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.Again and again the mighty unicorn smashed shoulders, horn, and hooves into the wood.Finally the wooden barrier shuddered, bouncing slightly as strained timbers began to break.Now Kamerynn turned and kicked the door with his powerful rear legs.It strained, and finally burst outward in a shower of splinters.Turning, the unicorn leaped through the opening.Four Firbolgs, clubs upraised, stood waiting, glee in their bestial eyes.Kamerynn charged forward, bowling over two of the Firbolgs with his broad shoulders.The others leaped and grabbed, but could not stop him.Kicking off the last grasping hands, Kamerynn galloped down a wide stone corridor, illuminated by flickering torches.Somewhere ahead, he knew, he would find the door.IXTHE LEGACY OF CYMRYCH HUGHTHE COMPANIONS FROZE in the treasure room.The Firbolg grunted and stirred in his chair.Finally, he settled back to a deep pattern of snoring.The incident made them realize how precarious their position was, however, and they gathered by the door.“Come on.” Robyn signaled to them.Holding her handmade cudgel ready for action, she led the party from the room.Tristan strapped the silver sword to his belt while he waited for the others to leave the room.He noticed that Pawldo’s pockets and pouches bulged with treasure, yet somehow the halfling didn’t make any clinking noises as he moved.Daryth carried the scimitar.In addition, the prince saw that the Calishite had bedecked his fingers with an assortment of gem-encrusted rings.Robyn had taken only the torque – even in the dim light, Tristan could see that the silver band enhanced her beauty.On impulse, the prince reached down and scooped up a handful of gold coins, realizing that he held in his hand more wealth than most humans ever came across in a lifetime.Carefully, he left the room and pushed the door shut.It latched with a barely audible click, but the sleeping Firbolg snorted in irritation and lurched in his chair.For a moment they feared that he would awaken, but he soon lapsed into deep slumber again.They looked about, realizing that they could return from the direction they had come, or advance farther into the Firbolgs’ den.Torches flickered up the corridor, holding the promise of more – and probably dangerous – activity if they continued ahead.Still hoping to find Keren, they chose to continue on into the stone structure.Behind them, the Firbolg snorted a few times and went on sleeping.*****Groth returned to a scene of mass confusion, rage, and panic.Giants ran to and fro, brandishing weapons and crying an alarm.“Hold!” cried the Firbolg chief, in a voice that reached into the very depths of the earth.Instantly, his minions paused and turned to face him.None spoke.“What is the meaning of this?” Groth demanded, fixing one Firbolg with a glaring eye.“The unicorn, yer greatness – it seems to have, well, escaped!”“Seems to have what?” asked the chief, very softly.The Firbolg paled, for the chief spoke softly only when he was very angry indeed.“It seems to have escaped!” he finally blurted.“But it is still in the temple.We were just about to catch it when -”“Fools! Blundering idiots! Can I not leave the temple unattended for a brief afternoon without you bringing disaster down upon our heads?” Groth’s voice now rattled the foundations of the temple with its strength.The other Firbolgs met his outburst with silence.“Find the unicorn!” he bellowed finally, triggering his minions to frantic action.“And return it to me, unharmed!”Giants raced in all directions, as anxious to escape the presence of their wrathful lord as they were to locate the wayward unicorn.Soon Groth stood alone in the entry hall, contemplating the situation.Groth was not particularly worried about the unicorn running loose through the temple.The structure only had two exits, and both were heavily guarded, so the creature did not seem likely to escape.Nevertheless, Groth gathered a few more of his warriors to him, and took them around the outside of the building to the exit from the coal bin.He would wait here, with a reinforced guard, in case the unicorn proved tricky.Any enemy loose in the temple of the Firbolgs was a potential threat, reflected Groth with a grimace.He thought of the treasure room and its valuable stores.There would be no telling what kind of trouble could result if the Sword of Cymrych Hugh should fall into the wrong hands.*****Robyn ran down another of the long stone corridors, her companions following quickly.They passed several branching corridors but continued straight ahead, hoping to find some clue to the whereabouts of Keren’s prison.“Shh!” called Daryth, and the whole party lurched to a stop.“I hear something up ahead.Sounds like quite a commotion.” The others, straining their ears, also heard the sounds of shouting and bellowing.“Something has the Firbolgs riled up,” offered Pawldo.“Maybe they found that one we left in the gutter.”“I don’t think so,” countered Tristan.“We left that one behind us, and all of the noise is coming from up ahead.”They approached a four-way intersection of corridors, and Tristan advanced to peer down the right and left paths.They were both empty.Suddenly a loud clattering emerged from the corridor before them, and they saw a huge white creature galloping toward them.Freezing momentarily, they stared at the magnificent beast in surprise.Apparently sharing their shock, the fabulous creature stopped suddenly before them and tossed his head in frustration.A milky white mane billowed from his neck, but their attention collectively focused on the animal’s forehead.“A unicorn!” gasped Tristan, saying what the others were thinking.The beautiful animal reared high and then stomped his forehooves upon the stone floor.For several seconds he stared at them, as if thinking.Then, he tossed his head to the left before turning and galloping down the corridor to the right.Tristan started after the unicorn, but paused as he felt Robyn’s restraining hand on his arm.At the same time, he noticed the sounds of pursuing Firbolgs far down the corridor.Obviously they were chasing the unicorn.“He wants us to go this way,” declared Robyn firmly, tugging the prince into the left-hand corridor.Too surprised by her assertion to argue, Tristan mutely followed Robyn.Daryth and Pawldo did likewise, and they all ran down the passage as fast as they could.Finally they ducked around a corner and paused, gasping for breath and listening for sounds of pursuit.The bellows and cries of the pursuing Firbolgs built to a crescendo and then faded again, so they knew that the creatures were chasing the unicorn down the opposite corridor.More slowly, but understandably vigilant, they continued to advance.Suddenly Robyn stopped by a door and held up her hand.Immediately, the others halted behind her.She concentrated – not as if she were listening for something, thought Tristan.It was more as if she sought a faint scent in the air.“Keren!” she called, in a loud, clear voice.Tristan gasped at the sound, looking nervously behind as if he expected hundreds of Firbolgs to leap upon them from ambush.Before he could urge Robyn to silence, however, an answering voice was heard from beyond the door
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