Recursive fanfic: Forgotten Realms
Jul. 23rd, 2022 02:39 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
somarielTo Go As Needed with a Pegasus (9216 words) by Somariel
Chapters: 3/3
Fandom: Forgotten Realms, The Legend of Drizzt Series - R. A. Salvatore, Wheel of Time - Robert Jordan
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Laeral Silverhand, Drizzt Do'Urden, Original Characters
Additional Tags: Canon-Typical Violence, Alternate Universe - Fusion
Series: Part 3 of A Crossing of the Realms, Part 2 of Ranger and Pegasus in the Wheel
Summary:
Inspired bysenmut and ilyena_sylph's fics Ranger and Pegasus and To Go As Needed.
Many thanks tosenmut and ilyena_sylph, for general idea bouncing and answering my questions about both Wheel of Time and their Fusion 'verse, and to ukia_dragon for making some useful suggestions.
This fic contains a certain amount of borrowing from "To Go As Needed", since some scenes from that fic are covered in this one, with alterations based on the changes caused by Bright Eyes's presence.
If you are confused by this fic, please go read "To Go As Needed" and the first fic in my series Ranger and Pegasus in the Wheel, as this fic very much assumes familiarity with both of them.
1335 DR, spring
When the plants all around the battlefield erupted into riotous, entangling growth that trapped many of the undead orcs she and Padraig were fighting—and only the undead orcs—just before a drow wielding twin scimitars joined the fight, Laeral wondered if this was the ranger that had been such a source of curiosity and bewilderment for her entire family the last few years. And when a pegasus came down out of the sky to join the fight, Laeral knew he had to be, even though the kestrel that accompanied the pegasus had not been mentioned before.
Once the fight was over, the pegasus—Bright Eyes, Laeral recalled—carefully made her way over to the drow—Drizzt—and bumped her nose against one of the pouches slung at his waist. “Yes, yes, my lovely one,” the drow laughed, “you can have a treat.” He then fished something out of the pouch the pegasus had nosed at, and held it out in the palm of his hand. The pegasus quickly snapped it up, and the drow petted her neck for a little before turning and starting over to Laeral and Padraig, with the pegasus soon following him.
“I’d apologize for barging into the fight,” he said, “but I’m sort of mandated to deal with these kinds of things.”
“We’re not complaining,” Laeral said, with a shake of her head and a cheerful smile, “though you’re certainly a bit startling.” Then, making the decision that it would be better to not act like she already knew anything about him, at least to start, she added, “I’ve never met a drow Dreadbane before, and few enough drow out in the middle of the day. Well met, stranger. I’m Laeral Silverhand, this is Padraig Farahar.”
“Well met, then. Drizzt Do’Urden, of Stedding Corwal, and my friend here is Bright Eyes,” he said with a smile of his own. “…Silverhand. Any relation to Lady Alustriel Silverhand, the High Mage of Silverymoon?”
“She’s my sister,” Laeral said.
“Then Andelver Aerasumé would be your nephew, yes?”
“Correct. And you must be the ranger that’s had our entire family so intrigued, and not a little bewildered, for the last few years.”
Drizzt ducked his head a little in what Laeral would swear was bashfulness, but when he looked up again, there was no sign of it. “Are undead like these common out this way?” he asked. “I was following the river down, and turned off into the hills. Meaning to make it to Waterdeep, though. I want to visit the sea, among other things.
“As my one visit to it so far was north, and winter, which made it less impressive than I’d been led to believe in.”
Padraig laughed at those words. “I find the ice-locked harbors terrifying, myself.”
Laeral shook her head. “No. Not common at all. There aren’t that many clerics of Shargaas—and they rarely act this openly. A young acolyte of Luthic managed to make it to Womford, mostly out of her mind and near death, raving about a male gone mad with the Night. I thought it might be a trap, as even that orcish goddess is an evil one, but… it seems not.”
“No, it wasn’t. Usually when I remove a head, the body stays down.” Drizzt sighed. “Thank you, for that assistance, again.
“Should I be worried there might be acolytes to hunt now?”
“Likely not; rare for one to get this much power, and unlikely to have shared it,” Padraig said. “Haven’t met many that go blindly into the lair of such.”
Drizzt half-shrugged. “My darkness was better than his,” he said with a grin, and Bright Eyes nickered in what Laeral was sure was amusement.
“So it was, it seems,” Laeral agreed, looking around at the undead sadly. “I have no great love for orcs, but this… he must have slaughtered the entire village to give them over to undeath. Poor creatures. And you are very welcome.
“Revenants—like that cleric became—are difficult foes to deal with. As long as there was still a body after death, they simply put themselves back together, and go hunting. Especially for those who first slew their body, because that being is always their primary target.”
“A good thing for me to learn then, Lady,” Drizzt said. “As it overcomes the usual method of dealing with undead that I use. Well, I have grown accustomed to fire, and will have to do better should I cross another’s path.”
“Or travel with someone that can do the destroying for you,” Padraig said, and by the amusement in his tone, Laeral knew he was referring to her.
“Ahh, but the farther I go from my former range at my teacher’s side, the less I know people to invite to such events,” Drizzt replied. “A ranger must be prepared to handle it all on their own.”
Laeral nodded then, and tilted her head slightly to the side. “I know I have more questions, and I’m sure you do, but I think further curiosity should wait until we’ve turned… mm. One of these caverns, I think, into a pyre for the dead.
“I’ll feel much better about leaving this place if we’ve burned them.”
“So will I,” Padraig said, “though this is going to be disgusting. Ugh.”
“I am accustomed to this part, and if you give me a moment,” Drizzt said, closing his eyes.
‘A moment for what?’ Laeral wanted to ask, but she knew better than to disturb a ranger who was concentrating, and soon enough it became obvious anyway, as a pair of bears and a mountain lion arrived, and started to drag the bodies to the largest cavern.
“Impressive,” Padraig said quietly to Laeral, as Drizzt moved to begin the dirty work, and Bright Eyes started making her way to the edge of the battlefield. “He’s quite unusual.”
“Very,” Laeral agreed quietly, and then decided that she was staying away from the big carnivores. She followed Bright Eyes out of the battlefield, but she wasn’t willing to not help. When the carnivores were at one end of the trek, she was willing to load corpses onto a floating disk and move them in a route that kept her away from the bears and mountain lion.
It took a little while, but eventually all the bodies were in the cavern, and the wood Padraig had been gathering was piled around and over the bodies along with tightly bundled grass and cloaks full of leaves. At that point, Laeral rubbed her hands together firmly, then cast burning hands, igniting straw, leaves, sticks, wood, and some of the bodies themselves with a cone of pure flame.
“A useful trick, that,” Drizzt said, even as movement at the edge of her vision caught Laeral’s attention, and she turned to see that Bright Eyes had come over to stand beside Drizzt, who had averted his eyes from the pyre, and the kestrel from earlier had settled onto Drizzt’s shoulder.
“Very much so,” Laeral agreed, finding herself a comfortable place out of the smoke to keep an eye on the pyre from, and noting as she did so that the animals Drizzt had called were leaving. “Barely more than a cantrip, but it increases in power with practice… which I have something of an excess of. Your kestrel is lovely. What’s her name?”
The kestrel preened a bit, proving that she had understood the compliment, and Drizzt smiled fondly. “Stela. My first companion. I rescued her as a fledgling two years past up in the Rauvin mountains. She decided I was hers, and that was all there was for it.
“My teacher’s wolverine was disappointed that I took a bird, instead of a sensible badger or such.”
Stela gave a terse chirp, clearly expressing her opinion on that, and Bright Eyes gave an exasperated sounding snort.
Laeral chuckled, smiling at the obviously loving relationship between the three of them, and tipped her neck left and right to pop the vertebrae there. “I see she and Bright Eyes both think she’s quite sensible,” she said wryly. “And given Bright Eyes, I rather think I agree with them.
“You likely gathered as much from my earlier comment about our entire family finding you intriguing, but I do already know a fair bit about you, so I don’t have to ask who your teacher was. Though I am curious about how you ended up with a druid for a teacher, instead of another ranger.”
“Aronna was the one that Mielikki brought to the stedding,” Drizzt said, “and despite offers over the years, she was the one I wanted to stay with. Many rangers, over the years, have shared lore with me, though, so I know more of that side.”
“You, Drizzt Do’Urden, are the most unusual person I may have met since meeting Laeral here,” Padraig said. “And that takes some doing, because she’s a handful in her own way.”
“Hmmph!” Laeral said, tipping her chin and nose up indignantly… before laughing and shrugging both shoulders. “Well, and so I am,” she agreed.
She was looking forward to the chance to travel with Drizzt, learn more about him—and she needed to make sure to let Qilué know that he was on his way to Waterdeep, too.
Padraig glanced at Laeral, then back to Drizzt. “Once the fire is done, and we make some distance, share a meal with us?”
“I would be glad to travel a bit, share a meal,” Drizzt said. “Any pointers on this region would be welcome, in regards to threats, or potential problems to deal with.”
Laeral smiled cheerfully, glad Padraig had invited him—she would have, but she was glad to have had him say it first, to know they were of the same mind. “Good, we’re agreed, then. Padraig’s a better cook than I am, but I can certainly put us up comfortably for the night once we’ve found somewhere comfortable. We know a fair bit about the region, and we were headed for Waterdeep ourselves. The ocean certainly won’t be frozen there. Not this time of year.”
“I’ve heard much of it, so had aimed to come to it as my wanderings allowed,” Drizzt said with a nod. “Heard much of Baldur's Gate as well, but I have personal reasons for choosing Waterdeep.
“I parted from my teacher this past spring, promising to see as much of the world as I wished to, until I found the place that called me to protect.”
Stela made a few noises, and Drizzt grinned.
“What was her opinion?” Padraig asked.
“That I protect everywhere I go.”
Bright Eyes gave another snort, and Laeral could almost hear the “Obviously!” she was certain the mare was expressing. “You are a ranger,” she said, her mouth curving with deep amusement, “that seems to be part of their ways. As an adventuring wizard, mostly I wander seeking interesting magic… and dealing with dangerous problems along the way.”
She got up and went to check the cavern, wishing the burning would get on with itself, but she was out of fire spells now, and they were just going to have to wait.
“Good of you to do so. Pardon, but while I know you are not one, some of the elan workers I have met have not been far from being dangerous problems themselves,” Drizzt said.
“Sorry you’ve stumbled over that kind,” Padraig said. “But I know the type.”
“No,” Laeral said with a wry chuckle, “I’m definitely no Aes Sedai, just a wizard. I call one or two of them friends… but you’re not wrong. Far too many of those who can use the Art fall prey to believing that just because they can do something, there is no reason they shouldn’t do something, in defiance of all morality, justice, and good sense.
“They do not long continue to do so, if one of my sisters or I find them.”
“Or your nephews,” Drizzt said with a chuckle of his own. “Andy shared a few tales during the winter he spent teaching me.
“And I have no grudge with the Aes Sedai—even if the Brown ones hold more curiosity than even I do—or regular wizards. I just have not worked with any of either group much other than when we pushed back the Blight a decade ago.”
“You were part of that? No wonder you have the Dreadbane mark; we heard it was brutal, once word spread out,” Padraig told him.
