Kianne's Journal - Archive

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---

[05/21/2003]

Over the past week or so that I've been neglecting writing in here, we've been gathering reagents and so forth, making slow progress. But today some particularly noteworthy things happened.

First of all, I was asked today to meet the others at the tower, but as I arrived out front, I felt that the cloaked man was very close to me. Immediately I began casting Reveal spells, and abruptly he started running, revealing himself. I took off after him, chasing him south and almost getting within an arm's reach several times. Nevertheless, somewhere near the nature preserves, he finally managed to Teleport himself around enough times that I lost him.

When I returned to the Watcher's Tower, I discovered something else. Soth had told Navien, who informed the rest of us, that he had found a note at the tower where he and Navien have been studying. Soth claimed it was from the cloaked man, warning us to stay out of Felucca. The wording struck me as odd, though, since the word Felucca was shortened to "Fel" and Soth is the only one I know of who does that...

Still, regardless of whoever left it, both Soth and Navien warned that the cloaked man is very dangerous and could kill us permanently, bypassing the spirit protections that exist here on Britannia for all humans. I don't know if that "permanently" would include immortals, but at any rate, I agreed that I wouldn't chase the cloaked man anymore. And I will keep that promise. I do, however, fully plan to keep my eyes out for him nevertheless. And Andrella, Navien, Sygil, and I began plotting a trap to catch him...

---

[05/23/2003]

Well. I'm writing this from my, erm, jail cell, since I have nothing better to do.

Yes, my jail cell. Actually, it's Blackthorn's jail cell. I think it still smells of him. How did I come to be here? Well, it goes something like this...

I was at my house, trying to organize my things and chatting with Navien. Suddenly two Chaos guards--no joke--walked up with a very confused-looking Pride following along. The guards immediately said I was under arrest by the "king" and told me to drop my bow. Well, naturally, I refused, and Navien and I asked them over and over what the charges were and who this "king" was, but they dodged answering any of our questions and just kept insisting that I disarm and go with them. I didn't want the deal to escalate into bloodshed, so I put my bow away in the bank. "All right, there," I told them. "Now what is going on here?"

I was never really able to finish speaking the words, because abruptly I found myself standing in Yew Jail, in the same cell that had once held Blackthorn. Of all the nerve. Navien fetched his brother Adweigan, but shockingly--and rather alarmingly--the Chaos guards were able to relieve him of his duty as Warden. Adweigan found that his axe no longer held its Warden powers, and he wasn't able to do anything to help me.

We complained at the guards, who finally told us that the king was...Blackthorn. In fact, one guard even went so far as to say that Blackthorn had "returned only hours ago." What is going on here? Not only that, but they revealed that Garn is coming back--joy--and also that my "crime" was plotting to destroy the kingdom. As if! If anyone, they should be jailing Soth or Blackthorn for that, not me...

And stupid me hadn't even had the chance to eat supper before they'd jumped me. My stomach was growling, but when I asked for food, the guard said they were under orders to starve me. Uh huh. I'll bet this is Blackthorn's bad idea of revenge. Well, I wasn't about to put up with that. As soon as the guards had left, I cast a Create Food spell and made myself some sausage. Recall and Gate Travel and any other more useful spells don't work here--I've tried, believe me--but at least I can get food.

The good side is, I still have all of my other items besides my bow--they never did disarm me. The bad news is, the guards said plain as day that they are going to jail Andrella, Connor, and Sygil as well. Navien promised me he would warn them to remain hidden so that they do not end up in the same fix I'm in. I only hope he finds them before the Chaos guards do...

Walter, Pride, Navien, and I spent some time trying to figure out a way to get me out of the cell. Magic wasn't working, and though I've found what I think is a secret door at the back of the cell, I've yet to figure out how to open it.

As it is, I was caught somewhat unprepared. Well, I always carry items with me to try to be prepared for anything, but since I'd been putting away my things at my house when they'd caught me, I didn't quite have ideal equipment. For one, I'm running low on reagents, and if I waste them all on food, I won't have much left for anything else. This is not good. And if the cloaked man really is Blackthorn...

Before he left, the guard mentioned that Blackthorn would come by tomorrow. I suppose if I don't figure out something before then, I'll just have to wait here until Blackthorn comes around, and then I can give him a piece of my mind...

---

[05/24/2003]

This is going from bad to worse.

This morning when I woke up, I spent many lonely hours poking at bricks in my cell's walls and feeding myself with Create Food spells. I was down to about 5 castings left so I was trying to preserve my reagents. At some point during the morning, my brain finally started working, and I remembered I still had my bag of holding on me.

This presented possibilities, and I realized I needed to speak with Navien to hatch a plot for my escape. As I was planning this, Andrella spoke some greetings over the global telepathy.

"Ack!" I sent immediately. There was no sign of Navien, who had promised to warn her. "Andrella, hide!"

She was naturally confused, but I entreated her to stay away from Chaos guards. I figured it didn't matter at this point if they could hear me. Since the guards had found me so quickly after I'd told Navien over global telepathy last night to meet me at my house, they probably were already on their way to find Andrella now that she had revealed herself.

Unfortunately, my suspicions were right on target, and even as I was urging Andrella to run and get away from them, she was abruptly materializing in the jail cell across from mine.

"Argh," I growled.

"What is going on here!?" Andrella gasped out.

"They say that Blackthorn has returned," I sighed.

"Blackthorn!?" she echoed.

I explained somewhat glumly. When I was finished, I kicked the cell door in irritation and asked wryly if Andrella knew of any weak points in the security of the jail.

"No, I'm afraid not," she chuckled. "I had to think of Sariff after all."

I was thinking the same thing. Good old Sariff, who had his own bunk in the jail and visited it regularly.

Ironically, while we were discussing this who would show up but Sariff himself, who had heard that we were in jail. He had a good laugh at our expense--as I knew he would--but finally he calmed down enough to speak again. After getting a promise from Andrella that he would not be jailed for the information he was about to give us, Sariff began to try to explain how we could take advantage of an unseen hole and slip out of our cells.

While he was doing this, I caught a glimpse of the cloaked man going down the stairs to the floor below us. "The dog is in the pen," I commented, since it was something along the lines of what Andrella had suggested we say as a code phrase for alerting others to the cloaked man's presence.

"Hmm," Andrella mused, but Sariff didn't understand the message. He went down the stairs himself, and called back up to us, trying to get us to see the cracks in the floor that we needed to use.

"Um, Sariff..." I started, but it was clear the cloaked man was hidden, because Sariff didn't react to his presence. That is, until abruptly we heard a sudden noise, and the room lit up briefly with a lightning bolt like what Soth used to use on us, back before he lost most of his power. We heard Sariff's death cry, then...nothing.

"Sariff!!" we shouted over and over, but received no response.

"He's...dead," I gasped out numbly. There was no sound from below, not even from the cloaked man who had obviously killed him. "Where is Sariff's ghost...?"

Andrella shook her head. "Oh no... Soth was right..."

I dropped my head. "Even Sariff didn't deserve that."

"I'm going to call Lita to get his things, just in case," Andrella told me, and I nodded. Lita arrived, taking the hint from Andrella well, and went downstairs cautiously. Apparently, the cloaked man was gone. I heard Lita cast Invisibility on herself, and she picked up all of Sariff's items while hidden. Then she came upstairs.

"Here," she said, and began casting Create Food over and over, passing me the resulting foodstuffs through the bars. Gratefully, I scarfed down everything she handed me. Andrella had been given bread and milk by the guard that had captured her, but the guard had still refused to feed me anything.

