way he walked was to make them hear the jingle of the coins they had just paid him.

"I wish you good luck in your task," Veri said as Corson went past.

Serhis nodded. "What are you going to do now?"

"Same as we always have. Meet old friends, keep out of sight of old rivals," Vincentia looked at Corson's back with disenchanted eyes. The Corson she had known wouldn't flaunt any fortune he had over others, figurative or real.

"We'll see you when we get back," said Baous as he and the other followed Corson to the gate.

Approaching the walls, the group stopped in front of the locked gates, the entrance blocked by an unfriendly looking pair, burly, strong, and obviously meant to intimidate anyone who might stray too close. Thugs in every sense in the word, their calloused knuckles probably had broken a lot more bones than had been necessary in their line of work. Whether for fun or to make a point, Serhis could only guess, but from the looks that said "I can break you in half" that they gave him, he was sorely tempted to show what someone they deemed weak could do. "What's this bunch here for Corson?" one of the humans asked. The patchwork leather armor he wore squeaking as he moved to step in front of the gate, obviously long dried of oil.

"See this dragon? He's going to be making us lots of money. That's all you need to know," Corson pulled out the coin pouch, jangling it loudly for all to hear. Hungry stares in the dark all focused on that bag, but that same hunger also made the people weak, too weak to try anything.

The guard didn't look terribly impressed. "As long as I see a cut of that, you can bring in a damned gorgon. Get 'em in. I expect to see you at the tables tonight Corson."

"Yeah, got to part a fool from his gold," the other guard smirked.

"Yeah right. Lady Luck smiled on me tonight boys, what makes you think you've got the advantage?" Corson laughed with familiar ease. The guard banged on the gate and it was pulled back, allowing them inside. No sooner had they passed did it slam shut behind them.

If the outside was immersed in poverty and misery, the inside was of avarice and suspicion. Gang members on the street looked at the group as they got inside, the outsiders obviously potential targets. The facades of the buildings were badly damaged, some looking to have had some fire damage before being put out. Those ones had been sloppily repaired with whatever was on hand.

"Where are the Followers based at?" Serhis asked silently.

"Just keep following me" Leading them alongside the wall for a while, Corson navigated the streets with a careful pace, looking over his shoulders now and again or taking a side street when an open one looked empty or going the long way around rather than using an alleyway.

"Are we going these ways to avoid Followers?" Serhis looked behind them towards the street they had bypassed. A small gang in matching clothes sat on a bench as they had approached then turned.

"We're avoiding someone all right. Those guys looked like they had a bit of hard times. We could have taken them if they tried anything, but I'd rather not attract attention," Corson answered.

"They'd attack you? You must be pretty low on the gang hierarchy," said Iskdiwercaesin.

Corson snorted. "What? You think we're all the same gang? No way, there're at least four gangs in here. Kind of. We're all the same gang really, but it's who we support the most to run it. Those guys are not on the same side I am. We have a truce, but if they can get at me without being caught, I'd put money on them trying something stupid."

The connection to what was going inside the Ashes was uncomfortably close to what was happening outside. Serhis wondered what possessed people to claw for power like that, power even over the dregs and ashes of ruined lives. He could understand part of the desperation, and yet, why hadn't they tried to put their resources into rebuilding instead of tearing each other down so that no one else would rise above? It was illogical, it was self-destructive. And still it persisted in places more than this. It was something he had a mind to take away from the world. It would have to wait, he had to focus. "Does that mean that if we need to make a quick escape, we have to avoid those them?"

"Depends. If you come out of there yelling and hollering getting chased by blood-thirsty cults, I'd say they'd get out of the way and watch the show," Corson stopped at the end of the exit that lead out to a larger street. "There you are, the Follower of Tomond."

Of all ironies, the Followers had made a base out of a temple. More accurately, it was a former temple, Serhis had a hard time telling who it had been dedicated to. Statues had been torn down, stumps of feet marking where they had been. Stain glassed had been smashed and all related symbols had been defaced. Every last vestige of the deity had been destroyed. It made him shake his head in disgust, though a part of him wondered how much damage had been done before or after the fire. As for the Followers themselves, they wandered around the temple grounds, talking to one another or doing tasks like craftwork. There were no walls surrounding the place, but the temple itself was designed to resist attacks from hostile forces. Not that it had been completely effective, the large iron reinforced doors looked to have been smashed in ages ago and the Followers were slowly repairing what they could.

"Heh, so good luck on getting in without being noticed. You weren't the first ones to try to get in. Neither are you the first to get out, but that just means they're more ready," Corson pointed towards a few of the Followers, dressed in what could be considered a uniform and carrying pole arms."

"So you know a way inside?" Baous asked hopefully?

"Nah, I just know the people who do and they're not going to tell me. It'd cut in on their trade secrets and they might want to go back in to grab some more stuff. Of course, no one's gotten to the relics they've got, I'd have heard. We'd have all heard once the Followers start making a fuss that they got robbed."

"I thought they had a deal with the gangs?" Iskdiwercaesin looked dubious.

"They've got an agreement to stay in here with us. Part of it is that they better keep an eye on their own stuff. Since it applies to the others, they really can't say it's a fair buy."

"'No honor among thieves'," Baous quoted the old maxim.

"No, there's honor. For instance, we haven't all murdered each other in our sleep," Corson said cheerfully. "Seriously though, if someone really did that, they'd be ripped to shreds. No one likes nuts like that."

"How many of them are there?" Rhasalis had counted as many as she could see from their vantage point, numbered them at fifteen.

"Best I could guess... hmm, fifty. Some might go outside of the walls, some stay inside that place, so I really can't tell you what you're going to expect in there."

Fifty didn't surprise Serhis much. In a large city like this, a good number of people could be swayed into any sort of cult. At the same time, he couldn't figure out why so many didn't simply turn away from a deity, but outright denounced them. "We're looking for one in particular, her name is Jacqueline," he recounted the human's features.

"Hmm, I think I've seen someone like that, but I'm not sure if it's her. I definitely haven't heard her name though. If she's a recruiter, I would have."

Serhis had expected that, Jacqueline was likely an alias. It was just as likely whatever name she went by with the Followers was also false. "We're going to find you here when we get back outside, yes?"

"No, I'll be a street back the way we came from. They'll get twitchy if they see me hanging around. See you if you get back," Corson slipped away, out of the path of the group.

"When. When we back," Iskdiwercaesin said to the fallen noble as he went into the dark. "Though I'd prefer a plan to make sure that's the case. Anyone got one? I'd like to have a working plan after all the time we've been doing this without one."

"Corson did say others have managed to infiltrate and get out without being detected or revealing their method of entry. We might find one if we go around and examine the building. It'd also help figuring out how the place is built," Rhasalis suggested.

"We still need to find Jacqueline, or whatever she calls herself," said Xet. "How are we going to find her quickly in that place?" His concerns were based on the size of the temple; it was three stories high and likely went underground. Searching the place for one person blind would increase the likelihood of getting spotted drastically.

After thorough consideration, Serhis shook his head. "There's no way around that, not without asking one of the Followers," he paused as he considered his own words. "... then again, maybe that is a way."

"What? A cleric of Bahamut going up to anti-deity cultists and asking for directions to one of their higher-ups isn't going to be a bad idea?" Iskdiwercaesin looked incredulous.

"One of the benefits of being a cleric of a not widely known, yet powerful god is that they are very unlikely to recognize the Star, though I'm not going to have it out in the open for all to see anyway. We can make up an excuse, any excuse to see her."

"That doesn't sound too good though. Everyone is going to be watching us. It'll be hard to ask her where Tomond is or get those relics," said Baous.

"If we're taking the stolen relics, then I can hunt them down. While you go in from the front, I can get in from another way. Actually, you'll make it easier for me if they focus solely on you," said Rhasalis.

Serhis nodded. "Let's go, we've got a spy to smoke out." Taking to the streets, the group headed directly towards the ruined temple, Rhasalis not too far behind in the shadows. The Followers outside took notice, most of them pausing in their activities to watch as they approached. Serhis attempted to look as though he had business with them while trying to emit the sense that they were neither hostile nor threatening. The others did the same, though there was little way for Iskdiwercaesin to appear less threatening, it simply wasn't possible and he wouldn't attempt to try anyway.

"Stop there!" One of the spear carrying Followers yelled out to them, a dark skinned elf with black hair who looked no more than thirty. "Why do you approach the Followers of Tomond?"

"We wish to speak to Tomond himself," Serhis declared to gasps and harsh looks.

The guard looked at them skeptically. "For what purpose? There are many who wish him ill and we would not lead them to him."

"That would mean he's here then?"

The guard looked flustered for a moment. "No! Though we wish it were so, Tomond has never approached any of us, he does his labors with his own hands and with his own will, but should he wish it, we would follow in his example. Now answer! Why are you here?" Pointing the spear at Serhis' chest, he and a few others leveled their weapons, heedless of the danger the group possessed.

"If he is not here, then we bear a message to his agent here. We understand that her name is Jacqueline," he described her face and features for all to hear.

Murmurs came from the watching crowd as they heard the description. "That sounds like Sister Jacal." "She personally knows Tomond?" "Why would she hide that from us?"

The guard was even more baffled by the news, the spear point wavering in front of Serhis. "While the woman you've described bears a striking resemblance to one of our sisters, how can we trust you? How can we believe what you say?"

"I will be reaching into my pack to show you proof," Serhis wanted to make certain that any action he took wouldn't be misconstrued as aggressive, that was a sharp metal spike pointed at his heart. He had prepared for that question and extracted one of the letters they had taken from Cobbler. "This is a letter from Jacqueline to Tomond, who has been reporting your actions to him. She has been watching and judging you and would not allow you to see Tomond until he deemed it time," Serhis adopted the formal and overly flowery language the guard used to further impress them. "It is time. We are to speak to her immediately and tell her to lead us to Tomond for his grand plan."

One of the Followers from the crowd looked over the guard's shoulder to read it. "I, this, it's her handwriting! She's been telling him what we've been doing in Council, how many members have been recruited, temples we are planning to hit, everything!" This worked better than Serhis had hoped. The letter had things that only they knew and with the way there were talking to one another, rumors spread and the suggestions cemented in their minds without Serhis having to say anything further. The only thing that would have sealed the matter was a reply letter from Tomond, but all they had were the ones Cobbler had in transit.

Seizing the wooden haft of the spear, Serhis gently pushed it away from his chest for both dramatic effect and for his own safety. With a word, he could shatter it with a spell if things didn't go the way he planned. "You must take us to her now! Tomond needs us, all of us, for the next phase of his plans, and she is the only one who knows where he is!"

All the Followers looked at Serhis in awe, and then they immediately rushed to open the doors for them, the guards standing to the side and acting as a motley honor guard, spears presented and standing to the side in a ragged line. In his mind, Serhis couldn't help but laugh at his own manipulation. These people might be renouncing deities, but when a cleric spoke with a fiery manner and authority, they scrambled to accommodate in their fanaticism.

Slowly walking through the courtyard Iskdiwercaesin whispered to Serhis. "Nice, I'd only do a bit better. What are we going to do when we get to Jacqueline?"

"We talk to her," Serhis shrugged. This was the weakest part of the plan and he knew it keenly. He didn't know exactly how she would react when confronted like this, he would need to act quickly to the changing situation, but at least he would be the one pressing the issue instead of reacting to it.

"Talk. Right," Iskdiwercaesin muttered as he pulled his head back and walked proudly.

Passing over the threshold of the ruined temple, they heard the doors quickly shut behind them. All the Followers were inside now, eagerly following the group up to face Jacqueline. "Think Rhasalis made it in by now?" said Baous as quietly as he could, his eyes glancing around.

"If she is, we better not give her away," Xet replied, though he also looked around and into the shadows. Fortunately, he didn't see her. If he couldn't, neither could the Followers.

Up two flights of winding stairs they went and into a narrow, and suddenly crowded, corridor. They approached on of the solid wooden doors to the side, unremarkable from the others lining the hall. Serhis enjoyed a moment of relief and vindication, searching blind would have taken a long and harrowing time. "This is where she is?"

One of the Followers nodded, an elderly man dressed in far more elaborate attire than the others. Moving his hand forward to knock, his knuckles rested on the wood for a moment, a look of slight doubt playing over his face as his eye glanced back at the group. Iskdiwercaesin quirked an eyebrow in suspicion, daring him to voice those doubts and the man quickly rapped on the door. "Sister Jacal? Are you there? There are messengers."

There was the sound of footsteps approaching the door, opening to reveal a modestly dressed woman in a tight cowl that covered most of her head except for her face. If she was surprised at seeing almost half of the Followers crowded in the hallway, she didn't show it. "I take it these are the messengers," she indicated the kobolds and dragon. "What sort of message do they have that they bring everyone up here?"

The elderly man held up the letter. "They come bearing a message from the one who fights for our behalf, Tomond, though this letter is not from him. It is from you. I must ask Sister Jacal? Why? Why did you hide this from us? Weren't we searching for Tomond so that he would not have to fight his battles alone? Doubtless it was for the sake of his overall plans, but we all wish to why he would do that, if you know?"

Jacqueline was a cold woman. Barely any hint of emotion or surprise registered on her as all eyes turned on her. Where others would begin sweating and get nervous from the attention, she stood her ground and looked at the kobolds and dragon. "I will admit to spying on the behalf of Tomond-" a gasp echoed through the crowd as they began talking amongst each other in earnest, "but as for these messengers, they are not the ones I usually speak to! I've received word that you are the ones that assaulted the one that usually delivers our letters, so I take it you are imposters."

The attention shifted from Jacqueline to them quickly, making Serhis' breath catch in his throat. Cobbler hadn't been bluffing about that, she really did keep a close eye on her subordinates. As he scrambled for an explanation, Iskdiwercaesin stepped in. "If things had gone like they should have, you wouldn't know about us at all. Tomond's been keeping a close watch on him since he opened up a letter that wasn't for him, and we've been the ones doing the watching. Too bad he didn't learn from his last mistake, we approached him as a warning, but when he tried to run, well, you know how that goes. Now Tomond's getting suspicious that Cobbler had leaked information sometime before that and we had to clean up the mess. He's moving up the timetable and he's bringing these fellows," tilted his head at the Followers, "to help in the search."

Iskdiwercaesin was taking a gamble here. If Tomond had told her about his ultimate objective, then there was a good chance she would assume they indeed did know Tomond and would understand that they could not discuss the matter of an imprisoned god among the Followers. If she didn't, she would assume that they were fishing for information or might even demand to know, and letting the Followers know would be letting the secret out in a very bad way.

To their silent relief, Tomond must have trusted her with such a secret as she nodded in understanding. "Hmph. It would be just like him to keep watch over Cobbler. So you need me to arrange a meeting now? I suppose we need to gather equipment for them as well."

"The search isn't going to be easy. Tomond hasn't filled us in on everything either, but I'd think he's got the key or a way to bypass the barrier by now if he's telling us to move quickly." Now Iskdiwercaesin was lying through his teeth and making large leaps of intuition. Since there was a deity that had been imprisoned and Tomond was on the hunt for him, he could guess that Tomond would be looking for either way, no matter what he wanted to do. It also offered enough of a hint that Jacqueline would understand the vague reference.

As for the Followers themselves, they were completely lost in the conversation. Who was Cobbler? Equipment for what? Key? Barrier? The old man that by Serhis figured was the leader of the cult stepped forward to make his presence known. "Sister Jacal, please, take us to Tomond. It sounds very much like Tomond has need of us now, that we've been called to perform a great service. The messengers..." he glanced at the kobolds and dragon, realizing he didn't even know their names.

"I am Serhis. This is Iskdiwercaesin, Baous, R-, and Xet," he barely caught himself, he had been too used to introducing the whole group. "And we aren't technically messengers. We just do what Tomond calls us to do, we don't exactly have an assigned purpose," he tried to explain.

"Ah, yes. These fellow Followers have already told us as much, but what is it that Tomond wants done?"

"... I think I'll let Tomond decide what he tells you," Jacqueline turned away from the crowded hallway and back into what looked to be her office. From Serhis' vantage point, it was neatly organized and prim, but utterly devoid of any personal touches. She went to gather what looked to be random, but important objects from around the room, ranging from scrolls to baubles.

The Followers' whispers had turned into excited babbling, all of them eager to meet their idol. The leader tried to regain control of the situation. "We should wait before we leave. The others have yet to return and I while we should make haste to Tomond, we should not leave our fellows behind."

"Tomond can send for them later, but we have to go now," Serhis urged, not wanting to give them time to think or have any delays that would give more chances for their story to unravel. "That's why Tomond sent us instead of arranging for another letter drop. It would have taken too long," he said to Jacqueline.

"If we go, at least try not to look too conspicuous. Make no mention that we are heading to Tomond, any of you! Act like we normally do when we leave this place, we are on one of our missions," Jacqueline declared.

"Yes! Tomond wishes for secrecy so that among the fools that don't listen to our truth, they will remain so until we have undeniable proof! We shall be silent and enlightened!" leader of the Followers declared, reasserting his authority after being practically ignored by everyone else.

It was then that they began marching out of the ruined temple, a few reluctant Followers left behind to guard the place as the majority went out. Jacqueline walked at the fore of the column, the Followers walking in semi-disciplined rows, and the kobolds and dragon not far behind.

"This is what you had in mind when we went in?" Iskdiwercaesin asked Serhis.

Shrugging sheepishly, Serhis had some of his own reservations. "It was the best I could come up with at the time. I am grateful for your input. I should have thought about Tomond searching for a key of some kind."

The dragon replied with a shrug of his own. "Seemed reasonable. If you've got a prison, you've got to have a key. Well, we're talking about deities, so it can't be an actual key, but if other deities were draining a god while he's still inside, they had to have had a way to do it."

"We're lucky that she's taking us right to Tomond, but what do we do when we get there?" Baous aired his concerns.

The thought hadn't escaped Serhis as well and it would be impossible to lie their way out of it. When Jacqueline talks to Tomond, the whole scheme would unravel. "We act when we see him. Xet, can you sleep spell all of the Followers quickly?"

"That depends. They've all got to be close together. I might get... eight of them at a time? Probably less if some have a strong will and resist. All I know for sure is that it'll wipe out all of my sleep spells," Xet warned. "I don't know about Jacqueline, she might be easy to take down. Maybe not. I definitely know that Tomond's going to be awake since magic doesn't work on him. Still, what about Rhasalis? I think she's still inside. When she comes back out, she's not going to know where we went. She might still wait for us with Corson," he resisted the urge to look over his shoulder.

"I'll send her a message," Serhis assured him. Times like this proved how much that some situations didn't need flashy magic or destructive spells, but instead needed quiet words. "I'll send it to her when we find where Tomond has been hiding."

"Heh, at least we won't have to pay Corson anything to get back out," Iskdiwercaesin laughed as they passed by the street where the former noble had been waiting. The wyrmling resisted the urge to wave at him as the man watched them with suspicious eyes.

They made quite the scene as they passed through the streets and out of the gates. The people might have care about the small groups of Followers that came in and out at times, but they took notice when such large numbers poured out and were equally curious why the kobolds and dragon they had seen earlier were right behind them. As Serhis expected, Jacqueline was leading them away from heavily populated areas. What he didn't expect was how close Tomond could still be. On a stretch of the bank of the river were a row of houses, technically part of the district of the Ashes, but saved from the fire due to its proximity to water like the taphouse. Like the taphouse, even if it had been saved from the flames, neglect had taken its toll as grim and mildew caked the buildings, the moisture that saved them now rotting them slowly without proper care.

Passing building after building, Serhis had thought Tomond had taken up residence in one of them, but instead, Jacqueline went closer to the river. He wasn't the only one that was confused, the Followers watched with anticipation as she descended a ramp to a pier on the river. Taking out a wooden stick that she had in her office, she tapped a lead pipe softly and in a certain pattern. If Serhis hadn't been looking at her from right next to the edge of the river edge, he would have missed her completely. The unique sound of wood echoing through the pipe was obviously a signal and since the pipe went away from the water and underground, he didn't know where it would lead. With one last knock on the pipe, she lifted a small cover on the pipe, wrote something on a piece of parchment that she immediately stuffed in a small container, then dropped it inside. "Now we wait for Tomond to come."

Serhis felt a weight drop in his stomach. She had sent a message to Tomond and there was no way to stop it or tell what she had written down. If she had sent a standard message for a meeting, then all would be well. If she made mention of the unique circumstances, then Tomond would be forewarned that something was amiss. He has assumed that Jacqueline would take them to Tomond directly, not arrange a meeting. Struggling to keep his nervousness in check, he looked around, seeing that Baous and Xet also had an unsure look in their eyes. Only Iskdiwercaesin was successfully masking his. As things were going, he decided to send the message to Rhasalis now. "Jacqueline lead to meeting spot with Followers. Declared we are messengers. Might be revealed, Tomond might know. Go towards river, past houses, on northern pier," he whispered in Draconic, his words taken away on the winds of magic. If Serhis hadn't been used to sending short and concise messages for Baous, he would have been in trouble there.

The waiting was tense. They did not necessarily need Rhasalis to be there to aid them, but they would need all the edge they could get. Can she get out in time? Did she get spotted by the Followers still inside the temple? Would she find a way past the walls? Worrying about things he couldn't change didn't usually happen to Serhis, but still he worried.

Those worries vanished. Only to be replaced with shock as something smashed at his feet and a cloud of noxious vapors rose out of a smashed globe, making him stumble back from the smell as if it had punched him in the gut. Coughing and blinking back tears, he looked for the source of the thrown spheres, but could only see his friends also coughing in the cloud. Other spheres had been thrown amidst the Followers, who yelled in panic as they also choked on the gasses, some diving into the river to get away. The only person who wasn't in the grips of the gas was Jacqueline, holding a damp cloth pressed to her nose and mouth as she impassively watched the crowd in front of her fall to their knees.

Feeling light headed, Serhis tried to fly up, out of the choking gas only to falter in mid-flight. Crashing back down on the deck of the pier, even the pain of impact was dimly felt. He tried to keep his eyes open, he tried so hard, but with every breath he took his world became dimmer. Baous was on his hands and knees, struggling for breath and Iskdiwercaesin had dragged himself halfway to the pier and into the water, but he had already breathed in too much, the dragon floated atop the water like a bloated whale and Xet had already succumbed to the gas.

In his last moments of consciousness, Serhis could feel his frantically beating heart slow and all he could see were his friends falling around him. In the corner of his vision, he saw a human in reds and blacks coming down the pier to stand above him, the last of his sight before sleep took him away was of Tomond.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Waiting in the shadows, Rhasalis had been glaring at Corson as the man made her life a bit more difficult. "You'll tell me where they went now!" she demanded as her eyes burned with sparked anger. It had taken her a while to find the crawlspace on the second floor of the temple, though at least not as long as it took to climb up with the aid of a rope and grappling hook. She had just reached the top when she saw the Followers bringing the others inside, forcing her to wait on the lip of the small ledge between the inside and outside until they all went to the floor above. Taking the hook and securing it on one of the rafters, she had slipped back to the main floor and speeded downstairs with no trouble at all, finding the only locked door there with similar ease. The lock had consumed much of her time, the smith who made it had been frustratingly precise about his workmanship. When she did manage to get through, her impatience almost overrode her caution and almost stumbled over the tripwire that stretched along the bottom of the doorway. It was more out of reflex than conscious skill that saved her from rattling the bells up above and alerting everyone that there was an intruder down below. Darkly berating herself for being so impatient, she methodically checked that each of the stored relics weren't similarly set to an alarm, which some of them were. Others simply made sure the relic was damaged, or the person stealing it was.

After taking everything she thought held any spiritual worth, she again nearly gave herself away when everyone came back downstairs in a bunch, all of them crowding to get out the doors. Almost all of them, a human pointed at a few of the ones with spears and told them to stay on guard while the others left. Rhasalis was pleased when she saw that the others weren't being forcefully led out or otherwise restrained, yet she was still irritated when the guards stood around the open hall. After a minute, it was clear that they weren't moving from their spots, they all were talking to each other about being disappointed that they had to stay put while everyone else went to see Tomond, then the subject strayed to mundane topics like the weather and the quality of food, or lack thereof. From the way there were positioned, there was no way back to the rope without going out into the open at least once, she'd have to be invisible to go undetected. Technically, she did have an invisibility potion on her for such emergencies, but it would do nothing when the rope started straining and moving when she climbed it, the movement would give it away even with it blackened to hide it in the dark.

Rhasalis needed a distraction, that much was clear, and soon. By now, she'd have a lot of trouble following the others, even with a large gang of Followers going with them. She had one idea. She didn't like it. Violating all the rules for secrecy, she went back down to the vault, took a deep breath, and touched off the alarm. She was already halfway back up the stairs when the bells stopped ringing and she clambered up as fast as her legs could carry her, she had to be at the top before the guards had heard the bells and their minds realized that someone was in the vault. She reached the top just as she saw shadows covering what little torchlight leaked into the stairwell and she threw herself into the corner, stopping hard enough to bruise as the guards ran past. She didn't even wait for their backs to disappear down the stairs, she rounded the corner and kept running. Shouts of alarm and for everyone to search the area could be heard as Rhasalis hoisted herself up the rope. By the time the guards had come back up, the kobold had already left the temple grounds.

Rushing out into the street, she tried to make out the passage of the Followers. She was no tracker, it was barely a block out when she reached the next intersection and lost all signs where they had turned or went. Glancing around desperately, she saw that they had passed the alley where Corson had been waiting at and she demanded that he tell her where they had went.

"Fuck no! You all agreed that when I get you out, you give me the relics! Since your buddies went out without you, how the hells am I supposed to make money out of that?!" Corson had replied. In the face her latest shout, he only sneered.

"Fine, you want a relic for my passage out, I'll give you one!" Rhasalis took out one of the trinkets she had taken off the walls and tossed it down at his feet. "Take me to them!"

Corson didn't even look at the jade bead bracelet. "It doesn't work that way anymore. Now you better hand over all of the relics, and whatever money, weapons, and whatever else you've got."

"That- that's robbery!"

"Yeah, no shit," Corson snapped his fingers. At the ends of the alley, a pair of thugs, the same thugs they had passed earlier, blocked the way. Corson was smiling. "I figure that if you're all alone and you've got all the relics, why share the profits? And why not everything else too?"

"You prey on the desperation of others. My friends need me, just take the relics and let me go, but I'm keeping my equipment," Rhasalis snarled. If the others got into a fight, she needed to keep them.

Corson stopped leaning on the wall and drew a knife, its blade slightly rusty when it didn't get cleaned properly. Or was that rust at all? "I saw what you were carrying when you paid me outside. You've got a lot of gold and stuff for a puny kobold. Now we're going to take it off your hands, or claws or whatever, and you won't have to take a thrashing. We're being nice, others around here would skip to the beating."

Rhasalis drew her own daggers. "You aren't worthy of the trust that Vincentia gives you."

For a moment, Corson looked genuinely hurt by those words until his face was set like a hardened mask. "If your pals ever come back around here again looking for you, they're not coming back out either," he said as he approached Rhasalis, knife leveled at her.

Fighting in the dark, narrow alley was not in Rhasalis' favor. Escaping wouldn't be easy either, the sandstone walls to either side offered little in the way of handholds, climbing out wasn't an option, so her only way out was through either end of the alley. She considered heading towards the other end which Corson wasn't blocking, there was only on thug to get around, but it was further away and Corson could run her down. That left getting through Corson and the other thug.

Feigning to run the other way, Rhasalis immediately turned hard to get around Corson as he began pursue towards her, expecting her to flee. He had too much inertia and couldn't stop or turn in time as she spun past, but she lost momentum as a club the thug at the end of the alley held swung right through where her head would have been if she had kept going. Fighting defensively, she needed an opportunity to slip past the next thug and found one when he stepped forward to swing again. As she leapt forward under his extended arm, a cutting pain crossed the back of her right shoulder. Rolling under the thug's reach, she turned to see what had happened. Her shoulder had a gash in it, a trail of blood leaking through the torn leather armor, a shallow cut. Corson was trying to push past the thug as he stood dumbstruck in the mouth of the alleyway, the knife Corson held slick with her blood.

"Where do you think you're going?" Corson he talked in a conversational manner as he reached down and picked up the bracelet. "Unless you want to try climbing the walls, you're trapped in here, and all the guys on patrol will shoot anyone trying to do that, either coming in or going out. Don't try to run and make this harder, simply give up everything you have and I'll kick you out of the gates with no worse the wear."

Rhasalis response was to stick up a claw while her hand formed a fist, a gesture she learned from the sailors of the Cast of Onyx. The people who saw it looked like they had been offended, and she was right, Corson and the thugs didn't like it one bit. Considering that the person who did it claimed that he was being cheated at a game of dice, she felt the situation was similar enough for her to use it. "I'd cut all your throats if I didn't have somewhere else to go right now."

Laughing, Corson got out of the alley as the thugs flanked him, standing tall and looking intimidating one of their primary jobs. "Bold words for a teeny lizard. I was thinking that if you did give without a fight, I'd have given you the antidote and no hard feelings. Guess you'll just have to suffer.

Antidote?! Rhasalis had to consciously keep her eyes on the three and not stare at the gash on her shoulder. What she had assumed to be rust or dried blood was a powdered poison. Now that he mentioned it, her shoulder was starting to ache. "Poison only works so fast. I can kill all of you and get that antidote before it works."

"It's already working. I don't even have to fight, I just need to keep an eye on you for a minute. Now give me the rest," Corson twirled the beaded bracelet between his fingers.

Just as she was about to launch a knife at him, lots of movement to her right diverted her attention. Fortunately, Corson and the thugs didn't take advantage of the distraction, mostly because they were equally surprised by the group of Followers running down the street. "Hey you! Have you seen anyone-" the spear holding Followers stopped talking when they saw what Corson was holding. "They're the ones who took the relics! Get them!"

"Oh shit!" One of the thugs looked at the half dozen Followers charging at them and figured the odds weren't in his favor as he ran back down the same alley Rhasalis had escaped from. He wasn't the only one running, Rhasalis was fleeing at top speed down the open street, not caring who saw her or whatever gangs she came across.

"Follow her you stupid- ah hells, get after her!" Corson said to his remaining lackey as they chased after Rhasalis while being pursued themselves.

As fast as she could run, Rhasalis had no idea where to go. She was concerned that the poison would slow her down, but aside from the stinging, it didn't seem to be getting worse. In fact, it seemed to be fading. That worried her even more, the pain getting numb and the way Corson had mentioned that all it needed was a minute told her that it could knock her out if she didn't keep her focus. All of her focus was on running, to keep her mind clear as she kept out of the grasp of Corson as they went down the darkened streets and alleys, Rhasalis at times having to make a sharp turn when she ran into the wall surrounding the place. Her passage didn't go without notice, particularly when both groups behind her where in sight as gang members looked out windows and those got ready to run or fight on their own. At least no one had tried to get in the way.

"Stop her, stop her!" Corson was shouting to anyone up ahead. A few looked like they were about to step in her way, but when they saw the Followers, they thought better of it.

"Stop him, stop him! Thief!" The Followers yelled out as well, waving spears and shouting curses, but there were a lot fewer willing to do anything for them.

Knowing where else to go, she had been heading towards the gates, hoping to lose them in one of the tents outside. She had considered the buildings, but from the way Corson had been yelling, she could have been going into a hornet's nest of thieves that were in his gang. To her unsurprised displeasure, the gates were closed as they came into sight.

"Open up! Open the gates, we're being chased!" she yelled. Had it only been her and Corson behind, they might have hesitated, but when the gate guards saw the Followers emulating their namesake, the wooden barrier parted for her.

"No you idiots don't let her through!" Corson's orders were followed too late as Rhasalis dived through the narrow crack.

Rolling through the sand, Rhasalis could feel the tip of her tail brush against wood before it slammed shut again behind her, the guards outside looking befuddled at her sudden appearance. As soon as she appeared, she vanished into the darkness of the tent camp, darting between the low cover the tents provided. From what she could hear behind her, Corson and his thugs didn't get through the gates and hadn't been able to open them back up in time before the Followers caught up. She couldn't guess who'd win in that fight or if the guards at the gates would help, all that she knew for certain was that people would be looking for her. Hiding in a random tent wouldn't help, whoever was sleeping in it would suddenly not be as they saw a bipedal reptile dive in and all their screaming would give her away as well as give her a headache. Rhasalis could only hope that she remembered which tent was safe.

Her memory wasn't as faulty as she feared as she ran into a large tent. In the sudden intrusion, she saw Holton bolt up from his worktable holding a scalpel as a weapon. The look of panic the cleric of Pelor had was replaced with confusion. "Huh? Are you not one of the kobolds from-"

"Yes, my name's Rhasalis. Please stay quiet, some people from the gangs and the Followers of Tomond are chasing me."

Holton nodded, and as she thought, he bore no love for either party. Tense minutes passed as they waited, Holton returning to his work of making whatever remedies he could from local plants and every so often looking at the opening of the tent with concern.

There weren't many places for Rhasalis to hide in the tent. The few that were available weren't pleasant, even as small as she was. Tucking herself in one of the cots, she pulled the covers over her head. If she was someplace else, she would be laughing at her own desperation having to hide like a child under the bed when the monsters came out. Her concerns were immediately squashed as she heard the tent flap being thrown to the side.

"You there, cleric! Have you seen a kobold coming past here? A small lizard thing? The others I've come across told me it came this way. Which way did it go or do I have make the healer see a doctor of his own?" It sounded like Corson's voice.

"Ah!" Holton startled as Corson grabbed the collar of his shirt, looking down the blade of the man's knife.

Rhasalis wanted to hold her breath, she wanted to make as little movement and noise as she could, but she kept a level breath, equally afraid that if she tried and Corson didn't move away quickly, the gasp for air would give her away. She could have used the invisibility potion, it would have been easier to hide in the corner, but it was too late for that now. As she took measured breaths, she could smell the rancid odor of the cot she was hiding in. Remembering how Holton said that there wasn't even enough water to wash his hands, cleaning the cots after each patient was just as unlikely. The more Rhasalis thought about it, the more she wanted to shed her scales then and there. She could only hope that whoever used the cot last hadn't been too sick and left without making a mess.

At least, she hoped that person left on their own feet.

"It came in here, I know that much! Where is it?!" Corson tilted the dagger up from Holton's throat and towards the man's eye. There was more noise from the tent flap, more of Corson's gang had come in.

"Ah! Yes, she came in here!" Holton's voice was strained. Dread sank into Rhasalis' mind, then a cold steel resolve as she drew the daggers out from under the blanket. If she had to fight, she thought about tossing one Holton's way, but went against it, the man was protecting his own life over a stranger's. "It, she, the kobold ran right through here. Scared me and the other patients half to death, then went under the other side," Holton pointed at the opposite end of the tent.

Using his knife, Corson didn't bother to make another threat as he slashed through the indicated direction and sped back out into the night, his gang following after. When she could no longer hear Corson demanding whoever else was around where she went, she slid out of the cot. "Thank you for that," said Rhasalis quietly.

"Not at all a problem," Holton slumped down in his chair, the cleric having been so close to death despite having forestalled the deaths of others now had a far better appreciation for life. "I think that helps with the ventilation problem," he looked at the cut Corson had made in his tent as he laughed, though it was a little too high pitched.

"Here," Rhasalis pressed ten platinum coins into Holton's hand. She wasn't as easy to give away money as her hatchmate was, but she felt it a good policy to compensate others well when they aided her. "Use it to fix the tent and get medicine. And water, definitely water to wash your hands and the cots."

