Chapter 11
Before going to see Renal Bloodscalp at Yoshimo's sincere behest, Leah and her companions first made a detour to deliver the poisoned Harper agent, Renfeld, to the location he had specified before starting to gradually pass out from the slowly working toxin inside his bloodstream, as well as the physical exertion. Considering the man's state, Leah didn't think it would have been a wise idea to drag him through the Shadow Thief guildhall before delivering him to his Harper friends.
Once they had arrived at the secret Harper base in the Docks, Leah had felt her eyebrows rise a little at the opulent and gaudy orange colored mansion that was sticking out like a sore thumb amongst the other more rundown and ramshackle buildings of the Docks. A quick glance at Jaheira revealed that the druidess was equally surprised, this kind of base feeling rather at odds with the Harper methods of operation. Nevertheless, the guard at the entrance had quickly taken Renfeld inside, then returning to reward Leah with a satchel of gold coins for their noble assistance. The guard introduced himself as Rylock, but never did reveal his affiliation to the Harpers, not even to Jaheira, and Leah was making sure to watch them both, finally concluding that they had not previously met. Of course, Leah realized that her and Jaheira's involvement would come to light in case of Renfeld's successful recovery, but she hoped that the assistance she had provided would only help her relationships with the Harpers, considering the influence of the sometimes unpredictable and mysterious organization.
However, things had become more interesting when the group of five were already back on their way to the Shadow Thief guildhouse. Along the way, they were stopped by none other than the mad Zhentarim wizard Xzar, ranting at them incoherently until Leah was finally able to comprehend his request to infiltrate the gaudy Harper base and rescue his friend, the nasty little halfling thief Montaron who had been spying on the sworn enemies of the Zhentarim. Aiding a Zhentarim agent and going against the Harper organization seemed like the worst possible career move that Leah could think of, even if Xzar promised untold riches in reward for Montaron's safe return.
That was when Xzar had dropped the name of Irenicus, immediately complicating the entire circumstance. The mad wizard claimed to have information on Irenicus, such as his location, suddenly making it very difficult for Leah to turn down his request for help. Something stirred deep within her soul, urging the young priestess to wrap her hands around Xzar's throat and simply wring the information out of him, but somehow, something made her stop at the last moment. She was about to agree to Xzar's terms, when Jaheira pulled her aside before she could utter the words, the druidess shooting her a warning glare.
"Be careful, Leah. I will understand why you would choose to ally with a Zhentarim agent for Imoen's sake, but the other Harpers will not," Jaheira said quietly. "I... might not be able to shield you from their enmity, which these actions will undoubtedly bring upon our heads."
"I said that I would do anything for Imoen's sake, and I meant it," Leah spoke sternly, staring straight ahead and avoiding Jaheira's eyes.
"This is too much of a risk, Leah, and you know it," Jaheira scowled. "Have you considered that the fool does not even have the information that he claims to possess? Or that learning of the location of this Irenicus might not bring us closer to Imoen? What if we will still lack the means of transportation to get to him? What if the Cowled Wizards imprison these deviants on another plane? This reward of information could be useless!"
"It is common knowledge that the Cowled Wizards do not hold these prisoners in Athkatla," Yoshimo subtly poked his way into the conversation. "Your druid companion raises an excellent point, Leah."
"I understand what you're both saying, but as long as there is a chance, no matter how slight, I must take it," Leah repeated stubbornly.
"Leah... if the Harpers learn that I have aided the Zhentarim in something like this, it could brand me as a traitor of the Harpers," Jaheira warned again.
"Then feel free to sit this one out," Leah shrugged, looking at her friend.
"It doesn't work like that and you know it," Jaheira hissed, becoming irritated. "You are my charge, and the Harpers know it. We only just delivered Renfeld to them together! Your actions will implicate me as well, even if I am not there... and do you know what happens to traitors of the Harpers?" Leah shook her head stiffly. "They will send one agent after another until someone succeeds in killing me. Not a single traitor has escaped their sealed fate in the long history of the organization."
"So, the chance to save Imoen comes with the price tag of your life?" Leah sighed, her shoulders slumping. "Fine. You win." She turned towards the Zhentarim mage again. "Xzar, the deal is off. Let's move on, people," the young Sorlyn added, turning around and starting to climb the steps leading up from the lower level of the docks and the piers to the upper levels where the Shadow Thief guildhouse sprawled and occupied a large part of the district.
