image [https://i.imgur.com/z57RHzP.jpg]

Drinking a 100-point mana potion and receiving a 60-point Restore from Fabulosa put me in better sorts. I dodged and weaved, focusing my energy on withdrawing maneuvers as I read the attack-tells of the orcs not caught up by Fabulosa’s Wall of Thorns. My retreating speed matched their forward progress, so I avoided backstabs. A trio of orcs peeled away to pursue Jahid and Val, who held their ground. Since the orcs targeted me, the mercenaries remained at full health. My Rejuvenate mitigated the successful hits of my five remaining attackers.

Surrounding myself with orc warriors served as an arrow shield from the other archers. The three orcs rooted by Fabulosa’s Thorns now aimed arrows at her. It improved my situation, but I couldn’t expect more heals. Every time the orcs attacked, I took another couple hundred damage. The four Rejuvenates only recovered 7 points per second, so I wouldn’t win this damage race.

Fabulosa Get out of there. I’m out of healing. Iris and Sami are on their way. They took out the boss and are in good shape, more or less.

Apache I still have minutes left on my Slipstream cooldown.

Fabulosa Just turn tail and go! You have your drill buff. They can’t catch you.

Apache I guess you’re right.

After closing my chat interface, I searched the battlefield for alternatives to running away. If my attackers pursued, perhaps kiting them wouldn’t appear cowardly.

I turned and ran, bracing for a backstab that never came. The 20 percent increase in speed saved me from many flanking attacks. Taking care not to run too fast, I feigned stumbling a few times so that the orcs would keep their pursuit. I ran toward the orc camp, hoping the familiar ground would urge my pursuers to press onward. It did. Staying just out of their reach proved more difficult than I expected. One orc managed a Charge maneuver and critted me from behind, exhausting much of the health I’d recovered from my Rejuvenate. I had 31 health—any hit might finish me.

I cleared a wide circle around the camp and ran toward Luda’s corpse. From my mini-map, I could see Iris and Sami reinforcing Val and Jahid, and the four made quick work of the attackers. Afterward, the mercenaries moved to Fabulosa’s position and alleviated her.

When I ran toward my five companions, Iris had cast a Rally heal. The mass heal bumped up the health of everyone except me. It gave only 48 health, but I couldn’t understand why she hadn’t cast it sooner. The answer lay on the map radar—all the red blips by them disappeared. Rally healed friend and foe alike.

Upon reaching them, I received three Restores, which brought me well over my halfway point. I slowed when rejoining my friends, as did my five pursuers. While Fabulosa and I waited to see if the orcs would retreat, the four ex-soldiers sprinted after them. By this time, the orcs had figured out they couldn’t outrun us and met us head-on, fighting to the death.

The six of us methodically chipped away at the enemy until we remained the only ones standing. When the game dropped us out of combat, we collapsed to the ground and performed a Rest and Mend.

Aside from a message that Iris’s raid ended successfully, I didn’t receive updates or rewards for the campaign. I had grown so accustomed to the game showering me with goodies after combat that I expected something for the effort. Instead, I enjoyed my level-up message.

Congratulations!

You are level 26

You have gained a level. You have increased your agility by 1, intelligence by 1, and stamina by 1. You have received 1 power point. You have 4,204/4,525 experience points toward level 27.

“I dinged to 26. Did you guys level?”

Fabulosa fist-bumped me and winked. “Oh! Level 26! Not bad. Not bad at all.” Her nameplate showed she stood now at 28—the brat.

Iris nodded. “I did. I’m 19 now.”

In their early teens, the mercenaries acknowledged they received two levels each.

I stretched my legs. “It’s strange. I’m barely out of breath, and I feel refreshed.”

Jahid nodded. “It’s the captain’s buffs. One energizes you.”

Iris stood up and cast her eyes on the sky. “And that’s a good thing—because we’re on the move. Let’s torch the camp and get to Krek before sundown.”

We searched the orcs’ leavings but found little more than common gems, a few coins, and standard weapons.

