ã€ŠTytersã€‹


 Where am I?

    TYTERS

    Part 1

    Deserts

    Chapter 1

    Where am I?

    It was mid April and seven friends were taking a leisurely hike in the local mountains on a pleasant Sunday afternoon. Torger and Graul were brothers who worked at their dad¡¯s custom cabinet shop. Arden and Brun were brothers and Arden was married to Jex who had come on the otherwise all guys outing. Rome had recently ended his service in the Navy and was an Uber driver and college student, and Antic loved all things Disney so much he decided to work there and had been promoted to a management position at the original park.

    They were hiking along a trail in the Azusa Canyon Forest. The name forest is misleading because this is Southern California and it¡¯s a desert. Without cities it would be nothing but sand and scrub brush. Each person carried a pistol because the area had rattlesnakes, coyotes, and mountain lions. Arden and Torger carried a shotgun also. They each also had a hiking pack with hikers¡¯ items in the pockets. Torger and Arden were experienced hikers and were slightly bothered about staying on the trail for the benefit of the group. All of them were a little overweight but kept physically active. It was getting past noon and the sun was beating on their heads so they decided to get off the trail and head for the shade of trees. After a quarter mile walk through knee high bushes they came to a cluster of pines. They all sat on the ground for a water break, except Arden who had severe ADD.

    Arden walked a ways further into the forest then called back for everyone to come look at what he had found. Reluctantly everyone got up to go see what it was. They knew better than to stay sitting because once he got an idea into his head he would argue his way was right until others gave up trying to lead him to reason. Arden loved arguing and would argue about anything at all just for the fun of it.

    What everyone saw when they got there was something truly shocking. A pulsating pale green dome about three feet in diameter was hovering a few inches off the ground. A small electronic instrument that looked similar to a smart phone was under it. They all surrounded it and naturally talked about what to do and asked each other what it was. After a minute of conversation Arden was unable to stand the suspense any longer so he reached out and touched it. The pale green light instantly expanded to encompass all of them and a second later all seven people and the electric device all disappeared.

    Torger stood in a rocky field with tall grasses coming to his waist. To his shock he was completely naked. He looked around and saw his brother Graul standing ten feet away, also completely naked. It was Graul¡¯s face, but not his body. It was the body of a skinny teen, about fourteen years or so. Torger looked down and saw that he too was in the body of a wimpy teen.

    ¡°Graul? Is that you?¡±

    ¡°Yep. What, why? I don¡¯t even know what question to ask right now.¡±

    They both looked around on the ground for their clothes but found nothing. After a minute of searching Graul said ¡°I found something.¡±

    Torger walked over and Graul picked up what looked like a Kindle tablet off the ground. They agreed that was odd and Torger urged him to turn it on. After a few seconds the screen came on then a display of icons.

    Get Started Weapons Armor

    Money Cities Notoriety/Quests

    Maps Exp  Stats

    Items Spells Translate

    Graul touched the Get Started icon.

    Welcome to The Tyter¡¯s Hunt ¡­loading¡­ Graul! Tyters hunt dangerous big game for sport and social status. You have been transported to another solar system. This planet has been terra formed to foster growth and strength for all who are summoned here. In three years a squad of our hunters (we are Tyters) will arrive to hunt the seven of you. The Tyter who kills the most humans will receive prizes and notoriety. If all seven Tyters die during the hunt the remaining humans will be free to live here. We hope the drop down tabs on your tablet are self explanatory, after all you are the smartest race on your planet.

    Torger read the message over Graul¡¯s shoulder and asked ¡°What the hell is going on?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know any more than you do. Look around to see if you got a Kindle too.¡±

    After a few minutes of searching Torger found his tablet and had the same written starting message. He touched the Weapons icon.

    Knives level 2, 0 exp

    Swords

    1 handed level 0, 0 exp

    2 handed  level 1, 0exp

    Bows level 0, 0 exp

    Clubs level 3, 0 exp

    Staffs level 0, 0 exp

    Guns level 29, 0 exp

    You own no weapons

    Torger didn¡¯t know what the levels were, but they may have been fairly accurate. He had played softball for a few years but quit due to ankle problems. He and Graul were used to swinging a baseball bat, and that might be a club. He was in the Army for six years and his job was to fix guns when they broke, and he frequently test fired them at Fort Irwin, but that was years ago. He did own a few cheap swords for fun.

    Armor showed no results, Money showed 0 gold, silver, and copper. Cities showed none, Notoriety showed 0 fame points, feared 0/100, loved 0/100, respected 0/100, hated 0/100 for dwarves, elves, and goblins. Maps showed an aerial view of the field they were standing in, and that was a small dot in a sea of blackout. Exp was a little more interesting. Experience 0/1000. Available ability points 0.

    Torger didn¡¯t know what ability points were or how they could be applied but he guessed that every 1000 exp gained, he earned 1 ability point, but he didn¡¯t know what experience points were either. Stats showed Health 100/100, Stamina 30/30, Strength 1/1, Mana 0/0. Items showed

    Health potions  Low-0 Mid-0 High-0

    Mana potions Low-0 Mid-0 High-0

    Strength potions Low-0 Mid-0 High-0Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    Stamina potions Low-0 Mid-0 High-0

    Spells showed None.

    Graul had similar results, unsurprisingly, minus the gun level. ¡°Torger what happened? Where are we?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. The messages on the Kindles could easily be a trick but that doesn¡¯t explain how we got here and where our clothes and equipment went to. Let¡¯s look around.¡±

    Torger scanned the horizon and pointed. ¡°That¡¯s Mount Baldy, so we¡¯re in the foothills, let¡¯s see, near Upland. So Azusa Canyon is about twenty miles west. But where are all the buildings, roads, power lines? And there are a lot of trees in the mountains. Wow! Even some redwoods! How are redwoods growing here?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know! I don¡¯t know anything. I don¡¯t know where the others are at. All I know is I¡¯m thirsty and naked and the sun is going down.¡±

    Torger looked at the sky. Surprisingly he wasn¡¯t blinking as much as usual without sunglasses. He always wore sunglasses and was sensitive to bright light, but now it didn¡¯t bother him. He saw that the sun was going down, but it was pretty far south. As he was looking a cold breeze came down off the mountain. It shouldn¡¯t be that cold in April. Looking at the sky again he said ¡°Graul, this isn¡¯t good. Not good at all. In fact this sucks. It¡¯s winter.¡±

    Graul looked at the sky and felt the wind and knew Torger was right. The weird thing about SoCal weather is it can be eighty degrees and sunny anywhere from mid September to late June, so when they got transported to the field the weather happened to be the same going from mid April to what was probably close to winter solstice. What they couldn¡¯t hide from was that nights were cold- that is by California standards, meaning overnight lows of thirties to forties. Without clothes or shelter this could be a miserable night.

    Torger looked at Graul and asked ¡°Why are you so short and scrawny?¡±

    ¡°Why are you so short and scrawny? Why did we change physically?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. What do we do now?¡±

    Graul answered ¡°We have two options. Try to figure out how to make shoes so we can walk somewhere, or try to find shelter for the night and make a fire.¡±

    ¡°I vote for fire, we¡¯ll figure out the walking problem tomorrow.¡±

    The brothers tenderly, slowly, and painfully walked over the desert rocks and around sage brush and cacti, toward a cluster of trees at the foothills. It was only a couple of miles away but was almost completely dark by the time they made it there. They found dry leaves and tried striking stones together but without the combination of flint and steel they didn¡¯t get any sparks. Next they tried rubbing sticks together but that didn¡¯t help at all. Finally they fell asleep on bare ground and shivered all night.

    Chapter 2

    Home

    The brothers woke up at sunrise and again asked each other ¡°What do we do now?¡± Being very hungry, thirsty, and cold, they decided some sort of footwear was of supreme importance. Torger pulled a piece of bark off a redwood and then broke it in half. He laid each piece on the ground and stood on them. ¡°If we can find some ivy we can wrap it around our feet to keep the bark in place.¡±

    Since both brothers were professional woodworkers they knew redwood bark was soft and easily sanded, if they had sand paper. They walked around and found thick moss growing on some trees. They braided it and wrapped it around their feet to make the most environmentally friendly kicks ever. The moss made poor twine and the wood slipped a lot, but they weren¡¯t barefoot on rocks.

    Next they decided to head for their house, or where they used to live. They were hoping to take an indirect route up the mountain first to San Antonio Falls. Again, falls is an optimistic word for the name. It actually is about twelve feet high and drops water at the rate of two showers running at once, but it is fresh water and that¡¯s what they needed the most, so they walked due north, straight up the mountain.

    After about a mile the bark under Torger¡¯s right foot cracked but stayed in place from the moss rope. After another mile they saw a wisp of smoke straight ahead through the trees. As they came closer they saw and heard metal clanging on metal in a steady rhythm. After a few more feet an arrow whizzed through the air just missing Torger¡¯s head. He jumped back and they both hid behind a tree.

    A deep and loud voice shouted out ¡°Breck gund nog awker fillart.¡±

    Torger peeked his head around the tree and saw a dwarf wearing iron armor. He held his bow with a knocked arrow pointed at Torger¡¯s head. Torger raised his hands and said ¡°I¡¯m sorry we¡¯re trespassing. We just wanted food and water.¡±

    The reply he got was ¡°Breck gund nog awker fillart.¡± That wasn¡¯t helpful. But what was helpful was Graul pushed the Translate icon on his Kindle and said ¡°We want water.¡± The speaker had a slight delay and said ¡°Gaum riker.¡± The dwarf spoke in dwarvish again and what was translated was ¡°We are willing to trade if you have anything of value.¡±

    Graul took up the conversation. ¡°We just arrived yesterday. We have nothing. We are hungry and thirsty and don¡¯t know what is going on or how we got here.¡±

    The response was ¡°Has it been a hundred years already? I will give you food and water and tell you about this land if you go far away and stay away.¡±

    Torger looked at him and said ¡°I don¡¯t know where we will go or what we will be doing for the next few days. This is the only fresh water source for twenty miles. Until we get information I can¡¯t promise anything.¡± He hoped that his brashness wouldn¡¯t result in an arrow through the heart. Graul looked at him like he was hoping for the same thing.

    ¡°Fine. A little information, then we will negotiate. My name is Baybil. Once every three years the tyters bring a strong life form here to hunt them. Dwarves, elves, and goblins are the indigenous intelligent life here, and we don¡¯t get hunted. The tyters transform the land to look like the birth place of the life they bring here. This world is called Nuva. Each race brought here is brought once every hundred years. Since you arrived yesterday, the tyters will arrive in three years and hunt and kill you. If you are near us dwarves, we may be killed in collateral damage. Therefore, go away and stay away. Enjoy the three years of life you have left.¡±

    Graul couldn¡¯t let that go so easily. ¡°How can you be so cold hearted? Don¡¯t you see we have real needs here? Help us today and we¡¯ll repay you later.¡±

    ¡°Hrramph. I doubt you will have anything to offer us in the next few days, but I will make you a deal. I will give you leather shoes, a skin of water, and two roasted rabbits. In exchange bring me back a deer in four days. If you fail, make sure none of us dwarves of the Cucamonga clan see you again or we will kill you.¡±

    Torger said ¡°Cucamonga, as in the Cucamonga Indians that were native here four hundred years ago?¡±

    Graul looked at him and said ¡°I didn¡¯t know that¡¯s where Rancho Cucamonga got its name.¡±

    ¡°I saw it on an episode of Storage Wars.¡±

    Baybil spoke up ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about and don¡¯t care. Do we have a deal? Bring me a deer in four days or go away.¡±

    Graul looked at his tablet and saw Quests was flashing, so he tapped it. The screen read:

    Bring Baybil a deer in four days. Reward will be paid in advance.

    Torger asked ¡°How common are deer around here? Where we¡¯re from there is very little wildlife left. And how are we going to kill it? We need a bow to hunt it.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not giving you any weapon. There are many animals around here. If you can¡¯t kill a deer bring something else that¡¯s useful.¡±

    They agreed. A half hour later Torger and Graul each devoured their unseasoned roasted rabbit and drank the whole water skin a few times as they kept refilling it in the falls. The San Antonio falls were much bigger than they had ever seen it. Meanwhile Baybil brought them two pairs of old worn out leather boots. Torger had the idea to sew the tree bark onto the bottoms of the shoes. They were horribly uncomfortable to walk in but it was way better than what they had.

    Torger asked Baybil ¡°One more question. We were both born at San Antonio Community Hospital in Upland, and it seems we appeared in Upland when we arrived here to Nuva. Does that mean our friends are at the places where they were born?¡±

    Baybil answered ¡°I guess so. We stay away from the tyters¡¯ prey.¡±

    Since they didn¡¯t know where their friends were born, that was bad news. They thought they were all born in California, but weren¡¯t sure. But the brothers were co-owners of a house in Rancho Cucamonga, so maybe the house was there. That was wishful thinking but they had no other ideas, so they headed in that direction. They walked down the foothills and then along them to the east. Their feet hurt from the bad shoes but they made much better time than they would have otherwise.

    After about eight miles the sun started going down and it once again got cold. They decided to push on into the night and make it to the house, if it was there. As they walked they commented that no other dwarves had come out to see them in that little village, which had no buildings which they could see, except a medieval blacksmith, and thought that was strange. As they walked in near darkness with the last of the sunlight they saw a cabin to the south. Completely overwhelmed with excitement they hurried (they couldn¡¯t exactly run) towards it.

    They arrived to find it exactly as they would expect to find a log cabin which had been built two hundred years earlier. There was nothing around it; no road or path, no garden or fence, and no sign of an owner at home.

    They knocked then pushed the door open. The inside of the house had nothing. There was a simple fire pit with a smoke stack, a cast iron pan next to it, and a shotgun without ammo. Exhausted they laid down on the hardwood floors in the cold empty house and tried to sleep, with little success.

    ¡°Do you think the others are near?¡± asked Torger.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Where do you think we are?¡±

    ¡°The message on the tablet is obviously a hoax. We¡¯re not on another planet.¡±

    Graul answered ¡°Someone has gone to a lot of trouble. This looks like SoCal, but where are all the people and buildings, and what happened to our friends and clothes? And how did we get from Azusa to Upland?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but we¡¯ll figure it out tomorrow.¡±

    Graul was silent for several minutes. ¡°Torger?¡±

    ¡°Yeah?¡±

    ¡°While we were walking here tonight, I didn¡¯t see the Big Dipper or Little Dipper. They¡¯re there year round.¡±

    Torger didn¡¯t respond. He had noticed the same thing but didn¡¯t want to bring it up.

 Hunting

    Chapter 3

    Hunting

    The next morning they found the area completely desolate. Thankful for a safe place to sleep, but disappointed with still being cold hungry and naked, Torger walked outside. He looked at the multitude of trees to the north. He walked back in and told Graul ¡°Our next door neighbor Giln was a local history buff. He once told me redwoods grew here up until about five hundred years ago. And it seems the Cucamonga Indians have been replaced by the Cucamonga dwarves. There are some redwoods here but not a lot. I think this is how the area looked when Columbus landed.¡±

    ¡°Great. So how does that help us?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. But I think we should try to find the others. I don¡¯t know where they were born but I think they were all born in SoCal. First we should go to our house, see if it¡¯s there, but we¡¯ll have to hurry because rain is coming.¡±

    They knew they had a five mile walk to the south to get to where their house should be. Along the way Graul saw a jackrabbit under a yucca plant. He picked up a rock and threw it. The jackrabbit got knocked to its side then got up and hopped away. A while later they saw another one. This time both men picked up large stones and tried to get close. Once they were twelve feet away the jackrabbit started hopping. Graul threw his rock and missed, but it caused the prey to change direction. That extra second allowed Torger to get close enough to hit it with his fist sized stone. Again the jackrabbit got knocked to its side and Graul ran close and bashed it in the head with a large stone.

    At the same time the brothers realized the dilemma. They had to put their Kindles and water skins on the ground to kill the bunny, and now had a dead rabbit to carry as well. Torger agreed to carry it and while walking Graul looked at his Kindle. Under his Exp icon, a new item was added.

    Exp 11/1000 Available ability points 0

    It would take another ninety-one rabbits to find out what an ability point was. That just wouldn¡¯t do. They needed real weapons. They hurried to the house and sure enough it wasn¡¯t there, just a wide open field. They did find a dead tree and were able to break off a branch for each of them as a crude club. They began walking back to the cabin, and after a couple of miles saw a coyote. It was much bigger than any they had seen in that area, maybe sixty pounds. They each circled to its sides to flank it then attack, but after a few steps they heard bushes rustling behind them. Turning they saw three more behind them.

    Torger had once been surrounded by coyotes in Nevada while Graul was exploring a cave, but Torger called and when the coyotes saw Graul emerge they walked away. These coyotes were much bigger and were not walking away. The men weren¡¯t really scared, they could win the fight, but without clothes they would get a few scratches and bites, which they would prefer to avoid.

    They set their water skins, and tablets on the ground and held the branches like clubs. There was a standoff. The coyotes wouldn¡¯t leave or attack, they just circled at a distance sizing them up.

    Torger called over to Graul ¡°Are they here because they¡¯re hungry or did we enter their territory?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. We can¡¯t keep standing here so let¡¯s attack on three. One two three!¡±

    The men ran a few steps, each toward a different coyote, and the two targets backed away but the other two coyotes ran towards Graul. He swung his club hard catching one in the jaw and knocking it unconscious, but two others jumped at him and each landed a bite, one on each leg. He grunted in pain and swung to hit one in the hind leg. It limped away but Graul fell down from swinging while off balance. He crawled a few feet, with one coyote jaw locked on to his calf.

    Graul reached a rock and slammed the coyote in the side. It yelped and scurried away. Graul was happy to see his legs weren¡¯t bleeding profusely, but there was a slow steady drip from each leg, and he had no medicine. He crawled back and slammed the stone into the skull of the unconscious coyote.

    Torger was much better off. Since he had only one coyote to contend with, as soon as he ran towards it the beast took a few steps back but still didn¡¯t attack or retreat. Torger got a good solid downward swing to split its skull. He turned to see Graul¡¯s fight, but got there too late. Torger decided to chase and kill the bleeding coyote, which was surprisingly easy with another good swing, but the branch split on impact.

    The coyote that Graul had first struck was lying in the field a hundred yards away and breathing hard. Torger guessed it had broken ribs and was unsure if he should try to attack a wounded animal. He decided to go for it. He went back and grabbed Graul¡¯s club and approached the coyote cautiously. It stood up when he came near and it growled and its fur bristled along its neck. Torger knew he had the supreme advantage and there was no reason for him to get injured. He grabbed the branch one hand at each end and held it in front of him sideways. The thinking was he would use it to keep from being bit.

    Sure enough the coyote ran at him and Torger positioned the branch to go sideways into the canines¡¯ mouth. Once it bit down Torger released his left hand and spun around its back. He straddled the beast and used his left arm to try to choke it. Unfortunately it was able to back up and slipped backward between his legs. It turned to run but Torger used the club to get a good strike on its hind leg. That caused it to limp and a quick second blow split its skull, and the branch was ruined too.

    Torger walked back to Graul and was breathing a lot harder than he thought he should have. Graul looked at him and said ¡°You¡¯re really out of shape. I guess we both are. Ten years ago this would have been too easy. But now we¡¯re weaklings. My bleeding legs mean I¡¯m going to walk slower and we need to get to clean water. Do you think you could carry one of those back to Baybil?¡±

    ¡°Probably not, but I think I could peel off the pelt of one in an hour. I¡¯ll carry one to you and we can both work on salvaging our first trophy kills.¡±

    He made crude stone shanks, which made very poor knives, but after an hour they both had fresh pelts with amateurish jagged cuts all over them. Graul¡¯s bleeding stopped and they decided to skin the other two. Each man put one pelt over his shoulders like a shawl and tied up the legs of the other pelt. Graul sat down while Torger went back to get two more branches. After another hour the men began walking north to see Baybil and get more fresh water, and they used the branches and pelts like a hobo stick and sack.

    Chapter 4

    Rewards

    The brothers made it to San Antonio Falls just as it was getting dark. The wind was strong and a light drizzle was beginning, promising a heavy downpour. Baybil met them just outside the village once again with a look on his face that was a mix of surprise and anger. Before he said anything Graul pressed Translate on his tablet.

    ¡°Either you brought back a deer or you want to be my slaves. Which is it?¡±

    Torger answered ¡°We have some things you might be interested in. Four coyote pelts, three crude clubs, two crude shanks and a partridge in a pear tree.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what a partridge or a pear is, but the four pelts is worth half a full deer. I¡¯m surprised you¡¯ve done so well without help. And the way you sharpened those clubs shows you know a little something about woodworking.¡±

    ¡°Do you have need of cabinets? We can work for you, but we don¡¯t have any tools.¡±

    ¡°Aye. There is no one in this village that works with wood. Our blacksmith can make some for you. What do you have for collateral?¡±

    ¡°You see everything we own, except our house. We need more water and food.¡±

    ¡°You two have a house? I¡¯ve never met someone that came here and the tyters gave them a starting house. Most imported beings don¡¯t have a house, and if they do it¡¯s far from where they¡¯re born. Put up your house for collateral and we¡¯ll go see it tomorrow. I¡¯ll give you a fair trade for it.¡±

    Graul was furious. ¡°There¡¯s no way we¡¯re trading away our house! If it is our house now. Take the four pelts for water, food, and a dry comfortable place to sleep tonight. I haven¡¯t slept much since we got here two days ago. I¡¯m injured and exhausted.¡±

    Baybil thought about it. ¡°Let¡¯s see, a good coyote pelt is worth three copper, but those are worth one copper each. I agree. Four copper now and another four copper on credit is worth a good nights lodging. Follow me.¡±

    Torger looked at Graul and they both knew they just got bamboozled. But a good rest was worth it in this cruel world.

    Getting a closer look into the village they saw three small cottages, poorly made, but said nothing about the shoddy workmanship or asked who lived in them. Baybil walked into a cave mouth and turned into a small alcove just inside. ¡°Here is my home. Meet my wife Hilda and my son Berks. Hun make a nice meal for these men please, and Berks prepare a soft bed for them. They will be staying here tonight.¡±

    The dwarves easily agreed and Baybil led the men to the falls to bathe. The water was frigid but they were grateful because they were covered in mud and blood. Bathing in cold water let them see just how unimportant they had actually become in this world. Once back in the cave they were led a little further inside. Baybil turned into a different alcove and they sat on chiseled stone ledges that were coming out of the walls. Baybil picked up a dark brown water skin off the floor and took a long drink. He passed it to Torger who drank then coughed.Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    ¡°I haven¡¯t tasted real mead in years. It¡¯s very rare where we come from but I wish it was more easily available.¡±

    He took a good drink and passed it to Graul who had never tasted mead. It was too sweet for his likes but he wasn¡¯t one to turn down free alcohol so he took a few chugs. After the skin made a second round among the guys Torger had some thoughts he couldn¡¯t restrain.

    ¡°Baybil, are you guys, I mean dwarves, looking for anything in this mountain? Or is this just your home? We hear picks striking stone deeper inside the tunnel.¡±

    ¡°As I¡¯ve told you, the tyters hunt here once every three years. They change the land to fit the home of their prey. For us who live here that means once every three years we have to start looking for new precious minerals, we dwarves love jewels. So yes, we are looking for stuff like emeralds, diamonds, or even mithril in this mountain.¡±

    ¡°How long ago was this world transformed? You¡¯ve already built a smithy, a few cottages, and tunneled a few hundred yards into the mountain. And how do they transform the land?¡±

    ¡°They have big ships that fly over the land. The ships send out beams of light and mountains are raised or shrunk, valleys are made and eroded, and plants grow in hours. It takes them about a week to transform the whole world. Our buildings and us are lifted into the air while the land is terra formed, then placed back down in a nearby spot but always with fresh water and at the foothills of the mountains. They know we love mining. The elves are always placed in a forest, and the goblins in a swamp.¡±

    Torger and Graul looked at each other. The story was hard to believe to say the least. Torger didn¡¯t allow himself to get flustered by the absurdity. He leaned over and whispered to Graul ¡°Trade him for information on the California gold rush.¡±

    Graul caught on but had a better idea. ¡°Baybil, it seems that this land was how our area probably looked five hundred years ago. Do you know why?¡±

    ¡°It could be that¡¯s how long it has been since they last visited your planet. Some of the intelligent prey have said the same thing over the years.¡±

    ¡°How old are you? How long has this been going on?¡±

    ¡°I am two hundred and twelve. Some in this village think I¡¯m over the hill but I think I¡¯m in my prime. And the answer to your next question, dwarves live on average for three hundred years. When I was a very young dwarf my great grandfather told me prey had been coming here for as long as he could remember.¡±

    Graul continued. ¡°Thank you Baybil, that¡¯s very helpful. If this land is exactly as it was hundreds of years ago, I know where silver is at. What is that information worth to you?¡±

    ¡°Silver? The lowest of ores that free dwarves would bother mining? That¡¯s not highly useful, but if your directions are good I would give you both leather armor and a copper sword, if the silver is close. But before you receive your reward I would have to verify it¡¯s there.¡±

    Torger caught on that Graul was talking about Calico, which was much closer than the gold in northern California, and they knew exactly where Calico was, but were not big on local history and had only a vague idea of where gold had been discovered. Why didn¡¯t they listen to their neighbor Giln when he rambled on about local history? And why didn¡¯t Bear Grylls teach them how to make clothes from plants. Now they had to trade their information for the basic necessities. But hearing the heavy rain outside reminded him it was worth it.

    Torger asked Graul ¡°Should we take him to Calico or look for the others?¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t know where the others are. Let¡¯s go to the desert while it¡¯s still winter. Baybil, let¡¯s head for the desert tomorrow. But we need to have leather armor and that copper sword for the journey.¡±

    Baybil agreed and they ate a hearty stew and drank more mead and slept deeply that night. The next morning the brothers and Baybil walked to the cabin. The men felt good to have clothes on, with proper boots and a short sword. Baybil had the tanner make the outfits during the night while the men slept.

    Baybil went with the brothers to see their house. When he came near he waited a hundred yards away while the men kept walking. They turned to look back at him.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Why did you stop?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m no fool. I¡¯m not walking in until you take down your shield.¡±

    ¡°What shield?¡±asked Graul.

    ¡°Oh gods help me. The tyters are supposed to bring formidable prey. Are you two so daft you didn¡¯t activate your property shield when you left?¡±

    ¡°Uhh no. Come inside and explain it to us.¡±

    Baybil looked around clearly impressed. He had never seen wood floors before, and Torger couldn¡¯t explain they were actually poorly crafted; with modern tools on Earth they could do a much better job. They explained how modern plumbing was supposed to work if they were hooked up to city water and sewage. They explained how light bulbs and outlets were supposed to work if they had electricity, and routine things like a missing stove, washer, and dryer. Baybil was even impressed by the concept of door knobs. He heard about windows and they explained they were supposed to have drapes, or blinds. Baybil sort of grasped the idea of blinds, and told them the strings would be good for a beginners to intermediate bow. The brothers realized Baybil had always partied like it¡¯s thirteen ninety-nine while living in an Amish paradise.

    Graul found a secret panel in the wall with a few knives in it. The men set their tablets on the floor. Fortunately they were solar powered or the batteries would have been dead. The icons for weapons, armor, cities, and exp were all flashing yellow. Weapons added their new copper swords. Torger¡¯s showed this.

    Knives level 2, 0 exp

    Small pocket knife x2

    <u>Crude shank x1</u>

    Swords

    1 handed level 0, 0 exp

    Decorative sword x1

    <u>Short sword (Copper) x1 </u>

    2 handed level 1, 0exp

    Decorative sword x1

    Bows level 0, 0 exp

    Clubs level 3, <u>156 exp</u>

    <u>Cudgel x1</u>

    Staffs level 0, 0 exp

    Guns level 29, 0 exp

    Shotgun x1 Shells x 0

    Graul had gained 52 exp in clubs, which meant each coyote killed was 52 exp. Armor showed leather boots, pants, and tunic. Cities showed

    Small Hammer (Dwarven village)

    feared 0/100, loved 0/100, respected 2/100, hated 0/100

    Mayor: Baybil

    HOME: Would you like to take possession of this property?

    Of course Graul pressed yes. A message appeared.

    You have accepted the position of Co-Mayor of Home. As the property grows, the rewards will increase, along with the pressures of leadership.

    Graul backed up to the previous screen and saw Home added to Cities.

    Current level: Large cottage (Property 200 foot diameter) Home needs a population of 6, and 5 ability points to expand

    Population: 2

    Ability points 0/5

    Buildings:

    Single family residence

    Mayors: Torger and Graul

    Population morale 40/100

    Allies: none

    Enemies: none

    Quests: none

    Bring Baybil a deer  minimize

    Complete. Reward: food and lodging for 1 night, 50 exp, 2 respect points

    Show Baybil silver ore details

    Incomplete. Reward Leather Outfit x2, Copper sword x2, 300 exp, 19 love points

    Security: none

    Shield: off

    Next Graul pressed the exp icon.

    Experience 113/1000. Available ability points: 0

    Oh yeah! Somewhere were practice swords and knives. The brothers finally felt like they were getting somewhere in this world. Being rulers over sage brush and Joshua trees was not enviable, but they saw with some elbow grease they could become moderately powerful. The three hundred exp for taking Baybil all the way to Calico was underwhelming, but they didn¡¯t want to lose their clothes again. Torger activated the shield and nothing seemed to happen, but the security showed Shield: 100/100.

    They looked around the cabin and found a loose floorboard. Under it were zinc swords and knives. The tyters really did give them the ability to grow stronger.

    The men were not looking forward to another cold night on a hard floor but Baybil had them gather dry brush and sticks. Once tinder was in the fire pit Baybil waved his hand and a flame shot out igniting the kindling. Torger and Graul both stepped back and asked what that was. Baybil asked ¡°You don¡¯t even know a basic fire spell?¡±

    ¡°No. There is no magic where we¡¯re from. Our mana is zero,¡± answered Graul.

    Baybil looked down and shook his head. He muttered ¡°Slaughtered like turkeys.¡±

    Torger asked ¡°What do you mean ¡®Slaughtered like turkeys¡¯?¡±

    ¡°The tyters use common weapons, and if they get in a bind they use what they tell us are futuristic weapons, whatever that means. Some prey is huge and physically strong, small prey usually has strong magic and venom. You guys won¡¯t last a day, so I don¡¯t know why they would bother bringing you here. It won¡¯t be a challenge for them.¡±

    ¡°We are the strongest on our planet because of our intellect. We¡¯ll think of something.¡± Torger said that because he hoped they would think of something, but had little confidence.

    The depressing conversation caused Graul to go wander outside. He couldn¡¯t handle his inevitable death as easily as Torger seemed to be taking it. After a while he came back inside with a few branches from a Eucalyptus tree. Without a word he sat down in front of the fire and began carving one branch. After five minutes Torger saw what he was doing and picked up a branch and also began carving using his new zinc pocket knife. Zinc doesn¡¯t cut well compared to pretty much all other metals, but Eucalyptus is somewhat soft.

    As they carved Torger told Baybil Eucalyptus isn¡¯t indigenous to the area, it comes from the other side of the world. The tree is thirsty and planting several saplings near a swamp will drain the swamp in thirty years leaving a very fertile meadow. They also can be planted in a line to form a wind break for a property. Baybil was impressed by their knowledge of wood and trees, and their skill in creating something delicate with a zinc knife. After a few more minutes he pulled a steel knife from his belt and handed it to Graul. A few notches later Graul stood up and cut the strings of his boots. An hour later they fell asleep, the brothers each had a new beginners recurve bow.

    As they were getting ready for bed Graul asked ¡°Baybil, what do you do for toilet paper?¡±

    Baybil reached into his bag and tossed him a clump of leaves from a jungle plant Graul had never seen before. Baybil told him ¡°We stock up on these when the tyters are hunting aposors. No charge for good hygiene.¡±

    Baybil slept uneasily. He had his iron armor, iron shield and two handed double headed steel axe, but he was a stranger in their house and their relationship was neutral. He didn¡¯t know if they would try to rob him in his sleep.

 The game changer

    Chapter 5

    The Game Changer

    The next day the three headed out toward the northeast. Torger said there is a mountain pass they would need to cross, and the back side of the mountain was desolate desert. Food and water would be scarce. Graul argued to head towards the San Bernardino mountains and go to Lake Arrowhead for water, but it was well out of their way. Torger knew once they made it through the pass it was a two day walk to the silver mines, or what would become mines. He reluctantly agreed.

    Travel was much easier since they didn¡¯t have to carry everything in their hands. The sword had a belt and scabbard, the bow went over a shoulder, the water skins went over the other shoulder, and the tablet was all they had to carry. As they walked the brothers took turns carving arrows with Baybil¡¯s knife. They didn¡¯t bother making arrowheads from rocks because the bows weren¡¯t very powerful anyways. They would shoot at trees for practice and along the way.

    After a few hours they saw a rabbit. Torger pulled back the bow string, aimed and released. The sharpened stick he used for an arrow had little penetrating force, and the bow had little power, but the arrow did impale the rabbit¡¯s hind leg, only going in an inch. But that was enough to keep it from hopping away. Graul charged it and cut it in half at the middle. Bile spilled all over, tainting the meat. As the blade struck the rabbit Graul¡¯s weak grip caused him to drop the blade. He picked it up and struck again by stabbing it. Again his weakling strength caused him to drop the blade, but his hand continued forward and he sliced open his palm.

    ¡°Chop off the head, not the middle. You ruined the pelt and the meat,¡± Torger reprimanded Graul.

    ¡°Hey you¡¯re the hunter, not me. I¡¯ve never killed an animal until two days ago. At least I¡¯m not squeamish,¡± Graul said while pouring water over the new wound. Baybil sighed and shook his head but said nothing.

    They continued on and during the journey they cleanly killed two more rabbits and a coyote.

    When they came to the foothills the following day Torger saw they didn¡¯t have to go all the way to the lake. The sun was out once again and snow was melting from the peaks. They found a small stream and filled their water skins. They stopped in the shade for the rest of the day to skin the rabbits and make them into three more water skins. Baybil had to explain the tanning process, and he was no expert at it either, but he said in a couple of days with direct sunlight the skins would be able to be sewn together, using the rabbit intestines.

    The next morning they backtracked a few miles and headed for the pass that led to Hesperia. Going through the pass they were suddenly surrounded by a bunch of dwarves which had jumped out from behind rocks! Baybil looked at them with anger then smiled when he recognized one of them. They began speaking in dwarvish too fast for Translate to work. After a minute Baybil smiled and patted Torger on the back and said ¡°This is my cousin Small Foot. Small Foot this is Torger and that is Graul. They are the new prey and we are passing through.¡±

    Small Foot said ¡°I know you are not their tour guide for free Baybil. We want a cut of the profit. A small gift for family you understand.¡±

    Baybil frowned. ¡°This journey will not yield me any great reward. They have nothing. We need food and water. What do you want from us?¡±

    Small Foot looked at the men and said ¡°If you have no possessions, maybe you could point us in the right direction Torger. What resources are around here? All we¡¯ve found in this mountain is granite. The desert looks brutal to the north. You have to be going there for a reason.¡±

    Torger looked at Graul. Then he responded ¡°Can we talk for a minute Small Foot?¡±

    ¡°Why would you keep a secret from me Torger? I¡¯ve done nothing wrong to you. Tell us where you¡¯re going, or give us something useful, or be our slaves for the next two years. Talk to Graul openly for all of us to hear.¡±

    Reluctantly Torger said ¡°Should we tell him about eighteen forty-eight?¡±

    ¡°Torger, that could be useful to us one day. The only thing useful around here in the future is oil wells. That won¡¯t be helpful to them or us.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t hold out on me guys. All we¡¯re asking for is a fair toll fee.¡±

    Torger became angry with Small Foot, but was still afraid. ¡°We¡¯ve been here for less than a week. As Baybil said, we have nothing. We¡¯ll just backtrack and go over the mountain.¡±

    He turned to walk away knowing they couldn¡¯t cross in the winter, but he hated taxes and extortion. Torger was an idealist and wouldn¡¯t pay even if he had the money. He had no idea how this would play out. Small Foot called from behind him ¡°I didn¡¯t give you permission to leave!¡±

    A rock hit Torger in the back and hurt him. He spun around quickly with his sword drawn. Graul had drawn his sword too, ready to fight and die with his brother. Baybil looked at them and said ¡°That was stupid, boys.¡±

    The band of dwarves surrounded them but didn¡¯t pull out any weapons; they just crossed their arms over their chests and shook their heads in dismay. Both brothers had no swordsmanship experience and stood with their hand grips too tight and their feet were firmly planted, making any lunge or slicing motion slow and predictable, and their now emaciated arms in their scrawny bodies were far from formidable.

    Small Foot said ¡°Have it your way. Slavery it is.¡± He withdrew his axe and stepped towards them with a rope in his other hand. Suddenly both tablets blared out and red lights flashed on the screens. Torger dropped his sword and picked up his tablet. A second later in the distance to the south there was a flash of pale green, then another to the north, and another. The men and dwarves were all at the top of the pass and these far away flashes kept coming on both sides of mountain range.

    Small Foot looked at Baybil and asked ¡°What was that?¡±

    Baybil shrugged his shoulders and Torger spoke up ¡°Listen to this!¡± pointing to the tablet. His and Graul¡¯s were saying the same thing in sync.

    RED ALPHA ONE! RED ALPHA ONE! RED ALPHA ONE!

    System Malfunction Activation from solar system XA34

    System Malfunction Activation from solar system PT46

    System Malfunction Activation from solar system LF84

    System Malfunction Activation from solar system GC59

    ¡­..

    System Malfunction Activation from solar system KF21

    ¡°Evacuate Now! Complete shut down in ten seconds. Extraction team unavailable. Evacuate now! Extraction team ETA is in three years. Shutting down now. Three, two, one. Shutdown complete.¡±

    Graul asked the obvious question ¡°What just happened?¡±

    Before anyone could answer a video loaded on to the tablets. A dark face that looked like an ape covered in scales and with antennae sprouting from its head like medusa appeared on the screen. A ¡°play¡± icon appeared on the screens. Graul touched his. The face began speaking ¡°Ruckfit grum agredle krok misdle¡­¡±

    Torger stopped his video, pushed his home page then Translate. As Graul¡¯s tablet played the message, Torger¡¯s translated it. ¡°¡­it seems every portal trap in our prey farming grounds was triggered, trapping and teleporting whichever creatures were near them to this battle planet, LK sixteen. For the safety of our homeland a global shield has been raised preventing all teleporting to or from the area. You are on your own mighty warriors, until the extraction team can arrive and reset the portal traps. In the event of this kind of emergency, supply caches have been hidden around the land. Use your camera to take a picture of the following map. This device cannot fall into the hands of our semi intelligent prey, and will self destruct in ten seconds. Stay strong and brave, and you will have honor heaped upon you at your return.¡±The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Torger frantically looked for a picture button on his tablet but couldn¡¯t find it quickly. Graul¡¯s tablet showed a picture of a map. It roughly covered California, Nevada, and Arizona. First there appeared a picture of a bed near Yuma. Next showed a picture of a pale green sphere over Catalina. Next was a picture of a vial near Lake Havasu. Finally, there was a picture of a grenade in Yosemite.

    Graul then threw the tablet and they jumped behind a rock. Then they waited. Still nothing happened. Graul peeked his head over and then stood up. Torger and the dwarves followed suit. The solar panel was visibly sucking in sunlight and overheating. The panel showed heat waves coming off it then all the plastic melted. Finally the circuitry sparked and fizzled, leaving a heap of gooey mess.

    Small Foot said ¡°That wasn¡¯t impressive. Quite anti climactic. Now you two, what just happened? What did that tyter say?¡±

    Torger realized his Translate only translated for him, meaning into English, and the dwarves understood none of what was said. ¡°Small Foot, you will want to know this. It¡¯s very important. So important that after I tell you, you will owe me money.¡±

    Two of the dwarves drew their bows and knocked an arrow. ¡°Torger, you are in no position to negotiate. Tell me what they said and you will be free to pass.¡±

    The brothers looked at Baybil who nodded.

    Torger took the bold approach. ¡°We can¡¯t trust you to keep your word Small Foot, but Graul and I need to come up with an emergency plan. Your weak little clan here is about to become food for monsters. We need to hold a war council tonight. Like it or not, we become allies or we die.¡±

    ¡°OK Torger, I¡¯ll listen to your story. We will hold council in a nearby cave in one hour. We will prepare food and shelter for you tonight. For now sit down and relax, and consider yourselves our¡­ prisoners. Whether we become allies is yet to be determined.¡±

    Small Foot gave a few commands and two dwarves walked away. Baybil walked away with Small Foot leaving Torger and Graul guarded by two more dwarves. Torger turned off his Translate and the brothers began discussing their escape strategy.

    Chapter 6

    Loose Plans

    The cave was the beginning of a mine the dwarves had started, and only went in the mountain a few dozen feet. There was a fire near the mouth and they all sat on the floor. Older dwarves had assembled for the war council, and Torger and Graul once again ate unseasoned roasted rabbit, while the dwarves ate rabbit stew with an assortment of vegetables and herbs. It was clear the brothers were not honored guests, rather they were little better than slaves. Halfway through the meal Graul broke the tense silence. ¡°The tyters¡¯ technology went haywire. We need to team up, or die.¡±

    One of the new dwarves with grey sprinkled in his beard answered ¡°We have always been fine. We don¡¯t need your help to survive. What do you have to offer us?¡±

    ¡°We thought that would be your answer. We will tell you where we were going and what is there. For this information, let us pass through.¡±

    Baybil quickly interjected ¡°That information is for me. You owe me. If you tell them then you need to give me something better.¡±

    Graul nodded for Torger to answer. ¡°Baybil, we will tell you about something better.¡±

    ¡°Yeah? And how could I trust you two?¡±

    ¡°We will give you an option for what information you would rather have.¡±

    Another older dwarf spoke up ¡°This is the dumbest war council ever. Do we have enemies or not? If we¡¯re just talking about unconfirmed secrets then I¡¯m going home to my wife and kids.¡±

    ¡°If you want to talk about enemies, then we need to be allies, if we¡¯re not allies then we just want to be on our way.¡± Torger gave each dwarf a stern look, trying his best to mask his fear.

    Small Foot entered the conversation. ¡°You didn¡¯t see the tyter face on that bewitched device of theirs. Something very serious happened. A few of us were outside when the green balls of light appeared in the distance. More prey has arrived, but that¡¯s all I know. We need to know what the tyters told them. I say we bargain for the message.¡±

    An old dwarf looked down in defeat and fear of Small Foot. Mustering bravery he said ¡°The tyters leave us alone. We just need to hide from their monsters until they come and kill them, then everything will be back to normal, probably in a month, at most.¡±

    Torger spoke ¡°Things won¡¯t be back to normal in a month. If you want to know what¡¯s going on with the tyters, become our allies. If you want to give us food, water, and let us go, we will tell you where we were heading with Baybil. Oh wipe that scowl off your face Baybil, we¡¯ll make you a better offer.¡±

    ¡°Hrmph. I guess I¡¯m not too heavily invested in you or this journey. And I would like to know all about them new monsters of prey. Fine. Tell them where we were going. We will talk about new terms of our agreement later.¡±

    ¡°Ok. Well Small Foot, here is the information you were holding us for. Agree to give us food, water, and let us pass through, and we are prepared to tell you.¡±

    ¡°Agreed. We have no real concern that we are in any danger. What is your secret?¡±

    ¡°We were taking Baybil to a location that contains silver ore.¡±

    ¡°What!¡± All the dwarves jumped to their feet and began yelling with each other. ¡°He has to be lying! There has to be more to it than that!¡±

    ¡°Silver Ore! The most common of the dwarven riches!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not going! I have no interest in a lot of work for mere silver!¡±

    ¡°Listen up boy. That information isn¡¯t worth food and water.¡±

    Graul yelled back at the last comment. ¡°We had a deal! If you don¡¯t want to go after it, fine. Give us our stuff and we¡¯ll leave in the morning.¡±

    Baybil eventually convinced Small Foot to honor his word. It seemed honor was respected among dwarves, though Small Foot only grudgingly agreed it was important. The trade was agreed upon after all, and it would be a bad mark on the family and tribe to go back on his word. That line of reasoning won the argument, and the dwarves all left, except Baybil.

    ¡°You guys better have something good for me. I know something is terribly wrong with the tyters. What are my choices? Information about the tyters, or something else?¡±

    ¡°The something else is gold far from here. Which one do you want?¡±

    ¡°How far is the gold?¡±

    ¡°About five hundred miles away, and we don¡¯t know exactly where it¡¯s at.¡±

    ¡°So I¡¯m in a stuck position. The dealings with tyters may be meaningless, or it may take a month to find the gold once we get there. I guess I¡¯ll take the sure thing. Tell me about that message you got from them.¡±

    Torger answered ¡°Apparently their system malfunctioned. Every single monster of prey is now here, and the tyters won¡¯t be here for three years to clean up their mess. We¡¯re stuck with these creatures. That¡¯s why we were trying to coax Small Foot into becoming allies. We¡¯ll all need to help each other to survive. That¡¯s what all those flashes of green light were in the distance to our north and south, monsters arriving. It¡¯s dangerous to travel anywhere, but we can¡¯t just stay here.¡± Torger thought about adding that they knew where caches were and that they had friends somewhere, but decided they couldn¡¯t trust Baybil just yet.

    It turned out Torger was right not to trust him. Baybil immediately left to go find Small Foot and tell him what he just learned, or rather sell him the information. A half hour later Baybil returned with a small leather pouch that jingled when he walked and a big smile on his face. Small Foot came in right behind him and grew very serious.

    ¡°My understanding is we¡¯ve got mountain peaks to our east and west with a snow storm coming in, and dangerous monsters to our north and south. Does that about sum up what you didn¡¯t tell me?¡±

    Graul nodded. ¡°Are you still interested in the silver ore?¡±

    ¡°Yes! I¡¯m a dwarf. Of course I¡¯m interested in gaining wealth. How far is it?¡±

    ¡°About two days walk, nearly due north. It¡¯s a desolate desert there with no water.¡±

    Small Foot replied ¡°We can¡¯t just stay here and wait it out for three years. We have to keep living. We¡¯ll leave at first light. We need you to show us the location, and you need us to protect your sorry asses. Is there anything else we need to know?¡±

    ¡°Just to watch out for rattle snakes.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s a rattle snake?¡±

    ¡°A small venomous creature. I don¡¯t know how to make the antidote.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that. We have a potion master and a white mage. We need to know about big threats like a pack of cottols. A cat like creature that sends a psychic blast to their prey confusing them, then the four foot tall feline attacks them from the back. They¡¯re usually level fourteen. Three cottols could take out Baybil¡¯s entire village. Isn¡¯t that right cousin?¡±

    Baybil ignored the jab and changed the subject. ¡°Where am I staying tonight? And more importantly, where¡¯s your ale?¡±

    Graul asked ¡°What do you mean, level fourteen?¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you know what levels are? By the looks of it you¡¯re level one. As you gain experience, you earn ability points, then you invest your ability points into different characteristics or attributes. Every time you invest ability points into yourself, you gain a level. Gaining a level in and of itself does you no good, but it gives everyone an idea of how strong you are. Once you gain an ability point, I¡¯ll teach you more about it, for a small fee of course.¡± Small Foot couldn¡¯t help but grin at his own luck for possibly getting paid for something every child knows.

    Graul muttered ¡°Once we figure out how to make money Small Foot, you¡¯re going to bleed us dry.¡±

 A Rude Awakening

    Chapter 7

    A Rude Awakening

    Torger and Graul were left alone in the small cave with firewood, but no bedding. Torger thought sleeping on wood floors in the cabin was miserable, but this was truly brutal. The borrowed leather armor came with thin wool padding under it, but that was little help on the cold, uneven stone floor. Both men couldn¡¯t get comfortable but knew they had a long walk in the morning. After an hour or so Torger asked ¡°How are we going to find the others?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but that¡¯s a top priority. It¡¯s clear that Small Foot will continue to use and mistreat us.¡±

    ¡°My top priority is finding that place on the map with the icon of a bed. I could use a good mattress and soft pillow.¡±

    Graul laughed and agreed. Then they both heard a loud screech and a second later dwarves yelling outside the cave entrance. The men jumped up and ran outside, swords in hand. A dwarf yelled ¡°Cumper dus gratistin, idselai!¡± He pointed to the sky.

    They looked up and saw a huge bird swooping down at them! They ran back into the cave. Torger grabbed the tablet and turned on Translate, while Graul grabbed his bow and arrows. He was about to run back outside when Torger yelled ¡°No! Don¡¯t! We¡¯re no match for that thing, let the dwarves handle it.¡±

    Sure enough, the dwarves took up positions on the rocks and rained a barrage of arrows at the bird. It squawked loudly and flew off, with multiple arrows sticking out of it. The dwarves ran after it. Baybil ran inside the cave and said ¡°Stay here. You¡¯re safer in here.¡± The brothers couldn¡¯t argue with that overwhelming logic.

    A long time later the dwarves came back with loud cheers. In the meantime Torger had built the fire at the cave mouth much larger, not for the heat but for protection. He was embarrassed to admit he was safer behind a fire than he was with a sword in his hand. They skirted around the fire to go greet the dwarves. Three of them were dragging the huge bird up the hill, while two others were happily saying it¡¯s time for second dinner. Torger and Graul found Small Foot and asked ¡°What is that thing?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a roc. They¡¯re very territorial and eat medium sized animals like deer, sheep and dwarves.¡±

    ¡°How did you know that?¡±

    ¡°I used analyze. This one is young, only level nine.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s analyze?¡±

    ¡°Great gods man! You really know absolutely nothing about this land do you? This world is called Nuva. We are all born with natural skills. Some children are good at swinging an axe or sword, others are natural archers, others learn magic early on, and some poor souls are good at cooking. As dwarves, we are all good at mining. It¡¯s different for the elves and goblins. Since you are prey, you¡¯re supposed to grow strong at whatever you¡¯re good at. Ahem. I know it¡¯s rude of me to ask, but what exactly are you good at? I haven¡¯t seen any above average abilities from either of you.¡±

    ¡°Well, in those terms, our race is good at thinking, and Torger and I are good at building stuff.¡± Graul felt foolish as he was saying it.

    ¡°Good at thinking, yet asking the silliest questions. And it seems to me you know nothing about magic. Well not to worry. Once you get some coppers in your pocket I¡¯ll teach you what you need to know.¡±

    Graul sighed and glared at Small Foot. ¡°You dwarves aren¡¯t known for your hospitality are you?¡±

    ¡°Aha! You are learning! I would sell you some of this roc meat and some ale, if you had coins. I would advise you to stay in the cave though, there may be other attacks.¡±

    The brothers didn¡¯t sleep at all because the dwarves got louder as the night went on.

    The next morning they came out of the cave as soon as they heard the dwarves stirring. They were told they would be getting breakfast soon, then be on the road, if there was a road to follow. They were given fruit that looked like apples, more rabbit meat, and a loaf of bread. Just as importantly they were given a satchel to hold it in and some more soft leaves to be used for toilet paper. The satchel was surprisingly similar to a murse- man purse. Looking around they saw all the dwarves had them, but they still felt awkward.

    After walking a few hours Graul gave a big yawn, having not slept the night before. A dwarf walked up to him and said ¡°Here, take this. It¡¯s a stamina potion.¡± Graul took the small vial filled with yellow liquid and drank it in one go. Immediately he threw up, then his head hurt and he became dizzy. Another dwarf ran over and began to cast a spell. A yellow light shot out of his wood staff, then a yellow light encompassed Graul. At that point he collapsed to the ground and began convulsing. Torger yelled wanting to know what was happening. The dwarf that had given him the potion reached into his bag and pulled out a vial made from pure gold. He poured it down Graul¡¯s throat. A minute later Graul was sitting up and saying he was fine.

    ¡°What happened there?¡± Torger demanded to know.

    ¡°It seems you guys are allergic to magic. I guess we can only give you completely organic potions. That second one countered the first one, but cost five gold, about a years¡¯ pay for most dwarves. I¡¯ll have to put that on your tab. He was supposed to carry the potion with him and drink it when he got tired of walking in a couple hours.¡±

    ¡°What! No one told you to give him the endurance potion in the first place! This was your fault. We¡¯re not paying for your mistake.¡±

    The dwarves surrounded them and took an aggressive stance. Baybil stepped in and said ¡°Hold up lads. I think I can make an arrangement here that would make everyone happy. Graul, Torger, would you come with me please?¡±

    They walked away from the angry dwarves and Baybil made his sales pitch. ¡°My village is in a much better location than Small Foots¡¯. However, we lack protection. I will loan you the five gold if you grant my village access to your house, so they can run there inside your shield in case of an emergency. Your house has a weak shield and is in an unprotectable location but it¡¯s better than what we have. I¡¯m making a very generous offer here. What do you say?¡±

    ¡°I say how will your people get inside the shield?¡±

    ¡°Ahh. There¡¯s the difficult part. You will have to make them villagers.¡±

    Torger looked at his kindle and saw he needed four more villagers and five ability points for it to expand, whatever that meant. ¡°Baybil, how can your villagers be a villager in yours and mine both? And why don¡¯t you have a shield for your village?¡±

    ¡°Being a resident of two or more places is no problem, and Small Hammer does have a shield. But my people have to leave the village to hunt. With all these monsters around I want the hunters to have a safe place to run in case things go sideways.¡±

    Torger knew the cabin was nearly useless as it was, and it wouldn¡¯t hurt to meet the population criteria. ¡°You can allow four hunters to take residence there, but they cannot go into the house itself, just into the shield.¡±

    ¡°Make it five. Five hunters for five gold coins.¡±

    ¡°OK deal.¡±

    They walked back to the other dwarves and Baybil paid Graul¡¯s debt. Everyone was appeased and they continued on their way through the seemingly endless sand. It was clear their lack of sleep was slowing them down. Around one in the afternoon they stopped for lunch. They found a large rock to get behind and out of the constant cold wind. The dwarves barely touched their lunches, still being full from the roc, but Torger and Graul devoured theirs. They then found some soft sand and quickly fell asleep.

    A short while later they heard shouts and opened their eyes to see dwarves scrambling to their feet. Torger got up as fast as he could and saw huge green lizards with rows of sharp teeth. They were about three feet high and there were seven of them. Small Foot yelled ¡°Battle positions!¡±

    With an unquestioning and efficient speed Baybil, Small Foot, and two other dwarves ran to the front, forming a line. At the same time the two archers ran ten feet behind the line, and the white mage and potion master came in close just behind the axe wielding warriors. The white mage immediately began chanting and wiggling his fingers and wood staff in a peculiar fashion. Two dwarves shot arrows as fast as they could, each arrow forming a small patch of blue ice where it struck, while the others held a line, axes drawn. Torger and Graul each released one arrow, but without arrowheads they only annoyed the lizards. One of the lizards rushed at Baybil. With a mighty overhand swing he split the skull of the reptile before it reached him. The other six lizards fanned out, then all charged at once. The white mage finished casting a spell and the lizards hit an invisible barrier that flashed gold and crackled with energy. They staggered back. The four axe wielding dwarves rushed around the magic shield that got severely cracked when the lizards ran into it, and began swinging their axes, splattering copious amounts of blood all over the sands and themselves. One dwarf cried out as a lizard bit his greaves, puncturing the iron. The others were impressive in their agility. Torger had no idea those big barrel chested short men could move so quickly and were limber as they ducked, lunged, swung, and blocked. At the end four dwarves were unharmed, but the four with axes got bit or clawed.

    The white mage cast a spell that surrounded Small Foot with gold light, and his arm stopped bleeding, and the potion master quickly handed out a potion to each of them.

    ¡°What were those things?¡± asked Torger.

    Small Foot answered ¡°Razorlings. They hunt in packs. Without Marvec¡¯s shield spell, that would have been a tough battle. And to think a tyter will try to fight all seven razorlings all by himself.¡±

    That was when Torger realized the futility of trying to defeat the tyters.

    The dwarves all went cross-eyed for a few seconds then cheered. Torger asked why they did that.

    ¡°You have that bewitched device in your hand that shows you your experience points, property, weapons, and things like that. We all have a similar version that is in the corner of our vision. We just checked how much experience we got for those kills. Seven razorlings against eight dwarves, we each got three hundred twelve experience.¡±

    Torger checked his Kindle. It showed his quest for Baybil was changed then completed- the new quest was to tell Baybil about the message from the tyters, which he did, and had received his 300 exp. He saw that taking Small Foot to the silver at Calico was another quest worth 300 exp, and he also received experience from killing the razorlings. He now had 768/1000 exp. with 0 ability points available. He realized as soon as they made it to the silver he would have one point. He wondered if Graul was accumulating exp without a Kindle.

    After the battle the dwarves were exhausted and sat down for a break. Torger and Graul tried to catch a little more sleep, but were too amped up from the battle they didn¡¯t participate in, much. They walked over to the bodies and cut off the sharp claws and teeth, not knowing if they might one day come in useful. Small Foot said ¡°You leave the treasures for us!¡± They dropped the claws and teeth on the ground.

    After the break they walked until sunset then camped for the night. The men slept deeply on the soft sand despite the cold wind, and the dwarves set up a night watch. When they woke up the wind was howling and dark clouds were coming in quickly. They ate breakfast of dried fruit and bread then set out again. The cold made the men shiver, but the dwarves all had winter jackets on. When Torger asked where the coats came from he was told the dwarves¡¯ satchels had magical space and weight reducers, the better the satchel the more volume it could hold with just a little extra weight added. Theirs were poor quality and could double the space and halve the weight. Once again Torger realized these dwarves were not allies and didn¡¯t put much effort into acclimating him to Nuva.

    As it turned out Torger only thought he was miserably cold before. Once the snow started falling his leather armor and boots did little to keep him dry. Small Foot asked ¡°How much further to the silver? Should we stop for lunch or are we almost there?¡±

    The idea of lunch and fire greatly appealed to Torger, but he honestly had no idea how far. Endless hills and sage brush all began to look the same now that it was covered in an inch of snow. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I need to get to the top of that hill and look ahead.¡± He pointed to a large hill to their right a mile away.

    ¡°OK. We¡¯ll take Graul and Baybil.¡±

    Small Foot told the other dwarves to wait there and be alert in case they needed help. Torger and Graul were out of breath half way up the hill. Since Torger was an experienced hiker, this new low stamina frustrated him just as much as the cold.

    ¡°Small Foot we need to take a break. I don¡¯t know why Graul and I move so slowly and are so tired and weak.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because you¡¯re at level one and haven¡¯t invested any ability points into stamina. This long walk will probably raise your stamina even without investing an ability point into it. When we get there and make camp tonight check your stats again. But for now let¡¯s keep moving or you¡¯ll risk frostbite, which wouldn¡¯t matter if you were able to be healed with magic, but since you can¡¯t we need to use more caution.¡±

    Torger and Graul forced themselves to the top of the hill. What they saw was white snow on top of other hills for miles in every direction. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Small Foot, with this snow I don¡¯t know where we¡¯re at.¡±

    ¡°Well, check your map.¡± Under his breath he added idiot.

    Torger touched the prompt for maps. It again showed California, Nevada, and Arizona with topographical detail, but he was zoomed way too far out. He noticed a little mark on the bottom right corner and touched it. The map zoomed in, and he found that touching the bottom left corner made the map zoom out. It even showed their present location. Graul looked over his shoulder and said to Small Foot, ¡°I think it¡¯s about thirty miles from the pass where we met you.¡±

    Torger added ¡°Calico is mostly due north, and a little east. So according to this it¡¯s about five miles northeast of us.¡±

    Small Foot got very excited and said ¡°That¡¯s it! That¡¯s all we need! We¡¯ll meet you there!¡±

    With that he ran down the hill, slipped, got up again, and kept running. As Torger, Graul and Baybil walked down the hill they saw Small Foot talking to the other dwarves then point north east. They all walked away at a brisk pace. ¡°Baybil, what just happened?¡±

    ¡°You need to understand, we dwarves love money. They want to get to the silver as fast as they can.¡±

    ¡°But at the pass they didn¡¯t seem interested in silver. They thought it was a lot of work for a small profit.¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    ¡°We love money, but we also love mining. It gives us purpose. That mountain where you met me was hard granite and we got nothing out of it. That is immensely frustrating for a dwarf. Small Foot loves money more than most dwarves, even more than compassion for strangers. He¡¯s not a bad dwarf really, just wildly greedy. It¡¯s a consuming thought to him.¡±

    ¡°What does he spend money on?¡±

    ¡°We dwarves have a pretty good trade system. Some make ale, others run taverns and inns, others make weapons, others make armor, others hunt or farm, some make potions and a few are mercenaries. There is plenty to spend money on in a dwarven community.¡±

    ¡°Mercenaries? Are you often at war?¡± asked Graul nervously.

    ¡°Not war between nations, but there is always treasure that¡¯s guarded. A good mercenary could make a pound of gold on a good routing.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s a routing?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s when we kill the monsters that are protecting the treasure.¡±

    ¡°What kind of monsters? Is there a lot of treasure here?¡± asked Torger.

    ¡°That depends on the treasure they¡¯re guarding. Strong monsters will protect a lot of treasure, and stay in a cave for a long time. You¡¯ll see once we get there.¡±

    ¡°Baybil, there are no monsters at Calico. Just dig into the hills and find the silver ore.¡±

    ¡°That must be nice on your planet, mining without monsters. Here on Nuva things don¡¯t work like that. Why did you think Small Foot brought six extra dwarves on this trip? Between himself, me, the potion master, and white mage, we could have beat those razorlings with proper battle tactics. The two archers and two axe wielders are here to clear out whatever is in the cave near the silver.¡±

    ¡°I still don¡¯t understand how you know there¡¯s something there,¡± Graul continued to press.

    ¡°There is always a guard. It will be something indigenous to Nuva. Since it¡¯s only silver, and only silver ore, it should be something easy, but with all the prey that just came to Nuva, who knows what they¡¯ll find in a cave? Like I said, the strength of the guard is always indicative of the quality of loot. They didn¡¯t need you to show them exactly where the silver is, just close enough that they could see tracks or evidence of hostile life nearby. That will lead them to the cave. The prey and native monsters are drawn to treasure, and the stronger ones drive out the weaker ones. It¡¯s not a perfect gauge, but it¡¯s right often enough to get a good read. For example a level seven cave will usually have a hundred level seven monsters, or fifty level fourteen monsters, and will have low end treasure like silver ore or coal or salt. A level eighteen cave will have a lot of gold ore or three rubies. Something like that.¡±

    ¡°A ton of gold is worth three rubies here?¡± asked Torger.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what it¡¯s like on your planet, but gems are very rare and extremely valuable here. They enhance magic spells.¡±

    It was a little confusing to Graul, and Torger was beyond nervous about the other dwarves potentially flushing out some alien monster that would run straight at him in fright. He knew they were in no position to fight anything beyond a coyote.

    Chapter 8

    Friends

    As Torger, Graul, and Baybil came near the cave they could hear dwarves shouting and axes swishing through the air, occasionally meeting flesh. Despite Graul¡¯s curiosity to go look inside, Torger insisted they wait outside until it was over.

    A few minutes later the sounds stopped, and flashes of golden light could be seen inside. Baybil told them it was safe to go in. They saw a pack of huge razorlings maimed and bloody lying on the floor. Each one was nearly a hundred pounds, and they counted fourteen of them. Further in they saw the alpha male, also dead, at well over a hundred pounds. Small Foot came up and said ¡°This silver mine must be bigger than we thought. I thought you were leading us to a small vein, but this must be a medium sized vein. There has to be more razorlings in the area, a lot more.¡±

    He pulled out a torch from his satchel and light it with magic fire, then led them to the back of the cave and showed them a dark grey rock half way up the wall. ¡°This is silver ore. It could take us a year to extract it all. Well done men!¡±

    He had a huge grin on his face. Baybil cleared his throat. ¡°Small Foot, maybe you want to be nice for a change?¡± He pointed at the ore.

    Small Foot reluctantly reached into his satchel and pulled out a pick. With a few well placed swings, he handed the fist sized rock to Torger.

    ¡°Small Foot, that is nice of you, really, but Graul and I don¡¯t have much use for silver ore just yet. I would gladly accept a reward, but in the form of two better magic satchels filled with food and water.¡±

    Graul looked at him. ¡°Are you crazy? That¡¯s a lot of silver! If even half of that turns into pure silver once smelted it will be a week¡¯s pay back home. Let¡¯s just accept it and leave.¡±

    ¡°Where are we going to spend it? And how are we going to purify it? I would rather carry more stuff with less weight, wherever we¡¯re going. Food and water is still our top priority.¡±

    Graul agreed that it¡¯s no use carrying silver around then dying of hunger. Before they bid the dwarves farewell, Torger, Graul, and Baybil sat down and ate again. They built a fire with wet wood in the cave and left early due to the smoke. They had no desire to go back out in the cold, but Small Foot and his dwarves were busy dragging out the razorlings and making plans for moving their tribe from Cajon Pass to Calico.

    Eventually they set out again, heading back towards the pass and ultimately to their house to allow Baybil¡¯s hunters access. Along the way Torger checked his stats to see what his experience got him. Sure enough his exp now showed Exp 68/1000. Available ability points 1.

    The 1 was blue so he touched it.

    The kindle displayed a message.

    Pick which category to use your ability point.

    Stats Spells Village Weapons

    Torger touched Stats.

    +50 health 1 Ability

    +5 stamina 1 Ability

    + 1 strength 1 Ability

    + 10 Mana not available

    Torger backed up the screen then pressed Spells

    Fire 1 Not available

    Ice 1 Not available

    Lightning 1 Ability points 2

    Slow 1 Ability points 3

    Cure 1 Ability points 3

    Heal 1 Ability points 3

    Sheild 1 Ability points 4

    Analyze 1 Ability points 4

    Haste 1 Ability points 5

    Beserk 1 Ability points 5

    Poison 1 Ability points 5

    Teleport 1 Ability points 6

    Baybil told him he would probably never be allowed to use magic, much to all their dismay. Next Torger pressed Village

    Fertile Ground 1, Ability points 1

    Shield strength + 50, Ability points 1

    Well Water, Ability points 1

    Expansion, Ability points 5

    Baybil explained fertile ground as crops getting ten percent bigger each level, and well

    water will determine if there is water underground and if so how far down and where to dig.

    Finally Torger pressed Weapons

    Knives Ability points 1

    Swords 1 handed Ability points 1

    Swords 2 handed Ability points 1

    Bows Ability points 1

    Clubs Ability points 1

    Staffs Ability points 1

    Guns Ability points 1

    ¡°Baybil it looks like it costs me one ability points to get to the next level. What does that mean?¡±

    ¡°As you use weapons, you gain experience from using that type of weapon. Once you get to a thousand experience, that type of weapon becomes more natural for you, that is it gets faster and deadlier. For example right now your use of one handed swords is a danger to us all. You¡¯re just as likely to cut off your own balls in a fight as you are to parry a single lunge. If you use your one ability point there you will be able to pull it from the scabbard, and swing it more quickly, accurately, and powerfully, a one percent increase to each of those four actions. Does that make sense? I hope so because I can¡¯t explain it any better.¡±

    ¡°That kind of makes sense. But wouldn¡¯t I get better just by practicing?¡±

    ¡°Of course you would, and it levels up just with use. You don¡¯t have to use ability points to gain a level with a weapon, just use it. Spend your ability points on more interesting things like well water.¡±

    ¡°It does look like I gained a level in bows, one handed swords, and clubs since we arrived here. I have killed a few rabbits and coyotes with them. Why don¡¯t you dwarves just keep killing small animals over and over to gain experience and become top notch mma fighters?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what mma is, but you only gain experience from your first twenty-five kills of a certain monster or animal. Each of my hunters have killed hundreds of rabbits, coyotes, and deer. Once they have killed twenty-five it is no longer a challenge for them and they no longer get experience from it. In a group setting the experience is divided to the members of the group. Go to experience, and you¡¯ll find beasts.¡±

    Torger touched Experience and saw a sub menu called Beasts. He touched it.

    Rabbit Level ??? Health ??? Mana ??? Kills for exp. 3.0/25

    Coyote Level ??? Health ??? Mana ??? Kills for exp. 2.0/25

    Razorling Level ??? Health ??? Mana ??? Kills for exp. 0.7/25

    Baybil said ¡°There were ten of us, and we killed seven razorlings, so we each got zero point one kills for each razorling. The dwarves that came here with Small Foot killed seven razorlings, and there were seven dwarves that won the fight, so they each got another one point zero kills for experience. If they ever get that total number up to twenty-five, they will never again get experience from killing a razorling.¡±

    Torger and Graul thought they had a basic understanding of how ability points worked now, but were not able to understand what changes physiologically by investing an ability point. After checking again Torger saw that he had indeed gained stamina. When he arrived in Nuva his stamina was 30/30. Now it was 32/43. All that walking for the last week had at least a little benefit. Gaining an easy five more was tempting, but so was doubling his strength from 1/1 to 2/2. He wondered what it would be like to suddenly grow muscles, and how close that would get him to his normal sized arms and height he had on Earth. Ultimately he decided to save his ability point until he got back to the cabin. Graul was sullen knowing his destroyed tablet didn¡¯t give him these options. He would have to gain levels for weapons, strength, and stamina through hard work. When he mentioned it to Baybil, he was told most of the tyter prey are dumb beasts and experience they gain is automatically distributed. Without being able to check Graul didn¡¯t know if his ability was spent on stamina or a weapon. He swung his sword a few times and shot his bow, but didn¡¯t notice any changes.

    They walked until dark and slept near a fire. Graul found that he could walk further and faster than Torger, so they assumed his ability point was automatically put into stamina. But it was still nowhere near what he had on earth. Instead of always feeling like he was having an asthma attack, he now felt like he just finished a bunch of sprints and wasn¡¯t getting a second wind.

    Seeing Baybil start fires so easily made them wish they could use magic too. They would have to work on inventing a cigarette lighter. That night they took turns keeping watch, (Torger and Graul each fell asleep on their shifts), and the next day ate dried fruit and bread again. Part of the food Small Foot had given them at Calico was pepper venison jerky, and they munched on that along the way. They killed a couple more rabbits with their bows and it really was starting to feel more natural to them. Skinning the rabbits gave them a little experience with knives as well.

    Once they made it to the top of the pass they saw that it had nearly a foot of snow. The travel was slow and bitter, but they pushed on to make it to the other side so they wouldn¡¯t be quite as cold that night.

    They spent that night near the bottom of the pass because walking became too dangerous on the slick stones at night. The weather was getting closer to mild, but sleeping under the stars on a snow dusted ground was no one¡¯s idea of a good time. Early in the morning Torger heard his name being called from a distance. He was still asleep and Graul had apparently dozed off on his watch. Torger stood up and looked out. He saw all his hiking friends! Arden, Jex, Brun, Rome and Antic were all walking towards him. He woke up Graul and Baybil and then ran to meet his friends.

    ¡°Hey guys! How did you find each other? Oh and Arden, this is for touching that green sphere.¡± Torger slugged him in the arm.

    ¡°Oww! I didn¡¯t know what that green light was. How was I supposed to know it would bring us here?¡±

    ¡°Not knowing what it would do is WHY. YOU. SHOULD. NOT. TOUCH. IT.¡±

    Graul looked at his friends and realized he and Torger had been lucky compared to them. They were dressed in poorly sewn rabbit furs and were shivering uncontrollably. They looked like they had very little to eat in the last week, but their weapons were guns. They also had nothing but rabbit furs to cover their feet. Graul asked ¡°Have you guys managed to build a fire?¡±

    They looked down and scowled, clearly that had been a point of contention between them, and nobody wanted to talk about it. Next he asked ¡°How did you find us?¡±

    Antic answered ¡°Naturally once I realized where I was, I headed toward Brun and Arden¡¯s parents¡¯ house. Rome and Jex had the same idea, and we all met up there after a couple of days, except of course the house wasn¡¯t there. It¡¯s just an empty field. We found supplies a few yards from where we each entered; a gun or food, clothes, and water for each of us. These fur rags aren¡¯t clothes, really, but they were near where we started. It¡¯s amazing we all started miles apart from each other, but all got our bearings and went to the same house. We all arrived within a day of each other. Near me was a revolver and near Jex was a twenty two rifle, but Arden and Brun found a thirty thirty near them. And Rome had food, water, and furs, but no gun, and we¡¯ve been fighting about that ever since.¡±

    Brun picked up. ¡°The tyter message came on our Kindles the day after we met up. Arden watched the video, and the rest of us pressed translate, so his was destroyed. Then we started arguing about where to go. I wanted to go to Catalina where the picture of the portal appeared on the map, but we have no way of getting there. Eventually we realized you guys own your own home and you might go there to see if it somehow showed up here. With no other direction to go we walked to it. When we got near there we saw dwarves hunting. They took us to their village at San Antonio Falls and gave us food, water, and more furs, and told us you were headed this way.¡±

    Arden interjected ¡°We spent a lot of ammo shooting at rabbits and possums before we met up, each of us wearing small animal skins barely held together. Rome¡¯s furs were better, but we still had a hard time sewing together the new ones the dwarves gave us.¡±

    Torger asked ¡°What good are guns without ammo? We left our shotgun in the cabin near us, but we ran into trouble with some dwarves and would have used it, but everything worked out OK without it. We need to be careful with the little ammo you guys have left. It¡¯s not like we can make more. As for going to the bed in Yuma, Arden you and I are good at hiking, much better than the others, or we were good at it, but we¡¯re a long way from being Lewis and Clark. And why were the Cucamonga Dwarves so nice to you?¡± Torger knew his thoughts were scattered and he couldn¡¯t talk straight seeing his friends in this strange land. He was happy to see them, but sad they were stuck there too, and had an overwhelming desire to care for their basic survival.

    Arden smiled and pulled out a large pouch strapped to his waste. He opened it and inside was an assortment of food, water skins, and knives.

    Graul looked in and was shocked. ¡°Explain the food and stuff, and why your furs are better sewn together than everyone else¡¯s.¡±

    Jex answered ¡°Uh, well, we convinced the dwarves to¡­ ah, put it on your tab.¡±

    ¡°Our tab? I didn¡¯t know we had credit. How much did they gouge you for?¡±

    ¡°One gold coin each.¡±

    Graul gasped. ¡°For the five of you? Did you know five gold coins is nearly a year¡¯s wage here? I mean, I¡¯m very glad you¡¯re not all standing here naked, or dead from hunger, but my god did you even try to bargain?¡± Baybil smiled broadly.

    ¡°Graul we had nothing. And we¡¯re cold. Let¡¯s go back to your cabin and light a fire. Please.¡± Jex gave her best puppy eyes at him.

    Graul agreed, but knew they would have to spend another night outside before making it back. They walked all day, talking about the tyter message and Graul and Arden losing their tablets. That night they all huddled around a fire talking about their individual adventures in Nuva. It was no surprise to Torger and Graul that Arden tried to touch the shield surrounding their cabin. Jex was worried that he might have died when she saw him get shocked. Baybil explained that the level 1 shield had 100/100, which was the same in terms of damage needed as their health being 100/100. Basically someone pounding on it with a club for a couple of minutes would destroy it, but it gave off an electrical discharge equivalent to Lightning 1, a weak spell but would keep all monsters under level 9 away from it.

    Late the next afternoon they made it back to the cabin. Baybil said he was going to check on his village, and would be back the next morning with five hunters to be added to the village population, as they had agreed. Before he left Torger asked him to light a fire in the fireplace and they could keep it going. After he left, Torger added Arden, Jex, Brun, Antic, and Rome to the village population. That night they stuffed themselves full with all the food they had left and finally slept deeply and warmly on the hard wood floors.

    They talked late into the night about how awesome it was that Baybil could mutter a few word and contort his hands, then a fire shot out of his finger. Torger and Graul had seen it too many times and the novelty had started to wear off, but their friends excitement bolstered their appreciation of this new world. Like Torger and Graul, each person insisted on trying to repeat the words and hand gestures, but none of them could make a fire from magic.

 More plans

    Chapter 9

    More plans

    The next morning Jex moaned about her need for a toothbrush, and Rome complained about a lack of toilet paper, but over all they were happy to be full and warm and together. Graul and Brun gathered more firewood while the others went looking for food, basically hunting for rabbits. When they got back Jex said ¡°I think we should head to Lake Havasu and find those vials. I think they¡¯re potions.¡±

    Torger and Graul screamed ¡°No!¡± and told them about Graul¡¯s near death experience from being allergic to magic. Next they all agreed that Catalina may contain a portal home, but they had no way of getting to the island. Torger and Graul might be able to build a basic canoe, and sharks shouldn¡¯t be in the area during winter, but the waves would be too big to make it. Arden said they should get those grenade looking things in Yosemite. That sounded appealing, but they would have to go during the summer. The snow can get very deep there. The most benign and unappealing image on the map was an icon of a bed near Yuma, and if they were going there it would have to be in winter. They wouldn¡¯t survive one day in a blistering hundred and twenty degrees. Even if they had water, Torger and Arden knew there is no shade there.

    As they were discussing whether to go to Yuma or build up the village of Home, Baybil called out from beyond the shield. He had been given access to enter, but his hunters hadn¡¯t. He made introductions to everyone, and they were all polite, but Torger and Rome could tell the dwarves were underwhelmed with this ¡°village.¡±

    Torger asked Baybil ¡°What does this ability, water well, do again?¡±

    ¡°It shows if there is water underground, and if so, where is the best place to dig for it. I strongly recommend you use it. You will always need water.¡±

    Torger answered, ¡°Yes, we do need water, but I¡¯m really tempted to use my ability point on strength. I think I speak for all of us when I say we hate having our thirty-five year old faces on fourteen year old bodies. I want to grow some muscles.¡±

    Rome said ¡°Speak for yourself. This was the best diet plan ever! I bet I lost ninety pounds.¡± Jex agreed that her fourteen year old body looked better than her thirty-five year old body.

    ¡°Yeah, and you¡¯re four inches shorter. We are not prepared for combat. At all.¡± Torger was always pragmatic.

    Baybil quickly agreed to that. ¡°You lot have no protection and no way of caring for yourselves. I guess if the Small Hammer village is going to give credit to Home village, I might as well extend it. My archer will teach you basic sword and bow skills, until you¡¯re all at level 3 in each, for another one gold per person of course. From where I stand it¡¯s an offer you literally can¡¯t refuse. Basically take it or die in the wilds.¡±

    Brun said ¡°You¡¯re all heart Baybil. Torger, Graul, it¡¯s your village, you have to accept or decline. And by the way, the village Home is a stupid name. Baybil, is there a way they can change the name?¡±

    ¡°Yes. That will become available once the village gets to level three. So do you accept my offer? We can start today.¡±

    Torger and Graul talked it over then agreed to Baybil¡¯s proposal. They now owed him twelve gold, and had no source of income, or food, or water. ¡°We agree Baybil, but tell us how we can get money to pay you back.¡±

    ¡°You can take up a trade and work for it. As I said our village needs a couple quality woodworkers. Or you can be adventurers and look for caves like the one at Calico, then kill the monsters and take the treasure.¡±

    The whole group quickly agreed killing monsters was way better than working long days for the next two years to pay off the debt. They eagerly approached the hunters to begin practicing with swords and bows, except only Torger and Graul had a sword and bow. That turned out to not be a problem because they were each given sticks to use. Six of them broke into pairs to face off, while Torger went out with hunters to find rabbits and coyotes to practice with his weak recurve bow.

    The sword instructor was named Quickly. He got the name because he moved exceptionally fast for a dwarf. Most of the others preferred bows and axes, but he was naturally good with the proper footwork for being an effective sword fighter. For the first twenty minutes he taught them how to stand, and none of them even swung the stick. Arden got frustrated and his ADD made him walk away from the group and start swinging at the birch tree. He swung the stick like it was a hatchet and Quickly told everyone it was time for a demonstration. He called Arden over and sheathed his sword. He had a round wood and iron shield strapped to his back, and he placed it in his left hand. ¡°Arden, I have no sword, not even a stick. Use your training sword and aim for my shoulders and knees. I¡¯ll show you just how effective you are.¡±

    Arden swung at his left shoulder with an unrestrained full body swing. Quickly moved his shield slightly and Arden¡¯s stick broke, and he yelled out and started shaking his hand because the sting in his hand was intense.

    After a few seconds Quickly instructed all the others to lay their practice swords on the ground near Arden. ¡°Pick whatever one you want. A one handed or two handed wood sword, or one in each hand. Try again, but I recommend using a different technique.¡±

    This time Arden grabbed a large two-handed stick. He started swinging it again at Quickly¡¯s left shoulder, then slowed and changed direction to go in front of him then a quick back slash towards the dwarf¡¯s right knee. Again a slight movement of the shield resulted in Arden shaking the sting out of both hands.

    Brun called ¡°Just give up and let¡¯s resume our lesson.¡±

    But Arden¡¯s ego had been damaged. He picked up the two smallest sticks, one in each hand, and swung both of them at Quickly¡¯s shoulders, one on each side. He leaned his head back and brought up the shield parallel to the ground and both swords went flying out of Arden¡¯s hands. His pride was hurt so he stormed off to be by himself, and no longer participated in the sword lessons.

    The others were attentive students, with varying degrees of success. By the end of the day none of them had swung a stick at anyone else, but they all had greatly improved stances and grips for both one handed and two handed swords. They were all exhausted.

    Torger had much better luck killing rabbits with the hunters than he did with Graul. By the end of the day he had reached his experience limit of killing twenty-five rabbits, and had killed three more coyotes. They easily found the rabbits and killed the coyotes. They taught him what signs to look for when chasing rabbits, coyotes, or deer. They showed him how to properly skin the pelts and dry them for a tanner. He had made it to level three in bows in just one day, and that was the greatest feeling he had since coming to Nuva.

    The next day Arden, Jex, and Brun went out to practice with bows. Torger was at a great disadvantage with one handed swords, since he didn¡¯t get the footwork and grip lessons of the previous day, but his and Graul¡¯s years of playing softball let them quickly learn two handed swords.

    That night after dinner Arden addressed his friends, away from the dwarves. ¡°Brun and Jex and I talked it over today. With the tyters coming in three years we need better weapons. We want to head to Yosemite to see what those grenade things are.¡±

    Brun and Jex looked down as if Arden had pressured them into agreeing. Torger answered ¡°We talked about this already. Either we need to stay here and fortify the village, or go to the bed in Yuma. We can do Yosemite later. There¡¯s no rush. And I always repay my debts. I¡¯m hoping we find a novice cave to conquer near here or on the way to Yuma. I say no. We need to think things through.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not in charge Torger. If we want to go to Yosemite, then we¡¯re going to Yosemite.¡±

    ¡°I know I¡¯m not in charge, but if we want to survive then we need to stick together and level up safely. Brun, I know he¡¯s your brother, and Jex you¡¯re his wife, so you don¡¯t want division in the family, but let¡¯s come up with a better plan than going into deep snow in the winter.¡±

    ¡°We need better weapons, and that is our best chance.¡± Arden was determined.

    ¡°You don¡¯t even know where in Yosemite to look. It¡¯s a huge place, just like the area surrounding Yuma or Lake Havasu are huge areas. We need specific directions.¡±

    Rome joined the conversation. ¡°Didn¡¯t you guys figure out how to read your maps? After the video played and Arden¡¯s Kindle was destroyed, we didn¡¯t want to play it again. But the next day I had an idea, so I played it again. Once the map came up and the fourth icon appeared, I was able to push pause. I was then able to zoom in on each icon, one at a time. The others took pictures of my map with their Kindles, like the video suggested. We narrowed down the search area to one square mile. Since I couldn¡¯t press play again without the video restarting and self destructing, I kept it away from all light until the battery died. When I turned it on I got the original ¡®We are tyters and you are doomed¡¯ message. It¡¯s actually likely a pre-recorded message meant only for the tyter hunters to have seen. I bet there¡¯s a central broadcast station in orbit that sent it to all tyter devices. They may not know we¡¯re here and assume their own hunters are here instead.¡±

    Torger and Graul realized that had been a foolish oversight on their parts. It made sense that they could have paused the video, but at the time they thought it was a live transmission.

    After further discussion, and objections from Arden, they agreed to one more day of sword and bow training, then head for Yuma. They hoped a picture of a bed turned out to be something cool, but it was likely to be safe.

    Chapter 10

    Surprise!

    At the end of the third day of training, Torger had reached level three in one and two handed swords, successfully using his copper sword to land a glancing blow on Quickly¡¯s armor, getting around the wood shield. Graul and Arden had no idea if they were gaining levels or not since their tablets were destroyed. Rome, Antic, Jex, and Brun all reached level two in bows, one handed and two handed swords. Torger would not brag or put anyone down, but he knew he was the dominant fighter of the group.

    Before they set out, Torger used his one ability point for Water Well. An image of his property came up on his tablet, and it sent a pulse into the ground that vibrated his hands. A few seconds later it showed there was water, and the best place to dig was near the eucalyptus tree in the back yard. He wasn¡¯t too concerned about using the one ability point, since his personal experience was now 859/1000. He would get another one soon.

    They traded fifty-one rabbits, and the nine coyotes and four deer they had killed while practicing bows with the hunters. The group kept eleven rabbits for their own food. What they got in return was each person had two skins full of water and a poor quality magic satchel full of food. Everyone except Torger and Graul received a copper sword with sheath. While the others were trading at Small Hammer, Torger and Graul made a beginners recurve bow out of Eucalyptus for each of their friends. They were all also given a winter coat, for an increase in the village debt. In short, they all had the exact same gear, except Torger and Graul who had leather armor instead of wearing cave man furs.

    They knew it would be a very long walk to Yuma, and danger could be found over the next hill the whole way there, but it was better than sitting at Home and waiting. Torger and Graul wished that Graul still had his tablet. If he had, he would also have an ability point to spend on the village, and they would put it into the shield. And they really needed five ability points to expand the village. They now had thirteen residents, and only a two hundred foot diameter. They needed to build another house, but why bother if they were going to die in three years anyway?This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

    As they talked about their property and village growth, their friends weren¡¯t jealous. Everyone was always happy for each other¡¯s good fortune. As they continued on Rome said ¡°I could really go for a candy bar right now. This fruit, bread and meat is OK, but I want some fake sugar. Or maybe a pizza. I also need sunglasses. Looking at snow in sunlight hurts my eyes.¡±

    Everyone realized that they missed home, but were grateful that they were no longer starving and cold. Another storm was on its way, and a cold wind was blowing, but the winter coats kept them warm, except for their feet, hands and faces. They traveled the rest of the day without incident, but that night they tried without success to make a fire. The cold night made everyone grumpy the next day, and they knew they had to find flint to go with the steel guns.

    As they were eating breakfast Brun saw a coyote on a nearby hill watching them. They quickly finished eating while scanning the horizon for more. Once they started walking again, they saw another on the same hill. Jex and Brun knocked arrows, while the others withdrew their swords. Antic said ¡°Do we take them out to test ourselves, or turn a different direction away from them?¡±

    Arden said ¡°Of course we¡¯re going to attack them! This is exactly the kind of practice we need.¡±

    Torger said ¡°I think it¡¯s best to keep heading the direction we¡¯re going, and defend ourselves if necessary.¡±

    No one had better ideas, and everyone but Arden agreed. He called them wimps, but stayed with them. As they continued the coyotes kept just ahead of them and to the north. They needed to refill their water skins in a stream from the runoff from Lake Arrowhead, which was to the northeast, with the coyotes between them and their water. Refilling the skins was a top priority before they started heading southeast through brutal desert. The snow wasn¡¯t deep enough to gather up handfuls and melt it.

    After a few miles the coyotes disappeared. They hunt at dusk and dawn, and the sun was too high overhead by then. The group felt good about at least appearing formidable. They began heading north, but once they were closer to the foothills they saw three coyotes attacking a deer. This time there was no discussion, the experience was too easy to pass up.

    They all ran forward and the coyotes looked at them. The deer was bloody and took the opportunity to run away. The three coyotes wanted to give chase, but knew they were now threatened, so they circled around the men with swords. Brun released his arrow, but was too far away and he missed. Torger and Arden were the first to meet their foes. Arden ran at the one on the left and swung his same wild slash he had tried on Quickly. The big arm wind up let the coyote see it coming and it easily backed away in time. Torger remembered his experience fighting them in the field with nothing but a branch and a rock, so he knew they like to stay low to the ground. He kept his sword at knee height and ran at the one on the right. He faked a thrust then changed to a back swing landing a weak hit. The copper sword hit the shoulder bone and stopped. The coyote yelped and hopped sideways, but instead of backing away it lunged at Torger¡¯s leg, and the bite left deep puncture wounds in his thigh. He jerked back in pain, but kept his head straight and with a downward thrust stabbed it in the back. The coyote released its bite, then it bit Torger in the left forearm, but his thick winter coat absorbed most of the damage, although he still bled a little. He twisted the sword then withdrew it, severing the spinal cord. The coyote was paralyzed in the back legs. Torger hobbled away to safety, his thigh hurting even through the adrenaline.

    Graul ran forward and stabbed the coyote through the mouth and out its neck. It convulsed then died. Meanwhile Brun and Jex kept shooting arrows at the one on the left, occasionally hitting it. It ran at them instead of away, and they were defenseless. It bit Brun on the arm and locked on. He tried to shake it off but it was too heavy and powerful for that. He began punching it in the side, but the blows were weak and ineffective, except that it gave Jex time to stab it in the side with her sword. The blade stopped when it hit a rib, and still it didn¡¯t let go of Brun¡¯s arm. He looked to see where the others were and saw Graul finishing off the one in the middle, with Rome and Arden standing close by watching his powerful two handed swing sink deep into the coyotes neck. Brun called for Arden to come help him, and Arden unholstered his revolver and shot it. That got it to release its bite. Arden grabbed one of the arrows sticking out of its front leg and pushed it in deeper. Rome saw that and caught on to the idea and pushed an arrow deeper into the beast¡¯s side near where Jex stabbed it. That arrow punctured a lung and immediately blood came out of its mouth. Graul saw this and yelled for them to just back away and let it bleed to death. In less than a minute it lay still and unmoving.

    Arden asked ¡°Who¡¯s not hurt?¡±

    Jex and Rome said they weren¡¯t, so Arden asked them to come with him to finish off the deer. Rome agreed but Jex wanted to rest for a minute. She was noticeably shaking from the adrenaline rush. Rome and Arden ran off following the blood trail, while the others looked at their wounds and applied pressure to stop the bleeding.

    A half hour later Arden and Rome dragged back the deer carcass, a look of triumph on their faces. Torger kept his thoughts to himself, which consisted of ¡°It¡¯s not a huge accomplishment to stab a nearly dead deer.¡± They all ate and rested then removed the pelts. They all agreed they had never heard of coyotes that big or aggressive before. A fight of three coyotes against seven humans would never happen on earth. There was plenty of food and water around, so it made no sense. Torger told Arden to stop wasting the precious ammo, but shut up when Brun showed him the bite marks on his arm.

    They were all covered in blood and used most of their drinking water to clean up. That wasn¡¯t a big deal because they knew they were going to make it to a stream the next day. They walked a few more miles then stopped for the night. Once again they were unable to make a fire.

    After breakfast the next morning they walked at a slow pace, hurting from the fight the previous day. This time they were striking rocks against each other making arrowheads. The fight made them realize the weak bows with sharpened wood arrows didn¡¯t inflict much damage on the coyotes, and they hoped the arrowheads would do a better job. On the bright side they found that Arden and Graul were still getting experience points, even without their tablets. Torger and Graul knew that each coyote gave a total of fifty-two exp, so a hundred fifty-six total, but each of their personal exp showed a gain of twenty-two, except Rome who gained seven more from killing the deer with Arden. Rome did the math to find out experience was being divided seven ways, not five ways.

    By the time they made it to the stream, a cold rain was falling, defeating the point of going there. As the rain dampened their clothes, it also dampened their spirits. Antic walked over to sit under a redwood that kept most of the rain off him. The others saw the wisdom in that and followed. They made no more progress walking that day, but tied the arrowheads to new arrows using twine they bought from the dwarves, and sharpened their bent and chipped swords on flat rocks. It was far from being professionally sharpened, but the copper was quickly dulling and something had to be done.

    The next morning they ate the last of their dwarf food, upset that they couldn¡¯t make a fire to cook the deer meat from Arden and Rome¡¯s kill. The rain kept coming, but they decided to walk in it rather than sit in it; either way it sucked and walking brought them closer to their destination, sitting didn¡¯t.

    As they made it out of the foothills and into rocky desert they knew they were mostly healed from the coyote bites and scratches. Boredom and monotony had set in, yet they kept walking hoping to find something new. As they stopped on a hilltop that evening, the rain finally, blessedly, stopped. Jex and Arden had each killed a rabbit that day, and the group was determined to make a fire that night for food.

    Graul and Arden struck rocks together looking for sparks, while Brun and Antic looked for dry shrubs. Jex cleaned the rabbits and Rome and Torger rubbed sticks together. Torger thought it would be nice to use Arden¡¯s glasses like a magnifying glass, then realized Arden didn¡¯t have his glasses.

    ¡°Arden, how can you see without glasses?¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t. Everything is blurry.¡±

    ¡°Oh I didn¡¯t know. That sucks.¡±

    ¡°Yeah well complaining won¡¯t do me any good, and there¡¯s nothing anyone can do to fix it, so mentioning it would be a waste of time.¡±

    Torger had that same kind of mentality- either tell him about the things he can fix or don¡¯t complain. Complaining changes nothing. He looked at Arden again, who was tying an arrowhead on an arrow. Torger chuckled. ¡°Liar. Glad you can see.¡±

    Arden grinned at him, but couldn¡¯t explain how he could see except that he had new eyes.

    As they were joking Brun said ¡°Guys. We have company.¡±

    They looked and saw him pointing at a huge cockroach at the bottom of the hill. The thing was more than three foot tall! It saw them then paced back and forth. They all waited for it to go away. But it didn¡¯t go away. It climbed the hill and waved its antennae toward them, then ran at Brun, who was still pointing, dumbstruck.

    Torger yelled ¡°Everyone stay back. I¡¯ll take it out.¡±

    Arden said ¡°No way. We¡¯re getting a piece of this action. Brun and Jex, try out those arrowheads.¡±

    Jex recovered from the shock first. She got her bow but it was too late. It was still heading toward Brun as fast as a dog can run, its six legs having no trouble with the rocky ground. Torger, Graul and Arden each ran toward it and stabbed it, but their swords were deflected off its tough exoskeleton. Torger regained his footing and swung at its head. The blade sunk in a little, but not much. It flinched then turned sideways, knocking Arden down. Graul swung hard at its side, but again the sword didn¡¯t penetrate.

    The cockroach monster thing raised its front leg and brought it down on Arden, piercing his sword hand. Torger ran over and swung at the leg, which was cut off completely. Graul saw this and cut off a back leg. The cockroach was off balance but rammed its head into Torger, knocking him down. Brun and Jex shot an arrow, the stone arrowhead glancing off. Rome and Antic had their swords out, but were keeping their distance.

    The cockroach lifted a leg to pierce Torger, making it very off balance, and Graul swung and severed the other back leg. The cockroach fell on its butt as its front leg extended trying to pierce Torger, but it missed. He and Arden got to their feet, and Arden strategically retreated, knowing his right hand was useless. Brun grabbed his sword and ran in to replace him. Jex used the .22 rifle and hit it in the mouth. It shook its head violently, and that gave Graul and Torger the opportunity to each cut off another leg. The beast collapsed, and the others ran in and they all hacked away at its hard back until yellow ooze came out. Next they each grabbed their bows, except Arden, and shot arrows at its face. The tough bastard just would not die! Once the arrows were spent, Torger cautiously walked up to it and with a well timed swing embedded his sword into one of its mandibles. Next Graul did the same. They all backed away and watched for a few minutes until it died.

    Rome asked the obvious question ¡°What is that thing?¡±

    Antic answered ¡°How should we know? It must be one of those aliens the tyters hunt.¡±

    Torger said ¡°Maybe. But that was too easy for them. I hate to say it but if the tyters hunt them, there must be more around. Let¡¯s get out of here.¡±

    Graul said ¡°No. we¡¯re on a hilltop, a good defendable position. Let¡¯s retrieve the arrows and stay.¡±

    The others agreed. As they gathered arrows and swords, Antic looked closely at a leg. He saw that it was hard and tapered and over a foot long. He walked around and found a long straight stick, then unstrung his bow and tied the leg to the stick. He spun it in the air and thrust it forward. He said ¡°Torger and Graul, thank you for making my bow, but if it¡¯s all the same to you, this spear feels much more comfortable to me. It¡¯s a natural fit for me, like swords are for you two and bows are for Jex. What I¡¯m saying is I think this is the weapon for me.¡±

    Torger and Graul agreed with no problem, if that meant Antic would be more of a participant in the fighting. So far he had done nothing for the team in terms of fighting. Everyone tried to hold and use the spear, but Torger was the only one that was good at it. The spear reminded him of a pool stick.

    No more cockroaches came that night, but the next day they followed its tracks. It led a couple miles away to a cave where they saw one coming out. Graul said ¡°This must be one of those types of caves that Small Foot was talking about. One where monsters guard wealth. I wonder how many are in there.¡±

    Jex said ¡°If there are two, that¡¯s too many. We¡¯re not strong enough to risk it.¡±

    Rome said ¡°I agree. I marked this place on my map, so we can come by on our way back from Yuma, if we¡¯re strong enough by then.¡±

    They all agreed and thanked him for marking his map, then continued on to leave the rocky desert and enter the sandy desert. As they were walking away Arden said ¡°Look. I¡¯m going to find out what that is.¡±

    They followed him and saw a dead body that had been dragged to near the cave entrance. It was a dwarf that had puncture wounds all over and had clearly lost a fight with a cockroach. Graul grabbed the dwarf axe and strapped it to his own back, Torger grabbed the round shield, full of holes, and Jex found some arrows. Most looked normal but one was painted red and another painted blue. She felt the arrowheads and said ¡°The red one feels warm and the blue one feels cold.¡±

    Graul said ¡°Don¡¯t touch that! It¡¯s magic.¡±

    She dropped them, then realized she had already touched them. She picked them up again and said ¡°I¡¯m going to put my magic arrows into my magic satchel. I¡¯m not sure your magic allergy story adds up.¡±

    Torger said ¡°I was there. I saw him throw up when he drank a potion and convulse when a spell was cast on him. I don¡¯t know what to make of it.¡±

    ¡°Maybe the magic can¡¯t enter the body, but we can touch it. Let¡¯s get some distance between us and the cockroaches then talk about it.¡±

    They walked a few miles away. Jex grabbed a normal looking arrow and shot it at a Joshua tree. Nothing happened. Next she shot the red arrow at it. On impact it burst into flames and scorched the outside of the tree.

    ¡°Fire!¡± yelled Rome and ran to it and grabbed some brush off the ground and lit it on fire. They all ran to help him then cooked the rabbits that were killed the previous day. Bland roasted rabbit never tasted so good to them. Hunger is the best seasoning for any dish. When they were done eating Rome cut off a piece of his winter coat and threw it into the fire. The fur caught on fire but the skin slowly shriveled. Next he used Antic¡¯s spear to poke a bunch of holes in it, then folded it into quarters and sewed up the ends, then threw it on the fire again. He had made char cloth, something that will take a flame at a lower temperature than brush. While it was still hot enough to burn his fingers, he wrapped it in wet leaves and put it into his satchel. They finally had a chance to eat meat again and stay warm at nights.

    Not knowing what to do with the dwarf, they buried him after looking for anything else useful on him. Instead of a satchel he had a backpack, but it was full of holes from a cockroach leg. They decided it had been a good idea to not go into the cave.

 Yuma

    Chapter 11

    Yuma

    The next day they were walking in an area south of Palm Springs. Rome checked the map to see what direction to go. The map was topographical showing elevation and vegetation density, but didn¡¯t show streams, not that they expected to find any in the desert. It did however show the Colorado River between them and the bed. They didn¡¯t know how they were going to get across it, but they would cross that bridge when they came to it, or lack of a bridge, which was the problem.

    Along the way Antic saw a huge spider, it was bigger than his hand! They stayed away from it but Arden insisted on following it. They headed further south into rocky hills and saw it go into a cave. They decided not to go in after it, but then saw another one come out. They hoped it was another cave of riches. Rome marked the spot on his map, and they continued on toward Yuma.

    That night Graul was able to rub sticks together and using Rome¡¯s char cloth they made a fire and ate venison, a deer that Jex was able to shoot and Arden cut up to finish it off. Torger loved venison, but the clumsy kills let the all the deer they shot with an arrow run away before they could catch them. The adrenaline flowing through the dying animals got into the blood and gave the meat a poor flavor, but he was grateful for the food. He was tempted to use the .30-30 to get a good clean kill, but knew better than to waste the bullets.

    Late in the night Brun was on watch when he heard a deep growl and a THWACK of something hard hitting something soft. He knew Arden would want to go investigate so he woke him up and they climbed up a nearby hill.

    When they reached the crest they both dropped to the ground. They saw a large green troll with a huge club by his feet. It was crouched down and eating a deer raw with large sickening bites that crunched through the bones. They watched it finish its meal then walk east, the direction they were going to head the next day.

    Brun woke everyone up quietly and told them what they had seen. Torger said they should get rest for the night and make a wide berth around the next day. Antic said they should get out of the hills because in all the fiction stories trolls liked hills and caves, not flat desert. That was as good of a guess as any so Rome suggested going due south to Imperial Valley then east again.

    The group didn¡¯t sleep well the rest of the night waking at every bird chirp and coyote howl. At first sunlight they left the area immediately crossing over the rocky hills and into a vast flat expanse of sand. They could see the Salton Sea to the south, and to the east was the direction they needed to go. Glamis. Miles and miles of sand dunes. They filled up their water skins at a spring in Indio Arden had found and deliberately hunted for food; it would be a few days before they had another opportunity.

    They spent the next three days walking over endless sand. The path was grueling but they were well clear of monsters. They saw a few scorpions, but fortunately the snakes were hibernating. Eventually they came to a large dune and could see the Colorado River in the distance. It was a beautiful sight to behold. All they had to drink the third day was water from cut cacti.

    The next day they came to the wide river. Normally they could all swim across it, but their furs and swords would make them sink. Since it was winter the river was a little higher than it would be in fall, but not as high as it would be in spring. On this alien world the Hoover dam wasn¡¯t to the north regulating the flow.

    As they sat next to the river deciding what to do Arden saw a huge green lizard approaching them, a razorling. He shouted in alarm as a few more came over the hill they had just crossed. Antic ran into the river and tried to swim across, but was weighted down and began sinking. He found his footing and waded back to shore. The razorlings formed a line and started approaching the group.

    Arden grabbed the .30-30 and shot one in the face, and it staggered a few steps then collapsed. Everyone else had their swords drawn when an arrow whistled through the air and struck one. Yellow lightning arced around the shaft and the razorling shook with a jolt of electricity. A second later two more arrows hit two more razorlings, leaving the last one to run at the group. Torger, Graul, and Rome charged it. It jumped and bit Rome on the arm as he stabbed and missed with his sword. Graul and Torger landed shallow cuts with their swords, but Arden fired the powerful rifle again and easily punctured its heart.

    A few seconds later three dwarves ran up and cut up the three razorlings that had been stunned from arrows. The razorlings had recovered before the dwarves got there and fought against the dwarves. Jex was able to get two clean shots in with her bow, one was the ice arrow, helping the dwarves win the fight.

    Two of the three dwarves had been bit on the leg, and the third one gave each of them a blue potion to drink. Their bite marks stopped bleeding, but they stood up with a limp. Rome had deep wounds on his arm that was bleeding severely. One of the dwarves handed him a blue potion and told him to drink it but Graul told them what had happened when he drank a potion.

    Antic bandaged his arm with a rabbit pelt and string, but that did little to slow the bleeding. Without anyone speaking, they all knew Rome was in trouble. Torger asked if the dwarves knew of any natural medicine, but they didn¡¯t. He thanked them for saving his life, all their lives.

    ¡°We were traveling to the east, trying to figure out how to cross the river when the razorlings attacked. There¡¯s just no way we would have survived that attack. What is your name? Why are you in this area?¡±

    ¡°My name is Brewski, because I am a potion master. Our village is just south of here, and we¡¯ve been patrolling our borders because these razorlings have been coming closer and closer to our livestock. I¡¯m sorry about your friend, I really am. I¡¯m no healer but I think the bleeding will stop on its own, eventually. But he¡¯ll be weak from blood loss for a few days. You won¡¯t be doing much traveling with him. I invite you to come to our village. Our healer uses magic so she can¡¯t help him, but perhaps you would like a soft bed and strong ale at our tavern? We also have a raft to cross the river.¡±

    ¡°That offer sounds phenomenal, it really does, but we don¡¯t have any money and little to trade.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s yer choice, but you really should at least get your friend some liquor to pour on that wound.¡±

    Torger agreed that would be for the best. They walked about three miles south. When they arrived they saw a series of low buildings scattered around made of wood and dried mud. At the tavern the barkeep asked what they had for trade. Everyone pulled out dried rabbit, coyote, and deer skins. He told them for that much they could all get a mug of ale and two rooms for the night. Everyone quickly agreed.

    As they were drinking a dwarf came in and sat at the bar. He kept eyeing them and after a while he approached their table and said to no one in particular ¡°I hear you¡¯re looking to cross the river. I own the raft and the charge is ten copper per trip, and it will take two trips to get all of you across.¡±

    Torger answered for the group ¡°That¡¯s a kind offer, but we have no money.¡±

    ¡°Yes I was told that. But that billik leg looks like a fair trade to me.¡±

    ¡°What billik leg?¡±

    Torger saw him pointing at Antic¡¯s spear that had the cockroach leg tied to a stick. Torger looked at Antic with pleading in his eyes. Antic smiled and said ¡°You can have the leg for the crossing, but I¡¯m keeping the stick and string.¡±Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.

    ¡°Agreed. You should get your friend to his room to rest. He looks tired.¡±

    Sure enough Rome was struggling to keep his eyes open. He poured half his ale on his arm and was saving the other half to use again later. They all worried about infection, but he said the alcohol numbed the pain. Jex and Arden led him down the hall and went into a room with him. The others finished their drinks and went to one of the rooms. Although the sun was just starting to go down, they were exhausted and looking forward to a good sleep.

    Unfortunately for them, this was a dwarven tavern, and they had to duck under the door lintel to get inside. They saw two small beds, about five feet long, and there were four men, each five foot tall. Brun and Rome claimed the beds, while Graul and Torger layed down on the floor. Torger reached into his magic satchel and withdrew another billik leg and tied it to Antic¡¯s stick, making another spear.

    Brun asked ¡°How many of those legs did you take?¡±

    ¡°Antic said to take all six. He didn¡¯t know if they would break in battle.¡±

    ¡°Good thinking, but do you want to trade another one for some food? We¡¯re hungry.¡±

    The four of them went back to the tavern and asked the barkeep if they could get a meal for a billik leg, and after thinking about it he reluctantly agreed. They quickly devoured the bowls of roast stew he brought to them. They felt better and slept well that night.

    The next morning they headed toward the raft. They saw two dwarves sitting on it with huge oars. They maneuvered the raft across with the first group easily but struggled to get upstream while crossing back. Once the second group made it across safely Rome asked Antic to pull out another billik leg. Not understanding he reluctantly pulled it from his satchel.

    Rome addressed the dwarves ¡°Do you want to take a daylong walk then do some mining for this?¡±

    They looked at it, and while impressed said it wasn¡¯t enough pay. Rome then had everyone pull out the remaining coyote and deer skins. That was better, but still not quite enough pay. Finally Antic pulled out another billik leg. The two dwarves quickly and excitedly agreed and crossed back over to get their provisions.

    While they were gone Torger asked ¡°Rome, why are we trading stuff to get two tag alongs?¡±

    ¡°I doubt that bed is in plain sight. They would have a better chance of finding tyter gear than we would. Like I said, the map narrows it down to one square mile. Hopefully it¡¯s sitting out in the open and this was a wasted trade, but if not we could spend a couple of days looking for it, whatever it is we¡¯re looking for.¡±

    The walk took them a few miles east of Yuma to a wide expanse of sand dunes. The sun was going down by the time they got to where the icon showed on the map. Rome asked the dwarves if they knew how to find tyter gear in the area. One of them knew a magic spell to locate precious metals underground when mining. He walked to the top of a dune and cast the spell. A few seconds later some sand sparkled silver in between two dunes. The dwarves looked at it and complained that there was nowhere for them to pile the sand as they dug. They couldn¡¯t pile loose sand on a sand dune or it would slide down on top of them.

    Night was coming quickly and the wind picked up. There was no chance of rain but it was cold. Graul suggested they wait until morning to begin the dig but the dwarves said they could dig an area big enough for them to be below the wind. They pulled out their shovels and started scooping sand into everyone¡¯s satchels. Everyone except Rome and Jex carried the sand away from the area and returned for more. Rome was looking pale and was very tired and cold and Jex was clearly worried about him.

    After an hour there was a fifteen by fifteen foot area dug out two feet below ground. Everyone collapsed on the soft cool sand exhausted. They took turns keeping watch that night but nothing happened.

    The next morning the dwarves dug down three more feet when they struck something hard. Everyone scooped away sand and they saw a piece of large curved glass. Rome was feeling much better after a couple of nights sleep since the razorling mangled his arm. To show it he had to be cocky and say ¡°I told you we would have never found it without help from dwarves.¡±

    Everyone ignored the jab and got back to work carrying away the compact dirt that was below the sand. Their magic satchels made the task much easier than buckets would have. After an hour they had revealed a futuristic looking bed covered with a thick glass lid. As the sun hit it lights started to come on inside of it.

    Chapter 12

    The First Icon

    Everyone stared at the bed in amazement as more and more lights came on. They had no idea what to expect when they found the tyter device on the map, but it really was a bed, albeit it looked more like a stasis chamber from some sci-fi movie. After a few more minutes a red button appeared on the side of the glass. They didn¡¯t know if they should touch it or not, and the dwarves had no idea what it was.

    Arden spoke up above all the clamor. ¡°I will touch it. I¡¯m the one that brought us here, I¡¯m the one who needs to take the risk.¡±

    Jex dramatically objected but he told her ¡°Honey, I¡¯m injured and weak. I have a hole in my hand from the billik leg, and the flesh of Rome¡¯s arm is shredded. If this thing can heal me, great. If not, I¡¯ve been slowing the group down the whole time. You¡¯re good with your bow, Torger and Graul are good with swords, and Antic is good with his spear. Rome and Brun will find what they¡¯re good at, but I¡¯m good with guns, and we don¡¯t have many bullets left. I¡¯m the one who needs to take the chance.¡±

    The group debated for a while but he insisted and eventually they relented. He placed his hand on the button and the lid flipped up an opened sideways. He climbed in and lay down. The bed was huge for him. Torger asked how big the tyters are and the dwarves said they average eight feet tall. Once Arden was settled the lid closed. A few lights came on and they could see his eyes moving but his body was completely still. About once every two to three seconds a light would flash, and after a minute a pale green light filled the space between the bed and lid. When it faded, Arden was gone!

    Jex wailed in despair. Everyone came over to hug her as she cried. Brun had tears at the corners of his eyes. Rome said that was the same pale green light as what teleported them to Nuva, maybe he got teleported back to earth. Jex eventually recovered enough to say that she was going to take the risk and go after him. Everyone protested but she wouldn¡¯t be persuaded, she was going to be wherever her husband was.

    She climbed in and a similar series of lights came on, though different colors and time between flashes. After a minute the pale green light took her away to an unknown place. Next Brun said he was going with his brother. The others tried to talk him out of it, but he climbed in. After a different series of lights he too disappeared.

    Antic said ¡°In for a penny in for a pound. If this gets me back to earth I¡¯ll take it.¡±

    Rome followed next. Torger asked Graul ¡°Do we or don¡¯t we? Staying here means growing powerful then getting slaughtered in three years. Going there is a complete unknown.¡±

    ¡°We might as well try it. I don¡¯t have my Kindle so I can¡¯t allocate my ability points. Catch ya on the flip side.¡±

    A minute later Torger told the dwarves good-bye and thanked them for their help. He climbed inside and laid down. The lid closed over him. As soon as it latched a clear gas filled the area and put his body into full paralysis. He could only move his eyes. He saw the dwarves looking at him, but he could do nothing to signal to them. A vision of a tyter appeared what seemed to be just an inch in front of him. It spoke in their own language but he could also hear a delayed translate, the same as what his tablet did.

    ¡°Welcome courageous warrior. You have found the hidden ability boost. You are now given twenty additional ability points. Spend them wisely¡­ It appears you have entered these hunting grounds trying to attain Extreme Conquest. That is very courageous and the rewards are bountiful, but without respawns death is permanent. If you no longer wish to attain Extreme Conquest, your body will be able to accept and perform magic, for a cost of ten ability points. Do you wish to abandon Extreme Conquest and instead be able to use magic?¡±

    Torger wanted to ask what that meant, but he couldn¡¯t speak. He tried to think of different questions hoping the machine would read his thoughts, but nothing happened. All he saw was a red hologram to his left said NO. A green hologram to his right said YES. He wanted to know what other options would be given to him after this first question, and he tried to project his thoughts outward. Nothing happened. Finally Torger looked at the green hologram but still nothing happened. He stared at it for another second then blinked his eyes.

    ¡°You have elected to use magic. You have eleven ability points remaining, one you had when you entered this ability boost chamber. You are currently connected to a portable tablet to spend ability points and manage village relations. Do you wish to be infused with the information of the portable tablet? This will allow you to never lose it or have it destroyed. The cost is six ability points.¡±

    Again the two holograms appeared and again he selected yes.

    ¡°You do not have a respawn point set. If you die, it will be permanent. Do you wish to set your respawn point to your village residence? The cost is two ability points.¡±

    YES!

    ¡°You have three ability points remaining. The system will allocate them to your strengths¡­ You are strong in all weapons. You will now gain a level in each type of weapon fifteen percent faster. Good luck in conquering your prey strong warrior.¡±

    With that said, there was a flash of pale green light.

 Hell Yeah!

    Chapter 13

    Hell Yeah!

    Torger appeared standing in his cabin. All his friends were there talking with a more intense excitement than he had ever heard.

    ¡°We won¡¯t die! At least not permanently.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m glad we didn¡¯t have to make that walk back here.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m glad we didn¡¯t become some gay tyter¡¯s sex slaves.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m glad my arm is healed!¡± Rome flexed his hand and moved his arm without any pain.

    Arden said ¡°The program told me what I already knew, I¡¯m good at guns. I will gain levels in guns twenty-five percent faster, if I had more bullets.¡±

    It turned out that Torger got a fifteen percent gain in all weapons, Graul got twenty-five percent in swords and clubs, Jex got twenty-five percent in bows and knives, Brun was able to learn black magic spells without investing ability points, Rome was able to learn white magic spells without investing ability points, and Antic got twenty-five percent increase to learning speed when using spears and knives.

    Most importantly was the respawn ability. They didn¡¯t have to be quite so afraid of death anymore. They all took the option to infuse their kindles, although Graul and Arden weren¡¯t given a choice; the ability boost bed automatically charged them each six out of the twenty points.

    Everyone¡¯s vision now had small holographic symbols, five on the left and five on the right.

    Weapons Notoriety/Quests

    Armor Map

    Money Experience

    Cities Stats

    Items Spells

    The icons would show what they had in inventory for each category. Another great surprise was Antic discovering that in the front yard of the cabin there was a variety of useful items. They had bows and clubs and dishes and bedding, all of it looked like it was made for settlers from two hundred years ago. They also found rope and knives and needles and thread.

    Torger asked ¡°Can someone separate anything that we will actually need here? The rest of it, I want to see how much Baybil will reduce our debt. Remember you bought food and clothes on my credit, so you each owe me a gold coin. Let¡¯s see what we can get from him for this stuff.¡±

    Graul didn¡¯t correct him that they were co-mayors, as Torger seemed to be taking a more dominant leadership role of the group. Still he felt a little slighted.

    They dug into the pile with gusto, looking for weapons of opportunity. Meanwhile Torger checked his new options. He tried to look at Weapons, but every time he moved his eyes to the top left, the words moved too. Then he moved his eyes rapidly to the left. The five words on the left swiped away out of his vision. He moved his eyes quickly to the right and those five words disappeared. It took him a couple of minutes to figure out how to look to his left and slowly drag them to the center of his vision and by concentrating on a specific word the menu finally came up.

    His weapons were the same, he had no quests but had 12/100 respected points for dwarves. Armor, Maps and Money were no surprise. Experience was at 0/1000 with 0 available ability points. Cities showed Home, Small Hammer, Calico, and Yuma.

