2
For four days they rode south along the Coast Way until arriving at the junction to the Way of the Lion heading west. Corwin Aldimar, riding point, was resplendent in his gleaming plate armor, his greatsword lashed to his broad back. Each night at camp he would remove his armor to polish that and his blade before settling to sleep. Albrec, not one to ignore any possible threat they may face, wore a boiled leather cuirass over his tunic and kept his two sheathed short swords on his back while they traveled. And taking Corwin's example, the halfling religiously polished his own blades as the paladin polished his. Glannor, garish in his purple tunic and black hose with his short sword slapping on his hip, whiled the time away by playing his lute both on the road and in camp. Corwin seemed not to mind the distraction—whenever Albrec would ask about his history, the paladin would decline to talk about himself, declaring it to be too much self-aggrandizing, before suggesting they listen to Glannor's compositions.
One night, the third since their meeting, Corwin had opened himself slightly. Perhaps inadvertently.
"Did you always want to be a paladin, Corwin?" Albrec had asked.
The scrape of the whetstone against the steel blade paused as Corwin considered the question. "No, not always. From my birth, I had expected to continue tending the fields on my family farm in Mistledale."
"What drove you to join the church of Tyr?"
"My family had long been members of the church of Tyr."
"Wrong question. When did you decide to become a paladin?"
"At the age of ten. A band of Vhaeraunian drow raided my town of Peldan's Helm, and a lone paladin stood between the raiders and the town. He drove them away, but he sustained too many wounds for even the town priest to heal. Tyr called the brave paladin home."
"And his bravery inspired you?"
"His bravery and his selflessness. From that day onward, I strove to prove myself worthy to be inducted into Tyr's temple to train with their paladins. That day came, and I was squired to a paladin of Tyr. When he was assigned to Tyr's temple in Neverwinter, I went with him. And I've been in Neverwinter since." Corwin resumed sharpening his sword. "I've talked too much about myself now."
And Albrec hadn't gotten much more out of the paladin since.
The Way of the Lion trail sloped upward as it headed closer to the Sea of Swords. At the end of the Way of the Lion, standing alone on a volcanic crag above the sea, was Candlekeep. Its austere walls rose high above the crag, and a single gate was its only point of entry.
Corwin dismounted before the gate, but before he was two steps from Katla the massive gate swung outward. Two men in plain gray robes emerged. Their faces were concealed in voluminous hoods, and one man was a good foot and a half taller than the other.
The shorter man drew back his hood, revealing an elderly human face. "Name yourselves."
"I am Corwin Aldimar of Neverwinter," the paladin said. "My companions are Albrec Twinblade and Glannor Glimm, both out of Waterdeep. We came at the behest of the Harpers."
The robed man peered intently into Corwin's eyes. "Indeed you are what you say, paladin. I am Thaddeus Morewind of the Avowed order of monks, dedicated to protecting our collection in Candlekeep. Come."
Corwin issued a brief, quiet whistle, and Katla fell into step at his heel as he followed the two robed men into Candlekeep. Albrec and Glannor dismounted and led their ponies inside. As they stepped into the courtyard, a stable master took the reins of their mounts. The master knew to not even attempt to take the bonded mount's reins, but instead let the paladin instruct her to go to the stable and watch over their companions' ponies.
The mounts heading to the stables, the taller of the robed men doffed his hood. Albrec jumped when he saw the heavy brow, the tusks protruding from thick lips, and the green-tinted skin.
"Orc," the halfling exclaimed.
"Half-orc," Thaddeus said. "He is the son of my daughter. My grandson, if you will. Come, the others are waiting."
Thaddeus and Kaegan headed for the entrance to the main foyer of the keep. Albrec hesitated a moment, but fell in step with Glannor and Corwin. The monks took them to a vast, sparsely decorated hall with a long oaken table lined with simple chairs. The stone walls were bare, not one tapestry decorated them.
"I'll bring the others," Thaddeus said. "Kaegan, keep our guests company."
Kaegan bowed stiffly at the waist. "Yes, Grandfather."
The elder monk left the hall. Kaegan gestured to the table, and Corwin accepted the invitation to sit. Glannor sat beside the paladin, and Albrec took the chair beside his friend.
