Forging the Half-Goblin Sorcerer

by J. Craig Argyle

  Trak shouts “Stop the assassins! Protect the king.” There is no chance Ghad’s men will get there in time. In the instant that Trak expects the archer to lose an arrow for the third time, he sees a knife flash out of the crowd and cut the bolter down. Trak is still pushing forward when the knife wielder climbs into the king’s viewing box and stabs another of the assassins before Trak and Ghad’s men enter the fray and kill the remaining attackers. Trak and the king’s mysterious defender stand with their backs against the king ready to receive any new assailants. None come. Trak hurriedly escorts the king out of the hall by a side door.

  Once safely in a chamber, Trak turns toward the goblin who came to the king’s assistance. “I might have guessed,” Trak says as he stares at the face of Hogarth Kingfriend. He has not seen Hogarth in nearly a decade. “Master Hogarth, it is good to see you.” Trak gives his old friend an embrace. “How did you know an attack on the king was coming?”

  “I didn’t, Lord Dragonfire, but I am sworn to protect the king. It doesn’t matter that I am no longer a member of the royal guard,” Hogarth replies.

  “Let us talk later.” I must return to the Great Hall and see if I can calm the panic. Take charge of getting the king out of the temple,” Trak asks the former master-at-arms.

  Trak runs back into the hall. Thousands are jammed at the exit trying to get onto the bridge. Ghad spots Trak and runs toward him. He exclaims, “Lord Dragonfire, the earth’s magma is rising in the caverns. Soon it will reach the Great Hall.”

  Trak spots Krage sitting on the platform surrounded by Queen Mothers. He is dazed from having served as the Earth Spirit’s receptacle. Trak shouts, “Queen Mothers, you must flee the temple! The lava is rising and is already in the temple’s lower levels!”

  “We cannot leave through the Great Doors,” one of the queens calmly replies. “The citizens of Neu Ardonbrae in their panic have sealed the exit with their bodies. We have sent our people to gather what supplies they can. We will assemble in the gardens atop the mountain and begin our flight from there.”

  Trak looks for Lord Lizardthroat, whom he suspects planned the attack on the king. The commander of the Secret Police is nowhere in sight. Then Trak smells the burning brimstone, the stench of rotting eggs. At first, he thinks it is the odor of the approaching lava. Trak is heading toward Ghad to assist in the evacuation, when a wind gathers on the floor of the temple. A mocking laugh echoes through the Hall. “It is Tironock!” Ghad exclaims. Those pushing to get out of the temple push harder. The menacing laughter intensifies. Flames spring from the cyclone that forms in the center of the hall. With lava so near, Tironock quickly materializes. The demon projects his will into the minds of the subterranean goblins, ordering the wraiths to butcher the surface dwellers. The wraiths resist. Instead of attacking the surface dwellers, they draw their swords and turn to face Tironock.

  Ghad rushes the demon from behind and drives the point of his sword into the demon’s calf. The monster howls. He feels pain, Trak realizes. Half a dozen soldiers follow Ghad’s example and begin hacking at the demon‘s legs that are protected by thick, red scales. Tironock rages. Smoke billows from his mouth, and his eyes glow bright red. Tironock Kan draws the power of the earth into himself and grasps a temple column in his arms. It blows into a thousand rock fragments that fly through the temple, killing and maiming. The demigod lumbers on his thick legs toward the temple’s exit where thousands are still pushing their way out of the mountain. Tironock cruelly stomps on the goblins in his path. Trak is outraged by Tironock’s cruelty. The demigod has the power to blow the temple to pieces, but instead, prefers to terrorize and torment his victims.

  Trak hears the Thaumaturgist shouting, “The wine—use the wine!”

  Trak is puzzled. What is his father yelling about? How can wine help? He looks toward Krage who is pressing his shoulder against a wine vat in a futile attempt to topple it. Trak understands. He orders Ghad’s soldiers to upend the vats. The wine splashes across the temple’s polished floor and flows toward Tironock. When the liquid engulfs Tironock’s feet, he bellows and turns to face Trak. The demon’s rage is immense. He lays his paws on a second column preparing to shatter the rock and send a thousand fragments in Trak’s direction. The column holds. Tironock bellows again. His power is ebbing and his corporal form dissipating. Within seconds he disappears in a whirling cloud of burning brimstone.

