Disclaimer: I do not own 'Shadows of Amn', the 'Forgotten Realms' or any characters therein. Wizards of the Coast do, at my last check. Lucky them.
I do, however, own Fritha and certain other characters and plot points. Basically, if you don't recognise it from the game, it's probably mine.
– Blackcross & Taylor
Darkness fallsHaer'Dalis shifted, the leaves beneath the cloak he was sat upon rustling as he inched closer to the fire. The group had set out early that morning, moving northwards through the gloaming forests, Minsc or Jaheira halting them now and then to consider the tracks they came across, though they saw no sign of any creature as they travelled over the rough terrain.
Night had fallen much sooner than expected and they had made camp as best they could in the press of trees, the group huddled awkwardly about a small fire as the darkness closed in about them. Haer'Dalis glanced about the circle, their numbers only five now while Minsc and Anomen were off walking the surrounding forests, checking all was still clear before they bedded down for the night.
Haer'Dalis let his gaze fall upon the woman next to him, Jaheira frowning as she stared into the flames. The druid had grown increasingly agitated as the day lengthened and now night was upon them he could practically see her twitching in her own skin. Haer'Dalis sighed. He could understand her discomfort; even he could sense the unnatural air of the forest about them.
It reminded him of Niflheim in the Grey Wastes. The troupe had been travelling back to Sigil when an ill-summoned portal sent them careening into the second level of Hades; a hopeless miserable place where apathy hung in the air like the ever present mists.
There had been a forest there too and one not unlike this one. Twisted sickly trees stretching for leagues in all directions, empty save for the beasts that prowled in search of unwary travellers.
They had managed to find the way to the gatetown and return to Sigil after a few days, but for some it was too late. Laedrith, a promising young actor who had always been of a melancholic disposition contracted a bout of the greys. They took him from that plane as quickly as they could, but he was never really the same afterwards, taking no pleasure in the performances which had once been his highest joy, and he would spend any spare moment in the Laughing Succubus tavern behind the theatre. He drank himself to death within the year.
Haer'Dalis sighed. As the raven would often say, such is life, and there were reasons he lived only for the moment.
He leant back on his pack and stretched his legs out before him, the muscles still aching slightly from the day's walk. The inky sky was visible through the dark web of branches above him and for a moment he let the sounds of the camp fade as he lost himself in the glittering vastness of it. There were no stars above Sigil; no moon either. He had travelled the planes for years now and he had never found anything he would rate higher than that glorious confusion of a city, but he was coming to realise that there were certain aspects to the Prime that bore merit.
And as though the thought of it prompted him, Haer'Dalis dropped his eyes to take in the three girls sat opposite him. The day had been a long and dark one but still they seemed to find the will to keep bright and the sight was heartening; Sigil was not a place for the innocent and those who were did not remain so for long.
Fritha and Nalia were weaving garlands of the fallen leaves, Fritha eschewing the glue Nalia had produced from her bag for the task, the raven trying to coax out some magic to bind hers instead, though by her tired frown Haer'Dalis considered she was probably enjoying little success.
And then there was his dove, the jewel of them all, sat next to them and practising her embroidery. He smiled as he watched her, a slight frown creasing her brow as her silk tangled, Nalia pausing a moment to look it over before gently informing her it would more than likely have to be unpicked and Aerie gave up, throwing the hoop into her bag with a frustrated sigh and finally glancing up to catch his eye. She smiled, moving across to sit next to him and pressing in close as he threw his cloak about them both.
'How goes it, my love?' he asked, gesturing to her bag and the elf sighed.
'Oh, fine. The girls make it look so easy. Nalia says I am making good progress but I cannot see as such myself. I suppose I shall just have to be patient.'
Haer'Dalis smiled slightly as his mind drifted back to their last evening in Athkatla.
'Yes, that is often the way of things.'
The girl had been nervous about him visiting her circus, though trying to hide it beneath her usual smile, and when all had gone well she had seemed almost drunk with relief. They had walked out afterwards, over to the temple district to sit and watch the canals beneath them, silver under the moon, the air thrumming with the murmur of services in the surrounding churches. And it was there as the bells sounded midnight that she had kissed him, and not innocently either but with an intensity that was surprising, though the girl had seemed more than shy of herself by the time they had returned to the inn. It was the same even then, the previous evening's ardour leading into a day of shy looks and reluctance.
