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

by Christopher Johns

  “Eathali, padilon, Fae diwali liv mat filli fon. Omywio.” He looked to Jaken as he spoke but was careful to speak slowly, then motioned for us to wait for him.

  “He wants us to wait while he finishes his trial,” Jaken translated.

  “We gathered as much.” Yohsuke shook his head. “Laggy-ass translator. He’s gotta know that’s not gonna happen.”

  “He’s adamant,” Jaken explained. “He told me that he was the youngest of the tribe to attempt it, but there’s a lot of honor riding on this for him.”

  “So, then we follow at a distance, and try to make sure he stays alive.” Bokaj motioned to the kid as he began to move on. “Say we give him a few minutes and then start moving?”

  Two minutes had passed before we moved, and Bokaj picked up the boy’s trail easily. He was definitely not leaving the trail that the armored creature did, but he wasn’t nearly the invisible hunter he made himself out to be. Of course, I don’t know that he had ever made that approximation of his skills.

  I took my panther form and climbed up a tree, then padded through the limbs that connected and went in the same direction as the party. It was hard going at times, but I managed it well enough.

  I half expected the voice of the panther to attack me the way that the owl’s had, but it seemed content to be quiet and observe—if it was even interested.

  The destruction stopped after about ten more minutes, doubled back, then reversed and moved on further along the trail with no damage to the trees. Well, there were some, but only when the trees were too close.

  The foliage here in this area was much darker and thicker to look at than what we had seen initially. Our footsteps slowed because the boy’s did. He was focusing heavily on the area in front of him. The brush and bushes began to shift and part as the horned head of the rhinoceros-like creature pressed through. There were flecks of blood along the side of its head and gore on its horns.

  Shiiiiiit, I groaned to myself. The beast began to advance menacingly, and even I felt threatened by its presence.

  The Belgar will kill that child, the panther’s voice growled through my head. It is fully grown and older. It can kill something his level easily. Unless you wish to take the child’s remains to his family—I suggest you help.

  Well, shit. I prepared to leap from my spot, slowly sidling closer. To his credit, Set was cool under the creature’s gaze, even if he was a mere thirty-five feet from him on level ground. His dominant arm began to draw the arrow back while the arrow and grip of the bow were still low at his waist.

  I was suddenly aware of the others now. Jaken slowly crept from his trailing position forward to be within line of sight. Likely gaining line of sight so he could take the aggro.

  The Belgar looked at all of us, and I shifted into my fox-man form to try and speak with it. “Hello, friend!”

  The creature looked up at me, startled, “You speak, creature?”

  His voice was surprisingly lyrical. Was that sylvan? Were each of the animal tongues that different in the realms too? Did that mean that I might not be able to speak with some creatures? I’d have to ask Mother Nature later.

  “I do.” I tried to smile and keep my voice light and cheery. “Tell me, how did a powerful Fae such as yourself come to be here?”

  He snorted and pawed the ground. “I do not know. I found a drinking hole I liked and fell in. When I rose, I rose here. Then the little stick thrower attacked me.” He tossed his head at Set. “I do not know the customs here, but that is a rude thing to do among the Fae. It is a challenge.”

  “And you cannot leave a challenge unanswered.” I nodded sadly. “Well, that’s unfortunate. I promised to get the boy to his people, and he seems to have it on the brain that he needs to kill you to prove that he’s a good hunter.”

  The Belgar tossed his head back and laughed, “He can try! I will gore him as I have many others, and then I will kill all comers. You as well, creature—if you get in my way.”

  Oh, shit balls. I looked over at the kid, and James held him still. Though he struggled mightily, the Paladin barely moved.

  “Tell you what, how about we play a game,” I offered.

  “There are no games,” the Belgar grunted, unimpressed.

  “Then a wager?” I offered a second time. The Belgar seemed to think a moment, then stayed silent, so I continued, “You know that you’re capable of killing the child easily. So how about you give him an advantage. Let our Ranger help him. None of the rest of us will interfere so long as the two of them are fighting you. If you will agree to that, I will give my word, that should you win—none of us will attack you so long as you don’t attack us.”

