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The five droorked their way into the bowels of House Melarn for what seeh Pharaun was fairly certain they&039;d only been at it for about fifteen roup was forced to stop while a uard crossed paths with them, and once, Halisstra actually posed as a roup of sentries to head to the surface to help in the defense of the House

"The lower levels are not usually very heavily occupied," Halisstra said at one point "I suspectin the defense of the House It&039;s not e nodded as the five of theht hieous creature beside his, especially the fact that she was helpless to defend herself with her araze cast demurely down, and the wizard only found this to be even roup took one last stairwell down and found themselves in a disance of the levels above, and the stale stench of unwashed bodies, faint though it was, gave a certain hint of as to be found there Halisstra led the five of them to a doorway at the end of a short hall It was stout and obviously designed to withstand considerable force

The drow priestess stepped up to the portal and waved her House Melarn brooch before it There was an audible click as the nia operated the locks set into the door Halisstra pushed the door aside and h into the chauard room, currently empty At the far side of the chamber, a hallway stretched off into darkness

Pharaun, spotting er to his lips and motioned for quiet

So to both Halisstra and Danifae

The two drow feestured for Halisstra to proceed As she entered the hallway, the others followed her in Theopen and the chambers within dark and silent However, about halfway down, Pharaun could detect the low voice of soht, and he could just see the door being swung shut fro as quietly as they could, the five of theap to the doorway The portal was not completely sealed, and Pharaun was able to peer inside the cell Quenthel was there, naked and crouched against the far wall A heavy steel collar was around her neck, with a thick chain running froh priestess was gagged with sohtly in her ether in some sort of thick, viscous black blob in front of her She had been very effectively immobilized, and Pharaun understood all too well, co, should she still have a divine enchantment locked away after all this tiainst another wall of the cell, Jeggredstood glowering He too was chained to the wall, thick bands of adas Pharaun could see that the restraints were ainst the to break free Again and again, Jeggred jerked on the chains, causing thee at the object of his wrath

Faeryl Zauvirr stood just a little way out of the draegloths reach, her back to Pharaun and Halisstra She was standing over Quenthel in thetaunt

"know you would have loved to tell the matron mothers the truth, but it&039;s too late for that now I only regret that we didn&039;t have ether, Quenthel"

Her voice dripped with acid

"Cored said, his deep voice flat with malice "Let me caress you like before, in the underhalls of the Great Mound Don&039;t you want to feel loth, instead pulling a dagger from her belt

Halisstra tapped Pharaun softly on the arned

Pharaun nodded and stepped back, out of sight Ryld pulled Danifae against the wall next to the wizard, while Valas took up a position on the opposite side of the door

"Still, it&039;s going to be fun watching you both die," the wizard heard Faeryl say

"I&039;m afraid we have other plans for her, Faeryl," Halisstra said, pushing the door open

The a here?" she snarled "You should be dead!"

Then, apparently realizing that Halisstra had discovered her secret, Faeryl&039;s tone changed

"You don&039;t really think I&039; to let you walk out of here alive, do you? To run and tell the others what you found? I don&039;t think so"

Halisstra&039;s tone was equally cold

"On the contrary You don&039;t think I cahter called out, back over her shoulder "It&039;s true Run, and tell the in the hallway as though she had leaped past the priestess "You&039;re not going to tell"

The words died in Faeryl&039;s ainst the wall

"You!" she spat "Halisstra, you cast your lot withtheht"

The look In Faeryl&039;s eyes was decidedly nervous, and her fear only grew as she felt Valas step in behind her and take hold of her arainst the hollow of her throat

Pharaun reached out and held out his hand, waiting for Faeryl to relinquish her dagger to hi any possible avenue of escape, she appeared ready to bolt but realized she had no chance against sothe handle around and laying the weapon in the wizard&039;s palm

"Perhaps I am a fool," Halisstra said, "but at least I have them as allies, which is ame of lies? I hope it orth it I think it will be the last thing you enjoy Ever"

"Watch her," the e said to Valas as he stepped into the cell, Halisstra close behind

It was obvious frolad to see hiical phrase The collar around Quenthel&039;s neck clicked open

"Help her," he directed to Halisstra

Pharaun then littered in anticipation

"Your arrival was ti his arms wide "Free me so that I may rend the traitor and watch the life fade fro," Quenthel said Halisstra had helped the high priestess rered Do you understand red looked at Quenthel for a moment, but then the demon inclined his head in acquiescence

"As you wish and command, Mistress"

Pharaun had but one red, and he quickly utilized it to free one of the draegloth&039;s are decided to cast a different spell, one that would suppress the thened the adaic and watched as the aura surrounding the ht

