A few weeks had passed since Prolo’s rescue, but despite the long search, Joseph had been unable to find Sera. She hadn’t been in Shian, at least he didn’t think so. He hadn’t left the confines of Betty in order to search the town. The ninjas could be anywhere after all, and he didn’t want him or her being ambushed. So, he had settled on going to the root of the problem, the mountains of Ugals.

He’d speak with Varig and tell him the situation, after that, he and a battalion of gun-wielding dwarves would erase the ninja threat forever. At least, that was the hope. Prolo’s leg and shoulder had recovered marvelously in the time they’d spent searching for Sera, and was now able to move around on his own. He had a few gnarly scars now, but the kid seemed unbothered.

They hadn’t spent all their time just searching of course. He’d been giving Prolo a crash course in English, and he was a fast learner. Things were expedited thanks to Joseph’s own fluency in Faesh, but Prolo still had a long way to go. Joe found himself wondering why Prolo wanted to learn the language… it was dangerous for him to do so, for what if he ended up being accused as an Outworlder? He must truly be a scholar at heart… either that or there was another reason. Joe would ask about it after the ninja business was concluded.

They were on the trail up the mountain, Betty once more gracing it with her treads. Again merchant wagons were terrified at seeing her approach, a reasonable reaction to seeing her in action. The metal cube rumors must have come about from the first merchants he’d scared on the way up to Ugals all those months ago. Well, them and curious strangers he scared away in the grasslands. Joe yawned and leaned his head back against the chair, briefly wondering if his magic items had finished being crafted by the dwarves.

Varig had said that it would take months to do, and that implied several months. It hadn’t been quite that long yet, but it would be nice to check. Maybe at least one of them had been made? That would be nice, especially before his assault on the Black Hand. Joseph continued up the rocky trail, humming a tune as he went. After a long while, when the sun was beginning to set, he arrived at the gates of Ugals.

The dwarves atop the gate waved at Betty, and Joseph grinned. It seemed they were happy to see him! It wasn’t long before the gates opened and he was allowed inside, parking Betty where he had last time. It seemed they decided to forgo the firing squad this time, for only Bilmor (at least he assumed it was) stood outside, waiting to greet him. Joseph stood and walked out into the front room, seeing Prolo completely transfixed by a World War One documentary. He walked over to speak with him, but the kid didn’t seem to notice Joe’s presence.

“Hey.”

“Pah!” Prolo jumped, eyes going wide, “Don’t sneak up on me like that, by The Overseer…”

“I didn’t try to sneak.” Joe said, “You just weren’t listening. You can’t drop your guard like that once we take the fight to the Black Hand.”

Prolo waved, “I know that, I just… wow, this is fascinating.” Prolo said, pausing the film, “This ‘Europe’ seems to wage war constantly, do your people really hate one another so much?”

“I ain’t European.” Joe said with a shrug, “I mean, genetically yeah I am, but I’m an American, or… I guess ‘was’ an American would be more accurate. Earth don’t really got proper countries no more.”

“Ah yes, The End yes?” Prolo asked.

Joe nodded, “Yup, but anyway let's pause the small talk, we’re at Ugals, so sit tight and I’ll be right back. I’ll pay for your portion of the debt-”

Prolo raised a hand to cut him off, “It’s already been paid, fear not, my family owes no debts to the dwarves.”

“...Alright then, do you want to come out?” Joe asked.

Prolo shook his head, “I want to keep watching this. I’ll come out if the need arises, I must find out who wins this conflict.”

“Ah well it was-”

“No spoiling the story!” Prolo said sharply.

Joe raised his hands, “It’s history not a story.”

“Well I want to see it play out for myself, I can somewhat understand what Ser Narrator is saying so I am not at a loss. Now begone!”

“Nerd.” Joe said snidely, leaving him to the documentary.

He quickly got suited up in his dragonbone plate and scale cloak, equipping the newly made helmet gas mask combo. It had been extraneous but he finally got it done, now he was decked out head to toe in some very durable gear. It was strange seeing the grainy bone on the interior of the mask, but he’d get used to it. He couldn’t wait to wow Bilmor with this gear, guy was gonna go nuts seeing the craftsmanship.

