Arrows of Ladis

by RG Long

  It was also barring some considerable wounds and smelled horribly.

  “What is it?” Serinde asked before anyone else could venture the same question.

  “Bah,” Gorplin said, holding his hand to his face. “It smells worse than it looks, and it looks like death and the underworld.”

  All around it were scattered chests and barrels. They all had straps attached to them, like they were somehow connected to the massive creature. Blume imagined that it wouldn’t have been hard for it to carry all that weight. The thing was so huge to begin with.

  “It’s an elephant,” Holve said, looking around for Silverwolf. “It should have been with....”

  “Four men,” said a voice from above them. “Maybe five, but I can’t tell. Whoever did this isn’t as clean as I prefer.”

  Silverwolf materialized in some tree branches above them.

  And, right beside her, so did a terrible looking lizard creature. Blume pointed and shouted at it. Fortunately for Silverwolf’s sake, the motion also produced an involuntary blast of magic that sent the creature flying through the trees away from them. It had been preparing to spear the assassin through the gut with a spear.

  There was no praise from Silverwolf, though. She was swearing up a storm as more and more of the lizards began popping out of cover all around them. Everyone formed a circle around the elephant carcass as the lizards hit the floor of the jungle around them and began charging with their spears.

  Blume had never seen such wild creatures. They were a deep purple color. That is, when they weren’t matching the jungle foliage perfectly. There had to be at least twelve of them and Blume didn’t hear or see them run in their direction.

  One dropped from the branches of a tall tree right in front of Blume.

  Finally, a chance to let her magic freely escape. She felt her terror of being overshadowed by a giant lizard with a mouth that looked like it could consume her head in one bite overtake her. She felt fire in her bones and let it run out of her fingers in full force. The lizard screeched as it disappeared in a pillar of flames.

  Blume turned to see where else she could lose her magic.

  Gorplin was busy taking on two of the lizards himself. They didn’t seem to know how to handle his height and battle prowess. One of them kept trying to stab too low, while the other was furiously beating away Gorplin’s ax. Ealrin and Holve fought back to back using the dead elephant as cover, spear and sword flashing into dark purple lizard hide.

  Silverwolf was swinging from tree to tree, taking lizards with her as she came upon them. Serinde was standing over Jurrin, who had his sling out and was pelting any who came near him with rocks.

  Then Blume saw one leap from above her in the direction of the elf and halfling. With a yell, Blume blew a gust of wind that stopped the lizard mid fall, then took him straight into a tree with a satisfying crunch.

  Gorplin took down his two lizards and, with their heavy thuds, the jungle fell quiet again.

  Silverwolf leapt down into the cleared area, panting as she did so.

  “I think we just earned at least a night’s rest at Martta’s,” she said. “Though, I’m lobbying for a private suite. I took down five all on my own.”

  “Four and a half, Miss Wolf,” Jurrin piped up. “I knocked one out with a stone before you finished him off.”

  Silverwolf cut Jurrin a comical look and Blume nearly laughed. It was good to be able to use her magic to help the people of Three Way and earn some rest at the inn. They had been through a lot in the last month. It felt like they were getting back to being helpful to others and pursuing the right course.

  Holve was getting ready to speak, when he stopped. Blume caught his eyes looking up at the trees.

  Twack. Rap rap.

  Twack. Rap rap.

  The sound reverberated all around the jungle scene. Blume followed Holve’s gaze upwards and her mouth dropped open.

  Above them, scattered among the trees, more and more lizards dropped their disguises and began to materialize from the foliage.

  “Run,” Holve said quietly.

  Silverwolf took a step back in the direction of Three Way. Ealrin took two tentative paces.

  A lizard dropped down in the middle of the them. Holve stabbed it with his spear before it could act. The pretense of safety was gone now.

  Holve was now shouting as more and more of the lizards fell from the sky. They had no choice but to obey his bellowed command.

  “RUN!”

