Kaylin just shook her head. “That poor sheep,” she said sadly.
Shy nodded in agreement. “It should have been you.”
Vexx clapped his hands. “Well, it’s great to see you two are getting along! Now that you won’t be at each other’s throats, how about we head into town? We need to get ourselves another quest, and I’d rather not have anyone see us near…” he prodded the ripped-apart sheep carcass with a boot. “This.”
Kaylin made a face at the carcass. “You’re such a messy eater. Who raised you?”
“Don’t start this with me, girl!” Shy threatened, snapping her whip into existence, grinning triumphantly when Kaylin yelped and leapt away. “Centuries ago, people had some respect for their eld—”
“Enough of that!” Vexx snapped. “Calm down, Shy. Let’s just get going.”
Shy sighed, her whip dematerializing. “You’re right, Master. I don’t want to get all worked up like that right after eating,” she added, patting her toned stomach. “I’m eager to see how civilization has developed in my absence.”
29
Doctor Fansee’s Quest
“This town looks just like any other one,” Shyola grumbled once they’d entered Cloudbury. “There are some fancier crossbows, and some of the buildings look different, but it wouldn’t be out of place centuries ago. Though…I remember most of the towns being on fire.”
“Really,” Vexx said, half-listening as he led the way through the market. “Was that before or after you got there?”
Shy chuckled, a seductive sound that was somehow ominous and flirtatious at the same time. “Stick with me for a while, Master, and I will tell you a few tales.”
Vexx grunted, spotting Doctor Fansee’s sign, and stepped up to the stall. This time, the potions vendor was frowning down at a few shriveled lizards. “Just won’t do,” he muttered to himself. “This won’t…” he glanced up, then broke into a wide smile. “Customers! What brings you to Doctor Fansee’s Pick-Me-Ups?” the gnome asked, then grinned as he took in Kaylin and Shyola. “Well, hello there! Goodness me, I’d be worried if I didn’t have health potions around, with a couple of heart stoppers like you two!”
“Yeah, yeah,” Vexx said, moving in closer as Kaylin blushed and Shyola twirled a finger around a lock of hair. “We need potions, same deal as before.”
“Ah. Hey, kid.”
“What, you don’t recognize me?”
The gnome shrugged. “Ah, you humans all look the…oh, hey! The ‘fighting one goblin’ kid? How’s you doing there, slugger?”
“I did just fine.”
The gnome chuckled. “I’m guessing that goblin didn’t do so well.”
“Enough about the goblin. Gimme some more of those,” Vexx said, tapping on a few of the blue potions and picking up a health potion or two. Kaylin also picked up a couple health potions for herself, but Shy seemed disinterested with the whole business.
“Hey, uh…you’re dungeoneers, aren’t you?” Doctor Fansee asked after a moment. “Doing odd jobs, that sort of thing?”
“Absolutely,” Vexx and Kaylin said together.
“What’s a dungeoneer?” Shy asked, as she examined a jar containing a preserved snake. Doctor Fansee fixed Vexx with an earnest gaze.
“Here’s the thing. I can’t afford to post a bounty right now…I’m in a bit of, well, I guess you could call it financial distress.” He grimaced. “Look, I’m flat out broke.”
“Really? You seem to be doing well to me.”
“Appearances can be deceiving. Speaking of which, I have an illusion potion here for twenty silvers. But I’ll get right down to it, young man. I get my herbs in an area that I’m not quite comfortable disclosing to half the town. But a pack of wargs have moved in. You know, I tried waiting them out. Figured they’d just leave after a while. But it’s been days now! Just yesterday, I tried luring them away with meat—just about lost my hand for the trouble! Anyway…I want them gone.”
“Wargs?” Vexx grimaced. “Oof. How many are we talking about?”
“Heheh, never mind how many, kiddo. Anyway, I can give you some of my potions—after I’ve made them. But right now, this is all I have,” Doctor Fansee said, gesturing at his array of potions. It was an impressive amount, but now that Vexx looked, he could see that there were a lot of gaps where potions hadn’t been refilled.
Vexx hesitated. I don’t like the idea of tussling with wargs, not one bit. He looked over at Kaylin, who shared his concerned expression. Beasts like that are on a whole different level. Goblins we can handle, but—
“We’ll do it,” Shy declared.