He did not mind though. Aerie was an interesting confusion of burning passions and repressive mores; she would come to him again in time. An occasion made all the sweeter by the wait.
He smiled, glancing up as light laughter drifted over the campfire, Nalia giggling at Fritha who was sat holding up a very bedraggled garland, her lap full of leaves. Fritha caught his eye and smiled, heaving a sigh when suddenly her breath seemed to catch, the girl swallowing furiously as she tried to stifle it.
Haer'Dalis smiled. Fritha had been very subdued all day, the girl walking at the back of the group with Nalia, hiding her pale drawn face in her sleeve as she coughed quietly and he had a feeling her little jaunt in the rain may have had some unwelcome consequences.
'Are you okay, Fritha?' asked Aerie, the elf rising from her place next to him to move to her side, Jaheira sending the pair a suspicious look.
'I'm fine, Aerie, honestly,' the girl answered in a strangled voice, batting the hand away from her forehead, but the elf was too quick.
'Oh, you feel really warm, I-I think you've got a fever.'
'By Silvanus,' snapped Jaheira, looking as though she had been waiting for this moment, 'and I wonder why that is.'
Fritha shot Aerie a look and sighed.
'It's nothing, Jaheira, just a sore throat.'
But Jaheira did not appear to be listening.
'Foolish girl, dancing about in the rain like an idiot! Well, I've not an ounce of sympathy for you, not one!' she announced and promptly began to root in her pack, adding various herbs to water that still hung simmering over the fire, muttering darkly and from what he could gather, Fritha had suffered with something similar but months before and the druid's worries that it would take firm hold were high, though it was not a fear Fritha shared.
'Oh, it's my own fault, Aerie, don't fuss,' she sighed as the girl hovered over her with an anxious look. 'Besides, Jaheira's cooking me up a caudle,' she added with a roguish grin and the druid rolled her eyes, Aerie moving back to sit beside him and watch her work.
'Here, drink this,' Jaheira ordered at last, ladling out a cupful of the mixture and handing it too Fritha, the girl straightening to receive it, taking a sip and clearly fighting hard not to spit it immediately out again.
'Ah, Jaheira,' she gasped, holding the cup at arms length, 'this stuff is vile! I'd rather be ill.'
The druid raised an eyebrow to a background of laughter.
'As you wish,' she replied in clipped tones, moving to retrieve it and Fritha seemed to enjoy an instantaneous change of heart.
'No, no, no,' she retracted hastily, drawing back to cup it with both hands, 'I'm sorry, it's lovely. Thank you, Jaheira. Mmm, yum…'
She forced her face into a smile and took another drink, which turned instantly to a grimace as soon as the druid's attention shifted, Fritha physically shuddering as she forced down another mouthful. Haer'Dalis grinned.
'Poor sick raven, was your hour of pleasure worth a tenday of plague?'
Fritha said nothing, but the look she sent him over the rim of her cup could have killed lesser men and he laughed, Aerie tutting reproachfully. 'Haer'Dalis.'
He turned his smile upon her.
'To take joy in the entropy at work is in my nature, my dove, but perhaps you can distract me from it with pleasures of another sort.' The girl coloured and it was all he could do not to laugh as he continued kindly, 'shall we work some more on our play?'
For an instant Aerie looked relieved before she sighed and certain weariness settled over her.
'Not now please, I am tired and I find it difficult to concentrate.'
'As you will, but you should not be too focused in any instance; you must feel the role, my dove, lest the performance feel too practised.'
'Yes, yes…' she snapped, shaking her head as she added remorsefully, 'I am sorry, Haer'Dalis, I know you are only trying to help. I am just finding it harder than expected. This character I must play, she is so unlike me. Can't we try something else?'
And that was why he had chosen it; something to bring the girl out of herself and free the fires he knew she had hidden within her. Haer'Dalis shook his head, putting an arm about her shoulders.
'Nay, my dove, I have every confidence that you shall master this role and feel all the better for doing so.'
