A/N I've somewhat simplified the process of getting the Sleeping Man's ring. I didn't think the original version added any storytelling aspects that I wanted to write about.

With This Ring

"Let Deekin go," said Cora. "Right now. One warning only."

Arden Swift not only ignored her, but waggled the curved blade positioned dangerously close to her friend's throat. Deekin tried to crane his head backwards, but Swift gripped harder with his other hand.

"Your warning counts for nothing, unless you don't care about the kobold's life. But you do, don't you? It sounds like the two of you go way, way back. I'm here to get my property back, and I'll need further payment for my inconvenience." His eyes travelled down the length of the robe.

Resisting the urge to fold her arms, she stared back. "What property? I don't know what you're talking about." Behind her, she heard slow, slow movements, and the clink of metal: she guessed that Valen had heard everything, and was trying to be quiet while he geared up for a fight.

"Isn't it obvious, or are you too addle-coved to work it out? My trumpet's missing because the halfling runt stole it from me." He sneered. "No-one peels Arden Swift and gets away with it."

"How do I know if you're telling the truth? Chances are that you were cheating him."

"I explained the game's rules at the start. It's hardly my fault if he's too clueless to play by them properly."

Cora's first thought was to attack Swift, but she knew that all it would take was one small slip for Arden to slit Deekin's throat. She couldn't rely on knocking his hand away quickly enough. "We need to talk about this. You'd better come in."

"I'm quite comfortable here, and I have the kobold just where I want him. Besides, I know that son of a demon's in there with you."

It was then that Valen chose to step forward. "Since you're a gambling man, you should reconsider your chances. Slit the kobold's throat, and you'll still have two of us left to end your useless life."

Swift's smile only widened. "Think you're the hendest blood on the planes, don't you? I know my odds of success well enough. Is it two against one... or against the whole inn? Make one move and I'll let out the secret that your blabbermouth friend told me." He spoke again in a whisper. "Tanar'ri don't live for long around here, berk."

Great, so now I have yet another reason to hide my identity, thought Cora. "Your threats don't impress me. Everyone in here is so apathetic I doubt they would spare us a second glance."

For a moment, she had the sinking feeling that she'd made a mistake, and Swift was about to test out her theory at the top of his voice. She shifted on her feet, preparing herself to jump at Swift. She knew Valen was probably doing the same.

She hadn't bargained on Swift's fondness for talking. "Apathetic? I'd say that about those joyless gith pilgrims, but they're not the ones you need worry about. Look around this joint a little harder. Erinyes. Blood Wars veterans. And if news spread outside here... I only can imagine how much Gru'ul would enjoy a couple of Tanar'ri slaves. He'd pay quite handsomely for the entertainment."

Behind Cora, she saw a shadow move. Tomi. She caught herself before Swift noticed her staring. She needed to keep him talking. "Who's Gru'ul anyway? I can hardly feel threatened by someone I've never even heard of."

"Not heard of Gru'ul? That little fact is going to make him angry... very angry, and he's renowned for his short temper. Let's just say that he's not one of your more diplomatic devils and some of the machinery in his mine is vicious, no other word for-"

She heard the thud, followed by a gurgle as Swift jerked forward, and she snatched the blade even as the old bard began to stumble, wresting it from his loosening grip. Deekin slipped out of harm's way, and as Swift hit the floor Cora crouched down, slashing his throat.

For a moment, the room went quiet, then the murmur of conversation quickly resumed. Cora stared down at the blood which could have so easily been Deekin's, watching it pool on the floor.

Well, that's poetic justice.

"He's had it," said Tomi, as blithe as ever. I got a good hit on his back anyway."

"Would you care to explain what this was all that about? Deekin nearly got killed!"

"Dunno why you're all lookin' at me like that. The card game wasn't working out too well, so I had to resort to Plan B. Only trouble was, I hadn't thought of a Plan C when Deekin got grabbed."

"Didn't you once tell me you could beat anyone at cards, any time you chose?" said Valen.

Tomi looked shiftier than ever, before digging deep into his pockets. "Everyone's gotta have an unlucky streak sometime. Still, I came up with the goods at the end, see?" He brought out the Trumpet of Pandemonium.

"That's a relief. Let's hope it's worth all the trouble."

"What's this I see?" The dragon emerged from his small room. He sniffed almost delicately at the corpse on the floor before raising his great head to stare at Cora. "Well well. It seems you've made a mess of my inn."

"He threatened to slit the throat of my friend."

"Do you expect me to care about trifles such as who did what to whom and why? Pah! I want the body brought to the kitchen and all the blood cleaned off the tiles. You'll also have to pay his bar tab in full."

