The Zenith

by Blackcross-Taylor

After their capture by the mysterious Irenicus, Fritha and her companions find themselves in the lands of Amn with a friend to rescue and a debt to repay. Completed

60. Out came the sun

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. Nor do I own "Another girl, Another Planet"' by the Only Ones.
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.

Out came the sun

It was well past midnight now, the stars blinking as clouds moved overhead, blowing in off the sea, bringing with them a damp almost warm breeze and Jaheira could sense the rains to come.

Fritha and Haer'Dalis were walking slightly behind her, almost as though they still worried she might change her mind. A part of her considered she should as well, though it was a concern that she was clearly alone in, the pair laughing and chatting as they walked and Jaheira could not help but notice the change in Fritha, the girl's carefree manner lacking the strained edge it had suffered lately and she seemed genuinely happy. Jaheira let her gaze drift to the dusky-haired man walking next to her. She had been worried before that something best left dormant would blossom between them, but then it had all faded into friendship and she had felt her concerns ebb.

But now… Jaheira considered as she watched the girl laugh, dark eyes shining with more than just the reflection of the streetlamps. Fritha glanced ahead to catch her watching, beaming as she skipped forward to playfully tug at her sleeve as though to hurry her along, like a young child on her way to some wonderful treat.

'Ah, I'm so excited!'

'Fritha, calm down.'

'How can I, when I'm out with my two favourite people and I'm feeling so up!' Fritha sprang onto the low wall next to them, her voice light and full of laughter as she began to sing. 'I always flirt with death. I look ill, but I don't care about it.'

'Fritha, get down from there!'

'I can face your threats, and stand up straight and tall and shout about it.'

'You having fun there, pet?' called a gruff voice behind them and the three turned to see a patrol of two watchmen paused at the crossroads they had just passed.

'Aye, always!' Fritha called back.

The guards laughed continuing their patrol, Fritha humming blithely as she continued her dance along the wall, the tiefling smiling as he turned to Jaheira.

'Now, my ptarmigan, who looks the more suspicious: three cutters skulking about the darkened streets, or three revellers on their way to the next tavern?'

'Do not even attempt to make out her idiocy is all part of some greater plan!'

'No, but it was a useful coincidence, was it not?'

He grinned and Jaheira shook her head in disbelief.

'The full moon must be affecting more than just Cernd; letting you two lead me into this madness. How I will face the others tomorrow, I do not know.'

But Haer'Dalis waved her concerns away with a pale hand. 'Oh, they will not care and those that do will be appeased easily enough.'

'Yes,' agreed Fritha, looking down on them, suddenly serious, 'it's not as if we're going to desecrate anything. Just fetch this book and leave. Besides,' she continued, a certain sternness creeping into her manner and Jaheira could see a reflection of Gorion and his Oghamite teachings lingering behind the young face, 'books shouldn't be buried to start with. They are created to be read, that the knowledge they hold may be shared and grow. I bet the person who wrote it would not wish for their book to moulder away like a corpse.' Fritha had at last come to the end the wall, the girl dropping down to join them on the street once more as she continued thoughtfully, 'And as for the others, well, I don't think Minsc will mind so much, for a start. Will Cernd?'

Jaheira sighed dully. 'No, I do not imagine so.'

'And the dove is always cross with me about something at the moment,' offered Haer'Dalis with a shrug.

Jaheira nodded. In fact, the only reaction she could not foresee was Anomen's. In the beginning, he had been so predictable in his black and white view of the world, but he seemed to have matured somewhat lately. She doubted he would be pleased with them tomb robbing, but if Fritha went to him with her reasons…

'I could not guess at what the knight would do though, he has changed greatly of late,' Jaheira offered absently and Fritha nodded in vehement agreement.

'I'm glad you've noticed it too. I thought it was just me, at first, but Anomen has been acting very oddly, hasn't he? I think this knighthood has gone to his head. He told me I had nice posture the other day,' she confessed, frowning as though she could not see why anyone would have even considered it.

Haer'Dalis smiled mildly, letting his eyes flick pointedly down to her rear.

'Are you sure he said posture?'

'Haer'Dalis!' Fritha cried, laughing through her indignation as she cuffed the back of his head, the bard lost to laughter. Jaheira shook her head, torn between disapproval and amusement.

'Really, Haer'Dalis, are you that keen to meet with your oblivion so soon? I cannot imagine Aerie finding such jests as entertaining as you seem to.'

The bard let his laughter finally fade in a sigh, though the smile still lingered.

'Ah, that she would not, my ptarmigan, but it would be refreshing to be scolded something for which I feel I should be reproached. Ah, and at last we are arrived, my birds.'

Jaheira gazed up at the ornate stone archway that marked the entrance to the cemetery, memories of the last time they were gathered before it and their chilling meeting suddenly at the fore of her mind. Neither Fritha nor the bard seemed especially concerned though, the pair stepping just inside to examine the painted board that showed the layout of the plots for visitors, Fritha letting a pale blue light blossom in her hand as they examined it.

'So which way is it?' asked Fritha. Haer'Dalis glanced briefly to the map he held.

'The west gate is the crypt entrance nearest to where we are headed; it is on other side of graveyard. This way.'

Fritha let the light she held fade, the girl unwilling to attract the attention of any more watchmen now. The moon was full though, bathing the place in enough light to make the way, though it was not as brightly as Jaheira would have liked. Perhaps it was just since she knew who held residence there, but she fancied every shadow looked sinister, the darkness that hung in the doorways of the tombs they passed hiding untold fiends.

Haer'Dalis led them through the hatching of cobbled streets past ornate vaults and tombs, some almost miniature palaces in their grandeur, finally coming to a narrow lane between two large stone mausoleums that ended in a wall. A tall iron gate was at the end and barring the way to a flight of stone steps which spiralled down into the darkness. The bard rattled it, the clang of metal on metal seeming very loud in the surrounding stillness.

'Ah, locked as expected. My raven.'

Fritha let a hand hover over the lock, a well-oiled click the only sign of the magic being worked within. Haer'Dalis grinned, opening the gate and stepping back with a slight bow.

'Ladies first.'

Fritha glance to Jaheira with an eager smile, light blooming about them as they summoned their werelights and together the three descended into the crypts.

The steps led down into a small square room, three tunnels leading from it, just three yawning black holes in the grey stone walls. The vaulted ceiling above them was also lost to darkness, the place swathed in shadows that their werelights seemed to do little to penetrate.

'Ooo, it's a bit spooky, isn't it?' whispered Fritha, though she sounded more enthralled that scared, the girl raising her light to better see the ornate carvings that decorated the ceiling ribs. Haer'Dalis snorted, not bothering to glance up from the map he was studying.

'Believe me, a few profitless hours searching and it soon loses its macabre charm. Come, the map points this way.'

They took the northern tunnel, travelling the maze of passages, the majority of which were lined floor to ceiling with alcoves where bodies both fresh and ancient lay under shrouds in their final rest. The way was slow for the map they had acquired was not the most accurate of plans and seemed to miss off the smaller tunnels and turnings altogether, and with a tunnel-in further into the crypts forcing them to backtrack, Jaheira guessed it was well over an hour later when they finally reached their goal.

This passage was much wider than the others they had travelled to get there and lined, not with alcoves but long heavy wooden tombs set vertically against the walls, each painted with an image of a figure dressed in simple clothes, their eyes closed as though sleeping.

'What are these?' asked Haer'Dalis, moving closer to the nearest one. Jaheira shrugged, joining him to throw light upon the faded painting of a square-jawed and simple looking man she placed as some sort of labourer.

