The Greystone Chronicles Book Two: The Dire Lands

by Dave Willmarth

  Sasha cast her thorns, and Alexander hit the boss in the face with Wizard’s Fire. Then he hit four more kobolds in a circle around him. Lugs was scrunched down - as much as a nine-foot-tall half-ogre could scrunch - behind his shield. Sasha pulled Fibble over to one side so that they could see Lugs clearly. “Now, Fibble!” she called out, dropping a heal on Lugs herself. Fibble shouted, “Pew! Pew!” and fired white healing light at the ogre. The two of them managed to keep Lugs’ health above 75% as the fire heated his shield.

  “Lugs! Step out!” Sasha called. The ogre moved sideways along the wall, keeping the shield between him and the burning boss. As he cleared the fire, he took a parting shot with his hammer, striking the boss in its shoulder with a massive crunching sound.

  Helga was already moving in, slaughtering the mobs that stood between her and the boss. Sasha threw her a heal as she began to suffer fire damage from the inferno of burning lizards. Fibble shot Lugs again, then shot Helga without being asked. Sasha decided to let him go. His wand held 100 charges, after all.

  Alexander cast a couple more Wizard’s Fires on kobolds he hadn’t targeted the first time. One disadvantage of their method was that he couldn’t stack fire spell upon fire spell. After thirty seconds, Sasha was able to re-cast her thorn trap, adding more fuel to the fire. The smaller kobolds were now all dead, but their bodies still fueled the inferno that was quickly burning down the boss. Alexander stopped to look at the boss’ stats.

  Kobold Chief

  Level 55

  Health 500/5500

  He quickly cast the trap soul spell on the boss before it expired. Sasha called everyone back. The fire would finish the boss. There was no need to risk fire damage to themselves. Beatrix cast a globe of water around its head, keeping it from any last-minute castings as it died.

  When the boss expired, Alexander heard, “Woohoo!” from Jules behind them.

  Level up! You are now level 40!

  Your wisdom has increased by +1. Your intelligence has increased by +1

  You have 27 free attribute points available

  Everyone got at least a level out of that fight. Fibble got several. He was staring in wonder at his hands, probably feeling added… what? What would the goblin’s main stats be? Agility? Stamina? Certainly not strength or intelligence. Maybe dexterity. Or even charisma. The little fella did kinda grow on you.

  While they waited for the molten corpses to cool, Grimble inspected the room. Moving over to the corner where he expected to find a throne, he paused. “Sweet Durin’s mithril balls!” He dropped to his knees and hugged what looked like a pair of ovoid stones.

  “What is it?” Sasha asked breathlessly. Jules just giggled and said “He’s praying!”.

  “These be…” Grimble turned and looked at them with actual tears in his eyes. “These be rockworm larvae. The rockworms lay ‘em in nests, like eggs. Only there ain’t no shell. Just the skin o’ the lil beasties all curled up.” He motioned to the sort of bowl-shaped structure covered in animal skins that he was standing in. “This be a damned nest! That fool kobold were restin’ his scaly arse on baby rockworms like a chicken hatchin’ her egg! BWAHAHAHA!”

  Not really getting the joke, the others chuckled along, mostly because of Grimble’s enthusiasm.

  Edward spoke up, holding his sword tightly. “Shouldn’t we destroy the eggs before they hatch? How dangerous are rockworms?”

  Grimble looked horrified. He actually lifted his shield and put himself in front of the larvae. “Bite yer tongue, lad! These babies be worth their weight in mithril! Fer these lil darlins, me King’d shave his beard ‘n’ give it to ye!” he roared.

  Alexander decided to diffuse the situation. “Grimble, nobody’s going to hurt the baby worms. Now, tell me. What is so valuable about them?”

