by Phoenix Grey
With a nod, Azure followed the deer into the forest. While the blood trail eventually disappeared, he did stumble upon a set of footprints. Kneeling to get a better look at them, he quickly realized that they did not belong to goblins. That was a relief. What wasn't a relief was that when he stood up, he began to notice something more alarming. The scenery around him was way too familiar.
Abandoning his search for the wounded animal, Azure decided to follow the tracks for a while. There weren't many distinct things about this forest, but he was almost certain that he'd been here before...that the two sets of footprints he was now following belonged to him and Uden.
Shit. Who else would be out here?
For good measure, and because he wasn't sure how else to tell, he placed his foot in the larger of the tracks. It was a match. That didn't mean anything, though. It wasn't like he didn't share a shoe size with probably hundreds or thousands of other men in The Realm.
He decided to go retrieve Uden to confirm his theory. If anyone would know if the tracks were theirs, it would be him.
“Tell me those aren't our tracks.” Azure pointed to them once he had brought Uden over.
“Those aren't our tracks,” the half-imp responded without even kneeling to give them a good look.
“Dude, the shoe fucking fits.” He placed his foot on top of one of the prints again. “Try the other one.”
Stubbornly, Uden shuffled forward and placed his foot in the other print. It was a perfect match. For a moment, he looked surprised. “You may be right,” he said, rubbing his chin in thought.
“I am right” Azure insisted. “Doesn't this all seem really familiar to you?” He gestured to the forest around them.
“To be honest, we've been walking for so long that all of the trees look the same to me.”
It was a strange response from someone who was typically very aware of his surroundings, but Azure couldn't really argue. The scenery had been the same for much of their journey.
“Is there some kind of enchantment that could have been cast to disorient us?” he asked.
“Possibly. It's hard for me to believe that we would not have noticed, though.” Uden's eyes scanned the forest as if looking for someone.
“The sprites had the protection of the trees,” Azure reminded him.
“Sprites are practically made of Earth and Life magic. They have control over the forest in ways that no other species does. It's an innate ability for them to collectively be able to erect walls of shrubbery from the forest around their settlements. A mage would not have the same ability without laying down runes, and we haven't come across any so far.”
“Would we even notice them if we came across them?” Azure figured that a trap wasn't very good if you could detect it. Kind of like leaving landmines out in the open. Who would be dumb enough to knowingly step on one?
“I'm pretty sure I would have.”
“Well, not to be a dick, but you didn't notice us walking around in circles. I suspected it yesterday.”
The half-Imp blew out an annoyed breath. “To be fair, we're still not even sure these are our footprints.”
“How are we not sure?!” Azure gawked at him incredulously. “They fit our fucking feet.”
Uden ignored Azure's frustration, turning his attention toward the direction that the tracks were headed in. “We should follow them for a while and see if we continue to recognize the scenery around us. We should also start looking for runes.”
Why was it so hard for Uden to believe him? Wasn't there even that much level of trust, or did the half-imp just think him an idiot? It certainly seemed that way. Whatever the case, there was no point in arguing further. Just as Uden had been insisting that they wasted the day after Lonnell and Bronna had left, there was no making him budge now. They would follow his plan and likely squander even more time as a result.
“Fine,” Azure acquiesced with a sigh. “What does a rune look like anyway?”
“You'll know one if you see one,” Uden said before taking off in the direction of the footprints.
Azure could feel his blood pressure rising. In his mind, he was reaching out and strangling Uden. The guy could be insufferable sometimes.
Not knowing what to look for, Azure trailed behind the half-imp blindly. He kept his eyes peeled for anything unusual, but as Uden had said earlier, the forest seemed much the same to him. They must have walked a good mile before they came upon anything distinguishable—two rocks that curved oddly towards each other in the shape of a heart.
“There!” Azure pointed. “See! I knew we had been here before.”
Uden paused, gazing at the natural wonder. He didn't even show an ounce of enthusiasm at the find as he said, “I suppose you're right.”
“I don't understand why you wouldn't believe me.” Azure glanced over at his comrade, his displeasure shining through.
“Apologies.” The half-imp placed a hand on his shoulder. “It is incredibly rare that I'm duped. I admittedly didn't expect you to be more perceptive than me. It's a bit embarrassing, if I'm being honest.” He chuckled, lightening the mood a bit.
Azure brushed the offense he had been feeling away. “Everyone makes mistakes, friend. Don't worry about it. Now we just need to figure out how to get past this enchantment. On the plus side, I imagine this means that we must be close.”
“We must be,” Uden agreed. “He is somewhere nearby. But it is getting late. We should make camp for the night.”
“Is it safe to make camp here after we discovered the enchantment? Won't he know?” Azure raised an eyebrow.
“If he were going to attack us, he would have. The fact that he took the time to cast this enchantment means that he's afraid of us. In any case, we won't be able to break free from it until we find and dispel the runes.”
“Isn't that even more of a reason for us to keep searching?”
“I think we've already proven that to be a challenging task in the light of day. If we're lucky, the runes will glow at night.”
“Then we should search through the night until we find them,” Azure insisted.
“Fine,” Uden surrendered with a sigh.
