One word: Damn.
These past couple of chapters really stood out. Seeing Garland's hopes and dream, having him lose everying over the pace of one chapter had made his character's transitition to darkness well written. Great work,
Final Fantasy: Cycle of Wrath
Moderator: LadyTevar
-
Darth Raptor
- Red Mage
- Posts: 5448
- Joined: 2003-12-18 03:39am
“Ugh! We’re finally here!” Kelga yawned and stretched in the evening light as the three weary travelers approached Cornelia City’s North Gate. “I never want to sleep in a tent again! Tonight we’ll get a real bed and real food! Not monster meat and that nasty freaking candy you guys like for whatever reason.”
Gilles came to a halt. “Something’s not right.”
That, in turn, stopped Kelga and Duane dead in their tracks. Duane wordlessly began taking in the scenery while Kelga glared at the black mage impatiently.
“What?” The thief demanded.
“North Gate is heavily fortified…” Duane observed. “Unusually so.”
“Look.” Gilles pointed toward the battlements at the top of the nearest tower. “Isn’t that Cornelia’s war banner?”
Kelga’s demeanor became more serious, and Duane nodded- apparently lost in thought. “It is. Who could they be fighting? If the kingdom is at war with the elves or dwarves it is a recent development, because last I heard the only thing Cornelia was fighting were goblins and pirates.”
“Does Cornelia recognize the goblin tribes as a sovereign nation?” The black mage asked.
Duane shook his head. “No, of course not. …Maybe there’s been a rebellion?” The red mage suddenly looked very worried.
Kelga sighed. “The only way we’re going to find out is if we get in there and ask some people. Come on.”
He marched up towards the heavy iron gates mumbling to himself as the two mages followed hesitantly. The walls looked like they had been reinforced mere days ago, and the extra gateways seemed to be hastily installed. Despite all of the wicked trappings, only two- albeit heavily armored- soldiers stood guard. Kelga marched right up to the nearest guard and waved to him. The soldier nodded curtly, making no effort to hide his mistrust of the city’s most recent arrivals.
“Hey there!” Kelga grinned amicably. “We’re from Pravoka, we-“
“Pravoka?” The soldier cut him off. “How? Construction on the drawbridge has been suspended.”
“We took the ‘scenic route’.” Gilles muttered.
The guard’s eyes got wide. “Through Mt. Lariat? You guys must be regular adventurers then. Something I can help you with?”
“Yes, there is.” Duane answered. “Because we’ve been in the wilderness so long we’ve been unable to keep up on current events on the Aldean. …We couldn’t help but notice North Gate has been heavily fortified and the war banner flies…”
“In short, what’s going on?” Kelga finished for him.
The soldier chuckled cynically. “What isn’t going on? General Garland has betrayed the crown and kidnapped the princess. He’s holding her hostage behind an army of goblins and undead. His forces have been staging feints on outlying villages on a regular basis. It’s all we can do to keep the city secure.”
“A human controlling monsters?” Gilles was incredulous. “How?”
The guard shrugged. “We don’t know. At first we didn’t even know it was him. We just thought the goblins got a new leader as their attacks were far more organized and effective than they’ve ever been. This came right after he snatched the princess right out from under His Majesty’s nose.”
“We just thought it was one hell of a coincidence.” The other soldier interjected, crossing from his side of the archway.
The first guard nodded. “It took us quite a while to figure out it was the general. Our first clue came when whole platoons of walking skeletons razed a village to the northeast. Undead never come this far south. They never cooperate with goblins either.”
“What sorcery is this!?” Duane whispered.
“So this ex-general is holding the princess hostage? What are his demands?” Kelga was noticeably intrigued.
The guard laughed. “Nothing less than the kingdom itself!” He shook his head. “The general has apparently gone mad. The palace is really tight-lipped about the actual abduction, but he can’t possibly expect the king to just turn Cornelia over to him.”
“So he’s using her as a shield while he attempts to take it by force?” Gilles was staring at the ground.
The soldier shrugged again. “Maybe, but he’s really going about it half-heartedly. Like I said, he probably has no plan at all. He’s got to be mad.”
“Still…” Duane mused. “If he can control fiends I wouldn’t underestimate him. This could be very bad.”
“It already is.” The soldier nodded grimly.
“Well, thanks!” Kelga said. “You’ve been a great help!” He grabbed his two companions by the arms and began to drag them through the gate. He only needed to do so for a few strides before they began to follow of their own accord. “Well, that was interesting. What do we do first?” He shook his head while he blithely lifted the purse from a wealthy-looking passerby. “No, let’s find an inn.”
“Did you just-!?” Duane’s eyes were wide.
“There’ll be none of that, child.” Gilles’ tone was totally unambiguous. “This isn’t Pravoka. This city has a watch.”
“Which means it’s more of a challenge!” Kelga grinned mischievously. “I’ve been getting rusty picking pockets in Anarchy Land.” His grin focused on Duane. “Besides, if I get caught Moneybags McFeatherhat will bail me out.”
“I most certainly will NOT!” Duane crossed his arms indignantly.
Kelga pinched his cheeks. “Aww, you’d let me rot in a cell?”
“Just knock it off!” Gilles hissed. “We can track down Lukhan tomorrow. Let’s find a place to eat and spend the night.” His yellow eyes flared brightly as he turned to Kelga. “And there will be no thievery from now on. You’re a Light Warrior, remember? Start conducting yourself as one.”
“Yes, Dad.” Kelga fell into step behind the two mages as they wound their way through the crowded street. Cornelia City was the largest in the world. Its population was overwhelmingly human, and it symbolized the human race as well as the Cornelian nation. Just as Cornelians referred to Elfheim and Duergar as ‘the elves’ and ‘the dwarves’ respectively, Cornelia was often referred to as ‘the humans’ in foreign lands. The city, the nation and the race had been one and the same for four hundred years. Since recorded history began.
The layout of the town was in sharp contrast to that of Pravoka. Never mind the fact that Pravoka was in a hideous state of disrepair, the eastern port city was heavily paved and industrialized. Cornelia, on the other hand, for all its development sported statues, fountains and neatly manicured lawns. Lavish mansions rested among walls and were small castles themselves. Even the lower-class houses were well-kept; the only thing about them that even said ‘lower-class’ was their small size. Deciduous trees lined the streets, some growing up from the street. For all its grandeur though, the city was dwarfed by the hulking mountain of masonry that was Castle Cornelia. It was the largest and tallest structure in the world. The three had seen the spires of the palace long before they had glimpsed the city itself on the horizon. Having entered from the north end of the city, they were directly beneath it. All three of them felt like fleas.
Kelga whistled. “Hard to believe people could build something that big.”
Duane chuckled. “Impressive isn’t it? It doesn’t seem that large from the inside however. Most of it is solid wall, and if I recall correctly it’s sort of built atop a mountain that was itself walled in. You could say the architects cheated, in a way.”
“That is still way too big to be someone’s house.” The thief almost tripped on something the way his neck was craned straight up.
“It doesn’t just house the royal family, it houses government officials and the ranking officers of the military. Hundreds of people live and work there, but it’s also built to be indestructible. Four hundred years ago dragon attacks were a major concern for all three nations. The city itself began within the warrens of that keep.”
Gilles, who had been silent thus far spoke up. “If that fortress can repel dragon attacks, what hope does that Garland guy have of taking this city with ordinary fiends?”
“Didn’t you pay attention?” Kelga chided, making a mental illness gesture. “The guy’s insane.”
The black mage shook his head. “I refuse to believe that someone who has the power to control fiends is just some two gil, crackpot revolutionary.”
“It’s not unheard of for people to negotiate with beastmen.” Duane scratched the back of his head. “Goblins, ogres and a few other species have their own language and are intelligent enough to deal with. The results are rarely favorable however.”
“I’ve never heard of a human leading a goblin army.” Gilles muttered.
“Nor have I.” The red mage frowned. “Controlling the undead is something altogether different.”
“Necromancy.” Gilles grunted quietly.
Duane nodded. “Outlawed in every nation, and for good reason. No, this ex-general is not to be trifled with. I fear for the kingdom.”
“Why?” Kelga demanded. “Why is any of this our concern? So some necromancer made a pact with the goblin tribes in order to lay siege to the country. We’re just here to learn about the crystals.”
“Were you born this nonchalant, or was it a skill you had to develop?” The dark wizard’s amber glare seemed to bore into the thief.
Kelga shrugged. “Meh, life’s too short to worry about every little thing. Besides, when you’re as fast and good looking as me, there’s no situation you can’t get out of.” That hubris-laden answer did not seem to satisfy Gilles, so Kelga quickly changed the subject. “Hey Duane, you’re from here, right? Why do we need to get an inn? Can’t we just crash at your place?”
Duane’s face became even more pale, if that were possible. “No! Absolutely not!”
“Issues.” Kelga muttered. He pointed to a hostelry on the far end of the square. “Well, that place looks as good as any. Let’s go, I’m starving.”
As the three made their way towards the inn, their gaze returned to the ground. It was then they noticed something bizarre that had escaped their attention previously.
“Sure are a lot of guards around.” The thief observed anxiously.
Duane cleared his throat. “I noticed that too…”
“Is that unusual?” Gilles asked.
Duane nodded. “Very. I can understand if they’ve instituted martial law, but they haven’t. This insurrection is external, there’s no unrest within the city itself. It’s almost as if they’re looking for something.”
“Or someone.” Kelga snorted. “Come on, let’s get indoors. Guards give me the creeps.” He opened the door and shuffled inside.
“They would.” Gilles muttered as he followed the other two into the warm firelight. Inside the three promptly took seats at a large round table. A cute, blue-haired waitress shuffled up to them, a small chalk board in hand. She smiled at Kelga, all but ignoring the two mages.
“Can I take your order, handsome?”
Kelga seemed totally oblivious to the compliment. “What do you recommend? I’ve had nothing but dog meat, wild herbs and licorice for the last few days.”
“Oh, you poor boy!” The waitress seemed genuinely concerned. Gilles rolled his eyes, but of course no one could see it. “The special is stuffed hen, brown rice and batagreens.”
“Sounds good.” Kelga cracked his knuckles. “I’ll have hard mulsum to drink.”
“Same here.” Duane clucked.
“And you, sir?” She turned to Gilles.
“Yeah that’s fine, but I just want some melon juice for a beverage.”
“It’ll be right out!” She winked to Kelga as she left, who didn’t even seem to notice.
Duane stood. “I’ll go reserve the rooms.”
The two sat in silence, taking in the atmosphere for a few moments. Kelga finally spoke up. “So first thing tomorrow we find that Lukhan guy? Any idea where he’d be?”
Gilles nodded. “The church, of course.”
The thief grinned. “I can hardly wait! Where do you think he’ll send us?”
“How should I know?”
Kelga sighed. “You wouldn’t, I’m just psyched. I mean, we’re finally here! We’re going to realize our destiny!”
“You honestly believe in that nonsense?”
“You don’t?”
This time Gilles sighed. “Kelga, I’m speaking from experience here. I’ve studied time magic. Have you ever heard of time magic? It transcends both black and white magic. I will be the first to admit that black magic is a difficult subject, but it doesn’t even compare to time magic. It isn’t just about elements and their correlations, it’s about the very fabric of the universe itself, about concepts so complex our mortal minds can never hope to fully comprehend it.”
“You can control time with magic?” Kelga was intrigued.
“Well, I can’t specifically- yet, but it is possible. Accelerate, decelerate, even stop time at a focus point. I don’t understand the specifics, but the very force that holds the world together can be manipulated with time magic. It’s actually a very new and exciting field.”
“I’ll say.” Kelga nodded to the waitress as she set out the drinks. He popped the cork on his bottle and took a sip. “But what does this have to do with the Prophecy?”
Gilles snorted. “The Church sees time as a straight line, and the world as one singular continuum. This view, while not necessarily inaccurate, is overly-simplistic.”
“How so?”
“Think of it this way: Time is only a straight line from our perspective. We live in the present, and the present world is exclusive to the past and the future. Likewise, time seems linear when you look at the past. You can’t change the events of the past, and the present is merely the culmination of the past, so it follows that the future is similarly linear.”
“Uh huh.”
The wizard shook his head emphatically. “But it’s a fallacy. White magic isn’t about manipulating the laws of the universe to suit your ends; it’s about borrowing the gods’ power to bypass those laws. If the church wasn’t so dogmatic they would see that time is more like…” He pointed to Kelga’s chest. “…More like a zipper.”
“A zipper?”
Gilles nodded. “A zipper. Only the past is linear. You have complete control over events in the present, and the future is full of infinite possibilities. Claiming to know the future is foolishness, and true clairvoyance is impossible. At best, prophecies can only show you a likely outcome. They probably only show you a possible outcome, and at worst, they’re totally useless.”
“So you don’t think we can save the world?”
“Of course we can save the world... that is, assuming the world can be saved. By that, I mean if saving the world is indeed a possible outcome then of course we can save it. It just means our success is by no means guaranteed.”
“That’s kind of discouraging.”
Gilles’ eyes narrowed. “I find it liberating. Personally, I think the idea that our lives are on a set path from which we cannot deviate repulsive. THAT would be discouraging, if we weren’t really in control over anything we do. That’s what black magic is all about; control. It’s the antithesis of white magic, in which you are controlled. Black magic is, in truth, far more compatible to a realistic view of the world. White magic is more about blind faith.”
Kelga gestured toward the counter. “Duane uses both equally well.”
Gilles nodded. “That he does, but at a heavy price. By embracing two philosophies that are so diametrically opposed he has to meld them into a unique, third philosophy to even make sense of the world. Hence the term ‘red magic’. Regardless of what he’ll tell you, there’s no such thing- it’s just the bastardization and blending of the two true schools. Because of his proficiency in both, he will never master either.” He took a sip of his juice. “Here he comes now.”
Duane sat down. “Sorry, we have to share a two bedroom room. They were booked solid.”
Gilles shrugged. “That would be a problem if I had any intention of sharing a bed. I can assure you I do not.”
“Can you teach me black magic?” Kelga stuck to the topic.
Gilles balked at the request. “Hah! No, I’ll never take on an apprentice. I don’t have the patience to go through what my master went through with me. It’s an extremely difficult subject.”
“I can teach you.” Duane spoke up. “Granted I’m not as well-versed in the field as my esteemed colleague here, but the basic spells shouldn’t be too hard. Ninja train in them anyway.”
Gilles chuckled viciously. At first Kelga and Duane thought he was sneering at the prospect of them studying his craft together, but they looked up and saw he was really laughing at the waitress trying to carry three plates at once.
“About damned time.” The wizard muttered. “I’m starving.”
Gilles came to a halt. “Something’s not right.”
That, in turn, stopped Kelga and Duane dead in their tracks. Duane wordlessly began taking in the scenery while Kelga glared at the black mage impatiently.
“What?” The thief demanded.
“North Gate is heavily fortified…” Duane observed. “Unusually so.”
“Look.” Gilles pointed toward the battlements at the top of the nearest tower. “Isn’t that Cornelia’s war banner?”
Kelga’s demeanor became more serious, and Duane nodded- apparently lost in thought. “It is. Who could they be fighting? If the kingdom is at war with the elves or dwarves it is a recent development, because last I heard the only thing Cornelia was fighting were goblins and pirates.”
“Does Cornelia recognize the goblin tribes as a sovereign nation?” The black mage asked.
Duane shook his head. “No, of course not. …Maybe there’s been a rebellion?” The red mage suddenly looked very worried.
Kelga sighed. “The only way we’re going to find out is if we get in there and ask some people. Come on.”
He marched up towards the heavy iron gates mumbling to himself as the two mages followed hesitantly. The walls looked like they had been reinforced mere days ago, and the extra gateways seemed to be hastily installed. Despite all of the wicked trappings, only two- albeit heavily armored- soldiers stood guard. Kelga marched right up to the nearest guard and waved to him. The soldier nodded curtly, making no effort to hide his mistrust of the city’s most recent arrivals.
“Hey there!” Kelga grinned amicably. “We’re from Pravoka, we-“
“Pravoka?” The soldier cut him off. “How? Construction on the drawbridge has been suspended.”
“We took the ‘scenic route’.” Gilles muttered.
The guard’s eyes got wide. “Through Mt. Lariat? You guys must be regular adventurers then. Something I can help you with?”
“Yes, there is.” Duane answered. “Because we’ve been in the wilderness so long we’ve been unable to keep up on current events on the Aldean. …We couldn’t help but notice North Gate has been heavily fortified and the war banner flies…”
“In short, what’s going on?” Kelga finished for him.
The soldier chuckled cynically. “What isn’t going on? General Garland has betrayed the crown and kidnapped the princess. He’s holding her hostage behind an army of goblins and undead. His forces have been staging feints on outlying villages on a regular basis. It’s all we can do to keep the city secure.”
“A human controlling monsters?” Gilles was incredulous. “How?”
The guard shrugged. “We don’t know. At first we didn’t even know it was him. We just thought the goblins got a new leader as their attacks were far more organized and effective than they’ve ever been. This came right after he snatched the princess right out from under His Majesty’s nose.”
“We just thought it was one hell of a coincidence.” The other soldier interjected, crossing from his side of the archway.
The first guard nodded. “It took us quite a while to figure out it was the general. Our first clue came when whole platoons of walking skeletons razed a village to the northeast. Undead never come this far south. They never cooperate with goblins either.”
“What sorcery is this!?” Duane whispered.
“So this ex-general is holding the princess hostage? What are his demands?” Kelga was noticeably intrigued.
The guard laughed. “Nothing less than the kingdom itself!” He shook his head. “The general has apparently gone mad. The palace is really tight-lipped about the actual abduction, but he can’t possibly expect the king to just turn Cornelia over to him.”
“So he’s using her as a shield while he attempts to take it by force?” Gilles was staring at the ground.
The soldier shrugged again. “Maybe, but he’s really going about it half-heartedly. Like I said, he probably has no plan at all. He’s got to be mad.”
“Still…” Duane mused. “If he can control fiends I wouldn’t underestimate him. This could be very bad.”
“It already is.” The soldier nodded grimly.
“Well, thanks!” Kelga said. “You’ve been a great help!” He grabbed his two companions by the arms and began to drag them through the gate. He only needed to do so for a few strides before they began to follow of their own accord. “Well, that was interesting. What do we do first?” He shook his head while he blithely lifted the purse from a wealthy-looking passerby. “No, let’s find an inn.”
“Did you just-!?” Duane’s eyes were wide.
“There’ll be none of that, child.” Gilles’ tone was totally unambiguous. “This isn’t Pravoka. This city has a watch.”
“Which means it’s more of a challenge!” Kelga grinned mischievously. “I’ve been getting rusty picking pockets in Anarchy Land.” His grin focused on Duane. “Besides, if I get caught Moneybags McFeatherhat will bail me out.”
“I most certainly will NOT!” Duane crossed his arms indignantly.
Kelga pinched his cheeks. “Aww, you’d let me rot in a cell?”
“Just knock it off!” Gilles hissed. “We can track down Lukhan tomorrow. Let’s find a place to eat and spend the night.” His yellow eyes flared brightly as he turned to Kelga. “And there will be no thievery from now on. You’re a Light Warrior, remember? Start conducting yourself as one.”
“Yes, Dad.” Kelga fell into step behind the two mages as they wound their way through the crowded street. Cornelia City was the largest in the world. Its population was overwhelmingly human, and it symbolized the human race as well as the Cornelian nation. Just as Cornelians referred to Elfheim and Duergar as ‘the elves’ and ‘the dwarves’ respectively, Cornelia was often referred to as ‘the humans’ in foreign lands. The city, the nation and the race had been one and the same for four hundred years. Since recorded history began.
The layout of the town was in sharp contrast to that of Pravoka. Never mind the fact that Pravoka was in a hideous state of disrepair, the eastern port city was heavily paved and industrialized. Cornelia, on the other hand, for all its development sported statues, fountains and neatly manicured lawns. Lavish mansions rested among walls and were small castles themselves. Even the lower-class houses were well-kept; the only thing about them that even said ‘lower-class’ was their small size. Deciduous trees lined the streets, some growing up from the street. For all its grandeur though, the city was dwarfed by the hulking mountain of masonry that was Castle Cornelia. It was the largest and tallest structure in the world. The three had seen the spires of the palace long before they had glimpsed the city itself on the horizon. Having entered from the north end of the city, they were directly beneath it. All three of them felt like fleas.
Kelga whistled. “Hard to believe people could build something that big.”
Duane chuckled. “Impressive isn’t it? It doesn’t seem that large from the inside however. Most of it is solid wall, and if I recall correctly it’s sort of built atop a mountain that was itself walled in. You could say the architects cheated, in a way.”
“That is still way too big to be someone’s house.” The thief almost tripped on something the way his neck was craned straight up.
“It doesn’t just house the royal family, it houses government officials and the ranking officers of the military. Hundreds of people live and work there, but it’s also built to be indestructible. Four hundred years ago dragon attacks were a major concern for all three nations. The city itself began within the warrens of that keep.”
Gilles, who had been silent thus far spoke up. “If that fortress can repel dragon attacks, what hope does that Garland guy have of taking this city with ordinary fiends?”
“Didn’t you pay attention?” Kelga chided, making a mental illness gesture. “The guy’s insane.”
The black mage shook his head. “I refuse to believe that someone who has the power to control fiends is just some two gil, crackpot revolutionary.”
“It’s not unheard of for people to negotiate with beastmen.” Duane scratched the back of his head. “Goblins, ogres and a few other species have their own language and are intelligent enough to deal with. The results are rarely favorable however.”
“I’ve never heard of a human leading a goblin army.” Gilles muttered.
“Nor have I.” The red mage frowned. “Controlling the undead is something altogether different.”
“Necromancy.” Gilles grunted quietly.
Duane nodded. “Outlawed in every nation, and for good reason. No, this ex-general is not to be trifled with. I fear for the kingdom.”
“Why?” Kelga demanded. “Why is any of this our concern? So some necromancer made a pact with the goblin tribes in order to lay siege to the country. We’re just here to learn about the crystals.”
“Were you born this nonchalant, or was it a skill you had to develop?” The dark wizard’s amber glare seemed to bore into the thief.
Kelga shrugged. “Meh, life’s too short to worry about every little thing. Besides, when you’re as fast and good looking as me, there’s no situation you can’t get out of.” That hubris-laden answer did not seem to satisfy Gilles, so Kelga quickly changed the subject. “Hey Duane, you’re from here, right? Why do we need to get an inn? Can’t we just crash at your place?”
Duane’s face became even more pale, if that were possible. “No! Absolutely not!”
“Issues.” Kelga muttered. He pointed to a hostelry on the far end of the square. “Well, that place looks as good as any. Let’s go, I’m starving.”
As the three made their way towards the inn, their gaze returned to the ground. It was then they noticed something bizarre that had escaped their attention previously.
“Sure are a lot of guards around.” The thief observed anxiously.
Duane cleared his throat. “I noticed that too…”
“Is that unusual?” Gilles asked.
Duane nodded. “Very. I can understand if they’ve instituted martial law, but they haven’t. This insurrection is external, there’s no unrest within the city itself. It’s almost as if they’re looking for something.”
“Or someone.” Kelga snorted. “Come on, let’s get indoors. Guards give me the creeps.” He opened the door and shuffled inside.
“They would.” Gilles muttered as he followed the other two into the warm firelight. Inside the three promptly took seats at a large round table. A cute, blue-haired waitress shuffled up to them, a small chalk board in hand. She smiled at Kelga, all but ignoring the two mages.
“Can I take your order, handsome?”
Kelga seemed totally oblivious to the compliment. “What do you recommend? I’ve had nothing but dog meat, wild herbs and licorice for the last few days.”
“Oh, you poor boy!” The waitress seemed genuinely concerned. Gilles rolled his eyes, but of course no one could see it. “The special is stuffed hen, brown rice and batagreens.”
“Sounds good.” Kelga cracked his knuckles. “I’ll have hard mulsum to drink.”
“Same here.” Duane clucked.
“And you, sir?” She turned to Gilles.
“Yeah that’s fine, but I just want some melon juice for a beverage.”
“It’ll be right out!” She winked to Kelga as she left, who didn’t even seem to notice.
Duane stood. “I’ll go reserve the rooms.”
The two sat in silence, taking in the atmosphere for a few moments. Kelga finally spoke up. “So first thing tomorrow we find that Lukhan guy? Any idea where he’d be?”
Gilles nodded. “The church, of course.”
The thief grinned. “I can hardly wait! Where do you think he’ll send us?”
“How should I know?”
Kelga sighed. “You wouldn’t, I’m just psyched. I mean, we’re finally here! We’re going to realize our destiny!”
“You honestly believe in that nonsense?”
“You don’t?”
This time Gilles sighed. “Kelga, I’m speaking from experience here. I’ve studied time magic. Have you ever heard of time magic? It transcends both black and white magic. I will be the first to admit that black magic is a difficult subject, but it doesn’t even compare to time magic. It isn’t just about elements and their correlations, it’s about the very fabric of the universe itself, about concepts so complex our mortal minds can never hope to fully comprehend it.”
“You can control time with magic?” Kelga was intrigued.
“Well, I can’t specifically- yet, but it is possible. Accelerate, decelerate, even stop time at a focus point. I don’t understand the specifics, but the very force that holds the world together can be manipulated with time magic. It’s actually a very new and exciting field.”
“I’ll say.” Kelga nodded to the waitress as she set out the drinks. He popped the cork on his bottle and took a sip. “But what does this have to do with the Prophecy?”
Gilles snorted. “The Church sees time as a straight line, and the world as one singular continuum. This view, while not necessarily inaccurate, is overly-simplistic.”
“How so?”
“Think of it this way: Time is only a straight line from our perspective. We live in the present, and the present world is exclusive to the past and the future. Likewise, time seems linear when you look at the past. You can’t change the events of the past, and the present is merely the culmination of the past, so it follows that the future is similarly linear.”
“Uh huh.”
The wizard shook his head emphatically. “But it’s a fallacy. White magic isn’t about manipulating the laws of the universe to suit your ends; it’s about borrowing the gods’ power to bypass those laws. If the church wasn’t so dogmatic they would see that time is more like…” He pointed to Kelga’s chest. “…More like a zipper.”
“A zipper?”
Gilles nodded. “A zipper. Only the past is linear. You have complete control over events in the present, and the future is full of infinite possibilities. Claiming to know the future is foolishness, and true clairvoyance is impossible. At best, prophecies can only show you a likely outcome. They probably only show you a possible outcome, and at worst, they’re totally useless.”
“So you don’t think we can save the world?”
“Of course we can save the world... that is, assuming the world can be saved. By that, I mean if saving the world is indeed a possible outcome then of course we can save it. It just means our success is by no means guaranteed.”
“That’s kind of discouraging.”
Gilles’ eyes narrowed. “I find it liberating. Personally, I think the idea that our lives are on a set path from which we cannot deviate repulsive. THAT would be discouraging, if we weren’t really in control over anything we do. That’s what black magic is all about; control. It’s the antithesis of white magic, in which you are controlled. Black magic is, in truth, far more compatible to a realistic view of the world. White magic is more about blind faith.”
Kelga gestured toward the counter. “Duane uses both equally well.”
Gilles nodded. “That he does, but at a heavy price. By embracing two philosophies that are so diametrically opposed he has to meld them into a unique, third philosophy to even make sense of the world. Hence the term ‘red magic’. Regardless of what he’ll tell you, there’s no such thing- it’s just the bastardization and blending of the two true schools. Because of his proficiency in both, he will never master either.” He took a sip of his juice. “Here he comes now.”
Duane sat down. “Sorry, we have to share a two bedroom room. They were booked solid.”
Gilles shrugged. “That would be a problem if I had any intention of sharing a bed. I can assure you I do not.”
“Can you teach me black magic?” Kelga stuck to the topic.
Gilles balked at the request. “Hah! No, I’ll never take on an apprentice. I don’t have the patience to go through what my master went through with me. It’s an extremely difficult subject.”
“I can teach you.” Duane spoke up. “Granted I’m not as well-versed in the field as my esteemed colleague here, but the basic spells shouldn’t be too hard. Ninja train in them anyway.”
Gilles chuckled viciously. At first Kelga and Duane thought he was sneering at the prospect of them studying his craft together, but they looked up and saw he was really laughing at the waitress trying to carry three plates at once.
“About damned time.” The wizard muttered. “I’m starving.”
-
Darth Raptor
- Red Mage
- Posts: 5448
- Joined: 2003-12-18 03:39am
“What’s taking so long?” Argus was making quite a racket as he paced back and forth on the polished marble floor of the Cornelian Grand Cathedral.
“Sage Lukahn is a busy man.” Sarina replied, sitting calmly on a small, ornate, yet decidedly uncomfortable-looking bench. “As is the cardinal, for that matter. They have not yet verified our identities or the authenticity of the artifacts we carry. We can expect to be treated as commoners until they do.”
“But you work here, don’t you? Doesn’t your position carry any open-access benefits or something?”
The healer smiled. “I am only an acolyte. There are literally hundreds of us, Argus. There are even more freelance white mages not officially affiliated with the Church. While they get most of their support from the secular mages guilds, they come here to give and receive counsel from time to time.”
Argus stopped pacing and gazed up at the spacious chamber, taking special interest in the giant, stained glass windows that depicted the gods in all their ethereal majesty. Some gods looked humanoid, while many more resembled dragons or monsters- some were even demonic looking. Argus couldn’t remember all of their names but he knew the big black dragon was Bahamut. He sighed impatiently. “How come they’re so busy? There aren’t any sermons going, there aren’t any sick or injured about…”
“This isn’t the only church in Cornelia, you know.” Sarina shook her head. “It’s the main Temple of Light for all of Cornelia. There are several smaller churches in this city alone, and hundreds spread throughout the rest of the nation. Cardinal Vias administrates them all. The secular Cornelian government relies heavily on the church as well, as it serves both the citizenry and the militia.” Her back straightened reverently. “And I can’t presume to know what Sage Lukahn does. Surely a man with such incredible wisdom as he is always occupied.”
“He probably just sits on a cushion with his eyes closed smoking all day.” He pointed to a window that depicted a vicious-looking, three-headed canine beast. “Isn’t that Cerberus? I thought he was evil?”
Sarina shook her head. “That’s a common misconception. Cerberus is a guardian, a warrior, honor-bound to follow those whom he has found himself in service to. Sometimes his masters are well-intentioned… other times… they’re not.”
“In dwarven mythology he’s an archfiend of earth, in league with Echidna and Ahriman.”
“Well, Echidna is his mother.” Sarina replied. “She is definitely evil, and his duty to family complicates things from time to time.” The white mage frowned. “I’m admittedly not well-versed in dwarven folklore, so I don’t know where this business with Ahriman comes from. I’ve never heard it before.”
Argus shrugged. “I never paid much attention either.” He pointed to a pinkish, spiky, ghost-like monster. “And that’s the father?”
Sarina nodded. “Typhon. To the layperson he’s kind of morally ambiguous as well. Official doctrine describes him as being more random and chaotic than actively evil. He has a short temper and his retribution is… sloppy, but he’s basically benign otherwise.”
Footfalls echoed through the chamber and both travelers turned to take in the church’s newest arrival. Sarina produced a fake smile. “Ah, you’re early. How did your unspeakable act of murder go?”
“That was fast…” Argus murmured.
Maduin put his hands up defensively. “Murder? More like vigilante justice. I told you, the man was a pirate. I only kill people who deserve it.”
The white mage’s phony smile disappeared. “Only a court of law can decide who is worthy of death. All others must be killed in self defense.”
The monk shrugged. “Whatever. It doesn’t matter anyway, someone got to him before I could. The target was hit before we even arrived here.” He frowned. “And I can assure you, Sarina, that I wouldn’t have caused nearly so much collateral damage had I been the one to take him out. Black magic is a very sloppy assassination method.”
“Collateral damage?” Sarina looked worried. “How do you mean?”
“Whoever hit Bartz took out most of the entire city block with him. The fire spread to the neighboring houses and the knights are still cleaning up the rubble. There were even a few of your colleagues there, looking for survivors I imagine. It wasn’t pretty.”
“Gods…” Sarina whispered.
Argus whistled, impressed. “I hope we don’t run into whoever did that.”
“Same here.” Maduin agreed. “It didn’t take me long to figure out what happened, it’s some of the biggest news in town- aside from the attempted coup they have going on, of course.”
Sarina nodded. “General Garland. I must say I’m quite surprised by this turn of events. He didn’t strike me as a bad man. Selfish and immature perhaps, but certainly not a traitor or a murderer. Certainly not a necromancer. No, I fear someone else is behind this crisis.”
“Whoa.” Argus butted in. “You’ve met Garland?”
“He was the officer in charge of that debacle north of here. You know, the one that destroyed your home town? I was to answer to him directly until the pirates were defeated. He seemed way too young to be a general. Brash, self-important and yet so insecure at the same time. Such malice still seems beyond him.”
“Sarina’s good at reading people.” Argus explained.
“I know.” Maduin grunted. “Oh, that’s not all that’s going on either. You guys are going to love this. Remember all those guards we saw on the way here? I found out who they’re looking for.” He grinned.
“Who?” Argus demanded.
