The two demons that had been left behind, presumably to watch over Kael, Tauran, and Zasian, turned suddenly and departed. Kael watched them disappear up the gloomy passageway just beyond the cramped cave where he and his fellow prisoners waited. He didn't know whether to feel relieved or worried. Kael certainly felt better, not having the vile creatures looming so near, but he wondered what would have drawn them away so abruptly.
He jerked again on the chain that kept his manacles connected, knowing he could not break it but needing to keep trying. To do otherwise felt too much like giving up.
Kael stole a quick glance at Zasian. The glow surrounding the priest had grown slightly brighter, more steady. He wondered why that might be, but he didn't dwell on it. The human just sat, staring at nothing. He had grown very quiet after recounting their ordeal, and the half-drow wondered if he was beginning to suffer from the grimness of their predicament.
He can't be doing well in this hellish place, Kael decided.
Kael tried to imagine what it must be like to have the sum total of his memory be only a few days old. He had grown convinced, based on the priest's odd behavior, that his new personality was not an act, but a genuine transformation.
At least he's not in as bad of shape as Tauran.
Tauran lay curled up nearby. His breathing was mostly slow and even, as though he slept, but occasional coughing fits interrupted his rest from time to time, and he tossed and turned as much as his bonds would allow, groaning or even whimpering. He had not said anything after Zasian's recounting of what had happened, either.
Torm, Kael thought. This place is killing him. We've got to get out of here. He yanked on the chains holding him captive once more.
In a moment of desperation, Kael managed to get to his feet and, taking small steps because of the restraints holding his ankles, walk toward the tunnel leading out of their chamber. He reached the passage and peered down it as far as he could see, until it turned and disappeared from his view. Kael debated continuing, seeing what he could find out about their prison, but the way was rough and uneven, and with his chains, it would be difficult to maneuver. Plus, he loathed leaving Tauran behind.
It's not like he's going anywhere, he decided, taking a few steps farther along his route. He braced himself against a stalagmite and used it to aid him in scrambling up a small incline. And if I get close to something I'd rather avoid, I can always scoot back here.
Still, Kael felt vulnerable. The weakness stemmed not just from wearing shackles, but also because he did not have his sword with him. It was a rare occurrence for him to be without his blessed blade easily within reach, if not in his hands outright.
No, Kael realized. It's more than the sword. I am afraid that Torm is beyond my reach, too.
The half-drow had uttered a prayer or two to his patron in the time since he had come awake in captivity, but they were throwaway offerings made out of habit. He had not dared beseech his god to intervene on his behalf, granting some power or energy to aid him in his escape.
What if he cannot hear me? What if this place is too far removed… or too tainted?
Get over it! he snarled. Do I really need that comforting connection so badly? What would Tauran think of such timidity? Use what you have. Be the power that's inside you. Act!
With his fears of being cut off from Torm cast aside for the moment, Kael cast a glance back at Tauran and set out again, ready to face whatever might be lurking around the next turn in the tunnel if it meant the possibility of escape.
Kael did not get too far before he heard the sounds of commotion ahead in the distance. He froze in place, slowed his breathing, and listened.
It sounded like battle. And it was coming closer.
Kael's fingers itched to be holding his greatsword. He fought to keep his hands still as he tried to ferret out some sense of who was fighting whom. He strained to hear more clearly, but whatever was happening was still too far away. Nonetheless, he did not want to get in the middle of some conflict with who-knew-what bound as he was.
He needed an advantage.
Ambush, he decided.
Kael turned and headed back the way he had come, returning to the small chamber where Tauran still lay in a troubled sleep and Zasian sat in a stupor.
I won't get much help from either of them, Kael decided. No matter.
He surveyed the chamber carefully, taking note of every feature and protrusion of rock. There wasn't much. The floor was rough but relatively flat. The ceiling overhead hung pretty low; near the edges of the room, he had to duck to avoid cracking his skull on some bit of sharp, jutting stone.
Kael decided his best option was to position himself near the exit to the chamber, flat against the rock wall, and watch for anyone coming in. With their attention on the other two occupants, particularly Zasian and his bizarre glow, he might go undetected. It wasn't much of a hiding place, but he had nothing else.
