"Protect me for a second, I need to catch a big breath," said Terran.
"Are you crazy? I'm barely surviving here," she replied.
The training from the pond had taught him how to catch a huge breath before plunging back beneath the surface, and that helped him gather his energy before the exhale. When he let loose the Sonic Disruption, he didn't end the spell, but kept it going as if he were a personal hurricane of sound.
The Cave Devourer screamed.
Its body shuddered at his vocal assault, and the rocks and stones attached to its body exploded, shaking themselves from its body. Tentacles whipped around in a mad attempt to stop him, thrashing against the stone wall, but failing to penetrate his continued exhaling of sound. A dust cloud formed around the Cave Devourer as it shed its protective armor like old skin.
[You have increased the skill Battle Song]
Skill: Battle Song 9 (CHA)
Sing like no one is listening.
When he could no longer sustain the note, he let it drop. Before him sat an enormous mountain of mottled flesh, covered in bloody wounds, its tentacles restless and quivering.
But even without its rocky armor, it was still a massive threat. Removing the stone covering had been painful, but now that it was over, the creature brought its many tentacles against him.
"Uh-oh. I think you made it mad," said Luna, baring her teeth in a defensive growl.
Terran steeled himself for the pummeling, lifting his staff before his lips. Right as the Cave Devourer lifted its tentacles to bring them down on him, a shape leapt from the entrance above them, flying across the room with blades extended downward, a cry on her lips and shadows like a swirling cloak behind her.
Chanterelle landed on the mound of unprotected flesh, right above the cavernous mouth, and shoved her blades through the spot between its milky eyes. The tentacles went straight out, then fell flat to the ground like a withered plant as life fled from the Cave Devourer.
The Rock Leaf Elf strode off the deflating body of the creature she had killed as she casually wiped the ichor on her blades on a rag before returning them to their sheaths.
"You had me worried when I couldn't see you," said Terran.
"The shadows protect," she said solemnly as if she were at a temple rather than giving a post-battle quip.
When he furrowed his brow, she turned her head as if he'd caught her in a moment of vulnerability.
"Is that a Shadowbane thing?" he asked.
"I don't want to talk about it," she said. "Her gifts helped us win this battle. Let's leave it at that."
"Does that mean…?"
She shook her head vehemently. "No. I haven't accepted her offer. I'm afraid if I do that I won't be the same."
"Then don't," he said. "After this is over, throw away the blade."
The thought of it rippled across her gaze as wide-eyed alarm. His gut tightened with the thought that this was his fault, since he gave her the weapon.
"I should," she said eventually, meekly, "when this is over. For now, we need its gifts."
He nodded. As much as he worried about it, the danger of the mountains was worse than some distant power.
In the carcass of the Cave Devourer, he found a cache of valuable gems including five petite emeralds, two dozen chips of lapis lazuli, three opals as big as his thumb, and a single black diamond. The last gem was likely very valuable, but he was pleased to acquire all of them. They'd make great food for growing crystals or trade bait with Vievel.
"Let's go," he said after a short rest and a handful of healing mushrooms. "We need to get out of these caves."
Chanterelle led them towards the cool air, which Terran could feel against his sweaty skin. They meandered through the caverns, seeing fewer signs of the other mountain denizens. When they came into a cavern as big as Wunderlust Keep's courtyard, Terran whistled softly. The walls were covered in a faintly glowing fungus, returning color to his sight. Between the stalactites and stalagmites grew patches of mushrooms, while deeper in the cave, the sound of water trickling through a small stream could be heard.
"Enoki would love this place," said Chanterelle. "My father too."
"Do we know which way to go?" he asked.
She shrugged her shoulders, while Luna cleaned the cave dust from her paws.
"The air is so clear here, it's hard to feel where the outside air is coming from," said Chanterelle.
A distant thud brought their heads around, and they tried to locate the source, but Terran quickly realized it was not in the cave, but somewhere near.
"Was that a hammer?" asked Chanterelle.
