There was silence, broken only by another soft groan from Garmansder.
Thass spoke first.
'Very good. I didn't think you'd figure things out. Your reputation is well justified, Avarilous.'
'Thank you. Now suppose you release my friend, and we sit down and talk things over.'
Thass laughed. 'I think not. This arrangement suits me very well. But by all means, let us talk. I gather you have been wondering what it was we found here.'
Avarilous pursed his Ups. His forehead wrinkled in concentration. 'I don't think it's an object. If it had been, you wouldn't still be here. You'd have taken it, killed your friend the commander, and brought it to whomever you're working for. Who is that, by the way?' Thass shook his head, smiling. 'Go on.' 'If it's not a thing, it's more likely to be a place.' Avarilous’s eyes narrowed. 'You've found… a way down. A way down into one of the Buried Realms!'
'Excellent!' Thass shifted his stance slightly to match a careful movement of Avarilous's to the left. 'A road leading to a hoard of magical power left from Netheril. We've just uncovered a bit of it thus far, but once it's open, there's no telling what we might find.'
Avarilous nodded. 'I see. That gives me a clear idea of who's behind you. You're working for-'
A series of yells and screams from outside interrupted him. The earth shook beneath their feet, jarring them. Garmansder used his good hand to take advantage of the interruption, driving an elbow into Thass's gut, doubling him over. He ducked himself as Avarilous's knife whizzed past, burying itself in the lieutenant's neck.
Blood spurted, as the tent swayed in a sudden wind. Both men fought to keep their feet. The rumbling intensified.
'Earthquake!' gasped Avarilous. Garmansder shook his head as he fell to his knees. 'Not exactly,' he shouted over the tumult. 'I set a couple of smokepower charges near the scaffolding with a long fuse. It looks like nobody found them.'
Avarilous glared at him. 'You idiot! Are you trying to get us killed?'
'No,' his friend snapped, 'I'm trying to get us out of here! Suppose we go. Now.'
He looked at Thass, lying half-conscious on the floor of the tent in a pool of blood. 'Shall we finish him?'
The decision was made for him. A wisp of darkness spread beneath the lieutenant. It grew in size until it was a pool of blackness. His body became shadowy and indistinct then disappeared altogether. Slowly the blackness faded.
Avarilous turned toward the entrance. 'Come on!'
The two men raced across the oasis, Garmansder doing his best to cradle his broken wrist. Their camel was tugging frantically at his tether and had succeeded in pulling its stake half out of the sand. Other beasts milled about, their grunting adding to the commotion that filled the air as black-robed Zhents shouted and slashed angrily with their whips at Bedine workers. From what Avarilous could see, the Bedine had taken the opportunity to rebel against their masters, and dozens of small battles had broken out across the settlement.
From where the excavation had been rose a thick column of black smoke, partly masked by clouds of dust thrown up by the cave-in. Avarilous had little time to marvel at the results of his companion's sabotage. Already he could hear frantic shouts from the direction of the commander's tent that told him their escape had been discovered. He boosted Garmansder atop the camel, cut the tether with a slash of his knife, and leaped up himself.
A Zhent rushed at them, blade swinging. Avarilous pulled back on the camel's reins, and the beast reared, striking out with its heavy hooves. The Zhent fell with a crushed skull, and the pair of escapees galloped forward. Slowly the shouts and confusion faded behind them.
They rode for several miles before Avarilous insisted upon stopping to bandage Garmansder's wrist, tying it up with a stick to keep the bones rigid. The tall man endured the operation without complaint, though his eyes dilated with pain as the merchant manipulated the bones into place.
When they were remounted and trotting on their way, Garmansder said, 'So Thass was working for the Shadovar.'
Avarilous nodded. 'Yes. They seem to be looking for access to the magic of the Buried Realms, though I don't know for what purpose. In any case, we should probably be glad we stopped them.'
'We?' growled Garmansder. 'I think I deserve the credit here.' They rode in silence for a mile, and he said, 'What are you going to tell Bin-Daar?'
'Nothing.' Avarilous half turned in the saddle. 'As far as he's concerned, we eliminated his problem. That should be worth the price he offered.'
'So we keep this information to ourselves.'
'Not at all.' Avarilous was looking dreamily at the horizon, where the sun was setting, a flaming ball of orange and yellow that turned the desert sands to gold. 'Information, my dear Garmansder, as I have never ceased to explain to you, is the most valuable commodity in this world. One merely has to know what to do with it.'
'Uh huh. What are we going to do with this bit?'
Avarilous shrugged. 'One thing. Possibly another. I hear Waterdeep is lovely this time of year, and I've always been curious to meet Khelben Arunsun.'
