The Banished

Chapter 18

Ripred just stared at Gregor for a long moment before saying, "So?"

"So?" Gregor looked around in the darkness, opening his eyes for a moment though he saw nothing in return. "So they're, like, eating other people. Don't you get that? I mean, God, I thought that even down here that was considered a crime. I didn't think that the Underland was just so lax about this kind of stuff. I mean I know that the, like, spinners do that shit, but they're freaks enough how it is!"

For a moment, everyone was quiet and Gregor was slightly disappointed in himself for having such an outburst. It was extremely unbecoming of anyone, especially someone trying to rescue a princess. Still, the whole cannibal thing was bothering him. Seriously.

"Overlander," Ripred sighed, shaking his head. "Do you not think I did not already know this information?"

"What?"

"I have been here many days now, fighting these people."

"And yet here he comes," another gnawer said from behind him. "Thinking that he knows more than us, that he is more equipped to handle the situation. Ha."

"Silence, Killgore," Ripred sighed before moving back away from Gregor. The man shut his eyes, clicking once more, as to keep an accurate assessment of everyone's location. He heard Aurora rustle her wings behind him, no doubt uneasy. Fliers were bred much like humans in the Underland; never trust a gnawer. Never. Even in times of peace.

"What exactly do you plan to do here anyways, Overlander?" another one of the gnawers asked. "Besides kill us?"

"Kill you?"

"We found a body of another gnawer," Ripred told him. "Not one of my own. We also encountered some…trouble ourselves, with others yelling of your return. We eliminated the situation, of course, but-"

"They attacked me and Aurora," Gregor said, rolling his shoulders as he leveled his breath. Now that he had found Ripred, he had no doubt that Nike would be right behind. The sooner they found her the better. He did not want to spend any more time in the Dead Lands. It seemed like every time he came there something bad happened. Every time. "It was merely an act of self-defense."

"You do not have to defend yourself now, ever, to us. I care not what you do, honestly," Ripred told him. "You seem to handling yourself well enough. Even in the dark."

Gregor frowned at that. "I'm not a boy any longer, Ripred."

"No, you're not. And you have not been for some time," the rat said with a sigh. "And you come without your queen's consent, I assume."

"Why would you assume that?"

"It is all over the Underland, like fire, the fact that the fliers have ended their allegiance with Regalia. The first time in over a century, I would think. And it will go down on your little girlfriend's record." Ripred poked him in the chest then. "Why, she might just go down as the worst queen in the history of them. They won't let another woman run Regalia after her! Not alone anyways. They'll have a male only policy. They-":

"Knock it off." Gregor grabbed the rat's tail when he tried to poke him with it again. Tossing it away from him, Gregor said, "If you are not going to be of any help to Aurora and I then-"

"Watch it, boy. Or should I say man?" Ripred snorted then. "Fine. If you have no food, then come with us. No doubt you are hungry."

Gregor was glad that his stomach did not betray him then by growling. "Maybe slightly."

"We were about to catch a few fish. Come. You will see how we dine. I get to see how you do enough."

Gregor shook his head then. "I cannot. I must find-"

"You are no good hungry. When was your last meal, Overlander?"

Honestly, he could not even think of how long it had been since they left Regalia. Even then, it was some time before that. Hours, probably. It was very well that he might not have eaten in a day or more.

"I have no choose, but to keep looking for her. They tortured me, or were planning to, when I was their captive," Gregor said. "Nike is a friend."

"A friend, is she? Did she come to your rescue while you were lost? Did your queen? No? That's right, Overlander, I orchestrated that whole thing. And yet you and I are not friends, are we?"

That was a loaded question that included many different factors. At the moment though?

"Not in the slightest," Gregor told him with a shake of his head.

"Then maybe you should reconsider exactly who it is that you call your allies, yeah?" Ripred turned then, his pack moving to follow. "Come, don't come. Eat, don't eat. Starve, don't starve. Get eaten yourself by those maniacs. I care not. I truly do not."

