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They came in under the cover of a violent squall line that swept down upon Ten-Towns from the open east Ironically, they followed the sa the side of Kelvin’s Cairn that Drizzt and Wulfgar had traveled just teeks earlier This band of verbeeg, though, headed south toward the settleh tall and thin - the siants - they were still a foriant led the advanced scout of Akar Kessell’s vast ar blasts of wind, they moved with all speed to a secret lair that had been discovered by orc scouts in a rocky spur on the southern side of the mountain There was barely a score of the e bundle of weapons and supplies

The leader pressed on with all speed toward its destination Its naiant whose upper lip had been torn away by the ripping rotesque caricature of a sure the respect of fear in its normally unruly troops Akar Kessel had personally hand-picked Biggrin as the leader of his forward scouts, though the wizard had been counseled to send a less conspicuous party, so’s people, for the delicate ard and was impressed with the enor could carry

The troop settled into their new quarters beforeareas, storage rooms, and a small kitchen Then they waited, silently poised to strike the first lethal blows in Akar Kessell’s glorious assault on Ten-Towns

An orc runner came every couple of days to check on the band and deliver the latest instructions froress of the next supply troop that was scheduled to arrive Everything was proceeding according to Kessell’s plan, but Biggrin noted with concern that er and anxious every ti that the time to march to as finally upon theh: Stay hidden and wait

In less than teeks in the tense atiants had disintegrated Verbeeg were creatures of action, not conteurin was never far away, and the ied to break up the scuffles before any of the troops were seriously wounded The giant knew beyond any doubt that it could not keep control of the battlehungry band for er

The fifth runner slipped into the cave on a particularly hot and uncoht As soon as the unfortunate orc entered the co

"What’s the news, then?" one of them demanded impatiently

Thinking that the backing of Akar Kessell was sufficient protection, the orc eyed the giant in open defiance "Fetch your rabbed the orc by the scruff of the neck and shook the creature roughly "Yous was asked a question, scuiant "What’s the news?"

The orc, now visibly unnerved, shot back an angry threat at its giant assailant "The wizard will peel the skin frorowled the first giant, reaching down to clae hand around the orc’s neck It lifted the creature clear off the ground, using only one of its massive ar the verbeeg in the least

"Aw, squeeze its filthy neck!" came one call

"Put its eyes out an’ drop it in a dark hole!" said another

Biggrin entered the rooh the ranks to discover the source of the co toriant leader was aering the volatile Akar Kessell It had seen , or simply to appease the wizard’s distorted taste for pleasure "Put the roans and angry gruiant

"Bash its ’ead in!" cried one

"Bites its nose!" yelled another

By now, the orc’s face had grown puffy fro holding it returned Biggrin’s threatening stare for a few iant’s booted feet

"Keep it then," the verbeeg snarled at Biggrin "But if it wags its tongue at in, I’ll eats it fer sure!"

"I’ve ’ad too iant from the back of the ranks "An’ a whole dale o’ filthy dwarfs fer the taken’!" The grurin looked around and studied the seething rage that had crept into all of the troops, threatening to bring down the whole lair in one sudden fit of irrepressible violence

"Tooin’ out t’ see whats about us," Biggrin offered in response It was a dangerous iant knew, but the alternative was certain disaster "Only three at a tiained a rin’s proposal It started to protest, but the giant leader silenced it irin co that had threatened the runner and siants howled their glee and exchanged shoulderclaps with their coiven theiant leader’s doubts about its decision were far from dispelled by the lusty enthusiasm of the soldiers Shouts of the various dwarven recipes the verbeegs had concocted - "Dwarf o’ the Apple" and "Bearded, Basted, an’ Baked" to narin dreaded whatca out of the lair in groups of three, and only during the nighttiht it unlikely that any dwarves would travel this far north up the valley, but knew that it was taking a huge gaiant’s mouth whenever a patrol returned without incident

Si allowed out of the cra’s morale tenfold The tension inside the lair virtually disappeared as the troops regained their enthusias war Up on the side of Kelvin’s Cairn they often saw the lights of Caer-Konig and Caer-Dineval, Termalaine across the way to the west, and even Bryn Shander far to the south Viewing the cities allowed thehts were enough to sustain the see the iht to his troops, Biggrin gradually began to relax about the risky decision

But then tarves, having been informed by Bruenor that there was some fine stone under the shadow of Kelvin’s Cairn, ate itspotential They arrived on the southern slopes of the rocky mountain late one afternoon, and by dusk had made camp on a flat rock beside a swift stream

This was their valley, and it had known no trouble in several years They took few precautions

So it happened that the first patrol of verbeeg to leave the lair that night soon spotted the flames of a campfire and heard the distinctive dialect of the hated dwarves

On the other side of the mountain, Drizzt Do’Urden opened his eyes fro glooar in the custo out over the plain