“Oi!” the goblin's cry rang through the narrow, steep hallway. The light of his torch fading out of view. Magnar was already halfway up the embankment by the time Magnus even realized what was happening. Beltayne and the others were quickly on Magnar's heels and Magnus followed the party. By the time the wizard reached the top of the embankment, his thighs were ablaze and he was gasping for air, each breath coming in a ragged wheeze. Magnar and the rest of the party were grouped together, halfway down a short corridor which ended with a large wooden door slightly ajar.
“My prowess as a warrior and swordsmen are truly secondary to my skills in the art of stealth" Magnus heard Beltayne whispering to the rest. “Allow me to sneak up to the door and assess our enemy's strength" Beltayne continued.
“I really think that you should let me do..” Telerek began to respond before he was cut off by Beltayne.
“Nonsense. As a Knight of the Winter Court my honor will not allow me to have you put yourself in harm's way. Once we reach safety, you should reflect a little on your abilities and shortcomings friend, it has done wonders for me of late,” Beltayne said as Telerek shook his head.
“I don’t care which one of ye goes, but this is one fight I am not just running into. If there is one thing I know of goblins, where there is one, there is fifty” Magnar growled.
Magnus said nothing as he was still trying to quietly catch his breath. None of the others even seemed phased by the sprint up the embankment, making it twice as embarrassing for the wizard. Thank the arcane he didn’t actually have to go through with swinging a pick axe all night in the mine.
Beltayne crept down the rest of the narrow hallway, the sword at his belt rhythmically tapping the wall with every other step. The elf stared through the crack in the door for several moments before abruptly standing and waving the rest of the party to him. “I count only five of the stunted beasts inside. The room is large and well lit, but their numbers few.” Beltayne announced, voice still lowered.
“No lad, surely you’ve miscounted. I have fought hundreds of goblins in my time and rarely are they found in such low numbers.” Magnar said.
Beltayne smiled and placed a hand on Magnar's shoulder. “My dear barbaric friend, I may not know how to read. But it has never been said that I am unable to count. Allow me to lead this charge and be the bulwark for our party” Beltayne responded.
Magnar smiled and gestured to the door. “After you then.”
Beltayne unsheathed his sword, the metal grating loudly as it made contact with the side of the scabbard. The next moment Beltayne kicked open the door and charged into the room. Magnus, still standing at the back, couldn’t see all that happened. But he did see arrows strike Beltayne in the shoulder and thigh, as well as several rocks pepper the head and torso of the elf. He collapsed almost immediately as six other goblins swarmed his unconscious body, battering him with pickaxes and short swords.
“Fool" Magnar and Magnus uttered to themselves in unknown unison before the rest of the party rushed through the open door.
Telerek released arrows at an imperceptible speed, striking three of the goblins hacking at Beltayne. Radiant light emanated from the end of Kel'dhos' mace in a concussive shockwave that blew the other goblins off their fallen comrade. Magnar dashed between Beltayne and the throng of enemies that seemed to fill every open space in the room. With a swing of his maul the dwarf sent four goblins flying through air, the sound of bones breaking only interrupted by the goblin’s shrieks of pain. Apparently Beltayne's illiteracy did, in fact, extend into the realm of the numerical. The entire circular room was nearly overflowing with the gray skinned goblins. Makeshift furniture, that appeared to just be crates stacked in multiple different configurations, littered the room.
Magnus saw a goblin standing on top of several crates with a small, rudimentary bow in hand. The wizard smiled to himself and conjured fire into his palm, the familiar heat and energy bringing a small sense of comfort in the chaos. Magnus took aim and flung the fireball at the goblin, who was nocking an arrow while staring at Magnar. The fireball flew past the goblin archer and the flames died out quickly on the stone wall behind. The goblin quickly turned and locked eyes with Magnus, flashing a pointed tooth grin at the wizard.