Aerie looked downcast but did not refute it and he continued more gently, 'But let us put this aside for now, the day has been a long one and I can see it is distressing you.'
She nodded, leaning into him slightly and a comfortable silence fell over them, Haer'Dalis allowing his attention to drift over to the pair opposite.
Fritha had finished her tonic by now and given up on her garland too by the look of it, clearly deciding since her secret was out she no longer needed to pretend she was well, Nalia seemingly content to lay down her own work as well, and the two were together, Fritha laid with her head resting in the girl's lap.
Haer'Dalis smiled, tightening his arm about the girl next to him, wondering when Aerie would feel comfortable enough to let him act with such affection in company. He watched them, Fritha looking half asleep as Nalia absently combed her fingers through the curls at her temple. And such from the girl who had shied from his merest touch; the primes were very odd.
xxx
Jaheira swallowed dryly, her heart racing as she pushed her way through the tangle of branches, the only life to that forest the gusts of wind that groaned through canopy above them. Minsc was just a silhouette a pace or so before her, the others following close behind them as they walked the last mile or so to the temple ruins, all silent and Jaheira knew even the least perceptive among them could sense the aberration of that place.
It was mid morning, not that it was apparent, the forests darkening to a perpetual twilight as they had continued their journey northwards; not the clear deep darkness of night, but different, somehow hazier, as though a veil of shadows had been thrown over the world. Another gust of wind and somewhere behind her the crack of timber caused more than one person to start, the others' nerves merely serving to heighten her own. Hardly anyone had slept that night, Jaheira spending her guard watching the others laid about her, their eyes reflecting in the firelight, every now and then the sound of distant wolf calls sending a shiver over the camp.
There had been no sign of the creatures yet that morning though, even as they closed upon the ruins, but still she could not shake the feeling that they were being watched and Jaheira kept alert for any sound or movement that would give them away, every nerve straining until she felt alive with it. She sighed, her shoulders aching with the tension in her. They should be reaching the temple soon according to Merella's map, though the forest was so dense and dark it turned out they were almost upon the place before she noticed.
A glimpse of blue-grey stone through the gloom and the group finally found themselves in a clearing that was easily half the size of the village, the ruins of what once must have been a huge structure sat dead within it.
Uneven steps led up into the temple and Jaheira ascended with the others to find herself in a large square bordered on three sides by a hatching of crumbling walls, the place as lifeless as the surrounding forests and silent bar the wind that howled through the broken stonework, catching up the fallen leaves to send them scuttling across the square.
Jaheira frowned slightly. Merella had written of inhabitants, but where were they staying? There wasn't enough of the ruins left to live in by the look of things.
She followed the others across the courtyard, the cobbles underfoot a mess of wolf tracks just as Merella's cabin had been, Fritha pausing to consider an arid fountain, the cracked basin full of dead leaves.
'Look at this,' she began, pointing to the pattern of sunbursts carved about the rim, her voice rustling like the leaves being swept about the square. 'The symbol of Amaunator.'
Anomen raised an eyebrow and Jaheira could read his thoughts on his face as she glanced about the decaying ruins; she could not think of anywhere less likely to be dedicated to the ancient sun god.
'You are sure, my lady?'
The girl just nodded though and the squire frowned, his hand moving unconsciously to the chain at his neck as he cast a wary gaze about them.
'Then this place must have been corrupted.'
'And most powerfully too,' murmured Aerie, shivering slightly as another gust of wind howled through the ruins, only the howling did not fade this time.
'Wolves!' screamed Nalia an arrow already nocked and Jaheira whirled to see a score of the dark shaggy creatures suddenly prowling from the empty ruins as though stepping from the shadows themselves.
The group moved instinctively together, their backs facing inward and weapons drawn, everyone casting about for some sort of shelter, though the wolves seemed everywhere.
Jaheira felt her grip on her staff tighten as they closed in. The beasts looked half dead, as though they had not eaten for days, their black fur matted with filth and blood. They prowled about them just out of reach of their weapons, an uneasy stand-off until suddenly one lunged and chaos erupted. Nalia took the first down with an arrow, Minsc killing another, its body scattering others as it was flung backwards. Jaheira caught one sharply across its front legs, clearly breaking bones and she was horrified to see the creature pick itself up to stagger back ready to attack again.