  14: No Rest

  Ealrin swung his blade at a lizard as it fell from above right next to him. The beast’s arm fell free of its body and it writhed in pain. There was no time to celebrate, though. Hundreds of the things were leaping through the trees, dropping every so often on top of them.

  A huge blast of magic from Blume had given them a head start in their escape. It had also blown a hole in the canopy of the jungle. It was past noon.

  Holve was leading the charge back to Three Way. Or, at least, that’s where Ealrin assumed they would head. The village had walls, which is more that he could say for their current predicament.

  Another lizard fell down on his left. Before he could adjust and swing his blade correctly, a grunt and thud sounded out from Gorplin behind him. The dwarf had thrown his ax at the head of the lizard. As they continued to run, he pulled his blade free of the lizard’s skull.

  “Bah! They bleed purple!” he cried as he leapt from that lizard to another. “I’ll see if they do a different shade when you slice them open all the way!”

  Ealrin saw Blume react before he had time to yell words of warning. Both of her hands shot out and she let loose a burst of lightning. The two lizards who had leapt out at them both writhed in pain and fell dead to the jungle floor.

  Blume swayed on the spot as her eyes glazed out of focus. Gorplin reached out and steadied her with a hand while Ealrin spun around, checking for more lizards jumping down on them.

  “Bah. None of that now,” Gorplin said to Blume as he held out his ax.

  “Holve!” Ealrin shouted as they both led Blume away. “We need a plan!”

  “What do you think I’m doin’!?” Holve shouted back at them as Silverwolf jumped from limb to limb of the jungle trees, slicing lizards as she came to them.

  “Getting us into a thicker mess!” she shouted as a lizard challenged her, then disappeared right in front of Ealrin’s eyes. The assassin swore and then jumped down to the floor of the jungle to join the rest of them.

  “This way!” Holve said as he turned left. Ealrin recognized this path. It was the one that they had taken away from Three Way as soon as they had been sent off on their task to find the lizards. They had certainly accomplished that.

  The group froze as they rounded the corner, if only for a breath.

  Three Way was in flames.

  Plumes of smoke rose up through the jungle canopy. It was only then that Ealrin realized a small breeze had been blowing along with them, masking the smell of smoke that now invaded his nostrils.

  “Follow me,” Holve said gruffly, pulling on Gorplin who, in turn, pulled Blume along. Ealrin ran behind them. So much for a peaceful night’s rest and a chance to get a few days of meals. They were running off the path now. Even though the beaten dirt of the jungle had been difficult to walk on at times, the way Holve was leading them now seemed untraversed at all.

  They shoved their way past vines and tree trunks, all the while cutting down lizards as they fell from above, their spears in hand and war cries in their throats. Ealrin cut down every one that came near them and swung his blade at most of the others who came close. The lizards weren’t coming in as many numbers as they had at first. He was glad they had stopped their constant shrill hisses.

  “Down here!” Holve said as he jumped over a root and disappeared behind it. Ealrin ran up to the same place and looked down as a blast of cool air hit him. The ground seemed to fall away and down into depths.

  Serinde got to the trunk just as Gorplin did.
She didn’t even stop before trying to lift the dwarf up over the root. Silverwolf landed beside them and shoved them both over before turning to Ealrin, winking, and diving over the root herself.

  Ealrin helped Jurrin over the root and after Silverwolf as soon as he got there. The halfling was, thankfully, very light. Ealrin was afraid he had almost thrown him too hard but didn’t have time to contemplate it.

  Blume was stumbling over her own feet, so Ealrin lifted her up and placed her on the tree’s base before climbing over himself. He wanted to take a second glance to see where his feet were going to land, when a spear hit the trunk of the tree right where his hand had been just a breath before.

  “Down we go!” he said, much more confidently than he felt as he grabbed Blume around the waist and rolled behind the protective cover of the root. He was sure he heard the thudding sound of two more spears hitting the tree before they were rolling down a slippery and increasingly steep path.

  “Blast it, Holve Bravestead! I’ll skin your hide if we survive this!”

