In The Cards

Betrayal is always a horrible thing, no matter who it is betraying you. Still, I think there can be none more hurtful than your own family, your very children or your devoted lover turning against you. Such a fate I wouldn’t wish upon anybody.

Excerpt from ‘Ruminations Of A Master Bard’

“Yeslick?” Imoen asked. “Any idea how many cellars this place has?”

The dwarf thought for a moment before he answered. “Four or five, I think,” he said.

“And we’re only past the first one yet,” Zaerini sighed. “Oh well. Nothing to do but go on. I just hope there aren’t any more metal dwarves waiting for us.”

“I’m sure there aren’t,” Yeslick said.

“Oh?”

“Oh, aye. Durlag wouldn’t have repeated himself. Whatever else is down here is bound to be something different.”

“Of course,” Edwin said, “different in this context probably means ‘something infinitely worse’. (Well, at least we’ll get an impressive tomb.)”

“Would you stop being so gloomy?” Rini snapped. “You’re starting to remind me of Xan.” Edwin had been acting rather strange lately, almost as if he was trying to make up his mind about something and couldn’t quite take that final step. And ever since the defeat of the warders he’d been watching her whenever he thought she didn’t notice.

“What?!” the Red Wizard indignantly responded. “That droopy elf? Clearly the madness that haunted Durlag must be infesting your miniscule brain if you compare me with that miserable excuse for a mage. (I ought to leave her right here and let her fend for herself without my incomparable arcane skills to drag her out of whatever messes she gets herself into.)”

“Ha!” the bard exclaimed, grinning at the surprised wizard. “I thought that would perk you up. Nothing like a few friendly insults to get the blood flowing quicker, right Eddie?” She was greatly amused and pleased to see the annoyed expression on the wizard’s face melt and give way to surprise, and then to a faint smile. He should smile more often. It looks good on him.

“Hmpf,” Edwin said, still with a quirky half-smile on his face. “As long as you recognize my superior…”

“Ego? That was what you were going to say, wasn’t it?” The redheaded half-elf could barely keep from laughing out loud. He looks like somebody who just had a rug pulled out from under him. “That’s all right, Eddie,” she said. “I like your superior ego. I guess it’s sort of grown on me.” She tossed a smooth rock into the air and deftly caught it with one hand. It was marked with a dwarven rune, and it had fallen out of the dead ‘Love’s hand. A wardstone. “We have the key. Let’s see what else Durlag has to offer his guests.”

The staircase ended up in a circular and empty room, with many doors, all of them locked. Imoen struggled with the locks for some time, but to no avail.

“L-look,” Khalid suddenly whispered. “Writing, there on the w-walls.” And so it was. Spidery runes, carved into the very rocks of the walls, with something strangely desperate about them.

Yeslick moved closer. “It is dwarven,” he said. “Divided into four paragraphs. ‘Moved ne'er by rage and ne'er by anger, cold is the trait'rous doppelganger.’ The second reads: ‘Too young to fight, except to fall, here died my son, young Fuernebol.’ The third one, over here, that says: ‘Islanne, my wife, I love you still. 'Twas just your form they made me kill.’ And the final one, here, that says: ‘Oh Kiel, Clan-prince of this dark tower, you made your death your finest hour.’”

“Am I understanding you correctly?” Jaheira asked as she looked more closely at the runes. “Are you saying this was written by…”

“By Durlag Trollkiller himself, aye.” Yeslick’s face was unusually grim. “The dopplegangers mimicked his kin, betrayed him in their forms, made him kill them, slaughter the likenesses of those he loved. Small wonder the dwarf was driven mad.”

“Poor Durlag,” Imoen said, her eyes shiny. “That is so horrible. Imagine being betrayed by somebody you love, even if they couldn’t really help it since it wasn’t really them, but you know what I mean. I think I’d rather die.”

“Yes,” Rini said, staring at the pathetic markings on the wall. “It’s really awful. And imagine having to hurt somebody you loved, even if you had no other choice. Sure, it wasn’t really them, but I don’t think it would feel much different. What do you think, Edwin?”