  The surface goblins still able to stand continue to escape the Great Hall. The citizens of Neu Ardonbrae are stumbling through the city’s streets, and wraiths are assembling in the garden atop the mountain. The scene in the Great Hall is one of carnage. In the space of a hundred heart beats, Tironock wrought unimaginable destruction. Dozens have been smashed beneath his feet and hundreds more killed by flying debris or trampled by the crowd fleeing the temple. Trak finds Ghad and pulls the bloodied commander to his feet. He has received multiple cuts from flying rock but is still in control of his wits. “Aid the injured,” Ghad commands the soldiers who are still in the hall.

  Trak is beginning to assess the magnitude of the problem the dead and injured present when a soldier shouts, “The lava is in the Great Hall!” Trak can feel the heat of the lava before he sees the orange magma enter through the side doors. The rising heat causes the banners hanging from the ceiling at the far end of the hall to superheat and explode in flames.

  “Grab the injured and head for the garden,” Ghad orders. Trak gathers an old Queen in his arms and exits into a corridor. The lava flows across the floor, burying the dead and injured in a fiery grave before it spills out through the Great Doors and tumbles down the face of Holy Mountain into the city. Stragglers, still on the platform struggling to cross the narrow bridge, are consumed. The Great Doors burst into flames. Lava cascades from the bowels of the mountain onto the city below.

  Once in the garden atop Holy Mountain, Trak is relieved. The subterraneans are not totally unprepared. Many arrive in the garden with provisions they had assembled for their exodus. Trak is surprised to see King Lorring in the garden. Hogarth explains there was no opportunity for the king to escape through the temple’s main doors.

  After the events in the Great Hall, the scene in the garden is comparatively tranquil. The garden’s trellises are being torn down to build litters to transport the injured. Ghad’s soldiers are organizing his people for the journey. Lava still pours out of the temple but hasn’t risen higher than the Great Hall. Ghad reminds Trak that as the lava cools and solidifies it will seal the exit and the magma will again rise. Trak wonders how Ghad intends to carry litters down the mountain. He climbs to the crater’s rim and looks down the northeast face. He sees that in the few weeks the subterraneans have occupied the temple, they have cut switchbacks down the mountain’s steep slope.

  Trak notes that his father and Alrik have escaped the Great Hall. He thinks of Myrel and Meg and is relieved they were not in the temple when Tironock materialized. Still, he wonders where they are. Trak speaks to the king. “Your Majesty, are you hurt?”

  “No, thanks to my guard and Hogarth,” the king answers. “It seems Lord Lizardthroat’s ambition has once again surfaced. It is not safe for me to return to the city, and I can’t stay here waiting for the volcano to explode. Melkerei has every reason to think I am dead. Let him think so. I will travel with the white goblins to the mountains where I will plan my return to the city and put an end to Lizardthroat once and for all. There is an immediate problem. Lizardthroat now believes my newborn heir is all that stands between him and the crown. I want Hogarth to go to the Isle of Uisgebeatha and warn the Duke and my queen that Melkerei will send assassins.”

  Chapter 40

  Dragonton, Bretwalda: Wraiths Invade the Kingdoms of Men

  In Dragonton, Lord Ran sits in his broch considering his plan to reduce the size of his smelting operation. It seems unlikely Trak will suddenly appear with another colossal contract. He answers a knock at his door and is surprised to see the white goblin, Terrin, standing in the dar
k. Ran recognizes Terrin as the son of Ghad, the wraith with all the gold. “Yes, Terrin, how can I help you?” He invites Terrin into his broch.

  Terrin begins, “I bring news. The Second Sowing has begun. My father and Lord Dragonfire have led the goblins from the main hive beneath Neu Ardonbrae to the surface. The main hive is not alone. Other hives are also on the move. Soon the surface of the world will be swarming with white goblins looking for a place to settle.”

  “There is more,” said Terrin. “Not all goblins are fleeing Tironock. Some remain under his control and have been sent to the surface to do his bidding. Even as we speak, a hive is preparing to attack the goblin fortress, Trak built on the eastern border. I fear King Red’s citadel will be next.”

