The Path to Peace

by Daniel Schinhofen

  “Yeah, that red-furred Lunari was bitching all about it when she joined the Guild,” Ulula said.

  “Bloodmoon?” Alburet asked.

  Blaze nodded, “Yeah. We had to kick her out after we took the Keep though. She was a real bitch.”

  Karen snorted, “Looks like she isn’t making any friends.”

  “She had an Elementalist trailing after her like a puppy,” Sato said. “He seemed to be the only one who could stand her.”

  “Takes all kinds,” Alburet shrugged. “Anyway, as my wife said, we have to meet up with Gerald. Good seeing you guys again. Maybe next time they put up a competition we can get it before you.”

  “Ha,” Blaze said, shaking hands with Alburet, “g’luck man, but we’re damned good.”

  The groups parted with smiles and light-hearted trash talk. Once Blaze and his group left, Alburet led the women over to the Gunso, who had been watching the exchange with interest. “Welcome back, Alpha Company. I see your quests are completed, let me reward you.” Pulling out bags of gold, he pushed them across the desk along with a token for the quartermaster. “We had a small wager riding on whether you or the Delvers were going to destroy one of the labs first. Since they came back first, I made a nice little bit of coin from Haru,” he nodded towards the other Gunso, who had a bitter twist to his lips. “So, thank you for being second.”

  Quest Completed: Kill twenty Arcane Undead

  Receive: Two hundred and fifty gold and increased reputation with Brightgrove Wardens

  Quest Completed: Kill twenty Plated Deathwalkers

  Receive: Two hundred and fifty gold and increased reputation with Brightgrove Wardens

  Quest Completed: Kill five Colossal Brutes

  Receive: Two hundred and fifty gold and increased reputation with Brightgrove Wardens

  Quest Completed: Find the Necromancer’s Lab and destroy it

  Receive: Six hundred gold and increased reputation with all Brightgrove factions and an item from the Quartermaster

  “Heh,” Alburet shrugged at Haru, “sorry, we got tangled up this morning.”

  Haru breathed out heavily, “It wasn’t much, but I had hoped to see Aiko taken down a peg.”

  “Not likely,” the Gunso laughed as he handed out their rewards. “I’ll buy you a drink later, so cheer up. What would the Rikugun-Taisa say if he saw you being glum on duty?”

  Haru sat up straight and looked around nervously, “Good point.”

  The group saluted and left the two Gunsos, heading to the quartermaster to pick up gear. Everyone chose jewelry to put up for the next Guild raffle, as theirs was still much better than what they could get from these quests. They used their Homestones, appearing in front of the Guild hall.

  “Home again, home again,” Alburet chuckled. “Okay back to the portal gui—”

  Four daggers hit him in tandem, dropping him to a fraction of his max health, and four debuffs began to tick away as two black clad figures materialized beside him. “It’s just business, mate,” a familiar voice said, as the blades withdrew from Alburet’s body.

  Tiny roared, slamming the other Assassin with his shield and stunning the man for a few seconds. Kitten sang at the speaker, making the Assassin waver on his feet as her Daze took effect. Bob tried to use Burning Cleanse, but the poison ticked too fast and Alburet collapsed to the ground. When he died, the Infernals all vanished, including Stacia. Fluff and Karen gasped before Fluff let out a scream, her skin flushing red as she dug her claws into the Assassin who’d spoken. Karen slammed both her daggers into the neck of the same one, dropping his health by a significant amount.

  With Kitten gone, the Assassin she had Dazed was now free of the effect and he Vanished. Fluff lunged forward, her arms wide. Catching the Assassin in her grasp, she wrapped her arms around him as twin blades sank into her gut. Her arms tightened up before the paralysis poison took hold of her. She fell to the ground, her arms still holding the Assassin pinned under her.

  The second Assassin shook off the stun and spun around to see Fluff holding his accomplice while Karen knelt down and jammed her blades into the man’s eyes. With a tsk, the Assassin triggered his ability to Vanish into stealth as Karen killed the other one. Stacia came out of the house at a run as the Guild door opened, revealing Gerald and Marysue, who had come out to check on the sounds of combat.

  “What happened?” Gerald asked.

  “Fluff needs healin’,” Stacia snapped as she rushed to help her wives.

  Marysue stepped around the archway behind Gerald and began to heal Fluffball. By the time her first spell landed, Fluff had begun regaining hit points, as combat was over. “Where’s Al?” Marysue asked.

  “This fucker got him,” Karen growled as she kicked the corpse, causing it to vanish and a small bag to appear in its place.

  “We do have someone telling them about the goings on in the Guild, it seems,” Gerald sighed.

  Alburet reappeared just outside the home, flaming maul in hand. “They gone or dead?”

  Stacia tackled him in a hug. “I do nay like it when ya die.”

  Fluff quickly joined the hug. “You okay, Al?”

  Dropping the maul, which caused the fire to flicker out, he hugged them both back. “We know they’re after us now.”

  “We have to do better than that,” Karen said from a few feet away, angry at herself for allowing the two Assassins to strike without being noticed.

