(A/N: This chapter was strangely difficult to write. It gets more exciting after this, though, so I should have an easier time writing the next chapters. Thanks to everyone who reviewed last time, and before I forget yet again, please read Voracious's "These Roads We Walk". Thanks!
Disclaimer: Do I look like Bioware to you? I do? Wow. No one's ever told me that before... regardless, I don't own Neverwinter Nights.)
Chapter Five
The lower levels of Undermountain were very different than their higher equivalents. Halaster hadn't bothered to carve anything even remotely resembling a dungeon here; instead, Undermountain's bowels were left as caves. Yes, it was all a series of slimy, dripping caverns. It reminded Deekin of his old home in the Nether Mountains. For a second he cringed, thinking he heard Tymofarrar's voice.
Fortunately, the speaker was only an enraged drow, who Umbra speared on her sword before he could even hope to harm Deekin. The drow gurgled, vomited up some of his own blood, then hunched up and fell over, dead. However, he was not alone. A squadron of drow and duergar awaited them, some drawing their weapons and attacking head-on while other cast a variety of spells. Umbra drew both swords and began slashing at the gray-skinned foes, much to Enserric's delight.
"Oh-ho! Yes, that's it, cut her arm off!" the talking sword crowed with bloodlust. "The eye, get the eye! Go for the leg now... yes! Watch the bloody bastard crawl, cut him down before he gets away! There's one coming up from behind--nevermind, it's dead now. You used the other sword to slay that one! No fair, it's not sentient enough to enjoy the gore like I do! Ooh, I didn't know insides came in that color..."
Deekin, meanwhile, noticed that there seemed to be a great deal fewer drow now than there had been at first. A simple spell of "True Seeing" revealed several drow and duergar spellcasters hiding behind invisibility spells. Smirking, Deekin cast anough spell and easily lit them afire. The flaming spell-wielders put themselves out with ice spells and grimaced furiously at the kobold, icicles forming on their flared nostrils. Now that they were out in the open, however, Umbra cut through most of their heads before they could do anything, and Deekin yanked out his crossbow and shot bolts into the skulls of those left over.
As they fought the drow, Deekin gazed over at Umbra and smiled. Her long black hands gripped the gleaming longswords steadily, neither clenching nor slipping on the hilts. Her swings were confident, easily slicing through bone matter and tissue as though it were butter. All the time, her slim face never changed in expression, always stolid. Even when a dark elf's weapon bit into her side, she issued not a cry, not a grimace, while the bewitched cloth of her robe quickly stitched itself back together. Though covered almost entirely by the robe, her movements were nonetheless fluid and graceful, darting quickly between two fully armored duergar and caused them to clang together, whereupon she closed in for the kill. If an enemy made to come down with a deathly blow on an unsuspecting Deekin, she darted in, diverted the attack and turned it against the attacker. When she tired of melee fighting, she drew back and summoned intricately patterned fire spells, a splendor to watch as they shot down and scalded their enemies. She was wonderful, and the kobold couldn't be more thrilled with her return. Deekin sighed happily, then turned back to the fight at hand and drove his rapier deep into a duergar's ear.
"Aaah, I haven't had a fight like that in years!" Enserric commented cheerily, his blade dripping an extensive amount of blood. The battle was finally over, Deekin and Umbra--and, apparently, Enserric--the victors. "Did you see the look on that dark elf's face when I slit open his belly? Hah! When his intestines tumbled out, he looked ready to--"
"Umm, talking sword be quiet for little bit?" Deekin suggested, writing frantically in his notebook. "Deekin tryings to concentrates."
"Bah, kobolds," Enserric grumbled. "Lousy lizards... I never met one I liked." He did fall silent, though partially owing to Umbra having slid him into a scabbard.
Looking up at his hero's tall form, Deekin felt compelled to ask Umbra something. There were so many things--the mysterious "Relic of the Reaper", or even more mysterious, the shadow creature that had given it to her. There was Undermountain to talk about, the drow's maniacal plotting to ponder, their times without the other to commiserate, good tales to share, random things to gibber about... Yet in the end, one ultimate question popped from Deekin's mouth.
