To make no mistakes is not in the power of man; but from their errors and mistakes the wise and good learn wisdom for the future.
-Plutarch
Ralis felt an air of unease around him. He is fully aware that everyone behind him saw the symbol of Bhaal burned onto the bridge, including his conversation with the hooded man. It will take days or weeks for someone to clean the bridge off, but even if they did, the memory of it will remain fresh in the memory of his party and the Flaming Fist coalition. And all this happened while he fainted on the bridge and had a dream of seeing Bhaal's demise at the hands of Cyric even though he was not there when the event happened ten years ago. He was only ten or eleven years old back then when it all happened, sheltered behind the fortified walls of Candlekeep! And why is that odd hooded man so interested in him? So many questions, so little answers.
"Ralis!" He heard Khalid's voice come up behind him.
Ralis looked over his shoulder and saw Khalid run up to his left, followed by Corwin, and his entire party, but the Flaming Fist armies and the dwarves of Dumathoin lingered back several yards away, no doubt murmuring among themselves.
"Khalid. Corwin. I suppose you have questions about what happened back there," Ralis said sullenly.
"Yes, we certainly do. What the hells happened back there? You just suddenly fainted and this bright light of energy burned Bhaal's symbol on the ground around you," Corwin said warily, with Neera standing inches beside her.
"Yeah, and that strange hooded guy appeared and- BLOODY HELLS, ADOY, TAKE A COFFEE BREAK FOR TEN MINUTES, WILL YA?" Neera said to Ralis, then suddenly exclaimed to Adoy, wherever he is, startling Corwin with her outburst.
Almost everyone looked at Neera in silence for a few seconds, possibly wondering if she is mentally sane or not, then they decided to ignore her sudden outburst and move on.
"I'm wondering the same thing Neera is wondering. Who was that hooded man, anyway?" Corwin asked Ralis.
"I have no idea!" Ralis responded. "He won't tell me his name or why he is interested in evaluating me."
"Evaluate? For what?" Rasaad asked with curiosity.
"I wish I knew," Ralis said sullen shrug of his shoulders.
The entire group walked down the road in silence for the next minute until Baeloth decided to speak up.
"That... was the most unexpected spectacle I have ever seen. Tell me, would you happen to be a child of Bhaal, by any chance?" Baeloth asked Ralis.
Ralis looked over his shoulder, glaring at the drow being flanked cautiously by Voghlin to his left, and Minsc to his right.
"What do you know about Bhaal, drow? I didn't think you'd be familiar with gods of other races," Ralis said.
"Some drow are more well-traveled than others, waeles (idiot)," Viconia said almost spitefully.
Baeloth chuckled, then said: "You see, my fascinating human compatriot, when you have been forcefully banished to the surface world for the past eight months or more, you'll soon realize that you must grow accustomed to the lifestyle and flora and fauna of a foreign world, including other gods, rather than sticking with the knowledge you had from the Underdark."
Ralis raised an eyebrow. "You were banished from the Underdark? Why?"
Baeloth gasped softly, then grumbled to himself, wishing Ralis never asked that question.
"My friend asked you a question, fiendish drow. Speak to him, and no funny business, or the sword of justice will come crashing down on you," Minsc warned Baeloth, and Boo hissed like an angry cat at Baeloth from Minsc's left shoulder.
"Ja, in addition to the mighty swing of an ax," Voghiln added, smirking at Baeloth and winked at him.
Baeloth ignored Voghiln and instead looked up at Boo glaring down at him from Minsc's shoulder.
"Excuse me, tall one, may I inquire why you carry that gerbil on your shoulder?" He asked.
"GERBIL?!" Minsc immediately turned to glare at Baeloth, making his heart jump.
"Oh crap," Neera's eyes widened.
"You dare call my hamster a gerbil?! Boo is NOT a gerbil! He is a miniature giant space hamster!"
Baeloth paused for a moment, then slowly nodded, obviously in a skeptical manner. "...Uh-huh. You do realize gerbils and hamsters look alike, don't you? How do you know he is not a miniature giant space gerbil?"
"Because there is no such thing as a miniature giant space gerbil!" Minsc snapped.
"Baeloth! You did not answer my question. Answer it," Ralis demanded, the tone of his voice rather forceful.
"All right, already! Sagacious little specimen, aren't you? *sigh*... Remember that show I put on back near the Coast Way crossing bridge?" Baeloth asked while continuing to walk with the group.
"You mean your pitiful show where I met you and M'Khiin?" Ralis asked.
"Yes, that one," Baeloth confirmed. "Many months ago, back in the Underdark, I hosted another show similar to it, but far, far better. I called it The Black Pits!"
Jaheira huffed in disdain for reasons Baeloth could only assume.
"Huh. Cheery name. I bet you had fun hosting pits that are so dark you can't even see your hand in front of your face," Neera said sarcastically then nearly tripped over a rock in the road but she regained her balance instead of falling to the ground. "No one saw that, right?"
"I did. You tripped over a rock," M'Khiin nonchalantly said.
"It was the pinnacle of entertainment, I tell you! Drow from almost every city in the Underdark were invited to see dozens of intrepid gladiators from all over Faerun participate in the most entertaining battles!" Baeloth exclaimed in the manner of an enthusiastic game show host.
Everyone around him fell silent as they continued walking up the road, and Corwin noticed to their right, they passed by an old well not to far away from the road, close to the trees. The bucket attached to the rope that is tied to a thick wooden stick over the well sat on the partially broken stone structure. A common rumor about that well is that a powerful entity has been somehow imprisoned in that well. Corwin remembered that Duncan wrote about this well in his report. He managed to draw up fresh, clean water with the bucket even though the winch is old and rickety. Even though he had heard that locals throw coins in the well in hopes for their wishes to be granted, he never tested the superstition.
"... And these "gladiators" you mentioned, did they volunteer to take part in your Black Pits, or were they forced into it?" Ralis asked the dark elf man warily, breaking the silence.
Baeloth chuckled. "Some volunteered. Others... well, they had to come against their will, I won't lie," he admitted. "... But thanks to six of these persistent gladiators, The Black Pits is no more," he said with a growl, his expression darkening, his voice clearly hinting restrained anger. "They conquered every challenge I threw at them! It was unprecedented! No other gladiator lasted as long as they did! And in the end, after personally defeating me in battle, my djinn servant betrayed me, freed all the gladiators, and banished me to the surface world!"
"Serves you right for playing dirty. If you ask me, the gladiators who defeated you should have killed you. You got off lucky," Ralis said.
Baeloth simply huffed, venting some of his anger, but he did not reply with words.
Two days later during nightfall, the group continued walking up the road, Boareskyr Bridge is now little more than sixteen miles behind them, and to pass the time, they had conversations, including a few soldiers in the Flaming Fist coalition further back.
"I'll admit you are not without skill in combat, monk. Do not think that gives you license to challenge me," Dorn said to Rasaad.
Frowning incredulously, Rasaad looked up at the half-orc in disbelief. "Why would I want to? I have no quarrel with you," he assured the blackguard. "And in the matter of Caelar at least, we share a goal."
"I know your kind," Dorn scowled distrustfully at the monk as they walked alongside each other. "All who sanctimoniously embrace "goodness" salivate at the very idea of my death."
Rasaad felt pity for the half-orc, always second guessing the motives and intentions of the people he travels with. Living that life would be like staying wide awake in the middle of the night when you need sleep, knowing that the very moment you close your eyes, a predator nearby will take your life when you least expect it. Without sleep or peace, the ever vigilant mind can never relax.
"And those who walk the path of evil will never know peace. I can imagine no fate worse than that."
