Homecoming (Homecoming Chonicles Book 1)

by James Thornton

  “The northern continent?” Forec asked. “What about the upper half?”

  Kura’Gasa eyed the High Mage. “Humans know so little,” she said. She shook her head gently from side to side.

  “Well cure us of our ignorance and tell us,” Forec said.

  “I’m afraid it isn’t so simple, human,”

  “Kura, I believe we’ve strayed some,” the High Mage said. “If we don't contain the elves, what do you plan to do with them?”

  “We kill all of them,” she said. “Then the orcs return home to defend our world from their return. Just as you promised us, Mage.”

  “Kill them?” Forec asked. “You’re suggesting we kill those?”

  “Better than trying to herd them,” Kura’Gasa said.

  “There are no other options at the moment. We will fight them back and kill as many as we can,” the High Mage said. “The orcs will stay and defend against the elves permanently. Any lands that Auverance loses are uninhabited anyways, and what’s left of the Warring Kingdoms is in no position to complain.”

  “And you think the king will go along with this?” Forec asked.

  “Of course,” Insmith said. “The elves nearly destroyed the city without an army. Imagine ten thousand of those monsters marching towards him?”

  “Would be awfully convincing,”

  They weren’t wrong about that. But she did wish they would talk more about where the orcs had lived. Some had lived in the forest? How? They were too big to be able to walk through all those trees. Maybe it was different when they were there. She wanted to know more, but the conversation had once again drifted. Not only had she missed what they talked about, but none of the names they used were familiar. The orc woman seemed to share her confusion as she slumped her shoulders and stared off into the sky.

  The massive tannish-gray woman noticed that she stared and walked over towards her. Not exactly what Vyra had hoped for, but whatever was about to happen would be different. She suppressed the urge to veil herself and run, but only just.

  “You care little for these matters, as well?” she asked.

  “I don’t know anything they’re talking about,” Vyra said. “I’m just from a small village in the Warring Kingdoms.”

  “Warring Kingdoms? The lands beyond the wall, I believe,” Kura’Gasa said. “My people come from those forests. My clan, though, left them for the lowlands.”

  “So orcs did live in the forest!” she shouted. “I was wondering.”

  “Yes, we were practically built for life in them,” she smiled and showed her tusk-like canines.

  “How?” Vyra asked. “You’re too big to get around the trees.”

  “We just knocked them over to make paths,” the orc said, proud grin still on her face. “Much easier than going around.”

  “That does make sense,” she said. “How long did you live there?”

  “Oh, girl,” Kura said. She placed her massive hand on Vyra’s shoulder. Her fingertips nearly reached her elbow. “My people have been away from this world for thousands of years.”

  “Well, that explains why I never saw any,” Vyra said. She smiled nervously. “Where were you?”

  “This is not the time to discuss such things,” she said. “This world’s story is too deep.”

  “I had no idea,” she said. “Not much gets into the Warring Kingdoms.”

  “Yes, it seems your kind has only furthered the story,”

  The High Mage called for Kura'Gasa. She gave Vyra a tusky smile before she returned to the group. Ters had returned and already took an enormous amount of pride in his position at the center of the conversation. That was reason enough for Vyra to turn away and return to her thoughts.

  The world was truly a much bigger place than she had ever realized, too big maybe. She didn’t like that. When she had lived in the village, she had understood what her life was. Simple. Dull. Easy to daydream and escape from. Now when she tried to fantasize, her imagination was more believable than her reality. If only the world was like her daydreams.

  She wandered away from the group. Freedic still paced like a madman. What a bore. Ters still had control of the conversation between the mages. Nothing she cared about would happen as long as he was there. Unless Kura’Gasa was annoyed enough by Ters, but she didn’t seem the type to start a fight over an annoyance. However unfortunate that was. Maybe she could learn something about the orcs, she thought.