"Can Deekin goes potty, Boss?" He could have kicked himself.
"Of course," Umbra consented.
"Thanks, Boss..." Bowing his head in humiliation, Deekin located a suitable corner of the cave in which to relieve himself. When his business was finished, he hitched up his pants and secured them with a belt, which he'd customized to closely enwrap his diminutive waistline. That taken care of, he turned around and started back toward Umbra.
"Boss--" he started humbly as he approached her. Umbra spun around to sharply he stumbled back involuntarily. Her arm shot out in an instant, reaching past him toward the cave wall. Tumbling out of the way, Deekin watched in stunned silence as Umbra reached into the dark shadows that pooled at the wall's bottom. As Deekin watched, he saw Umbra's arm vanish into the darkness momentarily, then return with a drowess seized by the neck. The drowess choked as Umbra's fingers encircled her windpipe and tightened threateningly. Over a head taller than the drow, Umbra lifted her struggling captive off the floor by the throat.
"Fool. You thought to catch us off-guard?" Umbra hissed. "You cannot hide in shadow from one of shadow."
"Pl... ease..." the drow burbled, eyes watering and fingers scrabbling weakly at Umbra's own. "L... et... me dowwwnn... I'll... ex... plain..." The drow made a pitiful sound as she tried to breathe. "Umbra... Lumina..." Deekin's eyes widened in surprise as the drow uttered Umbra's name.
"Drops her Boss! Quick!" he pleaded. "She almost dead!"
"As you would wish it." Umbra's fingers released their grip, letting the drow fall to the floor, where she collapsed in a heap and hacked and coughed, desperate for oxygen.
"Speak now," Umbra ordered her. "Who are you to know this one's name?"
"Gives her a chance, please, Boss," Deekin frowned sympathetically. "She needs air." Respectful of his wishes, Umbra stayed back while the drow inhaled and exhaled frantically. When at last her breathing returned somewhat to normal, the drow looked up at them with bleary eyes and got to her knees in a vague attempt to save lost pride. She was still unsteady on her feet, rubbing her neck gently as she spoke, her voice slightly raspy after such rough treatment.
"I mean you no harm," the drow told them, though her eyes regarded Umbra resentfully. "Apparently, I cannot say the same for you." She stopped to breathe. "I understand your suspicion, but not all the drow are after your blood. Just listen to what I have to say, and it will all become clear." Her clothing was different than the other drows', he noticed; rather than red-and-black, it was a looser, gray sort of armor.
"This one shall listen," Umbra agreed, but drew her weapons and kept them ready, staying close to Deekin should the drow try to assail him.
"My name is Nathyrra," the drowess introduced, staring at Umbra warily. "And you must be the one they call Umbra Lumina."
"How do you know this one's name?"
Nathyrra smiled feebly. "Your reputation precedes you, Umbra. I know who you are. You're something of a legend among my people." She seemed somewhat disappointed. Umbra certainly wasn't the bluebird of happiness. Deekin tried to cheer the bleak mood.
"Deekin writes book and makes you famous, Boss, just like he says he would!" he beamed at Umbra, then at Nathyrra. "So you reads book, yes?!"
"Uhh... some of us have, yes," Nathyrra avered. "But there are other means of knowing."
"Oh." Deekin was slightly put down, but remembered to bring out his writing supplies and begin recording the conversation.
"What business have you here?" Umbra demanded. The Boss's social skills truly left something to be desired, Deekin thought with an inward sigh. But no one was perfect.
Nathyrra furrowed her brow, carefully considering her next words. "Although I am a drow, I am not allied with those who are attacking Waterdeep," she assured them. "Me and my people are different. We are--"
"You means 'my people and I'," Deekin corrected her abruptly, scribbling away in his tome. "'Me and my people' be bad Common." Nathyrra stared at him in disbelief.
"This from a kobold who speaks in the third person?" she murmured incredulously, then shook her head. "Nevermind. My people and I--"
"Much better," Deekin nodded approvingly. Nathyrra sighed, exasperated.
