Oh, christ - I actually feel a little bit sick, I'm so nervous about doing this!! That's how silly I am...

Any hoo - hello, folks! You can pick your jaws up off the floor and ready your various missiles of the rotten fruit variety if you wish...

First off - a big apology to all and sundry! Yes, I fell off the face of the planet. This happened for many different reasons:

1) I was burnt out. Seriously, seriously burnt out. It got to a point where if I never saw BG2 again, I would have been happy. However, after getting the urge to play BG again, Fade's been niggling at the back of my mind, and so I decided to take a deep breath (one that took 3 days - I really should grow a spine at some point!) and see if there was still any interest in Fade... imagine my surprise (pleasant!) that this forum isn't the complete ghost towen I was expecting!!

2) I had to put some more effort into my career - teaching is majorly draining.

3) Lastly, and most importantly - I'm now a mother! I have a beautiful 16 week old daughter called Lucy who is just my life at the moment.

So, yeah. Tentatively looking at getting back into the modding saddle (if Sil will have me, that is!!). I also need to get my house rennovations finished before I can seriously get down to anything (all my mod files are on my main PC, which has been packed away in a cupboard for a good, ooo, 6+ months now...). Chances are, I will play through the mod myself (it's been that long!) and possibly re-write sections, simply because I feel I have definitely matured as a writer now (I've been indulging in a bit of NWN:HotU based fan fiction and other writing exersizes in my spare time, and when I read stuff I wrote back in 04 / 05, I just want to cringe!), but I definitely want to take the yoke that is the unfinished ToB section of this mod off from around my neck soon. It's going to take me some time to re-integrate myself back into this community, and although I am off work until September (and then going back part time), Lucy is the main focus of my life right now, so I won't be able to devote hours and hours of mod time a week like I used to back in Ye Olde Times, but I'd still like to give it a crack... that's if you all want me to, of course!

Love and hugs,

Ely

(and, of course, Fade herself... )


(Just to prove she is still in my thoughts forever - a new-ish painting of her )

Thanks everyone!

Being a mum is awesome (even if Lucy seems to be allergic to everything right now... I'm going on an elimination diet to try to figure out what it is. We're guesing dairy (which = no more chocolate or cheese for me) since she had a major allergic attack which ended up hospitalising her the first time she ever had formula milk (a couple of weeks ago) - now she's just all itchy. It's really quite horrible, and there's nothing I can do about it until the bloody doctor stops faffing around and actually decides to help me! )

I know it's not BG (I've got my mod for that!), but nevermind... I've been writing this for a while - had to give it up while I was pregnant, unfortunately (nothing defeats the creative process more than constantly being sick!) and now that little one is here, I'm trying to get back into writing in all its forms.

Rated M for violence and sexual themes. You know, the good stuff...

I'm posting this story as a series of links to each chapter (if I do get time, I'll try to format them and post them properly), simply because posting them individually here equates to literally days of formatting. I hope this is an acceptable way of posting the story - if not, let me know and I'll amend it asap

Chapter One - The Seer
Chapter Two ? The City of Lith My?athar
Chapter Three ? Beggars Are Rarely Also Choosers
Chapter Four ? Introductions
Chapter Five ? Into the Zhasen
Chapter Six ? Silence is Golden
Chapter Seven ? Waterfall
Chapter Eight ? The Battle Continues
Chapter Nine ? Lost...
Chapter Ten ? Tensions
Chapter Eleven - ? And Found
Chapter Twelve ? Reunion
Chapter Thirteen ? A Silent Reprieve
Chapter Fourteen ? Bridges
Chapter Fifteen - Comfort
Chapter Sixteen ? Claustrophobia
Chapter Seventeen ? Allegiances
Chapter Eighteen ? Shades of Grey
Chapter Nineteen ? A Many Splintered Thing
Chapter Twenty ? You Reap What You Sow
Chapter Twenty One ? A Demon's Fury
Chapter Twenty Two ? Zorvak'Mur
Chapter Twenty Three ? Slaves
Chapter Twenty Four ? Ixenthraxsis
Chapter Twenty Five ? From Grace She Will Fall
Chapter Twenty Six ? Crossroads
Chapter Twenty Seven ? Awakening
Chapter Twenty Eight ? Turmoil
Chapter Twenty Nine ? Duel
Chapter Thirty ? A Brief Candle
Chapter Thirty One ? Back to Lith My'athar
Chapter Thirty Two ? Don't Fear the Reaper
Chapter Thirty Three ? Rebirth
Chapter Thirty Four ? Desire, Treason and Plot
Chapter Thirty Five - Revelations
Chapter Thirty Six ? A Time to Breathe
Chapter Thirty Seven ? A Call to Arms

Wheee!!! Hooray - Lucy's asleep! We're having a bit of a trying time right now - I had to take her to the doc's yesterday with suspected (now confirmed) infantile eczema, and I've been with the paediatric dietician all morning discussing my diet... from now on, I am on a strict no-dairy-whatsoever diet (Lucy is horribly allergic to cow's milk (she had an anaphalactic response to her first ever bottle of formula - good job I was intending to breastfeed her near enough exclusively for a least the first 6 months, really) and we think it is affecting her skin), which isn't much fun. Nevermind, though - it's for her, so it's worth it

Thanks for the lovely warm welcome back, everyone!

Sil: You are the best, you know that?! I couldn't do this without you!!

Now I've got to start organising myself - I've even bought myself a new Fade modding notebook (to go with the 3 I have already filled out...), so if that doesn't say something, nothing does!

Considering everything, this may seem a bit weird, but hang in there...

Does anyone have a copy of the ToB alpha version of Fade (with the little added bits of SoA) to hand? If so, can you send it to me (mistresselysia@yahoo.co.uk)? My main PC is packed away and this is a new laptop, so I don't have any Fade material at all to hand right now (which is a pain).

Ta in advance!!

Ely
xx

(PS: Brace yourselves for a whole shedload of stupid questions; it's been so long since I did this I can't even remember how to install mods, let alone anything else... )

This is excellent work!

Thank you so very much for your kind words, both of you! I have to admit that I thought people had forgotten about Fade, but after getting curious as to whether this was true, coming across comments such as these really is a real incentive to get back into the saddle and get this mod finished...

Thanks again!

I have to say that I drew Fade's portrait a hell of a long time ago - I've painted Fade a few more times since then and so I have converted two of them to portraits.

However, this thread isn't just for my portraits - I know that some of you have made your own portraits, and I would a) love to see them and b) create a nice resource for people who like to have a choice in these matters. So if you have made a new Fade portrait and wish to share it, please post away!



(original painting HERE)


(original painting HERE)


(original painting HERE. This is an older one that I'm not so fond of...)

I also have THIS PAINTING but it doesn't make a very good portrait...

GT - YOU ARE THE BEST! Thank you so much; I can now go through my files and refamiliarise myself with everything (although, saying that, it doesn't take me long to get back into the mindset... last night I ended up unable to sleep due to the old noggin going into overdrive mode, which is a bugger considering Lucy had me up at 3am this morning - I'm knackered now!). And of course I'll be roping you in for any beta testing I need done

Heya, Zyraen! Long time no speak! How's everything your end?

Heaven!!! It's been too long... forgive me?! Of course I'll tap you if (when) I need help - I have to admit that right now, I could do with someone who knows CN Anomen (I am rather ashamed to admit that I have never had CN Anomen in my party - I always let him pass his test, because I am a great big softy like that!). If you do want to change the song you wrote, the let me know - I know how it feels to read back on old stuff and think 'oh, hells, that's just awful!' (although I have to admit that I think your song is lovely... )

Thank you, everyone, again for being so supportive!

As I said - YOU ARE THE BEST, GT!!! Thank you!

Okay - the time to work on this mod is definitely nigh, considering how much it kept me up last night, bombarding me with ideas for possible new material. However, some of them I'm a bit torn on... whilst I do try to go with my gut on these things, sometimes my gut has a metaphorical brainfart (a bit like how, when you've had one too many, that egg, onion and curry sauce sandwich seems like such a good and tasty option, riiight up until that moment when you take your first big bite...) and so it is nice to get outside opinions.

It was always my intention to make Fade more than 'just a romance mod' and add in equivalent material for non-romancing males and female PCs. With regards to this, I have had two ideas floating around for a while:

For non-romancing male PCs: If you let Fade down nicely / gently early on in her romance path (via a player initiated dialogue), that will kick off the male 'friendship' track. I figured, however, that just because you don't want to romance Fade, she wiil automatically not find you attractive - so I figured for non-romancing males, I might write an 'unrequited love' subplot, with a possible chance to requite it in ToB (if the player so wishes). She won't try to steal you away from your current love interest per se, but unless you are absolutely foul to her (and even then, she can't deny her heart completely), she will still initiate dialogues that might be mildly flirtatious in nature - I thought this might also give the current romance (Bioware ones only initially) a good chance to show some reaction / get jealous / be a bit insecure themselves. You know, just like in real life... Good idea? Bad idea? Indifferent idea?

For female PCs: there will be a friendship track (already started on this), but in lieu of a Bhaalspawn to fancy, I thought Fade might turn her affections to another victim: namedly Valygar. There has already been ground laid that she quite likes Valygar (yes, this is author bias too; I am just a complete sucker for that whole 'stoic warrior' thing), but again, should it be unrequited, or should Valygar eventually reciprocate? I have to admit, I am erring on the side of it being unrequited (but then again, I like torturing my own creations ), but I could be easily swayed if people want it requited.

For female PCs romancing Anomen: Yes, I am guilty as charged with regards to ridiculing this much maligned character, and so I am rather keen to set the record straight a bit and allow female PC's to discuss why they are with Anomen... again - good idea / bad idea / indifferent idea?

Any input is very much welcome!

Thank you very much for your input! This is really helpful - there is no point indulging in anything people wouldn't be interested in seeing (or indeed, reading), and so it really allows me to focus upon what is important

As for Valygar - I agree with both of you with regards to him not reciprocating any of Fade's feelings. Basically, it would be that old 'he's just not that into you' chestnut - whereas Fade is definitely someone who (against all odds, considering her heritage) likes and, to a certain degree, needs company, Valygar just isn't... I envision that whilst he wouldn't be unpleasant to her, he could gently jibe her etc (I just like it when your own characters don't win / succeed in everything they strive for, hence the reason why an 'unrequited' path for a non-romancing male PC is appealing for me - it is a whole new avenue of writing not yet explored )

Yes, it is almost done. In fact, I could probably release what is ready tomorrow so people could finish the ToB section of the romance. However, I'm not going to release it tomorrow, simply because I'm not happy with it as it stands - there are a few things I would like to add to it before I go to a public release

At the moment I can't give an actual 'release by' date because my PC (which has the unfinished dialogues in it that I really want to add in before a release) is packed away (my house is being rennovated right now) - that and I can't dedicate hours of mod time a day due to the amount of time I have to dedicate to my young daughter (she is only 4 months old). However, I will tentatively say 'give me a month' and then see how we're doing

Sir K? Sir K?!? Lordie lordie lordie, how long has it been? Too long, for sure...

Just throwing my hat into the 'definitely would like to let Chrysta join my party' ring. So, so, so good to see you're still around, my dear.

Okay. *Deep breath*. I know I've only just returned to modding after a protracted absence (some of it not entirely intentional... *gazes adoringly at Lucy* ), but that doesn't mean I've not continued to think up ideas for different mods.

