The Kender Affair - Book Two

Chapter 11 - This Ain't Funny Any More!

When we last left our heroes, they were crouched in dingy sub room of the main ballroom in Lord Nasher's palace. Tuvor, Exegete, Ganzelle and a dubious acquaintance, one Numard Feathertouch, a visiting Kender, had descended from the floor above, Tuvor unwillingly, the other three of choice. The Kender had scurried off, out of the room through a side door. Ganzelle had just created an orb of light and they three Knights of the Round Table stood astonished at what the light had revealed, the corpses of nearly two dozen servants in various House Nasher colors.

Tuvor moved over to examine the closest of the bodies, his face grim. He cast his gaze over several bodies and then straightened up, wiping dust off of his hands. "This is messy business" he said. "Throats slit, backs stabbed. Looks like some where held and killed when they helpless."

Ganzelle's lips drew into a angry grimace. "These weren't even warriors" he noted, "but servants". He flipped one body over with the toe of his boot. "Look, this one was a waiter" he said in disgust. "That one" he said, pointing, "was a cook, and that one some sort of cleaning man". He shook his head. "This was the work of cowards" he spat, his outrage evident.

Tuvor nodded in agreement. "This is a heinous crime" he agreed.

"Nasher'll turn the place upside-down when he find this out" Exe said from another part of the room. "This one was just a kid" he said, shaking his head. "What kind of a wuss would do this?" he wondered out loud.

"This can't be all there is to this" Ganzelle said. "Nobody in their right mind would set themselves up for Nasher to come after" he said. "It doesn't make sense."

"It makes sense if this is only the beginning of a larger matter" Exe said in an ominous tone

"Hahum" said Tuvor thoughtfully. "You may have something there Exe" he went on. "Ganz's right, no one in their right mind would do this openly because they'd know that Nasher'd freak when he found out. I don't know of anyone in the realms who'd want to set themselves openly against Nasher."

"But no one from outside of Neverwinter could get this close to Nasher without being found out." Ganzelle protested "You saw security on the way in and it's been that way for days now. This can't be a plot from outside of the realms." he concluded.

"The Kender got in" Exe observed. "If I hadn't seen him he'd probably have had Kholari's Lady's girdle by now" he said.

"Now there's a disgusting image" Ganzelle replied, his tongue rolling out in obvious distaste. "Bleeeeeeeaa"

Tuvor smiled, for a moment, the frowned. "The Kender are not forbidden entrance to the city" he said. "Any of the outside nations would have been spotted, but no one would have seen a lone Kender as a threat to safety." he went on reasonably.

"They obviously don't know Kenders too well" Exe observed dryly. "We've been chasing him for hours and we still don't where he is!" he said, looking around.

"Yeah" Ganz added, "Where is the little sonuva. . ." he went on, looking around as well.
"Little jerk certainly has a knack for getting out of sight" Exe said.
"I've got a bad feeling about this" Tuvor said.

The door burst open at that moment and the Kender broke in at a dead run, moving as fast, obviously, as his little furry feet would carry him. "Not partners no more!" he exclaimed as he came in. "Deal over, nice meeting you, bye now, come again" he sputtered as he flashed by the three Knights, somehow managing to shake each of their hands as he passed. "Not my fault" the Kender added as a parting shot as he disappeared through an impossibly small hole in the far wall.

"What the hell was that?" Ganzelle shouted at the flurry of motion.
"I think it was the Kender" Exe said, making a futile leap to grab Feathertouch's fast disappearing foot, but missing and falling dramatically.
"Dang it"! Tuvor shouted, searching his cloak and tunic desperately. "I think he took my purse on his way!"

Exe fell in a heap near the hole through which Numard had disappeared. "We'll never get through this hole" he said mournfully looking at the small opening. "Wonder what he meant wasn't his fault" he said rubbing his sore knee.

"Dunno" Ganz said reaching down to help Exe to his feet. "I expect we'll find out soon enough".

"Damn Kender" Tuvor said wrathfully. "Wait'll I get my hands on him again." he went on, obviously warming to the idea of taking his frustrations out on the Kender. "Step away from that hole you two" he commanded, I've got a little spell that'll widen that hole so we can follow" he said, stopping short after the last word, having noticed the widened stares of his two companions. He turned and looked toward the door, and his own eyes widened and his jaw fell open.

"Better save yer spell Tu-bore" Absstain said. "I'm afraid we can't let you do anything that might attract attention just yet." His sinister smile broadened as a full squad of BDA's Warriors and storm troops spread out on either side of him. "Now be nice goodies and keep yer hands where I can see 'em, awright?"

