“What song?” Baby asked, confused.
“The flute song that’s playing, can’t you hear it?” Heath asked.
“Music . . .” Baby mumbled, her eyes widening suddenly, she slapped her hands over her ears. “Cover your ears,” Baby shouted, unable to hear her own voice.
“Huh? My ears?” Heath said, his hands covering them as Baby told him to, not sure why he was doing so. After a moment, it was like a fog had lifted.
“Bloody Bards,” Heath hissed, not that Baby could hear him. Okay, so the spell was broken on Heath and Baby but how could they fight if they were covering their ears.
Baby kicked Heath in the shin. Then mouthed something to him.
“What?” Heath asked, confused.
Baby mouthed again, but slower. Then she mouthed it again.
Heath mimicked the motions of her mouth. Slowly finding the word ‘Play’ then ‘Music’ not that it helped him.
Finally, Baby appeared to have growled before removing her hands from her ears and mimicking the act of strumming on a guitar before she fell under the spell again.
“Now I understand, you want me to play my guitar to counter it, got it,” Heath said, not that anyone could understand him while under such a spell. It was a risk to remove his hands, but he didn’t have a choice. In one smooth action, Heath uncovered his ears, pulled the guitar from his bag and played a hard ‘A-minor’, completely discordant with the flute.
The effect was perfect, it seemed to jolt Baby and Gras and a few soldiers around him out of the spell.
“What? What is the meaning of this?” the closest Hammerton Guard asked, his eyes quickly glazing over.
“Don’t stop playing,” Baby all but shouted.
Heath wasn’t going to argue with that order in the slightest. He started playing that ‘A-minor’ hard and fast, setting his own fast tempo with no song in mind, he just needed to keep that flute’s song broken.
“It’s working,” Baby said, fluttering into the air again.
“We need to find that flute,” Heath said, mixing in an ‘E’, his fingers naturally finding the tempo and chords of one of his favorite songs.
“What is that?” the same Dwarf asked, snapping out of his daze again.
“There is a Bard here, he or she has been enchanting all of you,” Baby answered.
“Ruddy Bards!” the Dwarf howled before he noticed Heath, “No offense.”
Heath just smiled and kept on playing, ignoring several of the Dwarves around him muttering.
“You broke the spell?” the guard asked, looking at Heath.
“Yeah, but Baby figured it out,” Heath said, giving credit where it was due.
“You best keep strumming, lad,” said the guard. “Lads and lasses, we have got a flute playing Bard that needs killing. Time to get hunting.”
“It’s worse than that,” Baby said before the guards could rush off. “We have reason to believe someone may have infiltrated the gatehouse and intends to open the gates for Anvilton.”
“Aye, that is bad, lass,” said the guard. “I suppose that should be dealt with first then. Come on, and do not stop playing.”
That simple order was music to Heath’s ear. He knew becoming a Bard was a good idea.
“Keep up, lad,” the Dwarf ordered.
“You got a name?” Heath asked, tired of looking at the
“Hendel,” the Dwarf answered, his nameplate changing to
“Nice to meet you, Hendel, I’m Heath,” he replied, continuing to play the same two cords. He also couldn’t help but notice that more and more soldiers were following along as they got closer to the gatehouse and the front of the column. He also noticed the flute was getting louder as they got closer to the front of the column and the gatehouse, it was getting harder for the strumming of his guitar to break the effect, he found himself missing the occasional chord.
“Almost there, lads, just hold on,” ordered Hendel, though it was clear even he was struggling.
Heath shook his head. They weren’t going to make it at this rate, his circle of influence was shrinking.
“Heath, do something,” Baby said, her voice raised slightly, an edge of panic in it.
“Like what?” Heath asked, not sure how to fight against an actual Bard’s music.
“I don’t know, play the whole song, channel mana into your guitar, start singing for all I care, just do something,” Baby insisted.