  “I can agree to this contest of honor. Stand before me challengers.” I translated to the others. Set let the arrow slide back a little to relieve his arm.

  I hope you know what you’re doing, man, Jaken growled into my head.

  They’ll be fine so long as the kid stays on the move, and Bokaj can lay down the hate.

  So, if it starts to get bad, we bring him toward one of you guys, and if he fucks up, you can join in.

  I looked down to a tree across the path and saw Bokaj glance my way, and I gave him a nod.

  Bokaj dropped from his position in the trees, Tmont’s form slinking over behind him as he stood next to Set.

  “I have no quarrel with you, panther. You may stand aside while I battle these two.” The Belgar waved his head to the left for Tmont to stand aside.

  “My place is with master,” Tmont growled menacingly. “He will kill you, and I will help. Know that I bear you no ill will other than that you will be trying to harm my master.”

  “That is fair. Creature!” The Belgar looked my way, the eyes on the sides of his head looking my way. “What are these opponents’ names?”

  “They are called Set and Bokaj, and the panther is Tmont,” I called down. “What is your name, so I can tell them?”

  “I am called Teyatunga the Thunderous.” He lifted his large head and snorted before stomping the ground with a resounding thud.

  I translated the message for the two below us, and they nodded toward the creature.

  Set looked at Bokaj and began speaking—Jaken translated actively—“Stay out of my way, and do not take my kill.”

  Bokaj just shrugged, slung his bow and stepped over to the tree I was on. He used Nature’s Path, stepped through the trunk of the tree, and then stepped out on to a limb just above me.

  “The one in front of you has opted to take your hide for himself, and Bokaj will graciously allow him to try with minimal support.”

  Teyatunga snorted and flicked his ears. “Fine. Say the words, creature.”

  “I, Zekiel Erebos, speak on behalf of this group. I give you my word of honor as spokesperson that not I, James, Jaken, or Yohsuke will harm you in any way during this fight or after should you be the victor—unless you attack us in any way. Purposely or otherwise.”

  “I, Teyatunga the Thunderous, meet this challenge as I do all others. I will stand by my word not to harm those who do not participate and hold you to yours with your stipulations. Fight well.”

  “He said to fight well,” I called to Jaken, who translated to Set. He nodded to the Belgar and fired an arrow right at the creature’s eye.

  Teyatunga tossed his head to the side and snapped the arrow on his wide front horn, his ears flicking forward toward the enemy. The Belgar bellowed loudly and charged right at him.

  Set rolled out of the way a second before the great beast steamrolled through his previous spot. He didn’t make it out completely unscathed, though. His bow snapped as the Belgar’s armored skin hit the end, and it was out of commission instantly.

  Set cursed in a language I didn’t understand and drew a small dagger from his inventory. He timed his stride with the next charge and ran up the side of a tree. The Belgar rammed into the wood, and the tree began to fall. Set leaped from the falling trunk and landed on the creature’s back where he stabbed down as vici
ously as he could. The blade snapped in half and clattered uselessly to the ground with a soft clatter.

  Maybe time to step in, bud, Jaken broadcast to all of us, but Bokaj simply shook his head.

  Set placed his feet and hands inside the ridged plates of the Belgar’s natural armor and held on as the creature bucked and thrashed wildly. It bumped the tree that we were in, causing me to lose my balance, knock my shoulder against the limb below me as I fell. Bokaj tried to grab me but wasn’t able to keep me up from the momentum that shook me out of his grasp.

  I collided hard with the back of the creature and the child clinging to him for dear life. The smaller horn on the top of the creatures head tore through my wrist and flung me sinfully from its back.

  “Fuck, that hurt,” I grumbled aloud.

  The creature stopped and stared at me for a moment. It looked at my wrist and saw the blood that cascaded from it, dribbling as my health bar fell slightly.