"I am... sorry," Jaheira spoke quietly, catching up with her. "Normally, my affiliation should not be a hindrance, but..."
"Think nothing of it," Leah shrugged, trying to put the whole conversation out of her mind. "Luckily, Xzar isn't our only link to Imoen... if that was so, my decision might have been different. I would still like to know how Xzar knew about Irenicus, even if the name was all that he was truly aware of."
"He was a wizard and a Zhentarim agent," Yoshimo inserted, effortlessly slipping in to walk on the other side of Leah. "No doubt that he had connections within the Cowled Wizards, or else his kind would not be able to walk the streets openly, not even in the Docks. It is possible that he learned the name of Irenicus from his contact within the Cowled ones."
"That makes sense," Leah conceded with a sigh. "So, there's actually a good chance that he wasn't lying. But... it doesn't devaluate the points you made, Jaheira," she added hastily, noticing the guilty, downcast expression on the half-elf's face.
"Meanwhile, we have arrived," Yoshimo said, drawing their attention to the fact that they had arrived at the main entrance into the Shadow Thief guildhouse. The structure it was housed in was a peculiar one. It seemed to have once consisted from several adjacent buildings, over time fusing into one sprawling and rather ugly establishment, reminding Leah very distinctly of the thieves' guildhouse back in Baldur's Gate. She only hoped that this Renal Bloodscalp would be a more pleasant person to deal with than Alatos Ravenscar, who had sold her out to his Halruaan mage accomplice without a moment's thought.
"Is it alright for you to join us inside this Shadow Thief hive?" Leah asked, turning back to face Anomen. "We don't have to worry about some Order spy following us around and reporting on your morally questionable missteps?" she added with a cheeky smile.
"No, it is not quite that bad, my lady," Anomen replied with a smile of his own, making Leah feel relieved that he could at least take some teasing with good humor. "I think I should be fine, as long as nobody does anything to force me into defending your honor, in which case I will have to follow the Order's chivalrous code of conduct."
"Yes, let's hope that the Shadow Thief leader is not of the lewd and overtly flirtatious type," Leah chuckled, the guard opening the doors for them as they approached, winking at her as if they were old acquaintances, when Leah had never even seen the man before.
Inside, the guildhall at first appeared to be very chaotically organized, thieves of every race, age and gender milling around the ground floor of the base, consisting of shelves full of contraband and stacks of barrels and boxes. A pretty half-elven lass had even set out some of the stolen merchandize on several tables in front of her, acting as a merchant, which implied that this floor of the guildhouse was accessible to a wider public than just Shadow Thief guild members. Before Leah had a chance to ask for directions, Yoshimo was already pointing at a set of stairs at the back of the cluttered main hall and without wasting more time they quickly proceeded to the second floor. Even if nobody asked them any questions or did not appear to be watching them, Leah knew they had to be under constant surveillance. Renal obviously knew that they were coming, the winking guard at the doors had been the first clue to give it away.
Renal Bloodscalp, himself a man in late forties, met them while surrounded by a group of more intense and business-like looking thugs, and Leah was reasonably certain that even more of his thieves were watching them, ready to spring into action at the first sight of trouble, not that Leah or anyone in her company intended to provoke the Shadow Thieves into hostilities. While Renal did not appear particularly physically imposing, there was something about his lean, scarred frame suggesting that while many had tried to depose him, none had ever succeeded from stopping him in rising high amongst the ranks of the Shadow Thieves and that alone was reason enough to play nice with this influential individual.
"My, my, if it isn't the freelancer, Yoshimo, come to see me at last," Renal laughed amiably, seeing them approach. "I had nearly thought that the streets had opened up and swallowed you whole, dear lad. Sometimes that tends to happen to ragtag independents infringing on our territory... I'm sure you've heard the stories, Yoshi."
"Yoshimo, if you please, sire," the Kara-Turan replied politely. "Where I come from, such a pet name is only used by... well, let us say that you and I have not become so familiar just yet, hmm?" By Milil, I nearly called him Yoshi several times already, Leah groaned mentally, making a note not to use that pet name. He probably wouldn't have corrected me either, unlike with Renal...