He got into place by bracing his feet against a short, stumpy stalagmite and lifting himself high against the cave wall. Use the high ground, he thought. Take every advantage you can. He pressed his back against the rock and waited.
So, what do I do when something does come in? he wondered.
He considered the chain between his manacles. He could use it like a garrote, perhaps even lifting an opponent off its feet and swinging it around to dash it against the rocks. It was the best he could do, and it would have to be enough. He wasn't going down without a fight. He owed Tauran that much. And Torm, he reminded himself.
The sound of the fighting increased until Kael was convinced the conflict was just beyond the entry. He fought his own nervousness and waited.
Suddenly, there was a gasp and a dying scream, and the sounds of combat ceased. Kael held his breath, anxious to find out what had happened, worried about betraying his inadequate hiding place. He detected the sound of footsteps, faint but rapid, approaching. Then a shout issued from deeper in the corridor.
Just when he thought he couldn't stand to wait any longer, a figure dashed into the room. It was some kind of fiend, short and squat, with greasy black skin and patches of fur growing everywhere. It held a nasty looking saw-tooth-edged blade in one hand. A foul odor filled Kael's nostrils, a mixture of feces and acrid smoke. The creature skidded to a halt, stared at the two occupants, and the obvious dead-end. He let out a howl of frustration.
Zasian cried out in alarm and scampered backward from the intruder. Tauran didn't move, seemingly oblivious to his own danger. Kael prepared to lunge at the thing, knowing he only had one chance to get behind it and get his manacles over its neck, but he hesitated. He sensed something else coming, following the fiend through the tunnels.
The creature turned, and Kael could see its grotesque face and ratty, caked beard as it caught sight of him. The bearded devil snarled and took a step toward Kael, but then it froze in place, its attention turned back toward the entrance again.
A second, hulking figure emerged from the tunnel. The new arrival filled the entrance with its bulk, and it could not stand upright in the cramped chamber. It looked much like a gorilla from Kael's vantage point. The smaller devil let out a nervous growl and began to back away, brandishing its serrated weapon.
The gorilla-demon snorted and roared, then it punched at the bearded devil with one massive fist. The smaller creature yelped and tried to retreat further, but there was nowhere to go. It took a swipe at its enemy's fist with its weapon, slicing open a gash across the knuckles. The gorilla-demon howled and yanked its fist back, sucking the wound into its mouth, but it used its other hand to swat at the devil.
The sweeping strike caught the smaller creature and sent it sprawling. It gibbered in terror and tried to roll out of the gorilla's reach, but it was truly trapped and got another punch for its troubles. The devil slammed against the wall with a sickening thud and slid down limply to the floor, leaving a dark smear on the stone. The gorilla demon loomed over the devil and pummeled it several times with both fists, reducing it to a mass of pulpy flesh.
Kael watched the entire skirmish, frozen in awe and unable to react. In the back of his mind, he knew that, even if he had been able to jump on the demon from behind, its head and neck were much too thick and muscular for him to be able to do anything with his makeshift garrote.
Without his sword, Kael was no match for the hulking thing.
The creature finished satisfying itself with pulverizing the devil and turned to stare at the other occupants of the chamber. Zasian had managed to scoot away from the fighting and pressed himself as closely as he could to the rock wall of the room, but Tauran still had not moved. When the demon saw the angel lying bound near the base of the wall, it howled in savage glee and reached out to grab him.
"No!" Kael roared, jumping from his position and ramming his shoulder into the creature's ribs. Even with his limited mobility, the knight managed to generate good thrust with his powerful legs, and the metal of his shoulder armor struck bone.
The gorilla-demon grunted and staggered to the side. With a snarl, it spun away from the angel and swatted at Kael with its big, meaty fist.
The half-drow had been expecting the attack, and he managed to sag backward as the powerful punch sailed over his head. As soon as he landed on his back, Kael rolled the rest of the way backward and flipped himself onto his feet. The problem, he quickly realized, was that he had backed himself against the wall in the process, so there was little maneuver room left for him.