As the dragon strode away, Cora spoke. "Kitchen? Why would he want us to take Swift there?"

"He's a dragon," said Valen drily. "It might be better for our sanity if we tell ourselves it's for his own use."

0-0-0

Cora was left to get dressed while the others dealt with Swift. She gathered her possessions up, taking a mental inventory as she went along. Soap – still damp, I'd better wrap that in a bandage. Sword. Opening up the storage chest, she took out Enserric, slipping him into the scabbard on her belt.

Is that all? One more item came to mind, small but rather important.

The tincture. She had bought the bottle from the merchant Gulthrys in the Underdark a while ago. The brew was said to stave off the monthly flux if taken regularly: he had also told her, somewhat slyly, that it prevented pregnancy too.

She hadn't been thinking of that at the time, only of convenience while travelling. Now, she searched through her pack, trying to calculate her last dose. It might have been about a day ago, but how can I tell, when the sky's the same shade each time I go outside?

Finding the small bottle belatedly, she opened it up, letting a drop of bitter liquid pool onto her tongue before swallowing. She hoped that it wasn't too late to be of use.

To her eternal mortification, a voice spoke in her mind, the accent distinctly male. There's no doubt children tie you down, charming though they are.

Cora froze. Enserric? How much did you hear earlier?

In that musty old chest? Nothing... but the next time you store me away, please dust first. Honestly, I couldn't stop sneezing.

Please tell me you couldn't read my mind.

The sentient sword chuckled. Should I have done? Sadly, it seems I've missed some entertainment.

Don't say another word. A moment later she relented, driven by curiosity. What do you know about children, anyway?

You forget that I was once a man, made from flesh instead of cold steel. I had a daughter, so long ago that she must be rather old, assuming that she lives at all.

It was true that she found it hard to imagine his life before his fateful transformation. What was she like?

Delightful, when I wasn't too busy or distracted to deal with her. Bright, too. I'm sure she inherited her intellect from me, although her dear mother had the effrontery to forbid me from teaching her magic.

Cora still remembered the heated argument her foster-parents had when Amadei first taught her how to wield a sword: it only stuck in her mind because their usual idea of an spat was to bicker in a mild and civilised way. To Helene, the activity was too risky in adolescent hands while Amadei insisted it would burn off restless energy and build discipline. She turned her thoughts back to Enserric. So you didn't get along with her mother?

You could say that, although it would be something of an understatement.

She might have asked more, but the door opened, and Valen walked in. "It's done, although it seems Swift had a hefty bar tab."

"Don't tell me how much it was. I'd rather not know." She was all too aware that their funds were not infinite. It did not help that some of their money was in the form of silver coins, a currency which no-one seemed to want in Cania.

Valen wasn't fully armoured yet, and Cora watched as he started to strap on his breastplate. "Need help?"

He grinned. "Your way of helping is highly distracting, my lady."

"That's the whole point." She strolled over to the door. "Our first death in Cania. It feels like we're getting back to business as usual."

The floorboards creaked with each step as he walked up to her. "If the Sleeping Man helps us to get out of here, I don't know when we'll have the chance to be alone again."

Cora turned to face him. "Right now I'd like to lock the door and shut out the rest of Cania, but that's not really an option, is it?"

"Your kobold would never leave us in peace." All levity suddenly gone, he gazed back at her. "I'm not sure what dangers we will face if we find a way out. All I can do is try to keep you safe."

"And I you. We managed well enough in the Underdark, didn't we?" Even as she spoke she knew it wasn't quite true but it didn't matter, because he gathered her into his arms and kissed her as if he might never get the chance again.

0-0-0

"Boss. You gots the horn?" Deekin's stage whisper was louder than most people's speaking voices: Cora was thankful that they had not yet reached the temple.

Before Cora could answer, Tomi quipped "I think she's s'posed to ask Valen that."

Getting his double meaning, Cora gave the halfling a none-too-subtle nudge with her foot, nearly unbalancing when he dodged her. "Looks like you caught a dose o' touchiness from him," muttered the halfling, "and that's even worse than the Calishite Itch."

If Tomi kept up the ribbing, Cora thought she'd be giving him a dose of the back of her hand soon. Still, they were all feeling a little frayed right now, and even the rogue's innuendoes sounded more brittle than usual. Back to reality, whatever that is. Why couldn't I have stayed in that room longer? The subject of her thoughts walked a little way ahead of them, leading the group: he half-turned as he reached the entrance of the temple, fixing his gaze upon Tomi.

"You can wait out here, halfling." he said. "Don't freeze or anything while we're gone." As Valen walked in, Cora heard him murmur "Calishite itch?" under his breath: doubtless he had heard the entire conversation.

