by Pwyll Duggan
Table of Contents
Author’s Notes
Cover
Foreword and Thanks
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Beyond The Wall 2
Noble Intentions
By Pwyll Duggan
Table of Contents
Author’s Notes
Cover
Foreword and Thanks
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
"You will reach your destination,
even if you travel slowly."
- Icelandic Proverb
Author’s Notes
I’m Australian.
For this reason;
I use the Queen’s English. (until there’s a King, then it’s the King’s English)
Colour is the correct spelling. (interestingly, how it changed is a good look at the telegraph and newspaper industries, truly fascinating…okay, for some of us)
Distances can be metric (world standard) or Imperial (only two countries left).
The slang is weird. The swearing is weirder.
Soft Drinks have no alcohol, Hard drinks do… hence the term Hard Liquor.
Shrimps are Prawns, and they may (or may not) go on the barbie (BBQ).
Football means you use your feet and even we think Cricket is slow, so we made the 20/20 match system to knock it for six. (you may or may not get that)
Most importantly,
Enjoy and have fun!
In the end, that is what it is all about!
Cover
www.coversbychristian.com
It never hurts to say thank you! Christian works hard, just ask his suffering family. At least he has his singing to fall back on…Thanks Mate!
Foreword and Thanks
Thanks go to my Wife, Trish.
Teaching me that any crafting hobbies has two parts.
Buying the supplies then, sometimes, using the supplies.
Mila Young. Author, Friend, Mentor and fire under my butt.
Dave, my best man, reliable back-up guy for catching my worst mistakes.
Lizbeth. Newly formed cat-lady, friend and helpful reader.
My boys Connor and Riley. Making my life ‘interesting’.
My gaming buddies for the last 30 odd years of fighting bad guys, being the bad guys and kicking the odd dragon’s arse.
Krispy, Norm, Gary, Nick, The Daves and Bazza plus the kids added over the years, Kyle and Emma (be scared of the girl with short hair)
Youtube
Shadiversity and Skallagrim
Channels whose knowledge and insight I plundered.
Blackheart Music Videos. For the GMVs that kept the beat going.
Tom Day and his ethereal music.
Neffex for pumping the blood when caffeine failed.
Song to listen to for Book 3
https://youtu.be/puR2wgjrXjs
Please enjoy!
Chapter 1
"For those I love, I will do great and terrible things" – Unknown.
BLISS! Nyssa's long fingers scratch my scalp, my torso is wrapped between her thighs, her silk-shirt covered breasts press into my back, I feel like I can take on the whole world. Even sitting here in Merryn's home, among the rest of the Grove 'council' as I called them, as they discuss the current priorities…
"Ah hum... Paul, you still here?"
Merryn's sing song voice cuts thru the bliss I'm feeling. Not opening my eyes, I wave a hand dismissively.
"I'm fine. Call me when you need me."
And I lean further back. Merryn continues, exasperated, and sighs.
"Well Shielder Walsh and his crew saved 127 people from Cratertown's Mine, killed the Mother Harpy Night One, numerous snotters, gobbers, orcs and ogres. The Dead are roaming free around the mines and Cratertown, and the greenskin's have retreated to the north and west of us for now. Garrot has spotted Lamia Patrols on the move, capturing equipment and slaves and returning them to their own town. Paul has brought another two wagon loads of food and clothing from Kawaba, but our supplies are still low, and we will need more until our farms are producing again." Her hand rubs up and down her face, strain in her eyes. Her vine-like hair moving in an unfelt wind.
The 'council' watch each other, waiting for someone to speak. Merryn's sits heavily, kind of surprising for a Dryad. I try and sit up and Nyssa's squeezes her thighs, holding me in place. Her spider half skitters back, trying her strength versus mine. Doesn't work as I drag her a little forward and sit upright. Looking around I see all the major Grove residents.
Nir and her son, Garrot - Dark elves (well more dark-grey than black-as-night but the standard silver hair) both 'upped' to the next level now, thanks to my stored Spirita Aqua. Um - I'll explain that stuff later, people first. Hare person Carol, her husband Robert (who I rescued from the mines) and their daughter Kitty. She's a special little girl, talks to the King Oak tree we currently all live under, seems to have druidic powers, so the smart money's on never ever getting her angry. Oh, and she thinks Nyssa and I make a cute couple.
We also have Niall, my squire. Dwarven Bard, beer drinker - 'Ale ye philistine!' as he has already repeated many times in the, what, 24-36 hours I've known him. Mary the corrupted unicorn, turned bihorn then 'upped' to a Warhorn - her words, not mine. Don't mess with the 8-foot-tall centaur with twin horns on her head and a sledgehammer as a weapon. It squashes 8-foot Ogres to paste... I got splashed with the gore. She's standing at the open door. She didn't want to track dirt into a dryad's house. And she calls me Master as I rescued her from the mine also.