Holton stared at the money she had given him, his hands had stopped shaking as he gripped the coins tightly as if his life depended on it. If not his, then definitely others. "I won't ask what you did to upset those brutes so much. If you're anything like the others, then it was for a good purpose, and I would help you again, even if I didn't receive payment. You have no idea how much this will help me."

"I'd like a little more help now then. If you saw my hatchmates or friends pass by earlier with a large band of Followers of Tomond, I need to find them."

"It looks like you need a bit more help than that," Holton pointed. Through the running and the hiding, Rhasalis still had an open wound on her shoulder.

"The danger has passed, if the poison hasn't worked yet, then I should be fine. Blue whinnis if I guess right." Rhasalis was simply glad that Corson hadn't used anything stronger. Drow poison would have knocked her out right at the alley while she was unprepared and didn't have the benefit of the fight or flight response pushing her. Though drow poison would have been actually cheaper to produce than blue whinnis, at least the drow liked to keep the process secret. Her knowledge of poisons was likely as extensive as Serhis' knowledge of medicine.

"I think I have something for that. Blue whinnis, blue whinnis," Holton muttered as he looked at the very small selection of bottles on a shelf. Taking one off, he handed it to Rhasalis. "Antivenin. Most of what I treat are injuries and diseases, so I at least have a small store of them. I'd offer to heal your shoulder, but I've nothing left. As for your friends, I have not seen them pass by this way."

"Thank you," Rhasalis hissed through her teeth as she applied it. She endured the pain, glad to even feel it rather than the numbness. "That type of help won't be needed. If you don't know, then maybe someone else-"

_"Jacqueline lead to meeting spot with Followers. Declared we are messengers. Might be revealed, Tomond might know. Go towards river, past houses, on northern pier."_The disembodied voice of Serhis spoke in her mind.

Holton looked at her worriedly as if the poison had actually gotten worse after it had been treated. "Are you alright there?"

"Yes, yes I'm fine. I have to go now, I know where to go," Rhasalis would have ran out the tent towards the river at full speed if she didn't have Corson to worry about. Waving to the cleric of Pelor as she went out of the tent, she went in an arc around where Corson would be looking and made for her hatchmate's last known position.

Running through the empty streets and blackened skeletons of the buildings in the Ashes, she reached the river's edge with her legs and lungs aching from the sprint. Looking around, she looked for the pier Serhis had mentioned, scanning the river beneath for signs of a large group. Instead, she saw a floating body floating down the river.

Something's gone wrong. The thought that a fight or that something had happened brought new energy to her feet as she kept running along the length of the river. When she saw the shadows of the pier over the dim shimmering of the water, she almost didn't stop in time before she realized that none of the people still standing were kobolds or a dragon. She was too late.

There were four men on the pier, two of them picking through the pockets of the Followers laid out on the floor while the other pair were busy hiding the bodies from view. Rhasalis couldn't tell if the Followers were dead or alive. She didn't care about them much, but if they were all dead, then her hatchmates and Baous and Iskdiwercaesin were lost to her.

"Hey, look what I found on this old bat. Two gold coins!" one of the looters said triumphantly. They were dressed nondescriptly, simple cloth pants and shirts that practically everyone wore in this desert region. They weren't even matching in style or color, anyone looking at them wouldn't assume they were linked to each other.

"Hah! These fellows aren't all right in the head, but they've got good taste in jewelry," said as he roughly pried a ring off a finger.

"You two better finish up fast, Tomond wants us back quick," another grunted as he and his partner lifted another Follower, a young dwarf, off the pier and onto the shore.

As they worked, Rhasalis crept closer. On closer inspection, she saw that the men were two humans, an elf, and a half-orc. The humans she knew she should take by surprise, but the elf and the half-orc would be problematic. Sand would make it easy to sneak up on them if she stepped carefully, but every now and then the elf and half-orc would look up as they took the bodies off the pier. For now, she waited and listened, knowing that they were in league with Tomond. If they didn't say anything that she wanted to hear, she either had to wait and follow them back to wherever Tomond was hiding or capture one of them, forcing him to tell her what had happened here.

"Nah, Tomond doesn't have much for us to do, we can take our time. It's not like this bunch is going to get up soon," one of the human looters said, still picking through pockets and tossing away random stuff that wasn't of any worth. Rhasalis didn't like the sound of that, it indicated that they were dead. If that was the case, she wouldn't bother hunting down Tomond because of his schemes, but for her hatchmates. She'd hunt him for long as she lived, and beyond that if necessary too, she heard that ghosts could be manifested if someone died with an unresolved desire or enough wrath. She put it from her mind, she concentrated on living in the moment, which might mean her revenge would start with the four dead men walking in front of her.

"That's what I'm concerned about. Are they going to stay asleep for an hour? Two? Until morning?" the elf asked. Rhasalis' fears were slightly eased. If the Followers were only unconscious, then the others might also be as well. Still looking, she still couldn't find any of them among the bodies laid out on the pier or piled up on the shore.

"If it can knock out a dragon, then it'll last," the half-orc replied. "I hear that dragons couldn't be unwillingly put to sleep. If what the boss used can work on them, it's got to be strong stuff."

"That's only being put to sleep by magic. Whatever he used isn't, and that might not last long," his fellow body carrier said. "I speak for myself too, elves can't be sleep spelled."

"Well this poor sod's dead, I can tell you that much," the half-orc grunted as he pulled a body from the river. "Whoo! Look at him hang onto the side. Idiot must have tried jumping in to get away and drowned for his troubles."

"Of for Celestia's sake, we don't to pull the ones that went down the river, do we?"

"Nah, no need to worry about those floaters. They'll be washed out to sea. Tomond just wants this bunch out of the way. Ugh, I think that's the last of them." Wiping his hands off in the river, the half-orc went to the other pair. "What are you two waiting for? We're done, we can go now."

"Yeah, but we're not done yet. I still haven't checked the ones you brought over."

"Are you really that hard up for money? Come on, move! Before I kick your ass over." All four walked off the pier, their boots making a clatter over the creaking boards and letting Rhasalis move in secrecy from her vantage point to a new hiding spot.

"Why'd you think Tomond told us to leave this bunch here, but had the other guys take the dragon and its servants?" one of the humans wondered aloud as they passed by her.

"Beats me. Personally, I say it's bad news to have anything to do with a dragon," the other human replied. "All I know is that he doesn't tell me nothing unless he's got a reason."

"Heh, then all I know is that he pays well in gold what he doesn't in what he says. Now keep quiet. We don't want anyone hearing us or seeing where we go," the elf replied.

His warning was far, far too late. Trailing close behind, a reptilian shadow of wrath and blades loomed, watching their every move, their only fortune was that she would not kill them.

At least, not yet.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Waking on a cold floor, Serhis hacked and coughed, feeling short of breath and clearing his lungs of whatever was still in them that wasn't air. Bleary eyed, he blinked to clear the hazy mist of the world around him and found that he wouldn't have missed much. His entire world right now was granite walls and a thick reinforced metal door.

"Xet? Baous? Iskdiwercaesin?" He called out as he moved to stand, only that he couldn't. His hands were bound behind his back and his ankles locked together in manacles. Looking at himself, all of his possessions had been taken except for his underclothes. Not that it helped Serhis much, without his amulet the cold air chilled his scales.

"Uuurgh... One of the worst wake ups I've had." Even if Serhis didn't know the sound of Iskdiwercaesin's voice through the wall, his attitude certainly would have given him away. Still, the dragon's voice sounded very muffled, much more than what the wall should have blocked.

"Are you okay? Can you move?" Serhis asked.

"Of course I'm not! I'm chained and I've got this weird... thing covering my snout. I can still talk, but I can't open my mouth wide." There was a brief silence, then a bit of grunting. "Grr, no good. They've actually strapped me to the floor! Even my tail! Damn Tomond!"

"Iskdiwercaesin?" Baous' inebriated voice came from across Serhis' cell door. "Ugh, I feel sick. What was that stuff? My nose is burning..."

"I'd say that you shouldn't move too much Baous, but I think you're as restrained as we are," said Serhis. Still looking over his cell, he found that it was completely barren. No tools to get out or potential weapons except the manacles, which were too busy being used as a way to prevent him from using weapons.

"I can do that. Not that I can anything else. Where are we?"

"In deep shit," Iskdiwercaesin replied. It was short, concise, and certainly had a grain of truth.

"That's not very helpful. Xet? Xet?" Serhis called out. He heard no response from his hatchmate. Either he had been imprisoned somewhere else or he was still unconscious. Neither sounded good to the kobold.

"Give me a moment, the morons who put this muzzle or whatever on me have stopped me from spraying my acid all over the place, but I can still burn..." Iskidwercaesin went quiet for a while. It was several minutes of silence before they heard him coughing. "Augh! Ah, eurgh! Damn it, it won't burn! The thing filled up with acid and it just sat there. Eewww, I nearly choked on my own acid," Iskdiwercaesin gulped air.

"We have to get out somehow," Baous sounded worried. "Why'd Tomond bring us here? That was Tomond, wasn't it?"

"I think it was," Serhis' memory was still hazy. He hadn't been able to see Tomond's face hidden behind a mask that covered his mouth and nose, clearly it had been something that prevented the former cleric from falling victim to his own gas. He did wear what Grey had told them, a black sash that had a tear in the middle, which was over a trim cotton shirt and pants with a mantle across his shoulders much like Serhis himself wore, except made of hardened leather and he thought he saw it extended further down Tomond's back.

The sounds of a dragon straining to get free was all that they could hear for several minutes, Iskdiwercaesin straining his muscles in his arms, legs, jaws, and even his tail for any weakness, and he found none. "Graaaah! Damnitdamnitdamnitdamnit!" the wyrmling vented his frustrations to all that could hear, which was very few. "Again! Why did this happen again?! How is it that someone always gets the drop on us?! It isn't supposed to be this way!"

"We'll find a way out then," Serhis replied. "We've done it before."

"That's the worst reassurance I've ever heard. I'd rather that we didn't get caught in the first place, let alone so many times we're good at escaping," Iskdiwercaesin scowled, though the others couldn't see him through the muzzle and thick stone walls. "Come to think of it, ever since I met you, I've been captured so many times I should be keeping a ransom for myself! Last time it was kobolds, and before that it was bandits, and before that, pirates! Each time it was for something I couldn't care less about, but I still got dragged into it anyway, because of you!"

Serhis did not care for the blame that Iskdiwercaesin cast on him while he was still shackled. "I can hardly be blamed for that. Each of those times it was due to circumstances beyond my control to counter or even know. At least I did something to get us out!"

"After we nearly get killed doing it! Now look at us, after you let that human send out her message without any interference. If it were up to me, I'd have stormed those walls, killed anyone that was dumb enough to get in our way, and make Jacqueline bring us to Tomond instead of what you thought up! All because you don't want to get your claws bloody!"

Even though Serhis wasn't warm-blooded, he could feel his heat rise as anger took over. "Killing should not be that simple! We don't know what crimes those gangs committed, but slaughtering them is hardly the way to do things! What would you have done if Jacqueline hadn't done what you wanted? Would you resort to battering her? Torturing her?"

"Then what would you have done?! Threats are no good if you don't carry them out."

Serhis stared at the solid wall separating himself from the dragon, towards the source of Iskdiwercaesin's voice. If they weren't restrained and for the walls blocking each other, things might have come to blows. "I wouldn't have threatened her."

"Then what good are you? If you want to do good, what's the point if you can't ever get the evil you're fighting to back down," Iskdiwercaesin hissed back.

For once, Serhis couldn't reply. His anger boiled not only at Iskdiwercaesin for blaming him, but at himself because Iskdiwercaesin had him. To end pain, sometimes there needed to be force and he would never consider it a first option, but it was always an option. "Though we were captured, we made sure it was never twice, and never for long."

"I don't know about that, since my first time waking up in a prison was because of you."

It was like a lance to the heart. Serhis had thought that after Arcwell that they had settled their disputes.

"Stop, stop! Arguing about stuff like that is not going to get us out," Baous shouted so that both could hear him. It wasn't necessary, Serhis was hurt enough that he couldn't have formed a response. "Just... take some time to cool off. We keep looking for anything we can use to get out. Or if someone comes by, we'll get a chance then."

The following silence was for the better, yet it left a raw divide between Serhis and Iskdiwercaesin. Like the dragon had said to him from a much earlier time, Serhis didn't hate the other for what they had done or said. Still, it left a bitter feeling. If they escaped from their newest prison and everything went well afterwards, he wasn't sure he even wanted to attempt to sort this out, their issues were clashing often. Serhis had thought he would be sad to see Iskdiwercaesin go on his way. Now, he only hoped that if Iskdiwercaesin did go, it was without another fight.

More minutes passed. "Your personal conversation, while interesting, held nothing of value to me." In the oppressive silence of each other's thoughts, they were all startled to hear a new voice. "What does hold value is why you tried to seek me out, and I must ask directly now instead of listening to you attempt to plot an escape."

All of the heat from earlier froze, Serhis was about to start suggesting possible options while the man could quietly listen as he waited outside. They had been speaking Draconic, but Tomond had been a magic user, he could understand it. One of them would have mentioned Rhasalis. His captors likely didn't know about her. If he had said anything, their captor would have learned to keep a watchful eye for his hatchmate. His hatchmate. "Where's Xet?! Where are we?! Who are you?!" he demanded to know.

"The other kobold is currently not your concern. What is, is you answering me. I cannot compel you to answer and I am not without fairness, so I offer you this. A question for an answer, one for another." The voice was calm, sounded mildly conversational, and without malice.

"I love those types of agreements. Mostly because we can both lie through our teeth. You were about to ask us to go first, weren't you? That way you can stay one ahead if you didn't feel like answering at the end," Iskdiwercaesin redirected some of his resentment and snide remarks at the man holding them prisoner.

"That would hardly be fair, and it would not give me what I want to know. Though I highly doubt you'd wish me anything good, I am courteous enough to answer first. So in response, the other kobold is currently in a separate cell, unconscious, and both claws bound and snout restrained from talking to prevent the use of spells. Also, I'll also answer another question right now without demanding another, for the sake of expediency. I am Tomond Shaviayear."

Serhis didn't know if having the leader talking to them was a good thing or a bad thing. He then decided it could go either way depending on the questions and how they answered. At the very least Xet sounded like he was unharmed. "Ask your question Tomond."

"It would only be fair to know your names."

"I am Serhis, the dragon is Iskdiwercaesin, you can already assume that my hatchmate's name is Xet, and the other kobold is Baous."

For once, there was no immediate response of why Baous was also called a kobold. Then again, it would have wasted Tomond's question, and he could rein in his curiosity. "And what is your question? Where you are, right?"

Thinking on it, Serhis shook his head and then remembered that Tomond couldn't see them. "No, it's a useless question in this situation, it gives us nothing to use. I want to know why you captured us, attacking the Followers at the same time."

"They are not my Followers. They are only so in name only, yet they don't know anything about my motivations or my goals, they know nothing about why I do what I do. They are simply nihilists, people who crave the destruction of the orders they belong to, but they have no other purpose beyond that destruction. And if they succeed, they are lost."

"Oh right. Cobbler did mention that," said Baous. Iskdiwercaesin immediately tried to shush him.

"Ah right, Cobber. No need to blame your companion for that, I already knew about your invasion of his home before you even left it," said Tomond. It made Serhis even more uncomfortable. Just how much did he know? If he did learn about that, he might have known that there was another, one kobold he missed. "Regardless, refer to them as that from now on if you could, and I haven't actually answered your original question. I took you all because you are useful to me in a way the Followers were not. The sleeping gas was a way to pacify all of you without me having to deal with the unnecessary questions and idol worship. This brings me to my next question, why were you seeking me by false means. I can guess it wasn't for anything nice."

That was something all of them were reluctant to answer. They didn't know to what extent Tomond and Nadia directly confront one another. If he knew about Nadia and had moved against her before, telling him would give him nothing new. If he didn't, it would tip their hand and let him know that there was a divine agent actively working against him. It crossed Serhis' mind that they could lie or not answer at all, though there were the dual problems that he was no liar, or at least not a very good one, and he needed to know more about what was to happen. Tomond could catch him in a contradiction if he didn't come up with a well-constructed lie, and that could end their dialog then and there. Instead of saying something, he waited to let Iskdiwercaesin answer.

"I don't suppose that you remember ticking someone off named Nadia?" Iskdiwercaesin gauged his reply carefully, thinking on the same lines of Serhis. It was answer, in a way, while still allowing him to craft a lie if Tomond didn't know.

"Nadia? Oh, Nadiaverinos! That explains much," Tomond recognized the name. "I guess she told you what I'm doing."

"You plan to find the prison of a god," said Baous. "She didn't say what for."

"Ah, she didn't say why because she doesn't know. I can also assume that she told you all about me," Tomond said in a thoughtful voice. "You've answered my question, so ask yours."

Considering what had been just said, Serhis only had one thing in mind. "Why are you doing all of this?"

"To the heart of the matter. You know who I am, you know what I've done."

"I know you're insane," Serhis couldn't help himself.

"I expected such a response from a cleric. Nadiaverinos might have told you what I've done and what had been done to me, but she didn't tell you what my motivation was. Mostly because she didn't know. There are two ways to answer your question, one would be my ultimate objective and the other would be what I intend for Vocos, former god of the rising sands and sweeping desert. I suppose this really isn't a question, but something of a clarification, which would you like to hear?"

As much as Serhis would like to know about motivations of a former cleric and his war against all deities, they had more immediate concerns. He had mentioned that he had uses for them and Serhis had to figure out what for. "The reason why you're searching for the prison."

In the dim cells, they listened as Tomond's captive audience. "Since you didn't ask who Vocos was, I'll skip the history, or at least the unnecessary parts. He was imprisoned by three other deities, the slowly stripped of his powers. As much as the three deities drained Vocos of everything that he could use to escape or bestow on his clerics, they couldn't take from him his divinity, what made him divine, the source of his power, so they had to be content with the slow trickle."

"Wait, does that mean you want to take a god's soul?!" Iskdiwercaesin was surprised by the audacity of it, shock evident in his voice, though with a hint of admiration.

"Take? No, a god's divinity cannot be taken like a thief stealing in the night. I would not want that power either, both because of what it takes to maintain that power and what it represents. I intend to study this bound god, not to kill him, but to eradicate his divinity."

The implications destroyed any train of thought that they had. "That- that's impossible! You a deity can't have their power destroyed like that! It's what makes them deities in the first place," said Serhis.

"How can you say that for certain? No one has attempted it, so no one has tested if it is possible at all. The whole concept of miracles and deities are that they can accomplish the impossible, given enough power and opportunity. I have the opportunity and soon, if my studies are successful, the ability to deny deities their power."

"What for?! What reason do you have for this mad quest?!" Serhis shouted at the wall, unable to restrain himself in the presence of what he saw was pure insanity.

"I don't think I have to answer that one. After all, I've already answered your question," Tomond replied. Before he could say anything else, they heard footsteps outside, approaching their prison.

"Tomond, it's ready," someone said outside.

"Start preparations," Tomond said to his henchman, the man leaving as fast as he came. "I have one last question before I end this conversation, cleric of Bahamut. Are you so sure in your faith to your god that you are blind to everything else? That when you pass judgment, is it with your own conscious or by the morals and views of another? I do not expect an answer now, but I will need it soon. I have need of you in particular, that is why I have brought you here, and your cooperation would be appreciated. If the answer you give is satisfactory, then I believe there is hope for you," Tomond's voice started fading as he moved away from the cells.

"Wait! What did you mean by that?!" Serhis yelled, unable to tell if the former cleric could hear him. "What are you about to do?! Why us?!"

To Serhis' questions, there were no answers. There was only silence.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Rhasalis was starting to get nervous. Cover was growing thin and she was sure the four she was following were starting to suspect something. Almost twice she had been spotted or made a noise that caught their attention, both times they dismissed it as either a false or attributed to a random passer-by. They were heading South, keeping near the river, but not on the street that ran directly next to it. Past the burned Kovsto District and towards the workshops and warehouses further upriver, she had to keep a watchful eye on both the group and for any sentries meant to spot unwanted visitors. That caution was well warranted as she almost stepped into the open street, almost missing the shrouded silhouette of someone on the upper terrace of a building she had nearly passed under. Watching as the group got further away, she looked frantically for other paths to keep following them, afraid that she was about to lose them. It was to her great relief when she saw them approach one of the doors to a building and look around once more for anyone who might have followed them one last time before entering.

Finding Tomond's hideout would be easy compared to finding a way to get in and get her friends out. Her first objective was to calm herself down. Her state of mind had passed from anger to fear to rage and to critical analysis of the situation. Taking deep, calming breaths, she walked around the building and keeping one street away and out of sight of the people she thought might be sentries. The whole place seemed to be a mix between a workshop, a warehouse, and an estate all in one building. It didn't have walls, but there were no low lying windows she could slip through and all the upper levels had iron bars. The more she looked at it, the more she saw that the place had much more security than any place should warrant aside from a paranoid noble's estate. Not only that, some of the sentries were patrolling on nearby buildings rather than staying at that one place, giving overlapping fields of vision and telling Rhasalis that she had to be careful about potential threats in the surrounding houses.

After long and thorough watching, she thought she saw a potential way to slip inside. Someone was going out and were taking a train of horses and wagons with them outside of the wide warehouse doors. She could see that there was another door past the large wooden crates stacked inside. The invisibility potion was useful up to a point, anyone looking her way when she tried to open a door or if she needed to pick up an object would immediately know something was wrong, a main reason she didn't simply go through the front. From the warehouse, she could gain access and start her search.

Still, she needed keys when she got inside. Lock picking was all well and good, but it took more time than she cared for and it left her vulnerable while she was busy determining the shape of the lock by trial and error. For that, she needed one from the guards, who she was more than happy to relieve from his post. After observing their patterns, she found one that the others wouldn't miss. At least, until it was time for a shift change or they found his body. Whether he would be alive or dead depended on how much of a struggle the sentry put up.

Matching her footfalls in time with a passing patrol, she approached one of the lone sentries near a corner of a building. It was a good hiding spot, she had barely seen him as he waiting in the dark, likely bored out of his mind. The human likely had been on watch for weeks with nothing happening. Rhasalis was about to give him a bit of excitement.

"Make a noise that I don't like and you'll find yourself talking out of the gap in your throat," Rhasalis pressed her claws to the sitting man's back and the front of his neck. The human was about to stand up, but a quick jab in the back that drew a little blood made him think better of it. As good as a hiding place he had gotten, Rhasalis appreciated that he made her task easier now that barely anyone could see the both of them. She could have used her daggers, but they could slip from her grasp. Her claws though, they were going to stay where she wanted them to be, a hairsbreadth from ending someone's life.

"Who-?! What the hell are you?" the sentry kept enough of his head not to talk any louder than he needed to with a sharp claw pressed to his neck.

"Someone that's already pissed off, so how about you don't make it any worse." Rhasalis looked around, making sure that no one else was around.

"Hey, how abut we make it easy for both of us. My money's in a pouch, right hand side of my belt."

"I don't care about your money. Did you see a dragon and kobolds being carried inside earlier?" Emphasizing how impatient she was, she dug her claws deeper into his back.

"Ow! Ow! Yes, I saw some guys taking them in! Why, what's it to you?"

"Stop asking questions." Taking her claws away from his back for a moment, Rhasalis used her hand to bash his head against the wall he had been sitting next to while her other hand muffled his voice, briefly bring her claws away from his neck. When the muffled cursing into her hand stopped, she brought her claws back to his neck and back. "Do you have a key to get inside?"

"Ow... motherfucker..." Rhasalis rammed her knee into the back of his hips for that, she had to make him learn to stop with the unnecessary talk if he wanted to get out of this alive. She couldn't guarantee that he would walk away though.

After clamping his jaw shut with her hand once more, she loosened it slightly. "Answer me and no more than that. Got it? If your tongue can't work the way it should, I'll take it out and find another that does."

That put enough fear into him. The thought of being expendable tended to do that. "Eeergh, okay okay, just stop with the hitting. I've got a key."

"Where is it? What doors can it open?"

"It can open all the doors inside. It's also in my pouch," the man answered. He had felt around for his short sword during the scuffle only to discover it wasn't were it should be. For Rhasalis, it was right where she wanted it to be after she took it out of its scabbard while he hadn't been looking, buried under a small pile of sand at the other end of the alley.

Drawing her rapier across his neck with her left hand, she took away her claw as she grabbed the pouch. When she did, something didn't seem right. "It's light... Why does it feel like there's powder or something like that?"

"I fill part of it with sand. Makes it look like a good target for the pickpockets around here so they don't look for my actual one."

Rhasalis didn't have to think hard to see a hastily and badly crafted lie. Ripping it off his belt, she stuffed the pouch in his mouth before he could finish his fib. For the next part, she was glad that Serhis wasn't around to see. As much as she respected her hatchmate's devotion to mercy, she had no room for it in her work. Delivering a hard kick to the back of the sentry's knee, she bent his other knee so far that it went backwards, ensuring that he couldn't run. After that, she gripped his right shoulder, popped his arm out of its socket while he leaned down in agony, leverage taking the place of strength, and repeated it on his other arm so that he couldn't fight. Satisfied that he had been completely disabled, she leaned over the whimpering man, finally showing her face to him in the dim moonlit alley, her red eyes glowing in the reflected light. If he hadn't already been screaming into the makeshift gag, he would have then.

Kicking him under his ribcage, Rhasalis waited until his breathing had returned to some semblance of normal. When she took out the pouch, his abused lungs couldn't even gather enough strength to shout for help or scream. "What's in the pouch? I know it's neither money nor a key."

"Dust... choking dust," the sentry rasped weakly. Rhasalis scowled, if she had known that she would have simply opened it under his nose and let that do the work for her instead of having to break him. "Made it... *cough* made it so it'll burst into someone's face if they opened it. Please, no more. Can't move..."

"If you answer truthfully from now on, you might be lucky enough to move in the morning. Where is the key? What does it open?" Rhasalis hissed dangerously. She hadn't been bluffing about killing him and moving to the next sentry and that was assuming that she didn't find a key on his body.

"Vest pocket. O- opens first and second floor doors, not private rooms," he wheezed.

Rhasalis had roughed him up enough that he wouldn't pass out yet, but it wouldn't take much more. She had to keep him talking. "And the guards? Where are they stationed? Is the way through the warehouse clear? Where are my friends?"

The man's eyes lost focus for a moment, and then came back. "Warehouse is clear. Past that, kitchens, then stairs up and down. Don't know who's in the kitchen. Definitely someone stationed at the bottom of the stairs. Barracks. Don't know how to get past that. Don't have key to get past other end of the hall," he spoke in short, disconnected sentences, every breath a struggle.

"My friends are kept somewhere down there?" Rhasalis assumed and the man nodded quickly. Looking up briefly to see no one at the end of the alley, she had one more question. "What are your orders if you saw any intruders?"

"Anyone outside, capture. Kill anyone inside, no questions. Please, let me go. I won't sound an alarm."

Leaning over the man and picking him up by the scruff of his shirt neck, she looked at him sternly. "I can be sure of that." Pressing on his throat, she waited until he passed out, and then let him go. Dragging him into a pile of refuse, she was rather certain that he could shout out for help later. After she was finished. Taking the key off of the sentries' unconscious form, she made her way back towards the warehouse entrance, and waited.

There was a lot of activity going on, making Rhasalis wonder if her friend's recent capture was what spurred it on. It didn't matter, only the consequences did. With all that movement, she could slip in and most of the guards would dismiss stray sights of her as part of the natural background. It also meant a lot more people walking around, more eyes to spot her. Again, she had to watch their movements, looking on as people moved crates onto wagons and saw areas where they had finished packing and were no longer going there. Between waiting for a gap in the sentries' patrols and a time when no one inside the warehouse was looking her way, her window of opportunity would be short.

As she waited for the opening, she was still bothered by certain thoughts. This looked like a large operation, something that wasn't only kept within the one building. This was a whole estate with armed guards. It puzzled Rhasalis in how Tomond kept this hidden, especially with all the lengths the Houses took to keep track of him. Either the activity was unusual or Tomond's influence was far greater than they had originally thought and he was able to keep eyes away from here. As an opening approached, she focused. Those were concerns for a later time, all that mattered was finding her friends. Slicing Tomond's throat if she came across him and ending all the unnecessary schemes connected to him would be an optional, though preferred, objective. When the sentries passed and the workers looked away, she dashed out of the shadows and into the light of the warehouse torches.

Charging into the opening, she practically dove into an open box, squeezing her small frame into what space it provided. The worker nearby hadn't heard or seen her, much to her relief, a relief that would only lasted if he walked away. When he did, she crawled out and made her way to the other end of the large area. She had watched their patterns enough to know when she could afford to go into the open or wait more, and was confident that all went to plan when she got to the doorway. Each time she thought she had been spotted, she clutched for the invisibility potion. As much as she wanted to use it then and there, she had to wait for an opportune moment. She was confident that she could slip past the outer perimeter, but once inside, she had no knowing where guards would come or what areas were under watch, forcing her to wait until she got inside before she could drink.

A near mess-up at the end of the warehouse almost botched that plan then and there. Waiting for a chance to open the door when no one was looking in her direction, she almost came into view of someone who opened the door for her. Rounding a stack of crates, she hoped whoever it was wasn't looking her way as she hid in a very open area. Fidgeting with cork on the vial, she almost expected to hear shouts of alarm. When she didn't hear them, she still kept the open vial next to her mouth.

"What are the conditions on the road?" what sounded to be a male asked as he stood near open door. Rhasalis cursed her misfortune. They were standing right in her path!

"We've word that all there won't be anything major when you go up. No sandstorms and we've arranged for any patrols to be absent when you come around. With decent margin for error," a female voice replied.

"Give my compliments to the master of the house. He has been very accommodating. And his reward will be delivered soon. What about the key? Is it ready?" Rhasalis nervously looked around. This was cutting it close. If anyone came by now, she might not hear them while whoever those two were kept on talking. She wished she could make them disappear.

"I had somebody pick it up. He'll meet us along the way. It appears our alchemist was under watch. I assume Cobbler-"

"I've already dealt with that issue. If things go well, we won't need his services any longer. Arrange for proper payment and that will be it," the man said. "They're packing extra food as I ordered?"

"Yes. Just be thankful we don't have to worry about water or the logistics are going to be hard with extra mouths to feed." There was a brief pause, as if something had caught their attention. "Make sure he's treated well. He'll be riding in the same wagon as me." There was then the sound of more feet moving past, but not the two in the doorway. "As for the prisoners in the cells, keep them as they are and wait for word from me. If they are fortunate, I will still have a use for them. If they're still going to be hostile, kill them.

I have to get them out now! Rhasalis felt her teeth rattle near the lip of the vial, glass meeting sharp fangs. With a sigh, the two started walking again. And they had left the door open for her. Swallowing the potion as fast as she could without choking, she dashed in before it closed by itself. The sound of a door shutting behind her was the one of the kinder sounds she had heard all that night.

Now came the hard part, exploring hostile territory with no indication of where to go and who to expect. Looking around she saw a door not far down the hallway, then an open one with light pouring out of it. A brief glance into the closed door showed a stocked pantry and as the sentry had told her, a kitchen through the open door. Glad for the invisibility, she strode past the lit door as kitchen staff worked throughout the night. They seemed to be as big a frenzy as the workers outside, getting food ready and preserved for some kind of journey.

She seemed to have found the main hallway of the estate, running past all the main rooms. It wasn't long before she found a way down. As expected, the door was locked and she made use of the key she had taken. What she didn't expect was that there would be guards right behind it.

"Hmm? You hear something?" It was a small room, it barely had room for the desk and the two guards inside. From one of their angles, they could see right through the crack in the doorway. Rhasalis froze in place and let go of the handle. He was looking directly at her, or he would be, if she were visible. "Hey, you left the door open."

"What? No I didn't. When I came in I locked it and everything," the other guard replied. Rhasalis couldn't see him from where she stood, but she could hear him get up from a chair and walk towards her.

"Then explain that," the guard pointed at the ajar door.

"Hey, you saw me lock it," the other guard opened the door wide and looked out. Rhasalis stood as still as she could. As good as invisibility was, it wasn't perfect. There have been times those with keen eyes could pick up the passage of an invisible person and she wasn't going to risk finding one of those people. Besides, the potion did nothing for sound. Looking up and down the stairwell, the guard's irritation was plain. "Someone wanted to come down?!" he shouted upstairs. Of course, there was no answer.

"Just close it already and lock it. Be extra sure this time," the guard still at the desk said in a mocking tone. Grumbling, the other guard shut the door in Rhasalis' face.

Rhasalis didn't have time for this, she had to get the others out now! Going back up the stairs, she considered opening the door again and simply disabling or killing the two. The idea came and went just as fast. While she was confident that she'd bring the two down without a sound, it meant losing her invisibility. She didn't have the improved version of the spell, the illusion would fall apart if she interacted directly with another living thing. Technically, that wasn't true, attacking a zombie would also do the same thing, so it was more accurate to say that any animate object would disrupt the spell. It all meant that even if she did get past those guards, the sentry mentioned barracks beyond that room. It was more than likely that there would be someone still awake inside and it would far too easy for her to be overwhelmed if an alarm got out. At this point, she had to find another way.

Reaching the top of the stairs, she kept going down the hall, deeper into the depths of the estate. Keeping a mental map, she kept track of what the building looked like outside. The hallway would eventually go out to the front entrance, that much she knew, everything else was to be discovered. The first room she crossed was the main dining room, walking around others in the way that would have ran into her if she hadn't. There were guards eating their dinner inside and she slipped past them easily, the noise of them eating covering her footsteps. Beyond the dining room were two separate branching hallways and a staircase leading up. Her searched continued as she went down one hallway, then another, always looking for another way down. To her growing frustration, she found none.

Her options running thin, as well as the time left before the potion wore off, she seriously considered risking a run through the barracks if she hurried back while the invisibility lasted. As she came back to the main entranceway, she looked up and her run slowed. There was a worker descending the staircase, carrying a box full of what looked to be alchemical equipment. As she stepped aside to let him pass without him blindly bumping into her, she stared at the passing equipment. Tomond made use of alchemy, though with the aid of another, but that still meant he could have a store of materials for her to make use of. It wasn't as if she could make anything, Rhasalis didn't know the first thing about alchemy aside from what Xet warned her not to do while he was working, but that was good enough for her. She would do exactly what he had told her not to and hopefully make the second distraction for the day.

As she went upstairs and down the hallway the mover had come out of, she peeked into every room that she passed. There was a study, a bedroom, and finally, the workshop. Looking over her shoulder, she checked to see if anyone was watching before the door suddenly opened and closed on its own, a kobold that obviously wasn't there now inside the room.

The workshop was set a bit differently than what Xet used, though most alchemical workshops followed the same set-up. All of the equipment had been stored into crates by now, the shelves bare of any convenient vial of acid she could use or thunderstones to create loud noises. Rhasalis didn't like this in the least, if she followed through with this, it meant that she would have to search through the boxes, all the while having to worry about the worker coming back to pick up more stuff. As her time ran low, she couldn't hesitate and she began rifling through the wooden containers. Most of the things she dismissed immediately, objects used in the process of making dangerous chemicals, but none of those chemicals themselves. As she picked through her third box, she almost threw the dagger before she remembered that she still couldn't be seen.

The mover at the doorway scoffed as he saw the lids of the crates popped off and the top contents scrambled. "Oh ha ha. Very funny. Who's responsible for this? Seriously, I don't have time for this!"