Once Lita was gone, I explained to Andrella my idea--inspired by something Navien had mentioned to me the night before--to use my bag of holding and get my Chaos guard outfit from my bank box. I thought what I could do is pretend that "Kianne" had escaped by somehow locking a guard into her cell. I, of course, would pretend to be that poor guard, and if all went well, I would get them to release me without their even realizing they were releasing me.

Navien came as we were discussing this, and he agreed to be the scapegoat so to speak. Posing as a guard, I would claim that "some mage" had cast a spell which caused "me" and "Kianne" to swap places. That mage would be Navien--we could say he used his necromancy spells, although in truth I don't think there is a spell that has such an effect. But that doesn't matter. It was the best cover story we could come up with.

So Navien got the heck out of there, since it wouldn't make sense for him to stick around after "springing" one of us. I used my bag of holding and fetched my costume, as well as some more reagents, my bow, my invisibility cloak, and other things I thought might be useful. Hidden, I quickly changed into my disguise and used my identification card to give myself the guise of Elane, the Chaos guard. Once I was set, I revealed myself, winked at Andrella, took a deep breath, and started shouting.

"Hey!" I yelled. "Somebody let me out! She's getting away! They both are!"

Andrella played her part and laughed and snickered while I hollered and banged on the bars and tried to get the attention of a guard. At first, only the jailer was near enough to hear, and he just kept yelling back for me to shut up. But finally he stalked into the jail room irritably and headed for my cell, where I was still making a racket. "Hey you! Shut--" he started, then broke off and stared at me. I fought hard to keep my face looking frantic and angry rather than grinning at him. "Holy crap," he goggled. "Where is Kianne!?"

"Some mage used a really weird spellbook," I explained, ad libbing our cover story. "And suddenly, I was in here--and she was out there!"

"I got to get Zane," the jailer gasped, looking visibly shaken, and hurried away.

I kept up my act, because the room just outside the hall with our jail cells was beginning to fill with Chaos guards. "You have to let me out! I have to find her! Or they'll have my head!"

The Chaos guard known as Zane came in and looked me up and down. "What are you doing in there?"

"It was a mage, a bloody mage with a funky spell," I growled, pretending to be scared and irritated at the same time. "He swapped me with her. And then they both ran!" I shook my head, getting into the act. "I didn't even know spells worked in here..!"

Zane shook his head. "She's tricky, just like Blackthorn said."

"Blast it!" I forced myself to groan. "I am so dead..."

"Yeah." Zane shrugged. "You are dead."

"Wait!" I let out, not having to fake most of the panic in my voice. But suddenly I found myself standing outside my jail cell, and I realized he'd released me. "I'll fix this, I swear!" I babbled. "Don't hang me!"

"You go tell Blackthorn immediately," Zane said to me, and handed me a Recall rune. "It was nice knowing you."

Then he turned and walked back to the main room.

I took a deep breath--given past experience with Blackthorn and his guards, I knew I was very likely to wind up dead even with my disguise--and tossed Andrella one last look. Then I quickly ran from the room to exit the jail so that I could get outside the magical barriers and use Recall. On my way out, I passed Adweigan who was being denied entry by the guards, but I didn't stop to see what he was saying.

Once I was outside the jail and alone, I debated for a moment ignoring my "orders" and just escaping. But I wanted--no, needed--to see if Blackthorn had truly returned from the void. And, I needed to gather whatever intelligence I could. I knew I was going to be stepping out of the frying pan and into the fire. But there was no choice.

I gazed at the rune in my hands for a moment. It was labeled Magincia. Well, here goes, I thought, and Recalled.

I ended up in what looked like a council meeting. The guildmasters of the various crafting guilds were sitting at a long table, and...my heart about turned over. Blackthorn was speaking to them. I'd recognize his oily voice anywhere. And his face. For a moment I felt cold. But I had to do this. Taking a steadying breath, I stepped closer, hesitantly. I didn't have to fake the nervousness that I felt.

"RBW has long been a thorn to these lands," Blackthorn was saying, and internally I growled, but outwardly I forced myself not to give away my thoughts in my expression. "We must outlaw that guild..."

"Excuse me, milord," I broke in, praying Blackthorn wouldn't just kill me on the spot for the interruption. "Urgent message for you."

He stopped in the middle of a sentence and turned to look at me. It wasn't a pleasant expression. "What?"

"I'm afraid there has been a jailbreak," I explained quickly. "The one known as Kianne seems to have escaped. We are looking for her now."

Blackthorn scowled. "...Kianne..." he grated out.

I tried to leave on the pretense that I needed to be out searching for the escapee, but Blackthorn nipped that idea in the bud. "Excuse me, please," he said to the gathered council members with a pasted-on smile. "I have to go for a minute." Then, before I could get away, he commanded to me, "Follow me, Elane."

Rapidly I weighed the advantages and disadvantages of obeying him. On one hand, I might find out more, but on the other, I had no idea where he was taking me. For all I knew, he could have been leading me out somewhere unseen so that he could kill me.

He wandered the city for a brief time, looking in buildings and muttering. "No quiet places," he grumbled, and I got a sick feeling that my guess had been right.

"I'll begin looking for her right away," I spoke up nervously.

"Not so fast," he said to me, and finally found a spot to stand near the water which was relatively private and hidden from the curious eyes of the townspeople. "Get over here."

Reluctantly I stepped closer and stood before him, bowing and trying to act like a loyal guard. "Milord..."

Blackthorn gave me one of those fake smiles. It was really unnerving. "Now," he breathed. "Tell me how this happened."

I swallowed. I really was hoping to avoid giving Blackthorn the details. Oh well. "A mage with a funny spellbook," I explained, my tongue tumbling over the words. "I..I don't know what happened. Just suddenly, I was in the jail cell, and she was out. I guess it swapped our places."

Blackthorn considered that. "I am leaving you personally responsible for this," he commented.

"I'll do whatever I can to rectify this," I assured him. Once again, I didn't have to fake it much to put a note of desperation in my voice.

"You bring her to me," he ordered.

"I will, my lord," I agreed. "With all haste." I bowed again and started to move away.

Blackthorn was staring at me with a suspicious look. I didn't at all like it. "Time is wasting," I added. "Her trail is growing cold..."

"Then hurry," he finally said. "Bring her to my castle. Ten minutes."

I gulped and ran.

This time I bade no thought of obeying orders. I Recalled, first to my house, but then I realized that was a stupid place to be, so I Recalled again. Just as I was leaving, I spotted the cloaked man out of the corner of my eye. He was right near my house. What was he doing there? At least I still looked like Elane instead of Kianne...

I Recalled to the place by the sea where I had spent so many days that week after the Guardian had come. Inside the cabin Sygil had built there, I quickly removed my disguise and the guard identification, getting back into my own clothing and armor. My heart was still pounding from my close call. Blackthorn could have very well simply killed me for "letting Kianne escape." I was lucky to be alive.

"That's it for Elane," I commented grimly to Andrella via private telepathy. I'd been keeping in touch with her when I could spare the time to pass across a thought. "It was nice while she lasted."

She agreed. "At least as Kianne you don't have to pretend to like Blackthorn!"

"Tell me about it." Then I looked outside the window and stiffened when I caught a glimpse of the cloaked man. I was glad I was hidden in the house, but nevertheless I found myself gasping out, "The cloaked man is here again! How does he do it..!?"

Andrella had no answer, of course. Finally I sighed and prepared to leave. This was getting very messy, and I didn't like having to leave Andrella behind. "I hope you'll be okay..."

"Don't worry about me," she responded. "I'll convince Blackthorn to release me somehow."

I wasn't so sure about that, but there was nothing that could be done at the moment. The guards would never fall for the same trick twice, and so far we had no ideas for how to get her free.

