Extinction

A brief shiver of apprehension swept through Danifae. Was she going to get out of there alive? She realized she was depending upon Pharaun, and she despised herself for it.

Pharaun was signing again. Danifae had been distracted and so just caught the end of it.

. . tell us where it lies, and I'll arrange for you to meet Quenthel, the mage told Oothoon.

The aboleth matriarch's three eyes blinked rapidly.

"To what purpose?" she asked.

Pharaun nudged the piece of aboleth flesh with his toe, then glanced up.

To eat her, he said bluntly.

Danifae's eyes narrowed. She hoped Pharaun was bluffing.

Oothoon's tentacles writhed.

"Eat a drow priestess powerful enough to slay a god?" the aboleth asked in a voice that burbled with mirth. "You mock me!"

Not at all, Pharaun answered. Quenthel's spells are strong, but each takes a long time to cast. She is weak, physically?as weak as any other drow. Knowing this, she keeps a half-demon at her side at all times for protection. If she can be separated from this demon?perhaps by some trick?she will be unable to defend herself. The magical items she carries are paltry ones: her only dangerous weapons are her hammer?which is magical and can smite at a distance?and her snake-headed whip, whose vipers have a poisonous bite.

Danifae looked on in shock, astounded by Pharaun's audacity. He'd just told the aboleth everything she needed to defeat Quenthel. The only detail he'd left out was the fact that Quenthel no longer had access to Lolth's magic. He'd baited his hook with Quenthel's supposed god-slaying capabilities, and Oothoon, anticipating the acquisition of such a spell, was practically salivating as a result. Strangest of all, the mage had done it all in Danifae's presence. Did he realize that she would betray him to Quenthel?was he counting on it? Perhaps there was a deeper game the mage was playing at. …

Danifae shook her head. There was no guessing the mind of a man who had matched wits with a demon and won. She made a quick hand gesture, the sign that indicated she wanted to speak to him in private.

Pharaun frowned, then turned and addressed Oothoon.

The spell sustaining my companion is waning, he told the aboleth. To recast it, I need to hold her hand for a moment. The spell will conjure up a small black cloud around our hands. Do not be alarmed by it, for it is harmless. Do I have your permission to proceed?

The aboleth's three eyes narrowed?an expression the creature had doubtless picked up from the drow.

"You may."

The two guards tensed, watching Pharaun closely as he took both of Danifae's hands in his. A moment later, a sphere of darkness just large enough to cover their hands appeared and Danifae switched to finger-speech. With a rapid series of taps, she spelled out words against his palm.

Do you seriously intend to sacrifice Quenthel?

The fate of Menzoberranzan hangs in the balance, Pharaun tapped back. I'm sure Matron Mother Baenre would consider it a worthy sacrifice. If she was in my place, she would do the same.

Danifae could hardly argue with that logic. Instead she turned to a more pressing matter: herself.

You're asking me to take your side. To betray a priestess of my own faith. Why should I? I care nothing about Menzoberranzan.

What of Eryndlyn? Pharaun asked.

What of it? her fingers tapped back.

Would you like to return to it, one day?

That made Danifae pause.

I have visited Eryndlyn more than once, Pharaun tapped. I know the plaza that surrounds the Five Pillars very well. With a simple incantation, I could send you there.

There is nothing left for me in Eryndlyn, she replied. No House, no family.

Then where else?

Danifae was quick to catch on.

Quenthel would never permit it, she tapped out. Not after losing Halisstra. . and Ryld.

No, Pharaun signed, shaking his head. She would not?but I would. So the question remains, if not Eryndlyn?and certainly not Ched Nasad?where would you like to go? Llacerellyn? Sschindylryn?

Despite herself, Danifae gasped. Sschindylryn was a city known for its many portals and known to Danifae as the adopted home of perhaps the only drow in all the Underdark who might be able to help her, who might be able to undo the spell that bound her to Halisstra. If indeed he could. .

Seeing that Pharaun was studying her face?and irritated at herself for betraying her thoughts?Danifae composed herself.

For a moment, she'd almost believed him, but she knew better than to allow herself to hope. In her experience, promises?especially those made by a fellow drow?were seldom kept.

Still, there was a chance. During the fall of Ched Nasad, Pharaun had risked his life to rescue her. Danifae was still trying to puzzle out why. What advantage had that gained him? Maybe the rescue had simply been an impulse, a product of lust. That emotion might have been driving him still.

Had the moment come to switch her allegiance from Quenthel to Pharaun? Danifae turned the thought over in her mind. She'd cultivated an alliance with Quenthel because finding out what had happened to Lolth offered a chance to regain her magic, perhaps even to gain special favor from the dark goddess herself. Quenthel was the highest ranking drow among the Menzoberranyr, and if Danifae was doomed to serve, she preferred serving at the highest level possible. To be a battle-captive was one thing, to be the servant of a Houseless refugee from a crumbled city was another. Danifae's serving Quenthel had stymied Halisstra. The First Daughter of House Melarn could have killed Danifae on a whim, but once her battle-captive became Quenthel's plaything, Halisstra would be answerable to the Mistress of Arach-Tinilith.

After so many years of demurely bowing and murmuring acquiescence to others, Danifae was finally able to choose her own path, finally able to act?but she was far from free. There was still the Binding. She could still feel that unbreakable co

Quenthel was a powerful ally, and if Danifae played her sava pieces correctly, she might even wind up at Quenthel's right hand. . if the quest to find Lolth succeeded. Of which, given their lack of success so far, Danifae was less than certain.

But in Sschindylryn, if the old mage was still alive, she could be free at last. Free to?what? Where would she go? Even assuming Eryndlyn hadn't suffered the same fate as Ched Nasad, there was nothing left for her there. She could go to Menzoberranzan or some other city, but as what? A free drow, but one without alliances, without a House to protect her. But if she had a sponsor, a matron. . someone like Quenthel Baenre, for instance. . she might find a home at Arach-Tinilith. .

Danifae decided to play her pieces carefully, starting with a lie.

I'll do it, she signed. Quenthel will hear nothing of this from me. But make certain, first, that they really do know where the ship is?and that it's still seaworthy.

Pharaun smiled and inclined his chin slightly in a token bow. Then he dispelled the globe of darkness, dropped Danifae's hand, and turned back to Oothoon.

Well? he asked. Have you decided to accept my offer?

The aboleth matriarch flicked a tentacle and said, "Give me Quenthel, and I will tell you where the ship of chaos is."

Danifae raised an eyebrow. Seeing it, Pharaun gave a slight nod. He'd obviously realized the same thing she had, they'd come looking for a ship, but neither one of them had mentioned precisely what sort of ship. Still, there was a chance that Valas might have done so.

Describe it, Pharaun signed. Convince us that you know about it.

The aboleth closed its eyes, as if calling up a distant memory.

"It was made of bone and moved upon the surface of the lake. The creatures that inhabited it were shaped as you are and seemed alive but were pale and bloated, and tasted of death?and of insects. The one that she-who-spawned-my-mothers consumed was infested with white, wriggling things."