Chapter 7 -:o Homo homini lupus o:-

As Ged and Imoen arrived at the scene of the previous night's carnage, they heard whooping shrieks from the clearing.

Peeking from the bushes, they saw wide areas of burned and blasted earth, which had disrupted the stone circles that had until yesterday marked the area for some obscure reason. Ged's heart constricted and he gasped as he saw a body clad in white, blood stained clothing. It could only be Gorion. Present were also the two huge ogre carcasses, amidst which four dark shapes were dancing and jumping.

"What are those... critters?" Imoen hissed in disgust, as she saw one of the shrieking monkeylike things tear off a strip of charred ogreflesh and begin messily devouring it.

"Gibberlings, I think." Ged answered, recognizing the feral humanoids from the bestiary volumes he had studied back at Candlekeep. The creatures often gathered in huge hordes and attacked anything that moved.

Ged considered his options. The sight of these carrion feeders might mean that Gorion's killer and his surviving ally had left.

"By Mask! Look at that one, it's noticed Gorion!" Imoen whispered in horror.

She was correct, two of the grotesquely thin, hair covered humanoids were sniffing and poking at the body of Ged's adoptive father.

Ged could literally feel the scream of rage that rose from within him and rushed forward, his mouth fixed in a rictus grin of pure hate that would have terrified Imoen, had she seen it. Instead she drew her bow and put an arrow on the string, preparing to cover her friend as best she could.

The feeling was a familiar one to Ged, it was as it had been with those two ruffians who had so haplessly tried to kill him back in Candlekeep. It was as if he had surrendered control to some inner force which knew how to best utilize him in the grim task of killing. The hot flames of his anger didn't cloud his judgement. Instead, his mind was filled with the perfect methods of tearing these wretched sub-humanoids into tiny shreds for the offence of trying to eat his father.

He yelled out again, and got the attention of the gibberlings which all sprung towards him, whooping in their shrill voices. Seeing he had got their attention, Ged stopped his advance and drew a pinch of sand from the ground. With a grim smile, he spoke the words of power and cast his Sleep spell, felling three of the hairy, dog sized creatures. He readied himself to face the last one in melee with his staff.

It charged towards him, oblivious of the fate of it's comrades. Just as it was preparing to jump at his throat, Imoen fired her bow, hitting the beast in chest. Making pained squeals, it trashed around until Ged crushed it's skull with a forceful blow of his staff.

He then drew his knife, and with a lack of emotion and deliberate intent that scared Imoen but that actually took some restraint on Ged's part, slit the throats of all the sleeping gibberlings.

"Ged... Uh..." she cleared her throat after her friend had finished their last foe, but he didn't hear her and instead rushed to his fallen parent. She realized the pragmatism of her friend's deed, but the merciless act had shook her up.

She brushed away the sudden tears she got in her eyes for some reason and walked to the gibberling she had shot.

"There, ya stupid grassmonkey! That's what happens when you mess with Imoen the Great and Terrible. Too bad ya can't learn from the experience." she told the deceased gibberling, poking it with the toe of her boot.

Hearing a sound behind her, she whirled around fumbling for her bow.

Two figures had risen from the bushes, where they had most likely been hiding and watching the fight.

"GED!" Imoen called, and aimed her bow at the taller stranger, a tall but thin man with wild hair, clad in green robes and a darker green cloak. The other was a halfling wearing leather armor and armed with a short sword and a brace of throwing daggers.

Hearing Imoen shout out, Ged whirled around and searched frantically for a weapon (he had dropped his staff when he bolted to Gorion's body). There was a old dagger near Gorion, which he took, rising up and mentally readying his remaining spell, which was the protective Armor.

"Heh heh... Hullo there, children!" the green clad man shouted. His tone was more mocking than friendly, and as he walked closer Ged and Imoen could see his face was covered in black tattoos which, coupled with his leering mouth and wild eyes, gave him quite an insane appearance.

"Stop right there, mister Tattoo-face!" Imoen shouted, her eyes widening in alarm at the sight of the stranger's face.

"Yes, identify yourselves! What do you want?" Ged demanded, putting a reassuring hand on Imoen's shoulder. She gave him a quick smile before turning back to face the unknown duo.

"How rude! Monty, tell me what should we do with rude children like these? Verily! My cup runneth over when I see claim jumpers telling me off. It just ruins my day..." the tattooed man said, in mocking tones feigning astonishment.

"What do you mean claim jumpers? That is my father's body there, sir!" Ged thundered, suddenly quite prepared for another fight.

"Shh... These weren't the guys you met last night, were they?" Imoen whispered to him, leaning close.

Ged shook his head in answer, but kept his dagger ready.

The two strangers seemed to have forgotten about the two friends, however. They were loudly arguing and insulting each other.