"What do you do here in Candlekeep?" Albrec asked.
"We keep the greatest treasure in Faerun," the half-orc monk replied.
"Treasure, eh?"
"Knowledge is their treasure, Albrec," Corwin said. "Candlekeep has the most extensive library in all of Faerun."
"There is no greater treasure than knowledge," Kaegan said.
"Knowledge hasn't filled my belly as well as gold has," Albrec said.
"Are you forgetting how we first met?" Corwin admonished. "You were starving, even though your purse was full. Knowledge of wilderness survival skills would have filled your belly before you spent one gold piece."
"Oh yeah."
"The price of admission into our keep is usually a gift of a book," Kaegan continued. "It is how we add to our storehouse of knowledge."
"A book," Albrec said. "Any book?"
"It has to be a book of great value. However, as we asked the Harpers for aid, and the Harpers sent you, we allowed you inside without the requisite donation."
The four stood as Thaddeus returned with two others.
At the monk's right hand was a dwarf with a long black beard and a chain mail hauberk covering his broad torso. A warhammer hung from his wide leather belt, and a gold holy symbol of the dwarven god Moradin hung from a gold chain around his neck. Leather trews and boots completed his attire.
The elder monk's second companion was an enchantingly beautiful elf woman with emerald green eyes and waist-length dark hair plaited behind her. She wore a studded leather vest molded closely to her feminine torso and a skirt of leather straps that left her supple legs bare. Her feet were adorned with soft leather shoes, whose straps laced up her calves. She wore a long sword on her left hip with a longbow and quiver of arrows slung across her back.
"May I introduce Rorin Hammersmite of Silverymoon, cleric of Moradin, and the ranger Alisia Moonflower of Evereska," Thaddeus said, gesturing to the dwarf and the elf, respectively, with each introduction. "And with my grandson we have Corwin Aldimar of Neverwinter, paladin of Tyr, and the bard Glannor Glimm of Waterdeep. We also have the halfling Albrec Twinblade, also of Waterdeep. He is a, um, swordsman...I believe."
"A scout," Albrec said, tearing his gaze from the elf woman's smooth, supple legs. "I was a scout for the Waterdeep guard. A practitioner of sword and stealth."
Corwin effected a bow before Alisia Moonflower. "My lady."
The dwarf, Rorin Hammersmite, strode right up to Glannor and slapped a powerful palm against the gnome's shoulder. "Glannor, me boy. Long time no see, eh?"
"The years number fourteen," the bard said, "since by my eyes you've been seen."
"I see ye still have the curse."
Albrec looked at his friend. "Curse? What curse?"
"Ye haven't noticed yer companion speaking in rhymes?" the dwarf said.
"I just thought he was weird."
"A curse brought upon by me, when I asked a wish of a genie," Glannor explained. "Because of the curse, I can only speak in verse."
"He was a lousy poet at first," Rorin explained. "Couldn't rhyme to save his life. He released a genie on one of his travels in the North, who granted him one wish. His wish was to rhyme better."
"Now I rhyme all the time."
"Glannor went to all the temples in the Silver Marches for a cleric to remove the curse, including the temple of Moradin in Silverymoon where I was an initiate at the time. Obviously, ye found no cure."
"Misstating my wish was my mistake. Now this curse, off me, no cleric can take."
"When will the Keeper of the Tomes see us?" the elf, Alisia Moonflower, asked.
"Who's that?" Albrec queried.
"The Keeper of the Tomes rules Candlekeep," Corwin said.
"My lord Ulraunt is unavailable at the moment," Thaddeus said. "My apologies, but he is involved in a divination that may assist in the task that we brought you here to accomplish. I can explain our dire need, however."
"We're listening," Rorin said.
"The six Hearts of Knowledge are gone."
"What are the Hearts of Knowledge?" Corwin asked.
"Six gems of incomparable value," Thaddeus replied.
Albrec looked at the paladin. "I thought you said the only wealth here was knowledge."
"The Hearts of Knowledge aren't ordinary gems," the elder monk said. "They are ancient relics of untold power that would be dangerous if unleashed improperly."
