“Well we just follow the river now,” whispered Jeff. “Watch your step. Even a hard headed dwarf would have trouble surviving that fall.” The two dwarves gave him a strange look until Jeff finally smiled at them and they relaxed, giving him a hearty laugh.
“Nuri’s head could withstand’t, I’m sure,” said Burr in his burly voice. “Seen one of them large orcs trample on ‘is ‘ead, I did, and it did him li’l harm.”
“That could easily be disputed, I’m sure,” quipped Jeff. The thunderous roar of laughter from the two dwarves had him regretting that comment. It took him a moment to calm them back down again before he was willing to move on.
On the river’s edge, Jeff saw the orcs’ fortification and a large stone bridge crossing the gorge; a picturesque waterfall off in the distance. Timber steps lined the far wall allowing access to the small river port below. Jeff knew that Rakir, a small city, was further downstream at the entrance to a large lake, Ixende Kalin or Blood Lake. Chimak was a large city on the southern shore of that lake.
Until quite recently, the city Rakir belonged to the Black Skull tribe and so this river had obviously been used for trade and transport. The road from Grenth to Qunik was wide and well used indicating that the river was perhaps a preferred method for travel to the cities downstream.
A wooden cargo lift connected to a large drum of metal chain reminded Jeff of the unexpected ingenuity of this orc race. Jeff counted fifteen boats moored to the docks, the largest of them big enough to hold thirty or forty people. Jeff liked that one because of the large flat deck that sat quite low to the waterline making it easy for their injured to climb aboard.
However, the place was guarded by the orcs of the Red Axe tribe. Jeff could count five guards but knew many more could be about and reinforcements could be coming through at any moment. Whatever they were to do here they needed to do it fast and with as little fuss as possible.
“Let’s just charge ‘em,” whispered Burr over his shoulder. “Take’m by surprise ‘n be floatin’ down the river afore they be e’en noticin’.” Jeff couldn’t disagree with the excited dwarf as he could think of no other way. They could travel upriver a little bit in the hopes of making their way down to the water and somehow float back, but the waterfall up ahead meant there was scant chance of that.
“What do you reckon Captain Riyad? Is it worth the risk?” asked Jeff turning to face the captain.
“I see little other choice. We either take the chance or we go away empty handed and those boats would sure come in handy.” Jeff looked back at the bridge — two orcs on each end and one in the middle. The trees seemed to grow right up to the road, so they could overwhelm the two on this side in no time, but it’d give the others plenty of time to call for back up.
The walls of the fort loomed up a short distance away. Jeff couldn’t see any orcs on top of the walls from here but that didn’t mean there weren’t any. They could likely reach the boats before any back up came, but if they got archers on top of those walls quick enough, they likely wouldn’t make it over the bridge.
“Your choice then, captain. You’re the ranking officer here.” All heads turned toward Captain Riyad, eager expressions on both the dwarves’ faces.
Captain Riyad was a tall, solid man with an easy and confident stance. He had very serious looking blue eyes, a stern face and long black hair. Jeff had known him as a young squad leader when he had served in the army. He knew then that the man had a lot of promise if he learnt to control his temper. Jeff had since heard many stories of Riyad losing his temper and taking out those frustrations on superior officers which had undoubtedly held back his progress in rising through the ranks.
His temper had mellowed a little in the last twelve months, and he was finally given a chance at being a captain. If it came down to skill with the blade, Riyad would have been a major by now without doubt for few could match him.
“Well let’s do it,” replied Captain Riyad with a mischievous look.
They headed quietly to the road — well as quietly as the dwarves could be at least. Captain Riyad held up his hand and Jeff could see why as he came up beside him. It seemed that Shardae, the goddess of luck was with them, as Jeff watched the orcs from the far end walk slowly toward the centre of the bridge.
The orcs stopped in the middle and started talking to the sentry there. The two orcs closest to them watched the gathering for a moment before deciding to join them. Now was the time to strike, while the orcs had their backs turned and their guard down. Captain Riyad obviously agreed as he began his charge from the trees; Jeff and the two dwarves followed right after.
