by Sean Oswald
“Honestly, the idea of a dungeon which could send creatures out in the middle of the night is pretty terrifying, so I’d be content if it was never more than the drake,” Jaselm said.
Then Hiroto added, “The dual benefits of time dilation and mana density for workshops are more than enough to make this deal even without the other parts.”
While Daichi said, “Not that I disagree with you, esteemed enchanter, only that it is also a great boon to be able to level up the weaker members of our community can’t be underestimated either. Just think about being able to level up the crafters and the character points that will come with that.”
Emily said, “So I get it, this is a great deal for the community, but you said there were two other parts. What is the last part?”
Dave grimaced but finally blurted out, “Sara has to go and spend an afternoon once a week with the drake.”
“No, absolutely not. Over my dead body,” Emily said. The pitch of her voice rose as she spoke.
“Wait, Emily,” Dave said, “I was able to get it to agree to grant safe passage to either you or me to go with Sara each time that she plays with the drake inside the dungeon. I also think that some of the time instead of playing inside the dungeon that they will go flying together outside.”
Emily wanted to scream. Dave had gone and done it again. He had bargained away one of the children for the betterment of the community. Certainly, what the dungeon offered was going to be of great value to them, but nothing justified what he had agreed to. “I swear, did you even get the parenting gene?”
“That isn’t fair. This isn’t the same thing as Jackson. She will be perfectly safe as will whichever parent accompanies her. It is just one afternoon per week, and you know that Sara wants to play with her friends. This is actually a really good compromise that I negotiated. I mean the drake wanted Sara to come live with it full time, which I immediately shot down,” Dave protested.
“You better have. Well I don’t have to like this, and I reserve the right to cancel this deal at any point in time.”
Dave started to speak but must have thought better of whatever he was going to say as he nodded his head and said, “Of course.”
Emily hated it when he acted like he was giving in even though he actually got everything that he wanted out of whatever situation that they were arguing about. Still, she would watch and bide her time to make sure that she felt Sara was really going to be safe. She did have to admit after all that Sara’s friend, while having used her as bait, had never actually caused harm to come to her daughter.
Derrick then stood up from the table as if to draw attention to himself. “I am certain that we are all pleased with the deal that you have negotiated with the dungeon, and strange as it seems to me, the idea of an advisory council is probably a good idea for new rulers. Now, however, it is time that we move on to the only subject that really matters, and respectfully, the only people needed here are those representing one of the patron choices …” He added a belated, “m’lord.”
She heard what he said and saw her husband grow tenser with every word spoken. Dave had always been a calm, even-tempered man, but of late, he had been edgy and more emotionally raw. Emily really didn’t want to see him explode again, so she did what any helpful wife would do and did the exploding for him. “What?” She practically shrieked the question. “Have you not been listening to anything we have been saying? Or did you not mean the oath that you gave this morning? Is Mishpat particularly lax about the oaths that his paladins take?” Each question drew her closer till she was pressing her finger against the paladin’s armored chest.
Emily knew from his reaction that she had guessed correctly. He had been expecting Dave to overreact. He had been prepared for it, even prepared to take a beating, because that would have proven the justness of his statement and drawn him more support. Now though, he was upbraided by a woman half his size and with all moral authority that these church types gave to only Chosen of any of the Gods in their lifetimes. The paladin stumbled over his words as he tried to apologize for misspeaking.
“My husband may be prepared to forgive you. He is a devout but still primarily secular man. He may not understand the affront you have offered. I will not be so generous. Shanelle may demand second chances, but what are you on your fourth or fifth chance? I may even be willing to give you another chance, but I need to know that it is not wasted. I need you to understand that this choice of patrons is about choosing the theme of our barony. It is not about either following or repudiating any of the deities for that matter. I am a Chosen of Shanelle, but have you ever heard me speak ill or in any way slight either of the other deities? Of course not. Nor have you ever heard me speak ill of the elven traditions. I have a relationship with the God who created Eloria, but I don’t have to go around flinging it in everyone's face. Justice does not require you to do that either, only that you stand firm. Justice does not blindly predetermine an outcome but listens with open ears and a wise mind.” It was the longest speech that Emily had given at one of these meetings, and it was full of passion and perhaps overdue.
“Yes, Lady Chosen. I apologize for misspeaking.”
“Your apology will be accepted if you will go and meditate in the woods for the next two days. Turn over all of your duties to another of Mishpat’s paladins and then do not return here until the second sun sets in two days. That is my judgment of justice. Will you abide by it?” Emily couldn’t see it, but later, those at the meeting would swear to one another that there was a faint light glowing around her.
“As you command, Lady Chosen. I will seek the wisdom of justice and only return as instructed.” With that, he bowed to Emily then to Dave and finally to the others assembled before walking out of the town hall. Emily was pleasantly surprised that he had taken it so well. She wanted to believe the best about the man. He was completely committed to what he thought Mishpat and justice stood for, but he was like too many religious people– more focused on the trappings of their church than of the actual principles it stood for.
