Metal Mage 4

by Eric Vall

  He sent me a toothy grin. “Gotta keep in shape. These dwarves are makin’ me look bad.”

  Thrungrig snorted as he joined the half-ogre on the launch platform.

  I let the two work together to mount the stump properly in the sling, since they’d have to rely on one another once we were in battle. In a few minutes, they looked somewhat confident they’d gotten it, and I came over to double check the ropes.

  “Should be right,” I said.

  “What do you mean, should?” Thrungrig asked quickly as he raised a bushy eyebrow.

  “I told you,” I replied, “I’ve never seen one in real life, but I’m pretty sure this is how it’s supposed to look.”

  The dwarf looked like he wanted to say something, but he took a deep breath instead and jumped down from the platform. “Well, let’s get to it then, nothing to lose but a stump.”

  Everyone in the field moved toward the path that led back to the mines. They huddled together there, well out of range of the contraption, and waited silently for the test run to begin.

  I could almost feel the tension of the group from where I stood, but I shook it from my mind. Either it would work, or we’d just have to tweak a few things until it did.

  Thrungrig had Toromere stay with Haragh and I, and the four of us walked around the Warwolf a few times to check for any visible issues.

  Then we stood beside the release lever that kept the counterweight box suspended above our heads. I looked at Haragh, but he looked at Thrungrig. The lead dwarf seemed to realize the half-ogre expected him to pull the lever, but he didn’t move.

  Finally Toromere let out a low, “Oh shit, just--” and knocked the lever from the notch.

  My eyes darted to the box, and there was a hollow creak as the weight of the tungsten plummeted down. It landed with a loud thunk on the platform, and the beam that had begun to fall with it finally reached the point of tension. The sling went taunt, and the stump was yanked from the platform, swung wide behind the beam, and was released.

  It flew forward, and I shaded my eyes as it passed in front of the sun on its way out and over the edge of the cliff. We heard it crash into the forest below, and a group of birds exploded up and into the sky.

  The crowd near the path burst into applause, and I started to laugh my ass off. “Hoooly shit! Did you see that thing?”

  Haragh and Thrungrig shook hands while they laughed as well, and Toromere stared slack jawed at the place where the stump had disappeared.

  “There ye’ have it!” Thrungrig said with a satisfied clap of his hands.

  The others had run over by now, and even the Ignis Mages and Dorinick joined in the celebration of our collective success.

  “Now we just need to do it again.” I grinned. “Why don’t you guys get started on the next one, and I’ll grab an engine from the workshop and get it rigged up.”

  The amped crowd was all for it, and they quickly got organized for the next assembly. I jogged my way up the path to the workshop and found Cayla had deserted it some time before, but she left everything neatly arranged on the table. The assembly looked like it had gone as easily as it always seemed to for her, and I made a mental note to track the princess down and do something to show her my appreciation.

  I was making my way back down the snowy path, with an engine suspended in front of me, when I heard heavy hoof falls echo in the ravine. By the time I got to the edge of the field, a rider appeared from a path down below, and I could see it was a dwarf in golden armor. He rode hard up the last of the path and came to a quick stop just a feet from me.

  Then he drew his sword and leveled it with my eyes.

  I remembered that I was technically an outsider in this nation, so I slowly lowered the engine to the ground and decided to bow my head to the dwarf, despite the steel point that hovered only inches from my skull.

  “You trespass on the lands of Orebane,” he declared in a gravelly voice. “State your name.”

  “Mason Flynt,” I answered quickly. “And I do not trespass. I am here with the permission of a dwarf, and I’m helping--”

  “What dwarf?” the rider interrupted.

  “Thrungrig.” I peeked up and found the dwarf scowling to me from his place on the horse.

  His eyes were dark and threatening, but he returned the sword to its sheath. “Where is Thrungrig?” the dwarf growled.

  I nodded my head toward the field, and the rider took off without another word.