_I could say the same thing,_Rhasalis thought darkly as she gripped the dagger.

"Come on out! Damn it, you jerks could at least help clean up after your pranks! Tomond organizes these things very carefully, I don't know how I'm going to fit these things back and still have the lid stay on," the worker grumbled as he stuck his head out the hall. Rhasalis had to fight the urge to attack his vulnerable back. Sighing, the man tried to fit the lid back on of one crate and as he had said, it wouldn't stay. "Going to have to make another trip. And they're just about to leave," the man sighed as he took enough things out so that the top could go on. Laying them on the floor, he grunted as he lifted the box and left the room.

As the latched clicked shut, Rhasalis looked at the crates left behind. Guess I don't have to worry about making a mess anymore, she thought to herself as she continued to pick through them. Even without having to clean up after herself, she still picked through the objects carefully. The last thing she needed now was a moment of carelessness and break open up a vial of something nasty. To one side of the crate, her eye caught a smaller box in the corner. Intrigued as to what would need another container, she took it out and laid it on the ground, then opened it. An invisible smile was all she could allow herself as she found vials, stones, and small glass spheres packed in rows with cotton stuffed between each of them as cushioning and wooden dividers to categorize the alchemical items. Tomond had even meticulously labeled all of the dividers to show what they held, Rhasalis had found Tomond's store of acid, smoke sticks, thunderstones, and other such things. As she was about to stuff the whole thing into her own bag, she noticed the glass spheres. Having used plenty of Xet's concoctions, that she found something she didn't recognize stayed her hand. The label read: Sleeping gas.

Rhasalis' eyes narrowed as she looked at the spheres, guessing that those likely had to do with her friend's capture and knocking out all the Followers on the pier. At least she could put them to good use, she finally had a way to get past the guards downstairs. Waiting for the worker to come back, she ducked past him as he opened the door and cursed at the sight of the new mess. Her dash back to the stairs was dangerous, there were a few times people walking the halls thought they heard footsteps and didn't see anyone pass, leaving them to glance around in confusion, though when she did get back into the stairwell, she quietly snarled as she found that she could see herself. Her free pass around the place was gone, now she had no spare chances of escaping detection if she wasn't cautious.

Taking out a sphere and the key, she would both curse and praise Tomond if the sleeping gas was as potent and fast as she assumed. Since it knocked out her companions without a sign of a struggle, it had to be. Opening the door in one smooth motion, she tossed the sphere and something extra onto the ground and quickly shut the door without slamming it.

"Who's there? What the-!" the same guard who noticed before saw the danger too late, assuming that whoever was coming in was someone who belonged there. That was all he could say before his and his fellow guard's windpipe were filled with a mix of sleeping gas and the choking powder Rhasalis had taken off of the sentry. Choking on the powder, unable to sound an alarm, and struggling to breathe, any air they pulled into their chests was full of the mind dulling fumes. Breathing brought them closer to unconsciousness, trying not to would suffocate them.

Counting to twenty, Rhasalis took a deep breath of her own and opened the door. She waited until whatever fumes in the room diffused as they mixed with the influx of fresh air and went inside, closing it behind her. Shutting the door, she didn't dare lock it. If she needed a quick escape after freeing the others in the cells, she didn't want the hassle of fitting a key in a lock just to keep up appearances. Besides which, anyone coming down here would have a key of their own, so locking it again would be pointless if she had been trying to keep someone out.

The room seemed to be a small office meant to organize who would go on patrol, whose responsibilities that night were for what, and other such tasks. The people in charge of security were now asleep on the job, one slumped over his desk and the other face down on the ground, hands around his mouth and throat. Assuming that the one sitting down was in charge, she searched him and found what she had been looking for, a set of keys that possibly allowed her access to most of the estate, most importantly the cells. If they weren't, she was going to be ticked off. More so than she already was.

Taking out another of the glass globes, she slowly opened the door on the other side of the office. The door lead to a torch-lit hallway, two more sets of doors near the entrance while the hallway extended into what looked to be an open space further ahead. Seeing no one, she went in and opened one of the doors with the same caution as the first. The room beyond was dark, no trouble for her, she saw that the whole room was lined with weapon racks. Swords, spears, axes, and bows were stored in here, she had found the armory. Spying an opportunity for sabotage, she went in and closed the door and got to work.

Taking out the box of alchemical supplies, she smeared acid on the edges of blades or hafts of the weapons, blunting them or weakening so that they would snap if they hit anything too hard. Using strings she took from the bows, she tied up a tripwire to the ditherbomb she had, ensuring the other weapons she hadn't coated with acid when she ran out would be destroyed should anyone reach for them. And potentially a few of those people in the process. As her last act of spite, she exited the armory and wedged a smokestick into the crack of the door so that the next time it opened, the snapped stick would billow out smoke and make it a complete guessing game of what weapon they were reaching for. The only way to figure that out was to blindly grab for the weapon and potentially injure themselves on the sharp bits, or at least the ones with hafts. After checking the other door and seeing a small supply closet, she continued deeper down the hallway.

The first thing she noticed up ahead was that it was darker than most of the other rooms she had seen. The area up ahead seemed large from what she could tell from the way the light glowed, and what little there was barely enough to see. Getting closer, she found out why. Rhasalis had found the barracks, a good number of the guards asleep on beds. The light levels here had been reduced to allow the guards at least some measure of darkness so that they could sleep. However, that wasn't to say it was dark enough for Rhasalis to stroll through undetected. A major source of light was a fireplace at one end of the wall, perpendicular to the exit and the other door across from it. The door was different from the ones she had seen before, it looked to be thick wood reinforced with iron bracings. If there was a prison down below, she had found the likely entrance. She still had to get around the place though, there were guards still awake inside, four sitting at a table near the fireplace playing games of chance, a mix of cards and dice while another pair had a private discussion at the end of the room. One overriding thing was clear, there was simply no way she could get to through door undetected. She would be spotted crossing, heard trying to open it, and caught. The sleeping gas wouldn't work, the guards were too spread out and they would rouse the others. They all had to be eliminated at a single stroke.

Creeping at the edges of shadow and light, she approached each occupied bed. Nine were dead without a whisper of their life ending as a quick blade pierced their hearts. The tenth had the misfortune to be needed alive, if only for a little while.

Going back to one side of the room, she went back to lock the door after having to revising her strategy, then she climbed upwards, onto the support beams of the room. It wasn't as if she could lie on top of them, the space between the beams was too narrow, so she had to hand underneath using a pair of climbing claws on her hands and feet. As she made her way back to the last sleeping figure, anyone looking up think they saw a misshapen lump of a dark cloak with a tail handing upside down clinging to the beam. In the next second, everyone would be looking directly underneath that lump as a dagger landed squarely on the sleeping figure's chest.

The guard thrashed and shouted, the others she had kept quiet by holding their jaws shut. The noise attracted the other guards as they stood up from their tables and rushed over to the injured man.

"What the hell happened here?!" one of them demanded.

"A bleedin' knife's in my chest, get it out!" the stabbed man gripped the handle and took it out himself.

"Hey, this guy's dead!!!" one of them noticed a nearby corpse.

"Oh fuck! He's bleeding all over the bed! He's dead too!"

Having waited long enough, Rhasalis lowered a hook from one of her hands after taking it through the space between the beam like she was threading a needle, a rope attached to the end of the sharp claw. Seeing it level to one of the guard's back, she swung it to one side, and brought it back hard.

The guard half screamed, half gasped when whatever air was left in his lungs was stilled as the climbing claw punctured his diaphragm as it caught under his ribcage. Rhasalis hoped he died quickly for what was to come next. Still holding the rope, she dropped down, the rope slipping against wood overcome by a sick wet thud as the climbing claw was pulled up, jerking the body of the guard with it. She wasn't heavy enough that he would go up as she went down, but the metal claw tugging against bone and muscle slowed her descent, allowing her to land softly. As she landed and released the rope, the body of the guard she had used as a counterweight had jumped a foot in the air and came back down on its feet before falling forward, showing the damage the claw had done to his back. To all those who were still alive, all five guards saw a visage of dark fury, whose red eyes promised only death that would come, no matter if it was swift or slow, silent or screaming. For those still staring at the gruesome death, those five were cut down to three as she lashed out with her claws, catching one in the jugular and the other by the face.

Half of them now dead, the remaining half finally realized that they were under attack and tried to draw their weapons. Another died before his hand could touch the handle of his axe and the fifth managed to get half of his blade out of the scabbard before he was cut down. The last one remaining turned and ran, screaming for mercy. Rhasalis had none to offer for the people who would kill those she cared for. The throwing knife she drew caught him in the back of the head as he banged his fist against the locked door at the end of the hallway, ending his cries for help.

"Get away from me!" the guard on the bed rose and ran as well, stumbling as his legs gave out from under him, his chest bleeding heavily. Rhasalis ignored him, he was dead the moment the poisoned dagger landed. That he pulled it out only meant that he would die quicker as he bled out. All she cared about was that all the noise might call attention. Hurrying over to the locked door, she took out the keys she had taken and tried them, the fourth one unlocking the thick doors for her. She left the room, leaving only the dead and the dying in her wake.

When Rhasalis killed, she always felt a numbness as she did it. She felt no remorse for her actions and never pity for those that she marked for dead. She also did not revel in it, each life she ended was always one that needed to end in her mind. As she walked away from the carnage, the numbness faded, the energy of what she had just done crashing into her as if delayed, making her voice shaky as she called out.

"Xet?! Serhis?!" she called for her hatchmates as she saw the set of locked doors ahead of her.

"Rhasalis, is that you?" she heard Baous call out from behind one of the doors.

A surge of relief and joy washed through her, wiping away the numbness and nervous energy as she went towards the door. "I'm getting you out, I have the keys. Are the others in there with you?"

"No, Tomond locked us in separate cells and then locked us up in manacles. He even put a muzzle of some kind on me!" said Iskdiwercaesin to the cell to her left. There were a set of keys hanging nearby which Rhasalis immediately snatched up. They looked too small to fit the cell door locks, so she figured they were for the restraints.

"Hold on a little longer, we're all leaving here," Rhasalis tried the set of keys from earlier. Each key that failed to open the lock frustrated her further, but it was faster than if she had tried to pick the lock. When the lock did open, she rushed in with the other set already in hand.

As Rhasalis entered, Iskdiwercaesin shook his head. "This is embarrassing. I've got to stop getting my tail saved by kobolds," he muttered as she unlocked the restraints.

"You can get locked up again and hope someone else saves you. That might happen if we don't get out of here quick," Rhasalis tossed him half of the keys from the ring. "See if those open Baous' door, I'm getting Xet and Serhis out."

"Hey wait!" Iskdiwercaesin called out as he fumbled catching the keys after he was rubbing his snout after so much straining to get out.

"It's faster this way and if the set you have doesn't work, then we'll know mine will!" Rhasalis rushed out of the cell and approached one of the others. Since Baous was in the other, she knew the two others would hold either Serhis or Xet. When the first key she tried work, her elation grew as she pushed the door.

Elation turned to irritation. Neither Serhis or Xet were inside. When she tried the next door, expecting the both of them to be inside, irritation turned to anger and frantic panic. "Serhis?! Xet?! Where are you?!"

"They're not here!" Iskdiwercaesin called from the other side of the corridor with Baous next to him. "I knew they took Serhis away, but Xet too?"

"Took them away? For what? Who did? Where?" Rhasalis rushed over to them as the questions poured out.

"I don't know where Tomond took them. All we heard was Serhis was taken out of his cell, but that's it. He asked the same things, but they didn't answer, they just took him," Baous answered in the same frantic manner.

Rhasalis gritted her teeth. "Then we'll find them. I didn't see anyone leave, so they have to still be in this place. If we come across Tomond, then he's dead."

"I'm good for killing Tomond. If we find Serhis and Xet along the way, I suppose we could get them," said Iskdiwercaesin.

As Rhasalis was stalking back out of the prison, her anger almost clouded what she had heard. "What did you say?"

"He and Serhis had an argument earlier," Baous explained, glaring at Iskdiwercaesin for his unkind words. "But we're going to find them and make sure their safe. Right?"

Iskdiwercaesin only scoffed and started after Rhasalis. "First, let's find our stuff, get our armor on, and break out of here."

Upset about Iskdiwercaesin's attitude, Baous wanted to say something more to the green dragon, but held his temper. The last thing they needed was to get into another argument while there were still under threat. As long as they found Tomond, that also meant the others would be there too, so it was essentially the same thing.

Rushing past the prison door and into the barracks, the group saw the havoc that Rhasalis had wrought on everyone there. Both Baous and Iskdiwercaesin's run slowed to a stop as they stared at the carnage. "Rhasalis? Did you do all this?" Baous gasped as he looked at the other kobold.

Nodding, Rhasalis took the climbing hook out of the body it had still been embedded in, flicking the blood off onto the stone floor before stowing it back into her pack. "Did you hear anything while you were in the cells?" The two of them shook their heads no. "Then we still might have a good chance that no one knows about this. We still can surprise someone."

"Still... all this? Did you have to kill them all?" Baous was still shocked. It wasn't as if he had completely quashed his uneasiness about dead bodies even after all he had been through, but some of the ones here looked to have been asleep when they died. The guard that looked as if the back of his ribcage had collapsed upwards and out made him turn away.

"They wouldn't have had any objection doing the same to me if they saw me. Also, they might have gotten orders to do the same to you too, executing you while you were helpless. We have to keep moving and find the others, get your stuff." Rhasalis found their things in one corner of the barracks, stuffed in a large bag. After a little while to properly put on their armor, Baous and Iskdiwercaesin were ready to fight their way out. With the pair of them carrying Serhis' and Xet's own belongings, they were set to leave this place as soon as they finished the rescue.

The hallway that led to the stairwell had a trail of blood. The guard that Rhasalis had poisoned had dragged himself all the way to the door in his bid to flee for help, only to find the door locked. He had bled out as he lay across it, next to the other guard with the dagger in the back of his head. Rhasalis gave a small grunt as she retrieved the dagger and dragged the bodies away from the door so that it could be opened.

"You can do a lot of damage when you set your mind to it," Iskdiwercaesin said with a hint of admiration.

"I was taught to do things efficiently and as if there were no second chances," Rhasalis remarked offhandedly as she cracked the door open to look into the office. The two guards there were still unconscious, so she opened it wide to let Baous and Iskdiwercaesin pass through.

"My compliments to your teacher," said Iskdiwercaesin as he saw the two unconscious forms.

"Where are we going? What's up there?" Baous asked as they looked up the staircase.

"I know most of the layout of the building. To the right are the kitchen and a warehouse that opens out to a loading area. We have to be careful, when I came in there were preparations for someone to leave," Rhasalis informed them.

"Who's leaving? Tomond?" Baous asked suddenly.

The thought hadn't struck Rhasalis until now. She hadn't considered the voices she had heard to be the one she had hunted. "I'm not sure. I didn't see whoever was in charge, I only heard his voice talking with a woman."

"Tomond and Jacqueline," Iskdiwercaesin voiced his assumption, making Rhasalis growl in complete frustration and fury. That meant she could have passed by her hatchmates in her rush to get inside. "We have to move! The loading area isn't far, it's down this way." Making haste, the three rushed for the exit, heedless of who would see or hear.

Some would see them along the way, one of the servants who was carrying a tray of food to the dining hall. He shouted in alarm as they ran towards him, making him drop his tray and splattering all of their legs with the ruined dinner. They didn't stop as they pushed pass him, the servant backing himself against the wall to avoid getting trampled by the three.

"How many guards did you see out there?" Iskdiwercaesin asked Rhasalis as they ran.

"Outside, nine armed guards in three patrols of three and five sentries, not counting the one I disabled. Near the warehouse, five."

"Oh good, we can take them," Iskdiwercaesin grinned as he neared the door that lead outside. Breathing in deep, he let loose a fell roar as he rammed it open with his shoulder, even if it was unlocked. Everyone in the warehouse and loading area had their attention drawn to the dragon as he made a dramatic entrance, provoking shock and disbelief. "Time to slaughter some peons!" he yelled with a laugh. For the workers, they had seen enough and were running the other way, out of the open gates of the estate. For the guards, they looked at Iskdiwercaesin uncertainly as they backed away, and then at each other, not sure who would be the unfortunate one to attack him first.

Since they couldn't decide, Iskdiwercaesin picked for them. He charged forward, bearing his full weight towards the guard that stood between him and the exit, knocking him aside as the man crashed to the side, slamming into a stack of crates. Baous and Rhasalis were right behind him as they went through the warehouse and towards the open night air.

"They were loading the wagons there!" Rhasalis pointed at the loading area.

"Where? The wagons are gone!" said Baous as they came to the closed gates. Once more, Rhasalis' hopes were dashed again. All that marked the presence of the wagons were the shallow ruts in the road. Tomond had gone, taking her hatchmate with him for destinations unknown.

Though the gates were closed, the iron bars didn't stop Iskdiwercaesin as he lead the charge out, breathing a wave of acid as he ran forward. Though his breath wasn't strong enough to break molded metal, it was enough to corrode them as he bashed through another barrier to their escape.

"Where do we go now?!" Baous said as they got to the street.

"We lose them first and then we pick somewhere to go!" Iskdiwercaesin saw the patrols heading their way. The guards weren't going to be much of a threat to them, even with their friends missing, but staying any longer meant getting overrun as the alarms broke out.

Or at least they would have if Rhasalis' sabotage hadn't worked. A muffled explosion could be heard from inside the estate, though a plume of smoke wouldn't be rising out of it for a minute or two. As Iskdiwercaesin and Baous looked curiously at Rhasalis, she shrugged. "They tripped my ditherbomb. We don't have to worry about their reinforcements," she told them all that they needed.

"Keep running anyway, we'll pick them off if they keep following us." Iskdiwercaesin was about to run towards any random street, but Rhasalis grabbed his arm.

"This way! The alley is dark and there's stuff in it that we can tip over to block the path," Rhasalis headed towards a preplanned escape route. Now following her lead, the escape route she had was effective as she hoped and kept their pursuers away as they ran into the night. From there, they had no idea where to go.

Resting their tired legs in the dark shadows of a far off street, Baous got enough air in his chest to speak. "This- this isn't good. Did you hear anything about where they were going?"

Rhasalis shook her head. She had been recalling what detail she could, but nothing came up. "They didn't say anything about a destination."

Groaning as he got to his feet, Iskdiwercaesin began walking away from them, towards the open street.

"H- hey! Where are you going?" Baous stumbled as he stood up too fast and making himself feel light headed.

Iskdiwercaesin didn't stop walking, he only turned his head as he spoke bitterly. "If you want to keep chasing after them, you can do it yourself. I'm taking the next ship out of here," the dragon said as he kept moving away. Baous went after him with Rhasalis, both feeling shocked and betrayed.

"What?! You're just going to leave them with Tomond?!" Rhasalis barked at Iskdiwercaesin's back.

"Why the hells not?" Iskdiwercaesin snapped as he turned his head. "We've lost them. That's it. We don't know where to go, we have no leads, and we'll never be able to catch up! I'm not going to be wandering around the desert looking for them!"

"We still have to try!" Baous shouted back with bared teeth. "I can't believe you'll let them go just like that!"

"It's not like we have a choice, I don't like the idea of losing like this either! But we're finished, done," Iskdiwercaesin hissed bitterly. "Maybe if they're lucky, Tomond will let them go," he said as he stalked away.

Baous wanted to grab a hold of Iskdiwercaesin to make him keep looking for Serhis and Xet. He wanted to tackle the dragon for even thinking about abandoning them. Yet, he clenched his fist and his eyes shut, doing anything like that wouldn't make Iskdiwercaesin help. "Serhis shouldn't have saved you! He should have left you to die like you're doing to him!" he yelled at Iskdiwercaesin's back, impotent rage making him say the most hurtful things. "We trusted you! Serhis trusted you with his life! I trusted you too!"

Rhasalis gripped Baous' arm as she looked up at him. "Baous, stop, that's-"

"No, he shouldn't leave us like this! He shouldn't leave Serhis and Xet like this! They're not even going to know he left them, they're going to die still thinking he's going to come!" Eyes tearing up, Baous sank to his knees as he stopped hearing the dragon's footfalls going away. "What can we do? Even if we find them... two of us won't be enough."

"We'll find them. I swear it." In her whispered words, Rhasalis' conviction was absolute.

"... if we do, even if it's two of us, we'll still try," Baous replied, matching her oath with his.

Clasping her claw with his paw, she nodded. "We have to keep going. I don't know if they're still searching for us, but we can't stay here even if they aren't."

Taking one last look down the path that Iskdiwercaesin took, the shadow of the wyrmling deepening until he had disappeared into the night, Baous shook his head angrily and went another way, away from the dark alley, deeper into the city of Jiak.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Having to go around the Ashes when Rhasalis explained to Baous about Corson's actions, longer. At this point, they didn't know where to go, only where places where they had to avoid.

"You heard Tomond talking, right? What about?" Baous asked Rhasalis as he looked around the dimly lit streets.

"Mostly about the supplies for the trip. Food and that the patrols would be out of the way, so I can safely assume they're out of the city by now."

"Then maybe we can get outside the city and see if we can spot a wagon train?"

Rhasalis considered the thought. "We could do that, I did count how many wagons were out there. There were nine of them, some loaded with supplies, others just to carry people. But which direction would we look at? South? West? East? South is probably the best, we'd have a wider field of view. Still, that's if they haven't gone too far into the desert that the dunes will hide them."

"No, that won't work," Baous said with bared teeth, still feeling simmering rage. "Any other ideas?"

"I'll think of something," said Rhasalis, but there was still something that bothered her and it distracted her to no end. "Why did Iskdiwercaesin say all that? What happened in those cells?" She couldn't understand the sudden outburst between the kobold and the dragon. That Iskdiwercaesin would leave them while her hatchmates were taken prisoner had hurt her.

"He was angry about us getting captured, then he started blaming Serhis for that. Then they argued about how they should have done things different and it got worse. Iskdiwercaesin still holds a grudge against us for what we did when we first met, even if he said he didn't earlier."

"The ritual?" Baous nodded to Rhasalis.

"Fine time for him to say it now," Baous growled. "When our friends are in the most trouble, he turns his back on them."

"We should keep focusing on what we can do," Rhasalis replied, her previous question answered. "... the patrols. The woman, Jacqueline, she mentioned that the patrols had been arranged not to cross Tomond's path. If we learn which patrols have been assigned to go where, I should be able to find the gap they left."

"Yeah, yeah! We could go to Keianc, he might know about that!" said Baous.

"Either Keianc or Rahsh, though I'd go to her first. Her office is closer than the inn. Though that's if that House Ihthei place is still open."

Wasting no time as the distance between their friends and hatchmates grew, they went towards Rahsh. When they saw that the place was still open, their enthusiasm made them run at the doors, only to be stopped as the guards for the place blocked their path. When Baous explained that they wanted to see Rahsh, they had to wait until they got word from inside to let them in. Escorted to Rahsh's office, they could tell she was still in from the still strong cloud of smoke.

As the gnoll guard opened the door for them, they saw Rahsh as she sat at her desk, the only lights on in the room was the small flickering oil lamp next to her desk, weak from the lack of oxygen, and the glowing ember underneath the hookah. "What are you doing here this late? If you wanted to bother someone, get Keianc, he's supposed to be the one working with you. I already heard you've got arrangements so that you don't reveal that you're still working with him," she said as she looked up, pipe dangling from her claws.

"Something came up, we found Tomond," said Baous.

It got Rahsh's attention, but she didn't react like it was too important. "If you remember, we keep 'finding' Tomond and losing him again. Unless you've found out his base of operations, that's not really news."

"Well, about that... we sort of did. Accidentally," Baous replied.

That got the reaction he was expecting as Rahsh cleared some space on her desk. "You still got the map I gave you? Put it down, mark where it is." Baous laid out the parchment on the flat surface as Rhasalis pointed out the estate. As Rahsh looked at it, her eyes glanced up at the kobolds and back at the map. "What do you mean accidentally?"

"We... got caught by Tomond and his men," Baous answered. "We just escaped too. Tomond's leaving the city right now, and he still has our friends with him! Please, we need your help to find out where he's going."

The gnoll's stare didn't flinch. "So you're saying you found him and lost him."

"Well, yes," Baous answered nervously. "Still, we're so close to catching him. We know he's done some things so that when he leaves, he won't be spotted. There's this human woman named Jacqueline that works with him, Rhasalis heard them talking about arranging for the guard patrols outside the city to miss them. If there's anything you can use about that, please, do it."

Waiting in an uncomfortable silence, Baous and Rhasalis looked at Rahsh, waiting for her answer. Smoke came out of her mouth in small puffs as she seemed to consider her options. "That's not much to go by. House Ihthei controls most of the patrol contracts, though not as extensively as you think. Still, you've already helped me quite a bit. You just pointed out the estate of the Jameson's."

"Who're they?" Baous asked.

"Important people in my House, stuff that you probably wouldn't know. Or should care about really, it's more of something I can use. Hey, you, lump, I'm want an investigation of the Jameson's estate and I want it ready by morning. Get to it," she pointed at the guard that had been standing with them. Realizing that she had issued and order, he saluted before getting to the task. As the guard left, Rahsh redirected her attention from the closing door to Baous and Rhasalis as she used the hookah again, breathing in a deep mouthful of smoke. "This is lucky break for the both of us. I usually go home by now, except I got stuck with an unusual amount of reports tonight and you found me while I was still here."

"Lucky? My hatchmates are hostages and are getting further away by the second! Can't you do anything to help now?" Rhasalis demanded.

Holding up a sheaf of paper, Rahsh plopped them on the desk. "I'm working on it right now. The reports were from some of the patrols about what they saw on their new patrol routes tonight. I don't have all of the patrol reports, some of the other bosses have their own patrols and there's shit all I can do about the other House's patrols until I gather and correlate everything, since everyone's keeping an eye on each other. Get that all together, I should figure out which way Tomond went from the tampering. Looking for anything with a Jameson's mark on it is going to make it a lot easier," she muttered through tight lips as she talked around the pipe in her mouth.

"How long is that going to take?" Rhasalis asked the most important question to her.

"With the help of the clerks that I'm going to be pulling out of bed, I'd say six hours, give or take. The most it would take be a whole day, after the raid, err, I mean investigation, on the Jamesons."

"Six hour?!" "Maybe a whole day?!" Rhasalis and Baous exclaimed simultaneously.

"How is anyone supposed to catch up to them by then?!" Rhasalis clenched her claws together.

"How do you think I feel about this? I'm stuck in this place, rummaging through piles on piles of parchments, looking for probably my best lead in months, and it's still a slim chance I'd catch him. Take what you can," said Rahsh with a stern, yet calm voice. It was likely the calm that irritated both Baous and Rhasalis. They wanted action to be done, and quickly.

"Wait, I remember something else," Rhasalis said suddenly. "The alchemist, you have someone watching him, right?"

"Hmm, you mean the one you got that halfling to squeal about? Yeah, I pulled someone off of watching that dummy dock lead and had him go look at some crusty old alchemist. I haven't gotten anything much on him yet, we just started."

"That's not important! Tomond knows that the alchemist he hired is under observation, but Tomond needed to get something from him tonight. Whoever's watching that alchemist might have seen something unusual, something that the alchemist did differently. Like someone who met with him and which way he went." As much as Rhasalis didn't want to admit it, she was grasping at straws now. Her desperation was getting worse.

"I'll see about it. Go back to the inn, I'll get you once the clerks are done," said Rahsh as she went towards the door, opening it and yelling several names outside, telling the guards still here to get those people in now. "If you've got nothing else, I think you better go."

At a loss, Baous and Rhasalis nodded, leaving the House Ihthei building to trudge back to the 'Swift Sands'.

The feeling of helplessness that plagued Rhasalis and Baous never abated, even as others were working to locate Tomond. They said nothing to each other, there really was nothing left to say that could ease each other or their own minds. As the dim light of the inn came into view, Baous sighed as he pushed in the door for Rhasalis before he entered himself. Sitting at one of the tables, the tavern keeper looked out of his door with slight irritation as he asked if they wanted anything. When Baous said no, he grunted and went back to bed. While he doubted that Iskdiwercaesin was still staying at the inn, he didn't want to see him so soon again. He was fine if they never saw each other again.

Baous' thoughts of ill will towards his former friend faded when he saw the look on Rhasalis' face. It was open distress, a fear not for one's own safety, but for those of others. He expected that he wore the same expression. "We'll keep trying. We might have to wait a little while, but we'll be back on their trail soon."

"That's kind of you to say, but I won't be content until they're by my side. I'll actually be happy if Tomond is at the end of my blade, but I'll settle for my hatchmate's by me again," Rhasalis said grimly. Baous nodded, feeling much the same way, then Rhasalis glanced at him. "I don't want to question your help, but I've been wondering for so long... Why are doing this?"

Baous would have laughed if the situation wasn't as bad as it was, he had heard this from Serhis before and now his hatchmate was echoing his thoughts. "Serhis is my friend and so is Xet. We've been so much already, I'm not going to let him down now."

"I'd understand that if you were our hatchmate. You're not even a kobold." Baous gave her a look. "You know what I mean. Even when you didn't know Serhis, when you saved him from dying at the river and brought him back to health when you were complete strangers, why? I've heard of angels and archons helping random strangers in need, but you're not one. Yet you let him in your home when you didn't even know how dangerous he could be."

Baous could see some Serhis had told him come into play, how the kobold culture of xenophobia was making Rhasalis wonder why someone outside their species would be so kind to them. "My dad, Innoc, he told me how some people can get into a lot of trouble through no fault of their own. He told me that, when these people are at their most helpless and other people can pass them by because it would endanger themselves, when someone does take the effort to give them the chance they need to get out of trouble, they would remember that any time they see anyone else in the same way. Then, they would be the ones to do a good deed, and it keeps going from there. Justice rewards itself, something that he firmly believed in since he was a follower of St. Cuthbert."

"And you believe that?"

"... I had hoped that he was right. Turns out he might not all that right since Iskdiwercaesin left," Baous said gloomily.

"He was still right in a way. You saved Serhis' life, so I will always remember that, and I will always help you in your times of need," Rhasalis answered with her own belief. "Thought I'm still not completely clear why you did it. It can't be just because of what your father told you. You did more than help Serhis recover, you picked up your life to follow him wherever he wanted to go."

Rhasalis was asking questions Baous really hadn't thought hard about. Certainly, he knew the reasons he told himself when he left his parents and his home, so that on the off chance he could find his own kind, but Rhasalis was asking more than that. She was asking why he wanted to go with Serhis rather than on his own path. "I... It's hard to say."

"Still, say what you can," said Rhasalis.

Sitting with Rhasalis at the table, waiting for news to rescue his troubled friends, he was surprised to have such a deep discussion with her. Looking over his decisions through new questions, the answer wasn't clear, but it was there. Part of it was because of the similarities that he and Serhis shared as they got to know one another. By birth, they had been set apart from others. He by misfortune, his parents killed before he could remember so that he was raised by his adoptive father, the teacher of their killers, and a unique face in a land which had forgotten any such as he existed. Serhis by sheer chance, born as a dragonwrought and raised to be an exemplar that would rise above his peers, yet beset by his doubts of the culture that mistrusted outsiders while he would not judge and condemn so easily that he eventually broke from his faith and would wander the surface for a year. In that, he had separated himself even further. He voiced his thoughts as well as he could and it didn't sound as elegant as it was in his thoughts, but Rhasalis seemed to understand that well enough. It wasn't only that which made Baous feel connected to Serhis. They understood one another, shared a sense of justice and kindness beyond simple charity to others. They held onto what they believed and shared in both each other's tragedies and victories.

When he was done, Rhasalis looked at Baous with new eyes. Climbing off of her seat, she rounded the table to set a claw on Baous' shoulder. "You may not have been our hatchmate, but you may as well have become one. Thank you for doing all of that, and for staying with me while we look."

Somberly, Baous smiled at Rhasalis. "Thank me when they're out of Tomond's hands. Why did you ask me all that?"

"To honest, I didn't trust you. Completely," Rhasalis added. "We might fight side by side as allies, but I didn't know if your motivations were the same as mine."

"They are," Baous insisted.

"I can tell from the way you said everything before. That's why when we go after them, I'd have you at my side as much as I'd have my hatchmates. After what you've done to protect one another when Xet and I couldn't, then I will do the same for you."

"I'm glad to hear that," Baous said softly. "Though you seem more nervous than the other times we got into something like this. You look scary when you're angry."

Taking that as a compliment, Rhasalis barked a short, rueful laugh before returning to the more serious tone. "That's because when Yelec was torturing them, I knew that they were there, that I could do something to save them given the chance and get revenge for it. This... I might lose them. I mean really lose them. I won't know if they're alive or dead, if Tomond will toss them out somewhere in the desert and I simply won't know. When Serhis told us that he wasn't staying when he came back home, I was a little worried, but I knew he could protect himself. He can't now and I... we, are the only way he's going to escape, and we're nowhere close to doing that. That's what's got me scared." It was an admission that she had already made for herself and knew it was completely true, but it was something else to say it to someone else that wasn't her hatchmate.

"That's okay. I'd have been even more worried if you weren't scared," Baous replied and then sighed as he rubbed his eyes. "I don't know if you can, but I'm going to need some sleep while we wait. I'd look pretty stupid trying to rescue them while fighting to stay awake-," Baous' sentence trailed off, leading Rhasalis to believe that he really was too badly sleep deprived before she followed his gaze and realized that he wasn't out of it. At the door was Kreetchn her antennae waving about as she looked into the room.

"Greetings Rhasalis, Baous," she said to the pair as she got closer.

"Greetings Kreetchn. What are you doing here so late?" Baous asked.

"As ones such as you are also up so late, we have our reasons," Kreetchn replied before actually making herself clear. "I'm here to deliver your shares for the price of the ship you helped us capture now that we've been able to sell the Steel Line."

"Well, thank you," Rhasalis said. "But still, why so late at night? We could have gotten it later."

Kreetchn tilted her head in the way only an insect could do, quick and without snapback. "From what I've heard, he said he wasn't certain if you'd still be in the city by tomorrow morning."

"Huh? What have you hear? From who?" Baous asked.

"Your companion Iskdiwercaesin informed me that you have an emergency to work through. He instructed me that along with your shares, that you are also to get the other two's shares as well and that you'll give it to them the next time you see each other."

For Baous, it was like the dragon had thrown an insult into his face. "He won't give us a bit of his own help, but he sends us our money on the chance that the do live?! I can't believe him!" Kreetchn was surprised at the sudden outburst, though she wasn't the only one when they heard someone bang on the wall from one of the nearby rooms to keep their voices down. Lowering his voice while keeping all the heat, Baous looked at the pouch that Kreetchn had carried with her. "Let me guess, he woke you up so he could get every bit of gold that was owed him before he's leaving town?"

With each response, Kreetchn only seemed to become more confused. "He has told you nothing? He didn't come to us just to collect his share, he was the one who bought the ship, using that share to pay for a small part of it while covering the rest out of pocket."

The situation had become so ridiculous that Baous almost wanted to laugh. Iskdiwercaesin, captain of his own ship? Baous had a hard time imagining it, but then he remembered how he commanded his own private army of drow. Suddenly the idea didn't sound so farfetched. He slumped against the backrest of his seat as he looked at Kreetchn. "Sorry, sorry for this. It's something between us, I didn't want to confuse you or anything."

"That is fine. Did you have anything to ask before give you your shares and leave?" Kreetchn unbuckled the pouch from her thorax.