No one noticed them until Captain Riyad made it onto the bridge. The eyes of the orcs in the middle went wide and they fumbled for their weapons. The two with their backs turned were slow to react and one fell dead before he even drew his weapon.
Jeff made short work of the other one with a quick dodge of the wild swing and a jab of his sword. This gave the dwarves time to run by them and they shield rushed the orcs in the centre as one blew a horn. One orc fell and Captain Riyad killed him while the dwarves engaged the other two. The orc who blew the horn was the first to die as he was slow to get his weapon readied. The last of them died soon after with Nuri’s axe deeply imbedded in his stomach.
Captain Riyad led them to the end of the bridge and down the stairs to the docks. Jeff noticed some activity up on the wall before he descended and lost sight of the battlements. Archers would do them little good up there now.
By the time Jeff reached the bottom, Captain Riyad had already cut the rope on one boat and pushed it out into the stream. Burr had jumped onto the deck. Jeff helped the captain cut the two ropes holding the largest boat while Nuri climbed aboard.
On the way to the third boat Jeff noticed orcs running down the stairs. Captain Riyad ran to a fourth boat while Jeff cut the rope of his and jumped on. The captain sliced the rope but Jeff realised he was going to run out of time before the orcs were upon him.
Jeff jumped back onto the pier before he was too far away to do so. By the time he got to Captain Riyad, he was already engaged with the first orc, his boat slowly starting to drift away from the pier. Jeff blocked a strike from an orc aimed at the side of the captain which he had no chance of avoiding.
That last minute block put the orc off balance and Jeff was quick to take advantage of that by kicking out with his foot into the side of the orc’s knee, which sent the orc to the ground grimacing in pain. Rather than pursue and finish the orc, Jeff jabbed at the orc fighting Captain Riyad, scoring a wicked hit. The orc jumped back, narrowly avoiding a killing blow from the captain.
“The boat!” shouted Jeff.
Taking a few steps, they both jumped simultaneously for the loose boat and guided it out into the stronger running current. Before they did though, two orcs were able to jump aboard, one brandishing a crossbow and had it levelled at Jeff in an instant.
The orc suddenly jerked weirdly and brought his hand up to his neck where a dagger had stuck. In the motion though, he had fired his crossbow; the bolt clipped Jeff’s shoulder painfully. The other orc seeking to take advantage of the injury, charged in at him.
Jeff got his sword in place just in time to block what would have been a killing blow. Before he set himself for the next strike, the orc was down on the deck, blood streaming from a large gash in his side. Captain Riyad put his sword to the orc’s neck and finished him off.
“Where did you get a dagger from?” asked Jeff as Captain Riyad turned back to regard him.
“I found it amongst the weapons in the orcs’ armoury when they released us. I thought it might come in handy.” Captain Riyad smiled.
“Well it sure did. Nice throw by the way,” said Jeff, looking once again at the orc lying on the deck with the dagger protruding from his throat.
“Thanks,” replied Captain Riyad, “and thanks for comin’ back to help me.”
“Anytime,” said Jeff. “Now we need to catch up to that other loos
e boat.”
* * *
It had been slow going but they made it to the river without incident. No more deaths. The very wide river flowed slowly here. When they first discovered the river they were too high up and couldn’t get down to the water, so they had had to travel west until they finally found this spot with a low bank.
The trees spread out more sparsely here and the ground was rockier. Large rocks emerged from the river forcing the water to flow around them, with the exception of the centre which had a clearance wide enough for a sizeable boat to travel through; Gerard assumed that it had been cleared by the orcs for that purpose.
The water seemed drinkable enough and proved to be very refreshing after their ordeal. It also gave them a chance to wash and clean their wounds. Looking around at the exhausted men and dwarves, Gerard hoped that Jeff had been successful in acquiring some boats; he wasn’t sure how much further they could travel like this.