  Grimble took a deep breath. “I tell’d ye. Rockworms be living, moving refineries. What a full grow’d rockworm can process thru its belly in a day, would take a refinery three days to process. And it don’t need miners to dig the ore out, or carts to transport it, or fuel for the refinery fires. But rockworms be rarer than dragons. Me clan had one nearly a thousand years ago. We kept the secret o’ trainin them, just in case…” his voice drifted off. Alexander assumed he was dreaming of riding a rockworm through a field of mithril boulders.

  Alexander saw a way to score some points with the dwarves of Broken Mountain, and his new miners at the same time. And to improve the mine production.

  “Grimble. Grimble!” he shouted when the dwarf didn’t respond. Finally, he said, “Fibble, please shoot Grimble for me?”

  The goblin had uncanny aim. The bolt hit Grimble right in the face.

  “Bah! What?” the dwarf spluttered.

  “Welcome back, Grimble. Let me ask you something. I’m thinking of offering King Thalgrin a deal. What if we give him both baby worms, he trains them both, and gives one back for you to use here in the mine?”

  It was hard not to laugh at the range of expressions that passed across the dwarf’s face. He had to actually lean on his shield to stay upright. He went from amazed to thoughtful, then cynical, then amazed again.

  “It… be possible. Me King would pay ye well for both. But if ye stick to yer guns, yes. I think we could have our own rockworm.” The dwarf seemed in shock. Alexander decided not to remind the dwarf that Thalgrin was no longer his king.

  This was one treasure Grimble was absolutely not willing to leave behind. He wrapped each of the larvae in one of the hides from the nest. They looked to be dire wolf pelts. He stuffed one of the larvae in his own inventory bag, and gave the other to Lugs. The larvae were apparently very heavy.

  As they went to leave the room, Alexander said “Edward, grab the rest of those hides. Lainey might be able to use them. Or we can trade them to the dwarves.” Edward dashed over from looting the pile of kobolds and began to pick up hides.

  Just as Alexander reached the door, Edward said “Uhhmmm… Grimble?”

  The group all turned around, their lights shining on Edward, still standing in the nest. Which, now that the hides had been removed, looked like a shiny gopher mound with a hole in the middle.

  Grimble gasped, moving back over to the nest, laying his hands on it. “Mithril. The nest be refined mithril,” the dwarf murmured. Stepping back, he pulled the egg back out of his bag and laid a hand on it.

  Alexander looked at the nest. Best guess, there was half a ton of refined mithril there. His people never needed to operate the mine. Just that blob of metal would keep them in running for years. Decades. If Max were here, he’d be over there trying to hump it. Maybe Brick, too! Alexander smiled at the visual.

  Poor Grimble didn’t look well. He’d wrapped up the larvae again and put it back into his bag. The dwarf sat on the edge of the nest.

  “Grimble, are you okay? I know that’s a lot of mithril. We’ll sell it in small bits to Thalgrin. Broken Mountain will have all the mithril it can handle!”

  “What?” Grimble looked at him. “Mithril? Oh! Aye. That be a historic find, fer sure…” He drifted off again.

  Alexander looked around. The others all shrugged. Helga volunteered, “I think maybe he snapped.”

  Taking the initiative once again, Fibble stepped toward Grimble and shot him in the face with another bolt of healing magic. “Pew?” he questioned more than shouted.

  The dwarf came around again, and Fibble wisely retreated to hide behind Sasha, who was having a very hard time keeping a straight face.

  “Grimble, what is it?” Alexander asked.

  The old dwarf shook his head, and stood. “These babies. Their mama ate a whole mithril vein afore she birthed ‘em. That be why the nest be made o’mithril. This much metal… it’d take her a week, maybe more to process enough to make this here nest.” He paused again.

  “And?” Alexander prompted him.

  “Rockworms have a natural affinity for the metal they be born in. They like that taste best, and seek it out. But also, they be born with some o’ the prop
erties o’ that metal. These be mithril worms. Ye could fire a cannon into its side, and ye’d just make it angry. With a mithril worm, ye could… roll over an army of ogres with axes, and it’d not be scratched.”

  “So, it’s a tank!” Jules cried. “Like, a real tank!”

