Chapter VI
Labyrinth of Shadows
Sos'Umptu felt blood trickle down her forehead as she pulled herself up from the shattered pew. The Shadow Adept stood upon her dais, in front of her alter to the Spider Queen and summoned forth his allies who flooded the room, slaughtering worshipers and warriors alike.
Sos'Umptu Baenre struck up a prayer to her goddess and was answered, she thrust her palm towards the Shadow Adept, and seven bolts of darkness shot towards him!
He staggered, though they did not seem to bother him too greatly, Sos'Umptu did not wait to see whether or not the attack had truly hurt her opponent. She sprang forward and struck out with her whip!
Vierna was there too, a pair of light maces in her hands the other high priestess slammed one of them into the small of the wizard's back as Sos'Umptu's three headed whip struck, one head latching onto the wizard's neck, another his shoulder, the third his cheek!
The dark drow fell to the ground dead, Sos'Umptu felt rather pleased with herself until she realized this had been nothing more than an illusion.
Evidence that this was a powerful foe, Sos'Umptu realized. "A shadow double!" She hissed to Vierna, but it seemed the former princess was already aware of that. She levitated with a speed Sos'Umptu had never before witnessed up towards the shape shifting statue of which House Baenre was so very proud.
A swarm of magic missiles flew from the statue towards the former Do'Urden princess, slamming into her chest, but she kept rising towards the statue until she was close enough to grab hold and climb up, now Sos'Umptu noticed the Shadow Adept grip a staff firmly with both hands and attempt to ward of the enraged Vierna's flurry of blows quite unsuccessfully.
He fell from the spider statue, slowing the fall with levitation, suggesting that he might have noble blood.
It didn't matter to Sos'Umptu. Noble and commoner, they were the same in death and what more did those who desecrated Lolth's temple deserve? She cast her spell again, and her seven bolts of darkness crushed the drow mages' body, ripping through him and leaving a bloody mass floating in the air just beneath the shifting statue until its levitation wore off.
Sos'Umptu nodded to Vierna, who leapt down from the statue, landing on the body and using it to leap onto the sacrificial alter. Like a cocky young male, the priestess spun her twin light maces in her hands before rushing into the throng of enemy warriors, though Sos'Umptu would not grudge her the bravado.
Sos'Umptu herself, by no means a warrior charged all the same. She met with an enemy fighter, he struck out for her heart and she only barely managed to dodge out of the way in time. She thrust her hand forward and gripped his arm, spontaneously casting a spell of infliction and causing the warrior to fall back writhing in pain where a loyal Baenre soldier finished him off by slamming his sword down into the drow's chest.
Death to all who dared to desecrate Lolth's holiest of temples!
Matron Kenlyl smiled snidely at the representatives of the other seven houses involved in the conspiracy as the mercenary captain bowed before her instead of them.
Jarlaxle stood before her with a troop of fighters fully prepared for war, though he had come with the bulbous wizard Elkantar.
But what did the charming rogue want? She had no doubt that had the mercenary wanted her dead, she certainly would be. Even with her daughter's beloved but merely budding weapon standing besides her, though the girl's eyes were not downcast as usual. Instead she looked bravely at Jarlaxle, her violet eyes unwavering, she stood ready to die for her Matron if necessary, just as a good tool should.
Kenlyl decided she might have to reward Ielenia if they both survived this evening, the child knew her place in the familial structure, if not the religious one.
Other leaders might have had a "no nonsense" expression as they spoke to her, but Jarlaxle seemed calm, relaxed, even friendly. "Dear lady," He said, "It surprises me that you would fight alongside the grunts. You are, I believe, the only Matron Mother here?"
"It would seem that way. But why should I hide? I had to see this through for myself. Is it not an easy task to recognize all eight houses in this alliance now?" She asked the others, laughing freely along with the first born daughters who had come to represent their mothers. Yes here in this command post a noble and recognizable representative from each House had come, as the Dark Ones had demanded, and as Matron Kenlyl had hoped.
This was the time and place where the grand alliance would reveal itself to itself, reveal which houses were involved.
Matron Kenlyl smiled, and Jarlaxle winked at her, he wore the eye patch over his right eye today. "You know what to do now." She said.
Jarlaxle showed her a rather cocky grin. He looked over his shoulder to his troops, and yawned, "Kill them."
The mercenaries, about thirty in number surged forward, cutting into several unsuspecting nobles, some of them still laughing dumbly.
Matron Kenlyl shoved Ielenia's child behind her and moved her hands about, a prayer to Lolth on her lips as she summoned a tiger.