That question was answered some time later as he spotted some movement on the water upstream. Major Isak ordered everyone into the trees and out of sight as a precaution. It didn’t take long to spot a dwarf on the deck of the first boat and a tired cheer went up.
When the boats arrived they all boarded them and began floating gently down the river.
* * *
O’tukka entered General Kraktoo’s quarters and took a seat by his small desk. He had brought them both to the entrance of the Gate soon after witnessing the escape of their captives. The general was soon off dealing with matters around the fort, leaving O’tukka to his own devices. Some time later, a messenger arrived saying that the general requested his presence.
“What did you think of the fierce one’s plan?” asked Krak’too without greeting.
“A short sighted plan, I fear. But I imagine that for those not having seen the effort and the loss we have suffered here it would seem a very wise plan,” said O’tukka trying to get a gauge on the general’s thoughts.
“My thoughts exactly. It’s a play for power and favour. General O’hark was certainly delighted by it as it made his defence look so much more effective. He will win the day thanks to our efforts on this world and I don’t doubt will reap all the praise. Meanwhile I’ll be pressured into keeping up the supply of captives.” Krak’too slammed his fist against the desk, catching O’tukka off guard. He couldn’t remember seeing the general so out of sorts.
“What will you do?” asked O’tukka leaning forward.
“There’s little I can do. The reality is that we have created another enemy for ourselves, not eliminated the one we had. While we may well be able to push the Red Axe back now, we could well see an even stronger enemy attack us here, and perhaps continue on to lay siege to Gnash. If that happens the blame will fall on me.” General Krak’too had never levelled with O’tukka to this extent, which demonstrated just how agitated the general was.
“Do the humans have the strength to accomplish that?” asked O’tukka. He knew the answer to the question but he wanted to lead the general’s thinking to a point where he could mention his plan.
“If the humans didn’t already have their hands full with the little orcs and the Raziyan kingdom to the west then we would have already been overrun here, and they are not alone. The dwarves have already shown that they will support them and they are formidable themselves. We will be attacked here within days I believe, as we caught some spies today.” The sudden mention of captured spies took O’tukka by surprise.
“More than one?” he asked.
“A group of three children. They must have snuck through at the time when you relieved the Gate guards.” The tone and the posture of General Krak’too were both threatening. This was not where he wanted the conversation to go. “They were captured not too far from Gnash.”
“A good job done then,” said O’tukka trying to divert the conversation again. “The humans still won’t be sure what they face and so may delay their strike until we have more reinforcements here. Have the spies spoken?”
“No they haven’t spoken but humans don’t send children as spies. These three were just as likely to have acted alone. Now back to why you felt the need to relieve our guards.” Krak’too leaned forward, placing both his hands on the desk.
“Before I tell you, I would like to discuss another option with you. One that I believe will be most beneficial to you.”
* * *
Knowing the northern gates were all but impossible to enter at the moment, Decker had led Mistress Cali on the route taking them to the western gates. Once inside the city walls they hurried to the Castle entrance. A very agitated Cressida waited for him there.
“Did you happen across Jaz and the boys?” she asked after wrapping him in a big hug.
“No I didn’t see them.” Then a scary thought came to him — images of the strange footprints that were about the right size, the dead orcs and the splatter of blood on the ground flashed in his mind’s eye.
Cressida obviously noticed something in his expression as her face became serious and she asked him what was wrong.
“I’m not sure. I noticed some strange footprints on the orc world and I didn’t think much of it ‘til just now.”
Cressida’s face dropped and she shook her head. “No, no they wouldn’t have! Could the prints have been theirs?” Tears formed in the corner of her eyes and Decker tried to pull her close but she resisted.
“They were about the right size, but think about it, how would they have got there? Mistress Cali and me were invisible and it was still a difficult task.”
Cressida seemed to relax a little at his explanation and finally let him pull her in close. “They are clever kids when it comes to doing the wrong thing. They may have managed it somehow,” said Cressida in a croaky voice after a time.
