Not even twenty seconds later, I got my first victory notifications:
— You have killed Orc Rider (20).
— Congratulations! You receive:
— Experience essence (4000).
— Silver tablet (10).
— You have killed Steppe Warg (18).
— Congratulations! You receive:
— Experience essence (3600).
— Silver tablet (10).
— You have killed Steppe Warg (18).
— Congratulations! You receive:
— Experience essence (3600).
— Silver tablet (10).
….
And a few seconds later, so many notifications rained down on me it was like I was seeing colors...
The abundance of flickering text just about made me miss the most important part — the ice storm was moving. I couldn’t be sure if it was because of the wind or something else, but it had been in motion all along. The element I’d awoken with ancient magic was racing fairly quickly my way.
Not delaying for a second and no longer looking around, I started running toward the forest again. I took a fleeting glance at the timer. The spell was going to stay active for another minute and a half.
Meanwhile, the fearsome din behind me was growing louder and louder. And I was running slower and slower. My energy supply was noticeably sagging. Red circles appeared before my eyes and a sickly rasp tore itself from my throat with every step. By all appearances, I was about to be swallowed up by the monster I’d summoned. It would be hard to imagine a stupider way to die.
While losing consciousness, I felt for the summoning amulet and activated it. The last thing I thought before the darkness swallowed me up was that Gorgie and Mee would survive...!
Chapter 28
I BURST TO CONSCIOUSNESS all at once, as if swimming up out of a deep whirlpool. Darkness all around. I listen closely. The scratching of trees swaying in the breeze is unmistakable. So some magical means allowed me to crawl to the western forest.
But if I’m in the forest, why am I so warm? Patting myself down head to toe, I realize I’m lying on soft furs and covered with a thick comforter. Curious. Where am I?
I was still coming to, but vague guesses were already starting to faintly glimmer in my mind. At that very moment, the darkness around me stopped being complete. Right before my eyes appeared a triangle of light which I finally recognized as a slightly opened tent flap. Someone carefully threw back both flaps and let in a refreshing icy breeze, smoke from a bonfire and a small shred of the night sky.
When I saw the outlines of a pair of wide ears, I smiled with relief.
“Rick?”
“Hey there, brother,” I rasped back.
“Praise the gods you woke up!” Mee exclaimed joyfully and jumped into the tent.
We embraced firmly, then the gremlin struck flint to steel a few times and lit some kindling. The inside of the tent lit up with a timid little tongue of flame and Mee extended me a wooden bowl filled with something that smelled tasty.
“Here’s something to help clear your throat...”
“Where is Gorgie and why am I still alive?” I quickly asked.
“He’s doing fine. He’s the one that dragged you to safety.”
I sighed with relief and took the first gulp. Had we really made it out of another close call?
“After we brought the children to their parents and came back here, the harn went out to hunt,” Mee continued. “I’m sure he’s already sensed that you’re awake. He’ll probably be here soon.”
“Are you saying you found the people?” I asked in surprise. To be frank, I was not expecting the timid gremlin to be such a self-starter.
Mee had his own interpretation of my reaction.
“Yeah, it wasn’t exactly a big deal... Their camp was blowing smoke over the whole area. Gorgie sniffed them out right away.”
“Hold up... So how did the captain and his warriors react to you?”
“They didn’t,” Mee answered. “They didn’t see us. We showed the children the way and they walked the last hundred yards to the camp on their own. I wasn’t feeling bold enough to join the people. I saw what they did to you.”
“Very wise decision,” I praised the gremlin.
“Why did they do that?” he asked angrily.
“Tom was considerate enough to tell the captain who the shaman was after. And you know what came next...”
The gremlin clenched his teeth hard and hissed:
“Ingrates.”
“But living ingrates...” I chuckled.
“And all thanks to you again!” Mee exclaimed with admiration.
“And you, brother... By the way, did the Dome work properly?”
“Yes,” Mee nodded. “It’s a miracle we avoided the trap. We were walking along the forest’s edge. The gods must have intervened in our favor. After that we watched you meet the human company. It was hard for me to hold those little ragamuffins back when they saw their parents hugging the warriors.”
“I see...”
“But when the orcs showed up, they stopped trying to run.”
After Mee said that, he gave a happy chuckle.
“What’s that about?” I asked in surprise.
