by Logan Petty
"You'll be safe in here for now," She whispered to her creation as she patted its steel carriage.
A goblin she knew from childhood approached her, "We be's ready to go, missus. Just gives us the orders."
She nodded as the other goblins gathered around, "Thanks, Crieza. Alright, you all know what to do. Go in with as many weapons as you can quietly carry. Make sure you have your lock picks before you go! Your only job is to free the dwarves and give them weapons. No need to join in the fighting yourselves."
They all chanted in unison, "We be's gobs, not heroes."
Magina nodded, "Words of wisdom we should all live by. Let the dwarves and Sawain's crew be the heroes today. Tomorrow, you'll have the spoils of war without spoiling yourselves!"
The goblins chattered excitedly among themselves a moment before Magina raised a hand to quiet them down, "Alright, the other teams should be in place by now. Grab your gear and spread out. Good luck, my friends!"
She sauntered over to the nearest cart and loaded her belts with daggers and swords. Each one she strapped on threatened to betray the nerves she felt beneath her calm exterior. Once sufficiently laden, she checked her pouch for the mythril lockpick she made herself when she was nine. It had never failed her yet.
Dozens of goblins silently padded past her, peeking out of holes where light crept into the darkness before slipping through them into the city proper. She followed suit and moved down the tunnel until she heard the clinking of picks against stone. The tunnel subtly converged with an abandoned mineshaft that once belonged to the Goldseer Company. Now it was just a gutted hole in the mountain with nothing valuable left within, so she thought. The clanging of picks grew louder the farther in she crept. She paused a moment as two other goblins sneaked past her, fading into the shadows of other hidden tunnels. She smirked, barely able to contain her excitement. Soon the dwarves of Caer Teallagh would be free of their bonds and the uprising would begin.
She continued quietly along the mine until she came to a widened chamber where the digging grew loudest, and mingled with the slave song her people sang mournfully as they worked.
Dig on, dig on, dig on til' the woe be gone.
Heave one, Heave two. Soon our labor pay will be due.
Breathe deep, sing loud, 'til the gods can hear this sound.
One day we shall see the dwarf land singing free.
Days hard, nights long, still we sing the deliverance song.
Heads of stone, hearts of steel, we will sing til' our land can heal.
In our hearts we bemoan the king who once sat upon his throne.
So dig on, ‘neath driver’s heel, work ‘til they our wrath may feel.
One day soon we shall see our sons and daughters singing free.
Magina bit her lip and held back tears as she waited in the shadows for the vampyr overseer to stalk away out of sight. Once the coast was clear, she crept up to the nearest dwarf and hissed quietly to get his attention. He jumped as he saw her out of chains. His song turned to a hoarse whisper in the dwarven tongue.
"What are ye doing, lass? If the vampyr catch you, they'll eat you alive! Quick! begone!"
She shook her head while she produced her lockpick, "Not without you lot. Now quickly, keep digging and I'll have those cuffs off you in a flash!"
He shook his head in protest, but Magina ignored him as she slunk over to him and began working at the lock. She glanced in the direction of the overseer, who was busy lashing its latest victim. His yelling echoed from the far end of the chamber, causing her to nearly fumble the pick. A resounding click announced the success of Magina's endeavor. She slipped back into shadows as the overseer stalked around the corner. Its batlike features made her skin crawl as it rushed over to the dwarf she just freed. Its whip shot through the air, slashing his back with a loud crack.
"Keep digging, scum! Who told you to slow down?"
The dwarf sped up his production, begging the monster's pardon as he went. It loomed over him, sniffing the air. It turned toward Magina, who instinctively held her breath and pressed against the rock she hid behind. The vampyr slowly paced toward her, sniffing the air as it drew closer. Suddenly, a cry came up from the far end of the room.
"Boss! Boss! I founds something!"
