Chapter 120: Path of Honour
It has been a long time since I have walked these halls, Anomen thought ruefully as he, Imoen, Keldorn and Minsc pushed open the doors to the Headquarters of the Most Noble Order of the Radiant Heart and stepped inside, the coolness of the stone walls and marble floors creating a pleasant contrast to the blistering heat of the outdoors.
They would be watched, he knew. Knights gave them odd, sideways glances as they strode in, doing, as Anomen had advised, their very best to not seem nonplussed by any unwanted attention. Though it would make little or no difference to the reason they had come here, it would, as he would admit only to himself, make him feel distinctly more confident about returning to this place.
He was glad Harrian had given him the company he had. Keldorn's presence was, as always, reassuring – though the aged Inquisitor had retired from the Order, he still gave certain knights familiar nods of greeting, wearing the halls like a second suit. Next to Keldorn, Anomen commanded respect, and next to Keldorn, he would not be ejected or set upon on sight. Keldorn had uses.
That didn't mean he wouldn't turn and run, however. It was the others who did that. Mighty Minsc with his Boo, who walked with such a confidence that, although Anomen knew the confidence was born more of bewilderment than anything else, it reassured the cleric no end – with Minsc by your side, it was easy to believe that you could take on the world, and that he would follow you to the end of it.
Then, of course, there was Imoen. Imoen, without a Haer'Dalis next to her to stare Anomen in the eye and with a smug grin remind him of all his failings, all his shortcomings, all the reasons why he couldn't win her heart. Imoen, who could just give him that smile of hers – not the broad and bright grin which lifted his spirits, but the encouraging, softer smile that lifted his soul – and he'd be ready to take on the world… with Minsc.
Anomen exchanged a brief nod with a slightly surprised Irlana, who clearly hadn't expected him to be there, but otherwise kept his eyes on where he was going, focusing on the great hall again, knowing he could make it there without turning and fleeing. He had Keldorn and Imoen flanking him, Minsc behind him, so knew he wouldn't get too far if his nerve failed, but if it faltered just once, this could be the end of this.
I need to do this. For Harrian, for the party, and for myself. Bodhi needs to be defeated, and I have old ghosts that need to be put to rest, his mind insisted, and he steeled himself as they entered the great hall of the Radiant Heart. They were all decked out in all their finery, Anomen in the deep forest green of the Gorgon Plate taken from Ardulace; Keldorn in his golden plate given to him by Torm; Imoen in the sparkling emerald of her elven chain male; Minsc in the deep, glossy red of Firkraag's dragon scales. With this and their respective powerful weapons – Anomen desperately hoped Minsc could keep Lilarcor silent at this time – he knew they cut quite an impressive sight, bearing the spoils of their adventures. Two dragons, a lich, the Twisted Rune, an illithid city and the Underdark; quests and perilous endeavours most knights only dreamt about.
I'd still be dreaming if I'd left. What had we done at that point? Freed Trademeet, secretively and accidentally killed a serial killer, stolen from the Cowled Wizards and a noble of the city. Hardly great deeds. Though there is a statue with my name on it in Trademeet…
Actually, it says 'Follower of Harrian', but let's not quibble, he remembered dryly, also remembering that entire incident with a vague amount of amusement – how easy things had seen in those days, when Irenicus was a threat they could deal with at their leisure and the only thing hanging over anyone's head were the Harpers, who hadn't really bothered Anomen that much. Things had changed. A lot.
Wessallen was, amazingly, actually in the main hall and not in his office, as he usually was. Anomen wondered for a moment if Keldorn had called ahead and let them know so they could prepare themselves, but then realised that preparation would have probably consisted of a dozen knights to forcefully eject them.
The Prelate gave them a long and considerate look as they approached, his gaze giving Imoen and Minsc – irrelevant outsiders – merely a cursory glance, his attention quite obviously on Keldorn and Anomen. He turned and faced the party, Sir Ryan Trawl hurrying from the wings and managing to assume a suitably impassive countenance.
