@0    = ~Thou hast been silent of late. I know that Gorion's letter placed a great weight upon thy shoulders, but 'tis no reason to avoid thy friends.~ [DYROM2]
@1    = ~*My friends* I do not avoid.~
@2    = ~I am sorry, Dynaheir, I am simply in no mood to talk. To anyone, not even you.~
@3    = ~You knew about Bhaal being my sire, didn't you? All those hints, those strange glances. There is only one explanation - you knew!~
@4    = ~Friends? Do I still have friends? Can I ever have friends, being what I am?~
@5    = ~There are quite a few things I have to consider now that I have discovered the truth about my heritage, Dynaheir. But if you wish to talk... perhaps you can tell me if you knew who I was before I received Gorion's letter?~
@6    = ~So 'tis just my love thou refusest?~
@7    = ~LOVE? Dynaheir, how can you claim to love me? After what you have done...~
@8    = ~Don't you think you deserve my coldness? You knew about Bhaal being my sire, didn't you? All those hints, those strange glances. There is only one explanation - you knew!~
@9    = ~I thought thou wert a man grown, not a boy prone to sulks.~
@10   = ~Your prodding will get you nowhere, witch. I will not talk to you again.~
@11   = ~You want me to talk? Very well then, but you will not like what I have to say.~
@12   = ~Oh, Nine Hells! I *tried* to contain myself, but if you insist! You knew about Bhaal being my sire, didn't you? All those hints, those strange glances. There is only one explanation - you knew!~
@13   = ~Think what you may, I do not wish to discuss it.~
@14   = ~Not knowledge, but suspicion. Perhaps, if thou wilt let me explain?...~
@15   = ~I do not want your lies. If you want to help me, fight for me.~
@16   = ~I am listening.~
@17   = ~Dynaheir, I do not need an explanation. You concealed the truth from me without intention to harm me. Just like Gorion. I wish that both of you would have trusted me, as well as loved me, but-~
@18   = ~You had best do so, for I begin to suspect a conspiracy. My destiny was all but stolen from me by my tight-lipped 'allies'.~
@19   = ~If you wish, but truly, this changes nothing. We all must battle our demons to stay on the right path. *sigh* Mine would just seem to have sharper talons than most, but I felt it *before* I was sure. If you know what I mean.~
@20   = ~Yes, thou have, and thou canst.~
@21   = ~I would know what ills I have done to thee.~
@22   = ~Do try though.~
@23   = ~I have concluded that you knew all about Bhaal being my sire, Dynaheir.~
@24   = ~I think that the feelings you profess to have for me are insincere, Dynaheir. You knew from the start that I was a spawn of Bhaal and tried to win my confidence because of this fact.~
@25   = ~Such resolve. Such coolness. Yes, it fits impeccably into the small puzzle you have presented me with. I solved it. All these hints, all these strange glances... there is only one explanation - you knew me for what I was, and played me for a fool.~
@26   = ~Thou art a fool indeed if thou thinkest that foreknowledge will permit a man to avoid his destiny. And thou'rt twice the fool if thou wishest, like Sarevok, to claim thy sire's inheritance.~
@27   = ~Thou felt it? Then perhaps thou knew more than me, <CHARNAME>.~
@28   = ~I have indeed known, for a long time, that there might be a son of Bhaal. Whilst visiting Saerloon in Sembia on my dajemma, I studied with a learned man. He was a priest of Mystra and a librarian in Her temple. I had the benefit of listening to his debates, and once, a dispute touched a rather frivolous topic of "god-children". At the time, 'twas an almost comic notion, for after the Time of Troubles many an unwed mother claimed her offspring to be god's blood.~
@29   = ~He told us how such a lie may ruin a young life. He had heard a boy once, he said, lay claim to divine blood. Peculiarly, it happened years before the Godswar.~
@30   = ~I was interested enough to speak to my mentor in private, and he told me of the boy. He was a wild and unsettled child called Sarevok, taller and stronger than some, but not remarkable otherwise. His madness was surely due to the fact that his mother was found murdered a few days before. Perhaps the woman was unstable herself. It was she who had picked a cruel deity for her son's father: Bhaal. Or perhaps the boy did in distress over his mother's violent death.~
@31   = ~Intrigued, I studied every scroll mentioning Bhaal and came across Alaundo's Portents. Indeed 'twas prophesied that Bhaal would send forth mortal spawn. And then I asked myself, if I were a deity who had foreseen my own death, would I produce my heirs in the year of troubles? Or would I seed them throughout the ages? The dozing seeds, which I could call forth from beyond death.~