Dorn grunted at Rasaad's remark and reminded himself that peace is a lie, no one is ever truly safe, good or evil, it doesn't matter who, what, or what their alignment happens to be.
At the same time during Dorn and Rasaad's banter, Neera decided to chat with Viconia.
"So, Viconia. Viiiconia. Vicky. Can I call you Vicky?" She asked.
"Even you cannot be so foolish to ask this in earnest. Is this some ill-advised attempt at humor?" Viconia asked, gazing at Neera with a mildly annoyed glare.
"Viconia, then. Fine. In that case, you must call me Neera."
"... I have called you nothing else," Viconia said, raising an eyebrow in slight confusion.
You never called me anything, Neera remarked in her mind.
"Haven't you ever wanted to, though? Maybe "Neers"?" Neera flashed an innocent smile at the dark elf, showing her teeth.
"Definitely not," Viconia rolled her eyes in disgust.
"Peanut, doll, pinkie?"
"Your antics do not amuse me, girl. Begone."
Neera did as Viconia demanded and left her alone, moving further ahead, brushing past Minsc, Dynaheir, Baeloth, Rasaad, M'Khiin and Dorn, then the group walked across the road in complete silence for the next five hours.
"My f-friend? A m-moment of your time?" Khalid asked Ralis, breaking the silence at that time.
"Of course, Khalid. What is it?" Ralis asked him.
"Oh yes, well..." Khalid paused briefly, and broke eye contact with Ralis, staring down at his walking feet for a few seconds. "... What I meant to say is, h-how are you? Everything a-all right?"
"They'd be a better if you told me what you really want," Ralis said, sensing that Khalid has something personal to ask or tell him.
"Is it th-that obvious? I have a f-favor to ask of you. Jaheira and I told everyone we came north to r-rest. We were actually h-here on Harper business. Even so, I h-hoped we'd have some time to ourselves," Khalid admitted.
Ralis shook his head, coming to the realization that a Harper's work is never done. Harpers are never able to actually have a day off after all, Ralis couldn't help but quietly chuckle. Out loud, he said: "This is riveting. Go on."
Khalid licked his lips first before speaking, as if something made him feel uneasy. "Our anniversary approaches. I want to give Jaheira a gift, one that shows her h-how much she means to me. C-could you find me silk from a giant spider?"
"Something from a giant spider will show Jaheira how much she means to you? I've got to ask, how much DOES she mean to you...?" Ralis asked, wondering why does Khalid need webs from a giant spider.
"When Jaheira and I met, I'd n-never left the city b-before. Never been out in the wilderness. Jaheira was horrified how little I knew of n-nature. She showed me how to follow animal tracks, identify plants... And she showed me a trick for curing s-spider silk. If I can get some, I can turn it into a beautiful, sparkling thread to weave her a necklace f-from," Khalid explained.
Ralis nodded to show he understood the significance of the spider silk. "All right, that doesn't sound nearly as terrible as it did at first. I'll try to track some down for you," he promised.
Before Khalid could thank Ralis for agreeing to help him, he noticed that there are several strings of webs stuck in Ralis' hair.
"Uh, Ralis, did you know you have some w-webs stuck to your hair?"
Confused, Ralis reached up with his right hand ant touched his hair. "Huh? No, I didn't," he admitted.
When he brushed his right hand through his hair three times, he looked into the palm of his right hand and saw several strings of hair resting on his hands.
"Huh. These must have stuck to my hair back when I was stuck in the spider webs back in that cave..." Ralis said.
"Y-you were stuck in spider webs?" Khalid asked in mild alarm.
"I, uh... had a near death situation. It's a long story. Here are the webs you need," Ralis handed the webs to Khalid.
"Th-thank you, my friend. We have to t-t-take the opportunity to show our affection when we can. None of us will live forever," Khalid said.
"Ain't that the truth? Sometimes I wonder if I will find the right woman," Ralis said.
"T-time will tell, my friend. Time will tell," Khalid assured him.
Corwin was listening to their entire conversation, and after she heard Khalid say that everyone should take the opportunity to show their affection to a loved one as soon as possible because no one lives forever, she realized that she cannot let her duties as a Flaming Fist captain separate her from her needs as a single mother forever, so she started thinking about having a married life with the hero himself, wondering how that might turn out. She could barely see how a married life with Ralis would turn out, with his heritage and all, but if he truly is a good person who is trustworthy and disobeys his murderous tendencies, she could imagine a future with him. Life would be easier for Rohma, at least, with a father figure around to support them. A famous father. Plus, Rohma might get a half brother or half sister before Corwin gets too old to endure the labor pains of giving birth to a new child. She flinched when her thoughts drifted to the possibility of having a child with the hero of Baldur's Gate. Does Ralis understand the hardships and responsibilities of being a parent? That is an answer she doesn't know yet, so she came up to Ralis with the intention of getting her question answered.
"Do you have any children, Ralis?" Corwin asked him.
Ralis looked at her in confusion, and Corwin silently cursed at herself, admitting to herself that was a very stupid question to ask him, because she has heard that he lived most of his life in Candlekeep, it is very unlikely he has met a woman that caught his interest there, the chances of him being a virgin are very high, but to her surprise, Ralis was not offended by the question in any way, just caught off guard a bit.
"No. Not yet, anyway. Someday, I hope, if I am lucky. Why do you ask?"
"Because there's nothing I wouldn't do for Rohma and my father. But the time my duties take me away from them, the risks the job carries with it... Sometimes I wonder if I've made the right decision. Is a full belly worth an absent mother?" Corwin said, her voice heavy with doubt and grief.
"You're asking the wrong man. I never knew my mother," Ralis said.
Corwin blinked in surprise, feeling a bit more guilty now. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to bring up a painful subject. It's just hard, with me away so often and Rohma's father not around. Sometimes I think she might have been better off if I'd left her on the steps of the Temple of the Radiant Hall, like her father wanted."
"No. She's lucky to have you as a mother. No one could replace you in her life," Ralis said, giving Corwin a comforting pat on her back.
Corwin shook her head. "How did we end up talking about this? Let's talk about something else- better still, let's not talk at all for a while, alright?"
Ralis nodded in agreement.
Khalid decided to talk to Corwin after she was finished speaking to Ralis.
"You're a fine fighter, C-Captain Corwin," he said to her, recalling how deft and lethal she is with her longbow back during the fight against the crusaders at Bridgefort.
"That's high praise, coming from someone who knows his way around a sword as well as you," Corwin replied.
"I trained with the city militia back in C-C-C-Calimport, dedicated warriors, all. Fighting for one's city inspires much d-d-devotion and courage."
"A city is just a bunch of buildings," Corwin admonished Khalid. "It's ideals that inspire people. Principles. That's why the crusade is going to be so much trouble."
Khalid now looked like he is at a loss of words, which he really is.
"... I see. I, uh... I... I'll just leave you to your t-thoughts, then."
Not long after that time, Ralis heard disagreements and arguments among the Flaming Fist coalition that sometimes flared up into fistfights. He couldn't clearly hear what the commotion was all about, but Corwin, who had to occasionally help Duncan and Nederlok break up fights between disagreeing Flaming Fist soldiers reported to Ralis that there are some soldiers who have polarizing beliefs about him. Those that believe Ralis is a child of Bhaal believe that he killed Sarevok because he was an obstacle in Ralis's agendas, whatever they may be, and there are soldiers who don't believe the rumors to be true, that Ralis is a noble and honorable person. The soldiers who think that Ralis is nothing more than a wolf disguised as a sheep get easily angered at the soldiers who don't believe Ralis is a Bhaalspawn, calling them naive and stupid, or worse, picking a fight against them. Ralis pitied those who are beginning to suspect his heritage. If they really wanted to know the truth, they could ask him, not antagonize their fellow soldiers who don't think he is anything like Sarevok. But maybe after seeing what happened at Boareskyr Bridge, very few of them are willing to personally speak to him, possibly out of fear of what he might be. Days pass, and everyone takes notice of signs of the crusade's recent presence on the long, grueling walk to Dragonspear Castle. They spotted a few crusader scouts a couple times, and obviously they invariably retreat on horseback, likely to reach Dragonspear Castle in the next few tendays and report to Caelar that the Flaming Fist coalition has made it through Boareskyr Bridge, and that all of the crusaders at Bridgefort, including the Barghest have been slain.