  Stacia let Alburet go and hugged Karen. “Aye, now tha’ we be sure they be after us, we will nay fail again.”

  “How did they kill me so easily?” Alburet asked. “I’m not as weak as I was before, but the two of them obliterated me.” While asking the question, he summoned Tiny and Bob, then Copied Stacia and Tiny.

  “Remember I said that completing Assassinations gives my class tokens to spend at the Guild?” Karen said, disengaging herself from Stacia’s hug, her anger abated. “They must have used one of the top end poisons those tokens can buy. Against people, it does ridiculous damage, but sucks against monsters.”

  “I can expect more of that, then?” Alburet asked with a frown.

  “No, that poison is one of the top items,” Karen sighed. “The one who spoke to you seemed to know you.”

  “He’s killed me a few times before; it was the Assassin I got the deal out of,” Alburet said, slinging his maul onto his back. “I didn’t expect him—kind of thought he liked me.”

  “Nothing says respect like killing you first,” Karen growled. “It’s part of the Assassin Guild code. Respected targets get priority, even over higher paying targets. If you’re both, then it’s a race for them to kill you first.”

  “Yippee,” Alburet said.

  “Well, now that they’ve killed you once, maybe we can go hunting,” Gerald said. “Just be on your toes, all of you. They can come at any time now.”

  Fluff glanced around, her lip curling up in a silent snarl. “Next time we’ll be ready, right Karen?”

  Nodding, Karen bumped hips with Fluff. “Damn right. Let’s teach them the mistake they’ll be making.”

  “Master,” Tiny rumbled, taking a knee before Alburet, “please forgive my failure. I will do better.”

  “You did what you could, Tiny,” Alburet said, clapping his minion on the shoulder. “Since I’m immune to attacks for the next twelve hours, you are to protect Fluff and Karen above even me. Understood?”

  “Yes, master,” Tiny rumbled as he stood back up to his full height. “I will be Fluffball’s shield.”

  “I will be Karen’s bulwark,” TJ said as he went to Karen’s side.

  “Thanks, big guy,” Karen said, before vanishing. “Protect Fluff, though. I’ll be staying stealthy until we can get the Guild off our backs. I need to be stealthed for extra damage at the start of a fight.”

  “As you wish,” TJ said, flanking Fluff on the other side.

  “Not Stacia?” Marysue asked, confused.

  “Normally, that would have been my thought, but I have th
e feeling that her unusual nature might have her registered as an invalid target,” Alburet said, scratching at his head. “It’s a feeling I have.”

  “Wouldn’t be the first time that she broke something,” Gerald snorted. “Let’s get going before all the Two-souled Assassins show up.”

  Karen grabbed the bag of loot dropped by the killer, and they started down the street. Stuffing it into her bag, she fell into step behind Fluff, intent on keeping at least one of her lovers safe.

  Chapter Twelve

  Appearing before the gates of Bunker, Alburet let out a soft whistle. “Holy fuck, now that is ambitious.”

  “Forge and Hearth crafted the city for them,” Fluffball said as she looked at the view before them. “Beautiful isn’t it?”

  “They carved the mountains?” Karen asked.

  “Made from the bones of the earth,” Stacia said. “This be just the part of the city that visitors be allowed into. Ya have to be a dwarf, or well known to them, to be allowed into the undercity.”

  “Wait, there’s another city under this?” Marysue asked.

  “That would be like stacking New York on top of Los Angeles,” Gerald murmured.

  “Shall we go have a closer look?” Alburet said, starting for the gates that were set in the smooth grey stone walls.

  “Newcomers, welcome to Bunker,” the Dwarven Guard said with a grin. “Ye can always tell the newcomers by their gobsmacked expressions.”

  “It’s impressive as hell,” Alburet said, looking at the towering grey buildings beyond the gate. “We’re hoping to find the Portal Guild; can you point out the right way?”

  “Let me see yer map,” the guard said with a bemused smile.

  When Alburet brought his map out, the guard frowned. “It seems ye already have it marked.”

  “I didn’t think about that. Sorry, sir, a friend traded all of his data with me a while back,” Alburet chuckled.

  “Seems he knew the undercity pretty well, too,” the guard said as he studied the map. “Aye, ye can find anythin’ ye need easily enough, it seems. Which zone are you all headed to?”

  “Glacial Lake,” Gerald said. “We hear there are Langistors out there.”

  “Ach, damn shelled bastards always be a problem. Ye lot be careful, but as ye seem to be Two-souled, ye’ll probably be fine.” His eyes focused on their Guild emblem for a moment. “Alpha Company?”

  “That’s us,” Gerald said. “Did you need something from us?”

  “Nay, just heard of yer Guild and them Delvers. They say ye get thin’s done without too much issue. We be glad for the help. I wish yer lot a good day.”

  “You as well, sir,” Gerald said as he led them through the fifty-foot tunnel.

  Alburet let out a soft murmur of appreciation. “This place would be a right bitch to attack. Slits, holes, multiple portcullises…”

  “Stormguard has something similar, just not as deep,” Gerald said. “Then again, Stormguard is only the third largest city in the Empire, and this capital has been here from the beginning.”