The gorilla-demon grunted and closed the distance, aiming another punch. Kael tried to dodge to one side, but in his haste, he forgot how limiting his ankle restraints were, and he tripped, dropping to his knees. He caught the brunt of the blow on his shoulder and the side of his head.
A blaze of light flashing in his vision, the half-drow sank to the stone floor, woozy.
The demon roared in triumph and scooted closer.
Kael tried to clear his head of the cobwebs, but his eyes wouldn't focus right.
The big ape-thing smacked him with an open palm and sent him tumbling across the floor.
Kael struck his hip against a sharp protrusion of rock that sent shooting pain all through his midsection. He knew the demon was toying with him, and that one more blow like that would probably knock him unconscious.
No more stalling, part of Kael insisted. Call to Torm.
What if he does not answer? The thought terrified him.
Then die like a true servant of the Loyal Fury.
A peace settled over Kael in that instant, the thought filling him that he would represent his god in the best way he could, even without the deity's comforting presence to guide him. No one would know, perhaps, but he needed to prove to himself, one last time, that he was worthy of Tauran's trust in him. In grim resolve, Kael began a prayer to Torm, asking the deity for the strength and discipline to face the demon, no longer terrified that he would not be answered.
The gorilla-demon loomed over Kael again, raising both fists high, clenched together, ready to bring them down in a final, crushing blow. Kael realized he would not complete his prayer in time. He did not want to die, but he braced himself for it and hoped it would be with honor.
A flash of blue light filled one corner of the room.
Aliisza stepped through a magic doorway, her slender long sword in hand.
"Hey!" she shouted. "Get away from my son!"
It took Kaanyr quite a while to find his way back to the small chamber where he and Aliisza had left their other companions. In the confusion and thrill of battle, he had become turned around in the catacombs, and he couldn't remember which route to take.
Along the way, he encountered a few other knots of demons and devils doing battle, but the invasion appeared to have been thwarted and the diabolical fiends were being destroyed or were fleeing. Kaanyr was pleased. He did not relish the idea of having to negotiate with devils, even though they were more willing to stick to their bargains than chaotic demons. He had double-crossed more than a few of them in his time, and he feared that his reputation might precede him in any dealings.
Kaanyr reached a series of tunnels that looked more familiar to him, and he followed the one he believed led back to the cave. He hurried down it, checking his wounded arm as he did so. The poisoned cut had turned a nasty shade of purple, and his entire arm was swollen and stiff. Whatever had coated the half-devil's scimitar, it was not treating him nicely at all.
As he drew closer, he could hear the sounds of fighting.
Not yet, he thought, increasing his pace. Don't kill the angel yet. I still need him.
Then another thought crossed his mind.
If I am too late, at least I would be free of his confounded geas upon me. The thought both pleased Kaanyr and forced him to sprint. He would not mind at all escaping the compulsion magic, but it would be by his own hand. The celestial bond required him to attempt to save Tauran.
Kaanyr turned the last corner and dashed into the chamber in time to see a huge, brutish bar-lgura with its back to him, flailing at some target he could not see. To one side, Zasian cowered against the wall, the illumination that surrounded him providing the only light in the cave. Next to the priest, Kael struggled to rise to his hands and knees, but the knight appeared woozy and was having trouble staying upright. On the opposite side of the chamber, Tauran also tried to move, but the angel, bound as he was, could not do much more than thrash around on the hard stone floor.
Kaanyr ran to Tauran. "Can you heal this?" he asked, thrusting his wounded arm in the angel's face. "I've been poisoned by a devil's blade."
The deva blinked and stared at both the wound and Kaanyr's face. "Help Aliisza," he croaked, his voice hoarse. "Hurry!"
Kaanyr saw that Aliisza was the object of the big ape-demon's wrath. She brandished her weapon but could do little more than poke and prod defensively at her foe's ferocious punches and swipes. Kaanyr grinned and felt an old, familiar stirring at the thought of fighting alongside her. Watching her lithe, black-clad body glide so smoothly from one battle stance to another always thrilled him. But his wound was pulsing in time with his heartbeat.
"I can fight better with both arms healthy. Can you do it?"
Tauran shook his head. "Not bound like this," he said, and his voice cracked. "But there's no time to free me. Aid her first!"
