MERCS:

Leonard ‘Cap’ Babler | Wilson ‘Twerk’ Turk | Usain ‘Usa’ Bizra | Izildra ‘Izil’ Bizra | Bletcher

Georg ‘The Hoffmeister’ Hoffman | Victor ‘Pecs’ Balinski | Eddie ‘Fortune’ Rich

‘Now,’ Cap began, as Twerk and the others lined up before him. ‘We all know we’re heading into significant danger. But I believe that as a team we’re well equipped to handle it. Even so, I’m throwing in a little sweetener.’ He held the Spear of Riposte in front of them. ‘One of you lot is going to earn this. At the end of the mission, I’m giving it to the man who is most deserving. If we get our hands on Redblade and Breaker as well, I’d say you have a fifty-fifty chance of walking away with a magic weapon that will transform your career.’

None of the weapons were suitable for Wilson. Still, one had to admire a leader who was willing to give up their own weapon to one of their warriors.

They took a circuitous path to the hillfort, approaching it from the north. The orc garrison were unlikely to be paying too much attention to that region. In the dusk, they were able to settle down amongst a stand of trees—close enough to observe the hill, yet concealed from their enemies.

The flicker of flames atop the hill made it easy to keep the orcs in sight, even during the night.

Wilson shared a watch with Victor. Wary at first, he found the big warrior easy enough to talk to.

‘Breaker’s a polearm?’ he asked Wilson.

‘Aye. A pike.’

‘A pike? Hmm.’

‘That a problem?’

‘Well. I thought I might have a good chance of getting it, being skilled in polearms. But a pike can be used by those skilled in spears, as well as polearms, which negates my advantage. On the other hand, not many can wield a pike one handed like I can. I’ve got that going for me.’

Wilson thought that was it, but then the man kept going.

‘It’s a shame, really, about Cap giving his spear away. Because that might mean he claims Breaker for himself.’

Wilson really had no interest in who might get what weapon. ‘Still. Good of Cap to give his weapon away. You’ve found him to be fair?’

‘Aye. He knows what he’s doing. Treats you with respect if you’ve earned it. Then again, Stiff was generous with the items from the barrow, wasn’t he? Only kept that little crown for himself. Gave each of us a nice bonus out of the treasure we got. Believe me, we’d have got less if we were in The Blades.’

‘Is that so? And what did you make of the Blairs?’

Victor shrugged, suddenly nervous.

‘They didn’t even let me join,’ Wilson said. ‘Because I’m a gnome.’

‘Yeah, well. I didn’t have much to do with them. Rylan, well. He did some things that were out of order. Wynter is a little crazy. Sal is a hard man. But he got us work. I didn’t have a falling out with them. Just felt like a change.’

‘And no regrets?’

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

‘None so far. Getting in a war with a band of orcs—I don’t know if it’s a good idea. But these magic weapons. I wouldn’t have stood a chance of getting anything like that with The Blades. They let you know you’re at the bottom of the barrel. In The Apples, it feels like I’ll have opportunities.’

All these humans, coming late to the party, getting all these opportunities, Wilson complained to himself. He could feel his position in the squad slipping. Not so long ago, he had considered himself second in command. Cap had taken that role. Stiff was giving out rewards to the new recruits; he didn’t seem to give a damn about Wilson any more.

‘We have targets,’ said Georg.

There were only two orcs. They had descended the rope ladder with large wood axes. They strode towards the stand of trees in which the mercs waited. It was almost too good to be true.

‘Hide,’ Cap told them. ‘Wait until they start chopping.’

The two orc warriors were impressive physical specimens. But they made no attempt to search the trees before they began swinging their heavy axes, no doubt intent on completing their task as quickly as possible. Before they knew it, they had five spears, a magic sword, and two axes pointed at them.

‘Drop those axes,’ Cap said.

Twerk could sense the nerves in his voice. A noisy killing might catch the attention of the orcs from the fort.

‘It would be a good idea,’ Bletcher added, as they hesitated. ‘Better than being killed. We will release you when we’re done.’

‘Done with what?’ one of the orcs asked.

‘The gods want you to take us to Darkspike Dungeon.’

‘Gods?’

‘Aye. The gods. And it’s never a good idea to deny them. They can be bountiful with their rewards; yet terrible with their punishments.’

When one of the orcs dropped their axe to the ground, his companion followed his lead.

Cap insisted they give the hillfort a wide berth, adding considerable time to their journey.

Wilson walked with Bletcher. His understanding was that the two orcs were under the wizard’s spell. And yet, the one armed man didn’t seem to be concentrating on maintaining a connection with, or control over them. He produced an odd looking jumble of tat, tied together with straw, from his cloak.

‘A gift for you, gnome.’

Wilson eyed it. ‘What in Gehenna would I do with that? Put it away, you fool.’

Whatever Bletcher was or wasn’t contributing, their orc guides remained docile. They pointed out a mountain in the distance. ‘That is Darkspike Dungeon.’

‘The mountain?’ Wilson asked them.

‘Yes.’

He spoke with Cap out of the greenskins’ earshot. ‘We might be better off stopping for the night and making a fire. We don’t want to be seen from the dungeon.’

‘You think we need a fire?’

‘I think we need to keep a good eye on our captives. They act like they’re under Bletcher’s control, but they can be cunning. And they have excellent night vision. Not as good as mine, but I can’t keep my eyes on them all night without getting tired.’

‘You make a good point,’ Cap said, hefting the Spear of Riposte he used as his walking stick. He gave Usa a nod. Then, before Wilson had fathomed what was happening, he was striking at the nearest orc.

ACTION ROUND

Orc Warriors

Orc

Warrior

Action Stats

EXP Level

3

Action Points

5

Hit Points

23

Cap didn’t need Usa’s help. He struck the first orc with the Spear of Riposte on his first attempt, killing him instantly. He reached the second orc on his second action point, and killed him on his third. He didn’t miss; he killed them both with one hit.

They were dead before most of the team had turned to look.

Cap saw Wilson’s open mouthed expression and smiled. ‘Don’t worry, Twerk.’ He pointed into the distance. ‘They told us where the dungeon is. We don’t need them any more.’