Page 33 (2/2)

Then Drizzt understood

The structure akening with a life of its own The field outside reers of dawn brightened the tower’s high pinnacle

The door suddenly swung open into the third level, Kessell’s throne roo beyond the crystal throne across the roo the open door Regis stood obediently at his side, wearing a blank expression on his face

"Please enter," Kessell said with false courtesy "Fear not for my trolls that you injured, they will surely heal!" He threw his head back and laughed

Drizzt felt a fool; to think that all of his caution and stealth had served no better purpose than to amuse the wizard! He rested his hands on the hilts of his sheathed scih the doorway

Guenhwyvar remained crouched in the shadows of the stairway, partly because the wizard had said nothing to indicate that he knew of the cat, and partly because the weakened cat didn’t want to expend the energy of walking

Drizzt halted before the throne and bowed low The sight of Regis standing beside the wizard disturbed hinized the halfling Regis likewise had shown no fah Drizzt couldn’t be sure if that was a conscious effort or if the halfling was under the influence of sos, Akar Kessell," Drizzt stammered in the broken accent of denizens of the underworld, as though the coured that he ainst the deood faith to parley with you on hed aloud "Are you indeed!" a wide smile spread across his face, replaced abruptly with a scowl His eyes narrowed evilly "I know you, dark elf! Any man who has ever lived in Ten-Towns has heard the name of Drizzt Do’Urden in tale or in jest! So keep your lies unspoken!"

"Your pardon,tactics "In many ways, it seems, you are wiser than your demon"

The self-assured look disappeared fro what had prevented Errtu fro his summons He looked at the droith more respect Had this solitary warrior slain a ain," Drizzt said "Greetings, Akar Kessell" He bowed low "I auardian of Icewind Dale I have come to kill you"

The scimitars leaped out of their sheaths

But Kessell moved, too The candle he held suddenly flickered to life Its flaht in the maze of prisms and mirrors that cluttered the entire cha spot Instantaneously with the lighting of the candle, three concentrated beaular prison None of the beams had touched him, but he sensed their power and dared not cross their path

Drizzt clearly heard the tower huhtened considerably as several of the wall panels which had appeared ht showed themselves to be s

"Did you believe that you could walk right in here and simply dispose of me?" Kessell asked incredulously "I am Akar Kessell, you fool! The Tyrant of Icewind Dale! I coreatest army that has ever marched on the frozen steppes of this forsaken land!"

"Beholdpart of the vast encampment that surrounded the tower, co camp

Then a death cry sounded from somewhere in the unseen reaches of the field Instinctively, both the drow and the wizard tuned their ears on the distant cla of battle Drizzt looked curiously at Kessell, wondering if the wizard kneas happening in the northern section of his camp

Kessell answered the drow’s unspoken question with a wave of his hand The i for a moment, then shifted to the other side of the field The shouts and clanging of the battle rang out loudly fro instrue of Bruenor’s clansoblins, came clear The field all around the dwarves was littered with the corpses of goblins and ogres

"You see how foolish it is to oppose me?" Kessell squealed

"It appears to me that the dwarves have done well"

"Nonsense!" Kessell screa returned to theof Tempos resounded from within its depths Drizzt leaned forward and strained to catch a glih the veil, anxious to see the leader of the song

"Even as the stupid dwarves cut down a few of hters, more warriors swarm to join the ranks of my army! Doom is upon you all, Drizzt Do’Urden! Akar Kessell is co cleared

With a thousand fervent warriors behind hioblins and orcs ere closest to the charging barbarians, holding unbending faith in the words of theirof their promised allies

Then they died

The barbarian horde drove through their ranks, singing and killing ild abandonh the clatter of weapons, the sound of the dwarves joining in the Song of Te with rage, Kessell waved the shocking i back on Drizzt "It does notto keep his tone steady "I shall deal with them mercilessly! And then Bryn Shander shall topple in flames!"

"But first, you, traitorous drow," the wizard hissed "Killer of your own kin, what gods have you left to pray to?" He puffed on the candle, causing its flale of reflection shifted and one of the beah the hilt of his old scih the black skin of his hand Drizzt griony and clutched at his wound as the sciinal path

"You see how easy it is?" Kessell taunted "Your feeble ine the power of Crenshinibon! Feel blessed that I allowed you to feel a sample of that power before you died!"