Night hours in the final month of the autumn season were a challenge to walk through, but the cool pre-winter air blowing at their faces felt a bit refreshing. But fortunately it is not snowing yet, and the new year known as the Year of the Gauntlet (1369 DR) draws nearer and nearer each day. On the night when Corwin, Duncan and Nederlok decided to make a temporary campsite to rest, everyone including Safana, Skie and Ralis were happy to be able to sit in front of a campfire and warm up, and last but not least, get some well deserved sleep. More fights between disagreeing soldiers broke out in the temporary campsite, and though Ralis was tempted to, he chose not to get directly involved, letting Corwin and Duncan break up the fights. Thirteen days later since their departure from Boareskyr Bridge, the Flaming Fist coalition were beginning to strike up their temporary campsite that morning and continue on northwest towards Dragonspear Castle. Once back on the road again, Ralis walked alongside Neera.
"... So, back in Baldur's Gate almost two months ago, Corwin told me that she had heard reports that there have been some fires up north when I asked her about your whereabouts. Was that your wild magic that started those fires, Neera?" Ralis asked her.
"No!" Neera blurted out. "I mean, maybe. Forest fires happen naturally, right?"
"Not all the time," Jaheira interjected.
"If there were forest fires in the vicinity, it had nothing to do with me, I swear!" Neera said defensively.
"Are you sure? Wild magic does sound wild simply by its name," Glint said stroking his chin thoughtfully.
"A wild mage? We are in the company of a wild mage?" Baeloth perked up in amusement, looking around until he noticed Neera to his left, and she looked at him.
"What? Did the pink hair give it away?" She asked him with a nervously innocent smile.
"Ho ho! You travel in the company of interesting women, friend Ralis! I am enjoying the company of your group more and more each day, ja!" Voghiln exclaimed.
"Uh... thanks, Voghiln," Ralis said, unsure of what to say.
Neera looked back at Voghiln behind her, who is looking down at her buttocks as they were walking.
"Uh, who is this bearded guy behind me? And why is he staring at my rear end?" Neera asked, pointing back at Voghiln behind her.
"Oh, sorry! Neera, allow me to introduce you to Voghiln. Voghiln, this is Neera."
"A pleasure to meet such a beautiful elven lass with pink hair, ja," Voghiln said.
Neera huffed. "Look, buddy, I'm a half-elf. That means I am part elf, part human. Try to remember that, please?"
"Ja, ja, it is no problem, Voghiln has excellent memory skills," Voghiln nodded.
"Perhaps if you learn to meditate, you would start fewer fires," Rasaad suggested.
Neera grunted in irritation. "No one's ever gonna let the fire thing go, are they? Alright, I burn things, it happens!"
"Most refrain from setting their setting their own dwellings aflame when preparing a repast," Rasaad replied to Neera.
"Most people live in fear and misery. Maybe they should set their houses on fire to make dinner. Ever think of that?"
Rasaad frowned slightly, thinking over what Neera said for a few seconds. He couldn't see the logic behind it, but it shouldn't hurt to humor her.
"I admit, I had not," he admitted, his eyebrows arching up as if Neera gave him an idea he never thought of before.
"I think you may be onto something, Neera," Glint jumped in the conversation. "What about, uh, uh, a fire box? Something that continually emits fireballs? You could bake a potato in no time!"
At that moment Khalid noticed that Viconia is not only with them, but also Baeloth.
"T-t-two dark elves now? Ralis, what are you thinking? Are you out of your mind?"
"If we want to defeat Caelar, its a bad idea to turn away allies just because their race has a bad reputation," Ralis said.
Khalid shook his head. "Sometimes I wish I understood how you think," he said.
"You notice us, but fail to acknowledge the goblin?" Viconia called to Khalid.
"Give it a rest, Viconia," Ralis called back. "Khalid is just not used to working with people who might stab him in the back. Right, Khalid?"
"Uh, y-yes, that's is correct," Khalid nodded in agreement, then looked over his shoulder at Viconia and said to her: "Keep your distance, drow."
"I am merely walking, abban (ally). No need for alarm," Viconia assured Khalid.
"You should know I d-don't trust you. I'm p-prepared to defend myself," Khalid warned her.
"From what?" Viconia asked, her expression feigning mildly innocent confusion. "I have no desire to harm you. Our goals are aligned..." Then she smirked. "... for the moment," she added with the mischievous smirk.
"It's the m-moments they aren't that worries me," Khalid admitted.
Viconia rolled her eyes in disgust, she was only teasing the half-elf. Even when their goals aren't aligned anymore she won't have any apparent reasons to harm him, he should know that. Socializing with people who don't think alike can be very uncomfortable and troublesome. But when Viconia looked over at M'Khiin walking close by her, she looked back into what little she knew about goblin culture, and she realized of all the surface races in Faerun, goblin culture has much in common with drow culture. Goblins are taught from birth to rely on themselves and no one else in their fight for survival, and that being aggressive and ruthless is paramount to staying alive.
"Of all the surfacers here, I think you are the most likely to understand me," Viconia said to M'Khiin as soon as they made eye contact.
"Don't know anything about dark elves," M'Khiin replied.
"You can count yourself lucky for that," Corwin chimed in.
Viconia shook her head in disgust before continuing to speak to the goblin.
"Humans and their ilk hate and persecute us. We were both born to vicious societies, with the strongest and most ruthless ruling over the weak," Viconia said with dark, callous pride in her voice.
M'Khiin nodded in agreement, knowing the harsh, unforgiving culture of her people all too well. "Sounds like my tribe," she said.
"The cringing males creep in our shadows, while the women run our great cities," Viconia continued, the brooding, prideful tone of her voice remains unchanged.
"... Except for that part," M'Khiin said, knowing that male goblins are usually dominant, sustaining their tribe by robbing, pillaging and stealing from rival goblin tribes or human farmers, and small towns or villages.
"I never thought I'd see the d-day when I'd stand shoulder to shoulder with a g-g-goblin," Khalid said a minute later after M'Khiin was done speaking to Viconia.
"Shoulder only comes up to your stomach. You're standing stomach to shoulder with a goblin," M'Khiin corrected him.
Ralis couldn't help snickering at Khalid when she said that.
"You know what I mean," Khalid said in a flustered manner to the goblin.
"I know what you said. It was wrong."
"I'm starting to s-see why I never stood stomach to shoulder with a g-g-goblin before."
The few crusader scouts that Ralis and his group encountered along the very long trip to the coalition camp invariably retreated on horseback, likely to report to Caelar at Dragonspear Castle about the her of Baldur's Gate successfully crossing Boareskyr Bridge. A few tendays later, in the first month of new year, the scouts arrived at Dragonspear Castle ten days ahead of the hero of Baldur's Gate and the Flaming Fist coalition army, and requested to relay their report directly to Caelar Argent herself. They found Caelar at the top of the damaged, decrepit castle's inner walls, close to the tail bone of Halatathlaer's skeleton draped over the ruined castle's structure, looking down at the large, bustling population of crusader soldiers in the outer ward in deep thought.