He opened Betty’s ramp, then the door, stepping out to greet the dwarf who he now knew for sure to be Bilmor. The engravings on his armor were exactly the same after all.

“Hey there Billy boy.” Joe said, “How’ve things been?”

“...Billy boy?” Bilmor asked in an irritated tone, “No matter, we welcome you, Joseph Haythorn. We’ve completed only a single item thus far, I assume you would like to take it?”

If Bilmor cared about Joe’s new gear, he didn’t show it in his voice. His helmet did tilt up and down though, seeming to look over the armor.

“Oh yeah, absolutely.” Joe replied, “By the way, I have something I want to talk to you guys about. I know how you can repay yer debt to me.”

Bilmor perked up, “Yes? Are you in some sort of danger?”

Joe nodded, “The Black Hand is after me.”

Bilmor stiffened, “Them?”

Joe nodded, “They know what I am and there ain’t no way they’re gonna let me go off the hook.”

Bilmor nodded, “From what I’ve heard, they won’t. Your only hope would be to either flee this Shard, or to kill them all… so that is what you want our help with then?” He asked.

“Yup.” Joe said, “Do you know where they are, by chance?

Bilmor shook his head, “Not in the slightest, I assume they operate out of Relias, we don’t-”

“They’re five miles west of here, from what I learned.” Joe told him.

Bilmor fell eerily silent for a long while before finally he said, “You’re certain? This is a serious matter Joseph, you have to know for sure.”

“That was what I got out of the feller I caught, he said they’re at the base of a mountain.”

“The mountains to the west of here are far too sheer and rocky to accommodate human assassins… this can only mean that they are…” Bilmor put a fist to his armored forehead, “By The Overseer, they’re in the abandoned Dwarfhold, at least if what you claim is true.”

“It depends on if the guy was lying to me or not. I don’t think he was, but to be honest with ya, I can’t say for sure.”

Bilmor ran a hand through his long beard, contemplating for a long while, “This would repay the debt for certain but… to return to the cursed Hold? This is not a decision I can make. I will go to Prince Varig, will you accompany me?”

Joe shook his head, “If he could meet me out here I’d rather do that.”

“Very well, I will return with the prince and the item we’ve created.”

Joe opened his mouth to thank Bilmor, but the words died in his throat as he noticed something moving in the shadow of the gate.

“Awesome, first thing though… look over by the gate.” Joe said, “Don’t be obvious, don’t tilt your head, just your eyes.”

Bilmor fell silent for an instant, before saying, “They follow you even here? This trespass must not go unpunished.”

Bilmor then raised his hands, pointing to the gate before forming an X with his forearms. Almost immediately after the signal, Joseph heard gunshots from atop the gate, AK wielding dwarves shooting down at the trespasser. The perforated figure then fell to the ground, not even able to scream.

“Hot damn!” Joe shouted, “Y’all are quick learners.”

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“Let us investigate the body, keep your eyes peeled!” Bilmor said, rushing over to the body.

The guards on the walls scanned the courtyard, all wielding dwarf-steel replicas of Joe’s own AK. Joe followed after the dwarf, easily keeping pace with his longer legs. When they came upon the body, Joe saw exactly what he suspected. A damned dirty ninja, filled with holes and already dead. How long had this guy been following them? Wait a second, how could he have been following them? Betty was moving way too fast for this dude to keep up just by running, right?

Joe then looked to the gate… and came to a horrifying realization. Betty’s roof very nearly could scrape the top of it… the ninja had to have been riding atop Betty for that trip, and had only had to dismount when it was time to pass through the gate. How had the gate guards not seen him though? Could they really blend in that well? It was hard to say, and he wasn’t gonna get any answers from this guy now that he was Swiss cheese.

The ninja could have gotten on Betty at any time these past few weeks, Joe hadn’t gone outside at all while Prolo recovered… Now that he thought of it though, it was unlikely the ninja had been on for that long. He had no supplies with him besides some weaponry at his belt, it was more likely that Betty had been spotted by them as he’d gotten closer to their base of operations. This one was probably just a scout, trying to glean secrets about Betty before returning to his evil ninja senseis or whatever they were called here.

“You truly are in danger then. I advise that you return into your wagon and await our return. We will bring a retinue of guards with us as well.” Bilmor said, “Guards, remain on high alert!” He shouted to the dwarves on the wall, “Patrol the walls and make sure no more of these scoundrels remain!”

