“Gather the bodies and throw them on top of that drake over there. We’ll burn them all before we leave!” Captain Ripples-On-Salt ordered the rest of his crew, pointing at the downed drake that crashed to the forest floor while a few volunteers tackled the huge tree trunk, chopping it into smaller pieces and reclaiming what they could for the damaged boat. It would still float on the river, but it was clear from the black, charred decking that some patchwork needed to be done.
Amazingly, none of the River Giant defenders had been killed during the brief fight, but many were wounded, peppered with arrows or having taken cuts from Zorn weapons, though the most grievous wounds were the acid burns that Priestess Flows-In-Streams diligently treated, aided by Alora. Many of the crew were worried about the possibility of disease, given the Zorn’s propensity for it, and were keen to sail to safety as quickly as possible to treat it.
“Sephy, what are you doing?” Nika asked the Skritta as the Kizun spotted her friend approach the Plague Drake that Jack had downed, which had been yanked out of the river and was now being hacked apart to chuck the parts on the fire.
Sephy grinned, spinning a knife in her hand as she went to work on the drake’s mouth. “Isn’t it obvious? I’m getting a few of the teeth!”
“What? Why?” Nika asked as she dumped the Zorn she was carrying to have a better look.
“Oh come on! Have you seen the size of these things?!” The Skritta cackled as she wiggled the tooth. “Can I have your help for a sec?”
“Heh, alright!” Nika chuckled back as she took a look, with Sephy more forcefully wiggling the fang until it came out with a putrid stench. “Bleh! Fuck! Shame I didn’t bring pliers, Jack’s gauntlets should give us what we need to get some more out.”
“Good idea! Hey! Jack! Your services are required!” Sephy called out, as the human in question quickly bounded over from the pyre, looking somewhat morose. “Um…pliers please?”
“Sure?” Jack shrugged as the tools quickly appeared in his hand. “Uh, why do we need the fangs? Are they needed for spells or something? What about the hide? Do you use it for armour or something?”
“Hah!” Nika laughed. “I knew your fashion sense was bad but you would actually consider wearing THAT as armour?” She pointed to the cluster of boils and pustules on one of the wings.
“Okay, that’s a good point,” Jack conceded. “But how would I know? In fantasy games where I come from you can normally forge dragon scales into armour…”
“These aren’t dragons,” Nika interrupted him. “This is probably something for Chiyo to nerd out about when we’re back on the boat, but to answer your question, there’s nothing of value to take from Plague Drakes, just like the Zorn.”
“So why the teeth?” Jack asked curiously as he helped Sephy remove another.
“Because I want a badass trophy!” Sephy exclaimed. “We can get Chiyo to make them into pendants or put them on a chain or something! I’m gonna wear it next time Luvia’s around!”
“Are you insane!?” Nika hissed.
“Actually that sounds kinda cool!” Jack smiled in amusement, the Skritta’s antics lightening his mood from the harrowing encounter almost twenty minutes ago, making him feel better already. “Can I have one?”
“Damn right! We’re all getting one!” Sephy smiled, putting her arm around Jack, before looking down at their other companion. “Even you Dante!”
“Woof!” Dante exclaimed, pleased with the idea!
*****
It took just over half an hour to clear the blockade, with the crew of River Giants having carefully and vigorously hacked at the gargantuan trunk, careful not to drop it in the river and make their problem worse. With great effort, they hauled the parts of the trunk up and away from the river safely onto the bank, with an idea to collect it later on the journey back when they had more cargo space. However, they still took several lengthy branches with them that were thick enough to turn into planks, dumping them on the main deck for the crew to patch the ship up as best they could as they continued.
“Alright, we’re not hanging around for a full cremation like a tide over,” Captain Ripples-On-Salt declared, pointing at the roaring hot pyre. “They’re probably burned enough to get rid of any disease or nasty bits. Put the fire out and leave them for the scavengers!”
“Aye Captain!” Several of the crew acknowledged, quickly getting buckets to douse the flames and ensure they couldn’t return and cause a forest fire, hopping back on the boat as it set off. As the Siltskimmer left the site of the battle behind, a sense of quiet settled over the Forest of Fangs once more, broken occasionally by the returning sounds of nature, filling the air with the gentle chirping of birds and the soothing currents of the river as they continued to flow down.
“Hey.” Nika slowly sat down next to Jack, who for his part was silently staring out into the forest at nothing in particular, still trying to untangle his thoughts. She knew that despite Sephy’s jokes to help lighten the mood, he was still shook up about the pregnant Zorn he’d tried to be merciful to, and admittedly the sight of it shook her too. There was no way any of them could have known it would do something so insanely meaningless. “That was some wild shit back there.”
“Yeah.” Jack snorted in morbid amusement.
“Hey, not your fault,” The Kizun told him bluntly. “You tried your best, that’s all you can do. What that Zorn did sucked and none of us saw it coming, but that’s on them.”