'More than likely depictions of the servants of whomever we plan to rob and included here that they may continue to serve him beyond the veil.'

Fritha frowned, looking uneasy.

'They- they weren't killed when he died and buried down here as well, were they?' she asked and Jaheira assumed the girl had heard rumours of the barbaric rites carried out in distant Mulhorand, though the druid shook her head.

'No, no, I have not heard of that practise ever in Amn. These tombs are likely empty, just included as a representation of the deceased's status.'

They moved onward down the passage, the light that hovered over her staff slowly opening the room at the end, until finally they passed under the archway to stand in a small square chamber, a large sarcophagus in the centre, the figure of a man, robed and bearded, carved in stone upon the lid, while chests and pots of various sizes were set about it, a fine layer of powdery dust over all.

'So, we are here,' confirmed Haer'Dalis finally pocketing the map and turning his attention to the sarcophagus. 'According to Mekrath's notes, the book should be inside the tomb. Are there any traps awaiting prying hands, my ptarmigan?'

Jaheira ran her eye and then her fingers over the stone lid. 'Nothing physical. Fritha?'

The girl shrugged. 'I sense no magic about it.'

'Well, then,' said Haer'Dalis, rubbing his hands together eagerly and placing them against the lid, 'There is only one thing left, my birds.'

He lowered his frame and pushed, Jaheira moving to help him, the heavy stone lid grinding slowly back to reveal a desiccated corpse, its skin black and stretched like leather over its bones, tattered fragments of mouldering velvet and gold wire all that remained of the fine red robes it had been buried in. And there, clasped to its chest and still perfectly intact was a large green tome.

Fritha reached in and eased it carefully from its hands to open it.

'Ooo, Thorass.'

'Sorry?' came Haer'Dalis, glancing back from where he had been leaning in to better examine the body.

'It's written in Old Common,' the girl explained, 'As a language, I haven't seen it since leaving Candlekeep.' She shifted the book to rest upon one arm, turning the page as she read, before glancing up to them with frown. 'I think it's a diary.'

'Well, whatever it is, we have it now,' said Jaheira, 'You can study it after we return to the inn.'

Fritha nodded, pushing it carefully into her bag and moving to the other side of the sarcophagus to help the tiefling close the lid, the pair having barely set their backs to it when they heard it.

'I am not sure this is the correct turning, Korgan. This map is rather more sketchy than the last and since we were forced to backtrack-'

'No! This be the way, I bloody knows it, so get back in line!'

Jaheira's werelight was out in an instant, the last thing she saw, Fritha's look of horror before the tomb was plunged into darkness.

It was as though a veil had been thrown over the world, the vault now lit only by the soft glow of the torches that were just around the end of the tunnel, the light growing ever brighter with the approaching echo of the footsteps. Fritha bit back a cry as she felt two firm hands grab her shoulders in the darkness, Haer'Dalis suddenly dragging her along the tunnel towards the light, the pair reaching about halfway along before the bard pulled open the nearest tomb to bundle her inside, Fritha just able to make out Jaheira doing the same at the coffin opposite before Haer'Dalis stepped in behind her and pulled the door closed.

Fritha deepened her breathing, trying to hear over the smart tattoo of blood beating in her ears. The tomb was cramped with both of them in there, her face pressed into the bard's shoulder at an odd angle and she could feel his breath stirring her hair as they waited. The footsteps were growing louder and Fritha recognised the imperious tones of Aurimas as the men passed outside.

'Well, all I can say is that it is fortunate I kept that rough draft of the map Mekrath gave us.'

'Ha, listen to him, Korgan. We wouldn't even be in this position, spellfiddler, if you hadn't lost the first one.'

'Tae! It was not lost and you know it! Those vile thieves! I cannot believe they tricked us like this!'

'We should have realised really; there was no way that girl would have fancied you, Aurimas.'

'You-!'

'Cease yer jabbering,' the dwarf cut in roughly, 'or I'll be silencing ye both fer good! Now there still be a fair chance they ain't come down here yet, so…'

There was a pause to the voices and Fritha suspected they had finally reached the vault, suspicions confirmed but moments later when an almost primal roar echoed along the passage, quickly followed a long stream of curses punctuated by the smash of breaking pottery as Korgan no doubt vented his fury.

'Arrgh, those rank bastards! I do the work of ferreting out the blasted book and those plane-skulking swindlers steal it from under me! Thrice over their graves I'll be dancing, I swear it!'

Fritha felt a hand gently squeeze her shoulder, Haer'Dalis giving her this brief warning as he set his back against the lid and slowly eased it open, the man slipping quietly through the gap and holding it open for her to do the same. Jaheira was already outside the tomb opposite them, the woman carefully closing the lid. But time had taken its toll upon the workings, the hinges giving a disgruntled shriek as she let the lid swing closed the final few inches.

'Hold, Korgan, I heard something.'

The uproar in the vault behind them suddenly ceased and before they could even move, a light flared bright. For a moment, the two groups just stared at each other, all ghost-like and drained of colour in the flash of brightness the mage had conjured, when Korgan suddenly roared, raising his axe above his head with a wild look and Haer'Dalis had grabbed Fritha an instant later, pulling her after him as he turned to run, the three tearing off down the passageway, the mercenaries in furious pursuit.

There seemed little point for stealth now and Fritha had already summoned a small bead of light for them to see by, the girl on Haer'Dalis's heels, Jaheira but a pace behind her as the three of them ran. The tiefling clearly had a memory for maps, Haer'Dalis hardly even slowing his pace to decide each time they came to a junction and he recalled the way better than she ever could have. But even he was not infallible, and Fritha soon found herself running down unfamiliar passageways, until Haer'Dalis turned into a small chamber and finally they halted.

Fritha held her breath, trying to silence her panting and slow the wild beating on her heart after their frantic flight. The room was small and square with a vaulted ceiling just as the entrance hall had been, cobwebs hung like ornate swags above them, a heavy layer of dust over the two tombs the room housed, each carved with a figure, one man and one woman, both clothed in a very old style of dress. The sounds of their pursuers were still echoing in the tunnels outside, but they seemed quieter than before and Fritha let the hope enter her heart that they had perhaps finally lost them.

Haer'Dalis and Jaheira had slipped into the shadows behind one of the entrance pillars, Jaheira calling forth faint light for them to study the map by, the pair trying to place where they were. Fritha kept her eyes fixed on the doorway, moving to crouch behind one of the sarcophaguses where she had a view of the passage they had fled down just moments before, watching the end for the soft glow of light that would indicate they had been followed. But there was nothing yet, the girl turning back to ask the others whether they had found the way out, and Fritha only just manage to stifle her cry to a gasp as she came face to face with a young boy of no more than six winters, grubby and gaunt and pale with fear.

'What is it?' hissed Jaheira, the druid starting back with surprise as she rounded the corner of the tomb. 'By Silvanus!'

'Goodness,' breathed Fritha, still hardly able to believe he was there before her, the girl running panicked hands over his frame, bone-thin beneath his simple robes, 'Are you all right? Are you hurt?'

The boy shook his head, his eyes suddenly going wide, body tensing as though about to flee.

'Now, don't be afraid, we're not going to hurt-'

A scream from somewhere along the passage outside cut her off, Fritha whirling to the sound, though it barely had time to register as a large black shape dropped from the darkness above them to pin the tiefling in a tangle of long spindly legs.

'Haer'Dalis!'

