Most of the slaves were barefoot but the crowd still made a shuffling, whispering noise as they passed through the passageways towards the hidden entrance. Following along behind them Anna could scarcely believe their luck. The day's mining should've begun long ago but still they saw no guards. No one had come to drive the workers out into the tunnels, no one even appeared in the halls. Was the mine on holiday? It was worrying but Anna shrugged it off, her mind focused only in one direction.

"Not far now," Finn whispered next to her, looking cautiously down an empty side-passage.

Anna nodded in return, unsure if he'd been speaking to her or himself. With each step escape came closer and her heart hammered in her chest. To be free of that place, to see the sun—at that moment she didn't believe even the slaves longed for that more than she.

Although one person at least did, Anna thought as she spared a backwards glance at Xan. He moved swiftly considering his injuries but he still lagged behind the others. With Imoen and Ajantis there to help she didn't worry too much about him falling behind but she still wondered if she and Finn shouldn't slacken their pace. Finn stayed close to the slaves though and she remained by his side.

....

Anna soon stopped frightened in her tracks hearing Yeslick swearing at the fore of the group.

"What's this? What the poxy friggin' hells is this?"

She heard a deep resonating and realised the dwarf must be banging his fists against the stone wall that blocked their advance. By the hollow noise Anna reckoned it must be a door of some sort though she couldn't see any handles or seams.

"Will you cease?" Kivan hissed. "The rock sounds like a drum, there is no telling who will hear."

"This shouldn't be shut in the daytime. The doors are always open," Yeslick muttered to himself, ignoring the elf.

"Is there no way around?" Jaheira asked.

"Aye. Aye," the dwarf replied. "But it'll take us by the long way. We'll have to cut through the kitchens and the place might just be rammed with guards."

"Kitchens? Oh, thank the gods!" Kiri moaned.

Her face blossomed into an expression of nervous joy as she praised an unknown deity.

"This may be a blessing," Rill began. "But we must be prepared as well."

"Prepared? Prepared for what?" she asked anxiously.

"To battle," Ajantis said quietly. "Come, let us all follow this good dwarf."

"Yep. Our luck's not run out yet, there's service passages behind the kitchens. We won't have to cut through the mess and it saves us time in talking to the cooks as well! Come on, move out!"

Yeslick called again and pushed his way through the crowd, heading off down another passageway. The rest hurried after him but Ajantis placed a hand on the priest's shoulder, holding him back.

"Tell me, good father—this woman's child, do you truly believe he lives?"

Rill's eyes looked pained but he gave the knight a small smile.

"We can all pray, my friend."

Ajantis sighed and said nothing more.

....

Although the halls mostly looked the same something told Anna that Yeslick was leading them into a part of the mine they hadn't seen. The passages quickly grew narrower, forcing them to move no more than two abreast. No doors lined these halls but she began to feel a strange sense of unease that made the hairs on the back of her neck prickle. Something was wrong. She could feel it building in the air.

"Finn," she said, touching his arm. "There's something—"

Behind them Xan suddenly cried out.

"Neuma! Magic—get down!"

As he spoke Anna saw a light on a wall ahead of them. A strange pattern was painted there and it glowed of its own volition, energy flickering along its lines. Their steps triggered the ward and the symbol suddenly flashed white-hot, burning the back of her eyes and darkening her vision.

Finn grabbed her but the slaves didn't seem to understand the elf's cry until it was too late. The air crackled with electricity as the bolt shot through the hall faster than any arrow, leaving screams and the scent of burnt flesh in its wake. It struck the wall behind them and ricocheted, penetrating the slaves unlucky enough to be in its path. The symbol reabsorbed the energy and began flickering once more.

"Silvanus—stay down, stay down," Jaheira croaked, dragging herself across the floor towards a man who twitched in a fit.

The air crackled again as another bolt shot just above their heads. Anna rose to her knees and looked at the symbol, squinting her eyes against the glow. Wards were a particular interest of her father's and she'd studied them well, mainly to learn the ways of breaking the ones he placed on certain books and cabinets. The ward flashed and she cursed silently realising it must be self-repeating; it would trigger indefinitely in the presence of movement unless dispelled.

She looked at the moaning slaves, some of whom were trying to rise and she knew they'd never escape the hall without risking fatal injuries. Wards of that sort required a secret word to terminate and she lacked the magic to dispel it otherwise. But there was at least one other thing to try.

...

"Where are you going?" Finn said to her as she began crawling away.

"Come with me," she said, not taking her eyes off the ward.

She moved swiftly as she could, crawling around the bodies of the hurt and dying. One slave pulled desperately at her robe, begging for aid she couldn't give. Anna tugged herself free and paused at the end of the hall.