  “And so another has come,” Teyatunga grunted. “Make this a worthy contest.”

  “You got it.” I smiled grimly. This had gone according to how I had hoped it would.

  With how much of a juggernaut the Belgar was in motion, and his destructive tendencies, that had been the exact result I was looking for—albeit I had hoped it wouldn’t hurt so badly.

  I cast Regrowth on myself and shapeshifted into my new Belgar form. I could see, but it was weird. Like the vision was split and angled to the sides of my head, though it was poor. Lines were blurry and fuzzy, but my sense of smell and hearing were sharper than my normal form. I flicked my ears toward the direction I had been facing and heard the creature pacing forward.

  A deep baritone voice that had a musical quality similar to the creature I thought was still in front of me rang out in my head, You are more nimble than he, shuffle to the side and press forward the opposite side of your shuffle with your head low. Let your horns do the work.

  Belgar instinct was trying to tell me how to run shit? This was going to be cool.

  I followed the advice and shifted left before tucking my head and charging forward. I felt a clang against my armored skin and realized that I had missed my mark.

  Prepare for impact! Your nimbleness was your undoing, lift your back legs, let the momentum of his hit carry your body around. You will be hurt, but you will be able to use that momentum to turn and charge his rear.

  As I was about to ask with the fuck he meant by that, Teyatunga hit my left flank and flung my body around like I was a car in a bad t-bone accident. I tried to keep my legs beneath me as I landed, but one leg was a little more hurt than I’d be able to move with. It was next to lame.

  I shifted back into my fox-man form, and my vision was instantly better. I saw that the Belgar was on his way to try and turn around, so I had time. I was at eighty-five percent health. Then suddenly, I was up to full health, and my leg was back in working condition. I looked at a flash of light above me and saw Bokaj nod to me and lift his bow.

  Time to try something I hadn’t been able to do until now. I activated my first aspect. 200 MP drained from my reserves, and my body was suddenly heavier, my fur hardened like armor, and my snout tickled slightly. My muscles bulged thicker, and I felt as if I’d be able to stop a truck.

  Aspect of the Belgar – The Primal Warrior’s body thickens, becoming sturdier and stronger like that of the Belgar.

  +30 defense, +15 strength, Movement speed is severely lessened unless charging.

  Oh, this was fucking sick! I lowered my body’s center of gravity by bending my knees and prepared myself to meet him head on when an idea came to mind. There were no restrictions that I could see—could I stack aspects?

  No time to experiment.

  Fuck it. We’ll do it live, I grunted and readied to rock and roll.

  Teyatunga thundered toward me and lowered his head. I caught a glance of Set, and the kid leaped from the Belgar’s back. I brought Magus Bane into my hand and switched from the bladed symbol to the hammer side and took a batter’s stance.

  “Ha!” Teyatunga was closing in now, only twenty feet away. “You think a stick will stop the Thunderous! I will shatter you both! Oof!”

  Once he had stepped into my range, I activated Devil’s Hammer and swung for the fences. The hammer portion of the great axe smacked into the side of his head as an arrow pierced his right eye.

  Bokaj had given me a better target to aim for. The Belgar’s health bar plummeted to fifteen percent, and though his momentum carried him further than my strike, his direction had changed from my ringing his fucking bell as hard as I did.

  He careened through the trunk of the tree behind me about ten feet away, though he had hit it head on and it collapsed to the ground, his health had gone down further. Just barely there.

  As I walked over toward him, Set just appeared above his head and spoke with his chin jutted forward.

  “Ala putouri, Belgar—alar adanari ack me fratera.” He took five of his arrows and threaded them between his middle two fingers. All that remained visible were the heads and maybe an inch or so of the shafts.

  No time for dick jokes, man. Pull your shit together.

  With a jump three feet into the air, the Fae-Orc child used the gravity of his landing to add strength as he punched his improvised weapons into Teyatunga the Thunderous’s good eye. The Belgar stilled, and the life ebbed from him.

  Set knelt in front of the creature’s still corpse and put his head against the body. Upon closer inspection, I saw tears running down his checks.

