Some characters aren't mine, but most are.

-- x x --

Neverwinter, Citadel of the Fiend Queen - - -

--Neeshka

Hells, I'd dawdled a little too long at closing, and it looked like I was the only customer left in the place. A young man, wearing a still new Greycloak uniform, was being dragged further in. Suddenly my stomach was churning. I'd always protested, noisily for a while, whenever we helped the Greycloaks.

Helping them had been profitable too. The Commander had been nice to me even after joining the watch, and almost all the others she gathered were, as well. Even the paladin, even if he still made me itch sometimes. Cormick was kind of cute too, and was much nicer since I'd stayed legal. The kids at the Keep were fun, even if mostly clueless about life in the city. They were also ignorant about how many of the Greycloaks in Neverwinter were corrupt.

When I started in the city, so many were rotten to the core. Money could buy a lot of them, and favors buy many more. The Commander had identified the worst, and some had straightened out. So now most seemed better, but I'm sure some rotten ones were still around, even if more discreet. I'd seen some Greycloaks who still lived too high on their pay, blowing money on gambling and whores.

This guy could have busted, blown all his money gambling and was being taught the hard lesson for his stupidity. Why should I get involved in that? He'd end up beaten up and learn his lesson... paying his gambling debts or playing by the rules for the crooked and not getting too greedy.

Or he could be some kid, caught up in some scam.

I had already started edging after them. Maybe I was bored, maybe worried it was something really ugly... but I had to know.

Some movement out of the corner of my eye got my attention for a second, but I saw nothing beyond someone brushing off the table and sweeping up so they could go home. Already in the shadows, I eased into the hallway beyond the door, and I was glad to see it was empty. The door swung slowly closed behind me and didn't make a sound as it closed slowly without any sound to distract the absent gamblers.

At the end of the hall, almost no light was visible under the door. It was locked but that didn't take more than a moment to fix, and I only heard a groan moving further away. With only a soft click, the lock was open, and I barely heard a few whistled notes from right behind me.

Turning back, I didn't see anyone.

A whisper told me, "Don't worry, I don't like it either. He looked too young." Grobnar was here too, and invisible, a relief given the colors he picked sometimes. At least he hadn't been doing any of those stupid Wendersnivling tunes.

"Hells, you stay quiet, I wanna see if he's just stupid before I do anything..." I told him as quietly as I could. I was both glad and annoyed he was here. As long as he stayed quiet.

He had spells, and good ones now. Giving us many more options if things went south. I edged the door open into a room, dark but for some light spilling from a couple of the several doorways. Only a narrow table and chairs were running the length of the room. Peering into the darker ones, no one was in them. The third left one with a light had someone talking, and someone else whimpering occasionally.

That made the gambler or crooked watch far less likely. I wanted to hear what was being said, but I wasn't as sure I could sneak in much closer, dressed like I was for gambling. I felt a tug, and moved back, even as I heard footsteps coming down stairs that must have been beyond the far doorway.

Back into the other doorway, I heard more boots and a set of heels as we left the central chamber.

A woman's voice was saying, "...long has he been with them? He sounded young and ernest. Will he be missed?" They must have paused in the other room, then I heard a chair move and the minor sound of wood creaking. It sounded like several of the chairs.

"Only for a few months. He has no black marks on his record. No known girl or relatives, but he's quiet. He's already gotten one promotion, and our source says he's about to get another," came from another female voice.

"Excellent, an officer under my thumb soon. The last few had to ruin their usefulness by getting killed, or worse, demoted or dismissed. Get that sorry mage in to get the spell-chain on him. Order him to be a good little greycloak and clean his memory of us."

"Use magic?" A male voice said, "Or a concussion?"

"Both, no one will check such a sterling youngster for magic. Just make sure he's someplace anonymous, and have the Duchess make sure he doesn't know anything before he escapes," the boss said.

Her female underling asked, "Gonna let her work him over?"

"No, that gets too expensive to hide. Let her play fellow victim, she'll enjoy the preparations and he should try to help her innocence and keep up her spirits. He should be get free in a day or so. By then, will we have another replacement at the Bawd?..."

Nothing else was about the kid, who definitely was in over his head. I really didn't like the idea of some kind of magical control, left inside him like a booby trap. Perhaps worse on him if he learns of it and survives whatever she planned.

She, or course, had to be the owner of the Fiend Queen, another tiefling named Ansithym. She'd been closed a few times briefly that I could remember, but not due to anything like this. Just the usual kind of hassles a sometimes crooked owner gets into. I was actually getting pissed if she was getting nastier now. I'd gotten into enough heat for stupid shit, that I didn't deserve because people like her had to go and get greedy or power hungry.

It wasn't safe to act yet, as I'd heard four speakers, plus whatever pretty-boy personal guards she had this week to play impress the crowd. And when her pet mage and this Duchess arrived to finish their plans for the kid... Too many for the two of us alone, and I wished there were more of us here, even if some of them sucked at being quiet. Grobnar faded into view when his spell must have ended, but he only crouched there listening.

I only had daggers with me, and even if enchanted, I didn't want to have to fight that many in close quarters where I had less room to dodge. All we could do is wait for better odds. This Duchess was either involved heavily or just mercenary. It didn't matter The kid, was enough proof if we could get him out before his memory was gone.