Laeral managed not to actually stare at Drizzt for the second part of that statement, but it was a close-run thing, given Andy’s assessment of his age as of three years ago. And she was grateful for Padraig’s comment, as it kept her from actually saying anything about it, given that she definitely wanted to hear what Drizzt might say of that working. She had only heard of it well after it was over, and that had been true of all of her sisters. Some things, it seemed, were not for the Chosen to poke their noses at.
“Every single group that came to the initial gathering had been attacked along the way,” Drizzt said. “And we turned off two attacks before the main effort was made. They had sent for aid from temples, including Helm and Tempus, but a group of the Aes Sedai and their Warders arrived to lend aid before those could arrive.
“We needed the aid,” Drizzt said in a rueful tone. “We were fortunate that the Fades had been linking to the Trollocs, allowing us to deal great damage by hunting the Fades. And then… the druids and clerics did it. They pushed it well back, and life has taken hold in that pass once more, though it is scant even now.”
Padraig shook his head. “A very mighty undertaking,” he said approvingly.
“That would have been quite an advantage,” Laeral agreed, “but given how cowardly Trollocs are, I assume the Eyeless had to stay linked to keep them fighting. Were there more kinds of the Shadowspawn as well? I would think so, but…”
“Myrddraal, Draghkar, and Darkhounds alongside the Trollocs. They said there was an elan worker as well, but I never got near that, or… well. I would have had to try. And my teacher might have mourned, for I was not as skilled then.” Drizzt half-shrugged. “Always improving. So I can be the best at what is needed from me.”
Laeral nodded understanding, but that he would have hunted a Shadow-sworn elan worker—especially with as young as he would have been then—said quite a bit about his bravery and courage—qualities she greatly admired. “Definitely a goal to reach for. And quite an event to have been part of. The Blight is… so very… wrong.”
“Yes!”
Bright Eyes responded to the anguish in that one word by turning away from the pyre and bumping her nose into Drizzt’s chest. And he reacted to that by beginning to pet her with both hands.
“Very good work, then,” Padraig said.
Laeral nodded her agreement, then cocked her head. “That was several years ago, though… anything particularly interesting since? Obviously, there’s Bright Eyes’s story, but what about other ones?”
Drizzt laughed. “There are a few,” and he started spinning stories of things he had done with his teacher—and sometimes with Bright Eyes.
Laeral listened with deep interest, filing away where they had been… and she did not miss that he spoke so much more of his teacher, and even Bright Eyes, than himself. A very odd thing in an adventurer, especially one with Dreadbane status.
Laeral had been quite certain of what inn Padraig would have chosen, so she had cheerfully teleported herself and Qilué-as-the-Simbul to a convenient alley near the inn and headed inside to speak to the innkeeper. Also to her lack of surprise, Padraig had left a key for her, and she headed up the stairs to see if they’d made it back in, or if she and Qilué would be waiting when they did.
The rooms were empty, but it was just starting to get toward mid-evening, and Laeral had seen how curious, and chatty, Drizzt could get.
“Not in, yet?” Qilué asked, joining her in looking the room over.
“No, but that doesn’t surprise me,” Laeral answered, shrugging her shoulders. “Even with him having spent the one winter in Silverymoon, I don’t think he’s seen much of cities, and Waterdeep is, well… Waterdeep. City of Splendors, in truth.” She settled into a couch of the front room, one foot tucked up onto her other knee. “They surely won’t be too hungry when they get back, we can wait to order a meal until then,”
“Or I can summon one, dear,” Qilué replied. “I do keep that spell on hand, and Drizzt might appreciate my fare, mm? …though, he might not, I suppose. I’ll ask, and then we can figure out which way to go.”
Laeral blinked, then smiled brightly at her sister. “You’re so thoughtful, sister-mine. He does seem to prefer finding mushrooms to add to our meals, so I think he will. We’ll see.”
It wasn’t much later before they heard two male voices—Drizzt had a particular accent to his words from where he learned Common—before the door opened. Padraig smiled brightly to see the Simbul present, while Drizzt looked from one silver-haired woman to the other.
“Very similar,” he decided. “Hello!”
“You get to see, if not quite meet, two of my sisters today, Drizzt, Padraig,” Laeral said cheerfully, since she was certain Qilué was not going to continue to wear their sister’s face. “This appearance is my sister the Witch-Queen of Aglarond, who calls herself only the Simbul. We draw notice, of course, but not as much as her true face.”
Qilué let the illusion slip away, staying seated because towering over a drow male who had not become used to her was never a good idea, and smiled welcomingly. “But my name is Qilué Veladorn, priestess of Eilistraee, Drizzt Do’Urden.”
His eyes went wide at seeing her, the first drow he had seen in over a decade. And she was a cleric, but his skin wasn’t itching! For all that he had believed what Andy had taught him of other good drow during that winter in Silverymoon, it was still so strange to him.
“I should have guessed. It is good to see you, Lady Veladorn,” Padraig said, to give Drizzt a moment to get himself under control.
“I am pleased to meet another drow that does not make me wish to escape,” Drizzt finally said.
“Oh,” Qilué murmured softly, watching his face and eyes, “I am so sorry that has been all of your experience with us, young ranger, though I sympathize. When Laeral told me that she had met you and you had come to Waterdeep with her, I had to come meet you.”
“Thank you for the honor, even if it was unnecessary,” Drizzt said, as he removed his cloak so he could actually sit and visit. Padraig took it to put on the hook since he needed to take his half-cloak off too. “As I was coming to Waterdeep in the first place in large part to visit the Promenade.”
“And I will be pleased to bring you there later,” Qilué said. “But there is a mystery surrounding you that must be unraveled first.”
“A mystery?” Drizzt echoed.
“Yes,” Qilué replied. “Because with as obviously good as you are, Eilistraee should have known of—and been able to call to—you from your first night on the Surface, at the very latest, and yet She was wholly unaware of you until I passed the knowledge on to Her after Alustriel reached out to me during the winter you spent in Silverymoon.”
“Is it because I have my goddess?” Drizzt asked, feeling truly puzzled. “Those who serve Her say She is… extravagant in my direction.” He half-shrugged. “I try not to ask much, though.”
“No,” Qilué shook her head, “Mielikki and Eilistraee have no enmity—indeed, Mielikki’s folk are one of the most likely to accept us—and for you to be so thoroughly hidden from my Lady that she is completely unable to see you on her own, and even with Andy anchoring for Her during one of your lessons with him, was only barely able to perceive you, you would have had to have been hidden almost at your birth.”
Drizzt tipped his head, considering. “I learned,” he began slowly, “that I am third son, but the second died before my birth. At school, they implied it was because he was refusing to be as skilled as he could be, to avoid the life of a Blade.
“I was never told that was my path. I was not beaten as severely as some males were. Matron Malice even rebuked Briza for failing to apply salve after. And if I am right about my father, I know that I would have been considered valuable, if I could reach near what he was capable of. But I don’t know what else she might have done to be certain I was fit to match my sister when I graduated.”
Qilué ached for the young drow before, for the senseless, useless waste of lives, for the way the abuse was simply unremarkable fact, but that was… interesting. “That… I loathe everything about what our people do to warp the Warder bond, but that makes… some sense. But if That One has found a way to block my Lady’s call from goodly drow, I am… worried.”
“We’ll figure it out, sister-mine,” Laeral said, squeezing Qilué’s hand gently. “Even if I do think that we’re going to need Mother’s assistance to do so.”
“Pardon, but… mother?” Drizzt asked, shifting uncomfortably at the idea of a third—completely unknown, and clearly powerful!—woman being involved in this.
Laeral caught Drizzt’s shifting out of the corner of her eye, realized what must have caused it, and turned to face him fully. “This is normally only known by family and very trusted, long time friends, but you do have a pegasus friend, so while you don’t quite meet the second criteria yet, I think you’re safe enough to share it with.” And while she wasn’t going to actually say it, they needed him to trust them fully to figure out what was hiding him from Eilistraee. “Qilué and I, and our other sisters, are, in a very real way, as much daughters of Mystra as we are of the women who gave birth to us.”
“Oh.” Drizzt took a moment to consider that, then nodded and said, “Very well, then. Shall we proceed?”
Even with the need to go through the Dawn Pass slowly enough to not get altitude sickness, it only took Laeral and Drizzt two weeks to reach Tar Valon, though Drizzt was clear that it was only on the way to wherever he was being pulled to. But with it so very directly on the way, there was no good reason to not stop over there, and the famous information networks of the Aes Sedai were a very good reason for such a stop, even if Bright Eyes had earned them some curious looks from the guards at the gates before Drizzt sent her off.
And now, the morning after their arrival in the city, she and Drizzt were walking towards the northern gate in the wall around the grounds of the White Tower.
“Light illumine you, Lady, but you and your… companion… are unknown to us,” the lead guard at the gate said. “Your names and the nature of your business, please.”
“Laeral Silverhand, archmage of Waterdeep, and Drizzt Do’Urden of Stedding Corwal,” Laeral answered, pleased at the entirely appropriate response to their presence. “We wish to speak with Terava Sedai, if she is present, or any of her sisters who might be willing to speak with us.” Terava was a traveling Brown Laeral had spent time with a century or so ago, and she devoutly hoped she was here.
“Of a stedding?” the guard repeated, obviously confused, peering at Drizzt for a long moment before the decorations of face-guard and scabbards seemed to convince him and he nodded, if a little uncertainly. “I’m not sure if Terava Sedai is here, mage, but you may both enter the White Tower grounds in peace and under the Light.
“It is the business of the Aes Sedai, not the guard, if you are permitted within the Tower.”
“The courtesy is most appreciated,” Drizzt answered for them, inclining his head to the guard. “Our business is merely of information, and we can afford the rest, as our journey started farther from the Dawn Pass than the Dawn Pass is from here.” The mention of distance was calculated, as surely no travelers would journey so far on a fool’s errand.
“A very long way,” the guard said, shaking his head, “longer than I would want to travel! Be welcome, Dreadbane, Lady.”
“My thanks. Light illumine you, gentlemen,” Laeral replied, as they walked onto the Tower grounds. The path from the gate was not a straight line, as many humans would have designed it, but a thing of gentle curves, intersected by others, that wound through gardens of incredible beauty as they approached the White Tower itself. Inside the walls of the complex were other buildings. Stables, what she thought might be a smithy, possibly drying or curing sheds for the produce of the gardens, wings extending from either side of the mind-bewildering height of the White Tower itself. Probably more she could not see behind the height of those, in all truth.
The guards at the top of the stairs—each stair broad enough that it took two strides to reach the next—that rose to the White Tower were not liveried staff, but Warders, to Laeral’s interest. One was of Andoran origin, if she was judging right, and the other was a tall, dark-skinned man with slightly tilted dark eyes, wearing garb in the Saldaean style.
Even more interestingly, the one in Saldaean garb—who had the accents on his clothing that marked him as Warder to a Brown—seemed to have a look of recognition on his face. Which had to be for Drizzt, as she was quite certain that she’d never met him before—a supposition that was borne out by his words. “Greetings, Drizzt Do’Urden and stranger. Be welcome if you come in peace.”
“Greetings to you, Farouk Tailer,” Drizzt replied. “My companion is Laeral Silverhand, archmage of Waterdeep.”
“We come in peace and in search of knowledge,” Laeral added. “I would speak to Terava Sedai, if she is home, or any Brown sister willing to share information with one who has traveled from Waterdeep to Tar Valon.”
