SILVERYMOON
Chapter 20
Ghared was still just a little confused. "You two are Demons, and you're a Vampire, just not Demons and a Vampire from this Realm?"
Alexis tried to break it down for her again. "Yes and no. We're different, yet similar. Even in our Realm, we were called Demons and Vampire. It's just that they mean different things here. Until we came here we didn't even know what the Abyss was or what it meant. There were no Ghosts or Undead. Kate isn't an Undead, and while we call ourselves Demons, the truth is, we're not."
"Because you're from a different Realm?" Ghared was trying her best to catch up. But she was having the same problem Corimin had had when he found out.
"New York City, to be precise. The United States of America," Rick told her proudly. "Not Russia or England or Brazil or any other place. Try not to confuse them all."
"Confused." Yes, that was her, all right.
"I had the same problem when I found out, but they are different. Kate has a heartbeat, and she hasn't bitten anyone. They fight Evil. Annus Hag, Green Dragon, something called a Goliath, if I remember correctly. And if they're right, the Lady and her court know about them.
"I admit that I always wondered how they got to see the Lady so many times. No one just gets to see High Lady Alustriel Silverhand. Not like these three do. Plus, they share all the gold they gain. They sold all that metal to her instead of someone else.
"I believe them," Corimin said as he defended them staunchly.
"We did agree to do this. Because they asked." Kate looked at Rick. "Have we gotten this easy to manipulate?" Kate didn't like that at all.
"Now you know how I feel," Rick replied.
"Oh, do be quiet, babe." Kate looked at Ghared again. "Now you know. So who else knows? How many people have they told about us?"
"Apparently, not our Masters, or they would have thrown us out of school. Or does the Lady have that much authority?" Alexis was taken somewhat aback at the idea. Then she saw the look of not understanding on Ghared's face. "We're all in school, even Corimin. We're training to be Sorceress, Sorcerer, Warlock, and Slayer of Damiel. Well, Rogue first, but Slayer comes next."
"Lawful Good." Ghared knew what a Slayer was. She had never met one, but she knew of them. "Interesting."
Kate straightened her shoulders and faced Ghared. "What's it going to be?" she asked. "We can't get in without you. We don't even know what he looks like or where to find him. We agreed to do this, so are you going to help us? Or do you want to go home and not finish what you started?"
Ghared knew she couldn't go back a failure. They would throw her out of Mithral Hall. Her Master, after she found him, would be very cross with her, to say the least. She would be alone in this world. She didn't have a choice.
"We go down this side of that small forest and the very end of Nether Mountains, and then out into the desert. So long as we stay northeast, we will reach this edge of the desert. And it's where we will go east to this mountain range. Cross a small portion of the ice into this mountain range and stay in it to stay off the ice. I know an entrance we can use," Ghared told them instead of anything else.
Hearing what she said, Kate smiled. "It might be best if you stayed in our tent from now on," Kate suggested. "Unless you can put out that mini fire of yours. We can cook when we want to."
Ghared knew it was best, that the Vampire was right. "It's magical, and the fire never goes out. It looks like I'll stay with you. Eight cots, five people. I suppose you don't eat or drink?"
"No, I only drink blood. Your idea of a Vampire got that right. But I can survive direct sunlight. You've seen me outside in the sun. I don't care about Garlic or any other things you might be thinking about. I call myself a Vampire, but I'm not your Vampire. Don't worry about me, I'll be fine." Kate would bite Castle to get her blood. They just needed to find a way to make love so she could give him the Cum he needed to live. And the same for Alexis.
"We're even getting married. My engagement ring." Kate held up her ring with pride. She couldn't wait to be married to Castle, to be Mrs. Castle. If only her dad could be here to see her get married. However, now she had questions for High Lady Alustriel Silverhand.
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Rick questioned Ghared about her wanting to camp just inside the small forest area. "We're camping in the forest? I thought Dwarves liked mountains."
"We do. But the Nether Mountains house two large groups of Orcs. Thousand Fists claim the southern end, while The Ripped Gut lay claim to the northern end. The only good thing about this is that the two groups compete and usually only fight each other. And while I don't like being in this forest, I would prefer not to be caught between those two in a fight. There could be hundreds if not thousands in a major battle. Though more likely a scout will be encountered." Ghared was doing this because she had learned that these four were still in the learning phase.