My first question for all of you fine people is something that has been bugging me for a while now - although I see plenty of mods in the making, is there still a demand for them? BG2 is, afterall, coming up for 10 years old... Is it just the hardcore few that like new mods - considering many of us in the modding community have been here for donkey's years, are we all just creating mods for ourselves now rather than a wider audience (or has that indeed always been the case?) - or is the appeal of new mod NPCs still as widespread as it was 5 years ago?

Still, saying that; here are a few ideas I have had over the years for mods (some of these characters may be familiar to some people - I tend to incorporate many of my potential mod characters into either my stories or my roleplaying characters, mainly to test out their personalities and see if they 'work' as characters).

First up: Ghost and Jek

People who used to rp at Narbondel years ago (Kellen, I'm looking at you!) might remember Ghost. She is a mixture of an RP character I designed for the Midnight D20 system and then tweaked for Narbondel - I thought she might make an interesting mod NPC (although she *might* be a bit much, I don't know).

Ghost is a human female with pale, almost albino-esque skin, silvery hair and pale, silvery blue eyes. She is called Ghost not just due to her ethereal appearance, but also because she has no idea who she is nor where she came from; her anmesia with regards to her past (and sometimes even day to day things) is total and complete. She is, however, and accomplished sorcereress, but has no idea how she wields such power. Her only link to her possible past (and the 'person' who reminds her of day to day things) is her familiar, Jek - an abrasive and over-protective pseudodragon. She joins your party for two main reasons: to continue her seemingly neverending search to discover exactly who she is and why she dreams so consistently of flying, and simply so she has meaning to her life, a cause she can subscribe her life to and a place where she feels she 'belongs'.

Ghost is Lawful Good (which in itself is unusual for usually chaotic sorcerers). She believes in honour and helping others, and has an almost visceral response to evildoers. Although Ghost's life is very complicated, her morals are not - when it comes to them, Ghost sees the world in a very black and white way, which can sometimes come off as arrogance. Her amnesia, however, also makes her quite naive, and she can be manipulated quite easily. She finds it hard to connect with other people, and frequently has the nagging feeling that she simply 'doesn't belong' amongst other humanoid races. Surprisingly, she can also be quite covetuous and materialistic - she is seemingly drawn to gems and gold, favouring star sapphires and flawless diamonds over anything else.

Jek is Chaotic Good and serves as Ghost's friend, protector and personal journal. He regards his mistress highly, and reacts in an alomst jealous way if he deems other people's interest in her as 'too friendly'. He is also hiding a big secret that may or may not have something to do with Ghost's past.

Obviously, at first, the PC (and therefore the player) have no idea who or what Ghost really is, and obviously part of the fun is discovering this, but for the purposes of a mod pitch, I can't keep the twist a total secret! This is also where the 'Jeez, this is a bit much...' feelings might come in. Ghost is actually a polymorphed Silver Dragon, cursed to walk Faerun as an amnesiac human by a powerful Lich. This leads to the simple fact that as soon as she discovers who she is and regains her true form, she will leave the party, possibly making Ghost a rather bitter-sweet addition to BG2, especially if I do decide to include a romance (she would obviously have to leave once she re-discovered her heritage; I don't think anyone could excuse you carting a Silver Dragon around in your party!!!).

You would find Ghost in the Copper Coronet (or maybe another Athkatlan Tavern), and the culmination of her over-arcing quest would be iin Watcher's Keep (facing the Lich to break the spell, whereupon she would leave you - I figured WK was a good place for this, since it is the one place available for the duration of SoA and ToB).

Obviously, you could avoid losing Ghost as a party member by not allowing her to discover her true form (once she discovers her draconic heritage (the final realisation would be in WK), she will insist upon facing the Lich to break the spell to restore herself to her former glory (dragons are nothing if not self-centred and arrogant, afterall!) - if you refuse or leave it too long, she'll leave your party anyway), that's it, but that would just be mean...

Suggested Stats (subject to change): STR: 11 (although she is a dragon, as a human she is not too strong), DEX: 14, CON: 16 (her draconic heritage does make her pretty hardy), INT: 12 (average intelligence - the Lich doesn't want her to work out who she is too easily!), WIS: 15 (she's pretty sensible, hence the reason why she's survived regardless of her anmesia), CHA: 16 (she is a sorceress and a dragon to boot - this does lead to her having a strangely compelling aura about her).

Romance? Possibly. I do like writing romances, and this would be, for me, an interesting exercise in a doom-fated romance. However, romances are time consuming and might be a little passe now? I don't know...

Secondly: Xen'shai Aleanath

Xen'shai Aleanath is a NE drow bard with a complicated history. I first came up with Xen'shai years ago as a minor player in an RP (the member Xen'Shail (dunno if he is still around!) based his user name on the character many moons ago), and more recently, he is a major player in my Hordes of the Underdark fanfic, Where Darkness Resides.

Xen'shai is a Deathsinger, a drow bard dedicated to the service of Vhaeraun. He is charming (bordering upon almost sleazy), confident, and utterly self-centred, but is accomplished enough in manipulation that he can come across as caring and genuine. His reasons for joining your party seem innocent enough - as a drow upon the surface, he has little in the way of allies and is keen to 'make friends' (read: 'ally myself with someone hugely powerful who can protect me'), but underneath there seems to be another, slightly more sinister motive...

Xen'shai will target female PCs over male ones, simply because he finds females easier to manipulate than males (unless they are interested in the contents of his breeches; they're fair game as well). He likes to worm his way into people's affections as a way to get his own way - he enjoys the company of surfacer females because, in his experience, they are eager to please and easily satisfied (compared to the drow females he used to consort with, it's no surprise, really!). He is drawn to power, which goes some way as to why he is drawn to a Bhaalspawn... there is also the simple fact that as a Bhaalspawn, you have contained within yourself a divine spark, something that he rather covets himself (which makes his interest in the PC rather similar to Irenicus).

Whilst Xen'shai would probably come under the umbrella of a romance mod, the fact that he is utterly selfish and that he is incredibly unlikely to genuinely devote himself to the PC (although I am sure there are PC's with huge CHA scores out there that could do this!) will mean that any 'romance' pursued by a PC (although it will be Shai doing most of the pursuing, if that makes sense!) is effectively false - there is only one person Shai loves, and that is himself! Although he is evil, however, he does favour 'good' PCs (not that that excludes evil PCs - in fact, and evil PC is more likely to be the one whom he devote himself to), but that is simply because he sees them as easier targets... but in the long run, he would respect an 'evil' PC more.

Suggested Stats (subject to change): STR: 12, DEX: 17, CON: 10, INT:16, WIS: 12, CHA: 18. Xen'shai is not much of a fighter when compared to other characters, and prefers to talk his way out of things if possible, but he can hold his own when necessary.

The third and last proposal is probably going to be my most contraversial and least likely to be accepted, so I'm bracing myself for a bit of a flaming for even suggesting this, but here goes anyway...

Solaufein

Yes, THAT Solaufein.

I would like to make is clear from the very start that this is in no way an affront or condemnation of Weimer's fine work. His Sola was the first mod I played, and was the mod that started my modding career (I wrote a whole bunch or pretty crap flirts for him back in '03...), and for this reason, I do hold his Sola in high regard.

However, the more I read around the subject, the more I realise that a lot of people are not particularly satisfied with Weimerfein, stating specifically that he is just a little too different from Bioware's original character. Now, I am in no way whatsoever saying that I think I could do a better job in characterising Sola than Weimer (sheesh, I think that could actually be considered modding blasphemy!), and any tentative project undertaken to bring an alternative Sola into the game would MOST DEFINITELY be undertaken by a team (in this instance, I do think a team of people could pin down Bioware Sola's personality, simply because it's not just one person's interpretation), but I do think it might be an interesting project to undertake... *dons large iron helm and hunkers down into the foetal position, awaiting the many and varied beatings she may receive for even thinking this, let alone suggesting it...*

Before commenting upon the Solaufein suggestion, please remember that it is literally just an idea and nothing else!!

I do have other ideas, but these were the main three I wanted to toss out. Obviously, when it comes to modding, Fade is my main concern right now, but it is fun to think of other projects, too

This is why it is awesome that you're back Miss! I love this idea, I don't think romaces are passé . And a doomed one like this would be awesine, even if you decide to leave it out though a memory erased silver dragon joining your party would be great , it'd be something different that's for sure

If I was going to tackle any of these ideas, I think this is the one I would probably tackle first. Ghost has been around as a character for a good 4 years, and so it would be nice to give her a part in BG2. I think she would also be easier to undertake than Xen'shai - as an 'honest to goodness' PC, she would definitely be a more straightforward character in terms of personality.

Miss, how dare you! A non-good, non-dual weilding manipulative drow?! Those don't exist . I know my evil male PC would be very happy to have a guy he could compare notes with xD. He'd find it a challenge to have someone just as, or more, manipulative than him around

I know! It's almost as if I was a bit fed up of dual wielding rebel drow with hearts of gold...

I've been wanting to write a true 'evil' romance for ages, but I have to say that they are HARD. I've toyed with a few characters over the years, and they've all come to naught in the end, simply because although I find writing evil fun, I am also a hopeless romantic who does like a 'happily ever after' kind of ending. However, I got that with Fade, and there is no way I'm going to do that again - what's the point?

Ghost and Jek - this is one great idea. There are not many "unrequited love" romances around, especially when that unrequited love is directed towards the PC. But having someone in the party who is all paladin-like and still so materialistic would probably make some funny moments.

I'm not sure whether it would be unrequited - just doomed. Ghost certainly wouldn't reciprocate any feelings the same way Fade would - she is just too distant for that, so I suppose in that sense any romantic feelings might seem unrequited. Once she reclaims her true form, however, then it would definitely be unrequited - I envision potentially a very sad ending for Ghost's story, which in itself is interesting for me .

Xen'shai Aleanath sounds like he would be a really interesting addition to already problematic life of my Bhaalspawn - so long as there was an option to play "smart" against him

Oh, absolutely! Shai would be an interesting yet difficult character to write for, because I would have to ensure there were 'evil', 'good', 'naive and 'smart' options for his dialogues, ensuring as many PC types as possible were catered for. As I said above, I think Ghost would be an easier mod to write (and so would probably be tackled first), but Shai would be a real meaty challenge... I'd like it so that you could play him through at least twice, getting a different response from him each time depending on whether you played the innocent or whether you smart-mouthed him. For this reason, I expect I'd probably have to draft people in to help me - I don't think I'd like to undertake writing Shai on my own...

As for Solaufein, there are already two Nalia mods. I don't see anything blasphemous about creating another mod about Sola. More Sola is always good.

I have to admit, this surprises me! I was expecting to get totally lambasted for even suggesting such a thing - I expect I would have been when I first thought of it a few years ago. Maybe there has been enough time between releases now, and so a new Sola would be more accepted than once upon a time?

Yes please! I have been dying for a truly evil male to 'romance,' and gods would Xen'shai be perfect. And it has nothing to do with that particularly drool-worthy, half-naked drawing of him...no, nothing at all...*cough* The idea of a manipulative relationship is hugely appealing to me, and to my evil PCs who think Anomen would be more useful with his head on a pike.

