Razul twirled a dagger around his finger. “Then I guess we better not die then. How’s that sound to you, Hux?”
Hux gripped his staff. “You know, I have grown quite fond of living.”
Witt couldn’t help but smile. He could probably use his influence to make them leave, but he knew he would catch hell for it. If they wanted to fight by his side, who was he to stop them?
“Alright. No one dies. Except for whoever is tearing the forest to pieces.”
There was another flare of light and then a loud scream. They could see the trees shaking in the darkness. Whatever was coming, it was almost there.
“Help me! Somebody, anybody, help!” A kobold wearing bright-yellow robes ripped and covered in mud jumped through the bushes. He tripped on a root and fell to the ground.
Wide-eyed and full of panic, he clawed to his feet. “Run! The wolf spiders, they’ve chased me all the way from the mountain!”
The kobold turned and lifted a golden scepter the length of his forearm, pointing it toward the shaking trees. Light flared out from the end of the scepter in a golden arc, blinding Witt and momentarily stopping the rustling leaves.
“Come on, we can take haven in Murkwell.” The robed kobold scrambled to his feet.
The stars faded from Witt’s vision and he exchanged glances with Razul and Hux. “How many are there?”
The robed kobold scrunched his eyes. “Four, now let’s go.”
Witt shook his head. “No, we stay and fight.”
No sooner had he finished his words than the first wolf spider emerged from the bushes. Long hairy legs tipped with claws dug into the earth. Pincers snapped viciously, and an angry set of milky yellow eyes scanned the forest.
The group instinctively took a step back. Hux cast a flame wall just as two other spiders joined their brother. The spiders hissed violently from behind the flames.
“Do you have a death wish?” asked the kobold in yellow.
“We can talk later, for now, we fight.” Witt readied his daggers.
Hux tossed a fireball that passed through the flame wall, hitting one of the spiders in the face. It shrieked in pain as hair melted from its face.
The flame wall faded and all hell broke loose.
Witt activated Scale Mail and Critical Strike. Thanks to his recent levels, he was faster and stronger than ever.
The spiders lunged at the four kobolds. Witt ducked and slid underneath the spider’s belly, dragging his daggers across the soft underside as he slid. The bottom of the abdomen ripped open, spilling a slimy green substance.
Hux pummeled fireballs and attacked with his staff, while Razul put all of his rogue sneakery to use, moving in and out of the shadows and delivering critical strike after critical strike.
One of the spiders launched a glob of acid. It shot by Hux, melting foliage before sizzling out on the forest floor.
The new kobold wielded his scepter with grace, shooting beams of light that burned, slowed, and dissipated into the spiders. It was a spectacle to behold.
A clawed foot ripped through Witt’s tunic, but the buff from Scale Mail mitigated most of the damage.
Witt watched as an orb of light traveled through the spider’s body. It looked as if the spell had failed, then light burst through its black abdomen. At first, it was just a pinprick of light, as if a balloon were leaking. Light shot through, at first only a trickle and then more and more holes appeared until the light erupted like the quills of a porcupine. The spider’s insides sizzled and then the abdomen exploded, raining innards upon them all.
Razul managed to stake one of the spider’s claws into a tree stump as Hux summoned a flame wall underneath the beast, burning it alive.
The final two spiders were easy prey to the four kobolds.
Witt activated Barbarian Rage and felt a power inside him unlike anything he had ever experienced. Hot rage flowed through him, empowering his muscles with strength and adrenaline. His insides ached with unspent energy waiting to be released.
He leapt into the air, spinning and twisting so that he landed on the back of a spider. Flames engulfed the spider beside him, but Witt paid it no mind. He stabbed violently as energy from Cleave shot out in waves. Green blood spurted from each new wound as the spider thrashed beneath him.
A beam of light hit the spider in the face, stunning it. Witt used the opportunity to stab all eight eyes, blinding the furry arachnid. It screeched in pain, leaving a ringing in Witt’s ears, but it was too late. The spider stumbled back and forth as blood loss overtook it.
