Viconia watched the Bhaalspawn's group pass by on horseback through the window. She drew her hood up more tightly, but none of them looked into the building. None of them would have imagined her within miles, of course, but she had learned to be cautious, even when dealing with stupid surface dwellers. And these ones in particular had been quite troubling.
Ironically, the half-elf she sought, Aenwyn, was the one who had saved her life months back. She had been discovered by a mob and was about to be burned at the stake when Aenwyn rescued her. The girl hadn't even know who she was nor her crimes, yet she was willing to take a chance Viconia would never have considered. Aid to a stranger. The drow snorted; such weakness was idiotic at best, suicidal at worst. For here she was, now, seeking to capture the woman who had put herself on the line for a stranger.
"That is what you get for compassion," Viconia murmured.
Yoshimo looked at her. "What was that, my dark lovely?"
The drow bit her tongue, angry at herself for speaking aloud. "I saw that Aenwyn was not in the group. She must be hiding in town."
The bounty hunter nodded. "At the halfling woman's house. I suggest we watch and wait for a day or two. The little woman is a fierce fighter, and I would rather not cause a scene if it is not necessary."
"How do we know the others won't return by that point?"
Yoshimo gave a sad smile. "They will be off to fight Bhodi. I would never place my hopes on their survival, of course. No good servant would bet against his masters. But if they were to win," he suppressed a grimace of pain, "they would not return for at least a week."
Viconia crossed her arms and leaned back. "The knowledge one learns from working for a wizard is impressive. Perhaps one day the servant will overthrow the master."
"Irenicus is more powerful than anything I have ever come across," Yoshimo muttered. "There is no hope for me to escape him, especially with the geas. I don't think I will survive this mission."
Viconia mock-pouted and draped herself across his lap. "Must you be so mournful all the time, male? Viconia knows ways of cheering you up." She bit his ear and purred.
The bounty hunter ignored her, looking back out the window. "Why Irenicus is still interested in Aenwyn is a mystery. I would think tormenting her and leaving her to die soulless to be enough. But that monster will never be satisfied."
His companion smirked. "He must find her a fascinating study. Much as he did her poor sister. Ah well, better that we survive. We are not afraid of taking opportunities and using them, unlike those foolish iblith."
"I wonder," Yoshimo said, "who is more the fool."
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She found herself in the room without doors again. Shadows swirled like mist, smothering her. There was a tinge of salt in the air, and for a moment Aenwyn thought of the sea. The ocean would always remind her of the adventures she had undergone after leaving Baldur's Gate; the adventure where she had met Durlyle.
She and the others had decided to leave the city after Sarevok's death, for odd looks followed them everywhere. Heroes they might have been, but heroes brought trouble with them, and the citizens of Baldur's Gate had seen enough of trouble for some time.
So they had gone north, having nothing better to do, and come to the town of Ulgoth's Beard. After a strange visit to an island of ice, they had agreed to look for Balduran's lost ship, a treasure-seeking opportunity Safana and Coran had been eager to take up. But the trip turned out to be a disaster, and the only good that had come from it was Durlyle.
The man—or rather, werewolf—had defended Aenwyn from the rest of his tribe, and after some coaxing had agreed to escape the island with her and travel with the group. He had been there when Irenicus captured them. He had been in the dungeon…spread out on the examining table. Like an animal for dissection.
"Oh, Durlyle," she whispered, the pain as fresh now as it had been months ago when she came across him during the escape from Irenicus. She trembled, knowing that he would still be alive if she hadn't convinced him to leave his home with her.
A table lay before her in the darkness. A form was on it, but the shadows were too heavy for her to discern any details. She didn't need to get closer to know what it was, though. "No! Leave me alone!" She glared around the darkness but saw nothing else. She willed herself to wake up, to look away, but her feet advanced to the table and her eyes stared straight ahead.
"Please, I can't. Not again. I can't bear it." Her body continued to approach and her eyelids refused to shut. The shadows parted, allowing a clear view of the naked man on the table. His skin was open and nailed to the table, providing a clear view to his insides. Or what was left; several glass jars holding organs lined the edge of the wooden surface. Durlyle's face was frozen in horror and pain, his blank eyes accusing Aenwyn.
She sobbed and gasped for breath, panic overwhelming her senses. "I'm s-so sorry," she managed. Had she the power, she would have burned the corpse and destroyed all evidence of its violation, as she had done in Irenicus' lab below Waukeen's Promenade. But she was still frozen, trapped in her own body.
All she could do was stare at the mutilated form of her lover. The dead eyes blinked, then glared at her as Durlyle's head shot up. A feral snarl rushed through the ruined mouth as Durlyle shakily got to his feet and crouched on the table.
Every instinct told Aenwyn to flee, to escape this nightmare, but she could do nothing. A tear slid down her cheek; one of pity for her friend's torment rather than of fear or dread. "I would never harm you," she whispered. "I love you."