    Selecting the three cities he¡¯d visited, each showed: Trade Relations-None, hostility 0/10, Friendly 1/10. Home gave him his options to increase the shield strength for one ability point, fertile ground for one ability point or expand for five ability points. Stats showed: Health 100/100, Stamina 43/43, Strength 1/1, Mana 10/10. Items showed no potions, and Spells showed

    Fire 1 Ability point 1  (black)

    Ice 1 Ability point 1 (black)

    Lightning 1 Ability points 2  (black)

    Slow 1 Ability points 3 (black)

    Cure 1 Ability points 3  (white)

    Heal 1 Ability points 3  (white)

    Shield 1 Ability points 4  (white)

    Analyze 1 Ability points 4  (white)

    Haste 1 Ability points 5  (white)

    Beserk 1 Ability points 5  (white)

    Poison 1 Ability points 5 (black)

    Teleport 1 Ability points 6 (white)

    Torger realized that killing rabbits, coyotes, and deer had given them easy experience points, but the whole group had nearly reached the limit for coyotes giving experience and were way beyond the twenty-five per person limit of rabbits. They had come to realize that just as the experience from a kill was split seven ways for their seven person group, the experience limit for a certain type of animal was split seven ways. They remembered what Baybil taught them and when Torger checked Experience there was a sub menu option to check Beasts. That showed

    Rabbit  Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp Max/25

    Coyote  Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp 25/25

    Deer ??? Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp 12.52/25

    Razorlings ????Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp 2.11/25

    Billik???? Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp 0.14/25

    Since Rabbit and coyote were in blue he clicked on each and it was removed from the list. Torger took a guess that he would have to use Analyze to get an average level, health, and mana for each monster. He also saw that the large spider they had seen and the troll they had seen did not appear on the list. After thinking about it for a minute he thought this list was mostly worthless.

    Torger walked outside to help everyone sort out the pile belongings. Everyone brought their new bed rolls and bedding into the house. That made the house very crowded and they knew they needed more space.

    As the sun was setting Torger called everyone together. ¡°We¡¯re more comfortable now, and safer, but we still lack food, water and fire. We need to expand the village and build another building and dig for water and learn some spells. Graul and I are the co-mayors here, and we need leadership and organized direction, but we are all friends. I propose we each take up specific tasks to help each other. If I direct everyone for the tasks, would you follow me?¡±

    Brun, Antic and Rome quickly agreed but Graul, Arden and Jex had reservations. Graul said ¡°We are co-leaders, I¡¯m not under you, but we can work together.¡±

    Arden said ¡°My top priority is getting me and Jex back home safely. If your directions are not leading us that way, I won¡¯t follow them.¡±

    Torger continued ¡°OK how about this. This village belongs to Graul and me, and we will have the authority to make all decisions concerning the village and the residents of the village. As long as you are within our borders you will follow our requests. During hunts and travels we will operate by democracy.¡±

    No one was really comfortable with that but no one proposed better ideas. After a while of discussion Torger started giving out instructions. ¡°Our easiest need to achieve is fire. Brun you can learn black magic faster, so I ask that you, Jex and Arden go kill deer. You need to get a thousand experience to get one ability point to buy fire one. I think that once you have fire one and use it, you may be able to learn fire two without buying it with ability points, but I can¡¯t be sure how that works. Jex use your arrows to injure the animals, and Brun finish them with your sword. Arden, you have a limited supply of bullets so obviously don¡¯t use them except in an emergency.

    ¡°Rome, Antic, and Graul, we need to dig a well, but that is suck work. It will be a hard and dirty job, but hopefully we can increase our strength to two by the time we¡¯re done. I¡¯m not looking forward to it, but we desperately need water.¡±

    Graul calmly and politely corrected his brother. ¡°Torger, you¡¯re not thinking this through clearly. Dwarves are good at digging and have the right tools. Why don¡¯t we have them digging our well? They¡¯ll do it better and faster. We¡¯ll trade the deer and coyote skins the others hunt in the next few days.¡±

    Torger gave himself a palm to the face. ¡°Duh. You¡¯re right, that¡¯s a much better idea. My first directives and I blew it. New plan. At first light you three go gain experience, pelts, and food, and the four of us will go to Small Hammer and try to entice the dwarves to dig our well.¡±

    The next day Torger¡¯s group loaded up small stuff into their magic satchels, which thankfully teleported with them from Yuma. When they arrived Baybil met them outside of the village and was impressed by what he saw, and invited them into the village. It seemed that now the Translate feature from their tablets were permanently embedded into their minds because they could hear him speaking dwarvish but with a slight delay heard it in English as well.

    He said ¡°It looks like we are trading your animal skins for our work, so if we build a dirt road between our villages that will qualify as an established trade route. To maintain the trade relation we need to trade something once a month.¡±

    That was a no brainer for Torger and Graul to agree to, though they didn¡¯t know what they could offer in the future. They filled up their water skins at the falls and headed back to Home with Baybil and two other dwarves. When they got back Baybil picked through the pile of skins and meat Torger didn¡¯t want. When it was all done and they haggled a little, Baybil agreed the dwarves would dig the well and clear away rocks and brush to make a dirt path between the villages, but did nothing to pay down the debt of twelve gold coins. Torger knew Baybil wanted his hunters to have water there and saw the animal skins as a bonus, so he persuaded Baybil to let his village¡¯s seamstress sew them clothes from their excess bedding.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    Before Baybil left, Brun, Jex, and Arden returned from hunting. They had three rabbits, two coyote pelts and two field dressed deer. Torger was very glad to see their hunting trip had been a success. Torger thanked Baybil for the trade and offered him one of the deer as a gift.

    Baybil¡¯s face lit up and he bowed deeply. ¡°I see our villages can possibly become allies in the future. Rule your village well and grow stronger and we can talk about it later. As a return of your generosity, I present you with these.¡±

    He reached into his pocket and pulled out seeds. ¡°The red ones will grow an apple tree, the brown ones will grow potatoes and the yellow ones will grow corn. First use an ability point for your Fertile Land option, and for another deer I will send my best farmer here to properly plant these.¡±

    Baybil also told them that Torger¡¯s guess about magic levels was correct; once Brun bought Fire one for one ability point, he could use it to cause damage points to monsters, and once he dealt a thousand damage points with it he would automatically get fire two. The same worked for him for all black magics, and Rome could learn advanced white magic spells by using lower level white magic, but had to buy the first one of each category. Everyone else would have to buy each new magic with ability points.

    Graul noticed in his vision that Notoriety/Quests was flashing. He looked at it and blinked and it came into view for him. He saw that a new quest was available to bring a deer to Baybil. Reward: Help from a professional farmer and 100 exp.

    After Baybil and the other dwarves lit a fire then left, Graul told Torger about the quest and he had the same quest option, but no one else did. The next day they decided to put it to the test. Jex, Brun and Arden came back with a deer around noon, then the others took it to Baybil. When he received the deer Graul and Torger gained 100 exp, but Rome and Antic did not.

    ¡°So it seems that we receive the quests and the rewards, on behalf of Home, and the others don¡¯t. Is that how it works for you Baybil?¡±

    ¡°Yes. As mayor I get the quests, rewards, and challenges of leadership, though quests don¡¯t come around very often. The real experience is finding new caves and killing the inhabitants. That¡¯s where the big experience and money is at in Nuva.¡±

    Torger looked at Graul and they both knew what they had to do. They left Small Hammer and went back Home. That night things were finally looking up for the group. Since coming to Nuva they had faced seemingly insurmountable challenges, and had walked through the fiery trials. Without being hungry, thirsty, homeless and cold, they could really make plans and goals instead of just thinking about survival. A spark of hope finally manifest in their hearts that night.

    Chapter 14

    The First Conquest

    True to his word Baybil sent two dwarves to dig the well. They attacked the task with joy Torger couldn¡¯t understand, but as he had been told, mining gives dwarves a sense of purpose. Just like in Yuma, the dwarves filled the magic satchels with dirt and everyone carried it away to dump it out. The rope was plenty long enough for the dwarves to dig all the way down to the water. Torger and Graul helped the dwarves build the stone wall around the opening and make a support frame for the rope, bucket, and winch, generously donated by Small Hammer. Once completed, the two village relations improved by adding three respect and three love points towards each other.

    Over the next few days, Brun gained more experience to try to buy Fire 1, while Torger and Graul began making a foundation for another house on their property. After a week they had stones stacked three feet high around a seventy by seventy foot area, with a soft dirt floor in the middle. On the same day the dwarves finished the well complete with bucket, wench and rope, Brun, Jex, and Arden each gained one ability point.

    Brun came back very excited and called everyone around to watch him invest it. He selected Fire 1 and blinked. His whole body tingled and a message came into his vision.

    You have learned your first spell. Learning to control magic takes some practice but will become easy after a few attempts. Simply point your finger at the target and say the name of the spell you wish to cast. The mana will flow automatically, so don¡¯t fight it.

    Brun told everyone what it said and pointed his finger at the smoldering fire pit. He imagined fire coming out of his finger and hitting the charred wood, then watching it ignite. Nothing happened. He pointed again and felt a vibration run down his arm. His fingers felt warm and he imagined his own hand catching fire then quickly shut that thought down and shook his hand as if trying to douse flames. On his third try he allowed the vibration to run down his arm let his fingers get warm but kept thinking about the smoking wood to ignite. A couple seconds later he spoke out loud ¡°Fire one¡¯¡± and a thin stream of fire came out of his index fingertip and flew into the fireplace. Everyone cheered and patted him on the back, but he felt dizzy. He checked Stats and saw that his Mana was now 5/10.

    He sat down but the whole group cheered and congratulated him. Fire had been hard to come by, and now they didn¡¯t have to use Rome¡¯s char cloth and rub sticks together. Arden used his ability point on going from level two to level three with swords. He had been frustrated during the hunts that he wasn¡¯t much of a participant, wanting to spare his ammo for emergencies. He swung his copper sword through the air a few times with a little more grace and confidence. Jex had made it to level four with bows, almost to level five, from the hunts. They had maxed out getting experience from coyotes, rabbits, and deer, and had fifteen more pelts to trade to Baybil, along with a lot of venison and rabbit meat. After seeing Brun¡¯s success, she used her ability point to learn Ice 1.

    As for Torger, Graul, Rome, and Antic, their hard work moving stones around paid off too. They each gained one point in strength and stamina. Graul was the first one to go from strength 1/1 to strength 2/2. It came without warning and there was no way of tracking their progress. As he was lifting another stone to place on the second layer of stones making the wall, his muscles all over his body suddenly burned for a second and he grew a half inch taller. He looked at his arms and legs and saw a little more bulk and definition to them, not much but noticeable. He was then able to carry stones a little more easily. He had no physical sensation when his endurance increased. The other three on the building crew gained their strength points the following day.

    With everyone more prepared for battle, Torger suggested they go back to the caves they had seen near Indio, the billiks to the west of it and the huge spiders to the south of it. Arden quickly agreed but the others said they weren¡¯t ready for any intense battles. Torger and Arden tried and failed to convince the rest of the group to go. Instead Graul and Rome decided to take the coyote pelts and venison to Small Hammer to trade.

    Graul¡¯s relations with them now showed Loved 5/100 and Respected 17/100. That must have meant something because he was offered more than he thought he would get for the trade. Graul and Rome walked away with six copper bracers and three vials that restored nine health each, along with an anti venom vial. The dwarves kept potion making a closely guarded secret and wouldn¡¯t trade the knowledge for anything. Still they were happy with the trade.

    During the two days they were gone, Brun, Jex and Arden continued hunting to gain experience points, but they maxed out on deer and coyotes. They had nearly five hundred experience points again, and were getting really good at hunting, while the others still had no experience points. But everyone was participating the best they could for the survival of the whole group, and Torger was surprised there wasn¡¯t jealousy among them.

    Graul and Rome returned from Small Hammer, and showing the rest of the group what they had received in trade was the tipping point to convince everyone to try the caves. Jex wanted to go to Lake Havasu to get the vials of potions, but everyone else thought it was too dangerous.

    They set out on a trip once again. Torger gave Graul his shotgun since he had a little practice with it and he took Arden¡¯s .22 rifle. Torger was the most accurate with that gun of the group. Arden carried a revolver that had just two bullets left. Rome and Antic had no experience with guns and Jex was good with her bow. Arden also carried the .30-30. They hoped to not use any bullets, but there was no reason not to bring them just in case.

    The second day Brun had an opportunity to use Fire 1 against a coyote. Jex shot it with an arrow then Brun ran forward and cast his spell. It burned all the fur off one side and blistered the skin but didn¡¯t do a whole lot of damage. Graul stabbed it to finish it. Brun looked at Spells and saw Fire 1, 7/1000 to Fire 2.

    So Fire 1 only did 7 points of health damage. He hoped Fire 2 would be much stronger. They killed coyotes and deer along the way until everyone could no longer gain experience from the kills, then they quit looking for the animals. They had come a long way from being afraid of three coyotes attacking them, even if some of the coyotes were nearly a hundred pounds.

    After three days they came to the cave with billiks again, and the weather had turned stormy once again. A strong wind blew and a light drizzle fell, but their winter coats kept them warm and dry. They looked at the cave entrance from the top of a hill and saw a billik occasionally go in or out.

    Antic asked ¡°OK Torger, what¡¯s the plan? We have no way of knowing how many are inside there.¡±

    ¡°I think that me, Graul, and you should put on the copper bracers and go inside. Jex, cover us with arrows and Arden take back your twenty-two. We¡¯ll go down there and try to sneak inside to look around. If we have to get into a fight with one, we retreat as we¡¯re keeping it at bay. If you can get in a clean shot Jex or Arden, take it, but we have to know what we¡¯re dealing with.¡±

    The three men climbed down the hill and had to approach the cave in plain sight, there was no brush to hide in. When they were a few feet away from the opening they heard a gunshot behind them. They spun around to look and saw that there was a billik behind them returning to the cave. Jex and Arden had both shot it and it staggered back. Brun ran down the hill to cast Fire 1, while Rome stood at the top helpless.

    Torger and Graul ran in close to start cutting off legs, and Antic ran and thrust his spear into its mouth. It dropped its back side down and thrust a front foot at Antic, piercing his stomach. He began bleeding heavily. Torger and Graul each cut off a leg on its left side, then Torger ran around its back and cut off the other back leg. Everyone backed away from it thinking it was immobile, but the damn thing used its three other legs to turn around while dragging its butt on the ground. It snapped its mouth and bit at Torger, but he shoved his bracer into its mouth sideways and it didn¡¯t have the strength to bite through the metal, but it did bend it.

    Torger grunted in pain and stabbed it in the eye and through the brain. It released its bite as if it had no more control of its muscles, but the remaining three legs kept kicking and moving! Torger heard another gunshot and saw that two more billiks had come out of the cave! He withdrew his sword from the billik¡¯s face and saw Graul cut off the remaining two legs on its right side, leaving only the front left leg attached. That leg kept kicking but now it was immobile.

    Antic staggered back up the hill and was bleeding heavily from his stomach. Rome gave him a health potion and immediately the blood slowed. He collapsed on the ground relieved he wasn¡¯t dying but was still in excruciating pain. His Stats showed Health 28/100. That meant before the potion his health had been at 19/100! That scared him so badly that he vowed to himself right then that he would spend his first ability point on more health.

    Arden and Jex kept shooting at the two billiks and Brun cast Fire 1 once at one of them, ran out of mana, then he withdrew. Torger and Graul managed to cut off the two back legs from each, then they retreated up the hill. All three billiks were still alive but severely injured. Once everyone was safely at the hilltop Arden quit shooting, but Jex kept hitting their faces. Her arrows wouldn¡¯t pierce the shells covering the bodies, but Arden¡¯s rifle did, although there were no exit wounds so he didn¡¯t know how much the bullets were penetrating.

    The first one that only had one leg finally died, and as the other two were bleeding out, two more billiks came out of the cave. They saw the group and ran up the hill. This time everyone but Jex ran down to meet them, using the high ground to their advantage. Antic had not recovered enough to meet them with his spear and he was still on the ground bleeding a little, watching his health slowly tick down. Seeing his friends fight for their lives he walked down the hill and using his spear he thrust it into the face of one, but his every movement made his stomach hurt.

    Torger and Graul were clearly in their element now. They had figured out how to run to the back sides and start cutting off legs without placing themselves in danger. Torger yelled out to the others ¡°Stay in front of their faces and keep them distracted, we¡¯ll disable them!¡±

    The other four men moved to the front side, two each, and began throwing rocks at the faces, but they blocked Jex from getting any more arrows in. That didn¡¯t matter though as Torger and Graul were able to cut off all of the legs, dodging in and out of range of billik mouths. With the billiks completely immobile, the group withdrew up the hill once again. Everyone took out their bows and began shooting at the faces until they eventually quit twitching.

    Graul said, ¡°We still haven¡¯t got a look inside the cave. I say we go down and see how many more there are.¡±

    ¡°I agree,¡± said Torger and Arden simultaneously. The three walked back down the hill and a few feet into the cave. It was dark and they couldn¡¯t see much, but they did see dark shadows moving around further inside. They came back up the hill without a word spoken. In the meantime the other four had gathered up all the legs to trade later.

    ¡°Brun, it¡¯s too dark in there. I want you to come down with us and cast fire into the cave so we can see.¡±

    Brun agreed, but said they would have to wait. His Mana recharged at one point per minute, and already three had recharged. They all went back down. Just before they made it to the mouth of the cave another billik came out. Brun ran away and Arden distracted its face, and Torger and Graul had a good system of cutting off the legs from back to front, but before they cut off the front legs it was able to swing a leg sideways at Arden, knocking him to the ground. As it picked up the leg to pierce him Graul cut off the leg and Torger stabbed it in the brain.

    Brun came back and they walked around the twitching body, knowing it couldn¡¯t hurt them. Brun cast Fire 1 and a stream of fire came out of his finger and went forward about eight feet. As the flame turned upward they saw more than a dozen billiks in the cave bumping into each other partly blinded from the sudden light. The men ran out of the cave and around the twitching body and towards the hill.

    ¡°Ruuunn! Run away everybody!¡±

    The three at the top of the hill stood there in shock, unmoving.

    ¡°I said run!¡± Torger and Graul made it to the top first and turned around to look behind them. Two, three, four, five billiks came out of the cave and waved their antennae around looking for the trespassers. The whole group ran over the hill and down the backside. They ran for a mile then Antic tripped over a rock and fell, clutching his stomach. The others stopped and helped him up, but could see he wouldn¡¯t make it far. They didn¡¯t see the billiks behind them anymore, they must have given up the chase, so they found small boulders to sit on and catch their breath.

    The rocks were slick from the light rain, but they sat on them anyway too exhausted to move. After a few minutes Jex asked ¡°How come none of us has caught a cold? We were here in winter without warmth or shelter, but no one got sick.¡±

    Torger said ¡°That¡¯s a weird thing to ask right now. We just ran for our lives. But I guess there are no viruses here. But I wonder how we¡¯re going to clear out that cave. That¡¯s going to be a lot of work.¡±

    ¡°Clear it out? Torger we are no match for those things. We¡¯ll have to come back when we¡¯re stronger,¡± she protested

    ¡°Wait til we¡¯re stronger, wait til we¡¯re stronger. I¡¯m tired of waiting. Killing those things is how we get stronger.¡± He paused with a resigned look on his face. After several seconds he continued. ¡°I know we¡¯re not strong enough to take them out. I guess I¡¯m just sick of living in fear. We¡¯re the dominant species on Earth, and I hate thinking I could get killed any day. I want to be stronger now.¡±

    Graul answered ¡°Yes we all do, but we¡¯ve got to proceed with caution. I would never suggest we hole up at the house and wait for it to all be over, I won¡¯t accept that kind of defeatist mentality. But there is another way to get stronger.¡± He looked at everyone giving him quizzical stares. ¡°Those large spiders seem less dangerous. These cockroaches are almost as big as we are but the spiders are the size of small cats. We can clear out that cave first. It¡¯s got to be easier. Small Foot said the strength of the creatures guarding the cave is a good indication of the treasure in the cave. Let¡¯s go southeast and start at that cave and see how it goes. Maybe then we could come back here.¡±

 Try Again For The First Conquest

    Chapter 15

    Try Again For The First Conquest

    It took the group a couple of days to reach the next cave. Once Antic had slept that night, he woke up completely restored. His body had healed faster than anyone would think possible and no one could explain it, but they¡¯d take it. Killing the six billiks had given them each nearly two hundred experience points, but that still left them with a long way to go to get more ability points. They realized just how big of an upgrade that bed like chamber in Yuma would have been if they already had magic to begin with, but were still happy that they could now use magic, drink potions and respawn, though no one had wanted to try the last option voluntarily. Jex had reached level five in bows meaning she could shoot one percent faster and inflict one percent more damage, with one percent more accuracy per level gained. Torger and Graul realized they would have to try to make her a better bow.

    Torger, Graul and Antic snuck toward the next cave, east of Indio, as quietly as possible. They didn¡¯t know if the spiders were venomous, and they only had one vial of anti venom. They took a step in and saw webs all over the walls. Graul used his sword to clear some away and it sent ripples along the web further into the cave. A few seconds later a spider the size of a dinner plate came running along the side of the wall at them. Before it got too close Graul swung his sword and cut it in half. It died instantly. ¡°Maybe this won¡¯t be so bad.¡±

    Spoken too soon as another spider came along the other wall and Torger cut that one in half easily enough. What they didn¡¯t see was the spider running along the ceiling. It dropped from the ceiling on to Antic¡¯s head and he swatted at it with his spear but it bit him on the back of the skull. Graul stabbed it in the side but it didn¡¯t die. It tried to turn to bite Graul but couldn¡¯t move much seeing as how it was skewered. Torger sliced down at its head cleaving it in two, skillfully stopping the copper blade a half inch before he sliced Antic.

    Graul whipped his sword upward and flung it away. Antic collapsed to the ground but a second later climbed to his hands and knees. ¡°Why does this keep happening to me?¡± The others asked him if he was OK and he said when he got bit his whole body went into paralysis, but now he felt fine with no side effects. Checking his Stats he lost eight health from the bite. He shuddered imaging getting bit over and over again while being unable to move and slowly dying. ¡°Guys I¡¯m not afraid of spiders but I don¡¯t think my spear will do much good in here. This is a place for knives and one handed swords.¡±

    ¡°And fire. Brun! We need your fire here!¡±

    Antic walked up the near hill with the others while Arden and Brun came down.

    ¡°Brun, let¡¯s see if these webs are flammable.¡±

    It turned out they were flammable. The whole cave seemed to catch fire and it raced all the way to the back, much deeper than they thought it would be. A negative side effect was that the four men got singed from the flames losing most of their eyebrows and hair. ¡°We really need to get some helmets.¡±

    Another negative side effect was that it pissed off every spider in the cave. They all suffered a little damage from the singing but were running at them as if unharmed. Once again Torger yelled ¡°Run!¡±

    They ran up the hill but the spiders didn¡¯t give chase. A few stayed near the mouth but the rest went back inside. Torger said ¡°Swords out everyone. Jex, cover us.¡±

    When they came near, Torger told them to go to the sides of the cave mouth. Jex came and stood thirty yards directly in front of the cave mouth and quickly released three arrows striking all three remaining spiders. The arrows sank deep and the men finished their lives. Torger and Graul walked inside carrying dried wood and set it on the floor several steps in. The light was dim but Brun lit the stack of wood on fire. What they saw made them retreat once again. There were snakes on the ground, yellow in color and about a foot long, coming out of nests under rocks.

    Everyone gathered more dried brush and Graul and Torger stood guard killing the occasional spider and snake as the others built the fire into a huge ball of intense heat. They all left the cave and watched as smoke billowed out. Hopefully the monsters would all suffocate.

    A half hour later Graul and Torger reentered, choking on the smoke. There was enough light to see that that the snakes and spiders had not died as they hoped. Torger and Graul killed a few more but had to leave from the thick soot in the air.

    Not knowing what else to do, the group set up camp for the night. During Rome¡¯s watch that night he spotted a coyote in the distance but nothing else happened. The next morning they put their heads together.

    ¡°I think we could kill them all with swords if we could just see in there. How do we get light inside?¡±

    ¡°Can we make torches? What are those made from?¡± asked Arden.

    ¡°They¡¯re made from pitch, I think, but we don¡¯t have any. Can we flush them out?¡± answered Graul.

    ¡°I wish we could, but I don¡¯t know how. The smoke should have done that.¡±

    ¡°What if we all learn fire one?¡± Everyone turned to look at Rome. ¡°We are almost near getting another ability point. What if we kill what spiders we can and one at a time learn fire one? Those with the magic could provide light for those without it.¡±

    Brun said ¡°I¡¯m in. I need to hit as many of those things as I can to get fire two. This could bring me a long way toward that goal.¡±

    No one liked the idea overly much but agreed to it, except Antic who insisted on getting extra health with his ability point.

    Brun walked into the cave between Torger and Graul. There was still a stink of smoke but they could breathe easily enough. After a few feet he saw movement along the ground and cast fire at it. A snake writhed in pain and Torger slashed it, and the light lasted long enough for Graul to see two spiders and kill them. They waited to see movement again and after a minute Torger stabbed his sword toward the ceiling. His aim wasn¡¯t true in the dim light and he sliced the side of a spider. It fell to the ground, then with an amazing ability it jumped up two feet and bit Graul on the thigh! He fell to the ground, paralyzed. Torger sliced it and it died and at the same time Brun cast flame at the ground again revealing two more snakes. Torger dispatched those and Graul recovered a second later then they went outside again.

    Arden, Jex, and Brun were going to be the next ones to get ability points, since they had hunted while the others started building a second house. Arden and Jex looked at their Experience then looked at Torger and shook their heads. They were almost there, but not quite. Three people with Fire 1 would make things go much faster.

    After ten minutes Brun¡¯s mana was full and they entered again. This time was much the same as last time, killing two spiders, two snakes, and Torger got bit. When they exited Jex and Arden were grinning. They each bought Fire 1, and Brun bought Ice 1.

    For the rest of the day they entered and exited the cave casting Fire 1and eventually saw no more life inside. On a hunch Antic collected a few spiders and snakes and put them in his satchel. Once everyone was certain it was safe, Arden entered and a message came into his vision.

    Would you like to take possession of this property? Yes No

    Arden¡¯s ADD made him automatically select yes, and the message disappeared. Jex asked him ¡°What were you thinking?¡± and he didn¡¯t have a good answer, but his Cities icon showed he and Jex were the owners of the cave, automatically named Arden and Jex¡¯s cave. No one else was part owner or mayor. That must have been because they were married. Neither really wanted the cave, there were no resources around to make the land prosperous, but it did allow them to activate a shield that covered the mouth, the same as Home¡¯s shield. Of course the name sucked, but they didn¡¯t plan on upgrading it to be a level three cave, and if they didn¡¯t level up the cave they would never get the chance to rename it.

    Upon further examination it showed Arden and Jex each received 300 exp for ¡°Conquering a level 1 hostile village.¡± That caused a verbal fight to break out between Brun, Antic and Rome over who gets to claim the billik cave when they conquer it. They never came to a peaceful conclusion about it, so they played rock paper scissors and Antic won. The treasure they found was a bit disappointing, a dwarf merchant¡¯s body and goods: a pouch of twenty-three coppers and two glowing stones. After some more bickering, and by way of democracy, Rome kept the loot in his bag as he was the most trustworthy of the group.

    Chapter 16

    Billiks

    They set up a watch that night even though they were inside the cave, but that turned out to be unnecessary. The next morning they headed back toward the billiks¡¯ cave. Along the way they saw huge three toed footprints in the sand. It was heading the way they had seen the troll before, and everyone stayed on high alert.

    They came to the cave late the next day. They decided not to begin the siege until the morning, but when it was almost sunset several billiks came out of the cave and went in different directions. They had to kill the one that came towards them. Jex shot it with an arrow, Brun and Arden cast Fire 1 at it, and Torger and Graul swung swords at it. After two days of practicing teamwork in the spider and snake cave, the seven of them fighting one billik was no challenge at all.

    There was no sign of the bodies they had killed just outside the mouth a few days earlier. Jex had the second watch and she saw the billiks that had left earlier drag in rabbits, and one dragged in a deer.

    At sunrise Jex had the idea of baiting them to come out. She put some deer meat on the ground about forty yards outside the cave. Graul, Torger, Brun, and Antic lay in wait nearby and sure enough a billik came out and inspected the meat. Jex shot an arrow into its face and the others ran in to attack. Brun cast Fire 1 at its face and Antic thrust his spear at its face and Torger and Graul systematically cut off its legs. Arden spared his ammo.

    Fifteen minutes later another one came out to inspect the meat and they did the same thing. They were able to kill two more that way, but then no more came out.

    Jex said ¡°This is working great, but maybe they¡¯re nocturnal. Maybe we should try this at night.¡±

    Everyone had conflicting emotions of getting the task over with to find the treasure, versus not dying in the effort. They agreed to try again at night.

    They had better results and killed another fifteen that way, but then they stopped coming. The next morning they saw none come out, and waited all day, but none came out that day or that night either. Everyone but Jex approached the cave and she kept an arrow knocked. Once they were five feet away a dozen or so billiks ran out of the cave and attacked the whole group!

    Torger and Graul dodged and parried and cut off legs, Antic thrust his spear at their faces, and Brun cast Fire 1 twice, but Rome was useless in the fight and was pierced repeatedly. Out of the corner of his eye Torger saw a green flash where Rome had been, then his body was gone. Arden was the next to fall, having emptied the two rounds from his revolver, leaving his back and side vulnerable. Brun wasn¡¯t much better, after using his mana he retreated and picked up the smaller rifle, and he fired ten bullets from the .22 rifle, then he too succumbed to stabs. Antic got his spear stuck in the skull of one and as it jerked back his spear was ripped from his hands. He never saw the billik that bit him in the back of the neck, nearly decapitating him. Torger and Graul fought back to back keeping the creatures at bay, but three billiks charged Jex and then the brothers lost their cover fire. Torger stepped on an uneven rock and fell down, and that was all it took for Graul to be surrounded and stabbed in the back by a billik leg.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

    ¡°Horrible nasty beasts! I¡¯m going to kill ¡®em. I¡¯m going back right now to kill ¡®em all!¡±

    ¡°Calm down Brun. Yes we¡¯re going back to kill them, but it¡¯s going to be days before we¡¯re back there. Stop yelling and get some clothes on.¡±

    Torger, Graul, Rome and Antic were putting on their old furs in the cabin where they had respawned, while Jex and Arden presumably were getting dressed in the half built new house where they were supposed to respawn. Only Brun stood in the living room completely naked yelling about the injustice of dying. They all respawned in the living room without the clothes, armor, weapons, or satchels they had. Torger hoped they were still at the mouth of the billik¡¯s cave, but if they drug them into the back of the cave as he feared, that would be difficult to get their stuff back. There was only one option in his mind, increase his debt to Baybil. What also was painful for all of them was that they lost all the experience they had gained from killing the billiks the day before.

    An hour later they began walking to Small Hammer armed with branches as clubs, and Arden had the .30-30, which he had left behind for their journey. Torger asked him what guns were left behind when they died.

    ¡°The twenty-two with twenty-one rounds, the forty-five revolver with two rounds, and the shotgun with twenty-six rounds. Once those are spent, we¡¯ll have no more ammo. It seems the tyters wanted us to not die immediately, but also not spend three years blasting anything we came across. We¡¯ll have to plan very carefully how to use them.¡±

    Once they arrived in Small Hammer, Torger told Baybil that they had all died from billiks, and if he would loan them swords, bows, and armor, they would bring back some bounty to him, and possibly buy the gear.

    Baybil listened to their needs and predicament. After thinking a few seconds he replied, ¡°The price is that you bring back fifty billik legs for just loaning the armor and weapons. After all chances are the village black smith will probably have to repair them. The purchase price would be one gold, seventy-five silver for all of it.¡±

    Torger answered ¡°Thank you Baybil. Not to complain, but why is our getting more stuff less expensive than what you charged when we first met? We¡¯re already twelve gold coins in debt to you.¡±

    ¡°Two reasons. First, we now have trade relations, giving you deep discounts. Second, and the larger part, you¡¯re not desperate anymore. You can walk away from this deal and be OK, but when we first met you would have died without help, all of you. Can¡¯t blame a dwarf for makin¡¯ a little extra coin while helping out a stranded traveler. So if we have a deal, let¡¯s walk over to the armory and see what can be modified to fit you.¡±

    Inside they were amazed by all the different grades of weapons and armor, but the prices jumped drastically for every upgraded piece. They walked out with better gear than what they had originally. Torger, Graul and Antic had iron armor head to toe, and Torger and Graul also had iron swords and wood and iron round shields, while Antic had an iron spearhead affixed to an oak pole, and Brun had a mage¡¯s tunic and wood staff. Jex was given a recurve bow made of elm, with a quiver of arrows with iron arrowheads. Arden and Rome got nothing, Arden had his .30-30 and Rome was supposed to be a white mage but didn¡¯t know one single white magic spell. He was torn between saving his ability points for Cure 1 or Shield 1. Either way he would be useless in a fight until he learned one of them.

    They were also given water skins and poor quality magic satchels filled with fruit and bread. Torger watched his friends relish eating fruit and bread, sick of unseasoned rabbits to eat, so he asked Baybil to send his farmer with them. When they got to Home the farmer said he would plant and nurture the seeds, for half the crop. Torger and Graul agreed, and then they all started walking to Indio again.

    Brun found that having a mage¡¯s staff was a little different than pointing his finger. At the top of the wood staff was an amethyst and he had to point the gem at the target before saying ¡°Fire one.¡± Baybil told him a mage¡¯s wool tunic added ten percent to a spell¡¯s strength, and a wood staff also added ten percent to a spell¡¯s strength. Fire 1 had caused 7 health damage from his finger before, but now it caused 9 health damage without requiring more mana.

    One week after they had died, they came to the top of the hill in front of the cave. Their increased stamina combined with comfortable leather shoes allowed them to cut a day off the trip. But, as he feared, Torger didn¡¯t see their gear outside the cave. That night they set out deer meat in front of the cave. A billik came out to get it, Jex shot an arrow into its face, which went in about two inches deeper than the stone arrowheads had, and Antic shoved his iron tipped spear into its face, going in deeper with seemingly less resistance. Torger and Graul found slicing off its legs was easier with iron swords than it had been with copper, and having a shield on the left arm allowed them to be more brave when near the legs. Even Brun increased his Fire 1 damage from seven to nine per cast. Once that billik died, another came out, which they killed. In all they killed seven billiks with ease. This gear made a huge difference!

    No more three foot tall cockroaches came out, but this time the group knew what to expect. ¡°Rome, sorry man, but you¡¯ve got to take one for the team.¡± Rome had been a team player, the navy taught him everyone needs to work together for the greater good, but still he was trembling as he walked toward the cave all by himself, with the others ready to attack once the billiks came out.

    When he was ten feet away several billiks ran out and attacked him. Rome never stood a chance, but he had to believe he would respawn again. Arden fired round after round at them, Jex emptied her quiver, Brun cast Fire 1 twice then retreated, Antic stabbed their faces, and Torger and Graul cut off legs. The billiks moved sideways, backwards, forwards, they bit, kicked, and stabbed, but ultimately they had no intelligence, no unity in their attack, and fighting as individuals instead of as a group they were all killed. The men collected nineteen of Jex¡¯s arrows which hadn¡¯t broke, and climbed up the hill, bruised and tired.

    The first battle was won! Even though they ached all over, and Antic and Graul had bite marks on their forearms, the victory was sweet! They counted eleven more dead billiks in addition to the seven they had baited, and that not counting the ones they killed the week before. But they still had no idea how many were left. Torger asked that question out loud, mostly to himself.

    Antic answered, ¡°According to Rome, we should have sixty-seven left, and thirteen of those are injured or already dead. His theory was this: in the first cave there were one hundred snakes, and one hundred spiders, so there are probably one hundred billiks. Yes I know it¡¯s weird he calculated out his experience points divided by the group and multiplied by the number of kills or something like that, I really don¡¯t care how he came to that conclusion, but on our walk here he was explaining it to me and said he thinks we¡¯ve killed fifteen billiks so far and injured thirteen more when we died. I asked him ¡®What about the razorlings at Calico?¡¯ and he said they may have been out hunting or soaking up sunlight, or he may be wrong. But if the pattern holds true, we¡¯re one third of the way done.¡±

    ¡°Rome¡¯s too smart for his own good. I would have rather not known we have a long way to go. I¡¯m really sorry we had to sacrifice him. Do you think he¡¯ll stay at the property like we told him?¡±

    ¡°I doubt it Brun. He¡¯s probably already walking this way to meet us, the stupid guy. Here¡¯s for you Rome.¡± Arden poured his water skin on the ground.

    ¡°Rome¡¯s still alive honey. Save your water.¡±

    As Jex was saying that, they didn¡¯t notice the two billiks climbing up the hill toward them. Torger saw one out of the corner of his eye as it raised a front leg to pierce Brun. Torger jumped forward and deflected the strike with his shield, but the pointy leg still left a deep scratch on Brun¡¯s back. He yelled in pain and the others scrambled to their feet. Graul cut off a leg from the other billik that was raised to pierce Jex. Antic stabbed it in its side, but even the iron spear head barely penetrated the exoskeleton.

    Torger rolled to his side after deflecting the strike to Brun, and with a quick back hand slash he cut off the offending leg. Everyone then scrambled away from the two billiks and surrounded them. Brun was in a lot of pain but was able to cast Fire 1, and Antic shoved his spear into the face of the other one. It immediately went brain dead and the five remaining legs all tried to run a different direction at once.

    By then Jex had her bow and a second later shot the other billik through an eye. It too began moving erratically, and Torger and Graul finished them off. They looked down the hill and saw billiks watching them, then retreated into the cave once again. It seemed that they were both hungry and scared. If that was the case, Torger thought, soon hunger would overcome their self preservation instincts and they would come out to hunt. If they chose to do that at night when someone was on watch, game over, again.

    ¡°We need to hit them while they¡¯re hurting. I say we try to draw out a few more right now. I think they¡¯re weak, scared and desperate.¡±

    Everyone agreed and once again they set out deer meet near the entrance. Fortunately for the group, billiks were extremely stupid creatures. They drew out four more and easily killed them. No more came out that night, and no one was willing to go in. They set up a watch, and everyone was told if they come out, let them go as long as they don¡¯t come near them. Torger took the first shift, and sure enough once everyone stopped talking about twenty billiks left the cave, all giving a wide berth around the hill the people were camping on. At the end of his shift an hour later they returned with a few rabbits and a couple deer, and some had nothing. Torger was tempted to use the bow to injure them as they went in the cave (about one every five minutes), but the risk of them attacking the sleeping group was too great. He woke up Jex then went to sleep.

    During his watch that night Arden came up with a plan, which he proposed to everyone at breakfast. ¡°We lit a huge fire to try to smoke out the spiders, but that didn¡¯t work. I say we try it again.¡±

    ¡°If we get close, they come out and attack. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s possible.¡±

    ¡°Wait Brun, he might be on to something. Torger, do you think we could get up the hill above the cave mouth? Maybe we could throw a lot of brush near the mouth without them coming out, then light it on fire.¡±

    Torger considered Graul¡¯s plan and agreed to try it. They walked around to the top of the cave while carrying brush until they were standing over the cave mouth. No billiks came out. On the count of three they dropped their armful of brush to land in front of the mouth, then Brun cast Fire 1. The wood ignited, but the two brothers could hear clacking feet running away from the fire, not towards it. That gave Torger the opportunity to think of something new. ¡°If they¡¯re all at the back of the cave now, we can throw wood further in to the cave and then you can ignite that.¡±

    A few minutes later everyone except Jex and Arden tiptoed into the cave with an armful of brush. After going in ten feet they heard the clacking of hard feet on stone. They all dropped their piles and Brun lit it on fire, then they backed to the mouth of the cave. The clacking feet scampered away from the fire, but the men could see the cave quickly filling up with smoke. They backed out and got ready for a mass evacuation drill. But the billiks never came out.

    They waited for over an hour before Torger looked inside again. The wood was still hot and smoldering, and billiks were up next to the pile of hot ashes. The ones close to the fire were pushing backwards, and the ones in back were pushing forwards. They were crushing the ones in the middle. He called out ¡°Jex, Brun! Get over here!¡±

    Jex approached and saw what he was looking at then started shooting arrows at the front billiks while Brun cast Fire 1 twice, then was replaced by Graul, and when Jex was out of arrows she cast Ice 1 twice. When all was done they ran away and up the hill in front of the cave. They had killed six more in the skirmish, the front billiks trying to push backwards away from the hot coals and arrows, but then the rest of the billiks surged forward over the dead bodies of their family and out of the cave. They were moving slowly and the movement of their legs were disorganized so that it looked like they were stumbling. It seemed breathing in smoke for an hour straight did have an effect on them.

    Without a word spoken, Torger, Graul and Antic saw their opportunity and ran forward. Legs were cut off and faces were stabbed. This went on for fifteen minutes, until the remaining billiks recovered from the smoke damage. By then twenty more billiks were dead, but there were enough left that the men had to retreat up the hill.

    ¡°Arden! Cover us!¡±

    A loud bang came from behind Torger, and the billik next to the one he was fighting had some yellow pus come out of its face, and it no longer had a back end. Torger continued backing up the hill and another shot fired. When he got to the top another shot was heard. He stabbed the billik he had been fighting in the face, all the way to the hilt, and it died. He looked to his left and saw Brun cast Fire 1 at the billik Antic had just stabbed. It too died, but Torger didn¡¯t see Graul.

    ¡°Where¡¯s Graul?¡±

    No one answered and the .30-30 fired again. ¡°Damn bolt action! Arden next time get a semi-auto!¡±

    Torger met another billik coming up the hill and quickly cut off its two front legs, then it bit him on the shoulder. He grunted in pain and stabbed it through the eye, its brain died but legs were still kicking. He heard the rifle fire again then Arden called out ¡°Out of Ammo!¡±

    This was bad. This was very bad. He guessed there were about fifteen more billiks at the bottom of the hill recovering from the smoke. ¡°Where¡¯s Graul!¡±

    Torger cut off the remaining legs of the billik that was trying to eat him. A few seconds later he heard a different blast, his own shotgun. He looked down the hill and saw Graul pump it and shoot again. The billik¡¯s side looked like it had exploded, since Graul was only fifteen feet away. He called out ¡°Arden, Jex come here!¡±

    He pumped and fired again, killing another billik, and everyone ran towards him. ¡°The cave is clear! Go get guns! Arden take this.¡± He drew his sword and ran towards a billik. Torger and Antic joined him and Jex cast Ice 1 then she and Brun ran into the cave. Arden pumped and fired. He pumped again and fired, then ran into the cave knowing the shotgun would only hold five shells.

    That had given the other three men room to work. They slashed at legs, mandibles, antennae, and eyes, slowly dwindling down the remaining billiks. Antic thrust his spear awkwardly and randomly, pure terror in his eyes as he was aware they were on all sides of him. After another minute of intense hand to foot combat, they heard more gunfire, the .22 rifle. A bullet entered a creature behind Antic, and he heard it back away from him. He turned and stabbed it in the face, knowing he would have died if it hadn¡¯t been shot. Another bullet entered a billik that Antic hadn¡¯t seen to his right, and he was able to stab that one in the face too. Then another behind him again. After multiple shots Arden called out ¡°Hold your fire! Save ammo.¡±

    Torger and Graul slashed with their swords and blocked with their shields until they were able to reach Antic, then they fought back to back protecting each other. Another minute later all the billiks were dead.

 Growth

    Chapter 17

    Growth

    As promised Antic claimed the cave as his own, and he gained 400 exp for conquering the level 4 cave. Then they walked to the back of the cave and gathered up all their possessions. Torger asked ¡°Arden, how much ammo do you have left?¡±

    ¡°All the forty-five¡¯s for my revolver are gone. All the thirty thirty rounds are gone. I have eleven twenty-two rounds left, and you have twenty-one shells left. That¡¯s it.¡±

    Torger knew that wouldn¡¯t last long at all. It seemed the tyters gave them just enough to not die until they gained a few levels. He said ¡°Jex we are going to have to do a better job of making sure you have plenty of arrows. You running out in that battle really hurt us. I¡¯ll get more from Baybil. What are the treasures we got?¡±

    Brun and Antic were looking at a pile of stuff on the floor. Antic said ¡°We found the copper coins and two glowing stones from the first cave. From this cave we found a gold coin and sixty silver coins, a sword, and another glowing stone.¡±

    ¡°A gold and sixty silver is good, we can repay some of the debt. Brun, will you hold the glowing stones until we see Rome again? Let me see that sword.¡±

    Antic handed him a two handed steel sword that looked just like his decorative English double edged straight sword he received in the cabin. The steel was heavier and sharper than the tin imitation sword. ¡°This could come in handy. Graul, I think this will be best used in your hands. We¡¯ll take turns gaining experience with a two handed sword.¡±

    Graul agreed and they left the smoky cave to gather billik legs, including the ones that had died in the cave. After that they dragged the bodies away from the cave at Antic¡¯s pleading request. He didn¡¯t want to own a cave with dead cockroaches in it. What would the neighbors think?

    They had all gained two more ability points during the fight, but decided to save them and see how they should invest them once they got back to the cabin.

    They met Rome two days later, half way back to Home. He did not stay at Home like he was asked to, but came back right away. He was genuinely impressed they completed the mission, but sad to hear they were low on ammo. Brun handed over the three stones to his trustworthy friend and they went back to Home.

    When they got there they saw sprouts of crops growing and thought that was fast. The farmer that Baybil had provided for bringing him a deer said it depends on the land and who¡¯s doing the farming, and he smiled with self pride.

    Everyone decided not to spend their ability points and see what Baybil suggested first. When they got to Small Hammer the next day another storm had come in and there was a light snowfall coming down. By now it was mid February.

    First Baybil evaluated the sword and said it really was steel, of below average quality, but better than the iron swords they had. He accepted the one gold coin but told them to keep the silver, they may need it eventually. When he got to the glowing stones his mouth opened in shock but then he quickly closed it. ¡°I¡¯ll give you ninety silver each one.¡±

    ¡°Just add ten more silver and make it an even gold coin.¡±

    ¡°Shut up Arden, this is between Home and Small Hammer. Baybil, what do these stones do?¡±

    ¡°Well Graul, they are magic storage containers. The red one holds the fire element, and the blue one holds the ice element. I can use them in our forge to make a weapon that adds fire damage, and another weapon that makes ice damage, or armor that reduces damage from an ice or fire attack. I don¡¯t think these containment stones will do you any good, not until you become a veteran blacksmith in say ten years from now if you work for it. Since they¡¯re no good to you, a gold coin is a fair offer.¡±

    ¡°I think you using these stones to make Jex fire and ice arrowheads is a fair offer. How many billik legs is that worth to you?¡±

    ¡°You owe me fifty, and beyond that I only have need for about twenty of them, more than that would be a waste. We can make twenty-five arrowheads from each stone, so a total of fifty. Fifty magic arrowheads for twenty billik legs is a bit light. A fire one or ice one arrowhead is worth two silver coins each, so the sixty silver I asked you to keep to spend later, it may be time to spend it.¡±

    At that time Antic reached into his satchel. ¡°That¡¯s very convenient math Baybil. What will you give me for these?¡±

    He pulled out two dead large spiders and two dead small yellow snakes.

    ¡°Hmm they both contain paralysis venom. Since you¡¯re so interested in arrowheads I could coat them with the venom, and most beasts would be paralyzed for three seconds when struck.¡±

    Jex slapped her forehead. ¡°That would have been convenient when fighting the billiks.¡±

    Baybil continued ¡°You may need them if you accept a mission Small Foot has for you. That cave you showed him has more razorlings than they thought. They¡¯re so excited about mining the silver that none of them want to go hunt the razorlings. A messenger came yesterday and said they¡¯ve killed fifty-three, and should have forty-seven left, but they usually kill one or two a day. Could be a big reward in it for you.¡±

    ¡°Yes we¡¯ll accept the quest Baybil,¡± Torger said, ¡°but we need to finish our business here. I¡¯ve decided. What I want is to have a sword that deals fire damage, and for Jex to have arrows that deal ice damage and other arrows that deal paralysis, and normal arrows. Can we get all that in exchange for the green stone?¡±

    ¡°Yes! I accept! Oh no, no I can¡¯t do it. What¡¯s wrong with me? A dwarf with a conscious when trading. Humph.¡± Everyone looked at him for the odd outburst before he continued. ¡°That green stone is too valuable. I will make you the fire one sword, the twenty-five ice arrows, the four paralysis arrows, and reduce one gold of your debt for the teleport containment stone. In addition, I already have twenty-five ice arrows made that you can take with you and the paralysis arrows will only take me ten minutes to make. That is a perfectly fair trade.¡±

    ¡°What does teleport do?¡±

    ¡°Wherever you¡¯re at, if you activate the spell, it will teleport you to your respawn point. You could die and go there, but then risk losing your possessions you have on you, especially if you¡¯re far away. It¡¯s usually a list ditch effort if you¡¯re near death but can come in handy if you have a specific task to accomplish far away, then want to come back immediately once it¡¯s done. But this is not a group teleport, each person needs to buy the spell themselves. This containment stone is free to one person.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll take it!¡±

    Everyone looked at Rome and saw a huge grin.

    ¡°I¡¯m the white mage after all. Teleport is a white magic. This belongs in my category.¡±

    Everyone had mixed feelings because on the one hand he was the least likely to die in combat, since he rarely engaged the enemy, but then again he had a point about it being in his category. Eventually they reluctantly agreed to trade with Baybil. He immediately went to Spells and found Teleport. Cost 6 ability points. He held the green stone in his hand and concentrated on it, then a prompt came up: Do you wish to use a Teleport Containment Stone to buy Teleport 1? Yes No

    Baybil selected yes, then the stone in his hand grew brighter and brighter, then disappeared.

    Next Brun said ¡°Baybil, we¡¯re going need some more of those health and mana potions, like ten each.¡±

    Torger asked ¡°What happened to the other ones?¡±

    ¡°Rome handed them to me to hold on to before he walked into the billik cave. During that battle I got injured so I drank the health potion, and used the mana potion to get in two more fire one spells. We knew that the health restores nine points, and it seems the mana restores nine points. Those came in useful.¡±

    Baybil smiled again. ¡°Now we¡¯re trading! Buying ten at a time will get you a bulk discount. Only one silver per potion!¡±

    Torger gasped. Twenty silver for low level potions! He didn¡¯t want to know what mid level potions cost. But he knew it could save them. He pulled out all twenty silver coins and handed them to Baybil, who accepted the coins then called to a dwarf they couldn¡¯t see inside the cave ¡°Bring Hestaff out here! He¡¯s got some more smithing to do! And bring out a basic potion pack!¡±

    Torger groaned. Hestaff came out, nodded to them, and looked to Baybil. Torger was uneasy spending the little money they had, but knew the potions were helpful. ¡°Uggg. I guess. How long until it¡¯s ready?¡±

    Hestaff remained quiet as Torger looked at him when asking the question. Baybil answered for his blacksmith. ¡°About a week. Until then, you really should go help Small Foot.¡±

    ¡°OK we will. I¡¯ve got a question first. We saw a troll near the caves we cleared out. How strong are they?¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you use analyze?¡±

    ¡°None of have it yet.¡±

    ¡°Good grief man! How did you know if you could defeat the billiks? Didn¡¯t you analyze them to see their stats?¡±

    ¡°Like I said, none of have that spell yet. So how strong are trolls?¡±

    ¡°Right now I¡¯d guess around level thirteen.¡±

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t mean anything to me, Baybil. How strong are billiks?¡±

    ¡°Most billiks are level four, for now. The prey always grows stronger before the tyters arrive. I have analyzed all of you, and you¡¯re each level two.

    ¡°How do we gain levels?¡±

    ¡°Every time you buy an ability, you gain a level. If you buy health or strength or mana or stamina or a spell you gain a level. But gaining a level with a weapon does nothing for your personal level.¡±

    Antic spoke up ¡°The cave Jex and Arden claimed was easy. After they took possession they got a reward for a level one cave, and the one I claimed was difficult to capture. The billiks were a level four cave. What¡¯s the difference?¡±

    ¡°Before you enter a cave, Analyze gives you the recommended level needed for a group of ten warriors to clear out the cave. Ten level one warriors have a ninety percent chance of clearing a level one cave, ten level two warriors have a ninety percent chance of clearing a level two cave and so on. You¡¯ll see the cave level if you analyze it. With only seven of you, and all at level two, you had slim chances of beating the billiks. How¡¯d you do it?¡±

    Antic thought about the guns but decided that wasn¡¯t something Baybil needed to know about. ¡°We used our ingenuity. We humans are resourceful and can figure out difficult problems. When I claimed the cave for myself I could activate a shield. Why didn¡¯t the billiks activate it?¡±

    ¡°Because they¡¯re too stupid. That troll you saw will have his shield up, and goblins will have their shield up. Most other creatures don¡¯t seem to understand how to use ability points.¡±

    ¡°Thanks for your help Baybil. We¡¯ll pick up the potions and be on our way¡­ oh wait. How strong are the razorlings we¡¯re going after?¡±

    ¡°They average to be level nine for now. Like you, the more they kill the higher their level gets. Most prey are around level thirty by the time the tyters come.¡±

    ¡°That may be beyond our abilities, but we¡¯ll give it a shot.¡± Torger didn¡¯t like their chances.

    Chapter 18

    Razorlings

    As the group left the dwarven village there was fierce contention between them. Half wanted to go kill some razorlings for a lot of experience points and half wanted to finish building the second house at Home. After nearly an hour of arguing they came to an uneasy truce. They were surrounded by desert and had no desire to walk through sands in the summer. So once it got hot they would build up Home and explore the beaches, hopefully find a way to get to Catalina and use the teleport device to get back to Earth. Until summer came they should get all the experience they could from Calico.

    They ended up not going back to Home, but instead headed straight for Cajon Pass. Fortunately the journey was easy and uneventful. They walked over the pass facing nothing more dangerous than an alien creature like a young mountain lion, which two arrows from Jex weakened it enough for Torger, Graul, and Antic to easily finish it off. At watch the next night Graul saw two razorlings in the distance. They had no encounters with them and safely made it to Calico a couple days later.

    Small Foot greeted them when they came near. ¡°Welcome to Calico! The biggest silver mine for a thousand miles!¡±

    ` Torger didn¡¯t tell him there was even more silver near Carson City. Small Foot hadn¡¯t earned that information. ¡°Hello Small Foot. We hear you got a problem with lizards around here. Why don¡¯t you give us some food and water and we¡¯ll talk about it.¡±

    Small Foot looked a little taken back. Torger had gained confidence since he held him and Graul as prisoners. He thought it over for a second then put on a fake smile. ¡°Yes of course. Our village is newly under construction so we don¡¯t have many accommodations for you, but we¡¯ll try to make you comfortable.¡±

    He led them in to a hastily built stone house. Inside were mattresses all over the floor, and women dwarves were washing clothes at one end. Two men dwarves were building a much nicer and bigger stone house next door. Small Foot looked at their surprise and said ¡°We¡¯ve only been here a month. We had to verify the amount of silver available before moving the whole village. And as you had warned me, water is hard to come by. But the silver! So much silver just flowing out of the hills! Coming here was good advice you gave me.¡±If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.

    They sat down and were given food and water. Torger introduced everyone in his group then said ¡°We didn¡¯t have much of a choice. You were prepared to let us die from the cold, as your prisoners. But that¡¯s water under the bridge. We¡¯re here to kill some lizards. What do you know about them?¡±

    ¡°They consider these caves their home. They keep attacking at night. I¡¯ve asked the other dwarves to mine only half a day then kill the razorlings at night, but they¡¯re too eager to slow their mining. Each dwarf gets to keep half the ore he mines, so they¡¯re all competing to get the most. We fight them when they come, but no one is willing to locate and destroy their nest. I don¡¯t know if you¡¯re up to the challenge but the reward is big.¡±

    Indeed the reward was big. 1000 exp for Graul and Torger to divide between the two of them, and everyone would upgrade their poor quality magic satchel for a medium quality backpack. All the men were sick of carrying around their man purses. By itself that wasn¡¯t enough to entice them to come, but everyone except Rome had gained two ability points killing all the billiks, and gaining ability points had become infectious. Everyone wanted more to make themselves stronger, but Antic could already see there would be no end to it. Everyone would always want just a few more ability points for the next cool thing they could buy.

    ¡°Do you have any idea where they might be?¡±

    ¡°No. But they are food for rocs. The huge birds will swoop down and carry them high up then drop them to kill them. The razorlings will sleep somewhere they can¡¯t be seen from the air, and hide if they see a roc. And I suggest you hide if you see a roc.¡±

    ¡°Which direction do they come from when they attack?¡±

    ¡°From the east. Over there are soft sandstone cliffs for them to dig into.¡±

    Small Foot offered them a place to sleep, but Torger and Graul still didn¡¯t trust him. Everyone walked a mile to the east before setting up camp for the night. Brun lit a fire and everyone talked about getting the new magic back packs so they could stop carrying the tents and sleeping mats around. But at least their treks were better with their camping gear available.

    Just after dark Antic saw four razorlings approaching. He shouted and jumped up, and everyone was on their feet in seconds. The razorlings saw them and ran at them. Jex released one arrow after another, and the iron tips sunk deep, but the razorlings kept coming. Torger, Graul and Antic used the same approach they had on the billiks, with the two slicing at legs and Antic thrusting his iron spear it their faces, but the razorlings were much quicker and more agile than the billiks had been. They could turn their heads and twist their bodies to bite at anyone on their sides. Graul swung the new steel sword and chopped off a leg, but that razorling turned and bit him on the left arm. Its teeth slightly pierced his iron bracers. He dropped his sword and tried to run, but it wouldn¡¯t release. Antic stabbed it in the side and blood poured out, then it released its bite and bit his spear instead. The oak pole snapped and he had to retreat.

    Torger had slightly better luck. Since he still had a one handed sword, he used his shield to keep one from biting him, but he couldn¡¯t get a chance to stab it back because its attack was relentless. Twenty seconds after the battle started Arden yelled ¡°Retreat!¡±

    Brun cast Fire 1 at the one nearest him, then after one second was able to cast it again. After the second cast he was out of mana. Brun and Arden had to use their shields too as the lizards kept trying to get to Jex. Brun didn¡¯t have time to stop blocking the razorling teeth and claws to be able to find the potions, and Arden eventually dropped his shield and started firing as fast as he could with the .22 rifle. Jex shot her arrows in order at the one that was attacking Torger, then the two in front of her, then the one attacking Graul. Everyone ran up to stand in front of her. Graul abandoned his dropped steel sword and instead removed his iron sword and wood and iron shield that had been strapped to his back. They walked backwards toward the village but they were losing as the razorlings kept trying to bite and claw past the defenses.

    ¡°Rome run to the village and get help!¡±

    Rome turned and started running away. The razorling with the missing leg that Graul had chopped off finally succumbed to the arrows. With three remaining, Graul and Torger were able to get in an occasional slash at a razorling¡¯s face. They continued walking backwards and several minutes later they heard grunts in the distance. Brun turned and saw dwarves running towards them, with Rome among them. Brun saw his mana recharged to 6/10, so he cast Fire 1 again, but it didn¡¯t seem to do a whole lot of damage.

    The dwarves finally arrived and one cast a powerful ice spell at the lizards. Their movements slowed and the other two dwarves used big axes to sink deep into the razorlings necks, leaving only one razorling to be stabbed to death by Graul and Torger.

    During the melee everyone¡¯s stamina had bottomed out and they all dropped to the ground exhausted. The dwarves congratulated them on a job well done and advised them to come back to the village to rest. This time they accepted the offer.

    They were offered thin mats to sleep on in the stone house, along with almost every dwarf in the village. There had to be more than thirty of them in there. The humans were all bleeding and injured, but too tired to care. Everyone fell asleep immediately and dreamed of chain saws and clothes dryers, inspired by the sounds of the dwarves¡¯ snoring.

    In the morning they took inventory. Physically they were fully restored. All the shields were badly damaged, all their camping gear and satchels were a mile away, and Antic no longer had a spear and Graul had dropped the best sword they had.

    ¡°Things are looking bleak. Let¡¯s go get our stuff and regroup.¡±

    It turned out Torger¡¯s words were an understatement. More razorlings had come in the night and shredded their satchels and tents to get to the food inside. To make matters worse it looked like rain was on the way. The one bright note was that Jex was able to recover most of her arrows from the dead bodies, and Graul got his sword, but the spear would never be used again.

    As usual, Antic had a more observant eye than the others. He cut off the feet and put them into the one remaining good satchel. When they got back to the village they found Small Foot.

    ¡°I hear things didn¡¯t go so well for you last night. Do you wish to abandon this quest? You¡¯re free to do so of course, but then I¡¯d have to charge you for your room from last night. Everyone working for the benefit of the village gets a free place to sleep and free food.¡±

    ¡°Is that why all the dwarves are mining instead of building? They need to collect money for themselves to get out of your slum living conditions?¡±

    ¡°They are free to mine or build. The two dwarves you see doing the building are employed directly by the village, everyone else needs to contribute however they can and all are treated equally.¡±

    ¡°So they keep half the silver they mine, and I¡¯m sure you tax them heavily on that, and the village keeps all the rest? And since you¡¯re the mayor I assume you decide how it¡¯s spent. I would even guess the two village employees make triple the amount the miners make. And the new big house being built, is that for you or for the villagers? Quite a racquet you¡¯ve got going here.¡±

    ¡°Calm down Arden. They can run their village however they want, we¡¯ll run ours how we want. We don¡¯t need to get all up in their business.¡±

    Graul had a point. It would do them no good to get into a political argument with their current employer. Graul had a strong live and let be policy in his head.

    ¡°How do you run your village then?¡± Small Foot challenged.

    ¡°We all discuss the pros and cons of our next step then vote on it. Majority wins. If two groups can¡¯t agree at all, we¡¯ll split up for a short time and go our own ways then come back together again. But that¡¯s not important. We need a blacksmith to repair our stuff so we¡¯ll be ready again tonight.¡±

    Small Foot looked angry and offended, but forced a smile and said ¡°We don¡¯t have a smithy set up yet, but I¡¯ll see what I can do.¡±

    Small Foot was gone a half hour and came back with a young strong dwarf. He was just a blacksmith apprentice but said he could repair the shields and spear. He didn¡¯t get done until late in the day. When he was done he said ¡°That will be thirteen silver coins.¡± He held out his hand, palm up.

    Torger said ¡°Just put it on our tab.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t have credit here. You need to pay up.¡±

    ¡°Thirteen silver seems kind of steep for one day¡¯s work. Five silver sounds like a fair price.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t set the prices here. Small Foot does.¡±

    They went to go find Small Foot. ¡°We think thirteen silver coins is steep for the repairs done by an apprentice. Some of the metal is still bent on our shields.¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t have to get repairs done here, but you did, and that¡¯s what I¡¯ll charge.¡±

    Antic pulled out a razorling foot. ¡°How much is this worth?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve killed over fifty of them. We don¡¯t need any more.¡±

    Antic pulled out the remaining billik legs. That made Small Foot sit up and take notice. ¡°Yes, those could come in handy. Give me those and the repairs are free.¡±

    ¡°Not so fast. We think these are worth repairs over and over until we kill all the razorlings, and since that young dwarf was pulled out of the mines for our repairs, he will get half of them.¡±

    ¡°Half? He¡¯s not worth that much. I¡¯ll give him two.¡±

    ¡°There are thirty-four legs there. He¡¯ll get half and you¡¯ll get half, and his will be tax free. He will probably miss a few days of mining to make repairs for us.¡±

    Small Foot looked like he wanted to argue, but the greed was clear on his face and they knew they were overpaying him once again. He agreed, but had a scowl as he did. He asked ¡°One question before this transfer happens. I want to know how you can cast your spells so fast Brun. It takes the average dwarf three or four seconds to cast a fire one spell, and with the appropriate hand gesticulations, but I¡¯m told you just point and say the word. How is that possible?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know how the magic works. This is supposed to be tyter magic, so I had assumed that¡¯s how it works for them. We went to the east and found a chamber that changed us. It infused us with tyter upgrades, that¡¯s all I know. A return question to you; four days after we killed billiks, we returned to the spot, but their bodies were gone. What happened to them?¡±

    Small Foot answered ¡°When an elf, dwarf, or goblin dies here, they stay dead. All other beasts respawn somewhere at random far from where they died after three days. Have you ever kept deer or rabbit meat for three days? When three days is up, the meat disappears as the animal respawns.¡±

    ¡°So we have no idea where the one hundred billiks we killed respawned at?¡±

    ¡°Nope, but it will be at least fifteen miles away. Then they¡¯ll look for unguarded treasure to gather around. W dwarves have never figured out why that is, but just accept it as a fact for all new beasts.¡±

    That night just after sunset three razorlings attacked them in the same spot, a mile east of the village. Antic was more careful to keep his spear away from their faces, and instead poke them in the side, but also avoiding the tail that could knock him down. Graul didn¡¯t try to use the two handed steel sword, but instead used his shield and iron sword, which felt much more natural to him. The battle lasted for nearly ten minutes, and again everyone was so busy blocking with their shields that Brun couldn¡¯t get to the potions, and Jex found out that each ice arrow only contained the spell Ice one, after she retrieved them they were normal iron arrows again. Once the three razorlings were dead everyone gained another ability point.

    Things went much the same for the next two days and nights, getting the shields and armor repaired during the days and killing big lizards at sunset, and on the third night they didn¡¯t get attacked. Jex had about one in four arrows break each night, and now had thirty two good ones left, the same number of razorlings remained also.

    Everyone saved their gained ability points, waiting for Rome to catch up. They wanted to invest them wisely, although they each had their own ideas and visions of personal glory. It was time to find the nest. They headed east and that night camped on a hilltop in the rain. Visibility was poor, so they hoped the razorlings wouldn¡¯t be out.

    Everyone pulled their fur jackets up over their heads and looked out at the horizon. No one talked because they were nervous with the possibility of being attacked any minute. Finally Rome broke the silence. ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking. Each razorling gives us on average four hundred sixty experience, to be divided up between us. Since I missed out on the experience from the billiks, maybe someone else can sit out so I can catch up.¡±

    ¡°No we¡¯re all needed to complete this mission. Well figure something out later,¡± Arden said.

    ¡°Fine. I¡¯ve also been thinking about that first night we attacked them. A dwarf cast a powerful ice spell, probably ice two, and they all slowed down. Maybe this cold rain is making them slow down. Maybe this is the best time to attack.¡±

    Antic answered ¡°That sounds like a possibility if we knew where they were. All we know is they¡¯re trying to get back into their home of the cave at Calico. Maybe we should all buy ice one to see if it slows them down when we do find them, but Jex¡¯s arrows had ice one at first. I didn¡¯t notice if it slowed them down or not.¡±

    Rome said ¡°No. I¡¯ve been pretty useless so far, and will continue to be until I learn cure one or shield one. I¡¯m not buying ice one.¡±

    Jex said ¡°I already have ice one.¡±

    Brun said ¡°I¡¯m buying more mana. In fact there¡¯s no reason for me to wait because I¡¯m almost at fire two.¡± He selected his Stats and bought five more mana for an ability point, then thought about it, and five with another ability point bringing him up to 20/20. ¡°Now I can cast fire one four times in a battle instead of twice. Fire two, here I come!¡±

    Antic was still scarred from dying once and nearly dying a few times. He increased his strength to 3/3 and his health to 200/200. He was now taller and stronger than any of the others.

    Torger tried to tell everyone to wait and make better plans, but they ignored him. Rome, Arden, and Graul all bought ice one. Then Torger did too. Everyone still had two ability points left, except Rome.

    They walked out into the rain looking for signs of razorlings. The rain washed away all potential footprints, until Arden saw a Joshua tree with missing bark and deep scratches. He whispered to Torger ¡°I didn¡¯t know they used trees as a scratching post.¡±

    Torger didn¡¯t know how to answer that. Lizards don¡¯t do that, do they? They searched the area and found another tree with scratches. Rome pointed and everyone followed with their eyes. At the bottom of a big boulder was a dug out hole, about two feet in diameter, and a razorling was occupying it, clearly annoyed at their presence but also hating the rain.

    They gathered about forty yards away, then Jex shot it with an arrow and Torger cast ice one at it. It reeled back and went into the sand hole, but clearly moving more slowly than others they had fought. He didn¡¯t know if it was from the cold rain or the ice spell, but it could make the fight easier than they had been for the past few days.

    ¡°It¡¯s time for me to shine!¡± Brun went to the hole and blindly cast fire one into it four times. That was a mistake. Reptiles are cold blooded and need heat for energy.

    ¡°You idiot!¡± One razorling after another came out and each one got hit with ice one. Those in the group with that spell each drank a mana potion, bringing their mana up to 9/10. In one more minute they could each cast ice one twice, again.

    Jex shot arrows, Antic dodged and blocked when the chance appeared but he was clearly afraid and waved his spear at their faces instead of thrusting into them. Torger and Graul used their shields to block one bite after another. They had no chance to counterstrike. Brun and Rome ran to stand by Jex, then bravely got their shields and ran into battle, just to block some from coming at Jex. Arden decided now was the time to use his .22 rifle. He knelt by Jex and fired quickly and accurately at whatever razorling was closest to his wife. She used the four paralysis arrows on the four nearest razorlings to buy Arden a little time.

    ¡°A minute has passed! Use ice one!¡± Brun knew exactly how long it took for him to wait for his fire one spell to recharge. He had used it plenty of times.

    Four people in the group cast ice one, and a second later they cast ice one again. That was eight razorlings moving a little more slowly, in addition to the eight that got hit coming out from under the boulder, but that left sixteen still moving at full speed, and even the slow ones were still plenty dangerous.

    Arden shot his last bullet, and then Brun was knocked down by a tail. The razorling turned and slashed its claws across his wool tunic. It was scored deep and knocked the wind out of him, but kept him from bleeding. He struggled to sit up, but another razorling bit the top of his head; as a mage he wasn¡¯t wearing an iron helmet. There was a flash of green light and Brun was gone, his staff and mage cloak laying on the ground along with his fur clothes and leather boots.

    Brun had been watching Antic¡¯s back. There was a bite to his arm that pierced his iron bracer. His higher health meant that his muscles and bones were denser and his blood was thicker so he took less damage from it than Graul or Torger would have. But as he turned to face the beast, another one came up behind him, and higher health didn¡¯t save him this time. A claw to the back of the neck was all it took. There was a flash of light and Antic was gone.

    Arden frantically loaded five shells into the shotgun and began firing. Jex ran out of arrows, one in each razorling. There were more than a dozen dead lizards from Graul and Torger¡¯s swords and Arden¡¯s rifle, but they were still outnumbered. Rome took a bite to the leg, then a claw penetrated his skull. A flash of green light. Several razorlings charged Arden and Jex. They each drank a mana potion and were able to cast ice one once, but they were defenseless and put up little resistance.

    Torger and Graul, however, were in their stride. They stood back to back, shield in left hand and iron short sword in the right. What helped was that every razorling had been injured from a well placed arrow, many in an eye, a few living ones had bullet wounds, some had fire marks on their skins, many had frostbite. The brother¡¯s system of fighting brought them strategically near a huge boulder. No razorling could attack them from that side, and only three razorlings at once could attack the two men. Fighting razorlings every night helped them with their level of swords. By now Graul was level six in one handed swords and Torger was level five. Their experience boost in weapons brought them up from level three in swords, where they were at when they found the ability boost bed near Yuma.

    Their shields were beginning to fracture, the metal began to bend, but they continued to slash and stab the already injured razorlings. A few bodies piled up and they climbed on top. This made their footing unsure but gave them the high ground. After five minutes they each cast ice one again. The rain continued to fall and the cold water slowed down all of the razorlings. The sluggish movements made killing them easier, but the razorlings continued to attack. Another five minute later they cast ice one again, taking two more out of the fight temporarily.

    Eventually they sat down on the ground completely spent. Their shields were splinters held together with bent iron, and their swords were as blunt as a butter knife, but every razorling was dead. Graul threw back his head and laughed wildly and challenged all living things who could hear him. ¡°Hell Yes! I¡¯m The Man! HaHaah!¡±

    Torger relished his brother¡¯s laughter. He couldn¡¯t keep back the big smile, knowing he was far more powerful than he thought, when they all worked together as a team.

 Hostility

    Chapter 19

    Hostility

    Torger and Graul climbed under their jackets and slept right there on the ground, not caring if they got attacked in the night, they were just too tired. They didn¡¯t even bother to check their stamina. When they woke up in the morning they were shivering and the sun was trying to push light through the clouds but failing. The rain had stopped at some point in the night but they were shivering. Stats showed they were both at 50/100 health and 22/44 stamina- a message was in the center of their view. Cold damage slows regeneration.

    They walked back to Calico and found Small Foot. He said ¡°Good job men. As promised, your experience for the quest has been added to you and here are your magic back packs, medium quality, as promised. Each back pack will hold five times the storage space it should and for one fifth the weight.¡± He held out two back packs.

    ¡°There are seven of us, we¡¯ll take the other five back to our village.¡± Graul kept an uncompromising and stern look on his face.

    ¡°Seven of you? No, the quest rewards go to those who complete the quest. The others did not complete it and therefore do not get the reward. That only makes sense.¡±

    ¡°No Small Foot! We work as a team! We all participated in killing the razorlings, we all get the reward.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not how it works, Torger. Take your reward and go before you say something you¡¯ll regret.¡±

    Three dwarves walked in to Small Foot¡¯s newly completed private house. He didn¡¯t sleep with most of the other dwarves on the floor of the common house. Then men gruffly grabbed their bags and walked out. Before they stepped outside Torger said ¡°This isn¡¯t over Small Foot. We¡¯ll claim our full reward!¡±

    ¡°You better hope that¡¯s an empty threat Torger. You don¡¯t want to make enemies with me.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. We¡¯ll see.¡±

    The men walked quickly and angrily all the way to the top of the pass that day, what should have been a day and a half day walk. Before they went to bed they looked around. They found Small Foot¡¯s old village. One cave, presumably his, was decorated with nice paintings and figurines, abandoned there. The other caves had leaves scattered on the floor, probably for bedding, and nothing else. The tyrant was oppressing his dwarves, and it seemed his personal guard made sure no one complained about it.

    They made it back Home two days later. Everyone greeted them and asked them how they survived. When soldiers see combat from relative safety behind the front lines they tend to exaggerate their role and what they saw and did. Those who have been in the thick of it usually say little about what they saw and did. Torger and Graul had little to say about how they survived and killed the razorlings, but insisted it was a team effort, the others had injured the lizards and the melee fighters finished them off. They would rather forget the nasty slaughter and the fierce determination it took to survive.

    When they all calmed down and accepted they weren¡¯t going to get battle details, Torger told them Small Foot may be mentally unstable. They didn¡¯t get their promised reward and he may attack them. For this reason Torger spent five ability points expanding the village. The shield went from a two hundred foot diameter to a three hundred foot diameter. He saw it would take another five ability points and population of eleven to expand again. They had already met the population requirements, with Baybil¡¯s five hunters and one farmer being residents. A bonus was that they could now charge taxes, not that they would.

    Graul spent one Ability Point upgrading the shield strength. A message popped up.

    Shield 150/150 Defense, Lightning 1, Fire 1

    He spent another ability point on it and it went to 200/200 and added Ice 1.

    Another Ability point brought it to 250/250

    The next Ability point added Poison 1.

    The fifth and final Ability point he added brought it to 300/300.

    The next upgrade would cost two ability points and he would have a choice to add Fire 2, Ice 2, Lightning 2, or 100 to damage points to its strength.

    Graul had two Ability points left, but didn¡¯t want to spend them yet. After the battle with the razorlings, everyone else had gained one Ability point, but lost them when they died, along with any experience earned toward another ability point.

    Graul wanted to see what his spent Ability points did for the village. ¡°Antic, you¡¯ve got the most health of all of us. Go off the property. I want to exclude you from our population, then you touch the shield and see what happens.¡±

    ¡°No way. Four level one black magic spells all at once. I might survive that, but just barely and it would hurt way too much.¡±

    Arden said ¡°I¡¯ll try it.¡± But Jex told him no. She did have the idea to go outside and shoot an arrow at it. Everyone went out to see what would happen. She aimed just above the house and released an arrow. It flew straight and hit something hard, a shimmer they could barely see a second before. Lighting, fire, ice, and a green cloud of gas all shot out and hit her, nearly a hundred yards away from the invisible shield! Her body convulsed from the electric shock, her hair burned off her head, and frostbite set in at her fingertips. But the worst part was she coughed violently and immediately had the flu, complete with fever, chills, and the runs.

    Everyone was in total shock for a few seconds, but Torger recovered enough to ask Arden to help her.

    Arden carried her to the house and Rome said ¡°I want to buy poison one! It gives someone a severe flu!¡±

    Graul checked his shield strength and it had fallen to 289/300. An acceptable price to pay for finding out what his upgrades did. If Small Foot attacked, this would be useful.

    The next morning Jex woke up completely recovered. She walked into the living room and said ¡°Oww that suuucked! I¡¯m sore this morning, but those four spells brought my health down to twenty-seven out of a hundred. I¡¯m glad we recover every time we sleep.¡±

    As impressive as the shield was, they needed to keep expanding. Torger and Graul left the others behind with instructions for them to keep adding stones to the second house. They walked along a brand new dirt path all the way to Small Hammer. It made the trip go a little faster. Baybil greeted them outside the city and led them in. ¡°You guys are a day early. We¡¯ll have your sword and arrows ready tomorrow. How did it go with the razorlings?¡±

    ¡°We killed them all.¡±

    ¡°You did? I mean yeah of course you did. Uh, well, congratulations.¡±

    ¡°Baybil, did you expect us to fail?¡±

    ¡°Oh no. Well maybe. You¡¯ve got me in a pickle here. Let me just say congratulations and leave it at that.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re actually here to ask you about Small Foot. You said he¡¯s your cousin. When we went to collect our reward he cheated us, gave us our experience and only two of the seven back packs. We had words about it. Harsh words. Do we need to worry about him attacking our village?¡±

    ¡°No he won¡¯t attack you. But he¡¯ll never pay you either. He wanted you to go on the quest and find the nest, maybe hurt a few of them razorlings, but he didn¡¯t expect you to succeed. He sees you as expendable tools. I suggest you cut your losses and leave him alone. Nothing good ever comes out of stirring up a hornets¡¯ nest.¡±

    ¡°Baybil we need those back packs for travel. We were counting on them, especially since the razorlings shredded our tents, sleeping bags, and all but one satchel.¡±

    ¡°Small Foot just won¡¯t give them to you. Let it go. If you brought me some razorling feet, I¡¯ll trade you for more satchels.¡±

    Torger pulled out eight feet; all that would fit into the only remaining satchel at the battlefield. Baybil said ¡°I¡¯ll give you three satchels for those.¡±

    Torger thought that was more than he would get. ¡°What do you do with them?¡±

    ¡°We use the claws to make knives, but the real treasure is the sticky pads of their feet. That sticky gel goes on to the nets for our fisherman. If a fish touches it, it won¡¯t escape.¡±

    ¡°There are no fish around here Baybil. Try again.¡±

    ¡°Not this time, but when the tyters change the land again we may be by a nice lake or river.¡±

    ¡°It has got to be tough having your land change every three years, even if you get to keep all your buildings.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. That¡¯s just the way it¡¯s always been. I¡¯m used to it. We all are. Maybe it¡¯s not right, but we can¡¯t change it so we accept it.¡±

    Torger thought about how sad that was, that the tyters uprooted them, literally, every three years. He also thought about how sad life was for the dwarves at Calico, working long days to support a corrupt government. He realized there was nothing he could do, and that made him both angry and discouraged.

    ¡°We will also need more health and mana potions. We used them all fighting the razorlings.¡±Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

    ¡°Really going through supplies huh? You¡¯re going to have to figure a way to make more money, you still owe me a lot.¡±

    ¡°I know, but we¡¯re not able to collect enough stuff from our battles. We really needed those back packs to carry more stuff, like billik legs and razorling feet. Well also need more tents and sleeping bags. Do you happen to have a weaver here?¡±

    ¡°Actually, yes, I do. She¡¯ll make some tents for people your size. The ones we have are dwarf size and wouldn¡¯t work for you. Do you want winter or summer tents? Do you also want sleeping bags and bedding?¡±

    ¡°Everything yes. What¡¯s that going to cost?¡±

    ¡°About three gold, for everything for the seven of you. Roc feathers aren¡¯t easy to come by you know.¡±

    ¡°Roc feathers? What do you use them for? Could we bring you some?¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re very valuable. They¡¯ll go in your pillows and sleeping bags. We also use them as fletching for better quality arrows. We will have plenty of wool soon when we shear the sheep, but spider webs are hard to come by.¡±

    ¡°Wait, you¡¯re going too fast. You have sheep here?¡±

    ¡°Yes, they graze in the foothills, but some rocs keep eating them. The wool will make nice winter tents and blankets for you. The spider webs are light yet strong, and make nice summer tents and blankets. You know all about those spiders, you killed a cave full of them.¡±

    ¡°Those spider webs we burned were valuable?¡±

    ¡°You burned them? A cave full would be enough to make more than ten tents. I would have given you two gold for that much of it. It¡¯s easy enough to harvest, after all they¡¯re only level two monsters, but they¡¯re hard to find. All those spiders have respawned somewhere far away by now.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean they respawned? They¡¯re alive again?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Of course. Everything but goblins, dwarves and elves respawn when they die, though usually hundreds of miles away if they possessed a cave, but nearby if they didn¡¯t. Why do you think with all the rabbits, deer, and coyotes you¡¯ve killed, there are still plenty of them roaming around here? You kill them today, they respawn three days later. As I said, goblins, dwarves and elves are the only exception. The tyters want to make sure they have a good hunt when they come here. It wouldn¡¯t do for them to bring in dangerous prey, then that prey eats all the wildlife. The whole planet would be barren if that were the case. Of course prey killing prey has never happened before, so I don¡¯t know if the spiders stayed dead or respawned far away.¡±

    ¡°When we came here we would have stayed dead if we died.¡±

    ¡°No, you would have respawned a week later. Small Foot lied to you. I don¡¯t understand the whole respawn thing, not at all, but if we dwarves kill the prey then the tyters get mad that we ruined their hunt. But we¡¯ve discovered monsters appearing on the other side of the mountain, cottols, that weren¡¯t here when you first arrived. It¡¯s like someone far away is killing them, and a week later, by my guess, they¡¯re respawning on the back side of the mountains. It could become dangerous for us soon.¡±

    Graul whistled. ¡°Wow that¡¯s a lot to take in. So my guess is that deer, rabbits, and coyotes are here for us to hunt, to grow stronger so the tyters have a challenge, and when other monsters come here, they have their own native animals to feast on as they get stronger.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, you got it¡¯¡± answered Baybil.

    Graul really didn¡¯t get it, but he let it go. ¡°We don¡¯t know where the spiders are to get you the webbing, but maybe we could hunt some rocs for you to get the feathers. Do you know where they are?¡±

    ¡°You are not hunting rocs! They are way too dangerous for you. You¡¯ll need to find other caves and bring me gold, and I¡¯ll have your tents made soon enough. It¡¯s getting late. Come inside and let¡¯s have a mug of mead.¡±

    The mead tasted delicious. All they¡¯d had to drink for more than a month was water. They spent the night, and after lunch the next day they received their new sword and arrows. Graul slashed it through the air. It glowed red, and he felt a little heat coming off it. ¡°Baybil, this sword is amazing! How do you make it?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t. The blacksmith does. He¡¯s really good with metal, but lousy when it comes to infusing magic.¡±

    Graul saw there was the glowing red stone embedded into the blade just above the pommel, and Baybil told him that¡¯s the magic source inside the stone that added the fire damage. The golf ball sized stone made the iron blade a little off balance, but the fire damage should more than make up for it. He thought Baybil was being harsh when he said Hestaff was lousy with infusing magic. ¡°What do you mean? This will add fire one damage to a strike won¡¯t it? What¡¯s wrong with that?¡±

    ¡°Nothing wrong with it, but fire, ice, and lightning one is all he can do. You¡¯d piss your pants if you saw a sword infused with fire two, and I once saw an axe infused with fire three. I doubt you¡¯ll ever see one of those. Only the elves can make them.¡±

    Graul had no idea how powerful fire three was, or even fire two, but he drooled at the thought of killing a razorling with a single strike, and he might be able to with an axe like that. ¡°Do you know where we could find something like that?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t. I know that Small Foot has a blacksmith that is equal to mine, but not more skilled at infusing magic. I¡¯ve run into other tribes over the years that can do it, but they won¡¯t share the secret with anyone else.¡±

    ¡°We met some dwarves near Yuma. Maybe they could do it.¡±

    ¡°Perhaps. But I can almost guarantee they won¡¯t give you credit like I am. If you go, be sure to bring a sack of gold with you, because a sword with fire two, or something equivalent, will cost at least six gold, maybe as high as ten.¡±

    Torger muttered to himself ¡°What about a wheelbarrow full of silver?¡±

    No one heard him, but dark ideas began creeping into his mind.

    Chapter 20

    Attacked!

    Torger and Graul left with three quivers full of arrows- one with stone heads, one with ice one magic, and one of normal iron. They also had a dozen low level mana potions and twenty low level health potions. All that combined with their on-order camping gear brought their debt up to an even twenty gold. Baybil insisted they would not be given any more credit than that. Now the question was where to find a level two cave to conquer and collect some treasure.

    That night the entire group sat in the house discussing their financial crisis. Even with their current upgrades, they were still weak and they knew it. Everyone kept coming up with ideas of where they might find a cave, and the idea of killing the troll was discussed a few times, but Torger sat there silently, not really listening. He kept thinking about all the silver that Small Foot was hoarding for himself. Torger led him to where the silver was, and Torger killed the razorlings. He should be getting half the silver ore. They needed it more than Small Foot did. Besides, Small Foot held him prisoner, and oppressed his own people. Small Foot needed to be dethroned. But how?

    Torger felt guilty about launching a surprise attack on the dwarves, and he knew they had no chance of winning, but he wanted it so bad. Greed and revenge were creeping into his heart and he couldn¡¯t control it. If he had told his friends they would have counseled him and calmed him down, but he didn¡¯t say a word because he was afraid they would no longer respect him as a leader. A leader had to be decisive, and he had to be right all the time, or dissention would arise.

    As the conversation continued and Torger¡¯s thoughts festered, they all heard a loud screech outside. They ran to the backyard, but there was nothing there to see. They looked around, waiting to hear it again. The dwarf farmer ran into them, clearly frightened for his life. Antic asked him what was wrong, and then they all heard the crash.

    The dome shield crackled with lightning, and a loud crack like glass shattering could be heard. They heard the screech again and looked up. A roc had flown into the top of the shield. The lightning one made it convulse, the fire one burned off some of its feathers, and the ice one and poison one caused additional damage. But the bird was huge. It tumbled to the ground and struck the dome with its powerful beak. It suffered more damage, and the shield cracked again. Another screech was heard overhead, and they looked up to see two more rocs circling above them.

    ¡°Get your weapons! Everyone, go inside and arm yourselves!¡±

    Torger¡¯s yell caused everyone to shake off the shock of seeing a van-sized roc recovering next to the cracked dome shield. He checked into the shield and it showed a strength of 91/300. That thing was powerful! Torger ran at it and felt the tingling sensation he always felt when he entered or exited his dome shield. He took the two handed steel sword and sliced hard at its neck. It moved its head, but still got struck on the hard beak. The steel sword didn¡¯t penetrate the beak. It left a deep gouge, but the strike was turned away.

    Everyone else ran outside. They all took an assessment of the situation. Jex shot an arrow into the sky, but the roc was able to swerve just in time. She learned that her arrows could fly out of the shield, but not into it. Everyone else had handheld weapons. They ran at the injured roc and began stabbing it. It screeched and tried to fly away, but too many feathers had been burned off. It pecked at Arden in the chest. Its beak cracked his iron chest plate and he was knocked down backwards.

    Brun tried to cast fire one into the air, but the two rocs circling overhead were too far away and his pointed staff missed. Jex managed to hit one in the wing. The arrow sunk in a little, but mostly it just made the roc more angry. It went into a dive and slammed face first into the dome. It suffered from the four level one spells, but the dome shield shattered into pieces and disappeared as the fragments were falling to the ground. The stunned roc tumbled to the ground. Arden regained his feet and stabbed it in a wing. The roc turned its neck and bit him in the arm as he tried to protect himself. His forearm was cut cleanly off from the powerful beak.

    The others had finished killing the first roc and turned to attack the other downed one. Brun and Rome had spent all their mana, and waited near the back with unsteady bows in their hands.

    Graul, Torger, and Antic watched the gruesome sight as they ran towards it, a memory they can¡¯t shake of Arden¡¯s right leg being bit off at the thigh. Blood poured all over the ground from the wound. Everyone else circled it and stabbed at it, except Jex who shot ice arrows at it.

    Rome and Brun, who were standing near the back, never saw the roc swoop down from above and grab each one in the head with its claws. It crushed its talons as hard as it could, and their skulls imploded, then with two mighty flaps of its wings it flew away. They killed the second roc, after it killed Arden, but the third one never returned. It headed towards the mountains to the north and didn¡¯t look back.

    They waited a few minutes for their friends to respawn. Not knowing what else to do, Graul looked into how to repair the shield. It showed:

    Repair shield for Home. Cost 1 Ability point.

    He used an ability point, and the shield came back up at full strength. It took a few more minutes for the respawn to complete, but then there were three flashes of green light in the house. A few minutes later the three men came outside wearing old rabbit furs and with angry looks on their faces. They gathered their weapons and armor silently, and put it on.

    ¡°I hate dying! It never gets easier, it¡¯s just as scary and painful each time.¡±

    Before anyone could answer, the farmer pushed a pile of rocks off himself. ¡°Heh. You fought and lost, no surprise there. You¡¯re no match for three rocs. I¡¯m really surprised you killed two of ¡®em, though the shield did most of the work. We dwarves learn at an early age to bury ourselves under stones when we see them, and just let them eat whatever they want. They must not have seen a deer today and saw me instead. I¡¯ve known a couple of dwarves who died by getting eaten by one of them birds. Gotta be a terrible way to go.¡±

    ¡°Yes. It is.¡± Arden said no more.

    As usual, Rome checked how much experience he got from killing a roc, but remembered he lost it all when he died again and had 0/1000 exp.

    Brun started jumping up and down and waving his hands. His eyes were crossed and out of focus, so they knew he was checking his icons. ¡°I did it! I finally did it! I got fire two! Let¡¯s see, oh here it is, it does base fourteen damage points to one target. Cost is fifteen mana. Oh. That¡¯s not good. The spell is twice as strong but costs triple the mana. All this waiting. That sucks.¡±

    ¡°Too bad Brun. But we have a mission to accomplish. Tonight we¡¯re going to have a turkey feast with the dwarves! Carve up this bird and let¡¯s take it to Small Hammer. Finally something different than deer and rabbit.¡± Torger triumphantly cut off a huge wing and held it over his head. He didn¡¯t care that blood was dripping on him.

    Graul had an ear to ear smile and was swinging his sword in the air. When he noticed others looking at him he asked ¡°Did you see that? When I struck the bird with my sword it glowed red and left scorch marks wherever I cut it. A magic infused sword is awesome!¡± No one had seen it happen in the heat of combat, but saw seared cuts on both birds.

 A Bad Idea

    Chapter 21

    A Bad Idea

    Roc meat tasted terrible, as carnivores usually do, at least the humans thought so. But the dwarves loved it. But to make it truly a feast, the dwarves served fresh baked bread and mixed vegetables to go with it. The mead flowed freely and everyone was in good spirits. Graul had brought along a baseball bat he had carved, and a couple softballs Jex made from furs and dried skins, and a few mitts made from dried leather, Graul and the group went to a flat area to teach the dwarves how to play baseball. It was early March and the weather was perfect for it. Torger excused himself and didn¡¯t participate. Instead he went to talk with the weaver about making the tents.

    When it was too dark to play, they came back to the village caves and drank more mead. Happiness and camaraderie was spread deep and wide between Home and Small Hammer.

    Late the next morning they walked back to Home with hangovers, except Torger who walked with determination. When they got there, he pulled out a huge but thin bed sheet from his magic back pack. They all looked at him like he lost his mind, and when he explained his plan, they really thought he lost his mind.

    But after stating some carefully chosen words he concluded with ¡°We¡¯re not thinking like what we would do if we were at home. The idea of baseball reminded me of life in SoCal and what we as a nation have accomplished. All generals have known for the past hundred years that air superiority is a must. This is the best chance we¡¯ve got.¡±

    They thought it was a long shot, but if it worked, the payoff would be huge. A few days later they all began the long trek to Calico. The trip was excruciatingly slow, walking should have been faster, but there were nonstop hand sized rocks all the way to Calico. They felt the wind blowing from the southwest and after three days of walking set up camp a few miles from the dwarven village. Torger left the group and walked to the village alone.

    When he got there he sent a guard that was at the shield edge to go find Small Foot. Once inside the village, Torger laid out his demands loud enough for several dwarves to hear. ¡°Small Foot, you said all dwarves work here voluntarily and they can leave if they wish. Is that so?¡±

    A few nearby dwarves stopped working and looked at him. ¡°Yes all dwarves here are free.¡±

    ¡°Good. Then I have an offer for them. You are all invited to come live at my village. We are new and need good workers to build it up. We have crops that are being grown and a well. Look around. There is little water here. You will have little to drink when it¡¯s summer. You will each be free to build your own family house and I hope you build a brewery and raise bees because dwarven mead is good. When was the last time any of you had mead?¡±

    All the dwarves looked at the ground and mumbled.

    ¡°I also charge only ten percent tax on all sales in and near the village. If you want to come to my village, come with me.¡±

    Small Foot crossed his eyes and the shield activated. Then he addressed all of his dwarves and Torger. ¡°Not so fast.¡± Small Foot gave all the dwarves a stern look. To Torger he said ¡°You have no source of income, no way to pay their wages. They will work for food in your village.¡±

    ¡°At Home, each dwarf will stand or fall on his own merit. If you can figure out a way to make money, you keep ninety percent of it. If you can¡¯t you¡¯ll be a beggar. At Home, you don¡¯t go to work all day to give half of it to lazy leadership. Work hard for your own family, support yourself and thrive.¡±

    ¡°Lazy leadership? Are saying I¡¯m lazy? It takes a lot of work to run a village this size. Slander against me is a jail-able offense. Guards, take him to the stakes.¡± All the spectator dwarves scurried away.

    Torger withdrew a bow and shot an ice arrow straight up into the air. It went out the dome shield, then fluttered and came back down. The shield wouldn¡¯t allow reentry, and lightning and fire burned it up. Two strong dwarves grabbed Torger and dragged him to the top of a hill. Several tall wood stakes had been driven into the ground and they used rope to tie his hands to it. He tried to cast fire one to burn the rope, but couldn¡¯t access any spells. Small Foot said ¡°That¡¯s a rope of negation. It sucks all the mana out of you. Sit here today, and we¡¯ll see how you feel about my leadership tomorrow. Lucky for you the weather¡¯s good, but a night tied to the stake usually elicits an apology from ingrates.¡±

    From two miles away Torger¡¯s group saw the dome shield erupt with fire and lightning at the top of it. They didn¡¯t see any ice or green poisonous gas, but the fire and lighting both looked like level two spells. Everyone began casting fire one into the sewn together tents, careful not to touch the webbing itself. The tents had been formed to be a balloon and Torger and Graul used their woodcraft to make a lightweight basket. When they finished, everyone but Brun had spent all their mana but the balloon was full. Jex and Brun climbed into the basket as it lifted into the air. The wind had not changed direction, and they headed toward Calico more than a hundred feet in the air.

    The other four began running toward Calico, barely outpacing the balloon. When they were close, Arden used the shotgun to fire at the shield. Before the shield retaliated with spells, he pumped it and fired again. Lightning 2 and Fire 2 raced at him from the first blast and struck him before he could pump and fire a third time. He convulsed and collapsed to the ground, then got struck again from the two defensive spells, but the dome was almost totally destroyed. Graul swung his new flame sword and the shield fell into thousands of pieces, disappearing before they hit the ground. Antic and Rome ran towards Small Foot¡¯s stone house. Dwarves ran at them and some had swords, others had bows. As expected, Small Foot ran to his private house with two personal guards and the coward locked himself inside.

    Antic took an arrow to the neck and he went down, his two cans of animal fat spilling on the ground. Behind him pails of lard mixed with shotgun shells exploded when Graul cast Fire 1 at them. Graul and Arden weren¡¯t able to get far enough away fast enough and the force of shrapnel pierced them and pushed them off their feet. Rome made it to Small Foot¡¯s house and poured lard in a line in front of the door. A dwarf came up behind him and he was struck with a hammer in the back of the head and knocked unconscious.

    All the human foot soldiers were down, and that had not been Torger¡¯s plan. The dwarves dragged the severely injured humans and tied them up next to Torger. As they were focused on their tasks they saw a huge fire coming from Small Foot¡¯s house. Brun used fire two to ignite the lard, some right at the door, and some where Antic had fallen. Black smoke quickly encircled the private stone house.

    Small Foot¡¯s house filled with smoke, and Jex readied her bow. The balloon had carried them to a perfect angle, two hundred feet off the ground and facing an open window. Smoke continued to fill the house and she waited for Small Foot to emerge.

    An arrow flew up at them and struck the balloon. It began to lose altitude. Brun saw a dwarf villager was trying to bring them down. Brun was troubled because they were trying to oust the crooked leader, not kill the villagers. He decided not to return fire. Jex saw Small Foot come to the window and she released her arrow. It struck him in the neck and ice formed around the wound.This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    Another arrow struck the balloon and their descent accelerated.

    A golden glow surrounded Small Foot. She released another arrow. It struck a magic shield which cracked but didn¡¯t shatter.

    Brun drank the last mana potion and cast fire two at the shield. It shattered and Small Foot got scorched, but another golden glow surrounded him and the burn marks slightly healed. Brun yelled down to the dwarves. ¡°Finish him! Kill the tyrant and free yourselves!¡±

    The dwarves looked at each other scared, but then one of the three personal guards to Small Foot ran up and shouted ¡°They¡¯re the enemy! They attacked us!¡±

    In fear, the dwarves shot more arrows. Jex got in another shot to Small Foot. She was sure it struck, but if it hit flesh or armor she couldn¡¯t tell because he had withdrawn two steps into the house and back into the thick smoke.

    Three more arrows pierced the balloon. The last thing she yelled was ¡°We¡¯re not attacking you. We¡¯re freeing you from bondage!¡±

    Jex and Brun were tied at the stakes along with the others.

    Chapter 22

    Bad times

    Small Foot¡¯s main personal guard led them through the desert.

    ¡°Where are we going?¡±

    ¡°I told you. South.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s been a week already. All you¡¯ve given us is moldy bread and stale water. Where are you taking us?¡±

    ¡°Anyone who attacks a dwarf village comes here. Look there it is on the horizon.¡±

    They looked and saw the Salton Sea. A huge lake with a high salt content, and nothing but sand for miles around, except it wasn¡¯t sand like in California, it was marsh.

    The next day their dread increased when a three foot tall goblin came up to meet them. He looked at them and grumbled. ¡°Level three, all of them. Won¡¯t do us a whole lot of good as slaves. Still, they won¡¯t be dangerous.¡±

    The dwarf guard replied ¡°You¡¯d be surprised. Pay up, one silver per level per slave, so twenty-one silver. Really not even worth the trip.¡±

    The goblin paid and through Translate told the humans ¡°You¡¯ll be here until just before the tyters come, then we¡¯ll release you. Don¡¯t want them coming near us to look for you. Follow me and behave, and you¡¯re life will be easier.¡±

    They were led through the marsh, the goblin lightly stepping along submerged stones while the others splashed stinking water all the way up to their thighs. They coughed and gagged but the goblin kept poking them with a spear.

    ¡°As I¡¯m sure the disgusting dwarf told you, you¡¯re bound with rope of negation, so no mana, no magic. If you die while bound with that rope, you won¡¯t respawn. So hurry up.¡±

    They moved a little faster but not much. A little while later the goblin thrust his spear into the marsh water. He pulled it out with a small fish on it, then ate it raw, with head and tail. Everyone looked on in disgust.

    Eventually they came to a large round mud hut. ¡°This is the entrance, go inside.¡±

    Torger went in first, ducking his head to clear the round hole. Inside were tunnels with flickering torch lights in the distance down each one. They were led down the largest one in the middle, then passed a few small offshoots, then went into one of them. There were so many tunnels they were easily lost.

    ¡°You¡¯ll be digging. There are picks and shovels down there, along with other slaves and guards. Dig where the guards tell you to dig, and you¡¯ll get food and water. It really is that simple.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s your name? So we can tell the guards who sent us.¡±

    ¡°My name doesn¡¯t matter. You¡¯ll never see me again.¡± The goblin walked out.

    In a hushed voice Graul said ¡°Someone untie my rope, then I¡¯ll untie yours. We can kill each other and respawn at Home.¡±

    A spear sailed through the air and struck Torger in the thigh. He grunted and a goblin came down the tunnel towards them. ¡°You need to know we goblins have excellent hearing and night vision. If you ever plan to escape again, I will kill you, with the ropes on.¡± He waved his hand and a golden light surrounded Torger. The goblin pulled the spear out and the bleeding stopped, but he was still in pain.

    ¡°I¡¯m not going to cure you to full health, just a cure one to stop the bleeding. See if you¡¯ve learned your lesson. Now get in there and dig.¡±

    They wanted to ask what they were digging for, but didn¡¯t want to ask questions and get in trouble, so they walked until they saw two dwarves and two goblins digging. Two guards stood watch. The dwarves had their hands and feet tied, but the goblins didn¡¯t.

    They each picked up a tool and hit the wall. They found it was soft, not rocky at all. Big pieces fell to the floor and they wondered what to do with it but right then two more goblins came in with buckets. The digging dwarves and goblins filled the buckets, then the two goblin carriers walked out with them full. A minute later two different goblins came in with buckets.

    The process repeated for what seemed like a couple of hours. The two dwarves never spoke a word the whole time, but the digging goblins were jabbering excitedly. ¡°Me new home big. New home muddy! Me love new home. Queen very happy, make me happy. Many good fish in water. Good food in new home. Me love new home.¡±

    Apparently they had the communication skills of a dog and loved serving their queen. Maybe the goblin that bought them outside was a genius as far as goblins went. Eventually another guard came in and the other two guards left. It said ¡°Rest.¡±

    The two digging goblins left the cave, and the dwarves laid down on the soft dirt. The group looked at the guard and he pointed at the dirt floor. ¡°Rest.¡±

    They all laid down thinking about how to cut their ropes with the picks, but the digging goblins had carried the tools away. Laying there for several minutes, Brun couldn¡¯t take the silence anymore. He said ¡°How¡¯s your leg Torger?¡±

    Before Torger could answer the guard walked up and kicked Brun in the head, and without a word walked back to block the exit. Brun wasn¡¯t hurting too much, but the message was clear.

    This went on for days. On the night of the fifth day there, Arden was so bored he leaned over in the dark and kissed Jex. Like the men, she hadn¡¯t bathed since arriving and was covered in dirt. They all used the bathroom right there in the tunnel and buried it. She definitely did not feel sexy, but enjoyed the attention and human touch.

    The guard walked over and pulled up on Arden¡¯s foot. It pointed and said ¡°Move.¡±

    Arden climbed over the others and lay on the ground, for the first time away from his wife. He lay on his stomach and scratched the dirt. He found that it scratched easily. Hoping the guard couldn¡¯t see him or was too stupid to realize what he was doing, he wrote a message on the floor.

    In the morning when torches and cooked fish were brought in, he subtly indicated his writing.

    We rush the guard tonight.

    They quickly read it and he dragged his foot across it. The dwarves shook their heads no. It seemed Translate worked for writing as well. But everyone else wanted no more to do with digging tunnels. They had all gained one strength and one stamina point from digging all day for five days. The dwarves¡¯ must have been quite high from constant digging for who knew how long.

    That night they all laid down on the dirt floor. A half hour after the two guards left, Arden jumped to his feet quickly followed by the others. While they had been laying there, they all had laid on their stomachs and cut their ropes binding their hands with jagged rocks they gathered during the day. Once they were on their feet the guard threw his spear and struck Arden, but then the guard had no other weapon. He cried out ¡°Help!¡±

    Arden was pierced through the shoulder and bleeding heavily. Jex and Brun hurried to cut the rope around his feet before he died. They finished cutting the rope then went to work on their own ropes at the feet.

    Meanwhile Torger tackled the guard and pinned him down while everyone else cut their remaining ropes. They rushed into the tunnel no longer afraid of death. Torger cut his rope with one hand while holding the three foot goblin down with his other, and then smashed his rock into its face over and over until it died.

    While Torger was finishing off the guard, Jex tried to soothe and comfort Arden. He couldn¡¯t breathe enough to tell her to run away and he would respawn. It¡¯s not natural to run away from a bleeding spouse.

    The others rushed through the tunnels knocking guards down along the way. Antic got shot with an arrow and he went down, then in quick succession Brun, Rome, and Graul dropped from the arrows of paralysis that struck them. Before the three second paralysis wore off, about twenty goblins piled on top of them binding hands and feet.

    No one escaped that night, but Arden did die and respawn.

 Arden

    Chapter 23

    Arden

    Arden woke up in complete darkness. He heard wind blowing behind him, but saw and heard nothing else. He reached out his hands and felt a stone wall. It wasn¡¯t soft dirt like the goblin caves, so where was he? He cast fire one and saw that he was in some sort of cave or tunnel. Why didn¡¯t he respawn at Home? Where was he?

    Arden could still see the icons on the sides of his vision. He looked at Maps and blinked. It showed an overview of where he was, with sand and rocky hills as far as the map showed, about a mile in each direction. He looked at the bottom corner of the map and zoomed out more. He finally realized what happened, he was at the cave he and Jex had claimed after defeating the spiders and snakes. But why?

    Arden walked out of the cave and into a clear but windy night. There was little moonlight and the sand looked grey in the dim starlight. They seemed so bright out here in the desert. They always did. He went to the desert a few times during meteor showers to watch for falling stars. But this was different, he was naked and alone, and his friends were slaves a hundred miles to the south. He had nothing to defend himself with. Why didn¡¯t he respawn at Home?

    With nothing else to do, and knowing his friends would never be able to help him, he began walking. Hopefully they all died or escaped, and they would be reunited in a week. Since Jex didn¡¯t respawn at their cave, she must have escaped. He had to believe she escaped. The alternative was something he pushed out of his mind.

    Arden used his bare hands to dig up the grave they had buried the dead dwarf in. He removed the shredded clothes and wrapped them around his feet and tied the rags on. Now the rocks didn¡¯t hurt so much. The extra strength and endurance point he gained while working in the goblin cave allowed him to walk a little faster and a little longer before resting. When he finally sat down a couple hours later, his body was overcome with fatigue. Hard manual labor was not for him, and a week of it drained his mind, body and spirit. He remembered sitting on the rock to rest, but didn¡¯t remember face planting into the ground a minute later.

    The sun was up and it was a beautiful spring day when he woke up. The road rash on his face healed while he slept, so he never knew he had it. He walked hard and fast all day to make it to Home before nightfall. He had stopped at a spring near the area he woke up, shown on his map because he had been there before, but he had no way to carry water with him. The water from the natural spring had tasted wonderful after a week of tainted goblin water, but it had been twelve hours since he last had a drink. He was looking forward to the well at Home.

    Arden¡¯s heart sank as he approached from the east. A little wisp of smoke lazily floated into the sky from the charred remains of Home. When he finally made it there an hour later he saw that everything had been destroyed. The cabin was completely gutted from fire, everything that could burn did, the crops were nothing but soot, and the well had been filled in with rocks. Arden and the rest of the group now owned nothing but the clothes on their backs, and he didn¡¯t have clothes on.

    Arden sat in the smoldering ashes wondering what to do. No wonder he didn¡¯t respawn here, Home was no longer a village. That meant anyone without their own property would have no place to respawn if they died. They might be dead forever. Arden realized he had things to do. First, he added all his friends as residents of his ¡°village.¡± That way if they did die, they would respawn in his cave. Next, he walked north toward Small Hammer. He needed water, at the minimum.

    When he got there he was startled by what he saw. The guard from Small Foot that had taken them to the goblins was having a heated argument with Baybil. Both dwarves had their axes out and looked like they were ready to start trading swings. Arden had no doubt Baybil would lose. Without thinking, he ran forward ready to help him. Arden forgot that Baybil needed to grant him access to safely pass through the shield. Lighting and fire struck him and he flew backwards. He landed hard on his butt and broke his wrist trying to break his fall. His Stats was now flashing, and he knew if he opened it his health would show less than 50/100. Baybil and the guard looked at him laying on the ground. Baybil said ¡°Now we¡¯ll get to the bottom of this!¡±

    He walked toward Arden and the guard looked just a little worried as he approached. Either Baybil was extremely angry or he had an astounding lack of compassion. He said ¡°I¡¯m told you killed my cousin Small Foot, and his guards razed your village in retaliation! Is this true?¡±

    Arden was dazed, in pain, and thirsty, but he saw this as an opportunity to sell. He had to or he would be exiled from Small Hammer and probably sent back to the goblins.

    ¡°I¡¯m thirsty,¡± he croaked. He had to find out what happened in the last week without admitting guilt. Baybil glared at him before waving for him to follow.

    They walked to the waterfall and Arden saw the dwarves of Small Hammer looking at the guard of Small Foot with barely concealed hostility. There had obviously been tensions between them going back further than Arden¡¯s arrival in Nuva. He had to work that to his advantage.

    As he drank from the stream he asked ¡°How is Small Foot? He wasn¡¯t looking well the last time I saw him.¡±

    That verbal jab landed hard, just as he hoped. ¡°Small Foot died from your attack on him.¡± Turning his attention to Baybil the guard said ¡°He attacked a dwarf leader and your own cousin no less. You know that penalty is a lifetime sentence to be the goblins¡¯ slave. Hand him over to me and I¡¯ll return him to where he belongs.¡±

    Baybil asked Arden ¡°Where are the others? Why are you alone?¡±

    ¡°It is true they are slaves to the goblins. I died in an escape attempt. But Small Foot was alive when he passed sentence on us to become slaves. My sole purpose in life right now is to free them from an unjust slavery.¡±

    The guard yelled ¡°Unjust! Attacking a dwarf village has consequences!¡±

    Baybil asked ¡°How did you respawn? I hear Home was destroyed. If there are no intact buildings then it is not a village, and not a respawn point.¡±

    ¡°I am co-mayor of a cave. I respawned there, but I don¡¯t know why.¡±

    Baybil cried out ¡°The stupid goblins! The tyters will completely destroy them for killing one of their prey. But them dying is better for dwarves everywhere. Hmmm. We need to go to Calico. I want to hear from Strong Arm on this matter. As for your respawn point, a cave does qualify as a building.¡±

    Arden hung his head. Small Foot would surely convince Baybil of Arden¡¯s guilt. Why was the guard lying and saying Small Foot was dead? Why did Torger have to get revenge for getting cheated out of a reward? There had to be a different approach to resolving the problem. But Arden knew Torger was an idealist. He couldn¡¯t let a thief get away with his crime, not as long as there was something Torger could do about it. And now once Baybil found out what they did, word would spread and they would be hated by dwarves everywhere.

    Arden was given a simple bed sheet to wear, cut out to form a poncho. He was grateful because after two days of walking naked through the desert he was severely sunburned, but that healed every time he slept. Three days later they reached Calico. But what they saw surprised everyone. Dwarves were everywhere working to repair the damage of battle. Some were pushing the burned debris out of the way, others were repairing Small Foot¡¯s personal home and the common large house, and others were building what looked like it might be a tavern one day. There were around thirty dwarves in all that Arden could see. Compared to Baybil¡¯s twenty-eight dwarves he was in charge of, Calico could be a pleasant little town with some proper leadership.

    But the most amazing part of all was the sight of three tall gallows, all about fifteen foot high. Small Foot hung by a rope tied around his neck on one of them, and the other two personal guards hung on the others. Arden looked to the north and just out of the village some dwarves were digging rectangle holes in the ground. Small Foot¡¯s personal guard that had walked with them and was arguing with Baybil ran into the village.

    ¡°What the hell is going on here?¡±

    Two of the dwarves recognized him and yelled ¡°He came back! Get him! We¡¯ll hang him too!¡±

    Three dwarves ran at him with axes raised. To his credit, the guard didn¡¯t back down. He took his round shield from off his back and pulled out a small one handed axe that was strapped to his waist. He blocked the first strike that came at him and countered with his own axe. It sank deep into the skull of the smaller dwarf, who crumpled instantly. Baybil Yelled ¡°Stop it! Let¡¯s settle this with words, not metal!¡±

    None of them listened. More villagers ran at the guard. His axe was stuck in the dead dwarf¡¯s head, and the extra second it took him to pull it free cost him his thumb. Another dwarf had tried to remove the whole hand but the guard¡¯s impressive strength allowed him to pull the small axe free just in time, but his thumb didn¡¯t clear out of the way in time. He saw all the other dwarves running at him and used his shield to block an axe strike from the third dwarf that had initially run at him. He looked at Arden and said ¡°You are going to pay for this. I¡¯m going to torture and kill you and all your friends.¡± With that he ran into the desert dripping blood along the sand. His speed was faster than Arden thought possible.

    Arden looked at Baybil and asked ¡°Who was that?¡±

    Baybil said ¡°His name is Brute. He likes to hunt monsters to grow as powerful as he can physically. He and the other two guards have placed most of their ability points into strength, health, and stamina. They were all as tough and as dumb as an anvil. Doing whatever Small Foot wanted from them. But Arden, you really shouldn¡¯t have killed Small Foot. Now I have to arrest you.¡±

    Arden yelled ¡°We didn¡¯t kill him! He was alive last we saw him. Ask these villagers. I don¡¯t know why Brute wanted to pin the blame on us.¡±

    Baybil looked at the crowd of dwarves. ¡°What have you done! You know the penalty for killing another dwarf is permanent slavery! You have brought destruction upon yourselves.¡±

    An old dwarf approached. ¡°Baybil, my friend. You have not visited us in many years. These young dwarves don¡¯t know what true freedom is like. At least they didn¡¯t. For many years Small Foot¡¯s reign has been getting tougher and stricter, stifling independent thought and fun. He has manipulated these young dwarves into believing they were working for the good of the village and dwarves everywhere, but in actuality they were equal to indentured servants. It is true Torger and his group attacked Small Foot, and for that they should be punished. But it is also true he made these dwarves realize they weren¡¯t really living. More than half the silver they mined went to Small Foot, and they had no place to spend their own money. If someone tried to start up their own business, Small Foot would tax them until he owned it. He was your cousin, and for what I¡¯m about to say, I¡¯m sorry. But you need to know that your cousin was a crook. These dwarves lived in constant fear of him and his guards. If they did or said anything he didn¡¯t like, they got tied to a stake, which isn¡¯t that bad for a few hours. But then their muscles would cramp, then dehydration would set in. Two days of it would be physically very painful without anyone actually inflicting pain. The only way free from the stake was to make a public apology or die. Torger used the correct word when he called Small Foot a tyrant.¡±

    Baybil looked shocked by the audacity of the old dwarf using such a word against his leader, but the old dwarf continued. ¡°Torger promised them a life of freedom, a life of a ten percent tax, a chance to grow a new village into whatever they wanted it to be. When Small Foot sent these two guards to destroy Torger¡¯s village, the dwarves saw their chance to take freedom for themselves. They mobbed his house and killed him. These dwarves killed your cousin, not the humans. When the two guards returned and saw Small Foot hanging, their dumb minds told them to protect their employer, even though he was already dead. A battle broke out, and nine dwarves lost their lives fighting those two monsters.¡± He pointed at the hanging guards.

    Baybil sat down and a series of emotions crossed his face from anger to despair to betrayal to grief.

    Arden saw his opportunity. He addressed all the dwarves who by now were gathered around. ¡°Dwarves of Calico! For years you have been oppressed under a harsh ruler, but you have stood up for yourselves. You have chosen to live a life of freedom and not bondage. Well done! But do not forget that it was Torger who showed you that freedom was possible. It was Torger who showed you that Small Foot was not invincible. He gave you the heart and courage to take control of your own lives, and you have done that. Welcome to a new life of freedom! But you are leaderless. Are there any among you who know how to manage a village? Who know how to establish trade routes and ensure justice? Can any of you make this desert wasteland prosperous? No? I thought not. But I propose to you someone who can. I propose you accept Torger to lead you. He can teach you how to make yourselves strong, both with weapons and with wealth. Do any of you want Torger to guide you into a new life with casks full of ale, purses full of coins, and axes hanging on every door? I ask you to accept Torger as your new mayor!¡±

    As he was saying these things, Arden so badly wanted to make himself the new mayor, but he needed them to love Torger enough to free him, and more importantly to free Jex.

