"Well fucking now what?" Calvin asked. He stood amongst a throng in the middle of the wagons, club at his feet as he looked around.
"Is it safe to come out?" A male voice from inside one of the wagons said.
"Yes, it's safe," Klyppik called back. At his behest, the wagon masters emerged from hiding, all of them looking shaken and confused. More than one inspected their vehicles for damage before looking vainly around for where the horses could have went.
Brian would have joined them, if not for the futility of it all. He realized his weapons were still out and quickly stowed them away, hammer on his belt and shield at his back. Though he disagreed with Calvin's coping method, he couldn't fault the big man's point of view. What were they supposed to do now, with no horses and a bunch of cargo to transport? He would have rather the valuables been stolen, because at least then they wouldn't have to be dealt with. Now, they were the root of the problem.
"How did this even happen?" Calvin continued to ask loud questions of no one.
"They overwhelmed us, plain and simple," Hector said.
"They overwhelmed you maybe. I killed a bear!" Calvin pointed to the corpse for emphasis. "Did anyone else kill a bear? No? I did pretty good, then."
"I think that was the point, Cal," Ylva said. "The bear was supposed to hold you, the biggest person, in place while the rest of them went after the horses. They did something similar to me." The shieldmaiden stretched, likely a side effect of the waning Hold Person spell.
"Oh, well that's just fucking great. Take my victory away from me, why don't ya?" Calvin threw up his hands and turned away from her.
"No one's taking anything away from you," Klyppik said. "We all did the best we could. That's something to be proud of."
"We?" Calvin rounded on the much smaller man. "We? No, my people did the best we could. You all just sat around hiding. You didn't even try to help!"
"What do you want us to do?" A half-elven man said from his wagon. "We're merchants, not soldiers. That's what we hired you for."
"Yeah? Well, I hope you got your money's worth," Calvin fired back.
"Calvin, please, arguing won't get us anywhere. We need solutions, not more fighting," Hector said.
"Solutions, great. Leave it to the wizard to make the plan," complained Calvin.
"I like the way you think," Klyppik ignored him. "The sooner we get on the move, the better. So, what's the major problem?"
"The horses are gone," said the female yellow Dragonborn as she joined them.
"Exactly," agreed the gnome. "So, we need someone to go back to Alfield and get more horses."
"Cool, and how are we gonna pay for these horses," Calvin said. "I'm not about to spend more money that I would've made on this bullshit."
"I can buy them, that's not a big deal. It's just a matter of getting them," Klyppik said.
"Let's not get hasty, now," Hector said with a placating hand up. "The horses can't have gotten far. We should try to look for them, first. I can use my bat to help find them." He snapped his fingers, and Noche appeared on his left shoulder in a puff of purple smoke.
"I can help, too," Tiffany stepped forward. "My dad hasn't taken me hunting for a long time, but I remember how to track an animal."
"I'll join you," offered the Dragonborn. "Two sets of eyes are better than one, and mine are better than most."
Tiffany did not offer any sort of response to this positive or negative, but the way she reluctantly met the eyes of the Dragonborn indicated her discomfort with the idea. Still, the latter seemed mostly satisfied with the arrangement, and Brian thought even Tiffany realized it was a good idea.
"Alright, so let's do that for a day, and then send some of us to buy whatever horses we need tomorrow," suggested Klyppik.
"Sounds good to me," said Ylva.
There came no argument, and so everyone set about putting their plan into action. Hector immediately found a spot inside one of the wagons to meld his consciousness with Noche, who flew off in a seemingly random direction. After a brief discussion, Tiffany and the Dragonborn went in the opposite one. The rest of the caravan members began to either inspect their wares, or wait until a horse was found.
In watching all of this unfold around him, Brian realized he'd left himself with absolutely nothing to do. He had no property to worry about, zero experience tracking hooved animals, and even if he found one would have no idea what to do with it. Indeed, for the first time in his questing career, Brian was utterly useless. He had no skills applicable to the current needs. The only thing he could do with relative efficacy was take watch. So, that's what he did. The cleric began walking slow circles around the caravan, waiting to see if any more of the cultists showed up.