Gregor hesitated before saying, "Do you know where Nike is? And will you help me then? When you get your fill of food?"

"I can honestly say, Overlander, that I have heard nothing of your…friend," Ripred told him. "Still, you are much more likely to get lost on your own, yes? Than if you were with me? So I would suggest you get over yourself and come eat. If Nike cannot wait half an hour, than she is lost already."

Gregor shook his head before clicking behind himself. Then, once he had placed her, he said, "Come on, Aurora. He is right for the wrong reasons. We need to eat. Something. I need to get that smell out of my nostrils. Honestly."

"Be careful, warrior," she told him softly as they set out to match the pace of the other gnawers.

"Ripred would not hurt me." Then, thinking, Gregor added, "Right now. Today. He would not hurt me today, I mean."

"It is not him that I fear," she told him as she flew overhead. "It is his followers. He takes the best of the best with little regard to personality and true loyalty."

Gregor nodded slightly. "I will take that into consideration."

It was a long walk to the river, one of which the rats mostly ran. Gregor could have easily surpassed them all, but chose to trail behind, if only to heed Aurora's warning. His apprehension was waning, as he and Ripred hadn't really had it out for one another in a little over a year, but it was best to just please her. She didn't ask for much, Aurora, and if keeping him self extra safe kept her happy, who was he to complain?

When they made it to the river, the gnawers immediately set out on catching fish while Gregor took a look around. Or, well, a click around. Aurora went to work catching her own fish, leaving him to pay more attention to the gnawers' resources. The area was much the same as Ripred described it. The river smelt as rancid as everything else around, only fishier. He knew though that there were no other real options for the gnawers, as the fish were the only thing that they could eat. There was no light, no foliage or vegetation to feed them. Unless they turned into the banished and began eating each other. Which, given how much all of them hated each other for the most part, didn't seem too far off.

"You can teach the little prick to see in the dark, but he still can't catch his own food," one of the gnawers sneered to Ripred who just ignored him. "He'd never survived with us."

"I am not dead," Gregor told the rat after a quick click around.

"Surely you are not bringing him his food, Ripred," another one of the gnawers taunted. That did get a response out of the rat, though it was short.

"Of course not. The Overlander knows that you eat what you catch around here. Nothing more." Ripred shook his head. "The real question is, Gregor, is how exactly you're going to catch your own."

He knew that he was being tested and that it would be an easy out to just have Aurora bring him some fish. She would, of course. He did not doubt this. But that would bring no more respect to him than eating nothing.

Slowly, he unsheathed his sword before walking towards Ripred, having to click as he did so to let him know where the gnawer was. He was easily distinguishable from the others, if only due to his size. He had always been larger than the others, and even in his old age, not much had changed.

"Surely you will not back down from a fight, Ripred," Gregor said then "And when I win, you owe me your fish."

"Is that so?"

"That is so."

"Seems simple enough, Overlander. Believe me, I have already bled one human today. It will do me only more pleasure to start a streak now." Still, Ripred would not accept a challenge so easily. "But what do I get when I win?"

"Believe me." Gregor assumed a stance then. "You won't."

The gnawers howled at that while Aurora merely flew over head, no doubt making sure that Gregor remembered that they were not safe there. She had already warned him once. She would not again.

It was different, fighting in the darkness. You could not just constantly click. It wasn't a feasible solution. And given the fact that Ripred was far more skilled in the art of echolocation, there was no way that Gregor would win that battle. Instead, he had to rely more on Ripred's movements. He had battled in practice with the old gnawer many times. And though he was still a very imposing force, one not to be taken lightly, he was just that. Old. Ripred was aging. He had far surpassed many of his own colleagues and would no doubt be dead in the coming years. Still, he was much like Vikus in the fact that death did not just find them so easily.

