Into the Dragon's Den (Axe Druid Book 2)

by Christopher Johns

  There was a roar of “ayes” so loud that the cavern above us shook and more rubble fell. This time, it was not the feet of the Dwarves that caused the heartbeat of the Mountain to be heard but the massive diamond—larger than the compound itself—that was unearthed above us. No rubble hit the ground. Not so much as a mote of dust. There in the heart of the diamond for all to see was the face of Fainne.

  His mithral face covered in a golden beard and eyes cut from emerald. The top of his bald head shone in the light below. His smile, warm and loving, graced all.

  Motion caught my eye, and I looked as I saw dozens of Dwarves fall to their knees, clutching their weapons—not in order to fight but because they were solid. They provided an anchor.

  None of them had met their god. None of them had seen him. Spoken to him. Not the way that I had. And not like Shellica, who passed his blessing on to her clan for him.

  As I looked around, I saw others had frozen entirely. Mugs held to mouths floundering for words. Ale, mead, and other alcohol spilling down armored chests. Cups knocked over.

  A bass rumble shook us, and I realized that he had opened his mouth. I looked back up. I understood him. We all did.

  “Children, I can sense your sadness.” His eyes took all in. “This day was meant to be a special day, Farnik, me boy. And Shelly-lass. All of you, you are forgiven. Shellica, the Light Hand Clan no longer need suffer in silence, and ye lot who thought ye slighted them—didn’t. Ye made their faith in me that much more worthwhile. But times are changing, and as the facets of a gem change when ye shift yer hand, so too must our people. All of ye are witnessing the dawn of a new age as we defend ourselves from War and his forces. The birth of Dwarven magic users is nigh.”

  He shifted his gaze to those on stage. “Granite, berserker and father—bestow upon yer boy his name, that I may bless him.”

  Granite, mouth moving in silence, slapped himself and looked at his son. “Lad, yer name as ye have earned it. Ye, as witnessed by all here, shall forevermore be known as Fainnir. He who walks with the Mountain. Bring glory to yerself, the Mountain, and Dwarven kind.”

  Fainne’s face nodded, and he spoke now to the newly-named Dwarf, “Fainnir, set that stone down and break it with yer axe, lad.”

  The shocked lad sat the black stone down, brought the too-large axe down on it, and a burst of light took the stage.

  “I, Fainne—Craftsman, Mountain, Metal Bringer, and Harbinger of your kind—bless this child named after me with the gift to bring about a new age to Dwarves. May he bring honor to himself and his kin.” To the rest of the crowd, he said simply, “Love each other, and know that I love you though I am not always here. Work hard, my children.”

  The light faded a moment then returned, and the diamond was still there—a reminder of His presence above the city. A reminder of the new facets his people would soon see.

  I looked over to see Fainnir shocked, looking at something. “What is it, Fainnir?”

  “Me status screen.” He looked at me, then his parents. “It says me class is Stone Mage!”

  “The hell is a Stone Mage?” Muu asked from off to my right. He was standing next to Farnik once more. “And who the hell was that?”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Mead and ale flowed in abundance. Half of that was joy at having been forgiven. The other?

  The other was at having met the embodiment of everything a Dwarf could hope to be. Their God. The Mountain.

  As we walked around and made sure everything was fine, I overheard conversations about what they had seen. I heard snippets like, “Can ye believe the Mountain blessed this child hisself?” or “So the Mountain’s beard looked like tha’? Tha’s the goal then, aye?” My favorite was what one Dwarf said to his friends after downing four consecutive mugs of alcohol, “We go’a tell ever’ody.”

  The most pleased by all of this was Fainnir. He was tickled to have an all-new class to his kind, and his parents couldn’t be more proud.

  “I cannae believe tha’ the Mountain came to me boy’s name day!” Natholdi bragged before taking a large gulp of ale.

  “Aye!” Granite smiled. He took a large drink of his mug, then looked at his son. “Yer the first of a kind, I thinks, lad. Drink yer ale, Fainnir. It’s fer the glory o’ the Mountain.”