"What are you going to do?" Finn asked again.

"Wait," Anna replied, her voice shaking. "I—I think I might need you."

"What?"

"Just wait."

Cautiously she peeked around the corner. The hall was dark and she saw no signs of other wards or guards. Moving quickly she rose to her feet and huddled against the cold stone, and Finn followed. Nervously she regarded the flickering pattern on the wall. She waited until it fired its burst and reached out with a trembling hand.

"What the hells?"

Finn grabbed her hand, pulling it down.

"I need to," she said. "Just let me—"

"No chance," Finn replied. "Let me do it."

"You don't know which lines to erase, you could make it explode," Anna said. "Just let me."

She turned to him and looked into his eyes. Finn looked almost like he might explode himself, but slowly his face grew resigned.

"Alright. I'm here."

He braced himself and drew an arm tightly around her waist.

"Don't," she said, trying to move his arm away. "It might hurt you too."

Finn responded by giving her a squeeze. Anna turned back to the ward. She waited, watching the flickers until they seemed at their dimmest point. Quickly she forced her shaking hand onto one of the pattern's lines, smearing the paint away.

She almost screamed feeling the energy burning like cold fire along her fingertips, biting into her like she'd been holding a block of solid ice. Her hand dropped and she stared in shock watching the paint steaming on her blistering skin. Finn called her name in a sick voice but she shook her head.

"I'm fine," she breathed, though her stomach felt like it might rebel.

He pulled her closer and she reached out several more times, wiping away the ward's trigger lines in order. Her wet eyes blurred and she struggled to see but at least it kept her from looking at her hand. Her entire arm began to throb from the electricity but at last the ward fizzled and popped, the glow of the lines faded.

Shaking Anna glanced in horror at her hand, trying to fathom that it was actually hers. The skin had peeled away and hung dripping down, exposing the muscle in some places. One nail was half-off and swung on her fingertip like a door. Finn quickly took her hand and pressed it between his. He shut his eyes and she felt faint with the pain of healing. When he released her the dry, dead skin still clung but her hand was whole once more.

"Don't ever do that again, alright?" he said with a shaky laugh.

Anna wiped her eyes and looked at him. His skin was pale and his own eyes looked red. She shook her head and tried to smile.

"Are you all right?" she asked.

"Not really. I'm a bit peckish, to tell the truth. Hope we get to the kitchens soon."

Anna let out a laugh. They wrapped their arms around each other and Finn gently brushed her lips with his.

....

"You have dispelled the ward?"

She turned her head to see Xan rising from his knees.

"Anna managed it, yeah," Finn said.

"Thank Corellon, that trap was devilish. Er, pardon me," the elf said, noticing their close embrace. "I watched you from the hall, you seemed to be having...difficulty. You had dispelling magics at your disposal, did you not?"

"No, but...I managed," Anna said quietly.

"So you did erase the lines?" Xan exclaimed. "I thought as much, but I hoped my eyes deceived me. You are fortunate you didn't lose a hand. Did you not think to ask me first?"

"I didn't," she said, suddenly feeling foolish. "I didn't think about that, I just needed to break the ward."

"I see. I only wish you'd considered what losing a spellcaster could mean to us in this place," he said. "Or at least how living out the rest of our short existence missing an appendage might be"

"She was the one who got hurt, mate," Finn said angrily. "If you were so bloody worried you might've gotten here faster."

"It wasn't an easy task to get through this hall—I could not stand and I had to take care none of these people touched my blade. I tried calling out but I imagine you were somewhat distracted."

"Never mind" Anna broke in, rubbing her hands. "It may have been foolish, but it's done now."

"But, you are not injured?" Xan said, regarding her.

His voice had that queer tone again. Anna paused and quickly dropped her hands to her sides.

"They are, though," she said, trying to swallow whatever it was that crawled into her throat and stayed there. Without another word she hurried back to the slaves.

....

The healers aided the worst injured and most of the slaves had somehow managed to rise to their feet. But Anna saw a number of them lying where they fell, their skin reddened and burned like her now-healed hand.

"Gone in a moment," Rill said to her, following her eyes. "I'm thankful at least their suffering was short."

Although his voice tried to sound like a man seeking hope she saw a flash in his eyes, a look of anger.

"Well. We can cry for the dead later," Yeslick said, gravelly and dry. He ran a hand quickly over his eyes and pulled himself upright. "Let's be on."

"Yes. Point the way, but I shall take the lead," Kivan said.

"What, you think I need you shepherding us through me own mine?" the dwarf bristled.

