Chapter 14

M'lar stood pensively at the door and could hear the battle outside the door as it raged on with the sounds of blades on bone could be heard in her room. From behind she heard the noise of something and turned expecting it to be Rahvin to come and take her away from those that must have come to rescue her.

Turning she looked in surprise as she saw a ripple in the air around her and then a leg exited the tear in the fabric of time it was followed by another leg and he stood in front of her. "I told you my dear you are attracted by evil. If you continue to give in to your desires to seek evil it will find you and you will not be able to break from its bonds. Come along now, our would be heroes are not going to find you before that nasty death knight gets here."

Kelson waved his fingers to her to join him. "Come on hurry." The sound of a door sliding open behind them heralded the arrival of the death knight with his glowing red eyes he peered into the room. M'lar looked away from the glowing eyes and to Kelson.

"Come, come my dear we must be away. You have a different destiny to meet and we must figure out a way that keeps you from the grips of evil that always seems to surround you."

M'lar felt her hand tugged and she was through the portal and feeling a rush of energy that appeared like flashes of colorful lightening bolts that exploded around her and the rush of air that was the advent of time shift. The many thousands of voices and noises that assailed her ears as she moved through time and space with Kelson to come to a stop at the end of the tunnel and stepping out into the Hoch.

Kelson released her arm and stepped back then tapped her nose. "You must turn your back on the darkness that wants to call you because the next time you will not return whole and we cannot have that. You must follow the course that has been predestined for you to follow. No mater what God or what Darkness that wants to trap you my dear M'lar you must turn your back on it and stick to the light and the path that is yours and that of your children."

Leaning over he placed a light kiss on her cheek and then stepped back. "Now, I am off." He paused and glanced back at her and shook his head. "All I got to say is he is a lucky bastard." Turning he moved forward disappearing into another tear in the fabric of time. Leaving M'lar totally flabbergasted by his appearance and disappearance.

M'lar staggered on leaden feet to the nearest chair and collapsed on it. As she laid her head down on the table she felt the shift of pressure in the room and glanced up to the doorway. The bright light behind the figure in the door did not let her see who was there all she knew was she was home and her nightmare was over.

The soft voice that greeted her brought a smile to her lips. "M'lar! They rescued you and brought you home!" M'lar exhausted stood and moved to her sister's open arms and felt her grip tighten on her as she was hugged by her beloved sister Kait.

"Oh Kait! I missed you and was so worried!" She drank in the scent of her sister, the warmth of her hold and the feelings of love and tenderness that was Kait. Hearing her tender caring voice she allowed her sister to lead her back to the chair she had been sitting on.

"M'lar when did you get back?"

M'lar looked around at the safe secure surroundings that was her son's bar and sighed deeply. "Just now Kelson rescued me from the castle while others were fighting outside the door. He brought me here and left me."

Kait stepped back from her and looked her over from head to toe. "I see you wore the wedding dress back. You know I am beginning to think we need to go away to a convent and stay for a while. Maybe that way we will not be so prone to attracting the evil dark ones."

M'lar sighed deeply, another lecture and now it was from Kait. "No convent, and 'we' do not attract evil, 'I' attract the evil Kait and you now it. I bring you into the muck and then find myself trapped in it."

From the open doorway came the sarcastic tones of Shayla as she opened the door and entered the room. "So, you finally admit that you are a crap magnet and that you need to reassess your associations?"

M"'ar glanced up and nodded to Shayla, "Nice to see you too Lady Calderon."

Shayla frowned and made a face, "Please do not call me that, it is just Shayla." It was the first time that she had shown M'lar any degree of pleasantness.

"Well Shayla nice to see you too." Kait nodded to Shayla and then elbowed M'lar and nodded to Shayla's ring finger.

Shayla sighed dramatically, "Yes, Glithcalis and I are divorcing."

M'lar was shocked, she thought that Shayla and Glith would be forever for each other. "I am sorry to hear that Shayla. Is there anything that Kait or I can do?"

Shayla snorted, "Do? What is there to do, its over and I am over him and I am getting my life back! No more of this Miss Prim and proper wearing dresses and having those long boring dinners and his pompous attitude. I need to be me and I cannot be me as long as I am stuck in that mausoleum as his wife!"

Kait and M'lar both were taken aback. "Wow, never thought that you and Glithcalis would ever separate let alone end your marriage you seemed so happy!"

Kait said with a degree of shock and confusion.

"Happy? Shayla snorted her laugh and shook her head then moved to the bar and looked around. "You tending to this bar where is Baloq?"

M'lar stood up and moved behind the bar and into the kitchen. Jodi was doing dishes and looked up seeing M'lar smiled brightly. "Where is your father?"