  “What can be done?” Ran asks. ”Is it too late to warn the defenders?”

  “There is no way to reach the goblin fortress in time, but you must warn King Red to expect a subterranean attack on his royal stronghold. Families can take refuge in Dragonton. I have a few soldiers at my command who will guard the tunnels beneath Dragonton and give warning if you are attacked,” Terrin replies.

  “What of Westhaven and my father’s castle?” asks Ran.

  “I have no information about your father’s castle or any of the other cities in your kingdom, but the hives could strike anywhere, either to escape Tironock or to do his bidding. At the moment, my father has soldiers patrolling the coastal tunnel, but a large force could enter the tunnel at several points and quickly bring the coastal cities under siege.”

  Ran replies, “I will put Dragonton on alert and send riders to warn other cities. I must ride to Red’s fortress and convince the King to evacuate the families and prepare for an attack. Will you come with me? You know better than I how to defend the fortress against the subterraneans.”

  “Look for me tomorrow evening. I will meet you in front of the fortress. I prefer to travel through the tunnels. The thought of holding on to the back of a horse terrifies me.”

  ***

  Lord Ran meets Terrin at the gates of Red’s fortress and escorts the white goblin into the king’s audience chamber. “Your Majesty,” Lord Ran begins. “This is Terrin Samraet, son of the commander who purchased weapons from us and built your eastern fortress. He brings important information.”

  Surface goblins and cross-breeds are occasionally seen in the fortress, but this is the first time in his long life King Red has met an albino goblin wearing little more than black tattoos. Terrin repeats the information he delivered to Ran. King Red turns to his advisors and asks them when they last received a communication from the goblin-built fortress on the eastern border. “We have heard nothing for two days,” they respond.

  Lord Ran interjects, “I’m sorry, Your Majesty, but it is likely the fortress has fallen. It is vulnerable to a subterranean attack. The same is true of this great fortress. I fear it will be sieged at any moment.”

  “Why are you helping me?” King Red asks Terrin, distrustful as always of goblins.

  “A war rages in the Underworld, Your Majesty. It is between those controlled by the demigod Tironock and those seeking to free themselves from his domination. The war has spilled over to the surface world. My father has led a rebellion of the Underworld’s most important hive. He has seized the great temple in the goblin capital. He hopes to exchange the temple for a new homeland on the surface. The demon Tironock has begun dispatching hordes of white goblins to the surface to destroy the rebels and enslave the surface peoples, including the kingdoms of men.”

  “This fortress has never been taken,” interjects the king.

  “Surface fortresses are easy targets. Their defenses face outward and are unprotected below. Tironock’s goblins are coming to assault this fortress. I am here because my father needs allies. Without support from the surface kingdoms, his rebels are caught between two enemies.”

  “How long will it take the Underworld goblins to dig a tunnel into my fortress?” the king asks.

  Terrin explains, “Your Majesty, the tunnels, for there are many, were dug generations ago. When the assault comes, the attackers will break into this fortress in a matter of moments. There will be little warning. Your best course of action is to abandon your citadel immediately.”

  King Red gives Terrin a scornful look. “Is this a trick to draw my army into the open?”

  Ran interrupts, “My Liege, I feared you would never abandon your citadel. I asked Terrin here to show us how we might defend against a subterranean attack. We may have only a few hours, at most, before the attack begins. I recommend you evacuate families from the castle. For the moment, they will be safer in the countryside.”

  The king ponders what he has heard and wonders what part of the white goblin’s story is true when a captain enters the audience chamber. “Your Majesty,” he interrupts. “Four horsemen are here from the fortress on the eastern border. They report the stronghold has been overrun.”

  The king orders the men brought before him. The senior officer speaks. “It wasn’t much of a battle, Your Majesty. Most of us were asleep when we heard shouting. We grabbed our swords and ran into the corridors to find them choked with white goblins. For a time, we held them at bay, but there were too many. We fought our way to the stables and came to bring you the news. The fortress has fallen.”

  The king looks at Terrin. The son of the rebel commander says, “It is as I have said, Your Majesty. By now, the white goblins are already here.”

