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 Posted: Wed Jan 28, 2009 10:33 pm
 Completely oblivious to the fact that she would have an unexpected visitor within the hour, Haellara Torlyl buslted about in her playroom, her pet name for the House's interrogation and torture chamber. She turned and walked toward the center of the room, where a rack stood alone, occupied by a goblin, who unfortunately had been too short to reach the straps; Haellara had made him fit. Now the creature had one arm dislocated and the other had been freed to lay out on a table for Haellara to do with as she pleased.
She had chosen to take an instrument and sieze the ugly, dirt-encrusted cuticles of each finger and pull them back along the finger one by one, as far as she could without tearing anything. It took concentration, but she was used to hearing all manner of whimpers, cries, begs and screams from the one who had since occupied the rack. She considered this an art, and like any competitive female, she strove to be the best. The nicest part about being her was that she didn't even need an excuse to pull a goblin or a drow servant away from their work to serve as the canvas for her 'art'. She was the matron mother now, and her word was the law of the house.
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Posted: Thu Jan 29, 2009 1:45 pm
It was somewhat demeaning to be forced to come to the gate of another's House and request permission to enter, especially for one who would eventually become the matron of her own House, but Shrisin Baen'duis had brought no servants with her when she traveled from the main temple in Gallidurth. For one thing, she didn't keep servants, as they were generally not worth the effort and expense if one was living the life of a priestess, cloistered within the confines of a temple. Not that Shri was particularly cloistered, but she was supposed to be. It was hardly her fault that it was too easy to escape from the temple. Likewise, it wasn't her fault that there were so many interesting places she would never get to see once she became matron and was bound to Llurth Dreir and her House, never to leave the city for fear something might happen to her before she named or begot an heir. But all of that was neither here nor there.
She rubbed absentmindedly at the scar which wrapped around her wrist like a bracelet as she waited for someone to answer. She had come to this House in paticular because her mother had once told her that her aunt, Matron Umraevyll, had an agreement with the matron of this House, and she would find hospitality there if she needed a place to stay and was not unreasonable in her requests for accommodations. Apparently the offer was reciprocal, but it had been decades since anyone from either family had taken advantage of it. Nevertheless, she had been assured that it would be honored. She wasn't sure why, exactly, it would be honored, but it was good enough for the moment that she would have a place to stay.
At last a servant came to meet her and she nudged her thoughts to the present situation. She gave her name and her rank in her House, Shrisin Baen'duis, the daughter and heir designate of House Baen'duis, seventeenth House of Llurth Dreir. It was a mouthful, but she spoke the title with pride, because it defined who she was. To an extent. Those who knew would recognize that the fact that she was the daughter as opposed to a daughter, and understand it to mean that she could take pleasure in giving or receiving pain. Most would not know that. She wondered if Matron Torlyl would when she was introduced.
"I wish to speak with Matron Torlyl," she said with confidence. Although she kept no personal servants, she knew how to deal with them. Her House was full of them, as was the temple.
She was led inside to a commodious chamber where she was offered an aperitif while she waited for news of her arrival to be conveyed to the matron. She took the proferred drink, surreptitiously passing her hand and the spelled poison-detecting ring she wore over the goblet. When the band did not squeeze her finger to alert her to the presence of a known poison, she took a sip and settled back onto the soft cushions to wait.
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Posted: Thu Jan 29, 2009 9:06 pm
Haellara was working meticulously over the very last cuticle, her face just inches from the exposed underlayer of shiny skin, when a knock on the playroom door caused her to start in surprise, the tool she had been holding jerked along with her, and the flap of skin it had been holding tore free from the globlin's smallest finger. The unfortunate creature's scream of pain was matched by a higher keening from Haellara, but hers was not a scream of pain, but a scream that promised pain. "Who DARES interrupt me? Did I not make it clear that I am NOT to be disturbed when I am working in here?!"
