The Things We Lost -- Update 6/13 - Eberron fiction.
I swear I'm going to finish this dang thing. -- And Thanks for your support BlueAnt!
-=-=-=-=-=-=-
“Down!” Uri screamed as balls of fire streaked toward the scouts’ position.
Fire and earth geysered before and behind them, a handful of the shifters immolated in the barrage.
As one, the remainder of the platoon moved down into a nearby draw, and loped wordlessly back toward their lines. After a mile or more in the dusty hot highlands along Cyre’s border, Uri broke the silence.
“That wasn’t the best option,” he growled between breaths. “You could have been killed.”
Kath grinned, keeping pace beside him. “We found out where their sorcerers are looking.”
An explosive, unholy groan suddenly echoed down the canyon, as they emerged to see the Karrnathi lines in chaos. Breland cavalry, mounted on magebred horses the size of elephants streamed out of a massive…fort that hovered just a few feet off the ground. Ballista from the squat towers rained fire down on the Karrns, as they tried to regroup and the fort itself slid sideways across the uneven ground moving to cut off possible Karrn reinforcements.
“What in the name of the Sovereign,” Uri said, his bestial mouth going slack.
“We weren’t paid to fight something like this,” Kath said, her fear getting the better of her.
The glint of silvery metal shone through the haze of the battle as the Brelanders inside the fort moved a massive siege engine toward the edge of the wall. The tube of the thing glowed with an unnatural light and at its tip was the largest Khyber dragonshard Kath had ever seen.
A shout echoed over her and suddenly the scouts were engaged. Armored Breland regulars streamed over the edge of the canyon and archers peppered the ground around them with silver-fletched arrows.
“Stay close to me,” Uri said, catching a swinging axe by its haft and eviscerating its wielder with his wickedly sharp blade.
Kath ducked under another attacker and sliced her sword across his hamstring. The man went down shrieking, and a massive ursine shifter,
Duos, speared him through the throat.
“We have to get out of here,” she called through the haze and clang of battle. “We can’t fight that thing.”
“I’m going to take it out,” Uri said, his canines showing white against his black fur as he shifted in an instant.
“What?!” Kath barely avoided an arcing arrow then tripped over one of the dead, falling hard.
“Imagine the bonus!” he called.
She saw Uri’s eyes widen at something he saw over her head. Turning, she saw the mattock descending, fiery eyes of the Brelander and his lips pulled back hard over his teeth. Duos’ spear sprouted from the man’s chest with a bang of shattered chainmail and he collapsed.
“He’s the last,” Uri said without pause. “Let’s go.”
Turning to the hellish fort, they watched as the dragonshard weapon belched greenish fire into the Karnnathi lines, consuming Karnns and Brelish soldiers alike.
###
“No!” Kath’s scream echoed in the jungle and her companions were at her side before she was conscious.
“What is it?” Verloot bellowed, leaning over her, one hand on his askew wig.
Kath growled, the Beast taking her without a thought. Her claws sprouted and she dragged them across the gnome’s chest, grating on his breastplate. Verloot jumped back, surprised, as the warforged grabbed her wrists in a vise-like grip.
“Lady, wake up!” he said. “We are here. Friends.”
Pain shot through her spine and limbs and the Beast fled. Kath moaned, her head sinking to her chest.
“By the Sovereign!” Book said, lurching back. Black fluid leaked from between the metal plates in his hands.
“What?” Verloot said, jerking his sword from its sheath. “Are we undone?” He looked around frantically.
“She’s grown spikes,” the warforged said, shaking one of his hands and pointing tremulously with the other.
Protruding from the backs of Kath’s hands and forearms were finger-long spikes of boney material, though already they were receding back into her skin.
“What in the name of the Six,” Verloot whispered edging closer. “Kath, what’s wrong?”
“Call out!” Staver’s voice came from the jungle. “What attacks us?”
“Quiet you lout,” Verloot yelled. “You wanna wake the whole blasted forest! Over here.”
Still hovering on the edge of consciousness, Kath was aware only of a furtive conversation and pain. Pain moving through her like a dread wind through a shivering grassy heath.
###
They came in the dull humid darkness before dawn and they were not quiet. Verloot snapped out the semi-conscious reverie of a veteran campaigner to the sound of groaning metal and crunching vegetation.
“On your feet!” he bellowed, pulling his sword free.
The throaty tweets and croaks of the blackscale youth suddenly filled the jungle. Morren and Book flanked the gnome, the former brandishing his spear and the latter beginning an intonation of protection.
“What is it?” Morren said, his voice quavering slightly.
The crunching and groaning stopped, but they could still hear the lizardkin calling back and forth in their strange language.
“The scouts are speaking of a giant, and a handful of the infected shifters,” Book said quietly. “We should wake Kath and prepare to move.”
“No where to go, ‘forged,” Verloot muttered. “We’ll have to rely on cover, surprise and our reptile protectors.
“Sell-sword, you and Book move east along that streambed. Book, gather what lizards you can along the way. Set them to harrying those shifters and we’ll concentrate on the big target. If it is a giant, we’ll only defeat it by staying mobile and out of its reach.”
“What are you going to do?” Book said, as he gathered his bag and metal shod club.
“Make myself a nice juicy target.” The fat gnome moved off with amazing speed and grace through the cluttered jungle, his heavy armor creaking all the way.
“Is he really that good?” Morren asked as the two started down into the streambed.
“He thinks he is, so I guess that is something,” Book replied.