It was after Ripred literally clawed at his face that Gregor realized it was more than just a sparring match. The gnawer was going for blood. As he jumped back from another slash, this time with the opposite claw, Gregor reflected for a moment on if his decision to fight was a foolish one. Probably. Though Ripred was no doubt tired and malnourished, this did not immediately spring to Gregor's favor. Ripred might make a mistake or two due to his weariness, but he also became more volatile in such a situation. He got frustrated quickly. There was no easy out in such a battle and that was a definite oversight on Gregor's part.

"If you want any chance of winning this, Overlander," Ripred growled as he launched himself once more at the man. "I would suggest you start fighting back!"

Still, for all the anger that Ripred seemed to possess at the moment, Gregor wasn't feeling it. He always thought that should he and Ripred fight, really, really fight, that it would be simple. They were both ragers and they would simple allow their senses to take over. Lose control. An all out annihilation of their opponent. Gregor could tell though that though most of his self-control had been thrown to the wind, Ripred was still holding back. He was not just giving in. Gregor figured, though, that after so many years of repressing it, unleashing it was no easy feat.

"I am merely trying not to kill you."

"Merely," Ripred taunted as Gregor sidestepped him once more. "Do you realize how much you use that word?"

"No more than how much you use the word idiot."

"Touché."

Gregor could year the sounds of all the other gnawers then, cheering and laughing. They were getting a show, one that was unexpected, but most welcomed. He figured it was rare that anyone in their small troupe stood up to Ripred. Probably never happened, honestly. For those that did not know the gnawer or did not like him, at least they had heard the stories. Seen the scars and deaths that seemed to multiply when he was a part of something. He was a vicious little shit, but would surely be missed when he finally was gone.

It was honestly by accident that Gregor did what he did a few moments later. It was when he was taking a wipe at Ripred's head, never meaning to make contact, when Ripred turned quickly in a lame attempt to avoid it. In doing so, Gregor's aim turned out to be a little off, causing his sword to make contact with the rat's face, primarily his eye.

Ripred, of course, let out a loud howl of pain, turning away from Gregor for a moment before coming back with such fury that he could not hold him off. He had neglected to bring his dagger along, which would have helped block the rat's erratic movement as Ripred launched himself towards the man then, making contact at times. Gregor's blade made sickening noises as it clashed with Ripred's claws. The gnawer had lost more control at that point and was making wild attacks, the kind that he used tow warn Gregor against. There was no rhyme or reason in them, giving Gregor some great openings. If he could only find some way to attack while blocking… Ugh. It was useless. Solovet was right. You should always travel with all your weapons.

Still, the quickness of Ripred's attacks were causing him to wear down much faster than he would usually. As previous mentioned, the rat was getting older. He could not keep up his pace for as long. And after one failed strike towards Gregor's face was met with the blade of the man's sword, Ripred pulled back some, taking a deep breath. It was then that Gregor slammed hard against him with his shoulder, much how he had done York. It was enough to do the trick.

The gnawer fell to the ground with a loud bang, effectively ending the cheering and yelping given by his cohorts. It was so silent in that area by the river that, other than his heavy pants and those of his fallen advisory, all Gregor could hear was the sound of the river flowing through the river. It was almost funny, really.

Almost.

"I win," Gregor said as he held sword over the gnawer's face. this time though, he did not put a foot to his chest. Gregor was a lot of things, but stupid was not one of them. You should never make the same mistake twice, after all. If York had enough strength to buck him off to the ground, no doubt Ripred had enough force to send up straight through the ground above them and into the Overland! "Do you yield?"

Ripred was cursing then, as no master enjoys being overthrown by his pupil. Well, some do. Ones that actually get a joy from teaching. Ripred, however, had just had his pride hurt and was not in the mood. He only spat at Gregor, causing the man to shake his head.

"It is a sad day, Ripred, when a man cannot admit his own defeats," Gregor turned from him then, having enough faith to know that the rat would not attack him from behind. Or rather, he knew that Ripred was too weak at the moment to actually do him any harm. With a sigh, Gregor walked away from the band of gnawers, waiting for Aurora to land next to him. She did so, though first she dropped a few fish in front of him.