The goblin's eyes suddenly went wide as an arrow, courtesy of Telerek, plunged into his chest. He fell off the stack of crates and out of sight. Magnus turned to thank the wood elf, however, he was already sending another arrow into the pressing enemies. Magnus felt the orb began to pulse softly in his bag, but he did his best to ignore it.
Magnus turned his attention back to the fight and saw a line of goblins attempting to sneak between crates and an outer wall. Try to flank us will you? Magnus thought to himself as he began speaking an incantation. Sparks began to crackle between his hands and the sparks soon turned to arcs of arcane electric energy. Magnus pushed his hands forward and a bolt of lightning flashed towards the line of goblins, completely missing all of them. Magnus’ spell did manage to splinter the crates the goblins were hiding behind, exposing the would-be flankers.
Telerek's arrows brought down two of them in an instant. Kel'dhos quickly drove his mace into the skull of one, then used his backswing to crush the ribs of another. A green mist poured from the outstretched fingers of Val and enveloped the remaining three goblins. They began to cough and choke, tearing at their throats with their fingers, before collapsing.
Magnus cursed at himself, even the damn priest is more useful. The orb began to pulse even stronger now, imploring Magnus to drive his hand into the bag and take up the relic's power. Magnus fought the urge, refusing to give in, needing to prove to himself that he was the master and the orb merely his tool.
Magnar seemed to steadily push the horde towards the far end of the room. The broken, lifeless bodies of goblins were strewn throughout. The dwarf roared as his great maul passed through broken lines of goblins like a hot knife through butter. They began climbing over one another to try and escape the rage of Magnar and certain death at the end of his hammer. Telerek's arrows flowed from him in a steady stream of fletched fury, bringing down dozens of enemies. Kel'dhos was now standing over Beltayne with his shield raised, deflecting stray rocks and arrows flung at the unconscious elf. Val stood near Telerek, pretending to shoot an invisible bow and cheering as imaginary arrows took down another score of unseen enemies.
Magnus suddenly saw a goblin, slightly larger with darker skin, crawl out from the shadows. Using the chaos of the fight as concealment, he snuck between broken crates, shadows and limp bodies. A large dagger shimmered in his hand as he stealthily crept up behind Magnar, blinded to the assassin by his own bloodlust. Magnus smiled and began to conjure another flame into his hands. Fear and doubt suddenly gripped him. The orb now pulsed so intensely, he was sure the others could feel it tempting the wizard. The goblin inched closer and closer to his brother as Magnus finally made the decision, dissipating the flame in his hand. The wizard sprinted towards his brother, driving his hand into his satchel. As Magnus reached the goblin, who was now only a few feet away from Magnar, he pulled his hand from the satchel, light gleaming off the object in his hand. The goblin turned just as Magnus drove his dagger into the assassin’s neck, dark blood spraying as the wizard tore it out.
The goblin fell limp to the ground and Magnus immediately charged at another who was scrambling away over a small table. He grabbed the goblin's slick black ponytail and pulled his eyes skywards. Blood rushed like water from a broken dam as Magnus slid his dagger across the goblin's neck. The wizard let the body fall as another goblin jumped at him from a nearby table. Magnus drove his shoulder into the airborne enemy, knocking it to the ground. He then pinned the goblin with one arm and impaled his dagger into it's chest—once, twice, three times. Magnus stood, his blade dripping with black goblin blood, and looked at Magnar. The dwarf had momentarily stopped his rampage and gave Magnus a wink before taking in a deep breath through his nostrils and jumping back into the fray.
The goblins' numbers had dwindled to less than a dozen as Magnar and the rest of the party closed in on the remaining few. “Oi! Run! Get big boss!” one of the goblins yelled. In unison they all turned and made a mad dash to the back of the room, where another door had been propped open.