A second, then third sound helped them identify the direction of the source. "Sounds like a blacksmith's hammer on an anvil."
Chanterelle tilted her head. "That's a big blacksmith by the interval between the blows."
"Then we should head that direction," said Terran. "That's probably our Crag Trolls."
Chanterelle led them through the cave, and the sounds of the hammering grew louder, while the sulfur smell and heat grew stronger. They traveled for half an hour, making their way carefully in case of guards.
When they reached a cavern reflecting with orange light and stinking of sulfur, Chanterelle stopped them at an alcove. Ahead, a furnace the size of a building glowed with molten iron, spitting sparks as massive bellows were pumped by a group of chained slaves with pointed ears.
"Rock Leaf Elves," breathed Chanterelle, pulling out the Nightblade and surging forward. Terran grabbed her arm.
"And Crag Trolls," said Terran, gesturing towards the other side of the room where an enormous blacksmith in a leather apron smashed his hammer into a glowing sword on an anvil. A second Crag Troll threw powder onto the molten sword as the former worked. The powder turned the air around the weapon to fiery orange before getting sucked into the metal. He didn't know what kind of magic the powder was imbuing the weapon with, but it couldn't be good.
Even from across the room, the heat made Terran squint and brought sweat to his forehead. The molten iron was oppressive.
Terran gestured towards a wide door, but Chanterelle motioned towards the elves.
"We can get them on the way out," said Terran. "Based on the cool air, we can assume that this cave leads out of the mountains. We need to find the Trio first, and knock them out with the hibernating mushrooms."
Pain crossed through Chanterelle's eyes as she gripped her hilt tighter.
"If we free them now, and it's discovered, then the whole fortress will come down on us," said Terran.
"You promise?" she asked, jaw pulsing.
"Of course," he said. "I'm the leader of the settlement. They're my people as well now. I won't leave them." When she nodded, he added, "Can you get us past those blacksmiths with your shadow jumping?"
Chanterelle checked back to the Crag Trolls before nodding succinctly.
Luna whispered, "I'll get past them myself."
Terran crept behind Chanterelle as they snuck along the outside wall of the foundry cave, keeping a wary eye on the two Crag Trolls, but they were busy with their craft. The final stretch required passing near the blacksmiths, which would be impossible in the bright light of the room, so Chanterelle grabbed his hand, and they shifted through the room, appearing in the shadows of the doorway, where Luna was waiting for them.
She gave them both a, "what took you so long" eye roll, and Terran cracked the door open enough to see an enormous Barghest in full plate armor marching towards them.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Terran grabbed Chanterelle and Luna, pulling them against the wall as the door swung open, nearly crushing them behind it, but he managed to use his hand to slow its impact. The Barghest ducking into the room didn't notice them behind the door, nor did the two Crag Trolls, who froze in alarm at its approach. The Barghest had rust-colored skin and black hair pulled into a braid. Terran caught the hint of fangs in its wide mouth.
"You promised five new swords a day," said the Barghest in a
gravelly voice as it towered over the Crag Trolls. "You've only delivered two. That mouthy human that hired us wants to march south in two days. We need those weapons to ensure the complete destruction of the Mother Tree."
As much as Terran wanted to stay and hear the conversation, they had to get out of the room before the Barghest turned around. Chanterelle leading, they crept from the room, using the creature's bulk to hide their escape from the Crag Trolls.
The wide hallway let them run full out, and they reached a crossway and ducked into an abandoned room before the Barghest returned. After its echoing boots faded from their hearing, Terran let out a breath.
"A Barghest," said Luna, shaking her head. "There's no way the settlement can stand against a couple of Barghests."
Terran and Chanterelle shared a doom-filled glance.
"There aren't just a few Barghests, but a whole company of them. They must be a mercenary group," said Terran.
"The Crimson Brigade," said Chanterelle. "I saw the patch on his shoulder. A red banner. They're famous for never having lost a battle. It's probably why the Trio hired them."