“They’re looking for us. The knights’ most recent rescue attempt was an all-out failure. The king has apparently lost it. He’s been going around claiming the Four Warriors of Light will come and save the princess for him. The soldiers are out in force looking for four crystal bearers.”
Sarina shook her head angrily. “The nerve. Our mission is to restore light to the world and banish the monsters that ravage its surface. We are not tools of the king to make his problems go away.” She stood, clenching her fists. “This is the kind of blind arrogance that gives the truly faithful a bad name. How can he just give up and expect us to swoop in and save his daughter for him!? Ugh!”
Argus scoffed. “I bet if we’d known about this sooner we could have turned ourselves in to the guards and be getting down to business by now. Instead we came to them, are right under there noses and they’re making us wait!”
Maduin sat down where Sarina was previously. “No, we need to see Lukahn. This business between the king and that ex-knight doesn’t concern us.” He frowned thoughtfully. “Besides, there’s only two of you. Who knows where the other two are?”
“That’s part of the reason we’re here.” Sarina replied. “We don’t even know where to begin looking for the Fire and Wind Crystals.”
“You don’t just need the crystals.” Maduin pointed out. “You need the crystal bearers.”
“This is true.” She nodded. “Hopefully the sage’s wisdom can see us through. This is way over our heads.”
The three turned toward the archway as another white mage appeared. It was the same one that greeted them upon their arrival and told them to wait here. He looked bored and impatient. “Crystal bearers? The cardinal will see you now.” He announced dryly, turning and walking down the corridor he came from. “Follow me.”
Maduin stood and followed Argus and Sarina as they fell into step behind him. The corridor was just as extravagant as the main entryway, but the ceiling was much shorter.
“Was Sage Lukahn unable to speak with us?” Sarina asked plaintively.
The male white mage snorted. “You might say that. Shortly after the princess was abducted he abruptly left the city. The ship he departed on was bound for Elfheim, but the last people to speak with him said he was babbling, incoherent. Mentioning something about finding the ‘Crescent Moon’. In his absence, the king has begun to interpret the Prophecy in his own way. He believes the Four Warriors of Light will arrive to save the princess.”
“Great, so he’s not even here.” Argus groaned.
“Cardinal Vias will be able to help us.” Sarina reassured him.
The healer led the three travelers to a pair of heavy, wooden double doors. He opened the right hand door and held it open. The three stepped inside the cardinal’s spacious and incredibly opulent office. The white mage that brought them to the room remained outside and closed the door behind them. Vias was an incredibly ancient looking man, his face was wrinkled and what little hair he had was white. Despite his obvious age he did not seem to be in want of health or vitality. He stood quickly and nodded as Sarina gracefully bowed before him. Argus and Maduin nervously took their places behind her and to her side. His robes were long and flowing. They were like Sarina’s in that they sported the familiar white with red triangular borders- but that was where the similarities ended. While Sarina’s cloak was practical, Vias’ was luxuriant. It was bordered with gold and chains with all kinds of jewelry hung from his neck.
“Welcome home, Lady Sarina.” Vias turned to her two male companions. “And welcome to you as well. You have my gratitude for seeing one of my most promising trainees safely to Cornelia.” He crossed towards Argus and took his hand. “I am Cardinal Maximilian Vias, leader of the Cornelia Temple of Light and the kingdom’s white archmage.” He turned to Maduin and shook his hand. “Welcome to the city of dreams.”
Sarina spoke up. “The warrior to your left is Argus Baron. He is the bearer of the Earth Crystal, and is a refugee of the disaster in the Northern Strait. He has no family, and has pledged his services to the cause of restoring light to the Four Crystals.”
Vias turned back to Maduin. “And you, sir?”
“Maduin Vargas. I’m just an adventurer, here to help in any way I can.”
The cardinal nodded. “Then you two must understand the gravity of the mission at hand.”
Sarina jumped in again. “Your Holiness, I would like to formally apologize for the tardiness in my return to Cornelia.” She gestured toward Argus. “But with respect, I felt the recovery of the Earth Crystal was vital enough to warrant such a diversion.”
“No need to apologize, my young learner. The course of action you took was the correct one. You as well would seem to understand the importance of the task the gods have set before you. I am glad you finally realized the Light of the Sea was the Water Crystal.”
“Y-you knew?”
Vias nodded. “Indeed I did. Several years ago I was very close to the archbishop of Onrac. I still am, but the current state of affairs prohibits efficient travel to and correspondence with the north western continent. I personally approved your inheritance of the Light after your status as the convent’s valedictorian was recognized. I have great faith in you, child.” He smiled pleasantly. “We all do.”
“I am honored, Your Holiness.”
The cardinal turned back to Argus. “And now, you are the bearer of the Earth Crystal. May I see it? I know for a fact that Sarina’s Light is genuine, you must understand that I need to be sure that you too possess the real thing.”
“Sure.” Argus tugged on the silver chain around his neck, pulling the amber colored Earth Crystal out from under his platemail cuirass. He completely removed the chain and handed it to the white wizard. “Here you go.”
Vias clutched the crystal reverently. “This is it.” He whispered. “It is faded, just as I feared. The connection to the earth rot is undeniable, they must be related.”
“That was our conclusion as well, sir.” Sarina offered. “But how do we go about restoring light to these relics?”
“To even restore power to one, you need the power of all. Until we have all four crystals I am afraid there is nothing we can do.” He handed the chain back to Argus. “The Fire and Wind Crystals remain at large, we must find them.”
“Any idea where they might be?” Maduin was looking more than a little impatient.
“Unfortunately no. The Water Crystal was the only one in the Church’s possession. We granted it to one worthy to bear the burden, and the gods have seen to it that the Earth Crystal has been paired with its bearer. We knew nothing of its location or the location of the Wind and Fire Crystals.”
“Ugh! So what the hell do we do now!?” Argus wailed.
“Mind your tongue, Argus!” Sarina scolded.
Vias waved dismissively. “No, no, it’s quite all right. I understand your frustration- this crisis wears heavily on me as well. To tell the truth I had given up on seeing the coming of the Four in my lifetime. Lukahn had said they would not come for another two hundred years. I am no elf.”
“So what do we do, sir?” Maduin repeated Argus’ question.
“Have faith, child. Have faith. It is no mere trick of fate that brought you three together. The gods will see to it that you are united with the aeromancer and the pyromancer.”
A knock came at the door.
“Enter.” Vias answered, looking slightly annoyed.
The door opened and the white mage from earlier appeared. He bowed hastily to the cardinal. “Your Holiness, three more travelers have come, two of which also bear crystals.”
Argus and Maduin looked at each other wide-eyed and slack-jawed. Sarina and Vias looked genuinely, albeit pleasantly, surprised. “Gods be praised!” Vias exclaimed. “Send them in at once, Etoh!” The white mage bowed and hurried away, not even closing the door behind him.
The cardinal held his hands together in a rather childish expression of pure glee. Sarina looked hopeful, but reserved. Maduin’s face was one of raw incredulity. Argus just looked confused. Together they stood in silence for what seemed like forever while they waited for the new arrivals.
Etoh returned, followed in short order by a black mage, a red mage and a young man in light armor. He bowed to the cardinal again and saw himself out, closing the door behind him. The three new arrivals stood shoulder to shoulder, the red mage looked excited, the rogue looked nervous while the wizard’s expression was, of course, totally unreadable.
“Welcome, welcome!” Vias shook the hands of the three young men. “I am Cardinal Maximilian Vias, leader of the Church in Cornelia and the nation’s foremost white archmage. I am told you carry crystals, is this true?”
The boy and the black mage took a step forward, while the red mage took a step back. Both reached down and produced silver chains with crystals set in the pendant just like those of Argus and Sarina. The black mage’s crystal was faded and green; the boy’s, however, radiated a bright red light.
Maduin and Sarina gasped simultaneously. Argus just whistled, while Vias looked like he might bounce up and down. “By the gods!” He exclaimed. “It is! It is the two we’ve been looking for! We have all four!”
This statement seemed to catch the new arrivals off guard. The red mage stepped forward and bowed lightly. “My name is Duane Sorel, Your Holiness. The bearer of the Wind Crystal is the black mage Gilles Arkham.” He gestured to the youngest of the three. “This is Kelga Vasquez, bearer of the Fire Crystal and the sole heir to the Vasquez Consortium.”
Kelga waved nervously, while Gilles barely nodded. The red mage continued. “Pardon me for being bold, Cardinal, but did you just say you had all four?” He gestured toward the other three adventurers in the room. “I presume two of these three are also crystal bearers?”
Vias nodded. “They are.” He took a step back. “Go on, introduce yourselves!”
Argus stepped forward and shook hands with Kelga and Gilles. “Argus Baron. I have the Wind Crystal. I’m a fighter. Uh, that’s pretty much it.”
He changed places with Sarina who bowed cordially. “Sarina Alexandra, white mage and bearer of the Water Crystal. I am so pleased to make your acquaintance!”
Maduin just stood there and nodded curtly. “Maduin Vargas, white monk. I’m their support.”
“Ah, excellent!” Duane exclaimed. He strode up to Maduin and held his gloved hand out. “I was afraid I’d be the only one without a crystal! I’m their support, I suppose you could say. This is very reassuring, I must say six stand a far better chance than four!”
Maduin didn’t move. He just looked the warlock up and down. “You ever see combat before?”
“Maduin!” Sarina yelled, she then turned to the newest three. “I’m terribly sorry, he’s a bit uncouth. I, for one, am really looking forward to working together. Our chosen professions seem to compliment each other nicely.”
“They do indeed.” Vias almost giggled. “The king will be most pleased. Gah, to think his interpretation of the Prophecy was right all along!”
“…Excuse me, sir?” Sarina didn’t like the sound of that.
The black mage spoke up for the first time. “Forgive me, ‘Your Holiness’ but what exactly does the king have to do with anything? We’re here to learn about the crystals and do what we can to fulfill are duty as the Warriors of Light.”
Vias’ giddy demeanor evaporated. “And that duty, my dear heretic, is nothing less than restoring light to the world- and to banish darkness wherever it may lay. The king is desperate. He is convinced that the Warriors of Light and ONLY the Warriors of Light can save the princess. I am under strict orders to deliver you to the king.”
“Whoa, there!” The thief exclaimed. “The princess’ abduction has nothing to do with us! You don’t honestly expect us to take on an army of goblins and undead, do you?”
“To say nothing of that necromancer.” Despite his height, Duane was able to make himself seem very small.
The cardinal sighed. “I expect you to serve the cause of light. I don’t know what exactly the king has in store for you six, but I expect nothing less than your full cooperation. Sage Lukahn has gone missing, he is the true expert on the darkness that plagues the world and the means by which to banish it.” The white wizard smiled in mock reassurance. “Besides, this will only be a temporary diversion from your main mission. Had Garland remained loyal to the crown, I would have simply sent you north to speak with Lady Matoya. In case you haven’t heard, reconstruction on the drawbridge spanning the Northern Strait has been suspended. If you stop Garland and rescue the princess I am sure the king will see to it that your journey is hastened.”
“Bollocks.” Gilles growled. “We came here through Mt. Lariat, we can leave through Mt. Lariat.”
Vias grinned. “That part of the country is currently plagued by Garland’s minions. Should you choose to take the longer route you are fighting through the same army of goblins and undead you are trying to avoid in your cowardice.”
Duane swallowed, tugging on his collar. “Your Holiness, I am not a Warrior of Light, nor is sir Vargas here. I cannot speak for the black belt, but I… I am under no obligation to serve whatever cause His Majesty has construed as being part of the greater struggle. It’s not-“
“You will fight by their side, infidel.” Vias motioned to Maduin. “So will he.”
Maduin chuckled defiantly. “Bah, yeah right. Like the mage said, we’re not Light Warriors, your orders are to deliver the Light Warriors to the king. Again, Light Warriors, we’re not.”
“No, but you both have pledged yourselves to the cause.” The wizard’s smile disappeared as he glowered at Maduin. “I am close friends with Master Duncan of Ryukahn. Don’t think for a moment I am unaware of the unpleasant circumstances in which you left that school…”
“You sleazy old bastard!” The monk was outraged.
Vias turned back to Duane. “And you. I’m sure your brother would absolutely love to hear of your latest bout of cowardice. It’s beginning to look like he may become king, and that would make Lady Sarah your future sister in-law.” He looked genuinely contemptuous of the red mage. “Your lack of loyalty to your own family staggers me.”
Gilles’ shadowy voice was cold as ice. “Such extortion is quite unbecoming of a holy man.”
The archmage snickered. “Heh, I’m being lectured in holiness by a practitioner of the dark arts. What’s next?” He turned to Kelga. “I suppose the thief would like to lecture me on honesty and the sanctity of personal property!” He rounded his desk and sat down. “His Majesty will whip you six into shape yet. You must understand I only do what is necessary. I thought you understood the importance of the mission before you, but sadly I appear to have been mistaken. It is now clear that I must make you understand how important you are to Cornelia. It is pointless to fight against your destiny, children. You might as well embrace it.”
Without warning the double doors opened and two heavily armored knights entered the cardinal’s office. “Ah, you’re late.” Vias cooed. “Escort these six valiant adventurers directly to Castle Cornelia. They are here to serve the king.”
“Cardinal Vias, I must protest!” Sarina called out as the guards gently prodded her out the door with the other five. “Cardinal Vias!”
Vias smiled pleasantly as the door closed on them. “Restore the Crystals to grace, Sarina.”
“Sage Lukahn is a busy man.” Sarina replied, sitting calmly on a small, ornate, yet decidedly uncomfortable-looking bench. “As is the cardinal, for that matter. They have not yet verified our identities or the authenticity of the artifacts we carry. We can expect to be treated as commoners until they do.”
“But you work here, don’t you? Doesn’t your position carry any open-access benefits or something?”
The healer smiled. “I am only an acolyte. There are literally hundreds of us, Argus. There are even more freelance white mages not officially affiliated with the Church. While they get most of their support from the secular mages guilds, they come here to give and receive counsel from time to time.”
Argus stopped pacing and gazed up at the spacious chamber, taking special interest in the giant, stained glass windows that depicted the gods in all their ethereal majesty. Some gods looked humanoid, while many more resembled dragons or monsters- some were even demonic looking. Argus couldn’t remember all of their names but he knew the big black dragon was Bahamut. He sighed impatiently. “How come they’re so busy? There aren’t any sermons going, there aren’t any sick or injured about…”
“This isn’t the only church in Cornelia, you know.” Sarina shook her head. “It’s the main Temple of Light for all of Cornelia. There are several smaller churches in this city alone, and hundreds spread throughout the rest of the nation. Cardinal Vias administrates them all. The secular Cornelian government relies heavily on the church as well, as it serves both the citizenry and the militia.” Her back straightened reverently. “And I can’t presume to know what Sage Lukahn does. Surely a man with such incredible wisdom as he is always occupied.”
“He probably just sits on a cushion with his eyes closed smoking all day.” He pointed to a window that depicted a vicious-looking, three-headed canine beast. “Isn’t that Cerberus? I thought he was evil?”
Sarina shook her head. “That’s a common misconception. Cerberus is a guardian, a warrior, honor-bound to follow those whom he has found himself in service to. Sometimes his masters are well-intentioned… other times… they’re not.”
“In dwarven mythology he’s an archfiend of earth, in league with Echidna and Ahriman.”
“Well, Echidna is his mother.” Sarina replied. “She is definitely evil, and his duty to family complicates things from time to time.” The white mage frowned. “I’m admittedly not well-versed in dwarven folklore, so I don’t know where this business with Ahriman comes from. I’ve never heard it before.”
Argus shrugged. “I never paid much attention either.” He pointed to a pinkish, spiky, ghost-like monster. “And that’s the father?”
Sarina nodded. “Typhon. To the layperson he’s kind of morally ambiguous as well. Official doctrine describes him as being more random and chaotic than actively evil. He has a short temper and his retribution is… sloppy, but he’s basically benign otherwise.”
Footfalls echoed through the chamber and both travelers turned to take in the church’s newest arrival. Sarina produced a fake smile. “Ah, you’re early. How did your unspeakable act of murder go?”
“That was fast…” Argus murmured.
Maduin put his hands up defensively. “Murder? More like vigilante justice. I told you, the man was a pirate. I only kill people who deserve it.”
The white mage’s phony smile disappeared. “Only a court of law can decide who is worthy of death. All others must be killed in self defense.”
The monk shrugged. “Whatever. It doesn’t matter anyway, someone got to him before I could. The target was hit before we even arrived here.” He frowned. “And I can assure you, Sarina, that I wouldn’t have caused nearly so much collateral damage had I been the one to take him out. Black magic is a very sloppy assassination method.”
“Collateral damage?” Sarina looked worried. “How do you mean?”
“Whoever hit Bartz took out most of the entire city block with him. The fire spread to the neighboring houses and the knights are still cleaning up the rubble. There were even a few of your colleagues there, looking for survivors I imagine. It wasn’t pretty.”
“Gods…” Sarina whispered.
Argus whistled, impressed. “I hope we don’t run into whoever did that.”
“Same here.” Maduin agreed. “It didn’t take me long to figure out what happened, it’s some of the biggest news in town- aside from the attempted coup they have going on, of course.”
Sarina nodded. “General Garland. I must say I’m quite surprised by this turn of events. He didn’t strike me as a bad man. Selfish and immature perhaps, but certainly not a traitor or a murderer. Certainly not a necromancer. No, I fear someone else is behind this crisis.”
“Whoa.” Argus butted in. “You’ve met Garland?”
“He was the officer in charge of that debacle north of here. You know, the one that destroyed your home town? I was to answer to him directly until the pirates were defeated. He seemed way too young to be a general. Brash, self-important and yet so insecure at the same time. Such malice still seems beyond him.”
“Sarina’s good at reading people.” Argus explained.
“I know.” Maduin grunted. “Oh, that’s not all that’s going on either. You guys are going to love this. Remember all those guards we saw on the way here? I found out who they’re looking for.” He grinned.
“Who?” Argus demanded.
“They’re looking for us. The knights’ most recent rescue attempt was an all-out failure. The king has apparently lost it. He’s been going around claiming the Four Warriors of Light will come and save the princess for him. The soldiers are out in force looking for four crystal bearers.”
Sarina shook her head angrily. “The nerve. Our mission is to restore light to the world and banish the monsters that ravage its surface. We are not tools of the king to make his problems go away.” She stood, clenching her fists. “This is the kind of blind arrogance that gives the truly faithful a bad name. How can he just give up and expect us to swoop in and save his daughter for him!? Ugh!”
Argus scoffed. “I bet if we’d known about this sooner we could have turned ourselves in to the guards and be getting down to business by now. Instead we came to them, are right under there noses and they’re making us wait!”
Maduin sat down where Sarina was previously. “No, we need to see Lukahn. This business between the king and that ex-knight doesn’t concern us.” He frowned thoughtfully. “Besides, there’s only two of you. Who knows where the other two are?”
“That’s part of the reason we’re here.” Sarina replied. “We don’t even know where to begin looking for the Fire and Wind Crystals.”
“You don’t just need the crystals.” Maduin pointed out. “You need the crystal bearers.”
“This is true.” She nodded. “Hopefully the sage’s wisdom can see us through. This is way over our heads.”
The three turned toward the archway as another white mage appeared. It was the same one that greeted them upon their arrival and told them to wait here. He looked bored and impatient. “Crystal bearers? The cardinal will see you now.” He announced dryly, turning and walking down the corridor he came from. “Follow me.”
Maduin stood and followed Argus and Sarina as they fell into step behind him. The corridor was just as extravagant as the main entryway, but the ceiling was much shorter.
“Was Sage Lukahn unable to speak with us?” Sarina asked plaintively.
The male white mage snorted. “You might say that. Shortly after the princess was abducted he abruptly left the city. The ship he departed on was bound for Elfheim, but the last people to speak with him said he was babbling, incoherent. Mentioning something about finding the ‘Crescent Moon’. In his absence, the king has begun to interpret the Prophecy in his own way. He believes the Four Warriors of Light will arrive to save the princess.”
“Great, so he’s not even here.” Argus groaned.
“Cardinal Vias will be able to help us.” Sarina reassured him.
The healer led the three travelers to a pair of heavy, wooden double doors. He opened the right hand door and held it open. The three stepped inside the cardinal’s spacious and incredibly opulent office. The white mage that brought them to the room remained outside and closed the door behind them. Vias was an incredibly ancient looking man, his face was wrinkled and what little hair he had was white. Despite his obvious age he did not seem to be in want of health or vitality. He stood quickly and nodded as Sarina gracefully bowed before him. Argus and Maduin nervously took their places behind her and to her side. His robes were long and flowing. They were like Sarina’s in that they sported the familiar white with red triangular borders- but that was where the similarities ended. While Sarina’s cloak was practical, Vias’ was luxuriant. It was bordered with gold and chains with all kinds of jewelry hung from his neck.
“Welcome home, Lady Sarina.” Vias turned to her two male companions. “And welcome to you as well. You have my gratitude for seeing one of my most promising trainees safely to Cornelia.” He crossed towards Argus and took his hand. “I am Cardinal Maximilian Vias, leader of the Cornelia Temple of Light and the kingdom’s white archmage.” He turned to Maduin and shook his hand. “Welcome to the city of dreams.”
Sarina spoke up. “The warrior to your left is Argus Baron. He is the bearer of the Earth Crystal, and is a refugee of the disaster in the Northern Strait. He has no family, and has pledged his services to the cause of restoring light to the Four Crystals.”
Vias turned back to Maduin. “And you, sir?”
“Maduin Vargas. I’m just an adventurer, here to help in any way I can.”
The cardinal nodded. “Then you two must understand the gravity of the mission at hand.”
Sarina jumped in again. “Your Holiness, I would like to formally apologize for the tardiness in my return to Cornelia.” She gestured toward Argus. “But with respect, I felt the recovery of the Earth Crystal was vital enough to warrant such a diversion.”
“No need to apologize, my young learner. The course of action you took was the correct one. You as well would seem to understand the importance of the task the gods have set before you. I am glad you finally realized the Light of the Sea was the Water Crystal.”
“Y-you knew?”
Vias nodded. “Indeed I did. Several years ago I was very close to the archbishop of Onrac. I still am, but the current state of affairs prohibits efficient travel to and correspondence with the north western continent. I personally approved your inheritance of the Light after your status as the convent’s valedictorian was recognized. I have great faith in you, child.” He smiled pleasantly. “We all do.”
“I am honored, Your Holiness.”
The cardinal turned back to Argus. “And now, you are the bearer of the Earth Crystal. May I see it? I know for a fact that Sarina’s Light is genuine, you must understand that I need to be sure that you too possess the real thing.”
“Sure.” Argus tugged on the silver chain around his neck, pulling the amber colored Earth Crystal out from under his platemail cuirass. He completely removed the chain and handed it to the white wizard. “Here you go.”
Vias clutched the crystal reverently. “This is it.” He whispered. “It is faded, just as I feared. The connection to the earth rot is undeniable, they must be related.”
“That was our conclusion as well, sir.” Sarina offered. “But how do we go about restoring light to these relics?”
“To even restore power to one, you need the power of all. Until we have all four crystals I am afraid there is nothing we can do.” He handed the chain back to Argus. “The Fire and Wind Crystals remain at large, we must find them.”
“Any idea where they might be?” Maduin was looking more than a little impatient.
“Unfortunately no. The Water Crystal was the only one in the Church’s possession. We granted it to one worthy to bear the burden, and the gods have seen to it that the Earth Crystal has been paired with its bearer. We knew nothing of its location or the location of the Wind and Fire Crystals.”
“Ugh! So what the hell do we do now!?” Argus wailed.
“Mind your tongue, Argus!” Sarina scolded.
Vias waved dismissively. “No, no, it’s quite all right. I understand your frustration- this crisis wears heavily on me as well. To tell the truth I had given up on seeing the coming of the Four in my lifetime. Lukahn had said they would not come for another two hundred years. I am no elf.”
“So what do we do, sir?” Maduin repeated Argus’ question.
“Have faith, child. Have faith. It is no mere trick of fate that brought you three together. The gods will see to it that you are united with the aeromancer and the pyromancer.”
A knock came at the door.
“Enter.” Vias answered, looking slightly annoyed.
The door opened and the white mage from earlier appeared. He bowed hastily to the cardinal. “Your Holiness, three more travelers have come, two of which also bear crystals.”
Argus and Maduin looked at each other wide-eyed and slack-jawed. Sarina and Vias looked genuinely, albeit pleasantly, surprised. “Gods be praised!” Vias exclaimed. “Send them in at once, Etoh!” The white mage bowed and hurried away, not even closing the door behind him.
The cardinal held his hands together in a rather childish expression of pure glee. Sarina looked hopeful, but reserved. Maduin’s face was one of raw incredulity. Argus just looked confused. Together they stood in silence for what seemed like forever while they waited for the new arrivals.
Etoh returned, followed in short order by a black mage, a red mage and a young man in light armor. He bowed to the cardinal again and saw himself out, closing the door behind him. The three new arrivals stood shoulder to shoulder, the red mage looked excited, the rogue looked nervous while the wizard’s expression was, of course, totally unreadable.
“Welcome, welcome!” Vias shook the hands of the three young men. “I am Cardinal Maximilian Vias, leader of the Church in Cornelia and the nation’s foremost white archmage. I am told you carry crystals, is this true?”
The boy and the black mage took a step forward, while the red mage took a step back. Both reached down and produced silver chains with crystals set in the pendant just like those of Argus and Sarina. The black mage’s crystal was faded and green; the boy’s, however, radiated a bright red light.
Maduin and Sarina gasped simultaneously. Argus just whistled, while Vias looked like he might bounce up and down. “By the gods!” He exclaimed. “It is! It is the two we’ve been looking for! We have all four!”
This statement seemed to catch the new arrivals off guard. The red mage stepped forward and bowed lightly. “My name is Duane Sorel, Your Holiness. The bearer of the Wind Crystal is the black mage Gilles Arkham.” He gestured to the youngest of the three. “This is Kelga Vasquez, bearer of the Fire Crystal and the sole heir to the Vasquez Consortium.”
Kelga waved nervously, while Gilles barely nodded. The red mage continued. “Pardon me for being bold, Cardinal, but did you just say you had all four?” He gestured toward the other three adventurers in the room. “I presume two of these three are also crystal bearers?”
Vias nodded. “They are.” He took a step back. “Go on, introduce yourselves!”
Argus stepped forward and shook hands with Kelga and Gilles. “Argus Baron. I have the Wind Crystal. I’m a fighter. Uh, that’s pretty much it.”
He changed places with Sarina who bowed cordially. “Sarina Alexandra, white mage and bearer of the Water Crystal. I am so pleased to make your acquaintance!”
Maduin just stood there and nodded curtly. “Maduin Vargas, white monk. I’m their support.”
“Ah, excellent!” Duane exclaimed. He strode up to Maduin and held his gloved hand out. “I was afraid I’d be the only one without a crystal! I’m their support, I suppose you could say. This is very reassuring, I must say six stand a far better chance than four!”
Maduin didn’t move. He just looked the warlock up and down. “You ever see combat before?”
“Maduin!” Sarina yelled, she then turned to the newest three. “I’m terribly sorry, he’s a bit uncouth. I, for one, am really looking forward to working together. Our chosen professions seem to compliment each other nicely.”
“They do indeed.” Vias almost giggled. “The king will be most pleased. Gah, to think his interpretation of the Prophecy was right all along!”
“…Excuse me, sir?” Sarina didn’t like the sound of that.
The black mage spoke up for the first time. “Forgive me, ‘Your Holiness’ but what exactly does the king have to do with anything? We’re here to learn about the crystals and do what we can to fulfill are duty as the Warriors of Light.”
Vias’ giddy demeanor evaporated. “And that duty, my dear heretic, is nothing less than restoring light to the world- and to banish darkness wherever it may lay. The king is desperate. He is convinced that the Warriors of Light and ONLY the Warriors of Light can save the princess. I am under strict orders to deliver you to the king.”
“Whoa, there!” The thief exclaimed. “The princess’ abduction has nothing to do with us! You don’t honestly expect us to take on an army of goblins and undead, do you?”
“To say nothing of that necromancer.” Despite his height, Duane was able to make himself seem very small.
The cardinal sighed. “I expect you to serve the cause of light. I don’t know what exactly the king has in store for you six, but I expect nothing less than your full cooperation. Sage Lukahn has gone missing, he is the true expert on the darkness that plagues the world and the means by which to banish it.” The white wizard smiled in mock reassurance. “Besides, this will only be a temporary diversion from your main mission. Had Garland remained loyal to the crown, I would have simply sent you north to speak with Lady Matoya. In case you haven’t heard, reconstruction on the drawbridge spanning the Northern Strait has been suspended. If you stop Garland and rescue the princess I am sure the king will see to it that your journey is hastened.”
“Bollocks.” Gilles growled. “We came here through Mt. Lariat, we can leave through Mt. Lariat.”
Vias grinned. “That part of the country is currently plagued by Garland’s minions. Should you choose to take the longer route you are fighting through the same army of goblins and undead you are trying to avoid in your cowardice.”
Duane swallowed, tugging on his collar. “Your Holiness, I am not a Warrior of Light, nor is sir Vargas here. I cannot speak for the black belt, but I… I am under no obligation to serve whatever cause His Majesty has construed as being part of the greater struggle. It’s not-“
“You will fight by their side, infidel.” Vias motioned to Maduin. “So will he.”
Maduin chuckled defiantly. “Bah, yeah right. Like the mage said, we’re not Light Warriors, your orders are to deliver the Light Warriors to the king. Again, Light Warriors, we’re not.”
“No, but you both have pledged yourselves to the cause.” The wizard’s smile disappeared as he glowered at Maduin. “I am close friends with Master Duncan of Ryukahn. Don’t think for a moment I am unaware of the unpleasant circumstances in which you left that school…”
“You sleazy old bastard!” The monk was outraged.
Vias turned back to Duane. “And you. I’m sure your brother would absolutely love to hear of your latest bout of cowardice. It’s beginning to look like he may become king, and that would make Lady Sarah your future sister in-law.” He looked genuinely contemptuous of the red mage. “Your lack of loyalty to your own family staggers me.”
Gilles’ shadowy voice was cold as ice. “Such extortion is quite unbecoming of a holy man.”
The archmage snickered. “Heh, I’m being lectured in holiness by a practitioner of the dark arts. What’s next?” He turned to Kelga. “I suppose the thief would like to lecture me on honesty and the sanctity of personal property!” He rounded his desk and sat down. “His Majesty will whip you six into shape yet. You must understand I only do what is necessary. I thought you understood the importance of the mission before you, but sadly I appear to have been mistaken. It is now clear that I must make you understand how important you are to Cornelia. It is pointless to fight against your destiny, children. You might as well embrace it.”
Without warning the double doors opened and two heavily armored knights entered the cardinal’s office. “Ah, you’re late.” Vias cooed. “Escort these six valiant adventurers directly to Castle Cornelia. They are here to serve the king.”
“Cardinal Vias, I must protest!” Sarina called out as the guards gently prodded her out the door with the other five. “Cardinal Vias!”
Vias smiled pleasantly as the door closed on them. “Restore the Crystals to grace, Sarina.”
Sonnuva.... Nice to know that they're not VOLUNTEERS for this mission. 
So, are you going to do the whole plot now, or just end at Garland's Defeat?
So, are you going to do the whole plot now, or just end at Garland's Defeat?
Me: Nope, that's why I have you around to tell me.
Nitram: You -are- beautiful. Anyone tries to tell you otherwise kill them.
"A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP" -- Leonard Nimoy, last Tweet
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Darth Raptor
- Red Mage
- Posts: 5448
- Joined: 2003-12-18 03:39am
I still plan to take this all the way to the beginning/ending (begending?). When I first started out I only had a very vague idea of what I wanted to do, and was pretty much writing as I went, but have since filled in a lot of the details. There's really only a couple of things I'm still struggling with, and those are a ways off yet. As it is, this is too much of a freaking blast to stop now.LadyTevar wrote:So, are you going to do the whole plot now, or just end at Garland's Defeat?
@Kuja: I'm going to steal that and make it the story's official tagline.
*****
The huge, wooden double doors of Castle Cornelia’s throne room opened wide. Through the archway strode two temple knights who fanned out to stand on either side of the doorway as six apprehensive-looking travelers entered. Once they were past the doorway the knights closed the doors behind them, dutifully seeing themselves out as they did so. The throne room was just as ornate and regal as one would expect, but despite the castle’s size it wasn’t all that large. On the larger of the two thrones sat His Royal Majesty King Cornelias VI, next to him his wife, the Queen Jayne. Off to the side a stood a shrew-looking man. This was none other than Chancellor Rehnquist, the king’s chief advisor. After having been abandoned by the two knights the white mage of the group had apparently assumed the point position. She closed to a respectful distance and removed her hood, bowing gracefully.
Both the king and queen smiled, but the king waved his hand, motioning Sarina and her comrades forward. “Closer, closer!” He grinned. “How long I have waited for this day. The Warriors of Light have come at last!”
