Out Of The Shadows
Chapter Nine:
Coo!
Although many things plagued her mind, Imoen had managed to sleep all through last night's storm. When she had woken that morning, the city streets were refreshed and clean. That didn't last long however, and by the time she left The Promenade the cesspits were starting to fill up again. She had heard stories and poems written about Athkatla, and how its streets were paved with gold… it wasn't. In fact, most of it didn't seem to be paved at all. The Promenade had been a spectacular bit of architecture with its stone steps and arches, but just beyond it were rows and rows of wooden shacks and houses and it seemed just the same problems as Baldur's Gate; lots of people with very little space to live in and barely adequate means of disposing of their waste, rats and packs of dogs scavenging on all of it. She suspected the bit of Athkatla she was in now was not the part of the city visiting bards went to.
They were following Jaheira, mainly because she was the only one of them with any clear idea about where she wanted to go. She was trying to find way across the river that split the city in two and into the Government District, hoping that among the civic buildings, administrators and bureaucrats, they would find some representative of The Cowled Wizards, and she said she had been to Athkatla before. They had been following Jaheira for the last hour.
"That's the third time I've seen that Dog," Imoen strafed around the beast in question, a dirty white bulldog with one eye that had tried ferociously to get to the Bhaalspawn during all their encounters; fortunately it was tied to a post. "We really gotta go through this again, Jae? Why can you never just admit that you're lost…"
"Quiet!" The Druid scowled. "I am not lost. I merely… have to get my bearings…"
"Y'know, stop me if this idea is too far out there. I'm just trying to think a little outside of the box here, but… why don't we just ask someone for directions?" Jaheira scowled at Imoen even more. "Right… dumb idea, obviously… out of interest, when was the last time you were here?"
"Just five years ago," the Druid grumbled, "blasted cities are constantly being changed… this whole street was not here then."
"Hm, yes," Yoshimo nodded, "I believe a fire burnt down several of these neighbourhoods about four years ago."
"Come to think of it," Imoen turned to face the Kara-Turran, tilting her head and raising one eyebrow, "don't you live here?"
"Indeed. For just a few months now."
"So, why have you been letting us wander around like blind Beholders for the last hour?"
"Ah, friends," Yoshimo had produced a small, thin pipe and was packing it with herbs that he claimed were medicinal. "I really think you are wasting your time trying to learn anything from The Cowled Wizards."
"As opposed to what we have just been doing all day?"
"It is just that they are not known for being forthcoming. I believe few people in the government know at all what it is they do with their prisoners. It strikes me as not likely they will share with a group of strange foreigners."
"I will make them forthcoming," Jaheira almost growled.
"Impressive though you are in battle, friend, as we all observed yesterday, the wizards are many whereas we are just five," Yoshimo said. A low rumble from Minsc forced him to correct his maths. "Forgive me… six," Minsc nodded satisfactorily, patting Boo.
He had a point, Imoen had to admit. They were just six, and two of them were unlicensed practitioners of magic as well. Magic was feared in Amn, more than common folk feared the big tapestry that covered the world catching fire and falling on them… it might be seen as a bit buffleheaded for her to go marching into the offices of people charged with policing magic and start demanding things from them.
"Well, I don't much fancy being whisked away and cooped up again like the nude painting stuffed in the back of a wizard's spellbook," Imoen pursed her lips as she thought out loud, "but, what's the alternative?"
"A less direct approach. There are other factions within this city; those with contacts and resources and whose cooperation can perhaps more easily be bought…"
"You mean the Shadow Thieves."
"Well, I did not say that, exactly."
"Doesn't take a Candlekeep sage, does it? Information is a commodity, right? And who else would be bold enough to pinch info from those hooded creeps, but another bunch of hooded creeps," Imoen's face screwed up and twisted even more. Contrary to what most people thought, she wasn't really in favour of stealing for any reason other than a laugh, and while a lone thief could simply be a desperate person trying to survive, when you started getting gangs and guilds you started getting all sorts of other nasty stuff coming into it. Still, they might be the only ones able to tell them about Irenicus… but were the Cowled Wizards really as secretive as everyone said? It wasn't like she wanted names and addresses of every one of them and their aunties and uncles. She just wanted to know if Irenicus was alive and if so, where; maybe they should at least try asking them first… but then, what would they do if he was? They could do with allies… so much to think about… Imoen found herself looking to Jaheira.
"You wanted to start making your own decisions," the Druid shrugged, "but, if you require advice, then I would say that he may be right; Cowled Wizards are known for zealously guarding their privacy, whereas the Shadow Thieves may be bought and may also have other information about our quarry. The question is how much of a price are we willing to pay for it."
