Author note: heya my readers! A bit of shameless self-promotion time: I posted a small DBZ one-shot titled "An unexpected Saiyan". I'm just telling you in case any of you likes Dragonball Z and is interested in reading some Vegeta fluff ^ᴥ^
oxoxoxoxoxo
Settled the matter of the Lich, the party members went back to the inn and met with Lothar to decide a plan of attack against Sendai based on the area her lair was located in and the info his spies had already gathered. "So, there is a forest here", the general said, "With a huge glade here. Nobody lives in that place and it seems completely deserted". "Well, it makes sense: Drow live underground, they don't fare well under the sunlight", Jaheira commented, "Which means there must be a secret entrance to her lair somewhere". "Probably in the glade. I can have my men ready to march for tomorrow at dawn, every single one of them". Sarevok arched an eyebrow, "And what will Balthazar do when he finds out? He could accuse you of treason and refuse to pay you all".
Lothar smirked, "Let him be pissed off at us then, I don't care. He made the mistake of telling one of his monks where he stores the money that should serve to pay us after our fight against Sendai and Abazigail and it so happens that this monk can't hold his liquor. My second in command, Duro, offered that lightweight his own flask to drink from one evening, claiming it was water. Ten minutes later, the idiot monk was drunk off his ass babbling about the money they squeezed from the citizens, Balthazar's grand plan to be the only Bhaalspawn left, the secret stashes of money the monastery has and the fact that his mommy didn't love him because she wanted a girl instead of a boy", he said, causing everyone to chuckle and Imoen's eyes to shine.
"Soooo, you know where he keeps the money, uh?", she asked, but Meg glared at her. "Don't even think of it! The mercenaries will take what is due to them, the rest will be returned to the citizens. All of it, down to the very last coin", she added sternly and her sister huffed, crossing her arms on her chest. "Spoilsport". "We're already swimming in riches thanks to Firkraag's hoard, we don't need to steal from good and honest people". "Yeah, yeah, sorry, you're right", the pink-haired thief nodded. "Neither Abazigail nor Sendai have made a move so far, have they?", the Ilmatari then asked the general. "No, they've stayed in their lairs, probably gathering their forces like Balthazar has been doing".
"Good, so we can afford at least three days before facing the Drow. Let's gather your men in the town square, I will transport them to my Pocket Plane from there". Lothar blinked, confused, "Pocket Plane? And why?". "I have been granted a small plane of existence that answers to my will, it's a long story. As for your second question, I want to check the knowledge and skills of your men and see if we can improve them to our mutual advantage.
The mages will brainstorm with Edwin, Aerie and Chinchilla: maybe there are some spells yours could learn that will aid in our battle. The rangers and scouts will be under Minsc's, Boo's and Toop's guidance. The rogues will be assigned to Yoshimo and Imoen. The druids will be assigned to Jaheira and Daniel, the warriors obviously to Sarevok and Gromnir. As for the clerics, Anomen, Merlinious and myself will take care of them. Any objections or questions?". He shook his head with a smile, "None at all, actually that's a very good idea: this will make my men stronger and it will benefit us not only in the upcoming battles, but also after all this mess is over". "Good, let's go then: the sooner we start, the better".
They all left the inn and were moving towards the mercenaries headquarters, when they heard arguing and spotted a sadly familiar face down the path. Saemon Havarian was surrounded by three armed men who looked downright pissed off at him, not that anyone was surprised by it. "By Helm, not him again!", Anomen sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. "Let's just ignore him, maybe he won't recognize us", Meg suggested as they were forced to pass by the quartet…And of course, Saemon noticed them and lightened up, "Ah, Margaret Dawn, good to see you!".
She muttered a curse and stopped despite herself, "What do you want, Havarian?". He gave her a fake innocent look, "Who, me? Oh, nothing, my old friend! But maybe you could return to these men the boots you bought from me". She frowned, her temper rising quickly at his umpteenth betrayal, "I didn't buy anything from you and you know it", she hissed, a hint of a golden glow in her eyes. "Come on, don't be difficult, anyone can see you're wearing them right now". "Hey…He's right!", one of the strangers said, massaging his chin and looking down at her boots, "Those look like my boots!". "Oh puh-lease, all boots look the same!", Imoen huffed, disgusted by their gullibility.
Saemon just gave them a slimy smile, "Now, now, there's no need to argue, just gi-…!".
