by Jamey Sultan
“What do you think?” he asked, handing the flyer to Nidra. There was a map underneath that put Hess Farms directly between Cherryhall and Silencia. It would be the perfect quest to break up the journey. If they left that night, they’d be able to camp by the farm and go looking for the Spike Thrower in the morning. If everything went according to plan, they’d be able to make it to Silencia late the next day.
She read it over. “It looks good. Let’s go get Arik and head to the Broken Hammer before we leave for the farm.”
Chapter 38
They found Arik upstairs staring into the distance and clutching a flyer with white knuckles. Curious, James pried the pamphlet from his fingers and read it.
Adventurers Needed
I’m looking for a group of Adventurers to escort me through a level 75 dungeon in the Frostlands. I will be looking for a Crystal Lotus. Please speak to Sebi at the Broken Hammer for more information.
Reward: 100 Gold per adventurer, 1 Legendary Rank potion.
“Holy shit,” James said, handing the paper to Nidra. Arik still hadn’t moved, so James patted him on the back. “You okay?”
Arik nodded, wiping away a tear. “I’m good. It’s just nice to finally know where he was headed.”
“Hang on…” Nidra’s face was wrinkled in concentration as if she were trying to recall a long list. “Didn’t your dad say that Sebi took the palace gate out of the city?”
Arik nodded.
“Well, then how did he end up here?”
James suddenly realized what Nidra was implying. They’d thought the palace gate led straight to Silencia—but if that were true, then why would Sebi have come to Cherryhall looking for adventurers? It was looking like they’d been wrong to assume that the palace gate couldn’t lead to Cherryhall. With any luck, they’d be able to talk to someone who had seen which way Lucien was heading.
“We need to talk to the innkeeper at the Broken Hammer,” James said.
***
The Broken Hammer was near the smithy that Arik and Nidra had visited earlier in the day. The inn was the first stone building James had seen in Cherryhall. It was one of the larger buildings he’d seen in the town and the only building constructed from stone.
Like most Dwarven buildings, the Broken Hammer was constructed from red granite blocks cut from the Crimson Mountains. So, when they entered the inn, James wasn’t surprised to see a Dwarf behind the counter.
Name: Kairo Talle
Race: Dwarf
Level: 67
Class: Guardian
The innkeeper was one of the tallest Dwarves James had ever seen. He looked close to five-feet-tall and wore his hair in a topknot. Like most Dwarves, he sported a long, clean beard tied off with a series of golden rings at the end. His rings were accented with blue stones. He was clearly well-muscled, and although most of his skin was hidden under hide clothing, James could see a long scar running down his neck and under his shirt.
He was cleaning a glass and looked up when they entered. “Rooms are full,” he grunted.
“We’re not here for a room,” James said, approaching the counter.
“It’s a bit early for dinner,” he replied wearily.
“We were actually hoping you could help us out. Katie said there might be a Life Mage staying here?”
The Dwarf nodded. “A Life Mage was staying here. But she left a few days ago for Silencia.”
James groaned. Before he could ask about Lucien, Arik stepped forward and put the flyer down on the counter. “I’m looking for the Dwarf who wrote this.”
Kairo shrugged. “I get a lot of visitors. I don’t remember everybody who stops by my inn.” His tone was casual, but his body language was not. As soon as he saw the flyer, his body stiffened, and the corners of his mouth tightened.
James raised an eyebrow skeptically. “Sure, but I can’t imagine you get Dwarves that often,” he pointed out.
Arik frowned at the innkeeper. “I came a long way to find my dad. Please.” He slid a gold coin across the counter.
The innkeeper looked at the gold, then sighed and pushed it back toward Arik. “I’m sorry. I want to help you, but I can’t.”
“If this is about the tunnel, then we already know,” Nidra cut in, “so you might as well tell us.”
The innkeeper flinched and looked around, but no one was close enough to overhear. It was too late for lunch and too early for dinner, so most patrons were out and about. Anyone still at the inn was focused on their own business.
“Fine. Just be quiet.” He motioned for them to follow him around the counter.
The innkeeper led them to a small room behind the kitchen that was barely large enough for the four of them. “How do you know about the tunnel?” he hissed.
“I told you,” Arik said. “Sebi is my dad. He’s been missing for about five years. I know he took a tunnel from the palace here.”
“And we’re pretty sure someone else left the tunnel recently. A Human,” James added.
“I really can’t talk about it,” Kairo said. “In fact, I would like to ask you politely to leave. I would rather not draw attention to this establishment if I don’t have to, but if you refuse to leave, then I will have to force you out.”
Eyeing the lapis stones in the Dwarf’s beard, James decided to take a gamble. “How often do you get word from the Iron City?”
“James…” Nidra said warningly. “We’re already on thin ice.”
James ignored her and continued his train of thought. “I’m assuming you are part of House Fractus?”
Kairo’s eyes betrayed a hint of surprise as he replied. “Of course. I’m surprised you know about the Dwarven Houses. It’s not common knowledge out here.”
“We just came from the Iron City,” James said. “We took the tunnels out of the Old City.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Kairo said. “The city’s been closed to Humans for longer than I’ve been stationed here.”
