Charon's Claw (Neverwinter #3)(114)

The three crept up to the wall, exiting the tunnel.

“She delivered your message,” Entreri remarked, peering over the edge. Down below, the cavern buzzed with activity. Shades came out from many of the stalagmite mounds, gathering into ranks and battle groups. Some were already moving for the base of the walkway on which the companions stood.

Across the large cavern loomed Gauntlgrym’s wall, the underground pond still and dark before it, except for a pair of small rowboats shuttling a handful of shades toward the beach.

“Be quick,” Drizzt said, and he sprinted off, crouching low and close to the walkway’s outer wall, Entreri and Dahlia close behind.

As they neared the bottom, now with enemy soldiers not far away, Drizzt stopped, looked to Entreri, and nodded. As Drizzt reached for his whistle, the assassin drew out his obsidian figurine.

“How deep is the lake?” Entreri mouthed, and Drizzt could only shrug. He didn’t know, though it was a good question, but what choice did they have?

Again they exchanged looks and nodded. Drizzt blew his call for Andahar as Entreri dropped the statuette to the ground, summoning his nightmare steed. Surprised cries erupted almost immediately. Entreri’s hellish mount came into shape right before him with a burst of flame and smoke, and Andahar materialized in the cavern beyond the walkway, galloping hard for Drizzt. The unicorn skidded to a stop and the drow grabbed the white mane, glistening even in the low lichen light of the large cavern, and pulled himself astride. He turned as he settled, reaching a hand out for Dahlia, but she was already on her way, vaulting nimbly to her seat behind him.

Entreri came by first, thundering out into the cavern, sword waving as he bore down on the nearest Netherese.

“Give me the bow!” Dahlia cried, grabbing at it.

“No!” Drizzt yelled back before he could even consider the response. The vehemence of that reply shocked him and confused him, for it had come unbidden, a sudden reaction to the notion of Dahlia taking Taulmaril—to the notion of Dahlia wielding Catti-brie’s weapon.

Drizzt bent low and urged mighty Andahar on, the unicorn’s hooves cracking hard against the stone. Before them, Shadovar scattered from Entreri, who veered left around a stalagmite mound.

Drizzt went right around the same one, and steered Andahar even farther to the right. Confusion was their ally, he knew, and so better to split the focus of their determined enemies. Both steeds ran on, winding paths around the many mounds, leaping the rails for ore carts whenever they crossed. Drizzt didn’t even draw his blades, letting Dahlia with her long staff prod and swipe at any enemies who ventured, or were caught, too close.

Javelins and arrows reached out at them. Drizzt bent low and kept his course anything but straight. All around him, he heard shades calling out for others to take intercepting angles to cut them off.

Few ever got near to them, though. Their mounts were too swift and too agile, their surprise too complete. One poor shade rushed out in front of Andahar, apparently not even realizing that he was in the unicorn’s path. He got run over, the sure-footed unicorn not slowing or tripping in the least as it trampled him. Even with their distracting zigzagging and enemies scrambling all around, all three made it to the pond in short order, coming in almost side by side.

The dark water hissed in protest as the fiery hooves of Entreri’s nightmare splashed in. Drizzt leaped Andahar high and long, the unicorn splashing down hard some ten strides from the shore and running on.

“How deep is it?” Entreri asked again of his companions, who were now before him.

Dahlia glanced back and shrugged. When she had first come through here, she had utilized magic.

The water quickly rose to the top of Andahar’s legs, slowing the run dramatically; Dahlia tucked her legs up under her to try to keep her high black boots dry. Suddenly their progress seemed so dangerously slow!

“We’ll be swimming,” Dahlia called to Drizzt, leaning in close.

“Then we swim,” he replied.

“They have archers,” Dahlia argued.

“Should I stop, then, so we might—” He ended abruptly, an arrow reaching out at him from the far bank.

Andahar reared and kicked at it, but it slipped through and dug hard into the unicorn’s breast. Had the steed not so reared, Drizzt surely would have taken the bolt.

As they splashed back down, Drizzt tightened his legs around his mount and pulled Taulmaril free from his shoulder.

More arrows reached out at him—to the side, he heard Entreri’s mount shriek, an unsettling, otherworldly howl, and knew that the nightmare had been hit. It would take more than an arrow to bring down that hell steed, of course, but what of its rider?

More arrows came forth, but Drizzt responded with his own magical bolts, launching them out at the nearing bank. He could hardly get a good shot, aiming straight ahead while mounted, but he sprayed off many arrows in succession, trying to at least keep those archers dodging around and unable to take careful aim.

“Come on,” he called to Andahar and at the pond as they slogged through. It wasn’t getting any deeper, at least.

“Boat!” Entreri called from Drizzt’s left, and the assassin fell back a bit as Drizzt turned.

Indeed, the drow saw not one, but two boats full of Shadovar rowing in from the side, angling to intercept. A shade in the prow of the trailing craft held a bow.

But now Drizzt was shooting across his body, and Andahar’s bobbing head was not obstructing him at all.