Chapter 4 April 21, 775 FF
The group that gathered around the cooking fire was a battered looking one. Everyone in the group was wounded, except for Kiln. Dan had needed to walk back to retrieve his sheath, which had been tossed aside as he climbed down the hill, but once he had it he had started to wrap it up again, but then he stopped. Instead he removed the Blade of Memory from its sheath and stared at the gleaming metal. He ran a finger along the edge of the blade. His hand was trembling. A moment ago Dan had felt relieved, even cheerful, but as the rush of excitement from surviving the battle faded he felt himself beginning to tremble again. He had been so afraid as he faced down the man with the hammer. Dan had failed to even land a single blow. He had been useless.
Dan watched as Hydrozeno set to work making a meal. The strange elf, the hydrablood Icepaw had called him, had been amazing. He had taken down the enemy leader and then fought alone to buy time for Dan and Icepaw to escape. He was fearless. Unlike Dan. Once Dan had aspired to become the greatest swordsman to ever live. Now he knew that would never happen. He was a coward. He had been so terrified that he could barely swing at an enemy that was trying to kill him.
Dan gritted his teeth. He was even afraid of his own dreams. Every night he would sleep and remember the wolf. Every night he would fight it and no matter what he did, it killed him. Dan resheathed the blade and felt himself curl in on himself mentally. He refused to let his body do the same. There were other people present. They would notice if he became a jibbering, crying mess.
Dan looked up at the others and blinked. He was not sure how long he had been sitting here, lost in thought, but it was evidently a while. Hydrozeno had finished cooking the soup and had already eaten half the pot on his own. He was wolfing the meal down like he had not eaten in weeks. Kiln and Icepaw were sitting across the fire from each other staring hard. Neither looked happy. Dan scooted closer to the hydrablood and whispered the question.
“What happened with those two?”
Hydrozeno’s gaze snapped up from his half eaten soup. Dan felt his muscles stiffen as the strange golden eyes locked onto him. For a moment, Dan felt as if he were simply prey and Hydrozeno the predator. Then the hydrablood relaxed and the intensity drained away.
“Your friend wants to leave immediately. He is certain that those men from earlier will return with reinforcements. He is correct.”
Dan felt the blood drain from his face.
“Shouldn’t we be moving then?”
“As soon as I am done eating we will be going.”
“I don’t mean to sound rude, but wouldn’t getting away from the men who want to kill us be more important than eating?”
“Have you ever regenerated your skull after having your head bashed in?”
Dan was taken aback by the question.
“No, I wasn’t even aware such a thing was possible except by the most powerful of divine spellcasters.”
“It takes a lot out of me to heal myself from such a wound. I need food. So shut up and let me eat.”
Hydrozeno turned back to his meal. Dan sat back and waited for him to finish. He could not help but look around. Dan kept expecting men to come charging down the road towards the group. Kiln stopped glaring at Icepaw and pulled out his maps and began to study them. After a minute he spoke.
“Those bandits retreated east along the road. If I had to hazard a guess, they have their camp near the road. I don’t know about the two of you but we are headed east to Friedmark. This will complicate things.”
Icepaw nodded.
“We were headed west. We were mostly just trying to get out of the area. The closer you get to the nation of Pars, the worse the bandit situation becomes. My suggestion to you is to turn back west then head south around the mountains and approach Friedmark from the south, through the Kingdom of the Silver Hills. The roads there are much more heavily patrolled and safer.”
Kiln sat thoughtfully for a while, then sighed.
“That is going to add weeks to the trip, maybe even a month.”
Icepaw nodded.
“It will. May I ask why you are headed to Friedmark?”
“We are looking to sign up as mercenaries or adventurers there.”
“Really? You two don’t seem the mercenary type. Do you already have some contacts there? A company to join.”
Kiln shook his head.
“No, we don’t. We figured we would head out there and see what we could find.”
Icepaw frowned.
“You are probably better off heading for the Hendrix Alliance then.”
Dan sat up straighter.
“Why?”
“While most of the fighting is occurring in Friedmark, most of the mercenary companies are actually from Hendrix. You-”
Kiln leapt up and made a shushing gesture. Icepaw immediately shut his mouth and all eyes turned to the elf who had his head cocked and a very intent look on his face.
“Put out the fire and start climbing the hill over there. I will meet you there.”
