by Ian Rodgers
The green skinned girl’s face scrunched up in thought. “Why are you an outcast, though? You’re human!”
“Ah, but I was taught by a dwarf,” the master of metals informed. “I was like a lot of the people in Partaevia in my youth. Brash, arrogant, drunk on the beliefs that we were superior. So, when I encountered a dwarven blacksmith, I challenged him in an effort to prove my own skills. It was a crushing defeat.”
The large, beefy man sighed. “Three times I tried to beat him with the knowledge I had learned from my first master. Three times I was unable to match his talents in metalwork. I was broken. Devastated. My pride and my teeth had been knocked out and fed back to me. On my knees I went to him one day, and begged him to teach me. He saw that I had finally woken up from my arrogance and taught me much.”
“Oh, those were the good old days. I learned more in three years with him than a full decade with my old teacher! Of course, it was only later that I learned my new mentor was considered to be a master smith even among other dwarves.” A happy sigh escaped the man as he turned back to Dora. He sat down on the anvil and gave Dora an appraising look.
“I made a name for myself with my newfound skills, and the powers-that-be in Partaevia eventually saw my work when I returned and praised my efforts. Said praise turned to scorn when they learned who had taught me, though. I earned less, received fewer customers but plenty of abuse, so I finally picked up my hammer and anvil and moved away from them all. Bah! Let those fools stagnate. We need diversity in our lives, otherwise we become boring old sacks of meat. No challenges means no growth. No exchange of goods and ideas means no one thinks of new ways to do things.”
“But you probably don’t want to hear an old man ramble on,” the blacksmith said, running a hand through greying hair. “How about yourself? Why’d you run off on your birthday of all days?”
“I found a note from my daddy on my window sill when I woke up this morning,” Dora revealed after a moment of hesitation. “But when I showed it to mama, she tore it up and burnt it!”
The blacksmith winced. “Ah. Yeah, that’d do it. Still, can’t say I blame her.”
“Did you know my daddy?” Dora asked, perking up slightly.
“Not really. I was well established when he and his merchant caravan first rolled into Far Reach. Can’t say I knew him, but I did often see him and your mother together. They were so giddily in love with each other it was almost sickening to watch. And not because he was an orc, but there’s only so much sweetness a man can take,” the elder man hastily assured her.
“Then why does mama hate him?” the Healer’s apprentice demanded, wetness creeping back into her eyes.
“It’s not my place to say. All I can tell you is that he did some bad things for good reasons. And it hurt your mother’s heart to see him do so. He became a different person, and I don’t think Irene ever forgave him for that. You see, it’s not that she hates him, it’s that she hates herself for not being able to save him as he fell into a dark place.”
“That’s stupid,” Dora declared with all the conviction of a ten-year-old. The blacksmith merely nodded sadly.
“That’s life.”
After a pause in the conversation he held out a rough wooden box to the young orc.
“Here. I’m not a carpenter or a bowyer, but I can make do.”
Curious, Dora popped the lid open and gasped when she saw the item that lay within.
With extreme care she removed a small crossbow, one that had been crafted to match her size.
“I figured you could do with some way to defending yourself,” the blacksmith explained while Dora looked over it in awe. “Daggers are all well and good, and there’s one of those in there for you, but ranged combat is an option everyone should have. After all, better to get rid of your opponent before they even reach you then fight them on their own terms.”
“I don’t know, I’m supposed to be learning to become a Healer,” the apprentice muttered, suddenly looking concerned.
“You live close to the Dreadlands and are surrounded by ignorant farmers. And after today, I’ll be showing you some tips and tricks regardless of what your mother may say,” the blacksmith said firmly. He rose from his makeshift seat and went over to a part of the forge where a pile of firewood had been stacked in the corner.
“You can practice your aim by shooting at these logs. They’re thick enough to withstand your training bolts, and even if you miss it’ll only hit the shed behind them.”