@32   = ~I wished to find this Sarevok, who must, by that time, be a man grown. However, he was gone from Sembia, and I was commanded to return to Rashemen. ‘Twas not till last season that I received permission to come to the Western lands to seek his trail.~
@33   = ~In Saerloon, my old tutor told me that Sarevok had done well for himself and was now a merchant in Baldur's Gate, dealing with Sembia on behalf of his father, Rieltar Anchev. I gathered what information I could, but it was not enough.~
@34   = ~Before confronting the man with such an accusation, I determined to find more of Alaundo's prophecy and to see any writing that pertained to Bhaalspawn. Therefore, I started out from Saerloon to go to Candlekeep, where his lore is preserved. Yet things did not go as I planned, and I met thee. The description that thou gave'st of thine assailant made me suspect that 'twas Sarevok himself who came for thee. Added to the unusual circumstances of thy birth and upbringing and the strength of thy character, it made me suspect that thou, also, might be a Bhaalspawn.~
@35   = ~I had read so much, thought so much, of Bhaalspawn in the past six years. I had waited to meet one. I was intrigued when I thought I recognized the divine essence in thee. The more I knew thee, the more I became convinced that my earlier reasoning was true, and the darkness itself might be turned to the light's work by one like thee. I was not unlike Gorion in thinking so.~
@36   = ~So, you wanted to use me, while keeping me ignorant, just like Gorion did. Harper's causes, general goodness... it makes no difference.~
@37   = ~I wish that both of you would have trusted me, as well as loved me, but-~
@38   = ~The passion in your voice is unmistakable. But it is not passion for a man. It is passion for your work, your theories... You love me no more than a warrior loves his sword, or a mage loves his scroll case. You love me like a paladin loves his cause, not people whose lives he saves.~
@39   = ~So if you had managed to reach Sarevok first, you'd have bedded him? He is grander than I.~
@40   = ~You thought of me before we met? *You smile.* I wonder what you imagined, sitting alone in your small chambers over open tomes, in the flickering candlelight.~
@41   = ~The question is... do you still love that creature of your imagination, or do you love me?~
@42   = ~At least I know now why you came to the Sword Coast: to find Sarevok. Perhaps it is good that you ran into me rather than Sarevok. He sounds like a very dangerous man.~
@43   = ~I cannot speak for Gorion, but 'tis love that made me cautious. I wanted to be sure that thou wert a son of Bhaal, before I spoke. Such a revelation might have broken a lesser man. I thought much of it even before I met thee.~
@44   = ~Now there is proof beyond doubt, Gorion's own account and passion in your voice is unmistakable. But it is not passion for a man. It is passion for your work, your theories... You love me no more than a warrior loves his sword or a mage loves his scroll case. You love me like a paladin loves his cause, not people whose lives he saves.~
@45   = ~You thought of me before we met? *You smile.* I wonder what you imagined, sitting alone in your small chambers over  open tomes, in the flickering candlelight.~
@46   = ~Let the sleeping dog lie, Dynaheir. My love for you is not broken by this little setback.~
@47   = ~Prove that you love me and trust me, Dynaheir. *You grab Dynaheir's arm and look at her steadily.* Come to my bedroll tonight.~
@48   = ~What's done cannot be undone. We shall see in the end if Gorion and you both erred or were right.~
@49   = ~*She pales.* I guess one can hardly blame thee in seeing plots where there is none. I will leave thee to mull over it so that thou dost not blame me for manipulating thee in forming thy conclusion.~
@50   = ~Do not stalk away in anger, Dynaheir. I... I was paranoid and unjust.~
@51   = ~*You say nothing, enough hot words have been exchanged between you already.*~
@52   = ~Do not hope that I will change my opinion overnight!~
@53   = ~Bad and unworthy is a paladin who loves not the people he saves; only a poor mage or fighter loveth the tools more than the Art he practices.~
@54   = ~If thou so desire truth then here it is, the whole of it. I love thee, <CHARNAME> not for, but in spite of what thou art. I will leave thee to mull over it, so that thou dost not blame me for manipulating thee in drawing thy conclusions.~
@55   = ~*You say nothing, for enough hot words have been exchanged between the two of you already.*~
@56   = ~*She slaps your face and stalks away.*~
@57   = ~May I keep my old dreams private, <CHARNAME>? *She kisses you gently.* Because they were just that, dreams, and thou art real.~
