war of the spider queen 1 dissolution-第80部分

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　just　don't　see　the　point　of　your　scheme。　Lolth　will　speak　when　she　wishes；　not　when　we　desire　it。〃
〃It's　not　a　waste　of　time　if　it's　keeping　you　alive。　I　could　have　had　my　loyal　followers　kill　you　the　moment　they　entered　the　chamber。　Instead；　I'm　pronotposing　an　honest　inquiry　into　your　concerns；　for　the　sake　of　all　the　temple。　Under　the　circumstances；　what　could　be　more　magnanimous　than　that？〃
〃All　right；〃　Molvayas　said。　〃We'll　remain　for　a　time；　but　if　nothing　hapnotpens；　my　rades　and　I　go　free。　You　can't　chastise　us　if　the　results　of　the　test　are　inconclusive。　That　wouldn't　be　an　honest　inquiry。〃
〃Agreed；〃　the　mistress　said。
Drisinil　was　bewildered　and　appalled。　This　strange；　passive　procedure　sounded　as　if　it　could　take　hours。　She　needed　the　antidote　before　her　thunnotdering　heart　tore　itself　apart；　but　she　could　do　nothing　to　speed　things　along。
Though　plainly　just　as　puzzled　as　she；　the　pany　obediently　fell　quiet。　Meditation　was　a　familiar　practice　to　all　of　them；　though　frustrating　and　futile　since　Lolth　had　receded　beyond　their　ken。
For　what　seemed　a　long　while；　nothing　happened；　except　that　a　muscle　under　Drisinil's　eye　twitched　uncontrollably；　and　some　of　those　whom　she'd　betrayed　surreptitiously　glared　at　her；　wordlessly　vowing　revenge。　A　tiny　something　scurried　across　the　floor。　Or　perhaps　it　did。　By　the　time　she　tried　to　focus　on　it；　it　was　gone。
More　minutes　crawled　by。　Cloth　whispered　as　someone　shifted　position。　Later；　somebody　else　smothered　a　little　sneeze。　Drisinil　realized　she　could　just　barely　smell　the　ghost　of　the　funereal　incense　Lirdnolu　had　burned　when　teaching　necromancy。
Another　mite　scuttled　along。　Drisinil　saw　that　this　one　was　a　spider。　Nothing　unusual　in　that。　Arach…Tinilith　was　full　of　the　sacred　creatures。　Still；　something　about　this　particular　specimen　tugged　at　her　despite　her　sickness　and　terror。　She　stared　until　she　discerned　that　it　had　a　blue　shell　with　red　markings。
That　was　a　little　odd。　This　particular　species　generally　spent　its　time　lurking　in　webs；　not　roaming　about。　Still；　she　didn't　see　why　the　anomaly　should　trigger　a　twinge　of　alarm。　It　must　be　the　poison　clawing　at　her　nerves。
Time　dragged　on。　A　priestess　on　the　lowest　tier　sang　a　hymn　under　her　breath。　She　was　flat。　Another　novice　with　mutilated　hands　surreptitiously　checked　the　knife　strapped　under　her　sleeve；　making　sure　the　weapon　was　loose　in　the　sheath。　And；　Drisinil　noticed；　more　black　dots　were　creeping　on　the　walls　and　floor。　More　than　were　normal　for　a　disused　part　of　the　temple？　She　thought　so；　and　she　glanced　over　at　Quenthel；　seeking　some　sign　to　confirm　her　formless　suspicions。　The　Baenre　stood　motionless　with　head　bowed；　the　very　picture　of　a　mystic　absorbed　in　her　devotions。
A　novice　with　a　gold　earring　cried　out　in　pain。　She　dragged　on　her　shirt；　baring　her　right　shoulder；　and　found　the　spider　that　was　biting　her。　Her　frantic　efforts　to　remove　the　arachnid　without　hurting　it　should　have　been　ical　but　Drisinil　couldn't　laugh。　Frazzled；　addled　by　the　poison；　she　could　only　stare　at　the　dark　flecks　swarming　thickly　on　every　side。　Some　of　the　other　conspirators　had　started　to　notice　as　well。　They　whispered　to　one　another；　and　their　eyes　grew　wide。
Something　brushed　Drismil's　arm。　She　cried　out　and　spun　around。　It　was　one　of　the　Quenthel's　vipers　that　had　touched　her。
〃Stay　close；〃　the　mistress　said。
Once　again；　the　spiders　increased　in　number。　Somehow　hordes　of　them　were　scuttling　over　the　bodies　of　the　conspirators；　biting；　crawling　under　their　clothing；　freckling　their　skins　like　the　sores　of　some　hideous　plague。　Shrieking；　no　longer　caring　that　the　creatures　were　sacrosanct；　their　vicnottims　struggled　to　crush　them　and　brush　them　off；　but　they　couldn't　get　them　all。　A　few　of　the　traitors　retained　the　presence　of　mind　to　activate　protective　talismans；　only　to　discover　that　the　magic　didn't　help；　either。
The　one　place　free　of　spiders　was　the　upper　tiers。　Once　they　realized　the　creatures　weren't　going　climb　up　and　attack　them；　the　loyalists　mocked　and　jeered　at　the　plight　of　the　traitors。　Whenever　one　of　the　plotters　tried　to　grope　her　way　into　their　safe　space；　a　loyalist　would　knock　her　back　with　a　casual　swat　from　a　mace　or　whip。　Some　even　shot　down　with　hand　crossnotbows　any　conspirator　who　attempted　to　stagger　for　the　door。
Drisinil　did　remain　at　Quenthel's　side；　and　the　spiders　crawled　over　her　feet　but　otherwise　took　no　notice　of　her。　They　didn't　avoid　the　Baenre；　however。　They　climbed　all　over　her　body　without　biting；　and；　laughing；　she　stooped；　picked　up　more；　and　poured　them　over　her　head　until　the　creatures　virtually　encrusted　her。　Her　bright　red　eyes　shone　from　a　pebbled；　squirming　mask。
Finally　the　shrieking　stopped；　uncovering　the　sound　of　Vlondril　ecstatnotically　chanting　one　of　the　litanies　as　the　spiders　destroyed　her。　After　annotother　moment；　that　noise　ceased　as　well。　Drisinil　noticed　her　aunt's　corpse　slumped　among　the　carnage；　though　she　only　recognized　it　by　the　jade　gown。　Molvayas's　face　was　swollen　and　bloodied　beyond　recognition。
Quenthel　gazed　up　at　the　living　and　called；　〃We　asked　Lolth　for　a　sign；　and　she　gave　us　o