some artists in a tavern once.'
'She looks familiar, but I don't remember her,' the bard said.
'She was a shy thing. Sat in the back, listening quietly but intently.'
'How did she die?' Jas asked.
'She worked late at her master's shop every night to do her designs,' Finder explained. 'An enemy of her master's, intent on his murder, poured smoke powder into a chunk of coal that fired the shop's kiln. Rina was the only one in the shop when it exploded.'
'That's horrible,' Jas said.
Finder nodded. 'Fortunately she doesn't remember it. Petitioners don't remember anything about their previous lives, but she's still an artist. When I don't need her to greet visitors, she's working with the kiln she's built.'
'Did Rina make these?' Emilo asked, holding up one of the white dishes. 'It's so light, and look, the sun shines right through it.' The kender tapped the dish with his spoon and it rang like a bell. 'Did you hear that? That's real pretty.'
Finder nodded. 'Rina made all the dishes, pottery, jewelry, statuary, anything porcelain you find here. The other petitioner was a painter named Springer who died of old age. He painted the front hall. He's around here somewhere, painting one of the other rooms.'
Joel remembered Springer. The old man had gotten into an argument with an Iriaeban merchant over what should be painted in the merchant's hall. Springer had walked off the job and promptly offered his services at a cut rate to paint the hall of one of the merchant's rivals. The painted hall, and thus the rival, had become renowned throughout the region.
'So if you only have two petitioners, who cooked breakfast?' Jas asked.
'I've hired some local help for a while,' Finder explained. 'I'm not expecting many petitioners in the near future. With any luck, my worshipers will remain healthy and alive for years to come.' The god snagged a strawberry and stood up. 'I have something I'm working on at the moment, so I'm going to leave you to your meal. When you finish, climb the staircase beyond that door.' He pointed to a smaller door than the one by which they'd entered. 'I'll be in the room at the top of the tower,' he explained. Then he vanished.
'He just disappeared, like a wizard,' Emilo noted. 'I guess gods can do all sorts of tricks, can't they? Your Finder seems like a splendid fellow.'
'He is,' Joel assured the kender.
'One of the nicest reckless fools you'll ever meet,' Jas added, serving herself a helping of raspberries. 'God or no god.'
They proceeded to dine in earnest, speaking now and then only to comment on how good the meal was. Joel, anxious to speak with Finder, hurried through his meal Then he excused himself from the table, insisting the other two not rush on his account. He received no argument from either of his companions. Jas was busy playing with the custard, and Emilo was creating a very artistic sandwich far too large to fit into his mouth. Joel hurried up the tower stairs.
The room at the top of the tower was nearly empty. Several books were spread out on a table on one side of the room. There was a single wooden chair in which Finder sat. The god was pondering a yellow crystal that hung suspended in midair in the middle of the room.
The crystal, an artifact known as the finder's stone, could locate just about anything or anyone even slightly known to the bearer. Once upon a time it had also contained spells, like a wand. The spells could be cast by any member of Finder's family. Included in the spells were illusions of Finder singing any of the many songs he had composed in his life as a mortal man. Finder had cleaved the stone in two, however, to get at the shard of para- elemental ice within. He'd used the ice to destroy the evil god Moander, after which he claimed Meander's power and godhood for his own. Each half of the finder's stone still worked as a magical locator, but the stone no longer held any spells.
Finder gestured with one hand, and blue fire engulfed the gem. Joel could feel heat radiating from the stone.
'Have you put it back together?' the bard asked excitedly.
Finder lowered his hand and the blue fire faded. The god shook his head. 'I haven't quite figured out how to do it,' he explained. 'Any power great enough to reintegrate the crystal's structure is equally likely to destroy the magical properties the stone already has.' He lifted the top half of the crystal from the bottom and tossed it to Joel.
Joel caught it. It felt warm, but not hot. 'What will you do if you do get it back together?' he asked, admiring the stone's sparkle.
'Try to do what I did before. Put another shard of para-elemental ice in the tiny flaw in the heart of the stone, and then see if I can store magical spells in it, and music- mine and the songs of others.'
Joel set the top of the stone back down on the bottom half. The two halves fit together perfectly. 'Do you know why we've come here?' he asked.
'Jas's condition is getting worse,' Finder said.
Joel nodded. 'I don't think it will ever improve in a place like Sigil, but the way she looks, she doesn't want to go home.'
'Sigil's restless atmosphere is only part of the problem,' the god explained. 'Iyachtu Xvim's power and influence is growing stronger throughout the Realms. Jas's condition is a reflection of that.'
'You said you might be able to help her,' Joel said.
'I'll try,' Finder said, though he didn't sound hopeful.
Joel could read his god's mood. 'You're not sure if you can, are you?' Joel asked.
'I suppose I'm just feeling less certain because I haven't yet succeeded in gluing this rock back together,' Finder said. He took up both halves of the stone. 'And, of course, Xvim is more powerful than I am. It's entirely possible the priests of Xvim just shape-shifted Jas's form and relied on Jas's own hatred and anger to transform her into a creature of darkness.'
'But how can that be?' Joel asked. 'Jas isn't evil and her will is strong.'
'She was forced to watch as Walinda systematically tortured her friend Arandes and the rest of her crew to death. She was a victim herself of the priestess's sick practices. That changes a person, even one with a will as strong as Jas's. That doesn't mean there isn't some way to help her,' the god added, mustering a little more enthusiasm. He juggled the two halves of the stone in one hand and gave Joel a wink.
'I also told Emilo Haversack you might be able to find his home and help return there,' Joel said. 'But then, you know that, too, don't you?'
Finder nodded. The god had the power to sense whatever occurred in Joel's presence. He didn't need Joel to explain how he'd met the kender. 'Yes, I know of his world. Krynn, it's called. I can show him a magical gate that goes there,' he said, 'though I suspect he's not in any big hurry to get back. Kender spend a good portion of their lives in wanderlust.'
'He did seem pretty curious about Jas's spelljammer stories,' Joel recalled.
'I'm more curious about the circumstances that brought him to Sigil,' Finder said. 'Magical vortexes don't lead from Krynn to Sigil.'
'So you don't trust him?' Joel asked.
'Let's just say I'm uncomfortable because I can't predict the outcome of his actions. The vestiges of a superstition from my mortal days remains in me. Halfling luck, they called it when I was a boy.'
'But Emilo's a kender,' Joel said.
'He's a short person with clever hands and a quick wit who's been thrust under mysterious circumstances into my priest's life. I can't help but wonder what will come of it.'
'So should we just send him home?' Joel asked.
Finder shook his head. 'Not unless he wants to go. Whatever or whoever brought him here isn't a force I want to trifle with.' From the stairway came the sound of Emilo's chatter and Jas's laughter. Finder stood as the winged woman and kender entered the room.
Jas looked over at Finder. She shifted her weight to one foot nervously. She was uncomfortable asking anyone for favors, and Finder was no exception.
Finder didn't make her ask, however. 'Jasmine, there you are. Joel says you've agreed to let me take a stab