Dora nodded and stood up as well. She felt a smidge of shame at her excitement to learn how to fight, but the warm smile from the blacksmith eased her worries. She then looked down at the weapon in her hands and fiddled with it, figuring out how to wind it up and load it.
Chapter 12: Murderous intrigue
Wakefulness came too soon for Dora’s liking, even if it meant the dreams finally ceased their clamor in her skull.
She was tired, hungry, thirsty, and fairly certain she had overslept.
With a groan, the Healer sat up and gazed blearily around her room. Everything looked to be in order, but since when had a mountain taken root in it?
“Uldo, did you stay by my side the entire time?” she asked after a moment. The mountain-like man nodded, and the tan half-amazon gave her a kind smile from where he sat in the corner of the room.
Dora couldn’t help but smile as well. Partly in thanks, but mostly because there was something hilarious about seeing such a large man like himself squeezed into a tiny little chair.
“How long have I been asleep?”
“A few hours. You slept through the afternoon and the evening. It is a little past dawn at the moment.”
“So, not the entire day, then. That’s good.” She got out of bed and stretched, finally feeling alert. “Have Krave’s men come to bring me to the dig site?”
“Not yet, but if they do come it will be soon,” Uldo informed her. He then got up out of the chair, or tried to. It had molded to his buttocks and now it clung to him. Dora laughed, her mirth doing wonders for washing away the pain and heartache of yesterday.
For his part, Uldo merely rolled his eyes before pulling the piece of furniture off of him and exiting the room. Dora briefly wondered if he had done all of that fooling around just to make her feel better. Regardless of the reason, she was now genuinely smiling as she got ready for the day.
In the mess hall, she found herself immediately swamped by well wishes from the few crew who were also up at this ungodly hour.
“Thank you, really, for all your kindness,” Dora said, discreetly wiping away tears from her eyes.
“You’re like a daughter, sister, and niece to us all, Dora. Of course, we would be worried about you. And be more than happy that you’ve recovered,” Rindel said, plopping a plate down on the table.
One of the only good things about Annod Bol so far was the availability of food, and the variety. Real sausages, eggs, and some of the finest mint tea she’d ever tasted? Almost enough to make her forget about the rampant cruelty and slavery within and beyond its walls. Almost.
“Dora! I heard you were awake!” The Healer glanced over as Holt rushed into the dining room.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t there when Scar lost his temper. Maybe if I had been, I could have stopped him,” the goateed man apologized.
Dora flinched at the reminder of what the orc had done yesterday. Her shoulders tensed, her back hunched, and a whimper escaped her lips as she recalled the rage and darkness in her father-figure’s eyes.
Holt winced as he watched her shrink in on herself in fear. He’d arrived at the scene of the incident mere seconds after he’d spotted Scarrot storm out of the mess hall. The anger and self-loathing in his blood-brother’s every step had been shocking, but the cries coming from the rest of the crew had ultimately drawn his attention.
“You do know that he wasn’t himself at that moment, right? This city… it does things to people, and Scarrot got the worst of it.”
The Heal
er remained silent. The right-hand man of the caravan sighed in defeat and wandered off, giving Dora some space.
It took a while before Dora pieced herself back together. By then, the usual pair of guards had come to escort her to the excavation site. Steeling her nerves and forcing her face into its neutral mask, she joined Kari in the carriage once more.
She was surprised to see Krave in the transport with them, as the Lord of the West Tower usually preferred to take separate transportation.
The green-skinned Healer could also tell that the man was definitely not in good health, which likely explained his absence yesterday. Pallid and with drooping dark bags under his eyes, Dominick Krave’s hair was greasy and his clothes looked disheveled on his body. In fact, the pudgy lord seemed to have lost weight.
Dora averted her gaze from the man when he glared at her wandering eyes and she settled in for an awkward ten minutes.
As the carriage began moving Krave coughed wetly. “You. Healer. Give me an examination. What is wrong with me?”
“What are your symptoms?” the half-orc inquired as she ran a glowing hand over his chest and abdomen.