The Vampyr's head snapped in the opposite direction, its prey forgotten as it flew to the far end of the chamber. Magina let out her held breath and moved down the line. The next dwarf, a young woman, watched her work at the lock, whispering blessings to her as the chain fell loose. Magina slipped her a dagger and moved down to another slave who was chained to a hauling cart. His eyes flickered toward the vampyr overseer as it shouted at him.
"Oi, you! Get that cart over here! The boss'll want to see this haul for sure!"
The dwarf stammered as he peered down at Magina, "A-aye, boss! Be right there!"
She bit her lip as the tumblers on the lock resisted her. The vampyr tilted its head at the slave who still stood where he was.
"Now, thrall! Before I turn you into supper!"
He jumped as his lock clicked loudly. The Vampyr must have heard it too. It sped down the length of the chamber like a bullet, spreading its wings wide as it peered over the cart. It gasped as Magina shoved an iron sword into its chest. The resulting screech was more of a gurgle as the Vampyr crumpled into the cart. She sighed.
"So much for subtlety."
She slipped out of cover, handing the dwarf she just freed the bloody sword. She quickly went to work at another lock. The dwarf who it held captive kicked her away. He spat at her.
"Foolish girl! You'll be the death of us all! What are you thinking? That you can challenge Malsivith?"
Magina rubbed her bruised face as she spat blood back at him, "I'm your liberator! Operation Stormfront has officially begun! Right now, my army is slipping into the other mines and setting all the slaves free. We have twenty carts laden with weapons spread throughout the city and are smuggling them in while getting the sick and injured out. If you're too scared to fight, then so be it. You can go with the other refugees. But if you're a true Dwarf of the Mountain, then stop your fretting and let me get those cuffs off! We have much work to do tonight!"
Another woman down the line piped in, "What makes you think yer little army's enough to stand up to the might of Malsivith when our army could not?"
Magina smirked, "Your army didn't have the Swerdbrekker and his team of monster killers. Right now, they are inside the city, doing what they do best. Soon, the fires of revolution will blaze through our sacred halls, purging the invaders! Today is the day of deliverance! Tomorrow, we will sing free! But right now, you have to let me break you from these chains!"
The thralls exchanged looks with each other. An explosion rocked the mine, sending clouds of dust down on their heads. They shouted in panic a moment before settling down. Magina gestured with her hand as if to make a point.
"See? The Revolution has already started. Now, do you want to stay in here and hide like cowards, or do you want to get out there and take back your home?"
They hesitated only a moment before nodding in agreement and holding out their cuffs. Magina smiled as she went to work. It took a few minutes to set free the dozen or so remaining captives. She passed swords and daggers out to everyone who decided to stay and fight. For the others, she guided them back through the goblin tunnels to the convoys, where they could rest and eat from the barrels of fruit the carts hauled in. Each time she returned with another group of refugees, she restocked her supply of weaponry. She spent hours scouring the tunnels for abandoned slaves as the chaos in the city proper spread. The guards around the remaining slave camps stayed tight and she had to stab a few dozen more Vampyr before reaching her targets, but as the night went on, security lessened as more vampyr flew to join the battle outside.
Once she was satisfied her half of the city was liberated, she made her way back to Maggy-II and buckled herself in. The machine whirred to life as she pushed it forward. Battle called to he
r and she would no longer resist its allure.
The tunnel wall she emerged from exploded, sending rocks flying in every direction. She sauntered out into the open streets of Caer Teallagh, or at least one of the several tiers of streets that comprised the city. She knew she had to be on the second level of the city, as three wider rings of tiers loomed above the line of buildings before her.
A cloud of Vampyr descended upon her from a level above. She cackled maniacally as she fired her custom lobber into the cloud. The explosions scattered the enemy, who fell to the lower levels in flaming piles. She tried to count her kills so she could brag about it later, but as she fired round after round into the seemingly endless swarm of foes, she lost count somewhere around two hundred. Maggy-II charged through the onslaught of enemies until ot carried her to the street that overlooked the web of gondola wires and platforms that stretched across the cavernous expanse of the city. She checked her ammunition reserves and realized she only had one canister of dwarven fire left. She pulled a lever and twisted a nozzle on her lobber, then struck a piece of flint and steel connected to the end that ignited a small flame at the end. The ground shook as a large troll jumped down to where she stood from one of the city's gondolas. It roared at her. She roared back and pointed her weapon. A jet of fire streamed out of it, setting the troll ablaze. It screamed in agony, thrashing about as Magina continued to spray it and the vampyr who came to its aid.
