Trial...
The moonlight shone in through the open window, picking out the room in shades of silvery grey. Furniture formed black voids edged with moonlight, while ornaments sent out glints and soft gleams. The corners were deep, deep shadow, with ghostly hints of light where mirrors and glass cast back faint, confused impressions of the the moonlit room. All was silent, a hot and stifling hush, except for the sound of two people breathing heavily, their breaths gradually slowing, urgent tension easing.
Danno gazed down at Nalia's face. Even in the moonlight he could see she was flushed. He brushed a lock of hair away from her sweaty forehead. The silence, the heat, the moonlight, all gave the world an air of unreality. Everything seemed to drift, serene and peaceful. Surely this would last for ever, this one, perfect instant. Peace, calm, an end to all struggle, an end to fear, an end to loss and betrayal.
"Well well well. Looks like this situation needs some special attention!"
The dagger hammered into Danno's shoulder. He barely felt the pain of it, but the blow fell like a mace. He cried out, trying to roll away, his arm numb and useless. A hand knotted in his hair, pulling his head back, and he saw the flash of a blade in the moonlight.
Nalia smiled up at him, and wrapped her arms and legs tighter around him.
---
Danno thrashed up from sleep in a panic, tangled in bedding, his arm numb and useless.
"Hey, calm down! Gee, what's got into you?"
"Well I for one can't possibly imagine what has upset him. Being woken by someone punching one in the shoulder is surely the gentlest of experiences."
"Ugh... uh... N-Neeshka? Sand? What in the hells is going on?" Danno struggled clear of his sheets and tried rubbing some life back into his arm. A rush of pins and needles brought reluctant movement back to it.
"There's soldiers coming, lots of them, and no-one knows where Nalia is! Come on!" Neeshka scurried from the room. She'd changed into a set of leather armour.
"Gods! Are we under attack?"
"It really is rather hard to tell. Randolph says not, but for a man that claims to be unworried he is looking remarkably pale." Sand was, a little surprisingly, looking pensive rather than nervous.
"Hells!" Danno struggled into his clothes and robes. At least I've got all my combat spells memorised.
"Knight Captain, I hesitate to ask, but... are you avoiding Neeshka?"
Danno stopped pulling on his shoes, wobbling on one leg, and stared at Sand wildly. "You ask me a question like that now!?"
Sand looked away awkwardly. "Yes, well, perhaps it isn't the most opportune moment. It is simply that, when we were told you were sleeping, Neeshka did rather assume you'd be in her room. She was quite put out to find you in the one set aside for you, hence your somewhat rude awakening. Plus her alarm at the approaching soldiers, of course. I would rather that she were not too distressed just at present. Should she attempt to cast, in a state of high emotion, the spells I have been teaching her... well I really cannot be held responsible for the consequences."
"And that's it, is it?" Danno hurried out of the room and started heading for the main courtyard. Sand followed closely. "You just don't want her casting misfires?"
Sand looked even more awkward, and muttered something irritably.
"What?"
"I said that I have become rather fond of the young lady. I really wouldn't wish to see her upset unduly."
Danno stopped dead, nearly causing Sand to walk into him.
"You – you – gods! Are you in love with..."
"Mystra and Sehanine, no! It is simply that she shows remarkable promise. She really is a quite extraordinary student, despite her erratic and unruly nature. I would hate to see her abandon her studies over... some foolish disappointment."
"Right." Danno shook his head and started hurrying through the keep again. "Sand, there are SOLDIERS coming! Can we please talk about this some other time?!" And I think I'm an idiot!
When they reached the courtyard the others were up on the walls. It was mid afternoon – Danno guessed he'd been asleep for perhaps a couple of hours. He was relieved to see Elanee and Casavir had returned. Beyond the walls, drawn up in formation some distance off, was a sizeable body of troops. Nowhere near enough to even think of storming the keep though. Danno noticed that there were far more keep guards in evidence than he'd seen since they'd arrived. He spotted Randolph and moved over to him.
"Do you know what they want?"
"Not yet. Their messenger is still talking to the castellan."
Danno peered down. The drawbridge was lowered (although the portcullis was down) and the castellan was standing on it in conversation with the messenger.
"The castellan? Shouldn't one of your guards be carrying out any parley?"
Randolph, tense and anxious, shook his head. "This isn't a parley. Those are soldiers of the Council, drawn from the various Lords' and Ladies' personal guards, and here on Council business. There are several of our own men among them, those who are currently assigned that duty. They're not attacking us or threatening us, so it's the castellan's job to provide hospitality."