"In truth, I fear the decision may be out of our hands for now," Yoshimo said quietly, stepping forward between the redhead and Jaheira, puffing on his pipe. "You see that man with the walking stick back there? If he is lost, then he has been very foolish in following us around in circles for the last hour, no?"
Imoen hadn't noticed the man before. She tried not to look too much now, but she did catch a glance of him, dressed in rags, carrying a crooked stick, pretending he was interested in some crude wooden carvings being offered by a teenager at a small stall. Perhaps it was best not to let him know they were on to him; didn't want him to panic and run away…
"I… suppose we don't have to rush to find out about Irenicus," Imoen decisively decided, "not like he's holding any of us hostage or anything. We should figure out what's been going on 'round here and maybe make some more friends, right?"
"Yes… we should know our enemy first," Jaheira nodded, "gather our own strength… although we must not dawdle too long. If he lives, who knows what his plans are?"
"Great!" Imoen grinned, overjoyed that her decision had gone down well. "So let's just…" she started to stroll further down the street; they just had to wait for whoever was following them to make a move. There was another stall, just selling odd junk like broken ornaments, buckets, pans. Imoen caught sight of herself in a small cracked mirror, and pressed her finger on the tip of her nose. "Am I getting a hooked nose?" She asked, trying to correct it. "I am, aren't I? I'm gonna look like one of those stereotypical old witches… sheez," she walked away, still holding her nose up, thinking maybe it might set that way somehow.
As the others walked on, Yoshimo shrugged and offered to share his pipe with Minsc; the big man shook his head disapprovingly and followed the Druid and Imoen. Aerie meanwhile was captivated by the junk on offer, poring over some kind of astrolabe before she gasped, realising that Imoen had gotten more than ten feet away, dropped it and scurried after the redhead.
Imoen grinned when the Elf had caught up, settling down to walk just beside and slightly behind her. Meeting someone else who had been tortured, caged and treated like a beast, but had made a conscious choice to carry on trying to be good and start a new life for herself… it had restored Imoen's hope and confidence too. Plus, it was going to be fun having her own personal sidekick to help her with… stuff. Still, it worried her slightly that Aerie hadn't said a single word since leaving The Promenade. The Elf was busy taking things in, but the proximity of the other three seemed to have something to do with her being so quiet as well. The Elf looked up and listened to all of them when they talked, but wasn't yet sure enough about any of them to join in herself. Actually Imoen wasn't sure about one of them yet either…
"So, Yoshi," she asked, "why are you following us, still?"
"I assure you I've as much reason to see Irenicus brought to justice as any of you," he answered, "and besides… what else would I be doing?"
"Yeah… we are all rather lacking direction at the moment," the redhead blinked. Jaheira sighed.
"I told you… I am not lost…" the tawny haired half-elf insisted.
In any case, Yoshimo had helped them in the Circus tent. He was clearly a bit of a rogue, but whatever bad habits he had, he seemed for the most part trustworthy.
"What about you, Aerrers?" Imoen asked.
"M…me?" The blonde Elf blinked in surprise.
"Must be somewhere in the city you've always wanted to go."
"Well… I… have heard there is a temple of Oghma near the docks. T-they say it's one of the biggest libraries on The Sword Coast. Um, b-besides Candlekeep, of course. Although I'd like to visit there some day as well…"
"Heh… figures," Imoen smiled, remembering Aerie's little collection of books. She feared however that if she brought Aerie to a much bigger library it might be hard to get the Elf to come out again. "Hey… why don't we just swap childhoods? You can have Candlekeep and all the books, I'll take being able to soar high above and away from all the problems down here."
"I, um," Aerie smiled softly, although she turned her head away, gazing up at a passing cloud. "D-do you ever any idea how cold it gets up there?"
"Oh!" Imoen realised a bit too late that she'd said something foolish. "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to…"
"It's fine, r-really. You've got more important things to worry about than me."
"Aw, hey Aerie, you are important, okay?" The redhead put an arm around her, squeezing her shoulder. "'fraid sometimes my mouth just gets a little ahead of my brain."
"I… I guess that happens to everyone, sometimes…"
"Not me," Jaheira scoffed a touch theatrically. "Every word that comes out of my mouth is thoroughly thought through and checked for errors."
"She's lying her butt off," Imoen assured her friend, "if only she weren't, then maybe I'd get fewer headaches…"
"Coo!"