    After a pause, a dwarf meekly asked ¡°How can he be the mayor if the tyters will kill him? We need someone who will guide us after they come and go.¡±

    With quick thinking Arden replied ¡°I am not asking you to make Torger mayor for life. It is not right for a human to lead dwarves for many years. Dwarves need to lead dwarves. I am asking that Torger be your mayor for one year. He will show you how to get started as a village, and do the most difficult work of making you strong in mind and spirit. After that you should select someone from among yourselves to be mayor. Make Torger mayor for just one year. Let him help you.¡±Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

    Baybil listened to these words carefully. Before anyone responded he addressed the crowd. ¡°It is a great crime for anyone to attack a dwarven community, or a dwarf leader. As the closest dwarf neighbor to Calico, it falls to me to pass judgment against any who attacked Calico or Small Foot. With all the information before me, I pronounce my verdict. The members of the village of Home were not attacking dwarves, they were freeing dwarves. As such, they are hereby given the title ¡®Humans of Home, Liberators of Dwarves.¡¯ With this title bequeathed to them, they are given certain dwarven privileges. One of these privileges is to be granted military arms when they are under duress. As mayor of Small Hammer, I determine that they are under duress, and our village will leave tomorrow to deliver military arms to them. If you accept Torger as your new temporary mayor, it is your obligation to deliver weapons to him so he can fight his way out of the goblin caves.¡±

    After a minute the old dwarf said ¡°I nominate Torger the Liberator as new temporary mayor of Calico.¡±

    Baybil said ¡°A proposition has been made. In a democracy form of government, you may discuss the matter amongst yourselves. At sunset today, you will be able to give a yay or nay to Torger being a new temporary mayor for one year. I ask that you all show up and think about the positive and negative effects of your decision tonight. How you decide will determine the future of Calico.¡±

    Chapter 24

    Triumph

    Graul struck the wall with his pick, and another large chunk of soft dirt fell to the floor. He grabbed a shovel and scooped the dirt into a bucket a goblin had brought. The dwarves next to him filled the other bucket, and the carrier goblin carried the two buckets of dirt away. He had no idea how many days had passed since he had last seen his friends. Everyday was the same since the failed escape; dig dirt and sleep. That was the extent of his life.

    He struck the wall again and a chunk of coal fell to the floor. He waved the guard over and the guard removed it. Graul had no idea where they took the coal or salt they sometimes found. The goblins wanted it for something. He was so sick of his life that he wished he could light the coal on fire and die from smoke inhalation. But the attentive guards always saw when he found coal.

    Communication with the dwarves was minimal. They were never alone and weren¡¯t allowed to talk. Since Graul was two feet taller than them, he always hit high on the wall while they hit low on the wall. If he didn¡¯t keep up he would find himself stooping under the low ceiling. His desire to die had caused him to want to dig upwards, hoping he was under the marsh, and let the cave flood in drowning them all. But he had no idea which direction he was digging. He had to watch dirt chunks fall to be certain which way was down. Still, he hoped he was slowly angling towards the surface.

    He had gained another two strength points while learning how to be a miner. He also gained another three stamina points. He was sure he made more progress in digging now than he had when they first entered, but whether he made a lot of progress or little seemed to make no difference to the goblins, so long as he kept swinging his pick.

    The only thing stopping him from attacking a guard and dying was watching Arden die. He had no way of knowing if Arden respawned or not. The idea of permanent death just slightly outweighed his repulsion at life as a slave. He thought of his and Torger¡¯s ancestors, the Cherokee Indians, and their forced march along the trail of tears. Many had died during that long walk to the wasteland of Oklahoma. At least at the time the U.S. military had thought it was a wasteland. Now he wondered if his ancestors that died at that time tried to attack their guards just to get their miserable lives over with. The history books don¡¯t say that, but then again it was the corrupt soldiers who wrote the history.

    He swung the pick a couple more times and his thoughts turned to racial prejudice. He and Torger had grown up in an area of Southern California that was very ethnically diverse. His elementary school and junior high had a mixture of people from all different backgrounds. He had never even heard a racial slur until his freshman year of high school. No one ever made fun of him for being an Indian. Now they were supposed to be called Native Americans. Like most of the other Indians he knew, it made no difference to him. He and Torger befriended people based on their own personal merit. The idea of racism was a concept he struggled to grasp. It was more of an academic study in social study books. Hell, Rome and Antic weren¡¯t related but they both were Mexicans, and Brun and Arden were Pollocks. He didn¡¯t know what Jex¡¯s ancestry was but he didn¡¯t care. Many of his friends over the years asked why he didn¡¯t take the government money that he could apply for. His mother had taught them from an early age that they hadn¡¯t personally been oppressed. They never once suffered for being Indians. Why take money away from honest hard working people of today to pay for the sins against their great grandparents? That mentality had always rooted deep with him and his brother, and the rest of their family. His father was white and his brown skin meant he often got mistaken for being Hispanic.

    He struck the wall again and another chunk of coal fell out. The guard came and removed it. After being down here so long he finally began hating goblins. He finally understood racial hatred, or rather a species hatred. He couldn¡¯t be angry with all dwarves. He was here because of one dwarf, Small Foot. He suspected the dwarves working next to him were dangerous criminals, but their presence reminded him that Baybil had been good to them; loaning them twenty years¡¯ wages worth of goods was more of a gift than a loan. No, he couldn¡¯t blame all dwarves for where he was at. He could only blame all goblins for being cruel.

    His thoughts continued as they had day after day, wandering from subject to subject, with nothing ever changing. Until one day he heard goblins shouting far down the tunnel. He couldn¡¯t make out what they were saying, but one of the guards ran down the tunnel to investigate. He knew he should keep working but the idea that today something was different was too exciting to pass up. The dwarves stopped working too and looked into the darkness. Their eyes in dark shade were much better than his. The goblin guard that remained yelled at them to get back to work. He thrust his spear at a dwarf and stabbed him through the forearm. The dwarf cried out in pain but the goblin ignored him and went back to stand guard. Graul had seen this before. The same stab to a forearm a few times to disorderly dwarves. They writhe in pain all day with no medical attention, but wake up restored in the morning. Somehow in Nuva getting five hours of sleep always made you physically better.

    A few minutes later Graul heard the angry shouts of dwarves, then metal hitting metal. He turned and looked again but saw only shadows in the distance. The dwarf next to him said ¡°A rescue party!¡± He immediately began cutting his ropes of negation with a shovel.

    The goblin shouted ¡°Stop!¡± The dwarf didn¡¯t stop. The goblin thrust his spear into that dwarf¡¯s forearm as well.

    The last remaining dwarf yelled ¡°You bastard!¡± He hobbled with his feet tied and hit the goblin in the face with the flat side of his pick.

    Graul didn¡¯t want to die permanently, but was afraid the stupid goblins might kill him if he tried to surrender. He frantically cut off the ropes from his hands and feet while the three dwarves bludgeoned the goblin to death with their tools. Luckily the other guard didn¡¯t return. Graul knew this was his chance to fall on his pick and die, then respawn at Home. He mentally prepared himself to do something his psyche screamed against in protest. He readied the pick against the ground and was about to puncture his heart from falling on it, but a dwarf slave stopped him. He said ¡°We are being freed! Help us fight our way out of here.¡±

    Graul figured dying fighting goblins was just as good as a brief suicide. Either way he would awaken at Home a few minutes later, but this time he had to be sure to avoid all arrows of paralysis. He ran down the tunnel with the pick raised over his head and brought it down on the head of a goblin that had its back turned to him. He looked up and saw fully armored dwarves with battle axes running at him. They killed a couple more goblins and asked him ¡°Where is Torger?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I haven¡¯t seen him in a long time.¡±

    ¡°Help us find him. Take these.¡±

    The dwarf handed him a round shield made of wood and iron, and a long straight steel sword. That sword looked familiar. ¡°This was Torger¡¯s sword. Where did you get it?¡±

    ¡°Torger¡¯s? I thought your leader would have had the best sword.¡± The dwarf pulled out Graul¡¯s flame sword, an iron sword with a small pearl embedded in the blade, infused with Fire 1.

    ¡°That¡¯s my sword, this one is Torger¡¯s. And he¡¯s not my leader. We are brothers and equals. We are co mayors of Home, our village.¡±

    ¡°Well you¡¯re not equals in our village. We are from Calico and we elected Torger as our new mayor. Help us free our mayor or get out of our way.¡±

    Graul stepped back. ¡°Calico? You are the ones that sent us here. At least Small Foot did. Are you going to kill me?¡±

    ¡°Kill you? No. We listened to Torger and took our freedom for ourselves. Now help us look for him, we don¡¯t want to get trapped in here.¡±

    Graul traded the steel sword for the flame sword. It felt good to be in his hand again. He swung it through the air then saw Arden and Baybil run up. Graul said ¡°Arden! You¡¯re alive!¡±

    ¡°No time to explain. More goblins are on the way. Know that you can respawn, it will lead to my cave. These dwarves aren¡¯t here to kill goblins, just to deliver armor and a sword to Torger, then they¡¯ll leave. That was all I could convince them to do.¡±

    By then the dwarf slaves had caught up and were listening. One cried ¡°Get us out of here!¡±

    Baybil looked at them with pity, then shook his head. ¡°It would take a tribal chief to pardon your crimes, I don¡¯t have that authority. But at our next annual meeting I will ask for all dwarves to be freed from the goblin caves.¡±

    The dwarves looked surprised and dejected at his words, but Baybil cast Cure 1 on the two wounded dwarves, and the bleeding from their arms stopped.

    The dwarves of Calico along with Baybil, Arden, and Graul ran and searched tunnel by tunnel. Graul had no idea how massive the network was. Graul took point and killed a few goblins as they ran. They left the slave dwarves where they were when they found them. Eventually they found Antic digging with three other dwarves. Everyone else ran ahead while Graul freed him and assured him he would respawn if he died.

    Next they found Jex. She and Arden hugged and kissed and wouldn¡¯t move no matter how much the others tried to persuade them. Graul had to leave them there. Graul and others killed more goblins. Once in a while one would take a spear to the arm or leg, and a few got hit with an arrow of paralysis, but none of the dwarves died; they had brought several low level health potions. Finally they found Torger. The dwarves told him he was now the mayor of Calico, for one year, and it was their duty to provide him with a way of freeing himself, but their obligation ended there. If he made it to Calico, he would be most welcome. Then all the dwarves ran out of the tunnels and towards the exit.

    Torger was stunned at their words and the rescue, and didn¡¯t have any time to respond before the dwarves ran away, but once the shock wore off he put on his old iron armor, head to toe, and grabbed his two handed steel double edged straight sword. His mind was spinning, then looked at Graul and Antic. ¡°Where are the others?¡±

    ¡°Arden and Jex are a few tunnels away, we don¡¯t know where Brun and Rome are at.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not leaving them behind. I want to confirm with Arden that it¡¯s OK to die before we charge more goblins.¡± Graul led the way past dead goblins and took a few turns in the tunnels.

    They found the couple still hugging and had to pry them apart. ¡°We need to save Brun and Rome. We can¡¯t let them be killed with those ropes on.¡±

    Only Arden and Torger had armor on, and Graul had his sword and shield. That was all the dwarves brought for Torger. They seemed to have little interest in the safety of the others. But the goblins were small, weak and stupid. Goblin spears shattered easily and copper swords were cut in half against Torger¡¯s steel sword. Graul¡¯s shield blocked most thrusts aimed at him, and his sword cut deep into goblin arms, adding extra fire damage. With good weapons they plowed through pair after pair of goblins. Occasionally they had to stop for three seconds, waiting for paralysis to wear off from an arrow, but eventually they found Brun. He lay on the tunnel floor bleeding heavily from a spear in his side. The others froze in shock at the sight but Torger sprang into immediate action. He cut off the ropes binding Brun¡¯s hands and feet, and a few seconds later saw a flash of pale green light and Brun was no longer there.

    ¡°We have to find Rome. Now!¡±

    They all ran from tunnel to tunnel killing more goblins, but never found him. Finally a dwarf shouted out to them ¡°You are looking for your friend, yes? Free me and I¡¯ll tell you what happened.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean ¡®what happened¡¯? Is he alive? Did they take him away?¡± asked Arden.

    ¡°Free me first!¡±

    ¡°How do we know you know what happened to him? Tell us what he looks like.¡± Jex questioned.

    ¡°He is a human, of course. Dark hair, dark beard, medium dark or brown skin. He looks a lot like him.¡± He said that pointing at Antic. True they were both Mexican, but they would have never been mistaken as relatives on Earth. But when they all came to Nuva, they all entered short and scrawny bodies, and had all gained about the same amount of strength points so their height and muscles were similar to each other. To a dwarf it was possible Antic and Rome looked like each other.

    Torger said ¡°OK I believe you. Tell me where he is.¡± He cut off the dwarf¡¯s ropes. Torger didn¡¯t know why this dwarf wasn¡¯t trying to cut off his ropes using jagged rocks like all the other dwarves were. Even as they were talking a couple of dwarf slaves ran past them towards the tunnel exit.

    But as soon as Torger finished cutting them, the rope grew in length and circled around the whole group, going round and round faster than they could see. It cinched them all together, and the appearance of the dwarf changed to a hobbled old goblin leaning on a staff that looked like it was made from gold.

    It cackled in delight. ¡°Oh the queen is going to be so happy with what I¡¯ve done! I will get a big pile of treasure!¡±

    Brun checked his ability to use magic and saw this was not a rope of negation. He could barely move his hands but was able to cast Fire 2. The rope caught on fire and began to snap, and everyone got scorched, himself worst of all. The hobgoblin saw the rope burning and cast Ice 2 on it. The flames were extinguished, and the whole group took more damage.

    But the rope had burned enough that Graul could move his sword a little. He slowly changed his grip on the handle while Torger was asking the hobgoblin where he was taking them and what would happen. Graul got his hand at the end of the pummel and using his wrist swung the sword behind him. Antic cried out in pain as the sword cut deep into his thigh then Fire 1 was released from the sword into the wound.

    Unfortunately, Antic didn¡¯t die. Graul had no idea who he would hit with the strike behind him, but he thought as long as he hit anyone but Antic they should die. Antic had invested some ability points into health, making it harder to kill him. But Graul was committed now. The hobgoblin began waving his hand ready to cast a spell. Graul twisted the sword in the thigh and with the little wrist movement he had available he pulled down. His mining had increased his strength to six, and that extra strength allowed him to cut along the thigh until it went through the femoral artery. He felt it and knew Antic would be dead in seconds.

    The hobgoblin finished his spell and a dome surrounded the entire group. They didn¡¯t know what it did but it was obviously some sort of barrier to keep them inside.

    Graul readied his sword to cut the rope as soon as Antic disappeared and the rope slackened. Brun had the same idea. The hobgoblin began casting another spell, and before Antic died everyone was lifted into the air by the spell, still surrounded in the magic bubble. The hobgoblin moved his gold staff and the group began to float helplessly in front of him as he led them down a tunnel. He was apparently taking them somewhere specific.

    Antic let out a final slow breath and there was a flash of pale green light. Everyone was drawn a little closer together form the sudden void but as soon as they had a little room Brun cast Fire 1 at the rope and Graul sliced it. The combined effort cut through a few more cords, and with a little maneuvering they all slid out of the magic rope. Graul and Torger began slamming their swords into the shield and the hobgoblin looked worried.

    Arden slammed his wood shield into it and his shield splintered. With each strike against the magic shield, it released a Lighting 2 spell inside the spherical dome and everyone lost much of their remaining health. The goblin began casting another spell. The electric shock from the shield hurt like hell and the brothers dropped their swords. When Graul¡¯s sword landed on the bottom of the shield it sent Fire 1 into the shield and they were all struck by Lightning 2 again, but the two men with shields kept slamming their shields into the dome with eventually all of them losing all their health points and dying.

 Rebuilding

    Chapter 25

    Rebuilding

    Everyone was standing in the pitch black darkness of the cave. They called out to each other and found that Rome was there with them. He had managed to cut his ropes when he heard the commotion of battle, but in the tunnel he had been working in both guards had stayed. While the dwarves he was with were fighting the guards, he used a jagged rock to free himself. But just as he cut himself free more goblin guards rushed in and killed him and the other three dwarves he was with.

    Once he was done with his story, Arden told everyone to get out of his cave and bring back some clothes for him and Jex. As they were walking out, a couple of guys ¡°accidentally¡± brushed against her naked body, and when she yelled about it, no one would admit to it. Jex suspected it was her own husband who was the culprit. It was just like Arden to cop a cheap feel in the dark and blame someone else.

    They walked out of the cave and into the night sky. Rome had been watching the foreign star alignments since they arrived, and he guessed the sun had just set. The moon was either much smaller or much further away than Earth¡¯s moon, because it looked much smaller and gave less light for them as they were walking.

    The ground hurt their bare feet and they were reminded of first arriving there, naked and lost in difficult terrain. Antic spotted two coyotes approach, and the group pretended to be weak and injured. The coyotes attacked and Brun nearly killed one with Fire 2, while the others nearly killed the other with three casts of Fire 1. Another round of Fire 1 had them so severely injured that rocks smashing against their skulls finished them off. They used jagged rocks to remove the pelts and cut them into crudely shaped moccasins, tying them together with thin flexible shrubs. They walked a couple hours to the north and drank from the spring, then slept for the night.

    It took them three days of painful steps to reach Small Hammer. Baybil wasn¡¯t there, and they weren¡¯t surprised since he was walking back from the Salton Sea. It would take him at least another three days to make it back. No one in the village had the authority to allow them to pass through the shield, so Baybil¡¯s wife brought out to them food, water and hastily sewn clothes. They thanked her over and over again, knowing they truly had nothing yet again, after having passed through what charred ashes remained of Home. Arden had warned them there was nothing left of it, but the sight completely demoralized all of them and they wanted to get away as soon as they saw it.

    With better leather shoes and full bellies and water skins, they made good time getting to Calico, in less than three full days, also being aided by their extra strength and stamina they had earned in the caves. When the dwarves saw them approach, many ran out to greet Torger and welcome him in. The humans looked around and saw repairs to the two stone houses nearly complete, with many dwarves walking around carrying things and starting their own projects. It looked like things were going well, until Torger began overhearing individual conversations.

    ¡°No we don¡¯t need to plant a garden, we have no water.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care what you say, building a brewery is more important than building another house.¡± ¡°That pick is mine and you know it. My father gave it to me, now you give it back or I¡¯m gonna bust your nose.¡±

    As dwarves noticed Torger, they began to surround him with their ideas and demands of what were the priorities in the village. They paid little attention to the rest of the group. Torger needed to get away from the crowd of pestering questions.

    ¡°Listen up, all of you! My friends and I have just been released from slavery, and have had a long journey. We are tired and hungry. We¡¯re going to the house to sleep, and I¡¯ll answer questions in the morning.¡±

    A worried looking dwarf said ¡°You¡¯re going into Small Foot¡¯s house? Just you humans? Are you going to stay away from us and collect riches for yourself like he did? Arden said you would be a different kind of ruler.¡±

    Some dwarves chimed in with their newly founded skepticism. Finally Torger was able to ease their minds, saying it would be just for one night, and in the morning he would begin organizing work parties. That calmed the dwarves down just enough for Torger to be able to slip inside the house. They found a large table, that was low to the ground, with small chairs, all dwarf sized. Since they weren¡¯t able to sit down, they laid down on the flagstone floor.

    Looking at the ceiling, Torger said ¡°We need to make a plan. What do we have? What do we not have? What are our priorities?¡±

    Graul said ¡°We need to leave Calico soon, and rebuild Home. There is little water here, and in a month it¡¯s going to be a hundred degrees.¡±

    Brun said ¡°We need to take clothes to Arden and Jex. He won¡¯t let her walk here naked, and they¡¯re stuck there near that cave until then.¡±

    Rome said ¡°You need to change our respawn point to here. Add us as villagers. If Calico gets destroyed, we¡¯ll respawn at the cave, and if the cave gets destroyed, we can respawn here.¡±

    Antic said ¡°I¡¯m hungry. Let¡¯s ask the dwarves to bring us some food.¡±

    Torger thought it weird he could ask for food and it might be brought to him. That would not have happened with his friends at Home, but the dwarves respected him. He took the easiest idea first, and added them as residents to Calico. As he was checking out the city in his drop down menu, he found a new option.

    You are the mayor of a village that has reached level 3. You may change the village name if you wish. You may also give your villagers a collective name.

    He asked the others about it. Calico was fine, but once they rebuilt Home they would definitely change the name. As for a name to give to the dwarves of Calico, he had no idea. Now that he thought about it his group of friends needed their own name too.

    He asked the others about it and a few names got passed around but they settled on Regulators, since they planned on bringing peace and prosperity to their altered homeland. They felt they really were in a wild west of sorts.

    With that settled, they rested for the night and in the morning they walked outside to address the dwarves. Torger asked his friends to gather all the dwarves in Calico, while he climbed to the hill with the stakes. When all the city was nearby and finally hushed down, he began his first public address ever.

    ¡°Dwarves of Calico! I was told by Baybil that you have elected me to be mayor here for one year. I do not wish to force my leadership upon you, so I ask you plainly, so I can know for myself. If you wish me to be a temporary mayor, state your approval now.¡±

    Most of the dwarves gave a hearty cheer, but a few looked unsure about the idea. He was glad to see none showed contempt for him.

    ¡°Very well. I plan to bring prosperity to you, and also safety. Prosperity doesn¡¯t mean having a pound of silver for every dwarf, with nothing to spend that silver on. I want to see more ale around here!¡±

    A great roar of approval greeted him.

    ¡°I want every dwarf to have iron armor and a steel battle axe!¡±

    More cheers raised his hopes that they might actually follow his ideas. He became bolder.

    ¡°I want us to eat omelets every breakfast and cherry pies for desert every night!¡±

    The dwarves looked at him in total confusion and his friends nearly choked holding back their laughter. Sure every politician makes promises that no one on Earth can keep, but he had to promise them something they wanted, and it was obvious they never heard of an omelet or a cherry, but he knew they knew what a pie is. He let the matter go and pressed on, but made a mental note to bring these dishes to the village.

    ¡°The point is, we want a variety of foods, and plenty of it. We want nice clothes and jewelry. And we can have these things. But we must work hard, we must work smart, but most of all we must work together. There are many things to do in the next month, but the most important will be to move to the mountains to the southeast.¡±

    As soon as he said this the dwarves booed and shouted him down. He said something wrong and he had to fix it fast. ¡°You know there is very little water here, and in a month it will be hot enough to cook a rabbit on the sand. This is a great place to live in the winter, but it is uninhabitable during the summer.¡±

    A tough looking dwarf stepped forward. ¡°We know we will have to move out for the summer, but by the looks of those mountains we think elves probably live there. We dwarves refuse to share the same mountains with elves.¡±

    Others spoke out and added their agreement that it¡¯s best for dwarves and elves to live separately. This was news to Torger. They would have to go live near water for the summer and fall, and Silverwood was the nearest lake to them. He didn¡¯t want to live near Palm Springs in the summer, or the Colorado River at Blythe. It could top a hundred and twenty degrees in both those places. The only other water around was the Kern River, and that was a couple hundred miles to the north. No, Silverwood was their best option, and he had to make it work.

    ¡°My friends and I, we are called The Regulators, will go to those mountains and see what¡¯s there, if there is a place we can stay for the summer. I would like to take two dwarves with me. Which two of you are able to be polite to elves for one day?¡±

    After several seconds of no one responding, a mother pushed her teenage looking son forward. It¡¯s hard to guess a dwarves¡¯ age, Torger thought. The boy sheepishly took a few steps forward on his own. Torger smiled at him and looked at the rest of the villagers. No one else approached, but he would wait them out. A full minute of awkward silence passed before one of the house building dwarves approached. Torger recognized him as one of the two dwarves employed by Small Foot to work on his personal home. Torger wondered if this dwarf wanted to elevate his position in the community by sucking up to the new mayor. But at the moment it didn¡¯t matter, he had his two volunteers and more importantly saw they were willing to follow his leadership. He continued vocalizing his to-do list.

    ¡°Very good. We will leave at dawn tomorrow. There are a few more things we need workers for. First, we are hungry. Is someone willing to cook us breakfast?¡± An old dwarf woman wearing a cooking apron nodded. ¡°Good, thank you. Next, Arden and his wife Jex need clothes brought to them. Brun, would you be willing to go to Indio with a dwarf you don¡¯t know?¡± Brun easily agreed. ¡°Good. Who is willing to make clothes for Arden and Jex, and who is willing to travel with Brun?¡± A few hands went up and Torger was inspired by the volunteers cooperating with his leadership. ¡°I appreciate it, thank you for helping and volunteering for the good of the village. Next, and this is the most difficult, we need to make a dirt road between here and Small Hammer. That might take the whole month until we move somewhere. I need three of you for that. Who will it be? No one volunteers? Then I will pick three. You, you, and you, make a clear and easy to walk dirt path to Small Hammer, and don¡¯t give me those dirty looks, everyone will work here. Next we need two full time cooks for the village.¡± Two dwarf women raised their hands. ¡°Thank you for volunteering so quickly. We also need a water carrier, someone to carry water every day to the dwarves making the road.¡± A father pushed his teenage son forward. ¡°Lastly, all the rest of you, once we return from Lake Silverwood, you will be joining me to go slaughter all those goblins and free your dwarven brethren!¡±The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

    Looks of shocked horror spread across all the faces. The old dwarf stepped forward and said ¡°With all due respect, Mayor Torger, you may lead us in the ways of our own village, but you may not interfere with the sovereignty of other villages. They sent those dwarves there for a reason, and you must respect their right to do that. More importantly, however, is the fact that you are not a war chief. Only a war chief can declare a war, and while you are Mayor Torger the Liberator, liberating those dwarves would be an act of war against the goblins. Baybil will have to answer for his actions at the next council meeting for enticing young dwarves to follow him to aid you. I hope for his sake they killed no goblins and he did not directly free you.¡±

    Torger thought about what Baybil had actually done. He found him, handed him armor, a sword and a shield, then ran out of the tunnel. Did he kill any goblins? Did the dwarves with him kill any goblins? Torger couldn¡¯t remember that happening, but Graul knew some of the dwarves had killed goblins. Graul kept that to himself.

    Torger continued. ¡°OK, the goblins will wait. But do not despair, I will see to it that the rest of you get an opportunity to find glory in victorious battle. Who is in charge of the city finances? What do we have to trade with the elves, if there are any near the lake?¡±

    A stout dwarf walked up. ¡°After we killed Small Foot and his guards, we divided all his treasure amongst ourselves. The city doesn¡¯t have money yet, we took what we earned over the last twenty-five years.¡±

    Torger sighed. He was mayor of a silver mine and still broke. ¡°We have to fix that. The rest of you will mine silver, and as I promised, you will keep ninety percent of it. For those of you with other assignments, you will be paid ninety percent of what comes into the city treasury. I will leave Rome here to monitor the amount coming out of the mine. Rome, will you be the city treasurer?¡±

    ¡°I will be if you insist, but I suggest you leave Antic instead. I want to see the lake for myself. I have an idea for it.¡±

    Antic eagerly accepted. He would rather remain in a village and relative safety than risk dying yet again. No one had said anything to him directly, but he was usually slow to rush into the thick of battle and he used his spear more for his own defense than to attack monsters. He was sure others had noticed his semi-cowardice, but they were polite enough to not mention it.

    Everyone got to work right away, and the whole village ate well that night, with seasoned venison, fresh bread, fresh fruit and cheese, and steamed vegetables. The Regulators slept deeply and peacefully in the nice house, and were full of energy when they woke up in the morning.

    Chapter 26

    Silverwood

    Torger was again pleased to see all the dwarves following his orders. On Earth he had not been a manager at any job, he actually didn¡¯t like being in charge, but his ideas appealed to the common people, or in this case dwarves. Torger, Graul and Rome began walking towards the mountains in the distance, along with the two dwarves who volunteered. Torger asked the young one to tell him about himself.

    ¡°My name is Blickel, son of Strong Arm. My father was a blacksmith in the Cucamonga clan, but higher and higher taxes forced him to shut down the family business and work the mines. The smithy had been in our family for nearly a thousand years, and it broke his heart he wasn¡¯t able to make me an apprentice. He was the one who convinced the others to remove Small Foot from power, and he was the first to volunteer when Baybil asked for volunteers to aid you in the goblin tunnels. I don¡¯t know if he likes you, he doesn¡¯t know you, but he would do anything to open a blacksmith shop again to teach me how to carry on the family legacy. He has always cared for my mother and me, but has kept me from talking to Small Foot or his guards. Actually, he didn¡¯t want me talking to many of the villagers at all so I wouldn¡¯t tell them how disgruntled he was. He tried to sneak us out of the village once, but we were caught and tied to the stakes for two days. That hurt so bad! He felt like he failed our family, and was willing to die in shame or rescue you, whichever happened would be better for him. My mom wanted me to come with you and help you restore freedom to our village.¡±

    The story saddened Torger, and he didn¡¯t want to show his raw emotions, so he quickly asked the builder dwarf to tell his story.

    ¡°The name¡¯s Stone Fist. Many dwarves consider me to be the best stone mason in the entire Cucamonga clan. I really don¡¯t know much about politics, or care. I want to build the best stone buildings I can and drink ale. That¡¯s about it for me. I came ¡®cuz I¡¯ve an idea ¡®bout the water in Calico. I¡¯ll look at Silverwood and if I think my idea will work, I¡¯ll tell you. If not, might be a wasted trip for me.¡±

    That didn¡¯t tell Torger a whole lot, but a master builder would be very useful in the next few months. But this was earthquake area, and stone buildings didn¡¯t last long. He would have to think it over.

    Two days later they were in the mountains and climbing a steep hill when they heard a high pitched voice yell ¡°Stop! You are trespassing. Turn around or face the consequences.¡±

    The humans looked around for the voice, but the dwarves pointed out where the elf was. Sitting on a branch of a pine tree was a slender pale man with pointy ears and dressed all in green. He hopped to the ground and landed without making a sound. He stood about four feet tall, had no facial hair, and had an intricately carved crossbow. Torger recognized the bolt as a billik leg. Now he knew why Baybil traded for them. He imagined the damage a fast moving foot long cockroach leg sharpened to an even finer point would do to his stomach; it would probably go all the way through him even with his iron chest plate on.

    On Torger¡¯s lead, they all raised their hands. ¡°We¡¯re looking for a very large lake. We will need water for the summer. It should be a couple miles that way,¡± he said while pointing.

    ¡°How do you know where the lake is at? You have spied out our land! Any friend of dwarves is not welcome here.¡± As he was speaking, two more elves walked up, also slender, pale and without facial hair. ¡°We will take you to the border elder. She will decide your punishment.¡±

    Torger asked Stone Fist what a border elder was. ¡°Elves always patrol their borders, well beyond the distance of their village shield. The border elder assesses if someone is merely lost, a legitimate trader, or a spy. If he or she determines we¡¯re spies, no one will ever hear from us again.¡±

    That didn¡¯t give Torger a whole lot of hope about the upcoming meeting, but he had no choice, so they followed the elf, with the other two elves picking up the rear. After a short hike they came to a clearing, and were made to sit on a rock engraved with odd letters or scratches. An old elf woman walked toward them, carrying a gold staff just like the one the hobgoblin had. She waved it in the air and chanted a few words that didn¡¯t translate, and a wind swirled around the group. It blew for what seemed like a very long time in their minds thinking they could die any second, but after about twenty seconds the wind faded away.

    She looked at the elves and said ¡°They¡¯re lost. Take them to the border and send them away.¡±

    She turned to walk away but Torger yelled ¡°Wait! We want to trade.¡±

    Stone Fist called him an idiot and hung his head in despair. The old elf said ¡°The winds of truth do not lie. They tell me you were not seeking elves. You are not welcome here.¡± She walked away making it clear the conversation was over.

    The border guards led them back to the edge, but closer to the lake. One said ¡°Our border extends half way across the lake on this side. Walk to the far side for your water.¡± They took a few steps back and blended into the trees so that the humans could no longer see them, but the dwarves could.

    As instructed, they walked to the far side of the lake. Rome and Stone Fist began taking evaluations. Stone Fist said ¡°Yes, we could dig tunnels and make a summer home here, but no dwarf would live this near to elves. We will have to find a different summer home unless my plan works.¡± He walked away looking at the landscape.

    Rome too was looking at the lake and a steady decline down one side of the mountain. With some dwarf expert digging, his plan might work. Torger asked him what he was thinking, but he said he wanted them all to discuss it, and he would need Stone Fist¡¯s input.

    A half hour later, Stone Fist returned. He said ¡°Yes, I can make it work. It won¡¯t do for this summer, but I can have it done for next summer.¡±

    ¡°What idea do you have?¡±

    ¡°I can make an aqueduct from the lake to Calico. We could have water come in all year long, but we would need someone to pour water into it from the lake using a bucket. A truly suck job for someone as a punishment, but it would work year round.¡±

    Rome jumped on the idea. ¡°An aqueduct! That¡¯s exactly what I need. Torger, with you and Graul¡¯s woodworking expertise, and my electrical knowledge, I think I can make a watermill that generates electricity. There seems to be plenty of copper around. I¡¯m sure we could do it!¡±

    ¡°Rome, what do we need electricity for? We don¡¯t have a TV or fridge.¡±

    ¡°I haven¡¯t figured that out yet Graul, but it could be available if we needed it.¡±

    Stone Fist interrupted ¡°That¡¯s all well and good, whatever teevee is, but with the elves here we have to find somewhere else to go this summer.¡±

    Torger said ¡°I can convince the dwarves of Calico to spend just one summer near the elves.¡±

    ¡°You underestimate our distaste for each other. But, you¡¯re the mayor. If you want to try to convince them go ahead. But the elves won¡¯t like it either.¡±

    Torger was determined. They filled up extra water skins and headed back to Calico.

    Torger presented his idea of sharing the mountain with elves for a few months. The villagers responded with ¡°No way.¡± ¡°I¡¯d rather drink coyote piss for the summer.¡± ¡°The elves would harass us.¡±

    Torger said ¡°Enough! Where does this racial hatred come from? Can¡¯t we all just get along?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve got thousands of years of uneasy tensions. Putting us into their neighborhood as next door pals isn¡¯t going to work. We¡¯ll stay in our caves, they can stay in their trees. It¡¯s better that way. So hell no, we won¡¯t go.¡±

    Torger responded ¡°Am I mayor or not? I will not tolerate mutiny. As the famous poet said, ¡®Homey don¡¯t play dat.¡¯ We need a place to live until the rains come back. It¡¯s just six months, then you can go back to your voluntary segregation. I don¡¯t get it and never will, but our only other choice is to walk two hundred miles north. We must go to Lake Silverwood or Crystal Lake.¡± He regretted it as soon as he mentioned Crystal Lake. The inevitable votes for anywhere else began immediately.

    The back and forth bantering lasted for hours, but at sunset, most dwarves agreed to finding out if the elves would be tolerant of them for six months.

    The Regulators went into the private house and sat on the floor. Torger and Graul knew they desperately need to make wooden chairs and a table. Torger stood up just as quickly as he sat down. In a corner of the room was a pile of stuff. His shotgun had been partially melted in a fire and was bent, and the same fate happened to Arden¡¯s rifle. But that wasn¡¯t what caught his eye. There was a small pile of several small nuggets of silver ore. He picked them up and guessed they weighed about half a pound. He asked Antic where this stuff came from.

    ¡°While we were gone, that is walking here after we died, some dwarves went to Home to see if there was anything worth bringing back, and not knowing any better, they brought back the guns. The silver is the villages one percent. You said the miners keep ninety percent of their own finds, and ninety percent of the leftovers go to the public workers. That incentive caused the miners to work harder, although they worked shorter days, and removed more silver ore than usual. The pay turned out to be decent wages for everyone else, and food has been served on time every day and the road to Small Hammer is well under way. It¡¯s only been five days, but all the dwarves are enthusiastically working their assignments you gave them.¡±

    ¡°Antic this is amazing. Have you been monitoring all the silver ore coming out?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I told them to only enter the mines after breakfast and only come out just before dinner. Anyone going in or out at any other time will be kicked out of the village. Don¡¯t get overly excited about the ore. They say once it¡¯s smelted down it will make about fifteen coins.¡±

    It took a hundred silver coins to equal a gold coin, and they owed Baybil twenty gold coins. He could easily pay off the debt in his one year as mayor.

    The next day Baybil arrived, along with other Calico dwarves including Strong Arm. Torger got along with his new blacksmith right away, a patriotic and proud hard working dwarf. After they talked a while, Torger told Stone Fist to start building a smithy. He also told Graul to oversee the construction of a tavern and another house, and make a table and chairs human sized while he was at it.

 Progress

    Chapter 29

    Progress

    Torger was famished when he stumbled into the village two days later. He headed straight for the Regulator¡¯s house and laid down on the stone floor. It was just past mid day, and no one was in the house, but one of the two cooks must have seen him because twenty minutes later she brought in a hot plate of food. He sat up, thanked her, and devoured the grilled cheese sandwiches. He was glad he taught the dwarves how to make that simple meal, but it was taxing on the five adult female sheep the village had. Each one had produced a healthy lamb, and most of the milk went to them.

    Feeling better, he walked outside to look at the progress that had been made while he was gone. He was not looking forward to tell them the elves accepted the idea that they could move there temporarily, if they paid what was basically a tribute.

    Torger walked over to a partially constructed building. An area of dirt had been cleared away and leveled, and one layer of stones had been placed around the perimeter. Strong Arm and Stone Fist were talking about the dimensions and being cordial with each other, but clearly Strong Arm wanted it to be bigger. This must be the start of the smithy. While they were talking, two dwarves were standing there bored, waiting for their next instructions.

    Torger was about to ask them what the debate was about when he heard footsteps running up behind him. Before he could turn around Jex wrapped her arms around him. ¡°It¡¯s so good to see you. Graul said you went to the lake alone. He was really worried we¡¯d have to come rescue you, because he figured you would be back last night. Thank you for sending us clothes. That cave was awful.¡±

    Torger turned around and saw she was wearing a beautiful white and brown wool dress. It was modest yet fit her figure perfectly. The village weaver/seamstress had really done a wonderful job, given that wool was all she had to work with.

    ¡°It¡¯s good to see you too Jex. I hope your trip here was safe. Did you and Arden do OK for yourselves getting food and water?¡±

    ¡°We were fine. We killed a couple coyotes and made rags of clothes for ourselves, and spent the days near the spring, but slept in the cave at night. We were SOO bored. But with no weapons we didn¡¯t want to try to travel here alone. I¡¯m sorry about your house. That totally sucks. But it looks like Arden convinced the dwarves to follow your lead. Brun filled us in on all that happened.¡±

    ¡°Yes, they seem to like me, but they like their freedom even more. How did you kill the coyotes?¡±

    ¡°We cast fire one at them then bashed in their heads with clubs. Arden and I think we should stock up on our cave, and Antics cave, in case we ever have to respawn there again. Sleeping on hard rock was painful.¡±

    ¡°Good idea, I¡¯ll see to it. No, on second thought, I¡¯ve got my hands too full already. Would you be willing to take a couple of dwarves with you to put clothes and water into the two caves? No food or else wild animals will try to break through the shield to get to it. As you¡¯ve figured out, like we all have, the shield around Home did us no good because no one was there to defend it. We can¡¯t defend the caves, but no animals should try to get through the shield without a good reason, so let¡¯s not give them a reason.¡±

    ¡°OK, I¡¯ll take Druma the seamstress and a spare male dwarf she trusts. Arden won¡¯t like me going without him, and he might try to insist on coming along. What do I tell him?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, he will demand to go with you. Take him too. We¡¯ve got to prepare to move, and I¡¯ve got a lot to do. It¡¯s good to see you Jex, but I really need to talk to Strong Arm.¡±

    ¡°OK, I¡¯ll make the plans to go and we¡¯ll leave in the morning. Oh, and that road the dwarves are building made travelling faster. That¡¯s a good idea you had.¡±

    ¡°That is the point of a road. How far have the dwarves cleared the path?¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t know? They¡¯re almost to the pass already.¡±

    ¡°Wow! They are moving fast. I¡¯ll send two more dwarves to them, in case they get attacked by a roc. I¡¯m told some rocs live near the pass. ¡±

    Jex walked away and Torger headed for Strong Arm. ¡°Hi Stone Fist, I need to talk to Strong Arm for a minute then you can go back to discussing plans for the smithy.¡± Stone Fist nodded his head slightly in approval. Torger turned to the village blacksmith. ¡°Strong Arm, I spoke with the elves. They want two silver staffs and fifty silver arrowheads. They said dwarves know what they need them for. How soon could you make them?¡±

    ¡°What? They¡¯ll let us move to their mountain? You better tell the village soon, many dwarves are hoping the elves would just flat out refuse. As for the staffs and arrowheads, yes I could make them, if I had a smithy. But it looks like it will be a month at least before it¡¯s up and running. We have to build the building, bellows, forge, and anvil, and we don¡¯t have the metal for an anvil. That¡¯s a major obstacle to overcome once we get a roof up, but the completed building has to come first.¡±

    ¡°Do you really need a building to make the staffs and arrowheads? I hoped you could make a temporary forge and crude anvil to just get them done as quickly as possible. Silver has a low melting point right? The fire doesn¡¯t need to be all that hot.¡±

    ¡°I have my reputation to uphold! Every dwarf blacksmith does the best work he can on every job. The elves could form their own crude staffs, but they come to us when they want quality. You¡¯re not going to get them for at least a month. Not from me you¡¯re not.¡±

    Torger slapped his own forehead. ¡°How could I have forgotten? You¡¯re not the only dwarf blacksmith I know. You can go to Baybil and ask his blacksmith to make them. Let¡¯s go find Antic and see how much silver ore the village has.¡±

    ¡°Go to another village to make silver staffs and arrowheads! That¡¯s just as much an insult to me as asking me to make poor quality weapons. They would laugh at me, and rightly so, one blacksmith asking another to make simple weapons. I won¡¯t do it.¡±

    ¡°You have a choice Strong Arm. Make them yourself or go to Baybil for help. Either way, I need them in my hands in two weeks. Who knows, maybe if we have enough silver ore, we could buy a cask of ale.¡±

    ¡°Ale? That does sound good. Going to another smith will insult my dignity, but a couple glasses of ale could take the sting out. And Hastaff isn¡¯t a bad dwarf, really. I won¡¯t ask him to make the staffs and arrowheads for me, but I could ask him to use his smithy for two days and do the work myself.¡±

    ¡°Great it¡¯s settled. Jex and Arden are leaving in the morning, so go with them until you have to split ways. Thank you for your patience Stone Fist, you can go back to making plans with Strong Arm. And put those two dwarves to work. I hate seeing people sit around not working when there is so much to be done.¡±

    Torger walked to a mine entrance and found Antic dutifully watching that no dwarves were coming in or going out. ¡°Hi Antic. I¡¯m sending Strong Arm to Baybil, and I want to send all the silver ore we have with him. How much do we have?¡±

    ¡°The silver is flowing out of here every day. I think before I started watching them like a hawk we were getting ripped off. Even the dwarves are impressed with how easy it is to mine. I guess when Small Foot was here they didn¡¯t really try very hard. All the villagers who aren¡¯t miners get paid every week, but we still have over ten pounds of ore for the village. That could go a long way toward paying off our debt with Baybil.¡±

    ¡°I wish it would, but I doubt very little of it will go toward the debt. Where is it at?¡±

    ¡°Since the house is unguarded often, I hid it. I¡¯ll bring it to you tonight.¡±

    ¡°Good, thanks Antic.¡±

    That night Torger told the dwarves they would be moving to the lake in a month. There were boos and jeers, but he was able to convince most of them it was for the best.

    In the morning Torger gave Strong Arm nearly fifteen pounds of silver ore, and his beat up armor. The silver was supposed to be used first to make the elves¡¯ staffs and arrowheads, second to repair his armor, third for a cask of ale, fourth for a couple sheep and goats, and the rest to pay off the debt. Jex, Arden, and five dwarves left to go run their various errands.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

    For the next week Torger and Graul oversaw the construction of four new buildings. The primary building was the smithy, then another common house, then a tavern, then a brewery. They were very uncomfortable with building stone buildings in earthquake land, but they didn¡¯t have much choice. They had no mortar, but that would have to be added later. Stone Fist was in charge of the smithy, while the brothers were overseeing workers building the other three buildings.

    By the time Strong Arm, Jex, Arden, and the other four dwarves returned ten days later, the four buildings were each about five feet high of stacked stones. All the dwarves cheered when Strong Arm entered the village pushing a wheelbarrow with a cask of ale in it. Other dwarves had ropes tied to two sheep and two goats and led them to join with the small flock, and Arden carried Torger¡¯s armor to him, fully restored.

    All the dwarves stopped working and rushed the cask of ale. Torger and the Regulators couldn¡¯t contain them and it was clear that no more work would be done that day, but Torger was filled with joy to see the villagers enjoying a much deserved day off.

    Jex handed him the two silver staffs and fifty silver arrowheads and said the leftover silver paid off one gold coin of debt. Torger wished it would have paid off more, but learned that most of the silver ore he sent had lost a lot of its weight in the smelting process and the pure silver left over was now in his hands. He didn¡¯t think Baybil or Strong Arm had ripped him off. Jex also told him they paid for all the dwarf summer tents they used for the hot air balloon. Torger hadn¡¯t thought about that cost, and was reminded of his military failure. He knew it would have succeeded if the village dwarves had fought with them instead of against them, but the failed attempt and resulting slavery still stung his pride.

    Chapter 30

    Moving Day

    The whole village was packed and ready to move. They had a total of five mid level magic back packs, which for the whole village didn¡¯t amount to a lot of weight reduction. The walk was slower than everyone wanted, but the sheep, goats, elderly dwarves, and children had to walk slowly and rest often. An hour before sunset Torger called for them to stop and set up camp. There was no defendable hill nearby so they set up on flat level ground. The dwarves got to work clearing away stones so the tents would be placed on soft dirt. The way everyone took initiative and worked together showed him and Arden, the experienced hikers and campers, the dwarves had lived as nomads before. Camping on Earth was fun for a weekend, but to live that way for months or years would have been miserable, especially in this hot arid desert.

    In the morning the night watchmen reported seeing distant coyotes and a roc, but none came near once they saw the size of the camp. The animals knew there was strength in numbers, and the dwarves and humans combined to be fifty-two.

    The next day they made it into the foothills, but were still a long way from the lake. Torger remembered the bear attack and rattle snake bite, and ordered a double watch- six dwarves each shift instead of three.

    It was a good thing he did. Around midnight another California grizzly came looking for an easy meal. The dwarves shouted, waking everyone up in the camp. The six watch dwarves ran at the bear trying to attack it and lead it away from the camp, more specifically away from their own wives and children. They surrounded it on all sides, cautiously swinging their axes near it, but not striking.

    Growing frustrated with their taunts it charged forward and knocked one dwarf backwards with a powerful swipe of its paw. The dwarf was bleeding heavily from the chest and was knocked unconscious. The other dwarves became more aggressive and their axes sunk deeply into the thick hide, but the bear managed to injure three more. The remaining two dwarves retreated back to camp but Torger and Arden were by then racing forward. Torger ordered the dwarves to help them.

    Arden knew he was no good in a fight, but since he was the first one to get his armor on and grab Jex¡¯s bow, he knew it had to be him in the battle. Torger also had his armor on and held his two handed steel sword. Assessing the situation, he traded his sword for Jex¡¯s bow and arrows. He told Arden to stab it if there was a clear opening, otherwise stay back a few steps.

    Since entering the tyter stasis bed or whatever that bed in Yuma was, Torger was naturally good at all weapons, but not great at any one weapon type. He released arrow after arrow easily hitting the large target while the two dwarves with axes kept its attention on themselves. They were not making much progress and Torger was trying to think of a different strategy to use. Then behind him he heard a loud TWANG and a half second later the bear roared and stepped back in pain. A billik leg was embedded a foot into its chest. Torger looked behind him and saw a dwarf had shot a crossbow with the billik leg as a bolt. A second dwarf was readying another crossbow.

    Torger released another arrow and the bear charged him. Since it was no longer focused on the two dwarves in front, they each got in a good clean strike with their axes. Arden saw his chance and stabbed it in the back right leg, then he scrambled out of the way. Another billik leg hit the bear in the chest, but it kept charging.

    Torger remembered the last time he had been mauled by a bear just more than a month earlier. He remembered lying on the ground nearly helpless, and then the elves chased it away. He did not want to experience that again, so he dropped the bow and ran. He ran past the two dwarves with crossbows and then the bear passed them too. They were each able to get off another shot, both hitting the bear in the ass after it passed them.

    He continued running and saw Graul coming at him, fully armored with his flame sword. It¡¯s funny what weird things people think when panicking. Torger imagined the flame sword striking the bear and all its fur burning off, and he wouldn¡¯t have a nice pelt to keep afterward. He yelled to Graul ¡°No! don¡¯t ruin the fur!¡±

    Graul looked at him like he was nuts and swung his sword anyway. It sliced through the air and hit the bear in the mouth, cutting off some teeth. The sword kept going and sliced both cheeks deeply, splattering blood all over its face. It finally stopped running but the momentum it took before coming to a stop was enough to wrench the sword out of Graul¡¯s hand. It turned and gave a weak swipe at Graul, and he used his shield to block it, but the claws still ripped through the shield and gouged his bracer.

    Graul tried to back up but the shield was stuck. He let go of the shield and took a few steps back. The bear tried to fling the shield off, but couldn¡¯t. It finally stomped its paw down and the shield splintered into pieces. By then the two dwarves had reached it, as well as more dwarves from the village. They swung their axes and dodged out of the way of counter attacks. Torger thought they were quite nimble for being so hefty, and they worked great as a team too, though clearly a bit rusty at it. He had not been able to see them take out the razorlings when they first came to Calico, and no one dwarf was amazingly impressive, but they knew what they were doing in a fight. Two dwarves grabbed a net and threw it over the bear. The net stuck to its fur and he couldn¡¯t shake it off. It didn¡¯t tie up all four legs, but the net did entangle one, and once the sticky stuff from razorling feet touched the one bear paw, it could never get the net off that paw again. Torger thought of when Baybil told him razorling feet were made to build fishing nets, but now he saw the truth.

    Finally the bear succumbed to the myriad of axe blows and billik legs. Everyone sat down breathing hard. Even Arden and Antic got some strikes in at the end with their borrowed swords. As for Torger wanting to save the pelt, that looked like it wasn¡¯t going to happen. Lots of deep axe and sword strikes left it in shreds with blood all over.

    Everyone ate bear meat that night and told war stories of their participation in the battle. Torger didn¡¯t listen but instead went to the four badly wounded dwarves who had been on guard duty. They were lying on thin mats in a tent that was too small and too crowded for him to enter. He pulled the tent flap back and told them thank you, the damage to the village would have been horrendous if not for their vigilance and bravery. When he asked them how he could repay them, they responded they want a full tavern with plenty of ale built as soon as possible. That hadn¡¯t been high on his priority list, but it got moved up a few notches.

    Torger left them and he had two new objectives, to get a lot more potions for his village, and to get Rome to learn Cure 1. There were only two dwarves who knew Cure 1 among them, and they had used up all their mana saving the lives of those four dwarves. The two healers were standing outside the tent waiting for their mana to replenish, and Torger knew if two bears had attacked, some dwarves would have died.

    The next day they made it to Lake Silverwood. When they saw the lake all the dwarves ran close to it trying to pick out their best location for their summer tent. Everyone wanted to be by the water of course, but Stone Fist, Torger, and Graul were going crazy trying to properly survey the land and keeping the dwarves from setting up their tents, blocking the surveyors view.

    Finally Stone Fist saw his ideal spot and Torger cleared all nearby dwarves out of the way. As he finally began giving approvals for where tents could be set up, and where the latrines would be dug and the cooking area would be, Lagwil the Border Elder walked up behind him. When Torger saw the dwarves giving dirty looks and spitting on the ground, he turned around to see what had offended them.

    Seeing her, he said ¡°My apologies Lagwil. I knew dwarves and elves did not get along. But I didn¡¯t know there was such a level of disgust among some of the dwarves. I do not know your history together, but I will try to teach them to be respectful to visitors.¡±

    ¡°Be at peace Torger. Our rivalry is thousands of years old, and you will do little to change that. We elves and dwarves need each other, otherwise we would never speak. I am here to collect your agreed payment. I will collect them and be on my way.¡±

    Torger reached into his magic backpack and removed the two silver staffs and fifty silver arrowheads. She examined the quality and said ¡°You have done well, human. I don¡¯t think your village is quite up to the task, but the rocs and California grizzly bears have been a constant nuisance on this mountain. We would greatly appreciate it if you could remove them. I hope we can trade more this summer.¡±

    After she left Torger checked his Notoriety/Quests. He was now at 11/100 respected points with the Pomo Elves. He received his 400 exp for completing the quest bringing them silver weapons. But he was shocked at the new quest available.

    Quest from Pomo Elves:

    Kill 30 Grizzly bears within 10 Miles of Lake Silverwood

    Kill 30 Rocs within 10 Miles of Lake Silverwood

    Reward: Significant Increase in Respect with Pomo Elves

    900 Exp.

    Bow of the Owl

    Torger didn¡¯t know what a Bow of the Owl was, but he was sure Jex could use it. But Lagwil was right, they were in no position to complete that quest.

 The end of part 1

    Chapter 31

    Summertime

    It had been two weeks since they arrived at Lake Silverwood. The day was winding down and Torger returned to the village. He smelled venison roasting and realized he was very hungry. He had been a busy man and often forgot to eat a meal. That day he didn¡¯t have breakfast. He was pleased with the sight of two wooden buildings going up, managed by Graul. One was large, thirty by thirty feet, the other small, fifteen by seventeen feet.

    They were being built in the style of log cabins, one as a tavern and the other as a brewery. He wanted to wait until a kitchen and dining hall were built before starting on the tavern and brewery. Even though they were only going to be there another five months, the dwarves really wanted something to drink besides water, and since most of them had nothing to do during the days, he gave in.

    He wished they could be mining silver. It wasn¡¯t too hot underground in Calico, but that¡¯s what he and Stone Fist had been doing for two weeks. A stone aqueduct held together with a weak cement ran from the lake down the hill. He had six dwarves working on it, in addition to himself and Stone Fist managing it. A sluice had been set up near the lake, and once it was completed someone could simply slide up a metal plate and water would flow into the aqueduct and down to Calico. Sliding down the plate would cut off the water. Their water worries would be over. This was Graul¡¯s idea of an improvement compared to Stone Fist wanting dwarves to pour water in with buckets. But at the rate things were going, it wouldn¡¯t be done for a couple more months.

    Torger was happy that all the dwarves worked together as a community, even without pay coming in from the mines, but it was clear they were less earnest in their work ethic without pay. He suspected his high respect rating with them kept them working together at all, otherwise it would be every dwarf for himself.

    Arden saw him and came over. ¡°Hi Torger. I know all this building stuff is important, but it¡¯s really not my style. Let¡¯s go exploring tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°I would absolutely love to Arden, but there¡¯s too much going on here. We¡¯ve gotta get these buildings up and the aqueduct done.¡±

    ¡°Dude it¡¯s summertime. Take a day off. Let¡¯s see if we can make it to Big Bear Lake and back in one day.¡±

    The offer was temping. Back on Earth only Torger and Arden would have tried that, but here everyone was in great health and had nearly equal stamina. Maybe they should take a day off.

    ¡°OK we¡¯ll do it. But first I have to do something tonight.¡±

    ¡°Alright Torger! I¡¯ll pack the stuff we need.¡±

    Arden left and Torger knew his friend¡¯s ADD wouldn¡¯t let him get much packing done. But that wasn¡¯t all that important right now. He walked over and found the weaver. ¡°Do you have a strong rope?¡±Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    An hour later everyone was sitting on the ground eating dinner and talking, just like every other night had been since they got there. As the dwarves were close to finishing their mundane dinner at the end of another dull day, Torger stood up.

    ¡°Attention everyone. I have an announcement. Thank you all for working so hard trying to build up this temporary village. I know it¡¯s a lot of work for a short reward. I think we need a day off. Tomorrow I want everyone to either go swimming in the lake or go on a hike. Arden and I are going to take a long strenuous hike. If your stamina is high and your whining is low, you can come with us. For those of you who want to swim, I tied a rope swing to a high tree branch. Enjoy the day off tomorrow!¡±

    There was thunderous applause and cheers. The dwarves didn¡¯t know the concept of swinging on a rope and letting go over the water, but Brun and Rome said they would be happy to show them.

    Graul and Strong Arm joined the hike in the morning. It was difficult to guess the right direction with no path, and there was a real possibility they would get lost, but it was just the way Torger and Arden liked to hike. Along the way they saw a grizzly in the distance, and a roc fly overhead carrying a deer. Strong Arm hoped to find signs of minerals, hoping a mine was nearby, but just as the others suspected there were no signs of buried treasures.

    Strong Arm quietly noticed some rare plants growing along the hike, but didn¡¯t tell the humans. He would let the potion masters know about them quietly. Dwarves would never share the secret of potion making with humans, even if one was a mayor.

    At noon Torger said ¡°We haven¡¯t made it there yet. Do we go on or turn around? If we keep going we won¡¯t make it back tonight.¡±

    Arden wanted to go on, but Graul and Strong Arm said it was too dangerous to sleep away from camp at night. They turned back. Not long after they saw another grizzly, but much closer. And this one saw them. They calmly walked away from it, hoping to look powerful and unafraid. It followed them at a distance for a mile or so, and they quickened their pace, but then Strong Arm spotted a deer. Torger shot it with Jex¡¯s bow, and they left it for the bear. Fortunately, the bear followed the blood trail.

    They made it back safely after dark, and so the summer went; a lot of building, with some fun. There were two more bear attacks during the summer, and two rocs attacked at the same time one morning. They were able to fight off each attack, but serious injuries occurred each time.

    In early September Jex came to talk to Torger alone. ¡°I know you have this idea of building up this village and we¡¯re all trying to make life as normal as possible. I mean, even Rome is nearly completed with a water wheel that makes electricity, for no real reason. We all want normal lives, but the countdown is still ticking. We need to start making real preparations for when the tyters arrive. What I¡¯m saying is after the summer, let¡¯s go to the beach and try to sail to Catalina. We might be able to use whatever¡¯s there to transport back home.¡±

    Home. Torger and the others tried to not think about it too much because they missed it. He would be a fool if he didn¡¯t at least try. He could get a few dwarves to follow him to the beach. They¡¯ve shown they¡¯re good at cutting trees. He could probably make a decent raft and try to float out there.

    ¡°OK Jex. We¡¯ll go to the beach as soon as it rains. If we could get home it would be dumb to stay here.¡±

    ¡°Thanks Torger. I think we¡¯ve finally got our feet under us and it won¡¯t be so dangerous to travel there with a few dwarves. I mean, none of us are afraid of a one on one fight with a huge coyote anymore. We¡¯ve come a long ways.¡±

    At the end of September the brewery produced its first barrel of ale. The tavern was crowded, but that¡¯s because everyone in the village was there. It was standing room only and Torger had never seen everyone so happy. There was a wonderful sense of accomplishment. This wasn¡¯t ale bought from another village. This wasn¡¯t drinking under the stars, although the weather was perfect. This was their beer they made in their tavern they made with their own lake water. Pride and pats on the back were plentiful in the tavern that night, and Torger was especially happy knowing the village was getting a copper coin tax on every glass sold. After all, what else did the dwarves have to spend their money on?

 Stats of characters (Not a real chapter- OK to skip)

    SPELLS (For Humans)

    Fire 1  base damage to one target 7 health points Cost 5 mana 1 ability point

    Fire 2 base damage to one target 14 health points Cost 15 mana 5 ability points

    Fire 3 damage each of five targets 14 health points Cost 45 mana 9 ability points

    Fire 4  damage each of five targets 28 health points Cost 135 mana 13 ability points

    Ice 1  base damage to one target 7 health points Cost 5 mana 1 ability point

    Ice 2  base damage to one target 14 health points Cost 15 mana 5 ability points

    Ice 3 damage each of five targets 14 health points Cost 45 mana 9 ability points

    Ice 4 damage each of five targets 28 health points Cost 135 mana 13 ability points

    Lightning 1 damage to one target 10 health points Cost 7 mana 2 ability points

    Lightning 2 damage to one target 20 health points Cost 21 mana 6 ability points

    Lightning 3  each of five targets 20 health points Cost 63 mana 10 ability points

    Lightning 4 each of five targets 40 health points Cost 186 mana 14 ability points

    Slow 1  reduce target movement and speed by 15%  Cost 4 mana 3 ability points

    Slow 2 reduce target movement and speed by 30% Cost 12 mana 7 ability points

    Slow 3 reduce target movement and speed by 45% Cost 36 mana 11 ability points

    Cure 1  replenish 10 health points to target Cost 4 mana 3 ability points

    Cure 2 replenish 20 health points to target Cost 12 mana 7 ability points

    Cure 3 replenish 20 health points to five targets Cost 36 mana 11 ability points

    Cure 4 replenish 40 health points to five targets Cost 108 mana 15 ability points

    Heal 1 remove common animal venom and flu Cost 5 mana 3 ability points

    Heal 2 remove all venom and chicken pox Cost 15 mana 7 ability points

    Heal 3 remove dysentery Cost 45 mana 11 ability points

    Heal 4 remove stage 4 lung cancer Cost 135 mana 15 ability points

    Shield 1 creates an 8 ft x 8 ft invisible shield, deals lightning 1 when struck 7 mana 4 ability points

    Shield 2 creates a 15 ft diameter sphere around target, lighting 1 21 mana 8 ability points

    Analyze 1 Reveals target¡¯s level, health, and mana Cost 7 mana 4 ability points

    Analyze 2 Reveals strength, endurance, and elemental weakness 21 mana 8 ability points

    Haste 1 increase target movement and speed by 15%  Cost 8 mana 5 ability points

    Haste 2 increase target movement and speed by 30% Cost 24 mana 9 ability points

    Haste 3 increase target movement and speed by 45% Cost 72 mana 13 ability points

    Beserk 1 target will mindlessly attack enemy with weapon Cost 8 mana 5 ability points

    Beserk 2 target will attack anyone using bare hands  Cost 24 mana 9 ability points

    Poison 1 inflict a severe flu on 1 target (Max health/2) Cost 8 mana 5 ability points

    Poison 2 inflict chicken pox and mild venom on 3 targets (Max health/2 and max stamina/2 and 1 health damage every four seconds)  Cost 24 mana 9 ability points

    Poison 3 inflict dysentery on 3 targets (Max health/3) Cost 72 mana 13 ability points

    Poison 4 inflict stage 4 lung cancer on 3 targets (Max health, strength and stamina/4)

    Cost 216 mana 17 ability points

    Teleport 1 Caster teleports self to respawn point Cost 10 mana 6 ability points

    Teleport 2 Caster teleports self to any ally village  Cost 30 mana 10 ability points

    Teleport 3 Caster teleports 5 others to any ally village Cost 90 mana 14 ability points

    Note: Effects of poison disappear with five hours uninterrupted sleep

    Weapons

    Flame sword- a sword of any metal infused with Fire 1 or Fire 2

    Ice sword- a sword of any metal in fused with Ice 1 or Ice 2

    Lightning sword- a sword of any metal infused with Lighting 1 or Lighting 2

    Poison sword- a sword of any metal infused with Poison 1 or Poison 2

    (Arrows can be infused the same as swords)

    (Spears can be infused the same as swords)

    Club- any bludgeoning device. (Clubs cannot be infused with magic)

    Guns- power is based on velocity and mass of bullet. Guns cannot be infused with magic

    Bows- bows vary greatly depending on the skill of the maker and the quality of materialStolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    (Bow of the Owl lets archer see better in low light x2)

    (Bow of the Hawk lets archer shoot an arrow at a high velocity x2)

    (Bow of the Eagle lets archer have a more steady aim x2)

    Staffs-

    Wood staff amplifies magic x1.1

    Silver staff amplifies magic x 1.5

    Gold staff amplifies magic x 2

    Diamond staff amplifies magic x 3

    (A mage¡¯s tunic amplifies magic an additional x 1.1)

    Note: There are many one of a kind weapons and armor in Nuva

    Torger

    Health 100/100  Stamina 46/46 Strength 7/7 Mana 10/10

    Exp 248/1000  0 unused ability points

    Knives level 2, 0 exp

    Swords

    1 handed level 4, 0 exp

    2 handed  level 5, 80/100exp

    Double edged steel straight sword

    Bows level 4, 19/100 exp

    Clubs level 3, 0 exp

    Staffs level 1, 0 exp

    Guns level 29, 0 exp

    Spells

    Fire 1

    Graul

    Health 100/100  Stamina 46/46 Strength 7/7 Mana 10/10

    Exp 107/1000  0 unused ability points

    Knives level 2, 0 exp

    Swords

    1 handed level 6, 72/100 exp

    Flame sword (Iron sword with Fire 1)

    2 handed  level 4, 0exp

    Bows level 4, 0exp

    Clubs level 3, 0 exp

    Staffs level 1, 0 exp

    Guns level 3, 0 exp

    Spells

    Fire 1

    Arden

    Health 100/100  Stamina 44/44 Strength 4/4 Mana 10/10

    Exp 181/1000  0 unused ability points

    Knives level 3, 0 exp

    Swords

    1 handed level 2, 1/100 exp

    2 handed  level 2, 12/100exp

    Bows level 2, 0exp

    Clubs level 2, 0 exp

    Staffs level 1, 0 exp

    Guns level 33, 0 exp

    Spells

    Fire 1

    Jex

    Health 100/100  Stamina 43/43  Strength 6/6 Mana 10/10

    Exp 226/1000  0 unused ability points

    Knives level 2, 0 exp

    Swords

    1 handed level 3, 0exp

    2 handed  level 3, 0exp

    Bows level 7, 85/100exp

    Dwarven Oak Bow

    Clubs level 2, 0 exp

    Staffs level 1, 0 exp

    Guns level 9, 0 exp

    Spells

    Ice 1, Fire 1

    Brun

    Health 100/100  Stamina 43/43 Strength 6/6 Mana 20/20

    Exp 0/1000  0 unused ability points

    Knives level 2, 0 exp

    Swords

    1 handed level 3, 0exp

    2 handed  level 3, 0exp

    Bows level 2, 0 exp

    Clubs level 2, 0 exp

    Staffs level 4, 0 exp

    Dwarven Oak Staff (And Dwarven wool tunic)

    Guns level 9, 0 exp

    Spells

    Fire 1, Ice 1, Fire 2

    Rome

    Health 100/100  Stamina 43/43 Strength 6/6 Mana 10/10

    Exp 0/1000  0 unused ability points

    Knives level 2, 0 exp

    Swords

    1 handed level 3, 0exp

    2 handed  level 3, 7/100exp

    Bows level 2, 0 exp

    Clubs level 2, 0 exp

    Staffs level 2, 0 exp

    Dwarven Oak Staff (And Dwarven wool tunic)

    Guns level 2, 0 exp

    Spells

    Fire 1

    Antic

    Health 300/300  Stamina 80/80 Strength 8/8 Mana 10/10

    Exp 0/1000  0 unused ability points

    Knives level 2, 0 exp

    Swords

    1 handed level 3, 0exp

    2 handed  level 3, 0exp

    Bows level 2, 0 exp

    Clubs level 2, 0 exp

    Staffs level 1, 0 exp

    Guns level 1, 0 exp

    Spears level 4, 28/100 exp

    Iron tip on oak pole x 1 and billik leg on oak pole x 6

    Spells

    None

    Potions

    Health, Stamina and Mana potions

    Low- replenishes 9

    Mid- replenishes 19

    High- replenishes 49

    Note: Health potions and Cure Spells will attempt to stop bleeding, then repair broken bones, before replenishing health points.

    The landscapes described in this series are approximately accurate. Some areas have been changed in the book to make the story more entertaining. Example: Lake Silverwood is a man made reservoir, not a natural lake.

    The character¡¯s levels and stats were not made up on the spot here. I have kept a careful tally of each battle, approximate experience, and death each human character has endured in this story. All their levels are very close to accurate with what I have written in the story.

 Beginning of part 2

    Tyters

    Year 2, Mountains

    Chapter 1 Long Beach

    ¡°Seriously Torger, we really need to at least check out the beach. I¡¯m sure you and Graul could build a sturdy raft so we can float to Catalina and see what¡¯s there.¡±

    Torger looked at all his friends that had been transported with him to Nuva. If the device at Catalina could take them all home, back to Earth, that would be wonderful. But could he really build some sort of canoe or sailboat that would get them there? He had never tried anything like that before.

    ¡°What do you think Graul? Think we could make something to get us there?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure we could, if the weather is nice and the sharks aren¡¯t around.¡±

    After another minute of hesitation Torger agreed. ¡°OK, we¡¯ll leave in the morning. Fill up your water skins and pack some food. And don¡¯t forget to bring your weapons.¡±

    They spent that evening saying good-bye to all the dwarves of Calico, although they were still at Lake Silverwood. There were hugs, tears, and pats on the back. The dwarves had come to really respect Torger over the last few months. They saw he was a visionary; his ideas of how to make the village run efficiently with everyone chipping in was refreshing to these hardy but mistreated dwarves. Torger instructed Stone Fist to finish the aqueduct as his top priority. Strong Arm was to smelt and purify the village silver ore as soon as the smithy was complete. Other dwarves were to finish making the dirt path to Small Hammer, now that the weather was cooler. They told him they saw the wisdom in his leadership, and if couldn¡¯t get back home they would gladly welcome him back to being mayor. His heart swelled with joy at the accolades.

    Torger liked being in charge. He had a deep seeded desire for fair justice and equality. He had worked hard to walk through the village saying hi to all the dwarves and trying to learn their names. He remembered an incident from a couple months earlier. Once that summer one dwarf accused another of stealing his silver ore. Neither could prove their case so Torger didn¡¯t make the defendant return anything, but he insisted all dwarves engrave everything they own. After that theft was no longer a problem; each dwarf realized it was up to them to protect their own property because Torger wouldn¡¯t get involved without strong evidence. Torger also hated laziness. He made sure every dwarf had something productive to do. If they didn¡¯t find a way of running their own business or working for the village, he told them they could clean out the latrines or gather firewood for cooking. Those kind of chores ensured every dwarf found something else to work on.

    True to their word, the elves had left them alone for the past five months, never coming near the dwarves, and never asking them to complete the ¡®Kill 30 bears and kill 30 rocs¡¯ quest.

    The Regulators left in the morning as soon as there was enough light to see. They followed the aqueduct towards Calico, and once they made it to the foothills they turned west toward Cajon Pass. A few coyotes came near but then thought better of it and turned away.

    Night was coming before they made it to the top of the pass. They were hoping to use the dwarves¡¯ old tunnels at the top, but they weren¡¯t going to make it that far. Torger and Arden had the magic backpacks, and the others had magic satchels, or man-purses. Torger and Arden removed a tent each, and the others took out food and water. The bread and berries were still fresh and they had a nice meal.

    That night on Graul¡¯s watch a roc flew overhead and circled a few times then flew away. In the morning they found the dwarves had made the dirt path all the way over the hill and halfway down the other side before they went to the lake for the summer. That made their walking much easier and they covered more ground. Torger knew roads were essential to commerce, that¡¯s why he pushed so hard to get them done.

    The next morning they came to Small Hammer. Baybil welcomed them and insisted they have lunch with him. When they were all seated he asked them, through Translate, to tell him what had been going on in Calico.

    Arden answered ¡°We moved to the mountains for the summer. There is no water in Calico in the summer, so we set up a temporary village by a lake. But now we are going to the ocean. We hope to find a way to get back home.¡±

    Baybil said ¡°Wait, not so fast. You moved the whole village away from the silver mine?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°And the dwarves went along with it?¡±

    ¡°Reluctantly, but they didn¡¯t have much choice. Move or die of thirst.¡±

    ¡°Did you guard the mine?¡±

    Antic answered, since his main job was to oversee the mining. ¡°No. There¡¯s nothing other than the silver that¡¯s there, there is nothing to sustain life. The crops were all dried up without water.¡±

    ¡°But the razorlings could have returned and inhabited the mines again.¡±

    ¡°The dwarves killed all the razorlings when they took it in the first place. Either the razorlings are dead or the dwarves will kill them again. They fight very well together as a team.¡±

    ¡°Yes, I know. Most dwarves do. I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll be safe but I hope nothing worse moved in.¡±

    Antic had a little fear in his voice as he asked ¡°Baybil, what is worse that could move in to an abandoned mine in the middle of a desert during the summer?¡±

    ¡°Lots of things, like a specter. Trolls like mountains and goblins like swamps, so they shouldn¡¯t be there, and billiks aren¡¯t much of a threat, but mad vines and giant moles are.¡±

    Graul interjected ¡°Remember we did see a troll about twenty miles from here, not in the mountains. But what are mad vines, and how big are giant moles?¡±

    Baybil answered ¡°It is odd to see a troll in the desert, but that might be an isolated case. Maybe it was ostracized from its family. Mad vines are vines that grow on cave walls and are poisonous to touch. They move fast for a plant and try to strangle victims. Giant moles are about four feet tall and dig tunnels eating the roots of plants.¡±

    Antic was glad he was getting off this crazy planet. ¡°I hope those dwarves don¡¯t come back to find any of that, but if our plan works we won¡¯t have to fight any of that crazy stuff.¡±

    Baybil answered ¡°Perhaps life is more civil where you come from, but here we are constantly battling monsters with our axes and other tribes with our words. Speaking of, I take it there were no elves on that mountain. That¡¯s good to know.¡±

    Jex joined the conversation. ¡°Actually yes, there are elves there. They¡¯re from the Pomo tribe but their village got separated during the terra forming last year. They¡¯re trying to re-establish contact and move. We¡¯re guessing they live four hundred miles from here in a place called Yosemite.¡±

    Baybil was flabbergasted. ¡°The elves let dwarves share the same mountain! You¡¯re screwing with me. That wouldn¡¯t happen.¡±

    ¡°It did happen. Why do dwarves and elves not get along?¡± she pressed. Jex didn¡¯t like that neither side would explain the hostility to her.

    ¡°I¡¯m having a hard time believing they spent months on the same mountain, but I¡¯ll tell you. It¡¯s very simple. We have different religions. The elves think their ancestors came here from another planet thousands of years ago as prey for the tyters. They beat the tyters, then populated Nuva. They worship their own cunning and intellect, and always thirst for more magic spells. We dwarves know Muldwil and his sons formed the mountains and hid gems in them, then created us dwarves from the mountains with a desire to find the gems and treasures they hid from us. And our history tells us it was the might of dwarves and our axes that beat the tyters and saved the elves, but the ingrates want the battle glory for themselves and rewrote history to make it look like they did it on their own. They could never beat the tyter warriors during a hunt.¡±

    Jex said ¡°Maybe dwarves and elves worked together to beat the tyters thousands of years ago. Dwarf steel combined with elf spells.¡±

    ¡°Bah. That never has and never will happen. And as good as dwarf steel is, we would need diamond blades and mithril armor to beat the tyters.¡±

    Graul said ¡°It sounds like you guys have it all worked out. So we¡¯ll just pack up our bags and be on our way back to our home. Been nice meeting you Baybil.¡±

    The others were a little shocked at Graul¡¯s abrupt exit, but had known him or Torger to do that when conversations got tense. They walked back toward the ruins of Home and made it shortly after dark. There was nothing there for them, but Torger and Graul wanted to see it again and it wasn¡¯t far out of the way.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    Graul said ¡°I look forward to see our real house when we get back to Earth.¡±

    The next morning they began walking west, over the rocky ground and around desert bushes. The temperature was wonderful and a steady breeze blew in. But the difficult terrain made the trip agonizingly slow. Along the way they talked about which modern conveniences each one was most looking forward to. They walked all day, killing three coyotes and two rabbits along the way. That night Rome killed a rattle snake on his watch, and that made him wish he had done more to contribute to the group since they arrived. If the snake had bit someone, they probably would have died, and Rome was supposed to be the white mage of the group. If he knew the spell Heal 1, he wouldn¡¯t have to worry about a snake bite, the spell would heal the victim. But since arriving, he had not learned one single spell. He wasn¡¯t in the battles very often, so he didn¡¯t get much experience, and every time he saved an ability point or two he would end up dying and lose his experience and unused ability points. Everyone in the group had learned at least one spell. If they returned home, he would be the only one who didn¡¯t know what it was like to use his specialty. Of course he wanted to go home, but still that sucked. He even made a water wheel that generated a small amount of electricity, but it was of no use. Rome made a pledge to himself that night that if they weren¡¯t able to make it home from Catalina, he would have to get into more battles to start learning white magic.

    At the end of the next day they made it to the top of Kellogg Hill. From the top of the hill they watched a beautiful sunset. The land was different on the other side. Not rocky desert but instead it was fertile plains. They saw wild orange trees and strawberry patches growing. Here the weather was lovely year round, and millions of people on Earth crowded together on congested freeways to live and work in what was, as the Regulators saw, a prime settlement location. In the distance they saw a medium sized river bed, mostly dry, flowing to the south.

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe I forgot the LA river used to be an actual river!¡± exclaimed Torger. ¡°We could have moved here for the summer.¡±

    They were all bemoaning the fact that they could have moved the village to this nice, year round climate with fertile soil. In modern California there were no natural rivers anywhere near LA, but the Nuva version seemed to produce a little more rainfall. They set up camp on the hill and finished the last of the dwarf food they had bought from Baybil.

    Early in the morning, Antic had the last watch. He was bored but was used to night lookouts by now. They all knew night watchmen had saved their lives several times. Just as the sky was beginning to turn grey with the first light, he heard a distant rumble. The whole group had lived in California all their lives. Each person half way woke up at the sound and waited to see if the ground was going to shake violently, or just a little. There was the first jarring shock that passed underground, and a few seconds later the ground rolled like ocean waves out at sea, not with the beach breakers. At the second rolling feeling they went back to sleep, never having seriously considered getting up. The rolling feeling told them either the earthquake was small or it was far away. They knew nearby big earthquakes usually have a continuous jarring feeling, so the rolling was a relief, not that there was anything to fall on them anyway.

    In the morning after breakfast, they spotted an enormous rabbit. It was about six feet tall. It looked at them and hopped a little closer, sniffed, and hopped away. They watched it go into a large hole at the bottom of the hill. They¡¯d seen strange things in Nuva, but that was up there. Arden wanted to follow it but the others wanted to get to the beach then get home.

    They made it to Long Beach two days later, and Torger and Graul began to look for trees to chop.

    ¡°Torger, once we chop some trees down, how are we going to get them to the beach? They weigh nearly a ton, after we cut off the limbs.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll try to roll them. If that doesn¡¯t work, we¡¯re going to be here a while splitting them in half long ways.¡±

    Antic groaned at the thought of that much work. They each had a wood handled axe, purchased from Strong Arm on credit. They owed Baybil nineteen gold, and Strong arm two gold coins. They were literally running away from debt. The original plan was to bring several dwarves along to help make the raft, but Torger was unable to convince any of them to come. All the dwarves were too interested in getting back to the silver mines and continue building Calico.

    Each of the regulators wanted to get home so badly they walked in all directions to the nearest pine or oak trees and began chopping. Naturally Torger and Graul finished first and went to help the others with their trees. It was sunset by the time they finished felling the seven trees. They were exhausted and hungry and ate roasted and unseasoned day old deer meat, but they ate all they had from the appetites they built up.

    As they sat on the sand of Long Beach, they stayed quiet looking out at the ocean. Catalina was beautiful in the distance, with an orange, red, blue and purple sky.

    Chapter 2

    The Crossing

    They had no food left to eat breakfast, but were too excited to get home. They went to the nearest tree and cut off all the branches, then all got on the high side and pushed. It budged a little and they pushed harder. The pine tree began to roll downhill toward the beach but it also required constant pushing. This went on for fifteen minutes, then it hit sand. And stopped completely. They pushed and pulled and tried to get it to move but it wouldn¡¯t. After another twenty minutes they had moved it a foot.

    As everyone sat on the log breathing hard, Torger knew they would need to place boards on the sand and roll the log on the boards. The trouble was, if they cut trees into flat boards, they would just make a raft out of the boards. He looked up and down the coast. Everywhere was either rocks or sand; they wouldn¡¯t be able to roll logs to the water anywhere.

    Reluctantly, Torger suggested the others go gather the oranges and strawberries from several miles away, and try to catch some meat while they were at it. Brun, Arden, Jex and Rome volunteered to go on food patrol. Torger, Graul, and Antic began cutting the length of the log in half.

    It took the three of them all day to cut it in half, and they were very glad to see the others return. They ate an unappetizing meal of rabbit, oranges and strawberries, and from the looks of things that was going to be their meals for a while. Water was a problem yet again. They were running low and all the physical exertion meant they were going through it quick. Jex cast her Ice 1 spell at the log, but they only got a few drops of water out of it. It was a cold irony to go thirsty just feet away from the biggest ocean on the planet.

    Rome volunteered to take first watch that night. While the others slept, he pulled out a frying pan and tin lid that wasn¡¯t destroyed in the fire at Home. The dwarves had made some decent cooking utensils in Calico, and the Regulators brought that frying pan and some silverware with them to use on the trip to the beach. They never thought it would be useful for anything but frying meat, but Rome saw an opportunity.

    In the morning they all started cutting the logs in half. Rome had put saltwater in the frying pan and covered it with the tin lid. Unfortunately it wasn¡¯t a tight fit, both being a little warped from the fire at Home, and after a couple hours of sunlight, he was only able to get a teaspoon of water off the lid. That didn¡¯t work, but the concept was tried and true. But Rome didn¡¯t have any sheet metal to make a bedroom sized condensation catcher. A few of them would have to walk to the river, and although it was not far away it was only a couple inches deep. They would have to strain out the mud somehow.

    The same four went to get water and figure out how to purify it. Torger and Graul preferred splitting the log because they knew they were the best at it, and Antic did it to gain another strength point. Even if they were going home in a few days, he wanted to be the strongest and most physically fit of the group when they left, because he wasn¡¯t on Earth. They were all a little flabby on Earth, but Antic really enjoyed his new, now nicely shaped body. They grew a half inch in height and gained a little muscle mass every time they gained a strength point, and Antic made sure he was one ahead of everyone else. He had a strength of eight, while most of the others had six or seven. Antic never lost an ability point when he died. Every time he earned one from experience, he invested it into his body. He also had three hundred health compared to everyone else¡¯s one hundred, and eighty stamina compared to the others who averaged forty-five.

    At the end of the day the water carriers returned, and the other three had each gained a strength point and split another log. Rome and Arden had found at the river by pouring muddy water through clean sand, the mud would mostly disappear but would add a salt taste to the water. Not knowing what else to do they brought back slightly muddy, slightly salty water. Torger told them to boil it in the frying pan and pour it through a clean cloth, into a water skin. Jex poured the water into the frying pan and Brun lit a fire, then Jex rinsed out the skin in the ocean. Ten minutes later they poured the water through Jex¡¯s wool dress, and into the somewhat clean skin. After letting it cool Torger took a drink. Everyone looked at him to see his reaction. ¡°Tastes like pond scum, but it¡¯ll keep us alive.¡±

    The next two days all seven of them worked on splitting the logs lengthwise. Each half log was able to be dragged to the water. The effort gave everyone another strength and stamina point. By now it was mid October and the days were great, but the night wind was chilly. Finally the big day came. Torger and Graul used the rope they bought with the ale tax to tie the half logs together. The waves were a little bigger than they would have liked, but winter was coming and they could get worse.

    They pushed the raft into the ocean and climbed on top. Each one had a paddle carved from a tree limb and they rowed, a bit out of sync, but slowly made it past one breaker after another. It took two hours to get a quarter mile from shore, but then the waves were gentler. Jex, Brun, and Rome needed a break, and the others agreed to it. They kept rowing for another hour, and made it almost a mile from the shore.

    Graul saw a big shadow pass under the water near him, and said ¡°Hey guys. Heads up. I think I saw something in the water.¡±

    Arden said ¡°Sharks aren¡¯t here this time of year. We should be OK.¡±

    He spoke too soon. A giant octopus raised a tentacle onto the raft. Jex screamed and Arden hit it with his paddle. Torger reached into his backpack and pulled out his two handed steel sword, while Graul pulled out his one handed flame sword. Brun cast Fire 2 at it and the tentacle retracted back under the water. Everyone looked around on all sides of the raft waiting for the next attack.

    Seconds ticked by but they saw nothing. More seconds passed, then a full minute. A few seconds later Antic put his paddle in the water to start rowing again towards Catalina, with much renewed vigor. Rome was thinking they should go back to the shore. Antic pulled on the paddle once and then another tentacle came on to the raft. It was about ten feet long and reached to the other side.

    Torger and Graul sliced it, Jex cast Ice 1, and Brun and Arden cast Fire 1. Antic smashed it with his paddle, shattering the wood. He was left with a sharpened pole and immediately knew a short spear was just what he needed. The tentacle retracted again, but two more came up. This time they could see the octopus¡¯ face. Antic stabbed it in the eye. Its body convulsed, and the suckers stuck to the wood. It swam towards deeper water, pulling the raft along. The sudden movement caused Brun to fall overboard. Arden reached out to grab his hand and pull him back up, but the octopus recovered from its shock and another tentacle came on board, knocking Arden into the water too. They looked at the others on board and Arden yelled ¡°Go Home! We¡¯ll figure out another way!¡±

    Arden took off his leather armor and they started swimming back to shore. Jex yelled ¡°No! I won¡¯t leave you!¡± She jumped off and swam towards them.

    Torger and Graul kept slicing at the tentacles, and Antic stabbed them, but the octopus wouldn¡¯t let go. After a little while it tried to dive deep, but the wood was too buoyant, and the raft tipped up high. Torger and Graul had been white water rafting several times and when Torger yelled ¡°High side!¡± he and Graul climbed up to the high side of the raft and held on to the edge. Rome and Antic had no idea what to do, and Antic was tossed into the ocean. He used what was left of his paddle as a flotation device and started swimming back toward shore. Rome slid right at the octopus¡¯ face and he kicked it in the head, keeping his back wedged to the raft.

    The octopus realized it couldn¡¯t pull the raft underwater and stopped swimming. The raft that was tilted up slammed back down, and Torger and Graul both fell into the water. Their rafting experiences taught them how to quickly climb back up.

    Once on board again, Torger said ¡°It¡¯s too dangerous. Pack your gear and get away.¡±

    He and Graul took off their iron armor and put it and their swords into their magic back packs. But Rome didn¡¯t move. With his feet still pummeling the octopus¡¯ head, he said ¡°I¡¯ll keep it focused on me. Swim back to shore, and I¡¯ll meet you back at Long Beach in a couple of weeks. I¡¯ll respawn in Calico, I¡¯ll be OK.¡±

    Torger wanted to argue with him, to tell him they were in this together, but he knew Rome was right. Rome was in great position to be the sole focus of the sea monster. He didn¡¯t like it but had to agree. ¡°OK see you at the beach in two weeks.¡±

    Torger and Graul put their magic backpacks on, thankful for the weight divided by five and capacity times five benefits, and jumped off each swimming to a nearby paddle to aid in their long swim back to shore.

 Rome

    Chapter 3

    Rome

    Rome stayed on the raft but got dragged further and further out to sea. He watched, completely helpless, as Catalina got bigger on the horizon. The sea creature was in a frenzy from being attacked in the tentacles, so it kept swimming. The raft was slowing down the creature¡¯s speed a lot, but it was still moving faster than Rome was comfortable with. He didn¡¯t know whether to kick the beast some more or ride it out. Either way he knew he was a dead man; the question was would he rather get eaten or drown. Neither was an appealing option. He decided to wait it out.

    After a half hour they were just a mile from Catalina. Rome couldn¡¯t believe his luck; the monster had swum straight towards it. But as the water got shallower Rome¡¯s hope of salvation faded once again. There were several small octopi in the shallow water. It looked like mom was bringing home dinner. This was not good. In fact this was very bad. Getting eaten alive by one huge monster was scary. Getting eaten alive by a bunch of little ones would be excruciatingly painful.

    Rome looked around for anything that might help him. In the distance he saw two dolphins jumping out of the water. He had little choice with what to do. He reached his hands into the water and splashed as much as he could. The splashing attracted the attention of both the dolphins, as well as the small octopi. All of them swam near him.

    The dolphins saw the giant octopus mama and swam away. Her job of feeding the children was done so she swam after the dolphins hoping to catch a meal for herself. This was the only chance Rome was going to get to make it to Catalina and go home. He lay flat on the raft and began paddling using his arms.

    The swells caused him to go up and down on the water but he kept paddling. He didn¡¯t make it very far before the first baby sea monster came up to him. He saw that the baby was about four feet long from the top of the head to the end of each tentacle. It wasn¡¯t truly an octopus, but mutated with soft spikes sticking out of its face, a sharp bird beak covered its mouth, and its body was covered in slime. In the heat of battle and trying to live, Rome hadn¡¯t noticed the slime on the tentacles stung a little, but nothing serious. As he noticed then ignored the stinging, he saw more babies were coming his way. The first one to him reached a tentacle onto the raft to try to grab him. He backed out of the way and instead of fighting it, Rome grabbed the tentacle, gritting his teeth through the slight sting in his hand. Just as he hoped it would, the octopus started swimming away. It wasn¡¯t strong enough to pull the raft, but it kept trying.

    Another reached up a tentacle and Rome grabbed that one too. The two together started pulling the raft along the swells and to their safety of the shallow water. Two others wiggled their tentacles up onto the raft also, and Rome constantly had to kick them away. At any minute one could grab his leg and pull him overboard and he would have no way of defending himself. More time passed and they got closer to the shore. Then it happened. Rome kicked one tentacle out of his way but before he could regain his balance another one wrapped around his ankle.

    Rome tried to stay in his water skier position, but couldn¡¯t maintain with the swells at three feet high. He lost his balance and fell backwards into the ocean. The octopus tentacle wrapped around his ankle tried to pull him down, but the two he was holding on to were still trying to swim to shore. His limbs were stretched and his head went underwater. Rome kicked his feet to propel himself upward, although only one foot was free. But it was enough for him to surface and take in a lungful of air. His feet kicks also shook up the octopus attached to his ankle, but the other two easily dragged him closer to his safety.

    Others came at him and tried to wrap him up but he kicked them in the face as much as he could. It was a losing battle. They were too close together and all attacking him at the same time. He was pulled underwater again and he finally let go so he could use his hands to free himself. He grabbed a tentacle near his chest and easily pried it off, but he kept sinking.

    But then his foot hit something. He extended his toes in his leather boots and felt a rock. Rome curled himself into a ball and let them pull him down a couple more feet, until they could get comfortable on the bottom to feed. Rome bent his legs a little and firmly planted his feet. Just as he pushed off as hard as he could, one of the octopi bit him on the side. The pain seared through him, but also gave him extra instinctual panic to get away.

    The full strength push off propelled him up to the surface and he took in a big lungful of air. It also made the octopi release him, and he began swimming for the shore, assisted by the waves. But once again tentacles reached around him and he couldn¡¯t fight them off. He repeated the process of calmly going to the bottom then pushing off hard with his feet. That wasn¡¯t easy to do with his side bleeding, but it worked. The sudden upward thrust made the small octopi let go with their suckers. Rome swam as hard as he could until he reached the shore. He waded in two foot water and then stomped hard on the two baby octopi that followed him. Their heads squished a little, but they were still alive. Rome hated those things and wanted them dead, but to suffer before dying. He walked to the sand and removed their newly formed grips from his legs. One had bit his calf. He picked one up and threw it several feet further inland, then did the same with the other. Rome lay down on the sandy beach and passed out with exhaustion.

    He woke up and it was night. He didn¡¯t know how long he had been out. He didn¡¯t have any idea what time of day it was when he climbed to the shore, but his side and leg had healed so he must have slept for at least five hours.

    He looked around and saw nothing unusual. At least he wasn¡¯t being attacked by a monster as soon as he woke up. He stood up and began walking, but quickly saw the two dead baby octopi on the shore. He did it! He conquered them (only two of them but it was a huge victory in his mind) and survived to get to Catalina! Rome was ecstatic that he had the opportunity to go home. He would start looking for the transport device soon, but first he wanted to see what these monsters that almost drown him and ate him actually were. They looked similar to an octopus, but had a real face, with eyes and a mouth, with sharp teeth inside the bird beak, and gills where the nose should be. He looked at his Experience and blinked. It showed:

    Personal Experience 912/1000. 0 Ability Points Available

    Exp with weapons

    Beasts

    He selected Beasts

    Rabbit  Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp Max/25

    Coyote  Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp Max/25

    Deer  Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp Max/25

    Razorling Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp 4.22/25

    Billik Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp 1.57/25

    Goblin  Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp 0.17/25

    Young Sangler Level??? Health??? Mana??? Kills for exp 2/25

    Rome minimized the Rabbit, Coyote and Deer indicators. He would never gain more experience from killing them. So these things were called Sanglers? They were from another planet then, and not actually octopi. Or were they native to Nuva? They may have been, but he doubted it. He thought it would take a badass tyter to hunt these things in the ocean, especially when full grown, but that was someone else¡¯s problem. All he had to worry about now was finding the hidden teleport device and figuring out how to use it. He looked back to the shore and saw his magic satchel floating in the surf. How lucky was that?

    He picked it up and began climbing up a nearby hill to get a good look around. He remembered having to dig in the sands near Yuma to find the bed that had given each of them the ability to use magic, and weapons bonuses. He feared having to dig in random places on the island for years to find the tyter device.

    But at the top of the hill he saw another hill, and on top of it was a metal building. It was still dark out, so he couldn¡¯t see many details about it, but he saw clouds rolling in from the ocean. It was going to rain in a few hours, the first rain of the year. He walked toward the other hill, and as he suspected he saw a shimmer of a shield protecting it. But Rome knew what to do. These shields, if left unguarded (as they found out at Home), only kept out curious animals, not serious monsters or intelligent foes. He reached into his satchel and removed a copper sword and wire he had made for the water wheel at Lake Silverwood. He used the sword to dig a hole in the ground two feet deep and dropped in one end of the wire and buried it. Then he tied the other end to the sword blade and walked close to the shield. He could see it shimmer once in a while, and when he was a step away threw the sword as high as he could.Stolen novel; please report.

    Rome ran away before the sword hit, and when it did the predictable Lightning spell shot at the sword, which ran down the wire and into the ground. The sword bounced all the way down the dome shape, drawing massive amounts of electricity to itself. It was glowing hot when it finally hit the ground, and Rome threw a rock at the shield to see if it used up all its mana.

    His plan had worked. His friends told them that they regenerated mana at a rate of 1 point per minute, and the shields at Calico and Lake Silverwood worked the same. That meant he had less than five minutes until the shield could zap him with Lightning 1. It wouldn¡¯t kill him, but it would hurt. He picked up a big rock and smashed it against the shield. He did this three more times then saw a crack appear in front of him. With time running out he smashed it over and over until the shield shattered and the pieces disappeared as they were falling to the ground.

    Rome walked up to the closed heavy door and saw a place to put what looked like a three fingered very large hand. He didn¡¯t know what would happen if he tried it, but this was the only way back to Earth so he had to try. He placed his hand on it. A pale green light encircled him, and a few seconds later the door opened. Rome was definitely scared to walk inside, but he had to. What was he going to do? Turn around and walk away?

    Inside he saw a clear tube, five feet diameter that ran floor to ceiling. The door to the tube was closed. On the opposite wall he saw another device for a large alien hand. He placed his hand on it and again a pale green light surrounded him then faded. He heard the harsh speak of a tyter, and a half second later Translate kicked in.

    ¡°Welcome to the extraction point brave warrior. You are unable to teleport back to Sulmig right now, there has been a malfunction. The extraction team will arrive here in two years, and four days, Nuva time. Until then use the teleport abilities to aid in your hunt on Nuva.¡±

    A green light again surrounded Rome, then messages appeared in his vision.

    You have learned Teleport 1.

    You have learned Teleport 2.

    You have learned Teleport 3.

    Teleport 1 Caster teleports self to respawn point  Cost 10 mana

    Teleport 2 Caster teleports self to any ally village  Cost 30 mana

    Teleport 3 Caster teleports 5 others to any ally village Cost 90 mana

    Finally! Rome finally got a useful spell. It just so happened that he had ten mana points. He walked back to the dead sanglers and put a tentacle and head, and his copper sword and wire into his satchel. Having never used magic before, he looked up Teleport 1 and concentrated on it. A prompt asked him if he wanted to use it. He looked at the Yes side of his vision and blinked. A pale green light surrounded him and he disappeared.

    Chapter 4

    Regulators

    Graul held on to his paddle as long and firmly as he could, and kicked the water behind him furiously. He did not want one of those octopus things to catch him and eat him. A swell lifted him up and he could see the coast. He kept kicking as he sank into the trough. Another swell lifted him up and he looked for Torger, but saw no one, then he went back down into a trough. Clouds were building and the winds picked up, making the waves higher. Up in a swell, kick kick kick, down in a trough, kick kick kick.

    After a couple hours he climbed onto rocks that were jutting out into the water. He lay down on them, though they were terribly uncomfortable. It took a few minutes before he could stand up and walk to shore. He lay down on the sand and rested for maybe an hour, before the cold wind on his wet clothes made him get up again. The sun was setting and the wind picked up even more. He forced himself to climb up a hill and half way down the other side before he gathered brush and lit a fire. He had no idea where his friends were, but he had no choice but to fall asleep.

    Light was all around him when he woke up, but he couldn¡¯t see the sun because it was cloudy. He walked back to the top of the hill and looked at the ocean. He didn¡¯t know where he was, but it wasn¡¯t Long Beach. He saw the outline of Catalina a little too far to the north, and knew he must have been in Dana Point. He checked his Maps and confirmed his location. Not too far away, but a few hours of walking was ahead of him.

    He made good time walking on the compact dirt a bit inland from the sand. As he walked he realized something he didn¡¯t know the day before, his magic back pack was slightly buoyant, even partially full. That helped to keep him afloat. He wondered if the satchels had the same property.

    After walking for a couple of hours, he saw a wisp of smoke on the horizon. It was either the end of a morning fire his friends had made, or something else with intelligence made it. When he got there he saw a ring of stones around the ashes in a patch of sand. Human footprints led further to the north, towards the river. Water suddenly sounded very desirable and his tongue chose that moment to tell him it was dry.

    It took him more than an hour to reach the river. He saw more footprints in the mud around the river crisscrossing all over the place, then head upstream. He followed them for a couple of miles and heard shouting. Graul ran ahead and when he saw his friends fighting for their lives he pulled out his flame sword and charged into battle.

    Four half snake/ half alligator monsters were easily crossing the mud chasing his friends, who were sinking ankle deep into it with each step. Jex was shooting arrows as fast as she could, Antic was doing his best to keep them away from him by waving his spear at their faces, Brun was out of mana but it looked like he had cast Fire 1 once at each of them. Arden and Torger were attacking with tree branches used as improvised clubs.

    Graul ran ahead, keeping out of the mud, and cast Fire 1 twice at one monster, trying to draw it to himself. It worked, but he had underestimated how fast it could run on those stubby little legs. Just before it got to him he perfectly timed a swing to cleave its skull. The momentum carried it forward and ripped the sword out of Graul¡¯s hand, and it crashed into his shin. He got knocked on his butt, removed the sword, and with two strokes cut its head off. He stood up and ran at the one that by then had a strong bite around Antic¡¯s calf.

    Antic was screaming and trying to stab it with his spear, but couldn¡¯t get good leverage. His increased health made his skin thicker, muscles denser, bones stronger, and blood thicker, which was probably why his leg wasn¡¯t completely removed. Graul stabbed his sword down through its skull, killing it, then used his sword to pry its mouth open. He stood up, leaving Antic writhing in pain, and saw Jex finish off the beast that was attacking Brun. Brun was a bloody mess, with his right hand gone and covered in bruises that no one could see through the mud. Torger and Arden finally bludgeoned the last into unconsciousness. Torger told Graul to finish it, but Graul said ¡°No, you deserve the honors.¡± He tossed over his flame sword and Torger took delight in removing the head.

    Graul asked ¡°Where¡¯s your sword?¡±

    ¡°Good to see you too brother. Glad you survived the swim to shore; we thought you didn¡¯t make it. I woke up all alone this morning and saw smoke from a fire, then found them¡± he nodded towards their friends. ¡°In the swim I abandoned my back pack. I couldn¡¯t find it on shore, but we saw drag marks in the sand. We followed them here and these things came up out of the mud and attacked us. Now we need to look around and see if we can find my back pack.¡±

    They strained some water through sand and boiled it then drank it before it fully cooled off. They looked through the mud for a while then Arden said ¡°I found something.¡±

    Antic and Brun never got up to help with the search, too wounded to be of any use. The others simply ignored their bleeding and cries of pain, since there was nothing anyone could do for them. Instead Torger, Graul and Jex helped Arden pull a large cloth out of the mud. It was a goblin¡¯s loincloth, with the half eaten body still inside. They dropped it but found his chipped copper sword and a few copper coins. Later they found another goblin, same condition, same treasure. Further upstream they found Torger¡¯s back pack, shredded open and the dried rabbit meat gone. His sword was still in good shape, along with slightly damaged rope, an extra set of leather armor and a tent. Their search continued and they ended up finding another copper sword, a badly damaged wood shield, and fifteen more copper coins.

    Lightning flashed in the distance, and they knew if it started raining inland this nearly dry creek could turn into a halfway decent river. They helped Antic and Brun hobble to the top of a hill, and they lay down to rest. Antic looked at Torger and asked ¡°You collected the heads, right?¡±

    ¡°No. We don¡¯t need the heads.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know why I see these things, but they look valuable.¡±

    Torger knew Antic had spotted that stuff in the past. Antic knew to collect the billik legs, and he also knew to collect the razorling feet and spiders and snakes. Baybil bought some of each, so Torger cut the heads off the other two and tried to place them in his backpack, but it no longer seemed to have magical storage capacity. The claw marks through it might have had something to do with it. Instead he made Jex and Arden each carry one in their satchels, and Graul took two in his back pack.

    Arden asked Graul, ¡°What do we do now? Rome is supposed to meet us here in two weeks or so, but I don¡¯t want to sit around doing nothing.¡±

    ¡°No, we won¡¯t be doing nothing. We should go hunting monsters and gain some ability points.¡±

    ¡°Now you¡¯re talking! Getting stronger is always a good way to spend a couple weeks of waiting. Brun, Antic, are you guys in?¡±

    Brun said ¡°I¡¯m liking fire two, but it seems multiple cast of fire one is stronger for the mana I use. I¡¯m in if I can cast fire two a bunch and get to fire three. I want to see what that does.¡±

    Antic admitted ¡°I don¡¯t like almost dying all the time. I don¡¯t like battles and bleeding a lot, but my added health saved my leg today. I wouldn¡¯t mind adding even more health to myself, so yeah I¡¯m in as long as it isn¡¯t too dangerous.¡±

    Torger said ¡°Now that I have my sword again, you should be a little safer. You and I will work as a team to fight one monster, while the others fight other monsters.¡±

    Antic didn¡¯t like thinking that he needed Graul or Torger to keep him safe, but he knew it was true.

    They all agreed to look for more of those mud monsters in the morning. Until then they had to kill a deer or rabbit and gather some more oranges and strawberries. Brun and Antic stayed behind to nurse their injuries (Brun had a tourniquet on his forearm), Jex and Arden went hunting, and Graul and Torger walked inland to find fruit.

    The four left together, walking further upstream and looking for more signs of the mud beasts. They didn¡¯t want their two wounded friends to be attacked, although they were out of the mud. Also it would be nice to make a surprise attack against the beasts next time. As they were walking it began to rain. The hunting would be fruitless with the game taking shelter, so they walked until they found fruit to gather, several miles inland. On their way back they saw that the river was now a foot deep and gratefully drank the relatively clean water.

    Graul said ¡°If we could get the dwarves to dig a reservoir here this might be a great place to live.¡±

    The others agreed, except that getting home would be better. As they were stooping next to the water, Torger being always wary of danger, jumped back. The others looked up and saw one of the beasts swimming at them. They all backed up the bank and watched it swim away. It swam just as quickly as it ran, and it could dive under water. They all had the same thought- maybe we should find something easier to kill tomorrow.

 Destruction

    Chapter 5

    Destruction

    Rome materialized in the center of Silverwood village. He thought ¡°My respawn point is Calico. Maybe I did it wrong.¡±

    A dwarf saw him materialize and she said ¡°I haven¡¯t seen that in many years. That could scare some of the younger dwarves who¡¯ve never seen it.¡±

    Rome looked around and saw a few dwarf children looking at him from behind the wall of the tavern. He asked the dwarf ¡°Why am I here? I mean, it¡¯s the first time I teleported, but I thought I would end up in Calico.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t know? I guess you don¡¯t. Your presence here means you didn¡¯t find a way back to your home world; at least that¡¯s my guess. There was a big ground shake a few days ago. All the buildings in Calico were knocked down. It¡¯s no longer a village.¡±

    Rome thought about Torger¡¯s worry that the houses were made of stone, and stone buildings don¡¯t last in earthquakes. He looked over to see the aqueduct, also of stone and cement, which was also of concern to Torger and Graul. It looked fine. He thought ¡°Of course it looks fine here, the waves don¡¯t roll well in these mountains, but on hard flat ground the aqueduct might be damaged.¡±

    She saw him looking at the aqueduct and volunteered information. ¡°Stone Fist took some dwarves to repair the aqueduct. Strong Arm took some dwarves to protect the mines from being inhabited by razorlings again.¡±

    Rome looked at himself and was happy to see when he used teleport, his clothes and backpack traveled with him, unlike dying and respawning. Next he thought of the chance he might have to kill some monsters, with the help of dwarves. He knew he was no good in a fight, but wanted more ability points so he could buy more mana capacity and use Teleport 2. Then he remembered how thirsty and hungry he was. ¡°Can I get a drink and some food?¡±

    ¡°You can ask the cooks. They¡¯re in the kitchen.¡± She pointed to the hastily built log cabin that was used as the kitchen.

    They happily made him some food and gave him water, but wanted to know every detail about his trip. What was the land like? What were the monsters like? Did they find another dwarf village? What about an elf village or goblin tunnel?

    He answered about the land terrain and land monsters, but didn¡¯t say anything about nearly getting eaten by a mutant octopus. He also didn¡¯t mention he found the tyter entrance point. There was no real reason not to talk about it, but he felt like he should tell his friends first, then they could all decide what to tell the dwarves.

    Word of his return spread fast, and he found himself telling the same stories over and over. Before he knew it, it was too late to start walking towards Calico. He ate dinner with the dwarves and swam in the lake to get a little clean before going to bed. The lake water was cold, and the clouds he saw on Catalina were coming closer to them. Rain would be coming soon, and in the mountains it was always a cold rain. He went into a log house and laid down on a mat on the floor with other dwarves. Even with the lights out and everyone trying to fall asleep they kept asking questions about his trip. He thought they needed to get out more, but also knew that without TV he was the most interesting thing that happened since the earthquake. Talking was their entertainment.

    Rome got an early start in the morning to get as far as he could toward Calico. He knew he couldn¡¯t make it in one day, but he hoped to get to Stone Fist for safety for the night. He didn¡¯t go far when the rain started.

    Sloshing through the mud slowed him down, and it was after dark when he saw two tents set up at the end of the aqueduct. He didn¡¯t want to get shot by an arrow for sneaking up on them, so he called out ¡°Hello! I¡¯m a friend!¡±

    ¡°I thought I knew who you were.¡± The voice came from behind him. Under a heavy coat with a hood was a dwarf. In the dark Rome couldn¡¯t make out the face, just saw a beard. The dwarf had a knocked arrow pointed at him. ¡°No need to wake the others. My shift just started, and I thought it would be cold wet and boring. Good to see you Rome.¡±

    Rome recognized the voice. It was Glumek, one of Stone Fists¡¯ helpers. Of course they would have set a night watch. Rome didn¡¯t know why he wasn¡¯t looking for one, but Glumek sure got the drop on him. ¡°That¡¯s some fine guarding. I never heard or saw you. Can we get out of this rain?¡±

    ¡°You can. I¡¯ll let Stone Fist know you¡¯re here.¡± Glumek went to one of the tents and announced his arrival. After asking many of the same questions as the dwarves at Silverwood asked, Stone Fist finally went back to sleep. Rome was taking off his wet clothes and looking forward to laying down on Glumek¡¯s mat. He shivered for a while but finally fell asleep.

    In the morning he woke up to the smell of barbeque rabbit. He went out of the tent and was delighted to see they had eggs and bread to go with it. Glumek tried talking to him, but gave up when he saw Rome wasn¡¯t interested in anything but eating as fast as he could. Finally they got down to business.

    ¡°We got separated in the ocean, and I¡¯m supposed to meet them in two weeks at the beach. I wanted to see the damage to the aqueduct and Calico, and report to Torger. The damage doesn¡¯t look as bad as I thought.¡±

    It was true. The aqueduct was really nothing more than a one foot deep trench in the ground lined with a clay like cement on the sides and bottom with stones making up the bulk of it. It wasn¡¯t made for a large city. There was about a mile of cracked and broken cement.

    ¡°We lost about three days work having to repair this, but if there are more of those ground shakes we¡¯ll have to come up with another idea. I haven¡¯t been to Calico to see what¡¯s there. I expect us to complete the aqueduct in another three weeks. Once we got off the mountain the digging went very quick, and luckily it¡¯s flat land all the way until two miles before the village. We¡¯ll have to build a reservoir there and walk the two miles for water.¡±

    ¡°Sounds good to me, but I¡¯m no contractor. I would just say do whatever you think Torger would want. Hopefully there won¡¯t be another damaging earthquake here for a few years, but how do you work with the ground all wet?¡±

    ¡°Just trust us to get it done,¡± answered Stone Fist. Rome said good-bye and started walking towards Calico. He heard from behind him, ¡°And when you see Torger tell him he owes me three copper for your breakfast.¡±

    As Rome walked he noticed the parched sand had sucked up all the water from the night before. The ground was moist, but didn¡¯t slow him down. Because of the shorter daylight hours he got to Calico shortly after dark, but this time he was on lookout for a guard. He didn¡¯t see one, but once he was near the broken common house he heard ¡°Declare yourself!¡±

    He had been snuck up on from behind again, and this time he was looking for it. These dwarves were good. He raised his hands and slowly turned around. ¡°I¡¯m Rome, a human of this city.¡±

    Strong Arm¡¯s assistant Blokel had an arrow pointed at him. ¡°You dwarves are very good at your guard duty. I was looking for a guard and never saw you.¡±

    ¡°If we¡¯re not alert, we die. And we have good night vision, it helps us in the mines. Good to see you Rome. Where are the others?¡±

    He had told his story to the dwarves at Silverwood multiple times, then that morning to Stone Fist and his crew, and would have to tell it in the morning to Strong Arm and his crew. He didn¡¯t want to tell it unnecessarily again. ¡°I¡¯ll tell all of you in the morning. For now I want a nice mat to sleep on.¡± He was able to fall asleep quickly.

    The morning¡¯s breakfast was the same: rabbit, eggs and bread, though the bread was slightly more stale. He told them of being separated in the ocean and wanting to report to Torger how progress was going. Again he didn¡¯t tell them he learned all three teleport spells or that he made it to the island. The dwarves just assumed if he was here it¡¯s because he died and they didn¡¯t make it to Catalina.

    Strong Arm filled him in. ¡°Pretty much everything here is ruined. Small Foot¡¯s house and the common house are a pile of stones, and two of the five mines collapsed. What¡¯s worse is some razorlings took the remaining three over, and they¡¯re multiplying quickly. They¡¯ll get back up to a hundred before long.¡±

    ¡°Why is it always one hundred monsters in a cave? Baybil told us the stronger the monsters, the better the treasure.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know why it¡¯s always a hundred, just is. ¡®Cept with trolls and goblins. Oh and spirits. And it¡¯s true the strength of the monsters in a cave are a good indication of the value inside. Like these razorlings, being about level eight, guard this mine, level eight. That¡¯s ¡®cause it¡¯s silver ore. If it were about four tons of already refined silver the cave would be about level sixteen with level sixteen monsters guarding it.¡±

    ¡°Is that how much silver ore you think is in there; about four tons?¡±

    ¡°No, that¡¯s how much silver ore we guess was in there. We got about half of it out already.¡±

    Two tons of ore left! Rome did his best to put on a poker face. ¡°What¡¯s to keep anyone from going in and mining it for themselves? Do we have guards?¡±

    ¡°We need guards, badly. But we gotta have a place for the miners to eat and sleep. For now all we can do is watch and hope nobody powerful comes along. If they do, we gotta abandon it. And now that the rains started, anyone can mine it without dying of thirst. ¡®Course only other dwarves would come along to mine it, but they would be hostile to their own kind for a chance at even lowly silver. Many full scale wars have been fought over a mine of mithril that¡¯s found once in a while.¡±

    Rome thought about that for a few seconds before responding. ¡°I heard that the level of a cave is the average level it would take ten warriors to conquer the cave, but it seems the monsters are the same as the level of the cave. How does that work?¡±

    ¡°You really need to buy analyze. It gives you approximately how strong a monster or dwarf is. Or human or elf. And it gives you approximately how strong the monsters inside are, and the corresponding treasure. But the rule of thumb is this: you see a level four cave, shown to you by analyze. Inside will probably be one hundred level four monsters. If a group of ten dwarves, all level four and appropriately equipped attack it, they will have a ninety percent chance of success in killing all hundred monsters, without any dwarf dying.¡±

    ¡°This is too confusing Strong Arm. Tell me in simple terms.¡±

    Strong Arm chanted a few words and waved his hands in a pattern to use analyze on Rome. ¡°I see you are now level nine. You¡¯re more likely than not to kill a level eight razorling, if you had level appropriate equipment. But I don¡¯t know much about you just by using analyze. I see none of your nine levels come from health, and two come from mana. So you have high strength or you know several spells. Would you kill a razorling with a blade or ice magic?¡±

    ¡°I couldn¡¯t kill a razorling at all. I¡¯m a white mage.¡±

    ¡°Oh, very important role in a squad. No Rome, you never want to fight a monster. Just be sure to cure the one who¡¯s in the thick of battle. We need more white magic in our community. We can only make weak potions and have to trade with those self righteous elves for better potions. Forget all I said about cave difficulty and levels. Learn analyze, and if you and your friends see a level seven cave you¡¯re probably okay attacking it.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think we¡¯ll be attacking any caves soon, but that¡¯s good to know. I¡¯m going to stop by Small Hammer on my way. Is there anything you want me to tell Baybil?¡±

    ¡°Torger¡¯s the mayor, so it¡¯s not my place to say, but I think our villages should join together and share this mine. We¡¯d both be stronger and more secure. I hope you make it to your own planet, but if not I look forward to seeing you.¡±This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    Rome left and headed for Cajon Pass, happy for the dirt path leading there. As he walked he realized just how weak he was. He needed Analyze 1. He needed Cure 1. He needed Heal 1. And he needed twenty more more mana to just teleport to Small Hammer. He had no weapon and no armor. Just a mage¡¯s cloak. He looked in the corner of his vision to see his Stats even though he knew what they were, but he saw Notoriety/Quests. It had never been flashing for him before so he checked on it.

    Convince Torger to unite the villages of Small Hammer and Calico.

    Reward: 2% of all silver ore Strong Arm gets from the mines at Calico.

    600 exp.

    That¡¯s a hefty reward! Rome picked up his pace wanting to complete this quest quickly. As he was walking he saw a roc fly overhead. It spotted him and circled high in the sky. He looked around and saw he had nowhere to run. He had no way of defending himself and no weapon. He kept walking and watching it. It circled a few more times then dove down about a mile ahead of where he was. A few seconds later it flew into the air carrying a coyote. He was going to walk right to where that coyote was! The roc unknowingly just saved his life. He looked ahead and saw two other coyotes running for the hills away from the path. He was lucky and he knew it. According to Strong Arm he was at level nine, but Rome doubted he could kill a level nine coyote. During the summer the dwarves told them that all the beasts the tyters had brought to Nuva were getting stronger and gaining levels as they killed each other. That thought made him even more discouraged.

    He slept under a group of trees in the foothills that night, not wanting to be spotted from above. Nothing happened and in the morning he started walking towards Small Hammer.

