Chapter 6.b ;Initiation
The government building of Athkathla was a palace in every sense of the word, a lavish building of white polished marble – real thing this time – with workings of gold and silver. Stained glass windows depicted beautiful scenes, shining in the daylight. Surrounded by the fountains and gardens, it truly was quite impressive. And more protected than they expected. Numerous guards of the garrison in rounded plates stood watch by the entrance, or else patrolled the area, scowling at Imoen and Chloe as they made their way through the square.
This place was not A place, but THE place, the place where the various powers held their conference in Athkatla, powers such as the dukes, the garrison, knights of the order, merchants, ambassadors, and of course, the Cowl Wizards. Each one had their office here and there were several meeting rooms where parties could meet to debate and discuss current issues. It also provided the commoners the means with interacting with these offices, filing in requests and getting justice in return. Or something like justice. There was an inevitable slice of corruption in every pie such as this, particularly in large cities.
Imoen rubbed at her stomach ; she had had pie for breakfast this morning.
The two of them were not the only mercenaries who had answered the call of a fat bounty, which explained the extra guards. Indeed, many bounty hunters and adventurers who had been in town had come for a chance to hunt down the infamous Bhaalspawn, for fame if not for fortune. Even as they approached the main entrance - a tunnel-like gate with double grates opened wide - they found themselves amidst dozens of other mercenaries, slowly shuffling and funneling through. The emissary of the Cowls would host them all in his office within ten minutes or so, and the crowd of would-be heroes was naturally thick. Still, Imoen noted, there were not as many as she had thought there would be. Just twenty or so. Most of them seemed to be individuals, but there were parties of three or four. She could tell by the way they stood apart in the crowd.
Once they were all in, a polite female clerk escorted them up the stairs and down a hallway towards the office the Cowl Wizards had here. As they moved, they passed the office of the Order Of The Most Radiant Heart which caught Imoen's attention. The Knights were not a political organization, - more of a religious order, actually - so their presence here was small. As was their office. But it still made Imoen wonder about Keldorn and Anomen. It made her wonder about all the old friends who used to live in Athkatla, Cerand, and Aerie, and Edvin and Khorgan too. She knew many friends and... other people... that used to live in Athkatla, and if they were still here, they must have heard the rumors she was back in town. Abruptly, she berated herself for not thinking about it before now. She did not want her friends involved in this, but it was more than likely that they would come looking for her.
Irritated, she filed that thought away to be picked at later, for presently, they stood in front of the door of the Cowls office.
Like the Knights, the Wizards tended to stay out of politics, so their office was small, but it did nothing to diminish the shadow of their presence, as the hallway started to yield more and more empty offices and hollow rooms before stopping at their door. As sole masters of magic in the city, the forbidden taboo force of destruction, people tended to avoid them, even here in the center of Athkatla's government. And years of anti-magic propaganda had also reflected some stains on the Cowls, for both deviants and Cowls could call down lightnings, spout fire or do who knew what else. One rabid dog guarding you from another did not mean that the first dog was your friend.
Their guide politely knocked on the door and went in to exchange a few quiet words with the mage within. The office was not large enough to house 20 or more people, but the man inside just nodded, put down his writing quill, rolled the parchment he was working on - some kind of a spell-scroll - and dismissed the little clerk with a flick of his hand. After she departed, the man stood up. He wore the custom gray robe of their order with a hooded cape in a more blander shade of gray, though his hood was down this time. He was not that old for a human mage - 30 or so - but he went with the look which made him seem older ; a neat black beard that reached his chest, and hair tied up in a tail. His left bushy eyebrow had one golden ring in it, and his small eyes were calculating and betrayed a harsh intelect.
" Welcome mercenaries. " He said. And his passionless voice was a bit more nasal than Imoen expected. " Please follow me. "
He waved his hand, with a muttered spell, fingers wiggling and darting, and opened a door to another place right in front of them. So, that was how he intended to house them all at once. There was a soft murmur of people around her, and some appeared hesitant. Imoen used that moment to memorize the waving she had seen.
