about, smashing down a blocking stalagmite and tearing its great chunks of feet from the stone floor.
The gnomes rallied behind their giant ally, trying to reform some semblance of ranks amid the general chaos. They were mak ing progress, many of them zigzagging through the rocky maze to link up with their mounting central force, and the dark elves inevitably fell back from the dangerous giant. One burly gnome, a burrow warden, Drizzt guessed, called for a straight march across the cavern.
Drizzt crouched low on the ledge. From his vantage point, he could see the skilled drow warriors fanning out about the gnomes, flanking and hiding behind mounds. Another group slipped toward the far exit, the gnomes' destination, and took up strategic positions there. If the elemental held out, though, the gnomes would likely punch their way through, and, once into the corridor, they could put their elemental behind them to block the way and run on to Bling denstone.
Three drow females stepped out to confront the giant. Drizzt sighed, seeing that they wore the unmistakable spider emblazoned robes of Lloth worshippers. He recognized that these were priest esses, possibly high priestesses, and knew then that the gnomes would not escape.
One after another, the females chanted and threw their hands out in front of them, sending forth a spray of fine mist. As the mois ture hit the rocky elemental, the giant began to dissolve, streaks of mud replacing the solid stone.
The priestesses kept up their chants, their assaults. On came the rocky giant, growling with rage, its features distorted by the slip ping mud.
A blast of mist hit it squarely, sending a thick line of mud run ning down the monster's chest, but the priestess who had made the assault was too concerned with her attack and did not get back fast enough. A rock arm shot out and punched her, breaking bones and hurling her through the air to crash against a stalagmite.
The remaining two drow hit the elemental again, dissolving its legs, and it crashed helplessly to the floor. It began to reform its appendages immediately, but the priestesses continued their deadly spray. Seeing that the ally was lost, the gnome leader called for a charge, and the svirfnebli rushed on, overwhelming one priestess before the flanking dark elves closed in like a biting maw. The fight was on in full again, this time right below Drizzt Do'Urden.
He gasped for breath as he witnessed the spectacle, saw a gnome slashed repeatedly by three drow, to fall, screaming, dying, to the floor.
Drizzt was out of excuses. He knew right from wrong, knew the significance of the appearance of Lloth's priestesses. Fires simmered in his lavender eyes; out came his scimitars, Twinkle flaring to blue glowing life.
He spotted the remaining priestess down to the left. She stood beside a tall, narrow mound, one arm out touching a svirfneblin. The gnome made no moves against her, only stood and groaned, trembling from the priestess's magical assaults. Black energy crack led up the drow female's arm as she literally sucked the life force from her unfortunate victim.
Drizzt tucked Twinkle under his other arm and leaped out, hooking the top of that narrow mound and rotating about it as he quickly descended. He hit the floor right beside the priestess and snapped his weapons back to the ready.
The startled drow female uttered a series of sharp commands, apparently thinking Drizzt an ally Twinkle dove into her heart.
The half drained gnome eyed Drizzt curiously, then fainted away. Drizzt ran on, calling out warnings to the gnomes, in their own tongue, that dark elves were in position near the far exit. The ranger took care to keep out of the open, though, realizing that any gnome he encountered would likely attack him, and any drow he encountered might recognize him.
He tried not to think of what he had just done, tried not to think of the female's eyes, so similar to his sister Vierna's.
He rushed in hard and put his back against a mound, the cries of battle all about him. A gnome jumped out from behind another stalagmite, waving a hammer dangerously, and before Drizzt could explain that he was no enemy, another drow came around the side, to stand shoulder to shoulder with Drizzt.
The suddenly hesitant gnome looked about, looked for an escape route, but the newest opponent leaped at him.
Purely on instinct, Drizzt slashed the drow's weapon