"As I was saying, my people and I are different. We are... rebels."
"I don't know, Boss," Deekin said thoughtfully, deliberately using correct Common to prove that he could. "Deekin not know much about drow, but they be bad news."
"Much like kobolds, and yet here you are," Umbra reminded him. "Should you not focus on writing besides, friend?"
"Oh, yeah," Deekin grinned sheepishly, looking down his snout at the notebook as he resumed writing. Nathyrra, pleased that Umbra seemed to be getting over her initial suspicions, went on.
"We want to help you, Umbra," Nathyrra insisted. "We want to help you free Halaster so you can stop the forces of the Valsharess from attacking Waterdeep."
"The Valsharess?" Umbra and Deekin repeated curiously together. Neither knew who she was, Deekin having heard of her only in the passing, and Umbra not at all.
"The Valsharess is the ruler of House Kilath, a faction from the drow that has recently risen to prominence," Nathyrra informed solemnly. "The drow invading Waterdeep serve the Valsharess and her house. Her forces captured Halaster, giving them free access through Undermountain and allowing them to strike at the very heart of Waterdeep." Nathyrra smoothed a strand of silver hair out of her dark face, though not near so dark as Umbra's. "But not all the drow follow the Valsharess. There are some of us who oppose her, and will do whatever we can to break her power."
"So you claim to be an ally," Umbra mused. "How do you plan to help us?"
"There is only so much we are willing to do, Umbra," Nathyrra frowned, gazing uncertainly at Umbra's emotionless face. "I admit, we don't fully trust you yet--just as I'm sure you don't fully trust me." She halted hesitantly, then continued. "We weren't even certain we should even approach you, but in the end we thought you should know that there are others who want to see the attacks on Waterdeep ended. At this point, I'm only here to provide you information, Umbra. Nothing more."
"Provide us with information, then," Umbra urged. "Where is Halaster being kept?"
"I've done some scouting on this level; the wizard is being held far from here," Nathyrra told them. "Go through the north caverns, then head to the west once you are past them. There is a powerful drow war party guarding the wizard. If you want to free Halaster, you'll have to find some way to deal with them."
"So we shall," Umbra noted. "Thank-you for your time, Nathyrra. We shall be on our way, and you yours."
"Goodbye, Umbra," Nathyrra nodded politely. "And good luck. Maybe we'll meet again, sometime." With those words, Nathyrra disappeared back into the shadows. Even Deekin's keen eyes could not pick her out, but Umbra had no trouble, turning slightly over a short period of time as she watched the drow leave. Finally, she turned back to Deekin.
"Onward, then?" she wondered.
"Uh, almost." He jotted down a few more sentences, left off and tucked the writing stuffs away. "Before we sets off again, Boss, Deekin gots to wonders..."
"Yes?"
"You finds drow-lady easy when she be hiding in shadows, right?"
"Correct."
"But when Deekin first sees you, he follows behind you for long time and you not notices him one bit!"
"Oh, but this one did," Umbra said calmly. Deekin blinked.
"You... did?"
"Of course," Umbra said simply. "This one wondered why you were following her out your safe nook in the abandoned house, but you posed no great threat, so she kept on. When you burrowed yourself in the snow, though, this one became immediately intrigued." Her tone was fond. "This one is glad she investigated."
"This one--er, Deekin is too, Boss," Deekin smiled, though still somewhat stunned by this new information.
"Should we find Halaster now?" Umbra queried. Deekin nodded, and so they ambled on, Enserric grumbling unintelligibly in his sheath as they walked.
As Nathyrra had instructed, they headed north. A few malevolent drow skulked in the dark, leaping out at the kobold and the hooded one as they passed, but these assailants were easily disposed of. As they went further on, however, one drow cut Deekin's throat badly. Umbra lopped off the offenders head, knelt down, pressed a hand to Deekin's bleeding neck and murmured some arcane words. Grateful for her touch, Deekin smiled up at Umbra's solemn dark face as she chanted. A resulting spell healed up the throat wound nicely.
"Are you alright?" Umbra wondered, caressing his neck gently. "This one understands such cuts can be fatal." Deekin nodded, still smiling.
