One benefit of the caravan was that Tobias was able to buy new clothes for Shoshanna and Tellus. In Tellus' case, she would not be able to wear the new clothes until her chains were removed, but when the time came, Tobias wanted her to have something more robust than the flimsy Grecian tunic Delilah prepared for her. Shoshanna got a simple gown and cloak and a sash she fashioned into a headband with the tails serving to conceal her ears.

The next morning they set out on the less traveled road to the home of the Sons of the Mountain. In ages past, there had been some trade between the people of Utica and the Sons of the Mountain. At very least, that trade stopped during the reign of the Mad King if not sooner, but apparently there was still some contact or else these chains on Tellus would not have been forged. Who was the one who commissioned them, Tobias wondered. Could Lord Bannon himself have done it? It seemed unthinkable that the Minister of War himself would seek out a supposed enemy of their people for something like this.

Shoshanna reached past Tobias and rested her hand on Tellus' collar.

They did not talk for a while after that. Tobias was left to his thoughts, which meant that Shoshanna was left to his thoughts as well. Occasionally she would squeeze his arm in a silent plea for him to distract himself and grant her a little relief.

After passing through the foothills, they entered the Barklai Mountains proper. The mountain road was not too steep, but it was slower going all the same. About halfway up the third peak was the entrance to the underground city of the Sons of the Mountain. It was a giant gate carved into the living rock of the cliff face, adorned with figures of great serpents coiled around the pillars, goats and other, more fantastic creatures. Interestingly enough, there were no depictions of the Sons of the Mountain themselves. Tobias had never seen one himself, so he did not know what to expect. He had heard various stories, that their skin was like stone or their bodies were covered in thick hair and that their noses were nearly as big as their heads. He had no idea how much of the stories if any of it was true.

Entering the gate, he saw that the walls inside the cavern were just as elaborately carved as the gate. The light of the sun would not extend far into the cavern, though, and realizing this, Tobias dismounted to light a torch, then led his horse forward. He thought the horse would be less likely to become skittish if he was seen venturing ahead first. Also, he would be able to react easier to any danger that might appear than if he continued to ride between Tellus and Shoshanna.

Fortunately, the way was broad and level and it was not long before they reached the inner gate. The inner gate was not quite so large as the outer gate, but it nevertheless rivaled the main gate of the Queen's palace. Unlike the darkened way to the gate, the inner gate itself was illumined by six large sconces and there were smaller sconces on the doors to the guardhouses on either side of the gate. The doors of the guardhouses appeared to be stone discs that were rolled into place and when they opened, Tobias got his first sight of the Sons of the Mountain.

The Sons of the Mountain were a short people, not even reaching Tobias' chest, very nearly as wide as they were tall. The trunks of their bodies were like barrels, their limbs short and thick with wide hands and feet. Whether their bodies were covered in hair or not he could not say, but they all sported bushy beards that went down to their waists. Though partially concealed by their helms, their faces had broad, blunt features and although their noses were prominent, the stories of them being as big as the Sons of the Mountain's heads were a gross exaggeration.

The four guards who emerged from the guardhouses leveled their fearsome-looking polearms at Tobias and barked at him in their rude, guttural tongue.

Tobias held up his hands to show that he was not a threat and though he did not expect it to do him much good, he said, "I have business with the master smith Barthak."

One of the guards snapped back something that certainly did not sound pleasant, but then his body froze. After standing there tensely for a moment, his arms slackened and he lowered his polearm.

The other guards also lowered their polearms. Tobias turned to see Shoshanna with her hand outstretched, quaking from the exertion. The other three guards groggily returned to the guardhouses while the one remaining motioned inside the gate.

Puppeteered by Shoshanna's powers, the guard led them into the city. The main thoroughfare led into a central plaza and there were two spiral roads that wound up as far as Tobias could see. Besides what appeared to be chambers carved into the walls, there were tunnels leading deeper into the mountain. This city surely must have rivaled the Old Capital in all its glory. How many hundreds of years must it have taken to carve such a city out of the heart of the mountain?

Luckily for them, a smith of Barthak's renown was not secreted away in the darkest depths but rather was found a few levels up in the main chamber. Tobias was quite familiar with the sounds and smells of a smithy, so he knew they had arrived with the guard stopped at the door.

The guard then turned and went back the way he came. Once he had gone some distance, Shoshanna released her hold on him and very nearly fell out of the saddle. Tobias narrowly caught her in time.

Panting as if she had just run a race, Shoshanna said, "Yes... I will be fine... Just... just give me a moment..."

Tobias set her on her feet and she leaned against the wall to prop herself up while she recovered. Tobias then picked up Tellus and set her down. Seeing no better alternative for a hitching post, he tied the reins of his horse to one of the horns of a carving of a goat's head emerging from the wall.

Shoshanna still looked rather worn from her earlier effort, but she straightened herself up and stood behind him. They then went inside. From the vestibule, there were doors to three inner chambers. From the light, you could tell the one in the center was the forge.

They went into the workshop, where some ten or so Sons of the Mountain were busy at work with various tasks of delicate craftsmanship. Before Tobias could ask which one was supposed to be Barthak, the one in the center of the workshop took notice of them, picked up a hammer and banged it on his workbench.

