by Tom Gallier
A deep, slow water creek was just a few yards to the north, going over a ten-foot high waterfall into a still pool below their campsite. It had a sandy, rocky bottom with crystal clear water. The creek above the falls was perfect for refilling their canteens.
"This is great, Fergus. Well done," Killum said. "What are the chances you can hunt us all some meat for dinner?"
"I'm an elven ranger. If I don't bring home dinner, I'll give Rand my archery rings," he said, and vanished into the forest. "Get the fire ready!"
"I'll go look for some nuts and berries," Asha said.
Tiana jumped forward, shaking her head vigorously. "No. Killum and Rand can go foraging. You and I will stay here and prepare the camp. After all, I'll need you to start the fire with your magic."
Both Asha and Rand objected, but Tiana was adamant. She insisted the men hunt and forage, while the women stayed behind to tend the camp and cook fire. Division of labor, she called it. Killum didn't care, so agreed. Tiana gave each of the men a cloth sack, about the size of a pillowcase. Killum then ushered Rand out of camp, listening to his grumbling about sore feet.
"Everyone has sore feet. Try riding the mule tomorrow." He escorted the dwarf to the top of the hill, and sent him to the south to look for anything edible. "Don't return to camp until you have enough to split five ways."
Killum headed north. He shook his head, looking all around. "There are definitely some aspects of this world I don't like."
He never had to eat and drink in the previous realm. Well, he did, but that was only because it affected his Health. He usually took potions to restore his health. Now he could actually taste the food and drink, as well as feel the intoxicating effects of alcohol. But at that moment, his feet ached, his empty belly rumbled, and he really wanted to stretch out and sleep it all off.
"The Game has become real life," he whispered as he reached the creek. "Damn, I should've sent Rand this way and gone south instead."
Rand would let him hear it too, if he got wet crossing the creek. He smiled, imagining the way he'd rail on about being disrespected just because he's smaller than the others. The battle-mage turned right to head upstream, but stopped when he heard a squeal of feminine delight.
"Asha?" he said.
The sorceress's voice was deep and sexy, and very distinctive. Then Tiana's laughter bubbled up from below. He frowned and headed downstream to see what made them so happy.
Their voices continued in very happy tones as he approached the waterfalls.
The camp was empty when he arrived, but he heard them talking lower down the hill. It only took a moment to locate them below the waterfalls, and next to the pool. Killum's jaw dropped when Tiana came out of cover completely naked. The redheaded thief laughed as she ran toward the pool.
Oh my god, he thought. "Wow."
Tiana's body was amazing. The thief's loose clothes hid a treasure of feminine curves. Her breasts were perky and bouncing as she ran. She hit the water with a splash and squeal.
"It's perfectly cool, Asha!" she called. "Don't be shy."
Killum looked back to the bushes. Asha stepped out onto the bank, still fully dressed. She bit her lip, looked back into the woods, and then back at Tiana. The thief splashed some water at her, which fell short. The sorceress giggled, and then pulled her top off.
"Oh," Killum whispered, feeling his face heat up. Something else heated up, too, which was the reason he felt so dirty. "She's got a bikini model body."
Asha was a perfect physical specimen in his book. She was curvy without excess weight. Her brown skin looked silky smooth. No blemishes, cuts, or scratches thanks to healing potions and magic. She had large, firm, perfect breasts. He groaned when she removed her skirt, and then gasped when Asha sat facing him to remove her boots and giving the battle-mage a perfect view of the Promised Land.
She jumped up, causing her body to jiggle in the most amazing way, before the sorceress ran to and dived into the pool. Killum used his Farsee spell to zoom in on her when she came splashing back up. He watched water cascade across her shoulders and down between and over her breasts. Then his eyes lifted to her parted lips, all wet and kissable and…
What am I doing? The battle-mage felt his body stirring, and a second later heat flowed into his face. He ducked and crawled away, before hurrying off as quietly as possible. I'm turning into as big a perv as Rand.
