Tangled webs - Elaine Cunningham [73]
The illithid was in particular need of such a potion. Her last one had been used to create a ring ofwater-breathing, a valuable item lost to the drow whom the slain merrow and his band had failed to kidnap. This drow-indeed, the entire crew of the Ruathen ship-had surprised Vestress more than once. That situation, however, was about to change.
The Regent glided toward the pool that led to iskor's watery realm. She would summon the water wraith and persuade her to bring the drow Shakti to Ascarle at once. What better, more entertaining way to learn more about her new drow foe-and her new drow ally-than to pit them against each other?
The Cutlass made port on Trisk, the main island in the Purple Rocks archipelago, in record time. With the assistance of an efficient dockmaster, Rethnor sent a messenger to the palace requesting an immediate audience with King
Selger, the nominal ruler of Trisk. As he suspected, the monarch sent a coach at once to bring the High Captain of Luskan in state.
This was Rethnor's first visit to the island, and as the royal coach crested the rocky hillsides of the coast and rolled through the green valley beyond, all that he saw confumed his suspicions about the island's place in the Kraken Society. The people ofTrisk were cheerful and industrious. Never had Rethnor encountered so pristine a harbor, or farms and homesteads so well tended. At first glance, the island appeared to be a place of remarkable contentment-a paradise.
But Rethnor had not achieved his position by accepting first appearances. He noticed the strain behind the smiles, the frantic striving at excellence, the watchfulness on every face. And he noticed that the emblem of the Kraken Society-a many-tentacled purple squid-was worn in some form by every person he set eyes upon. Rethnor did not think that these simple, isolated folk had become Kraken agents through personal ambition, or even by choice.
So much the better.
He found King Selger to be much as he'd expecteddelighted with the impromptu visit, eager to please, clearly aware of the importance of maintaining Luskan's goodwill. Rethnor intended to see how far the king would go to keep it.
The High Captain waved away repeated and lavish offers of food, mead, and various entertainments. "My time is short. I need to meet with the head of the Kraken Society," he said bluntly.
Stunned silence met his words, then carefully worded disclaimers. Rethnor would have none of it. He badgered, ordered, threatened-and finally King Selger yielded.
"We will do what we can to aid you," the king said cautiously, "but upon your own head be the consequences."
"i accept them," Rethnor said, and then added dryly, "Perhaps it will set your mind at ease to know that these consequences, whatever they may be, will not affect the island's trade status with Luskan."
The kings face turned deep red at these words-even a puppet monarch had his pride, Rethnor noted-but he did not try to deny their truth. His only caveat was that Rethnor must wait for low tide. Nothing the captain could do or say would make Selger budge on that point.
And so shortly before the following dawn, a servant summoned Rethnor and showed him to the royal stables. The two men selected their mounts from among the stout, shaggy ponies indigenous to the island, and then rode off in silence. Rethnor tried to extract information from the servant, but the man did not speak the Common trade language and Rethnor knew only a few words of the obscure dialect spoken on Trisk. The High Captain suspected the servant had been chosen specifically for his lack of linguistic skills. Although King Selger had little choice but to cooperate with this powerful ally, he apparently intended to do all he could to protect the secrets entrusted to him. The two men rode in silence to the island's northern coast. It was a dismal, deserted place,