They scoured the surrounding forest to no avail. Uden said that the runes would be on the ground and roughly 1 x 1 foot. Nothing glowed in the night besides the occasional flash of a firefly. The paranoid part of Azure wondered if they were part of the enchantment, but when he asked Uden about it, the half-imp simply laughed at him.
After hours of searching, they finally gave up and decided to bed down for the night. Once more, Uden allowed Azure to slumber until he was fully rested. Traveling alone with the half-imp seemed so different from journeying with Lonnell. There was no urgency in much of what he did. It was as if this quest wasn't very important to him. Or perhaps he wanted to wait for his brother to return for the sake of safety. From the show of magic he'd seen so far, there was no doubt that if The Dark One did try to attack them, they'd be outmatched.
That begged the question, though... If this person was aware of them, why hadn't he attacked yet? Uden had said he was afraid. If that were the case, then he was likely a weak foe. However, the half-imp had also warned that he would be strong. So which one was it? If he was strong, then why not eliminate them right away? Surely, The Dark One must see them as pests.
“We will be free to travel now,” Uden told Azure as soon as he had rubbed the sleep from his eyes. “While you were sleeping, I found the runes and dispelled their magic.”
“You what?” Azure blinked awake. What he really wanted to ask was...you just left me here asleep and vulnerable and went off exploring on your own?!
“I dispelled them,” he responded absentmindedly.
Azure sat up, still trying to get his head around what Uden was saying. “What do you mean you found them? We looked everywhere last night. For hours. Scoured every bit of dirt within a ten-mile radius.” That was probably an exaggeration, but it sure had felt like it.
Uden grinned. “I actua
lly found one when I was taking a piss. Would you like to hear the story?” His eyes flashed with humor.
“Please.” Azure gestured for him to continue.
“Well, I was peeing close to a large rock, and I noticed that some of the splash was glowing an iridescent yellow. At first, I thought it might have been something I ate, but when I lifted the rock...sure enough, there was a rune. The Dark One must have hidden them in case we discovered his enchantment. Clever,” he mused.
“Clever indeed,” Azure agreed with a smile. “But no match for your uncoordinated pissing.”
Uden chuckled. “My pissing is quite coordinated, I assure you. It was just a spell of dumb luck. Needless to say, I went about turning over rocks until I found the other three. We should be good to go now.”
“Well, it's nice to know you were productive.” Perhaps the half-imp wasn't as lazy as Azure had thought.
“But now it's my turn to sleep.” He sat down, stretching out in the grass.
Azure's expression drooped. “Really, man? You shouldn't have let me sleep all night. What if The Dark One discovers that you dispelled his runes and comes back to place new ones.”
“There's no chance of that happening,” Uden assured him.
“How do you know?”
The half-imp eyed him. “Do you really think he'd think that we'd fall for the same trick twice?”
“Probably not. He's more likely to attack.”
“I promise you that if he spent all of that time to throw us off of his trail, he's not looking for a fight unless it's absolutely unavoidable.”
“Then maybe he shouldn't be sacrificing virgins.” Azure rolled his eyes.
“More than likely, this Dark One is probably just some mage dabbling in blood magic. He'll be powerful, don't get me wrong, but one man alone is always at a disadvantage.”
But The Dark One wasn't alone. He had the goblins behind him, or so it seemed. At the very least, they were catering to him to avoid his wrath. Azure couldn't help but think that Uden should be showing a bit more concern and caution.
“You get a few hours,” he agreed finally, sitting down to watch over Uden as he slept.
“Oh, don't be a Lonnell,” the half-imp teased him.
“I wouldn't be if you weren't such a time-waster.” Azure glowered at him.
“I'm not wasting time. I'm simply waiting for my brother to return so that we'll have a better chance of success. Our goal was only to find The Dark One. We're very close to doing that. There's no reason to rush it.”
“What if he tries to leave the area?”
Uden crossed his arms behind his head to use them as a makeshift pillow. “If we're lucky, he'll leave the island. Then we won't have to deal with this bullshit anymore.”
Despite him saying it, they both knew that wasn't what was going to happen. They would have to face The Dark One eventually.
Time wasted away as Uden slept. Even though the half-imp had assured him that The Dark One wouldn't randomly strike out at them, Azure remained ever vigilant. Knowing that The Dark One was close gave him an uneasy feeling. Would he even have time to wake Uden if the mage attacked? If this Dark One was as intelligent as he seemed to be, he would undoubtedly go for Uden first. It would be much smarter to kill the stronger foe while he was asleep then chance him waking and joining the fray. That thought caused Azure to stay close to Uden. It also made him stick to his word of only allowing him a few hours of sleep.
When Uden awoke again, he took his time getting up and moving about, which only served to annoy Azure further. Perhaps he was needlessly impatient. To some degree, Uden was right. What else would they have to do after they found The Dark One besides relocating somewhere that they wouldn't be detected and come up with a plan? Still, even if The Dark One was close, there was no guarantee they'd find him.
Azure tried to be forbearing as he waited for Uden to ready himself to head out again. At least, with the runes dispelled, they should be able to make some actual progress. That was something to look forward to.
