10 Kythorn
We're travelling again. Garrick tried to cheer me up about the letter:
"Seemingly half the population of the Sword Coast tried to kill us just a few days ago, and we were victorious! I know you can get back to the city, or...or achieve whatever you want, Skie."
"We killed them. Gorion, Eddard, Bassilus, Mulahey, Montaron, Kagain, Tranzig, NIMBUL, the cleric, that mage, Karlat, those three women, gibberlings and kobolds and gnolls and horrors." That list is too long. Also too melodramatic. "I don't know what to do any more! I don't know where to go!" I don't want to kill anyone else. (Sometimes we have to.) I can't go home now.
"Lady Skie, I promise I'll...I should like to stay by you..."
"You should go." The notes only mentioned Imoen and me; not Garrick, and of course not Edwin. "If there are more assassins, it's not fair on you! Just leave me here. I'll find something."
He said he wouldn't leave. Imoen...I did talk to her. If she likes him back, I won't try to make him go, and she said she didn't think he would leave. I told her about the people trying to kill us, the ones talking about Candlekeep and Gorion.
"There are people trying to kill us who must have spied on Candlekeep. I don't know who the spy was. Anyone who hadn't been there long and heard you talking to me. Maybe that weird man Shank who accidentally fell into his own knife in the priest hut. They only know me as Sky, they know you, and they knew Gorion. The man in the spiky armour, the one who killed Gorion...maybe they were connected. When he said 'hand over the girl and nobody will get hurt' I thought it was just because I'm a young woman and they were bandits... But now I think maybe he was one of those assassins after us. I'm sorry. I know what happened was awful..."
"Yeah, I saw it too," Imoen said fiercely. "Didn't hear it, only saw it.. You running into the bushes and all. Ya really thought they wanted to ravish you?"
"I was also carrying more gear than Gorion! I know I ran away. He told me to, I know I'm a coward. The two ogres he killed, the spiky man, a spellcasting woman with a Kozakuran accent...I couldn't see her face. It was too dark and wet. I think I'd know their voices again...and of course the glowing eyes are a dead giveaway." I didn't mean to pun. "Was he even human? Are there any demons or devils with eyes like that?"
"You'd've been toast with a critter like that there. So'd most of Candlekeep," Imoen said.
"Like that demon Errtu Drizzt defeated twice, who opened a gate to the Abyss, let countless fiends through, teleported instantly, used a lightning sword in a pool of water, and a whip of..." I stopped quoting books. "Yes, I don't want any devils and demons."
"All right, all right. So bad guys are after you and know I exist," Imoen said.
"Yes. The letters don't actually say...kill the red-haired girl. If you left, that might make it harder for them...But I think...I think if I were an assassin, I'd find and kill both the people mentioned...I didn't know I was doing this to you! I'm sorry!"
"If'n you think I'm leaving yer a bufflehead," Imoen said. I'm so glad. Even though it's selfish of me, Imoen's the best friend I have. "So what d' you think Mr G. did?"
Imoen was right; Gorion's magic was probably it. "I don't know. He mostly talked to me about history; obviously you were the one he told about magic. There's certainly no reason for these...people to think I knew his magical secrets. I'm just one of his friends' daughters."
"But they didn't know that," Imoen said. "And of course there was a little gossip about ol' Mr G. bringing a young girl home with him..."
"Ew!" we said at the same time, collapsing into nervous giggles.
Imoen pointed a wavering finger at me. "Foster auntie haha!"
We looked at E's letter again: an elliptically-phrased warning and vaguely-worded suggestion that assassins might find it harder to navigate the wilderness than Candlekeep. Not a very helpful suggestion, I thought bitterly. No sense in seeking the people called Jaheira and Khalid; from the last assassin's taunt, they had gone. It had been so foolish of me to have this journey on our own, when we could have had fighters helping us. Could E be Elminster? He made no reference to the letter when warning us about bandits; indeed he seemed in a hurry to be off, resisting Imoen's questions about him and Gorion. Damn him for underspecificity.
Also: Edwin. "I'm putting you in danger! I shouldn't take your services any more," I tried to explain.
"Surely the danger is decreased thanks to the...news received?" Stop being logical, you idiot. "I have no wish to remain in this squalid town while you drown your various sorrows. Inactive outward, inactive inward; I would I did not suffer these fools."