Jack nodded sadly a few times, saying nothing, until he finally let out a deep sigh. “I just don’t get it. She knew I was letting her go, I could see it in her eyes. Why would it do something like that when it was given a chance to escape?”
The Kizun wrapped her tail around the human as they sat there in silence, staring out into the ominous forest beyond before eventually answering.
“I don’t know for sure,” Nika whispered back. “But I do know that time can heal what reason cannot.”
Jack perked up at that comment curiously, having heard something similar before, but he couldn’t for the life of him recall where.
Nika snorted in amusement at his reaction. “My Sensei once told me that, but I can’t even remember what the context was. He has a habit of pulling proverbs out of his ass in almost any situation, so it’s hard to keep track of them or where to use them!”
Jack grinned. “Sounds exactly like your stereotypical sensei’s from the kung-fu movies with their ancient Chinese wisdom.”
“We get movies like that here as well.” Nika smirked. “There’s definitely a lot of them for you to catch up on when we get back!”
“Yeah.” Jack nodded, but frowned. “But we haven’t crossed the finish line yet.”
“We haven’t.” Nika shrugged. “That’s a good mentality to have on these kinds of Runs. Never get complacent, never get comfortable. And hell, we’ve barely made it past the starting line when things went to shit. Still, as long as we can do what we came here to do, we’re getting paid well at the end of it to be comfortable for a few months.”
“Yeah.” Jack nodded, looking at the Kizun warmly, already feeling much better. Out of all the members of their team, Nika seemed to be the most level-headed and practical of the bunch, and he always appreciated how she was able to keep them all grounded. Hell, he appreciated how all of his friends were able to help him deal with the horrors and living nightmares they’d encountered in their own special ways. “Still, we’re alive so far!” He joked with a dry chuckle.
“Yep!” The Kizun grinned. “Let’s try and keep that trend going!”
Jack sat there for a few more moments of quiet, the rest of his distress from the suicide of the Zorn fading away ever so slowly. He had no doubt it would still haunt him, but curiously he found he was able to cope with it better when he talked about it with the others.
“Thanks Nika, I needed that,” Jack admitted, almost afraid to admit his weakness as he looked at the Kizun in that moment.
“Any time!” She whispered, and patted him on the back, then wrapped the same arm around him. “All of us get shook up now and then, and the rest of us know you’re not as used to this shit as we are. It doesn’t completely go away, but it tends to get easier after a while.”
“You’re right. I remember those days after I first arrived at the Pallid Pit.” Jack sighed.
“If even half the shit Alora told me about that is true, you’ve grown stronger and come a long way since then.” Nika nodded.
“I never told her everything, maybe I never will,” Jack whispered. “Much of it is a blur to me now, but I was too terrified to leave the room they gave me, and I’d initially only talk to High Priestess Cornelia. I guess meeting Alora for the first time helped me heal from those times until I was considered fit enough to go to school.”
“And then you met the rest of us misfits and it all went downhill from there!” The Kizun joked, causing Jack to genuinely burst out laughing.
“Well… I’m sure it could have been worse!” Jack grinned. “At least I didn’t end up living with Luvia!”
“Hah! At least until she gets thirsty enough that she begs Alora to come live with us!” Nika cackled. “I wouldn’t put it past her!”
“Oh dear god…” Jack groaned at the prospect.
As they settled down and got into the quiet rhythm of keeping watch for any activity from the treeline, the group felt a sense of peace and calm wash over them as the excitement of the Zorn ambush. Hours passed them by as they stared out into the primeval forest, seeing nothing, though Dante occasionally stirred and gazed out, growling under his breath slightly before he abruptly stopped and laid back down as if nothing had happened.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
“Sooo…” Jack spoke up, interrupting the silence with his curiosity. He and Nika got comfortable enough to bring out the fishing rods again, though when they didn’t even get a nibble, Jack figured it was high time to start the discussion about why they were here and what they were being sent to deal with. “Do you think the Zorn have anything to do with why we’re here? We haven’t seen anything else aside from them and their beasts.”
“Possibly.” Nika shrugged, pulling up her fishing rod looking somewhat unsure. “I mean, you’ve seen what the Zorn are like at least twice now. They’re widespread like a plague and can form a large force, but they’re also primitive and aren’t really capable of higher thought. But if you throw Plague Drakes into the mix to lead them, maybe that changes? I don’t know, Plague Drakes aren’t normally spotted this close to the city, nor in this direction, but it’s not unheard of.”
“Why’s that?” Jack asked curiously.
“Hey! Chiyo!” Nika called. “Nerdage required over here!”
Now that’s just demeaning, Chiyo told them, rolling her eyes at them as she floated over with some hot drinks, handing them over to them. What about?