With a final sigh, the spider collapsed. As Witt’s rage faded, his muscles ached, the post-rage fatigue setting in.
He sat down and wiped spider guts from his face with his tunic. Then he turned to the new kobold. “Who are you and where did you come from?”
Although he looked similar to every other kobold, brilliant golden eyes set him apart. “I’m Mido, the light mage from Swampside. I was a part of a quest in Corvin Mountain when a dragon took over the dungeon. Apparently it flew all the way from New Hope Cove. Everyone was in hysterics. The heroes inside the dungeon were all burned alive. I managed to sneak out through a secret exit and made my way down Machmuller Pass, only to find it overrun with wolf spiders. The ones we just killed followed me all the way down the mountain.”
“Wait, did you say dragon? There’s a dragon in the mountain?” Witt’s heart raced. He’d always dreamed of seeing a dragon. “What was it like?”
Mido smiled. “The most terrifyingly beautiful thing you will ever witness. Scales the color of pure gold. Fire that can melt rock. Power and grace that leaves you in awe just by laying eyes on it. No wonder the heroes died. No one remains stoic in the face of a dragon.”
“I’m afraid I have some bad news.” Witt frowned. “Swampside is no more.”
Mido scrunched his eyes in confusion. “What do you mean?”
Witt told him of the attack and the heroes and everything that had happened the past few days. “We could use your help in Murkwell.”
Mido clasped his hands together. “If Murkwell is where my people are, then I will defend them until the end.” He extended a hand and Witt clasped him around the wrist.
Another mage joins my cause. We may survive this yet.
Chapter Eighteen
Hundreds of kobolds were waiting at the gate when Witt arrived. They held spears, swords, and bows at the ready. Several more hid in the trees with ranged weapons.
Witt smiled. They had retreated, but they hadn’t given up.
He waved them all to calm down. “It’s okay. They were wolf spiders from Corvin Mountain. Since Hux hasn’t been to his post in a couple of days, they’ve overtaken the pass. You can all rest now. Tomorrow we will start training.”
Most kobolds were natural fighters to a degree, but Razul agreed to show them some basic moves that should help their chances at survival.
Zirn waited around after the crowd had begun to fade. He looked tired, but wore a smile. “The palisade is completed. We can all sleep easy tonight.”
Witt clasped him on the shoulder. “Thank you for making this happen.”
“We couldn’t have done it without your buffs. Without your leadership.”
Witt simply nodded. He didn’t consider himself a great leader, but he had managed to erect a wall and traps around Murkwell in under a day. He had united two villages and brought them to his cause.
He introduced Mido to the others. “He says there is a dragon in Corvin Mountain. It flew all the way up from New Hope Cove.”
Just as Witt expected, their mouths hung open in shock.
Kessy bounced on the balls of her feet. “This can’t be a coincidence. First you get your quest, and now this. We descended from dragons, you know.”
Witt laughed at her enthusiasm, though he wasn’t sure it was warranted. “I know. The blood of the dragons flows through us all. I’m not a dragon rider, though. Nothing is calling me toward the mountain. We can be grateful that many heroe
s will likely die trying to best the dungeon. That is a victory in itself. It’s been a long day, though. I suggest we all get some sleep.”
The walls of the burrow shook, jostling Witt awake. Pieces of dirt and rock rained down from the ceiling, resting on his head and shoulders.
Something was wrong. He could feel it in his bones. Witt’s heart raced as he grabbed his lute and daggers before rushing out of the tunnel.
Other kobolds were already running toward the surface. The walls stopped shaking momentarily, and he spotted Kessy up ahead.
“Kessy, what’s going on?” He hurried to her side.
Her eyes were wide as she looked around. “I don’t know.”
The earth quaked again just as they made it aboveground. A massive boulder had erupted from the earth, splintering the newly built palisade by the gate. Early-morning sunlight bathed the village; it would have been beautiful if not for the chaos unfolding.