What was making them act like this? Even dire wolves still followed their instincts, retreating when outclassed or wounded and the druid suddenly realised that the wolves would fight until one group was dead, and by the numbers of them still creeping from the ruins to join the fight, Jaheira did not like to think which it would be.
The wolves were becoming more reckless now, almost frenzied, the creature throwing themselves forward regardless of their weapons. A large female leapt at her and Jaheira swung out, knocking it backwards, whirling to catch a second across the muzzle and it was then she saw them, just visible in the jumble of paw prints and leaves.
Tracks. And not wolves', but of a man and leading straight to-
'A trapdoor! Everyone, over here!' she screamed, breaking from the group to tear over to it before they were completely overwhelmed, falling into a crouch to heave at the heavy iron ring, one hand still tightly gripped about her staff. A set of stone steps swung into view, leading down into the darkness and she did not even have time to consider whether what could be down there was worse than what they were escaping.
'In, now!' she shouted as Fritha arrived, Haer'Dalis and the girls a second behind her as Minsc and Anomen protected their retreat, and there was a flurry of movement as they raced past her, Jaheira flying down the steps after them; the last thing she saw, a myriad of snapping jaws as the trapdoor slammed closed.
Jaheira drew a breath, trying to calm the wild beating of her heart, the idea of finding nature so corrupted unsettling in a way she could not describe. The others were pressed in about her in the darkness, still panting from the run, Fritha's hoarse coughing echoing somewhere beneath her and Jaheira did not need to see the girl to know she was brought double with it.
The druid closed her eyes, taking a moment to centre herself and call forth a light, opening them to find others had done the same, a winding passage of blue-grey stone stretching off before them and flickering in the mingled glow of their werelights.
'So this was where Merella meant when she spoke of the temple being inhabited again,' said Nalia and Jaheira realised she too must have been wondering about the lack of structures in the ruins above.
'Well, I hope they are the ones controlling the wolves,' sighed Fritha, the girl finally having caught her breath, 'because I don't think we'll have an easy time fighting our way out through that.'
The group turned as one to look up at the trapdoor, their only known means of escape, the faint sound of scratching and the occasional whine drifting through the wood. Aerie swallowed.
'D-Do you think they will just grow tired and leave?'
No one spoke and Fritha sighed deeply, throwing the elf a smile that looked more like a grimace in the glow of the werelights.
'Oh well, ever onward.'
xxx
Fritha paused to pull her cloak about her more tightly, surprised to see her breath wasn't misting as she followed the others through the temple's labyrinth of passages and rooms, the place seemingly empty save for the odd grouping of wolves, some of them more shadow than beast. But they were easily driven off by Aerie or Anomen, the creatures shrinking from their holy symbols as though the mere sight of them was agony and they just trapped and left the beasts in side rooms where possible, Jaheira and Minsc against killing any animal that did not pose a direct threat.
Fritha adjusted her grip on her sword, trying to suppress the tremor in her hands as she shivered, another wave of cold passing over her. She did not know whether it was the corruption of that place or just the air down there, but she was frozen. Nalia sent her a concerned glance, her face sallow in the glow of her lantern.
'Are you well, dearest? For a moment, you looked as though someone was walking over your grave.'
Fritha snorted.
'Walking? More like dancing! It's freezing down here!'
Ahead of them, Anomen glanced back, his face wearing the stern look she was more than accustomed to seeing lately. He had been sharp with her ever since the night before when he'd returned to camp to be informed of her illness and Fritha suspected the squire too had joined Jaheira in the opinion that she was now suffering a just reward for her previous foolishness.
'You are cold, my lady? Indeed, I note no one else is so afflicted; perhaps it stems from another source,' he offered mildly and she knew exactly what he was insinuating. He was probably right too, she considered crossly. Fritha sent him a dry smile.
'Yes, your manner'd be my guess.'
He coloured slightly as Nalia laughed quietly into her sleeve, but offered her his cloak all the same, Fritha refusing on the grounds that it probably was just because she was ill and there was no point in them both being cold.