    Chapter 6

    Training

    Graul was raising his voice as the conversation degenerated. ¡°I don¡¯t care Arden, there has to be something easier around here. But we should start making another raft and wait for Rome to return. This time we¡¯ll put high sides on it.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a waste of time and boring. Come on guys, who¡¯s with me? We can kill some of those river monsters. I know we can, because we already have.¡±

    ¡°Arden, Torger¡¯s the leader, we follow him. If he says we look for something easier, then that¡¯s it.¡±

    ¡°No Graul, Torger is the leader of Calico. Out here it¡¯s a democracy. Remember that¡¯s what we agreed to?¡±

    Torger said ¡°You¡¯re right Arden. We did agree to have a democracy outside of one of our properties. Who says we fight the river snakes and who says we look for something else? I vote we build a raft.¡±

    The other four of them voted to find something else, Arden was alone. But he was content handling things with a simple majority vote and didn¡¯t argue anymore.

    ¡°I say we go get that six foot tall rabbit,¡± offered Jex.

    ¡°That sounds like a good idea. That shouldn¡¯t be too hard.¡± Brun was glad the mood was calming down, and noticed Antic never said a word. Brun felt useless as he looked at his partially formed hand. It had halfway regenerated over night and had a three inch span. He could still cast Fire 1 or Ice 1 with his left hand, but couldn¡¯t hold a sword or weapon with his right.

    They went inland twenty miles to Kellogg Hill, having slept for a night along the way, and found the massive rabbit hole. Brun got volunteered to go in first and have Fire 2 ready. He walked in and looked and listened for any movement. He saw nothing but heard a distant scratching sound. He took a few more steps and then it was too dark to make out anything clearly. He told them they would need torches.

    Graul suggested trying to flush them out with smoke like they did with the billiks. They gathered dry brush and placed it twenty feet in from the cave mouth and lit it on fire. They waited for a half hour but nothing happened. Finally Antic saw smoke coming out of another hole a mile away. They argued for a while trying to figure out how to get light in the cave. Sticks covered with lard had been the only thing they could use for light, and that didn¡¯t last long and the smoke would burn their eyes. They tried it anyways and the result was disastrous as all they accomplished was to blind and choke themselves. Finally they agreed to go hunt the river snakes like Arden had suggested in the first place.

    It was nearly dark by the time they made it back to camp. It had been four days since the failed raft attempt. They ate a deer Jex had killed and set a watch for the night. It had been a wasted three day trip. The next morning they went to the river. The water had receded and was now about four inches deep. Torger and Graul approached the bank cautiously, with sword in one hand and water skin in the other. Torger stooped down to fill the skin when Antic yelled ¡°Look out!¡±

    Torger stood up as quickly as he could, while Graul struck a river snake in the head with his sword. Jex shot another with an ice arrow. Just like the razorlings, ice seemed to slow these reptiles down. She said ¡°Brun, this time don¡¯t use fire.¡±

    Arden and Antic ran forward and Brun felt useless as he watched his friends battle, wishing he could join in. He cast Ice 1 four times, thankful that two nights of sleep had fully reformed his hand.

    There were four of the monsters, and each of the melee fighters were attacking a separate beast. Jex kept shooting them as openings appeared. Each one had an ice arrow in it and they were moving more slowly. Torger stepped around the side of his and drove the steel sword in its neck, up to the hilt. At the same time he heard Arden grunt. Torger¡¯s beast tried to turn and bite him so he had to let go of his sword and back away. He didn¡¯t know how to get his sword back from the dying creature, but eventually it died. Torger grabbed his sword and pulled it from the creature¡¯s neck. He turned to look at Arden and saw him holding his goblin copper sword with both hands, one at each end, with the middle going sideways in the monster¡¯s mouth. Torger ran over to it and drove his sword through its skull.

    Graul and Antic were having a tough time. Graul¡¯s flame sword countered Jex¡¯s ice arrow when he hit it, so the beast was back to moving at normal speed. Antic kept lightly jabbing his monster in the face to keep it at bay, but not really doing any damage. Irritated with Antic, Torger yelled ¡°You¡¯re supposed to be good with spears. Thrust that thing.¡±

    Antic backed up a step, waited for the beast to attack again, and gave a little more power to his thrust. The billik leg at the end sunk in a few inches and the reptile flinched and stepped back to get the sharp leg out of his mouth. By the time Antic was prepared to thrust again, Torger and Arden were there. Torger waited until it was fully focused on Antic, and Antic again gave a half hearted thrust to its face. Torger used the distraction to pick his sword up over his head and swing down in a mighty blow. It completely chopped off the head. He glared at Antic then went to help Graul.

    Brun had used the last of his mana on an Ice 1 spell against Graul¡¯s enemy. He was right to do it because Jex¡¯s ice arrow had no effect once Graul had struck it with his flame sword. Graul saw Torger approaching from the side and moved over so that Torger could attack it from behind.

    Torger raised his sword high, pointed straight at the ground, and drove it through the tail and into the ground, all the way to the hilt. It tried to turn to bite him but he easily backed away, abandoning his sword. Graul positioned his sword to drive it through the face, but Torger told him not to.

    Torger looked at Antic and yelled ¡°Get over here!¡± and pointed to the ground in front of the pinned creature. Antic timidly walked up. ¡°You have the highest health and strength of all of us, and can gain levels using a spear quicker than the rest of us. We work as a team when fighting, and you need to join in. I know you¡¯re afraid of getting bit, we all are, but you are going to stop endangering the rest of us with those weak little jabs. Now stand in front of that thing and thrust the spear down its throat as far as you can! You will learn how to use it!¡±

    Antic looked to the others for help, but saw on their faces they agreed with Torger. Antic planted his feet, slightly confident that the creature¡¯s tail being pinned was keeping him relatively safe. He pulled the spear back along his side and thrust it forward harder than he ever had, but with only about half of his strength. The spear went in about seven inches and the creature thrashed and writhed in pain. During the squirming Torger¡¯s sword dislodged from the soft mud. It stepped forward to bite Antic. Before it could reach him, Antic held his spear in his typical defensive position ready to lightly poke it in the face to keep it at bay. Graul and Arden each thrust their sword into its side, and it thrashed a little more before dying.

    Torger looked at Antic with furiousness boiling in him. He opened his mouth to say something, closed it, then grabbed his sword and said ¡°Let¡¯s just get water and camp.¡±

    Jex and Arden went hunting, Brun and Antic strained and boiled the water, and Torger and Graul sharpened their swords. Everyone knew Torger was beyond pissed off at Antic and they couldn¡¯t blame him. Finally Brun couldn¡¯t stand the awkward silence anymore.

    ¡°Torger, what do you want Antic to say or do?¡±

    Torger kept looking at his sword and sharpening it. ¡°First Antic, find out what those things are called. Look up your experience and the sub category beasts.¡±

    After a minute Antic said ¡°They¡¯re called black simmets, I guess because their scales are black. It looks like we¡¯re getting about eighty experience points each from each black simmet we kill. We¡¯re more than half way to getting another ability point.¡±

    ¡°OK, I want you to drag one of those simmets up here. Then I want you to stab it with your spear until you have completely pierced it all the way through. I want you to do that three times. You need to know how much force it takes to shove your spear all the way through it.¡±

    Torger never looked up, but knew Brun and Graul had gone with him to the river. When they got back they dragged it to in front of Torger. He finally looked up. ¡°Go ahead Antic.¡±

    ¡°OK, but first we should cut it in half.¡±

    Torger was irritated when he asked why.

    ¡°It just seems like there might be something useful inside its stomach.¡±

    Torger handed Antic his sword. ¡°You do it. Swing it like a man.¡±

    Antic brought the sword to the simmet and picked it up shoulder height and swung down, again with half his strength. The sword went a couple inches in. He looked at Torger who was holding his face in both his palms and shaking his head. Antic pulled the sword out and swung much harder, but missed the previous cut. This time the sword went half way through.

    ¡°That¡¯s it! That¡¯s how hard I have to swing in battle. Any harder and I would overextend and lose my balance. Hit it again.¡±

    Antic picked up the sword to shoulder height again and swung just as hard. He again missed both previous cuts, the sword going half way through. On his next swing he hit a previous cut and the simmet split in half. A horribly foul odor came out of rotten flesh, but Antic used the sword to dig around inside. After a few seconds he reached his hand in and pulled out a silver coin with a goblin face on it.

    Brun looked at Antic and asked ¡°How did you know that was there?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Sometimes I¡¯ll see a glow, like an aura, on a dead beast¡¯s body. So far it¡¯s always been something Baybil would buy.¡±

    Torger genuinely congratulated him for cutting it in two, and for finding treasure so many times. But he still insisted Antic learn how to drive a spear all the way through the simmet. Antic picked up his spear and went to its face. He planted his feet, got the spear ready at his side, and thrust forward. Just like in the battle the billik leg went about seven inches into the mouth. He looked ashamedly at Torger and tried again. This time he leaned forward a little instead of back as he thrust, but didn¡¯t use any more strength. That made a huge difference. The billik leg went in about twice as far.

    Torger exclaimed ¡°That¡¯s it! You need to lean in to the thrust, not away from the creature as you¡¯re attacking. Do that two more times.¡±

    Antic tried again, using half his strength to not become off balance, and leaning slightly forward as he thrust. It produced the same acceptable result. His next attempt he was full of confidence. He put most of his strength and weight into the thrust. The spear went all the way through the mouth and stuck out through the stomach he had cut open. But he also overextended and fell on to the beast, getting gore all over his shirt. Graul laughed but Torger told him that was unacceptable. Go back to slightly leaning forward. Antic wanted to wash up but instead used all his strength to try to pull the spear out. As he pulled, the billik leg broke and he pulled out an oak pole with a nub tied to the end of it.

    Torger told him to go wash up. The others went with him. Torger used his sword and carved three more poles, but out of a weaker birch wood. Then he went into Graul¡¯s back pack and pulled out their last four billik legs. He used the last of the rope left over from making the raft and unwound it, then tied a leg to each pole. Before he was done, everyone had returned. He handed them to Antic.

    ¡°These poles are weaker than the oak pole. Use the oak one first, but if that leg breaks in battle, switch to one of these. They¡¯re much shorter so they are easier for you to carry around, but you¡¯ll also have to get closer to the simmets to use these birch ones. Attack them from the back side with these, they could bite you if they see you on their side. Now practice attacking it from the back.¡±

    Antic grabbed a shorter birch spear and walked up behind the dead creature. He stabbed it in the tail with a downward thrust.

    ¡°That won¡¯t do you any good. Aim for the legs.¡±

    Antic thrust the spear at a back leg. It easily went all the way through.

    ¡°OK, that¡¯s good, but go back to your old jabbing technique. With the spear embedded in its leg, it could rip it out of your hands. Jab and back up as quickly as possible.¡±

    Antic did just that. A quick jab that almost went through the leg and a quick step back with a firm pull back on the spear. It took less than a second.

    ¡°Perfect. Guys, I think tomorrow we¡¯re going to do a much better job of killing river monsters.¡±

    Arden was impressed by what he saw from Antic. He asked to use a birch spear. He thrust it at a back leg and retreated, not gracefully, but decent. He tried again with better success. ¡°Antic, could I try to use this tomorrow? We all know I suck with a sword, this feels a little better to me.¡±

    Torger and Graul began cutting and whittling more birch poles, and as they worked Torger asked ¡°Antic, when we first got here, you were rushing into the battles with us and swinging a sword a coyotes, but after the first month you¡¯ve been getting less and less involved in battles. What gives?¡±

    Antic looked at his feet. ¡°I hate pain. And dying. I wish I was an archer like Jex, away from the battle but still contributing in relative safety. The more damage I take, the more I hate these battles.¡±

    Torger answered ¡°Any of us could use any weapon, but that tyter ability boost bed gave you a twenty-five percent learning increase for spears. That¡¯s a huge advantage, and for the good of the team we need you to be the best spearman you can be.¡±

    Antic didn¡¯t answer, but the others encouraged him to be a team player. He finally agreed and of his own accord dragged the other three simmets up from the river bank and spent an hour working with Arden to figure out how best to thrust and block with the short birch poles.

 Change of plan

    Chapter 7

    Change of Plan

    In the morning Graul led the way up the river bank, with Antic behind him and Torger as rear guard. It wasn¡¯t long before Antic spotted a simmet half buried in the mud. He pointed it out and Jex shot it with an ice arrow. It hissed and three others emerged from the mud. Graul ran to face one, Torger another, and Antic another. Arden kept trying to run around to the back of one, but it kept turning in circles. He needed Antic to keep it at bay. He saw him not far away, then ran and stabbed the simmet in the back leg. It turned to bite him, giving Antic a clear shot. He thrust his spear through its exposed neck, leaning forward a little, but his adrenaline was up and he thrust too hard.

    The spear went all the way through, and the simmet jerked involuntarily, wrenching the only oak spear out of Antic¡¯s hands. At the same time Arden had to turn and face the simmet he was trying to get away from. Brun cast Fire 2 at the nearly dead simmet Antic had stabbed, and a few seconds later it bled to death. Antic had to abandon his oak spear to go help Arden. They both kept trying to get around to the back of it, but finally Antic had to man up and keep it focused on him in the front, with a few jabs to the face. That let Arden stab it in the back legs over and over again. It had a snake tail, not an alligator tail, so he didn¡¯t have to worry about it knocking him down. Simmets also had snake heads and necks, with alligator bodies and teeth.

    Jex kept alternating her shots between the simmet attacking Graul and the one Torger was attacking. Torger eventually beat his opponent with a stab through an eye, then helped Graul. Jex switched over to help Antic and Arden. When Torger and Graul got there its back legs were a mess that looked like ground beef, and its sides had about twenty arrows in it. Brun cast Ice 1 then Graul finished it. Antic pointed at one; he could see a glow around its stomach. They dragged it back to camp and he cut it open with Torger¡¯s sword. It had a small but clear ruby in it.

    ¡°That must have been on one of the goblins it ate. Good job Antic.¡±

    Like the ones from the day before, they dragged it to the ocean and threw it in. Standing on the sand they felt the cold wind and saw more storm clouds coming in. The next day they killed four more simmets, with it raining and the river higher. They had to lure the beasts onto the banks to fight them, but it worked out.

    The next day they killed four more, again with some rain but not as intense. Overall they collected four silver coins and six copper coins, along with twenty snake teeth. As they were wet and shivering and cooking dinner, they saw some dwarves approaching in the distance. Torger and Graul told the others to stay back, but be ready for anything. They walked up to these dwarves and saw they were wearing different clothing than they had seen anywhere else. They had thick furs on and huge feathers sewn into the furs. When they were fifty yards away Torger held his hands above his head and said ¡°Greetings!¡±

    The lead one called back ¡°Hello. We come in peace. We are looking for dwarves to trade with.¡±

    ¡°Then please come near. I would like to talk about business with you.¡±

    Once they arrived, the dwarf in charge said ¡°We usually only trade with dwarves, but might have something you want.¡±

    As they came closer Torger could see they were well armed travelling merchants. The one that had spoken seemed to be in charge, with four heavily armed and dangerous looking dwarves, and two dwarves that had huge duffel bags on their backs. The one in charge said ¡°Call me Treluge. Could we warm ourselves by your fire?¡±

    ¡°Sure come on over.¡± Torger and Graul turned their backs on them, tense in case they were attacked from behind, but trusted their friends to help out if needed. They sat around the fire, the two baggage carriers unloading their burdens but the four warriors kept their hands on their axes.

    Graul began the conversation with ¡°I¡¯m sorry we don¡¯t have much to offer you. We didn¡¯t expect to be here long. Where did you come from?¡±

    ¡°After the last terra form, we found ourselves in mountains that had a lot of coal, far to the east. We¡¯ve been walking and trading to the west for a year, and now we finally see there is an ocean.¡±

    ¡°It sounds like you started in the Appalachians. That is a long walk. Have you seen many dwarf villages on the way?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you mean by apple lotions. I don¡¯t have that to sell you. No dwarf has ever asked me for apple lotion before. Maybe this translate isn¡¯t working right. Something¡¯s screwy with the tyters. We¡¯ve seen and heard of all kinds of tyter prey here, and here you are, even more of their prey.¡±

    Graul laughed. ¡°First, I didn¡¯t say apple lotions. The mountains where you started is a place called Appalachians. This land was terra formed to be like our planet; we¡¯re the original intended prey. The tyters¡¯ system malfunctioned and brought creatures from all of their prey planets here. I don¡¯t understand it, but that¡¯s what we think happened. If you want I could draw you a map of this world. Of course it wouldn¡¯t be very detailed, but it would be accurate.¡±

    ¡°That is something I could use, but how do I know if it¡¯s right?¡±

    Torger realized the merchant expected to pay for the map. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you what. I will draw what you have seen from where you started to here. You¡¯ll see I¡¯m right, then I could draw you what I know of the rest of the world.¡±

    ¡°Sounds reasonable. What¡¯s your price?¡±

    ¡°I really need two things, a magic back pack, and another tent.¡±

    ¡°A little steep. What else have you got?¡±

    Torger reached into his shredded and no-longer-magical back pack and pulled out the copper swords and coins they found on the goblin bodies in the river.

    ¡°Copper? You really are poor aren¡¯t you? I guess it¡¯s a deal.¡±

    The merchant gave Torger parchment and a sharpened piece of coal. Torger consulted with his friends and they drew an outline of America. He drew the Appalachians, Mississippi River, Rocky Mountains, and Colorado River. He showed it to the merchant who was satisfied Torger knew what he was doing. They added the badlands, crops of the plains in the heartland, deserts of the southwest, Snake River and forests of the northwest, swamps of Florida, then Yellowstone and Yosemite. On another parchment Jex drew an outline of the Americas. They thought it would be a waste of time to tell the dwarves about the other continents since they would never go there anyways. Since they were all from California, the southwest had the most details, and explained that to Treluge, who accepted it. Once he was satisfied they told him everything about the land, one of the bag carriers opened up the duffle bag and pulled out a large dwarf tent and magic back pack.

    Torger was relieved they were back to two tents. Every night they had to take turns sleeping outside. And the tent easily fit into the magic back pack with room to spare.

    ¡°That was a good trade for both of us Treluge. I see you are a fair and honest dwarf. Do you happen to have ice arrows? We¡¯re running low.¡±

    ¡°Sure, how many do you want?¡±

    ¡°About fifty.¡±

    The dwarf guards stiffened. ¡°Fifty? You¡¯re hunting something around here weak against ice huh? I don¡¯t know what else you have for trade, but in coin that would be three gold pieces.¡±

    ¡°Three gold!¡± Torger knew he blew it. He gave away that they needed the ice arrows badly and of course the professional merchant caught on. Arden whispered in Torger¡¯s ear. Torger told Treluge ¡°I am afraid I¡¯m being a bad host to our guests. Treluge, would you mind finishing this transaction with my friend Arden? I would like to talk about pleasant topics with your acquaintances.¡±

    Treluge took two guards with him, and left two with the inventory. Torger whispered instructions into Arden¡¯s ear and slipped him the small ruby.

    The conversation between the dwarves and humans kept sputtering as they were nervously awaiting the results of the trade. Graul found out the giant duffle bags were actually high capacity magic storage bags, they could fit twenty times the stuff into the space with only one tenth the weight. The bag carriers put most of their ability points into strength and stamina, allowing them to carry the full duffle bags for long distances. Finally Arden came back and sat next to Torger. Treluge said ¡°Your friend is a tough negotiator. It was smart of you to have him handle this trade.¡±

    He told his dwarves to get thirty ice arrows, a wood staff for Brun, an iron shield for Graul, and iron armor for Antic and Arden. The armor was too small of course, being made for dwarves, but they were given extra iron and leather straps so once they got to a blacksmith they would be fully outfitted. He held out his hand to Arden, who told Torger he needed to give up the four silver coins from the simmets. Torger paid up and the dwarves left, heading straight toward Small Hammer, the directions to the dwarf village also part of the trade.

    They slept much better that night, with everyone in a tent, and were ready for more hunting in the morning. Arden and Antic had greaves and bracers on from the trade, though they were too small. But it made them a little less afraid of getting bit with two rows of curved snake like alligator teeth.

    While hunting the simmets the next day, Antic and Arden worked out a system of attacking from both sides, and Jex used more arrows than she had before. The result was they had enough energy left to go find another group of four simmets.

    At the end of the day they all had gained an ability point and were a couple hundred experience points towards the next one. This went on for the next two days. Then as they were walking along the bank they saw another group of four. But these were in the exact same spot as the first time they got attacked, when Graul wasn¡¯t there and Torger had lost his sword. They killed the simmets easily enough, but they had no coins or jewels inside. With every other group of four, one of them had a coin or two in its stomach. The next day they found four at the same spot they killed simmets on their second day hunting them. The simmets were respawning in the same place they had died a week earlier, but none had treasure. No one knew what to make of it until Graul remembered hearing from Baybil that the natural deer, rabbits, and coyotes of the area respawned after one week. That might have meant the simmets weren¡¯t prey for the tyters, they were native to Nuva. But they still had no way of knowing which monsters were native and which were tyter prey.

    After another week, they were cooking dinner in the rain, the two tents keeping them dry, and Brun pointed down the hill. Rome was walking up and looking happy. ¡°Rome how are you? We¡¯ve missed you. Are you hungry? Tell us what happened on the raft. What was it like getting eaten by an octopus? What are you carrying?¡±

    Rome was flooded with these questions before he even made it to the top of the hill. ¡°Have I got a lot to share with you guys. First, give me some food and water, I haven¡¯t eaten in two days.¡±

    Rome finished his rabbit meat with delight, while everyone else was sick of it. They were considering killing a possum, squirrel, or skunk just to have something different. When Rome was full and well hydrated, he continued.

    ¡°I made it to Catalina.¡± Shouts and questions filled the otherwise peaceful quiet. ¡°Whoa calm down, no questions, let me finish. There is a tyter entrance and exit building there. It seems like it¡¯s used for them to transport to and from orbiting space ships, but that¡¯s just a guess. It wouldn¡¯t let me or any of them teleport to another world because it¡¯s broken. But it did give me three spells! Teleport one, two, and three! I didn¡¯t die! I teleported to Lake Silverwood.¡±

    There were cheers all around and they asked him how it worked. ¡°With teleport one, I can return from anywhere to my respawn point. Teleport two allows me to teleport to any ally village, and teleport three allows me to send any five friends to any ally village. But I don¡¯t have enough mana for teleport two, and I¡¯ll probably never have enough for three.Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    ¡°I went to Lake Silverwood because Calico was destroyed in the earthquake. Stone Fist is rebuilding the aqueduct and Strong Arm is rebuilding Calico, but razorlings have taken over the mines again. On my way here I stopped by to see Baybil. I traded for this.¡±

    Rome held out a silver staff. He said ¡°Brun, we should trade staffs for now. I still don¡¯t have any useful magic.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the difference?¡±

    ¡°Your wood staff makes your spells ten percent stronger. This silver staff makes them fifty percent stronger.¡±

    Torger said ¡°There were some fierce looking dwarves, merchants, heading that way. Did you see them?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I hid when I saw them, and I don¡¯t think they saw me. Now that we know Catalina was a bust, what¡¯s next?¡±

    Antic responded ¡°Let¡¯s all sleep on it. But first, what did you trade?¡±

    ¡°An octopus arm and head, along with my wood staff, cloak, magic satchel, and the village silver that was mined after we left, which was a couple pounds of ore.¡±

    Torger said ¡°I hope that silver staff pays for itself, maybe Arden should handle all our trading now.¡± Torger didn¡¯t think Rome had made a good trade, but he didn¡¯t realize the power of a better staff in a mage¡¯s hand.

    Chapter 8

    Protection

    In the morning they were sitting around a fire. Torger said ¡°Alright, let¡¯s hear some ideas. Since Catalina won¡¯t get us home like we hoped, what do we need to do?¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go after the potions icon in Havasu. The bed icon gave us magic, and the green ball gave Rome teleport spells. The potions have to be good.¡±

    ¡°I think we need to go after the grenade in Yosemite. We need some superior weapons.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go kick some goblin ass. I¡¯m still pissed off about being a slave.¡±

    Rome spoke. ¡°All good ideas, but I think we should go secure Calico. We need the money and then can buy better weapons and some potions. Besides Torger, you¡¯re still their mayor and they did rescue you from slavery.¡±

    Torger and Graul agreed they had a debt to pay. They voted and ¡°go to Calico¡± won with three votes out of the seven. They stopped by the river to kill some more simmets and Rome was very impressed how they learned to work as a team. He could see his usefulness with cure spells being a big advantage to the team. But he stood there and watched them fight.

    After they quickly killed another four simmets, Rome asked ¡°How much experience have you guys gained from killing these things? You all look stronger and more agile in combat.¡±

    Antic checked his Experience. ¡°That just gave us another ability point.¡±

    Rome watched as they all grew a half inch taller and got slightly larger muscles. Antic looked pleased with himself. He answered ¡°That was the fourth ability point we gained from killing these things. Each time we invested it into more strength. The thinking was we would need a lot of strength to row out to Catalina. My strength is now fourteen. Arden has the lowest with nine. Sorry Rome, but you really missed out these last two weeks.¡±

    It was true. Rome¡¯s strength was seven. He was a little bothered by being the physically weakest, but the teleport spells made up for it.

    After they rested they headed inland. The next day they looked in the giant rabbit hole at Kellogg hill but saw nothing. It would be a waste of time to follow an underground cave made by a huge rabbit. A couple days later they came to Small Hammer. Baybil came out to greet them as usual.

    ¡°Torger my friend, come in. I want to thank you for sending the merchant here. We had many good trades. I was so pleased I sent him to Calico to trade there.¡±

    ¡°Baybil, they¡¯re on the way to Calico? They seem like honest merchants, but Calico is unguarded. They could take over the mines.¡±

    ¡°Really? Rome didn¡¯t tell me that when he was here. Otherwise I would have sent them another direction. They may be honest merchants, but if a group of dwarves see a mine for the taking, honesty gets slippery. You need to hurry.¡±

    Rome stepped up. ¡°Torger it¡¯s not completely unguarded. Strong Arm and some dwarves are there rebuilding. But more help would be good. Baybil, Small Hammer is a nice little village here, but what if you joined up with Calico? Both villages would be stronger for it and you¡¯re both from the Cucamonga tribe. Of course that¡¯s Torger¡¯s decision to make, but maybe you should talk about it mayor to mayor.¡±

    Everyone looked at Rome with expressions from shock to anger for bringing that up without speaking about it within the group first, but he didn¡¯t care. He wanted to complete his quest from Strong Arm. Baybil and Torger went into Baybil¡¯s cave, while the others went to the blacksmith. They gave him the money they got from the simmets and the iron armor they got from Treluge. He saw the forty two silver coins they offered and happily told them he could have the armor enlarged to fit them by noon the next day.

    A few hours later Torger and Baybil came out of the cave and Torger announced ¡°We have come to an agreement. Our villages will merge. Baybil¡¯s dwarves will move to Calico and help rebuild it, but are not allowed to mine for silver. They can open their own businesses and pay the same ten percent tax as the dwarves that are in Calico. This will last until my term as mayor is ended in June.¡±

    Rome couldn¡¯t hold back his smile. His eyes crossed as he looked at his quests and saw it was complete. He received 600 exp, which gave him one ability point, and he could look forward to 2% of all the silver ore Strong Arm gets.

    That night Baybil held a big feast to tell his villagers. Most of them seemed to like the idea, but a few liked the fresh water of San Antonio Falls in the cool mountains. None of them wanted to live in a hot desert, but there was strength in numbers.

    It took Small Hammer a couple of days to get packed, and ironically the dirt path from Calico to Small Hammer was finished that same day. Four days after that they entered Calico. The little village just nearly doubled its population from forty-five to seventy-three. Torger saw that all his villagers were there and looking afraid. He found Strong Arm and asked what was wrong.

    ¡°First, the elves kicked us off the mountain. They said we were allowed to be there until the first rain. We weren¡¯t prepared for all the dwarves to return yet. You can see we don¡¯t have one building finished yet. Then last week some powerful merchant comes here and wants to trade. We do some trading and everything goes fine, but he sees it isn¡¯t a proper village. He claims the mines for himself. We weren¡¯t prepared to fight him and had to let him and his crew go into the mines. We haven¡¯t seen them since.¡±

    That was a lot for Torger to take in all at once. ¡®OK, we¡¯ll go look in the mines and see what¡¯s going on. For now let these dwarves from Small Hammer set up their tents, and have someone show them around. They are instructed to help rebuild Calico, but won¡¯t start on that until tomorrow.¡±

    Strong Arm smiled at the news of the merger and said ¡°Stone Fist is going to love that. He¡¯s almost done with the aqueduct, then needs to build a lot of buildings. We¡¯ve been short handed since moving here. But be warned, not everyone¡¯s going to like it.¡±

    The humans started going towards the mines, but Rome stayed back. ¡°Strong Arm, I¡¯ve now got one ability point. Do you think I should be saving for cure one or analyze one?¡±

    ¡°You should ask Torger, but my advice is you want to know and see what you¡¯re fighting.¡±

    Rome thanked him for the advice and ran to catch up with the others. They came to the first mine, which was one of the ones that didn¡¯t collapse in the earthquake. They walked in a few feet and five razorlings ran at them. Torger and Graul each took on one, Torger blocking attacks with his long sword and Graul blocking with his shield and countering with his flame sword. Even Antic thrust his spear into the face of one, sinking in a few inches then withdrawing it.

    But the other two razorlings saw Arden looking unsteady with his short spear. The tunnel was congested and they couldn¡¯t get to him but tried crawling over the other three. Rome saw all that was going on and called for them to not back up. He knew if they did, the razorlings could flank them all. Jex released an arrow every time there was a clear opening, which wasn¡¯t very often. She mostly saw the backs of Graul, Torger and Antic taking up the full width of the tunnel. But her excellent shots eventually landed one ice arrow in each beast, slowing them down a little. Frustrated she couldn¡¯t get in any more arrows she cast Ice 1 at the razorling that Torger was battling, then Ice 1 at the one Antic was trying to keep at bay. Those two slowed down a little more, which gave Torger the chance to stab his sword into the head of his opponent. It went through the brain, the razorling convulsed and died as Torger readied himself to fight the next one climbing over its dead companion.

    Graul¡¯s flame sword countered the slowing of the ice arrow Jex had shot, and Graul was left mostly blocking with his new iron shield. Without it, he would have already died. Antic was slowly giving ground, and would soon back into his friends. Suddenly the razorling he was fighting got frostbite all over its front right leg. Antic looked back and saw Brun readying another Ice 1 spell. Antic faced his opponent again and a second later the other front leg got frostbite. Antic took the opportunity to thrust his spear forward with half his strength, leaning slightly forward into it like he did with the simmets. The spear went into the face about a foot, but the razorling didn¡¯t die. It backed up in pain, but Antic stepped forward and pushed the spear in a little farther. It still didn¡¯t die. Antic withdrew the spear, thankful it didn¡¯t break.

    Brun cast Ice 1 twice at the unattended razorling, slowing its speed significantly. Arden ran ahead and helped Antic kill the badly wounded razorling, and as it was dying they heard Graul yell in pain. His razorling had finally got a claw around the round shield and deeply cut his forearm. He dropped the shield as his left hand hung limp and useless. He used his right hand to swing down onto the beast¡¯s head, splitting the skull, but in its last bit of strength it used a claw and tore into Graul¡¯s leg. He collapsed on the floor and Arden sunk his short spear into it, finally killing it.

    With Graul down that gave Jex the chance to shoot two arrows into the razorling with two frost bitten front legs. They were now normal iron arrowheads because she spent most of the ice arrows while fighting the simmets. After an Ice arrow was used, it lost its magical property but remained as a normal arrow. Even after getting hit with two more arrows, the lizard was still able to get to Torger and bite his right arm. He held the two handed steel sword with his left hand and weakly swung it at the razorling biting him. The sword cut into a bad front leg, but that did nothing to get it off him. That did give the other razorling the chance to bite his other arm. Torger collapsed under the weight, completely helpless, but Jex had clear shots at both to shoot arrows as fast as she could.

    Antic drove his spear all the way through the side of the razorling he and Arden were fighting. It squirmed and Arden stabbed it in the face with his short spear. They went over and both stabbed one of the lizards in the side. It finally released its grip on Torger¡¯s arm, and tried to bite Antic, but he stabbed it through the face. It died then Antic drove his spear through the last one that was peppered with arrows.

    It died and the four men helped Torger and Graul to their feet, while Jex ran to the village for help. When they finally got there, the brothers had lost a lot of blood. There were four dwarves that knew the spell Cure 1. They each cast it once on each brother. The result of receiving four Cure 1 spells each was that the bleeding slowed to a trickle. They were taken to their tent and Jex and Rome helped them remove their leather armor then lay down.

    Brun, Antic, and Arden searched and found Hastaff the dwarf that made the iron armor for them, which they had bought from Treluge the trader.

    ¡°What the hell is this? You ripped us off!¡± Arden was furious as he held up Graul¡¯s iron bracer that had four claw scratches going all the way through the iron.

    ¡°No I didn¡¯t! Razorling claws will go through iron if there¡¯s enough force behind it. Everyone knows that.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think so. I think this is shoddy work.¡±

    ¡°Fine. Let¡¯s go ask Strong Arm. You can hear from him iron isn¡¯t good enough against razorlings.¡±

    They walked to the half way rebuilt private house. Six dwarves were working on it with Strong Arm standing on the ground shouting instructions. Arden walked up behind him and said ¡°Strong Arm we need your professional opinion. This hack gave us bad armor and said it¡¯s not his fault. But look at this!¡±

    Strong Arm took the bracer and examined the iron and gouges going all the way through it. He saw the blood on the inside and said ¡°Everyone knows not to fight grown razorlings with iron armor. This is about average workmanship for iron, maybe slightly low but not bad. Whose is it?¡±

    Arden looked at him in shock. ¡°You mean a razorling claw is stronger than iron? I had no way of knowing that. Iron blocked them before when we fought them.¡± He looked at the other black smith. ¡°I guess I owe you an apology. But what do you suggest we do? We have to find out if the trader is stealing our silver in the mines.¡±

    ¡°You need steel armor against them. But I¡¯m not going to have a forge up and running soon, and neither is Strong Arm. If you¡¯re going to fight grown razorlings, you¡¯ll have to be more careful. I see you don¡¯t know what I mean by ¡°grown.¡¯ All prey that is brought to Nuva grows in strength. The tyters give them three years to get stronger, with the land conditions suitable for the prey to grow as strong as possible. I guess it makes their hunt more exciting or something. Didn¡¯t you notice the razorlings are now a little bigger, stronger, and quicker than they were when you first fought them? They¡¯ve been here for ten months now.¡±

    Brun said ¡°That really sucks. We needed to know that before the fight began. Torger might want you to shift your priority to building a smithy. But you¡¯ll have to talk to him about that. He and Graul are badly banged up right now.¡±

    They walked back to check on their friends. The four dwarves with Cure 1 had recovered enough mana to cast it again once each. Torger and Graul looked much better. Color had come back to their faces and the wounds were mostly closed.

    Brun looked at the healers and said ¡°Thank you. If we were in the wilderness, I don¡¯t think they would have made it.¡±

    They told him it was no problem, they¡¯ll charge Torger for their services later, and they left the tent. Brun and Arden walked in, and that was all that would fit. Torger looked at him and said ¡°Good thinking Brun. Your ice spells helped save us.¡±

    ¡°I saw you fighting, and remembered I had bought ice one, but had no idea it would be so powerful.¡± He looked at his new silver staff and the old cloak he was wearing. ¡°The staff really did amplify the effect. We found out iron won¡¯t hold up to razorling teeth and claws anymore, but if you want to try again tomorrow, I would like to keep casting ice one until I learn ice two. But of course that¡¯s your call.¡±

    ¡°Of course we¡¯re going again tomorrow, but with a different strategy. I¡¯ll think it over tonight.¡±

 Upgrades

    Chapter 9

    Upgrades

    In the morning Torger and Graul were fully recovered. Everyone ate breakfast and was pleased with seeing the dwarves hustling all over the village to get buildings up. Water carriers were going back and forth to the reservoir that Stone Fist and his crew finished the day before, and that crew began rebuilding Strong Arm¡¯s smithy. Dwarves from Small Hammer were building a smithy for their own blacksmith. Torger knew that competition was good. It would keep quality high and prices low. But he also knew Calico owed a lot of silver to all these dwarves for their work, including silver to the dwarves who had cured him and Graul.

    Several dwarves offered to help clear the mines, but Torger wanted the experience to go to the Regulators, so he declined their help. They bought more iron armor from Hastaff and Strong Arm, so that Graul, Torger, Antic and Arden were almost completely covered in iron armor, with Jex, Rome, and Brun covered in leather armor.

    They walked to the second mine, Torger missing both his bracers and Graul missing one bracer and one greave. They walked into the cave mouth a few feet and at least a dozen razorlings charged at them!

    ¡°Retreat! Run to the village!¡±

    They all turned and ran back to Calico screaming for help, barely staying ahead of the overgrown lizards. Some dwarves heard them when they came close and started shouting to other dwarves they were under attack. A couple minutes later The Regulators entered the village while dwarves armed with axes ran at the beasts. They held up shields and clashed with the lizards.

    Two were mages who cast shield spells in front of the warriors, blocking and shocking the razorlings. Other dwarves shot arrows at them. The regulators turned around and Jex and Brun cast Ice 1 twice, slowing down four of the fast moving reptiles.

    Jex took up her bow and the four melee men rushed forward with the dwarves. Antic and Arden thrust their spears into sides, and Torger and Graul sliced into razorling faces standing side by side with dwarves. Brun used the last of his mana to cast Ice 1 two more times. All thirteen lizards easily fell, with the citizens of Calico suffering minor scratches and bruises. Everyone was out of breath from the run, but Torger announced ¡°Thank you all who came to our aid. You can keep the razorling feet as your reward.¡±

    The dwarves looked stunned like he was joking, then cheered when they realized he wasn¡¯t. Everyone told battle stories for a while, but then Torger sent them back to work rebuilding Calico. Rome checked to see how much experience they got, and found they each earned 624 exp points from the battle. The six dwarves who joined the fight were very happy with also gaining the same experience. All the regulators were close to getting another ability point, but these razorlings were giving more experience than they had in the past, and they seemed bigger and faster too.

    The Regulators rested a while longer, talking it over, then went back to the mine. They walked in a few feet and three more razorlings charged at them. Brun cast Ice 1 three times, slowing them down, and Torger and Graul each took on one, with Antic and Arden pairing up to take on the third. Jex again shot arrows as clearings opened, and Rome stood in the back unable to contribute.

    Graul took out his victim first, with his flame sword going through the razorling¡¯s side of the head. Then he went and helped Antic and Arden. Torger kept swatting at the face of his target, waiting for help to arrive. Help came quickly and a minute later they cut off the feet. Everyone gained an ability point, just barely, and Torger insisted everyone buy Ice 1. Brun and Jex already had it so they saved their point and walked further inside.

    The dwarves had left torches in the walls, and Torger lit the first one. He carried it in his left hand, sword in the right hand. They walked a ways further, unchallenged, and found another torch. Rome carried that one. Near the end of the tunnel was another torch, but they saw seven razorlings huddled near a suspicious looking mound on the floor. The shadows didn¡¯t let Torger see what they were guarding. Whatever was on the floor became unimportant as they watched in bewilderment as a spirit rose up out of it.

    It had a face of sorts, with shredded rags hanging off it, but was all monochromatic shades of white and grey. It had bony hands, but no feet. It lifted a hand and pointed it at Torger. A grey stream shot out of its hand and went right through his chest plate. Torger felt complete panic and terror. He collapsed to the floor and curled up in a ball, pure fear running through his mind.

    Graul didn¡¯t know what was going on with his brother, but he bravely ran forward and sliced the spirit with his sword. The blade went clean through, but the blade flashed red and the spirit moaned as fire seemed to hurt it. He yelled ¡°Use magic!¡±

    He didn¡¯t need to, everyone else saw what happened. They all cast Fire 1 at it, except Jex and Rome who cast Ice 1 at the nearest razorling. The spirit moaned louder, and all the razorlings rushed forward. With only a second to prepare, they all cast their spell again. The spirit shrank in size, but they could see no physical damage.

    Graul, Antic, and Arden began stabbing the razorlings, creating a bottleneck like they had before so that only three of them could attack at once. Graul saw the spirit disappear, but was too engaged in combat to pay much attention. He heard Brun gasp in shock behind him, but Graul had to keep fighting the razorlings.

    The spirit had rematerialized behind the group, and cast an ice spell at Brun. Rome and Jex turned and saw it. Rome had nothing but the wood staff in his hand. He swung it and it connected hard. Unlike Graul¡¯s sword that went through it, the magical wood staff shattered but seemed to damage the spirit a lot. It disappeared again.

    Torger began to come out of his daze. He was still very afraid, but regained some muscle movement. Battle was all around him. He saw a razorling trying to claw its way through Graul¡¯s iron shield, and the beast was making progress. Antic and Arden were each keeping a monster lizard away from them with their spears, but not inflicting much damage. Torger got up on his hands and knees and saw an opportunity. Graul side stepped a claw swipe, and Torger was able to stab its foot. It hissed and backed up a step, into another razorling.

    The spirit appeared further down the mine. No one could see it so far away, and Rome was surprised when a grey stream hit him in the chest. He collapsed on the floor in fear and panic like Torger had. Jex shot an ice arrow at it. It went all the way through, but the ice seemed to hurt it a little. Brun had seen Rome¡¯s wood staff hurt it, so he ran forward and swung at it. Just before the staff connected, the spirit disappeared again. Brun and Jex looked all over, but didn¡¯t see it. The melee fighters kept battling the razorlings and Jex couldn¡¯t get in a clean shot, but ten seconds later Jex screamed and pointed behind Brun. It had appeared further towards the entrance, and was raising a bony hand to point at him.

    Torger finally managed to climb to his feet. The others had been in a purely defense mindset, without his steel sword and Jex¡¯s arrows to assist them. He yelled ¡°Antic and Arden, just hold them back. Keep the tunnel plugged and we¡¯ll kill one at a time.¡± He and Graul stabbed the razorling in front of them, and another one climbed on top of it. Antic and Arden kept lightly stabbing the other razorlings in the face. Torger and Graul swung their swords at the same time, and both buried into the razorling¡¯s skull, killing it instantly. Another razorling climbed on top of the first dead one, and had the elevation advantage. Torger and Graul backed up from its swipe of claws, and that allowed it to come down to the floor again. Another razorling climbed on top of the two dead ones and attacked Arden from the side. He had no choice but to retreat, and Antic had to fall back too.

    Brun couldn¡¯t duck in time. The stream of grey light flowed towards him and out of instinct he held the silver staff in front of him. The grey light flowed into the staff and it burned in his hands. Brun dropped it and a small crack ran up from the bottom to top. He looked up and saw another ice arrow flow through the spirit, again slightly damaging it. The spirit disappeared. Brun and Jex looked around, then she spotted it over the mound of stuff at the end of the tunnel. It was clearly guarding something.

    Jex yelled ¡°Come back to me!¡± Graul looked over his shoulder at her and saw they could regroup. He told the others to walk backwards. They did until they reached Rome, who was slowly standing up. Brun was feeling the silver staff to see if it was still hot. It was warm but he could hold it. He walked to the front and saw Torger drive his sword into the skull of another razorling. Three down four to go.

    From behind, Brun said ¡°If that spirit gets close, let me whack it with my staff. That will do the most damage.¡±

    Torger agreed, and they kept fighting the razorlings, but the spirit hovered over the mound. It seemed to be getting bigger. Not as big as it was at first, but somehow recovering. Graul saw that out of the corner of his eye and said ¡°Brun, once these razorlings are dead, hand me your staff immediately.¡± Graul blocked another bite attempt with his severely bent and gouged iron shield, and countered by shoving his flame sword into its mouth.

    Antic and Arden began to get a little more aggressive, and Antic was able to drive his spear deep into a razorling¡¯s mouth. But before it died it snapped its jaws one last time biting Antic¡¯s spear if half and taking his left hand with it. Antic screamed out, but no one could help him.

    Graul yelled ¡°Brun now!¡± He side stepped the razorling attacking Arden, drove his sword into its side, and turned to face Brun, all in one second. Brun handed him the cracked silver staff and Graul ran at the spirit.

    Brun wanted to join and ran after him.

    Torger drove his sword into the last razorling¡¯s skull. They were all dead except the spirit. Torger and the others watched as Graul took a mighty swing with the silver staff. The staff shattered in his hands, but the spirit moaned loudly. It disappeared in a flash of white light. When his vision cleared, Brun saw the silver staff had shattered like the wood staff.

    Rome carried the torch forward, closely followed by the others. They walked to the back of the tunnel and smelled rotting meat. When they made it to the mound at the very back, they saw claw marks scratching the dirt pile. Graul used his sword to cut a shallow trench in the dirt and the smell got worse. He cut it deeper and saw partially decomposed razorling green skin. Torger and Arden removed more dirt and found a badly sliced and broken razorling. They pulled it out and saw another one below it. When they pulled that one out, they saw a dwarf leg under the next one.

    Arden and Brun began dragging the dead razorling bodies out of the tunnel, and Torger and Graul pulled out a dead dwarf. Jex and Antic ran out of the mine and vomited, and Rome held the torch while trying not to gag. Torger and Graul pulled out another razorling and under it was Treluge, the trader that claimed the mines for himself. The disgusting work continued for a couple hours. Finally all the bodies and humans were out of the cave.Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

    It seemed the living razorlings had buried the dead razorlings and dwarves. The Regulators had all seven dwarves that were part of the traveling traders, and sixteen dead razorlings, all cut up with dwarf axes. It looked like it had been one hell of a battle, the four warriors presumably doing most of the killing of the sixteen razorlings before being overwhelmed. Just as important were the two duffle bags the trader¡¯s baggage carriers had. Torger reached in to one of the bags and pulled out a dwarf tent.

    Graul saw it and reached into the other bag and pulled out a dwarf axe. Next Torger removed a magic satchel and inside that were a few potions. Graul removed a bundle of billik legs. When all was said and done, they had a huge mound of sundries, weapons, and potions. But most impressive was the pouch Torger found on Treluge¡¯s corpse. It had fourteen gold coins, a hundred seventy-two silver coins, and about five hundred copper coins. They finally didn¡¯t have any more financial problems!

    Chapter 10

    The Desert Oasis

    They loaded everything into the duffel bags and carried them to Calico. Graul and Torger were straining under the weight by the time they made it. Those dwarves must have had very high strength and stamina levels. Torger and Graul placed the bags in front of the private residence, and the others went around the village gathering up all the dwarves.

    Once most of them were there and quiet, Torger addressed them. ¡°I have good news and bad news to share with you today. The bad news is some of your own kind, Treluge the trader and his company, have died trying to kill the razorlings in one of the mines. I don¡¯t know your customs, but if you wish to bury them you may come back to the mines with us in an hour. I am sorry for your loss, the loss of any dwarf.

    ¡°The good news is we have recovered all his belongings. We will be selling most of it by auction. Go to your tents and gather your coins, the auction will start in ten minutes.¡±

    Torger reached into a duffle bag and pulled out a dwarf tent to show them. A lot of talking erupted and questions were asked, but Torger ignored them and pulled out a goblin copper sword. Next he pulled out a dwarf battle axe. That got their attention. First a few left to get their silver ore, then a few more, then there was nearly a tiny stampede as dozens of three foot dwarves ran to their tents.

    Several minutes later Torger had all the merchandise spread out on the ground in front of him. He held up the first item, a bundle of roc feathers. ¡°We will start the bids at one copper each item. If you wish to raise the price of the bid, raise a feather in the air and wave it.¡±

    His friends gave each dwarf one feather. When they returned Torger held up a magic satchel. ¡°Who will give me one copper? You. Five. Ten. Fifteen.¡±

    He sold the satchel for one silver and eighty-six copper coins. Next he sold a tent for almost as much. He kept back the other tent for himself and the dwarves groaned. He sold goblin swords and armor, dried meats, breads, and fruits, several yards of a thick canvass and several yards of fine cotton, ink, dyes, paints, a weak bow, copper armor and knives for dwarves, and several water skins.

    He kept for himself seeds for planting, everything that was made from iron and steel, a magic satchel, magic back pack, the two duffel bags, one pick axe, a medium quality bow, all arrows, all potions, and two silver staffs. From the sale of everything else, he made almost one hundred and twenty silver coins, and he found his small ruby and maps he traded to Treluge.

    The whole town was there and he held the dozens of silver coins and hundreds of copper coins in a pouch. In another pouch was all the money Treluge had. He told them all ¡°Tomorrow my friends and I will clear the last mine, then we can start mining for silver again. Then you all can get paid for work you¡¯re doing to build this village. We need several buildings built as fast as possible. Baybil, Strong Arm, and Stone Fist, I would like to speak to you in private please. The rest of you may go bury the dwarves.¡±

    All the other dwarves went different ways, some to bury the traders, some to go back to work, and some to inspect the items they bought. The three Torger called walked up to him, and he led them into his tent. ¡°First, Baybil, I owe you nineteen gold. Strong Arm, how much do you think this is worth?¡±

    Torger held out the small ruby and was told five and a half gold. Baybil agreed. Next he held out the maps and they agreed they were worth one gold. Torger gave him the maps and seven gold coins, fifty silver coins. ¡°I now owe you five gold coins Baybil.¡±

    ¡°But I don¡¯t want the maps. I want the gold instead.¡±

    ¡°Baybil you gave us food water and bad quality armor and swords for twenty gold. Yes you saved our lives, and Graul did need that expensive potion from the dwarf following Small Foot¡¯s greedy orders, but you charged us a hundred times what your stuff was actually worth. Do you think I¡¯m the one ripping you off?¡±

    Baybil tried to answer but wilted under the glares of the other two dwarves. Next he turned to the other two. ¡°I need a smithy up and running right now! I have a lot of iron and steel, and we need better weapons and armor. Strong Arm, how long will it take you to turn all that iron into steel, and make steel armor for all of us?¡±

    ¡°Once the smithy¡¯s built, it would take about two weeks. But you don¡¯t all need steel chest plates. Your woman archer and two mages would be slowed down by it, but they could use greaves, bracers, and helmets. So eleven days is realistic, if I skip the three chest plates.¡±

    ¡°Ugg. That¡¯s longer than I hoped. Stone Fist, how long until the smithy is done?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve got several projects going on right now. The two houses, the kitchen, tavern, and brewery, plus the two smithies.¡±

    ¡°I forgot we were building two because we have two black smiths. Forget the brewery altogether. We already have one at Lake Silverwood. Get those two smithies done tomorrow if you can, put everyone on it.¡±

    ¡°We can¡¯t just forget the brewery. The elves won¡¯t let us near the one on their mountain.¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah. I¡¯ll go talk to them tomorrow. Get those smithies done. It will be good for the whole town.¡±

    Next Torger went to find dwarves who knew about farming. He found three, and showed them the seeds. ¡°I want you to identify these, and tell me if they will grow in the mountain by the lake.¡±

    They told him he had corn, wheat, barley, apple, and watermelon seeds, and they could grow them in the foothills, plus the orange trees and strawberries he told them about near the beach. That was a problem because they would have no protection from rocs and bears. Torger knew he was going to have to kill every roc and, ironically enough, already extinct California Grizzly Bear for miles in every direction.

    Everyone ate well that night, eating the foods they bought from Treluge¡¯s supplies. In the morning spirits were high among everyone. Torger told his friends to take a few dwarves and clear the last mine that hadn¡¯t collapsed. He filled a magic back pack and began walking to the elf village in the mountains. He walked all day then he slept in a dwarf tent all by himself, but shivered from the cold wind that blew all night.

    In the morning thick clouds covered the mountain, and he could only see about fifteen feet in any direction. He followed the aqueduct to the lake. He was greeted by three heavily armed dwarves whose job it was to open the sluice and let water flow for one hour twice a day. Their armor and axes were for self protection they said, and the elves allowed them to keep three guards on the mountain to protect Calico¡¯s water supply.

    Torger walked along the lake expecting the four foot tall elves to come out any minute. He knew he would never see them in the trees until they had him surrounded. Sure enough he heard a high pitched voice tell him to stop. He stood still and raised his hands.

    An hour later Torger was in conversation with the Border Elder. The Winds of Truth showed he was there to trade, and he sat on a stone shivering as a light rain fell. She had a deerskin coat under her green poncho.

    ¡°We will not allow the dwarves to live here. We let them stay for the summer so they wouldn¡¯t die, we even allow them access to the lake water. You knew this was the deal when you first came here. They¡¯ll have to build another brewery in the foothills. It¡¯s always been a bad idea for dwarves and elves to live near each other.¡±

    ¡°As far as I could see, the dwarves and elves barely saw each other this summer. All I¡¯m asking is that two more dwarves be allowed to brew ale in the building they built. That can¡¯t be such a bad thing. I¡¯m not asking for the while village to move here again, just go from three to five dwarves on the other side of the lake.¡±

    ¡°No. The council said no, and I agree with them. Not unless the council decides to move us near our own tribe in that place you told us about, Yosemite.¡±

    ¡°Your scouts returned? They told you the same thing I told you, right? Tall granite mountains with plenty of streams and wild life.¡±

    ¡°The scouts returned last week. The council is deliberating whether we should move or not. But the dwarves will not be allowed here until we are gone, if we move at all.¡±

    ¡°Lagwil, I want to ask a sensitive question. Why do elves and dwarves not get along? They told me they were made here by a god, but elves believe their ancestors beat the tyters and the tyters let you stay. What is your history with the dwarves?¡±

    ¡°I will not tell you of all the wars we fought over the millennia. Most elves think of the dwarves as base and crass with weak minds. Most dwarves think of elves as self-righteous recluses. Our history says a group of our people were taken from our home planet Sprinnel Feld. A leader of our hunters, his name translates to mean Smart With Bow, found himself and fifteen other elf hunters here on Nuva. It looked much like our home planet, very much like your Yosemite. They were able to separate the tyters and hunt them one by one. Once the last tyter died, their sky ship left and three years later the world was transformed and dangerous monsters were brought in for new tyters to hunt. They have never hunted us elves again in the thousands of years we¡¯ve been here.¡±

    ¡°Do you mean if my friends and I can defeat the tyters that come, they won¡¯t send more to kill us anyway? We have a chance to live?¡±

    ¡°I could not possibly guess what the tyters will or will not do Torger. But I told you a small piece of our history, our origins here.¡±

    Torger had new hope. There was a chance he wasn¡¯t guaranteed to die in less than two years. Maybe he could separate and hunt the tyters one at a time like the elves had. He pushed these thoughts to the back of his mind.

    ¡°I have one more thing to ask. The dwarves admit they don¡¯t have much skill with magic. Is there an elf in your village that could infuse magic into my sword?¡±

    Lugwil looked at the sword. ¡°Your reputation with the elves is low. Ask again when we have a higher level of respect for you.¡±

    Before Torger could respond, she turned and walked away. He read the message clearly enough. She had given him a quest he hadn¡¯t fulfilled, and he needed to complete it before she would help.

    Torger walked back to the dwarves at the lake and told them the bad news- no brewery. He spent the night there and the next day used all his strength and stamina to walk as fast as he could to get back to Calico. He got there well after dark, and had to kill a pack of three coyotes along the way, which was easy while wearing iron armor and with a steel sword. It sucked he got no experience for it.

    Guards outside of the village stopped him, and let him pass once he identified himself. In the village few dwarves were walking around; most were in their tents. Torger went to his, waking up Graul when he entered. Graul told him the dwarves finished the first smithy that day, and the other would be done the next day. He also said there were nine razorlings in the final mine. Jex used all her arrows and Antic killed two of them with his spear. Arden and Rome had both died, but Brun using Ice 1 with the silver staff saved the day, although he had to drink all three mana potions they had found in Treluge¡¯s stuff. It would have gone much easier with Torger there and he knew it, but the mine was clear. On the plus side they sold the razorling feet to a dwarf who had one low mana potion, and Brun used his two ability points to buy Lightning 1. Graul, Jex, and Antic each now had two ability points, almost three, but Rome and Arden lost their one when they died.

    In the morning Torger walked around the village in amazement. He saw one completed smithy, with Strong Arm heating metal to make an anvil. Another had four stone walls and a forge inside, with three dwarves finishing the roof. The kitchen had four stone walls and no roof at all, and the two large houses had four stone walls and no roof at all. No dwarves were working on the houses, but a few were working on the tavern. Torger thought that was backwards priorities but didn¡¯t stop them.

    He saw in his vision Cities was flashing. He turned on the shield over Calico and the dwarves cheered. He walked around and gave each one access to enter the shield without harm. He considered upgrading the shield to add Fire 1 to it and fifty more points to its strength, but decided he should wait and expand its perimeter. As it was, several of the tents, the latrines, and both smithies were outside of the shield already. He saw cooks cooking, builders building, water carriers carrying water, and guards guarding. Calico had become a village once again.

 Mines

    Chapter 11

    Mines

    The next morning Torger told half the dwarves of Calico to go to the mines and start extracting silver. He went with them to see the process. There were twenty-one that went. Three went into the first cleared mine, three into the second, and three into the third. Antic stood outside to watch and make sure none took silver out without reporting it. The remaining twelve split into two groups to clear the rubble of the collapsed mines, and Stone Fist was there to strengthen and support the tunnels as the dwarves worked.

    They used shovels and wheelbarrows to remove the loose dirt, and Torger saw how well they worked as a team. By noon Stone Fist was telling them how to place wood beams across the top for extra support. Brun, Graul and Jex had spent the day working with a few dwarves making the wood beams, and Arden and Rome had probably respawned at Silverwood and would be back the next day. Torger looked back at Calico and saw smoke coming out of both smithies. He would soon be making some cash.

    Torger thought to the night before when Graul casually told him Arden and Rome had died. Were they becoming cold and calloused towards each other¡¯s pain and deaths? Torger had to admit they all were. Before that when Brun had lost a hand from a simmet, no one paid him much attention, and looking back over the past several months he saw the trend of them becoming desensitized to seeing their friends in pain. When they had first met Baybil, he didn¡¯t care about their being naked and thirsty, and Lagwil didn¡¯t care if the humans and dwarves lived in misery in the desert so long as they were off the mountain, which had plenty of room for all of them. Maybe the Regulators were being to see each other as tyter prey and injuries and casualties were becoming acceptable. Torger pushed the thought out of his mind and got back to work.

    As night began to fall the miners came out and gave their silver ore to Antic, who placed it in a magic back pack. The others were about to come out from clearing rubble, but Torger said to go just a little farther, they were almost through. They went back in and he heard shovels scraping in both collapsed mines. Then on the tunnel to his left he heard screaming and the dwarves ran out.

    The dwarves in the other tunnel heard the screaming and they ran out too. Torger asked what was wrong.

    ¡°We heard it. It was so close.¡±

    ¡°The moan, it was just on the other side of the dirt.¡±

    ¡°Razorlings are one thing, but I will not fight one of those.¡±

    Torger asked ¡°What was it? What¡¯s in there?¡±

    ¡°A specter. We heard the moaning of a specter.¡±

    Torger realized what they were talking about. His experience tab showed the ghost they had killed in the center mine was called a Lesser Lich. If there was another one in the tunnel, it would be up to the Regulators to kill it.

    They all went back to the village, keeping the spirit behind the dirt wall in the mine. Word spread quickly around the village that there was a specter in the mine. Dwarves seemed especially afraid of them. They would take on a bear ten times their own size, but would not battle a magical abomination. He assured them his friends would kill it in the morning. Then he divided the silver mined that day evenly to the twenty-one dwarves who mined, minus the village ten percent. Ninety percent of that he divided among the rest of the villagers, with Antic keeping careful notes weighing each nugget specifically. Some got larger nuggets weighing over an ounce, others got dust weighing several grams, and they all wanted equal sized quantities. Torger knew they had to do this once a week, not every day; it would be too much work. The two ounces left over he gave to Strong Arm to purify and make it into arrowheads. Another dwarf cast a spell that gave each of the two arrowheads a plus one point fire damage, which was far inferior to Graul¡¯s sword that inflicted seven fire damage with each swing.

    They waited a full day for Arden and Rome to return, wearing furs that were too small because they were the change of clothes from the three dwarves working the sluice at the lake. Torger sent a couple of dwarves to stockpile Silverwood with lots of leather armor; one full suit for each Regulator. The village tanner and village leather worker loved the seventy-two silver coins Torger paid them. Strong Arm and Hastaff were both rushing to see who could get their smithy done first as the mining dwarves were complaining about chipped and bent picks and shovels.

    Early the next morning the sun had just come up and all seven humans stood at the mouth of the cave. They had a few torches and walked in, jamming them into the dirt walls. Then Graul and Torger started shoveling dirt while Antic and Arden pushed out the wheelbarrows. After a couple trips, they heard moaning but kept working, with Brun, Rome, and Jex ready to attack.

    Several more wheelbarrow loads of dirt were removed and as Torger shoved his shovel into the dirt pile, it broke through and he couldn¡¯t see anything but blackness further in. The moan was very loud and Torger was suddenly struck with a grey stream of magic. He curled into a ball on the floor, afraid for his life.

    Brun and Rome wanted to cast spells through the opening, but couldn¡¯t see. Arden had his head on and threw a torch through the opening. They saw the Lesser Lich disappear, and heard moaning from deep within the mine.

    Graul and Antic hurried up and used their hands to make the hole in the dirt pile as big as possible. When it was about a three foot diameter the spirit reappeared. Brun, Rome, and Jex were ready. Brun cast Fire 2, Rome cast Fire 1, and Jex cast Ice 1. All three spells hit it, and the power of the silver staffs made it shrink to about half its original six foot size. It howled and disappeared again.

    Torger climbed up off the floor, still afraid but not petrified. Graul and Antic went back to tearing into the dirt wall but didn¡¯t get far when another full sized Lesser Lich appeared. It raised its bony hand and tried to cast its fear spell at Graul, but he ducked in time. The spell hit Jex instead. She gasped, fell on the floor, and cried.

    Brun and Rome each cast Fire 1 at it which hit the ghost and it shrunk a little then disappeared. Arden ran to comfort Jex, Brun drank their only mana potion, restoring nine mana points, and Torger and Graul kept making the opening bigger. Antic threw another torch in as far as he could. The light showed the second spirit hovering away from them, a yellow glow around it and slowly getting bigger.

    Torger and Graul grabbed shovels and threw dirt in through the opening, until it was big enough they could crawl through. Jex recovered slowly, and all seven walked over the dirt mound with Antic carrying the last torch. They walked until they were about twenty feet away. Jex shot a silver arrow with a little fire magic in it. It went through the spirit, but the yellow glow surrounding it shattered and it stopped getting bigger. It disappeared.

    They walked deeper into the mine and now Arden, Torger, and Antic each had a torch, and the tunnel was starting to fill with smoke. Even though he had no protection against magic and no magic weapon, Torger took the lead. Graul was right behind him ready to charge, with Brun and Rome behind Graul, staffs held at the ready. They made it almost to the end when they saw both spirits at the back, covered in yellow light and slowly getting bigger. Torger nodded to Jex.

    She released the other silver arrow. The one she hit earlier was ready and disappeared, but the other was surprised when its¡¯ yellow regeneration light shattered. Brun and Rome cast Fire 1 a second later and both hit it. It shrunk again, and Graul rushed forward. Before he got there it disappeared. Jex screamed and again was hit in the back with a grey stream of crippling fear. This time she went completely catatonic.

    Everyone turned around facing towards the entrance and Brun cast Fire 1 at the spirit. It shrank and disappeared. Torger ran and picked up her bow and quiver of ice arrows.

    Brun said ¡°I¡¯m out of mana.¡±

    Rome said ¡°Me too.¡±

    Graul said, ¡°I guess it¡¯s up to me to send these spirits back to hell.¡± He held his flame sword looking one way, with Torger on the other side of the group looking the other way.

    Arden couldn¡¯t get Jex to come out of her stupor. Antic got ready to cast Ice 1. A few seconds later Torger shot an arrow. He wasn¡¯t as good a shot as Jex and the arrow grazed the spirit, but it still did damage. His level of bows was at three, and Jex¡¯s was at ten, and the difference showed. Each level added 1% to aim and speed, just like with swords. Torger was level eight with two handed swords and Graul was level ten with one handed swords, and none of the others could swing as fast or as accurately as they could. Their individual strengths given to them by the tyter chamber in Yuma were beginning to show.

    Torger told them to go all the way back to the end of the mine so they wouldn¡¯t have to look both ways. Arden and Brun carried Jex.

    Once everyone was situated, Torger told Antic to be ready with Ice 1. Graul led the way, with Torger just behind him as they walked toward the cave mouth, leaving their friends in the far back of the tunnel. They saw the two spirits with a glowing yellow light again. Torger took careful aim and released a silver arrow he had recovered. It shattered the yellow light again of one spirit, but didn¡¯t seem to damage it. The other raised its¡¯ bony hand to point at him. Graul ran forward and swung before it could cast its spell. The sword went through it but glowed red, and the spirit moaned. Graul twisted his wrist and swung backhand at it, going until it was half way through. The sword glowed red again. He regripped the sword and swung up then down with it in the spirit. It flashed white and disappeared, the sword glowing hot.

    Graul looked back to see Torger, but saw a flash of blue far behind Torger. ¡°Antic just cast ice!¡± Torger turned around and ran towards them.

    Graul now knew how to kill these things. He ran too and before he got there, there was another flash of blue. Antic cast Ice 1, and Arden cast Fire 1 once and was getting ready to cast again. Graul held the super heated sword and ignored the blisters developing on his hand, then stabbed the spirit in the back and left his sword there as it shrunk. Arden in his panic cast his Fire 1 anyway. It hit the spirit, but also burned some of Graul¡¯s hair. Arden apologized but Graul kept focused and twisted his sword back and forth until the spirit died. Then he dropped the sword because it was too hot to hold. The blade slightly warped from the intense heat of the Fire 1 spell being continually cast combined the magic in the pearl constantly casting the spell.

    Antic and Rome ran back to the village calling for help. They found Baybil and told him Jex was hit with fear twice and wasn¡¯t recovering. Baybil ran to his tent and came back with a silver vial. ¡°This is a very rare and powerful potion. It¡¯s a strength potion, usually for regaining physical strength, but could work for regaining mental confidence or bravery.¡±

    As he was handing the potion to Rome he said ¡°Keep in mind, this is expensive.¡±

    Just before Rome grabbed it an old lady, one of the cooks, walked up. ¡°Oh calm down Baybil. It¡¯s not all that rare.¡± Turning to Rome she said ¡°All your friend needs is sleep. I¡¯ll cook you up a night time drink and she¡¯ll sleep it off. And unlike Baybil, I¡¯ll only charge you thirty coppers.¡±

    Rome asked out of annoyance ¡°Baybil, will you sell me that potion for thirty coppers?¡±

    He opened his mouth but was unable to speak. He grunted and walked away. The cook took them to the almost complete kitchen and poured some ingredients into a small pot and heated it up. She was done in ten minutes. ¡°There, pour this into your water skin and give it to your friend.¡±

    Rome thanked her and started heading back, but saw Arden carrying Jex. Rome and Antic followed them into their tent. Rome poured the brew into her mouth and she coughed but swallowed some. He eventually got her to drink most of it. Arden stayed with her and she fell asleep quickly, but slept fitfully all night, full of nightmares. She woke up fine and whole in the morning.

    At breakfast the whole village was afraid of the mines. The dwarves didn¡¯t like specters before, but had never seen the results of an attack from one. Seeing Jex in a catatonic state being carried back amplified their fear of the liches. Torger had to convince them they would clear out the last mine and all would be safe.

    After breakfast Strong Arm handed Torger ten silver arrows, with one damage point from fire. He made them from the broken silver staff Torger gave him the day before when he returned with Jex. That broken staff was the one Brun had used to smack and kill a lich the first time they came across one. They all knew they needed more magic weapons, and these weak arrowheads were all the village could produce. On the bright side, Brun, Graul, Jex and Antic had each gained another ability point, but didn¡¯t use them.

    They returned to the last mine and began digging in the dirt. Brun was especially excited because once he cast Fire 2 one more time, he would learn Fire 3. That made Rome feel bad that he still didn¡¯t know Cure 1. He wanted to use it and learn Cure 2 and 3. Cure 1 cost three ability points to buy, and he always died when he had one or two ability points.

    After hours of digging dirt, they heard a low moan. They kept digging, staying ready for the expected attack. Once the dirt wall fell and a space opened up, they all ducked down. A grey stream of magic flew over their heads. Just like the day before, Arden threw a torch through the opening. The light allowed Brun to see enough to cast Fire 2. The Lesser Lich moaned and before it could disappear, Jex shot it with an ice arrow. Then they all cast Fire 1 or Ice 1 at it. It flashed white and died.

    Another appeared in its place a couple seconds later. Everyone was able to cast another Ice 1 or Fire 1 spell at it. It shrank to about two foot tall, nearly dead, and disappeared. They knew they had time to dig while it was regenerating, and with only one to face, it shouldn¡¯t be so bad, except they were all completely out of mana and had no potions. Only Graul¡¯s sword and Jex¡¯s arrows would damage it, but if they waited five minutes they would each have five mana again, and be better equipped for the battle. They began digging again, hoping it would take the ghost more than five minutes to regenerate.

    Brun wasn¡¯t much help with the digging. He was smiling ear to ear as he looked at his new spell. He had reached dealing five thousand damage points with Fire 2, and had learned Fire 3. As he looked, his jaw dropped. ¡°Forty-five mana, that¡¯s insane!¡±

    ¡°What is it Brun?¡±

    ¡°Fire three costs me forty-five mana per cast. That¡¯s a lot of ability points to get that much mana. I¡¯m at twenty now, so five more ability points to get to forty-five. And it doesn¡¯t tell me what it does.¡±

    Torger thought about it for a few seconds. ¡°OK. If you want to spend your ability points on mana, that¡¯s fine by me. I see your fire two is more powerful than your fire one. Let¡¯s find out how much more powerful fire three is. Until then cast ice one and lightning one to get them to the second level.¡±This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

    Everyone agreed that was a good idea. Brun used the ability point he gained the day before to get five more mana points.

    Five minutes later they walked down the mine. The Lesser Lich appeared behind them and cast an ice spell at Antic¡¯s back. Everyone else cast their one spell back at it, then Graul ran forward and slashed it several times. It flashed white and died. Antic, with his health at 300, suffered little effect from the spell. They walked on and saw that the mine was clear. There were no treasures to find, just the ore in the walls.

    When they made it back to Calico, Torger addressed the dwarves and told them it was safe to reenter the mines, but they were still too afraid to trust him about that. He had to argue with them for almost an hour, appealing to their greed and his place as the leader, before three dwarves reluctantly agreed to go with him to see for themselves that the mines were clear once again.

    The next day, the same twenty-one dwarves returned and began their work again. With the five mines open, they were each allowed to keep ninety percent of whatever they mined, instead of compiling it then dividing it. That day they extracted about six pounds of ore in all. Each dwarf began making his or her own side tunnel, responsible for clearing out their own rubble. It was an inefficient system, but Torger couldn¡¯t convince a few of them to be full time mules to get a percentage of the daily extraction. The mining went smoothly day after day for a while.

    A week later all the buildings in the village were fully functional. The regulators took one house, about twenty dwarves could fit in the other house, leaving nearly fifty still sleeping in tents. The kitchen had four full time cooks with all the pots and pans and serving utensils they needed, and three full time dish washers, and the dining room could hold ten dwarves at a long table comfortably, so they ate in shifts.

    The sheep and goats had a pen that was covered overhead so rocs couldn¡¯t see them from the sky. Three full time clothes washers had a stone basin several feet away from the reservoir. A barkeep and two bar maids worked in the tavern, and two dwarves produced ale as fast as they could in the new brewery. Each blacksmith had an apprentice and was fully functional, spending most of their time purifying the villagers silver ore. Two competing weavers were making clothes as fast as they could. Three farmers were twenty miles away in the foothills planting crops and building a hut near the aqueduct, since the desert had given them poor yields that year. The rest were building more stone housing for the other dwarves.

    Torger collected a one copper tax from every mug of ale sold, and Rome got two percent of all the silver that Strong Arm kept for smelting fees. With the village running smoothly, it was time for the Regulators to fulfill an outstanding quest.

    Chapter 12

    Bears and Rocs and Cottols. Oh My!

    The Regulators were in good spirits as they walked back to Lake Silverwood. It was around the first week of December, and the air was cold. But they all had heavy coats made from furs found in Treluge¡¯s bags. Still, their leather boots were wet and cold as they walked in the rain. They came to the border of the elven territory and asked to speak to Lagwil. She came to them an hour later.

    Torger said ¡°Good to see you Lagwil. We have come to complete the quest you gave me. Is there anything we need to do to get started?¡±

    ¡°No, just hunt and kill the bears and rocs. But be quick about it. The council has decided to move to Yosemite. We will leave in four days. The bears are bedding down for the winter, and you should find them in caves. The rocs don¡¯t fly when it¡¯s cloudy, so today you would find them in their nests. And be careful, a cottol or two have been spotted in the area.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s a cottol?¡±

    ¡°A large cat with magic. It sends a psychic pulse to a victim. The pulse confuses the target, and he or she turns away from the cottol, then it attacks from behind.¡±

    ¡°Sounds scary. Thanks for the warning. What if we don¡¯t finish before you leave?¡±

    ¡°If we are no longer a village here, the quest will be cancelled and you won¡¯t get a reward.¡±

    ¡°Oh. We¡¯ll hurry, don¡¯t worry. You have always treated us fairly Lagwil. Except the brewery, but I let that pass.¡±

    ¡°You had no choice in that Torger. I didn¡¯t give you a choice.¡± She turned and walked away. Her message was clear: they were on the mountain because she let them be on the mountain. Torger didn¡¯t have any visions of grand victory against the elves. He couldn¡¯t even see them, but knew they were near.

    ¡°Where do we start looking guys? There is a lot of land to cover in a short amount of time,¡± Torger asked to the whole group.

    ¡°This may be an obviously dumb idea, but maybe we can find bears near Big Bear Lake.¡±

    Everyone turned to look at Antic. He shrugged and said ¡°Just thinking out loud.¡±

    ¡°Sounds like as good a place as any.¡±

    They started walking that way, looking for signs of bears or rocs. After a couple miles Arden pointed up a slope. On the side of a steep slope was a huge nest, about twenty feet wide, with two adult and two baby rocs in it. They couldn¡¯t climb up it, but Jex could shoot that far. They asked each other if they were ready to take on two rocs at once. Time was ticking so they had to take the chance.

    Jex pulled back on her bow string as hard as she could and aimed a little over the head of one of them. She released and the arrow flew in an arc, and pierced its wing. It screeched and both adults looked down at them then took flight.

    Antic, Arden, and Rome all had a short bow found from Treluge¡¯s belongings, but they had just simple iron arrowheads. Torger instructed them to shoot only when the birds got very close. Brun prepared to cast Lightning 1, and Torger and Graul held their swords, ready to defend their friends.

    A roc swooped down and flew at Jex. She fell to the ground to avoid being scratched, but Antic and Rome also fell down out of fear. Arden released an arrow and missed, but Brun hit it with lightning. It was stunned for less than a second and dropped several feet, then flew away again. Graul looked at Antic and Rome getting up off the ground and shook his head in disgust. Everyone knew they missed the opportunity to get three arrows in the giant bird.

    It circled high in the air, then both adults dove at the same time. This time the group was ready. Jex sank an ice arrow into the chest of one, and it flew away not finishing the attack. The other three archers hit its wings, but didn¡¯t sink in very far. Brun cast Lighting 1and it was stunned before flying away. Both birds flew back to the nest. Brun told everyone ¡°Remember Lighting 1 costs me seven mana, not five, so I can cast three times, then wait three minutes and cast it again.¡±

    Jex took careful aim again and released, sinking another ice arrow into the wing.

    When they saw her taking aim again, they took flight. They circled high overhead, not willing to attack. Jex aimed at one of the babies. It was a much smaller target, with a four foot wing span. But her aim was true and the arrow sank into a wing. It shuddered and tried to fly, but tumbled out of the nest and down the slope. By the time it stopped rolling, both wings were broken. The parents screamed in rage and dove again. All four arrows shot hit targets, and Brun hit one with Lightning 1. Both were already injured to begin with and fell from the sky. Torger and Graul rushed forward and avoided claws and beaks while driving in their swords. Graul¡¯s shield took a beating, but unlike the razorlings, the roc claws were not sharp enough to penetrate the iron. He blocked a beak strike one more time with his shield and stepped forward to drive his sword deep into the chest, all the way to the hilt. At the same time Torger was able to get to the side of his target and slice off the head of the bird.

    They looked back at the group and saw Jex release an arrow at the flailing baby roc on the ground. It sank to the fletching and the bird died. Next she shot the other baby in the nest, and it too tumbled down the hill. Another arrow finished it off. They spent the next hour retrieving arrows and collecting feathers, then went hunting again.

    A few miles away they found another nest, and did the same thing, with Jex shooting arrows to draw them out. Those died and they went hunting again. A while later Arden saw a bear. They followed it for an hour and saw it go into a cave. They had no idea how many bears were in there or how active they were, but they had to try.

    From two hundred yards away, and up in a tree, Jex shot an arrow blindly into the cave. They heard a roar, then a few more snorts from different bears, but none came out. Torger signaled to her to do it again. This time the roar was louder. ¡°Everyone ready?¡± Torger looked around. They were all in trees away from the cave but near each other. They nodded and Torger shot an arrow into the cave.

    A huge sleepy bear came out and looked around. Torger and Jex shot it again, and Brun hit it with lighting. It focused on Jex and began charging. Before it got there another bear came out of the cave, and another. Rome and Arden shot the two new bears, the arrows barely penetrating the thick hide, and Arden knew it was his moment.

    Once the smithy for Strong Arm had been completed, Torger assigned him a special secret task. Torger¡¯s shotgun was damaged from the fire when Small Foot¡¯s goons destroyed Home, but Strong Arm assured him he could repair it. It cost Torger forty-seven silver, but it might have been worth it. Rome and Torger had worked together with Strong Arm late several nights trying to recreate a crude black powder and casings, with the appropriate wad. Together after many trial and error attempts, they came up with nine new shells. Arden fired, pumped, fired, pumped, fired. The shots were noticeably weaker than modern machine made shells filled with primer, but still penetrated the bear¡¯s thick hide.

    One of the three bears that had come out of the cave lay on the ground bleeding heavily, the other charged Arden. He put in two shots into that one, then reloaded with the last four shells. By the time he was done, the bear was shaking the tree Arden was in. But his level with guns was at 33, and even while laying on a branch that was swaying, he got another shot into the face of the bear. It collapsed to the ground, breathing but not moving. Graul and Torger got out of their trees and attacked the one that was trying shake down Jex. It had five arrows in it and had been hit with Lighting 1 twice, so their stabs finished it off.

    As they were withdrawing their swords they heard another gunshot. They looked behind and saw more bears coming out of the cave. Arden shot twice more and they had no more shells. As good as the black powder shots were, it was not a one shot one kill ratio they were hoping for. Torger and Graul ran to Arden¡¯s tree and killed the wounded bear that was there. Brun Cast Lighting 1 at a new bear, and he was completely out of mana.

    Jex recovered from her scare and with shaky hands released an arrow. Fortunately she had a big target to aim at. Torger and Graul ran under Antic¡¯s tree as planned. A bear followed them and they fought it on the ground while Antic easily thrust his spear into its back over and over. Graul took most of the blows on his shield and kept the beast facing him. Torger drove in his sword through its side, piercing a lung. It fell but more were coming.

    Jex, Arden, Brun, and Rome were releasing arrows as fast as they could from the semi safe tree branches. Graul and Torger stood their ground under Antic, waiting for the bears to come to them. They saw a total of nine bears had come out of the cave, two of them were adolescents, and four of the nine were already dead. Two bears went to attack Jex, and the other three came to Torger and Graul.

    The archers protected Jex as best they could, and Torger and Graul had to keep circling around the tree, blocking claws and teeth as much as they could. Antic had a field day thrusting his spear down as hard and fast as he could. He inflicted a lot of damage on the three below him, and after several minutes of intense combat, the bears were dead. Torger ran to the other bears, riddled with arrows and bleeding heavily. He came up behind one and sliced deeply into its back leg. It fell down and he shoved his sword into its skull, then he went and did the same to the other one.

    Graul was bleeding from both arms. He was blocking the bears as best he could while Toreger and Antic were inflicting damage. But at one point claws ripped his right arm, and a while later claws had ripped his left arm. Torger went to the duffle bag and found a health potion. Graul drank it and the bleeding slowed, but didn¡¯t stop.

    ¡°I¡¯ll get you another one.¡±

    ¡°No Torger, I¡¯ll be fine. We only have four left. We¡¯ll use them in emergencies.¡±

    ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go see what¡¯s in that cave.¡±

    They cautiously approached the cave. Outside, Jex shot an iron arrow in, and they heard it hit the back wall. They lit some wood on fire and threw it in, but saw nothing. They walked all the way to the back and found three vials of a black potion. There was nothing else in there.

    ¡°What do you think it is?¡±

    ¡°How should I know? None of us has seen that before.¡±

    Torger put them into the duffle bag and they skinned the bears, then put the skins into the bag also. They agreed to walk back to where the dwarves were operating the aqueduct. It was almost dark when they got there and they set up tents and cooked bear meat, giving roc meat to the dwarves who were grateful. After dinner Torger pulled out one of the vials of black liquid.

    ¡°Do any of you know what this is?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I do. It¡¯s a strength potion. If you drink it, it will restore your strength if you¡¯re weak.¡±

    Antic said ¡°That could come in useful one day.¡± Torger put them into his back pack and told everyone he would take the first watch. They went to sleep, the dwarves thankful they didn¡¯t have to take a shift on watch duty that night.

    It was well past midnight and everything was still. Jex was cold and bored. She stood up and walked around the camp trying to stay awake, but after a few minutes she sat down again. A few minutes later her head was bobbing up and down with her eyes half closed.

    A cottol watched from behind bushes in the dark. It sent a psychic blast at her and she picked up her head and looked the other direction. It approached with the stealth cats are known for, and raked its claws down her back. She screamed and came out of her trance, but was in crippling pain. It jumped on her back and bit her in the neck. She tried to roll away and fight back, but couldn¡¯t shake it off. In the corner of her vision, her Stats turned yellow, then red. She lay on her stomach with the cat on her back and through blurry vision saw legs running towards her. She heard people yelling and the sound of metal cutting into meat, then she passed out.

    When she woke up the sun was high in the sky. Her husband looked at her and said ¡°I¡¯m sorry we didn¡¯t get to you sooner. That was too close.¡±

    She stood up and felt fully restored. ¡°What happened? Why didn¡¯t I die?¡±

    ¡°We gave you all four cure potions. Sleeping restored you.¡±

    ¡°All four! You should have let me die and respawn.¡±

    ¡°Graul said that, but Torger said we need to finish the hunt and we need your archery skills. I couldn¡¯t let you die either, not if there were potions nearby. We¡¯ve all changed our respawn point from Calico to Silverwood, and you need to do the same.¡±

    She looked around. ¡°Where are the others?¡±

    ¡°They went to see if they could find another cave or nest. They should be back soon.¡±

    Sure enough, they returned to camp a half hour later.

    ¡°We couldn¡¯t follow the cottol tracks. But we did find another cave and a nest. Are you ready to go?¡±

    ¡°Sure Torger, let me eat something first.¡±

    She ate dried fruit as they walked. No one said anything, but she knew she failed miserably at her guard duty. She vowed to herself that would never happen again.

    They first came to the cave. Everyone climbed into trees and Jex shot an arrow in. Just like the day before there was a roar. A bear came out and she shot it in the leg. It roared again and more bears came out. Arrows flew through the air, and Brun cast Lighting 1three times. Antic was able to spear a bear that was below him, but today they all had spears. Torger and Graul had carved straight oak poles during their shifts, and tied billik legs to them. The bears couldn¡¯t shake them out of trees, and Jex shot arrows freely. Whenever a bear tried to climb a tree, a spear to the eye made it go back down. All seven bears died without anyone getting hurt.

    The rocs went much the same as the day before; Jex shot an arrow at the nest and lured them close to the group. Brun stunned them with lightning and Torger and Graul battled them on the ground. The young ones in the nest succumbed to Jex¡¯s arrows.

    After the battle Rome announced ¡°I almost have three ability points. Should I buy Cure one, or wait for one more to buy Analyze one?¡±

    They could see the glee on his face. He was a white mage that knew no white magic spells. They discussed the pros and cons, and decided to wait for analyze. With luck, he would be able to buy it at the end of the day.

    They searched more, but it was nearly dark before they found another nest. As before, they killed the two adults and two babies without incident. They went back to camp and sat around the fire.

    Torger spoke up. ¡°Tomorrow is the last day. We¡¯ve killed sixteen bears, and twelve rocs in two days. That is very impressive guys, but we need to get to thirty each, then get to the elves to collect our reward. Our battles will have to go faster tomorrow. Who has ideas?¡±

    Brun said ¡°I now have thirty-five mana. I just need two more ability points to get to fire three. I think tomorrow will get me there.¡±

    ¡°Good. That¡¯s just what we need Brun. Who else?¡±

    Antic said, ¡°I¡¯ve been putting my ability points into stamina. I could run and scout the area while you are looking around in the morning.¡±

    ¡°OK do it, but be careful.¡±

    Arden said ¡°The rest of us have two or three unused ability points. We could all buy lighting one.¡±

    ¡°No, our ice one is fine. We can cast ice one twice, but lighting one only once. But I like the idea. Jex and Graul, would you buy slow one? You each have three ability points, and slower moving bears is what we need.¡±

    ¡°Ok we¡¯ll do that, but what about you and Arden?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure yet. I want to spend mine protecting Calico, and Arden might want to wait and buy shield one.¡±

    Graul said ¡°We both spent four ability points upgrading and protecting Home, but it¡¯s a heap of ashes now. We wasted them. Don¡¯t make the same mistake with Calico. Besides, Calico is temporary until the silver runs out.¡±

    ¡°I know, but I hate the idea of dwarves sleeping outside the shield. I¡¯ll sleep on it.¡±

    That left Arden and Torger with two unused ability points each, and Rome had three.

 Departure

    Chapter 13

    Departure

    At first light Antic took off at a jog. His stamina was now 96/96, while all his friends were at between 44 and 47. By putting most of his ability points into health, strength, and stamina since coming to Nuva, he was taller, stronger, and all around better physically fit than all of his friends, but he still feared pain and death. He circled around the lake towards the elves, but saw no cave or bears. He started jogging down the hill and saw a roc nest. He marked it on his Maps. He jogged back toward where his friends were and saw another nest in the distance.

    A couple hours after he left camp, he came to the place where they had seen the nest the previous day. Four dead rocs lay on the ground, the feathers not plucked. A deep scratch was in the dirt, an arrow pointing east. He jogged in that direction and a half hour later saw his friends fighting bears. Two were dead, and six were fighting one on one with his friends. After jogging for two and a half hours straight over uneven terrain, he was happy to see he gained another stamina point and his stamina was still at 31/97.

    He ran and stabbed one in the back with his spear. It roared and Arden stabbed down at its skull from the tree he was in. Arden climbed down and the two of them attacked the one under Jex. It tried to swipe at them, but the spears were too long for it to reach. Spears to the face ensured it died quickly.

    Jex aimed her arrow at the one attacking Brun¡¯s tree. He was holding on to the branch, unable to counter attack as the tree swayed. Antic and Arden circled around it, stabbing when the opportunity came. But Jex¡¯s ice and fire arrows did most of the damage. As she was shooting it she heard Graul cheer in the way he did when he made a kill. She guessed Torger would kill his target soon also. She released her arrow and it sunk into the grizzly¡¯s lung. Antic and Arden were able to finish it with spears, but at the same time they heard Rome call for help.

    Just like Brun, he was laying flat on a branch and holding on while the huge bear was shaking the tree, but then his legs slipped off and the bear sliced into them. That was the last bear alive. Rome¡¯s eyes crossed, even as his legs were bleeding, and a big smile came across his face. ¡°I did it! I got a spell!¡±

    The bear ripped him to the ground, and slashed his chest, but before he died and disappeared in the pale green light, he smiled and cheered.

    Torger killed the bear, then looked at his friends and said ¡°I hope Rome bought analyze one like he wanted. It seemed like he did.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I got from his expression. I found two roc nests in my scouting. Come on, we¡¯re wasting time.¡± Antic picked up the heavy duffle bag and led the way.

    Jex shot a roc, then another, and they finished off the nest then went to the next one that Antic had spotted. That one turned out to be not much of a problem either. Torger looked at his Notoriety/Quests.

    Quest from Pomo Elves:

    Kill 30 6 Grizzly bears within 10 Miles of Lake Silverwood

    Kill 30 10 Rocs within 10 Miles of Lake Silverwood

    Reward: Significant Increase in Respect with Pomo Elves

    900 Exp.

    Bow of the Owl

    Torger looked up and saw it was around noon. Time was running out. Antic said ¡°I know it¡¯s a long ways, but we haven¡¯t circled around to the west side of the elf village. We know there are rocs near Cajon Pass.¡±

    Everyone but Antic was exhausted, but they agreed to try it. They circled to the north side away from the village. They walked much too slowly, their low stamina not letting them move faster. After a couple of miles, Torger told them to sit and rest. They wouldn¡¯t do any good in battle in the condition they were in. Brun asked ¡°Where is Rome? He should have set his respawn point to Silverwood, but we haven¡¯t seen him.¡±

    Jex checked Cities and saw Silverwood was now an elf village. The bastards had somehow claimed the village as their own. Cucamonga Dwarves were allies so they could set their respawn points to any Cucamonga dwarf village, but Pomo Elves weren¡¯t allies so they couldn¡¯t respawn in an elf village.

    As they were sitting, Arden jumped up. Two cottols were approaching from further up the hill. Graul and Jex each cast slow one, and the cottols did seem to move a little more slowly as they continued to approach.

    The cottols sent a psychic blast, which went right through the armor. Graul and Jex dropped their weapons and turned their backs to the cats. The others ducked behind trees. True to form, the cats pounced at Graul and Jex, raking their claws down their backs. They came out of the stupor, but the cats immediately hit them again with psychic blasts. Even with blood flowing down their backs, Graul and Jex again turned to face away from the cats. Jex¡¯s leather armor was shredded, but Graul¡¯s iron chest plate blocked the damage. The cat swiped its claws at the back of his arms.

    Brun cast Lightning 1 at each of the cottols, and Torger ran around the tree and stabbed one. The other saw him and raked its claws at his arm, leaving deep gouges between the bracer and pauldron.

    Antic and Arden ran ahead and thrust spears into a four foot tall cat. The billik legs went all the way through the side of one cat. It tried to swipe at them but couldn¡¯t. Both cats were badly hurt and each sent a psychic blast at Arden and Antic. The men dropped their spears and turned their backs to the cats.

    Brun cast Lightning 1 at one cat, and it collapsed, alive but barely. He cast Lightning 1 at the other cat and got the same result. Torger used his left hand to stab each one. Blood still flowed out of his right bicep.

    He knew he had only one option to keep himself from bleeding out, and to help Graul and Jex. He said ¡°Sorry Calico.¡± Torger bought Cure 1, and asked for Brun¡¯s silver staff. He pointed the emerald at the top of the staff at his own bicep and cast Cure 1 on himself, the spell coming from the gem rather than from his outstretched finger, and the blood slowed down. He cast it again, using eight of his ten mana, but the blood stopped and it began to scab over. He handed Brun the staff again. Brun told him to keep it because he still had Rome¡¯s silver staff left from when he died again. Cure 1 gave 10 health points to the recipient, and the silver staff added fifty percent to the strength of the spell. The two spells using the staff restored thirty health to him.

    Torger shook Arden, but he didn¡¯t come out of his stupor, but a slap to the face did the trick.

    Arden also had three ability points, so he bought Cure 1 and using the silver staff cast it once on his wife then on Graul. The blood slowed but didn¡¯t stop.

    They walked to their friends and shook them, but nothing happened. Torger slapped Graul in the face and he came out of his stupor. They walked around and slapped Jex and Antic. They rested and assessed the situation. Torger didn¡¯t have full use of his right arm, Graul and Jex were still in pain, and everyone but Antic was still tired.

    ¡°We¡¯re not going to make it in time. We can¡¯t find and kill six bears and ten rocs, then make it to the elves before sunset.¡±

    ¡°I know, we¡¯ll do the best we can.¡±

    They rested a while longer, Arden and Torger casting Cure 1 until everyone was near full health, and continued waiting until their stamina got back up to thirty, then walked west. It was a clear day, and Jex saw a roc flying in the distance. They kept going and found a nest. There were two young birds in it, and no parents. Jex shot one, then the other. They kept their eyes to the sky as they walked to the birds. Before they got there, a roc swooped out of the sky. Jex saw it and shot it with a fire arrow, but it kept coming. Graul and Torger slashed it as it flew overhead, but it scratched Arden¡¯s face with one claw and Brun¡¯s face with the other.

    Both men fell to the ground writhing in pain. The bird circled in the air, and another roc came flying at top speed toward them. Jex shot an arrow at it, but it swerved out of the way. Both birds came in at the same time. Graul and Jex both cast slow one. The birds couldn¡¯t flap their wings fast enough to come out of the dive and skimmed above the ground. They both crashed into nearby trees.

    Graul, Torger, and Antic ran forward. The birds were dazed but not helpless. They tried to peck at the men. Graul was able to block with his iron shield, but it was already battered from the fights with bears. A strong peck at it caused it to split in two. He dropped the shield and swung his flame sword at the bird¡¯s neck, sinking deeply into flesh.

    Torger kept the focus of the other bird on himself, while Jex shot it with another arrow and Antic circled around behind it. He stabbed it in the back, making it look at him. The bird bit the spear and broke it in half, but that gave Torger time to raise his sword high and chop its head clean off. He rushed back to his injured friends.

    They were both bleeding profusely out of the tops of their heads, but their steel helmets saved their lives. Torger cast Cure 1 on each of them, while holding Rome¡¯s silver staff. The bleeding slowed but didn¡¯t stop. He told everyone to stay there and ran to the elf border. He arrived completely out of breath, and asked the guards that surrounded him if they would sell him a cure potion. They said no, but brought Lagwil.

    ¡°Lagwil, two of my friends are injured. I need two cure potions so we can complete our quest.¡±

    ¡°You are running out of time Torger. We will leave tomorrow morning, and it¡¯s almost dark. I brought potions. Low level cure potions are one silver coin each, mid level cure potions are three silver coins each. Which do you want?¡±

    ¡°The mid level ones.¡± He knew low level potions restored nine health, and mid level potions restored nineteen health. Torger reached into his backpack and pulled out six silver coins. Lagwil thanked him and turned to go.

    Before she left she looked back at him. ¡°I see you tried very hard to complete this quest for me. Bring your friends here. I will give you a partial reward for partial success. We both know you won¡¯t finish it tonight.¡± She turned and walked away.

    As Torger jogged back to his friends he had a decision to make. Hunt into the night, or take a partial reward. When he got back he saw his friends looking worn and beat up. He gave one potion to Arden, and one to Brun, and Torger and Arden again cast Cure 1 on each of them. When they drank the potions, their health was restored almost to full, the scratches on their heads almost fully healed.

    Torger looked at Graul¡¯s broken shield, the two sliced steel helmets, and the rest of their dented and scratched armor. Rome was presumably walking back from Calico, but wouldn¡¯t make it in time to help them. They were defeated in this quest and they knew it. Pushing on to fight after dark would not end well for them. For the past three days they defeated the bears or rocs when they were able to launch a sneak attack with everyone in position, but if they were caught off guard like they had been with the cottols, someone was going to die.

    Torger told them what they expected to hear. ¡°I¡¯m sorry guys. We ran out of time. We¡¯re not going to kill six bears and six rocs then get back to the elves before dawn. We put in a good effort. A few months ago we wouldn¡¯t have been able to kill two bears or two rocs in a fight, but now we¡¯re stronger, have better equipment, and better spells. We¡¯ve come a long ways, but still not quite far enough. Lagwil is kind enough to give us something for our effort. Let¡¯s go get our partial reward from the elves.¡±

    They hung their heads in defeat, but knew he was right. All their armor wouldn¡¯t last another battle. They had to get it to Calico for repairs.

    When they came to the border, Lagwil was waiting for them. ¡°You are wise Torger. There is a time for bravery, but not when it carelessly endangers the others around you. All of you, your effort was valiant. Jex, step forward please.¡±

    She stepped forward and Lagwil handed her a recurve bow made of a grey wood that Torger and Graul couldn¡¯t identify. Lagwil said ¡°May the night not be a hindrance to a great huntress.¡±

    She looked at Torger. ¡°You will receive no experience from this quest. However, your reputation with us has improved. If you wish for us to upgrade your sword, we will.¡±

    Torger looked under Cities and found Lake Silverwood (Elven city). It showed

    Contact: Lagwil. Feared: 0/100 Loved 10/100 Respected 25/100 Hated 0/100.

    He had gained ten love points and ten respect points. He wondered how much it would have gone up if he completed the quest.

    ¡°What can you do to my sword to make it better?¡±

    ¡°You must have a jewel. Do you have one?¡±

    Torger rummaged around in the duffle bag and pulled out the small ruby he got from a simmet near Long Beach, then recovered from Treluge. He showed it to her.

    ¡°Our alchemist can fill this with Fire three, and infuse it into your sword. It will cost you one gold and sixty silver. Do you want me to take it to him?¡±

    Fire 3 with every sword strike! Yesss, Please! Torger tried his best to keep a poker face. ¡°I don¡¯t have that much money with me. But we do have bear skins and roc feathers for trade.¡±

    ¡°We would like the roc feathers, but Jex will need them for her new bow. Let me see the bear skins.¡±

    She agreed to buy the skins for forty-eight silver coins, and Torger gave her almost all the money he had left. She was surprised he didn¡¯t have a gold coin and started counting silver coins. She was a little irritated when he was two silver coins short and gave her two hundred copper coins. ¡°Torger I forgot how new you are to Nuva. You could have gone to your icon called money, and there you will see a bill for me. Select the ¡®Pay in full¡¯ and the money will automatically transfer from your coin pouch to mine. It¡¯s considered rude to physically hand someone more than twenty coins.¡±

    But she took the money and sword and ruby and walked towards the forest. When she was gone Torger told his friends ¡°This could take a while, and I had no idea those bear skins were so valuable. We got three silver per skin. I¡¯ll wait here, you go back to the eight bears we killed this morning and skin them. Maybe she¡¯ll buy those too. I¡¯ll meet you at the aqueduct.¡±If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

    His friends left and Torger waited as the sun set and he got cold. He waited for a couple more hours before Lagwil returned. She held the sword sideways and presented it to him. He grabbed it with both hands and it felt a little warm. He bowed his head to her. ¡°Thank you Lagwil. I hope you have a safe journey to meet up with your tribe. You have been kind to us and helpful. Snow will be here soon, and it will be deep in Yosemite if you get there too soon.¡±

    ¡°I see you are a decent man Torger. I hope you will visit us before the tyters come. You remind me much of our own history, defeating the tyters and claiming our independence. I wish the same success for you. And of course you may now claim the dwarven city near the lake, since we won¡¯t be here.¡±

    She turned and walked away, and Torger had to find his way back to camp in the dark. He had sore feet and ankles from stepping on unseen rocks, and bruised shins and scratched arms from unseen shrubbery by the time he made it back. While he was still a hundred yards away he heard Jex yell ¡°Stop!¡±

    Torger froze and looked all around him. He couldn¡¯t see a thing on that moonless night. She said ¡°Come on Torger.¡±

    He walked up and she pointed to where he had been standing when she told him to stop. It was pitch black. ¡°How did you see me?¡±

    She handed him the Bow of the Owl and he knocked an arrow to it. He looked back to where he had been and could barely make out grey silhouettes of rocks and branches. A little closer to him everything came into better focus. He put the bow down and saw nothing but blackness again. ¡°Jex that¡¯s amazing!¡±

    ¡°I know right! Now I can see in dark caves.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true. I didn¡¯t think about that. This is a huge advantage in caves.¡±

    ¡°What did you get? Let¡¯s see it.¡±

    Torger walked over to the campfire and everyone gathered around as he removed his steel sword from the scabbard. It was the same sword, two handed, double-edged, straight steel, and over three feet long. But on the center of the blade, just above the guard, his ruby was embedded into the steel. He stood up and swung it casually through the air. Brun yelled ¡°No Don¡¯t!¡± It flared red and heat from the blade caused everyone got their face hair burned off.

    Looking perturbed Jex said ¡°Brun finally made it to forty-five mana, and he tried out fire three on a possum. That¡¯s the second time tonight I lost some of my hair.¡±

    After asking around, Torger found out that Graul, Jex, and Antic each had two ability points, and he and Arden each had one. They made more progress in the past four days than they had in any single month since coming to Nuva. Torger looked at his upgraded sword and realized life just might be getting easier.

    Chapter 14

    Enter the White Mage

    Rome hung from the tree branch, his legs shooting with pain as the bear ran its claws through his greaves and calf muscles. He couldn¡¯t hold on much longer, but he was looking at the corner of his vision. He saw Spells and blinked. A list of spells came into his vision. He knew exactly where to look to find it quickly. He had looked at this menu dozens of times wishing he had four ability points to buy the spell. It took him less than a second to find it. He looked at Analyze 1 and blinked.

    The California Grizzly Bear sunk its claws into Rome¡¯s chest, and he fell to the ground. He had a second, maybe two left to live, but that was enough.

    The expected message popped up.

    Do You Wish to Buy Analyze 1? Cost 4 ability points YES NO

    He looked at Yes and blinked.

    You have bought the sp---

    The bear ran its claw into Rome¡¯s chest, and he died.

    Rome was standing upright in the Regulators house in Calico. He was naked, but his spare armor and clothes were in a pile right next to him. He dressed in clean clothes. The last time he had been in Calico he had fought razorlings in the mines, and afterward took his bloody clothes to the laundry area, a stone basin a couple miles outside of the village and next to the reservoir. He gave the dwarf a copper coin- standard pay per garment, but when she saw it was covered in blood she looked at the other two dwarves who charged for doing laundry, and they both shook their heads. Rome gave each of them another copper coin and left. Now those bloody clothes had been washed, sewn, folded, and placed near his bed. He was very thankful for that.

    He walked back to the kitchen and bought some food, and put it in his magic satchel. He went to Strong Arm to get another silver staff (a deal he had worked out a week earlier when he saw hitting a magical monster with one would shatter it), and began walking back to Lake Silverwood. It cost him all the silver Strong Arm owed him, but was well worth the cost.

    He didn¡¯t get far when he saw a couple of coyotes watching him. He wanted to try out his new spell very badly, but had to be cautious. He might have to rely on a magic spell before this fight was over, and if he used seven mana to cast Analyze 1, he wouldn¡¯t have enough left over to cast Fire 1.

    Rome removed his satchel and laid down his staff, then grabbed his spear with two hands. He wasn¡¯t going to attack the coyotes, and it looked like they were unsure if they should attack him. He reached down and picked up his satchel and staff with his left hand, holding the spear with his right. The coyotes followed him as he continued through the desert. He had to keep looking back over his shoulder, and that slowed him down too much. He finally picked up a rock and threw it at them. He missed but he picked up another rock and threw that one too. It missed again but they circled around to be one on each side of him. He threw another rock, but still they kept their distance. He finally had to pick up the silver staff and cast Fire 1.

    The coyote yelped and backed away, but the other one ran at him. Rome expected it and dropped the staff, then turned to drive his spear all the way through it. It died instantly, but his spear was stuck. He picked up the staff and cast Fire 1 again. The coyote got badly hurt, but circled around him, panting and with its fur burned off.

    Rome went to the first coyote and tugged on his spear until it came free, but it was too late. The other one came up behind him and bit him on the leg. His greaves took most of the bite, but his leg still got bruised. He drove his spear into it and it died.

    After gathering his gear, he continued to walk towards the mountains. He made it to the foothills just after nightfall, but had no tent and no real protection for himself. He ate a meal with the three farmers and after that he decided to walk through the night.

    Part way up the hill he saw a rabbit. He finally got the chance to use his new spell! He looked at it and thought ¡°Analyze.¡± Nothing happened. He went to Spells and selected the spell. A message came up:

    Do you wish to use the spell Analyze 1?

    He selected yes and another message popped up.

    To use this spell, point at the target.

    He pointed at the rabbit and thought ¡°Analyze.¡± Nothing happened. He pointed again, but said the word out loud. It worked the same as the Fire 1 spell he had. Information came to focus in front of him.

    Rabbit. Level 1. Health 20/20 Mana 0/0

    That was far less helpful than Rome hoped for, not really worth seven mana since his max was ten mana. However he did find out if he used Analyze 1 another 249 times, he would get Analyze 2.

    Rome walked all through the night; the sun was up when he made it to the lake. He was greeted by his friends who were just finishing breakfast.

    ¡°Guys it¡¯s the coolest thing. I can look at an object and find out information. For example,¡± he pointed at Torger and said ¡°Analyze.¡±

    The others saw nothing. Torger hesitantly asked, ¡°So what happened?¡±

    ¡°It shows me stuff. It says Human, level fifteen. Health a hundred out of a hundred. Mana ten out of ten.¡±

    Torger tried very hard to not sound condescending. ¡°That¡¯s cool Rome. We were just talking about where to go next. You can tell us how tough the monsters are before we get into a fight.¡±

    Rome knew Torger was right, but he had been waiting for a year to learn his first white magic spell, and now that he had it, it sucked. It would have uses, sure, but Cure 1 would have been a better choice. He tried to sound confident when he asked ¡°So what did the elves give you?¡±

    Everyone looked at Torger. ¡°Uh, Rome, they didn¡¯t give me anything. We didn¡¯t complete the quest. But I did buy an upgrade for my sword from them.¡±

    Arden said ¡°Stopping being shy, show him,¡±

    Torger removed his sword and everyone backed away. Torger looked at Rome and told him to take a few steps back. He swung his sword through the air and Rome saw what the others had seen the night before. The blade glowed red with heat and they could feel it radiating off the blade.

    ¡°Wow Torger, that is a serious upgrade. Until now Graul¡¯s flame sword was cool, but¡­ just wow.¡±

    Jex couldn¡¯t stand not showing off her new toy. ¡°Rome look what the elves gave me for almost finishing the quest.¡±

    Rome held it and drew back the bow. ¡°That¡¯s nice Jex. It¡¯s a lot like your old one, which is a good bow. This one has a heavier pull, so you can shoot further.¡±

    ¡°This one has a special ability that doesn¡¯t work in daylight. It helps me see at night.¡±

    ¡°Hey that is good. So where did you decide we¡¯re going next?¡±

    Graul answered ¡°We¡¯re going to go to Calico and tell Stone Fist he can build summer housing here. I wanted to sell the bearskins to the elves, but thought the dwarves might need them for the winter. I¡¯m thinking about selling the strength potions, I don¡¯t see where we¡¯ll need them, but I don¡¯t need to buy anything right now so I¡¯ll hold on to them.¡±

    Rome asked ¡°So the third bear cave had one too?¡±

    ¡°Yep. Three bear caves, nine strength potions. They¡¯ve got to be worth something.¡±

    They walked back to Calico and Stone Fist was happy to get more building to do. Torger wanted the farmers to grow crops in the foothills as soon as winter was over. It was going to snow soon and the farmers had nothing to gain from spending the winter there. With most of the bears and rocs gone, they should be somewhat safe, but even safer if dwarves lived in the mountain.

    When they made it to the kitchen, they saw dwarves arguing. Torger ran in and asked what the problem was.

    Baybil told him ¡°The dwarves of Calico are getting a lot of silver from the mining, while the dwarves of Small Hammer aren¡¯t allowed to work the mines.¡±

    ¡°Have they opened their own businesses and are they getting paid from the mines?¡±

    ¡°They have, but the miners are collecting silver hand over fist. I tell everyone they¡¯re all getting a living wage, maybe a little better, but jealousy runs deep with dwarves.¡±

    Torger thought about it. He looked and saw Strong Arm nearby. He asked ¡°How is our supply of iron? We need to repair our steel armor.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s running low Torger. Prices are going to start getting real high soon.¡±

    ¡°Yeah that¡¯s what I thought. Baybil, do some of your dwarves want to mine iron and sell it here?¡±

    ¡°They think they¡¯re above that. It¡¯s the criminal slave dwarves that mine that kind of stuff.¡±

    After another minute of thought Torger said ¡°So if we free the slaves from the goblins, they would mine the iron?¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t set them free Torger. That¡¯ll be looked at as a massive jailbreak. They would have to remain slaves.¡±

    ¡°OK, but they would rather be slaves under me than under the goblins. Guys, we¡¯re going to the Salton Sea. And any dwarves who aren¡¯t content with the way I¡¯m running Calico can become prison guards in Indio.¡±

    Antic asked ¡°Why Indio?¡±

    ¡°Just east of there is iron.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure I want a hundred criminals next to my home. Besides, that¡¯s where we kept seeing that troll.¡±

    Torger slapped his forehead. ¡°Of course. The troll is guarding an iron mine. So we¡¯ll have to kill the troll first, then go to the Salton Sea.¡±

    Torger set up plans for the dwarves. Some would continue running Calico, and Torger hoped Dijrit the chief miner would be honest about how much silver came out of the mines. Some dwarves would build up Lake Silverwood, and some would continue building the road from Calico to Indio. The dirt path already took them from Calico to San Antonio Falls. Still more dwarves were tasked to be under Stone Fist, to build an aqueduct from the springs near Indio to the iron mine where the troll was. Of course they would have to stay away from it until the Regulators killed it, but this aqueduct would be more of a challenge; the terrain didn¡¯t flow consistently downhill so they would have to start it at a hilltop and keep it suspended above ground level most of the way. Stone Fist would have to find another dwarf to be in charge of building up Lake Silverwood.

    Before he left he used his one ability point to expand the village shield from a two hundred foot diameter to a three hundred foot diameter. That ensured both smithies were inside the dome.

    Arden used his one ability point on strength, and Graul, Jex, and Antic used their two ability points to buy Lighting 1. That brought everyone to having no ability points and very little experience towards the next ability point. But when they all compared notes, it looked like this:

    Torger Level 20

    Health 100/100 Stamina 47/47 Strength 13 Mana 10/10

    Fire 1  Ice 1  Cure 1

    Graul Level 21

    Health 100/100 Stamina 47/47 Strength 13 Mana 10/10

    Fire 1 Ice 1 Slow 1  Lightning 1

    Arden level 17

    Health 100/100 Stamina 45/45 Strength 10 Mana 10/10

    Fire 1 Ice 1 Cure 1

    Jex Level 18

    Health 100/100 Stamina 44/44 Strength 11 Mana 10/10

    Fire 1 Ice 1 Slow 1  Lightning 1

    Brun Level 26

    Health 100/100 Stamina 44/44 Strength 11 Mana 45/45

    Fire 1 Ice 1 Fire 2 Lighting 1 Fire 3

    Rome Level 16

    Health 100/100 Stamina 44/44 Strength 7 Mana 10/10

    Fire 1 Teleport 1,2,3 Ice 1 Analyze 1

    Antic Level 28

    Health 300/300 Stamina 97/97 Strength 14 Mana 10/10

    Ice 1 Lightning 1

 Trolls

    Chapter 15

    Trolls

    That night they didn¡¯t have a big party or feast. They were too busy stuffing their magic duffle bags, back packs, and satchels with as much food and water as they could carry. Torger took a risk he didn¡¯t like; he left all their steel armor with Strong Arm for repairs, and they instead wore leather armor. Torger bought Rome and Brun wood staffs, in case their silver ones broke, and Antic and Arden spent the evening tying billik legs to oak poles of varying lengths, then placing them in the duffle bags. They made fourteen spears in all.

    Torger was frustrated with Rome. Every seven minutes, when his mana would recharge, he stopped what he was doing and used analyze on a dwarf. By the time they went to bed he had used it nearly forty times. Torger kept giving instructions and micro managing all the details until everyone went to bed early to avoid his smothering. He knew he was being over bearing but couldn¡¯t help it, he wanted everything to be done with the utmost efficiency.

    After breakfast the dirt path took the Regulators, six aqueduct builders, and six road workers to the top of Cajon Pass the next day. Sentries saw rocs flying around on their shifts that night, but the group was too large for them to attack. The next day the road workers stopped along the dirt path where they began making a path to Indio, almost at the falls, and the others headed south. They came to the burned ruins of Home and slept there. The sight saddened Torger and Graul. They underestimated how much Small Foot hated them, and their property paid the price.

    It rained for two days making for a miserable journey before they came to the spring west of Indio. They refilled their water skins and slept in Arden and Jex¡¯s cave. Torger felt more comfortable with Stone Fist and the other five dwarves having that cave to sleep in every night. The shield was weak, but they wouldn¡¯t have to waste dwarf power on keeping watch every night.

    At almost noon the next day, they saw troll footprints in the mud and easily followed them. It took about two more hours until they found the cave. Rome used Analyze 1 on the cave. A message came into his vision:

    You have found cave, level 5. Do you wish to conquer it?

    Of course he selected yes. Then a wide smile came to his face.

    ¡°Guys, by selecting that I want to conquer the cave, I can see into it.¡±

    Graul replied ¡°It¡¯s daylight. We can all see about ten feet into it.¡±

    ¡°No, I mean it¡¯s grey, deep inside, like looking down an arrow through Jex¡¯s Bow of the Owl.¡±

    Jex handed him the bow for a comparison. It was exactly the same for Rome.

    ¡°That¡¯s great! Two of us can see grey outlines in the cave without torches,¡± Torger said. ¡°That¡¯s a big advantage.¡±

    Rome knew he wasn¡¯t being sarcastic, but also realized the implications. ¡°Torger, if everyone learns analyze one, we won¡¯t need torches to clear out a cave. We will all be able to see in the dark.¡±

    Antic said ¡°That is good news, but for now we have work to do. You said the cave is level five. Remind me what that means.¡±

    ¡°It means if ten people level five attack the cave, they have a ninety percent chance of winning. For comparison, the one hundred razorlings guarding Calico when we first arrived were guarding a level nine cave, and the higher the level, the better the treasure. Also, as a group we are at level sixteen.¡±

    ¡°Very good Jex,¡± Rome acknowledged, ¡°That means that is one seriously powerful troll or there are others in there.¡±

    Torger instructed everyone to make torches from tied together branches and smear them with animal fat. ¡°We want to try to flush them out. Rome, you¡¯re going to have to use analyze immediately and tell us what we¡¯re facing.¡±

    Rome¡¯s heart swelled with pride. He finally had something useful to contribute to the battle.

    Torger and Graul stood to the sides of the mouth, while Arden and Brun threw in dry branches. Brun set them on fire and ran away. After a couple of minutes a huge troll came out, over eight feet tall, kicking the fire with its feet and extinguishing the flames.

    Rome used Analyze 1 and saw

    Troll Level 19. Health 300/300 Mana 0/0

    Rome called out ¡°Level nineteen, three hundred health, no mana!¡±

    The troll looked at him and started running towards him. Jex shot it with a fire arrow, Antic and Arden ran away from it, Brun cast Fire 2 at it, and Graul and Torger stepped behind it and stabbed it in the back. But when Torger¡¯s sword, now infused with Fire 3 struck, something amazing happened. The blade glowed red, and he heard the sound of flesh searing from the heat, but Graul¡¯s blade always did that too. However Torger¡¯s sword shot four fireballs out of it, two from each side. They circled in the air once, then slammed into the ground not damaging the troll any further. It was the first time he used the upgraded sword, and that was not what he was expecting.

    Torger and Graul withdrew their blades but the troll backhanded Torger. His leather helm did him no good as his head snapped back and he collapsed, unconscious, from the incredibly powerful blow. Graul sliced its leg and Brun cast Fire 2at it again twice, then he was out of mana.

    The troll tried to punch Graul, but he ducked and ran away. Jex shot it twice more with her last two ice arrows found in Treluge¡¯s goods, and the troll determined she was the biggest threat. He ran towards her and Rome. Seeing his wife in trouble shook Arden out of his daze and he ran at the troll. Antic saw Arden run and a second later he began running at it too.

    Jex and Rome both ran away and the troll followed, but Arden followed and stabbed it in the back with his spear. It stopped quickly and grabbed the spear, then pulled the non barbed billik leg from its back and broke it in half. It used the dangerous half like a javelin and threw it at Antic. He ducked just in time and when he looked up he saw Arden running towards a duffle bag for another spear.

    In the meantime Graul was trying to wake up Torger, seeing his jaw was clearly broken. Torger finally came to, with his vision blurry, and saw Jex and Arden casting spells at the troll that was on its knees and seemingly near death. It swatted weakly at Antic as he drove his spear into its skull. Everyone cheered and Graul stood up. He never saw the club swinging around like a baseball bat that hit him in the back.

