Season 3: Chapter 86: Hiro The Mafioso
Two Days Later…
In a densely populated forest of purple trees and black leaves, my caravan came to a stop, just at the edge of an open field.
Through the eyes of Slimey, I could see an impressive mountain range, one that I knew all too well.
The Nornmus Mountain Range.
Named after a gargantuan creature that once roamed the mountain's peak, protecting Barborall and his domain.
Of course, my party and I had defeated the beast, felling the King of dragons whose massive stone-scaled corpse was now a landmark against the backdrop of the mountains.
Even at a distance, I could already see Normus’s body, the creature’s jagged spine blending with the mountain to form peaks of hardened chitin.
“Beautiful isn't it?” Lhikan said, staring at the sunrise over the dragon's skull. “I never get tired of seeing that skull. A grandiose reminder of what humanity can achieve.”
“My Lord says it was only won thanks to the combined might of Queen Lidica’s Raptors and the aid of the giants,” Slimey said, relaying my words to the paladin. “A hard fought battle that saw the deaths of thousands before it fell.”
From our spot, there was a clear separation in the sky, a natural divide between smog and breathable air, at least, what constituted breathable air for the humans.
The damn sky was just a lighter purple, the smog not as intense but still polluting the air and spreading.
Somehow, despite the air quality getting worse and worse, they never bothered to attempt to fix it…
Typical.
“My Lord wishes to know why there has been no attempt to fix the air quality,” Slimey asked the paladin.
“The smog emanates from the Demon Empress Gisellneia’s castle. Even if we wanted to, there's nothing to be done,” Lhikan replied, adjusting his gas mask. “Once we're at the base of the mountain range, we'll make camp before scaling it.”
“Uuugh,” Tipsy let out, the little gnome groaning. “I hate this mountain… Jesse! You should carr-”
“Absolutely not,” Simone hissed, drawing the gnome's attention. “You've got two legs, use them.”
“Ladies, ladies, there's more than enough of me to go around!” Jesse exclaimed smugly before being kicked in the shin by Tipsy.
“Paladin Lhikan,” Slimey said, interrupting the now bickering group with my question. “My Lord wishes to know why you are scaling the mountain instead of going through it?”
At my question the group of papal adventurers froze, all staring at my rubber shell.
“There's a way through the mountain?” Tipsy asked, the first to recover with her pointy ears wiggling.
“The Lemoidians Squats dug several hyperways through the mountain, allowing Lord Hiro's forces to travel uncontested by harpies and wyverns. My Lord wonders why you do not use them?”
“Lemoidians?” Simon said, her face twisted with confusion.
“Squats?” Jesse muttered, crouching low.
Wait…
From the looks of confusion on everyone's faces, it was evident they had no idea what I was talking about, and worst yet, whom, I was talking about.
“Short, stocky individuals with large beards, they live underground predominantly as miners.” Slimey relayed.
“Oh dear…” Tipsy let out, the tiny woman adjusting her glasses.
What? What is it? I squeaked before realizing I still didn't have a mouth…
“Speak, tiny knife-ear.” Slimey said, completely unprompted by me.
If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
“Well… this is awkward,” Tipsy said, taking off her round glasses. “The Squats have been extinct for roughly a thousand years.”
WHAT?!
Shocked, for lack of a better term was all that plagued my mind. How the hell could an entire species of sentients go extinct?! What the quack had happened?!
“The last documented sighting of one was a thousand years ago. One day they all just up and disappeared,” The gnome continued, “It's been a topic of much contention, with most believing they were killed off by Demon incursions. Although, personally I don't-”
Simone's hand clamped over Tipsy’s mouth, shutting the gnome's mouth as silence permeated the air.
Dead… Extinct? No… how?!
Squats were your typical Token dwarfs, short, stubby, bearded, with a dislike of elves, something that made them A-okay with me. In fact, I once drank with a few Squats, at a mead hall they called The Putsch as we talked about our hatred of elves.
They were a mighty band, a group of hard working miners that were experts in the underdark and traversing soil. For them to be all wiped out by demons…
No, something was amiss. Some trickery at play.
Maybe even elven in nature…
“Ehem,” Lhikan let out, breaking the silence. “We should make haste for the entryways milord. If you know where they are, the cartographers in the capital would forever be in your debt.”
Right, there's more pressing matters.
Using the corpse of the dragon and the direction of the sun, I managed to pinpoint the location of a central tunnel.