“Me?” the wizard said. He’d been looking at the runes, seemingly deep in thought about something. “Nothing! Absolutely nothing. It’s got nothing to do with me after all. Nothing at all…” He stalked off down the one open passage in front of the adventurers, and he would say nothing more on the subject.

The passage ended in a long room with a very ugly carpet on the floor. “Eeewww!” Imoen exclaimed. “That looks like a doppleganger. And look, its eyes follow you wherever you go in the room!”

“Well, Yeslick,” Rini said. “Durlag may have had many good traits, but decorating really wasn’t one of them, now was it? I’d call this style ‘Neo-Horror’ myself. Or possibly ‘Spooky Grossness’.”

Imoen, meanwhile, had already darted around the room, and now her eyes settled upon an object on the wall. “Oh look!” she said. “A switch. Let’s see what it does.” As soon as the pink-haired thief pulled it a rumbling sound could be heard, as of a door opening nearby. “Neat!” she said. “A secret door.”

“Yes,” Jaheira agreed. “You are very fortunate it was not a lethal spike trap. You were supposed to keep an eye out for traps, remember?”

“Oops. Sorry. Will do.”

As it turned out the door opened into a small practice chamber, with three large practice dummies standing in one corner. That was it. No foes, no treasure. Nothing. Well, nothing except for a pair of rather nasty Stinking Cloud and lightning traps in the corner that Imoen dealt with quickly enough. “Something is wrong here,” Jaheira flatly stated. “I can sense it. Be on your guard.”

“Oh come on,” Edwin said. “Surely you aren’t frightened of these old things?” He gave the leftmost of the three dummies a disparaging blow with his staff. As soon as he hit it the stone door leading into the entrance slammed shut behind the adventurers, almost taking off Khalid’s heels. “Ah,” Edwin said, looking a little embarrassed. “Upon further consideration, perhaps I should not have done that. (I wish I could have a few minutes alone with Durlag one of these days. Just me, him, a soundproof room and a rusty fork.)”

“Oh really?” Jaheira said. “Whatever gave you that idea? By Silvanus, I wonder how you managed to survive to adult age. You must have been enough to run even an army of guardian spirits ragged.”

“Sssh! Zaerini hissed. “Can’t you hear it? Somebody is coming.” And so it seemed. There were footsteps, heavy and dragging footsteps, coming closer and closer. But they were coming from behind a blank wall. Then the wall swung aside, and a short figure stepped out from behind a previously hidden door. He seemed to be a fairly old dwarf, fair of hair and beard, and wearing heavy chainmail.

“Ho there, kuldar!” Yeslick hailed the dwarf. “Who are you, and what brings you to this place?”

The dwarf simply stared right through him, eyes unseeing and empty. “Ah, Fuernebol, my son,” he spoke. “Trade your bow for a lute and play something mournful for your father, will ye?”

“Fuernebol!” Jaheira exhaled. “Durlag’s younger son! That is the visage of Durlag himself!”

Durlag’s Ghost! Rini thought, feeling a deep chill run down her back. I don’t like this. I really, really, really don’t like this.

Steady, kitten, Softpaws warned, watching the strange dwarf with unwavering eyes. That is no ghost, it is flesh and blood.

Flesh and blood? But then…

“Why do ye hesitate, my child?” ‘Durlag’ said, his voice now stern. “'Tis your father's face beneath this beard.”

“S-stay away!” Khalid said. “Come n-no closer!” He had his bow out by now, and the other adventurers were readying weapons of their own.

The strange dwarf’s face suddenly twisted into a mask of fury. “Augh! ...Fire upon your very father, would ye, dwarfling?” he sneered. “Thsss, don't make me laugh! Ah, the meatssss makessss me laugh…” With that his features rippled and changed, the face of a dwarf warrior melting away to be replaced by a grey and leathery one.

“Doppleganger!” Rini just had time to scream. Then she could hear the hiss of approaching gas and saw a green cloud rushing towards her as the doppleganger smiled and prepared to cast another spell. She was choking, gasping, and unable to breathe. The last thing she could see was the hungry gaze of the doppleganger, and then she fell into darkness.

Kuldar=warrior