EPISODE 3

                Two weeks after Ka's departure from Venorik'Z'ress, Zojikoe found himself sitting alone in the chapel, counting healing salves. He had only begun his 'appointed task' a few days ago and, ever since that time, he considered himself tortured. Why did Matron Irrialishe send Ka to the ice caves? Why her and not him? After all, he was older, more informed, and more accustomed to out-of-House missions... Yet he's the one who remained home to write up the chapel inventory while his little sister was out walking the Underdark!

                Idly he sat atop the altar (if his mother saw him do that she'd have a heart attack...) and flipped open the dusty lid of a box that he had pulled out of an old cupboard. Inside the box was a bunch of old leather straps and belts designed for tying down an unwilling sacrifice to the altar; half-heartedly, he pulled at one of the straps in order to free it and begin the count of the other items inside, however the strap was tightly wound up with all the others in a large, tangled ball. Zojikoe closed his eyes and breathed deeply.

            "Oh for Goddess' sakes..." He mumbled sourly and dropped the ball back into the box, closed the lid firmly and threw it off to the side in irritation. "I can't do this." The young mage moaned to himself, his voice echoing off the walls. He buried his face in his hands and thought for a moment. Surely there was a way to get out of this predicament...he didn't really have to do inventory, did he? There HAD to be something else for him to do...

            He looked up from his hands and a slow smile crept onto his lips. "I'm just gonna get the hell out of here." He reasoned out loud. "I'm gonna go after Ka...sure she won't like it, but if I stay here I'll kill myself..." He chuckled cynically at the thought of the ball of straps he had found in the old box. "Oh yes, I'm leaving right now." He jumped down from the altar and hastily made his way out into the halls beyond.

***


                By all appearances, Zojikoe was making a short trip to Sorcere in order to pick up some items that he needed. In reality, he was going out the way Ka had left -- through the gates behind the Academy. He knew very well where the ice caves were and, seeing as there was only one path that lead there, he figured he could catch up with his sister in a reasonable amount of time.

                Zojikoe pulled his piwafwi tighter around him and chuckled to himself as he mounted the stairs leading up to Tier Breche. He was imagining Ka in a ditch somewhere, all bruised and cut up and starving...if not dead. It wasn't that he didn't have faith in his sister's abilities, it was just that he didn't think she could fend for herself in the wilds of the Underdark. This thought troubled him, as it made him wonder, once again, why the Matron had chosen Ka for the adventure North...

                The Academy was quiet this time of day so Zojikoe was not likely to meet anyone he knew...not that it mattered if he did. He rounded Sorcere and came around the back, then headed for the gates about a hundred feet away. The gates were guarded by magical stone spiders that came to life if a non-drow passed through without an escort; the young mage slipped through without a sound and the giant spiders did not move.

                Once through the ward statues, Zojikoe glanced over his shoulder. "Forgive me, Irrialishe." He whispered and set off into the patrol caves beyond.


***


                However, Ka was far from in the ditch and starving.

                She had learned to ration her food supply extraordinarily well and had managed to eat a bit of something twice a day for the whole two weeks she had been gone. Everything was actually just fine and dandy for the youngest member of Venorik'Z'ress; sure she didn't sleep very well at night, but other than that, things were going smoothly.

                Matron Irrialishe's map, given to Ka before her departure, was actually very accurate. Ka made good time, or so she figured, since her departure. She had to admit, though, that her pace hadn't been affected by any obstacles of any kind...she encountered a grand total of one creature that she remembered from the picture book she had flipped through the night before leaving the House. The creature was a large bird common to the Underdark; she had never seen a thing quite like the bird, but upon seeing it for the first time, she spent no more than five seconds eyeing it as it pecked away at the moss between rocks on the cavern wall.

                In the middle of her second week of travel, Ka crossed a drow caravan. Although she stayed out of their way, she could tell that they were slave traders; with them they carried several chained and battered members of various Underdark races. She never knew that her people actually went out and looked for slaves...


***


                By the second week, Ka was forced to sing to herself in order to calm the urge to scream. The boredom, as she had predicted, was becoming an overwhelming force. She blessed the fact that she hadn't run into any horrible creatures like bulettes, but sometimes she caught herself wishing she might encounter something of the type around the next bend.

                It was now the middle of the week, and Ka was submerged in an old folk battle song. "...lu' lil Quarvalsharess tuth ogglin lueth abbil esaph brorna ussa xuil ilta z'ress --" She sang loudly, then, giggling added conceitedly, "--USSTA Z'ress!!" In an even louder, out-of tune lyric change. Her voice echoed off the walls and it suddenly hit her that if anyone was overhearing this, she would be very embarrassed...and very dead if the listener was hungry.

