“Ooh, this one’s only wounded,” Shyola said a few paces away, as a man screamed in pain. It was suddenly cut short with a sickening, slurping sound. “Mmm, not bad! These Lowrie Boys have a good flavor to them!”
“Well, I don’t think we’ve seen the end to them,” Brundisio muttered. “It’s still an hour or two to Cloudbury, and they know we’re here. Are you ready for another fight?”
Vexx grinned, pulling out a satchel filled to the brim with magic potions from Barnabus’s corpse. “I am now!”
48
Guarding the Wagon
The wagon trundled onward through the night, an unearthly sensation as the howls and grunts of the goblins harried them on both sides. Still, aside from the stray arrow fired by reckless goblins and Kaylin, there was little activity. Even after the fighting and despite the late hour, Vexx walked with a spring in his step.
“So, we’ll get a bonus for all this lumber?”
“I’ll say,” Brundisio replied and readied his axes as his eyes swept the perimeter. “We had quite the victory tonight…or we will, once we make it back to Don Kordo’s. Never you fear, Vexx White, we’ll cut our way through. I’ve never seen a killer like you.”
“Glad to hear it,” he said idly, though he felt a certain joy at the prospect. I’m starting to make a name for myself. Is this what Dred Wyrm felt when he was just starting out? “You know, you wouldn’t be a bad dungeoneer yourself.”
“Ah, I’m Don Kordo’s right hand orc, and I’m happy staying that way. With the money and reputation we’ll win tonight, that’s going to mean a lot in the slums.” He paused. “I underestimated your companions as well. That she demon…I wouldn’t want to tangle with her.” He bared his fangs in a smile. “Or maybe I would, if you know what I’m saying.”
“I know what you’re saying.”
“And the elf?” He nodded up at the wagon where Kaylin kept one hand on the reins, the other on her readied bow, eyes scanning for threats. “Normally they’re a flighty and weak species, but she can really hold her own.”
Kaylin’s ear twitched and she looked over. “Thank you,” she said, with more than a hint of sarcasm.
“Oh, no problem!” Brundisio called up, then winked at Vexx. “I forgot their hearing is so good,” he whispered.
“Eyesight too,” Vexx added, “though I suppose you orcs are good in low light. There’s no one creeping around?”
Brundisio shrugged. “Just a pack of goblins.” He spat to the side. “They’re shitting themselves. Goblins are cowards at the best of times, but excellent opportunists. If they see a chance to take us out, they’ll charge in an instant. But personally, between you and me?” He shrugged nonchalantly. “They don’t have the stones to do it. They’ll probably just—”
“Goblins!” Kaylin shouted, pulling on the reins and getting to her feet, drawing her bow back. Vexx saw them now, a great swarm coming in from the side, howling their unearthly chants as they brandished crude scimitars and axes. Vexx’s arms shot up and he blasted the front rank with fireballs, a few of the fireballs streaking by overhead to smolder in the branches of nearby pine trees. It cast a dim orange glow on the assault, along with a sickeningly sweet smell from the burning sap.
Brundisio growled, hurling an axe end over end, then grabbed something from his pocket and jammed it into his mouth. He glanced over at Vexx as he chewed, spittle and chunks of food coming out, a wild expression in his eyes that he hadn’t had before.
“Stay back, mage,” he growled as he chewed. “Time to see how an orc berserker fights! Hah!”
He threw his second axe forward, then ran into the rushing swarm of goblins, swinging his double-headed axe in a long arc that felled the three nearest to him. He moved faster than before, much faster, a whirring blur of gray metal and streaming red blood. Brundisio was howling now, louder than the goblins, as he hacked and slashed away at their bodies. Vexx paused his fireballs as he sat there in awe, watching as a goblin was thwacked clear against the nearest tree, another one hurtling to the ground from the berserker’s wild lunge.
The goblins were now running in a panic, but Brundisio kept charging forward. He was faster than them, slashing at their legs, chopping into their backs and downing them, running in close and finishing them off without mercy. When the final goblin fell, he stood there panting.
Shyola whistled, keeping close to the wagon. “You’re a bloodthirsty one, orc! I can think of a few hells that would love to have you.”