It was almost impossible to concentrate on his objective. All he could think about was how amazing they looked. Asha, especially, was…
"No, no, no," he scolded himself. "Purge. Purge. Must not think about that ever again."
He was about to give up and return to camp when his eyes kept returning to a patch of low plants. They were unremarkable, except for the small purple and white flowers. But after his eyes were pulled back to them for the third time, he gave them a harder look.
Potatoes.
Dropping to his knees, Killum used a stick to dig up their roots. Small yellow-skinned potatoes were just under the surface. He laughed and dug up every one of them. Then he carried them to the creek and washed the dirt off before stuffing them into his sack.
Killum returned to camp to find Fergus on one knee by the fire and tending a pair of rabbits spitted over it. Rand was at the creek washing his haul of berries, with a pile of nuts next to the fire. Asha looked extremely happy with his potatoes, taking them to place in a pot of water. He noticed her waist-length black hair was still damp, as were her freshly scrubbed clothes.
"We'll tend the fire and cook everything if you boys want to go below the falls and take a bath before it gets too dark," Tiana said. "We already got our bath in."
"What?" Rand cried. "Is that why you chased us off?"
The women nodded and giggled. Tiana winked at him. "Better luck next time."
"We have soap, and you can use it on your clothes, too," Asha said. "Please, use it on your clothes, too."
Tiana laughed as she gave each of them a bar of soap and ushered them out of camp. Rand grumbled about missing the "show" while Fergus teased him. Killum was just glad for the darkness of the forest trail, since his face felt red hot.
Chapter 31
Two days on the road were uneventful. Two nights sleeping under the stars passed without incident. And then they started up the side of that mountain. The dragon's lair was visible from the road, and it wasn't even that high up the mountain. But it was steep and the dragon had protection in place.
Ka-Boom!
All five of them were knocked down and tumbled a good hundred yards back down the mountainside. Killum's descent was stopped by a rock. A really big, really hard and unyielding rock.
"What the hell was that?" he asked. The battle-mage used the rock to help him stand. His left hip ached, so he drank a healing potion. "Did the dragon do that?"
He didn't see the dragon or anything else. Fergus was above him on the mountainside, sitting against a gnarly old tree. He was rubbing his ribs, eyes closed. Tiana was sprawled, head lower than feet in an open patch of dirt, head rocking back and forth. Asha was slowly rising to her feet, looking discombobulated.
Rand was already marching back up the mountain, looking none the worse for wear.
"Some kind of magical booby-trap," Asha said. "Hold up, Rand. I think Killum needs to lead us since he can see magic."
"Just give me a second to pull myself together."
He tested his hip by lifting his knee. A jolt of pain shot through him, so he drank another healing potion. The pain started to fade away immediately. Each potion took a designated amount of time to heal. Taking two or more at once did double the rate of healing with some potions. After two potions, though, he did feel a little sense of euphoria, so knew not to take another until the cooldown period was over. There was a reason you weren't supposed to take more than one an hour.
"You don't need those healing potions anymore," Asha said. "I just healed all of my aches and pains with the spell I shared with you."
"Yeah, at what cost?"
he asked. "I'm saving my mana for the dragon. Besides, I paid for these healing potions. I have to use them."
Asha had considerably more mana since she could afford to buy more mana boosting potions. Knowing they were going up against a dragon, he refused to cast any magic since leaving Knaresburg. He let Asha start their two campfires. She didn't seem the least bit concerned about using up her mana.
He climbed atop the boulder that stopped his tumble down the mountain. It was about two feet taller than him. Killum could see the dragon's lair, so used his Farsee spell to zoom in on the cave's entrance. There were skeletons of large animals, as well as some bi-pedal races. One looked like an ogre skeleton, while there was a pile of what looked like human skeletons.
As he looked, something huge and black rushed out of the lair. He quickly zoomed back to see the dragon flying up in a spiral flight path. Asha and Fergus cried out in alarm.