She called her 7th class but to hear these four, they weren't even 1st class yet. She shook her head. They might not even be able to cast a single spell of use yet.
"That would be bad." Rick could see her reasoning. However, she was willing to share her little fire so they could cook dinner. Once that was done, she turned her tent back into a cloak and put it in the tent, along with most of her supplies.
"So, talk to us about Battlesmith, please?" Alexis loved learning new things, and this was definitely new.
Ghared attempted to explain. "The Battlesmith is a blacksmith who does not toil solely in a forge but instead goes out and turns wherever he stands into a workplace. Rather than wait for materials to show in the market and have others test to see the quality of his wares, the Battlesmith is a warrior who makes his own gear, improves upon it, and masters the art of using equipment in the most optimum way possible."
"And you make your forge when you travel?" Alexis queried.
"You can, but I have a portable one," Ghared confirmed. "It's small, but it works for me so long as I don't have to make anything large with it."
"Interesting. Then being in this forest isn't for you. You would rather be in that mountain looking for metals you can use," Alexis realized.
"I would, but I'm also on a mission. If my Master needs help, then I intend to give it to him. I can't risk being caught in a battle with an Orc army or end up injured or killed. Orcs don't take Dwarf prisoners. You two, because you are human females, they might try to capture you. Use you as…" Ghared trailed off since she couldn't think how to say it nicely.
"Comfort women," Alexis said.
"If I understand that term correctly, yes. Half-Orcs are considered worse than a human. Not true Orcs and have tainted their bloodline. So any child you produced while captured and used would be killed instantly." Ghared removed any doubt she might have.
"However, in your case, I don't know. The joining of a human and a Demon would produce a Tiefling. Part human and part Demon. And what they would think of a half Orc and half Demon, I have no idea. An Orc Shaman might actually like the idea. The Orc Leader probably not so much." Ghared really couldn't say.
"I vote I not become a Slut or a Whore to a tribe of Orcs." Alexis might kill herself to prevent that.
"Over my dead body!" Corimin exclaimed, and that earned him a quick kiss on his cheek.
"MEOW!" Patches got up and walked toward the edge of that forest. They weren't all that deep inside it, just a couple of trees.
Alexis got up to join him. "Patches says he hears something. I've learned that his vision and hearing are better than ours, and he's never wrong."
"Let's find out." Kate got up, shifted into a swarm of bats, and took off. Kate thought a swarm of bats wouldn't attract that much attention.
Ghared's eyes were open wide in surprise. "Interesting." She didn't know any Vampire who could do that. Turn herself into a single bat or perhaps a wolf, yes, but a swarm of bats? No.
They were all waiting for Kate to come back when they spotted a swarm of bats come in and land and turn back into Kate. "There are eight of them. They're walking on the very edge of the mountain. Weaving in and out of the hills and boulders."
"They're scouts looking for a camping caravan with fires, perhaps. Or they're looking for the other tribe of Orcs. They will be weak; we could kill them with ease," Ghared suggested.
"We're not killers. If they don't come this way, I don't see the need." Kate didn't want to become a killer. Defend herself or save another person, she could understand.
"If the Stronghold has been attacked and conquered, it's likely Orcs. Attacking these Orcs will give you an idea of their capabilities and how to counter them," Ghared contended. It would also show her what these four were capable of doing.
Kate, though, wasn't convinced. "Not unless they come this way. They don't know we're here, and I would like to keep it that way. What if this group doesn't come back? They'll send out another group, only bigger this time." Kate shook her head.
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Ghared was in their tent to hide her fire, even so, she wasn't asleep. They assured her that Patches would wake them if someone or something came this way. She might believe them, but that wasn't the only reason.
She was thinking and was almost sure that an Evil Demon wouldn't have hesitated to kill eight Orcs, steal what little they had, and capture one, forcing him to talk. There was indeed something different about these humans. Before going to bed, the female Demon got a kiss, as did the Vampire.
Still, they had to cross the desert first, then head into the mountains. The desert and the mountains, in Ghared's mind, were going to be dangerous places.
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They had gone around the forest while never really leaving it all that much. The small group camped just inside the woods yet again. Tomorrow would be all desert for the next few days. It was roughly a week in the desert to reach the first mountain range and then a short trip across the ice to get to the upcoming mountain range. It was also the last chance for the horses and her Battle Ram to eat grass before there was nothing to eat...at all.
