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The Dark Sun, together with the Lord's Keep and the barracks, was one of the largest buildings in all of Llorkh: an absurdly oversized cathedral to the Prince of Lies. Its great wooden doors stood several stories high; its nave supported by many thick black pillars of ebon. Geildarr had never seen it more than two-thirds full, not with all the faithful of Llorkh, Loudwater, and Orlbar attendant on important holy days.
When Geildarr strode inside, he felt dwarfed by the immensity of the purple walls, from which the jawless skull—Cyric's symbol—stared at him on every side. A much smaller temple to Bane once stood on this spot, presided over by Mythkar Leng back before the Time of Troubles. But when Cyric took Bane's place after Bane died spectacularly in the city of Tantras, Leng displayed his newfound fealty by ripping down the old temple and building one twice as large on the same spot, mere months afterward.
It amazed Geildarr that Leng could switch allegiances so easily. The transition was easy for Geildarr, of course, for it meant little more than changing the name in his prayers and quaking in fear of a different power. But priests were supposed to have such an intensely personal relationship with their deities. Geildarr had heard about some Banites and Bhaalites who purposely injured themselves after their gods died.
And now Bane was back, bursting from the shell of his son, the puppet, and with Bane's resurgence spreading throughout the Black Network, Cyricist Zhentarim were becoming a rare breed. The Zhentarim, once a secular organization that comprised followers of many deities, seemed increasingly like an arm of the Church of Bane, and the worship of Cyric seemed to be more popular in places like Amn and Thay, where Zhentarim influence was minimal.
Geildarr decided that Leng swapped deities so easily because the god he worshiped was nothing more than a name for the darkness in his soul. What Moritz said made sense: Leng could easily switch to Bane and take the temple with him. He had transitioned so easily to Cyric, and just as easily he could go back. Lord Fzoul did the same, changing his allegiance from Bane to Cyric to Xvim, and he was a favorite servant to each god, blessed with much power.
Geildarr knew what all Zhentarim knew, but none dared say: the bulk of them were interested in power above all else, and worshiped whichever god could best provide it. After Cyric went mad and unleashed a monster army on Zhentil Keep, Xvim the Baneson seemed like a welcome alternative. But Darkhold always remained loyal to Cyric; therefore, Llorkh had too.
Eyeing one of the etched skulls staring down at him from a pillar, Geildarr reflected on his own relationship with Cyric. Certainly he acknowledged that Cyric had touched him in a rare and special way for a wizard, granting him powers to craft and explore magic that few could manage. He owed that much to the Lord of Murder. But did he have such loyalty that he would never contemplate worshiping Bane, or any other god, if circumstances demanded it?
A young acolyte came out to greet Geildarr. 'I need to see Leng,' Geildarr said. 'Fetch him.'
'The Master is attending to his studies,' the dark disciple told him. Geildarr knew just what that meant. Another dwarf who was part of a conspiracy against Llorkh had been turned over to the temple, and Leng was experimenting with better ways of creating groundlings—the disgusting dwarf-badger hybrids that the Zhentarim used as elite assassins. They were both tinkerers, Geildarr and Leng, though Geildarr liked to experiment with new and better spells and magical items, and Leng devoted his time to finding ways to corrupt good into a dark and degenerate mirror of itself.
Geildarr recalled that the Dark Sun once contained a secret known to few in Llorkh. Rakaxalorth, one of the Zhentarim's loyal beholders, lived in a chamber beneath the temple, covertly operating the Dark Sun alongside Leng. The two functioned together as the Zhentarim's foremost representatives in Llorkh. When a bugbear army— under phaerimm mind control and led by a beholder—assaulted Llorkh, Rakaxalorth came out of his hideaway, flew over the city walls, and joined the fray. Rakaxalorth annihilated the phaerimm's beholder mind slave, and gave his life to do it.
Somehow, Geildarr doubted that Leng would ever do anything remotely comparable in defense of Llorkh.
