by Eden Redd
Kavan smiled to himself.
I’m counting on them talking. I believe Soki will keep it quiet, but Ammi forgets herself. If there is a rumor that someone in town tried to have me killed, it will reach the suspect. With everything going on, they may out themselves.
“Either they will hope we die at the xykk colony or try to take us out before or after it. Very shrewd.”
I’ve played a few mystery sims in my time. You pick up a thing or two.
“It may help with one problem, but what about the big problem. You barely held your own against several xykks. A whole colony can be the death of us, even with Durzol and Drayke.”
Durzol is strong and should be able to handle himself. We still don’t know Drayke’s real intentions. Him coming along may shed some light on that subject and help us understand what happened and why he’s here.
“Unless he was the one who placed the altered sapling on your property. We could be walking into a situation where he pushes us into the colony and walks back to town to tell everyone of our terrible mishap.”
Call it a hunch, but I don’t think Drayke wants us dead. He seems genuine that he had never visited Moonvale before and the sapling was taken nearly a month ago. No, there is something else at play here. We just have to figure out what it is.
Kavan approached the mayor. Durzol and Dura were standing by their father’s side as the older orc was talking to a woman with cat-like features and witch hat. Kogan glanced at Kavan's approach and smiled.
“Esmeralda, please meet Kavan Cynder,” the mayor said politely.
The cat woman turned and immediately bowed with nervous eyes. “Charmed,” she said as if trying to sound confident and yet, it came out with a hesitant edge.
Kavan bowed. “Pleased to meet you, Esmeralda.”
The two stood up, but Esmeralda looked away, unable to make eye-contact.
“Esmeralda is the town alchemist. We’ve had several discussions about using fire potions for the town defense.”
The cat woman began talking at a rapid-fire pace, “Most insects, like the xykk, don’t like fire. A certain temperature melts their carapaces easily and they have a difficult time regenerating from fire damage. After the mayor brought it to my attention, I began making vats of fire liquids that react and explode to air. The fire will have the perfect power to damage xykks and not be hot enough to set the town on ablaze. Due to my supplies, I can have over a hundred potions ready by tomorrow morning. It means working through the night, but who needs sleep? I don’t need sleep. Not all the time. Don’t mistake me for hating sleep. I love to sleep, when my mind lets me. It’s a cruel dance. Sometimes I fall asleep just about anywhere. And sometimes I just run around, trying to get the energy out. Sleeping potions work, but I can’t use them all the time. You get addicted to them and I have enough problems. Oh dear, I keep talking. Why do I keep talking?”
Kavan smiled politely.
Kogan gently touched Esmeralda’s shoulder, “Easy Ezma. Kavan is our friend and Magistrate.”
The woman with cat-like features nodded as her gaze remained firmly to the floor. “I know. I know. It’s hard being outside. I know the town meeting was important, but I have to get back to my potions. Don’t want anything exploding and setting the town on fire, not at all. Fire bad, potions good.”
Esmeralda looked up to Kavan with wide eyes. “It was a pleasure to meet you! I hope you don’t die,” Esmeralda said a little too loudly.
Before Kavan could get a word in edgewise, the alchemist turned on her heels and marched off at a quick pace. She walked down a street and was gone from view.
The mayor gave a somber nod. “Esmeralda is a gifted alchemist, but her social skills are a little underdeveloped. She should have enough fire potions by the morning for your mission.”
Kavan nodded when something Priest Raine said before touched Kavan’s thoughts. “Mayor, can I speak to you in private?”
“Of course, my boy,” Kogan nodded.
The dragonkin and orc stepped aside until they were out of earshot of those still lingering along the town center.
Kavan glanced over to Onka and Lorta. The goblin and troll were talking to each other. Onka glanced over to Kavan, their eyes connecting for barely a moment before she returned her attention back to the tall troll.
“What’s on your mind?” Kogan asked.
Kavan spoke in a hushed tone, “Mayor, I was informed by Priest Raine that I should speak to you about the Heart of Moonvale.”