"It not hurts anymore," he assured.
"Most fortunate." Umbra stood up swiftly, braced Deekin's shoulders and easily pulled him up as well. Ascertaining that the kobold could stand on his own, Umbra started ahead at a steady pace. Deekin adjusted his backpack straps and traipsed after. He admired the Boss's lean, robed form striding smoothly ahead of him. She was kind, brave, powerful and beautiful, he thought. Her return was even more important to him than the drow raids.
"Umm... Boss?"
"Yes, Deekin?" Umbra responded, turning west. Stalactites dripped slime from above as they traversed the caves' ringed interiors.
"Deekin just wants to say--" He narrowly caught himself. "...you is best friend Deekin ever gots." Umbra was pensively quiet.
"This one... is?" She sounded surprised, but genuinely touched. "This one... has never been anyone's friend before. Let alone a best friend." Now it was Deekin's turn to be surprised.
"Not anyone?" he cried.
"Not anyone," she affirmed. "This one would--" She cut off abruptly. Moments later, Deekin saw why as Nathyrra materialized from the darkness.
"Oooh! Here come drow lady again!" Deekin remarked, advising, "Look sharp, Boss." This was laughable, of course, as Umbra's look never changed.
"We meet again," Nathyrra greeted, approaching. "Somehow I knew we would."
"How you knows where to finds us?" Deekin wondered, getting out his supplies and resuming writing.
"I've been waiting for you here," Nathyrra explained. "I knew you'd have to come this way eventually if you wanted to free Halaster." She gestured to the wide area of cave behind her. A distance away, the cave was halved by a wide stream, which was bridged by a thin rock formation. "I've been scouting the area, and I came across a large encampment of the Valsharess's forces near here. If you take this bridge--" she referred to the natural rock formation "--you'll be walking right into them."
"Many thanks for the warning," Umbra acknowledged gratefully. "We shall proceed with caution."
"There's more," Nathyrra smiled. "The drow have set up a pair of ballista on top of a ridge behind their camp. If you attack them head on they'll use the ballista to smash you to bits."
"Uhh... Deekin pretty sure he allergic to being smashed to bits," Deekin decided.
"But there's a way you can sneak past the camp and get to the ballista unseen," Nathyrra continued enthusiastically. "Then you can use their own weapons against the rest of the camp, and rain death down on them from above!" She grinned at the thought.
"Deekin likes this plan, Boss," Deekin nodded. "Give them nasty drows a big surprise!"
"Just follow the narrow corridor to the north," Nathyrra advised, pointing to the area past the bridge formation, where the cave narrowed. "It seems to lead to a dead end, but there is actually a secret passage that will take you right to the ballista."
"Know, drow," Umbra warned, "that if this is a trap, the shadows will not hide you from this one's wrath." Nathyrra shrugged carelessly.
"Do as you will," she said simply. "Attack them head on and be smashed by the ballista, or use the passage to the north and beat them at their own game. The choice is yours." Before Umbra could say anything, she added, "I have to go now, Umbra... unless there is something else?"
"That... is all," Umbra responded. "Thank-you for the warning... if that is, indeed, what it was." Nathyrra only shrugged again and melted back into the shadows. Umbra began walking again. Deekin finished writing as hurriedly as he could and scrabbled after.
"Where is we headed, Boss?" he wondered.
"This one does not know," Umbra admitted. "This cannot tell when your like is lying. Deekin, do you suppose the drow was telling the truth?"
"You is askings Deekin?" Deekin scratched his head, trying to decide while simultaneously wondering what Umbra had meant by "your like". "Uhmm... Deekin thinks drow lady tellings the truth. She seems nicer than other drow... she not looks nasty at Deekin or anything. We always runs if it be trap, anyway, right?"
"Right," Umbra agreed, speeding her pace now that a resolution had been reached. Walking alongside the cave stream, they passed the rock bridge. Across it, Deekin saw an area of cave littered with tents and crates, as well as drow and duergar. Deekin froze, fearing that they would be spotted. A second later, a barrier of darkness enveloped them; Umbra's invisibility spell. Deekin relaxed, and reveled in that the Boss was thinking along the same lines as he. The spell was a success; they were unnoticed, and went on without incident, aside from Deekin near-slipping in a puddle of slime.