Though Baous seemed to have had enough of thinking about Iskdiwercaesin, Rhasalis never was one to let her curiosity to go unfulfilled. "Has he said where he's going with that ship?"

"He has not told me his plans. I'd assume he's to sail into far off waters considering that he asked me the cost of supplies such as food and fresh water for a long journey."

The answer had been simple enough. What Rhasalis heard in her own mind made that simplicity far more complex as it did flips and contortions. "Supplies... oh damn it! I'm a fool!" Her outburst prompted another bang on the wall, but it didn't stop Baous from replying in almost the same volume.

"What? What do you mean supplies? Did you think of something?" he asked.

"More like what I didn't think about," Rhasalis cleared the table in front of them, though the rough wooden surface was already rather clear without plates and eating utensils. "Baous, the map, I need to see it." Responding with a sense of urgency, Baous nearly tore the edges as he pulled it out of his pack and laid it out on the table. Seeing that it was the map of the city that Rahsh had given them, Rhasalis shook her head. "No, I mean the map of the continent." Now as confused as Kreetchn, Baous still complied as he pulled out the other one and placed it on top of the other. Red eyes scanning the lines and names of the world, she gave an almost stereotypical reptilian hiss of excitement as she confirmed her suspicions.

"Did you find something?" Baous wanted to know what she had discovered.

"The map might not be as accurate as I like, but there are no water sources to the south for almost a hundred kilometers, except for the river. Even if there are oasis dotting parts of the desert, they aren't that dependable and most of them are near the river anyway. When I heard Tomond talking about preparations, he had told them to get extra food, but not water. That doesn't make sense, extra food demands water no matter what, especially if it's preserved. Unless his entire company is supplied with mages of some sort that can feed them all with magically conjured food and water, which I really doubt since that stuff doesn't taste... well, it doesn't taste plain and simple, but when it has to be preserved food or the heat would rot the food in three days. He's got to be staying near the river throughout his journey to whatever destination he has and taking fresh water from there!"

For Baous, the smallest bit of hope had lifted his spirits, but an thought crossed his mind. "How can we tell where he's going then? He's probably not going to stay along it all the way?"

"We move fast enough, it won't matter what their destination is when we catch up with them on the way."

"Yeah, we can do that! If we find someone who can sell us a horse or a camel this late, we'd be able to catch up since those heavily loaded wagons would slow them down."

"By yourselves?" Baous and Rhasalis turned to look at Kreetchn as she clicked her mandibles. "My apologies, this sounds like a private matter. Still, from the sounds of your discussion, your hunt for Tomond has made you many enemies. Attacking a wagon train on your lonesome is bold, but unwise."

"We have to try," Rhasalis rolled up one of the mas while Baous took the other. "He has my hatchmates and I will run him down. Even if it's only the two of us."

"Wouldn't it be more prudent to gather a force to do that? As brave as you are, you will need help? I daresay there are some that would like a chance to chase Tomond."

"Rahsh," Rhasalis said. "We could tell her what we just found. She can halt her investigation and help us run them down."

"That's going to be a problem," Baous said gingerly. "We'd catch up quick if it was just the two of us, but with a lot of others, even if they had their own mounts, that's going to slow things down. Not all the horses and camels are going to be as strong as the others, we'd be strung out along the desert if we tried to go as fast as we could and we'd be too late if we waited for the slower ones."

"Might I offer another suggestion?" Kreetchn raised a pointed talon. "You are going to be traveling near a river. If you have a ship with a shallow draft, you'd be able to sail up it, and the ocean winds are blowing well enough to ride against the current. If Tomond's wagon train needs several days to reach its destination, you'd be able to catch up, as a ship still travels while they rest. You would also keep your allies with you as well."

"We can do that," Baous nodded emphatically. "If you're saying that, does that mean we can hire your ship to catch them?"

Kreetchn shook her head. "We cannot due to two things. My captain is to travel on the 'morrow since that he has no other reason to stay here, now that he has sold the other ship. We cannot delay and will not be available for hire. The other is that the Cast of Onyx is loaded with cargo for the trip, we would not be able to sail up the river without the risk of grounding the ship."

"We can go to Rahsh, her house might have a ship ready to go," Rhasalis suggested, but Kreetchn shook her head at the suggestion.

"As strong as House Ihthei is militarily, they have few ships to spare. It would be a tough prospect for her to convince her superiors to lend you a ship."

"And she'd still has to deal with the people above her that would stop us from going after Tomond," Baous muttered. "We could go to the docks and ask one of the captains not connected to a house."

"Possibly, but I know of one ship that is ready to sail and still has an empty cargo hold," said Kreetchn."

"What's his na-" His question dying in his mouth, Baous blanched at the idea. "No, anyone but him. He wants nothing more to do with us and I feel the same way!"

Both of her antennae flicked upwards a little. "I had gathered you had a falling out of some sort. However, it is still a valid idea. Should you convince him, following Tomond up the river would be easy. If you excuse me, I must go back to my own ship. I must rest before setting sail."

"Thank you for your help," Rhasalis nodded to her. Kreetchn bowed her head almost imperceptibly before she left out of the inn. "So... can we really convince him to come with us?"

Baous sighed, unable to think of a better option as he closed his sleepy eyes. "I'm going to try," he said as he rose from his seat. "Let's go see Captain Iskdiwercaesin."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The Steel Line was berthed near the dry dock after having going through the repairs that they had done to it, the newly attached sails furled up and the ropes mooring it to the dock stretched taught as the tide went out. As Rhasalis and Baous walked closer to the dock and the ship, they could see the boarding ramp lowered and the barely dragon shaped shadow moving on the deck.

"I don't know why we're even going to try. He's already told us he doesn't care about them," Baous said to Rhasalis.

"He's going to listen to us one way or another," she replied, prompting Baous to raise a furry eyebrow. "I'm not going to threaten him. I'm saying that if he has any sense of decency and loyalty left in him, it will be to the ones who've helped him the most."

"Not that it stopped him earlier," Baous scoffed, but he still went towards the ramp. Putting a foot on it, he sighed inwardly as he crossed over it, the wood creaking under his weight over the sound of water lapping against the docks and the side of the ship. As they crossed, they noticed that the name of the ship had been taken, or more accurately, dissolved off.

As the two kobolds approached, Iskdiwercaesin had been aware of them as they had come down the street. He waited for them at the end of the ramp. "I'd have thought you two would be halfway through your wild goose chase by now," he said to Baous and Rhasalis when they were halfway over the ramp, his tone dismissive.

"That's a nice hello," Baous scowled. Honestly, he expected that the first thing to come out of the dragon's mouth would have been a more hostile response.

"Why bother with a pleasant greeting when we had such a great farewell," Iskdiwercaesin replied with equal scorn.

"Yeah, a farewell that you shouldn't have made," Baous retorted.

"Stop it, both of you," Rhasalis spoke up. While she shared Baous' leeriness towards the wyrmling, she didn't want to conversation to come to a sudden and unhappy end before it even started. Baous kept his tongue in check, at least for now.

"So what did you come here for? Wanted to a take a look at my new ship? Or are you going to try to appeal to my sense of honor or some other bullshit?" Iskdiwercaesin asked as he still stood at the end of the ramp, blocking them from going onto the deck.

"We need your ship," Baous said concisely, not trusting himself if he said anything more.

Iskdiwercaesin quirked an eyebrow. "For what? Planning to take a cruise along with me?"

"I've realized the way Tomond is going to be going. Your ship will be needed to sail up the river so that we can catch up to him," said Rhasalis.

"Well tough luck. I'm not taking on any passengers."

"This is ridiculous!" Baous shouted in frustration. "You left because we didn't know where they were going and had no way to go after them. Now we know which way and you have a ship to do it! What's your problem!?" he pointed a claw at Iskdiwercaesin.

"My problem?! It's that I'm being told that I have to go sail up some river on a chase that's not going to work by someone who thinks they own me!" Iskdiwercaesin and Baous were practically in a shouting match now as they yelled at one another.

"Own yo-? That's not-!" Baous sputtered at Iskdiwercaesin's words. "I've never said anything like that and I don't think I own you either!"

"Really? That's hard to say when I'm being constantly watched, my every action scrutinized and weighed on your sense of justice. If I did anything neither of you liked, you would have hunted me down!"

"We already go after people who do evil and cruel things! That doesn't make you any more special and we hardly did anything to make you do things you hated!"

"The both of you still watched me like I'd stab you in the back at a moment's notice," Iskdiwercaesin hotly growled. "If having to live under the constant watch and threat doesn't mean you own me, then I better go back to the Underdark and the drow and tell them their concept of slavery is warped compared to everyone else and they do some pretty twisted things."

"You were the one to wanted to come with us! We barely knew you, of course-"

"Yeah, but could I go anytime I wanted? You certainly want to keep me around now. How about you put me on a leash?!" Iskdiwercaesin and Baous shouted over one another. They could barely hear one another, they bellowed their grievances without even being able to listen to the response.

" ENOUGH!" To the surprise of both, Baous and Iskdiwercaesin's voices stilled as Rhasalis glared at them. "There is no time for this. We have to catch up with them and soon, before they break away from the river. I don't really know what's going on between you all, but if you won't go after my hatchmates out of friendship," she looked at Iskdiwercaesin, "then I'll hire your ship to transport us. I'll pay you, right now. Just get this ship moving." Though he voice was not as loud as theirs, it carried far more force.

"I don't care about the money," said Iskdiwercaesin. Baous kept his sarcastic remark to himself as Rhasalis still gave him a look that brooked no room for more argument. "I don't want to have anything to do with you bunch anymore. Once this ship sails and you're not with me, I'm free. No more having to do some random archon's bidding or hunting for long lost relatives that can pry into my mind. I'll be able to make my own choices and finally get to doing what is important, so don't you dare think that you can take away my choice ever again," Iskdiwercaesin said in a definitive tone.

Baous was no longer growling, though a few of his teeth were still bared. "We would have let you leave, but not like this. Not when you're leaving while Serhis and Xet are still in danger. We would never have done that to you, I would never have abandoned you."

"Hmph. Nice words, but they probably don't apply now," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"I would still come to rescue you if I ever heard you were in trouble," Baous replied sharply, his certainty without doubt. Even if he felt that Iskdiwercaesin was betraying their trust in them, he didn't ignore what the dragon had just said. "Just as I would save Serhis and Xet from their captivity, I would still do the same for you."

"Why would you do that? Just so that if I ever get in hot water again, that you would come charging in to prove that you're better than me?" Gripping the railing on the ship, Iskdiwercaesin's claws indented the wood as he glared at Baous.

"I don't care about who is better. It'd come for you because you're my friend. I still want us to be friends and I'm not trying to control you. You're a jerk sometimes and you're irritating and there are some things that you say that bother me... but even then, we still protect each other, we still have fun and laugh and don't have to worry that we're in danger when we're with all together. Don't you understand?" His voice cracking, Baous stated himself plainly. "Even when times are hard, then we have each other to make things better, when things are good, then we're there to share it."

Stepping forward on the ramp, Rhasalis shared Baous' belief. "Though Xet and I haven't known you as long as Serhis and Baous have, you helped my hatchmate escape death many times, and for that we will always think of you as a friend. But it's more than that, I don't only respect you for what you've done for my hatchmate. For the time I've known you, you were always respectful to us and never once did I ever suspect you of betraying us. Even now, when you want to leave, I don't feel that you're betraying us, you don't want to see us hurt, but we still need your help when you have the best chance to give it. Please, I plead to you, save my hatchmates. Not because I feel that you owe us anything, but because I don't know who else I can trust with my hatchmate's lives."

"..." With his mouth open, Iskdiwercaesin's rejection didn't come. The rage and anger had died, leaving cold embers that he swore he felt smoldering in his heart. He kept telling himself that all that they were saying was a lie, that it was all a trick so that they could use his ship. And yet, when looking at those faces that bore no deception and those eyes that reflected everything that they had said as parts of themselves, he couldn't say anything to hurt them and any lies that would feel as false to himself. Stepping back from the ramp, Iskdiwercaesin felt as though he could only say what he knew as his own unvarnished feelings. "You both really mean what you say, don't you? ...then what now? Even after I let you use my ship and you get them back, and I damn well know you will, no question, you're not going to want to be stay me, right? That after what I just pulled, we'll be friends, but then we'll go our separate ways?"

"I... don't know either. I don't want you to feel like we're holding you anymore and I can't say I can blame you for feeling that way. We never really talked about it since we sort of avoided the subject," Baous sighed. "I just wish it didn't have to be at a time like this that it comes out."

"Right," Iskdiwercaesin stepped back further, giving them enough room to walk aboard. "Don't stand there, at least get over here so you don't get an accidental swimming lesson."

Crossing over the ramp, Rhasalis gave a tiny smile. "That's what I meant all along. Even in your small ways, you don't want to bring us harm."

"Yeah, don't push that on me," Iskdiwercaesin grunted. "How are we going to do this? You say we're still friends, but that's not quite right. Estranged friends? Friends with a tense subject? Sort of friends, but not exactly?"

Baous shook his head. "I say we can get through this as friends, simple as that. If you want to talk to me and Serhis later about you leaving, then fine. If not, then we'll keep talking."

On the cold deck of the ship, Iskdiwercaesin looked out at the open sea. "So what's your plan exactly on rescuing them?"

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

On a soft leather mat out on the desert, Serhis and Xet sat back to back, tied to one another next to a tent pole that tethered them both. A light breeze blew through the tent, showing the outside, which was a small crowd of other tents nestled by an outcropping next to the river in the late afternoon. They had been travelling for two days at a pace the both of them didn't believe was possible, but still, there they were, covering a lot of ground and increasing the distance between them and the city. More importantly, between them and their friends. As soon as the sun set, they would embark again and travel into the night.

For being a captive, Serhis and Xet were a bit surprised at how well they were being treated. Tomond had even removed Xet's gag when Serhis told him how he didn't have any spells that only relied on a vocal component aside from making a bright flare, on the condition that the kobold didn't use it. Xet had agreed to that, partially because he knew it wouldn't do anything more than annoy and mostly because he hated having the cloth stuck in his mouth after every bite when they had a meal. At least they were being fed well.

"How do you think they're going to catch up?" Xet whispered quietly to Serhis. The tent was in a way their new prison as Tomond had assigned a keen eyed guard to watch over them. Fortunately, he wasn't so keen eared, so they could talk to one another, but they were still very cautious about what they said.

"Rhasalis will figure something out. I hope she's got Baous and Iskdiwercaesin out at least." He looked out of the tent. "Though I'm also worried how fast we've been going. If they keep staying on the path next to the river, then they're going to have to find a really fast way to catch up to us."

Xet nodded somberly. "I'd guess something's helping Tomond's expedition. The wagon wheels are enchanted? Something that they give to the horses and camels?"

Shaking his head, Serhis had his speculations, but they weren't important. "How tight are your ropes?" he asked, wary about the guard posted to watch them.

Shuffling his arms, Xet shook his head. "No good. I've been trying for hours, but all I think I've accomplished so far is giving myself a bad case of rope burn."

"Same here," Serhis sighed. Even if they had managed to slip loose of their bindings, he wasn't sure what their next move would be. He had considered keeping to the river if they could and he could still conjure needed food and water if they needed to head into the open desert to lose their pursuers, but even then they wouldn't get far, not if they had something that speeded their horses and camels. Taking one of the mounts had also crossed his mind, but neither he nor Xet were riders of any skill, a major detriment if they were chased by those that were. For now, they would have to bide their time.

During the time they already spent traveling with Tomond, the man had said nothing to them. He would issue orders to others and seem to have an interest in keeping the kobolds healthy, but for what, they couldn't divine. When they tried prying questions to Tomond when he was around to check in on them, he still said nothing. Serhis was starting to get the impression that Tomond wasn't the kind of person to gloat or speak without purpose, all his words would be for a reason. Then they saw him enter the tent while they were still whispering to one another about potential escape methods in the canine Kobold language. Serhis had learned from that particular mistake back in the cells.

Serhis and Xet said nothing to him, the kobolds didn't want to waste their breath as they glared at him with a pair of gold and red eyes. He was likely only checking in on them before they were to be put in the wagons once more.

"What language were you speaking in?" Tomond asked, dispelling that assumption very quickly. He spoke in Draconic, as Xet's ability to translate Common depended on the use of arcane words.

"Why? Could you understand it?" Serhis said in turn. He was being evasive for more than one reason, the two main ones being to determine if Tomond really did know it and to not reveal any sort of link between them and the hidden kobolds. Informing him that they knew a millennia long dead language wasn't the biggest risk, but the preferred none. Besides that, the geas also loomed over them.

"No. Doubtless you were discussing how you may escape from your captivity, but I expected that. That you were speaking in some form of unknown language or a code does not matter. I am still curious as to what language that is, if it is a language at all."

The kobolds didn't respond to his query and kept their silence. It wouldn't serve them anything to answer. Tomond's neutral expression didn't change, his face impassive in the face of their defiance. "Though you will not answer to that, I hope you do to what else I have to say. I want your cooperation in my task. It will not be necessary, even if you are unwilling I will still accomplish my goals, but should you hear my plight, then perhaps that may sway you."

"Why would I ever do that?" Serhis made it clear he wasn't interested as he kept glaring at Tomond.

"That is as much of a question that I could ask you. Why do you serve your deity so willingly and do the work of one of their agents so quickly? We have never met until recently and you treat me as an enemy, working against me when I have done nothing against you personally."

Serhis caught that last word. "You've raided temples to Bahamut before," accusation was clear in his voice.

"I have not. Those dedicated to your order are rare or in the care of dragons, placing them out of my reach," Tomond said plainly.

"But you would have if you could."

"Yes."

The way that Tomond said that rankled Serhis. He had expected Tomond to unreasonable, utterly without direction or purpose, but no, he was speaking to them like a rational individual. "Then you're completely mad if you think that I'd help you when you say that."

"You are so quick to condemn, so quick to judge. You do not even know what I intend and you still oppose me, simply on the words of those you serve. Aren't those of your order dedicated to understanding and mutual cooperation so that you may strive above prejudice?"

Now Serhis could feel an icy anger rise in him. It wasn't because he thought Tomond may have been wrong, but because he felt that Tomond was right in some way, even if he was twisting it to his own ends. "Say the one who does more harm than anything. You assault places of healing and knowledge, despite what good they've done and you've done nothing to alleviate pain. You only wish to spread it," he growled.

"I do not discriminate between gods of good or evil. It is simply the fact that they are of a divine origin that matters to me," said Tomond.

"Then why?! What are you doing this for?" Serhis demanded to know.

"I was wondering that as well. Also, why'd you give up being a cleric? Weren't you one for Boccob?" Xet asked, his back still pressed to Serhis' and the pole as he wriggled his arms. To his disappointment, he still hadn't gotten any slack.

Tomond looked as if he was considering not answering that question before he changed his mind. "You're name is Xet, correct? I heard them calling for you back in the cells. If you and Serhis are willing to listen, then I will share my reason. I ask that because if you will only hear and reject what I would say, then any further discussion on the matter is meaningless." Both of them slowly nodded as Tomond sat down to face them eye to eye, either as a sign of respect or to avoid having to crane his head down all the time. Serhis and Xet had more or less the same thing in mind; anything they heard from Tomond would be met with skepticism, but if it revealed anything about his enigmatic goals, they would listen.

"Nadiaverinos may not have told you everything, either to conceal or due to actual lack of knowledge, so I will start from the beginning. I was born and raised as a cleric of Boccob, yes, my course in life seemingly set during that time. My father who trained me from the very start believed that magic was an integral part of the world, that to feel its touch is to be blessed and to understand it is to understand the workings of the world itself. It was that upbringing that encouraged me to venture out into the world, as it was my impression that if I were to understand the world, I would also understand the mystic energies that filled it as well."

"We heard about the same from Nadia," said Xet. "That you traveled around doing stuff in the service to Boccob."

"She spoke true. For many years, I toiled in the service to my former god, aiding in the creation or recovery of items of magic both arcane and divine while expanding my knowledge in their workings. Though there were a few times of struggle, I suppose I had a bit of what you'd call blissful ignorance of the true situation."

"How true would that be?" Serhis asked testily.

Tomond regarded him carefully. "Remember that I asked that you keep an open mind about this. To go on, my activities and words were soon noticed. Not by any king or high priest, but by those such as myself who had a love for magic, and when they contacted me, I eagerly went with them when they explained their purpose."

"Would that purpose happen to include the downfall of deities?" Serhis asked. He kept his head this time as he kept his voice level and without emotion.

"No, nothing like that, but our declared purpose was no less grand. What we strived for was no less reality shifting. We were to create one of the greatest artifacts throughout the planes."

"What would that be? Who were these people you worked besides?" Xet asked. He did have a deep interest in what Tomond had to say on that.

Tomond smiled, breaking the façade of stoicism rather neatly as he reminisced of past times to a listening ear, even if it was to a captive audience. "What we aspired to make would break all barriers of communication. That to use it would be to know another as both intend, without ambiguity or misinterpretation. To those willing to use it, it would be a gift to share all knowledge as they know it and to discuss any matter at length in the blink of an eye, without the fear of lies. What one would wish to stay private would remain so, it wouldn't pry into your mind like an intruder, yet for what is willingly given, it would be without the interference of misunderstanding and it would not be constrained by distance or time." He spoke as if quoting from another, or at least paraphrasing, then gave a small chuckle. "As good as he was at talking, he never did come up a name for the thing."

"Who are you talking about? One of the people I asked about?" said Xet.

"Yes. Though it has been some time, I still feel the need to say that I respect them enough to protect them, so I will not mention their names. I will refer to them in another way though. They were the Druid, the Artificer, the Bard, and the Sorcerer. I suppose you could call me the Cleric of our band, but we never really made a big name for ourselves."

"What you were trying to do does seem admirable, but this doesn't make sense. Where does your grievances against deities come in?" Serhis asked, now truly as curious as Xet. From what he could tell, a project like that would be something he would support as well and it could certainly be endorsed by Bahamut.

Tomond's expression hardened slightly. "Admirable would be one of the words I could use for it. I thought it would be one of the greatest boons ever made to all sapient life. Perhaps even non-sapient. Communication with such clarity would spur the mind great feats of creation if many great minds could discuss their ideas at length, all of their brilliance pooled together and free for all others to glimpse at. The artifact would not only serve as a communications tool, but also as a repository of knowledge so that even if the person was not using it at the time, he or she would still be able to leave what they've gleaned in it. I was so excited and proud to be involved in such a project and I threw myself fully into the work."

"I sense a 'however' of some sort coming in," Xet muttered more to Serhis than Tomond, but the human took it as a statement towards himself.

"I wouldn't say it would be that, but something did come up," Tomond acknowledged grimly. "Though we treated one another as equals, there was no question who among us was the most powerful, the Bard and the Sorcerer. Surprising, I know, bards aren't exactly known for being powerful movers and shakers, but that was the case. It was them that sparked that grand idea. It was them that gave me a chance to glimpse truth," he said with a serious note.

"Seeking the truth is not only about discovering what is out there and seeing past the deceptions of others. It is also about seeing through the deceptions we make for ourselves," said Serhis, having sought for that truth himself so many times.

"Believe me, I found that out in a way no one else had," Tomond shook his head sadly as he steadily rose to his feet, looking out of the open tent towards the horizon, the sun not yet fully gone. "They made what could be considered a rudimentary spell for what we wanted. Hardly permanent and it could only be used by those with sufficient power, but for our purposes then, it was a start. When cast at a subject, they would be able to comprehend all that they heard. It wasn't like the translation spells you know, it was meant to connect someone on the deepest levels to... everything," he shivered as said that. "I volunteered to be the first to use it. We figured that with my connection to my god, we'd understand all the mysteries that hid the solutions that we sought. And what I learned shook me to my core."

"What could have caused you to turn away from your god? To wage a fruitless war against all deities?" Serhis asked. "Such a spell corrupted you completely."

"Corrupted? No, the spell wasn't imperfect. It acted as we thought, a preliminary spell that was actually only a test for range since we only wanted to limit the artifact to connect to the willing. What I saw was that, and more. For one moment, I... no, knew isn't the right word. I saw, heard, and felt everything. All of reality was in my senses for the barest hint of time. Yet, I could not comprehend it all, but what I could broke my heart. All of reality was mine to see and I saw it as if through the eyes of a god." Tomond went to the opening of the tent, casting his shadow over the kobolds. "They see as much as they can, through their worshipers' willing eyes and places not under the dominion of other deities. I saw them all. I heard them all. I touched their minds and unlike many who have done so, I did not go mad."

Somehow, Serhis seriously doubted that. "What you're doing can be considered insane."

"I heard as much," Tomond nodded as he turned back into the tent. "But how would you define sanity from madness? What do you consider them to be?"

Serhis didn't answer immediately. When pressed to answer something so fluid, he realized he didn't exactly have a well-constructed reply to give. "I've heard that sanity is when two individuals know what is real and what isn't. It has to be two people, otherwise it can be like truth which can be hard to define by yourself."

"I've heard others defining sanity as that before, but I asked for what you think it is, not those of others," Tomond pressed on that point.

Struggling to answer, Serhis looked meekly at his hatchmate, who only could shrug his shoulders and shake his head, not able to give a better answer. "I really haven't thought about it much."

"Sanity is not from the consensus of others. It is the ability to know one's own self," said Tomond. "I didn't only see everything else. I saw myself as I was, all the lies I told myself stripped away," he whispered, then blinked. "It's hard to explain, but I am trying. When I saw the world from the vantage of a god while still being a mortal, I saw how they viewed us. Some see us as less than insects and vermin, something to be exterminated at will, others saw us as no more than tools and base creatures, meant to be used or controlled towards their own ends. There are those that do view us as something to be protected and nourished. Your Bahamut is one of those."

"I've never doubted that. Still, I thank you for confirming that me," said Serhis. "You say all that, but it still doesn't make sense! Why do you oppose all of them, even the ones that would help us?"

"Because of what they are. Their intentions don't matter," Tomond's voice was filled with steel.

"Huh? They're deities, what else could they be? Aren't their intentions and ideals the whole reason they're deities since it defines who and what they are?" Xet wasn't the most theologically minded kobold, but he heard enough from Serhis to get a grasp of some of the more complicated ideas.

"They are those that lord above mortals and have little in common with what one such as ourselves truly desire. Though some say they care for us, they still seek to sway our fate towards their own ends and it is that goal of control that I oppose. Think! For all those that follow any deity, what is it that they all have in common? One purpose, to serve their deity and strive to become as much as they can towards that ideal. I realized how much we lose ourselves in the worship of deities! Serhis, tell me you can't see that yourself?"

"That is where you're wrong! Bahamut never forced me to change my mind about what I valued, I made that choice long ago to serve him because he is who I wished to follow, his goal is noble and what he wants to do to change the world is the same as mine," Serhis snarled.

"To what end? Even if any deity somehow gained complete dominion over all of reality, what does that accomplish for us? We would still be mortals serving an omnipotent and omniscient master. Even if your beliefs mirrored your deity, that does not mean you will attain the same power and mastery of reality."

"Then what is it that you want?! What are you trying to accomplish?!" Serhis wanted to get to the heart of the matter.

"For mortals to become the deciders of their own destiny. Deities would no longer be able to impose their view on reality as they see fit. That is what I wish, no more and no less."

Serhis and Xet sat in silence at Tomond's answer. For all life to live without any deity was something unheard of. Xet was the first to recover his wits. "The repercussions would be a complete disaster! What would happen if a deity like a goddess of the harvest vanished? Or one of the sea or fire? Things would go completely crazy!"

"All of the planes would be in the grip of chaos as their influence subsides, I've realized that much, but the people will survive and without the help or hindrance of another power. You have to realize even with deities, the world is still in chaos, and will always be, so ultimately the main thing that will have changed will be their power to meddle. Power, that's the crux of it all. The deities may be able to craft wonderful works and bring about miracles, but at the end of it all they are separate from us. Eventually even mortals will be able to do accomplish the same thing without the spark of divinity, without requiring legions of worshipers to empower their works."

"You reject them because of that?" Serhis responded in bewilderment. "You might as well make the same argument for mages. Some of the most powerful archmages in history have become significantly more powerful than their peers, so are you going to stop them as well? Because of the difference in power? Have you ever considered letting them be? Rather than a master and servant relationship, we are all cooperating with one another?"

Tomond raised a finger, like a scholar lecturing a student. "You miss the point. What separates them from us is simply what they are. They are divine. They draw their power not only from worship, but also the essence of reality. Their mere existence changes the world. I'm not saying that to alter the world is wrong, it's a fact of life that to live is to interact with the world, but they don't bend only the world to their whim, but the people too. If a mortal is to be the master of his or her own life, then such a corrupting influence must not be allowed to exist."

"Destroying deities or killing their followers isn't going to change that. If you can even kill a deity. There are other things that can do that. People can do that to each other," said Serhis.

"Kill? Though I consider it an option, that isn't my main goal. I find it simpler to sever their connection from this world. They will continue to exist in their own planes and able to wage their wars with another, though no longer by using us as their proxies," Tomond crouched down to look directly at Serhis. "What do I have to do to convince you that my mission is noble?"

"It is noble in its own twisted way, but you fail to convince me," Serhis growled at Tomond's face. "There are still deities with pure hearts and they genuinely care for us. They provide us healing and succor when we are in desperate times, Bahamut has proven that to me many times already. He sends me to do his work against those who are cruel and corrupt, something I would still do even if he couldn't aid me by imparting me a fraction of his power. But he does. Yes, people should be able to choose how they live their lives and accept the consequences of their actions. That doesn't mean that what you are doing deserves rejecting the words of others."

Sighing, Tomond turned to Xet. "What about you? Would you help me?"

Shaking his head, Xet had no grievances with any deity (with the sole exception being the god of the gnomes). "You haven't even said what you're doing out here. What would I even be able to do to help?"

Tomond considered if he should reply since they rejected his offer. "In my search for Vocos, I have discovered what has happened to him and where he has been hidden. Three deities confronted him in this region and prevented him from withdrawing back to his plane, but they did not want to kill him. They sought his power and destroying him here meant losing a significant portion to the _ae_ther. Instead, they imprisoned him beneath a mountain to separate him from the source of his power, the desert, so that they could extract what they wanted. They succeeded, but I'm not interested in tapping into that power. While Vocos is still imprisoned, he is still a god, retaining the spark of divinity and that is something I want to find. Given enough study, I may find a way to stop one who possesses such a spark from interacting with this reality, or if I have to, to destroy it. The deities that imprisoned him didn't leave much to chance for fear of Vocos' followers attempting to free him, so they devised several safeguards. They blocked the path from those who weren't led by someone who could use divine magic since while Vocos was bound, his clerics no longer were granted his blessings. I discovered that after a long, long search through the deserts here. I can guess that there are a few other things to stop someone who did manage to get inside. Physical traps perhaps, if they haven't rusted and fallen into disrepair after so long. I need you to find what is magically hidden," he pointed to Xet. "And through my research, I did find out one more thing that hides Vocos' prison. A key that was forged for the sole purpose of only letting out Vocos' power so that the ones that imprisoned him could take what they wanted, though it was destroyed when he had nothing left. I've contracted a local alchemist to make something as close to what I've could tell was used, but its imperfect. Without the right arcane or divine influences, it might not work."

It was now clear why Tomond had taken the both of them. "You need us to open the way for you since you can't use spells yourself," said Serhis.

Tomond dipped his head slightly. "While a mage might be persuaded to work with me, no cleric in the city would. I would rather have you willing help me rather than me having to force you."

"What would happen if I refused," Serhis said bitterly. He knew what Tomond would say and he wasn't disappointed to hear it.

"Your companions back in the city would be killed, along with you and Xet. Keep in mind that you were the ones who attacked one of my people in your pursuit of me, so I feel no guilt in defending myself."

"We didn't kill anyone! We only want to stop you!"

"Stop me how? Would you have tried to murder me if I didn't cooperate?" Tomond asked back.

Serhis looked at Tomond, unwavering in his answer. "I wouldn't kill anyone who did not threaten anybody's life."

"That doesn't answer my question. Would you have killed me?" Tomond pressed the question further.

"If you hurt any of my friends, I would hunt you down."

Nodding with a hint of understanding, Tomond stood up, looming over Serhis and Xet. "You are only doing as your god asks, you are one of the people I am trying to save, so I bear you no grudge. As it stands, I offer you two alternatives. Aid me willingly and you and the others will go free when we return to Jiak, on your oath that you will trouble me no more. If you do not help me, then I must inform you that your active participation is not required, only your presence to show the way and empower the key. Afterwards, I will ensure that your deaths will be swift and painless, as you cannot be made to see reason and will likely continue to pursue me. You will have until we reach our destination to speak to one another before giving your answer." He went towards the opening in the tent.

"Wait," Xet spoke up. "What happened to your work with on that artifact? What happened to the people?"

Pausing at the gap in the tent, his hand pushing away the cloth, Tomond did not turn around to reply. "We went our separate ways after my revelation. It pained me to abandon such a project, but this concerned me far more. It still pains me. Maybe one day, after the deities are no longer in play, I will continue it. As for the others, well, you can imagine that we didn't keep contact with each other for long, the effort stalled without my involvement. The last I've heard, the Druid also decided to pursue a goal of her own in the wilds, the Artificer copied what research we made and is making a different type of artifact, and as for the Sorcerer and the Bard, I do not know. Was that all you had to ask?"

There were far many more questions Serhis wanted to ask, but he could only voice one. "You would block off beings of power who can change reality for the better and inspire great works, all because you see them as meddlers in mortal affairs. Opportunities for great good would vanish, the power to alter things so that we're all happier denied us. If you did succeed, what would all this accomplish, would we really benefit from it?"

"I wouldn't do this if I didn't think so," Tomond said with his back turned to them. He looked like he was about leave, then he turned around to look at Serhis with somber eyes. "You believe in your god because Bahamut is a bringer of good. So do many others who serve similar deities. Others may worship deities that espouse their dominion over all reality, so that the strong would rule the weak. Those that worship those deities do so because they believe in that philosophy and hope to gain a measure of power for supporting it. And there are still more that not concerned with good or evil, but simply follow a simple truth their deity prescribes, to let nature takes its course and any radical change would be unwelcome. Though there are many different deities and their followers even more diverse than them, they all believe because they think it can improve their life or their afterlife. When you pray to Bahamut, how do you do it? When you worship his ideals, how are they reflected on you? When you devote your life to another's dogma, how do you see yourself in relation to them?"

"I..." Serhis hadn't considered such things, he was perplexed as to why Tomond would ask him. That was likely why he asked them at all.

"Your confusion is an answer in itself. You haven't thought on it at all. Like I never thought when I served Boccob. When I said I found answers, it wasn't to the questions of others. Instead, I found answers to questions I never asked myself. My answers were that when I devoted my life to Boccob, I saw myself as a servant that would never be his peer, never to truly know him. When I worshiped his ideal, it was to because I never made any for my own. When I prayed, I did so because I was weak and asked for another's power, and when I took that power because of it, I would never grow in my own way, only in the way my god desired. We have power of our own, power that the deities use to their own ends and even if we serve our entire lives faithfully, we have achieved nothing for ourselves. So long as the deities exist, we can never grow beyond them. I know we can do that." Tomond spoke with a fire in his eyes, his words a living testament to his own inner faith. What scared Serhis the fervor that he spoke, but that the questions asked led him to dark and unknown paths.