The six would-be heroes stood shoulder to shoulder at an uncomfortably close distance to the throne. Aside from his diplomatic smile, the king’s expression was mostly unreadable. The queen’s grief-stricken face seemed to shine with hope, while the chancellor remained largely aloof, making no effort whatsoever to hide his skepticism.
Rehnquist turned to the king. “Your Majesty, we cannot be certain that these are the warriors foretold by the Prophecy. We will need… proof of some sort.”
“Ah, yes.” The king leaned forward. “I am told you come bearing crystals remarkably similar to the four elemental crystals described in Lukahn’s Prophecy. This must at least be true if you’ve found your way here, but may I see them? The chancellor is a very doubtful man, I’m afraid.”
Rehnquist ignored the slight, frowning instead at four of the six as they stepped forward. The fighter in heavy armor, the fighter in light armor, the white mage and the black mage all produced ornate, silver chains with crystals set in the pendant. Three of the four were dull and faded, but the red one shimmered brightly.
The king gestured to the four as he addressed the chancellor, his tone patronizing. “Surely it is no coincidence that four warriors bearing crystals have appeared at our kingdom’s darkest hour. It is just as the great sage foretold: ‘When darkness veils the world, Four Warriors of Light shall come’. My daughter, the heir apparent to the throne of this very kingdom has been abducted. Fiends lay siege to our great city and murder innocent civilians outside her walls. Garland has somehow acquired untold power, we cannot defeat him ourselves, only the Warriors of Light can do this.”
“Please…” Jayne pleaded. “Please bring my daughter, my Sarah, back to me safely. I don’t know what I would do if something were to happen to her…”
The chancellor sighed, addressing the de facto Light Warriors for the first time. “As you may or may not be aware, Garland, a knight one in His Majesty’s service, has abducted Princess Sarah. I hereby request your assistance on behalf of His Majesty, the King of Cornelia. Garland has taken refuge in the Chaos Shrine, which lies to the northwest. The ruins have always been a nesting ground for monsters, including undead, but it has since been turned into a virtual fortress. Garland was the leader of the Cornelian Royal Army, so he is no stranger to military tactics. Again, as you may or may not know, he has somehow gained the ability to command the undead, and has forged an alliance with the newly unified goblin tribes. Both have joined forces to attack Cornelia, reaching the city itself on several occasions.”
He extended a pointer and walked over to a giant map mounted on a large stand. The map depicted mainland Cornelia. Rehnquist pointed to a small point northwest of Cornelia City and motioned from there to the city itself. “We are, and have been since this began, on the defensive. We have staged several unsuccessful counter-attacks on the temple, but each has been forced to retreat. The goblins have untold numbers, although each individual fighter is weak. The undead are, of course, undead. While the bulk of Garland’s forces engage the Royal Army south of Lariat, the shrine itself is relatively unprotected.”
The king nodded. “A small, highly specialized group of elite adventurers- that’s you- should have a much easier time getting to and infiltrating the shrine than any conventional force.”
Rehnquist continued. “The Royal Archaeological Society has provided maps to the foyer of the Chaos Shrine, but we have no idea where the princess is being held. Also, Garland may have renovated the upper levels and basement floors of the shrine. Booby traps and other assorted security measures await you, as do Garland’s minions. This is all in addition to the large array of monsters that normally nest there anyway.” He smiled dryly. “If you ask me this is a suicide mission, but the king seems to believe you are the Four, so it shouldn’t be anything you can’t handle.”
His Majesty nodded gravely. “This leaves the matter of Garland himself. Although he is obviously no longer the man I once knew, there is no reason to assume his abilities have similarly fallen from grace. Put simply, he was- and is, for that matter- the finest swordsman in the kingdom. We have none who can match him.”
The chancellor put the pointer away and returned to his original position. “You set out at daybreak tomorrow, I leave the tactical details in your very capable hands. The Army has its hands full securing the homeland, and henceforward are mainly a diversion for your activities anyway, so don’t expect any official support.” He beamed. “Questions?”
“Uh, yeah. I have a question.” Argus stepped forward, bowing slightly to the king. Sarina looked mortified. “What does all of this- any of this- have to do with our main mission? How will pulling this off work towards the goal of restoring the crystals?”
Gilles shuffled quietly to Argus’ side, nodding in agreement. “I beg your pardon, sir, but we are not ‘elite adventurers’ as you say. I cannot speak for Mr. Baron or Ms. Alexandra here, as I have only met them today, but I, for one, am no warrior.” He spread his hands. “I am barely a full-fledged mage.”
Kelga spoke up, but remained in place. “Your Majesty, I came here under the impression that we would be trained to become Warriors of Light. We came here seeking the guidance of Sage Lukahn or whoever else might know something- anything- about these crystals.” He looked more than a little worried. “I’ve seen some action before, you can be sure, but nothing like this.”
“They’re not ready.” Maduin called from his place next to Duane, his arms crossed irreverently. “They came here to become Light Warriors, and they’re treated like they already are. With all due respect, this is foolishness, Your Majesty. You’re sending them out to die.”
“It would appear, Sire…” Sarina mumbled, almost whispered. “…It would appear that we need some time to prepare.”
Rehnquist muttered to no one, looking pleased. “For legendary heroes, they don’t have a lot of confidence…”
The king merely sighed and nodded dotingly. “I understand your concern, brave warriors, but I am afraid time is something of which we have run out. To put it plainly you’re our only hope, and to answer your previous question…” He shrugged. “Lukahn has left us for parts unknown. No one knows the Prophecy as intimately as he does- it is his, after all.” He smiled in what was probably intended to be reassurance. “Lady Matoya, a master alchemist and a powerful witch lives the life of a hermit in the wilderness north of here. Far to the north of here. She is the world’s foremost expert on magical crystals, in possession of a particularly powerful one herself. If anyone can help you unlock the secrets of the artifacts you carry, it is her. Unfortunately…”
“Unfortunately what?” Argus seemed to forget he was talking to a king.
“Unfortunately, Garland’s forces hold Lariat and we cannot complete the drawbridge spanning the northern strait at a time of war like this. The only other option would be by sea, but the only port in that region was recently destroyed in a skirmish with a pirate fleet.”
“I know.” Argus frowned. “That was my hometown.”
“So basically,” Kelga sighed. “We don’t get to Matoya unless the bridge is finished, and you can’t finish the bridge until Garland’s siege is broken.”
“Precisely.” His Majesty nodded gravely. “So you see how Garland’s betrayal is part of the greater darkness you are destined to defeat.”
“I believe in you.” Jayne said quietly. “You’re our only hope…”
“Anything further?” Rehnquist stood expectantly. “No? Shall I see them to their rooms, Your Majesty?”
The king nodded. “You are dismissed. Go now, Warriors of Light, and do not fail me!”
I felt a disturbance in the Force...as though six people simultaneously gulped and thought, "Oh shit, he's serious."The king nodded. “You are dismissed. Go now, Warriors of Light, and do not fail me!”
Not bad, but felt a little weaker than some of the earlier chapters. But I guess the quest had to start sometime, and I thought you handled it fairly well.
Kick ass.@Kuja: I'm going to steal that and make it the story's official tagline.
JADAFETWA
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Darth Raptor
- Red Mage
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The guard that had escorted them to their suite unlocked the door and held it open for them. “This way, please.” He gestured inside as the guests shuffled through the doorway. Once they had all filed in the knight stood in the entrance and addressed the group. “I trust you’ll find our accommodations to be satisfactory. Lady Sarina, I apologize, but due to security concerns you must remain with the group.” He nodded curtly. “I shall come by to collect you in the morning. I would recommend you get some rest. Restore the Crystals to grace!” He saluted and shut the door behind him as he left. Not only did the door latch tightly, but it made an unsettling clicking sound.
Argus ran up to the door and tugged on the latch. “It’s locked!” He exclaimed. “They locked us in!”
“Nicest prison I’ve ever stayed in.” Kelga joined Argus at the door and shooed him aside. “Let me take a look at this.” He pulled a small metal tool out of his pocket and started probing the latch and hinges.
“Ironic, isn’t it?” Maduin sat down on one of the luxuriant full-sized beds. “We’re being sent to do what their army can’t, and they still think they need to protect us.”
“Their ‘security concerns’ are for their benefit, not ours.” Gilles started spreading his belongings out on a small round table. “They’re taking no chances. They don’t want us going anywhere.”
“This is ridiculous!” Argus fumed. “They can’t do this! They requested our help and now they’re compelling us to save the princess?”
Maduin rolled his eyes. “That official ‘request’ was just a formality. It’s like the mage says, they’re not letting us go anywhere. Hell, they even blackmailed me and that guy in the funny hat into helping you out, and we don’t even have any crystals!”
“My name is Duane, sir.” The red mage had chosen a bed and started situating it to suit him.
Gilles sighed, setting up candles and runes in apparent preparation for some kind of ritual. “Politicians. I miss Gaia where all you had to deal with were a council of elders. This nonsense with an absolute autocrat and a white magic theocracy could get really old, really fast.” He looked at Sarina cockeyed. “No offense, madam.”
“None taken.” Sarina was staring out the window at the city.
Kelga was in his element, apparently occupied at picking the lock. Argus gave up and took a seat at the table with Gilles. “You’re a magician too, right? What’s all this stuff?”
“Yes, I am a ‘magician’ and this would be magical stuff.” His yellow eyes narrowed. “Black magic stuff.”
“Good.” Maduin muttered, laying back on the bed. “Now we’ll have some real firepower, and I won’t have to do all the work.”
“Oh as if!” Argus shouted angrily. “I got Sarina all the way to Duergar before we even met you. I killed an ogre.”
“Knock it off, you two!” Sarina didn’t even turn around. “This isn’t appropriate!”
Duane crossed to the center of the room and cleared his throat. “Since we’re obviously not going anywhere, I think it would be a good idea if we got to know each other better. With a more comprehensive understanding of our comrades and their abilities we will be better suited to the task at hand. We can assign duties according to our specializations. First of all, we’ll need a leader.” He looked around the room. “Any suggestions? Volunteers?”
“Not it!” Kelga called from the door he was still trying to unlock.
Duane continued. “Our leader should probably be the most experienced, if not the oldest of our group. One with a keen grasp of tactics, a good amount of common sense and a knack for improvisation. In a traditional party such as ours the leadership position usually defaults to the warrior.” He nodded to Argus. “Mr. Baron, do you have any formal military training?”
“Uh, no. Sorry. Self-taught.”
“Anyone else?”
“Not interested.” Gilles closed his eyes and started chanting. The runes and alchemical symbols on the table started to glow and Argus watched them intently.
“I’ll do it.” Maduin stared up at the ceiling. “I’m the most experienced fighter here, and I’ve taken on all kinds of missions before.” He sat up. “I’ve been working as a mercenary, although I don’t have any formal training I’ve got plenty of experience.”
Duane nodded. “All right then, all in favor?”
Everyone in the room mumbled in agreement.
“It’s settled then. Master Vargas I defer to you.” Duane turned around and proceeded to sit down.
Maduin stood and stretched, then he cracked his knuckles. “Okay, from the look of things this is a very well balanced group. We have four fighters and three magic users.”
“Four and three make seven, Maduin.” Argus apparently thought he was being clever.
“Do they really? Unless Duane here just likes dressing funny, I’m assuming he’s a red mage. A warlock, a spellsword. In other words, he does both.”
“Oh.” Argus said quietly.
Maduin continued. “I’ve never been good at magic, never had any desire to study magic, but don’t think that I don’t respect it.” He nodded. “I’ve seen what it’s capable of first-hand. I’m good- that’s not conceit, it’s a fact- and Argus here is good, if a bit green.” He gestured to Kelga, still probing the door. “He can probably hold his own in combat too, but my point is it doesn’t matter how good we are. It’s the magic that’s going to make or break this group and get us through this mission. We will be relying on Gilles to blast stuff, Sarina to tend to our wounds and Duane to pick up the slack in both departments.”
“My spells can be used aggressively against the undead.” Sarina reminded him.
“Right, but you and Duane will be the healers of the group. In the most general sense, what the rest of us can’t kill, Gilles will have to.”
“So what are us three then?” Argus demanded. “Shields?”
Maduin flashed him a predatory grin. “No, you are the shield. With that armor, and Sarina and Duane’s enhancing magic you’ll have the best chance of surviving what comes our way. In case you haven’t noticed, the rest of us aren’t all that heavily armored. In the case of Kelga and myself that’s to retain mobility. The mages need to be able to focus.”
Gilles chuckled quietly. “Basically, you run interference while I attack from a distance. Sarina will keep you alive in the meantime.”
“Oh, sounds great.” Argus swallowed.
“Kelga and I will be on offense.” He turned to the thief. “Kelga, are you listening? I’m going to be your trick partner. Have you done that before?”
“Yeah, yeah. Go for the kidneys while I stab them in the back… Damn it, this freaking… They don’t fool around.”
“What about multiple foes?” Duane asked.
Maduin nodded. “Good question. If they’re people or normal monsters you and Gilles put the extras to sleep so we can deal with them one at a time.”
“Enfeebling magic is useless against the undead.” Gilles pointed out.
“Not mine.” Sarina added. “Garland can send all the undead he wants. Dia will be waiting.”
“Good.” Maduin scratched his head. “I think that about settles it, then. Of course, we’ll be wanting to avoid combat whenever possible- especially once we get to the temple, but we need to be prepared anyway.” He looked around the room. “How is everyone for equipment and supplies? Weapons okay?”
“You’d think…” Kelga grunted. “That they’d be giving us the best weapons and armor they have.”
“Funny story there, Kelga.” Duane muttered. “Four hundred years ago the founders of this kingdom built an armory on the lowest level for just that purpose. The first King of Cornelia stockpiled weapons and supplies for the Four Warriors of Light, as did the leaders of Elfheim and Duergar. The treasury was then sealed with powerful sorcery that cannot be dispelled, and the only key was entrusted to the elven royal family.”
“How is that funny?” Argus asked.
“It’s not, really, unless you find bitter irony amusing. The current guardian of the key has been under a curse for the last five years. Only he knows its location and he is unable to wake.”
“Still, you’d think they could give us stuff better than what WE have.” Kelga’s frustration with the lock was starting to show.
Gilles shook his head, impressed. “I must say this is a very economical move on the part of His Majesty. Sit on your duff and wait for a group of legendary heroes to assassinate your nemesis and rescue your daughter. All you have to do is finish building the bridge you were going to build anyway.”
“Hah!” Maduin scoffed. “I don’t remember them saying anything about killing Garland, do you? They seemed to indicate we were in trouble if we ran into him. Personally, I don’t have any intentions of Garland knowing we were there until the princess is already safe in her bed back here.”
“That would be ideal.” Sarina agreed.
Gilles nodded. “I agree, but the bridge cannot be completed until peace has been restored to the kingdom. Unless the would-be usurper is removed, I don’t see how that can happen.”
“Mm, I do.” Duane mused. “With his hostage gone, the good general loses most if not all of his bid for the kingdom. He can’t take the city by force or he would have done so already, his plan seems to be to force the king to abdicate out of desperation. A plan that seems to be working, I might add. After all, we are his only hope. Think about that for a moment. Not to say we can’t do this, but the threat posed by this ex-knight is obviously greater than we originally feared… as is his reliance on the princess.”
“So it’s decided then.” Maduin said. “We bypass Garland completely if possible. Without better info I’m afraid the rest will have to be made up as we go…” He scratched his head. “Um, I can’t really think of anything else. Duane?”
Duane shrugged. “Manipulating the power of the Crystals, perhaps?”
Kelga finally gave up with the lock. “I have the only active one, remember? I’ve been messing with it the whole way here from Pravoka and still haven’t been able to do anything with it. It just glows.”
“What powers are supposed to be granted by the Fire Crystal, anyway?” Sarina queried.
“Manipulation of fire, obviously.” Gilles stated. “General pyromancy on par with fire elemental black magic. I really don’t know why the boy hasn’t been able to use it.”
“What have you been trying to do, Kelga?” The white mage asked gently.
“Uh, I really won’t know where to start. I’m not a mage. I don’t know Divine or Hermetic and there’s not even a spell to chant if I did…”
“I told you it’s not a spell!” Gilles interjected.
“Er, right. I still don’t know how to work with it.”
Sarina frowned. “Has it had any… side effects? Has exposure to the Crystal been doing anything out of the ordinary? Other than glowing?”
Kelga shook his head. “No, nothing.”
“No nightmares?”
“…No.”
“Nightmares!?” Gilles was visibly surprised.
“Have you been having them?”
“…I have.”
“What about?”
“I’d rather not say.” Gilles scratched under the brim of his hat. “Suffice to say that they’re disturbing, to say the least.”
Sarina turned to Argus. “Have you had any since you got your Crystal back?”
“Not since I got it back, but quite a few back in the day.”
Sarina was silent for a moment. “So it appears that only the faded Crystals cause nightmares in their bearers. The Fire Crystal appears to be untouched by whatever affliction is corrupting the other three.” She shook her head. “I don’t understand.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Gilles continued. “What’s important is that it should work, but Kelga can’t get it to for some reason. I can’t think of a reason why.”
Kelga just stood there staring at the shimmering crystal while the other five erupted into speculation. Moreover, only Sarina, Gilles and Duane were really speculating. Argus and Maduin just tried to keep up with the increasingly technical conversation. Eventually Sarina and Gilles got into an argument that was over even Duane’s head. This debate continued until it was interrupted by sound of flames.
“Uh, guys?” Kelga was still standing there, dumbfounded. Only now the Crystal was glowing more brightly than ever and fire was being emitted from his clenched fists. He didn’t appear to be harmed by the flames. “I think I got it.” He made a gesture and dispelled the effect.
“Can you do it again?” Gilles didn’t appear all that hopeful.
Kelga closed his eyes and focused. The Crystal flashed and a circular wall of fire enveloped him. He opened his eyes and smiled briefly before the combustion dissipated. “Now I know I got it. Okay, I’m ready for anything.”
“Didn’t even burn the carpet…” Argus whistled, impressed.
“So, how did you do it?” Maduin demanded.
Kelga frowned. “It’s hard to say exactly, so I won’t. I can’t. It’s really more like a wellspring of knowledge I tap into than any real power I wield myself. Like I said, hard to explain.”
Gilles nodded. “Like I expected. Well, now this is progress. Now all we have to do is light the other three, however it is we do that.”
“That’s up to that witch, remember?” Maduin laid back down. “That’s a long ways off yet, we’ve got a lot of ground to cover tomorrow. Let’s get some rest.”
Argus ran up to the door and tugged on the latch. “It’s locked!” He exclaimed. “They locked us in!”
“Nicest prison I’ve ever stayed in.” Kelga joined Argus at the door and shooed him aside. “Let me take a look at this.” He pulled a small metal tool out of his pocket and started probing the latch and hinges.
“Ironic, isn’t it?” Maduin sat down on one of the luxuriant full-sized beds. “We’re being sent to do what their army can’t, and they still think they need to protect us.”
“Their ‘security concerns’ are for their benefit, not ours.” Gilles started spreading his belongings out on a small round table. “They’re taking no chances. They don’t want us going anywhere.”
“This is ridiculous!” Argus fumed. “They can’t do this! They requested our help and now they’re compelling us to save the princess?”
Maduin rolled his eyes. “That official ‘request’ was just a formality. It’s like the mage says, they’re not letting us go anywhere. Hell, they even blackmailed me and that guy in the funny hat into helping you out, and we don’t even have any crystals!”
“My name is Duane, sir.” The red mage had chosen a bed and started situating it to suit him.
Gilles sighed, setting up candles and runes in apparent preparation for some kind of ritual. “Politicians. I miss Gaia where all you had to deal with were a council of elders. This nonsense with an absolute autocrat and a white magic theocracy could get really old, really fast.” He looked at Sarina cockeyed. “No offense, madam.”
“None taken.” Sarina was staring out the window at the city.
Kelga was in his element, apparently occupied at picking the lock. Argus gave up and took a seat at the table with Gilles. “You’re a magician too, right? What’s all this stuff?”
“Yes, I am a ‘magician’ and this would be magical stuff.” His yellow eyes narrowed. “Black magic stuff.”
“Good.” Maduin muttered, laying back on the bed. “Now we’ll have some real firepower, and I won’t have to do all the work.”
“Oh as if!” Argus shouted angrily. “I got Sarina all the way to Duergar before we even met you. I killed an ogre.”
“Knock it off, you two!” Sarina didn’t even turn around. “This isn’t appropriate!”
Duane crossed to the center of the room and cleared his throat. “Since we’re obviously not going anywhere, I think it would be a good idea if we got to know each other better. With a more comprehensive understanding of our comrades and their abilities we will be better suited to the task at hand. We can assign duties according to our specializations. First of all, we’ll need a leader.” He looked around the room. “Any suggestions? Volunteers?”
“Not it!” Kelga called from the door he was still trying to unlock.
Duane continued. “Our leader should probably be the most experienced, if not the oldest of our group. One with a keen grasp of tactics, a good amount of common sense and a knack for improvisation. In a traditional party such as ours the leadership position usually defaults to the warrior.” He nodded to Argus. “Mr. Baron, do you have any formal military training?”
“Uh, no. Sorry. Self-taught.”
“Anyone else?”
“Not interested.” Gilles closed his eyes and started chanting. The runes and alchemical symbols on the table started to glow and Argus watched them intently.
“I’ll do it.” Maduin stared up at the ceiling. “I’m the most experienced fighter here, and I’ve taken on all kinds of missions before.” He sat up. “I’ve been working as a mercenary, although I don’t have any formal training I’ve got plenty of experience.”
Duane nodded. “All right then, all in favor?”
Everyone in the room mumbled in agreement.
“It’s settled then. Master Vargas I defer to you.” Duane turned around and proceeded to sit down.
Maduin stood and stretched, then he cracked his knuckles. “Okay, from the look of things this is a very well balanced group. We have four fighters and three magic users.”
“Four and three make seven, Maduin.” Argus apparently thought he was being clever.
“Do they really? Unless Duane here just likes dressing funny, I’m assuming he’s a red mage. A warlock, a spellsword. In other words, he does both.”
“Oh.” Argus said quietly.
Maduin continued. “I’ve never been good at magic, never had any desire to study magic, but don’t think that I don’t respect it.” He nodded. “I’ve seen what it’s capable of first-hand. I’m good- that’s not conceit, it’s a fact- and Argus here is good, if a bit green.” He gestured to Kelga, still probing the door. “He can probably hold his own in combat too, but my point is it doesn’t matter how good we are. It’s the magic that’s going to make or break this group and get us through this mission. We will be relying on Gilles to blast stuff, Sarina to tend to our wounds and Duane to pick up the slack in both departments.”
“My spells can be used aggressively against the undead.” Sarina reminded him.
“Right, but you and Duane will be the healers of the group. In the most general sense, what the rest of us can’t kill, Gilles will have to.”
“So what are us three then?” Argus demanded. “Shields?”
Maduin flashed him a predatory grin. “No, you are the shield. With that armor, and Sarina and Duane’s enhancing magic you’ll have the best chance of surviving what comes our way. In case you haven’t noticed, the rest of us aren’t all that heavily armored. In the case of Kelga and myself that’s to retain mobility. The mages need to be able to focus.”
Gilles chuckled quietly. “Basically, you run interference while I attack from a distance. Sarina will keep you alive in the meantime.”
“Oh, sounds great.” Argus swallowed.
“Kelga and I will be on offense.” He turned to the thief. “Kelga, are you listening? I’m going to be your trick partner. Have you done that before?”
“Yeah, yeah. Go for the kidneys while I stab them in the back… Damn it, this freaking… They don’t fool around.”
“What about multiple foes?” Duane asked.
Maduin nodded. “Good question. If they’re people or normal monsters you and Gilles put the extras to sleep so we can deal with them one at a time.”
“Enfeebling magic is useless against the undead.” Gilles pointed out.
“Not mine.” Sarina added. “Garland can send all the undead he wants. Dia will be waiting.”
“Good.” Maduin scratched his head. “I think that about settles it, then. Of course, we’ll be wanting to avoid combat whenever possible- especially once we get to the temple, but we need to be prepared anyway.” He looked around the room. “How is everyone for equipment and supplies? Weapons okay?”
“You’d think…” Kelga grunted. “That they’d be giving us the best weapons and armor they have.”
“Funny story there, Kelga.” Duane muttered. “Four hundred years ago the founders of this kingdom built an armory on the lowest level for just that purpose. The first King of Cornelia stockpiled weapons and supplies for the Four Warriors of Light, as did the leaders of Elfheim and Duergar. The treasury was then sealed with powerful sorcery that cannot be dispelled, and the only key was entrusted to the elven royal family.”
“How is that funny?” Argus asked.
“It’s not, really, unless you find bitter irony amusing. The current guardian of the key has been under a curse for the last five years. Only he knows its location and he is unable to wake.”
“Still, you’d think they could give us stuff better than what WE have.” Kelga’s frustration with the lock was starting to show.
Gilles shook his head, impressed. “I must say this is a very economical move on the part of His Majesty. Sit on your duff and wait for a group of legendary heroes to assassinate your nemesis and rescue your daughter. All you have to do is finish building the bridge you were going to build anyway.”
“Hah!” Maduin scoffed. “I don’t remember them saying anything about killing Garland, do you? They seemed to indicate we were in trouble if we ran into him. Personally, I don’t have any intentions of Garland knowing we were there until the princess is already safe in her bed back here.”
“That would be ideal.” Sarina agreed.
Gilles nodded. “I agree, but the bridge cannot be completed until peace has been restored to the kingdom. Unless the would-be usurper is removed, I don’t see how that can happen.”
“Mm, I do.” Duane mused. “With his hostage gone, the good general loses most if not all of his bid for the kingdom. He can’t take the city by force or he would have done so already, his plan seems to be to force the king to abdicate out of desperation. A plan that seems to be working, I might add. After all, we are his only hope. Think about that for a moment. Not to say we can’t do this, but the threat posed by this ex-knight is obviously greater than we originally feared… as is his reliance on the princess.”
“So it’s decided then.” Maduin said. “We bypass Garland completely if possible. Without better info I’m afraid the rest will have to be made up as we go…” He scratched his head. “Um, I can’t really think of anything else. Duane?”
Duane shrugged. “Manipulating the power of the Crystals, perhaps?”
Kelga finally gave up with the lock. “I have the only active one, remember? I’ve been messing with it the whole way here from Pravoka and still haven’t been able to do anything with it. It just glows.”
“What powers are supposed to be granted by the Fire Crystal, anyway?” Sarina queried.
“Manipulation of fire, obviously.” Gilles stated. “General pyromancy on par with fire elemental black magic. I really don’t know why the boy hasn’t been able to use it.”
“What have you been trying to do, Kelga?” The white mage asked gently.
“Uh, I really won’t know where to start. I’m not a mage. I don’t know Divine or Hermetic and there’s not even a spell to chant if I did…”
“I told you it’s not a spell!” Gilles interjected.
“Er, right. I still don’t know how to work with it.”
Sarina frowned. “Has it had any… side effects? Has exposure to the Crystal been doing anything out of the ordinary? Other than glowing?”
Kelga shook his head. “No, nothing.”
“No nightmares?”
“…No.”
“Nightmares!?” Gilles was visibly surprised.
“Have you been having them?”
“…I have.”
“What about?”
“I’d rather not say.” Gilles scratched under the brim of his hat. “Suffice to say that they’re disturbing, to say the least.”
Sarina turned to Argus. “Have you had any since you got your Crystal back?”
“Not since I got it back, but quite a few back in the day.”
Sarina was silent for a moment. “So it appears that only the faded Crystals cause nightmares in their bearers. The Fire Crystal appears to be untouched by whatever affliction is corrupting the other three.” She shook her head. “I don’t understand.”
“It doesn’t matter.” Gilles continued. “What’s important is that it should work, but Kelga can’t get it to for some reason. I can’t think of a reason why.”
Kelga just stood there staring at the shimmering crystal while the other five erupted into speculation. Moreover, only Sarina, Gilles and Duane were really speculating. Argus and Maduin just tried to keep up with the increasingly technical conversation. Eventually Sarina and Gilles got into an argument that was over even Duane’s head. This debate continued until it was interrupted by sound of flames.
“Uh, guys?” Kelga was still standing there, dumbfounded. Only now the Crystal was glowing more brightly than ever and fire was being emitted from his clenched fists. He didn’t appear to be harmed by the flames. “I think I got it.” He made a gesture and dispelled the effect.
“Can you do it again?” Gilles didn’t appear all that hopeful.
Kelga closed his eyes and focused. The Crystal flashed and a circular wall of fire enveloped him. He opened his eyes and smiled briefly before the combustion dissipated. “Now I know I got it. Okay, I’m ready for anything.”
“Didn’t even burn the carpet…” Argus whistled, impressed.
“So, how did you do it?” Maduin demanded.
Kelga frowned. “It’s hard to say exactly, so I won’t. I can’t. It’s really more like a wellspring of knowledge I tap into than any real power I wield myself. Like I said, hard to explain.”
Gilles nodded. “Like I expected. Well, now this is progress. Now all we have to do is light the other three, however it is we do that.”
“That’s up to that witch, remember?” Maduin laid back down. “That’s a long ways off yet, we’ve got a lot of ground to cover tomorrow. Let’s get some rest.”
-
Darth Raptor
- Red Mage
- Posts: 5448
- Joined: 2003-12-18 03:39am
Cold rain trickled down through the cracks in the ceiling. The icy water droplets woke Sarah from her dreamless sleep. What day was it? She had lost all track of time. Hours meshed into days which may have meshed into weeks. She had no idea how long she’d been in the cold, drafty cell. It seemed like forever, but it also seemed like yesterday she was safe and comfortable at Castle Cornelia. She sniffed, having caught cold over the last few days. No, her time back home seemed more like a fond dream than something that actually ever happened. She looked up at the gray clouds through the gaps in the dilapidated shrine. She hated this place. It was a temple built to honor evil, destruction and disorder. It was now a citadel from which a monster she used to love plotted his revenge.
She scooted back against the wall, out of the rain. It was an awkward maneuver with all her chains, but she still managed it. The rattling of her shackles woke one of the werewolves that slumbered in front of the entrance to her cell. It resembled an ordinary dog, albeit quite large with sick-looking green fur and red glowing eyes. There were two of them on guard in front of Sarah’s cell. Yellow, viscous, disease-laden saliva dripped from their ivory fangs. How the goblins could tame such a beast was beyond her. Maybe it was only because the goblins were beasts themselves. Satisfied that it was only its charge, the wolf laid back down and closed its eyes. For a moment she thought she heard the werewolves growling, but she then realized it was her own stomach. The princess couldn’t remember the last time she had eaten, although she had been fed here. The goblins brought her stale bead, gruel and vegetable broth from time to time. It didn’t satisfy.
Sarah had spent a lot of time crying since her arrival. The first few hours (or was it days?) were literally a nonstop orgy of sobbing. Now, she couldn’t summon the urge to cry anymore. Her outraged despair had given in to detached depression. The only thing really on her mind now was her physical discomfort. Her hunger, her cold, her infirmity. How she longed for the luxuries, nay, the necessities of civilization. She was sure she would die out here.
The heavy iron door to the dungeon opened and both monsters were on their feet, snarling. The short, disproportionate shadow cast into the gloom told her the visitor was a goblin. Two tall, deathlike shadows flanked the new arrival, a couple of the animated skeletons used as guards here. Both werewolves caught the scent of the visitor and promptly sat down in deference. It wasn’t an ordinary goblin guard, this heavily armored fiend had guards of his own. As he rounded the corner Sarah’s suspicions were confirmed. This was the goblin tribal leader, a warlord, a foul creature known only as Knocker.
The goblin strode right up to the iron bars and grasped them. He smiled at Sarah, baring his disgusting teeth. “HelLO, PrinCESS!” Sarah didn’t answer. “HOW are you feeLING? HunGRY?”
“A-“ Sarah coughed and cleared her sore throat. She didn’t have much of a voice. “A little. Why do they send their leader to do what guards have been doing so far?”
Knocker exhaled sharply. The sound was similar to a groan but the disconcerting smile on his face didn’t leave. Sarah decided it was a goblin expression, wholly unreadable. “GARland wishes to DINE with you, PrinCESS. You are the guest of HONOR at this banQUET. A BANquet in CELebraTION of our conQUEST of CORneliA!”
“So the city has fallen?” Sarah’s hands were numb, and not from the cold.
Knocker made the sound again. “No… not YET. The king is DESperATE. He has not attacked the shrine RECENTly. Pigeons bring news that he wishes to neGOTiATE!”
“Father…” Sarah’s worst fears bubbled up from the depths of her psyche. The king didn’t react rationally when he was attacked personally. At first she didn’t think he would ever abdicate the throne to insure her safety, but now…
The goblin cackled. “You will SEE him soon, PrinCESS. Before GARland runs him THROUGH and takes his CROWN!” He drew a heavy set of iron keys and unlocked the cell. The two skeletons entered first and took their positions on either side of the doorway before he entered. Knocker hobbled up to where Sarah sat and unlocked her chains. “Come on THEN, PrinCESS!”
Sarah slowly stood to her feet. She was weak and queasy. She couldn’t remember the last time she stood. She took a moment to stretch; a moment before one of the skeletons prodded her to follow Knocker, who was already heading out of the dungeon. She limped after him.