The mayor’s calm demeanor shifted. Long shadows covered his eyes and the often-stoic mayor looked away.
“Kogan?” Kavan said.
The older orc let out a long exhale. “Kavan, I’ve wanted to speak to you about the Heart of Moonvale for some time, but now is not it. I can only promise to speak to you further about it after we’ve made sure the town is safe.”
Kavan glanced at Onka again and then looked at the mayor, “Does this have something to do with Onka? Priest Raine gave me instructions to speak with you, but only when Onka was out of the room. Is there something more I should know about her?”
Kogan lifted a large hand and placed it on Kavan’s shoulder. “I wish I could tell you right now, but it will be a distraction. I must ask you to trust me and the town. I will speak to it, I swear on the lives of my children.”
Kavan saw the earnest look in the older orc’s eyes. Kavan could see the battle within the mayor to tell Kavan everything, but something more was holding him back.
“After we protect the town, we must sit down and have that chat,” Kavan said.
The mayor nodded. “We will, I promise. For now, I think a few others need your attention.”
Kavan glanced over at Onka, Lorta, and Abby as they looked at him.
“It is too dangerous for you and your taur to stay on your farm. Stay at the inn for the night. We will meet in the town center at first light. Get plenty of sleep. We all may need that for the days to come,” Kogan said.
Mayor Sunaxe squeezed Kavan’s shoulder before letting go. The older orc walked back to Durzol and Dura as Kavan walked back to Onka, Lorta, and Abby.
Abby was jumping in excitement, her cloven feet clattering against the cobblestone street. When Kavan approached, she rushed over and hugged him.
“You’re so brave, Master!” Abby said with barely contained excitement.
“Urm, thanks,” Kavan said and had to pry Abby’s arms off of him so he could stand straight.
Onka smiled. “Lorta and I were talking. We were going to go back to her farm and gather up the bolids and harpies and bring them back here.”
Lorta nodded. “They can’t stay in the barns if there are xykks around. They could be stolen during the night. They will have to stay at the inn with us.”
Kavan smiled and nodded. “I agree. All of us can go and round them up.”
Lorta gave the dragonkin a shy smile. “Thank you, Kavan and Onka.”
“I’m coming too!” Abby nearly shouted.
Lorta blinked at the taur, “Oh, yes, thank you too…”
“Abby. My name is Abby,” the taur grinned.
“Thank you, Abby,” Lorta smiled.
The small group turned and moved as one along West Street. Onka stepped closer to Kavan and put her arm around his waist. Kavan put his arm around her shoulders as they walked along.
“Are you sure you want to go to a xykk colony and burn them out?” Onka asked in a low tone.
“It will be worse if I don’t go,” Kavan said darkly.
The goblin nodded and leaned her head against Kavan’s ribs. “I don’t want you to go, but I understand why you have to.”
“I’ll be as careful as I can and come back in one piece.”
Onka looked up with a small smile. “You better. I never lost anyone as a guide to Moonvale.”
Kavan lifted an eye ridge, “I’m the only person you’ve ever been a guide for.”
The goblin nodded. “And I want to keep my record perfect. Your death
will leave a terrible stain and we can’t have that.”
A smile crept into Kavan’s face. He bent his head down and kissed the top of Onka’s head as they walked.
The small group reached the western gate as a cold breeze washed over the town of Moonvale, hearts beating together in uncertainty for the days to come.
Twenty One
Onka opened her eyes and stared at the empty spot beside her. The goblin slowly blinked as she turned slightly and looked up to see Kavan by the door to the inn bedchamber. The dragonkin was buckling his belt. He was fully clothed, wearing his leather armor and spear stabbing up from behind his shoulder. A strap crossed his chest to a tattered satchel hanging at his hip.
Early morning sun streamed in through the windows as Kavan turned and looked at the bed with the waking goblin.
A loud snore filled the room, Lorta on the other side of Onka. The floor of the bedchamber was covered in bedrolls. Abby, Lorta’s bolids, and her harpies laid about and slept deeply. Harpy wings were wrapped around bodies. Bolids slept on top of each other, limbs hanging over each other’s bodies. Abby was beside the bed, her eyes covered by her arm.