Sighing in exasperation, Kaanyr rose to his feet and slid Spitefang free. He swished the blade through the air and then closed the gap with the crazed demon. He tried to ignore his throbbing arm as he swung the blade with all his might, aiming toward the bar-lgura's flank.
The blade bit deep into the demon's flesh and sent crackling purple energy crisscrossing over the beast's body. The demon howled and spun away from Aliisza, turning its glittering red eyes on Kaanyr. With a roar, it tried to smash Kaanyr with one of its fists. Kaanyr stepped neatly out of the way and sliced at the wrist of the creature. Once more, the keen edge of his sword sliced deeply into demon flesh, and the malevolent magic of the blade scoured the demon.
The ape-thing yelped, but before it had time to react, Aliisza stabbed her own sword into its shoulder, then she flung a handful of glowing, magical missiles at it. As the familiar azure glow erupted around the alu, her whistling blue darts hit it in the head, and the creature dropped to the ground and writhed in death throes. Kaanyr finished it off with a quick thrust into its chest, directly into the demon's black heart.
When it was clear the fight was finished, Kael said, "That was fortuitous timing, Vhok." He attempted to rise on unsteady feet that were still restricted by steel. "I thought we would all meet our end here."
Kaanyr nodded, catching his own breath. "Glad I could be of service," he said absently, not even mocking the knight. His arm burned with an inner fire. He turned to Tauran. "My arm is about to fall off. Do you think you could possibly take care of it now?"
The angel closed his eyes as though in pain, but he nodded. "Yes," he said. "I will heal you with what little power I have left."
"No," Kael said.
Kaanyr spun to face him, angry. "What?" he asked. "Why not?"
"Let Zasian try, first," Kael said, pointing at the priest. "He has a healer's touch and isn't suffering the effects of this place like Tauran is."
Kaanyr smirked, but he didn't argue. He moved over to where the priest sat, a vacant look upon his face. "Can you leech the poison out of my wound and heal me?" he asked. When Zasian didn't answer, Kaanyr squatted down in front of him. "Hey, you!" he said, raising his voice. "Can you hear me?"
Zasian finally turned his gaze toward Kaanyr, but there was little recognition there. Kaanyr sighed but held his arm out in the hope that perhaps the man who had once been his adversary might understand. The priest looked at the wound and finally, some sense of awareness blossomed in his eyes.
"You're hurt," he said, reaching out to touch the open sore, which by then had become a festering gash oozing greenish pus. The touch sent fiery pain shooting through Kaanyr's arm, which was otherwise growing numb.
"Yes," Kaanyr said, trying to remain patient. "I've been poisoned. Can you do something about it?"
Zasian did not answer, but he dabbed at the infected cut with the tip of his finger. The cambion clenched his teeth and tried not to wince.
Zasian closed his eyes and let his fingers caress the wound. Where he touched, Kaanyr felt cooling sensations, and the swelling seemed to go down the slightest bit, while color returned to the skin. Kaanyr let out a deep, satisfied sigh, not realizing until it was made better just how bad his arm had felt.
Zasian continued to work for a few moments more, magically leeching all of the poison and infection from Kaanyr's arm. When he was finished, the priest smiled vaguely up at the cambion, then turned his gaze away again, lost in his own stare.
Kaanyr stared at the place where the wound had been. His arm felt perfect, and there was nothing to denote that he had been injured at all other than a very narrow white scar that was already fading. The cambion flexed his arm a few times, testing its mobility. Satisfied, he rose to his feet and turned toward the others.
It was only then that he realized what a sorry state Aliisza was in.
Her body looked beaten and battered, and blood poured from several wounds. She had balled herself into a knot and was retching blood. She gasped for breath as she writhed on the hard stone ground, even as the blue glow around her faded.
Kneeling down beside her, Kaanyr said, "You look like death warmed over. Do not tell me you aren't hurt."
"I am hurt." She coughed again, and more blood dribbled down her chin. "I think my newfound arcane power is devouring me."
"What?" Kaanyr asked softly. All his recent thoughts and memories of their happier times together surged through him, jumbled in a painful revelation. He felt sudden fear. "Why would that happen?"
