Lidia would never describe herself as timid or fearful. But she found herself glancing at the lengthening shadows: stretching down from the village's homes, leaning against the hitching posts and the fences, striding behind them as the Company walked to the village square from the lodge. The same shadow-creatures that had nearly killed her could be hiding anywhere the darkness spilled upon the ground.
She was on alert this time, and she and others with her could cast them back with a word. But she felt uneasy nonetheless, of the same kind that accompanied dark clouds on the horizon. As though something was approaching and ready to pounce upon them unawares.
Aerie said, half to herself, "If wolves were shadows and doing this, they'd have to be terribly evil…and there's talk of this witch...this all sounds quite ominous…"
"Wolves and shadows and witches, oh my!" Minsc said. "Which of these are evil, I wonder? But never fear, little Aerie!" he said. He patted Larry's hilt. "The edge of my sword will find the truth!"
"You got it, boss," Larry chimed in.
"I want to keep a lookout in case the shadows come back," Lidia said, "Any ideas?"
"Perhaps a defensive point near the square would defeat these foul creatures," Anomen said.
"A nice thought," Yoshimo said, "but how do you defend against something that could be anywhere?"
"You put something out that they'd like, maybe," Aerie said. "What do those shadows want?"
"To make more of themselves," Lidia said. "They're driven by a need to feed upon sentient beings, and nothing more. But they can't stand light, and they can't get into tight spaces."
"So," Aerie said slowly, "we find something to use as bait, wait for them to come, trap them, then destroy them or drive them back somehow?"
"I like the way that sounds," Lidia said. "Let's explore that further."
After scouting out a few promising spots for setting the bait, Gorion's Company returned to the lodge to prepare for tonight's possible assault. They all met in one of the large corner guest-rooms on the ground floor, a spacious place with large, comfortable, sturdy beds. Immediately they set to work: polishing and fixing their weapons and armor, working out who would take what watches, and going over their plan one last time.
"So we should be the only ones in the streets tonight," Lidia said. "It's possible that the shadows would be willing to brave some light if it was their only chance to feed. The most important thing is to stay sharp. We've got only one restoration spell handy, and I hope we can avoid using it."
"No shadows will be able to take a nibble at us, and if they do, they shall find Minsc and Boo hard to swallow, that much is certain!" Minsc declared. "We shall stick in evil's craw and give it a stomachache the like of which it's never seen."
"Shh," Aerie said. "Do…do you hear that?"
It took a few moments before the others could hear it too. But, within a few moments, the hum of many voices began to drift through the walls.
Like a distant crack of thunder, a sharp, loud knock resounded.
They stopped what they were doing and listened, not opening the thick door to their room.
They couldn't hear exactly what was being said, but the voices belonged to Minister Lloyd and the innkeeper. The din outside grew louder.
"I very much doubt it has anything to do with us," Yoshimo said.
But after they heard the lodge's heavy outer door shut, Lidia immediately left, heading to the lodge's common room.
The room had gone mostly dark, painted a deep blue with the approaching night. Shimmying along the wall, trying not to trip over the displaced furniture, and taking care not to be seen, she glanced down one of the two ostentatiously large glass windowpanes in the front.
Outside the porch, two men stood in front of a crowd of about two dozen, all Imnesvale's villagers and farmers. Nearly everyone in the crowd was armed, most with torches and repurposed farming implements. Only about three or four were carrying longbows. All wore faces filled with weighty purpose.
She went back to the others, reporting what she'd seen.
"This isn't right!" Minsc said. "We are brave heroes, not common criminals!
Have we not buttkicked to their satisfaction?"
Anomen said, "This rabble is disturbing the peace. They ought to be shown the consequences of their rashness, particularly for threatening these men with arms."
Lidia shook her head. "First, there's a lot more of them than there are of us. Second — and I've noticed this several times — they know a thing or two about fighting, enough to act as a militia in a pinch."
"Then what is it you intend to do?"
She glanced towards the door. Yoshimo might be right about this not concerning them at all. But their host and the leader of the town seemed to be threatened; it seemed wrong to stand by and do nothing.
"I'm going out to them," she finally said, moving towards the door.
"No sword to strike against evil?" Minsc said incredulously.
"Yes," she said. "The last thing we need is to provoke them any further."
"Well, it was a pleasure to know you," Yoshimo said.
"If you want to help me," Lidia said, "here's what you can do: take your ranged weapons and pick a spot on the second floor or roof. Stay out of sight, and keep a close eye and a steady hand. Only fire if anyone moves against the innkeeper or Minister Lloyd."
Aerie was the first to head up the stairs, and the others followed behind her after they got their weapons.
As they went, Lidia leaned against the doorframe, taking a steadying breath. A shout from outside broke into her thoughts and brought clarity. Things sounded as though they were getting out of control, and if she could do anything to help, she must. She rapidly straightened up, turned the doorknob, and opened the door to the lodge.
Minister Lloyd still looked disheveled from the day's celebration. His few strands of gray hair, which he'd carefully combed over his head, had now gone astray. His waistcoat was unbuttoned, and his ivory sleeves were rolled up to his elbows. He tried to get the crowd's attention with his large hands. "I just...Everyone remain calm! Panic will not help!"
He was entreating them as though they were in a particularly unruly town council meeting, not an angry mob nearly ready to knock down the door.
Holding onto Minister Lloyd's arm for dear life, Eina shouted, "Listen to my husband!"
From here, Lidia could see more clearly who was leading the crowd: she recognized the middle-aged, keen-eyed man who had been watching the door for the wounded a few days ago. She didn't know who the other man was; he hadn't gone to the Greengrass festivities. But he was younger and sturdier, and he had dirt and blood smeared on his hands.
Vicenzo the innkeeper also had taken a place on the porch, next to Minister Lloyd and Eina. His hands wildly flourished as he shouted, "Look, these attacks have aught to do with any of us here. The Umar Witch is the one who's done it."
Someone from the crowd of villagers yelled, "And I 'spose you'll be going on about those three wizard apprentices who disappeared, too?"
He shot a dark glare in response. "My family has been in this here area for a long, long time, and the tales of the witch, Umar, have been passed down, they have! She comes back every century, and —"
The innkeeper was shouted down, and then he knew he was defeated.
Minister Lloyd called out, "Moreno! There's — there's no need for this! Please, tell these people to leave!"
The younger leader came forward, along with two others from the crowd who dragged a limp man behind them.
Moreno's voice was powerful, carrying across the crowd and through the no-man's-land in front of the porch. "Vince, you're just trying to make a quick buck selling those journals. It could be Umar, or the ogres, or Shar herself. Maybe you ought to ask Myrick, eh?"
With raised shouts and cries from the crowd, the three of them hurled the limp man towards the porch. The crowd burst into uproarious cheers.
In midair, as though upon a signal, the body was barraged with a Magic Missile, two arrows, and a smooth, round stone.
Rolling to one side as he landed, Myrick fell upon the stairs to the porch, his eyes glassy and his skin a deathly white, his clothes dirty and torn, his body pierced, cut, and bruised, his hands curled into claws. He had died long before he came here.
But after the man's flight, the only sounds were the calls of a distant flock of birds. Everything else in that place fell silent.