The child went to run but Fritha was too quick for him, grabbing his arm, Jaheira already upon the creature, swinging out her staff to knock it from the bard, the creature skidding across the tomb on its back only to spring to its feet again as it scuttled back towards them, a cluster of bulbous red eyes glimmering faintly just above its fangs and Fritha felt herself recoil from just about the biggest spider she had ever seen. Jaheira was ready for it though, staff drawn back for the killing blow. One swift thrust to its face and the spider was on its back once more, legs twitching in death, the druid immediately turning her attentions to Haer'Dalis who was leant back against the wall clutching his shoulder and looking pale.

'Are you all right?'

'Yes,' he breathed, though he could not seem to manage any more by the way of reassurances. Another roar echoed through the tunnels outside, this time accompanied by the shriek of spiders. Fritha swung the boy on to her back, the child instantly stopping his struggles to fasten his arms about her neck with a grip that could have strangled her. She turned back to the others.

'Do we know the way out?'

Haer'Dalis nodded weakly.

'Well, come on then!'

They ran back along the passage, the sounds of battle growing ever louder until they rounded a corner to find their three would-be hunters caught in a vicious battle with half a dozen of the huge black spiders, ever more seeming to pour from the tombs and crypts around them. Korgan was in the thick of them, though not out of his element it seemed, the dwarf smeared with the green-black gore as he swung and swore at anything that came within range of his axe, Tae at his back, bow in hand while behind them, Aurimas was stood, his staff aloft, white energy bright enough to light the whole tunnel crackling about his head as he called on arcane powers.

'Come on,' shouted Fritha over the din, 'we know the way ou-'

The boy's scream nearly deafened her as a spider dropped from the darkness above, though Jaheira struck it aside before it even reached them.

'Fritha, we've got to go!'

Suddenly, Aurimas swept his staff down, striking it against the dusty stone tiles and fire burst forth to engulf all around him, the creatures finally retreating, Korgan's curses and the shrill screams of burning spiders filling the air.

They ran on, the stitch in Fritha's side like a knife between her ribs, her knees trembling under the weight of the child she carried as they raced along the corridors to finally reach another junction. Haer'Dalis was looking faint by now, the man leaning heavily into Jaheira as he fought to catch his breath.

'Which way?'

'That, that one,' he gasped, raising a trembling hand to the southern passage and they set off again.

Fritha was leading now, the girl beginning to recognise the turns and tunnels and suddenly they were back in the vaulted room where they had first descended. She tore up the steps, the gate bursting open before she even reached it and finally the four of them were out, stood gasping under a pale grey sky.

It was raining lightly, the cold drops speckling Fritha's face, the cobbles and stonework about them drenched and glistening, evidence of the heavier rains which had already been and gone. The alley between the two mausoleums was cramped and they moved at once into narrow lanes of the cemetery proper Haer'Dalis immediately slumping onto a low wall, clutching his arm and breathing heavily as Jaheira tended him, the man sweating profusely though it was cold.

Fritha turned away from them, the feelings of guilt stirring and she settled her attention instead on the one good thing that had resulted from her foolishness.

'You all right back there, my lamb?'

She felt the boy nod into her neck, though he said nothing and Fritha set him gently down to stand on the low wall next to her. The boy seemed reluctant to let go, though he slid off after a little coaxing, Fritha removing her cloak and wrapping it about him against the morning's chill before letting the boy climb onto her back once more. Fritha sighed, turning eastwards to see the sky finally warming, a pale watery yellow creeping into the haze and at her ear there came a whispering. She half turned back, about to ask the child what was wrong when she realised he was not talking to her, all his focus east as he intoned a prayer to the dawn. Fritha felt her heart twist, a hot lump rising in her throat, the panic and fear of before finally dissipating to leave her rather emotional.

'Oh, bless you. We'll soon have you back with Dawnmaster Kreel, okay?'

She felt the arms about her neck tighten in a brief squeeze of acknowledgement, no pause to his worship. A sharp hiss behind her and Fritha turned to see Jaheira drawing what looked to be a broken shard of fang from Haer'Dalis's shoulder, the man grimacing as he drank from a small bottle of viscous brown liquid that did not look particularly appetising and Fritha felt awful all over again.

'Come now, my raven,' Haer'Dalis scolded, sending her a weak smile as Jaheira fussed over the wound, 'don't look at me so. I was as eager for this jaunt as you. And as they say, there is no excitement without risk.'

Fritha sighed. 'Yes, but this trip has ended up with much more of the latter than the former.'

But the bard just laughed, finishing his draft in one final mouthful and hissing as Jaheira pulled the bandage tight in the final knot and took the bottle from his waiting hand.

'Right, the poison should be purged from your system now; can you walk?'

Haer'Dalis nodded, rising stiffly.

'As well as I ever could -though it might be a while before I'm tripping you about a dance floor, my raven,' he added with wink, Fritha sending him a wry smile in return.

'I'll wait.'

Jaheira sighed, shouldering her bag with a smile of her own. 'Well, at least your spirits remain unaffected. Come, with any luck we can get back to the tavern before the others have risen and at least be graced with time enough to take some tea and decide how to best explain this folly.'

It seemed, though, that the last of their luck had been spent in the crypts.

'Fritha!' cried Anomen as the tavern door banged open, four familiar faces instantly glancing up from the table opposite, the knight on his feet a moment later.

'Oh dear,' sighed Haer'Dalis behind her and Fritha felt her stomach lurch in agreement. So much for them getting back before the others even realised they had gone. Aerie was on her feet as well by now, her face already flushed in her temper.

'Where, in the name of goodness, have you three been?'

Fritha sighed. She knew well enough how the rest of this was going to pan out, namely badly.

'We've been in the crypts, didn't you get my note?' she asked, sending a questioning look to Minsc who smiled.

'Yes, we found your letter, Boo thought it very droll. Though tomb-breakingis really ki'tszij. The word you used, hagisk, would be for the looting of the dead before they are buried.'

Jaheira sent Fritha an exasperated look. 'You wrote the note in Rashemi?'

Fritha shrugged. 'I thought it would be good practise -but before we all start screaming and shouting,' she added quickly in the face of Aerie's angry look, 'we have a new addition to our company.'

Fritha turned slightly and there were collective exclamations of astonishment as she let the boy, unnoticed all this while, slide off her back and into the nearest chair.

'Here, my lamb, eat up,' she smiled, quickly serving him some porridge and setting it in front of him, 'we'll soon have you back with all your friends at the seminary.'

'A ch-child?' gasped Aerie, Anomen looking just as shocked.

'The boy from the temple, you found him?'

Fritha nodded. 'Yes, and quite a way from where you lot were looking for him.'

'We also ran into the likely cause of the disappearance,' continued Jaheira, glancing to the boy to add, 'though perhaps it is best we don't speak of that here.'

'What is your name, child?' asked Cernd, sending the boy a concerned look, though he barely glanced up from his food.

'Don't take it personally, Cernd; he hasn't spoken once since we found him,' said Fritha, smiling kindly as she turned her attention back to the child, 'I'll be back in a moment, my lamb, and then we'll return you to the temple. Okay?'

The boy smiled tentatively and nodded.

'Good lad,' said Fritha, gently ruffling his sandy hair as she turned to lead the others away from the table to a corner where they could speak without being overheard.

Cernd lingered though, unwilling to leave the boy alone after his ordeal and for a while he just watched him eat, feeling the silence between them pressing on him. Foolish though he knew it to be, a part of him felt that he should know instinctively how to reach the boy, but he did not and the silence hung over them, broken only by the chink of his spoon, the boy watching the window next to them as he ate.

