Journey to Delronia (4/18/22)

(I wrote this story during a writing class in college)

 In the mystical continent of Elordin, a pair of travelers seek to find the Delronium Kingdom. Their travels lead them to a forest known as Dariwood, known for being almost impossible to navigate. Some say it's cursed, some say the magic of the forest interferes with navigation equipment. The pair was given a choice, take an extra week to circle around the woods, or go straight through. They decided to risk the shortcut, and their decision led to them becoming utterly, desperately lost.

 "We're lost, aren't we?" said Carnegie Finn.

 "No," Dawna said bluntly with her deep orcish voice.

 Dawna was a strong half-orc. After leaving her tribe she traveled Elordin in search of a purpose, until running into a human treasure hunter named Carnegie Finn. Carnegie on the other hand, used to be an inventor- somewhat. Carnegie never actually invented anything, he would steal already existing ideas from highly developed cities, then sell those ideas at a heightened price to villages where the technology didn't exist. Eventually, he fell in love with the practice of treasure hunting, looking for long abandoned ruins in search of rare artifacts.

 “Really? Okay, tell me, which way is north?” Carnegie asked.

 “Carnegie, I have the blood from generations of orcs flowing through my veins, raised in a tribe that has explored every corner of Elordin. It would practically be heresy to my entire culture if I were to become lost; north is that way,” Dawna pointed ahead of them.

 “I thought we were going west.”

 “Well now we’re going north.”

 “Dawna, I ask you this not as your business partner, but as your friend- are we lost?”

 “... We’re lost”

 “I fucking knew it!”

 “Alright, you happy now? Great. Now go climb a tree.”

 “Wha-? Why?”

 “Up you go!”

 Dawna put her hands around Carnegie’s sides and in one movement, hurled him nearly two meters into the air. Carnegie grabbed hold of a thick branch before he could fall back down.

 “What the hell?! I could’ve been hurt!” Carnegie shouted, clutching the branch.

 “I probably would've caught you. Now go find out what’s ahead.”

 Carnegie climbed the tree one branch at a time. He was usually the acrobatic sort, but his tiredness combined with his pettiness made for a slow climb. It took a dozen minutes to get near the top, and a fall from the height would be a deathwish. Upon making it to the top, Carnegie stared at the beautiful view. A field of green leaves as far as the eye could see, blue skies where birds danced and small dragon-like drakes searched for prey. Carnegie pulled out his compass from his pocket. He steadied it on his fingers- its magnets were still being interfered by the forest even from this height.

 Focusing himself, Carnegie searched for any sign of the Delronium Kingdom’s borders, or perhaps catch sight of one of their outer territories. The two treasure hunters were not traveling to the kingdom just to go sight-seeing, they were on their own mission. They were in search of the tomb of the dead king. King Delrune, who died decades ago, and was buried under the capital city. His gravesite is said to hold priceless artifacts, along with more expensive jewelry, enough to last the treasure hunters their entire lifetime.

 As Carnegie looked at the horizon between the light sky and bushy tree tops, he saw no such structures. However, between the trees, he caught sight of a wooden structure, it looked almost like a treehouse. Analyzing the area around it, Carnegie could see small glimpses of houses and people between the leaves and branches.

 “What do you see up there?!” Shouted Dawna.

 “I think there's a village in the forest! It's a couple miles away!”

 …

 The two treasure hunters arrived at the edge of the mysterious village. They heard voices ahead, the sounds of a semi-busy town.

 “Whoever these people are, they better have some idea how to get to Delronia,” Dawna said.

 “Better have a tavern too. Or a brothel. I'd take either,” Carnegie added. There was a sign in front that said the town's name, ‘Dwindlewood’, was painted in bad handwriting on a wooden board.

 As Carnegie Finn and Dawna passed the thick treeline they were met with a village that was built into its surroundings. The village was set in a part of the woods that was significantly less dense, but the trees that remained were not cut down. Instead, the village was built into the wilderness. Trees were used as supports for some of the structures, some had ladders and ropes that lead to houses and bridges overhead. Though there were a few stone walkways, the ground was mostly made up of dirt surrounded by healthy grass. The village was full of life, people walked around laughing and conversing, going along with their daily lives- which happened to be in the middle of nowhere. As the duo walked through the village, they passed small shops and homes. One shop appeared to be carved into the large trunk of a tree, where an old merchant sat cross legged with cute wooden trinkets surrounding her. Despite the occasional stare at the lage half-orc, the village people barely took notice of the newcomers. The pair came across a tavern named the Tasty Root. The left side was built around a tree, and a branch of the tree held the sign for the tavern. Entering, they were greeted by the bartender.