"Point taken," Renal nodded. "So, have you finally come to pay the debt for your recent activities, or are we simply to trade barbs until I am forced to do something hideous? But wait..." Bloodscalp's eyes left Yoshimo and turned to examine Leah in turn, the young priestess trying to maintain her calm and neutral demeanor under the old thief's scrutinizing gaze. "I thought I had a task for you, Yoshimo, but it seems that you have done something better already. Your traveling companion is of interest to me, and you have delivered her before me. Many thanks."
"As long as my companion is not brought into danger because of my debt," Yoshimo said, sounding a little uncomfortable. "It would reflect very poorly upon my honor."
"Considering that your companion is actively seeking the aid of the Shadow Thieves in another endeavor, I do not think that hostile confrontation is in the best interests of either party," Renal chuckled, turning back to Leah. "You'll have to excuse me for not recognizing you immediately. Some of the descriptions don't do you justice. I was expecting someone of more physically intimidating stature."
"Many have made that fatal mistake in underestimating me," Leah shrugged, maintaining her impassive countenance. "I'm sure that you have benefitted from the same throughout your career."
"Wisely deduced," Renal nodded, flashing a gap-toothed smile. "So, Leah, what would you say to an opportunity to both earn a greater goodwill from the Shadow Thieves as well as smoothing out the differences between the good Yoshimo and our organization?"
"I'm interested, but like they say, the devil is in the details," Leah said, crossing her arms on her chest, giving Renal her best piercing stare, but it only seemed to make the smile on the thief's lips broaden.
"Yes, the details!" he nodded, his expression then immediately becoming cold and businesslike. "How shall I put this? One of my guildhouses to the south is run by a rather ambitious fellow named Mae'Var. Good thief, but I never liked him. Now I know why. I've had some hints that he is getting too big for himself. Thinking of taking my place, I suspect, but I've had no real evidence to say that this is so. Now, you're probably thinking, why not just eliminate him? Yes, yes, I suppose I could do that."
"Murdering your underlings without proof would send the wrong kind of message throughout the organization," Leah said thoughtfully. "You would soon have a rebellion on your hands."
"Especially with that guild war that some recent rumors speak of, my lady," Anomen leaned closer to whisper in her ear. "That other guild must be posing a very serious threat to these scoundrels for them to be so desperate to turn to outsiders like us."
"Regardless of all that..." Renal said impatiently, unwilling to acknowledge even the slightest hint that the Shadow Thieves were in danger of losing some of their turf. "We have come to your part in all this. I would like you to go to Mae'Var and join his guild. I will give you the papers saying that you are being transferred by the Shadow Master. You will spy on Mae'Var from the inside and find me the evidence that I need."
"I do not see why you need a large group to infiltrate the guild of this Mae'Var," Leah shrugged. "This would be a task perfectly suited to Yoshimo alone. In fact..." her eyes fell on Minsc, smiling broadly as he absentmindedly stroked Boo's fur, and then onto Anomen, his shining and well polished armor standing out like a glowing beacon amidst the thief guildhouse. "I do not think that some of my friends are well suited for a covert mission of this sort."
"The truth is that I do not care how you accomplish this task, Leah," Renal said, a little distractedly. "You may wish to assign Yoshimo to take care of his own mess single handedly, and that is fine by me. Or you may choose to assist him. I care little, as long as I see results on the table."
Ignoring the worried stare that Yoshimo was sending in her direction, Leah continued to press on with her own questions. "You spoke of a mutually beneficial arrangement," the priestess of Milil spoke sternly. "So far I have only heard of how this all will benefit you. What do we get out of this deal?"
"The arrangement that you have struck with Gaelan Bayle," Renal said simply. Leah raised an eyebrow, waiting on him to continue. "I am aware that twenty thousand gold is not a small sum. Fulfill this task for me, and I will speak with the Shadow Master about knocking several thousand gold off that target."
"Ten thousand gold," Leah said boldly, knowing that Renal would never agree to reduce the cost so drastically.
"You jest, dear girl," Renal smiled at her. "Three thousand is the most I can promise you."
"Five?" Leah tried one more time, Yoshimo making a warning gesture to her and whispering something about never haggling with a man like Renal.
"Listen to Yoshimo. I do not hail from Amn originally, and do not view haggling as an art," Renal said simply. "In fact, it is the best way to insult me. I will let this slide because you are... so very easy on the eye, girl," he added with a wink. "Three thousand gold, and I will add some magical baubles from my own collection. This will have to satisfy, or else... your overall relationship with the Shadow Thieves will become unnecessarily sour."