"Keldorn, my old friend," Wessallen greeted the retired knight warmly, stepping forwards and shaking his hand. The Inquisitor seemed a little stiffer, but smiled broadly and nodded respectfully as the Prelate approached. "It has been far too long. The Order feels the loss of your dutiful hand."
Keldorn gave another deep, courteous nod. "And I feel the loss of the Order in my life too, Prelate, but I have a family to fill the hole that left. There is indeed evil left to be dealt with on this world, but I shall leave it to those who have strength left in their veins and youth in their limbs. There are many others to continue the fight," he said shrugging a little and smiling a smile which had a touch of nostalgia in it.
The Prelate pulled back slowly and gave him an evaluating look. "And yet here you are, in all your finery, the Firecam plate out of its closet and gleaming as much as it ever did," Wessallen pointed out inquisitively, giving the others long looks, his eyes eventually settling on Anomen. "Lord Delryn. You honour us with your presence," he stated at last, respectfully, but with the hardening of his eyes and the slight clenching of his jaw, the temperature seemed to drop to freezing levels.
"Prelate. It is an honour to be back in this walls," Anomen replied in carefully measured tones, giving a deep nod which crept on the edges of being a slight bow. "Though I fear that this is not a social call."
Trawl stepped forwards, waiting for a glance from the Prelate to give him the right to get involved, and clasped his hands behind his back. "I do believe you were told that you would not be welcome back here, Lord Delryn. However, you have come here peacefully, and if there is something you wish of us, then we shall hear you out."
Anomen nodded briefly. You will hear me out whether you want to or not. This is not the time for posturing, Sir Ryan. I looked up to you once, and I still respect you very much, but I will not allow pettiness or bureaucracy to stand in the way of what must be done. "Vampires," he said briefly, not explaining too much. "Harrian Corias is committed to wiping out the den of vampires that reside in the government district. And he requests the aid of the Order in this endeavour."
The Prelate took a little taken aback and a little disappointed at the same time. "You still travel in the company of Corias?" Wessallen asked, then shook his head, dismissing the question for another time. "Vampires. We know of the vampires, and have been watching them. With the activity beginning to take place in Tethyr, many of our knights have been riding south, and so there are not many left within Athkatla. We needed to evaluate their strength before establishing whether or not we could destroy them on our own."
"And a small band of adventurers would make little difference," Trawl pointed out, with a touch of disdain but mostly with a blunt, matter-of-fact air even as he evaluated how well-equipped the foursome were.
"You are not the only allies we seek," Anomen explained, not sure that he should elaborate too much and mention just who else the party was going to for help.
"Corias this very moment is talking with the Shadow Thieves to gain their aid," Keldorn declared solemnly, making the decision for Anomen. "They have their own guild war with Bodhi's vampires. If all the strengths in Athkatla turn on these creatures of darkness, they should be overrun."
Wessallen considered this for a moment, nodding slowly, then gave Anomen a contemplative look. "And why is Corias interested in wiping out the vampires? Indeed, he was captured by them, but that was over a month ago and you have been busy with other matters. It seems… a little late for vengeance, perhaps?"
"It's not vengeance," Imoen popped in, evidently not being in the least bit happy with sitting out for this. "We need an elven artefact, the Rhynn Lanthorn – well, the elves need it, and we need to give it to them." There was a touch of desperation in her voice, as if there was more to the story, but only Anomen knew her enough to hear it, and frowned with mild confusion… but made no comment.
The Prelate nodded. "Very well. We shall lend our blades to your cause, Anomen. Since our last dealings with him, he has proven himself to be honourable, and has deeds of true righteousness attached to his name. Even if we must fight alongside Shadow Thieves, it is the lesser of two evils. The activities of the Thieves' Guild tend to be self-contained. They do not prey directly on all that is good and righteous." He gave them all a half-bow. "I shall see to arranging a fighting force, and send you word when we have one," Wessallen continued, before turning and heading towards the back of the Hall, towards where his office was.