I donned my invisibility cloak and returned to Magincia, but the council meeting had apparently been called off because no one was there anymore. Grumbling a little, since I'd wanted to listen in, I went to Blackthorn's castle, hoping to find him there. When the place turned up empty, I went instead to Lord British's castle, suspecting Blackthorn might have taken it over.

I was right. The place was crawling with Chaos guards, there were almost no Order guards left, and Blackthorn himself was sitting on the throne.

I stood silently and watched him in disgust as Blackthorn got up and paced the room, clearly waiting for "Elane" to return. Finally, Zane walked into the throne room.

"Well?" Blackthorn queried impatiently.

"Elane is not registered," Zane replied to a question Blackthorn had obviously asked him to research. Well, of course she wasn't--it was a name I made up to go with my disguise.

Blackthorn looked curiously triumphant, in a dangerous sort of way. "Don't you see? You fell right into her trap!" He scowled. "You are dismissed. Go to the guillotine and chop your head off!"

I winced, but found the command somewhat funny; what guard in his right mind was going to obey that order?

Zane turned and left. Blackthorn cursed a little, then gathered the guards that were nearby. "If anyone sees Elane, kill her instantly," he ordered. "She is posing as a Chaos guard."

"Yes, your highness," the guards responded. Well, I thought, nobody is ever going to see Elane again.

Blackthorn then Recalled away, which irritated me because I had no idea where he'd gone. I wasted some reagents trying the various places that I could think of, but to no avail until finally Andrella called to me, "He's here!"

I went quickly to the Yew Jail, but even so, I ended up missing the first part of the conversation. "So uh...weren't you like banished or something?" Andrella was asking Blackthorn when I arrived, echoing my sentiments exactly.

Blackthorn gave a sly grin. "By Lord British. Not by you," he pointed out.

Navien was there as well, but so far he was outside the jail cells; I'm not sure yet why he wasn't on Blackthorn's "jail-on-sight" list. I think that changed, though, when Soth sent Navien a summonings. I guess I haven't mentioned, but since Navien is, essentially, tutoring under Soth, Soth has a wand which he can use to summon Navien to him at any time. Since Soth hates the global telepathy, and also simply because he's Soth, he tends to use the link wand instead of just asking Navien nicely to come to him. Unfortunately, it's not at all inconspicuous when the link request arrives.

"Soth?" Blackthorn blinked.

"Oh pitty," Navien muttered.

"What is Soth doing sending you a magical link?" Blackthorn asked, but Navien refused to answer, leaving quickly to respond to the summonings. "Interesting..." Blackthorn murmured when Navien was gone. He turned to Andrella. "Anything you want to explain?"

"Not particularly," she responded. "How about you? Want to explain how you're here?"

Blackthorn considered. "No, I will wait until Kianne crawls back."

Like I was going to do that. I was sorely tempted to just start talking right then and there, knowing full well Blackthorn would be able to hear me. Unfortunately, that would give away my ability to be invisible, and I want to keep that secret for a bit longer because I have a feeling I will be needing it.

Andrella, at any rate, had a better response than I would have come up with anyway. "Oh, did you miss her?" she laughed. "I'm sure you were anxious to see her." I nearly laughed out loud. Blackthorn glared.

"Your trick only proves," he growled, "what you are capable of. Lying, deception, ruining my land..."

"Pardon me?" Andrella retorted. "Your land? I am regent of this land until British's safe return."

Blackthorn laughed. "Oh, you have it all wrong now. You are no longer anything."

Navien returned just then. "I have word..."

Blackthorn turned to him. "So what did Soth have to say?" he asked in a mocking tone.

Navien tried to get Blackthorn to follow him, which rather annoyed me because I wanted to go too and eavesdrop, and it was going to be difficult to do so if they left by Recall. Blackthorn at first refused, saying he would go nowhere without his guards, because, he claimed, RBW would ambush him. Finally Navien handed him a rune. "Then use this. That's where he is."

Blackthorn looked at the label. "Hedge Maze?" he queried, and I felt a rush of triumph--I had a rune to there, so I could easily follow. But Blackthorn's face had taken on a suspiciously curious look. "I will send my guards," he stated.

I was already Recalling, having already discovered that the invisibility cloak allowed me to cast spells silently. When I arrived at Soth's house, no one was there. I quickly exited there and went to the tower nearby where Soth and Navien work. There was nobody there but Navien and one Chaos guard.

"He's here!" Andrella suddenly sent to me. "Soth was just put in jail!!"

I shook my head in disbelief. So that's what Blackthorn had meant. I was about to leave, but Navien was still looking around in confusion, and the Chaos guard was refusing to answer any of his questions. So I walked up to him, out of the earshot of the Chaos guard nearby, and whispered quickly, "Soth has been jailed."

Navien's face didn't change expression, but I knew he'd heard me. And since he knows of my cloak, he wouldn't be surprised to hear my voice but not see me. He didn't respond. He simply immediately Recalled.

I did as well, and I have to say I am sad I didn't get to see Soth's face when he'd first appeared in the jail. By the time I got back, Blackthorn and Navien were there, and Soth was trying to fight his way out of his cell...and wasn't succeeding very well, because Blackthorn simply kept calling the guards down on him with a smug smile on his face.

"Fool," Soth growled, raising himself. "I cannot die."

Blackthorn laughed.

"But you can!" Soth finished, and summoned some Apparitions on either side of Blackthorn.

Blackthorn didn't fight them himself. He merely called the guards on them. When the Apparitions failed to do the job, Soth gathered his energy and summoned two Wights. At this point, even Navien ran and quickly hid himself, lest he be collateral damage. Blackthorn, though, didn't look at all worried. The Wights didn't even seem to attack him, and even they were soon taken care of.

"You know, I never thought I'd say this," I commented to Andrella from where I was watching, invisible, "but I really hate to see Soth losing to Blackthorn."

"You really ought to stop about now," Blackthorn commented calmly.

"Navien, kill him," Soth growled.

Navien just looked at him. "You and I both know that would not happen."

"Don't waste your power," Blackthorn told both of them.

Finally Soth seemed to give up. "Why are you doing this to me? I did everything in my part of the deal."

"I have a bone to pick about that," I grumbled to Andrella, since she was the only one who could hear my private messages at the moment.

Blackthorn laughed. "You are so foolish. You did nothing but release hell on this land."

Soth just shrugged. "Not my problem."

"Blackthorn told him to," I complained privately, and Andrella echoed my words out loud.

Blackthorn simply laughed again, then, not responding to that, he commented, "Soth, I would like to speak with you in private anyway."

"Then let me out of here," Soth growled.

Blackthorn did, and the two vanished--much to my irritation, as usual. Even Navien didn't know where they had gone. I ran back out into the hall where I could Recall, only to hear Sygil saying hello over global chat.

"Ack! Sygil, hide!" I let out immediately.

"I must go get him," Navien said, and Recalled.

I Recalled as well, trying various places in an attempt to find Blackthorn and Soth. While I was doing this, I happened to stumble across Zane, who was checking in at Blackthorn's castle and hadn't, in fact, beheaded himself. I followed him for a bit, but he just walked out of the castle and sat down, drowning his troubles in a bottle of ale. I left him there and resumed my travels.

Then Andrella sent word, "Navien and Sygil are jailed."

"Both of them!?" I let out, and growled. "Argh..."

I would later learn that Navien had tried to help Sygil evade the guards. And so evidently he had been jailed as well for interfering. However, things started looking up--Soth sent Navien another link, and when Navien used it to teleport himself to Soth's location, it actually got him out of jail. Interesting. "Where did he go?" I asked Andrella quickly.

