Disclaimer: I don't own the Forgotten Realms, but the rest of these
characters are mine.
This story has been in the works for awhile in several forms. Shadiesha's
my first D&D charcter and althought it uses her, this isn't the same
charcter. Its kinda like an alternative universe Shadie. Weird how
characters change over time. Please review and let me know what you think
so far.-Kurai
CHAPTER 1 Arrival
The last thing he remembered hearing was, "I can see light," spoken in the excited tone of his female companion. Then he remembered thinking, "They said it was bright, but I didn't think they meant this bright." As he took a step out of the cave, a rumble disturbed the quiet. Everything went black after that.
He shook his head, clearing the dust and looked around. A huge fireball blazed above in an open expanse of bright blue. He tried recalling the names he had been told for the blue ceiling and the burning sphere, but they escaped him at the moment. He shook his head again and brushed back his long white hair. He looked to the cave entrance, fully expecting to see his companion perched atop the large boulder that sat to the right side of the opening, but she was not. Fighting off the brutal glare and panic, he focused on the rubble on the cave floor. Seeing the purple fabric of his companion's shirt, he rushed to her side, half stumbling from dizziness and half tripping over his dark robes to remove the rocks off her petite form.
"Shadiesha..." he said, trying to brush the dust from her dark face, "Please, wake up. I don't want to be up here without you." Almost pleading to whichever gods would listen.
She moaned softly and began to come to. Thankfully, none of the rocks where too large or heavy. He cursed his matron mother for deciding that he should be a wizard instead of a fighter. If he were a fighter, he would be stronger or if he were a more powerful mage then somehow all of this could have been avoided. Deep down he knew being a wizard or a fighter had nothing to do with what happened.
"I'm ok," Shadiesha said, rolling over and wincing in pain.
"Don't lied to me, "he climbed over to help her to sitting position.
"You worry too much, Darkel, " she smiled, but it was strained. "I've worse than this before. Can we get out of this damn cave? I've had.." she coughed, sending racking pain throughout her whole body.
Darkel moved closer to her, concern on his handsome drow face.
"I'll get you out of here."
He lifted her gently. She winced again and let out a small cry of pain. Her breathing came in short labored breathes.
The blazing fireball hung lower on the horizon then it did when he first saw it. Darkel was not sure if that was a good thing or not, and what if any significance it held at all. He laid Shadiesha down under the arms of a huge, he did not know what to call it. It was tall, dark green with a brown stalk like thing holding it up and tiny green needles sticking out off the arms. Scattered around the base were coppery colored needles. He took a deep breath. It smelled strangely under the thing, fresh and slightly cold. It looked like a safe enough place. The green needles did a surprisingly well at keeping out the blinding light and the dry needles made a softer bed and the ground alone.
"Must be some kind of weird fungus,'" he thought.
"You beginning to regret this?" Shadiesha asked. Darkel pressed a finger to Shadiesha lips.
"Don't speak, you'll need your strength," He bent down for a better look at Shadiesha's wounds. Nothing visible, he suspected she had broken ribs. She coughed again. "Rest, I'll keep watch." He kissed her forehead and she closed her eyes. Darkel noticed in normal light that Shadiesha's eyes were the same color green as the needles on the arms that sheltered them. He began wondering how that little detail had escaped him and why the color surprised him. He admitted to himself that he liked the green more than the burgundy that her eyes were in darkness. The two had been together for 5 years and in that time he felt he knew everything about her. He began thinking he was wrong. He ran his long slender fingers through Shadiesha's silver hair and leaned back against the stalk.
It was so peaceful here. There were sounds he had never heard the likes of before. In the Underdark, sound meant danger, on the Surface sounds seemed to be made for no better reason then because it could be. This was a completely different world. One of light and endless sound. A tiny bird landed on an arm just above Darkel and began singing, it was joined by others, each with a different song. He laid back, listening to the little serenade and slowly gave into sleep.