With that Kiln moved quickly but quietly off the road, his path angled to take him east along the road. He had pulled his cloak tightly around him and in the waning afternoon light he was hard to spot even for Dan who knew he was there and what to look for. The other two were quickly packing the meal setup. Incredibly, Hydrozeno was still somehow finding opportunities to gulp down more soup. Without a word, the trio began to climb the hill, hoping that whatever Kiln had heard it was not what they all feared it was. Once they reached the top, they crouched down behind a convenient cluster of bushes and small boulders to wait and watch. Dan took the opportunity to pray that the fighting was over, but his hand tightened on his sword hilt, now affixed back on his belt where it should have been to start with.
Kiln crept silently along the hillside just above the road. After a few minutes he saw them. A man running along the road had joined a small group that was hiding in a cluster of large rocks further down the road. It was an ambush. Six men waited. Kiln could see the surviving axman and the man with the hammer. They were joined by two men with swords, a man with a bow, and a man with a staff. Kiln felt a chill run down his spine.
Kiln and his companions had held off the earlier group, but just barely. If the remaining two men had decided to push they would have very likely killed everyone but Kiln himself, Kiln could have likely killed one of them, possibly both of them. It made sense for them to retreat. If they had reinforcements then it meant they could slaughter Kiln’s entire group without risking anyone else.
Unnoticed by the men below, Kiln slowly began to backtrack to the hill he had sent everyone to. Everyone gave a start as he settled down next to them.
“They are here. They brought four more with them. One is an archer and another might be a mage.”
Icepaw’s ears twitched.
“That is not good. I didn’t expect them to return so quickly.”
Dan’s eyes were wide with fear.
“We barely survived the last fight. If they find us we are dead.”
Icepaw nodded slowly while Hydrozeno snarled quietly.
“I agree.”
“Let them try!”
Three pairs of eyes slowly turned to stare at Hydrozeno, who shifted uncomfortably.
“What?”
Icepaw sighed.
“Hydrozeno, you are very tough to kill but even you need to rest in between fights to the death. Anyways, we should get moving. I take it they are coming up the road from the east?”
Kiln shrugged.
“Maybe? They were hiding just off the road like they were waiting for us.”
Dan’s face scrunched up in confusion.
“Wait, do they think we are just going to go strolling down the road in the direction we saw them run?”
“Maybe. I think one of them saw us gathered here around the fire and told the others. So they could just be waiting for night. Maybe they think we are just dumb and will sit here and eat soup.”
Kiln looked pointedly at Icepaw, who flattened his ears and looked away in embarrassment.
“I thought it would take longer for them to get back to their base of operations.”
Dan frowned. There was a lot of frowning going on right now Kiln thought to himself as Dan spoke up.
“That implies that you know where their base is and who they are.”
The Kitsune squirmed slightly.
“Possibly.”
“Will they leave us alone if we get far enough away?”
“Possibly.”
Kiln stared pointedly at Icepaw and voiced his growing suspicions.
“You two weren’t ordinary travelers on the road getting mugged by random bandits, are you?”
Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.
Icepaw reluctantly shook his head. Dan groaned and looked at Kiln.
“Do we ditch them?”
Kiln carefully considered the question then shook his head in disgust.
“I don’t think splitting up is a great idea. Those men seem like they might chase us and will undoubtedly try to follow. We did kill one of them and there is a chance that the group they would follow would be us if they had to follow one group or the other and then we would be alone against them.”
Kiln turned to Icepaw.
“Did you kill or hurt someone?.”
“Not until the fight. They think we have something of theirs.”
“Do you?”
“No!”
Kiln narrowed his eyes. While this could all just be a misunderstanding, he highly doubted it.
“Do you know where it is?”
Icepaw hesitated before nodding. Kiln closed his eyes. Clearly Icepaw and Hydrozeno did something and Kiln did not want to get involved, but Hydrozeno was clearly some kind of elf and that made him kin. Elves were few and far between outside of the mountain tribes. Kiln also recognized that Icepaw also had the decency to not lie to his face even if it might have been better for him to. Those two facts decided him.
“We need to leave now. Clearly the other group expects us to wait here for a bit since that is what we have already done by starting a cooking fire and it's almost dark. My guess is they will attack once the sun goes down. The fire will be a beacon to them. The other group is all human, which means they can’t see in the dark. Let’s take ten minutes to rig up some dummies then get moving. If we travel all night we can get a good head start.”