"Try Blackie's castle," she responded.

I had been there already, but quickly I Recalled back. This time, I discovered to my relief the three of them on the third floor.

"You don't think I can do it now?" Blackthorn was asking when I arrived, still hidden under my cloak. This charge was going a long way. I will have to ask Navien for the start of the conversation later, but I already had a pretty good idea what was going on. I had a feeling this would happen. I'd had it ever since I'd learned Blackthorn was back. I figured Soth would no longer be of help to us, because Blackthorn would simply promise to send him back home, and Soth would probably believe Blackthorn more capable of it than us.

Navien was standing in the room with Blackthorn and Soth, so evidently Blackthorn didn't care that Soth's link had gotten Navien out of jail. I would discover in short order why that was.

"We are wasting time," Soth told Blackthorn. "I will not talk to you again. Backstabber."

He turned to leave, but Blackthorn brought him up short. "Hold on," he urged. "No, wait. I will do it. If--"

"No more deals," Soth snapped. I almost wanted to cheer.

Blackthorn commented, "You are not in the place to bargain. Navien controls the powers of necromancy, does he? Then let him prove it."

"Show him, Navien," Soth commanded impatiently.

Navien agreed and summoned a skeleton mage. It was immediately dispatched by a guard--whom Blackthorn immediately dismissed in annoyance--but it was proof enough.

"All right, then, I have no further need of you," Blackthorn told Soth. "I will send you back to Krynn--after you give me the rock."

I wanted to shout "No!" but of course I couldn't. It took all the willpower I could muster not to reveal myself right then and there.

Soth shrugged. "I will bring it right now," he agreed, and left.

While I frantically tried to think of what to do, Blackthorn turned to Navien. "You will have to serve as my royal mage."

"I already am the royal mage," he responded.

Blackthorn grinned slyly. "No, no. My royal mage."

"Why me?" Navien asked, trying to stall.

"I need a necromancer," Blackthorn replied. I'm not sure why that is, unless only necromancers can open the Black Gate? But then, why would Blackthorn want to open the Gate again anyway? He's already accomplished what was surely his goal--he's gotten rid of Lord British and his court. "Soth is leaving the lands. He has been far too troublesome. I need a necro who will listen."

I was still lost in thought on how to stop Soth. "I'll try to grab the rock as he passes it to Blackthorn," I said to Andrella. We need all five rocks, so we can't let Blackthorn get one. "But, I don't know if I can with this cloak on..." And there was no way to get the cloak off without hitting someone... And anyway even if I did, I would just be jailed by Blackthorn. And I couldn't hope to catch up to Soth and intercept him with the rock--he'd simply kill me. Argh, what was I going to do?

Soth returned just then. "I have it," he said, and passed it over. I tried to snatch it, but I wasn't able to get my hands on it. Mentally cursing, I glared at Blackthorn.

Blackthorn grinned, rubbing the stone before he tucked it away. "Ahhh, the rock. Good. Where are the others?"

Soth didn't hesitate. "Kianne has one," he responded dryly, as if recognizing the irony of that. "Andrella has another. Sygil a third. And..." He turned his head to give Navien a curious look. "Navien has the last."

Blackthorn looked interested. "Is that so?"

I growled mentally at Soth. Navien asked Soth out loud how he could betray us. Soth ignored him. "They plan on creating facet stones," he told Blackthorn. "To go to Fel."

"Ohh?" Blackthorn mused while I fumed. I'm going to kill Soth... I'm going to kill Soth... ran through my head furiously. Blackthorn turned to Navien. "You can do this?"

"He can," Soth assured. "He's a powerful necromancer."

"That's great," Blackthorn grinned, rubbing his hands. "You will serve me well, Navien."

"Let's get me out of here," Soth finished impatiently.

"Of course," Blackthorn agreed oily. "Once Navien agrees."

"Tell him, Navien," Soth ordered promptly. "Tell him you'll serve him."

I could see that Navien was uncertain. Finally I focused and sent him a private message via telepathy. "I'm here," I told him, knowing he would not be surprised. "But I'm afraid I can't help you in this. Whether the risk to you is too great is something only you can decide."

Navien replied to me quietly, "Tell the others I am doing this only to help RBW and get the rock back."

I knew. Although in the past there have been times when I had been worried that Soth was swaying Navien over to the side of evil, I have since discovered that Navien is still loyal to us, even though he has been training under Soth. "I will," I promised.

"Do it, Navien," Soth urged while Navien and I were conferring silently. "I hate this place. Look at me. A shadow of myself. All because of what? Because I was sent here to destroy RBW." He gazed steadily at Navien. "Say it!"

Navien sighed. "Over time, I have grown quite fond of you..."

"Don't give me this crap," Soth responded. "You're more powerful than I could ever be here. I am a waste. Just say it!"

"One thing first..." Navien agreed finally.

"What?" Soth asked impatiently.

Navien looked at him. "Use telepathy and say 'I am sorry RBW for the pain I caused you.'"

"WHAT!?" Soth cried out. I almost burst out laughing, and fought to keep silent. "You have to be kidding," Soth complained. "That would be a lie." And even Blackthorn chuckled, appearing amused.

"Yes, but so is you going home," Navien responded dryly--and bang on target. I didn't trust Blackthorn any more than Navien did.

Soth didn't seem to get the significance of his words. "I am sorry RBW that I didn't kill you all," he growled over the global telepathy.

"Hey, hey," Navien admonished, and I almost fell over laughing again. "That's not what I said."

"Navien, you are making this worse," Soth complained as Andrella, Sygil, and others began sending typical responses to his message. "See?"

"Just say you're sorry, and you're leaving," Navien requested with amazing calm considering what he was doing looked like it was about to cause Soth to blow his top. "I know you can do it."

Soth glowered at him. Finally, telepathically, he practically bellowed, "I HAVE TO SAY I AM SORRY SO I CAN GO HOME!"

I was leaning weakly on the wall by this point, both hands pressed over my mouth, so close to laughing out loud that my lungs were hurting.

"That-a-boy," Navien praised. Then he turned to face Blackthorn. "It is done, Blackthorn."

"Now you will bow to me?" Blackthorn clarified. "You will serve me?"

Navien was able to keep any revealing expression from his face. Gathering his courage, I am sure, he replied, "Yes."

Despite the silliness of Soth's farewell, I was getting worried by this point. I hated to admit it even to myself, but I didn't really want to see Soth leave here and now. Even though Soth is evil, he could prove to be a valuable ally--if he will fight on our side. Besides which, I really didn't trust Blackthorn to send him to Krynn, and so I found that I couldn't just stay silent, even though it was Soth.

"Are you really sure you will end up at Krynn?" I asked over the global telepathy, since that way Blackthorn would not know I was actually nearby.

"You trust one such as Blackthorn?" Andrella chimed in.

"Hmm, I wonder how a liar could trust another liar," Sygil agreed.

Soth didn't seem to want to pay attention to our warnings. "I am leaving so good riddance," he growled over the telepathy.

I gave it one more shot. If he was going to go anyway, at least he couldn't say we didn't warn him. "Have fun in the void or wherever Blackthorn sends you. You did want to be banished, after all, right?"

"I hate this," Soth grumbled. "It's in my head. The insults are flying now."

I wanted to bonk him over the head and tell him they weren't insults, but in afterthought I suppose I could have phrased my warnings better.

"It is complete," Blackthorn was saying. "I will return you to Krynn now."

"I will miss you Soth..." Navien commented quietly. "Though you think you had no friends, you had one."

"Oh please," Soth sighed.

"Shut up Soth," Navien returned. "You know it to be true." Privately, I found myself thinking--if anyone could melt Soth's undead heart, it may well be Navien.