“Shy!”
“What? I’ve been trapped for ages, let a girl have her fun. I’m ready to spill some blood,” she said, grinning at Vexx. “And to f—”
“First things first,” Doctor Fansee broke in. “I’ll close up shop and take you there myself. I’m not drawing maps for you to go giving out to all your friends.”
“I wouldn’t do that,” Vexx protested.
“Yeah, we don’t have any friends!” Kaylin added cheerfully.
“Good,” Doctor Fansee said, already stuffing potions in a crate beside his stall. “Give me a minute to get ready, and we’ll be off. It won’t take me long to get what I need once the coast is clear.”
The dungeoneers waited as Doctor Fansee closed up his shop. Shyola seemed calm enough, watching as people went about their day and occasionally licking her lips, but Kaylin clearly shared some of Vexx’s concerns.
He sidled up next to her.“So, wargs. What do you think?”
“I’ve never fought a warg before,” she confessed. “But I’ve heard stories about them from the wood elves and a few of the elders in the village. Huge, wolf-like creatures that can rip an elk apart in seconds.”
“Well…just make your shots count. With your arrows and my fireballs, we can take them down from a distance. And Shy can take out any who get close. You might not like her, but it’s clear she can handle herself.”
Kaylin nodded uncertainly, and they waited together until Doctor Fansee approached, a heavy pack resting on his shoulders. He smiled up at them, as if eager to be on this adventure.
“So whaddaya say, buddy? You ready?”
“The name’s Vexx White. And I say…” Vexx extended his hand and clasped it around the gnome’s little hand. “I say you have yourself a deal.”
30
Along the Stream
“Here’s good,” the potion vendor said, now that they had gotten a bit out of town, setting his pack down and rummaging through it, glass vials clinking together. He held up a yellow potion and turned to face the dungeoneers.
“Good for what?” Vexx asked.
“Look, I don’t want you being able to retrace the route,” Doctor Fansee said. “That’s why I want you all to take a sip of this Confusion potion. It won’t last long, trust me.”
“Getting drugged by a stranger?” Kaylin frowned. “I don’t know, seems like a bad idea.”
“For once, I agree with the elf,” Shy broke in. “I’m not drinking your brew. Blindfold me if you want, gnome, gag me, even. I don’t mind. But no potions.”
“Well…I suppose blindfolds will do.”
Vexx shrugged. “Works for me.”
“Good, good,” Doctor Fansee said, before rummaging around in his pack. “Let’s see, what can I use…”
A wagon rumbled down the road, a caravan leaving Cloudbury by the same gate, three fully laden horse-wagons with a half dozen guards marching on either side. Atop the first wagon was seated a stoic dwarf with a gleaming helm and a crossbow, who looked over as they made their way past. Vexx raised a hand in salutation, but the dwarf ignored him.
He lowered his hand and coughed as the wagons rolled past, kicking up a flurry of dust, and turned to see Doctor Fansee looking up at him.
“Crouch down here, lad, and I’ll tie it up,” he said. Before too long, the dungeoneers were blindfolded, Vexx tilting his head to make out what was happen
ing.
“Just hold on to my pack, lass,” the gnome said, Shy grunting something in reply. “The rest of you hold hands. Up there. No…here, let me help you.”
Vexx felt his arms push, and then felt warmth as he clenched Kaylin’s and Shyola’s hands.
“Step lightly now,” Doctor Fansee said, and Vexx followed as Shy pulled him forward, Kaylin trailing behind. They shambled along together, Kaylin squeezing tightly, and despite himself, Vexx found himself smiling. It didn’t last long, fading away as he scraped a low-hanging branch and cursed. The gnome cackled up ahead. “It won’t be too much farther!”
Vexx didn’t entirely know what “too much farther” meant to gnomes, but it clearly wasn’t what it meant to humans. They’re shorter too—you’d think it wouldn’t be far at all. Why does he keep dragging us through this forest? Behind him, Kaylin stumbled, pulling hard on Vexx’s arm. It was a sensation he was getting more and more used to.
“Hold on,” he grunted, pausing and hauling Kaylin back up. “Doctor, are we there yet? This is getting ridiculous.”