The rain of burning bodies lit up the darkness of the city. It was almost beautiful. The thrashing troll staggered too close to the ledge of the road and tripped on the rails, plummeting several hundred yards down to the lower levels of the city. Magina watched it fall like a shooting star, taking out one or two fiends on the way down. She smiled with satisfaction as it hit the ground.
"The fires of revolution are set ablaze."
More freed slaves poured into the streets from various levels along the tiered city. Magina fought her way along the complex network of twisting roads and intersecting tunnels. She kept an eye out for anyone from Sawain's team as she went, but had not seen a single one yet. She knew the city was huge. They could be anywhere. She slammed Maggy's drill into a charging vampyr, tearing it to pieces as she charged down a flight of stairs to the level below. Her best bet of reuniting with her friends would be to fight to the center of the city, where the World Forge lay dormant. With any luck, Sawain would be there by now and have claimed his holy blade.
As she pushed forward, a sudden glowing mist filled the streets. Hundreds of ghostly warriors dressed in an array of armor from every civilization in the world poured into the battlefield. They sprang from walls and through floors, impaling the unlucky defenders on ethereal blades. The weapons Magina passed among them did not seem to have much effect. She cursed herself as she overlooked such an obvious part of Malsivith's defenses. The few mages in the city fought back with magic, and even Maggy's flamethrower had some effect against the spectral foes, but they were outnumbered. If this revolution did not want to be dowsed right now, then she would have to come up with a new plan.
Then she remembered. Mythril! The holy metal of Caer Teallagh would kill ghosts efficiently, but she would need to make her way up and across town to the Royal Armory. Aside from the army of vampyr and unkillable ghosts, Malsivith would likely have it under tight surveillance, knowing full well that it would be his army's undoing.
She let her gaze wander in the direction of the armory, then that was when she saw him. A concussive blast of fire exploded out of his modified Lobber, incinerating a cluster of ghosts. The massive bronze colored golem charged through the corporeal enemies as if they were but a field of wheat, taking no heed to their volleys of necrotic magic. Another series of explosions marked his progress as he tore along the upper levels.
She sighed to herself as a squadron of goblins gathered around her. Crieza saluted her.
"Lady Magina! We be's here to helps ye fight fer yer home!"
She crossed her arms and scowled at the old goblin, "What happened to gobs not heroes?"
Crieza shrugged as she ducked a swooping vampyr, "We be's gobs AND heroes, missus! We tired of all other folk treating us like baddies because we always be's so cautious. Today be's good day to change all that!"
Magina smiled as she discharged a spout of flame to drive back the vampyr, "Well, who am I to argue against that logic? Alright then, let's get a move on."
Crieza sliced at another attacking vampyr, "Where to, Missus?"
She pointed toward the Royal Armory, "First, we're going to go pick up that bolt-brain, Vaghn and point him in our direction, then we'll use his... talents to raid the Royal armory and get ahold of some ghost slaying weaponry."
Crieza grinned maliciously, "Always wanted to kills me some ghosties."
"Well," Magina smirked, "Today is as good a day as any to live out your dreams."
Chapter Thirteen:
Banthan ran his hand along the smooth stone walls of the old mine shaft he traveled along with Vaghn and his freedom fighters. Each intersecting tunnel they encountered, another dozen or so dwarves joined their entourage. Within three miles of distance covered, Vaghn’s forces filled the tunnels and stretched well beyond vision.
They had been walking for hours it seemed and his feet ached as they trekked through the mountain. He vowed internally that once he could put this adventure behind him, he'd never go underground again. It felt so smothering, like he could be crushed beneath the weight of the mountain at any moment. It was almost as unbearable as Vaghn's self-glorifying tales of his past accomplishments. Banthan sighed loudly as Vaghn started again.