“Well…”
James launched into the story of their journey. He started with the slavers and subsequent escape through the Abandoned Aqueduct. Then he went into how they’d been captured and thrown into the Coliseum, and then their eventual escape. Whenever James missed a detail, either Arik or Nidra would jump in to clarify.
Kairo listened to the entire story in wide-eyed surprise.
When James finished speaking, Kairo took a second to collect himself before replying. “That was… If that’s true…”
“Exactly. That’s why we’re trying to find Lucien. We need to stop him from doing whatever he’s planning.”
“I see…” Kairo replied. “If what you’re saying is true, well, a lot of things make sense. When a Human walked out of the tunnel, I was expecting someone to come and explain. But nobody came. If he collapsed the tunnel on the other side, that would explain why.”
“So, can you help us? Please.”
Kairo nodded. “My job is to guard this end of the tunnel. It seems that you aren’t trying to get into the tunnel. Even if your story isn’t true, you clearly know enough that I wouldn’t be revealing anything new to you by answering your questions. At the end of the day, my duty is to keep people away from the tunnel. If you promise to leave without causing a scene, I’ll answer your questions.”
“Thank you,” James replied. He was about to ask about Lucien, but Arik stopped him with a hand to the shoulder.
“Do you remember my dad?”
“Of course. Only three Dwarves have come through in the past five years. He stayed here for almost four months.”
“Four months? Why so long?” Nidra asked.
Kairo gestured at the flyer, still clutched tightly in Arik’s hands. “He was looking for a group of people to escort him into a level 75-plus dungeon. That’s not easy to find.”
“But we’ve seen tons of high-level adventurers lately,” James pointed out. “We saw a level 97 adventurer on the road yesterday.”
“That’s because of the Fishing Tourname
nt. Normally it’s a lot quieter around here. This valley is considered a level 1-50 zone. Most of the high-level adventurers only pass through here on their way from the Shivering Sands to visit Silencia or as a stop on their way up the Crimson Mountains.”
“What is the Fishing Tournament?” James asked. He had meant to ask someone, but it hadn’t come up yet. Based on the general gossip he’d overheard while walking through town, it was a big dungeon dive in the middle of Silencia, but that was all he knew.
“It’s a huge event that happens every ten years. The Storm Warden opens up the Temple of Lightning ruins for five days and allows adventurers to go hunting. The winner of each grouping gets a hefty sum of gold, and the grand prize is a Legendary item.”
James tried to keep his expression placid, but his mind was back at the Dungeon of the Lion-Ant, the first dungeon he’d ever completed. At the end of the dungeon, he’d found a note from someone called Darious, Keeper of the Cloud Temple. The note detailed his suspicions that Syreus, the god of storms, was dead.
The note had triggered a quest, Splintered Past I, but hadn’t given James much direction. Before he could really try to figure anything out, he’d been captured by the Orcish slavers. Then his life became a whirlwind of capture and escape, and he hadn’t had time to investigate more.
The Fishing Tournament could be a great opportunity to investigate Syreus’ disappearance because it was going to take place in the Temple of Lightning, the same place Darious had mentioned that he was going to visit in his letter, and the seat of Syreus’ power.
Not only that, but with Ozure’s revelation that Sytar was also dead, James had a strong suspicion that the two quests were connected.
Two dead gods couldn’t be a coincidence.
“Anyway,” Arik said, cutting James a sharp look. “Did my father happen to say where he was going?”
“It was somewhere in the Frostlands. I don’t remember exactly what the dungeon was called, but it definitely had maze in the name.” Kairo rubbed at his chin in thought. “Maybe the Ice Maze? No… That doesn’t sound right.” He shrugged. “It was definitely somewhere in the Frostlands with maze in the name.”
Arik took a deep breath. “Well… It’s more than I knew before. Thank you.” He reached out a hand and grabbed Kairo’s. “Thank you,” he repeated.
“Did Lucien say where he was headed?” James asked.
Kairo shook his head. “I tried to talk to him, but he just left. I thought about following him, but my duty is to protect the tunnel. I’m supposed to stop people going into the tunnel from this side, not people leaving from the Dwarven side.”
James swore under his breath. Just when he felt they were getting somewhere, it turned into nothing. “Did he do anything odd? Anything that might indicate where he was going?”
“Well… There was one thing,” Kairo said hesitantly. “But it wasn’t something he did. It was more what he didn’t do.”
“What you mean?” James asked.
“Well, when people come through the tunnel, they usually ask where they are and take a moment to get their bearings. With Lucien… Well, it was as if he had been here before. When he left the inn, he turned right and walked off without looking at a map or anything.”
To the right? James thought. That was the road toward Silencia. Not for the first time, he wondered what Lucien’s goal was. Whatever it was, they needed to get stronger if they wanted to stop him.
They spent a few more minutes talking to Kairo, but it was clear he’d told them all he knew. Once they’d finished questioning the Dwarf, they left as promised, without making trouble.