 “Hello there, grab a seat wherever you'd like, i'll be with you in a minute,” he said.

 The two sat down as the man was filling a drink for another patron. Then he made his way back to their side of the bar. “Don’t see many orcish folk around here,” the bartender said, looking at Dawna. He spoke with an accent that was familiar to the orcish woman.

 “Your accent is interesting, do you happen to be from the Empire?” Dawna was of course referring to the Chirough Empire, an authoritarian regime located in the east of Elordin.

 “You haven’t been here that long I take it? Most people here are from the Empire,” replied the bartender.

 “Escapees?” asked Carnegie.

 “Precisely, my son was going to be forced into the army. He’s a gifted boy in the arts of the arcane. They wanted to use his gift to fight and die in battle, I just couldn’t let them. Most others around here have a similar story. We all found each other, and all wanted a new life. So one night we all left and met outside the walls of the capital, and made our way towards Delronia.”

 “Hey, we’re trying to get to Delronia too! So what changed? You all aren't exactly in the kingdom’s territory yet,” Carnegie said.

 “We got lost,”

 “Excuse me?” Carnegie said, his excitement deteriorating.

 “We must have messed up our navigation, bringing us to these woods. We couldn’t find a way out, so we just built a village here. Certainly the Empire won't find us in a place like this. Every once in a while people like yourself will get lost as well, and we let them stay here.”

 “So none of you know where you are?” Dawna asked.

 “Nope. Well, maybe Levenoff could help you. He's the one who organized the entire escape plan, he became our leader after the formation of the village. But he hasn't been out in public lately, you can find him somewhere in the town center. Anyway, do you two want a drink? We got the Tasty Root specialty- ‘root ale’.”

 “Root ale? That’s a weird name, so I like it. Get me one,” Carnegie said, placing a silver coin on the counter.

 “One time I ate an entire weed including its roots, it tasted alright. I’ll have one,” she said, placing a silver coin on the table as well.

 The bartender gave the travelers an ale that was poured into a one liter glass that had a small plant placed inside. The bottom of the glass was filled with the plant’s cleaned tangled roots, and a stem that peeks out of the glass with a single green leaf at the top. The bartender placed the two glasses on the table.

 “Drink up! The roots give it flavor,” he said confidently.

Stolen novel; please report.

 While Carnegie and Dawna drank their root ales, a man wandered through the door of the tavern. He sat down at the seat near Carnegie, fishing out a single silver coin from his pocket. He placed it on the counter, and looked up at the bartender with an odd gaze.

 “Whisky,” he said in an emotionless tone.

 The bartender poured the drink for him and set it on the counter. “You seem a bit pale, Davey. Are you alright,” the bartender said, clearly slightly unnerved.

 Instead of answering, Davey picked up his drink and brought it to his lips. The man began drinking the whiskey with short chugs, not stopping until all the alcohol was emptied from the glass. He did not react at all to the sting of the whiskey, not even coughing. His face was neutral, his eyes unblinking.

 The man muttered a “Thanks,” then sat up and headed towards the door.

 “Strange, he is usually much more talkative than that,” the bartender said.

 Carnegie whispered to Dawna, “Something seems off about that guy, want to follow him?”

 Dawna agreed. Carnegie began taking bigger sips of his ale while Dawna went ahead and chugged the rest of her’s down in only a few seconds. As the pair got up to leave, Dawna turned around.

 “Oh, I almost forgot. Y’all got a brothel here?” she asked.

 “Um, not that I know of,” the bartender awkwardly stated.

 “Well we’ll be on our way now, have a lovely day!” Carnegie said as he nudged Dawna out the door.

 Once outside the tavern Carnegie turned to Dawna, “How many times do I have to tell you? You can't just ask if someone’s town has a brothel! You gotta be subtle.”

 "‘Subtle’ isn't a word in the orcish language, I only knew of the concept when I learned Delronian speak.”

 Carnegie paused for a moment, “Are you being serious? Is that a joke?”