  The orcs watched as she approached. The looks were familiar. There was no hostility, only curiosity. The first group she encountered nodded to her and gestured for her to join them with smiles. She couldn’t understand them but enjoyed the conversation nonetheless. The next group spoke some broken human tongue once she joined them. They asked her simple questions about the world that she was more than happy to attempt to answer. Most of the questions were about things she had no knowledge of. It was like they knew more about the world than she did.

  She learned some of what their clan was like. A mishmash of terrible hunters and foragers who became farmers. That must have been why they moved away from the forest in the first place. They emphasized how different that made them. They wore it as a badge of honor. She gathered most orcs were foragers and hunters. It was strange the farmers had been the first to come to help. But it also made sense in a way. If the world the orcs went to was anything like their homeland, their clan would have suffered from the impossible to farm forests.

  The more she listened to the orcs, the interested in their lives she became. She was more interested in their lives than her life in the Warring Kingdoms, at least. But then again, they seemed fascinated by her stories. It understandable though, the forest she lived in was their homeland. It had been thousands of years since their kind had heard anything about it.

  Forec noticed that Vyra had disappeared, but wasn't too concerned. It was what she did, after all. Ters addressed the group as if he had any authority. He looked at the High Mage to gauge her reaction every few words. Each time, he seemed quite satisfied with himself. As far as Forec could tell, Insmith seemed as bored as the rest of the group. The King's Hand finished with whatever he said and asked an open question. Forec had very clearly not paid any attention to him. As Forec waited, it became clear that no one else in the group had, either.

  "High Mage. Orc," Ters said. "If you would join me, King Pharris requests that meeting immediately."

  Insmith groaned, "Forec, I need you to get to the wall and report to me whatever you see,"

  "Yes, High Mage," he said. "I’ll need a rift there."

  "The wall? High Mage, please you have to let me-" Freedic said.

  "You're going," she said. She waved a dismissive hand at Freedic. "Have you not realized you're following the Council Mage yet, talent? I thought you better than that."

  "I'm sorry," Freedic said. "The wall is stressing me. I just really-"

  "I don't care, talent," she said. "Ters, open them a rift."

  "Vyra!" Forec called. "We're going."

  After a few seconds, the girl walked from the crowd of orcs with a smile on her face. She stood beside Forec and said nothing. As if her behavior wasn't bizarre enough.

  "High Mage, should we return to Quisen to report to you?"

  "No, my chamber in Krux Aev'then," Insmith said. “This meeting will only take a few seconds.”

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  Chapter 11

  Forec’s mages and talents stepped out from one field to another. Before them was the broken remains of the wall with a hole thirty feet wide in it. Bodies were splayed in all sorts of unnatural positions, both human and elf. Mostly human. Muted red splatters stained the carpet of green and yellow grass. Forec’s eyes began to water as he took a breath filled with the smell of rotten bodies. He raised his hands to his nose and made a bubble of air to keep the stench out.

  Freedic heaved. No reason to blame him for that, though. The stench was horrific. Forec put a bubble of air over Vyra’s head. It was too late, though, the odor had
reached her. Her face puckered and eyes watered. The others maintained better, though Ausa threw up as well.

  Even though Forec had seen bodies in Quisen only a few hours ago, he couldn’t help but feel unnerved. For the most part, the bodies in Quisen were far off. Distant objects. Not people. These had been people. When he was stood among them, it was a substantial change in perspective.

  The distant sounds of battle rang from the far-off cliffs. From a distance, it was hard to tell who the fight was between. Two groups were distinct, one with their backs to the cliffs and the other that pressed forward. Elves, of course, were on the attack. They had to be. But whether it was the orcs Kura had mentioned, or the soldiers from the wall was impossible to tell. If it was the soldiers, they were a damn bit more effective than the ones in the city.

  Freedic wandered amongst the bodies and turned over any he found face down. He would look for a second and then move on to the next. Whoever he was after, he hadn’t found them. Nor would he, for a while at least. There were more important things to do.