“Lai'komani, do you think you can help me? Stop those gross little men from escaping!” Val said to an imaginary figure next to her. Suddenly a burst of light filled the room and a great red and green feathered bird, awash in flames, appeared in the doorway. It let out a deafening screech as the goblins stopped and trembled at its feet. The bird opened its beak and flames burst forth, engulfing the remaining goblins, reducing them to ash in moments. The great bird snapped its mouth shut and nodded towards Val, who was doing kart wheels in the back of the room. In another blinding flash the phoenix was gone.
The party all turned and looked at Val, curious and stunned expressions painted across all their faces. “Lai'komani is pretty shy, she only comes out when I ask super, super nice.” Val said. “Oh! Our hero! You with the small ears and big prayers, can you save him?” Val said diverting the entire party's attention onto the fallen Beltayne.
Kel'dhos immediately instructed Magnar and Magnus to hold Beltayne down as Telerek pulled the arrows from his leg and shoulder. The dwarves' efforts were meaningless, however, as the elf barely made a grunt. Kel'dhos then applied a salve and wrapped the wounds to stanch the bleeding. He then began whispering a prayer to Sioch as he cradled Beltayne's head. A dull white light seemed to envelope the pair. After a few minutes, Beltayne's eyes slowly opened and the light faded.
With Kel'dhos' assistance, Beltayne sat up and looked around the room. “Well, I am glad I was able to absorb their first assault for you all. Perhaps I underestimated the exact size of our opposing force,” The elf said as he shakily stood, leaning heavily on his sword.
Magnar let out a grunt and set to helping Telerek collect arrows. Beltayne then turned to Kel'dhos and said, “Thank you, friend.”
Kel'dhos placed his hand on Beltayne's chest and said “I am but an instrument for Sioch's will and mercy. It is he that deserves your thanks. Well, him and Magnar's hammer.” The two smiled at one another as Val ran over and wrapped her arms around Beltayne's neck, squeezing him tightly.
“You really have to stop thinking you can do this all on your own. You might be a hero, but you're not the hero,” Val said before planting a quick kiss on the snow elf's cheek and walking away.
“There ain't nothing here but broken boards and cheap tools,” Magnar said after giving the room a once over.
“Well, those last few mentioned something about a boss. Also, I think I see why Magnar and me weren't able to procure employment in this mine. Seems the owners have, or well had, all the cheap labor they needed,” Magnus said, gesturing to the forty or so goblin corpses that littered the room.
“I hate to suggest this again,” Telerek said, looking at Kel'dhos “but, we are going to have to dive a little deeper.”
“I completely agree,” Kel'dhos responded. “Using goblin labor, while deplorable, is not evidence of slaving.”
The entire party nodded in agreement. Soon they were making their way deeper into the complex, mostly through winding passages and, much to Magnus' dismay, up a few more inclines. Thankfully, Magnus was able to take these ones at a much slower pace while assisting Kel'dhos with the still limping Beltayne.
When they were at the bottom of one particular incline Magnus saw a diverging path just to the left. “I feel like we have been going up forever, why don't we see where this passage leads?” he propositioned hopefully to his companions.
“Lead the way then brother, if that is what you feel" Magnar responded.
Magnus led the party a short distance down the narrow, barely lit hallway until he came to a stone wall blocking their path.
“Oh, master of cavern dwelling and navigation. What do you feel like we should do now?” Magnar asked while bowing his head. Magnus let out a sigh and turned to start back towards where they came when he felt the orb in his bag vibrate at a rate and frequency he had never felt. Without thinking, Magnus put his hand in his bag and gripped the orb. A rush of warmth and calm flooded his body as the orb calmed to a slow dull pulse in his hand. Magnus then stared at the dead end and placed his free hand onto the stone. In an instant, the stone evaporated and an enormous, brightly lit room came into view where the wall once stood.
Dominating the middle of the room was a jet-black obelisk, hovering slightly off the ground and rotating slowly. Three men, wearing matching black hooded robes, walked with the obelisk's rotation while chanting “Let the Eye open in silence. Let the Eye open in shadow. Let the Eye open beneath. The gods above are false. The elements are blind.” Over and over, again and again the men chanted the words in perfect unison.
