Beth stared at the collapsed opening. Bel could hear her sister muttering to herself, an artistic combination of curses and imprecations at the “incompetent, lizard-licking, crotch-huffers” who had messed up her plans.
James pointed at the rubble. “So… was that the entrance?” James asked. “It looks like someone blew it up.”
Beth rolled her eyes. “Wow, you’re so observant you must have been blessed by Hyperion himself!”
Beth gestured angrily. “Of course it’s the entrance we were looking for. It won’t stay closed for long – even if nobody comes back to open it, it won’t be long before something large and dangerous busts its way out. And of course the little essence corrupted buggers will find small cracks and seams to squeeze through.”
She rubbed the handle of one of her daggers angrily. “Not that knowing it’s temporary does us any good.”
Bel looked around for signs of violence. “Where are the delvers? And Technis’ overseers? Do you think they collapsed it because something dangerous was coming out?”
Beth peered at the fallen debris. “Well, something must have happened, but I can’t see what. If there was any evidence, it’s probably buried now.”
She gestured with clear discontent at the debris.
James clicked his fingers. “That priest in Baytown said that they needed volunteers for something, right? Maybe there’s been some kind of disaster.”
“Well, maybe.” Her expression brightened. “If that’s true, then that’s good for us, right?”
She grinned. “We’re stuck out in the open now, so it would be convenient if they’re all distracted. Although…”
Beth pursed her lips and looked farther uphill. “I think that there are some ventilation shafts further up. If we can find one and get it open we’ll still be able to travel through the tunnels.”
Beth gestured towards a small trail that emerged on the far side of the rubble. “C’mon, let’s get somewhere less popular before we have to make camp for the night. We’ll look for another entrance tomorrow.”
Bel stared at the strenuous walk ahead of them. “I don’t suppose that we could just… walk around the hill instead of going over it? It’s getting dark, and my legs are cramping.”
Beth tapped her fingers against one of her daggers as she examined the young gorgon. “Yeah… But you know, I bet that the ritual would fix you right up. Maybe this’ll be the last night where you’re struggling.”
Bel perked up. “Wait, really?”
Beth nodded. “Sure. Probably. We just need somewhere to do the ritual.” She looked at the collapsed tunnel again. “The tunnels are actually a perfect place. They’re nice and secluded, and closer to the Heart of Olympos. The gods are supposed to like that.”
Beth tossed her braids over her shoulder. “Yup, that’s what we’ll do. Get into the tunnels, do your ritual, and then we can do all the other stuff.”
“Wait,” James interrupted, “what other stuff?”
Beth put her fingers together into a quiet clap. “Focus! Let’s get climbing! We’ll make camp, and then first thing tomorrow we’ll find that ventilation shaft.”
James grumbled, but he still started walking after Beth.
Beth looked back at the two of them. Bel tried to straighten her back and look tough, but it must have come off as pitiful because her older sister paused to give her a reassuring smile.
“Hey, there’s a great spot up ahead,” Beth chirped. “A big rockslide cleared out a scenic overlook. How about that for incentive? We’ll be able to see the sun set over the entire valley.”
Bel smiled back. Ever since her first time seeing the sky, Bel had been a sucker for scenic overlooks.
“Wait,” James objected, “you want us to stand on a rockslide? Isn’t that dangerous?”
“It happened years ago. I’d hardly call it a risk. It’s not like the rocks can fall twice, right?”
James tousled his hair with frustration. “God, and you people have a life expectancy of what? 30? At least I won’t need to worry about cancer here.”
Beth sniffed at his insults. “Don’t use your foreign words on me, kid. Hurry up.”
“Hey Beth,” Bel panted, “how do you know so much about the area? Have you–”
She paused to pull herself over a particularly rocky incline. “Have you lived in the hills before? I thought you grew up in a city?”
“I’ve been through these hills before, sure. I spent a little time with the delvers around here when I was searching for my purpose in life.”
Bel and James shared a look. Beth was always vague about her past, but they’d been chiseling away at her secrets for years. James nodded at her, and Bel continued her careful probing.
“Do you still have any delver friends?”
“Friends? I wouldn’t call them that. Technis’ overseers discourage fraternizing.” The mysterious woman turned back to smirk at them. “They wouldn’t want us getting any ideas and such.”
Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.
“Even if you aren’t on one of the chain gangs? You weren’t in one of the gangs, were you?”
Beth scoffed; a short, bitter sound. “They treated all delvers like criminals, even if you were a free volunteer.”
“Sounds like everywhere else in Satrap,” James stated bluntly. “So why’d you join?”
Beth made a humming sound as she considered his question. “Well, at the time – ah, shit.”
Bel and James looked around in alarm. Bel dropped her hand to the short sword that had been thumping into her thigh while James pulled out his sling.
Beth made a down gesture with her hand. “Nothing’s going to attack us, but you should probably see this.”
She clicked her tongue with frustration. “I knew it was coming, but this is a little bit too soon.” She flicked her braids over her shoulder and cursed. “Crows, this is going to make things more complicated.”
James reached the top of the incline a few steps ahead of Bel and came to an abrupt halt, blocking her view. She grumbled at his lack of care and made her way around him. She gave him an angry side-eye as she passed, but her annoyance was immediately swept away by the view.
Bel found herself standing on a large rock in front of a sheer drop. Her sight was unobstructed; the rocks below them were fresh and bare of trees, giving her a clear view of the valley below. Her eyes followed a wide and wild river that wound its way through verdant fields dotted with late blooming wildflowers and the occasional tree. No mountain blocked the light entering the valley, so, although the shadows stretched long, the scene was still illuminated. At any other time she thought that the sight would have taken her breath away. Now though, the activity on a bridge held all of Bel’s attention.