The scouts informed her that the hero of Baldur's Gate and the Flaming Fist coalition accompanying him have successfully crossed Boareskyr Bridge, but they were almost reluctant to tell her that all the crusaders stationed at Bridgefort have no doubt been slain, including the Barghest. After relaying the bitter information, Caelar solemnly congratulated them on bringing her up to speed about Ralis' progression, and dismissed them. Now she continued to look down at the outer ward grounds, feeling confusion and frustration bubbling up deep down in her body. From what she has heard about the hero of Baldur's Gate, he saved the city from the nefarious agendas of his half brother Sarevok Anchev, and from what she has learned from him during their conversation back at the Coast Way Crossing bridge many tendays ago, Ralis Rutela is most definitely not evil, he has noble intentions like she does... but regardless of that, they are not allies, they fight as if they are enemies, and that frustrated and enraged Caelar so much, her hands curled into fists, she closed her eyes and she felt warm tears around her eyeballs. It just does not make sense! How can two people who should become allies end up becoming enemies? It defies her logic.
"Why does he still refuse me? How can he deny the righteousness of our cause?" Caelar asked herself as if she knew the answer, restraining the urge to punch something or someone.
At that moment she heard footsteps approaching. Caelar opened here eyes, allowing the tears held under her eyelids to fall down her face, and she looked over her left shoulder and saw Adras Ashatiel standing three feet behind her, appearing majestic with her magical angelic wings attached to her back making her look like an avariel, even though she is human. The mythical avariel, a race of elves that have wings like angels and can fly, have been extinct, or at least believed to be extinct ever since the time when the destruction caused by The Sundering before the First Flowering changed the face of Toril. Despite her awe striking appearance, Adras also looked lethal with her sword sheathed in her scabbard and clad in form fitting magically enhanced plate mail armor, and her eyes stern and serious.
"We speak of a child of Bhaal," she said in a curt tone.
Caelar nodded in agreement. "And yet the Bhaalspawn is the hero of Baldur's Gate- and by all accounts, saved the Sword Coast from ruin during the iron crisis," she said, reminding the woman of Ralis' noble deeds.
Ashatiel knew what Caelar is trying to say; she is trying to say judge the hero of Baldur's Gate by his deeds, not his bloodline, and she did not appreciate that.
"You cannot ask me to show mercy to this abomination, not after what happened to my brother," Ashatiel retorted, her scowling face wrinkling with displeasure and turning her head to the right and looking down as if ashamed at Caelar.
Caelar knew about Adras Ashatiel's vendetta against the Bhaalspawn. Her brother Arran Ashatiel was an aspiring businessman before he was slain. When he was ten years old, he expressed deep interest in following his family tradition of becoming a respected, if not important businessman in Waterdeep, studying the family trade business extensively for years even though he was the youngest heir to the line compared to his sister. Adras admired his sharp wit and determination. And now his life had been quickly snuffed out as soon as his childhood dream had been made a reality. Many months ago, when the iron crisis was still happening, Arran had been personally called to the Iron Throne branch in Baldur's Gate for an important business meeting with the Iron Throne leaders. A day later after his arrival in Baldur's Gate, the city watch found what was left of his body on the ground outside the Iron Throne HQ. They managed to identify Arran by his body armor, since much of his body somehow turned to ash. During the investigation into his death, the Flaming Fist and city watch noted signs that he had fallen off the roof of the Iron Throne headquarters building. When the Iron Throne leaders were interviewed during the investigation, they claimed that Arran's death was an accident, and official reports did not have enough evidence to prove otherwise, so they closed the investigation into Arran's death claiming that he accidentally fell off the roof, but Adras didn't believe the official reports, there are several discrepancies that she could not ignore.
What was Arran doing on the roof of the Iron Throne building in the first place? How could he fall off the roof by accident? Especially when the edges of the roof are protected by a small fence of thin metal bars? It would take more than a drunk person to fall off that roof, and to Adras' knowledge, and Arran was not an alcoholic, he never was. And there is also the state of his corpse. It takes months or years for skin and flesh to decompose, yet Arran's body seems to have mostly been burned away somehow, making identifying him almost very difficult for the Flaming Fist. There are signs of foul play covered up, and she felt it in her bones. A child of Bhaal who worked with the Iron Throne murdered her brother, throwing him off the roof, contrary to what the official reports said. The fact that her brother's killer, Sarevok, had been slain is no comfort to Ashatiel at all. Ever since she heard that Ralis had killed her brother's killer, she has sharpened her skills with a sword which have for the past few years been honed ever since she joined the armed forces of Waterdeep a few years ago, and she learned how to get magical wings like the spelljamming and planewalking adventurer Jasmine who also lives in Waterdeep. Though Ralis is not the one who killed her brother, Adras still holds him at fault possibly because he is blood related to the man who is the true killer. Though Caelar understood Adras' emotions, she could not understand why Ashatiel wants to slay Ralis so badly even though he is not the Bhaalspawn who killed her brother. More importantly, she cannot let Ashatiel's vengeful desires to interfere with the mission of the crusade. Ralis is not supposed to die, he is too important to Caelar's cause.
"For the good of the crusade, you must. We cannot take the Bhaalspawn's life," Caelar consoled the winged woman.
Once again, Ashatiel could not look Caelar into her shining eyes.
"Forgive me, my lady. I do not know if I can do that," she said apologetically, but the tone of her voice is almost sharp as a razor.
"You can. I have faith in you, Ashatiel. For us, forgiveness must prevail over revenge," Caelar said, her calm voice brimming with confidence that seemed to soothe Ashatiel's anger-consumed soul a little.
Ashatiel nodded then turned her back on Caelar, heading for the nearest stairway to descend back down into the castle. Ashatiel has immense respect for Caelar Argent, and she knew that the mission of the crusade must take priority over her vendetta, but Caelar doesn't understand. She strongly believes in redemption and forgiveness, and that makes her blind to the reprehensible nature of the Bhaalspawn. The children of Bhaal are bloodthirsty monsters with no conscience, unable to feel pity and remorse, who gain pleasure from committing acts of murder for no particular reason, and Ashatiel will see to it that Ralis and any other child of Bhaal she encounters are sent back to the Nine Hells where they came from.
It felt like thirty tendays from Ralis' point of view to get from Bridgefort to the coalition camp where the armies of Waterdeep and Daggerford are waiting for the Flaming Fist armies to show up. But in reality, it actually took less than thirty tendays, more like nine. That means it is no longer the Year of The Banner anymore. The new year has arrived, the Year of the Gauntlet. It is the evening of the 28th day of Hammer, 1369 DR, the first month of the winter season, and the coalition camp is off the road directly south from Dragonspear Castle, towards Trollbark Forest. Corwin noticed more than hundreds of footprints ahead of them going off the road to the left, and they followed the footprints away from the road for a mile until they found the coalition camp. The first thing they saw were the banners of the three armies (or the cities they come from) outside the campsite, the Flaming Fist banner, a red burning fist surrounded by fire, Waterdeep's city banner, a crescent moon shaped like the letter "U" over mountain peaks in the background and a lake in the foreground showing the moon's reflection, and last but not least, Daggerford's banner, a steel dagger, the blade pointing down towards the ground anchored into the soil 22 feet ahead from the coalition camp which is protected by a ten foot wall of wooden stakes, and guarded by four men at the entrance, two of the guards are with the Daggerford military, evidenced by the emblem of the dagger on the breastplate of their body armor, and the other two guards are of Waterdeep's military force.