  Not understanding what she meant, the dwarf chuckled. “Aye, lass. The tank to beat all tanks. Its teeth be mithril. Its hide be mithril.”

  “Okay, we can discuss all this later. We need to finish clearing this mine, and get these babies back to the keep where they’ll be safe. Grimble, are you good to go?”

  The dwarf picked up his shield and hammer. “Aye.”

  A thought occurred to Alexander. “Grimble, if we move these babies, will the mother come looking for them?” The dwarf shook his head. “Nay. Once they be dropped in a nest, they be on their own.”

  They finished clearing that tunnel, finding several additional small groups of kobolds. As they passed the first room, Alexander used his earth mover ability to close a stone cover over the hole, leaving just a small opening around the rope, so as not to cut it off. Nothing larger than a rat could squeeze through. Grimble agreed they could come back and explore the lower level later.

  Back at the main tunnel, they turned left again. Following the main tunnel further down, they eventually reached its end. No other tunnels branched off. That was it. The mine was clear. Except for the underground level that was now sealed.

  Walking back up the main tunnel, Alexander had Lugs push an empty mining cart. They stopped at the last shaft, and went back to the two rooms. In the nest room, Lugs used his hammer to try and break off a chunk of mithril. It didn’t make a dent. Grimble explained that they needed special picks with diamond tips. The picks were crafted by dwarven masters specifically to work on mithril. He assured Alexander that Thalgrin would happily give him a couple as part of the deal for the worms. Instead, they loaded up the cart with all the gems from the piles in both rooms, and headed out.

  Alexander didn’t want to give the miners 10% of the ore and gems that had already been mined by kobolds, just for hauling them out. So, he made a deal with Grimble. The miners would come and haul out all the loose treasure, and would split 5% of the total, as a group. By Grimble’s estimate, setting aside the mithril, which the miners wouldn’t be touching, each of the eighteen miners would still get several thousand gold for maybe two day’s work.

  He also promised the three new guildmates a share of the loot, including a third of a percent each of the value of the mithril. Grimble estimated the pile of rare metal to be worth ten million gold. More if they took their time and sold it in small quantities. Their one third percent would equal roughly thirty-three thousand gold. That was a huge amount for any player for an afternoon’s work. They’d also receive the same percentage of the value of the ore and gems.

  Initially, Helga grumped. Saying Alexander was just making himself rich. Until Alexander reminder her that the guild would only take 10%, and that the rest of the funds would be used to support the growth of the keep she’d just sworn to protect.

  When they exited the mine, Alexander raised a stone wall to block the entrance. Then he raised a block of stone roughly the same size as a mining cart. He had Lugs dump the content of the cart into the box, and then lift the box. As soon as he had, Alexander teleported them all back to the keep. Lugs quickly set down the heavy box.

  Alexander heard some chuckling from above. Looking straight up, he saw Kai looking down from the wall into the box. “I take it you cleared the mine?”

  “You could say that.” Alexander grinned up at him, getting slightly dizzy. He felt like Fitz staring at Rufus leaning over his hat brim.

  “Get some rest, guys. Edward, get all the loot to Lola, and have her make a list. Helga, Lugs, Beatrix, thank you. It was a pleasure running with you.”

  Tapping Grimble on the shoulder, he said, “I’m going to open the portal. I’d like you to go and invite King Thalgrin here for dinner. Tell him we’ve got worms to discuss. You can take one worm with you, if you swear to return with it.”

  Grimble nodded his head. “Aye, lad, I swear on me life. I’ll not let ye down. I’ll make sure he brings a couple o’ mithril picks with him. Open the portal again in… an hour?”

  Alexander opened the portal, and Grimble strode through. He immediately began shouting and waving his arms. He summoned a battle boar, and took off toward the citadel.

  Letting the portal close, Alexander noted the time on his UI, and set an alarm. He was about to be pretty distracted, and didn’t want to forget to retrieve the king.