"I'll... think on your offer and your words before I have an answer," Serhis said quietly. He was convinced that a part of Tomond was truly insane, yet in that madness was a dangerous wisdom. When he talked about an answer, it wasn't only about whether he would help him, but to the questions Tomond has now asked. He still had faith in Bahamut and his cause, but he now questioned his role in it.

Their conversation done, Tomond nodded and disappeared into the bright light outside.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Swaying to the gentle waves of the river, Baous leaned against the railing of the ship as he kept an ever watchful eye on the shore. For two days, he had expected to catch up to Tomond relatively quickly as did Rhasalis and Iskdiwercaesin, but the wagons seemed to have been moving far faster than they realized. They had seen signs of camps being made at some points, but they never had signs that those camps had been recent. No cooking fires that were still warm, no fresh droppings from the horses and camels.

"Did you have to poke it with your bare claws Keianc?" Iskdiwercaesin held his nose as he ordered the ramp brought up as the gnoll got back onboard. "I can still smell it on you."

"It's hard to tell the warmth of the droppings with a stick, especially the insides which can confirm it," he said as he wiped his paws on a handkerchief. To their combined relief, at least he had washed his paws in the river directly after touching it.

The voyage out of Jiak was as fast as they could all make it. With Iskdiwercaesin offering the services of his ship, Rahsh had given them a small group of her mercenary warriors to pursue Tomond, free of charge. It was clear that if they managed to catch Tomond, that investment would repay itself in handsome dividends politically for her, if not so much for Baous, Iskdiwercaesin and Rhasalis, and the warriors were loyal to House Ihthei rather than them. Nonetheless, they were free sword-arms that would follow orders, relatively speaking. Keianc had been put in charge of the operation due to his rank and that he was one of the few there that knew how to track. Rahsh looked very much like she wanted to take command herself and go hunting after the mysterious human herself, but her recent raids into the Jameson's estate was consuming her attention. Baous, Iskdiwercaesin, and Rhasalis didn't have a clue what all of Rahsh meant by the implications of a higher-up's arrest, but at this point, they had well learned not to stick their snouts into these sorts of things and let it pass.

What hadn't completely passed was the tension between Baous, Rhasalis, and Iskdiwercaesin. Having decided to let their differences sit until they had rescued the others, there was still an air of conflict whenever they crossed, and since the ways around a ship are limited, those crossings were often. Baous stayed at the front of the ship and Rhasalis in the crow's nest, spending hours searching the horizon for signs of Tomond's company while Iskdiwercaesin stayed at the stern, overseeing the operations of his newly refurbished ship and having an added benefit of staying as far from the other two as physically possible.

Though Iskdiwercaesin had experience leading others, he discovered quickly that commanding troops on the ground and sailors on water were entirely different in critical areas, but a few things remained constant. For one, keeping a watchful eye on all the operations kept things running smoothly, food and water had to be stored in certain ways to prevent spoilage, and the maintenance of equipment was critical if it was to matter when they got to their destination. In this case, the equipment was what was getting them there and he wanted to make sure his investment was well kept.

The crew wasn't from House Ihthei or the other two, they were hired independently from the local docks for the standard rate, comprised entirely of sailors that had basic knowledge on how to operate their type of vessel. Kreetchn had been extremely helpful in finding them the crew before she left, the Cast of Onyx leaving shortly before they had. The sailors thought it novel that their captain was a dragon and his kobold companions were equally curious, but aside from that, they didn't stare too much after the first day, keeping a professional attitude and most of their conversations they kept amongst themselves. Iskdiwercaesin hadn't hired any specialists, he figured that the journey would be short enough that they could afford to go without them, and so they had no quartermaster, hooper, carpenter, navigator, or any other person needed for an extended journey.

As for Keianc and his squad of mercenaries, they were itching for a fight. While the pursuit didn't have the exact thrill of running down their opponents on land, the others could tell how they remained alert for any sign of their quarry, the ones on deck as diligent as Baous and Rhasalis while they kept watch. While the mercenaries kept themselves separate from the others of the ship, at least socially, Keianc regularly talked to the dragon and kobolds, both to be kept abreast of any changing developments and out of a general need to converse. It was apparent to him that there was something going on between the three and had asked them about it. When they told him it was a private matter, he simply shrugged and let it drop. What he hadn't let go was what had happened on that hectic night and he soaked up what information Rhasalis could give him about Tomond's operation. He gave some of his own concerning his previous investigations into the alchemist Tomond had secretly employed, Cobbler, and what Rahsh had hastily told him before he was swiftly ordered to get aboard the floating tub.

Concerning Cobbler, the halfling sailor had practically spilled his guts when he approached Rahsh, his hope that she could protect him from the dragon and kobolds by being as helpful as possible. Most of what he said was outdated information, but what little wasn't proved somewhat useful. One of those pieces was about the alchemist, who Rahsh had quietly put under observation. When she realized that the game was up and Tomond had secured what he needed from the alchemist, she gave up being subtle and directly approached him, demanding to know what Tomond wanted. At first, the alchemist wasn't cooperative, even when intimidated and threatened. The man felt that he was protected by potent friends in the Houses and remained steadfast even when she threatened the structural integrity of his hidden and highly illegal alchemy laboratory. Keianc eventually got him to talk by greasing his palms with gold. For remarkably cheap he added. It appeared that Tomond wanted to make something that functioned as a strange guiding device that could also take in arcane and divine energies and release them in a certain altered form, to what the alchemist didn't know, he could only make conjecture from how it worked. While Keianc made guesses of his own, Baous, Rhasalis, and Iskdiwercaesin knew what it would be for, they knew it was somehow connected to the imprisoned god and Tomond was heading directly for Vocos. As for the Jamesons, it wasn't relevant to them aside from that they were the ones mainly responsible for harboring Tomond by aiding in his misdirections and quietly benefitting from the trouble he stirred up against the other Houses and rivals within his own.

As things stood, the kobolds and dragon had no indication if they were closing the distance between them and their friends. Rubbing his eyes, Baous blinked as another gust of wind blew a light coat of sand in his face.

"You can take a break," Rhasalis stood behind him, surprising him a little since she barely made any noise when she moved and he had expected her to stay in the crow's nest. "Keianc told me that the signs he saw from the camp are too old for us to be close to them."

"I can't rest, not yet," Baous stifled a yawn. From dawn to dusk, he had stayed at the front of the ship and quite a bit longer, peering into the dark of midnight before sheer exhaustion forced him to go to sleep.

Rhasalis shook her head and tugged at his tail, definitely getting his attention. "Sleep, now. The way you've been keeping watch is going to hurt more than help. While those mercenaries are going to assist us, we're the ones who really have reason to fight and you can't fight well if you're battling your eyes from closing at the same time. If I see them, I'll wake you. I wish it wasn't like this, but we're not going to see them before you wake up."

Unable to make a point against her, Baous nodded as he realized how drowsy he was now that he was willing to rest. He could likely stay awake for another day and still be able to give chase, but like she said, he would perform badly if he tried. Walking across the deck, he was about to reach the stairs to go below deck as he heard Iskdiwercaesin and Keianc talking.

"You say we're getting closer. How close? If you're sticking your fingers in camel dung, I'd say you're pretty sure about that," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"It's not exact, alright, but I've got a bit of an idea on how long before we can catch up. Normally with the insides still warm and the embers in the cooking fires still giving off heat, I would have said we could catch up in four hours. Not normally is how fast this bunch is traveling. They seem to be taking paths that speed them along and the distance between each place they make camp is almost double and that's not because they're resting half as often," said Keianc.

"So? You can still make a guess."

"Eight to nine hours, if the winds stay strong," Keianc shrugged. "And that's if Tomond sticks by the water. We're about to hit the end of the river, so I know he's going to be soon. Too soon, we're cutting the time very fine here and we'll either catch up to them right as we get to the part of the river we can't go through or we'll miss them and have to catch up on foot. Not that I'd like to do that, but if we ran hard, we'd only have to tack on an extra hour or two to the that."

"Where's the end of the river?" Baous said from the top of the stairs as he overheard them talking. "What did you mean a part of the river we can't go through?"

Iskdiwercaesin gave him what could be best be called a neutral look while Keianc looked further ahead on the river. "You see those mountains on the horizon? The Velcas River's source is somewhere in those ridges, flowing down into the desert. Eventually we're going to hit the part where we have to start going up and unless you've got a ship that got some power behind it, sailing upriver and uphill isn't going to happen. If Tomond does manage to give us the slip, we're either going to have to go through the desert or his path is past the mountains and we have to chase them up there," he frowned at the implications. "If that's the case, we'd have to fight them going up the high ground and after a hard run. It doesn't take a tactician to figure how bad that's going to turn out."

"So even if we do catch up, we're not going to win?" Baous was crestfallen.

"I didn't say that," Keianc said with full confidence. "From what Rahsh told me, she gathered some information from her raid at the Jameson estate about what Tomond's company is comprised of. Around ten heavy lifters, eight wagon drivers, twelve scholars of all sorts, and two guides are going with him, but they're not the ones who're going to be fighting. He's got about twenty eight guys with him that actually know how to fight, six of them on horse or camel, but that's not much of an advantage for them if they are headed into the mountains. There's also Jacqueline, I don't know if she's any good in a fight, and Tomond himself, which I know firsthand, is. Oh yeah, and a cook."

Taking that in, Baous considered their odds. Pitting Keianc and the mercenaries against Tomond's forces, he wasn't sure how that would work. The mercenaries made their living looking for a scrap. Tomond's men weren't likely to be as skilled, but the advantages they had would level the field and of course, he could be wrong and the guard would be formidable. With himself and Rhasalis, they could do a lot of damage themselves. Rhasalis especially, as much as he wanted not to dwell on how she managed to break them out of their cells. The sailors most certainly didn't sign up for a fight, they were only there to work on the ship and would stay behind to watch it if they had to go on foot. Then there was Iskdiwercaesin...

"What are you looking at me like that for?" the green dragon grunted, making Baous realized he was staring at him while he was thinking.

"If we don't catch up with them in time, you are going to come with us, right?" Several days before, Baous wouldn't even have considered having to ask. Now though, even with Iskdiwercaesin grudgingly helping, he had his doubts. The brief pause as Iskdiwercaesin considered it didn't help.

"I did say I'd go after them with you. I suppose I owe them that much. Especially if it means I get to turn Tomond into a puddle of goo for knocking me out," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"Good, I suppose," Baous said before he yawned again. "Rhasalis was right, just enough time to sleep... but isn't there anything we could do to speed us up?"

Iskdiwercaesin shook his head. "Serhis was the one with the wind tricks. Xet too, but his set of scrolls was taken with him and the rest of their stuff. I've got nothing of my own that'll help."

"If we had some oars, I'd have my guys row for some extra speed," Keianc offered. "They'd only be able to do it for a few hours before having to rest, not because they'd get that tired or anything, but I'd rather have them fresh for a run if we need it. It'd shave off an hour at best."

"That'll work," Iskdiwercaesin called for one of the sailors. "Break out the oars, we're giving ourselves a little push."

The sailor nodded as Keianc went with him. "I'll go organize the little details. You know, who goes where, how we're going to time it, that sort of thing."

A bit of his fears set aside, if only a little, Baous headed below deck to sleep. His mind was still troubled, but exhaustion helped force them aside as he fell asleep.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

At the foot of the mountain, Serhis and Xet fears were realized. The high mountain stood alone in the desert, its solitary nature made it seem more imposing as it rose over them, the river they had been following pouring forth from somewhere within. Tomond stood over them as they kneeled in the sand, holding what looked to be a misshapen stone, though it was not made of any earthly material, that was for sure. Serhis called it a stone because he had no other way to describe it, it looked solid enough, but as he looked at it in the fading sunlight, its edges looked as jagged as glass and the thing looked filled with black and red liquid, if liquid could flatten out against a pane of glass that faced the same way no matter the angle. It was like looking at a tear in reality. Tomond held it between himself and the kobolds. "You've had some time to think on your answer. Now is the time to give it."

Their heads bowed, Serhis and Xet had to accept facts. They weren't going to be rescued. Rhasalis hadn't been able to catch up. And now, they had to make a decision that wouldn't only affect their own lives, but those of Baous and Iskdiwercaesin as well. Turning his head over to Serhis, Xet nodded his head sadly. Sighing, Serhis nodded back. They had talked at extreme length about it and had come to the same conclusion.

"What will it be? Your faith or your lives?" said Tomond.

"It because we want to spare lives of our friends," Serhis said in Common. "If only myself, I would spit on your offer. I rather die than being force to help your war against the gods. You are cruel man to do that."

"Cruel? How do you define this as cruel? How is it that you compare your loyalty to a god as equivalent to those of the lives of others? It isn't by me that they demand your obedience to their orders. It is their fault that they would demand the sacrifice of those you care about for their own ambitions. I will admit that I'd rather not be the one who threatened your friends at all, but that doesn't mean that what I said isn't true," Tomond sternly laid out his thoughts.

"Enough. I not care about your war anymore," Serhis lifted his head. "Like you say, we agree to help you, you let us all go, then we never trouble you again. Be done with it then."

"Then are you willing to aid me or not? Speak plainly."

"We will do as you demand," Serhis growled in defeat.

Tomond lifted his eyes from the two to look at Jacqueline, nodding the slightest fraction. Serhis and Xet then heard a knife being drawn before the cleric of Bahamut was made to stand on his feet, then his hands were free as she cut the ropes tying his hands. Without even giving Serhis time to stretch his cramped arms, he stepped forward, holding the object to Serhis, and to the kobold's greater surprise, the Star. "This is the key that I've made that will allow us to enter. Hold it above your head and invoke whatever power of the Bahamut you will. As the divine magic passes through you, it will also filter through the key, showing the path we need to take."

Slowly taking the two objects from Tomond, Serhis knew that Tomond only gave him the Star back because he feared no retaliation. Tomond stepped aside to allow Serhis an unobstructed view of the mountain, but all Serhis was looking at was the strange key in his claw, the red and black shifting in his sight. Gripping the Star tightly in his other claw, he knew of one spell he could use. He could only use it as an apology. "Baous, tell Iskdiwercaesin sorry for all that happen. Sorry to you too. Must work with Tomond so that you can live. We going be okay." He spoke even though the others around could hear, but he didn't care. It would likely be the last thing he would say to them in a long time.

"A Sending spell. Harmless enough and I'm not opposed to allowing them to converse about our agreement," Tomond said to the others in the group that didn't understand why the strange winged kobold was speaking to no one in particular. They didn't seem to hear it as they saw the reaction from the key.

The key shifted in Serhis' claws, whether it changed orientation or actually changed shape he couldn't tell, turning from black and red to white with blue streaks emerging from where his claws touched its surface. The white light grew so bright that it blinded all that saw it, forcing Serhis to turn his head. It surprised him so much, he almost didn't hear Baous' frantic reply to the Sending.

"We're not captured! Rhasalis freed us! Hold on, we're going to be there soon, watch the river for a ship!"

As the light faded, Serhis' look of shock was taken as surprise from the reaction from the key than what he heard. There were lots of times he was a bit annoyed that he had to voice the reply to the others since only the sender could hear the reply mentally, but now he knew help was on its way. His surprise from the Sending wasn't quite as big as what he saw what the key had done.

When they first saw the mountain, its steep sides looked like it would require abandoning the wagons, maybe even the horses, to advance and even then those on foot would cross treacherous ground of loose rock and gravel. As their vision returned, they saw a long, wide trail winding up the side of the mountain, the grade of the path still fairly daunting, but made of solid stone. At first Serhis and Xet thought it had been an illusion that covered the path, but something seemed off that made them doubt that. They suddenly realized that if it had been an illusion, the passage of time would still have eroded parts of the path and no matter how great the illusion, someone should have been bound to discover the discrepancies made by the false terrain after all the centuries after the Second War. Instead, the path looked to have been freshly made as if the stone had been freshly cut... no, molded would the right word. As friendly as the path looked, it still kept an organic look, as if it was natural. They realized that the key hadn't revealed a hidden path nor opened one, it made it.

Despite the miraculous event that occurred right in front of them, Tomond looked neither surprised nor happy. "Onward," he ordered his uncertain company forward, his boots the first to advance up the mountain. Nudged by the guards behind them, Serhis and Xet followed behind him, though Serhis took one more look behind over his wing towards the river, hoping to see the sight of a billowing sail. Not seeing one, he trudged along, slightly heartened from Baous' reply.

"Your symbol," Tomond slowed a bit to match Serhis' pace as he extended his hand. "I trust that you realize that even your most powerful efforts are useless against me, I still must make precautions in any event."

Holding on to it a second longer, the feel of the smooth platinum and lapis lazuli star comforting, Serhis reluctantly gave it to Tomond. "You give it back when we leave, right?"

"I will, though I would have rather that you abandon that physical representation of your faith," Tomond placed the emblem into a pouch on his pant leg. "Or did my reasoning fall on deaf ears?"

"You have some certain point..."

"However?" Tomond sensed his hesitance.

Serhis switched back to Draconic to better articulate his response. "Deities are somewhat detached from mortal affairs, but that doesn't mean they should be removed from existence. What we can do can affect them as well. When I pray to Bahamut, I give a part of myself in that prayer and I know he can hear them. In that part of myself, he grants it a power I could never use, keeping or giving to where he sees best to use that power. Because of that, even if I never see it, I know a part of me is helping others when he bestows it on another that I would never have been able to reach otherwise."

"A pragmatist's argument. Admittedly one better than most that I've heard," said Tomond as he walked along. "If I could, I'd go back and find the others of my group, not only to continue the previous project, but to implement a new one. A repository of power where people like ourselves could place pieces of our living essence in safe keeping to be drawn out when needed at a more crucial time so that it would function much like our deities have, but without their influence and judgments."

"Then who would decide where that power would go? You?" Serhis took the opportunity to needle Tomond.

"I wouldn't be the one to make such a thing. I would suggest its creation and how it could be accomplished, but I would not have a hand in it. I would not abide such hypocrisy if I forced which path mortals would first take without a deity's influence. Not even if my condition were removed. My part would be done and it would be time for someone else to make our lives anew," he sighed as he looked up at the long, winding path. "I expect our existence to be much like this road when I'm done. A long, arduous ascent that will be hard even to find, but at its very end will be our goal."

Serhis sighed, not wanting to continue the discussion in that direction any further and was thankful when Xet changed the subject to something he was curious about. "How did this road get made? I could guess it wasn't an illusion, but how'd something like that make it?" Xet could only gesture his head at the key Serhis was still holding in his claws, since his own were still tied up. "Actually, why did it react to Serhis at all? Shouldn't something like that only react for clerics of the three deities that made?"

"The key isn't an exact replica of the original. As the first was destroyed with no copies, I had to allow for some changes in the creation of it when I had the alchemist I hired make it. A major change was that the stone emulates the signature of the three deities, something that required many, many experiments before he found exactly what was needed," said Tomond.

"That explains why he needed so many random materials," Xet made the connection.

"I didn't only have to base material components, some of the things I sought were more esoteric in nature. I searched for ancient artifacts made by either Vocos or the three deities or their clerics, or rather the bloodlines descended from those same clerics. That took months of research, browsing countless records and those that kept them about lineage."

The more they listened, the more Tomond's seemingly random actions fitted one another. Such genealogists would mainly be at the employ of nobility and Tomond had concealed his actions by making it look like they were a veiled distraction. "Was that why you worked with or against the different Houses at times?" Xet asked.

"Partially. Some of them held the objects I required, though many of them didn't understand their value at times when I either took or was rewarded them. There were persons I needed to find as well and I got the blood I needed to bond to the key during my raids, either by them being my targets or a few allies that were injured in the fighting."

As if Serhis didn't need any further proof of how twisted the man was. "So that key altered my spell slightly so that it seemed as if I was a cleric of the deities that made the prison." Tomond nodded slightly, acknowledging his assumption. "The key also triggered something that made this road?"

"It would appear so. It isn't all that surprising, considering how the prison was made," said Tomond.

"This entire mountain was made into the prison," Xet couldn't help but look at the length and height of the mountain as he connected the dots. He had thought that the deities had lured Vocos inside, but creating an entire one to drop on their foe hadn't crossed his mind.

"Jahua, the god that had power over stone, raised this mountain out of the earth to cut a swath through the desert. Koroyia was a goddess that shaped water and drowned Vocos in a spring as he was forced underground, creating the river that flows out from the mountain. I imagine the name of the river was derived from Vocos and has changed over the ages. The third god, Saufkhan, was the one that weaved the great energies that made up Vocos' prison, making it much more than a mass of stone and water. Before the Second War, I expect the lands around here were nothing but sand." Rounding another turn up the road, Tomond's vision swept over the stretch of sand that reached all the way to the ocean.

"I have not heard of those three," said Serhis.

"For good reason. Jahau took part of that battle not because he viewed Vocos as a foe that threatened his power, but because he was desperate. It seemed that he was losing the grip on his own power and sought to take some of Vocos' to head off that loss. Instead, he gained nothing when the Second War ended, his divinity seemed to have been faltering through some natural occurrence that no amount of amassed power could prevent. He survived the war, but was rendered mortal. A very powerful mortal that was worshiped by many, but still a mortal that died of extreme old age and that history remembers as a pretender god. What little history there is," Tomond scoffed. "Koroyia was killed rather ignominiously in a later struggle with another goddess, one of those claimed by the course of the war. As for Saufkhan, he simply vanishes off the scene and his clerics are left to their own devices. Barely any trace of him at all in the history books, but plenty of speculation as to what happened. If he left this realm on his own accord, then he's one of the few that'll earn my respect."

Serhis hadn't seen Tomond so talkative since the journey began and he kept talking about history and the fallout of the Second War as they walked. He expected it was due to them conversing on the subject, that his scorn for the divine made him so vocal, but anything else was soon interrupted.

"Sir, a ship is coming up the river," Jacqueline brought Tomond's attention down the slopes. He squinted and raised his hand to block the afternoon sun before taking out a telescope, missing Serhis' barely hidden glee as he also saw the vessel. Xet was more confused than anything since Serhis hadn't had the opportunity to tell of their friends' escape and coming rescue.

"A cargo barge come to pick up a shipment from the farm we passed?" a guard speculated.

"It isn't," Tomond said definitively as he snapped the telescope closed. "I spotted the prisoners from earlier riding on that ship. Along with some armed men wearing Ihthei colors. Move the men up quickly, we must be inside before they reach us. And ensure that our own prisoners don't escape." As the group began hustled upwards, Serhis saw the way Tomond glanced at him and sending a shiver down his spine. He knew that Serhis hadn't been forthcoming about an important detail and that look promised of a harsh reprisal later. For now, he had to move quickly with them, away from his best hope of escape.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"We've been spotted," Rhasalis growled as she lowered her spyglass. "They're moving faster."

"Damn it. They're already up the mountain," Keianc cursed as their best case scenario was knocked out of the running. "But... where'd that road come from? I've never heard of one being made. A lot of merchants would have been using it to get over it."

"Another one of Tomond's fancy tricks," Iskdiwercaesin said derisively.

"Yeah, but so far his fancy tricks are keeping him one step ahead of us."

"Can we still catch up with them?" Baous asked earnestly. The crew had thought he had gone crazy when he bolted up in his hammock and started shouting at nobody before running back up to the deck. When he told the others about Serhis' message, they gathered that he had managed to get his claws on the Star somehow and that Tomond had somehow coerced him, at least until Baous' frantic reply got through. Since they had gathered that the key relied on divine energies, it meant that they had neared their destination.

Keianc looked at Tomond's position on the mountain, judging the distance as best he could. "Yeah, we would, even if we didn't push ourselves to the point of exhaustion to get up there. Those loaded down wagons are going to be slowed down climbing up that mountain and we're not so heavily burdened."

"Alright, get this thing to shore people!" Iskdiwercaesin bellowed to his crew. "I want a landing ramp out the second it can reach. All of you stay with the ship while we go after them!" Iskdiwercaesin glanced at the others before nodding slightly. When he heard the message, he was not happy as he guessed how close Tomond was to his goal, but what really surprised him was when Baous told him about Serhis' apology. It barely lasted for a second, if that long, but Baous and Rhasalis had seen it before he covered it up with his usual devil-may-care attitude.

As the crew scrambled for landing, Keianc also formed up his group. "Time to earn our pay people! They know we're here, so let's also let them know we're coming for them! Take what you can with you, but leave the heavy stuff behind. Most of them can't even hold a weapon right, so no worries about who'll win in a straight fight!" The mercenaries laughed lightly as they picked out their gear. "Not that it'll matter much, we outnumber the ones that do and those horsemen of theirs mean shit up there. Just keep your eye out for any spells or bows coming our way as we go up and we'll take them all!" The deck of the ship rocked with the shout of twenty throats as the landing ramp dropped onto the shore, the wood plank reverberating as twenty pairs of boots marched on it. Close behind them were Baous, Iskdiwercaesin, and Rhasalis as they moved to pursue.

"Hey, what exactly are you going to do when we get them?" Iskdiwercaesin said to Keianc as he looked up at the distant wagons. "Aside from the obvious."

"We're supposed to capture Tomond and as many of the people with him as we can alive."

"And if you can't?"

"Then Rahsh's bosses are going to have to settle with us catching them dead," Keianc shrugged.

"I can support that," Rhasalis assented.

"Though if that's the case, try not to damage too much of their stuff. Rahsh wants as much information as we can get on his contacts and the like and it's my hide on the line if all I've got is a bunch of charred scrolls and books."

"No promises," Iskdiwercaesin said as the group found a pace all could match while still gaining ground.

"Where does this road go?" Baous looked at the winding path, unable to see its destination through the cliffs.

"Hell if I know. It's not supposed to be here," Keianc replied.

"It's still here," Iskdiwercaesin said blithely. "I was wondering how Tomond was going to get those wagons over terrain like this if he wasn't going to head into the desert. He's probably got more stuff to throw us off."

"We're not going to lose him. Not when we're so close," Baous growled as he kept his head up, always looking forward as he climbed upwards.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

For three hours, the two groups pressed themselves as fast as they dared allow themselves. Serhis and Xet considered resisting to slow Tomond's group down more, but the way the former cleric warily watched him told them enough that he would brook no more delays or deceptions. He was a former cleric of the god of magic, he knew how a sending spell worked and that Serhis would have received a reply.

"Sir, can't we stand and fight?" one of the guards suggested to Tomond, grimacing from the arduous pace. "These cliffs and roads are perfect for raining down arrow and bolt fire on them."

"I'd rather we didn't engage them at all at this stage. There are too many of them for us to fight off, despite the losses they would sustain from a volley," Tomond craned his head to look at their progress.

"Then what're we going to do? They'll be on us unless we ditch the wagons."

"Unacceptable. Losing the supplies in those wagons would mean we'd have to go without a large supply of food and water, not to mention it would abandoning needed materials for our mission, the entire reason we're here." The look of disquiet Tomond had faded as he spotted something above them. Before the guard could ask about what other option they had, he and the others saw what came into view.

Hidden in the high cliffs of the mountain, a wide flat area opened up before them as they reached the top of the road. Serhis and Xet knew that it was too even to be natural, any doubts were dispelled that this place was made when they saw the thin shallow lines cut into the rock, rounded grooves that formed patterns of waves, sigils, and other signs. The only thing that broke the even ground was a stone altar in the center of the flat area, a focal point for all the carvings.

"What is this place?" Xet's voice was filled with awe. He knew that those lines were meant to be channels to direct energy, he had read about the subject, but he'd never heard of any that were so detailed, never mind extensive. They weren't anywhere near the top of the mountain, but he could guess that they were perhaps a quarter, perhaps a third of the way up. The flat area was large enough that a castle could be placed on it and there would still be room to spare, the plane so flat that a marble set on it would stay perfectly still, and the plane only ended when the mountain continued upwards at a right angle, the carvings covering the side of the mountain as well. Serhis thought that it had also been formed by the key, but there were telltale signs of aging and wear on the lines and small cracks marred the otherwise pristine lines.

"A killing ground," Tomond answered with undisguised disgust. When everyone else looked at him with worry, he explained further. "Vocos' imprisonment enraged his followers, prompting them to try and free him. Though his clerics lost access to spells, the area around here was still their home. They fielded a large army, formed mostly by those enraged that their god had been caught and by the invading deities on their lands. The mountain here was a target of their anger and they marched in force. As numerous as they were, they knew they could not directly confront a deity, let alone three, but still they tried in the hopes that some of their members could slip in during the fighting and release Vocos to turn the tide. Jahua, Koroyia, and Saufkhan realized that though they were in no danger themselves, their attempts to defend the mountain risked them freeing Vocos themselves if their powers somehow disrupted the prison, meaning they had to limit their power and risking some getting through. With that handicap, they had to rely on their own mortal followers. And yet, though they had to limit their own powers, that didn't mean they couldn't give their army an edge. Saufkhan prepared the ground, shaping the land with Jahua's aid to form these lines. Note how they are shallow near the edges, but are deeper as we come closer to the altar." Bringing the group forward, Tomond showed them what he saw. "Here is where the battle would be fiercest. Here is where lives destroyed for the sake of their deities would never find rest as the lifeblood of all those that fell would gather and create even more bloodshed."

"Blood magic," Serhis shuddered.

"Yes. Saufkhan commanded blood magic. When the battle was met, the deaths of enemy and ally alike would fuel his twisted works. As for Vocos' followers, those not even dying, but who had only been wounded would find their blood pouring out of their veins as it touched the ground, pulled viciously from their very hearts. A cleric of Saufkhan would command the altar to give the life force taken to Saufkhan's army who would be at the foremost of the fighting, maddened in their bloodlust and fury and spur on more death." Placing his gloved hands on the worn stone, Tomond examined the altar, brushing away piles of sand that had settled on it.

"So what are we doing? Using the altar ourselves?" Jacqueline asked, making Serhis and Xet look between her and Tomond in horror.

"No. Though the altar is still imbued by magic, it requires a cleric loyal to Saufkhan to use and it would only empower his worshipers. None of them exist today. Of that, I'm sure of, I've searched extensively. More to the point, I find the use of blood magic abhorrent and will not tolerate its use." Tomond's words alleviated some of the kobolds' fears, but it they realized he still knew something that they didn't if he had led them up here.

Jacqueline apparently was thinking on the same lines. "Then what's our plan of action?"

Pushing the last large pile of sand off the stone slab, Tomond revealed a small indentation in the altar. "We will fight them on our terms," Tomond said as he placed the key stone into the indentation before turning to Serhis. "You will open the way for us again."

"I won't," Serhis replied defiantly. The others were so close to rescuing them, he needed to keep Tomond from proceeding any further. The last thing he needed was to cut them off by his own action.

Tomond wasn't surprised with Serhis' renewed courage. He lunged forward with his arm, making Serhis scramble backwards slightly before he was pulled by his bound arms onto the altar. "I will remind you that though I require you, I don't require you alive at this juncture. I can still activate the key stone with a blood sacrifice, yours if I need it." Serhis didn't even see the dagger angled towards his chest until Tomond pressed it slightly, the point directed at his heart.

"But, but I thought you not use blood magic!"

"I find it abhorrent, but I will do what I must to keep moving forward," Tomond pressed his arm down on Serhis, keeping the kobold pinned. "Jacqueline, the other one."

Before Serhis could puzzle out what he meant, he felt Xet thrown next to him. "Let me go, let me go!" Xet yelled, though he didn't know if Jacqueline understood Draconic. Odds were likely that she did, but she ignored him all the same.

"Or will it have to be the blood of your companion? Are you so dedicated to stopping me that you would sacrifice his life for Bahamut's cause?" Tomond never once broke eye contact with Serhis, even as he was arm's length away from taking his life.

For the second time in his life, Serhis' resolve wavered. He had long accepted the chance that he might have to sacrifice himself for the greater good, but this... would he also allow his hatchmate to die for him? Looking into Xet's frantic eyes no more than a hand breadth between them, Serhis knew he couldn't. "I- I will open it," Serhis relented.

Quickly pulled upwards and spun around, Tomond kept the blade toward Serhis' back. Xet had also been taken off the altar, leaving only the stone. "Then do the same thing as before. This time, not a sending spell. One of minor healing will do."

His choice's decided for him, Serhis placed a shaking claw on the stone. As a trickle of healing energies flowed out, Serhis braced himself for something, anything that would happen.

At first, nothing did. As the guards and those in the wagons looked around nervously, some because they were watching the pursuing gnolls, humans, goblins, kobolds and dragon get closer. Then a resounding *CRACK* split the earth and sky.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"What in the Hells was that?!" A mercenary yelled as he picked himself off the ground. Everyone else also hastily rose to their feet, watching the road up ahead and above for what might be a surprise attack.

"Nothing good, I can tell you that much," Keianc swept his crossbow in an arc. Seeing no targets, he gestured for everyone to keep moving forward.

"I think I see the top. The road doesn't go any further up," Rhasalis observed.

"That's nice to hear. Because if we didn't, I'm sure we'd all appreciate having to climb all the way up this charming mountain," Iskdiwercaesin grumbled. "So let's corner them already and squash them."

Baous was the first to reach the end of the stone road and saw the lines carved into the flat plane of stone, though he couldn't make any sense of it. It didn't matter to him, it was what he couldn't see that bothered him. "Where'd they go?" he frantically looked around.

As the others walked onto the carved stone, Rhasalis carefully looked around. "In there would be my guess." She pointed to a large chasm towards the far wall, the crack in the surface of the mountain more than wide enough to allow the wagons pass, though the height of the crack was far taller than it needed to be. Looking ever upwards, they thought they could see a thin line reaching almost all the way to the top.

Keianc took one look at the opening and shook his head. "I don't like this. Fighting an uphill battle's one thing. Going in there is just asking for trouble."

"So you're chickening out?" Iskdiwercaesin chuckled, taunting the gnoll.

The gnoll, and a few of the other mercenaries, growled back. "We don't back down from a fight. I'm only saying whoever's going up front is going up front has to be one really tough maniac. Want to volunteer?"

"I'll go first." Rhasalis headed for the gap, the others standing around for a second in surprise before they hustle to catch up with her.

"You sure about that?" Keianc asked. "I would have figured your buddy over there would be better suited for that. He moves quickly in that armor and he's got a shield."

"Baous could withstand the brunt of an assault and will always stand his ground, I have no doubts about that," she acknowledged. "Though I prefer that we don't walk into one at all. We're going underground. Even though it isn't terrain that I'm familiar with, there are some subtleties I understand."

"You're not the only one," Iskdiwercaesin piped up as he walked next to her. "I've picked up a few tricks for underground fighting too."

"Okay, if you say you know what you're doing," said Keianc. As they got closer to the rift in the otherwise solid mountain, he started organizing the mercenaries into teams to accommodate the new tactical situation.

"You realize we're walking into an ambush," Iskdiwercaesin noted to Rhasalis.

"It was the first thing that came to my mind."

"And we're still going in?"

"An ambush can only work as well as the target's unpreparedness. We will not be," Rhasalis stated.

Iskdiwercaesin laughed. "Very true. I can't say I don't have a few surprises of my own."

"Really? What are they?" Baous asked.

"Heh, I might brag, but I'm not stupid enough to actually tell my advantage. Not when we're walking into this mess."

"Hey, is that crack... closing?" One of the mercenaries was looking at the top of the rift and soon he wasn't the only one. It might have looked like a trick of the light or some such at first, but slowly, the crack in the mountain was beginning to seal.

"Inside! Now!" Rhasalis bellowed as she sprinted towards the closing gap, everyone making equal haste to enter.

"Now we're running into the ambush instead of walking. This is smart," Iskdiwercaesin sighed wearily. Not that he was slowing down.