A horrified silence fell over the path as Meg's left hand, or rather, her left claw, pierced through Saemon's chest, spraying crimson droplets on the face of the nearest stranger and soaking her own sleeve in blood. "I've had enough of your lies and backstabbing, Havarian. No. More", she growled, eyes now glowing a solid gold as she retracted her arm with his heart firmly held in her grip, then she whispered a spell and the organ wilted like an old leaf. The strangers were petrified for a moment, but when she turned her gaze on them and snarled like a furious wolf, they forgot all about their boots and ran away in terror, screaming like little girls.
She smirked, a dangerous, cruel, sadistic smirk that made everyone's blood run cold, then her claw transformed back into a hand and the glow faded completely, "This should teach them not to mess with their betters", she commented, obviously very pleased with herself. Lothar was staring at her with a mixture of shock and confusion, he had a hard time accepting that this woman was the same kind-hearted person who had saved his life and given him the means to escape the Underdark, "You knew him, I guess?".
"He backstabbed us twice in the past and I warned him that next time we met, I wouldn't be so merciful if he tried to do it again. My word is kept", the Painbearer answered with a shrug, "Let's go now, we lost too much time already because of that pathetic simian", she added, resuming her walk and the others hurried after her, none of them daring to comment on her actions for fear of triggering the change again.
Anomen was quite worried, though a part of him understood her reaction and to be completely honest, he would have gladly smashed Havarian's head with his Flail himself after that stunt, but the fact that she had transformed her arm into the Slayer's limb so flawlessly wasn't a good sign…Or maybe it was? After all, that meant she had complete control over the Taint even when her emotions were all over the place, which in turn meant that she wasn't at risk of being overcome by it like Sarevok once had been.
While he was lost in such thoughts, the Slayer was busy laughing his scaly butt off. Well done, little Goddess! That's how you deal with annoying pests like that human Havarian!, it commented, clapping its claws, And your snarl towards those idiots was perfect, it nearly felt like I was looking at myself! I've really taught you well.
She smiled slightly at its praise, Thank you, my friend. It was quite satisfying for you too, wasn't it?
The creature nodded, Indeed! You really made me proud, it sighed wistfully, You've grown up so much, little Goddess: it seems like yesterday that you were a starry-eyed toddler, innocent and meek, used to letting others step all over her and completely incapable of hurting even a fly…And look at yourself now: a powerful battle-hardened warrior, a strong, beautiful and confident woman who doesn't take shit from anyone and isn't afraid to stand up for herself! You would make a wonderful Goddess, you know.
Meg bit her lower lip and swallowed a chuckle, Thank you, but I don't feel like dealing with the Gods, when dealing with mortals is already so troublesome. Can you imagine how much of a drag it would be, if I had to meet the likes of Cyric or that stuck-up bitch Mystra on a daily basis? No thanks. I may be a Painbearer devoted to taking upon myself the suffering of others, but that would be too much suffering even for me to bear, she replied, causing it to guffaw loudly.
Can't argue with that, some of the Gods are a real pain in the ass. Your sire used to say that the divine monthly meetings of the Pantheon gave him a headache.
I can see why.
"Here we are", Lothar's voice snapped he out of the conversation, "My men are inside here". "Good, let's tell them of our plan". He nodded and led the party inside, but then turned to her, "There's more than three hundred of them. Three hundred and forty-five, to be exact, forty-six including myself. Are you sure you can transport all of them in your…What was the name again? Pocket Plane?". She nodded, "That's right and to answer your question, I will take only a handful of them at a time, just to be on the safe side. I haven't tried moving so many people all at once before, so it's better to keep the numbers small to avoid problems". "Ah, I see. Well, it's your plane, so I guess I trust you with it", he said and she smiled gently at him. "Thank you".
oxoxoxoxoxo
Moving so many people, even in smaller groups, proved to be exhausting for Meg despite the high amount of additional power she had acquired from Yaga-Shura's death and by the time she had brought the last group in the Pocket Plane, she fainted. Luckily Anomen was quick to pick her up bridal style and put her to bed after having removed her bloodied vest and cleaned her up. "Will she be fine?", Imoen asked, worried and he nodded.
"I've checked on her conditions, she is just tired: the transport required a lot of energy and the strain it caused was too much for her body to bear. She needs to rest and she will be back to full health by morning. Please tell Cespenar to cook some warm soup and a steak for when she wakes up: she will need to eat to replenish her strength". "Aye aye, brother in law", the pink-haired thief grinned and left to find their adorable scaly butler, then she joined Yoshimo to start the brainstorming with the rogues from Lothar's army.