Deekin gazed around the cave as they walked. It really did remind him of the Nether Mountains caves--except, of course, this cavern was not near so cold. The particular area they were venturing through was very wide, much like the area Tymofarrar had lived in, though in this instance there was no portly young dragon to occupy it.
"Deekin, what is that?" Umbra said suddenly, arm outstretched toward a creature wandering outside their bubble of invisibility.
"That be a beholder, Boss," he informed nervously. "They can sees through invisibility spells." On cue, the beholder's central eye lit up and looked right at them.
"It can, can it?" Umbra said calmly as the airborne abberation hurtled toward them. Umbra swiftly withdrew a sword and speared the creature right through its eye. The monster roared and spasmed in pain, while Umbra hit the sword against the ground and smacked the beholder in half.
"Phew, that be close," Deekin sighed. "For a second, Deekin thought drow was going to notice--"
"HAHA! GOOD SHOW!" Enserric boasted delightedly, his metallic voice echoing boomingly around the cave. "That'll show that floating eyeball to--"
"You imbecile!" Umbra snapped as the invisibility sphere vanished, shattered by the loud noise. The drow and duergar looked up from their guarding duties, eyes narrowing upon spotting the intruders. "You have given us away!"
"Well, how was I supposed to know we were hiding?" Enserric cried indignantly. "Stuffed in that smelly scabbard, you expect me to hear--" Perturbed, Umbra shoved Enserric in said scabbard.
"Boss, what we gonna do?" Deekin cut in fearfully as the drow stampeded toward them. There were at least twenty--no, thirty--perhaps forty, fifty or more of them! Deekin's stomach felt ready to drop out of him.
"This one knows not," Umbra responded mournfully, more for than Deekin's sake than her own. An instant later, she brightened. "Except..."
"Prepare for death, surfacer scum!" a drowess screeched, tossing a shuriken at Umbra and narrowly missing. Umbra ignored her, chanting softly.
"I won't miss this time!" the drowess threatened. Deekin saw a duergar preparing a fire spell and quickly cast a shield spell over them. The duergar's spell of fire was deflected, the roaring blast of flames gushing off Deekin's invisible sphere in hot waves, dispersing to faintly glowing embers that scattered about the ground and died. Deekin's heart thudded a mile a minute; he could only trust the Boss knew what she was doing...
"You will know darkness!" A drow dove through the shield and prepared to drive his dagger into Umbra's chest. At that moment, Umbra finished the spell.
"No," Umbra said with something of a smile in her voice, "you will."
"Huh?" the drow puzzled. He did not see the many shadows which clung to cave's crevices stirring to life and peeling themselves free, thronging together in pools of impenetrable blackness. The perplexed drow was the first to be claimed by it, screaming as the shadows blanketed him, smothering him and dragging him down. The blackness surged toward the Underdark denizens, splashing against them and whisking down their bodies. Carpeted by the thick, cold blackness, the drow and duergar screamed and collapsed to their knees, clawing at themselves as they tried to peel the wretched ethereal substance off them. Writhing there in that sea of darkness, shrieking with paralyzing terror and clawing at their skin until they bled, the Valsharess's fighters were truly a pathetic sight.
"Come now!" Umbra ordered, grabbing Deekin and tucking him under her arm. She sped past the afflicted elves, racing unaffected through the living darkness she had summoned. She cut around the tents and crates of food with ease, stumbling not even once. A large wooden double door was inlaid in one towering rock wall. Figuring it to be the way out, Umbra sprinted toward it.
A drow leapt out of the sludgelike blackness and barring their path, moaning as he reached to stop them. Umbra slapped him aside and made it to the door, letting Deekin down and heaving it inward. The door immediately buckled in, revealing the expanse of the next area to them. She ushered Deekin within and quietly creaked the gargantuan doors shut behind them. Fortunately, a large plank of wood served as a giant bolt on this side of the door, and Umbra slid it down to keep the doors closed against any outside interference.