“What the fuck is that?” Magnar exclaimed loudly as the entire party inched into the room.
The chanting ceased immediately and all three of the hooded men turned and looked at the party. The man in the middle, face obscured by the red-trimmed black hood, pointed at Magnus and said, “Let the Eye open in silence. Let the Eye open in shadow.” Magnus felt the orb shake so violently in his hand, he feared it was going to rip free of his grip. The wizard tightened his fingers around the orb and took a step towards the mysterious hooded figures. A burst of green and orange magical energy rushed from the hooded figures and surrounded the party. All but Magnus fell to the ground, eyes glazing over. Magnar, Beltayne, Kel'dhos and the cousins all began chanting “The gods above are false. The elements are blind. Let the Eye open in silence.”
The hooded figure in the middle cocked his head to one side as he appeared to stare curiously at Magnus, seemingly unaffected by whatever sorcery had taken hold of his companions. The orb stopped vibrating and let out a slow, rhythmic pulse into Magnus' palm. The hooded figures began walking towards Magnus and, without thinking, the wizard stepped quickly to his right and spoke his incantation. An icicle, longer than a spear and thick as a frying pan, appeared in Magnus' free hand. Purple arcane energy pulsed beneath the icy surface. As the other two hooded figures raised their fingers at Magnus, all three began chanting once again, Magnus hurled his arcane icicle at the hooded figures.
The ice spear pierced the chest of the one in the middle, protruding out of his back and pinning him to the ground. The chanting stopped as the other two looked slowly at their compatriot. The pierced figure stared at the wizard and said in a clear voice, “The stone groans when we speak the words backwards. Proof the Eye is always watching. Even in silence, let none doubt.” Magnus closed his free hand into a fist and, as he did so, the frozen spear shattered into multiple shards, slicing through the bodies of the remaining hooded men, dropping them to the ground, the shards dissipating to mist.
The obelisk stopped rotating, and Magnus felt as if it was peering into him. An ice-cold fear began to spread through the wizard's body as the obelisk seemed to draw itself closer to him. Magnus' orb pulsed one single strong pulse and the cold fear was instantly replaced by the overwhelming warmth of the orb's power. The obelisk resumed rotating and Magnus peered into his bag as he released his grip on the orb. “What are you?” Magnus whispered as the light faded inside the satchel.
“Do all that with your dagger again, killer?” Magnar said, shaking Magnus out of his stupor. The wizard looked up and his companions were all rising to their feet again.
“I don't know what evil has corrupted this place. But, I suggest we leave this room immediately,” Kel'dhos said, gripping the pendant on his chest with the same fervor that Magnus had recently held his orb.
The entire party nodded and quickly exited the room in silence. As soon as Magnus passed the threshold of the doorway, the faux stone wall reappeared.
“I feel like that song is going to be stuck in my head the rest of the day,” Val said. “Oh! Kelly you should teach it to that bard girlfriend of yours! A song like that will make her rich, then when you marry her, you don't have to get covered in goblin blood to make a little coin."
Kel'dhos put his head down and walked to the front of the group.
Telerek turned to Val and said, “I didn’t think it was possible for anything to get stuck in your head Val. There’s so much room what would it get stuck on?”
The party continued further up the cavern until they came to two diverging paths. Rancid air that smelled like the mixture of unwashed bodies and excrement flowed from one. Fresh air from the other. Magnus, to the extreme disregard of his dwarven heritage, desperately longed to exit the cave. The endless winding tunnels, hot suffocating air and impossibly steep inclines had become foreign to him after years spent in Eldrin City. In his youth Magnus and Magnar had explored many unmapped caves, getting lost for days at a time. Now, the wizard felt much more at home exploring the endless hallways of a library and inhaling the warm air from a roaring fire on a cold night, cup of tea in his hand. The last several weeks should have been hardening him for this new life of thrill and adventure. Magnus, however, found that the last several weeks had only made him miss the comforts of a warm hearth and soft bed more, not condition him to the general malaise of life in the wilderness. The wizard may have grown used to being surrounded by affable fools, but he refused to become accustomed with a life of constant discomfort. The putrid odors coming from the path leading to the right brought these feelings into sharp focus and Magnus found the fresh air from the other path intoxicating. He instinctively began walking to the left when he noticed none of the others were following him.
