"Sir Raffi's wine-tasting guide (hidden insert)"—
[Underdark Calendar, October 27, 1001, Lightless City.
Only 14 days remained until the day of sacrifice.
Drizzt Do'Urden. A terrifying man.
He was like a bottle of '82 nightglow wine, a fine aged vintage. Even at the first encounter, the wine's luminescence and fruity fragrance were enough to inspire wonder (I mean the fact that his position and that of his female servant were reversed).
But only after truly understanding him would you discover the fundamental reason he was called the "Matron Mother of wines"—
That Silver Tongue of his.
He laid bare the thoughts I had buried deepest within me, without a doubt. I did not even know how he had seen through me. It was as though a Mind Flayer had probed my thoughts and exposed every ounce of humiliation and resentment in my heart.
But more astonishing still was that he had actually persuaded me.
Facts spoke louder than words. In the Hero Tavern, in his confidence, I had indeed glimpsed that future. The melody of liberation from the female narrative seemed to have been sealed away in an underground wine cellar, waiting for the day the jar was opened to release its accumulated fragrance into a corner of Lightless City.
But I needed to prepare for both possibilities, so that when the Matron of Spider Silk shattered this jar of fine wine called "men," I could stand firmly beside the women—at least that would let me survive, even if I remained as devoid of dignity as I was now.
Then perhaps I really ought to drag more people down with me, like a water ghost in the Dark Lake. Yes, contact the other families and drag in those like me and Vincent, men with ability but no standing.
That way,