  First, he waved over the group of miners. He told them they’d be getting into the mine in a day or two. Showing them the box of gems, he explained that they’d be spending their first couple days just retrieving similar piles of already-mined gems and ore. And that, in return for hauling it out in the carts, they’d share 5%. They immediately agreed. He also warned them to stay away from the room with the hole in the floor. Then he instructed them to pitch in around the keep, help the masons or the carpenters, until the mine was opened.

  Next, he went up the wall to see Kai. He called to Lugs to join him.

  “Ever heard of mithril rockworms?” he asked the dragon.

  Kai nodded his head. “Rockworms are rare. Mithril rockworms are about as rare as a black unicorn. One might see one once in ten thousand years.”

  Motioning to Lugs to hand the larvae to Kai, he said, “How about two in an afternoon?” and grinned at the surprised look on Kai’s face.

  Lugs stomach growled, and Alexander sent him to go get some food. The ogre didn’t bother with the stairs, he simply hopped off the wall, landing with an impact like a falling piano, and scaring several miners who were still talking below.

  Alexander explained to Kai what they’d found in the mine. Kai closed his eyes for a moment, and Fitz appeared next to them. “Looking around, Fitz said, “What’s the emergency?”

  Kai simply held up the larvae. The wizard glanced at it, then looked to Alexander. “So, you found a rockwork in the mine? Well done, boy. King Thalgrin will pay a fortune for it. You’ll be able to install solid gold doorknobs and toilet seats throughout the keep.” The wizard grinned, clapping Alexander on the back.

  “Look closer, Fitzbindulum,” Kai whispered.

  Fitz gave the dragon a questioning look, then focused on the larvae. After just a moment, his eyebrows rose nearly to the brim of his hat.

  “A mithril worm! And still a larvae! The skin!” The wizard laughed.

  Now it was Alexander’s turn to be confused. “The skin?”

  Fitz looked at him. “Remember I told you the ingredients for the spell on Kai’s torq were rare? Well, the rarest is mithril rockworm skin. Once a rockworm is fully grown, their skin becomes tough as rock. It has to be, as they burrow through rock itself. Rarely do they lose any skin, and when they do, it is someplace far underground. Mithril worms have nearly indestructible skin. The best way to find the skin is to find a nest, and wait for the babies to grow and shed their first layer of skin. What you’ve found here is… extremely rare.” The wizard stroked his beard. “With the full skin from this baby worm, I could make that spell… twenty times?”

  Alexander laughed. “We have two. One is with Grimble in Broken Mountain. He’ll be returning with Thalgrin in less than an hour. I plan to let Thalgrin keep one in return for training them both, and sending one back here to work the mine.”

  Instantly, Fitz said, “You must make him agree to collect the skin as they shed! And give them to me. As they grow to full size, they might shed three or four times. Each skin larger than the last.”

  “Do you know if the adult worm is dead?” Kai interrupted.

  “No…” Alexander mused. “There was a large hole in the floor of one of the rooms. It led down to a curving tunnel that originated from a large cavern. Grimble said the rockworm tunneled up into the mine from the cavern. We didn’t go down there, as I wanted to finish clearing the mi
ne and get these baby worms back here. So, I sealed the hole.”

  “We should confirm as soon as possible whether the worm is there. Or nearby. Especially if it is a mithril worm as well. It could be a danger to the miners. It could also be a useful asset,” the dragon said.

  “If we find it, you can train it?” Alexander asked. Maybe he shouldn’t have been so hasty to trade a worm to Thalgrin in exchange for training.

  “Not in the way you are thinking. Dwarves train the worms using a series of sounds. Taps on the walls, whistles, and such. The training takes a year or longer. Though it is easier with larvae. As a dragon, I can connect with the worm’s mind. Make suggestions. Bind its loyalty. We use them to dig tunnels and lairs for us on occasion. If you wanted, for example, an escape tunnel leading from the keep to the top of the ridge. You could make this tunnel yourself in a day or two. The worm could do it in the same time, while you spend your time doing something else. And it will process any ore that it finds along the way.”