{All non-player characters and the Guild Wars universe belong to NC Soft and Arena Net. I am simply presenting my own character through the story. Thank you.}
Chapter 16
"Q-Tee!" shouted a young voice across the camp. Q froze as he held the bread he was eating suspended before his open mouth. The order to bite didn't quite follow through.
"No one calls me that but one, brave man..." he muttered as he slowly turned in his seat. A heavily cloaked man with hair as white as snow and skin as black as coal approached wearing a big, dopey grin, "Drow!"
"Q Tan. And here I thought I'd never be seeing you again seeing as you wanted to stay in that mad hell-hole you called 'home.' What finally convinced you to leave?"
"Right, word never got through to Kryta" Q immediately sobered despite the happiness he felt upon seeing his old friend once more. He turned to Drow with pain in his eyes and put a hand on the taller man's shoulder. "Drow, my friend, Ascalon is gone. The Charr rule it now. In order to save the people of Ascalon, those that remain, we gathered together and migrated west. We're on our way to Kryta as we speak.
Drow's expression faded. He had left Ascalon behind long ago, and he had never truly felt that he belonged there. Still, it had been his home for a long time and he'd lived in Ashford a long time with the man he'd called father. The news brought pain to his eyes that he had not felt in a long while. "I see," he muttered, "Well, at least I might be of some help getting you through these mountains and into Kryta. I was on my way to Deldrimor actually before the Shiverpeaks were shut up due to the war.
"War? Would this have to do with the 'Stone Summit' I've been hearing all about?"
Kalen rubbed his head and stepped forward now with Zleeda by his side. "Oh they mean business Q. We actually ran, and I mean RAN," he gave a pointed glare to Zleeda, "into a group of them. They are a force to be reckoned with. They're heavily armored, well equipped, and have even domesticated these humongous cow beasts-"
Drow interjected, "Dolyaks."
"-Dolyaks. They've domesticated Dolyaks to serve their purposes. It was quite an effort between Zleeda and myself to take down just a legion of them. Mind you Zleeda did throw caution to the wind and charge at them head on like a raving lunatic."
Zleeda laughed a little and scratched her head, "What can I say I got excited."
Drow grinned, "I suppose you could say that you got… 'axe'cited."
Q groaned and rubbed his temples turning away, "I do NOT miss that part about you my friend."
Silvery who had snuck her way into the group giggled a bit, "I don't know I thought it was kind of charming."
Q turned around and glared at her, "Are you kidding me?"
Silvery immediately stifled her laughter and crossed her arms looking away, "Right not charming. Not charming at all."
Kalen groaned in frustration and cut in, "Okay pushing this whole conversation aside we do have a mission to report."
Q nodded glad to have something to focus on that wasn't a bad pun, "Oh yes thank you Kalen please go on."
Signa stumbled out of the tent she was resting in. She tripped across the snow and then pulled herself back up landing herself right next to Zleeda. She moved some bright silver hair from her face, glanced to the stranger, and then turned her attention back to Kalen, "Sorry go on."
Kalen huffed and turned his attention back to Q, "Right now that everyone is present I must report that our way to the Frost Gate and Kryta is blocked. It seems the Borlis Pass won't be safe for our caravans to pass through until the torches are relit. Drow tells me that the centaurs have captured the area and made it unsafe for any travel. Rurik is on the other side with the dwarves."
Q cursed and crossed his arms, "Drat, we can't stay holed up here forever this was only to be a small month-long stop. We've already been here far too long."
Signa ventured forth looking at Q, "Well how many soldiers do we have in our caravan? Twelve right? Benjamin has just recovered from that wound he got fighting a Juniper Bark*. If we all group together and go into the pass before the caravans we can take down the centaurs and re-light the torches. There's what, six of us now? That's plenty!"
"The girl might be on to something here," Drow added, "The centaurs are a fleeting mountain tribe. They are few and far between. If we stick together we'd be able to take em'."