"Looks like the dragon's home," Rand said. "Tonight I feast on dragon steaks!"
"More likely the dragon will choke on your overblown ego when he tries to swallow you whole," Fergus said. "But I'm game for some lizard steak."
"Ewww, I can't eat a lizard," Tiana said. "Shut up."
"Get back into the trees before he spots us," Killum called, jumping off the boulder.
The whomp-whomp-whomp of the dragon's wing reached them, and all five took off running for the cover of the trees. Killum and Fergus reached the treeline first and stopped for the others. Tiana, Rand, and finally Asha ran up. The dragon's massiveness darkened the sky above, making them all look up.
"No one steals my treasure," the dragon's voice boomed.
He breathed a torrent of dragonfire at them. Killum sucked in a sharp breath, knowing he couldn't move fast enough to avoid fiery death. Asha spun to face the dragon, thrusting her fist out. The fire hit the shield and splattered in all directions.
"Good save," Killum cried. "Let's get deeper into the woods!"
They understood the forest offered no protection from his fire but it provided some places to hide. The dragon's roar of rage and frustration filled the air, shaking the trees. Killum led the way through the thickest parts of the woods to provide as much cover as possible.
His magical sight showed him glowing trees, bushes, and rocks. All were along game trails, so he blazed a new trail for his friends to follow. All the while the dragon flew above them and sent fire down to ignite patches of forest.
"You know the cave is in a clearing, so he'll see us when we reach it," Tiana said. "As a professional thief, I'm confident in advising you against trying to rob him while he's out and about looking for us and guarding his lair."
"We're here," Rand said. "And he'll kill us as we leave just as fast as if we steal his treasure."
"We have to kill the dragon," Killum said. "He's the ultimate monster in his dungeon. Kill the dragon, defeat the dungeon."
"There lies our problem," Asha said. "How do we kill a dragon? That's the biggest dragon I've ever seen. I don't even know how the game designers thought anyone could kill something like that."
"You accepted the quest."
"I was hopped up on adrenaline."
Killum and Asha glared at each other a long moment. The others watched them, with Tiana smirking. The thief turned away when the battle-mage turned his angry eyes on her. The tension wasn't broken until the dragon flew over them, just above the treetops.
"We're almost to the dragon's lair. I say we at least look the situation over before we decide what to do," Killum said.
He started moving before anyone could argue. They fell in line like always. Asha followed him, then Rand, Tiana, and Fergus. The way became steeper, with less foliage. At times they had to help each other up, pushing and pulling. He noticed Rand took the opportunity to "help" Asha upwards by pushing her on the butt.
More like copping a feel, Killum thought, giving the dwarf a dirty look.
They finally reached a level shelf on the side of the mountain, with the dragon's lair before them. Lying on their bellies just inside the treeline, the players surveyed the clearing.
Dragon's Lair. Home of the infamous Gyevikxus! Treasure and danger abound within. Enter at your own risk. All robbers will be eaten.
"It looks bigger up close," Rand said.
"Duh," Tiana replied. "I bet you have a high GPA back in the real world."
The cave entrance was more than big enough to allow the humongous dragon to pass through. Killum's attention was fixed on the dragon, too. The beast was calming down, and he worried it would return to its lair. Then when he looked down the mountainside, the battle-mage spotted something and smiled.
"Fergus, come here," he said, moving off to one side. He pointed down at a gnarly pine leaning out over a game trail. The tree was glowing red with a booby-trap spell. "See that twisted pine tree?"
It took a moment for Fergus to figure out which tree. Killum told him it was magically booby-trapped. He didn't know what the spell was, but that didn't matter.
"Can you hit it from here?" Killum asked. "I think it'll explode if you hit it with an arrow, and the dragon will think we're way down there."
The elven ranger grinned. The magical bow appeared in his hand out of thin air, before an arrow appeared in the other hand. Fergus took careful aim, and let loose. They all held their breath while watching the arrow's flight until it hit its target.
