Chapter 15 Chapter 12 Adaptive

"We can bring this whole district down." General Dagna poked at the map unfolded on the table. "Collapse?" the battle maniac yelled angrily, "If you collapse it, how are we going to kill those stinky elves?" Regis, who had arranged the meeting, stared straight at Dagna and the three other dwarf commanders crowded around the table.Then he looked at Panter and explained, "The ceiling will kill the stinkers." "Bah, sandstone!" Battle yelled. "What's the point of doing that? I'm planning to oil my armor with drow blood, and I will. But with your stupid plan, I'll have to dig It took only a month to take out a bunch of dead bodies to rub."

"You take the lead to rush here." Dagna pointed to another open tunnel on the map, and suggested, "The rest of us let you lead by a hundred." Regis looked at the general with a wry face, and then at the other dwarves one by one, everyone nodded in agreement.Regis knew Dagna was only half joking.Half the Warhammer dwarves probably wouldn't have had their eyes wet when the stone fell on the dark elf if the damned Thiberdorf Panter had happened to be there. "If the passage is going to be collapsed." Regis brought them back to the point, "We have to strengthen our defense here." He pointed to two other open areas on the nearby lower passage, and added. "I'll be meeting Burksgar of Hard Rock later today."

"Are you going to let stinky humans get involved?" Pant asked. Even dwarves who like the smell of ash-soaked, sweaty body frown at such a comment.In Mithril Hall, Panter's underarm odor was known to wilt tough flowers fifty yards away. "I don't know what I'll do to humans," Regis replied. "I haven't even told them I expect a drow raid. If they would join us, I have no reason to think they won't, I think we'd be wise to keep them out of the lower tunnels—even though we have plans to light those tunnels." Dagna nodded in agreement. "A wise choice indeed," he said. "Tall humans are suited to fighting in the mountains. I think the drow could either go around or go through the mountains."

"The people of Hardstone will be waiting for them," added another dwarf. ※※※※ Standing in the shadows behind a half-closed door in the house, Bruenor Warhammer watched it all curiously.He was amazed at how quickly Regis had taken control of the situation, especially since the halfling wasn't wearing a ruby ​​hypnotic pendant at the moment.The halfling blamed Bruenor for not acting quickly, but for falling into self-pity for not being able to keep up with Catti-brie and Drizzt.Afterwards, he dragged Pant directly to General Dagna and several war commanders. What surprised Bruenor now was not that the dwarves were keen to prepare for battle, but that Regis seemed to be the leader.Of course, halflings make up lies to play such roles.With Bruenor becoming indifferent again, the halfling pretended to have met the dwarf king, and pretended to go to Dagna and the others with Bruenor's direct instructions.

When Bruenor first discovered the deception, he wanted to strangle the halfling, but Regis confronted him bravely and offered, with all sincerity, that Bruenor step aside as soon as he took over. Bruno wished he could.He tried to get back together, but any thought of fighting brought him back to the battles he'd been through lately, mostly with Drizzt, Catti-brie, and Wulfgar by his side.Unnerved by painful memories, Bruenor dismissed Regis, allowing the halfling to continue to issue orders in his guise. Dagna was as good a strategist as anyone, but his combat experience was limited to dwarves and stupid goblins.Regis, on the other hand, was Drizzt's best friend, having heard a hundred times the tales of Drizzt's homeland and his kin.Regis was also Wulfgar's best friend, so he knew well the barbarian allies the dwarves needed as war drew near.

Also, Dagna had never warmed to anyone other than a dwarf, but now he had listened wholeheartedly to a halfling--a halfling not known for his bravery! —Bruno was not as surprised as usual. This fact also stung the king.Bruenor knew dark elves and barbarians at least as well as Regis, and he knew dwarf tactics better than anyone.It should be him standing at the table, pointing out the various war zones on the map; it should be him who has Regis standing beside him, meeting the strong man Birxgar. Bruenor lowered his gaze to the ground, rubbing his eyebrows and the scar below.There was a dull pain in the hollow eye socket.Hollow, and so was his heart, empty at the loss of Wulfgar, broken at the thought of Drizzt and his beloved Catti-brie in danger.

What had happened to him was more than the responsibilities of being Lord of Mithril Hall.Bruenor's most important contribution to Mithril Hall was his children: one dead, another lost; then his friends.There was nothing he could do to change their fate now; he could only hope that they would overcome their bad luck, survive, and return to him, because Bruenor had no way of going to Catti-brie and Drizzt. Bruenor could never bring Wulfgar back. The dwarf king turned away with a sigh, and walked slowly back to his empty room.Didn't even notice that the meeting was adjourned. Regis stood at the door and silently watched Bruenor leave, hoping that the pendant was at hand, for no other reason than to rekindle the flame in the heartbroken dwarf's chest.

