Shadows Of The Knight

by Speaker-to-Customers

Sequel to Black Knight but you don't need to wait for that one to be completed before reading this. Captured by Irenicus, with some of her friends slain and even worse having been done to others, T'rissae must work with Jaheira to survive and rescue Viconia and Imoen. The mutual dislike between them is going to make that difficult...

10. Synchronistic Wanderings

Chapter Ten: Synchronistic Wanderings

The interior of the Planar Sphere was populated by several disparate groups of beings that must have boarded it in other lands, worlds, or planes. Either whatever condition prevented its doors being opened by anyone but one of the Corthala bloodline didn't apply when it was in other worlds, or else its controller, operating it from inside, had been opening the doors, allowing entry, and then shutting the doors and departing again. Trapping curious explorers in a way not dissimilar to how fishermen catch lobsters.

The denizens were of disparate kind and had formed little colonies. I guessed that the earliest entrants had penetrated furthest into the interior and the most recent were confined to the outermost areas. The first we encountered were not hostile. Humans, two men and a woman, clad in plate mail. Their language resembled the Common Tongue of Western Faerûn, but had some differences, and our conversation was halting. They came from a land called Ansalon on a world named Krynn, or possibly the other way around, and had been aboard the Sphere for perhaps a month, meaning that their world must have been the last one visited by the Sphere before its return to Faerûn.

They called themselves Knights of Solamnia, members of a group that sounded very like the Order of the Radiant Heart, and would have made fine allies had they not been in bad shape. They had not brought much in the way of supplies with them when they entered the Sphere, expecting as I had done that exploring the construct would take but an hour or two, and although they had been able to find water their food had long since run out. What they had found in those parts of the Sphere they could reach had been barely enough to keep them alive.

We shared with them what we had, which was not a great deal, and they told us of what they had seen of the Sphere. In one chamber adjacent to theirs dwelt a colony of Sahuagin, carnivorous semi-civilized fish-men, who had partially flooded their room to make it an environment suitable for their needs. The knights had fought them, and had managed to take some fish from them, but the fight had ended in stalemate with neither group being able to overcome the other. Since that conflict the Sahuagin had stayed in their own domain, and the knights had left them alone, although soon imminent starvation would have forced them to make another attempt. They warned us of the paralyzing crossbow bolts the fish-men used.

There was only one other door leading out of the knight's chamber, and in that direction lay a more formidable foe. A horde of small humanoids resembling halflings, but ferocious and cannibalistic, well-armed and including powerful mages in their number. They had defeated the knights, driving them back and killing several, and they had devoured the bodies of those they had slain. That was as far as the knights had penetrated and they could tell us no more.

I decided we should deal with the Sahuagin first, in accordance with my usual strategy of leaving no foe unfought that could emerge behind us and cut us off. We were better armed than the knights had been, and had magical resources they had lacked, and slew the Sahuagin in short order. I found envenomed crossbow bolts on their bodies but only three of the paralytic bolts; they must have expended most of their store on the knights. Their chamber was ankle-deep in water, apparently drawn from pipes on the walls, and fish swam in it. Farmed by the Sahuagin, presumably, and what had kept them from enduring the privations that had afflicted the knights.

The cannibal halflings were more of a challenge. They were savage, and attacked with unrelenting fury, but we overcame them. One of them had worn Gauntlets of Ogre Power, of the same type as the ones Viconia had acquired in the floating brothel in Baldur's Gate, but not the identical ones. They would be very useful, and if we ever reunited with Jaheira I thought she would be able to make good use of them, but for now they went to Valygar. That halfling had possessed an enchanted longbow named Ripper, inferior to Heartseeker but more powerful than the Elven Court bow, and we redistributed our weapons to give Ripper to Valygar and the Elven Court bow to Suna Seni. I suggested that Valygar take over the katana Celestial Fury from Yoshimo, as Valygar had greater expertise in the weapon and, with the gauntlets, greater strength, and so could use it more effectively if it came to close combat. Yoshimo was to concentrate on dealing with traps, of which there were many, and on using his bow at a distance.

This worked well for us as we pressed on. We fought more cannibal halflings, ettercaps, sword spiders, fire elementals, and golems of all types. In order to progress we had to repair a golem that was tasked with destroying intruders, as it was the only thing that could open one of the doors, and I feared that it would attack us once reanimated. My worry proved groundless as it ignored us, possibly due to the presence of Valygar, and after opening the door it announced that an intruder had been detected. It strode through a room, in which the floor was inlaid with large runic symbols, and out the other side. We followed close behind it and saw it attack a powerful Beholder Elder Orb. The Beholder concentrated its attacks on the golem and we were able to slay it without retaliation. The golem relapsed into inactivity, once the Beholder was dead, rather than continuing on. We left it behind, went through the next door, and found ourselves in what I guessed to be the Sphere's control room. It was occupied by a wizard. Lavok.

