Loyalty of the Tiefling

by JHMLYNDALE

The events of Mask of the Betrayer, but with the twist of Neeshka having managed to follow her harbour-boy… who is hers rather than Elanee's. Prologue, 25 chapters, Epilogue.

18. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

The expressionless face of the Clay Golem did not change as they left but once they had left it plodded back into motion and with as much speed as its thoughts and its body would allow began moving around the room. It was slow and calm but that was not the same as being stupid, and appearing simple minded and focussed on your studies had been a good survival trait in this Academy. Leaving and getting some distance between itself and that duo of bear and man seemed like it would be an even better survival trait now though.

Meanwhile Blake and the others had reached the bottom of the stairs and were looking down the hall ahead and to either side of them. As expected the stairs had bent around so they were facing the opposite way and these rooms were probably below those they had already cleared. With the air of a man deciding that any direction was better than none Blake headed to the left and the east. Neeshka bustled past him and, after briefly craning her neck to listen, pushed the door open and continued into the room. Following his sweetheart Blake looked around the room and at the piles of Golem parts and the inactive little winged homunculi.

"Not very tidy," Gann observed. "But certainly has a lived in feel to it."

"Surprised it has not been ransacked," said Blake. Gann gave him an inquisitive look so Blake explained. "Those things look like what was accompanying the Red Wizard that was sent to Okku's barrow to pose as a rescuer. So this might have been her room and, if so, might have had clues to her mother's doings."

"Room can be searched without leaving much evidence," Neeshka pointed out, as she proved her words.

"Has it been?" Blake asked.

"Not sure," admitted Neeshka, popping a few trinkets away, "they'd not have been after the same things as me, and there's no obviously missing scrolls or books."

Blake looked around the room again. "I don't think there is anything to learn here," he sighed, "we know from what Neeshka saw and heard that being sent to the barrow was a surprise to this Red Wizard so even if we found a journal there would be no clues in it."

The others nodded, even Okku, so leaving the room as they had found it except for the absence of a few shiny things they headed back down the short corridor and continued on to what would have been their right. There was a table whose drawer Neeshka swiftly checked and a door that she found was locked and which she shook her head about once she had listened at it. "Sounds empty," Neeshka whispered.

"I doubt the same result ahead," murmured Okku, "even if you cannot I can smell the presence of Gnolls."

Gann paused and sniffed. "It is distinctive."

While Blake tried to decide if Gann was bluffing or if his nose was actually that good Neeshka moved forward to listen at this door. She shrugged prettily to Blake at what she heard and drew her Rapier. Blake nodded back and drew his larger sword as he considered whether there was some magic he could cast that would make the next fight easier. Filling the entire room beyond that door with flame might be a good start but would also be counter-productive to searching the rest of this Academy if the building as well as the Gnolls caught fire.

Impatient with all the hesitation and planning and attempts to think how to make this go smoother Okku padded forward to smash one great paw into the door. It disintegrated into a rain of splinters, the hinges hung down, twisted by the impact and with a few remnants of wood still screwed to them, and there was a clatter as the door latch landed and skittered across the floor of the room. Okku lunged forward. There was a crack of wood and metal as the bear-god passed and brushed against the doorframe and one hinge, tearing part of the former from the wall and snapping the already abused latter in two.

Although he expected the bear-god needed little help Blake more neatly followed Okku through the doorway. Four Gnolls clad in the same armour as those outside were reacting to the sudden arrival. Two were already bringing their halberds into position to try to fend Okku off while a third was moving to recover his from where it had been leaning against a wall. The fourth Gnoll had an unstrung bow in his hand but he glanced at Blake and threw this aside before snarling and showing he had decided to rely on his teeth and claws rather than take the time to string the bow at these close quarters.

Blake did agree with the Gnoll that there was not much room despite the lack of furniture. There was enough though that with the reach of their halberds the Gnolls might be able to stab at Okku's flanks if those were not protected. Blake continued into the room, heading straight on with the wall to his right, Neeshka on his heels and Gann moving a little crabwise to his left along the other wall. The Gnoll that had thrown away the bow tensed and then sprang at Okku.

Okku turned to meet this but it had been a feint. Despite the apparent effort put into the spring the Gnoll did little more than take a half-step forward and the one to his right took advantage of Okku's turn for his own attack. Being a wily old bear-god with experience of pack predators, whether on four legs or two, Okku had not been completely fooled and with even greater speed whirled to face that halberd strike. He bounced back on his mighty legs a little to avoid it and counterattack but unfortunately this swung his great haunches towards Blake and in bouncing back he arse-butted Blake against the wall.

Compared with the bear-god's might this was an insignificant blow but it was enough that Blake, his attention on the weapon less Gnoll, had some breath driven from him and it did trigger Blake's Death Armour. One had to be careful with auras to hurt attackers as they could easily hurt friends if the spell was poorly crafted and lacked safeguards such as prevented it triggering from Neeshka's friendly touch or when Okku's earlier charge had brushed against Blake. This time however with the spell sensing through Blake there was danger and with the arse-butt being such a solid blow the aura flared up.

Surprised at having his rear burned by magic energy Okku lunged forward again and into the Gnolls. There was a solid sounding thunk as he embedded himself onto the halberd he had been trying to avoid and a slight skitter of foot-claws as the shock travelled up the halberd shaft and the Gnoll holding it lost his balance. A long shallow cut appeared along Okku's other side as he also grazed the blade of that halberd. Fortunately for Okku as surprised as he'd been by the pain in his behind it seemed the Gnolls were almost as surprised by him throwing himself on their weapons. He'd driven them back into the corner and more into each other's way.

Blake took a few deep breaths as he tried to regain his wind and decide if that was a good thing or not. It did seem that retreating into the corner to defend themselves while howling for reinforcements and to raise the alarm might have been better for the Gnolls. Of course that was assuming there were any reinforcements within earshot and that the Gnolls would be willing to embarrass themselves by asking for help. And would have had the disadvantage that their halberds would have been no defence against magic.

Seeing the Gnoll who had cut Okku withdraw his halberd for a more forceful and more aimed attack Gann stabbed past and over the bear-god's head to pre-empt this. The Gnoll jerked away as he caught the flicker of movement but the edge of Gann's spearhead still sliced across the Gnoll's throat just beneath the line of the jaw. It was not a very deep wound but it did not have to be deep to bleed heavily and to throw off the Gnoll's attack with the pain and the evasion and the sudden uncertainty over whether to attack the great colourful bear or this grey-skinned spearman.

Neeshka had moved to guard Blake while he recovered his breath and as she wondered if she could find an excuse to 'accidentally' stab Okku. She was more agile than her harbour-boy but, even with not being as directly behind the behind, she had barely jumped back in time to avoid being arse-butted as well. Blake gave her a quick smile as he continued along the wall and out from behind Okku and around. Neeshka smiled back as her desire for retribution on Okku faded a little with the passing moments.

Glancing again at the approaching Blake the weapon less Gnoll sprang again at Okku, this time with less visible tensing but with more force. The paws of the Gnoll with the stuck halberd skidded slightly as he wrestled against the bear-god's slight attempt to turn. Whether it was the force of his push, the pain of his weapon in the wound, or if his efforts had been irrelevant the result was the same. Okku was slow enough the weapon less Gnoll landed on him and dug in with the claws of his hands and feet to start biting away like an over-ambitious wolf.

This seemed to be doing little damage thanks to the slope of Okku's neck and how that was made even steeper by the hump between his shoulder blades. There was also some doubt over whether a god-of-bears with a form of spirit-flesh still had a spine to be bitten at and severed even if the Gnoll managed to reach it. However as annoyed as Blake still was he saw no need to let the Gnoll continue with his attempts. If nothing else there was the selfish reason that the longer this went on the angrier Okku would get and the more likely it was he'd ignore the halberd in him and start throwing himself around to try to fling the Gnoll on him aside.

Blake had already been squashed between Okku and a wall once in this room and twice would be twice too many. He swept his sword out and towards the Gnoll with less care than he might have shown on other occasions. Whether it was luck or that his training was good enough his emotions did not much affect his skill he managed to avoid striking Okku and the edge of the tip of his sword sliced neatly into the Gnoll's side between the armour plates. Muscle and blood vessels parted and magic discharged into the wound, numbing one of the Gnoll's legs so the force of the blow knocked him off Okku and to the floor. Spirit-flesh shimmered above him and a pool of blood began to spread beneath him as Okku's form repaired itself and the Gnoll's mortal body failed to do so as swiftly.

Stabbing again Gann kept the attention of the Gnoll he had wounded as his spear clinked aside with a parry from that Gnoll's halberd. He was at a disadvantage matching those weapons against each other as the halberd had just as much reach and the ability to be used more like an axe as well as like a spear. However Gann preferred the extra speed he could give the smaller spearhead and was not concerned by the contest as he saw Okku's weight shift slightly. Freed of the encumbrance of a Gnoll hanging off his side Okku struck. Even he could not ignore the halberd stuck in him to rear up or twist his body. But he could ignore the pain well enough to sweep his left paw around low and take that Gnoll's legs out from under him.

Blake continued to advance and stabbed down at the weapon less Gnoll before he could recover. Against most of the foes they had encountered he could simply have driven his blade into the centre of the chest and the heart within. Being armoured this Gnoll instead got stabbed at the base of the neck, just above the breastplate where some wore an armoured neck-guard, and choked up blood as the hand's-width of razor sharp metal cut down through windpipe and veins and spine. Neeshka had moved to Blake's right where she could protect him while his sword was down. Since the only Gnoll in position to strike at him still had his halberd stuck in Okku and had been tugged about a bit by his grip on it and Okku's movements this precaution was not completely needed. But Neeshka loved him and that was reason enough.

The Gnoll on the floor with the shredded legs twisted and managed to rather feebly bring the edge of his halberd blade up and into the side of Okku's belly. This made little impression but the final Gnoll had managed to untangle himself and step back and raise his halberd above his head to shorten it by angling the butt up. He stabbed down into Okku's shoulder like a whaler trying to finish off the exhausted leviathan beside his boat. Gann took a chance and, though the Gnoll on the floor could swing his halberd back and into his legs, stepped further into range. Raising his spear not quite as high as the other Gnoll's halberd Gann stabbed across past Okku again and into the armpit the Gnoll's still raised arms exposed.

Belatedly the Gnoll who had been wrestling with his stuck halberd gave up on freeing it as he realised how close Blake and Neeshka were. Focus and determination were good in many aspects of life but in battle, or even a fight, becoming obsessed with one thing could be a fatal mistake. So it proved here as Neeshka's rapier flicked out and across the Gnoll's eyes at a slight angle before he could do more than simply release the halberd shaft. One eye popped as it was cut and the magic discharged into it and an instant later the other eye was blinded by the blood flooding into it from the cut above it. The Gnoll started to raise its hands to cup either side of its face but Blake's sword came in and with less subtlety than Neeshka's cut halfway through the Gnoll's thick neck.