“Come ON!”
“I’m coming!” Sarah was careful to give the werewolves a wide berth. They snarled at her menacingly as she passed. The main corridor of the dungeon was in a decidedly better state of repair than the cells themselves. Once, thousands of years ago, this place was as beautiful and well kept as the Temple of Light in Cornelia; with almost as many followers. The only difference was the gods worshiped here were at the opposite end of the moral spectrum. The cult that practiced here had no Common name, and their Hermetic name translated into the curious oxymoron that was the Order of Chaos. They predated the birth of Cornelia as a nation. They predated the fall of the Lufeinian civilization. They were often inaccurately credited with the first organized effort to study black magic, a feat the elven sorcerers of old were truly responsible for. According to the Royal Archaeological Society, the shrine was mysteriously abandoned some four hundred years ago. This coincided with the fall of the Sky People and the birth of Cornelia as the new nation of humans. Four hundred years ago was, by all historical accounts, when monsters first appeared. They had spread and multiplied vigorously in the last four centuries. No one knew how or why.
“SOON, PrinCESS. SOON.” Knocker cackled. “GARland will be KING of CorNElia and you will be his QUEEN. Won’t that be NICE?”
Sarah didn’t answer. She had known this was Garland’s intent since that fateful day this all began. That seemed so long ago. It was only because of her behavior, her refusal to ‘behave’ herself that she was even thrown in the dungeon. He seemed to believe he was doing her a favor, and that his barbarous actions changed nothing between them. When she renounced his love for him he became angry, and seemed genuinely disappointed. How could he honestly expect her to condone his actions? He was insane, it was as simple as that. It hurt her deeply to see the man she loved fall to such depths, but it was clear that the man she loved was gone. The knight Siegfried, had been replaced by a hideous archfiend. His anger and hatred had corrupted the Light Crystal, and he declared his intentions to study the arts of the dark sword. No, her fiancé was gone. Her lover, her friend, her protector was no more. In his place was some dark knight doppelganger who would stop at nothing to accomplish his goal. That goal being nothing less than world domination. Some of her previous guards were goblins recycled in from the front. They bragged about sacking an entire village. The man she loved would never order such a heinous act.
“It is pointLESS to resist, PrinCESS. Why fight it when you can be at his SIDE? Don’t you want to RULE? Don’t you want to RULE with POWER? Real POWER? TRUE power?”
“It doesn’t matter what I want anymore. I’ll die before I let father exchange the kingdom for my life.”
Knocker growled. “YOU will come aROUND, PrinCESS. Soon, you will SEE things HIS WAY. We ALL will.”
“Why do you follow him, anyway? Why would the tribes obey a human?”
“RACIST HUME! RaCIST huMANS! Unlike YOU, we don’t CARE about BLOOD. We CARE about lOYalty and huMILity before the GODS. GarLAND is the one we’ve been WAITING for. The one DEStined to lead our people to victorY. HIS WILL is the WILL of the GODS, PrinCESS. This is what we were creATED FOR! To serve the bringER of DARKNESS!”
“All fiends were created to serve some prophesied warrior of darkness? Are you sure it’s not just the influence of his Crystal over your minds?”
“SILENCE! The CrysTAL he bears is PROOF that he is the ONE! With it, he will CRUSH the FOUR Warriors of LIGHT. Victory will BE ours!”
The Four Warriors of Light? Of course, it made perfect sense. As a member of her father’s court, Sarah knew the primary purpose of Lukahn’s Prophecy. The legend that four heroes bearing Crystals would restore the world and banish the monsters was a boon for morale among the poor, uneducated masses. While her father seemed to genuinely believe in it, as did most of the Church, the upper echelons of nobility regarded it as a myth. As did most of the secular intelligentsia of all three nations. It stood to reason that the monsters would have their own version. A version wherein the bearer of the corrupted Light Crystal defeated the other four and brought victory to the fiends. But what was victory for these monsters? Victory was probably world conquest, and subjugation of the enlightened peoples. In their relatively short history the goblins, ogres, sahagin and assorted other beastmen had developed an extremely hostile relationship with all three nations. While Sarah still struggled to grasp their willingness to accept this “bringer of darkness” as a human it may just have been their ideal. After all, what better irony, what better final insult than to have a human be his own race’s undoing? Or maybe Knocker was right, maybe goblins didn’t care what you were, as long as you were on their side. He would know best, after all. What with being a goblin and all.
Knocker led Sarah and the two skeletons to a pair of double doors that looked recently installed. The goblin warlord strained to reach the latch and opened one of the two doors. He bowed cordially to the princess and gestured for her to enter. The banquet hall was the most solid looking room she had seen yet. The roof did not leak, the pillars were all intact and the polished stone floor wasn’t missing any tiles. A long marble table was the room’s dominant feature. While the table had sufficient seating for nearly two dozen people, there were only five present- counting Sarah and Knocker. Garland sat at the head of the table. Once Sarah entered he stood and strode up to her. He was wearing a new suit of heavy armor. The darksteel platemail was adorned with studs, spikes and arcane symbols. His new attire fit well with the corrupted Crystal which hung around his neck. While impressive, his new armor bore a striking resemblance to that of a dark knight. Sarah was sure this was the look he was going for. Before she could resist, he snatched her hand and knelt to kiss it.
“It’s good to see you again, love. I hope it’s no longer necessary to keep you in that drafty old cell.” He turned and gestured toward the table. Knocker took his seat next to one of the other dinner guests- a broody looking dark elf. To her shock and chagrin, Sarah actually recognized one of the guests; a pale but attractive red haired man. She knew him as Lord Raxle Berne of Melmond. The implications of this did not bode well. What was an ambassador of Duergar doing among Cornelian rebels? Did Duergar have a stake in Garland’s coup? Did Garland have an alliance with the dark elves?
Garland smiled. “You must be hungry, Sarah. Come, have a seat.” He led her to the seat next to Berne’s- to the right of his. “Allow me to introduce our first of hopefully many allies.” Garland nodded to the armored goblin. “You have already met Boss Knocker. He is the undisputed leader of the goblin tribes. He assures me that the ogres and sahagin are also willing to cooperate with us. The creatures you call monsters were willing to live in peace all along. All we had to do was reach out to them. The dark elf on Knocker’s left is His Royal Majesty King Astos I. He is the leader of West Elfheim and has pledged his support to our cause.”
Astos stood and grinned at the princess. “A pleasure to finally meet you, Your Highness. Unfortunate that we had to meet under these circumstances. Although, now that the war has finally reached your doorstep, so to speak, you humans may be better able to understand the plight of my people.” He sat back down, his clear eye glittered brightly. “I sense much strength in you, child. You will make a fine empress.”
Garland pointed across the table from Astos. “You have already met Lord Berne. He practically owns the city of Melmond, and by extension governs most of that dwarven province. The earth rot has devastated his homeland, and your father did not see fit to assist. My reign will not be such a selfish one, I assure you.”
Berne stood and bowed gracefully to Sarah. “We meet again, Lady Sarah.” He smiled. “I know what you must be thinking, but I assure you I want only the best for my people. While Cornelia and western Duergar have been and still are very much allies, General Garland here represents a much needed change in your nation that I feel will be very beneficial to all.” He took his seat again. “In a world with so many problems, we needn’t fight with the ‘monsters’ as you call them. The corrupt monarchies of Cornelia and Elfheim must be deposed, for the benefit of all, you understand.”
Garland sat back down at the head of the table. “Have a seat, Sarah.” Once she did so Garland clapped his mailed hands and skeletal wait staff entered from another room. They came bearing platters of food and bottles of drink the likes of which Sarah hadn’t seen since she left home. While she was repulsed by the idea of dining with these would-be usurpers, her stomach overrode her indignation. The moment one of the animated corpses placed a plate before her, she hungrily dug in. Garland smiled.
“There now, my love. This is how it should be. I don’t want to treat you like a captive, but you leave me no other choice. This is a dark time for you, don’t think I don’t understand that. It is a dark time for all of us. Don’t you see how this is for the best? I had hoped to bring about the necessary changes peacefully, but your father had other plans. Once you and I assume our place on the throne we will bring peace and order to the greater Aldean. The goblins are no longer our enemy, and we can bring about an end to this long and bloody civil war in Elfheim. The people of Melmond needn’t starve any longer, Sarah.”
Sarah didn’t answer, she didn’t want to. Not even looking up she stuffed her face with food to avoid eye contact with the monsters around her. Not just the literal monsters like Knocker and the skeletons, but the wicked fiends of the human and elven variety also present. Did Garland think he could actually sway her with this nonsense? Peace and order? Such hypocrisy! Even now the goblins were raiding Cornelian villages, murdering innocent civilians. Sarah knew for a fact that the dark elves employed similar tactics in West Elfheim. No, what was gathered here were the most powerful, disenfranchised creatures on the Aldean. The goblins saw Garland as their savior, Berne was probably desperate for any aid he could get. If that meant supporting a coup then so be it. Astos’ presence was unexpected, but not surprising. In the elven civil war, Cornelia was neutral in name only. It was an open secret that the nation supported East Elfheim. The dark elves had every reason to want Garland’s coup to succeed.
Once Sarah finished her plate Garland poured her a drink. He then poured himself a drink and passed the bottle on. Once everyone’s goblet was full he stood. “I propose a toast. To a new era, an era of peace and prosperity. Not just for one nation, or one race, but to the entire world and all of its inhabitants! Together, we will accomplish what none of us could do alone! To unity!”
“To unity!” The delegates answered in unison. Everyone drank their wine but Sarah. She felt ill, having eaten too fast. Attending a banquet celebrating the impending defeat of Cornelia didn’t help matters much either. What was she going to do? Was it true that her father was about to capitulate? She decided there was only one way to find out.
“So…” She stammered. “Has my father responded to the demands?”
“Yes, love. The poor fool has finally realized he can’t take you back by force. Oh how it must irritate him not to have what he wants! No, in his desperation he has negotiated a cessation of hostilities. It’s a start. Of course, I will not rest until you and I are king and queen, but without me the Royal Army cannot break the siege. His Majesty is running out of options.”
Astos growled. “I must applaud your tactics, General. This kind of guerilla warfare has proven very effective in the south. The regular army is in disarray trying to protect the outlying villages. Trade routes to the capitol are thus disrupted.”
Berne seemed to sense Sarah’s dismay at the talk of slaughtered civilians. “Gentlemen,” he interjected. “Such talk is more appropriate for the war room, don’t you agree? This is a happy occasion. We wouldn’t want to upset the princess.”
Garland nodded gravely while Astos took another drink. Knocker apparently ignored Berne’s not-so-subtle hint. “A VERY hapPY ocCASion, my lord.” He squealed with delight. “FINaLY the humes taste their own mediCINE!” He cackled gleefully at Sarah. “NOW you must KNOW what it is LIKE for your people to BE exterminATED like VERmin!”
“That’s enough.” Garland’s voice was soft but firm.
“Yes, my LORD.”
Sarah stared at her empty plate, trying to keep her food down. The bile in her mouth and the tears in her eyes made it difficult. “Garland…” She wheezed. “Please, you must stop this. I can understand your anger, but this isn’t the way! Run away! Far away! If you don’t want to serve my father then leave Cornelia. Take me with you if you must but please, stop this war! I beg you!”
Garland hung his head. The other delegates watched their leader quietly, anxiously. “No, my love. I cannot. It is too late, I am in too deep already. I know this must all come as quite a shock to you, but you know I have always felt that the ends justify the means. Our empire will be the greatest since that of the sky people. We will bring peace, prosperity and order to the Aldean. No, not just the Aldean, but the entire world!”
“You would start a war in the name of peace? You would bring about a recession in the name of prosperity? You would destabilize the entire continent in the name of order? Do you even hear yourself, Garland!? You’re insane!” She shook her head. “No, you’re not just mad, you’re something else. That Crystal has corrupted you. You’ve become the very monster you sought to destroy, and ended up leading their army! Is your mind so clouded with your lust for revenge that you cannot think of anything else? What happened to your oath of chivalry? How are you protecting Cornelia by attacking it?”
“Quiet.” Garland didn’t look up.
“No, Siegfried! I won’t be quiet! My father crossed the line, there’s no doubt there. But you have gone so far beyond an appropriate response I can’t help but question your sanity! You conduct yourself like this and you have the gall to think of yourself as the better leader? You would sacrifice your own citizens like pawns in some petty squabble!?”
“Be quiet, Sarah.”
The princess stood. “Kill me. If you want to keep me from speaking my mind that is the only way. I can’t believe I ever loved you, Garland. You’re a monster, and until the day you’re defeated there won’t be a day that goes by that I won’t remind you of what you’ve become! I will never rule by your side. You will have to find another 'queen' to share your usurped throne with.” Tears were streaming down her face. “If you really want to silence me, then run me through! It’s the only way!”
Garland stood. “No, Princess. It isn’t.” He stretched his hand out towards her. The Dark Crystal glowed malevolently, as did the symbols on his new armor. A dark aura shot out from his outstretched hand and enveloped her. She gasped as she collapsed back into the chair, paralyzed. Her eyes were open, but she couldn’t move. She was completely aware, but was as still as death. Garland whirled around to hide his face from his companions, who sat in stunned silence. He picked up a heavy, long horned darksteel helm with a full-face mask and put it on. It was very clearly part of the complete armor set. Once he regained his composure he turned to face the table. He waved to the two skeletons in the corner.
“Take her to the Crystal Chamber. She’ll see things our way soon enough. Well then, gentlemen. This is the event you’ve all been waiting for. Lord Berne, your suspicions were correct. The excavation of the lower levels was most productive. While I didn’t uncover the Masamune, I may have uncovered the vault to a far more desirable weapon. I think I may have discovered the resting place of Ragnarok.”
She scooted back against the wall, out of the rain. It was an awkward maneuver with all her chains, but she still managed it. The rattling of her shackles woke one of the werewolves that slumbered in front of the entrance to her cell. It resembled an ordinary dog, albeit quite large with sick-looking green fur and red glowing eyes. There were two of them on guard in front of Sarah’s cell. Yellow, viscous, disease-laden saliva dripped from their ivory fangs. How the goblins could tame such a beast was beyond her. Maybe it was only because the goblins were beasts themselves. Satisfied that it was only its charge, the wolf laid back down and closed its eyes. For a moment she thought she heard the werewolves growling, but she then realized it was her own stomach. The princess couldn’t remember the last time she had eaten, although she had been fed here. The goblins brought her stale bead, gruel and vegetable broth from time to time. It didn’t satisfy.
Sarah had spent a lot of time crying since her arrival. The first few hours (or was it days?) were literally a nonstop orgy of sobbing. Now, she couldn’t summon the urge to cry anymore. Her outraged despair had given in to detached depression. The only thing really on her mind now was her physical discomfort. Her hunger, her cold, her infirmity. How she longed for the luxuries, nay, the necessities of civilization. She was sure she would die out here.
The heavy iron door to the dungeon opened and both monsters were on their feet, snarling. The short, disproportionate shadow cast into the gloom told her the visitor was a goblin. Two tall, deathlike shadows flanked the new arrival, a couple of the animated skeletons used as guards here. Both werewolves caught the scent of the visitor and promptly sat down in deference. It wasn’t an ordinary goblin guard, this heavily armored fiend had guards of his own. As he rounded the corner Sarah’s suspicions were confirmed. This was the goblin tribal leader, a warlord, a foul creature known only as Knocker.
The goblin strode right up to the iron bars and grasped them. He smiled at Sarah, baring his disgusting teeth. “HelLO, PrinCESS!” Sarah didn’t answer. “HOW are you feeLING? HunGRY?”
“A-“ Sarah coughed and cleared her sore throat. She didn’t have much of a voice. “A little. Why do they send their leader to do what guards have been doing so far?”
Knocker exhaled sharply. The sound was similar to a groan but the disconcerting smile on his face didn’t leave. Sarah decided it was a goblin expression, wholly unreadable. “GARland wishes to DINE with you, PrinCESS. You are the guest of HONOR at this banQUET. A BANquet in CELebraTION of our conQUEST of CORneliA!”
“So the city has fallen?” Sarah’s hands were numb, and not from the cold.
Knocker made the sound again. “No… not YET. The king is DESperATE. He has not attacked the shrine RECENTly. Pigeons bring news that he wishes to neGOTiATE!”
“Father…” Sarah’s worst fears bubbled up from the depths of her psyche. The king didn’t react rationally when he was attacked personally. At first she didn’t think he would ever abdicate the throne to insure her safety, but now…
The goblin cackled. “You will SEE him soon, PrinCESS. Before GARland runs him THROUGH and takes his CROWN!” He drew a heavy set of iron keys and unlocked the cell. The two skeletons entered first and took their positions on either side of the doorway before he entered. Knocker hobbled up to where Sarah sat and unlocked her chains. “Come on THEN, PrinCESS!”
Sarah slowly stood to her feet. She was weak and queasy. She couldn’t remember the last time she stood. She took a moment to stretch; a moment before one of the skeletons prodded her to follow Knocker, who was already heading out of the dungeon. She limped after him.
“Come ON!”
“I’m coming!” Sarah was careful to give the werewolves a wide berth. They snarled at her menacingly as she passed. The main corridor of the dungeon was in a decidedly better state of repair than the cells themselves. Once, thousands of years ago, this place was as beautiful and well kept as the Temple of Light in Cornelia; with almost as many followers. The only difference was the gods worshiped here were at the opposite end of the moral spectrum. The cult that practiced here had no Common name, and their Hermetic name translated into the curious oxymoron that was the Order of Chaos. They predated the birth of Cornelia as a nation. They predated the fall of the Lufeinian civilization. They were often inaccurately credited with the first organized effort to study black magic, a feat the elven sorcerers of old were truly responsible for. According to the Royal Archaeological Society, the shrine was mysteriously abandoned some four hundred years ago. This coincided with the fall of the Sky People and the birth of Cornelia as the new nation of humans. Four hundred years ago was, by all historical accounts, when monsters first appeared. They had spread and multiplied vigorously in the last four centuries. No one knew how or why.
“SOON, PrinCESS. SOON.” Knocker cackled. “GARland will be KING of CorNElia and you will be his QUEEN. Won’t that be NICE?”
Sarah didn’t answer. She had known this was Garland’s intent since that fateful day this all began. That seemed so long ago. It was only because of her behavior, her refusal to ‘behave’ herself that she was even thrown in the dungeon. He seemed to believe he was doing her a favor, and that his barbarous actions changed nothing between them. When she renounced his love for him he became angry, and seemed genuinely disappointed. How could he honestly expect her to condone his actions? He was insane, it was as simple as that. It hurt her deeply to see the man she loved fall to such depths, but it was clear that the man she loved was gone. The knight Siegfried, had been replaced by a hideous archfiend. His anger and hatred had corrupted the Light Crystal, and he declared his intentions to study the arts of the dark sword. No, her fiancé was gone. Her lover, her friend, her protector was no more. In his place was some dark knight doppelganger who would stop at nothing to accomplish his goal. That goal being nothing less than world domination. Some of her previous guards were goblins recycled in from the front. They bragged about sacking an entire village. The man she loved would never order such a heinous act.
“It is pointLESS to resist, PrinCESS. Why fight it when you can be at his SIDE? Don’t you want to RULE? Don’t you want to RULE with POWER? Real POWER? TRUE power?”
“It doesn’t matter what I want anymore. I’ll die before I let father exchange the kingdom for my life.”
Knocker growled. “YOU will come aROUND, PrinCESS. Soon, you will SEE things HIS WAY. We ALL will.”
“Why do you follow him, anyway? Why would the tribes obey a human?”
“RACIST HUME! RaCIST huMANS! Unlike YOU, we don’t CARE about BLOOD. We CARE about lOYalty and huMILity before the GODS. GarLAND is the one we’ve been WAITING for. The one DEStined to lead our people to victorY. HIS WILL is the WILL of the GODS, PrinCESS. This is what we were creATED FOR! To serve the bringER of DARKNESS!”
“All fiends were created to serve some prophesied warrior of darkness? Are you sure it’s not just the influence of his Crystal over your minds?”
“SILENCE! The CrysTAL he bears is PROOF that he is the ONE! With it, he will CRUSH the FOUR Warriors of LIGHT. Victory will BE ours!”
The Four Warriors of Light? Of course, it made perfect sense. As a member of her father’s court, Sarah knew the primary purpose of Lukahn’s Prophecy. The legend that four heroes bearing Crystals would restore the world and banish the monsters was a boon for morale among the poor, uneducated masses. While her father seemed to genuinely believe in it, as did most of the Church, the upper echelons of nobility regarded it as a myth. As did most of the secular intelligentsia of all three nations. It stood to reason that the monsters would have their own version. A version wherein the bearer of the corrupted Light Crystal defeated the other four and brought victory to the fiends. But what was victory for these monsters? Victory was probably world conquest, and subjugation of the enlightened peoples. In their relatively short history the goblins, ogres, sahagin and assorted other beastmen had developed an extremely hostile relationship with all three nations. While Sarah still struggled to grasp their willingness to accept this “bringer of darkness” as a human it may just have been their ideal. After all, what better irony, what better final insult than to have a human be his own race’s undoing? Or maybe Knocker was right, maybe goblins didn’t care what you were, as long as you were on their side. He would know best, after all. What with being a goblin and all.
Knocker led Sarah and the two skeletons to a pair of double doors that looked recently installed. The goblin warlord strained to reach the latch and opened one of the two doors. He bowed cordially to the princess and gestured for her to enter. The banquet hall was the most solid looking room she had seen yet. The roof did not leak, the pillars were all intact and the polished stone floor wasn’t missing any tiles. A long marble table was the room’s dominant feature. While the table had sufficient seating for nearly two dozen people, there were only five present- counting Sarah and Knocker. Garland sat at the head of the table. Once Sarah entered he stood and strode up to her. He was wearing a new suit of heavy armor. The darksteel platemail was adorned with studs, spikes and arcane symbols. His new attire fit well with the corrupted Crystal which hung around his neck. While impressive, his new armor bore a striking resemblance to that of a dark knight. Sarah was sure this was the look he was going for. Before she could resist, he snatched her hand and knelt to kiss it.
“It’s good to see you again, love. I hope it’s no longer necessary to keep you in that drafty old cell.” He turned and gestured toward the table. Knocker took his seat next to one of the other dinner guests- a broody looking dark elf. To her shock and chagrin, Sarah actually recognized one of the guests; a pale but attractive red haired man. She knew him as Lord Raxle Berne of Melmond. The implications of this did not bode well. What was an ambassador of Duergar doing among Cornelian rebels? Did Duergar have a stake in Garland’s coup? Did Garland have an alliance with the dark elves?
Garland smiled. “You must be hungry, Sarah. Come, have a seat.” He led her to the seat next to Berne’s- to the right of his. “Allow me to introduce our first of hopefully many allies.” Garland nodded to the armored goblin. “You have already met Boss Knocker. He is the undisputed leader of the goblin tribes. He assures me that the ogres and sahagin are also willing to cooperate with us. The creatures you call monsters were willing to live in peace all along. All we had to do was reach out to them. The dark elf on Knocker’s left is His Royal Majesty King Astos I. He is the leader of West Elfheim and has pledged his support to our cause.”
Astos stood and grinned at the princess. “A pleasure to finally meet you, Your Highness. Unfortunate that we had to meet under these circumstances. Although, now that the war has finally reached your doorstep, so to speak, you humans may be better able to understand the plight of my people.” He sat back down, his clear eye glittered brightly. “I sense much strength in you, child. You will make a fine empress.”
Garland pointed across the table from Astos. “You have already met Lord Berne. He practically owns the city of Melmond, and by extension governs most of that dwarven province. The earth rot has devastated his homeland, and your father did not see fit to assist. My reign will not be such a selfish one, I assure you.”
Berne stood and bowed gracefully to Sarah. “We meet again, Lady Sarah.” He smiled. “I know what you must be thinking, but I assure you I want only the best for my people. While Cornelia and western Duergar have been and still are very much allies, General Garland here represents a much needed change in your nation that I feel will be very beneficial to all.” He took his seat again. “In a world with so many problems, we needn’t fight with the ‘monsters’ as you call them. The corrupt monarchies of Cornelia and Elfheim must be deposed, for the benefit of all, you understand.”
Garland sat back down at the head of the table. “Have a seat, Sarah.” Once she did so Garland clapped his mailed hands and skeletal wait staff entered from another room. They came bearing platters of food and bottles of drink the likes of which Sarah hadn’t seen since she left home. While she was repulsed by the idea of dining with these would-be usurpers, her stomach overrode her indignation. The moment one of the animated corpses placed a plate before her, she hungrily dug in. Garland smiled.
“There now, my love. This is how it should be. I don’t want to treat you like a captive, but you leave me no other choice. This is a dark time for you, don’t think I don’t understand that. It is a dark time for all of us. Don’t you see how this is for the best? I had hoped to bring about the necessary changes peacefully, but your father had other plans. Once you and I assume our place on the throne we will bring peace and order to the greater Aldean. The goblins are no longer our enemy, and we can bring about an end to this long and bloody civil war in Elfheim. The people of Melmond needn’t starve any longer, Sarah.”
Sarah didn’t answer, she didn’t want to. Not even looking up she stuffed her face with food to avoid eye contact with the monsters around her. Not just the literal monsters like Knocker and the skeletons, but the wicked fiends of the human and elven variety also present. Did Garland think he could actually sway her with this nonsense? Peace and order? Such hypocrisy! Even now the goblins were raiding Cornelian villages, murdering innocent civilians. Sarah knew for a fact that the dark elves employed similar tactics in West Elfheim. No, what was gathered here were the most powerful, disenfranchised creatures on the Aldean. The goblins saw Garland as their savior, Berne was probably desperate for any aid he could get. If that meant supporting a coup then so be it. Astos’ presence was unexpected, but not surprising. In the elven civil war, Cornelia was neutral in name only. It was an open secret that the nation supported East Elfheim. The dark elves had every reason to want Garland’s coup to succeed.
Once Sarah finished her plate Garland poured her a drink. He then poured himself a drink and passed the bottle on. Once everyone’s goblet was full he stood. “I propose a toast. To a new era, an era of peace and prosperity. Not just for one nation, or one race, but to the entire world and all of its inhabitants! Together, we will accomplish what none of us could do alone! To unity!”
“To unity!” The delegates answered in unison. Everyone drank their wine but Sarah. She felt ill, having eaten too fast. Attending a banquet celebrating the impending defeat of Cornelia didn’t help matters much either. What was she going to do? Was it true that her father was about to capitulate? She decided there was only one way to find out.
“So…” She stammered. “Has my father responded to the demands?”
“Yes, love. The poor fool has finally realized he can’t take you back by force. Oh how it must irritate him not to have what he wants! No, in his desperation he has negotiated a cessation of hostilities. It’s a start. Of course, I will not rest until you and I are king and queen, but without me the Royal Army cannot break the siege. His Majesty is running out of options.”
Astos growled. “I must applaud your tactics, General. This kind of guerilla warfare has proven very effective in the south. The regular army is in disarray trying to protect the outlying villages. Trade routes to the capitol are thus disrupted.”
Berne seemed to sense Sarah’s dismay at the talk of slaughtered civilians. “Gentlemen,” he interjected. “Such talk is more appropriate for the war room, don’t you agree? This is a happy occasion. We wouldn’t want to upset the princess.”
Garland nodded gravely while Astos took another drink. Knocker apparently ignored Berne’s not-so-subtle hint. “A VERY hapPY ocCASion, my lord.” He squealed with delight. “FINaLY the humes taste their own mediCINE!” He cackled gleefully at Sarah. “NOW you must KNOW what it is LIKE for your people to BE exterminATED like VERmin!”
“That’s enough.” Garland’s voice was soft but firm.
“Yes, my LORD.”
Sarah stared at her empty plate, trying to keep her food down. The bile in her mouth and the tears in her eyes made it difficult. “Garland…” She wheezed. “Please, you must stop this. I can understand your anger, but this isn’t the way! Run away! Far away! If you don’t want to serve my father then leave Cornelia. Take me with you if you must but please, stop this war! I beg you!”
Garland hung his head. The other delegates watched their leader quietly, anxiously. “No, my love. I cannot. It is too late, I am in too deep already. I know this must all come as quite a shock to you, but you know I have always felt that the ends justify the means. Our empire will be the greatest since that of the sky people. We will bring peace, prosperity and order to the Aldean. No, not just the Aldean, but the entire world!”
“You would start a war in the name of peace? You would bring about a recession in the name of prosperity? You would destabilize the entire continent in the name of order? Do you even hear yourself, Garland!? You’re insane!” She shook her head. “No, you’re not just mad, you’re something else. That Crystal has corrupted you. You’ve become the very monster you sought to destroy, and ended up leading their army! Is your mind so clouded with your lust for revenge that you cannot think of anything else? What happened to your oath of chivalry? How are you protecting Cornelia by attacking it?”
“Quiet.” Garland didn’t look up.
“No, Siegfried! I won’t be quiet! My father crossed the line, there’s no doubt there. But you have gone so far beyond an appropriate response I can’t help but question your sanity! You conduct yourself like this and you have the gall to think of yourself as the better leader? You would sacrifice your own citizens like pawns in some petty squabble!?”
“Be quiet, Sarah.”
The princess stood. “Kill me. If you want to keep me from speaking my mind that is the only way. I can’t believe I ever loved you, Garland. You’re a monster, and until the day you’re defeated there won’t be a day that goes by that I won’t remind you of what you’ve become! I will never rule by your side. You will have to find another 'queen' to share your usurped throne with.” Tears were streaming down her face. “If you really want to silence me, then run me through! It’s the only way!”
Garland stood. “No, Princess. It isn’t.” He stretched his hand out towards her. The Dark Crystal glowed malevolently, as did the symbols on his new armor. A dark aura shot out from his outstretched hand and enveloped her. She gasped as she collapsed back into the chair, paralyzed. Her eyes were open, but she couldn’t move. She was completely aware, but was as still as death. Garland whirled around to hide his face from his companions, who sat in stunned silence. He picked up a heavy, long horned darksteel helm with a full-face mask and put it on. It was very clearly part of the complete armor set. Once he regained his composure he turned to face the table. He waved to the two skeletons in the corner.
“Take her to the Crystal Chamber. She’ll see things our way soon enough. Well then, gentlemen. This is the event you’ve all been waiting for. Lord Berne, your suspicions were correct. The excavation of the lower levels was most productive. While I didn’t uncover the Masamune, I may have uncovered the vault to a far more desirable weapon. I think I may have discovered the resting place of Ragnarok.”
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Darth Raptor
- Red Mage
- Posts: 5448
- Joined: 2003-12-18 03:39am
Whew. Apologies to anyone who followed this. I've been very busy, and very lazy. Not a good combination. At any rate, Cycle of Wrath is resuming as my FF obsession is ressurrected (I have the FFIV remake to thank for that). Look for updates once a week (maybe more if I ever get a computer of my own). Anyway, here's the first chapter in a long-ass time. Sorry. 
*****
The Atmori Woods lay in a fertile valley at the base of two separate mountain ranges. Good roads led northwest from Cornelia City into the forest, where they split- going east to Mt. Lariat and west towards the Horkavir Mountains. The Horkavir Range was the route Argus and Sarina had taken to Duergar over a month ago. The Earthgift Shrine, a sacred place for the dwarves, was situated in a cavern at the base of those mountains. Lariat, on the other hand, was the only overland route to Pravoka and, until recently, Prontera. However, no roads continued north, and that’s where the Warriors of Light wanted to go. North through the Atmori to the Leinhoffen Swamp, and further still to the Gytmori Woods and the Chaos Shrine beyond.
Once they passed that fork- the scene of a recent skirmish between the knights and goblins- they were in hostile territory. While Garland’s siege of Cornelia had brought the goblin and undead army to the city’s gates on several occasions, the king had staged an offensive to coincide with the Warriors’ journey. The grassy plains between Cornelia and the Atmori were easy enough to secure, but the knights could only take Atmori as far as the roads went. All of their steel, mythril and gunpowder did little to help them when the entire swampy forest came alive and attacked them. Goblins knew this territory well. After all, it was more theirs than it was Cornelia’s. The goblins were the ones who lived and multiplied here, and they could stage deadly ambushes in the thick foliage and treacherous swamps of the region.
The six were now in virgin, unbroken forest and were making little progress. They had been attacked by wolves several times on their journey already, but nakk were the least of their concerns in this dark wood. While the bulk of Garland’s forces were engaging the Royal Army in southern Atmori and on the plains, there were plenty of sentry patrols about. Not only were the goblins familiar with this territory, they had ‘improved’ it, in a sense. Lethal pitfall traps and snares were everywhere. While the Light Warriors had managed to avoid the hazards so far, they came across the remains of several knights who didn’t. The goblins themselves had keen senses of hearing, vision and smell- and so did their warg wolf pets. The six counted themselves very lucky to have made it this far unmolested, but none of them were arrogant enough to think that their luck would hold.