Brundisio made no reply, instead stamping down on a goblin corpse, huffing in exhaustion. The dungeoneers exchanged looks.
“Vexx, can you make him snap out of it?” Kaylin asked. “We need to go.”
“Sure thing,” Vexx said, walking over to the orc. “Hey Brundisio, nice going! I think that one’s dead!”
The orc berserker head whipped around to face him, his wild eyes fixed on Vexx, who stopped. “Uh…hey, buddy.” He raised one hand, readying a burst of magic. “You don’t want to…”
Brundisio took one heavy step forward, then another. And then the wild look in his eyes faded away, and he shook his head, bits of spittle and phlegm flying into the air.
“Oh, sorry about that, partner!” he said, suddenly calmer. “I get a bit crazy and axe-happy when I take this stuff. I didn’t cut you up any, did I?” he asked, glancing up and down at Vexx’s robe. “No? You look alright.”
“No, it’s fine,” he said, lowering his hands. “You weren’t kidding, though. I think you killed at least a dozen goblins just now.”
Brundisio grinned. “What a night, huh? On to Cloudbury and profits!”
Vexx nodded, turning around and waving for Kaylin to continue. They fell in along with the wagon, the night around Cloudbury was silent now, save for the call of an owl. Vexx’s breathing slowed to his regular speed, the excitement wearing away, but he still felt energized. The soft creak of leather sounded on the wagon as Kaylin raised herself in the seat.
“What is it?” Vexx asked as the moment lengthened.
Kaylin sighed. “There’s a blockade up ahead,” she said. “Humans mostly, a few orcs, even an elf.”
“The Lowrie Boys,” Brundisio intoned, suddenly serious. “Ah, I knew they wouldn’t let us just get away this easy.”
“Easy?” Vexx snorted. “What about this is easy?”
“Well…” the orc chuckled after a moment. “I guess you’re right, mage. Just keep the fire flowing. We’ll make it back home in one piece. But they won’t.”
49
Breaking the Blockade
The blockade was visible up ahead, a wagon blocking the road along with a few felled trees, crossbowmen sheltering behind the blockade as lanterns lit the surroundings.
“You there!” came a booming voice from the blockade, as Kaylin slowed the wagon to a halt. “Don Kordo’s dogs! Who was it that killed my brother?”
A tall mage stood atop the wagon in the middle of the blockade, radiating a glowing shield that covered the entire road. He pointed a finger at them. “I will have your lives!” he screamed, a rough mixture of rage and grief. “Vexx White! Where are you?”
Vexx grimaced, but stood firm. He glanced over at Brundisio. “What do you know about this guy?”
“Don Lowrie,” the orc said. “He focuses on buffing and shielding his men. That’s part of the reason why their gang is so big. He keeps them alive, and they love him for it.”
“Don Lowrie,” Vexx muttered, squinting into the distance. This mage also bore a staff, and Vexx winced as he saw the rippling energy that surged violently through it.
“You humans sure love the name Don,” Kaylin commented, carefully selecting her arrows. Brundisio tilted his head up at her, unsure if she was serious.
“They’re gang leaders,” he said finally. “Vexx, are you ready? There’s not much we can do to put this off.”
Vexx grunted. “Kaylin, what do you think about creeping off in the woods and taking them out from a distance?”
“Oh?�
�� Kaylin lowered her bow and smiled. “Because of how sneaky I am?”
Shyola snorted. “You’re not—”
“Yes, that’s exactly why,” Vexx cut in. “Sneak around and take a few of them out.”
The elf nodded, sliding off the side of the wagon and disappearing into the woods.
“Come on out, or we’ll come for you!” Don Lowrie boomed out. “Crossbows, fire a volley!”
Vexx swore and darted towards the wagon as a poorly aimed volley of crossbow bolts soared into the night. There were a few muffled thumps as they sunk into the wagon, others clattered uselessly along the road. The horse whinnied in panic, though Vexx was relieved to see that it was unharmed.
“Damn it. Alright, let’s do it,” he said. “Straight at them, no fussing about. Leave the wizard to me.”
“I’ll try,” Brundisio said, already chewing on his hallucinogenic mushrooms. “But when the axes start flying, there’s no telling what I’ll hit.” He shot Vexx a wild smile, then bounded down the road.