The door opened just a little, and a nervous-looking young drow, whom she recognized as a house servant, poked half of his head into the room, fixing the temperamental Matron with one red eye. "I am truly sorry, Matron, but you have a visitor; Shrisin Bean'duis, only daughter of the same house, all the way from Llurth Dreir."
Haellara's eyebrows rose at the proclamation, and she turned away from the door momentarily to ponder. She knew no one from House Baen'duis or the city of Llurth Dreir, and yet here was this visitor, from a smaller ranking house than hers, but the only daughter, which in itself was not only an impressive position, but one that she could completely relate to, having been the only daughter before she attained her new title. That alone would have been enough for her to want to meet her visitor, but another thought that occured to her was that this might be a part of a contact that her late mother had established as a means of gaining allies or trading benefits, or some other means of strengthening the House. No doubt this person had come here thinking to meet with the late Matron Dilayne. Well, Haellara thought smugly, here will be my first chance to show everyone that I will be twice the matron my mother ever was.
She washed her hands clean of blood and chemicals in a nearby basin and left the playroom to the still-bound, whimpering goblin and followed the servant down the corridor, peppering the youth with questions. "Is she alone?" "Yes, Matron." "Was she searched?" "By detection spells only, Matron." "Was she offered refreshment?" "Yes, Matron." She stopped after that; no 'good' or any other such affirmations. What the servants and lessers had quickly learned was that when the new matron let you walk away still intact and not selected as a living canvas for her hobby, it was the closest thing to praise you were bound to get.
Smoothing her robe and making sure it as properly closed, Haellara composed herself and followed the youth as he opened the door for her and led the way to an elaborate chair facing the other drow from a distance of at least half the room. She sat down smoothly with her hands in her lap, and listened with an expression of patience that she did not feel as the servant once more repeated the full title of her visitor, and introducing her as Haellara Torlyl, Matron Mother of House Torlyl, sixth house of Undrek'Thoz. At least he didn't include the segment; introductions were long and tedious enough as it was.
When he had finished, Haellara dismissed him with a wave and a glare, of which the male seemed to fall over himself in his haste to remove himself from the presence of the pair. When he had gone, Haellara turned to Shrisin with an air of confidence, knowing that despite the fact they were the only two in the room, she had enough magic to protect herself should things get.....unpleasant. "Now then, what brings you to my door?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 15, 2009 9:26 am
Shri had taken advantage of the servant's introduction to survey the matron. Haellara was not the name she had expected to hear, but she reminded herself that even matrons are not immortal, and when a matron has ambitious family, that immortality becomes even less pronounced. From the look of things, Haellara had been in control for some time. Which was just as well. Shri didn't really want to deal with power struggles while she was traveling. She just wanted a place to use as a sort of home base while she went sightseeing in Undrek'Thoz.
She had also stood up when the young matron entered, partly to show respect and partly because she preferred to be on her feet, just in case things went awry. Not that being on her feet or off her feet would make much difference if it came to it, since a priestess's powers were just as effective in either position. She just preferred to stand, and preferably to keep her distance, since she knew there would be a marked difference between her height and the height of any other matron. Being just five inches over five feet did not really make her seem particularly intimidating to other females, she'd found.
"Greetings, Matron Torlyl," she said in a nonconfrontational tone. "I hope I've not disturbed you unduly. There has been an understanding between our Houses for some time that hospitality would be granted if asked for by a member of either House. I came to Undrek'Thoz to broaden my knowledge of the Underdark before I return to complete my training as a priestess and then return to Llurth Dreir to study at my Revered Aunt's side as I learn the finer points of matronship. I thought I might take advantage of the agreement between our Houses and request your hospitality for a few days' time while I go about your great city."
The speech wasn't rehearsed, but with social customs being dictated as strictly as they were for members of the ruling caste, there wasn't a lot of variation to be found in any request such as the one she made to Matron Torlyl. She deviated very slightly from the standard form to add one more thing:
"I am given to understand that there has been a change in leadership in House Torlyl, and if the previous arrangement no longer stands, I will take remove myself, with my apologies for interrupting whatever business you were about before I arrived. If this is the case, and if there is no enmity between our Houses of which I am ignorant, I would be interested in opening negotiations to come to a similar arrangement for the duration of your rule - may it be long."