Gann twisted his spear and pulled back, the spearshaft grating against where breast and back plate met, not satisfied with himself. He'd found the opening in the armour that was needed to let the arm move freely, but he'd not angled the blow well enough for it to be immediately fatal. As that Gnoll collapsed the one already there with the shredded legs finally started to swing his halberd towards Gann's boots. Gann stamped down at the swinging shaft so the blade caught into the rug and floor, though that still put him a little off-balance, and he had to take half a step back to compensate, as he'd needed to briefly stand on one foot. Before the sprawled out Gnoll could untangle his halberd and try another swing a pained and dazed looking Okku bit down at him. The halberds wobbled where they were stuck in the bear-god and a crunch came from where his jaws met on bone and flesh.

Seeing his last packmate die the armpit stabbed Gnoll snarled through the blood frothing at his mouth. He tried to move and to claw or bite at them with his last breaths so Neeshka combined mercy for him and good sense for her in not wanting her ankles and calves assaulted. The shaft of the halberd sticking horizontally from Okku was in the way but with deceptive ease and fluid grace she hopped over this and stabbed the Gnoll in the mouth and neck with two quick motions. His last snarl died with him in a gurgle of blood as Neeshka stepped back.

Blake looked at Okku. "If you can move back a bit, my friend, we can try to deal with those."

Okku grumbled and shuffled back a little as Blake handed his sword to Neeshka to hold and Gann leaned his spear against the wall. Despite the hindrance of Blake's shield the two of them managed to get hold of the halberd jutting up diagonally from Okku's shoulder. This was close to falling out anyway but it would do extra harm in working its way loose with Okku's motions and as his healing pushed at it. It took little effort for Gann and Blake to carefully pull it straight out and lay it aside. Blake then looked at the other halberd that made Okku look as if he had a lance tucked under his arm.

"This one could hurt a lot more," Blake warned. "Apologies in advance."

Okku growled in contempt at the warning and Blake had to damp down a sudden flare of temper. He was trying to be sympathetic even though he felt the pain was the bear-god's own fault, and even though he had put him in danger by winding him slightly in the middle of a fight. For a moment Blake felt angry words quivering on the tip of his tongue to return Okku's contempt with his own but good manners from his adoptive father Daeghun and his training in diplomacy kept those words from escape. Taking a firm grip on the deeply embedded halberd's shaft Blake and Gann heaved and manners and training did not keep Blake from heaving slightly harder than Gann expected.

The halberd slid out almost noiselessly and the butt of it came back and into the wall. Plaster cracked and a small chunk of it fell off as plaster dust settled and stuck to the bloody Gnolls and floor. Blake glared at this pockmark for an instant as he laid the halberd aside and recovered his sword from Neeshka. Even with all the noise this fight had produced with snarling and growling and the clatter of weapons and falling armoured bodies that was still dangerous. Prisoners in dungeons had discovered sound could travel well through walls when they were struck so that thump might have travelled further.

Okku's broad chest was heaving with pain as gradually his spirit form knitted itself together. He would never admit this to the little-one, and appreciated the little-one not reminding him of this, but perhaps caution and teamwork was not as pointless as it had seemed. They had still wasted much time but it may not have been as complete a waste of time as he had thought. This pondering was interrupted as Okku felt extra energy flow through him to aid his wounds. He inclined his head in thanks to Gann as he realised the Hagspawn had beseeched other spirits to lend that aid and Gann nodded back, with a slight smile as it was so rare he needed to help the bear-god in this way.

"That pain, that aura," Okku rumbled, breaking the near silence of cloth on metal as Blake wiped his sword, "that was not something I felt when last I struck you."

Blake considered asking if Okku meant back in the barrow, where they were enemies, or when Okku had barged past him in this academy. But Neeshka was looking as sour as her sweet nature could allow and asking the question would also be a reminder of both incidents. "I'd not prepared or cast that spell to persist, then," nodded Blake, adding after a moment, "and my, as Gann put it, biscuit skill means I can also make the fiery Elemental Shield last twice as long as well as being more powerful with my extra practice."

Okku rumbled in acknowledgement as Neeshka gave him a final look and started examining the room and corpses for loot. Blake spent a few happy moments watching his beloved move, then frowned slightly as he looked around and remembered his earlier thought about there not being much furniture.

"This does not look like a barracks."

"I think there was a sign saying these downstairs were 'Instructors' Quarters'," agreed Gann.

"And upstairs were classrooms and storerooms," Blake continued, "still, there did look to be more rooms above those we started with so perhaps barracks and dormitories would be there. If anywhere."

"You wonder where they are?" rumbled Okku.

"I do, or if they exist," Blake replied. "This academy seems a little isolated for people to travel in each day but magic makes many things possible."

Gann chuckled and then, seeing the strange looks the others gave him, explained. "I was just wondering which would be less disturbing to find, a barrack full of Gnolls waiting to replace those we slew on guard on the walls. Or teenage humans lacking adequate supervision but not lacking in beds."

"I think the former would be more dangerous," smiled Blake slightly in return, "and, without wishing to boost your ego, I think seduction would not be as easy for a teenage boy as it was for a teenage Gann. However much they prayed to Tymorra for luck or Sharess for sensual fulfilment."

"And why do you think it would be the boy having to do the seducing? Hmm?" Neeshka asked, the twinkle in her eye and the angle of her smile making her look even more impish than normal. "I seem to recall a certain harbour-boy that took a lot of chasing and catching."

"Or even whether a boy, or a girl, would be involved at all," added Gann. "But I admit it more likely to be one of each, or perhaps at least one of each, in the tryst."

"We shall just have to see, my friends," Blake agreed, trying to end the discussion, "or hopefully not see. However much Gann's imagination makes him sound like the author of scenarios for an erotic pamphlet."

"And how do you know about the contents of erotic pamphlets?" asked Neeshka as Blake started to head out of the room.

"I've always been interested in reading," Blake replied deadpan, making Neeshka giggle. He decided not to add that as a teenager reading both those accounts and the accounts of magic it sometimes felt that magic was the more likely he'd get the chance to practice.

Moving down the hall Blake paused again at the unopened door. Neeshka nodded to him and slipped forward with the keys she had taken and, to her disappointment, one clicked the lock open. Moving carefully despite the lack of noise within Blake was quite surprised at the size of the room and that it wrapped around the stairwell they had descended. There was another of the mirrors that littered the hallways and ahead of them Blake could see a dais and a pair of obelisks. Those and the patterns laid out on the floor in stone suggested magic to Blake even before he reached the corner and saw a floating orb midway along the wall separating this room from the corridor. Skirting the pattern on the floor Blake moved across to the orb to examine it. Blake peered at it and the obelisks and the two additional mirrors that were at this end of the room.

"Careful harbour-boy," Neeshka warned. "I don't see any traps but you know I deal more with wires and pressure plates than magic."

Blake nodded as he tried a few simple divinations. "The flow of magic suggests it is tied to that obelisk," he said, pausing and adding with a smile, "which would have been a fair assumption anyway even without the aid of Mystra. Does seem only the two spells attached to it. The one to make it float and one to trigger the obelisk magic."

"Which does what?" Gann asked reasonably.

"I have no idea," admitted Blake. "The obelisk does seem similar to those in the Mephit experiment so could be teleportation, but I doubt it."

After a few moments more in thought Blake shook his head and turned away. None of the others objected as he led the way back out of the room and the short way down the cross-hall into the main one. There Blake noticed more mirrors and paused to examine a crystal in a metal holder but as their purpose, if they had one, eluded him he continued on to another door off the main hall. Despite the lack of noise past that door he had a feeling that all was not as peaceful as it seemed. Neeshka saw Blake's uncertainty and, for once, misinterpreting moved forward and checked the door for traps.

"No traps, and not locked," Neeshka said with a reassuring smile.

"Thank you," replied Blake, trying to look grateful rather than surprised as his thoughts had not been on that problem.

Carefully Blake pushed the door open and they entered. There was a short hallway within the room that made it a little L shaped so despite Okku's grousing they took advantage of this to organise themselves. It remained quiet but as they reached the corner into the main part Blake blinked in surprise. Just out of sight from the doorway was a large human shaped mound of rocks and mud that straightened as it sensed them. Stone rumbled against stone and a few lumps of mud fell to the floor as the Earth Elemental turned slightly. Blake waved for Gann to move a little along the wall to outflank it as it took one plodding step that hammered the floorboards and caused the end of one to pop up as it flexed.

This Elemental was barely short enough to not scrape the ceiling and was quite intimidating in its bulk but rather than concern a smile came to Blake's face. Upstairs people had ignored the constant thumping of the Golem duels and had fortunately also ignored when that stopped. It was a relief that there was something here that was almost as noisy and would also have accustomed them to ignoring loud noises, such as knocking a halberd butt against a wall. Its presence also solved one mystery as he might have been uneasy because his curse had felt the animating spirit of this Earth Elemental. But with it being both taller and wider than the doorway that raised the question of how it was supposed to get in or out of this room.

Gann's expression showed he was not sure what his spear could do to rock and mud but that given a chance he'd try to find out. To Neeshka's annoyance Blake moved in front of her rather than leaving a gap between him and the wall for her to fill. This could have been an accident or because he had Okku crowding him towards the corner to his right. But Neeshka suspected it was more that he wanted to protect her. The Elemental took another step and Blake thrust forward to sweep his sword in a backhand blow at the Elemental's left knee. His blade struck sparks off the rocks either side as he didn't quite manage a clean line through the mud-lubricated joint.

Staggering slightly the Elemental swatted at Blake who jumped back a little to avoid this blow. As the Elemental's left arm passed harmlessly in front of Blake, and Neeshka congratulated herself on not getting too close on Blake's heels, Okku lunged. Taking his weight on his rear paws and twisting his body the bear-god slammed his left paw into the side of the smaller rocks that formed the Elemental's head. Even a creature of rock would be affected by such a blow but to make matters worse for the Elemental this also put more strain on its damaged knee as it added to the momentum of its own backhand swat. The joint gave way enough that though the rocks remained attached the Elemental fell forward and to the side to bounce off the wall and land on the bed there.

With the Elemental's weight the mattress did very little to cushion the impact and the wood of the bedstead splintered into kindling. Before it could do more than begin to attempt to rise from its sprawling position Okku had pounced and a second thud ran through the floorboards and up through the soles of Blake's boots. This and the impact against the wall made him wonder if his relief of moments ago had been premature. Even if these people were used to loud noises there were limits to what anyone would accept or expect so they might be pushing their luck.

Okku continued to dig at the back of the Earth Elemental as Gann moved in and started stabbing at the shoulder and elbow of its right arm. Though the elemental outmassed them all, even Okku, compared with the one in the Skein it was tiny. Blake's sword twitched as he tried to decide where he could attack. Its left arm was trapped under its body and against the wall and Gann and Okku seemed to need little help. There was a slight whisper of fine chain links and Neeshka slipped out from behind Blake and around him and Gann to start stabbing the Elemental in the hips and knees.

With one arm trapped and its other arm and both legs being stabbed the Elemental was unable to dislodge Okku. A few more thumps ran through the floorboards as it briefly raised itself only to fall under the bear-god's weight and an attack on the limb it was pushing up with. Blake had still not found an angle to join in this dismembering before the Elemental slumped and something about it changed to make it appear nothing more than a pile of rocks and mud. It had no lungs to make its chest rise and fall with breath and no eyes to close or stare unblinking so Blake was not sure that without the reaction of his curse he would have been so certain there was no longer an animating spirit within it. Okku dug a few moments longer and then stepped down from the remains.

