Moonborn

Darkness Falls

A figure, little more than a shadow among shadows, scuttled between the trees, clumsily stumbling over the roots in its haste. A nearly-full moon shone through the pine forest and lit up random patches of earth on the forest floor, which the figure was careful to avoid, lest it attract any unwanted attention from above. But soon it had flitted into a darker and denser part of the forest, and not even the most careful of watchers would have seen it disappear into the ground.

Below ground, in the crypt-like tunnels that ran beneath most of the pine forest, the figure still hurried, with abandon now, as the meeting time drew nearer. Only the faintest of vyrms lit the walls occasionally, but the figure knew the way by its darkened heart, and only stopped for breath outside a large chamber, in which his boss awaited.

"Veneater?" A voice akin to squeaking floorboards and whistling pipes wafted out of the chamber and reached the ears of the panting figure, which stood up at once in a frighteningly rigid posture.

"Yes, m-master?" A tremor born out of fear shook the Veneater's response.

"You are late." Though the voice was no louder, the hissing and clicking that accompanied it rose, suggesting that the speaker was impatient.

"Well, y'see, I—"

"But perhapssss your information will make up for it. Do come in and have a ssssssssseat."

Veneater hurried into the chamber, a large oval cavern with a long glossy table extending for the length of it. It was empty. He glanced quickly up at a gaping black hole in the ceiling, shuddered and sat down at one end of the table, as far away from the center of the hole as he could manage. Hissing and clicking resounded from above.

"How goes the mission? I do hope you haven't failed me this time, Veneater."

"Of course not," he squeaked. "Impossible. Things have just gotten slightly . . . out of hand." The hissing and clicking increased in frequency.

"Don't tell me you've lost the egg."

"No, no, I know exactly where it is."

"Which is in our hands, I presume?"

"Well, n-not entirely."

"Not entirely? Did you crack off a bit of eggshell before giving it away?"

"Well . . . no."

"Then where is it, fool?"

"It's . . . um . . . "

"It's with the Wings, isn't it?"

"No—I mean yes. Well, partly."

"Give me a straight answer, or I might just . . . make thingssss ssssimpler."

"No, no! You don't have to! The egg disappeared, it really did! I sent forces after the Wings, but the egg was already there."

"So you left my brother to die. I've waited five hundred years for this, Veneater. Five hundred yearssssss. And you manage to botch it all. The Wings have no idea that I exist, haven't even connected the warfare in Suhderlan and Fivelgyn to a possibility that I might be real. Didn't even know of my plot until you gave them my treasure. Now they will undoubtedly begin to wonder who exactly was behind it. So I'm giving you a break, Veneater. I'll put you out of the picture so you won't have to face their chargessss. How doessss that sssssound?" The clicking became louder, echoing more through the cavern.

Veneater, whose brain was several significant points short of average, sighed in relief. "Thank you, Lord. How can I ever repay—"

The clicking was a boom now. "Oh, jusssst a sssssmall favor. I haven't eaten in ten yearsssss, you know. You'll make a good . . . appetizer."

Veneater didn't even have time to scream when a huge black shape came hissing down out of the hole in the ceiling, as fast as lightning, and swallowed him whole. A few minutes later there was a burp.

"Ah. That'sssss better."

A few moments later another figure hurried into the room, but with poise and dignity, the opposite of the late Veneater. He strode right up to the middle of the table and asked into the hole without flinching, "Master? Do you wish me to send out our new recruit?"

"Yessss. Yes, I do believe it's time to send out the Fisherman, though it won't be fish he'ssss catching." There was a prolonged hiss of laughter. "Yessss, my good ssservant. I should have put you in charge of the egg, though you had your hands full with the other one."

"As you wish, master."

"Go now, and be sure you never mean so little to me as to become mere . . . indigesssstion."

Hissings of laughter echoed through the cavern and the tunnels beyond.