She hadn't quite been empowered to negotiate for her House, but she'd been doing that anyway here and there, and if she was eventually going to become Matron Baen'duis, she wanted to have contacts outside of Llurth Dreir, just in case. She preferred to have multiple alternative plans.
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Posted: Sun Feb 15, 2009 10:16 pm
Haellara listened intently to the words her guest put forth, sizing her up as she did so. She felt no tell-tale vibrations from her topmost pendant, so there was no reason as of yet to suspect treachery, and her story did make sense; her mother had had many visitors in the past that Haellara had never so much as caught a glimpse of; she had been too busy engaged in other pursuits and cared little enough anyway, unless whoever it was caused enough of a stir for her to take notice.
Doing her best to mirror the civility of her guest while keeping her obvious authority in plain sight, Haellara nodded once Shri had finished. "You are quite observant, and also quite correct, in stating that leadership here has changed. My mother died peacefully in her sleep, though it bears little on the matter at hand. I must confess that I am woefully uninformed as to whatever contacts and agreements my mother established before her passing on, as she preferred to handle such things alone. However, I would be most pleased to uphold any agreement she might have made with you and your house, especially if it might prove to be mutually beneficial."
Haellara rose from her seat, hiding her slightly pulling on her robe with her shoe; one of the reasons why she loathed such coverings. She pulled her weapon out of her robes, extended it with a flourish, and rapped the butt of it onto the floor twice. The young drow servant appeared at the door at once, and she turned her most no-nonsense gaze upon him. "Gather some servant to prepare the guest quarters, then escort Lady Baen'duis to her chambers." She turned to face Shri with a slightly less hostile look. "I was informed that you came alone. If you like, I will select guards for your door, or you may choose from any I have. Should you need anything, my servant will attend you. Will all of this suffice?" She hoped to Lolth that she did not seem so eager to please that she looked simpering, but she confessed she was quite eager to test herself at running her newly acquired House properly.
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Posted: Mon Feb 16, 2009 6:45 pm
Being a drow made it unlikely that Matron Dilayne had passed in her sleep. Being a matron made it even more unlikely that her death had been so peaceful. But that was none of Shri's affair. Haellara claimed to be interested in upholding their agreement, and that was enough for her. She did not mention her doubts about Dilayne's death, because they had no bearing on the situation. Instead she nodded her appreciation, relieved that there had been no trouble so far.
Meeting other matrons was one of the most stressful things about being of her caste. Tension always ran high at such meetings because matrons could never really be friends as long as there could be social advancement from another's downfall. Unless the matrons had no reason to be in competition with each other, as with Shri and Haellara, whose Houses were in totally different cities and dealt in different areas and were in no way competitors. Then friendship was possible, but it was always better for the matrons to stay in their respective locations. Safer.
"I believe the agreement was simple enough. Just mutual hospitality. I do not know the conditions under which it was entered into. My aunt, Matron Baen'duis, has many surprising acquaintances. At any rate, I appreciate your willingness to honor the standing agreement."
She eyed the weapon Haellara drew from her robes, wary that she might have been betrayed, but instantly relaxing when a servant was instructed to prepare quarters for her. She found herself wondering why a matron would carry a weapon like that. Certainly it made sense for a matron to be armed, because even the best guard can fail, but it wouldn't have been the weapon she would have chosen for herself. She carried a very flat blade that Val had gotten her since finishing his training at the academy. He said it was also good for opening locked doors and windows, and offered to teach her how when he got a chance. They'd not gotten a chance yet.
"Thank you. You can call me Shrisin, or Shri, if you'd like. There are lots of Ladies Baen'duis in my family."
