First Impressions

Mliss hated it when people she had never met knew who she was. It had happened only once before, and that was because she had been wearing a nametag, but still…

Apparently, her scowl got the message across, as the Knight Captain seemed to realise that her dramatic entrance (though really she had been leaving the keep…) had not gone over well. "Er, yes, well, I had heard that you were coming…" the pregnant woman began.

"So, seeing as you're in the know, why am I here?" Mliss asked belligerently.

"Well, I assumed you wanted to join the Academy…"

"Yes, yes, but why am I here? Who told you I was coming? Who told me I was coming?"

The Knight Captain began to shift nervously. "Cadderly contacted me… he told me to expect you…"

"Oh." Mliss felt insane. "I just… it's been a long journey…" she began to explain.

The Knight Captain glanced conspicuously up the road to the point at which Mliss had materialised. "Er, of course. I have a room prepared for you…" she began to gesture Mliss through the gates in the manner one might assume when around a particularly ancient and infirm relative.

A pair of wide, fiery eyes watched their progress up the hill to the Keep.

"Kight Captain!" exclaimed a Kara-Turian woman, sinking into a ridiculously low bow.

"I was only gone ten minutes, Kana," sighed the Knight Captain, with the world-weary air of someone who had suffered in silence for a long, long time.

The Knight Captain lead Mliss through a side door, Kana turned in her bow giving the Knight Captain a lingering view of her parting. Up the stairs they went, past a landing and onto the third floor.

"Your room is here, on the right – number nine. Dinner will be served in an hour, just head downstairs and ask a greycloak for directions. There's a washroom through that door to the left, just stoke the fire under the bath to heat it. You know the spell to create water, right? Good. Candles are in the second drawer down, call a maid if you need anything."

The Knight Captain left at a pace, and Mliss paused to consider her surroundings. En suite… not bad, she thought.

xxx

Mliss spent the next hour grooming. She bathed, washed her lustrous black hair, filed her immaculate nails, cleansed and moisturised her clear creamy skin, and was sitting in her fluffy bath robe, drying her hair in front of the fire when she though she saw a fiery eye looking at her through the keyhole. She blinked and it was gone, but all the same, she glanced nervously around the room and went into the bathroom to change.

Hair brushed, lips rouged, dressed and ready for dinner, she headed for the door, head held high.

Ten minutes later she was beginning to panic. She should have found the stairs a long time ago, and now she was walking down a very strange corridor that seemed to project impossibly out of the side of the Keep.

"You don't want to go down there," came a male voice, smooth and confident, but strangely accented. "Leads to another plane."

"Oh," Mliss squinted into the gloom in the direction of the voice. As a figure stepped forward she could make out white hair and a gleaming, condescending grin. A closer look revealed glowing blood red eyes and obsidian skin.

Mliss yelped and jumped backwards, silently cursing herself for her lack of composure. She had never seen a drow before, and had never really wanted that to change. Still, as far as last looks go,she thought, I could do a lot worse. The black elf was undeniably handsome, and would be even more so if only he would wipe the snide grin off his face. What's more, this drow wasn't killing her. It gets better, she thought.

"Lost, are we, little surfacer?" His eyes took on a distinctly predatory gleam, and Mliss had the creeping feeling that he had been watching as she took the wrong turnings, undoubtedly for the opportunity to… well, Mliss wasn't sure what, but it couldn't be good.

Panic mingled with anger at his condescending tone, and Mliss snapped "I just arrived, so shove the taunts and show me the way to the stairs!"

"As you wish, jabbress," he smirked.

Mliss didn't know what 'jabbress' meant, but it sounded rather insulting. But she followed as the drow lead her back the way she came, through twisting corridors and finally down a long spiralling staircase. She knew it wasn't the way she had come up, but she didn't know how far from that place she had wandered, perhaps this was a short cut?

Mliss reached the bottom to find that her drow escort had disappeared, and she was in a large, empty, and very creepy hallway, alone. As she moved forwards her steps echoed loudly around the room, making her feel extremely exposed. Attempting to muffle her movements, she turned a corner, and shrieked.

