Chapter 14
We were outside the cave. It was obvious Finwiux was checking us out, scanning us, checking our weaknesses, and he must have observed us enough to realize Adamis was our weakest link. Findax began his manipulation of Adamis.
"I wonder how much money we will get for Findax?" I asked.
"Dunno, probably a few hundred gold pieces."
"Do you think he will be jailed or executed."
"Oh! I am only an old man! I wouldn't do well in jail. And would you really let them hurt me for a crime I don't remember committing?"
Adamis was the one who spoke, "Well, I suppose you could be put under my protection. When we get back to the castle I could say you are under my protection."
Dammit! I thought. Was Adamis really that gullible? Is this possible? I always thought this Adamis was a Malgoreal Vlacus, but I never thought he was susceptible to this open manipulation. I always thought a paladin's kindness could be a weakness, but this wasn;t pure kindness, this was being an idiot. "No! No one is going under anyone's protection. Uh-uh. NOPE!"
"Why?" Adamis asked.
"Because we want the money!" Thoros was blunt.
"This man poisoned the whole Town!" Cynwyd argued.
"He is manipulating you." I said.
"Are you manipulating me?" Adamis asked Findax.
Oh my god! Dammit! Is he really tis much of an idiot?
"No! Of course not! Why would I manipulate you?"
Because he's stupid! But I decided not to voice my thoughts.
At that moment I went behind a tree and hid. Thoros followed. Cywyd was hidden elsewhere. At that moment, a group of a dozen orcs came out of the forest with bags with crying coming from them and feeble shrill voices crying for help. My first thoughts was hobbits, then I threw that thought away and thought children.
The moment they saw Adamis they brandished their weapons. They carried short swords and spears and they seemed to have been singing in orcish about a good hunt and all. Findax said, "No, no! Don't hurt them! They are my friends."
Adamis ahd pulled out his sword and was facing the orcs off. "What do you have in your bags?"
"Why do you ask? Who are you?"
I began speaking in orcish, "Got some over here!"
"You don't sound orc! You sound human!" Said an orc. I could hear footsteps coming over to where Thoros and I were.
"No! There is an elf and a human!"
There were a few nods and sayings in orcish about tasty elves.
I heard orcs speaking of two elves.
"Everything is alright. These are my friends. Just leave things be."
The bags continually called for help.
A comment was made which I didn't ear even with my acute hearing, but at that moment Adamis went total berserker. I heard steel against steel as he brought his two handed sword out and began swinging it at the orcs. He killed an orc there. I saw Adamis' predicament.
It was at this point I began to think. The last party I met with had met with a terrible fate, not of any fault of mine. If I was going to face off with my brother, I needed friends, people I could trust to fight alongside me. Cynwyd wasn't a powerful mage, but I saw her capabilities. Adamis may not have been smart, and he was easy to manipulate. He was a decent swordsman, and was good with many weapons. Thoros was mysterious, but the party needed a healer. I gritted my teeth, I saw an orc slash Adamis' leg. I was going to leave them, but did I need them?
I pulled out my sword out of its sheath and began slashing at the orcs closest to me. I killed one, hit another with the flat of my blade, injured another. Thoros joined in as did Cynwyd.
An orc with a spear jabbed at my leg, I spun around and cut it's head clean off. The others suddenly realized as Thoros bashed in one of their skulls and cracked anoter's ribs that they were outmatched and they ran off into the woods.
I ran to the group Adam was fighting, hearing Finwyx saying "No need to fight! We can all go our separate ways."
I smiled and attacked the orc group from behind, stabbing one orc in the back, took the head clean off of another orc. The orcs turned around and I stabbed one in the heart. I took a step back as an orc tried ot jab my side with a spear. I killed the orc. And Adamis killed the rest. It was at this point Thoros came up from behind and knocked Adamis unconscious.
"Not a problem anymore." Thoros said, smiling.
