Betrayal at the Gates

“You must be General Gromnir,” Tybalt said as he reached the throne room. A half-orc sat on the throne, surrounded by a group of guards. “You know how to hide, don’t you? I’ve had to search this entire castle to get to you.”

“What?! Intruders! What do you want with Gromnir? Another assassin? We know how to deal with assassins, don’t we?”

Tybalt smiled thinly. “Figured me out, I’m afraid. But if you tell me how to open the gates, I might let you live.”

“No! Gromnir will reveal nothing! You will die, just like the rest of them!” He pointed, and the guards charged Tybalt.

Tybalt calmly fought his way toward the half-orc. He had found a gate leading from the castle to the outer wall and with the right key he would be able to open it. Hopefully Gromnir carried the key, or he would have to search the entire castle. As the last guard fell, Tybalt stared at the general.

The half-orc had raised his morningstar for battle, but his defeated look told of his chances for survival. “Melissan put you up to this, didn’t she?” he asked. “Tricky Melissan lies, she deceives. Don’t trust her!”

“Yes, yes, and yes.” Tybalt’s suspicions were confirmed by Gromnir’s accurate guess as to Tybalt’s accomplice, and he resolved to find the woman once the business with Saradush was over. “But I have more pressing matters to attend to.” He clashed weapons with Gromnir.

After the fight, he rifled through the general’s remains. Sure enough, there lay a key in the fallen clothes which had once housed the half-orc. He jogged to the gate and thrust it open, running out to the main wall before its archers could realize what was happening. He knocked the soldiers guarding the city gates to the ground and began to open them as arrows rained down from above. Cries of treachery rang out and soldiers pooled near the gates to try to stop him. Tybalt urged a boost of strength and thrust the gates open, exposing the siege camp.

He quickly ran out of the city and into the camp, noting that the giants had already started to move forward. The soldiers tried to shut the gate but hadn’t managed to do so by the time the first giant reached it. Arrows thudded into its sides and it splashed into the moat, but more came and heaved against the closing gates. The city forces were soon overpowered and Yaga-Shura’s army began rushing through the first wall. By dawn, they would reach the rest of the city.

Tybalt knew that now that Saradush had fallen, Yaga-Shura would have no more use of him, and he would probably be the fire giant’s next target. He checked the pendant to make sure he was nowhere near the giant as he searched the tents for Edwin.

He spotted a familiar flash of red and he ran to greet the wizard. “My part’s done,” he said, relieved at Edwin’s appearance. “I hope you found some information on Yaga-Shura.”

The wizard looked smug. “Indeed. However, I don’t think this is the best setting to relate my discoveries. I think it would be best if we moved to a more private location.”

“No arguments here.” They hurried out of the siege camp, avoiding giants as more and more swarmed the city. When they had reached the outskirts of the camp and the sound of battle was distant, they stopped and rested.

“You made good time,” Edwin remarked. “You are more resourceful than I thought (yes, it was a good decision to side with him, he will do nicely).” Edwin laid a hand on Tybalt’s arm. “Such a skilled warrior is doubtless in need of my talents, and I provide them all freely.”

Tybalt raised an eyebrow. “You can start with the information on Yaga-Shura. Everything else comes second.”

The wizard shrugged. “As you like. Yaga-Shura was raised in a temple of Bhaal in the Forest of Mir. I believe that he had some sort of benefactor watch over him and raise him to be the charming person we know now.” He made a face. “It may be there that we can find the answers to his invulnerability.”

“I thought you knew the secret,” Tybalt said crossly. “We have to go to an old temple to find it?”

“The other alternative is to fight our way into his fortress in the Marching Mountains,” Edwin said snappishly. “I don’t know how they taught you in your little library, but such highly prized information is not easily extracted without torture, and it seems I left my rack at home.” He glared at the man and crossed his arms. “However, I did happen to find out some more information on your friend, Melissan, as well.”

“Really?” Tybalt asked.

“(Of course I did, otherwise I wouldn’t have said it, monkey!) She visited the giant some time after you left. From what I gathered, she was once a priest of Bhaal, which explains her interest in the Children.”

“So she wants to use us against each other?” Tybalt wondered. “She claimed not to want to see Bhaal raised, but maybe she’s waiting until the moment is right.”

“Or she could be trying to usurp her old master,” Edwin pointed out. “Such things have been done before.”

Tybalt glanced at the wizard, suspicion flaring to life at these words, but Edwin looked innocent, or at least as innocent as he would ever be. Still, Tybalt knew that now he could trust no one, not until this matter was laid to rest. “Then we head for the Forest of Mir,” he said.

Edwin stretched. “Yes, but I must get some rest, first. Sleeping among giants is not as restful as one would imagine.”

“Fine, but not for too long.”

The wizard smiled languidly. “Of course. I wouldn’t dream of delaying you. Such stamina shouldn’t be put to waste.”

As Edwin slept, Tybalt stood watch, uncomfortable at their proximity to Saradush. He thought of Haer’Dalis and the others and hoped that they were fine. He hated this, hated abandoning everything he cared for, hated his actions in Saradush, hated the violence which followed him. Most of all, he hated how he was becoming used to it. Soon, he might even begin to like it, to seek it out.

When the sun was fully in the sky, he woke Edwin and they began walking toward the old temple. “So, Tybalt, how do you feel knowing you will be the next God of Murder?”

“I have no intentions of replacing my father,” the warrior snarled. “I want to see my siblings dead because of the destruction they bring, not to gain power.”

“And yet, gain power you do. For one man, you are doing almost as much damage as the armies of your kin. Such a gift should be considered before you rashly deny your destiny.”

“I said I’m not interested,” Tybalt yelled and increased his pace.

“We shall see.” Edwin smiled.