"Very well, we agree," Leah finally nodded after a moment of silence, Renal rubbing his hands and looking pleased. Several minutes later, Leah and her companions found themselves standing back outside the guildhouse, Leah holding the papers that she was meant to present to Gorch, storekeep at the guildhouse of Mae'Var.
"Boo says we are going to play thieves now?" Minsc asked, looking disturbingly excited about the prospect, shaking Leah back to the harsh reality.
"Err... not right now, Minsc," she said, patting the large ranger on the arm. Then she pressed the papers in the hands of the unpleasantly surprised looking Yoshimo. "No, I don't intend to just leave you alone on this, Yoshimo," she said, smiling at the worried rogue. "But with the way we currently appear... only you could pass for someone that the Shadow Master himself would have transferred to serve Mae'Var. I suppose Jaheira and I could manage to look like half-convincing rogues with some work, but not as we are right now."
"Minsc knows how to be stealthy!" the ranger protested, looking disappointed.
"Yes, Minsc, in the forest or a swamp, but not inside a guildhouse," Leah replied with sympathetic smile. "Still, this is no reason to waste time, which is why I want you to go to Mae'Var's guildhouse immediately and get started, Yoshimo. Dig up as much information as you can, and perhaps you can think of a convincing way to get the rest of us inside the guildhouse. Or alternatively, Jaheira and I will dress up as stealthy rogues and join you later."
"Hmm, very well... I can lay down some ground work, as you wish it, Leah," Yoshimo finally acceded, agreeing with Leah's reasoning. "And what will you be doing in the meantime?"
"Visit to the Council of Six building," Leah replied, turning around to leave. "Time to sort out that magical license... or at least find out what kind of exorbitant bribe those Cowled Wizards are asking for..."
Following a rather unpleasant conversation with a Cowled Wizard representative named Corneil, Leah found herself standing in a discreet corner inside the Council of Six building and stuffing the parchment that apparently served as a license to allow arcane spellcasting within the city limits, into her now considerably lighter coin purse. "Ugh, I can't believe it took five thousand gold to acquire this," she cursed, feeling genuinely irritated. "That was all the reward from Nalia and then some. At least the license isn't made for a specific person, just one wizard traveling in my company... because I'm still not sure whether we'll be relying on Nalia or Aerie more..."
"How much have these expenses set us back, my lady?" Anomen inquired politely.
"Well... we're back down to less than hundred gold," Leah sighed. "Barely enough to cover the cost of accommodations we will need for tonight."
"Boo is prepared to make a sacrifice and pass on the double helping of nuts and berries for the good of the group, little Leah," Minsc offered kindly.
"Tell Boo that his noble sacrifice will not be forgotten, Minsc," Leah shook her head, then letting out a laugh, the jovial expression on the large ranger's face never failing to cheer her up. "I guess with the license business out of the way, we can be off again... Jaheira?" she turned to her friend, listening in on some conversation with a disgusted expression on her face.
"Do not mind me," the druidess looked back at her. "Simply overhearing the chatter between some clerks. They are rushing to see a public burning of some hapless drow. Pathetic."
"Sounds rather sickening... is this kind of thing legal here in Amn?" Leah turned towards Anomen.
"I am sure that her guilt is proven beyond doubt, my lady," the squire replied, not looking utterly convinced. "However, without knowing all the details..."
"I see... well, from everything I've seen so far here in this Council of Six building, I'm not sure that your much valued sense of justice and righteousness is appropriately honored and served within these walls," Leah said, looking around the halls, her stare lingering at the figures of Magistrate Bylanna Lanulin and Chief Inspector Brega in particular, her inquiries about Imoen's fate to them both hitting a dead end, both officials candidly admitting that the Cowled Wizards openly stonewalled them on every matter that involved magic. "I hope you don't mind if we go and see what is happening with that drow by ourselves."
"Of course not, my lady," Anomen replied proudly. "If justice is not served, it is our duty to interfere, as Helm would want it."