Darkel awoke to see the fireball had moved even lower on the horizon and the blue of the expanse now replaced by a riot of purples, reds and oranges. Shadiesha shifted and raised up on one elbow to peek out at the wild colors. The colors slowly grew darker as the flaming sphere sank lower. The two sat in speechless wonder, neither wanting to disturb the moment.
Shadiesha coughed. "Its getting worse, Darkel," she said between gasps.
"We'll have to find a better shelter. It's gotten cooler since that fiery thing went down."
Shadiesha nodded and tried to move, but only ended up in sever pain. She cursed under her breath and laid back down.
"I finally get here and I can't even enjoy it," she muttered.
Darkel turned and smiled at her.
"We've got plenty of time to enjoy it. This is going to take a lot of getting used to and we have no idea where we are. First thing thought, is finding a better shelter. I'll worry about where we are after that." Darkel glanced to the cave, then Shadiesha and then back out around the shelter. "Don't suppose you're willing to go back into the cave?"
She responded with a simple a pleading horrified look.
He sighed. "I thought not but had to ask." he smiles his best disarming smile. "I'll go out and see what i can find. You'll be all right here alone?"
Shadiesha nodded. He helped her to a sitting position against the stalk, handed Shadiesha her swords and kissed her.
"I'll be fine, but hurry back anyway," she said smiling up at him.
"I will." He kissed her once more and headed off away from the cave and shelter. He glanced back once more, and could hardly see Shadiesha even though he knew exactly where she sat. She always had a talent for hiding. The first time they met she had been hiding and with good reason. She had stolen an item from a high ranking Matron Mother- his mother. To this day, he still had no idea how she pulled it off or what exactly the item was. He smirked to himself, picturing the look on his mother's face when she realized the item was gone.
It was love at first sight, a meeting destined by the gods and nothing would come between them. He smiled at that thought. They were on the surface. Darkel could hardly believe it. One day, he is the second son of the Matron Mother of the Second House, and the next he is running from the city with a crazy, little female thief and her father.
Even with the fireball gone, it was still wasn't completely dark. A white ball now replaced the burning one. It's bluish light did not blind or warm, but it was much more conformable to the dark elf's eyes. He looked up at the expanse now a dark navy blue with little pin prick holes of light. This place just kept getting stranger.
Breathing was becoming more difficult. Shadiesha lay with her eyes closed, listening to the sounds around her and thinking. Part of her regretted continuing after her father's death and she couldn't help but think she was partly responsible. He was killed by a deep dragon three months back. She found herself wishing she was back in the Underdark. At least the Underdark, as dangerous as it is, was familiar. She kept thinking if they would have turned around then and there that the two of them could have found a place to live happily. She smirked to herself realizing the irony of happiness in the underdark. They made it to the surface, but with no further plan or provision beyond that. This was all much more frightening than she thought it would be. It was just so big and open.
Her father had mapped this out, gotten the gear, most of it surface made so that it would not be destroyed by the sun. It wouldn't do to have his daughter running around naked. He even sounded like he had a plan once they reached their destination. If he did, he took that information with him to the grave.
She squirmed to peek out from under her shelter and looked up. A sprinkling of tiny points of light, littered the expanse above her. "So this is what all the fuss is about," she thought, smirking again. Stars. He wanted to see stars. "Those little things hanging up there must be stars. " She tried to adjust to see them better. "If my damn chest would stop hurting.... I'm gonna die up here, helpless. " She thought.
Leaves rustled, the underbrush being disturbed, Shadiesha tried to sit up, but it hurt too much. She held back a yelp of pain, wincing. The pain cleared quickly enough. Sword in hand, she sat ready. Whatever it was it made a lot of noise, but didn't seem to care. It seemed to Shadiesha that everything on the surface made noise. Stealth was not a skill highly valued, it seemed to her. She slowly moved back closer to the stalk, deeper into the shadows. Stealth kept her alive this long and she'd be damned if she throw it to the wind now.
