by Hans Bezdek
“So you weren’t the only one that left?” she asked. “The older members did too?”
“Before I left, a group of the older members got together, inviting me to join them. They were going to sit down with Dmetri and explain that he was breaking his own code. The leader of this group, Zanna, was an orc that had been one of my closest friends. She had done more jobs than anyone, and everyone thought she was going to replace Dmetri one day when he got too old to continue. Anyway, Zanna and several of the others go and want to have a sit down with Dmetri. Not even ten minutes passed before he accused them all of trying to force a coup…”
I trailed off, seeing the scenes play out in my head like they were just yesterday. They were some of the worst of my life.
“What happened to them?” asked Cassandra quietly.
“Dmetri was furious. I and some of the other lieutenants tried to calm him down, but he wasn’t having it. He demanded that Zanna and her followers be executed. There was nothing I could do to stop it,” I said. I shook my head a little and cleared my throat. What’s done was done. “I left that night. Dmetri sent people after me, but no one has been able to catch me in the years since. Galdric, the bald guy, is just the most recent. They’ve also put a bounty on my head.”
“A bounty?” she said, nearly tripping over her feet. “Just for leaving?”
“Well, the only way you can leave the Tumblers is through death,” I shrugged, stopping to stretch out some. We had been going at a pretty strong pace, but could afford to take a break.
“Seems harsh,” she said, coming to a stop as well.
“It is,” I nodded. “It’s supposed to instill loyalty or something.”
“So thats why they’re chasing you?”
“I mean… I might have also borrowed a few items on my way out…”
“You did?” she smirked.
“And set some parts of his headquarters on fire…”
“You did?” she said, smile slipping.
“And sent a few of his favorite guards that tried to stop me to the hospital…”
“Huh,” she said. “Guess a bounty makes some sense, then.”
“Let’s just say I don’t blame them,” I grinned.
“You about ready to keep going?” she asked, looking around impatiently.
“What’s the rush?” I asked. “I’m just as excited to leave this area as the next guy, but I don’t see the harm in taking a five minute break. I’ve got some food we could share, too.”
Cassandra hesitated, looking away. “Well… we may not be the only two looking for the mythical Sword…”
“Not the only two?” I asked, pausing as I reached into my sack for some of the bread and burnt meat I stowed away. “I mean, I’m sure there are some teenager outcasts that spend there time searching for it, too. I don’t think you have to worry about that, though.”
“You joke, but it’s true,” she said. “Brenda said I’m the fourth person to ask her about it in the past week.”
“Really?” I asked, genuinely surprised. What was causing people to lose their minds and risk their lives and money in pursuit of a fake weapon?
“She said one group asked her just the night before,” she nodded. “She said she recognized who they were.”
“Okay…?” I said, waiting for her to indulge me. She didn’t. “And those people would be…?”
“With The Guild,” she smiled nervously.
“Ugh, seriously?!” I whined.
The Guild were a collection of a bunch of fake good-doers. Some of them probably meant well, but from my experience most were just there to rip off the people they helped. They were for hire by anyone, and would typically give an up charge after grabbing or protecting whatever it is they were supposed to do. The general population bought into their marketing machine, thinking that they were a well groomed, lawful group of adventurers, just trying to do the right thing. In reality, they were no better than the Tumblers. I wasn’t looking forward to crossing paths with them again. “We’ve got Tumblers behind us, and The Guild in front of us? Even if this thing is real, I don’t see this ending well for us.”
“Hey, if we get the Sword, it’ll be worth it,” she said, taking a few steps and waiting for me to follow.
“If you say so,” I mumbled, shoving the food back in as we began to walk again again. I hoped less trouble waited for us in Kra’Gar than I was predicting.
Chapter 8
“Are we there yet?” asked Cassandra several hours later.
“Not yet,” I said, grinning in spite of myself.
“How about now?” she asked.
“I know what you’re doing, you know,” I said, casting her a sideways glance. She smiled back.
Night had just fallen and we hadn’t reached the city limits of Kra’Gar yet. However, we were close. We were just a couple of miles south, and would make it there before anything nasty came out to play. At least, that was my hope.
“Stop,” whispered Cassandra, grabbing my shoulder.
“What is it?” I asked, glancing around us. It wasn’t dark enough yet to obscure my vision, and I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary.
“Up ahead… lights,” she said, pointing along the trail. It looked like there were two or three small fires up ahead, with people gathered around them.
“Probably just fellow travelers calling it a night,” I shrugged. Cassandra didn’t seem convinced. “We can be quiet as we move up, I guess.”
She nodded, and we crouched our way up, being sure to stay off the path. I didn’t think it mattered much in the flat, open landscape, but it seemed to make the elf feel better. When we got close enough to better make out the figures, Cassandra stopped and leaned in to whisper.
“Greeners,” she said. “Let’s take them out.”
“No,” I said, trying to grab her arm as she pulled out her daggers. While the group around the fire appeared to be just orcs and goblins, that didn’t make them Greeners in this part of Yaerna.