Kelga, who was acting as pathfinder, came to an abrupt halt. Although he raised his hand to signal his comrades to do the same, he didn’t have to. They had long since been conditioned to stop when he did. He turned to the other five and motioned for them to get down, he then dove into the ferns- where his leaf-green clothing hid him remarkably well. The other five were not so well camouflaged, and so hid behind trees as quickly and quietly as they could. Argus had the most awkward time, as he was arguably the least stealthy of them all. The Warriors nervously peeked from their hiding places to see what had spooked Kelga so.
Eight goblins marched by, single-file. They wore light, leather armor and it seemed to be a uniform of some sort. The guard in the lead wore a blue tunic and cap while the other seven wore yellow-green. The leader chattered away in the shrill and obnoxious goblin tongue, and the other seven repeated what he said. It seemed to be a cadence call. As the platoon passed, Kelga stood and gave the all-clear signal. This was not the first patrol they had encountered, and as they got deeper into Garland’s territory it certainly wouldn’t be their last. Fortunately, Kelga’s highly tuned senses and reflexes had allowed the group to avoid every one.
As the six prepared to resume their journey another goblin burst from the undergrowth, chasing after the others. It was a straggler, a goblin that got separated somehow and was now rushing to reunite with his squad. The hasty fiend blundered right into the Light Warriors’ formation- catching them completely off guard. Unfortunately for the goblin, he was just as surprised. The fiend skidded to a halt in wide-eyed terror and started to emit a high-pitched, barking cry. The goblin’s call was cut short as the beast was struck with a flying kick from Maduin. The little imp’s body careened through the air and crashed against a tree in a most unhealthy looking position. When the goblin hit the ground, it didn’t get up.
“Think they heard?” Argus whispered as he moved in front of Sarina, getting a better grip on his already drawn broadsword. Kelga and Maduin both nodded as they also took their places in front of the mages. Duane stepped forward to join the front row, drawing his rapier as he did so. Sarina began casting Protect as quietly as the incantation would allow- bestowing the magical shield on Argus. The surly black mage grumbled to himself quietly- the air grew chilly as he was apparently preparing to cast Blizzard. Kelga pointed his now drawn scimitar towards a point in the bushes. Everyone strained to see what he was pointing at, but couldn’t. At least they knew what direction the attack would be coming from. They shifted their formation accordingly.
Suddenly three goblin footmen charged out of the foliage, their wicked-looking daggers drawn. They were daggers only to a full grown human. In proportion to the goblins, they were more like shortswords. With his shield raised and his sword held high, Argus dashed forward to meet them. Instead of attacking him, they flanked him. Two on his right and one to his left. Argus broke to the right, attempting to engage one fiend while holding the other’s attention. Duane dashed forward with a quick thrust that impaled the goblin that came in from the left. The heavily armored warrior bellowed a war cry as he beheaded one of the two he was fighting. The other charged right for him. While any sane creature would have been terrified, Argus’ provocation incensed it, rather than intimidating it. This, however, was the entire point of his strategy. By keeping all attention on him, he kept the unarmored mages safe.
Guarding the mages was what Kelga and Maduin were doing while the two swordsmen were up front. Four more gobs and their boss had yet to show themselves, and with all the noise Kelga couldn’t detect them. Sensing his confusion and frustration while she meditated quietly, Sarina began extending her focus. The sickening sound of Argus running his goblin through became faint and distant as her spiritual sight moved outward and upward; scanning the forest for the lost monsters. There! She gasped as she sensed their location. Two were coming from the rear right, another two from the rear left, and the vanguard coming straight at them from behind.
“Boys! Behind us!” She wheeled around and started casting Protect, this time on herself. Argus and Duane closed ranks just as the remainder of the platoon showed themselves. Kelga didn’t hesitate. The first goblin out of the bushes was greeted by a throwing knife to the face. The one following it abruptly turned to ice and shattered as Gilles finally discharged his spell. Three to go. The guard appeared and charged with his two subordinates on either side of him. Argus and Duane rushed the two footmen, dispatching them with equal ease- but different style. While Duane elegantly ran his goblin through Argus brutally cleaved his in half.
Unfazed, the goblin guard continued his charge- that is, until Kelga’s motion became an impossible green blur. Once the imp found himself without a weapon, he looked less eager to attack and more willing to retreat. Too late. Maduin charged and dove head-first towards the little monster, his legs wide open after his jump. As he passed directly over the goblin he snagged its head between his knees. Both the human and the imp came down with a crash, but Maduin had positioned himself so the goblin’s back would absorb all of the impact. With the impish vanguard’s vertebrae shattered, and the crisis passed, he stood up and brushed himself off.
“Show off.” Sarina chided good-naturedly as she holstered her cudgel, relief washing over her pretty face. Any fight that ended without needing a Cure was a good fight in her book.
Maduin nodded back at her. “Nice job Sarina. You too Vasquez. The rest of you… The rest of you need some work.”
“What the hell!?” Argus yelled. “That was perfect!”
“No, it wasn’t.” The monk countered. “You’re the defender. Mind telling me why you rushed out to meet an obvious feint? Leaving the real attackers to guard the mages? If it wasn’t for your yelling two of those first three would have breezed right by you.”
“I…” Argus’ face was red, and he broke gazes with the black belt.
“With four fighters we have some liberties available when engaging large numbers of weak monsters.” Duane offered.
“Yeah, but you’re no fighter. Your fencing is impressive, don’t get me wrong, but we would have been better served by you standing back and casting Sleep or something. That’s what we agreed on for crowd control, remember?”
“Oh… Yes, well-“
“Swordsmanship or no, you’re still a mage. And if you’re not using magic, you aren’t fighting at your best.”
“And what, pray tell, was wrong with my performance, Mr. Vargas?” Gilles’ voice was neutral, but still scary as hell.
“Don’t use your strongest spells on the weakest target. You used that Blizzard on the weaker goblin while the elite guard was still out there. Black magic and a hair trigger is a bad combination- and a good way to get all the enemy attention focused on you. Plus you wanna conserve your mana in case things really go sour.”
“Indeed.” Gilles nodded sagely, apparently not too proud to accept criticism.
The same could not be said for Argus. “How was I supposed to know that was a feint? Kelga signaled in that direction so I ran out to take them. The more room we have between us, the easier it is for them to cast spells!”
“And you didn’t stop and wonder where the other five were?” Maduin was looking at his hands nonchalantly. Apparently enjoying himself.
“Stopping and thinking like that can get you or someone else killed!” Argus thrust his sword into the soft soil. “We don’t have time for that crap!”
“Look, kid.” The monk snorted. “When time is short and things are deadly urgent, that’s when you need to keep your head about you. Even a berserker knows how to focus his uncontrollable rage in a coherent direction. That little stunt you pulled left the rest of us wide open. If Sarina didn’t have the foresight to scan around she might be on the ground with a knife in her back right now.”
The fighter’s eyes went wild. Maduin had apparently struck a nerve. “Damn you to hell, Vargas. I didn’t ask for this! Why do I have to be the human shield?”
“We went over this, putz. You have the heaviest armor. We have two white magic users and plenty of healing potions. The pain will pass, child.”
“Screw off!” The younger boy’s voice was shrill. “I don’t care about the pain. I can handle the pain! It’s…”
“It’s what?”
Argus fidgeted in his armor while he glanced at Sarina. “It’s the responsibility. I can’t be charged with the lives of five people! That’s insane!”
“And you call yourself a warrior?”
“You- You BASTARD!” Argus strode up to Maduin and took a swing right at his face; a swing that the older monk easily caught. With Argus’ fist in his own Maduin wheeled around and swiftly subdued the belligerent fighter, forcing him to the ground.
The others stood in stunned silence while Argus struggled to get up, but Maduin’s defensive grappling and his own armor made it impossible. The warrior growled piteously, impotently.
“And stay down, kid.” Maduin sneered. “Hubris will get you killed faster than an ogre’s club or a dragon’s fangs. Before we’re outta this mess, you’ll learn the difference between confidence and blind, stupid arrogance.”
“Me, arrogant?” Argus’ voice was strained. “That’s a laugh, you pompous ass. You have an ego the size of an airship!”
“So do you.” Maduin chuckled. “The difference is I have the skills to back it up. I know my limits- extreme though they may be. You, on the other hand, do not.”
Argus’ response was some kind of dwarven slur that he didn’t even understand.
“That’s enough!” Sarina barked. “My patience is exhausted with this childish nonsense! Maduin! Get off him! Now!”
The monk wordlessly complied.
“You two are like little kids! Grow the hell up! We have a job to do, and we can’t be fighting amongst ourselves!”
“Then tell him to get off my case.” Argus struggled to his feet.
“Be quiet, Argus!” Sarina hissed. “He’s the leader. We elected him the leader because he’s the most experienced adventurer.” Although she was a few years younger than Maduin, and only a little older than Argus, she exuded more maturity than the two of them combined. “Take what he’s telling you and learn from it. It’s the only way you’ll grow stronger. As for you…” She turned to the monk. “Quit being such a pompous ass.”
“I-“ Maduin’s jaw dropped.
The group’s black mage cleared his throat. “Well, I can’t remember when I’ve had more fun, but I think the princess is expecting us.”
“Yeah.” Argus retrieved his sword. “Let’s all just shut up and get the hell out of here.”
“Every gob within a earshot knows we’re here now.” Kelga was admiring the wicked khukuri he stole from the goblin leader. “And goblin hearing range is closer to elven than that of a human. We do need to move.”
“Is that… steel?” Duane eyed the treasure quizzically.
“Yeah, why?”
“Such metallurgy is supposed to be beyond the tribes.” He said quietly.
“Maybe they got it off a dead Cornelian.”
The red mage shook his head. “Unlikely. Ornate daggers like that aren’t used by the Royal Army.” He peered closer. “And that… That’s the mark of Knocker’s tribe! This knife is goblin made!”
“So what?” Gilles shrugged. “Garland taught them how to smelt iron. That’s hardly alchemy.”
“But this implies an infrastructure. Goblins aren’t supposed to have mines and forges! This is a disaster!”
“…I see.” The black mage got quiet.
“Hey, now. Let’s not jump to conclusions.” Maduin jumped in. “For all we know that could have been an officer, maybe even a general or the goblin equivalent. That hardly means they have the dwarves behind them.”
“What!?” Argus almost shrieked. “The dwarves would never-!”
“Steel.” Kelga reported as he sifted through the weapons of the other fallen goblins. “Every one of them, steel. Pretty generic, too, if you ask me.”
“See.” Duane explained. “Goblins usually sport custom knives made from materials they scavenge. Someone is making them weapons.”
“A war between Cornelia and Duergar could complicate things.” Gilles muttered.
“It’s not Duergar!” Argus yelled.
“Who else?” Sarina asked gently. “Who else near here has the capability to outfit an army like that?”
“But it doesn’t make any sense.” Maduin countered. “Why would they be helping monsters? Why would they be risking a war when they’re at their weakest? Between the earth rot and their severed trade routes-“
“They’re desperate.” Duane speculated. “It’s not like they’re supporting the fiends themselves. The goblin tribes are in league with General Garland. What they’re doing is supporting a foreign rebellion. Perhaps to secure untainted farmland east of their traditional borders, or to install a government more sympathetic to their plight.”
“We don’t KNOW they’re doing anything!” Argus wailed.
“Guys! We need to go. Now!” Kelga was on his feet and glancing about nervously in all directions. “Bloody hell, we’re surrounded!”
“Stay calm.” Maduin ordered. “Which way do we go?”
“Uh… Up?” Kelga smiled weakly. “I said we’re surrounded.”
The bushes came alive, and out of the shuffling greenery a teeming throng of goblins began to emerge. This time they wore armor and carried spears and halberds.
“Well guys, it’s been fun.” Kelga chuckled nervously. “Later!” He jumped straight up and grabbed the highest branch he could. In only a few seconds he had scrambled up the tree and out of sight.
“Wonderful.” Gilles growled as he dropped his staff and put his hands up. One by one, the Warriors of Light lowered their weapons and surrendered to the impish spears arrayed at them from all directions.
*****
The Atmori Woods lay in a fertile valley at the base of two separate mountain ranges. Good roads led northwest from Cornelia City into the forest, where they split- going east to Mt. Lariat and west towards the Horkavir Mountains. The Horkavir Range was the route Argus and Sarina had taken to Duergar over a month ago. The Earthgift Shrine, a sacred place for the dwarves, was situated in a cavern at the base of those mountains. Lariat, on the other hand, was the only overland route to Pravoka and, until recently, Prontera. However, no roads continued north, and that’s where the Warriors of Light wanted to go. North through the Atmori to the Leinhoffen Swamp, and further still to the Gytmori Woods and the Chaos Shrine beyond.
Once they passed that fork- the scene of a recent skirmish between the knights and goblins- they were in hostile territory. While Garland’s siege of Cornelia had brought the goblin and undead army to the city’s gates on several occasions, the king had staged an offensive to coincide with the Warriors’ journey. The grassy plains between Cornelia and the Atmori were easy enough to secure, but the knights could only take Atmori as far as the roads went. All of their steel, mythril and gunpowder did little to help them when the entire swampy forest came alive and attacked them. Goblins knew this territory well. After all, it was more theirs than it was Cornelia’s. The goblins were the ones who lived and multiplied here, and they could stage deadly ambushes in the thick foliage and treacherous swamps of the region.
The six were now in virgin, unbroken forest and were making little progress. They had been attacked by wolves several times on their journey already, but nakk were the least of their concerns in this dark wood. While the bulk of Garland’s forces were engaging the Royal Army in southern Atmori and on the plains, there were plenty of sentry patrols about. Not only were the goblins familiar with this territory, they had ‘improved’ it, in a sense. Lethal pitfall traps and snares were everywhere. While the Light Warriors had managed to avoid the hazards so far, they came across the remains of several knights who didn’t. The goblins themselves had keen senses of hearing, vision and smell- and so did their warg wolf pets. The six counted themselves very lucky to have made it this far unmolested, but none of them were arrogant enough to think that their luck would hold.
Kelga, who was acting as pathfinder, came to an abrupt halt. Although he raised his hand to signal his comrades to do the same, he didn’t have to. They had long since been conditioned to stop when he did. He turned to the other five and motioned for them to get down, he then dove into the ferns- where his leaf-green clothing hid him remarkably well. The other five were not so well camouflaged, and so hid behind trees as quickly and quietly as they could. Argus had the most awkward time, as he was arguably the least stealthy of them all. The Warriors nervously peeked from their hiding places to see what had spooked Kelga so.
Eight goblins marched by, single-file. They wore light, leather armor and it seemed to be a uniform of some sort. The guard in the lead wore a blue tunic and cap while the other seven wore yellow-green. The leader chattered away in the shrill and obnoxious goblin tongue, and the other seven repeated what he said. It seemed to be a cadence call. As the platoon passed, Kelga stood and gave the all-clear signal. This was not the first patrol they had encountered, and as they got deeper into Garland’s territory it certainly wouldn’t be their last. Fortunately, Kelga’s highly tuned senses and reflexes had allowed the group to avoid every one.
As the six prepared to resume their journey another goblin burst from the undergrowth, chasing after the others. It was a straggler, a goblin that got separated somehow and was now rushing to reunite with his squad. The hasty fiend blundered right into the Light Warriors’ formation- catching them completely off guard. Unfortunately for the goblin, he was just as surprised. The fiend skidded to a halt in wide-eyed terror and started to emit a high-pitched, barking cry. The goblin’s call was cut short as the beast was struck with a flying kick from Maduin. The little imp’s body careened through the air and crashed against a tree in a most unhealthy looking position. When the goblin hit the ground, it didn’t get up.
“Think they heard?” Argus whispered as he moved in front of Sarina, getting a better grip on his already drawn broadsword. Kelga and Maduin both nodded as they also took their places in front of the mages. Duane stepped forward to join the front row, drawing his rapier as he did so. Sarina began casting Protect as quietly as the incantation would allow- bestowing the magical shield on Argus. The surly black mage grumbled to himself quietly- the air grew chilly as he was apparently preparing to cast Blizzard. Kelga pointed his now drawn scimitar towards a point in the bushes. Everyone strained to see what he was pointing at, but couldn’t. At least they knew what direction the attack would be coming from. They shifted their formation accordingly.
Suddenly three goblin footmen charged out of the foliage, their wicked-looking daggers drawn. They were daggers only to a full grown human. In proportion to the goblins, they were more like shortswords. With his shield raised and his sword held high, Argus dashed forward to meet them. Instead of attacking him, they flanked him. Two on his right and one to his left. Argus broke to the right, attempting to engage one fiend while holding the other’s attention. Duane dashed forward with a quick thrust that impaled the goblin that came in from the left. The heavily armored warrior bellowed a war cry as he beheaded one of the two he was fighting. The other charged right for him. While any sane creature would have been terrified, Argus’ provocation incensed it, rather than intimidating it. This, however, was the entire point of his strategy. By keeping all attention on him, he kept the unarmored mages safe.
Guarding the mages was what Kelga and Maduin were doing while the two swordsmen were up front. Four more gobs and their boss had yet to show themselves, and with all the noise Kelga couldn’t detect them. Sensing his confusion and frustration while she meditated quietly, Sarina began extending her focus. The sickening sound of Argus running his goblin through became faint and distant as her spiritual sight moved outward and upward; scanning the forest for the lost monsters. There! She gasped as she sensed their location. Two were coming from the rear right, another two from the rear left, and the vanguard coming straight at them from behind.
“Boys! Behind us!” She wheeled around and started casting Protect, this time on herself. Argus and Duane closed ranks just as the remainder of the platoon showed themselves. Kelga didn’t hesitate. The first goblin out of the bushes was greeted by a throwing knife to the face. The one following it abruptly turned to ice and shattered as Gilles finally discharged his spell. Three to go. The guard appeared and charged with his two subordinates on either side of him. Argus and Duane rushed the two footmen, dispatching them with equal ease- but different style. While Duane elegantly ran his goblin through Argus brutally cleaved his in half.
Unfazed, the goblin guard continued his charge- that is, until Kelga’s motion became an impossible green blur. Once the imp found himself without a weapon, he looked less eager to attack and more willing to retreat. Too late. Maduin charged and dove head-first towards the little monster, his legs wide open after his jump. As he passed directly over the goblin he snagged its head between his knees. Both the human and the imp came down with a crash, but Maduin had positioned himself so the goblin’s back would absorb all of the impact. With the impish vanguard’s vertebrae shattered, and the crisis passed, he stood up and brushed himself off.
“Show off.” Sarina chided good-naturedly as she holstered her cudgel, relief washing over her pretty face. Any fight that ended without needing a Cure was a good fight in her book.
Maduin nodded back at her. “Nice job Sarina. You too Vasquez. The rest of you… The rest of you need some work.”
“What the hell!?” Argus yelled. “That was perfect!”
“No, it wasn’t.” The monk countered. “You’re the defender. Mind telling me why you rushed out to meet an obvious feint? Leaving the real attackers to guard the mages? If it wasn’t for your yelling two of those first three would have breezed right by you.”
“I…” Argus’ face was red, and he broke gazes with the black belt.
“With four fighters we have some liberties available when engaging large numbers of weak monsters.” Duane offered.
“Yeah, but you’re no fighter. Your fencing is impressive, don’t get me wrong, but we would have been better served by you standing back and casting Sleep or something. That’s what we agreed on for crowd control, remember?”
“Oh… Yes, well-“
“Swordsmanship or no, you’re still a mage. And if you’re not using magic, you aren’t fighting at your best.”
“And what, pray tell, was wrong with my performance, Mr. Vargas?” Gilles’ voice was neutral, but still scary as hell.
“Don’t use your strongest spells on the weakest target. You used that Blizzard on the weaker goblin while the elite guard was still out there. Black magic and a hair trigger is a bad combination- and a good way to get all the enemy attention focused on you. Plus you wanna conserve your mana in case things really go sour.”
“Indeed.” Gilles nodded sagely, apparently not too proud to accept criticism.
The same could not be said for Argus. “How was I supposed to know that was a feint? Kelga signaled in that direction so I ran out to take them. The more room we have between us, the easier it is for them to cast spells!”
“And you didn’t stop and wonder where the other five were?” Maduin was looking at his hands nonchalantly. Apparently enjoying himself.
“Stopping and thinking like that can get you or someone else killed!” Argus thrust his sword into the soft soil. “We don’t have time for that crap!”
“Look, kid.” The monk snorted. “When time is short and things are deadly urgent, that’s when you need to keep your head about you. Even a berserker knows how to focus his uncontrollable rage in a coherent direction. That little stunt you pulled left the rest of us wide open. If Sarina didn’t have the foresight to scan around she might be on the ground with a knife in her back right now.”
The fighter’s eyes went wild. Maduin had apparently struck a nerve. “Damn you to hell, Vargas. I didn’t ask for this! Why do I have to be the human shield?”
“We went over this, putz. You have the heaviest armor. We have two white magic users and plenty of healing potions. The pain will pass, child.”
“Screw off!” The younger boy’s voice was shrill. “I don’t care about the pain. I can handle the pain! It’s…”
“It’s what?”
Argus fidgeted in his armor while he glanced at Sarina. “It’s the responsibility. I can’t be charged with the lives of five people! That’s insane!”
“And you call yourself a warrior?”
“You- You BASTARD!” Argus strode up to Maduin and took a swing right at his face; a swing that the older monk easily caught. With Argus’ fist in his own Maduin wheeled around and swiftly subdued the belligerent fighter, forcing him to the ground.
The others stood in stunned silence while Argus struggled to get up, but Maduin’s defensive grappling and his own armor made it impossible. The warrior growled piteously, impotently.
“And stay down, kid.” Maduin sneered. “Hubris will get you killed faster than an ogre’s club or a dragon’s fangs. Before we’re outta this mess, you’ll learn the difference between confidence and blind, stupid arrogance.”
“Me, arrogant?” Argus’ voice was strained. “That’s a laugh, you pompous ass. You have an ego the size of an airship!”
“So do you.” Maduin chuckled. “The difference is I have the skills to back it up. I know my limits- extreme though they may be. You, on the other hand, do not.”
Argus’ response was some kind of dwarven slur that he didn’t even understand.
“That’s enough!” Sarina barked. “My patience is exhausted with this childish nonsense! Maduin! Get off him! Now!”
The monk wordlessly complied.
“You two are like little kids! Grow the hell up! We have a job to do, and we can’t be fighting amongst ourselves!”
“Then tell him to get off my case.” Argus struggled to his feet.
“Be quiet, Argus!” Sarina hissed. “He’s the leader. We elected him the leader because he’s the most experienced adventurer.” Although she was a few years younger than Maduin, and only a little older than Argus, she exuded more maturity than the two of them combined. “Take what he’s telling you and learn from it. It’s the only way you’ll grow stronger. As for you…” She turned to the monk. “Quit being such a pompous ass.”
“I-“ Maduin’s jaw dropped.
The group’s black mage cleared his throat. “Well, I can’t remember when I’ve had more fun, but I think the princess is expecting us.”
“Yeah.” Argus retrieved his sword. “Let’s all just shut up and get the hell out of here.”
“Every gob within a earshot knows we’re here now.” Kelga was admiring the wicked khukuri he stole from the goblin leader. “And goblin hearing range is closer to elven than that of a human. We do need to move.”
“Is that… steel?” Duane eyed the treasure quizzically.
“Yeah, why?”
“Such metallurgy is supposed to be beyond the tribes.” He said quietly.
“Maybe they got it off a dead Cornelian.”
The red mage shook his head. “Unlikely. Ornate daggers like that aren’t used by the Royal Army.” He peered closer. “And that… That’s the mark of Knocker’s tribe! This knife is goblin made!”
“So what?” Gilles shrugged. “Garland taught them how to smelt iron. That’s hardly alchemy.”
“But this implies an infrastructure. Goblins aren’t supposed to have mines and forges! This is a disaster!”
“…I see.” The black mage got quiet.
“Hey, now. Let’s not jump to conclusions.” Maduin jumped in. “For all we know that could have been an officer, maybe even a general or the goblin equivalent. That hardly means they have the dwarves behind them.”
“What!?” Argus almost shrieked. “The dwarves would never-!”
“Steel.” Kelga reported as he sifted through the weapons of the other fallen goblins. “Every one of them, steel. Pretty generic, too, if you ask me.”
“See.” Duane explained. “Goblins usually sport custom knives made from materials they scavenge. Someone is making them weapons.”
“A war between Cornelia and Duergar could complicate things.” Gilles muttered.
“It’s not Duergar!” Argus yelled.
“Who else?” Sarina asked gently. “Who else near here has the capability to outfit an army like that?”
“But it doesn’t make any sense.” Maduin countered. “Why would they be helping monsters? Why would they be risking a war when they’re at their weakest? Between the earth rot and their severed trade routes-“
“They’re desperate.” Duane speculated. “It’s not like they’re supporting the fiends themselves. The goblin tribes are in league with General Garland. What they’re doing is supporting a foreign rebellion. Perhaps to secure untainted farmland east of their traditional borders, or to install a government more sympathetic to their plight.”
“We don’t KNOW they’re doing anything!” Argus wailed.
“Guys! We need to go. Now!” Kelga was on his feet and glancing about nervously in all directions. “Bloody hell, we’re surrounded!”
“Stay calm.” Maduin ordered. “Which way do we go?”
“Uh… Up?” Kelga smiled weakly. “I said we’re surrounded.”
The bushes came alive, and out of the shuffling greenery a teeming throng of goblins began to emerge. This time they wore armor and carried spears and halberds.
“Well guys, it’s been fun.” Kelga chuckled nervously. “Later!” He jumped straight up and grabbed the highest branch he could. In only a few seconds he had scrambled up the tree and out of sight.
“Wonderful.” Gilles growled as he dropped his staff and put his hands up. One by one, the Warriors of Light lowered their weapons and surrendered to the impish spears arrayed at them from all directions.
-
Darth Raptor
- Red Mage
- Posts: 5448
- Joined: 2003-12-18 03:39am
Blargh! I am such a bum. And yet, somehow, this jalopy lurches into motion once again.
*****
Perfect, this is just perfect. Kelga hung upside down, suspended by a hempen noose around his ankles several meters above the forest floor. Why did this happen to him, of all people? He was the fastest, the most nimble and by far the best at spotting traps before anyone else. So why was he now hanging precariously from this crude goblin snare? Ironically, his proficiency in all things security was the reason. He was careless, that much was certain, but he was also too preoccupied with actually escaping to notice any other hazards. He had been feeling very pleased with himself; bounding over fallen logs, swinging from branches, diving and rolling. He had lost the goblins with ease, but when he vaulted over another tree stump he landed with both feet square in a snare that closed on him faster than even he could react.
From his inverted vantage point, he could see his scimitar among the ferns on the forest floor. He had dropped it in surprise, but it wasn’t a big deal. He had plenty of throwing knives and other assorted short blades for cutting himself down. No, the real problem was the height from which he would be falling if he cut the rope. His ability to land on his feet had been legendary back home, but even he would have a hard time doing so when falling head-first. Also, if his pursuers found the blade, all they would have to do is look up and he would be in the same boat as the others.
Bright spots were forming in his vision due to the excess blood in his head. He lunged for the rope around his ankles, grabbing it on the second try. With more than a little effort he pulled himself right side-up again. The thief indulged himself in a smile as he began to climb the rope. Once he was sure he had enough slack he drew the steel khukuri and freed his legs. Looking down, he prepped himself for a fall but thought better of it. Even though he had his legs again, it was still a really long way down. Oh well, he thought, if he couldn’t go down, he’d have to go up. With renewed vigor he continued climbing the rope to where it was fixed to a flimsy-looking branch. Just as he was preparing to shimmy across that branch towards the trunk of the tree, familiar voices started cackling from somewhere down below.
Goblins! Kelga hadn’t lost them after all. They were still on his trail, only far behind. But how? The brigand’s silent question was answered when a trio of warg wolves emerged from the undergrowth. Another breed of nakk domesticated by goblins, warg wolves were stronger and smarter than their wild cousins. One could tell them apart because wargs had distinctive, rust-colored pelts. The goblins had used them similar to the manner in which a hunter uses a hound. The wolves closed on where Kelga had sprung the snare trap, and stopped. They turned around, glaring in every direction but up; sniffing the wind for any further sign of the human. When their goblin masters caught up to them, they swiftly spotted Kelga’s blade where it lay. The goblin picked up the shortsword with both hands and looked around for its former owner. Kelga didn’t even breathe. Don’t look up, don’t look up. The lead imp that had taken his sword barked orders to his party- which dispersed to search the immediate area. The warg wolves did so as well, sniffing at the base of the tree from which Kelga hung by increasingly tired arms.
The largest of the three wolves snorted at the tree. Kelga’s anxiety evolved into pure dread when the wolf reared up on its hind legs, raking its sharp claws into the tender bark. It was following the scent up the tree. The other two wargs began to whine and snarl- their quarry was obviously nearby. Fortunately for said quarry, the goblins hadn’t caught on to their pets’ discovery. Kelga had to think of something before they did. Time for a little diversion. Although they were pets in the loosest sense of the word, the voracious canids had every bit the unruly pack structure of their wild kin. While they wouldn’t dare turn on their goblin masters, there was no love lost between the wolves themselves. Each of the three would kill to be top dog if given half a chance. Kelga Vasquez was about to give them a whole chance. He pulled a throwing knife out of his vest and hurled it down into the back of the lead animal. While he had the precision necessary to kill the mutt instantly, he wanted his target to make a fuss.
And make a fuss it did. The second the knife was in its back the wolf stopped scratching at the tree trunk and started whirling around in circles, yelping piteously. Most of the nearby goblins turned to see what all the noise was, but before they ever noticed the knife, the scene had devolved into one of grisly chaos and carnage. The other two wolves, instinct overriding what little intelligence they had, turned on their former leader. In domestic dogs such yelping attracted sympathetic pack mates ready to help, but in these monsters the cries of pain and distress signaled weakness and an opportunity for attack. The wounded wolf was mauled to death in only a few seconds, and now the two usurpers- driven mad by blood- attacked each other. The goblins surrounded their mortally wounded but still quite vicious beasts. They didn’t dare try to break up the fight lest they get pulled into the deadly melee. Both dogs were a lost cause, so once a blood-caked victor emerged, it was promptly struck down by a goblin’s javelin. The diminutive beastmen then started chattering angrily amongst themselves.
Kelga exhaled with relief. Without their wolves the goblins would be hard pressed to follow his scent trail vertically, although their sense of smell was slightly better than that of a human. Yes, they were indeed too stupid to look up, but what now? They had every reason to believe that the human invader was somewhere in the immediate area. They weren’t going to leave any time soon. Kelga’s arms were really starting to ache. What the hell do I do now? I don’t have all day to hang around! Slowly, as quietly as he could, he began to swing hand-over-hand towards the trunk of the tree. Where the branch emerged from the trunk it was far stouter; he would be able to sit there and wait out the search party. Once he reached the base of the branch and pulled himself up, he groaned softly with relief- his arm muscles were badly cramped. Shame on him, he thought, he had believed himself to be in better shape than he apparently was. As he messaged his shoulders he watched the goblins mill around noisily on the forest floor.
Now that he was out of immediate danger, it was time for him to plan his next move. The others had surrendered, the fools. Kelga couldn’t believe that they would just lie down and be taken captive like that. Although, when he thought about it, what other choice did they have? They were completely surrounded. With so many gobs so close up it would have been nearly impossible to protect the mages- speaking of which, they were really too close to let loose the big spells. Gilles may have been able to take them all out, but at that range he would have torched everything; friend, foe and forest. Although fighting was an option, and it probably would have been Argus’ first choice, it wasn’t a very good one. Running, while it seemed smart to Kelga, actually wasn’t all that viable either. He was by far the best at escaping, and even he had just barely managed to do so. No, Vargas was right for waving the white flag. But still… Kelga shuddered. The idea of being captured by gobs really creeps me out. What would they do to them? Kelga banished thoughts of cannibalism and ritual sacrifice from his mind. The goblins were taking orders from Garland, he reminded himself. They weren’t just any random travelers, they were potential wartime enemies. No, the other five were in for some rather brutal interrogation, but whether it would happen now or once they arrived at a larger camp remained to be seen. One thing was certain; Kelga couldn’t count on the spellcasters to bust themselves out. While all three of the mages had spells that would make conventional imprisonment next to impossible, his experience in the dungeons of Pravoka told him that the goblin jailers would have ways around that. Anti-magic fields seemed a little out of their league, but even beastmen were known to employ those nasty, enchanted stocks that sucked the mana right out of you. While the other five were undoubtedly pissed at Kelga for ditching them like that, he may just have been their only hope. He smiled to himself as he made up his mind. I escaped for a reason. I’m their outside man. I’ll save them!
But how? It wasn’t a matter of sneaking or lock-picking. That would be the easy part- trivially easy, in fact, if his suspicions of the goblin prisoner measures were accurate. The hard part lay in the fact that he didn’t know where they were held and, in this forest, he didn’t even know where to start looking. However, as the goblins on the ground started moving off in the same direction, he got an idea.
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“Hey, you awake?” Maduin’s voice echoed through Argus’ head, bringing a painful ringing sensation with it. As the fighter opened his eyes he panicked momentarily. Everything was pitch-black, he couldn’t see a thing. Was he blind?
“I… I can’t see!”
