Land of the Undying

by Dave Willmarth

  Falin looked at her sorrowfully. He bowed his head. “I am sorry for your loss. If you choose the healing arts, perhaps we can help you to avoid such loss in the future.”

  Shari didn’t really need much convincing. Arlon was right. Healing was her path. “I would like to be a healer.” She replied.

  “Good! Now, let us begin. I’m afraid you have much to learn in a short time. Some of it I can teach now. But some, like bandages and potion making, will require a bit more time. I’ll teach you what I can tonight, and we’ll continue tomorrow.”

  Shari leaned forward to receive more knowledge.

  Chapter 16

  Centaur Trouble

  Mace stopped at the gate when he was finished building for the day. He found the captain standing with his guards, looking outward toward the lake. When he approached, the captain said, without even turning around “Don’t step outside the gate. Beron is being… stubborn. He has sworn to kill you on sight. He’s demanding we send you out, and threatening to shoot anyone who tries to get to the boats until we do.”

  Mace leaned his head to look past the captain’s body. He saw the centaur standing motionless between the gate and the lake. He had a massive bow in his left hand. The thing must have been six feet long and three inches thick. But one look at the muscled arms of the centaur left no doubt that he could draw it with ease.

  Mace spoke quietly, so that only the captain and the guards could hear. “Captain, I don’t wish to be a burden on your people. Maybe I should go and face him. Then he cannot hold a grudge against you.”

  One of the guards spoke up. “He’d have three arrows in ya before ya got halfway to him.”

  Mace didn’t think so. But he might take a single arrow. And he knew from experience that one was bad enough. Still, he said “True. But once he kills me, he’ll leave you alone.”

  You have gained +30 reputation with the settlement of Lakeside. Your reputation remains Neutral

  The captain shook his head. “This has become bigger than just his fight with you. He refuses to see reason. He’s made threats to my town, and me personally. We can not back down, or the centaurs will think they can push us around whenever they like.”

  “You don’t have to back down, captain. He can ‘catch’ me trying to sneak out. He’ll have his shot at vengeance, and you’ll have been seen to stand your ground.” Mace offered.

  The ogre thought about it. “When would you do this? Our boats need to go out at dusk.”

  Mace looked up at the sun, which had descended nearly to the treetops. “Ideally it would be at night, when he can’t see as well. But I can use the shadows of sunset well enough.” Mace was becoming more and more sure he was going to die. But a loss of level didn’t seem so terrible compared to the time he would save not having to dodge centaurs.

  The captain turned to face Mace. “If he attacks you, kill him. If you can. He crossed a line, and for no good reason. He admits they shot you without warning outside the forest. I think he is consumed with guilt for not killing you, allowing you to get past him and kill his uncle. He’s lost all honor.”

  Just as the captain finished speaking, Beron shouted “Come out, drow! I know you’re there!”

  Mace looked out at the centaur as the captain turned back toward Beron. He had an arrow nocked and was pointing it down at the ground.

  I guess now is as good a time as any. Maybe if he’s angry enough, his aim will be off.

  “Centaur!” He called out. “I’m not leaving this settlement. I like it here! And the beasts of the forest keep trying to kill me!” He paused while the guards chuckled. “You waste your time! Leave this place, stop threatening these people. Your people tried to kill me, and failed. Twice. Be glad it only cost you one life!”

  The captain, realizing what Mace was about, nodded in agreement. Mace said quietly “I’m going to ‘sneak’ out now, captain. I’ll let him see me when I’m far from your guards.”

  Mace stepped back behind the wall and slipped into stealth mode. Then he used the captain and the guards’ shadows for cover until he was clear of the gate. Moving quickly to his right, he took several silent steps along the wall. The sun was nearly set and the shadows of the trees were extending across the open grass to where the centaur stood fuming. The captain offered a distraction. “Beron! Listen to the drow. Stop this foolishness before your honor cannot be redeemed!”

