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Unwilling to Acquiesce – Part 14


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#1 Guest_No One of Consequence_*

Posted 19 June 2003 - 06:25 AM

It is clear that Jaheira does not believe Yoshimo’s story.

“There are pitched battles going on beneath the inn?” she asks, still bleary from sleep. “And Adamant has gone to try and stop them?”

“No,” replies Yoshimo archly, annoyed at having to repeat himself. “They hold pit fights under the inn, in a secret arena. We found the arena and Adamant has gone to free the slave fighters.”

Nalia is barely awake and not absorbing the conversation. For his part, Anomen has not been waking swiftly either, but talk of freeing slaves and pitched battles is drawing him into wakefulness. Jaheira is the most awake, but also the most distrustful of Yoshimo.

“What are we expected to do?” she asks.

“We are the glorious reinforcements,” Yoshimo explains with an irrepressible grin. “We ride to the rescue just in the nick of time.”

From the floor below, screams of terror can suddenly be heard, along with the roaring of a monster or wild animal. The sounds galvanise Jaheira, who leaps from her bed and seizes her battle staff. Anomen leaps from his cot as well, taking up his mace and threading his arm through the handle of his personal shield, a family heirloom of enchanted strength and effectiveness. Neither has the time to put on armour, instead rushing into the corridor in only shirt sleeves and trews. Yoshimo leads the way, followed by the warrior priest and the druid. Nalia brings up the rear, bow in one hand and quiver tangled by its strap around the other arm. In her haste she is spilling arrows on the passage floor.

The companions emerge onto the first floor landing and are brought to a halt by a scene more reminiscent of a battle field than a inn taproom. The former members of the pit fight audience are fleeing from the inn, screaming in terror. A pair of wealthy looking young women emerge from the illicit den and are swiftly run down by a winter wolf, its supernaturally frosty breath misting, in spite of the balmy weather. It bites one of the women by the neck, killing her instantly. The other one scrabbles desperately to get away, her dress tearing loudly under the beast’s claws. Further into the taproom two bouncers are engaged in a mortal battle with an enraged kodiak bear, the mighty animal’s strong arms batting the men about like a child with toys. The two men are bruised and bloody, looking about for a way to get free of their assailant, but the heavy tables and chairs block them in. One of them screams in agony as the beasts long claws tear out his belly and he collapses to the floor, bleeding out rapidly.

More patrons of the pit emerge from the back of the inn, followed by Adamant and the gladiator Hendak. The two men are fighting a defensive action, being driven back by the concerted effort of several humanoid warriors, all wielding iron weapons. The pair make a concerted lunge, winning themselves a moment’s reprieve, then they leap backwards. Adamant kicks a table onto its edge and they both leap behind it, making use of the cover and each other’s backs to keep from being outflanked.

From his position of relative safety on the landing, Yoshimo calls to Adamant. “Inquisitor,” he cries over the din. “What is all this you’ve found?”

Keeping one wary eye on the circling beasts and monstrous warriors, Adamant shouts an explanation. “I found the beastmaster, but he was unwilling to relinquish the key. He took some persuading. While that was going on, his trained tiger was going about opening the cages for the fighting animals, all of whom proceeded to run amok. After that, things get a bit confused.”

“You’ll need this then,” says Yoshimo, and he unwraps the Chaos Sword and throws it to Adamant. The blade gives off an high pitched keening as it flies through the air, its supernatural powers awakened by the unbounded conflict all about. Catching the powerful sword by the hilt, Adamant smiles and faces his opponents with renewed vigour.

On the stairs, Jaheira and Anomen engage a large wild cat in pitched battle. Anomen’s shield is particularly effective at holding the creature at bay. After a few moments though, Jaheira steps back and begins to invoke her druidic magic. With a sudden break, the wild cat becomes very calm, simply standing like an obedient pet. Seeing this as a perfect opening, Anomen raises his mace to club the beast insensible, but Jaheira restrains his weapon arm.

“There is no further need,” she says. “It will remain friendly now.”

Anomen regards the creature with suspicion, but accepts Jaheira’s word. The great cat licks its paw for a moment and then turns with a fluid motion and throws itself upon the back of one of the monstrous humanoids fighting Hendak. The wild cat’s motion is so sudden that Anomen almost falls over in surprise. Jaheira catches him by the elbow of his shield arm.

“Do not fear,” she says, mocking his pride with her mothering tone. “Now she will fight for us.”

Anomen nods and regains his composure. Further back on the landing, Nalia De’Arnise is using her bow to snipe at targets in fray. Yoshimo stands beside her, protecting her from any animals or warriors who try to climb up the landing.

From the chaos near the bar, Lehtinan’s voice carries over the noise of battle. “Hendak you rebellious barbarian scum,” he shouts. “I’ll have you flogged to death for this!”

“I’m no longer your pet to abuse,” retorts Hendak, leaping up onto a nearby table. “I will have my revenge!”

The inn’s proprietor leaps onto the bar and then charges erratically towards the escaped pit fighter, leaping from chair to table above the combat. When he reaches Hendak he eschews his weapon and seizes the gladiator by the throat. The two men, slave and owner, begin to wrestle in a wild battle of strength and wills.

The larger conflict begins to wind down. Most of the screaming patrons have either fled or been silenced. Jaheira’s charmed cat chases the last bear out into the muddy streets and the pair are soon lost in the twisting turns of the slum streets. Across the inn’s taproom the bodies of dead bouncers and slave handlers are strewn across furniture. One is half buried in the coals of the firepit and the smell of it smouldering is unspeakable. Behind the bar, Bernard’s head peeks up occasionally and then hides again.

At last, the only activity is the fight between Hendak and Lehtinan. The two grab and strike at one another with unrestrained fury, gouging, biting and spitting. However, Lehtinan is unaccustomed to such bitter struggles for survival, whereas for Hendak this has been the total of his life for longer than he wishes to remember. In short order, the escaped pit fighter locks his arm around the slave owner’s throat and inexorably chokes the life from him. At last, he drops his former owner’s lifeless body to the table and, rolling off the wooden surface, collapses exhausted to the floor.

Adamant walks to the exhausted man and offers his hand. Hendak accepts the offer and Adamant helps him up.

“You have your freedom now,” says Adamant.

“And I thank you for it,” replies Hendak, genuinely.

“What will you do now?” asks Jaheira. Hendak scans the damaged inn.

“I think I might become an innkeeper,” he says, a half smile twisting his lips.

“Do you have a place in mind?” asks Yoshimo, also smiling.

“Oh, I’ve heard of a place,” says Hendak. “’s’just lost it’s owner. Needs a bit of sprucing up, but I think it’ll do.”

The companions all laugh at the joke for a moment, then Adamant becomes serious.

“Are all the slaves free now?” he asks.

“All the ones here at the inn are,” says Hendak. “But Lehtinan was supplied fighters by a ring of slavers who operate elsewhere in the city. I know that that ring also deals in children, shipping them out around the Realms. Please, if you can find them you must help them. I know nothing in detail about these slavers except that they always bring replacement slaves at night, by a secret way; through sewers.”

Yoshimo and Adamant look to each other. “The secret passage,” says Yoshimo and Adamant agrees.

“Come,” orders Adamant to his companions. “Let us gather our things. Before we leave for your family keep Nalia, I have a notion to go hunting.”




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