Aeryn? Is that Aeryn Phoenix? Hehee - hi! Since I know you've read WDR, you know what kind of character Shai is (and thanks for the comment on his drawing... ) - I think he would make the PC's life 'interesting', shall we say! As I said above, though, I do think he would be hard to bring to life... I have thought long and hard as to how to implement him, and I would definitely have to change his motivation towards the PC than Jen; we know why he (and Vhaeraun) want Jen, but would the same plot device work for the divine spark of Bhaal? This is the one thing I'm not sure about, I have to admit...

Ghost and Jek makes me kind of sad. It sounds interesting, and it's nice to see ideas that deviate from the typical flow of mods.

It would be a 'sad' mod - I'm not sure how many people would want to undertake a possible romance that was fated to be doomed, but then again, that's where dramatic irony comes in - although the player might now what is going on (although I wouldn't tell them the twist in the mod description!), the character doesn't, and if he likes Ghost, then why not pursue her? I'm definitely into atypical romances right now - I've essentially done the whole straightforward 'true love' path, and so I think it's fun to explore different avenues

I agree with pretty much everything you said about Sola. I think most people shy away from the idea of a new project for him simply out of deference to Weimer, which is all well and good, but I am with the group that was not really satisfied with how he was characterized. At all. If there is enough demand for a different type of Solaufein (which I believe there is), then I see nothing wrong with undertaking the creation of another mod.

Again - I am surprised at this! I really did think I would be burnt at the proverbial stake as a heretic... although I would seriously LOVE (and it warrants the capital letter, believe me!) to create another Sola mod (because I just lurve stoic, brooding warriors, as I am sure you already know!), I am not sure I am the modder to do it - I don't have the clout (and to be honest, I don't particularly want to cultivate the clout) of a lot of the big name nodders out there... I kind of like being little me, nibbling away at the fringes of the core community. Bringing another Sola to the fore would definitely change that - Christ, I'd be the modder than effectively took on Weimer, which half scares me to death, considering the negativity that would inevitably spark! - so I'm not sure if I am the person to do this. I'd happily write the mod tomorrow given the chance - I've been a Sola fan since the beginning - even before I knew of the mod, I used to write silly fanfics where he joined the PC after the whole Ust Natha incident (and no, no one has read them, and no one ever will!) - but I think even if enough people lent me support, I'd rather hide amongst a group or even write under a pseudonym, simply so people didn't know it was me.

Yes; I am that much of a coward... (In all my years of modding and writing, the one thing I've never been able to deal with is the politics that inevitably go on within the community - I just want to write and have a fun hobby, not argue and get shitty with people. Unfortunately, as soon as I started work on Fade, I found out rather acutely that, as hard as you try to avoid the drama and politics, it eventually comes and seeks you out and you end up embroiled in it whether you want to be or not... It has put me off creating other mods in the past, I must admit, which is a shame, because modding itself is actually quite a lot of fun once you get in to it (whereas worrying about whether you're going to get subjectively lambasted by people simply by virtue of who you are (as opposed to people objectively and constructively criticising your work, which is something I embrace wholeheartedly) is, simply put, not. I'm not naturally the kind of person who goes against the grain - in real life, I'm pretty easy going - and so I find this abrasive mentality quite upsetting and, well, baffling sometimes...

Err, yeah. Umm, sorry - didn't mean to go on about that here! Just had to say why I am so very nervous about even proposing to make a new version Sola, let alone actually producing one!

Yes ma'am. I've played around with characters with a pretty similar arc, and I get giddy over the possibilities, but one thing or another always stops me from developing them in any real capacity (usually some combination of real life and the panic attacks I get when I stare at code for too long ). From an outsider's perspective, I can easily see Shai being fascinated by a Bhaalspawn, for different reasons depending on the type of PC. It would be a hell of a lot of work considering different motivations/plots/plans/smartassness...but it would be so amazing.

I feel exactly the same way, which is why I'm kind of staying out of the mainstream while I fiddle with a project(s) until something gets complete. Then I'll just toss it out there and people who hate it can hate it, and those who don't can have something to play with.

The one thing that always hangs me up about a new Sola mod (and I loved him early on too, in my first vanilla playthrough) is how long it takes to actually get him in the party. It's so much easier for a character that starts out somewhere close to the start of the game because they can be developed and integrated into the party. Strangely, to me at least, it seems like it would be more work than a fresh character .

It might seem silly, considering I have effectively been modding since the end of '03, but I never have shaken off that feeling of being a total noob when it comes to these things...

I think that has always been the issue with Sola, but I wouldn't want to have him join the party any earlier - it would just be too game breaking.

Do you watch Stargate? If so, you'll know who I'm on about - I kind of see Sola as a mixture of Teal'c and Ronon: he would have Teal'c stoicism and age along with Ronon's brooding nature and almost animalistic / vicious way of fighting. I personally would keep him a pure fighter, and his SoA dialogues would be more about him adjusting to the surface and dealing with living outside of drow society, as well as dealing with just what he's gotten himself into with regards to the PC. Any Ust Natha backlash would actually initially be aimed at the PC as well - the fact that Sola is with them would come as a bit of a surprise for them (he just disappeared, after all). Any romance might be tentatively started in SoA, with the main bulk of it happening in ToB. I personally wouldn't make him a chosen of Eilistraee - he would be just a drow on the run, trying to come to terms with the massive decision he has made and the full implications of his actions in Ust Natha.

Whoa. I think you're really overthinking the Weimer Sola thing. People have played and enjoyed Sola for years, and even if you write a Sola mod, they will still play it, but everybody needs a change sometimes.

And there's no such thing as modder clout. Some people are better known than others, and some may have a high opinion of themselves, but when all we're offering is free downloads, how much "clout" can a person possibly have? We don't even own our own characters, not really, or at least not once it's downloaded. You never know what interpretation someone is going to walk away with. This is doubly true when a person mods a BioWare NPC. For example, the NPC Flirt Pack offers flirts for Anomen. I'd like some variety. Maybe I want to write my own flirt pack. Would it be wrong for me to come up with a group of NPC-initiated flirts and a new PID menu that was a little different? OK, you probably wouldn't be able to have both on the same installation, but it would offer some choice. I can do this because the writers of the NPC Flirt Pack don't own Anomen. There's an encounter with Edwin in Romantic Encounters. There's a mod romance that involves Edwin. I don't see a problem with this.

Do you see what I'm getting at?

Anyway, if you wrote it, people would play it.

Berelinde - you speak a hell of a lot of good sense, that much is true. You're right - I am overthinking it all (I tend to do that!), and I'm getting all tied up in knots over it. Problem is, I still have quite a severe case of 'once bitten, twice shy' when it comes to certain aspects of modding - earlier on in my modding career, I with hindsight made some pretty stupid decisions. I didn't make them out of arrogance (which I was accused of), but simply out of stupid naivete; I got so caught up in the whole 'wow, I'm making something!' that I didn't necessarily think things through carefully enough with regards to some of my choices. Problem is, I now tend to go in completely the opposite direction - now everything I write is completely optional, with intensely (almost stupidly) detailed dialogues that cover near enough every single kind of PC reaction I can think of, which was equally stupid of me, because it led to the Avenue of Complete and Utter Burnout - in the end, I was sitting at my computer, stressing out because I couldn't figure out if Cespenar was a Baatezu or Tan'ari and sitting on an unfinished dialogue that already had well over 100 blocks of dialogue in it, just so I could cover as many eventualities as I could think of (when you're getting up to 8 PC choices or responses per dialogue block out of fear of people coing back to you and accusing you of 'railroading' them, it really is time to stop and evaluate what is important in your life!).

I suppose when it comes to Sola, I don't want anyone to think I am disrespecting Weimer's version in any way, because I am not. As I said, it was Weimer's Sola that brought me to modding, so on that level alone, it warrants my undying respect. I'm not in any way saying Weimer got it 'wrong' - just that it would be interesting to come up with another interpretation of him, and so I do see completely what you're getting at.

Thanks a lot - I need people like you around me to help me maintain my perspective! (And thank you even more for the very sweet last comment... )

I'm not sure - I might do a poll, asking for people's opinions on the Sola matter - you know, seperate it from this thread. Do you think that is a good idea?

This might not be the right forum for this - if it isn't, just move it and give me a slap on the leg

After coming back to BG after a while away from it, I have decided to run a vanilla game before fiddling around with mods again. It is largely a pleasant experience - even Irenicus' hellish first dungeon isn't as unpleasant as once it was, and whilst it isn't like playing for the first time, it is nice to come back after a protracted break to discover that BG is indeed as awesome as I remembered it, and not due to a horrible case of rose-tinted glasses.

One thing that really has struck me, however, is how much more respect I have for Anomen as a character. Whilst I still find him arrogant and boastful, whereas once I thought these flaws were irritating, I now find them interesting and inspired.

Over the last couple of years, I have really gotten into writing in a big way, and due to this, I have gained a love for truly flawed characters; ones that have real flaws as opposed to 'cosmetic' flaws (like being an arrogant wanker compared to being 'a bit clumsy' or having a bit of a temper... you know, annoying, real life flaws as opposed to 'these are *technically* flaws which would make me a total idiot in real life, but in the realms of fantasy, they make me look cool'). Due to this, I have been able to look at Anomen and at last see this much maligned, often ridiculed character for what I think he really is - a character with 'proper' flaws that make him incredibly real in ways other NPCs (canon and mod - and I include my own mod in this!) aren't. Of course, this means he isn't totally appealing in terms of being compatible with most female fantasies of their own personal 'knight in shining armour', but that doesn't mean he's a bad character - quite the opposite, in fact...

I was once one of those people who called Anomen 'Annoyman', but this is no longer the case. I am not saying he doesn't irritate me - sheesh, if I met him down the pub in real life, I'd be making my excuses to leave pretty damn sharpish! - but I have to admit that after ridiculing him for so long, I now feel a trifle silly and sheepish, because in reality, he is actually, I feel, a triumph of character creation.

TL;DR? Anomen FTW. Never thought I'd say that, but hey, you live and learn...

Anyone else had any revelations about any NPCs over the years? Ones the initially hated but have over time discovered respect for? Or how about vice versa? Maybe there was once a character you liked, but over time they have been revealed for the frauds they truly are...

(For purposes of keeping this topic unbiased, it pribably is best to stick to canon NPCs... although let me be the first to say that I am acutely aware that I definitely need to put a few more genuine flaws into my next NPC! )

If it helps you choose between ideas you feel equally strongly about, yes. Otherwise, the only opinion you should consult about what to work on next should be your own.

Yeah, I know I'm saying yes and no at the same time.

Hehehee It's the attitude that counts!

Thanks again - you've thrown new light on the whole issue for me, which has definitely put it into perspective (which is what I needed).

Another take on sola can only be interesting and would be fun to play. I think the community as a whole is mature enough to appreciate another interpretation of the character for what it is, and not draw narrow comparisions on which is better or worse.

Hopefully this will be the case! Got to admit, I was expecting a largely negative response - to get this much of a positive one really does make me feel a hell of a lot more comfortable about thinking about this project

If we change the word "watch" to "own every single season and do a marathon every few months just for fun and still get upset over stuff that happened 10 years ago"...then yes.

Gah, I know - Janet's death is a particular one for me; each time I watch that blinking episode, I sob like a child. And then there's Sunday... argh, don't get me started on Sunday. Carson... NOOOO! JUST GO FISHING WITH HIM!! (As for Quarantine - still won't watch that episode. Bloody Keller - who does she think she is, makin' moves on my Ronon?! )

*cough* Umm, yeah, okay, this is a discussion for elsewhere, methinks...