  In answer, Beron lifted the horn that hung on a strap around his chest. Tilting his head back, he blew a long, resounding blast. Mace took advantage of the distraction and rushed across the open grass to crouch behind a small boat situated behind the centaur. When the horn blast ended, he watched Beron lower his head and call out “I’ve summoned my clan. We will tear this place apart, and burn it to the ground if we must!”

  Mace leapt behind the boat. “No! You will not!” he shouted.

  The centaur spun around, and within a fraction of a second an arrowhead burst through the boat near where Mace crouched. He didn’t hesitate. He had maybe one second while the centaur drew another arrow. With a burst of speed, Mace leaped around the front of the boat and dashed at an oblique angle toward the centaur. He watched Beron nock another arrow and take aim at him. Leading him just a little as he let loose the arrow. Mace had been prepared, and changed direction as the string loosed. He turned straight toward Beron and the arrow passed just in front of him. With a slide, he passed beneath the centaur, each dagger slicing at one of his fetlocks. Beron screamed in pain and began to try and stomp the drow into the dirt. He staggered as his two wounded legs nearly buckled under his weight. Mace wasted no time. Rolling out from beneath Beron’s legs, he sprung up onto the equine back. He crouched there, his enchanted dagger’s point against the centaur’s human back.

  Mace shouted “Yield, Beron! Let this be over! I will kill you if you force me to!”

  Beron shouted in rage and tried to buck him off. His wounded legs failed him this time, and Mace heard a tearing almost cracking sound as first one of the joints, then the other, gave way. Beron tilted hard to one side and fell. Mace rolled off his back as the hefty body slammed into the grass. The scream that erupted from Beron’s throat made Mace’s gut twist. The anguish and pain of a mortally wounded horse combined with the rage of a man who’d lost all sense.

  Mace quickly stepped toward Beron’s head, saying “You chose this.” With a quick thrust, he plunged his dagger up under Beron’s chin and into his brain. The scream ended abruptly as the light went out of his eyes. The dagger absorbed the centaur’s essence, and Mace almost fell to his knees from the rush. When it was over, he bent and looted the centaur. He was rising to walk back to the gate when several shouts rang out. Both from the gate, and from the tree line.

  He turned to see several centaurs charging from the trees toward him. The next moment an arrow that seemed the size of a tent pole slammed into his chest. The impact knocked him backward to stumble over Beron’s body and fall to the ground. The arrow sticking out of his back snagged on something and caused the it to rip sideways through his chest. His view of the sky went dark.

  You have died.

  You may choose to respawn at your most recent bind point, or remain with your corpse, and resurrect it after a ten-minute wait period. Your resurrected avatar will have 50% health, and a two-hour debuff.

  Respawn at your bind point? Yes/No

  Mace respawned in his room at the inn, cursing violently. He quickly checked his logs and his gear. He’d lost nothing when he died. Summoning Minx, he ran down the stairs and out of the inn. Several of the townspeople were already running toward the gate, or the surrounding walls. Horns of two different tones were sounding, and people were shouting in alarm.

  When he reached the gate, the captain was ordering it closed. Mace had to shout to be heard. “What’s going on?”

  “Beron’s clan arrived just in time to see you kill him. I tried to tell them what happened, but they’re not in the mood to listen!” He answered as he lifted a massive log an
d dropped it into place atop two thick iron brackets, barring the gate.

  A dozen guards, all orcs or ogres except for one minotaur, all came running to report to the captain. He kept the minotaur with him, and sent the others to various posts around the walls. As they turned to leave, he shouted “Keep your heads down, or get an arrow to the face!”

  The guards rushed off toward their assigned posts as flaming arrows began to arc over the wall and strike the buildings within. Citizens with buckets of water dashed about extinguishing the flames as quickly as they could. One building not far away was hit with several arrows, and the bucket brigade was losing their battle. Mace pushed both his hands out, shouting “Frigis!” and a sheet of ice began to form on the building’s roof. Where it contacted the fire, it began to melt. The ice continued to spread until the fire was extinguished, and the structure was encased in ice. A few of the citizens looked at Mace, who flushed slightly. He might have overdone it a bit in the excitement of the moment.