But it wasn't happening yet, apparently. "I am so ready to get out of here," Soth stated. "No more of this telepathy crap. What are you waiting for?" he rounded on Blackthorn.

Blackthorn gave him a sly grin and raised his arms. "Farewell...fool."

I found myself reflexively wanting to leap forward to try to grab at Soth, but I was far too late even if I had. Soth vanished into thin air, leaving behind only a small cloud of particles that quickly faded away. Unconsciously I flinched. Well, that cinched it. There was no helping it now.

Blackthorn dusted off his hands and returned his attention to his new "lackey." "Navien, you are now at my beck and call. First thing is..." He took a breath and nearly shouted out, "Find that blasted Kianne!!"

I almost snickered out loud. I suspect Navien was fighting hard not to laugh too. "I'm right next to you, you fool!" I teased Blackthorn in private telepathy to Navien. It was something I wished I could say out loud, but knew I shouldn't.

"Hmm," Navien stalled. "Why do you need her?"

Blackthorn looked at him. "What is this? Rule number one: Never question me."

"I see..." Navien mused carefully.

"Now go!" Blackthorn ordered.

"I do not know where to search," Navien pointed out, which was only sort of a lie--after all, even though he knew I was standing right in that same room, if I wanted to, I could leave and go anywhere, and he wouldn't be able to find me if I didn't want him to.

"She is your friend, no?" Blackthorn pointed out. "Call to her. Ask her to come here."

Navien sent me a private "Ho boy" over our telepathy. I snickered in return. Finally he just sighed and sent over global telepathy, "Kianne, can ye come to Blackthorn's castle? 'Tis urgent."

I didn't respond directly at first. "Shall I tell him I'm already here?" I snickered privately to Navien.

Yeah, Navien, you could say that...

"I'll hide over here," Blackthorn said, and moved over to a wall where he hid himself.

"This is pretty funny," Navien agreed to me, then answered my question with, "Just pop out."

I sighed. "I can't," I responded. "For one thing, Blackthorn would just jail me. For another, I don't want him to know I can be hidden like this. And finally...there's no way to get this cloak off without hitting someone."

Then, knowing that the silence over the global chat had stretched too long, I finally answered publicly, but with a teasing tone, "Navien, are you insane?"

"Well, yes, but you knew that," Navien returned wryly. Then he spoke out loud to Blackthorn, "I have a plan. When I call...come to me. You will be able to jail her on the spot."

Blackthorn reappeared. "No," he responded instantly. "I do not travel outside guard territory. She can't be trusted. She will ambush me with that pretty little bow she stole from me," he grated out. I found myself disgusted at him for perpetuating that lie, but also a little surprised that he would pretend that my bow was such a threat to him. Given that his magic could probably drop me dead on the spot, I have no idea how, even if I were to attack him with my bow, he could feel the least bit threatened by it.

"I will return shortly with her then," Navien sighed, and Recalled.

"I do not like to wait!" Blackthorn called after him.

I remained in the castle, watching Blackthorn pace and finally sit at a table idly. Navien returned in a couple of minutes. From what I learned later, he had spoken privately to Andrella, who had urged him that he needed to think of a way to get Blackthorn to free everyone.

"Where is Kianne?" Blackthorn asked the instant he saw Navien return (empty-handed, of course).

"Before I get Kianne...you need to release the other RBWs," Navien stated. "These are Kianne's wishes."

Actually, they weren't my words, but I couldn't very well tell Blackthorn that. Meanwhile, Blackthorn was sputtering, "What!? How dare she...!"

"That is the only way you will be able to talk to her," Navien pointed out.

"I don't want to talk to her," Blackthorn growled. "I want to lock her up where she can't cause trouble." At least he didn't say he wanted to kill me, although I wouldn't put that past him.

"Either way...you need to find her," Navien noted. "And you won't find her unless she lets you."

Blackthorn grumbled a little, but finally decided, "I will set them all free. And I will meet her tomorrow. And then I will imprison them all again." He laughed.

Navien couldn't respond the way he probably would have liked, because he wouldn't want to blow his cover. So he just chuckled.

"I will tell the guards to release them," Blackthorn said. "We will discuss this more tomorrow. I have matters to attend to. Bring her here tomorrow. I will tell you what time."

"I shall see that it is done," Navien agreed. Privately, I found myself hoping he knew what he was doing. I suppose I would sacrifice my own freedom if it meant that no one else would be hunted by the guards, but since Blackthorn had come right out and said he was going to simply jail everyone else again as well, there seemed to be no point in me turning myself in.

Blackthorn was just turning away when something curious happened. Over the global telepathy, Soth's voice, almost too quiet to hear, growled out one long, drawn out word: "B..l..a..c..k..t..h..o..r..n..!!"

I winced again, actually finding myself feeling sorry for Soth. "Where did you end up?" I asked him sympathetically, but received no response.

"Why is Soth here?" Navien asked Blackthorn.

The evil lord turned back. "He isn't. He's in Krynn."

"He just used telepathy...did you not hear it?"

"I don't use that," Blackthorn shrugged. I found myself wondering whether it was the truth. "And he could not have." Without giving Navien a chance to argue, he turned away again. "Go then."

"Farewell," Navien agreed, knowing when not to push the issue. He Recalled away.

Blackthorn smirked. "Until tomorrow, my young fool." He laughed and disappeared into his personal chambers.

When I returned to the Yew Jail, I discovered that, wonder of wonders, Blackthorn had kept his promise and released the others. Andrella made a gate and we all quickly returned to Northwind. Andrella had things to do and so excused herself, but Navien, Sygil, and I went to the Officer's Club to talk. I was still invisible, since you never know when I'd need it, and so I didn't see a point removing the invisibility until I had to.

We discussed what all had taken place, from all of our different points of view. We all knew we would have to avoid Chaos guards from here on out, so that we wouldn't be nabbed a second time. As Sygil was talking about how he would remain hidden, he hid himself where he sat jokingly. Navien, also jokingly, cast Reveal on him. I was sitting right next to Sygil, with my invisibility cloak on, but although Sygil was revealed, I wasn't. So that pretty much cinched the power of this cloak.

Between the three of us, we all eventually agreed that Soth is the lesser of two evils here, and so we ought to try to find where he had been sent, and--heaven forbid--rescue him. After all, if Soth didn't dislike Blackthorn enough before, he'll definitely hate his guts now, given what Blackthorn did to him. And, no matter how you look at it, Soth hating Blackthorn will only help us.

We ended up back on the Wisps--since Wisps are pan-dimensional, they'll undoubtedly know where Soth ended up as well. Probably, that is our best possibility. We must find Lord Valkoris as soon as possible...

---

[05/25/2003]

I hate being a fugitive.

I've been hiding since yesterday, though I've organized my pack and my bank box so that I won't be caught flat-footed again. Today, Andrella said hello over global chat, but I didn't reply, because I didn't want to give any indication of my whereabouts to the wrong people.

After all, I'm not going to be much help if I'm in jail.

I met Andrella and Ayla at the Watcher's Tower. Navien came while we were talking and revealed that he had spoken again with Blackthorn and that Blackthorn had taken him to see Soth.

"Where did Blackthorn send him?" I asked him curiously, referring to Soth.

"He was turned to stone, so to speak," Navien responded.

I blinked. "Stone!?"

"Soth is?" Andrella echoed.

"Where is he?" I asked.

"I do not know, it is a secret area," Navien explained, then added, "Blackthorn took me there, because..." He turned and looked at me, and his expression was unreadable. "If you do not show up at Chaos castle soon...that is my fate."