We opened the bags sure enough there were two children, a boy and a girl, about eight years old. They were crying and saying things. I asked them, "Please stop crying, you're safe."
The kids wouldn't stop crying. I realized how different Elven children were from Human children. Their minds were different, their cares were different, and apparently their needs were different.
"Oh stop crying!" Cynwyd said.
"What is it you want? Food?" I asked.
Thoros ran after Findax who was trying to get away. He bashed Funwux's skull and he was knocked unconscious, but not as bad as Adamis.
I gave kids some food, and they began to stop crying. After a bit and after Findax was beside us all delirious and whispering non-sense tat we began questioning the children.
"How were you captured by orcs?" I asked.
"We were gathering berries," the boy spoke, "And we went too far from the village. T=The orcs attacked us and they put us in bags."
"Do you come from the Borderlands?" Cynwyd asked.
"No," the girl said. "We come from Klein."
"Where is Klein?" I asked.
"To the north." The boy said.
I took out the map and asked, "Can you point it out on the map."
The boy studied the map and said, "This map isn't rigt. Klein is right here." He pointed to an area a few miles north of the clearing and where it showed just forest.
"Oh," I marked the village on the map.
"So what are we going to do?" Cynwyd asked. "We have a paladin unconscious, two kids, and a prisoner. Should we head back to the Borderlands?"
Findax sat up and Thoros was right over him. Guarding him.
"I say we go to the Borderlands. It's getting dark." I said.
The children began to cry, "No! We wanna go home!"
"Fine! We'll go to Klein." Then a brilliant idea popped into my head. "Why don't we split? I take Findax to the castle and you guys take Adamis and the kids back to Klein?"
The kids nodded and said, "Oh yes, we can lead the way."
"I'm not sure. For a wizard you don't seem to use much magic." Thoros said.
"Yeah, I wouldn't trust you. What if he takes the prize money and runs away?"
I thought about doing it. I was going to perhaps. "I won't."
"Plus, how are we going to carry Adamis?" Thoros asked.
"We could build a sled." Cynwyd suggested. "We have all the materials and tools to do it."
"You can build the sled and I can take Findax back to the Borderlands."
"No your not. We are staying together." Cynwyd said.
So it was final, we all decided to build a sled and head to Klein. I sighed and obeyed and helped with the sled, while the kids, Findax and Thoros sat and watched. Thoros helped some, but he mainly kept wacth over Findax.
When we were done with the sled we piled Adamis and the kids on it, and we took turns pulling it.
By the time we reached the village of Klein it was dark, the moon was rising on the horizon. The crickets were chirping, the frogs croaking, I could hear a wolf howling ever so faintly. I smelled the air, it was wood smell, it sent memories to me. Memories of walking through the woods, walking for days on end, simply enjoying the beauty of the forest, the green of the pine trees, the aroma of the trees, the roughness of the bark, the smell of dirt and pine needles wafting up from the forest floor. I was so caught up in thought and enjoying the beauty of the forest I barely noticed the gold dragon sitting on a large rock in the forest. It noticed it before it noticed me.
"A young elf walking through the forest." The dragon spoke elvish, its voice was like three old men speaking at once, one a feeble old man, one with a rich, deep voice, and another with a whisper.
"A golden dragon perched on a rock." Those were the days when I acted like an elf. I laughed at my chance encounter and said, "Why are you not in your cave?"
The dragon snorted, as if it was amused by the young elf standing before him, "I forgive your ignorance as you are young and unlearned," the voices faded off into a low purring noise, "I live wherever I like. If I wish to live in the snowy mountains, that is where I live. If I choose to live by the sea shore, then that is where I live. For now I live in a forest."
I smiled and walked closer to the dragon, "What beautiful scales, they sparkle in the afternoon sunlight, they are worth more than any king's horde of treasure."
The dragon shook its head and purred, "Thank you young elf."
I smiled and hopped up onto the rock and and came within a few feet into the dragon's face, I looked deep into it's reptilian eyes, they seemed unfeeling, which was odd.