  Ealrin heard Gorplin’s shouts and couldn’t help but agree. Where ever it was they were heading, it was getting darker and they were traveling faster and faster with each passing moment.

  With a thud and a crunch, Ealrin came to a painful stop as Blume landed on top of him with a groan. The sound of other such complaining rose up from the spot they had come to rest in.

  “Skin me all you want,” grumbled Holve from just above Ealrin. “I’d like to see you try to get us out of that alive, Gorplin, son of Thorplin.”

  THE SLIPPERY SLOPE that Holve had led them down was, in fact, a very large cave opening. Ealrin looked up to see a speck of daylight far above them and, thankful, not a single lizard following them down the slope.

  He helped get Blume off of himself and lay on her back. She thanked him weakly, then closed her eyes and began to breathe steadily. She was already asleep. Ealrin stood and dusted himself off, ready to see what type of place Holve had brought them to.

  It took several blinks for his eyes to adjust to the dim light.

  “I don’t suppose anyone has some flint and a torch?” Serinde asked calmly.

  The small voice of Jurrin piped up.

  “Actually, I may have something better, Miss Serinde.”

  A small red light filled the cave as Jurrin produced an intricate wand with a piece of Rimstone attached to it.

  “How have you managed to keep that thing from breaking?” Silverwolf said as she looked down on the stone as it gave off its red glow.

  “Won’t break,” Jurrin said, twisting it in his hands. “Those dwarves that made it are sure masters at it.”

  “Bah,” came a voice from the shadows. “Course they are.”

  No matter where they came from or what they were up to, in Gorplin’s mind, dwarves were better. Ealrin couldn’t blame him. Most of the time he was right. The dwarves that had crafted that wand had done an extraordinary job of it. Unfortunately, to everyone except Blume, that beautiful and intricate creation was nothing but a torch.

  On the bright side, a torch was exactly what they needed. Holve held out his hand and Jurrin offered him the wand, though he hesitated just a moment. Ealrin knew it was special to him.

  “I won’t break it either,” Holve said, a small grin on his face. As he took it he held it up and let its light shine a little further than the halfling could. Ealrin’s eyes adjusted just enough to see, though the red light of the stone was a little hard to get used to.

  The cave’s walls were smoother than he would have thought, and rather tall, too. Bits of water dripped down from short stalactites on the ceiling. This wasn’t an old cave. But then how did the walls get so smooth?

  “Bah, the lizards aren’t coming,” Gorplin said, who had stood watching the entrance to the tunnel with his ax out and ready.

  “And they won’t,” Holve said, turning his attention in the other direction. “We should get moving.”

  “What about Blume?” Ealrin said, looking down at her sleeping form.

  “Wake her up,” Holve said without looking at Ealrin. At that moment, a low, rumbling, guttural sound filled the cave. It shook Ealrin and made the hairs on his arms stand on end.

  “Wanna bet that’s why the lizards aren’t chasing us?” Silverwolf muttered to Serinde.

  Holve nodded.

  “And that’s also why we need to wake our Speaker.”

  BLUME WALKED GROGGILY along the path as they made their way deeper and deeper into the tunnel. Gorplin kept putting his hand to the wall of the cave, then shaking his head several times. He never explained himself, even when Silverwolf threatened to shave his beard if he did it one more time.

  He just gave her a look that made Ealrin think watching the two fight would be worth seeing.

  Holve led them on, deeper and deeper. Ealrin was glad to walk right behind him. The tunnel was beginning to get to him. Fortunately, he could stand to his full height and the ceiling didn’t scrape his head, but he continually had the feeling that he was being pressed down upon. He looked over his shoulder at Silverwolf and Serinde just behind them.

  He was glad he wasn’t there. There was an overwhelming feeling in his stomach that something lurked just outside the scope of the red light. He felt it odd that he didn’t fear what was ahead. In fact, the sight ahead was exciting to him. The tunnel was getting wider as they went. A small stream began to run beside them as they walked. The trickling filled the cave with the echoes of water, filling in with their footsteps as they kept walking.