There, about a foot from her face, was the biggest, most hideous spider she had ever seen. Eight clusters of eyes shone in the gloom, and great hairy mandibles clicked threateningly, bits of its latest victim flying as it chittered. Mliss shrieked again, and turned to flee, but was beaten to it by the enormous arachnid.

Apparently her screams had frightened it, and it spun her round as it bolted for the door in its haste to leave.

Mliss ran in the opposite direction, through a small door, straight into something far worse than any arachnid. Great leathery wings of darkness furled around a huge beast-headed devil. Great horns curled around its fiery maw, and a whip of flame hung at its side. Malevolence rolled off it in waves, nauseating Mliss; turning her knees to jelly.

From the darkness of the room stepped another figure. Mliss whimpered. Fierce eyes, and glowing tattoos; a deep gravely voice boomed "students are not permitted here except for lessons."

"This cowardly prime is a student?" asked the Pit Fiend.

"I-I'm n-n-not a coward!" Mliss managed. "I've never seen a… you before. Or a giant spider," she shuddered reproachfully at the door. "A drow lead me down here."

"I do so like the drow," the pit fiend boomed. "Especially Vhaeraunites, they really know how to throw a party."

"How'd you like a drow toy boy?" asked Mliss hopefully.

The pit fiend tapped a claw on its chin, thoughfully. "Mmm, what do you propose, mortal?"

"No!" grizzled Ammon Jerro. "Deals with devils are not covered 'til your final year. I'll show you to the dining hall."

Mliss and the pit fiend looked crestfallen, but Mliss wouldn't pass up the chance to get out of there.

xxx

The dining hall was composed of three long wooden tables with benches. The hall was mostly empty, with only about eight people there in total.

Mliss chose a seat at the opposite side of the hall from the drow traitor, but summoned her indignation and glared daggers at him.

He smirked at her.

Fuming, she turned to whoever was sitting next to her, and instinctively recoiled. Was no one in this gods damned place normal?

Mliss' green eyes met a pair of familiar fiery eyes. A tail flicked excitedly at Mliss' ankles, and a pair of horns topped a rather seductive face, framed by a pair of large bat wings.

"Hi!" chirped her companion. "I'm Shar'ri! Well, that's not really my real name, but you know…" she babbled. "What are you in for?" She winked.

"In for? I… I'm just here to, you know, uh…" Mliss trailed off, lamely.

"Don't worry, I know just what you mean!"

"You do?" Mliss didn't even know what she meant.

"Sure," Shar'ri replied happily. "I can't really do anything either! I don't know why they let me in, but hey! I'm not going to complain."

"Right," said Mliss, deciding that the best way to deal with this surreal experience was to just go with it. "Do you know who that is?" she gestured at the drow.

"A drow."

"Anything else?"

"From the Underdark?" Shar'ri shrugged helplessly. "I think I heard his name was Sheath Sinay, or something."

"Shaiith Ssinaeth," said a passing voice, helpfully.

"Yeah, Sheath Sinay," said Shar'ri.

"Sh-eye-eeth Tsin-aythe," enunciated the voice.

Mliss regarded the speaker. He was normal. She smiled. "And you are?"

Clearly dazzled by her smile, the speaker replied dozily "Sebastian LaMonde." He ruffled his dark brown hair nervously. "To whom do I have the pleasure of introducing myself?"

Shar'ri rolled her eyes.

"Mliss," she shook his hand, daintily.

"May I join you, Mliss?"

"Certainly you may," she beamed. "Shar'ri and I were just discussing what we hope to learn here."

"Ah, well I am blessed with a talent for bardic magic, so I hope to improve my powers here. I had heard that there was a famous bard living here called Scalesinger…"

"Deekin?" put in Shar'ri. "Yeah, he's here. Don't ask for a demonstration. He runs a shop along with that drow woman."

"Another drow?!" exclaimed Mliss. "One is quite enough! Why are there so many drow here? And giant spiders? And what's with the maniac summoning demons in the basement?!"

"Giant spiders?" Shar'ri frowned. "I hate spiders…"

"They're devils," added Sebastian.