“Be careful, Master,” Shyola said, and then she and Vexx ran toward the blockade. Vexx’s heart pounded in his chest as he fired the first fireball straight at Don Lowrie. The fireball hit, but it barely staggered him back, fading away in strength as it passed through the shielding spell.
“Over there!” Don Lowrie shrieked, and several crossbowmen raised themselves out of cover to aim. One of them reeled back, Kaylin’s arrow taking him through the ear, but the others fired bolts that just missed the charging dungeoneers, one taking Brundisio in the left ear but not even slowing him down. The orc leaped forward, just as the melee fighters of the Lowrie Boys approached, and Brundisio’s surprisingly fast chop bashed a swordsman straight through the helm. The orc slammed down two more times before the others could even react.
One raised a mace in the air, but Shyola’s whip slashed forward, cutting it through the haft just as the man struck. He looked over, confused, and Shyola cackled as she leaped forward. The man screamed, trying to resist the succubus as Brundisio tussled with the others. Vexx tossed a fireball into the mix, but kept his focus on the big man atop the wagon, firing up at him even as the mage repelled his attacks. Vexx lowered his attacks, and then concentrated on a powerful Scorching Missile. He shouted as he fired, the Scorching Missile slamming into the wagon, knocking Don Lowrie off balance.
The gang leader cursed as he stumbled back, the spreading flames already enveloping the wagon and setting the boot of a startled crossbowman on fire. The gang member shrieked as the fire began spreading in both directions along the felled trees, and then collapsed to the ground as another arrow soared out from the darkness.
“Onward!” Vexx cried out, blasting the blockade with fireballs as it burst into pieces, kindling flying through the air. Already, a few embers had fallen into the trees nearby, smoldering in the upper branches, and the remaining gang members were backing away warily.
“For my brother!” the mage shouted, raising his staff up high, a burst of wild blue energy crackling out in all directions. The Lowrie Boys, who had been backing up, suddenly straightened. Their faces lost their grim expressions as they suddenly surged forward with a new determined attitude.
Even so, Shyola and Brundisio barreled through them, their flashing whip and double-headed axe felling one and then the other. Vexx kept close behind them, crouching low beside two fresh corpses, pressing his two hands against the bodies. I’ve never tried this before. Here goes nothing!
Sweat beaded his forehead as he forced the necromantic energies downward. His magic reserves were running dangerously low and he slumped onto the ground from the effort. Vexx stared at the defensive circle of Lowrie Boys, one of them stabbing Brundisio in the arm and dodging a swing. Another raised a steel shield, catching Shyola’s whip on the edge and shrugging it off, dashing forward with a mace and just missing the succubus as she darted away. She had stopped laughing by now, but darted to the side whilst shooting a worried glance back at Vexx.
Then, his two fresh corpses rose shakily to their feet. Vexx pointed at Don Lowrie. “Kill him,” he rumbled, and his undead soldiers lumbered forward. Vexx fired an explosive fireball to clear their paths, and they lurched straight through the collapsing ring of Lowrie Boys, even as Don Lowrie desperately tried to fend them off.
“Tomas, Darrow! Don’t…it, it’s me!”
The two undead creatures raised their weapons, smashing the mage’s staff aside, then began stabbing away at their former gang leader. As he screamed in pain, the blue energy dissipated around the others, and their ranks broke when they saw their fallen leader. Brundisio slashed one down even as he turned to run, then glanced toward the nearest ones left before darting over to the undead soldiers. Vexx watched as the orc berserker slashed the undead soldiers apart, knocking them to the ground. He winced as the orc’s axes slammed into their bodies as they continued to twitch.
Oh well, they served their purpose, Vexx thought, waving Shyola back. He watched Brundisio for a moment. The change seemed to happen in mid-stroke, a sudden shiver as the bloody axe fell, then collapsed onto one of the bodies. It stayed there for a moment, the orc blinking as if surprised to see it there, and then he looked up at Vexx.
“Did we win?” he asked in the sudden silence, sounding almost childlike in his confused innocence, despite the blood soaking his body.
Vexx smiled. “We won.”