As always the Sensei was in attendance. Although she was preoccupied with a pile of books, she seemed quietly pleased to see them return to the shrine. After confiscating their weapons, she returned to her studies.

For a moment, Cora felt guilty for what she was about to do, a vestige of her long experience of obeying the rules in temples. She reminded herself that they meant no harm to the Sleeping Man. Besides, she had never known of any religion with only one genuine adherent.

The group walked along the narrow corridor, and into the sanctuary. "Still sleeping in, I see," said Valen. "I get the impression that celestials don't need to earn their keep."

Deekin nudged Cora. "Boss. Yous sure you still gots the trumpet?"

"I haven't lost it since you last asked," she said, digging out the instrument from its hiding place. "Well, here goes..." Before she could raise it to her lips, Deekin stopped her, laying his paw on her arm. The kobold gazed up at Cora, his head slightly tilted. She immediately recognised it as his special pleading expression, something she was oddly powerless to resist. Sometimes she wondered if it was a bardic skill of his.

"Deekin be thinking... yous and Goatman be skilled in many ways, but yous nots know how to be bards."

"I don't think either of us would dispute that. All right, Deeks, what do you want?"

"Little Deekin wants to play the music of Pandemonium, if that be okays with Boss."

"Just give it to him quickly," said Valen, his expression betraying a weary amusement. "You'll never get any peace otherwise."

"I have the feeling that we won't get any peace anyway." She handed Deekin the trumpet. "Have fun, but don't blow too hard. With any luck, we can wake him without disturbing the Sensei."

"Yay! Deekin be happy to play for Boss!"

The bard did not play immediately. Instead he studied the instrument for a moment or two before approaching the celestial. "And so the brave kobold prepared for the performance of his life, thankful that he rarely gets stage fright. Although it be hard to get nervous when the audience be fast asleep." He positioned the trumpet against the celestial's ear.

"That's too close for-" If Valen said any more, his next words were drowned out.

Cora thought she heard the shrieking of the lost souls outside, combined with the massed dying shout of the Elder Brain: she heard the clash of a thousand swords, the crackle of burning buildings and the screams of those still trapped inside. Every discordant or disturbing noise she had ever experienced in her life came back to her, plus others suggesting horrors she could barely imagine, all mangled together.

Just as Cora began to fear the din would never end, it stopped, and she could only hear the ringing of her poor abused ears. Realising she was on her knees with her hands clasped tightly over her head, she stood up.

It worked.

The Sleeping Man was sitting upright: his eyes were covered in a golden film, yet she knew he could see her clearly, for he was staring as if he'd never seen a woman before. "You..." he said. "You're her?" He seemed disoriented, which was hardly surprising after the manner of his awakening.

"My name's Cora... and I'm so sorry about the noise," she said, not knowing how else to begin. "It was louder than I expected."

"Even Deekin finds it too much by the end," said the kobold, sounding disappointed.

The celestial approached Cora, his gait surprisingly graceful after his long rest. He reached out to her, his slender fingers cupping her cheek: a flicker of confusion crossed his features yet he did not move away. "I need to know if you're the one. Are you?"

In spite of all his beauty his touch repulsed Cora, but she resisted the urge to slap his hand away. Instead she took a step backwards. "I'm not sure what you're asking."

"I can guess," said Valen, his voice sharp.

As if for the first time, the planetar seemed to notice Valen.

Not that you could exactly miss him.

Valen stood tall, his arms folded across his chest. "She's not the woman you've been waiting for, in case you're wondering." His words were cool and measured, but his mouth was set in a scowl and his tail flicked back and forth.

Surely he can't be jealous. Can he? Cora felt a secret thrill of pleasure, then suppressed it quickly: they needed to stay on good terms with the Sleeping Man, if they were to ask for his aid.

Looking from Valen to Cora, the planetar's shoulders sagged. "In truth, I had doubts when I saw what you were. Why did you wake me?"

"It's a long story, but we're hoping you can help us with some information." She did not get the chance to continue, for she heard the sound of running footsteps: Sensei Dharvana burst into the room, her sharp eyes quickly taking in the scene. For a moment she stared at the planetar, her mouth opening then closing without making a sound, and then she turned back to Cora.

A dusting of fresh snow patterned Dharvana's hair, and she was trembling, whether from cold or anger. "I... thought that horrendous din came from outside. So I went out and looked, and found nothing. Then the truth dawned upon me - I knew you were careless, but I never thought you would abuse my hospitality! How dare you?"

"I can explain," began Cora, "if you'll listen."

"Like the last time? Excuses!" Without another word, Dharvana launched herself at Cora.