Aliisza drew a deep breath. "The backlash of Mystra's death," she said. "I felt it course through me when I first came to, back in the rotunda. Just as I suspect it is what fused Micus and Myshik together and stole Zasian's memories, it must have imbued me with unparalleled power." She trembled. "But that power draws on me, on my lifeforce, to function."
For a moment, the look on Aliisza's face reflected Kaanyr's own pain. "I don't understand," he said.
"Yes, you do," she said. "Great power. Killing me. Slowly."
Kaanyr felt his chest tighten, found it hard to breathe.
"How bad is it?" he asked. "Can you recover?"
Aliisza shook her head. "I don't know. I dare not-" Another wracking coughing fit hit her. She wiped away the smear of blood from her lips and tried again. "I dare not invoke the magic again," she said. "Each time, it gets worse. I can rest and feel better, but if I cast another spell, it takes me all the way down. And then some."
Kaanyr sagged back against a stout stalagmite. I'm losing her, he realized. Perhaps Zasian could…
Kaanyr rose, crossed over to the priest, and grabbed him by the arm. "Come here, you," he snarled, pulling on the man. "Come make her better."
But Zasian didn't react. He merely toppled over onto his side.
"Damn you!" Kaanyr shouted, drawing his leg back to kick the priest.
"Kaanyr, stop it!" Aliisza cried out. Her voice was weak, and she could hardly hold herself upright, but she crawled toward Zasian anyway, trying to reach out and ward off the impending blow.
Kaanyr paused, stunned. You would protect him, even if it meant your own death. You'd defend him even from me. As feeble as a lamb, yet you still-
Then his indignation and rage left as realization struck him. You're a fool, Kaanyr Vhok, he told himself. You've created a mess of massive proportions and stuck yourself right in the middle of it. Well, it's time to fix it. It's time to fix everything you've fouled up. There can be no future for you until you resolve this.
With that, Vhok felt a great weight lift from him. He sensed many tendays' worth of anger and frustration dissipate. It was time to act. No more hesitation, no more succumbing to inaction. It's a new day, Kaanyr Vhok.
Vhok saw Aliisza's eyes widen, staring at him. She's wondering, he thought. She's worried that she's just crossed a threshold, revealed her deepest, darkest weakness to me, and that she can't trust me with the knowledge. Let me show you, lover.
"It's remarkable," he said. "A day or so ago, I would have wanted nothing more than to ram my blade through his gut. Today, he restores my arm without a thought. And I mean that. He literally doesn't seem to have a thought left in him."
Tauran coughed. "He is becoming a Living Vessel," the angel said, still sounding as if he hadn't had a thing to drink in several days. "I've never seen it happen like this, though."
Curious, Kaanyr moved over to the angel and knelt down. "What is he?"
Tauran fought a coughing spell, then explained. "Usually, a celestial creature can make an ultimate sacrifice of itself by making its body an empty vessel for another to inhabit. We don't do it often, but when certain needs are pure and dire, we sometimes offer ourselves in this way.
"Zasian told us a bit about what happened in the rotunda," the angel continued. "It sounds as though, with the strange surges of magic that cascaded through there right after Mystra was slain, his spiritual form and the planetar's somehow merged. Perhaps the planetar invoked his power accidentally when he was so badly wounded, almost like a reflex. But instead of the planetar's body becoming the vessel, Zasian's did. But some small part of a personality-neither the planetar's nor Zasian's complete memories, but some small part-remained behind, which is why he has been behaving so oddly. And over the last few days, as it has perhaps dissipated, he has grown more vacant, detached."
Vhok tried to absorb what the angel was saying. "Why would one of you do this?" he asked. "What can become of the Living Vessel afterward?"
"The mind and spirit of another being can inhabit our body," Tauran answered. "It's not the same as the powerful arcane magic you are more familiar with. It's more of a divine melding. I cannot adequately explain it."
Already, Kaanyr's mind churned with the possibilities. "That is very interesting," he said. "So what has become of Zasian? Where is his original mind?"