"What!?" I gasped out.

Andrella added, "If Kianne doesn't show up you will go where Soth is?"

"Yes, and I will remain stone."

"What about everyone else?" I asked, appalled. "Blackthorn said he'd jail all of them."

"Yes, if you showed." Navien seemed curiously calm as if he would deal with whatever life tossed him without panic.

But Andrella scowled. "Well, I've had enough of this. Let's go settle this once and for all."

Navien and I looked at her. "Andie..." he started, and I added, "How do you propose doing that, Andrella?"

She looked determined. "I'm going to speak to Blackthorn." It sounded very simple on the surface. But I couldn't very well let her go alone.

"But if I go..."

"You're not going," Andrella told me before I could finish saying the words. Then she grinned and winked. "At least, not that he'll see."

"I won't be able to help much with the cloak on," I warned her.

"No, but I'm not scared of Blackthorn. I'm tired of this. He will not come here and take over the land."

We all nodded in agreement.

"Here's the deal," Andrella stated. "I'm going to speak with him. Ki, you are going undercover so that you can take notes. And what did the two of you want to do?" she asked Ayla and Navien.

"I have to accompany whoever goes," Navien said.

Ayla pulled out a purple potion. "I will blow him up with explosives."

We all laughed. "No, Ayla, we can't attack just yet," Andrella giggled.

"Although," I winked, "keep a powder keg handy in case she ends up back in jail."

We snickered again. "Is everyone ready?" Andrella asked.

I pulled on the cloak, which I had fetched from my bank box, and they watched as I vanished before their eyes. "Ready," we said. Andrella asked if Navien had a rune, but since I already have one marked there, I spoke up that I would create the gate. I wonder what it looked like to the others for the moongate to appear out of nowhere, since they couldn't see me casting the Gate Travel...

At any rate, we all trooped across the bridge to Blackthorn's castle, where we discovered the false king sitting at a table reading, as if waiting for something. Invisible, I moved closer and took a quick peek at the book cover. "The Age of Exodus." Ho boy.

"Andrella..." Blackthorn greeted with one of those sly grins as everyone else gathered around the table. He looked around, as if searching for something, and apparently not finding it.

"You have a lot of nerve," Andrella growled at him. "You think I'm going to just stand here idly and watch you destroy this land?"

But Blackthorn seemed to have his mind elsewhere. He stepped over to Navien and whispered, "Where is Kianne!?" I happened to still be standing near enough to hear; Andrella walked closer the instant she noticed what Blackthorn was doing.

"Enough of this," she snapped as Blackthorn quickly backed away. "I haven't seen my friend in days because of you." I almost snickered out loud.

"Now calm down," Blackthorn urged. "Let us talk this through rationally. Sit down, all of you."

Navien took the seat Blackthorn had been using. Andrella remained standing. "Don't boss me around."

Blackthorn glanced at Navien. "You were right. She is a loose cannon."

"Don't put words in my mouth," Navien commented dryly.

Andrella responded by pulling out her katana of life drain, along with her shield. Blackthorn jumped the instant the sword came into light and immediately scrambled back toward the door. "Now just one second!" he protested. "There are guards outside!"

"I don't care about your guards," Andrella snapped and stepped closer.

Blackthorn hesitated for a moment. Then he turned and ran.

We followed him up to the third floor, where he immediately locked himself into his bedroom. Andrella banged on the door, but it was as solid as a wall.

"Andrella, I won't come out until you calm down," Blackthorn told her through the door.

"What have you got to say that would interest me?"

"I can tell you what we need to do next to save the lands," Blackthorn promised her. I found myself shaking my head in disbelief. Blackthorn was acting like a totally different person today.

Andrella wasn't swayed. "Here's the deal. You want to be part of this land? Then you will help us free Lord British, Dupré, and Nystul."

"Of course!" Blackthorn agreed. "That is my desire!"

Andrella glared at the doors. "I don't even know how you got back here. But that's not important, I'm sure the answer will come soon. But you will do what I say until Lord British returns--not the other way around."

"Of course I will!" he repeated. By this point I was staring in awe.

"You will release the bounties you have on Kianne, Sygil, and myself," Andrella continued. "And all rights and privileges of the Warden will be returned to Adweigan at once."

"It was all a misunderstanding," Blackthorn whined, making me gag. "Let me explain..." We heard him move closer. "Are you calmed down? Can we speak face to face?"

"Have you agreed to everything I have said and you will work on this immediately?" Andrella asked him.

"Okay, okay," he agreed.

Andrella sheathed her sword and shield. "Then I am calmed down."

I was snickering silently by the time Blackthorn came out of his room. "Try anything funny," Andrella warned, "and the sword comes out."

Blackthorn just smiled away the threat this time. He was holding a black staff, but it didn't seem to be magical. "Now," he said, "I would like to speak to Kianne."

Andrella responded instantly, "I want a signed letter from you releasing all bounties before you get anything."

"Sure," he agreed easily. "Go get Kianne, and I will get the papers."

"I want the letter in my hand," Andrella insisted.

"Of course, but it takes time..." he wheezed.

"Then so will seeing Kianne," Andrella tossed back, and I found myself privately snickering again.

Blackthorn gave a little sigh. "Give me five minutes."

Andrella made a big show of considering it. "Three."

They tossed a few more barbs, but finally Blackthorn left. Shortly thereafter he sent a link to summon Navien--have I mentioned he seems to have Soth's link wand, somehow? The rest of us waited for Blackthorn's return. I think he was a little more than the three minutes, but Andrella didn't call him on it.

"Where are the papers?" she demanded.

"I gave them to Captain Zane," he responded, then corrected himself, "er, the new captain, Belik."

"I told you I want them in my hand," Andrella insisted, and the two went back and forth on that for quite some time. Finally, almost shockingly, Blackthorn relented and returned with some papers, which he signed in front of Andrella. "There," he said, stepping back. "All is in order. Now. Can I meet with the elusive Kianne?"

Andrella eyed him. I'm sure she was finding this as curious--as well as suspicious--as I was. "What is the importance of this meeting?"

"It is rumored that she knows how to operate something..." Blackthorn shrugged while I blinked and stared at him. "Never mind. You wouldn't understand. Just tell her I would really like to see her. Like the good old days."

I was sorely tempted to tap him on the shoulder, just for the fun of it. But I didn't. Andrella asked me over private telepathy, "Do you want to speak with him? I don't want to put you in a bind."

"Yes," I responded to her instantly. "I do."

"Where?" she asked me, while saying out loud to Blackthorn, "You will bring no guards."

"Bring?" he echoed innocently. "She is coming here. That was part of the deal..."

"I don't remember a deal being established," Andrella said dryly. Meanwhile, I was pondering the best choice of location. I didn't think Northwind would be a good idea, and Lord British's castle would set an annoying precedent.

"I guess here would be best," I told Andrella, "but outside, on the street. If I'm inside, he'll accuse me of stealing something."

Blackthorn smirked suddenly. "How about we meet at the jail hall? That way, if anything happens, we can talk behind bars."

We rolled our eyes at him. I had certainly had enough of that place.

"She will meet you outside," Andrella told Blackthorn.

"I'll take the cloak off and be back," I said to Andrella, and Recalled away. I returned using my rune to Lord British's castle, and ran on foot to Blackthorn's, because I didn't want Blackthorn to see where my rune to his castle was marked. No guard bothered me on the way.

When I arrived, everyone was standing at the agreed-upon place, just on the other side of the bridge that leads to Blackthorn's castle. Visible now and feeling much better since I could tread boldly in the streets again, I walked up to Blackthorn and was able to glare at him face-to-face for the first time since he had returned.