Tuvor looked at Exe "This is another fine mess you've gotten me into Ollie" he said
Exe stuck his tongue out as his only reply.
"I hate it when this happens" Ganz said with a sigh.

Chapter 12- This is another fine mess you've gotten me into Ollie!

Ganzelle was the first to regain his senses, moaning groggily as the pain in his head and chest competed with each other for his attention. Stars swam before his eyes and his vision blurred and swam before him. He sensed an intense coldness in his extremities and noticed frost hanging from his eyebrows and from his mustache. He began to shiver uncontrollably. He pushed himself up off the floor, ice crackling and falling from his clothing as he did. He struggled to clear his mind and as awareness gradually returned; and with it came memory.

The battle had been short and sweet, well maybe not so sweet, at least as far as the three KORTers were concerned. The BDA force had not hesitated long before attacking. It was clear that they were set to deal with Mages, as the Storm Troops immediately let lose with a volley of arrows that did little damage, but occupied the three Knights completely enough to prevent them readying an defensive spells.

Tuvor gave an enraged bellow and launched himself at Absstain, Trident at the ready. He was met and brought up short by a volley of fiery missiles that leapt from Absstain and two other BDA mage's fingers, the three combining to topple him like a bevy of expert linebackers. He hit the floor and skidded to his right, toward where Exe was grappling with several Storm Troops. He quickly attracted the attention of several Troopers of his own and readily threw himself into the melee with them, reasoning that they would give him some cover from the Mage attacks. He was in the process of showing three of the BDA Storm Troops the folly of crossing a KORT Knight when he was frozen by a bolt of lightning. It passed through him and through two of the warriors he was battling (so much for the shielding idea). The two warriors were killed instantly by the first bolt, with the third knock unconscious (not to mention across the room) by the aura of the bolt. Tuv was staggered by the bolt and watched helplessly as the bolt ricocheted off the nearby wall and returned to sizzle him once again. Tuvor's back arched in agony and he spun sluggishly around to try and face his tormentors. He sank to his knees as a bolt stole more strength from him. Absstain stepped to his side and grinned evilly. "No Tutu to save you this time dearie" he said. The swish of Absstain's mace was the last sound Tuvor, Knight of the Round Table heard for a long, long time.

At the same time as Tuvor leapt for Absstain, Ganzelle echoed his cry and headed for the rank of warriors on the left. He flung himself headlong at the six warriors that flanked a lone Mage on the side of the room. The Mage was quick and let loose a bolt of lightning that, lucky for Ganz, was badly aimed and thundered into the pile of corpses behind Ganzelle. Ganz plowed into the contingent of Troopers and bowled nearly all of the over, scattering them like bowling pins before a well-aimed ball. He was up in a flash dispatched two of the Troopers before any one could do anything to hinder him. But his blade stuck for a moment too long in the body of the second and that gave the other four, not to mention the Mage all the time they needed. A Flurry of Crossbow bolts slammed into his thighs and calves. Ganzelle screamed in rage more than pain and dropped his sword to try and grasp at the bolts, succeeding in pulling two out before four more entered his lower extremities.. "Arrrrrgggghhhh" he bellowed, again, as much out of anger and frustration, as out of pain. He turned and bent to grasp his blade again, intent on closing the distance between he and the archers when the Mage was heard from again. The Cone of Cold caught him square in the chest and thrust him backwards, over the bodies of the two Storm Troopers and onto the floor. As consciousness began to flee, he saw a second, newly arrived Mage unleash a similar blast of cold that sealed him in a thick case of ice. The light fled into dreams of frozen tundra and shadows of bitter, frozen cold.

Exe tried for a scroll in his front pouch, but was buried under a foursome of Storm Troopers, maces flailing, beating a tattoo on his back. The scroll was knocked from his fingers as he was swept into a corner, buried under a mound of punching, stabbing and kicking flesh. Exe abandoned himself to the sheer physicality of fighting hand to hand, with eye sockets, Adam's apples, and other, even more vulnerable spots his targets. He was shocked when the hands of one of his attackers found his eyes and seemed to blossom with fire. His eyelids provided only minimal protection from as his face was seared like one of Strider's bullock steaks. Exe screamed in pain and surprise, brushing the offender aside. His vision, though blurred, was still good enough to make out the insignia of the BDA Foresters on the shoulder of the attacker. In that slow-motion way that the mind has of working when a crisis is in full flower, he realized that that these were members of the Elite BDA Forest Rangers, used for hit and run attacks in the Woods and the Lost Hills. His attention was quickly drawn back to the task at hand the weight on him lessened. He tried to jump to his feet, only to be slammed into the corner once again by a blast of fire, quickly followed by another blast. Oddly, even as consciousness failed him, he felt the draft of cool air on his lower back and legs. Then the pain set in with a vengeance and following closely on its heels, unconsciousness.