Jodi shrugged, "I thought he would be in at anytime, he asked me to come in to open up. Glad to see you are back and in good health."

M'lar smiled and nodded, "Thank you Jodi, could you tend bar while I run up to my room and change?"

From behind she felt Shayla as she leaned over her shoulder and looked into the kitchen. "What is cooking? Anything good to eat?"

M'lar stepped aside and invited her back, "Go find something Shayla, I am going to change."

"In to what? A Dragon, something other than you?" M'lar had not heard her being so flippant with her in a teasing tone and she leaned close and smelled her breath and she could detect the hint of whiskey on her breath.

"I am going to change out of this dress and into something that is more appropriate for tending bar, that is if I have your permission."

Shayla moved over to the stove and began to poke into the pans that were being used to cook the meals that would be served. "Jodi, throw together a platter of sliced meats, cheeses, and some fruit and bring it out to the table. Kait will want a ruet bier and I shall have some pineapple juice."

Shayla smiled like a child at a birthday party and receiving presents. "Oh yes, fruit and meats just what I need, oh some of that wonderful freshly baked bread you are famous for baking."

M'lar nodded and then disappeared into the bar, "I am going up to change clothing, would you be so kind as to entertain our guest?"

Kait moved to M'lar and whispered, "She took a bottle of whiskey from behind the bar and set it over there."

M'lar glanced to where Kait had indicated and nodded, "All right, so she got her a bottle of whiskey."

Kait hissed, "Do you think she is going to kill us in our sleep?"

M'lar rolled her eyes and sighed deeply, "It's Shayla, Kait, no she is not going to kill us in our sleep, I suspect if she wanted us dead she would kill us standing here in this bar in broad daylight, now be a good hostess while I get out of this dress that has been noting but bad luck since you made me wear it!"

M'lar lifted the dress gathering it by balling it into her hands and moved up the stairs. She could finally relax having something familiar about her and feeling safe she moved to her room and went over to her bed and flopped down on the bed and sighed. "Home I am home!"

Kait moved uncomfortable and paranoid to the table that Shayla had set the bottle of whisky on and slid into a chair. "I don't bite much. You know Kait; you need to loosen up a little. I want to get to know you and M'lar better and the best way to do that is to spend some time with the two of you. You know I don't have very many friends."

Kait was immediately sympathetic to the woman as she spoke of having no friends. "Shayla when you were with Glith, I thought all those people that showed up for your long dinners were your friends."

M'lar moved to the balcony and looked below just in time to hear a portion of that conversation. "Those people that showed up for those dinners were not friends Kait, they were people that wanted to be noticed and associated with the Calderon's'. They hoped that it would raise their position in the community. In other words they were there for no other reasons than to offer their friendship to Shayla or Glith for something in return."

Shayla nodded, "By the Enoreth's beard! She's got it! They were the leaches and users of this island that only hoped to get something other than a free meal."

Kait was immediately indignant, "Well I know for a fact that Lady Rose and Rosemary were not there for anything other than to share good company and offer friendship."

Shayla sat down and began to shove some fruit into her mouth and chew the juices dripping down her chin and onto her shirtfront. "They were the exception to the rule Kaitlin. The others that showed up and forgive me M'lar your son and that woman he calls his wife only came because of duty and Fel wanted attention that Marstoq is not giving her."

M'lar flushed, "I think Mars hoped to open doors for me to meet some of the island's upper society."

Shayla sighed dramatically, "And thus the reason I had no friends at that table."

M'lar moved down the stairs and sighed as she approached the table. "Shayla, I went to support you and Glith but mostly because I wanted to make friends. You were unapproachable and rejected my friendship."

Shayla sat back drew the whiskey bottle to her lips and took a long drink and then set it down. "It was because you reeked of death playing in Tarin's temple I did not want to be friends with you."

M'lar felt a bit indignant, "Well your husband was promoting that relationship, he told me I had been a positive influence on him and he was changing and he felt that he was changing because of me."

"Glith was a fool for saying that. Tarin was using you and got what he wanted and then some, you had his child."

M'lar looked down at her hands folded in her lap and nodded. "True, I had his child and I resented each moment I spent in his temple and his bed."

M'lar shudder remembering her time with Tarin. She was about to reveal things that happened that she had never spoken of before to anyone. " Each time he took me he was so brutal and cold that I thought he intended to kill me. Do you know my first time, my first experience with a man as he took my virginity was to slam my head onto that alter and then to ravage my body and then later to nearly drown me in a vat of blood!"

Shayla snorted, "Then why stay?"

M'lar's voice grew soft, "Because I knew I was pregnant and did not know where I could go. There were very few that were kind to me. I tried to resist him and avoid his commnds."