  The king summons Stev Kleyman, captain of his guard. “This goblin brings word of a pending attack. Listen to what he says and prepare.” To his chamberlain he orders, “Evacuate all noncombatants from the castle. I want them gone within the hour.”

  Terrin briefs the King’s captain on the goblin’s likely attack strategy. “They will enter through the lowest levels.”

  “That would be the dungeons and wine cellars,” surmises the captain.

  “You must establish defensive positions at bottlenecks where your forces will have the advantage of numbers,” Terrin explains. “Take me to your lowest levels.”

  The wine cellar is a long chamber with a vaulted ceiling. The wine barrels are arranged along one wall. The cellar’s only exit is a staircase that ascends to a kitchen storage room. “Clean out this area and erect a barricade,” Terrin indicates. “Place your archers on a platform so they can fire down on the attackers. Position guards below the barricade to deal with any who climb over. The defense will hold the attackers at bay for a time, but you must deliver a crippling blow if you hope to win the battle. What is above the wine cellar?”

  “The main dining hall,” Captain Kleyman responds.

  “Cut narrow holes in the floor of the dining hall and have vats of oil brought from the battlements.”

  The captain questions the suggestion. “We can light the oil on fire, but there will not be enough air in the wine cellar to sustain the flame.”

  “It is just as well. The fire will consume all the air and force the attackers to withdraw,” Terrin replies.

  Terrin suggests a similar strategy to defend against an attack coming from the dungeons. He warns the captain. “I have anticipated the two most likely points where an attack will occur, but it is not enough. The attackers can enter from anywhere, even from inside the central keep or the towers. You must position guards throughout the fortress to watch for other possible attack points. If your guards listen carefully with their ears against the rock, they should hear the strikes of the attacker’s chisels. Keep fifty soldiers ready to rush at a moment’s notice to where they are needed, and stockpile materials for building barricades throughout the fortress.”

  Lord Ran watches the noncombatants leave through the gates. He greets Queen Meriem as she and her twins are loaded into a litter. The queen asks, “Lord Ran is this truly the beginning of the Second Sowing?”

  “I don’t know, My Queen, but Trak’s goblin friend believes it is so. If you find yourself in peril, make for Dragonton. There, I can protect you. I
will return to Dragonton and prepare its defenses, as soon as Terrin finishes here.” Within two hours, the barricades are in place and workers have begun cutting murder holes in the ceilings above the likely entrance points.

  King Red walks into the courtyard where Ran is standing. “What now, Lord Ran? How long do we wait? I will be most annoyed if I made all these preparations for nothing.”

  “How would you feel if you hadn’t prepared and there was an attack? Your Majesty has been most wise.” Ran replies.

  The last of the noncombatants are exiting the fortress, when an excited guard runs to Captain Kleyman and reports, “We can hear knocking in the wine cellar.”

  The captain runs to investigate. By the time he reaches the barricade, the sounds of stone blocks falling on the floor of the cellar is clearly heard. “Archers, to the ready,” he commands. Suddenly, five naked wraiths rush into the storage room and are halted by the barricade. They hesitate only a second before nimbly scaling the debris that blocks their way. ‘Fire!” yells the captain. The archers barely have time to reload before the second wave of white goblins swarms over their fallen comrades. One of the attackers manages to ascend the barricade and jump to the floor where he meets three swords. The intensity of the assault is more than Kleyman anticipated. He calls for reinforcements. With the number of bowman doubled, the assault ceases.

  The captain reports to the king in his throne room. “Your Majesty, we blocked the first assault and confined the attackers to the wine cellar. I must leave to inspect the other defensive positions. The dungeon barricade is quiet, but as he walks through the courtyard, chaos erupts at the doors to the citadel’s temple. Three guards back out of the temple as they fight off a dozen goblins. The captain shouts for reinforcements.

  In the heartbeats it takes for more men to arrive, a spear thrust kills one man and a dozen goblins rush past the two remaining guards, race across the cobblestones and enter the keep. The captain ignores the goblins running amuck inside the keep. Instead, he orders the reinforcements to retake the temple. He doesn’t want to deal with hundreds of wraiths swarming the fortress. The men fight their way into the temple and drive a score of goblins back into the hole they have cut in the floor. They push a heavy marble altar into the hole to temporarily seal it.