Maybe I should tell Edwin the truth. He's Thayvian, there's no way he's involved with whatever strange thing wants someone called Sky dead. But Dynaheir said I should keep it quiet, and...can I trust someone who introduced himself by wanting to kill one of our friends? That's an obvious no.
If I dismiss him from the month he promised with a 'we hate you, go away', he'll look for Dynaheir again. She has Minsc and Branwen with her-he's not going to win. That might mean he'll die. Like Kagain, unable to be raised- And getting Edwin killed trying to kill Dynaheir really defeats the purpose of sending him away to protect him. Or if he wins the fight, Dynaheir dying is even worse. On the other hand, if I keep Edwin with us and we make it to Baldur's Gate in a month (Eldoth can help us if he is there!), I can talk to Dynaheir again and figure out some way to settle it without anyone getting hurt. And until then, I have to protect him from assassins. He's a wizard, he's not very strong and he's a little clumsy. But I also have to keep Imoen safe, and I know Garrick's not very good at fighting, and it's not as though I'm any better.
Garrick has a solution for that, though. He's heard gossip that to the east there's a warrior who likes to challenge passers-by for twenty gold pieces. We've got several hundred gold pieces as a result of the people who tried to kill us and a white wolf Minsc killed near the Cloudpeaks. If we can make it there, we should be able to hire her for some time. I was going to leave the gold for Sendai as partial compensation and give her a new horse when we met again, but screw Sendai's horse. (Not literally, thank you Edwin.) I never liked Sendai anyway and now she can have fun telling the story of how Eilma Silvershield's bastard stole from her.
It's making it through the wilderness to hire the fighter that's the problem...but we've taken steps. My hair is a dark green now that Garrick was nice enough to say goes with my eyes, and Imoen's is a lovely, very pale, pink. The cloak Garrick gave her looks wonderful, and I have to admit (but never to anyone else!) that I was partly responsible for helping them out. He showed it to me first, saying it was a treasure he thought I might like when he found it near Tranzig's rooms and that I was nymph-like, but obviously it's pink, so: Imoen! He looked shy and afraid when I said he ought to give it to her, but thankfully he must have gotten over it.
We've also got antidote supplies against spiders, a few good arrows for Imoen and me (she's decided to go back to the bow rather than her mage's sling), magic sling bullets for Edwin, and more provisions. That's all we could afford. If only I were home... Into another painful 'adventure'.
11 Kythorn
The Temple warned us! They warned us about monsters!
I cannot believe we are still alive. (Still haven't made it to Garrick's fighter either.)
We went out, trying to stay north of the ridges but still south of Larswood, where Elminster and Tranzig's letters said bandits were. Successful...up to a point. There was howling in the distance; Garrick loosened his armour and started reciting a spell. Suddenly there was four of him, like that assassin had created.
"I'll hold them off!" he told us. "The wolves shall have to defeat four of me before harming you fair ladies!"
Wolves racing toward us. Much larger than the ones Imoen and I ran away from outside Candlekeep; two light brown, the third even bigger than either of them with fur stained a dark purple-black. Garrick stood in front of Imoen and me, his shortsword drawn. I shoved him.
"Sense of smell-wolves have a sense of smell, Garrick!" I'm a city girl, but I've read that much. Magical images weren't going to stop him getting hurt. I ran. "Nice doggies! Nice doggies! Please don't chase after the spellcasters!"
Imoen was reciting something, too, throwing blue pebbles around me; a green arrow Eldoth showed me once hit the giant black one, from Edwin. The three wolves turned on me. Their breath smelled of rotten meat. The light-furred ones had unbrokenly black eyes, but red glinted in the stare of the third. I spun away from them. Stupid plan; what choice was there? You need someone racing into the fight, and I couldn't do magic like the others...
"Mystra curse me are dreadwolves hurt by normal weapons..." Edwin was saying. "Spells on the big one! Attempt bows on the others, lackeys! No wasting!"
No useful trees to run away to, here. I lashed out at random with NIMBUL's shiny sword, and heard a growl; cloth across my calf tore open.
Imoen with her throat ripped out. Garrick with a wound in his chest. Edwin pale and killed.
One leaped at me; I ducked, rolled, and got the other light-furred one between me and the black. Unnatural beasts; the smell was as bad as the gnolls' prison. Balloné grand; a three-quarter spin; spells from Edwin and Garrick hit the black one. I swear its howl made my hair stand on end. A green burn spread on its fur where the arrow's acid ate into it.
