Death Knight Box Set

by Michael Chatfield

  Claire read over the reports. She looked more lethargic than she had in hundreds of years as she rubbed her eye sockets.

  “It looks like the forces of chaos are moving again. They’re also converting more people into chaotic beasts. They must be trying to put their plans into action before the coming battle.” She looked ahead and tapped her finger on her armrest.

  The knight standing in the room fell over onto the ground.

  “Damien, you were standing still. How did you trip?” she yelled.

  “Sorry. I was just, umm...” Damien laughed awkwardly and started to get back up.

  “Battle nut,” Claire muttered. “The good thing is that while the Agents of Chaos have tried to enter Ilsal, none of them have been able to affect our cities. The main problems lay in the main continent. There are forces of chaos manipulating the war between the humans and beasts. It looks like they’re making an effort to cause inner issues with the beast kin and draw the elves into the fight.” Claire sat back in her chair.

  “Send out some of our judiciaries to Epan. We’ve secured our position here. Let’s see if we can root out the forces of chaos. As they’re more active, they’ll mess up more,” Claire said.

  “What about...him?” Damien asked.

  “Leave him to his own devices. He might be as dull as your hammer at times, but he usually ambles his way through.” Claire sighed but the corners of her mouth lifted slightly.

  ***

  Tommie woke up early. Anthony had found them a place to camp late into the night. The two others had sleepily tossed out their bedrolls and collapsed, but Tommie hadn’t even made it into his bedroll.

  Tommie had a busting need to relieve himself and he ran through some trees. The relaxing sounds of water hitting ground filled the air as Tommie let out a satisfied sigh.

  He finished up his business and he saw the sunlight touching the water through the trees.

  Tommie felt at peace. As he saw that water, he could feel his itchy skin and his need to wash. He went back, grabbing a towel and soap.

  He stripped down to his underwear and jumped in. He rubbed his face and body quickly as he felt his skin turning to goose bumps with the cold lake water.

  Damn, that’s refreshing! Tommie surfaced. He heard Anthony whistling, so he turned around, seeing a skeleton washing his bones.

  “AHHHHYAHH!! SKELETON!”

  Birds fled for safety and deer were startled into motion as a flailing gnome sped toward the shore.

  The skeleton cried out, covering their bones, “Where! Where are they?”

  Tommie wasn’t making it very far and the skeleton calmed down.

  “What are you flailing around for, Tommie?” Anthony’s voice came from the skeleton.

  “What did you do to Anthony?” Tommie demanded. He now had his feet underneath him and was trying to force his way to shore.

  “How could I do anything to myself? Tommie, you sound ridiculous!” Anthony walked out of the water. His heart was beating away and his bones sparkled in the early morning sunlight.

  “He is an upright human and you’re an undead!” Tommie drew out his small sword from its scabbard and pointed it at Anthony.

  “Ouch, Tommie! Beauty is not skin deep!” Anthony said, hurt as he held one hand up to his shocked jaw. “Put that sword down! You’ll hurt someone! It looks like we need to have a talk about beauty. It is not just one’s outer appearance but how they are on the inside. See, my inside and outside are the same, so it’s easier to love. Come here.” Anthony moved toward the gnome.

  ***

  Aila woke up to Tommie’s scream and then Anthony yelling. She pulled out her dagger and gathered her mana as she ran toward the noise and the lake.

  Rushing out of the trees, ready to fight, she saw Anthony cradling Tommie, who was looking around with wide, alarmed eyes as Anthony patted him.

  “It’s okay, little fella. You know, some things aren’t always as they appear on the outside. I once knew this crossdressing orc—you’d swear that they were a female goblin when they were done. Incredibly good with a bit of mud, some powders, and a brush!”

  Tommie let out a squeak as he saw Aila. His eyes pleaded with her. Are you seeing this? his eyes seemed to demand.

  “What are you washing for?” Aila asked.

  “I might be undead but I have standards! My bones got really worn down with the mana loss—look at this yellowing!” Anthony pointed at his femur but Aila couldn’t see any difference in color from the rest of his bones.

