Tales of the Wolf: Book 02 - Enter the Wolf

by A. E. McCullough

  “It is done. I would estimate less than an hour.”

  Darnac raised his eyebrow in a silent question but neither the warlord nor his mistress would elaborate and protocol forbade him to ask. Turning his attention back to the approaching cyclopean army, the Blademaster once again wondered about the fate of his friend Grunk.

  * * * * *

  Aaron Trollslayer stared at the messenger with disbelief. He had heard the same report as his commander but was having a hard time believing it.

  Derek Ironhand placed a foaming mug of ale in front of the messenger and said, “Drink this. Then calmly tell me once more what happened.”

  No dwarf ever let a foaming mug of spirits go to waste. Marcus was still young by dwarven standards but downed the ale quickly before giving his report, again.

  “The goblins are retreating.”

  Aaron Trollslayer couldn’t hold back his tongue any longer. “Why? What is different about today?”

  Derek Ironhand let the slip of protocol slide because he was wondering the same thing. Since the goblins had captured the Lower Quarter ten days ago, they had kept the dwarves at a stalemate. They had held the entrance corridor and would not give ground, no matter how many died. Now this messenger was saying that the invaders were retreating. It didn’t make sense.

  “Tell me exactly what happened,” Derek commanded.

  Marcus cleared his throat. “The fighting was fierce. The same as it has been for the last few days, when suddenly a loud whistle sounded through the cavern. The goblins didn’t hesitate, they turned and ran. Some even dropped their weapons in their haste to flee.”

  “A whistle?” Aaron asked.

  Marcus shrugged. “A horn, whistle, blast, I don’t know. I have never heard anything like it before. It seemed to fill the whole cavern with its sound. But whatever it was, the goblins broke lines and ran.”

  Derek leaned forward eagerly. “Did they flee back through the opening they created?”

  Marcus shook his head. “No, that was also strange. They fled up the southern ramp.”

  Aaron said, “But that only leads to the South Gate.”

  “My sergeant fears they are planning to let in additional troops.”

  Derek shook his head. “No. There would be no need to abandon their defenses to open the South Gate if they were planning to add to their forces. The whistle is the key. It was a signal of sorts and has a more nefarious meaning than we could know. Of that I am sure.”

  “What are your orders sir?” Marcus asked.

  Derek Ironhand turned to his sub-commander and said, “Take command of the troops. Follow the invaders. Once you reach the failsafe, close the South Gate once and for all. Either after they exit or on top of them, I don’t care which. I just want that gate sealed permanently. I will try to get word to the king and join you shortly.”

  Having their orders, Aaron Trollslayer and Marcus left the King’s Regent pondering the actions of the goblins and figuring the best way to contact his liege.

  * * * * *

  In the few seconds Broun had to study their situation, he knew he was going to die today.

  He was trapped in a cave with a bunch of elderly barbarians and women. The only true warrior in the bunch was the huge werebear with the axe but he was on the other side of the cave along with Matanza, his centaur friend. Looking at those closest to him, Broun’s heart dropped.

  All that stood between the enormous scorpion and the whimpering villagers behind him was the old wizard and two elderly barbarians holding crude spears. The rest were useless, none of the women had any weapons, hell one was even in labor. Yep, Broun decided it was hopeless. The wizard seemed too tired to cast anymore spells, although he had cast a few beautiful fire spells earlier. A cry from the newborn behind him nearly made him jump out of his skin. The scorpion seemed to get more agitated with every wail of the baby. Broun looked at the pitiful torch that he held. Being crudely fashioned they wouldn’t burn for much longer and then they would be supper; scorpion supper.

  Broun snickered in spite of himself.

  Anasazi looked down and asked, “What’s so funny my little friend?”

  “Nothing,” Broun said. “Well, I was wondering how long the torches and your fire spell were going to last. Which lead me to thinking about fire, which lead to me thinking about supper; and then, of course when they fail, I realized that we would be scorpion supper and I guess I found that amusing.”

  Anasazi smiled. “I have missed the way my children think. It’s so refreshing.”