Leah simply nodded to that, before leading her group out of the government building and across the little park to where she could already see a large crowd forming in front of the Athkatla Prison. The short walk gave her a brief moment to reflect on a couple more job opportunities that had dropped into her lap during the visit to the Government District. First, she had been invited to talk with a Cowled Wizard named Tolgerias, a very haughty and arrogant mage, even for one of the Cowlies. Tolgerias had requested her aid in tracking down a renowned hater of mages, some nobleman named Valygar Corthala. Apparently, this man had slaughtered two of the Cowled Wizards already, so Tolgerias was naturally incensed and offered them a great amount of coins as well as magical items for their assistance.
Of course, Leah had immediately jumped on the chance to pester this Tolgerias fellow with questions about Imoen, asking the Cowled Wizard to expedite her friend's release instead of a monetary reward, but the mage had not wanted to listen to any of her demands, growing increasingly angrier until Leah had to settle for a promise that Tolgerias would look into the matter and see what he could do for Imoen's sake. The task itself, however, was a little puzzling for Leah, and since the Cowled Wizards seemed like the kind of organization that was difficult to place trust in, she resolved to be particularly careful while working on this case. It was not quite clear why the Cowled Wizards would not track this murderer down themselves, considering that they certainly had the manpower, as well as help of powerful divination tools. Also, Tolgerias' mention that he required Valygar's body, dead or alive, was more than a little strange and made Leah wonder whether the Cowled mage was a necromancer who planned to raise Valygar as a ghoul as a sadistic form of punishment for killing his mage fellows.
Tolgerias had suggested to check out Valygar's house at the docks, as well as his land property near the Umar Hills, and this coincided with the other task that Leah had stumbled across, a messenger from the town of Imnesvale in those same Umar Hills coming to seek aid with a string of mysterious murder cases that had sent the inhabitants of the countryside into a state of panic, prompting the mayor of the small community to turn to traveling adventurers for aid with the problems plaguing his town. The messenger, a young lad named Delon, begged them to travel to Imnesvale at the first opportunity and to speak with Minister Lloyd, the mayor of the town. Leah made a promise to do so, adding yet another mission to their encouragingly growing list of tasks, which hopefully also meant increasing income into the Imoen rescue fund.
By now, they had reached the thick crowd of people eagerly waiting for the drow to be burned on the stake, listening to a pair of fanatics ranting at the crowd about the inherent evil of the drow and about invoking the will of Beshaba that would apparently be pleased to see this drow suffer a most horrific death. The crowd seemed as if they didn't particularly care about the concerns of faith, but simply wanted to see the spectacle and listen to the screams of pain from the captured victim's mouth.
"Ah yes, there is the drow, my lady," Anomen spoke. Being slightly taller, he had spotted the tied up dark elf first, Leah's eyes widening in surprise as she now also could get a clear look at the captured woman, recognizing her instantly. "I had not thought the drow could be so... striking. A beautiful creature, this, if devoid of compassion as I hear," he added, making Leah glare at him instantly.
"She is not a creature, Anomen," she snapped angrily. "Her name is Viconia de Vir, and she is an old friend of mine." Anomen looked completely dumbstruck at that. "And by Milil, I'm not going to stand here and watch her get burned by these Beshaban fanatics! Wait here," Leah said harshly, starting to press through the crowd, Anomen seemingly frozen with hesitation while Jaheira and Minsc swiftly moved to follow Leah, not letting the girl out of their sights.
There seemed to be only two of the Beshaban faithful, running the entire show and still ranting and riling up the crowd, however, they were watched over by four of the guards from the nearby prison. Leah avoided the Beshabans for now and headed straight for the best armored of the men, assuming them for the leader of the guards, summoning a friendly smile when the burly man fixed her with a questioning stare, his hand first going for the hilt of his sword, then relaxing when he noticed that he was being approached by an attractive young woman. "Just trying to get a better place from which to watch the show," Leah offered, continuing to smile, watching how the guard relaxed instantly. "Enjoying it as well?" she asked.
"Not at all. I think everyone who comes to watch these executions is... a little sick, if you would pardon me, lass," the guard said, surprising Leah slightly. "But these Beshabans pay well, and the job of the guard doesn't really fill the coin purse as well as a man needs, if you get my meaning," he winked at the young priestess. "Besides, we are not wasting the time of the courts. Everybody wins."
"So, you just sell some prisoners to the Beshabans from time to time to fill your pockets?" Leah asked, trying to keep the rising anger from her voice as the guard nodded simply. "And this drow, has she actually... done something illegal?"