He was standing at the top of a flight of steps, next to what seemed to be some sort of control panel, part of a strange machine. He called out in anger as he saw us.

"You! You are the ones who have caused the Sphere to travel once again! You fools! I was close to escaping! You will die, mortals. You and your kind have stood in my way for far too long."

"Lavok!" Valygar cried. "You will not pass. I shall fulfil my family's vow and end your hideous life once and for all."

"You understand nothing, mortal!" Lavok mocked. "I am not who you seek… this be merely the body! And your intrusion has caused the Sphere to leap back to my own dimension. I have been denied the Material Plane! I will have my revenge!" And, with that, he began throwing spells.

Of course, we had not been idle whilst he was making his speech. Viconia had summoned her Skeleton Warrior and sent it forward. He protected himself with defensive wards that seemed to negate everything we threw at him, but the Skeleton Warrior kept hacking away, and his spells did nothing to it. We waited until his wards expired and then resumed pelting him with missiles. He went down… and then called out again but in an entirely different voice.

"Where am I?" he cried. "The… the force that possessed me… is… is gone?"

The change was so complete that I signaled for us to cease our attack.

"What is this?" Valygar asked. "Some manner of trick?"

I suspected as much myself but, if it was, we could resume our bombardment in an instant and the Skeleton Warrior stood over Lavok with its blade poised. And, of course, I wanted to ask Lavok how we could get back to Athkatla and out of the Sphere. "Let him speak," I advised Valygar. "Should it be a trick, it will cause only a few moments' delay."

It was no trick. Lavok revealed that he had been possessed by a demonic force for centuries, during which time he had managed to resist the force just enough to keep it away from his home world, and now we had freed him but, between the injuries we had inflicted and the damage the possession had done to him, he was dying. Something that he regarded as a blessed relief. I cast Detect Evil and he did not show the aura. This did not guarantee that he was telling the truth but it made it far more likely than a trick.

Lavok told us that he had only one remaining wish, which was to see the sky of his home world one more time, and to die in the city where he was born. He told us how we could reactivate the Sphere and send it back to Athkatla. The Sphere, he explained, was powered by the heart of a powerful demon. The trip away from Athkatla would have depleted the power of the last heart and used it to travel to the Abyss where another heart could be obtained. We would have to leave the Sphere, kill a demon and take its heart, bring it back, and place it in the engine of the Sphere. He told us of the engine room's location but warned us that it was protected by golems and he could not deactivate them. He would set the controls for the Sphere to return to the location in Athkatla from whence it had departed and, as soon as we inserted the heart, the Sphere would transport itself back to our home.

Going into the Abyss and fighting demons on their own ground was not something to which I looked forward with pleasure. Still, I could see no alternative, and agreed to the plan. To reach the engine room we would have to retrace our steps to the room with runes on its floor, and activate them in a particular sequence, and then descend. Before that, however, I led us into the three rooms that opened from the control room. One was an empty store room. The next was occupied by myconids, which we slew, and we found some useful healing potions and ammunition there. In the other dwelt lizardmen, fierce but not hard to kill, and that held several enchanted weapons and leather armor. Nothing as good as what we possessed but saleable for a good sum.

We went back to the room with the runes. In our absence someone had activated them and the door leading to the stairs down stood open. I had had a vague feeling, earlier, that we might be being followed but had seen nothing. I had dismissed it as nothing more than imagination but I had been wrong. It might be that the knights of Solamnia had followed us but I thought this unlikely. A more likely, and far more worrying, possibility was that one or more of the Cowled Wizards had sneaked in behind us, invisible, when we entered the Sphere and had taken advantage of us clearing the way. I prepared us on that assumption. We went through the door, and down the staircase, with Viconia's True Seeing active, envenomed shafts in our bows and my crossbow, and with spells defensive and offensive at the ready. The staircase led us to a walkway of metal slats with a door beyond it. Viconia summoned a second Skeleton Warrior before we went through.

My guess had been correct. In the room ahead of us stood two Cowled Wizards. One of them was Tolgerias, the one who had tried to commit me to a contract without revealing the details, and according to Suna Seni the very one who sought to capture or kill Valygar. He was formidable, and his companion no mere apprentice, but our preparations proved their worth.

I put an envenomed bolt into him before he could get off any spells. He was hampered, from then on, some of his spells failing due to the pain from the venom. The Skeleton Warrior led our attack. Tolgerias managed to put protections in place to save him from its blade, and our missiles, and retaliated by surrounding himself with the vapors of Abi-Dalzim's Horrid Wilting. A deadly spell, that killed by sucking the water from the bodies of its victims, but the Skeleton Warrior had no water to be taken. It was unaffected, and the living members of our party simply stayed out of the area of the vaporous cloud, loosing missiles at a distance. The fight went the same way as our combat with Lavok, with the wizards falling once their protections expired, except that we did not spare their lives. We made sure that they were dead.

