>>5968390Having secured an open invitation to the capita of Drow civilization whenever you so desire (at least, if you believe that the Dragon King truly wields such sway over your black-skinned cousins), there is one more thing you ask of him before you part company:
“If one wished to free a person from… From a PACT with the Nothic and its master… How would one go about it?”
“A pact?”
“An apprenticeship, of sorts,” you clarify.
This was not the source of the Dragon King’s confusion, though, as it turns out, and his parting words of advice rest heavy upon your heart:
“The Dark Godss Beyond and Below are not in the bussinessss of making ‘pactss’ in the manner of a lessser shadow, ssuch asss a demon. The Massster in particular hass no need of ssuch thingsss. He offers hiss knowledge to those whom he believesss will use it to advanccce hisss aimsss, insscrutable to the likesss of you or I…”
The Dragn King has sighed, a strangely human sound of mixed emotion.
“And I sspeak from exxperienccce when I tell you that to deviate from the Godsss’ Grand Desssign iss to risssk much. Take great care, Mage Apprenticccce.”
You need time to consider exactly how you will approach this mysterious and malevolent emissary of evil… Or even IZZY. A ‘Grand Design’… Could that prophesied descendant of yours, yours AND the line of the Dragon King, if Nenaias is to be believed, be a part of such sordid schemes?
(How can you extricate yourselves from this fiendish fate, if so?)
All this talk of darkness and beings who dwell therein reminds you of one in particular, though… One whom you are long overdue to check in on. Shortly before you departed, you created such a being—or, well, split one off from the strange spirit of your ‘soulless’ goblin friend Zith-Zi, to be replaced in her revitalized frame with a spirit of fairy-magic. That was… Wow, over a week ago, including all the travel and the work you’ve been putting in at the Hill! You’d instructed the Archmage to take due care with Carazzi, the demoniac gobliness who was the result of that spiritual-material schism, but you are well aware of how much your master dislikes demons.