Three of Imoen's good arrows stuck in one of the light ones chasing me. It still nipped at my heels. Imoen was fiddling with her cloak, letting it billow around her. I kept trying to distract the wolves, which meant trying not to get killed.
"Yes! Bite 'em, doggie!" Imoen gestured; I was left with one chasing me, as the other leaped for the throat of the black. "This cloak is so great!" She's so good at magic.
Just one. I can cope with just one doggie, right? I kept running in circles. Wolves are too fast.
The wolf attacking the black one fell, stiff, to the ground. Then there was a lot of dark blood when its body was ripped open, and the other one kept panting after me.
Edwin's drain came over my head, Imoen's missiles from her wand, Garrick's crossbow bolts; I risked the chance to hit the wolf myself. NIMBUL's sword went into it like butter. Since it was already wounded, it worked.
Then there was the black-coated monster. I didn't want to look at its red eyes; I feinted and ducked around it. Claw-wounds in my leg hurt.
Its teeth went into my thigh. I screamed, struggled away, and tried to stab it. Not much of a try-I just scraped along its cheek. The second time it bit me, I was gone. Frozen again, helpless just like all the other times this happens to me. It was going to kill me. Crossbow bolts from the four Garricks went into it and did absolutely nothing. It knocked me to the ground, aiming for my throat.
It caught on fire. The black fur turned into a smoking mass. It howled and fell. Imoen yelled, hoarse-voiced in victory. She had so much fun learning that spell with Dynaheir, helping her cook dinner with it, those happy days when we were on our way back to Nashkel. I felt light-headed; there were important veins and things where I'd been hurt, I think.
She pulled the disgusting corpse off me. "Ya okay?" she asked. "Guess my shielding spell needs work. Hey, guys! Should I pour a potion down her throat?" Dynaheir had certified the potions from the gnolls' cave were genuine, as weird as that was to believe. I guess magic doesn't discriminate.
"You would drown her, you great fool. (Not that it would be any loss.)," Edwin said. "I would imagine staunching the bleeding might be a good idea?"
"Huh, yeah."
I felt very light-headed. The clouds above me were so pretty and fuzzy. I'd never realized that Imoen looked like a small fluffy pink chipmunk before. She tied up my wounds. I hoped they wouldn't scar.
"Is she all right? What did that foul beast do to her?" Garrick said.
"It will wear off (now if I could apply such a thing to his tongue, that would be beneficial indeed). Only the bite of a vampiric wolf, after all, a small thing to a mage of my abilit.."
"Vampiric wolf?" Imoen and Garrick both exclaimed. If I wasn't already held, that might have been a good moment to swoon.
"We beat a vampiric wolf?" Imoen yelped.
"A...a vampiric wolf! I have heard songs but never..." Garrick gasped.
"Indeed. The credit for the defeat of a vampiric wolf and two dreadwolves is mine...by which I mean, you lackeys were of some small assistance to me. (However did a mage of inferior talent memorize a fire spell long used by the Red Wizards and occasionally their barbaric outlands? I believe I have an appointment with her spellbook awaiting me.) Speaking of which, fool of a bard, I informed you your crossbow bolts would be of no use against the creature-necromantic energy is completely suffused throughout their bodies, mundane weapons are worthless (every student in Thay knows this!)-and yet you fired them in defiance of my instructions. Observe your utter ineffectiveness. Still, I suppose your wastage was minimal."
"Excuse me for trying to save Lady Skie's life!" The four Garricks were quite loud. "I think you know nothing of chivalry, Red Wizard!"
"It is the last province of fools, fool. Is the crying little thief recovered yet, apprentice? (Perhaps I ought to leave them...if that damnable witch had not deceived me so...)"
Imoen offered the healing potion; I came out of the hold gasping. Drinking it made me feel better. As long as there weren't scars.
There were more howls coming from the south.
"Uh, guys? I kinda think we should..." Imoen said.
We ran for it. Fortunately the urgency of it made me forget almost everything; I think I pulled Edwin along (mage robes are about as practical as dresses for running) and just concentrated on getting out of there alive. The Temple did not specify vampiric wolves!
We're still breathing. I even dared to check for scars, and it looks like it'll fade in time. I guess I should go help Garrick with dinner.