  “Right, well, I’m going to get some breakfast. Don’t struggle—cuddle Tommie too much,” Aila said, quickly retreating.

  “Aila!” Tommie wailed, betrayed by his closest ally.

  I don’t want to be hugged by a skeleton either! Good luck, young Tommie. She silently saluted the little gnome and then went back to her bedroll, shivering as she thought of what she had just seen.

  “It’s all just a bad dream,” she muttered to herself as she went to sleep.

  Chapter: Norlund

  Tommie was still casting gazes at Anthony. Since Laisa, he had thought that Anthony was a little eccentric, not needing to eat that much or go to the bathroom. But now that he knew the truth, that Anthony was one of the cursed undead, he was having a little trouble digesting it all.

  He is a good person, even if he is only bones and a heart. He has helped a lot of people since I’ve met him.

  “You’re going to burn holes in my armor, staring that much. I’m sorry but I’m not into you, Tommie,” Anthony said from ahead.

  “Who said I was interested!” Tommie said.

  Aila snickered at their back and forth, staying out of it.

  She seemed perfectly fine. It was clear from her reaction that she had known that Anthony was an undead.

  Do they not trust me? Well, I have only just met them; it makes sense that they don’t trust me completely. Though he was washing there. Tommie sunk into thought. He didn’t notice Anthony as he dropped back.

  Anthony cleared his throat, pulling Tommie out of his stream of thought and making him nearly jump off his mount. He moved his arms around, not really sure what they were moving to do. When he jumped up, he was caught in his stirrups and fell backward, his arms cartwheeling as he yelled out.

  “Overreact a little there?” Anthony asked.

  Tommie held his chest, feeling his racing heart as he worked to calm himself.

  “So, what’s plaguing your mind there, my gnomish companion?” Anthony asked. “Are you having more troubles with the Gnome-inator? No worries, Norlund is one of the largest trading ports this side of the Swirling Seas. I am sure that you will be able to find plenty of parts and things for the Gnome-inator!”

  “He’s freaked out you’re all yellowing bones,” Aila said, not looking back as she stretched on her mount and started to brew herself a tea for the morning.

  “You know that I’m sensitive about the yellowing!” Anthony complained.

  “Well, stop standing out in the moonlight in the nude. Are you trying to make innocent bystanders crap their pants? Or have their hearts fail them?”

  “Aila! I am a refinement of the undead form!” Anthony gasped.

  “Well, I guess you are technically a body refined into an undead,” Aila conceded. She packed her leaves into a contraption and put it into some water, using a fire spell on the underside of the cup to heat it up.

  “Truly, you both need remedial lessons on true beauty. You all think that it is all skin deep!” Anthony said.

  “And who screams like a scared cat when they see their reflection in the water?” Aila yawned and waved her hand, the fire spell going out on her finger. She sat back in her saddle, moving with her mount, who was eagerly plodding ahead, picking up some roots in his mouth.

  Ramona crooned at him.

  He looked at her with his big cute lizard eyes, pouting at her.

  She made another noise of reprimand as he let go of the roots, snorting at another group of roots that were
taunting him.

  “How are you able to do all of these things? Aren’t undead just fighters?” Tommie asked.

  “Well, low-grade undead are like pissed-off toothpick men who attack anything that is in range. I’m a little more refined than that. I’m a death knight, pretty badass. Though I can use my familiars because they are soul bound to me, so alive or undead I can use them. Though if I was to die and my soul to disperse, then the bindings between my familiars and me would be broken. Though I need a higher mana capacity than what I have right now to wake them all up. I can only use a few of them at the same time and it burns through my mana like you would not believe and there is no mana savings time on this!” Anthony complained.

  “So how do you increase your mana capacity?”

  “Well, I need to refill it. The elves increase their mana by cultivating it, right? Well, I need to do something similar. I absorb in mana; that increases my capacity and then once I have done that, I can draw in mana to fill that capacity much faster!”

