Reynald couldn't believe his eyes, when he saw the party come back with the precious cup, "You have it! It's astounding, really: you must be quite skilled to succeed in such a task. I can introduce you to Anarg now", he said, leaving for a couple of minutes. He came back with a man in his forties, with greying hair and a broken nose, who looked more like a ruffian than a former paladin.
"This is Anarg, our leader. Anarg, these are the mercenaries I told you about". Anarg sneered, "I can see them well enough, Reynald! So, you there! Do you want to join us?". Margaret Dawn shook her head, "No, thanks: slave trade isn't for us", she said and grinned, "Sweet dreams, by the way". "Sweet dreams? What do you...", he trailed off, his eyes rolling back in their sockets as he fell unconscious along with his companions, courtesy of the Sleep spell cast by Edwin.
The Thayan looked at the slumbering men and frowned, "All right, now what are we supposed to do with these simians? Carry them on our backs all the way to the Order headquarters like pack mules? (Don't you dare say yes!)", he grumbled. Meg smiled, "Absolutely not! Why strain our poor backs, when someone else can do it in our stead? Aerie, if you will?".
The Avariel nodded and summoned five Ogres and three Gnolls, which took up the Fallen Paladins as if they weighted no more than a sheet of parchment. "Excellent job, Aerie. Now we can go back to sir Ryan", the Ilmatari said and the Elven girl beamed proudly. "Oh, it was nothing, really, a child's play".
Despite the huge amount of strange glances the adventurers got while walking to the Order headquarters, it was a quiet walk, especially because the would-be robbers wisely decided to turn to easier targets than a group of heavily armed people accompanied by a small army of monsters. Sir Ryan's eyes went wide when he saw the creatures entering the hall, but he recovered quickly and even managed to smile. "I see that you have found a very...Creative way to do the task you were assigned", he commented.
"Now they're yours to deal with as you please. If I may give a suggestion, though, I think it would be better to give Reynald and these two", the Painbearer pointed to two of the sleeping men, "A second chance: they didn't strike me as particularly glad with their new job. My guess is that they followed Anarg because he was charismatic enough to convince them to join his group".
The Tormtar seemed taken aback by her words, "You think they deserve a second chance? After all they've done? After turning their back on the Order and its beliefs?".
"I'm not suggesting restoring their status as knights, sir Ryan, but you should give them at least the chance to redeem themselves. Make them start again as squires and keep an eye on them. If they still turn out to be untrustworthy, you can always send them to jail then. There's nothing wrong in allowing them to make amends for their mistakes and to earn once again their place in these halls, if they prove to deserve it".
"I doubt Torm would agree with you, young lady", sir Ryan said, frowning, but she smiled. "You seem to forget that the Loyal Fury is an ally of my Lord Ilmater. Justice can't leave Mercy out of consideration, sir Ryan".
He blinked, but nodded, "You...May have a point there. So be it: when they wake up, we will offer them a second chance. I pray to Torm that they won't waste it. But now, here is your reward: the Gloves of Healing", he handed her a pair of chainmail gloves that glowed softly with magic.
Meg inspected them with fascination, "It's a very precious gift, my lord: if I recall correctly, these gloves are given only to the young initiates of the Order, who aren't able to cast healing spells yet". He looked at her in surprise, "Yes, that's correct. How do you know?". "Ajantis told me".
"You are a friend of sir Ajantis, then?", the paladin asked and the Ilmatari cleared her throat uneasily. "Er...Well, we met on the Sword Coast and he travelled with my party for a short while, but we parted ways in Beregost. Is he here?", she asked, sending a silent prayer to Ilmater for a negative answer: she really didn't want to be attacked again by that overzealous jerk.
"No, he's currently in the Windspear Hills on a mission: lord Jierdan Firkraag sent a request for help to the Order regarding an invasion of Ogres and Trolls in his lands and we sent a party of paladins to investigate". The adventurers exchanged meaningful glances at those words and the Painbearer quickly bid farewell to the Tormtar and guided her friends outside.
When they were in a quiet corner of the street, she stopped, "So, what do you think of it?". Edwin was seething, "That miserable ape Firkraag lied to us! (I will make him suffer for trying to trick the great Edwin Odesseiron. Oh, he will rue the day he was born!)", he growled.
