Duke Grandfather- The Whole Story

by James Maxstadt

  I nodded. “Sounds good. Rest up in the meantime, I guess.”

  He settled back and regarded me.

  “How’d you get that thing anyway?” he asked me.

  “It’s a long story,” I replied. “I’ll have to tell you another time. What about yours?”

  He glanced over at the huge axe propped against the wall next to him.

  “Biter? It was handed down to me. But yeah…long story too.”

  I nodded, understanding. Sometimes, it’s not the right circumstances.

  I dozed off occasionally over the next few hours, each time jerking awake to the sound of one of the Dokkalfar passing by. On those occasions, Brindar would extinguish the light from the lantern and we would sit silently in the dark until they moved on.

  Finally, it was time.

  “Here’s the plan,” Brindar said. “We’ll leave the lantern off and go as quietly as we can, hugging the walls. I’ll lead you. I can’t see down here as well as they can, but well enough. If we come up on any, I’ll take them out with Biter quick, before they can warn the others. Eventually, they’re going to see us, light or no. Then, we’ll turn the lantern up as far as it will go. Those things go pretty bright, so we’ll be able to see for a good distance. It will draw them to us, but you start taking them out as soon as you spot them. We make a break for it then, and hopefully, we make it through.”

  I took a breath, and said, “Dokkalfar” to my gun, hoping that Brindar was right about the time passage. I wasn’t thrilled with the idea of walking through the dark, being led along like a child, but Brindar’s plan had merit. The longer we could go without drawing them all down on us, the better.

  He extinguished the light and I wrapped my hand into his cloak, getting a good grip on it so that I wouldn’t fall behind. In the event that he needed to move quickly, I would let go, and stay near the wall of whatever building we were in front of until he finished. Then, he’d collect me and we’d move on again.

  From the moment the light went out, I hated the plan. I felt helpless and couldn’t stop straining my ears, trying desperately to hear one of the Dokkalfar approaching. As we moved out, I saw the flaw in our plan. Brindar was in the lead, could see, and knowing him, I was sure that he was attentive and vigilant, looking in all directions at once. But what if one of them came up behind me? Would he see them in time, or would he only know when I pitched forward into him, with an axe blade buried in my spine?

  My back itched and burned the whole time we walked, waiting for the blow. I kept turning my head, trying to get my ear pointed in the right direction to give me some sort of warning. The further we walked the more the feeling of dreadful anticipation increased, until I thought I might go crazy if there wasn’t light soon.

  Suddenly, Brindar stopped, and putting out a hand, moved me to the side until I was pressed against a wall, my eyes staring sightlessly out into the darkness. He left me then and I heard a soft grunt, a sound like a knife cutting into cold meat, and a thud. A moment later, and he was back, taking my hand and putting it on his shoulder again.

  “One down,” he whispered. “But I think there’s a bunch more of them up ahead.”

  “I’m almost relieved. I don’t know how much more of this darkness I can take.”

  “Hang in there.”

  He moved off again and I followed, still sure that my back was about to be split open at any moment. We only went a few paces when he stopped.

  “Shit,” he said quietly.

  “What is it?”

  “You’re getting your wish. There’s about ten of them up the street from here, and no way to get around them. If I didn’t know better, I’d think they knew we were here.”

  Then we heard the noise behind us, closer than we would have liked. It was a soft, hissing noise, the same sound that Brindar told me those things made when they were laughing.

  “Jigs up!” he said. “Keep your eyes averted!”

  He drew in a deep breath and blew as hard as he could on the stone in the lantern, which flared into a sudden brilliance. It was like a god dropped down into the Deep carrying a sun with him. The world exploded into light and the Dokkalfar that was coming up behind us threw his hands up in front of his face and let out an unworldly howl.

  Brindar moved faster than me, and his axe took off the things head in mid-howl. The noise was cut short, only to be picked up a moment later by the ones up the street, and echoed back from others further away.

