“The last time I relaxed and let things happen as they would, two of you almost died against that doffilnar.” I still recalled seeing Jaken kneeling over Bokaj, who had died in the fight and was subsequently being brought back to the living by the paladin. As well, James hadn’t been faring much better himself, barely hanging in there.
It was only when Telfino had stepped in and helped us that we had gained the ability to truly fight back. And now we had these damned nightmares coming to make things shittier.
“You had no way of knowing that it would take your shape and have that much mana.” Jaken actually shoved me when he spoke. “Don’t dwell on it—learn from it. Then move on.”
He very carefully made eye contact with me for this next one. “Because we have. We don’t have the luxury for you to space out and think about what could have been, or what ifs. We need you here in the present. Okay?”
My frown wasn’t from the disdain at being told to let go, but from wondering when Jaken had grown so wise. He’d always seemed to be able to make things better, but this was next-level insight.
“Yeah, you got it, Jaken.” I put a thumb up, and he shook his head. “What?”
“You’ve been a little off since before then, too. I know you miss Coal, but we’re all here, and he’s home, now.”
The others turned toward us, watching with interest. My cheeks burned a little but being called out like this in front of people I trusted wasn’t so bad. Still hard to fight my initial urge to tell my friend to fuck off, though.
“I’ve known you for quite a while now, and I know that this isn’t going to get through that thick skull of yours,” Jaken punched me in the shoulder kind of hard. “I’ve seen you being rough on yourself from all of this. You take things too seriously at times, and you’re always hardest on yourself. Sometimes it takes a little help for us to realize that we’re being assholes to ourselves. Let it go. Seriously.”
“I’ll try,” I stated with little ease. I’d always been this way. And it would likely not change overnight. But sulking wouldn’t help, right?
Without waiting for him to start in again, I shapeshifted into my owl form and flitted outside.
I heard a call, but nothing after, and nothing through our earrings. It was time to find the ladies and forget my wounded pride for a heartbeat.
Watching the skies around me, something moved below the horizon line east of us and cruised toward village at a steady pace. As I closed in from above, a large cart bustled along, pulled by a warthog.
The creature was larger than the cart it pulled, was red and gold, with large tusks jutting from its mouth capped with jagged silver spear points.
The cart moved on as I landed in front of it on a branch high above so I could watch more easily. A young-looking human child. No. As she came closer, noticeable signs of age like wrinkles on her golden-tanned skin and fine lines on her forehead and around her eyes sparked my interest. This was a halfling woman. I had seen a few of them in this world, and they were kind of popular in a tabletop game back home on Earth, but it was still so disorienting seeing them every time and not thinking of children.
She yawned, stretching in her seat at the helm of the cart. The bench looked a little worn, but it was a nice-looking cart for sure. She wore a pink dress with a black bodice beneath it that lifted her small chest a little higher and cupped her stomach and lower back tightly. It looked highly impractical.
“Well, Humphrey, seems we have a watcher up yonder!” The woman’s southern drawl was surprising. The cart came to a slow halt, and Humphrey, the large warthog, eyed his surroundings warily. “Oh, it’s up yonder Hum, don’t worry. He’s an owl. You probably won’t be able to see him too well, on account of your eyes bein’ all weird about looking up. But he’s a looker!”
The halfling woman stood up and reached into a bag beside her; my heart pounded as her hand disappeared before pulling out a large vole. She held it aloft, “You hungry, fella?”
I turned my head to the side in confusion and ruffled my feathers anxiously.
“I don’t blame ya for not wanting an easy meal ‘round a stranger fella, but I got a way with animals, see? Pa always did say, ‘Manly, if yer good to nature, nature’ll be good to you. Ya hear?’ And boy, I’d always holler ‘yes pa!’ And it ain’t never led me wrong. So, I’ll toss this here critter aside for you to have. If you want it? Well, you can have it.”
She tossed the now-struggling animal off to the side of the cart, and it landed in a bush. Well, if she was good with nature, that was good enough for me, right?