  “Think of it like a balloon: once you blow it up the first time, it is easier to blow it up a second time,” Aila said from ahead.

  “It’s just been awhile since I blew up this balloon so it’s being a bit of a pain, though the more times I use mana, the more it’s forcefully expanded,” Anthony said.

  “Where do you hold your mana in all of that?”

  “I ’unno. I just use the stuff.” Anthony shrugged.

  “You magical races.” Tommie shook his head. “Using massive power that can change the world around you and you know next to nothing about it!”

  “Well, do you want to go and study in a library? Practical knowledge is the future, my boy! Look, on your resume, you put on you went to the library, did a bit of school—you think that will look better than saying you went on a grand adventure? Seeing the world, the people, and the miracles that exist within it? Searching out the mysteries and finding yourself? What do you think that the person hiring you would say?”

  “You should have stayed in school, you hippie,” Tommie said.

  “Ugh, gnomes and your logic. Gotta live a little, Tommie!”

  Tommie blinked a few times and shook his head. “I can’t believe I’m being told to live a little by an undead skeleton.”

  “And what does that tell you?”

  Tommie tried to figure out the hidden meaning in Anthony’s words. “What does it mean?”

  “I have no clue. I was hoping you knew,” Anthony said. “Nice pair of fields you have there!”

  Aila sighed and shook her head as she drank her tea.

  They emerged from the tree line, passing a low wall. Fields stretched across the land. They went up a little rise. There were fields for miles around, creating a horseshoe shape around a large city. The city stood on the edge of the land. It was circular, with walls that appeared atop small islands dotted around the outside of the harbor city.

  “Norlund,” Aila said.

  There were white masts coming in as massive ships entered the harbors, passing those great walls.

  Other ships were leaving, heading to cities up and down the Selenus coast or heading across the Swirling Seas to find safe harbor in Epan or Ilsal.

  There were three inland canals, which acted like the bloodlines of the legion and the rest of Selenus. Carts from other nearby towns, cities, and villages or just trading companies brought their wares with them to sell at Norlund.

  The city was bright and refreshing.

  “I’ll be able to get my final parts.” Tommie sat up in his saddle and touched his coin purse. He squeezed it a few more times before he looked around and checked the contents. I’ve only got three gold and twenty silver left. I hope it’s enough.

  They rode down the hill and into the city. The guards checked their papers and guided them toward a place where they could have their mounts looked after while they were inside Norlund.

  “Much nicer here,” Anthony said.

  “They deal with other races all the time. The traders from Epan and Ilsal are from all of the races. Not many humans come here, but there are a few. Most of them tend to keep to themselves while in Norlund,” Aila said.

  They found the place to have their mounts looked after.

  “Don’t you have any coins?” Aila hissed to Anthony.

  “Does it look like I have a coin purse just hanging around here?” Anthony muttered back as the stable hand’s smile started to turn suspicious.

  “Tommie,” Anthony called out but Tommie was wandering down the streets, his eyes wide as he rubbed his hands in glee.

  Aila’s hand rested on Tommie’s shoulder. “We’re good friends, right? You don’t happen to have some money to spare, do you?”

  Tommie wanted to escape her grip but she sensed his reaction, her hand holding him like a vise.

  “But of course we’re good friends. How much might you need?” He smiled brightly as he wailed on the inside. I worked hard for that gold!

  “A silver and fifty coppers will do.” Aila smiled sweetly.

  Tommie’s smile was all the more forced as he passed over the coinage.

  “Thank you! We’ll look for a ship out of here tonight.” Aila headed back to Anthony.

  “How are we going to pay for a ship?” Anthony asked.

  “We’ll get to that when we get to it. You think that the elves could have given us a little bit of spending money when we were leaving,” Aila muttered.

  Tommie snuck away and then fled. I’m free! I’m free! Okay, now I need parts! Tommie chuckled to himself as he started to wander through the stalls, looking for the different items he might need.