Up ahead, Jaheira brought them to a halt, the woman pausing to examine a door they had come across, it apparently unlocked as she pushed it open and Fritha filed in with the others to find herself in a long room, though how long she could not tell, the far end still swathed in shadows. Two rows of slender columns ran the length, disappearing into the darkness as well and under the arch of each, large stone tombs rested, dusty and silent.
'A mausoleum?' came Nalia behind her and Jaheira nodded, stooping to examine the nearest grave as the others fanned out about her.
'Yes, though some look to have been tampered with. The seal on this one is broken.'
'This one as well,' came Haer'Dalis, Aerie at his side providing a light, 'it seems their final rest was not so peaceful.'
'Tomb robbers,' came Anomen, his disgust apparent.
'Well, they were very thorough then,' said Fritha, holding her lantern over the grave next to her, the stone lid cracked and left ajar, 'because this one's empty.'
A low creaking just on the edge of her hearing and everyone's attention snapped to the darkness that still hung over the rest of the room.
'What was that?'
Fritha swallowed, holding up her lantern, the others following her as she began a slow walk towards the source, the shadows parting before her until-
'Skeletons!' someone screamed as a skull suddenly lunged out of the darkness, Fritha lifting her blade just in time to sever the arm swung out at her, both it and the axe it bore clattering to the floor.
But the creature did not even seem to register the blow, Fritha poised to follow up on her attack and she was forced to dodge awkwardly as pressed on with its offence, catching her across the shoulder with its buckler, Fritha's cursing lost in the sound of splintering glass as she dropped her lantern. She took a step backwards, almost tripping over the broken lamp in her haste and bringing up her sword to slash it across the torso, the rotting leather armour it had been buried in parting easily, though again the creature did not seem to notice.
To her left, a spell flared, knocking one of the skeletons clear across the room, Aerie's face a stricken mask as it struggled to its feet again and pressed on as quickly as before.
'Magic, it- it's not working!'
'Well, ward them then!' Fritha heard the druid snap, the sound followed by a vicious crack and she suspected Jaheira was having more luck with her staff than she was with her sword.
Fritha brought her attention back to her own opponent, the pair stood, each waiting for the other to make some sort of move when it suddenly rushed forward, swinging out at her with its buckler, Fritha parrying the blow to knock the shield wide and bring her blade up to slice through its neck.
The creature finally dead, Fritha took a moment to glance about her. Haer'Dalis was fighting one, Aerie at his side with her staff, warding clearly as ineffective as her spell had been. Jaheira and Minsc seemed to fairing better though, bones of the fallen littering the ground at their feet, while Nalia stood back slightly peppering creatures with arrows for all the good it was doing.
And as for Anomen, it appeared the squire was in his element, the man ahead of her now and fighting two of the creatures, using mace and shield in perfect union to press the attack, a fine aura of dust swirling about him as he moved.
But even he would have been hard pressed to fight three at once and Fritha ran forward to engage the last skeleton before it reached him. This one was armed with a warhammer and though much heavier than an axe or sword, it swung the weapon with a brutal speed, keeping her constantly on the defensive as she waited for a window of attack.
Another wide swing at her and suddenly she saw her chance, Fritha stepping around the weapon to strike at the creatures head. But it was too fast, turning to swing out at her again as though the hammer was weightless in its hands and it was all she could do to dodge in time, the skeleton catching her a glancing blow across the chest that winded her. Fritha staggered back, suddenly unable to breath, the creature rushing forward to press the advantage when Anomen appeared at her side, swinging his mace out and its skull shattered on impact, showering her in shards of bone and dust.
Nalia rushed to her side as Fritha dropped immediately into a crouch, burying herself in knees as she coughed uncontrollably, the others slowly gathering themselves and moving in around them.
'That- that was awful,' breathed Aerie somewhere above her, the girl sounding shaken and Fritha suspected that finding her spells were useless had been a shock for her. 'Do you think there will be any more of those creatures?'
Fritha glanced up in time to see Anomen nod.
'Most likely, and we must be prepared for it.'
But it was clear that was not the answer Aerie had been hoping for and Minsc sent the elf a kind smile.
'Never would this happen in my homeland. People's spirits are released in glorious fire, on pyres even taller than Minsc. Much better, I am thinking. No evil magic can tamper with you then, eh Fritha?' he laughed.
