Jack nodded. “I’m not good enough with magic to rely on it.”
Lana opened her door and joined them. She had the same leathers on as Jack, but on her they looked different. They hugged her curves tightly and accentuated her lean yet powerful body. Her hair was up in a braid that wrapped around her head, almost like a tiara.
“What are you staring at?” Lana said.
“Uhh… nothing,” Jack stammered.
Lana spun around. “Did I get something stuck, or miss a button?”
“Jack think you look like a beautiful warrior,” Stannerios said. “That is why he drools.”
Jack subconsciously started to wipe his face. “I wasn’t drooling.”
“But you think I’m beautiful?” Lana said.
Jack didn’t know what to say.
Colin opened the door and walked in. He was already in his armor. It was a chain mail with heavy leathers underneath it. “By the gods, this stuff is going to be hot in the sun.”
Colin stopped and looked at them. “Why are you all standing around like that? What did I miss?”
Lana gave Jack and Stannerios a death glare. “Nothing. We were just getting our gear together.”
“OK,” Colin said. “I stopped at the maps room and picked up a copy of the map of the Ancient Lands, and the paths to it from here. There are two main paths, but one is much shorter than the other. I’m thinking we take the longer path.”
“Why not the shorter one?” Stannerios asked.
“Well, I’m guessing that most newbie questers go up the shorter path. That means there probably is more stuff we can find easily by taking the long path. I don’t think we should venture too far into the Ancient Lands until we’ve gotten our feet wet so to speak.”
“That makes sense,” Jack said. It was already getting to be noon, so it wasn’t like they could get too far without having to turn around. “I don’t think staying the night would be a good idea.”
“Agreed,” Lana said.
“OK. We’ll only go as far as we can and still make it back out of the Ancient Lands before dark,” Colin said. “I also grabbed four backpacks, Master Horton said none of you grabbed one.”
“I didn’t even think of it,” Jack said.
Colin grinned. “That’s what you got me for. When it comes to planning and mapping, I can help us be more productive.”
The left the room, and Chef Ramsey waved them down. “Colin said you were going out for a day trip. I made you some food.” He placed four small sacks and four canteens in their respective backpacks.
Outside, they started heading towards the dragon castle.
Jack turned to Colin. “I thought we were heading to the Ancient Lands? Why are we heading towards the dragon castle?”
Colin pointed to the low mountain range that surrounded the Academy grounds. “This mountain range is the end of the Westdrift lands, on the other side is the Ancient Lands. The main way into the Ancient Lands is actually through the castle. The path we’re taking is just a little different.”
Jack looked at the low mountain range. He’d never really looked at a map close enough to realize just how close to the Ancient Lands they were. He’d known Darkthorn Academy and the city of Ansby were at the edge of the Ancient Lands, but he’d always assumed that was a relative distance. Close, but not that close. As the crow flies, they were less than a mile from the mystical land. Heck, the dragons hovering above the castle were probably looking down at them right now. “I didn’t realize how close were actually were. Is it dangerous being this close?”
Stannerios looked at Jack like he’d grown a third eye. “You think there is a safer place than one with dozens of dragons protecting you?”
“Good point, I’ll shut up now.”
When they made it to the castle, they took a turn and started down a path that Jack hadn’t noticed before. Instead of climbing the mountain towards the castle it went down the side of it. They walked at a steady pace until the mountain started to taper off. Eventually, they arrived at a gap between where the mountain ended and the next began. They were now at the edge of the Ancient Lands. At first glance the Ancient Lands looked the same as the land they were standing on, but as they walked forward there was a slightly different feel to it. At first Jack couldn’t figure it out, but as they came off the mountain, he started to notice the difference. There were less sounds of nature. Less birds chirping, and the land felt dead. There was fewer green trees, more dead ones. Less grass, more barren land.
“It feels desolate,” Lana said.
Jack nodded; that is exactly how he felt about it.
“There was a lot of powerful magic used during the Great War. They had powerful mages who could kill everything within miles. Along the border here we won’t see as much destruction, but the lands still suffered,” Colin said.
“So which way should we be going?” Stannerios asked.
Colin pointed west. “The castle and the main path into the Ancient Lands are straight east from here. If we go west, we can hit less travelled areas faster.”
“Less travelled areas will be more dangerous,” Lana said.
“True,” Colin admitted. “But everywhere we go is going to have dangers. Might as well find out what we can handle right away.”
Jack wasn’t so sure he agreed with that idea, but they’d all agreed that going out and starting to explore right away was a good idea. There was no point whining about it now.
“According to the map, there was a city about five miles northwest of here, but I’m hoping there are farms and small villages outside of the city that we can hit. Perhaps pick up some small artifacts or farm equipment.”
“Northwest is good,” Stannerios said. “More ancient orcs that way. Maybe more orc armor.”
They kept walking until they found the ruins of what looked like a small estate. There was a large cottage with several outbuildings. The buildings were all stone, and for the most part, still standing.
Colin turned and smiled. “See, what did I tell you?”
Jack didn’t say anything, but he was skeptical that the estate held anything of value. Colin was smart, and he’d done what he expected few others would do. The problem was that the Academy had been around for generations, and there were probably always one or two smart people like Colin who didn’t take the easy path.