They were poorly equipped for wizards of such evident power. The only item of note on the body of Tolgerias was a ring called the Ring of the Ram, capable of sending out a beam of force that could drive back and severely injure a foe, but we had been beyond its reach and it seemed that he had not thought to use it against the Skeleton Warrior. The other wizard had nothing of any great worth.

To reach the engine room we had to cross either the Room of Fire, in which a strange engine kept the room at a searingly unpleasant heat, or the Room of Ice, similarly kept at a freezing temperature. Each room was inhabited by salamanders and elementals of types appropriate to the climates. We cleared both rooms, provoking the occupants into leaving their environments and fighting us in the main room where the temperature was pleasant, and suffered little hurt. Containers in each room held treasures of decent value. Then on into the engine room.

Have I mentioned that I hate fighting clay golems? Neither am I fond of fighting other types. We had to traverse narrow walkways of metal slats with golems assailing us. One of adamantine, one of iron, four of stone, and three of clay. The adamantine and iron ones were too large to maneuver freely, and we were able to destroy them at a distance with Azuredge and the Sling of Everard, but the others pressed us sorely. Suna Seni, Minsc, and myself were the ones who suffered the sorest hurts, and I came close enough to death that Viconia had to use a full Heal spell to restore me, but we survived.

A container in the room held gems, several sacks of coin totaling nearly seven thousand danter, an axe designed for fighting mages that afflicted those struck with Miscast Magic, and a ring that enhanced the ability of thieves to detect and disarm traps. We examined the engine, determining where we would need to place the demon heart once it was in our possession, and, with the guardians of the engine room now destroyed, we set off for the exit to the Sphere and out to the Abyss beyond.

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I had been into Acheron, in the Nine Hells, but never the Abyss and I had little idea of what to expect. I thought that perhaps we might find ourselves in a vast expanse, teeming with demons, but we emerged into a cavern floored, roofed, and walled by ugly reddish rock. There was no vegetation at all, just a barren waste, and there were no swarms of demons. What there were was quite enough.

We were attacked by imps, quasits, and salamanders first and then, after slaying them, found ourselves confronted by a more formidable foe. A large winged tanar'ri, not unlike Aec'Letec whom we had defeated in Ulgoth's Beard but perhaps even stronger and definitely far outclassing the Glabrezu I had slain in the Slaver building. It was surrounded by a retinue of fire mephits and they swarmed us as the great demon targeted us with spells and then closed for combat.

It was a tough fight, but I had expected nothing else. Minsc and Yoshimo were stunned and rendered immobile. Viconia was Deafened and her spellcasting hampered. The great beast chose Nalia as its prime target, no doubt wishing to take out our mage before dealing with the rest of us, and it was not deterred by the wounds inflicted by myself and Valygar. Nalia was severely wounded, and unable to get clear, but she was saved by Suna Seni who interposed herself between the demon and its prey. Suna Seni held it back, at the cost of much blood, and Nalia was able to escape and quickly down a potion. At last our sword strokes took effect and the demon faltered, tried unavailingly to retreat, and fell dead. I cut the hideous body open and removed its heart.

We healed ourselves up, using most of our remaining spells and depleting our potion stores, and continued on. Another demon, even larger and more fearsome in appearance, blocked our path. This one had no lesser demons in support and we were able to concentrate all our force against it. Despite the demon's greater power, and ruthless savagery, the fight was not as difficult as the one before. We took its heart too.

Hardly had we finished when we were attacked by a group of smaller demons, somewhat resembling ghouls, of a type that I believe are known as Maurezhi. They would have been the attendants to the greater demon but, luckily for us, they had been on its far side and arrived too late to support it in the fight. They had the power of summoning Skeleton Warriors, but lesser ones than the ones which Viconia could produce these days, and they did not pose us too much of a threat.

We encountered one more large demon before we returned to the Sphere, again one surrounded by fire mephits and quasits, but we were better prepared than the first time, with summoned ogres leading our way and with a Chant spell active, and we prevailed at the cost only of minor wounds. Even so, we made it back to the Sphere almost entirely without healing spells remaining, even my Gloves of Healing having been exhausted and Viconia's healing scrolls all used up, and with our stock of healing potions reduced to a fraction of what we had carried when we first entered the Sphere.

The cavern had been entirely cleared of demons, as far as we could tell, and if the hearts we had taken were not suitable as power for the Sphere I did not know what we could do. We hastened back to the engine room and fed the heart of the largest demon into an orifice resembling a mouth. The strange device lit up, electric sparks flashed like lighting between rods that projected above the machine, and the whole Sphere shuddered. After a few moments the Sphere jerked and shuddered again, sending us staggering, and the sparking stopped. The engine grew dark and looked to be completely inert.