@58   = ~Sometimes 'tis easy to love someone whom thou knoweth well, and sometimes 'tis not easy. But 'tis always impossible to love the one whom thou dost not know, <CHARNAME>.~
@59   = ~And what would that prove? If thou allow the wolves of doubt to gnaw at thy heart, thou shalt say: Dynaheir still loves me not. She has but dishonored herself further.~
@60   = ~I will do as I said. I will leave thee to decide these things when thy head cools.~
@61   = ~In the morn only the weaver knowest what pattern all shall see in the even.~
@62   = ~Quite true... In the morn only the weaver knowest what pattern all shall see in the even.~
@63   = ~Thy face has a noble cast to it, <CHARNAME>. 'Tis not Bhaal's.~ [DYROM2]
@64   = ~Now, that makes me feel so *much* better! At least no elderly dame who knew my father will stop me in the streets squawking: “O, my little dear! You look exactly like your father did at this age!"~
@65   = ~And what did you expect my face to look like? A skull in a wreath of bloody tears?~
@66   = ~I suppose I took after my mother.~
@67   = ~Do you think I took entirely after my mother? That she was half-elven herself? That the human in my heritage is not Bhaal?~
@68   = ~Gorion mentioned that my mother was his lover. I suppose that reduces chances of her being a full-blooded orc. Perhaps, the human in my heritage is not Bhaal, after all.~
@69   = ~Superficially, there is naught of Bhaal in me. I wish I could say the same about my soul.~
@70   = ~A pity. It would have helped my cause, had I my sire's looks.~
@71   = ~*Dynaheir cringes.* Thy sire being who he was, 'tis not a likely event.~
@72   = ~Superficially, there is naught of Bhaal in me. I wish I could say the same about my spirit.~
@73   = ~*You shrug.* I suppose. An old crone like this could have helped my cause, if I had my sire's looks.~
@74   = ~Nothing quite so... spectacular, <CHARNAME>.~
@75   = ~Superficially, there is naught of Bhaal in me. I wish I could say the same about my soul.~
@76   = ~A pity. It could have helped my cause.~
@77   = ~'Tis known that Qilue Veladorn, the seventh of the Seven Sisters, inherited her appearance from her mortal mother, not Mystra, being born a drow. So when thou lookest in the mirror, 'tis thy mortal ancestors' features that thou see'st.~
@78   = ~I know then how my mother looked. What I wonder about is why she had me, and what kind of person she was.~
@79   = ~So there is no easy way to detect Bhaalspawn? Anyone... anyone at all could be my sibling? Dwarf, or orc, or drow, or elf?~
@80   = ~Right. That is why there is no resemblance between me and Sarevok.~
@81   = ~Qilue Veladorn? That is the first time I have heard that name.~
@82   = ~Indeed, that is what I think. 'Tis known that Qilue Veladorn, the seventh of the Seven Sisters, inherited her appearance from her mortal mother, not Mystra, being born a drow. So when thou lookest in the mirror, 'tis thy mortal ancestors' features that thou see'st.~
@83   = ~'Tis a sign of a noble man to look past appearances. Take heart, <CHARNAME>, in the fact that thy mother had a loyal companion.~
@84   = ~And, to answer thy question, I think that when thou lookest in the mirror 'tis thy mortal ancestors' features that thou see'st. 'Tis known that Qilue Veladorn, the seventh of the Seven Sisters, inherited her appearance from her mortal mother, not Mystra, being born a drow.~
@85   = ~'Tis not easy to fight a god, even a dead god, but it can be done. Thy mother would not have carried thee, Gorion would not have raised thee as his own, if they did not believe in thy victory.~
@86   = ~*You shake your head* Who knows what they truly wanted, Dynaheir. To tell you the truth, I do not believe what Gorion's letter says. Gorion is an old man, Dynaheir... for a human. But I am *older* still; I must be at least over one hundred and ten or twenty now - from the way I look. Gorion could not have courted my mother before my birth. And if he did it after I was born - that means she did not die in childbirth, and that something was done to my memory; I should have remembered her if they met fifty or so years ago, when Gorion entered the prime of his life. It just does not add up!~
@87   = ~Of course. I must keep faith in their goodness, so that Bhaal cannot divert me into darkness.~
@88   = ~And thy cause would be?~
@89   = ~I do not know yet, having just uncovered who I truly am. But something grand.~
@90   = ~To inherit my sire's place. To do otherwise would be a waste of divine essence, and quite stupid besides.~
@91   = ~To plant pansies all over the Spine of the World - original, pleasing to the eye and showing true humility, while demonstrating that my powers have no limits.~