"And yet he's providing 'hospitality' to a messenger, outside the walls, with the portcullis down. And I see you have men ready on the drawbridge winches."
Randolph turned worried eyes toward him. "I understand you commanded a keep during a siege. The Lady De'Arnise has also instructed me that you and your friends have her full trust, so I will trust you as well. The fact is, I have been unable to contact her Ladyship. Riding hard, as she intended, she should have been in Athkatla long since. But the household mage has spoken with his contacts in Athkatla, and they have no word of her.
"The council wouldn't send so many troops simply to deliver a message, and with her Ladyship seeming to have disappeared I fear the worst. And... and I am glad to have an experienced commander here. My experience is of skirmishes with bandits, and dealing with drunken and unruly guests. I have no experience of pitched battle or sieges."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Danno looked out at the Council soldiers, and tried to look and sound more confident and knowledgeable than he felt. "I can tell you one thing though, there aren't nearly enough soldiers out there to even think of attacking or besieging this keep – not with the number of defenders here. Whatever's going to happen it won't be that."
Randolph smiled thinly. "That is some weight off my mind. My apologies, you must think me very foolish."
"Randolph, less than a year ago I'd never even seen a soldier. If you haven't had to learn, there's no shame in not knowing. Why did Nalia ride to Athkatla anyway? Couldn't she have used a gateway?"
"Her Ladyship is somewhat reluctant to use planar travel except in an emergency. It seems there are spells that can intercept the travellers and deposit them in the middle of an ambush."
"What? I've never heard of that!"
Randolph shrugged, uncomfortable with the conversation straying into areas even further outside his experience than siege warfare. "It is a little known technique, I understand, even among the Drow who discovered it. But the Lady Nalia prefers not to assume the Cowled Wizards haven't learnt it or discovered something similar."
"Hm. Well it looks like the 'hospitality' is over."
The castellan came in through a sally port, and hurried to speak to Randolph, while the messenger returned to the troops. The castellan was carrying a scroll – a Council Writ. There was a brief conversation between the two of them, then Randolph turned to Danno. His expression was one of frustrated anger – and guilt.
"I fear we have just run out of options. This writ calls for your friend Neeshka, for all of you, to be escorted under guard to Athkatla where you are to be questioned by the Council in emergency session. The writ... I am sorry. The writ is a majority decision by the Council; the only abstention is Lady De'Arnise. Even if she were here, she couldn't overturn or deny it."
"I see." Danno paused, looked around and noticed Casavir listening attentively to the conversation. He caught Casavir's eye, saw him put his hand to his mace. This could turn ugly. He looked back at Randolph, and fear twisted into aggression. "And what makes this different from when Neeshka was arrested in Athkatla? Well? You could challenge that writ alright, so just what makes this so damned special!"
"Sir, please, calm down." Randolph was also looking fearful – and controlling it far better than Danno. "That other writ was only signed by a couple of the Council, cronies of the Cowled Wizards. It was a minority writ, and could be challenged by any one Council member. This writ is signed by a majority of the Council, it is law. It cannot be overturned except by a majority. I am truly sorry, but I must bow to its demands. If I don't I become outlaw, and so does anyone who refrains from arresting me.
"This entire estate could fall to fighting. Even if the majority elect to protect you and become outlaw, the Cowled Wizards would have carte blanch to take whatever actions they saw fit to enforce the Council's will. Whatever actions!"
"So that's it. You turn us over to be questioned, convicted on whatever trumped up charge they come up with, and executed out of hand?"
Randolph looked Danno straight in the eye. "Yes. Maybe if Lady Nalia was here she would fight the whole nation of Amn to protect you. To 'do the right thing'. But she isn't here, and the lives of all the innocents on this estate are my responsibility. I will protect them, even at the cost of your lives. Even at the cost of my soul."
To that, Danno had no reply.
They travelled back to Athkatla under guard – and escorted. Many of Nalia's household guard travelled with them, ostensibly to support the Council soldiers but in reality to ensure no foul play. Or, as Sand acidly commented, "To postpone the foul play until it can be carried out by the Council. Properly legal foul play, as it were."
Danno and Sand had been hard pressed to convince the others that they should go along with this for now. As Danno had expected, Khelgar was prepared to fight, and Neeshka swore she'd rather go out fighting the Council soldiers and the whole keep (at which Randolph paled) rather than be locked up and maybe tortured. In fact, she went on about this at some length, almost growing hysterical, and Danno was afraid she might start attacking people randomly. What made it even harder to calm her down was that Casavir and even Elanee seemed to support her.