"We had best check the next door room," Blake commented, "and see if there is anyone in there who we have annoyed with the noise."

"I heard only the banging on the floor," smiled Gann, "rather than any banging on the wall."

"So the room could be empty, or this room could belong to a Red Wizard of power and short temper."

"Which would explain the corpse over there," said Gann, pointing towards the corner of the room, "if that is not the owner."

"Some places complaining about noisy neighbours can be a fast way to getting a knife in the guts," Neeshka agreed.

"Then I am glad I have stayed away from the 'civilised lands' where people are so uncivil," replied Gann, with a slight bow of the head to Neeshka.

Moving back out into the hall and around to the next door Neeshka again checked for traps and briefly listened. With a smile to Blake she eased the door open and they entered the room. This mirrored the other in shape though the furniture was different and, more importantly, there was no elemental waiting to notice them. It seemed quite a cosy room and Blake started browsing the bookcase to their right for any clues or any interesting books. He turned from this perusal as he heard Neeshka give a low whistle.

"Found something," Neeshka said, straightening from beside an opened chest and holding up a soul housing. As Blake crossed the room to join her she suddenly glanced to her left. "Make that two somethings."

Blake took the soul housing, with only a brief caress of fingertips against Neeshka's hand, and frowned at it as she moved away from him. Even the endearing way her tail was twitching as she examined the wall could not distract him from his displeasure that someone's soul was in a chest rather than at least being given enough respect and care for that soul housing to be protected in the depository. When Neeshka turned and grinned at him though he found it impossible to remain frowning.

"You see it?" Neeshka asked, gesturing.

"See…?" Blake began before cutting himself off. "Scrapes?" He paused a moment to look and think some more. "Does that bookcase slide?"

"Bravo harbour-boy! Top marks."

"So what does he win for passing this test?" Gann asked. "Or would revealing that embarrass him?"

"Careful my friend," said Blake in mock warning, "or do you want me to share the details of that dream-Gann?"

"Mercy!" Gann smiled. "Anything but that. Well, not anything… but many things."

Stowing the soul housing carefully in a magic pouch Blake joined Neeshka and set his shoulder against the bookcase. An experimental push showed there was no catch to be released and that this had been recently moved or at least well maintained. A slight noise like rubbing bare hands together for warmth came from the other edge of the bookcase as it further scraped the wall in revealing a door. Neeshka efficiently checked this for traps and then, with a small sigh, reached for keys rather than lockpicks. She soon found the right one and the door swung open to reveal an unexpected and unpleasant sight.

That the room beyond was lit in red was sinister enough that with all the death they had already seen the corpses of what appeared to be three female students and the puddles of blood hardly added to this impression. What did though was the torture equipment. Along each side of the room were pillars with neck collars attached to chains too short to allow the imprisoned person to sit on the floor. Three racks with ankle-stocks to hold and windlasses to stretch were arranged in a U towards the centre of the room and as Blake moved further in he saw two chairs at the open end of this. These looked more innocent until you noticed the metal half-loop fixed to their backs.

Those half-loops would be uncomfortable enough but level with them were large flat-ended screws through the chair backs. These could be turned with their crossbars to press against the back of the person's neck to force their windpipes against the half-loop and, unlike a person, these chairs could maintain that degree of strangulation for as long as the torturer wished. Blake noticed to his left there was an altar against this wall as well as against the opposite one. These were decorated in skulls and had manacles and a central trough to carry blood off the altar to pour into the bowl below.

As a final touch the pillars to the left of the door had an extra feature compared with those nearly straight ahead. Three pikes had been fixed into the floor and on each was a battered head. Blake moved across past the racks and strangling chairs to examine these more closely. He nodded as he decided that despite his sense of chivalry and that these were men rather than young girls he felt rather sorrier for them than for the students. One had a full head of hair, one at least some hair, and the one in the middle that was completely bald had no tattoos so these were not Red Wizards. That did not mean they were necessarily innocents but Blake did feel it made it at least possible.

Looking back towards the doorway Blake saw that Neeshka's customary happiness had deserted her and that Gann was looking even queasier than when his mother had described how she had been forced to devour his father piece by piece. Okku though had stuck his head in, taken a quick glance, and having confirmed there was nothing to fight had withdrawn and gone back to waiting for the mortals. Blake muttered a quick prayer to Lilira, Our Lady of Joy, to soon bless Neeshka again and then attempted to make his own contribution.

"There is a chest there," Blake said, hoping the prospect of loot would make his beloved happier.

With an uncharacteristic silence and a rather wan smile that made Blake's heart ache Neeshka nodded and crossed to that chest. Watching her he felt a little guilty as he realised he cared more that she had been made sad than he cared that these people had been made dead. Perhaps it showed the depth of his love for her or perhaps it was that however slowly and painfully these people had died feeling sorry for them would not help them now. Either way he felt like he should still care more rather than being so much less affected than Neeshka.

A sudden thought occurred to Blake. In trying to unravel this mess they had been reminded often of the existence of Gods of the Dead and an afterlife. That would help with feeling death was just a transition between existences. But they were reminded of those things because Akachi had been a priest of Myrkul, so maybe some of that faith was seeping through to make him feel even more that way?

"You appear to be thinking deep thoughts," Gann commented quietly, "rather than simply, as is your more usual habit, indulging in the sight of your lively and lovely sweetheart at work."

"She makes this room, and this academy, feel less terrible, my friend," Blake replied, "but seeing this does give me very mixed feelings. It shows the sort of things that Red Wizards… or I suppose anyone twisted enough are capable of. At least the Red Wizard we got the keys from had a more evil aura than most and that he had to hide this room does show even they have some standards."

"Perhaps so, but it is rather an elaborate room," countered Gann, "so he could not have expected it to be discovered until it had been much used. Which shows how little concern he had that those students would be missed or their disappearance investigated."

"True," said Blake simply. "And whatever extra crimes he committed against the body and mind in this room the entire Academy is devoted to greater crimes against the soul. But twisted bodies and torture equipment seems less abstract."

"On that we can agree," Gann nodded.

Neeshka returned and to their relief they could leave the depressing room. Blake headed across the hall past the tables and chairs in it and the crystal and to the door opposite the room with the Earth Elemental. As they neared it Okku slowed and sniffed and looked even more ill of temper than normal.

"More trouble?" Blake asked.

"That depends on whether you consider Infernals to be troublesome," rumbled Okku.

"They can be bound and used for good," Blake replied, "and Neeshka shows that blood does not always tell, but I prefer to avoid them. If possible."

"Then, little-one, you would prefer to avoid that room ahead," said Okku, tilting his head to look up with one eye, "but I expect you would feel that not possible."

Blake hesitated and nodded. "Aye, if there are creatures of that sort here then learning why might be worth the time."

"Especially since, from what we have seen," Gann commented, "if they are bound then I doubt it would be for good."

"And even if it was," said Blake sourly, "I have seen that trying to use their power for good results in many evils along the way."

Very reluctantly Blake opened the door and entered the room. There was a serious temptation to just set the academy on fire now rather than continue to search for clues but they needed as much information as possible. In any case they'd want to set fires in as many rooms as possible, so eventually they'd have to visit every room they could. Therefore it might as well be now and while they were unencumbered by incendiary supplies. As Okku had warned they found summoning circles within the room and within those were a pair of Pit Fiends. They seemed securely held but Blake mistrusted the appearance and felt himself tensing.

"Look at this one, Thael-ka," sniffed one Pit Fiend, peering down from its superior height at Blake. "Something familiar about him, wouldn't you agree?"

"As usual, Oronock, you are mistaken," Thael-ka replied disdainfully, sparing Blake a glance. "We have never seen this mortal before."

"Not the sight, my slow-witted associate," responded Oronock, sneering at Thael-ka as well as a Pit Fiend face could. "The smell."

"You said 'look', my developmentally stunted colleague," said Thael-ka with equal asperity and an equal sneer, "and so I did. But you make a point. Have we crossed paths before, mortal?"

"I did cross paths with a Pit Fiend named Koraboros," Blake said, now they had decided to talk to him rather than about him, "but he is the only one of your ilk I have met outside of Dreamscapes."

"Koraboros?" asked Thael-ka in surprise before continuing with more enthusiasm. "Oh yes. In fact we attended his demotion ceremony quite recently, before we were… called here. A delicious affair, by all accounts." His face distorted into a malicious smile as he enjoyed the memories. "There's nothing quite so satisfying as watching an accomplished Devil reduced to a bubbling oozing mass and writhing in pain for several hours."

"I can think of a few things harbour-boy," Neeshka whispered. "At least you seemed satisfied with them."

Blake nodded to her as Oronock mused to himself. "I heard word that a number of serious misjudgements on his part reached the ears of Baalzebul himself," the Pit Fiend commented. "Well… whatever a slug has for ears." Oronock looked down at Blake who calmly looked back despite how much he preferred the sight of Neeshka. "But surely you have not come here to catch up with old friends. How might we be of service mortal?"

"That would depend why you were… called here," Blake replied. "What do you do here?"

"We are facilitators of transactions," said Oronock, speaking in general terms, "overseers of a small but vital subsection of a vast economy that happens to be centred here at this establishment."

"What my well-meaning but sub-optimally competent business partner means to say," Thael-ka added, taking the chance for another insult, "is that we are in the habit of stimulating localised bartering on the premises."

"You'll forgive my mentally wanting accomplice for his over-fondness of vague jargon," sneered Oronock, ignoring how much he was guilty of the same. "It is natural habit when one spends his aeons negotiating and drafting bargains. Put simply, we are here to trade."

For a moment Blake was unsure what made this Academy worthy of the attention of two Pit Fiends. Then he thanked Oghma as The Lord of Knowledge granted him inspiration and he remembered what they had found in the chest across the hall. "You trade for souls, the ones extracted here by the Red Wizards?"

"How astute," said Thael-ka with uncomplimentary surprise. "Yes, typically souls filter down to our realm on their own upon death. But this institution has tapped into some of our own methods. It's created stragglers. We'd prefer to simply take them, of course…"

"Of course."

"But certain… prior agreements force us to seek them in trade," Thael-ka continued. "What transpires here is a mutually beneficial exchange of resources. The Red Wizards receive funding for their little school, and in return we receive a stipend of souls from their stockpile."

"And was part of that stipend a soul you would have received normally?" Blake asked. Feeling the need to justify himself despite his reluctance to provide more information than he had to he added after a moment, "I have an insipid poem that suggests I need to locate a damned soul."

"Mm. Yes, we thought you might be interested in trading for a soul rather than with a soul," Thael-ka smiled. "You… have that look about you."

"Don't play coy, Thael-ka…it's too easily confused with your penchant for cretinism," said Oronock derisively, drawing a slight glare from his colleague. "We can offer you something of that description, mortal. This specimen is in a rare transitional stage. Its host is dead, but it has not reached Avernus to begin its sentence."

"So that is what you have," Blake replied, "so what do you want in return?"

"Ah, clearly you've worked with Devils before. Already moving into the negotiation," said Thael-ka, with a somewhat speaking look at Neeshka. "We require a comparable soul in trade. The soul you want is rare so we'd like the same. For me, I'd like a soul from a person who lived in the filthiest, the most deplorable and wretched conditions, yet who forsook all thoughts of himself for love of another. Agreed Oronock?"

