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harbormaster’s greed prevented him from summoning the city watch to haul them away. But though it took a good portion of their remaining funds, in the end Baron Mahir’s money did the trick, and the companions were granted permission to enter Kolbyr.
    Like the docks, the buildings were hewn from gray stone. Thesquat, blocky structures were plain and austere, their surfaces smooth and bereft of ornamental touches. The streets were stone as well, though cracked in numerous places and in dire need of repair. The oppressive pall that they’d sensed at the docks was stronger here, and it felt as if the companions shouldered an unseen and increasingly heavy burden as they walked.
    “And I thought Perhata was unpleasant.” Ghaji remembered Asenka was with them and quickly said, “Sorry.”
    The woman smiled. “Don’t worry about it. My city may not be the jewel of the Principalities, but it has Kolbyr beat.”
    Ghaji couldn’t disagree with that.
    The people they passed looked little different than their counterparts in Perhata. Both men and women wore their hair in braids with intricate beadwork woven in—though theirs was less showy than elsewhere in the Principalities—and all were dressed warmly. The big difference was in attitude. Though the Perhatans were by and large rogues, thieves, and swindlers, the Kolbyrites appeared to be barely restrained killers. They glared, sneered, spat, and some even growled like beasts as the companions passed. More than a few hands twitched toward weapons, but none had been drawn—so far. Ghaji thought of the gulls that attacked
Welby’s Pride
, and he wondered if the only reason the Kolbyrites hadn’t given in to their antagonistic impulses was because they weren’t simple-minded animals. He also wondered that, if the curse of Kolbyr was truly at work here, how long the citizenry would be able to resist the urge to attack.
    Tresslar stepped forward until he trailed directly behind Diran. “I was thinking …” The artificer began.
    Diran stopped and turned to face Tresslar. The other companions halted as well and turned to listen.
    “Yes?”
    “Now that we’re here, I’d like to poke around a bit and see if I can detect any sign of my wand. I know it’s no longer in Perhata or the surrounding environs. Perhaps the barghest brought it to Kolbyr for some reason.”
    “What of the curse?” Ghaji asked. “We might need your help to lift it.”
    “I’m an artificer, not an exorcist,” Tresslar replied. “But to be honest, without my wand, I would be of little use to you. I’ve constructed a few other devices, it’s true, but none that will prove effective against a curse. But if my wand
is
here and I can find it …” The artificer trailed off.
    “As you wish,” Diran said. “Let us meet at the docks around sunset.”
    Tresslar nodded, clearly relieved.
    “I would like to accompany the artificer,” Solus said. “Despite my efforts, I can fathom little of the nature of the dark power that grips this city. This leads me to believe that it is primarily magical in origin. I suspect I will be of far greater assistance in helping Tresslar in his attempts to locate his lost wand.”
    Tresslar scowled at Solus, and for a moment Ghaji thought the artificer was going to decline the psiforged’s offer, but pragmatism won out over jealously, and Tresslar responded with a curt, “Thanks.”
    “I’m coming along as well,” Hinto said. “My friend can’t do without his eyes, can he?”
    The psiforged looked down at the halfling pirate, and though his face didn’t possess the ability to smile, Ghaji sensed the fondness Solus felt for his “eyes.”
    “Very true,” Solus said.
    Ghaji looked at Diran, an unspoken message passing between them. The loss of their two most powerful allies, if only temporarily, would seriously deplete their fighting strength. Given the reception they’d received so far in Kolbyr, Ghaji wasn’t certain that splitting up was a good idea.