  “Jaken, did you hear what he said?” I asked as we began to move closer. I noticed that each movement I made toward walking was still slower.

  I dropped Aspect of the Belgar, and I was immediately faster, but so much weaker. My fur returned to normal, and I knew that I would miss the added strength.

  “He said, ‘thank you, Belgar—your sacrifice for my brothers.’” I nodded. It was an interesting sentiment.

  Thanking an animal for its sacrifice was a common thing that a lot of Rangers did, according to some of the games I had played and books I had read back home.

  “Taking a life like that is hard, but it was his kill,” Bokaj said from behind me. Despite having heard motion behind me, I still flinched. “Tell him to stop crying like that. He’ll dishonor his opponent.”

  Jaken scowled at the Ranger, then knelt next to Set and began speaking to him in low tones. His head rocked back after a moment, then he looked at us.

  “This was his first kill,” Jaken said gravely.

  What. The. Fuck. Who the fuck does that to a kid? Wait, was it done purposely? Did he come here on his own?

  Before any of us could ask those questions, Jaken was already questioning the boy. It turned out that he had been sent here, and by his chieftain no less, to hunt the largest creature he could find. If the creature wasn’t the largest in the area, and other hunters proved it wasn’t, he would be cast out. The kid was an orphan. His parents had been shamed greatly, leaving him and his two little brothers behind when they fled the village.

  “Fuck,” James said with conviction more than any other emotion. “What do we do?”

  “Only thing we can do, man.” Yohsuke patted his shoulder. “We take him back to his people, and if they want to try and fuck with us, we take him and the kids back to Sunrise.”

  I looked at my brother, and the look in his eyes brooked no argument. That’s what we would do.

  “So, who wants to help me drag this big bastard to the village?” I smiled at the others.

  I cast Aspect of the Ursolon.

  Aspect of the Ursolon – The Druid takes on a larger, stronger form to better fight with.

  +10 strength and damage output increased by 20%

  My body grew, and my muscles thickened once more until I was seven feet tall. We tied a thick rope around the upper body of the Belgar, and between Jaken and me, we were able to drag it. I had to recast the Ursolon aspect spell every ten minutes, but that helped me get used t
he change that my body experienced each time. I did figure out that you couldn’t cast an aspect with another one. It was one at a time. No mix and match.

  Cool part was that there was no mana loss from the attempt, so that was nice.

  It took us a couple hours, with a break every thirty minutes, but eventually, we made it to a heavily wooded portion of the jungle. There were large logs carved into spears dug into the ground facing toward our approach.

  “This has to be the village,” I grunted.

  The strain of having to drag the Belgar’s carcass was starting to truly wear on my body. Jaken’s skin was just as slick with sweat as mine was.

  Set ran ahead, shouting something that alarmed Jaken. “He’s telling them not to shoot us. I can’t even fucking see anyone—get ready for a fight if they don’t like him that much.”

  Bokaj’s voice rang through my head, Two in the trees off to the left, six on the right in the bushes and shrubbery, and then there’s one that we are about be on top of that is walking closer with the kid.

  How the fuck did you know that? Yohsuke asked back.

  They hide well, but Tmont can smell all of them, and the one in front of us isn’t trying to remain hidden, Bokaj responded readily enough that it seemed as though he had thought that question may come. Kudos.

  “Welcome to our humble village,” the person with Set spoke with a thick, musical accent.

  His hair was light brown and long, even in a ponytail. His features were tanned, but not nearly as dark as Set’s, and his light eyes were impossible to define in the low light in this area. His features were definitively elvish, as was his thin but muscular build.

  “How can we help you?” the figure continued.

  “We stumbled upon Set as he was fighting a Belgar that had stumbled into your territory,” I looked the man in the eyes as Bokaj explained and motioned to the beast we dragged along. “A couple of us helped him, but he delivered the final blow.”

  There was a glint of hard disbelief. “I see. So he did not kill the beast on his own.”