Joe saw no reason to argue with him, heading back into Betty while he waited for Varig to arrive. When Joe closed the door behind him, he paused, turning around and narrowing his eyes at the door. If there were still ninjas around they could have listened to his secret knock… oh that would not do. Joe rummaged through one of his footlockers, coming up with a large bear trap, setting it in front of the door and placing the welcome mat right on top of the things teeth, mostly obscuring it…

Hmm, this wasn’t enough, he’d need to do something else. A good ninja would see this trap from a mile away, it would need to be more stupidly complicated to get the most dangerous ones. Of course it was preferable that none hear his knock at all, but that was easier said than done. He supposed he could just patrol Betty a few times, going to the roof and around her perimeter, just to make sure that no one was there before coming inside.

Damn, perhaps he should have done that before coming back inside. Oh well, the dwarves were on high alert so he doubted that there would be any more ninja trouble today. Just in case though, he’d be overtrapping his front door. He looked at the concealed bear trap and cringed, he could do waaay better than this! He then began to properly booby trap the door, making it completely ninja proof.

Any moron coming in here without his permission would pay the ultimate price. He just needed to make sure Prolo understood just how dangerous this was in case he decided to go outside. He informed Prolo of the situation while waiting for Varig to arrive. He was concerned that the Black Hand was beginning to hover around Betty, but he was soon sucked back into the documentary.

Joe left him, keeping his eye on the cameras until finally he spotted Varig emerging from the giant stone gates, phasing through with a retinue of guards behind him… all of them wielding Benneli’s. They really did work fast, hot damn! Maybe he should get one of them dwarven Bennelis for himself? He shook his head, there’d be time for that later, he needed to get out there. Joseph quickly disarmed the trap at the door, stepping through before shutting the door once again, sealing the ramp just to be extra safe.

Varig stood in the center of the courtyard, wielding his own Benneli and clad in the armor he was wearing last time. Now however, he had emerged with a helmet, his long dark beard spilling down to his gold colored breastplate. Joe waved and jogged over, keeping his eyes peeled for any more ninjas. It seemed the guards were doing the same, several patrols moving through the courtyard and along the walls.

When he got close to Varig, the two shook hands, “Joseph… I understand that you have a problem.”

Joe released the shake, “That’s right bud. The Black Hand is after me, if you can help me kill ‘em all, we’ll be square.”

Varig nodded, “Very well, we will resolve this together. Bilmor told me that they reside in the abandoned section of the hold… yes?”

“That’s just what he told me, I don’t know for sure.” Joe said honestly, “But I’m glad you wanna help me out. So how are we gonna get there?”

“Well… that is the problem, Joseph.” Varig said, “You will not be able to drive your Betty to it, the tunnels are too cramped to accommodate her girth, that, and you will need to pass through Ugals in order to reach them.”

Joe frowned, “You saying I can’t reach it overland then? I figured that much but they have got to have a secret entrance out of their base, right?” He asked, “I doubt they go through your gates every time they need to leave.”

“Aye, the old tunnels are sealed, they’d not be able to go through Ugals proper to reach the outside world. If I were to hazard a guess, they have a different entrance somewhere, but you finding it would be next to impossible. The tunnels we guard are guaranteed to lead to the cursed hold, that is your best bet.”

“Damn…” Joe said, putting a hand on his armored brow.

If he couldn’t bring Betty to the assault, that also meant he wouldn’t be able to use the T-12 at all. He could try and pull it on a wagon but that seemed impractical, especially considering the terrain he’d have to be pulling it through. Running through those tunnels with the armor was also a bust, as it would take far longer than thirty minutes to reach this ‘cursed hold’. Speaking of which…

“Why is it called ‘the cursed hold’?” Joe asked, “What’s wrong with it?”

Varig sighed, “Misfortune befell it long ago when an abomination rose up from the depths, a beast known as Jilamaka. We suspect that it has made the hold its lair, and we’ve not dared return for fear that it will learn of Ugals.” He explained, “The beast could be long gone by now, returned to Everfae’s depths, but if we’re wrong, we could bring its attention to the new hold… yet, if The Black Hand truly made their nest within it, perhaps Jilamaka has left, for the beast sees all life as food, I doubt it would give the Black Hand any quarter.”