"And they have some powder that's going to help them take down the Mother Tree," said Terran. "We can't fail now. There's no way the glen will survive if they attack."
"Five Barghests would be more than enough," said Luna. "A whole company is overkill."
"There's no way the Trio has that much money on their own. Whoever is backing them has deep pockets," said Terran, shaking his head.
"But why? Why do they hate us so much, these offworlders?" asked Chanterelle in anguish.
"I don't think they hate you, but want something the Mother Tree has. She's a force in this world," he said, furrowing his forehead as he thought about how Grimchar was extracting power from her essence. "But I wonder if I truly understand what she is."
"Then we can't fail," said Chanterelle.
"We need to find where the Trio are quartered. This is a big place. It's going to take us a while to find them," said Terran.
"They're in the tower," said Luna.
Both he and Chanterelle stared incredulously at the lynx.
"What? It's not that hard. You humans and elves like to use height to convey status. I bet my fur they're in the big tower," said Luna.
Chanterelle punched him softly in the arm. "She has you there."
"Let's get out of here and figure out where we are in this place," said Terran.
Chanterelle took the lead, scouting a bit ahead since she could easily disappear into shadows if necessary. Terran had his armor invisibility, but it was only once per day and he didn't want to use it up. After exiting from the dungeons, they found themselves in the back of the busy fortress, hiding behind a pile of crates that had been lazily stacked near the northeast wall. Terran realized this was where they had planned to land in the first place.
It was dark beneath the shelter of the mountains, but torches flickered like eyes in the courtyard, creating patches of light in the ancient place. The inner keep provided a staging area for troops, or to muster a defense, while the living quarters for the various inhabitants were built into the mountains. From their hiding spot, they determined the Crag Trolls lived in the east section, while the Barghests lived in the western quarters near the tower, which had two Barghests posted before the door. Everything was exactly as they expected until an armored centaur meandered out of the quarters to the north, relatively near their hiding spot.
"What are they doing here?" asked Chanterelle.
"I didn't know there were any centaurs left," said Terran. "Wunderlust Keep was filled with skeletal centaurs."
"It looks like they're flying a mercenary flag, The Steel Hooves," said Chanterelle. "I wonder what your ghost friend might have to say about that."
Terran hesitated before summoning Lord Ostric's ghost. For once he was glad that no one else could hear or see him, or he'd blow their hiding spot.
The incorporeal form of the centaur lord formed with his horse end inside the crates. "Lord Terran, how may I serve you?"
The title made Terran blush. "We're inside the fortress by way of a secret entrance and we found something you should see. It's in the courtyard."
The enormous bushy mustache on Lord Ostric's face waggled with thought as he turned around, not bothering to walk out of the crates. Terran flinched at his exclamations of anger even though he was the only one who could hear the centaur lord.
"Those traitorous bastards. I could never believe they would be willingly working with the Crag Trolls, or against the Rock Leaf Elves, not after our long and storied partnership. If I were flesh and bone, I would smash the sense back into them," said Lord Ostric.
"What if they had no other choice? After you died and the Mother Tree was destroyed, any survivors would have had a tough time of it," said Terran, lifting his shoulders.
"I would have died before choosing to work with Crag Trolls," said Lord Ostric. "The Barghests, I can understand. They've long been mercenaries, brutal warriors for the right price, but centaurs are proud people. They should not be holding out their hand for coin, especially not at this bloody price."
Terran was interested to hear more about Lord Ostric's willingness to spill blood for battle, but not as a mercenary, but there wasn't time, nor was it an ideal location for such conversations.
"Do you think they could be convinced to switch sides?" asked Terran, thinking about what might happen if they failed to take out the Trio.
"I do not know these centaurs, but I imagine they would be descendants of those who lived in Wunderlust Keep. Their Captain Nodran has the look of a centaur I knew once," said Lord Ostric. "His name was Percian, and their emblem was a pair of lances. At a jousting tournament we once crossed lances for a dozen tilts until I finally won."