Drew's a blue skinned human. That's it, blue skin, no other differences. Accent I can't pick, some English-speaking country. Works out he's the clay maker here, the potter of the grove. Met him when I dived deep in the lake surrounding the Grove, trying to find the source poisoning the area's Spirita, killing t
he Dryad and her tree. Turns out the hill nearby had ancient ruins inside, and the source was a bony amorphous mass of a Night One trying to get at a magic sword inside a spell shield… But my mostly naked self, ran around and dropped boulders on her as she cut me to shreds. Seems giant rocks versus unmoving enemy really flattens out the odds. Scored a shiny new sword, I call her Princess, because everyone has artefacts called Doomblade, Mjolnir, the One Ring etc. Plus, she liked the name.
Sally is sitting next to Drew. Smaller, very goblin like. She's a Green Gnome. More like the green thumbed. Her family are the farmers of the Grove. I haven’t really had anything to do with her or her family. Apart from the hugs of thanks for saving more of her clan. It's a big clan.
Last one sitting around is the lady with one pair of her legs wrapped around me. Nyssa's an arachne, a drider. Half woman, half spider, looking all Irish to me. Long red hair, freckles and four pairs of blue eyes going up her forehead. Small nose, little pointy ears out the side of her hair. Plus, a spider’s body and it's eight legs. Today's she's wearing a thin white silk robe and red pants on her 'legs'. Her legs turn to claws at the foot, lower leg all chitin. She's a scholar, researcher, mage and a friend. More than friend. She saved me as I saved her friends on my first day beyond the wall. Then we destroyed the blockade that was built to capture all the Shielders passing through the wall from Kawaba.
The Wall. It stretches from horizon to horizon, wider than the continent, higher than all the mountains. Stops the monsters on this side of the Wall, where the Grove is, from getting to the Human dominated lands to the south. Powered by souls. That's what a Shielder is - a claimer of souls. I need to kill things, harvest their souls and take them back to the Stone that power the Wall in the Kawaba Temple. Kill so others may live. Souls are called Spirita Aqua - liquid magic would be my guess. We use Spirita to cast spells and gain levels and power. Shielders can also ‘up’ 'Normal' beings boosting their power (More on this later) - I’ve also discovered that monsters can level up by eating a Shielders' brain or heart. Yup- I’m considered a delicacy.
Five and a half days ago, the Stone in Kawaba pulled me from Earth, dumped me here with nothing. The villagers who took me in, told me that I was the only one who could save their wall. They gave me armour, weapons and some of their daughters to convince me to do this. Things got complicated real fast, people died, including the corrupt head priestess who had been sending their past Shielders and most of the men from their village Beyond the Wall right into a trap. Long story short, with the assistance of some friends I’ve made this side of the wall I was able to defend the Grove; heal the King Oak and the Dryad Merryn; destroy 3 Night Ones and many of their followers; and rescue 127 Grove-folk and a further 200 or so men of Kawaba from the mines of Cratertown. I’ve given hope back to the village, not only have I re-powered their wall, they have gone from a village almost devoid of men to a working village again. Even if it’s still divided demi-humans versus humans. Nothing like racism to make a good village or country for that matter.
So here I sit, in the arms and legs of a Drider that likes me a lot, probably more than that, that could turn the room to crispy critters, listening to the council decide what they want to do next. Living with the fear of the tree and dryad dying for the last three years will make decision making hard. And the constant raids. And selling everything to buy healing to keep said dryad alive. Life is nothing if not a challenge. All Eyes are now watching me, waiting for my input. This is, after all, one of my homes now.
"Garrot and company can keep hunting and watching the roads. I'll get another lot of supplies from Kawaba and organize a larger load for later in the week. Mary can assist Sally and the farmers cleaning up their fields. Niall, Carol, Robert and Drew can sort out the loot from the Mother Harpy so we can trade when the caravans arrive in the next ten days? Right?" nods all round at that.
"Equip what we can. Sell what we have no use for. Build up our food supplies, so we don't drain Old Man Oak or Merryn. Ensure that everyone is settled, fed and clothed first. Nyssa and Nir can get that potion factory up and running - trade with Kawaba for the metals, cloth and food we need." Nyssa's interrupts from behind me with a shout.
"RICE BALLS!" and laughter breaks the tension.
"I'll get reequipped. Nyssa's making more armour. We can explore the enchanting option for trade as well. I would like a day or two when I'm not getting stabbed, bitten, shot, blasted or dropped from a great height. Would make a nice change of pace." That gets muted laughter and a few weird looks. Whatever.
"Anyone got anything else?" blank glances and the shake of heads is the only reply.
"Fine. I need Merryn for a while."