Not having a better idea, Heath moved his strumming into the chorus, playing ‘A-minor’, ‘G’, ‘C’, ‘G’, ‘A-minor’ with a riff using his pointer and pinky on the second string, ‘G’, ‘C’, ‘G’, ‘D6’, and ‘E7’ and repeating it. It seemed to help but he was still losing.
Heath was reluctant to sing, it was one thing to goof off with his friends but to actually sing . . . That left just adding mana, trying to add mana at least. Heath tried to focus on the energy that hummed just under the surface of his skin, Heath nudged it, pushing it toward his hands and then into the guitar. It might have been his imagination, but he could have sworn his guitar was getting louder, that his blood was pumping faster, and his adrenaline was rising. Before he knew it, his song was filling the air, fighting against the flute’s, but most importantly, it was freeing more soldiers.
“Good work, lad,” Hendel shouted over the music.
Heath was happy to keep playing, though the rate at which he was losing MP was a little worrisome, -25-MP per second he played would leave him empty pretty quickly. But seeing the Dwarves surging forward, seemingly re-energized, made it completely worthwhile.
“They are on to us, hurry up and open the gates,” yelled a voice, the flute music suddenly cut out.
“We haven’t broken the lock yet,” another voice called back.
Heath couldn’t see what was going on ahead of him while he was focused on his guitar and the chords made famous by possibly the most famous guitarist of all time, the man himself, Keith Richards. He kind of wished he had an electric guitar and an amp to really push the sound. As it was, he needed to content himself with the fact that he was actually using music to help win a fight in a real way. If only it worked that way in the real world.
So, lost in the music was Heath, he didn’t realize the fight had ended. The gatehouse was secured and the gates themselves remained firmly shut.
“Well done, lad,” Hendel said, clapping Heath on the back, his hand hitting a bad chord and breaking his rhythm and tempo.
Heath looked around slightly confused at the sudden silence, there was no flute being played. Most of the soldiers seemed to be snapping out of their doldrums and began picking themselves up again.
Then Heath heard a banging noise, not from the gates but from the main doors to the barracks, which appeared to have been barred at some point.
“Leon, Jasper, open that door,” ordered Hendel, two Dwarves quickly rushed the barracks door.
“It is about time,” an angry Dwarf snapped, exiting the barracks through the unbarred door. His nameplate read
Hendel was quick to report everything, including a fair amount of praise for Heath and his music.
“Ruddy Bards,” the Sergeant complained. “No offense,” he added, looking at Heath.
“None taken,” said Heath.
“Corporal Hendel, organize some runners to retrieve the deserters,” the Sergeant ordered.
“Right away, Sergeant Murdock,” Hendel said, his fist thumping against his chest in a salute.
Sergeant Murdock turned back to Heath, “Heath, was it? Do you mind playing that tune again, breaking whatever enchantment that damned flute weaved on my men?”
“Can do,” Heath answered, eager for any opportunity t
o use his new skill. Speaking of, he had flashing notifications, hopefully, that meant he learned an actual guitar spell.
You’ve learned ‘Guitar’ subskills ‘Largo’, ‘Andante’, ‘Moderato’, ‘Allegro’, ‘Vivace’, ‘Presto’ and ‘Prestissimo’
Guitar II
Level: 13
Experience: 3.14%
Skill Effect: You are able to play the guitar.
Subskill: Largo
Speed: 40-76 BPM Spell Effect: Unknown
Spell Mana Cost: 5 per second
Subskill: Andante
Speed: 76-108 BPM Spell Effect: Unknown
Spell Mana Cost: 10 per second
Subskill: Moderato
Speed: 108-120 BPM Spell Effect: Unknown
Spell Mana Cost: 15 per second
Subskill: Allegro
Speed: 120-156 BPM Spell Effect: Unknown
Spell Mana Cost: 20 per second
Subskill: Vivace
Speed: 156-176 BPM Spell Effect: Unknown
Spell Mana Cost: 25 per second
Subskill: Presto
Speed: 176-200 BPM Spell Effect: Unknown
Spell Mana Cost: 30 per second
Subskill: Prestissimo
Speed: 200+ BPM Spell Effect: Unknown
Spell Mana Cost: 35 per second
Okay, not exactly what Heath expected but it was a start, a very good start. Now he just needed to figure out what the spells did. Something he had a feeling wouldn’t be discovered until he actually became a ‘Jack of All’.