But actually I think you're description is pretty close to how I picture him as well. I think he'd be jumpy and nervous at first, and really nervous in surface cities/crowded places, especially during the day when it's harder for him to see. (In a lot of ways, he's pretty defenseless in those situations, and he'd have to trust the PC to back him up if things go badly.) I think he'd be paranoid, even of the PC. Especially of the PC if she's female. Life as a drow male and all that. If the PC shows trust and vulnerability with him, I can see that staunch loyalty really kicking in. It's obvious from the way he tries to "protect" Phaere even when she tells him off that he's the protective type. I can't see him romancing an evil (at least not a prototypical "evil") person. I think he would have had enough of that from his past...but I guess it would depend more on how an evil PC treats him and the people/things he values than his/her actual alignment? And I think the Eilistraee thing should be something similar to the way Aerie occasionally mentions her beliefs in an offhand sort of way. It's important to him, but it's personal to him. If that makes sense...I think I'm babbling.

Have you been peeking into my mind? Because That's basically how I envisioned him, too! At first, he'd be incredibly reserved to the point of almost being withdrawn (think Ronon when he first speaks to Weir in 'Duet' - all that suspicious reservation), so to begin with, it would be a case of helping him aclimatise to the surface (again, like Ronon has to aclimatise to civilisation after being on the run for 7 years). For a male PC, there could be a real Sheppard / Ronon dynamic, and with a female PC (although I am not a Spanky shipper at all) a Ronon/Teyla dynamic... Lol, can you guess that I have also thought about making a mod based on Ronon's character at all?! (In fact, it was this that made me think about doing a new Sola mod in the first place - there are a lot of similarities between the two characters at the end of the day!)

In case I didn't say it outright, I do like the Sola idea though I'm still in the cheering section for Xen'shai.

Hehee - 'Shai is definitely an interesting NPC to play around with, but he would be 'one of the long haul', rather like Fade...

Having as many dialog options as possible is always good, we're playing RPG after all. However... Having 3-4 different - and I mean really different, not just various formulations of the same subject - options is quite enough. Anything more will most likely result in diminishing return. Furthermore, having to read through 6-8 lines every time one is about to reply quickly gets tedious and boring. Same thing about having long (over 20 words) replies. In fact, the dialog system employed in IE can't really support more than 5-6 options, just as it can't work with replies that are more than 10-15 words long. Not for technical reasons, but exactly due to the need to read through all of them before selecting one.

Exactly - this is why I was getting so bogged down with something that was in the end ultimately futile. Having choice is fun, but having too much choice is actually counter productive - when it comes to this, I really, really, REALLY need to gain my perspective.

Speaking of railroading, sometimes that's needed more (and much so) than diversity. Heavy story and sandbox are incompatible by their nature. Problem is, not everyone knows (judging by many RPGs released) how to conceal those rails well enough. That's it, unless you meant exactly the concealing.

As Sillara once said to me, 'it's all about giving the player the illusion of choice, whilst at the4 same time getting them to do what you want them to do'. I used to be able to do it... but then it all kind of went a little bit to pot!

Agreed with the modern RPG thing as well - it's something I've noticed in near enough all games (don't even get me started on the new Tomb Raider games... totally and utterly ruined, they are. Crystal Dynamics should be shot for Legend, simple as that!)

That's surely none of my business to meddle in, but if they do think like that, aren't those their own problems?

Yes, it is their problem... but that's the kind of thing I worry about anyway. I like to create, but not necessarily rock the boat, y'know what I mean? And I have a feeling creating a new Sola might rock the boat just a little bit!

I *thought* that was what her name was. I still remember her picture(I suppose I could've looked that up first. ) if that makes you feel better.

Yep - that was her! I would have to re-paint that portrait before using it - *shudders* so many anatomical errors...

Hmm, on DeviantArt and RPGDungeon I go by Xenshail(And you even drew me a sketch, which was fabulous), but I never based it on another character that I recall... Course that was back before Fade was even released, iirc. So that's quite a time ago.

LOL! This is why it should be against the law for people to change their online names - because old hags like me get confused at to who used to go by what name! I was sitting there, wracking my brains, thinking 'I know Xenshail became someone else, but who the buggery was it??' - now I know

Both of your first two ideas look very intriguing. I'm sure you'd write Sola well, also, but he just never interested me.

I'd really be open to whichever you want, but you know I've got a little bit of bias for Ghost of course. And that crazy little psuedo, Jek.

Thanks! I'll see how it goes... got to get my head around finishing Fade too (although sometimes working on something else actually paves the way for more inspiration...). As I said before, if I was going to tackle one first, it would probably be Ghost, since she would be in the game for a set time, rather than spanning the entire thing, so she's not *quite* as daunting as taking on Xen'shai.

I totally agree with your assessment of Anomen's treatment - as a recent Anomen convert, I would love to see him treated with sensitivity rather than just playing the old 'he's an arrogant twat and must be ridiculed at every turn' card (something I admit in full to doing in the past - believe me, I am going to take steps to amend this!).

As for Keldorn, like Aeryn, I am rather fond of the old paladin. Rather than a romance per se, I envisioned an almost father/child relationship developing, where Keldorn partially fills that big, Gorion shaped hole in the PC's life. Keldorn is, after all, a father himself, and for that reason alone I could see him taking an interest in such a young person with such a huge responsibility upon their shoulders - he seems to have quite a strong paternal streak in him, and having him pass on his wisdom to a younger student figure would, I think, fit his personality. However, like all children (biologial or adopted...), how the PC takes this interest is another matter!

To bridge that gap between a full blown romance and a student/mentor thing, the PC could develop a bit of a crush on him; Lord knows, I know I quite easily could...

Thanks, everyone!

I like the thir one best, and I think it blends better with BioWare than the default portrait. The second is nice, too, but the first one is a bit... well, she looks kind of like she's had enhancement surgery.

*nods* I know what you mean - unfortunately, none of these are dedicated portraits, and so they aren't perfect for the job. Eventually, I will probably digitally repaint this picture to be Fade (heh, I am better with traditional media over digital, so I bet I screw it up...), but I can't do that until my house renovation are finished (just the bathroom to go now!) and my PC is unpacked again - although I do have Gimp2 on this laptop (I have Photoshop on my PC), my lovely wacom tablet is - you guessed it! - packed away with my PC... bah!

If I get time, I'll probably repaint the third portrait again as well... I've got a bunch of things I want to do, so I might as well!

Thanks, Shadowhawke (and as I have said before, thank you so much for your lovely reviews on ff.net! ) - I shall post the chapters up here slowly, if Queen Lucy lets me (she seems to have a 6th sense for when I want to write or draw, meaning as soon as I start doing so, she always wakes up / begins to cry / shouts for attention... If she wasn't so damn cute... )

Hordes of the Underdark: Where Darkness Resides.

I?ve never written ?serious? fanfic before (unless you count my Baldur?s Gate mod!) ? I normally either stick to my own stories or write parodies / silliness. I decided to write this because a) I thought it would be good practise b) it?s a break from my own mammoth story that is getting far too big and confusing for its own good and c) Valen? (yeah, I admit it; I?m a bit of Valen fangirl?).

I started writing notes for this a couple of years ago, but never actually bothered to do anything with them - hence the reason this is so late in terms of the game?s release date. It?s really just a bit of self indulgence ? the plot is basically the same, but I?ve decided to completely re-write dialogues and add in scenarios of my own invention (mainly because I?m too lazy to open up the dialogues in the game and re-write them here ? the basic gist is the same, though). The main protagonist is a half elven rogue / sorcerer called Jenalil ?Jen? Allomann, and I?ve decided to start the story near the beginning of Chapter 2 of the game ? mainly because Chapter 1 in the game is simply a dungeon crawl and therefore not that interesting to write (although I may go back to it eventually ? we?ll see how far I get with this!).

As for copyright ? the plot and characters (apart from Jen) belong to Bioware and all that jazz.

Chapter One ? The Seer

Such an insignificant thing. Tiny; unassuming. Who would?ve thought it would turn out to be so important?

Jen sighed to herself as she laid the small amulet upon the sheets of a borrowed bed, tracing the swirls that adorned it with a gentle finger. The relic was a small disc of gold; it looked as if it had once been part of something larger - a hilt of a sword, maybe. She knew the truth of it, however, and consequently she?d lost count the amount of times she?d try to be rid of it; each time, it had come back to her.

To haunt her?

Shaking her head, the half elf studied the room she had been given for this brief interlude. To the casual observer her general demeanour might have come across as merely curious, but her darting eyes and the imperceptible shaking of her hands betrayed the uncomfortable nervousness accompanied by fleeting periods of acute anxiety she was currently experiencing.

She must be wrong. She has to be wrong?

?Boss??

Jen near jumped at the high-pitched, slightly rasping voice that intruded upon her introspection. She had forgotten that Deekin had accompanied her to her room; truth was, she could have done with this time to herself, but there was no subtle way to discourage the little kobold bard from following her and sitting himself upon one of the spider-adorned chairs in the corner of the rather grandiose room she had been granted; hints just slid off his scales like water, and Jen didn?t have the heart to have him forcefully removed from her room.

?Don?t call me boss, Deekin. I?ve asked you before.?

Deekin nodded as he swung his clawed feet back and forth, an endearing, if slightly annoying, sight.

?Yes, boss. Deekin was just wondering: why is we sitting in this room??

Jen sighed again, mentally cringing at the deference he always showered her with and shrugged her shoulders.

?I thought we needed a few minutes to gather our thoughts,? she answered carefully; for some reason, she was unwilling to admit that she needed some time to herself, as if it was some kind of dire weakness in this most dangerous of places. She smiled weakly at the kobold. ?I thought they were going to throw us out immediately after charging us with this godsforsaken quest; I suppose we should be grateful that they?ve granted us this time to sort our heads out.?

Deekin cocked his head to one side and looked away from Jen for a moment, strumming a few soft chords upon his curiously shaped lyre, as if the action aided his concentration. After a moment?s pause, he looked back to the half elf.

??Suppose so. Deekin thoughts the big goatman was going to chuck Deekin and boss out for sure.?

Despite herself, Jen couldn?t help but grin at the little kobold?s unerring ability to hit the nail right upon the head. Their arrival to the Underdark hadn?t been particularly pleasant or successful; placed under a geas by a mad wizard to defeat a drow queen calling herself the Valsharess, only to be greeted by a drow priestess who claimed that she knew of Jen and that she was there as some kind of saviour of her visions. Upon seeing the drow collective in the audience chamber, Jen had thought them dead for sure ? it was truly ironic, then, that the assembled drow had been almost accepting of them once their Seer ? the priestess - had vouched for her; it had been the odd-looking man ? the only non-drow in the room (and possibly the whole city, Jen mused) beside herself and her kobold bard companion - who had stood so protectively to the right of the Seer that had been the most negative and aggressive towards her. Although she had seen drow before, she had never seen his like in all her extensive travels; with his curled, goat-like horns upon his head, cruel, ice blue eyes and long, sinewy tail he both piqued her curiosity and frightened her in equal measure. Beside him, the drow assassin Nathyrra?s cautiously cordial attitude towards her seemed almost obscenely welcoming, and the Seer? well?