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Posted: Tue Feb 17, 2009 8:08 pm
It was easier than Haellara had thought, lying about her mother's passing. Well, it wasn't exactly lying; in comparison to how many, many other drow met their untimely end, Dilayne's passing had been quite peaceful. Some died after days or even a fortnight of torture; she had only had to endure about two minutes of heart strangulation. She shouldn't have been so careless with her door guards; it was her own fault really. Haellara could have spirited her away to her playroom and made a wonderful sacrifice out of her; Lolth would have savored it as much as she herself would have, but it would have increased her chance of getting caught; people were ALWAYS barging in on her when she was doing her best work.
Haellara nodded at the acknowledgement, but as Shrisin casually gave permission to call her by her first name, Haellara found herself slightly taken aback. Was that entirely proper? Calling other drow of standard by their first name? Certainly, if they were close enough to form that little shadow of a friendship that was as close as drow could get to the real thing, but when they first meet? She honestly wasn't sure. She had never really had any comrades; even durig her short time at the academy. Friends slowed her down, and most only wanted her to help them in their studies, giving nothing in return, like a bunch of red-eyed, ebon-skinned leeches. Still, if an alliance was to be formed with Shri's house, and she admitted to having almost no experience in that field, she supposed a first name basis could indeed be proper, and might in its own way serve as a good beginning to said alliance.
Trying what she hoped was a friendly smile on for size, she nodded once more in acquiesence. "Very well. In turn, you may call me Haellara, or just Hael, if you prefer. I'm the only female here as of now, but that can and will change; it's only a matter of time." She cleared her throat and smoothly retracted the long rod of her weapon, hiding it inconspicuously in the large folds of her cloak. "While your room is being prepared, is there anything you would like? A tour perhaps, or I could arrange for some entertainment for you, if you happen to enjoy torture."
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Posted: Wed Feb 18, 2009 9:42 am
Shri would have sworn she saw a moment's indecision shade Haellara's expression, but she guessed rightly that it was her automatic informality. Shri was capable of being formal and putting on the whole show, but she'd never seen the point of doing so among equals. Particularly equals who had no real reason to be on guard around one another. She could only rule one House in one city. Anything more would certainly drive her mad, and she had no ambitions in that direction. Sanity could be horrible, but she could only imagine that madness was worse. Which was why she had conspired in the past to drive her beloathed cousin Trielnolu mad. It hadn't been as successful as she had hoped, but there had been some appreciable effect. For one thing, it got her cousin out of the House.
"You honor me," she said with a much easier smile than the one Haellara turned on her. As with formality, Shri was capable of being somber and severe, but she preferred to enjoy life, and so frequently wore a smile or grin.
She wasn't sure if she was supposed to interpret Haellara's remark on the eventual arrival of more females as a subtle hint that Haellara was with child or whether she simply had some cousins she planned to bring up from somewhere. Or maybe she planned to adopt people into her House. In the face of such ambiguity, Shri's response was careful:
"I hope that whatever female comes to live here in the future pleases you and offers you no challenge to your status."
The offer of a tour or other diversion was welcome. She would particularly like to learn more about methods of pain infliction practiced by those in other parts of the Underdark. She knew everything there was to know about it in Llurth Dreir, and much of what there was to learn in Gallidurth, but Undrek'Thoz provided a potential new training ground. The prospect was pleasing.
"I have a special appreciation for torture," Shri replied with a quick, self-directed smirk. She had more of an appreciation for torture than most, as she could appreciate what it was to be in either role. "If that is something you wish to do."
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Posted: Thu Feb 19, 2009 8:59 pm
Haellara's eyes widened at Shri's proclamation; even her own mother had never come close to having the same sort of passion she had for torture. She had always done it all herself, presuming the only eyes that would ever view her handiwork would be Lolth's. But now it seemed that she had someone who just might appreciate all the hours she toiled away down in the chamber, striving to pull pain away from her victims as though it were something tangible that could be gripped with pincers or siphoned with needles.