I had no way of knowing if we had indeed returned to Athkatla and could only hope that all had gone as planned. We returned to the control room, where Lavok was slumped over the control panel, and found him barely alive. He assured us that we had returned to our starting point, and that the Sphere's engines were now dead and it would never be able to travel the Planes again, and begged us to take him out to die under his own skies. He could not walk and so we carried him through the Sphere and out into what was, indeed, Athkatla's slums.

We laid him down on the external platform and he stared up at the stars. "Ah, it is the sky after all," he gasped out. "I had forgotten how it looked after so long. I thank you… I… I wish…" His voice trailed off, he gasped for breath, and then died.

Valygar stood for a long time looking down at the body. "He is dead," he said. "Lavok, the necromancer, is finally dead. I can scarce believe it. My family's vow has been fulfilled, and I am now safe. And yet I feel little satisfaction. I had no idea it would feel like this. Could he actually have been redeemed? After all that time? Did he really fight that demon to prevent it from escaping the Sphere? If you had asked me such a question even a day ago, I would have answered that such redemption was impossible. Now, I am not so sure."

Suna Seni put her arm around his shoulders. "Yes, redemption is possible," she said. "I feel it. I have regained the ability to cast spells, or at least I sense that I will be able to do so after we have slept. Khalreshaar has accepted my repentance and I am a true Ranger again."

"You put your body between Nalia and death, at the risk of your own life," I said. "I believe that deed is what proved your worth in the eyes of your goddess. You have my most sincere thanks."

"And, of course, mine," said Nalia. "You saved my life."

We had not yet told the Knights of Solamnia what had happened, as I had wanted to see the evidence of our return with my own eyes before giving them assurances that might prove false, and so we went back into the Sphere and gave them the news.

"Have you good tidings for us?" their leader, the woman Rayna, asked.

"We have returned to my world," I told her, "but this Sphere can no longer travel between the Planes."

She sighed. "Then we are trapped here," she said. "As Knights of Solamnia, we will bear this with good grace, and go forth into your world to offer our souls and our swords to the cause of right."

"You should come with us to the Order of the Radiant Heart," I suggested. "It is an order of paladins, with its whole purpose being to support the cause of righteousness with swords, and I am sure that they would receive you into their ranks with gladness. I think you would fit in very well."

"That seems to be our best option, indeed," she said. "I thank you."

"First, though, to an inn," I said. "We are all weary, and not entirely healed of our hurts, and in sore need of rest and baths. Especially baths."

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The Copper Coronet was not the most salubrious establishment in Athkatla but it was by far the closest. I could not face the journey to a better class of inn and so it was to the Coronet that we went. It was the early hours of the morning, some three hours or so before dawn, and we had an encounter with a vampire on the way.

A female vampire had approached a Shadow Thief, attempting to recruit him to the rival organization, and it seemed that she was about to overcome his reluctance by the use of her vampiric thrall. We interrupted, and slew her with my sword and Minsc's Azuredge, leaving the thief to wander off in a confused stupor. A small victory, and only a temporary one, for the vampire drifted away in gaseous form and would regain her body and her unlife. We had still not found a way of tracking them to their lair, driving stakes through their corpses, and granting them true death. At least we had saved the thief.

On to the Copper Coronet, to sell off our gains, eat, have hot baths, and sleep. Well, most of us slept. Valygar and Suna Seni, as far as I could tell from the muffled sounds, spent at least part of the night having sex. Luckily, I did not need as much sleep as a human, and the rest of the party were so weary that, as far as I could tell, the noises did not disturb their rest. When we spoke in the morning it was clear that Valygar and Suna Seni had resolved any outstanding issues and were a couple again. I did not wish to disrupt their newly-restored relationship by dragging them into my own troubles and did not ask them to stay with the party. They gave back the Gauntlets of Ogre Power, and the katana Celestial Fury, but we told them to keep the Night's Gift armor and the Elven Court bow. Valygar said that if we called upon them for aid they would respond gladly, and that we should visit them at his cabin if we were in the area of the Umar Hills, and we bade them farewell.

At the Order of the Radiant Heart Sir William Reirrac was not best pleased that we had taken so long to return to him with our report of our resolution of the problem of Baron Metrich. He questioned us about the way we had dealt with the matter but, when I explained, he agreed that I had acted correctly. He was pleased to greet the Knights of Solamnia and took them, and us, to Prelate Wesselen. I recounted the circumstances in which we had found them, and the Prelate questioned them about the code they lived by, 'the Oath and the Measure', and he was well satisfied with their answers. They were accepted into the Order, and given quarters, and it seemed that they would fit in well. Short of returning them to their own world, which seemed impossible, this was the next best thing. As happy an ending as could reasonably be expected.