    Even from a distance, the others heard the impact and looked. Torger was still on his knees and woozy, but was able to grab his sword from the ground and drive it into the troll¡¯s shin. He looked up and saw it was a female troll. Again the blade glowed hot and seared the flesh behind the shin, and four fireballs came out of the sword. But this time only two went into the ground after circling once. The other two flew into the cave mouth. Torger looked in and saw two six foot adolescent trolls holding clubs a few feet away. Both had a scorch mark from the fireballs on their chest. Torger didn¡¯t have time to think about how awesome his new sword was. The female hit him in the back with the club and through the agonizing pain he didn¡¯t realize he had no feeling in his legs.

    Jex shot iron tipped arrows as fast as she could at the three trolls. Everyone was out of mana from killing daddy troll. They knew Torger and Graul both had broken backs, but Antic and Arden ran at them with their spears anyway. As they were running, Rome realized there was something he could do. He ran behind them and when they got near, the spears poked into the mama troll, and Rome ran and grabbed Torger¡¯s sword. He swung it with just a little practice, a lowly level two in two handed swords and compared to Torger it looked clumsy, but the blade sank into mama troll¡¯s bicep and again four fireballs came out, two hitting the adolescents in the chest and two going into the ground.

    That unfortunately motivated them to spring into action. They both ran at Rome and he ran away carrying the sword in one hand and the staff in the other. He saw that although they looked fat and slow, they were only slowly losing ground on him. He circled to the side and began making his way back towards Jex and Brun. He saw Jex shooting arrows as fast as she could and shouted for her to help him. She turned toward him and knocked an arrow, and at the same time Brun started digging in the duffle bag near his feet.

    Jex shot one troll in the leg, which slowed it down, then shot the other in the leg, giving Rome time to arrive and grab a spear handed to him by Brun. They both turned and faced the trolls. Neither man knew how to use a spear at all, and held them at waist height. Fortunately the adolescent trolls were very stupid and ran forward, impaling their stomachs on the spears. The momentum knocked all of them to the ground, including Jex.

    Rome was the first to recover and grabbed a club one of the trolls had dropped. With a savage cry he raised it over his head and brought it down as hard as he could on the troll¡¯s head. The thick skull cracked, and it was knocked out. The other troll grunted and punched Jex in the chest while it was still on the ground. It had plenty of strength and she felt a rib crack. She rolled away from it just as it was drawing its arm back to punch her again, but Rome brought down the club again, knocking that one out as well. He looked up and saw Antic and Arden both drive their spears into the mama troll¡¯s sides, then they backed away and watched her bleed to death.

    Rome picked up Torger¡¯s sword and sliced the neck of one of the trolls on the ground. The blade cut easily and three fireballs circled in the air then went into the ground, the fourth hit the other unconscious troll in the chest. He collapsed to the ground with exhaustion.

    Torger was in so much pain he could barely think, but he finally managed to cast Cure 1 on himself. The pain subsided a little, but not much. It was enough for him to realize he couldn¡¯t feel his legs. He looked to the side and saw Graul laying at an awkward angle and not moving, but breathing.

    He called over ¡°Hey Graul, you still with us?¡±

    Graul didn¡¯t move but answered with his face in the ground ¡°Yeah. I can¡¯t move my legs and it hurts to breath.¡±

    ¡°Me too. I¡¯ll cast cure one on you, then again in two minutes.¡±

    The cure eased some of Graul¡¯s pain, but his back still screamed. All he could do was lay there and wait.

    The others walked down to them, Jex holding her ribs, and the others carrying gear. Rome handed Torger his sword, and Brun handed him his silver staff to aid with the cure spells. Rome and Antic volunteered to check inside the cave, Antic using the Bow of the Owl to see. As soon as they stepped in Rome saw a message.

    You have cleared this cave. Would you like to take possession of it?

    He called out to the others ¡°I got a message asking if I want to take possession of the cave. How do I answer?¡±

    They all talked about it for a while, Rome afraid to exit the cave and lose it. Brun called back ¡°Select no. Let¡¯s see if I can take it. We have access to it either way.¡±

    Brun walked in but didn¡¯t get a prompt. That was frustrating. He walked back out and Rome and Antic walked to the end of the cave. They saw nothing but animal skins and a fire pit in the far back. They looked around, but there was nothing to find. They walked back out. Rome exited first, and as soon as he did, Antic got a message asking if he wanted to take possession of the cave. He told the others.

    Antic walked out, and Brun walked in by himself. Only when he was in the cave by himself did he get the message asking if he wanted it as his own property. He selected NO and told the others. During that time Arden and Torger were able to cast Cure 1 on Graul and himself once each. Their pain diminished substantially, but they still couldn¡¯t move their legs. The others dragged Graul in and walked out of the cave. He took possession of it, then they dragged Torger in and, with the safety of a shield over the entrance, cooked dinner and drank water. Arden cast Cure 1 on Jex, and Torger got in one more cure for himself and his brother, the freedom from pain combined with a sleeping potion from Calico allowed them to fall asleep.

    In the morning they were all healed. Graul left the shield up and they walked back to tell Stone Fist they succeeded. He told them he was glad, but they asked him why they had such a hard time defeating a level five cave, and they told him the whole battle.

    ¡°It sounds like it started out just fine, an unfortunate hit to Torger. But if I understand correctly, Graul you were overconfident thinking the battle was over. You got blindsided by a powerful blow, taking you out of the fight. How different would the fight have gone if you weren¡¯t surprised?¡±Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    Graul thought about it. ¡°I could have killed one of the adolescents all by myself.¡±

    ¡°And that would have changed the whole battle?¡±

    Everyone nodded and agreed. Stone Fist said ¡°The battle wasn¡¯t difficult for you because your levels aren¡¯t high enough, you went in with leather armor made for level two or three dwarves instead of steel armor made for levels fifteen to thirty, or even iron or bronze, and you didn¡¯t fight together as a team. You¡¯re talking about going to attack hundreds of goblins without steel armor and not working together. I hope you take this event as a wakeup call.¡±

    They sat there looking at the ground and felt dejected. After a few minutes Brun asked ¡°Now what?¡±

    Torger looked up and said ¡°My suggestion is we go to Havasu and find those potions.¡±

    Stone Fist looked at him with shock on his face. ¡°What potions?¡±

    Torger was uncomfortable with the restrained greed behind the dwarf¡¯s eyes. ¡°We know a place where there might be some buried potions.¡± He didn¡¯t want to say more.

    Stone Fist let the news sink in for a few minutes, then he stood up on his tip toes and rapped his knuckles on Torger¡¯s forehead. Before Torger could say ow Stone Fist started yelling ¡°Idiots! All this time you¡¯ve barely managed to fend off razorlings and big bears, and you knew where to find potions? We dwarves can only make low level potions, and the farmers have to wait until the end of winter to set out to plant crops for food and ingredients for potions. Those are a huge boost in a fight! How easy would that fight with the trolls have been if you had four cure potions and four mana potions? Even low level ones? It takes a month to grow the ingredients for potions and another three weeks to brew them. Calico has nearly exhausted its supplies on you humans, and it will be a couple of months before farmers can plant the crops for the ingredients.¡± Frustrated he stormed off and called them idiots over his shoulder.

    Torger looked at the others. ¡°I guess that settles which way to go.¡±

    Chapter 16

    The Muddy Desert

    None of the Regulators were still tired when they woke up. Antic¡¯s cave was plenty big enough for everyone to sleep. He felt happy he had something to offer his friends, both human and dwarf, but sleeping on bare ground would have to be improved on one day.

    They ate breakfast, their bread and dried fruits were very low but they still had plenty of dried meats. They set out due east with full bellies and water skins. The cold wind from the northwest made them put on their winter coats, and they saw clouds rolling in.

    As they walked Rome said ¡°I¡¯ve been watching the daylight. I think yesterday was the shortest day, but I¡¯m not sure. Anyway, I¡¯ll pretend tomorrow is Christmas Eve. Just thought I¡¯d let everyone know.¡±

    Christmas. The idea reminded everyone of home and family. Their families had no idea what happened to them; they went for a hike and were never found. For every one of them, their thoughts turned toward homesickness, which then turned to anger towards the tyters for taking them away for some sort of pleasure hunt. They walked in silence, but daydreamed about killing their enemies in less than two years. As their thoughts turned dark, so did the sky.

    They made camp on the backside of a hill, out of the wind as much as possible. It was difficult to keep the cook fire going, and as soon as they put a couple rabbits on spits it began to rain. Arden grabbed the spits and threw the rabbits as far as he could, and as the fire got quenched no one could blame him.

    Torger took the first watch as everyone went into their tents early, and hungry. Using the Bow of the Owl made it a lot easier to be on watch, and he found he was less jumpy at noises. Near the end of his shift he saw three coyotes come and eat the two rabbits forty yards away. They saw him but with enough food they left him alone.

    They walked as far as they could the next day with the rain falling on and off. Spirits and heads were down and they walked mostly in silence. They only made it about twelve miles and set up camp on a wide expanse of soft sand.

    The next morning they ate the last of their dried foods. The sun had come out, and they continued due east until they came near the Colorado River. The cold, wet and boring journey wearied them, and they weren¡¯t highly alert when a large razorling walked in front of them. Torger saw it half a second before the others and he looked around. There were sand dunes in all directions.

    Jex readied her bow and Rome cast Analyze 1.

    Razorling Level 14. Health 400/400 Mana 0/0

    Rome called out the stats and asked ¡°How could it have more health than the troll? It¡¯s a lower level!¡±

    Jex released an arrow and struck it in the chest. Arden cast Ice 1 and its movements slowed a little. Torger answered Rome¡¯s question. ¡°It probably has higher health but lower strength and stamina. But those claws will be just as sharp as the level nine ones we fought at Calico.¡±

    Rome looked at this razorling, and it seemed to be the same size as the ones at Calico, and bigger than when he saw them near the Colorado river almost a year earlier. Torger and Graul walked towards the beast, swords held at the ready. When they came near, Jex shot it again, but they heard Antic yell ¡°Another one to the left!¡±

    Torger looked and saw one coming over that sand dune. Rome yelled ¡°Another on the right!¡±

    The injured razorling in front of them ran forward. Graul stopped its claws with his iron shield, and Torger sliced off its foot. Four fireballs came out of his sword and flew in four different directions away from him. He heard Brun yell ¡°You¡¯re negating the ice spells!¡±

    Torger didn¡¯t like hearing that but he had no choice. Graul stabbed it in the side while Torger distracted its face. It turned to bite Graul but he jumped back in time, though the soft muddy sand slowed down his footwork. When it tried to bite him it exposed its neck. Torger drove in his sword at the opportunity. Again four fireballs shot out in four different directions. It stumbled as blood gushed out, but retained its footing enough to try to bite Torger.

    Torger felt the pommel slip out of his wet hands when it turned its body. He used his forearm to protect his face, but the leather bracer did little to stop the sharp teeth. As they were sinking into his skin Graul took a full swing and chopped its head off. The pressure on Torger¡¯s right forearm lessened a little, but the severed head locked its jaw and didn¡¯t drop off. He used his left arm to try to pry the teeth apart, and Graul ran into battle behind him.

    Graul saw the others were in trouble. He ran to the right and blocked a claw that was coming down at Rome, who was lying on his back. He heard the twang of a bowstring but didn¡¯t have time to look up to see what Jex was aiming at. Graul shoved his sword into the lizard¡¯s mouth and quickly withdrew it before it countered. He heard another twang and knew that was too fast for Jex to aim and release again, but he kept his mind on the five foot reptile a foot from his face.

    Graul blocked another claw strike with his iron shield, but the claws almost went through. The shield wouldn¡¯t survive another heavy blow. He had to end the fight with the next stroke of his flame sword. He dropped to one knee and drove it up through the monster¡¯s chin; through the mouth and brain. Its body collapsed and landed on the sword, with his hand still holding it.

    Rome recovered and picked up the head while Graul wiggled his sword until it came free. They looked and saw Antic holding one at bay with his spear, and Arden trying to hold another at bay with his spear, but not doing so well. Jex and Brun were both using bows to shoot another one that was heading for Torger. Graul ran to help Arden, but watched Torger as he did.

    Torger finally got the locked teeth off his arm and picked up his sword just in time. He blocked a bite attempt with a blade edge, it sank an inch into the lizards nose before it flinched away. Four fireballs shot out of the sword, two circled and went into the ground, the other two flew at the other razorlings, each hitting one. They flinched with pain, but their movements became faster. Torger didn¡¯t see that however, as he was busy stabbing his sword at the already wounded nose. The blade sank in easily and deeply, and the razorling frantically backed away. Two more fireballs shot at the two other razorlings. Torger withdrew the sword and sliced down on its head, splitting the skull. The beast died and another two fireballs found their mark. He looked up in time to see Graul stab the lizard that was giving Arden a hard time. It died a few seconds later and Torger ran up to the one that was busy with Antic. It looked like a porcupine with about twenty arrows sticking out of it. Without swinging his sword he encouraged his friend ¡°Go ahead Antic. Finish it.¡±

    Antic thrust his spear at its mouth and leaned forward slightly. The billik leg went through the mouth and into the brain. It shuddered and died.

    Graul walked around cutting off feet while the others regrouped. Torger cast Cure 1 on his arm and most of the blood stopped, but the puncture marks were still there. He asked if anyone else was hurt. When they all showed minor scratches and bruises, he completely cured himself.

    They were all tired and depressed from the journey and the rain, and set up camp right there, with an hour of sunlight left and only a few miles from the river. They all went to bed hungry, but no one saw any trouble on the night watches. During his watch, Rome checked and saw he was just thirteen experience points short of another ability point. Almost all of that came from the four trolls and five razorlings.

    The next morning they made it to the river and were very hungry when they got there. They turned north and headed for Havasu, hoping to find a deer drinking from the river as they walked. They didn¡¯t make it far when they saw a group of dwarves coming their way.

    The leader said ¡°Ahh, you must be the prey we heard about. We heard some humans came here months ago, didn¡¯t have two coppers to rub together between the lot of ya. Have times improved for ya?¡±

    Torger stepped forward. ¡°I am Torger, and as you can see we are not so weak as when we came here last time. We were a little further south then, but the razorlings seem bigger here. Why is that?¡±

    The dwarf leader stood up straighter. ¡°Razorlings? Where did you see them? We¡¯ll kill those beasts for ya, can¡¯t have them coming near our village.¡±

    ¡°We killed them last night. There were five of them.¡±

    ¡°You killed them? Were they babies?¡± He eyed Torger suspiciously like a kid with chocolate on his face that said he didn¡¯t eat any cookies.

    Torger reached into the duffle bag and removed all twenty feet. ¡°Do you want to trade us something for these?¡±

    The dwarf looked shocked. ¡°I guess I was misinformed. You¡¯re not as weak as I was told. No we don¡¯t want razorling feet, we¡¯ve got a barrel full of ¡®em in the village that nobody wants. Got all the sticky nets we need too. You asked why the razorlings are bigger here. Actually, they¡¯re not. All tyter prey comes to Nuva weak, and gains in power and levels as they get stronger. The last time you were here, the lizards, and you too I suppose, were young and weak. But tyter¡¯s beasts usually gain about one level every month, on average of course. Some grow faster, others slower. Take you for example. You¡¯ve been here twelve months and gained nineteen levels. These razorlings been here twelve months and gained seven levels. You¡¯re all fast growers it seems, but the razorlings started off at level seven, now they¡¯re at fourteen.¡±

    Rome thought about that. ¡°So by the time the tyters come once every three years, you could be facing some very dangerous monsters.¡±

    ¡°Yes. One tyter would take on five level ten razorlings by himself. They want a bigger hunt than that. But words been going round that the tyters brought in all kinds of prey this time, though no one seems to know why. In another year the whole planet will be a war zone. That¡¯s why we¡¯re trying to get all the prey out of the area as quick as we can while they¡¯re still weak. Tyter prey usually respawns if we dwarves kill them, though somewhere else in the world, away from other dwarves.¡±

    Brun asked ¡°What if we kill them?¡±

    ¡°I have no idea. There¡¯s never been two kinds of prey on Nuva at the same time. But what brings ya here?¡±

    Torger answered ¡°We have a task to complete to the north. We wanted to follow the river hoping to catch a deer.¡±

    ¡°Our village is to the north. I¡¯ll go ask the mayor if you can come in or if you have to go around. Until then stay here and good hunting. I¡¯ll be back in a few hours.¡±

    He left a couple dwarves with them so they wouldn¡¯t head toward the village. Rome used analyze on one of them.

    Dwarf Level 22. Health 400/400. Mana 15/15

    Rome was a little surprised, most dwarves in Calico were around level seventeen. He was told they usually maxed out on animals to kill in Nuva around that level. To grow higher they would have to kill the tyter¡¯s prey, and that was usually pretty dangerous. They usually had low levels of mana since most dwarves couldn¡¯t gain any level two spells.

    Torger received a new quest:

    From: Romalt

    The dwarves of Parker don¡¯t want any tyter prey in the area. Remove all prey within 20 miles of Parker.

    Reward: Significantly increased reputation with the dwarves of Parker.

    Reward: 900 exp.

    Reward: Ice weapon of choice

    While they waited Jex tracked and shot a deer, and Arden field dressed it and carried it back. They were cooking it when the leader came back three hours later. Jex had used her regular recurve bow for the hunt. Torger had signaled to her the dwarves shouldn¡¯t know about her elven bow or his sword. The leader told them they were welcome to spend the night in the village, for three coppers each. Torger handed him the money and they started walking north.

    They made it just before sunset, and were disheartened to find out three coppers would let them sleep on the dirt outside, but in the safety of the village shield. They were given the option to sleep in the caves dug in to the banks of the river, for an additional three coppers each. But they were within a shield, so out of principle they set up tents right in the middle of the town square, suggested by Arden. The dwarves who came out of the caves gawked at their audacity, but the Regulators fell asleep before the last rays of sunlight disappeared.

    In the morning Torger was the first one to wake. He was happy to use a latrine again, and when he came out he saw a blacksmith outside stretching in the early light. Only the guard was awake. Torger walked over and struck up a conversation.

    ¡°Hi I¡¯m Torger.¡± He stuck out his hand. The black smith looked at it then ignored him.

    ¡°Let¡¯s try this again. How is your supply of iron?¡±

    The blacksmith looked at him. ¡°It¡¯s a little low, like everyone else. But I¡¯m fine,¡± he said with a guarded voice.

    ¡°If I can get some iron delivered here in say, three months, would you want to buy it?¡±

    That got his attention. ¡°You know where iron¡¯s at? Name¡¯s Guntrink. I¡¯d pay a fair price for it sure, but as I said, I¡¯m not desperate yet. The goblins haven¡¯t come by here selling anything for a year, ¡®cept salt and coal. If ya can sell it at four coppers a pound like they do, we could do business.¡±

    Torger¡¯s hopes sunk. Apparently an iron mine was worth way less than a silver mine. Made sense, but unless he wanted silver armor, he needed iron to make steel. Then the idea hit him. Silver armor would be better than the leather armor they were wearing. He should have Strong Arm make them ¡°cheap¡± silver chainmail. He pushed the silly thoughts aside and said ¡°Guntrink, do you have any armor our size? I mean my friends and me? Anything would be better than this leather we¡¯re wearing.¡±

    ¡°No, nothing your size, but I could have some bronze armor expanded and reshaped in a few days. Are ya going to be in the area?¡±

    ¡°I think we¡¯ll pass back through here in a few days. How much would it be?¡±

    ¡°Oh, about a gold for each of ya for the full getup.¡±

    ¡°Whoa, that is some serious price gouging. I guess our two mages and archer don¡¯t need it. On second thought, forget it. Our steel armor is being repaired and we¡¯ll manage without the bronze armor.¡±

    ¡°You got steel armor and you left without waiting for the repairs? You¡¯re dumb or desperate. My offer stands. One gold per full set of bronze armor, and four copper per pound of iron ore you deliver.¡±

    Torger shook his head. ¡°A gold is more than I have, and I wouldn¡¯t pay that much anyway.¡± He walked away thinking he had to complete that quest to increase his reputation in the village.

 The Third Icon

    Chapter 17

    The Third Icon

    They bought breakfast for a higher than expected price, and some dried food, then left. Just as they left town they saw farm fields lying dormant for the winter and hoped Calico farmers could grow crops soon, as the city food supplies were running low. As they walked Rome said ¡°We got more experience from killing the bigger razorlings here than the smaller ones at Calico.¡±

    Arden looked at him and said ¡°You¡¯re always so scientific and crunching numbers Rome. Just enjoy the travel.¡±

    But Torger came to his aid. ¡°That¡¯s something good to know Rome. I want to hear about stuff like that. The more we know about Nuva, the better.¡±

    Rome gave Arden a smile. ¡°Okay Torger. It seems we get a total of about fifty experience points per level of monster we kill, but it¡¯s not exact. I think younger weaker ones give less experience points. Also we should all gain another ability point with whatever we kill next.¡±

    ¡°Thank you Rome.¡±

    They walked until sunset and set up camp. During Brun¡¯s watch, around midnight, he saw a razorling on a hill. He went into Torger¡¯s tent to wake him up. When they got outside, there were four razorlings walking towards the camp. Torger shouted ¡°Everybody up!¡± and he banged on tent flaps.

    Brun knew he had to slow them down. He cast Ice 1 at the nearest one, and it flinched, but the other three charged at him. He cast Ice 1 twice more before had to run away. Torger stabbed at the last one that wasn¡¯t hit with the spell, but he didn¡¯t want to strike until everyone was ready. Four fireballs came out of his sword and three hit razorlings, negating the slow movements Brun¡¯s ice spell had caused. He circled it, keeping his sword pointed towards its face, and heard Brun running. Arden was the first one out of the tent and tried to keep one occupied with his spear.

    One of the other razorlings chased Brun and the last one tore into a tent. Antic and Rome came out foggy eyed but ready. Antic stabbed the lizard and Rome used analyze.

    Razorling Level 14. Health 304/400 Mana 0/0

    Rome cursed his stupidity. He didn¡¯t need to analyze it, he needed to cast Ice 1 at it twice. He went back into the damaged tent and found Antic¡¯s spears. He came out and helped him keep it away.

    Jex shot the one chasing Brun. He heard it hiss and he saw Graul was the last to come out of a tent. ¡°Graul cover me!¡± Brun ran at Graul looking for protection. Graul stepped to the side as Brun ran past and sliced off the tail of the giant lizard. It turned and hissed at him, but kept running at Brun. Graul saw that it couldn¡¯t turn quickly without its tail.

    ¡°Brun run in a circle back to me!¡± As he did, Graul cast Slow 1 at it, then Slow 1 at another lizard. The next time Torger¡¯s sword sent out fireballs, those two reptiles continued to move at a slightly slower speed.

    Brun in his panic ran in a perfect circle back towards Graul, which meant the lizard had a lot less ground to cover. Jex shot it with another arrow into a leg and it slowed down again. When it came near, a fireball hit it in the chest. Graul ran towards it and shoved his sword in its mouth as it Brun ran past him. Surprisingly, it bit on the sword and it took off Graul¡¯s hand. He screamed in pain, but he had also delivered a fatal stab. It plowed face first into the ground. Before it died, another fireball hit it in the side, and that finished it off. Graul had never had trouble with stabbing razorlings in the face before; these were definitely more aggressive.

    Brun looked to see the other three razorlings engaged in battle. Torger was doing fine staying away from his, and Arden and Rome were making weak stabs at one, while Antic was thrusting his spear at another. Brun cast Ice 1 at the one fighting Antic, and it slowed down a little. Jex had multiple arrows into the one Arden and Rome were struggling to keep away from themselves. A few minutes later the battle was over. Graul staggered to Torger, who took Rome¡¯s staff, and cast Cure 1 twice. Rome knew that should be his job and said so, but Graul encouraged him to save up for it. Rome already had an ability point saved, and that fight got him a second ability point and brought him almost half way to the next one. He knew he might get Cure 1 within a day. But ultimately he decided against it. Rome bought five more mana so he could cast Analyze 1 and still have enough leftover to cast Ice 1.

    Graul¡¯s hand stopped bleeding, mostly. Arden retrieved his spear and they all went back to bed. In the morning Graul had a small half formed hand. Sleeping didn¡¯t fully cure that severe of an injury, and Cure 1 didn¡¯t speed up the regrowth. He knew he would be no good in a fight that day. Luckily they came to the south side of the lake by nightfall. They made camp and Rome checked his map. The icon was on the north side, so they could look for it the next day.

    The next morning Graul was glad to have his hand back. He swung the sword several times, twisting his wrist to make sure everything worked right. They walked around the lake and were on the north side a couple hours before dark. Rome looked at his map and said they needed to walk a couple more miles, then they would be within one mile of it, in any direction. They didn¡¯t like not knowing exactly where it was, but unless they wanted to bring some greedy dwarves they had to look for it on their own.

    When they got right on top of the icon on the map, it disappeared. Rome told them to look around. They spread out and looked all over the steep cliffs on the west side of the river, but when dark came they had to make camp. As they sat around the fire Antic asked where it could be, but they all knew the answer; they had to cross the river and look on the other side. They went to bed dejected and thought about how to get across. It was winter and the foothills were cold that night, and the river was swollen with rainwater.

    In the morning the others awoke and took down the tents, but Torger looked up and down the river trying to find a way to cross. If it came to it, they would walk downstream a mile and cross in cold calm water, but that would make them spend the rest of the day drying out next to a fire. There had to be a way to cross it without getting wet, but how?

    As he was thinking about it, he saw something strange in the way the water was moving. Torger had been white water rafting many times before, and had a pretty good idea how to read the water to see submerged rocks, but this was different. After watching for a while, he said ¡°You have got to be kidding me!¡±

    The others walked over to him and asked what was wrong.

    He pointed upstream. ¡°You see how the water breaks there? It¡¯s hitting a wedge shaped rock about a foot under the top of the river. And you see how it breaks over there? It¡¯s hitting a large round rock about two feet down.¡± He pointed a little downstream. ¡°What do you see there?¡±

    They looked and Arden said ¡°It¡¯s just fast moving water.¡±

    ¡°No, it swells up a little. Right in the middle of the river, it flows like there are no big rocks under the surface, but it bulges and forms a straight line going across the river, about three feet wide.¡±

    ¡°So? It¡¯s a square rock buried deep.¡± Arden was unimpressed.

    ¡°Straight lines are very rare in nature. If it were a rock, the water would be eating the sides, trying to make it round, or slamming into the center and making it concave. There is nothing the water is doing to make it straight while submerged. At least it would be a one in a billion shot.¡±

    ¡°So what do you think it is?¡±

    ¡°Based on the water I can see at the surface, a submerged treasure chest.¡±

    ¡°How are we supposed to get it out?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m working on that.¡±

    Everyone looked at the water flowing quickly over the odd shaped bump. They all thought about it for a few hours, but no good ideas came up in conversation. Arden said ¡°It seems the tyters meant to get to it during the summer when the water level is lower.¡±

    Since winter had just began, and the river would get even higher with snow melt in four months, they had to get it out that day or come back in six months. After discussing it even more Jex asked ¡°How do we even know it¡¯s a treasure chest? What if we¡¯re wasting our time looking at an anomaly in the water?¡±

    Torger responded ¡°If we had a ten gallon fish tank I could submerge it two inches and you would be able to kind of see the bottom. I wish the dwarves made glass.¡±

    That gave Rome an idea. ¡°Maybe we can hire the dwarves to dig a canal and divert the river.¡±

    ¡°Not a bad idea, but we don¡¯t have much money to hire the dwarves near Parker. We would have to go all the way back to Calico, collect silver, then come back again.¡±

    ¡°I meant the dwarves of Calico who are building the aqueduct.¡±

    They all thought about that. It would be a three day walk there and three days back, if they kept up a quick pace the whole way. Finally after discussing it some more Torger decided to try to get the chest out themselves, and if they failed then they would go get Stone Fist and his crew. He reached into his back pack and pulled out a strong rope, tied it to himself in a harness, and everyone else held on to it, slowly letting out slack as he waded into the water.

    The water was very cold and his legs became numb. His leather boots did little to keep his feet from sliding and keep him from twisting his ankle on the uneven rocks he couldn¡¯t see. As he got stomach deep the current was too strong and it swept him down river several feet, but his friends held the rope tight and began pulling him back. He made it back to shore, failed in that attempt, but had another idea.

    ¡°I want to get all the way across the river and tie the rope to the pine tree, and you guys tie the rope to the pine tree over there,¡± he said pointing at the Ponderosa Pine. ¡°Then I¡¯ll tie a short rope to the main one and can easily make it to the center of the river, being tethered from the middle instead of from a shore.¡±

    Everyone but Graul looked at him like they had no idea if he was speaking English. Graul explained the process by describing a hammock that sags in the middle, and that sag, if rotated sideways, would be where Torger would be tied at.

    Once again Torger waded into the water, but much further upstream this time. He swam across as best he could, but still ended up twenty yards downstream by the time he reached the other shore. The large rope was tied to him, with the others holding the other end. They tied the ends to the two trees, then Torger tied a smaller but strong rope to his harness and the main line. With much fear, he held on to the main rope with both hands while wading into the water.

    After several feet, his hands slipped and he was whisked a few feet downstream before his anchor line stretched tight and held him. The force of the water pushed him under, but he was prepared for that, having been ready for a foot entrapment to end his life.

    He had tied the anchor to near the top of his harness, and while under water turned to face upstream. He grabbed the rope with both hands and pulled himself forward against the current until his head broke the surface and he gasped for air. Knowing his muscles would only last for a few more minutes, he quickly pulled himself back to the main line. Once there he used his hands to once again drag himself to the center of the river. He took a deep breath, held it, then let go.

    The water immediately sent him several feet downstream until the rope tightened again. He turned his body to face down and opened his eyes. His guesstimates had been nearly right on because he could just make out the top of a brown rectangle box a couple feet below his stomach. The box was mostly buried in silt. On top of the box was some sort of palm reader that looked like it was made for a very large, three fingered hand. The first thought that ran through his mind was ¡°Maybe that opens the box and if I open it, all the potions will float away, and we won¡¯t get any. Not gettin¡¯ any is always a bad thing.¡± His next thought was ¡°There is no way we¡¯re pulling this thing out with human force. It¡¯s buried too deep and the water is too powerful.¡±

    That made up his mind for him. The box would be opened that day, whether on shore or at the bottom of the river. He reached down to touch it, but reaching two feet below his stomach from his prone position made his palm face the wrong direction. He tried to turn his hand over, but couldn¡¯t quite place his palm flat against the hand indicator. He was two feet too far downstream. He rolled onto his back and pulled himself upstream, and below water, with a hand over hand motion along the rope. Once he went far enough, he held on with his left hand with all the strength he had, and rolled to be face down again. He reached out his right hand and was able to place his palm flat against the lid of the box.

    A yellow light lit up around his hand, then around the box. He didn¡¯t know what that meant, but he needed air. The box could wait. He rolled onto his back again and reached up to grab the tether with his right hand. When he moved his hand, the box broke free of the silt and flew to the far side of the river. Torger didn¡¯t know what that meant, but he was seriously short of air. He began pulling himself up the rope, hand over hand. Finally he broke the surface and took in a big breath. The sound of roaring water flooded his ears, but after a few seconds he heard distant yells.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

    He looked over to the shore and saw his friends pointing to the other side of the shore and yelling something he couldn¡¯t make out. He looked to see where they were pointing and saw the box levitating above the opposite shore. It had a yellow glow around it still, and his right hand was still glowing yellow. His arm muscles were burning and he had to get to the shore. He pulled himself all the way up the tether to the main line and began pulling himself along that rope to the shore. His arms were killing him, but he knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to recover any strength while in the water. He finally made it to a point where he could wade to shore.

    A few feet from shore his hearing returned to him. He heard Arden yell ¡°Raise up your hand! Raise your hand!¡±

    Torger held on to the rope with his right hand, since the river was pushing him to the left. He raised his left hand and waved at his friends. He was exhausted and needed to rest and didn¡¯t need Arden¡¯s silly games right then. But everyone yelled ¡°Raise your right hand!¡±

    Not in the mood to take orders, Torger walked to the shore. Graul ran at him and grabbed his right arm and picked it up. Torger was surprised and tried to shake off his brother, but he was too weak from the most intense game of Marco Polo ever. Graul brought Torger¡¯s arm away from the shore, while at the same time turning Torger to look at the water. The box was coming towards them, half way across the river. The gold glow was pulsating quickly like a car blinker with one of the bulbs out. The box itself was continually slamming into rocks as it came towards them, the sides and bottom bent and banged severely, with a few holes in it. Torger raised his hand higher, and the box raised higher.

    Stunned, he brought his hand above his head. The box moved toward him a few feet, then stopped again. The pulsating yellow light had now started in his hand. This seemed to be some sort of timer. A timer to what he didn¡¯t know, but it seemed to be getting close to ending. Fearing the box may turn into some sort of bomb he yelled ¡°Everybody down!¡±

    Torger turned away from shore and threw his arm like pitching a baseball. The box flew over everyone¡¯s heads. While it was airborne the yellow light around his hand and the box stopped. As soon as that happened the box lost most of its momentum and fell to the ground. The corner it landed on crumpled, but the rest of it seemed to be OK. Everyone ran at the box to see what was in it, except Torger who crawled to his back pack and drank one of the strength potions.

    His burning muscles stopped hurting and he checked his Stats. It showed his strength was at 2/13. He felt weak and beyond tired. His stamina was 1/48. He didn¡¯t know why it dawned on him that the river climbing gave him another stamina point. He wished he had a stamina potion. Instead he drank another strength potion, which added another point. Having a little strength and no energy, he lay there waiting to catch his breath. He could hear his friends cheering in the distance, and he was glad they succeeded.

    After several minutes Rome came over and handed him a white potion. He said ¡°Drink this and see what happens.¡±

    Torger wasn¡¯t usually prone for tricks, but Rome was usually trustworthy to not pull a prank on an injured man. Usually. Arden and Brun were a different story. ¡°Did Arden tell you to give me this?¡±

    ¡°No, I used analyze on it. It says it¡¯s a low level stamina potion.¡±

    Torger drank it. He gained a little energy, but not much. ¡°I feel a little better. It increased my stamina by two.¡±

    ¡°Good, drink another.¡±

    Torger wanted to say they should keep it for later, but he really wanted to be able to stand up. He drank it and gained another two stamina, and with another minute of rest he was at 9/48. He got up and walked over to see the world¡¯s ugliest treasure chest. Made out of a brown metal it looked like it had been used at a rifle range, in which most bullets weren¡¯t powerful enough to penetrate it. The dents were deep and everywhere, and there were five dime sized holes.

    ¡°How did any potions survive in this?¡±

    ¡°A few were broken, but most are safe, no thanks to you,¡± scolded Arden. ¡°They would have all been fine if you didn¡¯t keep slamming the box into every rock in the river while you came back to shore.¡±

    Torger thought about his hand over hand movements pulling himself along first the tether then the main line to get back to shore, and imagined the box going left, right, up, down over and over again. The thing had to be nearly indestructible to withstand that abuse. But instead of saying that he chose to say ¡°Sorry I was too focused on not drowning to care about the box for those twenty seconds.¡±

    Arden gave him a look that was a mixture of anger and understanding compassion. ¡°Just come see what we got.¡± Neither man was going to apologize and they both knew it. Arden was a natural Alpha male and Torger was a natural lone wolf, but now Torger was becoming in charge of the group and neither of them liked it.

    Torger walked to the box and looked inside. His jaw dropped open and he had no words to say at the beauty inside the forgettable utility box.

    Chapter 18

    More upgrades

    It took until after dark, but Rome analyzed and separated all the different types of potions. When he was done he made a list and handed it to Torger.

    Health potions  Low-12 Mid-13 High-13

    Mana potions Low-13 Mid-13 High-12

    Strength potions Low-19 Mid-12 High-13

    Stamina potions Low-10 Mid-13 High-12

    Rome said ¡°They all started with fifteen, but some broke. You drank two low stamina potions, and we had seven low strength potions left over from the bear caves. We know for health and mana potions they restore nine points for low and nineteen for mid, and low strength restores one and low stamina restores two. We don¡¯t know what the other ones do.¡±

    Torger looked at him. ¡°Rome, the elves sold me mid level health potions for three silver coins each. This would be a lot of money if we didn¡¯t need it for ourselves.¡±

    They both stayed awake after the others went to sleep talking about what to do next. When Rome¡¯s shift was over Torger still didn¡¯t have a plan of what was most important, but they woke up Graul for his shift and went to bed.

    The sun was bright when Torger woke up. It was an unusually warm day for what might have been new year¡¯s. Jex was cooking a deer leg over the fire and others were taking down a tent and packing bags. Graul and Arden were trying to get the treasure chest into the duffle bag. It finally expanded enough and then the box shrank in size to one twentieth and weight to one tenth the original.

    As they ate breakfast Torger asked no one specifically ¡°What do we do now? We can kill all the tyter prey south of here to complete the dwarf quest, or we can go to Yosemite to get the last icon of the tyters, or we can go take revenge on the goblins. I favor going back to Calico to get our steel armor. It was no fun fighting razorlings with leather armor.¡±

    As before, Arden wanted to get the grenade icon from Yosemite and Brun wanted to take revenge on the goblins, but everyone else decided they needed better armor before they could do anything.

    They headed back to Parker and again paid three coppers each to set up a tent in the town square for the night, and again overpaid for breakfast and rations. As they were leaving they were stopped by the guards.

    ¡°Word has come to us that you intend to free the dwarf slaves from the goblins and make them your own slaves. We were instructed to tell you that you will do no such thing until the annual council is concluded. As mayor of a dwarf village, you are required to attend. It will be held here in one month.¡±

    Torger asked ¡°One month from today? Or is it four weeks?¡±

    Both guards looked away and refused to answer any questions. Torger got no further information from them. He would have to rely on Baybil for that. He also realized he would have to gain some respect points from the dwarves at Parker, so he didn¡¯t completely offend the host village.

    They left and had no incidents getting back to Stone Fist. The aqueduct to the Troll cave was coming along nicely, but they still had a long ways to go. Looking at all the stacked up stones to keep it level made Torger wish they didn¡¯t have earthquakes. It wouldn¡¯t take much of a jolt to bring it down. The next day they said good-bye to Stone Fist and his crew and headed toward Calico. At the end of the day they came to the six dwarf crew that was making the road. Torger was pleased to see their progress and told them to help with the aqueduct once they got there. They slept well that night and made it back to Calico two days later.

    It was raining hard when they entered late at night. A guard stopped them, and once they identified themselves they walked through the shield and straight to their stone house. Arden lit a fire in the corner and they all fell asleep once they stripped off their wet coats and boots and dried off.

    The rain had turned to snow at some point in the night. Rome was the first one of his friends to wake up and he walked outside. It was surreal to look up and see the bottom of snow sitting on top of the dome shield. Rome was amazed it didn¡¯t recognize snow as an enemy trying to break in. Ever since coming to Nuva he had been bouncing around from place to place and one adventure after another, and being here in a small village of dwarves felt a little like coming home after a vacation that lasted too long. He knew they would likely leave again the next day, but being somewhere somewhat familiar and safe gave him a peace and happiness that caused him to have a big smile as he walked back in to the house and throw a snowball at a sleeping Arden. Everyone laughed, including Arden and a massive snowball fight ensued.

    They enjoyed a breakfast of omelets. Thankfully the dwarves had been using the little goat milk the village produced to make cheese. Torger was delighted to see the village had almost completed a second common house to fit another twenty dwarves in it. That would still leave some dwarves sleeping in tents, in addition to the dozen that were making the path to Indio and aqueduct to the iron mine. While they had been gone Baybil¡¯s and Strong Arm¡¯s families were sleeping in the mayor¡¯s house, and that still left room for the Regulators to fit inside, if a little cramped. But Torger wanted as many dwarves inside buildings as possible and having a leader from each of the two villages show cooperation in living together might help diffuse tensions built up from jealousy.

    Strong Arm had been busy while they were gone. In his smithy he presented the four melee regulators with full sets of steel armor, and Rome and Brun each received a spare silver staff. Torger said ¡°Wow Strong Arm, this is amazing! We are much better equipped for battle now. What do we owe you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m glad you like it. It took the last of my iron to turn it into steel to complete everything, and I¡¯ve accepted all the silver left over from the mines which belonged to the village. Even with that, you still owe me ninety silver coins.¡±

    ¡°Whoa, that¡¯s a hefty price my friend. It¡¯s a bit more than I expected. I hope the dwarves who work for the village have been paid.¡±

    ¡°Of course they get paid first, just as you directed. And I told you, as iron diminishes, the price goes up. And I am being reasonable. Hastaff I¡¯m sure would have charged you more. Go ask him if you don¡¯t believe me. Those two staffs of course took a lot of silver, and repairing the steel armor wasn¡¯t all that expensive. But making a steel shield for Graul and steel spears for Antic and Arden took a lot of work and material.¡±

    Everyone exclaimed ¡°What? What do you mean?¡±

    With a huge grin Strong Arm went to the back of the smithy and brought back a steel round shield and two steel spears, just as he promised. The three men they belonged to greedily stepped forward and accepted their new equipment.

    ¡°Strong Arm, I don¡¯t know what to say. This is magnificent. I¡¯ll bring you your payment right away.¡± Torger left to go back to the house to retrieve the last two gold coins he had saved from Treluge¡¯s pouch. Graul, Antic, and Arden stepped out of the smithy and Graul held up the steel shield while the other two lightly stabbed at it with the steel spears. Brun went to put the two extra silver staffs in the duffle bag, leaving Rome and Jex behind.

    Rome asked ¡°How much is my cut? Maybe a half pound of ore?¡±

    Strong Arm answered ¡°Sorry Rome. This armor and spears has taken all of my time. The dwarves have been taking their silver to Hastaff to purify it. Maybe in a few weeks you¡¯ll get a few good sized nuggets.¡±

    Rome wasn¡¯t too disappointed. He was glad the other black smith was getting a lot of work. That helped to ease jealousy between them. Jex asked ¡°Do you have any steel or magic arrowheads for me?¡±

    ¡°Sorry Jex, as I said I ran out of iron. But I was able to make you eight more silver arrowheads, each with a fire damage of one. I used an amethyst for each of the silver staffs, and it would take an equivalent gem to make twenty-five arrowheads with fire one. Those gems are very expensive and rare, and each arrowhead only casts the spell once. It¡¯s a horrible waste of money. But if you¡¯re looking to waste money on arrowheads, the elves could make them have stronger magic value. Say lightning two on twenty-five arrowheads for a ruby like the one on Torger¡¯s sword.¡±

    ¡°Just the one damage point from fire is still good. How come when I shoot a magic arrow, the spell only works one time, then it becomes a normal silver or iron arrowhead? Graul and Torger¡¯s swords keep casting fire damage over and over again.¡±

    ¡°Their swords have a gem embedded that holds the spell. The gem became the source of magic with whatever the elves do to it. Your arrow heads have a spell cast on them, not in them, and when the arrow strikes the spell is used up. You would have to place a gem in each arrowhead to use the spells over and over again. Like the silver staffs I make. They¡¯re not just a straight rod of silver. You see how they come to a point at the bottom, have a curve where the hand goes, and a large round bent top. The shape itself helps amplify spells, but there is a topaz, pearl, amethyst, or something like that in the staff itself that also helps to amplify the spells. Better quality staffs use better materials. With arrowheads we infuse the spell into the gem then melt it with the iron before separating and making individual arrowheads. The gem is destroyed in the process.¡±

    Jex thought about the implications. Maybe she could get a gem embedded into her bow that would cast a spell on the arrows. In fact, maybe that¡¯s how the Bow of the Owl worked. And getting staffs that would make spells even stronger seemed to become a priority.

    As she and Rome were thinking about these things Torger returned. He handed a gold coin to Strong Arm. ¡°You said I owed you ninety silver. I assume you have change.¡±

    ¡°Of course I do.¡±

    After the exchange he handed Baybil a gold coin. ¡°I still owed you five gold, now I owe you four.¡± Baybil accepted the payment and Torger pushed aside thoughts of being broke yet again.

    ¡°While we were travelling we heard all dwarf mayors have a meeting in a month, and I was told I should be there. Do you know about that?¡±

    ¡°Yes I do. It¡¯s not all dwarf mayors around the planet, it¡¯s mayors of the Cucamonga tribe. It¡¯s very important that you attend.¡±

    ¡°Yes I want to talk about the dwarf slaves. I wasn¡¯t given an exact date to be there.¡±

    ¡°Not to worry. It is in twenty-six days. I will leave here in twenty-one days.¡±

    ¡°Thanks Baybil. We should travel together. Is there anything going on in the village I should know about?¡±

    ¡°No, everything is running smoothly. Finally. Twenty-one miners from Calico go gather silver each day, and most of my dwarves from Small Hammer are building the path, the aqueduct, or Lake Silverwood. There is still a little greed and resentment that they can¡¯t mine silver, but everyone is working hard and well supplied with food, water, and tools.¡±

    Torger, a man of efficiency, was beaming with pride. He loved city building games back home, and now he was doing it in real life. Of course managing all the little intricate details was much more difficult in real life, but Baybil and Strong Arm were good trustworthy dwarves who carried out his plans. But he could also see that the larger a village became, the more difficult keeping morale high and crime low would be. And managing Calico and Indio at the same time would be near impossible. But he pushed that to the back of his mind. He had to try out their new steel armor and spears.

 Leveling Up

    Chapter 19

    Leveling Up

    At dinner Torger gathered up his friends. ¡°I have to be in Parker in three and a half weeks, with Baybil, for a mayor¡¯s meeting. Everything seems to be going okay here in Calico, so what do you guys say to going to kill some monsters with our new equipment and gaining some ability points?¡±

    Of course everyone enthusiastically agreed. But the discussion unraveled when they decided where to go. Torger wanted to complete the quest near Parker, Brun still wanted to go kill goblins but Torger insisted they can¡¯t do that until after he convinced the other mayors it was OK, Graul wanted to go explore Kern, which was too far away, and Antic wanted to go chase the six foot rabbit at Kellogg hill. Rome finally said ¡°If the goal is to get easy experience points, let¡¯s go back to the LA river and kill more black simmets. Those seemed easy enough to kill. After more discussion they agreed to it.

    Since it was winter the river should have some water in it, enough to not go thirsty. They packed up supplies that night and left the next morning. It was raining but they pushed hard along the muddy path and made it to the tunnels at the top of Cajon Pass around midnight. They all fell asleep having blocked off the tunnel entrance with the duffel bags and back packs.

    In the morning a light dusting of snow was on the ground and the sky was still cloudy. As they walked Arden spotted a roc nest. Rome used analyze and found the adults were level 14. Jex shot an arrow and the birds flew at them. Even the two babies were able to fly away from the fight. Jex and Torger used bows, and Arden held the shotgun. Strong Arm had only been able to make five more shells in addition to all their steel armor, but the hope of getting more when they returned made him less anxious about using what he had.

    The adults swooped down and Antic was able to drive his new steel spear into one. It collapsed and Graul cut off its head before it could recover. Torger and Jex shot more arrows at the other, and Arden fired a shot at it. All hit heir mark and Brun cast Fire 3 at it just because he could. Like Torger¡¯s sword the spell hit the bird then four fireballs came out of it and circled in the air before slamming harmlessly into the ground. A thrust from Antic¡¯s spear ended it. The babies never returned to the nest.

    Brun was excited to see his Fire 3 spell was the same as Torger¡¯s sword. Rome said he wanted to use analyze to see how much damage the fireballs caused on the next attack.

    They collected roc feathers and headed west along the foothills. They made it to the abandoned village of Small Hammer that night and were again too exhausted from the hard day¡¯s walk to set up a watch. As they slept two cottols attacked the shield and came into the village and used a psychic blast against Torger and Arden. The men rolled over in their sleep and turned their backs to the cats. The cats used psychic blast on everyone else and they all turned their backs while still sleeping.

    Rome and Arden woke up screaming as pain erupted from their backs. Rome tried to reach his staff but it was too far away and the cat jumped on him and bit his neck. Arden however was used to camping with Torger and had the shotgun loaded near him. He grabbed it and fired directly into his enemy¡¯s face. Blood splattered everywhere but before he assessed the damage he pumped and fired it into the side of the cat that was on top of Rome. The beast fell onto its side. Amazingly it stood up and faced him. Without hesitation Arden fired at its face and it died. He turned to see the cat that had attacked him and saw it struggling to stand up even though it no longer had eyes, or a mouth. Arden used the last shot and it died.

    Rome crawled to the duffle bag while Arden cast Cure 1 on himself twice. His bleeding slowed significantly but didn¡¯t completely stop. He crawled to the duffle bag also and both men found the potions and drank a mid level cure potion. Arden¡¯s back stopped bleeding and healed a little, but Rome¡¯s was still trickling and the back of his neck was mangled. However he was thinking clearly enough to not drink another potion. He instead crawled over to Torger and slapped him. Torger came out of his stupor and listened to Arden explain what happened. While he was speaking Torger cast Cure 1 twice on Rome. They woke everyone up by slapping them, and Rome was too full of adrenaline to get to sleep so he took the first watch.

    The next day they didn¡¯t push so hard to get far and set up camp at sunset. During his watch Antic thought he saw one of the large rabbits in the distance, but didn¡¯t know if that was wishful thinking. Nothing more exciting happened until they made it to the river. The rains had made it more than a foot deep. Torger knew the weather on Nuva was different than on Earth because it seemed to be raining more on this alien world, but he would gladly take it.

    After establishing camp a mile away, they rested for the night, anxious to kill as many of the creatures as possible. It had been a couple of months since they had last seen these weird looking monsters. They were completely black, covered in scales. They had the head and tail of a snake with the body of a crocodile, but the mouth had eight curved teeth in them. The good news was they didn¡¯t seem to be venomous.

    Just as they had found the last time, these creatures were very quick whether running across mud or swimming in water. And as expected, they were a little bigger than the last time they saw them, now about five feet long. They also still attacked by ambush in groups of four, half burying themselves in mud and waiting for animals to come get a drink of water.

    Brun spotted the first one mostly underwater. Rome cast Analyze 1 and saw it was level 6 with health at 170/170 and mana 0/0. They knew there would be three more nearby. Jex shot an arrow at it and it rushed at her. As planned, Brun cast Fire 3 at it. The spell hit it and four fireballs flew into the air after impact. Three of them flew down to hidden simmets under the water, and the fourth fireball slammed harmlessly into the ground. The other three ran up the bank, having been discovered. The bad news was that the fireballs dissipated when they hit the water.

    Torger sliced deeply into the one Jex had first shot. Four fireballs came out of his sword and hit the other three simmets. That was what Rome had been waiting for. He cast analyze 1 at one of them and saw its health was 156/170. That told him each fireball from Torger¡¯s sword caused fourteen points of damage. That was less than they had hoped for. The good news was that Torger swung his sword again and chopped off the head of the reptile. Three more fireballs found their mark. That made Rome realize the cumulative damage could add up if they faced overwhelming numbers of an enemy.

    Antic and Arden thrust their new steel spears into a simmet without fear of them breaking and with trust that their steel armor would protect them. The low level beast died easily. Graul had just as easy a time using his steel shield to block and countering with his flame sword. The four simmets died with little effort from the Regulators. It was too easy, almost boring. But Antic found a silver coin in the stomach of one.

    They walked upriver a mile and found four more. This time when Jex shot an arrow at the first one, Torger stabbed it to expose the other three. Once the fireballs came off his sword and flew into the water, the simmets came out of hiding. It wasn¡¯t until they were halfway up the bank that Brun cast Fire 3. Once the three fireballs hit the other three simmets, Rome cast analyze. He saw the health of one was 149/170. Brun¡¯s spell was stronger than Torger¡¯s, but that made sense. His silver staff was supposed to multiply the strength of a spell by 1.5, and it did.

    They killed those simmets easily, and another group of four that day before returning to camp. On the last batch Brun had switched to using Ice 1, trying to learn Ice 2 once he dealt another 712 damage points with Ice 1. Since casting Fire 3 one time completely drained his mana, and he had to deal another 14,779 damage points with it to learn Fire 4, he had no hope of ever learning that super powerful spell. But getting to Ice 3 and Lightning 3 were realistic goals for him. As usual, Rome geeked out and crunched the numbers. Everyone but Torger was annoyed by it. They could kill seventy more black simmets before everyone but Rome was maxed out on gaining experience from them.

    For the next six days they easily killed twelve simmets per day. At the end of each day Antic collected a few treasures from some of the reptiles. They gathered a gold coin, five silvers, twenty-one coppers, and most impressive were two pearls. These things seemed to have a large supply of goblins for food. Torger wanted to use one to upgrade Graul¡¯s sword, but was unsure about the other one. Antic wanted to add magic to his spear, and Jex wanted to add magic to her bow. But Torger let them talk without committing. They were a long way from the elves who would be needed to make the pearls magical and add them to the weapons. He had time to think it over.

    After each day Torger would walk to the beach and look at Catalina in the distance. He had twenty months left until the tyters invaded. He would think about ¡°What is the difference between an extraction team and the hunters? Do we have a chance of surviving? Are we walking all over this land to get stronger with no hope of winning?¡± Each day he would try to formulate some sort of plan to survive. Sometimes one of his friends would join him on the beach and they would talk it over. He thought about destroying the building on the island that the tyters would likely enter from, but that also meant destroying the building that could send them back to Earth if they killed the hunters. He didn¡¯t know what to do, and twenty months seemed like a short time to prepare.

    When they woke up after the final battle with the simmets, Torger addressed the group. ¡°We came here completely naked, owning nothing, and have grown strong. It seems this land has been created to make us strong. We fought level one coyotes in abundance when we were level one. We found a cave in Indio full of level two spiders and snakes. We found another cave full of level four cockroaches. And the last week we have fought and killed almost a hundred level six alligators. We¡¯ve had our ups and downs, all of us dying a few times, and being slaves to goblins, but I think there has to be another challenge somewhere for us to get stronger. All the monsters I just described are here Nuva have helped us grow stronger, but we have the opportunity to kill other monsters too. We all just gained four ability points in six days. That is damn good. I think it¡¯s time we go to Parker and complete the quest we have there. We can kill some monsters easily with our steel gear, and I need the reputation boost for the mayor¡¯s meeting. But as we discussed this is democracy time. What do you say?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m liking the easy experience we had this last week. I¡¯m in.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m in too,¡± agreed Antic, ¡°But I would like to see what those huge rabbits are as we pass by.¡±

    Everyone agreed to that and after they packed up camp they spent their ability points. Everyone but Brun bought Shield 1. He bought Poison 1. And everyone except Brun and Rome had another ability point left over and bought five more mana. Rome was very happy to learn another white magic spell. He had fifteen mana, and Analyze 1 cost seven mana and Shield 1 cost seven mana. He could finally be a little useful in battles.

    They made it to the top of Kellogg hill a little after dark. The battles with the simmets had another advantage in that everyone but Antic gained another stamina point. It wasn¡¯t much, but they could walk a little faster and further. But still, everyone but Antic had the stamina of a thirty-five year old man who goes to the gym once a week. But they had the strength to bench press two hundred pounds twice. Torger did give everyone but Antic a low level stamina potion when they stopped for a rest at noon. Antic could jog a half marathon without having to walk part of the way.

    They set up camp and Antic took the first watch since he was the only one with energy left. He eagerly looked around using the Bow of the Owl and spotted a huge rabbit going into the same hole they had seen the first time. He was giddy with excitement to find out what these abnormal beasts were in the morning.

    It was Brun¡¯s turn to cook breakfast, not that the bland meals ever varied. They either ate roasted deer or roasted rabbit. While he was starting the fire and others were taking down the tents, Antic was too excited to see what the big rabbits were. He convinced Rome to go with him to sneak into the hole.

    When they came near Rome used analyze and it simply said

    You have found a level 18 cave. Do you wish to conquer it?

    Rome selected yes and his eyes changed so that he could see grey outlines further inside. The level was much higher than he expected and wanted to leave, but Antic held the Bow of the Owl in front of him so he could see further inside. Antic was going to enter whether Rome followed or not. Reluctantly he walked behind his friend.

    They saw nothing for a hundred feet but then it split off into different directions, four ways all going down further underground. Rome insisted they turn back but Antic picked a path to the right and walked down it. They only made it about six feet when a huge four foot mole ran at them. Rome cast Shield 1 and the creature ran its head into it, slightly cracking the magic shield. Lightning 1 came out of the shield and shocked the beast. Antic shot an arrow at it, and as expected his arrow went right through Rome¡¯s shield. It hit the rodent in the head but only sunk in an inch. Both men turned and ran out of the cave. Behind them they heard the mole slam into the shield again and heard it shatter. They ran towards the exit but heard the beast gaining on them. Antic yelled and Rome turned back to see two sharp teeth pierce the steel helmet. There was a flash of green and Antic disappeared. Rome ran all the way back to his friends with the giant mole chasing him.

    Graul was the first one to hear him yelling. He looked and saw the four foot tall mole gaining on Rome. He grabbed his shield and ran towards it, the others close behind him. He cast Shield 1 between Rome and the mole, and again it slammed into the shield. With its faster speed the shield nearly shattered upon impact. The magic shield was eight feet by eight feet, and the mole didn¡¯t just go around it. The mole got shocked by the lightning from the shield, but quickly recovered and rammed the shield with its head again. The shield shattered and Graul met its face with his steel shield.

    It tried to bite through but the shield was much thicker than Antic¡¯s helmet. Graul didn¡¯t have his sword to counter with, but that wouldn¡¯t have mattered. The mole was so powerful it slammed its head into his shield and knocked him backwards.

    Brun cast Fire 3. Four fireballs circled in the air and went into the ground. The smell of singed fur was thick in the air. But that had little effect on the mole. It tried to rake its claws across Graul but his chest plate protected him. Arden ran forward and drove his spear deep into its side. It turned and bit his arm. The bracer mostly held, but he still had some blood coming from his forearm.

    When the rodent turned to bite her husband it exposed its neck and Jex shot an arrow into the side of its neck which took its attention off of Arden. By then Torger was able to circle around its back side and stab one of its back legs. That side of it dropped to the ground, and he quickly withdrew the sword and stabbed the other back leg. It tried to turn to bite Torger, and that gave Graul the chance to slam his shield into the side of its face. It finally collapsed to the ground unconscious. Torger stabbed it in the neck and it died.

    Everyone sat down and rested. Rome explained what happened, with Antic going in against better judgment. They were shocked the cave was level 18. Some overgrown rabbits shouldn¡¯t be all that dangerous, but they didn¡¯t know the moles were in there too. Once they got a clear understanding of what happened, they knew they had to recover the bow and armor, and then go back to Calico to get Antic.

    Rome had a better idea. Once they recovered the armor he could teleport to Calico with it and give it to Antic, then meet them in Indio. Everyone agreed and gathered their weapons and headed toward the cave.

    Rome still had the ability to see grey outlines in the cave, but everyone else was blind. Everyone tucked a low health and low mana potion into their boots. Rome led them to the intersection and looked on the ground where Antic had died. The bow and the chest plate were gone, but the rest of the armor was still there. He saw drag marks leading down a different tunnel. He took the armor a bit closer to the exit, then led his friends towards the drag marks.

    After about forty feet he saw a giant mole walking backwards and using its teeth to carry Jex¡¯s bow. He whispered what was happening to Torger. Everyone snuck up to the mole, which stopped moving once it saw them. It dropped the bow and ran at them.

    Rome cast Shield 1 and it slammed into it headfirst, cracking the magic barrier. Everyone else could see it briefly from the resulting lightning spell coming from the shield. It ran forward again and shattered the shield. Rome cast Shield 1 again and it again ran into that one. That gave enough light for Torger and Graul to run forward and stab it in the face. Three of the fireballs from Torger¡¯s sword circled and went into the dirt floor, but the fourth one flew behind the back of the giant mole.

    ¡°There¡¯s another one behind this one!¡±

    Everyone had quick thinking. Jex shot an arrow at it, and Arden cast Shield 1 in front of it. Graul reached down and grabbed the bow and they all started running out of the cave. Once they got to what was left of Antic¡¯s gear, Rome stopped to pick it up while Graul and Torger cast Shield 1 behind them. As they got to the mouth of the cave they heard both shields shatter, a few seconds apart. Once in daylight they turned to see their foes. Two giant moles were running at them, one of them was badly injured.

    Rome reached into his boot and uncorked and drank his low mana potion. He gathered all of Antic¡¯s armor into his magic back pack then cast Teleport 1. There was a green flash and he was gone.

    Torger and Graul stabbed the injured mole in the face and it died. Jex shot arrows at the other one while Brun repeatedly cast Ice 1. Arden cast Shield 1 in front of it and it ran into the shield, cracking it like the others, but also took a weak electric shock. It slammed its head into the shield again and it shattered. Torger and Graul each stabbed a back leg and it tried to bite them but Graul blocked with his shield.

    Brun kept casting Ice 1 until he used all of his mana, a total of nine casts. Jex kept shooting arrows at its neck, and Arden finally got around to the other side and drove his spear into its side, killing it.

    They rested a short while then walked as far away from the hill as they could before setting up camp for the night.

    Chapter 20

    The Council

    Rome appeared inside the mayor¡¯s house at Calico. Antic was getting dressed with old clothes. He was surprised to see his friend appear, holding most of his armor. He looked at the helmet and saw a huge part of the back of it had been pushed in, complete with a gaping hole. He looked at Rome but had no words to say he was sorry for endangering everyone¡¯s lives. Rome saw him struggling internally and asked ¡°What happened Antic? You should tell me.¡±

    Antic said nothing as he put on his greaves and bracers, but walked to the large kitchen table Torger and Graul had made the previous summer and sat in one of the human sized chairs. He held the helmet in his hands looking at the damage. Rome sat across from him.

    ¡°As everyone knows, I hate dying and I hate pain. I know we all do. But everyone seems to be more brave about it than I am. I¡¯ve been trying to build up my bravery. I thought huge rabbits couldn¡¯t be all that dangerous. I wanted to prove my bravery to everyone. No, that¡¯s not right. I wanted to prove my bravery to myself. Fighting a big gentle rabbit isn¡¯t all that brave but it¡¯s a step in the right direction. When you said the cave was level eighteen, I thought your analyze was wrong. How could a big rabbit be that dangerous? I should have trusted you to just leave the cave empty handed.¡±

    Rome considered this for a while. ¡°You¡¯re right that we all want to go home and live normal lives again. But none of us are stupid enough to go fight a tough monster by ourselves. You see how we work together as a team. We are all important to each other¡¯s survival. I¡¯m the least important to the group. I just a few days ago learned a shield spell, just like almost everyone else. I have contributed the least, but I¡¯m trying to get better and start pulling my own weight. You¡¯ve come a long ways since being here. We all have. Let¡¯s go find Baybil and head to Indio. We have good friends waiting there.¡±

    ¡°Thanks Rome. But what really keeps me up at night is permanently dying when the tyters get here.¡±

    ¡°You need to have more faith my friend. We all believe in Jesus, that He will let us into Heaven when we die. Think of death as a promotion to the ultimate body you¡¯ve been striving for since coming here. But until that day comes, we¡¯ll try to figure out a way to get home and live long and happy lives.¡±

    ¡°Thanks Rome.¡±

    They left the house and found Baybil. Rome said ¡°Hi Baybil. We had a run in with a giant mole and our plans got altered. We¡¯re heading to Indio to meet up with Torger. It¡¯s a couple weeks early, but do you want to come with us?¡±

    ¡°The village is running smoothly. Let me assign a few tasks today and we can leave in the morning.¡± Antic and Rome spent the rest of the day inspecting the progress in the mines.Stolen story; please report.

    After breakfast they began walking along the dirt path towards Baybil¡¯s old village. Along the way Rome described the giant moles and Antic¡¯s death and Rome¡¯s teleport.

    Baybil said ¡°Two things you need to be careful of with them. Their teeth, as you already discovered Antic, and their thick skulls. They use their heads like battering rams. When you cast the shield one it should have a health of one hundred. That mole probably did seventy or eighty damage on the first head butt. If it hit you with it, and you had no armor, it would take off that much health. It has claws, but they¡¯re not sharp enough to penetrate iron, and you were wearing steel, so you should have been safe from that.¡±

    ¡°Do you know where they come from? I mean which planet?¡±

    ¡°I have no way of knowing that. The tyters don¡¯t talk to us, they ignore us like we don¡¯t exist during their hunts. If you kill a brimmel, what you call a mole, they will respawn a week later. To get the treasure in that cave you would need to kill everything in it in less than a week then take possession of it. Only then will they respawn somewhere else on the planet. Otherwise they¡¯ll respawn in the same cave.¡±

    ¡°That sounds like a big job. Too big for us where we¡¯re at.¡±

    ¡°Yes you would all need to gain several levels, and gaining levels will become more difficult for you soon. You¡¯re no match for those things yet. Fortunately they stay underground and keep to themselves.¡±

    ¡°It must be a pretty good treasure they¡¯re guarding.¡±

    ¡°I would think so. Some dwarves have claimed to have been in a group that has cleared out a cave full of giant moles and rabbits, but they say all that¡¯s in there is pitch.¡±

    Rome was surprised. ¡°Pitch, as in tar, as in crude oil? Do they say there is a smell that gives them headaches and nose bleeds?¡±

    ¡°Yes. How did you know?¡±

    ¡°That would be from natural gas. It¡¯s very useful where we come from, but we don¡¯t have the tools necessary to do anything with it here. What a shame.¡±

    They walked for four days along a muddy path until they came to Indio. As promised, their friends were waiting for them at Jex and Arden¡¯s cave.

    Baybil looked around the landscape and when he found Torger he said ¡°My dwarves are doing a great job here. The path is complete, and now all twelve dwarves are working on the aqueduct. You may want to consider giving them a bonus.¡±

    ¡°Up to your old ways Baybil? All the dwarves here chose to come here instead of opening their own businesses in Calico. They get a portion of the silver that¡¯s mined, as agreed. And once the prisoners are transported here, they will become prison guards.¡±

    ¡°If the prisoners are freed. First you have to convince the council to remove them from the goblins, and if you do that the goblins won¡¯t give them up easily. But I do hope it works out because we are in desperate need of iron.¡±

    ¡°I know we are my friend. Let¡¯s eat dinner and head to Parker tomorrow.¡±

    The next morning they left with a bright sun shining overhead. Without a dirt path it took two days to get there. Walking over uneven terrain made everyone realize how spoiled they were with the dirt paths. Torger thought they were well worth the investment.

    When they arrived at Parker Baybil was greeted with cheers and pats on the back. Torger was given dirty looks. Several dwarves invited Baybil to the tavern for a drink of ale, and he looked back apologetically toward Torger as he was being led away. That settled the matter in Torger¡¯s mind, and he had no trouble convincing the Regulators to leave town immediately and start killing prey.

    They headed a couple miles north and set up camp for the night. While yet again roasting bland deer, Rome handed Torger the village silver. It was just over a half pound of raw ore. He added that to the gold coin and silver and copper coins found from the simmets.

    That night three razorlings attacked them, but Brun was alert on his shift. He was able to wake the others before things got out of control. By the time the lizards made it to camp Arden and Torger were out of tents with weapons in hand, a steel sword and a shotgun. Strong Arm had been able to produce eighteen more shells in the eleven days Rome had been gone. The shotgun and sword killed all three before their friends made it out of their tents. At the end of the fight there were fourteen shells left. At two silver coins per shot, that was very expensive ammo. If Strong Arm kept up production at that rate Torger would owe him a gold coin a month.

    They spent the next six days walking concentric circles around Parker hunting all the razorlings they could find. As always, the dwarves of Parker sent out daily patrols five miles to the north and south looking for razorlings, and that helped them a great deal.

    After killing another pack of five razorlings on the north side of Lake Havasu, Torger¡¯s Notoriety/Quests icon in his vision began flashing green. He opened it up and saw the quest was complete. They made camp and the next day walked all the way back to the village. When they walked in they got no scowls or dirty looks. Most dwarves ignored them but a few smiled and nodded. They asked an especially friendly looking dwarf if she knew who Romalt was. She giggled and led them into a cave in the side of the river bank. She told everyone else to stay at the mouth, and she led Torger along the tunnel. The ceiling was so low he was tempted to crawl on his hands and knees but thought that might be rude.

    The young dwarf woman knocked on a wood door. ¡°Door¡± may be generous. It was more of a lattice. A voice called out ¡°I¡¯m busy. Hold your questions until the council tomorrow.¡±

    Undeterred she called in ¡°It¡¯s me grandpa. A human wants to see you.¡±

    A sigh could be heard then the voice called ¡°Come in Torger.¡±

    Torger picked up the lattice and moved it aside. Inside the ceiling raised to six feet, where he could stand comfortably. An old dwarf, covered in a grey beard, sat behind a desk writing notes. He finished his writing then looked up at Torger.

    ¡°So you¡¯re the young upstart changing the way we dwarves have done things for over three thousand years. Tell me, why are you disturbing our way of life?¡±

    That was not the welcome he was expecting. ¡°I¡¯m not trying to change the dwarves, I¡¯m trying to get the tyters to not kill us. I tried to remove a corrupt mayor from power, that is true, but I didn¡¯t ask to become a mayor. The dwarves of Calico elected me to be mayor while I was a prisoner in the goblin mines.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll see about that at the council tomorrow. For now you may collect your reward.¡±

    Torger saw his Cities icon flashing. He opened it and found Parker. It showed

    Feared 0/100 Loved 10/100 Respected 40/100 Hated 10/100

    Torger didn¡¯t know he could be loved and hated at the same time. Or maybe that was how the percentage of the population saw him. He decided to ask about it.

    ¡°Romalt, how can I be loved and hated at the same time?¡±

    ¡°That is Chief Romalt. I am the tribal chief of the Cucamonga dwarves and will be respected as such, even among mayors. Those numbers reflect the villagers sentiment towards you. Some of them can hate that a human is a mayor over dwarves, yet love that you risked your life to free our own kind. Most of them simply respect that you killed the razorlings.¡±

    Torger looked and saw he also gained the promised 900 exp. That gave him another ability point and brought his experience to almost 700 exp. After all of the Regulators killed thirty razorlings in the past six days, they had each gained another three ability points, and now Torger had four. He immediately spent it on what he knew would be important. He bought Analyze 1. Now he too could see grey outlines in a dark cave.

    Romalt watched him until Torger was done. ¡°A wise choice for a warrior. You may now go to Guntrink for an ice weapon. Give him this.¡±

    He handed over a small sapphire. Torger gratefully accepted it but asked ¡°How did you know what I spent my ability points on?¡±

    ¡°I used analyze three on you. From what I can tell, that spell is not available to humans.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t mean to be rude, but I thought dwarves were weak with magic. That they can¡¯t use spells beyond a level one.¡±

    ¡°That is true for black magic spells, and mostly for white magic. But some of us may progress far with white magic spells.¡±

    Torger thanked him and walked back out of the tunnel, stooping along the way. He told Jex to walk with him to the blacksmith. Guntrink took the sapphire and gave Jex a recurve bow to try out. It was small, dwarf sized, and when she pulled back on the string it broke. Her strength was at 11 and her skill with bows was at 19. Guntrink gave her another bow, a long bow for dwarves which was just a little big for Jex. She pulled back on that one and maxed out the pull easily. She asked for something even stronger and the blacksmith went into the back and came out with a long bow made from hickory.

    ¡°That¡¯s the strongest bow I have. Very few dwarves can accurately aim with it and the tension is a hundred pound pull. Only a real master archer could use this effectively in battle.¡± He looked at her with a derisive smirk clearly expecting her to not pull back fully or accurately. Jex held the bow firmly with her left hand, set her feet apart with her right foot pointing to the side and pulled back as hard as she could. As expected she couldn¡¯t fully draw it back. She handed it back to Guntrink who took it to the back of his shop to return it and bring out a weaker bow. While he was gone Torger told Jex to put her three unused ability points into strength. She grew an inch and a half and her muscles gained a little more mass. Now she had the same strength as Antic.

    Guntrink returned with three long bows. One was oak, one was ash, and one was maple. Torger said they would take the maple one before Jex even tried any of them. The other two looked at him in shock and he said he knew maple is a harder and stronger wood. It was also less porous and easier to keep a coat of wax on it to keep out water and termites. Maple grows slower due to growing in cold weather and the individual cells are more condensed. Jex trusted Torger¡¯s knowledge of wood and believed him that a maple bow would last for years longer than an oak or ash bow, but she still had to try it to find out how it felt. Guntrink said he didn¡¯t know if she could draw it all the way back. The hickory bow had a hundred pound draw and this maple bow had a ninety pound draw. The oak and ash bows each had a seventy-five pound draw which was more her level. She gripped the maple bow firmly with her left hand and used her new muscle strength to draw with her right arm. She was just barely strong enough to fully draw it back and looked at Torger like this was a mistake, but he shook his head and insisted it was the right one. Once Jex found the right bow Guntrink took it and said he would be done in a few hours.

    While they waited they went into the crowded tavern and ordered ale. It was good that this time they got charged the same price as the other dwarves. It showed the humans they were now accepted in the community. After a couple drinks and friendly conversations they returned to the smithy and Jex was the new proud owner of an ice bow, in addition to a Bow of the Owl, and a regular recurve bow. Guntink said every arrow shot from that bow would have the spell Ice 1 added to it, and a silver arrowhead would add another fifty percent to the magic. She was beyond pleased. She drew it back again and her arms trembled with the strain, but knew if she spent her next two ability points on strength she could manage it easily. But it would take a few more upgrades to strength beyond that before she could rapidly shoot arrows at targets like she could with the two recurve bows.

    During that day more and more dwarves showed up from different places around Southern California and Arizona. It seemed this annual council meeting was also a general meeting for all the traveling traders. All the regulators except Torger had their fair share of ale that night and woke up in various states of dress around the village the next morning. Arden and Jex woke up in a room inside one of the tunnels that had been made into a temporary inn. Rome, Graul, and Brun woke up in the middle of the town square without shirts on and water skins full of ale slung around their chests, and they all had many deep bruises all over their upper bodies. They had vague memories of wrestling dwarves in a dirt patch, winner gets a skin of ale. Antic woke up next to a cart full of armor that had been pulled by a bison and now he had a new steel helmet and steel chainmail shirt. He was wearing those two pieces of armor, and nothing else. He looked at the dwarf he must have bought from and asked how he afforded the armor. The dwarf smiled and held up thirteen vials of potions, all of them were mid level stamina potions. The regulators no longer had that specific type of potion. He was also taller and stronger, sort of remembering Jex saying she had finally become as strong as him. His strength had gone up to 17, meaning he used all three of his ability points towards his physical growth. That must have been his drunken response to no longer being the strongest Regulator.

    Torger however, had spent much of the night talking with Baybil about his encounter with Romalt and asking questions about what would happen at the council meeting. He too woke up in a room in the tunnel that had been converted into a temporary inn.

    After breakfast Baybil led Torger to the far west side of the village. He came to a normal looking rock and then used the handle of his battle axe to tap on it, making it sound like some sort of Morse code. The rock rolled away leaving a hole about two feet in diameter. He crawled in and Torger followed. Once Torger was in the rock rolled back in place and he found himself climbing down a ladder into a huge cavern. Magic lights surrounded the walls and four dwarves were seated at a large stone round table, except the round table had one flat edge where Romalt sat. Torger followed Baybil and they sat at the last two available seats. Romalt stood up and an unseen dwarf standing in a dark corner loudly spoke ¡°All kneel.¡±

    Everyone knelt before Romalt, Torger the last to do so. The tribal chief sat down then said ¡°Be seated.¡±

    Torger was the last to get to his chair and sit down. Romalt began ¡°According to our three thousand, five hundred and eighty-one years of recorded history, never has a non dwarf sat at the annual mayor¡¯s council. I do not like that this has happened on my watch, and may blotch my record as tribal chief for the next three thousand years. Be that as it may, it is my understanding that Torger became a mayor of the Cucamonga tribe through a democracy. A vote entirely by dwarves with no pressure to vote for him against their conscious. There are a few ways a dwarf can become a mayor, and democracy is one of them. Are there any here who would claim this human wrongfully placed himself into this position of power?¡±

    No dwarves answered.

    ¡°Very well. It is also my understanding this human attempted to kill the previous mayor he deposed. Who has an accusation against him?¡±

    A large dwarf Torger hadn¡¯t recognized at first stood up. Torger saw he was missing his right thumb and then recognized him as Brute, the lead henchman of Small Foot. Romalt said ¡°I recognize Brute, our new war chief.¡±

    Brute looked at Torger and pointed a finger at him. ¡°It is true he and his posse of humans killed Small Foot. I personally escorted them to the goblin mines as slaves for their crime. They broke free, aided by Baybil, and came back to Calico to kill more dwarves while threatening to keep killing dwarves unless they made him a mayor. It was out of fear that they elected him as mayor.¡±

    Torger jumped up and shouted ¡°That¡¯s not true!¡±

    Romalt banged his axe handle on the table and two unseen guards in the shadows came to Torger and pulled him down hard back into his seat. Baybil leaned over and said ¡°Don¡¯t say anything. I¡¯ll handle this.¡±

    Romalt stood up and Brute sat down. He said ¡°Those are very serious accusations war chief. Do you have any proof or witnesses?¡±

    Brute said ¡°If you will allow me, I would like to bring in dwarves to testify before this council.¡±

    Romalt agreed. The two guards walked to a wall and pulled a lever. The stone outside rolled away and a dwarf crawled in, then began climbing down the latter. Everyone looked with anxiety to see who was the first witness to say the human was a murderer. The dwarf came to the bottom of the latter and turned around. Stone Fist stood before the council in the shadows of the light. He walked forward and Torger couldn¡¯t help himself but to say ¡°Why?¡±

    Everyone ignored the question and Stone Fist walked to stand next to Romalt. Brute grinned widely, and Stone Fist began addressing the council.

    ¡°My name is Stone Fist. I have lived with the villagers of Calico for nearly sixty years. I came to them in my youth when times were peaceful, when Boyork was the mayor. I was there when the elderly dwarf passed away and Small Foot was elected to be the next mayor. But shortly after Small Foot gained power he slowly raised taxes and began hoarding metals and jewels for the village. Some dwarves saw the likely future and left the village.¡±

    Brute interrupted ¡°That¡¯s not what we talked about, builder. Get to the part where the humans killed the mayor.¡± Brute glared at him but Stone Fist held his ground.

    Romalt said ¡°Be seated war chief. I will hear his whole testimony.¡±

    Brute growled and stared into the eyes of Stone Fist, but he continued undeterred. ¡°It took about fifteen years, a slow process that was supposed to be for the good of the village. But eventually all the dwarves were working fifteen hours a day just for food and clothes. If any dwarf showed initiative and opened their own business, they would pay a sixty percent tax on all sales. It ensured that everyone worked for the village. A few times dwarf families tried to escape, but Brute and the other two hired henchmen caught them and tied them to stakes for a day or two. The prisoners were not given food or water.¡±

    Brute tried to interrupt but was quieted by a hand signal from Romalt.

    Stone Fist kept talking. ¡°I was a hired village employee too. The few of us were well paid, at the expense of the villager¡¯s sweat and toil. I first saw Torger and his brother Graul at a place called Cajon pass. After the last Terra Form they came into our village with Baybil. He can also testify that Small Foot wrongfully took the two humans as prisoners. They traded knowledge of a silver mine for their freedom. That silver mine is now Calico. It is true that the humans tried to kill Small Foot months later.¡±

    All the dwarves began talking at once. It took a couple of minutes for Romalt to calm everyone down.

    ¡°As I said, it is true that they tried to kill Small Foot, but they didn¡¯t succeed as Brute has said. They were captured and sent to the goblins. A week after Brute left to take them to the goblin mines, Small Foot increased protection for himself and became reclusive from the rest of the village. He was no longer pretending to be a mayor; we finally realized the humans were right. He had become a dictator and we had slowly let it happen. Some of the dwarves revolted, then others joined in. They tried to kill Small Foot, but his remaining two body guards put up a viscous fight. Nine dwarves died in the battle that led to Small Foot and the two mercenaries being overthrown. When Baybil and Brute returned with another human, Brute tried to take possession of the empty mayor position for himself. A brief fight ensued that left another dwarf dead and cost Brute his thumb.

    ¡°The village was leaderless, and we had been oppressed so long we didn¡¯t know what to do. The human Arden convinced us to elect Torger as the new mayor. We did so with reluctance, then sent a rescue group to get him out of the mines. They told the goblins that the sentence for the humans was over. The goblins would not release them. Baybil was there and he told me they even tried to bribe the goblins, but with no surprise they still refused. Dwarves ran in and delivered weapons to Torger, then the dwarves left without killing any goblins.¡±

    Romalt interrupted. ¡°Baybil and Torger, is this true?¡±

    Baybil answered ¡°I was not there for everything that happened. But yes I saw Brute try to take control of Calico through force, and yes I was in the group that tried to free the humans peacefully, then ran into the mines to give Torger weapons. As a mayor, the dwarves of Calico had an obligation to try to deliver weapons to their mayor for him to free himself.¡±

    The other dwarves all nodded that was true. Torger simply stated everything was true as far as he knew.

    Stone Fist resumed his prepared speech. ¡°What I would like to emphasize above all else is what has happened since Torger became a mayor. We have for the first time in twenty-five years dirt paths that connected Calico to Small Hammer, and now to Indio. We will be planting farms in the spring and built one aqueduct and are building a second aqueduct. Twenty-one dwarves are extracting silver ever day, and Torger and Baybil have combined the villages to become even more productive. For the first time in twenty-five years, under Torger¡¯s rule, we have hope of a better future. I am not of this council of course, but if you don¡¯t imprison him for attempting to kill a tyrant, then I will ask to extend his temporary status as mayor for another year.¡±

    Brute jumped up and screamed ¡°That¡¯s an outrage! We can¡¯t have humans in charge of dwarves. It isn¡¯t right!¡±

    The guards again came to him and forced him back into his chair. His low intelligence was showing clearly to all the council members. Romalt asked Stone Fist to step away, and asked Brute if he had another witness. With reluctance Brute acknowledged that he did.

    The guards pulled the lever and the stone rolled away and another dwarf came down the ladder. It was one of Stone Fist¡¯s crew, who also should have been working on the aqueduct. It took him about five minutes to repeat everything Stone Fist had said. After he was finished, Romalt addressed the council.

    ¡°We have four decisions to make. The first vote is to remove Torger from his position as mayor. The second is to imprison Torger for attempted murder of a mayor. The third decision is to extend the temporary position of mayor to Torger for one year, and the last decision is whether or not Brute has the necessary qualifications for the position of war chief.¡±

    Discussions lasted nearly an hour. Torger was found not guilty by nullification, but his status as mayor would be left to the dwarves of Calico. Brute was found to have questionable morals and was removed as a war chief. He left the council furious. Surprisingly, Romalt then addressed the council again.

    ¡°This council is to consist of seven dwarves. The tribal chief, two war chiefs, and four mayors. We have a vacancy in the position of war chief. I nominate Baybil to become the next war chief, and for Torger to temporarily merge Small Hammer and Calico as he has already done.¡±

    Everyone quickly agreed but Torger asked ¡°Who will replace me in June? And how will you find another dwarf to become the mayor of Small Hammer?¡±

    Tambik, the mayor of Smooth River south of what would be Blythe, and Kirsk the mayor of Lake¡¯s End in what would be Parker where they were having the council meeting, answered Torger¡¯s question. ¡°Each village elects their own mayor, or a mayor may resign to appoint another mayor. Your case is rare being a temporary mayor. It is a position that is usually for life. Each year our council meeting moves to the next village. Next year it will be in Calico.¡±

    Torger said ¡°I have just the dwarf to fill Baybil¡¯s position as mayor. How do I nominate him?¡±

    Romalt answered ¡°You hold a council of that village and publicly nominate him. The dwarves will be allowed to discuss it until sundown then cast their votes just before dinner. Also, since Calico will be the next village to host the mayor¡¯s council, I will leave with you and live in Calico until then. As mayor, it is your responsibility to provide me and the war chiefs with private housing and food.¡±

    Torger thought about the conditions of Calico. There was the mayor¡¯s house, two common houses, and two more half way constructed common houses. There were also some tensions between the two villages living together. The politics could get dicey, and he had other things on his plate. He said ¡°If I may, I would like to pass on the position of temporary mayor to a dwarf named Strong Arm. He is the most honest and hardest working dwarf I have met. He loves his family and his village.¡±

    Romalt looked at Torger with a small expression of surprise, but Baybil quickly said ¡°A fine idea from a noble leader. But I have an alternate proposition. I would ask Torger and Kirsk to exchange villages. Kirsk can become the mayor of Small Hammer, and Strong Arm can become the mayor of Calico. Torger will become the mayor of Lake¡¯s End.¡±

    Torger looked at Baybil and the dwarf said ¡°I know you have plans to go north. You should take these dwarves with you.¡±

    Baybil was right. The Regulators would be better off if they had a dwarven village to stay in. Next Torger asked if he could free the slaves from the goblins, to use them to mine iron. He explained that a road had been built and an aqueduct was being made, and there were eleven dwarves ready to be prison guards. Baybil sent for Stone Fist to come again, and the two of them convinced the council that mining iron was more important than the measly salt and coal the goblins were producing. It seemed the purpose of the prisoners was to mine for low quality items to enrich the lives of all other dwarves. Having been in the mines himself, Torger knew how miserable the conditions were, and hoped to bring a little dignity back to the criminals. He explained his time as a prisoner, and the council agreed. Baybil as a war chief, and Torger as the mayor who proposed the idea would lead a small army to move the prisoners from the Salton Sea to Indio.

    The proposed changes were made, and the council was adjourned. Kirsk came to Torger and asked ¡°Why would you abandon a silver mine? A silver mine is not much, but there is nothing here at the river. We have spent the last year catching fish, growing crops, and fighting razorlings. We have found no gems or ore to mine.¡±

    ¡°I need to go north, and having dwarves will make my trip easier.¡±

    ¡°Perhaps, but the land will be Terra Formed again in less than two years. Any crops you grow, roads you make, or aqueducts you build will be uprooted. Most dwarves stopped making those kinds of improvements hundreds of years ago. It¡¯s a lot of work for a temporary benefit.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not all temporary. The iron will remain dwarf property even after the tyters change the land again. For you, it¡¯s a long term investment at a high initial cost. Building the roads and aqueducts is better than squandering the next two years here at the tip of a lake.¡±

    Kirsk thought about it and knew if he remained there he would just gather food but not produce anything for his village for the next two years. ¡°I hope you¡¯re right Torger. Lead them well.¡±

 Goblins

    Chapter 21

    Goblins

    Torger climbed out of the cavern and found Stone Fist. ¡°Thank you for saving my butt in there. I could have been sent back to the salt mines without your help.¡±

    ¡°No Torger, thank you for freeing us. Brute came to me a week ago and bribed me to testify against you. I accepted his money with no intention of betraying the Liberator of Dwarves. I guess this means Strong Arm is our new mayor, and Kirsk is now the mayor of desolate land in Indio. He might not be pleased with what he sees there.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯ll be fine. You will have water to the mines soon, and we will go bring the prisoners up to it. The dwarves of Small Hammer will leave Calico and move to Indio, and the two villages will exchange silver and iron with each other. I may never see Calico again, but I would like to give you a letter to give to Strong Arm.¡±

    Torger and Stone Fist walked to the village and Torger found a merchant who sold ink and parchment. Torger wrote the letter and gave it to Stone Fist. ¡°Make sure Strong Arm gets this. I hope to see you again my friend.¡±

    Stone Fist looked at Torger and handed the sealed letter back. ¡°Have someone else deliver this. I have seen what you are capable of in city building, and I choose to follow you. If you plan on moving this village, you will need me to help build the new site.¡±

    Torger was pleased that he had made such an impact on the dwarves¡¯ lives. He found his friends and together they walked around all the merchant carts that had come from other tribes far away. They traded roc feathers, billik legs, and razorling feet for paralysis venom from jumping spiders and shock snakes: the one foot yellow ones they had killed in a cave a year earlier. Torger was kicking himself for not having collected that venom themselves, but then again he was new to Nuva at the time and didn¡¯t realize what had value. He also got a variety of fruit and vegetable seeds.

    Next they moved on to look at weapons and armor. The best the vendors were selling were steel and silver, but they already had steel and silver. One of the last carts they came to had a richly painted awning and was made from teak. The merchant wore a velvet robe and had three burly body guards. Torger and Graul were the first to notice armor that was an odd silver color, and other armor that was green and yellow.

    The merchant looked at them with a little disdain. ¡°The finest armor in the world my friends. Mithril armor and dragon scale armor. But if you don¡¯t have a purse full of gold then please be on your way. I sell the best quality anywhere to those who can afford it.¡±

    Torger knew if he combined his silver and copper coins together he would have less than one gold coin. Instead he pulled out the two pearls they had taken from simmets. ¡°What will these get me?¡±

    The merchant looked at the pearls with slight interest. ¡°Those won¡¯t buy you any set of armor, and I won¡¯t sell a partial set. But I do have the ability to infuse them into weapons. What do you have?¡±

    The Regulators stepped away and discussed it. Torger returned with Antic¡¯s steel spear and Graul¡¯s iron flame sword. The merchant looked at them.

    ¡°A decent spear, but you might be wasting money upgrading a flame sword.¡±

    Torger ignored the recommendation and asked ¡°What can you do with these?¡±

    ¡°With a pearl, I can add lightning one. The pearls you have aren¡¯t quite a high enough quality to add poison one.¡±

    Torger said ¡°We¡¯ll take lighting one. How much will it cost?¡± He pulled out his pouch and reached inside.

    The merchant said ¡°Lighting one will cost forty silver.¡±

    That was about how much Torger thought he had. He dumped all the coins on to the table and started counting. Before he got to five silver the merchant said ¡°It¡¯s forty silver each. Unless you have something of value to trade, you might as well be on your way.¡±

    Torger sighed and knew what he had to do. He asked Antic to take off the magic duffle bag and Torger removed the box of potions. Rome had neatly organized them and Torger saw all the mid level stamina potions were gone. Before he could get angry Antic pointed at his steel chain mail and said ¡°Sorry. I spent those.¡±

    Torger pulled out the eleven mid level health potions and twelve mid level strength potions. ¡°I believe this is worth the eighty silver.¡±

    The merchant looked at them and shook his head. ¡°I can sell those for three silver each, but I need to buy them for two silver each.¡±

    Torger wanted to argue but knew he would lose to this professional negotiator. He pulled out the thirteen mid level mana potions. ¡°I want five silver coins back, and this will cover the cost of the lightning one upgrade on both weapons. This is a take it or leave it deal.¡±

    The merchant debated in his mind about counter offering, but Torger wore an expression of determination that said he meant it as a final offer. The merchant agreed. After that they came to another agreement for the merchant to sell thirty iron arrowheads and coat them with the paralysis venom Torger bought. It cost Torger his half pound of unpurified silver ore. That left him with one silver and sixty copper coins.

    They spent the rest of the day buying all the dried foods they could. Torger walked around meeting his new villagers. Word had spread fast that the human was the new mayor. Throughout the day he spread word that there would be a village meeting that night.

    When it was dark Torger had all the prominent dwarves of the village gathered in the tavern. The other council members were there as well. Torger didn¡¯t need to stand on a table since he was two feet taller than the tallest dwarf.

    ¡°Villagers of Lake¡¯s End, the council has decided to make some changes. Some very big changes. Tomorrow this village will split in two. All able bodied dwarves who can wield an axe in battle will follow Baybil and I to move the dwarf prisoners from goblin control to be in dwarf control. Mayor Kirsk will be the mayor of Small Hammer, and that village will oversee the prisoners mining iron. The other half of this village will travel north with Antic, Arden, Rome, and Jex to another silver mine location. They know where it is at, and Stone Fist will be in charge of building the new village. There is nothing here to make this village prosper, and if we know where silver is, we¡¯ll take it. I expect everyone to be ready to move out in the morning.¡±

    The announcement came as a shock to all the villagers, but surprisingly they agreed. It seemed they didn¡¯t have the same disdain for leadership that Calico had after years of oppression. They all drank all the ale they could that night, and Torger didn¡¯t get the early start he expected the next morning.

    It was almost noon when the two groups of the village were a few miles apart from each other. Torger looked at who he had with him. There was Brun and Graul and Baybil, along with Kirsk and twelve dwarves. Everyone had steel armor and weapons, except Brun who had three silver staffs and his mage¡¯s cloak.

    The four dwarves who had iron armor went with the other villagers to protect them on their journey. Torger had found out the village had a population of forty-five, and sixteen were of military age. Even some of the women dwarves carried bows and wore bronze chain mail.

    It took two days to reach the dwarves who were working on the aqueduct. It was almost finished. Kirsk addressed the eleven dwarves of Small Hammer and told them he was their new mayor. Everyone else agreed that it was true. As mayor, Kirsk ordered them to stop the aqueduct and join the rescue of the dwarf prisoners. They had only iron armor, shields, and axes, but Kirsk assured them they would only be needed as a show of force.

    It took another four days of walking through the desert with clouds overhead to come to the swamp. Torger led them in a few hundred yards while stepping on stones before the goblin that had bought them as prisoners came out to meet them. He looked at Torger with disgust and said ¡°Have these dwarves come to return the escaped prisoners?¡±

    ¡°No. We have come to take back the dwarves. Instead of being treated like slaves under goblin rule, they will be treated like prisoners under dwarven rule. Tell your queen to release them all to us, and we will go away.¡±

    ¡°I will tell the queen. I do not think she will agree to it.¡±

    The goblin left and quickly walked through the swamp. Torger led the group deeper in. They were almost to the mound that marked the entrance when the goblin returned. ¡°You bring many fighters with you. This is the message from the queen.¡± The goblin quickly pulled a knife from his waist and stuck it in Torger¡¯s unprotected thigh.

    Graul swung his sword and decapitated the messenger. Both fire and lightning came from the iron sword, burning and shocking the goblin as it died. Everyone ran into the tunnels. Torger removed the knife from his thigh and cast Cure 1 on himself. The bleeding slowed a little bit. He reached into his boot and pulled out a high health potion. He drank it and the bleeding stopped. He looked and saw his health was 79/100. He knew he had to be good in the fights, so he drank a low health potion adding nine more health.

    With his leg mostly healed he ran into the tunnel. He heard metal clanging and screams from goblins seemingly coming from all directions. The eleven dwarves who had been working on the aqueduct and had iron armor and axes were standing at the first intersection of the labyrinth. Torger nodded to them as he passed, agreeing they should guard the exit and try to not get caught up in the heavy fighting.

    The light was dim and he cast Analyze 1. He drank a low level mana potion bringing it up to 13/15. He heard goblins dying in all directions. He checked his Experience and saw he had gained another ability point. That was important because that meant Brun and Graul should have bought Analyze 1 and cast it inside the tunnels, getting the same message Torger just got.

    You have found a level 28 cave. Do you wish to conquer it?

    By selecting yes their vision would show everything in grey outlines. The three of them had 812/1000 exp to their next ability point before the fighting started, and with a group of twenty-eight attacking that meant they had to have already killed six level 18 goblins.

    Every grown male dwarf Torger ever talked with had the spell Analyze 1. They would be useless in battle in complete darkness, even though they had great night vision. Torger pushed aside thoughts of how much experience they were getting and what kind of riches would be in the cave. Kirsk and Baybil made it very clear to all the warriors they were there to free dwarves, not to eliminate all the goblins. As much as they didn¡¯t get along, the dwarves felt it was morally wrong to wipe out a partially intelligent indigenous life for their own greed. As disgusting as the goblins were, they did have at least the right to live their meager existence.

    Torger chose the tunnel on his left at random and tried to run down it but had to keep stooped down. He saw dwarves with ropes tied running toward the exit, and two dead goblins, killed from axes. He kept going and chose a random tunnel to the left again. He saw a guard standing in front of three bound dwarves. He ran at the guard who threw a spear at him. Fortunately the spear was copper and his chest plate was steel. The spear dented it but didn¡¯t penetrate. The goblin pulled a short bow off his back but Torger closed the distance and stabbed it in the face. The sword went all the way through its head and four fireballs came out. Three went into the ground but the fourth flew behind Torger. He turned to see a goblin get hit in the chest but it held onto its bow and shot at him.

    Torger tried to duck but was too slow. But once again his steel helmet saved him. He ran at the goblin and before he could stab it the goblin was able to shoot another arrow. This one hit Torger in the lower abdomen, below the chest plate, and from such close range the copper arrowhead sunk deep. Torger ignored the pain and ran the remaining two steps to stab that goblin in the face. Two fire balls went into the ground, and one each flew in different directions down the tunnel.

    Torger took a few steps back and cast Shield 1 over the mouth of the tunnel. He grabbed the arrow shaft and with great determination pulled the arrow out of his stomach. Blood poured out and he cried in pain. At the same time he heard his shield get hit and release an electric charge. He looked up to see two goblins had thrust their spears at it but it held firm. They were shaking off the shock and were getting ready to attack the shield again. Torger didn¡¯t have time to do anything else. He reached into his boot and drank another high level health potion. His bleeding stomach still hurt a lot, but the bleeding mostly stopped. He cast Cure 1 on himself at the same time the goblins thrust their spears into the shield. The shield cracked, but it also crackled with electricity and shot out at the goblins. Both goblins cast Cure 1 on themselves.

    Torger had no choice. He wouldn¡¯t be able to fight two at once with the amount of pain he was in. He reached into his other boot and pulled out two low health potions and a low mana potion. He drank them one at a time, and was out of the potions he had carried for himself. The goblins slammed the shield again and it shattered. They both threw their spears at Torger, but he was ready with another Shield 1 spell. The spears hit the barrier and it shot weak electric charges at the two goblins. They came to retrieve their spears and Torger used the last of his mana to cast Cure 1 on himself again. He had run out of mana and potions, and had nothing but a slightly damaged magic shield to protect him.

    The goblins hit the shield again and it cracked, but again they got shocked, and again they cast Cure 1 on themselves. Torger had about fifteen seconds to get ready. His stomach and thigh still hurt, but he would be able to ignore the pain for a while. The goblins both drew their arms back to throw spears at Torger. They all knew the shield would slow them down but not stop them as it shattered. With the short ceiling height and a dead end behind him, along with three frightened and bound dwarves, there wasn¡¯t much Torger could do but hope the spear he couldn¡¯t deflect with his sword hit his chest plate and bounced off harmlessly.

    Both spears were hurled at him, they hit the barrier and slowed down, but kept coming as it shattered. Torger remained focused on the spear on his left. He held up his sword and swatted it out of the air. And just as he hoped, the other spear hit his steel armor and glanced off. He turned to the goblins who stupidly had just thrown their weapons at him. They turned and ran. Torger ran after them and heard the dwarves behind him pick up the spears and start cutting their ropes.

    Torger had to keep stooped down but followed them for turn after turn, deeper and deeper underground. As he was gaining on them they seemed to drop into some sort of hole in the ground. Torger slowed down and walked cautiously to where they disappeared. Once he was about forty feet away he saw there was a large cavern at the end of the tunnel. He walked until he came to the edge. At his head height, the ceiling level was the same all the way across the great gulf. He looked and saw Brun standing in another tunnel looking down at the cavern. Torger scanned around and saw several tunnels all pouring into the giant cavern below him, and each tunnel had a dwarf looking down.

    Torger walked to the edge and looked down and saw the pit was about eighty feet across and eighty feet deep. Goblins were clinging to the sides of walls everywhere. There must have been more than a hundred of them, including five hobgoblins. One of the hobgoblins had captured Torger and his friends when they had been slaves trying to escape. But that wasn¡¯t what worried Torger the most. On top of a large pile of salt, coal, bronze, tin, and copper, along with a few dozen low quality gems, was a massive goblin. It was female, and half corporeal, half spirit, and as it looked at them it picked up a topaz. The twelve foot tall queen ate the topaz, and a ghostly finger became flesh. She pointed it at Brun and he ducked, but a black gas cloud surrounded him.You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

    The gas cloud continued to move behind him and it surrounded two dwarves. All three of them fell to the ground and threw up, then small red bumps broke out all over their bodies. The queen ate another topaz, and another ghostly finger turned to flesh. She pointed it at Torger and he ran down the tunnel as fast as he could. The gas cloud gained on him and eventually overtook him. As soon as he inhaled the poison it flew down a connecting tunnel and he heard dwarves try to run away from it.

    Torger felt an immediate fever enter his body. His max health was cut to 50 and his stamina was cut in half. He felt nauseated and had a severe headache. His heart pounded hard and it took will power for him to get up and walk towards the exit. He didn¡¯t make it far when dwarves came into his tunnel. He was light headed and disoriented and they helped him stagger back to the entrance.

    When he got there he saw he was the last of his group to emerge. Twenty-five dwarf prisoners were being guarded by the eleven dwarves from Small Hammer.

    Torger, Brun, and four dwarves from Calico all had the small red bumps on their skin. But they heard in the tunnels goblins running towards them. Kirsk took five of his dwarves and led all the prisoners away. The others had collected all the copper and bronze weapons from the goblins they killed. They tried to help the sick humans and dwarves walk away, but the goblins were coming too fast. They only made it a hundred feet when goblins began pouring out of the cave. The dwarves formed a protective ring around the sick, but Torger stood up and joined them. The four sick dwarves saw him join the ranks and hold his sword at the ready, then they slowly stood up too. Graul looked over and nodded to them in appreciation. Brun was the last to stand up.

    Torger looked at the goblins. ¡°This battle is over. Go back to your caves. We are leaving. The prisoners are already gone.¡±

    The goblins held bows and copper spears, and looked at the dwarves with steel armor and axes. A hobgoblin stepped forward. He looked at Torger. ¡°We have never seen someone with the will to fight after suffering from poison two. We could attack your group, and we would win, but our losses would be too great.¡± He looked at Baybil. ¡°Once the tyters squash this pest, we expect our deal to be re-established. He has clouded your thinking.¡±

    With that the goblins backed into the cave, weakly waving their spears.

    The group of humans and dwarves slowly made their way out of the swamp then walked another mile before they found Kirsk and the prisoners. All but the sick and the prisoners set up camp. As Torger wretched again Baybil brought him some water. He asked ¡°What did the queen do to me?¡±

    ¡°She hit you with the spell poison two. It inflicts chicken pox and venom on three dwarves. Or I guess a human and two dwarves. The spell heal two would remove it, but none of us know it, and we don¡¯t have an antidote potion. You¡¯re going to have to sleep it off. You¡¯re losing one health every four seconds, as are the other five who were hit with the spell. You three humans and four dwarves will have to cast cure one constantly until each of you gets enough sleep to stop the venom. Two hours of sleep should do it, but each spell cast will have to be perfectly timed.¡±

    Torger said ¡°Brun and I will take care of ourselves, the other five who can cast cure one need to worry about the four dwarves.¡±

    Torger and Brun took turns drinking health and mana potions for two hours until the four sick dwarves had two hours of sleep, then the remaining five healers kept casting cures on the two sleeping humans. Without the potions they bought from the council meeting festival, they would have both died along with two of the four dwarves. It ended up being a very expensive lesson to stay away from Poison 2 spells.

    Chapter 22

    Lake¡¯s End

    Torger felt much better the next day. They ate breakfast and packed up the tents. As they were all walking north, Brun came up to Torger and Graul. ¡°That bitch was impressive. Level thirty-two, five hundred health, and a hundred mana. We would not have won fighting her.¡±

    Torger looked at Brun. ¡°I¡¯m glad you analyzed her. I used up all my potions and mana in that fight. All I accomplished was killing two goblins. How¡¯d you guys do?¡±

    Brun looked down. ¡°I used ice one a whole bunch. Now I almost have ice two, but I didn¡¯t kill any goblins. But as a group on the whole we killed forty-one. We each got thirteen hundred experience, and no one got hurt.¡±

    Torger looked at him and pointed to the knife hole in his leather pants at his thigh and the arrow hole in the leather jerkin at his stomach.

    Brun looked away realizing his poorly chosen words, but Graul said ¡°Adding that lighting spell was great. Fire removes seven health, and the lightning removes ten health, and that doesn¡¯t include the damage from the cut itself. Those goblins dropped easily to Inferno.¡±

    ¡°Inferno? What¡¯s that?¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah, you weren¡¯t there. At Lake¡¯s End you know we all had a bit to drink before your council meeting. I named my sword Inferno, and Antic named his spear Colonoscopy. Yeah I know, terrible name, but that was around our fifth or sixth pint. Anyway, you should name your sword. After all, it is the coolest weapon we have.¡±

    ¡°OK I¡¯ll think about it. But Antic will be changing the name of his spear.¡±

    The next day during the walk Torger, Baybil, and Kirsk talked to the twenty-five prisoners. They explained they were still prisoners, but they would be treated like prisoners instead of slaves. They would be mining iron, and be given fresh water and meat to eat each day. They would still be bound with ropes, but as long as none of them tried an escape attempt, they would all be freed in seven years. That cheered them up a great deal, and they were almost happy when Torger told them they would be allowed to talk in the mines.

    The eleven guards who were discontent with the way Torger was running Calico were now under Kirsk, and they were happier to be led by a dwarf instead of a human, although all the rules for them were exactly the same either way. The prejudice rolled off Torger as he had his eyes set on bigger and better things.

    When they came to Indio Torger stayed a day to see that the work on the aqueduct continued and the prisoners began mining. Kirsk had a good grasp of leadership, and the next day Baybil went to Calico and Torger and his group headed toward Carson City.

    It took them three days to get to the north side of Havasu, and Brun and Graul told the dozen dwarves how Torger walked into the water and dove down to get the chest. Brun was sad he couldn¡¯t show the dwarves the metal box Torger brought out of the water then smashed against the rocks over and over breaking some of the potions.

    Torger didn¡¯t appreciate the detailed explanation of his clumsiness, but the story did cause his new constituents to raise their respect of him.

    It took three more weeks to make it to what was near Carson City. Lake Tahoe was to the west, Yosemite was to the south west, and they were high in the Sierra Nevadas. Spring was beginning and water was freely flowing everywhere. Animals were abundant. Too abundant. They killed three California Grizzly¡¯s and four cottols during the three week trip. With three humans and twelve dwarves, it wasn¡¯t much of a problem each time they got attacked, but it made Torger worry about the well being of his friends and villagers. That worry also gave the dwarves reason to trust that he cared about them as a leader.

    One morning they crested a hill and saw a camp set up on the next hill. Even from a distance of nearly a mile Torger could see dwarves building buildings.

    When they came near they were spotted by a sentry who called out to the camp. Everyone ran out, and most of the dwarves that were with Torger were met by their wives and children. Only four of the twelve with him were bachelors. Torger surprised them by calling each wife by her name, memorizing them during the three week walk.

    Arden came up to Torger and said ¡°It¡¯s about time you guys got here. What did you get from the goblins? I hope they had a lot of treasure.¡±

    ¡°Sorry, our mission wasn¡¯t to conquer them, it was to free the slaves. And we did that. Brun has always wanted revenge on the goblins since we were slaves. Tell him how it went Brun.¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t inflict much damage on them. I just cast a bunch of ice one spells, but on our way back I kept casting them at deer, rabbits, coyotes and possums and learned ice two. Their queen was very powerful. We couldn¡¯t take her down if we tried, and they had five hobgoblins. But my thirst for revenge was quenched. We did kill forty-one of the bastards.¡±

    Rome said ¡°That¡¯s great you learned ice two. I kept using analyze and learned analyze two. But I don¡¯t have the option to learn analyze three. But with analyze two I have access to see a monster¡¯s level, health and mana like analyze one, and I can see their strength, endurance, and elemental weakness. But the spell costs twenty-one mana, so I used my three unused ability points buying mana. But another benefit of analyze two is I can see more clearly in a dark cave. Imagine the grey outlines you can see if you use the Bow of the Owl, and then add a lot of definition and clarity in the dark. It¡¯s still all in black and white, but it¡¯s as clear as an old movie.¡±

    Torger was happy for his friends¡¯ progress. ¡°That¡¯s great Rome. Arden, that leaves just you and me with three unused ability points, unless you spent yours.¡±

    ¡°No, I still have my three. But passing by Yosemite on the way here was inhumanely cruel. You know how badly I want to see what that grenade there from the tyters is.¡±

    The dwarves around them looked at him with concern. Arden forgot that was supposed to be a secret to the humans. Torger looked around at the dwarves then told Arden ¡°We¡¯ll talk about it later.¡±

    They made their way to the new village. The dwarves were working diligently building two houses, a smithy, a tavern, and a brewery. Stone Fist greeted them. ¡°It¡¯s a good thing the dwarves didn¡¯t know where they were going when they left Havasu. Rome led us into the mountains and there was a lot of murmuring about not living near elves. Fortunately, the elves are forty miles away on the north side of the lake, and of course in Yosemite. We found the cave entrance and I decided to set up the village here.¡±

    Torger could hear in his voice he was firmly set that this was the right location to build, but was also seeking verbal approval of his choice. ¡°This is a defendable spot with a creek a mile to the south of us. As long as the cave is within two miles, this looks like the best possible spot.¡±

    Stone Fist smiled and looked relieved. ¡°The cave is two miles to the north, at the bottom of that mountain. It¡¯s filled with cottols. A lot of bears and rocs are in the area too. We have some fighting to do to make this place safe.¡±

    Torger¡¯s Quests began flashing. He opened it.

    New Quest form Stone Fist

    The area you have chosen to build has many natural resources, and many dangerous monsters. Kill 30 Grizzly Bears, and 30 Rocs.

    Reward: Large boost to village morale and respect.

    900 exp points

    Raise village to level 3

    ¡°That we can do Stone Fist. We¡¯ve nearly completed this same quest before, but we¡¯ll have to be quick about it. I have more plans.¡±

    They slept that night and in the morning they walked to the cave, along with the twelve dwarves that had gone to the goblin mines with them. Arden, Jex, and Antic did not have Analyze 1, but Jex used her Bow of the Owl. That left Arden and Antic in the dark.

    They had no protection against the psychic blasts that met them, but those in the back slapped the faces of those in the front when they turned around and dropped their weapons.

    All the humans except Brun had Shield 1, and they all cast it into the cave. Brun began casting Lighting 1 as fast as he could, and his spells were able to go through his allies shields. Another round of psychic blasts hit the four human melee fighters in front, and again they dropped their weapons and turned their backs to the cottols. Four dwarves slapped them and took them out of their trance. As soon as they bent down and picked up their weapons again, they were again hit by the blasts and dropped them.

    Jex didn¡¯t mind. She was hitting one cottol after another with regular iron arrows. But she soon spent all thirty that she had. She had a decision to make: Use sharpened wood arrows or use the thirty arrows of paralysis they bought from the merchant in Parker. The cats weren¡¯t attacking the shields, and were continually sending psychic blasts. She could injure them with wooden arrows. As she shot the first one, more cats came to the front and sent psychic blasts. The cats had been rotating which ones were in front, and after that group of four sent their blasts, they would move back and four more would come to the front. She was guessing it was so they could recharge their mana. But now there were seven at the front, and the four humans and three dwarves closest to the mouth of the cave all dropped their weapons and turned their backs. Jex could see the men¡¯s faces were bright red from having already been slapped five times. They needed to change tactics.

    Rome cast Analyze 2. He saw

    Cottol level 15. Health 169/300 Mana 5/15 Strength 5/5 Endurance 80/80 Elemental Weakness: none

    Jex called for everyone to retreat. The stunned men were slapped a few more times, making it a slow retreat. Eventually they all made it out of range of the cats. They looked into the cave and saw the shields were still in place, and the cottols still didn¡¯t attack them. It was obvious they needed bows. Jex reached into her back pack and handed her ice bow to Antic, who was the only one strong enough to pull back on the string, and gave her recurve bow to Torger, who was the only one who gained more than average experience while using a bow, except of course for Jex. Two of the other dwarves went to the village to get more bows, while everyone else began sharpening sticks.

    Before the dwarves got back, Arden saw inside the cave that the shields began slowly flashing. The cats came close to the other side of them, waiting for them to disappear. The Regulators didn¡¯t know there was a time limit on the shields, but apparently the cottols did know. Everyone but Brun ran down the hill and again cast Shield 1, making a stack of six new shields an inch apart from each other. But all six humans were hit with psychic blasts. They dropped their weapons and turned their backs to the cats.

    Some dwarves ran to slap them awake, but the dwarves too were hit with the psychic blasts. Brun picked up a rock and threw it at Arden, but it bounced off his chest plate and Arden didn¡¯t come out of the trance. Brun knew he had to inflict one point of damage to their health to wake them up. He picked up a rock and threw it again. This time it hit a dwarf in the helmet. He said ¡°Ouch¡± and looked around. But he got hit with another psychic blast before he got out of the spell¡¯s range.

    Brun had to test his spell range. He pointed at the nearest cottol and said ¡°Lighting one.¡±

    Nothing happened. He walked twenty feet closer and tried it again. Still nothing happened. He walked closer still, and saw a cottol try to send a psychic blast at him. He instinctively took a step back, and the cottol¡¯s spell didn¡¯t hit him. He pointed again and said ¡°Lightning one.¡±

    The familiar tingling sensation ran down his arm and shot out the small lightning bolt. It hit the cat and the beast backed away. The dwarves behind him cheered. Brun had no more mana and knew the shields only had a few more minutes until time ran out. He reached into his backpack and took out a high mana potion. He drank it and his mana fully restored to 45. At seven mana per cast, he cast it six times, hitting six different cats.

    He then drank the three low level mana potions he had, bringing him to 30/45, good enough for the next four casts. Just as he was finishing the last cast, a roc flew overhead. The dwarves behind him scattered, and he was left standing alone with his six friends and four dwarves stunned just twenty feet in front of him. Times were desperate for him, but he heard the bird screech in the air. He looked up and saw two arrows sticking out of its wings.

    The two dwarves who had run to get bows had returned in time to keep the bird occupied. Brun had no choice but to go back to the rock throwing idea. He threw a rock at Torger, and hit him in the crotch. Torger dropped to the ground in pain and a psychic blast flew over his head. But as Brun hoped, Torger was aware enough of his surroundings that even in his pain he kicked the dwarf next to him in the shin. Another psychic blast hit Torger, and a second later one hit the dwarf. Both were standing with their backs to the cats, but their movement made a wall Brun was hoping for. He dropped to his stomach and crawled behind them. Three cottols tried to send the blasts at him but the already stunned humans and dwarves blocked them.

    Brun retrieved the bow and crawled back. He stood up out of range and was very clumsy as he tried to fit a sharpened wood arrow to the string. He managed it after a few seconds and pulled back. He was only level 3 with bows, but that was enough for him to hit the five foot diameter hole sixty feet away. He shot all twenty-two arrows they had made during their first retreat, most of them hitting a random cat, but not sinking very far.

    Once he was done, the shields began to flash again. He looked at the six dwarves behind him who had done nothing the whole time. ¡°In one minute, all those injured cats are going to come running out of the cave. We have to throw rocks at our friends and make the cats use up all their mana.¡±

    The nine awake people threw rocks at the ten stunned people. Every time a rock would hit someone, a psychic blast hit them a second later. But they kept throwing rocks. It looked like the sickest game of red light green light ever. But they ran out of time, and there were too many cottols. The shields dissipated and a hundred cottols ran out of the cave. Most of them had an arrow sticking out of them and many had electrical burns. Brun and the dwarves had no choice but to run towards their friends.

    Some cottols raked their claws down the stunned people¡¯s backs, scratching harmlessly down the steel armor, but most ran at Brun and the remaining eight dwarves. Brun and the dwarves never made it to the cats. All of them were hit with psychic blasts and the cats attacked them. But the beasts seemed to have finally run out of mana.

    After getting clawed on a leg, Torger sliced and sliced, four fireballs finding marks every time he cut into flesh. Antic and Arden thrust with their spears, antic getting a Lighting 1bonus every time he did, and Graul got a Fire 1 and a Lightning 1 bonus every time he ripped through fur. The six humans who could cast shields did, and the cats avoided the magic barriers.

    Jex and Rome had nothing to contribute, both pouring all their mana into shields. But the dwarves used their axes like a windmill in a tornado, tearing into one cat after another. Some cats were able to regenerate enough mana to cast another psychic blast, but the dwarf or human next to the victim slapped them awake again. After several minutes, there were one hundred dead cottols lying in the field. Blood flowed freely from all seven humans and all twelve dwarves.

    As they sit there resting and bleeding, the two dwarves who had run to get the bows returned. They saw that the battle was over. At first Torger was furious with them, until Brun explained that they kept a roc away while half the group was stunned. Torger stood up and asked who would not survive the night. Brun, Rome, and Jex all raised their hands. They didn¡¯t have metal armor, only leather, and the cat claws ripped right through it. Four other dwarves also raised their hands. All four had been bit on the back of the neck. Torger and Arden each cast Cure 1, then waited another minute, and cast Cure 1 again. The dwarves¡¯ bleeding slowed, but didn¡¯t stop. He gave all seven severely injured people a low health potion. He only had two left, but Rome and Brun looked awful, so he gave them each another one.

    They all staggered back to the village and fell asleep without answering any questions from anyone.

