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Aunrae srant such a vision to a male? Do you think she would allow aboy, however clever, to unlock the secrets of her silence?"

"These are desperate times, Matron Mother, you said so yourself I would not close any possible avenue of redemption, however thickly cloaked in folly it may seem Of course, I have few avenues of redemption for my life left I have my own desperate times Whether you wish to question hi his His words could provewhere this was leading She was beginning to think it had been a mistake to put the full plan into ht into custody, or better yet, killed Maybe she could get to him before the rest of them had a chance to speak with him, take care of it herself, one way or another Perhaps then herher like a child

Aunrae nodded, her er droords

"You argue for your life, Halisstra Melarn, but still your pleas have some merit We ait to pass sentence on you until we&039;ve had a chance to hear all sides As for the &039;clever boy,&039; when he comes to us, e have him in our possession, ill extract whatever infor any price Somehow, I do not think Quenthel Baenre had established the proper leashes on her wizard I do not intend to make the same mistake"

"Matron Mother Nasadra," Zammzt called from the back of the room, where he had just entered "They are here"

Pharaun, Ryld, and Valas had been led inside and shown to a waiting rooht to each of the to set their minds at ease They were left alone, or rather with only sentries posted at each of the exits to keep theh the cha the frescos and statuary that were in abundance there, prilory of the dark elves There were a goodly number of nize The Master of Sorcere supposed a good many of the works related to the history of House Melarn, but to Pharaun it was all just so much pomp and circuether in consultation,thes went bad

When the double doors at the far end of the room were thrown open, Pharaun turned to see not one but several ostentatious drow fee audience chamber beyond They were attended by a retinue of House wizards, soldiers, and younger females, all of the , and welcome to House Melarn," one so on the throne as the three males moved into the room "I ahtly as he h back so as not to see Ryld and Valas athered around the throne, and the assortment of wizards, priestesses, and soldiers flanked everyone else

Pharaun knew the woman was Faeryl&039;s uess what she was doing on the throne of House Melarn

Theto find Faeryl She was there, though off in a corner of the roo to avoid notice

If I didn&039;t know better, Pharaun thought wryly, I would have to assu so, but the wizard could feel the

"We are honored and delighted to be guests in your House, Matron Mother Zauvirr," Pharaun said "To what do e this auspicious occasion?"

And where in the Abyss are Quenthel and Jeggred? he silently added

Ssipriina Zauvirr sniffed and replied, "On the contrary, Pharaun Mizzry you why you have graced the City of Shiust presence The reputation that preceded you, telling of a confident, self-possessed e of no smallskill, was only half the story, it see way he couldthe other turn out slightly

"Everyone has her own opinions, as always, Matron Mother That is not to say that anyone is in error, only that affectations and realities do not always ood reason"

"Of course," anotherforward from Ssipriina&039;s left, "and our opinion is that you and your co the appearance of simple travelers or even emissaries from our sister city of Menzoberranzan, are in reality spies, here to steal froht be able to find to the world at large"

So ht uneasily

He felt, rather than saw Ryld, to his left, and Valas, to his right, both stiffen at the undisguised accusation

"Easy," he muttered under his breath "Save the foolish heroics for the &039;all-else-fails&039; part of the prograe spread his hands in gracious acquiescence and said, "I&039;m sorry, Mistress"

"Matron Mother Jyslin Aleanrahel, of House Aleanrahel"

Pharaun sed then said, "Matron Mother Aleanrahel While I&039; attention must seem terribly surreptitious, I can assure you that we onistic We only wished to - "

"To avoid being confronted like this?" Jyslin interjected "Hoell did that serve you?"