"Try to break it, now," he said to Jeggred

The draegloth jerked experi him to the walls, then he really leaned into the effort, but the adamantine links still would not yield

Pharaun frowned

"Perhaps a bit of cold, toa sether in a group," he directed the draegloth Jeggred did so, holding them in his free hand like a set of reins on a pack lizard

Pointing the crystal at the sections of chain, the Master of Sorcere focused a cone of ths When the incantation was coain

This tian to work the restraints over, the frostyhim He still had the collar and manacles around his neck and limbs, but that could be dealt with later

"My thanks, wizard," the draegloth said, then strode over to where Quenthel was in the process of freeing herself from the last of the black, sticky, resinlike substance that her hands had been encased in

Quenthel stood in the center of the cell, naked but see ly out of reach until the last possible htly "You cut your arrival a bit close, didn&039;t you?"

Pharaun sighed inwardly, realizing that whatever gratitude had been present before had been replaced by the high priestess&039;s usual haughty demeanor

"My pardon, please, Mistress Baenre," he said in as gracious a tone as possible "We dallied with so here at the last moment I didn&039;t think you would mind terribly much"

Ryld chuckled at the wizard&039;s snide reavehi him that the two members of House Melarn were unaccustomed to his disrespectful relationship with Quenthel The Mistress of the Academy merely scowled at hied, still under Valas&039;s guard

"Strip her and give her clothes to h-pitched squeak of protest from the ambassador

Valas held the prisoner steady as Ryld stepped up to help hian to disrobe Faeryl, who struggled to avoid the ignominious fate

"Just who are these two?" Quenthel snapped, eyeing Danifae

The battle captive cocked her head to one side, eyeing the high priestess in return, as though gauging how much she should defer to this new leader

"I am Danifae Yauntyrr, Mistress Baenre, formerly of Eryndlyn I am Halisstra Melarn&039;s personal attendant"

"A battle captive?" Quenthel sh, Faeryl stood naked in the roup, still held between Valas and Ryld, while Quenthel donned the a, she jerked her head in the direction of the collar, still chained to the here she&039;d been restrained only moments before

"Lock her up," Quenthel co desperately to jerk free of her two captors As Valas, Halisstra, and Ryld all corralled her, the aainst her captors "No! You can&039;t leaveFaeryl "You sniveling, wretched creature, did you really believe you could get aith your betrayal? Did you honestly think you could defy me, a Baenre, and the Mistress of Arach-Tinilith? By the Dark Mother, child, the depths of your foolishness surpriseonce more at the thick ada as she was hauled over to the wall

The ambassador flailed and kicked, but the scout and warrior held her tightly as Halisstra fitted the collar around her neck When the adamantine band clicked shut, the imprisoned drow sobbed once, and as soon as the two an frantically jerking on the restraint

Quenthel started to turn away, then paused

"You can redeem yourself, if you like," she said to Faeryl

"How?" the frantic dark elf asked "Anything! I will do whatever you want"

"Tell s are," Quenthel replied "Tell ht here"

Faeryl&039;s face fell in despair

"I don&039;t know," she sobbed, dropping to her knees in supplication "Please don&039;t leave me here I will find them for you"

"Don&039;t bother with her," Halisstra said "I knohere your things are, Quenthel Baenre"

Quenthel turned and eyed the daughter of House Melarn

"Why should I trust you?" she asked

"That is for you to decide," Halisstra answered, "but consider thisI led your males down here to find you, I lured the traitor out into the hall before she could kill you, and I live here and can find ainst me, as I told the wizard, I have no quarrel with you, and I do not want to see you suffer the consequences for House Zauvirr&039;s betrayal of my mother"

Quenthel&039;s eyebrows raised as she listened to the other priestess&039;s words, then she looked at Pharaun

"She speaks the truth," the wizard admitted "At least thus far She has thrown herself in with us, though she has few alternatives The othercontrol of her House away from her, after the death of her mother"

"Hmm," Quenthel mused "Very well We&039;ll address your status later If you knohereforward against the chain around her neck "She will betray you, Mistress All the noble Houses despise you for your plans to steal from the city You can&039;t trust her"

"On the contrary," Quenthel laughed derisively, shaking her head "She is a Melarn, a o"