It soon became clear why the residents of the city generally left the Sensei in peace. The githzerai had been trained in some form of martial art, raining punches and kicks with deadly precision, and Cora found herself blocking blows rather than landing many hits of her own. Valen got behind the sensei, trying his best to bring her down, but the sensei could dodge as well as mete out damage with astonishing speed.

"Here comes halfling death!" yelled Tomi, making a late entrance, but the battle-cry broke Cora's concentration at the wrong time. Dharvana's fist made a decisive, dizzying blow on the side of her head, swiftly followed by another. As Cora struggled to fend off another hit Valen pulled one hand behind Dharvana's back: the sensei tried to trip him, but as her foot hooked around his leg Deekin's spell hit her squarely, holding her fast.

"Stop!" Holding up a hand, the Sleeping Man stepped forward, placing himself in between Cora and Dharvana. "All of you! Why are you fighting in my home?"

"I didn't want to start a fight," said Cora, rubbing at the side of her head, "but I'm not going to stand there and take it, either."

"Why did you attack us?" asked the Sleeping Man, addressing Dharvana directly. The spell was fading now, and Cora readied herself for another fight.

It didn't happen. As the Sensei unfroze, all her attention was focused upon the planetar. "I would never harm you," she protested. "I was only trying to protect you. By disturbing your dreams, they have tainted your place of worship.""

"You're half in love with him anyway," said Cora, sore enough that she was beyond any notions of tact. "Why is it so devastating if he wakes up?"

"You made a mockery of my religion. Are you going to rob me of my dignity too?"

"Wait. You speak as if this is a temple, yet there was never one here before," said the Sleeping Man.

"The Sensei worships you," said Valen. "She created a religion in your name: unfortunately you're the last to know."

"This is true?" The planetar's golden gaze was fixed upon Dharvana. He didn't appear flattered by the notion.

The priestess glanced downwards, her face betraying some internal struggle, before she answered him. "It's true, although the tiefling casts it in a negative light. After hearing about you, I brought a group of pilgrims all the way from the plane of Limbo to your shrine. The original group dwindled away but I hoped to recruit more followers here. I communed with your dreams and wrote down the core of the Fivefold Mysteries. It was done in your honour, my Lord."

The planetar looked thunderstruck. "In my honour? I am not a god, and my dreams were never meant for an audience. I find the idea abhorrent."

The Sensei's face fell: she seemed utterly crushed by his answer. "Of all the secrets I learned from you... I had no idea you felt that way." Looking away from the celestial, and meeting no-one else's eyes, she slunk away.

"For the first time I almost pity her," said Valen.

"So do I." Glancing at the Sleeping Man, Cora guessed he did not feel the same way: he still seemed caught up in annoyance.

"Are you followers of this cult too?" asked the planetar.

Cora shook her head. "We wanted to meet you for a different reason. Through the Sensei, we found out about your quest to find the Knower of Names. That was of great interest to us, because we're trapped here in Cania while the Reaper's portals are closed."

"Closed?" the planetar repeated, puzzled. "The doorways in the Realm of the Reaper are always open."

"It must've been like that before you started your shut-eye," said Tomi. "It's not like that any more, not since Big M went and found out the Reaper's True Name. He made the bag of bones close the portals, and now they're about as much use as a pub without beer. No-one's going anywhere right now."

"This is why we wondered if you could help ," added Cora. "We need to go back to the Prime Material Plane as soon as we can. The Reaper asked us to find out his True Name, so that we can command him to reopen the doors."

"No one would ever disclose their True Name willingly. Nor would they tell anyone to seek it out," said the Sleeping Man, sounding dubious.

"Perhaps he sees the alternative as worse," said Valen. "We want the portals open, and so does he. He also knows that we have no desire to return here once we leave."

"Can he not tell you his name?"

"No," said Valen. "Mephistopheles ordered the Reaper not to speak it to others, It seems he anticipated that possibility."

"The archdevil has supreme cunning. He always stays one step ahead, and that is how he protects his interests. Above all, he is ruthless. Strange as it seems to me, the Reaper must feel that his true identity is safer in your hands."

"He's desperate," said Cora. "The Reaper has lost his purpose, hasn't he? If he is part of the Realm, and the Realm is part of him, it must feel like having a limb cut off. We'll start to feel that way if we stay here too long. We don't belong here – none of us do, and we're all feeling the effects in different ways." A look passed between herself and Valen, a shared understanding.

"No-one feels at home in this plane any more, save for the Baatezu." The celestial's golden eyes lingered first on Cora, then on Valen. "Yet you are tieflings."