※※※※ Catti-brie looked apprehensively at the wide corridor ahead, trying to make out a clear shape among the many stalagmite peaks.She entered a muddy area, and she could already see the tracks quite clearly—goblin tracks, she recognized them.Moreover, this is a recent imprint. A perfect location for an ambush looms ahead.Catti-brie took out an arrow from the quiver behind her buttocks, and then held the magic bow Tamari Heart Piercing Bow in her hand.The other hand holds the black panther statue, ready to be dropped at any moment.She quietly considered whether to summon Guenhwyvar from the Astral Plane.There's no solid evidence that goblins are around—all the pinnacles in the corridor look normal and harmless—but she just has the creeps.

Reason overwhelmed intuition, and she decided not to summon the big cat.She walked slowly along the left wall, flinching every time the muddy water splashed next to her raised boots. Having left behind a dozen peaks of stalagmites, still clinging to the left wall, the young woman stood and listened.Everything seemed quiet and quiet, but she couldn't get rid of the feeling that she was being watched every step she took.There was a monster lurking not far away, just waiting to jump out and strangle her.Is there always danger in the Underdark?She wondered if the imaginary danger was driving her mad?Or worse, false alarms from misguided intuitions causing her to let her guard down when the real crisis is coming?

Catti-brie shook her head to clear her mind, squinting into the gloom brought on by the magical starlight.Another benefit of Lady Alustrie's gift is that Catti-brie's eyes don't glow red to indicate she has night vision.But she was inexperienced in such things and knew nothing; she knew only that the shapes ahead were indeed ominous.The floor and walls, unlike the rest of the tunnel, do not appear to be solid.Mud and water flowed freely in various places, and many stalagmites appeared to have grown appendages—perhaps the hands of the goblins wielding their evil blades. Catti-brie pushed back another thought and started to move forward, but she froze immediately.She heard a soft, tiny scratch, like the tip of a knife brushing a stone face.She waited for a while, but heard nothing more, so she warned herself again not to let her imagination lead her away.