Anomen agreed, "Yes, this has the stench of a trap. What I don't understand is why he involved the Order in it: messing with an adventuring party is one thing, but crossing the Order is pure madness", he noted.
Yoshimo nibbled on his right thumb fingernail while reflecting, "There must be a reason for that, or he wouldn't have risked messing with such a powerful organization. And he waited specifically for Meg to come back to the Coronet, so whatever he is planning, it is directly connected to her".
"Then we must stay as far from the Windspear Hills as possible", Jaheira stated, "He may be interested in her...Unusual heritage", she turned to her ward, "Maybe he is even in league with that monster Irenicus", she added, spitting the name as if it were poison on her tongue. Margaret Dawn leaned on the rail and looked at the waters of the river below for a long moment, thinking about the next move. Finally, she looked up, "We will go to the Windspear Hills.
I know it may seem like folly to you, but think: Firkraag doesn't know that we know that is it a trap, right? So he will feel confident and he will probably lower his guard, while we will be ready to defend ourselves against whatever he can throw at us. Besides, I promised the Dryads that I would free them and I can't abandon them to their fates in Jon's dungeon. And...", she cut herself off and turned back to the water.
"And what, child?", the druidess asked, her eyes narrowing suspiciously at that 'Jon' that had just escaped her daughter's lips. "And I think Ajantis and the other paladins are in danger. They may need our help".
The Red Wizard sputtered, "WHAT? You can't be serious! That pitiful baboon was this close to killing you and you want to help him? (That's it, she's finally gone crazy. I knew that travelling with these lesser apes wasn't good for her mental health!)". Meg shrugged, "Oh, he wasn't that bad".
"You're being sarcastic". "Was that so obvious?", she grinned, "Okay, he is a prejudiced, buffleheaded, fanatical and idiotic ass. But even if he deserves to be buried alive under a giant pile of Dragon poop, the other members of his party may be decent people, who deserve better. So, who's with me?".
Minsc was the first to answer, raising one of his big hands, "Minsc and Boo are with you, little Meg, as always!", he declared and his hamster seemed to nod, twitching his small nose and squeaking loudly.
Anomen agreed, "I am at your side too, my lady". The young woman hesitated, "Well, I...I think it would be better if you didn't come with us: as you have heard, Ajantis was openly hostile towards me and he could try again to...".
"I know this and that's precisely why I want to come: I am a member of the Order like him, so if I tell him that you're not a threat, he should listen to my words". "What if he doesn't want to listen?". "Then I will do what I have to in order to protect you. He's a brother in arms, but you are my lo-my leader", the squire hastily amended, "I promised to help you and to protect you and that's exactly what I will do".
She felt her breath catch in her throat at those words and she took his hand in hers with a warm, grateful smile, "Thank you, Anomen. I will never forget this", she promised, deeply moved by his loyalty.
Yoshimo smiled, "The Great Yoshimo is at your service, sekai no hikari". "I will come with you too", Jaheira said, "The Dryads have been waiting for freedom for too long already". Aerie nodded, "You can count on me too, Meg".
That left only Edwin and all eyes turned on him, as he still hadn't given his consent to the mission. After a couple of minutes of silence, the Painbearer asked, "Well?". "Well what?", he replied, ostentatiously inspecting his perfectly manicured nails.
"Are you coming with us or not?". "Only if you give me a good enough reason to. And I'll have you know that the safety of that insipid, moronic, tin-plated baboon doesn't qualify! (If anything, it's a good reason not to go!)".
"Firkraag promised us ten thousand gold coins", she said. "It was only bait to lure us into his trap", he replied. "That's true. He looked rich, though. If he really is an enemy and we have no choice but to kill him, we can loot his home and put our hands on a lot of money. And you know that, if we want to win the fight, we need to have the best Red Wizard of all the Realms with us".
The Thayan nodded, "Yes, you would never survive without me. All right then, I will come too", he conceded, smiling smugly, "(I would have come anyway, but sometimes it's necessary to remind them how much they need my astounding powers)". "I'm glad to hear it, my friend. Let's go, it's a long journey to the Windspear Hills".