Chapter 73: Unpleasant Business
Bishop sighed and stretched his legs out, slouching in his chair at the corner table in the Phoenix Tail, the table where he and Nim usually sat at on some evenings when at the keep. They had returned a mere few hours ago and he for one had never been so happy to see any place in his life. Upon returning from the last statue, after fighting some thing the gith had called a Shadow Reaver, they had made camp and then set out early the following day. Qara had been kept bound at the hands and was told she would be gagged as well if she opened her mouth for any reason other than absolute necessity. Bishop had taken great pleasure in making snide remarks towards the sorceress, when Nim wasn't around to hear it that is, and enjoyed watching the brat struggle to remain silent. Even better had been watching her on those occassions when Sand took it upon himself to educate the girl. The wizard seemed to take great delight in the fact that he had a "captive" audience, for Qara couldn't even so much as whisper a dissent. The one time she lost control and opened her mouth to spew some nasty words in the wizard's direction, Grobnar had immediately cast silence on Qara, effectively muting her irritating whine. He had to admit that he was coming to enjoy having the little pest around, and his handling of Qara had made him even more welcome company.
Still, despite those little bits of amusement, the trip back had been filled with more than a few uncomfortable silences. The gith, thankfully, had kept herself apart from them, not once venturing an unasked for opinion or comment. Nim had been subdued, lost in her thoughts about what they had seen and learned and also contemplating what to do with Qara. Bishop had not ventured his opinions, but he had told Nim that he would back her up, regardless of what decision she made. That seemed to be the only thing Nim needed from him, well, emotionally anyway. They had enjoyed several hours of diversions along the way, much to the annoyance of the rest of the companions. He figured they were just jealous because they weren't getting any and he was. A slow grin curved his lips as he thought about the fun he and Nim would have tonight in her room. Before his thoughts could wander too far into the carnal, he was jolted back to the inn by the appearance of Casavir at his table.
"I don't think I want to know what caused that look on your face Bishop," Casavir stated with a sigh. "However, I do want to know what you think about the situation with Qara, and what you think Nim might do."
"Well, here's a surprise," Bishop snickered. "You actually asking me for my opinion. Stop the presses, mark the calenders, such a momentous day should not go unheralded."
Casavir frowned at the sarcasm but chose to let it go. "Funny, but I do acknowledge the fact that you understand Nim better than the rest of us and thus you are the only person I can ask such things of. I will support her in whatever she decides to do because that is my duty, my obligation. Others are not so bound and I want to be prepared for potential fallout. Many things are often done in the heat of the moment and can never be undone."
The ranger studied the paladin for a while, sensing that the man was being sincere. It surprised him that Casavir would come to him. He did know Nim the best of all of them, but how to get the paladin to understand her was something he wasn't sure he could do. If Casavir refused to believe his eyes, no mere words would change that, but he owed it to Nim to try.
"There are three types of people in the world," Bishop began. "The talkers, the thinkers, and the doers. Me, I'm a doer, so's Khelgar. Neither of us are big on talking stuff out, it's easier to punch sense into an opponent than talk it into them. As for thinking about situations, well neither of us like to take time going over the pros and cons of our actions. We make a quick decision and then stick with it. Then you have the talkers, like Shandra, Grobnar, and that pyro brat Qara. They bray like donkeys all the time until you muzzle them. The problem with that type is they spend too much time talking and not enough time doing. There comes a time for the talks to end and the action to begin. Then you have the thinkers, like Sand and Elanee, who like to waste time thinking about all the ins and outs of a particular situation before getting down to doing anything. Spend too much time thinking things over and you don't leave enough time to take action. As for you, you're more like half thinker, half doer. You don't waste too much time thinking before getting down to business, but you don't stop thinking even while taking action."
Casavir hid his suprise for he never thought that the ranger was capable of such deep thought. "So what does this have to do with Nim?"
"Nim is in a whole class by herself," Bishop said, a hint of admiration in his voice. "She's that rare person who thinks enough to evaluate a situation without overdoing it, talks enough to make her point, and then moves on to take whatever action is required. From what I learned years ago in Luskan, the best leaders are like her. She has the brains to match her abilities and the confidence to use them when required. I'm sure she's already made up her mind what she is going to do, but she has allowed others to speak their peace first. She's not the type to let the "heat" of the moment affect her decisions. If you hadn't come up with an argument as quickly as you did, then Qara would have died in those ruins, and I for one wouldn't have shed a tear. But it was not done in the heat of the moment. No, it was a cold and calculated decision to kill someone whose foolish disobedience almost caused the death or serious injury of her friends. To Nim, that is a most serious crime, almost as bad as destroying her beloved woods."
"I have observed this in her before, but I had thought that it had been tempered in recent weeks," Casavir nodded agreement.
"Tempered only in the fact that she is willing to listen to other's opinions first, however briefly," Bishop snorted. "Make no mistake, she will do what she feels is best and to the hells with other people's opinions. If she decides to kill Qara can you live with that decision paladin?"
"As I said on the field, we are at war and rules are different during war time," Casavir replied stonily. "She is our Captain, our leader, and I am honor bound to follow her orders whether or not I like them, agree with them, or am comfortable with them. However, I am thinking about the men we have stationed here."