"Don't talk, just run!" Baous urged them as he kept pace. As wide as the gap was, they had a lot of distance to cover and it looked like the rate of which it was closing was getting faster.

When Rhasalis crossed into the dark cave, they saw that they could get inside. Some didn't. As nearly half of them hurled themselves into the rapidly thinning entrance, others behind them slammed into each other as they came to a sudden halt, not daring to try and attempt to get in at the risk of getting crushed. For those that did manage to get inside, they were now sealed in.

"... how'd you prepare for this?" said Iskdiwercaesin.

Rhasalis gave him a withering glare, but she turned away, realizing that there were more important issues at hand, such as being on the lookout for a sudden attack now that they had just split their forces. "Shh, quiet," she whispered as loud as she dared. Hearing nothing, she looked at those that had managed to get in. "How are we doing?"

"We're in deep shit," Keianc said grimly as he finished counting the mercenaries. Only eight of them were fast enough to get through. "We're the ones that are outnumbered now."

Glancing around nervously, all Baous could see was a path further into the mountain, its surface as smooth as the road that came up here and still as wide as before the way inside before it started closing. The hackles of his fur raised, the fact that he didn't see anyone looking like they were about to attack didn't relieve him in the slightest.

"What are they doing? Now would have been a perfect time to spring the trap," Rhasalis muttered, her senses as heightened as his under the stress.

"Somehow, I don't they planned for us to get in at all," Iskdiwercaesin said quietly. "It didn't look like the entrance closing was perfectly timed to split us up."

"Our bad luck then," Keianc mumbled as he sheathed the scimitar and drew his short sword . Some of the other mercenaries put away their weapons, the blades or hafts too long for such confined spaces, and instead pulled out similarly shorter weapons.

"So we're the ones that have the surprise then," said Baous. "They think we got locked out."

Keianc thought for a moment, then shook his head. "Not really. If what Tomond has been doing's been any indication, he's not going to write us off that easily. He'll think his back is covered, but he'll still be watching it."

"Do you see any way to open this back up?" Iskdiwercaesin felt the surrounding walls for a switch or lever.

"I don't see a damn thing," one of the halfling mercenaries cursed. The others were very surprised that such a small being had managed to keep up with them, but then again, he had comparable height to the reptilian kobold and he'd been shown time and again to possess amazing berserker strength, so the guy had plenty of surprises. They hope he would continue with those surprises.

"Hold on a tick Chides," Keianc also examined the area, motioning for the others not to light up a torch. The mercenaries knew enough that putting on a light would ruin the vision of the ones that could see in the pitch dark, not to mention mark them in a bright light that might as well paint all of them with a big target if there was anyone waiting in the dark. The blindness still made them jittery. "Crap. I don't see how we're going to open this. How'd they even close it in the first place?"

"We can ask them while we're digging them out of this pit," Iskdiwercaesin said. "We can't stay here. Going deeper in isn't the best idea, but so is staying. At least we've got a chance that we can find a way to get around any traps they might set along the way, they've got just as good of an idea of where anything is as we do if I guess right."

With no clear good options left, they forged ahead. Keianc had the mercenaries that couldn't see in the dark stay at the entrance for the moment, on the condition that they only use a hooded lantern and to keep trying to open the rift.

"Splitting us in half again? That doesn't sound too good," Baous voiced his doubts.

Keianc shook his head, his ears tilted forward like Baous' to pick up any sound as they passed through the dark, wide stone path. "Of course it isn't, but look at it this way. We'd still be in deep trouble if they attacked us all. This way I don't have to worry about anyone who can't see fumbling or bumping into things. We don't have to carry a lit torch too. Tomond and the others do, so we'll be able to have at least some warning before we get close."

Baous nodded silently, not wanting to say anything more now that they were the ones that relied on stealth. As best they could, leather boots, reptilian claws, and padded paws made quiet progress through the depths of the mountain. Though they were underground, the way the path was laid out made them uneasy. Rhasalis wasn't bothered in the least about the subterranean locale and Baous was at least inured to the experience after the time he spent in kobold cities, or the ones underground at any rate. The same could be said of Iskdiwercaesin and his time in the Underdark. Then they realized what was out of place. There was no visible ceiling. For as far as they could see, the walls went up and up, yet never seemed to meet. As they progressed further, they began to see carvings in the walls. To their left and right, large murals depicting scenes of battle were imprinted on the walls. Not etched or carved, but imprinted, as if the stone had been pressed in. It was the only explanation for the impossibly detailed sights, some of them made so that there were layers of drawings laid behind one another.

"Keep your eyes front, don't get distracted," Rhasalis refocused their attention.

"They go on..." Baous was awestruck. The stupefying large mural went all the way up to the unseen top, beyond their line of sight. He brought his attention back to what was important though.

The path was large enough that they didn't have to crowd one another, but they still stayed close, huddled in the darkness waiting for a potential scream as one of their numbers was brought down by an arrow or a war cry as an ambush swept out from nowhere. As none came, the mercenaries began quietly chattering to each other.

"What is this place? I've never seen anything like this before."

"Your guess is as good as mine. We'll figure it out when we've got Tomond, so long as he's still got his jaw attached to his head. If he still has his head."

"Hey Keianc," the halfling nudged the gnoll to get his attention. "Did Rahsh mention anything about this?"

"All she said was that the guys from the estate talked about his expedition, but she couldn't get anything specific. Baous, Rhasalis, Iskdiwercaesin, you guys know?"

Baous and Rhasalis were hesitant to tell. Their task for Nadia already messed up as it was, revealing more seemed unwise. Of course, if things were so botched up anyway and with the potential of those of House Ihthei finding out one way or another, telling what they knew to keep the good faith between them was one prospect instead of having to rely on deception.

Iskdiwercaesin didn't hesitate as he stepped into the gap of silence the two left. "Tomond's looking for a place dedicated to a long forgotten god. He's after what leftover power's still here, probably a magic item or two of some significance." It wasn't really deceit, or at least by the literal definition of the word, though it certainly fell under the parameters of subterfuge. His reasons for keeping to Nadia's wishes were still the same, even if his relation to the kobolds was now on shaky ground, he had no intention of hacking off one of the holy messengers of the divine. If for some reason Keianc, Rahsh, or someone else in Ihthei learned about Vocos and weren't happy about how he didn't tell them everything, he was happy enough to let them sort it out with her. Some of them grinned, eager for a chance to get their hands on some relics they could plunder. "Knowing Tomond, he's probably got something for the traps or curses those old things have to." That was enough to discourage further thoughts of incautiously looking around.

Their curiosity satisfied, they continued their march into the dark silence.

After walking for what seemed like an hour, eventually saw the top of the tunnel as it gradually sloped down. Even it had a mural, depicting a scene of some grand battle. Eventually, they came to what could be considered the threshold of this place as large stone columns intersected with the walls. The mural ended at the columns, though these ones were the most intricate, displaying some kind of conflict between three individuals against one. More importantly, they saw a dim flicker of light beyond the columns.

Holding out an arm, Rhasalis motioned for them to stop. They followed her silent command, though they went to the sides for what cover the columns could offer.

"Scouting. Stay," Rhasalis said to them briefly as she looked past the pillars, then went through the opening.

The columns were only the first of many, the two in front only to mark the entrance. High vaulted ceilings were between each set of four columns. Though the murals had ended, the artwork and detailed craftsmanship only seemed to intensify as the grooves in the columns weren't simple lines, but intricate patterns much like the ones outside, the floors tiled to form circles that connected the pillars. It didn't matter to Rhasalis aside from the tactical implications. The pillars could be used as cover to move her closer to the light, which she now could tell was coming from behind the silhouette of people and wagons, while remaining unseen if someone was looking her way.

Looking someone was. Guards were stationed at what looked to be a makeshift perimeter around the wagons that had been pushed to the other end of the chamber. Torches had been wedged into the crevices of the pillars, illuminating the area, though the guards had been placed a bit beyond the range of the light. It didn't hide them from Rhasalis' sight as she carefully pinpointed all the locations of those sentries. That didn't mean she wasn't also searching for her hatchmates or Tomond somewhere beyond them and found neither. The wagons had been set up in a semi-circle around a path that lead further into the mountain, the workers setting up an encampment for what looked to be a long stay. There were other passages around the chamber, but none as large as the one they had set up around. While the number of hostile warriors didn't concern her, the pair of ballista they had set up more than made up for it.

"Think they're still out there?" one of Tomond's working crew asked, his voice echoing through the hall.

Another worker set down a sack as they kept working. "How should I know? I'm more worried about if anything's still down here. You heard Tomond, this place is a prison or some such for a god. If three deities are keeping one locked up, I'll wager that they made up something awful nasty to keep guys like us away."

"Like traps? I hear Jacqueline's already going up ahead with them, clearing the way for us before we can get to work."

"Yeah traps, but I was thinking more like monsters and stuff. We're talking about deities here. Well, long gone deities, but you know what I'm talking about."

As interesting as the conversation was, Rhasalis kept more of her attention on the patrols of the sentries, though she wasn't the only one overhearing the two talk. If anything, she could see how it was unnerving them. She cursed the two silently, they were going to be more flighty and alert if they were watching for phantoms flitting in and out of sight. The phantoms might not exist, but she certainly did.

"You can't be serious."

"I'm only saying that we're not in the best of spots. Sure, we're in here, where they can't get to us, but it's like a siege, they'll try to wait us out. Of course, We've got," the worker hefted a sack, "a lot of food and water and they'd be waiting for us on the side of a lump of rock. With this much, I'd say we can hold out for a month. If he can get that little lizard to make us stuff to eat and drink as well, then a damn lot longer than that. I hear clerics and druids can do that. By the time we're done getting all we need from here, they'd be gone. There's no way they're going to be staying out there waiting for us that long, they'd get nothing from it."

_I'd wait for as long as I need to._Rhasalis crept around the very edge of the perimeter the sentries had made and hadn't found any holes to slip through. As she saw it, it looked as if she and the others were going to have to wait for a guard change so that they had time to settle their nerves, think themselves safe, and maybe slack off enough for her to get through. If she could free Serhis and Xet, she was perfectly fine with Tomond rotting down here, assuming she had to pass a chance to strike at him.

"Them being out there is good and fine. What's in here though? Do we really know?"

"Tomond's going to find out. He always finds out. He has setbacks, sure, like what happened with Jacqueline and those lost ones, and he still managed to get ahead with that."

"Poor souls. They had lots of energy, and all of it going the wrong way. Sure, the deities need to butt out, but they want to kill them all and that's just crazy. They don't even know what to do with themselves. What would happen if they did do just that? Absolutely nothing, they just want to destroy for the heck of it. Us, though, we know..."

Rhasalis shook her head in silence. They had traded one group of fanatics for another. Seeing no way through, she went back to the others waiting behind her. It looked as if they were going to have to wait for a chance to launch an attack.

As she got back, she saw a lot of assorted weapons at the ready. Seeing that it was her, they relaxed a little. "So what'd you see?" Keianc asked.

"They've set up a barricade using the wagons and have sentries posted near the outer edge. They think we're still outside, but Tomond isn't taking any chances and keeps them on guard anyway. I didn't see my hatchmates with them."

"What about Tomond? Is he there?"

Rhasalis shook her head. "There's a passage further on, past the place they're setting up camp. I think they went down there and took a few guards with them. Two of them."

"That's a little more in our favor. Not much though," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"So what're we going to do now?" one of the mercenaries looked around at the group. "Get the others and charge in?"

"I'm for bring the others, but attacking like that doesn't sound so good," said Baous. "We'd still be outnumbered."

"Pfft. Numbers don't mean anything if they all stand in front of me," Iskdiwercaesin grinned, showing off his teeth.

"We can't do that. They still have Serhis and Xet hostage, they'd threaten to kill them. I just need a chance to get past. I could thin them out a bit, but they'd know someone's in here with them when they see the wounds..." Rhasalis' voice trailed off.

"What? You've got an idea? Why are you looking at me like that?" Iskdiwercaesin asked, half curious and half aggravated for not knowing what was going through her head.

Setting down her pack, she took care not to make any noise as she searched through it and withdrew some of the alchemy supplies she had taken. Everyone else was now regarding at her with the same expression Iskdiwercaesin had as she took out two empty bottles. "I need you to fill these up to here."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sullenly walking among Tomond's company, Serhis and Xet couldn't have been more depressed. To have their hopes raised by an unexpected rescue, a hope they sustained as the others were plainly making ground. Only to have that chance cut off by an entire mountain.

They were elated that Rhasalis had managed not only to elude capture, she had freed the others, but their own fates seemed firmly sealed. Tomond had them watched closely, not trusting the kobolds to remain so placid after the run in outside. He did not accuse them of somehow having a hand in the platoon of mercenaries hounding them, however he was cautious about their brief moment of defiance.

As things stood, Serhis had no plans for acting up. They were effectively trapped inside with Tomond and the rest of his group, escape wasn't possible, not when the sliver of light that shown down the path began to seal up.

Xet was silently condemning himself once more, ashamed of his inability to act and again being a burden to his hatchmate. Being used as nothing more than a piece to compel Serhis to act disgusted himself. He put most of the blame on Tomond, yet he still felt in a small way at fault for his lack of power. "So where are we going now?" he asked in a tired voice.

Tomond did not reply, nor did any of the others as they went ever downwards. It seemed that with their cooperation in question, the former cleric wasn't as vocal, Xet hanged his head and sighed. It wasn't as if there was much to see ahead anyway. Jacqueline ranged ahead of the team, roughly ten meters. So far, they hadn't encountered any disagreeable circumstances like a hail of arrows coming from down the hall or a mummy to come out and greet them with a smothering hug and chokehold. That hadn't stopped them from progressing slowly and soon they found reason why.

Stopping suddenly and holding up her hand, Jacqueline's actions made the others slow to a halt a distance behind her. "A glyph in the stonework. A very powerful one, triggering it means death to those that cross it."

Having not expected anything less, Tomond waved for the guards to move the kobolds back as he walked forward. Jacqueline, rather than trying to circumvent the symbol as they expected, walked several steps back as Tomond went past. In complete disregard for the ominous warning that she said, he stood directly next to the symbol as it suddenly flared with light at his presence. Many would have died in the lethal light, yet Tomond stood in full view of the etched magic. Crouching even closer to the symbol, he placed a finger onto it, the light dying as quickly as those that it had meant to kill, leaving only the light of their torches to fill the empty corridor. "Continue," he said to the others, the guards pushing the kobolds forward as Jacqueline went to the front once more.

Looking down as the crossed over where the symbol had been, Serhis and Xet looked down and found that the magic sigil had vanished at Tomond's touch. They had no reason to doubt Nadia's word about Tomond being immune to magic, but such a clear display confirmed it.

The traps they came across only grew in number from there and with varying lethality. Some were simple pitfalls, others that rained fire from all around, and one that could drive any sapient mind insane. Jacqueline disarmed the mechanical ones while Tomond either tripped those that relied on magic on purpose, either expending the one shot spell or actively seeking its source if it lasted longer and disrupting it, when at last they saw something other than the long bleak hallway. The front area seemed to have been an antechamber for the much larger one they walked into and with several key differences. The antechamber was square and had pillars, but this area was strange to even look at and it took them aback as they entered the room. It had a tetrahedron geometry, a type of pyramid with four sides instead of five with the base also being a triangle instead of a square, though the point went downward instead of up. They had emerged from the middle of one of the sides onto a walkway with no rail or guard, allowing an unobstructed view if anyone cared to walked to the edge and ignore the sensation of unease when next to a long plummet and slide. And it would be a very, very long plummet, at least until the next walkway underneath. The place was gigantic, an entire galleon wouldn't have gotten stuck on the level they were on and it wouldn't have reached the walkway on the other side by a fair amount. Serhis and Xet then realized that they could even see a walkway and not because of the light the torches. A faint blue and green glow emanated from down below, at the very bottom and apex of the sloping walls.

"That's where Vocos is," Serhis guessed.

Tomond nodded as he looked downward. There seemed to be no stairs or ladders that led up or down, but each of the other sides also had an opening like the one they had come from. No one could see anything up above due to the walkways, the ones below could be spotted and each of them also had three entrances. Serhis could count five or six levels before the very bottom, being the only other one who dared to go onto the lip of the ledge. Having wings helped, at least for the moment before he remembered his wings were wrapped up. As he looked down, he could see more of those lines in the walls, though far more intricate than the ones outside as they looped, intertwined, ended at certain points in certain shapes like circles, squares, stars, and other strange forms. At the corners of the walls, there were sections of the walkway that were missing, as if the corners acted as a sluice. Looking behind, he saw one of those weird blobs that the lines ended at and stepped closer to look, only to jump back and almost go tumbling down. An almost lifelike effigy of a bipedal figure was set into a recess of the wall, elven by the looks of him. The others also saw the statue, they soon found even more of them spread out among the wall, each of different size, shape, species, and gender.

"I'd have to assume that to go up or down, we'd have to go through one of those," Jacqueline indicated the entrances at the other ends of the walkway.

"Down we go," Xet muttered to himself.

"Not now," Tomond said, Xet having not been awake when he demonstrated his sharp hearing in the cells. "Jacqueline, we go up. Stay alert."

In all honesty, Serhis expected at least some form of trouble as they went through the eerie structure. More traps, a barrier that blocked their path, even the statues coming alive to destroy the intruders of the secluded sanctum. His expectations weren't met as they reached the other doorway. As Jacqueline had surmised, there were more passages through them, though it took them a while to find the one that lead up. Most of what they saw where empty chambers, rooms with altars, or what looked to be living areas. Serhis even thought he saw the remains of an underground garden as they passed by another door. He began to understand that this place was more than a prison.

When they found the stairway up, they found an easily repeatable pattern to the design of the place. After climbing to the top, Serhis and Xet had no idea what to expect, or more accurately, what Tomond expected of them. The top layer of the structure wasn't much different from those down below, though the exception made up for that. At the upper edges and corners, there were full blown temples, each dedicated to one the deities that had sealed Vocos. Entering one of them, they found yet another altar at the center, though this one had the symbol of one of the long forgotten deities emblazed on each of its sides.

"Xet, your spells are required here," Tomond took out the key stone again, then motioned to the guards. Each of them took a step away from the other, taking the kobolds with them so that they were separated as Tomond approached the sorcerer. "I will have you unbound so that you can use your magic, but only if you fully cooperate."

Knowing the unsaid condition if he didn't, Xet glanced towards Serhis for a little while before he nodded. The man holding him untied his hands, Xet flexing his claws after several days of poor circulation. The key stone was placed in his claws as they opened.

"Go towards the altar with it held in front of you. Stand in front the altar and with the stone directed towards the symbol, cast any spell of destruction," said Tomond.

Holding the stone, Xet examined the thing closely. The consequences of what he was about to do was unknown. What would happen if he didn't was. As he stood in front of the altar, Xet only hoped that whatever he did was as Tomond commanded, but the outcome wasn't what the man had planned. Using a magic missile, Xet saw the stone glow, if darkness could glow, before his spell went through it and hit the altar. It shattered. Though the spell wasn't exactly weak, there was no way it could have caused the amount of damage that left Xet stunned in front of the broken stone.

"Give the stone to Serhis," Tomond directed Xet. "Serhis, go towards the altar in the same manner he did, but use a healing spell this time."

Serhis took the stone and repeated what Xet had done, using the healing spell on the altar. He didn't expect much, curing spells only worked on living tissue, barring the exception of undead flesh which is destroyed instead. However, he knew Tomond had something in mind. The stone turned red in his claws as he cast the spell and though the altar didn't do anything quite as spectacular as reform itself, the area around them glowed in the stone's light as something... broke. Serhis couldn't explain it, the sensation was too alien, but he had felt something in the air change. He wasn't the only one, Xet and the guards also seemed to react to the unnerving feeling. Jacqueline masked her own discomfort and only Tomond seemed to have been completely unaffected.

The area around the altar started to glow with the same light at the bottom of the complex, if not stronger. An irritation at the soles of Serhis' feet made him want to move, like he was standing on a smoldering coal. When he stepped aside, he saw that he had been standing on one of the lines. Whatever they did, it was working

"We move on." His objective done here, Tomond directed the others to the other temples and with each of those, they repeated the same process. With each crumbling altar, the unnerving sensation only grew.

With the third and last one destroyed, Serhis felt what could only be described as a prickling sensation on his scales. "What is happening?"

"One of the barriers around Vocos' cage has fallen and all the excess energy that would normally have been gathered by the altars is draining out. We'll head back now, the others are needed to examine this," said Tomond.

The trip back down was as uneventful as the one up, though much faster now that they knew the way and had disarmed the traps. The encampment the others had set up was now firmly established, tents and bedrolls laid out and clear areas where cooking fires and waste disposal were set aside.

"Anything to report?" Tomond asked one of the guards as they approached from the tunnel.

The man almost jumped from Tomond's voice before he composed himself, or at least tried to. "Nothing... so far."

"Explain."

"Well, we've been hearing these... sounds," the man replied sheepishly. The others in the encampment also acted nervously, their attention directed at the shadows beyond the light of the fires.

"That's not very descriptive," Tomond stated.

"We can't really describe it at all. It's like, a groan, but long, rumbling, and very quiet like. You can barely hear it at all when it's quiet."

"Doesn't sound like any damn thing I've heard before, not below ground. Not even above the surface really," one of the dwarven workers commented.

Tomond took a moment to hear, though nothing could be heard then. "Have you tried to find out what it is?"

"No, not yet. It's hard enough to tell where it comes from, but we think it's coming from one of the side tunnels."

"Hmm. I'll see to that soon enough. For now, Jacobs, Tarry, Sproutsvin, get your teams ready, the area ahead is set up as we discussed. It's as our research predicted, so we have the right gear on hand. We've disabled the hazards up ahead, but each team will have a guard with them." Three of the scholars began gathering their people, as well as things like parchment, pens, books, and a few devices used in the research of magic. As the group left, Serhis and Xet were herded towards one of the wagons. Without much delay, there were again tied up and left sitting on the wooden seats. "I do not apologize for my precautions," said Tomond. "There may come a time that you earn my trust and I'll allow you to remain unbound, but as things stand, I must keep you here."

"We can't earn your trust much by doing nothing," Serhis grumbled.

"All that is required is your compliance. As long as you don't try to attempt a futile escape and actively help my researchers, then maybe that will be enough."

Somehow, Serhis seriously doubted that. "You won't be truly comfortable with us, will you? Not unless I renounce my loyalties to Bahamut."

"It would be preferred," Tomond simply stated as he turned away to follow the researchers. Sighing in defeat and with nothing else to do, the two hatchmates leaned against one another and trying to find some uneasy sleep. They had almost dozed off when the screaming jolted them awake.

"Aaaaaahahh!!! Burns! My eyes! Aaah!" The yells of a sentry at the perimeter startled everyone, causing the workers to get away from there while the other guards came rushing to his assistance. The elf was thrashing on the ground as if it would put out the fire he felt on his skin, something that wasn't helped any by a puddle of some kind of green liquid that kept spreading as he rolled around.

Two of the guards pulled him out of the stuff, one of them hissing in pain as his ungloved hands touched some of the elf's clothes that had been covered. "Ow dammit! What is this?"

"Ugh. This stuff stinks," the dwarf took off the gloves he had been wearing, worried that the acid would eat through it. "Where the hell did it come from is what I'm more worried about. Keep a look out everyone!"

Someone grabbed a bullseye lantern and lit it, shining a clear light out of the opening and into the darkness beyond the perimeter. Sweeping the light back and forth, nothing could be seen in the open, but that didn't count for much with all the columns that blocked their view.

Serhis and Xet also kept a watchful eye around themselves. The guards still maintained their positions with the exception for those actively searching, but the kobolds didn't want any monster that was in there with them coming close. Especially when they were trussed up and with no chance of getting away before turning into snacks.

"I don't see anything," said one of the guards. "There's nothing out there." "Of course there's something out there! Something did this to Adwan." "You know what I mean." "Shut up! I hear something."

A low, undulating sound that could be considered a growl echoed through the antechamber. It stopped for a few seconds, then started again, slightly louder and faster.

"Damn it, what's making that sound?" The man holding the lantern kept moving the lantern, casting light and shadow all over the place.

"There, I saw something!" a worker pointed out as the light passed over the entrance to a side passage. Holding the light on the far entrance, everyone looked on, both hoping and dreading to see what was there. When the worker yelled, the sound stopped.

"You sure you saw something?"

"I... think I might have."

"It wasn't the shadows moving, right? What'd you exactly see?"

"I'm not sure," the worker began to sound doubtful now that he was pressed for details.

The dwarf guard sighed as the wounded elf was taken away for treatment and then turned to the kobolds. "You!" he directed his voice at Serhis. "You're a cleric, heal him!"

Serhis shook his head. "I can't."

"Don't screw around with me! I want him healed-"

"I really mean I can't. Need symbol to heal," Serhis explained.

Looking none too pleased with it, the dwarf called two of the other guards that weren't assigned to sentry duty. "You and you, get over to Tomond and tell him what happened. Also, bring the kobold's symbol back with you." As the duo went down towards the main chamber, the other guards kept on alert now that their fears were confirmed. Something was down here with them. Pointing the lantern at the doorway, most of their eyes were directed there as well instead of where they normally kept watch.

One of the gnoll guards gripped his axe in agitation. "We shouldn't just sit here waiting for the thing. I saw we go in there and rip it apart."

"In a moment. Tomond's got to know about this first. We don't know where that goes and I'm not in the mood for chasing whatever's out there blind, getting lost and having it come after us. When we go after it, we're doing it smart."

After several long tense minutes, the two that were sent came back, one of them holding the Star. "Tomond's giving us the go ahead to find whatever it is and that we're not to compromise the safety of the camp, so no more than half go out."

"Then we send half!" the gnoll declared. "We hunt whatever it is down and kill it now, I don't want it escaping to come back and pick us off one by one!"

"I'm the one in charge of security here!" the dwarf replied, daring the gnoll to make an issue of it. The gnoll said nothing, but he didn't exactly back down. "Alright, here's how we're doing this. I'm sending a third of us to go monster hunting. That's more than enough to kill some acid spewing troglodyte and if there's more than one, then you're to come back, not walking into some nest and giving mommy a break from hunting," he commanded the gnoll.

"What'll happen after that? We hide in a corner?" the gnoll said contemptuously.

"Then we bring back the guys with the bookworms so we'll have more swords to stick the things with. Go on, I thought you wanted to kill it," the dwarf pointed at the illuminated corridor. Baring his teeth, the gnoll growled as he and the others went out. "Insubordinate fur bag," the dwarf muttered as he turned his attention to the kobolds. "Get to healing," he put the Star in Serhis' lap as two others brought the wounded and delirious elf close. After a while, nothing happened. "What are you waiting for?"

"I can't heal with no hands," Serhis stated. Grumbling, the dwarf untied Serhis' arms, but not his legs. Picking up the Star, Serhis hold it firmly in one claw while placing the other on the elf's face. He wasn't in danger of dying unless some extreme shock set in, but the pain had effectively disabled him, so Serhis used one of his slower acting healing spells.

The guards noticed that not all was well when Serhis lifted his claw from the burned face. "Hey, no slacking off!" one of them shouted.

"He healing, wait," said Serhis. As they watched, the sore and open wounds began to close. "More healed than with faster spell."

"Fine. Give me that," the dwarf held out his hand for Serhis' Star.

"He can't, not if the elf needs a full recovery," Xet said out loud, his words translated by his usual method. That said, they still saw his mouth moving and the sound coming from it looking off as his voice was translated from Draconic to Common as he was talking. It helped distract from the bold faced lie. Once the spell was active, Serhis didn't require the symbol. "He said he also got some in his eyes, so he's going to need to keep his full attention."

"Okay, okay, but you're handing that over when you're done. I thought you couldn't talk," the dwarf said the last part offhandedly as he turned around and got the guards to keep watching the outside again instead of looking in.

Holding the Star as if it would still matter, Serhis gave a curious look at Xet. "Why did you say that?" he asked in Kobold.

"Why not? If we can pull one over them for a little while, I'm all for it."

"It's working for now, but when Tomond comes back, he's going to know you lied," said Serhis.

Xet shrugged impassively. "At least you still have your hands untied and I'm much more comfortable with you with your symbol around than worrying about what Tomond would do if whatever it is comes back. Say, what do you think it is?"

"If I had to guess, which I do, I'd say it's some kind of undead or some sort of creature that can go into deep hibernation. That's the only way I'd think anything could survive in this place, or not exactly survive if it's undead. There's nothing to eat, I haven't seen a single plant or fungi, not unless another of those gardens I saw somehow are still growing. Even then, we should have seen insects."

"A nice educated guess," a muted, familiar voice said in the forgotten Kobold language. "But you're wrong this time."

Serhis and Xet stared at one another, unsure if what they heard was real or their minds were just cracking under the pressure and telling them what they most wanted to hear. "Rhasalis?!" Both of them said, barely able to contain their voices so that the guards couldn't hear.

"Quiet!" her hushed urging came from below them, underneath the wagon.

"Sorry. How did you get in?" Xet asked.

"If you mean into this place, we ran like crazy when we saw the crevice closing. If you mean how I got past the guards, I had to wait for them to keep staring at you when you started healing. Speak as if you're talking to each other, not the wagon."

"You said we, so the others are with you?" Serhis restrained his voice as his excitement rose, keeping his head up to look at Xet, all the while making as if he was concentrating on healing the elf between them. To their relief, the elf had fallen asleep from exhaustion now that the pain had passed.

"Baous and Iskdiwercaesin, yes. Keianc too, and a few of his mercenaries that had come with us to catch Tomond. Most of them couldn't get inside in time though, only eight were fast enough, so we're outnumbered."

"Not so much anymore," Xet counted the number of armed guards, which came up to fourteen, assuming the workers, drivers, and others didn't pick up a weapon. "Since you said that we're wrong, I'm guessing that this is your handiwork," he poked Serhis' patient with his elbow before he realized that Rhasalis couldn't see them.

"I had some help from Iskdiwercaesin. Namely a lot of acid with a few things mixed in," she understood what he was indicating anyway. "That was easy. What wasn't was climbing up that pillar to spill it and jumping to another one before they got a light on me."

"So if there aren't any monsters in here, what was that we heard? I've never heard anything like that, Baous and Iskdiwercaesin couldn't have made that noise," said Serhis.

"Wrong again... well, more like you're partially right. Iskdiwercaesin put his voice through a ventriloquism spell to get it sounding like that and the echoes from the halls helped."

"Since it's ventriloquism, they're going down the wrong hall," Serhis thought through what had ran through his hatchmate's mind.

"What happens now? There's a lot of guards that can see you if you come out from under the wagon. We can't run, our arms and legs are tied up. And Serhis' wings," Xet added.

"I'll cut you loose soon, after I give the signal to the others."

There was a moment of silence from underneath them and they stained to hear in the chance that she was speaking so softly that they couldn't make out what she had said. After a few seconds, Serhis thought he needed her to repeat what she said. "What signal? Rhasalis? Rhasalis?"

When no answer came, they had the presence of mind not to say anything more. Still, they would very much would have liked to know what the signal was or what it was supposed to signal. For a tense minute, they waited and listened, not even know if Rhasalis was still hiding underneath the wagon or had slipped away when no one was looking.

When they began to hear the sound of drops hitting the floor echoing through the open antechamber, they could guess it was the latter.

"Where's that noise coming from?" a guard further off asked, looking around wildly.

As if in answer, the singular drops became a small splash as a glob of acid dropped from the ceiling, most of it landing in the main campfire, extinguishing it and making the people who had been warming themselves next to it yell and curse as the stinging droplets sprayed and bounced. Before anyone could yell "Look up!" another sound not unlike small pebbles skittering on stone was heard from an outlying column further out, going down and away from the camp.

"Get me another lantern!" the dwarf yelled, trying to retain order and stem a panic. He was somewhat successful.

"There are more of those things!" One of the wagon drivers said frantically as he ran towards the light of another camp fire, his eyes anxiously looked up into the gloom above.

"Calm down! Get this thing lit." Closing the hatch of another bullseye lantern, the light emitted was pointed towards the center of the antechamber where they last heard noise.

"Where'd it come from? I was looking at the lit entrance, I was looking," the sentry said with certainty.

Almost like an answer, an undulating sound of something living in the tunnels came from the entrance opposite of the lit one. Serhis and Xet did what they could to suppress their grins at the unnerved expressions of their captors and took on an appropriate look of unease. That was if any of them could read a kobold's facial expression.

"This is bullshit," the dwarf cussed as he set down the lantern to cover the other entrance. "I am not in the mood for more of this crap."

"What do we do? Send more guys to hunt these things?" one of the guards asked.

"Damn right we are, I'm not sharing this cave with something that's planning to make dinner out of us," the dwarf spat on the ground. "But I'm not risking the security of the camp to do it. First off, I'm not moving any of us until the other group gets back, then I'm sending a runner to Tomond. If he knows what good for him, he's going to put a halt to sending out those researchers and putting the guards he has with them onto the hunt. Only when whatever those things are all good and dead am I going to be comfortable."

Serhis and Xet glanced at each other, both knowing what the other thought. Whatever Rhasalis had been planning, that wasn't supposed to be how it went. This was only going to strengthen the main camp, not weaken it.

Iskdiwercaesin thought so as well as he came charging into the light, letting loose a nerve wracking battle cry as well as a spray of acid towards three of the guards at the very edge of his range. His surprise attack worked as most of the guards were caught frozen for a moment, looking dumbfounded as they assaulted them from their flank which by any normal circumstance would have been their front. With their attention diverted to the side passages, they had thought the only exit was secure.

The green dragon wasn't alone in his charge, Baous was beside him with his shield before him and a rush of mercenaries were behind him, shouting battle cries with equal volume, thought their equally acidic swearing and insults didn't have the same results that Iskdiwercaesin's had.

"Form up! Form up!" the dwarf attempted to rally the guards, but it was for naught. They were too close and the sentries' and ballistae's lines of fire was focused in the wrong directions, but they still tried their best as the attack group went headlong into the camp. Serhis and Xet had been so elated to see their friends that they hadn't noticed Rhasalis until she landed in the wagon from up above.

"That didn't work out like I thought," said Rhasalis as she cut the ropes off her hatchmates as she took a glance at the mess of combat, the noise of battle resounding through the place so much that it sounded as if it was two full armies clashing with each other than two groups in a skirmish.

"Then let's make this work," Xet grunted as he stood up and flexed his arms, finally able to move freely without having to worry about someone lopping his head off at a hint of an arcane gesture.

Feeling the ropes slip from his legs and wings, Serhis stood up in the wagon with renewed resolve, eager to share that sense of elation. Holding the Star high, he let loose a wave of energy that enhanced his friends and allies, letting them fight with greater strength and speed like he had before in mass engagements.

The abruptness of the attack and the poor position was too much for the defenders. "Pull back!" the dwarf shouted as he attempted an organized withdrawal. As the guards ran, the mercenaries chased them as far as the entrance to the passageway that led into the main chamber. All told, the assault had left two of the mercenaries injured, one badly enough that it left him on the ground and another walking wounded while Tomond's company had been reduced by eight, six of those badly injured while two had surrendered when their line of retreat had been cut off. As for Tomond's worker, all of them had managed to escape.