"Candlekeep has become so adept at protecting our stores of knowledge over the centuries," Kaegan said, "that we are sometimes entrusted with magic that should not be free in the realms. We have the physical security you see in the great stone walls of the keep, and we have the security of secrecy. No one but the Keeper of the Tomes himself knows all that we have stored here."
"And it is the duty of the Avowed to ensure it stays that way," Thaddeus said.
"Kind of mucked that one up, didn't you," Albrec said. "Someone found out about those Heart gem things."
"I don't know everything about the Hearts of Knowledge," Thaddeus continued, ignoring the halfling. "I don't know exactly what they do, only that they'll prove dangerous to Faerun, and maybe to all of Toril, if they're unleashed by improper hands. They are six gems. The Sapphire of Humankind, the Emerald of Elvenkind, the Ruby of Dwarvenkind, the Amethyst of Gnomekind, the Topaz of Halflingkind, and the Obsidian Shard of Orckind. Only a member of each race can safely handle each respective Heart."
"The thieves worked fast," Kaegan said. "The detect evil spells we had in place detected them as soon as they breeched the vault. The Avowed responded quickly, but the thieves had already absconded with the Hearts of Knowledge."
"There was more than one thief?" Albrec asked.
"I believe they would need at least six," Corwin said. "One from each gem's race."
"The vault was still intact when we arrived," Thaddeus said. "Its exterior wards were still in place."
"They used a gate spell," said a commanding voice.
All in the room turned toward the speaker. An aged human in a white mantle stood erect with his hands behind his back. His white hair and beard were short and trimmed.
"The vault wards protect against gate spells, my lord Keeper," Thaddeus said.
"Not if the wizard who cast the spell is a skilled and powerful spell-caster," Ulraunt, the Keeper of Tomes, said. "Casting such magic against our ensorcelled vaults is not without risk. We know the origin of the gate spell."
"Where the gate began," Glannor said, "has to be where the thieves ran."
"They have most likely moved from there," Ulraunt said, "but it is a place to start. I requested the Harpers to gather one member of upstanding moral character of each of the requisite races to retrieve the stolen Hearts of Knowledge."
"Except the orc," Albrec said.
"That role will fall to my grandson," Thaddeus said, putting a hand on Kaegan's shoulder.
"But he's not a full orc."
"Orc blood runs through his veins. It's enough to handle the Obsidian Shard."
"Theoretically," Ulraunt said. "We do not know for sure if the Obsidian Shard will resist his human half. Our natural philosophers are divided on which blood is dominant, his mother's blood or his father's blood."
"I am willing to take the chance," Kaegan said.
"What do the gems do?" Alisia asked.
Albrec turned his gaze toward Alisia at the sound of her melodic voice. The gods be praised, the elf was the most beautiful creature he had seen this side of halflingdom.
"It's best you don't know," Thaddeus said. "But know this, you must only touch the gem that matches your race. Mere contact with one of the other gems could prove fatal."
"They need to know more to understand the urgency we face," Ulraunt said. "The Hearts of Knowledge are infused with knowledge...knowledge that can be used for good or ill. The knowledge contained within the gems can only be accessed if held by a member of the appropriate race while a specific ritual of release is performed. Only the most powerful of wizards can perform the rite."
"Such as a wizard powerful enough to cast a gate spell through the wards in place around the vault," Rorin said.
"Indeed."
"Where was the gate's origin, Keeper?" Corwin questioned.
"A seven-day ride to the south, in Amn," Ulraunt said. "A city called Crimmor. Trade caravans frequent that city, so it would be easy for a wizard and his underlings to come and go with little notice."
"And that is where we must begin our search."
"It is."
"Pardon my ignorance," Albrec said, "but how do we find where the wizard and his minions spirited the Hearts to once we arrive in Crimmor? Surely they would be long gone by now."
"The presence of the Hearts disturbs the Weave," Ulraunt said.
"What's the Weave?"
"The Weave is the manifestation of magic," Rorin explained.
Ulraunt continued. "With the proper divining rod, you can determine the direction of their flight once the Hearts emerged from the gate into the material plane. You should be able to follow the trail from there."
"And you will provide this divining rod?" Corwin asked.