"This warren may be of your making, but other hands have shaped it since. You did not spot their snares until it was too late. There may be more traps awaiting us and we will need sharp sight to find them."

The ranger's face stayed calm but his eyes glittered. Yeslick puffed out against his bruised dignity.

"There weren't an elf born what had better sight underground than a dwarf. Ye weren't two paces behind me when that thing triggered—where were your keen eyes then, off taking a snooze?"

Kivan scowled but Jaheira spoke quickly.

"If you do not cease, by Silvanus I will throw you both over my knee and give you the spankings you deserve. I have had enough of the arguments of children! Look at these poor people—they need our aid and our strength, not to hear us bickering. Go, now!"

She stamped her boot and pointed down the hallway, her own eyes snapping. Kivan looked surprised and the dwarf sheepish but they both departed without another word.

....

They moved on again, but Anna let out a breath of despair as they came across another sealed door.

"Dammit!" Yeslick bellowed.

"Something's going on, ain't it?" one of the turncoat guards spoke. "Fook me, we're in for it."

"B-but there were other doors," Khalid said thoughtfully. "I've seen them, s-set hidden into the walls. Why just sh-shut these?"

Yeslick bit his lip and ran a hand over the rock, staring hard at the stone as though he might crack it with his glare.

"Can't say. We're all right though, we—just gotta go another way."

"Will we still get to the kitchens?" Kiri asked anxiously.

"Yeah, we'll go by there. Some of us—maybe we can send someone out to the cooks."

The assurance in his voice fell flat.

"Me cousin used to do this," a slave spoke quietly, and the others turned to him. "He was a rat-catcher. Block off the tunnels so the rats go where you want. Catch 'em with dogs, club 'em to death. Drown them."

He looked up, glancing around into the other frightened eyes.

"We're the rats, ain't we?"

There was silence.

"Like hells we are," Yeslick said, becoming animated again. "They might think we're vermin but they're gonna find out we've got some pretty sharp teeth. Am I right?"

None of the slaves responded.

"That wasn't a question," the dwarf said, turning away down another passage.

"Don't go that way," a guard suddenly said, stopping him.

"Why not?" Yeslick said, yanking away his arm.

"Well, they moved some hobgoblins in to the lower quarters not this past tenday," he replied, suddenly wary of the eyes that suspiciously regarded him. "The last thing we'd want is to run into those hairy bastards, they're nasty pieces of work."

The other guard quickly backed up his assertion. Yeslick stared at the man hard, like he was trying to read his thoughts. Finding no answer though he sighed.

"If you say so, pally. Alright—this way then."

....

He chose the opposite path, calling the slaves to follow. Anna began to sweat from exhaustion and her increasingly edgy nerves. Yeslick followed his twists and turns down the empty corridors, soon leading them through a hall that she recognised as the place they'd encountered the half-dressed guard.

She glanced at the closed doors, trying to remember which room held the man's body. 'The quarters' he'd called it. Other men must have been there, where were they now?

Her breath left her as a door swung open. Anna saw no confused occupant standing there but a fully-armed guard. For one moment their eyes locked, him staring keenly into her shocked face. Another man crouched at his feet. As in a dream she barely had time to process that they both held crossbows before hearing a command echoed from behind another open door.

"Attack!"

By instinct alone Anna spoke and a blue field of energy surrounded her just as the men let loose their quarrels, sending the bolts to the floor like they'd hit stone. Next to her Finn's curse somehow penetrated the screaming of the slaves whose cries broke out in unison, like some terrified choir. The men reloaded without missing a beat and Anna spoke again, hitting the crouching man with a burst of energy and sending him onto his back. The standing guard looked at her in surprise and fired another futile round at her heart with the same result as the first.

Finn pushed past her into the room. He knocked the weapon from the man's hands and drove his sword through his hardened leather at the abdomen, twisting the blade and jerking it upwards before pulling out the stained metal with a grunt. The guard's face looked sick with surprise but he fell in silence to the floor.

He then whirled on the guard hit by Anna's spell. He'd begun to rise but Finn kicked him back and without hesitation stabbed his blade directly into his eye socket. Blood burst out and the man twitched violently, pinned to the floor.

"Where's Imoen? Get into the room!" Finn shouted over the din as he pushed past Anna again, heading out into the melee.

She ignored his command and followed after him. The hall was chaos; the doors were all open and the slaves screamed and shouted, tripping over bodies of slave and guard alike. Anna's comrades shouted commands of their own but they struggled to reach their attackers in the narrow hall.

A few slaves slipped panicking past her down the hall, but Anna was surprised that many of them weren't fleeing. Like cornered animals they suddenly began to fight their attackers, striking at them madly with their bare hands in a wild rage. They pushed their way into the rooms with as much determination as they'd used to force their way from the grates.