Chapter 13 - Intuition Pays Off

The Lady Nalika watched Kholari disappear out of the door to the small side room they had recently shared with Lord Nasher. She peered thoughtfully at the door for a long moment after it had slammed in Kholari's wake. She pursed her lips and looked at the ceiling of the little room, musing to herself. Dagron watched her patiently, knowing the look of concentration that indicated Nalika's famed intuition at work. Dag busied himself by finishing off the plate of food he had brought in with him. By the time he had worked his way around to the Pork Intestine Serpent Surprise, always a favorite of his, Nalika had begun to move toward the door. Dag swallowed his latest mouthful quickly and cleared his throat. Nal stopped, as if surprised that Dag was still in the room.

"I don't trust him" Nal said in a confidential tone.

"Yeah, well he ain't exactly my choice fer class president either" Dag said, poking at the pulsing length of port intestine on his plate.

"It's more than just his demeanor" Nalika went on, casting a dubious eye on Dag's plate. "He's certainly no Miss Congeniality, but then he's always been a bit on the snippy side."

"You call that snippy/" Dag said with a grin. "You never met my momma on bath day" he went on.

"I have the feeling that there's more going on here than a food fight" Nal continued, trying to ignore the sausage's slow movement on Dag's plate. "Kholari's got something up his sleeve and I think that it's something that's in the works for soon." She finished with a look of revulsion as Dag sliced into the sausage and dozens of small serpent-like things squirmed out on his plate.

"Whooopsie" Dag said, " 'salittle rare today" he said disappointedly poking at the baby serpents with his fork hurriedly trying to keep them on his plate. " 'Tough to get good serpent surprise these days, but I thought that Nasher'd serve a decent batch." He sighed as he threw the entire batch in a nearby trash bin. "Whaddya think Kholari's up to?" he continued, whipping his hand on the covering of one of Nasher's side tables.

Nal shook his head. "You actually eat that stuff?" he asked incredulously. "My god Dagron" she finished with a shudder.

"Ah, they're much easier to catch if they're cooked right" Dag said with a dismissive wave. "So whaddya think's going on with Kholari and his girl scouts?"

"I'm not sure, but the more I think about it, the more certain I am that he's up to something and up to something now." Nalika said. "Listen, I want you to get a hold of Allsie or Coral and make the rounds of the guests. Be real friendly and make sure you hit every area of the hall. I'll get Slen Star to grab one of the other women and do the same in the other direction. Keep yer eyes open for anything out of the ordinary that might tip us to what's going on. Look close Dag, cause I bet if there are clues, they won't be easy to spot." Nalika said.

"Sure thing Sis. Me 'n Allsie'll be glad to make the rounds." Dag replied, heading for the door.

By the time Ganzelle had extricated himself from the ice coating he was in, both Tuvor and Exegete were stirring in the respective parts of the cell. Tuvor seemed a bit sluggish and sported a huge purple bruise on the left side of his face. His left eye was completely swollen shut and his left ear was calliflowering nicely thanks to Absstain's parting Mace shot. Ganzelle peered over at Exegete only to get an entirely unexpected shot of his rump, the tops of the back of his thighs and his lower back, tattered with blackened bits of clothing and not a few blisters amongst the portion of reddened flesh. He groaned loudly as he straightened up.

"'Red Moon at night, sailor's delight' did the saying go"? Ganz inquired delicately. "Glad I didn't have the same kind of beans you had" he went on.

"Har de har har" Exe said as he tried to peer behind him to survey the damage.

"Makes me glad I can only see out of one eye" Tuvor piped up from his position on the straw.

Ganzelle hugged himself in an attempt to still the chills that were still coursing through him at regular intervals. "Well, it could be worse, Exe could have been Dag" he said with a halfhearted attempt at a smile. "Then that would have been Dag's rump." he finished, looking around at the rest of the cell.

"Sheesh, Now I'm gonna have nightmares" Tuvor said, pushing himself up with help of the wall.

"I wish he had been" Exe said, walking ever so gingerly away from the wall. "Oooohhhhh" he said as the tender tissue stretched and flexed. "Where are we?"

"Looks like one of Nasher's dungeon cells" Tuvor said, peering around as best he could.

"And you with only one eye" Ganzelle quipped, stepping over to the door and feeling around the edges and the hinges with practiced hands.