“Jack wants to know a bit more about the Plague Drakes, but you should probably give him the rundown on Blighttooth,” Nika bluntly told the Ilithii.
“Wait, I’m sorry, did you say ‘Blighttooth’?” Jack asked.
“Yep!” The Kizun nodded with a slight grin. “Pretty sure that asshole has an actual proper name, but I’ve never heard anyone actually call him it.”
Nalestrixxondraal, Chiyo told them grimly as she looked at Jack. ‘The Plague Dragon.’
“A dragon!?” Jack started in alarm.
“Yep!” Nika snorted. “Did you really think Luvia was the only one around?”
Yes, Chiyo continued. Blighttooth is a Dragon that's been a local threat to the city for a few centuries now. He holds domain somewhere in the wilderness North West of the city and sometimes emerges from hibernation to cause problems.
“What kind of problems?” Jack asked, suddenly wary.
Well, we just encountered them. Chiyo smiled grimly. It’s no coincidence Blighttooth has established his domain where he has…
“The Zorn.” Jack realised in a moment that should have been obvious. “They were created by the God of Disease, Gunge, right? I’m guessing they would make the perfect minions for a ‘Plague Dragon’.”
Correct! Chiyo nodded encouragingly. Originally the Zorn weren’t as widespread as they are now, but the moment Blighttooth arrived and he presented himself to them as an aspect of Gunge, they fell over themselves to worship him and will answer if called, which is fortunately rare. The Plague Drakes are all his spawn, likely created in a profane ritual involving many sacrifices of Zorn. Still, to encounter three of them this far away…
“Means that Blighttooth may be coming out of hibernation, or already has and is planning something.” Nika nodded. “We should definitely let the Temple of Hope know when we get back so they can tell the right people and prepare to deal with him again.”
Indeed. Chiyo nodded, looking to Jack. While Blighttooth has attacked the city many times before, he is normally more of a cunning schemer, though to what end isn’t fully understood. He will bide his time, whatever his plans are and wait for the perfect moment to strike.
“I take it nuking the twat from orbit isn’t an option?” Jack asked with raised eyebrows.
“Hah! I wish!” Nika grinned. “We know the general direction he’s at, but not where his actual lair is, which is probably almost as well-protected as Nightwhisper Manor.”
“Fair enough, but I had to ask!” Jack shrugged with a smirk, remembering the ominous Nightwhisper Manor from the serious warnings the others had told him when they first left the city to see the Oracle. He remembered proposing a similar solution back then too.
Some things never change…
As their journey continued, the air around them seemed to grow colder and more oppressive as the riverboat travelled deeper and deeper into the Forest of Fangs, with Chiyo shivering slightly before Nika threw her a spare jumper to pull over the one she already had on. Alora took it upon themselves to boil another pot of tea for them with a quick cantrip, causing a few of the nearby River Giants to take inspiration from the idea to warm up, getting a few tankards of hot broth more suited for their size from the common room cauldron.
“So how much further do we have to go before we land?” Jack asked the others, stretching his legs as they all reconvened at the front of the ship, still gazing out into the foreboding treeline. He couldn’t put it finger on what had changed, but something about it gave him an uneasy feeling...
“Only a couple more hours,” Sephy told them, checking something on her datapad. “Still making good time despite the ambush, so it should still be light by the time we get back on dry land.”
“Not that you’d know it here,” Nika added, pointing to the thick, overbearing canopy above that blanketed them in near-darkness. It had gotten more oppressive by this point, and the crew had relit many of the lanterns around the riverboat for visibility.
“Then we’d better get ready,” Alora told them. “We should get a lay of the land and talk to the-”
“Woof!” Dante suddenly hopped to his feet and ran to the port side of the boat, staring out into the distance, before letting out a low, aggressive growl.
Jack leapt to his feet, turning on his Shades of Seeing and bringing his heavy plasma rifle up in the direction the ‘dog’ was staring at.
“What do you see, Dante?” Jack cautiously whispered to the ‘dog’, who let out a cautious whine as he kept staring into the distance. Alora quickly joined them and checked on Dante, who’s eyes were glued onto a specific point in the distance.
I detect nothing! Chiyo told them.
“Sohla!” Alora muttered under her breath, creating three small balls of pale white light in her palm, throwing them up in the air to hover over the boat before sending the lights dancing slowly into the distance, casting ominous shadows amidst the treeline.
“Anyone see anything now?” Sephy asked as the dancing lights floated ever further away into the far distance. Dante slowly turned his head towards the Skritta and gave a low whine of worry.
“I’ve got nothing,” Nika whispered under her breath, but Jack wasn’t so sure. For just a brief moment, he could have sworn that one of the shadows looked strangely shaped, so much so that he couldn’t describe it for the life of him, but he dismissed it as a trick of the light as his eyes focused and he couldn’t see it again.