The bridge spanned the river at a relatively straight section, forming a wide wooden causeway that was supported with tall posts twice as wide as a person driven into the riverbed at regular intervals. Bel guessed that it was wide enough for two wagons to pass one another with room to spare, but it was currently filled with people – and none of them were crossing. She could see that the people on the western side were attempting to cross, but those on the eastern side, closer to her, were fighting to stop them.
Her eyes flicked to the brief flashes of light and puffs of smoke from what she thought must have been spells, but it was too far away and too dark for her to make out the details. The river downstream of the bridge churned with fresh blood, and Bel could see a continual stream of bodies going over the edge only to be swept away by the current. Bel’s eyes widened at the sheer pace of death. James had described war to her, but she had never seen death coming so quickly. It made her wonder how there were still any people left with how quickly they were dying.
With an application of will, Bel was finally able to pull her attention away from the fighting itself. Looking around she noticed some of the flags on the near shore. She pointed at a colorful wisp of cloth that was fluttering in the light breeze. “Is that the Baytown flag? The yellow wheel on white?”
Beth nodded. “Looks like it. They must be trying to hold the river crossing. The Cobalt is too wide to cross while someone’s shooting arrows at you so it’s easy to guard. It carves a sheer canyon through the hills under us before heading straight to Baytown, so this is the best crossing point.”
James pointed at the fighting. “Are those guns? Why are there guns in this fantasy world?”
Bel squinted. “Guns are those exploding arrow things, right?”
“They’re flintlocks, I think,” Beth answered. “Something new from Technis’ military academy, but they aren’t standard issue, at least not yet. If they have a bunch of them here then the Baytown militia must have been prepared for this.”
Beth spun her bracelets with agitation as she glared at the carnage.
James pointed to more movement below them. “Look, they’ve messed up. Some of the other people are already across the bridge.”
Bel looked where James pointed and saw that a third group of people-smudges, smaller than the first two, was streaming out of some dense woods to the north of the river perhaps a few thousand strides away from the fighting. She gaped as they ate up the ground between them and the militia like a hungry tide.
Bel couldn’t understand why anyone would rush into possible death like that, but the newcomers put their mana enhanced muscles to work and closed the gap in just a few minutes. Bel, James, and Beth were gripped with silence as the dull colors of the third group joined battle with the Baytown militia. The new group, dressed in dark blacks and browns, seemed to be overpowering the Baytown white and yellow like a dark pigment spilled into a bright bucket of paint.
“Who are the new people?” Bel asked. “Are there other towns around here?”
Bel looked up. “Well, the Saw Mountains run west, but there’s Bear’s Crossing northwest of here. I can’t imagine them having an army though.”
Beth pointed to some color on the western side of the bridge. “Those are Points flags over the bridge. Looks like they lured the Baytown militia against the river so this other force could ambush them. I’m guessing the new people are some kind of delver coalition.”
Beth paused to consider things. “You can see Technis’ priests in the middle of the Baytown forces, but they’re missing from the Points. It’s a long overdue rebellion against the church or the priests wouldn’t have gotten involved.”
Bel tugged nervously at her snakes. “I guess that could explain why they were asking for volunteers earlier.”
James scoffed. “A few volunteers wouldn’t help with this though.”
Beth nodded. “Yup, looks like they didn’t expect this. I didn’t expect it either, and I’ve been keeping track of these things. It explains why the tunnel was closed off though.”
James looked back along their path. “What does that have to do with the fighting? We’re nowhere near it.”
Beth cracked her knuckles and pointed. “Those new fighters are cutting through the militia like it’s nothing, so they’ve gotta be some of the better delvers. They must have killed their overseers, collapsed the tunnel to slow down anything nasty from getting out, and gone to join the fight.”
They watched in silence as the militia attempted to disengage and pull away. The newcomers had initially cut through the militia with ease, but then Bel saw the priests in their dark robes entering the fray.
Beth grunted. “Clearing out all of those underground beasts is one of the best ways to get strong, so the delvers are pretty tough. They aren’t used to fighting like this though, so I’m betting that the militia makes it back to Baytown with enough fighters to defend it.”
Beth tapped her dagger and nodded appreciatively. “Still, this is a big loss for the hegemony. I suppose that I can forgive them for starting early and without us.”
James scratched his chin. “Let’s ignore for a moment that you want to be involved with all of this, this is a good thing, right? Anything bad for Technis’ priests and the elites in Capital city is good for us, yeah?”
Beth made a so-so gesture with her hand. “Depends on how successful they are. We don’t want to be around a town when the inquisitors start searching for traitors and spies.”
“Since they’re fighting Technis’ priests, can’t we just go to the Points?” Bel asked. “You know, since we’re fighting Technis too?”
Beth raised an eyebrow. “And you think that they would just trust anyone suspicious who suddenly shows up claiming to be an enemy of Technis? No, I think it’s best that we act like refugees and try to lay low somewhere that isn’t directly involved. At least Baytown has bigger things to worry about than a little fire at their temple.”
James looked up hopefully. “So I guess that means that we don’t need to go down into the tunnels any more, right?”
Beth laughed. “Nope, still the best way to go. Hopefully all of the exits aren’t blocked off too, but if they are I think I’ll be able to call in a favor or two with some old delving companions. Let’s keep going you two, we should set up camp before it gets too dark.”