It was both striking and disturbing just how droll this period after action had become. There had been so much fighting, so much excitement out of nowhere, and now there was nothing at all. He definitely hated the implications of that. Was this what his life had become? Had he lost all sense of what to do with himself when outside of combat? Or, was this all just the adrenaline talking? He didn't know the answer, which made matters even worse.
The day progressed very much like this, with Brian patrolling the caravan while overthinking the majority of notions that came to his mind. He really was his own nemesis. The worst thing he could do for himself was to be locked away in his own thoughts. Yet, he did nothing to stop it, either. His brain was a familiar place, his thoughts a sanctuary from the badness outside. At least inside his mind he had some control over what happened. The world, not so much.
Sure, he could probably find Ylva and have a nice distracting conversation with her, but that presented the possibility of extraneous factors removed from his control. With everything that had happened in just the past couple days, Brian found these factors untenable. He much preferred to stay within himself, where nothing could hurt, or ambush, or insult him. His head was a safe space. Exandria was not.
Tiffany, Noche, and the female Dragonborn searched through the night, a nonissue for the latter, though Brian imagined Tiffany did just fine as well. Occasionally, the master of the wagon Hector had taken shelter in would shout directions and one or two members of the caravan would run off to find whatever had been revealed to them. This always resulted in the return of a horse.
As dawn broke the next day, Tiffany and the Dragonborn returned leading an entourage of horses, four to be exact. With the three Noche managed to locate, this made for a half the herd. There was some discussion about whether they should do this again for one more day but Klyppik, understandably concerned, shot the idea down. Instead, they eventually agreed to go with the original plan.
Assignments were given out, and some of the merchants went back on their way to Alfield. Ylva and Hector decided to accompany them for security. In this travel, the horses came in handy. As they had seven mounts, seven folks including the two Guild members were chosen to mount up and make their way. This would undoubtedly speed them up.
Brian was surprised to see that both Ylva and Hector knew how to ride horses. Ylva seemed to be a bit of renaissance woman, so that she could at least made sense. Hector, however, gave off much gentler vibes. Yet, he climbed into the saddle and trotted away as if it were natural. Was this the Gift of Knowledge at work? It had given them most of the applicable skills necessary for adventuring. The ability to ride a horse seemed necessary, at least to him. He'd have to try it, if he ever had the guts. Being so close to the horses had shown him just how big, powerful, fast, and dumb they were. That looked to him like a bad combination of traits. He'd never had a reason to think about it before, but Brian didn't think he liked horses.
Another day passed almost exactly the same as the first, except this time Brian had even fewer friends to talk to. The wagon masters weren't bad people, of that he was positive, but they weren't exactly acquaintances, either. Even Klyppik, who might have been one of the most amicable people the cleric had ever met, was a no go.
At the same time, Brian didn't want to cling to his party members. They probably had their own agendas to worry about. Calvin, anyway, seemed content to make long patrols of the caravan. Tiffany was nowhere to be found, which just meant she didn't want to be bothered in her solitude. Brian was surrounded by people, yet he felt utterly alone. Eventually, he settled on going to sit down at the head of the wagon train and wait, head turning this way and that for threats. None came, of course, which heightened his self isolation.
Night fell, which came as a surprise to him. He'd hopelessly lost track of time. Eyes dull on the horizon failed to even notice the sun go down. The only reason Brian noticed was the lack of clear vision. Were he a race capable of seeing in the dark, he might not have noticed at all. As it stood, nighttime enveloped him, a sensation he oddly welcomed. When he couldn't see the world around him, it felt much less claustrophobic. He took a deep breath, held it for a moment, and then let it out slowly.
"This is all kinds of fucked up, ain't it?" Said the voice of Calvin from behind him. Brian turned in time to see the big walked up.
"You mean just now, or in general," Brian joked.