  But I did exactly as Brindar said and kept my sight focused away from the lantern as it flared up, so I wasn’t blinded by the intensity. It was horribly bright and threw the shadows back for a long way up the street. I could clearly see the Dokkalfar starting toward us, but almost wished I couldn’t.

  They looked like a gross parody of the dwarves. They were the same size and general shape, short, but wide and solidly built. But they were completely black, from head to toe. Their hair was greasy, ebony waves that lay flat and unmoving on their heads, and hung from their faces in tangled beards. Their eyes were flat and black, and reflected the light from the lantern so that they seemed to glow a sickly gray color. When they looked at me and howled, I could see black tongues moving like slugs over blocky, black teeth. They were horrible to look at, and I didn’t wonder that they chose to stay deep underground, hiding in the dark.

  But now they were between me and freedom from this place. I raised my gun, sighted on the one closest to me, and pulled the trigger. There was a loud bang, and a glow as the little, metal ball sped off, round and blazing with a brilliant light of its own.

  It hit the Dokkalfar in the chest and the effect this time was much more satisfactory. Instead of the puff of dust, there was almost an explosion, and the dark thing only had time to look down at the smoking hole that punched completely through it, before it crumpled to the floor, dead before it hit.

  The others paused when the first one fell, and I took advantage. I pulled the trigger again, and again, and two more dropped, their bodies ruined by the luminescent balls that hit them. I began to laugh, feeling that now we were home free, and nothing would stop us from getting to the gate. Certainly not the Dokkalfar, now that my gun was set to kill.

  The spear came in from the darkness, which was quite a way off. It was only that fact which saved me, I’m sure of it. If I had forgotten, I was suddenly reminded of the strength of these things. It was an amazing throw, and only missed me by a fraction of an inch.

  It was enough for me to turn, scan the darkness and fire off a shot. I missed, but by the light of the passing metal ball, I could see one of them scrambling behind a building down a side street.

  “Great,” I said, “they throw things! Let’s go!”

  We took off running, which wasn’t great for aiming the gun, but was better than staying there to be sitting ducks. As we fled, Dokkalfar would jump from windows, or out of streets or doorways that we passed. Brindar cut them down whenever one was close and I shot them from a distance. We could hear the sound of pursuit getting closer, since we needed to constantly stop to fight and the ones chasing could keep coming.

  It felt like we ran and fought for hours, and I lost count of the number that we killed, yet they kept coming. They blocked our way, and we barreled into them, slaughtering them and taking wounds ourselves. They threw spears, knives, and axes, and we dodged and took more wounds. They jumped onto us from overhead as we passed beneath windows and we threw them off, killed them, and took more wounds.

  If it wasn’t for Brindar, I wouldn’t have made it out of there. I like to think he would say the same about me, but in the end, I know I was leaning on him more heavily than he was on me. I thought we were done for when we saw a light ahead. The gate was within sight. Our breath heaving in our throats, we fought on, knowing that soon we must be heard by those beyond the gate, and surely, they would come and help us.

  They did. I saw the gate open and a horde of dwarves pour through it, led by a large figure. Moments later Grundir grabbed me and was p
ulling me back toward safety, while two other dwarves did the same with Brindar.

  “Easy, lads,” he rumbled. “You’ve done enough. We’ll stop them here.”

  In the end, it was a close thing. Without my gun, and Brindar’s axe, it was a much harder fight. Axe and hammer blows only slowed the Dokkalfar down, while their weapons did horrible damage to the dwarves. They were pushed back, taking causalities, until it looked like they would be overrun.

  But when the first Dokkalfar crossed into the pool of light cast by that enormous chandelier hung in the Guild Hall arch, it all changed. The candles flared up, brighter by far than the lantern had down below. The Dokkalfar screamed, threw their hands up and ran, back down into the Deep. The dwarves rallied, and followed, cutting them down as they fled, but going no further than the light thrown by the chandelier.

  When the last Dokkalfar fled, the light slowly faded, and the dwarves withdrew with it, until they were all safely back through the gate, and it was securely locked once more.