"Kianne..." Blackthorn greeted through one of those forced smiles. "So...good...to see you."

I crossed my arms irritably. "Blackthorn, don't you know the meaning of the word 'banishment'?"

"Well," he replied, "I would have never returned if not for the mess you made."

Now this was the Blackthorn I knew. "It was your doing! You knew what Soth was going to do! If you'd only told me when I'd asked..."

He scowled. "I did not return to listen to accusations. But let's not dwell," he added while I rolled my eyes at him. "Be thankful I have returned."

"I'm not too thankful you threw me in jail," I commented wryly.

"That was a misunderstanding," Blackthorn repeated. "You see, rumor had it you guys all messed up and released the Guardian on this land..."

"You told Soth to open the Black Gate!" I retorted.

"Now hold it. I tried to stop him," Blackthorn fibbed. "But when I talked to him, you went to the king and accused me of consorting..."

"Maybe because you were?" I smirked dryly.

"He was your lackey at the time," Andrella agreed.

"No," Blackthorn insisted.

I was getting tired of his two-faced lies. "You admitted it yourself! Do you want me to get out the letter?"

"I only said that because it's what British wanted to hear," Blackthorn reasoned. I couldn't believe this guy.

"So what's to say you aren't lying now?" Andrella pointed out.

"My heart," he responded, and we nearly gagged.

I glared at him. "What do you want that you don't already have?"

"Well..." Blackthorn mused, "I put an end to Soth's reign. That was first on my list."

I chuckled. "And started your own?"

"I did not name myself king," Blackthorn insisted. "The people called on me."

"In case you haven't noticed, we already had a regent just fine," I pointed out. "Still do, in fact."

He ignored me. "I have returned order..."

"I thought you detested Order," I commented.

"Never!" he retorted. "Now stop it now!"

I crossed my arms again and suddenly cut straight to the chase. "Okay, fine then. Why'd you call me out here?"

"Well, I just have to make sure," Blackthorn responded readily. "Is it true that you know how to use the Orb of Moons?"

I was still wondering how he had found out about it. I hadn't overheard Soth telling him. I measured him up in silence for a moment, then, dodging the question, asked, "Why is that important?"

"Because you all slacked so much...we are on the eve of impending doom. You see..."

"Exodus?" I broke in blithely, and got the supreme pleasure of watching Blackthorn goggle at me in surprise.

"How would you know?!" he gasped. I don't know if he was truly surprised that we knew, or if he was only faking, but I found it entertaining nonetheless.

"We make it our business to know," I returned calmly. Blackthorn hmmed. I decided to throw a little more on the plate. "And Minax. We know about her too."

Blackthorn hmmed some more.

"But what I don't know is how the Orb of the Moons will help in this matter," I pointed out to him, because I didn't. Before, we'd needed the Orb for Soth, but not directly to take care of Exodus.

Blackthorn eyed me. "Perhaps you are a double agent?" he asked. "Whose side are you on?"

I glared at him. "For the record, we were working toward putting a stop to Exodus. Before you decided to pop in and jail us all, and basically cause a mess."

"I jailed you because of a misunderstanding," Blackthorn repeated.

"You didn't even speak to us. You just popped in and threw us in the slammer," Andrella pointed out.

"I was mad," Blackthorn said.

"The feeling was mutual," I commented wryly.

"Besides," Blackthorn added, "Kianne broke out. And caused a lot of guards to lose their heads."

"That's because you're an imbecile," Andrella said.

"You always try to trick me," Blackthorn started, and I smirked and broke in, "That's mutual too."

Blackthorn went on as if he hadn't heard, "They were good people. And now their families suffer..."

I scowled. "Then why'd you tell them to be beheaded?" I almost said "to chop their heads off" but caught myself just in time. After all, I wasn't supposed to know that little detail. Although knowing it did, at least, give me a little ray of hope. After all, as much as Blackthorn twists the truth, he did have a bit of a point. Although I took most of the fall as "Elane," I would still hate to have been the cause for guards being killed. Hopefully, Blackthorn was as much of an idiot with the others as he was with Zane, and any that were given death sentences yet live.

Blackthorn replied, "It is the law. But they did not know you were not really a criminal." Oh, now he says so! "If you would have just waited a few hours..." he sighed gustily. "But no... Anyway, this is getting us nowhere," he went on, cutting off our responses. "If you want me gone, get British back."

"Ohhh, we fully intend to," I assured him.

"And I will be banished again," Blackthorn finished with a shrug. "So..."

I eyed him. "But tell me, what do you want with the Orb of the Moons?"

"If you know how to use it," he replied, "we can stop Exodus from ever coming back."

"Won't we need a facet stone?" I asked. "And for that matter, where did you plan to get the Orb?"

"Facet stones?" he echoed. "You don't plan to go to Felucca?"

I looked at him. "What, didn't Soth tell you?" I asked sarcastically, knowing full well he had.

When Blackthorn didn't answer, Ayla spoke up, "Where will we find this Orb?"

"I know where it is," Blackthorn mused. Then, ignoring the question of where that would happen to be, he went on, "With it, Kianne can open portals anywhere..."

I wasn't quite sure whether he knew how to use the Orb or not, or even if he fully understood its powers. "I should point out," I commented dryly, "I have to be holding it in my hands to use it."

"Uh oh," Andrella teased. "Holding it in your hand is a confusing concept to Blackthorn."

"Of course," Blackthorn said to me, ignoring her. "But we will have to work together." I about gagged again. "You will have to open the coordinates I point out..."

Coordinates? Now I was sure he had no idea how to use the Orb.¹ "I should also point out that messing with the Orb can be tricky business." I had found that out while trying out all of its locations--a few put me in places that I left with all due haste.

"I know that!" he responded. "That is why I am in charge of it! I just need you to use it."

I rolled my eyes. "Where are these coordinates then?"

"They will cause a rift in the space between the moons, and send Minax to Exodus to be eternally tortured!" Blackthorn explained, and I felt my eyebrow climbing. The Orb of the Moons isn't supposed to be able to do that.

But I played along, for now, by considering that thoughtfully. "Hrm. Wouldn't we need to be near them for that to work?"

"We?" Blackthorn echoed. I about fell over.

Andrella shook her head. "And now we get down to the truth."

"What, you expect me to walk up to them myself?" I asked, exasperated. "Alone?"

"No no," he replied. "You can take Andrella and anyone else with you. As many as possible. I have to stay here," he added, noticing Andrella's questioning look. Just in case we blow ourselves to kingdom come, I thought dryly. "I have to make sure the moons are in the right position," Blackthorn explained. "It will take a lot of study. Like she said." He nodded his head toward me. "Any wrong move..."

And we blow ourselves to kingdom come. Yeah, I was starting to get that impression.

I spoke up again. "Okay, Blackthorn, tell me something else. Where is Exodus? Do you know?"

He looked at me. "No! Do you!?"

I found myself smirking. I liked to be a step ahead of him. Of course, we don't know where Exodus is either, but we're all practically sure it's in Felucca, and I have some good theories as to exactly where.

"But Minax does..." Blackthorn mused. Then he shrugged and went on, "We will all follow my plan to get this done. Once Minax is defeated, the land will be safe for British. I will not let him come back to this."

"Where is the Orb?" I asked him again. "I assume you already know where it is?"

As if in reply to another question, Blackthorn said, "Well, Navien can make facet stones. He is a necromancer."

"It's in Felucca?" I verified.

"The book I need is," Blackthorn returned, and I almost wanted to fall over again. "Don't worry about the Orb. I will handle that."

"If you need the book then we'll hold the Orb," Andrella spoke up. "You're not getting both."