'So,' Cernd began slowly, unable to bear the silence any longer, 'you were lost in the crypts for six days -did you know it was that long? …No, well, you were very fortunate to have survived all that time… It must have been very frightening… I imagine your family will have been very worried for you -or the priests and your friends at the temple,' he added quickly when he considered that the boy may have been taken into the seminary as an orphan like so many others.

Silence. The boy did not even draw his gaze from the windows. Cernd stifled a sighed, just about to give up when-

'Jarrem.'

Cernd started, wondering if he had just imagined the barely whispered response.

'Jarrem, is that your name?'

The boy seemed not to have heard him, his large grey eyes still fixed on the window as he continued quietly, 'Jarrem will be worried. And Petra too. Jarrem said we should go into the crypts. He thought it would be fun; show the others how brave we are. We all went, me, Jarrem and Petra. There's a hidden way in that the priests don't think we know about, in one of the back rooms in the chapel. We snuck down after lights out; it was dark; we walked along a long tunnel. Petra heard something coming and Jarrem dropped the lantern. We all ran but I fell over and hit my head and when I woke up the others had gone. I found the lantern and tried to find the way out, but I couldn't and there were things.'

'Things?' questioned Cernd. The boy nodded.

'Like spiders, only really big. I had to stay away from them. But I found places to hide; places where water seeped down and mosses grew. They tasted horrible but I ate them anyway.'

Cernd swallow dryly. 'It must have been very frightening, to have been down there all alone.'

The boy shook his head, finally turning from the window to look at him, his young face solemn and looking much older in the weak sunlight.

'I was very frightened, yes, but I was not alone. It was like Sister Eleni says: Lathander is always with us. I knew He would send someone for me.' The boy paused a moment, considering Cernd with an thoughtful look. 'My name is Mihel… Can I have some more porridge, please?'

The druid smiled and reached for the pot.

...

Fritha stood, silent and waiting for the uproar to begin. She had just finished her account of their expedition. Her confession that not only had they gone to the crypts, but that they had made enemies of another mercenary group and stirred up a spider's nest in the process had been received as well as she had imagine it would, Aerie before them now and looking rather imposing for one who was usually so meek, her eyes blazing as she stared at the three of them in a manner rather reminded Fritha of Jaheira.

'So am I to understand that you not only went to loot some tome from the city crypts, but in order to do so you stole the map to its location from a group of violent mercenaries? What were the three of you thinking?'

Fritha frowned, rather wondering the same herself.

'Well, we really didn't think they would find out until at least the morning -and not one of us could have predicted this spiders' nest.'

'But that you even went in the first place. Stealing a map! Going to the crypts alone! It was so dangerous!'

'Yes, well that is something I am coming to realise myself,' Fritha agreed tiredly, 'but everything seemed like a much better idea last night. I think you just had to have been there, Aerie; there was rebellion in the air.'

'What rot! And I cannot believe you would even consider tomb-robbing!'

'We were nottomb-robbing, my dove,' soothed Haer'Dalis, 'We were not down there scavenging for anything we could find, we just went to fetch this book-'

'It makes no difference what you went to steal!'

'Come now, little Aerie,' interrupted Minsc calmly, 'what need have the dead of anything? Their spirits are no longer of this plane, free of mortal desires.'

Fritha nodded her agreement, rather impressed with this stance and more than glad he seemed to be on their side in all this; you could not help but feel better when Minsc was at your back. The elf merely snorted though, turning instantly to the man at her side.

'Anomen, don't you have anything to say?'

'No,' he answered stonily, looking down at them with a cold disappointment that inspired more regret in Fritha than any of Aerie's anger had, 'I would only waste my breath.'

'Well,' Fritha continued stalwartly, 'now we have all said our piece, we need to get our young charge back to the temple. I'm sure the Dawnmaster will be glad to have him returned however we came about finding him.'

xxx

Aerie adjusted her grip on her staff, the walls about them glistening wetly as her werelight flickered with the movement, the crypts that had seemed so dull before taking on a whole new fear for her as she imagined the spiders that skittered and chattered in every shadow; how that poor boy must have suffered down there.

Fritha had been right. Dawnmaster Kreel had been overjoyed to find his young charge still alive and unharmed, Mihel walking the way back to the temple between Fritha and Cernd, still wrapped in the girl's cloak and talking quietly with the pair of them as they went.

Kreel was less pleased, however, once he had discovered just how the child had been found, though he seemed a touch more impressed with Fritha's excuses than Aerie herself had been: the girl sternly telling him she would have never gone to the crypts for just any treasure but books were something that should not be buried from the world, the Dawnmaster addressing her as 'child of Oghma' and decreeing that any misdeeds on their part would be overlooked if they would agree to join himself and a group of warrior-priests in destroying this spiders' nest.

And so there they were, walking north west through the crypts, the walls about them damp as they drew closer to the river, and according to Father Lytham, that section of the vaults had not been used in centuries.

Aerie let her attention focus on the soft glow of her werelight, trying to ignore the thought of all that water and stone above, the press of bodies around her merely intensifying the feeling. With their group and the Lathandites as well, they numbered twelve, a dozen people hemming her in to that dank endless tunnel. How it would be if fight were to break out there? Bodies all pressing in, the noise and the confusion of the battle engulfing her and Aerie was forced to deepen her breathing as she felt her panic rise. The man at her side glanced to her but said nothing.

Haer'Dalis had led them back to where he, Fritha and Jaheira has first been attacked, the fire-scorched walls the only trace left of the mercenaries they had wronged, and from there, they had continued northwards towards the river, following Mihel's tales of water and, more recently, the trail of webs.

Aerie let her eyes wander to the man next to her, the glow of her werelight highlighting the scars along his cheeks. She had learnt later that Haer'Dalis had been injured in his flight from the crypts and she could tell by the way he was holding his arm now that it was still a source of some discomfort. She knew, though, that since their quarrel he would not be the one to ask for her aid and Aerie had to keep reminding herself she was cross with him as she fretted and frowned and almost offered to help anyway. She watched as he shrugged his bag into a more comfortable position, wincing slightly as he did so and Aerie finally relented.

'Here, let me look,' she sighed, a hand already moving towards him, though he shifted slightly, suddenly just out of reach.

'It is fine, my dove, Jaheira tended it earlier -besides, it was no more than I deserved, aye?'

'You know I would never wish for you to be hurt!' Aerie snapped, stung that he was being so cool with her, especially when it was he who was in the wrong, 'I just cannot understand how you did not see the danger in the first instance!'

Haer'Dalis sighed. 'Yes, it was very foolish, I will admit.'

'I was so worried when I awoke in the morning and found you were not in your room.'

'Well, I am sorry for that; it was not my intention to distress you.'

A pause, the elf watching him carefully from the corner of her eye.

'You are always out drinking with Fritha.'

Haer'Dalis smiled a strange mix of roguish and tired to the gesture. 'Ah, now that you will not make me regret, my dove.'

Aerie frowned, feeling cross and anxious.

'Why do you spend so much time with her?'

'Because she needs the company and I for one enjoy it. We have a laugh together,' he offered with a careless shrug, perhaps implying that lately they did not and Aerie felt her indignation pique.

'A laugh? Is that what you would call theft and crypt-breaking?'

'Well, you must admit it served as ample distraction from her troubles.'

'Oh, so all this idiocy was for Fritha's benefit?'

'Do not blame her in this, Aerie,' he cut in, unusually firm, 'Stealing the map, going to the crypts: they were both my idea.'