Coo? What kind of a greeting was that? Imoen looked ahead of her and saw some man in what once might have been fine garments, but were now tattered and covered in grime, trying to catch their attention. But… Coo? Raised by pigeons, maybe…
"You ladies, and laddies there, seem a little lost," the man grinned. He was missing about half his teeth. He might have been about to lose a few more, judging by the way Jaheira looked at him. "This ain't no place for tourists t'be… get what I'm saying, aye?"
"I am not lost!" The Druid kept insisting. "Nor are we tourists."
"Ah… so ye meant to be walking over yer own bootprints all day, eh?"
"State your business, fool."
"Aye, you be Jaheira, right?" He nodded in greeting, then turned to the young redhead. "And you be Imoen, if I'm not mistaken."
"And you be missing a few fingers if you do not tell us who you are and what you want," Jaheira said, her handing twisting around the hilt of her scimitar.
"Now, no need for any of that. I'm just after a congenial little chat is all. 'Sides, I reckon ye'd be full of hole before ye got that thing out of it's sheath," the man looked pointedly in several directions. There several men and woman mingled with others in the street, and in some of the windows about, carefully pulling their cloaks back to reveal the crossbows hidden underneath.
"How do you know our names?" Imoen asked, suspecting there wasn't much point in denying it. Wasn't much point in asking that, to be honest… they'd probably been listened to all day.
"Coo! Real live heroes come to our little street, huh? Is it true ye once singlehandedly cleared a barn of rats and cured a sick cow?"
"Er… yeah, I guess… that was a very long time ago, though…"
"Maybe ye'd take a look at my cellar, huh?"
"Er… no. I don't exactly do that sort of thing anymore…"
"So I've heard. Ye hunt bigger vermin now. Although I guess lately the vermin's been hunting you."
"It looks that way, yeah…"
"Well why don't ye come inside and chat for a bit? " He nodded backwards to the building behind him. "Be great to hear a few stories from someone of such reknown as yerself."
"You still haven't said who you are."
"Ach… were are my manners, ey? I be Gaelan Bayle. Come on in," he nodded more insistently, already opening the door.
"I have heard of this man," Yoshimo informed the rest of his group. "He handles some of the pickpockets around here… or collects from them, rather. I am sure the rumours are not true… in any case, he is quite well connected."
"R-rumours? W-what do you mean?" Aerie asked, not understanding the innuendo. Imoen couldn't blame her; even with Candlekeep's vast collection of books, there were certain things that just didn't get written about very often. It had been quite a shock to her to learn about some of these things for the first time. No time to explain it now though, and it wasn't something they were here to investigate. Hopefully it was just a rumour or a joke.
"Talk about it later, Aerie," Imoen sighed. Hopefully the Elf would forget about it. "For now, it looks we don't have much choice. I want you to wait out here, with Minsc."
"Wait?" Aerie's eyes widened. "Out… o-out here?"
"I won't be gone long, I hope. And Minsc is just a big friendly giant, ain't ya Minsc?"
"Indeed… Minsc is your humbug servant," the big man bowed, "no disastrophe will befall you out here!"
"See? Nothing at all to worry about."
"All… alright," Aerie forced herself to smile. It was clear enough she would obey.
"Now, you both know what to do if you hear screaming from in there, right?"
"Hmmm," Minsc scratched his bald head for a moment. "Ah… run for our lives, yes?"
"Wha…?" Imoen was taken back by the very un-Minsc like response, but then she saw the way his lips moved. "Oh, I see… that was a joke! A genuine Minsc joke, there… aww… look how proud he is… but you really both know what to do, right?"
"Of course Minsc and Boo know what to do, as does little Aerie we're sure."
"Right," Imoen felt a bit foolish; no reason to doubt any of them, was there?
She went on in with Jaheira and Yoshimo. The inside was pretty unremarkable; just like every other poor him she'd been. Walls, floors and furniture made of hastily thrown together wood held in place by nails and dried mud. Bayle was pouring them each a drink of water and ale. Mostly water.
"Me sources be telling me you might be looking for information 'bout a certain wizard, yes?" He explained to them, casually pushing three battered tankards across the table. "Man calling himself Irenicus?"
"The Cowled Wizards took him away," Imoen shrugged. "He's probably dead by now, right?" She said, hopefully, even as she suspected it just wasn't true.
"Aye… if only they'd that much sense," Gaelan sighed. "But no… he's alive, my mateys. And long as he is, he can still be a threat. To us all. He's being held in a charming little place they have for what they call 'deviants'. Er, people who practice magic but who aren't Cowlies."
