“From our estimate we think maybe two or three hundred.”
Tef smiled.
“There’s more good news.” The other scout offered.
Tef stood up. “Go on.”
“Apparently, they suffered major casualties of their own by either an invading army or had a civil war.”
“What do you mean?”
“There are dead bodies everywhere.”
“Did you see any giants?”
“We found them among the dead.” The first scout said.
“What’s left?”
“We only saw the goat creatures. They were either roaming the streets drunk or sitting in the tavern drinking heavily.
“This must be some sort of trap.”
“It’s not. I am telling you they are only interested in drinking and gambling.”
“Good work. That will be all.”
Tef finished with the scouts and walked over to Sir Valden, Master Shoo, and Priest Hamond.
“It appears our enemy is ripe for the picking.” Tef stated.
“What do you mean?” Sir Valden asked.
“My men tell me there are only goatmen roaming the city.”
“And their numbers?”
“Around two to three hundred.”
“What?” Hamond exclaimed.
“Where are the giants?” Master Shoo asked.
“Dead.”
“Are you sure?” Valden asked.
“Yes. They found them among the dead, scattered throughout the city.” Tef grinned
“I wonder what happened there.” Valden simply said.
“My men think there was a civil war or another army invaded the town.”
“I think we should start with the taverns and inns and then work our way through the city.” Priest Hamond said.
“Good. Let’s move on them when the moon is at its highest and put an end to this.” Shoo said.
After dividing their men into three parts, they began their assault to take back Redden. Sir Valden led the first wave of troops throughout the city, overwhelming and slaughtering any non-human creature, and clearing the path to the taverns.
Master Shoo and Priest Hamond led the second charge and did their part by setting the four taverns ablaze, killing all inside, while Tef led his men behind the others and finished off the last of the goatmen.
It was nearing morning when Priest Hamond and his men discovered a cavern to the north. The smell of something rotten preceded its discovery. What they found inside was so horrific and disturbing, it would definitely haunt them for many years to come. Festering, unrecognizable corpses in various stages of decay were piled on top of each other and stretched as far as they could see.
“What do you want to do with them?” An acolyte asked Hamond.
“Get some oil and burn the bodies.” Hamond replied with great sadness, knowing that they were discarded to rot inside of this hollowed out grave.
After emptying several jugs of oil on the bodies, Priest Hamond said a few prayers and then lit them. All present watched the flames engulf the dead in one massive fireball. They were about to turn away, when something towards the back of the cave made a hideous screeching sound. In the next instant, the pile began shifting and moving until the flaming bodies were thrown out of the way, and a war beetle charged out of the cave. Priest Hamond and a few others moved out of the way just in time, but others weren’t so lucky and were trampled under the beetle’s enormous body. The creature turned around while hissing and attacked with its large mandibles snapping and tearing apart three others.
High Priest Hamond retreated to the side of the cave and began working his hands frantically into the air while chanting words of summoning. The carnage of death continued a few yards away as the men fought ineffectively against the beetle’s tough shell, and were either quickly cut down or trampled upon.
At one point, the beetle parted its shell and began flapping both halves, causing a loud screeching sound and forcing everyone in its path to cover their ears. Priest Hamond finished his chant and when he saw the soldiers trapped between the beetle and the fire in the cave, he panicked and commanded the Air Tirip to attack. He realized his mistake too late, as the Air Tirip, not knowing friend from foe, attacked everything in its path, starting with the soldiers. It was over quickly for them, as the Air protector swirled counterclockwise and drew the very air from their lungs until they fell over and died.
Next, it sent swirling wind tunnels at the beetle, lifting its massive body into the air and threw the bug into the fiery inferno, roasting it alive. When it was over, Priest Hamond slumped to the ground, shaking and crying over his mistake and then praying for the dead and their forgiveness.
By mid-morning, Master Shoo, Tef, and Sir Valden met near the town square to discuss the future of Redden and how they would rebuild the town.
“We have a large task before us.” Master Shoo began. “So where do we begin?”
“First we need to have a strong presence and more importantly keep order.” Sire Valden stated.
“That’s a start.” Tef added. “What about the stores and the riches they contain? I think we should have first crack at everything before we let anyone else enter the town, in fact, maybe we should keep everything.”
“Spoken like a true thief.” Valden sneered.
“We earned it, don’t you think?”
“I agree with you; we should take what we want, but not everything!”
“I hate to say it, but I think we’ll need the Magistrate’s input on how to rebuild the town. He has a mind for that sort of thing.” Shoo added.
“Rebuild the town yes, to run it no.”
“Then what should we do Sir Valden?”
“Run this place until we elect a new Magistrate. From there we…”
He was about to say something more when Priest Hamond rounded the corner. The grave look on his face gave everyone pause.
“Are you okay?” Tef asked him.
“I found the rest of the townspeople.” He simply stated.
“Where are they?”