“I will go find my Aes Sedai, lady,” the Warder—Farouk—answered, “as I am sure she will be glad to share information with Drizzt and anyone he travels with.” Then he turned to go within.
Very soon, he returned, accompanied by a woman with pale blonde hair, dressed all in brown. “Welcome, Drizzt, and to you as well, Lady Laeral,” she said. “Please, come with me.”
“It is good to see you again, Bethena Sedai,” Drizzt replied as he and Laeral followed her into the Tower.
“Speaking of whatever has brought the two of you here together should undoubtedly wait until we are within the quarters of the Brown Ajah,” Bethena said, “but do you have any other interesting stories you might share as we walk?”
“I do, actually,” Drizzt said, then began to tell the tale of how he had come to have Bright Eyes as his friend.
They climbed for… a while, up stairs done in a slowly repeating pattern of the colors of the Ajahs. The stairwell often let off onto landings that encircled it, but Bethena kept climbing until suddenly she stepped off and moved onto one of the landings, circling towards a section of the outer wall that blended from white stone into brown of all hues, and a wooden door carved with books and scrolls in a deep, warm hue.
Laeral looked directly behind her and found a doorway surrounded by yellow stone and a door carved with all manner of leaves… herbs, she thought, and other healing plants.
Bethena opened the door carved with books and scrolls, and led them over flagstones carved with open books, apparently towards the outside edge of the Tower. They passed several doors, each with a delicately carved scroll on the door, before Bethena finally opened another one.
The chamber that they entered was one that wrapped partially around the outer curve of the Tower itself, from the long span of arched and curving windows. Some were draped by curtains of more hues of brown than Laeral had ever imagined, but some were open. At least the sun was currently behind some clou—
“Drizzt,” she said, her eyes transfixed as she stared out the window for a moment, “is— is that a Great Tree at the southern edge of the island?”
Drizzt took a look, and smiled. “A younger or small one, yes, Laeral,” he said, delighted to see another piece of home. Only two years among the Ogier, and yet… every little piece that connected back to them made him feel safe and comforted. He then turned to look at Bethena. “While I am sure that you and your sisters have more questions for me, that must wait for later, as this time, I am the one hoping to learn more.”
“Farouk said as much,” Bethena replied. “If you will tell me the shape of what you seek, I will find the sisters who would best know how to help you.
“Please, seat yourselves comfortably.”
Drizzt gave Laeral a hand in taking her seat, helping corral the dresses by steadying her as she whisked them into behaving. He then sat next to her, but before he could say anything, a door farther down the chamber opened, and a woman in a brown and cream gown entered.
She was broad, light-eyed, and pale, with traces of ink on her fingertips, and blazing red hair, and she came to an abrupt stop on seeing two strangers in the chamber. After a moment, however, she quickly moved towards Drizzt and Laeral, in a way that left Drizzt feeling like she had somehow managed to miss Bethena's presence entirely.
“Can it be that you are Drizzt Do’Urden?” she said. “I am Calinde Varant, and the book Bethena wrote left me with so many questions.”
“Calinde!” Bethena said sharply, even as the other woman drew in a breath to continue speaking.
Calinde startled at that, making it clear to Drizzt that he had been correct in thinking she had not noticed Bethena, and turned to look at the other woman. “Bethena, why didn’t you tell any of us that he had come here?”
“For one thing, I only just brought him in,” Bethena said. “And for another, he and the Archmage of the Sword Coast have come seeking information, not to answer our questions.”
Drizzt smiled at Calinde. “Greetings, Calinde Varant. I am pleased to meet you,” he said. “Perhaps, if it is possible at the end of my quest, I could return for a time, and exchange knowledge for knowledge?”
He had no idea if it would be, but it seemed unlikely that Mielikki would immediately pull him in another direction without allowing for a rest.
“That would be most welcome,” Calinde said. “Is your quest one you wish to keep private?”
Calinde had the control of her expression of any Aes Sedai, but Laeral was certain she would be bitterly disappointed if Drizzt asked for privacy.
“It is not,” Drizzt replied, “and I have not yet had the chance to tell Bethena Sedai what I am seeking, so I won’t even have to tell it twice.”
Calinde smiled at that, and took as seat in the chair beside Bethena’s. “So what is your quest?” she asked, causing Bethena to give an exasperated sigh.
“I have been guided this way by my goddess,” Drizzt said. “She has a task for me in this place so far from my usual range.
“I have an impression of the Blight, and know I need to travel further still, east and north if the sense is right. Have your people heard of anything against the wilds in that direction?”
The slightest frown formed at the corner of Bethena’s lips, at the corners of her eyes, but it seemed a thing of concentration, not displeasure. “East and north, near the Blight… Shienar, perhaps. Or far eastern Arafel. I have heard of nothing from Arafel, but… there are strange rumors coming from eastern Shienar, near the Dragonwall. I know there have been discussions about whether someone should be sent to investigate, but I do not know what conclusions have been reached.”
“The Amyrlin Seat just approved Halani's decision to send a Green and her Warders this morning,” Calinde said.
“Well then,” Bethena said. “Would the two of you have any objection to traveling companions?
“I do not think that it would be possible to convince Halani that the two of you investigating makes it unnecessary for her to send someone, but that you, Drizzt, are being guided to deal with it makes me think that the source is something more usually found outside the Enclosure Peaks, which means not only is an Aes Sedai unlikely to know how to deal with it, it is entirely possible one would not be able to do so.”
Laeral exchanged a quick look with Drizzt, then said, “Not at all, though I will need to borrow a horse for such a journey, as I was switching between riding double on Bright Eyes and using a phantom steed on our way here.”
“Then I should bring the two of you to speak with Halani.” Bethena got up and headed for the door they had entered by, and Laeral and Drizzt did the same, following her out of the room.
Halani, who turned out to be the Captain-General of the Green Ajah, had asked quite a few incisive questions of Laeral, Drizzt, and even Bethena, before finally agreeing that it did seem like a good idea for Laeral and Drizzt to accompany the trio she was sending to investigate the rumors.
Meeting Marinna Sedai and her Warders, Verad and Nikho, had gone quite well, and Laeral and Drizzt had been invited to join the briefings that Halani had arranged to give the trio all the information they might need for the investigation. Once those were done, Marinna had invited the pair to join her and her Warders for a meal, and then, after agreeing that Laeral and Drizzt would return to the Tower the next morning for their party’s departure, saw them out of the Tower.
The revelation that Drizzt had sensed corruption in at least one of a pair of Aes Sedai (one Yellow, one Blue) that they had passed on their way out of the Tower was a disturbing one, especially with how distressed Drizzt was over the possibility that a healer was corrupted, but it at least had the benefit of assuring them that none of the other people they had met that day were Leafblighter's. Which was no small thing, when they were going to be traveling with three of those others, and a fourth was the Head of the Green Ajah.
Thankfully, Terava had been in the city, and as she had also proved uncorrupted, they had been able to pass that problem on to her to be dealt with. And time in the Ogier grove and among some of the Ogier that lived in the city had fully restored Drizzt’s equilibrium.
Once they were well out of the village, their second day on the road, Laeral followed up on her promise of the night before and began explaining to Marinna and her Warders how magic and innate abilities were different from channeling and why that meant they didn’t have to be concerned about what Drizzt could do.
“Although Drizzt does not use arcane magic, that is what I am going to start with,” Laeral began. “The source of arcane magic is known as ‘the Weave’, or more formally, ‘the Weave of Mystra’.
“And while the similarity in name to the equivalent of spells for an elan user is, so far as I know, pure coincidence, it does provide for a comparison to help you understand the differences.”
“And what is that comparison?” Marinna asked, sounding intrigued.
“The Weave of Mystra could, with reasonable accuracy, be viewed as the equivalent of a planet-wide elan-weave that can be accessed and borrowed from by anyone who has the right training—or sometimes, simply the natural ability, though those who cast their first arcane spell through pure natural ability will still need training, or at least to study magical texts, in order to be able to cast more than the most basic of spells.”
Marinna tilted her head, a considering look on her face “That… is a useful comparison,” she agreed. “The similarity gives a basis for understanding, but it also highlights the differences from channeling.”
“Thank you,” Laeral said. “Moving on, divine magic—the type of magic that Drizzt uses—is literally a gift from the deity the spellcaster follows or serves, which can and will fail if the spellcaster has earned their deity’s displeasure, though the degree of failure often depends on the degree of displeasure.”
“Is there any way to regain divine spellcasting ability if it has been lost because of divine displeasure?” Verad asked.
“The spellcaster can regain their deity’s favor by completing a quest for atonement that is set for them by a cleric of their deity,” Laeral answered.
“Is Drizzt’s ability to understand and communicate with Stela and Bright Eyes due to divine magic?” Nikho asked.
“Partially,” Laeral said. “All pegasi are innately able to understand Common and Sylvan, so communicating with Bright Eyes doesn’t involve any magic on his part at all.
“As for him being able to understand her so clearly, and both understand and communicate with Stela, while most rangers and druids need to actively call on their deity to do so, Drizzt is one of a rare few who can do it naturally. Such rangers and druids are referred to as ‘wild-called’, due to that natural ability being seen as a gift of the wilds, making it akin to being a Wolfsib.”
“Does being a wild-called ranger mean Drizzt doesn’t have to worry about the taint that is known to be in magic?” Marinna asked. “Though my understanding is that it is not as severe as that in saidin.”
“Drizzt doesn’t have to worry about the taint,” Laeral said, “but it’s not because of being a wild-called ranger.”
“What is the reason, then?”
“The sacrifice of Mystra's predecessor as goddess of magic blunted the effect of the Dark One’s counterstrike on both arcane and divine magic,” Laeral said, “and the divine will of all the other deities, good, neutral, and evil alike, further blunted the effect on divine magic.
“So taking a Warder is sufficient to protect arcane magic users and clerics, while all rangers and druids are protected by the fact that the magic they use is too wild-touched to suffer from taint, and paladins are—to the best of my knowledge—protected by the fact that their actual spellcasting ability is limited, with most of their magic use being a more direct manifestation of their deity’s favor.”
“If taking a Warder protects arcane magic users, why don’t you have one, then?” Nikho asked.
By Marinna's exasperated-sounding sigh, Laeral could tell that the Aes Sedai felt her younger Warder was being too curious. And while Laeral actually felt much the same, it was an understandable question, at least, so she was willing to give a partial answer.
“I am one of the Chosen of Mystra,” she said, “and being a deity’s Chosen also protects against the taint.”
“I’ll explain what a Chosen is later,” Marinna said, pinning Nikho with a stern look. Turning back to Laeral, she said, “So that leaves innate abilities to be explained.”
“Innate abilities are things like a dragon’s breath weapon—magical abilities that a being is born with,” Laeral said. “Some innate abilities are known as spell-like abilities, due to the fact that they replicate the effect of a specific spell, without actually requiring any spellcasting.
“In regards to Drizzt, he is a drow, and all drow are born with four spell-like abilities—darkness, faerie fire, dancing lights, and levitate. However, drow who live on the Surface instead of in the Underdark always lose one of the abilities, and so Drizzt is now only able to use the first three.”