In danger of looking like a delighted child about to show off her newest toy, Haellara smiled a much less fake smile and gestured to the door. "I am pleased to hear you say that. I happen to have an acute fondness for torture; indeed, I practice it as both a hobby and a means of ensuring favor to our Goddess. Perhaps we might share in a bit of fun, learn a few new techniques and see what two sets of hands might accomplish for the delight of Lolth."
She had barely made it out the door when she was confronted by a breathless servant; the same young one who had hurried off to see to the preparations of the guest room. "Mistress," he panted, "I am terribly sorry to disturb you and Lady Baen'Duis, but.....well, I was passing by your torture room, and I heard the most horrific keening in there. I know you'd rather we stay out, but I was afraid your captive might have done something drastic in an attempt to escape. I went in and.......I'm sorry mistress, but it appears as though your goblin....slit its wrists with a protruding tooth. I am so very sorry, Mistress."
Haellara's eyes narrowed dangerously; it had taken hours of painstaking peeling of the skin to achieve that little part of the creature's hand. Now it was all wasted. Who knew that a dumb goblin could be so.....inventive? Well, before she enlisted another, she would be sure to disable its mouth somehow; perhaps pulling the sharper ones out first. She allowed the angry pounding of her veins to cool and she looked carefully at the trembling servant. "Then we shall just have to find another body; my guest WILL have her sport." She turned to Shri and smiled. "Actually, since you are the guest, I shall leave it up to you; what sort of pitiful, puling creature shall my servant fetch for us?"
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Posted: Sun Feb 22, 2009 2:27 pm
Shri's expression was that of understanding as Haellara explained about her tortuous practices. If Shri was being perfectly honest, she didn't actually like torture. She'd been tortured before. She preferred torment and temptation. However, she could appreciate watching others be tortured and participating in the act. Of course, her reaction to others' pain - and her own - was not what most would call normal. It was the Goddess's gift to her House, and it was rare enough in manifesting that she had been instantly named her aunt's heir when it became apparent that she possessed it. It was why she was called the daughter of House Baen'duis, rather than a daughter, or one of the other various titles members of Baen'duis could be granted based on how Lloth's gift effected them.
"I would enjoy that, I think," Shri said with a quick, somewhat dangerous grin. "I am probably a bit out of practice, I warn you. Priestesses-in-training aren't really allowed as much freedom to enjoy themselves as one might think."
As they made their way to the door and the breathless servant made his interruption Shri observed her hostess. Dangerous, definitely, for she was a matron, but possibly more so. Shri had very little magical ability beyond what was granted to any noble drow and those powers a priestess might acquire through the grace and goodwill of the Goddess, but she had become rather good at spotting magical ability in others. Haellara was definitely some sort of mage. Which made Shri wonder if she ever used her powers in her hobby, or if that made the process less satisfying. Personally, Shri doubted that doing a thing magically could compare to the sensory stimulation of tactile involvement, but she'd never had the opportunity to do things any other way.
And, based on the servant's message, she wouldn't. She had been told at some point in her youth that goblins, while not a clever race, took glee in thwarting the plans of the drow simply to have done so, and without much regard for anything beyond the immediate consequences. She had been advised to put no faith in goblins, or anyone, really. The sort of close, personal relationship she entrusted her brother with had been incidental to their circumstances, and she was not considered wise for confiding in him even as little as she did, but she trusted him completely, as she trusted no other. She would not have trusted a goblin not to do something spiteful, had she been in Haellara's position, though she had no way of knowing what sort of measures had been put in place, and by goblin standards, the victim's actions had been clever.
Asked a question, Shri considered. Most of the work she had done lately had been on other drow, but she did not feel in a position to ask that another member of their race be brought before her so that she could sate her sadistic tendencies. At home or in Gallidurth she would have known where to find an appropriate victim, but Undrek'Thoz was very much a mystery to her. Additionally, she had been given little opportunity to inflict physical pain for some time beyond the usual sorts that nobility or a priestess-in-training might inflict on someone who displeases them, and she had not been raised to be casually violent. It was more effective to be deliberately violent, she had been taught, and so she reserved her violent outbursts for special occasions that truly warranted a violent reaction.
