The Mountain Valley War

by M. A. Carlson

  I now saw just how much it cost to purchase buff spells, I understood why people weren’t buying dozens of them and stacking them up. It would become extremely cost prohibitive.

  “One last thing,” I said, opening my bag and looking for the book ‘Demonology: Summoning Demonic Plagues and Pests’. I wanted to see if Winslow had any information on it. But the book was gone. I looked through my inventory list one more time, but the book wasn’t there. It was gone and I know I didn’t take it out. That meant someone with the ‘Pickpocket’ skill must have taken it. But who? And why?

  “What’s wrong?” Rose asked, seeing the look of panic on my face.

  “The Demonology book, it’s gone,” I answered.

  “What do you mean it’s gone?” Rose asked.

  “Gone,” I repeated. “As in someone stole it from my bag.”

  We all looked to where Heath was standing moments before.

  “I didn’t take it,” Heath said, appearing near the door. “I might take a look through your bags every now and then, but I never steel from you.”

  I cursed as did Rose and Olaf.

  “So, someone took a book from you, so what?” Bushy said, clearly not understanding.

  “It was for a quest,” I answered, checking my quest log. “Thankfully, we haven’t failed the quest but that was a big clue.”

  “Sorry,” Bushy said, shrugging. “Wish I could help but my awesomeness wasn’t with you when you fought the gremlins.”

  I was going to question Bushy on how she knew about that, but Olaf spoke first.

  “Unfortunately, there isn’t anything we can do about that right now. We should head for Mardi’s rally if we’re done here. We can look into the theft later,” Olaf said, trying to keep us on task.

  I wasn’t necessarily happy about it, but he was right. There was nothing we could do about it just then.

  A minute later, Olaf led us back into the city and toward the main gate, an area that was already starting to gather a large crowd of Dwarves.

  Chapter 19

  We were lucky Sergeant Murdock found us or was instructed to find us. Otherwise, we would have been stuck at the back of the rally. Mardi was just outside the entrance to the barracks with the other adventurers. They were all congregating on a newly constructed stage raised a few feet off the ground to ensure that anyone on the new structure was visible, even from the back of the crowd. She was socializing and talking to a few of them here and there. There must have been every Dwarf and player in the city of Hammerton there in addition to every single soldier the city could muster, four or five thousand Dwarves in total by my guess. I also guessed about four hundred of those were soldiers. I didn’t realize just how big the city really was or that it housed so many.

  At the front of the stage, a large stand had been erected with a podium at the top, the crowd below radiated out around it.

  “You made it, good,” said Mardi, greeting us. “We are about to start if you want to stand with the other adventurers. When my speech is done, I would like to address all the adventurers together before we meet with my Council.”

  “We’ll be there,” Olaf volunteered.

  “We are ready, your Grace,” said General Hammersmith.

  “Wish me luck,” said Mardi, ascending the stairs on the back of the stand.

  “We are very lucky to have her,” said the General. Then very softly he added, “And very cursed as well.”

  I would have questioned him, but the roar of the crowd drowned out any chance of it, though I made a mental note to ask him later if I had a chance.

  “Good Dwarves of Hammerton,” Mardi started, her voice seemed to have been magically amplified to carry out over the crowd. “Yesterday, our neighbors to the south officially declared war upon us. They attacked, unprovoked and claimed the lives of several of our brave soldiers.” The crowd roared with anger and rising vitriol. Mardi did her best to wave them down, to calm them.

  “I also feel the sting of loss. Eighteen good and honorable Dwarves perished protecting their people. Many more would have been lost to us if not for the brave actions of the adventurers,” Mardi’s words brought another roar from the crowd, this time one of approval. I honestly felt embarrassed at having so many eyes drawn to us.

  “They fought and died for us and then fought some more. They fought and they won the day! The acts of these men and women, these heroes, saved us all!” Mardi shouted, bringing the roar of the crowd to new heights.

  Mardi let the frenzy continue for a moment before she waved her arms again, trying to quiet the crowd before speaking again.