"You've missed the mark completely, Thael-ka," Oronock said, disagreeing, "and once again it falls to me to save our reputation. My ideal soul would be of one who was brought up in prosperity yet sunk to the absolute depths of depravity. The sickest most self-centred and delusional individual possible."

"So a soul for him and a soul for you?"

"No, no! Of course not," mock-protested Thael-ka. "That would hardly be fair. We want one soul. One soul that has all those qualities."

"You want a soul that is rich and poor," Blake frowned, "selfless and self-centred?"

"Yes, I believe you've hit upon it exactly," smiled Oronock insincerely before adding, equally insincerely, "good luck."

"Aye…" Blake grumbled.

They moved back out into the hallway and away from the two Pit Fiends and their amusement, as well as their smell of the lower planes. Blake looked towards the next door but hesitated before moving towards it. The list of requirements seemed quite impossible and his taste for further exploration here had already dimmed.

"Dealing with Devils is not to my taste, little one," Okku rumbled.

"Nothing here is to our taste," sighed Blake, "and I do not think a selfless soul would be condemned to their care in the normal course of events."

"So?" Gann asked, his tone making it clear he meant 'so, what shall we do?' rather than 'so what?'

Blake thought a moment. "So, we shall keep our eyes and noses open for some other way to induce these Pit Fiends to give us what we need, or some other way to get the damned soul we need for that damned door."

"Noses?" Neeshka smiled. "You have been hanging around Okku too long."

"Or just long enough," murmured Okku.

"We still have not addressed the other problem of their demands," Gann pointed out. "As well as condemning a selfless soul to Devils there is also the problem of the traits they want. People may contain many contradictions but not to that extent."

"I am loath to say this but…" Blake hesitated, "we may have to talk to that Golem. If we can find two souls that match the two Devils requirements then the Golem may be able to join them into the one we need…" A slight smile came back to Blake's face. "And that might also solve the first problem as well. For now though let us finish searching this level and see if we can avoid that as a plan."

The room next to the Pit Fiends was empty though when Neeshka found a soul housing in a vase the frown returned to Blake's face. Storing one in a chest had felt too insecure but to put it in a vase? The torture room and that they regularly dealt with Infernals had shown the depths the Red Wizards would sink to but that they were so casual with something so precious as a soul showed their contempt for others. At least it eased his qualms a fraction as it made it seem fairer to treat their desire to not be killed with equal contempt.

Moving down the hall they saw a stairwell leading up on their left. Blake paused and looked around to judge distances and frowned. "Strange, I am sure we are still below the floor we already explored but there was no way into these stairs on that level."

"Looks like a very winding staircase," commented Neeshka, moving across and opening the door so she could peer upwards, "almost as bad as the ones to the tower."

"Aye, best check this floor first," Blake decided.

The main hall ended in a cross hall ahead so while Neeshka checked the bookcases to either side Blake took a moment to think. Then with a shrug and a clank he opened the door directly ahead of them. There seemed nothing to be lost by following Okku's example of charging forward. As expected this was another set of Instructor's Quarters and as hoped there was nothing hostile within it. Neeshka slipped in through the door and then nodded to the bed and grinned at Blake.

"Shame we are having to move through here fast harbour-boy," Neeshka winked, "all these private rooms with comfortable looking furniture."

"Ah, true enough," sighed Blake, "though it would make me in no fit state to fight, even if you meant to only use one room, or one piece of furniture within that room, rather than trying more than one out for the blessings of Sharess."

"Does that give you fresh reason to return to your Crossroad Keep?" Gann asked. "Or have you already… blessed… every room within it with such deeds?"

"Hah! Nowhere near," scoffed Neeshka. "Not yet even managed to ambush him outside his Quarters there."

"It was rather crowded," Blake commented, moving to check a bookcase for books and scrolls, "a lot of Greycloaks moving around preparing the Keep for the attack by the army of undead…" He stopped and ran the fingertips of one gauntlet over the wall beside the bookcase. "Another scrape here, though I am a little loath to see what is concealed behind this bookcase."

"A feeling I think we all share," Gann agreed, "but I think we also all share the feeling we need to check."

"Aye," replied Blake, giving a push to one side of the bookcase and sliding it across. This revealed another door that Neeshka checked for traps and unlocked. To their relief the room past this door looked normal. There were a few sets of stocks with comfortable chairs and sofas for people to sit and look at whoever was imprisoned but there were no corpses and no sinister lighting or altars.

Moving along the L-shaped room Gann nodded and gestured to the furnishings. "This is more what expected of the Red Wizards. Facilities to humiliate someone and taunt them while remaining comfortable yourself. Rather cruel but also rather petty."

"I think by their standards we are too kind hearted, my friend," smiled Blake, "that we think humiliation rather than torture and death more apt a punishment for the transgressions of students."

Having turned the corner and found more stocks and seating they also found the door ahead was not locked but was stuck. It opened a fraction but there seemed something in the way of it opening any more. Okku had been looking disinterested in the conversations and disappointed in the lack of enemies to fight but seeing Blake's trouble he moved forward a little.

"I could easily smash that, and whatever obstructs it, aside little-one," Okku rumbled.

"No doubt, but we don't know what that whatever is."

As Okku frowned over trying to understand why that would matter Neeshka spoke. "If my sense of location is correct…"

"Which I am sure it is," Blake smiled.

"Then we would probably be coming out into the room past the door that was to our right," finished Neeshka, returning the smile.

"Have the advantage of surprise coming into a room this way, which is often useful for the Red Knight's plans…" Blake began to say, meaning to continue by saying 'but I think I would rather go back through that cross hall.'

Before Blake could complete his sentence though Okku had taken one quick bound to build up speed and then leapt at the door. The top of a head of solid spirit-flesh met wood and the latter lost as it splintered aside as if struck by a catapult ball. Okku slowed only slightly as he passed through the door and the bookcase that had been against it. Books sprayed across the room and the top of the bookcase sagged down from the rail it slid on as suddenly there was nothing below to support it.

There had been no cries of surprise or fear as Okku made his dramatic entrance so Blake took a moment to close his eyes and take a deep calming breath. Then he stepped and pushed his way through the wreckage to join the bear-god in what had proved to be another normal room. Blake picked a few books up to check their contents and because it made him twitchy to see them scatted and open with their pages bent under them. Having had less use for book learning and thus caring less Neeshka had moved diagonally across the room and to another door.

Neeshka turned as she finished checking that door for traps and unlocking it. "They do like their bookcases for concealing doors," she commented, adding with a wink, "though Okku is a little less subtle than you at un-concealing them harbour-boy."

"That he is," Blake replied, looking around again at the wreckage and ignoring Okku's rumbles of displeasure at the possible criticism of him taking the only course worthy of a god-of-bears.

Entering this next room they were pleased to see no torture equipment or corpses though there were a couple more mirrors. Blake examined these and then the dais with a pattern around it. This looked similar or identical to the one they had found in the other room but there were no obelisks and no floating orb. That there was a connection seemed obvious and a vague suspicion of how they were connected began to tickle at the back of Blake's mind. Something about a signalling method or something Neeshka had done or did.

They backtracked into the room with the wrecked bookcase and into the cross hall. As they approached the other end Okku paused and sniffed. "I smell death little-one, but no blood or disease. Just a sense of… despair."

"There are magics that slay directly," Blake replied, looking concerned, "though Gann wards us against most spells of that type."

"I do," confirmed Gann, "and that blessing of the spirits still lingers about us. As I think does your own protections?"

"They do," Blake nodded. "So Tymorra's luck be with us."

Pushing the door open they were greeted by the smell of people left to lie in their own excrement and of mattresses inadequately cleaned and aired before their next occupant added their own contribution. The room was nearly silent with a Red Wizard lying on a bed ahead of them, his breathing so shallow they had to approach quite closely before they could be sure they could see his chest rising and falling. His eyes were rolled slightly up and he was trembling and seemed unaware of them.

"He does not look well," Neeshka said with understatement, adding after a pause, "almost not worth slitting his throat…"

Her voice seemed to draw the man's attention back from whatever haze it had been lost in. He blinked and as some awareness returned it became more clear he was more a boy than a man. His lips moved as if he was trying to speak but even in the quiet of this room the whisper was so faint as to be lost. Blake leaned in closer to listen while Neeshka tensed slightly in case this was a trick to bring her harbour-boy's face within striking range.

"You…" breathed the Red Wizard boy, making an effort and raising his voice a little, "you are the one she described to me." Blake glanced to Neeshka who returned the look of concern over if that was good or ill. "I carry something you will be needing," continued the boy. "Nefris asked me to keep something safe for you. She wanted to be sure it was you who got it, not Araman. That was her greatest fear. This… was all I could do to reassure her. An apprentice's greatest honour."

Blake looked at the nearly helpless Red Wizard and wondered how he could keep anything safe. "Whatever you have must be of great importance."

"The room we're in… it's a ward for the soulless," replied the boy, one arm twitching as he tried and failed to gesture around them. "Nearly all our most important work at this school requires human subjects… and sacrifices. Subjects who lose their souls are brought here to die."

"You could not grant them a easier swifter end?" Gann asked. "They have to be left to linger?"

The Red Wizard boy looked at Gann with utter incomprehension. It was not much trouble to leave the bodies here and it meant you had a few days to change your mind before the subject died. Why would you deprive yourself of that convenience? "I endured such an experiment to have my soul transplanted for a surrogate," continued the Red Wizard, giving up on the effort to understand. "It is all that keeps me from death and the very thing Nefris sought to keep from Araman."

"A surrogate soul?" asked Blake. "That sounds like one of those I need whether it's 'imagined' or 'imitated'. How may I claim this soul?"

"I can say no more," replied the boy, his eyes darting around and his head turning slightly on the thin pillow as he checked. "Nefris meant for you to have it, but you are here and her daughter is not."

Blake thought a moment and then decided on an argument. "If her greatest fear was that Araman would get it rather than me, then does anything else matter? In the state you're in you cannot defend yourself or it if he comes and tries to take it from you."

"Hmm… it's true that would be her biggest concern." mused the young Red Wizard as he tried to decide if he dared ask where Nefris' daughter Safiya was. Deciding that could be risky he sighed and continued. "Very well. The surrogate can be… displaced. My original soul has a natural affinity for my body, it would re-enter on its own and the surrogate could be extracted."

"Go on," Blake said encouragingly when the youth paused.

"For my own safety Nefris did not tell me where she had placed my soul but she was fond of hiding things in plain sight. I expect she would have hidden it amongst the others in the depository. You would just need to identify it with the soul viewer."

"I will return with your soul then," Blake replied simply, before moving a little away to talk more privately.

"Killing him would also displace the fake soul he has…" suggested Neeshka with her sense of practicality.

"Likely enough," Blake agreed, adding a little ruthlessly, "but we can always decide to kill him after we've done what he said. Make sure we get the surrogate soul first."

Neeshka nodded to this but Gann cleared his throat where he was peering around a column. When they looked at him he gestured slightly. "There is another body here, and one that is not in the robes of the Red Wizards."

"Hells," muttered Blake as he took the half step to look where Gann had pointed.

"So that's what happened to him," Neeshka commented, joining her harbour-boy.

"You know this man?" blinked Gann in surprise.