  “Yes, da.” The young Dwarf tipped his small mug up into his mouth and lowered it to show his rosy cheeks and a happy grin. “Tha’s right good, tha’ is. Muu! Drink yer ale, lad. S’fer the glory o’ the Mountain.”

  “Don’t you tell me what to do, you half-sauced half pint,” Muu teased, but he took a drink as well. “You like what I brought you?”

  “Oh, aye!” Fainnir tapped the shield with the head of a Dragon on it. “Thank ye. An’ thank ye Zekiel fer me daggers an’ the thowin’ knives.”

  Oh, man. The kid was sauced already? “You’re welcome, bud.” I patted his head and took a drink from my own mug. “So, what does it say that you can do with your class?”

  “I dunno.” He shrugged happily.

  I do. I heard the rumbling of stone grinding against stone in my head, and I felt the pressure of something in my right palm, the diamond wall around the flame pulsed as the Primordial Earth Elemental spoke to me, Hello again, tiny Druid. I have seen you using the strength you borrowed from me. I have witnessed you be good to the dwellers of my domain and the children of my friend. Have the child call out to me from my back, and he will have another friend. Do this for me, and I will bless you further, as you have blessed him.

  QUEST ALERT!

  Earth’s little buddy – The Primordial Earth Elemental has asked you to encourage Fainnir to stand on the earth and call to him.

  Reward – Earth’s strengthened blessing.

  “Fainnir!” I called to the boy and stood. The alcohol in my system made me a little warm, but it was nowhere close to me being drunk. “Fainnir, come here, let’s do something. I got some magic you can do.”

  The small Dwarf hopped from his chair and promptly pitched over on to his rump. A resounding cheer erupted from everyone in attendance. Hell, some of the Dwarves even clapped. Farnik hooted from a table that had been brought out that he and his clansmen sat at drinking merrily despite the earlier sadness. When Fainne forgives—his people take that shit to heart.

  Fainnir stood up, raised his arms into the sky, and a louder cheer burst forth. He waddled unsteadily toward me, and Muu offered him an arm. Between the two of us, he finally stood in the center of the courtyard between the stage and the people here in support.

  “What I want you to do is close your eyes, hold out your hand, and call out to the Primordial Earth Elemental,” I explained.

  “Ye wan’ me ta do wha’?” he responded blearily.

  “Hold your arm out, like this.” I held my right hand up with my fingers spread slightly. He mimicked me unsteadily. “Now, say ‘Primordial Earth, I ask of you, show me what I can do. Please’.”

  He looked at me oddly but closed his eyes, “Primo’dial Earth, I ask ye, what can ah do? Please.”

  Nothin’ happened. “Try again, Fainnir! You got this!” I gave him nod with a grin I hoped looked supportive.

  He hiccuped, looked around in consternation, then knelt on the ground, “Oi! Were ye nae listenin’, lad? Could ye help me learn me powers ‘ere, or no’?” Unsatisfied, he smacked the ground a couple times with his palm.

  A rumbling began beneath him, and a pile of rubble and stone formed where he had smacked the ground. When it was almost as tall as Fainnir it stopped growing and began to take shape. The center—core, whatever—was thick and oddly shaped with thick legs and arms protruding from it. There was a mouth and two diamonds for eyes.

  “Woooow,” I whispered. I had notifications, but I ignored them.

  Fainnir stood in front of it with wonder in his eyes. He no longer seemed intoxicated. “What’s yer name then?”

  The little figure looked at his summoner and clacked his jaws together, then spoke in a surprisingly deep voice
, “You summoned me, master, and father saw that you were worthy of the title you bear. I came to serve and to teach you.”

  All the Dwarves in attendance were quiet. Some looked a bit apprehensive until Granite called, “Aye, that’s all well and good, lad. But—do ye drink?!”

  The other Dwarves toasted, bellowed laughter, and a chorus of “C’mere little stone” sounded throughout the place.

  “I do not require sustenance,” the creature said. “I can consume things, but I do not need it for survival.”

  “Why did your father send you?” I asked the little creature. “What are you? What do we call you?”