  "Freedic," Forec called. "We have no time for the dead."

  "Norvance isn't here," Freedic said. He let out a deep breath. "Oh thank Avalyns he isn't here."

  "He still may be trouble," Forec said. "There’s fighting out by the cliffs. We were ordered to observe and report back."

  “Observe again?” he asked. "You’re not going to let them die too, are you? You’ll help them."

  "I’ll do what needs to be done,”

  "Oh come on, Forec," Helien said. Sparks dripped from his hand and left scorch marks on the ground. "Let us loose."

  "We will see what we need to do," he said. "For now, why don't we get a better view."

  He opened a rift. Another opened atop the cliffs.

  "Go," Forec said.

  Atop the cliffs a small camp had started to be set up. Soldiers limped and struggled around it while they tried to set up tents with their finicky limbs. The mages Insmith had sent were amongst them. They sat to the side at a fire while the soldiers struggled around them. They didn’t even try to heal any of the soldiers.

  If he discounted the injured and dead among them, there was barely enough to field a force that could fight. And as more soldiers limped up the cliffs, their situation seemed dire. If the orcs were overrun below, the cliffs would soon become a graveyard.

  Freedic wandered into the camp, as did the four mages, Forec and Vyra were left alone. He looked over the edge of the cliff at the battle below. Orcs and elves fought at near equal numbers, but the elves held the upper hand. It was a slow but sure thing. They cut off retreats and pressed them back. Soon the orcs would have their backs to the cliffs and nowhere to run. Were the mages to intervene though, they might stand a chance. It didn't go directly against orders, Forec decided, but he knew it didn’t follow them either.

  "Vyra," Forec said. "if you had the opportunity to intervene and assist the orcs, though it is against the spirit of your orders, would you?"

  "If I wanted to," she said. "sure."

  "Even though it went against your orders,"

  "I don't much care about what you order me to do," she said. "I just go along with it because it's easier than arguing. Besides, what else would I do? Go home?"

  "Right,"

  He should have expected that from the girl, she wasn't stupid. She hadn’t lived under the control of a higher power for long either. She was stubborn, but not stupid. Clever. Maybe even right. If the orders he was given didn't apply to the situation, how could he follow them? It would be ridiculous to follow orders when they didn’t apply.

  It was just a simple matter now. Forec had to make up his mind.

  Freedic darted around the camp in a panic. None of the faces he saw were Norvance, None of the ones who lived, none who were injured, and none of the dead. It was as if the man had disappeared. If he were here, he would have left something for Freedic. A message or a sign, but there was nothing.

  He looked for any familiar faces. Someone who had been under Norvance's command. But there were too many people and they all moved and shifted at once. He couldn't find anyone he even recognized. His eyes shut hard, and tried to block out the chaos. It didn’t help.

  Someone grabbed him by the shoulder. It was a soldier. One he recognized from the wall.

  "What are you doing here?" the soldier asked. His grin went ear to ear.

  "Where is Captain Norvance?" Freedic asked. "I need to meet with him."

  "Best find a way to Avalyns palace, then," he said. "He was one of the first to go, bud."

  "What?"

  "Catapult shot hit him right in the chest," he said. He mimicked the action. "Everyone saw it happen."

  "And no one helped him?"

  "He had a hole in his chest the size of my head, what was I supposed to do?" he said. "Besides, he was a right bastard. No one is-"

  "Excuse me, is the deserter bothering you?" A familiar voice said. Not Norvance. Just another soldier.

  "Is what he said about Norvance true?" Freedic asked. "Catapult shot to the chest?"

  "Exaggerated, but," he said and trailed off. "He's dead."

  Freedic looked to the deserter who had too much of a grin. "Is there something you'd like to add?"

  "Nah," he said. "just happy every time I hear it."

  "Too bad it was the last time then," Freedic said.

  "Ah no," he said with the same grin. "It's the talk of the guard. I make damn sure of that!"