Durlyle's form rippled and he began to transform into his wolf form. Another snarl erupted and he leapt onto the woman. Without a word he began to tear into her, dissecting her just as he had been.
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The first day of travel passed calmly, and was more pleasant than usual thanks to the horses' quick pace. Cernd had gotten to know the group well enough and was content to help them in their tasks. Aenwyn had seemed like a worthy individual, Bhaalspawn or no, and fighting a vampire guild was worth saving her life. Especially as that meant the fate of an elven city would be saved; Bhodi guarded the only way into Suldanesselar, and the group would join the stranded elven army to recapture the city from Irenicus' clutches.
The druid wondered how this diverse group had come about, guessing that Aenwyn's leadership had been a large factor in ensuring the group's survival. Tensions which he only noticed once they had left Trademeet behind filled the long journey to Athkatla. Everyone was pleasant enough, but Cernd felt the waves of emotions bouncing back and forth among the five people. He shook his head; Nature did not complicate things unnecessarily with such problems.
He approached the sweet young elf, the girl whom he sensed still retained her affinity to Nature, even though she had been removed from it for much of her life. "Aerie," he said, "is anything wrong? You have the look of a hare trapped between a lynx and a mountain lion, unsure which death is less unpleasant."
Aerie started, then blushed and smiled at Cernd. "You startled me. I-I'm fine, thank you for your concern. I'm just worried about Aenwyn."
"I may not choose to surround myself with humanity," Cernd replied, "but I have not forgotten it completely. These old eyes still recognize love when they see it."
Aerie blushed deeply and looked away. "I d-don't think you know what you're talking about. Please, let's talk about something else." Her gaze brushed over Anomen, who had guided his horse closer before resting on Cernd.
The druid smiled. "Of course, my dear. Just remember, some animals are made to mate for life, while others are less discerning in their choice of partners. You strike me as the first; when you are ready, you should find another of your type."
Anomen had seen the druid sidle over to Aerie and cause her to blush. He moved his horse to listen more closely, but when he was within range he only heard the pair talk about medicinal properties of several herbs. He shook his head and rode to the front.
Valygar joined him, having just returned from scouting the road ahead. "I didn't see anything for some distance. I'm hoping we can make it to Nalia's keep before nightfall and finish the journey in the morning."
Anomen nodded absently. "What do you think of the druid?"
Valygar snorted. "I'm glad to see your mind on the task at hand."
The knight blinked, then grinned sheepishly. "I'm sorry, I have a lot to think about."
"So I see. I like Cernd well enough, though his nature metaphors are a bit trying."
"Yes. He seems to like Aerie."
Valygar eyed Anomen, who was innocently watching the road ahead. "You never did say what happened when you went into her room back at the inn. I take it you didn't apologize?"
The younger man checked his gloves for any signs of wear. "Oh, yes, we both acknowledged we were in the wrong. Nothing more to it, really. I'm happy to see the girl is finally gaining some maturity. Hmph."
Valygar chuckled under his breath. Now he was certain that something had passed between the two youngest members of the group. Well, young in mindset, he had to remind himself, as Aerie was in fact the oldest present; no one thought of her that way, however. Perhaps having the experienced druid around would help soothe things. He had to admire Aenwyn's ability to keep her group under control; it was no easy task on the best of days.
The ranger looked over to the bard, who had joined Aerie and Cernd and was laughing loudly. Valygar knew that he contributed to Aenwyn's peacekeeping through his taciturn nature and dislike of magic, but he couldn't help himself when faced with that bard. Something about the tiefling crawled under his skin and annoyed him constantly. Perhaps it was the man's flamboyance when silence would have done just as well. Their natures were simply contradictory, he supposed. He stared at Haer'Dalis for another moment before turning back to Anomen.
"We must all work together to defeat Bhodi. Even more so with Aenwyn gone."
"What are you implying?" Anomen asked, eyes narrowing.
Valygar sighed. Tact was not his strong point. He was missing Aenwyn more each passing minute. "I just want to be sure that you have nothing unfinished with other party members before we descend into the crypts. If we do not all communicate, the battle will be that much harder."
"If you are referring to the lady Aerie, everything is fine," Anomen snapped. "Maybe you should deal with your own issues instead of nosing about others. You've been staring at the damned tiefling this entire ride." He rode ahead.
Valygar ground his teeth. That hadn't worked out like he had hoped. He had not been watching Haer'Dalis anymore than he normally did, either. He just didn't trust the bard, not completely. Someone who worshipped chaos as he did wasn't entirely dependable.
Branwen's thoughts were on the battle ahead; she ignored her surroundings and her companions. She thought back to their last skirmish with Bhodi in the catacombs beneath the city, and planned out how they would carry out the mission. She had always been the one to anticipate tactics. It was part of her training as a priest of Tempus, after all. Now, however, she would have to leave Aenwyn's sword and spells out of the equation and add in several new allies.