Jen pursed her lips and, locking her hands behind her head, lay back upon the silken covers of the bed as she thought of the Priestess of Eilistraee: hauntingly beautiful and ageless in appearance, her eyes the only thing betraying the wisdom of many centuries. Wriggling a little, Jen mused on how the bed was surprisingly comfortable; for some reason, she had always imagined drow life to be one of hardship and torture, and so she had never considered such simple things as beds in connection with them before. The spider motif that dominated the room did not surprise her, however; even if the Seer did proclaim to follow Eilistraee, the room was located in what was first and foremost a temple of Lolth, the Spider Queen.

Odd how things work out?

Jen?s private reflection was cut short by a short, sharp rap upon the door to her chamber. Deekin, startled, stopped his strumming and looked apprehensively to his half elven comrade. Shaking her head at him, Jen sat up, leant across to the bedside table where her sword, Enserric, lay in its scabbard and crisply bade the knocker enter.

She knew it was Valen before his features became apparent in the dim light of the room by his sheer size; no drow could ever hope to match his height. Glowering a little, the be-horned man regarded her with a stony, measured gaze that bordered upon insolence; a silent challenge if she had even seen one.

?The Seer wishes to know if you are rested enough.?

Clutching Enserric, Jen stood up and matched his stare, refusing to be intimidated by him. In the corner of her eye, she saw Deekin stand up and clutch his lyre to himself defensively; she knew the gesture and felt a small flare of satisfaction that, despite his small stature compared with the warrior that stood between them, the little kobold bard wasn?t afraid to stand by her if things turned ugly.

?I am,? she replied eventually, keeping her tone as flat as possible as she buckled her sword to her hip and snatched up the Relic of the Reaper from the bedcovers.

?Then the Seer wishes to speak with you again.?

With that, Valen turned tersely upon one heel and near marched out of the room without a backward glance.

o0o

Feeling decidedly apprehensive, Jen attempted to straighten the overlapping plates of the simple black leather armour she habitually wore and tucked a rather unruly lock of chestnut brown hair behind one sharp ear. She didn?t know why she felt she had to present herself in such a manner; after all, according to the Seer, she was the Saviour - the defeater of the Valsharess or some such nonsense, but the calm authority that the Seer seemed to exude reminded Jen a little too sharply of the classroom and therefore of Drogan, her dwarven mentor, and so the desire to present herself in a good light to the drow priestess was more an ingrained response than anything else. Behind her, Deekin followed meekly, his claws clacking lightly upon the highly polished marble floor. Taking a deep breath and expelling it slowly, Jen opened the door that lead to the Seer?s audience chamber and tried to ignore the score of dark elven eyes that followed her progress as she made her way to ornately decorated central dais where the Seer stood, a welcoming smile touching her lips.

Extending a hand, the Seer invited Jen to sit upon the dais with her and offered her a small cup which she filled with a sweet smelling red liquid.

?I do hope you were not roused from your rest too early; if so, I apologise,? she tilted her head towards Jen in a gesture of regret. The half elf offered the beautiful drow a hesitant smile and a small, half-shrug, to which the drow smiled warmly.

?I wish I could allow you to relax to your heart?s content, Jen, but as you are well aware, time is a simple pleasure that we simply do not have right now.? The Seer?s countenance grew grave as a shadow passed briefly across her ancient eyes. ?The Valsharess moves swiftly against us; we must be prepared. As I said before, she has powerful alliances ? alliances that we need to be broken,? she gave Jen a significant look. ?Alliances that you need to break.?

At this, Jen swallowed hard and nodded dumbly, her mouth suddenly dry. She knew she had agreed to this, but it didn?t stop her being plagued with self doubt. Seeing her discomfiture, the Seer gestured to the forgotten cup in the half elf?s hand and offered her a munificent smile. Unconsciously, Jen smiled back and took a sip of the fragrant liquid; for a short moment, she was back upon the surface enjoying the sun on a summer?s day and not in the claustrophobic confines of the hostile Underdark. Surprised, she looked quizzically down at the cup and then at the Seer, whose smile simply widened for the briefest of moments before settling back to her previous benign countenance.

?You are the one of my visions, Jenalil? of that I am certain,? she glanced briefly to one side, where the warrior Valen stood in the shadows. ?I know not everyone believes in my visions...? the Seer raised a delicate ebon hand to forestall Valen as he made to step forward and interrupt her; snorting irritably, the horned man stepped back into the shadows and took up his customary spot once more, offering Jen a flat, hard stare ??but you must believe me when I say that I would not send anyone into the wilds of the Underdark without good cause,? the Seer sighed as a look of resigned sorrow settled upon her fair features. ?The Underdark is a dangerous place; if it were possible, I would send you back from whence you came? but it isn?t; Halaster has seen to it that even had you not been the one of my visions, you would have to face the Valsharess anyway, and for that, I am sorry.? Before Jen could comment, the drow priestess continued. ?However, I am not proposing you go alone. Nathyrra has petitioned me personally to allow her to accompany you, if you should wish her help?? At the offer, Nathyrra stepped forward, seeming to coalesce out of the very shadows themselves and nodded towards Jen, a slight smile upon her obsidian lips ?? and Valen has also pledged his sword-arm to you, should you accept it,? Jen couldn?t help but glance with a flicker of surprise towards where the surly warrior stood with his arms folded over his chest, a stoic look upon his face, his gaze fixed unblinkingly upon a point just above where the meeting was taking place.

?And Deekin, boss! Don?t forget Deekin! Deekin is coming, too! Deekin must continue to write the story of brave boss and her adventures in Underdark!?

Jumping a little, Jen turned to regard her kobold companion, having forgotten that he was present during this meeting - and by the look on the Seer?s face, so had she. The priestess quirked an eyebrow and gave Jen a quizzical look. Blushing slightly, Jen glanced up at Valen and Nathyrra as they exchanged a slightly horrified look before remembering themselves and forcing their faces back to their former, carefully contrived masks.

?Uh, Deekin? it?ll be dangerous?? Jen started, unsure of what to say.

?Deekin will be safe; he is with boss!? Deekin interrupted. Jen winced slightly.

?Yeah, umm, okay? but the Underdark? are you sure you wouldn?t be happier, well, here? I?m sure you?d be? a? great?.help?..? she trailed off as Deekin?s face fell with abject disappointment.

?But? Boss? we does these things together? how can Deekin write saga of brave boss if Deekin is here?? Deekin almost whispered, a husky edge to his voice. Closing her eyes, Jen sighed and patted the kobold upon his shoulder. Truth was that Deekin had proved himself to her on more than one occasion, which, when all was said and done, was more than could be said of Nathyrra and Valen.

?Okay, Deekin? if that?s what you want, you can come.? Jen heard a snort of derisive astonishment from behind her; to her surprise, she felt her hackles rise a little in response to it. Deekin, however, had obviously not heard it.

?YAY! BOSS! Deekin and Boss, together again!? the kobold trilled ecstatically, strumming an upbeat chord upon his lyre. Wincing visibly now, Jen shrugged helplessly towards the assembled audience; the drow that had before been pretending not to listen to the exchange between the rogue and the priestess had all turned towards the kobold?s enthusiastic reaction and watched with raised eyebrows and perplexed looks, making Jen squirm uncomfortably inside.

?Yeah, okay, come on, Deekin? that?s, err, enough now?? she mumbled, going an impressive shade of deep crimson as the kobold beamed happily at her. ?Everyone is watching??

?Then it is settled,? the Seer interjected smoothly. ?You will not be fulfilling your destiny alone,? she smiled again, this time her attention fixed upon Deekin: ?Not that I thought you would be??

Standing up, the Seer smoothed the creases out of her silken dress and reached for a small box that stood upon a filigreed side table. Not sure if the meeting had come to an end or not, Jen followed the Seer?s lead and stood up awkwardly, running a hand apprehensively through her hair. Just as she was about to lower it again, the Seer caught it tenderly and studied the ring that was glowing gently in the half-light of the audience chamber.

?You wear this so you can see?? she asked softly. Before Jen could answer with anything more than a nod, the Seer held the small box up and offered it to her. ?External light will be your enemy down here, Jen; it makes you a target. You need to see as we, the drow, do.? Opening the box, the Seer drew out a delicately wrought silver circlet with a small, highly polished moonstone set within it; after holding it up for Jen to inspect it, she presented to her.

?If you would allow me?? the Seer gestured for Jen to be seated once more. Slightly nervously, Jen complied. The Seer then carefully fitted the circlet so that the moonstone sat snugly upon her forehead: gasping, Jen surveyed the room.

No longer was it filled with murky shadow illuminated solely by bursts of lilac and green faerie fire; it was as if the entire room had been bathed in the bright moonlight of Midsummer?s Eve. Colours that were once muted and distorted now became brighter and more apparent, and everything was suffused with an almost eerie silvery sheen. Turning once again to the Seer, Jen blinked furiously, unsure of how to thank the priestess for such a princely gift. As if able to read her mind, the Seer inclined her head towards the rogue and caught Jen?s cheeks between her cool, ebon hands

?This is the least I can offer you, Saviour. Take it with my thanks; with the thanks of all my people. May Eilistraee smile upon you.?

o0o

After Jen had accepted her gift, the Seer left the audience chamber with a couple of her drow entourage in tow. The remaining drow slowly turned their attention back to their own occupations, and so it was that the only remaining people left near the dais were Jen, Deekin, Nathyrra and Valen.

Deekin was the first to break the silence.

?Deekin thinks the drow lady wants us to work, now,? he said thoughtfully, turning towards the doors that lead to the drow city of Lith My?athar. ?We shoulds be going, Deekin thinks.?

?On your own?? Nathyrra interjected, speaking up for the first time since Jen had entered the audience chamber. ?My offer still stands. I am more than willing to accompany you.?

Jen smiled gratefully at the drow and nodded appreciatively at her offer.

?In truth, I?m grateful. I wouldn?t want to have to muddle my way through this on my own? Jen replied.

After a moment?s hesitation, Nathyrra smiled back.

?I am knowledgeable enough with regards to the local environs; I can help you locate the allies of the Valsharess easily enough??

?And I can help you defeat them,? Valen interrupted and stepped forward to stand beside Nathyrra, dwarfing the drowess.

Surprised, Jen nodded slowly. Although the Seer had said he was willing to help, the half elf hadn?t quite believed her. Seeing her doubt, Valen quirked one crimson brow at her in obvious annoyance.

?So? you?re willing to help, too?? Jen said carefully.

?The Seer wouldn?t have extended my offer if I wasn?t willing to help,? Valen replied, his tone clipped.

?But you don?t believe in the Seer?s visions. Why offer to help in the first place?? As soon as the question left her lips, Jen regretted asking it; the last thing she needed to do was make an enemy of the one man who looked like he could level an entire battlefield on his own.

Valen folded his arms once again over his chest and glowered down at Jen, his ice blue eyes colder than ever.

?If you do not wish my help, just say so. There are other things I can be doing.?

?No, no! I mean, yes. I? I mean, yes, I do want your help, and no, you don?t have to do other things. Unless you want to, of course,? Jen stammered, trying to recover herself, bullying herself not to be cowed by him. From the corner of her eye she saw Nathyrra raise her eyebrows in a slightly incredulous way, but decided to ignore her.