"Why are you away from your kind, elf?"
"I decided to take a walk in the forest, I don't know how long I've walked, but I think I walked far enough." I laughed and said, "Such fascinating creatures your kind is."
The dragon purred, I could feel it in my chest. "I suppose I should be going."
The dragon glowed brilliantly in the sun light. It began to grow smaller, and after a minute its shape changed to a man in human clothing. "Good bye young elf." The man said, and he jumped off the rock and ran into the forest.
I opened my eyes and observed the village. The village was small, with only four buildings and smoke rising in various places in the forest. There was the tavern and four other buildings. We left Adamis outside the tavern and entered the tavern with the children and immediately everyone came gathering around us. The children's parents thanked us and offered us anything.
The father said, "We don't have much, but we will offer you anything."
The others in the room nodded, and said they would give us anything. At that moment Adamis walked in. I spoke to Cynwyd in elvish, "I knew we should have taken Findax as far away from him as possible."
We explained the situation to Adam and he asked, "Do you have any horses?"
"We have a horse and cart if you want." One man said.
"Oh there is…" I began.
"We'll take it." Thoros said.
I looked at Thoros questioningly. We didn't really need it. Thoros didn't catch my glance. Adamis settled beside Findax who was smiling at us as like a man with power stares at those trying to oppose him and he knew he was safe. I saw that smile in my brother, I had looked over my shoulder as I ran and he ran after me, "You can run! Oh you can run! Run away! Keep running! I have no need of you anymore!" Fire exploded from his figure and it seemed the whole forest caught on fire. Behind me all I heard was fire and laughing. I cleared my head of such thoughts and turned my attention to the current situation.
A priest came up to us and explained to us, "We are in need of help. Recently in other towns nearby, graves have been found disturbed, and crypts are disturbed as well. Would you please guard our church?"
"Sure." I said.
"We don't have much to offer you, but we do have some money and you may sleep in the church."
The others agreed. After a few more minutes at the tavern we went with the priest to the church. Cynwyd decided to sleep in the church. Adamis, Thoros and I decided to watch the graveyard. Findax followed.
The graveyard was large, two hundred feet by a hundred feet. It was covered in a thick fog. I sensed a decay, decrepitude. It was a grave yard and it certainly felt like a graveyard. I shivered, I am not sure if I was sensing spells being woven on the graveyard, or future events rippling backwards in time, but I felt something.
We decided not to light a fire. We sat, in the dark, on the edge of a graveyard. With my infravision I saw nothing. I looked out at the graveyard and thought of the elves. I realized how far I had gone in life. How different was from the elves. Elves were a people who loved nature, enjoyed life, they were viewed by other races as easy going and nature lovers. We were an arrogant race too. I had succumbed to my more arrogant side. I was not easy to trust. I had become untrustworthy.
"I am going into the graveyard. The forest is closer to the west. If anyone will come it will be from the west." I explained myself. I walked out into the graveyard with fields of green and thoughts of gurgling streams, anything to stave off the decay from entering my mind.
From behind me I heard ground stirring, an upchurning of soil. I drew my sword and turned around to find sketon hands reaching out of graves. Two pairs of fire appeared, then another, and another. IT took me a second to realize skeletons were rising from the ground. I ran towards the others. The had too know. As I ran I yelled, "Undead!"
When I reached them, the skeletons were out of sight. "Skeletons." I said.
We ran up the hill to the church after the skeletons, they were headed for the church. When we reached the church the door was open and there was the sound of wood against bone. I went inside first, sword first. I saw Cynwyd, her cloak on the floor, she was fighting four skeletons with her staff.
I came up from behind a skeleton and smashed its skull, a skeleton struck me from behind. I twisted around, but Adamis had already crushed it with his mace.
"A figure in black robes entered the crypts." Cynwyd reported. The four of us went down into te crypts.