Q slowly nodded rubbing the stubble upon his chin, "Her name is Signa, Drow and the both of you have a point. I don't see what else we can do. We have no idea when this 'war' between the dwarves will end and if we stay here any longer we'll start losing people. I'll start rallying the people. Kalen you brief the soldiers, Zleeda you notify the locals, Drow and Signa see what you can do about giving the soldiers some torches to carry. They'll have to trail a ways behind us if they want to stay safe and I don't know how well they'll be able to see without your magic."
"Drow I thought you said there were centaurs on this mountain," Q whispered narrowing his eyes against the snow. He looked to the ground, but saw nothing. The wind was too strong.
"There are it's just that they're farther up. They guard the torches to make sure that the pass isn't reclaimed. See look it's up ahead the huge metal thing" Drow answered pointing his staff toward the brazier that was just barely peeking through the blizzard.
"With this blizzard rolling through how are we even supposed to light it?" Q asked shielding his eyes with his forearm. He crept closer to the brazier now standing just a few feet away.
"There's an inscription in the brazier itself. Powerful magic that is. It keeps the fire from ever going out unless the counter inscription is read."
"It's an eternal flame?"
"Yeah all it takes is a 'spark'."
"For Melandru's sake really Drow? That one wasn't even good."
"Can't flame a guy for trying."
Q shook his head and knocked Bill up the backside of his head, "Just go ignite the blazier, we'll cover you when the centaurs come."
Drow chuckled and nodded stepping to stand above the brazier, "Whatever you say just don't let them 'trample' all over you."
Q groaned, "Less talky, more lighty!"
Drow chuckled again and turned to the brazier finding the correct inscription within. He began to read from it and a blue light lit in the bottom of the brazier that slowly grew until it raised into a full fire and lit the whole path. Shouts were heard from further down the path followed by the crunching of many hooves blazing through snow. "Ahh here they come," Drow warned as he raised his staff a red light glowing at the end. The party prepared for battle. Kalen and Zleeda stood in front, Signa and Drow behind them, and Q at the back standing upon a rock.
There were only four centaurs in the group that approached. One met its end at the wrong end of Q's bow, while the other three were easily dispatched by the warriors. Signa smiled seeing that her idea was possibly a very good one. The party pushed forward repeating the process with the torches six times. Soon they arrived at at a fork in the road. Q turned to his friend and gestured to the road, "Which way oh mighty teller of cheesy puns" he muttered."
Drow chuckled and gestured to the left, "To the left is the final beacon and probably where the Chieftain is staying. To the right is the gate leading to King Jalis' kingdom."
Q looked at the paths, "It will be best to finish what we started with the beacons then. We don't want that last centaur group to flank the caravans when they come by here. Let's go."
They walked down the left path carefully peering around each bend. Eventually they came across a crudely made camp. It was actually just a fire made in front of the last brazier with a few weapon racks set about. Q motioned for Kalen to circle the camp and set up behind the chieftain. He gestured for Drow and Signa to stay beside himself. Once Kalen reached a good vantage point he waved to Q from across the clearing.
Q aimed his arrow through some trees taking cover behind a bush. He closed his left eye aiming the tip of the arrow straight at the chieftain's heart. He let fly with a 'twang' and the arrow hit home causing a cry from the chieftain as he stood and began running about trying to take the arrow out. Kalen and Zleeda leapt from their hiding places quickly taking down two of the Chieftain's guards. Signa and Drow ran in from the other side setting others on fire. Q sent another arrow into the chieftain's back and with the rest of the centaurs killed the rest of the group also began to pound on the Chieftain. Kalen and Zleeda took out his legs while Signa and Drow froze him in place just so that Q could have a clear shot at his head. The whole ordeal was over in less than five minutes and Drow lit the final brazier, "Well done team we really 'snowed' them! Eh? Eh?"
The group slowly shook their heads with a huff and turned around heading back to the fork in the road.
"Oh come on it wasn't that bad.. guys? Guys!" He quickly ran after them laughing along the way.
(Thank you for reading this series and please review/comment/message me with your feedback or just to say hi! Have a magical day!)