“I’m tired of running away,” she hissed. “It’s okay to-”
“No, we don’t have to run away,” I whispered back. “We’re in Gorland, remember? They could easily be normal people of these lands, camping out on their way out to Trenton or one of the southern cities. Not all goblins and orcs are evil.”
“Just most,” she mumbled, a sour expression on her face. Thankfully, she put her daggers away. “What should we do, then?”
“Just walk on by,” I smiled, standing up straight. She followed as I got back on the path, and we made our way closer to the campfires.
There were a dozen or so of the creatures, five or six to each campfire. They quit talking and looked up at us as we approached.
“Evening,” I smiled, giving a little wave as Cassandra and I walked by on the trail.
They stared back in silence.
Not the friendliest group. I could respect that. Nothing to worry about.
When we were about half way between the groups, they all got to their feet. A few walked up and blocked our path forward to Kra’Gar. I glanced behind us, where several others blocked the road behind us.
Okay. Maybe something to worry about.
“Told you,” whispered Cassandra.
“Don’t worry, I’ve got this,” I whispered back. I cleared my throat and addressed the two orcs before us. “Excuse me, good sirs, but it looks like you’re in our way. If you would kindly move, we’d appreciate it.”
One was missing a tusk, while the other had a deep scar under its neck. I looked between the two, waiting for them to respond. Instead, they each took a step to their side.
“Thank you,” I smiled, giving Cassandra a look. “See? I told you we were…”
Before I could finish, a human with bright red hair walked in between the two orcs. His hands rested on the hilts of two swords at his side, ready to pull them out if needed. He was dressed in black leather, along with a black cape. He scanned me over briefly, and Cassandra for a much longer time. I
looked over at her, and could’ve sworn she was blushing.
“What’s going on here?” asked the man, looking around disapprovingly at the orcs and goblins around us. “Is this anyway to treat free citizens of Yaerna passing through?”
The group looked around at each other, confused looks on their faces.
“Please, ignore them,” he said with a huge smile. He took a step forward and reached out his hand to Cassandra. “I’m Stalrik. And you are?”
“C-Cassandra,” she said, taking his hand.
“What a beautiful name,” he said, kissing the top of her hand. “It fits you.”
I jumped as Cassandra made a noise I hadn’t heard her make before. Was that a giggle?
“And your friend?” he asked.
“R-”
“Rilen,” I said quickly. I had no idea if word of my bounty reached this far yet, but I couldn’t be too sure. “Rilen Ironhammer.”
“Nice to meet you Cassandra and Rilen,” smiled Stalrik, not taking his eyes off Cassandra. “Would the two of you like to stay and have dinner with us? We’ve got plenty to share.”
“That sounds nice,” said Cassandra, looking over at me with hopeful eyes.
“What? I thought we were in a hurry?” I asked.
“It couldn’t hurt to stop for just a little while,” she shrugged, smiling when she met Stalrik’s eye again.
What had gotten into her? Was Stalrik casting a spell on her, or did she just genuinely find him attractive? I looked the man over one more time. He wasn’t hideous, I guess. Did look a bit scrawny…
“Whatever,” I relented. The orcs and company seemed hostile, but were backing off as long as this guy was giving us his protection. Might as well go with the flow for a bit.
The orcs and goblins watched as Stalrik took us over to his campfire. The rest had rough looking tents setup, while Stalrik had an obnoxious purple canopy over a large mattress, with matching purple covers and furs.
We sat down with him as two goblins ran to his dwelling, returning with trays of freshly cooked poultry and beef. I took a small portion, waiting for Stalrik to eat before taking a bite. There was something about all this I didn’t trust.
Unfortunately, Cassandra didn’t seem to be picking up on the same vibe. She was all smiles with Stalrik, and seemed to genuinely enjoy talking with him.
“And that’s when I knew the old orc was trying to hustle me,” he laughed, finishing a lame story I couldn’t be bothered to pay attention to. “He never let me live that down.”
Cassandra exploded with laughter, slapping Stalrik’s arm playfully. “You’re so funny, you know that? I can’t believe the things that happen to you!”
“It’s just what happens when you go out there and truly live, you know?” he said, staring deep into her eyes.
I wanted to throw up. All this guy needed now was a guitar and…
Stalrik waved over to a goblin, who ran back with an acoustic guitar in his hands.
Okay, enough was enough.
“Alright, well thanks for the food,” I said, putting both hands on the table. “We should probably get going, though.”
“Aw, really?” asked Cassandra, turning back to me for the first time since we began eating.
“Yeah, I think we’ve stopped long enough,” I nodded.
For the briefest second, I caught Stalrik glaring at me. As fast as it happened, it disappeared, and his cheesy smile returned.
“But wait, we know hardly anything of you, Rilen,” said the human, waving the goblin with the guitar off. “Tell us about yourself.”
“Not much to say really,” I said.
“Oh, you’ve got some sauce on your cheek,” said Cassandra, reaching over and trying to wipe something off my face. She pushed my hood back to get at it more easily.
“Uh, thanks,” I said, looking back over to Stalrik. “Just a regular guy, making his way through Gorland. Never been out here before, so I wanted to see the sights.”
Stalrik stared blankly back as I talked, before his eyes widened in surprise.
