Homeland (The Legend of Drizzt #1)(80)

“Just get me out!” the wizard cried. Drizzt fumbled about, not knowing where to begin.

“Elementals travel between planes,” Masoj explained, knowing that he had to calm Drizzt down if he ever wanted to get out of the floor. Masoj knew, too, that the conversation could go a long way in deflecting Drizzt’s obvious suspicions that the lightning bolt had been aimed at him. “The ground an earth elemental traverses becomes a gate between the Plane of Earth and our plane, the Material Plane. The stone parted around me as the monster pulled me in, but it is quite uncomfortable,” He twitched in pain as the stone tightened around one foot. “The gate is closing fast!”

“Then Guenhwyvar might be ...” Drizzt started to reason.

He plucked the statuette right out of Masoj’s front pocket and carefully inspected it for any flaws in its perfect design.

“Give me that!” Masoj demanded, embarrassed and angry. Reluctantly, Drizzt handed the figurine over. Masoj glanced at it quickly and dropped it back into the pocket.

“Is Guenhwyvar unharmed?” Drizzt had to ask.

“It is not your concern,” Masoj snapped back. The wizard, too, was worried about the cat, but at this moment, Guenhwyvar was the least of his troubles. “The gate is closing,” he said again. “Go get the clerics!”

Before Drizzt could start off, a slab of stone in the wall behind him slid away, and the rock-hard fist of Belwar Dissengulp slammed into the back of his head.





Chapter 23

A Single Clean Blow


“The gnomes took him,” Masoj said to Dinin when the patrol leader returned to the cavern. The wizard lifted his arms over his head to give the high priestess and her assistants a better view of his predicament.

“Where?” Dinin demanded. “Why did they let you live?”

Masoj shrugged. “A secret door,” he explained, “somewhere on the wall behind you. I suspect that they would have taken me as well, except...” Masoj looked down at the floor, still holding him tightly up to the waist. “The gnomes would have killed me, but for your arrival.”

“You are fortunate, wizard,” the high priestess said to Masoj. “I have memorized a spell this day that will release the stone’s hold on you,” She whispered some instructions to her assistants and they took out water skins and pouches of clay and began tracing a ten foot square on the floor around the trapped wizard. The high priestess moved over to the wall of the chamber and prepared for her prayers.

“Some have escaped,” Dinin said to her. The high priestess understood. She whispered a quick detection spell and studied the wall. “Right there,” she said. Dinin and another male rushed over to the spot and soon found the almost imperceptible outline to the secret door.

As the high priestess began her incantation, one of her cleric assistants threw the end of a rope to Masoj. “Hold on,” the assistant teased, “and hold your breath!”

“Wait -,” Masoj began, but the stone floor all around him transformed into mud and the wizard slipped under.

The clerics, laughing, pulled Masoj out a moment later. “Nice spell,” the wizard remarked, spitting mud.

“It has its purposes,” replied the high priestess. “Especially when we fight against the gnomes and their tricks with the stone. I carried it as a safeguard against earth elementals,” She looked at a piece of rubble at her feet, unmistakably one eye and the nose of such a creature. “I see that my spell was not needed in that manner.”

“I destroyed that one,” Masoj lied. “Indeed,” said the high priestess, unconvinced. She could tell by the cut of the rubble that a blade had made the wound. She let the issue drop when the scrape of sliding stone turned them all to the wall.

“A maze,” moaned the fighter beside Dinin when he peered into the tunnel. “How will we find them?”

Dinin thought for a moment, then spun on Masoj. “They have my brother,” he said, an idea coming to mind. “Where is your cat?”

“About,” Masoj stalled, guessing Dinin’s plan and not really wanting Drizzt rescued.

“Bring it to me,” Dinin ordered. “The cat can smell Drizzt.”

“I cannot... I mean,” Masoj stuttered.

“Now, wizard!” Dinin commanded. “Unless you wish me to tell the ruling council that some of the gnomes escaped because you refused to help!”

Masoj tossed the figurine to the ground and called for Guenhwyvar, not really knowing what would happen next. Had the earth elemental really destroyed Guenhwyvar? The mist appeared, in seconds transforming into the panther’s corporeal body.

“Well,” Dinin prompted, indicating the tunnel.

“Go find Drizzt!” Masoj commanded the cat. Guenhwyvar sniffed around the area for a moment, then bounded off down the small tunnel, the drow patrol in silent pursuit.

“Where...” Drizzt started when he finally began the long climb from the depths of unconsciousness. He understood that he was sitting, and knew, too, that his hands were bound in front of him.

A small but undeniably strong hand caught him by the back of the hair and pulled his head back roughly.

“Quiet!” Belwar whispered harshly, and Drizzt was surprised that the creature could speak his language. Belwar let go of Drizzt and turned to join other svirfnebli.