Fritha just nodded though, unable to manage any words of comfort right at that moment. Her chest felt impossibly tight, every lungful of that cold dry air burning her throat as she fought to catch her breath.
The others spread out to check the remaining tombs, Nalia at her side as she shuffled back to lean against the wall, trying to stop coughing long enough to take drink of the syrup Jaheira had brewed her early that morning. The woman had surpassed herself in managing to make something which tasted worse than the previous night's concoction, though the way she felt at the moment, Fritha would have drunk anything the druid gave her if she said it would make her feel better, although it had meant she'd wasted the last of her water that morning in attempts to take the taste away. And as though on cue, another pair of boots joined Nalia's and Fritha straightened to see the frowning face of Jaheira.
'Really, Fritha, listen to you!' she sighed, taking her chin to peer critically down her throat as Fritha gasped and spluttered, 'Have you been taking the linctus I gave you?'
'Yes, yes,' Fritha dismissed, batting her hand away and taking a quick mouthful, 'it's just a cold, Jaheira. Stop twisting on, I'm fine.'
Fritha sighed, smiling instantly at how less than fine she sounded as her voice cracked and wavered. 'Gods, I need a bell, don't I,' she laughed hoarsely. 'Unclean! Unclean!'
'For the love of Silvanus, you are making it worse!' Jaheira scolded as her mirth soon descended into another bout of coughing, Nalia sighing tersely as she rubbed her back.
'For goodness sake, Jaheira, she's taking your linctus; leave her alone.'
'Yes,' Jaheira snapped, whirling on the girl, 'and she should have been drinking it yesterday. If you were her friend you would have told me of this illness as soon as you knew.'
Nalia coloured and Fritha felt her stomach tighten.
'Leave off, Jaheira,' she croaked, straightening with some difficulty to send the woman a frown, 'this is no one's fault but mine. I asked Nalia not to say anything.'
Jaheira was looking back and forth between them, Fritha squaring up to her gaze and next to her she sensed Nalia doing the same, when suddenly the woman was shaking her head and Fritha was surprised to see she was smiling.
'Well, at least you stand united- even if it is in idiocy. Just make sure to tell me if she gets any worse,' the druid continued to Nalia sternly, the girl assuring her she would as the woman stalked off, leaving the pair staring bewilderedly after her.
'What was that all about?' asked Nalia. Fritha shook her head.
'Haven't a clue.'
'Nalia, could you come and check something for me, please?' called Aerie from the far end room and Nalia looked torn. Fritha sent her a smile.
'Go on, you go. I'll stay here and take my medicine.'
Nalia nodded, moving off to help the elf, Fritha leaning back against the cold wall and closing her eyes as she took another drink of the astringent syrup, unable to suppress a shudder as she swallowed.
'The Adder's Root blend?' came a voice at her shoulder and she opened her eyes to find Anomen stood over her, eyeing the bottle in her hand. 'Yes, that one is rather bitter-'
'Yes, yes, I know; all my own fault,' Fritha sighed, screwing up her courage for another mouthful, Anomen watching her drink with a contemplative look.
'Here,' he said eventually, opening his flask to pass it to her and she took a long grateful draft, cold water soothing her throat in a way nothing else could.
'Thank you,' she sighed with a tired smile, moving to hand the flask back to him, though he shook his head, indicating for her to keep it as he continued, his manner warmer than it had been in a long time.
'Not at all. I had worried whether your staying out in the storm would not be something you would later regret. I only hope this experience will serve to show you that such careless diversions usually hold hidden detriments, and ones not favourable for the life we must lead.'
'What?' she began with a laugh at his paternal tone, a stern look from Jaheira stifling it as she continued. 'Anomen, I only went out in the rain and got wet.'
The squire frowned, his air of concern waning.
'Yes, and suffering for it now, I see.'
'And? It's only a bit of a cold, Anomen. Gods, you wear that armour like a shell!' she laughed, rapping lightly on his breastplate for good measure. 'So I went out in the rain playing silly devils. So? It was a wonderful experience. And now I am sick and that's an experience too; admittedly not as enjoyable, and the timing could have been better, but I would not sacrifice one to save me from the other.'