Iris held up a battleax. “You want?” Her face betrayed a look of contempt for the weapons, a prejudice I didn’t share, so I nodded. Her question revealed her prerogative of claiming the gems and coins. I took the hint that everything became the commander’s spoils.

Showing no regard for the weapons, Iris took the orc armbands. She caught me watching her and explained herself. “These are Crackedleather bands. They’ll buy me credit with the staff in Fort Krek. Seventeen orcs are a lot for soldiers of our level to handle, and these bands and gems will grease our welcome.”

We piled the bodies onto a pyre and torched them along with the tents and unclaimed artifacts. Whenever one of our escorts saw an orc arrow, they went out of their way to remove it as if it represented claimed territory.

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Returning to our eastward trailblazing seemed anticlimactic after zipping around during combat. Hacking at bushes wasn’t thrilling, but I didn’t mind slashing at vegetation while waiting for my cooldowns to reset. The battlefield fell an hour behind us when the mercenaries recognized which way to go. Closer to Fort Krek, we saw no more signs of orcs.

Iris pointed out the trails. “These are local paths. We should be safe now.”

Secure as we might be, I kept Beaker unsummoned. I enjoyed having him around, but the risk of something going awry felt too great. He behaved unpredictably and distracted me. Babysitting him in a hot zone held little appeal. Besides, the trees weren’t big enough for suitable griffon perches.

The mercenaries never slowed, maintaining a healthy pace for hours as we crossed a dirt road. Cartwheel ruts in the mud showed the first sign of civilization.

“It’s been a while, eh?” Sami caught his breath, grinning at Val and Jahid.

Fabulosa looked to Sami. “How close are we?”

“This is an old road to an abandoned mine. We used to set up camp a mile west.” Sami gestured in the opposite direction of our heading. “The town isn’t far—maybe a few miles.”

A half-hour later, we passed a series of boarded-up farmhouses and sheds outside a wooden palisade, a larger version of Hawkhurst’s motte-and-bailey. We’d reached the outer curtain of Fort Krek. Aside from barnyard smells, nothing indicated anyone occupied them. It wasn’t exactly a ghost town, but the vibe wasn’t healthy.

More farms made of timber and heavy stones stood near the gatehouse.

A goat bleated nearby, and a woman carrying buckets in both arms emerged from a small house. I smelled a campfire and heard familiar blacksmithing sounds of pounding metal. Soldiers walked along the tops of the wall and occupied towers on either side of the gate.

Iris and her men adjusted their armor as we passed through the gate. I expected an interrogation, but the half dozen soldiers on either side only sized us up as we silently passed, stopping only at another gate twenty yards beyond the first.

We followed the rutted wheel tracks that counted for a road. I avoided gawking at the imposing fortifications and kept my eyes forward, studying the town.

Inside the fortifications stood dozens of buildings. These looked more refined than the hovels outside the walls. I spotted a general store, an inn, and a livery stable. The purposes of the inner buildings weren’t always apparent, although I guessed many of them could have been private apartments and houses. Some had windows—some didn’t. High brick walls ringed several properties. The densely packed buildings reminded me of Belden, but the lack of painting and ornamentation gave the town a prosaic quality, closer to the mining town of Darton Rock.

We arrived late evening, so the town’s activity settled into a post-dinnertime calm. The few people we passed on the street didn’t look worried or concerned, but they weren’t friendly either. No one nodded, smiled, or acknowledged our passing.

The main thoroughfare took us past a town square containing a platform and audience space. It looked like the place Fletcher described, where he performed for the city crowds. Yet no sets or playbills advertised activity. Someone had stacked its benches to the side. It stood as the only painted place in the neighborhood, and it struck me as sad that it wasn’t in use. It reminded me of my hometown’s famous boardwalk during off-season.