 Rocs

    Chapter 23

    Rocs

    All the warriors woke up the next morning fully healed and very hungry. They ate the last of the breads and dried fruits they brought from Parker, and it would take weeks before the fruits and vegetables that were planted would be ready to eat. But Torger wasn¡¯t concerned with that. He wanted to get in, get all the easy silver they could, and leave quickly. He sent twelve dwarves to begin the mining process, with Antic making sure they weren¡¯t sneaking silver for themselves. Three dwarves left with Jex and Arden to go hunting, and five dwarves walked to Lake Tahoe to go fishing.

    Torger, Graul, Brun, and Rome went to scout the area to find bears and rocs, while the remaining ten adult and fifteen children dwarves continued to build the village. The first place they went was to where all one hundred dead cottols were on the ground. At the mayor¡¯s council Torger saw some merchants selling cottol furs, and he thought they might need them for the winter. When they got there twenty-two rocs were eating the dead cottols!

    Antic and the twelve dwarves had waited for Torger and the others to show up. The rocs were very full and sluggish, but primal feeding instincts drove them to keep eating. The group of seventeen warriors asked each other what to do. The dwarves had each brought an axe, and also picks and shovels and even two wheelbarrows, but they didn¡¯t bring shields or iron armor. Most had thin shirts on and leather pants. None of them brought bows because it was just supposed to be a scouting mission.

    Part of Torger wanted to go back to the village and gather all the bows they could, but part of him didn¡¯t want to pass up on the easy opportunity to kill many level 15 monsters. His greed won out. He said ¡°Men, we have a wonderful chance here to gain a lot of experience. These fat birds can¡¯t do much fighting back. Hopefully they¡¯re too stuffed and tired to fly away. We need to rush them and cause as much damage as possible in the first thirty seconds.¡±

    No one really liked the idea, but the experience seemed to be just sitting there waiting for them. Torger told them to follow his lead. He crept to the edge of the tree line and looked at the meadow. He held his hand up in the air for a second, then pointed forward as he ran out of the concealment and straight at the nearest bird. It never saw him coming as he thrust his sword through its wing and into its heart. It screeched and tried to flap away, but one wing was pinned to its side by the sword. Four fireballs shot out and hit four birds in the chest.

    Brun had bought another five mana with his last ability point before the fight. That brought him to 50 and he was able to cast Lighting 1 seven times. Rome watched the other fourteen fighters attack the remaining twenty-one birds. He saw Graul easily slice with his sword and block with his shield, and Antic used all his high strength and stamina to thrust his spear then back off over and over again. He was burning a lot of energy keeping two birds focused on himself, staying just close enough for them to fear his spear but not back away.

    But as Rome had expected, several birds did try to fly away. He was ready for it. The ones that looked like they were about to fly off, he cast Shield 1 above their heads. They would jump into the air and flap their wings, only to hit their head on the magic shield and get shocked, falling back down. He was able to cast it four times, then drank a low mana potion, and cast it once more.

    The dwarves¡¯ short reaches gave them troubles. They tried swinging at the bird¡¯s necks, but couldn¡¯t reach that high. The birds would counter with a bite from a very sharp beak. Then the dwarf would have to block with his axe. It would have been a stalemate except the birds outnumbered the dwarves. Rome and Brun stayed hidden in the trees and watched as a dwarf got too careless and his hand was bit off. They felt helpless watching the surprise attack lose its momentum and the birds began to become aggressive. Rome shouted ¡°Watch out!¡± but it was too late. A bird raked its claws on the top of the head of a dwarf and he collapsed.

    Rome ran out with a high health potion in each hand. He called for Graul to cover him, and Graul cut off the neck of the bird he was attacking, then looked to see where Rome¡¯s voice had come from. He saw the dead dwarf and saw Rome running towards him and called for Rome to back away, but he wouldn¡¯t. Graul ran over and engaged that bird in combat.

    Rome made it to the dead dwarf and it took him several seconds to realize he was dead. But the dwarf missing a hand ran over to Rome and yelled to get a potion. The yelling voice shook Rome out of his daze at seeing the dead dwarf and handed the injured dwarf a high health potion. He drank it and the bleeding stopped, but his hand did not reform. Rome had the unfortunate experience of watching another roc lift into the air several feet, and use its talons to crush another dwarf¡¯s head before flying away. Then he saw another dwarf overextend his swing and that bird bit off the dwarf¡¯s arm. Rome ran to that one and gave him a high health potion. He also drank it and the bleeding stopped, but there was no further healing.

    As that dwarf was drinking, Rome saw a dark fog roll over his head and hit another bird. The bird threw up and collapsed. Then another dark fog hit a bird, then another fog. Rome looked back and saw Brun casting a spell causing these dark fogs to hit three targets. Brun cast a total of six Poison 1 spells, which damaged six of the eighteen remaining rocs. That changed the tide of the battle. The birds were sick but still fought with vigor. However the swords and axes did a lot more damage with each swing. Once some the birds had been infected with the flu from the Poison 1 spells, they were killed quickly and after that the battle was over four minutes later.

    The five men took much longer than expected skinning the cottols. All the dwarves had carried their two dead companions back to the village for a funeral service. Torger felt like a complete failure. He was newly a mayor of this village, and on his first day he nearly got twelve dwarves dead from cottols, and on his second day his recklessness nearly killed the same twelve, but this time two did die and two lost a hand. He didn¡¯t know what to say when he got back to the village, so he sat on the ground skinning cottols thinking about it.

    He thought about everyone in the group gaining one ability point from the battle, and the price was way too steep. Two dwarves dead, two injured, and two high health potions were drank and a high mana potion that Brun had drank to be able to cast Poison 1 six times. If the dwarves had bows and armor the battle would have been very different. It would have been easy to pluck off several birds from a safe distance. They wouldn¡¯t have killed twenty-one of the twenty-two, but no one would be dead.

    Torger placed the seventy-three good cottol furs into his duffle bag, and they all walked back to camp. When they got there they heard dwarves singing in dirge in baritone, and the bodies were lowered into a pit. Torger and his friends saw Jex and Arden sitting on a three foot stone wall of what would become the kitchen. They went to join them away from the dwarves, but close enough to hear. When the song was over, the wives of the deceased dwarves faced the villagers and spoke of the honesty and bravery of their husbands. The words were kind as they also spoke of their compassion and family values. When the benediction was completed, Torger walked towards the dwarves. He stood between the two widows and with everyone watching he spoke from the heart.

    ¡°I have been mayor of this village for less than a month, but in that time I endangered the lives of dwarves in the goblin caves at the Salton Sea, then again clearing out the cottols, then again today fighting the rocs. I pushed our luck too far, and your husbands paid the price. I could never replace them, nobody could, but I offer you what little I can.¡±

    He reached into his duffle bag and gave each widow fifteen furs. Next he gave each of the two injured dwarves fifteen furs. Then he gave all of them six roc feathers each. ¡°I have no words to express my grief. I will never again bring disaster to your people.¡±

    He turned to rejoin his friends but Stone Fist stepped forward in front of him. He addressed all the dwarves behind Torger. ¡°This human has enriched my village. We have roads for commerce and water in a desolate desert and crops are being grown. He negotiated a temporary peace with the elves, freed dwarf slaves, inspired us to overthrow a tyrant, and has found two silver mines and an iron mine. He has done more good for dwarves than any other since Red Beard the Just over thirty years ago.

    ¡°When Torger first came to Baybil, the mayor turned him away into the unforgiving desert. When Baybil brought Torger to Small Foot, that mayor took him as a prisoner. Torger spent time in the goblin caves as a slave, but he fought his way out and became a mayor of dwarves. He is the first human to ever have that distinction. He is a fighter, and he always bounces back. He is a master city planner, and not too bad with a sword either. I ask that you accept his leadership and dig for all the silver we can get before the tyters come and kill him. I say we help the Liberator of Dwarves.¡±

    There were mixed reactions, but after much quiet murmuring and discussion, the majority of the dwarves decided to give him another chance. Dinner was subdued that night, and everyone wanted the awful day to be done and hope for a better tomorrow. As Torger lay in his tent that night, he couldn¡¯t sleep. He had too many options to consider and too many ¡°what if¡± scenarios ran through his mind.

    Chapter 24

    Cleaning House

    Torger gathered up the Regulators before breakfast. ¡°I did a lot of thinking last night. I think our main goal has to be getting better weapons and armor. We can¡¯t let the dwarves do our fighting for us anymore. The cost is too great.¡±

    Arden interrupted. ¡°Finally! We¡¯re going to get the last icon from Yosemite! That¡¯s great!¡±

    ¡°Not yet Arden. Sorry. We need dwarven steel infused with elf magic. That¡¯s going to cost us a lot of money. A whole lot. This silver mine isn¡¯t going to be enough. We¡¯re going to need a lot of gold. Here¡¯s my plan. We forget about building up this village. We get all able bodied dwarves to extract as much silver here as quickly as possible, then go to the American River. I don¡¯t know exactly where the California Gold Rush took place, but we¡¯ll find some fierce monsters that are guarding it. Then we¡¯ll be able to set up a permanent village and dig for it. Once we have enough gold, we can go buy weapons upgrades from the elves. And yes Arden, we¡¯ll go find the last icon in Yosemite that looks like a grenade.Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    ¡°I already had this idea half formed before we freed the dwarf prisoners. I sent a letter to Strong Arm, and if he agrees to it we¡¯ll meet the village of Calico in the sequoia forest in the middle of summer. But today I have to convince the dwarves to stop building and just focus on getting silver.¡±

    The Regulators discussed the finer details for a while then joined the dwarves for breakfast. Once breakfast was almost over Torger stood up to speak. All the dwarves politely stopped talking and looked to him.

    ¡°I know I am new at being a mayor, but I have some plans I want to let you in on. This place was always going to be temporary to get silver. I knew where the silver was at, or approximately at, and my goal was for us to get in, get all the easy silver, then move again.¡±

    There were moans and muttered protests.

    ¡°I know you¡¯re tired of moving. Your whole lives get turned upside down every few years, but I hope for something better this summer. I hope to create something more lasting, before the tyters come to kill me and my friends. I hope to go down in your history as an above average mayor for what I accomplish, for what we accomplish, rather than me just being remembered as Torger the Human Mayor. I want more than that. I have plans to do something great, but I will need all of you to participate. Can I count on your cooperation?¡±

    There were nods of agreement, but also looks of distrust.

    ¡°I want to stop building here. Instead, all able bodied dwarves I want you to get as much silver out of the mine as you can during the next three months. I know that¡¯s not a lot of time, but you should be able to get half of it in that time if you all work together. We will need water carriers and hunters too. And these mountains are dangerous. I want all villagers to stay close to the mines. My friends and I will hunt all the bears and rocs in the area to keep you as safe as possible. Please move all of your belongings to the mine today.¡±

    At the promise of the humans doing the dangerous hunting, Torger¡¯s respect points rose. The dwarves seemed to admire a leader who put himself in danger first. That day they moved all the camp equipment a mile and a half to the large meadow in front of the cave. Fifteen men and four women worked the mine, while the other women and children cleared away the dead and rotting cottols and rocs.

    The next day the regulators went hunting for the large birds and bears. Graul stuck with his sword name of Inferno, Antic changed his spear name from Colonoscopy to Power Cord, and Torger named his sword Red Fury. Jex looked at her dwarven long bow that dealt Ice 1 damage with every arrow and said ¡°I will call it I.B. for Incoming Blizzard.¡±

    After an hour of walking Arden spotted a nest on a hillside. It looked similar to what they had seen near Lake Silverwood, but the baby rocs were much bigger. Jex shot an ice arrow at a parent, and all four birds flew at them. Torger used the Bow of the Owl, although it was daylight and the night vision didn¡¯t help him, and Arden used the regular recurve bow. Torger and Jex hit their target-the closest adult flying at them, and Arden missed. But the Regulators had battled these birds before and knew what to do.

    The three archers continued to shoot arrows at the four birds, and Brun cast Poison 1. After the black fog surrounded one of the four birds, Rome cast Analyze 2. Before he could read the message he and Brun had to run behind a tree, leaving the fighting to the others. Brun began casting Lightning 1 as fast as he could, and Graul and Antic both cast Shield 1 above their heads. The two adults hit the shields while coming in hard, and put deep cracks in them, then fell to the ground in shock. Antic and Graul ran at them and stabbed them repeatedly until they died.

    The babies began flying away, and Torger was able to get in two more arrows, but Jex was able to get in four more. That baby roc fell out of the sky, dead. Rome looked at what Analyze 2 revealed to him.

    Young Roc. Level 6 Health 0/150 Mana0/0 Strength 0/6 Endurance 0/35 Elemental weakness: Dark

    They walked over to collect the feathers and meat. They knew the dwarves loved the tough potent flesh, but the humans didn¡¯t care for it at all. As they were plucking feathers Torger announced ¡°As far as our quest is concerned, that¡¯s twenty-four down, only six to go. And of course thirty bears.¡±

    Rome was still marveling at the bird¡¯s growth. He asked ¡°Is it safe to assume these birds hatched at level one?¡±

    Graul said ¡°Yeah. Duh.¡±

    ¡°This one has gained five levels since then, so we could assume it was born about five months ago. That means its parents were level ten when it hatched, meaning these so called babies will begin mating soon.¡±

    Everyone stopped at the implication. Brun asked ¡°Does that mean in a year we¡¯ll have a whole new batch of rocs?¡±

    ¡°I think it does mean that. If they¡¯re left unchecked, by the time the tyters get here there could be hundreds of level ten rocs flying all over. And if the same holds true for all the tyter prey, imagine several hundred razorlings, billiks, bears, and cottols running around, all around level ten, plus the parents at level thirty.¡±

    Torger held back a primal yell, and choked, but he said ¡°All we can do is prepare to meet the tyters. Let¡¯s go find some extinct bears to hunt.¡±

    It turned out the bears were easy to hunt. They were starving, having just come out of hibernation, and they were easily found. The adult males were alone and the mamas had two cubs, always in groups of three. They were found drinking from stagnant ponds made by snow melt, or eating wild berries. The humans killed nine bears before returning to camp. Brun¡¯s Poison 1 spell was a real game changer, cutting the max health of the bears in half, and making them sick, before the fighting began.

    The hunting resulted in everyone gaining an ability point, plus almost a hundred experience points. That brought Arden to 4 ability points, and he bought Analyze 1. Torger reached 5 ability points, and he bought Poison 1. Everyone but Jex had two unused ability points, she had one.

    When they made it to camp, they saw more than a dozen tents set up outside the mouth of the tunnel, with children playing and some women cooking and others washing laundry. The sun was going down, and before Torger had the chance to greet each dwarf, the mining men and women came out of the tunnel.

    Stone Fist said they found no silver, but that¡¯s to be expected on the first day of a virgin mine. He said all they can do on a first day is to remove as much loose dirt as possible and bring in wood beams to support the cave ceiling, but the next day should start producing a small result, then they would really pick up the pace extracting the ore on the third day. With so many hands in the process, they would be able to branch off into six different tunnels on the third day.

    Torger¡¯s face glowed with pride. Calico had twenty-one dwarves extracting about eleven pounds of ore per day. Paying the miners ninety percent of what they took, then the villagers ninety percent of what was left, still resulted in about an ounce and a half per day for Torger, although that now went to Strong Arm. He had made the same deal with these dwarves of Lake¡¯s End, although they would have to get a new name soon.

    Once Torger and the Regulators completed the quest, the village would be promoted to level 3 and they could rename it under his menu icon Cities. The problem was, they needed one building to be considered a village.

    The next day, the other humans went out to go hunt bears, since they didn¡¯t seem to be in groups like they were before winter started, while Graul and Torger used all their strength and stamina trying to build a medium sized cube building. It took them two days to complete. It had stone walls and a timber roof, covered with sod. The building looked awful, it was poorly constructed, and leaned a little to one side. But that wasn¡¯t the point. This new thirty by thirty foot building was now the kitchen and dining hall, and qualified as one building.

    When the last of the sod was placed on the roof, an hour after dark of the second day, Torger received the expected prompt asking him if he wanted to claim this building for himself and start a village. He selected yes and received the title of mayor, of the village Home, level 1. He activated the weak shield, and it had the expected two hundred foot radius, covering half of the dwarf tents.

    His friends thought it was a waste of his time, after all they each received another ability point and four hundred experience points from killing ten more bears over the past two days. As far as they knew, Torger and Graul missed out on the easy experience. But Torger saw village morale rise to 25/100, and respect from these dwarves rose to 31/100. But as he was checking out how each city felt about him that he¡¯d encountered, he saw Salton Sea (Goblin) Loved 0/100, Hated 80/100, Respected 0/100, Feared 28/100. That city was in red, all the others were in blue. There was a note at the bottom that read

    Probability of Goblins attacking your village,

    Hated-(Loved+Respected+Feared)= 52/100

    That was bad. They shouldn¡¯t find him this far north, but they would easily find the prisoners in Indio. He hoped Kirsk was up to the challenge, because there was nothing Torger could do about it.

    All the dwarves ate roc meat that night, and the humans ate a deer Jex had killed and black berries Arden had found. They got a good night¡¯s rest and headed out to complete the quest the next morning.

    Since the Regulators had been hunting mostly in the mountains north and west, they decided to head into the desert to the southeast. Before noon they found and killed eight more rocs, two more than they needed, but had no signs of bears. They called it an early day and walked back to camp.

    When they came to the top of a hill, they saw all forty-five villagers sitting down and resting and talking. Some looked worn out, and they all looked scared. Before Torger made it another ten feet he saw two huge trolls laying dead in the middle of the village. The shield had been destroyed and the kitchen door was in splinters, busted inward.

    Torger ran to the dwarves and asked to no one in particular ¡°What happened?¡±

    One of the dwarves, covered in sweat and dirt (obviously a miner thought Torger), looked at him and said ¡°What does it looked like happened? These monsters were looking for an easy meal and saw our wives and kids nearly unprotected.¡±

    Torger looked at them all in horror. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. I had no idea there were trolls in the area.¡±

    Another miner interrupted him ¡°You didn¡¯t think there would be mountain trolls in the mountains? This is elves country. Let the elves deal with the mountain prey, we¡¯ll deal with the deserts, plains, and hills, and the physical monsters found there. But, good for us, you did build a building to raise a shield. That slowed them down enough for our families to go take shelter. Without the shield up and stone building, we miners would be hunting you humans right now.¡±

    Torger looked around and saw heads nod. He wanted to make it up to them, but didn¡¯t want to make a rash decision. ¡°I gained enough experience today to just barely gain one ability point. I will use it to expand the shield.¡±

    Torger looked at Cities, found Home, and found Shield. He selected it and the prompt came up asking him if he wanted to add to the shield strength He selected yes, but the shield strength didn¡¯t go to 150 and add Fire 1, as it had with the original log cabin called Home. Instead a message popped up.

    You may not add 1 ability point to shield strength until:

    <ul>

    <li>City Shield is repaired</li>

    <li>The city has 1 fully functional building</li>

    </ul>

    Would you like to repair the shield for 1 ability point now?

    Torger selected yes, and his one ability point was spent, but the shield did not come up. He looked at Graul and said ¡°We have work to do.¡±

    They spent the rest of the day repairing the broken door. It was nothing more than wood planks nailed in a checkered pattern, and left the dining hall a bit drafty, but it was good enough to reactivate the shield. It was past dinner time by the time they finished, and each dwarf family had to cook their own meals over a campfire.

 Spring

    Chapter 25

    Spring

    The next morning the dwarves went back to the mines, but kept a youth at the tunnel entrance to watch for danger attacking the village shield. Torger and the Regulators found and killed eleven bears, completing the mission, but it was midnight before they made it back. But as tired as he was, Torger accepted the award from Stone Fist. The shield expanded twice, going out to a four hundred foot diameter, and enclosing all the dwarf tents. Killing the eleven bears that day had given Torger and his friends each 1021 experience points, and he earned 900 exp points for completing the mission, so he used the two new ability points to strengthen the shield twice. It grew to have a strength of 200/200 and added Fire 1 and Ice 1 to the already standard Lightning 1.

    He also enjoyed the other reward for completing the quest: the large boost to village morale and respect. Morale soared to 51/100, and respect shot up to 79/100. His villagers liked and accepted him a whole lot better, and most no longer held grudges against him for asking them to attack the rocs although they were unprepared the second day they were at the location. That mistake cost two dwarves their lives. And Torger had made the mistake of sending all the physically strong dwarves into the mines, leaving the children and old women to hide from two attacking trolls. But that mistake was completely forgiven with the morale and respect boosts.

    The higher morale for some reason seemed to allow more silver to come out of the mine. Instead of getting the ounce and a half of silver ore, after paying everyone, Torger was getting two ounces per day. They had nowhere to spend it, but they were only going to be there for a few months anyway.

    A week after the Regulators finished the quest, a night sentry saw another troll in the distance. He told Torger about it the next day, and that got the humans excited. After constantly hunting and fighting since coming to Nuva, this was the first week where they were actually bored. Torger, Graul, and Rome had always found construction projects to work on, and Jex and Arden liked to go hunting, but none of that was necessary. Fresh fish were brought from the lake every day, along with buckets of water, and the large garden would be producing fruit in a couple of weeks.

    The idea of a troll nearby gave them a challenge. Their upgraded weapons and stats had made killing the rocs, bears, and occasional cottol that came into the area too easy. After the quest, no one had killed anything, yet everyone but Torger had three or five unused ability points. Before they set out, Torger asked them to invest in strength, just in case the trolls got the upper hand. He knew they had all lost several unspent ability points from dying in a hot battle.

    Antic gladly and quickly spent his five on strength, bringing him to twenty-two. Rome was impressed. He had only analyzed two dwarves in all of the mayor¡¯s council with a strength that high. As for Rome, He spent three to finally learn Cure 1, and the other two ability points went to learn Lightning 1. Torger of course had none, since he spent his on repairing then strengthening the village shield.

    Graul spent three learning Cure 1, and the fourth he invested into one strength point, bringing him to fourteen. Brun also bought Cure 1, and spent his other two ability points to get ten more mana, bringing him to sixty. Jex bought Cure 1, and had one ability point to spend on strength, bringing her to fifteen. Arden had three ability points, but already had Cure 1, so he used them for strength. He hated being weaker than his wife, and this boost brought him to thirteen. Jex couldn¡¯t resist pointing out to everyone that she could still kick her husband¡¯s ass. With her new strength increase, Jex placed her regular recurve bow in her backpack, and withdrew I.B. She knocked an arrow and pulled back until the tension maxed out. Her strength allowed her to hold it for two full seconds before her hands started shaking from the strain and she lost sight of her distant target. She cheered and called out ¡°Look out trolls! An Incoming Blizzard is headed your way!¡±

    Her cheer caused all the humans to raise their weapons and run out of the village. An old dwarf watched them go, then shook her head and muttered ¡°Morons. Good hunting, you stupid, brave, and happy tyter prey. Enjoy what little life you have left.¡±

    They headed north to the nearest mountain, above the mine. Looking around they couldn¡¯t find any troll footprints on the granite ground, so they headed to the west towards Lake Tahoe. After a couple of hours, Torger found a print. They followed it and found another. They kept following the trail for miles, and when they came to a top of a hill, they saw three trolls entering a cave and swinging their clubs at something unseen just inside. The humans crept closer, a rare chance to see one group of monsters fighting another group of monsters.

    A troll froze, and dropped to the ground. The other two kept swinging their clubs. After a few seconds, the first troll got up and resumed his attack. After a couple minutes, they were too far in the shadows to see clearly. Everyone but Jex and Antic cast Analyze 1, because those two didn¡¯t have that spell. Jex instead switched bows and looked down an arrow shaft while holding the Bow of the Owl. They could see grey outlines of small, one foot snakes and large, dinner plate sized spiders trying to bite the trolls, but the thick hides usually protected them, although once in a while the paralysis venom would pierce through the skin and a troll would collapse.

    The five people who used analyze saw it was a level 1 cave. The treasure inside would be weak, but the venom was valuable to coat Jex¡¯s arrows. They missed the opportunity the first time they fought these level 1 pests, but there was no way they were going to pass on that valuable venom again. And to make things worse, the trolls seemed to be completely crushing snake and spider heads, destroying the venom. They had to stop the slaughter quickly.

    On Torger¡¯s signal, they ran towards the cave. Brun attacked first, casting Poison 1. It hit a troll, who began coughing. The troll looked back at them and grunted. The other two turned and saw the humans, and began charging. For good measure, Brun cast Poison 1 twice more, once at each troll, and good thing he did too because in both cases the fog caused them to cough. But the main damage was done, all three trolls vomited, sharted, and lost half their max health, but still they ran at the group of little insolent people.

    As they had done so many times before, Jex began shooting arrows as fast as she could, Brun began casting Lighting 1 as fast as he could (good for five casts) and Rome cast Analyze 2 at a troll. The other four men charged, weapons held high. Rome saw

    Mountain Troll Level 19 Health 182/450 225 Mana 0/0 Strength 12/12 Stamina 31/40 Elemental weakness: none

    He had never cast Analyze on a target after it had suffered the flu symptoms of Poison 1. That was an awesome spell Brun had. The missing 43 health points had to have come from the two arrows sticking out of its belly. Unfortunately, both mages had run out of mana before the melee fighters got there. But their higher levels, and superior weapons and armor made short work of the three trolls. Graul ducked the first slow and clumsy club swing, then snuck in close and behind the eight foot tall green beast. He easily sliced the back of the calf and the troll fell to the ground.

    Antic and Arden worked as team with their spears. Arden tried to jab it in the face so that Antic could get behind it, but the troll grabbed Arden¡¯s spear and they got into a tug of war. But that provided the distraction Antic needed, and he thrust his spear through its back and out the front of its chest. He loved having his new strength of twenty-two. He was only 5-11 with all the twenty-one half inch growths, but his biceps were bulging. He could bench press 280 pounds twice. But his speed and dexterity paid the price, as did his stamina. He moved slower and was less flexible than he had been, and his max stamina dropped to 90. That was an unexpected setback in battle, and he knew he would need to make a decision with how to spend future ability points on his new buff bod. Antic could squat 400 pounds then jog fifteen miles before stopping, a feat few humans can do. As muscle mass increases, stamina decreases and Antic seemed to have hit the limit of muscle to stamina available to humans. When he invested ability points to bring his strength up to 22, his stamina max dropped from 96 to 90.

    Torger faced his troll head on like a man. When the monster swung his club like a baseball bat, Torger turned Red Fury to stop it with the blade side. The sharp steel sword cut deep into the crudely shaped oak tree branch, and a fireball hit the troll in the chest, but with only a strength of 13 he lost the power battle since the momentum was in favor of the troll. Torger tried to keep a hold of his sword, but it was ripped from his hands when the troll raised the club up. Torger was flung to the ground, and the troll raised a foot to stomp on the little foe, but Jex saved the day with a well placed shot to the eye. The troll snapped its head back to avoid the pain, but it was already standing on one foot and was off balance. It fell backwards. Torger got up, saw his sword deeply embedded in the wood, and ran away towards Jex. She aimed carefully, and sent an arrow flying, which hit the troll in the nuts and penetrated six inches into the bladder. Mercifully, Graul finished off his opponent then quickly ended the life of the stupid monster.

    They all regrouped, except Torger who had to use all his strength to slowly wiggle his sword free. When he returned to the group, they all pointed and laughed at him. He joined in the laughter and said ¡°Yeah, that was real stupid, trying to block a club with a sword against an equally strong opponent. I won¡¯t do that again.¡±

    Graul gasped and said ¡°Oh no! Torger. Your sword. Red Fury.¡±

    Torger looked and saw a hairline crack in the steel. He screamed into the sky, and hung his head in shame. He quietly said ¡°You guys bring back the venom. I want to be alone for a while.¡±

    Rome tried to reach for him as he walked away, but Graul caught his hand. ¡°No. He needs to be by himself. It¡¯s the way he is.¡± They decided to trust Torger¡¯s brother to know how to handle their leader¡¯s depression.

    Torger walked straight back to his tent and laid down on his mat. He didn¡¯t move for hours, drifting in and out of sleep. When it was almost dark, he heard his friends return. He didn¡¯t get up, and hoped they would leave him alone. They did. He heard everyone eating dinner and talking about the battle with the trolls, but left his sword out of the story. He was thankful for that. As they continued to talk, he forced himself to fall asleep.

    A while later, he heard Graul enter. Graul tried to be quiet, but it¡¯s hard to not make much noise when you¡¯re piling steel armor into a heap in the corner. Torger asked ¡°How¡¯d it go?¡±

    Graul was glad to hear him talk. ¡°Fine. We got fifty-one spiders and sixty-two snakes. A few were damaged, but a dwarf said he has the skill to remove the venom and coat the arrows. Problem is, we¡¯re really low on arrows. Jex¡¯s new strength means more arrows are breaking on impact, so we¡¯re only recovering half of the ones she shoots. But once we carve more, we¡¯ll have a hundred and ten paralysis arrows. It¡¯ll cost us a half pound of ore.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s worth it. But that worries me about the arrow loss. We¡¯ll need stronger wood.¡±

    ¡°We were thinking the same thing. But as good as she is, I was wondering if maybe she could use billik legs as the shafts. But I don¡¯t know how straight they fly and how hard it is to notch them for the feathers to go in. It would take a professional fletcher for that. She¡¯s now at level twenty-eight with bows. She has the strength and accuracy to hit a watermelon from two hundred yards. Crooked arrows would take that advantage away from us.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m thinking of going to the elves. I need a new sword, but they don¡¯t work with metal, and we didn¡¯t build a smithy here. But I want to know if the ruby is salvageable. Maybe I can get them to make the highest quality arrows while I¡¯m there. And I should send someone to find Strong Arm and see if he¡¯s had the chance to make more shotgun shells. I¡¯m sure he¡¯s been busy moving the whole village a few hundred miles, but maybe he¡¯s had time.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure the elves could salvage the ruby, but you should just hang out for a couple of months. There doesn¡¯t seem to be anything dangerous around here. At least not dangerous to how strong we¡¯ve become. Let us keep threats away, and you oversee the village until we move in a couple of months.¡±

    ¡°Maybe we should move now. Let¡¯s get to the gold early.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you have planned long term Torger. You¡¯ve kept all of us in the dark. But whatever your plan was when you were thinking clearly is probably better than changing plans in the emotional state you¡¯re in. Spend the next two months boosting the morale of the dwarves, and practice with other weapons. Remember you get a learning bonus for all weapons, not just swords. Although Red Fury is the coolest and fiercest weapon we have. Carve a tree branch and improve your use of clubs, or use Jex¡¯s regular bow and get better with archery. You¡¯ll learn quicker than the others, so use this opportunity.¡±

    ¡°I guess you¡¯re right. You guys probably got a lot of experience from all the creeping things, huh?¡±

    ¡°No. The suckers were all level one and two. They¡¯re indigenous to Nuva, so they don¡¯t gain levels and get harder. We each got nine hundred and fifty experience from them. But I think you¡¯re forgetting what treasure was in the cave the first time we killed them.¡±

    Torger fully opened his eyes. ¡°I remember from one cave we got a stone that gave your sword fire one, and a stone that made twenty-five ice arrows for Jex. And from the other cave we got a teleport stone that we sold to Baybil for way too little money. So what did we get this time?¡±

    ¡°A piece of quartz that contains fire one, and a low level strength potion.¡±Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    ¡°Great. Close to worthless.¡±

    ¡°Yeah that¡¯s what I thought you would say. So I made the decision to pay a dwarf to add the stone to Arden¡¯s spear. He¡¯s still not great with it, only level six, but a little extra fire damage wouldn¡¯t hurt. And that brings our total low level strength potions to an even twenty.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve never had need to use one of them. I¡¯ll see if I can trade the twenty for a new sword once we find the gold mine. In the meantime, I¡¯m going to sleep.¡±

    ¡°OK cool. Things will look brighter tomorrow. Oh, by the way, I gained an ability point today. I spent it on health, just to see what it felt like. I feel tougher. I get why Antic¡¯s addicted to it. Good night.¡±

    In the morning Antic was furious. He came up to the others and said ¡°Guess what! I got screwed! You all know the last time I invested my ability points, I put five at one time into strength, and for some reason my stamina was lowered to ninety. So after yesterday¡¯s battle with the trolls and spiders and snakes, I gained another ability point. This morning I put it into stamina to raise it to ninety-five, and my strength dropped to twenty-one! What happened?¡±

    Rome said ¡°It seems we have a cap. One hundred stamina and twenty strength. If we go over on one, the other is removed.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not fair! I wish someone had told me! I wasted it. I could have put it into health.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s hope there¡¯s not a cap on that too.¡±

    The others looked at their own stamina. After months of walking hundreds of miles, plus the time spent in the mines, they were all at an even fifty. When each one confirmed that¡¯s what they had, it was Rome again who saw the bigger picture. ¡°It looks like without investing into stamina, we could only gain that much through hard work. We¡¯re all maxed out unless we spend ability points into it.¡±

    Brun said ¡°That sucks. I hope there isn¡¯t a max we could hit from hard work for gaining strength.¡±

    No one had the answer to that. But they would all have liked more stamina to be able to run a half marathon like Antic, yet still be able to squat 400 pounds like him.

    Torger took a more fair and honest assessment of what he had going. In the dawn of a new day, he took Graul¡¯s advice, and they all went out scouting for danger, but Torger carried Jex¡¯s recurve bow. He was level 4 with bows on that first day, and they killed an adult male grizzly. They went out every day for two months, and by the end of spring Torger was level 11 with bows. He was far inferior to Jex, but the others let him get in the first shot at a bear, troll, roc or cottol they came across, then the others would charge forward and claim the easy experience.

    It was the first week of May when Torger told the dwarves to shut down the mine. They packed up their tents and headed east. During the two months of mining, Torger received seven and a half ponds of silver ore for the village. Each dwarf miner had earned about fifteen pounds of silver ore. Moral was higher. It moved to 59/100.

    While the miners swung picks in the dark, the Regulators hunted in the daylight and they each gained seven ability points and almost seven hundred additional experience from killing the random beasts that strayed too near. Their morale was high too, although there was no way to quantify it.

    Chapter 26

    Finding Gold

    The village headed to the north side of Lake Tahoe, but didn¡¯t quite make it that far on the first day. An hour before sunset Torger called a halt and they all set up tents for the night in a large meadow. He was a little frustrated at the slower than expected pace, but knew many of the dwarves didn¡¯t have the same stamina as the humans. Only the hunters and miners still had energy to keep going. But on the bright side each dwarf family had a magic back pack to carry their tents and equipment. The men carried axes as they walked in case of a surprise attack, while the women kept encouraging the small children to keep up. The nine dwarf kids caused an additional two unexpected breaks during the walk. Watching all this throughout the day made Torger be more appreciative of the bachelor life he led back on Earth.

    They had made it almost to where the dwarves reported there were elves, but it was the way they had to go. The next morning they broke camp, and after walking a few hours they were in a thick woods and suddenly found themselves surrounded by elves. All the dwarves scowled, but knew enough to keep their mouths shut. Three elves seemed to materialize out of the trees and walked toward the group. One called out with a high shrill voice ¡°You dwarves know better than to enter elf territory. Who is your leader? We have agreements keeping each other at a distance.¡±

    Torger stepped forward. ¡°I am the mayor of this village of dwarves. I assume you are the border guards. Take me to the border elder and sit me down on the magic stone so the Winds of Truth will tell her we¡¯re OK.¡±

    The elf stepped back and rage came over his face and his four foot body trembled. ¡°How dare you belittle our sacred customs? You will pay for your insolence! I will bind you before you are taken to the elder.¡±

    The elf stepped forward with a rope in his hand. All the dwarves stepped back, but the other six Regulators drew their weapons and stepped forward. Eight arrows came out of trees towards the six humans, and none of them ever saw the elves that shot them. Everyone but Brun pointed at a space a few feet in front of themselves and said ¡°Shield one!¡±

    No arrows were shot at Torger and his shield was undamaged, but the first five arrows to strike crackled with ice and fire as those five shields shattered before they could retaliate with Lightning 1. The next three arrows hit Jex, Rome, and Brun in the right bicep, where there was no armor. Fire and ice exploded out of the arrows and blew a golf ball sized chunk of muscle away. They each dropped their weapons and grasped their gaping wounds.

    Torger stepped forward and said ¡°There is no need for this! I¡¯m going willingly!¡±

    But at the same time Arden ran to help Jex, and Antic and Graul raced forward to attack the hidden elves. Torger called ¡°Stop!¡± but it was too late. Antic took an arrow in each bicep and was knocked backwards, and Graul blocked the two arrows shot at him with his steel shield, but the steel shield cracked from the combination of fire heating it to expand, and ice cooling it to contract. These arrows seemed to have both Fire 2 and Ice 2, and the shield took two of the mini missiles.

    Torger and Graul held up their hands in surrender while the others began casting Cure 1 on themselves. Torger stepped forward with his hands raised. ¡°I will meet your border elder peacefully, but there is no need for the rope. I will take off my armor, but wish to carry my cracked sword.¡±

    The elf looked at the sword and saw it was damaged, and agreed. Torger walked in front of him and behind the other two elves that had made their presence known, but knew the eight hidden archers were still nearby watching his villagers.

    As expected he sat on a stone with engravings on it. He was left alone and shivered from wearing only a thin cotton shirt and pants. It took nearly an hour before an old elfa came to him. She did not introduce herself.

    ¡°I am told you claim to be the mayor of a dwarven village. I don¡¯t need the Winds to know that is a lie. But I am also told you are familiar with the Winds of Truth. How did you learn of it?¡±

    ¡°I sat on a similar stone to this a year ago, far to the south. The Border Elder is named Lagwil. I hope she has made it to Yosemite by now.¡±

    ¡°You know much of our affairs for tyter prey. Either you have met Lagwil or you are a clever spy. I will not delay my curiosity any longer.¡±

    She waved her gold staff and chanted words that didn¡¯t Translate, and the expected winds swirled around Torger. After a minute they died down.

    ¡°I see you are not here as an enemy, you are not here to trade, and yet you are also not lost. Curiosor and curiosor. What proof do you have that you are not a liar and a spy?¡±

    Torger handed her Red Fury. ¡°Dwarven steel infused with a ruby containing fire three. You know the dwarves do not have the ability for that kind of magic.¡±

    ¡°Ha! We trade swords like this with the dwarves on a regular basis. This is not a unique sword. It is slightly better than average. I¡¯ll assume you bought it from a dwarf. Try again.¡±

    Torger thought about what proof he had. He had never been allowed into the village at Lake Silverwood, but had explored it after they left. ¡°I was never allowed in Lagwil¡¯s village, but I looked around after they left. It is commonly believed elves build wood bridges high in the trees. I did find that. But I also found many trees had a hole cut in the stump and a large cavern was dug out underneath them. It looked like each cavern could house a family of three.¡±

    She thought about these words. ¡°You did meet Lagwil, or you are the greatest spy we have seen in over a hundred years. Lagwil and that village did meet up with another village of the Pomo tribe a couple hundred miles south of here, as you said. She also sent word it was a neutral human who told her where to send the scouts. You may be that human. The winds also told me you were wondering about trading the ruby. It can be salvaged by a skilled elf, but I do not trust you enough. Go seek Lagwil. If you are not a liar, you will know how to find her.¡±

    The old elfa turned and walked away. Torger stood up and walked quickly back to his friends. He felt hidden eyes following him the whole way. When he got there he asked ¡°How is the healing going?¡±

    Graul and Arden hadn¡¯t been hit, and everyone else showed them their completely healed arms. ¡°Great. I¡¯m glad we all know cure one now. Let¡¯s go quickly.¡±

    They left and walked through the woods as fast as they could. Along the way Brun told Torger everyone but himself had used all their mana casting Cure 1. Those arrows did a lot of damage. Rome proudly reported he used Analyze 2 on an elf, and found they are Level 22. Health 140 Stamina 90 Strength 4 Mana 100

    Rome also said their strength is too low to shoot arrows that far and that accurately, so he assumed they put some sort of spell on the bows or arrows to fly far and straight. That information wasn¡¯t helpful, but it did give them something to talk about as they ate dinner that night.

    The next day they came to the large open valley Torger was expecting. He lived in this valley for two years, and hated it. They were well south of Susanville, but too close for Torger. Known for its maximum level prison, it is tucked away in a harsh and cold isolated corner of California. The population was always low in this section of the most populous state. When they came to the edge of the valley, he told everyone to stop for the night. There were protests that there was still sunlight, but he insisted. They had killed two more bears, rocs, and cottols in the past two days, and it was a relief to have an open valley on one side of them so the sentries could stay focused on the east side of the camp.

    The next morning they got an early start, eating breakfast at sunrise and completely packed up before the sun came over the tree tops. They stayed to the edge of the forest and walked south as quickly as the children would allow. He only allowed two stops of ten minutes each and made them force march until it was too dark to see. In mid May that far north there was fifteen hours of daylight. Everyone set up tents quickly and fell asleep exhausted, without dinner. Torger let them sleep in the next day and eat a large and leisurely breakfast. Only his brother understood his need to have walked through that area as quickly as possible and not camp out anywhere near the imaginary city.

    They continued walking southwest for two more days before they finally found what they were looking for. Torger stood in front of the large river and looked at all forty-five dwarves and six humans. ¡°We are near. But we have finally come to the part where I must come clean to all of you. We humans know gold was discovered somewhere near here. This is what we call the American River. But we don¡¯t know exactly where it¡¯s at. Only a few of you dwarves have been let in on the secret of why we abandoned the silver mine. It¡¯s because we believe there is a gold mine somewhere near here. But it could take a couple of weeks to find it, so be patient with us.¡±

    A dwarf miner stepped forward. ¡°You mean to tell me we¡¯re looking for a gold mine, and you didn¡¯t broker a deal with the elves to clear out the leprechauns?¡±

    ¡°Uhh, What leprechauns, and why do we need elves?¡±

    Mass pandemonium broke out. Dwarves yelled and cussed and the humans had to make a shield to protect Torger from the rocks being thrown at him. It took several minutes for Stone fist and his assistant to calm the other dwarves down. They were the only two who knew about Torger¡¯s plan.

    Stone Fist stood on a large rock once everyone was calm enough to hear him. ¡°Listen up! I didn¡¯t think about Torger not knowing about leprechauns, so let¡¯s make everything clear. First, Torger, whenever you see three leprechauns together, there is a pot of gold nearby. But we¡¯re not looking for three, we¡¯re looking for a hundred. Second, leprechauns are little magical creatures. They can find gold much faster than we dwarves can, and we¡¯re damn good at it. But as magical creatures, we dwarves can¡¯t fight them. We rely on strength to win our battles. We dwarves have a standing agreement with the elves: If we find a gold mine, we hire the elves because it will almost always be protected by leprechauns. They¡¯re indigenous to Nuva. But in battles we dwarves always come to a stalemate with the little buggers, and when we do kill one, it respawns a week later far away, so we can never be rid of them. So we hire the elves. The rate is to give them thirty pounds of refined gold one year after they clear out the cave.

    ¡°As for all my fellow dwarves. Have no fear about finding the cave. Torger in his wisdom has called for Strong Arm and the dwarves of Calico to meet us here. If all goes well, they will be in the area in the next day or two, and our search can cover more ground that way.¡±

    Stone Fist couldn¡¯t continue from the shouts of protest. ¡°You want us to share our gold with another village? Never! Our find. Our keep.¡±

    The crowd broke out into chanting ¡°Our find. Our keep.¡±

    It took Torger a long time to get them to listen to him again. When they finally did he said ¡°Think about what you¡¯re saying! More dwarves are just south of here, and if they find the gold first, they will keep it. We are less than seventeen months from the tyters returning, and when they do you¡¯ll have to find another gold mine. I don¡¯t think there will be enough time for two villages working together to get all the gold out. There should be enough for everybody. But there is no reason to delay in looking for the cave and the leprechauns. I want to send out three groups of scouts, five dwarves each, to find the cave and Calico. We regulators will hunt for food and protect the village while you look. As Stone Fist said, you dwarves are very good at finding gold. Much better than we humans are.¡±

 Stats of characters (Not a real chapter- OK to skip)

    Character Stats

    Regulator¡¯s stats at the end of chapter 26, Part 2

    The regulators spent two months hunting Rocs, California Grizzly Bears, Cottols, and Trolls in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. That gave each member seven ability points plus another approximately seven hundred experience points. Throughout the writing of this story I have kept careful track of how much experience each person earned, but did not add it into the story so it wouldn¡¯t get bogged down with boring math. Each monster killed gives about 50 experience points x the level of the monster, then divided by the number of people in the party. (1 Cottol level 15x50 exp= 750 exp/ 7 people involved in the kill= 107 exp per person.) Throughout the story some people die or are otherwise not present when a monster is killed and therefore do not receive the experience. Humans and monsters gain 1 level for each spell they learn, each strength point they gain, each addition of 50 health, and each addition of 10 Stamina or Mana. Humans start at H-100, S-30, S-1, M-0

    Torger  Level 24 412 exp

    Health 100  Stamina 50  Strength 13 Mana 15

    Fire 1, Ice 1, Cure 1, Shield 1, Analyze 1, Poison 1, Lightning 1, Slow 1, Heal 1

    Steel plate armor. Cracked double edged steel sword infused with Fire 3 (Red Fury)

    Two handed swords, level 27. Bows Level 11 Guns Level 29

    Graul Level 26 91 exp

    Health 150 Stamina 50 Strength 14 Mana 15

    Fire 1, Ice 1, Slow 1, Lighting 1, Shield 1, Analyze 1, Cure 1, Heal 1, Haste 1

    Steel plate armor. One handed iron sword infused with Fire 1 and Lit 1 (Inferno)

    One handed swords, level 31

    Arden Level 24 792 exp

    Health 150 Stamina 50 Strength 13 Mana 15

    Fire 1, Ice 1, Cure 1, Shield 1, Analyze 1, Lightning 1, Slow 1, Heal 1

    Steel plate armor. Solid steel spear. Shotgun with no ammo.

    Guns, Level 33. Spears Level 6

    Jex Level 26 792 exp

    Health 150 Stamina 50 Strength 15 Mana 15This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

    Fire 1, Ice 1, Slow 1, Lighting 1, Shield 1, Cure 1, Heal 1, Haste 1

    Leather jerkin, pants, and boots. Recurve bow (Dwarven), Bow of the Owl (Elven), Long bow infused with Ice 1 (Dwarven) (Named Incoming Blizzard, or I.B.)

    Bows Level 28

    Brun   Level 32 513 exp

    Health 150 Stamina 50 Strength 11 Mana 70

    Fire 1,2,3, Ice 1,2, Lightning 1,2, Poison 1, Analyze 1, Cure 1, Slow 1, Heal 1

    Leather pants, boots, woven mage cloak, Silver staff (Quantity 2) amplifies spell x 1.5

    Brun is not above level 3 with any type of weapon, Level 4 with staffs from being a black mage. Staffs do not gain levels. At level 4 Brun can point the staff in the general direction he wants the spell to go and the spell will hit its target. (Someone at level 1 with staffs must point the staff at the target as accurately as a rifle.) Level 4 reduces Brun¡¯s cast time to simply saying the first syllable of the spell he wishes to cast. Someone at Level 1 must clearly pronounce the entire spell name.

    Rome Level 24 361 exp

    Health 100 Stamina 50 Strength 7 Mana 35

    Fire 1, Teleport 1,2,3, Ice 1, Shield 1, Analyze 1,2, Cure 1, Lighting 1, Slow 1, Haste 1,2 (Rome bought Haste 1 shortly after the fight with the trolls in chapter 25, and cast it repeatedly for two weeks to learn Haste 2)

    Leather pants, boots, woven mage cloak. Silver staff x2

    Rome is not above level 3 with any type of weapon, Level 2 with staffs from being a white mage. Staffs do not gain levels. At Level 2 Rome can point the staff to within three feet of the intended target to hit it.

    Antic Level 40 361 exp

    Health 500 (MAX) Stamina 95 --(Combined MAX)-- Strength 21 Mana 15

    Ice 1, Lightning 1, Shield 1, Cure 1, Fire 1

    Steel plate armor except torso is covered by steel chainmail. Solid steel spear infused

    with Lightning 1 and Fire 1 (Power Cord)

    Spears Level 22

    Bestiary

    The following __/Max is the average for the Regulators. Some are closer than others to reaching the max kills for experience of a specific type of monster. (I) stands for indigenous- that monster will always be on Nuva and always remain at that level. (P) stands for tyter prey. These monsters come to Nuva at level 1 and gain levels. This chart shows the average level for adults at this point in the story. Indigenous monsters respawn in the same spot 1 week after they were killed unless that location has been occupied, then they will respawn in a similar available location somewhere on Nuva. Prey do not respawn if killed by tyters or when they have certain spells cast on them. They respawn hundreds of miles away in a similar environment unless they have a set respawn point.

    Coyote (I) Level 2 Health 85 Stamina 30 Strength 2 ????Max/Max

    Pinchers (Jumping Spiders) (I) Level 2 Health 35 Stamina 12 Strength 1 16/Max

    Prickle (Small Snakes) (I) Level 2 Health 40 Stamina 9 Strength 1 ??16/MAX

    Billik (P) Level 4 Health 200 Stamina 40 Strength 2???? 12/MAX

    Black Simmets (I) Level 5 Health 140 Stamina 40 Strength 4 Max/Max

    Sangler (Octopus) (P) Level 19 Health 225 Stamina 50 Strength 15  2/MAX (Rome)

    Razorling (P) Level 16 Health 250 Stamina 45 Strength 12 10/MAX

    Lesser Lich (Ghost) (I) Level 17 Health 200 Stamina 90 Strength 1 Mana 50 1/MAX

    Roc (P) Level 15 Health 230 Stamina 55 Strength 10?? 12/MAX

    Bear (P) Level 19 Health 350 Stamina 45 Strength 13 ??13/MAX

    Cottol (P) Level 16 Health 130 Stamina 70 Strength 9 Mana 20 13/MAX

    Troll (P) Level 16 Health 300 Stamina 50 Strength 13 ??7/MAX

    Goblin (I) Level 18 Health 135 Stamina 100 Strength 4 Mana 60 4/MAX

    Giant Mole (I) Level 18 Health 350 Stamina 90 Strength 7 ????0.6/MAX

    Giant Jackrabbit (I) Level 18 Health 350 Stamina 90 Strength 7  0/MAX

    Leprechaun (I) Level 22 Health 80 Stamina 65 Strength 2 Mana 100 0/MAX

    Dwarves (I) Level 22 Health 220 Stamina 70 Strength 13 Mana 15  0/MAX

    Elves (I) Level 22 Health 140 Stamina 90 Strength 4 Mana 100 0/MAX

 Treaties

    Chapter 27

    Treaties

    For three days the dwarves searched in all directions. During that time the scouts killed four trolls, four bears, three cottols and a roc, and the humans killed five rocs themselves. Between the animals they killed on the way to the river, and the five rocs, they each gained another ability point, but didn¡¯t spend them until they saw what kind of dangerous magical creatures these leprechauns were.

    On the third day the scouts returned for dinner. One group announced for everyone to hear ¡°Listen to what our leader has brought us to. Today we found two leprechauns. Oh great and mighty Torger, please save us from these terrible beast so we can split ten pounds of gold between the fifty-two of us.¡±

    It was said with dripping sarcasm and a hint of disdain. Most dwarves laughed, but a few jeered. This was not the grand city building Torger had envisioned. He looked at the irritated dwarves and wanted to defend himself, but had nothing to say. He went to his tent to sulk. His friends tried to restore hope to the village, but the dwarve¡¯s patience was thin and mutiny was stirring.

    The next day the Regulators headed out with that scouting group, and one group stayed behind to protect their families, and Torger sent the last group as far south as they could get in a day to find Strong Arm. He didn¡¯t know what the holdup was, unless Strong Arm refused his invitation when he got the letter Torger had written months earlier. Or maybe he never got the letter. Either way something had to crack soon.

    They were led down river to a flatter section of the foothills. The dwarves pointed at a distant tree and said ¡°They¡¯re hiding in or under that tree. Leprechauns never stray far from their gold, so it¡¯s probably buried under the roots. Go get ¡®em our protectors.¡± All five dwarves laughed.

    Torger didn¡¯t know if he should be holding his cracked sword or the recurve bow, but decided on the sword. It should be good for another strike or two before it completely broke. As they came near they heard a quiet high pitched voice call out ¡°You¡¯re looking for our gold, but you can¡¯t see us, Or haven¡¯t you been told, the smart ones leave us.¡±

    Torger called out ¡°A limerick, really? Are you Irish and wear green funny hats? And I assume you sleep on a bed of four leaf clovers too.¡±

    ¡°Oh ho. The prey knows a little, it¡¯s too bad we won¡¯t meet ya, they¡¯ll show up full of spittle, the tyters are gonna eat ya.¡±

    ¡°That was weak little munchkin. Show yourself and fight me like a man.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m no munchkin you oaf. I mean¡­ oh what rhymes with oaf? Loaf. Ahh! Just go away. You¡¯ll never find us or our gold.¡±

    Torger looked at his friends and got the nods he was hoping for. They all began cautiously walking towards the tree. When they got near, a net that had been invisible fell on Torger. He tried to get out of it, and everyone took up defensive positions. An Ice 1 spell hit Brun, and at the same time a Fire 1 spell hit Rome. The spells did little damage but hurt and broke their concentration. A few seconds later the same two spells hit Jex and Graul.

    Torger struggled to get out of the net, and two more spells shot out hitting Antic and Arden, but Arden saw where his source of pain had come from. ¡°Up there on the tree branch.¡±

    Everyone looked and saw a silhouette camouflaged in the leaves running along a branch. Another Ice 1 spell hit Brun and this time it was Jex who saw it come from the tree behind them. The one foot tall ghost ran across the branch, but she perfectly followed it with her bow and released. Before the arrow got there the ghost appearance disappeared. It didn¡¯t look like a ghost really, but it was translucent rather than solid, but in the shape of what you would expect a leprechaun to look like, at about one foot tall.

    Everyone scanned the area looking for the little buggers. Another Fire 1 and Ice 1 spell hit Brun and Rome, and Jex shot another arrow but the one she was aiming at disappeared before the arrow skewered it. Frustrated, Graul ran forward towards the tree. He held his broken steel shield in his left arm and Inferno in his right hand. He expected the leprechaun he was running at to disappear, which it did, but his plan was that as soon as it disappeared he would run to the tree trunk and start digging for the gold, becoming the target of their spells while the others tried to protect him.

    The plan might have worked if he didn¡¯t fall into a hidden pit and break his leg from the twelve foot fall. The leprechauns kept casting their weak spells, inflicting seven damage points each time, while Jex lost six arrows trying to pluck them off. Torger finally freed himself from the net and called for everyone to help Graul then retreat. A small shrill voice said ¡°That¡¯s the smartest thing he¡¯s done in months.¡±

    He lowered a rope to Graul, amid a barrage of irritating spells that stung, while Jex tried to shoot them, and Brun tried to hit one with a Fire 1 spell of his own. Antic followed Graul¡¯s original plan, and used his new maxed out health of 500 as he ran towards the tree and started digging up the dirt with his bare hands. That infuriated the pesky creatures and one came out of camouflage and ran and stabbed him in the calf with what to the humans was a pocket knife. The weak strength against Antic¡¯s tough skin and muscles was no match, but it did sink in an inch. Antic grunted in pain but kept digging.

    Rome yelled ¡°I did it! I got him!¡±

    Everyone looked around. ¡°Where is he? I don¡¯t see him.¡±

    ¡°I meant I used analyze one on him. I¡¯ve been missing this whole time.¡±

    Jex said ¡°Not helpful right now Rome.¡± But as she said it she got in a clean shot at the other leprechaun. It couldn¡¯t disappear in time, but waved its hand and a shield appeared. The arrow struck the two foot magic shield and both disintegrated. The Leprechaun stuck its tongue out at her and disappeared again.

    A few seconds later Brun felt a wave of weariness wash over him. He sank to a knee and asked ¡°What happened?¡± He checked his stats and saw all his remaining mana was gone.

    A small voice from behind another tree said ¡°Thanks for the boost, you big oaf.¡±

    Arden continued being a spotter for Jex, but the spells kept coming, most of them focused on Antic. Graul finally made it out of the pit with a rope and help from Torger, and just as he crested the edge, he saw the translucent image run across the ground in front of him. He cast his oldest and most familiar spell, Fire 1. The leprechaun was focused on staying away from Jex¡¯s arrow and didn¡¯t see the spell coming. It hit him and his body became solid. He kept running but glared at Graul.

    It seemed being damaged kept him from using a camouflage spell, but he waved his hand and a familiar golden glow surrounded him from the spell Cure 1. That reminded Torger to cast Cure 1 on Graul, which he did three times. The others had used all their mana curing Antic. Eventually both leprechauns stopped casting spells against him, and instead began stealing mana from the Regulators, but the humans each only had a few mana points. They all knew the leprechauns were running out, and they were no challenge without magic.

    That was until they heard one ask ¡°Must we?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I¡¯m afraid we must.¡±

    They both appeared solid for a second, drinking a red potion that looked a lot like their own mana potions. But that second was enough for Jex to release an arrow and skewer one. It flew a few feet across the ground and slammed into a tree. The huge hole in its chest was plenty of confirmation it was dead. The other looked at her knocking another arrow and yelled ¡°Damn you!¡± It disappeared again.

    But a few seconds later Antic yelled ¡°I got it!¡± He backed away from the tree carrying a small cauldron of gold flakes and small raw nuggets. The leprechaun ran at him, small sword in hand, and stabbed his other calf. But it was enough time for Jex to shoot that one too.

    They all limped back to where the dwarves were waiting. The dwarves looked pleasantly surprised when they saw Antic carrying the pot.

    ¡°Well, looky ¡®ere. These humans actually did it, though in a bit worse shape than they would like. Still, well done.¡±

    Torger would take the small compliment. Morale had plummeted and any compliment was accepted. But it was true they didn¡¯t look so good. They all had scorch marks all over their armor and burn holes in their clothes, along with frostbite in their fingers and toes.

    Another dwarf asked ¡°So do you want to face a hundred of them little buggers at once, or do you want to hire the elves.¡±

    Torger looked at Arden. ¡°It looks like we¡¯re finally going to Yosemite.¡±

    When they got back to camp, Torger showed everyone the cauldron full of raw nuggets and flakes. The dwarves estimated it to be 9.6 pounds, and would be less than half that when refined. Torger said ¡°The village rules are that miners keep ninety percent of what they mine. As such, Antic dug this out of the ground, so Antic keeps ninety percent. Ninety percent of the remainder goes to the non-mining villagers. Who would like the honors of splitting it up?¡±

    A few dwarves came forward, but they all saw what Torger had done. He whetted their appetites for finding the gold quickly. The next morning he put Stone Fist in charge, and the Regulators started to head for Yosemite. One of the miners stopped them. </img>o you plan on trading the raw gold with the elves?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°I thought so. You don¡¯t seem to know the way things work here. Elves don¡¯t take raw minerals. They don¡¯t understand smelting and forging. You will need to trade refined gold with them. It just so happens I have some. I¡¯m willing to trade my refined gold for your raw gold.¡±

    ¡°And you¡¯ll take a cut I assume.¡±

    ¡°Of course. But the point is I¡¯m saving you from having to make a return trip.¡±

    ¡°It sounds a little sketchy, but it does give me an idea.¡±

    Torger stood up on a large rock. ¡°Can I have everyone¡¯s attention? I have been informed the elves won¡¯t take raw nuggets. Is this true?¡±

    There were nods.

    ¡°In that case, I will need to trade this pot of raw gold for refined gold. I have eight and three quarters pounds here. Who will give me three point five pounds of refined gold for it?¡±

    Seven hands shot up. Too bad two of the scout teams had already left. The bidding could have gone higher.

    ¡°Who will give me three point six pounds? Three point seven?¡±

    The highest bidder paid four point two pounds of pure gold. But Torger was also informed those two leprechauns had probably gathered every gram of gold in a ten mile radius to get that pot. There would be no nearby cave. That was disheartening. He gave instructions to Stone Fist to move twenty miles north, and set up a semi-permanent camp. They would rejoin in two weeks, and hopefully Strong Arm would find them.

    The regulators once again headed for the mountains to the east. It took three days until they saw El Capitan in the distance. The beauty was breathtaking. There were hills, mountains and swollen rivers every direction they looked. As they stood on top of a hill surrounded by giant sequoia trees, they were once again approached by three elves. This time they all raised their hands and waited for the border guards to approach.

    Their scrawny four foot bodies made them look harmless, but they knew better. The elves were master archers and had strong magic. The lead guard said ¡°State your business for coming to the Pomo tribe.¡±

    Arden couldn¡¯t help it. ¡°The cheese.¡±

    The others tried to suppress chuckles. Of course the elf had never seen the old commercial for California cheese, so he thought they were laughing at him.

    ¡°I will tell you I am the chief of border patrol for the Lake Silverwood elves! I am second only to the border elder herself.¡±

    Torger couldn¡¯t believe his luck. ¡°Great. Could you let Lagwil know Torger is here to trade and the Winds of Truth will confirm that for her.¡±

    ¡°How do you know of Lagwil? You must be spies!¡±

    ¡°Relax little man. Check your cities then check your relationship with Calico. I was the mayor of Calico who boosted the respect and love points between the two villages.¡±

    ¡°If you were the mayor of Calico I would recognize you as him. Instead I see you are the mayor of Carson City. I have no idea where that is, and we have no contact with you. Keep up your lies about being the mayor of a respected dwarf village, human, and your interrogation will be especially painful.¡±

    ¡°Shut up little man. We¡¯re not here to cause any harm to any of the elves. The Winds of Truth will confirm my words. Take me to Lagwil and she¡¯ll set you straight.¡±

    ¡°How dare you insult my post! I am the most senior ranking elf present, and you will speak to me! I will decide if and when to take you to the center stone.¡±

    This little guy had a serious case of Napoleon syndrome. Torger had to choose his next words carefully.

    ¡°Since you have not sent for Lagwil to come, I will assume she is off on another mission. So that would leave you in charge, temporarily. We have come to hire elves to clear out a mine of leprechauns. The dwarves told me about the standard payment for the service. If you take me to the Winds of Truth you will see I am here to trade. I¡¯m not lost, and I¡¯m not a spy. I also want to know if the dwarves could salvage this ruby in my sword and infuse it into another sword.¡±

    That finally got his attention. ¡°Let me see the sword and I will know if an elf merged the ruby o the metal.¡±

    Torger showed him the cracked steel sword, and the small ruby in the center of the blade near the cross guard.

    ¡°When did you have this done?¡± The question was asked with a tone of derision and a smirk as if he had Torger trapped.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.

    ¡°One year ago. I handed the steel sword and the ruby to Lagwil. She walked into the elf village, and three hours later returned. When she handed me the sword, the ruby was embedded into the metal. Ever since then, this sword has dealt fire three damage each time it cuts flesh.¡±

    After nearly a minute, the elf said ¡°Hand me the sword. One of our alchemists may remember this work.¡±

    Torger handed him the sword and realized the elf didn¡¯t know how to operate the Winds of Truth spell, and that Lagwil was not in the village. He would probably have about an hour to discuss it with his friends.

    They sat on the ground talking about their options. The kept their voices quiet to try to prevent the unseen elves in the trees from hearing them. Arden said ¡°OK. We now all agree that the elves will see we¡¯re telling the truth and not hold us as prisoners, but I still say we are so close to the last icon. We need to get it while we¡¯re here, even if it means going all the way around their pretend borders. Listen guys, we¡¯re only five miles away according to the map. Let¡¯s go get this last bonus.¡±

    Torger answered ¡°We¡¯re five miles away in a straight line. But this is mountain territory. And we have to go a few miles around the elf village. It could take two days to make it there. You and I, we¡¯re both experienced hikers. You know two days is realistic to reach it. We have to first build a building for the dwarves, and provide them with a shield for protection, then we can come back here.¡±

    ¡°It will take us four days to walk back, assuming we find them quickly. You told them to go twenty miles north and look for a gold mine. That¡¯s not very specific instructions Torger. Let¡¯s get this grenade while we¡¯re here, then go find gold.¡±

    ¡°I think protecting the village and getting enough gold to upgrade our weapons is top priority. The grenade will still be there in a month.¡±

    ¡°Torger, I told you in the beginning I will follow you as long as you are leading Jex and me towards getting back home. Now you¡¯re more concerned about dwarves than you are about returning.¡±

    Graul hated the tension and interrupted. ¡°What we all agreed to is that Torger is the leader in the village, but we make plans by democracy when not in the village. This is the perfect time for democracy.¡±

    Everyone looked at Graul like he was a genius. How had they forgotten? Torger said ¡°Let¡¯s wait until our business with the elves is done here, then move far away where they can¡¯t overhear the location of the grenade.¡±

    Only Arden argued to settle the matter right then, the others agreed with Torger¡¯s idea. They had no reason to mistrust the elves, but there was no reason to tell them the approximate location of what was probably a powerful weapon. When no one was looking, Torger gave Arden a haughty smile. It was a message that he had them already siding with him with that little demo vote.

    Chapter 28

    The Last Icon

    The border guard Torger nicknamed Napoleon returned. ¡°I have confirmed that an alchemist of our village did upgrade this sword. Our village elders send a message: ¡®Lagwil will return tomorrow. Come back and speak with her later.¡¯ Take your sword and go. Whether you go around our village to get to Yosemite or return to the dwarves is not my concern.¡±

    He turned around and left, along with his two escorts. Arden returned the smirk back to Torger. An hour later and a couple miles away from the elves the discussion resumed.

    Arden said ¡°There is no point in going back to the dwarves without elves. We might as well go get the grenade, then come back when Lagwil is here.¡±

    It didn¡¯t take much of a discussion to get a unanimous vote to find the weapon. They began walking to the south, where the terrain was flatter, to get around the elves. It was disturbing that they still heard or guessed the human¡¯s conversation, and knew of their desire to get into the mountain paradise. Sun was setting as they made it to the far side of the elf border. They set up camp and set up a watch for the night.

    They had not seen any dangerous animals in the area, but assumed it was because the elves killed any that came close. Rome learned Haste 3 that day, after repeatedly casting it for the past month. But the spell cost 72 mana, and he had a max of 35 mana. Rome, like everyone else, had one unused ability point, and he spent it to get five more mana.

    Graul had the third watch that night, and he was awake walking around the perimeter. He stopped pacing to look out on the beautiful moonlit valley on that clear night. Wolves howled in the distance and he had seen a far off cottol, but nothing was unusual. Until there was a knife blade pressed to his throat. He froze, unsure what to do. A Female voice said ¡°Glad you made it.¡±

    The knife was removed, and Graul slowly turned around. Lagwil stood there holding a long curved knife. She wore a smug grin. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you didn¡¯t doze off on your guard duty. A sleeping sentry could be the death of the whole camp.¡±

    Unsure how to respond he stammered ¡°Uhh, thank you. I think.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it¡± she said with a bit of laughter, ¡°Almost no one could see an elf coming in the night. How did your visit with the elves go?¡±

    ¡°Your substitute wouldn¡¯t talk to us. He didn¡¯t bring Torger to the stone to use the Winds of Truth. It was Torger¡¯s sword that your alchemist improved last year is what got us set free. We nicknamed the haughty little chief ¡®Napoleon¡¯ after a short mean ruler on our planet, from a long time ago. He said the council of elders told us to come back after you returned.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, I will not discuss the affairs of elves with you or anyone outside of our village. But I will talk with all involved in your rude treatment. What brought you here in the first place?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll let Torger discuss the details, but we¡¯re looking for a gold mine and the dwarves say there is a standard contract to hire the elves. That¡¯s the main reason.¡±

    ¡°I sense you won¡¯t discuss other reasons for being here, but that is fine. As for the gold mine, that is a standard agreement as the dwarves said. There should have been no trouble sending a team back with you.¡±

    ¡°That didn¡¯t happen. Not even close. But we¡¯ve got another errand to run and will be back here in three or four days.¡±

    ¡°I will have a team assembled for you by then. Of course Torger will have to be tested by the Winds first. And I will give you free advice. I just returned from a nearby elf village to the east. Since you have not met them, they will be¡­ disagreeable if you try to accomplish your task in their territory. I hope you don¡¯t need to be too close to them.¡±

    Lagwil turned to leave, but Graul stopped her. ¡°Wait. I remember something else too. Jex has grown a lot since you saw her. She needs stronger arrows.¡±

    ¡°If you have something worthy of trading, I will see that it¡¯s done. Be sure to let the others know how important it is to stay awake on their shifts.¡±

    She walked to the nearest tree, in a shadow of the branches, and disappeared.

    Graul had no trouble staying awake for the rest of his shift that night.

    The next morning they ate, packed up, and headed east. Graul told them of his encounter with Lagwil, and they at first didn¡¯t believe him but his earnest pleading made them all open to the possibility. They hiked to the base of El Capitan, then around it. It was sunset when they looked out onto the valley. Half Dome was clearly seen five miles away. They wanted to get to a river, so they walked until the end of sunset when they made it. They began setting up camp when they heard a high pitched ¡°Hold on.¡±

    They looked to see three elves approaching, arrows knocked to their bows. Torger was getting tired of this song and dance. He put up his hands, and the others followed. Before the lead border guard spoke, Torger cut him off.

    ¡°We just came from the village to the west yesterday. My brother spoke with Lagwil last night. We are not here to trade, or as enemies, and we¡¯re not lost. The Winds of Truth will tell you that. We¡¯re tired. We have a mission to accomplish tomorrow, then we¡¯ll go away.¡±

    The elf looked intrigued for a second, then hardened his face again. ¡°You are not quite at our border, but are too close to it to camp for the night. Back up a mile. Then go around in the morning.¡±

    Rome whispered in Torger¡¯s ear. He nodded then addressed the elf. ¡°We will fill our water skins, then back away a mile as you stated. In the morning, I will need to speak with your border elder.¡±

    The elf looked like he might argue, then shook his head. ¡°Fine. My shift will be done at sunrise. Let the day watch handle your prying eyes.¡±

    They filled their skins then backed up a mile to the edge of the valley. None of them slept well that night, half expecting an elf attack. The next morning they headed toward the north side of what they hoped was the border. Since elf borders weren¡¯t marked, and they had to guess where the center of the village was, they hoped to skirt around it entirely without being stopped. Luck was not with them. A new patrol of three elves stopped them.

    ¡°We were told to expect you this morning. We were also told you know about the center stone and Winds of Truth. The rest of you wait here, and you come with us.¡±

    Torger followed and after a fifteen minute walk he sat on a flat stone with engravings. It wasn¡¯t exactly like the one Lagwil used, but very similar. After another fifteen minute wait an old elfa came out of the forest to the east. She looked at Torger, pointed her hand at him, and said ¡°Analyze three.¡±

    Torger felt nothing. But this was the first time an elf had to use a word to cast a spell instead of just waving their staff. She did it just like the humans did to cast their spells. But her staff was very sparkly. Torger knew their silver staffs magnified cure, shield and elemental spells x1.5, and Lagwil and Romalt had staffs of gold that magnified their spells x2. But this staff had so many diamonds covering it he couldn¡¯t tell what the base material was.

    After several seconds of her examining him, she relaxed and smiled. ¡°I see you once had passable relations with Lagwil, but you are no longer mayor of that village. So you will know what comes next.¡±

    Torger nodded and closed his eyes. Winds whipped all around him that lasted for thirty seconds then quickly died. ¡°Yes, it is just as you told the border guards. You¡¯re not an enemy, not here to trade, and not lost. So now we need to figure out why you would intentionally march a small military force directly at an elf village, with no intention of encountering elves. What do you have to say?¡±

    Torger was prepared for this. ¡°We¡¯re on a quest. We have something to accomplish close to here.¡±

    ¡°I see. I don¡¯t have the authority to let you pass into elf territory. The council of elders or the tribal chief can grant you permission, but without a high level of respect and love I¡¯m certain they won¡¯t allow it. Many trolls have been roaming this area. They have a natural resistance to our magic, and we are no match for them physically. Kill thirty mountain trolls near here and then come back again.¡±

    She turned and walked away. Torger muttered ¡°We don¡¯t have time for this.¡±

    You have been offered a quest from Edina.

    Kill 30 mountain trolls within 5 miles of the Yosemite Valley borders.

    Reward: Significant increase of Respect and Love points. Permission to quickly complete a quest within Yosemite Valley borders.

    Torger walked back to his friends dejected. He told them the bad news. Arden was angry because he really wanted the cool weapon, but everyone knew they were no match to fight a village full of elves, and they didn¡¯t want to start a war when they needed their help with leprechauns. They also needed to improve relations with Lagwil again.

    Torger began to walk back to Lagwil¡¯s village but Rome said ¡°Wait. I have an idea.¡±

    They all looked at him. ¡°Looking where we are now, and where the probable center of the elf village is, we may be able to find the last icon on the west side of their territory, without crossing into their borders.¡±

    ¡°Where is the icon on your map Rome? And where do you think their border ends?¡±

    ¡°The icon is centered on the top of Half Dome, just about the same place their border may end. Since the icon has a one mile diameter to where the tyter weapon is actually located, it may be on the back side of Half Dome and we could retrieve it without fearing for our lives. But if the weapon is on this side, then we would need to cross into their territory.¡±

    ¡°I guess it¡¯s worth a shot¡± said Brun, ¡°But it¡¯s risky not knowing exactly when we cross their imaginary border.¡±

    They all agreed to at least try it, and if it was in elven lands then they would at least know where it was and not have to search for it later. They walked around to the north, intending to give a wide berth to the little frenemies. They made it nearly a mile when Arden spotted troll footprints. He wanted to follow it, but Torger insisted they needed to get the gold mine started before the end of the week. There was no specific reasoning for his rush, but he wanted a smithy up and running to make him another sword. He felt weak using the bow compared to Jex¡¯s mad skills.

    After another mile they saw two trolls in the distance eating a deer raw. But the trolls didn¡¯t notice them and they hurried past the area and out of sight. It was past noon when they began the climb up Half Dome. Torger had made that climb years earlier, but this time there weren¡¯t people and ¡°ducks¡± to follow, but their internal maps let them know exactly where they were. It was almost sunset when they made it to the top. Not having a rope to hold onto made the steep climb on bare rock especially treacherous.

    The large bare rock area at the top should have easily exposed any alien device there, but they saw nothing. They looked all over, but found no sign of it. They were all frustrated, but Arden didn¡¯t want to waste the trip completely. He came near the cliff, laid down on his stomach, and against Jex¡¯s screams of protest he crawled to the very precipice. None of them liked heights too much, but Torger was nearly acrophobic and he stayed far away.

    Arden crawled until his head was over the ledge, and looked down. He froze in amazement. The long vertical drop seemed like an optical illusion as it took his mind several seconds to process what he was seeing. Once his vision cleared, he cheered.

    ¡°Guys! I found it! I found the tyter box!¡±

    Everyone was baffled by his words, but Graul was the first to understand. ¡°You have got to be kidding me!¡±

    Graul explained to everyone that the weapon was on the cliff face itself while Arden crawled backwards several feet before standing up again. He joined the others and explained ¡°There is a box much like the one that held the potions, but much smaller. It¡¯s half into the side of the cliff and sitting on a ledge.¡±

    Graul asked ¡°How far down is it? And how big is the box?¡±

    Arden held his hands about eight inches apart. ¡°It looks to be close to the top, but it¡¯s hard to tell looking straight down that far.¡±

    Brun said ¡°Doesn¡¯t seem like much of a weapon, being so small.¡±

    Torger said ¡°A small weapon can still pack a mighty punch.¡±

    Jex couldn¡¯t resist. She pointed at his crotch and said ¡°Keep telling the ladies that Torger. Maybe one day one of them will believe you.¡±

    Torger was too embarrassed to respond, but Graul said ¡°It looks like it¡¯s time to use our ropes. Who¡¯s getting tied off to be let down the side?¡±

    No one volunteered, and everyone would rather walk away than fall, die, and respawn in Carson City, a two weeks walk away. Finally, by democracy, Arden was selected to go. He was the one who had wanted this weapon for the past sixteen months.

    Torger tied one rope around Arden in the form of a five point racing harness, and then two different ropes, one at the top of each shoulder. He unwound the braided ropes at the ends back a foot, looped each one under the ropes at each shoulder, then braided the ropes again into themselves. That process makes the braided part stronger than any knot he knew, as increased pressure on the rope would only cinch the braids even tighter, and doubled the thickness and strength of the ropes at the last foot.

    Once Arden was ready, two teams of three let out the rope as they kept their feet as firmly planted on the solid granite as they could. Arden laid on his stomach, and crawled backwards until his legs were over the side. Everyone gripped the rope tighter as Arden pushed off and fell backwards over the cliff. The ropes grew taut but everyone held firm and Arden slammed his knee into the cliff face, but his head was below the top and they couldn¡¯t see him. He yelled out that he was OK, but that team Antic needed to give him another foot of rope.

    Antic, Rome, and Jex let the rope slide between their hands, and Arden leveled his shoulders. The majority of his weight was resting on the insides of his upper thighs, and the rope began to dig in, but as Torger promised there seemed to be no way he could accidentally slip out of the harness. He called for both teams to lower him down, but right then a roc flew overhead. Arden looked like an easy and helpless meal on the side of the cliff, and he had no weapons or armor on him. His thin cotton pants and shirt would be no resistance to the bird with a nineteen foot wingspan.

    Everyone saw it circling overhead. Torger called out ¡°Give him slack, then pull him up quickly!¡±

    Both teams let out several feet of rope, a few inches at a time, while Arden yelled instructions to team Antic or team Torger to give a little more so he could stay mostly level. But the bird dove at him. Arden had no way of defending himself as the bird¡¯s talons reached down for him. Fortunately Arden was flat against the cliff face and the bird couldn¡¯t get close enough. It hit its wing on the side and began to tumble before it flew high in the air again.

    Antic said ¡°We have the rope Jex. Kill that thing!¡±

    She reluctantly let go, but saw Rome and Antic still easily maintained a firm grasp. Jex picked up I.B. and easily placed an ice arrow into each wing. The bird screeched at the first hit, and when it was hit a second later, the second arrow convinced it to fly away.

    Jex grabbed the rope again, and they let Arden down until he was fifteen feet below the top of the cliff. He yelled up ¡°I got it!¡±

    They easily pulled him up to the top, and he had a small metal box in his hands.

    This one had the same large three fingered hand imprint as the box of potions, and the same as what Rome had seen on Catalina.

    Arden set it down and began untying the ropes surrounding him, but Graul couldn¡¯t stand the suspense. He picked up the box and placed his hand on the lid. A yellow glow surrounded him and the box. The box opened of its own accord, and a large clear diamond was inside. Before anyone could ask what that was about, the yellow glow grew thicker. The diamond floated out of the box and spun in a few slow circles, then a black mist flowed out of the diamond and into Graul¡¯s heart.

    Torger tried to reach him, but an incredibly powerful electric shock blew him backwards when he touched the yellow glow. At the same time four more lightning bolts shot out hitting Brun, Rome, Jex, and Antic. They all flew backwards, and each one of them lost forty health points.

    The black mist continued to pour into Graul¡¯s heart, the suddenly stopped. The yellow glow dissipated, then the large diamond shattered. Arden was the only one not recovering from being hit with a Lighting 4 spell.

    He looked at Graul¡¯s crossed eyes and knew his friend was checking something in his internal screen. Graul smiled.

    Everyone walked back to him and asked if he was OK.

    ¡°Yes I¡¯m fine. This weapon is a spell. An unusual spell, and dangerous. It¡¯s called Scorched Earth. It takes no mana, and is one time use. I can walk into an ally village, and cast this spell. I have to be within ten feet of the mayor¡¯s house. Everything in the village will be obliterated.¡±

 Fire

    Chapter 29

    Fire

    Walking back down the steep slippery slope was challenging. They all fell and slid several feet at different times, but at one point Antic lost his footing and slid for more than a hundred feet. His chain mail shirt kept the road rash off his back, but his legs got very bruised in his uncontrolled descent. By the time the others made it to him and began casting Cure 1, the sun had set.

    It was a warm and windy night and they had to walk in the dark until they came to level ground to set up the tents. None of them liked the location; they were surrounded by trees and didn¡¯t have a clear view in any direction to see nearby predators, but it was too dark to stumble blindly through the forest.

    Brun had the fifth watch, and about three in the morning lightning began striking in the distance. He watched as the storm came closer and closer to them. Everyone was exhausted from the long two days of hiking, so he didn¡¯t want to wake them up, but the last lightning was only a mile away. He decided to wake up his brother and get a second opinion. He knew Arden would want to see the spectacular light show anyway.

    As they both came out of Arden and Jex¡¯s tent, a lightning bolt struck the river in the center of the valley. They couldn¡¯t see it from where they were, on the back side of half dome, but knew it was too close. They woke up the others. As they were doing that, another bolt hit an old dead pine tree a mile away. The dry soft wood erupted into flames. It was too far away for them to see the orange glow. By the time the regulators were packing up the tents in the dark, the flames began to spread.

    They packed up the tents and Torger asked ¡°Which way should we go? I don¡¯t know how to figure out where the next lightning strikes will be.¡±

    Brun said ¡°They started over there,¡± pointing to the north, ¡°and they¡¯re heading straight for us. The last one was behind us to the south.¡±

    ¡°Then it looks like the storm has passed directly overhead and we¡¯re in the middle of it. Best to head north where it¡¯s already been. We¡¯ll need to stay away from water and tall trees.¡±

    Rome laughed. ¡°We¡¯re surrounded by water and tall trees.¡±

    The comment made Jex and Antic noticeably agitated. Torger glared at Rome. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    They headed away from Half Dome and walked north. After a mile of being led by Jex (who could see alright with the Bow of the Owl held in front of her), and as the others were banging against rocks and branches, Graul saw an orange glow on the horizon to their south. He had seen fires in the distance several times before, and there was no mistaking it.

    ¡°Torger, that fire is where the elves are. I think we should go help.¡±

    ¡°How can we help? We don¡¯t have a water pump and hose.¡±

    ¡°No, but we do have ice magic. We need to at least try to see if it works.¡±

    Torger reluctantly agreed it was the right thing to do. If it came down to a vote, he knew he would lose anyway. He asked ¡°Who has ice one?¡±

    Everyone raised their hands. ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    The sunlight was trying to break through the trees when they got there. Elves were casting ice spells at the fire, but were making little progress at slowing it.

    Rome saw a nearby stream and yelled ¡°Fire brigade!¡±

    Only Torger knew what he meant and he yelled ¡°Bucket line!¡±

    Arden and Graul ran to stand between the stream and the fire, knowing what Rome intended. Torger removed his duffle bag and took out his three water skins. He handed one to Rome, and passed the other two to Arden and Graul. All three of them ran to the fire and poured the water on the ground in front of the flames, then ran back to fill the skins up.

    Antic saw the point and he removed his duffle bag and pulled out three more water skins. After the men ran to pour water near the fire again, Brun and Jex finally got the idea and removed all the water skins from the remaining five back packs. They formed an orderly line and soon Graul found himself dumping water on the ground as fast as he could.

    But the fire line was too wide and they weren¡¯t making progress fast enough. Torger stepped back and assessed the situation on a larger scale. The main goal was to keep the fire away from the elf village, then put it out if possible. He looked around and saw some of the elves looking helpless. They had run out of mana casting Ice 1, and the others would run out soon too. He saw one nearby who didn¡¯t look totally catatonic in the soon to be loss of his home. Torger called to him, and pointed at the bucket/water skin line.

    The elf looked on with curiosity, and after twenty seconds he grasped the concept. He ran around to his kin and they formed two more lines from the stream to the fire. But their water skins were much smaller. Still, it helped the fire from spreading towards the village.

    Torger looked around again and saw a large flat patch of tall grasses. He called for Brun to break away from the line. When Brun came over Torger said ¡°We need to clear out this field. The fire is coming this way. I¡¯ll go to the east, you go to the west, and we¡¯ll cast fire one. It will burn up this field, and when the large fire gets here there won¡¯t be any fuel in this area.¡±

    Creating a fire to slow down a fire didn¡¯t make any sense to Brun, but Torger seemed confident he knew what he was talking about. Besides, they were losing the battle anyway.

    Brun and Torger each cast Fire 1 about a hundred yards apart, then Torger walked to the middle and cast Fire 1 again. As the flames grew in size, an angry elf ran up to them and yelled ¡°Arrest them! They¡¯re the ones creating the fire!¡±

    Three more elves ran over, arrows knocked to their bows. Torger raised his hands in surrender and tried to explain the purpose to the elves, but they had the same attitude as Napoleon. Things were about to get ugly when Edina walked up. She raised her voice and asked ¡°What is going on here?¡±

    The lead elf responded ¡°I saw these two humans light fires with my own eyes! They¡¯re not helping us, they¡¯re making it worse!¡±

    By then all three fires Torger and Brun had set were getting a little too big. Torger looked at Edina and Brun. ¡°Brun, cast a few ice one spells to keep the flames going but knocked down a little. We need to make sure the whole field is scorched.¡±

    ¡°See. He admits it. He wants these fires to burn.¡±

    Brun began casting Ice 1 spells, once in the middle of each fire. Meanwhile Torger said ¡°Border Elder, we are here to help. I promise. The flames are coming this way, but by burning small fires here, the flames will have to go around this field. It will provide us a safe haven while fighting the fire. You see the bucket lines. Once these fires burn this field, we will still be able to get to the stream and carry water to the far side of it. I know it doesn¡¯t make much sense right now, but it will. For the safety of your village you need to trust me.¡±

    Edina looked at him suspiciously. ¡°You¡¯re right. It doesn¡¯t make sense to me. But our elves are out of mana and tired. We¡¯re passing out mid level mana potions now, but we need to try something different. You humans keep the fire away from our village on this side of the stream, and we elves will keep it away on the other side.¡±

    She walked away, and the other elves gave dirty looks to Torger but they walked away. Torger saw he received a new quest.

    New quest from Edina. Protect the Yosemite Valley elf village on the west side of the Tuolumne river.

    Expiration: Sunset

    Reward: Significant increase to respect and love points.

    Bow of the Hawk

    Bow of the Eagle

    That was one hell of a reward! It was do or die time. Success meant great weapons. Failure meant imprisonment.

    ¡°Regulators! Circle up!¡±

    They broke away from the fire and joined him and Brun. ¡°We have the most important quest we¡¯ve received so far. We need to keep the fire away from the elf village on this side of the river. Brun and I have started to make a fire break. But we¡¯re going to need to move a lot of water for a lot of hours. Antic, how¡¯s our supply of stamina potions? This could take all day.¡±

    ¡°We have three low, no mid, and twelve high stamina potions.¡±

    ¡°Hmm. Not good. How are everyone¡¯s levels?¡±

    Brun said ¡°I¡¯m almost drained. I¡¯m at twelve out of fifty. I was on guard duty when the lighting was striking, and didn¡¯t get much sleep last night.¡±

    Rome and Jex were the only ones who hadn¡¯t had a shift that night. Their shifts were supposed to have been after Brun¡¯s. Their stamina was at 22/50, and Antic was at 73/95.

    ¡°Rome, Jex, and Antic, take a low potion now. The rest of us will take a high stamina potion.¡±

    After everyone drank their potions, Graul said ¡°That¡¯s great! I just gained five points to my max stamina!¡±

    Torger, Arden, and Brun also had a stamina of 55/55 after drinking the high stamina potion. Arden said ¡°We¡¯ve had these potions the whole time, and we could have all raised our max stamina when we found the crate in Havasu? I wonder if it works for strength too.¡±

    ¡°Maybe, but we don¡¯t have time for that right now. We need to burn this field and form a water line in it.¡±

    The man made small fires were kept low with the use of Ice 1 spells. After an hour, an area the size of a pro baseball stadium had been scorched. The Regulators stood in the middle of the smoke and ashes and watched the main fire burn until it reached the field. As expected, it died at the area that had already been burned, but tried to make its way around into the foothills. As they watched it burn further west, Torger realized it was beginning to burn towards Lagwil¡¯s Sequoia Elves.

    But then they saw elves trying to keep it at bay by casting Ice 1 spells at it, just as the Yosemite Elves had done. Torger ran over and for the fourth time explained how to use a bucket line and fire break. These elves were more rational, since the fire wasn¡¯t at their doorstep, and Torger pointed to the burned field they were standing in to help explain how to create a fire break. Then the Regulators demonstrated how to form a bucket line using all twenty-one water skins the seven Regulators had. The elves ran back a half mile and started casting Fire 1 spells, keeping the flames low and away from tree branches with Ice 1.

    The Regulators saw the elves had things under control far to the west, and formed a line to keep the fire away using water taken from the stream. The work lasted for over an hour, with Antic covering the most distance, until he, Jex, and Rome were too tired to continue. Torger gave the three of them a high stamina potion, and Jex and Rome raised their stamina to 55/55. Antic, however, raised his stamina from 22/95 to 71/100. But it cost him a max strength point going from 21 to 20. Everyone was displeased with the result. Even with the potions there was still a max strength to stamina ratio.

    The new boost in energy kept the Regulators moving the bucket line for another two hours. Finally the fire was out on their side of the river and they all sat down in the warm embers. They looked to the east side of the river and saw the elves weren¡¯t doing as well. The fire was still too close to the village. The small elves just didn¡¯t have the physical strength and stamina to keep the bucket lines going. Everyone was too exhausted to help and looked on with despair for their far away neighbors. Torger¡¯s heart broke and he asked ¡°What¡¯s our supply Antic?¡±

    ¡°Five high stamina potions. But we¡¯re also low on strength too. I mean I¡¯m not, but the rest of you are.¡±

    Torger asked ¡°Who has the lowest max strength?¡±

    They found out Rome had a max of seven, and he had already used one low strength potion during the fire. Brun was next with a max of eleven. Torger handed them both a high strength potion. Their max went to eight and twelve.

    Next they found out everyone but Rome had an unused ability point. Antic bought five mana, and everyone else bought one strength point.

    ¡°We have five high stamina potions left. Antic you¡¯re out. One of us will have to sit out back here while the others drink the potions and go help the elves. Any volunteers to stay behind?¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    All hands went up and Torger was dismayed his friends lacked the nobility to help their¡­ friends? No, acquaintances? No. They wouldn¡¯t help these elves they didn¡¯t know at all. Arden said ¡°Keep my wife out of danger.¡±

    The others agreed that was probably for the best. Jex didn¡¯t like chauvinism, but did appreciate the sentiment of dying chivalry.

    Torger, Graul, Arden, Brun, and Rome drank the last of their stamina potions, all gained five max stamina points, and ran to help the elves. Their arrival, with their fresh stamina, bigger muscles and more water skins emboldened the battered elves. When they arrived they saw numerous clay vials thrown all over the ground. Yet these elves were tired and battered. But they did keep two bucket lines going that Torger had taught them. He realized they had probably drank all the mana, strength, and stamina potions they had, yet still the fire was into the village itself.

    The humans spent all their mana casting Ice 1 spells to slow the flames, then formed a bucket line of their own. The five men worked relentlessly for another hour, moving much faster than the elves thanks to Rome¡¯s Haste 2 spells he cast on each of them. Haste 2 lasted for ten minutes, and he drank their last seven low mana potions to keep the spells going for the five of them, but eventually they slowed down to normal speed.

    They made a lot of progress in that first hour, but when the boost of speed wore off, they were all fatigued. Torger had no more stamina potions, but he gave each of them a low strength potion, lowering the count to 14. The strength boost allowed them to pick up the water skins more easily, but after another half hour they could barely stand. All their Stats icons were red and their stamina was 3/60.

    They retreated from the fire and sat down. Torger looked around and saw that they had moved a half mile away from the village in that hour and a half of super intense work. Part of the village had burned, but with the direction of the wind and the blackened ground around the village, the elves should be safe. As they continued to look around, they saw no sign of elves still fighting the fire. Instead, some elves were casting cure spells on other elves laying on the ground, and helping them limp away towards the trees that hadn¡¯t been burned.

    Chapter 30

    Unity

    After sitting and resting for an hour, the men finally had enough energy to walk back to Jex and Antic. What a joy to see them setting up the last tent, with the roc feather mats already rolled out inside each one. The sun was setting and it was mostly dark when they each went into the tents and took off their clothes. They all stunk like smoke, and it was another pleasant surprise to find full water skins with fresh water for each of them. To top it off there was a handful of fresh blackberries on each pillow. They all ate the berries, mostly to clean out the soot from their mouths, and drank the water. As if that weren¡¯t enough, Jex and Antic said they were going to keep watch all night; the others could sleep throughout the night without having to wake up for a shift. The friends truly appreciated each other¡¯s thoughtfulness and selfless giving.

    At sunrise Antic woke everyone up. They came out of the tents groggy, but with weapons in hand. They saw a troupe of Yosemite Valley elves walking towards them. Torger stepped forward and said good morning.

    ¡°Well done human. We are here to honorably escort you to the council of elders. Come with us please.¡±

    Torger looked at his friends, none of them wearing armor or fully alert. ¡°It¡¯s a little early for us. Let us eat breakfast and break camp, then we will join you.¡±

    ¡°Forgive me, honorable friend, but only you are invited to meet the elders. Your friends must stay here.¡±

    Torger looked at his friends, but before he could ask their opinions Graul told him to check his reputation with the elves. Torger checked and saw he had fifty-five respect points and twenty-eight love points. That was a major boost in reputation, since the day before he had zero in both categories. He decided to trust the stats and join the elves.

    He drank the last of the last water skin, leaving his friends to filter the dirty water from the stream. He didn¡¯t like being so rude, but he had to have his wits about him for this important meeting. He put on leather boots, pants, and a fur coat, leaving his steel armor behind.

    As they walked he looked at the devastation with fresh eyes. Small wisps of smoke still curled up from the warm ashes all around him. In the distance the valley and mountains looked as pristine as ever, but there were a couple miles of blackened ground. He felt bad for these elves who lived here, even though until then they had done nothing but give him a cold shoulder.

    He was led into the village itself. Tall pine and Sequoia trees looked untouched by the fire, and holes were dug under the stumps of most of them. There were wooden walkways spanning from tree to tree in a complex pattern twenty feet off the ground, and a few elves seemed to be patrolling, looking for trouble that was not likely there. Fires scared away all monsters, at least that was a fair assumption.

    He was led to a ladder, and climbed up to the walkway. His acrophobia set in and he hugged the tree trunk next to him. An elf escort looked at his fear and said ¡°It is not far my friend. You will feel more secure inside.¡±

    He was led along the walkway and they turned into the trunk of a massive sequoia. Torger had no idea how anyone other than himself would fit inside, but as he entered his body shrunk to be a little over one foot tall. Inside, at that size, was a massive oak table with six chairs. Five old elves sat there, including Edina. Torger was asked by her to sit in the remaining chair.

    ¡°Welcome to the council of elders, human. You are the first being who is not an elf to join us.¡± It was the biggest and strongest looking elf who spoke, and he was also sitting at the head of the table. This reminded Torger a lot of his sitting with the dwarven elders during the annual mayor¡¯s council.

    ¡°Thank you, sir. I am appreciative and humbled you would allow me into your sacred assembly.¡± Nailed it! Good thing he drank the water so his voice wasn¡¯t parched.

    ¡°Your polite manners belie your crude methods of conducting business, dwarven mayor.¡± This time it was the elf sitting directly across from him who had spoken. He had a scowl on his face.

    ¡°If I have offended you, please state your accusation and evidence clearly for me.¡± Torger did not come here at six in the morning to get chewed out, and he would not give them the satisfaction of him cowering in fear. He scanned their faces and saw the two sitting across from him looked on with disdain, while the other three looked at him with favor.

    The leader spoke up. ¡°That is a fair response, mayor. If you would be so kind, please state your name clearly and our procedure will begin.¡±

    Torger didn¡¯t see the harm in it, but didn¡¯t like the tone. ¡°My name is Torger.¡±

    ¡°Very well Torger. My name is Yiloding. I am the tribal chief of all the Pomo elves, the same as Romalt is the tribal chief of all the Cucamonga dwarves. But we do not operate with mayors as they do, each village operates with a council of four elders. However, I enjoy the privilege of overruling all but a unanimous vote.¡± He said this with a smirk, but Torger didn¡¯t detect evil intent in the statement. More of an announcement of who held all the aces.

    ¡°First we will address Hatrive¡¯s accusation. He claims you and your friends entered our borders to attain a tyter item on the split hill. How do you respond?¡±

    ¡°I do not know where your borders are. We did go to the top of the split hill. If we entered your territory, it was unintentional. We never came near this village.¡±

    ¡°So you admit to trespassing! That should conclude this council. Fine him and free him.¡±

    ¡°Not so fast Hatrive. Torger, do you not sense the elven borders?¡±

    ¡°Sense them? No. My friends and I just walk until we get surrounded by border guards. They turn us away and we have to guess at where the borders are.¡±

    ¡°Impossible! All magic wielding creatures feel the elven magic they are born with.¡±

    ¡°I will have no more outbursts from you Hatrive! Torger, do not lie to us. You must feel the mild shock when you come too close to our border. It¡¯s what keeps magical creatures from being unnecessarily killed by us.¡±

    ¡°No, chief Yiloding. We feel nothing. Humans are not born with the ability to use magic. We were granted the ability by a tyter device shortly after arriving here.¡±

    No one responded. Hatrive started to turn red holding in his retort. Edina spoke up. ¡°I believe he is telling the truth. Lagwil informed me she was aided by humans who could use magic, but our records of tyter prey have no indication of humans ever using magic in the past.¡±

    ¡°We can¡¯t know what the humans are capable of. I say he¡¯s lying.¡± This was the angry elf sitting next to Hatrive who glared at Torger before introductions were made.

    ¡°I see no way to resolve this issue one way or another. The issue is did the humans knowingly enter elven territory, and if so did they intend harm?¡± It was Edina who had spoken. ¡°Let¡¯s vote on this now and move on.¡±

    Yiloding called for a vote, and by a margin of three to two it was decided the humans did not knowingly enter elven territory. Next he said ¡°We also have the issue of you starting a fire near our village. Why would you try to burn down the village of a superior force?¡± Yiloding was giving him an underhand softball question, and Torger was grateful for it.

    ¡°You may ask around, and find several witnesses. We did start fires. It is a technique my home country started to combat wild fires. We burn a large area in a controlled manner where the fire is heading towards. This gives the fire fighters a break from the front flames, and controls the direction of the burn. The technique worked yesterday, or you would not have a village to hold this meeting.¡±

    The two elves sitting on the other side of Edina both agreed the humans taught them the technique, and it did lessen the damages. But inflicting destruction went against all the morals of the elves and they would have never thought of it. In their thousands of years of history, they had never considered such an idea as creating fire to combat fire.

    To the dismay of Hatrive, that vote was easily made in Torger¡¯s favor. ¡°I¡¯m glad we quickly resolved the questions of criminal behavior. Torger, you were promised that if you protected this village on the west side yesterday, our relations would grow significantly. That reward was granted to you this morning. You were also promised to receive a Bow of the Hawk and a Bow of the Eagle. I would love to present those rewards to you today. However, I have been informed our armory was partially destroyed in the fire. All of our Bows of the Eagle were destroyed, and we only have two Bows of the Hawk left. It is embarrassing to our kind to not honor our promise. What would you like instead?¡±

    ¡°We need stronger arrows, but Lagwil is taking care of that. We also need to clear out a gold mine, but again we have made arrangements with Lagwil. In a month, we will want magic infused to new steel weapons. Perhaps we could come to an agreement in that regard?¡±

    ¡°Perhaps. But I am also told you went beyond your promise to protect our west border, and also helped protect the east border. The account given to me is you and your friends used many potions, because the smoke inhalation significantly lowered your stamina. I would repay you for your potions, and more for your bravery, but we also used all of our potions. You have an uncompleted quest. Kill the trolls in our area, and I will give you something that will show our gratitude.¡±

    Yiloding stood up, and all knelt before him. Torger sat in his seat perplexed, but the chief smiled at him and patted his shoulder as he walked out of the tree trunk.

    Torger exited into the sunlight. His stomach rumbled and he was reminded he hadn¡¯t eaten for a day and a half. Edina came out to meet him. ¡°Well spoken, Torger. The dwarves might have been wise to make you a mayor. If you will listen to my advice I will suggest you establish your new dwarf village quickly, then come back to kill the trolls soon. The gift Yiloding has in mind is very impressive.¡±

    Torger was led out of the village and he walked back across the charred ground to his friends. He arrived in time to see Graul and Rome taking down the tents. Graul said ¡°Jex and Arden went hunting, but couldn¡¯t find anything. They came back to get Antic and Brun to help, but I don¡¯t think there will be any animals in the area. Looks like we¡¯ll go hungry until we find berries somewhere.¡±

    They left and walked along the charred remains to the west. They made a lot of progress, almost to the Lake Silverwood elves who were now in the Sequoia Forest. They set up camp and were happy to see the others return at sunset. Antic had a deer hoof sticking out the top of his duffle bag, which made sense because he carried three of the four tents in it. Although the duffle bag reduced space by twenty times and cut weight by ten times the original, it still took his strength and stamina to carry the heavier equipment during their travels.

    The deer was almost done cooking when they all heard a low moan. They looked around but by then it was dark outside. They were in a clearing, but still there were trees forty feet away in every direction. Jex picked up her Bow of the Owl and scanned the dark area. After a few seconds of looking around she said ¡°Guys, this isn¡¯t good.¡±

    They looked where she was looking but didn¡¯t see anything at first. But from behind the tree line a black stream shot out and hit Torger in the chest. He fell to the ground, curled up in a ball and full of panic.

    Jex shot at the apparition but the arrow went through it, causing no damage. Brun pointed his staff blindly and said ¡°Fire 1.¡± A ball of fire flew out of the top of his staff, and they all saw the ghost disappear before the spell hit it.

    They heard another low moan to their left, and another one behind them. They looked all around, but didn¡¯t see anything. Suddenly a large dog that seemed to be on fire came running at them. Jex shot, and the arrow sank deep, but it kept coming. Antic and Arden readied their spears, and Graul held his sword, feeling half dressed without his shield. Brun and Rome cast their spells at it, Fire 3 and Analyze 2. The fire hit it, but did no damage. Four fireballs shot out of the impact and flew four different directions, hitting four unseen Lesser Liches behind the trees. Rome¡¯s analyze showed

    Hellhound. Level 16. Health 160/180 Mana 15/15 Strength 10 Stamina 60 Elemental weakness: Water (Fire and Ice attacks nullified)

    He yelled out the information to everyone, just as the canine jumped at Antic. He thrust his spear, and it went through the animal, but it kept biting and fighting for several seconds before it died, unaware of any pain.

    While Antic was busy losing his hand to the dog and bleeding, the others were engaged in a battle of magic. In the darkness they cast spells trying to hit shadows that may be targets. Another hellhound charged at them, and Graul and Arden ran to intercept it. Graul couldn¡¯t block with his sword, and the dog bite pierced his bracer. Arden thrust his steel spear into its side, and Graul stabbed it through the heart.

    As the dog was dying, a barrage of spells shot out of the trees from behind them. Eight spells hit the four liches in rapid succession. They turned around to see Lagwil and three border guards have both hands raised and released spells from both hands simultaneously, except Lagwil used her gold staff in one hand and an open palm was pointed at a different lich. Eight more spells came from the four elves and the Liches were hit again. But all four liches cast a spell into the ashes and four hellhounds arose from the coals. Lagwil yelled ¡°We¡¯ll take the ghosts, you fight the dogs.¡±

    That sounded like a good plan to them, mostly because they could see the dogs. Antic tried to stop one of them while holding his spear in his left hand, since he didn¡¯t have a right hand anymore. His strength of 20 had become an equal match to the beast¡¯s strength of 10. His spear impaled it, but instead of biting the foul creature spit, which cast Fire 2 into his face. Antic dropped the spear and grabbed his burning eyes. Rome cast Cure 1 at him.

    Graul and Antic fought another, and Jex and Brun were keeping the third one occupied, but they were losing. The last beast ran at Torger, who was just recovering from being hit with the fear spell. He crawled up to his knees when he was rammed in the side by one of the creatures. He held out his arm as it tried to bite him, and the teeth tried to pierce the steel bracer, and succeeded a little. Blood dripped down his arm. He reached for his sword and cut it, but the expected fire damage did nothing. Four fireballs circled then flew into the ground. His cut was shallow, and the dog didn¡¯t slow at all. Torger could only keep its mouth on his bracer and its claws away from his face while he waited for help to arrive.

    Torger didn¡¯t see it coming, but a minute later Graul stabbed it in the side, into the heart, and it died.

    A few minutes later Lagwil returned. Her green dress had scorch marks in it, as did the clothing of the other three elves. Graul asked her what just happened.

    ¡°We won, of course, but the battle was intense. This land is destroyed, and is evil. I fear more lesser liches will appear, and in these ashes they can call beasts of the underworld. Liches cannot be exposed to bright light or they will be greatly hurt, but each night they may appear in these burnt lands. We elves can handle magical creatures, but struggle against physically strong ones. Come to the edge of our village where it is safer.¡±

 Gold Rush

    Chapter 31

    Gold Rush

    Lagwil led them into the elf border, but a couple hundred yards from where the nearest elf home was located. The Regulators set up their tents and fell asleep just before midnight. Although Lagwil assured them they were safe, the humans set up a night watch anyway. On the one hand it was a great honor to be allowed so close to the village, but on the other hand they still had no respect or love points with this village, since all that Torger worked for was transferred to Strong Arm when he became mayor of Calico.

    Thinking of Strong Arm, Torger wondered if he made it to meet up with Stone Fist. He would find out soon.

    When they woke up in the morning three elves brought them fresh fruits and nuts, and biscuits made from ground acorns. The hungry, tired, and mentally beat up humans devoured the meals, then were led to a small stream a mile away to refill their water skins. Fifteen of the twenty-one had been lost or damaged fighting the fires, but they knew the dwarves could make another one from each deer stomach they brought to them.

    Once they drank all the water they could, and filled the remaining six skins, the elves led them to the western border of their lands. There were thirteen elves assembled, all with strong bows and two quivers of arrows. Lagwil was the leader.

    ¡°Good morning Torger. Much has happened in the past week, and we are not able to assemble the usual twenty elf team to clear out the leprechauns. But the thirteen of us should be able to handle the task. The standard thirty pounds of refined gold fee still applies. Lead the way to the cave.¡±

    Torger looked at the others, and they sure hoped the dwarves found the main cave, full of a hundred leprechauns. It would be very embarrassing to lead the elves crisscrossing the land searching for the target.

    As they walked Torger and Lagwil broke off from the main group. He had to ask her the burning question. ¡°That fire was devastating, and you said liches will appear each night. Will your village be safe while your team is gone with us?¡±

    She sighed. ¡°It is not our way to discuss our affairs with outsiders. But we suffered greatly from the fire. Three of us died in the fire, and two in the Yosemite Valley village died in the fire. I am told you know they used all their potions. We used most of ours. The stronger arrows we were making for Jex were destroyed. And our night patrols will be fighting liches each night.¡±

    Torger looked at her and shook his head for their loss. She continued. ¡°Your techniques for fighting the fire saved our village, and our neighboring village. I sense you did not check your cities to see our relations. By saving the chief¡¯s village, you gained three love points and ten respect points from each Pomo village. You also gained five of each kind from our village for teaching us how to save ourselves. Those numbers are low, but enough for us to honor our promise to help you in your quest for gold.¡±

    Torger was in awe that just by doing the right thing he would gain favor from powerful allies. He accepted the situation for what it was and they continued walking.

    Late the next day they came to the dwarf camp. Many dwarves glared at the elves entering, and most of the elves glared back. Stone Fist walked up to Torger and Lagwil.

    ¡°I¡¯m glad you returned. The village is getting restless wanting to get to the gold. And I need to speak to you privately about Strong Arm.¡±

    Torger said ¡°You found the cave? Great. Lead us towards it.¡±

    He turned to Lagwil. ¡°Would you like to begin the battle tonight, or rest and start in the morning?¡±

    She said ¡°We will camp outside of this dwarf camp, but wait until just before first light to attack.¡±

    Stone Fist said ¡°That¡¯s fine by me.¡± He led them to the north side of the camp, just a quarter mile away. It was a large flat field. ¡°This looks like the place to build our village. There is a stream to the east, a mile away, and the cave is in the foothills a little less than two miles to the north.¡±

    Torger surveyed the land and gave his approval. As the elves were setting up tents and a night patrol, Stone Fist brought the humans away to talk in hushed tones. ¡°I received word from Strong Arm. He was on his way here when a messenger ran to them from Kirsk. The goblins attacked Indio, so Strong Arm and the dwarves of Calico turned to go help them. That was three weeks ago. Then yesterday I got another message. The goblin invasion of Indio was squashed, but eight dwarves died in the battle. Romalt insisted since the goblins spent most of their forces in the attack, their tunnels should be weak. Strong Arm and two warriors are leading the children and elderly here, but Romalt is leading a force of nineteen strong and battle tested men and women to kill the remaining goblins, including the queen. If they succeed, all that cooper, bronze, and semi-precious stones you saw will belong to dwarves. If they fail¡­ as a tribe we will be even weaker, and leaderless.¡±

    That was a lot for Torger to take in. Torger was the one to lead an invasion to free the dwarf prisoners. That affected him both emotionally, and as a mayor of dwarves. Romalt, Baybil, and the other war chief could score big or lose half the tribe. He pushed the news to the back of his mind. He had a gold mine in front of him and a village sitting on their hands producing nothing.

    The humans camped with the elves that night, and both set their own watches. During Torger¡¯s watch, the elf on duty woke up Lagwil. She came and sat with Torger.

    ¡°For thousands of years we elves have killed leprechauns and liches for the dwarves, and for the same time they have killed the hellhounds and provided us with metal weapons and jewels. Tomorrow will be the first time we attack with a smaller group. I am confident we can accomplish the job, but not that we won¡¯t suffer casualties. I ask you to join us in battle, as our shields. It is a selfish request and one that would bring me consequences if any other elf found out I asked. As such, there will be no reward, and no reduction of cost for the job. I can only ask you this as a friend Torger.¡±

    Torger thought about the implications. ¡°What consequences would you face?¡±

    ¡°I would be ostracized. Banished from all elves forever, wandering the land alone. But I value the lives of my men and women who will be engaged in battle tomorrow. It is an embarrassment to ask for outside help.¡±

    Torger thought it over for a few minutes, then agreed. He walked back to the dwarf camp and woke up Stone Fist. ¡°I have decided we Regulators will join the elves tomorrow in battle. If we fall, we will respawn in Carson City, and won¡¯t return for a week or more. I trust you to lay out which buildings will be built where, how to bring water to the village, and to make sure there is no theft of gold.¡±

    ¡°You got it boss. But attacking the leprechauns is a bad idea. Good luck.¡±

    Torger walked back without much hope of winning the battle. The elves would win, but the humans were going in as fodder.

    Torger woke up his friends an hour before sunrise, at the same time the elves were getting up. He explained to them they were going to join the battle to get the experience, but after the fight with the hell hounds Jex and Arden had gained an ability point and he advised them to invest it. The recommendation was a message to them all that he didn¡¯t have high hopes for their survival. They all knew that during the battle every time they gained an ability point spend it on mana immediately. Brun and Rome were the closest to gaining the next one. Jex and Arden each invested into health, bringing them to 200.

    Graul, Jex, and Rome each had the spell Haste 1, and when they were a hundred feet from the cave they cast it on the whole group. As soon as they began casting the Haste spells, a dozen spells shot out of the cave towards them. They all got hit, but kept casting Haste 1 or Shield 1 spells.

    The leprechaun spells flew right through the shields and hit them all again. Fire, ice, and lightning pummeled their bodies, but thirteen arrows were shot over their heads and into the cave. Two leprechauns fell, dead, but the other eleven arrows skidded harmlessly along the stone cave floor.

    Another volley of arrows was sent towards the cave, and another volley of spells hit the Regulators. As planned, Rome picked up both duffle bags and ran towards the cave behind his friends. Their charge resulted in a couple dozen half seen leprechauns run out of it, and thirteen of those little pests were hit with Ice 2 from the elves. They spell made them become fully visible, and the Regulators attacked them with weapons.

    Jex was able to pick off two, and Graul and Torger each sliced one to death, before the others cast Cure 2 on themselves and disappeared again. Red Fury sent out four fireballs, hitting four unseen leprechauns in the cave. More spells came at the humans from inside the cave. Many more. Their bodies were riddled with level one spells.

    Brun hit one with Poison 1, and the leprechaun got the flu and lost half her health. But another immediately cast Heal 1 and she was restored. Arden and Antic contributed very little to the fight because their spears were too slow and bulky to hit the fast moving foes. But they all worked their way deeper into the cave, making many leprechauns spend much of their mana.

    Outside the elves were easily able to cast spells and shoot arrows at the remaining leprechauns who had fled the cave. They finished them off then ran to the cave mouth. Lagwil arrived in the middle of her group. She quickly counted five dead leprechauns near the entrance, and saw five humans remaining alive. As she stepped in she saw a green light surround Rome, and he disappeared with both magic duffle bags he was carrying.

    Antic was laying on the floor nearly dead, and continually getting hit with level one spells, and Torger and Graul were running forward swinging their swords wildly. They each hit two leprechauns in their bull rush, and Red Fury sent out a total of eight fireballs that hit eight leprechauns. But as the brothers died, Torger¡¯s sword fell to the stone ground and finally shattered.

    The elves engaged in battle, but a few seconds later Jex disappeared in a flash. An elf ran to pick up her Bow of the Owl. He and the other elves shot arrows and spells at the mana drained leprechauns, and it turned out for them to be the easiest gold mine clearing they had ever participated in.

    The humans all appeared in the abandoned dwarf village near Carson City. Rome was digging in the duffle bags and he was handing out clothes to everyone when Jex was the last to arrive. All the men got a good cheer at her appearance in the nude, but were doing so jokingly and respectfully turned away.

    They took inventory and were thankful for Rome¡¯s spell of Teleport 1. Torger and Graul had bronze swords, Brun and Rome had their spare silver staffs, and Jex had Incoming Blizzard. She handed Arden her regular recurve bow, along with a quiver full of arrows that were simple sharpened sticks. She had eight stone arrowheads and hoped they could make it to the dwarves safely. None of them had any armor, but they did have their four tents and six water skins.

    As they set out from the ghost town, they hoped their encounters with trolls, bears, wolves, cottols, and rocs would be minimal.

    The battle had been too intense for any of them to spend any ability points they might have earned, and lost them and any accumulated experience, except Rome who gained one ability point before teleporting. He used it for more strength. But Torger told everyone he was proud of his friends for putting up such a good fight against enemies they could barely see and that moved so quickly.

    They were able to avoid mountain trolls, and rocs left them alone since there was much easier meals for them to eat. But during the ten day walk back they were attacked by cottols five times, always in groups of three. By then the cottols had grown to level eighteen, and they all just barely gained two ability points from the fights. The cottols were a little bigger and stronger, and the bronze swords struggled to inflict death blows to the heads or hearts. But I.B. saved them every time and Rome and Arden made sure to keep Jex alert. Torger got in a few shots with the recurve bow too, but they desperately missed their better weapons and armor.

    They returned to see a fully functional kitchen, a mostly completed smithy, and four other partially started buildings. Stone Fist was directing construction workers and stopped to come greet Torger.

    ¡°Welcome back boss. I hope you like what you see.¡± He beamed with pride.

    ¡°This is great Stone Fist. I take it everyone¡¯s been cooperative with your leadership.¡±

    ¡°Yes. They¡¯re all so eager to get to the gold that they¡¯re doing everything they can to set up the village quickly. I¡¯ve got five hunters, two water carriers, four cooks, three dishwashers, three clothes washers, seven builders and six miners, just like you demonstrated in Calico. The system works great. Before this kind of organization everyone rushed in for the gold and little got done for the benefit of the whole village. There are fifteen children and elders who can¡¯t work yet or are too old.¡±

    ¡°It looks like things are under control here. I¡¯ll activate the shield and set our respawn point here. But where¡¯s Calico? I don¡¯t see any of them.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re not going to believe this. They¡¯re south of here, with the elves. They found another gold mine in the foothills! They¡¯re going to establish their community there. You should go say hi. But I still haven¡¯t heard from Strong Arm or Kirsk. I want to know how the invasion of goblins went.¡±If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    Torger thought about everything he knew. They would soon be getting gold, but had to get a lot of it to pay back the elves. The elves wanted them to kill trolls near them, but they needed better weapons and armor. They couldn¡¯t get better weapons and armor until iron came from Indio and there was a fully functional blacksmith. And the smithy was almost complete.