But Anomen clearly did not appreciate this unrepentant standpoint.
'And have you no thought as to how this affects anyone else? All night I had to listen to you rattle and cough!'
Fritha swallowed, her smile fading on her face, and for all her sickness, it was only then she felt truly awful.
'I'm sorry,' she said quietly, guilt squirming in her stomach, 'I didn't realise I'd kept you awake.'
Anomen paused, a look of intense indecision passing across his face before he slowly admitted, 'You- you did not. I was awake anyway, I could not sleep… But that is not the point-'
'Well, what is it then?' she snapped, her guilt quickly turning to annoyance at this perceived attempt to trick some remorse from her. 'If the only person suffering by this is me and I think it's worth it, what does it matter?'
'Er, Fritha, could you come and look at something, please…' called Aerie tentatively from the other end of the room. Fritha sighed and shook her head, more than glad of an excuse to end the quarrel.
'Thank you for the water,' she said briskly, with as much geniality as she could muster, Anomen's reply just as clipped.
'You are quite welcome.' And with that, they parted.
Fritha walked up to find the girls stood before a section of wall between two pillars and examining a panel of intricate carvings.
'What is it?'
Aerie glanced back to her and shook her head.
'I don't know. I- I just sense something here. I thought perhaps it was some kind of magical trap at first, but Nalia can't find anything.'
Fritha took a step closer. The familiar sunburst of Amaunator was carved above a table of sixteen tiles that looked as though they could be removed and all baring a different symbol.
'Well, they're all characters in Old Draconic. See, that's light… life… I think that one's book, or perhaps joy…'
'So, it is some sort of puzzle then?' came Nalia eagerly, 'We have to put them in the correct order?'
Fritha shrugged.
'Looks like. So we've got light, life, joy…'
And Fritha set about translating the rest as best she could remember, though she freely admitted she was guessing a lot of them, the girls between them deciding on the order with much swapping about and changing of minds, until they finally decided, their disappointment palpable as they placed the last tile in and nothing happened, before Nalia suddenly remembered that, outside of books, Draconic was usually written from top to bottom.
A moment to rearrange the tiles and finally Aerie was fitting the last tentatively into place, the three starting backwards as the sound of ancient clockwork groaned somewhere below them and the whole wall slid away to reveal a small circular room, the walls lined with tables and shelves all covered in a dusty collection of books and jars.
Together they stepped inside, Fritha moving to leaf through the nearest tome, while Nalia set to examining a tray of narrow iron instruments on one of the tables. Aerie took the lid from a large stone jar, replacing it immediately as the rich woody scent of olibanum filled the air.
'I- I think this must have been where they prepared the bodies of those people buried out there.'
A clatter as Nalia instantly dropped the long iron hook she'd been examining, Fritha smiling as she held open her book to show the elf some strange diagrams she had just found.
'Here, what do you make of these?' she asked, Aerie leaning forward to take it, a curtain of flaxen hair falling across her shoulder and Nalia suddenly cried, 'Is- is that…?'
The elf straightened, looking embarrassed but Fritha had seen it too, a small violet stain upon her neck, Nalia's amusement mirroring her own as the girl continued incredulously, 'Aerie, is that a lovebite?'
Aerie said nothing, stunned to silence, but her blush spoke volumes and the two girls broke out into raucous laughter.
'It isn't! It's a bruise, truly! Oh be quiet, you two!'
'Lovebites!' cried Nalia, still laughing, 'What about all that "Oh, we don't really kiss, we just hold hands and talk"!'
Fritha grinned.
'No, no kissing, they just skipped straight to the good stuff! Ah, grotts of all things; and I thought you were such a nice girl, Aerie.'
'Grotts?' came Nalia and Fritha nodded brightly.
'Yes, that's what we call them up in the Heartlands. It's slang, probably some contraction of garrotte. Hmm, it does look a bit like someone's tried to strangle you. Let's ask the man himself shall we?' Fritha teased, turning to draw a fractured breath as though to call for Haer'Dalis and Aerie leapt in with a shriek to clamp a hand over her mouth, Nalia left breathless with laughter.
