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Night Above, Part 1
by Tullarix Elythanar

He never spent much of his time in Rilauven and the compound of Qu'ellar Elythanar. It wasn't because he didn't feel welcomed and wanted. He couldn't care less what the other drow thought of him, except for that of his mother. For some unknown reason he always felt a bonding with Elythanar's Ilharess. He always tried to make her proud of him, even though he knew that nothing could come of his attempts to make himself look superior in her eyes.

He hoped that his current foray into the Night Above would more than impress his mother. Seemed that all who were sent to this particular area of the Neverwinter Woods had vanished without a trace. A few of them soldiers and slaves from his own house. But he resigned himself to the fact that even if he did solve the mysterious disappearances of the other drow from Rilauven, the Ilharessen and Yathrinen of his city would not give him his due.

“Such is the way of the drow,” he thought with a bit of resentment. "Especially a male drow."

Tullarix stopped in mid-stride as his keen sense of hearing picked up a slight movement just behind him. Switching to his infrared vision, he methodically scanned the area around him, searching for any change in the heat patterns in the area that would give away whoever or whatever stalked him. Several times he stopped his search to zero in on a tiny burst of heat only to realize that it was some tiny forest creature. Again his hearing picked up a sound, and this time right in front of him.

A small smile played across his face as he prepared to set an ambush on the ambusher. His plan had been to levitate high into the branches of the heavy oaks and then to cast a globe of darkness to hide himself, but to his surprise he stayed right on the ground and stayed visible. Silently cursing his luck, he decided to just cast an invisibility spell to hide his form and give him time to formulate a new plan, but to his horror he remained visible. His eyes widened in horror as a thought dawned on him.

“Dead magic area,” he thought worriedly. 

Gripping his mithril flail tightly in his fist, he carefully backed away from the sound that started to get louder and louder in front of him. He finally secured himself behind a stand of wind and rain weathered megaliths. Tullarix readied himself for any attacker that might pounce on him soon. He smirked at the thought that he was glad that he stayed and observed the soldiers and his dalninuk practicing their sword-craft, though he was wielding a flail instead. If he ever got out of this little trouble and safely back to Rilauven he would start taking lessons in earnest from the soldiers...

His thoughts were interrupted by a stranger’s voice, “Tullarix... come out from there and join us. Come and play with us friend.”

The voice spoke in drow, “Please come join us... come join me...” That last came across low and silky. Almost how his mother spoke to him at times when she showed her praise from some of his forays onto the surface. And usually it was followed by a kiss...

“Yesssss Tull, come out... I want to give you a kiss just like your mother does...”

His mind swam pleasantly in the sweet, calm waters that he vaguely knew was that voice. The grip he had on his flail began to ease, the shaft slowly slipping past and out of his grip, clattering on the stony ground within the circle of megaliths.

“Yesssss... I mean you no harm... I am here to give you pleasure beyond your imagination... come out now Tull...”

“Of course, she's not going to harm me,” he thought absently. Like the voice said she was there to kiss him. Slowly he emerged from behind one of the megaliths to face the voice. His heart raced and his blood boiled when he saw what was before him...

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Night Above, Part 2
by Tullarix Elythanar

The figure in front of him had to have been the most beautiful creature he ever laid eyes upon. There standing --- no make that floating --- was a slender female drow wearing a sheer gown which flowed up and about her form. Her hair, those silvery tresses, flowed around her head like an aura of powerful magic. Her eyes a striking dark shade of crimson, the orbs glowed with dark desire and promises of sweet ecstasies.

Her luscious red lips, very red indeed, slightly open in anticipation; her slim tongue playing across her lips, glistening until he thought they resembled dark red pearls. The drowess lifted her arms and waved at him invitingly, her dark eyes boring into his brain. Constantly showing promise of the rewards he would receive.

“That's it Tull... come to me... yesssss, come closer...,” he distinctly heard her silky voice though he never saw her lips move from that inviting smile.

Slowly, he stepped out of the megalith circle. His body moved step by step, his movements slow and trance-like, a lazy smile on his face. All he heard were the desires and pleasures the voice constantly promised, some he never even dreamed possible. His body responded with the usual stirrings.