"Tanar'ri tieflings," admitted Cora, "and I was born in the Prime. This isn't my home by any stretch of the imagination."

"Tanar'ri, Baatezu... they are simply different flavours of evil," said the planetar dismissively.

"You overlook the fact that tieflings are partly human," said Valen. "Has it ever occurred to you that some of us don't wish to be evil, or that we might value our human traits?"

"Are humans all benign? It is not what I have heard."

He really is like Lavoera, thought Cora. This isn't going too well. "We can't all be born celestial, can we? Not all of us have such luck, so we work with the cards we're dealt with. I know from experience that Valen is a good man, someone I would trust with my life. I'm sure he'd vouch for me, too."

Valen gave her a brief, sweet smile. "Always, my love."

"You spoke of love, and it did not sound like a lie. I would not have expected such a sentiment from your kind." said the Sleeping Man.

"Maybes green angel man needs to get out more?" said Deekin.

The planetar fell silent, stroking his smooth, hairless chin. Finally he looked back at them, his expression wistful. "It seems you have found something that eludes me."

It wasn't Cora's business to offer advice. Her last attempt with Aribeth hadn't worked well at all. Still, she couldn't resist trying. "A friend once told me that the best time to meet someone is when you're not looking. What if waiting around here is the wrong approach?"

"I was not always lost in a world of dreams," the planetar admitted. "When I sought out my true love's identity, circumstance forced me to abandon my quest."

"What happened?"

"I risked placing the Knower of Names in peril because Mephistopheles had hidden her away from his rivals. She was foolish enough to love him, yet the archdevil rewarded her loyalty by imprisoning her in a remote corner of Cania. My aim was to find her prison, free her and find the answer to my question, but by then, it was clear that others knew of my search. I don't know what would have happened if she had fallen into the hands of power-hungry devils."

"Torture," said Valen flatly. "They would make her long for death even if she is immortal."

"That was why I walked away." He paused a moment before continuing. "You seem to understand my concerns, yet I still have misgivings."

"You can trust us. I promise you," said Cora. She had the sinking feeling that a if human's word counted for little with the planetar, then the promise of a tiefling would be ranked far lower. She had to try though. She didn't know what else to do.

"Umm, Deekin gots a question."

"Go on, small creature," said the Sleeping Man. "Ask what you will."

"Deekin be thinkings... if you be waiting for True Love and she be outside the city somewheres, how she goings to find yous when all the Reaper's gates be closed?"

At first the celestial looked puzzled, but comprehension slowly dawned. "I have always believed that my soulmate must share my yearning for our union. If she cannot reach me because of the archdevil's trickery, it must feel intolerable for her."

Well played, Deeks. "We want to help you change that situation," urged Cora. "We need those gates to open as much as you do."

Slowly, the Sleeping Man nodded. "It is true. Perhaps I can trust you well enough to say more. I will tell you how I made my journey, but I must ask a favour in return."

"Ask us anything at all," said Cora, privately hoping that the price wouldn't be too high. "We're listening."

0-0-0

The friends sat listening as the Sleeping Man recounted his tale in full. Occasionally Deekin asked him to pause so that he could make notes in his journal, but at long last the story was over.

"It sounds like quite the expedition," said Cora. "There's one thing I don't understand, though. How did you leave this city in the first place? There's no visible way out of here."

"There are ways and means," said the planetar. "I have always been able to see the gates. Certain advanced forms of magic may help some people see clearly. An item charged with the right enchantment will also work."

"We have none of those things," said Cora, disheartened.

The Sleeping Man slipped a ring off his finger then placed it on his palm, staring down at it. "I had this made for my love, but too late I realised that it will not fit a woman's hand. Perhaps you could wear on a neckchain, or else your friend can wear it instead. If I give you this, I expect you to find out my true love's name if you reach the Knower. Without your True Name I cannot bind you to your promise, I must rely on any sense of honour you have." He stared down at the ring, and his fingers closed around it as if he wasn't quite ready to lend his trust.

"I swear on Helm's name that I'll find the name out for you, if it's within my power."

"A vow to a god is a solemn one." He held out the ring to Cora and she took it from him. She could feel the Weave pulsing around the trinket. As the Sleeping Man had warned her, it appeared too large for her fingers, so she passed it to Valen.

"It fits well enough," he said. "Strange. I can see clearly yet the light seems subtly different now."

"If you go outside, the way forward will be clear."

"I can't thank you enough for this," said Cora.

"You can," said the Sleeping Man. "Remember your vow and keep it: then all will be well."

Planar cant from Mimir dot net

Blood = an expert in any field.

Hende = a real blood.

Addle-coved: idiotic

Peel - swindle