Lazybones
Adventurer
As promised, first of two updates.
* * * * *
Chapter 84
PAIN
Dar stirred, grimacing as pain tore through the lingering shreds of unconsciousness. He became aware of a sharp odor, and drew his head back, only to bang it hard against the stone wall behind him.
“Take a care,” a calm voice said. “You have an ability to absorb damage that matches few men I have encountered, but even you are mortal, Corath Dar.”
Dar looked up to see Setarcos standing above him. “How long...”
“Just a few seconds. The creature has moved down into the town, but I fear that this tower will collapse at any moment.” The aged monk held out a tiny metal box, which was the source of the stink Dar had detected. “This is a potent stimulant with curative properties, I recommend that you...”
Dar reached out and grabbed the box, downing its contents in a single gulp. A sudden shot of energy seemed to flow into his body, along with fiery tongues of pain that almost made him cry out. Every bone in his body felt like it was broken, but he was able to stand. He realized that the fly spell was still active, and he lifted a few inches off of the ground as he summoned the magic again.
“Can you manage...”
“I will be fine,” Setarcos said. “Fight well, Corath Dar.”
Dar nodded, and shot up toward the gaping hole in the side of the tower ten feet above.
Petronia almost fell again as she staggered to her feet, and started to pick up Allera. On the far side of the healer, Kiron was getting up as well. “We have to get her out of here!” the woman knight exclaimed. “We can’t stand against that thing!”
“We have to,” Kiron said, but his voice betrayed his own feelings, that Petronia’s words were only stating the truth. His hand dropped to the heavy bronze hilt fastened to his bet. “Get her to safety,” he started to say to Petronia, but to his surprise Allera looked up, her eyes clear and determined.
“No, my friend,” she said. “We all stand here.”
There was a flare of light as Sultheros unleashed another spell in the direction of the Ravager. The monster unleashed another cry of rage that was almost defeaning, even coming from a few hundred feet distant. A hulking thing emerged from the rubbled building behind it, a massive earth elemental of pseudonatural origin that rose up and wrapped huge arms around the Ravager. The elemental was nearly as large as its opponent, but the Ravager reached around with its extra arms and pulled the summoned entity off its back as though it were a child. The elemental slammed a fist hard into the Ravager’s chest, the thump of it like the booming of a rockslide. But the Ravager merely took it in its claws and tore it apart, striding forward through the cascading rubble. A pair of scorching rays flared with red fire across its shoulders as one of the half-dragon mages flew over; the Ravager did not even look up.
Kiron had not looked away from the creature since its unholy cry. “What do you need,” he said to Allera, without turning.
“Time. Just a little time,” she said, her voice quiet, yet somehow audible over the din.
Kiron nodded, and took up his sword. “Protect her with your life,” he said to Petronia, and started across the square, toward the Ravager.
A few of the other knights started after him, but Petronia held them with a shout. “Ward your charges!” she said, directing them back to their positions protecting the vulnerable clerics. Maricela, lying in the open stall, had started to stir, but the others remained insensate. “Remember your duty this day!” she yelled, taking her own position at Allera’s side, supporting her as she reached out to her magic. “The Dragon Knights hold the line!”
There was no answering cry, no shout of challenge. In the face of the Ravager, any such declarations would have seemed foolish bravado. Instead, the men and women of Camar held their weapons, and waited for death to come to them.
In the ruined gateway of the castle above, Selanthas cursed as he looked down at the scene above. Fortunately for him, he’d taken his rest in the South Tower, and not in the castle keep. Behind him, Callyse and Setarcos emerged as well, the elf woman helping the old man navigate the last steps of the wrecked staircase leading down from what was left of the gatehouse tower. The elf archer lifted his bow, but then lowered it without firing. Even at this range, he could make the shot easily, but what hope did he have of actually harming the creature? Selanthas was a calm man by temperament, but at the moment he felt like gnashing his teeth in frustration.
Behind them, a noise of movement drew their attention back to the ruined gate. They turned to see a man clad in tattered clothes, sodden with blood, carrying the limp form of Letellia. Selanthas recognized the man as the prisoner that they’d taken at Rappan Athuk, and he started to lift his bow again, before recognizing the futility of it.
“She lives,” Duke Aerim said, and that finally got through to the elf, who reached into his pouch for the potion there before hastening to the aid of the wounded sorceress. She was unconscious, and it took some doing to get the healing draught into her, but it worked quickly, and the woman stirred as it completed its work.
It wasn’t until she started to wake that Selanthas looked up and realized that Aerim was gone.