  By the time I set the engine on the platform, several dwarves had gathered around Thrungrig and the dismounted rider, and as I headed toward them, I recognized the strange language again. The words sounded angry and urgent, and the gilded dwarf pointed to the mages and the contraptions and spoke so quickly that spit flew from his lips. Thrungrig snapped back at the man, and several dwarves began to speak just as angrily, but the lead dwarf silenced them with a wave of his hand.

  Then the gilded rider said something that caused Thrungrig to turn and send a shrill whistle across the field. I turned around and saw Dorinick shake his head from where he sat on the pile of logs. Thrungrig hailed him over with his arm, but the dwarf took his time deciding to listen. Finally, he climbed down from the log and walked slowly across the large stretch of land.

  Thrungrig sighed as he waited, and I glanced over to see all of the dwarves stood silent, and a couple of them shifted nervously. When Dorinick finally made it to the group, Thrungrig began to speak, but the gilded rider cut him off and stepped forward to speak for himself.

  Dorinick stared off toward the path as he listened, and when the rider was done, he shook his head and turned to leave.

  “Dorinick,” Thrungrig spat, and the dwarf slowly returned. Thrungrig spoke to the dwarf with urgency, and then he gestured toward me a few times.

  Dorinick didn’t look at all pleased at the conversation, but he glanced at me a couple times, and I didn’t see hate in his eyes at least.

  Everything was quiet, and Dorinick scowled at the dirt for a long moment. Then he sighed and mumbled a few words to Thrungrig before heading toward the mines without looking back.

  Thrungrig exchanged a few more unfriendly words with the dwarf in the golden armor before he waved him off toward his horse, and then the rider mounted and rode hard from the field. Commotion broke out immediately amongst the dwarves. Everyone seemed to have something incredibly important to say, but Thrungrig didn’t bother with any of them, he only walked over to me.

  “What’s going on?” I asked, my confusion past its limit.

  “News from the capital,” he answered. “An ice giant was heard in the hills just outside the walls this morning. They expect an attack.”

  My heart stuttered in my chest and then took off at a galloping pace. “We have to go now.”

  The dwarf nodded his agreement but looked to the field with a frown. “We’re not ready for a battle.”

  I could hear the concern in his voice and remembered the hideous scene he’d told me about, with his kin frozen and trampled by the giants.

  “Don’t worry. The construction will be finished within a few hours,” I assured him. “They won’t be able to get to the capital in time for this attack, but we will. We’ll bring what we can, and in two days we’ll be fully armed and ready to kick some serious ass.”

  The dwarf shook his head. “There’s no time for the assembly, we must ride out now or--”

  I cut him off. “You said the elders have their own armies. How many of your crew really need to go?”

  “Technically, just the one,” the dwarf grunted. “Dorinick’s been summoned by the elders.”

  “Dorinick?” I asked with a furrowed brow. “What for?”

  “He was their general, as I said. But he won’t serve ‘em. I told him we’d go and bring you and your mages.” Thrungrig looked uneasy as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I told him we’d have a stronger army, and he consented.”

  The scene I’d witnessed between the dwarves started to make more sense. I coun
ted the mages I saw in the field and made a quick decision.

  “Okay,” I began. “We’ll bring all of the Ignis Mages and leave Haragh and the others behind. We’re expecting several more mages to arrive by tomorrow, and they can follow behind with him and the catapults and meet us in the capital. We’ll be on our own for this next one, but with the Ignis Mages, I think we can manage it.”

  Thrungrig thought this over and finally nodded. “Dorinick won’t like it, but it’s our best shot.” Then he turned to one of the dwarves and told him to prepare the horses.

  I cleared my throat. “Actually, I’ve got a better idea.”

  Chapter 14

  Bobbie handled beautifully on the snowy path that wound through the passes of the mountain and toward the capital. Thrungrig and Dorinick managed to fit in the sidecar pretty comfortably, although I could hear their armor clank heavily against each other whenever the terrain got rugged. They had met me and the three Ignis Mages beside Bobbie in their full battle gear, and it took a lot of restraint on my part to not fan boy like crazy. I’d seen knights do reenactments on Earth, but what these dwarves wore put their attempts at authenticity to shame.

