Epilogue
Zak
padded down busy Narbondellyn, Zaire following closely behind him. Beside him, Jarlaxle yawned.
"Didn't
get much sleep?" Zak grinned, not looking at the head of House Do'Urden.
"No,"
Jarlaxle sighed. The new 'government'
had smoothed out most of the rough edges in a remarkably quick period of
time. There had been some half-hearted
attempts from the females at rebellion, but most of the others had settled
down, perhaps resentfully but relieved that they weren't going to lose their
lives, or get tortured like what Zak would have had if he had lost to
them. Lanfaye had settled down really
well...once she'd ascertained that Jarlaxle wasn't about to try and lord it
over her.
"How
are you?" Jarlaxle grinned. Zak had
been very busy for the past few months, and this was the first time since then
that Jarlaxle had seen him.
"Also
tired," Zak smiled. Jarlaxle noted that
his brother did smile more often now. "I worked out a bit of 'agreement' with magic – I use it at least once a
day, and it stops trying to take over my voice. It really spooks Zaire." The cheetah chirped an agreement.
"You
can talk to it?" Jarlaxle looked surprised.
"It
is alive, in a sense," Zak sighed. "It's complicated."
"I'm
sure it is," Jarlaxle shrugged. "Ah,
there's Laner."
"And
he's looking well," Zak grinned.
"What
do you expect?" Jarlaxle muttered.
The
dwarf looked up from his new, impressive stall in the middle of the
bazaar. "Zaknafein an' Jarlaxle!" he
roared, turning to them.
"Hello,
Laner," Zak smiled, "You conniving bugger."
"Me
beard," Laner grinned from ear to ear, "Yer city's lookin' better den yit ever
has. The neew nem's better too."
Zaknafein
and Drizzt had changed the name of the city. No more 'of Menzoberra', it was now 'Che'el D'aerthe'. More appropriate, somehow.
There
were more non-drow traders in the bazaar now, and Zak couldn't say that it
wasn't boosting the economy.
One
of the trader's 'goods' caught his eye while Jarlaxle was bargaining heatedly
with Laner over a suit of mithril armor.
Amongst
a group of selling, depressed-looking slaves were two proud elves. Zak thought they were a new type of surface
elves until he noted the faint 'aura' that all Underdark-born creatures had,
sort of like a flicker of red brown amber in the color of magic.
The
elves had light bronzed-yellow skin, and deep black hair. The pupils of their eyes were also black,
and the eyes almond-shaped and tilted up at the sides rather exotically. They seemed to be smaller sized than the
drow elves that gawked at them, but not in musculature or such but in
proportion. They radiated a certain
aloof laziness even through the shackles on their hands.
"What
elves are those?" Zak nudged Laner.
Laner
squinted in the direction of his pointed finger. "Oh. Rare type. Underdark. Live inna beeg, beeg cavern underneath one o' the surface world
oceans. Can't remember whut they're
called."
"I
see," Zak said dryly. He padded over to
the elves, Jarlaxle looking torn between bargaining and following. Muttering apologies to Laner, the lord of
Do'Urden hurried after his brother and the cheetah.
The
drow parted from his way. Three meters
away, he deftly picked out the language of the elves from their minds into his
head.
The
slaver, a drow, wandered up to him. "Greetings and Salutations, ArchMage. May I interest you in any of my goods?"
Zak
looked curiously at the elves. "What
are they?" he asked. One of them
stiffened, but the other put a restraining hand on his elbow.
"Zhongguo elves," the slaver shrugged,
"From BaiLong cavern, far north from
here. They're good fighters and
good...riders. Would you like to buy
them?"
"Perhaps
so," Zak said. "Five hundred adamantite
for each."
"Five
hundred, sir?" the slaver looked dismayed. Zaire snarled then, startling some of the goblin slaves into gibbering
terror, and he looked nervously at Zak.
"Or
nothing," Jarlaxle added.
"Very
good sir," the slaver regained his composure.
Zak
nodded, and paid up. He picked up both
chains of the shackles, and jerked his head, signaling that the elves should
follow.
One
of the elves dug in his heels, but the other hissed at him and he reluctantly
followed.
"I'd
see you later," Jarlaxle said, turning morosely back to Laner. Zaknafein nodded at him.
Zak
looked pointedly at nothing in front of him, and a portal formed to a meeting
room in HQ. Zaire padded in first, and
Zak dragged the two elves after him.
"Right,"
he said in their language, when he had indicated that they should sit down,
"Tell me about this 'White Dragon' cavern of yours."
The
first looked surprised, then suspicious. "Why?" he asked, in a musical voice.
"You
are slaves to me," Zak said dryly, "Though I would rather see it as a payable
debt, it is purely your choice."
"So
that you can invade us?" the second one growled, "We will raise weapons and
defend our ground, unshakable as rock."
Zak
looked significantly at the first.
"He
is young and excitable," the first said, "This paying back of debt is not
uncommon to us."
"Actually,
I was thinking more of trade," Zak said, "And diplomatic relations. I do want Che'el D'aerthe to continue on
after I die."
"Water
from far away cannot quench a near fire." The first observed.
"Perhaps
so," Zak commented, "But it can surely scare off any arsonists."
"Well
said," the first one grinned, "My name is Tianxiang."
"Heaven's
Luck?" Zak observed.
"Not
so lucky, apparently," Tianxiang
grinned. "Though many call me Luck."
"My
name is Feijian," the second said
grudgingly.
"Flying
sword. Interesting," Zak grinned. "Now, are you two important in the world of
yours?"
"Important
enough," Luck said carefully.
"I
see," Zak commented. "Enough to set up
relations in a favorable light?"
"Yes."
Luck said.
Feijian raised an eyebrow. "But..." he began.
"We
also need allies," Luck said, "Better if it were to have come from our Qin family, would it not?"
"Yes,"
he sighed.
"Good,"
Luck grinned, "It is good that you gave us a debt then," he told Zak.
"Why
is that so?" Zak asked.
"Well,
if you were just to set us free it would have been an insult," Luck explained,
"We'd have killed you."
"It's
what we're like," Feijian grinned
wolfishly. "Friend?"
"Friend,"
Zak smiled. Why not, anyway?
"Right,"
Luck commented, "Now we'd protect you until you decide our debt's been paid
off. And help you in any way we think
good, of course."
"Honor
is that big among your race?" Zak grinned.
"Unfortunately."
Feijian sighed.