  Brindar and I were slumped against a wall, watching the battle unfold, trying to ready ourselves should we be needed if the Dokkalfar breached the gate. When it was over, and we weren’t needed, we glanced at each other and smiled tiredly.

  “We still have to compare notes,” I said to him. “Something is still out there.”

  He nodded. “I know. Ale first. Then maybe a bandage or two. Then talk.”

  “Yeah,” I agreed. In spite of everything that happened, his words got me thinking. What exactly did dwarven ale taste like?

  LOOK HOMEWARD, DEATH ANGEL

  It turned out that dwarven ale was pretty good. It tasted a lot like the ale I was used to, only stronger, and earthier. I enjoyed it a lot, but only drank a couple, since I needed to get back home and let Lilly know that I was still alive.

  Brindar and I compared notes, but he hadn’t seen anything out of the ordinary either, other than the banshee and the pipers. That made three of us, when you included Raven, which I was pretty sure meant that those were the only attacks that had been launched. I was equally sure that they wouldn’t be the last.

  When I finally got home, it was to that weird mix of emotions that always happens when you’ve worried someone, but they’re glad that you’re safe. Lilly was furious that I was gone for so long, and been worried about what could have happened to me. She knew that I went into Underworld, which she was apparently already aware of, and that was it. But, when I told her what happened and how I helped get Brindar out of a jam, I was forgiven.

  “I know this is your job, Duke,” she told me. “It’s dangerous, like mine is. But I wish we had a better way of keeping in contact.”

  I nodded, agreeing, but only half listening. It was still early in the day, but I was exhausted, and needed sleep badly. I kissed Lilly, told her that I promised I would talk to her more about it in a few hours, and was out before my head hit the pillow.

  Those few hours turned into the rest of the night. By the time I woke up, it was early morning, for the world and not only for me, and the sun was barely starting to shine on the streets. I opened my eyes slowly, glad to be home in my own bed, and lying next to Lilly, who was still sleeping peacefully next to me.

  She looked beautiful, as she always did, and not for the first time, it struck me how lucky I really was, and what a remarkable woman I had. My mother thought I was destined for greatness, thus the name Duke, and I don’t know if this was what she had in mind, but if not, I think she would have been proud and happy to have Lilly for a daughter-in-law anyway.

  Speaking of, I wasn’t even sure where we were in terms of the wedding. We were three weeks away at this point and everything was still the same. I felt a twinge of guilt at that. Sure, I was told to stay out of the way and let the women handle it, and I was good with that. On the other hand, I didn’t want to shirk my responsibilities either. Not for this. For other things, sure, no problem, but failing on this felt too much like failing her.

  I slipped out of bed, tip-toed out of the room and down the stairs. Coffee was calling my name, and I was bound and determined to be a good host and answer it. Soon, I was installed in my favorite chair, near the hearth, sipping the hot brew and enjoying life.

  Lilly came down a short time later, and since I heard her moving around, I had a cup ready and waiting for her when she did. She sipped it while she watched me preparing breakfast.

  “You’re up early,” she said. “And making breakfast, too. What’s the occasion?”

  “No occasion. I thought you might like it.”

  She nodded, and moved to the table where I brought her a big plate of eggs, sausages and toasted bread. Taking a chair next to her, I tucked into my own plateful.

  “Not bad,” I said, my mouth still full, “if I do say so myself.”

  “Not bad, Grandfather,” she said. “Who knew you had it in you?”

  “Hey, I had to eat before I met you, you know.”

  “I thought you lived on ale and fried potatoes.”

  “No. Sometimes I made eggs too.”

  “It shows,” she said, and wolfed down the rest of them.

  Later on, we walked into the watchhouse together, even though I wasn’t planning on taking anything off of the Board quite yet. Although my journey into the Deep didn’t pay anything, I still got beat up pretty badly, so I was going to take a day or two to heal up.

  “Sarge,” I said, as we entered.

  “Duke, Lilly,” he answered. “Geez, Duke, you look like you’ve been run over by a carriage. What’d you do, piss off the wrong goblin again?”