The unsubtle hint works and the house empties, apart from Nyssa. Merryn's staring at me, eyes solid and unreadable. As the door closes, she turns to the rear wall, actually the trunk of the great King Oak, her tree, and gestures. It parts, a hand sized hole appears and Merryn pulls out the Stone Chunk I looted from the Cave below the Grove, from the Night One I introduced to heavy boulders. It's shaped like a d8, a dice for playing game like D&D. Matches the d6 The Stone in the village Kawaba gave me after I handed in all the souls I gathered from rescuing everyone. Might end up with a full set.
"I can transfer you some refined Spirita Aqua or store it in here. King Oak has drained it clear and refined all the Spirita. The corruption is gone now. It will store an amazing amount of Spirita if you want it to."
And that's what scares me. I stand there and let my eyes lose focus, as I consider the changes The Stone has already done to me. I'm beyond normal now. I can lift 1000lbs, 500kg easy. Run faster backwards than Usain Bolt can forward. Leap mildly tall buildings in a single bound. Shatter an 8-foot-tall Ogre's jaw with one punch. But that large dice of Stone sends chills down my spine. It's has the power to change things, like a Cosmic Cube, an Infinity Stone or maybe more like a Green Lantern Power Ring - a weapon beyond imagining.
There isn't a leader, warlord, King, Duke or Mayor that wouldn't kill for it. So, it’s not something I want to advertise, or even carry.
"Keep it here please Merryn. Old Man Oak can guard it better than I can. At least until I find a good use for it."
She smiles and places the stone back in the hole.
"We'll make you a wise man yet Shielder Walsh." Her other hand reaches out, small blue globe only she and I can see on it. I breathe in deeply, dragging the globe of Spirita to my arm, absorbing it. Twice as large as any I have previously absorbed. My face registered the change and Merryn speaks.
"We can spare more, and you are using it in our defence. The more beings you 'up' the safer the grove will be." She's right. Also, the less work I need to do to defend as well. Works both ways.
Nyssa drags me out by my hand, swaying as we walk together, staying close. We head thru a building site as the people of the Grove have banded together to repair the ramshackle buildings. Vines move and grow, removing rubble and transporting materials. Draining the spirita from my Stone helped to rebuild the Grove. As we pass, we are greeted with waves, smiles and shouts. Nyssa latches on my arm, signalling that I am not going anywhere. She sure is possessive since I 'upped' her.
Ah yes, upping. Played Pokémon? D&D? Rpgs on console, computers? Good, I won’t have you ‘hand in your nerd card’ then. Upping is like leveling. It's evolution in Pokémon. Epic levels in old school Everquest. Without it, beings in this world can get to a max level of 5. Basically 5 times the abilities of someone who's normal - sort of like an extreme athlete at their peak, super good at what they do and setting world records. Then if they get 'upped' or evolved, they can earn another 5 levels, getting even more powerful. To be 'upped', a Shielder like me uses the souls they have gathered to force them up. Alternatively, a creature can eat a Shielder’s brain or heart. See, being a Shielder is bright and sunny, people love you... until they eat you. Monsters love me, with a nice bbq sauce and dark ale, or so Niall tells me. Local leaders want to control me.
But in order to
‘up’ someone I need to level myself and I need souls to do that. Experience begets levels. Killing begets experience and souls. And the viscous cycle affects everyone. All that to power a huge Shield Wall that towers over everything, keeping the monsters out.
So, as I mentioned earlier, the people I rescued from Cratertown, the mining town controlled by the leader of the local Night Ones, came from here in the Grove or the village Kawaba. For more than three years the corrupt priestess of Kawaba had forced over a thousand males to become Shielders and sent them thru the Shield Wall to go collect monster souls. Most died the moment they came thru the Wall. (When you always just follow the same road as you go thru, the monsters learn where you appear - traps and barricades ensure, slaves are made.). They were never trained, she charmed those who did manage to survive an encounter to give her all the loot, and the gods know what else.
Once a week the village Stone summons an 'other world' Shielder to defend them. I'm the first in years that ever returned. Oh, and since the village had been stripped of its male citizens, very few children had been born in the last two years, and a weird tradition had started with the eligible women of trying to get offspring from the other worlders before they disappeared beyond the wall. Might be a college kids dream, but I'm the arse-end of 40, was married once and not really into all that. Not really into, but didn't mind it too much - dry spell you know, right? I'm only a mere male, sue me.
Luckily Nyssa is steering me as we walk to our house, my brain cataloguing my experiences and what I have learnt of this world. To me, the Stones control the Wall; Souls grant so many days of power to our ten mile stretch of Wall. They also grant extra powers to their 'Shield Containers', that’s me, as we gain experience from the souls we gather. And I discovered, that can be anyone’s soul. Anyone’s at all. So, eat your vegetables or Shielder Walsh will harvest your soul. The 7-foot cubed Stone, another giant dice - maybe there’s a theme here? - communicates via writing on itself. To me it looks like a unix terminal screen. I guess I’m showing my age with that reference, like a computer screen showing a command-line interpreter. Sickly green text and flashing cursor - very Fallout, Matrix or old school Necromancer Style.