"Just now," shrugged Calvin. He took a seat to the cleric's right.
Brian looked forward. "It definitely didn't go as planned."
"Man, nothing went as planned," Calvin said. "First, that cult guy didn't tell us anything, and then this happened. And we were on a roll, too."
"Every party loses, sometimes. I know mine have plenty of times." Brian did his best to offer condolences, though the attempt was pretty weak.
"But those were never real. If some shit went down at the table, we could all just suck it up and go on with our night, but we can't do that, here. We're in it, now, and that's all there is to it."
"Yeah." Brian paused. "This certainly isn't how I ever imagined living in a fantasy world would be."
"I know!" Calvin agreed immediately. "I always thought I'd be the big hero, charging into battle and killing a thousand dudes. Instead, I'm stuck on the side of the road." Calvin threw a rock Brian hadn't seen him pick up.
"What world did you want to live in?" Brian felt he might be pushing his boundaries with that question, but this was his first ever real conversation with just Calvin. He wanted to get to know the barbarian a little better.
"I wanted to go to the Warhammer World," Calvin answered. "I imagined I'd be a Dawi, taking the fight to the greenskins, kicking them out of the mountains, real hardcore shit. You?"
Brian hesitated. "I don't know... Does Star Wars count? I always wanted to be a Jedi."
"Hell yeah Star Wars counts. Quick, favorite Jedi?"
"Ahsoka Tano," Brian said without missing a beat.
"Kit Fisto," Calvin followed. "I didn't like Ahsoka, at first, but she grew on me."
"I think that's how most people felt. I always liked her, even back during the movie."
"I can respect that."
"You guys shouldn't be sitting out here in the dark." Both men turned at the same time at the sound of Tiffany's voice. She sat with her legs straight on Brian's other side.
"It's nighttime. Everywhere's dark," Calvin argued.
"You know what I mean," she insisted.
"Yeah, but now you're out here in the dark, so you're no better than us," continued Calvin.
"I guess," she said. The ghost of a smirk played across her face, just visible in the low light. She paused. "You think they're okay?"
"Hector and Ylva?" Calvin asked. Tiffany nodded. "Please, they're fine. If anyone can handle buying a few horses, it's them."
"They do seem pretty well adjusted. Better than any of us, anyway," Brian added.
"I'm not so sure about that," Tiffany said. "I think, at this point, we're all adjusted."
"Really?" Calvin raised an eyebrow. "Even you?"
"Yeah, even me. I got to a point where I had to accept what was happening, because this place is so dangerous that if I didn't it would kill me. I don't like it here. I hate it. But I won't let it get me."
"That's a good way of looking at it," Brian agreed.
"This place ain't so bad," Calvin said. "It's nice to look at, most of the people seem okay, and we have steady work."
"Yeah, except that out work involves killing people." Tiffany tucked her knees up to her chest. "I still don't think I'm used to that one."
"I try not to think about it. Easier that way," Brian agreed.
"I don't think we should get used to it. I mean, wouldn't that make us psychopaths or something?" Calvin said.
"Sociopaths, but you're right," Brian corrected, but then acquiesced.
"We're probably headed there." Tiffany leaned back, supporting herself on her palms. "I'll be amazed if we all get out of this with our sanity intact."
"Oh, trust me, I went crazy long before coming here," Calvin said. It wasn't a particularly funny joke, but they shared a laugh all the same.
Brian wasn't sure exactly how long the three of them stayed up talking like that, but he knew it was far too late. They probably should've gone to bed well before they did, but Brian didn't care. He kept feeding into the conversation so it would continue longer and longer. It was far and away the lengthiest talk he'd ever had with Calvin, and the most casual he'd ever been with Tiffany. Even their study sessions were more business than anything else. For them both to let their guard down around him was an indescribable sensation. It almost felt like they were finally more than just teammates, maybe even real friends.