The sleek surface feline was powerful, muscular and fiendish, a monstrosity and it hungered for the flesh of traitors. Matron Kenlyl sent it to do her bidding, and it did not hesitate.
The "command post" would be annihilated, and Kenlyl, lowest ranked among these eight houses would leap not only in rank, but in Lolth's esteem!
Just as she and Triel Baenre--who had visited House Kenlyl on her mother's behalf--had planned!
Jarlaxle watched as his mercenaries attacked, he blew on his whistle and nearly a hundred and fifty soldiers among the insurgents ranks suddenly defected and began to fight alongside house Baenre.
He chuckled to himself, he usually did not choose sides too early into a battle, but this one was so ridiculously one sided . . .
He had to wonder why Shar would allow her clergy to perform such a worthless act as an open, hurried and unintelligent insurrection using soldiers that did not share their faith and would too eagerly defect.
He supposed it was a delicious irony that while a handful of Shar's own might die tonight, hundreds of Lolth's faithful would fall. But such a game seemed more suited to the Spider Queen than the Mistress of Night.
As he pondered this the mercenary's hat was nearly blown away, which caused his eyes to narrow.
A blaze of flame lit up, engulfing his mercenaries even as they slaughtered the unsuspecting priestesses, and when the fire cleared there stood Elkantar H'mal, and his muscular niece Vidin H'mal.
"I shall deal with the princess, she is too much for a male like you." The Kenlyl Matron said.
Jarlaxle nodded. He did not agree, he could take them both, but why overexert himself?
He smiled and winked at Elkantar. He approached him as Kenlyl approached Vidin.
These two were all that were left of the insurgents' commanders.
He drew a dagger from his belt, "Ah, Elkantar, my Khal'abbil," Jarlaxle said with just a trace of sarcasm as he swept off his hat and bowed low, "Still alive I see."
"Your ruffians are not enough to destroy me, mercenary filth. You and your traitorous swine will not be tolerated in the Lady of Loss' brave new realm!" Elkantar roared and threw a bolt of lightning at Jarlaxle, which the mercenary dodged.
Fool Jarlaxle thought, and threw his daggers, but Elkantar had a number of defenses upon himself, and four of Jarlaxle's daggers bounced off of the wizard as if hitting a force field, which, Jarlaxle supposed, they had.
The fifth however struck Elkantar in the shoulder, but failed to slow him as he began to cast another spell.
Now there was seven of the fat drow wizard. Jarlaxle sighed, and threw his five daggers again—for they had returned to him—this time dispelling four of the illusions and again, with the fifth striking the real Elkantar, though it bounced harmlessly off of his armored piwafwi.
He saw one of his mercenaries, a wizard lend him aid in form of a fire ball, the squad of Elkantar laughed and spread their arms wide, though three disappeared the true Elkantar was uninjured, "This ring," He boasted, "Makes me immune to your fire attacks, add that to the fact that you are a mere apprentice compared to me and you will find yourself nothing but dead!" Elkantar cackled and hurled a lightning bolt at the mercenary wizard.
It turned his once proud robed body into a crumpled up ball of burnt flesh and flaming robes.
A pity, but it had given Jarlaxle an idea. He began to move his legs quickly, racing as if he meant to take Elkantar from behind, as he did so he kept his eyes on the fat mage, and began to move his hands about in a ridiculous fashion, he shouted some words that might have been mistaken for a spell.
A good wizard would never have fallen for it, even under the stress Elkantar was under being surrounded and outmatched.
Luckily though perhaps Elkantar was a powerful wizard, he was not a good one.
Jarlaxle's spell took form, a flaming arrow which bolted towards Elkantar!
The fat drow spread his arms again, willingly accepting the blaze, "Fool!" He cried as Jarlaxle smiled, "No flames can hurt—ugh!" he was cut off in the middle of his sentence as the small fiery arrow slammed into his heart.
He looked down, his ring having dispelled or extinguished the fire, leaving for the fat and dying drow the sight of a beautifully crafted dagger.
A magical dagger enchanted to catch flame once the command word—easily slipped into a made up spell—was spoken.
Elkantar slumped and fell over, blood issuing from his mouth as he tried to mumble the words to a spell he would never finish.
Jarlaxle shrugged, "That is that." He said, going over to the wizard's corpse to retrieve his dagger, and Eleanor's ring. To the victor after all.
Matron Kenlyl however had not fared so well with her opponent. She was holding her side as blood flowed forth, staining her violet robes.
Vidin, and Kenlyl's granddaughter were nowhere to be seen.
