by Logan Jacobs
What the fuck was this place?
With the newfound light, I could see there was a giant platform that encircled the entirety of the volcano like a donut. Further down, underneath said platform, I noticed the distant outline of several large figures. They were all breathing softly, but through the darkness I couldn’t quite get a headcount of how many there truly were.
Still, the rumors were true.
We were standing on top of a literal dragon’s nest.
We watched from above as the orcs paced to-and-fro on the platform, and they inspected the walls heavily before they moved onto another part. Finally, after about thirty minutes of inspection, one of them threw down his torch in frustration.
“There ain’t any eggs here!” His growl echoed up the tunnel, and my blood ran cold.
“What the fuck is he doing?” I hissed. “Won’t they wake up?”
I’m not sure, Tirian admitted. When a dragon enters its hibernation, they can sleep through a hurricane. At least, that’s what your friends back at your island told me.
It is true, George agreed. When we go into hibernation, sometimes we are thought to be dead. We don’t wake up for almost anything, and I’m guessing these are the same.
“Varklag said these fuckers had a bunch of eggs!” the orc continued to complain. “I ain’t found shit in this fucking hole.”
“Calm down, Meurk,” another one of the bastards said as he stepped toward his crewmate. “I know--”
Before he could finish his sentence, the orc known as Meurk smashed him over the head with his club. As the orc bastard was laying on the ground, bleeding and twitching, Meurk raised his club and proceeded to smash the second orc’s head into a bloody pulp.
Meurk then turned to the rest of his comrades and threw out his arms. “Does anyone else want to tell me to calm down?”
“No,” several of the orcs muttered and took a step back.
“Fucking good,” he sneered, and then he held his torch up high. “Because I say we’re wasting our goddamn time. We could be out fucking women or murdering men, but we’re here dicking around in a cave lookin’ for golden dragon shits!”
The rest of the orcs began to look at each other and give nodding agreements.
“I don’t like where this is going,” I began.
Meurk shook his head. “Ya know what I say? I say we kill these fucking creatures while they’re not a threat, and then use their skin to make us some new armor!”
The other thirteen orcs let out a battle cry of excitement as they raised their weapons up into the air.
Mom… Tirian blubbered.
I looked over at Jemma and saw pure, unbridled hurt in her eyes. Her bondmate was in pain, and that pain spread into her very soul.
I couldn’t stand to see either of them like this.
I had to do something.
“Fourteen against five?” I asked Lezan as I pulled out my seaglass sword. “Those good odds?”
The Coonag woman lit up when she realized what I was suggesting, and her grin was downright fiendish.
“Very good odds,” she reassured me. “Especially when we have a great leader like you.”
As much as I wanted to roll my eyes at the corny compliment, it did fill me with a sense of pride. So, I stood up, walked over to the rope that hung over the side of the volcano, and held it tight in my hands.
“What are you doing, Ben?” Jemma gasped.
“Something stupid,” I admitted. “We’re all about to do something very, very stupid.”
Chapter Ten
“I like where this is going,” Lezan admitted as she scampered over toward my position. “Are we going to go down there and rip them to shreds?”
“That’s the idea.” I nodded. “There’s only fourteen of them, and four of us. This should be a piece of cake, right?”
“Five,” Jemma corrected. “There are five of us, two of which are dragons.”
“George has to stay up here,” I explained, “We’ll need a strong body to yank us up if things start to go south or if we see any more orcs. And, since we’re literally going to be fighting above a bunch of sleeping dragons, things could go south very, very quickly.”
I wish to help, dear one. George frowned. I hate to sit back and watch while my friends are in danger.
“You can still help,” I promised. “We might need a distraction while we’re climbing down, and there are plenty of ways you can support us from above.”
I will do my best. George bowed his head as his tail wagged with excitement.
“Couldn’t we all just pick them off from up here?” Jemma questioned. “Then we wouldn’t have to be in harm’s way whatsoever.”
“It’s too risky for the sleeping dragons.” I shook my head. “Even if we kill half of them before they see us, they could still kill the dragons before we finish them all off.”
“Speaking of which,” Lezan gasped as she glanced downward. “The ugly murderer is starting to hand out torches to the rest of his friends. What exactly is their plan?”
“Maybe they’re going to try and burn them all to death,” I suggested as I grabbed onto the rope and put my feet against the edge. “I honestly don’t give a fuck what they’re planning, all I care about is stopping them.”
They want to burn my mom? Tirian growled through gritted teeth. I’ll show them how to burn…
“Just wait,” I ordered the small silver dragon. “You are one of our secret weapons, so it’d be best if you take them by surprise. Hit them when they’re least expecting it.”
How will I know? Tirian quirked his head.
“You’ll know.” I winked, and then I looked over at George. “Wait until we’re about halfway down the rope, and then extinguish their torches.”
“How are we going to fight in the darkness?” Jemma gasped.
“We Coonag can see in the dark.” Lezan shrugged.
“We won’t be fighting in the dark…” I grinned. “Once we’re in position, we’re going to have Tirian swoop down and light the torches on his own. And maybe an orc or two.”
