Read The Clan for Free Online

Lady of the strongest Drow house. Truly your warriors are the best from amongst the Dark Elves."
    The girl lowered her head, accepting the compliment with matter-of-fact dignity. Having said that, how much of it was a compliment? Unlike Dan, I didn't really know a lot about the House of Night or their dealings.
    Dan led us outside, crossing the square toward the donjon. The cutthroats joined the other raiders who were already in the process of concurring over buffs, ordnance and communication channels.
    The square was flooded with light from enormous burning oil vats. Several hundred magic torches filled the air with a subtle cedarwood smell. You couldn't see any of it from the outside as the castle had already been shrouded by a Dome of Darkness —a routine procedure at code orange—installed by some high-level Death Knight from the clan's Dark branch. I thought I'd seen that ability before inside one of the development chains. Having said that, it could be some funky artifact. The control room—the Castle's sancta sanctorum—must have had loads of accumulating crystals and other artifacts, especially because traditionally, the control room was the last line of defense which implied maximum protection and self-sufficiency.
    A very sleepy Taali stumbled past. She beamed at me, her grin quickly replaced by an indignant glare as she noticed the Princess. Nostrils flaring, Taali strode toward us shaking her gorgeous head of hair. I could see the symptoms of a cat fight.
    The Princess turned to her, flashing a welcoming smile. Talk about python vs. rabbit. Taali was shrinking even as she walked. Her decisive stride wobbled, her flushed cheeks betraying her feelings. Finally, she lost her nerve and dived under my arm, mumbling something as she grabbed at me.
    She rose on tiptoe to whisper in my ear, "Did you really need to bring her over?"
    "Sorry, sweetheart. We do need more men if we want to teach the bastards a lesson. The Princess has kindly offered her troops. Plus, it considerably increases our share of the loot."
    She didn't seem to hear, though. Her gaze wandered around. "Do you remember something you said about pheromones? " she breathed out almost soundlessly. "Do you think they work for... for women, too?"
    Meeting my puzzled stare, she blushed, her hard slender elbow poking my ribs. "That's not a joke!"
    I replied in mime, locking my mouth shut and throwing away the key. I didn't mean it as a joke. I'm not that stupid.
    The Princess with her delicate Elven hearing must have heard every word of our exchange. She laughed in a soft, husky voice, startling both Taali and myself. A thousand gentle pins and needles pierced my spine. The woman was a love-beam generator on two legs.
    I squeezed Taali's hand. "Take it easy, girl," I brought my face close to hers. "I'm in turmoil, too. I'm not sure about pheromones, but I do know that the sound frequency of 250 Hz can manipulate one's sexuality. Also, don't forget she's a Dark Priestess. She has to have some tricks up her sleeve. I think I need to do a bit of research —Wiki must mention some odd spell to counter her magic with. It's no good her trying to wrap me around her little finger."
    Taali nodded, then stood up. "Sorry, I can't leave it like this."
    She shook her heavy mane and slid to my other side, wedging herself between me and the Princess. Ruata smiled back at her glare, giving me a barely perceptible wink. Oh. About time I made myself a tinfoil hat.
    So we walked to the small hall that housed our HQ. Its walls were lined with the floor plans of the Forest Castle. God knows how they'd managed to lay their hands on them. Another large map showed the surrounding area. An analyst was hurriedly adding detail to it —apparently following the reports of our stealthed rogues who were surveying the castle area under cover of night.
    The General gave us a curt nod, then bowed to the Princess, thanking her for her troops. The officer on duty hurried to put us in the