by Allan Joyal
“There is no way she’s that old!” Thanul shouted.
The rest of his patrol rushed forward. They all took a careful look at Roquel as they caught up to her. Several stumbled trying to get a clear view of her face.
“See,” Thanul said as he pointed forward where Roquel was. “None of my men believe she’s that old.”
“I’m not!” Roquel shouted back. Thanul was just starting to smile triumphantly when Roquel turned to look at him. “I’m older. But no man should be asking my age.”
“What?” Thanul. “You expect me to believe you’re that old? How can you be out here heading to fight a dungeon?”
“The fact that I can fight dungeons might be a clue. I made deals with spirits. Some of those deals have kept me young, but I’ve paid a terrible price over the decades I’ve been alive,” Roquel said. The steel and passion in her voice caused Thanul to miss a couple of steps.
“Who is she?” he asked Kalacho in a worried voice.
“I’ve never asked the full story,” Kalacho admitted. “She showed up in Montgar with a group that claimed they were going to destroy the dungeon that is next to the town. I’ve heard her name before from stories that get passed around adventurers circles, but all they say is that she’s one of the best alive.”
“Best what?” Thanul asked. “I’m not sure what an adventurer is.”
“We seek adventure and challenge,” Kalacho said. “Mostly we enter dungeons. Your average adventurer is better than any guard, but we’d struggle to defeat an organized army.”
“I’d think if you are so good individually, you’d be able to defeat an army,” Thanul said.
“If we can force the fight to be one against one, we could, but an organized army would have multiple people counterattacking. Roquel might be able to avoid that kind of attack thanks to the deals she’s made with spirits. But I can’t block ten spears all stabbing at me,” Kalacho said.
Thanul nodded. “But why would you admit this to me?”
“Good adventurers aren’t going to go into battle against any army. That’s not something we are interested in,” Kalacho replied.
The group could see a cloud of snow in the distance to the southwest. Kerytyn immediately halted and pointed towards the cloud. “That is someone moving fast. That has to be what Faestari warned us about!”
Roquel, Gee’if and Kalacho quickly reached down to free their feet from the skis. Gee’if and Kalacho got their swords and shields ready as Roquel pulled the fur off her legs.
“Spirits of wind and stone, I crave your assistance,” Roquel said. The skin on her hands darkened to gray. She seemed to rise up out of the snow.
The cloud of snow seemed to thin a bit. They could see five kobolds running across the snow. They were bent forward, touching their hands to the ground as they bounded towards the group.
Koristal looked at the patrol. “Get shoulder to shouder!” she shouted as she braced herself. She had pulled out a small shield and was holding a hammer in her right hand. Kerytyn moved to cover her side. He had a shield in his left hand and a sword in his right.
The kobolds kept charging. Kalacho and Gee’if moved apart, trying to get the kobolds to split up. Each of them attracted a single kobold, but the other three charged directly at Thanul and his patrol. The villagers were still spread out and a couple dropped their spears in fear.
Gee’if noticed, but the kobold charging him was too close for him to move. “They’re going for the villagers! Roquel, Koristal!”
“Cuan Bi’s Shield!” Koristal shouted. She bent down and hit the ground with her hammer. A red light rose up out of the ground in a half circle, forming a barrier between the villagers and the charging kobolds.
Kalacho stepped forward and lowered his shield into the kobold charging at him. It tried to reach over the shield to claw at his face. The ends of the creature’s fingers burst into flames, singing the leather straps holding Kalacho’s helmet on and causing the man’s beard to smolder. Kalacho was knocked back and had to drive his left leg deep into the snow trying to find purchase.
Roquel had been bypassed by the charging kobolds. The trio were so intent on reaching the villagers scattered spearwall that they crashed into Koristal’s blessed barrier. Two of the kobolds bounced back, but the third spun off the barrier before crashing to the snow at Kerytyn’s feet. The adventurer immediately stabbed the kobold in the neck with his sword.