To her surprise, a small red furred creature came out of the bush. It wasn't very large and didn't look too intimidating. It's long white tipped tail swished from side to side. It made a little sniffing sound as it moved closer to her shelter. The small furry thing looked harmless enough, but things are rarely as harmless as they look. It had a snout, small black, wet looking nose and little white tips on its ears. Shadiesha cocked her head to the side and smiled as she watched it sniff around. Something caught the creature's attention and it darted off into the underbrush again.
She examined her swords. They were a matched set with a minor enchantment placed on them. She traced the design of the blade. The blade itself appeared loosely braided with two slits cut into the blade to lessen the weight. The swords were a gift, given to her when she was only a child. In smaller hands, the short swords acted more like long swords. Shadiesha relaxed a bit and let the swords drop from her hands. She shivered and half wished the sun, that's what that thing was called, would reappear . She noticed the sounds were different, more ominous. The songs from earlier were replaced with another chirping, slightly metallic song.
Shadiesha closed her eyes. The pain of each breath worsening in the cool dampness of the night air. She tried not to think about it and drifted off into a restless, dreamless slumber.
Twigs snapped under a heavy boot, jolting awake Shadiesha. She reached for her dropped swords and cursed her carelessness.
"Look wot we got 'ere, Sir," came a course male voice.
Shadiesha froze, praying she was deep enough in the shadows and that the man was talking about something else, maybe the red furred creature. Instinct told her differently.
"Somethin's under the tree."
Shadiesha readied her weapons. A dark shape moved, peeking under the arms at her. She kicked, sending a spray of dried needles into the face of the peeker.
"Drow!" He yelled in surprise ah he fell back. Someone ran over to help his companion up, but had to dodge a swinging short sword. He simply batted the sword aside sending it flying from her hand.
"A feisty one too."
One made a grab for Shadiesha and was greeted by a swift kick to the face. He fell back with a bloody nose and she reached for a branch to hang onto. The other, now more wary of his quarry, came in from the side. She saw him and shifted to kick at him, but was grabbed from behind and pulled out from under the tree. She squirmed and fought until the pain caught up to her. She tried to scream, but a rough calloused hand closed over her mouth.
A taller figure stood off to the side. He simply nodded. The one holding her reeked of sweat , his rough hands tightening around Shadiesha. She didn't look up, knowing she was defeated.
"Bring her back to the ship." The taller one must have been speaking, but Shadiesha couldn't be sure. Shadiesha, in one last act of defiance before loosing consciousness, bit down hard on the hand dover her mouth, drawing blood. Cursing, the man threw Shadiesha's prone form over his shoulder.
The white sphere rose higher overhead and the air grew colder still. Darkel could see his breath and he did not like it. In his search, he found nothing better than the cave, which Shadiesha refused and he couldn't blame her, and the green thing he left her under. He also did not like leaving her alone for so long. In her conduction, she would be hard pressed to defend herself. Normally, he would not worry. She was as a capable a fighter as he had ever known and he owed her his life many times over. He could tell it was growing late. He surveyed the area once more and decided to abandoned his search to go back to Shadiesha.
Everything felt so alien. Darkel found this feeling unsettling at best. It was the same trail he had followed earlier. He glanced over his shoulder, seeing the same shadows and unfamiliar shapes he saw before. The breeze died away; nothing stirred. This set him further on edge. He quickened his pace.
Arriving near the tree, he found several broken limbs and booted foot pints leading toward where he left his beloved. Icy fear stabbed Darkel's heart. He ran the last bit to the tree, fear's skeletal fingers digging deeper. He reached the scene finding only more booted footprints. Signs of a struggle became visible as he looked around. A spray of dried needles, a broken branch under the tree, scuffled footprints, then he saw a glint of metal off to the side. He went over ot examine it closer. It was one of Shadiesha's swords. Darkel picked it up and slid it into his belt, then searched to see which direction the footprints went off in.