She looked over at Dave, who had an odd gleam in his eyes as he looked back at her. “Did you want to take over discussing the options for patrons, or do you think we need to take a break now?”
Before he could answer, the alarm horns sounded outside. She couldn’t help but scream, “Gah, twice in one day!”
Dave and the other more military oriented people in the room were already up and running for the door. Emily took it upon herself to first calm the civilians and then get them out the door to make sure people were moving into the safer parts of town where they would be easier to protect in large groups rather than staying out on the fringes.
As they ran out of the building, Emily saw that there was already fire at the partially built wall at the edge of town. Her keen eyesight made out the images of goblins trying to scale up the wall while wielding spears. Behind them, a half dozen much larger creatures. From Dave’s descriptions, she took them to be ogres. She felt furious that they were being attacked already when the army was still supposed to be at least a week away. Yet, she was also proud as she saw the people of Eris’ Rise, her people, acting together in unison. The civilians were clearly scared but moving in an orderly fashion. She saw a small elvish child fall only to be helped up by a human woman. While on the wall, she saw both races working together to repel the attackers even though the wall was only partially built.
Chapter Thirty-Two
“If once is lucky, does that make twice brave or foolish?” — the alleged question posed by the great dragon Cel’nordon to adventurers and looters of his trove.
Eris’ Rise - Emily and Dave Nelson
The emotions that surged through Dave were of a slightly different flavor. He felt, on one hand, amusement that such a small force had been sent against him. Apparently, the enemy hadn’t learned anything when he single handedly destroyed six ogres. If they had, then they would never have thought that a couple hundred goblin skirmishers and six ogres
were going to be enough.
The second emotion was one of anger that they were attacking his town and his people. He didn’t feel the same level of fear that struck Emily. He realized that death was a possibility for some of his people and more than causing him to feel sorrowful or fearful, it caused him to rage. He shouted out, “Eisuke double check to make sure that there are no other attacks aimed at other parts of the wall!”
“As you order, Consort,” the forest warden replied as he veered off to obey.
“Morganthal, take charge at the spot being attacked and organize the resistance, but make sure that no one goes beyond the wall. I will be there in just a moment to deal with the ogres. Don’t let anyone risk themselves more than necessary.”
The knight nodded, but even with the huge boost to Agility he got from the unity of people, he was still breathing heavily, and his nod and salute had to serve as acknowledgment as he sprinted ahead of the rest.
“Ozakai, assemble the rest of the forces to act in reserve should there be a breach anywhere. If the forest wardens give the all clear, then send the men to support the area being attacked.”
“Yes, Baron Murkwood. It shall be as you say,” Dave smiled as the elven warrior spoke. He still hadn’t figured out why some of the elves insisted on calling him consort while others had adapted to his human title.
Dave looked at those running to the wall with him and realized that Daichi was not there. He could only assume that meant the monk had remained near Emily in order to protect her. Jaselm was with him, though, so he called out another order, “Gather all the paladins and knights you can, and I want you to ride down any goblins that make past the wall. Don’t let them reach our people.”
The newly healed man was clearly enjoying his lung capacity as well as the ease of movement from his newfound agility. “They shall all be protected with the same fervor as we protect the Chosen.”
Finally, Dave said to the soldiers who had gathered alongside him as he ran to the wall, “Buy me a few seconds, I have a big spell in mind that will push them back, and then I’m gonna get personal. These goblins need to learn to stop attacking Eris’ Rise.” As soon as he finished speaking, he started chanting the new spell he had in mind. Dave had new toys, and he wanted to try them out.
Once Dave reached the wall, he continued running up the stairs that would take him to the platform at the top. All those in his way quickly realized who he was and got out of his way, even if that meant a couple of them had to jump ten feet down off of the stairs, an insignificant height for any warrior who had put even a few stat points into Strength and Constitution. When he reached the platform, he had finished his second spell and was fighting with the spell form to shape it the way that he wanted. He had seen Mira do this, and while he acknowledged that she was better at it than he was, he didn’t believe for one moment that that meant this was beyond him.
It ended up costing him an extra 200 hundred mana to shape the spell the way he wanted, but it worked. A flash of icy blue flared from his hand as every bit of moisture in the air around him crystallized. Then as if exploding up from the ground, a thick fog appeared in an area extending six hundred feet along this side of the wall and forty feet out. Dave had left a small gap between the area of effect and the wall, but it was measured in mere inches. Within the wall, the temperature dropped by nearly one hundred degrees in a mere six seconds as a pleasant fall afternoon became an icy winter at negative forty degrees.
As the spell materialized only a few feet from his hand, Dave realized that there was still a physics question that had to be answered about this spell. It was why he always wanted to cast his spells in a safe environment first but had been so excited to try this one out that he had rushed ahead with no testing. He had to wait to see if the cold would expand beyond the area of the spell or if the heat from around them would be sucked into the lower pressure created by the extreme cold. Would they suddenly be flattened by the rush of air? Fortunately, this was one of those times covered by the initial notice he received upon entering Eloria: not all of the laws of physics work the same here. Maybe it was because the spell had a sort of skin around the area of effect maintaining the cold only inside this area or maybe it was some way that physics worked differently here. Either way, while the area of the spell put off cold, sorta like standing in front of an open freezer, it was nothing that couldn’t be ignored.