“I have been sweating profusely for a few days now, and my sleep is interrupted constantly by night terrors and bodily functions best left unsaid,” Krave explained. “My appetite is all but vanished and I can barely stomach even watered-down gruel.”
From the side Kari watched the procedure, intrigued. It was only through reading her body language that Dora knew the collared woman was observing them. She ignored the older woman’s hidden gaze and continued to run the diagnostic spell over the Tower Lord.
“I’m sorry, my lord, but I cannot find anything wrong,” Dora frowned. “I believe you are just exhausted from all your hard work and excitement for the unearthing of the Aegis Sphere.”
“Well what can I do about it? Sleeping pills of some kind?” Krave demanded.
“Yes, to start with.”
He settled back in his seat, grumpy with the outcome, but glad there was nothing wrong with him.
“Perhaps this will ease your mind, my lord,” Kari said. “I believe that if all goes as planned, I will have filled up the key with enough mana to unlock basic functions for the device. Not enough to initiate its Planeswalking and teleportation abilities, but at least open it up and turn it on.”
“Excellent!” Krave crowed, rubbing his hands together. “Oh, I can hardly wait! Driver, faster!”
The carriage obliged and the horses picked up speed. That cut their travel time by a few minutes and they reached the ruins swiftly enough.
As Krave stepped out men bowed and slaves fell to their knees. However, when Dora emerged many of the slave’s expressions changed, and they smiled at their savior.
Perturbed by the zeal in their eyes Dora carefully avoided meeting their gazes, focusing on helping Kari out of the transport and following after Krave.
It was a testament to how out of sorts their master was that Krave did not notice the adoration being giving to someone other than himself. Had he been in his right mind Dora had no doubts his wrath would be great. Dominick Krave was a petty, jealous man from what she had seen so far.
Inside the Aegis Sphere’s hangar a dozen men were hard at work shifting the stone that had been dug up around it as well as busily operating the winches and cranes that groaned under the insane weight of the ethereal alloy object.
They gave cursory bows and respectful nods before returning their attention back to the delicate work. Krave waved them off, staring greedily at the mirrored orb that was almost completely revealed.
As Dora stared in awe at the miraculous, massive artifact, a familiar snuffling sound caused her to blink in surprise.
In the ground, torso poking out from the floor, the golden mole was staring directly at the half-orc, nose wrinkling cutely. A whip cracked nearby and the poor beast flinched before it dove back into the ground, stone and gravel kicked up in a spray.
“The beast was most useful for the latter stages of the excavation,” Krave revealed when he caught Dora staring at it. “Golden moles have the unique spell-like ability to move through soil and stone as if it were no more solid than water. Earth Swim is its name, and with its aid we’ve successfully dug out most of the Aegis Sphere from its resting place.”
He then turned to Kari who straightened up under his heated gaze. “Hurry up and complete the mana transfer! I want this finished by sundown!”
“Yes, my lord,” Kari managed to answer through gritted teeth, and let Dora escort her to the room where the enslaved mages were held.
One of the chambers in the buried ruins was disturbingly cube-like, and felt like it was not a part of the ruins itself, but rather an attachment of some kind. It was perfect for keeping the poor souls being used as living batteries, though, thanks to all the empty space and magic insulated materials it had been built with.
Clad in rags and wearing heavy silver collars and manacles instead of the common bronze ones for regular slaves, they each wore a look of total despair. Some, to the Healer’s disgust, were no better than brain-dead puppets, bought and broken solely for the larger than average amount of mana in their veins.
Dora grimaced at the smell that greeted them. Filth and fear permeated the area, the stench clinging to the walls like a rancid mold.
Other than a wrinkle of her nose, Kari betrayed none of her distaste and stepped calmly into the center of the room where a large magical array had been drawn in blood. Her magic-restraining gauntlets had already been removed before they’d entered the room and she pulled out the odd spherical key from somewhere on her person.
