1.22

The closing mist around them continued to thicken as they walked. The temperature dropped and the grass slowly changed into thick, heavy, marsh.

“We’d be easy targets for anyone watching us right now,” said Fenrick. He scanned with strained ears and eyes.

“The dwarves here are more than welcoming to travellers. They love sharing their place to stay,” said Kamaya.

There were two species of dwarves on the world of Merrin. Both generally just called dwarves in the common tongue, they both had distinct names in dwarven.

The močvarna were the dwarves that generally lived in marshes and swamps. Made up of wet vegetation, as an insult, some would call them muck-men. These dwarves were generally happy to intermingle with other societies. The city of Juniper Hill even had its own marsh land district for the dwarves.

These dwarves were generally in tune with the very lifeforce of Merrin. A lot of the močvarna were powerful druids and rangers. The frog was their holy animal, and many followed the great frog Paragon, Žaba.

The other dwarves were the voda. These dwarves lived in the deep oceans all over Merrin. Believed to have been some of the first intelligent beings created on Merrin, they were made from coral and other sea flora.

The city of Dawn’s Ledge had a large sphere of water in the middle of one of the districts, made to be just like the ocean, complete with sea life of all sorts.

The voda looked after the oceans, keeping a balance between the natural world and the advancement of surface dwellers.

Elite troops of these dwarves were also in charge of watching over The Abyss. The Abyss was a seemingly bottomless trench that stretched for hundreds of miles. Out of The Abyss came powerful, terrible monsters that wreaked havoc upon Merrin. Nobody knew what was down below.

“Why do you think they’re coming through here?” Bandor asked the other dwarf. He was a ranger of high regard within Misty Swamp with a giant dragonfly animal companion named Vis.

“Who knows.” The other dwarf was named Brun. She was a little taller than Bandor, and half his age. She’d been in training for close to ten years, and was finally a fully-fledged ranger.

“What do you reckon we should do?” Bandor asked.

“Get their answer before they get too close to the village.”

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“Good. Are you ready?” Bandor waited for Brun to make the first move. Vis buzzed around above them.

“Yeah.” With her sling-staff ready, the dwarves jumped out of the trees. Brun could tell the gnome and the human had already spotted them.

“My name is Kamaya, and these are my companions; Fenrick, Tad, Sharampf, and Bodwyn. We’re passing through as we’re tracking an ogre.” Kamaya’s bow was nocked, but pointed to the ground.

“I’m Brun, and this is Bandor. We’re rangers of Misty Swamps. We’ve seen the ogre. It’s been lumbering through here and killing a lot of things. Why do you seek this foul creature?”

“I hunt foul creatures to protect the people of Gamerrah.”

“Oh, a ranger then?” Brun asked, sounding excited.

“No.” Kamaya shook her head slightly.

“A paladin?” Bandor asked.

“Yes. And it’s my Creed to do this. That monster has killed a lot of innocents and its on me to end it.” The resolve in Kamaya’s voice was unnerving.

“Whoa, a paladin. I’ve never actually met one,” whispered Bodwyn.

“Well then, Misty Swamp is certainly glad you’re here to help. We’ve lost a few dwarves and some mighty fine frogs too. We managed to keep it away from our birthing pools but now its headed toward our supply of fish.”

“Can you take us?” Kamaya asked.

“We’ll speak to the Mother, then we’ll tell you what she says,” said Bandor.

On a giant lily pad in the middle of a large pool sat the shaman. Smaller lily pads were scattered about the pool. Each one had a frog of a different colour.

The shaman was squat, even for a dwarf. She wore a necklace of reeds and a crown made of flowers and bark, that was fashioned in the shape of a frog. A giant cattail reed leaned against her.

“Help has arrived?” the shaman asked.

“Yes, it has. In the form of a paladin and her adventuring party. Depending on your answer, we’ll show them where to go.” Brun bowed low and Bandor lowered his knee.

“Good, good. Hopefully we don’t lose any more life. If they are successful, be sure to show them Misty Swamp’s hospitality as thanks. We would owe them a great debt if they killed that foul beast.” A hint of anger did not go unnoticed in the shaman’s voice.

“Right.” Bandor nodded and made to walk away but stopped when Brun continued to talk.

“Shouldn’t we help them in the fight? Misty Swamp should be able to stand up for itself.” The hot-headed ranger took a few steps toward the shaman’s pool and held her sling-staff high.

“Brun,” hissed Bandor.

“No, it’s okay Bandor. She’s still young and is only beginning to learn her powers. She’s eager to prove she can defend us, and its admirable. But don’t speak out of turn again, young ranger.” The shaman glowered at Brun.

“I’m sorry.” Brun doubled over as she bowed this time, staring straight at her feet.

“Misty Swamp is one of the smallest tribes of dwarves, and we aren’t known for our might. We are sometimes a tourist attraction or a place of respite for adventurers. We’ve only just begun a solid trade with our fish.” The shaman shuffled on her lily pad. “We cannot risk any further loss of life. If the great frogs should deliver us a paladin, then we should let them do what they must.”

“Yes, Mother.” Brun did her best to hide her hurt pride. Bandor bowed next to her and made a motion for Brun to follow him out.

“You know better than to do that, have you learnt nothing from me. You know what she’s like. We don’t act if it puts us in danger.”

“But inaction will only result in more death.” The anger in her voice was obvious now.

“The frogs would have given somebody.” The stern tone in Bandor’s voice took all the vitality out of the young ranger.

“What if one of us was that somebody. What if that somebody was me?” Brun said under her breath.