"Gimme yer cloak Ganz" Exe said "I'm gettin cold."

"You're cold!" Ganzelle said. "I need mine, sorry"

"Here Exe" Tuvor said, handing Exe his cloak. "I'd consider it a favor if you'd cover ... um wear mine." he said.

"Thanks Bro, I'll give it back" Exe said gratefully.

"Thanks, but no, keep it" Tuvor said, rolling his eye. "Do me a favor and fix my eye for me?" he said.

"Sure" Exe said, "C'mere" Exe thought for moment and then mutter the familar incantation of a heal spell, his hands poised over Tuvor's injured eye.. The spark of the healing energy coalesced between Exe's fingers and the injury, then, unexpectedly, fizzled and sputtered into darkness. "What the heck...?" Exe exclaimed.

"Just as I thought" Ganz said from across room. "This is one of the "Dispel" chambers Nasher uses to hold Mages. I thought maybe Absstain'd put in one of these. Nasher set them up years ago, when he was fighting the Border Wars, or so they say."

"I guess they say right" Tuvor said. "Here Exe" he said, handing Exe a tiny pocket knife he had hidden in his belt. "Cut me above the eye a bit and drain the blood so I can get my eye open".

Exe grimaced a bit, then set about the delicate task and soon had a trickle of blood running down the side of Tuvor's face. They stanched it with a bit of cloth after it had bled enough to allow Tuvor's injured eye to open a bit.

That'll do" Tuv said as he opened and shut his eye gingerly. "I can see OK now. Absstain's gonna regret that Mace action" he said in a dangerous tone.

"Hey, you two, c'mere and look at this" Ganzelle said from the far back portion of the cell. "We got company"

Chapter 14 - Enlightenment

Both Exegete and Tuvor moved over to where Ganzelle was kneeling beside an almost invisible form crumpled into, and almost underneath the pitiful mound of dirty straw in the back corner of the cell. Ganz was murmuring some chants that, though they were non-magical, still had some healing and comforting value. "I think she's just exhausted and deeply asleep" he explained briefly as he ministered to her. "She's almost in a coma." he added in a concerned voice.

Tuvor also knelt beside the still form and added his voice to the chants that Ganzelle was murmuring and Exe looked on as the small form began to stir and move ever so slightly. "Easy Lass" Tuvor said gently as her eyes began to flutter. "You've had a rough row and 'tis best you be still until you have your wits about you. You're safe, we'll no let anything more happen to you." Exe wondered at Tuvor's easy charm and at the tender quality of his voice. The great Knight had such a way with women he thought, a bit jealously. Just the right tone and just the right words to comfort and encourage her as she struggled to regain consciousness.

"You didn't use that tone with me that time when your horse nearly kicked me into the next week" he whispered in Tuvor's ear.

"Nay, your right" Tuvor replied quickly, "'Ta horse was in more need at the time" he continued, "Now hush".

The young woman's lips began to move soundlessly and Tuvor leaned forward in an attempt to hear whet she was saying. Ganzelle removed his cloak and covered her with it, a concerned look on his face. After a moment, Tuvor straightened and sat back on his heels. "She's not strong enough to speak yet, but she's coming out of it." A cursory examination of the lass showed that she was not really hurt, though she showed signs of magical attack. "I believe this lass is a mage" he said when his examination was done.

Exe stroked his mustache thoughtfully. "You know, the more I look at her, the more familiar she seems to me. I know I've seen her before." he said.

"I agree" Tuvor said rising to his feet. "She seems familiar to me as well".

"That's not saying much" Ganzelle said "Three quarters of the young women from here to Vilnask are familiar to you" he went on.

"Not to mention three quarters of the fathers of young women from here to Vilnask" Exe added with a quick grin.

"Oh sure" Tuvor said with an air of injury. "Spend a couple nights hiding in haystacks and you have a reputation" he went on in a wounded tone, but the small smile on his face belying his appearance of injury. "This Lass, however, doesn't fall into that category" he finished.

"She sure does look familiar" Exe said again, this time all the more thoughtfully. "I wish I could remember where I've seen her."

Ganzelle, who by now had left the young woman's side and was working his way along the wall looking for cracks or some way to perhaps scale to the window far above their heads, paused in his search; "I don't like to say nuthin', but I think this dang cell is gonna be hard to get out of." he said.

Tuvor moved off in the other direction along the wall. "There's always a way to get out of these places. Trust me, I've gotten out of enough of them". He said. "All we have to do is look hard enough."

"Hey, maybe if the girl's father showed up. . ." Exe quipped, quickly ducking the small rock Tuvor sent his way in reply.