Imoen felt her heart sinking suddenly… she knew he probably was alive, but to have it confirmed. She'd still been holding out a little bit of hope that she wouldn't have to face him again, or stare into his cold, emotionless eyes. Not unless they were already dead, anyway.
"Where is he?" Jaheira snarled suddenly, slamming her fist on the table.
"Hey… calm down, Jae…" Imoen squeeked.
"I have no time for games. I want to know where the murderer of my husband is hiding, now!"
"I not be having all the details," Bayle said, backing away slowly. "'N even if I did, what are ye gonna do? Take on all the Cowled Wizards yourselves to get to him? Just ain't happening, friends. But I happen to acquainted with a powerful group who've as much interest in seeing justice brought to this fella as all of you. And they've enough power to go against the wizards."
"Well, if that's the case, why would they want our help?" Imoen asked. Jaheira seemed to have regained control of herself… she hoped there weren't going to be too many outbursts. It was unprofessional and un-Jaheira like. Even if it was understandable, it worried Imoen a little.
"More a question of what did he want with you, I reckon. Oh, we've all heard the rumours about who your father is, lady, but what did Irenicus think he could use you for?"
"I have no idea," Imoen shook her head, answering truthfully, "he had all sorts of machines and experiments going on, but I've not any idea what they were about…"
"Still, he wants ye for something. N' for that reason, my friends think it would be best not to let ye out their sights. But since they be knowing ye be no allies of his, maybe best you just work together, 'ey?"
"So, these 'friends' of yours," Imoen asked as if she hadn't already guessed. If they were who she thought they were, there was little chance of escaping their sights anyway. She hated being dragged along into things like this, but for now it looked like there was no choice. She was just never going to be able to live her own life. "Where they the ones fighting Irenicus in his dungeon?" Bayle looked up, measuring Imoen.
"Aye," he nodded, "it weren't their intention, but a lot of them lost their lives so that you could escape. They be willing to help you more, but they want a little something in return."
"Like what?"
"Well, first, it'll require a little capital to cross the Cowled Wizards…"
Money… of course. "How much?" Imoen sighed.
"Twenty thousand gold pieces."
"No, seriously… how much?"
"I just said."
"We don't have that kind of money!" The redhead protested; in fact, they didn't really have any money.
"Ack… I'm sure ye've raised that much before in your adventures."
"Oh yeah, sure… trouble is, I left all my money in Baldur's Gate. Didn't think to bring any of it with me before I was knocked out and dragged here. If only I'd planned ahead, huh?"
"We live and we learn. But don't fret missy. There be plenty of jobs going 'round 'ere for someone with your skills. In fact, you may be able to pay some of it off working for my friends themselves," Bayle said with a wide, crooked grin. "You head down the docks and ask for a fella called Bloodscalp. Renal Bloodscalp. Tell 'em I sent ye."
"Nice name. I take it he didn't get it because he's constantly scratching at lice?"
"Nah… he washes least once a month, I reckon."
"Wow," obviously someone extremely meticulous about how they looked. Imoen didn't exactly relish the thought of getting involved with someone who had earned a name like that, but… what else would she be doing? There were no other leads to go on, and Bayle's friends probably were the best people to learn the lay of the land from.
"Oh… one other bit of advice for ye," Gaelan said as Imoen was turning to leave, "you be careful who you talk to out there. Lot of… unpleasant types about," he said with a mostly toothless, apparently unironically. And, well… I'm sure you'll learn about all the recent goings on round 'ere soon enough. Good luck to ye," he toasted.
Right now though, Imoen wanted intelligence far more than luck.
Aerie was waiting patiently outside. At least she looked like she was. In truth, she was finding it very hard. She was trying to keep herself occupied wondering if it was possible to cause a total protonic reversal by crossing two neutrona beams, but her mind kept wandering back to why Imoen was taking so long. Every little noise made her jump up, and she was really struggling not to open the door and go in. But, Imoen had told her to wait, and she didn't want anyone to think she couldn't follow instructions. In fact, it was one thing she'd learnt to do really well.
A few feet away, on the opposite side of the door Imoen had gone into, that huge man, Minsc, was gently petting his hamster. She had never seen quite such a big human, and had to admit she felt a little threatened by him; in her life, musclebound men carrying weapons had tended not to treat her very well. She knew she was silly; if he was a friend of Imoen's then he must be good. She'd heard he was from Rasheman, a land she'd read about before, ruled by powerful witches. She had a lot of questions she wanted to ask him, but… what if she made a mistake? What if she accidentally said the wrong thing and he became angry and attacked her? Or worse, what if he decided he just didn't like her because she bothered him with stupid questions that anyone who'd grown up in the world ought to know the answer to and she ended up having to go back to the circus? So in the end she said nothing at all.