"We can trade or something," Blackthorn shrugged. "You get me the book. We'll figure it out later."

"What book?" Navien asked, and Blackthorn told us it is called the "Tome of Stars."

"Right now it is in the hands of a very powerful beast," Blackthorn went on. "One that cannot be defeated easily. A black void golem."

We all blinked in surprise. "Oh, we can take those down easy," I teased, waving a hand. "Lots of practice."

"Oh?" Blackthorn asked.

Andrella gave him a wry look. "They're one of Soth's creations."

Blackthorn looked at her. "Is that what he said?"

"Yep," I returned, a little bit of my homeworld dialect coming through. "And he threw a half dozen at us."

Blackthorn shrugged. "Then it will be very easy. Good. Once you have made a facet stone, I will give you the coordinates to the golem's lair." Then he paused. "Oh, one more thing. I request that all the Virtue stones be brought to me. They belong in a museum here."

"Nope," Andrella responded instantly. "They belong in Northwind. RBW saved them, and we will keep them safe."

Blackthorn apparently decided it was wisest not to argue with her. "I will ask Avatar. He is more level-headed than you." Then he went on before she could respond, "So it is agreed then. You will help me. Good."

"I think it's more like, you will help us," I told him dryly.

"Think what you will," Blackthorn shrugged, and turned. "Good day."

I watched him walk into his castle. "I'd say I wish you farewell..." I murmured to his back, "but I'd be lying."

A few other notes for today...

At some point, I was listening while invisible to Blackthorn and Navien talk privately... Blackthorn really did seem like an entirely different person this day, because he denied ever demanding that Navien be his lackey. He also claimed that Soth had given him a fake stone. I don't know if this is true or not, but seeing as to how we will need all five of the golden rocks to open the Black Gate and free Lord British and the others, it is something to keep in mind.

Later this evening, after I had removed the cloak of invisibility, Blackthorn summoned Navien using the link wand again, so instead of using a charge on my cloak, we decided to eavesdrop another way. While Navien went off to Blackthorn's place, Andrella and I sat and listened in using the communication crystal that we'd planted in that castle all those weeks ago. This time, Blackthorn was pouring on the lies, claiming that...well, never mind what he claimed, it was all bogus anyway.

So now we're stuck deciding which is the lesser evil. We could follow Blackthorn's plan, or instead we could release Soth and just get out of the way and let him vent his frustrations at Blackthorn himself. Then, of course, we'd be right back to finding a way to deal with Soth. We're relatively sure that only Soth will be able to destroy Blackthorn for good. But do we want to be responsible for unleashing the evil that is Soth, even if for the greater good? We all know that once Soth returns to Krynn, he'll hook back up with Takhisis, and we'll be back to dealing with the Dark General again...

Of course, if we do neither of these, then we go at it alone. And we'd still have to stop Exodus and Minax, and find a way to save Lord British and the others...

---

[05/26/2003]

Today, Andrella and I put some finishing touches on the ceremonial armor she's been planning for RBW, but hadn't had a chance to complete. It's gold armor, and we decided on black kilts and sashes and purple capes and headgear. We're finishing the armor because we need to meet with the council, and we might as well look official when we do it. I naturally told Andrella about what Blackthorn had been saying to the guildmasters in Magincia, so we need to set things straight or we'll find Blackthorn yanking the entire kingdom out from under us and Lord British.

I also told her about the incident with the cloaked man. Earlier this day, I'd been in my house alone when I'd spotted the cloaked man through my window. He walked straight past my house and headed north, toward the Rares Museum. I paused, frowning. I had promised not to chase him anymore, but I decided that following him stealthily wasn't quite the same thing. So I let myself out of my house quietly and quickly worked my way north, trying to keep hidden.

When I reached the museum I could sense him inside. While hidden I debated for a moment, then revealed myself and walked boldly inside, pretending to be there for innocent reasons. As I was walking up the stairs to the second floor, where the Virtue stones are, out of the corner of my eye I noticed the cloaked man hurrying down the stairs into the room with the Christmas globes. Privately I smirked. He was trapped in there. There was no way out of that room except the stairs, or Recall.

But I knew that cornering the cloaked man wouldn't exactly be good for my health. Even knowing that, I was sorely tempted to do it anyway. I really wish I could just grab him and keep him from escaping so that we can finally get some answers out of him. But following him in here was already borderline on breaking my promise. I decided not to push it.

So, instead, I stood at the display case holding the moonstones and gazed down at them. "Good, they are still here," I spoke out loud for the cloaked man's benefit. "Stupid Blackthorn."

Then I turned and walked back out, and once I reached the first grove of trees I hid again and watched and waited.

The cloaked man finally came out and headed around the building toward the northwest. I Recalled to the Officer's Club, which is in that direction, but I didn't spot him again. I guess he left.

At any rate, I later told Andrella about all of this and took her to the Rares Museum to show her what had happened. As we were coming back out, we were surprised to see three Chaos guards walking toward us.

"Um..." I started.

The lead guard stopped a short distance from where we were standing. We were conveniently blocking the door into the museum, so he had to deal with us. "Okay, listen up," the guard spoke. "We are here for the Stones of Virtue by order of his highness."

"No," Andrella returned simply. "Be on your way."

"I am here on orders not to leave without the stones," the guard insisted.

Andrella pulled out her sword, and I followed up by taking out my bow. "Here are my orders," she responded.

The guard immediately gulped. "Er... Yes, that sword," he whispered to the other guards, apparently in response to some question he'd been asked earlier. Then they quickly retreated.

"It seems they really dislike your sword," I giggled at Andrella.

But it looks as though Blackthorn doesn't know how to take 'no' for an answer. So I'll be keeping my eye on the Virtue stones too...

---

[6/21/2003]

Andrella and I went to speak with the Magincia council today. It could have gone better.

On the good side, many of the members supported us. However, they said that, after Blackthorn had returned, they had held a vote on whether to follow Blackthorn as the king of Britannia. The vote had come out in favor of Blackthorn.

I couldn't believe it. What were these people thinking? This was the man whom Lord British banished while he was yet here, and now they want to bring him in as the king's replacement to rule Britannia?

Andrella and I were sure Blackthorn either bribed or threatened them--or both.

One man in particular, the merchant guildmaster, named Oakley, spoke up heatedly about how much better the land was under Blackthorn. Because of this, we decided we needed to investigate him, and see what he does in his off-duty time. I will ask Starfire later to keep an eye on him, as he lives in Minoc, and that is the town in which Starfire spends most of her time.

Unfortunately, Blackthorn just had to show up during the middle of the meeting. He immediately went into a snit, jailed all of the council members, and chewed us out. He didn't much like it that we called a council meeting without inviting him. Fortunately, he did let the council members out of jail after a few minutes, but the meeting had been disrupted.

So all we learned is that Blackthorn most likely has made most all of the council members scared silly of him, except perhaps for Oakley, who Blackthorn seems to have bribed. Wonderful.

---

[6/22/2003]

Last night, Starfire found Oakley in his home in Minoc after the whole council incident. She reported back to me today. Nothing much happened, but Oakley did speak quite a bit with Fangoli and, she told me, had received from Fangoli at least one glass sword. Glass swords! I haven't seen one of those since...well, since I was on my original Britannia. They aren't really all that critical, but I've always liked to carry a couple around for emergencies. I wonder where Fangoli found one? When Oakley asked him to get more, Fangoli replied blithely, "Ask Blackthorn." Hmm....

---

¹ In the Ultima games, the Orb is used by selecting a specific location on an invisible grid around the Avatar. The placement of the moongate is what determines where it leads. In those games, the Orb can only create gates to pre-determined locations.

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