Chapter 85: Under Siege
As Tom sat on the table, just having washed down a pair of painkillers, he took a second to appreciate the scene. All these different faces. None of them familiar, most of them fucked up, but all of them alive. Even if he didn't know how many there used to be here. They had properly closed the neck wound, but his other injuries had only been bandaged up. The worst one had been the cut to his side from the stinger. It burned with a vengeance, likely due to the poison involved. It had gotten better after they had cleaned it though, so that was something.
Jackalope was currently being tended to by the healer woman. Jarix was still being looked at. Apparently, the impact had knocked out his shoulder. Putting that back in had been sounded like the world's largest dog being stepped on. Tom was absolutely amazed the dragon hadn't broken anything, he had felt the collision in his chest after all.
“You good there… whatever you are?” Luke questioned from behind him.
“Not quite sure,” Tom replied, not knowing what else to say to that.
“Mind filling me in on what the fuck just happened?”
“Can’t you ask Zarko? I think she’s got a better grasp of that,” Tom tried to dismiss him.
“Uhm… Sure… You were Tom right?”
“Yup.”
“I just wanna say thank you. The dragon is a bit distracted right now so I guess you will do.” Right on cue, Jarix let out another groaning whimper as one more arrow was yanked out. Looking at Jarix, he looked almost part pincushion right now. There were dozens of arrows embedded in his back.
“Couldn’t take another one.”
“Another what?”
“Sir, Lord, whatever…”
“Lukano, but Just Luke, that’s fine” the dragonette interrupted, though he sounded mostly apologetic rather than rude.
“Luke then… They burned down Hylsdal. They took everyone. We only found the kids ‘cause they hid them underground… couldn’t let that happen again.”
“Well you might not look like it, but you sure sound noble,” the dragonette replied, sounding like he was trying to cheer Tom up.
“How many did you lose?”
“Mostly wounded, but we got 4 dead and two missing. We couldn’t even count how many of them there were. It was fifty easily though. I have to ask... How did you kill that many?”
“Hate and firepower,” Tom replied, looking back at Luke. “And a fair amount of luck. If you want to thank someone, thank him,” Tom continued, pointing at Jarix.
“Oh, I have…” Luke replied in an uncertain voice, glancing at Jarix “What of the other dragon? We couldn’t see him. Did he fly off into the night? Not that I would blame him; that would be very smart.” He sounded almost like he was worried he had just insulted Tom with that insinuation.
“You are looking at him, Luke,” the female dragonette who had attacked him went before Tom could respond, walking up. “I have no clue what he is, but he spews fire and death, unlike anything. Also sorry about earlier.” Tom nodded at her. How was she supposed to know after all?
“So it was you that made the explosions?”
“Yeah, I’m a powerful fire mage,” Tom replied, not having the energy to put in much effort. “And I’m quite tired right now, so no magic tricks… Did anyone get hurt when I blew up the lower level?” Tom hadn’t noticed any deaf dragonettes running around, so he hoped not.
“No, fortunately not. You did give us the scare of our lives though… quite a few times in fact.”
“Are the kids here okay?”
“They are quite safe, thanks to you people.” Luke looked like he wanted to give Tom a punch to the shoulder. He did clearly think better of it though, Tom giving him a weak smile. Luke bowed slightly, walking away. There was plenty to do, though the sound of fighting had seemingly ceased.
“Luke, what were those bat things?” Tom interjected as Luke walked to leave.
“I was hoping you could tell me…” He replied, turning back.
“Well that’s just brilliant,” Tom sighed.
“Fucking arseholes, that's what,” Jarix replied with a considerable amount of malice in his voice. “And cheaters.”
“Bats can see in the dark, Jarix,” Tom replied in a normal tone. He knew the dragon could hear him just fine. “In fact they use sound to see”
“That still doesn't make it fair. Auu! It’s cheating!”
“You breathe lightning; that’s hardly fair either. Fights shouldn’t be fair anyway. Those are for suckers, and you did well. Extremely well in fact.”