“Oh yessssssssss...” The voice triumphantly whispered as Tullarix finally stepped far and away from the circle of stones.

The creature glided towards him and closed the gap. Its arms held outward ready to embrace him. Those arms closed in around him and embraced him close, far and deep in his mind he heard what seemed to be a low cackling. He felt a hot presence all around his neck. Soon it was followed by small tender kisses, then by long sensual licks. His arousal increased ten-fold as the kisses and licks continued, soon joined by what seemed like a multitude of hands caressing and stroking his body. A soft moan escaped from his lips, his body relaxed totally into the embrace only held up by those arms.

“Do you want me Tull? Do you long for my touch and kisses?”

He nodded weakly, not really caring what the creature asked him.

“Yesssssss... I want you too... I long for you sooooo much Tull... make me warm...”

"Xas, take what you need from me. Take me." Tullarix surrendered in a luxuriant sigh.

Its eyes flashed red in wicked triumph. It cocked its head back, lips parted and mouth opened wide. Its canines elongating until two sets of sharp, pointy fangs gleamed with drool from the moon's light. Its hands grabbed the collar of his robe and pulled it apart to reveal in full his neck and the jugular vein that pulsed just under his skin.

The drowess-turned-vampire cackled loudly in delight, loud enough to break the trance he had been in, but too late to stop those teeth from descending with cobra-like speed to his neck. His last thought before the fangs would rip his neck and jugular was how gullible he had been to fall for a pretty face. But instead of feeling the teeth pierce his neck, he was violently thrown back and an ear-splitting shriek pierced his mind instead.

Shaking off the rest of the fog from his mind, he looked up from where he fell. He saw the floating form of the creature that pushed him away. Instead of the beautiful drow he had seen in his mind's eye, he saw a hideous caricature of one. A thing dressed in a dirty, bloodstained gown, its eyes wide in pain and fury. Its slash of a mouth full of those sharp teeth. He saw on its exposed upper chest, a glowing a smoking brand in the shape of his house sigil. Looking down to his chest he touched the glowing house medallion that was enchanted by Shadosin, but blessed by his mother. 

“Bel'la dos Ilhar,” he thought over and over...

The vampire screamed once more and lunged at him --- hands hooked into long, sharp talons and mouth full of flesh-rending fangs. Without even thinking of how to defend himself, his hand reflexively reached into his robe, pulled out and threw, in one swift motion. Suddenly the undead drowess was violently stopped in its flight towards his throat and jerked backwards. The creature slammed against a far oak, impaled was more like it.

"Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!" it flailed and screamed. The tattered gown burst into flames and soon its flesh showed beneath it. Its flesh rotted and burned as it weakly tried to remove the silver-bladed dagger that was imbedded in its chest, directly through the heart. He saw its black, thick heart's blood flow from the wound.

Rich, red blood, so recently ingested, burst forth through its mouth, ears, nose and eyes. The spurting blood painted the tree and forest around it red with gore. With a final series of spasms, the fire finally consumed the creature's form as a loud unholy scream pierced the night sky filling the quiet forest with the echoes of agony. Soon nothing remained except a pile of ashes and a few tiny bits of bone at the foot of the now burnt oak tree.

Finally he got over the scene that had played itself in front of him, stood, and dusted of the dirt from his hooded robe. He took a deep breath to steady his racing heart and calm his nerves. The area around him flickered a few times. It seemed the vampire had cast a major illusion spell in the surrounding forest. Bodies of recently drained travelers (drow, surface elves, humans, dwarves, and a lot of other manner of creatures) littered the ground, in addition to several skeletons of long-decayed victims.

The broken remains of caravans that the undead drow had ambushed and feasted on also flickered into view. Weapons, old and new, were strewn all over the area. Armor and clothing littered the place. Tullarix walked amongst the junk and picked up certain items he saw as magical. He kept these as souvenirs of his escape from joining the other poor fools who became food to the vampire. As he bent to pick up a ring, he heard a light moan emanating from one of the broken wagons.

"Oh not again," he groaned softly as he took out another silver dagger.