As they traveled, Drizzt sparred with Verad and Nikho every day, once they had made camp for the night, and Laeral could easily see his delight in having such skilled opponents to practice with. Nor was he alone in his enjoyment, as both Warders were very clearly impressed with his skill, and the sparring often turned into lessons, either Verad teaching Drizzt better techniques for using a single blade, or Drizzt teaching Verad and Nikho how to better defend against twin blades.
However, the idyll ended when Drizzt’s sense of where he was needed pulled them off the Fal Moran road well before they were into the settled part of Shienar, off towards the painfully jagged peaks of the Dragonwall, and then directly into the uneven terrain at the edge of them.
The fourth day in that uneven terrain provided a very unsettling reminder of the dangers they would be facing, when they came across a spot where the plants and animals, and even the land itself, had been just… ripped apart. The sight had left Marinna and her Warders pale for some time, and Drizzt’s expression had become grim.
Three days later, Drizzt signaled Bright Eyes to stop, and once she had, he turned towards the others, who had followed his lead and stopped their mounts. Something was pulling hard on his instincts, something he was not yet able to quantify. “I can sense something now,” he said.
“Only ‘something’?” Verad asked. “Not whether it’s what we’re seeking?”
“My sense of evil only tells me that it is there,” Drizzt said, “not what sort of evil it is.”
“But if you can sense it, that must mean we’re close, yes?” Nikho said.
“Only for a loose definition of close,” Laeral said, “especially in terrain like this. His range on that sense is quite large.”
“So what do we do now?” Marinna asked.
Drizzt dismounted, then looked up, and Stela obediently flew ahead, scouting the land for them. “Dismount and follow me,” he said.
He then moved to follow the path Stela was laying out for him with her eyes. She was aware of his needs, and guided them to a defensible spot they would be able to guard from, without much chance of anything reaching them first.
Once they had reached the spot Stela had found for them, Drizzt found a comfortable place to settle, and the others turned their horses over to Bright Eyes’s supervision and found their own places to settle, Laeral and the Warders automatically choosing spots which would easily let them watch a wide area. To Laeral’s slight surprise, Stela came down to her, settling on her shoulder rather than Drizzt’s.
“She knows which of us will be mindful,” Drizzt said with a chuckle at her surprise, then unshouldered his pack and set it down. “Now I must ask you all to guard me,” he continued. “I need to fully feel the land… but be prevented from going toward the source of the evil here until I am out of the trance.”
As Drizzt prepared himself to do a ranger’s reaching out to the land, Marinna asked Laeral, “Why does he need to be prevented from going towards the evil? Dealing with it is what we came to do, after all.”
“It’s because he’s entering a trance state to find out more,” Laeral replied. “It leaves him with no true awareness of his surroundings, but if he senses evil while in such a state, he will nevertheless just start walking towards it.”
“That seems… inconvenient, to say the least,” Marinna said.
“Mmm, maybe so, but given that his sense of evil is always working, I’d call it an even trade-off for the fact that he never gets stunned by the evil being too strong. Which is how the spell to detect evil works.”
Laeral would have explained further, as Marinna looked curious, but then Drizzt shifted in a way that presaged true movement, and she prepared to stop him if needed.
Thankfully, something drew him out of the trance, and his eyes opened, glowing briefly with the darkvision that was their natural state before he blinked and they cleared to the normal hue of purple Laeral was more accustomed to.
Purple glowing eyes was a far different sight from the red of most of the drow Laeral knew.
“Someone has set a demon loose on the Surface,” he said softly. “One of the youngest kinds, if I remember Vierna’s lessons on demon hierarchies correctly.”
Laeral sucked in a hissing breath, her mouth tightening as her eyes took on a tinge of silver for a long moment. Before her was not her wry and sometimes capricious friend, but the Dreadbane who had defended those who forced back the Blight. A nearly impossibly capable warrior dedicated to the protection of the wild and intent upon that goal—and she was of the same mind with him.
Demons were not supposed to run free on the Material Plane. They were supposed to be confined to their depths of the Abyss, unless some idiot wizard called one to make a bargain with it. Even then, they should be confined to the summoning circle. A loose demon was a serious danger to everyone in its vicinity.
“There are a few young kinds, which one do you think it is?” Laeral asked, one hand on the edge of the pocket where her wands waited for use.
“From the breaking of all things around it? I would wager it is a loumara. They delight in needless cruelty against natural places,” Drizzt said.
“What do you mean by ‘the breaking of all things around it’?” Marinna asked.
“Remember that place we passed through three days ago, where everything had been ripped apart?” Drizzt said. “That is what a loumara does.”
Marinna’s face paled at the memory, and Laeral took the opportunity to say, “Which is why you and your Warders will not be assisting us in dealing with it.”
“But-”
“No,” Laeral said. “I can turn its rending back on itself twice, but since I only have two memorized, I cannot do more than that. Which means I will have to prioritize protecting myself and Drizzt, as the ones who actually know how to deal with it.”
Verad came over to them then, and placed a hand on Marinna’s shoulder. “This is exactly why Halani agreed that they should come with us, remember?”
Marinna sighed, and placed a hand on top of Verad's. “You’re right. I just don’t like feeling useless.” Turning her attention back to Drizzt and Laeral, she asked, “Would Bright Eyes be willing to carry me? I’ll feel better about reporting that the problem has been dealt with if I can see it happen myself.”
“It’s her decision,” Drizzt said, “but if she’s high enough to keep you from being noticed by the loumara, you’re not going to be able to see anything useful.”
“Most people wouldn’t be able to, but I know a weave that will grant me a hawk’s vision for a while.”
“In that case, let me and Laeral figure out how we’re going to handle this, and then we can ask her.”
As Bright Eyes took off and started climbing into the sky, following Stela, Marinna reached for Air and Spirit and deliberately crafted the hawk’s vision weave she had first used instinctively as a girl desperate to keep her family from losing any more chickens to what she now knew had been equally desperate hawks.
Closing her eyes to let the change in her vision settle—since trying to adjust to the new sight with her eyes open was a bad idea—she considered the plan that Drizzt and Laeral had come up with. She did not know enough about demons to truly have an opinion on if it was a good plan—which was something she intended to rectify once this one had been dealt with!—but that they both thought it would work reassured her.
And its reliance on the known relationship between demons and drow was intriguing, leading her to think that she should actually read Bethena’s book herself, rather than rely on the summary Nikho had given her when she thought the subject was merely an academic curiosity.
Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes again and looked around. Stela had started circling, and Marinna looked down to see what the kestrel had noticed—just in time to see trees and plants being ripped apart in a large circle, though there was no visible cause for it.
That Stela headed back towards where the others were as soon as she had finished her circle confirmed Marinna’s assumption that they had found the loumara, and she asked Bright Eyes to circle over the spot.
It did not take long before two drow crested a hill from the direction that Stela had left in, and since Marinna recognized the male’s face as Drizzt’s, that meant that the female had to be Laeral, under the illusion that she had mentioned.
The two of them stopped just outside the circle of destruction, and although Marinna could not hear anything, she assumed that they were playing out their roles. Then Laeral suddenly lunged forward and bolts of energy shot from the wand she was holding, into the center of the destruction.
Drizzt had leaped forward just after Laeral’s lunge, and was now in the middle of the destruction himself. And then, all of a sudden, Marinna could actually see something else there—a tangle of thorned vines, each ending in a fanged maw.
Every movement of Drizzt’s blades—not that Marinna could truly keep up with his speed—made contact with the tendrils, while Laeral sent bolts of energy at any that did not leave her at risk of hitting him, and shortly after an agonized screech that had to have come from the loumara, Drizzt drove one blade directly into the middle of the tangle.
Laeral ran forward then, and just as she reached Drizzt, the illusions cloaking both of them vanished—as did Marinna’s ability to see the loumara, making her realize that it must have also been the result of an illusion from Laeral—and the ground around Drizzt’s blade was torn in a way that looked similar to the damage Marinna had seen the loumara cause earlier.
A shudder ran down Marinna’s back as she realized that the loumara must have tried to inflict its rending on Drizzt in retaliation for the direct strike to its body, and Laeral had lost the illusions to the effort require to turn the rending back on it.
Even without the illusion of the loumara's body, however, Drizzt was still making strikes with confidence.
Then there was another screech that Marinna could actually hear, but it died away quickly, and Drizzt stopped moving even as Stela launched off his shoulder.
When Laeral reached down to clamp her hand around her calf, Marinna knew that the loumara had to be gone, and asked Bright Eyes to take her down to them.
She closed her eyes as Bright Eyes descended, dismissing the hawk’s vision weave, and when she opened them again at the sound of hooves thudding on dirt, her vision was back to normal.
“One human, to the northeast,” Drizzt was saying as Marinna dismounted and walked over to him and Laeral. “Seems to be dropped on the ground.”
“One of the puppets you mentioned the loumara might have?” Marinna asked.
“Presumably,” Laeral replied.
“If I get Stela to guide you to the person, would the two of you be willing to go ahead on Bright Eyes while I go get our packs and guide Verad, Nikho, and the horses?” Drizzt asked.
“If Laeral is, I am,” Marinna said.
“Of course,” Laeral agreed. “But first, Drizzt, you should take this, since I saw it bite you.” She fished a vial out of one of her pockets and held it out to Drizzt.
At that, Drizzt looked puzzled, then started laughing. “Just that fast, I had forgotten,” he said cheerfully, before he downed the contents of the vial and returned it to her.
The person that Stela had seen proved, once Laeral and Marinna reached them, to be the missing Shienaran scout—which left Laeral quite impressed with her sheer willpower and tenacity, to have survived for so long as the loumara’s puppet.
But even so, she was clearly only barely still alive, so Marinna cast a healing weave on her to make sure she didn’t die before she regained consciousness. And when the scout did do so, Laeral let Marinna take the lead in dealing with her, only asserting herself enough to insist the scout drink a potion.
By the time that Drizzt, Verad, and Nikho arrived with the horses, it was clear that the scout was in no shape to travel yet, so Laeral joined the three of them in setting up a camp that would be comfortable for a longer stay.
Three weeks of healing weaves, careful feeding, and good shelter got the scout into good enough condition that she could at least keep herself on a horse, at which point she started to insist on returning to her fort of origin.
Since that would be best handled by Marinna and her Warders, but Marinna did not wish to delay any further on getting at least some form of report to the Captain-General of the Green Ajah, Laeral and Drizzt agreed to carry a letter for her on their return. And since the scout had been given Drizzt’s spare set of clothing, it wasn’t even like they would have to go out of their way to deliver it, as they had agreed that it made the most sense to get more clothes for him from the Ogier community there.
A week after parting from Marinna, her Warders, and the scout, Laeral and Drizzt entered Tar Valon again.
As it was still early in the day, they went straight to the Tower to deliver Marinna’s report. One very intense meeting with Halani later, they left the Tower and went to find an inn.
And once they had obtained rooms in the same inn as before, they settled into the baths to relax from the journey before visiting the Ogier community.
I couldn't find a way to fit it in, but Laeral does still recommend that anyone who desires to learn more about demons and how to defend against them go to Silverymoon. Marinna mentioned the need in her letter for Halani and that was one of the things Halani asked about during the meeting where the letter was delivered.
And because they got to Tar Valon so much faster, Drizzt and Laeral's encounter with Broken Chain and his pack happened on their way out of the elan-lands.