Onka sat up and looked at Kavan, a growing concern filling her oval, yellow eyes.
Kavan gave her a reassuring smile. “Take care of the town while I’m gone,” Kavan whispered.
Onka bit her lip as worry bled into her eyes. “Don’t go,” she said with a sad whisper.
Kavan’s expression softened and his heart thudded harder to her words. “I promise to come back.”
The goblin looked away. “And if you don’t?”
“Light a candle for my spirit to visit you every evening,” Kavan said softly.
Onka’s eyes trembled as she looked at the dragonkin.
Lorta’s snores stopped. The troll blinked before she sat up. She looked at Kavan as he stood by the door.
The dragonkin bowed to the women on the bed. He stood up, took hold of the knob and opened the door.
“Keep the town safe. I should be back in a few hours,” Kavan smiled before stepping out and gently closing the door behind him.
Lorta looked over to Onka’s lost gaze. She took the goblin’s hand into hers and squeezed it. Onka squeezed it back as sunlight flooded the bedchamber in brilliant light.
Kavan made his way downstairs and onto the main floor. Rujin was behind the counter, lifting up wood slats for windows and placing them on the bar. The troll looked up from what he was doing and gave Kavan a firm nod.
The dragonkin nodded back to the troll, an unspoken comradery touching each of them before Kavan stepped out the front door and onto the street.
The morning was filled with light and not a single cloud in the sky.
I hope the sunny day keeps the xykk inside the dungeon.
“They do have an aversion to daylight. This may prove fruitful to our quest.”
Kavan nodded and began walking east to the town center. In the distance, several figures stood around a table. Water trickled from the fountain spouts, adding the beautiful morning.
Mayor Sunaxe, Durzol, Dura, Esmerelda, and Drayke stood by a table covered in potions. Heads turned to West Street, Kavan stepping closer with confidence in his stride and eyes. The mayor and Durzol smiled. Dura had a small smile. Esmerelda blinked. Drayke stood in his black and silver leather armor with his arms crossed.
Kavan approached them and spotted an odd warhammer with a metal spike over Durzol’s shoulder. “New weapon?”
Durzol nodded. “I made it last night. It should penetrate xykk armor plates easily with slightly less effort. If I had enough time, I would have made more.”
“I hope we don’t have to use it,” Kavan smiled.
Mayor Sunaxe cleared his throat. “Gather everyone, gather. We have much to discuss in a short amount of time.”
The group closed in around the table filled with potions.
The mayor continued, “Esmerelda worked through the night to create these fire potions and many more. There should be enough here to burn out a colony if you get in deep enough. We have many more, ready to be placed in strategic locations around the town, alongside small weapon caches.”
The mayor held up a small scroll with a symbol of a dragon head. “Each location will be marked with this symbol. If you are not able to burn out the colony, the town will be ready for any xykk counter attack.”
Kogan pulled out another scroll, unrolled it and placed it on a small space on the table. Everyone looked down at the small, simple map of Moonvale. The orc’s thick green finger pointed to a starred location not far from the center of town.
“The Church of Drogoss is here on North Street. Should things go badly, everyone in town will congregate here. Extra weapons and potions will be placed inside the church. It is a sturdy structure and should help protect us if things don’t turn out for the better.”
Kogan looked up to Kavan with a smile. “But we have faith you will stop this threat before it truly begins.”
“No pressure,” Kavan chuckled.
Dura smiled. “We understand the danger with this quest. We discussed it at length and decided to make sure the town was ready for anything. We don’t know how many xykks may be in the dungeon, if they are truly there. If the numbers are too great, retreat back to town and we will make our stand here.”
The mayor nodded. “Xykks are tenacious and can be clever. If there is a queen, she will be smarter than the drones and warriors. Take care and remain vigilant.”
“From what we could gather from several books, the dungeon should be about a little over two hours from the south gate,” Dura added and pulled out a scroll.