 Before he could get an answer, Dawna pointed her eyes behind him. Carnegie turned around to see the man from the bar. It was Davey, smoking some thinly-wrapped tobacco a couple shops away. He was already halfway through, taking quick breaths. He seemed to smoke the paper as if it was a robotic routine, instead of a pleasurable activity. After finishing his smoke, he wandered from the grass onto the stone walkway, towards the shopcenter. The pair followed him as he did so. The shopcenter was semi-crowded, so they had to navigate the people walking from shop to shop. For the first couple minutes that the duo staked him, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Until they realized that they weren't the only ones following Davey. A little bit in front of them, a hooded man took the same turns and routes as the man from the bar. Carnegie and Dawna were behind him, so they couldn't get a view of his face.

 Then, Davey stopped dead in his tracks. He turned his head, navigating his surroundings, much more aware and alive than he did before.

 “What? When did I get here? What the hell just happened?” he said aloud.

 People in the shop center stared as the hooded figure quickly walked behind him, Davey turned around and met his eyes.

 “Who are y-” his inquiry was interrupted by the hooded man placing his fingers on Davey’s forehead. A faint purple light emitted from his fingertips, and within a split second, Davey returned to his emotionless state.

 The people in the shop center had no clue what to do, some began awkwardly backing away, and some ran. Davey turned around and continued his wandering down the shop center. The hooded man, on the other hand, walked towards the alley of two shops. Dawna and Carnegie split up to corner him. As the hooded man was halfway down the grassy alley, he saw the large half-orc block his way.

 “Excuse me, ma’am,” he said with a soft voice.

 “No, excuse me,” Dawna said, walking towards the man. She gave him a strong push, causing him to stumble backwards.

 “Don’t worry, I got ya,” Carnegie said from behind as he caught the hooded man. Then after a short pause, pushed him back towards Dawna, who proceeded to pin him to the wall.

 “I don't know what you think I did, but you’re wrong.” The hooded man nervously said.

 “We don’t know what you did either, so kindly tell us,” Carnegie said.

 “You’re not getting anything out of me,” the man replied. In response, Dawna stuck the man in the jaw.

 “Ow! Fuck! That hurt way more than I thought it would. Fine, I’ll tell you, but leave me out of this.”

 “Go on,” Dawna said.

 “I’m a part of a group of necromancers, we’re worshippers of Daak,” the man said, removing his hood. He was a younger man in his twenties.

 “Who the hell is ‘Doc’?” asked Carnegie.

 “Daak, the Sleeping God. The faith that the races of the undead follow.” Dawna replied.

 “That man, Davey i think- he was under an enchantment. It suppresses the conscious mind, but keeps the subconscious mind. They continue their daily life, but without thoughts or free will. We gave this enchantment to random villagers around town. We already got the town leader, Levenoff. Once we got enough subjects, we would bring them all to our hideout to sacrifice them to the Sleeping God.”

 “Sounds like a pretty bad plan if you had to make such a scene back there.” Carnegie said.

 “My friends are kind of stupid, what can I say? They miscalculated how long it would last, and made me go out to fix it.”

 “Where can we find them?” asked Carnegie

 “There’s an old woman selling wooden trinkets, ask her for a trinket of a sleeping elephant.” the man said.

 “Great. Now, do you have any coin on you?” Carnegie asked.

 “What, am I getting robbed now?”

 “Yes, we need weapons to kill your friends.” Dawn said with a grin.

         …

 Carnegie Finn and Dawna walked up to the old merchant in the carved out tree trunk. She was surrounded by dozens of wooden trinkets. The old woman seemed to be blind, she had soft cloth tied on her head, covering her eyes. Due to her lack of vision,she didn't notice the multiple weapons that the duo held.

 “We’re looking for a sleeping elephant?” said Carnegie.

 “Oh, of course,” she said, moving aside the blanket she sat on, revealing a trap door.

 Below, in a dirt cave supported by the roots of the tree, four necromancers sat huddled around a black fire. They were praying to Daak, the Sleeping God. One of the necromancers had a single left arm, he seemed to be the leader.

 The one-armed necromancer spoke, “With each sacrifice, the great Daak comes closer to his reawakening. Thousands of years he’s slept, waiting for his time to strike! He’ll build his army, all that has helped his cause. Together, we’ll rule all of- what- what is that?”

 A green ball rolled towards the group, about the size of a closed fist. It stopped, then exploded into a green mist. Suddenly, large vines and roots burst from the ground. One of the necromancers was caught by these vines, which pulled him into the soft dirt ground until his entire body was buried.