Without a word, the symbols on the magical array lit up in bloody light and the collars on the slaves’ glowed cherry red. Most of them couldn’t even scream anymore, their minds and bodies were so far gone. Instead they twitched spasmodically as if currents of lightning ran through their bodies.
And through it all, Dora stood at the entrance of the cubed room, holding down her bile as she watched. This was as close as she dared to be, lest the ritual steal her own magic.
A rainbow tornado had formed as wisps of mana were drawn out of the mages and became a colorful maelstrom that screamed and howled above Kari’s head. The raven-haired woman remained stock still throughout, her poise unbending before the raw power before her. Dora respected her for her bravery and discipline. Gods knew the half-orc would have balked at the prospect of being near such volatile magic.
But at length the vortex of energy that had sprung up around her was sucked up into the crystalline material. The key turned dark for a moment before the colors settled and the white became dominant as all the mana blended together.
Kari let out a heavy sigh and sagged in relief, clutching the artifact to her chest. She turned to Dora and gave a weak smile.
“Come on, let’s return.” The Healer nodded before entering the chamber and taking her by the elbow, once more acting as the eyes for the blindfolded woman.
Back in the hangar the pair of women noticed that Lord Tiegan had joined them at last, the older man tapping his cane softly against the tiled floor as he waited beside a sickly Krave.
“I have transferred enough mana now, my lord,” Kari stated, holding out the artifact. Krave merely nodded and pointed at the Aegis Sphere.
“Can you open it now?”
Kari lifted her blindfold slightly, giving the arcane device a peek with her magical eyes, before nodding resolutely.
“I can.”
“Then get to it! I don’t have all day!”
“I’d say so. Are you sure you’re fit to be here?” the Lord of the East Tower asked of the pale, sweating Lord of the West Tower.
“I’m fine, Tiegan! Just tired is all. Maybe you should calm down yourself, your heart is not as strong as it used to be,” he shot back. Tiegan simply rolled his eyes but said nothing as he watched Kari approach the Aegis Sphere intently.
Now that the massive orb was lifted out of the hole partially, a s
mall indentation could be seen near the bottom. Or top, given that it was apparently upside down.
The woman with two Bloodline Traits kneeled before it, carefully slotting the key into the indentation. The mirror-like material rippled on contact, acknowledging the artifact. Silver and blue sparks flew from the contact point as the ancient magi-tech came to life once more.
A deep hum split the air and the surface of the Aegis Sphere shifted slightly. A ripple moved across the surface, but thankfully this sudden movement did not disturb any of the ropes or bindings attached to it. Seconds later a portal seemed to melt open above where the keyhole was, revealing a mysterious interior bathed in pale blue light.
Jaws dropped and eyes wide, the two Tower Lords stepped forward towards the Titan artifact. Kari stood up quickly, still clutching the unusually shaped key. The two men ignored her, content to enter the Aegis Sphere.
The entrance to the trans-dimensional piece of magi-tech was massive, large enough to fit a person fifty feet tall and half that in width with ease. Dora followed behind the two Tower Lords at Kari’s side.
The young woman had lifted her blindfold once more and was staring at everything she could inside. Dora had to admit, it was just as impressive as the outside. More so, in fact, given that there was far more inside than the exterior would lead one to assume.
The interior of the Aegis Sphere looked extremely similar to a regular house. There was a couch, table, and a few other pieces of furniture. Everything was made of some sort of shimmering white steel-like metal. Something Kari said was called ‘chrome’ after studying it briefly with her unique eyes.
All of it was sized up to fit a being many times the size of a human, and all of it was stuck to the ceiling. Dora felt dizzy looking up at the topsy-turvy arrangement.
“When we flip this thing right-side up it’ll look better,” Kari assured the half-orc.
“What else is in here?” Dora asked excitedly.
“Over there is a bathroom, apparently,” the slave woman mused, taking everything in with her Divine Eyes of Appraisal. “And a bedroom is off to that side.”