Whomever kidnapped Shadiesha was not being subtle. They left a clear trail, which he thought was plain stupid. Drow rarely traveled alone, especially on the surface, but then she would not have been left alone to begin with. They had to expect someone to follow, but maybe they didn't care. The trail continued along to the east until reaching a sheer drop. Another trail lead down to the beach below.
In the distance, he made out the shape of a large ship's sails. Darkel dropped to his knees in despair. Shadiesha was on that ship, of that he was certain. He closed his eyes, trying to focus his thoughts enough to think of some useful spell. In a moment of pure frustration, without concuss thought, he let loose a fireball in the ship's direction. It lit up the night sky, falling harmless shy of its target.
"Shadiesha!" he yelled into the night. "I will find you again and when I do I will be strong and powerful enough to keep you safe." He vowed softly before despair took him.
The stench of dirty, wretched souls seeping into the comfortable blackness of unconsciousness, wrenched Shadiesha from its welcoming arms. The floor moved up and gently dow and back again. She curled into a ball and covered her head, believing this to be another earthquake. The surface was not as stable as she originally believed. Hearing course laughter, she tentatively looked up to see several very dirty, barely clothed humans. At she assumed them to be human or extremely tall goblins. Everything seemed larger up here, why not the goblins too.
"Found himself a drow, did he," said the biggest of the group.
All Shadiesha made out was the word for 'drow". She wished had paid more attention when her father and Darkel tried teaching her surface common. It wasn't so much hard to learn as much as she was easily distracted. "Hook horrors and such will do that. You try concentrating when you hear scraping," she would say. Darkel would start to say something but be dismissed by her father. Arguing was pointless.
"Must not be plannin on keepin' her or she'd be in his cabin by now."
"Why would he want a filthy drow when he can have this?" Said the female, standing next to the apparent leader, running her hands along her body suggestively.
"Who hasn't had that?" A younger male stepped forward with a smirk.
The female huffed and stomped off. Passing by Shadiesha, she gave the drow a swift kick. Shadiesha cried out in pain, feeling another rib crack. Another joined in the game, while she tried curling up to protect her ribs.
A whip cracked and someone squealed, Shadiesha meekly looked up in time to see another slave whipped.
Someone, the one whom she had broken his nose, approached Shadiesha and poured a thick, vile tasting liquid down her throat. She felt her ribs snapping back into place, on of the most unnatural things she had ever felt. Rough hands lifted to her feet and half drug her to a wooden cage. The drow was tossed in and the door locked. Rolling onto her back, Shadiesha caught site of the female slave, who was smirking victoriously at the caged drow. The slave all but blew Shadiesha a kiss. The other slaves found all this to be most amusing. Shadiesha groaned and muttered every curse she knew. A few of the slaves must have understood some of the curses and took a couple of steps back from the cage.
Some time later, Shadiesha had no idea how much time passed, the door to her cage was opened. She was drug out of the cage and pulled up on deck. The sun was blinding and the rocking had not ceased. Someone thrust a mop into her hand.
"You have got to be kidding me," Shadiesha groaned and looked questionably at the mop and bucket. She took the mop with a smirk, gripping it much l ike a bo, in equal thirds with the rag end up. Shadiesha having never mopped anything in her life, thought them giving a prisoner a weapon as a foolish mistake and before anyone could react she hit the nearest crewman with an overhead blow that sqarely connected with his skull. She then readied for another attack, seeing someone moving to her left. She turned using the momentum to add to her swing. The crewman saw it coming thought and caught the tail of mop, grabbing it and holding onto it. Shadiesha, still holding her end of the mop, shifted and kicked to the man's stomach, doubling him over.
Two large crewmembers rushed over to Shadiesha and overpowered her knocking her to the boards of th ship and ending her little revolt. They dragged her, kicking and squirming to a large keg and ties her to it. The captain appeared as if from thin air, whip in hand. The whip tore at the smooth flesh of her back, sending waves of searing pain with each strike. She could no longer form cohereant thought and and trying not to scream became a lost cause. A small part of her realized it was all her own fault. Mopping the deck couldn't have been that bad, not compared to the pain.
