Broken pottery lay scattered among the cavern's jagged rocks. Renato picked up a shard and studied the geometric patterns along its edge.
Typical duergar craftsmanship: crude, but durable.
The camp was not far from District 2, only one cavern away. This debris had probably been swept here by the Great Earthquake.
Tristana and Klauthsura had spent the past two days scouting the nearby Psionic Nodes. Although they theoretically still had three weeks left, which was plenty of time, the group no longer intended to wait for the Elder Brain to slowly unravel the Deep Dragon's magic.
What if something unexpected happened and the Elder Brain cracked it faster?
Moreover, according to Klauthsura's observations, the volume of supplies moving through the Mind Flayer Colony had noticeably increased lately, and its defenses were being strengthened further. The hunters sent out earlier had also begun returning one after another. The Psionic Warriors were the Elder Brain's loyal guards, and Renato had fought them before. They were formidable opponents.
The four companions' advantage in intelligence was dwindling as the Elder Brain continued gathering resources. Time was not on Renato's side.
The hunters had been recalled... had the Elder Brain temporarily given up on destroying the Artifact, or had it realized something was wrong?
Probably the former, Renato thought. After all, Balin's chosen route through the Crystal Cavern had been something of a detour, and the group had carefully disposed of their campfire ashes along the way. The Elder Brain should have had no way to track their movements.
He reckoned that the Elder Brain intended to complete the Ritual first and replace the Dragon's "body," then take its time dealing with the Artifact that countered it.
The strengthening of the lair's defenses also made the group realize they could delay no longer. All four