"I would rather end my days here, in the open air and in sight of the living land, than trammelled up in a dungeon within that lifeless and unnatural city."
"Speaking purely for myself, I would rather end my days as late as possible, whatever the surroundings."
"I believe that is fear rather than your good sense speaking. There are worse ways to die than in battle; far worse."
In the end, rather to his surprise, it was Danno's argument that persuaded the others to go to Athkatla.
"Listen, we're out in the open here. If we fight, we die, simple as that. There's nowhere to hide and no way of running. Even if we could get clear of the keep without the soldiers spotting us, any half-competent scryer would see us in an instant.
"In the city though, there are a thousand bolt-holes. If we make a break for it there, then it is at least possible for us to disappear in the confusion, go to ground somewhere. The city isn't just big, it's heaving with people; even the best scryers would have to search room by room, street by street, cellar by cellar. There are the temples, which the Council might be wary of attacking for political reasons; Helm, Illmater, Waukeen, hells, even the Temple of Talos would be more secure than this keep. There's the Shadow Thieves; the Cowled Wizards have never been able to dislodge them. If we could make ourselves more valuable to them alive than turned in, we might keep going a long time. And there are the docks; if we can stay low long enough, the doldrums might break. Get on a ship without being spotted and we're free and clear.
"I know it's a poor chance, but in the city there is at least a chance, especially for Neeshka. Here, we have no chance at all."
While Danno was relieved that his argument won them over, he wasn't at all sure that he believed it himself. Mostly he thought that the longer they could put off the inevitable fight to the death, the more likely that something would turn up to either tip the balance in their favour, or help them to escape a fight at all. He couldn't think what, though. He was certain that Nalia was either dead or 'detained' by the Cowled Wizards until the Council could present her with a fait accompli.
Eventually the portcullis was raised, and they and Nalia's household guard set off, joined by the Council soldiers. The captain of the soldiers was irritated by the presence of the household guard. With the companions placed between the two groups it looked more as if they were being escorted by bodyguards than being under arrest. The fact that he couldn't refuse the assistance of the Lady De'Arnise's guards without causing a diplomatic incident seemed especially galling to him.
Along with the household guard, Randolph had sent four trackers, who constantly ranged out to either side of the road; ostensibly seeking to 'frustrate any ambushers who might seek to rescue the prisoners', in reality searching for any clue as to Nalia's disappearance. Randolph was certain she would have ridden the same route, and she plus four bodyguards shouldn't have just vanished into thin air. Randolph didn't, however, tell the Council soldiers of her disappearance.
"If they are responsible (which I doubt), and they think we are unaware, they won't be so careful in trying to misdirect us and they will be less likely to try and murder you on the way."
Randolph accompanied them. While he wasn't prepared to lay the staff of Nalia's keep open to the anger of the Council and the Cowled wizards, he claimed he was willing to risk his own life should it come to a fight. The household guards who came with them were all volunteers who had made the same declaration. If they did defy the Council, then it would be only themselves who would suffer – they hoped.
---
It was late, almost dark, when they arrived in Athkatla, but they were taken straight to the Government district, to the Council of Six building, and then to a courtroom. Clearly, Danno thought, we're not going to be given any time to get our stories straight. They were then left sitting on hard benches for more than an hour, after which several paladins were ushered in to the room and shown to comfortable seats off to one side. Ah. The witnesses to Neeshka being Jerro's Demon. Looks like Nalia had the shape of it. Even as they were shown in, some of them looked at her sharply – and gazed at Khelgar and Casavir with doubt and confusion. Sand leant towards Danno.
"Well, it seems as if our accusers may have made their first mistake. I do believe these paladins may be less sure of accusing a paladin and a monk of Tyr, albeit by association, than they would be of accusing an unknown tiefling. We may come through this yet."
Danno smiled thinly. "Only if they're unsure enough to actually lie when questioned by the Council. We can be sure the Council will only ask the questions that condemn us. This isn't a fair court – I doubt we'll be allowed to cross examine them."
"Hmmm. You may be right." Sand shook his head regretfully, then brightened up a little. "Still, if you are, at least I shall hang knowing we made a lawyer out of you."
"I bet you'd rather you had failed, and I was wrong."
"Quite."
