Eden's Gate: The Scourge: A LitRPG Adventure

by Edward Brody

I need you, I projected to Sora. Come slowly so you don’t draw any attention.

  Yes, Gunnar, Sora projected back as she began slowly creeping towards me.

  “Find anything good, Sung?!” I yelled, trying to act as normal as possible.

  Sung shook his head. “A gem and a weak bracelet. Nothing worthwhile.”

  “Come here and show me the bracelet!” I said jovially.

  Sung stood up, wrinkled his nose, and tilted his head in confusion. He could tell my behavior was a little off.

  I motioned my hands for him to come close and tensed my jaw to make him aware that it was urgent.

  Understanding my gestures, Sung jogged over to me and arrived right about the same time that Sora did.

  “Ride with Trynzen,” I said low.

  “Huh?” Sung voiced.

  “Just do what I say for now,” I ordered. “No time to explain.”

  “Wait, why?”

  I looked up to the men who were strapping in the injured soldier, so I knew there wasn’t much time. “Just do it. You’ll see why soon.”

  Sung creased his brow, but seeing my seriousness, he turned to Trynzen and raised his chin. “Come on, Tryn. Let’s go for a ride on the horse.” He turned and signaled for the horse to come towards him.

  “Ride?” Trynzen asked. He rubbed his paw against Sora’s fur. “Trynzen ride cat. Cat same Barbaros, but not same, same time.”

  “Come on,” Sung urged. “The horse is fun.”

  “Fun?” Trynzen asked. “Trynzen want to have fun.”

  “Go Trynzen!” I said sternly.

  Trynzen jumped off Sora, and with Sung’s help, hopped onto the back of the horse.

  “Ride towards Barbaros, and don’t look back,” I said. “Act normal.”

  Sung narrowed his eyes but gave a subtle nod before pulling himself up onto the horse in front of Trynzen. He looked at me one last time before nudging the horse forward and away from the scene.

  As Sung rode off, I yanked off my robe, revealing my mostly naked body underneath. I scurried back to the overturned wagon and started motioning my hands for the orc to come out.

  The orc shook her head at first.

  “Get out here,” I muttered. “We don’t have much time.”

  Again, the orc shook her head no.

  “Do you want to live or not?” I peeked up to see the injured soldier wobbling around on the horse, obviously drunk in pain. The other soldiers tried to steady and tighten his straps so that he wouldn’t fall to the ground. I looked back to the orc. “Any minute, those Highcastle soldiers will be back over here. This is your last chance.”

  The orc swallowed then looked down to the child. She squeezed her eyes tightly as if praying to something but then started to hurry out from under the wagon.

  The orc jerked back when I tried to throw my robe over her, perhaps thinking I was attacking in some way, but when I tried for a second time, she stayed steady and allowed me to pull it down over her body. When she was fitted into my robe and cinched it with my belt, I yanked the hood over her head and grabbed her by her thick, muscular arm.

  “Over here,” I whispered, pointing towards Sora. “Get on.”

  The orc looked at Sora cautiously as she lowered herself nearby.

  “Get on!” I grunted and gave her a slight shove. I didn’t want to be rough or harsh, but I knew there were only seconds to get out of there before an explosion of drama. There was even the chance that what I was doing was somehow a crime, and my one stint in Highcastle prison was already one time too many.

  The orc pulled the baby close to her chest, waddled up to Sora and hopped on. As soon as she was seated, I jumped on in front of her, and urged my Great Beast forward.

  “Hey, where are you going so fast?” one of the soldiers yelled out as we started to trot away. “And why are you naked? Wait… weren’t you the one wearing the robe before?”

  “Umm... mine was damaged!” I yelled, not really knowing what to say.

  “Damaged robe?” the soldier questioned. “What?”

  “Need to go quickly!” I said loudly. “I’m summoned to the Mages Hall for important business!”

  I pushed Sora into her fastest run at that point, eager to get away.

  “Okay, well thanks for your help!” I faintly heard one of the soldiers yell as we distanced ourselves from the scene. Thankfully, they didn’t question the fake mage on the back of my mount, the fact I was virtually naked, or the fact that we were running away from the Mages Hall rather than towards it.