Ka-boom!
The dragon roared. Fire spewed in long streams through the sky. Killum waited just long enough to spot the monster flying toward the explosion. Then he ordered everyone to run to the cave and get inside.
Rand took off first, but his short legs didn't allow him much speed. Tiana used her ring to surge toward the cave, but she stopped to sweep Rand up in her arms before speeding to the cave. Fergus proved to be a helluva fast runner, as did Asha to a lesser extent. Killum found himself bringing up the rear, and quite winded by the time he was inside.
"Wow. You elves are fast," he said, bent over huffing and puffing.
"No. You're just slow," Fergus said.
"It's the armor. You try to run with this much weight strapped to you."
"Uh-huh," Asha said, grinning. "Heavy armor. Right."
There were countless bones in the entrance. Mostly deer, pig, and cow bones, but there were bones clearly human or elf. The floor of the cave was practically paved with broken and crushed bones. The air had an odd sulfuric stench that they finally decided must be what a dragon smelled like.
"Where's the dragon?" Tiana asked. "I don't see it anywhere."
A big black shape dropped from above and hovered a good hundred feet from the cave, glaring bloody murder at them. Killum's heart sank. There was nowhere to hide from dragonfire in those confined spaces. So he balled his left hand into a fist and aimed it at the beast.
Lightning bolts cracked the air as one, two, three shot out and struck the dragon in the chest. The monster roared, but was otherwise unfazed.
"Well that sucks greasy monkey balls," he muttered.
"Ewww," Asha said, giving him a disgusted look. "Let me try."
The dragon arched his neck, head pulled back. It was a move Killum knew meant he was going to breath fire at them. The sorceress stepped forward, while the others scrambled to find cover. He watched her lift her right hand and a shiny, crackling lightning bolt of remarkable size and power appeared in her hand.
Asha threw it like a javelin at the dragon.
It thundered through the air, shaking the ground. Her bolt stuck the dragon with a rattling Ka-Boom! He flinched, and when he looked up the dragon was nowhere to be seen.
"You killed the dragon!" Killum cried.
"No. I don't think so," she said, looking around warily. "But I think he's stunned and out of it for a little while."
"Time to loot his lair," Rand said. "Wahoo. I'm going to be rich!"
"We. We are going to be rich," Tiana said. "We're a team, you idiot munchkin."
"No. We came to conquer this dungeon, so that me
ans we have to set up an ambush to kill the dragon," Killum said. "The quest isn't over until the dragon is defeated."
"I was afraid you'd say that," Asha said.
Chapter 32
While the dragon recovered lower on the mountain, the adventurers headed for the heart of the dragon's lair. Dragons lived super long lives, and collected treasure into huge hoards. The older the dragon, the greater the treasure hoard.
"After we kill the dragon, and then kill Lord Kathro, we'll move the dragon's treasure to the castle," Killum whispered as he led the way down the dark, twisting cave. "Then we can set our respawn sites at the castle and use it as our base of operations."
"I like your confidence," Asha said. "But killing a dragon that large isn't going to be easy, much less conquering a castle controlled by a powerful necromancer and his undead army."
"Women think too much," Rand said. "Fight. Kill. Conquer."
"You're a brave fellow, Rand," Asha said as she followed Killum. "But nothing will save you if your face bumps into my bum again when I stop."
Tiana giggled. Killum stopped and looked back at the dwarf. He was bright red, shaking his head. Asha wouldn't listen to his pleas of innocence.
"Now we know why he always chooses a dwarf as his avatar," Fergus said. "Genius."
"Genius?" Asha asked.
"Yes. I'd like to motorboat your ass, too."
Asha's face burned red. Killum was amazed they'd left her speechless, since she was used to the sexual innuendo. There was always some flirting and suggestive language in their group.
"Hey now," Killum cried. "Let's keep our minds on the task at hand."
She looked relieved. The others still watched her with amusement.
"I agree," she said. "This conversation is making me uncomfortable."