CHAPTER 1 Arrival
The last thing he remembered hearing was, "I can see light," spoken in the excited tone of his female companion. Then he remembered thinking, "They said it was bright, but I didn't think they meant this bright." As he took a step out of the cave, a rumble disturbed the quiet. Everything went black after that.
He shook his head, clearing the dust and looked around. A huge fireball blazed above in an open expanse of bright blue. He tried recalling the names he had been told for the blue ceiling and the burning sphere, but they escaped him at the moment. He shook his head again and brushed back his long white hair. He looked to the cave entrance, fully expecting to see his companion perched atop the large boulder that sat to the right side of the opening, but she was not. Fighting off the brutal glare and panic, he focused on the rubble on the cave floor. Seeing the purple fabric of his companion's shirt, he rushed to her side, half stumbling from dizziness and half tripping over his dark robes to remove the rocks off her petite form.
"Shadiesha..." he said, trying to brush the dust from her dark face, "Please, wake up. I don't want to be up here without you." Almost pleading to whichever gods would listen.
She moaned softly and began to come to. Thankfully, none of the rocks where too large or heavy. He cursed his matron mother for deciding that he should be a wizard instead of a fighter. If he were a fighter, he would be stronger or if he were a more powerful mage then somehow all of this could have been avoided. Deep down he knew being a wizard or a fighter had nothing to do with what happened.
"I'm ok," Shadiesha said, rolling over and wincing in pain.
"Don't lied to me, "he climbed over to help her to sitting position.
"You worry too much, Darkel, " she smiled, but it was strained. "I've worse than this before. Can we get out of this damn cave? I've had.." she coughed, sending racking pain throughout her whole body.
Darkel moved closer to her, concern on his handsome drow face.
"I'll get you out of here."
He lifted her gently. She winced again and let out a small cry of pain. Her breathing came in short labored breathes.
The blazing fireball hung lower on the horizon then it did when he first saw it. Darkel was not sure if that was a good thing or not, and what if any significance it held at all. He laid Shadiesha down under the arms of a huge, he did not know what to call it. It was tall, dark green with a brown stalk like thing holding it up and tiny green needles sticking out off the arms. Scattered around the base were coppery colored needles. He took a deep breath. It smelled strangely under the thing, fresh and slightly cold. It looked like a safe enough place. The green needles did a surprisingly well at keeping out the blinding light and the dry needles made a softer bed and the ground alone.
"Must be some kind of weird fungus,'" he thought.
"You beginning to regret this?" Shadiesha asked. Darkel pressed a finger to Shadiesha lips.
"Don't speak, you'll need your strength," He bent down for a better look at Shadiesha's wounds. Nothing visible, he suspected she had broken ribs. She coughed again. "Rest, I'll keep watch." He kissed her forehead and she closed her eyes. Darkel noticed in normal light that Shadiesha's eyes were the same color green as the needles on the arms that sheltered them. He began wondering how that little detail had escaped him and why the color surprised him. He admitted to himself that he liked the green more than the burgundy that her eyes were in darkness. The two had been together for 5 years and in that time he felt he knew everything about her. He began thinking he was wrong. He ran his long slender fingers through Shadiesha's silver hair and leaned back against the stalk.
It was so peaceful here. There were sounds he had never heard the likes of before. In the Underdark, sound meant danger, on the Surface sounds seemed to be made for no better reason then because it could be. This was a completely different world. One of light and endless sound. A tiny bird landed on an arm just above Darkel and began singing, it was joined by others, each with a different song. He laid back, listening to the little serenade and slowly gave into sleep.
Darkel awoke to see the fireball had moved even lower on the horizon and the blue of the expanse now replaced by a riot of purples, reds and oranges. Shadiesha shifted and raised up on one elbow to peek out at the wild colors. The colors slowly grew darker as the flaming sphere sank lower. The two sat in speechless wonder, neither wanting to disturb the moment.