“I’m sure they’re fine, Cressy. For now I have to go and report to the duke. I’ll catch up with you again after that.” Decker tried to push her away from him but she resisted and so he hugged her tightly again. Finally she took a step back and gave him a nod as she wiped her eyes.
On the way to Duke Angus, Decker couldn’t get those images out of his head, especially the blood-soaked ground. If it was the kids’ tracks he had seen it didn’t bode well for them. He didn’t want to worry Cressida with that thought just yet. He’d like to have a word to Master Pilk about it first.
They were both shown straight in to see Duke Angus, and Decker reported what he had seen in intricate detail. He also mentioned the tracks he saw and the possibility of it being Jaz, Vik and Trent’s. Duke Angus looked particularly disturbed by this and said to Decker that if any children could or would do it, it was those two boys. He knew less about Jaz but with her bloodline he said it also wouldn’t surprise him.
When they had been dismissed, Decker parted ways with Mistress Cali and sought out Master Pilk who was in his office. Master Pilk didn’t seem particularly surprised by Decker’s news and mentioned to him that he thought it was a possibility. At the mention of the blood stain though, Master Pilk bowed his head and collapsed in his chair.
“Did you tell Cressy of the blood stain?” asked Pilk after some time.
“No. I thought I’d find you first and tell you. You know her better than I do.” Decker studied Master Pilk closely. He seemed to have aged dramatically in recent weeks. His usual inquisitive, intelligent blue eyes appeared bloodshot and haggard. Rather than a freshly shaved face, he had three or four days’ worth of growth. The wavy brown hair visible under his magical, short pointed hat looked to have much more grey scattered throughout and the wizard was only in his early thirties. His slumped shoulders and concerned face also served to age the normally scatterbrained, but comical wizard.
“It would devastate her,” said Pilk in a quiet voice. “Jaz means the world to her and is a living memory of her lost husband.”
Decker did not know how it was that Cressida became a single mother. He had detected early in their relationship that it was a sensitive topic and so he had avoid
ed bringing it up. Even now he didn’t want to query Master Pilk about what he meant by ‘lost’. “So should I tell her of the blood stain?” asked Decker quietly.
“I think so,” replied Pilk bobbing his head up and down as if to convince himself, “she would not forgive you for not mentioning it if it ever came out. Give me a few moments and I’ll come with you.”
Decker leant back in his chair and watched Master Pilk continue reading the book on his desk in silence.
* * *
“We march at first light then?” asked King Buster once Duke Angus had related Decker’s report.
“I am concerned about this large city not too far from the Gate on the orc world. Decker observed it from a distance, but he described it as quite formidable. But yes, I feel we have to strike back at them and at least push them back to their own world. Your thoughts General Kehar?” Duke Angus sat at the head of the large oval table, With King Buster on his right and General Ludko seated next to him. General Kehar sat to the left of the duke with the newly appointed Major Hillsworth next to him.
General Kehar was still restricted to light duties after his almost fatal injuries which he sustained in the bloody defence of Arthea. He walked around with the aid of a walking stick, his hunched form and slow movements making him look more like an old man than someone in their mid-forties.
His broad frame had lost a fair amount of muscle tone too and his deep brown eyes were looking more sullen than ever — a visual reminder to all who knew him how annoyed he was to be so helpless and dependant on others. Occasionally he’d visit the training grounds at the barracks and take out his anger and frustration on the new recruits. His neatly trimmed black hair appeared to become greyer by the day. In an attempt to help him, Duke Angus would include him in many matters, not just military ones.
“I agree, my lord. They have been a nuisance on our world far too long already and will become more entrenched the longer we wait. By all reports the orcs at Fort Lowmount seem content to control what they have already taken. They suffered massive losses when they attacked Arthea and I’m sure won’t be quick to attempt that again.” General Kehar’s voice was forceful and he balled his hands into fists as he spoke. Duke Angus was pleased to note the general’s enthusiasm.
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