Chalk was making quick work of a sapling while finding anything he could. He didn't know about the desert, but he wasn't concerned. He knew his owner would take care of him.
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Alexis stopped at the edge. "WOW!" One second there were grasses, and next, it was all sand. "Let me guess, out there somewhere is quicksand."
"Definitely," Ghared confirmed. "I will lead," she said and looked at Kate," you just watch our backs."
"I always do." Kate knew she was going to be last and watching their backs.
It was still early in the day, so it wasn't all that hot. If anything, it was still somewhat chilly but not freezing cold, as this trip had been mostly. Three hours later, however, everyone had stopped to take off their winter clothing, and they took this moment to give the horses and the goat some water while they drank just a little themselves.
Lunch was cold, and they walked their horses and goat while eating it. It wasn't long after lunch when they finally began to feel the heat of the day. It seemed to bounce off of the sand.
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Suddenly Ghared urged her goat into a gallop and went forward. Alexis and Corimin instantly followed and saw what she had spotted.
Kate, who was dead last, joined them. "Camels, and they look loaded."
"They are. Help me search what they're carrying," Ghared asked them. "It might tell us who they belong to."
Corimin had noticed blood on his. "This one's injured."
"Mine is, too," Alexis said. Almost any animal hurt made her angry.
"Same here," Rick added.
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They had a lot of waterskins, rations, blankets, tents, fairly common weapons, and odds and ends. "Any idea?" Kate queried since this was Ghared's domain.
"Bandits, but they encountered someone worse and lost. And they lost control of the camels. It's just that the caravan trail is far south of here." Ghared didn't understand why they would be this far north.
"Your Dwarven Stronghold, maybe?" Alexis suggested. "The word is out that it has been conquered."
"Sadly, you may be right." If she was, it meant bad news. "Help me link up all these camels into a line. From now on, we drink the water and use the wood the camels carry for fires. We'll save what we're carrying for later. We still have to come back this way, eventually."
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Ghared was back out front with Alexis and Corimin not far behind her. Rick and Kate were both trailing four camels behind them.
"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT!?" Corimin had spotted it on his side and it was headed their way. He knew what it was, but it wasn't supposed to be nearly that big. It was bigger than any of them, including the horses they were on.
"SCORPION!" Ghared confirmed. She had her hammer out and was all set to throw it at it when suddenly three Lightning Bolts struck it one after the other, and just like that, it was dead.
That had Ghared looking and saw that two of them had wands out, and Corimin was still pointing his Staff at it. If she had been worried about them, she was less worried now. They had magic, and that was always a good thing.
Camping that night was their first cold night. And Ghared had questions. "Wands?"
"I have a few of them while everyone else has just one, though Corimin has his Staff. Kate was hesitant about spending the money – sorry, gold – but so far, it has proven to be a good purchase. Killed that Young Green Dragon before he breathed on us," Alexis told her.
"I only want what we spend gold on to be worthwhile. Our business isn't making that much money yet. What we're doing now isn't going to increase our supply of gold, either." They were doing this for two weapons, and that was it.
"If my Master is still alive and we rescue him, he may offer you something for saving his life." Ghared was pretty sure of that. Just what that would be, she had no idea.
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They set up camp that night. Two of the horses got a feed bag while the other two got fed hay they were carrying on their backs. It was another cold campsite for them. They learned that Ghared had her own feed bag for her Battle Ram, Chalk. Before going to bed, they gave all of the animals some water that was on the camels.
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"MEOW!" Hearing that, Alexis's eyes snapped open. "Patches?" She had heard him but didn't understand him this time which was very odd.
"MEOW!"
That had Alexis scrambling out of her sleeping bag and grabbing her Wand of Lightning Bolts. She kicked Corimin to wake him up and headed for the tent flap to see what had Patches all worked up over.
"HOLY SHIT!" Alexis was just in time to hear the horses in distress and watch something a little big lift a camel high up into the air, working on chomping on it and swallowing all of it. "HEY!" That was their camel!
Saying anything wasn't a good idea, but now, it was too late.
Corimin was next to her now. "THAT'S A DRAGON!" It was still dark outside, so figuring out what color it was wouldn't be easy.
"Dragon!?" Ghared was now awake, and while not dressed in her armor, naturally, that didn't stop her from retrieving her hammer and going outside.
