Daughter of the Drow - Elaine Cunningham [89]
That made matters all the more difficult, for Shakti's only hope of gaining access to Liriel's castle was by physical means. Her spies had reported seeing the girl leave the place early that day, but who knew how long she might stay away? If Shakti was to find a way in, she must do it soon.
The nearsighted priestess squinted frantically, but she could see nothing from this distance that would help her.
With a hiss of frustration, Shakti left the festhall and hurried across the street, lake many of Menzoberranzan's drow, she traveled swathed in her piwafwi, her face hidden by the deep cowl of her hood. She was all too aware, however, that her stout figure and distinctive, ungainly walk made her conspicuous, and she did not want to be seen examining the house too closely. One pass, two at the most, was all she dared risk.
At first Shakti saw nothing that might help her. The houses in this city, even those of the commoners, were virtual fortresses protected by magic and ingenious hidden devices. As far as she could see, there was no way in. Then suddenly, she detected a movement in the seemingly solid stone of the front door. A tiny swinging door poked up and outward, and the mottled red and black head of a lizard poked through the opening. Its tongue flicked out to taste the breeze, and it darted off into the shadows.
The priestess smirked. Finally, the chink in her rival's defenses! She'd heard rumors the spoiled princess kept a menagerie of exotic pets brought from distant places in the Underdark, even from the Lands of Light. This door was no doubt designed to allow Liriel's collection of pet lap-lizards to come and go as they pleased.
It was possible this door also had magic wards. Shakti would never know for certain unless she tested it.
So with all possible speed, the priestess made her way to the home of a certain wizard, a commoner of considerable skill whose talents were for hire. Granted, there were priestesses in her family who wielded more powerful clerical magic than her own, and two or three who might be able to cast the needed spell. But that would mean invoking Lloth-a dangerous enterprise at any time and utter insanity when the purpose was a direct attack against a Baenre female. Besides, this was a personal matter and Shakti did not wish to involve her family. Among the drow, it was far less expensive to buy a service than to accept a favor. The price for the latter was never quite what one expected it to be.
Within the hour, Shakti and her hired wizard slipped through a back door in the Hunzrin compound. She led the mage to the barracks that housed the clan's soldiers. She selected a soldier-a dispensable male, of course-and explained the task before him.
"You will enter the home of Liriel Baenre through the door used by her collection of pet lizards. This wizard here will shrink you to a fraction of your normal size."
"How small?" the soldier ventured.
Shakti held out her hands, one above the other, measuring a distance of about six inches between them.
The male blanched, his face paling nearly to blue in the heat spectrum. "But the lizards-" he began.
"You are armed," she snapped. "The soldiers of House Hunzrin have been trained to handle foes greater than lap-lizards!"
The soldier considered the wrath on the priestess's face and decided that the safer course would be to hold his tongue and do as she said. Never mind the fact that to a six-inch drow, a large gecko was nearly as fearsome a foe as a dragon!
So he inclined his head in a gesture of respect and acceptance. "As you command, Matron-" the male paused, letting his intentional error linger in the air like incense. "Lady Hunzrin," he corrected.
It was an obvious ploy, a ridiculous currying of favor that would have earned him a sharp cuff-or worse-from most drow females. But even a lowly soldier could recognize the ambition, the pride, on this one's face, and the singlemind-ed fervor exceptional even among