"You shall have to eat them raw," she told him softly. "I know that this is not the custom of Regalians, but the Fount people do it quite frequently."

Gregor nodded slightly, remembering the time that Howard had told him the same, so many years ago. Ripping more from his shirt, Gregor gave his sword a quick rub, removing any blood from it before putting it back in his scabbard. The, slowly, he sat down on the ground in front of the fish, clicking a few times to be sure that the gnawers were far away from him. HE could hear them then, talking amongst themselves, about something or other. No doubt they were helping Ripred lick his wounds. Either that or taunting him. Yeah, Gregor would probably go with taunting. Most gnawers were not too kind when it came to losing a battle.

Especially one with an Overlander.

"Here."

Gregor almost jumped when he heard a voice from behind him. Turning, he saw that it was one of the gnawers, who simply stood there, staring down at him. Gregor quickly rose to his feet, not liking the idea of one of them being above him.

"You are a human, yes? And you do not have a dagger, do you? Or a knife?" The gnawer reached out to take one of Gregor's fish. "You must scale them first. They will rip a human's throat otherwise."

"You do not-"

"Would be an honor," the gnawer told him. "Leader."

"You- Wait, leader?"

"Ripred told us that should any of us kill him or at least defeat him in battle, would we become leader. You have done it. You shall lead us now then, yes? It is what the others say now."

"They say…wait, what?"

The gnawer simply began to scale the fish for him, not speaking for a moment. When he finally did again, he said, "Ripred is most upset."

"I'm not leader, he told him, with a shake of his head. "Believe me, I am not."

"Damn right you're not."

Gregor cringed as Ripred started up from over by the river. "I merely wanted fish. I did not-"

"I would have killed him, should I have wished," Ripred announced them while Aurora simply ruffled her wings. A few of the other gnawers made grumbling noises at this, btu Ripred kept up. "It is true. I did not wish to kill him."

"sure seemed like it," one of his followers said.

"Speak louder then, Deathmask," Ripred ordered then. "Speak as loud as you like. I shall kill you for it though, after I am done with the Overlander."

"I was merely hungry," Gregor said then, shaking his head. "I meant you no harm, Ripred."

"Shut up," the gnawer snapped. "Eat then, Overlander. Have your fill. Because it shall be your last. I-"

"Hush, Ripred," Aurora said then, almost silently in comparison to the others. "The Overlander beat you fair and square. You are only sour because you got shown up in front of your friends. It is not Gregor's fault that you are getting old and are not as ready for battle these days."

"Watch it, bat," Ripred growled. "Before I go ahead and render those pretty little wings unusable."

"Do not threaten her." Gregor shook his head. "You're just a miserable old man, like always. If you're not going to help me find Nike now because you got shown up, then I'm out of here. That's what being a friend is, Ripred. Helping one another. You just used people. That's what you are. A user. I don't have time for that anymore."

"Then go, Overlander. And any that want him, go? The hell do I need any of you for anyways?"

It was then though that all of the gnawers stilled and Aurora opened her wings. Gregor, though he could learn to mimic many things, did not have that animalistic instinct.

"What?" he asked in a whisper. "What is it?"

"People are coming," Aurora said, fluttering her wings. "What do we-"

"It shall be the banished," Ripred announced after taking a deep breath.

"And when you are already so injured," one of the other gnawers taunted.

"And yet I could still take every single one of you."

Gregor ignored them, drawing his sword then. "I fight better on the ground, Aurora. Perhaps you can hide yourself, somewhere, and come for me when-"

"Do not underestimate me, Overlander."

He grinned at her then, though it was rather grimly. "Alright then."

Gregor was expecting a speech from the people. At least a reasoning for their attack. They gave none. When they exited the cave, they already had their weapons drawn and went straight into combat with the gnawers and him.