I could almost reveal myself to someone like this, but now I had the village to think of.
The creature is going to run further if you aren’t careful, the owl’s instincts tutted. If you want to be a believable predator, leaving a meal like that alone would be bad. Though an owl who hunts during daylight hours is odd enough. You might want to secure a different avian form for daylight hours.
Won’t that overwrite you? I returned as I dropped toward the bush.
I eyed the smiling—Manly, was it? She made no move to do anything other than watch me fly.
Only if the form you take is that of an owl or is stronger than the one you use, now. It is possible to have several different forms of the same type but upgrading them isn’t a bad idea either. I notice that you don’t have a rodent form, either. This is a folly on your part.
That’s likely a fair thought from his perspective. Having more forms I could take would be nice, for different aspects I could use, and for the ability to blend in a little more, sometimes. It was only a benefit.
Still didn’t mean I liked the voices in my head being pricks about it.
I’d have to see about what to do later on.
I dove into the bushes, bank left, and extend your right claw in front of you.
I did as the owl had instructed and burst from the bush with the vole clasped in my claws. It struggled, but I would likely let it go here in a minute.
As I cleared the foliage, a hand reached out and grasped me by the back of the neck.
“There we go!” Manly’s voice reached my ears. “That’s a strange leg for a critter like yourself to have. Are you someone’s pet?”
I struggled and flapped my wings, the vole forgotten in my grasp.
“Don’t worry fella, I don’t wanna hurt ya! I just want to look at that purty wing of yours!” She tried to make that last bit soothing, but I wasn’t having it, and thrashing about was all I could do without giving away my natural form.
Now that she had captured me so easily, I wasn’t sure I wanted to do that.
“Well, you must be important to somebody, because that’s quite a serious piece o’ hardware there. And there’s even a bit obscuring information on it from someone else touching it.” She turned me so that I stared into her molasses-colored eyes. “If you were a wild owl, I’d take you and see what you’d fetch at auction, but I ain’t no thief. I might be out and about hunting for different things to add to my collection, but you’re safe from me, little fella.”
I screeched once, and she finally released me. I fluttered back toward a tree but left the area so that I could be out of her sight.
I listened carefully, the sound of the gigantic warthog snuffling the ground, pawing it then moving on. Toward the village. I didn’t want to leave the others in the dark, nor did I want to lose the cart and the halfling driving it.
I shifted and cast Mental Message to Yohsuke since we were out of range for our earrings to be of use, “Cart inbound to the village. The enchantment should hold, but I’m following it. Not certain if hostile or not.”
I shifted back and fluttered around to stay out of her sight, then behind the cart until I could land on it. Once I on board, it was easy to see that the woman had no true plan moving forward. Her plodding gait forward seemed lax. And more than a little at the whim of Humphrey.
The large beast didn’t stop much, grazing on the go, but he was sure-footed and seemed to ha
ve no issues pulling the cart.
You sure they’re on their way toward us? Jaken said through our earrings.
The enchantment worked when I was in animal form, but it was one way. I couldn’t respond to them. But what I could do was have Kayda act it out to them!
Kayda, go find the others! I called through our bond. She responded with an image of Jaken below her from her perch. Good! Plop onto his shoulder and do as I tell you to do, okay?
She obeyed, and the tops of the trees nearest the village came into view.
Nod at him. She did, and he seemed a little confused until she pecked his head and really got his attention before nodding exaggeratedly this time.
Oh! Smart man. Okay. How many are there? Tell Kayda to stomp on my shoulder for how many there are. I had her stomp once. They a threat?
I had her shrug for me, then nod once.
Uncertain then. Could they know about the village? Did they mention anything about it? Kayda swiped her head back and forth to say no, which I’m fairly certain would have looked hilarious because I knew she could just turn her head and say it. She’d been doing it since she was a chick.
Focus.
I’ll gather the others and wait inside the gate. If they get too weird and shit goes south, let us know and start slinging spells. No chances. Jaken’s voice was uncharacteristically angry, for once. I was a little worried.