“Are you kidding me? How many do you think you killed?” Jarix replied.
“The ones I needed to. All but three were dead anyway,” Tom replied gingerly, trying to stand up. Someone, who themselves looked beaten to shit, came over to give him a hand.
The two of them hobbled over to Jackalope who was also lying on a table, but up on her side. Her breastplate had been removed and the bolt taken out. Currently, someone was applying some herbal looking stuff to the wound, along with bandages, much like what had been done to Tom’s neck.
He sat down in front of her with a smile. She moved to open her mouth. Tom just put a finger on her snout. She needed to be still right now he reckoned. She did bring a hand up to caress his face though and smiled a bit, even if her face betrayed just how much pain she was in right now.
“Is it okay if she drinks some water?” Tom asked, looking to the one applying bandages.
“Should be fine. Just don’t make her move or shout or anything like that please.” The dragonette sounded tired as all hell. Tom guessed they had been treating the wounded for a while even before the shit show had kicked off.
He brought up the painkillers, taking one out and gesturing for Jackalope to open her mouth. She did so as he put the small pill in her mouth, unscrewing his flask for her. She turned her head 90 degrees to the side looking up into the ceiling, drinking in deep gulps before handing the flask back.
Tom still had to get used to that. It wasn’t any different than when they had a drink in flight though. But still that looked weird.
“There we go, you crazy bastard,” Tom went, setting the flask aside before laying his arms on the table resting his head on them. He felt tired enough to sleep standing; how much the blood loss had to do with that he didn't know but he would sleep just fine here for now. The fact that Jackalope moved her head in closer didn’t hurt either.
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“So we travel with you now?”
“I guess so. Someone apparently has to keep you from being murdered in the night,” Maiko replied. He didn't seem to have much of a problem with the arrangement. Nor did Sapphire, though she had worried they might get that Latori guy. Sure, he was probably the most useful in their current situation, but he didn’t seem like very interesting company. Maiko also knew where he was going, so that was a big plus.
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The plan for the day, following the unorthodox start, was to go to Tink’s place. This time trying to ensure they weren't followed. They landed early, took several turns, and had a bit to eat following the slightly rushed breakfast. They hadn’t spotted anyone though.
“They just tried to scare you. Hiring a bunch of people to do a flyby and look scary isn't that expensive. Now they need to figure out if it worked. Then they might spend a bit more. I’m guessing that's why I’m actually here.”
“You think you would make the difference in a fight?” Dakota questioned, clearly trying not to insult the dude. Makio didn't even flinch though.
“Nah, my armor says Royal Guard on it. That makes the proposition a lot more expensive.”
“Huh,” was all Sapphire got out at that.
“Don't worry, if they are dumb enough to attack me they will have a whole new order of problems to deal with. Now are you done? I wanna see what Tom gave to that crazy guy you found.”
“We better get cracking. I hope you're not afraid of possible explosions,” Dakota replied, getting up. Earning a slightly worried look from Maiko.
They had made it mostly to the workshop before the food break, so they did the last bit on foot. Stepping into the workshop, it was clear Tink hadn’t been waiting for them before getting started.
“You’ve been busy.”
“Why yes, of course, this is so very exciting. Are you sure this oil is enough to keep it from touching? Oh, a new friend! Pleased to meet you. I’m Tink; this is Tink Junior,” Tink went, holding out a dirty hand.
Maiko took it, looking a bit strained, but remaining polite. “Corporal Maiko, Royal Guard.”
“Yes, I knew you were a real one,” Junior let out, clearly excited. “Are you dragon crew? Who do you fly with?” Junior continued, seemingly barely able to restrain himself. Maiko seemed to find it rather amusing though, so no harm done in Sapphire’s book.
“I fly with Baron and Colonel Hashaw.” Junior’s eyes went wide as he looked at the corporal.
“That’s so cool!”
“So what you’re doing here? You're working for Tom. He got a dragon to work for him not the other way around after all.”
‘Ha. Someone's a showman,’ Sapphire mused to herself.