After a few hours of travel, we had come to a spot near the base of the mountain, a place overrun by vines, flora, and the occasional stray monster that fled the moment they saw Slimey.
“Uhm… not to question your decisions or anything, but… are you sure we're in the right spot?” Jesse asked, the paladin picking vines off his boot.
I could feel the human's unease, the tensions high as the sun began to fade. Before long, it would be too dark to see and too dangerous to light a fire.
Fortunately for them, I could feel our destination. My perception penetrating the floor beneath us.
Slimey.
At my command Slimey stepped off the carriage, her human features immediately beginning to melt away, horrifying Simone who quickly turned away.
Slimey stretched out, melting over the spot to form a large puddle that ate and dissolved the moss and vines at our feet.
“In the maker's name…” Simone whispered.
Reforming her body, the humans looked down, flabbergasted as Tipsy began to press her face to the heavy metal floor and move around excitedly.
“This! This is a Lemoidian lift! A lift!” Tipsy let out, racing to a wagon and returning with tools.
“My Lord wishes for us to make camp for the night.” Slimey said, immediately killing Tipsy's enthusiasm.
“B-b-B-”
“Lord Hiro is correct. We will need our strength if we are to traverse the underdark. After thousands of years, there's no telling what awaits us below,” Lhikan said, giving the order to make camp. “Jesse, feed and water the mules, Simone, place a protection spell, Tipsy, get the purifiers up.”
As the sentients went about their tasks, Slimey took a seat back on the wagon, holding me close as the sun set.
Truth be told, I hadn't actually thought about the monsters probably inhabiting the tunnels but rather, something else more pressing and immediate was on my mind, something occuring miles away.
****
Elsewhere.
My consciousness moved, shifting through the void to land within my agent that took on the form of a bald man.
In front of me, a gathering of seemingly respectable humans, seemingly, because despite the fancy clothes and jewelry they wore to hide they're ugly interiors, they couldn't shake off the air of scum they gave.
Bankers, greedy traders, corrupt priests, and city politicians. People that ruled over the underworld of the Trade City of Ambrosia.
All gathered before Tywin Albet, a banker by day and the leader of a criminal cartel at night.
Who had just so happened to have been… liquidated two days prior after meeting with a minion of his.
Now what replaced him was Slimey, equipped with his memories shared through our bond as I ripped them from the man she now doppelgangered.
“Good evening gentlemen,” I spoke, my vocal cords twisting with a slight tang to mimic Tywin Albet’s almost country voice. “Now ya may be wondering why I don brought ya here.”
“Where the hel have you been?” Gideon Lawson, an art dealer spat, slamming his portly fist onto the table. “We've been trying to reach you about our money! Why can't any of us make withdrawals?!”
“Calm down Lawson, I'm sure Albet has a reason,” Benny Cadius, an alleged man of the cloth cut in.
“Calm down?! I can't be calm when I have no money to pay my men!” Lawson roared.
“He has a point Albet,” Marko Roth added, a low level politician aiming for mayoral election. “That isn't just your money, it's the cartel's money, so you better have a good damn reason for blocking our withdrawals.”
“Gentlemen,” I said, lacing my fingers together. “The reason I have blocked your withdrawals is very simple.”
“Oh? And why's that?” Lawson growled, the cartel guards that lined the room eyeing me.
“You simply don't need it!” I said, flashing a smile.
Of course the other cartel members didn't share my enthusiasm.
“What is this?” Lawson spat as Roth signaled the two guards that flanked him.
“I always thought you were stupid Albet, but I didn't think you were this dumb,” Caldus sighed, standing up. “Oh well, it was a good run. Take him to my church and we'll find out where our money is.”
Around the table, the guards of the other cartel members began to move, converging on my position.
However, the moment one of the goons placed a hand on me was the moment it disappeared.
“AAAH!” Screams flooded the room, curses letting out of the minion’s mouth as steam bubbled up from his amputated stump.
Horror. To sum up the expressions on everyone's faces.
Delicious, delectable, faces of fear that hung on everyone's faces as all four men that surrounded me were speared by tendrils of hardened blue slime that appeared from my body.
Controlling Slimey's body was... Very different than a skeleton but thankfully, Slimey knew what I intended to do and help immensely.
“Y-y-you! Demon!” Lawson cried, stumbling back as Caldus immediately fled.
“Oh no,” I replied standing up, my hand shooting out and stabbing the fleeing priest in the back. “I'm much worse. I'm Hiro, and I'm here to clean up the trash.”