Gregor's presence was a big through off to them though, of course. This was made obvious by the first man that ran at him to attack him. It was still pitch black of course, but they seemed to see just fine. And from what Gregor could tell from his echolocation, these people were not as frail as their counterparts that he had seen only an hour or so before. He could tell from their shape that while they weren't buff or big by any means, they were rather normal. He figured that the fighters had been sent with their king to the gates of Regalia, while some of the weaker men had been left behind. Then, the ones Gregor had seen…feasting, must have been the wearer ones. The children and those too old or sick for fighting. It made sense, at least.

"It is the Overlander," the man whispered, face to face with Gregor in the darkness while the other people ran passed, headed straight to the gnawers. Not certain if others had noticed him, Gregor plunged his blade straight into the other man, so he would not let on to his location. All of the others seemed to not see him at all. Now their backs were to him as they faced off with the gnawers. Gregor couldn't find Aurora with so much chaos, but figured she had taken to the air. They were not in a cave or any kind of dwelling; she was probably far above them by that time.

After downing his first opponent, Gregor turned, clicking softly. There were only thirty or so men attack them. He didn't doubt the gnawers could take them, but he was not one to be left out of a battle. And with his appearance still somehow unnoted, Gregor was able to attack unseen from behind, slicing open the unarmored backs of his opponents. He figured it best to just help the gnawers kill them, as he did not wish to see for the loss off life on the gnawers' side, which wasn't likely, but still possible.

"The Overlander!" one of the men shouted as Gregor took out the person next to him, cutting the back of the neck of one of the men. The man Gregor had just killed had been attack Ripred, who looked none too happy to have his supposed predecessor fighting his battles for him. Still, there was too much going on for the two of them to really have it out about that.

The gnawers moved and fought with no thought of others or their position. This was mainly due to the fact that they lived differently than the humans. The humans lived like a cohesive force, everyone pulling their own weight and expecting others to do the same. Gnawers were self-sufficient, always. Even under the rule of a unified king, many of them lived alone or with their mates and children. They were a proud people, gnawers were, and did not like relying on others. This showed through into their fighting styles well.

Gregor kept an eye out for Aurora as he fight, clicking regularly while he was at it. He was skilled in echolocation, sure, but he still needed to click rather hard to get definite shapes and features. He was keeping a count on the gnawers to the best of his ability as well, as he did not want any of them sneaking up on him. Especially not Ripred. As the battle wore down, he knew that the rat would slowly remember that he was angry with the young man.

One of the most interesting things about the fight that Gregor took note of was the fact that the banished people's weapons were not that inept. They actually appeared to be sword forged in Regalia. When he thought about it though, the gnawers had probably supplied them, for the short time that they were allied. Still, it bothered Gregor to think that if these people, the ones that were left behind, had weapons, then the ones at Luxa's door were no doubt just as equipped, if not overly so.

"Don't kill the last one, you idiots," Gregor heard Ripred yelling then. "Keep him hostage. I swear, if there is not one of these sorry creatures left when we're done, I'll kill all of you instead."

The match was mostly over then as Gregor ran his sword straight through the belly of the enemy in front of him. When he withdrew his weapon, he turned in a tight circle, clicking his tongue to find someone in front of him or at least near. There was not. Everyone was mostly gone at that point and he finally found Aurora as she drifted down from the air.

"You are uninjured." It was more of a statement than a question, but Gregor went ahead and nodded his head.

"I am," he agreed with her as he sheathed his sword. He saw the last human then, being held down by a gnawer sitting on his chest. Gregor made his way over, glancing at Ripred, who was standing by the side then.

"For whatever plan you have to keep him living," Gregor said slowly, "it shall be ruined this gnawer sits on him. It will crush his chest cavity in a matter of minutes, I am sure. And as it is, I am almost certain he cannot breathe."

"You speak hurtful words, Overlander," the rat that was on the man growled as she stood. "It is not nice to insult a woman's weight."

Gregor rolled his eyes before glancing at Ripred. "Why are we keeping him?"