"Ye're insane, ye know that? Bleeding spellflinger, toad-eating, corpse-smelling addle-coved eedjit! That's what ye are! I told ya we should'a jumped in earlier, didn't I-" the halfing yelled in his harsh voice, having turned his sword towards the tall human.

"I'm insane?" The man yelled back, actually tearing at his own hair in his sudden fury.

"You're insane! You're out of order!" the green clad man shrieked, looking like he might have a fit and pointing at his companion with his finger as if trying to skewer him with it. "This whole world is insane!" he screamed, finishing with a horrible high-pitched laugh that eventually caused him to double over in a coughing fit.

The halfling, who the shrieking mad man had previously called Monty, regarded his companion in disgust. He was an ugly specimen for a halfling, covered in scars and unusually well-muscled for one of his short race. Seeing the tattooed man temporarily incapacitated, he sheathed his blade and turned to face the two young friends, who were watching the spectacle and feeling a little spooked.

"Never mind that eedjit, kids. 'e's just a mad, bleedin' useless wizard, 'e is. Off on one 'is 'spells' again, if'n ye take my meaning..." Monty addressed them, grinning evilly and winking his eye at Imoen.

Imoen lowered her bow and Ged stuck Gorion's dagger in his belt, seeing as it looked the situation might defuse.

"I'm sorry I was rude, sir. My name is Ged and this is Imoen." he said, bowing slightly towards the halfling.

Monty didn't seem impressed. He wrinkled his nose in disgust and spat to the ground. "Sir! Save yer whining to the nobles kid, it doesn't impress me one bit! My name be Montaron, and that eedjit coughing 'is lungs out is called Xzar. A stupid enough name, even fer a long-limb spellflinger such as 'im."

Ged and Imoen glanced at each other warily. Imoen gave a slight shrug.

"What... he he... are a pair of such... haah... beautiful children doing in these dangerous woods?" Xzar mumbled, having recovered somewhat.

"We're not exactly children, thank you kindly!" Ged snapped.

"I am a conjurer and as you saw from your hiding place, my friend can be quite the archer if need be." he stated proudly.

"Oh yes! You killed four gibberlings, that is impressive..." Xzar giggled.

"My associate and I were merely... gauging you prowess. You see, we have a proposition."

Something about this duo caused Ged's neck hairs to rise up. "What do you mean?" he demanded.

"Oh, you probably know about the troubles with iron in this region?" Xzar continued, somewhat more lucid.

Ged and Imoen glanced at each other, exchanging a puzzled look.

"Oh you don't? Well, show them Monty, show them." the tattooed wizard said, gnawing his fingernails. Ged couldn't decide if the wizard did that to mock him or if he really was so excited about something.

The halfling took out a throwing dagger, clasped it's blade and twisted.

It's tip shattered like ice, and smaller shards fell to the earth.

This caused Xzar to start laughing hysterically for almost a minute. Montaron gave him a disgusted look and turned away. He threw the dagger away, and quickly rifled through the huge sacks that had doubled us money pouches for the ogres.

Just as Xzar seemed to have recovered enough to talk, several blood curdling howls echoed through the woods.

"Wolves!" Ged yelled, glancing anxiously at Imoen.

Montaron grinned evilly at Xzar. "Well well, children. Time to go, leave these carcasses for the worgs."

"No!" Imoen yelled. "We can't leave Gorion!"

"I won't abandon him for beasts and carrion eaters to defile! Help us carry him!" Ged pleaded Montaron.

"We will help you, if you help us." Xzar said.

Imoen was frantically looking around, her bow ready.

"Help you with what?" Ged demanded, suspicion and resentment clouding his features.

Again the howls sounded, this time much closer.

"Five or six wolves, I'd say." Montaron said lazily, though his sword was drawn and he kept his gaze towards the woods.

"We'll carry your father with us, I always admire a man who doesn't leave raw material behind, he he..." the tattooed wizard giggled, as if thinking of some great joke.

"Perhaps as payment you would go with us to Nashkel." Xzar said, as if his request was the most natural thing anyone could ask.

"It is a troubled area and we mean to investigate some disturbing rumors surrounding the local mine. Some acquaintances are very concerned about the iron shortage. Specifically, where to lay blame in the matter. We are to meet the mayor of the town, a man named Berrun Ghastkill, I believe."

"Nashkel! But that's all the way south to the Cloudpeaks!" Ged blurted out incredulously. He was ready to argue the point when Imoen grabbed his hand.

"I don't like these guys either, but now it's either to accept their aid or let the wolves get us, Gorion or both." she whispered into his ear, her voice breathless from fear.

"You must promise! On the memory of your dead father here! Do it and we'll help you!" Xzar hissed, obviously getting some sort of sadistic pleasure from the sight of Ged's despair.

There was only one choice Ged could make.