“What’s up?” I asked, reaching up and feeling my face. Did Cassandra miss the sauce on my cheek?
“Your eyes… they are a very deep green,” he said suspiciously.
“Uh, yeah… thanks,” I said, quickly bringing my hood up. “I get that all the time.”
“You know… they look kind of familiar…”
“Don’t think we’ve met before,” I said. Why did Cassandra have to push my hood back?
Stalrik stood up, carefully brushing off his backside of any dirt. He looked down at me and gave a simple nod.
I was suddenly suspended in the air as the orc with the missing tooth wrapped me up in a bear hug from behind.
“What are you doing?” demanded Cassandra, jumping to her feet. All of the other orcs and goblins gathered around us again.
“The man traveling with you has been lying to you this whole time,” said Stalrik.
“What are you talking about?” I said, trying to squirm my way out of the orc’s grasp. He wasn’t budging, and held me close. Stalrik must have recognized me from the bounty posters after all. Hopefully Cassandra and I could find a way to talk ourselves out of this. Maybe they’d try to take me alive, which would buy the two of us some time.
“He’s a half dragon.”
It took everything I had to not react. This was going even worse than I thought.
“What?” laughed Cassandra, giving him a confused look. “No he’s not.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, guy,” I said, adding a laugh at the end to make it sound like he was crazy. “I’ve never even heard of half dragons before.”
“Yeah, I don’t think those exist,” added Cassandra.
A few of the orcs and goblins cast anxious glances at each other. I wasn’t surprised. Most people didn’t think half dragons actually existed. Sure, there were dragons who would occasionally get intimate with humans while in human form, but there was little evidence that the two were able to have children together. Some of the races could mix, such as elves and humans, or dwarves and gnomes, but others couldn’t. There was no such thing as a half-goblin half-human, for instance, or a half-kobold half-elf.
“Oh, they exist alright,” said Stalrik, pointing up at me. “I met one before. He was even deadlier than a full blooded dragons. I barely escaped with my life… Anyway, this one here isn’t just any half dragon, but a half green dragon.”
The group around us mumbled excitedly.
“He’s not, but what’s it matter even if he was?” asked Cassandra.
“Their eyes sell for nearly a million quats,” said Stalrik, eyes focused on mine. “Each.”
The group hollered and cheered at that.
“I’m not whatever you think I am,” I said, trying to kick out of the orc’s grasp again. “Let me go.”
“Don’t want to change and show us? I guess we’ll have to beat the dragon out of you, then,” smirked Stalrik.
A goblin rushed forward, hopped up, and swung with all his might at my jaw. I felt my lip burst as he connected, blood dripping from it immediately.
A rush of rage I hadn’t felt in a long time flowed through me. My dragon side was raring to be let out. It had been so long since I was in my half dragon, or even full dragon, form. I consciously bottled it up and pushed it down. It wouldn’t help me right now. I didn’t want Cassandra to know, and they’d probably kill me before I completed my transformation anyway. Changing forms was pretty quick, but if they were looking for it, they could attack in the few seconds it took.
“Ow,” I said, opening and closing my mouth. I hoped my jaw wasn’t broken. “How did a goblin’s punch hurt so much?”
“Like my contraption? Eh?” asked the goblin, reaching his hand up tauntingly. On his knuckles were chunks of metal connected together.
“Well, that would do it,” I said. Goblins, while smart and crafty, we’re insanely weak. I think I’d even witnessed a gnome beat one in a
n arm wrestling contest.
“The sooner you change, the sooner this’ll all be over,” said Stalrik.
“Sorry buddy, but I’ve got no idea what you’re talking about. I’m just a human.”
“That might work on most, but I’ve actually hunted green dragons before,” he said, a sickening grin spreading. “I’ve sold quite a few emerald eyes. So many, in fact, that I can tell the difference between a man’s and a dragon’s, even in their human form. There’s something about the way they shine in the light of fire that really makes them pop.”
“If I was a green dragon, why would I make my eyes green?” I asked.
“No clue, but they still did it,” shrugged Stalrik. “Maybe they were like the silver and golds out west, thinking they were better than others because they kept their eye color. Besides, I suspect you’re a half dragon, anyway. You couldn’t change your eye color, even if you wanted to.”
How did he know all this? He must have actually met other half dragons before… so I wasn’t the only one after all…
“Please stop,” said Cassandra. “He’s just a human, honestly.”
“Don’t worry, Cassandra,” said Stalrik, pulling out one of his blades. “I’ll make sure you get your cut of the money when we make him change and take his eyes. It’s only fair.”
“You just said you need me alive to change,” I said, looking down at him. “You aren’t going to be able to scare me with your weapons.”
“I need you alive, true,” he nodded. “However, that doesn’t stop me from hacking off some of your limbs, now does it?”
I gulped in spite of myself. That was a good point.
“A leg first?” he smiled, pointing at my feet with his sword, before drawing it up to my hands. “Or perhaps an arm? I guess it doesn’t matter where we start, since we’ll soon take them a-AAAAAAA!”
Stalrik dropped down to his knees as Cassandra’s dagger pushed deeper into his shoulder.
