It was nearing dusk on the surface when Karsh and Karesck left their home in secret, but the two drow and the trembling halfling did not know that as they crept through the ebony darkness of the Underdark. The drow's heat senstive eyes were ideal for this creeping away in complete darkness, but Bremis was having troubles. The halfling stumbled into so many walls and rocks as they made their way out of the city, that Karsh ended up giving him a magically enchanted lantern so that he wouldn't alert any one or any thing to their presence. They need not have worried, however, for something already knew that they were coming.

The ancient Crimson dragon, the evil spawn of a red dragon and a deep dragon, opened it's eerie yellow eyes at the sound of the approaching trio. The monster grinned evilly as it sensed a meal coming up and began to shift its' form into that of a drow female. This particular Crimson dragon had destroyed its wizard long ago, and was now operating merely to kill and terrorize.

Crimson dragons had been originallly created in the control of powerful wizards. Unfortunately, as the techniques of creating these dragons had advanced, so had their intelligence. Most Crimson dragons existing in the land now had either destroyed their wizards, or had gotten their wizards completely under their control.

One of the reasons that these dragons had been created were to try to perfect a more subtle way of infiltrating and destroying entire drow colonies. Thus, all Crimson dragons had acquired the trait of playing with their food before they ate it. The dragon-now drow smiled and rubbed her hands together in anticipation of a meal.

***

"What do you mean, they're gone?" Matron Te'kari screamed at her daughter as she paced in front of her throne. Tezza had the look of one who had just been caught in the pinchers of a cave crab. The drow swallowed fearfully and tried to look her matron square in the eyes.

"Both Karsh and Karesck cannot be found neither in the House or in the city." She said, her voice quavering only a little as she saw the eyes of her irate Matron flare up in anger at those words.

The matron glared at her only daughter for a minute and with an effort, quelled the urge to lash out at her again. She knew it would serve no good, Tezza did not know where her brothers went off to, and no amount of yelling or torture would enable her to find them. She pressed her hands to her temples and thought for a minute as Tezza stood, practically quaking in her boots. Finally, she came to a decision that she had not had to make in many centuries.

"Go call upon the Quacksir." She told Tezza, watching grimly as an even more fearful look came upon her youngest daughters' face.

"But, Matron Te'kari, they have not been seen in this region for many a century and their methods are even horrible even to our standards!" the young drow exclaimed in an anguished voice. To this, the Matron only nodded.

"Yes, go and call upon them. We cannot let the other houses learn of this, at whatever the cost." She told her finally, wearily sitting back down in her throne. When her daughter just stood there, gaping, she took out her snake-headed whip angrily and lashed it so that it just grazed the side of her face. "Go! I expect you back before the false sun rises!" she screamed in fustration, a grotesque smile coming to her face as the drow girl hastily bowed and practically ran from the room.

No matter what the cost, she would have Karsh and Karesck back before the other Houses found out.

*****

The two drow, having trained for this kind of thing, were not growing tired one bit, but as the march through the passages of the Underdark wore on, they realized that the halfling would have to rest, as he was practically falling over now with every step. Finding a partially secluded alcove within one of the passages, they stopped to allow Bremis to rest. As they listened to Bremis grumble about the sores on his feet from walking, Karsh heard a sound coming from the passages that they had just passed through.

"I think I heard something, brother." Karsh motioned to Karesck with handtalk, silently half-drawing his short sword. Karesck nodded and, silencing Bremis with a quick pommel on the head, crept out into the passageway to better hear what it was. The noise sounded like the voice of a drow priestess, calling out for some slave to come assist her. Karesck shook his head negatively and gave Karsh a look of warning.

"We do not have to show ourselves, we are renegades now. Any drow we meet will be out to kill us." He signed to Karsh. Karsh nodded his agreement and stayed hidden in the alcove, keeping one hand on his sword. Karesck pulled his piwafwi around himself and hid in the passageway.

Presently, a richly dressed drow female walked down the passageway towards the two drow and their captive. She carried no weapons save for a snake-headed whip, and from her rich attire and her prominence, she looked to be a high priestess. She looked around and apparently found the alcove, for she peered inside to see Karsh against one wall and the unconsious halfling against the other.

"Show yourselves, you sniveling cowards!" the priestess shrieked, snapping her barbed whip against one of the walls of the cavern. Karsh started to move, but was silenced when Karesck stepped out of the shadows, his long sword in his hand as he lgared at the priestess ferally.

"We have nothing to fear, it is you who should be warned of our presence." he told her in a low meanacing tone, not allowing her to see fully who or what he was. The female sniffed derisively and snapped her whip at him. The drow warrior caught the fake whip with the point of his sword and jerked it out of her hand. The now exposed false whip lay silent on the floor. Karesck looked over to Karsh and grinned.

"You must pay for your treachery upon this city!" the priestess screamed, spreading her fingers and calling out an arcane word. The dragon had just about enough of this charade that was not turning out well. It wanted to eat it's meal and be done with it.

******

Chapter 2