"Why did you not resist him, you left once." Shayla was getting more information and feeling the pain she felt and she was thoroughly annoyed with Glith for keeping her tied to that horrible man.

M'lar sighed deeply her voice growing soft. " I hated that and when I resisted, he had this portrait of Myrkul whose eyes glowed red burn me horribly for being disobedient. I was healed more times than you can imagine Shayla and I wanted out. Glith brought me out and for that I am grateful, but oddly enough, It was Glith that every chance he got tried to talk me into returning to Tarin. I was not about to subject myself or my child to that temple again."

Shayla studied her and then sighed. "I suppose I had you all wrong M'lar. I had thought you nothing more than a tramp that wanted to be with men of power and darkness. I see instead a pitiful breed like me lost and alone and wondering what she will do with her life. I suppose we are more alike than I would want to admit. Here is to you and me M'lar! May we find what we want from life and manage to survive it when we find it!"

John Doe moved on silent footfalls to the rear of the House and entered through the secret passage. His partner, Lanz Manshure a small compact half silver elf, half drow assassin, followed John closely. His features were set and detached of any emotion as he followed John in carrying the phylactery that they had recovered from the necromancer's castle.

Lanz moved to the dinning room and put the vessel on the table then straightening his jacket he turned and folded his gloved hands over one another and looked at Morgan as he sat impassively at the table. "Is he dead?" Morgan's words were like silk on steel as he spoke and he waited.

John flopped down on the nearest chair and shook his head. "Don't know, he used a magical mirror to plane shift but from what we understand by tracking his location, he is in the demi plane of dread and under the powers of Ravenloft, he won't be back."

Morgan looked at the phylactery. "You are telling me he left that behind to escape you?"

John shrugged, "I am saying that is what we found in his lab. I suspect he was preparing it for her soul, from the paper work we found," John reached into his bag of holding that he had draped over his shoulder, he reached in and pulled out several scrolls. "His intent was to turn her into a lich and place her soul in there."

He nodded to the vessel. "And where is she?" John sighed and looked at Lanz and then back to Morgan, "Not sure where she is, we found a door that had been wizard locked and when we broke through the spells and entered the room all we found was a death knight. She was no where to be seen."

Morgan stood and picked up the phylactery. Looking at the vessel he could tell that it had not been completed with the spell that had been cast. "So, it is possible that she did escape?"

Shayla entered the front door, carrying her bottle of whiskey and laughed, "Escaped and back at the Hoch doing business as usual."

Morgan stood and moved to the door. "I will pay you half for your efforts Doe, you did not complete the job and I should refuse to pay you or your thugs at all. As I may need your services in the future I am sure you will agree as the contract was not completely fulfilled, half payment is fair?"

He paused to put that cold calculated stare on John, "Morgan, I know the contract was not fulfilled, and I also know you may have need of my services in the future and let us just say for the cause of fair play and just deserts, half price if acceptable this time."

Morgan narrowed his gaze on John, "Do I detect a hidden threat there Mr. Doe?"

John shrugged elaborately, "Let us just say, my men do not like to be cheated and neither do I but as you say the contract was not completed."

Morgan nodded and with a simple thought ~teleported~ leaving only a slight pop with his passing.

John turned to look at Shay, "What an ass. Well we did salvage some very nice and interesting items which I will send you some to be put in your cache of weapons."

Shayla nodded and sighed, "Well half the payment from him will be nice. You will make sure to take out my share and deposit it in the bank in Waterdeep?"

John looked tired and stood up and moved towards the door, the silent but disapproving Lanz sighed dramatically, "I suppose you are going home to your pet?"

John paused in mid stride and shook his head. "You know one of these days Lanz some woman will put a knot in your nasty tail and then we will see if you want to call them pets. Yes, I am going home to my wife where I plan on striping down naked and bumping nasty's with her and then I might see what other business I can drum up for your blood thirsty heart."

With that John was gone out the door to leave Lanz behind with Shayla, "I will see you later Shayla, I am going to lie down it was a long and nasty night of all kinds of icky nasty dead things and I can't believe we did this to rescue that green skinned Orc."

Shayla chuckled, "She is not green Lanz and you know it, She is scro and only half at that and looks nothing like a scro."

Lanz moved to the stairs he looked exhausted, "It does not matter Shayla, she has Orc blood in her. This world would be better off if men could figure out how to satisfy whatever needs they have without thinking they need a female to help them."

Shayla chuckled and shook her head. "Lanz, John is right some day you will have your whole world shifted upside down and the one that very well may do it is that very ugly and detestable female you went to rescue. The problem is until Morgan gets her out of his system and you know how he likes to toy with his 'projects' you won't stand a chance with her."

Lanz frowned "Well on that note, I am going to try and get some sleep or slit my wrists which at this time the thought of sharing a bed with her or slitting my wrists makes the wrist slitting sound more preferable. Good night Shayla."