"Much better." Appreciating their better odds, Keianc had the prisoners round up and placed in the same wagon Serhis and Xet had been stuck in. The dragonwrought kobold was more than happy to show his appreciation for the rescue by fixing up the cuts and bruises they all had after administering some more intensive healing spells to the two wounded mercenaries. Even though they had been his captors until scarcely a minute ago, he wasn't about to let anyone die from exsanguination and shock, though using more conventional methods.

"Am I ever glad to see all of you!" Serhis said as he and Xet gleefully gave their friends a hug.

"Yeah, don't get all mushy on me," Iskdiwercaesin said awkwardly as he pried the pair of kobolds from each of his arms.

"The both of you aren't hurt yourselves?" Baous asked as he gave them a look over.

"A few bumps and rope burned wrists, nothing to complain about," Serhis answered as he looked to Keianc. "I suppose I have you to thank for the help. I guess your House provided the ship too, I owe you a debt of gratitude."

"Ahem," Iskdiwercaesin drew his attention. "Actually, that ship's mine. Remember the one that we faced off against on the way to Jiak? I bought it after the repairs were done."

"Wow. You bought a ship to rescue us? Well, if simple gratitude isn't enough, I could give you some of my money to help cover the costs. Either way, you and everyone else has my most heartfelt thanks," said Serhis.

Serhis saw how Iskdiwercaesin seemed to become more uncomfortable at his words as well as how Baous and Rhasalis were looking at the dragon with unhappy looks. "About that..." Iskdiwercaesin began to speak, something clearly bothering him. It bothered Serhis and Xet too, Iskdiwercaesin never was this bothered.

"Don't you have something more to say?" Baous glared.

Iskdiwercaesin's expression changed quickly again, leaving the two newly freed kobolds confused about what had happened. "I'll get to that soon," Iskdiwercaesin snapped, "but first, I'd be more concerned about the ones that got away, as well as the ones that went down that path," he tilted his head at the first lantern lit entrance. "Sound carries so much in here that bunch is probably heading back here right now."

"We've got that problem solved," Keianc pointed towards the ballista still aimed in its direction, one of the human mercenaries having gotten behind it and had his hand on the trigger. "That way's good and covered, that is if that passage doesn't loop around to the other one."

"I can fix that." Searching around, Serhis found his belongings as well as Xet's tucked away in another wagon. Taking out a few snares, he placed them along the length of the passage before quickly coming back to the camp.

"There's no way they're getting out way, at least not unscathed," said Xet.

"That sounds great, except we've got the same problem. How the in the world are we supposed to get out of this... whatever this place is," said Keianc.

"We're at the site of an ancient battleground, where both mortals and deities fought," Serhis felt there was no harm in telling the gnoll and his mercenaries that much. "This place was meant as a focal point for those deities' powers and was fortified to protect it, so you could call this place a citadel. As for leaving..." Serhis turned his eyes towards the way to the main chamber. Towards where the guards retreated and where Tomond still was. "We need Tomond's key stone. It's what allowed him to open the rift in the mountain and made the road that led up there," he explained to the mercenaries.

"So we've got to chase him through this wonderful place. How nice," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"Serhis and I have been through part of it, so we're not completely lost if we go in," said Xet. "We don't have much of a choice, it's the only way to open the rift again. Aside from digging through several tens of meters of solid rock."

"Serhis has his pickaxe and ditherbombs," Iskdiwercaesin pointed out.

Rhasalis shook her head. "It won't be enough. We'd clear maybe three meters with the ditherbombs, five if we're lucky. Or the mixtures would be off and we'd barely get one. It wouldn't be anywhere close to enough anyway, not from the thickness that I saw."

"So we're still in a bad position," Keianc growled. "We all can't go chasing after Tomond, not with that group still back there. If we try it, they'll hit us while we're in the tunnels, even if they don't know what's going on. When the guys up front will hear the fighting and come at us that way, that's it."

"I'm going to have to say the best way to do this is for you and the others to stay here and guard the area," Baous said to Keianc and the others of Ihthei, "while we go get the key."

"Best way? I'd say it's the only way not to lose horribly," Keianc agreed. "Besides, it's always a good idea to keep a line of retreat."

The kobolds nodded as one, their own personal experiences more than justifying that statement. "We wouldn't have to fight all of Tomond's people either, we're only after him and the key," Rhasalis pointed out.

"It's not going to be as easy as that, it's going to be hard to navigate the area ahead," said Xet.

"Why, it's a maze?" Iskdiwercaesin asked.

"Nope, more like the opposite. It's open, very, very open, with limited ways to move." As Xet explained the layout of the chamber ahead, Serhis felt something was underfoot. Literally. Raising a clawed foot, he saw that he had been standing on one of the lines again and was about to simply step away before he saw something drip from his toe claw. Blood.

"Gah!" Serhis jumped back, making everyone else raise their weapons at the sudden shout.

"What is it?" Baous asked, trotting over to him.

"Blood... it's not mine though," Serhis inspected himself and found no injuries to speak of. When he looked down at the line again, he saw that a trickle of blood laid in the crevice. He was about to say that it was nothing before he noticed how long the line was. "Where's it coming from?" he said his thoughts aloud, following the trail.

He thought it was simply from a puddle that was draining as a consequence of the battle. He was wrong as he saw that the trail led to where the guards had been tied up and placed under guard. To his horror, Serhis looked at the fresh bandages he had placed on those wounds and found all of them slick with blood, the wrapping completely soaked all around as the cuts bleed freely as if the bandages weren't even there.

"What's going on?" the mercenary guarding them asked.

"Oh. Oh no," Serhis hadn't considered a consequence of the fighting. He still didn't know the full extent actually, but as things stood it still was nothing good. "Get them up, I need to use something more extensive than just bandages," Serhis told him and the others.

"Serhis, you're thinking what I'm thinking?" Xet asked as he looked at the wound that Serhis uncovered. Serhis nodded as he inspected the cut while Xet looked at another. "This one's the same. This place is making them bleed out," Xet explained how one of the deities that had made the citadel used blood magic to the others. "Looks like it's still working, even inside."

"The enchantment seems to stop natural healing, not ones from spells. Otherwise everyone else would have noticed something." Serhis finished ministering to the last of the captured guards. He had only used the most minor of healing spells, but it was enough to seal the weeping cuts on their bodies, though all of them were pale and had an increased heart rate.

"Why do we care? That only means we should get out of this creepy place faster," said Keianc.

"If the enchantment is still active, that means whatever the blood is supposed to power could be active too," Iskdiwercaesin answered for the kobolds. "Drow, remember," he replied to their inquisitive looks. No sooner had Iskdiwercaesin said that did a sharp yell echo down the main passage. Directly down where they had to go.

Looking back down, Serhis saw where the blood was going, and where there was none left. With the fresh source sealed, the ground next to the guards was bereft of the sanguine liquid as it visibly moved through the ground lines and towards the lower areas. "This changes a few things," said Keianc as they still heard the commotion.

"It doesn't change too much. We still have to go in there," Baous hefted his war hammer as he stood at the front of the group. "Everyone else ready?" he turned his head to look at the others. Everyone nodded as they formed up behind him.

"We'll stay and keep your tails covered," Keianc grunted as he helped move the other ballista that had been pointed towards the trapped corridor, clearly planning to direct it towards where they were going.

"You had better not shoot that until we're out of the way. I've seen the range on those things," Iskdiwercaesin's parting words weren't most encouraging, but since it was in the back of everyone's mind, he couldn't really be blamed for that. As things stood, they might need that ballista on the way back up. Going down the corridor, the kobolds and dragon felt tense as they continued to hear the distorted sounds of something going wrong further ahead.

"Did you find out what Tomond was planning to do with Vocos?" Baous asked, now that the mercenaries weren't there.

"Nothing specific, as far as I could tell he was here to research what he could do. We did learn something about himself personally and that he would have sacrificed us for his goals." Giving an extremely shorted version of Tomond's ambitions and scope, Serhis was hesitant to share what the former cleric had said to him personally too. He might be skipping those parts, but that only made him think about it more.

_In serving Bahamut, what did I want to do?_Serhis' thoughts weren't conflicted. To have conflict, there must be something to resist. He could barely tell what he was fighting against, it was like confronting a void inside himself. Tomond had made Serhis aware of how blindly he followed his god and the kobold was never one to rely on zealotry in lieu of truth. The truth was he had to come up with an answer on his own, about how he saw his place in the conflicts of mortals and deities.

"Sounds like we don't have to worry about him using this place as a form of weapon against us," Rhasalis said to Serhis as he finished recounting what he could.

Baous stopped in front of them so suddenly the others almost ran into him. "I can worry about that, right?" he pointed ahead towards the opening to the main chamber.

Standing alone and framed by the eerie light, a bipedal figure stood in their path. Looking closer, Serhis recognized it as one of the statues that he had seen lining the walls of the cavernous space, but this time, they moved with a silent and unnatural will. At the top of its head was a splash of red that ran down the length of the statue like crimson ribbons, its face sprayed with the liquid as some dribble down its eyes like it wept blood. The roughhewn stone statue turned its head as it noticed the intruders of its sanctum and it was walked towards them. As it did, its mouth opened, unleashing a fetid stink from inside as more blood trickled from its jagged lips.

"Okay, I'll admit it. That's kind of creepy," Iskdiwercaesin made a small admission. "Hey Baous, go up and smash it."

"Me? You're the one that breathes acid, you don't have to go near it."

"Just blast it!" Xet made the first move as he stepped to the side and flung bolts of energy into the thing. The bolts impacted as expected. The statue chipped and cracked as expected. That exposed decaying skin underneath the coat of earth as pieces of its chest and death mask fell away which was not expected, exposing a skull with its dried skin stretched tight around with only the places where blood had seeped in through the stone, making the flesh look alive.

They all had faced undead before, but the horror that approached was something new and grotesque, making them shudder in revulsion (with the possible exception of Xet).

"Gross!" Iskdiwercaesin exclaimed before he inhaled, then drenched the thing in acid. Its stone façade chipped and cracked as it dissolved, then fell to pieces as Baous did a cross swing, smashing it into the wall.

"Uhurp!" Baous clasped his muzzle. "Ugh, I think I'm going to be sick..."

"I know that thing's disgusting, but it's not that bad," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"No, no the smell. It's awful, getting close to it is terrible, even if I'm breathing through my mouth. I don't want to smell that again."

"You're going to have some trouble with that."

Baous gave Iskdiwercaesin a confused look and saw the dragon pointing behind him, and then he turned around. Three more statues, each with some difference from the other in height, build, or shape, they all shared the anointment of blood and the foul stench emitted from their gapping mouths.

"Away!" Serhis held up the Star, filling the area around him with the holy power of Bahamut. The undead things shuddered as the negative energy powering them conflicted with the holy energy, forcing them to turn around and flee from them. Serhis had channeled so much power that one of them crumbled to dust while the others ran.

As they looked at the pile of unmoving undead, they looked at one another. "What are those things? They're undead, but I've never seen anything like them," said Rhasalis.

"They're some ancient form of undead, made by a deity to be guardians for this place," Serhis guessed. "Baous is right, don't get close to them. Something about their smell makes you sick. I don't even want to know what happens if they get that close."

An anguished scream echoed from ahead, telling them that whatever it was, it was nothing good. "Sounds like Tomond's people are getting into a lot of trouble. Not that I'm opposed to that," said Iskdiwercaesin.

"I am. These things weren't moving when we came through here," said Xet. "I think it's the blood that makes them move."

"The more people they wound and kill, the more awaken," Serhis shuddered at the possibility. They must have passed hundreds of those things in the alcoves and hallways. From the sounds of battle, a life had been taken and was about to be passed out to the slumbering guardians. "We have to find Tomond right now."

"I'm for that. We grab the key and get out of here," said Iskdiwercaesin as they moved onto the platform of the main chamber. Now it was the others turn to stand in awe of the immense size of Vocos' prison. More things had changed since the last time Serhis and Xet had left, aside from the moving statuary. The corners of the room had what seemed like a hazy mist flowing upwards from down below, into the temples at the points of the triangle. Looking down, they could see the origin of the stuff, the same place where the light was shining. "I'm guessing he's all the way down there."

"I think so too. Tomond said he was going to keep exploring the area," said Serhis. Looking up, he saw a running battle between what was left of Tomond's guards and the undead guardians.

Counting their numbers, Rhasalis sighed a little in relief. "They haven't lost too many people."

"That's not going to last long," said Xet. "The guards are all that are holding them back. If they reach all the workers and the researchers..."

"It will be a literal bloodbath," Serhis saw the disaster that would create. "We can't let that happen."

"What about Tomond? It looks like he's doing something down there," Baous pointed out. "I don't think that's a good sign," he pointed at all the walls. Now not only blood filled the lines, there was something else. After trying to tell what it was, he saw what was rising. "Sand?"

"This is a prison for a god of the desert. Don't ask me what the sand means, I've got little knowledge about theology and how their powers work," Iskdiwercaesin, as well as the others, gave Serhis an inquisitive look.

Serhis shook his head, the odd like making his golden scales shimmer with a strange glow. "I don't know what it does, but I know one thing it could mean. Tomond has done something and I doubt it will do us any good. We have to get to him quickly."

"Now I see water coming up," Baous commented as kept looking down in the vain hope of spotting Tomond and perhaps having Rhasalis snipe him. "... and more of those undead things in statues are coming out of the walls."

On the levels beneath them, scores of the walking dead touched by the lifeblood of others walked out of their alcoves and began moving towards the hallways, towards the stairwells that led to the other levels. Not all of the statues had become active, yet they all knew that could change uncomfortably quickly.

"We're going to have to get through them before we can reach Tomond. I could fly down, but that means I'm facing him alone and has Jacqueline with him," said Serhis.

"Then we better move now. We've got more problems if we don't," Iskdiwercaesin pointed at an opposing wall. The guardians that Serhis had turned away were coming back through the other entrances and they had more among them.

As Serhis turned to go towards the other entrance that would take them lower, he went forward several steps, then stopped when he noticed something was off. Turning around, the others were coming with him, except Xet. Standing at the same spot, his hatchmate took out a wand and had turned to face the oncoming undead. "Xet, come on! We can deal with them when we come back up, after we've stopped Tomond."

"You can keep going, I can fight these ones," Xet stood his ground despite Serhis' call and the approaching enemy. "My magic is useless against him, we both know that. At least yours can heal and aid the others. I can still fight these things and keep them off your backs and if I've still got something left in me, I'm going to go up and keep fighting, I have to make sure that the ones above us don't kill the rest of Tomond's people or this place is going to be covered in blood and undead statues."

"But... okay." As much as Serhis wanted his hatchmate to stay close, Xet was right. "Stay safe."

"I'll make sure of that." To both Serhis' and Xet's surprise, Rhasalis went to Xet and stood in front of him. "They'll have to get past me first. I'm not going to leave anyone alone, so don't tell me to go with the others," she cut off any of Xet's objections.

"Whoa, wait. How're you going to damage those things? That rapier of yours is only going to annoy them that much when you stab them," Baous asked.

"I've learned my lesson from my last fight with them. I'm properly prepared," Rhasalis assured not only him, but the others as she held up a crystal from her pouch, much like the same one that Serhis had given Baous in Lehaskeral and that he still had attached to the top of his war hammer. "Now hurry!"

Serhis hesitated only for a moment, then gripped the holy symbol in his claws as he gave them all what protection Bahamut could offer. "We'll come back as soon as we can!" Serhis said as he, Baous, and Iskdiwercaesin turned to run deeper into the prison.

As the two hatchmates gave one last glance to them leaving, they got ready to face the oncoming horde. "Ready to do some damage?" Rhasalis asked as she readied her blades.

"I'm ready to make sure they don't have a chance to do their own," Xet replied, the spark of flames in his hands ready to fly.

Counting the approaching undead, they were two against twenty. An even fight as far as the pair of hatchmates were concerned, two or two hundred, as long as they were together, they would still fight by each other's side.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The dull *whumph* of a fireball exploding could be heard all the way down the stairwell as Serhis, Baous, and Iskdiwercaesin hustled, Baous in the front and Iskdiwercaesin at his side while Serhis supported them, bashing, clawing, and melting the undead that were climbing up. In the narrow confines of the stairs, they had to constantly keep checking their footing as they fought more and more, the littered pieces of their fallen enemies still impeding them even in death.

There was a lull in the fighting when they reached the bottom of that level and crossed the walkway towards the next passageway, time enough for Baous to look behind him to see Serhis scanning the walkway above, despite the bad angle that would prevent him from seeing Rhasalis and Xet. "They're going to be fine, you gave them what help you could before we left, remember? That's more than enough," Baous reassured his worrying friend.

Another explosion echoed through the chamber, this time they were able to see the burst of fire and flying shards of hardened earth and bones. "And if your protection spells aren't up to snuff, that would be," said Iskdiwercaesin.

Nodding silently, Serhis concentrated on the road ahead instead of looking up. There didn't seem to be any more of the prison sentinels coming towards them. However, there were still many, many more lined along the alcoves, waiting for their tithe of life to trickle down. So long as Xet and Rhasalis could keep the other undead busy above them, they didn't have to be afraid of getting swarmed. That didn't mean they were completely bereft of fear.

Passing the corner of the chamber, Iskdiwercaesin was closest to the strange mists climbing upwards when they passed. "Gah! Whoa, that felt weird," he shivered.

"Are you hurt?" Serhis asked as he reached forward to place a healing spell before Iskdiwercaesin brushed his claw aside.

"It's weird, not painful. Like something rough grazing my scales, really rough, hot and cold at the same time, yet soothing... I think I'll stick with weird, I can't explain it."

"We should stay away from it then," said Serhis as he looked at the source now that they were closer. The misty stuff hovered over the bottom of the chamber, but in large clumps with open spaces around them. As well as the more undead awakening.

"Another level to clear," Iskdiwercaesin sighed as saw them coming up, then took notice as they passed through a thick bank of the mist that blew into the crowd. All at once, the undead statues shuddered, shriveled and turned to ash, or blew up into tiny pieces, a few of which had enough force to pepper them despite the distance. "Okay, yeah. Definitely don't touch that stuff. Not that I mind having to smash less of the things."

Continuing their way down, they encountered less and less statues as they progressed, which Serhis guessed was due to the diffusion of blood the further down they went and the strange mists that swirled around. As much as they liked the unexpected assistance, they had to double back through certain passages when the corridors were full of the swirling fog. He was beginning to fear that they wouldn't find any clear ways through and that they had to risk sliding down the side of the chamber before reaching the final stairway down. Looking at Baous and Iskdiwercaesin to either side, Serhis thought they were as ready as the possibly could be to confront Tomond.

As they emerged from the stairway, none of them could have imagined what was underneath the layer of mist. It was a lake beneath the mountain, the waters swirling and churning from some unseen source. Whatever it came from, the most they could tell was it came from somewhere in the center where a long stone walkway extended over the lake and onto a platform. Serhis took one look at the water and shuddered, unkind memories of being pulled under surfacing in his mind as he saw the powerful currents. He knew from a glance that if any of them fell in, the water would sweep them away without any hope of them getting back. As to where the water would take them, he could assume that there were channels that drew the water up and out of the mountain and became the river.

"Looks like we're not the only ones after Tomond," Iskdiwercaesin drew Serhis' attention away from the water as he pointed at the platform at the center of the lake. Off in the distance, he could see a group of undead crossing the walkway towards the isolated stretch of stone.

"I don't think that is going to be enough to stop him," said Serhis as he took a cautious step onto the walkway. It took some concentration for him to stop looking at the sides, suppressing the fright that went all the way to the pit of his stomach of slipping into the churning black waters.

He had guessed right when they were halfway across. They could make out Tomond and Jacqueline fighting and destroying their foes, Jacqueline with a mace and Tomond with a quarterstaff. Serhis would have thought that the mace would be the one doing more damage to the earthen warriors, yet when Tomond struck, he stuck with both force and purpose. Even at the barest touch of his weapon, the undead he struck crumbled to dust. Serhis knew that whatever Tomond touched would be rendered of their magic, but he hadn't thought that he could destroy the undead by removing the magic that moved their bodies. The three had almost reached the platform when Tomond and Jacqueline destroyed the last undead, dashing the remains into the water.

Tomond only had to see Baous and Iskdiwercaesin to figure out what had happened. "I take it that you've done something to awaken the temple's guardians? Your friends succeeded in getting inside, then they and my men have had their blood drawn out of them in a fight."

Serhis nodded. "The mercenaries now hold the main camp and your people have retreated to the upper levels. Without the supplies in the wagons, your people won't be able to stay down here and if more of those things awaken, they won't even last that long. Tomond, stop this now, there is nothing to gain and so much to lose."

"Nothing to gain? We've already lost so much by letting deities rule our lives. Look around you and see the things they have made in their own name," Tomond replied as he waved at the platform around them. Again, it was a stone slab that was covered in lines, but these were the most intricate yet, to the point of incomprehension that it hurt simply to look at them. The lines continued off the platform, going all the way down to the bottom and then back up the walls. He knew these were the same lines because of the sand pouring out of an impression at the center of the cube in the middle of the lake, the fine grains swirling through the stone impressions and into the water before emerging elsewhere, taking a measure of water with them. The sand didn't concern Serhis, Baous, or Iskdiwercaesin, but the keystone tumbling around the swirling sand did. "They've done this, all of this, for the express purpose of securing their power. The mortals that worshipped them sacrificed themselves to guard this place, and for what? To have an eternal vigil over deities that have since long forsaken them. If I can find what they used to imprison one of their own and take his power from him, I can end their influence."

"And you'd sacrifice your own people to do it too?! You would have killed my friends if they didn't help you!" Baous was quick to point out the hypocrisy.

"I will not sacrifice the lives of those that have entrusted me with their beliefs so easily, but I will if I have to. They give them to me willingly as I would for them if they continue my work, but I'm nothing like the powers that meddle in mortal affairs. My people follow me not because I offer them power or a utopia or an afterlife, but because of what we can do in this world, right now, and because I am like them a mortal tired of their rules, their unexplained actions or their aloof passivity."

"Whatever you say. It doesn't mean much when you're stuck under a mountain, constantly being attacked by the undead, and having your supplies being generously given to us," Iskdiwercaesin's mocking tone didn't perturb Tomond in the slightest. "Plus, now you've got us. Give it up already, you're out of tricks and there's no way you can beat us, so stop wasting our time, save yourself some pain, and let us lock your worthless hide in one of Jiak's prisons. I'm sure a lot of people would be happy with that. Magic or no magic, my teeth around your neck is going to cause you some trouble."

"It may be true that I don't have many options left," Tomond admitted. "However, that doesn't mean I have none. Do you see the keystone? It is inside the controlling mechanism for the entire complex. When it is finished restoring functionality to every area, the guardians you have unleashed will also come under its control. I may not be able to use the keystone, but Jacqueline can, and it will only be a short while before that is so. I'm the one giving you the chance to surrender. Whatever chances you think you have against me and the others, it will count for nothing when the guardians awaken. Lay down your arms now and convince your allies to do the same and I will spare you all. You will be able to leave when my work is done here, though during that time you will be under heavy guard, considering what has happened, but you will be treated fairly."

"You're bluffing, you can't control those things," Iskdiwercaesin glared at Tomond as if to stare him down. Most humans would have betrayed some hint of emotion, something that he could use to tell whether Tomond was lying through his teeth. He may as well have been trying to read one of the stone statues they had smashed on the way here, Tomond's expression and body language did not give him any hints. To Iskdiwercaesin's way of thinking, either it proved that Tomond was exceptionally good at keeping at straight face or he really was telling the truth, either way it made him uneasy.

"Whether you believe me or not doesn't matter, not at this point. This is the only chance I am giving you to yield," Tomond spaced his feet into a stable pose, his form illuminated by the blue green light emitted from the platform they stood on. Jacqueline stood next to him, putting away the mace and drawing the rapier on her hip to better suit the living enemies she was facing. "Why do you fight me? What reason do you have for doing this? Nothing I have done has hurt you or threaten the ones you love. Defeating me will not improve your lives or those of others. You only do this at the whim of the deities. If not for them, we would no reason to fight. Tell me that I am wrong Serhis," he set his eyes on the cleric. "Are you so sure that you are in the right?"

In Serhis' mind, he wanted to despise Tomond. The man had called everything he believed into question, every action something he should reconsider, and would not relent despite the good things he had done. There were others much more deserving of his wrath, he was certain of that. Faresterear, who murdered those that sought shelter in his town or the ones he had killed earlier so that he could use their bodies as his army and their souls to empower himself. Lilthain, Gatosa, and Atamis, for their betrayal and causing mayhem, death, and chaos to further their own ambitions. Yelec and Harick, who enjoyed their wanton acts of cruelty, torture, and pain.

And still, Serhis couldn't bring himself to truly hate Tomond. He did everything for a purpose, truly believing that in the end, he would make the world better, he did not kill others needlessly, though that did not entirely excuse what deaths he had cause, and when he asked difficult questions, it was Serhis' lack of wisdom, not faith, was why he didn't have an answer.

"I cannot say that you're wrong," Serhis sighed as he admitted that. Before Tomond could say something, Serhis held up a claw to forestall what he would say. "I can't say you're right either. Deities are different from us and they will never be on the same level we are. Their actions can seem random at times or completely pointless, but as different as they are, they still share our emotions. Anger, rage, sadness, pity, jealousy, happiness, joy, pride, even fear, though it's on a different spectrum that we feel, it still drives them to do things that even mortals can't explain when we let it control us. Those differences shouldn't drive us apart. Not all of them are kind or fair, but the ones that do don't deserve what you want. They've done great things that we can't, not to hold themselves higher than us, but because they need to when no one else can. And maybe, maybe one day when we've come much farther, they won't treat us as servants in need of guidance. We wouldn't be equal in power, but they will help us achieve wonders of our own, a miracles of mortals. Above all, there are those that help us in our darkest times, who preserve us from ordeals that we'd otherwise fall to, not because we're their soldiers or their servants, but because they care for us. Deity or mortal, we both can care about others no matter who they are. That is why I have to stop you Tomond. I can't let you break that connection between us and them." Tightening his fist, Serhis felt something in himself as his spoke, like a block in his mind breaking or something coming together in clarity. A divine revelation? A self-made epiphany? it was all the same as he found where he stood in his own mind, his hand having grasped the Star of Bahamut as he announced it aloud.

The feeling didn't last long as he returned his attention to Tomond. In the face of Serhis' words, the former cleric again did not reveal his thoughts on his face, except in one small aspect. In his eyes, he seemed saddened that he had once again failed to turn another cleric from his path. "You are the first to say such things. Others have simply stuck to their dogma and blocked everything I've said. I respect your beliefs, something I can't say about most other clerics whose convictions would have them shutting off their minds, heedless of the consequences in the face of my arguments, yet you acknowledge the flaws and still think of a way to improve things. My own beliefs still stand, however, and we will have different methods of changing the world. Through force of arms or reason and conversation, we will see whose faith is stronger, not in conviction and the illusions we make for ourselves, but in the very principles. I will not try to change your mind any more, we have said what we really feel and are still at an impasse. That is all I have left to say to you."

"Oh just give up already! You might have gotten the drop on us last time, but now we know what to expect and without you little tricks you don't stand a chance," Iskdiwercaesin stepped forward, growling intimidatingly.

Tomond did not reply to Iskdiwercaesin, instead subtly nodding his head towards Jacqueline. She never had taken her eyes off of the three for a moment, but she must have seen his signal from the edge of her vision as she moved explosively towards them.

Prepared for a fight as they were, Baous and Iskdiwercaesin barely had time to respond as she went from a standing stop to an alarming speed of acceleration. She seemed to be aiming directly towards Baous, the point of her sword extended outwards at his chest as she ran. Barely having time to raise his shield to deflect the blow, he winced as he prepared for the impact, only to feel air passing him as she took a running dive around his guard, landing in a spinning roll as she slashed at Serhis.

Unprepared for the sudden attack, Serhis almost stumbled off his feet as he tried to evade the swift blade by stepping back. He wasn't entirely successful as the rapier cut through the air and into his scales, all he did was turn a blow that would have cut him from shoulder to hip into a deep slash across his right upper arm and side, the metal of the blade raking the chainmail he wore with a series of *chlinks*.

"Leave him alone!" Baous yelled at her as he took a step forward to get into striking distance. His shout alerted Jacqueline to his attack, but the point was for her to redirect her attention on him instead of the now wounded Serhis. As announced as his blow was and as fast as she could move, the heavy weight clipped her left arm as she spun out of the way. He imagined that it would leave a stinging bruise at best, but Jacqueline was perturbed as she flexed her arm, finding it slightly deadened of sensation. Baous would have to thank his dad the next time they spoke for his choice of weapon enchantments, he doubted he could bring her down in any other way if she kept moving that fast. Too fast. It was similar to when Harick drank the potion that increased his own speed. His guess was that she drank one earlier before destroying the guardians. Or worse, she had an object that permanently granted her that swiftness. "Serhis, how are you?" he asked as he edged closer to him.

"I'm- I'm still standing." That was barely true. If she had been hit him lower or he was bigger, he'd be worrying about reattaching his lower arm and a part of his leg instead of several ruined links of chainmail and the gashes in his body. Concentrating through the pain, Serhis channeled healing energies into himself. It sealed his wounds and stopped him from bleeding out onto the life draining floor, however he could still feel pulsing ache where the sealed cuts were.

Dealing with the closest threat, Iskdiwercaesin lunged forward with fangs and claws to tear into Jacqueline. She dodged left and right, avoiding the swipes of his claws, only to have her leg get caught in his teeth. Masking her pain with a slight gasp, she pulled away from the pursuing dragon. Iskdiwercaesin would have very much liked to keep a grip on her and shake like a crocodile, but was forced to let go before she could take a swipe at his neck.

Keeping Jacqueline busy, Baous hadn't forgotten about Tomond. He had redirected his focus too late as Tomond hefted another glass sphere into the air and it smashed against the wooden shield as Baous raised it to block reflexively. The kobold immediately halted breathing, not daring to inhale or even to hold his breath and even exhaling a bit to clear what little he might have breathed in. The others recognized the familiar sound and the frantic close combat dissolved as Serhis, Baous, Iskdiwercaesin, and Jacqueline vacated the gas cloud, scattering in random directions.

Baous had went directly towards Tomond and allowed himself to breath when he felt the tingling in his nose pass so that when he took in deep lungfuls of air, he uttered a fierce war cry as he swung the hammer down at the human. Tomond must have not anticipated that Baous would have went directly towards him after using the gas and took a hard blow in his plate armored chest. Baous hadn't expected to either, he was running blindly, but he took what advantage he could. As the two combatants stepped back to assess their situations, Baous was unnerved by what he could see. The hit had dented Tomond's chest plate sure enough, but the damage wasn't as severe as it should have been. Getting hit full on with fast moving heavy metal swung by an irate kobold certainly did something, yet Tomond didn't show the usual signs that the wounding enchantment was working.

Stumbling through the gas cloud, Serhis took several more steps even when he thought he was out of danger to be on the safe side before he took another breath. "Baous?! Iskdiwercaesin?! Are you still awake?" he called out.

"I'm still fighting!" Baous replied as quickly as he could.

"*Gasp* I think I- *cough* -some in," Iskdiwercaesin wheezed to Serhis' right, his speech and breathing labored. The dragon swayed on his feet and would have been flat on the ground and still in the gas if he hadn't been quadrupedal, his off-balance limbs managing to see him to relative safety.

About to comb through his options to get Iskdiwercaesin back into fighting condition, Serhis almost neglected his own safety again as Jacqueline nearly speared him through his wings and back. Narrowly avoiding the thrust, Serhis backed up further and was about to hit her with a debilitating spell, then realized that most of them wouldn't work, his magic was focused on battling evil. Jacqueline's actions might be considered questionable, but weren't outright evil as she bore no malice or disregard for life. That he had to use some of them to get here didn't help. Barely ten seconds into the fight and Tomond had already thrown them off balance and separated them.

"What are you- *cough* Up, fly up!" Iskdiwercaesin shouted to him.

"What?! There's barely any space if I do," Serhis replied, ducking another swipe. Technically, that wasn't true, the area above them was open, but it was filled with the swirling mist. "I'm not that good at flying yet."

"Get better fast, now or never," Iskdiwercaesin seemed to be getting himself back in shape, but not quick enough that Serhis could depend on his assistance.

Hoping that a sudden updraft didn't lift him into the mists, Serhis took flight. He didn't get close to the mists, but he nearly did come crashing back down into the water, as he was barely able to ride the harsh current of winds that danced throughout the cavernous area. Fighting the tide of the winds was near impossible, forcing him to simply ride what air flows he could find that didn't push him into the mists or back into the ground.

Her primary target having escaped her, Jacqueline was left with only Iskdiwercaesin nearby. "I'll get to you. In a sec," Iskdiwercaesin said as he controlled his breathing.

For Baous and Tomond, their fight got as close to a duel as could be allowed. The former cleric was as skilled with the quarterstaff as Baous was with his war hammer, likely more so after over a decade of use. The metal banded staff's steel tipped ends impacted against the rapidly moving shield as Baous defended himself against a barrage of blows, only to have it forced out of the way as the second hit jolted his arm and the staff thrust into his gut. What air in his lungs was pushed out in a short gasp as Baous tried to recover and keep his guard up, but the hit showed one more thing Tomond could do. Serhis had thrown the heaviest protection spells he could on all of them and Tomond had blown right through it, the impact should have been softened or slightly misdirected by the energy of the spells. So not only could Tomond not be affected by harmful magic, he could strike past whatever protected his target. Baous realized how dangerous Tomond could be, anyone who fought against him could only depend on their skill and strength, those who relied too heavily on magic to support their efforts would be left at a severe disadvantage when the cursed cleric took them away. Settling into a better position, Baous kept his shield to his front and war hammer raised in hand.

As for Iskdiwercaesin and Jacqueline, they were about to get into a duel of their own. Left with little option but to switch targets, Jacqueline circled around the dragon as she approached before charging at him. Fortunately for Iskdiwercaesin, the protection spells still worked for him as they made up for him temporarily debilitated state as his sluggish dodge still let her get close, only for the impaling thrust to be pushed slightly aside and missing him by a hair. Iskdiwercaesin growled dangerously, something that promised swift retribution for the attack.

Serhis circled around in the air, unsure who needed the most help. That they needed help at all wasn't to be questioned. Baous traded blows with Tomond, each move they made against each other was quickly accounted for and countered in turn, the two of them getting in hits where they could. Iskdiwercaesin and Jacqueline were no slouches either, though their methods of battle were radically different, the human relying on speed to make her attacks count while the dragon used his natural power. He knew Baous would need help eventually, Tomond was showing to be the better combatant, but he couldn't do much of anything after he landed to heal. Instead, he dived towards Iskdiwercaesin instead to give his support. Serhis would have thought it laughable that the green dragon would need any help in a one on one situation. He wasn't laughing now. Swooping low, Serhis raked Jacqueline's side with his pick as he dove, landing next to the both of them. Jacqueline reeled at the blow, but she wasn't down.

"Nice of you to help!" Iskdiwercaesin said as he was finally given some room to recover. It was brief though as Jacqueline took the offensive again as she brought her arm back and stepped forward for a hard slash against the dragon's midsection.

Or so she made it seem. As she swung, her arm wasn't fully extended as she purposefully decreased her range as the rapier went short of hitting Iskdiwercaesin, only to extend when hitting her real target, Serhis. She would have hit if he hadn't been ready to sidestep the attack, not willing to fall to the same feint again. Iskdiwercaesin was about to make his own rending blows when Serhis throw something at her feet, forestalling him. "Careful with that Serhis!" he yelled, not eager to fall victim to whatever alchemical solution was inside as it burst, whether it be a sticky tanglefoot mixture or the scorching alchemist's fire.