It didn't take them long to notice Ralis, his while party and the Flaming Fist army behind them coming their way, and two of the Waterdeep guards rushed into the campsite to inform their leaders that the Flaming Fist army has finally arrived. As one of the Daggerford guards approached them, Nederlok and Duncan walked ahead of Ralis and the others to greet the guard.
"Sergeant Wilch of the Daggerford military!" The guard gave Duncan and Nederlok a formal salute.
"At ease, sergeant. Corporal Duncan of the Flaming Fist, and I am Marshal Nederlok."
Wilch paused and looked at the large groups of people behind Duncan and Nederlok.
"You are a sight for sore eyes! It is damn good to see the Flaming Fist finally arrive!" Wilch said, smiling in relief.
"We have had a hell of a rough time getting here," Ralis said to Wilch.
"I bet you have. Who are you, exactly?" Wilch replied, not recognizing Ralis.
"I guess you haven't heard. Sergeant Wilch, this is Ralis Rutela, the man responsible for ending the iron crisis. He is famously known as the hero of Baldur's Gate," Duncan introduced them.
"Alleged hero of Baldur's Gate," A Flaming Fist soldier blurted out coldly.
"Can it, soldier!" Duncan snapped.
"That's what they call me. what the nice ones call me, at any rate," Ralis admitted to Wilch.
Wilch nodded at Ralis, then looked over Ralis' left shoulder at the Flaming fist soldiers and mercenaries behind him, then he pursed his lips, sensing the tension among them. "Did something happen along the way?" He asked.
Nederlok signaled to Ralis to follow him so they can speak in private. Ralis was concerned about why Nederlok wanted to speak to him in private, but deep down, he knew it was about what happened at Boareskyr Bridge. Once Nederlok and Ralis were eight feet away from everyone, Nederlok whispered to him:
"Once everyone in the camp learns about what happened at Boreskyr Bridge, they won't be very trusting towards you. Already many- too many of my men see you as Sarevok's heir apparent."
Ralis felt dismayed, but he tried to hide some of his depression from Nederlok. "Of course they do. Why wouldn't they? I only risked my life to save the Sword Coast from his diabolical machinations," he said with mild sarcasm.
"The lazy remember only remember that which is most convenient," Dorn said to Ralis.
Nederlok somehow saw Ralis' true feelings, possibly by looking into his sullen, tired eyes. Nederlok pitied the young man. He has a gut feeling that Ralis is indeed different from Sarevok, and his gut instinct comes from years serving the Flaming Fist and gauging the the motives and intentions of people. Unlike Corwin, he believes that bloodlines do not determine the personality and ethics of a person.
"If anyone gives you trouble, report it to me. I'll take care of it. You should go get some rest. I'll come get you tomorrow morning for a meeting with the commanders." Nederlok whispered to Ralis.
After hearing Nederlok's words, Ralis understood the meaning behind them. It means that Nederlok, regardless of whether he believes Ralis is a child of Bhaal or not, will defend him from scrutiny because he believes that Ralis is a noble man regardless of his heritage. Feeling relieved, he followed Nederlok back towards Wilch, Corwin and Duncan.
"All right, get settled in. We have a long day tomorrow," Wilch announced, then he permitted everyone to walk into the siege camp.
Ralis, Corwin, Minsc, Dynaheir and Duncan were among the first people to come inside the camp, and Ralis was not surprised to see that the siege camp is not so different from the tent community near Bridgefort, having over 700 tents in one location. What really surprised him is the sheer number soldiers, mercenaries and adventurers from Waterdeep and Daggerford in this place.
"Wow. So many people here..." Neera said.
"There must be more than six hundred people here in this camp. In addition to the Flaming Fist we must number close to nine hundred, now," Corwin stated while all the Flaming Fist soldiers entered the camp and spread out among the groups and crowds of people in the camp.
"It has been a long, harsh road, but we made it, thanks to you," Raypheus said to Ralis.
All Ralis did was nod at him appreciatively, then he set off southwest, unknowingly splitting up from Corwin and his party, but they didn't notice either, all new arrivals are looking for a good place to rest, especially Safana. As he searched for a tent meant for someone to rest in, Ralis heard all manner of conversation around him. Some were casual, others were about the upcoming fight against Caelar Argent's crusaders. And some officers of Daggerford and Waterdeep's military forces were doing weapon drills with inexperienced soldiers and adventurers. He heard one woman nearby exclaim:
"What a bunch of pathetic babies! I've never seen a worse lot in my entire career!"
Ralis looked around for the source of the voice, and in an open space near a green striped tent close to where Belegarm is setting up his own tent, he saw a woman wearing a helmet berating a group of six rookie soldiers from Daggerford. She is most likely an officer of Waterdeep or Daggerford's military, he can't tell since he can't see the emblem of the city she is from on her breastplate from behind. The woman drilling the rookie adventurers is Vigilant Halasan, of Waterdeep's military. She fought in the second Dragonspear War as a soldier of 3rd Company. Since Halasan served under Frey Silverblade, who expected to command soldiers with adequate combat experience, it is no surprise that Halasan is severely frustrated at how inept her recruits are in combat.
As Ralis approached her from behind, Halasan exclaimed to her demoralized recruits: "Do you think the crusaders are gonna hold their swords back because of those sad puppy dog eyes you're giving me? if that's what you believe, then you are an even sadder bunch of babies than I thought!"
"Troubles, Vigilant?" Ralis asked her when he got close enough.
Halasan turned around and nodded curtly, scowling in disapproval. Ralis could see in her emerald eyes the irritation she has at the lack of progress in training these new recruits.
"You said it. They're a Daggerford detail- not used to the experience and discipline we get in Waterdeep," she explained.
"Do you think you are able to whip them in shape?" Ralis asked.
"I'm doing my best, but I've other duties to attend to. This lot might have to get by on their own. I'd love to send them back to Daggerford but we need every soldier we can get. Even ones as useless as these."
Ralis suddenly had an idea. He had never trained anyone in combat before, it might work. "Why don't I take over training for a bit? I certainly can't make them any worse,. I'm Ralis Rutela, by the way."
Halasan gasped in awe. "You're the hero of Baldur's Gate. ... Well, sure, why not? Be my guest," she said, then stepped aside from Ralis a few steps.
Ralis rubbed his hands together as he took a few steps closer to the recruits.
"Well, introductions are in order. I am Ralis Rutela, the hero of Baldur's Gate. I have volunteered to be your substitute drill instructor."
"Wow...! It's him! My name is Taield. It is an honor to meet you, sir," the man armed with a longsword said.
"I-I-I am Garrold," the other man who seems to be a cleric said, because he is armed with a mace.
"My name is Morlis," another man who is slightly taller than Taield but having more broader shoulders said.
"I am called Hester," one of the few human woman in the group said, who also happens to be armed with a lightweight crossbow and short sword.
"A pleasure, hero. I am Danine," the second human woman in the group of recruits said.
"I am Clovista. A pleasure to meet ye," the halfling woman said.
"The pleasure is all mine. Now, the first thing I want to do is see your fighting styles firsthand. Taield!"
"Yes sir?"
"I want you to spar with Garrold. I will judge how the both of you fight in combat," Ralis replied.
"Very well," Taield said with a shrug, then approached Garrold, drawing his sword out. Garrold drew his mace out, and Moril, Hester, Danine and Clovista backed away, giving them some space. Taield and Garrold circled each other for a few seconds, then Taield came at Garrold with a stab, and Garrold dodged. They circled each other again for another few seconds trying to anticipate what move they would make, then Taield slashed at Garrold, and he crouched, then Taield followed up with another stab that Garrold dodged. As the sparring progressed, Ralis noticed something unique about Garrold's fighting style. He does not attack as often as Taield does, he only does it at opportune moments, but there is a flaw there. His attacks are repetitive, easy to read.