They found a quiet place off the side of the road to talk. James shared his realization about the Temple of Lightning and the possible connection between Sytar and Ozure. They were both interested and agreed he needed to sign up for the Fishing Tournament. Even if Silencia wasn’t Lucien’s final destination, hopefully, they’d be able to learn more while they were there.
***
They’d been talking to Kairo for longer than they’d realized, and when they finally left Cherryhall, it was already early evening. It was still light out, but since the road led straight to Silencia, most of the traffic had died down. Anyone who was heading to the city would have done so hours before. The journey to the city would take about a day and a half for adventurers around James’ level.
The first few miles of roadside directly outside of the city were cluttered with adventurers setting up camp, and the smell of sizzling meat suffused the air. James’ stomach growled, so he pulled a spiced Techi leg from his pouch.
They’d had more free time lately, and James had used it to read potion books and run a few experiments of his own. One of his experiments involved temperature maintenance. He’d wanted to see how his pouch handled hot and cold items.
Both Arik and Nidra told him that dimensional items generally didn’t retain an object’s temperature. Most bags just averaged out the temperature of whatever was inside of them. Because of this, some Herbalists and Alchemists carried around multiple dimensional items filled with either ice or hot coals so that they’d be able to store rare ingredients at any temperature.
James still wanted to test his theory, so he’d stored five coals in the pouch and removed one a day for the past two days. Neither of the two he’d stored seemed to have lost any heat, so James had started to store cooked meals in his pouch. They tasted better and restored more Essence.
He only had a few because he had no money. For the past few days, Arik and Nidra had been paying for his room and meals. He was planning on selling all of his spare equipment in Silencia, then hopefully, he’d have some money.
The road was paved with cobblestone. It ran on as far as James could see and stood out starkly against the valley’s grassy hills. The mountains loomed to his right; their harsh, craggy red faces cast long shadows over the valley as the evening sun slowly faded behind them.
About a mile and a half into their walk, James started to pick out a grinding noise and the sound of rushing water coming from up ahead. He tensed and looked around for the threat, but whatever was making the noise was on the other side of a hill. Still, James remained on high alert. He wasn’t going to be caught off guard again.
Chapter 39
A few short minutes later, they crested the hill.
James wasn’t sure what he’d been expecting. Based on his previous experiences, probably something awful. What he hadn’t expected was a completely run-of-the-mill… mill. He consulted a map of the valley, and sure enough, there was a small building marked on the map called Grinder’s Mill.
The mill was a three-story building next to a narrow section of the river with fast-running water. The rushing water rotated a massive wheel connected to the building by an iron rod thicker than James’ body.
Outside the mill was a neatly dressed Gnome in fur-lined leather with a pair of black gloves. He was panting and trying to drag a sack of flour about as big as he was up a staircase on the side of the building. His face was red and sweaty, and his breath came out in clouds of icy air.
“You okay there?”
The Gnome looked up at James’ words and waved. “I’ve got everything covered, thanks,” he said curtly, throwing himself at the sack of flour and barely shifting it.
James sighed and approached the Gnome. As he got closer, the Gnome’s status page appeared above his head.
Name: Yoav Crusher
Race: Gnome
Level: 17
Class: Engineer
James hauled the protesting Gnome’s flour onto his shoulder with almost no effort. “Where do you want it?” he asked.
Yoav opened his mouth with a stormy expression but then appeared to think better of it and, instead of yelling at James, pointed at the stairs. “Third floor, next to the others,” he replied shortly.
The stairs were awkwardly spaced for someone James’ size. They were too small to be comfortable ascending one at a time, but at the same time too big fo
r James to comfortably walk up two at a time.
Once he’d figured out the right pace, ascending the stairs was easy. When he arrived at the top, he dropped the bag on top of a pile of similar-looking bags. The grinding sound in the room was almost unbearable. James spotted the source immediately. A rotating circular stone with a hole in the center was set into the floor. Above it was another machine that dropped little red seeds into the hole in the stone.
“You like my machines?” Yoav yelled over the sound of stone striking stone.
“Yeah. What are they?” James shouted back.
The Gnome pointed to the larger machine, the one that took up most of the room. “This is my thresher.” He held up a long-stalked plant that James recognized.
Crimson Mountain Wheat:
Rank: Common
+ 5% to buffs imparted to the final product
Wheat grown at the foot of the Crimson Mountains.
The wheat was redder than James remembered it being back on Earth. It was more of an orange than a golden plant, but the shape of it was unmistakable.
“It does this.” The Gnome squeezed up the top of the stalk, and a few roundish seed-like objects popped into his hand.
Crimson Mountain Wheatberry:
Rank: Common
+ 5% to buffs imparted to final product
Wheatberry clumsily harvested from wheat grown at the foot of the Crimson Mountains. It has not been properly cleaned.
He pointed to the stone. “Then this grinds the wheatberries into that.” He pointed at one of the bags like the one James had just brought up. James examined a pile of pinkish dust that lay on the ground from a ripped bag.
Crimson Mountain Flour:
Rank: Common
+ 10% to buffs imparted to final product
Finely ground flour from wheat grown at the foot of the Crimson Mountains.