It seemed longer, but I only heard a few ship's bells very faintly through the walls as we waited. The talk was of business and profits and extortion. Even aside from the strong arm stuff, the profits were pretty good, even though they cooked them. I just didn't want that kind of tiny details day after day.

Finally, Ansithym left, with orders to dock the mage's pay for being so slow. It sounded like at least some of the people left with her.

Tapping Grobnar, I mouthed a question, and he shook his head. A moment later I heard the a throaty chuckle from the direction of where we came in from the front of the house.

"Persinas, I see you dawdled when you were called," I heard through a couple other laughs and cruder comments, as he said this.

We had run out of time, and needed to stop this before the kid was enchanted. I tapped Grobnar, and he hummed a few soft notes as the laughter and joking continued out there, and he faded away again, as did I. As I moved towards the door I realized he was in front of me. Another spell in the noise, and I didn't see any effect as I slipped around him moving quietly.

My first view of the room was quick enough, three seated at the table, all armed, but not heavily. The mage, in the doorway, with a tragically pale, dark-haired bimbo. Older than my first glance. He was the one with the welts and injuries, she looked like a cat with the cream.

I carefully edged around him as he was the worst threat to us. Even under the joking I heard a few low notes, and Grobnar appeared in the doorway. The wizard stopped joking, and started looking towards 'Nar, so I struck, then everyone stopped and started moving as our targets realized they weren't alone.

Then I felt it all in a chaos of instants. The mage grunted as my daggers sunk in, and Duchess shrieked. The spell racing for Grobnar dissolved even as the three at the table knocked back their chairs and pulled weapons. Now knowing I was here, hitting the bastard was harder. Grobnar sang-shouted something and Duchess fled with another shriek. The damn mage cast a spell on me.

I couldn't dodge it, as one of the others had gotten too close. Avoiding him with his sword was just as important to me. Four left, and the other two were coming for me as well, as I wasn't partly concealed like Grobnar. Somehow he was always overlooked, despite his wardrobe. Grobnar did another song, as I tried to not get hit by the swordsman.

Maybe I should practice this kind of thing a bit more often with the paladin or the runt. I'd really hate to get an 'I told ye so' from him.

All three of the strongarms had reached where I was now, and I was still too close to the spells of the mage. Especially as a damned raven began squawking and diving at me. It was trying for my eyes, and I couldn't force myself to ignore it. I did hit it, and feathers scattered after I did.

I could feel an instant of pity for an animal, but then I remembered its master was going to be enchanting and destroying that kid's life. To my surprise the one of the three bully-boys ran out after Duchess dropping his blade in the hallway. Three left, though the only one damaged was the mage.

That didn't last as the swordswoman gotten me badly, and I couldn't help cursing. The mage smiled, casting another spell even as I heard Grobnar do so as well.

Rolling past the first swordsman, the fighter bitch would have to go around to get me again, though that wouldn't help with the mage. To my surprise the guy who got me, attacked the mage now. I heard my dress rip as I went over the table to get at the woman, I wasn't going to argue my luck, and thanked Tymora. But the mage dropped, and now it was only the two of them.

Grobnar's next spell must have been a summoning, as a dire bear certainly got their attention. The rest of the fight didn't take much longer.

He did a bit of healing for me, and thanked the bear before dismissing him... or her as it was. I didn't know the difference.

Checking the mage, he said, "He's dead."

"I'm not gonna cry," I returned, as I snagged all the goodies I could from the mage quickly.

"No, but a witness would be good. Let me... ah, your admirer still lives, barely. Let's get him and the young watchman to one of the officers..." Grobnar said with a merry smile. "Maybe the one you arrived with is in town..."

"Nah, he won't be back for another tenday," I said, before looking at Grobnar in surprise. "You been following me?"

"I hear all the Wendersnaven gossip now that I'm deemed worthy," Grobnar said with a straight face, before getting their purses.

For a second I wanted to smack him like the ranger had always threatened to, but then the bard smiled at me, merry again.

"Would you like to free the young man, then I'll enhance us so we can take them out quickly?" He said, while tying our prisoner. Then he began a healing tune, sounding a little wry as he sang.

Taking only a very few more minutes, I freed the woozy young Greycloak, and dragged him out of the cell. It wasn't that easy, but once Grobnar's spell helped, we left the Fiend Queen, and made our way to where Brelaina had her office. Then it was like stepping on an anthill, as the Greycloaks left the place in numbers and we were questioned for more details. Grobnar got a lot of stares when he mentioned the 'Snaven rumors so I got all their questions after that.

By dawn, Ansithym had been killed resisting capture, but several of her people survived. More than enough to confirm what we told them. We were promised a finder's fee, but I wasn't going to hold my breath. I just wanted to be anonymous.

A few days later the reward was delivered to the Flagon by the youngster we'd saved. He was embarrassingly grateful, and told me the Queen was being shut down and sold. The profits going being split among interested parties like the city and a few temples, as she'd had no known heirs. And Grobnar and I, and including the kid as the victim would get a small slice too.

The kid's eyes were shining with admiration, but I managed to shoo him off before Duncan got back to the common room.

Pretty good profit for one evening, even if that left me one less place to make a profit. I was looking forward to an evening at the Leather Apron Club, and the coming spring.