"All right, break!" Ralis shouted.
Taield and Garrold dropped their fighting stances, breathing heavily. Taield looked over at Ralis, wiped his sweaty forehead and asked: "How am I doing, sir?"
"You're not here to impress me, you are here to survive and protect this land. I expect you to sharpen up your sword-fighting skills," Ralis admonished the man, crossing his arms and giving him a stern scowl, then he turned his attention to Garrold. "You! Garrold!"
"Yes, sir?"
"I've been watching your combat style, and I've noticed something interesting about you. You are good at memorizing your opponent's attack patterns. That's one ability I want you to improve on, but you fail to create your own attack patterns. You got the basic forms, but you're pathetically repetitive. If Taield were a more experienced soldier, he would have easily taken advantage of your weakness. I want you to cover your weakness by coming up with a few variant attack forms and cycle through them on the battlefield."
"I'll try to remember that, sir. Thank you!" Garrold exclaimed with a relieved smile.
Ralis realized that all some of these recruits needed was someone to evaluate their skills and teach them to improve their positive parts and cover their weaknesses as much as possible.
"Good! Spar again!" Ralis shot back.
Taield and Garrold began sparring again, and as they sparred, Ralis glanced over at Vigilant Halasan and he thought he saw a faint smile on her lips. He also noticed that a few other people have taken notice, watching the hero of Baldur's Gate train the newbie soldiers from Daggerford. Ralis turned his attention to Morlis and Hester next, having them spar against each other, and it didn't take long for Ralis to see that Morlis is a very aggressive fighter, having the potential to go berserk like Minsc, and he convinced Morlis to control his temper in the battlefield otherwise he will become a danger to his allies as much as his enemies. As for Hester, Ralis noticed that she became easily terrified at Morlis' ferocity in battle, she tried to keep her distance from him and pelt him with practice crossbow bolts, she never used her sword against him, so he stopped the battle and decided to give her a little pep talk.
"Hester, why weren't you using your sword?" Ralis asked her.
Hester blinked nervously. "Uh, my weapon seems to be broken. Maybe you could train one of the other recruits and get back to me?"
Ralis snorted in derision.
"Try asking the enemy to come back when you are ready. See how far that gets you," he scolded her.
Halasan laughed.
"Yes sir. Sorry sir," Hester hung her head down slightly in shame.
"Listen, soldier. Everyone must face their fears in life sooner or later. Take me, for example. I was trained fight, but I lived behind the walls of Candlekeep most of my life. The first time I killed a man, I did it to save my life. I knew that he was more ruthless than me, I knew that I could not ask him to leave me alone or wait until I'm ready, I knew that one of us had to go, either me, or him, and I made damn sure it wouldn't be me. In battle, it is not just you against your opponent, it is you against you."
"Me against me?" Hester repeated.
"Yes, exactly. The enemy in front of you is just an obstacle in your way. Get him out of your way!"
"I'll try, sir," Hester promised, then continued sparring against Morlis, and to Halasan and Ralis' surprise, Hester had a bit more courage facing Morlis, and Morlis fought with controlled aggressiveness now.
"Hmm. Impressive. They are improving," Ralis heard Halasan say to herself.
More and more people came by to watch the hero of Baldur's Gate train the recruits, and so far, everyone seemed impressed. Next, Ralis had Danine and Clovista spar against each other. Ralis noted that Danine is very tentative in her attacks and moves around too much, expecting to dodge an attack when no attack is coming. Ralis suggested Danine to try weaving in place instead of skipping, because skipping will get her fatigued more quickly. As for Clovista, since she is the shortest person in the group, she must change up her fighting strategy in a different way, fight smarter, not harder. Ralis noted that she tends to strike at heavily armored areas. He suggested that she should aim for the joints, making disabling blows instead of outright trying to kill the enemy would better conserve her energy.
After training all six recruits, Ralis approached Halasan. "Well? What do you think?"
"They're better than they were, I'll give you that. Not amazing, but better," she admitted to Ralis, nodding approvingly.
The crowds of people watching Ralis train the recruits cheered.
Ralis looked over at the crowd and smiled.
"You did a good job. I didn't think you could do it, but you made a difference here," Halasan said.
"It's all part of the service," Ralis said, turning back to face her.
"So our famous hero is not only an adept teacher, but also a modest one. That is good to see," a voice behind Ralis said.
He turned back around towards the cheering crowd to see an elf man standing near him. The elf is dressed in dark green +2 studded leather armor with a hood over his head, he has a sword sheathed to his left side, and a special heavy crossbow attached to his back.
"Who are you?" Ralis asked the elf.
"My name is Jovan Goldmarsh. Originally from the High Forest, but now I live in Daggerford." The elf then extended his right hand out for a handshake.
"Nice to meet you, Jovan. I am Ralis Rutela." Ralis shook Jovan's hand tentatively.
"I know who you are. Everyone knows. You are the hero of Baldur's Gate. The young man who unexpectedly put an end to the iron crisis plaguing the Sword Coast," Jovan said with a warm smile.
Ralis shook his head. "You have me at a disadvantage. You seem to know a lot about me, but I know very little about you."
Jovan smiled modestly. "Well then, let's rectify that, shall we?" He offered, gesturing to Ralis to follow him.
Ralis shrugged and followed Jovan towards the crowd. The people parted away, allowing Jovan and Ralis to pass through, then they went on with their business.
As Ralis walked alongside Jovan, he noticed that the elf walks in a confident free-spirited manner, as if free from all worries and strife.
"You don't wear the body armor of a Daggerford soldier. Are you an adventurer seeking gold or glory or something?" Ralis asked.
"Oh, I am not looking for either of those things, my friend," Jovan replied, looking up at the evening sky as the orange sky slowly dimmed into the dark night sky, and already Daggerford, Waterdeep and Flaming Fist soldiers are lighting torches all over the campsite providing some light in the night.
"So why are you here?" Ralis asked.
Jovan looked at Ralis and smirked. "The thrill of adventure," he said.
Ralis frowned in confusion. "If you are looking for thrills, you have come to the wrong place, Jovan."
"I have experienced thrills like this many times before. I am 322 years old, believe it or not. A couple centuries ago, I've lived part of my life in misery, because I lost someone dear to me. But after an adventure I had in Icewind Dale long before you were born, I've learned to look at life as an adventure, a road with twists and turns you might not expect to come across."
"That's a sort of... chaotic way to view life," Ralis said uneasily.
"Isn't it? The interesting thing about life is you never know what comes up next. It might give you great sorrow or happiness. In my case, it has given me much happiness. I have a wife and two beautiful children. And it is all thanks to an adventure I've had in Icewind Dale 88 years ago."
Ralis stroked his chin in thought. This Jovan sounds very interesting. Whatever happened in Icewind Dale decades ago had a very positive effect on his outlook on life.
"Sounds interesting. Would you like to tell me the story of your adventure in Icewind Dale? I mean, if you remember anything about it," Ralis asked.
Jovan chuckled. "Ralis, I would be more than happy to tell you about that time."
"Can you tell me about it early tomorrow morning? I need to get some rest first. Getting here has been like walking through hell," Ralis said.
"Of course," Jovan said courteously.
A few minutes later, Ralis found Thaird in the section of the siege camp where the Flaming Fist armies have set up their tents, and Ralis fell asleep in his tent, with Jovan sleeping in a tent next to his even though Jovan is one of the hired adventurers with the Daggerford military.
