Catti-brie had managed to get across the room and she was attempting to get
herself out of the chair but it was not easy task considering her arms were tied behind her.
She was fighting her way out of the chair when her captor walked into the room. If he
noticed her attempts to escape he didn't say anything.
He grabbed her roughly by her hair and he spoke some words that Catti-brie
couldn't recognize and the rope that was holding her fell free to the floor. He pulled her
on by her hair but she didn't utter a word of complaint. She didn't want to show any signs
of weakness around him.
He dragged her on down many spiraling staircases. They finally stopped at what
must have been the lowest level. He threw her to the floor. She looked around and saw
that the room she was now in must be the dungeon. There were shackles hanging up on
the wall and a bunch of other odd-looking torture devices. What was he going to do to her
now?
"You will be staying down here for the remainder of your visit, which I assure
you will be very short indeed." He said as he rolled at jeweled dagger in his hands, which
looked extremely familiar to Catti-brie. She gasped out loud as she finally recognized it.
He noticed her looking at it and he deftly spun it into its sheath.
He pulled her up from the ground and lifted her up with what seemed like super-
human strength and he threw her against the far wall in the room. As she flew across the
room her necklace came off. She hit the wall extremely hard and she heard a couple of
bones snap and some of her muscles twisted the wrong way. There was no use even
trying to investigate her wounds because she couldn't see anything in this pitch-dark
room.
Her attention was quickly brought back to her current situation when she realized
that he was still in the room somewhere. She could hear him laughing but she couldn't
make out where he was in relation to where she was. His footsteps where absolutely
silent so she couldn't tell where he was until he was right behind her breathing heavily on
her neck. He slipped the necklace around her head for an instant just allowing her to see
momentarily and then he took it off.
After he was done toying with her, he grabbed each of her hands and slammed
them into the wall with such force he broke some fingers on each of her hands along with
jamming several others. The cuffs he had slammed her hands into closed round her
wrists. With the cuffs around her wrists she was now dangling a good few inches above
the floor. She couldn't quite reach the floor flat footed so she had to resort to relieving the
pressure by standing on her toes.
"When I grow tired of this game you will be the one who will pay." Her captor
said with a chilling tone. To emphasize his point he brought out his dagger again and he
placed the sharp edge on her throat and he drew a line of red blood across her throat. She
moaned softly in pain, but she said nothing. He laughed again and he left with her
necklace leaving her all alone in the dark cold room.
# # # # # # # # #
"I have a prisoner to bring in." Jarlaxle remarked to his comrade. The man
grunted his reply.
"Put the prisoner in the dungeon then if the prisoner is that important. I have no
time for them. So do what you will with them but make sure you are quick about it." The
cloaked figure replied to Jarlaxle. Jarlaxle bowed low and walked out of the room, his
magical boots clicking as he left.
He motioned the drow that was holding the unconscious Drizzt to follow him.
They walked down the dimly lit corridor until they reached the end room. Jarlaxle
commanded his comrade to put Drizzt on the ground. He deftly pulled out a vial and put
it up to Drizzt's lips. He forced it down his throat. Drizzt coughed as the potion woke him
up. He opened his lavender orbs and looked around blinking to try to orient himself.
"Say nothing." Jarlaxle ordered Drizzt as soon as he started to open his mouth to
question the drow mercenary. "I am going to tell my companion that the prisoner I
brought down was just some rogue that was caught spying on our grounds and that I had
the guards dispose of you quickly. I could not tell him your true identity now could I?"
Jarlaxle told a perplexed Drizzt.
He led Drizzt through a dizzying array of corridors and hallways. Every time that
Drizzt tried to get a good luck around him, Jarlaxle would yell at him to keep his head
low. Soon they came to their destination. Jarlaxle pushed open the heavy doors and
hurried Drizzt inside. Once they were inside, Jarlaxle hastily closed the doors. The room
was so dark that Drizzt couldn't even see his hand even when he held it out in front of his
face. Jarlaxle's voice soon pulled him back from his musings.