50
Don Kordo Does Them a Favor
Vexx couldn’t quite remember the rest of the night—how they’d made it past Cloudbury’s Western Gate, how they’d escorted it through the slums to Don Kordo, how it came to be emptied of lumber. He knew he’d collapsed into a borrowed bed to sleep like the dead. And then, like many of the dead around him, he’d been forced to rise once again. Vexx rubbed the sleep from his eyes and barely resisted a yawn.
“You what?”
“I have another job for you,” Don Kordo said with a smile, looking fresher than ever. “You did so well last night that I saw no reason to wait.”
“Did you?” Vexx gave in to a long yawn. “Do you have our money?”
Don Kordo slapped the table, and the large collection of silver coins that rattled on top of it was enough to dash Vexx’s exhaustion away. He blinked at the pile.
“Oh! Well, why didn’t you say so!”
“And there’s more,” Don Kordo added, clapping his hands together. “Have you ever heard of Baron Hardringa?”
“Ah…”
Foggy mentions of the disgraced baron danced through Vexx’s memory. Even ensconced in the secluded existence of the Magical Academy at Fallanden, tales of Baron Hardringa had been whispered amongst the students. As a native of Cloudbury, Vexx, of course, remembered them.
“He was a traitor, wasn’t he? I don’t remember the details exactly.”
“The baron would contend that he was not…but it’s all the same to me,” Don Kordo said with a shrug. “In the end, he wasn’t executed, but his title lost all respect. Still, after everything he did, his estate fell into ruins. Over the years, he managed to claim possession of it once again, but it’s quite dangerous now. The skeletons of his butchered servants haunt the halls, or so the rumors say. He’d asked me to clear it, but the price was insultingly low, however…” he shrugged. “You dungeoneers seem capable, and the baron did offer what loot could be carried out. So I agreed for you.”
“For us,” Vexx repeated in disbelief. “Let me guess, for a share of the profits.”
Don Kordo shrugged his massive shoulders. “A share of the tiny profits, as it does not include any loot. I’m telling you, I did you a favor. A token of my appreciation after the good work you did me. If you hadn’t fallen in with me, you would never even have heard about this quest.”
“I suppose not,” Vexx said, scooping his reward into his coin purse. “And this renegade baron? Where can he be found?”
“There’s a detached servant’s cottage outside his haunted halls where he’s been staying. You know nobl
es, there’s nothing as demeaning as living like the common folk. He doesn’t have much money, but he still has his pride.” Don Kordo pointed out the window. “It’s just outside the wall and still flies his family crest. You can’t miss it.”
Vexx nodded. “I’ll go wake the others,” he said, and turned to make his way through the creaking house. He hesitated at one of the guest doors for a moment, then rapped sharply on the aged wood. “Kaylin! Got another job!”
A groan echoed from within. “Can I just have a few minutes?”
“Time is money,” he said. “Get on up!” Vexx stepped over to the next door. I sound like my father, he thought to himself. Or like one of the damned instructors. Before he could knock on the door, it swung open. Shyola flashed him a coy smile and looked as energetic as ever.
“Why, Master! Coming to my private quarters, I see.”
“We’ve got another job. Ready for it?”
“Absolutely. I couldn’t sleep at all last night. I was so worked up after draining those lovely souls. I need to work out this energy somehow,” she said, biting her lip seductively. “Who are we killing next?”
“They’re undead,” Vexx replied. “No souls here.”
“Ah, that should be fine. Just as long as they’re not goblins. I’ve had more than enough of those filthy creatures.”
“You and me both,” Vexx muttered as Kaylin’s door creaked open. She shuffled out, bleary-eyed and yawning.
“Where are we going?”
“To make our fortunes,” Vexx declared, striding through the house like a conquering hero. “After me!”
The servant’s cottage was a far cry from the slums of Western Cloudbury, but the man who answered their knocks seemed to be only a shell of his former self.
“Baron Hardringa, I presume,” Vexx said at the doorway.
“Yes. Normally, I would have my butler answer, but he is, ahem, undead. As are most of my family. You must have heard the details.”
A New Beginning: A Fantasy Adventure (The White Chronicles Book 1) Page 15