"Why didn't you tell him?" Anger, confusion, shame. As soon as we were outside the vast cavern, she turned on me. We had not even completed the stone stairwell's descent; the cave the chamber was carved from was shrouded in darkness, but for the natural rays of light shining in from above. There was a cool, moist feel, and I got the impression we had just left the throne room. The heart of Firkraag's lair had not been what I was expecting; I had not seen a hoard in one corner, or fawning lackeys. Above us, greenery grew; plants, trees. It had been raining.
"Why did you drug me?" My calm buffeted her ire, but did not extinguish it.
"So you would come!"
I did not ask how; I assumed it was something she added to the clothing or water, perhaps the herbs in the soap. I also expected her to have used the antidote on herself.
"Had you asked, I would have." While she frowned at me, trying to decide whether or not I spoke true, I decided it was time she learned the truth. "Your master killed a young woman's father, a little older than you."
There was a sullen pause, "What do I care?"
"Her name is Nalia. I suspect her father knew yours–"
Folding her arms with a frown, I knew I had struck the mark.
"I glimpsed the coat of arms. Cousins, perhaps?"
She turned her back on me.
"He did it to lure me here. That official? He offered us information for coin. Coin gained by ridding the De'Arnise ancestral keep of trolls. I wondered what manner of being would be strong enough to cause trolls to fear. Ask him: he's right up those stairs. Your master could have extended an invitation, but he likes to play games, as he has with your father."
"Stop it!" She whirled around, "What do you want?!"
"Justice." Realising I sounded like a paladin, I amended, "I want my sister back. That mage took her from me, tortured her. Tortured me. We escaped. The cowls fought him; he let himself be captured; they took him to Spellhold, along with my sister. She almost died."
No reaction; I wasn't expecting much.
"While I was chasing trolls, she was being tortured. The cowls that guarded him are dead. Whatever he started, he has almost finished. The guild war in Athkatla – you've heard of it? The vampires fight the thieves; they are led by his sister, and now the city is locked down. I have no way to Spellhold, no way to save her."
"Irenicus," she said abruptly.
"'Shattered One'?" I translated the bastardised elvish frowning slightly.
"Him, the Exile. Firkraag delights in knowing what others do not."
"Thank you." Finally, a name… 'Shattered One'. It wasn't at all appropriate. 'Living Ice', perhaps, or 'Dead Inside' would be a better fit. "Your master," it was not really a question, no matter how I phrased it, "he plays 'chess', but we are the pawns." Not so much a question after all.
"What's your point?" The sullenness returned.
"How did that fire start, the one that consumed your family home?"
She stared at me, "An accident, why?"
I didn't elaborate. "The paladins of the Radiant Hart are opposed to such as he, are they not? That's why you dislike them, amongst other reasons."
"So? Make your point."
"Interesting how your father is friends with Firecam. Was there ever an expedition to rid these lands of the wyrm?"
"Many times…" Her eyes widened slightly.
"You might want to think about that. Now, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to return back to Delryn, well, I should. I've wasted enough time, and Imoen has only a little left before she fades entirely."
"But you… you're a…"
"Bhaalspawn? Yes. So is my sister. I love her, just as somewhere, deep down, you love your father. Did he ever really hit you, or was that just part of the act?"
Chewing her lip, she wouldn't answer.
"You do need your freedom, Iltha, but not from your father's 'confinement'."
Her cheeks flushed, "What do you know?!"
"I know you're hurting, and you know the lie for what it is, that you want to believe it even though you know it's wrong."
"Who – who are you?!"
My smile was slight, "A mortal, like you." I glanced at the water dripping down the natural cave walls, and offered her my arm, "Take me back."
Ashen, her face fell. Pity surged inside me, "I won't tell your father how you've betrayed him," I promised, "you'll do that for yourself." After a moment I added, "I doubt he knows. His despair is over his wife's loss; I won't leave him heartbroken over his daughter's."
"You're cruel," she whispered, her hands clenching and eyes down.
"No, cruel is what you've done to him. What that wyrm has done. Firkraag has taken everything from him, and he doesn't even know it."
Her tears began to fall.