"His name is Ammon Jerro," Blake replied. "He is a warlock, the one I mentioned in the Wizards dream as being likely dead or imprisoned."

"The one that collected Devils and Demons?" asked Gann, his tone making it more a statement than a question. "And is who you meant by having seen Infernal servants and good intentions leading to evil?"

"The same. It was in his hands the Sword of Gith shattered. Neeshka mentioned he had chased after me, so I suppose we had maybe better heal him."

Gann raised his eyebrows at the number of qualifiers. "You sound remarkably… unenthusiastic."

"Ammon Jerro has done much to earn my hatred," Blake growled, looking towards Gann who noted the anger in Blake's eyes as he continued. "He killed many innocents, killed a member of the Neverwinter Nine, killed his own Granddaughter, destroyed my home village and slaughtered its inhabitants … all in pursuit of his war against the King of Shadows."

"That would explain the lack of enthusiasm," said Gann with understatement. "It is a wonder you are willing to aid him at all, or even that you were ever allied."

"It was not by choice," Blake replied more calmly, looking back towards Ammon Jerro. "To fight the King of Shadows we needed all five parts of the Ritual of Purification and Ammon Jerro reached one of the statues that bestowed the blessings before we did. I might have… probably would have… killed him and hoped that would allow the ritual at that statue to be performed again but a servant of the King of Shadows destroyed that statue."

"I still wanted to wrap him in chains and throw him off the docks," hissed Neeshka, her tail lashing in remembered hate.

"It was tempting. He'd only just killed Shandra," Blake sighed. "It was not long since I had passed through the Illefarn Song Portal and seen the destruction of West Harbour and the corpses of the people. Vengeance would have felt right then. But at Shandra's Farm he was remorseful of his actions, and he is here because he tried to help me, so despite my feelings I will not leave him here to rot."

"I do not recognise his affliction," mused Gann, "but the Red Wizard over there did say this was a ward for the soulless."

"And that Nefris liked hiding things in plain sight," Blake agreed with a nod. "Seems we are searching for more souls than we thought. First those for the door and then those to satisfy the Pit Fiends and now these for that Red Wizard and Ammon Jerro. While we are there we can check the soul depository again for a housing black enough to contain Ammon Jerro's soul. Before that we should speak to that Golem though and see if an idea I had was valid."

Leaving the two insensate men to their fate Blake and the others retreated from the Ward of the Soulless and back down the cross hall. As they reached the corner into the main hall Blake paused and looked around.

"You seem uncertain of something?" Gann pressed.

"We went up a ramp and there are windows so this floor is at ground level," nodded Blake, "it is not a cellar dug into the soil."

"True enough," Gann agreed, "though if you are certain of that?"

"Then what am I pondering?" asked Blake. At Gann's nod he continued. "As I said on the floor above this looked larger from outside. But again the walls seem solid and that there is nothing else."

"Perhaps those stairs?" Gann suggested with a gesture. "They might lead to your theoretical barracks and dormitories and the floor above the floor above have stairs back down to the level of the ramp?"

Blake nodded and moved the short way to those stairs to begin making his way up them. Neeshka happily followed at once, wishing not for the first time that Blake didn't have a cloak in the way and didn't wear as much armour over his rear. Gann shrugged and followed, making a similar wish about Neeshka's cloak and armour but in reverse. Had her cloak been on her shoulders or her chainmail links not so fine and well tailored to her form it would be easier to avoid having his eye caught by the sight and easier to avoid her, or Blake, objecting if they thought he had looked for too long.

Okku grumbled at the idea of more stairs but eventually followed to fill the stairwell with a constant rumbling as if this stairwell was the chimney leading down to some Gnomish engine working away. The bear-god did not appreciate stairs made for the legs of mortals of such a different shape to him. He might not be subject to the muscle aches of flesh that climbing something so poorly fitted to his limbs could have brought but he was still annoyed by it.

"I think we are up one floor," Blake commented after a while. They continued to climb for a while longer and Blake stopped and glanced back down the stairwell. "And I think this should be another floor climbed, but still no doors."

"If we must climb these stairs, little-one," rumbled Okku, "then let us climb. An exit will appear eventually, whether you find a door or I smash though a wall to free us."

"It may come to that, my friend," Blake agreed, "though these stairs are very twisted and it is hard to know which wall you should smash. Or smash first at least."

They continued to climb and continued to have no luck with any exits and to be subjected to Okku's constant rumbling. This noise destroyed most hopes of stealth and was annoying in itself so it was a relief to more than the bear-god when the stairs ended. Neeshka listened to the door at the top of them and checked for traps and locks before gesturing her harbour-boy forward. Blake looked around as he entered the room and noted the already ransacked appearance.

"Is this… the headmistress' tower room?" Blake asked in bafflement.

"Yes," replied Neeshka, joining him. "Why? What's the problem harbour-boy?"

"No real problem," Blake said, moving to look out a window, "but I thought those other stairs led up here."

"Maybe they do," smiled Neeshka, pointing at another doorway and that it had stairs leading down.

Blake nodded slowly. "Wherever those lead we had better check, though if you are right that shows how twisty those staircases are."

"Indeed," Gann agreed, "this room is large but not that large that I would expect stairs from almost opposite ends of the floors below to meet here."

Blake crossed to a door that seemed to have withstood a lot of magic without being destroyed or even much damaged. He nodded as the inscription on it confirmed this was the one they also wanted to open and pulling out the splintered soul from his belt-pouch he compared it with the socket in the door. They seemed to match for size and shape so they were on the right trail. Which Blake felt a mixed blessing as in some ways he'd rather have been wrong than having to seek more souls and deal with Pit Fiends.

"Let me check, little-one," Okku murmured, startling Blake a little as he'd been deep enough in thought to not notice the bear-god move to just behind him.

Realising what Okku intended to check Blake nodded and moved back and away. Great spirit-muscles flexed under the colourful spirit-fur and Okku slammed his paw into the door, huge razor sharp claws driven by his immense strength raking across its surface, and doing nothing. Okku growled and struck with his other paw, putting more of his weight into it and thrusting forward with his powerful hindquarters to add even more power to the blow. A vase fell off a nearby table but there was only, perhaps, the faintest of scratches left on the door.

"Hrrrrr," Okku growled, glaring at the lack of results from his blows, "so souls it is. Curse the Red Wizards."

There were an impressive number of bookshelves in this room and most had remained untouched so Neeshka did not take offence when her harbour-boy began checking them for anything she had missed. She had been searching fast while hoping to remain undiscovered and although she doubted she had left any gold or valuables there was the chance Blake would find something interesting for his magic. More than a few books went into his bags and Blake turned and smiled to his watching sweetheart.

"I don't see anything of immediate use," admitted Blake, "but Aldanon will be pleased at the extended library."

"Careful harbour-boy," Neeshka grinned, "he was already becoming a fixture at Crossroad Keep. Do you want him to never return to his own manse?"

"I'd not mind, I rather liked him. Besides, with how long we've been gone, we might end up moving in with him rather than still having the Keep."

After a quick final check of the shelves and cabinets they began making their way down the other set of stairs. These were no more suited to Okku's gait than the others and he found he had to walk down slightly crab-wise to avoid the danger of tumbling down and over the mortals. He would have taken no harm from that but it would be undignified and a less than splendid way to end their efforts should the little-one be killed or seriously injured by this.

There were again no other exits from this winding set of stairs and landings. Blake did begin to wonder if for some strange reason the doors were hidden but he had faith in his beloved's eyes being sharp enough to spot those or the patterns of wear on the floor that would show someone had walked through that wall. This was quite strange and to Blake's mild surprise these did lead down to the doorway in the north-west corner of the classroom level.

Hearing their footsteps the Golem turned and shuffled slightly to one side as it did. "Oh. H- hello there," it greeted them, managing despite its expressionless face to seem even more nervous. "Again."

"I need a soul with conflicting traits," Blake said flatly. "Could you join two together?"

"I… suppose I could," replied the Golem thoughtfully before adding. "Not really. Well… it depends on what you will accept."

"Explain."

"How to explain though," said the Golem, glancing at Okku whose temper had still not recovered from the stairs and the door. "Some of my work is on merging souls and theoretically I could do what you ask, take two souls with different traits and forge them together as one. But the merge never takes, I can fuse pieces of soul together but the separate parts of the soul remain isolated."

"And if the souls were totally different," Blake asked, "would that worsen this isolation?"

"Even if they were similar it would almost certainly fail to fully incorporate," the Golem replied, before hurriedly adding in an appeasing tone, "but if you bring me two souls, each with half the qualities you require I will try to fuse them for as long as it would last."

"Very well…" accepted Blake, commenting, "and the imperfection of the fusing may be an advantage in this case."

"I don't see how…" the Golem said before deciding not to ask, "but y- you will need a pass." Seeing they looked a little blank at this the Golem explained. "If you get the souls from the depository you will need a pass to check out more than one. Take this with you."

Blake took the pass, not noticing that as he did the Golem used its shift in position to nudge a sack further under the counter. They moved the short distance down the hall to the Soul Depository and started going through the shelves. Each soul housing in turn was placed in the viewer and with a faint swirl of colour the, literally, disembodied voices were heard speaking a fragment of their memories. This fragment remained the same each time they were viewed but it was still apparent what the personalities were of these souls and which were most likely to fit the different needs.

"So," Blake said, looking at the soul housings on the table. "Those we found downstairs rather than safely in this depository seem to be Red Wizards?" Gann nodded. "This soul seems pathetic enough, eager enough for approval, to be the Red Wizard downstairs?"

"Was a little whipped puppy like," Neeshka agreed.

"Hmm," grumbled Blake, not appreciating the image. "This one seems to have died wallowing in depravity, and this to be the selfless one? None of them are Ammon Jerro though. No obsessed ranting about the King of Shadows."

"You really do make him sound so pleasant," Gann smiled.

"Aye, almost as pleasant as this soul," agreed Blake, pointing at the housing Neeshka had found in the chest. "Makes me feel a little better that she was not such an innocent. That she died because she wanted to manipulate whoever had given her the keys, probably that teacher, and because of her own plotting and greed."

"Hey! Nothing wrong with greed harbour-boy," Neeshka protested, a little self-consciously, "and even if there was there's more wrong with being tortured to death and having your soul ripped out."

"I did say only a little better," replied Blake, "her fate was far in excess of what Tyr would consider justice."

"Little-one," Okku rumbled suddenly, "my reluctance to hand this selfless soul over to Devils has only increased. There must be another way."

"Unlike the Golem," added Gann, "I think I see what advantage the imperfection of the fusing might bring, or what you are hoping, but I agree with old father bear that we should find an alternative."

"I doubt there is one," sighed Blake, "but we may have to find it, depending on this soul's reply."

"Reply?" Neeshka asked, puzzled as it hadn't seemed they could talk to them.

"Gann," said Blake, turning to him, "you have opened my Dreamer's Eye. Do you think working together we can enhance the function of this soul viewer? Allow us to communicate with the soul rather than simply listen to it repeating the same experiences?"

"Perhaps," Gann replied, after several moments thought. "As… loath… as I am to say it your curse does give you a link to spirits and souls that could be useful here. We will not know though until we try."