  “It is also from these adventurers we have learned the truth,” Mardi said calmly, earning a rumble of murmuring from the assembled Dwarves. “The truth that the people of Anvilton are suffering under the yoke of tyranny. The truth that the people of Anvilton do not want war. They do not want to fight with the people they considered brothers and sisters once upon a time. The truth that the people of Anvilton have begun to rise up against the Lord of Anvilton, Duke Shrove, a Dwarf that, as we have only recently discovered, has all but enslaved his people. The leader of this rebellion has reached out a hand of friendship, asking that we help free his people and put an end to the machinations of a mad Dwarf.”

  I had to hand it to Mardi, she was one heck of an orator. The frenzy of the crowd ebbed and flowed with her words, roaring in approval or booing in disapproval when she wanted them to.

  At this, Mardi motioned toward the barracks where Gras and the almost two dozen shale Dwarves we rescued the day before emerged. Gras was dressed much more formally and the rebels with him looked considerably better than when I last saw them. I also noted the hushed tone that fell over the crowd. I looked around at the faces, trying to get a feel for their reactions. Some were of anger and resentment, some of them were of sadness but most were of surprise. I knew that not everyone would immediately accept the change in circumstance, but I would take surprise over anger any day.

  “I would like you all to meet the leader of the rebellion, Gras du Anvil,” said Mardi, quickly trying to silence the crowd upon hearing his name. “I know, I know. I also had my doubts. He is the son of the Duke Shrove du Anvil. He witnessed his mother’s execution at the hands of the Duke. He escaped the same fate and was hidden among us so that he could grow and one day overthrow his father. That day has come!” Another roar of approval cried out from the mob.

  “We have many difficulties ahead of us. And we need your help. This fight may call on every Dwarf, young and old, to fight. So, I ask you now, fight with me, fight for your homes, fight for Hammerton!” Mardi ended with a yell and a single fist pumped into the air.

  Mardi stood there for a while and let her people cheer in adoration. I couldn’t help but notice rows of tables being set up near the back of the crowd, several soldiers manning each table with a stack of papers and a stamp. Recruitment tables if I was to venture a guess.

  Mardi eventually came down off the stand, the crowd still roaring behind her. “And that is how it is done.”

  “Very impressive,” I said approvingly. She really was quite good. “Was that a skill at work?”

  “A few of them. ‘Influence’, ‘Public Oratory’, and ‘Leadership’,” Mardi answered.

  Now, I already had the skill ‘Influence’. But ‘Public Oratory’ was a skill I had zero interest in attaining . . . ever. But ‘Leadership’ had me curious. “What is ‘Leadership’?”

  “When you are a leader, you are a leader. You do not just tell others what to do, you set the example for them to follow. From there it makes others more likely to follow you. Whether that is in building an empire or charging into battle does not matter. I know you and Olaf are both leaders, I have seen it with my own eyes. Keep doing what you have been and eventually, the skill will unlock for you both,” said Mardi.

  It made me wonder if ‘Leadership’ gave me the ability to lead NPC’s. To add them to my party or to any order I might join or create with my friends. It wa
s food for thought.

  “Adventurers, the Duchess Mardi would like to speak with all of you. Please follow me,” Master Sergeant Murdock shouted over the noise of the crowd.

  “Walk with me,” said Mardi, holding Olaf and me back, which naturally made our entire party hold back. “I want you to act as my representatives to the adventurers. They followed you yesterday, you have already established yourselves as my authority and I do not want to change that now.”

  “We’re honored,” said Olaf.

  “Good, we will discuss what that means in more detail shortly. For now, your compatriots are waiting,” said Mardi, walking ahead of us into the barracks.

  We were back in that same training room where we waited the night before and the adventurers looked less than pleased to be back there, not that I could blame them.

  “Greetings,” said Mardi cheerfully as she entered the room. “I am the Duchess Mardi du Hammer, leader of Hammerton and your benefactor. First, let me thank you, all of you. If not for your actions yesterday, Hammerton would not be here today. For that, you have my deepest gratitude.”