The street led to an imposing stone castle. It contrasted with the sparse ruins I’d seen in history books and documentaries. Fort Krek’s façade bristled with wooden frames, shutters, signal flags, and clay pipework. Wooden encasements between crenelations topped its walls. The canopy sheltered occupants from weather and arrows. Soldiers equipped with spyglasses watched from its towers.

Val interrupted my ogling with a whisper. “Governor, L.T.—we’ll hang back while the captain talks to the house guards.”

I hadn’t noticed that Iris had disappeared, likely into the castle.

Jahid gave me an apologetic look. “This might take a while, sir.”

Sami turned to Jahid. “I told the captain we’d be in the New Jay.”

Jahid nodded. “Right. That’s a good call. Sir, ma’am?” They looked at us for permission to lead the way to the New Jay—presumably the name of an inn or pub.

Fabulosa and I looked at each other, shrugged, and went with the flow.

The mercenaries had stiffened in the fort’s proximity. Fabulosa and I had earned points with them after the orc encounter, but a noticeable separation lingered. The mercenaries didn’t always include us in conversations and addressed us with formal titles. For the most part, I took no umbrage, for we fell outside their command structure. We still counted as civilians, albeit important ones, but we’d never be soldiers.

With Iris absent, we followed the guards around a sidestreet into a building. Its exterior looked like any other residence or nondescript structure, but the reception sign inside the door read “The New Jay Tavern.” A half-empty pub filled with uniformed soldiers and townsfolk occupied its lower floor, creating an intimate, warm, and comfortable atmosphere. The conversation typified what I’d seen in pubs, so Fort Krek didn’t seem like a town under siege.

Fabulosa and I sat at an empty table, eschewing the larger scene of socialization. Everyone else looked familiar with one another, as if this watering hole fit into their nightly routine.

Val didn’t join us. “Sir, I’ll order drinks and see what’s for chow.” He approached the bar while Sami and Jahid clapped shoulders with other patrons at a nearby table.

Fabulosa shrugged. “They’re in their old stomping grounds. At best, we’re wallflowers tonight.”

“That’s fine with me as long as we can sit down. Even after Iris’s buff, my legs are sore from that run.”

Fabulosa nodded. “No kidding. They’re probably used to hoofing it.”

After a half hour, Val returned with three drinks. “Sorry, sir, ma’am. That took longer than I expected. We have plates of roasted potatoes and pork on the way. I talked to Chassy, who’s been here forever, and picked up some scuttlebutt. He’s not so cagey as the soldiers around here.”

Fabulosa arched an eyebrow. “He’s not worried about toeing the company line?”

Val nodded. “He runs his own place now. I wouldn’t be surprised if we didn’t learn more about what’s going in the fort than the captain—which is usually the case around here. Chassy says the commander is unwell, but I think he knows more. He’s a good storyteller, and his ear is usually close to the ground. I’ll get something out of him.”

Val took a long draught of his ale. “I should probably keep my wits about me tonight.” He took another long pull from his mug, finishing its contents. “But I miss their pale ale—its sweetness is perfect, and I can barely taste the hops. Can I grab the next round, Guv?”

Fabulosa and I had barely started our drinks. I placed enough coins on the table to imply I would pay for everyone’s meals, drinks, and boarding. I wanted to ensure everyone that I’d foot this expedition’s bill. “Sure. Perhaps we should get some rooms for the night, too.”

Val hesitated before sliding the coins toward his palm. “Sir, I should be buying tonight. You saved my skin back there. The fight could have gone either way, and I’ve never seen you in action before. The captain vouched for you, but I never—”

Fabulosa pushed the coins toward him, causing Val to lose his thought. “We understand, but funding the trip is our duty. Y’all catch up now with your friends. We’re right here.”

Val suppressed a smile and gave his pals at the bar another quick look. “I’ll secure rooms, ma’am. There are plenty of vacancies. New Jay’s rooms aren’t big, but they’re clean. I’ll go to see what I can find out.”

We nodded before he left.

Fabulosa turned to me with a grin. “You know, we won’t see another lick of him tonight. I’ll look into getting rooms.”