After giving her an appraising look, Valen reached back and picked up his weapon of choice: a massive tangle of heavy spiked balls made of a cold, black bone fixed by chains to an ornately crafted handle. Goggling slightly, Jen watched as he wound the heavy flail?s chains around its own handle and then slid it home into a complicated leather harness with practised ease that allowed him to keep his hands free. ?Well? Where to??

Nathyrra broke in, giving Jen an odd look

?I suggest we talk with Imloth; he knows a good deal about the various enemies we?ll be facing.?

Valen snorted. ?Beholders, Illithid, undead? we already know how to fight these foes, Nathyrra.?

Nathyrra frowned. ?That may be the case, but I doubt Jen does. She needs advice, and I know I am not best person to give it.?

Valen?s countenance hardened again.

?And neither am I, I suppose? You forget; all the time you?ve been skulking in the shadows, I?ve been leading your troops and fighting skirmishes in your name for a long time now.?

?I am aware of that, Valen,? Nathyrra snapped back. ?But Imloth is the Master at Arms in Lith My?athar ? not only is he trained in fighting these foes, he knows how to train others to fight them!?

Glancing nervously from the warrior to the assassin, Jen was grateful when Deekin seemingly innocently broke the tension.

?Deekin knows of Mindflayers, also known as Illithid. They like to eat brains. Deekin recommends a helmet,? the kobold commented, his reptilian face the perfect picture of earnest sincerity.

Unable to stop herself at the absurdity of the statement with regards to the seriousness of the rest of the conversation, Jen couldn?t help but stifle a giggle behind one hand. Both Nathyrra and Valen rounded upon her with narrowed eyes.

?Well, Deekin has a point?? she said a little sheepishly, waiting to be chastised. At that, Nathyrra rolled her crimson eyes and grinned and much to Jen?s surprise, a fleeting ghost of a smile touched Valen?s lips for a mere second.

?Whatever we do next, we should get going,? he commented, the usual gruff edge to his voice firmly back in place. ?Time is not on our side.?

Despite their differences, Jen couldn?t have agreed more with him.

Chapter Two ? The City of Lith My?athar

Leaving the relative safe confines of the temple, Jen hadn?t known what to expect from the drow city; one thing for certain was she hadn?t expected it to be so beautiful. Despite being half elven, she had had little to do with the elven way of life; her birthmother had died in bringing her into the world and so she had been brought up by her human father (joined later by her human stepmother) in a very much human dominated society. It was this largely untapped elven side, however, that appreciated the delicate filigreed buildings that towered above her and the exquisitely carven statues that were dotted around the square in front of the temple. Both were largely constructed out of a shining black marble veined with glittering lilac crystals, garlanded with almost floral-like bursts of purple, blue and red faerie fire and spoke of a deeply ingrained appreciation of aesthetics and need to create beauty ? although Jen?s own appreciation was tinged with a slight, jarring feeling of horror when she focused upon the smaller details adorning the gracefully constructed buildings: the spires that ended in cruel spikes, soft curves intermingled with jagged barbed designs and the abundant proliferation of the spider motif, either depicting fierce arachnids themselves or huge replica cobwebs that spanned windows and balconies. Shuddering slightly at this conflict between beauty and cruelty, Jen forced herself to turn her attention away from the spiders; be they real or simply renditions, she had always been a little afraid of the eight legged creatures after she and her half-brother Renlan had been attacked by a giant specimen in the forest local to their village. Renlan had been bitten and consequently had been ill for some time after; in the end, the local druid had been the only one who could neutralise the poison that the massive arachnid had pumped into his system. Consequently, she had had nightmares for months afterwards, and whilst she was confident that she had mastered her fear enough to tackle the creatures by herself if there was no other option, she would rather avoid them if she could.

Unfortunately, it looked like that wasn?t going to be entirely possible here.

A slight breeze danced pleasantly over her, lifting the strands of hair that framed her face, having escaped from the braid she habitually wore; another surprise, since she had thought the Underdark would simply have been an extension of Undermountain, claustrophobic and still. As it was, Lith My?athar buzzed with life: merchants hawked their wares from market stalls to the right of them, their customers strolling from booth to booth, sampling a wide range of goods ranging from the decidedly exotic to the everyday mundane; hammers rung upon anvils located in a huge forge just beyond the market stalls; battalions of dark elven soldiers sparred together in small groups, honing their already impressive skills; and from the faint smell of river mud and fish that was carried upon the breeze, Jen guessed that there must be some kind of water course nearby. Looking up, Jen found that she could not see the ceiling of the massive cave the city was located in; instead, she could see hundreds of tiny points of faint light that eerily resembled a twinkling star-scape. This did not alleviate the foreboding feeling of being buried deep within the earth, however; the fact that this place could live and thrive hundreds of feet beneath her world without the inhabitants of the surface ever knowing about it in any way other than through dark rumour and old wives tales disturbed her more than would be willing to openly admit. Jen shivered a little and drew her arms around herself; even with the relative familiarity of people going about their everyday business, this place, with its pervading sense of tension and subtle undercurrent of malice that seemed woven into the very fabric of the rock the city was constructed on, was more alien to her than she could ever have imagined.

Noticing her shiver, Valen glanced down at the uneasy half elf for a split second before looking up again, his face carefully impassive. The look did not go unnoticed, however, and after waiting a few moments to see whether the tall warrior was going to say a few words of comfort, Nathyrra shook her head imperceptibly, rolling her eyes a little as she did in silent chastisement of Valen?s rather callous demeanour.

?This place can be a little unsettling for surfacers at first,? she commented in a low voice, a reassuring smile upon her lips. ?If you have any questions, I?d be more than happy to answer them.?

Jen nodded unconsciously, chewing a little upon her bottom lip. She knew what she wanted to ask, but didn?t want anyone to know of her weaknesses quite yet.

?Uh, how long has the city been here?? she asked eventually, trying to infuse her voice with an air of confidence she did not particularly feel.

Recognising her need for inconsequential small talk, Nathyrra inclined her head towards Jen, indicating she was willing to discuss such things with her; in complete contrast, a flash of impatient irritation flickered momentarily across Valen?s face, his jaw tightening as he clamped down upon the retort that was obviously attempting to fight its way out of him.

?The city has been here for many centuries,? Nathyrra began, gesturing around herself ?although more as an outpost than an actual city. It is the haven of House Maeviir, once a powerful House in their own right, but now the last refuge for a mere handful of survivors and rebels. Once upon a time, other, lesser drow Houses also inhabited the walls of the city, but they have either been destroyed by, or joined with, the Valsharess.? Nathyrra shook her head sadly. ?We truly are the last stand against her. If we fall, all is lost; no one will be able to halt her rise to ultimate power.?

?Hence the importance of having allies we can trust implicitly not to fail or betray us,? Valen broke in, his intense cerulean eyes boring accusingly into Jen.

At that, Jen felt a small flame of furious irritation of her own ignite deep with in her at the warrior?s continued negativity and flagrant, mocking mistrust of her.

?I never asked for this, you know,? she snapped back, her voice suddenly tight with suppressed anger. ?I didn?t just stroll down here and demand to be charged with this task. Maybe you?d like to take me to get another wizard and have yet another geas placed upon me, just to make sure there is absolutely no way I can betray you? Or maybe you?d like me to pledge some kind of oath in front of a deity of your choice? Or how about a potion of truth - maybe even a nice Discern Lies spell as well, just for good measure - so you can grill me to your heart?s content with the knowledge that I can?t actually lie to you? Would that suffice, Valen? Or do you want more?? she glared back at the horned man, her own soft hazel-green eyes now taking on the coldly glittering cast of well-cut emeralds.

For a second, Valen?s eyes narrowed and one gauntleted hand hovered over the handle of his massive flail; the colour drained a little from Jen?s face as she wondered in slight panic if he had taken her little frustrated outburst as a direct challenge. Even though she had some pretty devastating spells at her disposal and knew exactly where to stick a dagger into a man to bring him down with one hit, her strength lay in the element of surprise or, failing that, in distance; in a straight fight, Valen would beat her into mulch without so much as breaking a sweat. Fortunately, the moment passed as the warrior dropped his hand back down to his side and gave her a slightly appraising look, almost as if she had passed some kind of test. Folding his arms over his chest in a gesture that Jen was now beginning to recognise as one of intimidation as much as one of defence, Valen glowered down at her, the tip of his sinewy tail flicking from side to side. From out of the corner of her eye, Jen saw Nathyrra?s hand drop from the hilt of her rapier; the gesture did not comfort her however, for as friendly as the drow assassin was towards her, the rogue did not think she would raise a blade against Valen in her defence if he did decide to take matters into his own hands.

?There will be no need for that, Jenalil Allomann,? Valen replied eventually, his voice deep and slightly threatening. ?I will be watching you closely; that is enough for me. Just know that if you make one false move,? he held up his index finger to emphasise his point, ?I will not hesitate in cutting you down. I will not have these people harmed.?

?I can appreciate that,? Jen answered curtly, hoping that her voice sounded cool and collected rather than harried and nervous, ?I have no intention of betraying anyone.?

?There is no need to qualify yourself in front of us, Jen,? interjected Nathyrra, throwing Valen a decidedly withering look. ?That the Seer believes in you is enough for me.? She smiled again, softening her angular elven features once more; Valen just snorted derisively.

?Imloth,? he near growled as he strode away, leaving the two females upon the temple steps.

?Why is goatman so nasty, boss?? Deekin asked quietly once the rest of the little party had left the steps to follow Valen. The little kobold had watched the entire exchange with huge eyes, clutching his lyre to his thin, scaly chest defensively. ?Deekin knows boss wouldn?t betray the drow lady??

Jen smiled ruefully at her stalwart companion and patted him lightly upon the shoulder.

?I know you do, Deek, and I?m grateful for that? we?ll just ride it out for now, huh? He?ll either come around or decide he can?t stand to be with us; whatever the case, it?ll sort itself out in the end. These things inevitably do.?

Deekin looked up, his expression decidedly sceptical. Jen knew exactly how he felt.

o0o

Following Valen?s purposeful lead, Jen found it quite hard to take in everything around her, but even from her rapid trip across the city she could see that there were clearly two factions of drow at work there. First of all, there were the remaining members of House Maeviir, obvious in their sneering, disdainful and above all suspicious looks towards her; then there were the followers of Eilistraee, their looks less disdainful, but no less suspicious. Feeling rather conspicuous as yet another pair of dark elven eyes turned to watch her passage, Jen wished that she wore a cloak so she could draw the hood up and become just another anonymous figure going about their daily business. Not that that would work in this situation she thought ruefully, looking ahead of her to the almost predatory form of Valen as he stalked ahead of them, playing the alpha male for all it was worth. Ironically, Nathyrra was nowhere to be seen; she was too practised in skulking in the shadows for Jen, with her newly enhanced ability to see in the dark, to spot her if she didn?t want to be seen quite yet.

It took them a good half an hour to reach their destination; on Jen?s part, it was a good half an hour of uncomfortable silences and feeling rather like a carnival sideshow exhibit. About halfway through their journey, after realising that Valen was indeed going to ignore her completely, Nathyrra had relinquished the shadows and come to walk beside Jen, offering her titbits of information about the buildings they passed: their history, who had once owned them, the crimes committed in them. After the fourth story of grisly murder on the same street, the half elf had become to feel rather sickened by it all, and felt a deep yearning to be out of this dark place and back upon the surface once again. Sure, such crimes were committed there too, but they weren?t spoken of so candidly, as if they were rather cleverly pulled off japes rather than scenes of twisted murder, rape and torture. It didn?t help that all the way through it, Valen kept up a punishing pace, obviously determined to show Jen that although he had agreed to help her, he was firmly in charge.