  Hammerton War Effort: Invasion Repelled – Completed!

  You have repelled an invasion by Anvilton, successfully protecting the city and all her people.

  Reward: +25,000-Experience, Increased reputation with Hammerton Military Structure

  I had honestly expected that reward to come the night before when we actually finished saving the city. Still, this was more impactful, especially as I watched several of the players cheering, many of them shouting ‘DING!’ loudly as they gained a level for their troubles.

  “I am happy to be able to reward your efforts. They are well deserved. I hope you will continue to fight for me and put an end to this war. There will be many more opportunities to earn such rewards,” Mardi addressed the assembly. She turned back to us briefly, motioning for Olaf to step forward.

  “This is Olaf Crushhammer, he is one of the adventurers that led you last evening to victory. In recognition of his achievement, I am granting him the honorary rank of Hammerton Major,” Mardi stated. There were a few polite claps from the other adventurers, but I saw plenty of looks of jealousy. That didn’t stop Micaela from cheering loudly, or the rest of us from clapping in approval.

  “Bye-bye Jacko, Hammerton Captain,” Mardi continued, motioning for me to step forward.

  Mardi continued on, giving each of us a rank with the exception of Bushy, which I understood as she was new to the group. “Heath Rickards, Hammerton Captain. Rose Thorns, Hammerton Lieutenant. Babies Breath, Hammerton Lieutenant. Micaela Crushhammer, Hammerton Lieutenant.”

  “I hope all of you work hard to earn a similar or even higher rank. Hammerton needs adventurers like you fighting for us. Now, we have an urgent mission that needs some of you with the right skills to assist with. Captain Rickards,” said Mardi, motioning to Heath again.

  Part of me prayed he wouldn’t use that terrible fake accent, but then again, it just wouldn’t be Heath if he didn’t.

  “I need 5 or 6 of you with good ‘Stealth’ and ‘Scavenge’ skills, ‘Engineering’ would be a bonus,” Heath said loudly, causing a scramble of players to start weaving through the crowd to get to him. I only recognized two of the ten players that rushed forward to him, Duncan Donut and Evile Lynn.

  “Everyone else, report to Colonel Grandmite for duty assignments,” Mardi ordered motioning to the former Captain that entered sometime during Mardi’s speech. I was only slightly shocked by the promotion from Captain to Colonel but given the losses to Hammerton’s military leadership, it made sense she would be promoted, even skipping past the rank of Major along the way.

  Mardi was on the move again, with all of us, except Heath, following along as she went. I expected she would be heading toward the command center, instead she went back toward the mess hall. Inside the mess hall, she went north toward a stairway I hadn’t paid attention to the first time we came through the barracks. Where the stairs to the south led up to the battlements, these led into the mountain and a long hallway which eventually opened into a large circular room with several more hallways connected to it. And in the center of the room was a winding staircase going up, a path Mardi was quick to follow upwards.

  At the top of the stairway was another large circular room but this was easily twice the size of the one below us. This room had a throne placed at the end opposite the stairwell. Curved tables were placed to either side of the throne and circled the room with seats placed every 10 feet, I counted 20 seats in total. Carved into the stone in front of each seat was a Dwarven rune, all of which I recognized thanks to my profession. To the throne’s right was the rune for ‘Leader’ and on the left of the throne was the rune for ‘Official’. I saw one for ‘Money’, one for ‘Shield’, one for ‘Mine’, and one for ‘Craft’ and there were still others.

  Before I could look too much, Mardi was moving toward the throne where she bowed reverently then moved to the right of it and took a seat behind the rune for ‘Leader’ much to my curiosity.

  “Why not the throne?” I asked.

  “The throne is for my father,” said Mardi. “Should he ever wish to speak it is only appropriate that he be given the proper respect.”

  “Has he ever?” Micaela asked.

  “No,” Mardi answered. “Anyway, the rest of the Council should be making their way here. Please use the seats behind me. I may ask you to speak to the assembly at some point so be ready.”