"Not that I know of," the guard shrugged. "She was detained on the suspicion of being a drow. Since nobody knows her and she is a complete stranger to the city, she was my first choice to sell to these bastards."
"I see..." Leah muttered, watching with increasing worry as the Beshabans were starting to get ready to set fire to the stake. "Tell me, you have already received your coins from them, have you not?" The guard nodded at her again. "I don't suppose I could convince you to... I don't know, perhaps head back inside the prison and forget about guarding these idiots?"
"Much as I'd love that... what would be our incentive?" the guard commander asked. "I presume you harbor violence towards them, but as despicable as they are, they provide extra income for us. What could you possibly offer to make us turn a blind eye?"
"Well... I can't bribe you, I'm afraid," Leah admitted ruefully, then grinning and winking coquettishly at the guard. "But... there might be alternative ways for me to show you my gratitude..."
The guard definitely looked very interested, even if he still appeared reluctant. "Oh, I don't know, girl, you're very easy on the eye for sure, but..."
"That drow about to be burnt on the stake... she's actually my friend. Her name is Viconia," Leah pressed home the advantage, continuing to smile seductively. "If you allow us to free her, I'm sure that she would also join me in showing you that certain kind of gratitude... and you know what they say about the drow and their knowledge of those particular arts..."
"Hmm... alright, but you better not be playing any tricks with me, because if you are, we will find you and you'll both end up on the stake, you get it?" the guard asked, clearly excited about the prospect of female companionship.
"Of course I understand... and I assure you, there are no tricks," the young priestess smiled broadly. "Stop by the Copper Coronet this evening and ask around for Leah. I will be waiting for you together with my friend, I promise."
"Well... alright," the guard leader finally nodded, turning around and ushering his slightly surprised fellows back inside the prison building, leaving the Beshabans, now working to properly set fire to the stake, without their honor guard.
"Minsc!" Leah ordered, having noticed that her friends had caught up with her by now. She pointed at the two frantically working fanatics. "Take them out, now!"
"Minsc and Boo will happily apply righteous head banging of justice to the villains who would hurt little Viconia," the ranger bellowed excitedly, picking up the two struggling fanatics by their collars and then crashing their heads together, sending them both tumbling on the ground unconscious, the crowd gasping, some already turning to run away in fear.
"Jaheira?" Leah turned to ask, then noticing that the druidess was already cutting the ropes that held Viconia tied to the stake.
"Already on it," the half-elf snapped her reply, cutting the final rope, as Viconia gracefully jumped off from the stake and approached her savior, looking grateful as she embraced Leah.
"My thanks for your timely intervention, abbil," she said, clearly pleased to see her old comrade with whom they had traveled all across the Sword Coast. "These rivvin are mad, they were about to burn me alive simply for being a drow!"
"Well, we're going to give them a taste of their own medicine," Leah said sternly, earning an approving look from Viconia, and a slightly shocked one from Anomen as soon as she uttered her next words. "Minsc, tie them both to the stake in Viconia's place. The crowd came here to see a spectacle... I do not want them to go home unsatisfied..."
"My lady... are you certain this is a just course of action?" Anomen asked, looking hesitant. Jaheira also did not look entirely comfortable, but Minsc as always showed no reaction, gladly tying the unconscious fanatics to the stake.
"I'm not always a very nice person, Anomen," Leah replied with a fake smile. "Especially not when someone threatens my friends... not like this..."
"I... understand," Anomen bowed his head. "They have been practicing this unjust punishment for some time, it appears. Perhaps... perhaps it is only right that they suffer it themselves."
"There is a certain irony in turning the tables on them, I agree," Jaheira noted, seemingly also coming to approve of Leah's decision after some internal debating. "I suppose you will want to bring Viconia along, yes?"
"Of course little Viconia will come with us!" Minsc announced cheerfully. "She is our responsibility now! Minsc and Boo will make sure that she does not run into any more trouble!"
"What Minsc and Boo said," Leah chuckled, looking at the mildly exasperated drow. "Viconia, if you please..." she said, pointing at the stake.
"Of course, abbil," the drow grinned broadly, uttering a short prayer to Shar, summoning a strike of flame from the sky that quickly ignited the stake.
As the five of them walked away, the crowd behind them erupted in a grand cheer at the first cry of pain from the burning fanatics.