Dan shifted awkwardly.
“Kiln, I can’t see in the dark and I don’t have a light spell.”
Kiln nodded
“That’s fine. I can and I am guessing Hydrozeno and Icepaw can too, they can help you.”
Icepaw nodded in relief.
“We can. If we head west about two miles there is a road that turns south.”
Kiln shook his head.
“We aren’t going to use the road. We will go cross country. You three will move ahead going south while I follow and cover our trail. Unless one of them has tracking skills, that should let us lose them easily. Once we lose them we can cut back to the road.”
Dan groaned.
“I hate it when you make me walk through the middle of nowhere.”
Kiln rolled his eyes.
“Would you prefer to stay and fight?”
“No.”
“That’s settled then.”
Hydrozeno looked concerned.
“What about food?”
“You can go a few days without.”
Icepaw’s ears immediately shot up and his tail began to wave wildly in agitation.
“Not a good idea.”
Kiln felt his stomach sink. He didn’t know why but he could tell he wouldn’t like the answer he was about to get.”
“Why not?”
Icepaw fidgeted before explaining.
“Hydrozeno needs a lot of food to maintain his metabolism and I mean A LOT of food. Especially after he regenerates from a significant injury.”
“How much exactly?”
Icepaw grinned nervously.
“He can eat as much as all of us combined on a normal day. After a fight like earlier, he will need at least twice as much.”
Kiln and Dan both turned and stared at the Hydrablood. He met their gazes with his own. His golden eyes bore unnervingly into theirs, his face impassive as he shrugged.
“What happens if he doesn’t get it?”
Dan’s voice was nervous as he asked the question.
“Have you heard of the term ‘hangry’?”
“Yes.”
“Multiply your understanding of that by the size of Hydrozeno’s appetite. Then multiply that number by the same amount again.”
“Oh.”
Kiln gritted his teeth.
“I will find a deer for him to carry.”
Name: Hydrozeno
Age: 18
Race: Hydrablood Elf
Mana:
Blessings:
Scimitar of Flame: Level 1 0/2 Does 1 point of fire damage
Bag of the Companion
Health Level 2 2/4 Health 2/2
Claws Level 2 2/4
Bite Level 2 3/4
Fur Level 1 1/2
Skills:
Health: 1/22
Base Defense: 4
Longevity: Level 4 3/16
Darkvision: Level 4 3/16
Bow Range: Level 1 0/2
Bow Damage: Level 3 3/8
Bow Accuracy: Level 3 0/8
Regeneration: Level 9 8/256 9/9 points used
Regeneration: Level 3 0/4
Instant Regeneration: Level 3 1/4 1/3 healing points remaining
Swimming: Level 2 3/4
Scimitar Accuracy: Level 3 0/8
Scimitar Damage: Level 3 0/8
Scimitar Parry: Level 1 1/2
Light Armor: Level 1 0/2
Acidic Blood: Level 1 0/2
Cooking: Level 1 0/2
Intimidation: Level 2 0/4
Poison resistance: Level 1 0/2
Shield: Level 1 0/2
Name: Icepaw
Age: 18
Race: Beastman
Mana:
Basic Mana 0/3
Water Mana 1/1
Blessings:
Rapier of the Frozen Level 2 0/4 Adds 2 point of ice damage per mana spent
Coat of Changing Level 3 0/8 Adds 3 levels to Illusion magic and spells
Skills:
Health 6/21
Base Defense: 0
Darkvision: Level 4 3/16
Animal Handling: Level 4 3/16
Unarmed Accuracy: Level 1 0/2
Unarmed Damage: Level 1 0/2
Unarmed Evasion: Level 2 3/4
Tracking: Level 2 1/4
Survival: Level 2 0/4
Climbing: Level 3 0/8
Basic Mana: Level 3 0/8
Crafted Illusion: Level 3(6) 0/8 3(6)/3(6) point used
Illusion Size: Level 2 0/4 Illusion has max size of 2 foot squared
Illusion Duration: Level 2 0/4 Illusion lasts 10 seconds per mana spent
Disguise Self: Level 2(5) 2/4 disguises oneself in an illusion for 2(5) minutes per mana spent
Sleight of Hand: Level 1 0/2
Sailing: Level 1 0/2
Perception: Level 2 1/4
Insight: Level 1 1/2
Water Mana: Level 1 0/2
Rapier Damage: Level 1 0/2
Rapier Accuracy: Level 1 0/2
Rapier parry: Level 1 0/2
Name: Kilnoher
Age: 18
Race: Elf
Mana
Nature Mana: 1/1
Earth Mana: 1/1
Body Mana: 1/1
Blessings:
Longbow of Sight: Level 1 0/2 Doubles your bow range and darkvision
Cloak of Shadows: Shadow Stealth Level 1 1/2 Increase your stealth level by the level of this cloak
Skills:
Health: 21/21
Base Defense: 0
Longevity: Level 4 3/16 Your lifespan in increase by 4 years
Darkvision: Level 4 3/16 You can see perfectly in the dark for up to 40(80) feet.