  A few feet behind each of the seats ringing the curved table were two rows of five chairs. I guessed they were for guests and advisors to whoever claimed each seat. Not sure what else to do, we sat down and waited.

  Slowly but surely Dwarves began to file in, taking up various seats, some with a large entourage filling all their seats plus a few more left standing. I hadn’t recognized any of the Dwarves taking the various seats until I saw Foreman Digren from the mine, who took a seat behind the ‘Mine’ rune.

  “Mardi,” said a Dwarf in robes of blue and gold, giving the slightest of nods of respects. He was tall for a Dwarf with steely blue eyes and a very grand beard extending just below his chest to the tip of his rotund belly.

  “Morlin,” Mardi replied, giving him the same nod.

  The dark-haired Dwarf took the seat behind the ‘Official’ rune.

  I wanted badly to ask Mardi who he was, and if he was some kind of rival, but as full as the room was becoming, I was afraid of embarrassing her.

  When all the chairs, except the ‘Shield’ chair, had been filled, General Hammersmith entered with a retinue of ten soldiers. The staircase rose behind him, sealing the room. The old General took the final seat behind the ‘Shield’ rune. I only now noticed the General’s armor had the same rune stamped over his heart.

  “Calling to order emergency session of Hammerton’s Council,” Morlin loudly shouted, bringing the little bit of murmuring to a halt. “Lady Hammer, if you please the court.”

  Mardi stood. “Anvilton has officially declared war. I am reliant upon this Council to assist in preparations and providing the additional funding necessary to outfit our troops and to reinforce the city against imminent attack.”

  “I hardly think a raid counts as a declaration of war,” Morlin responded, standing from his seat.

  “Eighteen of my soldiers are dead! Our gates were nearly broken and if not for the quick action by the adventurers, Hammerton surely would have been sacked. How can you possibly not call that a declaration of war?” General Hammersmith shouted angrily, standing from his seat. I could feel an oppressive aura coming from the old Dwarf. “If you will not call that a declaration of war then I will declare war against Anvilton right now, as is my right as General of the Hammerton Defense Force.”

  Morlin snarled angrily. “Then call for it. Stand before his throne and make your demand for war against our kin!”

  General Hammersmith huffed a few times to calm down.

  “I thought not,” said Morlin as if he had
won some victory.

  “Are they really discussing this?” Olaf whispered softly, voicing the disbelief I was already feeling.

  “Now, as to your call to arms rally,” said Morlin, glaring at Mardi. “Why was this Council not consulted first?”

  “I do not need to consult this Council to address my people,” said Mardi. “They deserved to know the truth. To be made aware of the danger we are now all under. Or is there something you have not told us?”

  Morlin’s face turned sour. “Are you accusing me of treason?”

  “I said no such thing, why? Are you confessing?” Mardi asked.

  This was yet another side of Mardi I hadn’t seen before. It made my respect for her grow. It also instilled a little fear. Only now did I see she had a sharp tongue and wit to her.

  “Enough!” General Hammersmith shouted, slamming his fist on the table, halting whatever retort Morlin was about to make. “We are at war, whether you choose to acknowledge it or not. My Dwarves need to be armed. Our mine was recently secured so the ore has begun to flow once more, we need to put that to use.”

  “My Dwarves have been filling back orders of home goods almost around the clock,” said the Dwarf that stood behind the ‘Craft’ rune. “Just say the word and we will halt those orders and begin making weapons and armor that will put that Duke in his place.”

  “Why was that not done already?” Mardi demanded.

  “Our people need to be taken care of first,” said Morlin harshly.

  I was beginning to get the idea that Morlin was no friend of Mardi’s. From the sound of it, he was going to be a major obstacle.

  Call for me!

  I knew that voice, it was the God Ivaldi. Looking around, it seemed no one else had heard it. It made me wonder if I imagined it.

  I said call for me you ruddy Priest!

  Nope, definitely heard him. I wasn’t sure what the process was, but I had the feeling the God Ivaldi wanted a spectacle, which is why I was the only one that heard him.