Trawl looked at the group for a moment, something evidently weighing on his mind. He grimaced a little, then approached Anomen, looking contemplative. "If you would listen to me, Lord Delryn, I would have a word with you," he said quietly, nodding towards the corridors.
Anomen glanced at the others, then, as Imoen and Keldorn gave him encouraging nods and Minsc just smiled brightly, looked back at Trawl. "Very well, Sir Ryan. If you have something worth saying, I shall hear you out as you just heard me out."
The two men detached themselves from the group and moved away from the main hall, moving to stand near the tapestries and statues of the far wall, the senior knight evidently with matters weighing on his mind.
"There has been much talk and much debate since your leaving, Anomen," Trawl explained slowly. "Especially with Corias eventually coming forth to show himself as not being bound by his blood. Questions have been raised as to why you were pressured into leaving the Order, why you chose to."
"What has happened is done and dealt with," Anomen replied coolly. "I shall not lose sleep over what may have been if we had all done differently; I have found my life, found my way in the world. The past is to be the past."
"True. True indeed." Trawl nodded, then frowned a little. "There is no need for there to be animosity between you and the Order, however. As a noble of Athkatla we hope you will favour the Radiant Heart as others do. There is no need for the distance that has prevailed these past months."
"No." Anomen paused, looking up at him. "This is not why you wished to speak with me in private, however," he pointed out.
"It is not," Trawl admitted. "If you would do it, the Order would be grateful for your assistance. Do not think that this is in exchange for our assisting you with the vampire Bodhi; she is a force for evil and we would not consider refusing if we can aid you at all. We are not brigands like the Shadow Thieves – the deed is payment enough. But if you are willing to help us, we would be grateful."
Anomen's eyes narrowed with mild suspicion. "What would you have of me?"
"You know how hard the road to knighthood is, Anomen. You travelled it successfully, but not without its troubles. Some are not as successful. Some falter and fail when they get there," Trawl started, and Anomen glanced up, searching for accusation… yet found none. Sir Ryan looked merely sincere and hopeful. "You know of Sir Anarg, do you not?" Trawl continued.
"Of course. He Fell only a short time before I left the Order," Anomen replied, his voice quite and a little solemn. Paladins who were Fallen tended to be spoken of in hushed tones when they were former companions, especially in a place such as this hall.
"Others have followed in his wake," Trawl elaborated grimly. "There is now a group of perhaps a dozen Fallen Paladins in Athkatla. They have become little more than a mere rabble now, acting as thugs and mercenaries, though still proclaiming themselves to be paladins of good and righteousness," he explained. At Anomen's slightly aghast expression, Trawl nodded. "If any of our number attempt to deal with them, only battle will follow. If it is possible to resolve the matter peacefully, we would wish to. Anomen, they will know you only as the knight who walked away from the Order, and might even give you respect for it. Would you help us?"
"How would you expect me to… 'deal' with Anarg and his men?" Anomen asked, frowning a little, the confusion visible on his face. "If you do not want them killed, what is it you want? Redemption?" There was a slight sneer on his face which he managed to keep under control.
"Perhaps," Trawl said. "I do not want the only option available to be bloodshed. If you do not, we will have to send our own knights to deal with them, and there will be death on all sides. Whatever you can do, Anomen, would be appreciated. I am sure we can find a way in which to show our gratitude." At this final sentence, there was a tilt to his head and a gleam in his eyes which made Anomen's own eyes widen slightly.
"I will have to talk to the others; I cannot speak for them and assume that they will help me. We were only supposed to be here to gather support. But if they will, then I shall aid you however I can," Anomen insisted quickly, reverently, trying to ignore the slight spark of hope within him that had been set off by Trawl's words and body language.