He knelt beside the still semiconscious form of the young woman and took her pulse at the jugular. "Her heart seems strong enough" he said absently. He checked her eyes, briefly lifting each eyelid and noted that the sclera of each eye was badly bloodshot, and the pupils were rolled back in her sockets. "You know, I think this poor Lass has been drugged" he said loud enough for the others to hear. Thinking that perhaps there was something that might identify her, he decided to search her clothing, pockets, and such. He immediately noticed the thin golden chain that hung around her neck, previously unnoticed in the fold of skin where he neck met her shoulders. He delicately pulled at the chain and was only mildly surprised to see an unobtrusive pendant slide from the bodice of her dress. The Pendant bore the crest of House Nasher and Exe suddenly remembered where he had seen her before.

Dagron and Allsfaire passed the last of the dessert tables, finishing their tour of the northern section of the grand banquet hall in Lord Nasher's palace. Dagron was rubbing his jaw gingerly with his right hand and had managed to snare a couple mango flavored donuts from the end of the dessert buffet as they passed.

"I'm really sorry about the shot in the jaw Dag" Allsfaire was saying in properly concerned voice that couldn't quite hid her amusement. "He ducked at the last moment and I didn't see you there behind him."

"'Sallright M'dear" Dag said in response. "It was an honest mistake, anybody could've made it. I'm just glad it was with your off hand or I'd've been spitting teeth instead of tuna & beet salad."

Allsfaire giggled, a light and almost girlish sound, quite musical in quality. "I wouldn't want to be around when that lady tried to comb her hair out and finds all that mess in it." she said, continuing her giggle.

"I thought the beets contrasted nicely with her dress color" Dagron said with a smile. "Thank Tyr that she had apparently drunk enough to fail to notice. That was a Big fellow standing next to her, 'could have been nasty."

They continued on their way towards Nalika, arriving just moments before Slen Star and the Lady BlackCoral arrived back from their tour of the southern section of the hall.

"Well" Nalika asked as they arrived, "Notice anything untoward?" she asked with a curious look at the palm shaped red mark gracing Dag's right cheek.

"Saw a lady with a curious doo over there" Dag drawled. "Allsie helped her with her new look" he continued with a smile.

"Hmm Hmmm" Nalika said, moving to get a better view of Dag's cheek. "Just out of curiosity, why is there a palm print on you face Dag?" she asked.

"Oh, Allsie tried to rearrange my features" Dag said in a pleasant voice.

"What!?" Nal said in a shocked voice, looking over at Allsfaire.

"Not really" Dag said, "She took a swing at some geek over near the soup buffet and missed him. I was, unfortunately, in the line of fire."

"The little dink pinched my butt" Allsfaire said indignantly. "I haven't been pinched since I was a page" she continued. "He's lucky he's still got hands, let alone fingers" she finished in a huff.

"Haa Hmmmm" Nalika said. "Did you, by chance, happen to do any scouting around while all of this was going on like I asked you to?" she asked in a weary voice.

"Sure did!" Dagron said. "Sorry to say, While we were seein' stuff I didn't see nuthin' that was any more out of the ordinanry that it would be ordinarily if we saw it the way it ordinarily was. . ." He paused with a puzzled look, then shrugged. "If you know what I mean" he finished.

Nalika nodded "I do, and it really scares me" she said.

"You've known him way too long Nal" Allsfaire said in a confidential tone.

Nalika only nodded, her attention taken by the approach of Slen Star and Coral. She saw the concerned expressions on their faces and stepped toward them. "What's up" she asked?

Slen Star and Nalika nodded greeting at Allsfaire and Dagron, Slen Star raising an eyebrow at the sight of Dagron's cheek. Coral shot a smile at Allsfaire and then turned her attention to Nalika.

"We were looking around, real quiet like, like you asked" she said in an excited voice. "We had covered most of the southern end of the hall and were just about to give up on seeing anything worth reporting. We'd kind of brushed past most of the guild parties, and only had the BDA's left to check out." she said breathlessly.

Slen Star cleared his voice and spoke up, continuing the report. "We went over toward the BDA party, on the pretense of grabbing some of the peeled oyster flambe for Coral. While she was picking over the buffet, I had a chance to look over the party. You know how they're so rank conscious over there?" Nalika nodded impatiently. "Well", Slen Star went on, sensing Nalika' impatience, "I've had some dealing with their lieutenants and such over the past few months and I gotten to know most of them on sight." He paused and glanced toward the BDA group far off at the southern end of the banquet hall. "They are really big on being seen and showing their rank and stuff" he said. Nalika cleared her throat impatiently. Slen Star quickly turned his eyes back to Nalika's face: "You know how many of the lieutenants I recognized?" he asked.