  “He sent me to teach the little Mage,” it looked at me, and I swore the thin little mouth of stones turned up into a smile. “Hello, friend of nature. Father wishes to let you know that your assistance was crucial in this meeting, and you will be rewarded appropriately. My name is hard to pronounce in this tongue, so the little Mage may name me. I am a lesser earth elemental. The smallest of my kind.”

  “I’ll call ye…” Fainnir tapped his foot for a moment in thought. “Rocky? No. Stone? Ach, no. Oh, how about Earthbreaker? Nope, you’re of the earth.”

  “How about Pebbles?” Muu offered.

  I looked at him. “You sure that’s not copyrighted? Or trademarked?”

  “The fuck does that matter?” he threw his hands up and shouted at me.

  “No reason.” I looked anywhere else while smiling.

  “Pebble is suitable,” the elemental decided.

  “I know this is probably going to be one of those times that someone says ‘duh,’ but what exactly does a Stone Mage do?” Muu asked.

  “A Stone Mage’s focus lies solely in the use of the element of earth and the union of that element with mana,” Pebble explained. “After that union, their will becomes the will of the ground around them. This is not a new concept, as far as those who use elemental magic, but master will have a much stronger affinity for my element. He will have access to a stronger tier of earth magic than that of any normal Mage.”

  Muu and I both whistled. We looked over at Fainnir. He was staring at his hands now. Whispering something.

  “You okay, bud?” Muu asked, concern passing over his features.

  “Ye cannae hear tha’ voice?” he whispered to us urgently. “It’s like a cave in in me noggin. A rumble in me heart.”

  I smiled comfortingly, and Pebble stepped closer to him and patted his arm stiffly. “That is father. He speaks through the earth to you. It is not something that happens often. It means he likes you.”

  “Must mean he likes me too.” I smiled and put a hand on Fainnir’s shoulder. “He speaks to me as well.”

  “Father likes you greatly, Druid.” Pebble looked at me oddly. “You have not accepted his reward yet, have you?”

  “No, I haven’t,” I shook my head. The little elemental smiled his weird smile and patted my leg.

  “Father says that you should.” And he tottered back over to stand next to his master.

  I looked at him a moment longer and opened the blinking notification.

  QUEST COMPLETED!

  Earth’s little buddy – The Primordial Earth Elemental has asked you to encourage Fainnir to stand on the earth and call to him.

  Reward – Earth’s strengthened blessing.

  About time, tiny Druid. You’ve been instrumental in a good deal since you have come to this realm. I sense that you have strengthened your bond with Flame and carry his pet. Allow me to gift you this. I like you, tiny Druid. Continue to be a diamond to others, and good luck on your endeavors.

  “Wait,” I blurted. I felt the immense pressure on my mind stop as it had begun to pull away. “Do you know where we may be able to find Dragons?”

  I have no such beings in my realm, and my influence on the Prime is… limited. Perhaps you should find time to speak with your Mother. Good luck, tiny Druid.

  Did he just… I swear, if an elemental equivalent to a god just “your mom-ed” me, I’m going to put my axe through something, I grumbled my thoughts as I tilted my head back to relax a bit.

  Abilities unlocked!

  Stone Weapon – Caster creates a weapon made completely of stone. Cost: 100 MP. Duration: Until dismissed or out of caster’s hand for more than 1 minute. Cooldown: 10 seconds.

  “Hot damn!” I clapped my hands.

  “What’s up?” Muu asked. “Get a new ability?”

  “Yup!” I smiled at him. “But enough about me, what about you? I meant to ask you about what enchantments you wanted for your new weapons and gear when I saw you the other day, but then things happened while you were busy.”

  “It’s cool, bud.” Muu waved it all away. “Uh, if I’m being honest and not at all holding back, I’m going to need to be able to jump a lot better than what your boots could give me—no offense.”

  “None taken.” I pulled a quill out. This one I had enchanted to never run out of ink while I had been training with Shellica. The design had been similar to the water basin I had made in the Fae Realm. I began to take down what he had said. “Continue.”