    ¡°Stone Fist, we have a lot to do this summer. My friends and I are going to set up our tents, and take tomorrow off. And I¡¯m happy with your progress, really, but where are the farmers planting crops?¡±

    Stone Fist looked down and shook his head. ¡°I knew I was forgetting something. I¡¯ll pull two construction workers and a miner.¡±

    ¡°Not yet. We need the smithy going at full capacity in a week. Finish it before you reduce your crew.¡±

    ¡°OK. But it¡¯s early June and already a bit late for crop planting. The harvest will be small this fall. We¡¯ll need a lot of food to save up for the winter.¡±

    ¡°I hadn¡¯t thought of that. Get the smithy done, then get those seeds planted quickly.¡±

    Chapter 32

    Upgrades

    A week later the Regulators walked into Rich Fields. Strong Arm renamed the Calico dwarves to be the Rich Fields dwarves. It looked much like Torger¡¯s new village called Sonora, but he would raise it to level three and rename it. Strong Arm¡¯s village was near what would be Modesto on Earth. Torger and his friends finally had a sense of permanence. They were brought to Nuva naked and separated, then lived in a cabin called Home, then were slaves in the Salton Sea, then were in charge of Calico, then traded to be in charge of Parker, then moved to Carson City, then near Sutter¡¯s Mill for a few weeks before now finally having a permanent home near Sonora. By permanent they knew that meant for the next sixteen months until the tyters returned and killed them. But pushing that aside they lived in a village of dwarves that were friendly to them, with close ally dwarves to the south and two villages of elf allies to the east. They had plenty of food, water, and land, and soon would have wealth in the form of gold nuggets and steel weapons and armor. They could finally talk to the dwarves they knew and rescued from tyranny with a calm and relaxed attitude.

    Strong Arm came out to greet them. ¡°Welcome Torger and the Regulators. You guys really are movers and shakers. I wondered if you inspiring us to take out Small Foot was a fluke, and when you reclaimed dwarf slaves I wondered if that was luck. But it seems you have taught us how to build better villages with a better tax code and inspire us to work harder together. And I hear you taught the elves a better way to fight a wild fire. You are still prey, but have befriended both dwarves and elves. I get to be a firsthand witness to major historical events. Your names will be in our record books for sure.¡±

    ¡°Thank you Strong Arm. We are only introducing ideas that work better on our own planet. We¡¯ve come to check on the progress of Kirsk and Romalt. Have you heard anything?¡±

    ¡°Yes. Kirsk¡¯s team just delivered the first shipment of iron this morning, and we received a message that Romalt and the warriors will return tomorrow. We really need them. Construction is slow, and I only have one dwarf in the mine. No one is planting crops, and everyone is on their own for food and water. I¡¯ve got mostly old dwarves and children here. If they took heavy casualties with the goblins, I don¡¯t think our village will survive.¡±

    That wasn¡¯t good news. Strong Arm would owe the elves thirty pounds of refined gold in a year whether they mined that much or not. ¡°I¡¯m sure everything will work out. Do you mind if we stay the night here?¡±

    ¡°Not at all. You¡¯re welcomed guests. But as I said, you¡¯ll be on your own for food and water.¡±

    They set up their tents, and there was still a couple hours of daylight left, so they went hunting. They returned after dark with a deer and two rocs. During the hunt they found out Torger and Graul¡¯s bronze swords did little damage to the birds, now level eighteen. But I.B. and the recurve bow did plenty of damage to knock them out of the sky, and Lightning 2 from Brun did some damage as well. They had been warned that his poison spell would taint meat, and they knew from experience fire spells ruined the valuable feathers they enjoyed sleeping on, and using for Jex¡¯s arrows.

    When the dwarves saw the birds, they rushed forward offering to buy the meat. These dwarves really were foraging for themselves. Torger surprised them all saying the meat was a gift to them, and they would all get an equal cut. They feasted that night and talked with the dwarves Torger had been the mayor of for several months. He still remembered all of their names.

    The next day they saw dwarves approaching from the south, just after lunch. The humans had killed another deer that morning, and Jex broke her last stone arrowhead. Strong arm was trying to make her iron arrowheads in his incomplete smithy.

    As the dwarves approached they looked haggard and depressed. Torger counted eight of them, but knew twenty-one had gone to kill the goblins.

    Baybil led the procession. He greeted Torger with a smile, but wasn¡¯t completely enthused with the encounter. He looked too tired and mentally occupied to care.

    ¡°Hi Baybil. It¡¯s good to see you again. Would your men like some deer meat? We were just finishing eating lunch and have a few pounds left over.¡±

    ¡°That would be great Torger. We haven¡¯t eaten much in the last few weeks.¡±

    They sat on flat stones while Jex, Arden, and Brun brought over chunks of venison from the camp fire. All the dwarves but Baybil dug into it with gusto. Instead, he pulled Torger away from the others.

    ¡°As you know, Romalt decided we should attack the goblins after they attacked Indio. It seemed they wanted their slaves back, and Indio lost eight dwarves fighting and killing seventy-three goblins. Romalt led twenty of us into their tunnels on a counter-strike, to kill the queen and take the treasure. We won. We got the treasure. But only eight of the twenty-one of us are left. Our tribe is weak. Romalt fell in battle, as did his son the other war chief. That leaves me in charge of the whole tribe until the next council of mayors. I have you, Strong Arm, Kirsk, and Krig from Blythe to rely on. I need you four mayors to unite and prosper. When news of Romalt¡¯s death gets out, the dwarves may become depressed and work will slow.¡±

    ¡°What happened? Surely Romalt wouldn¡¯t have gone in with the odds so evenly matched.¡±

    ¡°Brute happened. After he was shamed at the last council in which your mayorship was extended for a year, the traitor joined the goblins. He led a squad of them to attack Romalt. It was Brute¡¯s axe in his own hands that split our chief¡¯s skull. I killed him myself, but that is a sting that will never go away.¡±

    Torger was taken back by the news. Strong Arm was only going to get seven healthy men and a healthy woman to plant crops, brew beer, and mine gold. And Baybil was one of them, but now he was the temporary tribal chief and couldn¡¯t do much for physical labor. These Rich Fields dwarves were in trouble, and Torger could think of no way of helping them.

    Baybil led Torger and Strong Arm into the half way constructed kitchen, away from prying eyes. He dumped the contents of his duffle bag onto the flagstone floor. Several copper and bronze swords and shields fell out and clattered on the floor, and Torger knew the dwarves outside heard it. But then he reached in and started pulling out handfuls of topaz, opals, malachite, onyx, and pearls.

    Torger was stunned by the wealth. That was why Baybil didn¡¯t want all the dwarves to see it, and why he made a lot of noise with the copper and bronze.

    ¡°The remaining warriors have already been paid. They split the three hundred pounds of copper coins between the seven of them. I need to introduce myself to the elves and establish good relations with them as Romalt had done. Strong Arm, your village needs weapons upgraded with elf magic, and these stones are the key. I want you, me, and the seven warriors who returned with me to have full steel armor and axes all infused with elf magic. Get your smithy going and produce as fast as you¡¯ve ever done before. How much iron have you received from Kirsk?¡±

    ¡°A team brought the first shipment today. I traded forty ponds of pure bronze for forty pounds of iron ore. I will need to buy all the copper from those warriors, and we need a source of tin to make more bronze, or get a bigger crew here to extract this gold from the mine. We lack dwarfpower.¡±

    Baybil looked at Torger. ¡°You have come up with unique solutions in the past. Do you have ideas to share with Strong Arm to get his village on the right track again?¡±

    ¡°I do. Stone Fist is almost complete with construction in our village. He can be here in two weeks to oversee the construction here.¡± Both dwarves nodded their approval of the idea. ¡°I also have some relations with the local elves. I can find out if I can introduce you to them.¡±

    ¡°That would save me a lot of time. But I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s going to be enough for this village.¡±

    ¡°The only other thing I can think of is to merge our villages. But you and I tried that before, and most of your people ended up going to Indio to work as prison guards.¡±

    ¡°Many dwarves have tried mergers in the past, and it rarely works out. For whatever reason a village of sixty dwarves is a little unruly, and a village of eighty is uncontrollable. But if this village fails, we may have to try it.¡±

    The next day the Regulators left to visit the elves, and Strong Arm sent a warrior to escort Baybil to Sonora. They stayed as a group for the first three days, then split off with Torger and Baybil agreeing that they would have to make a dirt path between the two villages. The dirt paths Torger had Calico dwarves make between Calico to Small Hammer, and then to Indio, had cut travel time by a third. The same should be true to cut a seven day walk into a four day walk between Sonora and Modesto.

    It was the middle of June when they were greeted by Lagwil. She explained she had to take Torger to the center stone to be tested by the Winds of Truth. She apologized but said it was elven law.

    After the testing showed he was there to trade she escorted him into the village itself, but his friends had to stay at the border. He was led up a ladder and onto the platforms that ran between trees, just like in Yosemite. He went into a large Sequoia and his size shrank from just under six feet tall to just over one foot tall. Lagwil took her place at the council table, and motioned for Torger to sit down next to her.

    Torger looked around and asked ¡°Why are there five women elders here? In Yosemite there were two women and three men, and Yiloding was there to make a fourth man. Are there not enough men in your village?¡±

    He hoped they wouldn¡¯t be offended by his sincere question. Lagwil answered ¡°Elves select the most intelligent of our people as leaders. It makes no difference if the elders are male or female. Dwarves select leaders based on military strength or financial prosperity, so usually they end up being men.¡±

    That made sense to Torger, and if they were offended by his question they didn¡¯t show it. Lagwil continued. ¡°I¡¯m sure you are wondering why you are here. We have had¡­ discussions. You bravely volunteered your human friends to assist in clearing out the leprechauns, and I accepted your offer to help.¡± The Winds of Truth lady seemed to be stretching the truth, but Torger let it go.

    ¡°In battle, when an ally falls, their equipment is gathered and accepted as part of the loot of war. But in this case you died, yet are still here. Our discussions have been focused on whether your equipment is still yours, or if it was forfeited when you died.¡±

    Torger interrupted ¡°I can easily resolve this. We want our armor and weapons back, but I am willing to pay for them. And as the Winds of Truth old you, I am here to trade.¡±

    ¡°It is good that you are willing to pay for them, that eases things. But some of our elves want steel armor and weapons, and they all want the Bow of the Owl. It is possible to trade with the dwarves to get the armor modified for us elves.¡±

    Torger looked at the elder who had spoken. ¡°I think it will be more useful in our hands, than in elf hands.¡±

    She replied ¡°As a mayor of a dwarf village, your blacksmith could make you new weapons and armor.¡±

    ¡°Or he could make armor for elves, for a price.¡±

    ¡°You talk of prices, yet you now owe our village sixty pounds of refined gold. I think your credit has been stretched too far.¡±

    ¡°You mean I will owe you sixty pounds of gold. I still have a year to pay it off.¡±

    ¡°Eleven and a half months. Conveniently the same amount of time you have left as a mayor, then you will leave a large debt to your successor. But let¡¯s set that aside. Why have you come here to trade?¡±

    ¡°We need better weapons and armor. Once we get quality steel, we want your alchemists to infuse spells. I just found out armor can also be strengthened with magic.¡±

    ¡°Yes, of course it can. But it only nullifies the same type of spell the gem is infused with. I see you¡¯re confused. We can use an emerald to infuse it with ice three, and infuse it into a helmet. If the helmet gets hit with ice one two or three, the gem will absorb the spell and the wearer won¡¯t be damaged. But that is a very expensive process. Your helmet, greaves, bracers, pauldrons, gauntlets, chainmail skirt, boots and chest plate would each need three emeralds or rubies. One for lightning three, one for fire three, and one for ice three. Thirty-six emeralds aren¡¯t cheap, and neither is the alchemist¡¯s labor for that much work. And that¡¯s just for one set of armor, yet you have seven humans who each need a set of armor. Wealthy elves and dwarves will use lower quality gemstones to absorb level two spells in their helmet and chest plate. Even that could cost several years wages.¡±

    ¡°I see. I¡¯m not that wealthy. Our more immediate concern is retrieving our belongings. We have a quest from Edina to kill mountain trolls, and we can¡¯t do that without our stuff. So how much is it going to cost me to buy what used to be ours?¡±

    A different elfa answered. ¡°We will discuss that. Please step outside and give us privacy.¡±

    As Torger exited the tree, he returned to normal size. He walked along the catwalk for a half hour, always staying as close to tree trunks as he could. Finally he was summoned to return. When he took his seat they negotiated, and the lowest price would be three gold coins. He had nowhere near that much money, so he left. As he neared the edge of the elf territory one of Lagwil¡¯s subordinates ran up to him.

    ¡°Sir. I heard you were interested in purchasing strong arrows because your top archer is strong and keeps breaking them. I am a fletcher on the side and am looking to make a little extra coin on the side.¡±

    After a twenty minute discussion Torger walked with him to his friends who were hunting a few miles from the elf village. Antic pulled out of his duffle bag all eighteen billik legs and seventy roc feathers. The elf took them and said he would deliver them at that same spot in three days. Antic and Graul agreed to come back to the area in three days.

    They all walked back to Sonora and made it before dark the following night. In the morning Antic and Graul took all the silver and copper coins Torger had, which totaled to about fifteen silver, and returned to the Sequoia elves. By the time they would get back it should be three days.

    Meanwhile, Torger found Baybil busily looking at all the mostly completed buildings and farm and mine. ¡°Stone Fist has done a wonderful job here Torger. I¡¯m sure he will be equally valuable to Strong Arm and building that village. I sent him back when I arrived here yesterday morning. I trust you can oversee the operations here.¡±

    ¡°Yes. Kind of. My friends and I were not able to recover our weapons and armor from the elves. I will have Guntrink start making more for us today, if his smithy is fully operational. Once he has us equipped, we need to fulfill a quest for the elves.¡±

    ¡°Being a mayor is a tough job. You need to take care of your people, and strengthen alliances. You can¡¯t bankrupt the village, and you have to gain ability points to invest in the shield strength and village growth. No one has time to do it all, so you appoint competent dwarves to handle specific tasks. I was a mayor for nearly fifty years, and now I¡¯m the tribal chief with no war chiefs. I have two top ranking vacancies to fill, and I¡¯ve got six months to figure it out to bring up at the next council. I don¡¯t want to burden you with my troubles Torger, but I¡¯m saying delegate tasks to people you trust. It will be much easier than trying to handle everything on your own.¡±

    ¡°Thanks for the advice Baybil. I¡¯m going to check in with all my villagers, you know, make the rounds.¡±

    ¡°Torger, before you go, you¡¯ll need some money soon. Strong Arm made some things for you, and he needs to sell them to refill his own pockets.¡± Baybil uncurled his fingers and held out a shotgun shell, filled with black powder and a copper casing.

    ¡°How many of these did he make?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m not sure what you do with them. But he says he needs a gold coin real soon and he has them ready.¡±

    ¡°At two silver per shot, that¡¯s fifty shots. Excuse me Baybil, I¡¯ve got a gold mine to plunder.¡±

 Trolls

    Chapter 33

    Trolls

    Antic and Graul returned from the elves with eighteen billik leg arrows, and two silver and eighteen copper coins. The arrows were notched at the end, ready to take an arrowhead.

    Guntrink was converting the second batch of iron ore into steel. He said he can produce about three pounds of steel per day, but it takes seven pounds of iron ore to make the three pounds of steel. Torger had traded with Strong Arm for twenty pounds of iron ore, half of the first shipment from Kirsk. Torger had to give up twenty bear skins, all fifteen cottol skins, and thirty silver coins for it. On top of that, he had no money to pay Guntrink for his labor, but Guntrink didn¡¯t know that.

    Torger watched his village grow for a week. The blacksmith had nine pounds of steel, enough to make one chest plate or shield, and Torger chose a shield for Graul. Guntrink was just putting on the final touches when another twenty pounds of iron ore arrived. Torger gave the porters a two ounce gold nugget to give to Strong Arm, the only gold he had.

    The miners were rolling in the dough, keeping ninety percent of what they mined. All sixteen of them were bringing out a total of six pounds of nuggets per day, after the first three days of removing dirt and shoring up the ceiling. But ninety percent of what was left went to the other villagers who were running independent businesses or working for the village directly.

    Torger had four cooks, three dishwashers, three farmers, two water carriers, and four road makers employed by the village, who got the majority of the gold. In private business there were two ale makers who were making a good living, a tavern owner with three barmaids, two weavers, a leather maker, and Guntrink and his assistant. Three old women had a business washing clothes.

    There were three houses: the mayor¡¯s house and two large common houses. The forty-six dwarves slept in the two common houses and Torger wanted to improve that, so he and his friends built a third stone house. It didn¡¯t look as good as the other¡¯s built by Stone Fist, but it was just as solid. Every single dwarf had a job, from the youngest to the oldest, and all but the miners got paid out of one budget depending on what Torger thought each one was worth. He was collecting a copper coin tax from every mug of ale sold, and a ten percent tax from the profit of each business, but he still didn¡¯t have a single gold coin, and wouldn¡¯t for a while.

    The village ran smoothly for a month, until Torger completed a third common house and Guntrink had produced four steel chest plates. Torger grew impatient, and could wait no longer. Against his better judgment, he led the Regulators around the Sequoia elves and towards Yosemite.

    Before they made it, they saw a California Grizzly. Jex took aim at the lone adult male, and shot her first billik leg arrow. Just as Torger had hoped, the steel arrowhead easily pierced the thick hide and the strong shaft didn¡¯t splinter. The added Ice 1 spell did little additional damage, but the arrow pierced a lung. It ran towards them, and Graul held up his steel shield. But that turned out to not be necessary as Arden shot it with the shotgun. It stumbled, and another arrow from Jex pierced its brain.

    They retrieved both arrows intact, and Arden still had forty-nine shots left. They would be okay against the trolls. They skinned the bear and set up camp. That night Graul took the first watch. Shortly after the sun went down he heard the familiar low moan. They had forgotten the lesser liches reformed after dark in the ashes each night!

    He had no weapon at all, and quickly woke everyone up. As he was yelling, the apparition pointed at the ground and a hell hound rose out of the ashes. He cast Slow 1 at it and Shield 1 in front of himself, then he was out of mana. Thinking he was going to die, he spent his two unused ability points on more mana.

    The otherworld dog ran at him and slammed into the magic shield, cracking it, suffered a mild electric shock that took off ten health, then ran into the magic shield again, shattering it. Graul could only keep his steel shield between himself and its fangs.

    An arrow hit the dog in the side, and pellets ripped open the same side. The dog had a huge hole in its right side, but kept attacking. At the same time the lich hit Brun with a fear spell. That was bad since he was their strongest spell caster, and they could only hurt the lich with magic. Everyone else but Torger used their two unused ability points buying more mana. They all cast Lightning 1 at it twice, except Graul who was occupied with the dog and Brun who was curled up into a fetal position. It wasn¡¯t enough to kill it, but it was hurt badly. It pointed to the ground and raised another hellhound, then disappeared.

    Jex hit it twice with arrows, and Arden finished it with the shotgun, then turned and waited for Graul to try to disengage so he could get a clear shot. But Arden never got the chance. Jex finished it with a perfectly placed arrow to the eye.

    As they began to settle down, the original lich returned, and it brought three friends. Torger yelled ¡°Retreat!¡±

    They all ran west to the elf border of Sequoia. When they came close they saw Lagwil and border guards fighting two other liches and two hellhounds. Jex and Arden shot the hellhounds while on the run, a difficult thing to do, but their high bow and gun skills allowed them to hit their marks. The elves abandoned the injured dogs and quickly killed the two liches with magic, while Jex and Arden shot again and again before the hellhounds died.

    They all looked at each other, and knew they worked good as a team, but it wasn¡¯t supposed to be that way. But no one had time to comment. The other four liches kept disappearing and rematerializing closer and closer to them. Antic had carried Brun for the run, and he was tired, but Brun was beginning to come out of his stupor. An elf muttered a few words, waved his hand and a light shone around Brun, then he stood up perfectly fine.

    The four liches each summoned another hellhound, and Jex and Arden shot at them while Graul used his shield to keep one away. Brun and the elves cast rapid spells at the four liches, and they died before the hellhounds did. Brun heard a final shotgun blast, and the last hellhound died.

    Lagwil looked at the group. ¡°Come to our border where it is a little safer.¡±

    They followed her and when they arrived she dismissed the other three elves. ¡°It is foolish to travel near death without magical weapons. Yet it is partly our fault for not returning your belongings. But I cannot overrule the council. I could sell you a bow or two that has elemental magic, but you already have a bow like that. I cannot help you in that regard, but rest on the ground, and hope your tents are still there in the morning. We will watch over you.¡±

    They didn¡¯t sleep well, and found their tents and gear undisturbed at sunrise. They packed up camp and headed far to the north, well away from the ashes before setting up camp for another night. Nothing took place that night, and they made it to the Yosemite village late the next day. They were welcomed by Edina, and allowed to set up camp on the border, but she warned that liches attacked every night. Arden explained how he and Jex could handle the hellhounds if the elves took care of the liches. Edina was intrigued by the concept of elves and humans fighting side by side.

    That night, just as discussed, Arden and Jex shot hellhounds while Graul blocked one with his steel round shield, and the others, along with the elves cast spells at the ghosts. When it was done Edina said she had no idea handling the attacks could be so easy, but was looking forward to the sprouts that were growing through the ashes to fully bloom and stop the liches from rising. She said they rise at night from dead things. Either a pile of bodies or a dead field of plants. The bigger the pile, the stronger the liches.

    Torger told her about the dwarves attacking and killing goblins in their tunnels, and she said as long as they burned the bodies they would be OK. Torger hoped they had, but if not the tunnels by the Salton Sea could be filled with ghosts.

    The next day they walked into the mountains to the east, and tracked down a cave with four trolls. Jex couldn¡¯t see without her Bow of the Owl, and she and Antic were the only two without Analyze 1. She handed I.B. to Torger. He looked into the tunnel, and had a little trouble pulling back the bow since it had a ninety pound draw, but his aim was good enough to hit the troll closest to the cave mouth in the forearm. Arden had a much better shot, hitting the same troll in the chest.

    Torger quickly handed the bow back to Jex and cast Lightning 1 at it. But the troll barely flinched. Rome had been checking, using Analyze 2, to see which spells were most effective. Antic cast Ice 1, and Graul cast Fire 1, but all three spells only took off seven damage points total. Rome thought trolls seemed to have a very high resistance to magic, so that must have been why elves didn¡¯t want to hunt them. But when Brun cast Poison 1, Rome saw it had the full effect of cutting the troll¡¯s max health in half. A shotgun blast to the face finished it off, but by then the other three of the family were running at them, two of them experiencing stomach problems from being infected with the flu, thanks to Brun casting Poison 1 at them.

    Rome shouted out for Brun to cast poison one again, but everyone else should save their mana because it didn¡¯t do much damage. The next time the spell hit, one of the three remaining trolls had been hit twice with Poison 1, but Rome saw there was no cumulative effect.

    Graul blocked a big club swing with his steel shield. The wood club broke in the troll¡¯s hand, and she looked at it with a stupid expression on her face, not comprehending what happened, until Arden removed her face with a shot. But the big swing still did damage. The shield slightly bent, and it broke Graul¡¯s arm.

    Jex and Arden took on the adolescents, while Antic volunteered to be their punching bag, and everyone else cast Cure 1 on Graul. The four spells mostly healed his arm, and once the two teenage trolls were dead, they cast Cure 1 on Antic, who was bruised head to toe.

    The troll cave contained a red containment stone, most likely a Fire 1 spell. At this point no one had a whole lot of interest in it, but it could come in handy later. They returned to camp, and again that night killed four hellhounds while the elves killed four liches.

    When the battle was over, Arden spoke to the group. ¡°I¡¯m out of ammo again. I need to go back to Strong Arm for more.¡±

    Graul swore. ¡°That stuff is expensive! Two ounces of gold nuggets for those fifty shots. I don¡¯t know if the village has mined enough gold yet to buy more, and I doubt Strong Arm has made fifty more. He has his hands full.¡±

    Torger considered their options. Without the shotgun, they wouldn¡¯t beat more trolls. ¡°We need our weapons and steel armor back. I guess we¡¯ll have to buy them from Lagwil. But we don¡¯t have enough money yet.¡±

    As he was speaking, Edina and her elves returned. ¡°I overheard you lack weapons. I¡¯m sorry, we have none to provide you. At the same time, we need you to help us with the trolls. My elves are exhausted from fighting liches and hellhounds every night, and the trolls are coming closer to our borders. I¡¯m afraid in another week, they may overrun us.¡± She looked at each person in the eyes before continuing. ¡°Please. You must help us. Yiloding is offering a great reward for what we owe you, once you kill the trolls.¡±

    Torger answered, ¡°The council in Sequoia has decided the weapons were forfeit when we died attacking the leprechauns. We owe them too much gold for them to return our weapons on credit, and the two dwarf blacksmiths are already working as hard as they can.¡±

    ¡°How much money do you have? Perhaps we can loan you some items to trade with them.¡±

    ¡°I have silver and copper worth about three silver coins. I just spent some money on Jex¡¯s arrows, and the mine is just starting to get into the big production. We have nothing of value to trade.¡±

    After several seconds of awkward silence Rome said ¡°Oh hell. I guess I should contribute to the cause.¡± He pulled out a leather pouch with nearly a pound and a half of silver ore.

    Arden exclaimed ¡°Where did you get that from?¡±

    ¡°Strong Arm and I had a deal. I was getting two percent of all the silver he made in Calico. Once he became mayor, that amount grew a lot. A messenger from him delivered this to me a couple weeks ago.¡±

    Everyone had forgotten about his payment for completing a quest from Strong Arm. But Edina said ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Ore has no value to elves. We need finished metal, preferably in the form of arrowheads and staffs.¡±

    Antic spoke up. ¡°I guess if we¡¯re all contributing towards the weapons, I should throw these into the mix.¡± As the supply chief, he was responsible for inventorying and protecting most of their collective valuables. He withdrew nine low level health and nine low level mana potions.

    Torger asked ¡°Where did you get those? And how come I didn¡¯t know about it?¡±

    ¡°Our dwarf farmers, they started a side business. They¡¯re employed by the village, you, to grow crops for food. And they do a great job of that. But they also grow plants used to make these potions, and sell them to one of the cooks who turns the plants into potions with her spare time. She gave me these on credit, in case things went bad and we had an emergency.¡±

    Edina sniffed the potions with disdain. ¡°They are inferior to what we elves make, but our supplies are out. They sell for one silver coin each, so eighteen silver coins. Thanks Antic, but you¡¯re still well short of what you need. Elves and dwarves only drink each other¡¯s potions in an extreme emergency. Rome, if you turn the silver ore into silver arrowheads, we could arrange something.¡±

    Torger thought about it all. ¡°Edina, our two mage¡¯s first staffs were wood. Is that just a carved tree branch with a gem in the top? Could Graul and I carve staffs and they become magic amplifiers?¡±

    ¡°No. But it is a simple gem stone that is placed into a wood staff. We elves don¡¯t need any wood staffs. You see I have a diamond staff, and most of the elves you have seen here carry silver ones, and we have a few gold staffs.¡±Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

    ¡°Yes, but that wasn¡¯t what I was thinking. Would it be valuable to you if we helped kill the liches at night?¡±

    After a few seconds she said ¡°Normally, no. But I see the fatigue in our guard¡¯s eyes from fighting every night. But you struggle to kill the hellhounds. How would you take on the liches?¡±

    ¡°I think Graul and I could manage to give you a night off, in four nights from now. Hopefully two nights off. What would that be worth to your village?¡±

    ¡°Not much, but we also don¡¯t have much right now. I guess a night off would be worth a recurve bow.¡±

    ¡°How about a Bow of the Owl?¡±

    ¡°That would be a bit lopsided, you would have to do better than killing the liches and hellhounds for two nights.¡±

    ¡°OK we¡¯ll see what we can do. Just one more question. Why do you keep killing the liches? Why not just move away from them?¡±

    ¡°You see how dangerous these lesser liches can be. They come from a big pile of death. If twenty Lesser Liches ever meet up, they will combine to form a Grand Lich. Even if we were to move, they would still rise every night, four at a time. So in five days they could form a Grand Lich.¡±

    ¡°Oh, that sounds bad. I¡¯ll see what we can do to help you until the plants grow big enough to prevent them from rising.¡±

    Torger sent Antic to run as fast as he could to Sonora and come back. His mission was to get Rome¡¯s silver ore turned into silver arrowheads, collect any village gold nuggets and exchange them for anything of value to elves, and get all the weak gems from Baybil that he could.

    For the next three days, the others tried to fight the hellhounds at night, but what ended up happening was the five men would cast a few spells then get mauled while Jex shot the beasts with arrows. Then they would cast Cure 1 on themselves for a couple of hours. During the day Torger and Graul each carved a club and a mage staff. They would break the clubs on the hellhounds that night before getting mauled.

    When Antic returned on the fourth day, they had eight wood staffs. He brought no gems back with him, and beamed with pride when they started yelling at him. He reached into the duffle bag and pulled out Power Cord and Inferno.

    Graul was nearly giddy with excitement. ¡°How did you manage that?¡±

    ¡°Sorry Graul, and Torger, and everyone, I had to take a chance. On my way back I stopped to talk to Lagwil. I figured we didn¡¯t need all of our old gear at once. I traded her three pearls, eight silver arrowheads, one topaz, and twelve low health and low mana potions. I got these two weapons back from them.¡±

    Torger had mixed emotions. It was good two of them were better off, but it wasn¡¯t what he was hoping for.

    Antic saw his displeasure. ¡°Don¡¯t be disappointed. Guntrink has been busy.¡± Antic pulled out three sets of steel bracers and greaves. That cheered everyone up.

    Torger, Graul, and Antic put on the extra armor. Graul picked up his shield and sword, attacking an imaginary hellhound. He shouted ¡°Tonight¡¯s gonna be different, bitches!¡±

    Torger still had no sword. He picked up his club, and the one Graul was carving. He thought ¡°At least tonight I¡¯ll break two clubs on them instead of one, and the bracers should keep me from almost losing my arm again.¡±

    Chapter 34

    Morale

    That night all seven Regulators walked into the ashes, with Lagwil and her team. As usual, an hour after dark they heard a low moan. But this night was different. They waited for the ghost to materialize near them, and cast a fear spell.

    It took only a couple minutes for it to appear. Jex and the elves shot it with arrows, as they had so many times before, and it shrank before disappearing. They knew it was off healing somewhere, when as predicted, three more appeared. They got pummeled with magic arrows and spells, but raised three hellhounds before disappearing to go heal somewhere. The elves ran to track them down, and Antic and Graul ran at the dogs better equipped.

    Antic thrust Power Cord down the throat of one, and he was running so fast he knocked the big dog backwards when he crashed into it. Graul blocked the first pounce with his shield, but instead of having a crude club to counter with, he was able to stab it in the side with Inferno. The Fire 1 spell did nothing against the creature from hell, but the lighting spell shocked its internal organs. After that, it became a big wrestling match, and none of the spell casters could get in a clean shot.

    Another hellhound bounded at them from the tree line, summoned by the first lich to get injured and disappear. Torger saw Jex was shooting the other one, with Arden laying on his back trying to keep his face from getting eaten. Torger ran at the beast and swung a branch, breaking it over the dog¡¯s head. But that night, he had a second branch, and was able to get it into the dog¡¯s mouth before it bit him.

    What Torger didn¡¯t count on was that its bite was so strong it was able to regrip its bite then snap the branch. Like the other nights, Torger instinctively raised his arm to protect his face, but this time the beast bit metal instead of flesh. This time Torger didn¡¯t have to see his arm get shredded then his bones crack. Before the dog bent the steel too much, Antic ran over and speared it through the side and into the heart.

    The dog died instantly. Torger stood up and saw all four dogs were dead, and Jex had some arrows left in her quiver, and there was only need of a few Cure 1 spells. They had enough energy left to collect the spent arrows and go find the elves to help them. They arrived in time to see an elf cast a Lighting 2 spell at a small lich, about two feet tall, and the spell struck it and it disappeared.

    Lagwil looked at them. ¡°It looks like you still can¡¯t give us a couple nights off, but you¡¯re not all ground meat when we returned. I hope you can get enough rest tonight to go hunt trolls again tomorrow.¡±

    They did get to bed a couple hours earlier, since they didn¡¯t have to wait for their mana to recharge to stop the bleeding.

    The next day they found a troll cave to the north again, and attacked. Everyone but Arden and Torger were in prime form. Arden felt useless without the shotgun, and Torger felt useless without Red Fury. They stayed in the back, casting spells, and hated watching Graul and Antic struggling to not get bashed in the head.

    But Antic was able to drive his spear through papa troll¡¯s thigh, and Graul left a deep cut in mama troll¡¯s arm. Both men got punched in the face for their efforts, but it bought Jex the time she needed to hit the two teens in the eyes. She was getting good- four shots, four eyes pushed to the back of the brains. Brun¡¯s Poison 1 spell made the battle much easier before it ever began, and with that cast he had finally dealt 1000 damage points with Poison 1, and learned Poison 2.

    Poison 2 cost 24 mana, and he couldn¡¯t wait to see what it did. But first they had to find their reward in the cave. They found a red containment stone, just like the other, probably holding Fire 1.

    They returned to the elf village, and Torger found Lagwil. ¡°I have eight wood staffs, and two of these containment stones. Could you put them into two of the staffs? I want to try something tonight.¡±

    ¡°Normally I would charge you for that, but if it damages the liches, it will help us.¡± She took two of the wood staffs, and the two containment stones away.

    When Lagwil and her three helpers returned just before dark, she handed the magic staffs to Torger. ¡°These will amplify a spell by ten percent, just like any wood staff, and will add fire damage to the spell.¡±

    ¡°Thanks, but that¡¯s not exactly what I have in mind.¡±

    An hour after dark the first lich appeared. As it was materializing, Torger ran at it as fast as he could and swung both staffs across his body in a scissors motion. Both staffs shattered, and the lich shrank to three feet. He ran away but was hit with a fear spell in the back. Before the lich could disappear, Lightning 1 spells from all ten remaining allies finished it off.

    Lagwil said ¡°That worked great, you humans really are crafty. Fighting three liches instead of four will be easier for us tonight, and you¡¯ll only have to fight three hellhounds instead of four. But it¡¯s an expensive way to do battle.¡± She waved her hand and a spell surrounded Torger, relieving him of the terrors of the fear spell.

    Lagwil¡¯s prediction was right: the fight that night was easier. They only had to fight three hellhounds. The next day, they again killed four trolls, and Brun was able to test Poison 2. It cast Chicken Pox instead of the flu, and added a small dose of snake venom. Like their fight with the queen goblin, the mild venom removed one health point every four seconds. Being on the giving end rather than the receiving end of the spell gave them a huge advantage in battle. Not only that, the spell struck three trolls instead of one troll. The trolls broke out in sores all over their bodies, and like the flu, their max health was cut in half. But Rome used Analyze 2 and saw their max stamina was also cut in half. But the humans were too busy trying to not die to be able to leave one troll alive. Rome was curious to see how much damage the venom would ultimately take off. If left alone, would the trolls die in a few hours? He hated not being able to find out the answer, when Antic¡¯s spear pierced the heart of the last troll.

    Each night the humans and elves worked together to kill four liches and four hellhounds, and each day the humans killed four trolls and recovered a Fire 1 containment stone. Every other night Torger would break two wood staffs on the first lich, and the fighting would be easier that night.

    On the eighth day, they killed another four Trolls, and Torger saw his icon Notoriety/Quests begin flashing. After the intense fighting of the four trolls, they sat down for a breather and to cast several Cure 1¡¯s, except Rome who had by then learned Cure 2, once he cured 1000 health points. Cure 2 replenished 20 health instead of ten, but cost 12 mana instead of 4. His silver staff amplified the cures by fifty per cent, and he had to cure 5000 health points to learn Cure 3.

    Torger saw the expected message they had been waiting for all week.

    Quest: Kill 30 Mountain Trolls within 5 miles of Yosemite Village (Elf)

    Status: Complete.

    Return to Edina to claim your reward.

    Torger was thrilled along with all his friends. All the fighting had earned them each another four ability points, and they all had a strong itch to spend them all. But they agreed to wait until they were back at their home village near Sonora. Torger insisted they assessed their situation at home first, before spending the coveted points. Mainly, they were hoping Guntrink had completed armor and weapons for them all, and the village was rolling in the gold. But much had gone wrong in the year and a half they spent on Nuva, and they knew they couldn¡¯t count on anything to run smoothly for long.

    Edina was waiting for them at the border. It seemed odd to the humans that they fought alongside the elves every night, yet Torger was the only one allowed into the village, and that was only on two occasions. Understandably everyone was stunned when Edina made the announcement. She began, ¡°Well done, all of you.¡±

    She looked at Torger. ¡°The original quest promised you a significant increase in love and respect points with this village. As you know, Yiloding changed the terms when we failed to provide you with a Bow of the Hawk and Bow of the Eagle, after you did the majority of the work in saving our village from fire. For that failure, we are embarrassed. Torger, you will need to come with me to receive your new reward. And Jex, please come along, and bring both of your bows.¡±

    Jex didn¡¯t know what to say or do. She wasn¡¯t the mayor of dwarves, or the leader of the human group. She didn¡¯t want either of those responsibilities. After three awkward seconds of her not moving a muscle, Arden playfully nudged her. ¡°Go on babe. See what it¡¯s like.¡±

    Jex followed Torger, who followed Edina. Torger was still awed at seeing all the high catwalks, and all the holes dug under large tree stumps. But it was still eerie not seeing any elves, although he knew guards were watching them and families were working in the underground holes.

    Jex didn¡¯t have the same fear of heights as Torger, and finally felt more in place as she walked casually on the bridges twenty feet off the ground, while she watched Torger trying to put on a brave and manly expression while secretly clinging to the tall trees.

    When they got to the hole in the trunk that led to the magic conference room, Jex was amazed as she watched Torger shrink from five and a half feet to just one foot as he walked through the opening. She followed, and felt no tingling or sensation at all, but knew she was magically shrunk to fit. All five village elders were there, and also Yiloding. Torger immediately noticed the two elves who had hated him for being a human when he first came there, now looked at him with reluctant acceptance. Not great, but a huge improvement.

    When all were situated, Yiloding began speaking. ¡°Torger, Liberator of the Dwarves, Mayor of Sonora, we welcome you. Today you will add a new title. I, Yiloding, tribal chief of the Pomo Elves, bequeath to you the title Protector of the Forests. You Torger, with the help of your friends, saved not one, but two elf villages from what could have turned into a catastrophic fire. You taught us new techniques to use when the next fire threatens our homes.

    ¡°Not only did you protect us from fire, of your own volition you have fought and killed four Lesser Liches and thirty-six hellhounds in the past nine nights. Your heroism and bravery has given our battered and weary guards much needed rest.

    ¡°As if that weren¡¯t enough, you protected this village from trolls who were steadily moving closer to our lands, and that while we were in a weakened state. Torger, you and your friends are heroes to the Pomo Elves, and I name you allies to all Pomo villages.

    ¡°Yet in return, it is to my shame that we have been unable to reward you for your valiant efforts.¡±

    All the elves looked at the ground and held back a tear as if their moms just died. Torger and Jex were given fifteen full seconds of silence to become unbearably uncomfortable. But neither one would dare move a muscle in that solemn moment. Finally, Yiloding continued.

    ¡°As my shame is great, so must my reward in compensation for such an ally also be great. Jex, please hand me both of your bows.¡±

    She reluctantly complied after getting a nod from Torger. But she knew he had no idea what was going on either, and the nod was a ¡°hoping for the best¡± reaction.

    Yiloding handed both bows to the other female elf elder, who wasn¡¯t Edina. She took them outside, and returned a couple minutes later reverently carrying a black velvet pouch. One of the elves who had at first strongly disliked Torger stood up and shouted ¡°No!¡±

    Yiloding shot him a withering stare and the elf mumbled an apology before sitting down again. Yiloding continued as if the unexpected outburst hadn¡¯t happened. ¡°No common bow must ever be in the presence of a Master Bow. There are very few Master Bows in Nuva, and we Pomo elves have been fortunate enough to have had one. Jex, you are nearing the point of becoming a master archer. You are now at level thirty-eight with bows, and when you hit level fifty, this bow will take on the aspects for you of all three high-bows.

    ¡°First, the Bow of the Owl allows you to see twice as clearly in the dark. Second, the Bow of the Hawk allows your shot to leave the string at twice the velocity. The impact on your prey will be very powerful. Third, the Bow of the Eagle will allow you to have twice the steadiness of hands. This will allow your accuracy to be twice as great. Once you reach level fifty in bows, as long as you are using this bow, you will be able to hit an apple at three hundred yards.

    ¡°As a Master Bow, this bow has been infused with three sapphires. Each arrow shot from this bow will carry with it the spells of lighting two, fire two, and ice two. Those spells are already effective at your current level.

    ¡°However, I have two severe warnings for you. As a Master Bow, this can only be loaned out. It can never be given. It is within my authority to loan this to you for two years. If it is ever lost or damaged, the devastation to our village would be horrible. Second, as a Master Bow, this one can never be in the presence of an inferior bow. It will lose some of its properties of magic each day one of your party carries another bow. Torger and Jex, you must know and understand this. No human, elf, dwarf, or goblin bow can be travelling together with you. This velvet case protects it from the harm of inferior makes, but please do not allow any harm to come to it. Finally, I present to you the only Bow of its kind, The Bow of Artemis the Huntress.¡±

    He removed the velvet sack from the Bow. A highly polished bow of layered woods was a beautiful sight to behold. Torger saw it had overlapping ironwood, ash, walnut, and maple. The hard woods assured it had great strength and rigidity, but also a layered dark-light-dark-light of the woods was beautiful. For her part, Jex was expecting a recurve bow, maybe a long bow, and she was hoping for a compound bow Rambo style. The Bow of Artemis the Huntress looked nothing like 20<sup>th</sup> century drawings. It was a simple short bow, as depicted in ancient statues. The style of bow was unimpressive, and she didn¡¯t understand the strength of woods and layering them together like Torger did, but she was immediately drawn to the string. It wasn¡¯t string at all, it was braided nitinol. She knew what it what because of her hopes of working for NASA one day. A strong and flexible alloy made of nickel and titanium. It seemed absurd for her to see it on this bow that was allegedly thousands of years old.

    She knew it would take the strength of a goddess to draw that bow, so she immediately put all five of her unused ability points into strength, bringing her to twenty-one. A small smile spread to her lips as she knew she was now stronger than Antic. She reverently accepted the Bow from Yiloding, and drew back the alloy string. It took all the strength she had, but nothing had ever felt more balanced or¡­ perfect.

 Sonora-Home

    Chapter 35

    Sonora-Home

    The council of elders urged Jex and Torger to keep the Master Bow as secret as possible. She placed it back into the black velvet case, then into her back pack. Edina escorted them back to the border. When they arrived she asked Torger ¡°What are your plans now?¡±

    ¡°I need to get back to check on my village. There are still many things to get done and we have been away too long.¡±

    Edina looked sad at the statement but nodded approvingly. ¡°Your primary allegiance is not here. I wish all of you well, and hope we can trade soon.¡±

    As they were packing to leave, Torger didn¡¯t feel easy about the decision. It was apparent Edina wanted them to stay, but any number of things could be happening at Sonora. Were the dwarves mining enough gold? Were they being honest about how much they kept? Had the village been attacked? Did Guntrink make more armor?

    All these questions kept circling in his mind, but he couldn¡¯t shake the feeling he had more to accomplish in Yosemite. Finally he said to the others ¡°You go back to our village and see that everything is running smoothly. I want to stay a bit longer.¡±

    Rome looked at him with suspicion. ¡°What¡¯s wrong Torger?¡±

    ¡°I want to stay a few more nights fighting the hellhounds. Graul, can I use your shield and sword, and I¡¯ll catch up with you later?¡±

    ¡°Uh, sure, I guess. What aren¡¯t you telling us?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s nothing big. I want to gain two more ability points, then I¡¯ll have ten. I can expand the village shield twice, raising the village level to three, but more importantly I¡¯ll be able to rename it.¡±

    Jex immediately jumped in. ¡°I want to stay too!¡±

    She let out more enthusiasm than she intended. But Torger knew he couldn¡¯t keep the secret of the Bow from his friends. He said ¡°I know you want to try it out. Go ahead and show them.¡±

    She looked around for elves, but only Edina and her crew of three were nearby. Edina gave Jex an approving nod. She pulled out the velvet case and then with a slow and playfully drawn out demonstration, she pulled out the Master Bow. Everyone gawked at it. Graul asked ¡°This is what they gave you? No wonder you wouldn¡¯t tell us. When you returned you looked like you just egged the White House and got away with it. What is it?¡±

    Jex smiled and told them ¡°A bow used by an ancient Greek goddess. The Bow of Artemis the Huntress.¡±

    Antic asked ¡°Can you even draw that thing? Wait, I thought you looked different. Did you just spend ability points on strength? You did, didn¡¯t you? You¡¯re about to pop out of your leather armor. What¡¯s your strength level at now?¡± His voice got higher and louder as he was sizing up his own manhood with the questions.

    ¡°It¡¯s not important Antic.¡±

    ¡°Yes it is. Tell me.¡±

    Torger cut him off. ¡°She¡¯s now at twenty-one, one above you. Let it go Antic. You¡¯re maxed out and you don¡¯t need to waste an ability point.¡± But the words were futile. Antic spent two of his five on strength, dropping his stamina back down to ninety.

    ¡°Damn it Antic. Spend your points on something useful.¡±

    Out of spite, he spent the last three on Slow 1.

    Torger sighed. ¡°OK, who else has ability points they want to waste?¡±

    Rome felt pitifully weak, and spent his five on strength, bringing him to fourteen, and Brun followed, going to eighteen. Graul couldn¡¯t be weaker than a mage, so he spent four on strength, and one on health (19 and 200). Torger was saving his for the benefit of the village, and that left Arden who had six. He said ¡°I just need fifty three more experience points to get a seventh ability point, and then I could buy slow two, cure two, or heal two. So I¡¯m going to stay with you and Jex to get a little more experience.¡±

    The three of them stayed, and the others headed back to Sonora. That night, as expected, a lesser lich rose out of the ashes. Jex was ready. She pulled back, and let the arrow that had a billik leg shaft fly. It sailed right through the lich, just like other times, but lightning, fire, and ice caused it to steam on the inside. When she had used I.B. which had an Ice 1 spell, the liches would look at her with annoyance as the arrows flew through them. This time the lich moaned and shrunk by a foot.

    It cast a fear spell at her and she collapsed to the ground, then it summoned a hellhound. But Edina was ready. She cast a spell over Jex that restored her sanity, while the other elves and Torger attacked the hellhound. Torger did just fine with Graul¡¯s steel shield and one handed sword, Inferno. He wasn¡¯t as quick or powerful with the combo as his brother was, but he managed to keep his arm attached to his body and still get in a few shallow slices that sent fire and lightning damage to the beast. The fire spell was nullified, but the lightning kept the dog¡¯s attention on himself and not on the others.

    As he was fighting it, suddenly a missile ripped through its body and sent three spells into it. When he pushed it off himself, a hole the size of a pear was seen as the exit wound. Everyone looked at Jex. She stood with her mouth open. The only thing she could think to say was ¡°Wow.¡±

    After that the fighting was easy. Just let Jex take one shot at each level 16 hellhound, while the others battled the liches. But the Bow came with price. Even though the billik legs were a little stronger than maple, they snapped after exiting each beast. These expensive arrows had become one shot missiles, and she used five of her eighteen that night. Not only that, Lagwil and the other elves weren¡¯t able to bring their bows to the fight or it would slowly weaken the magical properties of the Master Bow.

    Arden gained his ability point, in fact all three of them had gained one point from killing four liches and four hellhounds, even with the four elves getting equal experience. But this was the first time they had teamed up to fight both hellhounds and liches, so they were getting eight kills instead of four each night.

    They did that for the next two nights before heading toward Sonora. Edina thanked them for their help, and said her elves had gotten more rest the past three nights from the quick kills. And less than a month after the fire, there were hundreds of grass sprouts breaking through the ashes. It would only be a few more days before the liches would no longer be able to appear in that field.

    An important lesson they had learned on the second night was that Jex¡¯s new bow was so powerful, sharpened pine arrows disintegrated in the air before hitting the dog. That lesson caused Torger to be caught off guard and he got knocked down by the dog while casting a spell at the lich, and his greaves kept him from losing his lower leg from the powerful bite. Further testing showed that only the hardest woods had the strength to withstand being shot from the Bow, and even oak splintered on impact. Torger had to think of some other way to get more arrows, because tracking down and slaughtering a cave full of billiks would be time consuming, and if only two or three of them went it could still be dangerous. Also they would have to kill several rocks to get the feathers, and pay Edina¡¯s assistant to make the arrows.

    During the night fighting, Arden was in no way able to contribute. He had a shotgun with no shells, and was poor at the use of all weapons. After the third night he had nine ability points, enough to buy Poison 2, but he would first have to buy Poison 1. But maybe it would help the group. He went to Edina.

    ¡°I have been worthless around here the last few weeks. I¡¯m thinking of buying poison two, but I first need the flu one. What do you think?¡±

    ¡°That is a dark magic. Too dark for elves. I didn¡¯t know you humans knew such a dark spell. We could never learn poison one, and I recommend to stay away from it.¡±

    Arden thought about it. Every time Brun had used poison one and two against the trolls, there were no elves around. They could find out he had the spell if they used analyze three on him, but they seemed to be courteous enough to not have used it on anyone but Torger. He would have to tell his brother to keep that spell on the down low.

    Instead he bought Shield 2 and spent his last ability point on strength, bringing him to fifteen. That left Torger tied with Rome for last place, but he still put the village first.

    On their way back to Sonora, they came across a pair of cottols. It wasn¡¯t much of a threat, but Arden wanted to try out Shield 2, since none of them had that spell yet. Jex shot the first one, going in its mouth and removing its tail, and Arden cast Shield 2. Instead of the regular 8x8 foot shield where he pointed, a large sphere formed. It was fifteen feet in diameter and completely surrounded the cottol. The beast sent a psychic blast that hit Arden, and he turned his back to it.

    Jex hesitated with her shot, watching her husband become vulnerable. It gave the cottol enough time to send a psychic blast at her, and she dropped the Master Bow and turned her back. Torger charged at the sphere, and hit it with Inferno. The shield cracked but didn¡¯t break, and he got hit with a psychic blast.

    The cat used up fifteen of its twenty mana points with the three spells, and when Jex came out of her trance it sent another blast through the shield at her, but it would not attack the shield surrounding it and get electrocuted. Arden came out of his trance next and looked on helpless, knowing it was building up one mana point per minute. He had no weapon so he walked to slap Jex to wake her, but he got hit before he made it to her. Torger came out of his trance and went to slap Jex. He made it and she was able to shoot an arrow through the cat just as the shield was disappearing from its ten minute time limit.

    Torger looked at his friends. ¡°That¡¯s an impressive shield Arden. When we battled a hundred of those things before, we were stuck in our trances for an hour or so, but that shield of yours allowed us to wake up after seven minutes, I think. Whatever it does, it reduces the power of spells of whatever is trapped inside. Too bad it¡¯s just as weak as a regular shield. With how hard I hit it with Inferno, I would guess it has a hundred health points like the shield one. Still, a handy spell to buy us time.¡±

    Arden didn¡¯t let on that he loved the idea he had something valuable no one else had.

    When they got to Sonora, their friends came out to greet them. Torger shushed their questions about the journey and the Bow, but he said ¡°I have to do something first. I¡¯m going to raise this village to level three, and give it a new name. I think I want to call this place¡­ Home. What do you think?¡±

    Graul thought back to that little log house they found when they first arrived. It was called Home, and they couldn¡¯t wait to get enough ability points to change the horrible name, but they never made it that far. But as he looked around the village, he saw forty-six dwarves, and knew every name. He taught them baseball, and they fought razorlings together, and traded life saving potions and weapons. Yes, for Graul too, this had become Home. A place they would never move from, until the tyters came.

    After greeting the village of dwarves, they all headed to the mayor¡¯s house. Baybil had taken up the master bedroom, and as tribal chief there was nothing Torger could say about it. Graul and Arden teasingly advised him to go put his foot down, that he was the mayor and this was the mayor¡¯s house, but when their whispers became too loud, Baybil came out of the room. Torger¡¯s close friends who were telling him to stand up for himself suddenly remembered they had things to do elsewhere.

    ¡°This isn¡¯t a bad house Stone Fist has made for you Torger. That is as far as houses go. Of course we dwarves prefer to sleep in tunnels underground, but that would lead to secretive mining for gold. I¡¯ve been watching this village grow and thrive. Your dwarves are happy and are working hard. Tensions are low and production is high. You have a real knack for making policies that they want to follow.

    ¡°Kirsk has adopted your policies in Indio, and the prisoners are producing more iron ore than we hoped for. The dwarves that were under my leadership in Small Hammer and decided to move to Indio to get away from your rule are now following the same policies there, but are happy being led by another dwarf. Guntrink and Strong Arm are having difficulty producing enough gold to pay for all the iron ore. Blythe had nothing to offer, but they found they can grow the ingredients along the banks and make potions and are trading them for iron ore.If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

    ¡°But Strong Arm is struggling. The road you had built has sped up communication between us, so it¡¯s now a solid four day walk, and that has promoted more trade. But he doesn¡¯t have enough dwarves to keep the village running smoothly. We lost too many fighting the goblins. Will you go see if you can help him out? I don¡¯t know what you can do, but you see things from a different perspective than we do.¡±

    ¡°Sure Baybil. I¡¯ll leave in the morning.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I was hoping to hear. I¡¯m sorry to send you out as soon as you returned, but it¡¯s beneficial to have all four Cucamonga villages prospering.¡±

    Torger read between the lines. This was Baybil¡¯s first year as a tribal chief and he wanted a strong showing at the Council of Mayors in January. Torger also saw his Quests flashing. He opened it up and saw he already accepted the quest without knowing it.

    New quest from Baybil.

    Modesto is producing very little gold, and morale is low. Bring gold mining up to 2 pounds of nuggets per day for three days in a row, and bring morale up to 40/100.

    Reward: Ability to impose tariffs for increased tax revenue.

    Torger didn¡¯t know if he liked that reward, but he did need more money. He considered if starting a new tax was worth the hit to the morale in his village. He would have to sleep on it.

    Chapter 36

    Splitting Up

    In the morning the Regulators stepped out of the mayor¡¯s house. They used the common latrine, took a much needed bath, and headed for the kitchen. Dwarves were at the tables, but a young dishwasher told him that group¡¯s hour was almost up and then they could come in. Ten minutes later the ten dwarves left and the humans entered. They sat at the long common table, made to spaciously sit ten dwarves at a time. The benches and table were low, but it was the first time in weeks they didn¡¯t have to cook, and they got real food. There wasn¡¯t unseasoned venison or rabbit like they were used to, they had the dish Torger taught them how to make. Omelets.

    With the amount of food the kitchen was producing, he knew the farmers must be doing very well. They had to have plenty of chickens, goats and sheep, as well as wheat and barley to make the bread, and there were fresh oranges, apples, watermelon, and strawberries served too. If the dwarves were eating like this three times a day, it must be horribly stressful for all involved, but it also explained why the village morale had increased to 71/100 while he was gone. He decided to ask about it, so he called over a dishwasher.

    A child walked up. He looked nervous speaking directly to the mayor. ¡°Yes, sir, how can I help you, sir?¡±

    ¡°Relax Soft Hand. I want to know how much do you work in here each day?¡±

    ¡°We come in an hour before sunrise. The first dwarves, miners, arrive a few minutes before sunrise, and the whole village eats in one hour shifts. There are four shifts. Then we eat and clean up. Then we take a break for three hours, then start preparing dinner. The last group finishes an hour after sunset.¡±

    Torger added it up. ¡°Ten hours a day, and you don¡¯t serve lunch. I guess that¡¯s what I¡¯d expect of everyone every day. What do you want to do when you grow up?¡±

    ¡°I want to be a protector like my grandpa was!¡±

    Jex asked ¡°What¡¯s a protector?¡±

    ¡°They get real good with shields and axes, and become strong. Travelling merchants hire them to protect them while they walk from village to village. They get paid real good, and they get to see the land of Nuva every time it changes!¡±

    She said ¡°That sounds dangerous. Don¡¯t you want to be a miner like your dad?¡±

    ¡°No. That seems boring. Besides, I¡¯m not growing very fast. It¡¯s why they call me Soft Hands.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll grow up. You¡¯re still young. Maybe this year you¡¯ll hit a growth spurt.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s a growth spurt? Is that when you kill a lot of monsters in one week and gain three or four strength points?¡±

    Arden said jokingly ¡°It was a nice and normal conversation, then you had to go and make it weird.¡±

    The lad replied ¡°I really don¡¯t know what you guys are talking about. I¡¯m twenty-three years old. By now I should be training for a career.¡±

    ¡°Twenty-three!¡± They all thought he looked like a nine year old. Baybil had been walking in when Graul exclaimed the age.

    Baybil asked ¡°What¡¯s the conversation about?¡± He politely sat down and joined in, and tried to not make it awkward. They knew him well enough to know he missed normal conversations instead of always being revered by most villagers and talking about national affairs all the time.

    Everyone looked a little shy at his approach, except Torger and Arden. Torger was a mayor and had a good relationship with him, and Arden still had too much of an alpha male personality to cower down.

    Torger filled him in. ¡°We came to get breakfast, and I wanted to check up with a random villager, as I often do. I asked this kid to come talk to me and find out how many hours he works and what his plans are later in life. When you walked in we were surprised to find out he is twenty-three.¡±

    ¡°Yes, he is a little old to begin training. We dwarves start training for a career around twenty, fully start it around thirty, get married around forty. Remember, we live to be about three hundred. Unfortunately for Soft Hand, we haven¡¯t been near a good training ground for the last five years. He hasn¡¯t had a chance to grow any skills.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean by that? How do dwarves grow?¡±

    ¡°Just like elves and you. Our children grow until they look like Soft Hands, then a few adults take them out to hunt monsters level one to five. The kids get experience and invest into strength and stamina, or into specific careers. We have things you know about we can invest into: mining, cooking, weaving, farming, potion making, spell casting. We also have more¡­ elite dwarves who can make a career in other areas you don¡¯t know about. Maybe after the tyters terra form the land again, we can find a beginners area to get our children up and going.¡±

    Jex asked ¡°How many children need beginners training?¡±

    ¡°There are three in this village and one in Modesto. None in Indio, and two in Blythe.¡±

    Jex looked at Torger, then at Arden. She patted her back pack holding the hidden Bow.

    Arden said ¡°Baybil, what is training the children worth to you?¡±

    Jex interrupted ¡°Knock it off Arden. Baybil, we can take the kids to a place for training, unless you had plans for us Torger?¡±

    ¡°Actually, no. I¡¯m heading to see Strong Arm today. If the kid¡¯s parents say OK, take them for an extended trip.¡±

    Baybil was confused. ¡°What trip? What do you want to do with our children?¡±

    Torger tried to make the offer gently. ¡°Not anything their own parents wouldn¡¯t do, if they had the chance. Baybil, my friends and I know of a place where level five and six black simmets respawn once a week. Jex and Arden can take them, and let them get some experience, with adult supervision.¡±

    ¡°A simmet nest? That is a tremendous find! I will personally ask the parents and escort you to Modesto.¡±

    An hour later Guntrink had orders to make four teenage sized sets of armor, along with one handed battle axes and round shields. Quickly, the dwarf who taught the humans the basics of swordsmanship, heard about it and insisted on going along, and he added two teen-sized swords to Guntrink¡¯s order.

    The blacksmith and his apprentice worked well into the night, and the next morning six of the Regulators, Baybil, Quickly, and three young looking dwarves began the walk to Modesto. It didn¡¯t take them long to ask where Antic was, but Torger assured them he would be waiting for them in Long Beach.

    That first night Baybil and Quickly insisted the youngsters set up their own tents, and they struggled with it but only got verbal instructions and no physical help. It was obvious they had been helpers before, but Torger and Rome both recognized this for what it was. It looked a lot like Army basic training to Torger, and he pushed away his memories of it, and Rome did the same with his memories of Navy boot camp.

    The next two days Baybil and Quickly drove the kids hard and made them do everything for themselves. They learned how to set up their tents, take shifts on the night watches, cook, find water, read the terrain, keep a look out for enemies, look for potential caves and go on hunts. Two of the three dwarves were girls and their treatment was exactly the same. By the time they reached Modesto they each gained one strength and one stamina point.

    Along the way Jex played notes on her flute or lyre to keep them marching in lock step. Quickly insisted they learn how to move at the same time and know what the other was doing without looking at them. On Earth she had played a flute and guitar, and these wood instruments were just different enough that she had to relearn them, but her friends had been enjoying her singing and playing on long walks for the past year.

    It took Baybil very few words to convince the next parent to allow their sixteen year old son to begin his training a little early. A simmet nest was too good an opportunity to pass up. That child had been a temporary apprentice to Strong Arm in the blacksmith because the village didn¡¯t have enough dwarves. The loss would hurt his business, but he knew it was necessary. The two females were clothes washers, and Torger had to bring a miner out to help with the laundry. No one had volunteered, so he had to make his selection based on a game of Yahtzee from wood dice he had made a year earlier. The burly dwarf who came in last was more than upset about being sent to wash and fold clothes for the next three months, but as far as Torger was concerned everyone had an equal chance to not come in last.

    Torger stayed behind while the others began the long trip walking to Long Beach. He did not envy them having to find water once they got south of the Kern River in the middle of summer. He asked Strong Arm to give him a tour. Strong Arm seemed a little upset that Baybil had brought in another mayor to help him, but since he and Torger had been close for nearly a year, he could accept it.

    Torger asked ¡°How many dwarves do you have, how many are healthy adults, and how many are working in each position?¡±

    Strong Arm gave him a blank stare. ¡°There are thirty-one of us. One miner. Ten adult males in our prime.¡±

    Torger waited for him to continue, but saw that was all Strong Arm knew about the village census. ¡°OK, we have some basic work to do. Tonight call for a general meeting of all the villagers. Let¡¯s check out your buildings.¡±

    Strong Arm showed him a completed common house, a nearly completed kitchen, a half built brewery, and lastly Stone Fist and one dwarf were working on a half built Tavern.

    ¡°Where do they all sleep?¡±

    ¡°Twenty-five are in the common house, and six are in tents.¡±

    ¡°Oh. That¡¯s not good. You need to raise morale, then they¡¯ll work harder. Why is the kitchen close to being done, but not done?¡±

    ¡°I thought if we could get some ale going, that would boost morale.¡±

    ¡°I see. Why didn¡¯t you just buy ale from us?¡±

    Strong Arm looked shocked. ¡°You have enough ale to spare?¡±

    ¡°Not a lot, but some. How about food? Are they eating well?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. They¡¯re on their own for food.¡±

    Torger hid his face in his hands and slowly counted to ten trying not to lose his cool. ¡°We¡¯ll work on that. You said there are ten males in their prime. What are the other twenty-one?¡±

    ¡°Some are too old to mine or build buildings, three are too young to let go of their mother¡¯s dresses, and the rest are women.¡±

    ¡°Old and young men and women can still contribute something to the village. For starters, have those who are over two hundred and fifty watch the three kids who are under twelve. That will free up three mothers to do things like cook, weave, farm, or wash clothes, without also babysitting.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I guess that does make sense. I don¡¯t think about things like that Torger. I¡¯ve always been a do it yourself kind of guy and expect everyone to be the same way. I guess I¡¯ve been running the in reaction to Small Foot. I wanted to give everyone freedom that he took from us; give them the freedom to live how they want. But with everyone doing their own thing, there¡¯s no cooperation.¡±

    ¡°Not to worry my friend. I have the advantage of a technique used on my planet. It¡¯s called an assembly line. Everyone gets good at specific tasks, and then sells their services or goods for as much as possible. It keeps them motivated to contribute something high quality that others actually want. But overall, they¡¯re working to be efficient. The process needs oversight, but it works well. Let¡¯s get some food and spread the word about that general assembly tonight.¡±

    Before that night, Torger helped Strong Arm know what to say and what changes to make. The top priority was to get a more detailed census, then find out who wanted to do which jobs from a list.

    After dinner, all the dwarves sat around on the ground outside. Strong Arm asked them to separate by age groups, then he told the elders they would be in charge of taking care of the children. A few dwarves were surprised by his bluntness, because he had given very few direct orders as a mayor. Torger whispered in his ear to keep going.

    ¡°All the elders, over two fifty, and children twelve and under, gather over there to my left. Next, we need farmers. I need two volunteers to help Garnger with the crops and livestock, and to hunt one deer per day, a strong adult and one past his or her prime. OK not so many hands. You and you, go over there with Garnger. Next Stone Fist needs another helper, a strong adult. I need someone to be a weaver. All our clothes have ugly patches all over them. Thank you. Does anyone know how to make potions? Man or woman, young or old¡­¡±

    It took more than an hour, but everyone had a specific job to do instead of trying to do a little for themselves each day. Torger warned him it would be rough for the first few weeks while they adjusted, but once all the buildings were complete and the crops were growing things would become much simpler for him.

    Torger stayed and watched for three weeks. Two casks of ale had been bought from his own village and carried by the two village traders. That only lasted for the first week, but it improved morale enough to get things moving more quickly. At the end of three weeks, Stone Fist and his two assistants had completed the kitchen, tavern, brewery, and built a mayor¡¯s house. Living conditions were still cramped, and the weaver needed her own shack, but Torger got the morale up to 40/100. The first part of the quest was complete, then he asked Strong Arm to send Stone Fist and his two helpers into the mine. Stone Fist objected that they needed more buildings. Torger knew he was right, but his goal was to complete the quest then go back home. With the extra three dwarves, the six miners were just barely able to extract two pounds of gold per day for three days. Once the quest was complete, he advised Strong Arm to put two of them back onto making a second common house.

    As Torger was walking back to Home, with the latest full shipment of forty pounds of iron ore, he wondered how his friends were doing. Messengers going between the two villages had confirmed everything was fine at Home. Most importantly, he smiled to himself knowing Strong Arm could once again focus on making the next batch of shotgun shells. That had been Torger¡¯s hidden agenda all along, and it played out perfectly.

    When he got to Home, he used his reward and imposed a one copper coin tariff on every one silver worth of merchandise coming in and out. He figured they wouldn¡¯t grumble too much about a new one percent tax, but it did drop the morale from seventy-one to sixty-six.

 Long Beach

    Chapter 37

    Long Beach

    When the five humans and six dwarves came to Long Beach, the children were stronger and more scared. Their physical exercise brought their strength to three and endurance to forty-five, but they saw the four adults kill three grizzlies, six cottols, and two rocs along the way. The kids knew how to quickly set up and take down their tents, hunt, track, find and filter water, cook meat, set up night watches and actually stay awake, and best of all were the lessons with Quickly. They all knew how to properly hold a shield and short sword, and keep their footing balanced.

    To rub salt into his wounded ego, each night Quickly would have them spar against Arden. Neither had forgotten how poor of a student Arden had been more than a year earlier, and Baybil was amused to watch. By the time they arrived at Long Beach, all four children, and Arden too, had reached level four with one handed swords.

    When they got close, they saw four tents set up in the area. As they cautiously approached, Quickly cussed. ¡°I will not train here! We¡¯ve been tricked. Let¡¯s go home.¡±

    Antic walked out of the camp to greet them. ¡°Hi guys! We just arrived yesterday. Come meet your new classmates.¡±

    Baybil was angry but kept his cool. ¡°Antic, why did you bring elf children here to train? You know dwarves and elves don¡¯t get along.¡±

    Antic was expecting that response, but was still uncomfortable. ¡°Torger sent me to bring them here. He thinks if elf and dwarf children train together, their generation might end the hatred.¡±

    ¡°I doubt it. And what is she doing here?¡±

    Baybil was speaking of Edina, who was there obviously to train the four elf children. ¡°Hello Baybil. This is news to me too. Antic never told me you would be coming, or I never would have agreed.¡±

    They stared at each other until Brun said ¡°Let¡¯s at least try it. See how it works then talk about it again next week.¡±

    Tension was thick but Baybil ignored Edina and the humans. ¡°We dwarves will set up camp over there.¡± He pointed to a flat area a few hundred yards away.

    Antic said ¡°Aw Baybil, don¡¯t be like that.¡±

    But they walked off at a brisk pace and didn¡¯t look back. Edina came up to Jex. ¡°Torger sent some potions with Antic to buy these. Make them last.¡± She handed her six arrows with maple shafts and silver arrowheads. ¡°One shot will kill a simmet, but that¡¯s all you have. And remember, most elves and all dwarves don¡¯t know you have the Bow. Let¡¯s try to keep it that way.¡±

    Jex thanked her and accepted them. The humans set up their tents and all three groups set up their own night watches and cooked their own dinners, no group intermingling with the others. It seemed like southern segregation at its finest to all of them.

    In the morning Arden took on his suppressed leadership role. He walked away from his friends and headed to Baybil. ¡°I know you don¡¯t like this, but Torger might be on to something. Train with the elves today.¡±

    ¡°No. Quickly and I will train our own.¡±

    ¡°What if I get Edina to agree?¡±

    ¡°Ha! She would never agree.¡±

    ¡°If she does, come join us.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know Arden.¡±

    ¡°Promise me Baybil. We¡¯ve never wronged you.¡±

    ¡°OK. One day of training. If she agrees.¡±

    Arden walked to Edina. ¡°Hey, Baybil says he¡¯ll train with the elves if it¡¯s OK with you.¡±

    She looked at him with suspicion. ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound like something he would say. Baybil¡¯s not as bad as most dwarves, but even he wouldn¡¯t cross that line.¡±

    ¡°Just train with him. He¡¯s willing for one day. Use this one day opportunity. How long has it been since an elf and a dwarf fought side by side?¡±

    ¡°A couple hundred years as far as I know. Mmm, I guess. One day. That¡¯s it.¡±

    ¡°Great. I¡¯ll get everyone.¡±

    Twenty minutes later Arden was facing six angry dwarves, five angry elves, and five nervous humans. ¡°Good morning everyone. This is the spot where we gained a lot of ability points. To you eight children, you may each kill twenty-five black simmets for experience. That will give each one of you exactly six ability points.¡±

    None of them had ever earned one ability point, and they all tried to keep the smiles off their faces and not be happy while in the presence of their antagonizers. But the seed of joy had been planted, and Arden knew it¡¯s hard to hate someone you¡¯re having fun with and growing up with.

    ¡°Our first lesson is in finding them. Follow me.¡±

    As usual, it was Antic who spotted a half hidden simmet. Everyone was quiet as instructed, and Arden pointed it out to the children. As they were looking at it and getting close to the bank, they children crowded close together forgetting to keep their distance from those not of their kind. Brun and Jex were safely in the back and gave happily guilty looks at the dwarf and elf adults. They returned the smirks with scowls.

    Once ready, Arden cast Shield 2, surrounding the simmet. As expected, three others rushed out of the water at the group. Graul and Antic ran forward, easily killing two of them with a single swing of Inferno and thrust of Power Cord. The third one was hit with Slow 1 from Rome, and Ice 2 from Brun, and he cast it three times before it reached the bank. An arrow from Edina ended its life. Antic then walked to the one in the sphere shield that was thrashing about wildly, getting shocked over and over. He told the kids ¡°Watch how I do this.¡± In slow motion he thrust the spear into the snake mouth, through the alligator body, and out the snake tail.

    They dragged all four dead creatures to the shore and back to camp. It took them ten minutes to calm the kids down who were excitedly talking about getting experience and how cool it was they had 58/1000 exp for doing nothing. The walls were coming down, and all the adults could see it happening.

    Next Antic gave each one the same lesson Torger had given him. They had to use his spear to stab into the face, and lean a little forward without getting off balance. Quickly said ¡°Spears are not a weapon many dwarves use,¡± but Baybil immediately shushed him. He saw the point of Antic teaching the use of spears. Neither dwarves nor elves had the advantage using this unfamiliar weapon. The humans were bending over backwards to keep things fair and he thought it was genius.

    They all ate separately again that night, but the adults caught a few kids glancing at the other two camps.

    The next day was the same thing, with Antic teaching spear skills, except he found a copper coin in the stomach of one. The third day was time for a change. All the adults and kids were on the top of a bank. Jex borrowed Edina¡¯s bow, but by prior arrangement Jex had to leave her Bow back at camp, so it wouldn¡¯t become tainted and weakened by being in the presence of the inferior Bow of the Eagle that Edina used.

    Antic pointed at a half hidden simmet, and Jex shot it in the tail, intentionally not killing it. The other three rushed out and she shot and killed those in rapid succession. But Graul ran forward and used his shield to block bite attempt after bite attempt from the wounded simmet. After nearly a minute of him standing in the mud doing nothing but block, Jex shot it in the side and it died. They dragged the four bodies back to camp.

    Arden, still the leader of the human camp, addressed everyone. ¡°Alright kids, you saw what Jex and Graul did to that one simmet. You are going to practice the same thing on these four. I need one dwarf at the mouth of each simmet, pretending to block its bites. I need one elf to shoot the simmet with three arrows, without hitting the dwarf. Elves, move to the sides if you have to, or ask the dwarves to try to move to the side.¡±

    This was the moment of truth. Would dwarves and elves work together? Or would they end up attacking each other? The dwarf children stood in front of the simmets, and bashed their shields into the reptile faces over and over again. The elves began shooting arrows, but yelled and ordered the dwarves to get out of their way. Arden and Jex put a stop to it right away.

    They instead focused on one dwarf and one elf at a time, making the others watch. Arden helped the dwarves stay focused on the faces, but still listening for the elf requests. Jex helped the elves know not to shoot unless there was a clear shot, and to walk to the side left or right while keeping their arrows knocked. Occasionally if the dwarf was directly in the line of fire, she would say ¡°Step left¡± or ¡°Duck¡± or ¡°Fall Back.¡±

    The next day Brun cast Poison 2 and Arden encircled one with a Shield 2 spell. Graul cut off all their legs, then he and Antic made two trips, dragging the nearly dead simmets to camp, sharp teeth latched on to their steel bracers. Arden and Jex sent the dwarves to block the still squirming beasts, and the elves to kill them completely. The children had a much more somber attitude about actually killing a level five monster, when they were each only level one. But the dwarves used their shields, and the elves shot their arrows, and only the simmets died.

    That night Antic said ¡°Jex, Arden, we¡¯ve got another mission to accomplish. The other adults can help you injure and capture the simmets. I think they¡¯ll get along fine now.¡±

    ¡°What where are you going?¡±

    ¡°Torger wants us to investigate that rabbit hole again. See what¡¯s down there.¡±

    Arden said ¡°We know what¡¯s down there. The dwarves said it¡¯s crude oil and natural gas. Well, they described that although they don¡¯t know what it is. What¡¯s the truth Antic?¡±

    He looked at the other three who were going to go with him. He looked at Arden again. ¡°I can¡¯t shake the demons. I really wanted to kill a level eighteen, six foot tall rabbit, and I couldn¡¯t even get close. I begged Torger to let me try it again. He said that was completely my choice. If it didn¡¯t work out, I would respawn in Home anyway. He made me promise to make sure the kids would be safe before I left. The others think this training is boring, and want to go with me. Actually I asked them to come along. But you and Jex have this. You¡¯re doing great, and we¡¯re not learning anything. You don¡¯t need us anymore.¡±

    Arden looked at Jex. ¡°Yeah, we do make a great team. Based on how well the kids got along today, I don¡¯t think they¡¯re in danger.¡±

    ¡°Cool. I recommend cutting open every stomach, just in case there¡¯s another small ruby one day that could contain fire three.¡±

    They looked and saw elves in the elf camp openly staring at the dwarves in the dwarf camp, who were staring back. If not for the adults, they knew the kids would go talk to each other.

    The next morning they headed for Kellogg Hill, and made it just before sunset. Rome looked at Antic. ¡°Let¡¯s hope it goes better than it did last time.¡±

    Brun said ¡°It should. Yesterday, after casting ice two all week, I finally learned ice three, and I¡¯m almost at lighting three. I¡¯m going to need a lot more mana to use those spells effectively. Ice and fire three cost forty-five each, and I have eighty max. Ten more mana points and I can cast either one twice. Until then I¡¯ll use lighting two and poison two. I¡¯ve still got a ways to go to get to poison three.¡±

    They camped away from the cave mouth that night and entered the next morning. Antic still did not have Analyze 1, and he was walking in total darkness. Graul took the lead, and they came to the first intersection. They waited for the first Giant Mole to appear, but it never came. After five minutes, they chose to go straight ahead.

    The first mole ran at them. Graul shouted to Antic, and Graul blocked the sharp teeth with his steel shield. Rome cast Shield 1, and the mole was blocked, but it rammed its head into the shield twice before shattering it. But that gave enough light for Antic to see. He thrust Power Cord into its mouth, while Inferno cut off its front right leg. Lightning 2 hit it, and another thrust from Antic killed it.

    But two more came running down the tunnel. Antic couldn¡¯t see them, but he cast Slow 1, and in the narrow tunnel he couldn¡¯t miss. Graul took the brunt of the attack, and another Shield 1 from Rome and Lightning 2 from Brun slowed it down enough. Brun cast Lightning 2 at the other mole, and Rome cast a shield in front of it. That bought Graul and Antic enough time to finish off the first one, then turn their attention to the next one. They killed that easily too, and heard more coming at them.

    Brun said ¡°We need to leave. I¡¯ve used too much mana.¡±

    As they carefully retreated, they killed three more giant moles. When they made it outside, the moles didn¡¯t come into the sunlight. After an hour, Brun¡¯s mana was fully restored. Rome commented that killing those six moles gave them each fourteen hundred experience points. If they killed ten more, Antic could buy Analyze 1 and the clearing of the cave would go much faster.

    When they reentered, they saw two moles dragging away the corpses. Both stopped what they were doing and attacked. Shields, Lightning 2, Inferno, and Power Cord worked in tandem to take the rodents down. They retreated outside for twenty minutes until Brun¡¯s mana was full, and entered to find two more moles dragging away dead vermin.

    This went on for most of the day until Antic bought Analyze 1. Rome asked ¡°Do we keep going or call it a day? There¡¯s still a couple hours of sunlight left.¡±

    Antic was eager to try out his new spell, but he was outvoted. They went in search of water, but found none. They gathered wild strawberries and oranges and returned to camp. That night during his watch, Rome saw two distant giant rabbits staring at him. It seemed absurd, but they seemed to be sizing him up. They never came close.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

    The next day, with all four of them accepting the option to conquer the level 18 cave, Antic could finally see the grey outlines the others had been able to see. That allowed him to be much more aggressive in the tunnels, and they made a lot of progress. Many tunnels led to dead ends, and there were a handful of times that one of them got bit during the battles, but they all had Cure 1.

    After the seventh battle, as they cast cures on Rome who was bleeding from a clawed leg, Graul realized they were lost. Brun said ¡°We need to get back out. We¡¯re all low on mana.¡±

    The trouble was, there were so many turns and side tunnels they didn¡¯t know which way to go. Rome pulled up his Maps icon, but it only showed where they were when they entered the tunnel. Maps seemed to not work underground.

    They followed the trail of bodies, and had to fight a couple more moles before making it back outside. They had all completely exhausted their mana fighting the last pair of four foot tall moles. They set up a watch, and woke up with the sun.

    Graul said ¡°I¡¯ve got enough water to get in one more good drink around lunch time. How are you guys?¡±

    They said the same. He continued ¡°It¡¯s a full day walk back to Long Beach and the LA River. Do we need to leave?¡±

    Antic shouted ¡°No! We¡¯re so close guys. Let¡¯s not give up. Rome, what¡¯s our count?¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve killed thirty-seven. We have sixty-three left. Sorry Antic, we¡¯re not going to make it. We didn¡¯t have enough man power to get through the fights quickly. And we still have the rabbits to contend with. Maybe.¡±

    Antic dropped his head. He knew they couldn¡¯t get through all the moles without dehydrating. They would have to go back¡­ wait, go back to a river where there were friends and allies. ¡°Guys. We can do this. We need to get Jex, Arden, Edina, Quickly, and Baybil. They¡¯ve been training on how to work together. This is real life practice!¡±

    Chapter 38

    Teamwork

    They left early the next morning and made it back with plenty of sunlight. They arrived in time to see young dwarves blocking with shields and swinging their axes at four full grown simmets, while the elves moved left and right looking for clean shots. All the adults stood by, with weapons at the ready, but were giving no instructions.

    A few minutes later the last simmet died, with three arrows in its side and several slashes to its face. The final blow had come from the youngest dwarf, at sixteen years old who looked like an eight year old. He swung his axe in a high overhead swing bringing it down on the snake head. Quickly ran over to him and started berating him for not keeping his weapon close to his body with a strong grip. Rome started to protest but Graul whispered that the dwarf sword master was right. Even though it worked that time, a quick head movement from the simmet could have sent the axe flying out of his hand.

    Baybil gave a slight nod of approval to the elf children, but Edina did not return it to the dwarves, and Quickly scowled at everybody. They broke off to go to separate camps, but Rome rushed forward.

    ¡°Wait! We have a mission. The tunnels are more difficult than we expected, and we ran out of water. Let¡¯s join up and go kill bigger monsters!¡±

    Two dwarf children and one elfa smiled at the idea, but all the adults began shouting it down. To Rome¡¯s surprise, Arden was the loudest. ¡°No. They¡¯re not ready for that, and they can¡¯t be left alone while we go into the tunnels. Not gonna happen guys. Sorry.¡±

    Antic deflated like a Brady football. He still hadn¡¯t seen one of the rabbits up close. The humans went to the river to begin filtering the muddy water. They strained it through a wool rag, then another wool rag, then brought it to camp to boil it. It still tasted just as bad as the first time they were there. Brun volunteered to cook the deer, and Rome headed to the beach to look at Catalina in the sunset. Since there wasn¡¯t a cloud in the sky, it wasn¡¯t a postcard worthy scene. He returned to camp.

    ¡°Remember making the raft? It took a week, and we didn¡¯t make it a mile out to sea before getting attacked. How strong do you think those sanglers are now?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. I would guess level eighteen, if they came at level one and gain a level a month. But the one that attacked us was strong. Maybe they grow faster.¡±

    Rome responded ¡°That¡¯s a scary thought Graul. Do you think we could make it now?¡±

    ¡°Maybe. But you¡¯ve been there already. We have nothing to gain. What¡¯s on your mind?¡±

    ¡°Nothing specific. Maybe I could repair the device and get it to send us home.¡±

    Antic perked up. ¡°That would be great. Let¡¯s try it again guys!¡±

    Arden said ¡°If you could get it to work, great. But what did you see when you were there? You told us it was a standard shield, and a mostly empty room.¡±

    ¡°Yeah. There were glass tubes where I think the tyters enter at. The only other thing was a place to put my hand, well, a tyter hand, to get teleported away. And the screen said it was broken.¡±

    ¡°If it¡¯s broken, maybe the tyters won¡¯t be able to get here.¡±

    Graul said ¡°That would be nice, but if they can figure out how to travel to a different planet in a few seconds, they can figure out how to reboot the computer.¡±

    Rome said ¡°That¡¯s it! Maybe it just needs a reboot! Maybe there¡¯s a panel hiding a reset button!¡±

    Brun looked at him with disdain. ¡°Rome, you¡¯re a pretty smart guy. That has got to be the stupidest thing I¡¯ve heard you say.¡±

    Rome was embarrassed, so he hid it with anger. ¡°I¡¯ll show you! I¡¯ll go and have a better look around. It was dark and rainy when I was there.¡±

    Before anyone could respond, for the first time Rome went to Spells then selected Teleport 2. A list of ally villages appeared: Calico (abandoned), Small Hammer (abandoned), Indio (dwarf), Home (Antic), Home (Arden and Jex), Parker (abandoned), Blythe (dwarf), Carson City (abandoned), Reno (Elf), Sequoia (Elf), Yosemite Valley (Elf), Catalina (Tyter), Yuma (Tyter), Home (Torger- respawn point).

    What? He couldn¡¯t believe it. He could teleport to Catalina. Which meant that with thirty more mana points, he could teleport his friends there using Teleport 3. He was too excited and forgot to tell his friends what he was cheering about. Finally Brun got him to calm down enough to say what he was all giddy about.

    Once they understood, they all desperately wanted to get Teleport 2 for themselves. But without thinking what he was doing, Rome said ¡°Catch ya on the flip side losers!¡± He teleported to Catalina and found himself in the same entry room. He looked around for a hidden panel covering a red reset button. After several minutes, he gave up hope. Then he realized his predicament that there were no teleport points close to Long Beach. Sighing with the knowledge that he once again failed, he teleported to Home.

    Those near the beach were stunned for a few seconds. Arden finally said ¡°I hope he can fix it.¡±

    But the possibilities had been established. If they could learn Teleport 2, that would save them days of walking. Rome, Antic, Graul and Brun had each earned over 8000 exp points from killing the thirty-six Giant Moles. Antic had bought Analyze 1, and still had four ability points left, and the others had all of their points. The discussion got Arden and Jex excited to go get ability points for themselves, and specifically to buy Teleport 1 for six ability points, and Teleport 2 for another ten points.

    As they were discussing these things, all the dwarves and elves walked up. Baybil started. ¡°We saw Rome disappear in a green flash. I was told he had that spell, but why did he go back to Home?¡±

    Antic said ¡°He didn¡¯t go to Home, he went to Catallluuhh somewhere else.¡±

    ¡°Somewhere else? Does he have that spell too? It can¡¯t be.¡±

    Edina said ¡°I¡¯ve never used analyze three on him. Is it true? Can any of you teleport?¡±

    Arden said ¡°We all have the option to buy teleport one. None of us have, so I don¡¯t know if we could buy teleport two or not.¡±

    The kids looked confused, and an elf asked ¡°What¡¯s teleport?¡±

    Edina answered ¡°It is a rare spell among elves, and it seems to be rare among dwarves too. It allows you to travel from any place to your home village in seconds, without having to walk. What Rome just did, no one has seen that among elves in a few decades.¡±

    Baybil admitted ¡°It¡¯s been over a hundred years since I talked to a dwarf that could teleport to an ally village. Why didn¡¯t you guys buy that spell and use it, instead of walking all over the land? You could have saved yourselves months of travelling. You could become rich travelling merchants.¡±

    Arden responded with an edge to his voice, looking at Edina and Baybil, ¡°Up until a few months ago, we didn¡¯t have allies.¡± They looked away from his accusatory stare.

    Jex tried to smooth things over. ¡°We¡¯re going to a tunnel to get experience to buy teleport one. You should come with us.¡±

    All three adults declined, saying they had to keep training the children. But they all looked envious of the chance to go get easy experience.

    The next morning the humans left to go to Kellogg Hill. When they got there Brun reminded them ¡°Remember, the Giant Moles respawn here seven days after they were killed. It is now four days since we killed the first group of sixteen. Let¡¯s kill another sixteen before bed tonight, and we¡¯ll have fifty-one left for tomorrow.¡±

    They all cast Analyze 1, and accepted Yes to conquering the level 18 cave. Jex had kept the Bow of Artemis the Huntress hidden for the weeks they had been with the dwarves, but when she held it while entering the cave, it felt great in her hand. She said ¡°I only have six arrows that can withstand this Bow, and they will each break on impact. So, six shots in total.¡±

    That was bad news for everyone. Chances of dying were high for everyone, so Brun and Graul bought Teleport 1, leaving each of them with two ability points. The plan was for Arden to cast Shield 2 on the first mole, and he would have enough mana left to cast it twice more if things got bad. Jex would keep Haste 1 on everyone, Brun would cast Lightning 1 as many times as he could, Graul would block a mole with his shield, and Antic would keep shoving Power Cord at any other moles in the area.

    The plan worked great. The first mole slammed into the shield surrounding it twice to shatter it, but that delay allowed Antic to position himself closer and shove the steel spear through its heart. Graul blocked the next one with his steel shield, and Brun hit it twice with Lightning 1. Graul finished it while it was stunned from electric shock by stabbing through its eye. They got a little break before more came. Brun cast Lighting 1 at one, and Arden slowed down another with Shield 2.

    Arden wished he could make his shields stronger like the elves could. Edina had taught the elf kids they could spend ability points to make shield one, two and three stronger with more resistance before breaking, or add elemental spells to their shields. She had demonstrated by surrounding a simmet with Shield 2, and when it rammed the shield it was hit with Lightning 1, Fire 1, and Ice 1, just like an improved village shield. But humans didn¡¯t have that option with their magic shields, and based on Quickly¡¯s rude reaction, neither did dwarves.

    They exited the tunnel, and Brun proudly announced that with his next Lightning 2 spell, he would learn Lightning 3. The sun was setting when they re-entered. When they came to the first intersection, they saw the bodies began piling up, and other moles were not removing them quickly enough. They chose to go to the right. At the next intersection, three Giant Moles attacked them at the same time. Arden trapped two with Shield 2, but that only held them for a few seconds before they broke free.

    Antic easily killed the third, but took a nasty claw swipe to the back of his leg from the first mole to break out of the shield. Brun kept casting Lightning 2, hitting one three times, but it was still alive enough to crawl toward Jex. She shot one of the arrows, killing it, while Graul finished the one Brun had damaged. They each had to cast Cure 1 once to bring Antic back up to nearly full health, then left the cave. Even though Antic had a max health of 500 instead of the initial 100, Cure 1 still only recovered 15 health with the aid of a silver staff, 17 from Rome and Brun who got the ten percent bonus from the mage¡¯s tunic. It took a lot more Cure 1¡¯s to cure Antic, but without the higher health he would nearly die in every battle with the moles.

    They set up camp and went to bed tired and hungry. In the morning, Arden addressed them. ¡°We need to save Jex¡¯s arrows. Everyone is doing a good job, and Brun, now that you have lightning three, focus on casting poison two. What does it cost you?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s twenty-four mana, so I can cast it three times and still have eight left over. It will take sixteen minutes after I cast the first one, before I could cast it a fourth time, then we would need to exit for eighty minutes.¡±

    ¡°Eighty minutes is a long break, and we need to kill a lot more of these things. Who has ideas?¡±

    No one had answers, so they had to settle for four groups of moles then retreat. Fortunately for them, the dead moles had been cleared out during the night. Another bonus was that the moles seemed to attack in groups of three, and Brun¡¯s Poison 2 spell affected three moles. He cast it the first time, and Arden trapped one in Shield 2, while Graul and Antic took on the weak other two. The mole¡¯s strength was still around 14, plenty strong to do a lot of damage, but their lower max health meant that the sword and spear penetrated more easily and did more damage. The three moles fell quickly, as did the next three groups of them. When they turned around to exit, they were further into the tunnels than they ever had been. They got lost a few times, and had to follow the trail of dead bodies.

    After more than an hour break, they re-entered. As they walked through, no moles were seen anywhere. They marked the floors and walls with scratches, to show them where they had been, and walked through many turns and intersections, but found nothing. Nearly an hour later, they saw a distant light. As they came closer, they saw that it was sunlight. They exited, and saw they were a mile away from the entrance closest to the beach.

    They walked back into the tunnels, looking at every possible intersection for an idea of where to go next. Antic lowered his spear as he walked, but Brun told him to get it back in a fighting position. There were supposed to be thirty-nine moles left, along with a big rabbit.

    After a half hour of aimless wandering, Arden saw drag marks in the dirt floor. He told them to follow it. After a couple more turns, more drag marks showed up. It looked like the living moles had dragged the dead bodies that way. They followed it for another ten minutes, then had to stoop down into a four foot tunnel, exactly the size of a Giant Mole. They walked in a half-squat sort of way for twenty feet before it opened up again. When they emerged, they were standing on a dirt shelf looking down into a huge cavern. It was just like the cavern the queen goblin had been in; an eighty foot sphere. At the center in the bottom were five four foot tall jackrabbits. Several feet behind them were two adult six foot tall jackrabbits. Surrounding the bunny family were the missing thirty-nine living moles, but the truly disturbing part was watching all the rabbits devouring the flesh of dead moles. Most had been picked clean, but sixteen were left untouched- the sixteen infected with Poison 2. The jackrabbits looked at them and bore their wickedly sharp teeth.

    Along the edges of the bottom of the cavern were tar pits, with a few dead moles decaying in them. It would take another two days for the bodies to disappear then respawn in the tunnels. As they watched, two of the skeletons disappeared without warning. Those must have been killed exactly one week earlier. From the fighting in the tunnels that day, Antic made it to eight ability points. He bought Analyze 2 and cast it at a rabbit parent.

    Giant Jackrabbit. Level 18. Health 400/400. Mana 0/0 Strength 8 Stamina 100/100. Elemental weakness: None

    Note: Beware of Giant Jackrabbits. They can jump 50 feet, and have fangs!

    Antic called out the stats as he read them. When he read the note, Arden yelled ¡°Run!¡±

    Brun cast Fire 1 at the mole nearest to the tar. Its fur caught on fire and it lit the tar on fire. Thick black smoke filled the cavern as the fire spread, but they didn¡¯t stay to watch. They ran back into the small tunnel made for Giant Moles, and all the vermin ran at them, climbing up the steep dirt walls. The young rabbits jumped up almost to the dirt shelf in a single bound, and began quickly tunneling their way into the dirt.

    As the Regulators ran through the tunnels, the moles ran after them, but going in all different tunnels along the way. Antic was leading the retreat, but turning down different tunnels at random. Then they came across a Giant Mole that ran into the next intersection in front of them. Antic slowed to spear it, and his momentum allowed him to kill it in the single thrust, but it slowed them all down for his attack, and brought them to a complete stop while he extracted his spear. Then they had to all climb over the beast, but before Arden (who was bringing up the rear) could climb over, more moles ran at them from the sides of the intersection.

    Graul and Antic fought and killed the first two, but more came from every direction. Jex used her remaining five arrows, each shot killing a mole, while Brun used the last of his mana on Poison 1 and Arden used the last of his on Shield 2. Arden yelled ¡°We¡¯re going to die! Spend your ability points!¡±

    As he was yelling that, the young rabbits tunneled into the intersection they were standing in. Two dropped out of the dirt ceiling, and three came up through the floor. The moles backed away, and the five rabbits each jumped at a different human. Graul blocked with his shield and countered with Inferno, stabbing deep into its side. Antic thrust his spear and impaled the one jumping at him. It died instantly. Arden and Jex each had four ability points, and Brun had six. They all bought the first thing they could as quickly as they could: Mana. Each one of them got bit in the neck and futilely pushed and punched at the rabbits.

    Antic got knocked down from the back by a Giant Mole who began biting him. Antic was much stronger and pushed it off, but two more each bit a thigh and Antic died a slow and painful death as his blood pumped out of his femoral arteries. Graul swung Inferno again, slicing off a leg of the rabbit, but he too was attacked by three moles at once. He valiantly swung his sword and blocked with his shield as he laid on the dirt floor dying.

 Revenge

    Chapter 39

    Revenge

    They all appeared in the mayor¡¯s house of Home. This time all five of them were angry. Antic hated pain, and that had been his worst death. Arden hated he had failed to protect his wife Jex, Brun hated he just found out his max mana was 100, Graul hated he just lost six unused ability points, and Jex hated she just lost the Bow.

    But before they could all get in a proper yell and cuss, the Bow reappeared next to Jex, in its black velvet case. She was stunned. When Yiloding gave it to her, he didn¡¯t tell her it would return to her, and would never be more than two hundred feet from her without reappearing at her feet. Everyone was in too much awe of the magical properties of the Bow to care about anything else. All their anger dissipated. But it became awkward when they were all standing in the mayor¡¯s house completely nude when Torger, Rome, and Guntrink all rushed in with weapons drawn ready to kill.

    When they saw the situation, Torger explained ¡°As a mayor, I sense intrusions into whatever dwarf village I¡¯m in. I sensed five angry assassins just enter the house. You all have murder in your hearts. What happened?¡±

    Jex tried to cover herself up with her hands, then ran to her room, and the men said they would be right back and went to get clothes on. A few minutes later when they came out wearing bed sheets, Graul explained.

    ¡°We tried to eliminate the Giant Moles. I¡¯m sure Rome filled you in on what happened when he returned here. We were doing great with the moles, but there¡¯s this family of huge killer bunnies that got us.¡±

    Torger looked skeptical. ¡°Those huge six foot rabbits are serious enemies? Really guys? What actually happened?¡±

    Graul continued ¡°No seriously. We didn¡¯t get to fight the six footers, we were taken out by their kids, the four footers. With some help from the moles. I know that sounds ridiculous, but we need a lot more firepower.¡±

    Torger answered ¡°No. You need to be helping the dwarves and elves get along. We need them as allies. Your side trip into the cave didn¡¯t work out, but that¡¯s not the most important thing. Jex and Arden, you need to go back and make sure the dwarves and elves aren¡¯t killing each other.¡±

    Arden argued ¡°That¡¯s a problem Torger. We all just lost all of our gear. We have no weapons or armor.¡±

    Torger took an exasperated sigh. ¡°Rome told me about your arrows Jex, and I¡¯ve had Guntrink working on making us more armor. But we¡¯ve got a long ways to go. We¡¯re not going to be able to take on that cave again for a while. When Rome returned, he had eight unused ability points, and spent them all on mana. He can now send five of us to any ally village.¡±

    They looked on with disbelief, and Rome had to explain what Teleport 3 does. Torger continued ¡°I¡¯ve turned Rome into a travelling merchant. Every day he teleports to Indio to pick up iron ore, then to Rich Fields to sell some of it to Strong Arm, then here to give the rest to Guntrink. His travelling has kept four dwarves of Indio from walking those trips over and over again, saving us money on purchases. The iron is coming in so quickly, we didn¡¯t have enough gold to keep up with the purchases, so I had to sell all of our potions to Kirsk. But the benefit is both Guntrink and Strong Arm have been working on a special project for me. Guntrink, would you get one of these items?¡±

    Guntrink left and came back a few minutes later. They all watched as he slowly and with pride withdrew a cloth bundle from a magic back pack, then handed it to Jex. She unwrapped it and stared in disbelief. It was an arrow, with roc feathers as usual, but the shaft was steel, and the arrowhead was refined gold.

    Torger beamed with pride. ¡°Both gold mines are doing well. Morale is up in both villages, our borders are safe, and production is high. Rome when you make your trips tomorrow, will you ask the weavers in the other villages to make clothes for our friends? And they¡¯ll need leather to go under their new steel armor.¡±

    He looked at Guntrink. ¡°When can you have new sets done?¡±

    ¡°Since supply isn¡¯t a problem anymore, between me and Strong Arm we could be done in eight days.¡±

    ¡°Great. In eight days you can go take your revenge.¡±

    Graul said ¡°That might be a problem. Antic and I still need weapons.¡±

    Guntrink said ¡°The eight days includes a steel spear, shield and sword. But they won¡¯t have the added magic bonus that you had before.¡±

    They accepted the situation for what it was.

    The Regulators were bored for a week. Torger kept busy running the village, Rome made his daily trades, and Jex tested out her new arrows. As powerful as the Master Bow was, the shafts didn¡¯t break on impact like the billik legs had, and by having gold arrowheads they doubled the power of the three magic spells. Even a glancing blow with one of the arrows would cause ninety-six damage points to a target from the magic alone. She told Torger the design was genius. The problem was gold is soft, and each arrowhead would be blunted after the first shot, and when she retrieved it and shot it again, it would completely dull the arrowhead. But between Strong Arm and Guntrink, they had made twenty-nine of the arrows.

    After eight days had passed, Torger came to present them with their new clothes, armor and weapons. Talk about serious upgrades! Antic¡¯s spear had become a halberd, Rome and Brun were given gold staffs, and Torger had a new mace for himself. It wasn¡¯t as good as Red Fury had been, but it was the first time he had a weapon of his own in months. He also received a steel shield. He was used to a two handed sword, not a mace and shield, but he did OK with them. Arden received sixteen shotgun shells, and Torger said the production from mines had been very good. Antic stayed behind while Rome cast Teleport 3 on the others.

    They arrived in Small Hammer. The shield was still up, and the caves looked undisturbed. An hour and a half later Antic appeared, and ten minutes later Rome appeared. The five Regulators began walking to Kellogg Hill once again. They knew all the Giant Moles had respawned by then, but this time they were ready for what they faced.

    They entered the tunnel the next morning at daybreak. When they made it to the first intersection they were attacked by two moles. Two shots from Jex ended their lives in a hurry. They worked their way through the tunnels, Jex doing most of the damage, and Antic taking a little too much joy in his revenge on the rodents. The halberd prevented deep thrusts, but that also allowed him to more quickly extract the spear point and stab again. The axe came in handy for chopping off legs, but the hook had no use against the vermin.

    Torger struggled getting used to the mace and shield, and did more blocking than beating, but by the end of the day he was at level nine with clubs. That was poor compared to his level eleven with one handed swords and level thirty-three with two handed swords.

    Jex had finally reached level fifty with bows and her shots with the Bow became fast, fluid and powerful. The magical properties of the Bow doubled arrow accuracy and speed and allowed her to see in the dark. She looked like she could rival the Greek goddess.

    When they had killed fifty-five moles, they exited the caves. It was dark outside and they were tired but happy. Fifty-five was the number Rome had set before they started, because that meant everyone but himself and Torger had maxed out on killing Giant Moles. When they were outside they saw that each of them had gained seven ability points on the day. They all invested it into health, except Antic who was already maxed out at 500. He bought Cure 2. Graul, Arden and Jex hit their max of 500, and spent the last one on stamina. Torger and Rome were tied as the weakest ones of the group, but they were the only ones who would be gaining experience when they killed the next forty-five moles the following day.

    In the morning they didn¡¯t make it far when they were attacked by three moles. Everything had been working exactly as it had the first time they fought in the caves, and they knew where they were going to get attacked next, which made it easy to get through everything so quickly. There were no surprises, and after killing the next group of three they moved on to the giant cavern. Just as it had been before, there were thirty-nine moles and two rabbit parents, and five rabbit kids, at four feet tall. These indigenous monsters were too predictable. They didn¡¯t seem to breed and grow stronger like the prey did, but it was easy experience.

    Standing on the dirt ledge, Brun cast Fire 3 at a parent. Its fur caught on fire, and four fireballs shot out hitting four of the kids whose fur caught on fire. They jumped toward the group, but two came too close to the tar pit and caught it on fire. As the moles rushed them and kids jumped at them Jex got three arrows away killing three moles, and Arden fired five shots, severely injuring five moles.

    Then they turned and ran. They were expecting the chase so they ran to the longest narrow tunnel they had seen. The moles had to attack one at a time, which Jex shot one at a time until there was a complete blockage on that side. Arden shot the ones on the other side of the tunnel until there was a blockage there. As expected the living moles began removing the bodies while the young rabbits burrowed into their area of the tunnel.

    Graul and Torger kept two occupied with their shields, and Antic kept stabbing one in the face with the halberd. Brun cast Poison 2 at one of them, and the spell made three of them get sick and lose half their max health and stamina, and lose one health point every four seconds. Then he cast Poison 2 again and all the rabbits were sick. Rome kept casting Shield 1 between Jex and the rabbits, and she and Arden were ready for more moles to appear.

    Graul, Torger and Antic kept getting scratches, but their high health made it so the damage was weak. Brun cast Poison 1 once at the end of the tunnel on Arden¡¯s side, infecting three moles on that side that were coming at them. Jex had three on her side and she and Arden dropped those six, and Arden reloaded his last three shots. Jex saw she still had twenty-three arrows. Survival would be up to her.

    Brun was nearly out of mana and knew he had nothing more to contribute. Arden saw the two unchallenged rabbits breaking through Rome¡¯s last shield, and he was out of mana. Arden killed those two rabbits with shots, then turned and shot the one that had pounced on Torger and was trying to bite through his armor.

    Jex shot the two who were fighting Antic and Graul. Those rabbits died and both men were bloody. Arden, Antic, Graul, and Torger began casting Cure 1 on themselves while Jex alternated shooting the incoming Giant Moles.

    The process took six minutes. After two minutes she had run out of arrows and the three armored men fought the remaining moles. When it was over, all three were at ten stamina, two strength, and a hundred health. They sat around for an hour waiting for mana to recharge and casting Cure 1¡¯s. But their Strength and stamina were recovering too slowly to take on the parent rabbits. Torger had mixed emotions about selling all of their potions. They really needed the potions then, but if he hadn¡¯t traded them away they wouldn¡¯t have armor and would all be dead. They had no choice but to go out and sleep.

    The fighting of moles allowed Torger and Rome to each gain six more ability points, and killing the five young rabbits gave each of them another 570 exp. Torger and Rome spent all their ability points on strength, bringing them both to twenty.

    Rome couldn¡¯t explain why he had done that. He was a white mage and hadn¡¯t been involved in hand to hand combat in a year. But he was tired of being a weakling in the group and wanted to hold his own. His contribution in casting many Shield 1¡¯s for months had finally paid off and he learned Shield 2, and Brun had learned Poison 3. They were confident and prepared when they entered the cave the next day.

    They walked past dozens of dead Giant Moles along the way to the cavern. When they arrived the tar fire was out and the rabbit fur was restored. The parents sat in the center of the circle watching them. Jex took up her Bow and shot at one. It had a lot of confidence in being able to hop out of the way of an arrow from the one hundred foot distance, but it underestimated the speed of the Bow of the Hawk feature of the Master Bow. The arrow hit its hind leg before it cleared away far enough. The gold arrowhead amplified the three spells, and although the gold was blunted, it took off a third of the total health. That enraged both of them and they hopped half way up the dirt incline in a second.

    They were close enough for Brun to cast Poison 3, and both rabbits were surrounded by a thick black cloud. They both quickly hopped out of the cloud, but the damage had been done. Their max health was cut to a third of the original 400, and they crapped liquid pellets. The description of Poison 3 told Brun it infected three targets with dysentery and cut their max health to 1/3 of the original.

    The next mighty jump made one land on Jex, right after it took an arrow to the heart. Its heavy bulk came down on her hard, and even though it was dead before it reached her, the weight crushed her. She felt ribs crack and broke her left arm trying to brace her fall. The other one had aimed for and landed on Brun, who had caused them so much damage. He had the same results as Jex, but the one that landed on him was still alive.

    Torger, Graul, and Antic ran at it, while Arden tried to free Jex and Rome tried to free Brun. The living rabbit bit Brun in the neck, killing him instantly, then hopped away before Rome could push it, and then down to its original position at the bottom. The five healthy men rolled the dead rabbit off Jex, and saw she was struggling to breathe. They all cast Cure 1 on her, and her ribs snapped back to their original positions, but her ulna was still poking out of her arm.

    They each cast Cure 1 on her again, and the bone went back into the skin but didn¡¯t fully mend the break. By then the rabbit had sensed the two dangerous humans were no longer a threat and hopped at the group again. Torger and Graul saw it coming, and shouted for everyone to watch out, but the rabbit was too fast. They blocked it with their shields but it wasn¡¯t aiming for them. It landed on Arden¡¯s back who was trying to console Jex. It knocked him down, bit him on the back of the neck, then turned and bit Jex¡¯s neck before anyone could react quickly enough.

    The sick and injured rabbit underestimated the biggest and strongest human¡¯s speed. Antic thrust the halberd at its back leg before it hopped away. It made it down the incline and back to its starting point, but it was injured and moving more slowly.The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

    Torger watched the Bow disappear a few seconds after Jex disappeared. There were four left against an injured bunny. Surely this couldn¡¯t be so hard, right?

    They looked down the incline, and it looked very steep. Rome tried casting Shield 2 at it, but it was too far away. Antic looked at the predicament- they couldn¡¯t get to it, and it was healing and curing at the same time by eating a mole. If they waited long it would be at full health again. Antic walked to the edge and tumbled down the dirt slope. He got up and rushed the rabbit.

    Graul and Rome followed, but Torger couldn¡¯t overcome his acrophobia. He watched from near the wall as the rabbit jumped out of the way of Antic. He chased it, and it turned and pounced back at him. Antic held his halberd firmly, and it impaled itself through a front leg. Antic got knocked down and the rabbit bit him on the neck.

    As Antic was dying, Rome cast Shield 2 at it, surrounding it. It slammed into the shield and was punished with a Lightning 1 spell, then slammed at it again shattering it. But by then it was too late for the rabbit. Graul had crossed the distance and drove his sword into the good back leg, all the way to the hilt. He let go when it turned to bite him, and blocked with his shield, then Rome cast Shield 2 at it again.

    When it broke free, Rome cast Slow 1, and Graul cast Shield 1 in front of himself. The rabbit jumped over the shield, and Graul ducked and turned to run. But as he did he saw Torger throw his mace down into the pit. Rome saw it too, and again cast Shield 2. He was out of mana after that spell, and he had no weapon and no way to get out of the pit. Graul would kill it or they would all die.

    Graul picked up the mace as he heard the magic shield crack. He guessed the sucker had to be close to dead, with Brun¡¯s Poison 3, Graul¡¯s sword in its back leg, a stab wound in a leg from Antic¡¯s halberd, and three Lightning 1 spells. He took a huge risk he was unsure about. He dropped his steel shield and held the mace like a baseball bat. Just as he got the proper grip he swung as hard as he could. The rabbit jumped at Graul. The timing was perfect, and the rabbit¡¯s bared fangs were broken off from the ten pounds of spiked steel. The rabbit got its face turned away from the impact, but its body slammed into Graul. He got knocked backwards several feet.

    Graul lay on his back, barely breathing from a cracked rib and collar bone. He began to cast Cure 1 on himself, but saw the rabbit twitching. It looked semi-conscious like he was, and the winner would be the first one to get back to his feet. Graul pointed at the rabbit and cast the strongest spell he had, Lightning 1. It did little damage to the rabbit. Graul thought they were going to lose, but through blurry vision he saw Rome, wearing no armor and a simple mage¡¯s cloak, run at the rabbit with Graul¡¯s round shield. The white mage picked up the shield over his head and brought the edge down as hard as he could on the rabbit¡¯s skull. It stopped twitching, and Rome grinned ear to ear knowing he had won in a battle.

    Chapter 40

    Tensions

    Rome checked his Experience and saw he gained an ability point from fighting the two rabbits, which meant Torger had too. But it did him no good waiting for three more minutes while watching Graul lay on the ground in pain. After three minutes Rome had regained enough mana to cast Cure 1, and Graul had done the same for himself. Four minutes later they both cast it again, while Graul held Brun¡¯s gold staff.

    Meanwhile Torger went to their camp and brought back the duffle bag and two back packs they had left. He brought out the rope and tied one end around himself and threw the rest down. He called down ¡°Search the area for hidden treasure, and our stuff should be in here too! Then I¡¯ll pull you up.¡±

    Rome and Graul searched the area and found their equipment buried in the loose dirt. They kept looking, hoping there was something more to the pit than just crude oil. The fumes were nauseating. During the fight they were too focused on survival, but after a couple minutes of rest their eyes and lungs were burning. On a hunch Graul checked the area where the parents kept returning to. He dug in the dirt and found it was not compacted like the rest of the floor. He dug some more and exclaimed ¡°This makes no sense at all!¡±

    Rome came over and looked where Graul was digging. There were two giant, multi-colored eggs buried under the ground. He said ¡°Easter bunnies? Really? This place is crazy!¡±

    When they lifted the one foot eggs out of the hole, Graul called up to Torger, ¡°Should we break them open?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. I don¡¯t see why not.¡±

    Graul grabbed Inferno. His sword felt good in his hands again. He swung and hit the egg. The shell cracked, and he started pulling pieces of it away. When he removed most of the shell, he reached in and pulled out the treasure. He held it up for Torger to see, and Torger couldn¡¯t believe it. It was a huge containment stone glowing purple. He asked them to open the other egg, and it also had a purple containment stone.

    They searched the area for another hour, but found nothing. Then Torger pulled up Graul, then Rome using the rope. They walked out of the tunnels, then agreed Rome could walk back in to claim it for himself. When he did, he got an internal map of it and had to activate each shield of five separate entrances. They camped for the night just inside the cave so they wouldn¡¯t have to set up a night watch. That didn¡¯t work because the magic shields were trapping in the fumes and the caves began filling with natural gas. Rome shut off the shields and they walked to each entrance stacking stones in front of them, with small gaps to allow air to flow through. It was around midnight by the time they were done.

    In the morning they began the walk back to Long Beach. There was still plenty of sunlight when they arrived to the scene of Edina yelling at Baybil and Quickly yelling at Edina.

    Torger walked up and asked ¡°What happened? Things were going great from what I was told.¡±

    Quickly yelled at Torger. ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing? Who do you think you are? You¡¯re no god to be screwing up people¡¯s lives! Get out of our business and stay out!¡± He stormed off.

    Torger turned to Baybil for help, but he had a deep scowl. ¡°During training, which none of us should have ever agreed to, Edina¡¯s elf shot my dwarf in the calf! We will go our own ways and stay away from each other. Come, Torger, leave the snobs to fend for themselves.¡±

    Torger looked to Edina and asked what happened, but Baybil yelled ¡°Mayor! As tribal chief I am ordering you to leave them. Come to the dwarf camp.¡±

    Torger was torn. If he went to the dwarf camp, the elves would no longer be allies, and vice versa. He looked to Rome and Graul who just shrugged. He gave Edina an apologetic look and walked to follow Baybil with his head hanging down, but whispered to his friends ¡°Stay with her. Containment stones.¡±

    When they got to the dwarf camp Baybil yelled at him some more. ¡°Dwarves and elves don¡¯t mix, Torger. You thought you had a good idea for the children to train together, but the elves protect elves, and dwarves protect dwarves. You do not have the authority or knowledge to change our ways. I¡¯m tempted to fire you as a mayor right now, but I will wait until the Council of Mayors in January. If you hadn¡¯t done such an outstanding job, I would fire you right now. Let me make this clear. Leave the elves alone.¡±

    Torger was full of anger, confusion, and self preservation. ¡°I don¡¯t know what happened. Weren¡¯t things going OK? And if not, why did the combined training continue?¡±

    Baybil paused. ¡°The training was better than we thought, but it was obviously a fluke, something new and different for a few weeks. Quickly and I, and that elfa, drew four simmets up onto the bank like we had every day for two weeks. The four young dwarves blocked and sliced, the elves stood safely in the back and shot arrows. One of the dwarves blocked a bite and stepped to the side to swing his axe into its head, but an elf moved to the same side and didn¡¯t pay attention to what he was doing. He shot the arrow and hit the dwarf in the back of the leg, with no warning. Of course the dwarf fell down and Quickly ran to kill the beast, but before he got there the simmet bit the child on the stomach. It¡¯s the elf¡¯s fault he¡¯s laying in the tent.¡±

    That was bad news. Torger asked ¡°Why didn¡¯t he die? A simmet bite to the stomach would cause massive internal bleeding to a child.¡±

    ¡°Because Quickly killed it before it could bite again.¡±

    ¡°I meant, who cured the child?¡±

    ¡°Oh, well, Edina did, but that doesn¡¯t make it right. The elves are too arrogant to say they¡¯re not good enough fighters to keep up with the dwarves.¡±

    ¡°Too arrogant? How many black simmets have the children killed?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not the point Torger.¡±

    ¡°How many?¡±

    Baybil sighed. ¡°They are at twenty and a half to their max.¡±

    ¡°Twenty and a half? You¡¯re telling me that nine children have killed nearly two hundred simmets without adult help, and you¡¯re throwing that kind of success away? Baybil how many times can a group of nine dwarves kill four beasts three levels higher than themselves without an injury?¡±

    Baybil looked away. ¡°Baybil, has that ever happened? Most dwarves at Home are level twenty-two. Pick nine of them and tell them to go attack four level twenty-five trolls. Would you do that?¡±

    ¡°If it needed to be done, but I wouldn¡¯t like it.¡±

    ¡°Training is necessary Baybil. Taking chances is part of growth. These children didn¡¯t attack one group of four, they attacked forty groups of four. That¡¯s three groups a day. They are having incredible success, and there¡¯s one hiccup and you want to throw it away. And what was the elves response to an elf mistake? She ran over and cured the boy, probably used a cure two spell, which you don¡¯t have. And she has a lot more mana than you. You and Quickly would have ran out of mana before that boy was cured, he would have bled out and died if not for her. Accept that one elf made a mistake and resume training tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°No Torger. We tried it and it didn¡¯t work. The elves didn¡¯t have to save his life if they hadn¡¯t endangered it.¡±

    ¡°You said elves Baybil. Plural. What happened?¡±

    ¡°The elves cast cure spells to save him, but it¡¯s still their fault.¡±

    ¡°How many cast cure spells Baybil?¡±

    ¡°Go to bed Torger. We¡¯re done.¡±

    Torger sat up as the first watch. He stayed in the dwarf camp, and looked at Graul sitting in the elf camp. Graul looked excited like he wanted to talk, but both brothers knew better than to enter the other camp.

    The next morning Torger was the first one awake. He was cooking breakfast before the others were dressed, and in the elf camp Rome was doing the same. Both men tried to be cheerful to their camps. The kids were cheerful back, but the adults didn¡¯t look happy.

