Flashback: A Familiar Enemy

Since the return of Lloth’s divine ear, High Priestess Telefe Drodeen prayed incessantly, grateful for reconnecting with her goddess after a yearlong silence. However that gratitude lasted for only a fleeting moment when the Lloth expressed her thoughts and opinions on the aristocracy of Ched Nasad and how, in a period of testing, the houses fell to politics that physically collapsed the city of webs.

Telefe could not know how long her supplications lasted. Hours, maybe days? The Priestess did have the sense of her precious twins Ebomara and Maastick at prayer nearby as well as some of the other drow elves, but Lloth’s divine visions swam into and out of her consciousness it was impossible to organize everything Telefe perceived. One scene showed her own Matron Mother Grazia falling to Darien of House Auvryndar in a battle underdeep waters. But when Lloth discovered how vision affected Telefe, the Spider Queen continued to assault her with this vision mentality deepening her anger.   

“Command me. What must I do to earn your favored regard my Queen?” Telefe said reaching for a dagger meaning to murder her precious twins.

“Stay your hand.” Said a voice that came from Ebomara, it was Lloth speaking through Telefe’s daughter. “Why guarantee your house’s demise by killing off its next generation?” Lloth was right, besides the three male warriors that accompanied them; they were now all that was left of House Drodeen.

“By right of conquest you must retaliate.” Now the otherworldly feminine voice came from her son Maastick; both twins still in prayer but speaking with the voice of their goddess. “Instead I demand the soul of Darien Auvryndar’s grandson- end the house that nearly ended your own.”

“Thank you my Queen.” Telefe said weeping and elated, she reached out grabbing her precious twins together in a vicious group hug. “It will be done my Queen. Once I find him…” Telefe began between sobs but a whisper spoken in each ear from each twin cut her off.

“Do not worry; the grandson of Darien is on his way here now.” The shock and disbelief broke the twins from their revere.

“Gather the others and retrieve your weapons.” Telefe commanded. The twins knew why of course, they remembered what Lloth said while in prayer but before they could do more than turn and the door to Telefe’s dim sanctuary was thrown wide in haste around which appears the drow Frizzt, “Lady Telefe, we have problem…”

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Zara Nasadra’s present chambers was nothing like her luxurious room back home, being a noble born

sorcerer had its benefits but only where that commodity had value. Out here away from high society Ched Nasad, and living in a secluded complex with other renegade survivors; being noble born for Zara held next to no value. Instead Zara was forced to rely on other skills she would need to broker in information to get the things she needed. She would exercise her magical talents to seek information for Telefe who was cut off from gaining insight or information on her own. One of Zara’s assets was Endrenn, she was only half-drow which is why Zara sent Endrenn to the nearby surface town to not only handle Zara’s Lamia and the slaving operation but to relay valuable information back to Frizzt, Zara’s manservant.

“We have not heard from Endrenn for a few days and still no word from our neighbors across the hall my Princess.” Frizzt’s well-spoken manner and etiquette was unshakeable even in the lowliest of accommodations. Soon they will make a play for the town and they will be gone from this complex.

From atop of the full-length mirror, Zara’s infernal eyewing glided down to eventually rest on the arm of her chair. It’s one eye seeing all.

“I would not send your eyewing into town my Princess, it is too dangerous.” Frizzt said. “Perhaps I could persuade you to look in on the mining operation; we have not received any product for me to refine from the orc slavers below and we are still weeks away from having enough component to attack the town. If the humans in their incompetence released poisonous gasses in the mines your eyewing will be protected and we will know what is going on. Perhaps they are all dead but it would be nice to know.”

At once Zara mentally commanded her eyewing. The infernal creature took leathered wing and exited Zara’s chambers and down a shaft that descended from a central hall. The eyewing dropped silently through the shaft tucking its bat-like wings around its spherical body, mindful that its master could see everything it saw.

When it cleared the ceiling of the mining chamber the eyewing was immediately wrapped in a blue radiance binding it into a rough ball sending the infernal creature helplessly to the ground. A short moment later Zara could see a human with blue glowing eyes approach her through the eyewing’s singular eye as he killed it.

Zara, breaking off the connection before the killing blow, looked over to Frizzt who could read the news on her face.

“Put on your protective cloak Lady Zara, I will summon your duskblades and inform our neighbors.” Once she was under the protection of her four personal guards Frizzt took his leave with haste to Telefe Drodeen’s chambers whereby he threw wide the door before saying, “Lady Telefe, we have problem…”

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“The humans have killed all the orc slavers and have somehow captured the rope of climbing enabling them to escape,” Frizzt said to the drow gathered in the receiving hall on the main level of the complex; it was a richly decorated chamber in the colors of the two drow houses. “The humans will be making their move soon.” 

On one side of a long black table sat the remnants of house Nasadra the sorcerer Zara, her manservant Frizzt, and her four duskblade protectors. Sitting across them was the vestiges of house Drodeen the priestess Telefe, her twin progenies, and three warpriests.

“Lloth has shown us that the impending siege is also our path to redemption.” Telefe told the assembled refugees. “We find ourselves perfectly situated to eliminate the Auvryndar lineage and regain Lloths favor; however he does not travel alone.”

“If the grandson of Darien has gotten to Endrenn then we can assume he knows about us and our operation.” Frizzt said preparing for the worst. “Let’s organize a defense before we find ourselves fighting on two fronts.”