  “The jumping thing,” He thought a moment. “Lighter armor—this stuff is badass, but it should be lighter and more durable. My short lance is fine. I’d like to keep it, but I did put an order in for one made similarly with a stronger metal. The enchantment on this new one, I’m thinking lightning. Anything it touches should get fried to a crisp.” His face began to take on an almost-childlike expression. “And for the great lance that Granda is making me, I want to have it do ice damage, but I also want it to pierce things really really well. The piercing should be priority, though. Ah, boots—jumping because duh—and they will have spikes that will help me gr–”

  “Woah!” I tapped him on the forehead with my finger to break him out of the rant. “You’re like a kid making a Christmas list. Jeez. What about your shield? The blade and the shield need to be separate, so what do you want?”

  “Sorry about that.” He thought a moment then said, “The shield should be impact absorbing, and the blade… The blade should be poison damage.”

  “Okay.” I finished writing. “I’ll talk to Shellica and see what can be done.”

  “Thanks, man.” Muu smiled, then grabbed my arm and sheepishly continued, “I do want to let you know, I appreciate you all taking such good care of me.”

  I smiled back at him. “Dude, you don’t even have to say anything. Ever. You saved me from myself—you and Yoh—and I will never forget that. So, when I got you—I got you because I know that you will do the same.”

  He pulled me into a firm hug, then gave me a big kiss on the cheek, the cheeky fucker, and I watched him walk over to Farnik’s table, lift a mug, and shout, “To Fainne!” The Dwarves roared in delight and drinking ensued.

  “He’s a good lad,” Shellica said from behind me. I didn’t jump—I’d heard her walking toward me. “He gave you a list then?”

  “He did.” I handed it to her and she looked over it. “I’m certain those are all doable?”

  She snorted. “I could do them hungover and half asleep.”

  “Keep drinking the way you have been, and that’s what you’ll do,” I observed lightly. Her cheeks were rosy tinted, and her speech was getting a little slurred. “The rest of our items should be done tomorrow or the day after.”

  “Aye, and I’ll do them all,” she smiled sweetly, “or I won’t, and I’ll let Vilmas work on a few of the ones I think will help her gain some experience.”

  “I trust your judgment,” I replied simply.

  “Something wrong, lad?” Shellica walked over to stand beside me. Her steady gaze looked up at me.

  “I caused a lot of unnecessary guilt in a lot of your people today.” I closed my eyes and the scenes of Dwarves cutting their beards—their physical badge of pride and honor—off and putting it at Shellica’s feet. “If I had kept my mouth shut… If I had kept my fucking mouth shut, none of this would have happened. I put everything at risk fo
r Fainne to come here because of the turmoil I caused.”

  “You aren’t wrong.” She patted my arm. “I told ye to leave it be. Ye didn’t.”

  I nodded, and I felt her strong grip on my elbow and looked down at her. Tears streamed from her cheeks.

  “I’m glad ye didn’t listen, ye thick-headed child.” She pulled me close to her and hugged my waist. “If ye hadn’t been clan to Mugfist already, I’d adopt ye as me own.”

  “That would send your son into a rage,” I snorted.

  “He wouldn’t know.” A look of longing and a frown crossed her face. “He left us shortly after you did. I reprimanded him too hard, but he had to learn. I awoke one morning to find that he had gone, claiming to know how best to walk his own Way.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that, Shellica,” I tried to offer her what comfort I could.

  I know that a mother’s love is a crazy thing, and she was pretty fucking crazy already, but that she had torn into him for how he treated me for trying to learn my craft and then being an asshole about it was nice. It showed that she cared, not about just me but him, the racist piece of shit I thought him to be.

  “I am too. Come. Let’s enjoy the festivities.”

  After that, we drank and made merry. Everyone continued to drink and sing loudly.

  At one point, Farnik—piss drunk and teetering dangerously—shouted, “Granite! Where are ye, ye legen’ary bashard? Come hel’ me clean me face!”

  Granite, also piss drunk, stood and walked from the table on stage, stopped at the edge, and looked down at the ground. He gave a little, “hep,” as he fell down and promptly landed face first on the stone.

  Bellows of laughter ensued as he dragged himself slowly to his feet and began to trudge toward Farnik. Farnik had climbed slowly up on the bench he’d sat on, and Granite held his hand out for something to use as a razor. Someone handed him an axe, and he began slowly shaving the leader of the Mugfist Clan.