  “Fair enough,” Alburet nodded.

  “Which way to the Portal Guild?” Gerald asked as they finally made it to the streets on the city.

  “Straight ahead, then hang a right at the big square,” Alburet said as he looked around at the buildings. “Smooth stone, not built.”

  “Forge shaped the exteriors of each building and Hearth worked on making them livable on the inside,” Fluff said. “When we get to the square, there are some buildings that are actually built over the ruins of the older buildings.”

  “Something knocked some of these things down?” Karen asked, impressed with the idea that they could be broken.

  “It’s said that the last time one of the Eldest Dragons was awake, it landed in the middle of the upper city. It broke a number of the buildings there before it was driven off.”

  “Oh, there are Dragonkin on this continent,” Marysue said with a grin. “Can we go to one of those zones instead?”

  “We can ask at the Portal Guild,” Gerald chuckled, “see if they’re in our range.”

  Alburet chuckled at Gerald’s quick agreement with Marysue. “That’s fine, it might be nice to see a change of foe.”

  “Yay!” Marysue said, and kissed Gerald’s cheek.

  Gerald blushed, eyes darting around to see who might be watching them. He found the entire group grinning at them, and Bob flying above them laughing. “Mary…”

  “No. We’ve talked about it. You agreed last night, small signs of affection are okay in public.”

  “What’s a big sign of affection?” Bob asked from overhead.

  Glaring daggers at the Imp, Gerald’s lips peeled back from his teeth. “Come down here and I’ll explain it to you.”

  “Bob,” Alburet said, “don’t bait him.”

  “I was only curious,” Bob huffed. “Just because he has a stick so far—”

  “Bob,” Alburet sighed, “enough.”

  “Yes master,” Bob grumped.

  Marysue released Gerald’s arm and took his hand, which caused Gerald to look around wildly again. “You need to get used to it now. What are you going to do when we have to leave the pods, refuse me?”

  Blanching, Gerald shook his head. “Of course not, Mary.”

  “Good. Besides, I always get what I want. Now that I know what I want, I’m not going to let you stop me,” Marysue said with a playful smile. “Not that you really want to stop me now, do you?”

  “No,” Gerald said, his hand taking hers firmly. “This is something I’ve always wanted.”

  “I do nay want to pry too much,” Stacia began, pausing until they both looked back at her. “With the obvious love ya be havin’ for each other, have ya thought of mayhap marryin’ here before ye go back to ye world?”

  Gerald looked slightly panicked, but Marysue nodded. “I still wonder how Daddy will react to that, but yes, it’s an idea I’ve considered.”

  “Really?” Gerald’s voice came out as a squeak.

  “Of course,” Marysue said, looking back at the stunned man holding her hand. “We’ll talk more later, okay? I didn’t want to spring anything on you until we’ve gotten this whole Assassin issue settled.”

  “We know who’s going to be wearing the pants in that relationship,” Karen murmured softly enough that the pair ahead of them didn’t hear.

  “Aye, as it should be,” Stacia grinned, with a sly wink directed at Alburet, “women should always be the ones to handle the big problems.”

  Alburet shook his head, knowing better than to rise to the bait she dangled before him. “Nope, not going to touch it.”

  “That’s not what she said,” Karen chuckled.

  “At least you’re fun,” Bob said as he fluttered next to Karen. “He’s been getting grumpier about me teasing Gerald. Can you help an Imp out with that?”

  Karen chuckled and shrugged. “It’s not lack of sex, I know that much.”

  “Bob,” Alburet sighed. “I know it’s difficult for you, but try for me, okay?”

  “Fine,” Bob huffed. “But if I don’t tease him, who can I tease? I need some kind of entertainment.”

  Karen snagged Bob from the air and squeezed him. She held the hug for close to a minute before releasing the Imp, who fluttered as if drunk. “There. Behave and I’ll give you a hug every once in a while.”

  “Deal,” Bob croaked, eyes slightly glazed.

  “You’re bribing him?” Alburet asked incredulously.

  “Whatever works,” Karen said with a grin, “besides, it’s easier to get guys to do what you want if you dangle a carrot in front of them.”

  Gerald slowed as they reached the square Alburet had referred to earlier. “This is…”

  Alburet had to agree. The center of the square was an outdoor market, with tents of every color and size taking up space along the edges and packing the center with walkways between them. “Very much like a bazaar,” Alburet said.

  “The buildings are d
ifferent,” Marysue pointed out. “You can see the individual stones.”

  “Aye, those be the ones that were rebuilt,” Stacia said. “They still be built better than many of the buildings in Stormguard. Dwarves be the best stone crafters in the world.”

  After taking a few minutes to meander through the bazaar, and stopping to look at one of the rebuilt buildings, the group moved on. It wasn’t long afterward that they finally reached a spire that mirrored the Portal Guild in Stormguard, but made from a single piece of stone.

  The layout inside appeared identical to what they were used to. A Dwarf sat behind the reception desk, a professional smile on his face. “How can I be helpin’ ye?”