“Where ye goin’ killer?” Magnar shouted down the path towards him. Magnus stared confusingly at his brother, who was experienced enough in the art of spelunking to know that the fresh air meant an exit.
“We aren't trying to leave, we are trying to find slaves,” Telerek said walking up to Magnus. “Or at least evidence of slaves. I don't think they will be hiding any in plain sight,” the wood elf continued.
Magnus sighed and followed Telerek back to the rest of the party as they delved deeper into the foul-smelling path. A small patch of orange light came into focus after several minutes of walking. Magnar held up his arm, motioning the party to stop and fall silent.
Telerek looked at Beltayne saying, “While your masterful display of stealth was invaluable earlier, allow me to scout ahead this time… please.”
Beltayne stood up straight before saying, “Of course, I must allow the rest of you to spread your wings at some point.” Beltayne then slouched against the wall and hung his head while rubbing his injured shoulder.
Telerek melded into the shadows, his footfalls noiseless as he slowly moved along the walls towards the light. More to Magnus' surprise, Val had taken to her panther form and was silently stalking right behind her cousin.
Magnus stood, staring at the light so long that it fell out of focus and he swore he saw it flicker a few times. Magnus had to rub his eyes as he swore he saw the light moving closer.
“Ready yerselves,” Magnar growled, tightening his grip on the maul.
Magnus wasn't delirious, the light was getting closer. The wizard began whispering an incantation as Keld'dhos raised his shield and Beltayne half-heartedly raised his sword in feeble challenge. Suddenly, the light came rushing towards them at an alarming speed. The time for subtlety appeared to have vanished as Magnus' heart began to race. The wizard finished his incantation quickly and an arcane projectile, in the shape of an arrow, materialized between his open hands. Magnar roared and surged towards the light, bringing his hammer down.
Val, holding a bright torch, side-stepped Magnar's blow effortlessly as the dwarf's hammer slammed into the earth. “Wow. You really need to start paying better attention,” Val said to Magnar, glaring at the dwarf with disapproval. The look faded in an instant and Val smiled at the rest saying, “You have to come see what we found!”
The party followed Val down the hallway until they came to a small circular room. A dilapidated wooden table with three chairs dominated the center of the room. Four men lay dead, bleeding from neck wounds, on the floor. At the far end an iron gate stood closed and multiple pairs of hungry, desperate eyes stared back at the party from behind.
“I think we found the proof we were lookin for lads,” Magnar said, approaching the gate.
A gaunt, yellow haired man pushed himself past the other slaves to the gate. “Gentleman, thank the gods you have come,” he said, pushing his arm past the bars on the gate for a handshake. Val huffed and turned away, walking away from the man, apparently annoyed at being referred to as a gentleman.
Telerek shook the man's hand before asking, “What is going on in this place?”
“My name is Bram Holloway, I am in the employ of Lord Alaric Fairwinds, noble of these parts,” the man said.
“I thought House Dyre controlled these lands?” Kel'dhos asked.
“Ah, yes Duke Dyre is the Lord of the Tameless Shore, no doubt. Lord Fairwinds is a most loyal vassal” Bram said with enthusiasm.
“How does a man in service of a nobleman find himself locked in a cage beneath a mine?” Telerek asked.
“Lord Fairwinds learned that this mine was potentially a front for a slaving operation. Most barbaric of practices, outlawed by the King over a decade ago. Lord Fairwinds sent me, his humble servant, to investigate if there was any truth to these rumors,” Bram said.