Gee’if had managed to sidestep the first attack from his opponent. This kobold’s hands did not light up with flames, but the kobold then leaned forward and spat a ball of flaming phlegm at the adventurer. Gee’if blocked it with his shield. The phlegm stuck to the shield and continued to burn.
“Dump the shield in the snow!” Roquel shouted to Gee’if as the man parried a claw attack with his sword.
Gee’if accepted the command and threw his shield at the two kobolds who had been knocked down by Koristal’s shield. The villagers had stopped crying in fear and Thanul was working to get them into two lines of five so they could support each other as the kobolds began to rise to their feet.
Roquel rushed in and began hammering at one of the kobolds. Her strange gray fists sank deep into its back with each punch as she drove it away from the barrier and the villagers. The kobold attempted to turn to fight, but Roquel moved with it, continuing to assail it with a flurry of well directed punches.
“How?” Thanul asked with a gasp.
“Watch the kobold!” Koristal shouted as she moved to stand to the right of the villager’s formation. The barrier of light moved with her keeping between the kobold and the villagers.
“What are you?” one of the other villagers asked quietly as the remaining kobold started to claw at the barrier. Its hands were burning with fire as it tried to break through and attack.
Kalacho had managed to regain his balance and was now fighting his kobold in a strange dance of sword and fire. The kobold kept trying to grab at the wooden shield Kalacho carried, finally forcing him to throw it to the snow. His sword became his defense as the kobold swung its burning hands forward trying to get a grip on the experienced adventurer.
Gee’if had managed to dodge three more flaming spitballs. The kobold was quite willing to stand a short distance away using its spit to harry the adventurer. The spit was sticky and kept burning for a short time after landing, melting the snow. Gee’if failed to realize this and finally slipped as he tried to dodge another spit ball.
The kobold bayed in triumph and spat another flaming ball, this time directly at Gee’if. The adventurer tried to dive out of the way, but the ball struck his lower back, showering flames over his back and legs.
“Roll!” Kerytyn shouted to Gee’if as he tried to bound through the snow to defend his fellow adventurer.
The villagers tensed. “We can’t just let these others protect us!” Thanul shouted.
“What do we do?” a nervous voice called out from the now tight rectangle of men. They were in two lines of five men. The back men held their spears level over the shoulders of the front line while the front line had the tips of their spears at waist level.
Thanul watched the kobold. “Charge!” he shouted.
The front line of villagers moved immediately. The second line was a step behind, but managed to keep their spears above the front as the group raced towards the kobold still clawing at the barrier.
“Disperse!” Koristal shrieked out in a surprised voice. She turned and ran towards the left side of the villager’s formation. The barrier vanished as she started to move and the villagers crashed into the kobold.
Roquel had managed to down the kobold facing her. It lay in the snow. The huge depressions in its back showed that her punches had shattered ribs. She turned to look around.
Kalacho had dropped his sword and was holding his left arm with his right hand. The kobold he had faced was on its back. The now handless arms were spread out on the snow as kobold blood stained the landscape.
Gee’if had used h
is roll to crash into the legs of the kobold. The rolling had managed to put out the fire on his armor. His sword was thrust upward into the gut of the kobold and it was collapsing to the ground.
The villagers had also triumphed over their opponent. When everyone turned to look at them, they could see that six of the ten spears had pierced the flesh of the monster. Two of the villagers were kneeling by its body trying to extract the spears while also examining the creature.
“I’ve never seen a kobold this big,” one of the villagers said.
“You’ve never seen a kobold,” Thanul said. “There are no kobold lairs in the mountains around Fairview. The council would never permit one to exist.”
“Obviously there is one,” Kerytyn said as he moved around to retrieve the skis his group had tossed aside during their preparations for the fight.
Koristal had rushed over to check on Gee’if. The adventurer had tried to keep her from examining his back and legs as he checked over his shield.
“I’m fine,” he grumbled. “I don’t need any healing right now.”