So the question remained: What sort of creature would she prefer?
"What creatures do you have that are native to Undrek'Thoz that I am unlikely to encounter at home, in Llurth Dreir? I would enjoy learning what methods to employ with exotic victims. Well. Exotic for me. Though if you find that boring...?"
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Posted: Tue Feb 24, 2009 7:18 pm
Haellara stroked her chin thoughtfully. "Native to Undrek'Thoz....hmm....well, I do know in the section of Vrasl there are a lot of undead, but I find them particularly unsatisfying when it comes to torture. No fresh blood or organs, and they never resist or show any pain. I've only tried one, and it was so unsatisfying that I've not tortured another since. Sshurlynder, which is not too far from here, has many orcs and ogres that one could pick like mushrooms, but they tend to be cumbersome, and I prefer to give my prey smells instead of have them coming with their own smell, if you know what I mean."
She suddenly brightened. "Another segment of Undrek'Thoz is an infamous slave trading area. We could probably get almost anything there; a human, or maybe even a surface elf." The very thought sent shivers of pleasure to course through her body and cause parts of her to stiffen. She loved tormenting surface elves; they were particularly expressive, and anything she cared to do to them showed up so well on their alabaster skin: blood droplets, blisters, welts, bruises, and many others, when coupled with their cries and screams and ferverent prayers to their false gods, seemed like such a sweet treat to Lolth.
Of course the only thing that could possibly be sweeter than a surface elf would be.... "A heretic! Another segment here does not allow non-worshipers of Lolth, and any found are at the mercy of the authorities. We might be able to purchase one; save them the trouble of executing them outright." She felt excited; so many possibilities that existed outside her own house, and here she was as though she had discovered them for the first time. Partly she had; she had never shown much interest in being out of her House, and even then had preferred to stay around Brudag, only reading about the other parts of the city. Perhaps soon she would pay a visit to more of the city, to set up contacts and establish a few good sources of fresh canvas.
"Well, in any of those cases, I can send out a servant to bring back whatever we choose; it should not take long, since all of Undrek'Thoz is connected by portal, and while we wait, perhaps I could show you some of the tools I love using and what I intend to do with them when our fun gets here?
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Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2009 11:04 am
Shri waited while the matron mused. It was evident that her input was not presently required, and she knew better than to interrupt a matron when she was making decisions. She had contributed her part, and whatever was decided from there was out of her hands, and none of her fault. This was the attitude she took when she was at home, too, and it irritated her mother, who felt she should be more involved in orchestrating events to turn out as she wished, but Shri couldn't see why she should bother. Her aunt wasn't inept, and the House wouldn't fall to ruin if things didn't go exactly how Shri wanted. And if things did go too splendidly under her aunt's regime, it would mean more for her to live up to when she ascended.
She nodded at the appropriate point in Haellara's contemplations. She did know what Haellara meant about smells. She didn't like things to come in smelling, and she didn't really like for them to smell while they were with her, either. She could use her sense of smell to detect things her other senses could not. Her infrared vision could pick out points of internal bleeding, but it was usually her nose that first alerted her to it. There was a specific smell that was different from external bleeding. Likewise she could determine her victim's state of health, how nervous they were, and a number of other things with her sensitive nose.
With some species, she'd known them to be initially aroused by her treatment of them, and that smell had hung thick in the air even after the being which had generated it had died. There had been several occasions where she had performed a careful tightrope walking act, keeping someone on the edge between agony and ecstasy for hours, tormenting them with both pain and pleasure until they didn't know which was which and begged for either to release them.