  We rode as hard as we could until we caught up to Sung, and only slowed to a steady run once we were beside him. When we were confidently out of sight and out of range of the soldiers, we returned to a normal paced trot.

  “So, do you want to tell me what’s going on?” Sung asked. He looked towards the covered figure riding behind me. “Who the hell is that wearing your robe?”

  Before I could answer, the female orc turned towards Sung, giving him a glimpse of her face. Sung veered his horse wildly and reflexively leaned away, confusion and shock in his eyes.

  “What the!?” Sung blurted.

  “It’s cool…” I replied. “… I think.”

  “What the heck is going on, man?” Sung asked as he pulled his horse back in parallel with Sora. “Why the hell are you riding with an orc?”

  Chapter Seventeen

  2/19/0001

  I explained the situation to Sung as we rode—how I found the orc under the wagon and how she was carrying a small child. Sung seemed flabbergasted at the idea that I helped them and straightaway thought I had lost my mind.

  “This is crazy,” Sung said, shaking his head. “You’re always doing wild stuff, but this takes the cake.”

  “It felt like the right thing to do at the time,” I replied. “She has a baby.”

  “At the time?” He glanced to the passengers behind me. “And does it still seem like the right thing?”

  I shrugged. “We’ll find out soon enough.”

  Sung turned to me. “Do you remember all the Scourge that attacked Edgewood? The buildings that were destroyed, the trees?”

  I nodded. “Yeah, but they were mostly goblins. And have we ever seen any orcs like this one? Female? I don’t think so. And I don’t remember seeing any kids either.”

  Sung sneered. “Who cares? What could we possibly accomplish by saving an orc?” He kept glancing behind me as if he was expecting things to go wrong at any moment.

  “I don’t know…” I trailed. “I had to make a quick choice, and sometimes my softer side gets the best of me.”

  “And where are you going to take it?” Sung asked.

  “We’ll drop her off in front of the Wastelands, I guess.”

  “No,” the orc behind me muttered. Her voice was slightly guttural like male orcs, but there was a clearly more feminine tone to it. “Anywhere but there. I cannot return to the Wastelands.”

  I turned my head a little, glancing to the orc, then made eye contact with Sung. He once again raised his eyebrows and shook his head as if he couldn’t believe the decision I had made.

  We were approaching the Wastelands entrance, and I knew that past the Wastelands was just an open road and mostly unoccupied land, up until the Peace Temple. After that, we’d have to cross a large valley before we’d reached Barbarosia. Turning around and going a different direction wasn’t much of an option due to the relative danger of Scourge in the Freelands and possibility of Highcastle soldiers spotting us with an orc.

  “Would you rather us drop you off here?” I asked.

  “Here?” the orc asked, turning from side to side, taking in the area. “Where will I go?”

  “Well, you were going somewhere, weren’t you?” I asked.

  The orc lowered her head but didn’t reply.

  “Why not the Wastelands?” I asked.

  “Cannot…” the orc muttered. “Cannot return.”

  “Well, tell us where to drop you off then,” I said firmly.


  “Wasn’t the whole Peace Temple mantra about the orcs and Barbaros getting along?” Sung asked. “Wouldn’t she be allowed in Barbarosia?”

  I titled my head a bit. “Yeah, it was, wasn’t it?” I cleared my throat. “We’re heading to Barbarosia. Do you want us to take you there?”

  “Barbarosia…” the orc muttered with a slight grunt. “Yes. I have never been there, but yes, orcs are allowed. Please, take me to the Barbarosian stronghold if you will. I was heading that way, actually. I will figure things out from there.”

  “Okay, we’ll be there soon if we don’t run into any trouble,” I explained.

  “Just be careful, Gunnar…” Sung said as he glanced to both me and the orc. “This is really sketchy.”

  The orc child started crying, and the female swung her head to Sung and glared at him as if he had caused the problem.

  Sung swallowed hard and focused his attention back on the road.

