Szarkai were the result of a very rare mutation, appearing in only 0.01% of the drow population. They were relatively more common among the noble houses than among lower castes, though it was unknown if this was the product of inbreeding or meddling by the goddess
Lolth. The birth of a szarkai was viewed as the blessing of Lolth upon a family, and thus they were dubbed
szarkai, or "ghost spiders". Other drow looked on them in awe. They were far too valuable to risk in the cutthroat politics of drow society, or to be murdered by chance in the streets.
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Thus, their existence was kept a secret from all, known only to the highest-ranking members of a family and those who had a vital need to know. Kept apart from everyday drow life, szarkai were sequestered and lived much safer than many other drow, though no less harsh or corruptive. They tended to receive personal attention and training from the very cruelest of priestesses and the most duplicitous of nobles. Almost from birth, they were trained as spies and saboteurs and readied for a life undercover on the surface, living among elves and in
human cities where elves were common, where they could operate without suspicion. When they'd completed their training and had the necessary skills, szarkai were sent on deep-cover, long-term assignments to the surface, to advance the plots of their houses and of the Spider Queen.
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