'What are you three-?' came a familiar terse voice, Jaheira stepping into view and trailing off as she stared about her. 'A hidden room…' she said eventually, looking rather impressed and Fritha sent the girls a grin.
'We three were hard at work, as you can see.'
Jaheira snorted.
'I'll never see the day- wait, what is this?' she continued a concern creeping into her voice and all three turned to a plain narrow table in the back of the room, a small muslin-wrapped bundle upon it and overlooked in the surrounding chaos of scrolls and bottles.
'Isn't that-?'
It was. The bones of a child, still wrapped in its burial shroud and Fritha suspected by its size it had probably reached no older than four years when it had lived.
The girl moved closer and it was only then she noticed the circle of runes that were painted roughly around it, a feeling of cold worse than any she had yet experienced washing over her as she reached the table. She did not think and could not say later why she had done it, just quickly reached out to snatch the bundle up, ice piercing right to her heart.
'Fritha!' snapped Jaheira as it brought her double, Nalia at her side in an instant.
'Are you all right?'
'Yes, just- just cold,' Fritha gasped as she straightened and the three gathered around her, all staring down at the bones cradled in her arms, the skull looking almost alive in the flicker of their lights.
'Who do you think it was?' asked Nalia, her voice suddenly little more than a whisper. Fritha shook her head, moving the bundle gently into the crook of her arm as she parted the shroud slightly to reveal a treasure of bracelets and pendants in amber and gold.
'I don't know, but they must have been important; look, they were buried in a dragon's hoard.'
'It feels powerful,' came Aerie quietly, 'and- and good. I can't describe it…'
Jaheira nodded decisively.
'Well, it clearly doesn't belong in here, in any case.'
'No, and all the tombs outside were spoken for,' agreed Fritha. 'Come on, it can come with us.'
She moved a hand up to the clasp of her cloak with the intention of making a sling, feeling it would be somewhat disrespectful just to push the bones into her bag. But Nalia noticed what she was doing and beat her to it, ignoring her protests to take off her own cloak and lay it on the ground, Jaheira folding it this way and that before they gently laid down the child and gathered it up to be slung across Aerie's back.
Fritha smiled, feeling oddly protective over the tomb-worn bundle.
'Come on, little one, we'll soon have you back at rest.'
xxx
Deeper into the ruins they went, continuing their search for the inhabitants and a source to the corruption there. Anomen could sense the evil of the place, the unnatural air of darkness that hung over them as they explored room after room, most emptied by scavengers but still recognisable as storerooms of sorts, all dusty weapon racks and empty bookcases, and he wondered if the place had not once been similar to the temple-school where he trained to become a cleric.
They were currently walking along a narrow corridor, the curve of the passage and the ever-present shadows making it difficult to see what was up ahead. Anomen readjusted his grip on his mace, glad for the familiar weight of it in his hand as they continued on. At least the way had become easier since the addition of that child's remains to their group, the wolves now fleeing from their mere presence. The undead that wandered the place were still proving to be a problem though, especially in that they seemed both immune to the effects of the remains and their own warding.
Up ahead a hoarse coughing started him from his thoughts. Fritha was still trying to catch her breath from their last skirmish, the sound of it putting his teeth on edge. All night he'd had to listen to her; laid there, the only sounds the crackle of the fire and Fritha's rattling cough, a laboured pained sound that went right through him.
He had tried to be sympathetic before, but the words had not come out as he'd planned and her lack of repentance had annoyed him. He had almost been tempted to let her continue in her belief that she kept them all awake that night, if only to make her rethink her foolishness and save herself from something similar in the future. But it would have been untruthful and now he was reaping the rewards for his honesty, the girl as obstinate as ever.
Anomen frowned, almost hoping they would happen upon another group of skeletons, if only so he could vent his frustrations on them. But the passage remained empty and they walked on for another few moments before finally reaching a door, Minsc pushing it open after Nalia had picked the lock and Anomen found himself walking down a set of stairs into a huge arena, columned archways stacked one upon the other and rising up to an open roof, a dark starless sky hung overhead.
And then from the shadows he heard it, a low guttural growl, two steady wisps of smoke rising without a kink in the still air as a voice rasped, 'Welcome fleshlings.'