  Freedic’s hand was already pointed at his thigh. He called for a sword. It materialized handle first, straight through his leg and femur. The man’s grin disappeared. One grew on Freedic’s face. He twisted the blade. The crack sounded like tree as it fell. Blood gushed from both sides of the wound.

  He dismissed the sword and let the soldier collapse. He faded fast, but Freedic hadn’t finished his fun yet. He called another sword through the man’s groin, then dismissed it as a cry of pain escaped his mouth. Blood spilled freely. He still wasn’t dead, though. More opportunity to inflict pain, Freedic thought. Another sword materialized through his hip.

  The other soldier began to say something. Freedic’s head snapped to him. Whatever he wanted to say must not have been important. The man on the ground was nearly gone. He opened his mouth and tried to get his final words out. Freedic had wanted that to happen. He called another sword and let the blade materialize in the air. It cut through the man’s open mouth and poked out the back of his neck. His eyes glazed over and his body slumped.

  "I needed that," Freedic said, then looked to the shocked soldier. “Where is he?”

  “He?” the soldier asked. “I don’t know who you mean, but I’ll get him, whoever it is.”

  “Norvance,” he said.

  “Still near the wall somewhere,” the soldier said. He was cautious with his words. “We couldn’t recover any one. The elves were too fast. Then those other things came. It’s all a blur.”

  Freedic left in silence. Any further conversation would end up with a second dead man. He returned to Forec who stood at the edge of the cliff. If he were that close, he’d step over the edge. Best to stay back. Vyra sat next to him with her legs hung over the edge, just inches away from death, he thought.

  “Norvance is dead,” he said. His tone surprised even himself. It was dry and matter of fact

  “Alright then,”

  “His body is down there,” he said. He still sounded detached. Strange. “We’ll need to go down and recover it. Back near the wall.”

  “Talent, I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Forec said. “Tell me again and explain yourself.”

  “Norvance,” Freedic said. “He was killed in the attack. We have to get him. He was the leader of the wall guard.”

  “And you think we need to get his body,” Forec said. “Any particular reason?”

  “They killed Norvance,” he said. Still too calm. “If we don’t get him, he’ll stay there.”

  “I told you before, talent,” Forec sai
d. “We don’t have time for the dead.”

  “Fine,” Freedic said. “How about the living? The elves are fighting below, right? How about we join in and kill the fucking monsters.”

  “Killing elves?” Forec asked. “Doesn’t seem like such a bad idea.”

  “Except what, your orders are in the way? Can you even take a piss without Insmith’s direction?”

  “Except nothing,” Forec said. His eyes narrowed on the talent. “We’re going to kill elves. Or maybe some talents who don’t know when to hold their fucking tongue.”

  Freedic swallowed.

  “You seem surprised, talent,”

  “Well, yes,” he said. “A mage actually doing something is about as rare as-”

  “As a talent that knows when to shut the fuck up?”

  “What are my orders,” Freedic said.

  “I’m not quite sure,” Forec said. “You wouldn’t happen to have any suggestions, would you?”

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  Chapter 12

  Forec called for the mages. He got the attention of both his mages and the mages that Insmith had sent. All nine walked over. Fantastic, he thought. Four that could fight and five that would complain that they had to be near average humans. Worse than that, he would have to deal with whatever reaction they had to the orcs. Why were they sat around when the soldiers needed to be healed. An idea struck him. Insmith’s mages could stay atop the cliffs and heal. His four could go to the bottom and get some work done.

  “You see the brutes fighting each other below?” one of the High Mage’s mages said. His voice was nasally and grated on Forec’s ears. Worse than even Ters. “Once they’re done killing each other, we’re going to have the soldiers step in to finish off whoever remains.”

  “Under whose authority do you give out orders?” Forec asked.

  “We’re the only mages here,” he said. “Figured it was up to us to lead the rabble.”