Maduin chuckled. “Heh, there’s nothing to see. It’s nightfall, and they’ve got us in a hole in the ground.”
“…Who’s ‘they’?”
“The goblins, of course. Wait, you didn’t lose your memory, did you? That was quite a nasty clubbing they gave you.”
Argus thought he tasted blood. That explained why his ears and eyes hurt. He was quiet for a moment as he delved into the deepest recesses of his memory- to make sure it was all there.
“Argus?” Maduin sounded a little worried.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. They didn’t hit you guys?”
The monk laughed again. He seemed to be in pretty good spirits, despite their circumstances. “No, you were the only one who put up a fight. The rest of us don’t lose our heads in a life or death situation.”
“…Where are the others, are they okay?”
Maduin was silent for a few moments. “…I, I don’t know. Once they sprung that ambush, Vasquez ran. I don’t know if he made it or they got him later.” He sighed. “I suppose it doesn’t matter. We’ve seen his true colors… and they’re yellow. We can’t count on a thief.”
“But he has the Fire Crystal!”
“Good, that’s one less the goblins have. Assuming he actually did get away.”
“What?” Argus struggled to search his armor for the Earth Crystal, but to no avail. It was the first he’d noticed that both his arms and legs were bound. If the goblins had the Crystals, then things had just gone from bad to worse.
“Yep.” Maduin continued. “They took everyone’s chains shortly after we arrived here. If we’re going to get the three back, we don’t have a lot of time.” He snorted bitterly. “Hell, we may already be too late. Garland may very well have all four. The important thing is the safety of the team.”
Argus couldn’t contain his concern any longer. Although he was loathe to show this face of him to Maduin, he simply couldn’t help it. “…Sarina? Where’s Sarina? Is she all right?”
If the monk had any glib remarks, he held them; much to Argus’ relief. “They took the mages somewhere else. Where exactly I don’t know, but they are being kept separate.”
“What for?”
“Probably has something to do with keeping their powers contained. It’s notoriously difficult to keep a spellcaster under lock and key. They probably have special holding areas set up for their kind.”
“Damn it!” Argus growled. “If Kelga’s gone, and the mages can’t use their spells, how the bloody hell do we get out of here?”
“Calm down, kid.” Maduin chuckled. “They must think I’m just a tavern brawler. Not all of my techniques are rooted in the Primary Physical Plane.”
“Uh… what?” One could tell Argus had a blank expression on his face, even in the dark.
“Just sit tight.” Maduin grew silent as the sound of their discussion gave way to the screech of straining metal.
“Maduin?” Argus asked softly.
The monk didn’t say anything, he just growled in pain as his shoulders dislocated and his wrists shattered. The noise was sickening.
“Maduin?”
Maduin finally spoke up again, his voice hoarse. “Ch… Chakra!”
A white hot flash of light flared up in Argus’ eyes, momentarily blinding him. Maduin was enveloped in a bluish aura that looked and sounded a lot like Cure. The unpleasant sound of bones realigning themselves soon followed. “I’m all right.” The black belt wheezed. “That… That really hurt.”
“You’re insane.” Argus only now realized what happened. Maduin had broken his own arms and wrists to escape his shackles, healing them as soon as they were free. He didn’t respond to the warrior’s diagnosis. Instead, with a swift chopping motion he destroyed the shackles around his feet. Once those were free, he crawled up to Argus and destroyed the tiny stocks around his ankles and wrists.
Argus struggled to sit up in his heavy armor. Once the light from Maduin’s healing technique dissipated, it was impossible to see anything in the pit. Going on memory it seemed like they were at the bottom of a very deep, very dry well. The walls were bare dirt, but their slopes were smooth and completely vertical. It would be impossible to climb out.
“Great.” Argus groaned as he struggled to his feet. “Now what?”
“Now we wait for them to come down and get us.”
“The goblins?”
Maduin grinned. It was for his own benefit, since the other inmate couldn’t see it. “Sure. They don’t know we busted the stocks. They’ll be in for a surprise when they come down here again.”
“Assuming they didn’t just drop us down here to die.” Argus pointed out.
“That’s possible, but it doesn’t make a great deal of sense. Why lower us down here with that pulley then? They could just have easily killed us topside.”
“Maybe it’s some kind of sadistic ritual.” The warrior offered.
“Now that may be.” The monk agreed. “Still, I suspect they’re planning on retrieving us later. We can beat the hell out of them when they do.”
“I don’t have a sword.” Argus reminded him.
“Oh, that’s right.” The black belt chided. “You’re useless without a weapon. I’ll take care of them, then.”
“You ass.” Argus huffed. Maduin didn’t offer a rebuttal.
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Sarina Alexandra felt like she was floating. She could almost see herself where she lay chained to the ground, face down atop an alchemical sigil that constricted her throat to the point that she could barely breathe, let alone speak. As if that wasn’t enough, the stocks around her ankles and wrists had similar carvings in their metal. The mana that usually abounded in her mind, body and soul was being drained through the stocks and fed into the circle. Her own magical energy was being stolen and used to keep her from speaking. There was absolutely no way she could use magic in this condition. It’s not as if I know any spells to break these bonds anyway. She thought bitterly.
Her hindered breath and lack of mana were taking their toll on her consciousness. She felt like she had been casting non-stop for days. She couldn’t remember the last time she felt so thoroughly drained. But this, this was not just weariness. This was torture. She wasn’t getting enough air, and she could feel herself slipping in and out of that euphoric dream world she had visited once before. The time she nearly drowned in Crescent Lake as a child.
She floated upward on the cool night air. Glimpsing her corpse at the center of the circle, the faint rising and falling of her chest the only sign that she was still alive, she turned her attention to more interesting things: Goblins cackled and brawled amongst themselves around nearby campfires. Their success had been thorough. Garland was sure to be pleased. As more and more of her rationality escaped her, she found solace in the fact that her enemies would be jovial. The nice thing about war was that sometimes there was a winner. Yes, for the survivors and victors, war was the greatest thing ever. No, she chided herself; the greatest thing ever was melon pie. Or maybe Argus, he was a real cutie. No, that wasn’t right either. Melon pie was so much better than Argus.
Her focus shifted once again to one of the goblins: A tall, slender goblin with round ears and green clothes. The goblin slinked through the ferns toward the sigil that had freed Sarina’s mind from all of that magical mumbo jumbo. She watched with detached boredom as the goblin picked open her irons and quietly dragged her body off of the circle. It was only then that she realized the goblin was really a human, a gorgeous, blond-haired, suntanned human in light leather armor. As her throat opened up to receive the air she so desperately needed and mana began to slowly trickle its way back into her soul, her mind screamed with sudden recognition. Kelga!
“K, Kelga?” She choked.
He grinned roguishly and put a finger to his lips. She smiled and closed her eyes as he dragged her limp body into the safety of the bushes. Once he was sure they were far enough away from the camp proper, he sat her up against a tree trunk.
“There you are.” He whispered. “Are you okay? Comfortable?”
“I knew… I knew you wouldn’t abandon us…” She wheezed. “They took… The Light…”
“What?” Kelga nudged her gently. “’The Light’? You mean the Water Crystal?”
The white mage nodded faintly, still barely on the cusp of consciousness.
“Here.” Kelga delved into his pouch and produced a small flask. Unstopping the cap he held it up to her face, gently grabbing her chin with his other hand. “Open up.”
She complied, and Kelga placed a few droplets of the reddish liquid onto her tongue. No sooner then he did so, did Sarina’s eyes snap wide open. She exhaled sharply as mana began flooding back into her anima. She hated the taste of ether, especially the flavored varieties, but the harsh alcohol was the most welcome substance in the world at that moment. She stood up abruptly, and just as suddenly pitched forward onto her knees.
“Whoa, take it easy.” Kelga suppressed a chuckle. “You haven’t fully recovered yet. Where are the others? Do you know where they’re keeping the Water Crystal?”
“It takes…” She huffed. “It takes a different kind of alchemy to keep black magic contained like that. Gilles and Duane are probably in the same location. I don’t- I don’t know where Argus and Maduin are.”
“Can you sense them? Do you have enough strength yet?”
Sarina nodded and closed her eyes again. As more and more mana flowed into her mind she could sense the spirits of every living thing around her once again. The entire forest came alive: plants, fungi, animals… Animals generally had the strongest spiritual presence, and the nearby goblins and humans practically forced their way into her mind. The vibrant vigor of the two fighters could be felt clearly at the bottom of a well, due northeast of their current location. She also thought she felt two more faint human auras, but they were so stunted in power she couldn’t pinpoint their location. They were most likely Gilles and Duane, suffering from the same affliction she was still recovering from.
“Well?” Kelga did his best to hide his impatience.
Sarina stood up slowly, bracing her hands on her knees. “Argus and Maduin are alive and well. I can sense them clearly in that direction.” She pointed northeast. “I… I can’t find the other two. They’re alive, don’t worry, they’re just so depleted they kind of blend in with the rest of the forest.”
Kelga nodded grimly. “Okay. How are you holding up? Think you can manage now?”
“Definitely.” She flashed him her most reassuring smile. “Listen, maybe we should split up. I know exactly where the fighters are, I’ll see to it that they’re released. You look for the mages, okay?”
“You sure?” Kelga asked because, frankly, he wasn’t.
“Don’t worry. With my powers back I’m even stealthier than you.” She started chanting the Invis spell in a hushed whisper. A faint light enveloped her and bathed her in rainbow hues, as if the air around her were full of tiny, floating prisms. She became totally transparent as the spell distorted light around the contours of her body. Moments later, she seemed to flicker out of existence completely.
“Wow…” Kelga whistled, impressed. “Maybe white magic’s more up my alley…”
“Good luck!” Sarina’s voice called as the ferns spontaneously parted along a trail to the northeast.
“Don’t worry, I’ll find him…” Kelga said with firm conviction.
The foliage stopped shuffling. “…Him?”
“Them!” Kelga stammered. “Yeah, right, both of them.”
“Don’t start any trouble, okay?” The forest floor resumed depressing for no good reason.
“No worries!” Kelga slowly began stalking towards the heart of the goblin camp.
*****
Perfect, this is just perfect. Kelga hung upside down, suspended by a hempen noose around his ankles several meters above the forest floor. Why did this happen to him, of all people? He was the fastest, the most nimble and by far the best at spotting traps before anyone else. So why was he now hanging precariously from this crude goblin snare? Ironically, his proficiency in all things security was the reason. He was careless, that much was certain, but he was also too preoccupied with actually escaping to notice any other hazards. He had been feeling very pleased with himself; bounding over fallen logs, swinging from branches, diving and rolling. He had lost the goblins with ease, but when he vaulted over another tree stump he landed with both feet square in a snare that closed on him faster than even he could react.
From his inverted vantage point, he could see his scimitar among the ferns on the forest floor. He had dropped it in surprise, but it wasn’t a big deal. He had plenty of throwing knives and other assorted short blades for cutting himself down. No, the real problem was the height from which he would be falling if he cut the rope. His ability to land on his feet had been legendary back home, but even he would have a hard time doing so when falling head-first. Also, if his pursuers found the blade, all they would have to do is look up and he would be in the same boat as the others.
Bright spots were forming in his vision due to the excess blood in his head. He lunged for the rope around his ankles, grabbing it on the second try. With more than a little effort he pulled himself right side-up again. The thief indulged himself in a smile as he began to climb the rope. Once he was sure he had enough slack he drew the steel khukuri and freed his legs. Looking down, he prepped himself for a fall but thought better of it. Even though he had his legs again, it was still a really long way down. Oh well, he thought, if he couldn’t go down, he’d have to go up. With renewed vigor he continued climbing the rope to where it was fixed to a flimsy-looking branch. Just as he was preparing to shimmy across that branch towards the trunk of the tree, familiar voices started cackling from somewhere down below.
Goblins! Kelga hadn’t lost them after all. They were still on his trail, only far behind. But how? The brigand’s silent question was answered when a trio of warg wolves emerged from the undergrowth. Another breed of nakk domesticated by goblins, warg wolves were stronger and smarter than their wild cousins. One could tell them apart because wargs had distinctive, rust-colored pelts. The goblins had used them similar to the manner in which a hunter uses a hound. The wolves closed on where Kelga had sprung the snare trap, and stopped. They turned around, glaring in every direction but up; sniffing the wind for any further sign of the human. When their goblin masters caught up to them, they swiftly spotted Kelga’s blade where it lay. The goblin picked up the shortsword with both hands and looked around for its former owner. Kelga didn’t even breathe. Don’t look up, don’t look up. The lead imp that had taken his sword barked orders to his party- which dispersed to search the immediate area. The warg wolves did so as well, sniffing at the base of the tree from which Kelga hung by increasingly tired arms.
The largest of the three wolves snorted at the tree. Kelga’s anxiety evolved into pure dread when the wolf reared up on its hind legs, raking its sharp claws into the tender bark. It was following the scent up the tree. The other two wargs began to whine and snarl- their quarry was obviously nearby. Fortunately for said quarry, the goblins hadn’t caught on to their pets’ discovery. Kelga had to think of something before they did. Time for a little diversion. Although they were pets in the loosest sense of the word, the voracious canids had every bit the unruly pack structure of their wild kin. While they wouldn’t dare turn on their goblin masters, there was no love lost between the wolves themselves. Each of the three would kill to be top dog if given half a chance. Kelga Vasquez was about to give them a whole chance. He pulled a throwing knife out of his vest and hurled it down into the back of the lead animal. While he had the precision necessary to kill the mutt instantly, he wanted his target to make a fuss.
And make a fuss it did. The second the knife was in its back the wolf stopped scratching at the tree trunk and started whirling around in circles, yelping piteously. Most of the nearby goblins turned to see what all the noise was, but before they ever noticed the knife, the scene had devolved into one of grisly chaos and carnage. The other two wolves, instinct overriding what little intelligence they had, turned on their former leader. In domestic dogs such yelping attracted sympathetic pack mates ready to help, but in these monsters the cries of pain and distress signaled weakness and an opportunity for attack. The wounded wolf was mauled to death in only a few seconds, and now the two usurpers- driven mad by blood- attacked each other. The goblins surrounded their mortally wounded but still quite vicious beasts. They didn’t dare try to break up the fight lest they get pulled into the deadly melee. Both dogs were a lost cause, so once a blood-caked victor emerged, it was promptly struck down by a goblin’s javelin. The diminutive beastmen then started chattering angrily amongst themselves.
Kelga exhaled with relief. Without their wolves the goblins would be hard pressed to follow his scent trail vertically, although their sense of smell was slightly better than that of a human. Yes, they were indeed too stupid to look up, but what now? They had every reason to believe that the human invader was somewhere in the immediate area. They weren’t going to leave any time soon. Kelga’s arms were really starting to ache. What the hell do I do now? I don’t have all day to hang around! Slowly, as quietly as he could, he began to swing hand-over-hand towards the trunk of the tree. Where the branch emerged from the trunk it was far stouter; he would be able to sit there and wait out the search party. Once he reached the base of the branch and pulled himself up, he groaned softly with relief- his arm muscles were badly cramped. Shame on him, he thought, he had believed himself to be in better shape than he apparently was. As he messaged his shoulders he watched the goblins mill around noisily on the forest floor.
Now that he was out of immediate danger, it was time for him to plan his next move. The others had surrendered, the fools. Kelga couldn’t believe that they would just lie down and be taken captive like that. Although, when he thought about it, what other choice did they have? They were completely surrounded. With so many gobs so close up it would have been nearly impossible to protect the mages- speaking of which, they were really too close to let loose the big spells. Gilles may have been able to take them all out, but at that range he would have torched everything; friend, foe and forest. Although fighting was an option, and it probably would have been Argus’ first choice, it wasn’t a very good one. Running, while it seemed smart to Kelga, actually wasn’t all that viable either. He was by far the best at escaping, and even he had just barely managed to do so. No, Vargas was right for waving the white flag. But still… Kelga shuddered. The idea of being captured by gobs really creeps me out. What would they do to them? Kelga banished thoughts of cannibalism and ritual sacrifice from his mind. The goblins were taking orders from Garland, he reminded himself. They weren’t just any random travelers, they were potential wartime enemies. No, the other five were in for some rather brutal interrogation, but whether it would happen now or once they arrived at a larger camp remained to be seen. One thing was certain; Kelga couldn’t count on the spellcasters to bust themselves out. While all three of the mages had spells that would make conventional imprisonment next to impossible, his experience in the dungeons of Pravoka told him that the goblin jailers would have ways around that. Anti-magic fields seemed a little out of their league, but even beastmen were known to employ those nasty, enchanted stocks that sucked the mana right out of you. While the other five were undoubtedly pissed at Kelga for ditching them like that, he may just have been their only hope. He smiled to himself as he made up his mind. I escaped for a reason. I’m their outside man. I’ll save them!
But how? It wasn’t a matter of sneaking or lock-picking. That would be the easy part- trivially easy, in fact, if his suspicions of the goblin prisoner measures were accurate. The hard part lay in the fact that he didn’t know where they were held and, in this forest, he didn’t even know where to start looking. However, as the goblins on the ground started moving off in the same direction, he got an idea.
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“Hey, you awake?” Maduin’s voice echoed through Argus’ head, bringing a painful ringing sensation with it. As the fighter opened his eyes he panicked momentarily. Everything was pitch-black, he couldn’t see a thing. Was he blind?
“I… I can’t see!”
Maduin chuckled. “Heh, there’s nothing to see. It’s nightfall, and they’ve got us in a hole in the ground.”
“…Who’s ‘they’?”
“The goblins, of course. Wait, you didn’t lose your memory, did you? That was quite a nasty clubbing they gave you.”
Argus thought he tasted blood. That explained why his ears and eyes hurt. He was quiet for a moment as he delved into the deepest recesses of his memory- to make sure it was all there.
“Argus?” Maduin sounded a little worried.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. They didn’t hit you guys?”
The monk laughed again. He seemed to be in pretty good spirits, despite their circumstances. “No, you were the only one who put up a fight. The rest of us don’t lose our heads in a life or death situation.”
“…Where are the others, are they okay?”
Maduin was silent for a few moments. “…I, I don’t know. Once they sprung that ambush, Vasquez ran. I don’t know if he made it or they got him later.” He sighed. “I suppose it doesn’t matter. We’ve seen his true colors… and they’re yellow. We can’t count on a thief.”
“But he has the Fire Crystal!”
“Good, that’s one less the goblins have. Assuming he actually did get away.”
“What?” Argus struggled to search his armor for the Earth Crystal, but to no avail. It was the first he’d noticed that both his arms and legs were bound. If the goblins had the Crystals, then things had just gone from bad to worse.
“Yep.” Maduin continued. “They took everyone’s chains shortly after we arrived here. If we’re going to get the three back, we don’t have a lot of time.” He snorted bitterly. “Hell, we may already be too late. Garland may very well have all four. The important thing is the safety of the team.”
Argus couldn’t contain his concern any longer. Although he was loathe to show this face of him to Maduin, he simply couldn’t help it. “…Sarina? Where’s Sarina? Is she all right?”
If the monk had any glib remarks, he held them; much to Argus’ relief. “They took the mages somewhere else. Where exactly I don’t know, but they are being kept separate.”
“What for?”
“Probably has something to do with keeping their powers contained. It’s notoriously difficult to keep a spellcaster under lock and key. They probably have special holding areas set up for their kind.”
“Damn it!” Argus growled. “If Kelga’s gone, and the mages can’t use their spells, how the bloody hell do we get out of here?”
“Calm down, kid.” Maduin chuckled. “They must think I’m just a tavern brawler. Not all of my techniques are rooted in the Primary Physical Plane.”
“Uh… what?” One could tell Argus had a blank expression on his face, even in the dark.
“Just sit tight.” Maduin grew silent as the sound of their discussion gave way to the screech of straining metal.
“Maduin?” Argus asked softly.
The monk didn’t say anything, he just growled in pain as his shoulders dislocated and his wrists shattered. The noise was sickening.
“Maduin?”
Maduin finally spoke up again, his voice hoarse. “Ch… Chakra!”
A white hot flash of light flared up in Argus’ eyes, momentarily blinding him. Maduin was enveloped in a bluish aura that looked and sounded a lot like Cure. The unpleasant sound of bones realigning themselves soon followed. “I’m all right.” The black belt wheezed. “That… That really hurt.”
“You’re insane.” Argus only now realized what happened. Maduin had broken his own arms and wrists to escape his shackles, healing them as soon as they were free. He didn’t respond to the warrior’s diagnosis. Instead, with a swift chopping motion he destroyed the shackles around his feet. Once those were free, he crawled up to Argus and destroyed the tiny stocks around his ankles and wrists.
Argus struggled to sit up in his heavy armor. Once the light from Maduin’s healing technique dissipated, it was impossible to see anything in the pit. Going on memory it seemed like they were at the bottom of a very deep, very dry well. The walls were bare dirt, but their slopes were smooth and completely vertical. It would be impossible to climb out.
“Great.” Argus groaned as he struggled to his feet. “Now what?”
“Now we wait for them to come down and get us.”
“The goblins?”
Maduin grinned. It was for his own benefit, since the other inmate couldn’t see it. “Sure. They don’t know we busted the stocks. They’ll be in for a surprise when they come down here again.”
“Assuming they didn’t just drop us down here to die.” Argus pointed out.
“That’s possible, but it doesn’t make a great deal of sense. Why lower us down here with that pulley then? They could just have easily killed us topside.”
“Maybe it’s some kind of sadistic ritual.” The warrior offered.
“Now that may be.” The monk agreed. “Still, I suspect they’re planning on retrieving us later. We can beat the hell out of them when they do.”
“I don’t have a sword.” Argus reminded him.
“Oh, that’s right.” The black belt chided. “You’re useless without a weapon. I’ll take care of them, then.”
“You ass.” Argus huffed. Maduin didn’t offer a rebuttal.
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Sarina Alexandra felt like she was floating. She could almost see herself where she lay chained to the ground, face down atop an alchemical sigil that constricted her throat to the point that she could barely breathe, let alone speak. As if that wasn’t enough, the stocks around her ankles and wrists had similar carvings in their metal. The mana that usually abounded in her mind, body and soul was being drained through the stocks and fed into the circle. Her own magical energy was being stolen and used to keep her from speaking. There was absolutely no way she could use magic in this condition. It’s not as if I know any spells to break these bonds anyway. She thought bitterly.
Her hindered breath and lack of mana were taking their toll on her consciousness. She felt like she had been casting non-stop for days. She couldn’t remember the last time she felt so thoroughly drained. But this, this was not just weariness. This was torture. She wasn’t getting enough air, and she could feel herself slipping in and out of that euphoric dream world she had visited once before. The time she nearly drowned in Crescent Lake as a child.
She floated upward on the cool night air. Glimpsing her corpse at the center of the circle, the faint rising and falling of her chest the only sign that she was still alive, she turned her attention to more interesting things: Goblins cackled and brawled amongst themselves around nearby campfires. Their success had been thorough. Garland was sure to be pleased. As more and more of her rationality escaped her, she found solace in the fact that her enemies would be jovial. The nice thing about war was that sometimes there was a winner. Yes, for the survivors and victors, war was the greatest thing ever. No, she chided herself; the greatest thing ever was melon pie. Or maybe Argus, he was a real cutie. No, that wasn’t right either. Melon pie was so much better than Argus.
Her focus shifted once again to one of the goblins: A tall, slender goblin with round ears and green clothes. The goblin slinked through the ferns toward the sigil that had freed Sarina’s mind from all of that magical mumbo jumbo. She watched with detached boredom as the goblin picked open her irons and quietly dragged her body off of the circle. It was only then that she realized the goblin was really a human, a gorgeous, blond-haired, suntanned human in light leather armor. As her throat opened up to receive the air she so desperately needed and mana began to slowly trickle its way back into her soul, her mind screamed with sudden recognition. Kelga!
“K, Kelga?” She choked.
He grinned roguishly and put a finger to his lips. She smiled and closed her eyes as he dragged her limp body into the safety of the bushes. Once he was sure they were far enough away from the camp proper, he sat her up against a tree trunk.
“There you are.” He whispered. “Are you okay? Comfortable?”
“I knew… I knew you wouldn’t abandon us…” She wheezed. “They took… The Light…”
“What?” Kelga nudged her gently. “’The Light’? You mean the Water Crystal?”
The white mage nodded faintly, still barely on the cusp of consciousness.
“Here.” Kelga delved into his pouch and produced a small flask. Unstopping the cap he held it up to her face, gently grabbing her chin with his other hand. “Open up.”
She complied, and Kelga placed a few droplets of the reddish liquid onto her tongue. No sooner then he did so, did Sarina’s eyes snap wide open. She exhaled sharply as mana began flooding back into her anima. She hated the taste of ether, especially the flavored varieties, but the harsh alcohol was the most welcome substance in the world at that moment. She stood up abruptly, and just as suddenly pitched forward onto her knees.
“Whoa, take it easy.” Kelga suppressed a chuckle. “You haven’t fully recovered yet. Where are the others? Do you know where they’re keeping the Water Crystal?”
“It takes…” She huffed. “It takes a different kind of alchemy to keep black magic contained like that. Gilles and Duane are probably in the same location. I don’t- I don’t know where Argus and Maduin are.”
“Can you sense them? Do you have enough strength yet?”
Sarina nodded and closed her eyes again. As more and more mana flowed into her mind she could sense the spirits of every living thing around her once again. The entire forest came alive: plants, fungi, animals… Animals generally had the strongest spiritual presence, and the nearby goblins and humans practically forced their way into her mind. The vibrant vigor of the two fighters could be felt clearly at the bottom of a well, due northeast of their current location. She also thought she felt two more faint human auras, but they were so stunted in power she couldn’t pinpoint their location. They were most likely Gilles and Duane, suffering from the same affliction she was still recovering from.
“Well?” Kelga did his best to hide his impatience.
Sarina stood up slowly, bracing her hands on her knees. “Argus and Maduin are alive and well. I can sense them clearly in that direction.” She pointed northeast. “I… I can’t find the other two. They’re alive, don’t worry, they’re just so depleted they kind of blend in with the rest of the forest.”
Kelga nodded grimly. “Okay. How are you holding up? Think you can manage now?”
“Definitely.” She flashed him her most reassuring smile. “Listen, maybe we should split up. I know exactly where the fighters are, I’ll see to it that they’re released. You look for the mages, okay?”
“You sure?” Kelga asked because, frankly, he wasn’t.
“Don’t worry. With my powers back I’m even stealthier than you.” She started chanting the Invis spell in a hushed whisper. A faint light enveloped her and bathed her in rainbow hues, as if the air around her were full of tiny, floating prisms. She became totally transparent as the spell distorted light around the contours of her body. Moments later, she seemed to flicker out of existence completely.
“Wow…” Kelga whistled, impressed. “Maybe white magic’s more up my alley…”
“Good luck!” Sarina’s voice called as the ferns spontaneously parted along a trail to the northeast.
“Don’t worry, I’ll find him…” Kelga said with firm conviction.
The foliage stopped shuffling. “…Him?”
“Them!” Kelga stammered. “Yeah, right, both of them.”
“Don’t start any trouble, okay?” The forest floor resumed depressing for no good reason.
“No worries!” Kelga slowly began stalking towards the heart of the goblin camp.
YAY!!! It's BACK!!
Me: Nope, that's why I have you around to tell me.
Nitram: You -are- beautiful. Anyone tries to tell you otherwise kill them.
"A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP" -- Leonard Nimoy, last Tweet
I cannot express my delight seeing new chapters in this wonderful Final Fantasy saga. I hope to see more chapters in the future. I have some specific comments.
The dinner party scene: I know it's an old scene, but I never got a chance to say how much I enjoyed reading that scene.
I like the way you manage the action scenes. More specifically, almost every scene where the heroes are in jeopardy you made them shine and bet the odds through their wits. Plus, every element of danger maintains the sense of realism and the attention to detail shows. Also, I like how you handled the Serina's imprisonment, mainly how you described the slipping mindset.
But, I have some questions I must bring up. As you explained said that there are different means to contain black mages and white mages, my question is this: how could the goblins (or anyone with a limited understanding of magic) tell which character is a practicer of what color of sorcery. Unless there's a goblin shaman who could divine a magic aura or they managed to obtain intel, I can't fathom that someone will just know what spells you can cast based off the cloths off your back.
Finally, somewhat trivally minor; but I can picture Argus being completely useless despite a lack of weaponry. He's still wearing that heavy armor (which might sport a gauntlet), and while he's not Maudin, he could at least sucker punch a imp half his size. In their training, Maudin should had least taught Argus some basic martial art moves.
Anyway, all this is my two cents. Good work.
The dinner party scene: I know it's an old scene, but I never got a chance to say how much I enjoyed reading that scene.
I like the way you manage the action scenes. More specifically, almost every scene where the heroes are in jeopardy you made them shine and bet the odds through their wits. Plus, every element of danger maintains the sense of realism and the attention to detail shows. Also, I like how you handled the Serina's imprisonment, mainly how you described the slipping mindset.
But, I have some questions I must bring up. As you explained said that there are different means to contain black mages and white mages, my question is this: how could the goblins (or anyone with a limited understanding of magic) tell which character is a practicer of what color of sorcery. Unless there's a goblin shaman who could divine a magic aura or they managed to obtain intel, I can't fathom that someone will just know what spells you can cast based off the cloths off your back.
Finally, somewhat trivally minor; but I can picture Argus being completely useless despite a lack of weaponry. He's still wearing that heavy armor (which might sport a gauntlet), and while he's not Maudin, he could at least sucker punch a imp half his size. In their training, Maudin should had least taught Argus some basic martial art moves.
Anyway, all this is my two cents. Good work.
In Final Fantasy, mages tend to advertise themselves by the colors they wear, Rhoades.
White mage wears white, often trimmed in red. Black mages wear blacks and blues. Red mages wear mostly red, and then get flamboyant.
White mage wears white, often trimmed in red. Black mages wear blacks and blues. Red mages wear mostly red, and then get flamboyant.
Me: Nope, that's why I have you around to tell me.
Nitram: You -are- beautiful. Anyone tries to tell you otherwise kill them.
"A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP" -- Leonard Nimoy, last Tweet
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Darth Raptor
- Red Mage
- Posts: 5448
- Joined: 2003-12-18 03:39am
While there are goblin mages, they usually aren't all that... competent. I say usually because in FFXI and Crystal Chronicles their race produces sorcerers par excellence. In other games they're barely on the cusp of written language and their spells literally blow up in their faces. Like Tevar said, it's usually more than obvious what brand of magic humans in FF use.
White mages generally wear loose-fitting white robes with a red triangle pattern and have little if nothing in the way of physical deformities. Black mages wear blue and black robes or baggy pantaloons. They have broad-brimmed hats and, most importantly, their skin doesn't reflect light for some reason (this phenomenon has only been observed in human black mages to date, no other race suffers from it). The absorbed light shoots out their eyes somehow. Red mages, obviously, wear red. Most wear the plumed cavalier-type hats similar to Sixteenth Century nobility, but some wear more traditional wizard hats. There's sometimes a loss of pigmentation in the hair and skin, but this is by no means universal, and in more than a few cases is race-specific (It's not uncommon for Viera, Mithra and Elvaan to have white hair anyway). It could also be another example of bizarre hair coloration that's oh-so-prevalent in a lot of Japanese fiction.
There's no evidence for the goblins of FFI being very advanced magically. While they're under Garland's command, he's only just started out as a dark knight. Most of the opposition's magical prowess comes from Berne and Astos at this point.
Edit: And Maduin's insults are generally hyperbole. Expect things to heat up between those two in the very near future.
White mages generally wear loose-fitting white robes with a red triangle pattern and have little if nothing in the way of physical deformities. Black mages wear blue and black robes or baggy pantaloons. They have broad-brimmed hats and, most importantly, their skin doesn't reflect light for some reason (this phenomenon has only been observed in human black mages to date, no other race suffers from it). The absorbed light shoots out their eyes somehow. Red mages, obviously, wear red. Most wear the plumed cavalier-type hats similar to Sixteenth Century nobility, but some wear more traditional wizard hats. There's sometimes a loss of pigmentation in the hair and skin, but this is by no means universal, and in more than a few cases is race-specific (It's not uncommon for Viera, Mithra and Elvaan to have white hair anyway). It could also be another example of bizarre hair coloration that's oh-so-prevalent in a lot of Japanese fiction.
There's no evidence for the goblins of FFI being very advanced magically. While they're under Garland's command, he's only just started out as a dark knight. Most of the opposition's magical prowess comes from Berne and Astos at this point.
Edit: And Maduin's insults are generally hyperbole. Expect things to heat up between those two in the very near future.
That's a pretty decent explaination. Personally, I'm curious why most mages (I note that there are exception) choose a uniform style of dress. I imagine it's a traditional reasoning. No matter. I like how you're taking note of the supernatural demorities. Your attention to detail never ceases to amaze. me. Keep up the work.
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Darth Kalgarath
- Redshirt
- Posts: 25
- Joined: 2006-01-11 08:46am
- Location: The dead, lightless center of All That Is.
Man, I just finished reading this.
Its really good stuff.
Update soon, yes?
Its really good stuff.
Update soon, yes?