“I can’t send the lights any further,” Alora warned. “Can you not see anything?”
“No…” Jack finally answered.
But that doesn’t mean that nothing is there, Chiyo cautioned, looking at the others with a serious expression. We should stay alert and ready for anything.
“Agreed.” Jack nodded as he knelt down and patted Dante on the head while pulling out a piece of jerky. He looked at the worried ‘dog’ thoughtfully, and was reminded of the terrified look of the pregnant Zorn. “We might not be alone out here.”
Despite his best efforts to remain vigilant, Jack couldn’t shake the feeling that they were all being watched, with unseen eyes following their every move from the depths of the forest. He saw little of note, maybe the odd bird or critter out of the corner of his eye, but that did nothing to ease his mind.
“Shit, this isn’t good…” Sephy announced, as she was the first to notice it. “We’ve got fog!”
“Not what we want,” Rapids-On-Rivers grumbled under his breath. “This has happened before here, but not commonly. This will slow us down.”
Unfortunately, Jack had to agree with him. From the surrounding trees, what began as nothing more than a faint haze hovering just above the surface of the water intensified as the boat kept moving forward, as it slowly began to engulf the boat in a shroud of translucent mist.
“Crew! Full alert!” The Captain yelled, startling everybody on guard. “No rest for anybody while we navigate this fog!”
As more crew emerged from the bowels of the ship, their visibility quickly diminished as the forest around them was reduced to little more than vague shapes and shadows lurking in the gloom. Even when Jack tried to cycle through the settings of his Shades of Seeing he couldn’t see as well as he wanted to, so he settled on relying on his natural senses.
Each rustle of leaves, or crack of a branch caused the tensions to rise, until…
“Contact! Left side up ahead!” Nika called out, causing Jack to snap his gun to where Nika was looking, spotting a very slight, tiny flash of faint, white light for just a moment before it flickered out.
“What did you spot?” Alora asked, as several of the River Giants stared at the Kizun in confusion.
“I saw it too,” Jack confirmed, causing Nika to steel herself in relief that she wasn’t going crazy. “A light in the distance, right?”
Nika nodded. “Yeah, small, but it didn’t look like it was a campfire or anything.”
“You sure you two saw something?” Rapids-On-Rivers questioned, though not sounding doubtful. If anything, he sounded genuinely scared as Jack and Nika nodded emphatically.
Stay alert, Chiyo told them all. I don’t like this!
“Do you sense anything?” Sephy asked, warily. “It better not be fucking ghosts!”
I don’t know. Chiyo shuddered. My senses are…off.
“Have you encountered anything like this before?” Alora asked the nearby River Giants.
“The fog, yes,” Priestess Flows-In-Streams whispered, having joined them from below decks. “Very rare in the past, but it has appeared more frequently in recent times.”
“I take it it’s not a natural thing then?” Nika asked the priestess, the Kizun thumbing the safety on her plasma rifle as she kept her eyes open for anything else.
“No,” She replied, shaking her head. “We don’t know what it is, but we’ve always been safe as long as we’ve remained on the ship.”
“Like you’ve never been attacked by Zorn before?” Jack asked sceptically, but carried on with his reasoning to avoid causing offence. “Look, it might simply be a coincidence, but you’ve said the Zorn have never bothered you, yet here they have, and you said this fog was rare, but it’s still happening. I don’t think what you guys consider ‘normal’ applies here.”
“And this may all be connected to why we’re here,” Alora added. “But as for why we do not know. Regardless, I would urge the utmost caution.”
“You have a point,” Captain Ripples-On-Salt spoke up, raising his voice loud enough to get the attention of the crew. “Everyone! Stay alert!”
“Fuck!” Sephy yelled as raised her plasma rifle and fired a burst into the treeline, causing everyone to rush over. “I saw something over here!”
What was it, Sephy? What did it look like? Chiyo asked, quickly summoning a globe of water in her hand, ready to lash out.
“Some kind of mass skulking in the bushes over there!” Sephy pointed at a thick patch of foliage at a part of the bank that jutted out close to the ship.
“Did you get it?” Nika asked.
“Don’t think so.” Sephy shook her head. “I didn’t have much to go on!”
Are you sure you saw something? Chiyo asked Sephy, trying to be tactful, knowing Sephy didn’t react well to anything ‘spooky’. It’s easy to lose your focus in a situation like this!
“I know what I saw!” The Skritta argued. “It was there!”
“I believe you,” Jack whispered truthfully to Sephy, placing a hand on her shoulder, quickly calming her down. “There’s definitely something out there.”
A sudden gust of wind blew by, and Jack shivered as he could have sworn he heard the faint sound of malevolent giggles carried by it, before it stopped just as quickly
“Then we should be ready for anything!” Alora warned with a determined grimace, pulling out her wand, as another light flickered in the distance once again, and Jack could swear it was getting closer…