Tauran shrugged as best as he could in his restraints. "I do not know," he said. "Perhaps it's also in there somewhere, buried and unable to react to us. Perhaps it has been eradicated or is cast out on the Astral, adrift and bodiless. I barely understand all of the ramifications of the magical surge that wreaked so much havoc on the universe. The fate of one man no longer seems so consequential."
Kaanyr chuckled, finally at the moment of truth. "Perhaps for you," he said. "But unless you have forgotten, my fate is inextricably tied to Zasian, through you. We have unresolved issues."
Tauran coughed again. "You are right, cambion. I agreed to free you should you successfully aid me in stopping the priest of Cyric-"
"Or should it no longer be relevant."
"Indeed." Tauran drew a deep breath and said, "I gave my word. I free you of your obligation."
Vhok felt the magical shackles fall away from him at last. He wanted to stretch, to crow, to shout "Freedom!" at the top of his lungs. He wanted to draw his sword and run it through the damnable angel who had caused him so much trouble. Instead, he merely grinned.
"Kaanyr," Aliisza said, giving him a warning look. "Do not."
The cambion smirked at her. "I don't know what you're talking about," he said playfully. "I was merely savoring the moment of release."
"We must help them get out of here," Aliisza said. "They will not survive this place."
"And take them where?" Kaanyr asked, his voice growing cold. "We do not ourselves know where we are, and the odds are not good that we would survive if we tried." He stood and looked down at her. "At least, the odds aren't good for the four of you. The angel is dying, Zasian is nothing but a shell of a human being, hardly more than a halfwit child, and…" His anger and glee subsided. "And you can no longer draw on your power, lover. You've become a liability."
Aliisza stared at him. He wasn't sure whether she was on the verge of crying or screaming at him. "No," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Kaanyr, don't."
A pang of regret sent a chill through him. No, he insisted, shrugging it off. It's time.
"Vhok," Tauran said. "You have done so many right things. Don't undo all that now."
Kaanyr ignored him. "I thought I wanted what we used to have, Aliisza. When we were talking earlier, and when I watched you fight, I recalled how good we were together, and I yearned for those days to return." His voice had become gentle, but it grew stronger, cold once more. "But I realize now that such can never be again. You are not the cunning trickster I loved back in the dwarven halls. Your time spent in the heavens changed you. Even if I were inclined to try to fight through all that, to guide you back to the crafty minx I remember, magic is killing you. Frankly, I don't want to watch you waste away as your power eats you alive."
Aliisza said nothing, but tears ran down her cheeks, and she looked as though he had just rammed his blade through her gut.
"No," he continued, tuning Aliisza's soft sobs out, "the odds are pretty low that the five of us could escape here together. I, on the other hand, have many options. I think I will honor the bargain I made with Vhissilka the marilith. I like my chances much better that way."
"You bastard!" Kael shouted, struggling to get to the cambion. "I'll kill you!"
Vhok laughed as he drew his sword once more. "I ought to kill you now," he said, "but it's just too much fun watching you flounder around in those chains."
He launched a series of feints at Kael's head, got the half-drow off-balance, then kicked the knight's legs out from beneath him. Kael went down in a heap and grunted in pain as his head bounced hard against the stone floor.
"Kaanyr!" Aliisza cried out as she struggled to where her son lay panting. "Leave him alone!" she growled as she hovered over him protectively.
"You see?" Vhok said, feeling anger rise. "That's what I'm talking about, lover. Always more worried about them than me. I sure won't miss that."
Then he bent down and looked her squarely in the eye. "Would you sacrifice yourself, use the last of your 'immeasurable power,' to strike the killing blow on me right now? Do you even have anything left to expend?"
Aliisza returned his gaze with a hateful glare. "Yes," she said in a voice barely above a whisper. She reached one hand up toward him. "Come here and let me show-" The strain of her effort sent her into another coughing fit, and she crumpled down again atop Kael.
"That's what I thought," Vhok said, rising again. He saluted the four of them with his blade, eager to get out of there before Aliisza decided to try again to unleash her fury at him. He truly didn't want to have to be the one to kill her. "It's been grand," he said, then he turned and departed.
It was, for a brief moment, very hard not to turn and look back at Aliisza one last time.