  “Good stuff, Sarge,” I said. “That’s why I come here. The sparkling wit. I leave here and go use the same jokes as part of a comic act. It kills them in the sticks.”

  “You two have fun,” Lilly interrupted, giving me a peck on the cheek. “I’ll be home later.”

  She started to walk off when a messenger came running full bore into the Watchhouse, and skidded to a stop in front of the desk. Whatever he had to say looked awfully important, but he couldn’t get it out. Instead, he panted and wheezed, bending at the waist with his hands on his knees.

  “Whoo…geesh…man oh man…”

  And so on. The three of us watched him in amusement for a moment, and then Sarge spoke up.

  “Alright, son. That should about do it. Deep breath, straighten up, and say what you came to say.”

  The messenger did as he was told.

  “Yep, sorry,” he was still out of breath, but was making a visible effort to pull it together. “Here it is. The guards at the gate are requesting that a senior officer come down with all haste.”

  We waited, but the messenger didn’t say anything else.

  “That’s it?” Sarge asked, one eyebrow raised. “Send an officer down to the gates? Nothing else?”

  “That was all, sir. It was all that I heard anyway. The Watchman shouted it at me, so there may have been more. I couldn’t really tell. That’s why I ran, you see. It sounded important.”

  “Wait a second,” Lilly said. “Why did he shout it at you? Where was he?”

  “He was in the guard shack, ma’am.”

  “Oh, then where were you?”

  “I was right there, ma’am. Standing near the doorway, if you see what I mean.”

  “I don’t,” she replied. “If he was in the guard shack, and you were right near him, why did he shout?”

  “He didn’t at that time, ma’am. That came later. When he was running away.”

  The three of us looked at each other.

  “Running away?” Sarge said. “What do you mean he was running away?”

  The messenger shrugged. “Can’t say, sir. It may have something to do with the knight at the gates, demanding entry. He was a big fellow, and scared me half to death too, I don’t mind saying.”

  “I’m going down there,” Lilly said. “Let’s go, Duke.”

  She didn’t have to tell me twice. I was pretty sure that this was going to be attack number three
. Normally, I would have said that it was nothing to worry about. If Lilly was going there personally and I was there with her, then the problem should be easily dealt with. But I had seen enough recently to know that that probably wasn’t going to be the case.

  The trip from the watchhouse to the gates isn’t a long one, and under normal circumstances, we could have made it in about fifteen minutes. Today it was taking longer, since we needed to fight through the throngs of people that were flowing in the other direction, fleeing from the area around the gates to get deeper into the city. Another sign that something was definitely amiss.

  “Oh, forget this!” Lilly said, and fired up her magic. Whenever she does this, a transformation comes over her. Her hair will frizz out and stand up in a cloud around her head, sometimes almost seeming to move on its own accord. Her eyes go completely black, so that they are dark orbs in her face, no sign of the whites at all. And most disturbingly, sparks begin to dance among her fingertips, leaving the impression that if you weren’t careful, you’d be in for a nasty shock.

  Even in their fear, few people could ignore the sight of a necromancer in full display of their power, and today wasn’t the exception. They parted before us like a huge invisible hand came down and pushed people to the side. Adults grabbed the hands of children and pulled them away, to not attract the attention of Lilly.

  I was perfectly happy to stay right behind her and let her take the lead all the way to the gates. As it turned out, she didn’t need to keep it up for that long. After a few more blocks, the crowds thinned out. Apparently, most of those that were going to flee already did.

  Finally, we made it to the gates, which were closed, the portcullis lowered and locked. The Watchmen that should have been at the gates were no longer there, and their shack stood empty and abandoned.

  “Dereliction of duty,” Lilly said. “I’m going to have to report them.”

  “Sure,” I replied. “But before that, can we maybe see what it was that scared them that badly?”

  There were stairs that led up the inside of the wall, so that you could get to the top and have a look around. Normally, they were open for anyone to climb, and a lot of people did exactly that, to see the local scenery and show their out of town relatives the sights. You got a pretty good view of the city from up there.