But-
My kind has a tolerance for the stuff, he told her gruffly, so even though I had some, I'll be fine. You probably would not have been so lucky. Obviously, he added, a colleague ofNaglatha is less impressed with us than that lich was.
What I'm trying to ask, Tazi said, is how can you be doing this? How can you be inside my thoughts?
Oh, Justikar replied, that. Centuries ago, my kind was ruthlessly enslaved by illithids. We developed a limited, mental ability over time because of it.
This might come in handy, she told him after a moment.
I think it already has, he shot back at her.
Tazi smiled ruefully and nodded slightly in wordless agreement.
One thing, she added. Next time you suspect poison or something like it, why don't you just tell me instead. She rubbed her stomach lightly. The dwarf, however, didn't say another word.
CHAPTER TEN
Later that Night
Tazi and Justikar sat in their room, without speaking. Just as the dwarf had said, the poison in their food made him somewhat ill. He had wretched into a chamber pot violently upon their return. Tazi moistened a cloth and offered it to him after he had emptied his stomach contents into the container. But he had pushed the offer aside and dragged his sleeve across his mouth.
'At least this rag has some uses,' he grumbled, referring to the gaudy tunic Naglatha's men had provided him with after the griffon attack. 'Are you going to vomit, too?' he asked, and Tazi thought he might actually be concerned for her.
'No, I'm fine,' she thanked him.
'Good. I'm not doing her bidding alone,' he replied.
So much for concern, Tazi mused.
And they sat in silence, waiting for the black-haired wizard to make an appearance. In fact, they sat for several hours waiting for Naglatha's return. Neither spoke, and Tazi used the time to mull over what she had seen during the evening's events while she sat in the windowsill of a trompe I'oeil, one leg dangling over the side and the other propped up against the window frame. She glanced over several times to the dwarf, but he simply sat hunched over on the small stool, his hands planted firmly on his thighs, a dour expression on his face. She wasn't sure if he was angry or perhaps contemplating the fate of his brother.
He's probably more eager to go than I am, Tazi thought. At least I am fairly confident my family is safe right now. He knows nothing about his brother, other than he lost contact with him.
She started to ask him about his sibling when Na-glatha quietly opened their door.
'Good,' she said without preamble, walking over to stand between where they were seated, 'you're both here.'
'As if we had a choice?' Tazi quipped.
'You didn't,' Naglatha replied easily, 'but that didn't stop you before, now did it? '
Scrutinizing their 'host's' face, Tazi could see a rosy stain across Naglatha's cheeks. Tazi wondered if the wizard had imbibed too much of the wine at dinner, or if the flush was from the excitement of her anticipated success.
'What now?' the duergar demanded, and Tazi felt sure it was impatience to find his brother that was weighing on him. She believed he wanted to proceed more than anyone else in the room at that moment.
'Now is when you go get me those spells, little man,' and her tone turned deadly. She regarded the dwarf coldly.
'It's time, then?' Tazi asked her in an attempt to turn her attention away from Justikar. If she was drunk, then chances were her actions would be even more unpredictable than they had been previously, and Tazi knew Justikar was only alive because she had asked it. Naglatha hated the duergar, and Tazi was unsure if that hatred was for him alone, or if her dislike spilled over to anything dwarven. She didn't want to find out.
Naglatha turned back to Tazi and said, 'Yes, it will have to be tonight. Tomorrow, Szass Tam will hold his council,' she said, 'and after he beats it into us all again that we must continue to make trade our highest priority, he will find a way to politely evict us one by one.' She sighed deeply. 'I don't think this chance will come again,' she added, 'not for a very long while.'
'Then' Tazi asked, 'where do we start? You've mentioned his book of spells several times, but you haven't given us an exact location.'
'That's because I can't,' she replied simply.
'Helpful,' the dwarf spat.
'Do you have an idea where to start?' Tazi asked, redirecting the wizard from the duergar.
'There is a chamber I know of just beyond the banquet hall that descends into the lower depths of the Citadel,' she told Tazi. 'Follow it down. Supposedly you will find rooms of fabulous jewels and metals below. Not far past them will be the chamber that contains one of Szass Tarn's vast collections of spells. There,' she breathed deeply, 'you should see his prize book. Take it, or take as many of the spells that you can. But bring them to me.'
'Not much to go on,' Tazi replied. 'And I'm certain there will be guards on so valuable an item. Not asking for too much, are you?' she inquired, unable to contain her sarcasm any longer.
Naglatha walked up to where she sat so nonchalantly and gripped Tazi hard under her chin. 'I never said it was going to be easy,' she hissed. 'If this was meant to be a simple task, anyone would do.' She released her biting grip on Tazi's flesh with a jerk and smiled again.
'I suggest that if you-' she paused and fleetingly looked at the dwarf as well and corrected herself- 'if both of you want your freedom, bring me what I want. If you can't do that, then I recommend you die trying. It's that simple.' She strode over the door and tossed a look back at the two. 'But I have great faith in you, Thazienne. I know you like I know myself, and I am certain you will do well.'
Before she left, Tazi pushed herself off of the win-dowsill and called out, 'Any weapons for us?'
'My dear Tazi,' she replied, 'it is not as though you're venturing out unarmed.' Tazi kept her face blank, but she feared Naglatha knew of her golden dagger. 'You've got him, after all.' She smiled broadly and pointed to the dwarf. 'You chose him, you know. Hopefully you won't regret the decision.' And she left.
Tazi looked at the closed door and shook her head. She turned to Justikar and nodded. 'Let's do it.'
It was simple enough for them to slip through the few passageways they were already familiar with and make their way to the corridor leading up to the banquet hall. Once more, they found themselves slinking down the array of exotic armor. Tazi slowed and reached out to touch a thin rapier that rested in the gauntlet of a statue of armor.
'Take it,' the dwarf whispered. 'You know you'll need it.'
'Someone might notice,' Tazi replied.
The dwarf ran a hand appreciatively over a large war axe, before pulling it free from its stand.
'Tonight, they're all going to be too busy plotting who to kill next to notice these missing items.'
Tazi shrugged and reached for the rapier. 'And I suppose if they do find that they're gone, they'll only watch their own backs.' She noticed the thin, chain-mail gauntlets and after a brief hesitation, she took those, too. They slipped over her own leather gloves like a second skin, and she marveled at how light and flexible they were. She could see the duergar was equally impressed with his new weapon. He yanked a leather strap off of another piece of armor and strapped the axe to his back. For the first time since they had met, Tazi saw that Justikar look comfortable.
Tazi took a page from the dwarf's book and stole a scabbard for her weapon as well. With the rapier fastened to her side, Tazi suddenly realized she had missed the familiar weight there. She found that even she breathed easier now with the unusual steel next to her hip. She walked no less quietly, but straighter than she had since her auction. For a fleeting moment, she entertained the notion of trying to escape.