Shadiesha coughed. "Its getting worse, Darkel," she said between gasps.
"We'll have to find a better shelter. It's gotten cooler since that fiery thing went down."
Shadiesha nodded and tried to move, but only ended up in sever pain. She cursed under her breath and laid back down.
"I finally get here and I can't even enjoy it," she muttered.
Darkel turned and smiled at her.
"We've got plenty of time to enjoy it. This is going to take a lot of getting used to and we have no idea where we are. First thing thought, is finding a better shelter. I'll worry about where we are after that." Darkel glanced to the cave, then Shadiesha and then back out around the shelter. "Don't suppose you're willing to go back into the cave?"
She responded with a simple a pleading horrified look.
He sighed. "I thought not but had to ask." he smiles his best disarming smile. "I'll go out and see what i can find. You'll be all right here alone?"
Shadiesha nodded. He helped her to a sitting position against the stalk, handed Shadiesha her swords and kissed her.
"I'll be fine, but hurry back anyway," she said smiling up at him.
"I will." He kissed her once more and headed off away from the cave and shelter. He glanced back once more, and could hardly see Shadiesha even though he knew exactly where she sat. She always had a talent for hiding. The first time they met she had been hiding and with good reason. She had stolen an item from a high ranking Matron Mother- his mother. To this day, he still had no idea how she pulled it off or what exactly the item was. He smirked to himself, picturing the look on his mother's face when she realized the item was gone.
It was love at first sight, a meeting destined by the gods and nothing would come between them. He smiled at that thought. They were on the surface. Darkel could hardly believe it. One day, he is the second son of the Matron Mother of the Second House, and the next he is running from the city with a crazy, little female thief and her father.
Even with the fireball gone, it was still wasn't completely dark. A white ball now replaced the burning one. It's bluish light did not blind or warm, but it was much more conformable to the dark elf's eyes. He looked up at the expanse now a dark navy blue with little pin prick holes of light. This place just kept getting stranger.
Breathing was becoming more difficult. Shadiesha lay with her eyes closed, listening to the sounds around her and thinking. Part of her regretted continuing after her father's death and she couldn't help but think she was partly responsible. He was killed by a deep dragon three months back. She found herself wishing she was back in the Underdark. At least the Underdark, as dangerous as it is, was familiar. She kept thinking if they would have turned around then and there that the two of them could have found a place to live happily. She smirked to herself realizing the irony of happiness in the underdark. They made it to the surface, but with no further plan or provision beyond that. This was all much more frightening than she thought it would be. It was just so big and open.
Her father had mapped this out, gotten the gear, most of it surface made so that it would not be destroyed by the sun. It wouldn't do to have his daughter running around naked. He even sounded like he had a plan once they reached their destination. If he did, he took that information with him to the grave.
She squirmed to peek out from under her shelter and looked up. A sprinkling of tiny points of light, littered the expanse above her. "So this is what all the fuss is about," she thought, smirking again. Stars. He wanted to see stars. "Those little things hanging up there must be stars. " She tried to adjust to see them better. "If my damn chest would stop hurting.... I'm gonna die up here, helpless. " She thought.
Leaves rustled, the underbrush being disturbed, Shadiesha tried to sit up, but it hurt too much. She held back a yelp of pain, wincing. The pain cleared quickly enough. Sword in hand, she sat ready. Whatever it was it made a lot of noise, but didn't seem to care. It seemed to Shadiesha that everything on the surface made noise. Stealth was not a skill highly valued, it seemed to her. She slowly moved back closer to the stalk, deeper into the shadows. Stealth kept her alive this long and she'd be damned if she throw it to the wind now.