“That sounds… scary for them,” Jemma chuckled.
“If it works for Batman, it’s sure as hell going to work for us. Now, are we all ready?”
The two women gave me a firm nod, and then they stood over by the rappelling rope. At the same time, George peeked his head over the lip of the volcano, and Tirian got into position.
So, I took a deep breath, crouched down, and then pushed myself off gently. The sound of my feet hitting the volcano’s walls was a bit louder than I’d hoped, but it didn’t seem to draw the attention of the orcs below. They were still jabbering away about what they’d seen Meurk just do, and their thirst for blood must have been at an all-time high.
Lezan was next, followed by Jemma, and the three of us rappelled as quietly as we could down the side of the volcano for a few dozen feet, guided by the light shining in from the opening at the top. It faded out about halfway down the interior of the structure, which was also where the torch light seemed to take over the lighting duties.
The orcs were now about twenty feet below us, and they still had not noticed the three angels of death that were approaching them from above.
It was just about showtime.
I looked up and George and gave a little salute.
The water dragon took a deep breath in, filled his mouth with briny water, and then began to spray it down into the chasm in a circular pattern, like an organic sprinkler system. As the liquid struck its target, the fire turned to sizzling smoke, and the area around the orcs was doused in darkness.
“What in the bloody fuck is going on?” one of them demanded.
“It’s rainin’ on us!” another one gasped.
“Somebody get a fucking fire started!” Meurk snarled. “I can’t see worth a shit down here!”
Under the cover of the darkness and the chaos, the three of us rappelled down further until I finally felt my boots clack against the rocky surface of the nat
ural platform. I pressed myself against the wall and held my sword at the ready as I waited for my friends to join the fray. Soon, I felt Lezan’s tail press up against my body, and I knew we were in position.
We’re ready for you, Tirian, Jemma told her dragon through their telepathic bond.
A fleeting spark briefly lit the room from afar before it instantly extinguished.
“The fuckin’ thing’s too wet,” an orc growled. “It ain’t gonna light.”
Oh, we were about to help with that.
Suddenly, the light from above was darkened by the shadow of a small, winged creature. Tirian’s mouth lit up with a ruby glow as he descended, and for a brief moment, we heard all the orcs gasp in awe.
“It’s one of them!” Meurk screamed. “I knew there were--”
Before he could finish his sentence, Tirian unleashed his fiery breath and lit one of the orcs up like a Christmas tree.
The evil bastard’s screams cut off his leader’s words, and he flailed around helplessly as his flesh was burned to a darkened crisp and his clothes went up in literal smoke. Then his still-flaming corpse collapsed to the ground, and he went limp.
However, our surprise attack had served its purpose. The dead orc was now acting as a lantern for the whole cavern, and we could see everything perfectly.
“Now!” I hissed as I lunged toward the closest orc.
The unaware combatant turned to me and reached for the hilt of his sword, but I was already upon him.
I stabbed the end of my seaglass blade directly through his heart, and the orc’s eyes rolled back in his head as he gasped his last breath.
The orc beside him drew his sword and hauled back to attack, but he quickly withdrew when one of Jemma’s arrows stabbed through his right eye. He screeched bloody murder as he wildly lashed out with his sword, but then Lezan separated his head from his shoulders with a swing of her stone axe.
It landed onto the ground in front of me with a sickly plop and then bounced up into the air, where I instinctively gave it a Ronaldo-style kick. The head slammed into the chest of another orc, who stumbled back in shock before Jemma’s arrow split his skull open like a ripe watermelon.
“An ambush!” Meurk called out. “Kill these motherfuckers!”
I ducked down out of the way of an orc’s club, swung my sword, and sliced off his left leg with a Monty Python style gush of blood. He yowled with pain as his entire left side moved downward, and his cries only intensified when I disemboweled him.
As I came up from my crouch, I had to throw up my blade and parry an incoming blow from another green bastard. The impact of his weapon sent a shockwave through my very core, but I held my ground.
I shoved my attacker’s sword out of the way and took a swing, and the seaglass blade connected with the orc’s throat and cut him open like a bled hog.
He dropped his weapon and pressed his thick hands against the deadly gash on his neck. Try as he might, though, nothing was stopping the gushing crimson liquid that splurted out from his jugular. Finally, the orc fell writhing to the ground, and I moved on to the next bastard.
As I ran toward the next set of orcs, the ball of speed and fur that was Lezan tackled one of them to the ground, and the other two watched in horror as the Coonag woman tore their friend’s throat out with her bare teeth and then spat it against the wall while he bled out.
The remaining idiots both swung at Lezan with their sword and club, but she tumbled back like Sonic the Hedgehog and avoided all of their strikes.
While they were both distracted, I ran up behind the one on the right, slashed upward with my sword, and lopped off his arm at the elbow. Blood erupted from the newly-formed stump and sprayed all over the orc beside him, but I finished the poor fucker off with a stab through the back, directly through his heart and out the front of his chest.