Chapters: 3/3
Fandom: Forgotten Realms, The Legend of Drizzt Series - R. A. Salvatore, Wheel of Time - Robert Jordan
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Characters: Laeral Silverhand, Drizzt Do'Urden, Original Characters
Additional Tags: Canon-Typical Violence, Alternate Universe - Fusion
Series: Part 3 of A Crossing of the Realms, Part 2 of Ranger and Pegasus in the Wheel
Summary:
The events of "To Go As Needed", in a universe where Drizzt and his teacher saved Bright Eyes's egg a few years earlier.
Beginning notes
Inspired by
senmut and ilyena_sylph's fics Ranger and Pegasus and To Go As Needed.Many thanks to
senmut and ilyena_sylph, for general idea bouncing and answering my questions about both Wheel of Time and their Fusion 'verse, and to ukia_dragon for making some useful suggestions.This fic contains a certain amount of borrowing from "To Go As Needed", since some scenes from that fic are covered in this one, with alterations based on the changes caused by Bright Eyes's presence.
If you are confused by this fic, please go read "To Go As Needed" and the first fic in my series Ranger and Pegasus in the Wheel, as this fic very much assumes familiarity with both of them.
Chapter One: Meeting Laeral and Qilué
1335 DR, spring
When the plants all around the battlefield erupted into riotous, entangling growth that trapped many of the undead orcs she and Padraig were fighting—and only the undead orcs—just before a drow wielding twin scimitars joined the fight, Laeral wondered if this was the ranger that had been such a source of curiosity and bewilderment for her entire family the last few years. And when a pegasus came down out of the sky to join the fight, Laeral knew he had to be, even though the kestrel that accompanied the pegasus had not been mentioned before.
Once the fight was over, the pegasus—Bright Eyes, Laeral recalled—carefully made her way over to the drow—Drizzt—and bumped her nose against one of the pouches slung at his waist. “Yes, yes, my lovely one,” the drow laughed, “you can have a treat.” He then fished something out of the pouch the pegasus had nosed at, and held it out in the palm of his hand. The pegasus quickly snapped it up, and the drow petted her neck for a little before turning and starting over to Laeral and Padraig, with the pegasus soon following him.
“I’d apologize for barging into the fight,” he said, “but I’m sort of mandated to deal with these kinds of things.”
“We’re not complaining,” Laeral said, with a shake of her head and a cheerful smile, “though you’re certainly a bit startling.” Then, making the decision that it would be better to not act like she already knew anything about him, at least to start, she added, “I’ve never met a drow Dreadbane before, and few enough drow out in the middle of the day. Well met, stranger. I’m Laeral Silverhand, this is Padraig Farahar.”
“Well met, then. Drizzt Do’Urden, of Stedding Corwal, and my friend here is Bright Eyes,” he said with a smile of his own. “…Silverhand. Any relation to Lady Alustriel Silverhand, the High Mage of Silverymoon?”
“She’s my sister,” Laeral said.
“Then Andelver Aerasumé would be your nephew, yes?”
“Correct. And you must be the ranger that’s had our entire family so intrigued, and not a little bewildered, for the last few years.”
Drizzt ducked his head a little in what Laeral would swear was bashfulness, but when he looked up again, there was no sign of it. “Are undead like these common out this way?” he asked. “I was following the river down, and turned off into the hills. Meaning to make it to Waterdeep, though. I want to visit the sea, among other things.
“As my one visit to it so far was north, and winter, which made it less impressive than I’d been led to believe in.”
Padraig laughed at those words. “I find the ice-locked harbors terrifying, myself.”
Laeral shook her head. “No. Not common at all. There aren’t that many clerics of Shargaas—and they rarely act this openly. A young acolyte of Luthic managed to make it to Womford, mostly out of her mind and near death, raving about a male gone mad with the Night. I thought it might be a trap, as even that orcish goddess is an evil one, but… it seems not.”
“No, it wasn’t. Usually when I remove a head, the body stays down.” Drizzt sighed. “Thank you, for that assistance, again.
“Should I be worried there might be acolytes to hunt now?”
“Likely not; rare for one to get this much power, and unlikely to have shared it,” Padraig said. “Haven’t met many that go blindly into the lair of such.”
Drizzt half-shrugged. “My darkness was better than his,” he said with a grin, and Bright Eyes nickered in what Laeral was sure was amusement.
“So it was, it seems,” Laeral agreed, looking around at the undead sadly. “I have no great love for orcs, but this… he must have slaughtered the entire village to give them over to undeath. Poor creatures. And you are very welcome.
“Revenants—like that cleric became—are difficult foes to deal with. As long as there was still a body after death, they simply put themselves back together, and go hunting. Especially for those who first slew their body, because that being is always their primary target.”
“A good thing for me to learn then, Lady,” Drizzt said. “As it overcomes the usual method of dealing with undead that I use. Well, I have grown accustomed to fire, and will have to do better should I cross another’s path.”
“Or travel with someone that can do the destroying for you,” Padraig said, and by the amusement in his tone, Laeral knew he was referring to her.
“Ahh, but the farther I go from my former range at my teacher’s side, the less I know people to invite to such events,” Drizzt replied. “A ranger must be prepared to handle it all on their own.”
Laeral nodded then, and tilted her head slightly to the side. “I know I have more questions, and I’m sure you do, but I think further curiosity should wait until we’ve turned… mm. One of these caverns, I think, into a pyre for the dead.
“I’ll feel much better about leaving this place if we’ve burned them.”
“So will I,” Padraig said, “though this is going to be disgusting. Ugh.”
“I am accustomed to this part, and if you give me a moment,” Drizzt said, closing his eyes.
‘A moment for what?’ Laeral wanted to ask, but she knew better than to disturb a ranger who was concentrating, and soon enough it became obvious anyway, as a pair of bears and a mountain lion arrived, and started to drag the bodies to the largest cavern.
“Impressive,” Padraig said quietly to Laeral, as Drizzt moved to begin the dirty work, and Bright Eyes started making her way to the edge of the battlefield. “He’s quite unusual.”
“Very,” Laeral agreed quietly, and then decided that she was staying away from the big carnivores. She followed Bright Eyes out of the battlefield, but she wasn’t willing to not help. When the carnivores were at one end of the trek, she was willing to load corpses onto a floating disk and move them in a route that kept her away from the bears and mountain lion.
It took a little while, but eventually all the bodies were in the cavern, and the wood Padraig had been gathering was piled around and over the bodies along with tightly bundled grass and cloaks full of leaves. At that point, Laeral rubbed her hands together firmly, then cast burning hands, igniting straw, leaves, sticks, wood, and some of the bodies themselves with a cone of pure flame.
“A useful trick, that,” Drizzt said, even as movement at the edge of her vision caught Laeral’s attention, and she turned to see that Bright Eyes had come over to stand beside Drizzt, who had averted his eyes from the pyre, and the kestrel from earlier had settled onto Drizzt’s shoulder.
“Very much so,” Laeral agreed, finding herself a comfortable place out of the smoke to keep an eye on the pyre from, and noting as she did so that the animals Drizzt had called were leaving. “Barely more than a cantrip, but it increases in power with practice… which I have something of an excess of. Your kestrel is lovely. What’s her name?”
The kestrel preened a bit, proving that she had understood the compliment, and Drizzt smiled fondly. “Stela. My first companion. I rescued her as a fledgling two years past up in the Rauvin mountains. She decided I was hers, and that was all there was for it.
“My teacher’s wolverine was disappointed that I took a bird, instead of a sensible badger or such.”
Stela gave a terse chirp, clearly expressing her opinion on that, and Bright Eyes gave an exasperated sounding snort.
Laeral chuckled, smiling at the obviously loving relationship between the three of them, and tipped her neck left and right to pop the vertebrae there. “I see she and Bright Eyes both think she’s quite sensible,” she said wryly. “And given Bright Eyes, I rather think I agree with them.
“You likely gathered as much from my earlier comment about our entire family finding you intriguing, but I do already know a fair bit about you, so I don’t have to ask who your teacher was. Though I am curious about how you ended up with a druid for a teacher, instead of another ranger.”
“Aronna was the one that Mielikki brought to the stedding,” Drizzt said, “and despite offers over the years, she was the one I wanted to stay with. Many rangers, over the years, have shared lore with me, though, so I know more of that side.”
“You, Drizzt Do’Urden, are the most unusual person I may have met since meeting Laeral here,” Padraig said. “And that takes some doing, because she’s a handful in her own way.”
“Hmmph!” Laeral said, tipping her chin and nose up indignantly… before laughing and shrugging both shoulders. “Well, and so I am,” she agreed.
She was looking forward to the chance to travel with Drizzt, learn more about him—and she needed to make sure to let Qilué know that he was on his way to Waterdeep, too.
Padraig glanced at Laeral, then back to Drizzt. “Once the fire is done, and we make some distance, share a meal with us?”
“I would be glad to travel a bit, share a meal,” Drizzt said. “Any pointers on this region would be welcome, in regards to threats, or potential problems to deal with.”
Laeral smiled cheerfully, glad Padraig had invited him—she would have, but she was glad to have had him say it first, to know they were of the same mind. “Good, we’re agreed, then. Padraig’s a better cook than I am, but I can certainly put us up comfortably for the night once we’ve found somewhere comfortable. We know a fair bit about the region, and we were headed for Waterdeep ourselves. The ocean certainly won’t be frozen there. Not this time of year.”
“I’ve heard much of it, so had aimed to come to it as my wanderings allowed,” Drizzt said with a nod. “Heard much of Baldur's Gate as well, but I have personal reasons for choosing Waterdeep.
“I parted from my teacher this past spring, promising to see as much of the world as I wished to, until I found the place that called me to protect.”
Stela made a few noises, and Drizzt grinned.
“What was her opinion?” Padraig asked.
“That I protect everywhere I go.”
Bright Eyes gave another snort, and Laeral could almost hear the “Obviously!” she was certain the mare was expressing. “You are a ranger,” she said, her mouth curving with deep amusement, “that seems to be part of their ways. As an adventuring wizard, mostly I wander seeking interesting magic… and dealing with dangerous problems along the way.”
She got up and went to check the cavern, wishing the burning would get on with itself, but she was out of fire spells now, and they were just going to have to wait.
“Good of you to do so. Pardon, but while I know you are not one, some of the elan workers I have met have not been far from being dangerous problems themselves,” Drizzt said.
“Sorry you’ve stumbled over that kind,” Padraig said. “But I know the type.”
“No,” Laeral said with a wry chuckle, “I’m definitely no Aes Sedai, just a wizard. I call one or two of them friends… but you’re not wrong. Far too many of those who can use the Art fall prey to believing that just because they can do something, there is no reason they shouldn’t do something, in defiance of all morality, justice, and good sense.
“They do not long continue to do so, if one of my sisters or I find them.”
“Or your nephews,” Drizzt said with a chuckle of his own. “Andy shared a few tales during the winter he spent teaching me.
“And I have no grudge with the Aes Sedai—even if the Brown ones hold more curiosity than even I do—or regular wizards. I just have not worked with any of either group much other than when we pushed back the Blight a decade ago.”
“You were part of that? No wonder you have the Dreadbane mark; we heard it was brutal, once word spread out,” Padraig told him.