Nalika looked as though he hadn't the slightest idea of the direction Slen Star was headed. With a grimace she shook her head. "No, how many?" she asked in a very, very impatient voice.

Slen Star looked intently into Nalika' eyes, a serious look that immediately told Nalika that what followed was important.

"None," Slen Star said in a dread tone. "Not a single one"

Chapter 15 - The Trouble With Illusions is...

"Hey" Exegete called out suddenly, interrupting Tuv and Ganzelle's search of the walls of their little prison. "I think I remember where I've seen this woman before"

"Been consulting your little black book?" Ganzelle quipped from the other side of the cell. "Didn't know it had pictures" he went on.

"Exe don't have a little black book" Tuv said with a laugh. "He just never forgets a slap in the face"

"Oh yer a scream you are" Exe said in Tuv's direction. "Your gonna wow 'em down at the fracture ward"

Ganzelle returned from the side of the room he had been inspecting. "You know" he said in a concerned voice. "I'm starting to wonder if there ain't more involved in this little one's situation that we know. She should'a been awake by now, but she ain't."

"I was just thinking that meself" Exe said with a shake of his head. "Wonder what's keeping her under?"

"Dunno" Tuv said as he joined them. "I wish Iser were here, she'd know what to do in a case like this, I just don't have any ideas." he went on. "Don't think its' anything magical, what with her being in this room and all."

Exe shook his head. "I agree. She seems ready to wake up, but then slips back deeper into unconsciousness."

"Yeah" said Ganzelle. "It's almost as if she's afraid to be awake" he continued. "'izat possible?"

"Could be that what ever put her to sleep was so horrible that she'd rather stay asleep that chance facing it again." Tuvor said.

"You mean her mind could actually be keeping her from doing something that's good for her?" Ganz asked.

"I think so" so Tuv replied, "If she thinks that waking up would be bad for her" he continued.

"How could she think something like that?" Ganzelle asked.

"Well" Exegete began. "The mind is a strange place. In some ways it's really easy to trick, but in others it's stubborn and decidedly hard to fool." he said. "It's easy to get someone to believe something if their kind of believing or wanting it already". he continued. "That's part of what Illusionists use to put their illusions over, the unconscious willingness of a subject to be deceived if you go about it correctly." he explained. "Given the proper context, you make a receptive subject believe almost anything." he said; "But in the wrong context, it's nearly impossible to put the illusion over." he went on. "Could be that she's convinced herself that she's better off asleep, as Tuv said" he finished.

"Exe, you mean that a part of the illusions you do sometimes are mental?" Ganz asked.

Exe smiled. "Yes, a part of almost all of them is done in the mind of the one or ones whom the illusion is aimed at." His smile broadened. "Take the "tutu incident" he said, casting an eye at Tuvor. "A part of that was magic that physically interacted with Tuv's clothing and gave me something I could suggest. The topper was a suggestion I left that insinuated itself on anyone who viewed the illusion." he went on. "It acted on the mind of the viewer to solidify the illusion." he went on. "That part is non-magical, it's mental" he finished.

"You're mental!" Tuvor said. "I still say you could have thought of a different way to deflect Absstain's attack." he said

"Aw" Exe said, "Don't be such a sorehead. Your just mad because it wasn't your color." he went on. "You know, I think I might be able to use an illusion to convince this woman that it's OK to wake up." he mused in a thoughtful tone of voice.

"Go for it then and quit squawking'" Tuvor said from the other side of the room.

"Yeah," Ganz added. "Go for it!"

Exegete nodded and began to think through the necessary incantations to create the illusion. "I'll need you both here, near her" he said, obviously warming to the attempt. "I always wanted to try and cast an all mental illusion on a sleeping subject" he murmured. "Should be interesting".

Ganz and Tuvie moved over to the far side of the sleeping girl, kneeling next to her.

"Tuvie, Ganz, get as close as possible so it's as warm as possible physically." Exe said. "Think warm thots" he added with a smile.

"Git goin' Tuvor said gruffly, "I ain't gettin any younger"

"Well, the first five hundred years are the toughest" Ganz said with a grin.

Exegete leaned in towards the young woman and waved his hands over her face and head in an intricate pattern.

"This is closest Exe's been to a woman in a long time" Tuv whispered to Ganz, "I think he's confused" he said to Ganzelle's amused smile.