They eventually came to a section of the city that rang with the sound of steel against steel and the shouts of commanding officers drilling their troops in a language Jen didn?t understand. Although close up it seemed a lot of people, she could see that their forces were pitifully few; a couple of battalions, no more. Upon seeing their arrival, the nearest Sergeant at Arms turned and offered Valen a sharp salute; Valen then strode over to join him, and after exchanging a few words with the drow, beckoned the rest of them over.

?Imloth is with Naldrin?s squad, to the east of the encampment,? he informed them. ?Tatholaer has sent a runner ahead of us to notify him of our arrival.? The drow Sergeant standing next to him nodded. Unsure of what to do considering she had not been properly introduced, Jen smiled at Tatholaer.

He did not return the gesture.

Allowing her smile to slide off her face, Jen crossed her arms over her chest, looked at the floor and wondered if anyone in this godsforsaken place apart from Nathyrra was going to respond to her in any way other than with barely veiled contempt.

It only took Imloth a short while to arrive. As Master at Arms, Imloth bore the rank of Training Commander and consequently, Jen was expecting to be treated in much the same vein as Valen. It therefore came as a great surprise when, after saluting to the much larger warrior, he also saluted her.

?Ussta Jallil Jenalil. The Seer said you might stop by for intelligence regarding the allies of the Valsharess. Is this the case?? he asked in heavily accented Common.

Completely taken aback, Jen just nodded dumbly at first. At that, Valen rolled his eyes and Nathyrra jabbed her surreptitiously in the ribs, encouraging her to speak up.

?Uh, yes, yes, that is the case, Commander. I, err, need to know about tactics; how to fight them and the like,? Jen near stammered, unused not only to the subject matter, but also the deference one of such importance as Imloth was showing her.

A fleeting look of confusion crossed Imloth?s onyx face before he answered her. ?Of course, Jabbress. What would you like to know??

?I?ve been told that the Valsharess has made allies of the beholders and the illithid and that a cult of necromancers are raising undead for her. Can you?add anything to this??

Jen couldn?t help but notice that Imloth glanced incredulously towards Valen before answering her.

?Not a great deal? We have spies posted around, but there is little to tell, to be honest. The Valsharess is hardly being subtle about things; it is simply a case of ?join or die?.?

?Where are these allies located??

?Mainly to the east of Lith My?athar; they have outposts in the Zhasen - the Wilds. Each outpost is located within a few days trek of each other, as the Imp flies. However, you?ll need to give yourself a few days grace to take marauding bands of Umber Hulks, Koa-toas and Grimlocks into consideration,? Imloth offered Jen a rather ironic smile that had nothing to do with amusement. ?Although, saying that, not many of the local inhabitants have been seen around recently. It seems the Valsharess has been good for something after all. But, there again, she has also done an admirable job of replacing the local inhabitants with Duergar raiding parties ? these are usually led by a drow Commander and up to four Lieutenants,? his countenance took on its former, rather grim cast, ?if I?m honest, I?d much rather face the Koa-toa.?

Jen nodded thoughtfully. ?I see. So we?re going to need to take a good tendays worth of supplies with us, just to make sure we reach each outpost sufficiently prepared.?

?At least, I would say.?

?Any other information you can give me? Numbers, maybe??

Imloth stroked his chin with one long, obsidian finger and looked towards Valen. ?I don?t know? I would say that the Illithid Conclave is, what, about fifty strong, give or take a few??

?At least,? replied the warrior tersely. ?You?re looking at hundreds if you include their thralls.?

Imloth nodded in agreement. ?As for the Beholders; who knows. A normal Hive can support anything from thirty to a hundred Eye Tyrants at a time. It depends how strong their Hive Mother is. I would hope that it is one of the smaller Hives, though; if not, then the Valsharess has grown stronger than we had imagined.?

Valen snorted sardonically. ?The fact that she has enslaved an Archdevil to her service should speak of her strength, Imloth.?

Imloth grinned. ?Watch it, Sut'rinos Shadowbreath. You almost sound like you admire her.?

At that remark, Jen held her breath; she had barely known Valen for an hour, and yet she knew that such a comment could stoke his irascible temper. Thankfully, it seemed that Valen held Imloth in much higher regard than he did her, and rather than beat him to a pulp, a small but decidedly evil grin touched his lips.

?In that case, I do so hope I get to admire her up close, especially with Devils? Bane close to hand,? he quipped, patting the hilt of his flail to accentuate his point.

?Ahhh, I would so love to see the consummation of that meeting, abbil?? smirked Imloth with obvious callous mirth.

At this exchange, Nathyrra rolled her eyes in mock exasperation. ?Jalukul?? she whispered to Jen, tutting under her breath, and although she didn?t know the direct translation of the word, she understood exactly what she meant by her intonation alone: Men?

?What of the undead, Imloth?? Nathyrra broke in, trying to steer the conversation back.

Imloth shrugged. ?Of that, we haven?t been so successful in our endeavours. There seems to be some kind of? village near the source of the undead, but in fear of revealing our hand, we haven?t been able to ask too many questions. We?re mainly guessing that a cult of necromancers is responsible for it all, but we really don?t have any solid evidence that that actually is the case,? he gave Jen a rueful look. ?There, I really have to apologise and say you?re on your own.?

Swallowing hard, Jen pinched the bridge of her nose between two gloved fingers and closed her eyes.

A good fifty Illithid, plus hundreds of thralls, a Hive full of nightmarish aberrations that might number anything up to a hundred strong AND a whole enclave of might-be-necromancers with a possibly unending supply of bodies to resurrect? and they?re expecting you to do this with no knowledge of the terrain, little to no experience of fighting half the foes mentioned and all with the sole help of one drow assassin, one bad tempered fighter and one kobold bard? fantastic. They?re all insane. There is no way we can do this on our own ? visions or not, it?s madness. Pure lunacy.

?Okay? so we have a rough idea of what we might be facing,? said Jen eventually. ?What about resources at our disposal? Weapons, healing? troops??

At the mention of troops, it was Imloth?s turn to close his eyes in rueful resignation. ?Rizolvir ? the local Weapons Smith ? can help you on that front. There are a few merchants around hawking magical goods for S'pdonen ? spellcasters, that is ? for being a completely unscrupulous bastard, Obok Faern Gulhyrs sells the best equipment this side of the River,? he took a deep breath and carried on. ?Healing isn?t as simple; we face major casualties every day, and so need as much of our healing capacity within the walls of the city as possible. Potions, wands, healing packs and scrolls have been made available for you to purchase, and if you come back to the city injured, just speak to any of the Seer?s priestesses ? they will probably heal you for free,? he sighed ruefully. ?I know it sounds callous to make you pay for your equipment, considering all you are doing for us, but it isn?t profiteering; we simply need a way to cover base expenses, mainly spell components. As a spell caster yourself, you must be aware that they aren?t always the cheapest of things to obtain.?

At that, Jen could do nothing else but nod. ?And, dare I ask, what about troops? Or are we to do this mammoth task alone??

Imloth glanced once again to Valen and visibly winced, as if Jen?s question has touched a nerve. ?As much as I would love to be able to offer you a battalion, Jenalil, I simply cannot. You have eyes; you can see how few we are. I need as many troops as I can muster here, in defence of Lith My?athar. If this outpost fails, then all is lost.?

?So all of this is up to me, Nathyrra, Valen and Deekin. Four against hundreds,? Jen said, her tone flat.

?Not quite. I said I couldn?t spare a battalion; I can, however, spare an elite vzahaz ? a small troop of well trained soldiers.?

Valen?s scarlet eyebrows shot up his forehead.

?Has the Seer sanctioned this?? he asked, his tone angry as he stepped forward threateningly, his tail beginning to twitch.

?Not explicitly, no,? replied the drow Commander defensively. ?But she has left training duties to me??

?? And directing the troops to me! You know this, Imloth ? why seek to directly undermine me?? There was no mistaking the malevolent note to Valen?s voice now.

?Not undermine, Sut'rinos ? to help! As powerful as you are, can you truly think of facing a whole Hive of Eye Tyrants on your own? I know I can?t! And that is what we are essentially asking Jen to do!? he shook his head. ?It?s? it?s not fair, Valen. This is no way intended as an insult to you ? it?s just good sense.?

Hearing Imloth?s justification, Jen felt a rush of gratitude towards the drow; Valen stepped back away from him, the look upon his face both hostile and mollified. ?I? suppose I can see your point,? he answered eventually as he folded his arms over his chest once more. ?But that does not mean I agree with you making such decisions without consulting me first.?

?When you?re travelling with Jen, I?ll have to make decisions like this all the time. You won?t be here,? stated Imloth matter-of-factly.

Both Jen and Nathyrra flinched slightly at this rather uncomfortable home truth and glanced at Valen, readying themselves for a violent outburst. The warrior didn?t comply, however; instead his face simply froze, his previous good rapport with the drow Commander now completely evaporated away, like morning dew in hot noonday sun.

?Who are you sending to help us?? Nathyrra asked eventually, hoping to diffuse the oppressive atmosphere that had settled upon them.

Imloth?s eyes flickered towards Valen for a fleeting moment before refocusing again upon the drow and half elven females.

?Come with me, ? he answered. ?It would be simpler if you just met them.?

Chapter Three ? Beggars Are Rarely Also Choosers.

At his offer, Jen followed Imloth wordlessly. She felt surprisingly grateful towards him; as far as she was concerned, he was really sticking his neck out for her, no matter what the others thought. Fair enough; in supplying her with allies, he was increasing her chance of breaking the alliances the Valsharess had formed and therefore ultimately serving the Seer and Lith My?athar, but these little details didn?t bother her one bit ? more allies on her side meant there was a greater chance that she and Deekin might actually survive this madness, which was, considering the way she had been drafted into this war, her main goal.

Picking their way through the ordered chaos of sparring dark elves, Jen wondered exactly who had been assigned to her cause, and whether they were going to be as happy about it as Valen seemed to be. The thought made her stomach flip unhappily; the last thing she needed was a whole bunch of surly, petulant, emasculated males to resent her ? it was bad enough having one. Still, Imloth had reassured her that they were field veterans - survivors of past engagements whose comrades-in-arms had been killed and were therefore technically without troops of their own and in need of a new assignment. The fact that they had survived what were undoubtedly bloody battles was both a comfort and a worry for Jen; on one hand, it meant that they knew how to take care of themselves, but on the other, it meant that they had probably lived by leaving dying comrades on the battlefield ? something Jen knew was necessary, but it didn?t mean that she had to like it. Sighing inwardly, she supposed this was the way of war and something soldiers were used to? and she wasn?t a soldier by any stretch of the imagination.

Just before the small group emerged from the tangle of militia honing their skills, Nathyrra touched Jen lightly upon her arm and leaned in close so she could whisper in her ear.

?Do not show any weakness. You are being given drow soldiers; they respect strength. And if you do not have their respect, you have nothing.? She gave Jen a significant look.

