Baldur's gate II_ throne of Bhaal - Drew Karpyshyn [27]
"Even if you speak the truth, there is no way into the town!" Jaheira said.
"That is not true, half-elf. My brother could walk through the front gates uninjured, if he chose. He could slaughter the entire army and save the town, if that was his wish."
"No," Jaheira spat. "More lies! We do not know the limits of Abdel's healing powers, and he will not risk his life against an entire army to test them."
"Besides, he isn't invulnerable. That lady with the arrows hurt him," Imoen said.
Abdel didn't say anything at first. He knew both Jaheira and Imoen had valid points, he knew what they said was true. But he also knew, deep down, that Sarevok was right. If he unleashed his full fury on the army gathered on the plains below, no one could stop him from entering the city gates. Any who tried would surely end up dead.
If the defenders inside the walls tried to keep him from entering, they would end up dead too, and if this Melissan refused to help him he would probably slay her, as well. He was the son of a god, a Child of Bhaal. If he wanted to, he could get inside the town. All he had to do was set the essence of his father loose and immerse himself in an orgy of bloody slaughter. But if he did that, Abdel knew, he would be lost. The part of him that was Abdel Adrian would be gone forever, swallowed by the ravaging beast that was the Lord of Murder reborn.
"If massacring an entire army is the only way in," the big sellsword said, "then I will have to learn to live without my answers."
The familiar shriek of Sarevok's armor as he shrugged set Abdel's teeth on edge, as it always did.
"I did not say that was the only way in," Sarevok answered. "I merely told you the solution that came most readily to my mind." There was a tinge of regret in his otherwise monotonal voice when he continued, "Perhaps such thoughts are why I was lost to the spirit of our unholy father while you have so far been able to resist his call, Abdel."
Imoen broke into the conversation, her high voice sounding surprisingly determined. "I think I can get us inside."
"How?" Abdel asked.
"I managed to come and go as I pleased when we were growing up at Candlekeep," she answered, laughing at the horrified disbelief registering on her half brother's face. "Every house, every castle, every keep, every walled town has a back way in, Abdel. A way in that nobody uses, a way most people don't even know about. It's just a matter of finding that back door."
"Forget it. It's too dangerous."
"If this Melissan has answers for you, Abdel, maybe she has some answers for me, too."
Abdel was momentarily taken aback by the anger in the young woman's words.
"You aren't the only one whose life has been ruined because of this damn Bhaal blood, you know. You aren't the only one struggling with this, looking for a way to deal with being the child of a god. I want to meet this woman, Abdel. And I'm willing to take more than a few risks along the way."
Abdel started to respond, but Jaheira held up her hand to silence him. "The girl is right, my love." The half-elf rested a slender hand on Abdel's muscular forearm and looked directly into his eyes. "The legacy of Bhaal is not my curse to bear, Abdel. Yet it is not yours alone, either. I have no right to challenge Imoen's decision, but neither do you. And she may succeed. Stealth is often a solution when force is not an option."
Before replying, Abdel let his eyes linger on the faces of his female companions. Jaheira's showed a familiar helpless frustration. The druid's desire to cleanse away the taint of her lover's tortured soul and her inability to do so were both evident in her beautiful features. In Imoen, Abdel saw something much different. Her face was young, but it was creased and worn by the burden of being the offspring of the Lord of Murder. Imoen's eyes reflected his own desire to be free of this cursed