The goblins within the area of effect were not so lucky. The first few seconds that the temperature plummeted and the thick white mists filled the area, they were shocked. Goblins are by nature hardy creatures, used to privations and able to survive where other creatures would not be able to. Were it not for that, there would be no goblins. Yet they were also stupid beings and were thus stunned. The human and elven warriors upon the wall quickly dispatched the goblins, who were in front of the area affected by Dave’s spell, while the creatures inside were moaning and uncertain about what to do.
Dave had not been inactive while he watched the icy spell bring doom to the goblins. Instead, he had already begun casting Mass Lesser Enlarge but only upon himself. As for the goblins, once their brains kicked into gear and they were finally determined to flee, the temperature had dropped even more, draining away their mobility as the blood within their veins turned sluggish. Even as they tried to scatter, tiny razor-sharp spinning snowflakes cut through their flesh and left them bleeding out. Within fifteen seconds, it was over, and the goblins were no longer a threat. But just to be safe, Dave allowed the spell to run for another ten seconds before dismissing it.
When the battlefield cleared, there were piles of rigid, frozen goblin corpse with a multitude of tiny cuts all over their bodies. Out beyond the area of effect of the spell were the six ogres. Dave had intentionally made the area of effect small enough to allow them to escape it. He told himself that this was a golden opportunity to build confidence in his people, not only with himself but with themselves. He needed a decisive showing. The Frost Storm spell had cemented his magical ability. Now he needed to demonstrate his melee capabilities. In thinking this, it never occurred to Dave that he might simply want to show off, for that recent little voice in the back of his head assured him of how right he was.
Now enlarged to over ten and a half feet, cloaked in his Ablative Armor spell, and wielding his flaming longsword, Dave jumped down from the wall. It’s thirty-foot height, nothing for his enhanced body. He definitely was appreciating the ease of movement granted to him by the increase in his Agility as well as the power filling his veins from his land ruler boost. Here in the Murkwood, he was a force like no other.
“Stand back all and watch your Baron deal with these ogres. I will show you that we have nothing to fear from these invaders,” he called out as part of the show.
Along the wall and even at its base, peering through its unfinished sections were a crowd of humans and elves alike. He heard a voice call out, “But m’lord, they are all ogre elites.”
“Bah, I’ve done six before by myself.”
Another voice called out, “There aren’t just ogres, but elites. Each one has over 1000 health.”
“Stop nagging. Watch what I can do. Then you will know why I rule here.” As he finished saying that, he could hear Emily’s voice, but chose to block her. This was just something he had to do. They all needed to know.
Dave bellowed out a challenge to the ogres, perhaps thinking he was funnier than he actually was. “Fee fie fo fum, I smell some stinky ogres. Soon you’ll all be dead, and I’ll grind your bones to make me bread.”
The ogres didn’t know what to make of a human, even a massive one, telling them that he was going to eat them. Ogres ate humans not the other way around. Still, they knew when they were being challenged and cried out at the top of their lungs as they raised jagged swords, spiked clubs, and massive axes overhead and rushed forward. Their legs might have been stubby in proportion to their size, but they still made good time across the two hundred feet that divided them from the taunting hu
man. The infuriating human, who did nothing but stand there waiting to take their charge.
What they couldn’t hear was Dave softly chanting the words to another new spell. This one required timing, but it would be spectacular if he got it right and even if not, he trusted in his Ablative armor to protect him. He watched as they drew closer, each wanting to be the first to land a weapon on him. Then as each were within but a step of him, he triggered the spell, Inertial Burst.
To those on the wall, the spell had no visible effect. There was no blue wave of energy that burst forth to explain what their baffled eyes showed them. Those sensitive to magic like Mira might have felt the spell go off, but to most, it was a mystery. One second, a combined three tons of poorly crafted weapons and ogre flesh were on a collision course with the Baron, and a second later, each of those six looked like they had run into an invisible wall. More than that, their bodies were flung back with nearly much force as they had been directing forward. Some of them lost weapons which stopped mid descent and then instantly were wrenched from filthy ogre hands and flung backwards.
The spell went off as well as Dave could have hoped for, better even. It may not cause very much damage, but it had quite literally stopped them in their tracks. All of his foes were now dazed and disoriented. He activated his Offensive Stance, cast Fleeting Fury to increase his attack speed. Then as he stepped towards the closest of the fallen ogres, he triggered the necrotic power of his new sword and a black wispy energy began to dance along its blade as his first slash landed. The prone ogre could not have done much to defend against the attack, but in his dazed state, he didn’t even raise an arm in a futile gesture. That one blow counted as a sneak attack on a helpless foe and did (2016) damage severing the beasts head in one swipe.