To her surprise, a small red furred creature came out of the bush. It wasn't very large and didn't look too intimidating. It's long white tipped tail swished from side to side. It made a little sniffing sound as it moved closer to her shelter. The small furry thing looked harmless enough, but things are rarely as harmless as they look. It had a snout, small black, wet looking nose and little white tips on its ears. Shadiesha cocked her head to the side and smiled as she watched it sniff around. Something caught the creature's attention and it darted off into the underbrush again.
She examined her swords. They were a matched set with a minor enchantment placed on them. She traced the design of the blade. The blade itself appeared loosely braided with two slits cut into the blade to lessen the weight. The swords were a gift, given to her when she was only a child. In smaller hands, the short swords acted more like long swords. Shadiesha relaxed a bit and let the swords drop from her hands. She shivered and half wished the sun, that's what that thing was called, would reappear . She noticed the sounds were different, more ominous. The songs from earlier were replaced with another chirping, slightly metallic song.
Shadiesha closed her eyes. The pain of each breath worsening in the cool dampness of the night air. She tried not to think about it and drifted off into a restless, dreamless slumber.
Twigs snapped under a heavy boot, jolting awake Shadiesha. She reached for her dropped swords and cursed her carelessness.
"Look wot we got 'ere, Sir," came a course male voice.
Shadiesha froze, praying she was deep enough in the shadows and that the man was talking about something else, maybe the red furred creature. Instinct told her differently.
"Somethin's under the tree."
Shadiesha readied her weapons. A dark shape moved, peeking under the arms at her. She kicked, sending a spray of dried needles into the face of the peeker.
"Drow!" He yelled in surprise ah he fell back. Someone ran over to help his companion up, but had to dodge a swinging short sword. He simply batted the sword aside sending it flying from her hand.
"A feisty one too."
One made a grab for Shadiesha and was greeted by a swift kick to the face. He fell back with a bloody nose and she reached for a branch to hang onto. The other, now more wary of his quarry, came in from the side. She saw him and shifted to kick at him, but was grabbed from behind and pulled out from under the tree. She squirmed and fought until the pain caught up to her. She tried to scream, but a rough calloused hand closed over her mouth.
A taller figure stood off to the side. He simply nodded. The one holding her reeked of sweat , his rough hands tightening around Shadiesha. She didn't look up, knowing she was defeated.
"Bring her back to the ship." The taller one must have been speaking, but Shadiesha couldn't be sure. Shadiesha, in one last act of defiance before loosing consciousness, bit down hard on the hand dover her mouth, drawing blood. Cursing, the man threw Shadiesha's prone form over his shoulder.
The white sphere rose higher overhead and the air grew colder still. Darkel could see his breath and he did not like it. In his search, he found nothing better than the cave, which Shadiesha refused and he couldn't blame her, and the green thing he left her under. He also did not like leaving her alone for so long. In her conduction, she would be hard pressed to defend herself. Normally, he would not worry. She was as a capable a fighter as he had ever known and he owed her his life many times over. He could tell it was growing late. He surveyed the area once more and decided to abandoned his search to go back to Shadiesha.
Everything felt so alien. Darkel found this feeling unsettling at best. It was the same trail he had followed earlier. He glanced over his shoulder, seeing the same shadows and unfamiliar shapes he saw before. The breeze died away; nothing stirred. This set him further on edge. He quickened his pace.
Arriving near the tree, he found several broken limbs and booted foot pints leading toward where he left his beloved. Icy fear stabbed Darkel's heart. He ran the last bit to the tree, fear's skeletal fingers digging deeper. He reached the scene finding only more booted footprints. Signs of a struggle became visible as he looked around. A spray of dried needles, a broken branch under the tree, scuffled footprints, then he saw a glint of metal off to the side. He went over ot examine it closer. It was one of Shadiesha's swords. Darkel picked it up and slid it into his belt, then searched to see which direction the footprints went off in.
Whomever kidnapped Shadiesha was not being subtle. They left a clear trail, which he thought was plain stupid. Drow rarely traveled alone, especially on the surface, but then she would not have been left alone to begin with. They had to expect someone to follow, but maybe they didn't care. The trail continued along to the east until reaching a sheer drop. Another trail lead down to the beach below.