 The duo emerged from the darkness, Dawna was armed with a crossbow and battle axe, while Carnegie was armed with throwing knives and a pouch full of various magical items.

 “Kill the intruders!” shouted a necromancer.

 One of the necromancers ripped a pouch open, revealing various small bones. The bones came to life, forming themselves into the form of multiple decayed bats. The bats darted towards them, Carnegie threw a glass bottle filled with static flame. Upon impact with one of the bats, it burst into a sphere of fire that engulfed the rest of them. Then the fire spiraled and imploded on itself, until fizzling into nothing but ash and dust.

 Another necromancer dashed towards Carnegie with a short sword in hand. The necromancer thrusted the sword’s tip towards his neck. He dodged the attack by turning to the side, but the necromancer proceeded to ram his elbow into Carnegie’s jaw. He stumbled in pain. The necromancer swung the short sword again, but instead of penetrating flesh, it was countered by Dawna’s battle axe. The force of the impact caused the short sword to exit his grasp, falling a few feet away. Before the necromancer could react, Dawna grabbed his arm and violently threw his body into the dirt wall. Even with the soft surface, the necromancer was knocked out cold, not to mention his dislocated shoulder.

 The leader of the group held up a dark wooden staff with his only hand, and summoned three skeletons which fell from the dirt ceiling. One was of a human, one a wolf, and one a goblin. Carnegie shot two throwing knives at the undead goblin, causing it to fall backwards into the black fire. The undead wolf lunged at Dawna with its mouth agape. Dawna held her axe over her head, and brought a powerful swing onto the wolf’s skull. The top of the wolf’s skull shattered into pieces. Dawna then took out her crossbow and aimed it at the human skeleton. Meanwhile the undead goblin jumped out of the black fire, still in flames. It ran towards Carnegie, who pulled a green vile from his pouch.

 Simultaneously, Dawna shot an iron bolt at the skeleton’s head, shattering it into pieces, while Carnegie threw the green vile at the goblin. The vile broke, splashing the green liquid onto the undead goblin. Almost immediately, the goblin’s bones began dissolving from the acidity of the liquid. The goblin froze for a moment, then fell to the ground while still dissolving.

 The necromancer leader waved his staff again, but Dawna rushed him. As a purple color emitted from the staff’s crystal, Dawna swung the axe.

 The necromancer watched in horror as his staff fell to the ground, along with his only remaining arm. He screamed in pain and crouched onto the dirt, with no arms to hold his bleeding wound.

 Both Carnegie and Dawna stared over to the last necromancer, who was already frozen with his hands waving in front of him.

 “Please don’t kill me! It was all his idea!” he pointed to the armless leader, who couldn't protest, as he was still groaning in pain. He pointed to a separate room, semi-covered by tree roots. “If you're looking for Levenoff, we held him in that room.”

 After knocking the daylights out of the last necromancer (just in case), the duo walked into the room that held the town leader. Levenoff’s mind controlling enchantment was just wearing off.

 “Where am I? What day is it? Who are you?” he said in confusion. “Wait I remember, I was abducted by hooded men. You two must have come to save me if I'm correct!”

 “I mean, yeah.” said Carnegie, with a large bruise on his cheek and jaw.

 “How could I ever repay you? Coin? Wait, even better! Would you two like to be my advisors?” Levenoff said very excitedly for someone who was going to be sacrificed.

 “Nah, we’re good… Do you know how to get to Delronia?” Dawna said with stains of blood over her clothes and face.

 “Of course! Me and the town’s wizards have been working on making compasses that aren't affected by the forest’s magic. We can give you one!” Levenoff said.

 “Fantastic!” exclaimed Carnegie, “but some gold would be appreciated as well.”

…

 After saving the town’s leader, Carnegie Finn and Dawna were seen as heroes by the town. They were given a generous amount of gold by Levenoff, as well as a magical compass that resisted the influence of the forest. The heroes went on a spending spree, and explored the beautiful forest-like town. That night, they slept comfortably in an expensive inn. The next day, the town cheered them on and waved goodbye as the heroes left the town on their journey to Delronia.

 “You know, I'm curious what happened to that younger necromancer that we let go.” Carnegie said.

 “Hm, probably, like, crying somewhere,” said Dawna.

 Unbeknownst to them, the young necromancer had but an enchantment on Carnegie. There was a small black symbol hidden on the back of his neck. With this symbol, the necromancer knew exactly where they were. Miles behind the travelers, the young necromancer slowly followed.