Instead, he heard the clatter of marbles as the bag spilled and little clay spheres rolled around Jacqueline's feet. The dragon was about to shout at Serhis for picking the wrong bag or asking what he was thinking that could possibly do to help, only to realize how perfect of a set-up Serhis gave him. Iskdiwercaesin didn't hold back as he went on the offensive, opening his own defenses to attacks that wouldn't come. Jacqueline was forced to hold her ground, unable to use her speed or risk stepping on the marbles that would trip her up and make her fall. Iskdiwercaesin bit and swiped at his almost immobilized opponent, scoring fresh wounds that would be trouble when the blood touched the ground. Now that Iskdiwercaesin could defend him, Serhis risked a glance at Baous, hoping that he was right and was holding his own against Tomond.

The furry kobold was making a fight of it, but Tomond's greater skill was telling. The extra range the quarterstaff had over his war hammer had almost been disastrous when Tomond swept it at his feet and clipped his ankle. Again, Baous was thankful for his dad's training which included being able to keep stable footing, the momentary loss of balance turning into a withdrawing step as Baous hopped back on his other foot and planted both firmly on the ground, his armor clattering as he jumped. Something had to change fast, he wasn't sure he could pull that stunt again.

Jacqueline certainly knew the same thing as she jumped clear of the marbles. Instead of getting Serhis to lower his guard again with a trick, she opted to try and force her way past it, slashing and thrusting with full force. Fighting defensively, Serhis dodged and swerved, then countered with the most indirect attack he could use.

She looked at him skeptically as he extended his arms to use a spell, only to see nothing happen before determining that he was looking at her feet. Out of nowhere, he had made a device at her feet that had too many blades for her liking as she jumped clear of the scything blade when it triggered, forcing her again to move away from them. It was all that Iskdiwercaesin needed.

Given some room to act, Iskdiwercaesin was keen to show that Xet wasn't the only one who could employ his magic to full deadly effect. He didn't need a blast of fire when a curtain of acid would do just as well, he just had to focus on debilitating his opponents so they would fall to his natural strength. Directing a claw in Jacqueline's direction, a brilliant point of golden light the size of a pinprick appeared in front of her gaze for half a second before it burst. Instead of a brief scorch of heat and fire, Iskdiwercaesin's spell gave dust and light. Serhis recognized the spell, Xet liked to use it on occasion himself when he was out of fireballs, but he couldn't do the follow up like a dragon could.

Stumbling back blindly as the light and dust both blinded her eyes, her speed was nigh on useless to her without her sight. Considering her skill, she might have adapted to the handicap in time, but it was time Iskdiwercaesin and Serhis weren't willing to give her. As Baous struggled to match Tomond blow for blow, kobold and dragon hit Jacqueline with all they had, Serhis wildly swinging at her legs with his pick and Iskdiwercaesin clawing at her as she frantically retreated, almost tripping over her own feet as she did. If she had asked for quarter, Serhis would have given it, yet she bore her injuries with stoic grunts of pain, even as she almost reached the edge. Before she tumbled into the water, as Serhis swung and clipped one of her legs, Iskdiwercaesin leapt forward with a powerful pounce, his claws ripping at her in passing as she fell to the ground barely three meters from the swirling waters.

"Stop! I will fight you no more." Heavily battered, Baous was sure he would be covered in livid bruises all over if it wasn't for the fur hiding them, yet he would have still kept on fighting if Tomond hadn't shouted that. Keeping the shield between him and Tomond, he kept the hammer up as Tomond tossed down the quarterstaff, the iron binding making a clatter as they hit the glowing stone ground.

"Does that mean you give up?" Baous asked. Only when Tomond nodded did he lower his weapon, if not his shield or guard. "Then I accept your yield."

"About time," Iskdiwercaesin wiped the blood from his snout, most of it not his.

"I will not fight you any further as long as you treat her," Tomond pointed to Jacqueline. "If you cannot, then I will fight further, if not to save her, then at least to avenge."

"Right then. Move over to her. If she wakes up, I don't want to be looking in two different directions at once," Iskdiwercaesin told him as he backed away from Jacqueline's prone form. "You are going to keep her from dying, right?" He knew he didn't have to ask, but he did it anyway.

"I can try," Serhis muttered, an answer that neither Baous nor Iskdiwercaesin expected. He may have been in a fight for his life and did his utmost to incapacitate her, but if keeping her alive meant an end to the conflict, he was more than willing to mend her wounds. It wasn't that he wasn't willing to heal her, it was that from even a cursory glance, things weren't looking good for her. He was sure that neither he nor Iskdiwercaesin had hurt her that badly, but the blood pouring out of her wounds had complicated matters. "It's this place, she's bleeding out a lot faster than the others," he said grimly. Pressing his hands to her abdomen, he called what reserves of healing he had left. When her cuts sealed and the blood that was already out of her racing away and into the water, Serhis, Baous, and Iskdiwercaesin looked at Tomond, wary of what he would do next.

"You don't need to look at me like that. With Jacqueline in this state, I can do little to salvage my plans," Tomond knelt next to Jacqueline, putting her head on his lap. Taking a step back, Serhis stood next to the others.

"Okay. If you're concerned about the lives of everyone else, then you'll help us destroy the statue guardians. More are probably going to wake up. I wish we didn't have to give them more blood to drink," Baous said distastefully. "Since you can destroy them with a touch, then we can finish them quickly."

"That won't be necessary," Tomond shook his head as he cradled Jacqueline's before turned to look at the keystone. It still kept its dark red light that clashed with the glow that came from around it. "By the time we reach the upper levels, that will have gained control of the complex. Likely even soon. You only need to wait for it to finish, then touch it and command the statues."

Shoulders slumping in relief, Serhis nonetheless kept glancing at the long bridge that connected them to the stairway for stiff movements. His life no longer in constant danger, relatively, and his attention no longer on avoiding getting run through, his eyes wandering down to look at the line patterns at his feet before he had to look away. They couldn't even be called patterns, something about the way they flowed told his mind that such things should not be and for his own sanity, he ripped his gaze from the impossible. "What are we standing on? The control mechanism for the complex?"

"The control mechanism, yes, in every sense of the word. We are on the prison of a god, Vocos is sealed underneath us. What power he has left is taken to keep him inside. In his weakened state, not much is needed, or at least compared to the power of deities," he scoffs. "What is left over is concentrated and sent above us, towards the temples where they are sent to their respective gods. Or that was what was meant to happen, if the altars hadn't been destroyed," Tomond looked up.

"The mists," Iskdiwercaesin deduced.

"What you see as mist is more than that. It is power divine, raw and unfocused. What we can see is only what our minds can comprehend."

"What did breaking the altars do? Is the power building up?" Serhis asked.

"The altars were the secondary control mechanisms. The three deities couldn't risk having the keystone so close to unlocking Vocos, so they made the altars become the primary method of control. So long as they stood, the keystone would have done nothing if I placed it there," Tomond rose up from the floor, holding the unconscious Jacqueline in his arms. "Though even if the stone activated now, I cannot control it without the assistance of another. As the situation stands, I cannot prevail. My only option is to abandon my efforts here and survive until I can find another avenue to my goal."

Even as he spoke, the key stone slowly rose from the floor, held up by flowing sand, water, and blood. It had climbed up to chest height (higher for Serhis) and it was still rising by increments. "Hold it there," Iskdiwercaesin held up his claw as if to halt Tomond. "You're not going anywhere until you tell us how it works. Even then, I don't think you're getting out of a cell in Jiak. I'm sure you made a lot of friends there. How do we call off the walking garden features?"

"When control is given, place a hand on the stone and will them to cease. That is all that is needed." As the kobolds and dragon looked at the stone for a moment, Tomond took a step back. Towards the water.

"Don't move!" Serhis yelled, though he wasn't really in a position to stop him. If the two humans fell into the water, he had nothing to save them from a watery grave. With a slight inclination of his head and keeping a tight grip on Jacqueline, he took another step back. And fell back into the water.

"Crap!" Iskdiwercaesin reached out to snatch Tomond's leg, diving forward to catch. Sliding across the stone, the dragon's arms barely caught onto the ledge as his claws raked air, then water as it splashed into the underground lake. They could only watch as his splash didn't even visibly disrupt the current before he disappeared into the dark water. "Damn," Iskdiwercaesin pulled his arm out of the water and shaking it. "Drowning is not how I wanted him going out," he growled.

"Can't you go after him?" Baous asked.

"Breathing underwater is one thing. Swimming in that whirlpool," the dragon pointed down and shook his head. "I'd be lucky if I could claw my way up without being battered into a well tenderized lump of meat."

Looking into the swirling nightmare, Serhis shook his head. "You're thinking the same thing I am, right?"

"Not really," said Baous. "Why'd he do that? He was talking about escaping, but dying like that doesn't help."

Serhis shook his head again. "He said that this place is the source of the river. That must mean it flows out of the mountain and out."

"But we're so deep underground," Baous pointed out.

"I don't know," Iskdiwercaesin muttered. "That current is going fast. There's also the chance there are air pockets on the way up," he grit his teeth. "That's if they don't smear themselves against the walls."

Now that Tomond had gone, either escaped or dead, Serhis could only give a sigh of relief. "Dead or alive, his plans have been disrupted."

"In more ways than one," Iskdiwercaesin then informed him of the investigations Rahsh was heading. "His resources are about tied up, though I very much doubt we got everything. This had better be enough to satisfy Nadia, because I'm not going to trying to track him down."

Frowning, Serhis considered heading up and maybe searching the river and he realized how a fruitless effort that would be. If Tomond and Jacqueline had died, their bodies would float down the river and would eventually be found, if not by them while they went back to Jiak on the ship, then by someone else. If they lived, then a search along the entire river was just as impossible. Only the more powerful divination spells would help, and even then, Tomond's condition would make him all but invisible. He wasn't sure if his condition only disrupted magic in contact with him or it extended from his person to shield Jacqueline, but it was a moot question without the appropriate magic. Before his thoughts could go further on possible ways to find the two, his concentration was soon broken. The prison of Vocos, god of the desert, felled by three deities, sealed in the mountain, shuddered.

Swaying, Serhis toppled onto his back, grunting as his wings hit the floor at a bad angle and likely bruising them. It was better than falling into the water and seeing if he could ride out the river himself. "What's happening?!"

"Something bad!" Only Iskdiwercaesin could point out the obvious with such hostility as he and Baous were also knocked to the floor. The tremor was brief, but powerful as it knocked stalactites from the roof that plunged into the waters and more importantly, around them and smashing into the prison. A little fact Serhis discovered was what they stood on wasn't the stone like he thought as the rocks falling broke on the prison and didn't even chip it. When it was over, the bright green-blue light Serhis was holding his head against had changed to the red and dark light of the key stone. Rising with trepidation, they got away from the edge of the prison.

Held in a swirling mass of the earlier support, the keystone also took in the swirling mist... no, Serhis corrected himself, divine power from above. The sight was a wonder in itself to see, the corkscrewing light above and the dark power below giving the illusion that they were standing between the surface of two lakes with a whirlpool connecting them, the key stone the in the place of the barest thread that connected them.

"I think that's the signal that the key stone is done," Baous was shaky on his feet as he approached the stone with the others.

It was hard to think otherwise. As they approached with caution, Serhis briefly thought of how safe it would be to operate it, then pushed it away. Xet and Rhasalis were still above them, fighting for their lives. Without hesitation, he strode forward and touched the stone.

Nothing happened. No surge of power welling through the kobold, no sense of immense understanding, nothing. The key stone simply was in his hand. "I... command the guardians to stop," Serhis declared a little sheepishly, unsure if that would even work.

The barest hint of intent was enough. Lines filled with blood came back down, no longer being pushed by the power of the temple to the alcoves of statues. The fluid moved rapidly, descending into the water, then back onto the prison before being consumed by the stone.

Holding the key to the prison of a sleeping god, Serhis had no idea what to do next.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

"Rhasalis?"

"Yes?"

"What just happened?"

Completely surrounded by the statues of almost every alcove on the second to last level, Rhasalis stood on the shoulders of one of the statues she had landed on, her blade still stuck down the length of its spinal column. All around were more of the guardian statues, attempting to surround her in massive numbers. Normally Xet would have already sent a fireball into the thick of things when Rhasalis got out range, which wouldn't be hard considering their speed. Not so normal was that he had taken shelter with the guards that had managed to keep themselves alive, holding back to allow him to sling his spells unscratched. The guards may not have liked the kobolds' earlier actions, but those were quickly overshadowed when facing a growing number of guardian statues. Two of the guards had been badly injured before the kobolds could reach them and the bleeding quickly halted with a pair of simple healing potions. When they saw the fresh wave approached, Rhasalis and Xet had been about to fear the worst.

Statuary frozen all along the length of the walkway, Rhasalis got off the statue she had somewhat-killed with a hop, causing it to shatter across the ground. When the other guards similarly pushed the immobile status onto the ground, they yelled in celebration. "This means Serhis managed to do something about them," she sighed, allowing fatigue to run its course on her strained muscles.

"Or it meant Tomond did," said Xet cautiously.

"We'll find out when whoever won comes up here to check on either us or Tomond's people," Rhasalis replied, distancing herself and Xet away from the strangers.

The cheering subsided as everyone else realized that they were still alive and not dead, but they could only take so much from that. The lighting from below had changed from it green-blue glow into a dark red, the bottom looking like a gaping hole in the earth that swallowed light. The guardians that had activated were still crowding the walkway and stairs, which in the dull red glow from beneath, made them look as if they were covered in the animating blood.

Movement coming between the stilled guardians got everyone's attention. Xet and Rhasalis' trust in their hatchmate and friends' abilities had been proven as they emerged from the legions of stone as they walked towards each other. "What did you do?" Rhasalis asked when they were close enough.

"They key stone is used to control this place," Serhis replied, still holding the misshapen lump. As they got closer, he waved the stone around, willing for the stone statues to return to their original places. When Tomond's people saw Serhis in command of what could be counted as an army, any thoughts they had of fighting their way out vanished.

"Where's Tomond and Jacqueline," Xet asked.

Baous shook his head. "We... don't know. They might have died or escaped," Baous admitted as he explained how they had gotten away.

"Confirming either is not going to be easy," Rhasalis muttered as she heard the news.

"But we're done here," said Iskdiwercaesin, his voice very much saying that it was not up for discussion. "He's gone, he's on the run, and we've got his precious key. No more threat," the dragon declared.

Silently, Serhis had to agree as he looked at the strange thing in his claws. Even if Tomond had some resources left hidden in Jiak, he wouldn't be able to repeat making the stone again. Touching the stone now that it had fulfilled its purpose, he was no longer able to even tell how it felt. Another thing that would be beyond his senses. Whatever it was, he had no indication what to do with it now that it had come into their possession. He was hesitant to use it for anything aside from commanding the guardians on the off chance that he'd inadvertently cause a surge of power somewhere or even free Vocos. Serhis wasn't sure if the deity had done anything to deserve to be imprisoned, but somehow, he figured that bringing a centuries old god back from hibernation wasn't to be easy anyway and it would be an extreme effort. Nevertheless, he resisted the impulse to see how solid that prison was.

Walking back to the antechamber as an honor guard of statues stood to their side, he hoped Nadia would come soon to tell him what to do with it.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Staring down the side of the mountain, Serhis looked at the river going off into the distance as the moon rose, the moonlight shimmering on the water. It had been a long, long week for him and the scene of peace before him was a welcome sight. That was if he ignored the sullen stares at his back by Tomond's people.

When they had reached the antechamber, the mercenaries weren't in a happy mood and weren't the most delicate when they restrained the members of Tomond's group. Their feelings were somewhat explainable when they had come up the tunnel, seeing the scattered pieces of several statues and the shattered wood of the ballista bolts that hit them. It went without saying that they shouted their presence before another one was launched at the slightest sign of movement. Keianc had come up to them, demanding to know what had happened, where Tomond was, and with a bit more colorful language than was needed, what had come walking up the corridor at them. His mood didn't improve when the group told him as the other House Ihthei mercenaries roped up the new batch of prisoners. He was ordered to take Tomond in dead or alive and having to say to Rahsh that he was most likely dead was not something he wanted.

Having secured all that they could, all of them went towards the surface and Serhis used the key stone to open the way once more. They had to forestall another incident of friendly attackers when the mercenaries that hadn't made it in earlier rushed into the gap as a rather belated reinforcement. When Keianc shouted them down, then showed that Tomond's lot were the prisoners, not them, they sheepishly stood down.

Now, they were getting ready to go back to the ship and have a good long sleep while they sailed down the river. Keianc was taking time to reorganize the supplies in the wagons so that his men could ride the way down without overloading them and having them speed out of control. Without much to do, Serhis had gone away from the group to enjoy the fresh air. Every now and then, he looked down at the key stone, trying to puzzle out what their next move would be. After speaking to Nadia, where would they go? Then there was Iskdiwercaesin. Baous had told him how the green dragon had wanted to go his own way after their escape from the estate, though he was calm and kept his anger in check, even with the wyrmling next to them since he didn't want to speak behind his back. It was a risky, but since Baous and Rhasalis had convinced Iskdiwercaesin to come to his rescue, they had managed to clear up most, though not all, of that rough patch. Not talking ill of each other behind their back was one way to do it, discussing it openly ensured little misunderstandings later. Hearing what had happened was another reason he needed a little space.

Serhis wasn't sure what to make of Iskdiwercaesin. He was disappointed in how the dragon was willing to leave him in dire straits, but he couldn't outright fault him for it. They didn't have any idea where to go at the time, the search could have proven fruitless which would have been especially true if the others hadn't managed to catch up in time and had a whole mountain to block them. If that had happened, they really would have been forced to go on their own way, never knowing what happened to Xet and himself if things hadn't turned out the way they had. Yet, there was the bitter feeling that Iskdiwercaesin should have made the attempt and not given up so quickly. It was a petty thought, he was supposed to be above that, Iskdiwercaesin had enough reason to assume him lost, and yet he couldn't control how he felt. The thing that lessened the blow was that he hadn't completely given up. When Baous and Rhasalis had come to him and the chance of finding Xet and himself rose from near nothing, he did it. There was no doubt their relationship would suffer for this, but it wasn't irreparable. The only question left was if they would want to.

"Do not look so sad Serhis, for you and those you cherish have done a great and noble deed this day. Tomond may have escaped, though we know not of his condition, but you have done as we have asked."

Somehow, Serhis knew that she would come at a time like this. "I know. It's not that I'm sad about Nadia," he turned to look at the towering figure of the messenger archon, the light that shined from her illuminating where they stood. Everyone else noticed her sudden appearance as well, Baous, Iskdiwercaesin, Xet, and Rhasalis walking towards them while the mercenaries looked on in surprise. One or two of them were even on their knees, bowing their heads to her.

Nadia had taken notice of the mercenaries. "You were not able to fully hide the location of the Vocos' prison, though from what I have observed, it was unavoidable in the pursuit."

Shrugging, Serhis had no excuse. "What will happen to them? What will happen to the prison? Are you going to erase their knowledge of this place? If you do, can you at least try to get rid of only the location, I want them to remember saving us, otherwise I can't thank them."

"Do not worry, their memories will remain intact. The alteration of memories is not done lightly. In this case, keeping safe Vocos' prison would have been one few times, but they will be allowed to remember this place. That is because they don't know the nature of the prison, they only think that it is an ancient temple and nothing more. However, there are those who do know."

"The ones Tomond told," said Serhis. "What will happen to them?"

"Fortunately, Tomond only took those who believed in his ideals. No one else in Jiak knows of the existence of Vocos' prison. They will not remember why Tomond was here, they will only remember of this place and his insistence that they come here. In this, their memories will be spared in near entirety."

"Nadia," the approaching kobolds and dragon greeted her, to which she greeted them as well.

"You have me and those of the divine power's gratitude for your actions. It is in your actions that prove how much we depend on tireless efforts of mortals when our own hand is stayed."

Nadia's words crept into Serhis' mind like a dagger in the dark, cutting open a swath of memories about his and Tomond's discussions. Pushing past the newest wave of unease, he listened as the others asked their own questions.

"You weren't totally clear about what you said earlier," Iskdiwercaesin frowned. "You told us that Tomond was after a relic. You didn't mention that it," he pointed at the key stone, "was already destroyed and he had a replica made."

"I did not know it had been destroyed," Nadia bowed her head. "I admit fault to that. I had assumed it hidden since the three deities that crafted it intended it only to be used by their followers and protected it from detection. I had assume that if the location had been discovered, I would ask those who did, as I did not. That Tomond would find a way to make a replica and even have it made was not considered."

"Humph, fair enough. Now, I also remember you saying you'd be of help when I'm facing off against Dianekesswhedabkeari."

"When the time comes, I will offer what protection I can before your confrontation. In the meantime, take this." Raising her hand, a scroll was extended to him. "It is the location of an ancient cache in the desert, also a remnant of the Second War. One of the very few that weren't completely used during the last battles in this land, though it is the only one that bears anything of value. It is not far from the river, only half a day's journey back and forth from the marked location on the map I have given you."

Smiling as he took the map, he quickly unfurled and studied the whereabouts of his next destination. As Iskdiwercaesin was distracted, Rhasalis and Xet stepped forward. "Nadia, you said you could help us with our death curse," Xet looked up at the being that towered almost three times his size. "What can you do about it? What can we do about it?"

"The natures of death curses is that they have no single remedy that will eliminate them. Each are individually made, their strength depending on the soul used to fuel them. In most circumstances, it is that person's last words the lay out the terms of the curse."

"But... I didn't hear him say what the curse was," Xet was unsettled from the news. "I was too far away when he died. And even if I did, I couldn't understand what he was saying." At the time, Xet had no understanding of Common or his latest ability to magically translate it, making his and Rhasalis' situation worse.

"I wasn't conscious at the time to hear either," said Rhasalis.

"But you were there. That is enough for what I can do for you," Nadia replied. "Whether it is the barest words on the far wind or what has been heard by the unconscious ears and mind, you could hear it. I ask for you to step forward," Nadia extended her arms forward slightly. Looking at one another, Xet and Rhasalis nodded as they took the step necessary to learn the full nature of their condition. "As an agent of the divines, it is within my ability to grant you this boon."

Her words sounded more like an incantation than mere words and the nimbus of light around her grew. It was not blinding like the sun, but had no less of the warmth as the tendrils of light reaches out from her hands and touched Xet and Rhasalis.

Both of the kobolds had shut their eyes, the light still stung them, even Serhis' when he wasn't right next to them. When the light faded, they all blinked, though for Xet and Rhasalis, it was to see the truth they hadn't noticed before.

"The necromancer's last words. I heard him as he swore that his death would touch us all for destroying him and his plans for immortality," Rhasalis held her head with her right claw. It was an unsettling sensation to remember words heard in the depth of unconsciousness.

Xet slowly nodded his head, also recalling the barest whispers that he could somehow hear in full clarity now, even in the rage of battle for their lives. "We were doomed unless we... saved a hundred thousand lives from a violent or painful death? Why would he make a condition like that?"

"It is the nature of the curse. They are a complicated weave and as they last as long as the cursed individual or group is alive, sometimes even spanning generations if that soul was particularly strong. To make it permanent would require great effort, beyond what most can do as they lay dying. By making these conditions, the curse lasts, using the condition as an anchor, preventing the curse from unraveling. Removing that anchor would remove the curse," Nadia explained.

"Saving a hundred thousand lives? Why would some necromancer pick that?" Iskdiwercaesin muttered as he read the map and essentially using Nadia as a torch.

He might not have meant to ask that question with any seriousness, but Nadia obliged and answered. "The only thing their curses can bring is suffering and as it consumes their souls, it serves them nothing to do it. These are the last acts of spite of a powerful individual. If he claims that you two denied him immortality, though I suspect his immortality would have been as an undead lich, he would find his death at your hands an intolerable affront. As is often the case, these curses are made at the spur of the moment in fits of rage or despair, it is doubtful many would even consider having to think of an appropriate condition at the times of their death, it is simply something that isn't considered. He may have thought it beyond you two. The curse's condition of removal cannot be impossible, to do so would make the weave impossible. However, as long as there is small possibility that it can be done, it will work. To save a hundred thousand lives is possible, if extremely difficult. He merely thought that beings such as yourselves would not even consider doing it."

Standing side by side, Xet and Rhasalis reeled at the implications. A hundred thousand? Only something on the scale of a war between two major nations would come close to having that many lives threatened so quickly and in a concentrated space. Would accidentally getting someone nearly killed and then saving them be valid? What if it wasn't accidental? How could it be interpreted if they saved a life by proxy, like sending supplies to the starving? These questions were quickly asked, then answered.

"I expect that bringing someone under threat accidentally would count, as you still took efforts to rescue them. The same would be said of showing mercy to the wicked that you defeat. I dearly pray that is what you meant by that question," Nadia's irisless eyes stared at them judgingly. "As for the other, as long as you are the ones to set events into motion knowingly, then it would be counted."

"So many though," Xet quailed.

"... but we've already gotten a good start," Baous said. As the others looked at him curiously, he explained his words. "Since you started to travel with us, we've already done a lot of things that could count. Like in Tiasvern, when we helped everyone escape the tavern. We also saved those soldiers from being executed. Maybe even a whole lot more, since we helped to stop Tomond.

Just when Serhis had seen one bit of wisdom from Baous, the furry kobold would again say something that astounded him. Given the conditions they were told, many of the people in the town of Tiasvern would have had their lives destroyed at the hands of Tomond's ambitions and they had indeed put a stop to it. He wasn't sure about how many would qualify, but even if erred on the side of caution, it would likely number over a thousand.

He wasn't the only one to realize this as his hatchmates slowly smiled, realizing that maybe their curse wasn't as beyond them. It would still be daunting, but they had a start. "Thank you Nadia, for telling us what we need to do," said Rhasalis.

"We finally can get rid of it," Xet sighed in relief.

Nodding with a smile, the archon turned to Serhis and Baous. "Was there a reward you wish to ask of me as well?"

Turning his head and looking up, Serhis could see Baous' thoughts on his face. He knew what his friend wanted, desperately, more than anything. He knew he wouldn't be able to ever get it. "I..." Baous began to ask hesitantly, already knowing what she would say, but he still had to ask. "Is there any way to bring my mom and dad back from the dead. I want to see them. Talk to them. Hug them. Tell them what I saw and did. Find out that they were really the loving parents that I couldn't remember," his voice trembled.

"I am sorry, but I cannot."

Taking a deep breath, Baous let out a shuddering sigh. He tried to put on a brave face, but he couldn't hide his downcast eyes. "I... I had to ask."

"Such things are beyond even deities. The state of a soul is always changing and never easy to manipulate. In the place where your parents reside, they can never be pulled back from beyond the veil, not after so long."

"I know. I know. Still... I wanted..."

"... but there is something I may be able to do."

Eyes immediately flashing alive, Baous' heart swelled with hope. "What is it?"

"Though there is no way to return them to living form, perhaps there is a way to speak to them. I may, for a short while, be able to channel their souls for you to see and talk to. It does not compare to the reward you should have earned, but it is what is possible."

"Then please, I want to see them, even for a little while."

Nadia held up a finger as she spoke. "I cannot do that just yet, such things take preparation. I do not know if they reside in Farukf's domain or they have faded, I cannot tell. And yet, there is something you could do to aid me."

"What is it? Another quest?" Iskdiwercaesin immediately looked up from the map, clearly not in the mood for another divinely given endeavor.

"No. I only ask that Baous to give me a tiny piece of his soul," said Nadia, her face impassive.

"My... soul?" Baous asked worriedly.

"You need not fear. What I ask for is only the barest trace of your being, something you would gain back by simply living for a day. You already grow far more than that by what you are doing now, meeting life in its possibilities. By having a piece of your soul, I may be able to see what connections it has. If your birth parents have not faded into the aether, then I will use your soul piece to find them, as they are equally connected to you. Should I find them, I can bring their own souls to you, empower them enough so that they can meet you at the edge of life and death, if only for a moment in time."

Hearing what Nadia had said, Baous didn't need to think twice about what he would want. "Then please, take a piece of my soul. Talking to them, even just seeing them, it would be worth more than a little piece," he said, taking a step forward towards Nadia.

With Baous' mind decided, Nadia did as he asked. Cupping her hand, she leaned forward to reach the kobold and placing the tip of her forefinger on his chest. Baous shivered, feeling how the archon's touch was like light itself. As she held her hand towards Baous, palm up, a small wisp, so much like the essence of Vocos that had been swirling in the chamber, wafted from Baous' chest and settled in Nadia's hand. Instead of the eddying mass that made a storm, it glowed gently as it slowly spun in her palm. Slowly, her fingers close around the delicate strand of Baous' soul.

"It... didn't hurt. Huh," Baous had been staring at his own soul, or at least a tiny fraction of it. He never thought that it would be like that or even considered how it would look so stunning.

"You have entrusted me with something precious and valuable. I will do my utmost to hold to that trust."

"As... as long as you can let me talk to them for a while, I don't mind," said Baous.

"I will tell you when you can as soon as I have found them," Nadia said as she took a step back from Baous. He still looked slightly dazed, but otherwise fine. Lastly, she looked upon Serhis. "What would you ask as a reward for you actions here today?"

"..." Serhis had known what he wanted to ask for. He had wanted to ask for a way to remove the curse on his hatchmates, but that question had already been asked and answered. He had thought that he would have given something for Baous, yet he didn't know what to ask for and still, his friend had found what he wanted. That left only one other person. "... could you give Iskdiwercaesin back his wings?"

The reactions from everyone were immediate. Rhasalis' was masked surprise, Xet's a bit of puzzlement, Baous' was sheer shock, and Iskdiwercaesin a mix of the three as he swiftly tore his attention from the map at Serhis, his mouth hanging agape. Only Nadia hadn't shown a degree of confusion. "You ask that your reward is the restoration of another's being?"

"Wait wait wait, I thought you weren't able to do that," Baous replied.

"Yeah, I did too," Iskdiwercaesin immediately put down the map as he walked over to Nadia and Serhis.

"That is indeed the case," Nadia replied before swiftly speaking further to avoid interruption. "Though if asked, I could direct you towards someone who possesses the ability I do not. You would need to perform a task for him or something equivalent given in exchange, but it is with certainty that he would be able to regenerate sundered limbs. Would you like that as your reward instead of the treasure?"

Looking at the scroll in his claws, Iskdiwercaesin didn't need to think twice about which he valued more. To feel the sky again, on his own power, would never compare to some lost trove.

And yet, he still had something else that made him think. Looking at Serhis, he couldn't help but ask. "You'd give your reward to me? Even after I almost abandoned you and Xet?"

Shaking his head, Serhis knew he had to explain his thoughts not only to Iskdiwercaesin, but everyone else as well. "And you didn't. You still came to save us, like I said before. You used your own gold, your own ship and helped Rhasalis and Baous reach us in time, you left your ship even though you had done enough, and you kept by our side as we fought. I'm grateful to everyone, but... there's nothing else I can give them that they haven't already asked. You're the only one that I know still wants something above anything else."

Speechless, Iskdiwercaesin's stared silently at him, his face an expressionless mask. As much as the dragon tried, he couldn't do anything about the conflicting emotions behind his green eyes. "Is this what you want to do Serhis? Do you wish to know of one who could give him back his wings?" Nadia asked.

"Ye-"

"NO!" Iskdiwercaesin shouted. "You can keep your reward, don't spend it on me!" he pointed at Serhis. "I've already owed you once and you know what you did to me. I don't ever, ever want to be in your debt again."

"It's not a debt, I would give it to you freely."

"That's even worse!" Iskdiwercaesin bellowed, bringing his head back and craning his neck. "It may feel like a gift to you, but it'd still be a debt for me! Keep your gift, it's yours. If I wanted something from you, I'll ask for it. Small gifts are fine, but this," Iskdiwercaesin spread his ruined wings, "this isn't yours to give."

In the moment of silence, as everyone watched the cleric and the dragon, even those of House Ihthei and Tomond's people further off, it was Serhis' turn to be stunned speechless. "I thought you'd want them back," he finally said when he found he had a voice again.

"I do, more than anything," Iskdiwercaesin growled, feeling the stumps, the scarred flesh, and torn membranes. "But I'll take them back it on my terms. Not out of charity."

"Do you wish to recant your reward then Iskdiwercaesin? If you desire, you may give me the map back and you can ask for it instead," said Nadia.

"... no. Not yet," Iskdiwercaesin closed his eyes and shook his head. "I'll want my wings back, no question, but like I said, on my own terms. Not because of you, not because of Serhis, and definitely not because of some random person out in the world which I have to do another task for," he grumbled. "When I get them back, it's because I earned it."

Nadia's expression finally changed, like the suppressed surprise from earlier rising to the fore. "Then you are noble in your ideals. Perhaps it may be called pride that you refuse aid, but no, you realize you are unable to regain them on your own and seek other methods to gain what you wish. Truly, I think that you have changed for the better... No, not changed. You are yourself, without the influence of your blood dictating your decisions and thoughts.

"I don't care what you think," Iskdiwercaesin scoffed, though after a brief hesitation. "I'll just take the map and work with what's in the cache."

Staring blankly at Iskdiwercaesin, Serhis wasn't sure what to think anymore. He was so sure the dragon would jump at the chance. Even if it didn't mean getting his wings back here and now, the simple chance alone to do it should have been good. The idea that Iskdiwercaesin would have his wings back on his own initiative wasn't considered. "Then... how will you get back your wings if you're not going to do that?"

"Any way that doesn't involve having to indebt myself to some random healer."

When Iskdiwercaesin didn't explain any further, Serhis guessed that it was because he couldn't. Iskdiwercaesin may dream of many things that increased his wealth, stature, and power, things he could do and control, but when it came to restoring his wings, he couldn't think of any other way to regain them aside from the generosity of others and it would bother him. "Then I'll find another way Iskdiwercaesin," Serhis said, to which the dragon only nodded once.

"This still leaves you unrewarded for your task Serhis," said Nadia. "You are noble yourself to give it away to another, but it seems that you will have to reconsider. Is there anything that you want that I can give?"

Serhis shook his head. "I can't think of anything. You've already given us what we needed so much. A way to lift the curse from my hatchmates. A chance for Baous to speak with his birth parents. An opportunity for Iskdiwercaesin to get his wings back, even though he didn't want it like this. I know I've earned a reward... but I don't have anything to ask for myself."

"And a reward given without thought or want is meaningless. You ask nothing for yourself, even when the needs of those you care for have been fulfilled, you are a kind soul Serhis," Nadia said gently. "I will not give you a reward yet then, I will wait until you have learned what you want. Until then, I will hold this boon until your time of need. With that, my purpose here has been served."

"Goodbye Nadia." "See you later." "Thank you." "Farewell." "Bye." A chorus of parting words came from Serhis, Baous, Xet, Rhasalis, and Iskdiwercaesin before she vanished again. Her departure left them standing in the starlit night, the only other lights coming from the torches the House Ihthei members carried as they stood dumbfounded at the group's exalted friend's parting.

Staring back over the side of the mountain, Serhis looked at the river again, seeing the ship anchored at the edge, ready to take them to wherever they would want to go. For the second time, Serhis didn't know what he wanted. They had no great objective, no grand quest. Even lifting the death curse didn't mean they had a clear destination. They were traveling on their own accord, to wherever they willed.

As they felt the wind and looked up into the stars, their thoughts were only of an unknown and brightening path.