Seeing Allera recovered and casting, Sultheros joined in the effort to delay the Ravager from reaching them. The elf summoned a wall of force across the square, the spell forming a glowing barrier some thirty feet high and nearly fifty feet across. The Ravager slammed a fist into the wall, but did not waste time pounding uselessly upon it; instead it started moving around it. The end nearer the creature culminated in front of an inn, a centuries-old two story structure with a high stone foundation. To the Ravager, this proved barely an obstacle as it came around Sultheros’s wall and tore through the front of the inn, ripping off the entire second story as it passed. Denied its rich feast of life by the trick played on it via the vanishing population of Highbluff, it seemed intent now on at least slaking its thirst on the magic used by these few remaining foes. It was focused on Sultheros, but as it drew nearer its black stare shifted to Allera, who had turned away from it, and who seemed utterly unaware of her surroundings as she closed her eyes and lifted her arms. To the Ravager, she glowed with a brightness that far outshadowed the globe of daylight, and it eagerly looked forward to consuming that glow, to ebb at least for a moment the ravenous hunger that drove its existence.
Thus focused, it completely ignored Kiron, at least until the knight, who narrowly avoided getting trampled beneath its ground-shattering stride, drove the epic sword given to him by Amurru through the monster’s right heel, slicing through its flesh all the way to the bone.
The Ravager screamed in real pain. It lurched to the side, falling against a leatherworker’s shop next to the inn it had destroyed. Its weight collapsed the building, and two of its four arms vanished inside the structure as it leaned precariously over.
Kiron pressed his attack, but before he could draw near enough to strike again, the Ravager lashed out with a left arm, seizing the knight in its huge paw, crushing him as it made a fist. Kiron struggled in vain against that steel grip, while the monster righted itself, leaving another structure in wreckage behind it. Already the wound at its ankle had stopped oozing fluid, although the gash still gleamed wetly as it slowly knit itself shut.
More spells splashed across the monster’s back, but the creature paid them no heed. Mehlaraine shot in, trying to help free the knight, but the Ravager merely swatted her almost casually with claw before she could draw close enough to strike with her spear. The elf warrior’s momentum was abruptly reversed, and she finally slammed into a roof some two blocks distant, dazed and bleeding, both of her arms broken and dislocated from their sockets.
Maricela, staggering out of the stall where she’d laid unconscious, screamed as the Ravager lifted Kiron in its fist, and bit off his head and a good-sized chunk of his body. His right arm, still holding his sword, went flying through the air, landing in the square in a bloody mess just behind the creature. Opening its fist, it thrust the rest of Kiron into its maw, swallowing the remains in a greedy gulp. Its meal seemed to fortify it, and when it stepped forward, its damaged leg withstood its weight without difficulty.
That distraction resolved, the Ravager started forward again, toward Allera and the others.
* * * * *
Chapter 84
PAIN
Dar stirred, grimacing as pain tore through the lingering shreds of unconsciousness. He became aware of a sharp odor, and drew his head back, only to bang it hard against the stone wall behind him.
“Take a care,” a calm voice said. “You have an ability to absorb damage that matches few men I have encountered, but even you are mortal, Corath Dar.”
Dar looked up to see Setarcos standing above him. “How long...”
“Just a few seconds. The creature has moved down into the town, but I fear that this tower will collapse at any moment.” The aged monk held out a tiny metal box, which was the source of the stink Dar had detected. “This is a potent stimulant with curative properties, I recommend that you...”
Dar reached out and grabbed the box, downing its contents in a single gulp. A sudden shot of energy seemed to flow into his body, along with fiery tongues of pain that almost made him cry out. Every bone in his body felt like it was broken, but he was able to stand. He realized that the fly spell was still active, and he lifted a few inches off of the ground as he summoned the magic again.
“Can you manage...”
“I will be fine,” Setarcos said. “Fight well, Corath Dar.”
Dar nodded, and shot up toward the gaping hole in the side of the tower ten feet above.
Petronia almost fell again as she staggered to her feet, and started to pick up Allera. On the far side of the healer, Kiron was getting up as well. “We have to get her out of here!” the woman knight exclaimed. “We can’t stand against that thing!”
“We have to,” Kiron said, but his voice betrayed his own feelings, that Petronia’s words were only stating the truth. His hand dropped to the heavy bronze hilt fastened to his bet. “Get her to safety,” he started to say to Petronia, but to his surprise Allera looked up, her eyes clear and determined.
“No, my friend,” she said. “We all stand here.”
There was a flare of light as Sultheros unleashed another spell in the direction of the Ravager. The monster unleashed another cry of rage that was almost defeaning, even coming from a few hundred feet distant. A hulking thing emerged from the rubbled building behind it, a massive earth elemental of pseudonatural origin that rose up and wrapped huge arms around the Ravager. The elemental was nearly as large as its opponent, but the Ravager reached around with its extra arms and pulled the summoned entity off its back as though it were a child. The elemental slammed a fist hard into the Ravager’s chest, the thump of it like the booming of a rockslide. But the Ravager merely took it in its claws and tore it apart, striding forward through the cascading rubble. A pair of scorching rays flared with red fire across its shoulders as one of the half-dragon mages flew over; the Ravager did not even look up.