Blake placed the selfless soul back in the viewer and the faint swirl of colour appeared. He and Gann knelt and closed their eyes and concentrated, reaching out to try to sense any feeling of connection between them and what was within the housing. Gradually the swirling colours thickened and became more solid and swirled more slowly and showed the silently watching Okku and Neeshka that something was happening. The slight murmur of repeated words spluttered to a halt to be replaced by silence before there was the noise of an immaterial throat being cleared.

"Wha… what?" a voice asked. "Where, what am I. Oh gods, I can't feel my feet, I can't feel anything…"

"You are a disembodied soul in a sphere in a Red Wizard Academy," Blake replied, raising his head and opening his eyes.

Gann winced as he also opened his eyes. "A less direct answer might have been easier for him to accept, ease him into it a little…"

"Red Wizard Academy?" said the voice, the colour swirl pulsing and shifting in hue. "I knew I would be punished if I was discovered, but never imagined this… how could I imagine this? How could I imagine such nothingness?" A very faint element of bravado entered the voice's tone. "What do you want Red Wizard? Why are you speaking with me?"

"We are not Red Wizards, feel the truth of my words through the link we are creating. We are enemies of the Red Wizards."

"But you still want something," replied the voice, "I can feel that truth as well."

"We are seeking to end a centuries old curse upon the land," Blake agreed. "But to do that we may have to deal with Devils as well as continue to kill Red Wizards."

"Devils? But they only want…" the voice began, breaking off with sudden realisation. "Oh Gods! No! Feeling nothing might be torment, but it would be a Heaven compared with the Hells."

"Yes," Blake admitted.

"Then why are you speaking to me? I can do nothing to stop you, why are you telling me what you intend?" demanded the voice. "Are you finding some amusement in warning me that you are going to condemn me to eternal torment worse even than this sphere?"

"No, it is because it might not be eternal torment," Blake replied, not taking offence at the accusation. "The Devils want a soul with hugely conflicting traits, which would require us to fuse your soul with that of another."

"That… sounds even worse. To have my being shaped like clay into something else."

"Ah, but the Devils may have outwitted themselves," Blake said in return. "A soul fused together like that from such opposing originals would be very unstable. I will not lie, I cannot lie in this link, there is a chance the composite soul might stabilise and the torment be eternal. But there is a better chance it would fracture apart again and you would either die into oblivion or your soul would escape to the reward you deserve. Either way your torment would be over."

"So… you want me to be fused into some monster?" the voice asked incredulously. "To gamble that I am not tortured by Devils for eternity as a result? With one alternative to torment being oblivion."

"That is what I ask as there seems no alternative to making the deal with the Devils, but I do ask rather than demand, and the choice is yours."

"I just want this to end. I can feel that you would end me if I asked, but I can also feel how important this is," the voice said. For long moments there was silence and the continued existence of the link was only shown by the more solid colours continuing to swirl. "Oh, Gods protect me… go ahead. What is one more good deed to be punished for in my life?"

"Thank you," Blake said sincerely. "May Tymorra bless us with luck or Ilmater reward you for your suffering and willingness to risk martyrdom."

There was no reply so gradually they withdrew from the link and the colours thinned above the soul viewer. Slowly the murmur of the repeated statements returned until Blake stood and plucked the soul housing from the viewer to end this. Blake looked down at this housing in his hand and shook his head in doubt. "Even with his permission and the hope it won't be eternal I really don't like this."

"Believe me harbour-boy, I had a lot of lore on Devils and Demons drummed into me by the priests…" winked Neeshka, touching the tip of one horn with a slender finger, "though I can't think why…"

"No reason comes to my mind," Gann smiled.

"And those Pit Fiends wouldn't accept anything but what they asked for," continued Neeshka, "and would not be able to be tricked or intimidated."

"Agreed," Blake nodded sadly.

Having shown the pass to the Golem Caretaker so it would not object to them taking two souls they returned up the corridor to the workshop where the Clay Golem was waiting. It gave them an expectant look so Blake held out the housings. "Here are the souls to fuse."

"Place them in the forge, I will take care of the rest," replied the Golem. For several minutes it worked away with various tools and potions and wands until it turned from its forge with a single sphere in its hand. Blake looked at this as it cooled and the Golem nodded. "Hmm… this seems right to me. The entire thing is completely unstable, the two souls are in direct opposition to each other."

"Good," Blake replied, carefully taking the newly formed soul.

Although its face could not change there was something about the Golem's body language that suggested puzzlement at Blake being pleased at this. "I suppose you'll be giving this away to someone, and you've reached your depository check-out limit already," the Golem deduced, turning and picking up some papers. "Here, if you still wish to check out from our depository you can bring these notes to the caretaker there. They should restore your privileges."

"Thank you," Blake said tersely as he took those papers. Politeness seemed wasted on a Golem, and especially one that manipulated souls, but it was not a good habit to break.

They returned to the Soul Depository where Blake passed the notes to the Caretaker Golem and was informed they did cancel the two souls they'd taken. There was no reason to linger so Blake took the other soul they needed from the table and led the way out and down the short direct flight of stairs. At the bottom of the stairs though Blake hesitated and looked again at the fused soul. His curse did not give him that much insight into souls and spirits and the sections of the housing appeared firmly attached to each other. But he was not sure how unstable 'completely unstable' was and the sudden image of it breaking apart before the deal could be done was a hard one to ignore.

"I am not sure if this soul or that Red Wizard will last longer," Blake commented when he saw Gann looking enquiringly at him.

"He did seem quite weak," nodded Gann.

Blake nodded and set off down the hall again. "I think I could spend longer debating which to do first than either would take to do."

"Good action now…" Neeshka said, in the tone of someone quoting someone else.

"Is better than the best action taken too late," finished Blake.

"Another military truism?" Gann asked politely.

"Aye," Blake replied as they walked.

The Ward of the Soulless was just as silent as before and, thankfully, smelt no worse so it seemed that the bowels of neither the Red Wizard nor Ammon Jerro had released in death. Blake moved across to look down at the younger man, noting the faint sound and movement of breathing, and after a few moments the Red Wizard's eyes fluttered open to look back up at Blake. The student's mouth worked a little as he swallowed the spittle that had built up and then he spoke.

"Have you brought my soul?" the Red Wizard asked. "My body calls out for its return."

"I am confident I have the right one," Blake replied, holding the soul housing out to where the youth could see it.

To Blake's surprise a mist began to gather around the sphere and to rise from the young Red Wizard as if the air had suddenly become as cold as the Ashenwood and his breath had become visible. Tendrils of this mist began reaching out and started passing each other in opposite directions. The soul housing and the Red Wizard both remaining as full as what passed out of them was perfectly balanced by what was flowing into them.

"Yes… I can feel it now, its warmth. It is familiar to me, if I can just drink it in," the Red Wizard said, his eyes closing in bliss. The mists faded as the process became complete. The Red Wizard sighed. "Ah, such relief. I have existed as a shell, come to know the despair of emptiness. I was not prepared for it."

"Mph," Okku grunted. "Perhaps he'll be wise enough to keep his soul where it belongs from now on."

"Or have some compassion now he knows what others have suffered here," added Gann.

"The surrogate has collected in my soul's place, as Nefris said it would," the Red Wizard said, opening eyes that looked clearer than before, ignoring or not hearing Okku and Gann. "Such an inscrutable woman my mentor, but wise like no one else I've known. I'm somewhat lost without her guidance."

"Good," muttered Blake. Raising his voice he continued. "This seems to have worked so I owe you some thanks."

"Worked? Perhaps. But it was what she wanted though, so I did what I could."

With an obvious effort the Red Wizard turned himself a little onto his side and groped where his back had been. Pulling a somewhat crumpled piece of paper out he offered it to Blake.

"Here, before I forget, take this to the depository caretaker. You do not want to earn his wrath with an overdue soul. You should return to your task. The longer you stay here the more likely you'll be stopped and all this will have been for nothing…" The Red Wizard's voice trailed off as Blake took the paper. "Perhaps it is anyway," he managed to say before slumping back and passing out from the effort of having moved that small amount.

"So…" Neeshka said, drumming her fingers on the hilt of the Rapier where her hand had gone when the Red Wizard moved.

"The rage of my vengeance is passing so do you want to hunt such pathetic prey?" rumbled Okku. "Without his mentor he is lost."

"Hey, he could still be dangerous when he recovers," Neeshka argued, "especially if he learns what happened to Nefris' daughter."

"I did say no mercy and no survivors," nodded Blake, "and even if he is not a threat himself he is a witness to our presence." Blake sighed. "But as ineffective as their resistance has been the other Red Wizard students were at least able to fight back."

"Or 'fight front' since the unsupervised students we have met immediately tried to kill us," Gann pointed out, "aside from the Golem ring where our lovely Tiefling companion managed to distract that fellow from homicidal thoughts. Even if that fellow's reaction did instil that variety of thoughts in our bearded leader."

Blake gave Gann a slight smile of acknowledgement before he sighed again. "We are manipulating and trading in souls, and there has been much blood and guilt on this journey and I fear worse to come. Perhaps if mercy can be shown we should show it.

"It's okay harbour-boy," Neeshka said, putting her hand on Blake's shoulder. He smiled to her and then looked back at the unconscious Red Wizard in thought, not noticing that once he turned away Neeshka caught Okku's eye. She nodded slightly towards the Red Wizard and then gnashed her teeth meaningfully.

"Indeed… little-one," rumbled Okku, a little hesitant as he was not completely sure of the message. "Here, I shall carry him outside where he will be safe when we collapse this building. If he is lucky nothing will harm him within the outer walls of this Academy."

"Aye, he does seem more victim than a victimiser," Blake agreed, while Neeshka mouthed the word 'If' to Okku.

Okku nodded slightly to Neeshka to show he understood that she wanted this Red Wizard to not be lucky. "I have no stomach for talking again with Pit Fiends, so you go ahead while I do this."

With that Okku picked the young Red Wizard up in his maw as gently as if this was an injured cub and padded away. Blake and the others followed down the cross hall and up the main hall towards the stairs until they reached the point where Okku continued on and Blake hesitated. He was a little envious that Okku did have the option of not having to speak to these Infernals and a little reluctant to go ahead. Neeshka gave him another reassuring smile though and that helped him lurch back into motion towards their room, to be rewarded with far less pleasant smiles from the Pit Fiends as they entered that room and they anticipated their amusement.

"I have brought you the soul you asked for," Blake said simply, holding the fused housing up for them to examine.

"Yes, I'm sure you have," replied Thael-ka, his face twisting even more horribly. "And we have been given a lifetime pass to all the celestial planes for our charity work with orphans…" The Pit Fiend broke off as his eyes and other senses focussed on what Blake was showing him. A slightly stunned expression came to his terrible face. "Wait, well I'll be blessed. I think this may be the genuine article Oronock."

"You'll recall, my cranially malformed consort," Oronock sneered, "that there is no conceivable chance that such a soul exists in the first…"

"See for yourself, my cerebrally misshapen colleague" interrupted Thael-ka.

Oronock looked at the soul housing, and then glared at Blake. "What fraud is this? This soul has been grafted together artificially."

"Imagine that. It's almost as if we're in an Academy dedicated to the shaping and manipulation of souls. Now, make good on your deal."