"Well, as for them, they will either accept her actions or not," Bishop shrugged, not really caring what the men thought or felt. "Nim will probably dismiss any who don't like what she does. However, I don't believe she'll kill Qara, not now at any rate."
"Why do you say that?" Casavir was curious, for the ranger didn't sound too unhappy that the sorceress might live.
"I don't care whether Qara lives or not, so long as she's not around to cause trouble for us when we find ourselves in battle again," Bishop shrugged. "She might prove useful at some point and Nim is not one to throw away potentially useful tools just because she doesn't like the way they're packaged. However, I doubt that the brat will be given free reign to do as she pleases. That could lead to some nasty confrontations."
"So you think Nim will confine her to the keep, possibly even to her room?" Casavir asked.
"Don't know and don't care," Bishop shrugged. "The only thing I care about is not having to watch my back all the time." He gazed thoughtfully at the paladin for a while, seeing that the man was giving serious consideration to what had been said. Of all of them, the paladin was the last person he expected to be giving advice to. "One other thing you should know," Bishop said quietly, looking around to make sure he wasn't overheard. "Nim doesn't really trust anyone except you, me, and possibly Sand. She definately doesn't trust the gith and is not happy to have the cleric around. I myself can't stand the woman's pompous and superior air and so I don't want anything to do with her. Nim is very close to having her locked up, just like Torio and Qara. I suggest you get the point across to her, however you can, that Nim is not to be toyed with. Her reaction to such a thing could be deadly."
Casavir looked hard at the ranger and could see the absolute belief in the other man's eyes. Bishop was convinced of Nim's potentially lethal side, a side that everyone had witnessed before but not really paid attention to. He could hear no lie in the ranger's voice, and the man knew the elf better than anyone. If he said she was capable of killing someone, then it was to be taken seriously. "I will talk with Zhjaeve and see if I can convince her to loosen up a little and be more forthcoming," he said aloud. "Nim will need every ally she can get, including Zhjaeve."
"Let's just hope that the old fool Aldanon will find Jerro's Haven soon," Bishop muttered. Hearing the inn door open, he looked up to see Nim and Sand come in and head towards them. He saw how relaxed the two were and knew that Qara's fate was decided. As they were sitting down at the table, he smiled at the elf. "Free for the evening now?"
Nim looked between Casavir and Bishop, sensing that they had been discussing something important. "What have you two been talking about?" she asked suspiciously.
"We were discussing how you would handle the situation with Qara," Casavir replied. "I assume since you are here that a decision has been made?"
"Yes, we have decided on a course of action," Sand said, unable to hide his satisfaction. "Qara is confined to the keep from this point forward. She will not be allowed to wander freely and her hours will be spent either in her room, the library, or the kitchens."
"I didn't want her to have unlimited access to any areas, especially to where Torio is being confined," Nim said quietly. "Qara is an idiot and would be putty in the hands of that Luskan viper. However, both may prove to be useful at some point and thus are a necessary burden. Qara was made aware that if she tried any sort of defiance then she would be sentenced to death. I will not have her or anyone else doing anything to compromise or undermine the security of the keep. Those who try will find their lives forfeit and I will not hesitate to carry out their sentences."
"Qara knows magic and none of the men we have here are capable of countering anything she might try," Casavir voiced his concern.
"Yes, that was a concern of ours as well, which is why I have sent for a couple of mages from the Cloaktower," Sand said with a smile. "They have agreed to send some lower ranking wizards to the keep and they should be here by the end of the week. Even young mages are more than capable of handling anything Qara could come up with. Until that time, Qara is under house guard and confined to her room. I have spelled the door so that she cannot leave and no one can enter without permission. For those times when it is necessary to either enter or exit her room, I will be in attendance."
"You said she would be allowed in the library wizard," Bishop sat forward suddenly, his body tensing. "From what I've heard there are some dangerous books and scrolls in there."
Sand waived a hand in dismissal of the ranger's concern. "If the girl ever bothered to read anything then perhaps it would be a problem," the wizard said, his voice fairly oozing contempt and disdain. "However, with all her insistance on how she does not have to "study" to use magic, it is highly doubtful that she would bother with such things. But, just in case she suddenly decides to grow a brain, I have made sure that the more dangerous items are spelled and only myself and Aldanon know the counters. Aldanon, foolish as he is, is too enthralled by his own research and interests to bother helping Qara with anything."
"As you can see, we have given this careful thought and taken every precaution," Nim broke in. "I gave Qara a chance to prove herself and she failed me. I will not give her a second chance. The same goes for everyone else, including my other companions. There is too much at stake here to do otherwise." A long silence fell amongst them as each absorbed what they heard.
"Well, enough of the serious shit," Bishop said suddenly and leaned back to signal a bar maid. "I say we relax and not worry about what might happen later. We've certainly earned a respite from all the tension and drama of the past couple of weeks."
The others shrugged and followed suit although none could keep their worries completely at bay. It was notoriously hard to predict what people like Qara would do and thus it was impossible to foresee all possible outcomes. However, there was nothing more they could do and so they agreed to let things be and not borrow future trouble.