The man was strong in magic, though his control of it was crude. She saw what he had done there, and she knew she could open up a gateway with far more finesse and far less effort. Still, the strength he used to rip it opened, surprised her. She could not say why, exactly. She just thought that he did not seem like he was that strong in Magic. Maybe he had an artifact which amplified his powers. She also did not see the exact location where the gateway lead off to. Sometimes, one could see it in the workings of the spell, but not this time.
After their host stepped through the translocation gateway, the rest of them followed, some more reluctantly than others. Imoen and Chloe were in the middle, ready for anything. Chloe frowned, her hand resting almost casually at the hilt of her blade, and the other, holding Imoen by the hem of her cape. She still thought the Cowls would jump them at any moment, so Imoen tried to soothe her by a confident pat. That pat was as much to soothe herself as Chloe. This visit was such a stupid thing to do, but that alone made them safe. Surely, the Cowls had no idea she would be right under their noses. Surely.
The gateway lead them to a place which appeared to be a colosseum ringed in darkness. The only light came from torches on the encircling walls, illuminating the sandy arena, but nothing beyond it. The sky was black. Not a cloudy night, or a high roof hidden in shadow, but simply black, like a vast void gaping at them down below. The other mercenaries seemed to be impressed, but Imoen could see the workings of a large spell which supplied that illusion of blackness. This was not a pocket plane or a different realm. Such gateways required an absurd amount of energy, the kind that Demigods and Demon-Lords had, and this was just an actual place in Feirun, diguised to look impressive. None of the others, appeared to have realized it though, evident by their wide eyes.
" I will be brief. " Their host said in his nasel tone. " A very powerful renegade mage is in town. We are looking for people with different skills to hunt her down. It will be dangerous and if anyone has a problem with that, the gateway back to Athkathla is still opened behind you. "
After about ten seconds of silence, no one moved or went back through the gateway. Despite their reactions to the magical fireworks, these people were professionals.
" Good. " The man said. " There will be a substantial reward for the one who brings her to us. Preferably alive, though we'll accept a corpse too. " Besides her, Imoen could almost feel Chloe's fists clenching in anger. The man went on without stopping. " However, we do not employee freeloaders or amateurs. That is why you are here now. You will fight in two events and thus be evaluated. At the end, we will separate the ones we will hire from the ones who are unsuitable. Any questions ?"
That brought about a few voices, asking things like, would the reward be smaller for a corpse, and was there any advance. The man listened, then rose his hand to silence them much like an instructor silences his class.
" We'll pay an extra thousand for a prisoner. " He said. " If you are chosen in this evaluation, you will get one fifth of the bounty up front, but nothing else until you deliver. And if you betray us, try to run, or make no progress within a week, we have means of hunting you down. I will be your contact with our order. You can find me in the main government building every day from... "
" Is it true that the mage we'll be hunting is Imoen of Candlekeep, Gorion's Ward and a farmer Child Of Bhaal ?" Chloe asked. Imoen narrowed her eyes at her angrily, before turning back to look at the Cowl Wizard before them. She had to stay calm and confident. She repeated to herself that the best place to hide was right under their noses.
All of the mercenaries were looking expectantly at the Wizard now. Some glanced at her and Chloe before turning back to the wizard, and after a few more seconds of silence, he spoke. " Whether it is her or not, does not matter to you. It will be dangerous enough in ether case. "
That brought about another few seconds of angry murmurs. Imoen used that time to step on the toe of Chloe's foot with the hard heel of her own shoe, watching in satisfaction as the other woman's lips tightened in response.
" Now, " He resumed. " if there are still some of you who hesitate, you are free to go back now. The rest of you will follow me to your first challenge. "
Lazaruss : " Reviews are welcome. "