"Then I'll have to talk to my wife about my last few children" Exe said without looking at him, "Now hush"

The thrashing and groaning that began to occupy the young woman was more than a motivator for the two to comply. they watched in some growing alarm as the young woman grew more and more agitated in her exertions. The groans escaping her lips turned gradually to words and finally to cries for help and mercy. She began to flail around with her fists, striking all three of the Knights, striking them indiscriminately.

"Jeez Exe" Ganz commented, managing to block most of the blows. "You sure have a way with women"

But Exe didn't hear him. eyes closed in fierce concentration, he continued his attempt to pierce the young Mage's self-imposed unconsciousness. He felt the strong barriers that closed off her mental processes giving way to his gentle probing and projecting of safety and friendship. Finally, he felt the last of the barriers melt tentatively away and sensed her conscious mind begin to rise toward the surface. He quickly withdrew his mental presence, aided unexpectedly by the force with which her consciousness hurled itself toward waking up. He stumbled back physically onto the floor as she snapped wide awake and sat up suddenly and forcefully, scatter both Tuvor and Ganzelle in the process.

"The Pendant!" she exclaimed "God's breath, not Melhorn's Pendant!!!!"

Numard Feathertouch remained in his hiding place until quite a while after the laughing and gloating BDA warriors had passed him on the way back toward the direction they had first emerged with the unconscious bodies of his three "partners". "Not good, not good" he murmured to himself as he extricated himself from the tiny hiding place he had placed himself in. "Bad, bad, bad, bad!" he said as he dusted himself off. "No profit at all" he continued, shaking his head sadly. He opened his hand an examined the key he had snagged from one of the passing BDA's and shook his head, slowly allowing a smile to grow on his face. "Hee hee" he giggled. "Bad humans gonna be locked out." he said with another smile. He stopped and frowned in concentration. "Or maybe some others locked in?" he said in a thoughtful voice. He thought for a moment more and then turned and hastened in the direction the BDA's had initially come from, back toward the cells of Nasher's dungeon.

Chapter 16 - Concurrent Thinking

You recognized no one?" Lady Nalika said in an incredulous voice. "How could you not recognize a single lieutenant in the ranks of one of our most frequent enemies?" she demanded further. I simply can't believe that they've grown to such a degree that their hierarchy has blossomed and we . . . we. . . " She paused in mid-sentence as the enormity of what Slen Star was suggesting hit her. "Good Gods!" she whispered, looking hard at the BDA group far across the banquet hall.

The awakening dawned on the rest of the group as quickly and they all suppressed a shudder at the concept of an attack on Lord Nasher right here in his own Palace. They began to whisper together in small groups in insistent, tho quiet voices. Finally, after a couple minutes of this, Nalika raised her hand. "Shssssshh!" she hissed. "We can't just stand here and rummage around ourselves" she said. Providence and the hand of Lord Tyr has laid this in our laps and it is up to us to do something about it!" She looked around at the assembled Knights, arguably the best in Neverwinter, perhaps in all the world. She pursed her lips as she pondered the task before her, and before KORT. The seconds dragged on as she thought, occasionally glancing over at the BDA's standing and talking amongst themselves, all innocence and purity. "Alright" she said finally, "Obviously, Kholari and his goons have a well thought out plan in place, or they wouldn't dare and try anything, here, in the Palace. They're nothing if not conservative in attacking with supremacy of numbers and surprise." she went on.

"They'll have to have compromised the Palace Guard" Dagron chipped in. "There's too many of them to leave to chance. There'll be a couple hundred of them in here in only a minute or two after an attack jumps off." he went on. "And that doesn't even mention the Endawbyews, all Mages and all sworn to uphold and defend Nasher to the death. With surprise, they could take a couple, but there's a bunch here, and more just outside." he finished, heads nodding in agreement all around.

"Of course" Allsfaire said thoughtfully, "They could have turned a couple of them, or compromise them somehow." she said. "They're only people after all, and you know how devious Kholari can be when he wants to."

"You know" Sylphee interjected "With some strategically placed Mages in the Guard; and a compromised Endawbyew or three, an aggressive attack might just have a chance at succeeding"

"I agree completely Sylphee" Nalika said. "We dare not let this news slip through our hands." She pursed her lips, licking them while she thought. "Awright" she said finally "Here's what we're gonna do. . ."