“Jilamaka huh?” Joe asked, “Sounds scary if it could take out a Dwarfhold, but I doubt it’s shotgun proof.” He said, indicating Varig’s Benneli, “If we do run into it, I think we might be fine. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not interested in going out of my way to find it, but if it finds us… well, I like our chances.”

“So then, you are interested in finally entering Ugals?” Varig asked, “You speak as if you are ready to embark.”

Joe looked to the gates and hesitated. It was going to be hard to get out, some of the dwarves knew what he was, he’d be outnumbered and, thanks to Joseph, be outgunned. Yet, the dwarves sense of paying back debts and the good rapport they had built helped to ease his paranoia… but only slightly. His dragon-gear would be able to stop the bullets, at least the bone would be, but if the dwarves were truly going to try and attack him, they’d want him alive for their wish. He doubted they would open fire on him if that was what they wanted. More likely they would try and capture him with nets or beat him unconscious.

That was if they really did want to capture him. He decided to leave this decision up to the wisdom of his gut.

“Yeah. I’m ready to go.” Joe nodded, “Just… I got to get ready first. How long do you think it’ll take to reach it?”

“A day or two at most.” Varig said, “Assuming the trip goes well that is.”

“Really? But it’s only five miles away.” Joe pointed out.

“The tunnels leading to it are hazardous and twisting, going through them will take us longer.”

“And there isn’t really any other option.” Joe sighed, “I get it. So can I bring Betty inside or do I need to leave her out here?”

“Actually Joseph,” Varig said, “There is another option, but the journey would take you even longer and you’d still need to leave Betty behind. On the other side of our mountain are the Dark-Wastes, with another tunnel that leads to the old hold… I do not recommend going that route.” Varig explained, “It would take you weeks to reach the old Ugals through that route, and you would have to contend with hordes of Black-Eyed orcs.”

“Black-Eyed orcs?” Joe asked.

“You know them.” Varig said insistently.

Joe nodded, “Yes of course…” He then looked to the dwarf guards standing behind Varig, their expressions hidden beneath their helmets, “I just didn’t know that they were in the Dark-Wastes.”

“You are from another Shard.” Varig nodded, “That makes sense.”

Joe had no damned idea what Black-Eyed orcs were, but he needed to pretend to know in front of Varig’s guards.

“I don’t think I’ll be going that way.” Joe said, “So can I bring Betty into the fort?”

Varig shook his head, “You can, but you won’t be able to drive too far into the hold. The inner gate is considerably more narrow than the exterior, as will be the tunnels. I also insist that we take some time to prepare before leaving, I have some things that must be taken care of.”

Joe lifted a brow, “You’re coming too?”

Varig nodded, “Aye, as Third Prince it is not necessary for me to survive, and I have been craving the chance to use this blunderbuss. That, and accompanying you will make it more likely that I will repay that debt in battle.”

Joe shrugged, “I don’t mind but just helping me clear out the Black Hand would be enough to make us square in my eyes.”

“Very well, but I will still seek out that opportunity… a part of me, an insane part, hopes we encounter the Jilamaka.” Varig said, his tone becoming excited, “If we were to slay it, we could reclaim the old hold. We would become storied heroes for such a great feat.”

“We’ll cross that bridge if we come to it.” Joe said, “I’m hopin’ that we don’t. How big is that thing anyway?”

“Big as a house, based on our records, covered in a patchwork of fur and scale with the body of a lion and the head of a rat. Its blood is acidic and its breath is sickening to the stomach. Our records also indicate that it has near-human levels of intellect.” Varig stated casually, “Our guns should be enough to slay it though, yes?”

Joe wanted to scream, he had no intention of fighting something like that. If this Jilamaka showed up, he was just gonna get the hell out of there. This thing was up there with some of the worst creatures that roamed the wastelands, and that was just based on a short description. He’d normally be more skeptical, but these were dwarves, their records were made by people with perfect memories… meaning that it was almost if not completely accurate. He considered just giving up right there and dealing with the ninjas as they came… but doing so would make life here in Everfae all the more difficult. He found himself internally praying to God that he wouldn’t run into Jilamaka, and that if they did, they’d be able to escape it.