“Ah, no, not quite,” the gnome began, but fell silent when the dungeoneers followed with a chorus of groans and complaints. “Oh, fine! We’re close enough, I suppose. You can take your blindfolds off.”
Vexx released his hands, tearing his blindfold off and blinking at the afternoon light. He’d been hearing the faint trickle of water for some time and now caught a glimpse of the winding stream through the forest they were sheltered in. Beside him, Kaylin took a few steps forward to peer past the nearby trees, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.
“You harvest the herbs along the stream bank?” she asked.
“I do indeed,” Doctor Fansee proclaimed with a smile. “Oh, it’s only a little creek, fed from the rainfall in the Lifeless Hills, but it provides the perfect growing conditions for some rather useful herbs. You won’t find it on any map,” he added, tapping his head. “But I know where to find it!”
“I see your problem,” Kaylin said quietly, and Vexx pushed forward to get a better view. After a moment, he saw a few dark brown shapes moving along the near bank. At first, they looked like cows; massive creatures that stalked the area, but Vexx quickly made out their wolf-like features.
“Yes,” Doctor Fansee replied. “You can see them from here. You know, one interesting thing about wargs is that their eyesight isn’t that good. No, they hunt mostly by scent.”
“By scent?” Vexx asked.
“Oh yes, they can track prey hundreds of yards away, and once the scent is on, there’s no escape. No, that’s why I was thinking we should take especially good care to approach from downwind. Otherwise, we’ll be in quite a lot of danger!”
Wordlessly, Kaylin bent down and plucked up a clump of dried grass, tossing it in the air. It drifted directly toward the wargs by the river bank.
“Oh dear.”
The head of one of the wargs shot up, and he sniffed the air, just as another and another looked over.
31
Warg Slaying
“Oh, fuck!” Doctor Fansee cursed as the wargs began bounding towards them. “Well, best of luck!” he added, scampering away into the underbrush.
“Damn it all!” Vexx cursed, glancing left and right, then waved for Shyola and Kaylin to join him. “We’ll hold in this clearing here! Backs against these trees!”
“I’m with you, Master,” Shyola replied calmly as they moved into position. We’re in a meadow here, which means we can get some quick shots off even if they dart through. Unless they circle behind us…I don’t even want to think about that.
Vexx’s thoughts faltered as he saw Kaylin tarrying, fumbling with something as she pulled a tree limb down. “Kaylin, what are you doing?” She wound a rope around the tree limb, tossing the net to the ground.
“Don’t worry about her, Master,” Shyola advised. “The wargs will devour her first and we can take them as they’re feeding.”
“Just one second!” Kaylin called back, binding rope to a second tensed branch and gingerly stepping back. Then she whirled around, sprinting towards them, her bow catching on stray leaves and branches.
“Get ready to shoot!” Vexx hissed. “Just as soon as they clear that brush.”
He stood there, magical energies drifting from both readied fists, listening to the snapping and crashing of the wargs hurtling through the forest. To his left, Shyola materialized her whip, and Kaylin nocked an arrow to his right. A roar echoed in the distance, followed by another and another, and the first warg burst into the clearing. Kaylin loosed her arrow, Vexx fired an accompanying fireball, yet somehow, the warg dodged both of their attacks.
It landed on the ground, head raised as if in contempt, and took one step forward. That step snagged just where Kaylin had placed her trap. In an instant, the coiled tree limbs sprang out, whipping the howling warg up into the air and trapping him in a rope net.
“Yes!” Kaylin cried out.
“That’s just the first,” Vexx replied. “Get ready for—”
He fell silent as another three emerged, bounding towards them. An arrow shot forward, embedding itself in a massive warg’s shoulder, but it didn’t even slow. The claws of the wargs tore great gashes in the meadow below as they charged forward, one taking a fireball right in the face but just shrugging it off.
Vexx saw a blur of motion as he fired fireball after fireball—Shyola rushing forward. A beam of crackling crimson energy shot out as Shyola charged the warg in the center. She raised her hand up—just as the warg howled and lowered its head. Shy leaped over, scrambling up the fur, then gripped the warg tightly by the scruff of its neck.
“You are mine!”