“Did he really?” Junior questioned, turning to Dakota.
“Sort of, I guess. Sapphire, Tink asked about the wire oil. What do you think?” Dakota replied, deflecting the question and looking to Sapphire.
“Damned if I know. He put some of it on there and let it sit for a few hours till it dried,” Sapphire replied. She didn't know how that electricity stuff really worked. “I’m not sure the wire will even work. It was made by a musician wasn’t it?”
“A luthier specifically and it better be. That the guy told me I was being an idiot five times before he agreed to make it, because copper strings were a stupid idea.” Junior responded. He had been responsible for acquiring the wire and had been in a foul mood when he returned yesterday. At least he was cheered up now though, thanks to Maiko.
“Well, it’s dry already so we need to wind it around this piece of iron. I still don't get why he didn't want some good nice steel.”
“It said iron so we use iron,” Dakota replied, leaving no room for wiggling. They had learned that the hard way already. Tink did like to ‘Improve’ things as it turned out.
“What exactly are we doing?” the clearly quite confused Maiko questioned, inspecting the magnet.
“We are building an electrical nagnet to make more small nagnets for making navigation devices,” Dakota responded, looking slightly worried at the device.
“Huh. And it might explode?”
“Oh no, it won’t. I have followed the instructions exactly. Well except for the wire thickness… and the number of coils, but that will give the same amount of copper, so that should be good… then the oil that has been sitting overnight to dry so that's good. Then comes the power source,” Tink started rattling off, enthusiasm unimpeded.
“That sounds explodey,” Maikoe interjected.
“Only a small chance by my reckoning.”
“That means keep your distance and plug your ears,” Sapphire cut him off, looking at Maiko with a serious expression. “It hurts a lot otherwise.”
“Okay then, I’ll just stay over here.”
“Oh come on, you’re the one in armor and afraid of nothing,” Junior went, sounding dead serious.
“Uhm.. okay, how does it work?”
The explanation took a bit, but then again there was quite a bit of wiring to do so it nearly canceled out. It was a tedious job, though it was nowhere near as bad as that strange “motor” thing Tom had been making for a while.
“So we put the plates in there. This thing starts to attract metal and we run it along this nail to see if it works…” Dakota was trying to sound confident, but this just seemed too absurd to be true.
“And I put the plates in the jar then look away?” Maiko questioned, clearly not convinced either. Okay here goes nothing.”
Sapphire stepped a few paces back along with Dakota and Balethon. Leaving the others to try it out. She was rather happy they had gotten their hands on a fearless member of the Royal Guard, otherwise, they would likely have had to force Balethon to do it.
As the plates went in nothing seemed to happen though, until Tink put the nail in the end of the iron bar.
“It sticks!” He let out in triumph.
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When Tom woke up again, he felt like he had been run over by a truck. Perhaps sleeping sitting at a table hadn’t been the smartest. Jackalope was still sleeping soundly and snoring, her head now lying on top of him. His head was throbbing painfully and he was thirsty as hell, not to mention his heart was pounding in his chest.
Tom gently maneuvered out from under Jackalope’s head, laying it down on the table. He downed what was left of his water bottle, taking stock of the situation. Jackalope was out cold, as were most of the people around him. A few were walking around checking up on the wounded. The healer who had worked on him was slumped against the wall. Zarko was currently sleeping on Jarix's back.
Jarix looked a lot better now that the arrows had been removed. ‘He needs a treat after this one,’ Tom thought to himself, looking to Jackalope. “And so do you, that’s for damn sure.” He tried listening for the tell-tell sounds of battle, but there was silence. In fact, Jackalope’s snoring was about the loudest thing he could hear.
He was still rather dizzy. ‘How much blood did I lose?’ he questioned himself, looking down at his very blood-soaked clothes. “That’s not gonna wash out.” They had taken his vest off, though he still had the shirt on and it was soaked in blood all the way down. His pants were too, in fact, now that he got a proper look. God, he looked like shit, covered in mud and blood: some of it his, some of it Jacky’s, and there had to be vargulf in there too.