As Colin and Stannerios excitedly ran forward to inspect the main cottage, Lana looked at Jack. “You don’t expect to find anything here, do you?”
Jack shrugged. “It would be nice, but I suspect not. Not that we shouldn’t look. There are lots of items that won’t get us ahead at the Academy but might still be valuable to other traders. I think we’re more likely to find value in the outbuildings.”
“Want to go explore them now while Colin and Stann check the cottage?”
Jack shook his head as he pulled out his copy of The Adventurer’s Guide to the Ancient Lands. “Rule number one to surviving questing in the Ancient Lands. Never split the party.”
Lana frowned. “Really, that is rule number one?”
“I didn’t make the rules,” Jack said, waving the pamphlet in the air, “but I’m not going to ignore them on my first day in the Ancient Lands.”
“Good point. We’ll stick together,” Lana said.
Colin and Stannerios were already inside exploring when Lana and Jack got to the door. Jack looked around. The main room had been thrashed. There was debris everywhere, and a thick layer of dust and cobwebs everywhere. They went through the entire house; it seemed that there was nothing that wasn’t broken or in complete disrepair.
“Nothing,” Colin said in disgust. “Everything here has been destroyed. Maybe I was wrong about heading west.”
“There are still the outbuildings,” Lana said, with a sideways glance at Jack. “We should check them before moving on.”
Colin sighed. “I guess. I just really thought I’d figured out a good plan.”
“There was nothing wrong with the plan,” J
ack said. “But that doesn’t mean you were the first to think of it. Besides, this is only the first estate, there’s probably plenty more farms and estates between here and the ancient city.”
Leaving the house, they started going through the outbuildings. They had no luck until they reached the third one. “Hey, this one has a trap door,” Stannerios said.
Colin frowned. “I can’t see it.”
“It is there, I can feel it,” Stannerios said as he knelt and started brushing away the dirt and dust from the wooden floor. As the thick dust was cleared, they saw the outlines of the trap door. “See, I told you.”
“I’d walked right there, and I didn’t feel a thing,” Colin said.
Jack chuckled. “Stannerios is much heavier than you, especially with all his heavy armor. He probably shifted the trap door when he stepped on it. Gain a hundred pounds and try again.”
“That would take a couple years and a whole lot of time eating, and I’d only end up with a big belly. I’ll leave the heavy lifting to Stann,” Colin said as he peered into the space under the floor. “I can’t see a thing.”
Jack drew Morgun Rog and lit the fire enchantment. The blade burst into flames and he used it as a torch to look down into the hole. Lord Scratches jumped off Jack’s shoulder and onto Stannerios’s. The big orc looked at Jack and shrugged.
Ignoring the antics of his dragon, Jack investigated the hole. There was a wooden ladder and then a room that looked like it had been a root cellar or a storage room. Jack carefully worked his way down the ladder while keeping his sword lit. Behind him, Lana came down the ladder. Colin followed.
“Lord Scratches and I’ll stay up here,” Stannerios said.
“Good idea, there probably isn’t room for all of us down here, and someone needs to keep watch,” Jack said.
Lana leaned over and whispered in his ear. “You think he’s scared of small spaces?”
“Aren’t you?” Jack asked.
“A little, this isn’t bad, though. It’s just a cold storage room.”
“A cold storage room with intact bottles,” Colin said with a grin as he wiped dust off a couple bottles that were on one of the shelves that lined the entire room. “We can sell these in Ansby for a few gold a piece.”
“We should leave these here,” Jack said. “We have a couple more hours before we have to turn around and head back to Darkthorn. If we find something more valuable, we can leave these here for another day.”
“That makes sense. It would take most of our backpack space to carry out all of the ancient bottles,” Colin said.
They exited the cold room and left the building. After a quick inspection of the fourth outbuilding where they found nothing, they decided it was time to press on. Keeping with the original plan, they kept moving west until they reached what looked like a large farm according to Colin.
“You sure it is a farm?” Stannerios asked. “Lot of buildings for one family.”
“Many of the ancient farms weren’t run by single families, they were communal. Five or six families would run them, making defense easier, and just making the farming more efficient. Many ancient farmers would hire mages to increase the productivity of the farms. That is why ancient farm tools are so valuable now. Often, they were made with superior metals and then enhanced with magic. Any books we find on a farm are going to be very valuable.”
“But won’t other questers be thinking the same thing?” Lana asked.
“Some,” Colin admitted, “but I still believe most would be looking for more valuable items. That first estate wasn’t a good example, I think it was still too close to the academy. Plenty of questers would’ve gone through it. We got lucky in finding that storage room. But I do think as we go further into the Ancient Lands, we’ll find more and more untouched land. The more experienced questers wouldn’t waste their time scavenging farms. Only us noobs who need to get our feet wet do this sort of thing.”
“What’s a noob?” Stannerios asked.
“It’s human slang for someone who is new or inexperienced,” Lana said. “I learned that in my school. They prepared us well for human variations of the common tongue.”