@92   = ~The crones, who'd swear that thou art a spitting image of anyone or that they had seen thee in their visions could be procured for thee, but I hope that thou art above such foolery and disgrace. Or am I mistaken, and thou hast changed so swiftly?~
@93   = ~What is thy cause, <CHARNAME>?~
@94   = ~Hmm... you think we can find the crones? Do you? Dynaheir? Where are you going?~
@95   = ~Thy voice indicates doubt. Dost thou suspect thy mother of wrongdoing?~
@96   = ~What good person would birth a child of the Lord of Murder? *You shiver.* Only one who'd want to use the monster to some righteous cause. And Gorion being a Harper - Dynaheir, I cannot help but think that I was coached to become some sort of weapon. A Harper's blade against other Bhaalspawn, perhaps?~
@97   = ~No. I should not and I would not! I must keep faith in Gorion's and my mother's goodness, so that Bhaal cannot divert me into darkness.~
@98   = ~The divine essence will manifest itself, sooner or later. The taint... *She stumbles over the word uncomfortably and stops.*~
@99   = ~Yes, Dynaheir? The taint?~
@100  = ~The taint, you say... Why did my mother carry me? What good person would birth a child of the Lord of Murder? *You shiver.* Only one who'd want to use the monster to some righteous cause. And Gorion being a Harper - Dynaheir, I cannot help but think that I was coached to become some sort of weapon. A Harper's blade against other Bhaalspawn, perhaps?~
@101  = ~Then all of us better learn to master the taint. If Sarevok's apparent madness serves anything, it is to show that Bhaal is not quite dead yet, while we live. And if we are to continue living... we will have to fight a thousand battles with him.~
@102  = ~I am surprised that thou dost not know of her. She is, of course, the least famous of the Seven Sisters, but still. As were the other six of Mystra's mortal daughters, she was conceived by Elue, Mystra's priestess, who was combined with Mystra herself. When Elue was carrying Qilue, her husband was told by a priest that his wife had been possessed by an entity of great magical power.~
@103  = ~To spare them both any further agony, he beheaded her, forcing Mystra to reveal herself. To save the child, Mystra located Iliryztara Veladorn, a drow adventuress leading a band of renegade dark elves toward the surface. Her unborn daughter had, unknown to her, died due to the rigors of the journey, so Mystra interceded.~
@104  = ~Qilue was born, thus making her the only one to serve two powers, Elistraee and Mystra.~
@105  = ~O... Quite entertaining. Well, that does not help me much, unless I decide to become Bhaal's Chosen.~
@106  = ~Look, Dynaheir, Elue carried babies for the goddess she served. And Iliryztara seem to have made a deal with the deities she did not detest. Now I start to question my mother's motives. She must have served Bhaal, for what good person would birth a child of the Lord of Murder? Or, if she was good at heart... *You shiver.* Did she want to use the monster to some righteous cause? And Gorion being a Harper - Dynaheir, I cannot help but think that I was coached to become some sort of weapon. A Harper's blade against other Bhaalspawn, perhaps?~
@107  = ~Thou art not an elf, <CHARNAME>. Thou art a demigod. Thou might not have aged like an elf.~
@108  = ~Might? But you are not sure? There could be a simpler explanation. *You shiver.* My life was hidden from me, and this letter is all lies.~
@109  = ~That's... probable, I guess. I... I want to believe it, Dynaheir. I must keep faith in my mother's and Gorion's goodness, so that Bhaal cannot divert me into darkness.~
@110  = ~As grand as Sarevok? No, do not answer. 'Tis clear that thou dost not yet realize all the implications of thy taint. *She stumbles over the last word uncomfortably and stops.*~
@111  = ~The taint, you say... Why did my mother carry me? What good person would birth a child of the Lord of Murder? *You shiver.* Only one who would want to use the monster for some cause... and Gorion, being a Harper - Dynaheir, I cannot help but think that I was coached to become some sort of weapon. A Harper's blade against other Bhaalspawn, perhaps?~
@112  = ~*She shakes her head.* Think, and think hard, before rejecting everything Gorion taught thee and did for thee, and turning instead to the seed from whence thou came'st.~
@113  = ~*Dynaheir rolls her eyes and wipes her forehead and murmurs tiredly.* Why dost thou like to waste what little time I have left?~
@114  = ~This thought is poison!~
@115  = ~Even if it is truth?~
@116  = ~You are right. I must keep faith in my mother's and Gorion's goodness, so that Bhaal cannot divert me into darkness.~
@117  = ~O, <CHARNAME>, when thou look'st to me like that, like a wounded animal, I feel like cradling thee to my chest. Please, remember that no matter what, no matter where I am, I am always thine ally against Bhaal.~
