Midnight ran her hands over her face and looked to the open doorway. The perfect sunlight from without had not changed since their arrival. "If we are to believe the men who greeted us at the dock, we'll be able to search in daylight. That, at least, will work against many of Bane's agents."
The barmaid brought the fighter's ale, and the heroes were silent until the pretty girl left them. As soon as she was out of earshot, though, Kelemvor pounded the table with his fist and hissed, "We can't go completely without sleep. Do you want to leave yourself open to attack because you're too tired to properly defend yourself? We need a better plan than just searching the city at random until we find the damned tablet."
"Then what do you suggest?" Midnight snapped, the weariness in her soul bleeding through to darken the tone of her words.
The fighter sighed and closed his eyes. "First, we should split up," Kelemvor said. "We can cover far more ground that way."
The mage shook her head. "We have only one object capable of locating the tablet. If I take the sphere, what can you two possibly hope to accomplish on your own?"
Kelemvor ignored the edge in Midnight's voice and tried to calm himself. "I tried to get Bane to tell me where the Tablet of Fate was hidden. He wouldn't tell me directly, but he did say something about 'having faith.' I didn't make anything of the remark at the time, but it could be an important clue."
A thought shot into Adon's mind, and the cleric smiled. "The temples," he said simply. "Bane could have been plating off the word 'faith.' Not unusual for a god these days." Adon ran his hand over his scar. "And Faulkner said there were a number of deserted temples in the city. The Tablet of Fate could be hidden in one of them."
"Well, that's a start anyway," Midnight told Adon, then turned to the fighter. "As to your other question, Kel, there's only one thing we can do with the Tablet of Fate when we find it. Elminster explained that there are Celestial Stairways — paths to the Planes — scattered throughout Faerun. Only gods or mages of Elminster's class can see them and touch them. A mortal can walk through one of the stairways and not even know it's there."
Midnight paused and considered her next statement carefully. "I've seen two Celestial Stairways, and I think we should bring the Tablet of Fate to one of these paths and give it to Helm. But first, one of us must gain an audience with Torm. He'll know where the closest stairway can be found." The mage paused again and put her hand on Adon's shoulder. "This should be your task. As an experienced cleric — "
Adon rose from the table, his chair falling away behind him. "I will not!" he shouted, and the few patrons in the taproom turned to stare at him. "I cannot speak with a god!"
A few murmurs ran through the room, and Midnight hardened her heart to the sight of the frightened, childlike cleric. "You must," the raven-haired mage said at last. "Kelemvor is needed to look for safe passage for us, so we can leave Tantras quickly — once we find the tablet."
The fighter took a swig of ale. "Aye," he grumbled. "We must assume the Celestial Stairway will be somewhere far from this city. If it's not, all well and good. But if it is, we must be prepared."
The cleric's hands were trembling, and his flesh had gone pale. When he saw the inn's patrons staring at him, though, Adon picked up his chair and seated himself at the table once more.
"I intend to return the Tablet of Fate to the Planes," Midnight said with a finality that frightened Kelemvor, though he couldn't tell why. "It's the only chance we have of ending the madness that has infected Faerun. As for our immediate plans, we should start the search immediately, and meet back here in two days."
"There's only one thing you're overlooking," Adon noted softly, his hands covering his face as he spoke in a low, trembling voice.
"What's that?" Midnight asked.
"There are two Tablets of Fate," Adon answered bitterly. "What happens when you stand before the God of Guardians with only one of them and he demands to know what you've done with the other one?"
"I'll tell him the truth," Midnight said flatly. "Helm has no reason to harm me."
Adon chuckled a strained, nervous laugh. "Strange," the scarred cleric commented. "I remember Mystra trying to do the same thing you propose… before Helm tore her, limb from limb, that is." Adon rose from the table and left his companions to ponder the observation alone in his room.
Eventually, though, Midnight and Kelemvor left the table to return to their rooms. The heroes had just reached the stairs, when a white-bearded minstrel carrying a harp entered the Lazy Moon and approached the bar.
"We do not perform charity work," the innkeeper growled with a voice that reeked of snobbery. "If free lodgings are what you seek, I would advise the local poorhouse."
The heroes turned away and walked up the stairs, and the minstrel watched them until they had moved from sight. Only then did the white-bearded man turn his attentions to the innkeeper.
"I have money, and I have very little patience," the minstrel snapped as he opened his hand and displayed a fistful of gold pieces.
"How long will you be staying?" the innkeeper asked politely, his back straightening, his tone instantly changing.
The minstrel frowned deeply. "I don't need lodgings. I need information. What can you tell me about the couple that just went upstairs?"
The innkeeper looked around to make sure that no one was listening. "That depends on what it's worth to you, "he whispered slyly.
"It's worth a great deal," the minstrel said as he shook his fistful of gold pieces and stared at the stairway, just where the heroes had stood. The smile faded from the minstrel's face. "More than you could ever imagine."
Fingers greedily kneading the air, the innkeeper grinned "I have a great imagination."
"Then tell me everything," the minstrel said quietly as he handed the gold to the innkeeper. "For there is little time, and I have much to learn…"
XII
Outside the Lazy Moon Inn, the heroes said their farewells. Midnight kissed Kelemvor for the fifth and final time then brushed the hair from his face. His strong, proud features were much more relaxed these days, now that the curse had been removed. Today, however, a shadow of worry and doubt had fallen upon him.
"Perhaps we should stay together after all," Kelemvor told the mage. "I don't like the idea of you risking your life — "
The mage placed her fingers to Kelemvor's lips then calmly noted, "We're all at risk. The best chance we have is to get what we came for and move on quickly. You know that we can cover more ground and accomplish our task faster this way."
The fighter covered the mage's hand with his own. "Aye," he grumbled, and kissed her fingers. "Be careful."
"You're telling me to take care?" Midnight asked sarcastically and patted the side of the fighter's face as she said goodbye to Adon and left the Lazy Moon Inn. She traveled south for two blocks until she came to a one-story, gray stone building with no visible windows. A sign had been placed above the ragged doorway, and it read, "The House of Meager Living."
The mage pushed at the partially open door, but it wouldn't open. At first she thought the door was simply stuck, then, through the door, she saw a man's arm fall to the floor. There was a soft moan from inside the building and Midnight pushed harder at the door. The sound of a body sliding across the floor accompanied her efforts. Once the door was open far enough, Midnight slipped inside the dark building.
The interior of the House of Meager Living was lit by a handful of small torches set in metal braces attached to the main support beams. A dozen metal beds bereft of any covering were scattered throughout the room, and well over seventy men, women, and children crowded the single room that took up most of the building's few hundred square feet. Volunteers moved among the poor, the homeless, and the sick, bringing food from an open kitchen at the rear.