"Damn right," muttered Shar'ri.

"No, the pit fiends that Ammon Jerro summons – they're devils, not demons."

"Whatever."

"Ah, trouble in paradise?" A smooth, oddly accented voice cut in.

Mliss snarled. "Shove off Ssinaeth."

Shaiith smiled, in a self-satisfied kind of way. "Why, jalil, I'm dreadfully hurt, and after all I've done for you…"

Growling, Mliss aimed a cream cake at his head.

"A cream cake? I expected at least a spoon…" he ducked a chicken leg. "And I don't even know your name…" An empty goblet caught him on the forehead, and he wandered off with a dazed look on his face.

"Damn drow!" Mliss swore.

"You got 'im though! Nice shot…" Shar'ri seemed mildly impressed.

"Right between the eyes," added Sebastian.

"By the way, how did you know that tattooed guy was called Ammon Jerro?" asked Mliss.

"Who else could it be?" At Mliss' confused expression, Sebastian elaborated, "You must've read the Memoirs?"

"Memoirs?" Mliss looked to Shar'ri who shrugged helplessly.

"'My Secret Life', volumes one and two." Sebastian went on. "The Memoirs of the Knight Captain. How else would you know about this place?"

"I kind of… had a dream about it…" Mliss tried not to sound insane, looking inquiringly at Shar'ri, to take the focus off herself.

"Some blue guy came to my brothel in Sigil and told me about it," explained Shar'ri.

"Blue guy?" said Mliss.

"Brothel?" said Sebastian.

"Yeah, a blue guy called Dan, or something. And yes, I used to work in a brothel. I was the highest paid, you know?"

"How old are you?" Mliss asked.

"Seventeen," shrugged Shar'ri. "That's not so young, for fiends…"

"Fiends are eternal," argued Sebastian.

"Yeah, but they mature quickly, you know?"

Their conversation was halted by the arrival of the Knight Captain's belly. Then the rest of her.

"Dear students," she began. "Most of you read about this place in my memoirs, but for those of you who didn't,' she glanced at Mliss and Shar'ri, then at Shaiith, "a few introductions are in order.

"My name is Lyria the Wolf; I am the Knight Captain and Headmistress of Crossroads Academy, formerly Crossroads Keep. I returned from Rasheman recently, with the help of my new friend Cadderly Bonaduce." She sent a ghost of a smile at Mliss. "With the threat of war ended, I felt this Keep, and my not too modest fortune, could be put to better use than serving as a glorified Inn on the road to Neverwinter."

There was a gruff 'hear hear' noise from somewhere behind the Headmistress.

"There were many times during my adventures that I would have benefited from greater experience, or preparation for the adventuring life. It is with that aim in mind; preparing young people for the world that awaits them outside, that I have established Crossroads Academy.

"Tomorrow I will introduce you to the instructors, but tonight there will be a social night in the Phoenix Tail Inn. Ask one of the kids you see around if you don't know the way.

"For now, bon appetit, and I'll see you all later."

Silence trailed in her wake, but gradually people resumed their conversations, and their meals.

There was roast duck, chicken, pheasant and venison, along with assorted vegetables and roast potatoes. For desert there were the cream cakes Mliss had hurled at Shaiith, along with mini cheesecakes and a platter of cheese and fruit.

"So," Shar'ri addressed Sebastian. "You know who knocked up the Cap'n?"

Sebastian choked on his cheesecake. "Well… she didn't exactly write that in the memoirs, but I'd put money on Bishop – you know, the Traitor of Neverwinter."

Shar'ri shook her head. "I don't know anyone except that blue guy. I kinda thought it might be him. Why would she sleep with a traitor?"

"Well he wasn't always a traitor…"

Mliss fazed out of their conversation. Despite having had several years taken off her life by chance meetings with various monsters, this trip hadn't turned out so bad. Her room was beautiful, and had all the comforts of home. Well, almost all, and she had to admit to herself that she was curious about this whole 'school' idea. She had even made a couple of friends, and Sebastian wasn't bad looking…

All in all, she was rather excited.