  Broun didn’t understand this remark but let it go seeing as they were about to die and he didn’t want his last few moments of life to be a lecture.

  Anasazi furrowed his brow as he looked across the cavern toward Tatianna. Speaking softly, Broun was amazed that he had no trouble hearing the old wizard when he spoke next.

  “Broun, I have much to ask of you and no time to explain. My spell is almost complete and when it falls, the shadow scorpions will attack. Even my magic is limited and I am almost spent. I have only a few spells left. I can distract our scorpion momentarily but you must ignore it and go to Nilrem’s aid.”

  Broun looked at the old man then at the huge barbarian. “How can I aid a warrior like him?”

  Without hesitation Anasazi said, “You must use your daggers. The ones you received from the high-priest of Hodios for services rendered.”

  “How…how do you know about those?”

  “I told you I don’t have time to answer your questions, I just need to know if you can do this. The scorpion’s weakest spot is behind their eyes. You cannot reach it but your blades should be able to break through their exoskeleton.”

  “And?” Broun prompted.

  “Hopefully that will buy Nilrem enough time for him to find a way to kill it.”

  Broun glanced over his shoulder at the huddled villagers behind him. “What about them?”

  “Their odds are not good but then only Tatianna’s child has to survive. And it has to survive, at any cost. He is the hope of all Terreth.”

  “You truly believe that old man?”

  “I know it.”

  Broun had never been much of a religious man. He had joined the faith of Hodios the Trickster as a rash youth looking for adventures and the church seemed like a good place to gain contacts. It was. After many adventures, he was even called on by the high priest to commit a series of ‘property liberations’ as the church called it, everyone else would call it burglary. Upon completion he was awarded a matched set of daggers that were constantly coated with poison; one was a sleep poison and the other a slow poison. Neither potion ever dried out or needed replacing.

  Of course, that was about the time a bounty was placed on his head. Broun had decided that it was time to move to the country and leave the city life behind. Now this strange old man knew about his special daggers and was asking him to attack an enormous scorpion that was probably ten times his size to save a child which was foretold to save the world.

  Broun snickered at the absurdity of the situation but shrugged his shoulders. “Why not, if we are going to die, let’s take the bastards with us.”

  “Broun, remember what Lodur told you. It must be your choice to aid the Chosen One or not.”

  Setting down his torch, Broun reached under his cloak and pulled forth the twin daggers; one gleamed a sickly green in the firelight, the other yellow. “Okay old man, let’s do this.”

  “Prepare yourself,” was all Anasazi said as his wall of fire faded and both of the smaller scorpions raced across the cavern toward their prey.

  The gigantic scorpion at the cave entrance flicked its tail once and the body of Talking Bird flew out of sight. However, instead of rushing inside the cave as the highlanders feared, it turned away to face another enemy.

  Chapter 35

  Once the dwarves reached the ridge, they saw the gigantic scorpion at the cave entrance. Actually, there was no way to miss it. Without waiting for orders or asking any question
s, the two hundred dwarves of King Padric’s company attacked. The air was filled with the steady twang of crossbows as one group and then another fired. Those without crossbows took up defensive positions in front of the crossbowmen, while fifty of the dwarves formed a phalanx and attacked.

  The gigantic scorpion turned to face its new attackers and with a flick of its tail, threw the flopping body of a barbarian at the dwarves. Ignoring the pitiful arrows, the shadow scorpion charged the phalanx. Dwarves are stout fighters; short and squat with powerful legs and a good sense of balance. Pound for pound they are some of the deadliest fighters on Terreth but even their low center of gravity and resilient nature wasn’t a match for the shadow scorpion. When the two met, the scorpion just bowled them over and scattered their impressive formation. After that, it became just a huge melee with every dwarf trying to damage or kill the scorpion before it killed them.

  Only the twins, King Padric, Midach Bonecrusher and Rjurik Silvershield weren’t involved in the chaos at the moment.

  Mortharona said, “This creature is beyond the skill of your dwarves.”