Witt cursed under his breath. He knew who was responsible. One of the other dwarves in Stu’s party was an earth mage. The ground continued to shake as a second boulder emerged, uprooting the stakes that Zirn and the others had so painstakingly assembled.
All that hard work, gone in an instant. It was a somber reminder of just how powerful heroes truly were. One mage could singlehandedly dismantle their defenses. Why had they not founded Murkwell inside of a mountain?
All around him, kobolds rushed to and fro gathering weapons and taking positions. Witt stood there motionless. Useless.
He didn’t understand how this was possible. How had they made it past the traps, especially during the night?
The gate rumbled as something on the other side pounded it repeatedly.
Witt needed to get moving, but he was at a loss for where to begin. A glass orb shot over the wall and exploded into flames when it hit the ground. Several more followed, setting the village ablaze. Horses neighed as flames coated the stables.
Kobolds climbed into the trees near the perimeter, firing arrows at the intruders.
Zirn bumped into Witt as he exited the tunnel pushing a wagon full of vials filled with liquids and powders of various colors. “Do something, Witt!”
Weaponless kobolds flocked to the wagon, grabbing vials and running toward the palisade.
Screams assaulted his ears as shards of ice shot over the wall, impaling kobolds who had taken position in the trees.
With a crash, the gate cracked down the middle and a steaming orc stepped through. Heat radiated from his skin. He lifted his battleaxe in the air, and tilted his head back, roaring as more heroes rushed past.
More than a dozen heroes spilled through the gate. Witt’s blood turned to ice when he spotted Stu leading the assault, his warhammer raised high in the air.
Kobolds charged at the intruders, but a blue-clad gnome raised her arms and the ground before her turned to ice. The kobolds slipped and fell, sliding right into the attacks of the heroes.
Witt watched helplessly as Stu crushed the skull of a kobold with his hammer. The barbarian orc stomped another. Everywhere he looked, it was the same. Devastation.
His hatred for Stu took over. He slung his lute over his shoulder and grabbed his daggers. He’d go into a rage and he would kill him. He’d kill him again and again until the end of time.
As if sensing his train of thought, Kessy grabbed Witt by the arm. “This is bigger than him.”
Witt jerked his arm free. He turned to Kessy, ready to lash out. She didn’t understand what he had been through, what he had experienced.
The concern in her eyes told him otherwise. Witt wasn’t special in his suffering. He was just in a position to finally do something about it.
Kessy was right. This wasn’t about one particular hero. This was about all heroes. Stu hadn’t been the only one to kill him. Stu wasn’t the only hero tearing down Murkwell’s walls. They were all the problem.
Witt put his daggers away and pulled out his lute. He strummed the chords and began singing.
“In ancient times, when lands were young,
and dragons spoke the only tongue,
they ruled the lands and skies above,
and hoarded all the things they loved…”
“Hey!” Kessy called to the kobolds near her. “We protect Witt at all costs!”
A circle of kobolds with glowing red eyes surrounded Witt as he belted the lines of Inspired Frenzy. Musical notes darted from his lute, empowering kobolds with skaldic power. All around him, kobolds began to rage. A mob of them swarmed the dwarven paladin, ripping his armor off as he exploded with holy light.
The mob suddenly stopped attacking as an aura of pink energy surrounded them. Their tongues draped from their mouths like limp noodles, the rage all but gone.
A burly, shirtless human approached them. He walked calmly, with no urgency whatsoever. His chest hair was shaved into the shape of a heart and a massive beard framed his jawline. He blew a kiss at one of the kobolds, and a pink heart made of energy zoomed toward the kobold. It dissipated into the kobold’s body and his raging eyes turned to hearts. He walked to the man where he was promptly choked to death.
As Witt finished Inspired Frenzy, kobolds fought against heroes nearly ten to one, but they were losing. The magical abilities of the heroes were too much.
Hux battled with the ice mage, their spells nullifying one another and covering the area in steam. Zirn peppered the group of heroes with throwables as they pushed their way deeper into the village. Razul was nowhere to be seen, but Witt was certain he was wreaking havoc somewhere.