Jack grinned. “Is that your way of saying we talk funny?”
“Localized vernacular is common among the different races,” Colin said. “Traditional words of their people’s tongues get added, slang words get created, it is all very interesting from an academic point of view.”
Lana shook her head. “I prefer Jack’s explanation. You all talk funny.”
Jack smiled. It was obvious Lana didn’t share Colin’s enthusiasm for the study of languages. Neither did Jack, but he did recognize that having Colin was valuable. His understanding of ancient languages and maps would help them.
As they got closer to the farm, Colin turned to Jack. “Last time my instincts proved wrong. Why don’t you lead the search this time?”
Jack nodded. He studied the buildings. There were eight main buildings that he could see. Five were closely clustered together while the other three were slightly spread out and away from the first five. “I’m guessing the five are the homes and the other three are farm buildings.”
“No,” Lana said.
“They aren’t farm buildings?” Jack asked.
“Not all of them. See that smallest of the three? That isn’t a farm building, it’s a small temple. These people were Krysha followers,” Lana said.
Colin nodded. “She’s right. You can tell by the narrow tower on the front of the building. It is actually the chimney for a fireplace. They would burn a small amount of their first harvests to thank their gods. They believed the smoke would reach the gods.”
Jack frowned. He didn’t know much about the ancient religions; he didn’t know much about religion in general. Ramy hadn’t taught him much, he’d always insisted the Jack learn about the gods on his own, make his own choices. Jack had never been too interested and hadn’t bothered to learn anything. “Are religious artifacts valuable?”
“Very, and they can be strong sources of power,” Colin said.
“OK. We start with the temple and then check the farm buildings after that. Then we check the homes last.”
As they got closer to the temple, Jack noticed fresh animal tracks on the ground. He stopped and looked at them.
“What is it?” Lana said.
“Looks like some wolf tracks,” Jack said, “but the paw is different.”
Stannerios looked closer. “I know this animal. It is an aardwolf.”
Jack had seen plenty of wolf tracks, he knew this wasn’t like any wolf he’d seen. “I’ve never heard of that kind of wolf.”
“That’s because they aren’t actually wolves,” Colin said. “We call them hyaenas.”
Jack looked around. He’d heard of hyaenas. They were as big as wolves, travelled in packs like wolves and were vicious predators. “We’ll have to be careful. This track is fresh.”
“One hyaena shouldn’t be an issue, should it?” Lana said.
“I’m not worried about it being one hyaena. They are pack animals,” Jack said.
“Oh,” Lana said as she looked around nervously.
“We stick to the plan. Check out each building, see what we can find, but we keep our guard up,” Colin said. “Lead the way, Jack.”
Jack remembered another of the hints from the Adventurer’s Guide to the Ancient Lands: know your role. As the magic user in the group, it wasn’t his role to be the first into new buildings. Stannerios was the biggest, strongest and most heavily armed, he was the logical choice. “Stann, you’re the man. Go in slow. Be prepared for anything.” Jack didn’t think there would be any danger in the abandoned farm temple, but if he’d learned anything at the college, it was that practice made you better. The more often they practiced being prepared the less likely they would be to make a critical error once they encountered something dangerous.
Stannerios grinned and pulled out his war hammer. He opened the door and made a fast move ins
ide, stepping to the side.
Jack appreciated the maneuver. Stann had gotten in and moved to the side all in one smooth motion. That allowed him to get out of the way of any enemy fire that would be coming towards anyone standing in the doorway, and it also kept the view of his teammates unrestricted. Stannerios understood his role well.
“Clear,” Stann said.
The others joined him in the small temple. There were four long benches that faced a dais, and behind it was the large fireplace for their offerings to the gods. While dusty and filled with cobwebs, the room didn’t look like it had been looted before.
“Aww, we got a corpse here,” Lana said as she went to the dais.
Jack and the others joined her.
Lana started checking the robes of the skeleton.
“What are you doing?” Jack asked.
“She’s checking for artifacts. Looking at his robes. This man was obviously a priest. He may have something of value on him.”
Jack squirmed a bit. He’d known they were taking loot wherever they found it, but he’d never thought about the fact they’d be taking stuff from the bodies of people. “Isn’t this a little wrong?”
“No,” Colin said. “The dead no longer have need of earthly possessions.”
“My people have a saying about this,” Stann said. “Take what you must, while giving the honor deserved.”
Jack sighed. “I guess.”
“My people have similar thoughts,” Lana said as she removed a necklace from around the neck of the priest. “When people die, the flesh and bones are left to the world, the spirit moves on. Anything left behind is no longer theirs.”
Jack thought about it. That did make sense. He knew some cultures cared about worldly possessions and would want to be buried with them, but that wasn’t the case here as far as he knew. “OK. I guess I will have to get used to looting skeletons.”
“It might be easier when you run into the ones trying to kill you,” Stann said.
Jack shuddered. “Yes, I suppose so.”
“Now that Jack is done worrying about his moral conundrum, Lana, what did you find?”
“An amulet of Krysha,” Lana said.
Menacing Misfits: An Epic Fantasy Adventure (Darkthorn Academy Book 1) Page 22