  Before the king could speak up to defend the honor of his men Khlekluëllin added, “This creature can only be damaged by fire or magic, not cold steel.”

  King Padric nodded his understanding and hefted his hammer. Speaking a word in the ancient tongue of the dwarves, his hammer began to glow a brilliant blue. “Then I guess it is time to join the fight.”

  “I wouldn’t miss the fun for all the ale in Darkmoor,” said Midach as he copied his eldest brother’s move and his hammer glowed with a golden-yellow light.

  “Let’s dance,” said Khlekluëllin. Drawing his katana it flared to life causing blue flames to dance along its razor sharp edge.

  Rolling his shoulders to loosen them, Mortharona grinned. “Aye. Let’s dance with this devil.” Pulling free his twin swords, which were shorter than his brother’s katana but of similar design and black lightning flickered along its edges.

  Watching his four companions attack the gigantic scorpion, Rjurik felt odd. It wasn’t the fact he only had one hand or any thought of being limited in the battle, it was more that he was destined to do something else…something important. For some reason, Rjurik felt the need to pull out the sword he crafted. The moonstone in its pommel pulsed with white light and it seemed to hum with excitement as if it was anticipating the upcoming battle. That’s when he heard the wail of a newborn coming from the cave and knew what he was supposed to do.

  Without hesitation the old dwarf sprinted up the hill to the cavern.

  * * * * *

  Nilrem knew that this was the end.

  He was separated from the ancient shaman and facing a deadly enemy without any support. Well, he did have the young girl Amani standing bravely at his side holding Red Eagle’s magical sword. It was something but Nilrem feared it would not be enough. Glancing over his shoulder, Nilrem caught a glimpse of the baby crowning and knew that the Chosen One’s birth was imminent.

  Mantaza was doing his best to shield the birth with the bulk of his body while helping the young elf deliver the child. He didn’t envy the centaur; he had seven kids of his own, three which he had to deliver himself.

  Hearing Anasazi say “Prepare yourself,” Nilrem returned his attention back to the huge scorpion in front of him as the wall of flames separating them faded into nothing. The scorpion attacked. Blocking the scorpion’s initial swipe with one of its pincers, Nilrem would’ve died in the next instant if Amani hadn’t been with him. Knocked off balance due to the strength of the scorpion’s attack, Nilrem didn’t even see the coming strike of the scorpion’s tail until it was too late. Out of the corner of his eye, he got a close up look at the foot-long barb as Amani parried it past his head.

  “Thanks,” muttered Nilrem as the scorpion continued its attacks.

  The two highlanders did their best to parry, block or dodge the deadly attacks but they both knew that sooner or later the scorpion was going to land a hit. When Nilrem’s axe handle broke during one of his attacks, he thought it was his time to die. Luckily for him, he was knocked aside instead of being lanced when Broun the halfling executed a backstab attack on the great beast. The large werebear fell hard against the cavern wall and landed heavily on Tatianna’s backpack.

  Amani screamed when she saw Bluebear knocked aside.

  He was a legend in their community, not as great as Hawkeye but certainly one of the greatest warriors of her time. She felt honored to stand beside him in defense of Red Eagle but now she was the only defender between the beast and the Chosen One. And she was frightened.

  Remembering to breathe, Amani let her mind drift into the zone that Tatianna had taught her during their sparring sessions. As she slipped into the warrior’s mindset, she felt her fear melt away. She became one with the magical blade as she parried, blocked and counter-attacked well beyond her training. Tatianna’s enchanted blade, the Moonsword, seemed to float in her hand moving from block to strike with barely a conscious thought. For a few moments, she was the living embodiment of Minos; the warrior incarnate and it saved the life of the Chosen One.

  Broun still couldn’t believe that he had attacked the scorpion but when he saw the huge highlander and the young girl stand against the beast in defense of Tatianna, he had acted. His first strike had been true, cutting right through the beast’s exoskeleton. But when the large barbarian was knocked aside he knew that if or when the great beast attacked him, he would not be able to survive. So he did what any good burglar would do, he hid. Pulling out a glass vial of black liquid, he threw it hard against the cavern floor. The potion was a trade secret of the followers of Hodios. It was a mixture of several rare roots and herbs combined with a bit of magic; the result was a potion called liquid darkness. Due to its magical properties, the black cloud it created was so dense it blocked all forms of vision, natural and magical. However, it would only last for a few seconds but more than enough time for Broun to hide behind a nearby boulder.