Laeral managed not to actually stare at Drizzt for the second part of that statement, but it was a close-run thing, given Andy’s assessment of his age as of three years ago. And she was grateful for Padraig’s comment, as it kept her from actually saying anything about it, given that she definitely wanted to hear what Drizzt might say of that working. She had only heard of it well after it was over, and that had been true of all of her sisters. Some things, it seemed, were not for the Chosen to poke their noses at.
“Every single group that came to the initial gathering had been attacked along the way,” Drizzt said. “And we turned off two attacks before the main effort was made. They had sent for aid from temples, including Helm and Tempus, but a group of the Aes Sedai and their Warders arrived to lend aid before those could arrive.
“We needed the aid,” Drizzt said in a rueful tone. “We were fortunate that the Fades had been linking to the Trollocs, allowing us to deal great damage by hunting the Fades. And then… the druids and clerics did it. They pushed it well back, and life has taken hold in that pass once more, though it is scant even now.”
Padraig shook his head. “A very mighty undertaking,” he said approvingly.
“That would have been quite an advantage,” Laeral agreed, “but given how cowardly Trollocs are, I assume the Eyeless had to stay linked to keep them fighting. Were there more kinds of the Shadowspawn as well? I would think so, but…”
“Myrddraal, Draghkar, and Darkhounds alongside the Trollocs. They said there was an elan worker as well, but I never got near that, or… well. I would have had to try. And my teacher might have mourned, for I was not as skilled then.” Drizzt half-shrugged. “Always improving. So I can be the best at what is needed from me.”
Laeral nodded understanding, but that he would have hunted a Shadow-sworn elan worker—especially with as young as he would have been then—said quite a bit about his bravery and courage—qualities she greatly admired. “Definitely a goal to reach for. And quite an event to have been part of. The Blight is… so very… wrong.”
“Yes!”
Bright Eyes responded to the anguish in that one word by turning away from the pyre and bumping her nose into Drizzt’s chest. And he reacted to that by beginning to pet her with both hands.
“Very good work, then,” Padraig said.
Laeral nodded her agreement, then cocked her head. “That was several years ago, though… anything particularly interesting since? Obviously, there’s Bright Eyes’s story, but what about other ones?”
Drizzt laughed. “There are a few,” and he started spinning stories of things he had done with his teacher—and sometimes with Bright Eyes.
Laeral listened with deep interest, filing away where they had been… and she did not miss that he spoke so much more of his teacher, and even Bright Eyes, than himself. A very odd thing in an adventurer, especially one with Dreadbane status.
Laeral had been quite certain of what inn Padraig would have chosen, so she had cheerfully teleported herself and Qilué-as-the-Simbul to a convenient alley near the inn and headed inside to speak to the innkeeper. Also to her lack of surprise, Padraig had left a key for her, and she headed up the stairs to see if they’d made it back in, or if she and Qilué would be waiting when they did.
The rooms were empty, but it was just starting to get toward mid-evening, and Laeral had seen how curious, and chatty, Drizzt could get.
“Not in, yet?” Qilué asked, joining her in looking the room over.
“No, but that doesn’t surprise me,” Laeral answered, shrugging her shoulders. “Even with him having spent the one winter in Silverymoon, I don’t think he’s seen much of cities, and Waterdeep is, well… Waterdeep. City of Splendors, in truth.” She settled into a couch of the front room, one foot tucked up onto her other knee. “They surely won’t be too hungry when they get back, we can wait to order a meal until then,”
“Or I can summon one, dear,” Qilué replied. “I do keep that spell on hand, and Drizzt might appreciate my fare, mm? …though, he might not, I suppose. I’ll ask, and then we can figure out which way to go.”
Laeral blinked, then smiled brightly at her sister. “You’re so thoughtful, sister-mine. He does seem to prefer finding mushrooms to add to our meals, so I think he will. We’ll see.”
It wasn’t much later before they heard two male voices—Drizzt had a particular accent to his words from where he learned Common—before the door opened. Padraig smiled brightly to see the Simbul present, while Drizzt looked from one silver-haired woman to the other.
“Very similar,” he decided. “Hello!”
“You get to see, if not quite meet, two of my sisters today, Drizzt, Padraig,” Laeral said cheerfully, since she was certain Qilué was not going to continue to wear their sister’s face. “This appearance is my sister the Witch-Queen of Aglarond, who calls herself only the Simbul. We draw notice, of course, but not as much as her true face.”
Qilué let the illusion slip away, staying seated because towering over a drow male who had not become used to her was never a good idea, and smiled welcomingly. “But my name is Qilué Veladorn, priestess of Eilistraee, Drizzt Do’Urden.”
His eyes went wide at seeing her, the first drow he had seen in over a decade. And she was a cleric, but his skin wasn’t itching! For all that he had believed what Andy had taught him of other good drow during that winter in Silverymoon, it was still so strange to him.
“I should have guessed. It is good to see you, Lady Veladorn,” Padraig said, to give Drizzt a moment to get himself under control.
“I am pleased to meet another drow that does not make me wish to escape,” Drizzt finally said.
“Oh,” Qilué murmured softly, watching his face and eyes, “I am so sorry that has been all of your experience with us, young ranger, though I sympathize. When Laeral told me that she had met you and you had come to Waterdeep with her, I had to come meet you.”
“Thank you for the honor, even if it was unnecessary,” Drizzt said, as he removed his cloak so he could actually sit and visit. Padraig took it to put on the hook since he needed to take his half-cloak off too. “As I was coming to Waterdeep in the first place in large part to visit the Promenade.”
“And I will be pleased to bring you there later,” Qilué said. “But there is a mystery surrounding you that must be unraveled first.”
“A mystery?” Drizzt echoed.
“Yes,” Qilué replied. “Because with as obviously good as you are, Eilistraee should have known of—and been able to call to—you from your first night on the Surface, at the very latest, and yet She was wholly unaware of you until I passed the knowledge on to Her after Alustriel reached out to me during the winter you spent in Silverymoon.”
“Is it because I have my goddess?” Drizzt asked, feeling truly puzzled. “Those who serve Her say She is… extravagant in my direction.” He half-shrugged. “I try not to ask much, though.”
“No,” Qilué shook her head, “Mielikki and Eilistraee have no enmity—indeed, Mielikki’s folk are one of the most likely to accept us—and for you to be so thoroughly hidden from my Lady that she is completely unable to see you on her own, and even with Andy anchoring for Her during one of your lessons with him, was only barely able to perceive you, you would have had to have been hidden almost at your birth.”
Drizzt tipped his head, considering. “I learned,” he began slowly, “that I am third son, but the second died before my birth. At school, they implied it was because he was refusing to be as skilled as he could be, to avoid the life of a Blade.
“I was never told that was my path. I was not beaten as severely as some males were. Matron Malice even rebuked Briza for failing to apply salve after. And if I am right about my father, I know that I would have been considered valuable, if I could reach near what he was capable of. But I don’t know what else she might have done to be certain I was fit to match my sister when I graduated.”
Qilué ached for the young drow before, for the senseless, useless waste of lives, for the way the abuse was simply unremarkable fact, but that was… interesting. “That… I loathe everything about what our people do to warp the Warder bond, but that makes… some sense. But if That One has found a way to block my Lady’s call from goodly drow, I am… worried.”
“We’ll figure it out, sister-mine,” Laeral said, squeezing Qilué’s hand gently. “Even if I do think that we’re going to need Mother’s assistance to do so.”
“Pardon, but… mother?” Drizzt asked, shifting uncomfortably at the idea of a third—completely unknown, and clearly powerful!—woman being involved in this.
Laeral caught Drizzt’s shifting out of the corner of her eye, realized what must have caused it, and turned to face him fully. “This is normally only known by family and very trusted, long time friends, but you do have a pegasus friend, so while you don’t quite meet the second criteria yet, I think you’re safe enough to share it with.” And while she wasn’t going to actually say it, they needed him to trust them fully to figure out what was hiding him from Eilistraee. “Qilué and I, and our other sisters, are, in a very real way, as much daughters of Mystra as we are of the women who gave birth to us.”
“Oh.” Drizzt took a moment to consider that, then nodded and said, “Very well, then. Shall we proceed?”
Chapter Two: Information and Traveling Companions
Even with the need to go through the Dawn Pass slowly enough to not get altitude sickness, it only took Laeral and Drizzt two weeks to reach Tar Valon, though Drizzt was clear that it was only on the way to wherever he was being pulled to. But with it so very directly on the way, there was no good reason to not stop over there, and the famous information networks of the Aes Sedai were a very good reason for such a stop, even if Bright Eyes had earned them some curious looks from the guards at the gates before Drizzt sent her off.
And now, the morning after their arrival in the city, she and Drizzt were walking towards the northern gate in the wall around the grounds of the White Tower.
“Light illumine you, Lady, but you and your… companion… are unknown to us,” the lead guard at the gate said. “Your names and the nature of your business, please.”
“Laeral Silverhand, archmage of Waterdeep, and Drizzt Do’Urden of Stedding Corwal,” Laeral answered, pleased at the entirely appropriate response to their presence. “We wish to speak with Terava Sedai, if she is present, or any of her sisters who might be willing to speak with us.” Terava was a traveling Brown Laeral had spent time with a century or so ago, and she devoutly hoped she was here.
“Of a stedding?” the guard repeated, obviously confused, peering at Drizzt for a long moment before the decorations of face-guard and scabbards seemed to convince him and he nodded, if a little uncertainly. “I’m not sure if Terava Sedai is here, mage, but you may both enter the White Tower grounds in peace and under the Light.
“It is the business of the Aes Sedai, not the guard, if you are permitted within the Tower.”
“The courtesy is most appreciated,” Drizzt answered for them, inclining his head to the guard. “Our business is merely of information, and we can afford the rest, as our journey started farther from the Dawn Pass than the Dawn Pass is from here.” The mention of distance was calculated, as surely no travelers would journey so far on a fool’s errand.
“A very long way,” the guard said, shaking his head, “longer than I would want to travel! Be welcome, Dreadbane, Lady.”
“My thanks. Light illumine you, gentlemen,” Laeral replied, as they walked onto the Tower grounds. The path from the gate was not a straight line, as many humans would have designed it, but a thing of gentle curves, intersected by others, that wound through gardens of incredible beauty as they approached the White Tower itself. Inside the walls of the complex were other buildings. Stables, what she thought might be a smithy, possibly drying or curing sheds for the produce of the gardens, wings extending from either side of the mind-bewildering height of the White Tower itself. Probably more she could not see behind the height of those, in all truth.
The guards at the top of the stairs—each stair broad enough that it took two strides to reach the next—that rose to the White Tower were not liveried staff, but Warders, to Laeral’s interest. One was of Andoran origin, if she was judging right, and the other was a tall, dark-skinned man with slightly tilted dark eyes, wearing garb in the Saldaean style.
Even more interestingly, the one in Saldaean garb—who had the accents on his clothing that marked him as Warder to a Brown—seemed to have a look of recognition on his face. Which had to be for Drizzt, as she was quite certain that she’d never met him before—a supposition that was borne out by his words. “Greetings, Drizzt Do’Urden and stranger. Be welcome if you come in peace.”
“Greetings to you, Farouk Tailer,” Drizzt replied. “My companion is Laeral Silverhand, archmage of Waterdeep.”
“We come in peace and in search of knowledge,” Laeral added. “I would speak to Terava Sedai, if she is home, or any Brown sister willing to share information with one who has traveled from Waterdeep to Tar Valon.”