'You always do that. You always take her side.' Aerie hesitated wondering if she even wanted to know the answer as she asked, 'Do- do you like her, Haer'Dalis?'

He sent her a very stern look. 'Aye, very much. But if you are asking if my affections run deeper, Aerie, then perhaps it is not my regard you should be questioning.'

Aerie opened her mouth to refute it, but the slight delay to her protestations seemed to be enough for the bard, Haer'Dalis throwing up his hands with a frustrated sigh.

'Enough, I can argue with you about this no more. Look, the ptarmigan seems to wish your ear as well.'

Aerie followed his nod to find Jaheira sending them a curious look, and by the time she had turned back to the bard he was no longer at her side, the man dropping back to walk at their rear, almost lost in the gloom.

'So, you and the tiefling are on your usual good terms.'

Aerie glanced back at the voice. Jaheira had fallen into step with her, though her eyes remained forward, alert as she scanned the shadows about them.

'That is none of your business!' Aerie snapped sharply.

'Then perhaps you should refrain from airing your grievances so stridently and keep it that way.'

Aerie felt her jaw tighten, the embarrassment merely fuelling her temper.

'I feel my grievances are more than justified under the circumstances. The pair of them off tomb-robbing of all things, with little care as to their own safety or the dishonesty of such acts -and I cannot believe you went with them.'

But Jaheira seemed unruffled by this accusatory stance.

'I hold up my hands, I did. But are you still truly so angry about that or is it that Haer'Dalis and Fritha once again skipped off on some jaunt without you?'

Aerie was suddenly glad for the gloom as she coloured fiercely; she could hardly believe the druid's cheek! And yet for all her outrage she could not quite quell the small sad voice buried inside her that said the woman was getting close to the truth of it. Aerie paused, her face dropping as she at last admitted, 'I don't like way they are together lately. Always laughing at some joke of their own, sharing sly looks and smiles.'

Jaheira nodded contemplatively. 'I will admit, it worried me at first as well-'

'You were worried?' exclaimed the elf, 'Why would you even care?'

'You really wish to know? I thought Fritha and Haer'Dalis a poor match,' Jaheira said with a frankness that left Aerie speechless, 'but my thoughts on this changed as I watched them in tombs last night. The way they worked and related to each other: they are very close, yes, and comfortable in each others company –too comfortable, in fact. No romance unrealised was ever borne with so little tension.' Jaheira glanced to her briefly, her expression softening somewhat, 'Fritha does not look at the bard that way, Aerie, and it is the same for Haer'Dalis; they are more like siblings than lovers.'

Aerie shook her head, the unhappiness she had been ignoring for so long now, suddenly at the fore and almost enough to overwhelm her.

'You don't know what its like! Haer'Dalis and I argue more and more. I try to get him to open his heart, to ease him of the pain I know he has felt and feels still. But he is so stubborn; he clings to his grief and calls it a philosophy! And then I am forced to watch them laughing together, him so open and relaxed –to know at the end of every quarrel he had stormed off to confide in her…' Aerie hung her head, hating how she sounded, even as she spoke.

'You suspect Haer'Dalis of… disloyalty?' asked Jaheira, her incredulous tone indicating that she did not believe it even if Aerie did. The elf shook her head.

'Not at all, but I wonder if he did not wish that another had claim to his loyalties.'

Aerie turned away, letting her eyes drift over the cold lifeless stone that surrounded them, wishing her heart was the same, not such a fragile sensitive thing that came to pain so easily. She had been suffering the worry for a while now, that she and Haer'Dalis had little in common and no future together, and that, sooner or later, he would realise the same and start looking elsewhere. And, despite what Jaheira had said about his regard being more brotherly, in Aerie's mind there really was not far for him to look.

'Fritha, she is so witty and bright and yet touched by dark things as well -she relates to him in way I never could, and- and it makes me so angry whenever I think about it, that it poisons time we have together. I pick and pick at him, getting us into these silly little arguments and just making things worse. Even when I know I am doing it, I still cannot seem to stop myself.' Aerie sighed, feel utterly miserable, 'You think I am stupid, don't you?'

Jaheira shook her head.

'No, I think you are young, just as we all were once -including myself, though you may doubt it,' she added with the slightest of smiles. 'You did not know Khalid, but be assured that it is not just the boasting of a proud and very much in love wife when I tell you he was among the most handsome of men. I am aware I am no great beauty, despite how Khalid may have professed to see differently, and in the beginning of our relationship, I found myself looking around at all the fairer women of our company, wondering whether he was looking at them too and my jealousy grew without check. But then I came to realise, as our time together went on and Khalid's affections remained true, that my envy was merely a reflection of my own insecurities. I had never cared before about my appearance, why should I suddenly be jealous of others' beauty now?

'It was my fear of losing Khalid, this man on whom I had come to so rely upon. And when it became evident that no number of pretty faces could tempt him from my side, my jealously faded as it should.' Jaheira sent her an understanding smile, 'It is easy to look about you and find the pleasing qualities in others, but just because it is more difficult to see them in ourselves does not mean they are not there and they are likely just as obvious to other people as theirs are to you. Haer'Dalis chose to be with you, Aerie, and seems more than resolved on his decision despite your recent troubles; do not let your own insecurities blind you to his regard.'

Aerie continued to stare up at her even as Jaheira had turned back to their path, the druid's profile sharp and noble, every plane and line brought into relief in the mossy green of her werelight. What must it have taken for her to share such memories? And Aerie felt both ashamed and touched that the woman cared enough to be willing to do so.

And as for Haer'Dalis, it was not that she did not love him, and she knew he loved her, but they could not seem to help but hurt one another, him with his merry detachment and she with her jealously guarded desire to help him. Perhaps it was as Jaheira had said; perhaps they were just a poor match. A round of laughter behind her, Aerie looking back to find Haer'Dalis and Fritha thick as thieves once more, the man glancing up to catch her eye and send her a smile. Aerie sighed once and weakly returned it.

--

Fritha watched as Haer'Dalis threw up his hands and turned on his heel, another fight with Aerie driving him past priests and knights to the back of their group where she had been walking alone and the girl sent him a commiserating smile.

'How's Aerie?'

'As reasonable as ever,' he murmured tightly, 'What happened to all the blame for this jaunt falling on Jaheira?'

Fritha shrugged. 'I suppose it just goes to show, sparrow, no man can escape his fate.'

'Well, we are not men, we are bards; we are above such rules.'

'Are we indeed?' she laughed, Haer'Dalis's arrogance nothing if not bolstering. 'Well, then what is your bardic self going to do about this latest quarrel with your good lady?'

'Why, let us at least have some sport from this tragedy; take a guess, my raven.'

Fritha made a show of giving it a moment's deep consideration.

'Hmm… Sulk, whinge and then go and make up with her?'

'You know me too well,' Haer'Dalis snorted, his manner suddenly serious as he looked to her, 'She asked if I am in love with you.'

Fritha almost laughed. 'Well, that's a fair enough assumption; so many men are.'

'Really, my raven,' sighed Haer'Dalis, though he could not hide his smile, 'I despair of her, truly, I do.'

'Poor sparrow. Love is many things, but simple is not one of them.'

'Love is very simple. Relationships, however, are not.'

Fritha laughed brightly.

'Ah, Aerie is probably just cross with you because we worried her; I'm sure she'll forgive you soon.'

But Haer'Dalis shook his head, frowning as though he was trying to understand something just beyond his ken.

'No, it is something more. Even when we are at peace there is a tension to the air, ever since we left Trademeet, though I am damned if I know what is the cause.'