She wasn't in the habit of killing things in the process of tormenting them. She would keep her toys alive for as long as she could manage, until sensory overload rendered them completely unresponsive, almost catatonic. Then she had them disposed of. There were few instances where she had actually killed anything. There were few instances where she'd kept things imprisoned just to torture them. Her lifestyle wasn't conducive to that sort of behavior. Often she had to work in impromptu settings with whatever materials came to hand, such as rooms in inns. She enjoyed the challenge, and also the necessity to keep things from getting too messy.
Shri listened to all of the choices available to Haellara and wondered how it could be that there was so much variation here. Llurth Dreir was too deep in the earth to have easy access to the surface, and so any surface creature or trinket was a commodity. Heretics, on the other hand, existed in great numbers in Llurth Dreir. There were rumors they were trying to overrun the city, though there'd not been much success apparently. Which was just as well. She was comfortable with her way of life, and wasn't interested in learning to worship a new deity. Not that she thought the heretics would show her any more mercy than Lloth's priestesses showed them at present.
"I've had very little experience with surface elves," Shri ventured. "But I would enjoy seeing what tools you work with. Mostly I use various styles of whips and lashes, and occasionally flechettes and knives."
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Posted: Fri Mar 06, 2009 7:41 pm
"Hmmm..." Haellara smiled. "I usually save surface elves for special occasions, but seeing as this is a time of cementing ties and contacts, I would say the occasion warrants it." Pulling her weapon back out, she extended it and rapped out a peculiar-sounding 5-tap tempo. A shadow fell over the corridor and a rather large and imposing male stepped forth, eyeing the pair of females stoically. Haellara gestured to him, looking more like she was swatting a fly away. "One of my brothers. They gave me no trouble when I ascended, and they tend to be quite useful."
She turned to the gigantic male. "I want you to go to Jenn'Yxir and find us a surface elf......make it a male this time; they tend to be just a bit more fun to torture than females. You know where the treasure room is; take as much as you need." The male made one low bow, turned on his heel and walked briskly off down the corridor. Haellara retracted her weapon and put it away, smiling at Shri. "That's what I like about him; he could be in the middle of fooling around with a female, and if I tell him to go and fetch me a fresh stick of incense, he would leave the whore on his bed and run off to fetch it. All the concentration of an undead servant, but without the smell. Shall we?"
She gestured to Shri and walked down the corridor to her playroom, eager to get the corpse out of the way and make preparations for the new arrival. She approached the door, which was unadorned save for the slightest discoloring around the edges that made it look disturbingly dipped in demon blood. As she opened the door and bade Shri enter, her eyes flew to the rack where the unfortunate goblin had met its painful end. To her surprise, the body was already gone, the blood wiped away, and the tool she had used to peel the cuticles back was merrily sitting in a tray of cleaning liquid. She suspected it was the work of that nervous little servant who had reported the news to her. Pleased as she was, she felt a bit annoyed; sometimes she didn't like it when servants became too useful; they were harder to torture and kill when they did that.
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Posted: Tue Mar 31, 2009 8:29 pm
Shrisin knew better than to try to puzzle out the intricacies of whatever coded system Matron Haellara Torlyl used to summon her underlings, but she couldn't help admiring the idea. Her aunt used different means to summon those she wanted, but this one was interesting, though only effective if the desired person was within hearing range. Her attention was diverted not only by Haellara's speech, but by the shadow of a large male. Instinctively she assessed him, measuring how her brother would fare Haellara's brother in a fight. He was big, and evidently strong, but much would depend on his training.
"Brothers can be useful," Shri agreed noncommittally. This was hardly the time to go into the details her own complicated relationship with her brother. Their relationship was one that few understood, and she did not think Haellara was likely to be one of the few.
"Especially when they are as devoted as you say Jenn'Yxir is, and relatively unoffensively scented." She added the last as a joke because she refused to get into a competition of whose brother was more loyal. Because she was certain that if she and Haellara were to hold such a competition it would serve only to destroy their siblings, and while the matron might deem that an insignificant loss, a large part of her brother's devotion to her was based on the fact that he loved and adored her, rather than fearing her, and that she loved him, too, in her own way. She had learned that sort of devotion was more valuable than any awe- or fear-inspired loyalty. It was even more powerfully binding than lust, which was a tool Shrisin wielded as deftly as she did her bullwhip.