“The children thought you jumped off the horse on your own to defend the others...” the gremlin’s mouth spread into a wide smile.
“Uh huh,” I laughed back. “A hero...”
“Feel free to believe this or not — but you’ll forever remain a hero in their memory,” Mee said seriously. Then he added:
“A dead one...”
“What are you talking about?”
“I told them you died.”
I nodded understandingly.
“So the captain wouldn’t send his cutthroats out for our souls?”
“Yes,” the gremlin answered. “Let them think you’re dead.”
Smart. Mee is a clever boy. He interpreted the situation properly. I told him so right away, not forgetting to praise him as well, which made him very embarrassed.
After a bit of silence, the gremlin said:
“I saw you awaken the element.”
“A ghastly spectacle,” I said quietly. “I get a shiver when I think back on it.”
“Was that one of those stones?” Mee asked.
“Yeah,” I nodded. “Good thing you convinced me to take your crystal. Otherwise I wouldn’t have had enough mana to activate the spell. Or more accurately, to unleash it.”
“It is highly powerful and fearsome magic,” Mee whispered and the fur on his back stood on end. “Even the great Sarkhaat wasn’t brave enough to stand up against it.”
“What are you trying to say?” I asked, dumbfounded. “Did he not die?”
“Of course not,” the gremlin shook his head. “A few seconds after the spell’s activation, he dissolved into thin air, leaving his whole band to be torn to shreds by the element. Honestly, most of the orcs also fled for the steppe when they saw it. All told, the storm only took down a couple dozen wolf riders. Gorgie and I combed the scene after, too, hoping to pick up some loot. But it’s terrifying magic — there wasn’t a single trace of the orcs left.”
I scratched the back of my head in perplexity. And I didn’t care about the loot. I had slightly more important questions on my mind. Why had the warlock just given up? It wasn’t like he just figured he was outgunned by little old me, right?
Actually, that sounded plausible! In fact, it all came together. Following the trail of his grandson’s killer, he probably saw the Tree of Spirits and the wide swath the otherworldly beasts cut through the forest along with the monster hunter fort... It followed then that the shaman came prepared to fight an experienced and powerful mage. Otherwise why drag so many riders along with him? But by the looks of things, the Ice Storm spooked even him and he concluded I was the more powerful mage.
All that time, I was sitting and smiling stupidly. I was imagining the look on the shaman’s face when he fou
nd out just who he was up against. I suspected the orcs had spies among the subjects of the Steel King — humans were not hard to corrupt with money. Mee, without even realizing it, had done a great thing by starting the rumor of my demise.
There was a lot I still wanted to ask the gremlin, but our conversation was interrupted. Gorgie was back and he looked delighted...
* * *
Mee turned out to be right. Looking over the system messages, I counted sixty-four victories. And for accuracy’s sake, the Ice Storm had swallowed up thirty-two wolf riders along with their wargs. The number of silver tablets I got in that battle boggled the imagination. At that moment, I had seven hundred thirty Silvers in my backpack. I even had to rub my eyes and glance into my backpack again.
But that wasn’t all. The Great System decided to generously reward me for the “display of gallantry.”
— Attention! The Higher Powers have taken note of your accomplishment! Fighting alone, you defeated 60 creatures more than 10 levels higher than you in one battle!
— Congratulations! You receive:
— Experience essence (20000).
— Silver tablet (30).
— Attention! The Higher Powers have taken note of your accomplishment! Fighting alone, you defeated 60 creatures more than 15 levels higher than you in one battle!
— Congratulations! You receive:
— Experience essence (30000).
— Silver tablet (40).
— Attention! The Higher Powers have taken note of your accomplishment! Fighting alone, you defeated 30 creatures more than 20 levels higher than you in one battle!
— Congratulations! You receive:
— Experience essence (15000).
— Silver tablet (20).
— Attention! The Higher Powers smile upon you! You have replicated the legendary feat of Ava the Great! Fighting alone and using just one spell, you defeated 60 creatures more than 15 levels higher than you in one battle!
— Congratulations! You receive:
— Experience essence (100000).
— Magic bracelet of Ava the Great (1).
I bit my lip and took the magical artifact from my backpack. My heartbeat racing, the first thing I did was glance at its level. Finding no limitations in its description, I sighed with relief. I wanted to shout loudly and jump for joy. But Mee was sleeping next to me, so I set the mad dances aside for tomorrow.