"I'm not keeping him, Overlander," Ripred told him as Gregor stared down at the frightened man. He was slightly older than Gregor, probably in his thirties. Drawing his dirty, bloodstained blade, Gregor held it out towards the man's neck, who only stared up at him in the darkness. "You are."

"Me? What will I-"

"You want to be me, Overlander, use your head for once."

Gregor made a face at Ripred. "What did you want to do with him, Ripred?"

"He'll take you to your little flier friend. I have better things to do. You know, like staying alive?" Ripred snorted as he turned to walk away. "Go with the Overlander, come with me, I don't care. But the next person that challenges me shall not be walking out of here alive. I swear it."

Gregor just watched as the gnawers quickly headed after their leader. Fun and games was over. There had been no lives lost on their side, but things did not stay as a joke for long in the Dead Lands.

Or so Gregor was finding out.

"Speak then," Gregor said to the man he had on the ground, staring hard down at him though there was no way the two humans could truly make each other out in the darkness. "Go on."

Aurora was behind Gregor then, on the ground, ever vigilant. Gregor had never found a bond to replace the one he had lost, but damn if Aurora didn't look out for him well enough. At times, he figured that another bond could never replace Ares regardless and he surely could not forge another friendship with a flier he had with Aurora and their fallen comrade. The fact that his and Aurora's friendship was a vowless one made it that much more special to him.

"Kill me," the man said then though Gregor could hear the fear in his voice. "Just kill me. It is more honorable-"

"There is no honor in these lands," he told the man, not forgetting the last words Luxa had told him before he left. "There is no honor on this earth. You shall die and no one shall care. Or you can help me."

"And then you can kill me?"

"And then I can leave this forsaken place for the palace," Gregor corrected. "And I shall let you go back to whatever it is you are doing here. With words for that worthless woman you serve."

Then man spit. "You had best watch your-"

Gregor pressed the tip of his sword closer to the man's throat. "I am tired of people spitting at me. So tired. Give me one good reason."

Then man shut his eyes. "Do it then. I shall not tell you what you wish to do."

"And what do you plan to do with Nike then? Keep her captive until yow in this war? You shall not. I will die defending Luxa from you and she will have to be killed before she ever gives up her throne. She would sacrifice everyone she cares about to keep possession of her kingdom. There is no way to win."

"Then she shall die in her foolishness."

"We all will," Gregor told him solemnly. Then he pressed down some more. "Starting with you."

There was a second, as Gregor continued to apply pressure with his sword, that he feared he would actually have to kill the guy, that he would not be able to get any useful information from him. And for all the hard work Ripred had put into getting him to him. Ha.

"In the pits," the man yelped out finally as the sword pierced his flesh, more a pinprick than anything else. "We have taken her down into the pits. It was no easy feat. We had had her bound this whole time. She screams mercilessly. There is not much to feed her. There is not much for us to eat. She refuses to eat or drink. She says she would rather die than-"

Gregor pushed harder then. "You will take me to her. And if she is dead, we will both witness my first ever dismemberment, demonstrated on you. And believe me, Overlander's love the smell of blood."

Aurora shifted her wings uncomfortably, no doubt worried about her friend then. "Hurry then. We must get to her soon."

"Stand," Gregor ordered, removing his sword slightly while taking a step back. It was hard to keep his contempt back now that he had heard the conditions in which Nike was being kept. "If you make any movement I do not like, I very easily will start that demonstration early, yes?"

"Y-Yes," the man stuttered as he slowly found his feet.

"And should we run into anyone, you shall not call out to them. If you do, my sword will go right through your back. And one I remove it, the hearts of all your friends."

Aurora fluttered her wings before taken to the air. "I shall fly ahead, Gregor. Should I see anyone, I will warn you."

"Be careful. These idiots are joined with other fliers as well."

"You be careful as well. Some fliers have joined with stupid humans, I hear."

He smiled. "Is there any kind of human other than stupid?"

"I'd like to think I'm bonded to one."

"I'd like to think that too. But we both know the truth."