I need to silence them. It was the only way to even the playing field.
The orc slashed his axe in an arc, dropping half a dozen kobolds with a single attack. A vial of boom powder exploded against his chest, turning his green skin bright red and knocking him to the ground. More kobolds flocked to the downed orc.
Stu tossed his warhammer. It cracked the skull of a nearby kobold, killing it instantly, before returning to the warrior’s hand.
“Joaquin, see if you can spot the bard,” Stu ordered.
From the backline of the heroes, a gnome wearing tight-fitting clothing hovered in the air. He held his hands firmly by his side and rose higher into the air, circled by a murder of crows. Kobolds shot arrows at the gnome, but the crows dove in front of the arrows, knocking them aside.
“There!” the gnome shouted. “They are protecting something in the back. They’ve formed a circle around a kobold playing an instrument.”
Witt continued to play.
“The world was dark and full of terror
for those who lived in the dragon era.
Blue, red, silver, and white,
no prey could hope to escape their might.
They burned castles and farms to the ground…”
His lute glowed white as it built up energy. In the chaos that unfolded two scenes played out. A horde of kobolds fought desperately and without fear against the heroes that continued to press toward Witt. Then there was the force that protected Witt, an unmoving wall that would hold until their dying breath.
Kessy headed the second.
Witt finished Song of Silence and a wave of energy flared around him. Spells faltered mid-casting and the kobolds turned the tide. Heroes retreated as they attempted to cast spells to no effect.
Witt almost lost focus when he spotted Schekt, eyes glowing red, holding a sword over his shoulder and charging into the front lines.
“Greetings, adventurer!” Schekt roared. “Welcome to The Merry Minotaur!” He stabbed the hero in the neck, and blood spurted out in an arc. “Would you like a room or a drink?”
A dark shadow appeared in the center of the heroes as Razul stabbed an elf through the eye, killing it instantly.
The victory was short lived, as the barbarian orc grabbed Razul by the throat. The orc lifted him in the air as the rogue’s eyes bulged from his reptilian face.
A blast of golden light collided with the orc and Razul dropped to the ground. M
ido stood atop a boulder in a fighting stance, his wand pointed at the orc.
As the heroes realized they had been silenced, the warriors and damage dealers took the front lines, bashing kobolds with violent fury.
It was only a matter of time before they were on Witt. They would kill every last kobold to get to him. Despair started to creep in until his throat was thick and he had to fight for each breath. The world sped up and slowed down as everything dipped in and out of focus.
Witt stopped playing. It was clear they couldn’t win this fight. The walls had been broken, his people killed, if he didn’t do something soon, there would be no one left.
“Zirn!” Witt shouted. He pushed his way through the kobolds defending him. “Zirn!”
The kobold sea parted as Witt found the tinkerer tossing throwables from his wagon.
“I’m a little busy at the moment, Witt.” Zirn continued to launch vial after vial.
“I need you to ready the Kobold Cannon.”
Zirn froze mid throw. “Witt, now is not the time for games.”
“It’s not a game. This is the only way to save Murkwell. If I go, the village can be rebuilt, but if I stay they will burn it to the ground along with every kobold in it. The heroes will come for me.”
Zirn paused for a moment, watching his village fall around him. “Fine, but we must hurry.”
Several kobolds sat atop the cannon, using it as a perch to rain arrows on the heroes.
“Down!” Zirn yelled as he climbed up the cannon.
He adjusted the trajectory and cranked the lever as the bow pulled back into position. Witt climbed into the seat and felt the wood press against his back. His heart pounded.
“Ready?” asked Zirn.
“Ready.”
There was a click as the lever flipped and the cannon propelled him through the air. He soared over the heroes and past the palisade. As he flew through the air like a dragon, Witt spotted Kessy down below.
“Find me in the mountain!” he yelled as the first tree limb smacked him in the face.
Path to Villainy: An NPC Kobold's Tale Page 12