But were those goblin footprints part of the imagination?she asked herself as she took another step forward. Catti-brie tossed the statue down and spun back.A goblin hides behind the nearest stalagmite, his ugly flat face widened by a wide grin, his rusty curly sword raised above his head for the strike. Catti-brie took aim and fired.Almost as soon as the silver arrow left the string, the goblin's head exploded in a shower of colorful sparks.The arrow whizzed past, and sparks splashed out, chipping off a large stone pillar. "Guenhwyvar!" Catti-brie yelled, shooting an arrow.She knew she had to move away, because the shower of sparks had given away her location.She saw the gray mist swirling around her and knew the summoning was complete.Picking up the statue, she immediately ran away from the wall, jumped over the goblin's dead body, cut to the nearest stalagmite, and then dodged the other two stalagmites in succession.Out of the corner of her eye she glimpsed another four-foot tall, huddled figure.An arrow shot out, and the silver trail swept across the shadows, hitting again.But Catti-brie couldn't help laughing, the flash saw a dozen hideous humanoids stalking and crawling around the pinnacle. They screamed and began to charge. Beside the wall, the gray mist condensed into a strong black panther entity.Guenhwyvar recognized the urgency of the call, and immediately went on alert, ears pressed down, and bright green eyes roving around, taking in the whole situation.The big cat strode up and ran, but it was more silent than the night. Catti-brie arced further away from the wall, weaving and circling to dodge the approaching procession.Every time she ran over a pinnacle, she would shoot an arrow, either hitting a stone or a goblin.She knew that chaos was her ally now, and she couldn't let these guys rearrange or surround her. Another arrow flew out, and by its light Catti-brie saw a closer target, a goblin crouching under the stalagmite she was about to pass.She ran behind the stone peak, braked suddenly, retreated along the original road, and hurriedly loaded the arrow branch. The goblin circled around the stone pillar and stabbed her with a sword.When Catti-brie swung her bow and was about to separate the sword, she suddenly heard a splash of mud and a gasp behind her, and instinctively fell down. A slashing goblin landed on his startled companion.But the two goblins were on their feet quickly, almost as fast as Catti-brie.She bowed forward for protection, one hand trying to grasp the dagger inlaid on her belt. Seeing that they had the upper hand, the two goblins charged forward—scrambling away after seeing the six-hundred-pound panther appear flying. "Kan," Catti-brie murmured gratefully, and drew an arrow and turned around.As expected, the goblin behind him was quickly approaching. Tao Mali's bowstring rang again and again.Katie-brie blasted holes in the queue.She ran under cover of sudden and deadly lases and sparks, but instead of fleeing as the goblin had expected, she charged forward, back the same way she had run. To amuse them, she ducked behind another large mound.She almost laughed when a goblin jumped out from behind her, rubbed its glowing eyes and looked the other way. Catti-brie shot an arrow five paces behind the stupid thing, and the silver arrow shattered his bones and sent the creature straight up into the air. Catti-brie turned and ran across the mound when she heard a growl from Guenhwyvar, followed by a series of shrill howls from goblins.In front of her were more than a hundred goblins running off into the distance.She raised her bow and arrow, ready to clear the way. Something bumped against her thigh, causing her to let go of the bowstring.The silver arrow missed its target far, poking a hole in the wall. Catti-brie felt physically hurt and mentally shocked, and she lost her balance.She was kneeling on one knee, her shin hitting a protruding stone, and the pain nearly knocked her over.Although the wound in her thigh was burning and throbbing, and her clothes were already soaked in blood, Catti-brie drew another arrow from her quiver. She struggled to stay sane, and put the arrow in her hand on the bowstring.The goblin who had attacked her stood directly in front of her, a rusty sword held aloft in both hands, and the stench of his yellow, mucus-stained teeth was sprayed directly in her face. Catti-brie shoots a silver arrow.The goblin in front of her jumped up.But the silver arrow pierced the skull from the chin of the second goblin behind him. Catti-brie thought she was going to die.How could she miss the target?Did the goblin jump up out of fear and just happen to dodge her arrow?This kind of question doesn't make sense to her now, but she just can't restrain herself from thinking about it.She was sure that the time of death was very near to her.She could barely hunched over the goblin's next sword swing. But the rusty sword did not fall.The goblin stood still, staring at Catti-brie for what seemed to be an infinite time, before the sound of the rusty sword falling to the ground broke the silence.There was a leaking sound in his chest, followed by a spurt of blood, and the monster fell to the ground like his rusted sword, dead. Only then did Catti-brie realize that her arrow had actually hit the mark, only hitting the second goblin after penetrating the first one. Catti-brie struggled to her feet.She wanted to run, but the severe pain overwhelmed her. Before she could understand what happened, her body was already kneeling on the ground again.She felt a coldness all over her body, her stomach and intestines were constantly churning, and what made her feel horrified was that a terrifying goblin was running towards her at high speed wielding a mace. Catti-brie managed to muster all her strength, and waited until the last moment when the goblin charged, before swinging her back at him.The goblin screamed and fell backwards.Though he avoided the blow, his retreat gave Catti-brie enough time to draw her short sword and jeweled dagger. She stood up, suppressing the pain and nausea in her body for a moment. The goblin shrieked something in a shrill voice that Catti-brie knew was a threatening curse.Catti-brie jumped back as the vile creature swung its mace at her. The pain nearly knocked her off balance.The goblin grinned uglyly in triumph.He pointed to Catti-brie's injured thigh and continued to jeer at her loudly, regardless of whether the other party understood his language or not. Catti-brie was sure she could defeat the goblin, but she was afraid there would be no point in doing so.Even if she and Guenhwyvar killed or drove away all these goblins, what would happen after that?Her legs were already struggling to support her body, and her task was definitely not complete, and she even began to wonder if she would have a chance to clean and bandage her wound.The goblins might not have been able to kill her, but they had certainly stopped her.The physical pain is constantly wearing down her will. Catti-brie