                Ka paused and looked behind her -- no one. She smiled and waited a moment to see if she could hear any tell-tale signs of life creeping up on her. When she heard nothing, she laughed raucously and pumped her fist in the air, "Lueth Z'ress del Qu'elar Venorik'Z'ress!!!" She cried enthusiastically, adding yet another lyric into the old battle song.

                Ahead of her, the cavern made a sharp turn to the left. Ka's heart beat faster every time she encountered one of these blind turns, because she never knew what to expect when rounding the corner. Sure it was a childish anxiety, but it kept her senses alert...and it alleviated the constant boredom for a few seconds.

                Humming to herself now, Ka drew closer to the cavern wall as a safety measure. She grazed the stone surface with her fingertips, leaving heat tracks that her infrared vision could pick up. A rough cut in the cavern wall caught her attention and she stopped to examine it. The cut was not a natural indentation, but rather a man-made anomaly. She blinked and saw something within the stone niche glitter.

                Ka rolled her eyes; as much as she was attracted to shiny things, she wasn't about to stick her fingers into a niche that could harbor a venomous creature. She smiled.  "If Zoe were here, I'd ask him to stick his fingers in there..." She mumbled to herself and sighed. The cut in the wall was obviously the work of a pickaxe...it seemed that the deep gnomes were at work again, sticking their picks where they shouldn't.

                Leaving the sparkling niche behind, Ka continued on towards the sharp bend in the path. Eyeing the turn, Ka began to sing again; in her belly, the anxious feeling was taking shape. As she always had done before making a blind turn (even in her own house when she was small), Ka opened her mind an scanned the area around the bend. If anything possessing a brain was there in silent waiting, Ka would know and would most likely send a deadly psychic blast in its direction, killing the creature on impact.

                She had tested the strength of her direct mental attack force a few times before, and she had found that she could easily kill anything with a mental capacity ranging from an insect to a young child. She had tested her powers during a surface raid half a few decades ago -- it had been a birthday gift from her eldest sister; in the magical guise of a male student of Melee Magthere, Ka had made the trip to the surface world with a graduating class of warriors. She had showed off to her sister by killing a trio of surface elves in less than two minutes. When her prowess was made known to her mother, Ka suddenly gained more respect...

                If the target was more intelligent, Ka would not be able to kill in one shot. It was comparable to bulk and constitution for the average warrior: the bigger and fitter they are, the more hits they can take. In Ka's case, the more intelligent they are, the more likely it would be that they'd offer resistance. In those cases, Ka simply got more creative...

                Since the beginning of her trip, every time Ka had mentally scanned the area around a blind corner she had found nothing...well, insects, but nothing else. It was nice...but it grew irritating after a bit.

                However, this time, Ka's mind settled upon something smarter than your average insect.

                Instantly, her heart skipped a beat. Her singing cut off suddenly, and she extended the velvet fingers of her mind in order to get a better 'description' of what lay beyond the bend. The mind she searched belonged to a fellow drow...a drowess to be exact. Ka frowned...she picked up no other intelligent life around the one female mind...this was odd. A female? Alone? Ka promptly reminded herself that she was a female and that she was alone as well, and indignantly returned to her searching. The female was troubled about something that Ka did not bother to make out...

                Ahead, the sharp bend drew nearer and Ka's breathing became alarmingly heavy. The as of yet unseen female's footsteps were silent, of course, but Ka could have sworn that they were slowing down...the new drowess' mind was aware of another being's presence prodding at her consciousness and wasn't sure what to think.

                The air felt as though it weighed a thousand pounds as Ka crept to the edge of the bend and drew in a deep breath. When she finally decided herself to peek around the corner, she came face-to-face with the mysterious drowess, who had, as if on cue, also peeked around the corner at the same time.

                Surprised at the stranger's unexpected proximity, Ka screamed and backed away, pressing her back against the cave wall. The strange drowess did the exact same, her shriek complimenting Ka's in a nervous crescendo.

                Ka closed her eyes tight and mentally berated herself for being such a baby...and then, as if to add to the anxiety of the moment, a hand tapped her shoulder. She whipped her head to the side and there stood another yet another drow! Letting out a second scream, Ka jumped away from the cave wall and stood a few feet away from the corner; she clumsily felt around her boots for the daggers that she had hidden there.

                "Ka!" A voice cried.  Ka managed to free a dagger from her boot but then fumbled it horribly and dropped it to the floor with a loud clang. Recognizing the voice that called out to her, she looked to the corner wall and her eyes fell upon the familiar robed figure of her brother.