“You emm… want to wash?” Someone asked from behind him. He turned to see a young woman, maybe 15 or 16 years old, holding a bucket .
“Yes, thank you,” Tom replied, taking the bucket and going about stripping off the ruined clothes.
“Are you some kind of monster?”
“I hope not. Do I look like one?”
“I’m sorry I didn’t mea…
“Nothing to be sorry for,” Tom cut her off. “Could you get another bucket for Jacky?”
“Certainly, right away. I could wash your clothes too.” Tom looked up at the girl from his impromptu wash. “Sure. How are you guys doing on food?”
“Oh we're good, want me to get you something to eat too?”
“That would be great. I’m starving.”
“Sure, I’ll be right back,” the girl went, scampering off to what was left of the kitchen, leaving Tom in his undies. He almost wanted to stop her from going down there. It had to be a mess, all things considered, it certainly had been yesterday.
He continued with the washing, rinsing off the worst of the muck. His wounds had been cleaned but the rest of him sure as hell needed a wash. The few people who were up and about were staring quite a lot too. The girl soon returned with another bucket, going back for the food. Tom set about trying to wash Jackalope, more blood had leaked from her ears and mouth as she slept.
“You just had to pull those fingers out, huh?” He asked her, receiving a snore in reply. “It was fucking crazy, though. Jarix did great. Zarko blew them to kingdom come… you’re deaf, but they are all dead. And save my ass twice… Thanks for that by the way,” he went, caressing her cheek before moving to wash off her arms and legs.
“I think it’s thank you, young one,” he heard the old granny go from behind him.
“You’re up early,” Tom replied, turning back to look at her, getting his first look. She looked proper old. She was wrinkly, slightly sunken in the face, and slumped over quite a bit, using a walking stick.
“A worried mother always is,” she replied, looking around the room. “I know not how to repay you.”
“Get the children to safety from that forest. I can’t do it. Kinda lacking in the wings department.”
“Oh you poor thing. I still remember flying around by myself. Still… I think you have an alternative,” she continued, looking at him knowingly before looking at Jackalope. “Luke says they are still outside, but they don’t know what to do. If we go out there he says they will attack us.” Tom looked over to where his stuff had been set down.
“More fighting then.”
“I’m afraid so. But don’t you worry yourself with that, Luke will figure it out I’m sure. You have done so much. You all have. I recognize young Jackalope, but where are you all from?” She questioned, gesturing towards Tom then over to Jarix.
“Also Bizmati keep. I’m training our big blue friend there. Zarko is his navigator.”
“My, my, you must be quite something… Oh who am I kidding, you killed all three of them, correct?”
“Sorta. Jacky pretty much got one of them. I just made sure it stayed down.”
“Do you know why they came here?” The old lady continued, hand starting to wobble a bit on her cane, free hand fidgeting.
“Please Lady Deriva, sit down.” Tom gestured the lady over towards his things, rummaging around for the knife.
“Oh, such a gentleman. Thank you,” she replied, clearly trying to hold it together.
“I found this.” Tom presented the blade. “Bizmati Keep was attacked over a month ago, and they were looking for a blade just like this,” he continued, placing the knife on the table. “They didn't get it though, so I’m guessing there are more than one.”
“But if they already had it… why did they come to my keep?” The old lady continued, tears starting to well up in her eyes.
“I can’t tell you, ma’am. I’m sorry.”
“No! Don’t you dare say you’re sorry, young man. Not with what you did. I will go find Luke. We must retrieve the kids. Maybe… maybe he’s figured it out,” the Lady replied, slowly standing up.
The girl had returned with a nice hot bowl of stew. Taking the old lady by the arm, she led her back down into the kitchen. Tom picked up the bowl and walked back over to Jackalope, placing it in front of her face as he sat down to eat.
It didn't take too long for that to work as she started stirring, sniffing the air, before her eyes slowly opened, looking at him intently before they flicked down to the bowl of stew.