Another dream haunted him this night. This time, in the dream, Ralis found himself in the bedroom of Corwin's daughter, Rohma. He saw Corwin in front of him sitting on a wooden chair next to Rohma's bed, reading a book to her. Corwin is not in her body armor, she is wearing pajamas, and so is Rohma, even though most of her body is concealed under the bed sheets. When he looked to his right, he saw the hooded man standing next to him, watching Corwin reading the story to her daughter. The story is about a princess who is pressured by her mother to surrender her crown as princess and accept the crown of being a queen and take on the responsibilities that come with being a queen. The princess refuses to to surrender her crown and embrace the duties of being a queen, but her mother made it clear that this fate cannot be avoided.
"... The queen does not relent," Corwin said, reading what is written in the book. ""You must surrender the crown." she says, "or the worst will come.""
Rohma sat up in her bed, looking at Corwin with a puzzled frown. "Does she have to give up the crown?" She asked her mother. "Why can't she just stay a princess?"
"Duty," Corwin replied. "Duty compels us, above all else."
Then immediately after that, Rohma disappeared in a puff of smoke, as if she never existed, and Corwin did not react to her daughter's sudden disappearance.
"Do you see, Ralis? Do you understand now?" The hooded man asked him.
Ralis didn't fully understand, but the lesson the hooded man is trying to teach to Ralis is that for better or worse, it is best to give in to what fate has in store for him. Trying to foresee the the negative outcomes of giving in to fate is meaningless, because defying fate's plans only leads to fruitless struggles and pain, like a parent dragging a stubborn child to a destination the child does not want to go to.
"My duty is done," Corwin said to herself, closing the book shut and slowly standing up on her legs. "The consequences are all that remain."
"Understanding is not required. You are compelled." The hooded man said to Ralis. "Let us try this one more time..."
After he said that, Corwin turned to face Ralis, then suddenly transformed into that bright red blurry demonic creature that Ralis has seen Sarevok and Imoen become in his previous nightmares and she mauled him.
Ralis woke up sweating, sitting up on his bedroll. He calmed his breathing and looked around, realizing that he is in his tent, that it was only another nightmare.
"Bad dream?" He heard a voice nearby say. Ralis turned to face the exit of his tent and saw Jovan peering in.
"Oh, Jovan, it's you. Come in." Ralis sighed in relief and wiped sweat off his forehead.
Jovan stepped into the tent and sat next to his human friend.
"What time is it?" Ralis asked the elf.
"It is morning. The sun should be rising up in a couple hours," Jovan replied.
Ralis nodded, and he started to say something, but he closed his mouth and turned his head away from Jovan.
"Is something wrong?" Jovan asked, wondering why Ralis chose not to speak.
"It's nothing. Just tell me your story while we still have time," Ralis said.
Jovan nodded. "Very well," he said then he cleared his throat.
"My name is Jovan Goldmarsh. I am a half sun elf, half wood elf hailing from the High Forest, and I have been an adventurer for nearly two centuries. I still have not seen everything Faerun has to offer me, and that is what I love about adventuring- there's no shortage of brand new experiences. When I was but a child, sheltered by my parents and older siblings, I somehow instinctively knew that the world outside the High Forest is much bigger, filled with many interesting creatures both beautiful and repulsive, friendly and hostile. When I grew older, a friend of my father, who is a ranger of Silvanus, also trained me to be a Ranger of Silvanus, and when I was prepared to leave my hometown, the first town or city I ever visited was Silverymoon. Much of my travels and adventures took place in the north, I've never been far south to Calimshan before. Long ago, however, I lost almost all of my love and zeal for adventuring. Let me just say that adventuring is not always full of wonder, discovery and romance, but also tragic losses. Right now, I'm going to tell my most recent story to you, which took place in Icewind Dale, a region that I don't visit very often. On my visit to one of the Ten Towns of Icewind Dale, called Easthaven, I had been asked to go on an expedition with a dozen other adventurers. And so, this is where my story begins, in a time long before Time of Troubles, before the legendary dark elf ranger hero, Drizzt Do'Urden made his presence known above the Underdark, the month of Mirtul in the Year of the Cold Soul, 1281 DR is the time when the story I am about to tell you took place. This is not just my story, though, this story also belongs to the people I traveled with, in an epic adventure we will never forget."
For the next two hours, Jovan told Ralis a tale about his adventures in Icewind Dale 88 years ago. He told the young man how he met his companions he traveled with during his adventures in Icewind Dale, Gorris, a young but strong barbarian belonging to the Tribe of the Bear in Icewind Dale, Andy, a human mage from Neverwinter, Felicia, a half-elf bard, Ordmar, a dwarven defender, Lysara, a halfling thief adopted by Ordmar, and Xalorn, a half-orc barbarian born from the union of a human man and a orc woman raised among Gorris' people, and how together they defeated long forgotten threats of Icewind Dale many decades ago. They were tasked to go on an expedition to a village inside the Spine of the World mountains called Kuldahar to investigate a disturbance. The man leading the expedition, Hrothgar, put together a large group of adventurers to come with him to investigate the disturbance plaguing the town, but in an ambush they never expected, Hrothgar and most of the expedition died in the avalanche at Kuldahar Pass caused by frost giants, but Jovan, Gorris, Andy, Xalorn, Ordmar, Lysara and Felicia survived and made it to Kuldahar, continuing on the mission Hrothgar tasked them to be part of.
Through a series of investigations assisted by a druid named Arundel, Jovan and his companions eventually learned that the only way to pinpoint the source of the disturbances in Kuldahar is by retrieving the Heartstone Gem, but the gem was confiscated by a marilith called Yxunomei, who was partly to blame for the disturbances in Kuldahar, kidnapping citizens, turning them into yuan-ti thralls for the purposes of creating a shock troop army against her old rival. Jovan and his companions fought and killed Yxunomei, retrieved the Heartstone Gem, and freed the kidnapped Kuldahar citizens, but when they returned, Yxunomei's rival led an orog army into Kuldahar, assassinated Arundel and disappeared, believing that Jovan and the others have lost, since Arundel was believed to be the only druid left who knew how to use the Heartstone Gem, but Arundel with his dying breath told them to go to the ruins of an elven fortress called The Severed Hand. There, they met the spirit of an elf that still lingered there, tormented by a mythal that caused him to be driven insane by the alleged betrayal of the dwarves of Dorn's Deep called Larrel who could use the Heartstone Gem to discover where to find the individual responsible for Kuldahar's woes. After shutting down the mythal around the fortress, Larrel was released from his torment to help Jovan and his party use the Heartstone Gem to learn the whereabouts of Yxunomei's rival.
Jovan and his companions went to a long abandoned underground dwarven city called Dorn's Deep. There they discovered not only that the dwarves of Dorn's Deep were innocent in The Severed Hand's fall (a drow named Nym stole and sold the weapons and armor forged by the elves and dwarves to orc and goblin armies), but also that the identity of Yxunomei's rival was a demon disguised as a human priest of Ilmater who went by the title and name "Revered Brother Poquelin". When Ralis heard the name, his mind briefly flashed back to Hephernaan, recalling that he has the exact same title as Poquelin did. Is there a connection there? Anyway, Jovan explained to Ralis that he and his companions systematically defeated six of Poquelin's trusted lieutenants throughout Dorn's Deep to obtain their badges to get into Poquelin's chambers (the elf woman Ilmadia survived long enough to give birth to Poquelin's twin children Isair and Madae who grew up to become the next threat to Icewind Dale 31 years later in 1312 DR but were destroyed by Jovan and Felicia's twin children Oliver and Ilivia). They confronted Poquelin himself, who revealed that he along with Yxunomei had been exiled to the mortal plane by their superior demons because their petty rivalry was causing too much trouble in the Nine Hells. After being exiled, and finding himself in the cold region of Icewind Dale, Poquelin heard the calls of Crenshinibon from a distant glacier and found it, the very same Crystal Shard that exiled Luskan mage Akar Kessel used to attack Icewind Dale decades later in 1356 DR before he was thwarted and destroyed by the drow ranger hero Drizzt Do'Urden and his allies. With the Crystal Shard, Poquelin created his own army, dominating the minds of creatures like orcs, goblins, bringing certain evil individuals to him to be his lieutenants, Malavon, Marketh, Joril, Krilag and Ilmadia (Poquelin also managed to brainwash a true priest of Ilmater named Perdiem), and created a crystal tower in Easthaven.