He looked up. Aerie silently yelped and quickly turned her eyes away. Oh dear… he must have seen her looking…
"I will ask her, Boo!" He said. She tentatively turned her head back toward him, just as he took a single large step, his shadow completely covering her. "Er, Boo would like to know," he said, rubbing the back of his head nervously, "do you like Sunflowers?"
"I…" Aerie gulped. Strange thing to be asked, and what if she gave the wrong answer? Was there a wrong answer? If there was, would it trigger some sort of berserker rage… "Um… I-I've never seen one," she said, resorting to just telling the truth.
"Truly? Ha! Minsc has seen many!" He beamed. "He has ridden through whole forests of them, some of them even taller than Minsc, if such a thing can be believed."
"R… really?" She gasped, her wide eyed fear slowly turning into wonder as she imagined what it must be like to run through such a forest. "Um… w-why does Boo want to know if I like Sunflowers?"
"Ah… he is thinking about food. He likes the seeds, you see. It has been a long time since any of us have had a good meal. But you seem to be afraid that Minsc might eat you…"
"No!" Aerie gasped, shaking her head. "I mean… t-that would be silly, right?" She'd prayed to Baervar that it was, anyway.
"Indeed it is, right Boo?" The big man grinned. "You are not fat enough to eat yet."
"Heh," Aerie snortled, feeling herself relax. "I-I'm sorry… I-I'm just not very good at… at talking, I'm afraid."
"You seemed to converse with Little Imoen well enough."
"I… I guess it was just the circumstances. I-I had to help her to get better, a-and then she helped me and, well…"
"Boo understands. He gets nervous meeting new people as well. He crawls into Minsc's pants and curls into a little ball… it can be rather embarrassing."
"I… see," the blonde Elf covered her mouth as she giggled.
"Hmm?" Minsc held the hamster up to his ear, where it's whiskers did appear to twitch a few times. "Ah… Boo says you have a pretty smile. You should not hide it."
"Um… thank you, Boo?" Aerie expected that many things would seem a little strange to her out here… but she hadn't she'd be talking to a hamster.
"Of course, Minsc has seen many wonders other than Sunflowers."
"You have?" Aerie's eyes sparkled. "L-like what?"
"Since leaving his homeland, Minsc has crossed mountains and forests and rivers, towns and cities such as this, and fought all kinds of beast. And wherever Minsc has gone, he has trodden on the buttocks of evil doers and made a name for himself as great hero! Minsc and Boo and…" suddenly Minsc's beaming eyes became very sullen. Aerie tilted her head, her own heart sinking of such a wonderfully stupendous man suddenly being like this…
"I'm… I'm sorry about your witch. Dynaheir, yes?" She said. "Imoen told me a little about her. She… s-she sounded like an amazing woman. Strong and confident and wise…"
"Aye, she was these things. Disapproving of Boo sometimes, but usually they got along. Now, her dajemma is over. And so is Minsc's…" he said, sinking even further. A dajemma was a journey Rashemi witches and the warriors sworn to protect them went on to prove themselves in the world, or so Aerie had read. She guessed for a warrior to return home without his witch would be… well, she'd never lost anyone who was that close to her, not that she knew, but she supposed it would be a bit like an Avariel losing her wings and suddenly being unable to talk to her family or anyone she'd cared about, not sure if they could even accept her now...
"N-no," Aerie shook her head. "You… you can still honour her memory. And, y-you still have Imoen to protect, yes? T-there's still lots you can do, Minsc."
"Ahh… Dynaheir would have liked you, Minsc thinks. You have a kind heart," he told her. It was rather simple and childlike thing to say, but endearing nevertheless. "And you are right… Minsc still has lot's to do. There is one butt in particular that needs to be kicked so hard it end up back in Rasheman…"
"Hey… are you two getting along?" Imoen asked, stepping outside. Aerie wasn't as relieved to see her as she would have been a few minutes ago. Not that she wasn't, just that she and Minsc were getting along.
"Yes," the Elf nodded. "What happened?"
"Something horrible, Aerie," Imoen shook her head, looking down at the dirt road. "Something that involves a word I really hate saying… it's a vulgar, disgusting word that should only be said in whispers, and even then only when it's positively, absolutely necessary for fear it might give someone a heart attack."
"What?" Aerie arched an eyebrow; she was catching on that when Imoen embellished things like this, it was probably going to be something very silly.
"We got a…" Imoen looked her in the eye, gulping and steadying herself, "…job."