Her eyes glowed, the warg howled in confusion and rage as its eyes glowed crimson, and then it raised itself. Shy pulled it to the right, where the warg barrelled into the shoulder of another. She materialized her whip, slashing it forward to curl around the neck of the second warg, and then ripped it aside—the magical whip cutting clear through the warg’s head and severing it entirely.
The third warg had been shrugging off Vexx’s frantic fireballs like they were nothing. Vexx was backing away, no, abandoning his dignity, as he scrambled behind a tree. A quickly fired arrow sunk into the huge warg’s side, but did little to slow the giant creature. Vexx spared only a single glimpse at Shyola’s mastery of her warg before fixing his vision on the slavering jaws of the warg barreling towards him.
It’s so fast and strong! I wasn’t ready, I—I’m not ready to die!
The warg paused in confusion and turned its head to sniff warily as Shyola and her warg approached. Then there was a blur of motion as she slashed down where the warg had been a moment before. The warg had turned around now, slashing at the possessed warg, who let out an unearthly howl as a great tear was ripped into its flank. Vexx popped out, blasting fireballs at the warg, doing little other than singing its fur.
Shyola’s warg was dying now, but she leaped off just in time, whirling in the air and hooking her magical whip around one of the warg’s hind legs. She pulled away, the leg cutting in half and sending the warg to the ground. Arrows and fireballs pelted the ground where the wounded warg lay, slamming into its hide, and after a few agonizing seconds, it finally stopped moving.
Vexx staggered forward a few moments later, clearing away the rank smell of singed fur and flesh. “They’re so tough,” he muttered.
Shy, meanwhile, was stretching idly beside the three dead wargs. “Leave these creatures to me, Master. You’re not quite at their level.”
“I see that…”
Kaylin brushed past, no worse for wear, pointing up at the fourth warg. It still struggled in the rope net, snarling as it tore at the coarse fabric. “Did you see that? It worked!”
32
To Fight and Kill
“It’s chewing on your rope, Kaylin. I don’t think it wants to be a pet,” Vexx said, eyeing the warg suspended above as it broke through another one of the ropes, the net unraveling at
an alarming pace. He stepped back nervously, wondering how to kill it from down here, and glanced over at Shyola.
“Shy, can you do the honors?” Vexx asked, brushing sweat from his head. “Since you’re so good with these.”
She shot him a peculiar look and made no movement to help.
“Hurry,” Vexx said, “before—”
Kaylin cried out as the warg toppled to the ground, almost crushing her. She stumbled aside, but then the warg lurched forward, pinning her to the ground.
“Shy!” Vexx shouted as he blasted the warg’s side with a fireball.
She was smirking, still lounging in place. “Oh, I know I said that I wouldn’t kill her. But the warg…” she shrugged. “Whatever happens, happens.”
Vexx cursed as Kaylin screamed, struggling under the weight of the warg, slashing upward with her knife and slicing away flesh and fur. Vexx sprinted over, readying a burst of flames, and just as the warg snarled and opened its massive jaws, Vexx raised his fist.
The rush of magical energy at point blank range burned through the warg, and it toppled to the ground, leaning partway on Kaylin. Vexx rushed over and hauled her out to stagger beside the burned warg. On the other side of the warg, Shy smirked as she ran a hand through her long hair.
“That one’s all yours, Master. Nice work.”
Vexx tried to snap back in irritation, but he did feel a strange surge of energy within him, as if he’d gained the ability to learn a new trick. So instead, he just brushed off a few sticky strings of warg saliva that had stuck to his robes.
“Good work, lad and lasses,” Doctor Fansee said.
Vexx looked around in surprise and irritation. Somehow, in all the chaos, he’d forgotten that the gnome was still around. “You! You left us to fight and die!”
“Ah, well, to fight and kill,” he said as he emerged from a thicket of bushes. He paused to pop a few wild berries in his mouth, closing his eyes in delight as he chewed away. “And you did quite well. Mmm, these are lovely. Now then! You’ve made good progress, but ah…” he strode over, then gestured towards the nearby stream. He pointed somewhere just past the meadow where the fighting had happened, on a forested ridge that overlooked the water, and the dungeoneers came in close. “You see those?”
A New Beginning: A Fantasy Adventure (The White Chronicles Book 1) Page 9