Aunrae though about the whispers that haunted her and had broken the artifact of Lloth in the chapel. A centuries old likeness of the Spider Queen had been shattered and thrown the whole house into a vicious panic. She knew it was the cold voices, the haunting winds that had tipped the artifact. Zanitra had just figured it out as well.
“No.”
“Of course not. You are different, like me. Being a drow and being different in Menzoberranzan does not lead to a successful or long life.” The bloody little goblin smiled.
“Lloth’s will – “
“Is not knowable or predictable. The only thing I know of Lloth’s will is that she hates me. For decades she has sent assassins through House Barrison Del’Armgo to torture and kill me. Were it not for the last assassin’s slow sadism, I would be dead right now.
Lloth hates me and by extension she hates you. ”
“One of my sisters, Zanitra, says I am cursed by Lloth.”
“Most likely. She is probably enjoying the anxiety that is slowly building inside you. You will end up on one of her altars in Arach-Tinillith. Zanitra would probably crawl over a thousand rot grubs to plunge the knife into you. Am I right?”
“You are going to save me from Lloth’s wrath?”
“Ha! No. I am going to saved you by doing her will. I am going to give Barrison Del’Armgo the secrets and trade might of Duskryn and then destroy it utterly, except for you. In return, the assassins will leave me alone.”
Aunrae’s skin was still smoking from the acid, but she relaxed her face and smiled.
“And how will you accomplish all this, dearest mother?”
“A contract,” Eclavdra whispered through the tiny goblin’s mouth.
“You have written a contract with House Barrison Del’Armgo?”
“I have not. I have an associate named Sabanion. He has.”
“Who is Sabanion?”
“Chief vassal of Moloch, Lord of the Sixth Layer. Sabanion owes me a favor.”
Aunrae leaned in closer, chewing on this new bit of information.
“A devil named Sabanion will pen a contract with House Barrison Del’Armgo and they will sign it?”
“Yes, every female of the House will put her mark on the page.”
“They will never sign it, they are not stupid.”
“That’s what they said ten years ago. But they’ve watched Duskryn grow richer and their best torturer has been unable to wring more than a laugh from Duskryn. They will sign, soon,” she looked at Aunrae, took a long drag on her pipe and smiled, “ten years of negotiation have made them confident.”
Ten years? I would have been fourteen.
“They have been negotiating a contract with a devil, and you have been planning this, for ten years?”
“Yes. Living on the surface has taught me many things. Patience is one of them. The surface elves have learned this to a remarkable extent. “
“Surface elves, did you crush them?”
“No, I rarely get time with them, the few that will speak to me. Generally, only the oldest, wisest… and the most bored, surface elves will tolerate me. They understand the thirst for knowledge, though they don’t approve of my methods,” Eclavdra smiled.
“What will the devil Sabanion gain from this contract?”
“His minions will take part in the new surface trade as caravan guards. Thus a devil will gain a foothold in Menzoberranzan and get another chance at mischief on the surface world. For the next century a House Barrison Del’Armgo caravan will not leave the city without a devil escort.”
“And me? Is my escape a part of the contract?”
“No.”
Aunrae’s shoulders sunk. An exquisite conspiracy of pain and death revolved around her. It will fall on my neck and my head will roll, she thought. House Del’Armgo and Sabanion will kick it across the Duskryn courtyard for sport.
“I am arranging the attack, young one. You will escape amid the slaughter. Your participation is crucial. Adding your name to the agreement would have drawn undue attention to you.”
“I still don’t understand, mother. How will you give up Duskryn’s secrets? The best torturers cannot break them and the strongest magic cannot compel them. The caravan guards have enjoyed countless succubi that cannot seduce the secrets out of them. What is it that you have?”
“Knowledge and power, my young haunted one. I’ve found things, deep in the Underdark. Things that no one else knows about. Only the strongest creatures know that gold, weapons, and lives are secondary to knowledge. The strongest beings can only become more powerful with knowledge.”
The torn goblin exhaled a sweet smelling plume of smoke and held up both its arms.
“Do you see this? My favorite spell. I kill a creature and fill its body with my own soul. Your father wanted this spell. He wanted it so badly… I still shiver sometimes when I think about the things he did to me in hope that I would teach it to him. And now… here you are.”
Aunrae considered this and there was a long silence. She looked around the library and saw the spiders had gathered in the bookshelves around them, waiting. They knew that when the conversation was done, the torn one would fall and a meal was at hand. They mewled and salivated vile poisons as they watched the goblin stand up and hold its pipe aloft. The conversation was almost over.
The pipe disappeared in a dull flash of light and the goblin stopped to smile again at Aunrae.
“Goodbye, my young haunted one. “
“Goodbye, mother. Wait…”
“Yes?”
“On the surface, have you ever met Drizzt Do’Urden?”
“Once, child. But that is a conversation for the World Above.”
With that, the goblin crumpled and the spiders sprang from the bookshelves. They hissed and screeched at each other over the corpse for several moments, then fell to silent feeding. Aunrae left the library and wandered the Duskryn estate, unsure what to think. She doubted she’d survive. A cool breeze followed and the cold voices whispered assuringly to her.
Foose
ReplyDeleteWed, Mar 26, 2014
I suppose. Consider it an "alternate universe" Sabanion. Thanks for the compliment, glad you liked it. I'm still getting caught up on all your posts. Very prolific!
Magnus
Wed, Mar 26, 2014
Is the name Sabanion meant as a tie-in to your Marvels character? Regardless or not, pretty cool!