“He’s right, Janik,” Auftane said, shrugging his shoulders.
Janik ran his fingers through his hair and stared at the door in silence for a moment. Finally, he sighed and shook his head. “Auftane, why don’t you take a look at Krael’s manacles. I want an assessment first, before you open them. Mathas, can you help him?”
“I’ll try.”
Auftane and Mathas huddled together behind Krael, examining the strange blue metal bonds as Sever watched over their shoulders. Janik stepped over to Dania, who had her head cocked as if she were listening to something outside the room.
“What is it?” he asked.
“Nothing,” she said. “What are you thinking?”
Janik took her arm and drew her a few steps away from the others—as far as the tiny cell would allow. “What if Krael is our only way out of here?” he whispered to her.
Dania pursed her lips and crossed her arms. “There has to be another way,” she said.
“We’d all like there to be another way, but no law of the universe says a means of escape must exist, let alone a second choice. What if he’s the only way?”
“Do you think there’s the slimmest chance we can trust him?” Dania said. “The instant he gets those manacles off, what’s to stop him from turning to mist, slipping under the door, and leaving us here to rot?”
“I can’t think of anything,” Janik said, frowning.
“Janik?” Auftane called, standing up behind Krael.
“Yes?”
Staying behind Krael and out of his line of sight, Auftane pointed at the manacles and bobbed his head, an exaggerated expression of confidence on his face. Janik nodded his understanding and turned to Dania.
He lowered his voice further. “Assuming we can extract a convincing oath from Krael that he’ll help us if we help him, are you willing to go along with that?”
“Are you asking me whether I can accept the lesser evil of helping him get free for the sake of the greater good of defeating Maija?”
“I guess so, yes.”
Dania sighed. “I have to bring him to reckoning for the evil he’s done, Janik. I have to. But if that happens after we’ve freed Maija from this Fleshrender’s grip, I can live with that.”
“Thank you,” Janik said, clasping Dania’s shoulder before turning to the vampire. “Krael?”
“Have you reached a verdict?” Krael said. “Decided my fate?”
“Your fate’s up to you, Krael,” Janik said, “though Dania assures me that she has a particular vision of it in mind. But in the short term, let’s discuss what we can do for each other.”
“A good idea,” Krael said, eyeing Dania.
“Auftane here is confident that he can release you from these manacles. He’s no doubt motivated by the opportunity to study them in more detail.”
“I’m pleased to hear that.”
“So we can set you free, and we ask for our freedom in exchange. We get you out of the manacles, you go under the door and open it from the other side. At that point, we’re even.”
“That sounds fair,” Krael said.
“However,” Janik continued, “once we’re all out that door, I don’t think we’re done with each other, as much as we all might like to be. We have a goal in common, to extract our revenge from the Fleshrender. I’m not at all confident that we’ll go about that in the same way.”
“Whatever do you mean?” Krael asked.
“I mean that while Dania might be able to force the spirit out of Maija’s body, I suspect you’re more likely to force the spirit out by killing Maija. That’s not an acceptable approach.”
“Hmm,” Krael said, a faint smile on his thin lips. “Perhaps it would be best to split up once we get out this door, and see who gets to Maija first.”
“And let you tear her apart if you reach her first?” Janik said. “No.”
“Besides,” Dania added, “the two of you can’t hope to face her alone. It seems that the six of us working together would have the best chances of reaching her, fighting through all the zakyas, and—” she caught herself.
“Killing her?” Krael said.
“And accomplishing our goal,” Dania said, turning away from the leering vampire.
Janik crouched in front of Krael again, looking him right in the eyes. “I want to trust you, Krael, and I’d rather work with you than against you on this. Can you give me any assurance that you’re not going to stab us in the back if we help you?”
“Long term? No,” Krael replied. “Short term, though, it’s just not in my interest. Leave you in here and try to face Maija and the Fleshrender alone, without even Sever beside me? That would be suicide—and believe me, I have little doubt that the Fleshrender would find some way to make sure I stay dead. You can always count on me to look out for myself, Janik. You know that.”
Janik stared into Krael’s red eyes a moment longer.
“Besides,” Krael added, “if I had wanted to betray you, I would have taken this opportunity to dominate your mind, forcing you to release me without anything in exchange.”
Even as he spoke, Janik felt the vampire’s presence probing at the edges of his mind, but Krael made no assault, no effort to take control.
Janik tore his gaze off Krael and stood. “It looks like we’re in this together.”
“For now,” Krael said.
Janik glanced at Dania, but she was distracted again. “Auftane, work your magic.”
Auftane kneeled behind the vampire and spent several moments in intense concentration. As far as Janik could see, no actual magic was needed—the dwarf had produced a set of lockpicks and was working them in a small keyhole set into one of the manacles. He chanted quietly as he worked, and Janik wondered if he was just improving his own concentration, manipulating the flow of magic in the manacles, or just singing to himself.
“There!” Auftane announced, and Krael stretched his arms up triumphantly.
“Auftane Khunnam,” the vampire said, getting to his feet, “I am indebted to you. Those were painful and damned inconvenient.”
“I look forward to giving them further study,” the artificer said.
“And now for my part of the bargain,” Krael said. Even as he finished his sentence, his body dissolved into a cloud of billowing vapors. For a moment, the mist was still recognizable as Krael, but then it lost all form and drifted to the door. It churned slightly as it seeped through the tiny crack under the door—and in a moment, it was gone.
The room fell silent.
Janik faced the door, his eyes unfocused but his ears straining for any hint of what was happening behind it. He listened for the sound of a bar being lifted or the lock opening. Beside him, he was aware of Dania rocking on the balls of her feet and flexing her fingers.
No sound penetrated the iron door. Janik heard Mathas grunt softly as he got to his feet, and Auftane made some clanking sounds, fidgeting with the manacles he’d taken off Krael. Dania let out a long, slow breath. Janik closed his eyes, every sound around him becoming an entity in a field of darkness. He could hear each of the others breathing—Dania slow and disciplined beside him, Mathas heavy and a little labored, Auftane uneven. No sound came from the warforged, or from the door before him.
A knot of worry formed in Janik’s chest, clenching his heart. Had Krael betrayed them again, leaving them here while he made his escape? Or just as bad, perhaps he had encountered zakya guards outside the cell that had overpowered him, the iron door blocking any sound of the struggle.
He opened his eyes and glanced at Dania beside him. She caught the movement of his head out of the corner of her eye and turned to meet his gaze. She shook her head slowly, then closed her eyes again.
She’s right, Janik thought. And she was right all along—we shouldn’t have trusted Krael.
“Well,” he whispered at last, “really, we’re no worse off than we were.”
“Except that our one hope is gone,” Dania said.
Janik was about to reply when a terrible clatter shattered the quiet of the room—a metallic clanging against the door. That was followed by the distinct sound of a bar being lifted off the door, then a key turning in the lock.