Yohsuke interrupted, why don’t we just meet them outside the gates?
Because that would give away that there’s something around here to be interested in. James answered flatly. You have a hard boss show up in any random location where no one should be, and you do what after you kill him or escape?
Immediately start snooping, Balmur and Bokaj intoned together.
Exactly. Let the enchantment do what it is supposed to do, and then if anything happens, we can take care of the rest, Jaken finished.
The others seemed to be relatively okay with the plan, so we waited. Eventually, talismans began to crop up in places like the crooks of trees, in large holes, or buried in the roots of shrubs. Perched just above and slightly behind the lip of the white cart’s roof Manly’s former look of confident ease filtered out of the line of her body. Almost imperceptible at first, but the closer they came, the worse it seemed to get until it Manly looked like she was about to vomit, and Humphrey stopped eating and chewing altogether.
The talismans had been a new touch that some of the kids had made to give a sense of unease. They weren’t enchanted to really do anything. What Manly was feeling now was the influence from the wall. It went pretty far, I guess. As Vilmas grew in strength, she and Xiphyre had been able to add a little more power to the enchantment itself, increasing range and all of that good stuff. I was pretty impressed with the result.
Then came the gas—I hoped it was nervous gas coming from the huge animal, but hey, I’m not one to tell someone they can’t be flatulent due to gender, man.
Seriously though, whoever that was smelled to high heavens, and I was surprised my feathers hadn’t crisped, damn.
“Maybe we oughta get on, Humphrey,” Manly grumbled below me. “This place ain’t right. Somethin’s wrong, buddy. Like somethin’s tryin’ to warn us away, you know it?”
We were about a dozen feet or so from the gates, the party and the guards standing on the walkway above them when Humphrey turned right and began to pull a little harder than he had before. A breeze hit us, coming westerly where I had settled. All of my friends watched as the cart turned, and I thought we were safe.
Humphrey stopped cold and whipped his head toward the wall, and his eyes narrowed. Fuck.
Why’d they stop man, what’s up? Muu asked nervously.
I wasn’t sure, but I looked down to see that, despite the discomfort and obvious sense of dread and evil around her, Manly got off the bench and knelt next to her friend.
“You caught on, buddy?” Looking ill didn’t keep her from excitedly leaning toward her partner, then grimacing as she tried to breathe through either her discomfort or the squealing gas that just erupted from Humphrey. “It was toward the breeze, right?”
Humphrey grunted and patted the ground before tossing his head toward the wall.
“Thanks, buddy.” Manly scratched the giant pig’s snout before standing and turning toward the gates. “If there’s someone there, come on out! I mean no harm, just a fair lass seeking some trade!”
The guards seemed concerned and didn’t know what to do while my friends looked ready to start lobbing spells and ass-kickings.
Time to see if we can’t keep things under control, then. I shapeshifted on the bench that I had just dropped down onto.
“Well, you caught me, then. What can I do for you?” I did my best to sound unsurprised and unconcerned. I adopted an attempted foppish pose to appear relaxed as I lounged on the bench. My whole body went rigid as she spun, and her hand went to the bottom of the bodice. A knife appeared between my legs. “Strike one. Why do you bother me?”
“Who are you?” She narrowed her eyes; then her gaze fell on my right arm.
“A curious owl, Manly.” I grinned, allowing the gesture to be simultaneously threatening and cool. Hopefully. I had never really been all that good at effecting confident faces. I was just too weird for it. “Last chance to answer me, Manly. You were kind to nature, so I will allow you a chance I do not give often—why have you come to my hunting grounds?”
“We came out this way looking for exotic animals and things to add to our collection and trade-off to high-end buyers,” She replied with a sigh. “I’d be more inclined to believe you iff’n I hadn’t been able to smell that there’s at least three different scents o’ food, a powerful body odor, and a freshly cooling pie upwind from us.”
Jig’s up y’all. She knows something is amiss. I told the others with our earrings.