  The dwarven helms were made of well-polished steel, and brass inlays ornately plated their brow and crests, as well as the length of the nose plate. All of the brass was etched with intricate designs, and just beneath the eye holes, the cheek plates were made of carefully woven steel that left the shadows of their faces just visible behind them. Heavy chain mail draped from the cheek plates all the way around the helm, and the entire effect was more epic than any Viking gear I’d studied on the internet. It also made it impossible to gauge the expressions on the two dwarves’ faces as Bobbie roared to life and sped off through the mountains, but no one punched me in the arm, so I assumed they could handle the ride.

  Aurora perched in front of me, and I’d taken a few minutes to elongate Bobbie’s seat in order to fit both Mina and Deli behind me. The two women were petite, though, so I didn’t have to add too much to the seat. I was a little worried the added weight of the armor and the mages would affect how the machine handled, but Bobbie didn’t miss a beat. She wove around boulders and skipped over snow banks without any issues, and I knew I wore a wickedly proud grin on my face the whole way.

  Thrungrig pointed out which direction to turn with the heavy finger of his gauntlet, and I couldn’t help but notice it was made of the same combination of brass and steel, and it also had a strange symbol etched in the metal on the back of his hand. I’d have to ask these dwarves about their ancestral arms if I ever got a chance. The entire ensemble clearly held a lot of symbolic importance, and the renaissance fair buff in me was itching to know the story behind it all.

  Dorinick’s armor bore the same etchings and designs, but his brass wasn’t polished, and the steel was blackened and dented in many places. Clearly, he’d seen many more battles than Thrungrig.

  I was lost in thoughts of medieval armor when Aurora hollered over the wind, and I quickly brought Bobbie to a stop and cut the engine.

  “What’s up?” I asked.

  “I heard something,” the half-elf whispered. “It’s on the other side of those trees.”

  Dorinick propped himself up higher in the sidecar and looked through the metal mask of his helm. We all stayed silent for a minute.

  Then the sound came again.

  It was a pealing shriek that wavered in the air, and the sound reminded me of the squeal of tires on asphalt.

  Dorinick nudged me, and his eyes were fierce beneath the silver plating of his helm. “Ice giant,” he growled.

  “Stay here,” I answered, and then I quickly dismounted with the mages.

  “You don’t want to--” the dwarf began, but I silenced him with a wave of my hand.

  I spoke quietly and motioned for the mages to move carefully. “I just need to see what we’re up against. Plus, this is probably the ice giant that the rider was warning about earlier. We should know as much about this as we can before we get to the capital. Stay here, and if you hear anything, don’t worry about us. The mages will handle it.”

  The dwarves looked uneasy but nodded their agreement, and I turned to lead the three mages into the line of pine trees beside the path. The strange shriek continued, but it was relatively quiet, and I hoped this meant it wasn’t calling to others of its kind.

  When I got to the edge of the trees, I could see a giant leg, sharp and very much like a trunk, but the entire thing glistened the way ice did in the sunlight. We crouched low in the brush, and from our place we could see the great giant that moved through the trees ahead. It took its time and turned slowly, as if it was scanning the surrounding woods.

  “It’s surveying the area,” Aurora whispered at my side as if she could hear my thoughts.

  I nodded in response.

  I didn’t like the idea of it, but if the ice giants could send scouts ahead of their battles, then they were definitely smarter than I’d hoped. Barreling blindly down peaks was one thing. Organizing attacks amongst themselves was completely different.

  “We’ll take it down,” I finally said, but the mages turned to me with worried looks on their faces. “It’s just one, and if it’s a scout, I don’t want it getting back to whoever’s in charge. Plus … ” I trailed off as the giant turned its front in our direction, and I shifted to get a clearer view of the torso as his upper body finally moved from behind the treetops.

  The thick plates of ice that made up its body were jagged and jutted at odd angles like glacial peaks, but I thought I could make out a distinct shadow in the bevel where the creature’s neck met the heavy bluish shoulders. The face was splintered with crystalline shards of ice that together gave the general impression of a massive jaw hinged with a livid face. The eyes were only holes picked into the face, but they were definitely eyes, and I could see the giant scanned its surroundings through them with an unnerving amount of attention.