?Right. Hard-hearted bitch it is, then,? Jen quipped, trying to inject an element of levity into the situation.

?I?m not joking, Jen,? Nathyrra replied, a serious look upon her face. ?Whoever they are ? followers of Eilistraee or Maeviir rebels ? they are still drow, and we are a proud race that responds to strong leaders.? She gestured surreptitiously with her eyes towards Valen. ?You wouldn?t believe the hard time some of the Maeviir rebels gave him at first.? Seeing Jen?s eyebrows raise incredulously, Nathyrra nodded. ?Yes ? Valen had to earn the right to command them in battle as well,? she then smiled reassuringly, aware that her words might not be the most comforting ones to be given at this time. ?Luckily, you only have to win over a handful of soldiers, and if they give you too hard a time, I will be there to snap at their heels in your name.? She looked up. ?It seems that Imloth and Valen have stopped. We are here.?

After briefly touching the drow female?s arm in thanks, Jen felt the swooping, sinking feeling returning at Nathyrra?s last comment. She then nodded to Imloth?s beckon; before she left, she ducked her head and whispered to Deekin, who has remained uncharacteristically quiet through the recent exchanges - although she could easily guess the reasons for this. If it had been up to her, she would rather liked to have kept quiet, too.

?Stay here, Deek, with Nathyrra. Don?t get involved if things go a bit wrong ? not that I think they will,? she added quickly, not wanting to worry the little kobold unnecessarily. ?I?m sure everything will be okay.?

Deekin looked up at her, his trusting reptilian eyes almost pleading in their desire to believe her.

?Don?t worry, boss; Deekin will stay here. Deekin stay with Nathyrra.? He offered her a wide, toothy smile that was meant, Jen knew, to reassure.

She had to admit to herself that she was grateful for it.

o0o

Leaving Nathyrra, Jen made her way towards Imloth and Valen; the former inclining his head towards her upon her approach, whilst the latter scowled slightly and once again indulged in his habit for arm-crossing. Whether this was for her benefit or for the small group of drow males located behind them that were lounging nonchalantly against some rocks that marked the border of the training grounds, each one weighing her up in his own mind as she approached, she did not know; nevertheless, she strived to make herself appear as relaxed and aloof as possible.

No females. Interesting. I wonder why that is?

From behind her, she heard a sharp intake of breath and sensed Nathyrra quickly close the distance between them. Jen didn?t dare glance behind her to see what had made the drow female hurry towards her in case the males in front of her saw it as seeking solace from another female, and so instead just stopped silently in front of Imloth, awaiting an introduction.

Nathyrra was not nearly so restrained.

?Imloth!? she hissed, her fury plain. ?Ele ph' udos ghil? Zhaunyl dos xun naut talinth nindel udos zhal'la malar reztorm suul nindolen... glennen??

I really need to learn some drow, Jen thought ruefully to herself. It?d make this so much easier?

Imloth?s expression was one of stone.

?Because I know they are the best, Nathyrra. They may not be the strict followers of Eilistraee you would wish them to be, but they have sworn their allegiance to me.? He inclined his head to Jen. ?And to you.?

Jen took a moment to study the small group in front of her before commenting. Nathyrra, on the other hand, hissed under her breath.

The group numbered five in total; she guessed that one was a mage by his robed attire, the others fighters of some kind since they all had swords of varying sizes strapped to hip and - in the case of the one that carried a greatsword ? back. They all wore their delicately boned faces as impassive masks - something the half elf was rather getting used to - and said nothing to her during her short scrutiny of them.

Rather than beat around the proverbial bush, Jen decided to get straight to business.

?Who are they, then, and why does Nathyrra seem less than pleased to see them??

Imloth seemed a little taken aback at the directness of her question; in contrast, the slight smile that touched the corners of Valen?s lips indicated that he appreciated it ? at last, it seemed she had done something right in the dour fighter?s eyes. Rather than allow Imloth to answer the question, Nathyrra interrupted.

?They are rebels ? and suspected devotees of The Masked Lord!? she near barked.

?And that?s bad how?? Jen?s brow wrinkled a little in confusion.

?Vhaeraun is just as bad as Lolth!? exclaimed the drow assassin, her usual calm demeanour lost. ?The Masked Lord is the drow god of thieves and trickery, Jen. He might oppose The Spider Queen, but that does not mean we want his followers to be the ones guarding our backs.? She gave Jen a significant look. ?It makes you wonder in what exact circumstances the rest of their units died.?

At that, one of the drow males kicked himself casually off the rock he was leaning against and sauntered insolently over to join in the conversation, a look of faint amusement upon his face.

?Ussta Jallil, you do us a disservice. We pledged our allegiances, just as everyone has here; we have no wish to see the Valsharess succeed.? He spoke in the same, heavily accented Common as Imloth, but his voice was richer and more fluid somehow. Despite herself, Jen couldn?t help but notice that he was also incredibly handsome in a cold, almost dangerous way. Quite why she had noticed this, though, Jen couldn't say. He turned to the half elf and inclined his head towards her, fixing her with curiously jade green eyes. ?We also pledge our allegiances to you, Jallil d' Ssussun. I am Xen?shai Aleanath, once a Deathsinger to Matron Mother Chesriina of House Aleanath, now a Houseless rogue.? He smiled, a mischievous twinkle dancing in his eyes. ?Those who follow the Dark Maiden of Stars label any male who refuses to join in their worship as a devotee of the Masked Lord. Especially those converts with the most to hide? eh, Nathyrra??

At that, Nathyrra balled her fists as if fighting the urge to draw her rapier and tossed her head back in a blatant gesture of assumed superiority. ?I know of your exploits, Xen?shai,? she spat back, obviously incensed. ?You defied your Matron from within and have consorted with known clerics of Masked Lord.? She gestured towards the other four males. ?You count Tsabandiir Hla?aneld as one of your number and everyone knows whom he draws his spells from!?

Rather than being intimidated, the Deathsinger simply smiled again, looking faintly amused.

?And what of it? My Matron joined the Valsharess ? I had no desire whatsoever to be involved in such an alliance. So I simply decided to take matters into my own hands to ensure things turned out the way I wanted them to. As for Tsabandiir; he is the nearest thing to a cleric that is allowed out of Lith My?athar ? you should be grateful. You know the saying: L' ogglinn d'lil ogglinn zhah ussta abbil ? the enemy of my enemy is my friend?? he quirked an eyebrow. ?I am sure you have. This is one of those situations, d'anthe jallil.?

?And I am sure you have heard of another saying, Elghinnsunduiri: Er'griff natha wael gultahen ukt rath xuileb erg'les ulu natha velve!?

In response, Xen?shai laughed. ?Ahhh, but you will not be offering your back willingly to us, will you, Jallil?? He turned to Jen and winked roguishly. ?And why would I wish to harm such a pretty back anyway?? He then gestured towards Valen, leaving Jen to fight back a blush that was threatening to crawl up her neck and lay siege to her face. ?Especially one that has the Errdegah-chath at her beck and call. We are not stupid; we wish to see the Valsharess stopped as much as you do. I give you my word ? even though we are not followers of your Dark Lady of the Stars, we will fight by your side as comrades in arms.?

The four other drow nodded in agreement, their demeanour solemn.

Nathrrya?s eyes narrowed, her stance now tense and guarded. Before she could voice any more reservations, Imloth spoke up.

?I would not offer you assistance that I do not trust myself, Jen. Most of these males have fought at my side in the past ? if you had seen the fervour in which they dispatched our enemies, you would not be in any doubt of their sincerity with regards to defeating the Valsharess.? He glanced towards Nathyrra, and for the first time Jen saw something approaching contempt within his calm, crimson eyes. ?I have noticed that it is sometimes? hard for females that once held positions of power such as yourself, Nathyrra, to accept this.? He refocused upon Jen. ?It is up to you as to whether you accept the assistance that is being offered you, however ? but, please, just remember: L'uss xuileb kestal vel'uss jorosen shlu'ta'naut mziln tlu l' uss vel'uss detholare.

At that, Xen?shai snorted in amusement, covering his smile with a gloved hand; Nathyrra, on the other hand, sighed angrily and Valen ? who had been unusually quiet throughout the whole meeting ? raised a single crimson brow quizzically. Jen, feeling a little confused and more than annoyed at the feeling that she had been excluded from some kind of private joke, just wished she understood what Imloth had said.

Determined not to show that she was irritated, Jen turned her attention back to the four drow who remained by the rocks. She hadn?t forgotten that Nathyrra had implied that one of them might be a cleric of some kind? and equated to at least some kind of healing, which was something their little party sorely lacked. Studying the males, she had to admit that they did indeed look competent; each one seemed comfortable to be scrutinised and wore their various weapons with easy confidence, leaving no doubt in Jen?s mind that they were not there for show and knew exactly how to use them.

Seeing her interest, Xen?shai leaned in behind her, keeping just enough distance to stop himself from being seen as impolite, but close enough to make the half elf feel slightly uncomfortable as his hair tickled the back of her arms, making her shiver.

?An impressive sight, aren?t they?? he murmured softly.

Jen glanced nervously towards him and shrugged her shoulders slightly in an evasive, non-committed way.

?They?re ? we?re ? willing to fight by your side, Jabbress. Imloth has explained your need. You have had far too much responsibility piled up upon your shoulders,? to emphasise his point, the drow laid a light hand upon her shoulder, the corner of his lips lifting in a small, secret smile as he felt Jen tense up. ?We can? ease the burden of some of that responsibility.?

?I? appreciate that,? Jen replied quietly, unsure of what else to say. To her relief, she then felt a larger, much more uncompromising figure stand beside her and pull the drow away from her wordlessly. For the first time since she had met him, Jen felt thankful for Valen?s intervention as he took Xen?shai?s place behind her.

?What do you think?? she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

It took Valen so long to reply that the half elf physically turned her head to look up at him, wondering if he had actually heard her.

?Imloth has a point,? he replied eventually. ?Beggars can rarely also be choosers. And whether I trust them or not-? he gestured at the four drow he could see with his eyes ?- isn?t the issue; I trust Imloth. And I trust myself. They have sworn fealty to the Seer and therefore will not betray you, especially whilst I am around ? I will see to that.?

?He called you the... Errdegah-chath,? Jen said quietly, trying to repeat the unfamiliar syllables as correctly as she could. ?What does that mean??

She felt Valen stiffen slightly behind her. ?That is not important now. What is important is that you make a decision. All of this hesitation is making you look weak.? He then stood back from her, as if to emphasise his point.

Taking one last look at the assembled drow, Jen turned back to Imloth and the others.

?Thank you, Imloth. I am grateful for the offer.? She inclined her head to the drow commander with a smile and then focused her attention upon Xen?shai. ?When can you be ready??

Realising that Jen meant to accept the offer of help, Nathyrra?s brows knitted together in furious disagreement, obviously deeply unhappy regarding the half elf?s choice. In contrast, Xen?shai smiled and touched his brow lightly with the index and middle finger of his left hand in a lazy, rather louche salute.

?We can be ready whenever you need us, Jallil d' Ssussun. Just give us the word.?

?Then give us an hour and meet us at the city gates,? said Jen. She looked back to Nathyrra. ?Or will we need more time??

Nathyrra didn?t bother to answer her.

?An hour should suffice,? Valen replied gruffly after Nathyrra remained silent. ?All we need to do is gather our supplies, and that shouldn?t take long.?