The young woman had seemingly gone mad after her cry concerning the pendant. She flailed about with her fists and feet, catching both Tuvor and Ganzelle off-guard, Ganzelle in a most delicate spot. The woman was surprisingly strong and her kick to his "nether region" actually lifted him up off the floor and crashed him to the dirty straw in heap several paces away. Tuvor would have be concerned except that he had his own problems. The young woman smacked him in the throat, leaving him booth speechless and breathless for a few moments, sitting down backwards against the wall, gasping for breath. Only Exe, purely because of good luck, escaped direct harm. He was able to slide around behind her and was busily engaged in trying to capture her flailing arms. He grimaced as the two blows to his friend connected solidly, but with a grand effort, he managed to enclose her arms in his own and bear her to the floor, still screaming about pendants and magic and doubles. He listened with interest for a moment and then began to speak soothingly into her ear. Gradually, the young woman began to slow down her frantic machinations, finally lapsing into a trembling, sobbing heap in Exe's arms.

"There now Miss" Exe said soothingly. "It's OK, you're among friends now -- Shh" he murmured in her ear, rocking with her as she thrashed. "No one's going to hurt you now" he continued "You're safe" he said with a dubious look at Ganzelle and Tuvor. "You two OK?" he asked in a low voice.

"Oh sure, never better" Ganz said in a strained voice.

"Grrraassssltttlee" was all Tuvor managed

Exe watched as his two friends struggled to recover from the unexpected attacks.

"You know Exe; this little adventure of yours is turning into quite a pain in the . . . well a pain pretty much everywhere!" Ganzelle said in short gasps from his seat in the straw.

Exe only grunted in reply, and murmured something in the girl's ear in a comforting tone.

Ganzelle was sitting up, leaning back a bit with his back slightly arched and drawing some deep breaths. "Man am I glad she's in her bare feet." he said, obviously beginning to feel better.

"At least she didn't hit anything vital" Exe said in a wry voice as he began to disentangle himself, but tightened his grip as she began to stuggle some more, then lapsed into quietness again.

Ganzelle frowned at the joke and stuck his tongue out in Exe's direction. He rose to his feet gingerly and turned a concerned gaze in Tuvor's direction who was in the midst of a fit of coughing at the moment. "You gonna make it Tuv?" he asked in a concerned voice.

Tuvor nodded in response. "I believe I shall" he said in a rasping wheeze, collapsing into a coughing fit. "Overall tho, I believe I'll pass on the next little party Exe decides to give" he continued in a moment, voice stronger and clearer.

"Harumph" Exe said, loosening up on the girl once again. "I think she's waking up." he said, laying her tenderly on the dirty straw.

Ganzelle walked back to her side, cautiously avoiding the range of her feet and looked at her face carefully. "You said you remembered where you saw her?" he asked. "She looks a bit familiar to me as well now that I have chance to look at her." he continued.

"Without ducking you mean?" Tuv said as he joined Ganz at the girl's side.

Ganzelle smiled. "No, really! I've seen her before also, and recently."

Exe nodded. "We all have" he said."Remember when we entered this little shindig? We went through the receiving line and all made nice to Nasher and his party?"

Both Tuvor and Ganzelle nodded, still looking at the young woman.

"Well" Exe went on, "She was standing right behind Nasher and his wife. You remember, She was the one with the Mage's staff?"

"My god" Tuvor exclaimed, he and Ganzelle exchanging glances of similar recognition. "She's an Endawbyew!"

"What's an Endawbyew doing down in Nasher's dungeon?" Ganzelle wondered out loud.

"She's a heck of a lot more than that" Exe said in a grave voice. "Unless I miss my guess, this is THE Endawbyew, the Chief of Nasher's guard, the one they call Snowie! Gentlemen - meet the single most powerful Mage and Illusionist in the Realms!"

Numard Feathertouch made his way cautiously through the dark, dank confines of the dungeon with the sure sense of direction inherent to his race. The dark corridors, with their baffling turns this way and that held no mystery to him. Kender show a sense of ease underground that almost rivals that of their distant Dwarven cousins. Sniffing the air occassionally, he unerringly made his way left and right, right and left through various doors and arches, up a couple steps here, down a couple there, until finally he paused, confused and conflicted. His instincts told him his "partners" were somewhere nearby, but his instincts also told him two other things. First, there was something nearby that was very valuable and his Kender blood began to rise as he considered the prospect of a valuable "acquisition". Secondly, and more importantly, His hearing told him that there was a fairly large group of soldiers moving toward his position. He estimated about 5 minutes until they arrived. "Me not like this place" he murmured softly as he crouched in the shadows of a support arch. "No fun, no profit" he spat, as if that was the most loathsome curse imaginable. He cocked an ear to the sound of the approaching soldiers and then at another noise, a shrill woman's voice and subdued male voices from a nearby side-corridor. He smiled a Kender smile. "Partners" he said in a more cheerful voice and scurried away in the direction of the voices.

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