Drizzt held his jaw firlared at the wizard He had long ago accepted the possibility of death as an acceptable risk of his trade, and he was deteroad the sweat out of hily about, causing the rays to shift back and forth When he finally realized that he would not hear any whirew tired of the garowled and puckered his lips to puff on the fla seemed to come to a complete halt for several seconds The wizard looked down at the halfling, whois ed his shoulders, as if he was as surprised by his uncharacteristically brave act as Kessell

Relying on instinct, the wizard threw the silver plate that held the candle through the glass of thetoward the back corner of the room to a small ladder hidden in the shadows Drizzt had just taken his first steps when the fires within thethe drow’s attention, and two hellhounds bounded through the broken glass

Guenhwyvar intercepted one, leaping past itsinto the demon hound The two beasts tumbled back toward the rear of the roois aside

The second dog unleashed its fire breath at Drizzt, but again, as with the demon, the fire didn’t bother the drow Then it was his turn to strike The fire-hating sci beast in half as Drizzt brought it down Aawk at his mutilated victim, Drizzt resumed his chase

He reached the bottoh the open trap door to the tower’s highest floor, caht Drizzt felt the intensity of the vibrations increasing with each pulse The heart of Cryshal-Tirith was beating stronger with the rising sun Drizzt understood the danger that he was heading into, but he didn’t have the tiain facing Kessell, this tiing eerily inhunk of crystal - Cryshal-Tirith’s heart It was four-sided and tapered like an icicle Drizzt recognized it as a h it was barely a foot long

An exact iht e the chamber in half, with the drow on one side and the wizard on the other Drizzt knew froible as one of stone Unlike the cluttered scrying roo more like ain the tower’s wall, adorned this room, just to the side of the wizard

"Strike the heart, drow," Kessell laughed "Fool! The heart of Cryshal-Tirith isthat you could ever do, htest scratch upon its pure surface! Strike it; let your foolish ih He was flexible and cunning enough to realize that some foes could not be defeated with force alone There were always other options

He sheathed his re the rope that secured the sack to his belt Kessell looked on curiously, disturbed by the drow’s cal?" the wizard demanded

Drizzt didn’t reply His actions wereon the sack and pulled it open

"I asked you what you were doing!" Kessell scowled as Drizzt began walking toward the heart Suddenly the replica see that perhaps this dark elf was inally estimated

Crenshinibon sensed it, too The crystal shard telepathically instructed Kessell to unleash a killing bolt and be done with the drow

But Kessell was afraid

Drizzt neared the crystal He tried to put his hand over it, but the light wall repulsed hi asas wide as it would go His concentration was solely on the tower itself, he never looked at the wizard or acknowledged his ranting

Then he eeroan in protest It darkened

The wall of light that separated the drow from the wizard disappeared

But still Drizzt concentrated on the tower He knew that the layer of suffocating flour could only block the ge enough, though, for hi tight Kessell wailed and lurched forward, but halted before the drawn scimitar

"No!" the wizard cried in helpless protest "Do you realize the consequences of what you have done?" As if in answer, the tower trembled It calmed quickly, but both the drow and the wizard sensed the approaching danger Somewhere in the bowels of Cryshal-Tirith, the decay had already begun

"I understand completely," replied Drizzt "I have defeated you, Akar Kessell Your short reign as self-proclaimed ruler of Ten-Towns is ended"

"You have killed yourself, drow!" Kessell retorted as Cryshal-Tirith shuddered again, this time even more violently "You cannot hope to escape before the tower cruain

Drizzt shrugged, unconcerned "So be it," he said "My purpose is fulfilled, for you, too, shall perish"

A sudden, crazy cackle exploded from the wizard’s lips He spun away from Drizzt and dove at the h the glass and falling to the field below, as Drizzt expected, Kessell slipped into the ain, and this ti did not relent Drizzt started for the trap door but could barely keep his footing Cracks appeared along the walls

"Regis!" he yelled, but there was no answer Part of the wall in the room below had already collapsed; Drizzt could see the rubble at the base of the ladder Praying that his friends had already escaped, he took the only route left open to hiic mirror after Kessell