She heard a confused noise of shouting and screaming and a terrified-looking guard emerged from a room. Blood trickled down his face, the clawed marks of fingernails apparent on his cheeks. Dirty hands clung to his armour, trying to pull him down. He struggled back, hitting out at some of the slaves but they refused to let go. Burdened by the weight of so many the man fell onto the floor. The slaves leaped on him, some kicking the man with their bare feet, others hitting him and tearing at his exposed skin. The man screamed and begged for mercy but the slaves kept attacking like wild animals. The gang clustered over him and Anna had to turn away from the scene.

....

Though it seemed to last a lifetime the ambush was over soon after it began. The healers aided the hurt slaves but some lay beyond their skill, their life's essence spilled onto the stone floor. The others hung around in a daze, moaning and talking amongst themselves, wailing over lost friends. One slave rose up from a body and turned to the corpse of a guard, swearing at the man and kicking him violently until Ajantis pulled him away.

"They know we're here, don't they?" Finn said, looking over the carnage. "There's no point pretending anymore. They must've known where we were heading, too, if they set this up."

"Gods, gods, we'll never get out!" A man nearly screamed. "How are we supposed to—I don't want to leave them lying there."

He nodded at the bodies of the slaves at his feet.

"This is...sickening," Xan said to the man. "But this will not be the last strike. I am sorry, but we cannot mourn here. We must move on."

"They can't know where we're heading, there's no chance in hell!" Yeslick exclaimed, tugging on his bloodied beard. "Nobody but me knows about the back door, and we weren't on the main passage to the surface."

"Maybe they caught the slaves we got out before and they told them. Or maybe your mine's not as secret as you think it is," Finn responded.

...

Yeslick began to reply but one of the guards spoke.

"It's not right. This isn't right," he said, shaking his head.

"You just get here or something?" the dwarf demanded.

"That's not what I mean," he continued, glaring back at him. "If they thought somebody'd invaded the mines the alarms would be ringing everywhere."

"So what's up then?" Finn asked. "We didn't just chance across some armed blokes playing hide and seek here."

"I don't know. Something's wrong though, that's bleedin' obvious."

"What is y-your attack protocol?" Khalid asked.

"If we were in the pits we'd force the workers back into their holes and lock the gate from the inside. Up here the levels would be sealed and all—but why no alarm?" the man repeated, looking up at a silent bell that was recessed into the stone above their heads.

"Maybe it's broken," Finn offered.

"Maybe," the man said, not sounding convinced.

"They just think some workers got out," the other guard said, walking up to the little group and trying to avoid the former prisoners' eyes. "Why else you think nobody's been down here yet? If they really thought we were under attack every guard in here'd be scrambled before ye could blink."

The first guard nodded. "Aye, that sounds about right. We keep these poor saps so—" he paused, then quickly cleared his throat. "Anyway, they don't think these worker fellows are much of a concern. A few've broken free before. It's just a little inconvenience, nothing to get the whole place worked up over."

"That still doesn't make sense," Finn said dubiously. "If they just thought a few slaves were on the run, why set up such a big ambush? And why hasn't anybody been in the pits doing a head count?"

"I don't know what to tell you," the first guard said. "But I can say if they thought this place was under attack we'd know about it."

"I'll bet you would," a slave man said. He approached the guard with nervous anger.

"What?" the man replied.

"Who was it that told us to go this way?" the slave demanded. "You did! You're in on it!"

Instantly the eyes of the other slaves focused in on the guards. The men took a step back.

"You're out of your mind. We could've gotten killed ourselves here, aye?"

"No. You led us here. It was your plan, weren't it? You all know what these bastards have done to us." The slave's pitch rose, and the others moved closer. "Remember? You beat me yourself, when my ankle was twisted and I couldn't walk. You beat poor Mikan to death. And what about Sara, aye? I heard her screaming. I know what you did to that poor girl!"

"I didn't!" the guard exclaimed, holding up his hands. "I never touched her, it wasn't me—"

"You, him—what difference does it make! You all did this, every last one o' ye!"

...

The slave began swearing and the others followed suit. They began grabbing at the terrified men, driving away the party's attempts to stop them.

The guards pulled back, just managing to slip inside a room. Taking a sharp breath Anna pushed her way inside with the crowd, thinking her holding magic might be needed. The slaves backed the men into a corner but they retreated a step when one drew his sword.

He held it up, the blade vibrating in his shaking hand.

"You see here," he said nervously. "Look at it! It's red. I just helped you fight this lot, and so did he! I'm sorry for what we did, it—but if it weren't for us just now even more of you'd be lying on the floor!"