  There is a thermal discombobulator and even a heat conversion thinga-whopper! Now I thought that I would need the thinga-whopper, but Anthony did say that the discombobulator would be harder to add in, but then it would last much longer and give me a higher power output.

  Tommie paused for a moment and he frowned.

  Am I angry at Anthony? I don’t think so. Maybe a little hurt that he didn’t tell me. Though he probably just forgot to tell me. Tommie shrugged and chuckled. It is Anthony, after all. I guess that he might not find his head if it wasn’t attached. Skeleton jokes! Oh, this is going to be good. Tommie was laughing in front of the stall.

  The vendor looked around at the others; they made eye contact and then shrugged. Who hadn’t seen a slightly mad gnome engineer? The vendor sighed and rethought his life choices and selling parts to gnomes.

  “I would like to take one of your thermal discombobulators!” Tommie smiled at the vendor.

  “A fine eye, my young gnome engineer!”

  “How could you tell I’m an engineer?”

  “I have an eye for these things,” the vendor said.

  Tommie didn’t see the other vendors rolling their eyes.

  “I can let it go for seventy gold. It is of the finest quality, made by some of the master gnome engineers in the Ilsal isles!”

  ***

  Aila and Anthony had walked up and down the pier looking for a ship that was heading to Ilsal. There were plenty of them, but the fastest route was to go to Epan, then ride to Sunset Pier and take a boat from there to Ilsal.

  The problem was they had no gold and so they had no passage.

  “We need to find a way to make some coin still.” Anthony sighed.

  Aila was chewing on some sweet cane as she looked around the harbor. There were people loading and unloading the boats. An unfortunate crew member tripped; the box that he was carrying went off the pier and into the water.

  “I just had an idea,” Aila said, looking at the box that the crew member had dropped.

  The foreman was yelling at them.

  “What’s that?” Anthony asked.

  He turned as he got a kick to the chest.

  “Not Sparta again!” Anthony yelled as he hit the water and started sinking.

  “See if you can find anything on the bottom that’s useful!” Aila yelled after him.

  Anthony
was already submerged as she let out a sigh and felt the sun on her skin.

  “Some nice peace and quiet.” Aila found a place to sit down and got comfortable. “Not as nice as the moonlight, but it does make you sleepy.” She got comfortable, ready to wait for the little submerged man to come up with loot.

  I wonder what is down there?

  ***

  Aila was sunbathing as a bedazzled set of armor walked out of the water, covered in seaweed and stinking of mud. Aila held her nose and used a water blasting spell.

  “Blasting off again!” Anthony yelled as he was thrown back into the water.

  He came out, muttering to himself, bedecked in different items. He wore jewelry and carried plates and a box of booze.

  “Well, look at this haul!” Aila smiled from ear to ear as she pulled a few of the items off Anthony, inspecting them closer.

  “Ah, good workmanship. Shame it was at the bottom of the bay. Well, if we can clean these up, then we can get a good price!” Aila started to rub the different jewelry.

  “I forgot just how much elves love shiny things—like magpies of the races,” Anthony muttered. He shook his leg; rings and a few coins came out. He opened his helmet and reached in, pulling out a slightly rusted candlestick.

  “Shinies!” Aila looked as if she were going to break out into a jig as she collected all of the different loot on the ground.

  “That should be good,” Anthony said.

  “Oh, and this one would be perfect with my eyes. Wouldn’t this look fine on my finger?” Aila was off in her own world.

  “You do know we have to sell them, right?”

  “Don’t talk about my shinies like that,” she hissed at Anthony.

  Anthony jumped back, tripped and fell into the water for the third time.

  Aila gathered up the loot, put it into her pack and headed off to give them some care.

  Anthony got out of the water, not seeing any sign of Aila.

  He got to the top of the stairs and he looked around.

  ***

  Anthony went and retrieved Ramona and her two young ones. He hung out with them, playing with them and watching them paddle in the water happily.

  Aila and Tommie appeared some time later. Tommie looked dirtier than before and he was patting his pack that was on his front with glee, even if his legs were having trouble keeping the weight of whatever was in his pack up.