  From the number of flaming arrows in the sky, Mace guessed there must be dozens of centaurs out there. This place would burn to cinders before they ran out of arrows. He needed to do something.

  Equipping his bow, he climbed atop the wall next to where the captain stood. There was a guard post on either side of the gate, and the extended wall provided enough cover for the ogre to stand upright. He was shouting out at the centaurs, demanding they stop and listen.

  Mace popped up above the wall and fired an arrow into the face of the nearest centaur. There was a short bellow of pain, which told him he’d hit his mark. Not wasting time, he nocked another arrow and moved down the wall about ten feet. There he popped up again and fired. This time he hit a different enemy in the gut. He repeated this process twice more, hitting two more enemies before the centaurs got wise. The next time he popped up, three arrows struck the wall inches from his face before he could fire.

  But the captain took advantage of the distraction Mace had created. He shouted “Fire” and six guards fired arrows over the wall. The captain himself hurled a massive spear with such force that it whistled through the air before impaling a centaur near the boats.

  Mace moved back up the wall toward the captain. He stopped once to fire another arrow quickly, then duck back down. There were small gaps between the logs of the wall, and Mace paused to peer through one of the gaps. His field of vision was limited, but he counted six dead or wounded centaurs.

  He decided to take a chance. Activating his stealth ability, he moved down the wall in the direction he’d just come from, farther away from the captain. The centaur archers had turned their attention back to the guards, who had loosed a second volley.

  Sure that he could not be seen in the darkening evening light, Mace stood and raised his hands, fingers pointed outward in a fan. He whispered “Infier,” and sent a spray of several small fireballs streaking into the centaur ranks. Three of them caught fire and began to scream, staggering around and bumping into their clan mates as they burned. The smell of burning horse hair and meat rose up from the field.

  Still, the centaurs didn’t stop. Mace looked over his shoulder to see two guards lay dead on the ground at the base of the wall, arrows protruding from face and chest. Several citizens lay dead and wounded, pierced by random arrows or burned by the fires.

  Guilt struck Mace like a hammer to the face. These people were dead because of him. He tried to tell himself they were just NPCs. But it didn’t work.

  Turning back toward the wall, he held up his hand with the enchanted ring. Pointing it toward the thickest concentration of centaurs in front of the gate, he said “Stone Golem.”

  The golem rose up out of the ground in the midst of the enemy group. At first, none of them noticed it. By the time one of the centaurs called out, it was grown to a solid ten feet in height, and grabbed hold of one them. With a twist of its hands, it snapped the centaur’s spine. Then it turned and smashed a fist down upon the horse back of another. The centaur flattened to the ground as if a boulder had fallen upon it.

  Other centaurs took up the cry, and a dozen arrows struck the golem. Some lodged in cracks or embedded themselves in the stone, but most bounced off taking small chips with them. The golem stalked forward and tried to grab hold of another centaur. He danced away, firing an arrow into the golem’s chest. All the centaurs gave it room, trotting sideways or backward to stay out of reach.

  Again, the captain took advantage. His remaining guards fired arrow after arrow at the distracted centaurs. He managed to put a spear into one close to the golem. The injured centaur wasn’t able to dodge quickly enough. The golem grabbed it by a hind leg and lifted it. The leg snapped as the golem swung the centaur and launched it toward another. Both bodies tumbled in a heap, and the golem moved to finish them both with pulverizing blows.

  A massive centaur, easily a foot taller and much broader than the others, charged at the golem with a two-handed sword raised above his head. Mace guessed it was the clan leader. As the golem was finishing the two centaurs on the ground, the charging centaur struck with the sword. One of the golem’s arms was severed, and its health bar dropped to 30%. It spun, trying to grab onto its attacker with its remaining hand. The centaur backtracked, then turned and bolted away.

  Mace ran to captain Charles. “Is that their leader?” he pointed to the axe-wielder. The captain nodded. Without another word, Mace pulled up his hood. He told Minx to wait up on the wall with the captain, then leapt from the wall into the grass outside. It was dark enough now that he was not easily spotted. Any centaur that happened to be looking his way would have just seen a falling shadow.