  We passed the Wastelands, where there were signs of high-level fighting at its entrance. A couple of large craters had been plowed into the ground, and there were still several mangled goblin corpses and rotting body parts laying around it. Stationed nearby were a handful of Highcastle soldiers, waiting idly behind a makeshift wooden barrier, looking out for another attack

  As we passed them, I felt my stomach tighten at the thought that the soldiers might stop us and ask about the orc, but even though they eyed us suspiciously, none of them approached or questioned us as we moved. The orc dipped her head, covered the mouth of the child, and avoided all eye contact until we were clear.

  We rode the length of the road until it came to an end, signaling the border of the Freelands, and as the road ended, so did signs of any orc invasion. There were a few dead goblins here and there—likely more spillover—but it was clear that the Scourge were specifically interested in attacking the Freelands and had not sent any significant force east towards Barbarosia.

  We marched through the unnamed valley and passed the Peace Temple with the towering orc and Barbaros statues. Memories of my time with the guild and time spent with Keysia flooded back to me, but it was hard to reminisce when I had a creature I didn’t fully trust or understand riding directly behind me.

  As Barbarosia grew nearer, the baby started wailing.

  The female orc made several guttural clicks and patted her finger on the baby to try to get it to stop, but the baby orc seemed to want something that the mother wasn’t able to fulfill. After a good 2-3 minutes of nonstop whining and crying, I was beginning to regret my choice of helping the orc.

  I don’t like that sound, Sora said in my thoughts, referring to the baby’s cries. My ears are sensitive, father.

  I’m not sure anyone likes it, I projected back.

  “Barbarosia!” Trynzen yelled over the baby’s cries when he caught sight of his hometown in the distance. He started jerking around on the horse and wiggling his body erratically. “Home Barbarosia, but not Trynzen home. Home Trynzen with friend. Barbarosia have brother Trynzen! Brother want hurt Trynzen! Steal!” Trynzen jumped up so that his feet were on the top of the horse and started biting his claws as he eyed the city in the distance. The horse veered a bit, confused at the sudden moments happening atop its rear.

  “Jenzyn is there, remember?” I spoke. “Relax Trynzen, we’re going to see Jenzyn.”

  Trynzen’s teeth chattered, but as I spoke his cousin’s name, he seemed to relax a little and adjusted himself so that he was back in a normal sitting position.

  “Jenzyn. Visit Jenzyn. Jenyzn help Trynzen feel better!” Trynzen breathed heavily as his eyes stared widely into the distance. “Trynzen can do. Can do, yes. Not hurt. Just a little. Trynzen strong.”

  I looked over to Sung who was throwing me the same confused looks that I was giving him. Trynzen seemed to be panicking in a way we hadn’t seen before, so I wasn’t sure if I should be more concerned about him or the orc sitting behind me.

  “What are you talking about Trynzen?” I asked.

  Trynzen shook his head and hunched over even more than normal. “Cannot tell. Jenzyn say not say. Long ago, but Trynzen still remember. Trynzen smart. Trynzen not forget.”

  I sighed and turned my focus away from him. “Okay, well, just stay calm.”

  Whatever it was that he was freaking out about didn’t matter, so long as I could drop off the orc, get him into Jenzyn’s hands, and collect my reward.

  Trynzen’s body was trembling as we approached the gate of Barbarosia, and when we were about to pass into the city, one of the two Barbarosian guards held up his paw, ordering us to stop.

  “What’s this?” the Barbaros asked, looking back and forth between both our mounts. He pointed a claw towards the covered figure behind me. “You, remove your hood.”

  The orc pulled back her hood, revealing her smooth green skin, and the Barbaros’ eyes widened. He inhaled deeply and puffed out his chest. “An orc rides with two humans?” His eyes lowered and he snarled at Sung and me. “Let me guess, a sex slave? We won’t allow such trade inside our gates.”

  “I’m here by my own will,” the orc grunted.

  The Barbaros let out a low growl as if he didn’t fully believe her.

  “Well, would you look at this… I can’t believe it!” the other Barbaros guard said loudly. “It’s the leper that went missing years ago!”

  The growling Barbaros turned his attention to his friend and started moving to join him near Trynzen. “That can’t be,” he said as he approached.