"A WHAT!?" Kate was now awake. She found her wand to go outside and kicked Rick to get him up.
Kate was just in time to see Ghared throw her hammer, watch it hit the Dragon, come flying back to her, and end up in her hand again.
That had the Dragon jumping up and landing only a few feet away. Now the horses were frightened and tried desperately to break their leads so they could run away.
"A Dwarf with Humans," the Dragon said and decided not to attack.
Ghared recognized the color now that it was close enough. "Brass, you're a Brass Dragon! A Chaotic Good Dragon."
"It ate our camel." Alexis was still pointing her wand at it. However, the word Good kept her from using it.
"My apologies, I was hungry. What can I offer in return for eating your camel?" the Dragon inquired. He knew this was a simple Shield Dwarf, so not normally Evil.
"The Dwarven Stronghold, what do you know of it?" Ghared questioned him.
"The one on the Ice? It was conquered by Orcs weeks ago," he responded. "I believe they dug their own tunnel and bypassed their defenses. Now, only one more question." After that, he would depart. He only really needed the one camel.
Alexis asked a question. "What other Dragons are in this area?"
"Just one I know of, and he is a Young Blue Dragon, much like myself. We avoid each other. Thank you for the camel." He turned away and started running till he was airborne and flapping his wings to gain some altitude, and was gone.
"Why do we attract Dragons?" Alexis queried. "Green, Red, Brass, and now Blue." Alexis looked at Ghared. "You said Good Dragon?"
"Brass is Chaotic Good. They breathe a Gas that I know of, but I'm not sure what it does." Ghared didn't know everything about Dragons.
Then all of a sudden, the Brass Dragon was back. It landed far off this time and walked in. "Why do you want the Dwarven Stronghold? An Orc army captured it weeks ago."
"My Master is located there. If he is alive still, I will find him. If not, I will avenge him," Ghared told him.
"It is over a week from here. There is an Orc army in the Mountain Range. Even I will not go there. I don't know for certain, but I think the Blue Dragon has reached a deal with them."
"We are still going," Ghared insisted
"Do you want to come with us?" Alexis asked him. "All the Dragons we've ever met have all been Evil Dragons. You're our first Good one."
"Alexis?" Kate questioned her softly.
"Pumpkin?" Rick wasn't sure about this either.
"Tell me, little human, what Dragons have you met?" He was beginning to like this group.
"We killed a young Green Dragon and kinda met an Ancient Colossal Red Dragon," Alexis said.
"You cannot be serious!" He was sure they were either lying outright or exaggerating, trying to impress him for some reason.
Alexis blushed as she hesitantly answered him. "Well, we didn't actually meet him. He... Um, he sort of surprised us in a vision."
"So, he now knows your face. I would not want to be you, little one. Red Dragons are the most Evil and foul creatures you will ever meet, Evil through and through.
"Hmm." He needed to think. "I will come with you on two conditions. One, you talk to me. Tell me stories. I love to learn new things. Two, I want to eat another of your camels eventually. Just not now. In return, I will tell you what I know and help you – some. But not against that Blue Dragon." He still wanted to avoid him. He was young and wanted to reach Ancient one day.
Alexis turned her head to look at her dad and Kate, both of whom were still standing there, pointing their wands at him. "It's a Dragon that doesn't want to eat us."
"Humans give me heartburn, and they taste terrible. Sort of a sickly sweet taste. Disgusting." He even made a face of disgust, or at least it looked like one. He was a Dragon, so it was hard to tell.
"MEOW!"
"Is that animal actually on fire?" He had never seen anything like it in his short life. Short for a Dragon, that is.
"His name is Patches. He's an Ember Cat, and yes, he is all fire. He's really nice," Alexis asserted.
They watched as he brought his head way down till it nearly touched Patches, who stood his ground. "He even smells like fire." He lifted his head back up. "So, Dwarven Stronghold. I will be right next to you till you reach the first mountain range, so long as you keep your part of the bargain." He meant one camel and telling him stories.
Kate patted Rick's shoulder. "You're up, babe. You know lots of stories."
That got the Dragon's interest. "You are a good storyteller? What's your name?"
"Richard Castle, perhaps you've heard of me?" He was famous after all.
"No, I have not. My name is Thinrythlaem."