'He will set his research aside for a moment,' Geildarr said to the acolyte. 'The mayor of Llorkh wills it.' But he was left waiting a long time before Leng arrived.
Leng wore the traditional purple and silver robes of his god, with ornamental handcuffs on the sleeves to signify Cyric's one-time imprisonment in Shadowdale. With jet black hair, pale flesh, and piercing gray eyes, he looked intimidating—enough to inspire the fear and devotion of those weaker than him.
'Mayor,' Leng said. 'To what do we owe this honor?' His tone was the same as all Zhentarim priests—coldly cordial with a hint of menace.
'I recently received a message from Fzoul,' Geildarr said, his voice echoing from the highest rafters of the cavernous church. 'He sends his regrets after the failure of our troops in the Fallen Lands.'
'Good of him,' Leng said. 'Has he further instructions for us?'
Geildarr shook his head. 'He says that he and Manshoon will review the Shade question before further actions are taken. But I'm concerned.'
'Why?' asked Leng.
'You know the workings of the Zhentarim better than I. Fzoul gave us an impossible task—the kind the Zhentarim give to cold initiates. One along the lines of 'assassinate Lady Alustriel' or 'steal Elminster's second- favorite pipe.' Now he wants to punish us for not fulfilling it.'
Leng smirked. 'Did you give Ardeth Chale such a task? Is that how she earned your devotion to her?'
'Better still, she accomplished a very difficult task of her own volition. Just the kind of initiative I admire.' A touch of defensiveness rang in his voice. He went on. 'I doubt if all the Lord's Men and the muster of our humanoid allies could have shaken the Shadovar from the Fallen Lands. Even if they had, it would have left us undermanned and vulnerable, even more so than now. This 'failure' could be the excuse Fzoul's been looking for to tighten his grip on Llorkh, and that could mean your head and mine.' He looked hard into Leng's steel gray eyes as he said this, searching for any reaction that might give him away.
Leng spoke coldly. 'If that were Fzoul's plan, he wouldn't need to go to such lengths as the conspiracy you envision. And if he wanted us dead, we wouldn't be here talking about it.'
'Perhaps you're right,' said Geildarr. 'But in any event, I feel the order of the day is appeasement. Start thinking—anything short of bringing the City of Shade crashing to Anauroch.'
'As you command, Lord Geildarr,' said Leng. But Geildarr knew he would do nothing. Geildarr noted a twitch of Leng's pale lips as he bowed in farewell.
As Geildarr walked back to his keep, he analyzed his information. He didn't trust Moritz, and he knew it was possible the gnome was mixing truths and lies as part of Sememmon's game, or some unknown agenda. For that matter, he had no way of being sure that Moritz was still on Sememmon's side. If Leng were disloyal, Geildarr would need to find out for himself. And if Leng needed to die, the act would need to take place without casting suspicion on Geildarr.
When Geildarr reached the Lord's Keep, he found his promising protegee Ardeth Chale waiting for him in his study, a mysterious smile on her face. She had taken some apprenticeship from him as a wizard, and though her power was progressing steadily, she seemed far more interested in honing her skills of cloak and dagger. So far, she had proved extremely valuable in helping protect Geildarr's rule.
'Something has just arrived,' she said, endearing mischief dancing in her eyes, 'that should be of great interest to you.'
'What is it?' asked Geildarr.
'A hobgoblin arrived in town today. One of the Skalganar tribe and a survivor from the Fallen Lands.'
'I wasn't aware there were any survivors.'
'He thinks he might be the only one,' said Ardeth. 'But Gan—that's his name—wants to work for you. On his way back, he found something he decided to bring to you. An axe.'
Geildarr sniffed. 'Nobody accuses hobgoblins of being much for brains, but an axe? Didn't anyone tell him I'm a wizard?'
'Somebody must have.' Ardeth stepped aside, revealing the axe lying on the zalantarwood table behind her. Geildarr walked up to it and leaned over to inspect the axe's design.
'No noticeable markings,' he said. 'But it looks dwarven to me. And nothing modern.'