“What about outside the gates?” Baby asked.
“What about it? Until we get orders otherwise, we stay put. Right now, I need to get my men back in order,” the Sergeant replied.
“People are dying out there,” Baby protested. “The other adventurers have probably already broken through the first gate. Don’t you get it? This whole thing was one big trap.”
“Sometimes, the best way to break a trap,” said Heath, pausing to adjust his guitar. “Is to smash it, mate.”
“We do not have orders,” Sergeant Murdock protested.
“Who can give those orders?” Heath asked.
“Colonel Hillman, Major Blunder or General Hammersmith,” the Sergeant replied.
“Then take us to one of them,” Baby insisted.
“Hendel,” the Sergeant shouted.
“Sergeant,” Hendel called back, rushing over.
“Get the men lined up as best you can,” the Sergeant ordered. “Anyone still under the effects of the ruddy Bard’s song is to be placed in the barracks, put them all in bunk room D. As for you three, come with me.”
Heath, Baby, and Gras followed the Sergeant into the barracks and down to the officer level where they found a grizzly sight. Colonel Hillman and Major Blunder were both dead and the General didn’t look much better.
“General sir,” Murdock said, rushing forward, Baby just behind him.
“Ruddy Assassins,” the General spat, wincing as Murdock helped to reposition him. “Curse upon them all.”
“May I heal you?” Baby asked. Under most circumstances, she would have started automatically, but this was a General.
“Aye, lass, do what you can,” General Hammersmith replied.
“Is the assassin dead?” Heath asked, his guitar switched out for his dagger.
“He had better be,” the General said. “His body vanished a moment after I delivered the killing blow, so I can only hope.”
“Anvilton adventurer then,” said Heath.
“Three of them, Colonel Hillman and Major Blunder held out as best they could, they will be honored for their service. They can be proud, they each took at least one of them before they died,” the General elaborated.
“Sir, we need to open the gates, send out our men before it is too late,” the Sergeant said. “We need to smash their trap, show them they failed.”
“Are the men ready?” the General asked.
“They will be,” Sergeant Murdock promised.
“Then see to it, Master Sergeant,” The General ordered, promoting Murdock, his nameplate changed to match the new rank.
“Sir, yes, sir!” Murdock shouted.
“Baby, keep healing the General, I’ll go with Murdock, see if I can’t break some more soldiers free from that enchantment,” Heath said, following the Master Sergeant back to the waiting soldiers only to stop at the entrance to one of the barracks.
“This is bunk room D,” said Murdock. “Please do what you can for them.”
Heath nodded, entering the room. The soldiers looked awful, some were crying, others just looked lost. Heath took out his guitar once again, letting the music play, letting that familiar tempo take over as he strummed each chord with practiced ease. One by one, the soldiers perked up, the whimpers receded and slowly but surely a fervor took hold. Eventually, it was all the Master Sergeant could do to keep the soldiers contained.
“Easy lads and lasses. Arm yourselves and get ready for a fight. Assemble quickly, we’re bringing the fight to Anvilton,” the Master Sergeant ordered.
The Dwarves quickly filed out of the barracks.
“That worked better than I thought it would,” said the Master Sergeant. “What spell was that?”
Heath could only shrug. “I’m not actually a Bard so I have no idea. I just know that it worked.”
“Well, when I address the lads and lasses again, play that. We’ll get them riled up for a good fight,” Murdock requested.
Heath smiled happily. “I would be delighted to.”
“Great, then let us get out there before they leave without us,” the Sergeant said, leading the way back to the inner gates and the assembled soldiers.