  Moving quickly, Mace went straight toward the leader. The centaur had reached a safe distance from the golem and turned to face it. He was clearly waiting for it to be distracted again so he could attack. Mace didn’t give him that chance. He approached from behind at a sprint, his feet barely touching the grass and making no sound. With a leap, he was atop the back of the leader. A step forward, and he placed his dagger against the clan chief’s throat. The centaur froze.

  “Drop the sword.” Mace said quietly, not wanting to draw the attention of the others. A solid arrow hit might knock him away before he could kill this one. And he’d already lost one level this evening.

  The centaur thought about it for a while, then laid down his sword. Mace then said “I don’t want to kill you. I didn’t want to kill Beron. He gave me no choice. Now tell your people to stop. I’ll call off the golem.”

  Mace did exactly as he’d said, in a show of good faith. He sent a mental command to the golem, causing it to lower its hand and retreat from the centaur it had been swinging at. “Call them off!” Mace repeated, pushing the tip deeper into the centaur’s throat.

  The clan leader lifted his horn and gave it two short blasts. Mace pulled the dagger away slightly so as not to cut him. The centaurs all paused to look his direction. Likely all they could see of Mace was a shadow on their leader’s back. Mace could hear captain Charles yelling for his people to cease fire. Then organizing fire crews.

  “My name is Mace. But you already knew that. You received the message from the elves and decided it was a good idea to hunt me. What is your name?” Mace asked.

  “I am Barlon. Beron was my brother. And I saw no message.”

  “Then your brother withheld information from you. His uncle. Your uncle. When he attacked me in the forest, I killed him. He was holding this.” Mace produced the note with his free hand and gave it to Barlon. He allowed the centaur time to read it.

  “They were waiting for me, along with a young one, and shot me as I crossed the field west of your forest. The young one’s aim was off, and he only wounded me. I evaded them and tried to flee through the forest. As I rested, your uncle shot me again. I was forced to kill him to defend myself. Then Beron pursued me here, threatened captain Charles and his people if they didn’t turn me over. Said your clan would burn the place to the ground. So I went out to face him. I asked him to let it
go. He attacked, and you saw the end of that fight.”

  “You lie!” Barlon growled.

  “I am telling you the truth.” Mace paused to think “You know the people in this town, yes? You trade with them?”

  “I know them.” Barlon’s answer was terse.

  “And you know captain Charles to be honorable? Truthful?”

  Barlon didn’t answer for some time. Finally he acknowledged “He is.”

  Mace let out a held breath. “Then call to him. Or better yet, walk to the gate so you don’t have to yell. Nobody will fire on you.”

  “As you wish” the reply was another growl. As the centaur turned toward the gate and began to walk, Mace called out “Captain! Hold your fire! Barlon wishes to talk!”

  The captain appeared from behind his barrier and waved an arm. He held no weapon. When Barlon got close enough to speak to the ogre without shouting, he said “Charles. On your honor, is what this drow says the truth?”

  Charles looked down. “Barlon, there was no reason for this fight. The drow told me of being attacked by your clan as he approached the forest. Beron confirmed it. They knew of his approach because of the elves. Thought to give one of your colts a worthy first kill. But they missed. Beron was so blinded by the death of your uncle, he refused to listen to reason. He waited outside all day and threatened to burn us out. Mace volunteered to go out, knowing he would likely die. When he called out to him, Beron fired. The drow killed him in fair combat. Then you killed Mace.”

  The captain’s voice broke, and he paused for a moment. “Why wouldn’t you listen to me? So many of our people are dead. Both our peoples.”

  Barlon shook his head. “I must speak with my people. We will withdraw. I need to… retrieve our dead.”

  The captain looked weary beyond words. “Truce, then? Until we can talk again?” Barlon nodded. He turned toward his people and said “Drow?”

  Mace removed the knife from Barlon’s throat and stepped down. “I did not want this. Any of this. I only defended myself and this settlement. Still, I am sorry for your losses.”