“They were all dead and stuffed into a cavern to the north. It was disgusting. Their bodies were just left there to feed the war beetles.”
“Please join us we're discussing the future of the town.”
“Not right now, I need to lie down.” Hamond said as he walked away.
“That was strange. I wonder what’s wrong with him? He only found dead bodies.” Tef asked after he was gone.
“I guess we should be grateful that we didn’t find what he found.” Master Shoo said. “When we’re done we’ll send word to the Magistrate to join us.”
“I don’t think he should get any of the spoils.” Tef said while looking directly at Shoo.
“He’s entitled to some of the profit. After all, he did lend us some of his men.” Sir Valden said to the thief.
“I guess you’re right.”
“You know; I might move my Order to this town. There’s room to grow and I could recruit more men. What about you, Master Shoo?”
“I think that I like the simplicities of the smaller towns.”
“Tef?”
“I haven’t decided yet. Let’s meet again in a couple of hours when Priest Hamond can join us.”
“Do we agree that we’ll oversee the entire operation, and the Magistrate will just offer us guidance?” Valden asked, wanting a clear answer. The others nodded, and he continued. “We’ll gather all the wealth, take out just a share, and then store it in one centralized place. Make sure you tell your men to keep the looting down to a minimum.” Sir Valden looked at the thief and smiled.
They continued their discussion and a few hours later Priest Hamond joined them and they talked well into the night. By the next morning, they sent word to the Magistrate and then set out to start rebuilding the town.
Chapter 24: A Child’s Dream (Part 2)
Shortly after midday, they left the woods and entered the surrounding area. The sky was clear; the s
now had stopped altogether, and towards the north stood anther forest.
“I guess that’s where Fefantor lives.” Katara decided.
“I think we can make it there by nightfall.” Torhan added.
They began walking.
“I was wondering if your god can protect us against those undead creatures.”
“In what way?” Katara curiously asked.
“Does she give you blessings against them?”
Katara shook her head. “She does, but I’m not sure how much she can do against reanimated corpses, if that’s what they are. I’ve been meaning to ask you, do you believe?”
“In what gods?”
“Yes.”
“I used to.”
“What happened to change your mind?”
“When I was young boy, my mother was attacked by an animal and was injured. The healer said it was minor and told us to pray for her. We did and when her condition worsened, he said to pray harder, so we spent every waking hour in the church, and you know what? She died anyway, so what’s the point of praying?”
“I’m sorry she died, but you have to remember, gods don’t answer every prayer.”
“It just seems like a waste of time when you ask for something, and it doesn’t get answered.”
“Believe me, it’s not a waste of time.”
“He was so sure she would get better.” Torhan was getting angry over the memory of losing his mother.
“It doesn't matter what he said, when it’s your time, it’s your time.”
“I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”
Katara let the matter drop, and they walked along in silence.
It was nightfall when they arrived at the forest. After lighting some glow rocks, they entered the dense woods.
“I think we should look for the house and then camp. What do you think?” Torhan asked.
“I’m tired, but I can keep going.”
They walked in a straight line, for the most part, and left markers every time they changed direction. A few hours later, they came upon fresh footprints leading north and followed the trail until they saw tiny lights coming off in the distance. Katara insisted they get a closer look. Another mile or so brought them to a two-story mansion which was down an embankment. The enormously large house had one visible entrance and many windows on both floors. Each windowsill had a lit candle, and from their position, they could see someone sitting in a chair by the closest widow on the second floor.
As they continued studying the structure and the person inside, Katara caught sight of a cloaked individual walking outside carrying a lantern. He or she walked from the far end of the building toward the front. They deactivated their glow rocks so that they would not draw any attention, and watched the figure walk around.
“Do you think that’s one of the creatures?” Torhan asked.
“No. Whoever that is they are walking normal and carrying a lantern. Now be quiet.”
They watched the figure pass the door and continue towards the other end of the building and then around the back. When the person disappeared from sight, another emerged from the other side and walked in the same direction. They watched the guards walk in this pattern for many rotations until Katara grew cold and said she wanted to leave. Torhan didn’t object, because he was feeling the same way.
They made camp a half-mile away, built a small fire and placed the Ring of Warmth next to it so that it could recharge itself. After they were situated, Katara, exhausted from the day’s events, covered herself in furs and fell asleep within seconds, leaving Torhan to take first watch. Torhan grabbed the rest of the furs and sat down with his back against a tree. He used them like a blanket, placed his spear across his lap and left his sword within reach. He figured that if he was going to keep watch, then why not be warm. What he didn’t take into account was the warmth of the furs coupled with his weariness would eventually cause him to fall asleep.
Morning arrived, and Katara was the first to wake. She looked around, realizing at once that she never took watch and upon seeing her companion, she knew why. He was sleeping. Getting up she walked over and was about to shake him awake when she noticed a trail of blood and large paw prints leading away from camp. Something got close to them while they were sleeping, and it sent shivers up and down her spine. Taking out her mace, she nudged Torhan awake with her foot. Seeing her standing there with her mace in hand, he got up, quickly gripping his spear.