The orc handed it to Kavan and he took it. His scaled hand placed it into his belt pouch and closed it.
“The map will lead you to the location and on the back is a rough diagram from what we can piece together of the first floor of the dungeon. It might help you navigate it once you’re there,” Dura said.
Esmeralda picked up a red glass potion bottle, filled with a crimson liquid. “The fire potions are simple. Throw them and once they shatter, they will react with the very air. Do not throw or drop them too close to you or your party or it’s going to be a hot time for everyone. Get it? Hot?”
Everyone blinked as the cat-woman giggled at her own joke.
The alchemist continued, “The fire will spread quickly and burn on surfaces for a long time. They will also produce a lot of smoke to help suffocate the xykk within. There is enough here that it should destroy the colony.”
Kavan nodded and opened his tattered satchel. His hands moved and gently picked up two potions at a time, placing them within the mystical confines of his satchel. Durzol and Drayke did the same, picking them up and putting them away. After a few short moments, the table was cleared.
“Before you set off, I need a word with the Magistrate,” Kogan said as he put his hand on Kavan’s shoulder.
The two stepped away from the table and stood about twenty feet away from the group.
“Kavan, it is good we are preparing for the worst, but I’m not sure we can hold off a xykk attack here in town. The residents have voiced their concerns, many of them preparing packs and ready to leave at a moment’s notice.
“If the xykk attack here, half the town may flee,” Kogan said in a hushed tone.
“I understand. We’ll make sure to burn out the colony,” Kavan said with a confident tone.
Kogan nodded and looked the dragonkin in the eyes. “My son…” the mayor trailed off.
Kavan nodded. “I will protect him with my life.”
A relief touched the older orc’s eyes. “Durzol and Dura are all I have left since their mother passed. I’ve held on to my sanity to make sure their lives were full and happy. Durzol is very much like my younger self. He never says it, but I know he wants to prove himself strong to me. All orcs feel this way when they reach a certain age. He won’t hear it from me if I tell him, he has already proven himself strong. He needs to know it for
himself.
“If he is hurt, bring him back to me and we will figure out a better defense afterwards. I don’t want him to die in some xykk colony. I want him home, with me and his sister.”
“I swear to watch over him and bring him back in one piece,” Kavan said with a warm intensity.
“Thank you, Kavan,” the mayor said, turned and walked back to the table.
Kavan followed.
Esmeralda pulled out potions from her satchel and placed them on the table. “These are minor healing potions, two for each of you. I wish I had more of the greater ones, but I was told to have them in reserve if the town is attacked.”
“This should be fine,” Drayke said as he picked up his two potions and placed them in his satchel.
Durzol and Kavan did the same.
Mayor Sunaxe looked at the three warriors and smiled. “Keep your wits and return to us safely. We will be waiting for your return.”
Kavan, Durzol and Drayke nodded. The three of them turned and began walking down the cobblestone street as the mayor, Dura, and Esmeralda watched them go with hope in their hearts.
***
Shafts of sunlight filtered through the leafy canopy. The air was cool along the forest as three figures made their way through it. The absence of birdsong caused the forest to press down on their senses, giving it an almost oppressive weight.
Kavan listened intently, drinking in the world around him. The only thing he heard was Drayke not too far behind and Durzol's boots amid crunchy leaves. Kavan’s spear was in his hands at half its length. He held it at the ready, listening for anything that may approach.
“The xykks are nocturnal. You should relax a little,” Drayke’s voice glided along the air from behind.
Kavan glanced over his shoulder to the dragonkin before looking forward again. “I’m not just listening for xykks. Undead have come from this forest. There could be other monsters we haven’t encountered yet. You’d best stay on alert so we’re not ambushed.”
“Or, we could talk?” Drayke said with an amused tone.
Kavan let out an exhale as his shoulders dropped a half inch. “Why? So, you can give me more cryptic riddles and mysterious information. No thanks. I’d rather focus on what we have to do. We can talk after the town is safe.”