  As the inky black cloud enveloped the huge scorpion, Nilrem struggled to regain his focus. The cavern was spinning slightly and his limbs felt heavy but he knew in his gut that he had to move. Rolling over to get his hands under him, Nilrem felt the haft of an axe buried inside Red Eagle’s backpack. Without thinking, he ripped open the pack, grabbed the ancient axe and attacked.

  Nilrem felt the balance of the axe shift in his hand, as if it was filled with water. The weight was suddenly in his hand and not in the head of the axe which had began to glow a fiery red. His first slash with the dwarven axe scored a deep gash in the exoskeleton of the beast and after that the battle became a blur of motion once again.

  * * * * *

  Rjurik rushed past the gigantic scorpion without a second glance, he knew in his heart that the true battle for the fate of Terreth was inside the cave. Passing a burnt corpse at the entrance, Rjurik took in the chaotic scene inside.

  Two scorpions the size of horses were locked in mortal combat with the survivors. On the far side of the cavern was a white haired highlander battling single-handedly one of the scorpions; all those around the old wizard were dead or dying. Closer to him was Tatianna. Rjurik could see that a kneeling centaur had just delivered her child and the only thing keeping the second scorpion from tearing her apart was a huge werebear with a glowing axe and a young girl with a sword.

  Without pausing to think his actions through, Rjurik leapt onto the scorpion’s back and thrust down with his Wolfshead sword. The enchanted blade slipped through the exoskeleton of the scorpion as if it wasn’t there and a loud howl echoed in the cavern as the Chosen One’s first cry filled the air.

  * * * * *

  Amani didn’t know where the dwarf came from nor did she care. When he had stabbed the great beast it reared up in an attempt to dislodge him and she saw her opening. Taking a two-handed grip on the Moonsword, Amani struck with all her might. Aiming for the same junction Nilrem had attacked on the first scorpion, the young girl was rewarded
with a flood of black sand-like particles as the great beast disintegrated.

  Nilrem didn’t wait or question their good fortune.

  As soon as he saw the beast fall away into nothing, Nilrem was in motion. Anasazi was on the far side of the cavern and was pinned to the ground by the great beast. Knowing he couldn’t cover the distance before the scorpion’s tail skewered the ancient shaman; Nilrem threw the dwarven axe. A trail of fire followed in the wake of the axe as it cut right through the shadow beast before burying itself into the cavern wall. The scorpion shuddered once and disintegrated.

  Chapter 36

  Tatianna’s world was awash with pain.

  Logically she knew that they were in trouble. She could tell that they were under attack but she couldn’t concentrate enough to get past the pain. She had read stories about the joys of childbirth; at this very minute she knew them all to be lies. Her world was a series of painful contractions with the overwhelming urge to push and brief moments of rest.

  With one mighty push, she felt the pain slip away and exhaustion overwhelm her as her son entered the world. His first cry was music to her ears and when Matanza placed him in her arms, all the pain became worth it. She didn’t remember screaming during childbirth but her throat felt raw and it hurt to speak. “Thank you.”

  Lurching himself to his feet, the centaur bowed his head slightly. “No thanks is necessary, I only did what was needed.”

  Tatianna noticed that the cavern had gone eerily silent even though a battle still raged outside. Struggling to sit up, she smiled as Amani moved to her side to help. Looking around, she took note of the carnage the scorpions had made of the villagers. Even though a great sadness filled her heart at the sight of their bodies, seeing the grinning form of Rjurik walking up to her lifted her spirits at the same time.

  “Hiya lass.”

  “Rjurik! You’re alive!”

  “Aye lass and so are your brothers. They are outside right now fighting a larger version of the beasties you had in here.”