Pharaun sighed and said, "Not well at all, it appears, but my companions and I still aren&039;t completely sure we understand your concerns Ihere, if none of you is Matron Mother Melarn"

Several of the lances Pharaun was thoroughly confused He continued to scan the roo else quite odd: a drow, obviously nobly born but stripped to her underclothes and held prisoner between two stout guards, and it wasn&039;t Quenthel

"Oh, we have no concerns," Jyslin Aleanrahel replied "Not anymore Until you arrived, ere concerned that ould not be able to detain you, that you ht try to slip out of the city We were concerned that you would report your discoveries to your superiors back in the City of Spiders We werefoolish, like concluding your high priestess&039;s ill-conceived plan of theft and spying You&039;ve cooperated nicely, though, so we feel we have the situation well in hand"

Ryld e felt the warrior shift his weight In response, several of the soldiers, who had unassuly fanned out toRyld to lunge at theh priestess was planning anything of the sort," he said "If so is amiss, we must all work to see that it is rectified Just tell us where she is, and I&039;ht coainst Ched Nasad," yet a thirdout froraceful age about her face, ht just be the most formidable drow he&039;d everto flee the scene of her cri Dead? Quenthel Baenre was dead? He wasn&039;t sure whether to laugh or be worried Behind hiasps of surprise

"She was caught conspiring with House Melarn to illegally enter the city and steal valuable resources belonging to us," the older drow said, "and we believe she was also coe on behalf of Menzoberranzan We consider these to be criainst the Dark Mother herself"

Conspiracy? Pharaun thought How ridiculous could they be?

He stared at the throne where Faeryl&039;sto understand as behind it, and perhaps why

No wonder Faeryl was so eager to help us, he thought She was leading us by our noses the whole time

"Furthermore," the matron mother continued, "you, by association with Quenthel, are accused of the saes You are under arrest, and you will be confined on the preuilt or innocence"

"Not today," Ryld said, taking a step forward and reaching for Splitter

As one, a multitude of soldiers brandished hand crossbows, and at least half a dozen wizards and priestesses appeared to ready spells

"Ryld, you fool, wait!" Pharaun growled, still trying to keep his voice low "There are better ways "

Valas reached a hand out and stopped the larger drow froreatsword

"Not yet," the scout pleaded "We&039;ve got no chance like this"

Ryld snarled, but he released the hilt of his weapon and stepped back again

"Good," the third ested Though the bravado is misplaced here, I&039;m sure it&039;s served you well in the past,"

"Mistress?" Pharaun began

"Aunrae Nasadra, of First House Nasadra," the drow finished for hiht

"Mistress Nasadra," he said, "while I am shocked and saddened by the news of Quenthel&039;s death, I ie of any conspiracy between her and anyone here in the city There "

"I doubt it," Aunrae replied, "but you may yet have a chance to prove it and spare your neck Simply tell us the truth Did you or did you not sneak into the city and meet in secret with Drisinil Melarn, oods out of Black Claw Mercantile&039;s storehouses?"

Pharaun looked around at theexpectantly at him - and at the scores of weapons leveled at hi he could; he lied

"Absolutely, Mistress Nasadra," he deadpanned, and everyone including Ryld and Valas gasped Before the other two Menzoberranyr could refute his false admission, he continued, "Or rather, Quenthel must have It all makes sense, now You see, Mistress, she ordered my two companions and e a us what they were for Mistress Baenre told us ht before we set out to follow her instructions, I overheard her speaking with Faeryl Zauvirr, the a us I recall that she said soh of course at the ti She asked Faeryl so to the effect of, &039;and you&039;re certain theplace is secure? We can&039;t afford to be seen, you know&039; "

"You pompous, smart-mouthed liar!" Faeryl screamed from across the room "Kill them now and be done with it!"

Pharaun did all he could to avoid sh he heardhim and his outlandish story, he knew that he had sown the seeds of doubt Already, though, the troops who had surrounded thean to advance uncertainly upon the three of theht, wizard," Ryld hissed, "we&039;re out of ti to do?"

Pharaun opened his mouth to tell the warrior that he had absolutely no idea, when a sudden and violent shudder rocked the cha everyone to stumble and flail about, their center of balance disrupted A split second later, a monumental thundercrash penetrated the walls, deep and loud, and reverberated through the entire room

"By the Dark Mother," someone cried as everyone looked at everyone else in confusion and panic

A servant ran into the chamber, a wild look of fear in his eyes

"Mistresses! It&039;s duergar! Hundreds of the!" Another sonic shock knocked the liveried boy to his knees, and he see the floor in terror "They burn the stones the!"