Bow range: Level 3 0/8 You bow range is 53(106) feet
Bow Accuracy: Level 2 1/4
Bow damage: Level 1 0/2
Nature Mana: Level 1 1/2
Earth Mana: Level 1 0/2
Stealth: Level 2(3) 0/4
Tracking: Level 2 0/4
Perception: Level 1 0/2
Body Mana: Level 1 0/2
Speed Boost Spell: Level 2 0/4 2/2 points used
Speed increase: Level 1 0/2 1%
Boost Duration: Level 1 0/2 1 seconds per point of body mana used
Sense Animals: Level 1 0/2 You can sense the presence of animal in a range of up to 100 feet for 1 second per nature mana used
Cartography: Level 1 0/2
Magic Items
Boots of speed: Increases speed by 1% for 1 minute for every 99 mana imbued
Current Mana Charge: 61
Name: Dan Del Torre
Age:18
Race: Human
Mana:
Basic Mana: 2/2
Body Mana 2/2
Blessings:
Blade of Memory: Relive the past of those you have slain and gain their experience
Wand of Binding: Level 2 0/2 2/2 points used
Charges level 1 0/2 1/1 charges(regains 1 charge per day)
Binding Duration: Level 1 0/2 Binding lasts 10 seconds
Skills:
Health: 9/19
Base defense: 1
Basic mana: Level 2 0/4
Body Mana: Level 2 0/4
Enchantment- Imbue Item(Skill Enhancement): Level 2 0/4 2/2 point used(requires 12 hour ritual and 1 gold per mana used)
Skill Enhancement increase: Level 1 0/2 Increases chosen skill by 1 level per 100(99) mana imbued
Skill Enhancement Duration: Level 1 0/2 Imbuement lasts 1 minutes per 100(99) mana imbued
Imbuement Item Recharge: Level 0 0/1 item recharges 0 mana per day
Longsword Accuracy: Level 3 0/8
Longsword Damage: Level 2 0/4
Longsword Parry: Level 3 1/8
Mana Circle(chosen skill): Level 2 1/4 Inscribe up to a level 2 mana circle on an object that will gather 1 mana per day per level. The inscriber may withdraw the mana at their leisure. Costs 100 gold to create per level or upgrade. Requires 12 hours uninterrupted to inscribe
Light Armor: Level 1 0/2
Mana Sight: Level 1 0/2 Can see mana at a range of 1 foot and 1% chance to identify its type
Magic resistance: Level 1 0/2
Enchantment Magic Mana Cost Reduction: Level 1 0/2 reduce enchantment costs by 1%
Speed Boost: Level 2 0/4 2/2 points used
Speed increase: Level 1 0/2 1%
Boost Duration: Level 1 0/2 1 seconds per point of body mana used
Strength boost: Level 2 0/4 2/2 points used
Strength increase: Level 1 0/2 1%
Boost Duration: Level 1 0/2 1 seconds per point of body mana used
Defense boost: Level 2 0/4 2/2 points used
Defense increase: Level 1 0/2 1%
Boost Duration: Level 1 0/2 1 seconds per point of body mana used
Weapon Enhancement(Temporary): Level 2 0/4 2/2 points use
Weapon Damage: Level 1 0/2 Increased by 1 level per 100(99) mana used
Boost Duration: Level 1 0/2 1 attack per 100(99) mana used
Armor Enhancement(Temporary): Level 2 0/4 2/2 points use
Armor Level: Level 1 0/2 Increased by 1 level per 100(99) mana used
Boost Duration: Level 1 0/2 Endures 1 attack per 100(99) mana used
Magic Items
Sword Belt- Inscribed with level 1 magic circle
Current Mana:
1 Basic mana
177 body mana