Chapter 68 - A Steaming Pile

A clutch of mutated feral jackals growled and postured at us, blocking our way to the descent. Several of them had blood on their muzzles. My best guess would be that we’d found the pack that had waylaid the small band we’d snuck past. The remains of something I was happier not knowing about glistened in the lamp light and off the yellowed pustules and teeth of the wild canines. The warped and twisted canines were guarding their kill. As if we wanted to share in their meal.

“Should we use the scroll Alondalis gave us?” asked Annalisa.

“Seems a waste on these miserable curs,” I said. “I’d rather save it for something we can’t handle.”

“Just don’t forget about it.”

I infused a card with the two of knaves and sent it spinning at one of the jackals. The card sliced it practically in half with a spray of blood and yellow discharge, which was enough to let the rest of them know they were outmatched. It was enough to make me want to vomit, as well. They took off down a small side tunnel, barking and yipping.

“Poor thing,” said Annalisa, toeing the dead mutant. She knelt down to look at the tiny tunnel. “The unsheathing is that way. Do you think they live under it?”

I checked our tags just to make sure we hadn’t run afoul of the glow-steel sickness. The stones had shifted color a little, but not nearly enough to be dangerous. “I’m not keen to crawl through and find out.”

Of their meal, little remained, save his clothes and a small pouch. I pried it open and looked at the last of his meager belongings—chief among which, was an unused potion of mend flesh. Lot of good it did him in this state. He didn’t have anything that looked magical, though he was missing one of his hands and both ears, as well as his throat. So, there’s a chance that rings or amulets might have ended up down the jackal gullets. I cursed, realizing that I’d let them get away too easily. A stupid mistake. The dragons in my deck lamented the loss, though the towers were pleased that I’d sent a proper message to the jackals to keep away.

Sighing, I pulled out my deck and did a quick reading to make sure nothing bigger was waiting down below. Aside from the little crusties, the delve so far had been blessedly quiet. I knew it couldn’t last. Not with our luck. Hells beneath, the best case scenario for us still involved trudging back to the surface with several sacks full of reeking monster shit. How many of Miss Trundi’s baths were we going to need after that?

The reading seemed to indicate the tunnels below us were clear. we found the descent, an old dilapidated spiral staircase of elven design that rested at a steep, uncomfortable angle. Below us, the masonry shifted again, and I spotted the long, thick wall Annalisa mentioned.

“This is golden elf work,” said Annalisa, running her hand over it.

“What, you’re some sort of building expert, now?” I teased.

“One of my brothers works for the Masons Guild,” said Annalisa. “He showed me one of the old golden elf towers he did repair work on in the upper city.”

“Huh,” I grunted. I ran my hand over the stonework. The thick blocks looked like they’d last another thousand years without chipping. “Bet they never expected the orcs to burn and bury half their city.”

“Suddenly, orcs!” laughed Annalisa. “Should I try it?”

“Go ahead,” I said, gesturing to the wall.

She squinted, scrunched up her face, and held her hands against the stone. After a moment of intense concentration, she let out a breath.

Brows drawing together, I pulled out the three of dragons and she tried again with my help.

“It’s like there’s a wall,” said Annalisa.

Stolen novel; please report.

I tilted my head toward the masonry.

“Not that wall, dummy! In the plane.”

“Is that unusual?”

Annalisa shrugged. “No idea.”

I scratched my chin. “Maybe it’s warded. That just makes me want in even more, but that’s also a problem for another time. Come on.”

We followed the wall south and then west, skirting two of the areas Alondalis had said to avoid. I did one more reading at an unmarked fork, wishing I was more attuned to the suit of ways. We took the right-most path, and a draft began to waft our way that threatened to have me coughing and retching. I retied the cravat over my nose and mouth before we pressed on. I heard a ripping noise and looked to the side. Annalisa had torn a strip off her bedroll to do the same.

“Tides have mercy,” said Annalisa as we pushed into the first chamber Alondalis had marked for us. The smell was unreal. It was like a physical thing that crawled into my throat and died. Suddenly, I was very grateful for the elf’s constitution booster.

The leavings were in a few distinct piles scattered across the floor, and I was very glad to not be seeing the creature that left them. Some of the older ones already looked sorted through and shoveled apart. While Annalisa pulled the shovels and sacks out of her pack, I reevaluated every decision that led me to this moment.

“Do you have the scroll?” Asked Annalisa.

It took me a minute to fully come back to myself and realize she meant the scroll of detect magic items. “Yeah, hang on,” I said. I fished in my pack and pulled out the leather-wrapped parchment, unsealing the binding and looking over the spell.

The activation was a small rune at the base, which I pressed my thumb to as I read the incantation. A small portion of my will flowed into the scroll, and a wave passed outward from our location. The ring on Annalisa’s finger began to glow, as well as her badge and something in one of the fresher monster mounds.

“Pay dirt,” I said, pointing.

Annalisa followed my finger, and then handed me one of the shovels. We went to work, pulling out the side of the mound, and damn if it didn’t smell even worse when disturbed. Maggots and other insects crawled through. Human bones protruded at odd angles, many of them splintered and chipped, and I had to move to the corner of the room to vomit from the smell of the past adventurers who had become passed adventurers. This was, without a doubt, the most disgusting endeavor I’d ever undertaken.

“Two hundred cunnings per item,” I reminded myself as I spit sour bile out of my mouth. “It’s so not worth it.” I returned to Annalisa and continued to help her pick through the pile. A bit of silver gleamed, and I carefully edged it over to reveal a small medallion with a citrine gem. I tapped the dragon’s gaze to verify, and nearly passed out. Apparently, it also enhanced the sense of smell. But sure enough, it glowed under the amber tint of the four of dragons.

I picked it up by the cleanest corner I could “Get the cleaning powder, please,” I said.

Anna moved back to the bags while I turned over the medallion. I couldn’t say what it did, but I certainly wasn’t going to pull out my cards until I’d had a chance to clean my gloves off. Anna brought the tin of powder, and I used it to scrub the excess droppings off the loot.

“Funny little medallion,” I said, dropping it into my pocket. “Where do you tie it on?”

“It’s not a medallion,” said Annalisa. “It’s a brooch.” she shook her head. “Boys have no head for fashion.”

“If I did, I’d probably look like one of those upper city fops,” I countered. “Is that what you want? To bodyguard some fop with puffy shirt shoulders and long legs in skin-tight hose who knows what a brooch is?”

Annalisa looked me up and down, and I didn’t like the way the corners of her eyes creased. It meant she was smiling under her scarf.

My face reddened. “Nevermind. Don’t answer that.”

Then, I helped Annalisa shovel loose shit from the floor into two of the canvas bags Alondalis had given us. These we tied off and put in the very bottom of each of our bags. The elf better not try and clip coppers on this fertilizer.

“Come on,” I said. “Let’s get out of here and try the next spot.”

“Do we have to?”

I patted my pocket. “Two-hundred cunnings.”

Annalisa needed very little convincing after that.

Unfortunately, the next spot offered nothing but a cavalcade of regrettable new smells. Disheartening, but hardly cause for lament.

Even if we found nothing but shit at the other marked locations, the delve had already been profitable. If that magic broach wasn’t useful to us? Well, we would just get it appraised and sell it off to bolster our purses. If we could manage to find a second one and fill up a few more bags of fertilizer? Maybe there was something to this whole delving business.

I stopped as dust began to drop from the ceiling behind us. Something thumped through the tunnel above as Annalisa and I held our breath. Something that chittered and hissed, with a buzz of wings. Something I very much did not want to meet.

Something headed straight for our destination.