"I believe that is who you were looking for, I am correct?" Jarlaxle questioned
Drizzt as he pointed over to the far corner of the room. Drizzt turned his head and as soon
as he saw Catti-brie he ran in her direction, and some invisible barrier stopped his
descent. He ran his fingers along the smooth wall trying to find the edge to it. Jarlaxle
calmly watched Drizzt.
"That is just an image. You cannot get to her that way. Besides, now is not the
time. The way is not yet clear." Jarlaxle said sternly to Drizzt. Drizzt fiercely turned away
from the image.
"Do you not see that she is injured? She needs help, and she needs to get out of
here. I have no idea who you are working for and who has done this or even why you are
helping me. I do thank you for your help but I will not take orders from you!" Drizzt shot
back to Jarlaxle. Jarlaxle kept his usual calm demeanor.
"But do you not see? You are in my debt, my dear friend. You are of honorable
intent are you not? Will you not help a friend who helped you?" He asked with a wide
smile forming across his ebony skinned face. Drizzt narrowed his lavender eyes but said
nothing. He glared at Jarlaxle for a moment but he finally sighed and nodded to him.
"What is it that you want me to do?" Drizzt asked Jarlaxle. Jarlaxle's face broke
into a wide grin. His white teeth were a strange contrast to his ebony skin, but it seemed
to suit the clever mercenary.
"Let's just say my comrade needs a healthy dose of humility, that and he has in
his possession an artifact of great power which I thought to be destroyed. Follow me. "
With those words Jarlaxle turned on his heel and he walked out of the room. Drizzt
turned away from the departing Jarlaxle to the image of Catti-brie. How he wished he
could run over to her and tell her everything will be okay. Drizzt sighed and turned back
around to find Jarlaxle standing right in front of him.
"Remember, technically you are my prisoner." Jarlaxle carefully reminded Drizzt.
Drizzt looked back over at Catti-brie one last time. He noticed that one side of her cheek
was swollen and there was a long cut around her neck. She was held to the wall by some
shackles. Her wrists were raw and they had even bled. She was in absolute terrible shape.
It reminded him of the time he had gone back to Menzoberranzan and how they had
abused him and how Catti-brie had come to his rescue. What irony, he thought to himself.
# # # # # # # # #
"Get yer arses movin'!" Bruenor shouted to the troops. "Me girl needs our help!"
He shouted at them. The dwarves continued marching at the king's expectance.
"If we moved any faster I might fly!" Regis grumbled to Wulfgar. Wulfgar
chuckled at the halfling's remark. In truth Regis was just as worried about Catti-brie and
Drizzt as Bruenor was. When the Companions of the Hall where not all together there
was something wrong and they all felt it. They had always looked out for each other and
this time was no different then any other.
"We're gonna find 'em for ye, me king." Pwent assured Bruenor as they resumed
their march. Bruenor nodded but he didn't comment.
"I am sure that these tracks belong to Guenhwyvar. These lighter ones must
belong to Drizzt." Wulfgar pointed out some tracks.
"Damn twinkly elf." Bruenor muttered under his breath. Wulfgar managed a
smile. Regis just kept plowing on down the trail without further complaint. The
remaining companions just kept going, following the trail.
# # # # # # # #
Catti-brie's cloaked captor walked into the room and he came over to Catti-brie.
"Are you enjoying your stay my dear?" The he asked Catti-brie. She didn't reply but
instead kept her head down low. He grabbed her chin and pulled her eyes up to meet his.
"It's about time you know who I am. That is if you haven't already figured it out.
It is about time you find out just how much danger you are in this time!" He pulled his
cowl back. "Remember me?" He asked in a very threatening tone. All Catti-brie could
see was two red eyes, which was the tell tale sign of infrared vision. Judging by the
roughness of his fingers he wasn't an elf. What human would have infrared vision?
Before she could even say anything her red eye captor pulled her cat's eye circlet over
her head so she could see.
She couldn't believe her eyes at what she saw! He was indeed a few years older
and by the lines on his face she could tell those years hadn't been to kind. His eyes
showed no life but instead seemed to gleam with inner ambitions. His hair was slicked
back and greasy. His face showed several days of stubble, which only added to his dirty
persona. All in all he was still Artemis Entreri, Drizzt and Catti-brie's worst enemy!
Please read and review! Thanks!