The plans vanished from her mind as she thought of Aenwyn. The entire ride, she couldn't concentrate more than a few minutes on anything before returning to her leader's fate. She hoped that Cernd's potion would indeed slow the illness, for they would have to take their time if they were going to defeat Bhodi with minimal losses.
The group's first stop once they reached Athkatla was to be Cromwell's smithy. Since leaving the city they had acquired several powerful items which could be forged into useful weapons, and the dwarven smith had proven a reliable dealer. Already they had some of his handiwork: Anomen wore a suit of red dragon scale armor and wielded a mace of disruption coated in illithium. They had also made a suit of shadow dragon leather, but the thief Yoshimo had worn it upon his departure.
Now, they had ingredients for two more weapons: the Equalizer sword and a war hammer called Crom Faeyr. Branwen looked forward to using this magnificent hammer, and she thought the Equalizer would make a nice gift for Aenwyn—along with Bhodi's head, of course.
These weapons might take some days to finish, which meant empty time for Branwen to worry about the delay, but she knew it had to be done. Anomen's contacts in the Order said that the vampires had risen to their former power already, and the group would need all the preparation time it could get.
She was still considering how best to use this preparation time when she caught sight of Nalia's keep. They would rest for the night here, for Nalia had promised to always leave the doors open for Aenwyn and her friends. Branwen wondered how the situation with Nalia's betrothed went and hoped it would not interfere with their own schedule.
Nalia herself came out to greet the party with a wide smile. "It's so good to see you all again!" she exclaimed. "But where's Aenwyn?" Happiness turned to worry in an instant and she looked around the group for an explanation.
"She is well enough," Anomen said. "We will explain inside, if you will permit us."
"Of course, I'm sorry." She ushered them into the main hall where servants took their belongings to reserved rooms. Once they were all comfortably settled down, Nalia sat on the edge of her chair and waited.
Valygar introduced Cernd as Anomen began to explain what had happened since their last meeting, while Branwen and Haer'Dalis interrupted each other in talking about Aenwyn. Cernd looked on in amusement.
"One at a time, please!" the noblewoman exclaimed. "Valygar, please continue." The others glared at the ranger as he explained the events leading to their arrival at the keep. Nalia held her hand to her mouth the whole time, saying "Oh my," several times.
"Well," she said when he had finished, "you've all certainly been through a lot. I will help as best I can. My keep is at your disposal. Within reason, of course," she added hastily.
"I trust your troubles with Isaea are over, then?" Anomen inquired.
Nalia's face darkened. "Well, not quite. Some time ago, he threatened to take this property, one way or another. His father even came here with a small invading force, but I managed to hold them off." She held a wicked smile for a moment, then frowned. "Isaea even tried to kidnap me, claiming I was insane from grief over Father's death.
"I think," Nalia added, "that he is afraid I might know about his connections with the slavery ring. When we freed the slaves in the Copper Coronet, I saw some documents bearing his seal. Not enough to damn him, but enough to raise suspicions. This is about more than just a thwarted marriage, now."
"P-poor Nalia!" Aerie exclaimed, rubbing the noblewoman's back. "He's even worse than I thought. How did you escape?"
"I managed to get my hands on some of those suspicious documents, along with ledgers from his accounts which didn't add up to Amnian tax law. Isaea's superiors weren't too happy to see this, nor was he when he was dragged off to prison. You should have seen his face!" Nalia laughed as the others smiled appreciatively. "Provided he doesn't buy his way back into society, the investigation will be the end of any claims he has for de'Arnise Keep."
Blackcross-Taylor- Yeah, the Anomen-Aerie thing was kind of evident and maybe a little heavy-handed, but the goal of this story isn't on them too much, so I allowed them to get close without too much angst. Plus, in my mind a lot of the personal issues between the NPCs have been happening for some time now, as this is months into their travels together. So things are going to come to a head more quickly once they finally give in to feelings they've been harboring for some time. Plus, shared survival of danger (Underdark, Spellhold, Slayer attacks) can bring people closer together. If I was so inclined (and as I say that it's obvious I'm not), I would make their budding romance a little less melodramatic and take a little longer to unfold. But as it is, it'll have to do. Thanks for the comment, though, I agree. :)
R Little Dragon- Yup, Imoen's gone. In a sense that makes later issues a bit easier, with Aenwyn not having to worry about Imoen's fate in the Prophecies (I always thought the end game scot-free answer was a bit lame, but then I'm a sucker for tragedy) and no sticky business with loopholes. Plus, I'm a little resentful that the party is "supposed" to pick up Imoen when that might not coincide with my plans. Cruel, I know, but then I'm the author. ;)