Finally, the Councillors entered. Five of them, four men and one woman – not Nalia. They didn't enter with great majesty or ceremony, for all that they were seated above everyone else on ornate chairs. Three entered as if they had enjoyed a pleasant evening meal, and then been required to carry out a tedious chore instead of relaxing with their families. Two, a greasy looking man and the stick-thin woman, looked smugly eager. They all entered, above all, as if they wielded such power and self confidence that they had no need for the props of ceremony. Danno thought that they could teach Lord Nasher a thing or two about intimidating majesty.
Looking at them, Danno almost failed to notice a sixth figure that followed them in, until Sand murmured "I see our accuser has arrived." Danno tore his attention away from the Council to see a cowled figure take a seat almost beside and only just below the Councillors. It was the wizard who'd arrested Neeshka... Gods, was it only yesterday? Neeshka, very quietly, made a 'woof-woof' sound. The wizard glared murderously at her. Oh well, he was going to kill us anyway. I suppose she can't really make it worse. The eager, greasy looking Councillor spoke up.
"Since it would appear that the Lady De'Arnise is unable to attend, I move that we declare a majority quorum and proceed."
"Yes, yes, let's just get on with it." A sour and hard-faced elderly man, who then muttered "Pretentious little oik."
The greasy Councillor pursed his lips angrily, but instead of responding turned to the wizard.
"Master Altan, would you present the case against the accused?"
"'The accused'?" interrupted an aggressive looking, bull-necked Councillor of middle years. "The writ I signed was for them to be questioned. Trying to play us for fools are you?"
Thank the gods, someone on our side.
"I'm sure Lord Colliard simply misspoke himself."
The bull-necked Councillor gave the woman a contemptuous glance. "Lady Darrance, I was talking to Master Altan. Colliard couldn't speak for himself if you gave him lessons for a month."
"Lord Torrefin!"
"Oh don't bother acting all shocked. It's not like these gutter sweepings will be alive tomorrow to tell the world what a lick-spittle moron Colliard is."
Damn!
One of the paladins present cleared his throat warningly; and was glared into intimidated silence by Lord Torrefin.
"Perhaps if you would allow Master Altan to outline the suspicions which Lady De'Arnise's guests must answer to?" asked the elderly Councillor.
"Hmph. That's more like it," Torrefin growled. "Just remember, Altan, we are the law in this city, not you."
"I bear it in mind every waking minute, Lord Torrefin."
"I'll bet you bloody do."
While the bickering had been going on, Danno had been thinking furiously. He was convinced now that this was where they'd have to escape from, if they were going to do so. It was clear even those Councillors who despised the Cowled Wizards had already decided they'd be dead by morning. Once they were separated and led to the cells there was no hope for them. So it was now or never. The problem was, as soon as they were out of the building they'd be swamped by Cowled Wizards. Five or six they could handle with no difficulty. A dozen would be hard to deal with, but perfectly possible – if most of them were only average in power and skill. But twenty? Thirty? Forty? All at once or coming at them in groups, they'd either be overrun or worn down.
He worried fretfully at the problem. Just take out the guards, bolt and scatter? Try to fight our way to a safe haven? Not good enough, none of it good enough. We need a way of keeping the Cowled Wizards off our backs! Some way of distracting them, or diverting them. A lure, a wild goose chase, some sort of bluff or threat, or... leverage.
The Council!
Of course! The Councillors clearly had power, serious power, but it was the power of law, of wealth, of trade, of armies and prestige. It wasn't personal power, except perhaps for Lord Torrefin who looked as if, armed and armoured, he'd be a deadly fighter. The Cowled Wizards on the other hand had immense direct power. Even stripped of all wealth and resources, as an organisation of ruthless spellcasters they could do almost anything they wanted in Amn.
Yet the Council were still in charge, nominally at least. Why? Because the Cowled Wizards needed them; perhaps as the public face which dealt with other nations if nothing else; perhaps because the people of Amn would be unmanageable if they had to admit that the feared Cowled Wizards were in total control.
So the Council are valuable. Five valuable people who are right in front of us, and we are stronger than them. Which makes them... Hostages! Danno knew he was grinning ferociously and didn't care, despite the looks he was getting. Even as Altan spoke, 'outlining his suspicions', he rose to his feet. No empty bluffs now, because I will kill the Councillors if we're attacked. Starting with... oh hells, it doesn't matter, they're all as bad as each other.
Behind him, a door slammed open with an impressive boom.
"The Lady Nalia Delcia De'Arnise!"
"Oh, I do hope I haven't missed too much."
Danno turned... and gaped. Nalia strode through the court toward the Council seats, her step confident, her expression determined - a ragged slash across her bodice (hastily pinned together) and the front of her gown drenched from throat to hem with blood. Already turned brown and stiff, but definitely blood. Ugh, the stink of it! What happened to her?!
