Baldur's gate II_ throne of Bhaal - Drew Karpyshyn [97]
He opened his eyes, expecting to see Jaheira. Instead, he found himself staring up into the tattooed face of the black-skinned Balthazar.
Before he could react, the monk jabbed the fingers of his right hand into the side of Abdel's neck, just below the line of his jaw. Balthazar's left hand had a firm grip on the other side of Abdel's jaw, almost as if the monk was about to twist his head clean off his spine.
"If you move, Abdel, I will be forced to kill you."
Abdel knew this was no idle threat. He was unfamiliar with the particular nuances of the maneuver Balthazar seemed poised to unleash, but Abdel had no doubt it would be instantly fatal.
"Why not just kill me now and end this?" he asked. Even the slight movement caused by speaking sent jolts of pain through Abdel's neck and skull. Balthazar must have sensed the sellsword's discomfort because he loosened his grip ever so slightly.
"I must speak with you, Abdel," Balthazar said, still cradling the sellsword's head in his lap even as his hands maintained a firm and ominous pressure. "I must know if you see a gate or a door in this room."
Realizing he was at the mercy of his foe, Abdel could do little but answer honestly. Though he was unable to turn his head, Abdel cast his eyes around the circular first floor of the tower. The entrance to the building was still sealed, the only exit was the stairway to the second floor.
"I see no gate. I see no door."
"It is as I feared," the monk muttered, "I have waited too long. The messenger's power has waned, and the path is no longer open."
Balthazar sighed, a sound of despondent resignation. Almost as an afterthought he asked, "Have you ever visited the plane of our father?"
Still uncertain what the monk was insinuating, Abdel could see no reason to lie. "I have seen Bhaal's Abyssal realm."
The pressure on his neck increased momentarily, causing Abdel to wince in pain.
"How?" the monk demanded, his voice unable to mask his excitement. "How do you enter this realm?"
Abdel hesitated before answering. If Balthazar knew the secret to reaching Bhaal's world, he might very well end Abdel's life in an effort to open the passage. However, if Abdel didn't answer, Balthazar would kill him for sure. And in the end it didn't matter. Even if he could somehow break free from his current compromising position, Abdel realized he would never be able to avenge Jaheira's death. Balthazar was too great an opponent. Abdel could never defeat the tattooed warrior.
"I cannot control it," the big sellsword said carefully, resigned to his inevitable fate. "It has happened whenever I have killed one of the Five. As they die, I suddenly find myself in the plane once ruled by Bhaal."
"Of course," Balthazar whispered. "The essence of Bhaal would return to its planar home. If the essence was great, as it was in each of the Five, your own essence would be drawn with it."
The monk's hands suddenly shifted, and Abdel braced himself for his own death. But instead of wrenching his neck, the monk's hands released their grip. Abdel felt something cold and hard slap into the palm of his right hand. He glanced down and saw he was holding Sendai's dagger. Instinctively his fingers wrapped around the grip.
"You must kill me, Abdel," Balthazar demanded. "Kill me and enter our father's world."
Abdel hesitated, unsure if this was some type of trick or test.
"Why?"
"Melissan has entered the Abyssal plane," the monk explained hastily. "She seeks to become the new Lord of Murder. You must enter the plane and pass through the final door to stop her."
Still on his back with his head on Balthazar's lap, Abdel pressed the point of Sendai's blade against the monk's throat. He didn't know if Balthazar was telling him the truth about Melissan, but he couldn't see any reason for the monk to lie. Abdel finally had his chance to avenge Jaheira. But for some reason, his hand still refused to draw the rune-covered edge across Balthazar's