                "Zojikoe!" She cried in surprise, then, when she realized that he was supposed to be at home counting candles, she frowned. "What the hell are you doing here?!" She barked angrily.

                Before the mage could answer, the mysterious drowess re-appeared from around the corner with a hand to her heaving chest. She was a priestess...no doubt about that; she was taller than Ka by a few inches but had the same build. She wore beautiful robes and her thick, slightly-curling hair was bejeweled with an obsidian spider-tiara. Her features were fine and her eyes bore the usual, rock-solid look of a hardened, Llothian priestess.

                The drowess took a few steps out into the open, then narrowed her eyes at Ka and started for her.  "YOU!" She cried angrily and pointed at Ka. "You were..." She made a gesture with her hand near her head, "...messing with my mind!!!" She accused ominously and halted before Ka, crossing her arms over her chest.  Ka remained speechless a moment, and then leaned to the side to look past the angry drowess and shot her brother a queer look.

                "She's alone in the Underdark and she still manages to be all high-and-mighty!" She commented dryly, thumbing over at the newcomer. Zojikoe blinked idly and shrugged. The priestess spun around to see who Ka was speaking to, then returned her attention to the psionicist.

                "Is that your slave?" She asked with a sneer. Ka grinned and blew a strand of loose hair out of her eyes.

                "Not quite..." She answered thoughtfully. "He's my brother." She winked over at her sibling, then looked up into the other drowess' eyes. "And who are you, missy?" She asked pertly. The drowess raised her chin.

                "Rose of Velve'Pa'Das." She answered indignantly, "You?" Ka smirked and absent-mindedly rubbed her temple.

                "Ka of Venorik'Z'ress, 15th House of Menzoberranzan." She replied curtly, then gave the drowess, Rose, a challenging look. "What rank is your House?" She asked. She knew she sounded childish, but she couldn't help herself. Rose mumbled something.

                "15th." Came her barely-audible reply. Ka rolled her eyes.

                "Yay." She grumbled...there go the bragging rights. As if to lighten the awkward mood, Ka's brother stepped up to the two drowesses and grinned, then dropped into a low bow before Rose.

                "Vendui Jabress," He greeted her formally. "I am Zojikoe." He drew himself up to his full height and put on a proud look. "You really must excuse my sister's behavior...being out in the wilds has done nothing to sharpen her wit." He remarked coldly. Ka's jaw dropped and she gave her brother a hard stare.

                "Zoe...that was a big mistake!" She hissed through clenched teeth. "I warned you about the brain-jokes. I'm just gonna wait until you sleep tonight..." She threatened darkly and looked to Rose once more. "So...what are you doing out here creeping up on helpless people?" She asked off-handedly. Rose's face darkened.

                "Family trouble..." She gave Ka an 'I don't want to talk about it' look and smiled thinly to Zojikoe. "Vendui' Zojikoe." She replied to his earlier greeting., "What brings you and your sister out here alone?" She asked him then. Ka cleared her throat loudly and interceded.

                "I" She spat the word, "am on a mission to the Northern ice caves." She narrowed her eyes at Zoe. "But I don't know what he is doing here." She gave her brother's shoulder a sharp push. "Why don't you tell us, Zoe? Huh?" She pushed him again. "Tell us." Her eyes burned with displeasure. Zojikoe promptly brushed his shoulder off and stepped to the side, away from Ka's reach.

                 "I decided to join my sister..." He smiled a false smile at the drowess in question, "... because I felt she might need backup." He turned to Rose and his smile lost its artificial sheen. "Were you headed anywhere in particular before Ka ambushed you?" He asked her kindly; to the side, Ka gritted her teeth. Rose thought for a moment.

                "No." She answered, somewhat embarrassed. "I wasn't really going anywhere...just...away from Ched Nasad for a bit." She managed a genuine smile, her first since she had met the two siblings. Ka's eyes widened.

                 "Ched Nasad?" She echoed. "You're a long way from home!" She cried and bent to pick up the dagger that she had attempted to use earlier on. She heard Rose sigh and, after picking up her blade, looked to the priestess thoughtfully, "Wanna join me and Zoe then?" She proposed, "We're going to the ice caves in search of the Kyrashar Rose...I don't know if you've heard about it, but I'm sure that if you haven't, Zoe can fill you in on the way." She grinned and winked at Rose. Rose examined Ka, who she really knew nothing about, and then looked to Zojikoe...who she equally knew nothing about. The choice she made came to her in a split-second.

                "I'd love to." She replied elatedly.