"Oh, aye, he's a generous one," a slave mocked viciously.

"We let Rill go!" the other guard exclaimed. "I brought him water, he might be dead too otherwise."

"He's practically a saint!" another slave shouted. "I don't want them here. I don't want to look at them. I want them dead!"

The crowd parted slightly as the priest himself stepped in between the men and the slaves.

"No! Think, friends, how could these men have set us up? They've been with us the whole time, they haven't talked with anyone. It was just a coincidence."

"Why are you standing up for them?" a slave said. "Don't matter if they set us up or not, they're murderers!"

The crowd muttered agreement and stepped forward. Like a rumble of thunder building Rill's face turned severe and he stood fully upright. Despite his thin frame he was a tall man, and the stormclouds in his eyes were so out of place with his character that even Anna stood back.

"Maybe they are. And they'll face justice, in this world or the next. But everyone deserves a chance to make penance. They're fighting with us now, and there's no reason to think otherwise. Do you think I don't feel hate for what they did to us, to me? Look at these scars!" He held out his arms, showing ugly red marks and bruises. "I've felt the weight of their hands as much as any of you. But we need to be better than this now. These men aren't your enemy anymore. Turn, my friends, and leave this madness."

The tension vibrated around the room. Anna stood stock-still, watching the faces of the slaves. She saw their rage and their pain and most of all, their fear. Those people had a burning terror within them that for all her experiences she could never understand. For some reason the slave's story of the rat-catcher came into her mind. They were helpless, they were all helpless. But not without teeth.

...

Jaheira pushed into the room, followed by Yeslick.

"We need to leave this place," the druid said bluntly.

Her words seemed to break the spell and the slaves fell back.

"Yes. Yes, we must go. There has been enough crawling in the darkness. We need to find the light," Rill said slowly.

"There is nothing more to be done here," Jaheira repeated for the benefit of the slaves. "We must move on."

"There might be something," Rill said thoughtfully. A soft light was shining in his eyes.

"What're you planning now, you devious old coot?" Yeslick asked.

"They most likely think the slaves have escaped. Well then—let's give them a slave escape."

"Pardon?" Jaheira asked.

"With my blessings I can make it so the guards could see me, but they wouldn't be able to touch a withered hair on my head. I could run in another direction and throw them off your trail long enough to get these folks to safety."

"Moradin's hammer, ye have cracked," Yeslick exclaimed. "Ye'd never manage that trick."

"Nothing ventured, nothing gained as they say!" Rill replied happily, regaining some of his usual mood. "I think it would work."

"Not saying it wouldn't work. I'm saying you aren't gonna try it. Not while I'm bloody standing here, you're not! I'll knock ye over the head myself first," the dwarf grumbled.

"You could try," the priest replied. "But if the guards couldn't knock me out I don't think you'd have much of a shot."

"Don't start, Rill—" Yeslick began. "And how were you expecting to get out of here, assuming they don't land yer scrawny arse flat on the rock? You just gonna stride out the front door?"

"Perhaps I will!" he said.

"Rill, I'm serious here. You know what we've got planned. I couldn't...if I—" the dwarf hesitated, then continued in an angry voice. "So help me, if I had to risk my own whiskers trying to save yours, all while guiding this useless lot up to the door and fighting more of these bastards—well, a fellow just doesn't have that much time on his hands!"

"I am sorry, my friend," Rill replied. "But I've made up my mind. You know your task as well. Take these people to freedom."

"You're not gonna leave us, are you?" a slave said anxiously.

"I'll meet you again, don't worry. I've made it this far, haven't I? And look at me. Ilmater will guide me. You see to yourselves."

The crowd exclaimed and tried to convince the priest otherwise, but he brushed them away.

"Rill—with respect, this plan sounds like madness," Jaheira said. "You shouldn't attempt such a folly. We will manage, and you have no way of knowing—"

"Who ever has any way of knowing? We do what we can, and that's all we can do."

...

The priest refused to hear any other arguments. Raising his hands he invoked Ilmater, and a strange, shimmering light began to glow around his battered body.

"Farewell, friends—I'll see you under the trees!"

He began to sing a song about a milkmaid in a surprisingly rich voice, interrupting the choruses with a loud, merry laughter. Without another word to anyone he skipped down a hall and disappeared into the darkness.

Some of the slaves moaned. Others wept silently. The guards stared at each other but said nothing.

"He has made his choice, then," Jaheira said to Anna. "Come, we need to leave!"

She called out to the slaves and slowly they all filed out of the hall, leaving the bodies where they lay.