Our reward was to be given another task. The Morningale family, respected nobles of Athkatla, had made enemies of the slavers and had been attacked and almost wiped out. Only one had escaped, a girl named Tyrianna, and the Order feared that the enemies sought her death to remove the only surviving witness. She was being protected by the Order at a safe-house in the Docks District and Sir William wanted us to go there and relieve the guard. The girl's godfather, a noble named Hurgis Baltezan, was due to arrive shortly from Baldur's Gate, to take her into his care, and escort her to his home. We were to guard the girl until he arrived and make sure that no-one else reached her. It should only be a matter of hours, until the next morning at worst, and did not seem an overly onerous task.

We found the safehouse easily enough, as it was next to the library where I had spent some hours recently, and went in. The knight on guard, who I had been told was named Sir Franco, raised his sword when I entered but lowered it as he recognized me.

"Halt! Come no further … oh, it is you, Tehrissae," he said, pronouncing my name incorrectly in the manner common to rivvin. "Forgive my challenge. I have seen you in the chapter-house, and I was told you were coming, but it has been a long day."

"I would imagine so," I commiserated, "what with the threat that an attack could come at any time."

"Ah, it is not merely that," he said, "but… you will see. I formally transfer responsibility for the situation to you, Tehrissae. May Helm watch over you, and Tymora as well."

"And Eilistraee watch over you," I responded.

Tyrianna was not a child, as I had interpreted Sir William to have meant, but a maiden perhaps almost as old as Imoen. Her dress, although of the finest materials, was far shorter than was customary amongst the noble class, and had a neckline low enough to reveal more than would have been considered proper of breasts that were bigger than mine. Sir Franco introduced me to her and then took his leave.

"I am glad he has been relieved," Tyrianna said, in affected tones that reminded me unpleasantly of Lady Delcia. "I found his manner insulting. Be a dear and bring me some ale."

"Alu lu'vith dosstan, my lady," I told her, taking advantage of the fact that it was highly unlikely that she could speak Ilythiirra. "I regret that I am not to leave this place, lest it mean your death, and I want my companions to remain at my side. Lu'Usstan tlun naut dosst wanre."

Tyrianna heaved a sigh. "I'll die of boredom before this day is through," she said. "Mother just couldn't leave well enough alone. There were better things to spend our gold on than freeing stupid slaves. And don't gabble at me in that silly Elvish language."

I began to see what Franco had meant by saying that it had been a long day.

"You stuffy paladins are all alike," she went on. "Same as father, and my upright godfather Hurgis. I am not looking forward to living with him. Stupid 'champions of morality'."

"I have no interest in your morality," I told her. "I honor my goddess by dancing naked under the moon. By my standards, you are wearing too many clothes. I don't even care if you drink yourself into insensibility. I'm just not willing to take any chances with you being killed on my watch."

"You dance naked under the moon?" she asked, showing interest for the first time. "Really? Do men… ogle you? Or… worse?"

"I killed the last one who tried anything," I said. "And, obviously, I don't do it in the city. Now, go upstairs and wait. Read an improving book. Or a trashy bodice-ripper, if that's your preference. I have one of the Moniské books in my pack, if you'd like to borrow it."

"Oh? Which one?"

"Moniské in the Pirate Isles," I answered. It was for research about the Isles, since I'd heard that Spellhold was there, or at least that was my story and I was sticking to it.

"I don't think I've read that one," she said. "Oh, very well, I'll go and read, like a good girl."

Viconia made a suggestion as to another way she could spend her time, thankfully using Ilythiirra, too lewd for me to be willing to translate. Tyrianna ignored her, took the book, went upstairs, and was out of our hair.

We passed the time in conversation, talking of our future plans, and wondering how Jaheira had fared with the Harpers.

"I did not think that I would miss the company of the tu'rilthiir druid," Viconia remarked, "and yet I do. Mocking her could be… amusing, and her answering retorts held some vestiges of wit, and her contributions to our combats were not minor. I… hope the Harpers have treated her justly."

"I also," I said. "If we do not hear anything in the next few days, I shall call upon the Harpers and ask what has been her fate. We will give them a bit more time, though, before taking any action."

We were called upon to take action regarding our present task not long after. Five assassins, one of them a mage, burst into the house and attacked. We slew three, but two of them got past us and ran upstairs. We followed with all speed and cut them down before they could reach Tyrianna.

Her clothing was in some disarray, and her face was flushed, and I guessed that she had indeed been passing the time in the manner suggested by Viconia. Either that or she had been about to use the chamber-pot at the moment the assassins entered the bedroom. I did not ask.

We returned downstairs, taking the bodies from the bedroom with us, and resumed our stations. An hour later a middle-aged man in plate mail entered.

"Good morrow to you," he said. "I am Hurgis Baltezan. You may address me as Lord Baltezan, or 'sire'. I have been informed that this is where I am to take custody of my goddaughter. I trust she is well?"