Well, nobody's said anything stupid to me yet, and I've not said voiced any of my own idiocity so far, sooo . . . .
"Yes it's true, we even have lasers today that use photonic energy at least i'm sure it's photonic." - Jedi Guardian
"Yes it's true, we even have lasers today that use photonic energy at least i'm sure it's photonic." - Jedi Guardian
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Darth Raptor
- Red Mage
- Posts: 5448
- Joined: 2003-12-18 03:39am
“So this guy- he was the size of an ogre- didn’t care too much for that. With one hand he knocked the table he was sitting at across the room. It was like something out of a book. He slowly, all deliberately like wiped the eggs off the back of his neck. Then he turned around- really slowly- and just glowered at me like a friggin’ bull. He didn’t say anything, he just breathed really hard. His eyes were all small.”
“Uh oh,” Argus said. “What did you do then?”
“I didn’t do anything. The guy just stood there and glared at me for a while. I just sat right where I was and glared right back at him. Right at about the time he started to snarl at me I went ‘what the hell is your problem?’”
“You’re insane. You know that, right?”
“Not really,” Maduin replied. “Guys like that are all show. They become conditioned to everyone giving them a wide berth from around the time they drop out of grammar school. They’re totally unaccustomed to being on the receiving end of intimidation.”
“How is someone a fraction of his size going to intimidate him?”
“Heh, it’s all in the attitude.” Maduin shifted to rest his back against the dirt wall of the well. “They’re like monsters, they can sense fear. If you don’t project any, instinct chimes in and suggests that there might be a reason for that.”
“So what happened then?” Argus asked.
“Well, I guess he was sizing me up, but he couldn’t have been all that smart since he attacked me anyway.”
“What did you do?”
“I just sat there. That is until the big oaf picked up another party’s table and threw it at me. Just as he did I sprung to my feet and assumed the Black Scorpion stance.”
“Black Scorpion?”
“I’ll show you sometime when we’ve got some light. It’s a guard stance, and an especially stable one at that. If you kinda lean into it at just the right angle and with just the right timing, it can send your attacker reeling. I shattered the table with it.”
“Wow!” Argus exhaled, impressed.
“Nah, it’s simple, really. But the guy still didn’t take the hint. He just lumbered at me and drew back for a big punch. Needless to say, it was easy to avoid. I sidestepped his fist and grabbed his arm. Then I kicked his legs out from under him and let his weight do the rest. I think plates and stuff fell off the tavern shelves.”
“Was he out?” Argus asked.
“Not quite, but he was stunned. I decided to give him a taste of his own medicine and smashed a table over his head. THEN he was out.”
“I never would have guessed a life of monasticism would have been so rough.”
Maduin laughed. “Hah, no way, this was some time after I left Ryukahn. I would have been excommunicated for that anyway. We’re not supposed to start fights, only finish them.”
The two sat there in silence for a moment, and then Argus spoke up again. “Why did you leave the order, anyway?”
“Uh… It was a number of reasons.” Maduin sighed. “I always did chafe under authority, you know? I would have made a horrible soldier. It’s the same reason I don’t always work for the same boss. That’s not the whole reason, either, but it’s kind of a long story.”
“Bah,” Argus scoffed. “It’s not as if I have anything else to do.”
“Point,” Maduin agreed. “Okay, I guess I should start from the beginning. I’m from Crescent Lake. You ever heard of it?”
“That’s where Sarina was born…” Argus trailed off.
“Right, well, that’s where I’m from too. It’s like Pravoka, only civilized. It’s an independent city-state outside the territorial claims of both Cornelia and Elfheim; largely because the virtually impassable Gulg Mountains keep it pretty much isolated. It takes its name from the huge, freshwater lake it’s situated on, at the base of Mt. Gulg, an extinct volcano. I’ve been everywhere except the northland. It’s still the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen.”
“Cool.” Argus wasn’t sure what this had to do with heresy so severe Cardinal Vias could use it as blackmail.
“Sorry, rambling. I’d really like to settle down there someday. Or at least visit again. I… I can never go back.”
“Right, about that,” Argus said, a little impatiently.
“Yeah, well, anyway… Uh, my father was kind of a lecher. I guess that’s one thing I inherited from him. Anyway, I’m a bastard. There’s no real better way to put it. I was born out of wedlock and my mother’s family disowned her for it.”
“Ouch,” Argus tried his best to sound sympathetic.
“Her family was wealthy, too. That city’s pretty prosperous; still is, by any reckoning. But she was young, and didn’t have any marketable skills. She became a barmaid, and gil was scarce.”
“Your father didn’t support you?” Argus was genuinely disgusted.
“Well, he was required to by law. But he kept sleeping around on her, and eventually left town completely. The money stopped coming.”
“That’s rough.”
“Heh,” Maduin snorted bitterly. “I didn’t make it any easier on her, either. I was a problem child from day one, totally impossible to control. Everyone blamed my mother, because a bastard cretin like me is the inevitable result of a broken family. I got into fights at the drop of a hat, started hanging around with the wrong group of kids. I was expelled from school, and eventually exiled.”
“Exiled? What the hell for?”
“That’s not important. The point is I was judged too young for prison, and since Crescent Lake is a pacifist theocracy, my options were indentured servitude in Elfheim or some kind of White Monasticism, whether it be mage or monk. Well, I was judged too stupid and ill-tempered to be shipped off to Onrac so they sent me to Ryukahn. I would learn skills, morals and, most importantly, discipline. I did, for the most part.”
“So why did you leave?”
“Calm down, I’m getting to that! Geez, you’re like a little kid.”
Argus laughed. “I’ve never heard you talk this much. You’re practically blathering like Duane here.”
“Well, what the hell else are we supposed to do?” Maduin turned Argus’ earlier question back at him.
“Heh, you’re right. Go on.”
“The worst, that is, I mean, the hardest part of Ryukahn was the discipline.” Maduin shifted positions again to get comfortable. “I actually loved the training. I excelled at it, frankly, and I thrived in an environment where I was encouraged to fight.”
“But the fights are heavily structured, right?”
“Yeah, but that didn’t actually bother me too much. If you randomly pick fights with anyone you end up getting your ass kicked. When every confrontation is evenly matched it’s much easier to identify your mistakes and weaknesses and improve from them. I loved every second of it, and I was by any reckoning the best student in the dojo.”
The ex-monk was quiet for a moment. “Has Sarina ever told you anything about her training?”
“What? Er, yes. Yes, of course,” Argus replied; the question kind of caught him off guard. After all, she was a mage. What could their regimens possibly have in common? “Why?”
“The precepts are similar, almost identical. The only real difference is that a white mage trains his mind while a white monk trains his body. We’re crafted to be identical in almost every other relevant respect.”
“Uh, you’re a lot different from Sarina,” Argus pointed out.
“You’re telling me. I’ve known her a while, so I’ve had plenty of time to think about why that is. She honestly, earnestly believes everything she was taught. Her faith is virtually unbreakable- believe me, I’ve tried- she will sit there and tell you with a straight face that each and every one of us has a ‘destiny’ and that everything happens for a reason. And that no one suffers in vain. Life is one big story with an inevitable, happy ending. The struggles we endure serve mainly to improve us.”
“You don’t believe that?” Argus asked.
“Of course not!” Maduin growled angrily. “You do? It’s the most ridiculous notion in existence!”
“I… I don’t know.” Argus confessed. “I’m not really the intellectual type. I’m more of a practical kind of idiot. Try to make the best of life that you can, you know?”
“Huh,” Maduin snorted. “Must be nice, but when you think about it, does Sarina have any reason to doubt the precepts? No offense, she’s a wonderful young woman, but she’s led a life of absolute luxury. She’s only now just ventured out into the real world, while I was born in it. We'll see how long her faith in that garbage lasts under these circumstances.”
“So that’s why you left? Over a philosophical disagreement?”
“I’m from Crescent Lake,” Maduin chuckled. “We take philosophy very seriously, but no, that’s not it. I directly and deliberately disobeyed Master Duncan and the other high monks. After I earned my black belt, it kinda went to my head. I was trained never take a life unless in self defense, or in defense of the innocent.”
“That sounds perfectly reasonable to me,” Argus pointed out, a little worried that his comrade was about to try and justify murder.
“Of course it is, but only at an individual level. Unlike the church, which believes that sins are only born of ignorance and disobedience, I believe that there are also sins of omission and inaction. If you have the capability to make the world a better place and you don’t, aren’t you responsible for the horrible state of things?”
“Well, yeah,” Argus agreed. “But doesn’t that fall under the whole ‘protect the innocent’ thing?”
“You would think,” Maduin muttered. “In fact, that was the very argument I made years ago. But apparently, the order didn’t see it that way. They’re the greatest fighters in the entire world, and yet all they do is sit in that monastery seeking spiritual enlightenment. They should dispatch monks around the world to stop wars and eradicate monsters- not just guard temples.”
“So you argued for a doctrine of preemption.”
“Exactly; if we know where the wicked are. People or things who have attacked the innocent in the past and we have no reason to believe they will change their ways, we should go to them… and take them out.”
“I take it the order didn’t like this idea,” Argus mused.
“They didn’t, but they also pride themselves on intellectual integrity. They aren’t going to ban a monk just for disagreeing with them. The pivotal moment came when I acted on my convictions.”
"You went on the offensive?" Argus was suddenly very interested in this story.
"I did." Maduin's knuckles could be heard cracking in the dark. There's a coven of demons in the mountains north of Crescent Lake. They're as intelligent as any human, psychic even, and they're powerful sorcerers. Ever heard of a mind flayer?"
Argus nodded, even though it was pointless. "Yeah, a psychic, magic-using monster that eats people's brains. They're supposed to have a face like an octopus or squid."
"That's right." Maduin confirmed. "Apparently they require brains as an essential part of their diet. The more intelligent the victim, the more nutritious. Obviously, they prefer creatures like humans, elves and dwarves over animals and other monsters."
"Why do you think that is?" Argus asked.
"The hell should I know? When I'm done with a monster, there's nothing left to dissect. That's irrelevant anyway. The most disturbing thing about them is rumors that they keep populations of people... for use as cattle. This allows them to avoid outright war with the civilized world. Their voracious appetites mean that they would be constantly kidnapping people from towns and villages. Their only other alternative is hibernation. They're supposed to be able to turn themselves to stone and preserve themselves indefinately."
"So you went after them."
"You're damn right I did! Even if the rumors WERE just rumors I was obligated to find out for myself. Could you imagine how hellish that would be? Born and raised in frigid caves in complete darkness, only to one day have your brain devoured? Those monsters have no right to exist! I insisted that the order send an expedition to find the fiends, eradicate them and free their slaves. But no, that would disturb the 'natural ballance' of things. It would start a war. Apparently, the piscodemons had a sustainable population of 'cattle' and thus were not snatching people from Crescent Lake. I was utterly disgusted over how permissive they were. We had every reason to believe people were suffering and dying every day, and those hypocritical bastards were completely disregarding their own precious precepts. I told them if they weren't going to send me, that I would go myself."
"And?"
"And they said that if I left to slay the demons, I could never come back. I considered that a fair deal."
"So then what? Did you find the monsters?"
"...No," Maduin muttered bitterly. "It's freezing in those mountains, cartographers say it's the coldest place in the world. Something to do with a combination of elevation, wind currents and underground rivers. The whole region's covered by glaciers. I went up there and only got myself lost. I nearly died."
"How did you escape?" Argus was disappointed.
"This beastmaster found me passed out in a snowdrift. He took me back to his village. I was still unconscious, so I couldn't heal myself. I was so badly frostbitten they were seriously considering amputating my hands and feet. They would have, too, if it weren't for a traveling white mage that just happened to be in town."
"...You mean?" Argus was incredulous.
"Yeah, Sarina. She heard about my little stunt and went looking for me. Apparently, she's the one who sent the beastmaster out to find me in the first place. I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for her."
"And at this rate, you'll never repay the debt!" A female voice shot through the darkness like a crossbow bolt.
"Sarina?" Argus was on his feet in an instant. "Are you alright? How did you escape?"
Sarina giggled. "I'm fine! Kelga got me out of their prison. How are you boys? Are you okay?"
"...How long have you been up there?" Maduin sounded annoyed.
She giggled again. "Long enough. Anything broken?"
"Nah, we're fine!" Argus was jubilant. "So Kelga came through after all!" He jabbed a finger in the general direction of Maduin. "I guess you had him pegged wrong!"
"Humph." Maduin grunted.
"He's looking for the other mages right now," Sarina informed them. "I'm going to give us some light." She leaned back into a sitting position and started chanting one of the most simple and elementary spells she knew. A small, bright orb of light appeared in her hands. She guided the light down into the dry well, revealing two disheveled fighters who were shielding their eyes and squinting.
"Well, can you get us out or not?" Maduin asked.
"There's what looks like a rope and pulley here." Sarina disappeared from view for a moment, and then tossed what looked like the lid of a large barrel into the pit. The disk had a hempen rope in the middle, but it didn't reach down to the bottom. Not even close, really. Sarina disappeared again and the barrel lid began to descend, accompanied by an irritating, squeaking sound.
"Woo!" Argus cheered. Once the lid reached the bottom the two fighters stepped onto it, gripping the rope. "Okay, bring us up!"
The squeaking resumed, and the prisoners ascended towards freedom.
***
Kelga crawled through the damp ferns and moss. His first priority was to find Gilles and Duane and get them to safety. After that, it would be his responsibility to locate the group's weapons and Crystals. Once everyone was reunited with each other and their stuff, they would make a stealthy escape, gods willing. It sounded simpler than it actually was. The goblin camp was large and sprawling, and he had found Sarina's prison array through sheer luck. Wherever the other two were, he hoped it was the same place.
He froze in place as two goblin sentries marched past his position. There were far too many for him to fight alone. In fact, there were too many for the entire party to take on. He had to do whatever he could to avoid confrontations, and he would be forced to flee if he did run into trouble. While he was sure he could get away if that happened, it would put his comrades in jeopardy. It would also make any second attempts much more difficult.
He let out a sigh of relief as the goblins passed without incident. Slowly, he raised his body a few centimeters off the ground and resumed crawling towards a clearing lit with several torches. Whatever the little imps had up ahead, it seemed to be important. Kelga suppressed a shudder as a large beetle brushed across his bare legs. He didn't know what he would do once he found them. Would they be better or worse off than Sarina had been? Things would get tricky if neither of the other two mages were coherent. What's more, he would also be at his most vulnerable during the actual rescue. As he crawled towards the light, Kelga couldn't help but think Sarina had the easier task.
***
"How did you find us?" In the relatively bright moonlight (bright compared to the pit he was just in) Argus was furiously brushing clumps of dirt off of his armor- and out of his hair.
"I could sense your presence." The healer responded, nonchalantly. "You were both conscious, and your auras were not diminished in the least. I could easily pinpoint your location."
"And the others?" Maduin was all business. "You said Vasquez went to get them? Where are they?"
"That," Sarina said, "is the 100,000 gil question. Before Kelga released me, the goblins had me in a prison array. My powers were contained, and I was barely conscious. Gilles and Duane are likely in a similar state. I can sense them, but only enough to tell that they're still alive. I have no idea exactly where they're being held."
The black belt continued his relentless interrogation. "And the Crystals? Our weapons? Where are they?"
Sarina gazed up through the forest canopy at the waning moon. "I don't know that, either. Of course, our first priority is Gilles and Duane. We can plan our next move from there."
"Agreed," Maduin huffed, "which way did Vasquez go? I don't trust him to do this alone."
"Wait a minute!" Argus interjected. "You still think he's some kind of coward? After he came all the way here to get us?"
"No, of course not," the monk corrected. "His luck WILL run out someday though; I'd sooner it not be tonight."
"He may need our support," Sarina nodded. "He's this way, follow me."
***
The clearing was totally deserted. While Kelga should have been relieved, the total absence of goblins in such a well-lit area was more foreboding than it was encouraging. He had climbed a tree just to make sure. The fiends were holding some kind of meeting towards the interior of the camp. Some kind of ritual? Whatever. Now's my chance!
He blithely dropped several meters to the forest floor without so much as a sound. Taking a quick gander in both directions, he dashed up toward the two prison arrays. Both Gilles and Duane were chained to the ground just as Sarina had been. The way the white mage was talking, Kelga had half expected a totally different setup. From what he could tell the only difference was the shape and style of the magic circles etched into the ground. Why they needed to be segregated at totally opposite ends of the camp was anyone's guess. Duane was sprawled out on his back, and he was out cold. Only his slow, shallow breathing even hinted that he was still alive. His face was totally drained of all color- moreso than usual, if that were even possible. Kelga couldn't help but think he would look adorable and peaceful if the circumstances were at all different. He shook his head and set to work on the shackles. Once the warlock was free, Kelga dragged his inert mass away from the array. Satisfied that the distance was sufficient, he rushed to the black mage's side.
Gilles was chained face-down to the ground, in a position that looked decidedly uncomfortable. With some swift lock picking the wizard was free, and Kelga rolled him over before he pulled him away from the circles. He looked particularly lifeless and doll-like. It didn't help that Gilles lacked a face. Under normal circumstances, he at least had eyes- but comatose like this there was nothing but a black void where a normal person's face would be.
Kelga glanced about nervously again. He had never been good at containing his curiosity.
*poke* There was flesh.
*poke* *prod* *pinch* A face. Sure enough, Gilles did have a face. He wanted to explore further, but decided that this probably wasn't the best time. What's more, if the black mage woke up during something like that, he would be extremely pissed off. Even without any mana, Gilles was scary as hell. Kelga wisely decided to leave him alone while he recovered. Well, leave his un-face alone, at any rate. He would be best served to drag the two into the bushes though, out of the open.
Returning to Duane's side, he examined the red mage once again. He didn't seem as out as he did earlier, but rather in a state of fitful sleep. Kelga was relieved that he wasn't hurt. He knelt down and nudged him gently. The warlock made a weird noise, eyes snapping open. He didn't appear to be staring at anything in particular.
"Hey," Kelga whispered, "you awake? Are you alright, Duane?"
"I..." Duane breathed, "I must confess, I've been better." His eyes still weren't focusing on anything.
Kelga exhaled in relief and sat down on the ground next to him. "I was worried sick, Sorel!"
For the first time, Duane turned toward Kelga and squinted. "Kelga? You were worried? You came back? I thought..." *cough* "I thought you ran."
Kelga flashed him a brilliant grin. "I did! All the easier to come and bust you guys out! It would have been a hell of a lot tougher if I'd been captured along with you!"
"Vargas thinks you're a coward," Duane smiled, "I knew it wasn't true. I knew it had to be a mistake."
Kelga allowed himself to relax; lounging on his side, propping his head up with one arm. "Really?"
"Really what?"
"You had faith? You believed I'd come back?"
"Of course."
The two sat there in silence for a few moments, until Kelga grew impatient. "Well? Why?"
Duane laughed, "I'm much better at flattery when my mind is running at full capacity."
"So whatever you're thinking is flattering?" Kelga grinned. "I guess that's enough for now, but you owe me some earnest flattery later, okay?"
The red mage sat up slowly, laboriously. "Absolutely, but what about you? Why were you worried about me specifically?"
"Gilles won't teach me black magic."
Duane looked at him cockeyed. "Is that the only reason?"
Kelga's trademark roguish grin reappeared. "It is if you want it to be!" He winked.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"You really are dense, aren't you?" Kelga spat. Standing up, he stomped over to Gilles and proceeded to drag his still snoozing body out of the clearing. "Didn't you tell me that the most interesting books aren't written in Common?"
"Yes, but what-" His eyes widened with sudden recognition. "Oh. Oh my."
***
"Let me see!" Argus tried to plow his way between Sarina and Maduin. "What's going on?"
The two ignored him. "Some kind of ceremony?" Maduin asked.
"I don't know anything about goblin culture or religion," the white mage confessed. "Or their military affairs, for that matter. However, if I were to make an educated guess, I'd say this is more of a speech or a briefing or something."
Maduin nodded, "Well, at least we know where the Crystals are now."
A goblin in heavy armor stood on an ornate stone dais, cackling and chattering at the lesser imps gathered below in an unorganized throng. The leader had all three of the missing Crystals around his neck. The chains were designed for humans, and three of them draped around such a diminutive frame made the goblin look like he would sink if he were to fall in water; never mind the armor.
"This complicates things," Sarina murmured.
"I guess now we'll see if Vasquez is all talk or not."
"Can't we just kill him?" Argus asked, finally finding his own gap in the undergrowth from which he could observe.
"That's suicide, even for us," Maduin scoffed. "That's practically the entire camp over there."
"I don't mean take them all on, idiot." Argus growled. "If we could set up some kind of distraction one of us could get a shot at the leader."
Sarina grinned. "That's actually not a bad idea!"
"Yeah..." Maduin grunted, reluctantly. "Only what are you going to use for such a diversion?"
"Gilles," Argus stated matter-of-factly.
"We still need our weapons first," the monk countered.
"I thought you didn't need weapons!" Argus chided, mockingly.
"I don't, but YOU do once we have to make a hasty escape. At any rate, I suggest we find the weapons first."
Sarina hissed, "Whatever we're doing, I suggest we do it quickly. We have no idea how much longer this presentation is going to last!"
Maduin stood, "She's right, let's go find the others. And our weapons."
***
"Are you sure you're going to be alright, Duane?" Kelga had opened a small vial of smelling salts and was waving the fumes in Gilles' face.
The red mage collapsed backwards against the trunk of a tree, slowly sliding into an uncomfortable sitting position. "Yes... I've just never been this drained before. I am... physically unharmed. How is our favorite black mage?"
"Still out cold. He must have been chained up longer than you. I used all my ether on Sarina."
Duane removed his hat, scratching at his scalp furiously. "Ah, so you found the others?"
Kelga shook his head. "No, just Sarina. She said she could sense Argus and Maduin, so I let her go after them."
"I don't suppose you've seen my rapier?"
"No, sorry."
Kelga put the cap back on the vial and sat back on the wet grass. Smelling salts were exceptionally noxious, that's how they worked, but if they didn't work immediately there was no point in continuing such torment. The thief decided that it was probably better to let the wizard recover on his own.
"That didn't work?" Duane asked. It was really more of an observation than a question.
Kelga nodded. "Yeah, which kinda sucks. We probably don't have a lot of time to kill."
"Help me up, would you?" Duane was struggling to his feet.
"Just rest for now, you're no good in that condition."
The warlock chuckled. "Such concern all of the sudden."
Kelga's face flushed a deep red. Not even the night could conceal it. "Yeah, sorry. About that- Look, I know not everyone's... Sorry if I offended-"
"Not at all." Duane waved dismissively. "I may not be the greatest magician or fencer in the world, but what I lack in specialization I make up for in versatility. I like to believe that versatility carries over into... other facets of my life. Although, in this particular case, it's not some skill I learned. It's an innate attribute."
"What are you talking about?"
Duane smiled weakly. "You really are dense, aren't you?"
Kelga grinned. "I knew it! You gave off all the signals!"
The warlock rolled his eyes. "I've long since learned to take anything emasculating as a compliment."
The rogue stood up slowly. "So... does this mean?"
Duane nodded. "Yes, I'd like that. Very much. Now, if you'd be so kind as to help me up, we could leave this dreadful place."
"But, you're not-"
"Just help me up!"
Kelga extended his hand. Duane grabbed it and hoisted himself onto his feet. Once he was sure of his footing, he released Kelga from his grip and put his hat back on.
"Like you said, time is not in our favor."
"What do you have in mind?" Kelga glanced about nervously.
Duane took a deep breath. "Consider yourself fortunate Kelga, you're about to witness a very rare phenomenon, a Conversion."
"Conversion? Converting what?"
Duane's pupils contracted to tiny pinpoints. "My flesh... To mana!" A sick stretching noise like rapidly tanning leather sounded as Duane's face darkened. His visage stretched taught until deep cuts criss-crossed his face. Blood poured down from his forehead. Kelga gasped in shock.
"It's alright, don't be alarmed." Aside from the damage, Duane's face returned to normal. Blood trickled out of his gloves, suggesting that the rest of the body was cursed with similar stigmata. "It's not... life threatening."
"What the hell!" Kelga stared, dumbfounded.
Duane exhaled sharply. "Phew. I hope I never have to do that again. At any rate, I have regained my powers. I can use magic again." He quickly cast Cure on himself, completely reversing the havoc he had just wrought upon himself. He then turned to the dead weight that was Gilles Arkham and began casting another spell Kelga had never seen before.
"Refresh!" Gilles was shrouded in a glowing aura that resembled Cure, but it was yellow-red instead of blue-green.
The black mage's amber eyes snapped open. He immediately sat up straight.
"Gilles? Are you okay?" Kelga rushed to his side and knelt down beside the wizard.
"I want to destroy things," Gilles spat.
***
"Pay-dirt!" Argus beamed.
"You found them?" Maduin dashed over toward the warrior's position.
Argus pointed through the foliage. "Over there, big bronze box. That looks like their armory."
"I agree. Good work, Baron!" Maduin pushed some of the branches aside so he could get a better view.
"Are there any sentries posted?" Sarina was a little more reserved.
Maduin shook his head. "No. Goblins aren't the smartest critters, are they. Everyone seems to be at that big gathering over there."
"Those are our weapons, alright!" Argus pointed to an assortment of blades and blunt weapons that hung from hooks on one side of the crate. They were far too large for any goblin to handle.
Sarina breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, you two grab our gear and head back to that stone altar. I'm going to go recover the other three. That assembly could break up at any minute. We simply must recover those Crystals while we have this chance."
Maduin nodded. "Understood. We'll meet you there."
Without another word, the white mage turned and jogged away. Although they knew they were alone, the fighters were cautious on their approach to the armory. Now would be a very bad time to fall into a pitfall or snare. Silently, they started stripping the human weaponry away from the smaller impish arsenal. They recovered their weapons first: Argus, his broadsword and shield; Maduin, his baghnakhs, nunhaku and staff. After that they grabbed Gilles staff, Sarina's hammer and Duane's rapier and left the clearing as silently as they had entered.
***
"So you came back after all." Gilles grunted.
"Why the hell does everyone act so surprised!?" Kelga wailed.
"We really should go find the others." Duane reminded him.
"Right." The thief collected himself. "Follow me." He turned planted his face directly in Sarina's chest.
"Good, you found them!" The healer huffed.
"So I take it everyone is well?" Gilles asked the newest arrival.
Sarina grinned. "Yes, everyone's just fine! Argus and Maduin are recovering our weapons as we speak. Just as soon as we meet up with them, we'll work on getting the Crystals back."
Gilles' eyes got wide as he quickly patted himself down. "Bloody hell!"
"Don't worry, we know where they are." Sarina pointed back in the direction she came. "The goblin leader is addressing his troops, and he has the Crystals. Can we count on you to create a diversion, Master Arkham?"
"Absolutely. Sorel restored my powers, somehow."
Sarina turned to Kelga. "Kelga, that will be your cue to get the Crystals back from the leader. Kill him if you have to, but our objective is to escape without a battle. Can you handle it?"
"Puh-lease. Do you have any idea who you're talking to?"
Sarina nodded. "Good, let's go."
***
"Geez, goblins sure love to talk." Argus was getting impatient. "What's taking so long?"
Maduin glared at him. "You actually want the goblin to finish?"
"No, not him. Sarina and the others. I want to get the hell out of here, yesterday."
"That makes two of us."
Both fighters turned to face the rustling bushes behind them. Gilles was the first of four out of the bramble. "I heard you were in need of some pyrotechnics."
Argus grinned, but Maduin looked suspicious. "Are you in any condition to cast?"
"Not to worry," the wizard nodded. "Just tell me where to deliver the ordnance."
The black belt gestured for Gilles to come closer, then he pointed towards the clearing where the goblin pep rally was still going strong. "Towards the rear of that formation. It would be ideal if you could cast in a way that wouldn't give away your position. Kelga, that split second is all you have to snag the Crystals away from the leader."
"Not a problem." Kelga assured him.
"May I borrow your Crystal, Vasquez?" Gilles held out his hand. "I'm going to need some amplification."
"Sure." Kelga removed his chain and tossed it to Gilles. "I'm going to get in position now, what's the signal?"
"A giant, exploding fireball." Gilles muttered. He began chanting the Fire spell, while the Fire Crystal in his hand burned brilliantly.
"Right, stupid question." The thief turned and dashed away, as quickly and silently as he could.
“Uh oh,” Argus said. “What did you do then?”
“I didn’t do anything. The guy just stood there and glared at me for a while. I just sat right where I was and glared right back at him. Right at about the time he started to snarl at me I went ‘what the hell is your problem?’”
“You’re insane. You know that, right?”
“Not really,” Maduin replied. “Guys like that are all show. They become conditioned to everyone giving them a wide berth from around the time they drop out of grammar school. They’re totally unaccustomed to being on the receiving end of intimidation.”
“How is someone a fraction of his size going to intimidate him?”
“Heh, it’s all in the attitude.” Maduin shifted to rest his back against the dirt wall of the well. “They’re like monsters, they can sense fear. If you don’t project any, instinct chimes in and suggests that there might be a reason for that.”
“So what happened then?” Argus asked.
“Well, I guess he was sizing me up, but he couldn’t have been all that smart since he attacked me anyway.”
“What did you do?”
“I just sat there. That is until the big oaf picked up another party’s table and threw it at me. Just as he did I sprung to my feet and assumed the Black Scorpion stance.”
“Black Scorpion?”
“I’ll show you sometime when we’ve got some light. It’s a guard stance, and an especially stable one at that. If you kinda lean into it at just the right angle and with just the right timing, it can send your attacker reeling. I shattered the table with it.”
“Wow!” Argus exhaled, impressed.
“Nah, it’s simple, really. But the guy still didn’t take the hint. He just lumbered at me and drew back for a big punch. Needless to say, it was easy to avoid. I sidestepped his fist and grabbed his arm. Then I kicked his legs out from under him and let his weight do the rest. I think plates and stuff fell off the tavern shelves.”
“Was he out?” Argus asked.
“Not quite, but he was stunned. I decided to give him a taste of his own medicine and smashed a table over his head. THEN he was out.”
“I never would have guessed a life of monasticism would have been so rough.”
Maduin laughed. “Hah, no way, this was some time after I left Ryukahn. I would have been excommunicated for that anyway. We’re not supposed to start fights, only finish them.”
The two sat there in silence for a moment, and then Argus spoke up again. “Why did you leave the order, anyway?”
“Uh… It was a number of reasons.” Maduin sighed. “I always did chafe under authority, you know? I would have made a horrible soldier. It’s the same reason I don’t always work for the same boss. That’s not the whole reason, either, but it’s kind of a long story.”
“Bah,” Argus scoffed. “It’s not as if I have anything else to do.”
“Point,” Maduin agreed. “Okay, I guess I should start from the beginning. I’m from Crescent Lake. You ever heard of it?”
“That’s where Sarina was born…” Argus trailed off.
“Right, well, that’s where I’m from too. It’s like Pravoka, only civilized. It’s an independent city-state outside the territorial claims of both Cornelia and Elfheim; largely because the virtually impassable Gulg Mountains keep it pretty much isolated. It takes its name from the huge, freshwater lake it’s situated on, at the base of Mt. Gulg, an extinct volcano. I’ve been everywhere except the northland. It’s still the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen.”
“Cool.” Argus wasn’t sure what this had to do with heresy so severe Cardinal Vias could use it as blackmail.
“Sorry, rambling. I’d really like to settle down there someday. Or at least visit again. I… I can never go back.”
“Right, about that,” Argus said, a little impatiently.
“Yeah, well, anyway… Uh, my father was kind of a lecher. I guess that’s one thing I inherited from him. Anyway, I’m a bastard. There’s no real better way to put it. I was born out of wedlock and my mother’s family disowned her for it.”
“Ouch,” Argus tried his best to sound sympathetic.
“Her family was wealthy, too. That city’s pretty prosperous; still is, by any reckoning. But she was young, and didn’t have any marketable skills. She became a barmaid, and gil was scarce.”
“Your father didn’t support you?” Argus was genuinely disgusted.
“Well, he was required to by law. But he kept sleeping around on her, and eventually left town completely. The money stopped coming.”
“That’s rough.”
“Heh,” Maduin snorted bitterly. “I didn’t make it any easier on her, either. I was a problem child from day one, totally impossible to control. Everyone blamed my mother, because a bastard cretin like me is the inevitable result of a broken family. I got into fights at the drop of a hat, started hanging around with the wrong group of kids. I was expelled from school, and eventually exiled.”
“Exiled? What the hell for?”
“That’s not important. The point is I was judged too young for prison, and since Crescent Lake is a pacifist theocracy, my options were indentured servitude in Elfheim or some kind of White Monasticism, whether it be mage or monk. Well, I was judged too stupid and ill-tempered to be shipped off to Onrac so they sent me to Ryukahn. I would learn skills, morals and, most importantly, discipline. I did, for the most part.”
“So why did you leave?”
“Calm down, I’m getting to that! Geez, you’re like a little kid.”
Argus laughed. “I’ve never heard you talk this much. You’re practically blathering like Duane here.”
“Well, what the hell else are we supposed to do?” Maduin turned Argus’ earlier question back at him.