  The ice giants were clearly more than just a hunk of possessed ice, but whether they wore the mark of the Master mattered a lot.

  I nudged Aurora at my side as I gestured to the shadow beneath the neck, and then I leaned close to say, “Don’t melt the neck if you can help it … I wanna get a closer look.”

  The half-elf narrowed her emerald eyes as she searched the shadowy area, and she gave a curt nod before she passed the message to Mina and Deli.

  The giant turned away from us then, and it looked to be deserting its post at last.

  This was our chance.

  We swiftly crept from the brush and came up behind the ice giant without it hearing us until we were within ten feet of it. Then the giant’s heavy torso turned, and it peered under its trunkish arm before the hollow eyes keenly set on the two younger mages. The ice of the jaw scraped against itself as the beast began to yawn its giant mouth open, and the beginning of a shrill screech split the air, just before a wall of flames engulfed the face entirely.

  The giant reeled under the heat of Aurora’s flame as the half-elf moved to avoid its flailing limbs, and her flames ignited in a searing white arch. Mina and Deli quickly joined in, and one aimed a stream of flames at the giant’s middle, while the other melted the jagged joints of the knees.

  The confusion of the sudden attack infuriated the giant.

  It flung its arms in wide swipes across the ground, but it seemed unable to see with its face melted. Then it let out a gurgling shriek as the legs snapped, and the chunks of ice that had formed them crashed to the ground and brought the ice giant down into the trees. Branches crumpled under the weight, and the ground shook as the head of the creature shattered across it.

  Then the forest was suddenly silent, and the remains of the ice giant lay in a mess of ice on the slushy snow.

  Aurora and the Ignis Mages kept their arms extended and at the ready, but no movement came from the giant, or from the mountains around us. Then I heard the clatter of armor behind me and turned to see the dwarves emerge from the brush with the
ir swords extended as they scanned the forest around them.

  “I don’t think there are any others,” I called and motioned for the mages to move with me. We approached the pile of ice slowly, and shards as big as houses towered out of the snow. The innards of the giant were made of heavy blue ice, which was barely marred by the flames that had melted the joints.

  I gestured to Aurora. “The inside isn’t even warmed here,” I told her. “We’ll have to be careful.”

  The half-elf nodded as she ran her hands along the solid blue, and her face was lined with worry. “Three mages, and it’s only melted at the weakest points …”

  Mina and Deli joined her, and the three began to discuss their tactics while I picked through the remains. Thrungrig and Dorinick were beside me now, and I motioned to the shattered head.

  “I’m looking for the neck. There’s something I want to make sure of,” I told them.

  “What? You gotta break the neck to kill ‘em?” Thrungrig asked.

  I shook my head and found what looked to be a shard of the shoulder. I leaned close and shuffled a few pieces of ice around.

  “I doubt it,” I replied as I found a deep blue piece halfway buried in the snow. I pulled it out and wiped the surface clear, and then I held it up against the dimming sky. There was something within the ice, and as I turned it around in the dying light, I could just make out the distinct fissures running through the center.

  I looked at it from every angle but couldn’t make anything of the lines I saw. Certainly nothing that resembled the ominous rune I’d been tracking across Cedis and Illaria, although I’d been sure I’d find it embedded in the layers of ice.

  “The hell is it you’re looking at?” asked Dorinick as he plucked the ice from my hand to get a closer look.

  I rose and called Aurora over. “The mark of the Master,” I sighed, and Aurora crouched close to the dwarf to look for herself.

  “Shit,” she cursed. “It’s not there?”

  “What Master?” Thrungrig asked in confusion.

  “The Master is the dark force we told you of,” I explained with a frown. “The one that’s been threatening the nations to the south. There’s a rune that was carved in the skin of the beasts and the mages who have brought violence to the people there. It seems to be a tool of his, to possess others and make them do his bidding. If this ice giant had one, then it’d be likely all of the ice giants were being controlled by the Master. But I don’t see one. At least not where I expected it to be.”