Ulraunt led our party, Tethoril and an escort of Watchers to the meeting room in the back of the third floor.
"Hopefully they haven't already been killed in the time we took to gather the Watchers," I said aloud.
Ulraunt shot me another glare before knocking on the door. "Dear guests, this is Ulraunt, Keeper of Tomes and leader of Candlekeep. There is a security issue on the premises and we will require to check in on your well being. Also, there is someone here to see you on behalf of a Duke of Baldur's Gate."
We heard a voice beckoning Ulraunt to come in. Ulraunt opened the door and Tethoril held the door open for us, but there was limited space so the Watchers waited on the outside. I and Imoen set our backpacks aside on a cabinet nearby the table.
Inside, were four men. Rieltar was a senior looking mage in green robes, Brunos a warrior in chainmail, and two others, a warrior and a rogue, representing the Knights of the Shield.
Ulraunt expressed his relief to see their guests alive and well, explained the situation with the doppelgangers, and apologized to their honored guests.
The four men were shocked, of course. "Why have the doppelgangers been stationed here?" Bruno cried out in outrage.
Nearly let slip the doppelgangers work for the Iron Throne there, Brunos!
"Be quiet, Brunos. Not another word. Don't give the leaders of Candlekeep to get the wrong idea," Rieltar reprimanded him. He cast a suspicious glance at our group, looking past me entirely. "And who are these people here to see us?"
Up until now, some players may not have realised that Rieltar, the head of the Iron Throne, was not in fact the one who sent the assassins to hunt down the main character and was not the mysterious armored man with the horned helm and scary face plate full of sharp teeth. At this point, seeing that Rieltar was a mage, not a warrior, and that he didn't recognise the main character, that should have been a big clue he wasn't the mysterious armored man who had killed Gorion.
"I'm Sonny, and this is my party of mercenaries that has been investigating the Iron Crisis! Aren't you happy to see us alive and well!" I announced cheekily.
Rieltar and Brunos focused on me, their eyes wide.
"You?!? But you're so small!" Brunos exclaimed. "How can you be that halfling who Sarevok said was-"
"Who is here on the orders of the Dukes of Baldur's Gate!" Rieltar interrupted him while giving Brunos a withering glare. Back to me, he said, "Have you somehow convinced the Dukes you are not in fact working for the Zhentarim, hrm?"
I grinned at Rieltar. "Elminster has been seen speaking to me in public. Or didn't Sarevok tell you?" I said. "Pretty unlikely anyone would believe I'm a Zhentarim agent, wouldn't you say?"
Rieltar scowled, confusion etched across his face. "You... you are not Zhentarim? Then why on Toril are you so involved in... in the Iron Crisis?!?"
Rieltar couldn't very well ask why we were so involved with messing up the Iron Throne's plans.
"We'll get back to that in a while. Let's go over the current situation we have with the doppelgangers first, since that is more pertinent," I said. "Fact number 1: There are doppelgangers which have infiltrated Candlekeep. Just like the ones which infiltrated the Seven Suns, one of the competitors of the Iron Throne."
Rieltar's eyes narrowed. "Are you suggesting we had anything to do with the current doppelganger infiltration? Because I assure you we had no idea."
"Not at all, in fact. We don't actually think the doppelgangers are here for my party, in spite of the damage we have caused for the perpetrators of the Iron Crisis. So if they're not here for us, who are the doppelgangers here for? Before you answer that question, allow me to impart on you fact number 2: There's a monk name Koveras on the premises. He went missing when we caught wind of the doppelgangers and gathered Watchers to investigate, however. Who this Koveras person and what he has to do with the doppelgangers, well, that's something for you to figure out."
From his seething, I could see the implications were not lost on Rieltar. Brunos looked confused, so Rieltar whispered to him, "Koveras is Sarevok backwards."
Brunos's eyes widened in shock. He was about to blurt out something but Rieltar put a finger to his mouth.
But we weren't done. "Fact number 3. I was a nobody who lived in Candlekeep, until I fled Candlekeep with my foster father, Gorion. Gorion was killed by ambushers, including a mysterious warrior donning distinctive armor with large horns and sharp-teeth in the face plate and a female priest from Kara-tur. Tethoril and other people from Candlekeep can confirm many of the facts I've just laid out other than the presence of the armored man with the distinctive large horns and sharp teeth face plate ad his female companion. But I think you recognize who the armored man and his female priest or Kara-tur descent are, so my words must ring true to you."
Rieltar's face was now turning pale. "Sarevok. He and that woman, they started your involvement by attacking you and your foster father first?"
Ulraunt and Tethoril were watching our exchange in interest. So were the two representatives of the Knight of the Shield.
"Correct," I confirmed. "Thanks for confirming who the man in that distinctive armor is, by the way. We only had suspicions until now. So again, I ask you, who are the targets of the doppelgangers?"
Brunos was looking clueless, but Rieltar was deep in thought, grim.
"We are, of course. Sarevok, that upstart brat, wants my position. Probably bears a grudge," Rieltar said finally. "And since you are here, he would pin our deaths on your party if you can."
Ulraunt and Tethoril definitely took note of that.
"Correct again. So you do deserve to be the branch leader in Baldur's Gate," I said. "Thing is, we are working on the orders of Duke Eltan of the Flaming Fist to escort both of you to the Flaming Fist barracks for questioning. Thaldorn is already there, by the way. I imagine he has confessed the Iron Throne's responsibility for the Iron Crisis by now."
Rieltar's eyes widened. "Thaldorn! He- You- ...You cannot arrest me! Candlekeep is neutral territory. Baldur's Gate has no jurisdiction over Candlekeep! You're not even a Flaming Fist soldier!"
We looked to Ulraunt.
"That is true. Candlekeep is outside of Baldur's Gate. Violence amongst guests is strictly prohibited. That applies to both of you," Ulraunt confirmed. "As soon as any of you step outside however, our protection for you ends."
"At which point you are all murdered by doppelgangers. Alternatively there is nothing preventing my party from, how shall we say, accompanying you all until you leave Candlekeep. We are quite happy to escort you safely to Baldur's Gate. Take your pick, death by doppelgangers or interview by Duke Eltan," I said with a smile. I then looked at the two representatives of the Knights of the Shield. "You two are coming as well, by the way. Duke Eltan would be very interested in the contents of a meeting between the instigators of the Iron Crisis and the Knights of the Shield."
The two Knights of the Shield scowled at me. They reached for their weapons, but Rieltar held out his hand.
That wasn't a gesture for 'no'. That was a gesture for 'wait'. 'Not yet'.
Rieltar leaned back and snorted. "You seem to think quite highly of yourselves. You presume you can force us all four of us to comply, but this is a spurious assumption. Further, you think our arrest and confession will end the Iron Crisis? Even if we involved, and I am not admitting this is the case, you would be sorely mistaken."
My eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"
Rieltar eyed Ulraunt and Tethoril. "I'd like to propose a private deal, if you will. I must ask my hosts to exit the room. If we are able to come to an understanding, we should be able to avoid any violence on Candlekeep's sacred grounds."
What? This never happened in the game! But then again, Rieltar and company were not warned in the original game that death awaited them at the hands of doppelgangers commanded by Sarevok.
"Would a mutual understanding be possible, at this point?" Ulraunt asked me, pointedly.
"It may be worth a try," I said.
Ulraunt and Tethoril left the room, giving us privacy to negotiate terms.
Did they really want to broker a deal, or something else? At this point, probably both, depending on how our discussion goes.