I sidestepped the club of the second orc, whose attack slammed into the ground with such force that it nearly knocked me off my feet. I was able to stay upright, but the sudden vibration caused me to stumble back and briefly lose track of my opponent.
He quickly announced his presence by slamming his club into my chest.
All of the air was knocked out of my lungs as I flew back and slammed into the wall of the volcano. My chest felt like it was on fire, but nothing seemed to be broken. Thankfully, my scaly plates held up against his attack.
And now, I was going to make him pay.
I charged the orc and lashed out at his neck, but he blocked my weapon with the hilt of his club. He tried to counter with a meaty right hook, but I was too fast for the guy. I sidestepped the attack, twirled around, and stabbed the wide end of my sword into his right side with a wet shluck.
The weapon became lodged in his massive frame, and the orc roared with pain as I tried to yank it out. I spent the next few seconds frantically trying to dodge his wild punches and dislodge my weapon at the same time.
Finally, the seaglass blade pulled free, and I was back in business.
As I came up, I saw Lezan spring to her feet, teeth bared. She leapt onto the orc’s back, sank her razor-sharp chompers into his jugular, and then ripped the leathery green flesh straight off his body.
He screamed in agony as a literal geyser of blood erupted from his wound, but I silenced him by skewering his head with my sword.
The orc went limp as he fell down to the ground, with fresh holes in both his brain and his neck.
Lezan and I turned back to the rest of the orcs and surveyed what was going on. Jemma was firing arrows at two charging orcs, both of whom were blocking her projectiles with their wide clubs.
Meanwhile, Tirian was charging down once more, and a soft glow was rising through his scaly lips.
“It’s a baby!” Meurk called out. “Snag him!”
The other two orcs had nets in their hands, and they both spun them around as they prepared to launch them at our silvery friend. Lezan and I were too far away to get there in time, and our archer was currently preoccupied. If we didn’t think of something fast, Tirian was going to be put out of commission or, even worse, hurt.
“George!” I whistled, and my words echoed through the volcano.
The water dragon’s blue snout appeared over the edge, and he chuffed as his cheeks filled. Then George spat salty water down onto the orcs with the nets, and they gasped as they were thrown to the ground by the sudden tidal wave.
The water accidentally put out the burning corpse, but Tirian was on it.
Need more light? the dragon joked as he shot another breath of flames downward.
One of the orcs behind me screamed as his body was set on fire, and the hollow volcano was aglow once more. Meurk and the two orcs with the net were still alive, but they were still groggily pulling themselves back up to their feet.
“You want the ‘leader?’” Lezan growled. “Because I’ll gladly take the other two.”
I nodded to the Coonag woman, and then we split up and went after our targets.
The orc named Meurk steadied himself against his club, but he instantly saw me coming. So, he flipped his club up into the air, caught it by the end, and pulled it back like an all-star hitter.
I fell to my knees and slid past his attack on the still-slick ground. Once I was behind the bastard, I sprang to my feet and did a fast, upward slash against his back. My seaglass blade tore through his flesh like a hot knife through microwaved butter, but I wasn’t close enough to land a killing blow. Instead, a shower of warm blood landed at my feet, and Meurk growled as he stumbled forward and reoriented himself.
The orc held out his club downward and spun around. He was trying to take out my feet, but I jumped up into the air and out of the way before it could connect.
While I was still airborne, I lashed out at his head, but the orc saw it coming. So, my blade stabbed into his shoulder with a loud crack and lodged itself into the bastard’s muscle.
Meurk screamed as he jumped back, and his arm went limp. Unfortunately, he took my stuck sword wi
th him.
Oh, well… I had other ways of dispatching my enemies.
I drew my dagger and held both hands balled up by my face, with the blade facing down at my opponent. It was the natural way to shield from body blows and keep my blade literally by my side. Though, I wondered how much good my arms would do, if any, against the giant club of the orc.
Meurk pulled my sword out of his shoulder and inspected it for a moment. Then he clicked his tongue as he held it out in a cross formation with his wooden bludgeon.
“Pretty sword, little man,” he taunted. “It’ll look even prettier when it’s covered with your blood.”
“It’s already stained with yours, pal,” I reminded him. “Yet it’s still ten times better looking than your fugly face.”
Meurk just laughed, shook his head, and then lunged at me with both weapons at the ready.
I was only going to have a short window to strike, so I had to make any movements count. If I had even the slightest misstep here, I was going to get stabbed or skewered or crushed into a pulp.
Meurk swung at my head with my seaglass sword, so I ducked down to avoid being decapitated. He must have already anticipated this, though, because he instantly brought his club down in the hopes of bashing in my skull.
While I was still in a crouched position, I spun out of the way and stabbed my pink stone dagger into the bastard’s calf from behind.
Meurk yowled as he went down on one knee, and I was able to get another stab into the back of his left shoulder before he countered.
I hopped back just as the blade of my sword swung past my stomach, and then again as the club swished inches past my face.
“Spry little fucker, ain’t ya?” Meurk tried to mock, but I could see legitimate fear on his face.
He thought this was going to be a simple mission where they kidnapped and killed a bunch of helpless, literally sleeping creatures.