"Since we have time on our hands, I should tell you about the time I battled the Bandit King of the Northern Mountains. It's quite the tale, you see--"
Vaghn's henchdwarves groaned excessively, some throwing their hands to their faces, others shaking their heads.
Vaghn half jumped, shaking the tunnel, "What? That's a great story!"
"Aye, boss," One of the dwarves complained, "But it ain't yer story! Everybody knows that glory belongs to Lady Magina, and it ain't right fer ye to be stickin' yer name where it don't belong!"
The others grumbled in agreement. Vaghn let off a cloud of steam from the exhaust pipe that jutted from his back.
"Well, umm, I suppose yer right. Ye sure that wasn't me? No? Oh alright! I must be remembering it wrong is all."
Banthan nudged his sister, "I guess the great 'Dwarven Destroyer' has a rusty memory."
Silence met his joke as everyone stopped and glared at him. He sighed and shrugged, "Puns were always Mari's game."
He would never admit it out loud, but he really missed Mari's puns. As the party continued on, his mind drifted to his missing teammates. He had grown secretly fond of all his friends the last few years. Of course he had been fond of Naralei since childhood, but Mari and Timbrell's music always knocked him out of his bad moods. Jatharr's knowledge of wilderness lore amazed him continually. Though Kyra had joined their merry band only recently, he enjoyed watching her cast her magic with such flare and finesse. Even Sawain, as furious as he made him at times, had earned his respect through his acts of sheer heroism. Of course, he had never been good at admitting that either, which he imagined had led him into this predicament.
Loraleth eventually broke the silence, "Vaghn, the name Lady Magina came up earlier. We’ve established that our mutual ally is named Magina of the Uuthri. Might she be the one your story referenced?"
Vaghn glanced back, his motionless face still somehow managed a sort of shocked expression. He laughed jovially as he recovered his composure and carried on.
"So, the tinkerer is still tinkering with the Uuthri, is she? No, that's not the same Magina from the legend. The one you met is her granddaughter. I've heard tell their resemblance is uncanny. We'd better pick up the pace. If Magina is on the warpath still, we'll miss out on the fun should we dally."
Banthan huffed to himself. Plunging headlong into someone else's fight did not sound
like fun. When he started to think about it, all his adventures since he left home have been battles for other cities. As far as he knew, Alfhaven was already safe. If he had only turned back when Sawain charged out of the forest, he might have been able to stay with Loraleth and she might not have hated him as much as she did now. He would have been labeled a coward, but it might have been an easier burden to bear than traitor.
"Hold," Vaghn said suddenly, interrupting Banthan's inner monologue of self loathing. "We're close to the city proper now. Best you all be prepared for what you'll find there. It's big and open in Caer Teallagh, not like these cramped tunnels in the mines. The whole city was built into the heart of a hollowed out volcano, so it's quite spacious. That said, it's not as easy to hide such a fine specimen as myself among a city full of folk that only come up to yer stomachs."
He finished his statement by pointing at Banthan, who instinctively rubbed his belly, though he had no idea why. He sighed dramatically, as he often did to hide his nerves.
"So what, are you just going to sit this one out?"
Vaghn laughed heartily, placing his big metal fists on his waist, "Not a chance! Instead, I believe I shall serve as the distraction for you sneakier sorts. I'll cause a commotion and draw the enemy away. Meanwhile, you lot go around and find all the slaves in the city."
Loraleth tilted her head, "Then what? Just set them free and let them fend for themselves?"
All of the dwarves chuckled darkly. Vaghn shook his head as he flexed heroically, though his muscles amounted to gears and wire, he still looked quite powerful.
"Dwarves do not fend. We will unleash the indignant wrath bottled up within and kill every last one of those vermin once and for all. Then, when it's all said and done, we'll drive our mythril spears into Malsivith's black heart, ending his tyranny once and for all!"