“What'd ya find out?” Magnar asked, smiling.
“Much to my own reluctance I discovered, through intense personal experience, that this mine is in fact used for the housing and transportation of slaves” Bram said hanging his head low. “I have found,” he continued a few moments later. “That slaves are brought from all around the Tameless Shore to this mine, where they are housed for a short time before being led through the tunnels and loaded onto boats. I, unfortunately, was unable to learn these details, vital to my mission as they were, until I had already found myself in this cell. I did, however, bribe one of the guards to get word to Praldosta of my plight. It appears my bribe was not wasted, as my rescue now seems imminent.”
Magnus discovered a large key in the pocket of one of the dead men laying on the floor. Telerek unlocked the door and no less than twenty half naked, nearly starving men burst from the doorway. They devoured the few scraps of food on the table in mere heartbeats and then began kicking and spitting at the dead guards. Kel'dhos was passing around his canteen and distributing his rations to the freed slaves. He then took to wrapping wounds and saying prayers.
“How, if I may ask, were you able to make it to us?” Bram asked.
“We came up from the river, had to fight our way through an army of goblins and some sort of demonic obelisk,” Telerek said.
“Obelisk? In the mine? Can't say I know anything about that. The goblins make sense. Rythela, the superintendent of the mine, has apparently made some sort of deal with a goblin queen. Grabstab I think I heard them call her, horrendous name if you ask me. She provides slaves and labor to Rythela, Rythela provides weapons and wealth to the queen.” Bram said, chewing on the rations Kel'dhos had given him.
“Which way should we be using to get out of here?” Magnar asked.
“Certainly not upwards towards the quarry,” Bram said much to Magnus' dismay. The fresh air of the open pit was to remain a dream. Bram continued, “The guardhouse will see us immediately and it will be, quite literally, an uphill battle.” Magnus thought about which sounded worse, the continued endlessness of this cave, accompanied by their new foul-smelling companions, or having to climb even more. He rubbed his temples as his head pounded with the unpleasantness of both options that lay before the party.
“Can't we just pretend to be some of the miners? Or is the mine itself a pure illusion for slaving?” Magnus finally asked.
“Oh, no the mine is very much fully operational. It is, quite frankly, the lifeblood of Praldosta’s economy. People from all over travel and gain legitimate employment here,” Bram responded.
“So, what's the problem?” Magnus asked.
“The problem is that, by my calculations, it is nearly nightfall. Only the goblins work the mine at night. I am afraid we would stick out quite evidently,” Bram said.
“Heh, well I don't think they are going to be making their shifts tonight," Magnar said, patting at the dried goblin blood on his hammer.
“Ah, yes, well this also presents us with a new problem, I'm afraid,” Bram said. “I imagine that when the goblins do not come up, Rythela will send her enforcers down. I have no terrible desire to have another interaction with Rythela's chief thug, Brugnar Steeljaw they call him. Big, ugly and mean as the sun is bright. I once saw him crush a man's skull with his hands for yawning too loudly.”
“Well, it seems like we will need to work our way back down then,” Kel'dhos said.
“We can take trips ferrying a few of you at a time out of the cavern. That is as long as the boat we left can still hold up,” added Telerek.
“Splendid suggestion, gentleman. I advise that we begin our journey at present. There is no telling how,” Bram started to say before the sound of a gong echoed deep in the distance, the sound reverberating off the walls of the cave. “Oh, dear.” Bram said. “That is the call for the goblins to begin their shift. They will be sending Brugnar and his beaters down soon when no goblins make their way up.”
The party stared at each other for a short time before Magnar said “Well, I always did enjoy setting a good ambush. Takes me back it does.”
“Gentleman and my most beautiful of elven misses," Bram started looking at Val. “I must trouble you for one more thing.”
***
“A book? We are going to risk our lives for a damn book?” Magnar said.