“What’s going on?” He whispered.
“Look at the ground.” She said and continued scanning the area.
“Blood!” He exclaimed.
“Looks like something paid us a visit after you fell asleep.”
Torhan gazed at his scabbard, and it wasn’t glowing. “Whatever it was, it’s gone.”
“How do you know?”
“My scabbard isn’t glowing.” He then removed his dagger from the scabbard and saw that it was covered with blood. “It looks like my dagger must have fought with it.” He showed it to her.
She relaxed a bit. “How could you fall asleep? Next time, if you’re tired tell me, and I’ll take first watch. I don’t want to end up as a meal.”
“Look, I’m sorry and…”
Katara held up her hand, cutting off the rest of his words. “You should be, just don’t let it happen again.” She started picking up her things. “Let’s get moving and we’ll eat later."
“Look I’m sorry.”
“Save it.”
Katara was so furious that she didn’t talk to him until they reached the manor and were in position behind several trees to study the building. They didn’t see anyone walking around or inside like they did last night.
“We should go around back to see if there’s another way in.” She said.
“And if there isn’t?”
“We’ll knock.” She got up, and he followed.
They gave wide berth and stayed inside the trees. As soon as they were around back, Torhan noticed a door at the base of the building that normally led to the cellar.
“We have another way in.” He said.
“I thought there would be one. Let’s take up position over there.” She pointed further back into the woods. “I need to pray for protection and construct a guardian. I need you to gather enough wood so that I can create him and then keep watch until I’m finished.”
“When do you want to enter the building?”
“When it’s dark of course.”
“I have to ask you something.”
“What is it?” Katara looked at him with concern.
“If we have to kill someone innocent are you okay with it? Because if you’re not; then I’ll do this alone. We don’t even know if the guy in the house is a bad person or not.”
“Well if he’s stealing dead people, then chances are he’s not a good person and the people working for him are guilty by association. So, to answer your question, I’m good with it.”
“Okay.” Torhan smiled at her and was glad he got that off of his chest.
After Torhan gathered enough wood required for Katara to construct one of her guardians, he took up position on top of the hill and studied the mansion. By midday, heavy snow began falling and the first of the guards appeared from around the building. Torhan watched him walk from one end of the house to the other, and as soon as he turned the corner another one emerged and did the same thing. By the time Katara finished with her prayers and animating the wooden sentinel; Torhan knew exactly how long it would take the guards to complete their rotation around the building.
As the day faded into night, Katara and Torhan removed their furs to allow for extra movement, filled her pouch with vials of healing liquids, and took a few weapons. They waited until the guards were in mid-rotation before running down the hill and over to the door. Torhan found it locked and instructed Katara to keep watch for the guards while he picked the lock. She moved to the end of the building, flattened herself against the wall and waited with her mace in hand. Wh
ile Torhan worked feverishly on the mechanism, Katara heard footfalls crunching in the snow. She looked over at Torhan, saw that he wasn’t finished and knew what she had to do.
When the guard rounded the corner, she swung her mace with purpose and struck him in the side of the head, caving in his skull. She hit him again to make sure she finished the job and then dragged his body over to where Torhan was.
“He’s dead. We need to hurry or I’ll have to kill the other one.”
“Do you think we should? I mean it’s going to be nearly impossible to cover up all that blood and hide our tracks.”
She looked over at the blood covering the snow and house. “You’re right.” She said and took up her position again.
Katara killed the next guard just as easy and on some level, she was glad she surprised him. It seemed more humane that way. Torhan finally unlocked the door, and after they dragged the dead bodies down with them, he closed it. They descended the stairs and when they reached the bottom, they came to another closed door and were met by the stench of rotting flesh permeating from the other side. It was so powerful they had to cover their mouths so that they wouldn’t gag. Torhan tested the knob, found the door unlocked and pressed his ear against it to listen.
“I think there’s someone inside.” He said quietly. “I’m going to open the door and take a look. If we can’t surprise whoever it is, we’ll rush in and attack.”
She nodded and Torhan slowly opened the creaky door and peered inside. The room was dimly lit and stretched the length of the manor. He saw shackled tables down the center of the room, wooden barrels in each corner, pointy instruments hanging on the walls, and a couple of closed doors on both sides of the room. It reminded him of a very large healer’s room, but darker and more sinister looking.
His gaze came to rest upon a lone figure, dressed in a hooded robe, toward the front. His back was to them, and he appeared to be preoccupied at one of the far tables. He signaled to Katara and they squatted down and entered the room, closing the door once they both were inside. When they were sure they didn’t draw any unwanted attention from the person at the far end, they crept closer to the front, moving in and around the tables.
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