He moved on up the stairs and Shayla sighed, "I would pay one thousand gold to see you and her together for one night."

She murmured and knowing his elven hearing was excellent cringed as he shouted, "Not going to happen!" Then she counted and heard it, the door slamming hard as he let his irritation be known and sent through out the house.

Shayla sat down on the comfortable chair she had claimed as her very own when in residence and sighed contentedly. "Yep, I think she is about to rock his world, I just hope that Morgan gets over his obsession of trying to win her over and do whatever the hell he thinks he is going to do. This is really going to get tiresome and just when I was starting to like her."

M'lar stood on top of the hill over looking foothill park below. Behind her was the panoramic view of the Sword Coast Ocean and the docks below. The daily activities of he docks made those below look like miniature people or more like an ant colony going about their hustle and bustle of daily drone life.

M'lar looked up to the evening sky and sighed, "Why won't one of you claim me as your priestess?" From behind her a soft and gentle voice spoke, "Perhaps you try to hard an expect too much." M'lar spun around and paused looking at the most handsome angelic face youth she had ever seen.

He stood dressed so pristinely in his shinning armor, he moved to stand next to her and smiled. Upon his armor was symbol of a gauntleted right hand held upright with palm forward. "You follow Torm?" She reached her hand forward to touch the symbol of one of the Triad.

"Aye, do and you will find your god. I follow Torm but I venerate Oghma." M'lar was intrigued she had heard of the Triad and had seen two such Paladins in the park that wore such armor and followed Tyr and Torm.

They had spoke of the Triad and only had minorly researched Helm, Ilmater, and Siamorphe. The young man at her side was barely sixteen years of age and was so sweet faced and young. She knew those that followed the paladins way rarely lived past the age of twenty because they were in one form completely devoted and dedicated to their trade and would lay down their lives no matter what.

Now she looked upon this handsome youth and knew that he would follow that path and give his god his life. M'lar marveled at such dedication and devotion and wondered if why she had not been called upon by another God in this realm was because she was not as devoted.

The young man turned to peer out over the wide ocean and the view to the docks below and sighed deeply, "This makes me feel insignificant, to think all of that out there is like the space above, one small speck in this sea of humanity hoping to make a difference."

M'lar felt a nudge in her mind, though she devoted her time to the dragon god Bahamut, she was not a true dragon nor did she have the ability to poly morph to a dragon. He had spoken of venerating another God, Oghma, the name just seemed to fill her with curiosity and she had to ask. 'Oghma? Is he a good and just god?"

The young man turned and smiled as he thought about the god Oghma, "He is a good and neutral god that believes in abolishing ignorance, spreading wisdom though out the realms and he protects the bards and bardlings."

M'lar thought about this a god that believed in teaching and protected the bards. "Oh I am sorry, my name is Lady M'lar, I am on the council here in New Damara and bid you welcome."

The young man bent low in a bow took her hand she had offered and raised it to his lips and pressed a tender kiss to her knuckles. "I am honored to meet you my dear Lady. I am Korell, Paladin for Torm and at your service."

M'lar felt very warm and touched by the hand of the young paladin. Moving to a bench that occupied one of the many areas on the over look she felt him follow bringing along his backpack as he walked by her side. "Tell me more of this God Korell."

He waited for her to take a seat then he sat next to her dropping his pack on the ground and opened it. Taking from the pack a very well loved and read small book he handed it to her. "You can read?"

She nodded and smiled as if it should be a foregone conclusion that she could read. "I can read and have taught several others to read."

Korell handed her the book and nodded, "You will find this book very helpful in understanding the bookworm."

M'lar chuckled, "Bookworm?"

He nodded "Other Gods have referred to him as the bookworm. It is in that book." M'lar took the book with caring hands and held it and a charge filled her body and her eyes lit up with excitement as she felt it.

M'lar gasped and looked up at Korell and the light of the love of his god was now shining forth from her. "Close your eyes M'lar and listen, listen with your heart, listen with your mind and hear. Hear his words."

M'lar obeyed hearing from within a tender voice of kindness. The words were filled with promise as her God; her new God began to speak to her.

"M'lar build me a library and fill it was knowledge, go forth and dispel ignorance, teach, sing, dance, create so that the world is no longer held in a choking darkness of ignorance, take my book and learn, then teach! Do so in my name and be one of my daughters!"

M'lar's face glowed with the love of her god as he spoke to her on the hill top and so moved by his words she stood hugging the book close to her body and she began to sing, a prayer of thanks giving and a prayer of hope and knowledge, she had been given precious knowledge. Korell smiled then shimmered from view leaving her to bask in the glory of her newly found God.