“I will go find my Aes Sedai, lady,” the Warder—Farouk—answered, “as I am sure she will be glad to share information with Drizzt and anyone he travels with.” Then he turned to go within.
Very soon, he returned, accompanied by a woman with pale blonde hair, dressed all in brown. “Welcome, Drizzt, and to you as well, Lady Laeral,” she said. “Please, come with me.”
“It is good to see you again, Bethena Sedai,” Drizzt replied as he and Laeral followed her into the Tower.
“Speaking of whatever has brought the two of you here together should undoubtedly wait until we are within the quarters of the Brown Ajah,” Bethena said, “but do you have any other interesting stories you might share as we walk?”
“I do, actually,” Drizzt said, then began to tell the tale of how he had come to have Bright Eyes as his friend.
They climbed for… a while, up stairs done in a slowly repeating pattern of the colors of the Ajahs. The stairwell often let off onto landings that encircled it, but Bethena kept climbing until suddenly she stepped off and moved onto one of the landings, circling towards a section of the outer wall that blended from white stone into brown of all hues, and a wooden door carved with books and scrolls in a deep, warm hue.
Laeral looked directly behind her and found a doorway surrounded by yellow stone and a door carved with all manner of leaves… herbs, she thought, and other healing plants.
Bethena opened the door carved with books and scrolls, and led them over flagstones carved with open books, apparently towards the outside edge of the Tower. They passed several doors, each with a delicately carved scroll on the door, before Bethena finally opened another one.
The chamber that they entered was one that wrapped partially around the outer curve of the Tower itself, from the long span of arched and curving windows. Some were draped by curtains of more hues of brown than Laeral had ever imagined, but some were open. At least the sun was currently behind some clou—
“Drizzt,” she said, her eyes transfixed as she stared out the window for a moment, “is— is that a Great Tree at the southern edge of the island?”
Drizzt took a look, and smiled. “A younger or small one, yes, Laeral,” he said, delighted to see another piece of home. Only two years among the Ogier, and yet… every little piece that connected back to them made him feel safe and comforted. He then turned to look at Bethena. “While I am sure that you and your sisters have more questions for me, that must wait for later, as this time, I am the one hoping to learn more.”
“Farouk said as much,” Bethena replied. “If you will tell me the shape of what you seek, I will find the sisters who would best know how to help you.
“Please, seat yourselves comfortably.”
Drizzt gave Laeral a hand in taking her seat, helping corral the dresses by steadying her as she whisked them into behaving. He then sat next to her, but before he could say anything, a door farther down the chamber opened, and a woman in a brown and cream gown entered.
She was broad, light-eyed, and pale, with traces of ink on her fingertips, and blazing red hair, and she came to an abrupt stop on seeing two strangers in the chamber. After a moment, however, she quickly moved towards Drizzt and Laeral, in a way that left Drizzt feeling like she had somehow managed to miss Bethena's presence entirely.
“Can it be that you are Drizzt Do’Urden?” she said. “I am Calinde Varant, and the book Bethena wrote left me with so many questions.”
“Calinde!” Bethena said sharply, even as the other woman drew in a breath to continue speaking.
Calinde startled at that, making it clear to Drizzt that he had been correct in thinking she had not noticed Bethena, and turned to look at the other woman. “Bethena, why didn’t you tell any of us that he had come here?”
“For one thing, I only just brought him in,” Bethena said. “And for another, he and the Archmage of the Sword Coast have come seeking information, not to answer our questions.”
Drizzt smiled at Calinde. “Greetings, Calinde Varant. I am pleased to meet you,” he said. “Perhaps, if it is possible at the end of my quest, I could return for a time, and exchange knowledge for knowledge?”
He had no idea if it would be, but it seemed unlikely that Mielikki would immediately pull him in another direction without allowing for a rest.
“That would be most welcome,” Calinde said. “Is your quest one you wish to keep private?”
Calinde had the control of her expression of any Aes Sedai, but Laeral was certain she would be bitterly disappointed if Drizzt asked for privacy.
“It is not,” Drizzt replied, “and I have not yet had the chance to tell Bethena Sedai what I am seeking, so I won’t even have to tell it twice.”
Calinde smiled at that, and took as seat in the chair beside Bethena’s. “So what is your quest?” she asked, causing Bethena to give an exasperated sigh.
“I have been guided this way by my goddess,” Drizzt said. “She has a task for me in this place so far from my usual range.
“I have an impression of the Blight, and know I need to travel further still, east and north if the sense is right. Have your people heard of anything against the wilds in that direction?”
The slightest frown formed at the corner of Bethena’s lips, at the corners of her eyes, but it seemed a thing of concentration, not displeasure. “East and north, near the Blight… Shienar, perhaps. Or far eastern Arafel. I have heard of nothing from Arafel, but… there are strange rumors coming from eastern Shienar, near the Dragonwall. I know there have been discussions about whether someone should be sent to investigate, but I do not know what conclusions have been reached.”
“The Amyrlin Seat just approved Halani's decision to send a Green and her Warders this morning,” Calinde said.
“Well then,” Bethena said. “Would the two of you have any objection to traveling companions?
“I do not think that it would be possible to convince Halani that the two of you investigating makes it unnecessary for her to send someone, but that you, Drizzt, are being guided to deal with it makes me think that the source is something more usually found outside the Enclosure Peaks, which means not only is an Aes Sedai unlikely to know how to deal with it, it is entirely possible one would not be able to do so.”
Laeral exchanged a quick look with Drizzt, then said, “Not at all, though I will need to borrow a horse for such a journey, as I was switching between riding double on Bright Eyes and using a phantom steed on our way here.”
“Then I should bring the two of you to speak with Halani.” Bethena got up and headed for the door they had entered by, and Laeral and Drizzt did the same, following her out of the room.
Halani, who turned out to be the Captain-General of the Green Ajah, had asked quite a few incisive questions of Laeral, Drizzt, and even Bethena, before finally agreeing that it did seem like a good idea for Laeral and Drizzt to accompany the trio she was sending to investigate the rumors.
Meeting Marinna Sedai and her Warders, Verad and Nikho, had gone quite well, and Laeral and Drizzt had been invited to join the briefings that Halani had arranged to give the trio all the information they might need for the investigation. Once those were done, Marinna had invited the pair to join her and her Warders for a meal, and then, after agreeing that Laeral and Drizzt would return to the Tower the next morning for their party’s departure, saw them out of the Tower.
The revelation that Drizzt had sensed corruption in at least one of a pair of Aes Sedai (one Yellow, one Blue) that they had passed on their way out of the Tower was a disturbing one, especially with how distressed Drizzt was over the possibility that a healer was corrupted, but it at least had the benefit of assuring them that none of the other people they had met that day were Leafblighter's. Which was no small thing, when they were going to be traveling with three of those others, and a fourth was the Head of the Green Ajah.
Thankfully, Terava had been in the city, and as she had also proved uncorrupted, they had been able to pass that problem on to her to be dealt with. And time in the Ogier grove and among some of the Ogier that lived in the city had fully restored Drizzt’s equilibrium.
Once they were well out of the village, their second day on the road, Laeral followed up on her promise of the night before and began explaining to Marinna and her Warders how magic and innate abilities were different from channeling and why that meant they didn’t have to be concerned about what Drizzt could do.
“Although Drizzt does not use arcane magic, that is what I am going to start with,” Laeral began. “The source of arcane magic is known as ‘the Weave’, or more formally, ‘the Weave of Mystra’.
“And while the similarity in name to the equivalent of spells for an elan user is, so far as I know, pure coincidence, it does provide for a comparison to help you understand the differences.”
“And what is that comparison?” Marinna asked, sounding intrigued.
“The Weave of Mystra could, with reasonable accuracy, be viewed as the equivalent of a planet-wide elan-weave that can be accessed and borrowed from by anyone who has the right training—or sometimes, simply the natural ability, though those who cast their first arcane spell through pure natural ability will still need training, or at least to study magical texts, in order to be able to cast more than the most basic of spells.”
Marinna tilted her head, a considering look on her face “That… is a useful comparison,” she agreed. “The similarity gives a basis for understanding, but it also highlights the differences from channeling.”
“Thank you,” Laeral said. “Moving on, divine magic—the type of magic that Drizzt uses—is literally a gift from the deity the spellcaster follows or serves, which can and will fail if the spellcaster has earned their deity’s displeasure, though the degree of failure often depends on the degree of displeasure.”
“Is there any way to regain divine spellcasting ability if it has been lost because of divine displeasure?” Verad asked.
“The spellcaster can regain their deity’s favor by completing a quest for atonement that is set for them by a cleric of their deity,” Laeral answered.
“Is Drizzt’s ability to understand and communicate with Stela and Bright Eyes due to divine magic?” Nikho asked.
“Partially,” Laeral said. “All pegasi are innately able to understand Common and Sylvan, so communicating with Bright Eyes doesn’t involve any magic on his part at all.
“As for him being able to understand her so clearly, and both understand and communicate with Stela, while most rangers and druids need to actively call on their deity to do so, Drizzt is one of a rare few who can do it naturally. Such rangers and druids are referred to as ‘wild-called’, due to that natural ability being seen as a gift of the wilds, making it akin to being a Wolfsib.”
“Does being a wild-called ranger mean Drizzt doesn’t have to worry about the taint that is known to be in magic?” Marinna asked. “Though my understanding is that it is not as severe as that in saidin.”
“Drizzt doesn’t have to worry about the taint,” Laeral said, “but it’s not because of being a wild-called ranger.”
“What is the reason, then?”
“The sacrifice of Mystra's predecessor as goddess of magic blunted the effect of the Dark One’s counterstrike on both arcane and divine magic,” Laeral said, “and the divine will of all the other deities, good, neutral, and evil alike, further blunted the effect on divine magic.
“So taking a Warder is sufficient to protect arcane magic users and clerics, while all rangers and druids are protected by the fact that the magic they use is too wild-touched to suffer from taint, and paladins are—to the best of my knowledge—protected by the fact that their actual spellcasting ability is limited, with most of their magic use being a more direct manifestation of their deity’s favor.”
“If taking a Warder protects arcane magic users, why don’t you have one, then?” Nikho asked.
By Marinna's exasperated-sounding sigh, Laeral could tell that the Aes Sedai felt her younger Warder was being too curious. And while Laeral actually felt much the same, it was an understandable question, at least, so she was willing to give a partial answer.
“I am one of the Chosen of Mystra,” she said, “and being a deity’s Chosen also protects against the taint.”
“I’ll explain what a Chosen is later,” Marinna said, pinning Nikho with a stern look. Turning back to Laeral, she said, “So that leaves innate abilities to be explained.”
“Innate abilities are things like a dragon’s breath weapon—magical abilities that a being is born with,” Laeral said. “Some innate abilities are known as spell-like abilities, due to the fact that they replicate the effect of a specific spell, without actually requiring any spellcasting.
“In regards to Drizzt, he is a drow, and all drow are born with four spell-like abilities—darkness, faerie fire, dancing lights, and levitate. However, drow who live on the Surface instead of in the Underdark always lose one of the abilities, and so Drizzt is now only able to use the first three.”