"She is safe and sound, as promised," I said. "I trust you can verify your identity?" I had a feeling that something wasn't right. 'Sire' was the correct form of address only for a king, was it not?

"I will not accept any delay in the delivery of this child into my care," he said, ignoring my request for identification. "Tell her it is time to go."

"Not before I confirm your identity," I said. Unfortunately, I had been told, Tyrianna had not seen her godfather since she was a small child, and there was no guarantee that she would recognize him by sight.

"Impudence!" he snapped. "You have my word, and the instruction of your Order. That should be enough. Now, inform the child that I am here for her, and be quick about it. I do not wish to tarry in this place, for it is known to her enemies."

I cast Detect Evil. "Interesting," I said, and used the Silent Tongue to send an order to Viconia. "I thought a genuine noble wouldn't demand to be called 'sire'. You are no more Hurgis Baltezan than I am."

"What?!" he exclaimed. "How…? Then I shall do this the hard way!" He didn't even manage to get his sword half-way out of the scabbard before he died.

The real Hurgis Baltezan turned up not long afterwards; or at least someone who said he was Hurgis Baltezan, didn't insist on being called 'sire', and didn't show up as Evil. I went up alone to get Tyrianna, who thankfully was fully dressed including her undergarments, and brought her down to her godfather.

I let Tyrianna keep the book.

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Sir William was pleased with the way I had carried out the duty. He rewarded me with a quite magnificent suit of twice-enchanted armor and a matching shield. I had no use for the shield, and Viconia preferred her existing one and declined to take the new, but the armor was quite another matter. Now I could stop lusting after Balduran's Plate at the Adventurers' Mart.

"T'rissae, you are a true force of righteousness," Sir William praised me, "and I believe it is time for you to perform one final task, if you are willing. There is an item, a holy artifact, that lies in the hands of a great evil. You have felt his presence before, and now I ask you to address it with finality. Firkraag, the great red dragon, looms over the Windspear Hills. His reign must end, and from him you must retrieve the most holy of blades, the Avenger. This tool of Good has been in his possession for too long. T'rissae, I call upon you to slay the dragon and make a statement for right and justice."

"I have every intention of slaying Firkraag," I told him. "Not for the blade, but to free the Windspear Hills, and Garren Windspear and his son, from the menace he presents. But I am not going to do it straight away. Our group is one short, and I want to recruit a replacement, and improve our equipment further, before I take on Firkraag."

"It is a great risk," Sir William conceded, "but it must be dealt with sometime. Go, and may the forces of Good be your salvation."

A Holy Avenger sword was the ultimate weapon for a paladin. They were always enchanted at least four times and had the power of casting a powerful Dispel Magic on any foe they struck. Only a paladin could wield one and so it could never be turned against me. It might be the ideal weapon to use against Kangaxx so that we could obtain the Ring of Gaxx. On the other hand, it might be a single-handed weapon that would require me to learn an entirely new combat style before I could use it effectively. Even so, it was extremely tempting – but I still did not feel quite ready to face the mighty red dragon.

I had no immediate plans for what to next but remembered that the Temple of Helm had indicated that they might have another job for us. I decided that, as we were in the area anyway, we might as well call in on them and find out what they wanted us to do.

It turned out to be the most trivial task yet. The Helmites asked us to call on a famous artist, who was visiting the city, and persuade him to sculpt a statue for the temple. The artist, Sir Sarles, was notoriously picky about whose commissions he would accept and with what materials he would work. We would find Sir Sarles at the Jysstev Estate in the Government District.

He was even more picky, and arrogant, than they had led me to believe. He refused to work for any employer, church or otherwise, who could not supply him with two hundred pounds of pure illithium. I could think of better uses for the metal; the hargluk master smith Cromwell had mentioned, during the time when we were assisting him with the making of Yoshimo's Shadow Dragon armor, that one of the powerful items he could make required illithium. I wondered if I could obtain enough to fill both roles, and set off for the ore merchant who had a stall in Waukeen's Promenade.

I had little luck there. Jerlia the ore merchant told me that illithium was so rare that getting as much as fifty pounds in a season was nigh on impossible, and she knew of only one source who sometimes could obtain even that much. She suggested substituting an alloy for the pure article and offered to get the alloy, at a price of two hundred danter, if I could wait until the morrow to collect it. I thought it worth a try. I asked about her contact for the real thing, but she refused to divulge his identity unless I paid her for the information. A thousand danter. Excessive just to get the name of a contact, I thought, but the church had promised to refund all our expenses and I paid up. She revealed that he was a duergar, by the name of Unger Hilldark, who resided at the Copper Coronet but passed himself off as a surface dwarf.