-=-=-=-=-=-=-
“Down!” Uri screamed as balls of fire streaked toward the scouts’ position.
Fire and earth geysered before and behind them, a handful of the shifters immolated in the barrage.
As one, the remainder of the platoon moved down into a nearby draw, and loped wordlessly back toward their lines. After a mile or more in the dusty hot highlands along Cyre’s border, Uri broke the silence.
“That wasn’t the best option,” he growled between breaths. “You could have been killed.”
Kath grinned, keeping pace beside him. “We found out where their sorcerers are looking.”
An explosive, unholy groan suddenly echoed down the canyon, as they emerged to see the Karrnathi lines in chaos. Breland cavalry, mounted on magebred horses the size of elephants streamed out of a massive…fort that hovered just a few feet off the ground. Ballista from the squat towers rained fire down on the Karrns, as they tried to regroup and the fort itself slid sideways across the uneven ground moving to cut off possible Karrn reinforcements.
“What in the name of the Sovereign,” Uri said, his bestial mouth going slack.
“We weren’t paid to fight something like this,” Kath said, her fear getting the better of her.
The glint of silvery metal shone through the haze of the battle as the Brelanders inside the fort moved a massive siege engine toward the edge of the wall. The tube of the thing glowed with an unnatural light and at its tip was the largest Khyber dragonshard Kath had ever seen.
A shout echoed over her and suddenly the scouts were engaged. Armored Breland regulars streamed over the edge of the canyon and archers peppered the ground around them with silver-fletched arrows.
“Stay close to me,” Uri said, catching a swinging axe by its haft and eviscerating its wielder with his wickedly sharp blade.
Kath ducked under another attacker and sliced her sword across his hamstring. The man went down shrieking, and a massive ursine shifter,
Duos, speared him through the throat.
“We have to get out of here,” she called through the haze and clang of battle. “We can’t fight that thing.”
“I’m going to take it out,” Uri said, his canines showing white against his black fur as he shifted in an instant.
“What?!” Kath barely avoided an arcing arrow then tripped over one of the dead, falling hard.
“Imagine the bonus!” he called.
She saw Uri’s eyes widen at something he saw over her head. Turning, she saw the mattock descending, fiery eyes of the Brelander and his lips pulled back hard over his teeth. Duos’ spear sprouted from the man’s chest with a bang of shattered chainmail and he collapsed.
“He’s the last,” Uri said without pause. “Let’s go.”
Turning to the hellish fort, they watched as the dragonshard weapon belched greenish fire into the Karnnathi lines, consuming Karnns and Brelish soldiers alike.
###
“No!” Kath’s scream echoed in the jungle and her companions were at her side before she was conscious.
“What is it?” Verloot bellowed, leaning over her, one hand on his askew wig.
Kath growled, the Beast taking her without a thought. Her claws sprouted and she dragged them across the gnome’s chest, grating on his breastplate. Verloot jumped back, surprised, as the warforged grabbed her wrists in a vise-like grip.
“Lady, wake up!” he said. “We are here. Friends.”
Pain shot through her spine and limbs and the Beast fled. Kath moaned, her head sinking to her chest.
“By the Sovereign!” Book said, lurching back. Black fluid leaked from between the metal plates in his hands.
“What?” Verloot said, jerking his sword from its sheath. “Are we undone?” He looked around frantically.
“She’s grown spikes,” the warforged said, shaking one of his hands and pointing tremulously with the other.
Protruding from the backs of Kath’s hands and forearms were finger-long spikes of boney material, though already they were receding back into her skin.
“What in the name of the Six,” Verloot whispered edging closer. “Kath, what’s wrong?”
“Call out!” Staver’s voice came from the jungle. “What attacks us?”
“Quiet you lout,” Verloot yelled. “You wanna wake the whole blasted forest! Over here.”
Still hovering on the edge of consciousness, Kath was aware only of a furtive conversation and pain. Pain moving through her like a dread wind through a shivering grassy heath.
###
They came in the dull humid darkness before dawn and they were not quiet. Verloot snapped out the semi-conscious reverie of a veteran campaigner to the sound of groaning metal and crunching vegetation.
“On your feet!” he bellowed, pulling his sword free.
The throaty tweets and croaks of the blackscale youth suddenly filled the jungle. Morren and Book flanked the gnome, the former brandishing his spear and the latter beginning an intonation of protection.
“What is it?” Morren said, his voice quavering slightly.
The crunching and groaning stopped, but they could still hear the lizardkin calling back and forth in their strange language.
“The scouts are speaking of a giant, and a handful of the infected shifters,” Book said quietly. “We should wake Kath and prepare to move.”
“No where to go, ‘forged,” Verloot muttered. “We’ll have to rely on cover, surprise and our reptile protectors.
“Sell-sword, you and Book move east along that streambed. Book, gather what lizards you can along the way. Set them to harrying those shifters and we’ll concentrate on the big target. If it is a giant, we’ll only defeat it by staying mobile and out of its reach.”
“What are you going to do?” Book said, as he gathered his bag and metal shod club.
“Make myself a nice juicy target.” The fat gnome moved off with amazing speed and grace through the cluttered jungle, his heavy armor creaking all the way.
“Is he really that good?” Morren asked as the two started down into the streambed.
“He thinks he is, so I guess that is something,” Book replied.
Last edited:
Warbringer
Explorer
Nice Ragboy.. no more injuries to your digits 
You keep writing, so will I..
You keep writing, so will I..