"Come now," she said again, tugging at Deekin's hand urgently. "This one's spell will not last, nor will the bolt when the lifelings recover!" Obediently, Deekin began to run ahead with her. Before they could continue, however, a certain drow rose up out of the darkness in front of them.
"And so we meet again," Nathyrra greeted. "You'll be pleased to know that your quest to rid Undermountain of the Valsharess's drow is nearly at its end."
"Do not bar our way, Nathyrra," Umbra threatened. "Your last plan proved a trap, and you may count yourself fortunate if this one does--" Before Umbra could launch into a detailed explanation of Nathyrra's undoing, the drowess cut in.
"My plan would have worked if you had made it to the end of the cave," Nathyrra insisted. "And don't worry. The drow you attacked won't be following. I eavesdropped on them earlier, and they have been specifically instructed to stay put no matter what." Umbra's sounded slightly relaxed, but still tense.
"Why should this one believe you?" Umbra demanded, suspicious.
"Because we have to work together if the Valsharess is to be defeated!" Nathyrra shot back, sweeping an arm toward another another tall wooden door that stood behind her. "Look. The mad mage is being held just beyond that door, guarded by some of the Valsharess's most loyal and powerful servants. No doubt they'll attack us on sight."
"Not one step closer, drow," Umbra hissed, drawing the sword that wasn't Enserric and holding the point close to Nathyrra, guarding Deekin with the free arm.
Nathyrra sighed in exasperation. "I was hoping you would trust me by now. I'm not your enemy; the Valsharess is."
"How is this one to know," Umbra replied mistrustfully, "that you are not the Valsharess?" Nathyrra's eyes widened at first; then she thew her head back and laughed. "Ha-ha-ha! Me? The Valsharess?" she snorted with mirth. "You are as mad as Halaster himself! If I was going to disguise myself, why would I disguise myself as a drow?"
"But maybe a drow lady who pretends to be another drow lady tricks people who think she's not the first drow lady, even though she is!" Deekin suggested, grabbing his pen and notebook and writing wildly, then scratching his head. "But then if people think second drow lady might be first drow lady, first drow lady can't pretend to be second drow lady... unless everyone expecting drow lady two to really be drow lady one! If people expecting it, then maybe drow lady two can be... uh... maybe drow lady one is... hmmm, that not makes sense. Oh, Boss, Deekin's brain hurts."
"Perhaps there is a third party involved," Umbra chimed in wistfully, "in which case the first drow could be the third in disguise, whilst the second pretended to be the first and the first pretended to be the second! Yet what would be the point of that? Why would it require three flesh ones in the first place? Would there need to be three?" Umbra and Deekin fell silent as they attempted to puzzle the mystery out. The drow simply shook her head in the face of such convulted logic, obviously deciding it was an argument she'd rather not become part of. Instead, she focused on Umbra.
"You want to end the threat to Undermountain, Umbra," Nathyrra reminded. "So do I. The way to do that is to kill the drow in the next room so you can free Halaster."
"Why are we freeing the mad wizard?" Umbra questioned, still boggled.
"So he keeps drow and other Underdark beasties in Underdark," Deekin replied.
"Yes," Nathyrra avered, somewhat irritated. "Halaster is imprisoned in a magical globe powered by three energy stones. If the stones are destroyed, the mad mage will be free--and he'll likely help us dispose of any remaining drow. You might be able to do this alone, but you'll have a better chance if I'm fighting by your side. Now let's stop talking about it, and let's go save Halaster." And that was that. Nathyrra started ahead stubbornly.
"No--but this one--you do not have the consent--oh, forget it," Umbra grumbled, sheathing the drawn sword and following after. Deekin shrugged, finished up his writing and followed as well, smiling to himself. A trapped wizard, legions of subterranean monsters, a mysterious enemy, an adamant drow, and a paranoid hero? The sequel was looking great already.
(A/N: With luck, this chapter was worthy of my awesome fans. Keep up the reviewing, and I'll keep up the writing!)