@118  = ~And why would Gorion lie to thee in the letter he expected thee to find after his death?~
@119  = ~Perhaps, he is still protecting me from the truth. It could be that my mother served Bhaal.~
@120  = ~He might not have seen the truth for himself, blinded by his duty to Harpers, or by his love for my mother.~
@121  = ~Dynaheir, I cannot help but to think that I was coached to become some sort of a weapon. A Harper's blade against other Bhaalspawn, perhaps? Look at where I was raised - in Candlekeep, where Gorion controlled my every thought. I was raised on the legends about noble heroes and duty. I even had a companion chosen for me - Imoen, gentle, sweet Imoen, whose biggest sins were pranks. And you know what else? Before Gorion died, he told me to find his friends who'd help me - Khalid and Jaheira - who, unsurprisingly, are Harpers!~
@122  = ~*quietly* Even if it is truth...~
@123  = ~I will not live a LIE! I will not be a Harper's puppet! Bhaal, at least, is honest.~
@124  = ~There is no knowing it now, <CHARNAME>.~
@125  = ~If thou wish my counsel, do not doubt those who loved thee, do not question their motives. 'Twill only lead thee to harm.~
@126  = ~Then thou art a fool, <CHARNAME>, that cannot understand who is on his side. Can'st thou not forgive these perceived errors? Do not hoard resentment against something which thou dost not even know to be true. Life ever presents us with difficult choices. The one before thee is difficult. Do not let anger rule thee.~
@127  = ~*Only a few short weeks ago, you knew nothing of your father, and had naught but vague dreams of your mother. But with the discovery of Gorion's letter certainties became illusions, illusions became nightmares, and nightmares became reality.*~
@128  = ~*Where before you were a ward and a pupil, now you are a Bhaalspawn, making decisions that affect many people. Where before you ran chores, now you lead your companions into battles.*~
@129  = ~*Unbidden, the worrisome thoughts come. Just how real and how stable is this current strange existence? Can you rely on anything to last? Can you rely on anyone to be true to you?*~
@130  = ~*You look at Dynaheir and smile.* My love, one look at you dispels all my troubles.~
@131  = ~Dynaheir... what would you say if I asked you to swear fealty to me?~
@132  = ~We have talked a lot lately about my station, Dynaheir. I am a son of a god, a mortal with divine blood. My heritage is evil in nature. You are devoted to goodness. I am fearful of this combination.~
@133  = ~What were they, hero?~
@134  = ~Nonsense, silly, empty nonsense, Dynaheir.~
@135  = ~I would say that thy distrust saddens me, but if thou thought it would aid thee in remaining virtuous, I would do it. But should I swear to serve thee, thou will then become my liege lord.~
@136  = ~You would do it? So easily? What about your returning to Rashemen?~
@137  = ~There is no need. Thy readiness speaks of thy loyalty as much as a binding oath would.~
@138  = ~I will have an oath from thee, then.~
@139  = ~No, Dynaheir, I don't want an oath. Forgive me. It was... it was my fear that spoke, a fear of myself and of a destiny I cannot fathom. Thee - I do not doubt.~
@140  = ~Thou art afraid of betrayal.~
@141  = ~If the suspicion in thee is stronger than any other feeling thou might have for me, give me thy leave, <CHARNAME>. Or if thou wishes it, I will swear an oath of fealty to thee. But should I swear to serve thee, thou will become my liege lord.~
@142  = ~*quietly* I do not think I shall be returning to Rashemen.~
@143  = ~Whether 'tis easy or difficult for me is not thy concern. Tell me if thou wishest an oath.~
@144  = ~Thou art right, <CHARNAME>. *sighs* For better or worse, this is true.~
@145  = ~Lord <CHARNAME> of Candlekeep, a Son of Bhaal, has asked me to swear to him my fealty. In the name of the Three, I, Lady Dynaheir, Hathran of Rashemen, prepare to swear this oath, in the presence of <PLAYER2>, <PLAYER3>, <PLAYER4>, <PLAYER5>, <PLAYER6>, all honorable men and women.~
@146  = ~Therefore, let all present come to know that I, the said Dynaheir, acknowledge verily to thee, my lord <CHARNAME>, Son of Bhaal, and to thy successors, that I swear upon the name of the Three that I will always be a faithful vassal to thee and to thy successors in all things in which a vassal is required to be faithful to his lord, and I will defend thee, my lord, and all thy successors, against all malefactors and invaders, at thy request and that of thy successors at my own cost; and I will give to thee power over all my possessions in peace and in war, whenever they shall be claimed by thee or by thy successors.~
@147  = ~Nor I thee, <CHARNAME>.~