Kiron had not looked away from the creature since its unholy cry. “What do you need,” he said to Allera, without turning.
“Time. Just a little time,” she said, her voice quiet, yet somehow audible over the din.
Kiron nodded, and took up his sword. “Protect her with your life,” he said to Petronia, and started across the square, toward the Ravager.
A few of the other knights started after him, but Petronia held them with a shout. “Ward your charges!” she said, directing them back to their positions protecting the vulnerable clerics. Maricela, lying in the open stall, had started to stir, but the others remained insensate. “Remember your duty this day!” she yelled, taking her own position at Allera’s side, supporting her as she reached out to her magic. “The Dragon Knights hold the line!”
There was no answering cry, no shout of challenge. In the face of the Ravager, any such declarations would have seemed foolish bravado. Instead, the men and women of Camar held their weapons, and waited for death to come to them.
In the ruined gateway of the castle above, Selanthas cursed as he looked down at the scene above. Fortunately for him, he’d taken his rest in the South Tower, and not in the castle keep. Behind him, Callyse and Setarcos emerged as well, the elf woman helping the old man navigate the last steps of the wrecked staircase leading down from what was left of the gatehouse tower. The elf archer lifted his bow, but then lowered it without firing. Even at this range, he could make the shot easily, but what hope did he have of actually harming the creature? Selanthas was a calm man by temperament, but at the moment he felt like gnashing his teeth in frustration.
Behind them, a noise of movement drew their attention back to the ruined gate. They turned to see a man clad in tattered clothes, sodden with blood, carrying the limp form of Letellia. Selanthas recognized the man as the prisoner that they’d taken at Rappan Athuk, and he started to lift his bow again, before recognizing the futility of it.
“She lives,” Duke Aerim said, and that finally got through to the elf, who reached into his pouch for the potion there before hastening to the aid of the wounded sorceress. She was unconscious, and it took some doing to get the healing draught into her, but it worked quickly, and the woman stirred as it completed its work.
It wasn’t until she started to wake that Selanthas looked up and realized that Aerim was gone.
Seeing Allera recovered and casting, Sultheros joined in the effort to delay the Ravager from reaching them. The elf summoned a wall of force across the square, the spell forming a glowing barrier some thirty feet high and nearly fifty feet across. The Ravager slammed a fist into the wall, but did not waste time pounding uselessly upon it; instead it started moving around it. The end nearer the creature culminated in front of an inn, a centuries-old two story structure with a high stone foundation. To the Ravager, this proved barely an obstacle as it came around Sultheros’s wall and tore through the front of the inn, ripping off the entire second story as it passed. Denied its rich feast of life by the trick played on it via the vanishing population of Highbluff, it seemed intent now on at least slaking its thirst on the magic used by these few remaining foes. It was focused on Sultheros, but as it drew nearer its black stare shifted to Allera, who had turned away from it, and who seemed utterly unaware of her surroundings as she closed her eyes and lifted her arms. To the Ravager, she glowed with a brightness that far outshadowed the globe of daylight, and it eagerly looked forward to consuming that glow, to ebb at least for a moment the ravenous hunger that drove its existence.
Thus focused, it completely ignored Kiron, at least until the knight, who narrowly avoided getting trampled beneath its ground-shattering stride, drove the epic sword given to him by Amurru through the monster’s right heel, slicing through its flesh all the way to the bone.
The Ravager screamed in real pain. It lurched to the side, falling against a leatherworker’s shop next to the inn it had destroyed. Its weight collapsed the building, and two of its four arms vanished inside the structure as it leaned precariously over.
Kiron pressed his attack, but before he could draw near enough to strike again, the Ravager lashed out with a left arm, seizing the knight in its huge paw, crushing him as it made a fist. Kiron struggled in vain against that steel grip, while the monster righted itself, leaving another structure in wreckage behind it. Already the wound at its ankle had stopped oozing fluid, although the gash still gleamed wetly as it slowly knit itself shut.
More spells splashed across the monster’s back, but the creature paid them no heed. Mehlaraine shot in, trying to help free the knight, but the Ravager merely swatted her almost casually with claw before she could draw close enough to strike with her spear. The elf warrior’s momentum was abruptly reversed, and she finally slammed into a roof some two blocks distant, dazed and bleeding, both of her arms broken and dislocated from their sockets.
Maricela, staggering out of the stall where she’d laid unconscious, screamed as the Ravager lifted Kiron in its fist, and bit off his head and a good-sized chunk of his body. His right arm, still holding his sword, went flying through the air, landing in the square in a bloody mess just behind the creature. Opening its fist, it thrust the rest of Kiron into its maw, swallowing the remains in a greedy gulp. Its meal seemed to fortify it, and when it stepped forward, its damaged leg withstood its weight without difficulty.
That distraction resolved, the Ravager started forward again, toward Allera and the others.