Heath felt a little awed by the change in the demeanor of the soldiers. That demoralized and defeated feeling that permeated their ranks was gone, squashed, eradicated. Instead, they were angry and determined and clearly wanted some payback.
“A-ten-hut!” Hendel shouted upon seeing the newly minted Master Sergeant.
The din silenced, the Dwarven men and women were suddenly at full attention, a single stomp of their boots echoing through the area.
Heath looked around again, toward the back of the column he spotted Icyhot and his people along with a dozen adventurers he did not recognize. It was good to see the other adventurers had finally shown up. Heath could only guess that because of the other Bard, no communications were getting into the city warning about the attack. But with the enemy Bard stopped and order restored, a proper call was sent out.
“Parade rest!” the Master Sergeant ordered. The assembled Dwarves didn’t twitch but a small smile twitched at the corners of the Master Sergeant’s mouth. Murdock nodded to Heath to start playing. “You lads and lasses want payback?” he yelled, earning a loud roar of approval. “You want to show those Anvilton cowards what Hammerton is made of?” Another roar of approval. “Well, you are going to get your wish.”
“HOORAH!” the soldiers shouted in one voice.
“And best of all,” said the Master Sergeant started. “General Hammersmith himself will be taking the field with you. Consider this a great blessing and show him you deserve it!”
By now the entire column was whipped up into a frenzy.
“A-ten-hut!” Master Sergeant Murdock ordered upon seeing the General emerge from the barracks wearing his full regalia of bronze plate-mail armor, the familiar form of Baby flying just behind him.
The soldiers all snapped to attention as ordered.
The General moved with purpose until he was standing at the front of the column. He looked over the men silently, Heath’s music still playing in the background. He nodded just once, turning around swiftly. “Open the gates and prepare to unleash hell!”
“HOORAH! HOORAH! HOORAH!” the soldiers cheered, giving the General their full support.
With a loud bang, the gates swung open.
“CHARGE!” Baby shouted, her voice barely louder than the soldiers charging ahead . . . into a figh
t that seemed to already be over.
“Really Baby?” Olaf called loudly from the wall over them.
Baby kind of grinned and giggled, shrugging her shoulders.
“General, sir,” Captain Grandmite jumped in before Olaf and Baby could argue.
“Captain, prisoners?” the General asked, looking to a large group of unarmed players standing against the wall.
“Allies . . . we think,” the Captain replied.
“You think?” General Hammersmith questioned.
“Forgive me sir, but that is not important right now. I have a plan to deal with them. Right now, you need to secure the eastern gate. We need to capture the Anvilton cannons, destroy them as a last resort. I would like to try attacking that battering ram from behind, maybe even capture it. Anvilton has not fielded any kind of real force to attack us. It seems this was all a trap by the adventurers that have sided with Anvilton,” Captain Grandmite explained quickly.
“You heard her, Master Sergeant, get the men moving,” the General ordered.
“You also need to send a group of soldiers toward the Hammerton Graveyard to meet the adventurer allies that died protecting the city. They at least deserve safe passage back to the city,” Olaf added.
The Master Sergeant nodded and began barking out orders.
“And Heath, why do you have a guitar out now of all times?” Olaf asked.
“Fun story that,” Heath answered, grinning broadly and finally putting his guitar away.
“You have time for stories later. Gather up the other adventurers and go meet your comrades at the graveyard,” Master Sergeant Murdock ordered Heath and Olaf, though his gaze was locked on the unarmed adventurers by the wall. “After that, see what you can do to stop those cannons. My men and I will help secure the wall and Eastern gate. I am sorry I cannot do more for you, but my men are still in a disordered state.”
Heath looked around at the men. Since he had stopped playing, they all seemed to lose that frenzy, some of them reverted as far back as looking lost and defeated. Heath sighed. “No rest for the wicked, eh?”
“Olaf, you coming with us?” Baby asked, calling up to their Minotaur friend.
The Mountain Valley War Page 25