My most recent meeting with duergar had been with those working for Irenicus, and that had been hostile, but other than that I had no prejudice against them. I certainly could understand why he would hide his race. And, when I met him, he seemed decent enough.

He told me he had no illithium, because his most recent shipment had been stolen from him by a former partner, and I was welcome to it if I could take it back. The partner was 'former' because Unger had found out that he was a wanted criminal, a child-killer with a price on his head, on the run from Baldur's Gate. Unger was unwilling to report the thief, a Hill Dwarf named Neb, in case he himself came under suspicion because of his race. I had every sympathy.

I had none for Neb. We went to his home in the Bridge District and spoke to him. He attacked us as soon as I mentioned Baldur's Gate and, although he would have been little threat to us by himself, he summoned the spirits of children he had murdered to strike us with life-draining attacks. Meanwhile he used Potions of Invisibility to stab, disappear, and stab again. Viconia's use of True Sight foiled that tactic, and once he was dead the ghostly children, freed from his control, thanked us, cast Restoration on us in recompense for their life-draining, and moved on to their afterlife. As I was immune to the life-drains anyway their Restoration spells, which left the recipients fatigued, harmed me more than the original strikes from the ghosts.

At least we were able to loot Neb's home and find a stash of Potions of Extra Healing to replenish our supply. We took Neb's head, to present when we claimed the reward, and went to the Five Flagons Inn to sleep off the Restorations.

And then, on leaving the inn, we were attacked by three vampires. Viconia took a hit from one and suffered a life drain. She cast Restoration on herself, suffered fatigue, and we had to return so that she could sleep off that effect. A lot of wasted time, or so I thought, but as we had to wait around for the ore merchant to return with the alloy it did no real harm.

When she did turn up, she told me that the representatives of two other churches had approached her for the illithium alloy and, although she would stick to our deal and give me first refusal, she would have to charge me five hundred danter to match their offers. I was not impressed but, as it was the Church of Helm who would bear the expense, I paid up. The alloy she produced did resemble the real metal, as far as I could tell, and I set off with it to the Government District.

We called in at the Government building, and collected a reward of two thousand five hundred danter for the head of Neb, and so were in profit for this venture whatever happened. My plan was to offer Sir Sarles the alloy first, not mentioning the genuine pure ore, and only reveal it if he was would not accept my first offering. That way, I hoped to be able to satisfy the Helmites and still keep the illithium for Cromwell's weapon. My plan did not work.

Sir Sarles reacted with anger, said that he had never been so insulted, and that he would not work for the Church of Helm nor for any other in this city. He stormed off, saying that he was leaving Athkatla at once, and did not give me the chance to produce the genuine article. Feeling rather ashamed of myself, I led the group back to the Temple of Helm to report my failure.

And then my luck turned again. Guardian Telwyn, who had given me the assignment, was disappointed but took the alloy and said that he would have to commission a local artist to work with it. High Watcher Oisig saw the lump of alloy, an odd shape resembling a vaguely humanoid figure, and was intrigued by it. He thought it pleasing, with qualities that were appropriate to the worship of Helm, and took it as an artwork in its own right. He even said to Guardian Telwyn that he hoped Telwyn hadn't planned to commission the artist Sir Sarles, whose works were overrated and not worth the payments he demanded. The lump of alloy was placed on display in its unaltered form.

Guardian Telwyn was delighted with the way things had turned out and credited me with gaining him kudos in the eyes of the High Watcher. He rewarded me with a Helm of Glory, a helm particularly appropriate for a paladin, with the same armor-enhancing enchantments as my Helm of Balduran, and one enhancing my qualities of leadership and persuasiveness, but lacking the other helm's ability to increase the accuracy of my attacks with sword or crossbow. I was in two minds as to which of the two would be the best to take as my primary helm, there being advantages to both, and stowed the new helm away whilst I made up my mind. I've had worse dilemmas.

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Guardian Telwyn then asked if we could assist the church of Lathander in a problem they were having. The Temple of Lathander was next door to that of Helm and so I agreed to go and see Dawnbringer Sain there and find out what he wanted.

This quest was to retrieve the Dawn Ring, sacred to Lathander, which had been stolen by thieves working on commission for the Temple of Talos. A task more to my liking than dealing with a pretentious, arrogant, artist. Sain told me they believed the ring to be in the possession of a thief named Travin, who could be found in the Slums District, but only after nightfall. Any servants of the Temple of Lathander would be recognized, causing the thief to flee, and they wanted an outside party, one honest and reliable, to intercept the thief and retrieve the ring before it could be passed on to the Talos priests. I had a feeling it might well turn out to be more complicated than it sounded but I agreed anyway.

As it was only early afternoon, however, I thought we could fill in the intervening time by doing something else. Going to the Harper Hold, for instance, and asking about Jaheira.