“Your wife will make my life miserable if I don’t check, as will my best friend,” Koristal said acidly. “And I owe you.”
“How can you owe me. We never adventured together,” Gee’if asked.
“Jyxton,” Koristal said firmly.
“What about him?” Gee’if asked as Koristal finally forced the back of his armor up.
Koristal hissed. “Your armor is a mess and I can see blisters all over your back. I’m sure there are more on your legs, but I don’t want to fight you over them.”
“A potion can solve all that,” Gee’if said with an answering hiss of pain. “You don’t need to do anything.”
“You protect my best friend. You’ve trained up the man she’ll marry and offered her a place with you. I can’t fail to protect you,” Koristal said as she pulled out her figurine. She placed it against his back and whispered some words that Gee’if couldn’t quite hear.
The figurine glowed for a moment. Two of the villagers gasped and stepped away. They instinctively lowered their spears and pointed them at Koristal.
The villager who had talked to her earlier rushed over and placed his spear over theirs, pushing them down. “Don’t. Haven’t you seen a priestess call for healing before?”
“She’s a priestess? Where is her temple?” one of the other villagers asked. “Tracor, have you been drinking again.”
Tracor shook his head. “She obviously is a priestess of Cuan Bi. We’ve heard her call on the goddess more than once.”
The villager with the spear pointed at Koristal shook his head. “It could be a trick.”
“No one is going to pretend to be a priestess of Cuan Bi,” Thanul said. “There’s no benefit in it. Priestesses of the Lady of Mercy are sworn to a life of charity and mercy. But that does cause me to ask why she’s with these adventurers.”
“Because the kobolds come from a dungeon that shouldn’t exist,” Roquel said as her hands returned to their normal flesh color. The woman’s face was a bit pale as she found the furs she had used to keep her legs warm. “Koristal agreed to help us destroy the dungeon and will then try to save the kobolds.”
“And then we’ll send the kobolds away,” Gee’if said quietly.
“You will?” Thanul asked in a surprised voice.
“They won’t be able to remain in the caverns they currently occupy,” Roquel said. “Even after we destroy the heart crystal of the dungeon, the mana it once held will warp any creature that lives in them too long. It’s been seen to happen in other dungeons that were killed. The kobolds will have to leave if they are going to survive.”
“And you are just the group of people to kill this dungeon?” Thanul asked.
“That is the plan,” Roquel said.
Thanul looked over his patrol of villagers. He gazed out over the snow-covered landscape.
“And you believe all the raids this year came from the kobolds?” he asked quietly.
“It fits with what we know about the dungeon,” Roquel said. “You told us most of the raids were far to the south when we met at the end of the fall. The dungeon we seek is far to the south. We have also seen three groups of kobolds try to reach our town to the east. We are next to another dungeon that has fought with the one creating these kobolds. We also heard that two bands of kobolds were sent from the dungeon. One to attack Fairview, the other for South Falls.”
“Meadowview is on a direct path from the area where the raids were common if you are heading to Fairview,” Tracor said.
Thanul nodded. “Bostrum, Fintar, you need to head to Oersteglen. Tell them what we’ve learned. Everyone else, I know we didn’t expect this but we’ll follow the adventurers.”
“What?” Gee’if said.
“You might be the best at handling what’s in the caverns,” Thanul said. “But someone needs to watch for escaping kobolds. I’ll even agree to let them run away if they head south and west into the mountains, but for the honor of Oersteglen, we have to act.”
Kalacho laughed bitterly. “It’s always the case. Adventurers do the heavy work; others try to take credit. If you want to come along, do so, but Roquel is in charge. She knows dungeons best.”
The woman in question was standing up after fixing the furs to her legs. She shook her head as she walked over to Kerytyn to get her skis. “Let’s keep going,” she said. “We have many days to travel before we can end this plague of kobolds.”
The adventurers nodded and began to form a ragged line. Two villagers dashed off to the west as the others formed a double file to the right of the adventurers and turned south, headed back in the direction the kobolds had come from.