It wasn't totally dark, along the way to the door and down the stairs Thoros had lit a torch. I was thankful for the light, because only the skeleton's eyes gave off heat because they were aflame. When we got down into the crypt four tombs were open and tree other s were opening. In one corner a figure stood chanting. Three skeletons were beside him, one had a golden mace.
Three other skeletons came at us, I said, "Take care of them." I went for the kill. I assumed the chanting figure was a necromancer. The necromancer ceased his chanting and ran to the end of the crypt in a corner. I cut one skeleton at the chest, the legs continued to move, so I scattered the legs. The skeleton with the golden mace swung at my head, I took a step back, lunged and stabbed with my sword. I forgot the skeleton didn't have any flesh nor organs, the edge of my sword bounced off the ribs. The mace came swinging at my abdomen, I pulled my sword out of the way so I might parry the blow. I failed to parry and was struck unconscious.
A bright light engulfed me and I was in fields of green. I sat up and looked around. Overhead I heard the sound of a bird's wings flapping. It was a massive bird. The hawk which landed must have had a wingspan of twenty feet, and a rider jumped off it's back. The elf man patted the hawk's neck and threw a fish to it. The hawk snapped it out of the air and gulped it down. The man took off a leather helmet, he was human. "Hello."
"Hello?" I replied.
"What is your business elf?"
I was at a loss. "I was just with my…" I didn't want to call them friends, "my party in the crypt a-and I was knocked…"
"Party? Crypt, Sir Elf?"
"I was just fighting some skeletons, then…"
The wind rider looked at me as if I was speaking nonsense. "You are an odd elf. I only wish to know your business."
I was at a loss for words. Then the giant hawk opened its beak and spoke with Adamis' voice, "Use the Cure Light Wounds, it's all we have."
I stared at the bird.
The wind rider scoffed, "By the way you look at my bird I would think you heard it speak."
"Well…I did. It spoke with the voice of my comrade. A paladin."
"Hmm, you know what Sir Elf, I think you are very peculiar. You speak total non-sense. Perhaps your head got knocked up a bit. My Uncle Bailfire always said if I got knocked up the head and started speaking non-sense to have someone knock my head again. He said it worked for him one time." The wind rider came closer wit an upraised hand. I backed away and closed my eyes.
The next moment I was no longer in the grass covered field with the Wind Rider. I felt terrible, I felt like I had been just it with a mace. "Have I been hit with a mace?"
Cynwyd said, "Yes."
Adamis chuckled. Thoros stayed silent.
I sat up and looked around. The necromancer lay skewered in the corner, the skeletons a pile of bones. I stood up and went over to the necromancer and took a ring off it's finger. Adamis was the second one to come and pluck another ring off its finger. Cynwyd took the golden mace which had been in the skeleton's hand.
The priest who had summoned us from the tavern came down the stairs asking, "What happened?"
"Your problem is solved." I said, walking forwards, placing the ring in my pocket. "A necromancer was raising the dead, perhaps summoning an army of skeletons. But here, in this crypt, we stopped him."
"You were the one we had to heal." Cynwyd reminded.
The priest nodded and said, "Of course, thank you. We all thank you. We have the money box up stairs."
As we walked up I heard the priest calling for some monks. Some men in brown robes came down a stairway and walked down into the crypt. A moment later they carried out the body of the necromancer.
The priest had opened up the box, but before I could take anything, with one sweep of a hand Thoros took all of it. Cynwyd said, "Hey leave some for all of us."
"To slow." Thoros smiled.
"Please, sleep, rest. It is not yet morning." The priest nodded and walked off.
We all silently decided we would go to bed. I slumped against the nearest wall and fell down it slowly until I sat on the floor. Then a thought struck me, Findax! "Whoa! We forgot about Findax!"
Thoros said, "We did."
"We have his books, perhaps he'll come for his books eventually." Cynwyd thought allowed.
We all fell silent and I fell asleep.