"I promise you!" he shouted, drawing a grim look of satisfaction from Montaron and causing Xzar to erupt into a hysterical, evil laughter.

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They had evaded the wolves, and were carrying Gorion's body in turns, having rigged an improvised sort of stretcher out of two suitable young trees and Ged and Gorion's tent.

"Imoen told me there's a chapel in Friendly Arm, we can bury my father there."

Ged was arguing with Xzar after their turn of carrying his father's body was over.

"Bah! It's a temple of some Gnomish deity or some such useless nonsense! I say we put him to earth right here!" Xzar argued, his voice whiny.

"NO!" Ged snapped, feeling at the end of his patience for the lunatic's antics. He picked up Gorion's backpack from Imoen and briefly went over his father's belongings while continuing his argument with Xzar.

"If you want us to accompany you two to Nashkel, I want to bury my father and meet his friends first!"

Imoen and Montaron passed them, and they fell in line after them. For a while the two wizards walked in silence, which Ged gladly maintained, feeling tired and nearly sick from grief.

Gorion's spell books were gone, but he found something else of interest, a scroll tied with a red ribbon. He pocketed it and intended to read it right away, when Xzar interrupted him again.

"Did I hear you correctly, my dear child, that you said you were a conjurer?"

Ged jumped at hearing that warbling voice so close. He didn't like the madman, but did appreciate the added 'security' these two sinister travelers gave him and Imoen against beasts, bandits or worse. More a form of aggression towards their enemies, Ged thought to himself, than security.

"Yes. And didn't I hear Montaron describe you as a wizard?" he retorted.

"Mmm. I think his exact words were: 'mad wizard', a title after my own heart."

Ged blinked Xzar's tone, it actually sounded if he took 'mad wizard' as a compliment.

"Perhaps we might, how do you say... exchange spells?" Xzar inquired, in a surprisingly polite manner.

"That sleeping trick was funny. Primitive and rather low powered but funny. I might be willing to let you scribe a single spell from my book in exchange for that..."

"We'll see when we get to the Inn. I'm hoping to meet some friends of my father there, you know." Ged replied.

"Perhaps they will accompany us to Nashkel, yeeesss?" Xzar purred, his eyes wide as saucers, his voice once again mocking and spiteful.

"Um. Yes. You mentioned something about your employers-" Ged begun, but was rather rudely cut off.

Xzar was instantly livid and lunged at him arms outstretched and so pale that his tattoos seemed to fall off. "NEVER MENTION THEM! NEVER AGAIN, IF YOU WANT TO LIVE!" he screamed at Ged, literally foaming at the mouth.

Ged was preparing to defend himself when Xzar tumbled down, tripped by Montaron who then gave his erstwhile traveling companion a swift kick that seemed to take the fight out of him for the moment.

"Never mention our employers again, kid." the halfling snarled, and went back to help Imoen with Gorion's body.

It was nearly midday.

Ged stopped for a moment, made sure Xzar was paying him no further notice, and opened Gorion's scroll.

It read:

"My friend Gorion,

Please forgive the abruptness with which I now write, but time is short and there is much to be done. What we have long feared may soon come to pass, though not in the manner foretold, and certainly not in the proper time frame. As we both know, forecasting these events has proved increasingly difficult, leaving little option other than a leap of faith. We have done what we can for those in thy care, but the time nears when we must step back and let matters take what course they will. We have, perhaps, been a touch too sheltering to this point.

Despite my desire to remain neutral in this matter, I could not, in good conscience, let events proceed without some measure of warning. The other side will move very soon, and I urge thee to leave Candlekeep this very night, if possible. The darkness may seem equally threatening, but a moving target is much harder to hit, regardless of how sparse the cover. A fighting chance is all that can be asked for at this point

Should anything go awry, do not hesitate to seek aid from travelers along the way. I do not need to remind thee that it is a dangerous land, even without our current concerns, and a party is stronger than an individual in all respects. Should additional assistance be required, I understand that Jaheira and Khalid are currently at the Friendly Arm Inn. They know little of what has passed, but they are ever thy friends and will no doubt help however they can.

Luck be with us all.

I'm getting too old for this.

E"

Bewildered, Ged rolled up the parchment once again and thrust it into one of the pockets of his vest. Who was this 'E' and who was the 'other side', the ones that had killed his adopted father last night.

"'Do not hesitate to seek aid from travelers along the way'..." Ged whispered to himself. Perhaps Xzar and Montaron might provide at least some temporary aid, should his mysterious foe appear again.

He ran after his comrades, wincing with every step his sore feet took. How he longed to sit in front of a fire place and have a warm meal!

"The crossroads shouldn't be far now!" Imoen gasped to Ged as he passed her and Montaron, both already panting from exhaustion under their burden.

"From there it's only a bit more to the north, along Lion's Way to the Friendly Arm Inn."