"Bah! Your use of trickery is cheap and despicable," Oronock spat. "It doesn't even deserve to be mentioned in the same sentence as our use of it. Take the soul. But know this mortal… no one bargains with a Devil just once. And we always come out ahead in the final transaction."

"So an acquaintance of mine might have found out," Blake replied as he swapped the fused soul for the one they needed. "He has had his soul removed and it was not stored in the Depository. Given his history I wonder if that soul was of particular interest and given to you."

"Do you wonder now? What a fascinating dilemma," oozed Oronock. "I do hope we can be of assistance in the matter."

"This wouldn't be with regard to a certain warlock with glowing tattoos, would it?" asked Thael-ka.

"It would," Blake replied. "As little as I care for him personally I would like to find Ammon Jerro's soul. Do you know where it is?"

"Ah, it just so happens we do," smiled Thael-ka. "We were entrusted with the soul's keeping by the one who removed it."

"Thael-ka and I have what you might think of as a joint-ownership arrangement," Oronock added. "Unfortunately for you this means you will have to pay both of our prices."

"Pay both of your prices again you mean."

"I have no desire to be again swindled by your soul butchery, so I would like my payment in gold pieces," Oronock replied disdainfully. "Fifty thousand of them."

"You are a fool to trust a commodity whose value changes with the winds, Oronock," scoffed Thael-ka. "I shall emerge the richer from this bargain." Ignoring his fellow Pit Fiend's sneer he continued. "We have a training facility in Maladomini not unlike this one. Baalzebul has put a high premium on souls that might one day swell the ranks of our elite negotiators. You will bring me the souls of three students, young impressionable souls that will easily break. This is non-negotiable."

"You seem to be over-estimating how much I want this soul, or confusing wanting to find it, which I have with you, with wanting to recover it. This soul is already damned by another and has no value to you."

"The soul's value to us is irrelevant. It is worth much to you," said Thael-ka, seeming to address Neeshka more than Blake, "and for that you will pay our price."

As Blake wondered what the Pit Fiend meant and Neeshka worried about the same thing Gann spoke. "My friend here is rather stubborn," he said, trying his best merchant's smile, "and the more you try to push your current bargains the more stubborn he might become. I suspect you could still get a better price from him though if we haggle a little than if you have to sell this elsewhere."

"Shrewdly assessed," Oronock admitted. "You would go far in our realm you know. If you like I could put something in writing to arrange it."

"A generous offer," said Gann, his smile only slightly faltering, "but I shall… regretfully… pass."

"For now, then, I shall set my price at twenty-thousand gold," Oronock said firmly to Blake. Then he saw the look on Blake's face. "Though, should you reconsider our offer I could always offer a further discount."

"Oronock, you spineless imp," exclaimed Thael-ka in disgust, "you could have got twice that." He too looked back at Blake. "You'll not get the same discount from me, mortal. My offer is two student souls, no less. Take it or leave it."

Blake nodded. "I shall return."

Returning to the hallway for some privacy Blake mused for a few moments, watched by a concerned Tiefling and Hagspawn. There was only one blessing in this, aside from Neeshka being present, and that was that Okku had not yet returned. This was a difficult enough decision without Okku roaring about things that his conscience was already loudly reminding him of. "I think the two souls we found while searching down here would match what they want."

"But do we really want to hand them over to these Devils?" Gann asked. "At least the fused soul has a chance of escape or oblivion if it splinters."

"I am not sure it would make much difference whatever we do," replied Blake. Gann frowned at him at this seemingly casual attitude to soul dealing. "These are Red Wizard souls," Blake explained to the frown, "and we have viewed them and seen that they are not unusual for their kind. As young as they were they were raised to indulge in slavery and torture and, here, in the manipulation and destruction of souls."

"All true enough," Gann admitted.

"Perhaps, had they remained alive," continued Blake, "they might have had a chance to change their ways and avoid damnation but as disembodied souls I find it unlikely that, from what we have viewed of them, that they'd not end up in the Hells if we smash their soul housings when we destroy this Academy."

"So you argue that they would go to the Hells whether we release them or trade them?" Gann asked. Blake nodded and Gann sighed. "I want to argue that if we do neither then we would at least delay their fate but with how many we have slain and sooner sent to their judgement that argument seems weak." Gann nodded and sighed again. "I cannot fault your logic but I do ask you to consider how far this logic might take you."

Having lost track of how much coin Neeshka had made from her selling it was a surprise even to Blake the size of the money pouch she pulled out of her Bag of Holding. They had no counting board and no scales to weigh the coins so they had to do this the hard way. Rows of ten coins on the floor, then ten of these rows, then ten of those squares… it was fortunate that some of the gold pieces were worth multiples. Despite his expressed doubts Gann went and fetched the two student souls from the table in the Soul Depository while Blake and Neeshka did this. Since those souls had not been stored there the Caretaker did not care whether they were taken or left. Eventually they had the price in gold pieces in a separate purse and could return into the room.

"I am prepared to trade for Ammon Jerro's soul," Blake said, hoping Okku would continue with his absence.

"Yes, this ransom is acceptable," replied Thael-ka, assessing the souls and the contents of the coin purse. "The soul is yours now. But be forewarned… you have bought possession of the soul, not redemption, Jerro's is a marked soul. When he dies, it will go where it has long been destined, and the Hells will celebrate."

Blake nodded at this confirmation of what he had thought and said. To his mild surprise as they made the exchange he saw the soul housing was a russet red rather than the deep oily black he had expected. There did not seem any ambiguity the Pit Fiends could exploit to only meet the letter of the deal but he knew how much that would be their nature and, after the previous deal, their inclination. When they returned to the Ward of the Soulless though Blake felt a little reassured as he saw how similar the colour of the soul housing and Ammon Jerro's beard were. Perhaps it had been a square deal and it had been his expectations that were at fault.

"Right," Blake said, looking in mild disgust at the soul housing in his hand. "From the Red Wizard and his soul it seems like all I will need to do is bring this housing close enough to Ammon Jerro…"

There was a flash of light between Blake and the bed and as this cleared it revealed the seemingly unprepossessing form of Mephasm. His red eyes looked calmly at them as his Elf-like features moved into a slight smile. Gann's insight let him see past the surface appearance to the power hidden beneath and he rallied to the defence of the others who were strangely not reacting to this threat.

"Stand back Devil…" Gann said, hesitating, "Demon…" He decided to play it safe. "Infernal!"

"No," Blake gestured to Gann. "Be cautious but Neeshka and I have met Mephasm before. He was one of those bound by Ammon Jerro."

"Indeed," replied Mephasm, "and now it is the time for the minor service Neeshka promised me in return for my aid in teleporting her to the bear-god's barrow."

Neeshka frowned at the incredibly powerful Archdevil. "Remember, you promised this service would not cause any harm to anyone I loved…"

"Or that you even liked," Mephasm interrupted. "I remember and I shall abide by that statement." He looked to Blake. "Ammon Jerro's soul please."

"What?" replied Blake in surprise.

"How did you put it regarding the souls of those students?" Mephasm asked rhetorically. "If they are damned anyway then why not hand them over, why delay their inevitable fate, and as those fool Pit Fiends said Ammon Jerro's fate is inevitable. He is damned, he will suffer, but… after past experience… I would prefer that suffering to be at my hands."

"So that was why the Pit Fiend looked meaningfully at her," realised Gann, "and this is how far the logic leads you. To hand over the soul of someone who had been an ally…" He suddenly realised something more, that Blake was not protesting. "Wait, you are not actually considering this?"

"I am, and in some ways that is more than Ammon Jerro deserves," Blake replied flatly. "That I am considering this rather than agreeing at once. He was far more my enemy than my ally and his aid and his remorse at Shandra's farm only went so far to balance his crimes."

"But how sure are you of his crimes?" Gann argued. "From comments you've made and the story you told you thought he was the King of Shadows for a time. If you were not sure of that can you be sure of his guilt? Can you be sure he committed the crimes you condemn him for?"

"Gann, your concern for Ammon Jerro is kind," said Blake, looking at Gann so his friend could see the sincerity in his eyes, "but I am sure. The first time I saw him we had fought past his servant Infernals, past the bodies of innocent bystanders, and he was standing over the corpse of one of the Neverwinter Nine. The second time I saw him was in his haven and he was standing over Shandra, his Granddaughter, with her armour and body showing the wounds of his arcane power."

"And the destruction of your village?" Gann asked, in the tone of a man who knows he has lost the argument but feels obliged to continue.

"That I did not see…" admitted Blake with scrupulous fairness.

"But I smelt that his Infernals had been there," Neeshka added.

"And the Statue of Purification whose ritual powers he took was near my home village," nodded Blake. "So I know Infernals were in West Harbour and I know Ammon Jerro was in the Illefarn Ruins near West Harbour. Appearances can deceive but he never denied his guilt in that matter."

Mephasm smiled very slightly to himself. It added a little savour to this mortal's decision that his deduction was wrong. Mephasm knew that Ammon Jerro had not killed any of the people of West Harbour. He had induced a deep sleep in them to keep them out of the way while he passed through and while his servants searched for anything of interest. There was only a very brief time between this and when the Shadow Reaver arrived but had it been the Infernals that killed West Harbour then the villagers would have been torn to pieces rather than having the life drained from them to be raised again as shadows.

"Besides, there is another crime we can be sure of," Blake continued, unaware of Mephasm's thoughts. "After he killed Shandra he teleported us from his Haven…"

"I don't see how that is a crime," interrupted Gann in surprise.

"He left Shandra behind!" Neeshka snapped.

"We owed Shandra a lot," continued Blake. "Owed her the attempt to bring her back from death with one of the two Scrolls of Resurrection we had found and were carrying at the time. Failing that we owed her a proper burial with all the rites. Instead Ammon Jerro teleported us away without her and without warning and remained arrogant despite his haste having denied his granddaughter that chance or that service."

"Hmm," Gann mused, "you know my feelings towards your Gods. I cannot care as much as you that she was denied those rites, but her being denied a chance to live again does seem more worthy of regret."

"I admit the chance was slender. Elanee did say that she could no longer feel Shandra's life, so there might not have been enough of a link between body and soul to use the former as a focus to call back the latter, but she was worth the attempt."

"If you go back on the deal that was accepted then all you do is earn my enmity," interjected Mephasm, trying to sound reasonable as well as threatening. "You will not change Ammon Jerro's fate and whatever tortures I inflict on him will, probably, be no more than he would suffer elsewhere. Though I admit that would not be from lack of trying on my part."

"Very well," Blake nodded. "Neeshka's word is my word. I will not go back on it."

As Blake handed the soul housing over Mephasm allowed himself the luxury of a marginally larger smile. Soon Ammon Jerro would find out what it was like to be trapped in a circle and subject to the whims of another. The amusement of watching him kill his own granddaughter had not made up for the humiliation of being taunted by those three Succubi or being used for someone else's obsession. Mephasm had plans and they were more using the span of eternity to crush Ammon Jerro with the insignificance of his life and his deeds than they were anything more crude and involving spikes and fire and blood.

"My thanks," said Mephasm, accepting the soul housing, "the debt is repaid. And before Neeshka here reminds me, I shall remain quiet on this matter."

"Reminds you?" Gann asked.

"That knowledge of this deal being struck could cause harm to her paramour," replied Mephasm, "and so be in breach of my promise."