'Well, whatever it is, I doubt hanging around back here with me is going to provide you with any revelations on the subject.' Fritha sent him a stern look, 'The only way to solve things between you two is to talk to her… you do want to resolve things, don't you?'

'Of course! But I have tried to speak with her on several occasions now and she just says nothing is wrong.' He sighed, folding his arms and pursing his lips in a very good imitation of the elf. Fritha sighed too, smiling in spite of herself. She liked Haer'Dalis. He was a good friend who could see the dark humour in that sometimes cruel and bitter existence, and even the worst of situations did not seem so bad when she could share a quip and a grim smile with him.

'Well…' Fritha began slowly, trying to reason the thing out in her own mind, 'perhaps it is some sort of test. Aerie has suffered a lot; losing all she held dear so early on in her life. Perhaps subconsciously she is worried she will lose you as well and she is testing you, seeing how far she can push you away to test your affection for her.'

'Do you think so?'

'Well, why else would she be doing this?'

'Because underneath that sweet exterior beats the black heart of a true Loviatari!'

They both laughed at that, the idea that Aerie was anything but the shy (and sometimes shrewish) elf who was so full of tender care for the world about her was an amusing one, the girl herself glancing back at the noise and Fritha watched her send the man a small smile.

'Oh Hells take me, I love her,' Haer'Dalis sighed, still grinning, 'Right, this sparrow is once more off to try and make amends.'

Fritha thumped him soundly on the back. 'That's the spirit!'

And Fritha watched the man quicken his pace to rejoin the elf, Jaheira suddenly (and subtly) needed at their head and Fritha smiled; as Haer'Dalis was often heard to remark, 'All's well…'

The girl stopped, the smile suddenly frozen on her face, Anomen glancing back as the tiefling passed him to catch her eye, Fritha trying and failing to pretend she had not noticed, but it was too late.

'Hello Anomen,' she greeted, her stomach somewhere in the vicinity of her boots as he dropped back a few paces to join her. Anomen sent her a stiff nod.

'My lady.'

After a night of no sleep and much strain, Fritha was not blessed with her usual abundance of patience.

'Look, if you're still angry with me, then you can just go right back to where you were walking before and disapprove from afar!'

Her irritation seemed to shake Anomen from his coolness, his voice milder as he assured, 'I am not angry with you, my lady, merely… disappointed.'

'That I went to the crypts?'

'That you did not think to inform me –before the act. I would have attended with you.'

Fritha blinked owlishly, not really sure what to say to something so wholly unexpected.

'Oh, well, I'm sorry, Anomen, but to be honest, I didn't think you would want to come. I did not imagine it would be something you 'd approve of.'

Anomen returned his attention to their path, a little of his previous coldness creeping back in.

'I do not, but since you would have gone whatever I thought of the matter, I would have attended with you regardless.'

There was not much Fritha could say to that and they walked on in silence, the crypts about them cold and damp in the combined blue-white of their werelights.

'I just cannot understand why you would wish to endanger yourself on such a clearly reckless task?' Anomen burst out with a sudden frustration, 'Are we so desperate for coin?'

Fritha sighed, wishing she could somehow make him realise that the rules and ranks he found so supportive merely stifled her.

'Anomen, it was not about the coin -I mean, it was, it's just… Well, what everyone expects of me, this role I must play: the responsible leader, it just jars sometimes. When I told Aerie rebellion was in the air I was not exactly exaggerating.' Fritha sighed again at his troubled frown; he did not understand. 'Look at it this way, Anomen, if we hadn't gone then we would not have found Mihel, or the spiders or anything.'

'I cannot believe you would even try to use that as an excuse.'

'I'm not, I'm just saying-'

'Can you imagine what it was like? Aerie appearing at my door to tell me that the three of you were just gone. And then Minsc arrives with your letter, which, for someone usually so content to talk, was very sparing with the details! How would you have felt?'

Fritha paused a moment, putting herself in his place, stood there before an undoubtedly distraught Aerie, Minsc appearing with a letter that explained that three of their group had disappeared off to the city crypts.

'Well… that would be fine. You've left a note; I know where you've gone and you're all capable enough. If you hadn't returned by breakfast, I would be worried and perhaps go looking for you…' she tailed off, something dawning on her, 'I know what this is: I trust you not to do anything stupid, and you don't trust me to be the same!'

Anomen shook his head gravely. 'No, I think you are as capable as any of us. But it only takes one moment, one unexpected crisis, as this case is a prime example, and I- I just could not bear to see you hurt for want of my presence.'

Fritha sighed inwardly; just like his sister had been. She sent him a sympathetic look, her tone gentle.

'Anomen, I am not Moira.'

Anomen snorted. 'Of that fact I am more than aware, my lady.'

But Fritha was not so sure he was…

'Look, Anomen, whether you like it or not, I am a mercenary and will remain so for the foreseeable future and there will always be a certain element of risk to my life.'

'I understand this, but must you go looking for trouble?' Anomen sighed, shaking his head, 'I would just ask that in future you would tell me before you go rushing so carelessly into danger.'

'I can't do that! What if I'm doing something you can't conscience?'

He turned to her with a measured look. 'I can guard my own morals, my lady and I will make the decision as to whether or not I join you –or merely report you to the Watch,' he added, his lips twitching.

'Anomen!' she cried laughingly, 'You would as well, wouldn't you?' Fritha sighed, 'All right, I promise… that I'll try.'

Anomen nodded once, still smiling slightly. 'I suppose that is the best I can hope for.'

Fritha smiled too, glancing up as the two priests before them slowed, the group seemingly coming to a halt and she pushed her way to their head to see they had come to a junction, water dripping from the ceiling like rain, the tunnels that stretched off in either direction both thick with webs. Father Lytham was stood to one side with Minsc, while Jaheira was crouched at the fork examining something and beneath the grime Fritha could see the dull glint of metal, the woman's werelight highlighting the curved crescent edges of a double-headed axe.

The druid glanced up, lifting the weapon from the slimy floor.

'Do you recognise this?'

'Korgan's axe…' Fritha confirmed, 'So they didn't escape then.'

'So it would seem.'

Fritha frowned, gazing left and then right along the tunnels that seemed to stretch on endlessly, trying to see as far along each as she could, before both were lost to the darkness.

'Time is running out for them, if it has not already…' She turned to the priest behind her. 'Father, do your maps show anything, any chambers or vaults where these spiders could have made their nest?'

Lytham sighed and shook his silvery head. 'I fear not child. My maps do not stretch this far. We have been following your friends' skills alone for a while now.'

Fritha turned instantly to the ranger. 'Are there any tracks?'

Minsc nodded grimly. 'Yes, young Fritha, everywhere! And too many to show any favour for either passage.'

'They could have more than one nest,' Fritha offered eventually, turning to address the Dawnmaster who had been watching them patiently all that while, 'What do you think; should we split up?'

Kreel frowned, glancing briefly along the tunnels as she had.

'I would rather we did not. Our strength is in our numbers and I will not lose any more people to this. We stay together.'

Fritha nodded, turning back to the group behind her. 'Okay, who's got a coin? Thanks, Haer'Dalis. Right then, Swords we go left; wreaths and it's right.'

The coin flashed as it spun in the torchlight, Fritha catching it neatly to slap it on the back of her opposite hand and gingerly lift her fingers

'Okay, right it is then, and Tymora take the blame.'

Tymora was clearly more interested in taking the credit though. It was not far down the right-hand tunnel when the webs began to thicken, hanging from the uneven roof in great sweeping curtains and swags, sometimes covering the way completely and would have to be hacked through, the wispy remains clinging to clothes and armour like of tattered remnants of burial shrouds.