  “Does anyone else feel like we’re going down more than we’re going forward?” Silverwolf asked from the back of the group.

  Ealrin looked back over his shoulder. He was planning to give her a hard time about how water flows downward so of course they were going down, but then something caught his eye. Maybe it was just a glint off of a particularly shiny rock in the cave wall. But, then again, it appeared to move in a flash.

  “What?” Silverwolf shot at him.

  Ealrin shook his head and then turned back around to face forward. Forward was better.

  “There should be a larger opening soon,” Holve said. His voice sounded like it echoed less all of a sudden. Ealrin soon found out why. The walls of the cave were gone. In their place was a black expanse of darkness that only a portion of the red light touched.

  Holve had stopped right at the edge of a vast, underground lake.

  “I don’t swim very well, Mister Holve,” Jurrin said in a voice that shuddered slightly.

  Ealrin couldn’t help but agree with the halfling’s hesitations. He supposed the water was quite cold, being underground and possibly spring fed. Blume came up to him and wrapped her hands around his arm. She felt cold. They would need to get her rest soon.

  He touched the still water with the edge of his toe.

  “Don’t!” Blume breathed. As she spoke, a burst of mist escaped her mouth. It sparkled blue, then went out.

  The water immediately began to churn and ripple. What sounded like a far-off splash echoed through the large cavern.

  Holve grunted. He reached behind him, pulling out his spear and tightening his grasp on it.

  “And that’s why we need our Speaker awake.”

  15: The Ancient Sleepers

  “Light, Blume!” Holve commanded. “Fill the cave.”

  More mist escaped from Blume’s mouth as she spoke words of magic and threw her hands out in front of her. The red light from the Rimstone wand that had been small and diminished was all at once a ball of light that flew upwards, filling the cavern and the top of the water’s surface with a blaring red glow.

  Ealrin almost wished it hadn’t.

  Directly under the light a terrible splashing and crashing was occurring in the water. Great large somethings were making a awful tantrum.

  “Blume,” Holve said. “How are you feeling?”

  “Dizzy,” Blume replied and Ealrin looked down at her. She was shivering with cold. Ealrin found th
at strange. The cave was chilly, but not artic. Blume shook like she was in a blizzard.

  “But I’ll be fine,” she added bravely, and foolishly in Ealrin’s opinion.

  “Holve, she can’t be pushed too hard,” he said. “She’s been using too much magic. It keeps leaking out of her.”

  The old man grunted and looked out at the lake and the commotion happening there. It was coming closer.

  “She’ll have to or we’ll all be very wet and cold before we die.”

  He looked down at Blume and set his eyes. Holve’s eyebrows were furrowed and he looked like he was contemplating something dire.

  “Mister Holve,” Jurrin said, pulling out his sling. “I think whatever it is out there is very mad.”

  “Very hungry, more like,” Silverwolf replied, holding her sword ready at her side

  “You’ve got to do this, Blume,” Holve said. “Freeze the lake. If you do that, we’ll be able to cross and then those things will be trapped in it.

  “Holve, I don’t think...” Ealrin began, but Blume cut him off.

  “I’ll do it,” she said, looking determined but very tired.

  Shivering, she reached up hand up to her amulet, which was pulsating green, and gripped it tightly. With the other, she reached out to the water. Her hand hovered just above it.

  “The exit is on the other side of the lake,” Holve said. “Straight across from us.”

  Blume nodded.

  She took a deep breath and, as she exhaled, placed her hand on the water. The things that were splashing there were coming closer. Ealrin could almost make out their shapes. He didn’t like what he saw.

  There were at least two, maybe three of the underwater beasts. They looked like eels with front limbs. They were slimy and had massive, webbed claws on large forearms. Giant, sightless eye sockets rested above gaping mouths covered in teeth.

  Ealrin took out his own sword.

  He knew these things needed no light to hunt. They could sense, or maybe even smell, the presence of fresh meat in their cave. If Blume’s magic wore out and the light above faded, they were in serious trouble.