Terran couldn't quite wrap his brain around how centaurs would joust since they were connected to their horse body. He left Lord Ostric in his ghostly form as he addressed the others.
"So how do we get to the Trio? This is a busy courtyard. Too many people are coming and going. Plus we don't have any way to deal with the Barghests at their tower door," said Terran.
"We could lure them into a side chamber and give them a crimson smile to go with their flag," said Chanterelle, making a gesture past her throat.
"One of them would be a challenge, but two? And how am I going to fight without giving us away?" asked Terran.
"We should lure the Trio out of the tower," said Luna.
Terran scratched his chin. "Better idea, but how? And where?"
"The rooms near the smithy," said Chanterelle, nodding confidently, then adding as her expression broke, "but I don't know how to get them there."
"We could send a message into the tower. Tell them they're needed in the smithy, and ambush them along the way," said Terran, his mind whirling with thoughts. "The hibernating mushrooms act fast. We could blow them into the hallway when they went past. That way we could get the slaves in the foundry before we left."
"How do we get the message to them? It's not like we can just walk into the tower," said Chanterelle.
"I could," said Terran as he rubbed the smooth shoulder of his Rock Leaf armor. "I saw a Crag Troll head into the tower with a tray of food. I could sneak up to the door, then when someone opens it, trigger my invisibility and run inside. Once there, I'm sure I could find a way to leave a message."
"That's great, but how will you get out?" asked Luna.
"I can't climb up so well, but I'm sure I could shimmy out of one of those windows in the tower. One of you could distract the guards while I dropped down. Then we could hurry back to the rooms and wait for the Trio," said Terran. "The fact that it's dark should help too."
"Sounds risky," said Chanterelle as she rubbed the hilt of the Shadowblade.
"No doubt. This whole plan is risky, but it's better than waiting for them to show up with all the Crag Trolls and two mercenary companies," said Terran.
"I'm always in favor of plans that don't
put me in the line of danger," said Luna.
"Thanks for your vote of confidence," said Terran.
Chanterelle lifted a shoulder. "I don't have a better plan."
"It's settled then," said Terran with a big breath. "What's the worst that can go wrong?"
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The hardest part about getting near the tower was passing the entrance to the living quarters where the centaurs lived. It looked like they'd originally been deep stables built into the rock face, but had been made more livable for the centaurs. The wide double doors on the front had been propped open for the steady traffic. It appeared the centaurs provided scouting for the fortress since a group of them had returned through the main gate not long after a different group of them had left.
The Trio, despite the wealthy backer and ample supply of goods and mercenaries, did not keep an organized fortress. The courtyard was filled with crates and laden wagons, making reaching the tower without being seen relatively easy. Terran even spied a wagon full of oil, which he made a note of, if events deteriorated and he needed a flashy distraction.
He crept along the wall until he reached the open doors, crouching behind them as he listened for the clip-clop of hooves. Once he knew the way was clear, he scurried past, keeping a low profile until he reached the next pile of crates. After that it required a short sneak before he was waiting near the tower doors.
The two Barghests on guard duty looked restfully aware, which meant normal means of bypassing them wouldn't work. Waiting for an opportunity went on for a while, and every minute he was sure that someone would come upon him, or Luna, or Chanterelle. If he got caught he was prepared to do everything he could to make them kill him.
To his surprise, Roald came strolling from the far side of the courtyard with a content expression, his silk shirt untucked and his belt barely cinched back together. The assassin had the air of someone who'd just enjoyed time with a lady friend. Terran didn't like the idea of sneaking in behind Roald, but the longer he waited, the greater the chance of getting caught.
Terran scooted to the edge of the wagon, waiting for Roald to approach the Barghest guards. The assassin had excellent awareness, so Terran triggered his invisibility the moment Roald reached the door.
The Crystal Bard: A LitRPG Adventure (Kingmaker Saga Book 2) Page 17