Cerebral Paladin
First Post
“A mindflayer?” echoed Dame Brionna in horror. “Can anything be done about it? Can you throw it out of her?”
“Oh, it would splatter me all over the high table,” said Princess Cecilia calmly. “And people would be upset.”
“Could it use her to attack the Archduke?”
“Oh, no. Let’s see...” The princess studied Kit more carefully. “The Didactic of Horloq--that’s its sect. It wanted a close up view, and it didn’t get an invitation. It’s just watching, observing… and enjoying the appetizers.”
“It crashed? That’s just rude!” After a moment, Dame Brionna returned to focusing on the security breach, rather than the etiquette of the situation. She sent a quick note to the Minister of the Mind asking him to have a psionic exorcist meet them in the powder room. With the preparations made, Dame Brionna hurried back to Kit. “Kit? We need to go powder our noses.” She grabbed Kit’s arm firmly and began pulling her along.
“What? Oh, alright, I’ll come with you if you need to go. I’ve just been enjoying the stuffed mushroom things… have you tried them?”
“Um, no, I’ve been busy…” Dame Brionna hustled Kit into the bathroom, where a very pale young male gnome psion met them. He fidgeted nervously, looking around like at any moment people were going to scream about his being in the women’s bathroom. Kit just looked at him a little--it was odd that there was a man here, but she was sure that it was fine. Dame Brionna pushed Kit towards him. “Good, you’re here. She has an illithid in her. We need it banished.”
“An illithid?” asked Kit, momentarily worried before the feeling of calm washed back over her and she relaxed again. “It isn’t Alvin, is it? If it is, tell him he’s fired…” By the time she finished that statement, Kit’s voice had gone completely back to the dreamy tones she had been using and her face returned to a placid smile.
The gnome nodded and murmured, “I see what you mean.” He slipped out a crown made of many crystals wired together--perhaps the ugliest piece of jewelry either Kit or Dame Brionna had ever seen. He put the crown on, pulled a small and inexplicable device out of another pouch, spun a wheel on the device, and concentrated.
Suddenly, Kit had full control of her mind again. “Ugh! Where is it?”
“It’s out,” answered the psion. “It’s quite upset-- I think it’s young.”
“Yes, but where is it?”
“I just ejected its astral form. It would now be back in its own body.”
“How did it penetrate the palace defenses? Can it come back?”
“I shouldn’t think so. The wards are quite strong--much too strong for even most adult mindflayers. It had to have ridden an artifact in.”
“Those blasted combs,” said Kit. “I knew they were dangerous, but it clouded my thinking after I examined them.”
“At least you’re free now,” said Dame Brionna. She thanked the psion, who rapidly fled the women’s bathroom. “We should get back to the banquet. We don’t want people noticing our absence or trying anything while we’re gone.”
Kit nodded, still seething. They returned, and the rest of the banquet passed uneventfully. Kit felt a little awkward as Alistair approached her, danced with her once, and then moved on, but she knew that that was the most that they could do at such a public event.
“Oh, it would splatter me all over the high table,” said Princess Cecilia calmly. “And people would be upset.”
“Could it use her to attack the Archduke?”
“Oh, no. Let’s see...” The princess studied Kit more carefully. “The Didactic of Horloq--that’s its sect. It wanted a close up view, and it didn’t get an invitation. It’s just watching, observing… and enjoying the appetizers.”
“It crashed? That’s just rude!” After a moment, Dame Brionna returned to focusing on the security breach, rather than the etiquette of the situation. She sent a quick note to the Minister of the Mind asking him to have a psionic exorcist meet them in the powder room. With the preparations made, Dame Brionna hurried back to Kit. “Kit? We need to go powder our noses.” She grabbed Kit’s arm firmly and began pulling her along.
“What? Oh, alright, I’ll come with you if you need to go. I’ve just been enjoying the stuffed mushroom things… have you tried them?”
“Um, no, I’ve been busy…” Dame Brionna hustled Kit into the bathroom, where a very pale young male gnome psion met them. He fidgeted nervously, looking around like at any moment people were going to scream about his being in the women’s bathroom. Kit just looked at him a little--it was odd that there was a man here, but she was sure that it was fine. Dame Brionna pushed Kit towards him. “Good, you’re here. She has an illithid in her. We need it banished.”
“An illithid?” asked Kit, momentarily worried before the feeling of calm washed back over her and she relaxed again. “It isn’t Alvin, is it? If it is, tell him he’s fired…” By the time she finished that statement, Kit’s voice had gone completely back to the dreamy tones she had been using and her face returned to a placid smile.
The gnome nodded and murmured, “I see what you mean.” He slipped out a crown made of many crystals wired together--perhaps the ugliest piece of jewelry either Kit or Dame Brionna had ever seen. He put the crown on, pulled a small and inexplicable device out of another pouch, spun a wheel on the device, and concentrated.
Suddenly, Kit had full control of her mind again. “Ugh! Where is it?”
“It’s out,” answered the psion. “It’s quite upset-- I think it’s young.”
“Yes, but where is it?”
“I just ejected its astral form. It would now be back in its own body.”
“How did it penetrate the palace defenses? Can it come back?”
“I shouldn’t think so. The wards are quite strong--much too strong for even most adult mindflayers. It had to have ridden an artifact in.”
“Those blasted combs,” said Kit. “I knew they were dangerous, but it clouded my thinking after I examined them.”
“At least you’re free now,” said Dame Brionna. She thanked the psion, who rapidly fled the women’s bathroom. “We should get back to the banquet. We don’t want people noticing our absence or trying anything while we’re gone.”
Kit nodded, still seething. They returned, and the rest of the banquet passed uneventfully. Kit felt a little awkward as Alistair approached her, danced with her once, and then moved on, but she knew that that was the most that they could do at such a public event.