"The Elven Court of Evermeet has provided the divining rod," Alisia said. "They brought it to the Hill Elders of Evereska. I have it with me, though I did not know its purpose until now."
"Did the Hill Elders perform the binding rite?" Ulraunt asked.
"They have."
"Then you are the only one who can use the rod, Alisia. Hand it to me, and I'll perform the rite that will attune the rod to the Hearts' disturbance in the Weave."
Alisia removed a wooden wand from her quiver and handed it to the Keeper. Ulraunt tucked it into his sleeve and left the hall.
"The holders of the Hearts may be traveling separately," Thaddeus said. "Or they may be traveling together. We won't know that until you get to Crimmor and use the elven divining rod."
"What if they do separate?" Albrec asked.
"We choose one trail and follow that," Corwin said. "I would think they must be gathered together at their final destination to perform the ritual to activate the Hearts."
"Indeed," Thaddeus said.
"Another question," Albrec said. "If the thieves are not of high moral character, what's to keep them from going off on their own agendas with the Hearts?"
"The Hearts of Knowledge are useless singly, Albrec."
"Perhaps, but they are still gems. A thief could fence one for a hefty profit."
"I see your point, but a wizard who could cast the powerful spells capable of succeeding in this theft could compel the thieves' continued loyalty to his aims."
"The thieves may not even be black of heart," Kaegan said. "They could very well be mere pawns to the wizard's design."
"You will depart at first light tomorrow," Thaddeus said. "You will be shown to your quarters for the night. You'll be allowed time to clean up from your travels before evening dinner is served."
Albrec headed for the door. "Very well, I could use a repast."
As he walked past Alisia, he "accidentally" caught his foot against the back of his other heel, and he sprawled face-first on the floor, his head conveniently between her feet. He craned his head back to look up Alisia's skirt.
He was suddenly yanked upward and lifted several feet off the floor before he could even get a glimpse of what kind of undergarments the elf chose to wear. Corwin, holding Albrec by the collar, turned the halfling around so he looked directly into the paladin's stern eyes.
"That wasn't very gentlemanly," Corwin admonished.
"It was an accident," Albrec said.
"Uh-huh."
"It was."
Alisia stood close, and Albrec sensed her sweet wildflower scent. With Corwin still holding him, his head was higher than hers, he looked down to gaze into her eyes.
"You can put him down, Corwin," she said. "He won't try that again."
Corwin eyed her. "My lady?"
Alisia smirked, a mischievous glint in her eye, as she caressed the hilt of the sword sheathed on her round hip. "I can't guarantee how I would react to another such invasion of my personal space. I could perceive it as a threat."
Albrec swallowed. "Yes, milady."
Corwin set Albrec on the floor and gave the halfling a soft shove toward the door. Albrec strode quickly from the paladin and the elf, not even risking a look back. Glannor fell into step beside him.
"Albrec, you never learn," the gnome said. "Women of the taller races you still yearn. 'Tis trouble you seek, and the outlook of your success is bleak."
"Shut up."
"'Twas not I for the dwarven smith's sister did vie. Were if left to him, you'd have had a manhood trim."
Rorin, suddenly at Albrec's side, clapped the halfling roughly on the back. "Ye had yerself a dwarven woman, little one? Ha-ha! It's a wonder ye can still walk."
"I didn't get too far with her before her brother interrupted us and threatened to cut off my manhood," Albrec murmured. "It kind of spoiled the mood."
"He probably did ye a favor, halfling. A dwarven woman is not as delicate as an elven woman, or even a human woman." Rorin again slapped Albrec on the back. "Perhaps ye should stick to halfling women."
"To heed your counsel, common sense requires," Glannor said, "but what Albrec can't have, his heart desires."
"Can we not talk about this anymore?" Albrec said.
Rorin laughed and clapped Albrec on the back. The halfling winced.
-
At dawn the following morning, the band of six rode from Candlekeep. Albrec rode out front with Kaegan Morewind, who had replaced his gray robes with loose-fitting shirt and trousers and soft leather shoes for the journey. The halfling thanked the gods to be a part of something important, like the stories of wondrous deeds he'd heard as a child. In seven days they would arrive in Crimmor, where their own tales of heroic deeds would begin.