Chapter 28: The Guards of Fairview
The first night after the patrol from Oersteglen arrived was a bit uncomfortable for everyone. While Tracor clearly trusted the adventurer group thanks to Koristal being a member, Thanul and the others were surly and quiet. They insisted on setting up their own campfire and refused to engage Gee’if and Kalacho in a serious conversation.
The adventurers tried to ignore the situation, but Gee’if and Kalacho both spent half the night awake and watchful as the group tried to sleep. Both men were visibly tired the next morning as everyone got together and prepared to head out.
Thanul noticed their fatigue and made sure to jog next to Kalacho as the group started off. He had sent two of his remaining men to head to the west to try to hunt some meat. Two more ranged ahead and to the east, seeking to warn any farmers and villagers they might pass.
Once the men had vanished over the horizon, Thanul turned to Kalacho. “I admit to being impressed with how well your group dealt with the kobolds, but how did you know they were coming?”
“You were with us when Faestari warned us about this group,” Kalacho said calmly.
“And that was another thing that makes no sense. I’ve never heard of any spell that allows someone to teleport like that. Who was that elf girl?” Thanul said.
“Faestari is not an elf. And I’m not sure I should consider her a girl. I’m not sure if she considers herself one,” Kalacho said softly.
“She doesn’t,” Roquel called out. “But remember she claims that she was raised as a human child for about ten years. So, having a body is comforting for now. In one hundred years, she might not use it.”
“What?” Thanul asked.
“You were looking at a spirit,” Roquel said. “It was just a projection of mana given a form. The actual body of that elven girl is a gemstone of some kind. Its hidden under a mountain to the west. But if you want to find out for yourself, we’ll see if she’ll talk to you when she shows up in a short while. It’s close to midday.”
Kalacho shrugged. “It’s more complex than that, but Roquel is correct. As for the kobolds. The group you watched us fight was the third to try to get to Montgar. The first was wiped out by Roquel and some others who aren’t here, but that group was not very powerful. The next reached Montgar
and were killed in some vicious fighting at the walls.”
“There have been more of those things?” Thanul asked. The other three men with him all stumbled in shock as Thanul stopped jogging for a moment.
Kalacho just continued his skiing, staying at the rear of the group as they sped southward across the snowy landscape. He shook his head and called out to Roquel. “I keep forgetting how little most villagers understand about what we do. I’m too used to Dared.”
“He is very understanding,” Roquel said firmly. “I believe a lot of that has to do with his upbringing. His father wanted to offer him a future, but the nobles in Rockgar did not like him.”
“Where did you hear about that?” Kalacho said. “It seems he really tries hard and his father did leave him a considerable sum. Master builders like Joward are expensive.”
“Joward is very skilled,” Roquel agreed. “But Joward admitted that he came with Dared partly because of something that occurred back in Rockgar. I understand that it had to do with a noble attempting to force Joward to build a manor.”
“More issues with bad nobles,” Kalacho said with a shake of his head. “I know more adventurers who were forced into delving because of nobles.”
“That’s why we just have our merchant’s council,” Thanul said. “The council prevents that kind of abuse.”
“But it doesn’t appear to be giving the farmers enough protection,” Kalacho said softly. He glanced to the left of their line of travel and could see billowing snow in the distance.
“Roquel!” Kalacho shouted. “We have a disturbance off to the left. Look at the snow!”
The group slowed its progress. Everyone was looking to the left. The small cloud of snow Kalacho had seen was growing. It soon became clear that a group was rushing towards them.
“Should we slow down?” Gee’if asked calmly. “It doesn’t appear to be kobolds.”
“I see a lot of metal,” Koristal said as she held a hand over her eyes to help shield them from the sun. “I’d guess that its soldiers.”
“Hopefully they met with Thanul’s men,” Kerytyn said. “Otherwise this will be an extremely unpleasant encounter.”