In the distance, he made out the shape of a large ship's sails. Darkel dropped to his knees in despair. Shadiesha was on that ship, of that he was certain. He closed his eyes, trying to focus his thoughts enough to think of some useful spell. In a moment of pure frustration, without concuss thought, he let loose a fireball in the ship's direction. It lit up the night sky, falling harmless shy of its target.
"Shadiesha!" he yelled into the night. "I will find you again and when I do I will be strong and powerful enough to keep you safe." He vowed softly before despair took him.
The stench of dirty, wretched souls seeping into the comfortable blackness of unconsciousness, wrenched Shadiesha from its welcoming arms. The floor moved up and gently dow and back again. She curled into a ball and covered her head, believing this to be another earthquake. The surface was not as stable as she originally believed. Hearing course laughter, she tentatively looked up to see several very dirty, barely clothed humans. At she assumed them to be human or extremely tall goblins. Everything seemed larger up here, why not the goblins too.
"Found himself a drow, did he," said the biggest of the group.
All Shadiesha made out was the word for 'drow". She wished had paid more attention when her father and Darkel tried teaching her surface common. It wasn't so much hard to learn as much as she was easily distracted. "Hook horrors and such will do that. You try concentrating when you hear scraping," she would say. Darkel would start to say something but be dismissed by her father. Arguing was pointless.
"Must not be plannin on keepin' her or she'd be in his cabin by now."
"Why would he want a filthy drow when he can have this?" Said the female, standing next to the apparent leader, running her hands along her body suggestively.
"Who hasn't had that?" A younger male stepped forward with a smirk.
The female huffed and stomped off. Passing by Shadiesha, she gave the drow a swift kick. Shadiesha cried out in pain, feeling another rib crack. Another joined in the game, while she tried curling up to protect her ribs.
A whip cracked and someone squealed, Shadiesha meekly looked up in time to see another slave whipped.
Someone, the one whom she had broken his nose, approached Shadiesha and poured a thick, vile tasting liquid down her throat. She felt her ribs snapping back into place, on of the most unnatural things she had ever felt. Rough hands lifted to her feet and half drug her to a wooden cage. The drow was tossed in and the door locked. Rolling onto her back, Shadiesha caught site of the female slave, who was smirking victoriously at the caged drow. The slave all but blew Shadiesha a kiss. The other slaves found all this to be most amusing. Shadiesha groaned and muttered every curse she knew. A few of the slaves must have understood some of the curses and took a couple of steps back from the cage.
Some time later, Shadiesha had no idea how much time passed, the door to her cage was opened. She was drug out of the cage and pulled up on deck. The sun was blinding and the rocking had not ceased. Someone thrust a mop into her hand.
"You have got to be kidding me," Shadiesha groaned and looked questionably at the mop and bucket. She took the mop with a smirk, gripping it much l ike a bo, in equal thirds with the rag end up. Shadiesha having never mopped anything in her life, thought them giving a prisoner a weapon as a foolish mistake and before anyone could react she hit the nearest crewman with an overhead blow that sqarely connected with his skull. She then readied for another attack, seeing someone moving to her left. She turned using the momentum to add to her swing. The crewman saw it coming thought and caught the tail of mop, grabbing it and holding onto it. Shadiesha, still holding her end of the mop, shifted and kicked to the man's stomach, doubling him over.
Two large crewmembers rushed over to Shadiesha and overpowered her knocking her to the boards of th ship and ending her little revolt. They dragged her, kicking and squirming to a large keg and ties her to it. The captain appeared as if from thin air, whip in hand. The whip tore at the smooth flesh of her back, sending waves of searing pain with each strike. She could no longer form cohereant thought and and trying not to scream became a lost cause. A small part of her realized it was all her own fault. Mopping the deck couldn't have been that bad, not compared to the pain.