"But, yes. Let's."
She walked with Haellara, remaining approximately a half-step behind the matron less out of respect than unfamiliarity with her surroundings and a trifle reluctant to put her back to her new acquaintance. Entering the room Haellara evidently reserved for torturing her victims, Shri couldn't help the widening of her eyes as she took in the sight. She had never been anyplace as well-stocked as this. There were implements she could neither name nor guess at what their purpose was, which gave her a bit of a thrill as her mind tried to figure out how they might be applied. And everything was kept neat and orderly, which appealed to her. She preferred not to have the fluids or bits of a body stuck in or on the person she was presently working with. It seemed disrespectful.
"This is impressive," she said.
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Posted: Thu Apr 02, 2009 5:12 pm
Had she been aware of the thoughts swirling around in the head of her guest, Haellara would have taken that moment to boast that she always ensured that at lease one of her many servants was within hearing range; not the most effective boast, given the fact that any drow's ears were especially keen, but she always snatched up any moments that would allow her to brag.
And now that they were in her playroom, and she was surrounded by her element and her one true and twisted form of joy, she became immersed in the moment, and for a moment ceased to be a matron mother giving her guest a tour and became a young child eagerly showing off her best and brightest plaything to a new friend. "Thank you," she said in acknowledgement, "Many of the tools you see before you are either of my own making or have been modified to my own specifications." She pointed to the tool within the cleaning solution. "That is one of the ones I made myself, designed to pull thick cuticles back through a VERY slow process; had I known it would cause enough agony for a stupid goblin to take its own life, I might have used it more often."
She gestured to her more than generously stocked shelves, taking up nearly the entire right wall. "Any and every potion or powder that can possibly used to inflict pain can be found there, including several of my own making. You've got to be careful with mixing new things," she said thoughtfully, remembering some of the first mishaps she had suffered due to improper mixing. It was one of the only times her mother had severely reprimanded her; she had had to send a servant out to the marketplace to retrieve a hair-regrowing spell, and in the end, Haellara had been so stung with humiliation that she had ordered the servant killed as soon as he had brought the spell back.
"I also keep many kinds of healing potions on the shelves, for those times when you want the torture prolonged or if there is ever an unfortunate accident; it happens a lot with the ones who insist on thrashing." She gestured towards the back of the room, which unlike the front, which was lit sparsely by candles and a few of the potions that gave off luminesence, was shrouded in darkness. "I have a pit back there where I can put the ones that go mad; it's quite a spectacle, watching them climb out." She avoided mentioning the last part, the far right corner that was covered by what looked like a black cobweb shroud. There was where her favorite tools and best secret grew; her modest grove where she raised the exotic 'reviver' mushrooms, the same that she had used to rise in position to the head of the house. She felt there was no need to show her guest EVERYTHING she had; every Matron mother was entitled to their secrets.
She turned and smiled at Shrisin, her face full of pride. "I turn my sacrifices to Lolth into art, and this is my studio. Do you have anything similar where you are from?" As soon as she had asked this, there was a short knock on the door. Blinking in surprise, Haellara turned her gaze toward the door. "That was fast; usually he has to search a bit before finding a surface elf. This must be our lucky day." She turned and opened the door, where her burly brother stood, holding a shivering male surface elf by the arm. Haellara watched with a small smile as her brother roughly dragged him over to the rack and strapped him down until he was securely fastened, arms and legs straight out. His blue eyes were wide with terror as they darted back and forth from Haellara to Shrisin. The former sauntered over and ran a finger over the pale flesh of the elf's arm, smiling as she watched the tiny hairs standing on end at her feathery touch. Turning to Shrisin, she backed away slightly and gestured invitingly to her. "You may go first if you'd like. Would you care to show me how torture is done in your own House?"
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