“Bram said there should be some sort of ledger, or log of the slaves in the guardhouse. He said Lord Fairwinds requires more proof to bring before the king than the word of his personal servant,” Telerek said to the grumbling dwarf.
“Well, I'm not being paid by Lord Foul Winds, so I don't give a shit what he wants. It is the Trident Guard that's funding our little expedition if you haven't forgotten,” replied Magnar.
“Highwarden Blacktide asked for us to find proof that this mine was involved in the slave trade, what better proof could we bring him than one written by the guilty party's own hand?” Kel'dhos interjected.
“We can just drag that miserable bunch we just let free in front of the Highwarden, what better proof could that be?” Magnar asked.
“Yes, brother and if they don't want to go show themselves as proof, we can always lock them in chains and force them to against their will. They shouldn't have a problem with that,” Magnus said while smiling at his brother. Magnar shook his head and groaned to himself, but offered no further argument.
The party had traveled up to the entrance of the cave and found themselves in a large room with a giant opening leading to the bottom of the quarry. The front half of the room was illuminated by the full moon and the other half lay in near total darkness. They had luckily arrived before the mine's enforcers and were able to find advantageous positions behind several large rocks and stalagmites. Magnus hunched down behind a particularly large stalagmite and tried not to breath too loudly.
After a long while, footsteps could be heard approaching the cave entrance. Magnus peered out from the side of his hiding place and saw close to a dozen men, armed with swords and axes, standing in a line, the moonlight casting their shadows deep into the cavern. In the middle stood a man a head taller than the rest, chest as wide as a barrel. Next to the towering giant of a man, the aforementioned Brugnar Steeljaw presumably, stood a goblin. Damn, I guess we didn't get them all, Magnus thought to himself.
Brugnar took a step forward and bellowed in a deep raspy voice, “We know you are in here loves, why don't you make this easier for all of us? I don’t have it in me to clean my axe today.” The words were amplified by the natural acoustics provided by the cavern. Brugnar held a large two-sided axe in one hand and was picking at his teeth with the other. “No takers then? Well, don't accuse Brugnar of not offering mercy,” Brugnar said, the rest of his men snickering behind him.
Magnus suddenly heard boots scraping against the earth coming from behind him. He looked back and saw Beltayne, limping slowly towards the brutes, hand on the pommel of his sword. The wizard cursed the snow elf under his breath.
“Ah, so we have a fighter, though it looks like you're half beat already boy,” the giant man said, a yellow toothed smile flashing across his scarred face. Beltayne wordlessly continued his slow, labored walk towards Brugnar, eyes staring at his feet. He stopped no more than a single pace away and looked up into the giant's eyes. “I admire your tenacity little elf, but,” the sentence ended abruptly. In the blink of an eye Beltayne had unsheathed his sword and made one single swipe with astonishing speed. Brugnar’s head rolled from his shoulders and his giant body collapsed to the earth.
Magnus' eyes felt as if they were going to bulge from their sockets.
Beltayne pointed the tip of his sword at the remaining enforcers and stood up straight. “Do any of you cowards dare to feel the cold retribution of Winter's Bite upon your skin?” Beltayne stated calmly. Magnus and the rest of the party emerged from their hiding places, spells and weapons at the ready.
The rest of the men looked at each other nervously before rushing out of the cavern. After a few silent moments, the party gathered around Beltayne, who was still pointing his sword at where the men had been.
Magnar slapped the back of Beltayne and said, “Where did that come from, ya haughty dunce?”
Beltayne slid Winter's Bite back into its scabbard and turned to the party. “I could no longer permit that fiendish ogre to threaten my friends,” Beltayne said, his body beginning to slouch again.
The party looked out of the entrance of the cave and into the quarry. At the top, a small fortress dominated their field of view, its dark silhouette a stark contrast to the bright full moon behind it. Beltayne turned to the group and said, “I think it would behoove us to devise some sort of plan from here.”
End of Chapter