“Since you're so fond of those hills, let's head that way.” Uden pointed toward the hills. “That way you can let me know if they're not getting any closer.” He winked at Azure before stepping past him.
They had only traveled for about an hour before Uden came to a dead stop, throwing his arm out to the side to make Azure give pause as well. “Do you hear that?” he whispered.
“What?” Azure listened. Birds chirping in the trees was the only distinguishable sound to him.
“Goblins,” Uden said in a low voice.
“I don't hear anything.” Azure gave him a confused look.
“To be fair, my hearing is innately superior to yours. Stay near me.” He proceeded again more slowly this time, activating his stealth skill as so not to be detected.
Sure enough, they came upon three goblins camped about a hundred yards away. It bothered Azure that he couldn't hear them at all until they had gotten much closer. Was the half-imp's hearing really that much better than his?
The goblins seemed to be lazing about. One was resting on its side staring at the small fire they'd built. The other two were sitting cross-legged on the ground. Azure used Analyze on them. One was green, one was yellow, and the largest of the three was orange. They didn't appear to have any objective, merely sitting around gossiping about other goblins...which meant that there were definitely other goblins somewhere nearby.
After observing them for a few moments, Uden gestured to retreat back into the forest. Azure cautiously followed him until they were a safe enough distance away to speak.
“Here's the plan,” Uden began. “We split up. I'll come in from behind and make some noise to cause them to come investigate. You attack the smaller one while their backs are turned. I'll take the stronger two.”
“Wouldn't it be better if we did things the other way around? If they aren't expecting you to attack from behind, you can quickly kill at least one of the bigger ones,” Azure argued.
“I'm more likely to be able to handle a frontal assault than you are. I know we spent time training, but trust me when I say that it's not enough,” the half-imp warned him.
Azure sucked in a breath between clenched teeth, not feeling the plan. “We both have ranged weapons. They do not. Would it not be smarter to attack from a distance? I can probably take the weaker one out with my bow.”
“My plan is better,” Uden insisted.
“Your plan is risky.” Azure couldn't help but wonder if the half-imp had a death wish or if he was just that much of a thrill seeker. Whatever the case, it wasn't worth it. “Shall we flip a coin on it?”
“No,” Uden replied stubbornly. “I will be off now.”
Before Azure could open his mouth to object, the half-imp walked away, activating his stealth skill and disappearing into the forest like Predator.
Azure let out a long sigh, feeling tension building in his shoulders with his frustration. This was very reminiscent of the time they had come upon the goblins who held Bronna captive. “I guess we're doing this the hard way, then,” he mumbled, knowing that he now had no other choice than to go along with Uden's plan.
Moving with caution, Azure proceeded back towards where the goblins were camped. He could only assume that he was supposed to attack whenever the goblins started receding into the trees to investigate whatever noise Uden was going to make to distract them. It bothered him that they hadn't fully ironed out the plan, but the half-imp was nothing if not impulsive. Oh well. They'd make this work somehow. Everything else had worked out thus far, even when things were half-assed.
Almost as soon as that thought crossed Azure's mind, a wall of green muscle pushed through the foliage in front of him. His heart jumped from his chest into his throat, and he nearly stumbled back. Flanking his sides were the two other goblins, reminding him of the velociraptor attack from Jurassic Park. Their weapons were already brandished.
“You move, you die,” the goblin in front said in a gruff voice.
With blades pointing at Azure from all sides, there was no time to draw his own weapon. All he could do was raise his hands in surrender and hope that Uden would come to his rescue.
The goblins worked silently to bind Azure's wrists behind his back. Had he and Uden really made that much noise during their retreat? They had both been Stealthed, so it didn't make any sense. What had tipped the goblins off to their whereabouts?
Soon, there was a spear poking into Azure's back as he was being directed through the forest. His eyes raked the trees around him, looking for signs of his friend. Surely, Uden would come to his rescue at any moment. The longer they traveled, the more Azure began to lose hope. And when Uden's stats disappeared from the corner of his vision, he realized with great despair that he was now entirely on his own.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
THE REALM – Day 18
Things not on Azure's list of things to do:
Get captured by goblins
End up in the middle of a large goblin settlement
This is a lot of goblins. A lot of fucking goblins.
Those were Azure's first thoughts when the forest gave way to the goblin settlement perched on the side of a cliff. There were crude huts erected everywhere, the structures entirely primitive. The settlement must have encompassed a good quarter mile radius. It was bigger than Cragbell and had more goblins than the town had humans. They were everywhere, most of them clad in nothing but loin cloths. Azure lost count once he reached twenty-five, all of various levels, though close to half of them Analyzed as blue.
Congratulations! The skill: Analyze has reached Level 4. This skill allows you to see how dangerous a foe is in relation to your own level. Use this skill frequently to avoid getting yourself killed.
As they passed by one of the smaller huts, Azure thought he recognized one of the goblins. It had a ring of bite marks on its collarbone. He was almost certain it was the cook that Uden had sworn he'd killed. That scar was way too distinct, and Azure didn't see any other goblins with similar markings. An uneasy feeling formed in the pit of his stomach as he began to sense that something wasn't right.