They had adjusted their formation when they had halted before, Fritha now more to the centre of their group with Aerie, Lytham and other less armoured of their companions, Jaheira just before her and not looking very happy that her view had now been reduced to Anomen's broad plated back. About them, the tunnel walls were becoming uneven, covered in dry brown crust that Fritha thought looked similar to papier-mâché though what it truly was she did not like to contemplate.

'Hold a moment,' someone called quietly at their head, Fritha slowing her pace just in time to prevent her from walking into Jaheira. 'It's opening out.'

A few more steps and the confining tunnel walls finally fell away, their lights and lamps illuminating a vast natural cavern, the rough stone covered in webs and the same papery substance as the passage had been and Fritha felt like she was walking in to a huge wasps' nest.

The chamber seemed to be empty though, the spiders perhaps still out hunting in the crypts, and Fritha let her gaze travel the cave as the others spread out about her. The distant ceiling was still lost to darkness despite their lights, and she let her eyes fall to the uneven walls that surrounded her, heavily webbed bulges hung here and there and Fritha wondered if they were egg clutches. She moved over to examine the nearest, suspended just low enough for her to reach, the girl stretching up a tentative hand to part the lower webs and starting back with a cry as she uncovered a gaunt desiccated face, jaw slack and eyes rolled back from where he had been hung upside-down.

'It is Dervick,' sighed Lytham, suddenly at her side, a hand resting kindly on her shoulder, 'one of the priest we sent down here. Poor man, though at least his soul is with Lathander now. Come away, child; I shall call one of the men to cut down the-'

'I- I think I've found something,' someone called quietly from the far side of the chamber, Fritha moving towards the voice, a strange rumbling growing louder as they approached until she realised, to her confusion, it was snoring and she suppressed a laugh as in her mind she saw the dwarf, Korgan, taking a well-earned nap on a mountain of dead spiders. The cavern floor was uneven there, littered with bones and armour and other rubbish that seemed to have spilled from the large heap of debris that had been piled against the far wall and there, atop it all, sat what could only be described as the vilest mix of spider and woman head lolling as she snored loudly.

She was grossly fat and quite naked save for the thick black hair that hung about her in greasy matted tendrils, six long spindly arms protruding from the mound of mottled grey-white flesh, long dark-nippled breasts hanging sack-like to rest on her bloated gut. Suddenly the snoring stopped, the creature stirring as the light fell upon her, all six arms straining to manoeuvre her sheer bulk as she turned to them until she settled once more in her nest, bulbous red eyes looking down on them all with a remarkably satisfied look.

'What is this?' she cried, her voice shrill and slightly lisped from between the two huge mandibles that protruded from her mouth, 'Meat now walks willingly into the webs of Ceaturl?'

'What are you?' demanded Kreel, the Dawnmaster clearly having to force himself to speak past his disgust, 'Identify yourself, creature!'

The woman cackled, the flesh of her body trembling unpleasantly. 'Oooo, chatty meat, wants to talk.' She cast an appraising look over their group, 'Hmm, I will indulge your questions for now. I am Ceaturl, of the race chitine.'

'A chitine?' confirmed Jaheira with a frown, 'And what are you doing here? Your kind usually keep to the Underdark.'

Ceaturl nodded once and slowly. 'Yes, that is so. Exiled I am, exiled from Yathchol and cursed with it -cursed with a hunger that will never be sated.'

'It appears you have been making a worthy attempt to though,' muttered Haer'Dalis. The creature shot him a poisonous look, multifaceted eyes sparkling like cut bloodstones.

'You do not understand the hunger,' she snapped, spittle flecking her many chins, 'I must feed! Banished from my home caverns, I wandered without end, feasting on all I could find -alive or carrion, it mattered not- but it was not enough and the hunger tore at my belly and I grew thin and weak. I was nearly dead when I stumbled upon the crypts beneath your city and in my desperation I cried out to my brothers and sister in Lloth, and to my salvation, they came, gathering from the caverns that stretch far outside the boundaries of your city. Together we hunted these crypts, so full of fresh bodies and sometimes even fresher victims, and I grew fat on the spoils and when I could no longer carry my own weight, I made this nest. Here, I sit, matron of my family as my spiders comb these tunnels, sometimes even braving the world above to bring me meat.'

Ceaturl smiled, triumphant in her foulness, revealing a mouth of uneven yellow fangs, 'Exiled me they did, thought to punish me, kill me. Ha! I have a new family now and a new home too, and I grow fat and happy in my nest.'

Kreel seemed to swell with her elation, the Dawnmaster throwing his hand and the mace it held out at her, his face a picture of righteous fury.

'Your spiders are an unnatural plague here and they have preyed on their last innocent! By Lathander's Light, your monstrous existence ends this day!'

'Is that so?' Ceaturl cackled, letting her eyes flick pointedly upwards, Fritha following her gaze to the distant cavern roof, dark with the same shadows that swathed the rest of the crypts, when her werelight caught the faint glimmer of clustered red eyes and she realised to her terror that the darkness there was no mere absence of light, the cavern roof rippling with the blackness of scores upon scores of huge black spiders.

Fritha heard herself gasp, Jaheira's curse and Aerie's choked cry sounding somewhere behind her as they no doubt noticed the same and at her side Anomen glanced briefly to her reaction, his eyes unable to make out the horror that was just an instant away. The chitine smiled, her fangs glistening wetly.

'Attack! Kill the meat!'

And suddenly the cavern descended into chaos, the air filling with shouts and screams as dark shapes dropped from the shadows above them, all tangled legs and yawing fangs, Ceaturl's screeched encouragements echoing overhead.

Anomen swore, scooping Fritha under his shield as one of the creatures lunged from the darkness above them, the spider scrabbling against the cold metal curve before he managed to throw it off, the creature now sprawled beneath them, all eight legs flailing, though Fritha was already upon the thing, stabbing her sword through the spider's unprotected abdomen, others closing in about them, ready to take its place.

Their group had been scattered, Haer'Dalis, Jaheira and one of the warrior-priests hemmed against the northern wall and almost overwhelmed in the sea of spiders that surrounded them, others of their company reaching the shelter of the tunnel mouth, Aerie and Lytham stood behind Cernd and the other two warrior-priests, working furiously to call forth their magicks as the men held back the hoard. A deep sonorous groan filled the chamber, Lytham holding his hands aloft as he chanted, and it was as though the ceiling above them had cracked open to the midday sky, spiders shrieking as the cavern was suddenly bathed in glorious yellow light, Ceaturl shying from it even as she screamed to them.

'No, my siblings, ignore the others, get to the spellcasters!'

'To the witch!' roared Kreel, Minsc taking up the call, the pair of them battling their way through the spiders that surrounded them to reach Ceaturl's nest, the men slowly climbing the pile of bones and refuse to get to the creature herself. She was more than ready for them though, her six spindly arms bearing an assortment of weapons, her varied arsenal seemingly made up of anything she could find; a pair of rusted swords, a broken dagger, a small buckler and what looked to be a sharpened thigh bone, all being wielded with a coordination that was staggering, the two men kept off balance and at bay on the shifting debris.

Fritha ducked, Anomen bringing his shield around just in time to take the spider from the air, a single swing of his mace making sure it did not move against them again, Fritha already turned and intercepting another that had just made a lunge for his back, clawed front legs held high, the girl lopping both off in a single swipe to send them scattering across the floor, still twitching where they lay, the creature itself soon to join them.

