Lidia felt an arm prop up her head. A liquid, which tasted astringent, grassy, and overly sweet, was poured down her throat. Whether its vile flavor, or the quick burst of energy it brought, or its magical properties was what shocked her out of her haze, she couldn't tell. But she revived, waking to a ring of the Company's concerned faces. They kept their distance, their faces wary.
She swallowed in a vain attempt to get the potion's taste out of her mouth, but before she could speak, Mazzy went first.
"Lidia…that is you, isn't it?" Her bow was lowered, but her hands remained ready. "What happened?"
Lidia found, to her relief, that she could think clearly, despite her weariness; the fog in her mind from the black dragon's breath had dissipated. "The prophet's ghost used me to help channel power from Amaunator," she said.
Anomen spoke up. "Have you any idea how much danger you took upon yourself?"
"I'm well aware. There was no other way." Lidia glanced over to the spot where the little ghost had passed on. She regretted that she hadn't had the time to thank her. "And as far as I can tell," she said sadly, "Amuana mostly risked herself."
"Still, such power is not meant for mortals," he said. "If that is what happened, I am astounded that you still live."
"I…I have to agree," Aerie said, her eyes wide. "If the god is dead, then that…wouldn't that be even worse? There was no will in that power to restrain it. Nothing except the two of you."
"I've lived through many things that should have killed me," Lidia said. "I try not to dwell on it too much."
She sat up. She thought she heard whispers and glanced about for their possible source. But no one else was speaking, and the sound subsided.
She tested her limbs again and carefully got to her feet, finding that she could stand. She was exhausted, but there was still work to do before they could rest.
"First," she said, "we should take care of the Shade Lord's victims."
They found Anath's body, still curled up where it fell, and brought her and Merella near where the ground met the temple rooftop. They still had plenty of daylight left, so they built two pyres near the massive crystal, lighting the fires on top of the flagstones and keeping a sharp eye for stray sparks. "With the whole place dead," Valygar said, "it's a tinderbox in the making."
They burned the bodies, scattering Anath's ashes near the temple and keeping Merella's to bring back to Imnesvale.
As they cleaned away the pyres, Aerie found a smooth spot on one of the nearby broken walls, then cast a series of cantrips, slowly inscribing a series of names in bold, elegant letters in the stone.
The first space was dedicated to the original inhabitants of the temple: Badon, Dettseh, and Amuana. The next space memorialized Anath, Merella, and everyone in Imnesvale who had died when the Shade Lord had been unleashed. Finally, she made one more list: the names of Mazzy's adventuring company, along with a note that they had died fighting against the Shade Lord.
Everyone eventually came over to watch Aerie work, observing in a spontaneous, reverent silence. Once she had finished, Mazzy came forward, bowing her head and standing in front of her companions' names.
Mazzy spoke aloud: "My lost companions, my boon friends. I shall always carry your courage and your honor with me. I shall strike down evil in your name. Know, noble heroes, that you are not forgotten. May this altar always stand as a monument to your unselfish courage."
Her hand lingered upon Patrick's name. She said quietly, "May your souls be ever at peace, though your vengeance seems empty."
A long silence passed. Finally, Valygar said, "Mazzy, if you require satisfaction—"
"Then I would not seek it from you," she said, turning away from the inscription, "and I beg your forgiveness for my harsh words before."
"You have it," he replied. "You seem to think that we're not done, though."
"Not even the Shade Lord is a fit target for wrath. One blames a sick dog who bites, but true responsibility belongs to whoever loosened the leash." Mazzy maintained a well-practiced, courteous bearing, but a fire burned in her dark eyes. "If there is any chance — any at all — that someone intended to release the Shade Lord, then my companions' blood is upon their head, and their recompense is still due."
"You're right," Lidia said. "Our work isn't finished here. Discovering who is responsible, if anyone, might be the harder task."
"Many shifty-looking things in this valley, make no mistake!" Minsc said. "Evil might scuttle into a corner, but the broom of goodness shall sweep it out. Boo will make sure of that, though his paws are much too tiny for the handle."
—
With the shade wolves and shadows destroyed, and the native wildlife driven off, everything was silent. The day was sunny and warm, and the light conveyed a sense of hope and safety that, for the past few days, had been difficult to come by. The Company made camp and rested; no one felt much like doing anything else today.
With one exception. For a couple of hours, Yoshimo was constantly doing something with his hands, whittling a stray stick and checking his traps and other equipment, not out of a sense of industriousness but out of agitation.
Lidia noticed this going on for a while, then approached him while he was some distance from the others. "You've been through a lot," she said. "How are you holding up?"
"I'm quite well-rested," he joked, though there was no mirth in his eyes. After a moment of silence, he continued, "I feel some strain, though I am whole. I suppose I need to feel useful somehow, to do something…"
"How about this," she said. "We have some interesting pieces to this puzzle. Let's go inside and see if we can discover one or two more. We might be able to see better now, and your skill has been sorely missed."
They left camp and ventured inside the temple, stepping carefully as they went and keeping their eyes and ears open. Yoshimo already seemed more at ease, as though a burden had been lifted.
"I suppose you'd like an explanation for what happened with the Shade Lord," he said as they traversed down the hall to the dragon's lair. He was casual about the matter, as though a shadow trying to commandeer his body happened every day.
"Only if you want to discuss it," Lidia said.
"Well, you ought to know." He deftly stepped over a fallen pillar. "He could not take me because I am under a geas. It has much to do with why I left Kara-Tur, but I cannot say more about it."
Lidia recalled reading about that spell in Candlekeep's library, if only to avoid being unintentionally bound by one herself. Of course, a geas could be undone without fulfilling it, but that required near-miraculous magical might.
She said, "That can't be easy to live with. Maybe we could find some way to break it."
"The possibility seems remote," he said, "but perhaps one day we could."
Lidia did not pursue the subject further. She remembered something Jaheira had told her once: "Few come to the Life from happiness. Nearly everyone you will meet there is at least somewhat lost."