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The door of the lavishly-decorated building was open and there was no guard there. We walked in – and immediately were attacked, without even a challenge, by three apparent mercenaries. They were not elite warriors and we killed them with ease. I saw no sign of anyone else on the lower floor at all. It could well be that Jaheira was not here but we checked the upper floor anyway.

Jaheira was there. Alone, not even under guard, walking around as if bored. "What are you doing? Why are you here?" she greeted us.

"I wanted to make sure you were all right, Jaheira," I said. "I was worried about you, and so was Minsc, and Viconia too – although she might not want to admit it."

"T'rissae, you magnificent bastard!" Jaheira exclaimed. "I would kill you for following me, against my wishes, if I were not so glad to see you."

"Glad? I thought you wanted this," I said.

"I wanted to atone with the Harpers, but these are not they," Jaheira said. "The true Harpers have abandoned this garish place. Note that the Spectral Harpists have not returned. They would not leave their post unless it was no longer to be guarded."

"But it is guarded," I told her, "just not by Harpers. Our fighting is not done."

"We might still be hunted," Jaheira said. "I must ask Dermin if I see him again. He told me to come here, so I need to know if his allegiance has changed or not. Those we kill in self-defense may look like Harper allies, even if they are not. We have no choice, and I will not feel guilty over this tangled web anymore. Let's get out of here, but take care. If their tactics are as simple as their motives, you may have been allowed to pass. Our exit may be treacherous."

"You think this might be a trap for me?" I queried. "The three mercenaries we slew downstairs were expendable, then, expected to die so that I would think our exit safe."

"Quite probably," Jaheira agreed.

"It is… acceptable to have you back with us… Jaheira," Viconia said. "Being the sole healer for the group has been tiresome."

"And it is tolerable to see you again… Viconia," Jaheira responded. "I have been bored enough that even your insults would make a pleasant change."

"I shall be sure to think up some new ones," Viconia said, "once we are out of this place, that is."

We gave Jaheira the Gauntlets of Ogre Power. Viconia was wearing the Dragon Helm and kept it for the time being. I gave Jaheira the Helm of Glory in its place. We went downstairs again expecting trouble.

And it was there. A far more formidable band of mercenaries, this time, including a mage, and a thief who was invisible from the start and caught Minsc by surprise with a backstab, then turned invisible again before attacking once more. Nalia turned the tide in our favor with a Chaos spell, which sent most of our foes into confusion and turned some of them against each other, giving Jaheira the chance to Heal Minsc as he and I cut down the thief and then turned our attention to the only other enemy not to be affected by the confusion. With them down it was simple to pick off the others.

We told Jaheira of our adventure in the Planar Sphere as we walked to the Slum District. She was envious and sorry not to have been there. She had little to tell us in return. She had been ordered to stay in the building and then left almost entirely alone, deliveries of food being almost the only break from monotony, with no idea when, if ever, she was to have the hearing she had been promised. Only when we arrived did it occur to her that her function had simply been to be bait in a trap. A trap that had failed, and now that I had the backing of the Order of the Radiant Heart the Harpers would not be able to move against me overtly. That would not stop them from attacking by stealth but might hamper their plans to some extent.

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We asked Bernard, in the Copper Coronet, if he knew of a thief named Travin. He did, and was able to tell us where Travin usually could be found. We went there, after nightfall, and tracked the man down. The priests of Lathander had been wrong about Travin possessing the ring, however. He was merely an intermediary, whose only part was to let the priests of Talos know where they had to go to collect the ring. He divulged that information readily enough, after only slight threats, and we followed his directions.

The collection point was to be one of the buildings that were located on the wide roof of the Copper Coronet. The leader of the thieves inside demanded that I prove my bona fides by swearing my allegiance to Talos; something no non-worshipper would risk. I had no option but to refuse and thereby give away that I wasn't really there to collect the ring on behalf of the priests of Talos. They attacked, we killed them, and we obtained the ring anyway.

Dawnbringer Sain was delighted when we returned it and gave us a nice, simple, one thousand danter reward. With Jaheira back in our number I decided that it might be time, at last, to return to the Windspear Hills to deal with Firkraag once and for all.

It didn't work out that way. On our way out of the city we were approached by a man named Flydian. He had been sent by the High Merchant of Trademeet to recruit adventurers to deal with a problem the town was experiencing. It was under attack by wave after wave of wild animals and the townsfolk, and the High Merchant, believed that the attacking beasts were being sent by druids.

Jaheira, of course, was incensed, as was Minsc. If someone was using innocent animals to attack a town they both felt that it had to be stopped. I could not disagree. And so we diverted our course and, instead of the Windspear Hills, we headed for Trademeet.

Glossary of Drow Phrases

rivvin = humans
Alu lu'vith dosstan = Go fuck yourself
Lu'Usstan tlun naut dosst wanre = And I'm not your servant
tu'rilthiir = half-elf
hargluk = dwarf