Jaheira parried the stab to her legs, angling her staff under the spider to make thrust at its thorax, Haer'Dalis hacking down another with an uncharacteristic viciousness, and she wondered if he was not taking his revenge for his previous lack of vigilance, the woman sending a nod of thanks to the man on her other side as the Lathandite, Hagos, took another out of the air above her with a sweep of his sword. Jaheira swung out again, her staff connecting with a head this time to send another spider reeling; they were holding their own but just barely, and she knew that at this rate it would not be long before they were overrun, thoughts that were being shared by another across the cavern.

Cernd knocked one creature back with his staff, only just whirling in time to guard against an attack by another, the priest next to him constantly in motion using shield and mace in perfect unison as the pair of them fought to hold the tunnel, the spiders that surrounded them stretching as far as he could see, some climbing the walls around them to drop from above and it was all they could do just to hold their position. Though with seemingly limitless enemies and fatigue creeping, Cernd knew it would not be long before they were overwhelmed.

It was already beginning to happen, the druid glancing behind him to check on their casualty, the priest lain out in the tunnel behind them, the man convulsing as the poison took affect, Lytham trying to force some tincture down his throat. But that could not hold his attention long, Cernd's gaze drawn in avertedly to Aerie, the girl stood eyes closed, her hair moving about her as though stirred by some ethereal breeze and the druid could almost taste the ozone to the air as a huge ball of burning light began to build between her hands.

'Get down!' he shouted, the Lathandite at his side just heeding him in time, the backlash as she released it nearly knocking Cernd flat and the cavern was at once illuminated in flicking firelight, the swarm of spiders before them suddenly ablaze, those not dead shrieking as they scattered wildly.

Ceaturl's scream drowned out them all though, her rage-twisted face lit by fires of her burning brethren. She lunged for the two men, no more on the defensive, her arms weaving in a furious dance as she pressed for an opening to strike out at them. Minsc lunged forward to make an attack of his own, managing to dodge the sword that was swung at his head though her dagger was another matter, the broken blade sliding under his pauldron to score the flesh beneath, the ranger roaring as he swung his sword up to take off the arm that wielded it at the upper elbow, Kreel sweeping two other arms aside with his shield to send his mace smashing into the back of her skull.

Her final scream echoed about them, a tocsin for the remaining spiders, the creatures suddenly scattering, panicked and instinctive, scuttling up the rough cavern walls to disappear into unseen cracks and fissures, Aerie and the others at the tunnel having to duck, a sea of writhing black pouring overhead as others escaped into the crypts. Anomen lowered his shield, Fritha sheathing her blade and sending him a relieved half-smile in the glow of their werelights that he could do naught but return; that had all been a little too close for comfort.

'Is everyone all right?' Jaheira's voice echoed somewhere north of them.

'Anomen and I are fine.'

'Yes,' agreed Aerie, 'Tynan's been hurt but Father Lytham is tending him.'

'Minsc and I are unharmed,' confirmed Kreel, the man moving unsteadily down the pile of debris, the ranger just behind him and the rest of their company gathering to join them at the foot, the wounded Tynan still looking a touch groggy, supported by Lytham and another of his Lathandite brothers.

Kreel sighed, sheathing his mace as he gazed at the carnage about them, his eyes lingering a moment on the bloated corpse of the chitine, that now lay slumped and still atop her throne of filth.

'And so it is over. It is my deepest regret that we were not in time to save my brothers from the temple, though at least we are able to give them a proper burial.'

'So what now?' ask Fritha quietly.

'Well, your service to us is concluded; you can attend the temple later for the payment that was promised. As for us, we will take a torch to this place and send more warriors down for any remaining spiders; that their mistress is dead should weaken them greatly and I have hopes they will return to the caverns that were originally their homes.'

'Here! Ye lot!' shouted a rough voice, echoing about the cavern and making it all the harder to find the source, each of them turning this way and that, lights finally falling upon two cocoons hung at about head-height on the southern wall, both tightly shrouded in webs and struggling violently. A face had half emerged from one, bright red from the effort, stray webs clinging to his long beard.

'Aye, ye lot! Cease yer jabbering and get me down from here!'

'Korgan!' cried Fritha, seemingly overjoyed at finding their would-be murderers, the girl gingerly picking her way over to them through the charred corpses of dead spiders that littered the floor. Behind her, the others dispersed, the majority of her own group moving to join her, Minsc and Kreel remaining where they were to continue their talk, while Cernd moved to help the priests cut down and examine the other bodies. 'And Tae too,' continued Fritha cheerfully as she reached them, her werelight illuminating the cavern wall in icy blue, 'you're alive!'

'Yeah, no thanks to you!' the man snapped, Haer'Dalis slowly shaking his head and tutting like a disappointed tutor.

'Now, now, berk, the key to staying with the living is knowing when to fight and when to flee. We called to you and you stayed to battle those spiders of your own choosing; you cannot lay this at our door.'

'You stole our map!'

'But where's Aurimas?' continued Fritha, blithely ignoring Tae's outrage, 'Is he…' she tailed off, eyes running apprehensively over the cocooned bodies about them.

'Is he Hells!' snorted Korgan, 'That blasted mage upped skirts and ran as soon as the battle began to turn. Now get us down from here!'

Fritha sent the dwarf an appraising look. 'Now, if we release you, you've got to promise not to kill me.'

Korgan stared down at her, beady black eyes narrowed and full of loathing.

'Aye, I give ye me word,' he spat eventually, as though pained to force it from his mouth, 'though me axe may never forgive me it.'

'Dwarves' honour?' Fritha pressed in a sing-song voice.

'Someone get this lues-addled wench away from me AND GET ME DOWN FROM HERE!'

'Watch your tongue, dwarf,' snapped Anomen coldly, 'or this place will be your tomb.'

'Really, Fritha!' Jaheira sighed, thinking the dwarf's anger was hardly unwarranted as she moved to cut him down, Fritha helping her as Anomen and Haer'Dalis moved to aid his human companion. The webs parted easily enough before a knife's edge and the pair finally struggled free, Tae still looking rather unsteady on his legs, while Korgan brushed himself off roughly before receiving his axe back from Jaheira with a nod.

'There, that's better,' Korgan muttered, giving the weapon an affectionate pat as he slipped it back into his belt, 'Let's go, Tae, and find that gutless bastard, Aurimas. He'll soon learn that cowards reap their own rewards.' Korgan laughed grimly, turning to Fritha and Haer'Dalis, 'And if either of ye see me again about the city's alehouses, ye best be avoiding me, lest the beer go to me head and I be forgetting me oath, aye?'

He did not wait for any answer, just stalked off, Tae giving their group one last, and rather impotent, glare before hurrying after the dwarf. Aerie whirled immediately to the two bards.

'Well, I hope this has taught you both a valuable lesson.'

'Indeed, it has, my dove. Next time we stay and make sure the fools are so deep into their cups they cannot even see, before we go following any maps we've filched.'

'Haer'Dalis! -And don't you encourage him!' Aerie snapped as Fritha continued to laugh.

'Fritha, a moment of your time if you please,' called Dawnmaster Kreel, neatly forestalling Aerie's haranguing just long enough for her to make her escape. Anomen let the sounds of Aerie and Haer'Dalis's relatively one-sided quarrel wash over him as he watched Fritha, the girl talking excitedly with the Lathandite and Minsc.

And when they finally emerged from the tombs an hour later, under a waning afternoon sun, Fritha quickly made her excuses, citing much to do at the theatre, and quit their company; though Anomen could not help but note that it was not the direction of the Bridge in which she hurried off.