“So, you know my given name.” She stepped a little closer, her hand resting on the bolt that held her porcine friend in the straps for pulling the cart. “So, what’s yours, mister curious owl?”
“I’m Zeke, and I’m afraid that we’ve reached a bit of an impasse.” I sat up slowly, pulling the weapon that had embedded itself in the wood between my legs with my metal hand. I fiddled with the blade half interested in the craftsmanship, but mainly with how well she had thrown it. “You’re somewhere that not a lot of people were able to come before. I can’t know if you mean the people I care for harm or not, and since I can’t know that for certain, I don’t rightly know what to do with you.”
“Well, I could give you my word, if you like?” She offered politely with raised eyebrows.
Not going to do much for me, I’m not Fae enough for tha—or am I? I thought back to the fact that I was a knight of the Unseelie Court now. Could I make her swear a binding agreement?
Maebe there, anyone? I asked the others, hopefully.
Nope. She heard a threat could be coming, so she went to the children immediately, Bokaj stated. I looked over to see that he had drawn an arrow and had a handful more in his hand that held his bow aloft. As if to grab them faster and deliver them priority to a certain halfling’s center mass.
Couldn’t argue with that. And I didn’t have the time to deliberate any longer. She would get suspicious and either start questioning me, or a fight would break out.
Fuck.
“Swear to me on your power and upbringing what you like, but most importantly, that you aren’t a threat. Do that, earnestly, and I will consider it.” I hopped off the cart and slowly moved toward her. Humphrey eyed me closely but didn’t move.
“I swear on my strength and my bow that I was raised not to harm any what didn’t mean to harm me first. So long as no one means me harm and don’t attack me first, I will stay my hand, so I swear on my ma and pa’s spirits as they rest in their grave together.” She held her hand over her heart as she spoke, her face earnest. Humphrey grunted and tossed his head beside her. “Humphrey too, though if you have a compost heap, he may terrorize
it a bit. Who could begrudge him that though, eh? Not I.”
Her smile lit her face, and I eyed her warily. Then I got a notification, and it appeared that she had as well.
Warning!
You, as a knight to a queen of considerable power, have been given an oath, the consequences of which are incredibly dire. As someone who has received an oath, it is up to you to do what you can to see that the pledge-giver upholds their promise. Should you actively seek to harm this individual, they are unbound from their oath and allowed to protect themselves. The same goes for them if they break their vow. Congratulations!
“Well, that’s different, but at least now you know I ain’t lyin’ to you.” Her smile turned to a full grin. “So, can we get out of this uncomfortable place and get somewhere more…hospitable like? Humphrey gets real gassy when he’s scared, and he’s not been too shy about letting it all out. As you will likely be smelling right about now.”
I looked at her in confusion before gasping and gagging. Oh, my god! I retched audibly. “Yea-ugh, let’s.”
I led her to the gate and opened the place up with my palm. The large doors opened slowly, and all of my friends except Balmur stood there waiting just inside.
“She’s cool guys, but beware of the warthog, he just shit himself.” Bokaj’s face screwed up instantly, and he gagged. “Told you.”
Balmur appeared next to her and grimaced. “That’s rough.” He stepped back into the shadows and moved away from us.
“So, who do I have the pleasure of greetin’?” Manly waved to everyone as soon as we were fully inside. The gates had closed, and both of the visitors seemed to be in much better spirits.
“Well, we’re from left to right—our left, sorry—Jaken, James, Yohsuke, Muu, Balmur, and Bokaj. You’ve met Zeke.” Bokaj explained as he pointed to each of them. Kayda fluttered from Jaken’s shoulder to mine, and I distinctly caught the halfling’s eyes following her appraisingly.
“She’s not for sale, and if anyone touches her, they pay.” I said it mildly so that it wouldn’t be construed as a threat. She seemed to take it in stride as she looked around some more. “Now, care to introduce yourself to the others?”
Into the Darkness: A Fantasy LitRPG Adventure (Axe Druid Book 4) Page 6