He carefully walked to the wagon where the moans came from, dagger ready in hand. Taking a deep breath, Tullarix pulled the wagon’s ripped canvas covering and prepared to let loose his weapon. Instead of finding another vampire, he saw instead the slender form of a young human female cowering in the far corner, eyes wide in stark fear. Just to be sure he pulled out his House medallion again and showed it plainly to the young woman. When the young woman didn't flail and scream like the vampire, he smiled.

"You're ok now. The thing is dead. No one here will hurt you," he spoke to her in Common, his eyes warm and inviting. His voice was soothing and devoid of malice. "What is your name, my dear?"

The young woman hesitated for a moment, thinking over of whether to answer or not, but seeing the figure smile at her again she decided to answer, "Desinari, m'lord. My name is Desinari."

---

First Steps
by Ilyena d'Elythanar

Ilyena's heart and mind raced as she waited outside the compound walls of Qu’ellar d'Elythanar. Lloth had certainly favored this newly formed and ever growing house, she mused.

From her side she heard a rustling and a slow smile crossed her lips... Goodygater was at her side. She was new to the house's alliance with the young drow of Bregan D'Aerth, although his stealth was renowned. Ilyena also knew she had only heard his approach because he wished it so.

"Vendui, mistress... shall we begin?"

She ignored his tone of disgust.

Casting spells of darkness and linking her mind with his, she was able to follow his steps as they silently made their way through Rilauven. Ilyena frowned as her hand passed over her ghastly white eyes, marking her as blind and ill favored by the Spider Queen. In her short time at Rilauven she had felt the jeering stares and heard the snickers of the other drow around her. Her pride was great though, and in her heart she knew she would not fail her beautiful Ilharess who had taken her in... when no one else would.

No one was about as the two figures took the utmost care making their way east towards their destination... the compound of Qu’ellar d'Xorlarrin.

Goodygater and the lithe young mistress were soon at the northern most point of  the Xorlarrin compound. As they made their way along the edge of the compound fence, the wards of protection were badly fraying... especially at the southern most edge of the compound. The section furthest from Xolarrin's main structure.

At this weak point they cast a dimension door and seconds later were transported within the compound. They had waited several hours for guards to make their appointed rounds, finally giving up on finding any orderly pattern to the watch, Ilyena and Goodygater levitated closer to the main building. The dark spire pierced upward before them.

Voices abruptly halted their approach as they watched two sullen drow lazily walk in their direction.

"Dobor, you hear any more news?" came the youthful voice.

"You know as much as I boy," was the gruff reply. The elderly drow passed a green flask to the youth who thirstily slurped at its contents.

"Lady Midnight has not been seen out of the counsel chamber in months... not since the death of Iron Maiden, the Third Daughter, and the disappearance of her First Daughter, Liriel... Now that Iron Maiden, I would have liked to..." his lusting voice drifted off.

"But what of Xenobea?" lamented the lad.

"Xas, it is rumored she has been traveling on the surface above us, in Neverwinter, boy. I can not say much more than that."

Distracted by the vital information being divulged, Ilyena only now became aware of the mounting zeal in her companion. With lightning speed she barely felt him leave her side, she hardly heard a murmur. In her minds eye she could see his hands wielding two daggers simultaneously slicing through the soft throats of the ill prepared warriors.

"NAU!" she let her mind scream to him... but too late as she heard the soft bubbling of life's blood flow from his victim's necks. She heard Goodygater softly licking the thick red liquid from his weapons.

"Goody!" Her thoughts reprimanded him. "It is too soon... we must wait. The Ilharess has greater plans then these two fools."  Although she admired his skillful dispatching of the two, she could not let Goodygater’s zealous actions endanger their plans.

Casting a spell of transformation, Ilyena let a wave a magic envelope the two corpses, Goody watched the bodies shrink and shrivel taking the form of two dark brown mushrooms. He deftly plucked them and dropped them into Ilyena's bag of holding.

"A present for the Ilharess?" Goody asked mentally.

"Xas...a present."  The two still globed in darkness stealthily retraced their route leaving the compound with two less to guard against the wrath of Lloth.