Rise of the Blade - Charles Moffat [78]
A tall broad man with rough features and black hair stepped forward. "Ever been to Undermountain?"
Undermountain. Perhaps the most dangerous place in the whole Realms next to being inside an active volcano. This labyrinth of caves below Waterdeep was filled with some of the most vicious and truly unique monsters. It was easy to get lost, killed and eaten down there and it was as simply as that. Those humanoids who survived down there were either really lucky, or had proven themselves to be worthy adventurers.
Chev had never been to Undermountain. He had only recently learned of the maze of tunnels below. Now that he was in them however, he could only wonder if he wise being here. Already two of the men had been killed by a group of rampaging umber hulks and another to a cleverly conceived drow trap which had left the man's body parts smeared across half a cavern.
They were after a cache of magical items stolen by drow. The dark elves had fortified themselves within a dead end tunnel. The drow had placed crossbowmen strategically around the entrance so that anyone who entered would be filled with bolts the moment they stepped into view and that was the limit of what Chev had been told. If he could get past the bolts, he would have first pick of exactly half of any of the things they found.
A group of men had stayed behind to guard the entrance and wait the drow out but the elves were still there. That much was evident by the bodies laying in the entrance riddled with quarrels and bolts.
"Can you do it?" demanded the group's large leader.
"Will you care if I use their bodies?" Chev nodded to the bodies and flashed his glowing blue sword at the top one.
"Go right ahead."
"Okay, does anyone have a grapple or something with which I can get them out of there with?"
"You can use my harpoon," offered the dwarf and shoved a particularly wicked-looking harpoon at Chev.
The warrior took it and noticed that it still had gore on it from its last use. Likely the umber hulks they had encountered earlier. Stabbing the weapon at the fallen men, he dragged them back from the entrance and stacked them up against the wall.
"Now what?" demanded the leader.
"Now you shut up and tell your men to do the same," Chev said and tossed the harpoon back to the dwarf. Hoisting a dead half-orc on his left arm like a shield, the warrior approached the entrance and shoved the man within.
There was a series of sharp thunks and Chev hauled the body back quickly and then shoved him in again and immediately got several more thunks. This time he followed the body in and charged between the narrow stalactites.
A drow appeared before him with two blades drawn and Chev promptly buried the elf under the dead body and rolled off to one side as more crossbow bolts missed him.
Two blades out, the warrior kept rolling until he was behind a large section of stone that had fallen off the ceiling long ago. A startled drow beside him dropped his crossbow and reached for his swords but dropped them when his head fell to the ground beside them.
Standing and backing himself against a wall, Chev watched the five drow warriors fanned out around him and stalled for time while he planned a strategy. Finally he swept the glowing blade around in front of him, using its light to blind the light sensitive drow and used that moment of shock to stab at them.
By the time the drow recovered, there was only one left standing and he backed away from Chev for fear of falling to the same trick. A harpoon tip appeared where the elf's adam's apple had been and the look of fear was made permanent as the dwarf behind him pulled him to the ground and kicked him off his harpoon.
Chev saluted the dwarf with his glowing sword and looked about for this so-called cache of magical items. A large sack beside him beckoned to the warrior and he opened it slowly with the tip of his sword.
Several large glowing gems fell out and rolled across the cavern floor.
"Those are mine!" declared the leader of the thugs.
Chev turned to him slowly, swords raised. "You said I get first