A Son of the Mountain who was cutting a large gemstone fumbled his stroke, splitting the gem in two. He cursed furiously, throwing his hammer and chisel at the wall. He shouted at the one in the center, who was impassively sitting there, completely unmoved by his fellow's fulminations. He said a single word, making the angry gemcutter go silent. He said something more, prompting the gemcutter to ball up his fists and shake in barely contained fury. Tobias was afraid a fight was going to break out, but instead the gemcutter stormed out of the workshop without another word, but not before shooting Tobias an evil look as he passed by. The others quietly filed out after him.

Speaking in the common tongue of Hannibal, the remaining Son of the Mountain—who had to be Barthak—said, "You made me expel a damn fine gemcutter, human. I certainly hope this is worth it."

Tobias set Tellus in front of him and removed her cloak so Barthak could see her chains.

Barthak stroked his beard, saying, "Yes. And?"

Tobias knew better than to try to appeal to the master smith's sense of compassion, so he simply pulled out the necklace given to him by Jiria and set it down on Barthak's workbench. Barthak picked up the gem, then took the lantern sitting next to him to inspect it closer. Knitting his thick eyebrows, he glanced up to Tobias and asked him, "Do you know what this is, boy?"

Using some fine tools, Barthak pried the gemstone out of its silver settings, then held it up to appreciate it.

He placed the gem on the workbench.

With sudden violence, Barthak took his hammer and smashed the gem to powder. Tobias could only stand there numbly, disbelieving what he had just seen.

Barthak did not answer him. He swept the powder into the palm of his hand, then held it up to his nose and snuffed it up in a single, sharp breath. Almost as soon as he did so, his body convulsed and his head lolled back. He stared glassily at the ceiling with his mouth hanging slack.

Bewildered, Tobias looked to Shoshanna as if she would know what was going on.

Indeed, after a few moments, Barthak appeared to return to his senses, righting himself in his seat. He sniffed a little, then shook his head.

Hesitantly, Tobias said, "Master Barthak...?"

Barthak still seemed a little dazed as he looked to Tobias.

Tobias set his hands on Tellus' shoulders and said, "The chains."

Barthak looked at Shoshanna, then said, "How about that one?"

Barthak sniffed.

Barthak scowled.

Before he could name another price, though, Shoshanna stepped forward and said, "I'll do it."

Tobias took her by the arm and said, "Shoshanna, no."

Tobias felt his jaw tighten. Shoshanna put her hand on his and said, "Trust me."

Tobias felt something come over him. He realized it was Shoshanna using her powers on him, but there was nothing he could do about it. He could not tell her no, but he refused to say yes, so the only thing he was left with was to say nothing.

Tilting her head, Shoshanna asked him, "Will you be requiring your payment before, or after?"

Shoshanna bowed her head and said, "I am grateful to you."

Barthak grinned.

He then got up from his seat and went over to a heavy iron chest. Taking out a keyring from under his tunic, he unlocked the chest and rummaged around until he pulled out a small box. After unlocking that box, he pulled out a silver key. He then beckoned, saying, "Bring the girl here."

Tobias guided Tellus over to Barthak, keeping his hands on her shoulders to reassure her. Barthak took a knife from his belt and ran his thumb along the edge. He smeared the silver key with his blood, then inserted it into the lock on the collar while chanting under his breath. He then turned the key and the lock clicked and opened. He repeated the process for Tellus' manacles and at last she was free of the chains. The moment the second manacle was unlocked, there was something like a wave of power the shook Tobias to his core, but it had an even more profound effect on Barthak, who went down on one knee after the wave hit, and Shoshanna, who stumbled over to the nearest workbench to support herself before her legs gave out on her.

As Barthak recovered, he looked at Tobias and said, "Dangerous toy you got there, boy."

He stood up, then locked away the key once more. After he locked the iron chest and tucked away his keyring, he licked his hand and smoothed out his beard, then he went to a crate to pull out a few bottles. As he walked by, he handed one of the bottles to Tobias, saying, "Make yourself comfortable, boy. We're gonna be a while."

Tobias could feel Shoshanna's powers working on him to prevent him from objecting, making him accept the proffered bottle and stand there as Barthak led her into another a room. Only when Shoshanna was out of sight was he released from her grip. Part of him wanted to run after her to stop her from sacrificing her honor, but he knew she had resolved herself and if he tried to interfere, she would only repel him.

Tellus, who was rubbing her neck, looked up to Tobias.

He sat down at one of the workbenches and Tellus sat down beside him, wrapping her arm around his and leaning into his side as he morosely stared at the bottle he was given. Thinking whatever was in the bottle might blunt his feeling of guilt, he uncorked it and took a swig. No sooner had the contents touched his tongue than he spat it out, startling Tellus. There were no words to describe how singularly awful it tasted. Perhaps it would serve for penance, like the Yeshuim who would whip themselves to atone for their sins.

Tobias looked up and, much to his surprise, it was Shoshanna.

She took the bottle from Tobias' hand and threw her head back as she took a long pull at the bottle. Like Tobias, she immediately spat it back out.

Standing up, Tobias said, "Let's get going before you are wrong about anything else."

And so they made their retreat from the underground city. It was not quite like thieves in the night, but they did not tarry either. They had received all the hospitality of the Sons of the Mountain they cared to see.