  Trynzen looked at the two Barbaros with worried eyes.

  “Are you Barbarosian?” the doubtful guard asked as he stepped closer. “Are you that leper Barbaros who disappeared?”

  “He damn well is!” the other guard hollered. “He’s older and ever skinnier than I remember, but it’s certainly him.”

  “What’s your name?” the other guard asked sternly.

  “T-t-t… Trynzen,” Trynzen stuttered.

  The guard snapped his claws together. “That’s his name! I remember it now… I told you it was him!”

  The other guard scanned over our group and turned back to him. “Why are you traveling with these humans? Are you with them freely?”

  “Friend,” Trynzen said anxiously. “Trynzen come Barbarosia with friend! Friend good!”

  The guard crossed his arms and stared at us for a moment before stepping aside and turning towards his companion. “Let’s let ‘em through. It’s a suspicious group, but there’s nothing we can act upon.”

  The other guard smiled and still seemed caught up in his surprise of seeing Trynzen. He turned to his friend and started gossiping furiously as we passed by. “Didn’t the leper have relatives? I can’t recall their names. Zen or something, right?”

  “Who cares!?” his partner barked. “No one cares about a creature like that. Did you get a look at him? He’s hardly a Barbaros. And you on the panther!” he yelled towards me. “Put some clothes on!”

  I glanced behind me with a smile. “Yes sir! I will!”

  Eyes turned to us as we rode into the city on our mounts, but we didn’t attract the kind of attention that we might have in other places. From what I had learned on my previous visit, Barbarosians rode Great Beasts as a preference, and there seemed to be no issues with having them inside the city.

  Besides, I wouldn’t want to leave Sora and another horse outside alone for fear that they’d be captured or worse, eaten, like last time.

  We hopped off our mounts, and Sora walked beside us while Sung pulled the horse along by its reigns. The orc returned my robe to me, revealing her tall frame and full orc attire, finally allowing me to cover up.

  More stares were thrown our way, but the lion-like humanoids seemed to direct almost all their attention towards Trynzen. Trynzen continued trembling and stooped over more than normal while alternating between hiding behind Sora and the horse.

  Barbarosia looked exactly how I remembered, with Barbarosians maintaining their daily routines, walking about, ta
lking, and trading peacefully. There was no panic, fear, or signs of any trouble. Like Mist Vale, it was almost as if they were all oblivious of the Scourge attacks taking place in the Freelands just to the west of them.

  The peaceful setting and the fact that the Barbarosians paid no attention to the orc we were traveling with made me again question the Scourge’s motives. The orcs clearly weren’t just simple monsters attacking the Freelands mindlessly, but the reason for the attack was still unknown. If it were a political move like Darion suggested, there had to be a reason for it to be happening at that time. War moves involved preparation, planning, and target selection. The fact that we had an orc with us who was communicating rather than swinging axes made me wonder if I might be able to extract some answers.

  “So, where’s that Jenzyn girl?” Sung asked.

  “She said she rarely strays from around here unless she’s on a hunt with her boss, Mylynzen,” I said. “Keep an eye out for either of them or any of the Barbaros we saw with them last time.”

  “Mylynzen is the tamer, right?” Sung asked. “The one with the eye patch?”

  “Yeah,” I affirmed with a nod.

  The orc child cried again, and the female made a few guttural clicks towards it before looking up to us. “I should go on my way now, humans.” She turned to me. “I can only repay you with my gratitude. Thank you for sparing my life.”

  “Wait,” I said. “Stay a bit. I’d like to ask you some things.”

  The baby cried out again.

  The brow of the orc creased as she eyed me. “Ask me what? I must find food for my child.”

  “Do you have gold?” I asked.

  The orc snarled, as if she didn’t like to be questioned, showing more of the typical temperament I’d expect from orcs. She turned to her side, dismissing the enquiry.

  “I’m guessing you don’t,” I said. “Stick with us until we find Jenzyn, and we’ll help you find food. You’ve never been here before, right?”

  The orc snarled again, but then her face softened when she looked down at her baby. She swallowed and somberly said, “Fine… Help me with food and I’ll answer your questions.”