Chapter Three: Dealing with the Demon
As they traveled, Drizzt sparred with Verad and Nikho every day, once they had made camp for the night, and Laeral could easily see his delight in having such skilled opponents to practice with. Nor was he alone in his enjoyment, as both Warders were very clearly impressed with his skill, and the sparring often turned into lessons, either Verad teaching Drizzt better techniques for using a single blade, or Drizzt teaching Verad and Nikho how to better defend against twin blades.
However, the idyll ended when Drizzt’s sense of where he was needed pulled them off the Fal Moran road well before they were into the settled part of Shienar, off towards the painfully jagged peaks of the Dragonwall, and then directly into the uneven terrain at the edge of them.
The fourth day in that uneven terrain provided a very unsettling reminder of the dangers they would be facing, when they came across a spot where the plants and animals, and even the land itself, had been just… ripped apart. The sight had left Marinna and her Warders pale for some time, and Drizzt’s expression had become grim.
Three days later, Drizzt signaled Bright Eyes to stop, and once she had, he turned towards the others, who had followed his lead and stopped their mounts. Something was pulling hard on his instincts, something he was not yet able to quantify. “I can sense something now,” he said.
“Only ‘something’?” Verad asked. “Not whether it’s what we’re seeking?”
“My sense of evil only tells me that it is there,” Drizzt said, “not what sort of evil it is.”
“But if you can sense it, that must mean we’re close, yes?” Nikho said.
“Only for a loose definition of close,” Laeral said, “especially in terrain like this. His range on that sense is quite large.”
“So what do we do now?” Marinna asked.
Drizzt dismounted, then looked up, and Stela obediently flew ahead, scouting the land for them. “Dismount and follow me,” he said.
He then moved to follow the path Stela was laying out for him with her eyes. She was aware of his needs, and guided them to a defensible spot they would be able to guard from, without much chance of anything reaching them first.
Once they had reached the spot Stela had found for them, Drizzt found a comfortable place to settle, and the others turned their horses over to Bright Eyes’s supervision and found their own places to settle, Laeral and the Warders automatically choosing spots which would easily let them watch a wide area. To Laeral’s slight surprise, Stela came down to her, settling on her shoulder rather than Drizzt’s.
“She knows which of us will be mindful,” Drizzt said with a chuckle at her surprise, then unshouldered his pack and set it down. “Now I must ask you all to guard me,” he continued. “I need to fully feel the land… but be prevented from going toward the source of the evil here until I am out of the trance.”
As Drizzt prepared himself to do a ranger’s reaching out to the land, Marinna asked Laeral, “Why does he need to be prevented from going towards the evil? Dealing with it is what we came to do, after all.”
“It’s because he’s entering a trance state to find out more,” Laeral replied. “It leaves him with no true awareness of his surroundings, but if he senses evil while in such a state, he will nevertheless just start walking towards it.”
“That seems… inconvenient, to say the least,” Marinna said.
“Mmm, maybe so, but given that his sense of evil is always working, I’d call it an even trade-off for the fact that he never gets stunned by the evil being too strong. Which is how the spell to detect evil works.”
Laeral would have explained further, as Marinna looked curious, but then Drizzt shifted in a way that presaged true movement, and she prepared to stop him if needed.
Thankfully, something drew him out of the trance, and his eyes opened, glowing briefly with the darkvision that was their natural state before he blinked and they cleared to the normal hue of purple Laeral was more accustomed to.
Purple glowing eyes was a far different sight from the red of most of the drow Laeral knew.
“Someone has set a demon loose on the Surface,” he said softly. “One of the youngest kinds, if I remember Vierna’s lessons on demon hierarchies correctly.”
Laeral sucked in a hissing breath, her mouth tightening as her eyes took on a tinge of silver for a long moment. Before her was not her wry and sometimes capricious friend, but the Dreadbane who had defended those who forced back the Blight. A nearly impossibly capable warrior dedicated to the protection of the wild and intent upon that goal—and she was of the same mind with him.
Demons were not supposed to run free on the Material Plane. They were supposed to be confined to their depths of the Abyss, unless some idiot wizard called one to make a bargain with it. Even then, they should be confined to the summoning circle. A loose demon was a serious danger to everyone in its vicinity.
“There are a few young kinds, which one do you think it is?” Laeral asked, one hand on the edge of the pocket where her wands waited for use.
“From the breaking of all things around it? I would wager it is a loumara. They delight in needless cruelty against natural places,” Drizzt said.
“What do you mean by ‘the breaking of all things around it’?” Marinna asked.
“Remember that place we passed through three days ago, where everything had been ripped apart?” Drizzt said. “That is what a loumara does.”
Marinna’s face paled at the memory, and Laeral took the opportunity to say, “Which is why you and your Warders will not be assisting us in dealing with it.”
“But-”
“No,” Laeral said. “I can turn its rending back on itself twice, but since I only have two memorized, I cannot do more than that. Which means I will have to prioritize protecting myself and Drizzt, as the ones who actually know how to deal with it.”
Verad came over to them then, and placed a hand on Marinna’s shoulder. “This is exactly why Halani agreed that they should come with us, remember?”
Marinna sighed, and placed a hand on top of Verad's. “You’re right. I just don’t like feeling useless.” Turning her attention back to Drizzt and Laeral, she asked, “Would Bright Eyes be willing to carry me? I’ll feel better about reporting that the problem has been dealt with if I can see it happen myself.”
“It’s her decision,” Drizzt said, “but if she’s high enough to keep you from being noticed by the loumara, you’re not going to be able to see anything useful.”
“Most people wouldn’t be able to, but I know a weave that will grant me a hawk’s vision for a while.”
“In that case, let me and Laeral figure out how we’re going to handle this, and then we can ask her.”
As Bright Eyes took off and started climbing into the sky, following Stela, Marinna reached for Air and Spirit and deliberately crafted the hawk’s vision weave she had first used instinctively as a girl desperate to keep her family from losing any more chickens to what she now knew had been equally desperate hawks.
Closing her eyes to let the change in her vision settle—since trying to adjust to the new sight with her eyes open was a bad idea—she considered the plan that Drizzt and Laeral had come up with. She did not know enough about demons to truly have an opinion on if it was a good plan—which was something she intended to rectify once this one had been dealt with!—but that they both thought it would work reassured her.
And its reliance on the known relationship between demons and drow was intriguing, leading her to think that she should actually read Bethena’s book herself, rather than rely on the summary Nikho had given her when she thought the subject was merely an academic curiosity.
Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes again and looked around. Stela had started circling, and Marinna looked down to see what the kestrel had noticed—just in time to see trees and plants being ripped apart in a large circle, though there was no visible cause for it.
That Stela headed back towards where the others were as soon as she had finished her circle confirmed Marinna’s assumption that they had found the loumara, and she asked Bright Eyes to circle over the spot.
It did not take long before two drow crested a hill from the direction that Stela had left in, and since Marinna recognized the male’s face as Drizzt’s, that meant that the female had to be Laeral, under the illusion that she had mentioned.
The two of them stopped just outside the circle of destruction, and although Marinna could not hear anything, she assumed that they were playing out their roles. Then Laeral suddenly lunged forward and bolts of energy shot from the wand she was holding, into the center of the destruction.
Drizzt had leaped forward just after Laeral’s lunge, and was now in the middle of the destruction himself. And then, all of a sudden, Marinna could actually see something else there—a tangle of thorned vines, each ending in a fanged maw.
Every movement of Drizzt’s blades—not that Marinna could truly keep up with his speed—made contact with the tendrils, while Laeral sent bolts of energy at any that did not leave her at risk of hitting him, and shortly after an agonized screech that had to have come from the loumara, Drizzt drove one blade directly into the middle of the tangle.
Laeral ran forward then, and just as she reached Drizzt, the illusions cloaking both of them vanished—as did Marinna’s ability to see the loumara, making her realize that it must have also been the result of an illusion from Laeral—and the ground around Drizzt’s blade was torn in a way that looked similar to the damage Marinna had seen the loumara cause earlier.
A shudder ran down Marinna’s back as she realized that the loumara must have tried to inflict its rending on Drizzt in retaliation for the direct strike to its body, and Laeral had lost the illusions to the effort require to turn the rending back on it.
Even without the illusion of the loumara's body, however, Drizzt was still making strikes with confidence.
Then there was another screech that Marinna could actually hear, but it died away quickly, and Drizzt stopped moving even as Stela launched off his shoulder.
When Laeral reached down to clamp her hand around her calf, Marinna knew that the loumara had to be gone, and asked Bright Eyes to take her down to them.
She closed her eyes as Bright Eyes descended, dismissing the hawk’s vision weave, and when she opened them again at the sound of hooves thudding on dirt, her vision was back to normal.
“One human, to the northeast,” Drizzt was saying as Marinna dismounted and walked over to him and Laeral. “Seems to be dropped on the ground.”
“One of the puppets you mentioned the loumara might have?” Marinna asked.
“Presumably,” Laeral replied.
“If I get Stela to guide you to the person, would the two of you be willing to go ahead on Bright Eyes while I go get our packs and guide Verad, Nikho, and the horses?” Drizzt asked.
“If Laeral is, I am,” Marinna said.
“Of course,” Laeral agreed. “But first, Drizzt, you should take this, since I saw it bite you.” She fished a vial out of one of her pockets and held it out to Drizzt.
At that, Drizzt looked puzzled, then started laughing. “Just that fast, I had forgotten,” he said cheerfully, before he downed the contents of the vial and returned it to her.
The person that Stela had seen proved, once Laeral and Marinna reached them, to be the missing Shienaran scout—which left Laeral quite impressed with her sheer willpower and tenacity, to have survived for so long as the loumara’s puppet.
But even so, she was clearly only barely still alive, so Marinna cast a healing weave on her to make sure she didn’t die before she regained consciousness. And when the scout did do so, Laeral let Marinna take the lead in dealing with her, only asserting herself enough to insist the scout drink a potion.
By the time that Drizzt, Verad, and Nikho arrived with the horses, it was clear that the scout was in no shape to travel yet, so Laeral joined the three of them in setting up a camp that would be comfortable for a longer stay.
Three weeks of healing weaves, careful feeding, and good shelter got the scout into good enough condition that she could at least keep herself on a horse, at which point she started to insist on returning to her fort of origin.
Since that would be best handled by Marinna and her Warders, but Marinna did not wish to delay any further on getting at least some form of report to the Captain-General of the Green Ajah, Laeral and Drizzt agreed to carry a letter for her on their return. And since the scout had been given Drizzt’s spare set of clothing, it wasn’t even like they would have to go out of their way to deliver it, as they had agreed that it made the most sense to get more clothes for him from the Ogier community there.
A week after parting from Marinna, her Warders, and the scout, Laeral and Drizzt entered Tar Valon again.
As it was still early in the day, they went straight to the Tower to deliver Marinna’s report. One very intense meeting with Halani later, they left the Tower and went to find an inn.
And once they had obtained rooms in the same inn as before, they settled into the baths to relax from the journey before visiting the Ogier community.
End notes
I couldn't find a way to fit it in, but Laeral does still recommend that anyone who desires to learn more about demons and how to defend against them go to Silverymoon. Marinna mentioned the need in her letter for Halani and that was one of the things Halani asked about during the meeting where the letter was delivered.
And because they got to Tar Valon so much faster, Drizzt and Laeral's encounter with Broken Chain and his pack happened on their way out of the elan-lands.