The high priestess turned to depart the cell, and Pharaun was stepping into the hall behind her as Faeryl wailed once an a chant, and Pharaun recognized the pattern of the words as a divine incantation, though he wasn&039;t sure what sort of spell the dark elf ht still have retained in her h, Jeggred was in front of Faeryl The draegloth flicked a hand out, across her face, slicing his long claws across one cheek and catching her by surprise so that she lost her concentration and the words of the spell died in heraway and clasping her bloody cheek She began to trered had done to her She cowered fro herself into the corner, as the draegloth glared down at her He did not raise a hand to strike her further

Quenthel stepped up beside the dely around his arm, and smiled at the imprisoned drow

"You know, Faeryl," the Mistress of the Acadeht"

Faeryl only blinked at Quenthel, terror in her eyes

"You said before that I couldn&039;t leave you here Sadly, it&039;s true There&039;s no telling what other spells you ht still have tucked away in that clever little s she did to us Take your timeenjoy thewith Ryld, but Pharaun remained, as did Halisstra and Danifae

Faeryl&039;s first screa in the sloth had not yet touched the ared moved closer Her screared casually reached out with one large clawed hand and grasped her by the neck, just beneath the collar she wore, cutting off her air Madly, Faeryl began to flail at the fiend, but he easily lifted her up and extended his arm out fully, so that the naked drow&039;s feet rose off the floor, kicking at the air She puloth&039;s ar as she cru for air Before she could fully regain her breath, he reached down and poked a single claw up under her chin

Pharaun saw that the talon penetrated deep into the soft tissue, probably through the dark elf&039;s tongue, pinning her mouth shut Faeryl squealed in pain, but it was a muffled cry She reached up to try to pull the fiend&039;s hand away, but he slowly, relentlessly began to lift her, forcing her to scrabble to her feet, clinging to his arht and keep the talon froher and higher thedraegloth lifted, until at last Faeryl was on her tiptoes, frantically trying to lift herself off this i down her face

Jeggredhis two sht his other hand up and flicked a claw across her exposed throat, slicing through her vocal chords

With blood streaash in her neck, her red eyes ith terror, Faeryl tried to screagred laughed and let her dangle, unable to cry out at all

Danifae and Halisstra turned away, but whether satisfied or disturbed at the fiend&039;s display of ruthlessness, Pharaun was not sure He was the only one who remained in the cell, andhe couldn&039;t draw his eyes away from the scene before him

Blood ran down Faeryl&039;s neck and chest, and her struggles were growingtired of this sport, Jeggred raked at her again, across the abdo cleanly so that her entrails were freed The fiend let her drop to the ground at last, and Faeryl cruh Pharaun could see that she was not yet dead

The ambassador blinked in shock and occasionally thrashed weakly as Jeggred crouched down When Pharaun realized the de on Faeryl even as she lay there, still conscious but too weak to fight him, the wizard finally had to turn away The wet sounds of the demon at his meal followed him out into the hallway

Groe he had to deliver, for several reasons First and foreood news, and however much he was reer Ordinarily, he wouldn&039;t mind for that reason alone, for there were few individuals in Menzoberranzan who could actually take out their displeasure on hie in the city Of those few, most held on to only a shell of their for on hi the bearer of bad news this day would not be as risky as it ht on other days, but then he didn&039;t often have to deliver such unpleasant infore of Menzoberranzan around to the other cause for his distress Triel Baenre was at hoo visit her, rather than the other way around He detested leaving Sorcere, detested having to go to the Great Mound evenany of it under such circumstances It was yet another reason for him to add to his list of reasons why he wanted the crisis resolved He was tired of all the inconvenience it was causing him personally

As he flew over the streets of Menzoberranzan on his way to the Great Mound, Gromph peered below in consternation He had sent word to the appropriate individuals in charge that more troops were to be dispatched, but he had yet to see the results of his orders The disquiet beloas growing again, and if they weren&039;t careful, the nobles of the city would find the

Well, Triel could put her foot down again, he supposed, insist that the other matron mothers respond promptly when the call came for more soldiers, but he doubted it wouldto tend to their own Houses first, High Council be dae of House Baenre, Gromph settled himself to the balcony outside his sister&039;s audience chauards on duty there peered at him warily for a moment, but when they saho it was, they stiffened in salute Ignoring thee walked briskly past the to find Triel there She was not

Clicking his tongue in exasperation, Groe audience chamber and into the hallway beyond, which led to her personal quarters Arriving at the door to her suite of rooreeted by a pair of stoic females, robust specimens ell armed and apparently trained equally as well in the art of couards crossed their heavy maces before the door

"She is not to be disturbed," one of theu anotherthis No ht around to get to see Triel in her private roouards never h of it

"I&039;ue with you about this, today You&039;ve got one h, or I will leave you as two piles of s ash on her doorstep Do I make myself clear?"