Before dawn the next day came a great clattering of hooves and shouting of men. Brian awoke from the random spot he'd chosen to fall asleep to see that Hector and Ylva had arrived, along with the rest of the merchants and a cadre of horses. They were greeted by praise, laughter, and even a few cheers. A thread of relief ran through the happiness. The celebration was for the chance to finally go home, not because of who had given them that opportunity, and it showed in the energy of those who took part.
The members of the caravan wasted zero time getting the new horses hitched up. Brian stayed out of the way. While it was hard to know what he knew, something told him he couldn't be much help with attaching horses to carts. A cursory glance revealed his companions had similar ideas, but so they could keep watch. He decided that as probably a good idea. Once the task completed, they were off.
And like that, three days passed. The entire first, a palpable edge permeated the atmosphere. Now that the company was moving, instead of relaxed, everyone had their guard up. Brian expected another attack to come any minute, to become stranded again and this time even further from a replenishment of their herd. If he read the situation correctly, the others agreed with him. He kept his eyes on the sides of the road in search of anything out of the ordinary, or fogs that shouldn't have been there. Everyone else did the same.
By the time day two rolled around and nothing bad happened, the caravan relaxed considerably. The idle chatter between the merchants returned, though at a lower volume. Ylva even joined in with them, which annoyed Brian for some reason. One day alone with them, and all of a sudden they're all best friends? Why did he never have such an easy time making people like him? Of course, as these thoughts assaulted his mind, he knew how stupid they were. He did his best to eject them, and actually managed a pretty good job of it.
Brian was shocked when, a little after noon on the third day, the town of Trostenwald came into view. Then, he remembered they'd already traveled one whole day when the cultists attacked, which meant they had only three total days left when the caravan got back underway. This all worked for him. The sooner they got back home, the better.
After they reached a certain point in town, likely far enough in that everyone felt mostly safe, Klyppik handed out payment for the job. Each member received a hundred gold, which the gnome admitted must've been a pittance compared to what they normally made. He thanked them for everything that happened, apologized for how badly it went, and parted ways.
Brian pocketed the money without counting it, nor did he bother to put it in his coin purse. The frustration of the job hadn't really hit him until they reached town. When he didn't have to be frustrated by it anymore was when he realized how awful it had been. The sooner he washed his hands of it, the better. Whether his teammates agreed or not he refrained from asking, but they went right away back to the Adventurer's Guild all the same.
The journey through the halls took them along the same path as always. They didn't encounter Therdin along the way, and for that Brian was grateful. Much as he liked the kind elf, the last thing he wanted to do was get stuck in a conversation. Now that he was finally home, within spitting distance of a warm bed, his one desire was to report back to Edgar and go to sleep.
When no one stopped them on their way to the old wizard's door, Brian actually breathed a sigh of relief. Hector reached out to knock three times.
"Enter," came the immediate response.
Upon opening of the door, Brian wondered if Edgar ever moved. There he sat, at the same writing desk in the same corner next to the entrance, writing in what looked like the same book. While administering to a whole Guild certainly involved a fair bit of clerical work, it seemed the only thing Edgar ever did. What kind of boring life did the man lead?
"Ah, you've returned." Edgar closed his book and turned to them. "Later than expected, but that's neither here nor there."
"Yes, things... didn't go as planned," Ylva said.
"Tell me," Edgar said, more an order than a friendly request.
"Well, we might have broken a rule," Ylva said slowly. "The prisoner was a dead end. He didn't tell us anything we hadn't already guessed at. While we were recovering in a tavern, a gnome approached us. He wanted to hire us to help guard his merchant caravan, and we agreed."
"Is that what you mean?" Edgar asked. Ylva nodded. "There's nothing wrong with that. Your contract is with the Guild, yes, but it doesn't say you only ever have to work for us. As long as whatever you do doesn't interfere with Guild work or violate our core beliefs, then taking external jobs is perfectly fine."
At Edgar's explanation, a collective weight lifted off of everyone's shoulders. Brian certainly felt ten pounds lighter, and a mite less tired. He was sure all of them had been worried to death about what consequences may be waiting for them. That there were none was both the most unbelievable outcome, but also the most preferable. He almost couldn't believe it came true.