Jovan and his companions returned to Easthaven and infiltrated the crystal tower created by Crenshinibon, and from there reached the room where Jerrod's Stone was held in the basement of the temple of Tempus. Poquelin destroyed the stone, opening the portal to allow his demon brethren to pour through, but a priest of Tempus, Everard, sacrificed his life to reseal the portal, finally coming to the realization that Jerrod's sacrifice was not out of cowardice. Angered by the priest's sacrifice, Poquelin fought Jovan and his party in his true form and name, Belhifet. He fought viciously, but in the end, Jovan and his party overwhelmed and killed him, his soul sent back to the Abyss where he must remain for the next 100 years before he gains enough strength to return to the mortal plane without walking through a dimensional portal like the one Jerrod's Stone blocked. That means it has been 88 years since Belhifet's defeat. Twelve more years remain before his physical body gains enough strength to manifest on the mortal plane again. As for the crystal tower, it collapsed, and Crenshinibon went missing and undiscovered for the next seven decades until the day it joined forces with Akar Kessel.
Afterwards, Jovan and his companions were tied up in a conflict between the Ten Towns and the barbarians of Icewind Dale, instigated by the vengeful soul of an ancient female white dragon known as Icasaracht, the matron mother of all white dragons in Icewind Dale, inhabiting the body of a recently dead barbarian king of the Tribe of the Bear name Wylfdene. Posing as the king come back from the dead, the white dragon spirit had a personal vendetta against the Ten Towns. A shaman of the Tribe of the Bear, Hjollder, received a vision from Tempos about the chaos Icasaracht's plans for revenge will bring, and he sought out and recruited Jovan and his companions to try to bring peace between the Icewind Dale barbarians and the Ten Towns. Jovan and his companions tried to negotiate with Icasaracht who was impersonating Wylfdene, but she had absolutely no interest in peace, only war against the people the descendants of the people that took away everything she valued.
Eventually, Jovan, his party and Hjollder journeyed to a haunted island in the center of the large lake Maer Dualdon where they learned that Wylfdene is not what he seems, and they venture to the coldest regions of Icewind Dale to find another shaman, an old woman simply known as The Seer. Decades ago, she foresaw a vision of her death, and that Jovan and his companions would be partly responsible for it, so she hid herself in a remorhaz infested cavern hoping to avoid her fate. Despite all odds, Jovan and his companions found The Seer and asked for her help in unmasking the spirit impersonating Wylfdene, the consequence of unmasking Icasaracht was The Seer's death.
They returned to the barbarian campsite and exposed the foreign spirit impersonating Wylfdene, and in rage, Icasaracht killed the Seer and departed Wylfdene's body, and the barbarians helped Jovan and his party track Icasaracht's soul to an island in the Sea of Moving Ice. There, in an abandoned temple, they confronted and fought Icasaracht who wore the body of one of her children who have been kept lifeless in preservation wards for little more than a century. Being reborn anew in the body of one of her children was a contingency plan for her to gain something similar to immortality, and the reason why she was trying to manipulate the barbarians of Icewind Dale to go to war against the Ten Towns is because the origins of the Ten Towns is full of bloodshed, the blood of white dragons, and the Reghed barbarians of Icewind Dale. Everything Icasaracht cared about was destroyed by the invading army that eventually settled and created the Ten Towns sometime in the year 1181 DR.
A man named Aihonen used his special magical sword to slay Icasaracht, they fought on the banks of Lac Dinneshere, both Icasaracht and Aihonen died in their battle, sinking to the bottom of the lake, and the blade remained lodged in her original body, preventing her soul from leaving because it somehow knew that Icasaracht would come back in the body of one of her children and exact revenge on the Ten Towns settlers. However, she had returned because a water spirit of the lake resembling an elf woman named Elisia, who was deeply in love with Aihonen, pulled the broken sword out of Icasaracht's corpse a century later to give to Aihonen's descendant, Jhonen because of his physical resemblance to his ancestor Aihonen. When Jovan and his party returned to Easthaven before going into the crystal tower, Jhonen gave Jovan the magically reconstructed sword of Aihonen. To this day, Jovan still carries Aihonen's sword with him. Icasaracht fought Jovan and his party with all the ferocity a white dragon can muster, but was defeated, her spirit retreated into a crystal shard, and her life had finally been put to a permanent end when Jovan destroyed the crystal shard which contained her spirit preparing her soul to be transferred to another one of her offspring. After their adventures in Icewind Dale, Jovan and Felicia got married, had two children, and lived a happy life. Gorris and Xalorn returned to their tribe among the Icewind Dale barbarians, Andy returned to Neverwinter, and Ordmar and Lysara stayed close to Luskan and Mirabar. Jovan had heard that Gorris became king of the newly reformed Tribe of the Bear, ensuring the Reghedmen barbarians never reignite hostilities against the Ten Towns, but being wary of their actions. But what Jovan doesn't know is Gorris' reign as king didn't last long, because a couple decades later, he was dethroned and killed in battle by Angaar's son, Hrothulf, who is of the Tribe of the Elk, and the Reghed barbarian tribes under Hrothulf's rule resumed hostilities against the Ten Towns on a mild scale, raiding them frequently. Then a few years later, Hrothulf's son, Heafstaag became the king of the Tribe of the Elk, and in 1351 DR, Heafstaag alongside the Tribe of the Wolf king, Beorg, led an invasion against the Ten Towns, and they would have won, but they were defeated by the unexpected allies of the Ten Towns, Drizzt, Regis, Bruenor and the dwarves of Kelvin's Cairn.
After Jovan finished telling his whole story to Ralis, he could clearly see that the young human is spellbound by the amazing adventure he had, and how it changed his nature. During his adventures in Icewind Dale, Jovan used to be moody and sullen because his previous wife was killed by a green dragon a long time ago. But meeting Felicia has brightened his life forever.
"...That's very interesting, Jovan. You've seen so much and experienced so many things..." Ralis said with an amused smile.
Jovan shook his head while chuckling. "... Well, not everything. Why do you think I am here? There's never an end when it comes to being an adventurer. No matter how long you live as an adventurer, there are so many things that you haven't yet seen. You may be human, but having a long lifespan is irrelevant when it comes to the joys of adventuring. The excitement and danger is endless."
"Hmm. I'll remember that next time," Ralis promised.
"You're young, but you have a very good start. Being a hero of Baldur's Gate... That's quite an accomplishment."
"Thanks. I-"
Before Ralis could say more, he and Jovan heard someone clearing their throat behind them. They looked back to see Kyrill Nederlok coming into the tent.
"Am I interrupting anything?" He asked.
"Oh! Marshal Nederlok! I was just-" Jovan began to say.
"No need to give me excuses, Jovan, you are not in trouble. I just need to talk to your new friend here. Ralis?"
"Yes sir?"
"Come with me. General Stonehand and Torsin de Lancie are having a meeting, and I want you to be there to hear it."
Ralis nodded and put on his armor. "Got it. Jovan? I'll get back to you later."
Jovan nodded and watched Ralis leave out the tent with Nederlok.