“Heh, you’re right. Go on.”
“The worst, that is, I mean, the hardest part of Ryukahn was the discipline.” Maduin shifted positions again to get comfortable. “I actually loved the training. I excelled at it, frankly, and I thrived in an environment where I was encouraged to fight.”
“But the fights are heavily structured, right?”
“Yeah, but that didn’t actually bother me too much. If you randomly pick fights with anyone you end up getting your ass kicked. When every confrontation is evenly matched it’s much easier to identify your mistakes and weaknesses and improve from them. I loved every second of it, and I was by any reckoning the best student in the dojo.”
The ex-monk was quiet for a moment. “Has Sarina ever told you anything about her training?”
“What? Er, yes. Yes, of course,” Argus replied; the question kind of caught him off guard. After all, she was a mage. What could their regimens possibly have in common? “Why?”
“The precepts are similar, almost identical. The only real difference is that a white mage trains his mind while a white monk trains his body. We’re crafted to be identical in almost every other relevant respect.”
“Uh, you’re a lot different from Sarina,” Argus pointed out.
“You’re telling me. I’ve known her a while, so I’ve had plenty of time to think about why that is. She honestly, earnestly believes everything she was taught. Her faith is virtually unbreakable- believe me, I’ve tried- she will sit there and tell you with a straight face that each and every one of us has a ‘destiny’ and that everything happens for a reason. And that no one suffers in vain. Life is one big story with an inevitable, happy ending. The struggles we endure serve mainly to improve us.”
“You don’t believe that?” Argus asked.
“Of course not!” Maduin growled angrily. “You do? It’s the most ridiculous notion in existence!”
“I… I don’t know.” Argus confessed. “I’m not really the intellectual type. I’m more of a practical kind of idiot. Try to make the best of life that you can, you know?”
“Huh,” Maduin snorted. “Must be nice, but when you think about it, does Sarina have any reason to doubt the precepts? No offense, she’s a wonderful young woman, but she’s led a life of absolute luxury. She’s only now just ventured out into the real world, while I was born in it. We'll see how long her faith in that garbage lasts under these circumstances.”
“So that’s why you left? Over a philosophical disagreement?”
“I’m from Crescent Lake,” Maduin chuckled. “We take philosophy very seriously, but no, that’s not it. I directly and deliberately disobeyed Master Duncan and the other high monks. After I earned my black belt, it kinda went to my head. I was trained never take a life unless in self defense, or in defense of the innocent.”
“That sounds perfectly reasonable to me,” Argus pointed out, a little worried that his comrade was about to try and justify murder.
“Of course it is, but only at an individual level. Unlike the church, which believes that sins are only born of ignorance and disobedience, I believe that there are also sins of omission and inaction. If you have the capability to make the world a better place and you don’t, aren’t you responsible for the horrible state of things?”
“Well, yeah,” Argus agreed. “But doesn’t that fall under the whole ‘protect the innocent’ thing?”
“You would think,” Maduin muttered. “In fact, that was the very argument I made years ago. But apparently, the order didn’t see it that way. They’re the greatest fighters in the entire world, and yet all they do is sit in that monastery seeking spiritual enlightenment. They should dispatch monks around the world to stop wars and eradicate monsters- not just guard temples.”
“So you argued for a doctrine of preemption.”
“Exactly; if we know where the wicked are. People or things who have attacked the innocent in the past and we have no reason to believe they will change their ways, we should go to them… and take them out.”
“I take it the order didn’t like this idea,” Argus mused.
“They didn’t, but they also pride themselves on intellectual integrity. They aren’t going to ban a monk just for disagreeing with them. The pivotal moment came when I acted on my convictions.”
"You went on the offensive?" Argus was suddenly very interested in this story.
"I did." Maduin's knuckles could be heard cracking in the dark. There's a coven of demons in the mountains north of Crescent Lake. They're as intelligent as any human, psychic even, and they're powerful sorcerers. Ever heard of a mind flayer?"
Argus nodded, even though it was pointless. "Yeah, a psychic, magic-using monster that eats people's brains. They're supposed to have a face like an octopus or squid."
"That's right." Maduin confirmed. "Apparently they require brains as an essential part of their diet. The more intelligent the victim, the more nutritious. Obviously, they prefer creatures like humans, elves and dwarves over animals and other monsters."
"Why do you think that is?" Argus asked.
"The hell should I know? When I'm done with a monster, there's nothing left to dissect. That's irrelevant anyway. The most disturbing thing about them is rumors that they keep populations of people... for use as cattle. This allows them to avoid outright war with the civilized world. Their voracious appetites mean that they would be constantly kidnapping people from towns and villages. Their only other alternative is hibernation. They're supposed to be able to turn themselves to stone and preserve themselves indefinately."
"So you went after them."
"You're damn right I did! Even if the rumors WERE just rumors I was obligated to find out for myself. Could you imagine how hellish that would be? Born and raised in frigid caves in complete darkness, only to one day have your brain devoured? Those monsters have no right to exist! I insisted that the order send an expedition to find the fiends, eradicate them and free their slaves. But no, that would disturb the 'natural ballance' of things. It would start a war. Apparently, the piscodemons had a sustainable population of 'cattle' and thus were not snatching people from Crescent Lake. I was utterly disgusted over how permissive they were. We had every reason to believe people were suffering and dying every day, and those hypocritical bastards were completely disregarding their own precious precepts. I told them if they weren't going to send me, that I would go myself."
"And?"
"And they said that if I left to slay the demons, I could never come back. I considered that a fair deal."
"So then what? Did you find the monsters?"
"...No," Maduin muttered bitterly. "It's freezing in those mountains, cartographers say it's the coldest place in the world. Something to do with a combination of elevation, wind currents and underground rivers. The whole region's covered by glaciers. I went up there and only got myself lost. I nearly died."
"How did you escape?" Argus was disappointed.
"This beastmaster found me passed out in a snowdrift. He took me back to his village. I was still unconscious, so I couldn't heal myself. I was so badly frostbitten they were seriously considering amputating my hands and feet. They would have, too, if it weren't for a traveling white mage that just happened to be in town."
"...You mean?" Argus was incredulous.
"Yeah, Sarina. She heard about my little stunt and went looking for me. Apparently, she's the one who sent the beastmaster out to find me in the first place. I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for her."
"And at this rate, you'll never repay the debt!" A female voice shot through the darkness like a crossbow bolt.
"Sarina?" Argus was on his feet in an instant. "Are you alright? How did you escape?"
Sarina giggled. "I'm fine! Kelga got me out of their prison. How are you boys? Are you okay?"
"...How long have you been up there?" Maduin sounded annoyed.
She giggled again. "Long enough. Anything broken?"
"Nah, we're fine!" Argus was jubilant. "So Kelga came through after all!" He jabbed a finger in the general direction of Maduin. "I guess you had him pegged wrong!"
"Humph." Maduin grunted.
"He's looking for the other mages right now," Sarina informed them. "I'm going to give us some light." She leaned back into a sitting position and started chanting one of the most simple and elementary spells she knew. A small, bright orb of light appeared in her hands. She guided the light down into the dry well, revealing two disheveled fighters who were shielding their eyes and squinting.
"Well, can you get us out or not?" Maduin asked.
"There's what looks like a rope and pulley here." Sarina disappeared from view for a moment, and then tossed what looked like the lid of a large barrel into the pit. The disk had a hempen rope in the middle, but it didn't reach down to the bottom. Not even close, really. Sarina disappeared again and the barrel lid began to descend, accompanied by an irritating, squeaking sound.
"Woo!" Argus cheered. Once the lid reached the bottom the two fighters stepped onto it, gripping the rope. "Okay, bring us up!"
The squeaking resumed, and the prisoners ascended towards freedom.
***
Kelga crawled through the damp ferns and moss. His first priority was to find Gilles and Duane and get them to safety. After that, it would be his responsibility to locate the group's weapons and Crystals. Once everyone was reunited with each other and their stuff, they would make a stealthy escape, gods willing. It sounded simpler than it actually was. The goblin camp was large and sprawling, and he had found Sarina's prison array through sheer luck. Wherever the other two were, he hoped it was the same place.
He froze in place as two goblin sentries marched past his position. There were far too many for him to fight alone. In fact, there were too many for the entire party to take on. He had to do whatever he could to avoid confrontations, and he would be forced to flee if he did run into trouble. While he was sure he could get away if that happened, it would put his comrades in jeopardy. It would also make any second attempts much more difficult.
He let out a sigh of relief as the goblins passed without incident. Slowly, he raised his body a few centimeters off the ground and resumed crawling towards a clearing lit with several torches. Whatever the little imps had up ahead, it seemed to be important. Kelga suppressed a shudder as a large beetle brushed across his bare legs. He didn't know what he would do once he found them. Would they be better or worse off than Sarina had been? Things would get tricky if neither of the other two mages were coherent. What's more, he would also be at his most vulnerable during the actual rescue. As he crawled towards the light, Kelga couldn't help but think Sarina had the easier task.
***
"How did you find us?" In the relatively bright moonlight (bright compared to the pit he was just in) Argus was furiously brushing clumps of dirt off of his armor- and out of his hair.
"I could sense your presence." The healer responded, nonchalantly. "You were both conscious, and your auras were not diminished in the least. I could easily pinpoint your location."
"And the others?" Maduin was all business. "You said Vasquez went to get them? Where are they?"
"That," Sarina said, "is the 100,000 gil question. Before Kelga released me, the goblins had me in a prison array. My powers were contained, and I was barely conscious. Gilles and Duane are likely in a similar state. I can sense them, but only enough to tell that they're still alive. I have no idea exactly where they're being held."
The black belt continued his relentless interrogation. "And the Crystals? Our weapons? Where are they?"
Sarina gazed up through the forest canopy at the waning moon. "I don't know that, either. Of course, our first priority is Gilles and Duane. We can plan our next move from there."
"Agreed," Maduin huffed, "which way did Vasquez go? I don't trust him to do this alone."
"Wait a minute!" Argus interjected. "You still think he's some kind of coward? After he came all the way here to get us?"
"No, of course not," the monk corrected. "His luck WILL run out someday though; I'd sooner it not be tonight."
"He may need our support," Sarina nodded. "He's this way, follow me."
***
The clearing was totally deserted. While Kelga should have been relieved, the total absence of goblins in such a well-lit area was more foreboding than it was encouraging. He had climbed a tree just to make sure. The fiends were holding some kind of meeting towards the interior of the camp. Some kind of ritual? Whatever. Now's my chance!
He blithely dropped several meters to the forest floor without so much as a sound. Taking a quick gander in both directions, he dashed up toward the two prison arrays. Both Gilles and Duane were chained to the ground just as Sarina had been. The way the white mage was talking, Kelga had half expected a totally different setup. From what he could tell the only difference was the shape and style of the magic circles etched into the ground. Why they needed to be segregated at totally opposite ends of the camp was anyone's guess. Duane was sprawled out on his back, and he was out cold. Only his slow, shallow breathing even hinted that he was still alive. His face was totally drained of all color- moreso than usual, if that were even possible. Kelga couldn't help but think he would look adorable and peaceful if the circumstances were at all different. He shook his head and set to work on the shackles. Once the warlock was free, Kelga dragged his inert mass away from the array. Satisfied that the distance was sufficient, he rushed to the black mage's side.
Gilles was chained face-down to the ground, in a position that looked decidedly uncomfortable. With some swift lock picking the wizard was free, and Kelga rolled him over before he pulled him away from the circles. He looked particularly lifeless and doll-like. It didn't help that Gilles lacked a face. Under normal circumstances, he at least had eyes- but comatose like this there was nothing but a black void where a normal person's face would be.
Kelga glanced about nervously again. He had never been good at containing his curiosity.
*poke* There was flesh.
*poke* *prod* *pinch* A face. Sure enough, Gilles did have a face. He wanted to explore further, but decided that this probably wasn't the best time. What's more, if the black mage woke up during something like that, he would be extremely pissed off. Even without any mana, Gilles was scary as hell. Kelga wisely decided to leave him alone while he recovered. Well, leave his un-face alone, at any rate. He would be best served to drag the two into the bushes though, out of the open.
Returning to Duane's side, he examined the red mage once again. He didn't seem as out as he did earlier, but rather in a state of fitful sleep. Kelga was relieved that he wasn't hurt. He knelt down and nudged him gently. The warlock made a weird noise, eyes snapping open. He didn't appear to be staring at anything in particular.
"Hey," Kelga whispered, "you awake? Are you alright, Duane?"
"I..." Duane breathed, "I must confess, I've been better." His eyes still weren't focusing on anything.
Kelga exhaled in relief and sat down on the ground next to him. "I was worried sick, Sorel!"
For the first time, Duane turned toward Kelga and squinted. "Kelga? You were worried? You came back? I thought..." *cough* "I thought you ran."
Kelga flashed him a brilliant grin. "I did! All the easier to come and bust you guys out! It would have been a hell of a lot tougher if I'd been captured along with you!"
"Vargas thinks you're a coward," Duane smiled, "I knew it wasn't true. I knew it had to be a mistake."
Kelga allowed himself to relax; lounging on his side, propping his head up with one arm. "Really?"
"Really what?"
"You had faith? You believed I'd come back?"
"Of course."
The two sat there in silence for a few moments, until Kelga grew impatient. "Well? Why?"
Duane laughed, "I'm much better at flattery when my mind is running at full capacity."
"So whatever you're thinking is flattering?" Kelga grinned. "I guess that's enough for now, but you owe me some earnest flattery later, okay?"
The red mage sat up slowly, laboriously. "Absolutely, but what about you? Why were you worried about me specifically?"
"Gilles won't teach me black magic."
Duane looked at him cockeyed. "Is that the only reason?"
Kelga's trademark roguish grin reappeared. "It is if you want it to be!" He winked.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"You really are dense, aren't you?" Kelga spat. Standing up, he stomped over to Gilles and proceeded to drag his still snoozing body out of the clearing. "Didn't you tell me that the most interesting books aren't written in Common?"
"Yes, but what-" His eyes widened with sudden recognition. "Oh. Oh my."
***
"Let me see!" Argus tried to plow his way between Sarina and Maduin. "What's going on?"
The two ignored him. "Some kind of ceremony?" Maduin asked.
"I don't know anything about goblin culture or religion," the white mage confessed. "Or their military affairs, for that matter. However, if I were to make an educated guess, I'd say this is more of a speech or a briefing or something."
Maduin nodded, "Well, at least we know where the Crystals are now."
A goblin in heavy armor stood on an ornate stone dais, cackling and chattering at the lesser imps gathered below in an unorganized throng. The leader had all three of the missing Crystals around his neck. The chains were designed for humans, and three of them draped around such a diminutive frame made the goblin look like he would sink if he were to fall in water; never mind the armor.
"This complicates things," Sarina murmured.
"I guess now we'll see if Vasquez is all talk or not."
"Can't we just kill him?" Argus asked, finally finding his own gap in the undergrowth from which he could observe.
"That's suicide, even for us," Maduin scoffed. "That's practically the entire camp over there."
"I don't mean take them all on, idiot." Argus growled. "If we could set up some kind of distraction one of us could get a shot at the leader."
Sarina grinned. "That's actually not a bad idea!"
"Yeah..." Maduin grunted, reluctantly. "Only what are you going to use for such a diversion?"
"Gilles," Argus stated matter-of-factly.
"We still need our weapons first," the monk countered.
"I thought you didn't need weapons!" Argus chided, mockingly.
"I don't, but YOU do once we have to make a hasty escape. At any rate, I suggest we find the weapons first."
Sarina hissed, "Whatever we're doing, I suggest we do it quickly. We have no idea how much longer this presentation is going to last!"
Maduin stood, "She's right, let's go find the others. And our weapons."
***
"Are you sure you're going to be alright, Duane?" Kelga had opened a small vial of smelling salts and was waving the fumes in Gilles' face.
The red mage collapsed backwards against the trunk of a tree, slowly sliding into an uncomfortable sitting position. "Yes... I've just never been this drained before. I am... physically unharmed. How is our favorite black mage?"
"Still out cold. He must have been chained up longer than you. I used all my ether on Sarina."
Duane removed his hat, scratching at his scalp furiously. "Ah, so you found the others?"
Kelga shook his head. "No, just Sarina. She said she could sense Argus and Maduin, so I let her go after them."
"I don't suppose you've seen my rapier?"
"No, sorry."
Kelga put the cap back on the vial and sat back on the wet grass. Smelling salts were exceptionally noxious, that's how they worked, but if they didn't work immediately there was no point in continuing such torment. The thief decided that it was probably better to let the wizard recover on his own.
"That didn't work?" Duane asked. It was really more of an observation than a question.
Kelga nodded. "Yeah, which kinda sucks. We probably don't have a lot of time to kill."
"Help me up, would you?" Duane was struggling to his feet.
"Just rest for now, you're no good in that condition."
The warlock chuckled. "Such concern all of the sudden."
Kelga's face flushed a deep red. Not even the night could conceal it. "Yeah, sorry. About that- Look, I know not everyone's... Sorry if I offended-"
"Not at all." Duane waved dismissively. "I may not be the greatest magician or fencer in the world, but what I lack in specialization I make up for in versatility. I like to believe that versatility carries over into... other facets of my life. Although, in this particular case, it's not some skill I learned. It's an innate attribute."
"What are you talking about?"
Duane smiled weakly. "You really are dense, aren't you?"
Kelga grinned. "I knew it! You gave off all the signals!"
The warlock rolled his eyes. "I've long since learned to take anything emasculating as a compliment."
The rogue stood up slowly. "So... does this mean?"
Duane nodded. "Yes, I'd like that. Very much. Now, if you'd be so kind as to help me up, we could leave this dreadful place."
"But, you're not-"
"Just help me up!"
Kelga extended his hand. Duane grabbed it and hoisted himself onto his feet. Once he was sure of his footing, he released Kelga from his grip and put his hat back on.
"Like you said, time is not in our favor."
"What do you have in mind?" Kelga glanced about nervously.
Duane took a deep breath. "Consider yourself fortunate Kelga, you're about to witness a very rare phenomenon, a Conversion."
"Conversion? Converting what?"
Duane's pupils contracted to tiny pinpoints. "My flesh... To mana!" A sick stretching noise like rapidly tanning leather sounded as Duane's face darkened. His visage stretched taught until deep cuts criss-crossed his face. Blood poured down from his forehead. Kelga gasped in shock.
"It's alright, don't be alarmed." Aside from the damage, Duane's face returned to normal. Blood trickled out of his gloves, suggesting that the rest of the body was cursed with similar stigmata. "It's not... life threatening."
"What the hell!" Kelga stared, dumbfounded.
Duane exhaled sharply. "Phew. I hope I never have to do that again. At any rate, I have regained my powers. I can use magic again." He quickly cast Cure on himself, completely reversing the havoc he had just wrought upon himself. He then turned to the dead weight that was Gilles Arkham and began casting another spell Kelga had never seen before.
"Refresh!" Gilles was shrouded in a glowing aura that resembled Cure, but it was yellow-red instead of blue-green.
The black mage's amber eyes snapped open. He immediately sat up straight.
"Gilles? Are you okay?" Kelga rushed to his side and knelt down beside the wizard.
"I want to destroy things," Gilles spat.
***
"Pay-dirt!" Argus beamed.
"You found them?" Maduin dashed over toward the warrior's position.
Argus pointed through the foliage. "Over there, big bronze box. That looks like their armory."
"I agree. Good work, Baron!" Maduin pushed some of the branches aside so he could get a better view.
"Are there any sentries posted?" Sarina was a little more reserved.
Maduin shook his head. "No. Goblins aren't the smartest critters, are they. Everyone seems to be at that big gathering over there."
"Those are our weapons, alright!" Argus pointed to an assortment of blades and blunt weapons that hung from hooks on one side of the crate. They were far too large for any goblin to handle.
Sarina breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, you two grab our gear and head back to that stone altar. I'm going to go recover the other three. That assembly could break up at any minute. We simply must recover those Crystals while we have this chance."
Maduin nodded. "Understood. We'll meet you there."
Without another word, the white mage turned and jogged away. Although they knew they were alone, the fighters were cautious on their approach to the armory. Now would be a very bad time to fall into a pitfall or snare. Silently, they started stripping the human weaponry away from the smaller impish arsenal. They recovered their weapons first: Argus, his broadsword and shield; Maduin, his baghnakhs, nunhaku and staff. After that they grabbed Gilles staff, Sarina's hammer and Duane's rapier and left the clearing as silently as they had entered.
***
"So you came back after all." Gilles grunted.
"Why the hell does everyone act so surprised!?" Kelga wailed.
"We really should go find the others." Duane reminded him.
"Right." The thief collected himself. "Follow me." He turned planted his face directly in Sarina's chest.
"Good, you found them!" The healer huffed.
"So I take it everyone is well?" Gilles asked the newest arrival.
Sarina grinned. "Yes, everyone's just fine! Argus and Maduin are recovering our weapons as we speak. Just as soon as we meet up with them, we'll work on getting the Crystals back."
Gilles' eyes got wide as he quickly patted himself down. "Bloody hell!"
"Don't worry, we know where they are." Sarina pointed back in the direction she came. "The goblin leader is addressing his troops, and he has the Crystals. Can we count on you to create a diversion, Master Arkham?"
"Absolutely. Sorel restored my powers, somehow."
Sarina turned to Kelga. "Kelga, that will be your cue to get the Crystals back from the leader. Kill him if you have to, but our objective is to escape without a battle. Can you handle it?"
"Puh-lease. Do you have any idea who you're talking to?"
Sarina nodded. "Good, let's go."
***
"Geez, goblins sure love to talk." Argus was getting impatient. "What's taking so long?"
Maduin glared at him. "You actually want the goblin to finish?"
"No, not him. Sarina and the others. I want to get the hell out of here, yesterday."
"That makes two of us."
Both fighters turned to face the rustling bushes behind them. Gilles was the first of four out of the bramble. "I heard you were in need of some pyrotechnics."
Argus grinned, but Maduin looked suspicious. "Are you in any condition to cast?"
"Not to worry," the wizard nodded. "Just tell me where to deliver the ordnance."
The black belt gestured for Gilles to come closer, then he pointed towards the clearing where the goblin pep rally was still going strong. "Towards the rear of that formation. It would be ideal if you could cast in a way that wouldn't give away your position. Kelga, that split second is all you have to snag the Crystals away from the leader."
"Not a problem." Kelga assured him.
"May I borrow your Crystal, Vasquez?" Gilles held out his hand. "I'm going to need some amplification."
"Sure." Kelga removed his chain and tossed it to Gilles. "I'm going to get in position now, what's the signal?"
"A giant, exploding fireball." Gilles muttered. He began chanting the Fire spell, while the Fire Crystal in his hand burned brilliantly.
"Right, stupid question." The thief turned and dashed away, as quickly and silently as he could.
Why am I not surprised that the RedMage is Bi? Or that the BlackMage wants to blow the goblins to kingdom come?
Great story!
Great story!
Me: Nope, that's why I have you around to tell me.
Nitram: You -are- beautiful. Anyone tries to tell you otherwise kill them.
"A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP" -- Leonard Nimoy, last Tweet
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Darth Kalgarath
- Redshirt
- Posts: 25
- Joined: 2006-01-11 08:46am
- Location: The dead, lightless center of All That Is.
"I'm going to get in position now, what's the signal?"
"A giant, exploding fireball."
"Right, stupid question."
"A giant, exploding fireball."
"Right, stupid question."
Well, nobody's said anything stupid to me yet, and I've not said voiced any of my own idiocity so far, sooo . . . .
"Yes it's true, we even have lasers today that use photonic energy at least i'm sure it's photonic." - Jedi Guardian
"Yes it's true, we even have lasers today that use photonic energy at least i'm sure it's photonic." - Jedi Guardian
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Darth Raptor
- Red Mage
- Posts: 5448
- Joined: 2003-12-18 03:39am
Because I'm having a hard time straddling that fine line between "archetype" and "stereotype".LadyTevar wrote:Why am I not surprised that the RedMage is Bi? Or that the BlackMage wants to blow the goblins to kingdom come?
Wee! I'm out of that rut I wrote myself into! Expect relatively frequent updates from here on out. A short one today:
*****
“The beast races are found in every land. There is not a continent, country or island nation where their presence is absent. Beastmen live in the shadows of the enlightened races, stuck in a perpetual purgatory between barbarism and genuine civilization. What few accomplishments they have, they’ve gleaned from humans, elves or dwarves. It’s popular to claim that they’re inherently inferior, and there may very well be truth to this claim; but one must not discount the fact that their history is exceptionally short. Four hundred years ago, there were no goblins, ogres or sahagin. Their appearance in historical records coincides with the calamity that brought low the high human culture that was the Lufenian Empire, and the appearance of all non-sapient monsters. Least among the beastmen are the goblins. Standing roughly one meter tall, they are vaguely humanoid in appearance. Despite their small size their short, bulky limbs provide them with surprising strength. Their faces are ugly by the standards of elven aestheticism, their ears droop and their noses are large and bulbous. There is little sexual dimorphism between the genders either, and they are similar to dwarves in this respect. While I disagree that my grandfather’s evolutionary theories can be applied to monsters, there does appear to be a common meme in this case. Goblins are capable of speaking Common, as well as Hermetic and Divine- although they do have their own language- Impish. As a result, they have limited proficiency in magic and alchemy and are capable of dealing with the enlightened races on a somewhat diplomatic basis. However, the history of their relationship with humans and elves is one of constant strife. Most common in the Kingdom of Cornelia, the roving, nomadic tribes attack travelers on sight; scavenging gold and raw materials from their victims- which they use to barter among neighboring clans. While nearly nothing is known about goblin reproduction, their numbers are apparently without end. It is often claimed that they could sack Cornelia if they were united. Fortunately for the author as well as the reader, there is just as much fratricidal infighting as there is conflict with humanity.” ~ Excerpt from Intelligent Monsters: An Overview of the History and Biology of the Known Species of Sapient Beastmen by Dr. Erasmus Unne.
***
The moon was in the latter half of its cycle, beginning to wane. Yet, it still shone brilliantly high in the night sky. The pale lamination reflected off the patchwork light armor of the goblins gathered in the clearing. For creatures known to be so unruly, they listened to their leader with rapt attention. The imp addressing the assembly was a goblin commandant, the head of the regional guard chapter. Goblins usually wore light leather armor, but this particular fiend was bogged down in a full suit of worked copper plate mail. He (she?) chattered furiously while holding a spiked mace high in the air. The dissertation was totally unintelligible to an outsider, but whatever it was talking about was obviously important. Punctuating the gravity of the situation were the three ornate silver chains that hung low around the senior guardsman’s neck; each of which had pendant with a large colored crystal; one green, one yellow and one blue.
Suddenly, a deafening explosion sounded and an enormous blast of fire engulfed the forest south of the clearing. Simultaneously, every goblin that was not already facing that direction turned to witness the towering wall of flame. The commandant’s speech stopped short, but no one was listening anyway. Every pair of beady eyes stared in shocked amazement at the firestorm that had erupted without warning directly behind them. The leader started to shout out an order, but was abruptly silenced by a human hand. Its throat was subsequently slit by a compact jack knife. Amid a fountain of blood the chains were liberated and the shadowy assailant retreated back into the shadows. Several minutes passed before the goblins noticed their leader was dead. A full hour would pass before they would realize their armory had been destroyed and their human prisoners were gone.
***
Despite his considerable fatigue, or perhaps because of it, Argus was feeling extremely self-satisfied. He blithely twirled the Earth Crystal around a mailed finger while the group trudged through the increasingly sparse forest. The sound of owls, wolves and cicadas was beginning to give way to the incessant croaking of frogs. The ground was becoming progressively damp- grass and ferns gave way to lichens and moss.
“Hey, Vargas,” Argus clucked. “I say we make a new rule.”
“What is it?” The black belt did not sound quite so chipper.
Argus was quiet for a brief moment, “Never surrender.”
“If I had some more advanced spells, we wouldn’t have had to,” Gilles muttered bitterly.
“All’s well that ends well,” Sarina cooed. “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”
“Ah,” Maduin sighed in mock relief. “Nothing soothes the soul like a couple clichéd proverbs!”
“As if you have a soul!” The white mage kicked him, hard.
“He has a point,” Kelga offered. When Sarina turned to glare at him, the thief clarified: “Argus does, I mean. Next time we might not be so lucky.”
“So we should resolve to fight until the last drop of blood?” Maduin huffed.
“Absolutely!” Argus didn’t catch the sarcasm.
“We should resolve not to place ourselves in such a situation again,” Gilles growled.
Kelga hung his head. “Yeah, that whole stretch of forest just screamed ‘ambush’. Security’s my responsibility; I should have been more alert.”
“It was no one’s fault!” Sarina insisted. “We recovered our things and escaped with our lives, could we please just put this ordeal behind us?”
Maduin stopped walking. “Alright, I strongly disagree here, but I’m no tyrant- and I hate working for tyrants, so I’ll put it to a vote. The issue is whether or not to make it procedure not to surrender to the enemy. Vote in favor if you’re willing to die for this princess, vote against if you value your own skin above royalty.”
“Cut the crap,” Argus said. “I didn’t say we shouldn’t run. There’s a difference between fighting an un-winnable battle and surrendering to be tortured to death. Are you scared or what?”
Maduin placed his clenched teeth within centimeters of Argus’ face. “Are you calling me a coward, kid?”
“If the pointy elf-shoe fits!”
“Enough!” Sarina wailed. “Let’s just put it to a vote already! All in favor of surrendering when faced with impossible odds?”
Maduin, Gilles and Duane raised their hands.
“Wonderful. All in favor of running when necessary but never surrendering?”
Three arms fell while Argus, Kelga and Sarina raised theirs. Kelga glared at Duane angrily, who merely shrugged. The red mage raised his hand however, after getting kicked in the shin.
“You can’t vote twice, scrote,” Maduin spat.
“I am changing my vote.”
“Okay, whatever,” Maduin grumbled. “It’s decided then. No matter how impossible the situation is, we don’t surrender. We run if we can, and I guess we die if we can’t.”
“You’re a damned pessimist,” Argus chided, spirits high once again. “We’re the Warriors of Light, remember?”
“No, you’re the Warriors of Light. I’m just your tour guide. Whatever, let’s find a place to set up camp; I think we’ve had enough excitement for one night. Sorel, you have first watch.”
***
The heavy, darksteel double doors of the Chaos Shrine’s Crystal Chamber opened laboriously. Once there was a big enough gap, Boss Knocker scrambled through with extreme haste.
“GENerAL! GenerAL!”
“What is it?” Garland turned away from Berne and Astos to face the newest arrival.
“I gets a PIGeon froms CapTAIN LaRAK! You WON’t beLIEVE this!” The diminutive warlord was practically bouncing in his armor.
“Out with it, fiend!” Astos hissed.
Knocker ignored the slur. Goblins and dark elves didn’t make fast friends, after all. “Camp LESion caught some HUMans in their terriTORy! CorNELIAN MERcenARies!”
“Is the Army truly so exhausted?” Sarah whimpered, dejectedly.
Garland turned to the princess. “Apparently so, but it seems the Royal Treasury is not. It doesn’t bode well for your father that he’s hiring adventurers!”
“I cannot believe that Elfheim failed to conquer you weaklings!” Astos snickered.
“More imPORtant!” Knocker interrupted. He waddled up to Garland and pointed at the Dark Crystal draped over his breastplate. “They HAD crysTALs! CRYStals like THAT one!”
“Impossible!” Lord Berne’s red eyes were wide. “Could it be?”
“What?” Garland demanded.
“The Warriors of Light,” Sarah offered. “The prophesied saviors of the world.”
“A children’s fairy tale!” The dark knight scoffed.
“Hardly!” Berne huffed. “This is a disturbing turn of events. If the Warriors of Light have assembled, we don’t have much time!” He turned and marched toward the door. “I am returning to Melmond, I have much preparation to do!”
“Why?” Garland’s confusion was palpable, even through his face-obscuring helmet. “We have them.”
Berne didn’t turn around. “Those pathetic imps cannot contain them! Mark my words, General. The Warriors of Light will be on your doorstep within the week!”
Astos cackled malevolently, “I am taking my leave as well, General. I suggest you be ready to retreat if necessary.” The air surrounding the dark elf distorted into a whirling black vortex. When it dissipated, the elven king was gone.
“Your ORDERS, Lord?”
Garland stood dumbfounded for a few moments, “Tell your subordinates to execute the prisoners immediately and to bring the Crystals here. Send reinforcements in their direction.”
Knocker bowed reverently and waddled out the door.
“Alone at last,” Garland said with a predatory sneer.
“Like rats on a sinking ship,” Sarah muttered. “How swiftly your new allies abandon you.”
Garland spun around and wordlessly stomped to where Sarah was chained to the wall. He removed his right gauntlet and back-handed her across the face. “Insolent wench! I wield the Dark Crystal! The four Prime Elements cannot compare to the power of darkness!”
“Although baseless declarations lack truth, wrote repetition brings solace through delusional belief.”
Garland punched her, hard. But Sarah didn’t relent. “The Warriors of Light will slay you, Siegfried!”
Garland laughed, “Trust me, Princess. They won’t even get that far.”