"It shouldn't take a caravan from Alfield this long to get here. What kept you?" Edgar brought them all back to reality.
"That's the 'not as planned' part," Hector began. "On the way, more of the cultists we told you about attacked us. They didn't take any of the goods, though. Instead, all they wanted was to free the horses. We weren't able to stop them, and all of our horses were cut loose. We needed some time to recover what horses we could, while some of us returned to Alfield to purchase replacements."
"Hmm..." Edgar thought for a moment. "You say they attacked you. It must have been an ambush, but the land from here to Alfield is mostly flat. How did they pull it off?"
"Fog," Calvin said. "They used some magic bullshit fog. We never saw them."
"Creating a fog that thick, and maintaining it in the middle of a fight, is no simple task. If what you say is true then it is... distressing. These vagabonds may be more dangerous than I previously thought."
"That's what I was afraid of, too," Hector nodded.
"Give me just a moment, please."
Edgar then did something Brian had never seen before. He flipped back through his book, skimming pages at an unnatural pace. There was no way he could possibly read any of the words on the pages he turned, yet Brian watched his eyes pour over the pages. Within seconds, though he'd been through half the book, he found what he looked for.
"Yes, here it is. There have been reports of several arsons near the town of Felderwin. Myself, and the contractors, assumed it was goblins, but now I'm not so sure. If we know this cult is operating around this area, then it's not beyond belief that they've spread that far east," Edgar said.
"You think the cult is behind them," Ylva asked.
"I don't know. I can't until it's investigated. I hate to send you out so soon, but I want you to take the job, see what you can find."
Brian's heart sank. Perhaps he wouldn't get that nap after all. A jolt ran through the rest of his teammates. They were all tired, Ylva and Hector most of all. None of them wanted to take another job immediately after finishing the botch job they just did.
"You sure you want us to do it?" Calvin did his best to get out of it, though it was a weak attempt.
"Well, you're not the most experienced, nor the most trusted, but you are the most qualified. Right now, you're the only Guild party that has dealt with these cultists, which makes you the best suited to tracking them down. I can give the job to someone else, of course, but I would like for you to do it."
Of course, Edgar's explanation made perfect sense. And, Brian would be lying if he said he harbored no ill will toward the cult. They had made life difficult for his friends a few times, now, and had put them in grave peril on each occasion. He almost died because of them. It was simply impossible to live through experiences like he had without a desire to see those responsible brought to heel. So, even though a quest was the absolute last thing he wanted, the answer to Edgar's call was an obvious one.
"We'll do it," Ylva said. She faced no words to the contrary.
"Good. Take the rest of today and tomorrow to rest, and then I want you on the road. Make note of everything, every detail, no matter how small, and report back to me." Edgar gave his orders.
"We will," Hector said.
"Then you are dismissed." As he always did, Edgar went right back to his book, a clear indication that it was time for them to be gone.
Brian followed his team out and back to the same rooms they'd been staying in since arriving at Trostenwald what seemed like forever ago. Words could not describe the bliss of finally removing his armor after spending such a long time in it. When he fell into bed, he barely had time to think about the new development before sleep took him. The rest that followed was a peaceful one designed by the melting away of immeasurable exhaustion. He dreamt of goblins, and fire, and men wearing stag heads, and hoped none of these vision were prophetic.
AUTHOR'S NOTES: Perception checks from Noche, and a survival check for Tiffany and the Dragonborn. I gave them both advantage since Noche has it on any check involving sound, which echolocation technically does, and Tiffany because she had help. With advantage, they both rolled 18, which meant they returned with half the herd. It would have required two natural 20's to find the entire thing.
I'm sorry updates have been so sparse. You'd think a global pandemic would give me more time to write, but the opposite is true. I'm working more than ever at my essential job, and that's giving me little time for anything. I can't promise when the next update will be out, especially since I still have my Star Wars fic to worry about, but I'm not abandoning this story.