"Let this be the end of it," Blake responded firmly. "You are too intelligent and dangerous and we have bargained too much already."

"That we shall not meet again I cannot promise," replied Mephasm. "As I said to your love… blood calls to blood."

With that there was another flash of light and Mephasm was gone. Blake looked at where he had been and at the now irrevocably unsalvageable body of Ammon Jerro. It seemed wrong to leave the body to just die but it would be easier to just walk away. To let death take its course unwitnessed rather than do something to speed this. But nothing about this academy had been easy so Blake moved the few steps closer and reached down. The neck was surprisingly frail feeling under his hands as he squeezed and crushed the life from the still breathing corpse.

Neeshka handed him a sheet she had stripped from one of the other beds and Blake placed this over the body. Although he did not need to ask that the soul find its rightful judgement as he knew where it had gone Blake still closed his eyes a moment. He prayed to Jergal that burning and collapsing this academy would be proper burial for Ammon Jerro and all the other corpses within these walls and he prayed to Tyr that this had been justice. Then he opened his eyes and looked at the waiting Neeshka.

"Assuming I ever get around to proposing to you," said Blake, trying to smile and to break the mood, "I think I might have met one of the in-laws I'd gain. Perhaps even the grandfather that gave you your exotic looks."

"Assuming I say yes, that is," Neeshka smiled back, raising one eyebrow towards an 'exotic' horn as she tried to match her harbour-boy's light tone.

"As delightful as that banter is I am still… concerned… that you were willing to do such a thing," pressed Gann, not accepting the change in subject. "We are walking a steep slope here with the dirt crumbling from beneath our feet."

"What else was there to do?" Blake asked, trying to sound reasonable. "We need to stop this curse and having a Devil of Mephasm's great power and intelligence working against us would make that almost certainly impossible."

"Yes, we need to stop this curse," nodded Gann, "but at what cost?"

"Ask Okku, he sacrificed his clan to trap the spirit-eater. Sacrificed those of his own blood, can I do less?" Blake argued. "Should I have refused to sacrifice someone to who I owed so little, if anything at all?" Gann looked unconvinced so Blake continued. "And consider, if not for Mephasm aiding Neeshka in reaching me the Red Wizard plot would have proceeded on course. Ammon Jerro justified his actions by saying sacrifices were necessary for a greater good, that I was naive to seek to avoid making such sacrifices… well, perhaps he should not have been so keen to dispel that naivety."

"Some 'naivety' should not be dispelled."

"Maybe," Blake admitted. "But Ammon Jerro's fate was set before either of us was born. He already had an army of Infernals at his command during the battle in my home village when I was a baby in my mother's arms. He had already dealt with dark powers and acquired the Sword of Gith for it to shatter and a shard to pass through her and into me. Whether handing his soul to Mephasm was Tyr's justice I do not know, and I do doubt, but as I have done to him what he would have done to others it does feel at least like Hoar's poetic justice."

"Your skill with words is unconvincing," replied Gann with a frown, "but I can see your doubts are genuine with my Dreamer's Eye. I can see how much you are trying to convince yourself as much as convince me." He paused and then nodded in decision. "Very well, you made your choice and if your gods are truly real you can answer to them for it. Now we need to continue with the quest whose continuation you have bought in such rare coin."

Blake nodded back before trying again to change the subject. "So, we now have three of the four souls we need. There seems no other place to search despite the impression gained from outside so I am beginning to wonder about those mirrors and that sphere and whatever magic it might trigger."

"There does at least seem nothing else of possible use down here," Gann agreed, accepting the change of subject this time.

Heading back to the north they were joined by Okku squeezing his way down the stairs from the classrooms above. He murmured softly to himself as he sensed the tension between the three mortals. Trading with Infernals could lead to discord so he was not surprised by this, but he did wonder what he had missed and whether he wanted to know. Deciding he did not but would listen politely if they wanted to tell him Okku followed the little-one and the others into the room.

"Humans can be vain," Okku rumbled as they passed one, "but who needs this many mirrors?"

"I can think of some uses for them," smiled Blake, winking at Neeshka, "but I agree this is rather unusual."

Neeshka brightened a little as she realised the wink and the flirting meant Blake was not angry with her. She knew her harbour-boy was kind hearted and handing over even Ammon Jerro's soul would have troubled him. That unease could have led him to blame her for putting him in the situation without even the warning that her having demanded what exactly Mephasm wanted as his price could have given. But he seemed to have genuinely accepted that Ammon Jerro's soul had been a price worth paying. Which could be a concern in a different way if his 'naivety' did not return.

Blake moved across to where the orb hung, suspended by its magic, and this time lightly brushed his fingers across it. Distracted by her thoughts Neeshka didn't notice this until a beam of light streaked from the obelisk and bounced off the mirror that was turned the right way. She leapt three feet sideways and glared at Blake like an affronted cat, the resemblance aided both by her bright eyes and the swishing of her tail.

"Hey," Neeshka protested, "a little warning next time would be nice."

"Sorry," replied Blake, a little puzzled that Neeshka had been so surprised. He'd not tried to hide what he was doing. "Still, it looks like the mirrors are to guide the light… probably to that other dais… and the beam did look similar to the one produced when the Mephit experiment was completed."

"You think this will provide us another soul?" Gann asked.

"I think everything in this cursed place has something to do with souls," nodded Blake, "and this might be another of their experiments."

"Do we want to complete it then little-one?" Okku rumbled. "Rather than leave it unsolved so they might not benefit from it?"

"With as many of them as we have killed I doubt they could benefit from it, solved or not, and if the Red Knight blesses our plans we would be returning here to destroy this place before too long."

"Very well then," Okku accepted, "we shall take this risk and see if it leads us onwards."

Blake looked at the orb a few more moments before reaching out again. "This seems portable," he muttered, hoping he had been right that it also lacked a trap.

To Blake's relief he could take the orb and without suffering any pain. They worked their way along the line the light might take and rotated each mirror they came to so its reflective surface would send this ray onwards. This path was quite an indirect one and Blake considered trying to move rather than only rotate some mirrors to shorten it, but these were fixed firmly to the floor and there was a very slight chance that the distance the light travelled was important. In a few places it was fortunate they had moved, or in Okku's case smashed, the bookcases to reveal the hidden doors to let them be opened for the beam.

Finally they reached the other dais and rotated the last mirror. Blake tapped the orb and smiled as the ray streaked into the room and onto the dais. This smile faded as he saw the lack of results. In the same manner as many men he tapped the orb again, but a little firmer as if more emphasis in the triggering would make any difference. Neeshka smiled to him as the second ray of light arrived and gave a similar lack of results. Blake frowned at the dais and then at the orb in his hand.

"Hrm, nothing," Blake grumbled as he considered a third attempt.

"Can I see that rhyme again?" asked Gann. Blake handed him the journal with the note sticking out of it like a bookmark. "Ah," Gann nodded as he read, "we know we have the splintered and damned, and if the one from the Red Wizard was 'imagined' then perhaps this should be 'imitated'?"

"And it would need something to imitate?"

"Perhaps," agreed Gann, "perhaps it is like a shadow or like a projection through stained or engraved glass. Something needs to be in the way of the light."

"Which would explain why there are two daises with the same patterns surrounding them," Blake nodded, adding after a moment. "Though as it is a soul we need would be someone rather than something."

"Very well," shrugged Gann with a mock sigh, "I shall return to that first room and place myself on the dais. If I die though and do not become a Telthor I expect you to come after me, that Wall looked most unpleasant…"

Blake winced and almost collapsed, his hand going to his chest as his legs buckled under him. "Aahh."

"Harbour-boy?" Neeshka asked in concern, moving to Blake's side so fast she almost seemed to not move. To just appear there with her hands supporting him and her face peering into his.

"No, nothing. I am fine now", replied Blake, trying to reassure her. "Just a twinge from this curse at what Gann said." He took a few deep breaths and ignored Neeshka's dubious look. "I think… Araman said the Betrayer's Crusade was for love, for the sake of the Red Woman."

"For rescuing her from the Wall of the Faithless?" Gann asked. Then he nodded. "That is something a man might do for the woman he loves."

"Though in trying to save his mate he robbed many others of theirs," growled Okku.

Blake slowly nodded in agreement with both of them as he straightened. He did not know if Akachi had seen the possible consequences of his actions or if he would have cared about them if he had. Blake was also not sure whether even with the benefit of hindsight and the history of the spirit-eater if he would be able to care about anything but saving Neeshka in a similar situation. "Still, let us see if you are right about these daises Gann."

"Indeed," replied Gann, turning and trotting out of the room.

It was hard to know how long to wait and it was fortunate they had a bear-god chaperone to inhibit the more easily embarrassed Blake. Without this he and Neeshka might have passed the time more pleasurably than in him counting seconds and a few more for luck. As he tapped the Orb he hoped he had given Gann enough time and it seemed he had since as the light streaked in and vanished above the dais a figure took shape. This was like someone partially reverting from invisibility but to their surprise it did not look very like Gann.

"Ugly," Neeshka commented, as she looked the Hagspawn up and down, "are you sure this thing worked right?"

"No," admitted Blake, adding, "and this will be a shock for Gann when he returns."

"What will?" Gann asked as he jogged in. Blake glanced at him in surprise as he'd taken far less time to get back than Blake had allowed him to get there. "Oh," said Gann, frowning at the dais, "I see."

As well as a bear's face and body language could Okku managed to look puzzled at the byplay. His vision went far past what these mortals would consider sight and even as a bear of flesh his perception of people would have included their scent rather than just their surface appearance. So he was not sure why they considered this as looking much different from Gann as he could 'see' the essential similarities. And in any case as a god-of-bears he found all these two-legged creatures to be as similar as most but Druids and Rangers found bears.

Blake approached the image. "Hello?"

"Perhaps I need to speak to it," Gann suggested at the lack of response. "It may be a far from perfect shadow of me but it is a shadow of me."

As Gann also approached the translucent Hagspawn began to swirl like a Telthor losing its form but rather than dissipating it seemed to flow down and into the base of the dais. There was a click from the centre of this and a small panel opened. As the last of the mist, that reminded him a little of what they had seen in the Ward of the Soulless, vanished into that hole Blake stepped forward to peer into it. He was not surprised at what he saw and neither were the others when he reached down and pulled out a soul housing.

"Strange," Blake said, peering at it, "this does not appear quite real."

"As I said, is like a shadow, perhaps," commented Gann, "and rather a distorted one at that. Hopefully it was it will suffice for that door."

"Aye, it does look like it almost worked," Blake nodded, "was almost accurate enough to be real."

"Oh please, you saw that thing. I refuse to believe that my soul…"

"Is that of a Hagspawn?" Blake asked and teased.

"Not that of a Hagspawn of that common kind."

Blake nodded and dropped the subject. "We should head up the tower to open the door, now we have what seem to be the four 'keys'."

"What of this Academy though?" asked Gann, seeing the flaw in the suggestion. "If we have to depart through the portal we know is past that door we might be unable to return here to level this place."

"The problem, my friend, is that we need to be at the top of a tower," Blake sighed. "We need the tower intact long enough for us to pass through the portal and we need to be able to watch the results of our work rather than having to go up those stairs and through a portal and away out of sight."