closed her eyes and began to sway. The goblin thought that the opportunity had come, so he swung his club and attacked.Catti-brie's eyes suddenly opened at this moment.The goblin knew that he had been fooled, and hurriedly tried to stop, but slipped and fell in the mud under his feet. The goblin swung the mace wildly, but Catti-brie's short sword sank easily between the spikes on the head of his club.Catti-brie knew she didn't have enough strength to push the mace away, so she bent down and pushed the goblin's arm away with her weight.The jeweled dagger plunged into the goblin's stomach at the same moment. The goblin tried to block the dagger with his other hand, but the dagger left a deep gash on it. Catti-brie didn't know how long she could keep the goblin's mace down.Her strength is constantly draining.Now all she wanted was to curl up in a ball and fall asleep. But the situation took a surprising turn for her, and the goblin below her screamed in pain and shook her head desperately.He shook wildly, as if trying to get away from Catti-brie's dagger.He would have almost succeeded if Catti-brie hadn't pressed hard on the handle of the dagger. A surge of energy poured from the dagger's handle into Catti-brie's arm. The young woman didn't know why, she didn't know what was happening at all, and the goblin's body was convulsing, his strength pouring into his enemy. The creature eventually slumped to the ground, its arms hanging limply.With her newfound strength, Catti-brie drove the dreaded dagger deeper into the goblin's body, until it reached the hilt.The greater flow of energy nearly shook Catti-brie's hand.Her eyes were wide with terror—Artemis Entreri's weapon had sucked the goblin's life force and passed it on to itself! The goblin lay sprawled on the stalagmite pile, lifeless in his eyes that could not be closed, and his body began to twitch for the last time. Catti-brie stepped back, the bloody dagger still in her hand.It took a lot of effort to draw in her breath, and her eyes never left the gleaming edge of the dagger, which was full of disgust and disbelief. Guenhwyvar's growl reminded her that the battle was not over.She slipped the dagger back into her belt and turned to seek her magic bow.After running two steps, she realized that her legs could move freely again. From somewhere in the shadows a goblin hurled a spear and it was hitting the stone beside the woman.Catti-brie stepped into the mud puddle and retrieved her bow from it.She looked at her thigh, and found that the magic arrow shot from the quiver had been mended, and no blood flowed from the wound on her leg.The young woman carefully touched the wound with her hand, and touched a thick scab.Still shaking her head with a puzzled expression, she raised her bow and continued to shoot at the goblins in all directions. Only one goblin slipped up to Catti-brie again, coming around behind the stalagmite.The young woman immediately wanted to put down her bow and arrow and draw out her melee weapon.But she stopped immediately (as did the goblin!) A huge leopard paw slapped the top of the creature's head, and the long claw dug into the goblin's upward-sloping forehead. With a lift of his paw, Guenhyfer flung the monster backward, leaving only a tattered boot where he had stood.Catti-brie looked behind them.Guenhwyvar then bit through the throat of another goblin. Catti-brie saw no other targets, but she shot a magic arrow nonetheless, illuminating the end of the tunnel with its light.There were six goblins running in a panic.Catti-brie hurled a hail of arrows, knocking them all to the ground. For the next minute, she was still shooting arrows in all directions, and her magic quiver would continuously replenish the arrows she shot.Guenhive came back to her at this moment, rubbing her knee lightly, wanting her to pat him.Catti-brie let out a long sigh, and stroked the panther's gnarled underside with one hand.Her eyes fell on the jeweled dagger that had been sheathed back. She had seen Entreri wield the dagger before, and had it pressed against her own throat.The young woman shuddered every time she thought of that horrific moment, and now knowing the brutal capabilities of the weapon, she could only feel more frightened. Guenhive pushed her lightly and let out a low growl.Catti-brie understood the anxiety in Black Panther's heart.Drizzt had told her that goblins rarely moved in small groups in the Underdark, and if she saw twenty goblins, there were probably two hundred of their kind nearby. Catti-brie looked to the tunnel behind her, the road she had come from, and the remnants of the goblins from where they had fled.For a split second, the thought of turning around, hunting down the fleeing goblins, and returning to the sunlit world came to her mind. But the vulnerability of this moment was quickly erased by her.She knew she had to move on, but how?Catti-brie looked down and smiled at the mask fastened to her belt.She holds the mask up in front of her face, but she doesn't know how it works. Shrugging at Guanhaifa, the young woman pulled the mask over her face. Nothing happened. She pressed the mask tightly, remembering Drizzt.Imagine yourself with ebony skin and a delicate drow body. Magical power stimulated every pore of her body.It wasn't long before she took her hands away from her face.The mask has been attached to her face perfectly.Catti-brie blinked constantly.With the help of the cat's eye magic, she saw that her hands were shining with black luster, and her fingers became far more slender and delicate than she remembered. It's so easy! Catti-brie wished she had a mirror so she could see how she had changed.Although she knew that this change was real, she still couldn't believe it in her heart.She thought again of how perfectly Entreri had impersonated Regis when he returned to Mithril Hall, how even the halfling's attire had changed exactly the same.The young woman looked at the brown dress on her body.Then he began to recall Drizzt's description of his hometown, imagining the strange attire of the high priests of Lolth. Catti-brie's travel outfit quickly morphed into a gorgeous gown shimmering in purple and black.Her boots had turned black, and the toes curled into fantastic curlicues.Her weapons were the same, but Entreri's jeweled dagger matched her current attire very well. The young woman could not help thinking again of the evil of this weapon.She wanted to throw it in the mud beneath her feet, bury it so deep that no one could find it.Her fingers had even touched the handle of the dagger. But she immediately let go of it again.Gathering her mind, Catti-brie smoothed out the wrinkles on the drow's robe.This weapon had helped her.Without it, she would be unable to complete the mission due to injuries, if not death.It's just a weapon, like her bow.Though its terrifying powers tickle her mind, she should accept it.One day, two days, one week, two weeks, Catti-brie gradually got used to the existence of this dagger. This is the Underdark, the land of no mercy.