"De'Arnise!" The bull-necked Lord Torrefin was on his feet, his voice a strangled roar. "You're injured!"
"It really is nothing Lord Torrefin. Nothing that a rod of resurrection and a dozen healing potions couldn't cure. My guard Willem, dear boy, remembered his Sergeant's lessons very well indeed."
"What!? You... you died?"
"Only very briefly, I do assure you."
Lord Colliard leant toward Nalia as she took the empty seat. "You were attacked by bandits? How dreadful! Surely you are in no state to attend Council business. Why, you must be... traumatised! You should rest!" Danno thought he sounded panicky. Nalia smiled at him brightly.
"Why Lord Colliard, your concern is quite touching, but I am certainly capable. After all, I've died often enough that it is hardly traumatic!" Nalia laughed merrily, then sobered abruptly. "Although I do wonder why you assume I was attacked by bandits. Really, as if mere bandits could inconvenience me."
Lady Darrance pulled a prim and distasteful moue. "I'm sure we're all aware of your... your martial prowess."
"I'm sure you are. And I'm sure Lord Colliard is. Of course, my attackers were dressed as bandits."
"Are you implying something?" A dapper young Councillor who hadn't spoken before posed the question in a bored and rather effete voice.
"Not at all Lord Parish. I'm sure anything less than an outright accusation would be lost on Lord Colliard."
Lady Darrance sniffed disapprovingly, while Lord Torrefin barked with laughter.
"Well at least the... the scoundrels who did this have met their just deserts." Lord Colliard pulled an exaggeratedly frustrated face. "A damn shame we won't be able to question them."
"Oh, but we will."
"What!?"
"Indeed, that's how I came to be inconvenienced." Nalia was still smiling at him, but it was a cool and predatory smile now. "After I had disabled and disarmed them, quite tricky given their training and equipment, we found that some fortifying potions provided by their employer had been doctored with a slow-acting poison, no doubt to silence them – whether they succeeded or not. The poor things all went into the most horrible convulsions. I was so busy forcing antidote potions down their throats that I didn't notice one had a hidden blade." She sighed, and cast down her eyes in theatrical, mock self deprecation. "Most careless of me, really."
Then she looked up again, no longer bothering to smile, her gaze even colder and more predatory. "Still, his... compatriots, who were rather more devoted to their lives than to their treacherous employer, did sterling service in subduing him while Willem saw to me. Really, I didn't even need to Charm them for them to become most co-operative. I took them back to my estates by the fastest cross-country route, and all the while they were comparing accounts of who they thought had employed each of them, and trying to figure out his real identity.
"Imagine my surprise when I found that, in my absence, my guests were summoned to appear before the Council, and that it was Lord Colliard who had proposed this... at remarkably short notice."
Danno, who had long since sunk back onto the bench, couldn't help noticing that Colliard looked sick; and that the wizard Altan and Lady Darrance had carefully schooled their expressions into stillness. It seemed that the dapper Lord Parish had also been paying attention, and had started to enjoy himself immensely.
"Such good fortune that your attackers live to be questioned. So good to know we may well get to the bottom of this terrible attack. Don't you agree Lady Darrance, Master Altan?"
Lady Darrance summoned up a thin and brittle smile that looked as if it might shatter her face or, if the look in her eyes was anything to go by, fly right off her face and slice Lord Parish's throat. Altan didn't move a muscle.
"Well I certainly agree," said Nalia. "After all, anyone who attacks one of the Council might attack any of us. And that is not to be countenanced, I am sure we all agree."
The elderly Councillor suddenly interrupted. "I think we should take this discussion elsewhere."
"Agreed," said Lord Parish. The Councillors rose, of one mind on this point at least. "And maybe Lady De'Arnise would like to change and refresh herself?"
Nalia seemed to consider this for a moment. "No, I think that during our discussions we'd do well to have a reminder of the consequences of certain actions." She turned an emotionless gaze toward Lord Colliard and Lady Darrance. "The consequences for everybody concerned."
All six of them left the chamber by a small side door. Altan rose as if to follow, but was stopped in his tracks by a look from Torrefin. If the Councillor had been intimidating when he was glaring and throwing his weight around, the narrow sidelong glance he gave Altan was far worse.
"Not you, wizard." His voice was soft and deadly. Altan sat as if his legs had been kicked from under him. The side door closed.
Danno realised he was shaking like a leaf.