Somehow taking control of my gushing emotions, I finally started looking over the artifact. The bracelet looked like an icicle bent into a wide ring and had no fastener. Probably, like my little ring, it had some way of adapting to its owner’s wrist. I couldn’t be sure exactly what material the unknown craftsman used, but it bore a near perfect resemblance to ice. Based on the name of the spell and style of bracelet, I assumed Ava the Great belonged to the magical school of Ice.
I admired the ancient item until I had my fill then delved into its description.
Magic bracelet of Ava the Great.
— Type: Personal magical artifact.
— Rarity: Legendary.
— Intellect +30.
— Wisdom +30.
— Special effect:
— Raises level of all the wearer’s spells/magical abilities by 5.
— Note:
— Weight: None. Takes no space.
I put the ice ring on my quavering arm and looked at my characteristics. In an instant, all my spells and magical abilities shot up by five levels! Feverishly reading their descriptions one after the next, I gradually started to realize just how significantly my abilities had grown...
Finally tearing myself from the reading, I gave a weary yawn and looked at my friends dozing peacefully next to me. My mouth spread into a satisfied smirk. You two are gonna get a lot stronger tomorrow...
* * *
We were standing on top of a hill covered with old crooked pines, the very edge of the western forest. At the foot of the hill below, the plains began. After yesterday’s snowfall, they looked like a huge tabletop covered with a festive pure white tablecloth.
It took us just over two weeks to cross the western forest. Honestly, a few of those days were spent on my friends incorporating all the tablets. The process took a while, but it was worth it.
I brought Gorgie up to level eleven. Almost all his characteristics were at their maximum. Visually the harn was twice as big. The scales on his body had grown tougher and larger as well.
After the cat hit level eleven, I noticed a sharp spike of bone slowly sprout from the tip of his tail. There wasn’t a word in the beast’s characteristics about his new weapon yet, but I was willing to bet something would reveal itself at the next level.
Yesterday the harn scratched his front paws on the trunk of a pine. A few seconds later, the poor tree fell to the ground with a plaintive cracking. And Gorgie’s face looked so surprised that the gremlin and I couldn’t hold back and started laughing loudly.
Mee had also grown both in level and physically. Now he was level seven. Other than the vitally important characteristics, we’d paid special attention to his spells while spending tablets. For example, Wave of Healing now replenished fifty percent of its target’s life while the level three invisibility spell’s duration had gone up to twenty-five minutes.
Tearing my gaze from the plains, I turned. Beyond the forest, in the borderlands, the Great Horde was amassing. We even saw its first “wave” rolling in. Now it looked like a seething sea of disorder, growing wider and wider with every new incoming wave.
Seeing the army of thousands of orcs struck my imagination. I do not envy the Steel King. The ruler of the west will probably lose a couple of baronies this year. Although, if I considered what the spells of high-level mages could do — the orcs’ expectations could end up being dashed.
On that day, we saw lots of slaves of many races. There were people, gremlins, gnomes, trolls... In fact, it looked like there were more of them than the orcs. It was scary to imagine how many tablets all these unfortunate souls surrendered to their tormentors every day. At that time I was thinking that, if they all banded together, they might be able to escape. But I immediately remembered the disgust and disdain in the eyes of the liberated humans when they first saw Mee... No, they were not exactly primed for unity.
I looked back to the peaceful valley and breathed a heavy sigh. We had to go faster. The Great Horde would be here soon.
“I don’t know about you, but I never want to meet another orc for the rest of my life,” I said and added with a chuckle: “Although, looking at you two, I have to admit that every encounter we’ve had with them so far has been to our benefit.”
When I mentioned the orcs, Gorgie snorted scornfully and trotted forward. But Mee didn’t seem to be listening. Based on the grim look on his face, the gremlin was not in the mood for jokes.
“The world of humans scares me, Rick,” he suddenly whispered.
Placing a hand on his shoulder, I said:
“Yes brother. It scares me no less. But over the last few months, I’ve realized something. With all of us together, I’m not so afraid.”
Mee looked me in the eyes and said seriously:
“Thanks to you, Rick, I’m no longer a slave! Let’s go. Now it’s your turn to get free!”
End of Book Two
To be continued...
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