    After breakfast Torger watched the elves, Graul, and Rome go to the river to find simmets, and a few minutes later the dwarves walked to a different section, but he saw the kids looking at each other across the long distance as they were walking away.

    Quickly and Baybil stood on the bank and watched the young dwarves slowly walk along the bank looking for hidden simmets. After a few minutes one pointed at the mud and yelled ¡°Archers here!¡± He then sheepishly looked back at the trainers and said ¡°Oh, I forgot. What do we do?¡±

    Quickly said ¡°Act like a dwarf. Be a man and go get it to chase you.¡±

    The boy nervously walked down the bank and slapped his axe into the water. The simmet didn¡¯t move, thinking it was still hidden. The boy walked a little closer, and the simmet popped out of the mud and ran at him. The boy turned to run up the bank, but the simmet was faster. The others saw he wasn¡¯t going to make it, so they ran down and all attacked. Quickly yelled for them to each take on one simmet, but in the heat of battle they didn¡¯t hear or didn¡¯t comprehend the words.

    Quickly ran down the bank and Torger and Baybil each cast Lightning 1 twice, hitting each simmet once. But the damage wasn¡¯t enough to slow them. Baybil ran down the bank to help, and Torger cast Shield 1 four times, once in front of each simmet. He had enough mana left to hit each simmet once each with Slow 1, but it was too late. Quickly arrived and killed the first one, but the other three each were attacking the four dwarf children. The battle was too quick for them, and without the support of archers the three simmets had a firm bite on a leg of three of the four dwarves. Quickly and Baybil easily killed one more each, then killed the last one.

    They dragged the injured two boys and one girl up the bank. Baybil had used up his mana on the two Lighting 1 spells, and Torger had used his on the ten spells he had cast. The injuries weren¡¯t serious, and they had to wait two minutes before casting the first Cure 1 spells, then cast them once every four minutes.

    The wounds had a lot of bleeding, but were basically four deep puncture wounds in each leg, having bitten the thighs above the greaves. Torger saw that Quickly was visibly irritated with the dwarves for such a catastrophic failure, but he kept his mouth shut. By the look on their faces, the four dwarves knew they would receive a brutal tongue lashing once they were back at camp.

    While Torger and Baybil waited for their mana to recharge, Quickly walked downstream until he found another simmet. He ran down and killed it, then killed the next one to attack him with his steel sword, but the last two he bashed in the head with his shield, knocking them unconscious.

    He dragged the beasts back to the other dwarves and said ¡°Today you will fight like dwarves have always fought. You will work as a team and kill these two when they wake up. I need two of you blocking, and two of you attacking.¡±

    Before Torger and Baybil finished the cures, the simmets woke up. They were groggy at first, but Quickly insisted they be left alone until they were fully alert. After a minute, they ran and attacked the two nearest dwarf kids. They blocked with shields, while the other two came around the sides and swung axes at the heads. The simmets didn¡¯t die right away, and tried to bite the attackers, but they blocked with their shields. However, they left their axes embedded in the simmet necks and couldn¡¯t attack again. The other two dwarves finished off the foes with another axe strike to the necks.

    Quickly gave a nod of approval, but Torger was unsure that was such a good strategy. He said ¡°Well done everyone. But my brother and I have a different way of doing that. Quickly, may I borrow your sword?¡±

    Quickly looked troubled, but with a nod from Baybil he traded his sword for Torger¡¯s mace. Torger went down to the river, found more simmets, killed two and knocked out two. He dragged them back just as Quickly had done. He positioned himself behind them, and asked two dwarf kids to block with their shields but not to attack.

    When the simmets shook off the sleep, they attacked the two dwarf kids. They both kept blocking without counter attacking. Torger ran up to one and cut off a back leg, then jumped away when it tried to bite him. He yelled ¡°Come block again!¡±

    The dwarf ran to the front and drew attention to himself, keeping the shield near the reptile¡¯s face. Torger ran to the other one and cut off a back leg, and ran away when it tried to bite him. He ran to the first and cut off the other back leg, then the back leg of the second. Then he called out ¡°Fall back!¡±

    The dwarves walked backwards with the shields held in front of them. The simmets followed, but at a crawl instead of a fast run. Torger looked at the four dwarf kids and said ¡°Now go finish them.¡±

    The battle was much easier, since the simmets could only run or turn at half the speed they had been moving at. After they were dead Quickly growled and walked away, but Baybil looked at Torger with appreciation for the new strategy.

    The kids cut open all of the stomachs looking for treasure, and found two copper coins and a silver coin. Not much of a reward for twelve dead simmets, but it made them happy. When they got back to the dwarf camp, Torger saw Graul and Rome look at him from the elf camp, and shake their heads. It was a sign that things did not go well that day for the elves either.

    The kids had learned to train and kill together, and now they were expected to know entirely different tactics. The lack of cooperation between the races made it clear why they had been stuck in the middle ages for thousands of years. Torger tried to change them for the benefit of all, but his plan failed.

    The next day Torger once again watched the dwarf kids struggle and fail to kill the four simmets. Once again Baybil and Quickly had to rescue them and cure them. Torger had seen enough. While the dwarves were looking for another batch of simmets, he walked upstream to the elves. He arrived to see the elf kids running away from simmets and trying to shoot arrows behind them. Graul and Rome stood by watching as Edina tried shouting instructions, but eventually she had to intervene and shoot two of the four simmets.

    Graul and Rome saw Torger approach, and they all went back to camp without speaking a word. As they were packing their gear they all discussed what a disaster the training had become. The kids were running out of simmets to kill for experience, and they had no clue how to fight without being intermingled. The adults were trying to undo three weeks of training, and retrain them in the old ways with less than two weeks left before they ran out of chances to get experience. At the rate things were going, Torger expected them to be there for another three weeks, continually killing simmets just for practice without gaining experience.

    Rome used Teleport 3 on Torger and Graul, sending them to Home, then waited ten minutes to use Teleport 1 for himself. None of the trainers noticed they were gone for a few more hours.

 Waiting

    Chapter 41

    Waiting

    The four Regulators who had died in the rabbit tunnels were wearing new clothes, and when they found out their friends had returned they eagerly grabbed weapons and armor. They discussed the final battle until dinner, and Torger especially appreciated having a home cooked meal again. The strawberry pie for desert was fantastic, but he really chowed down on simple bread and butter, staying away from venison marinated with lemon and peppers. It wasn¡¯t bland venison, but he had enough of camp cooking deer to last him for weeks.

    The next day Rome set out to make his rounds, taking gold nuggets and health potions. He traded the gold nuggets with Kirsk for iron ore, and then headed to trade iron ore and food with Strong Arm for more gold. Then he went to Kellogg Hill and walked until sunset. He arrived at the beach and found Baybil.

    Rome said ¡°Torger thought you might need some health potions. I have seven low health to trade.¡±

    Baybil and Quickly both looked offended. Quickly said ¡°We can train without them. The dwarves get hurt, and they learn. It¡¯s how it has always been, no need to change anything.¡±

    Baybil was offended for a different reason. ¡°Torger abandoned us yesterday, and now he wants to make a profit off of our misfortune? We dwarves are greedy by nature, and his greed is high up there. Tell Torger he has become more dwarf-like than he knows.¡±

    Rome turned to Teleport back to Home. Baybil stopped him. ¡°No need to let those go to waste. I¡¯ve got some coins from these simmets.¡±

    Rome looked at him. ¡°Under Torger¡¯s rule, dwarves keep most of what they earn. The coins belong to the kids.¡±

    Baybil was a little embarrassed. ¡°Yes of course. I¡¯m holding them and will distribute them at the end of our training, minus our fees of course.¡±

    Rome corrected him again. ¡°You are both employees of Rich Fields. You get a percentage of the gold mined as your payment. You don¡¯t get fees for doing what is in the best interest of the village. Although you are the tribal chief, this training falls under the category of village subsidized worker.¡±

    He withdrew a pouch and handed it to Baybil. ¡°Three point eight ounces of raw gold is your payment from Strong Arm. Split it between yourselves, or buy these potions. But Torger doesn¡¯t want money, he wants your permission to upgrade his armor in Sequoia.¡±

    Baybil almost refused as a knee jerk reaction, the bitterness was still deep, but he changed his mind and nodded. ¡°You all need better armor and weapons. He can upgrade as much as he wants, but no other trading with elves.¡±

    Rome nodded and handed over the seven potions. ¡°I¡¯ll be back in a week with seven more.¡±

    Quickly grunted and Baybil gave an appreciative nod. Rome disappeared in a pale green flash. Baybil looked at the battered kids and knew they still had a lot of work to do.

    The next day Torger was in a hurry to get to the elves, but everyone saw how useful Rome¡¯s Teleporting was. Torger asked Rome to continue making his daily rounds, while the others began walking to Sequoia. Rome didn¡¯t mind. Torger paid him five silver coins per successful transaction, which was cheaper than paying travelling merchant fees. Rome spent one silver per day on ale (forty coppers per pint plus a generous twenty copper tip), a few coppers on laundry and a silver per week on new clothes. Occasionally he would gamble some on the new craze Torger had taught them, Yahtzee. But like most dwarves he was saving up for big ticket purchases at the next Mayor¡¯s council in January.

    Some dwarves talked about getting new leather boots, new cooking pots and pans, or binging on the variety of foods coming in from hundreds of miles away. Rome had his hopes up that he could find better mage¡¯s armor or a diamond staff, but magic items usually came from elves, not dwarves. Rome had one unused ability point from fighting the Giant Moles and rabbits with Graul and Torger. He wouldn¡¯t be getting experience anytime soon, so he used it on mana. He smiled at the idea the others were out looking for fights to buy the spell he already had.

    Torger and the others made a zig zag path to Sequoia. They killed three rocs, two bears, four cottols, and four trolls along the way, all between levels 17 to 21. The higher levels made the tyter prey a little faster, stronger, and tougher, but the regulators were on average level 40. The matches weren¡¯t fair, but the important thing was they all gained two ability points. They had a long way to go. Teleport 1 cost six ability points, and Teleport 2 cost ten ability points. They were all done with gaining ¡°easy¡± levels- investing in strength, health, stamina, mana, and level 1 spells. A few of them could invest a little more in one category or another, but it was clear once they hit level 42, gaining levels would come to a near stop as each additional spell cost several ability points.

    Finally they came to Sequoia on the sixth day. Lagwil greeted them personally, with her border guards. ¡°Welcome Torger, Regulators. We haven¡¯t heard from you in a while. How can I help you?¡±

    She spoke with a warmth and kindness Torger had never seen before. He was immediately guarded. ¡°Hello Lagwil. I am here to trade. This is a powerful containment stone, and I was hoping your alchemist could assist me.¡±

    She said ¡°Of course. Come in to the village.¡±

    The Regulators stayed behind as expected, and Torger began walking toward the center stone. Lagwil walked beside him as an equal, not in front of him with guards behind Torger. He thought it was strange. ¡°Lagwil, if you¡¯re not guarding me, why do I need to go to the center stone and sit through the Winds of Truth?¡±

    ¡°We can never fully trust anyone. I¡¯m sorry if that makes you uncomfortable, but you will never gain enough love points to bypass the testing. As you know, it is a short and painless process and not too far out of our way.¡±

    The Winds confirmed he was there to trade, but instead of asking him for the containment stones, she led him into the village itself. It wasn¡¯t until he was near the first occupied tree that she said ¡°This is as far as you may come. Hand them over please.¡±

    Torger had mixed emotions. Very few outsiders were allowed to see the village itself, but he still wasn¡¯t trusted enough to meet the alchemist.

    Lagwil was gone for ten minutes and returned holding the large stones glowing purple. ¡°These are haste two stones! They are very powerful. Where did you get them?¡±

    ¡°We conquered a cave. I would rather not say more, I hope you understand.¡±

    She caught on that Torger was playing a little tit for tat. She ignored the jab and said ¡°It is good you have a pair. One gets infused into each boot, and the wearer automatically keeps haste two on their feet all the time. Do you want these on your boots?¡±

    Torger didn¡¯t know what the containment stones were and didn¡¯t have the best quality of steel boots. Guntrink was in a rush when he was making all their armor. ¡°I think I would like to get the best quality I can, before investing such a precious and rare item. Are there any recommendations he has?¡±

    ¡°Actually this alchemist is a she. And she recommends putting them on Master Boots.¡±

    ¡°What is that?¡±

    ¡°You know Jex¡¯s Bow is a Master Bow. If she dies, the Bow reappears at her respawn point with her. If she dies permanently, the Bow reverts back to the previous owner. It was made by a true Master. There are boots that could hold the same properties, but they are rare.¡±

    ¡°Hmm, I doubt I¡¯ll ever come across a pair like that. And my boots are too uncomfortable. I¡¯ll return to the village and come back with the best pair our blacksmith can make. How much?¡±

    ¡°Two gold.¡±

    ¡°Ouch. Why so much?¡±

    ¡°Two, each. The higher the level a spell is, the fewer have the ability to infuse the stones. Most elf villages have one alchemist who could handle level three spells, and only a handful of elves, and of course wizards, could infuse level four spells.¡±

    ¡°Wizards? I¡¯ve never heard of them here.¡±

    ¡°They are recluses. They live in areas far away from any inhabitants. But they can teach apprentices many wonderful things. The nearest wizard is Ristopan. He has taught all the Pomo alchemists how to create and infuse level two and three containment stones.¡±

    ¡°He sounds like he could be helpful to us. Where is he?¡±

    ¡°That is something we are sworn to secrecy. What do you need help with?¡±

    ¡°It seems we are at or near our maximum on all our stats. It would be nice to go over the cap of our strength and such. Maybe a wizard could help us with that.¡±

    ¡°Oh. I didn¡¯t know you were that far advanced already, or even what the caps are for humans. Different, uh, forgive me, prey, have different stat caps, but we have never seen a human learn to use magic, so they reach their maximums fairly quickly. As for a wizards help, that is unlikely. They usually take an apprentice on a twenty year contract, and, sorry.¡±

    Torger wasn¡¯t disturbed by the reminder he would be dead in less than fifteen months. It motivated him to try harder and to think outside the box. ¡°Thank you Lagwil. I hope to be back in ten days or so with a new and nice pair of boots.¡±

    ¡°Good bye Torger. You really should learn teleport two, if you have the ability like Rome does, and save yourself the walk.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, we¡¯re working on it. Or, with haste two on my feet, the walk would be¡­ hastier.¡±

    The Regulators talked about the news as they walked back. They knew it was a three day walk if they didn¡¯t wander aimlessly looking for monsters. Torger was torn between gaining experience to get Teleport 2, or getting Guntrink working on the boots right away. As they walked and talked, Graul had an idea.

    ¡°What is the most barren, desolate place we¡¯ve ever been?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡±

    ¡°A place we¡¯ve gone a few times, where there are almost no buildings or people for a hundred miles.¡±

    Torger thought about it. ¡°Cathedral Gorge, Nevada.¡±

    ¡°Exactly. That sounds like a potential place for a recluse wizard.¡±

    ¡°Maybe, but it will have to wait. I want to make sure Home and all our allies are doing well. Hopefully I can restore relations between the dwarves and elves.¡±

    ¡°Then we¡¯ll go. If there is a wizard there, we could all become super powerful.¡±

    Torger thought about the proposition. He reluctantly agreed. ¡°I need to stay here, and Rome needs to keep up trade relations, but it could be beneficial for the rest of you to go. If there is a wizard there, great. If not, hopefully you can get to teleport two by the time you get back.¡±

    For the next week Guntrink made repairs to all their armor, which cost Torger nearly four ounces of gold nuggets. While Guntrink was working on their steel armor, Torger went to pay Strong Arm a visit.

    When he arrived and was comfortably seated in the tavern with a mug of mead in his hand, he said ¡°I see Stone Fist is hard at work building more housing. That¡¯s good. It¡¯ll boost morale.¡±

    ¡°I wish I could say the village was paying for it, but I can¡¯t afford it. The two miners hired him to build them each a private house. Their families will appreciate the space and privacy, and for the village it means five less dwarves in the common houses.¡±

    Torger liked the idea of miners paying for their own upgrades, but pushed the thought aside. ¡°I need another special project Strong Arm. I want to put your outstanding blacksmith skills to the test again.¡±

    He nodded for Torger to go on.

    ¡°I talked to Guntrink, and he said he could do this, but I want a second opinion, and a second price. I have some containment stones. Rare ones. I need the best quality, most comfortable and durable boots you can make. What do you recommend?¡±

    ¡°It depends on what you need. Are you looking for something that will stop a bite from a tresser?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s a tresser?¡±

    ¡°A big reptile, weighs a couple tons. Stands on its hind legs, about fifteen feet long head to tail tip. Wickedly sharp claws and teeth that would shred your steel chest plate and hardly slow down in the process.¡±

    ¡°Boots that would stop something like that seem like a bit of overkill. I¡¯m glad there are none of those around here. My boots will be mostly for traveling by road, but I¡¯ll be in an occasional scrap with a razorling. I want something light for the long journeys, but tough enough to stop most claws.¡±

    ¡°Steel with leather on the inside would be my standard recommendation, but I sense you want something a bit stronger. I could make ¡®em outta mithril, but that would be expensive. Too much for boots, unless you wanted a complete set of armor.¡±

    ¡°Mithril. I¡¯ve heard of that. What is it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s an ore, like iron. But it needs an additive, it¡¯s an alloy. Just melt the components together and form. Stronger and lighter than steel. But as I said, it¡¯s a little bit rare, and expensive.¡±

    ¡°Back up. What additives go into iron?¡±

    ¡°I melt iron ore, remove the impurities, then add a little carbon coal, not too much and not too little, and it becomes steel. Too much carbon coal makes it cast iron and brittle. Same with bronze. Mostly copper with a dose of tin and it becomes bronze, which is better than straight copper armor for fighting, but not as good as iron. But we¡¯re getting off topic. You are definitely beyond bronze armor and weapons. You¡¯ve almost outgrown steel. I¡¯ve got three pounds of mithril, just enough to make you a pair of boots, but you¡¯d be better off with a mithril sword.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s about what Guntrink said. But I¡¯ve got my heart set on these boots. What¡¯s the price difference between steel and mithril boots?¡±Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

    ¡°Steel, with leather inserts and lined with cottol fur, nice and fancy, would be seventy silver. Mithril would be a gold and twenty silver.¡±

    Torger was expecting it. Strong Arm beat Guntrink¡¯s price by fifteen silver for the mithril, and he had already proven himself a quality blacksmith. ¡°I¡¯ll take them in mithril, leather, fur, the best you¡¯ve got. It¡¯ll be the last pair I buy, unless I die on some quest and lose them when I respawn.¡±

    Strong Arm said ¡°If that¡¯s how you want to spend your money, that¡¯s fine by me. Which one¡¯s the priority; the boots or the alchemy you call ¡®black powder shells¡¯?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve got some time for both. So make ten shells, then the boots.¡±

    ¡°OK. They should be done in two or three weeks. I¡¯ll keep Rome updated on the progress.¡±

    ¡°Thanks.¡±

    Torger was happy with the idea of getting the best boots available, but in the back of his mind he knew he needed to replace Red Fury too. He ordered another round of drinks for himself and Strong Arm, and they talked and laughed until the barkeep told them he was closing down for the night.

    Three days later Torger commissioned Guntrink to build him a mithril sword with the little bit that he had.

    After that Torger helped his friends pack all they could for the long journey ahead of them. Rome had gone to Yosemite and back that morning instead of his usual trade route. Torger had given him all the refined gold he had- eleven ounces. Rome returned with five magic duffle bags the elves made, and to Torger¡¯s relief, brought back three ounces of gold. They had no idea what the wonderful duffle bags cost, since the two they had came from the dead dwarf Treluge. Now every Regulator had his own (and her own) magic duffle bag, able to condense items to one twentieth the original size and one tenth the weight.

    Things were finally prosperous for Torger, and he delighted in being able to provide each of them with five new water skins and several pounds of dried fruits. He even could afford to give them each a pound of salt and a pound of dried jalape?os bottled with vinegar and crushed garlic. Their venison and rabbit wouldn¡¯t be so bland for the trip. In fact the spicy recipe Torger was addicted to had become a big hit in the dwarf communities in the last month, and Torger was taking in several coppers per day from selling the sauce. His ¡°private¡± farm supplied all the jalape?os and garlic. He paid a farmer overtime from village funds to tend to the mayor¡¯s private garden. A little unethical perhaps, but a pittance of what the village paid out weekly in wages.

    He watched as Rome cast the spell, sending five of their friends to Parker. Torger wished them luck and hoped they were prepared. He had tried to talk them into waiting for another week until Arden had ten shells, but they were sitting around the village with nothing to do for too long and were fidgety. Torger gave Arden his mace, and kept the shotgun for himself. He had plans for it that involved Strong Arm and Rome, and the others didn¡¯t need to know about it in case the idea failed.

    After they were gone Rome said ¡°I have a message from Lagwil that you should be setting aside gold. They will expect their full sixty pounds of refined gold in June, thirty for each gold mine.¡±

    Torger sighed. ¡°I assume you already crunched the numbers.¡±

    ¡°I did. If production stays current, we will make it half way. Either Modesto needs to drastically increase production, or you need to raise taxes.¡±

    ¡°Not good. I need to think of something else. What do dwarves want? The miners are getting way more gold than I am each day. I need something to sell to them.¡±

    ¡°True, they have a lot of gold, and taxing them would be the simplest. Or you can go kill monsters, get something they don¡¯t have from pelts or loot. I¡¯ll think about it.¡±

    ¡°I will too. Let¡¯s keep this problem to ourselves for now.¡±

    Rome agreed, and they went about their daily business for the next week. Rome made his trades, and Torger mingled with the villagers in both villages, clearing out pesky bears and cottols that came too close. He gained an ability point, bringing him to four, almost to five.

    Baybil and Quickly returned, and the kids looked a bit tougher and more confident. Torger put the three kids from his village into the mines, and Baybil did the same with the boy from Rich Fields.

    Rome reported the elves too finally learned how to fight without help from dwarves. But he knew nothing about the inner workings of an elf village. As much as he tried, he couldn¡¯t find out what they wanted to trade; they would only talk to Torger about it.

    A couple weeks later Torger took his mithril boots and sword to Lagwil. She accepted two gold and sixty silver coins to infuse the boots with the Haste 2 stones, and the sword with the ruby containing Fire 3. Red Fury was back! And Torger could run, jump, and side step much faster with the boots on. She smiled at his improved speed and confidence, but it was clear there was still a little unease that he had tricked the elves into working with dwarves for the kids training. He didn¡¯t know if either side would truly get over it. He saw such great potential when they were working together, and it all unraveled because of one little mishap by a child.

    To release his frustrations with the situation he went looking for prey and killed three bears on his walk back to Home. His feet were pampered in the soft fur, and it helped to make him calm down again. Those three kills brought him to five ability points, and he spent them expanding the village again. It increased to have a shield diameter of five hundred feet.

    Chapter 42

    Nevada

    Rome cast Teleport 3 on five of his friends, and they disappeared in a flash of green light. They appeared in the abandoned dwarf village of Parker. The shield was still intact, but they saw two razorlings by the river to the north. The abandoned crops were occasionally eaten by deer and rabbits, which were eaten by the razorlings. In the village everything looked the same. Outside the village, it was natural and wild nature.

    The shield seemed to be holding them out, so the Regulators went into a cave and found rooms dug inside. They relaxed and discussed strategy, but there wasn¡¯t much to discuss. They had to head due north for a couple hundred miles through barren sand, and kill anything that came near. Graul had his shield and Inferno, Antic had the new and improved Power Cord, (he paid Strong Arm to remove the Lightning 1 and Fire 1 gems from his spear and put it into his new halberd), Jex had the Bow of Artemis the Huntress along with now thirty arrows. They had steel shafts and new gold arrowheads, but from experience a gold arrowhead would become very dull after two shots, and loose mass in the sharpening process.

    Brun had a gold staff, and Arden had a steel shield and steel mace. Arden wasn¡¯t good with his weapon, but he planned on doing more blocking than anything. They all had full sets of steel armor, and each had a spare full set in their duffle bags. They had thanked Torger, but saying ¡°Thanks¡± seemed empty for such extravagant spending. They had guessed he had spent all the gold the village had for their trip. It would be a shame to die from some super beast in the middle of the desert and never be able to recover it. Brun and Graul had Teleport 1, in case things got real crazy.

    At sunset they set out to wander in the desert. Crossing the river was easy. Summer was winding down and the water was low, and the duffle bags floated. Once everyone was safely on the other side, they got attacked by seven razorlings. Graul called out ¡°Rome, stats!¡±

    Rome wasn¡¯t there. Graul and Arden each blocked one, while Brun cast Poison 2, infecting three of them. Antic kept one focused on himself with the halberd, and Jex shot the other four, each through an eye and into the brain. Then she shot the other three. The battle took less than thirty seconds, but it was enough for them to see it would be difficult without Torger and Rome. Jex dulled seven of the thirty arrows, and they couldn¡¯t do that too many more times unless they found more billiks to sharpen their legs into arrows for her. But even those would break on impact most of the time.

    This brief and easy fight was troubling. They had just started the long journey and if they encountered several more fights like that one, Jex would become useless. Morale plummeted on the first day, one hour in to a trek that could take a month to complete. They collected the arrows but left the razorling feet and kept walking.

    Everyone walked in silence for a half hour until Graul spoke up. ¡°Brun and I have Teleport 1 so we could get back to Home instantly, in case things go horribly wrong. I suggest the rest of you save your ability points and buy the spell too so you don¡¯t have to die to get back.¡±

    The comment made sense, but being reminded of the high likelihood of the group failing to make it lowered morale even more. Graul immediately regretted saying anything.

    They travelled the rest of the day without incident, and followed the river north for three more days, but walked at a slow pace. Once they got to a point where they had to abandon the river to keep heading north, the difficult part of the journey began. They made camp for the night in a great flat expanse of nothingness. There were a few shrubs, but no water and on the night watches they saw no birds and heard no coyotes. On the third day they ran out of water and were still far away from Cathedral Gorge. Graul looked at his Maps as they were setting up tents for the night. ¡°Hey guys, we¡¯re going to have to head west in the morning. We need water and I doubt there is any to the east or north.¡±

    Arden looked at him. ¡°West is Vegas. There is nothing there.¡±

    ¡°It became a city because it had a spring for stage coaches to water their horses. Either we go out of our way west one day, or die of thirst.¡±

    They walked west all the next day but didn¡¯t find a spring. By then their throats were so parched that no one talked because it hurt. In desperation they didn¡¯t set up camp when it got dark but kept looking for the spring. They knew one had to be close because they saw birds and heard coyotes around sunset.

    As they continued to wander aimlessly they saw a few coyotes come look at them from a distance, realize they were outmatched and walk away. That happened three times and Arden told the others the coyotes were probably protecting their water. Late in the night they finally found it. Brun was the first to spot it and when he pointed he tried to say ¡°Over there¡± but his throat felt like it was packed full of sand and he painfully coughed instead of articulating the words. Everyone got the idea and looked. Arden was the first to drop his shield and duffle bag and run to the water. Everyone else followed a second later.

    The water felt like they were swallowing a smooth delicious cream that soothed their throats instantly. They couldn¡¯t drink enough and soon all five of them had their heads buried beneath the water.

    Twenty minutes later they returned to their equipment. Two coyotes were sniffing and scratching at duffle bags- specifically Antic and Jex¡¯s which held the dried fruits and meats. The Regulators saw two harmless huge coyotes, but the beasts saw five unarmed meals. The animals ran forward and attacked. Instinctively Graul raised his left arm to block with his shield, but it wasn¡¯t there, and a coyote latched on. As the teeth sunk into his skin a little, he was angry with Arden for convincing them all to remove their armor to make traveling faster.

    At the same time Jex reached for her quiver that wasn¡¯t slung over her back, Brun reached for his staff that wasn¡¯t there, Antic didn¡¯t have his halberd and Arden didn¡¯t have his shield and mace. All five of them pointed at a coyote and yelled ¡°Fire 1.¡± After several more spells the animals were dead. Graul looked at his arm and was surprised by how little damage he took from the bite. He remembered his first day on Nuva fighting a coyote and barely being able to walk after the fight. This time the teeth couldn¡¯t sink in more than a quarter inch thanks to his thicker skin and bone and muscle density, and his thicker blood made the bleeding stop on its own almost immediately. They had come so far since their rude and humble beginning, and he was glad to have that fight show him all his progress. But as he thought about their progress, he dropped into depression knowing they had just over a year left. He quickly pushed the thought aside and set up a tent for the night.

    The next day they were walking along soft sand and heard a distant rumbling like thunder, but there wasn¡¯t a cloud in the sky. They thought little of it and kept walking, but a few minutes later they heard it again, much louder. Not knowing what was making the sound, and seeing nothing but desert, they had no choice but to keep going. A minute later they saw the sand bulge in front of them and then erupt in a spray of sand raining down on them. The sand clouded their vision and choked them, but they could see a giant snake come up out of the ground to their left!

    Jex immediately shot it with an arrow, and the beast hissed but didn¡¯t seem too injured. Arden cast Analyze 1 and Brun cast Poison 2. Brun immediately knew he made a mistake. He cast chicken pox and a mild venom on a venomous creature. The venom aspect of the spell was negated, and chicken pox would only be useful in a long drawn out battle.

    Arden called out the stats

    Giant Sand Snake Level 58 Health 602/700 Strength 31/32

    The snake leaned down to strike at its nearest opponent, which happened to be Graul. He used his shield to block, but the snake mouth was so large its mouth completely encompassed the round shield, but couldn¡¯t open any wider than that. It bit down and the shield got wedged into its mouth. Graul removed his arm, abandoning the shield, and a second later Jex shot it again and Brun cast Poison 3. The snake tried to crush the shield but it couldn¡¯t, and then it tried to spit it out but its curved teeth didn¡¯t allow for that either. After both of those fails to free its mouth it turned and went back into the hole in the ground it had burrowed. But as it did it whipped its tail and caught Jex in the arm. She cried in pain as she saw it had a barb on the end of its tail.

    As the creature slithered away underground, a red rash formed on Jex¡¯s arm. It quickly spread and Arden cast Heal 1, but it did no good. They were all worried for her, but they were also worried about a return visit from the snake. Graul said ¡°Jex, I know you¡¯re in a lot of pain, but we can¡¯t stay here. We have to make it to the top of those rocks over there.¡±

    Arden glared at him for being insensitive to his injured wife, but quickly realized Graul was right. He said ¡°Come on hun, you¡¯re tough. You can do this.¡±

    Jex whimpered a little but grit her teeth and started walking. She felt woozy and fell down. Antic handed Arden his duffle bag and halberd, and picked up and carried Jex to the top of the rocks. She had lost consciousness during the walk. Six hours later she woke up completely refreshed and whole. Arden was on guard duty; he had stayed up with her the whole time.

    They walked northeast for three days before running low on water. They had learned to do a better job of rationing, so they had four days instead of three days of water in their duffle bags. When they arrived at Cathedral Gorge everyone but Graul looked at it in wonder. He and Torger had seen it several times, but it was still cool. There were what looked like spires made out of clay rising fifty feet out the ground with smooth vertical walls.

    They walked forward and were looking forward to getting some shade. Graul was excited to be there again and took the lead. As he was walking and talking Brun yelled ¡°Look out!¡± but it was a second too late. Brun had seen the unnatural shimmer of the magic shield just before Graul walked into it. Graul was sent flying back thirty feet as multiple spells riddled his body.

    Everyone ran over to him and began casting cures as quickly as they could. Antic cast an Analyze 2 on him and saw his four stats, Health, Stamina, Strength, and Mana, were all at 1. They continued casting cures and just as Graul was regaining consciousness, a green light surrounded them all and they were teleported.

    They appeared in a room completely made of one solid stone: a flat floor and ceiling, and a twenty foot circumference of a perfectly round wall. There was no door or window, no chair and no bed. Antic asked ¡°What is this place? How did we get here?¡±

    Of course no one had the answer. One minute later a hologram of an ancient looking dwarf appeared on the ceiling. It began speaking, but the sound seemed to come from everywhere in the room, not just the hologram. ¡°What a curious group of travelers. Tell me, adventurers, why have you come in a group to seek apprenticeship? I will only take one apprentice, and only one of you is qualified. The rest of you are uninvited. Are you spies perhaps? No, I think not. You are too weak and confused. Tell me, wannabe apprentice, why have you sought me out along with unwanted companions?¡±

    The hologram looked directly at Brun. Arden began to answer ¡°We mean you no harm. We were hoping you could-¡°

    ¡°SILENCE you level thirty-eight pest. Of course you meant me no harm! I do not even acknowledge the presence of any creature below level fifty. Only one of you has achieved that first meaningful milestone. The level fifty-three black mage is the only one who may speak to me.¡±

    With that pronouncement, the other four had their mouths involuntarily shut so they could only grunt. The hologram looked directly at Brun again. It said nothing, and stared at him without flinching for nearly two minutes. Finally Brun found his voice again. ¡°Sir, we have come across a difficulty. We are very nearly maxed out¡­ that is we have come close to the point in which we have reached the maximum amount of stats allowed to us. We sought you out to find out if there is a way we can increase our maximum strength, health, and mana.¡±

    ¡°I see. Hmmm. Had you ¡®bought¡¯ everything you could with ability points, then this would be a worthy visit. However, you have twenty-two more spells you could buy before you are truly ¡®maxed out.¡¯ Return to me once you have all thirty-eight spells available to you, and return alone. I could use a good apprentice. Now, since your intentions in disturbing me were innocent enough, I will release you and your companions¡­¡±

    Before the hologram could disappear, Brun interrupted ¡°Sir, may I ask your name, and do you have any advice for me to not die when the tyters come to hunt me?¡±

    ¡°Ahhh yes, the tyters. It¡¯s a pity you won¡¯t live to see your potential. As for myself, my name is Ristopan, level one hundred and two wizard. If you or any of your friends survive the hunt, I will take you in as an apprentice.¡±

    The hologram disappeared and the spell binding the speech of the others was broken, but before anyone could say anything, the disembodied voice again spoke. ¡°As a token of goodwill, I will tell you this. An army of goblins is marching towards your respawn point you call home. I will release you to a point one mile in front of them so you can see them for yourself.¡±

    The voice ended, a pale green light surrounded them, and they found themselves in the abandoned village of Carson City. As soon as their senses returned to them, Antic pointed east. They looked and saw a cloud of dust not too far away. He asked no one in particular ¡°Do we fight or run?¡±

    Arden answered ¡°Graul, maybe you could Teleport home and warn Torger.¡±

    ¡°No, I could get to Home by dying in battle, then warn him.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s no good. We need you or Brun to take all the equipment back. We don¡¯t want to lose everything.¡±

    Graul hated abandoning his friends. He saw Antic looking at him pleadingly. Antic would have loved to have Teleport 1, then he would volunteer to run away in the face of a losing battle. Graul looked at his friends. ¡°We can run and warn the elves.¡±

    Antic jumped on that idea. ¡°Yeah, perfect. Let¡¯s go tell the elves of Lake Tahoe. They¡¯ll protect us.¡±

    Brun said ¡°No, we need to let Torger know to get the village prepared. We have to hope the elves can protect themselves.¡±

    The idea troubled Graul. ¡°We can¡¯t bypass them without warning. I¡¯ll teleport and give the warning, you guys run to the elves.¡±

    Everyone agreed. Everyone except Jex put all their armor and weapons into their duffle bags, then Graul struggled to pick up all five bags. He looked at his Spells, selected Teleport 1, and was surrounded by a pale green light before disappearing.

    The others ran towards Lake Tahoe, making good speed unencumbered by steel armor and weapons.

 This Means War!

    Chapter 43

    This Means War!

    ¡°Torger I¡¯m serious, we have to get the dwarves mobilized and go head off the goblins. There were about a hundred of them!¡±

    Torger leaned back in his chair and sighed, then looked to Baybil who did the same thing. Baybil answered ¡°You don¡¯t need to get involved Torger. They are marching to kill me. I was the one in charge of the raid to kill a goblin queen. A hundred goblins, probably coming from the badlands, is a small force. Their goal is to lure me into meeting them in the open, on fair ground instead of behind a city shield. The elves will kill them before they get here, especially if they have advanced warning like Graul is saying.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a convenient answer my friend, let others do the work for you. But it¡¯s not right. We have to help.¡±

    ¡°Not right? The goblins will be dead before we even get there. Dwarves entering Elven territory is asking for trouble. If you want to go, by all means have at it. The village is secure and prosperous. You¡¯ve done an excellent job of keeping everyone happy and wealthy. The annual mayors¡¯ meeting is in two months and Strong Arm is busy getting his village ready to host it. The dwarves in your village will have plenty of gold to spend.¡±

    Torger relented. With a sigh he said ¡°OK Baybil, you¡¯re not joining the fight, you made that clear. You¡¯re even changing the subject off the goblins marching towards you. I will go to fight the goblins. We¡¯ll be back in a couple of weeks. Until then-¡°

    Torger didn¡¯t get to finish his sentence as Antic suddenly appeared in the mayor¡¯s house, completely naked. Torger raised his eyebrows. ¡°The goblins are that strong that they fought through the elves?¡±

    Antic grunted. ¡°No. Cottols. I was running to warn the elves the goblins were on the way when a cottol hidden behind a tree stunned me. There were two of them. With no armor or weapon, I had no chance!¡±

    Antic had grown increasingly angry as he gave his report. He turned to go to his room to get another set of clothes, but Graul stopped him. ¡°So what really happened then, is you were running away from the goblins faster than the others were running away, and you got caught in an ambush.¡±

    Antic ignored Graul and stormed off. Graul shook his head. ¡°He will never get an award for bravery.¡±

    Torger said ¡°It is time for Rome to get back from his daily rounds. I¡¯ll leave him and Antic behind.¡±

    They waited a few minutes and Antic came back dressed but still angry at having to endure pain and dying. A few minutes later Arden appeared. They all looked at him surprised. Antic asked ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°The goblins made it to the elf village. The elves shot a volley of arrows, but a couple of hobgoblins put up shields. The goblins returned a volley. A stray arrow pierced my heart. I bled out in seconds, before anyone could cast a few cures on me. The bad news is there are three trolls that joined the goblins. After seeing them I wonder if the cottols that took out Antic were working with them.¡±

    Baybil waved it off. ¡°The cottols are dumb beasts and wouldn¡¯t coordinate an attack with another species. But the trolls are bothersome. It¡¯s nothing the elves can¡¯t handle, but it¡¯s rare for them to join up with an army.¡±

    Torger looked at Baybil. ¡°What do you mean ¡®rare¡¯?¡±

    ¡°I just mean it¡¯s not unheard of. If more beings join them, then we could have problems.¡±

    Torger was ready to respond when Rome appeared. He arrived in the mayor¡¯s house and looked around. It was obvious Torger and Graul were worried, and Antic was angry, and it wasn¡¯t unusual to see Arden standing in the group naked. Back on Earth Arden made a habit of walking around naked to make others uncomfortable.

    Rome said ¡°It looks like I missed something.¡±

    Torger answered ¡°I need you to Teleport all of us to Lake Tahoe. We¡¯re under attack.¡±

    Baybil responded ¡°Don¡¯t be so cautious. We¡¯re not under attack, the elves are, and I¡¯m sure they have it well under control.¡±

    Torger ignored him. ¡°How long until we can all be there?¡±

    ¡°I can send the four of you in an hour, then wait a half hour to teleport myself there.¡±

    Torger shook his head. ¡°I forgot teleport three doesn¡¯t include the caster. Teleport yourself to Lake Tahoe, buy some mana potions, then come back to pick us up.¡± Torger handed him a small pouch full of silver coins.

    Ten minutes later Rome returned. Arden was dressed, and Antic had convinced Torger he should be allowed to stay behind to make sure the miners weren¡¯t stealing gold. Graul objected but Torger whispered to him ¡°This battle won¡¯t be determined by a spear. His weapon and cowardice will only get in the way.¡±

    Rome reported. ¡°Many goblins are dead, many elves were wounded then cured. A messenger was sent to warn Lagwil. A goblin leader tried to tell the elves they had no quarrel with the elves, just the dwarf that killed a goblin queen. The elves didn¡¯t care and started the attack anyway. They are expecting you.¡±

    Baybil put his head down and looked conflicted, but Torger knew he still wouldn¡¯t get involved, even though this was specifically Baybil¡¯s battle. Torger nodded to Rome, who drank a mana potion then cast the spell, and Torger, Graul, and Arden entered the elf village, fully equipped with armor and weapons. They looked around and saw elves shouting and shooting arrows.

    Arden spotted Jex and ran to her, with the others a step behind him. She was shooting arrow after arrow just as quickly and accurately as the finest elf archers. Torger looked and saw her arrows were the only arrows flying through the magic shields. The elf arrows were inflicting heavy damage on the shields, and a shield shattered and fell, but then the hobgoblin recast it immediately.

    Brun ran up and grabbed the duffle bag. He pulled out his gold staff, and began getting ready for battle. As he was drinking a mana potion he said ¡°I¡¯m glad you finally made it. We¡¯re doing okay, but some swords on the ground would help a lot. Their shields are powerful and they have a lot more arrows than we do. The elves are running out of potions fast, but we¡¯ve already taken out the trolls and cottols so now it¡¯s mostly clean up.¡±

    The others looked and sure enough three trolls and five cottols were lying dead on the field, along with about thirty goblins. Jex was shooting elf arrows made of maple shafts and iron arrowheads. That meant the elves had already spent all of the silver and gold arrowheads. The Bow of Artemis seemed to allow the arrows to fly right through the goblin shields, but the hobgoblins were able to wave their staffs to throw the arrows slightly off course. The remaining seventy goblins were picking up arrows off the ground and returning them to the elves, with no semblance of being skilled archers. But still, seventy arrows every four or five seconds caused the elves to constantly seek shelter.

    Just as Rome appeared, Torger, Graul, and Arden charged forward, each with Shield 2 protecting them. The elves Shield 2 was much stronger than the humans Shield 2, because the elves had the ability to strengthen the shields, making them have an equivalent of 400 health instead of 100 health.

    Torger ran to one goblin shield and stabbed it with Red Fury, and Graul ran to the other shield and stabbed it with Inferno. Both shields cracked and returned a Lighting 2 attack, but the brothers shook it off and stabbed again, collapsing both shields. Arden ran forward and swung his mace, accurately meeting a goblin¡¯s helmet. The helmet flew several feet and the neck snapped. Arden stepped over the dead body to swing again, but being at only level ten with cudgels he forgot to use his shield. Multiple arrows pierced him and he collapsed to the ground.

    Torger and Graul had much better results. On the run there volleys of arrows shattered their magic shields the elves had cast on them, but it allowed them to get close while unharmed. Once the goblin magic shields were cracked, the hobgoblins focused on them. That allowed Jex and the elves to easily pick off goblins, while Brun cast Ice 1 as fast as he could at the vulnerable goblins. The spell did little damage, but it distracted them for a second, making them easy targets for friendly arrows. Rome cast Shield 2 and Haste 2 on Torger and Graul, who were just trying to dodge spells and arrows. They had succeeded in drawing all the attention to themselves, and the goblins were too stupid to see the larger war strategy. Each goblin wanted to kill the humans, and they all forgot about the elf arrows.

    A goblin arrow struck Torger in the leg and he went down. He was so focused on enduring the pain of the hobgoblin spells that he didn¡¯t realize his shield had once again shattered. Once he was on the ground a large group of goblins ran at him and clobbered him with copper swords that only cut an inch deep at a time in the few areas he wasn¡¯t covered in steel. The pain was intense before he finally died.

    Graul had suffered a similar fate. He appeared at Home a few seconds before Torger. They looked at each other and grinned. ¡°We did it! There were only about a dozen goblins left when I died!¡±

    ¡°Good job! And good fighting!¡±

    They turned to see Arden sitting in Torger¡¯s chair. ¡°Oh come on Arden! Don¡¯t sit in my chair while you¡¯re naked! I wonder if there¡¯s a disinfectant spell here?¡±

    ¡°Oh don¡¯t worry Torger. There are no germs here, except with spells. So tell me what happened.¡±

    Torger and Graul explained the battle after Arden died while the three of them were getting dressed. Baybil listened with interest and couldn¡¯t believe cottols had joined. An hour later Brun and Jex appeared, having been teleported by Rome, who came a few minutes later. Rome did not look pleased.

    Torger asked ¡°How did it go? What happened?¡±

    Jex answered ¡°You guys did great. Charging into the middle of the battle broke their concentration and it made easy target practice for me and the elves. The elves are grateful you showed up when you did.¡±

    Torger saw she wasn¡¯t cheerful about the victory. ¡°But what? What went wrong?¡±

    Rome answered ¡°The elves say that battle was our fault. They say the goblins wanted to attack us and the elves had to fight our battle for us.¡± Rome took a deep breath and looked at Torger with a hint of sorrow. ¡°They want us to pay for the fight. All the potions they used, all the arrows they used, and a day¡¯s labor for each elf in the village. The bill is twenty-five gold.¡± Rome handed Torger a paper detailing mid and high level mana potions and dozens of silver and gold tipped arrows.

    Torger wadded up the paper and threw it on the ground and shook his head in disgust, but Baybil had read it too and he yelled ¡°That¡¯s an outrage! They didn¡¯t have to fight. The goblins could have gone around and come to us.¡±

    Torger looked at him. ¡°You know full well that would never happen. The elves are in the right to charge us for their losses. I didn¡¯t think they would do this, but they did have losses. Did we collect loot from the battlefield?¡±

    Brun answered ¡°The elves have to burn and bury the bodies so liches don¡¯t show up. They said war spoils will cover that cost.¡±

    ¡°If they find a single gem that will more than cover all their expenses. Let¡¯s go to the tavern and celebrate a good victory and talk about this more tomorrow.¡±

    The Regulators and Baybil spent several hours in the tavern telling their stories of the battle to any dwarves that would listen, which by dinnertime turned out to be the whole town wanted to listen. As Antic sat and listened, he was glad he didn¡¯t die again in battle, but felt left out of not being able to tell his own tales of glory. He knew everyone looked at him as a wimp, but he couldn¡¯t stay consistently bold like the others. Some days he would rush into battle with his friends, and other days he wanted to hide under a rock. This was an inglorious day for him, and he felt weak, but listening to three of them describe how they died made him not want that part of battle. At the end of the day he felt he had made the right decision to stay behind.

    The next day they all woke up with horrible hangovers. Torger¡¯s morning meeting with his friends didn¡¯t actually get started until almost noon.

    ¡°We need to discuss what to do. Baybil, how likely is it that the goblins will attack again?¡±

    ¡°You can see for yourself what your hatred and feared levels are with goblins.¡±

    Torger checked his Notoriety and found goblins feared him 59/100 and hated him 66/100. He told the results to Baybil. ¡°They strongly hate you, as they have ever since we attacked the prison, but yesterday¡¯s battle greatly increased their fear of you, which will keep you safe. So there is a difference of seven. There is only a seven in a hundred chance that they will attack again. Yesterday¡¯s battle made them put their tail between their legs.¡±

    That made Torger feel better. ¡°OK we can focus on what¡¯s really important; making money. Last year at the mayor¡¯s meeting I saw really cool stuff that I couldn¡¯t hope to afford. I want to save up as much as possible to try again this year. Antic, how is the mining going?¡±

    Before he could answer, Rome said ¡°I¡¯m going to make my daily rounds. I¡¯ll be back in a few hours.¡± He left.

    Antic answered ¡°The dwarves are still drawing a whole lot of gold out of the mine every day, but the village only keeps one percent of it. We get almost as much money from income taxes, beer sales, and tariffs from Rome¡¯s trading. If you pay the elves the twenty-five gold, we¡¯ll have thirteen gold coins left.¡±

    Jex spoke up ¡°No you won¡¯t. I¡¯m out of arrows. The elves are going to find and keep my thirty super-arrows.¡±

    Torger looked at Antic. He got the message without being asked. ¡°A super arrow costs about seventy-five silver; fifty for half a gold coin for the arrowhead, fifteen for the steel, and ten for labor, so you can get seventeen new arrows from what we have.¡±

    ¡°That sucks. I need two hundred gold at least before the end of the year. This is the plan: Jex you¡¯re going to have to get by with silver tipped arrows instead of gold tipped, as many as we can afford.¡± She didn¡¯t like it but nodded in agreement. ¡°All our weapons and armor are good and current. Thank you again Brun for bringing our stuff back from the battlefield yesterday.¡± Brun nodded. ¡°We have steady income, but not enough. What do we do?¡±

    Baybil answered ¡°You raise taxes of course. You charge far less taxes than any other mayor ever, and you¡¯re suffering financially for it.¡±

    ¡°Baybil, what has our production for the last two months been like compared to any other mayor?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not the point. I¡¯m saying-¡°

    ¡°That is the point. These dwarves are working harder than ever because they get to keep their money. How much is production up?¡±

    Baybil stared at him then mumbled ¡°A few hundred years ago a village had fifteen dwarves pull out nearly four thousand pounds of ore in two months. Easily a record. Home has beaten that by twenty-six percent.¡±

    ¡°And I¡¯m still broke. Let¡¯s talk about morale. Right now my villagers are at seventy-eight. How does that compare?¡±

    Baybil sighed. ¡°Not a record, but in the top ten percent of any mayor ever.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡±

    ¡°Money is flowing freely. There is plenty of coins circulating. They are well fed, have a variety of different foods, plenty of ale, they have money to buy new weapons and armor for themselves and the steel to make them, there is plenty of water, the children are well taken care of, and everyone has a job doing whatever they want without regulations. Crime is minimal, the less lucrative but necessary jobs are government subsidized, their clothes are patched and clean and most importantly they don¡¯t fear for their safety.¡±

    ¡°And if I raise taxes production goes down and theft goes up. There has to be a different way.¡±

    ¡°Raise taxes or fight the goblins or mine the gold yourself.¡±

    Torger stopped. ¡°What? Fight goblins or mine the gold. Baybil you¡¯ve nailed it!¡± Torger looked at his friends. ¡°Remember our time as slaves? That was training for us to mine our own gold.¡±

    His friends groaned but Torger marched them all to the blacksmith and placed an order for six picks and six shovels. He explained that they would get to keep ninety percent of everything they mined, but that only cheered them up a little. Mining was physically brutal work.

    As they were walking out Rome came running up. He was back too early. ¡°What¡¯s wrong man? You look like you¡¯ve seen a lich.¡±

    Trying to talk too fast all at once Rome said ¡°They attack, Indio, dwarves fight, slaves hiding, real bad.¡±

    ¡°Whoa, slow down. I heard attack, Indio, and slaves bad. Make sense of that for me.¡±

    On Brun¡¯s advice Rome took a deep breath and held it for ten seconds. ¡°The goblins attacked Indio. One group was coming to attack us here but got stopped by the elves yesterday, but another group of goblins took the south route and attacked Indio. It¡¯s a similar thing with about a hundred goblins, two hobgoblins, three trolls, and five razorlings instead of cottols. The dwarves weren¡¯t expecting it. Several prison guards have died and all the slaves are hiding in the mines. The village shield has collapsed and they will be overrun in an hour or two.¡±

    Torger whistled. ¡°OK Regulators. It looks like we¡¯re going to get some extra cash by fighting for it! Get your gear on and Rome drink a mana potion. Antic stay here with Rome, we¡¯ll go clean up this mess.¡±The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

    Antic surprised everyone. ¡°No, if you don¡¯t mind, I was left out of the fighting yesterday. Today I want to fight.¡±

    Torger started to respond but Jex stopped him. ¡°Remember I don¡¯t have any arrows. I¡¯m useless in a fight right now. You guys go.¡±

    Arden smiled. ¡°Good choice hon. You stay here and stay safe.¡±

    Ten minutes later, after Rome had drank three weak dwarf mana potions, the other five men arrived in Indio. Chaos was all around them. Dwarves were swinging axes and goblins were using spears, swords, and bows. The razorlings were dead but the trolls were being ignored as they were beating on the rock piles of the mines. It seemed the prisoners cut the support beams at the mouth of three separate mines, causing cave-ins. The trolls were too stupid to pull the loose rocks away so they were trying to push the piles into the mines to make it to the helpless prisoners.

    Everyone immediately sprung into action. Arden ran to the nearest goblin that was using a spear against a dwarf with a shield and axe. The goblin never saw the mace come down on its head. Antic used Power Cord to keep two goblin melee fighters at bay. Brun started casting Ice 1, and slightly damaged fourteen goblins, each of which were cut down by a dwarf a second later. And as usual Graul and Torger stole the show. They ran straight for the archers that were blocking the hobgoblins. The dozen arrows shot at each of them bounced harmlessly off Graul¡¯s steel shield and Torger¡¯s steel armor, and didn¡¯t even slow down their running. They each got hit with Lightning 2 but toughed through the pain and began slashing through the goblin archers. More and more spells hit them but they kept slicing off the archer¡¯s heads until all twenty-four archers were dead. But the brothers couldn¡¯t stand up to the continued onslaught of spells, and both of them died before they could reach the hobgoblins.

    Antic watched another goblin run away from him. He had killed three with his halberd, the new Power Cord, which dealt Lighting 1 and Fire 1 with each hit. The halberd was a foot and a half longer than goblin spears, so they couldn¡¯t get close to him. After he killed the first three, the rest stopped fighting him. He had an arrow sticking out of his right bicep, but in his battle rage he ignored it and chased down the fleeing goblin and stabbed it. Next came an unusual goblin. It was bigger than the rest and carried a wood shield and blacksmith¡¯s hammer. This goblin must have been a mid ranking warrior because it didn¡¯t look afraid in battle and the others stayed away from it. Antic smiled as it approached. The goblin raised its shield and hammer in a defensive stance. Very unusual. They usually just charged or retreated, but never calculated in battle.

    Antic thrust Power Cord above the shield, spun it a quarter turn, and yanked back hard. The hook caught the top of the shield on the back side. The shield pulled the goblin close and off balance, because its arm was stuck in the handles. Antic rotated the halberd another quarter turn and swung it a few inches until the axe part sunk into the neck of the goblin which also cast the spells into it, then he stepped back, pulling the axe part along the neck. Blood splattered the ground and the goblin dropped to his knees with a look of shock on its face.

    Feeling bold Antic ran towards a troll. As soon as he started he felt something was wrong. He looked around and saw melee fights everywhere, but arrows were missing from the battle. He looked to the archers and saw Graul and Torger chop the heads off the last two archers. Antic watched as they fell to the ground getting hit over and over with spells from the hobgoblins. Anger swelled inside him as he watched his friends die. He changed direction and ran at the three that killed his friends. Luckily for Antic they had used all their mana and all their potions during the battle. He enjoyed the terrified looks in their eyes as he ran at them. They had no means of defending themselves, and a well placed thrust to the heart took out the first one, and another turned to flee but the long stretch of the halberd decapitated it. The last one he wanted to feel pain. He used the axe part to chop off its leg below the knee. It fell to the ground as it was running away. He raised the halberd and chopped off the left hand, then the right hand. Without hands the hobgoblin couldn¡¯t point to cast a spell. Antic left the bleeding miserable creature there and returned to the trolls. When he made it he saw all three surrounded by dwarves. The trolls died a minute later, as did the tortured hobgoblin.

    Chapter 44

    Happy New Year

    Torger watched with excitement as the first merchant came to Modesto. The Regulators had found two rubies, a sapphire, and nearly seventy silver and sixty copper when searching the goblin bodies in Indio. After that they burned and buried the bodies, which took two days with the prisoner¡¯s help. The prisoners were trapped in the mines for a full day as the guards and Regulators dug them out. When it came time to divide the loot Torger and Kirsk had different ideas.

    ¡°I need to rebuild my village. I need the money more than you do.¡±

    ¡°No Kirsk, you need labor, which you have plenty of it here. You wouldn¡¯t have a village if it weren¡¯t for us.¡±

    ¡°We killed more goblins than you guys did.¡±

    ¡°Me and my brother each killed twelve archers. Is there a dwarf here who can say he killed twelve goblins?¡± Torger looked around but all the dwarves didn¡¯t respond.

    Kirsk said ¡°Archers are easy targets. Any dwarf here could kill a dozen archers.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not entirely true, but I¡¯ll play your game. Say an archer is half a goblin with a spear. Then we killed six goblins. How many dwarves here killed at least six goblins?¡±

    Four raised their hand. ¡°See, even at that we¡¯re still in the top third. We¡¯ll take the rubies and sapphire, you can keep the silver and copper.¡±

    ¡°No way! Our village killed about two-thirds of all. We¡¯ll keep the two rubies and silver and copper, and generously give you the sapphire.¡±

    After more negotiations Torger walked away with the bigger ruby and all the silver and copper. Then he and his friends spent a month digging in the mines, except Rome who still made his daily trips. And it seemed Kirsk was the first merchant to arrive to Rich Fields for the annual mayors meeting. Torger knew Kirsk would be looking to buy not sell, but Torger was prepared to get into a few bidding wars.

    When Kirsk arrived he looked around in wonder. He was with five armed bodyguards. Torger had been waiting to see the other mayors. ¡°Hello Kirsk. You can see Strong Arm has been busy. Stone Fist has directed construction of four tunnels and two houses for the mayor¡¯s meeting. Everyone should have a place to stay, and since you¡¯re here first, you get to stay where you want. Do you want a room in an underground tunnel or a room in a house?¡±

    ¡°Underground is where we dwarves belong, but I¡¯m not the first one here am I? I bet you already picked out the best spot for yourself.¡±

    ¡°Of course I did Kirsk. But we can be friendly about it. Since we have no war chiefs, once Tambik arrives we can get started. Have you heard from him?¡±

    ¡°He sends a messenger about once a month. He hasn¡¯t got caught up in your new ways of thinking. He runs his village the way dwarves have for thousands of years. He makes sure they have food and water first, then taxes them for all he can get. He should be here in a couple of days.¡±

    That night a caravan arrived. There were three covered wagons, each pulled by two bison. Two wagons opened up and sold dried meats, spices, cane sugar, basic weapons and armor, cheap jewels, quality leather boots, a variety of vegetables and vegetable seeds, and cotton clothing. The third one stayed closed and the owner said it wouldn¡¯t be opened until there was a large crowd.

    The next day more merchants showed up selling the same stuff, but one had performers. They set up a stage then covered it with a large tent and once every twenty minutes five people could go in to see the current show for forty coppers. They had jugglers, a sword swallower, fire spitter, a couple deformed dwarves, wrestlers and magicians who had unusual spells like levitating items or invisibility or the ability to see through solid objects. That night all the performers would put on a play for the whole village, if they collected enough donations before the show started.

    The play was a story of a young in love dwarf couple, but the male was called away to war and he nearly died. Battle hardened his heart and he swore off love and became a great general. It was not exactly a tear jerker, but Kirsk said all the dwarf plays are true stories. It¡¯s basically history class.

    The next night Tambik showed up and the four mayors quietly left the festivus. They followed Stone Fist to the secret location. Stone Fist had built it himself and only he knew where it was at, which was underneath a tree that looked like most other trees in the forest. Stone Fist rolled a stone away and a hole twenty inches in diameter led down. Baybil climbed in first, going down a ladder.

    When Torger got inside, he saw a large wood table with five chairs. One chair was obviously for him. There were sconces on the walls to provide light, and a narrow vent pipe to prevent suffocation. Stone Fist rolled the stone back and they were trapped inside, but also completely hidden from anyone. Everyone took their seats and Baybil began.

    ¡°Great god of the anvil Muldwil, we ask your favor to be upon our meeting tonight. Rid us of any deceit or hidden threats, and we will govern your dwarves the way you have always wanted us to do.¡±

    Baybil walked to a sconce and dropped in a powder that flashed. He did it to each of the four sconces. They stopped flickering with firelight and instead glowed blue for a couple seconds. Torger gasped and pointed. The blue light showed an invisible naked goblin crouched in the corner. Baybil was the first to seize it. ¡°A spy! Where have you come from vermin?¡±

    The goblin looked frightened but refused to talk. Baybil shook it and it slipped a few leaves into its mouth and started chewing. Baybil slammed the creature against a wall then hit it on the back to dislodge the leaves, but it was too late, the goblin was dead.

    Kirsk yelled ¡°Guards!¡±

    Strong Arm shut him up. ¡°Quiet you fool. We have to decide first if we want others to know about it.¡±

    Baybil nodded and shouted ¡°Kymerksidan.¡± The word didn¡¯t translate but Torger assumed it was an all clear safe word for hidden guards above ground. The vent pipe let out stale air as well as loud shouts. He asked about it.

    Baybil explained ¡°Each year the tribal chief selects two trusted dwarves to act as guards for the meeting. I told them they were selected a few hours ago, so they would have no time to plan our demise. That was the safe word I gave them. As for the spy, if others find out about it we would have no choice but to declare a full scale war on goblins. We have to discuss if that¡¯s really what we want to do.¡±

    No one spoke for over a minute. Torger finally said ¡°We have no war chiefs, and the tribe is spread wide. Me and Tambik are hundreds of miles apart. Strong Arm and I owe the elves a lot of gold, and I¡¯m only going to be mayor for another six months. This is a terrible time for the Cucamonga tribe to go to war. However, my friends and I will be hunted in ten months. We have little to lose. If seven humans attacked goblins, that would not change relations between dwarves and goblins.¡±

    Everyone sat there pondering his words, and Torger was screaming inside for someone to give a thumbs up or thumbs down. Apparently these dwarves liked to think everything through before speaking. Finally Strong Arm said ¡°It is a good plan, as far as dwarves are concerned. The goblins must pay for their attacks in Carson City and Indio, but our tribe is weak right now. We cannot go to war. But it is a dwarf war, not a human war. I don¡¯t like the idea of others fighting on our behalf.¡±

    Tambik agreed. ¡°We are weak right now, and perhaps that is why the goblins are pushing us. Maybe they want to find out if they could launch a large attack and win.¡±

    Baybil stroked his beard and muttered mmm hmmm. Everyone looked at him but he said no more. Kirsk was the last to speak, if you could call Baybil¡¯s mumble speaking. Kirsk said ¡°I think we are all in agreement that our villages and overall tribe need to be stronger before we do anything. We need a full council, more weapons, and more money, and most importantly more dwarves. Each village should have twenty more dwarves and twenty more axes before we consider a large war.¡±

    Torger asked ¡°Why does it have to be this tribe that does all the fighting? Why not band together with another tribe or two?¡±

    Baybil answered ¡°They won¡¯t do it. You can¡¯t gain experience fighting someone else¡¯s battle, and dividing the spoils often leads to minor skirmishes. Did you gain any experience fighting the goblins a couple months ago?¡±

    ¡°No. It is odd, and I talked about it with my friends, I mean my human friends, but we couldn¡¯t figure it out.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s because you weren¡¯t fighting for yourself, you were fighting for someone else. There is no reward in that. The goblins were trying to attack me. I¡¯m sure the elves got no experience, but Kirsk did, didn¡¯t you?¡±

    ¡°We cleaned up as far as experience goes. Twenty-eight hundred experience to twenty-two fighters, but nine of those died in that battle. The loss of life hurt the village deeply, but the surviving fighters are stronger. We got experience and you didn¡¯t because the goblins attacked us. We did not get experience from the goblins you and your people killed, and neither did you. It would have been nice if we could have got all of it, but if you didn¡¯t come help, we would have all died. Thank you for your help, I don¡¯t think I got the chance to say it.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re welcome Kirsk. So you are telling me other dwarf tribes won¡¯t protect you because there isn¡¯t enough of a reward in it for them. That¡¯s messed up, but moving forward, if we humans do attack the goblins, would we get experience then?¡±

    ¡°Yes, if you¡¯re the one launching the attack. But now you¡¯re seeing that without the personal reward it becomes much more difficult to do the morally right thing, and the temptation to get out increases. During battle, if other dwarves join in and start seeing their friends die, the lack of personal gain from the war leaves them with nothing to hold on to. They will desert.¡±

    ¡°Perhaps some will, but many people on earth fight in armies voluntarily.¡±

    ¡°Many people? I doubt that. How many able bodied men and women volunteer for front line combat in a foreign country without the promise of promotions or a bigger cut of the spoils? One in a hundred?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. Globally it¡¯s probably less. And I see your point about forcing people leading to desertions. The war has to mean something to the fighters. The Kurds are the best example I can think of for most young people joining the fight, but they have the most to gain or lose. That means nothing to you, but it puts our predicament into perspective for me. I¡¯m still set on fighting these goblins on behalf of this tribe. Point me in the right direction.¡±

    Baybil responded ¡°Not so fast. You have an obligation here first. You are a mayor until June, and the best mayor I¡¯ve ever seen. You are not about to skip out before you pay your debt to the elves. Then I would be happy to see you go kick some goblin ass. Now we need to discuss replacing you in June and finding two war chiefs, then we can discuss strengthening our tribe and each individual village.¡±

    It was well past midnight when Torger climbed out of the secret cave. His eyes burned from dreariness, but they had agreed to make a young dwarf named Thirrell Torger¡¯s successor. Thirrell was a miner at Home and the hardest working one. He was polite and sociable, helped others and was always curious about the village finances and safety, as well as asking the Regulators about their fighting tactics after every battle. A dwarf from Indio and a dwarf from Blythe would become the war chiefs. Torger was basically grounded for six months. Under Baybil¡¯s watchful eye, he had to train Thirrell how to be the best mayor he could be.

    Torger slept late the next morning, and walked around the village that day, the last day of the year. That night he became anxious. This was what he had been waiting for. He saved all his gold from mining, and hoped he had enough. He walked to the one covered wagon that was still closed. The guard standing in front of it sighed. ¡°Not yet Torger. Go get a drink.¡±

    Torger walked to the tavern and ordered a glass of mead, but he had a hard time getting into any conversation. Dwarves tried to talk to him and he would smile and nod, but his mind was on the upcoming auction. An hour later the expected herald came into the tavern and announced the high auction would start soon. Torger jumped out of his seat and ran to the wagon. He was the first one there. The merchant looked at him and smiled.

    Torger began looking at the merchandise with pure joy plastered to his face. He didn¡¯t hear the merchant the first time but heard him the second time. ¡°What¡¯s your name son?¡±

    ¡°Oh, uh Torger. And what¡¯s yours sir?¡±

    ¡°My names Milderwank, and I see you¡¯ll be bidding tonight. When you want to bid raise your hand and call out your name.¡±

    ¡°If that¡¯s how you run your auction that¡¯s your business. What can you tell me about this chest plate?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll get back to that. How would you have me run my auction? You think you could do a better job?¡±

    This conversation was derailing fast and if Torger didn¡¯t straighten it out he could get kicked out. ¡°However you want to run your auction is fine by me. I ran an auction only one time, so I have almost no experience to speak of, but I gave each bidder a roc feather to raise if they wanted to bid. Now how about this shield?¡±

    The auctioneer at first looked angry and was going to yell at Torger, but instead caught himself. ¡°Actually son, I think it might be easier for me to see someone holding up a roc feather than it would be to see their hand. Lots of people shift in auctions and I¡¯m unsure if they¡¯re bidding or not. I like your idea.¡±

    ¡°Good. It would also help you to see if you stood on a chair. Can this crossbow really store ten bolts?¡±

    ¡°Hmm? Yes. Kurnik, go into the tavern and get me a chair to stand on for the auction!¡± A teenaged dwarf ran inside.

    Torger got a good look at all the high end weapons and armor. As far as he knew this was the very best quality made from the best materials in the world. Even Guntrink and Strong Arm gaped and whistled at some of the items. Torger pulled them aside. ¡°Guys, tell me honestly, which items could you make yourselves and which are beyond your abilities.¡±

    Strong Arm said ¡°I could make that mithril halberd and chainmail, maybe the obsidian shield, definitely the repeating crossbow. Anything of dragon scale is beyond me, and anything with level two magical enchantments are out.¡±

    Guntrink couldn¡¯t be outdone. ¡°I could make the obsidian shield, helmet, and shoes, and anything you see out of mithril.¡±

    Strong Arm choked. ¡°You couldn¡¯t make a knife out of obsidian. No way could you make anything on that wagon.¡±

    Guntrink said ¡°Oh yeah? I¡¯ll make the dragon scale armor set if you go kill a dragon for me.¡±

    ¡°I have a better chance of killing a dragon than you do of turning the scales into something useful.¡±

    Torger interrupted ¡°Guys, cool it. I¡¯ve only got one shot at this. Have either of you found the good stuff I asked about?¡±

    The men bowed their heads a little and began a conspiratorial whisper. ¡°No. I haven¡¯t found any from anyone. I¡¯ve put out the word looking to buy, but no hits.¡±

    ¡°Me neither¡± Guntrink admitted. ¡°I¡¯m sure someone has some around here. Maybe they sold it early, and whoever bought it won¡¯t sell for any price.¡±

    ¡°I was afraid of that. Keep your ears alert. This is our last night. So back to the cart. Dragon scale is the supreme choice then? Any cautions?¡±

    ¡°Yeah¡± said Guntrink. ¡°The dragon scale helmet and boots are fakes. The chest plate and shield are real.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± asked Strong Arm. ¡°I¡¯m going to go have another look.¡±

    ¡°Hurry. It will be starting soon.¡±

    A few minutes later Strong Arm came back. ¡°Good eye Guntrink. I¡¯ll give you that. The helmet and boots are real dragon scale, but made from a baby dragon. They¡¯re too soft, about the strength of steel. Also the diamond infused with poison three has a small crack in it.¡±

    Torger was shocked. ¡°Good to know. I would not go into battle with an unreliable bow like that.¡±

    ¡°Yes. There is a small chance that occasionally the spell will backfire on the archer. Getting hit with your own poison three spell in battle would be a death sentence.¡±

    Milderwank stepped onto the chair and the crowd fell silent. He gave a long preamble about quality, reputation, and rules of bidding. The first item was a simple dagger made of mithril. Several people bid on it and it sold for twenty-one gold. Strong Arm whispered that was the value of the mithril if they melted it down. Next was a mithril helmet with the same result-scrap metal for rich people. Next was the obsidian shield. Torger raised his feather a few times but quit at seventy-five gold and it sold for ninety-one. The next item was the grand daddy of them all- the dragon scale shield. It could completely neutralize Fire 4 and Poison 4 if it was between its owner and the enemy caster. It was a large curved rectangle similar to a roman style. It was three feet tall and two feet wide and few dwarves had the strength or height to use it effectively in battle. It was a primitive APC. Torger had never coveted something so much in his life. His strength was high enough and his boots were mithril with permanent Haste 2. This shield was better than that. But it wasn¡¯t for himself. He owned a two handed sword after all.

    The bidding started at a hundred gold, and his heart sank. He had saved five hundred and twelve gold from the village and the mining, and that included his friends donating their share. He also had his eye on two items and was hoping the blacksmiths could find some raw mithril like he had asked for. He cleared his head and focused on the auction again. The bidding was at two fifty and climbing. He put the feather up. Three hundred would be too rich for him. He would have to give up something if this shield topped two eighty. His mind buzzed with the frenzy of bidders and the beauty of the shield. A minute later he heard ¡°Sold¡± and saw his own feather in the air. He looked at the auctioneer stunned. Milderwank looked at him.

    ¡°Congratulations to Torger for this fantastic buy at three hundred and ten gold!¡±

    What? He over spent! Now what? His mind settled down as the dragon scale armor and damaged bow sold. He looked around and saw Guntrink waving him over. ¡°I think I found someone. He says the ruby will get you twelve pounds.¡±

    ¡°What do you think?¡±

    ¡°I think that¡¯s a great ruby. If there were two sellers, you could get twenty pounds. But it¡¯s all we got.¡±

    ¡°No. I¡¯m too nervous with all this whispering and suspicions. It doesn¡¯t seem right.¡±

    ¡°I know Torger, but everyone here would slit your throat for a ruby like that. You can¡¯t trust anyone outside your own village. Keep it down and I¡¯ll tell him you want twenty pounds or no deal. That will make him go away.¡±

    Torger returned to his seat. When he had been negotiating with Kirsk after the goblin battle, he had no idea that each gem was the equivalent of several hundred gold coins, and he got the biggest ruby which Strong Arm put at about six hundred and seventy gold. That one ruby was worth what most dwarves would make in two and a half lifetimes. It was way too valuable to show in public, just like his boots, sword and Jex¡¯s bow. And now his dragon scale shield.

    Torger was relieved when Guntrink returned and said ¡°No deal.¡± Whoever had twelve pounds of mithril didn¡¯t want to advertise that much wealth either. The auction continued and one of the two diamond staffs came up for bid. Before the auctioneer even gave the opening price Torger¡¯s hand was in the air, feather raised high.

    That night Graul, Brun, and Arden all stayed up guarding Torger¡¯s room. The other three Regulators were at Home. Around noon Rome appeared and a half hour later he sent them ahead, back to home, assuring them it was safe and they wouldn¡¯t be teleported to the city under siege.

    Torger proudly handed a diamond encrusted staff to Rome, one to Brun, and the dragon scale shield he gave to Arden. He looked at his friend and said ¡°Arden, with this shield, do everything you can to protect your wife and your brother. I know that has always been your top priority in life, now you have the best protection for them that money can buy.¡±

 End of part 2

    Chapter 45

    Springtime

    The next day Torger took two gold staffs to Lagwil. ¡°How much will these reduce my debt?¡±

    ¡°You owe us thirty pounds of refined gold, and Strong Arm owes the same. These staffs weigh a little over three pounds each.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re not raw gold and you know it. These are a little on the rare side. Let¡¯s call them five pounds each.¡±

    ¡°No, four pounds each is fair.¡±

    ¡°Four and a half.¡±

    Torger enjoyed a pleasant day with the elves after the deal. Winter had finally come. It was mid January and a light snow was falling. That night Rome appeared in the village, which the elves didn¡¯t appreciate, and a half hour later he sent Torger back to Home then made the trip himself.

    The Regulators did nothing the next day but sit in the tavern talking. Baybil gently teased Torger ¡°We had dwarves come from several tribes and some from hundreds of miles away, and it was some of the most profitable trading our tribe has seen in generations, but when they all left all they could talk about was baseball and Yahtzee. You really cleaned up on those inventions. How much did you make anyway?¡±

    Torger answered ¡°Not a whole lot. Graul and I sold a few dozen bats and Strong Arm sold about a hundred mitts and baseballs. His apprentice became very good at making leather armor from all the practice he had making the mitts and balls. And we sold about a hundred pairs of dice. But it was Antic who really made a lot.¡±

    Antic smiled widely and without shame. ¡°You¡¯re the one who made me head of security in the gambling house, and it was your idea to take ten percent of each pot. We had no way of knowing it would be such a big hit.¡±

    Months earlier Torger had figured out how to gamble using Yahtzee, and only he and Graul had the skill to carve perfect wooden dice, so they had an easy monopoly on the supply. Each table held five players who would each put in fifty silver. Of the two hundred and fifty in the pot, Antic would take ten percent to make sure the game was fair. Each time a dwarf was the first to get something- three one¡¯s or three two¡¯s or three or four of a kind or full house etc., the dwarf would take ten silver. The first dwarf to get a yahtzee would get a hundred silver. The one with the most points at the end would get the remainder of the pot, which was usually sixty-five silver left. They had set up three tables in the gambling house, and they had to create a take a number system for the dwarves to come in and try their luck.

    Antic continued ¡°I worked in that house sixteen hours a day for four days.¡± He dropped a large leather pouch on the table and several silver coins spilled out. ¡°I made about four gees in silver. Jex, I know you got used to the awesome power of gold arrowheads, but I will give you a few hundred silver arrowheads if you cover my back in battles from now on.¡±

    Graul groaned but Torger thought it over. ¡°That¡¯s ok with me. Jex is easily the best ranged support this planet has ever seen. And now that Arden has the dragon scale shield to protect her, the three of them could hold off a few dozen razorlings or rocs or whatever else while me and Graul wreak havoc with our swords. And if Antic is willing to pay for the arrows that¡¯s less gold mining we¡¯ll have to do.¡±

    There was a lot more discussion that night but by the time everyone went to bed they all knew what they had to do.

    The next day Rome made his rounds, and Torger began teaching Thirrell how to be a good mayor. Hastaff had moved to Home from Indio during the festivus, and got to work turning the silver coins into silver arrowheads, and the other five Regulators begrudgingly went to work in the mines. Since snow had arrived dwarves were scurrying to get firewood for the winter and Torger realized how valuable the prisoners were when they were mining for salt and coal under the goblin oppressors. Stacks of coal would have been better than trying to dry out green wood, but he lived in SoCal, and winter had never been a problem for him, so he shrugged off his oversight. The dwarves were not happy about it and morale dropped eight points.

    Torger walked around the village every day with Thirrell. He taught him to check the village morale often. The higher the morale, the more work they got done. He also taught him to lead by example, and get into the mines once a month and work with his villagers, and wash some clothes with them and help out in the kitchen and work with menial tasks with leather and metal armor. He also taught him that the village shield and defense could only be increased if Thirrell himself went into the surrounding area and killed monsters then spent the ability points on the expanding or strengthening the shield.

    One day they walked around a building and saw two dwarves sitting and talking. They weren¡¯t doing anything bad, but they were supposed to be helping Stone Fist build a small house for village guests, but they were obviously slacking off. Torger was irate and made them gather and chop a half cord of firewood a day and clean the latrines everyday for a month. ¡°You don¡¯t need lazy dwarves in your village Thirrell. If anyone isn¡¯t pulling their weight let everyone know there will be consequences, and enforce those consequences.¡± There had been several occasions over the previous couple of years that Torger had given extra chores to lazy dwarves, and to embarrass them more he assigned a dwarf to stand near them every day for a week watching them work diligently. The incurably lazy had left the village and Torger let the whole population know the village would be better off without freeloaders. Thirrell had seen him do that first hand a few times. At the same time, morale and money was so good in Home that other dwarves from far away and even from other tribes had come to earn a prosperous living for good honest work. Torger had the perfect touch of keeping everyone both happy and honest. Dwarves who worked to improve the infrastructure were well paid, and all villagers had free lodging and food, and the village had two dwarves who knew the Cure 1 spell in case anyone got hurt.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.

    When the snow was mostly melted in early May, the Regulators left the mines and took Thirrell to go hunting. The bears had come out of hibernation and were hungry, as well as the cottols, rocs, and trolls. The team easily mopped up all monsters for fifteen miles in every direction, and there were a lot of monsters. They all hit their max kills for experience, and by then most monsters were around level thirty, so their ability points skyrocketed. They all reached maximum in health, stamina, strength, and mana, and knew most of the spells available to them. Arden was the weakest among them and he was at level 59. The highest they could get in theory was level 75, and Jex seemed to have maxed out her bows skill at 75.

    In mid June the day of departure came. Baybil walked around the village with Torger. ¡°My friend, you have been a great blessing to our tribe. Muldwil and his sons have looked kindly on us to send us such an intelligent and selfless ruler. I wish this didn¡¯t have to be goodbye.¡±

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t have to be. You could join us in our fight against the Tyters. If you join with the elves, we could win!¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve been over this Torger. Too many times to count. We will continue on and persevere as a tribe long after you are gone. You are asking us to throw away the safety of the tribe to protect you. As painful as it is to say, you are still just another game for the tyters. You are by far stronger than any prey they have ever faced, and I hope you do win, but my main priority has to be the tribe, not a few individuals.¡±

    Torger didn¡¯t like it, but he knew he wouldn¡¯t change Baybil¡¯s mind. Instead he turned to Thirrell. ¡°Young dwarf, you have a great sense of ambition and relentless stamina. You have learned much in the past six months, and I wish I could teach you more, but time is up. Remember to always keep morale high in the village.¡±

    ¡°Thank you Torger, my mentor and my friend. I know I will not be able to keep the village as prosperous as you made it, but you have been the best mayor our tribe has ever seen. No one would be able to lead as well as you, but I will do my best.¡±

    Torger smiled, started to speak, then stopped himself. Instead he turned and walked to the edge of the village where his friends were waiting. He didn¡¯t like a piece of Thirrell¡¯s leadership, but he could no longer stay and continue to train the young dwarf. The new mayor seemed to take a little too much pride in finding and punishing dwarves who slacked off. Torger shook his head. That would not be his problem.

    The Regulators walked to Yosemite Valley. They were greeted by Lagwil and Yiloding at the edge of the village. Torger nodded his head to them. ¡°It is a great honor that the two most prestigious elves of the Pomo tribe have come to greet us personally. I assure you I have all your gold.¡± He said the last part with a grin knowing they never doubted he would accomplish what he said he would.

    ¡°And it has been a great honor to have met such remarkably talented and wise humans. I wish we had a great gift to give you in your fight against the tyters, but we have nothing of tremendous value to offer. Instead please take these.¡± Yiloding handed each of them three high health and high stamina potions.

    The cost would have been high for those potions, and Torger had already expected they would give him a gift. He handed Yiloding a backpack full of refined gold, exactly sixty pounds. ¡°I thank you for your generosity. Our relations have been mutually beneficial, and it has been an honor to work alongside you for the greater good of Nuva.¡± He handed them a quiver filled with twenty arrows with silver arrowheads.

    Lagwil accepted them and nodded. ¡°I will leave you with a word of advice. The hunters will come for you as a sport or a game, and they will bring inferior weapons to make it more challenging for themselves. The extraction team won¡¯t care if you live or die and will bring all the strength and technology they have if you get in their way.¡±

    Torger nodded and thanked her. They all walked through the village and it was the first time anyone other than Torger and Rome saw the inside of an elf village. Everyone knew what a great honor it was that the tribal chief himself led non elves through the main village. Once they exited on the east side, the humans kept walking.

    They marched east towards the Great Salt Flats. Travelling dwarf merchants had said there was a large goblin population there, possibly a few thousand strong. It was likely they had sent the spy to see if they could eliminate the weak Cucamonga tribe, and take more land for themselves. The Regulator¡¯s task was to cut their number in half, buying decades of enforced peace between the dwarves and goblins. Each Regulator was between level 59 and 65, and most goblins were level 18, but it was seven against possibly as high as three thousand.

    After they had left Home and then Yosemite, the dwarves and elves changed their status with humans to neutral. That meant the Regulators could no longer teleport to Cucamonga dwarf or Pomo elf cities. That left them with three places: The small cave owned by Arden and Jex in Indio, the cave owned by Antic near Palm Springs, and Kellogg Hill owned by Brun. They were truly alone now, and about to face the first of three major battles. As they walked they each heard what sounded like a radio transmission in their head, and it was being run through Translate.

    ¡°(Static) ¡­in route now¡­ arrive in three¡­ any hunters respond.¡±

    They looked at each other. Brun asked ¡°What was that?¡±

    Everyone didn¡¯t know but insisted on talking as if they did, except Rome. He stayed silent until they all looked at him. ¡°The extraction team is close enough to begin sending communication to Nuva. They will arrive in three months, and they don¡¯t know if there are any hunters on the planet. My guess is that soon they will be able to hear us talking and realize we have absorbed some of their technology into ourselves. If I¡¯m right, and I hope I¡¯m not, they will be able to pinpoint each one of our locations on this planet.¡±

    Torger shook his head but tried to rally everyone. ¡°Nothing we can do about it now. Let¡¯s focus on the goblins first. And Rome, I sure am happy you came up with the plan to welcome them to their hunting grounds.¡±

    Arden got a vicious grin on his face, but only the three of them knew where Rome had really been going everyday. Torger took the lead and the others continued to march towards certain but temporary goblin death.

 Beginning of part 3

    Tyters

    Part 3

    Beaches

    Chapter 1

    The Surprise Visitor

    It took two weeks for the Regulators to cross the northern part of Nevada in the sweltering heat. Water was scarce, but they each had several gallons in their magic duffle bags. Once a day they would get a partial message with a lot of static from the tyter extraction team asking for any hunters to respond. The signal was slowly becoming clearer and they could expect their arrival by space ship in two and a half months.

    The sun was high overhead and sweat poured down their bodies. Every sage brush looked the same for the past hundred miles, but they were finally coming into a hilly area with a few trees. The idea of shade made them hurry more. The weather had started to become erratic during the summer. Sometimes hot winds would blow, sometimes freezing winds, and rarely was there no wind. Rome had come up with a theory that when the tyters would terra form Nuva they could only control the weather for a couple of years. Nuva probably sat on a different axis and had a different distance from the sun than does Earth, and may not be the same size or have the same ocean to land proportions. Nuva was naturally reverting back to its original state, and that¡¯s why the tyters hunted once every three years. The prey would freeze or bake to death depending on where they were from. But it was just a theory.

    As they trudged along, they heard a distant rumbling. They were out in the open with nowhere to run and hide. Torger said ¡°Let¡¯s keep going. If it gets closer, we¡¯ll be ready.¡±

    The sound got closer every minute, and their fear rose, but they kept walking. Eventually they couldn¡¯t ignore it and hope for the best anymore. Torger yelled ¡°Battle positions!¡±

    They formed a circle with Graul and Torger on one side and Arden and Antic on the other. Arden held his huge dragon scale tower shield and Jex aimed an arrow over the top of it. Brun and Rome held their staffs at the ready in the middle of the circle. This time they weren¡¯t caught off guard like the last time. The sand erupted in front of Graul and grains rained down on them as a giant sand snake came up from underground. Rome immediately cast Analyze 2. He called out the stats.

    Giant Sand Snake Level 61

    Health 600/600 Stamina 62/80 Strength 40 Mana 0 Elemental weakness: Water

    The last time they were attacked by one it had got Graul¡¯s shield stuck in its mouth then fled. His steel round shield was twenty two inch diameter, so the mouth could easily open wide enough to swallow a human whole. Graul held his shield up over his head just like he had the first time, hoping it would bite and get it lodged then scurry away. This time he wasn¡¯t so lucky. The snake was faster than anything he had ever seen as it lowered its head and slammed it into Graul¡¯s side. He went sprawling across the hot sand, a huge dent in his steel chest plate.

    Jex immediately spun on her heel and shot an arrow into its body just below the head. It reared back as Fire 2, Ice 2, and Lighting 2 entered its body, all three spells amplified by the silver arrowhead by one and a half. The magic alone caused 72 damage points. Arden rushed around and repositioned the shield in front of his wife.

    Torger quickly and lightly stepped to the side and swung Red Fury into its body. The Fire 3 spell infused into the mithril blade added extra damage, but the snake still had plenty of health. He yelled ¡°Poison!¡±

    Brun raised his diamond encrusted staff and pointed at the snake and said ¡°Poison three!¡±

    A greenish black flash came out of the staff and struck the snake. The spell gave it an instant case of severe dysentery and removed 2/3 of its max health. Between Jex¡¯s arrow, Torger¡¯s slash, and Brun¡¯s spell, the snake was teetering on death. As Torger raised his sword to make the killing blow, and the snake was whipping its spiked tail at Jex, a booming voice which seemed to come from the clouds yelled ¡°Halt!¡±

    Everything froze. No one could move, including the snake. Torger still had his thoughts, but his muscles wouldn¡¯t budge. He didn¡¯t know a spell could be so powerful. He couldn¡¯t move his eyes, but an ancient looking dwarf walked up to them, directly towards Brun. He was carrying a diamond staff also, and with a wave of his hand the snake was released from its paralysis and slithered underground and far away.

    The dwarf spoke to Brun. ¡°Have you returned to now be my apprentice? I see you are all now qualified, even you.¡± He said that looking at Arden.

    He waved his hand and they could all move again. Torger had been in mid swing toward the snake that was no longer there and he stumbled forward toward the dwarf, his sword in front of him. The dwarf lazily said ¡°Shield one.¡± A magical shield appeared before him and Torger crashed into it. Most shields shocked an enemy with Lightning 1, but dwarves and elves had spells that would allow them to improve the strength and magic spells in their shields with Ice 1 and Fire 1. Torger was not so lucky. This dwarf¡¯s shield had Lighting 4, Ice 4, and Fire 4. The shield shot out the three spells and Torger, Graul, Jex, Arden, and Brun all got hit with the three spells, removing 96 health from each of them. Only Antic and Rome were unscathed because they were the furthest away and those spells hit five enemies.

    The five who got hit were knocked to the ground but they quickly got up again. Torger didn¡¯t know what happened, but Brun understood perfectly. ¡°Ristopan, I honestly thought I would never see you again. Well, I guess I never saw you the first time, since we were prisoners and you appeared in a holograph.¡±

    ¡°Brun, when we spoke I invited you to be my apprentice, once you got as far as you could on your own. I see instead you helped your friends to grow stronger. That was a kind and selfless course of action. You are very near your maximum ability now. It seems most of you are. Have you all come to be apprentices?¡±

    ¡°Actually sir, we were-¡°

    Brun cut off Torger. Torger didn¡¯t seem to get that as far as Ristopan was concerned, Brun was in charge. ¡°I would guess you are aware we are tyter prey, and they will be here soon. We were welcomed and respected in a dwarf village for two years, and to pay that debt we will damage a threat to them, a goblin stronghold. Then we will have to fight the tyters and die. We are becoming accepting of that, but we will fight as hard as we can before they kill us.¡±

    Ristopan looked at each of them and saw that Graul and Torger were resolute in fighting to the death, the others were fearfully accepting of it, except Antic who looked terrified at the thought. He tsked and shook his head. ¡°Those damn war hungry beasts.¡± He pointed at Jex ¡°And this one with child too.¡±

    Everyone gasped, including Jex. She asked ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°I mean you are pregnant dear girl. It¡¯s very early, about a month now, but if you live you will have a daughter.¡±

    She looked at Arden. ¡°Where were we a month ago?¡±

    ¡°Maybe our last night in Home before we got kicked out on the road?¡±

    Jex nodded. She looked at Ristopan. ¡°This changes everything. I must live for my daughter.¡± She grabbed Arden¡¯s hand. ¡°We must live for her.¡±

    Ristopan had genuine compassion in his eyes. ¡°Had I known, I would have kept Besty away from you.¡±

    ¡°Besty?¡±

    ¡°The sand snake. She¡¯s a beast, but Beasty doesn¡¯t sound as affectionate as Besty. She lets me know when anything over level thirty-five is in the area.¡± Ristopan shook his head. ¡°That¡¯s a very different conversation. Now we have a few issues to discuss.¡± He waved his hand and sand rose out of the ground in the form of a long straight bench behind the Regulators. He motioned and they sat down, Graul finally loosening his grip on Inferno.

    Ristopan sat on his own sand pile that was in the form of a throne and he looked at each of them. ¡°I am not allowed to interfere in the tyter¡¯s hunt. I leave them alone and they leave me and my dwarves alone. We have¡­ an understanding. But first things first. You cannot attack the goblins in the Great Salt Flats.¡±

    Torger asked ¡°Why not?¡±

    ¡°Because that isn¡¯t in my territory.¡±

    When they all looked confused he asked them to look at their Maps. They each opened them up and saw they were near the edge of what would be Nevada on Earth. The maps were topographical and had no state lines, but showed mountains, valleys, forests, deserts, and the larger rivers. It was roughly the area of California, Arizona, and Nevada.

    ¡°It seems you have all looked at your maps before and are familiar with them. Rome, you seem to be the most familiar with science. You have realized you can¡¯t zoom out any more, but you can zoom in, and when you zoom out to the furthest it shows your location, but it doesn¡¯t center on your location.¡±

    Rome nodded.

    ¡°I see you don¡¯t understand. My point is your map will never show you what¡¯s another fifteen miles to the east of here. You know what¡¯s there from dwarf travelers and your own home world, but the map will never show it. That¡¯s because you can¡¯t go that far. There is a barrier that keeps prey confined to the district they¡¯re from.¡±

    Torger grasped an idea. ¡°Baybil told us the tyters hunt once every three years, and there are thirty-three prey they import to hunt, so humans get hunted once every ninety-nine years. When their teleportation machine broke it should have brought in thirty-two other types of prey, but we have only seen seven other types of prey. Are these districts the reason we¡¯re not all bumping into each other, even though we respawn far from where we kill each other?¡±

    ¡°Yes! Wonderful! You have a good head Torger. There are five districts. Indigenous beings to Nuva can travel between districts without realizing it. Prey get a wide area to roam to level up to make the hunt more fun, but once the hunters arrive, during the hunt the district gets reduced to less than a hundred square miles. I am the keeper of the west district. My brothers have the North, South, East and Central districts.¡±

    Jex caught on before the others. ¡°You¡¯re one of the sons! One of the sons of Muldwil!¡±

    Ristopan looked a little embarrassed. ¡°I guess I said too much. No one knows we¡¯re here. Apart from the five of us, you humans are easily the most intelligent creatures on this planet.¡±

    Torger thought about the advice he¡¯d given to the dwarves. Building houses, an aqueduct, helping elves fight a forest fire, even telling the dwarf auctioneer to stand on a box to be seen. Torger had humility and didn¡¯t think of himself as too smart, but looking back no wonder the dwarves were stuck in the dark ages after being here for thousands of years. They were a little on the dumb and unimaginative side. ¡°My guess is you fought the tyters with your dad and won your freedom, and you did that before the elves did the same thing.¡±

    Ristopan slowly nodded. ¡°I never thought anyone would ever figure that out. I won the freedom for my kind nearly four thousand years ago. The tyters called us worthy warriors and gave us immunity from hunts, as long as we don¡¯t interfere in their hunts. I stopped talking with my followers over a thousand years ago. I want them to choose for themselves to get involved with prey or not. I¡¯m supposed to discourage them from talking with other species, but if they didn¡¯t trade with the elves for better magic, their mortality rate would double. They live longer and happier lives because of the trading.¡± He shook his thoughts away. ¡°Anyway, you are honorable friends of dwarves to go kill some nasty goblins for dwarves who will now reject you. Because you are being so kind to my¡­ grandchildren, I will give you a gift.¡±

    He pulled out a scroll rolled up with a wax seal holding it together. ¡°This is a powerful spell, far too powerful for you to ever learn, but it¡¯s your ticket home, back to Earth.¡±

    They all looked thrilled and with longing in their eyes they each held out a tentative hand hoping against the odds that they might actually live. Ristopan shook his head. ¡°I see you don¡¯t understand. I wouldn¡¯t expect you to. No one has seen magic like this for a couple millennia. What do you know about the tyter method of teleporting you here?¡±

    They all looked at each other blankly. Rome ventured a guess. ¡°We were on Earth and saw an electronic device. It sent us here, but scattered us away from each other. The tyters enter through a machine that¡¯s in a building on Catalina island. I don¡¯t understand the technology, but the machine is broken and the extraction team is coming to fix it and take away stranded hunters. They don¡¯t seem to realize there are no hunters here.¡±

    ¡°That is somewhat good Rome. I don¡¯t have the first clue as to how they use machines to do magic, but it is different from magic no question. Skipping all the unnecessary guesswork, I¡¯ll tell you what I do know. They think you seven are their hunters. They¡¯re coming to rescue you, and re-establish this hunting ground. Once they realize you¡¯re not tyters, they¡¯ll kill you and they won¡¯t be fair about it. Somehow your genetics got mixed with tyter genetics. Do you know how this happened?¡±

    Graul answered and told him the story of finding the thing that was kind of a bed or stasis chamber under the sand in Yuma, and they used it and got the ability to use magic and respawn. Ristopan was fascinated by the story and kept asking for more details. When he learned enough he said it now made sense.

    ¡°That contraption physically changed each of you. When the tyters get closer, they will be able to tell you¡¯re not actually tyters, but have some of their technology and DNA in you. That is why when Torger put his hand on the box of potions under the river, it responded, and the same is true when Rome put his hand on the door of the building in Catalina. So, back to the scroll. Go into the round tube on Catalina and then open this scroll. The spell will override their machine and teleport you back to Earth. I¡¯m sorry I can¡¯t help you fight the tyters directly, but if I did they would kill every dwarf on this planet. This has been a wonderful conversation, but I have stayed here too long. I do hope one or two of you will stay and become my apprentice, if you survive. It is so rare I get an opportunity to talk about intelligent things with anyone other than my brothers. And by the way, as a thank you to helping my dwarves fight goblins, I brought the goblins to you. Good luck with the tyters and either living or escaping.¡±

    Ristopan muttered to his staff and a swirling mist briefly surrounded him before he disappeared. Torger looked to the horizon and saw thousands of goblins running at them from a mile away. It seemed Ristopan was slipping in his old age. The conversation was wild and sporadic then he unleashed enemies on them. Torger called everyone¡¯s attention to the upcoming battle.

    Chapter 2

    The Slap

    Quest (Mandatory)From Ristopan

    Goblins have been multiplying for years and are on the way to attack the Cucamonga dwarves en masse. Protect the dwarves. The Regulators group must kill 1000 goblins.

    Reward: The scroll you have been given will activate and allow you to override the Tyter teleport device on Catalina.

    Failure: The scroll you have been given will remain a useless parchment.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.

    Torger finished reading the quest then a counter appeared in the corner of his vision.

    Remaining goblins: 1612

    Goblins killed 0/1000

    Everyone finished reading this and fell into despair. That is, everyone except Jex. She never read the prompt but was instead screaming hysterically. ¡°No! Not my baby! I can¡¯t fight while I¡¯m pregnant! If I die, will she die permanently?¡±

    She kept screaming this mantra over and over and had collapsed to her knees on the sand. Torger looked up and saw the goblins marching forward. They had about one to two minutes before they would be in the range of archers.

    ¡°Jex, you gotta stand up. You gotta help us fight. We need to win in order to go home!¡±

    Torger¡¯s voice kept getting louder and more frantic as she kept screaming and crying and she was ignoring him. Jex had always been an emotionally stable woman, but this seemed to finally push her past her breaking point. Torger looked to Arden for help. Arden sighed then gave Torger a slight nod. They had been friends for many years and Torger knew what that nod meant. The other five men started yelling about getting into battle positions and were becoming frantic as the goblins got closer. Torger looked around at everyone trying to do their best, but without clear leadership. Torger hated being led by others, but he hated being the leader even more. They were now less than a minute from battle and Jex needed to engage the enemy. The head nod from Arden had given permission to Torger. He pulled back his hand and slapped Jex across the face.

    Unfortunately, in his adrenaline induced panic, he had put too much power into the slap trying to pull her out of her hysteria. In fact he put in way too much power. Torger was wearing a steel gauntlet, and Jex¡¯s head turned almost a full quarter turn and she landed on her shoulder on the sand. Torger¡¯s face dropped in horror. He reached down to help her up but Jex shook him off. She didn¡¯t say anything at all, just glared at him. That was bad. He knew her well enough to know that she didn¡¯t keep barbed taunts away from people who upset her. She was beyond ticked off that he hit her so hard and the look on her face made that very clear.

    ¡°Jex I¡¯m so sorry-¡°

    That was all Torger got out before she cast Teleport 1 and went to either the cave in Indio, Palm Springs, or the tunnels under Kellogg Hill. The group had just lost their archer for the fight. Torger looked to Arden to apologize to him, but he glared at Torger for a second before he cast Teleport 1 on himself to go look for and comfort his wife.

    ¡°Damn it!¡± Torger screamed in frustration, both with himself and the goblin situation that put them into this mess. He collected himself and pushed his emotions as deep down as he could. Then he resumed his leadership of the group. ¡°Everyone set your respawn point to Indio¡­ we¡¯re not going to survive this. But we can finish this quest! Let¡¯s kill some goblins and get into position to kill the tyters then go home!¡±

    The other four men cheered at the hope of going home, but Antic cheered louder and longer.

    Torger looked around and saw a steep hill a half mile away. He pointed and gave commands. ¡°We need that high ground! We won¡¯t be able to protect our backs. Brun, Rome, forget offensive magic, just cure us!¡±

    They ran to the hill and found a large rock in the side of it. Brun and Rome climbed on top of the rock and Torger instructed them to keep a shield up in front of themselves. Then they took the last remaining half minute to regain as much stamina and mana as they could.

    Predictably the goblin archers shot arrows long before the melee fighters arrived. All five Regulators cast a magic shield over their heads. After the volley of arrows struck the shields they were still all unharmed but the magic shields were all cracked. They each cast another shield above the cracked ones. The next volley of arrows landed just a couple of seconds before the fastest of the goblins arrived.

    Torger and Graul each swung big and beheaded the first two goblins, and Antic, being pumped up with adrenaline, fear and a desire to go home shoved his halberd into the first goblin so hard the axe and hook went into its body. That was very bad because he couldn¡¯t pull it back again. The next goblin swung wildly at him, and it was clear the goblin had very little experience using a sword in combat. Antic blocked with his steel bracer against the copper sword. The sword shattered and he kicked the goblin. He tried to free Power Cord again but it was stuck deep in the goblin corpse. ¡°I need some help here!¡±

    Torger was in the middle with Graul to his right and Antic to his left. Graul yelled ¡°I got you¡± to Torger. Torger turned to the side and in two perfectly executed swings of Red Fury left just a six inch piece of the goblin stuck to the halberd. Antic nodded his thanks and pulled the flesh off with his bare hand. As he was doing that Torger killed the next two goblins that tried to attack the occupied human with the big fancy spear.

    Torger turned to face the charge again just as another volley of arrows cracked the magic shield above his head. He was about to yell for Brun and Rome to help, but after nearly three years of life and death battles they all fought as a fully functioning machine. Three more shields were added on top of the two layers of cracked shields before Torger could ask for it. Torger swung hard and decapitated another goblin, then drew his sword back in a way that allowed him to elbow a goblin in the face that had made it between himself and Graul. Torger picked up his boot high and stomped down hard on its knee, breaking its leg.

    He saw Graul and Antic swinging quickly at the dozens of goblins that had surrounded them. The bodies had began to pile up and Torger ordered them to retreat back up the hill twenty feet. He hated wasting the shields from where they were at, but the new goblins were climbing over the dead goblins and they no longer had the high ground advantage.

    Two shields were cast just before the next volley of arrows came in. Wisely Rome and Brun had protected Graul and Torger, but the mages and Antic all got hit with arrows. Antic¡¯s armor protected him, but Rome and Brun had to each pull two arrows out of their shoulders then cast cure on themselves. They got up two more shields just before the next volley came in. They protected themselves, but Antic was unlucky enough to take an arrow to the chin. The downward trajectory made it go all the way through his chin and a little into his neck.

    Brun and Rome each cast Cure 1 on him, but Torger called them off after that. ¡°Sorry Antic, but until you get that arrow out you¡¯ll just keep bleeding.¡±

    Torger and Graul turned back to back to fight the horde while Antic turned and scrambled up to Rome to break the arrowhead and slide the shaft out. Antic of course screamed in pain then was given a mid level potion by Brun. The problem was that most of it spilled out the hole in his chin. A couple more Cure 1¡¯s later he rejoined the fight.

    Just as Antic turned to get back into the thick of it, Torger called for them to scramble further up the hill. More shields were cast and more arrows found the mages. Rome pulled out an arrow from Brun¡¯s back and saw there was heavy bleeding. Looking around, he saw that everyone was going to die from a thousand paper cuts. The three front fighters were bleeding profusely from minor cuts on their arms and legs. Rome cast Cure 3, giving each of them an extra 60 health (20 for the base spell x3 for using a diamond staff) which just meant most of the bleeding stopped but no real repairs to flesh were made. He called out to Torger ¡°I¡¯m out of mana!¡±

    ¡°Drink a potion!¡±

    ¡°We were saving those for the tyters.¡±

    ¡°If we don¡¯t get this scroll activated it won¡¯t matter. We have to finish this quest! We¡¯ll get more later. Use all the potions if we have to!¡±

    For the past six months Rome had been in charge of inventory and knew exactly how many potions they bought from the dwarves and elves. They had six high level mana and health potions and had started with six low level mana and health potions. Antic had tried to drink and wasted their only mid level health potion. Rome really wished at that point that they had bought more, but all their money had gone to the silver arrows for Jex.

    Rome and Brun each drank a high level mana potion giving them each an extra 49 mana. They each cast another Shield 1 above their heads then each cast a Cure 3. That brought the mages back to full health, but the fighters were getting thumped on. Rome and Torger realized the problem at the same time.

    Torger called out ¡°We¡¯re getting tired. My stamina is down to twenty-three! Report!¡±

    Graul called out ¡°Nineteen!¡±

    ¡°Sixty-one!¡± was called out from a smug Antic.

    Rome called out ¡°Some health and mana potions.¡±

    Graul muttered ¡°Bastard with the starting stamina of ninety.¡± Graul and Torger had a max stamina of one hundred which accounted for a little of the difference between them and Antic, but a quick glance showed Graul that Antic was doing more defending than attacking.

    ¡°Torger we can¡¯t keep this up. We¡¯re running out of stamina.¡±

    Torger looked at his counter.

    1371 goblins remaining. 241/1000 goblins killed.

    The bodies were again piling too high to maintain the high ground. ¡°Back up further! Rome and Brun drink mana potions and get new shields up! Rome look and see if we have any stamina potions. Graul we¡¯ll need to use a little less force on our swings and stabs.¡±

    Graul used his steel shield to bash another goblin in the face and figured that was taking a lot of his energy. They backed up to higher ground and again got pelted with arrows. As the fighters bent forward to have the arrows bounce off their protected backs, Graul took a sword thrust to the face. He grunted through the pain and killed the goblin with his own sword to its face and silently cursed Jex for leaving them. She could have picked off the archers by then. He decapitated another goblin and kicked a different one then saw a hobgoblin spirit rise from the pile of dead bodies.

    Torger called out ¡°Brun you do you!¡±

    Brun drank a low level mana potion and cast Beserk 2 at it. The spell caused the target to go into a rage and attack using only its bare hands. It floated towards Torger who used all his might with a two handed swing and cut it in half at the stomach. The hobgoblin spirit didn¡¯t die but clawed at Torger¡¯s face. Torger cried out and tried to push it away, but since it was a spirit only magic could damage it. It dug its fingers further into his cheeks and Torger fell backwards. Antic spun and stabbed it with Power Cord right through the neck. The spirit let out a cry and dissipated into the air. Antic smiled and nodded at Torger but then he got stabbed on the back of a leg with goblin spear. Antic fell down hard. He rolled over and from his back chopped off the goblin¡¯s hand then felt a familiar warmth as a golden light surrounded him. He scrambled back to his feet but still was off balance from the pain in his calf. Rome¡¯s Cure 3 spell gave all of them the extra health needed to keep fighting.

    Torger was exhausted. He stabbed another goblin through the chest and checked his Stats to find that his stamina was at 18/80. ¡°Rome, seriously, any stamina potion at all man.¡±

    Rome dug into his duffle bag while Brun drank the last three low level mana potions and quickly cast more shields. While they were busy, Graul called out ¡°That spirit came up when we killed two hundred and fifty goblins. Be prepared for when we hit five hundred.¡±

    Torger was wrestling a spear away from a goblin as he thought about it and realized his brother was right. The counter showed they were at 321/1000 goblins. ¡°You¡¯re right. If we make it that far, be ready. Rome, stamina, seriously, now.¡±

    ¡°I got two! We only have two high level stamina potions, no mid or low level ones. These are it Torger.¡±

    Torger called ¡°Let¡¯s finish this wave of goblins and on the next retreat further up hand one to me and one to Graul.¡±

    Antic wanted to argue that he needed on but he saw that the others were getting sloppy with their sword swings and thrusts. Most of the time one swing from them would still equal one death, but more often they were starting to land glancing blows that gave the enemy a chance to counter. Fortunately the goblins were stupid and the ones in back were pushing the ones in front with no discipline for battle formations.

    A few kills later Torger called for the retreat and as they fought while backing up Torger realized he had made a mistake. They had made it to the top of the hill. The archers had to go all the way to the bottom of the hill to be in range, and they seemed content to shoot their comrades in the backs. Rome handed Graul and Torger each a high level stamina potion and they gained forty-nine stamina points and another one max to their stamina when they drank them. Torger verified his Stats.

    Health 341/500 Stamina 59/101 Strength 12/20 Mana 100/100

    Hell, he forgot about his own mana! ¡°Graul and Antic, Cure 3!¡±

    All three fighters had full mana and easily cast the spell. Since none of them had a staff they didn¡¯t get a multiplier, so all five Regulators gained a total of 60 health. ¡°That was stupid of me! If we get another break in the action take a diamond staff before casting that spell! How are you guys doing on mana back there?¡±

    Rome called out ¡°We¡¯re both less than ten. We have three high level mana potions left.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not gonna make it.¡± Torger regretted the words as soon as he said them. He saw Antic dip his shoulders and heard the mages sigh. Graul kept right on fighting bashing one goblin with his shield and simultaneously decapitating another. Torger knew his brother was emotionally stout and was prepared to fight to the inevitable death before the battle started.

    A few more goblins killed brought them to the five hundred mark. When that happened another spirit arose from the bodies. This one was huge, nearly five feet tall and dressed in iron chain mail. Torger had never seen a goblin use iron, and the axe in its hands was also iron. He used analyze.

    Karruk, the spirit of a legendary captain. Level 24 Health 320/350 Stamina 45/45 Strength 12/12 Mana 0/0

    It surveyed the scene as Brun cast Poison 2 at it. Its health dropped to 175 and began losing one health point every four seconds, along with two other goblins near it. It barked orders. ¡°Fools! Go around and attack them from the back!¡±

    Torger¡¯s fear had come true. These goblins were leaderless, or rather the leaders were safely in the back. The nearest twenty goblins ran around the hill to their left. Torger knew they only had about twenty seconds before the mages would be in combat, and they would lose quickly. ¡°Graul, rear guard!¡±

    Antic looked across at Torger, but they both kept fighting. Torger saw the question in his friend¡¯s eyes but the words didn¡¯t need to be spoken. Graul and Torger were nearly unstoppable when fighting back to back. They had an unexplainable way of predicting each other¡¯s moves and anticipating dangers to each other. Breaking that team meant Torger didn¡¯t trust Antic to handle twenty goblins alone or Torger had great confidence that Antic could protect Torger¡¯s back. Antic would never know, but the truth was Torger didn¡¯t trust Antic¡¯s skills being outnumbered twenty to one. Until the mages were completely drained of mana they were still needed for the fight. That gave Torger another concern to worry about, teleporting their spare equipment. He decided to use that to boost Antic¡¯s confidence.

    ¡°Rome and Brun, keep up the cures as long as you can. Give us everything you¡¯ve got. Every potion and trick up your sleeve. Antic if they fall, cure me and Graul then use the last of your mana to teleport with all our equipment. We will have to save our gear.¡±

    Antic used the axe part of the halberd to chop off a goblin¡¯s arm then nodded at Torger. He understood they would all die, but Torger had an extra set of armor for each of them in their duffle bags, along with tents, water, food and weaker weapons. Teleporting while carrying five duffle bags would take considerable strength, but Antic knew Torger saw him as the only one capable of doing it. The battle was wearing everyone down.

    Torger was still easily decapitating the small, weak, and stupid goblins, but there were minor cuts all over his elbows, arms, and legs where his bracers and greaves didn¡¯t protect him. Since they had been fighting from the high ground the entire battle, the short goblins standing beneath him had easy strikes at his shins. His mithril boots that gave his feet Haste 2 allowed him to dodge most of the time, but Graul and Antic were bleeding heavily from their legs and were moving much more slowly. That made Torger certain it would be up to him alone to finish off the spirit captain that was pushing his way through the ranks towards Antic. It seemed the captain saw Antic as the easiest target, since Torger and Graul were doing a great job of protecting the healers.

    Torger called out ¡°One of you, Cure three!¡±

    A warmth enveloped him and his bleeding arms and legs felt better. Then Torger gave a huge battle cry and quickly and precisely cut through the ranks of stunned goblins. Five of them fell before his steel sword cut the axe head off leaving the captain with a stick. It swung it and hit Torger in the kidney on his left side, partially protected from chain mail, but Torger used both hands to bring the sword down on the spirit¡¯s head. The magic of Fire 3 flared and split the helmet and kept going through the skull. As with every swing of his sword, four fireballs each hit the nearest goblin. The spirit dissipated, then Torger found himself surrounded by dozens of goblins. He was separated from the group and left the mages unprotected.

    He called out ¡°Antic, protect them!¡± as soon as he saw Antic trying to make it to him. Antic used the halberd to keep goblins at bay away from the mages.

    Torger got pummeled with a dozen weak and poorly aimed sword strikes, but it still hurt like hell even through the steel armor. He heard Brun call out ¡°We¡¯re giving you the last we¡¯ve got! Good luck!¡±

    Torger was hit with two Cure 3¡¯s then two Shield 2¡¯s surrounded him. The shields immediately hit all surrounding goblins with Lighting 1. Torger took a knee, thankful for the rest. He looked up and saw Graul and Antic playing a wicked game of king of the hill, with goblins all around them. Rome and Brun were ready to hand their staffs to their friends, then die a horrible death.

    Torger¡¯s counter showed 671/1000 goblins killed. He ignored the pounding of the two magic shields around him. The goblins were striking the outer shield which was heavily cracked, and each time one of them struck it, Torger knew that goblin would take 10 points of health damage. He took in deep breaths and focused on slowing his heart rate.

    The outer shield fell and the banging started on the inner spherical shield. He looked up to the top of the hill. A dozen goblins were jumping on and stabbing the prone bodies of Rome and Brun. A few seconds later their bodies disappeared. Torger saw Antic gathering all five duffle bags then a pale green light surrounded him and he disappeared with all of their equipment. Antic had been bleeding heavily from both arms and legs, but he managed to save their gear!

    The shield fell and Torger sprang to his feet swinging his double edged two handed straight sword at every goblin near him. Six of them died easily before he was able to start hacking at the backs of the goblins circling Graul. Torger killed five more before the brothers were back to back again.

    Graul was completely spent. He didn¡¯t get the fourteen seconds of rest that Torger just had. Without saying anything, Torger cast Shield 2 around Graul. The fifteen foot radius was plenty for them to both fit in comfortably. They killed the goblins in the sphere then looked around.

    Torger said ¡°Two more to kill until the next spirit. We¡¯ve done well. Let¡¯s get as close as we can to our goal.¡±

    Graul shook his head and took a deep calming breath. ¡°We¡¯re not going to make it. We need to charge down the hill and take out the archers. Right before we die, we teleport and save our swords and armor.¡±

    Torger agreed to the plan, but he couldn¡¯t help but wonder if there was a time limit on completing the quest. They were nearly three weeks of hard marching away from their nearest ¡°safe house¡± in Indio. Torger had no more time to think. The shield fell and they both ran into the goblins nimbly dispatching them as they jogged downhill over hundreds of bodies.

    They reached the archers who were left undefended except for the few captains leading the campaign. All four captains glared at them but made no move to intervene. Torger killed the first archer and kept running unclear as to why the captains began smiling. A loud feminine shriek erupted from behind them and he spun to see a goblin queen spirit rise from the bodies. He didn¡¯t bother to use analyze 1 or 2 since they wouldn¡¯t be fighting her.

    Torger and Graul fought back to back at the bottom of the hill as the captains stupidly ordered the archers to attack. Some used their bows to shoot arrows, but most picked up knives from their dead comrades and ran forward. A couple dozen archers fell easily before the melee goblins made their way back from the top of the hill, trailing the queen spirit.

    She was about ten feet tall and encased in steel plate mail. She held a steel spear in one hand and a gold staff in the other. Suddenly, as Torger was shoving Red Fury at the chest of a goblin archer, he was paralyzed. A second later Graul was paralyzed, then a magic sphere surrounded them and they were lifted off the ground. It was eerily similar to how they were captured in the slave mines.

    Correctly guessing each other¡¯s thoughts, Torger and Graul both used Teleport 1 and found themselves in Jex and Arden¡¯s cave in Indio.

 The Apology

    Chapter 3

    The Apology

    Several sconces were burning along the cave walls, giving off flickering orange light. They could see the others outside the cave mouth speaking quietly and looking downcast. Torger and Graul were bleeding heavily and stumbled outside, glad that everyone had met up here instead of Kellogg Hill.

    Jex saw Torger approaching and turned her back to him, but Arden and Brun had enough mana restored to cast Cure 1on each of them. That helped a little, but not enough to stop all of the bleeding. Torger didn¡¯t need to check his Stats to know his health was below 100/500, and slowly dropping from continual blood loss. He sighed and looked at Arden for help. Arden thought for a few seconds then waved him over.

    ¡°You guys were gone nearly ten minutes longer than Antic. What happened? How did it go?¡±

    Torger was grateful to begin talking in Jex¡¯s hearing without directly addressing the elephant in the cave.

    ¡°We killed a lot more, I don¡¯t know how many, but we came up well short of a thousand. I wish I knew if there was a time limit on this quest. We¡¯ve got less than two months to get back to the dwarves and protect them from the goblins, then hurry back to greet the tyter extraction team. That¡¯s going to be nonstop exertion for the next six weeks, but we¡¯ll have to dig deep and finish the quest before we can go home.¡±

    The others sighed but nodded, including Jex whose back was still turned. They had to complete the quest or there would be no point in fighting the tyters, and that meant a thousand mile round trip to kill the goblins and protect the dwarves.

    As they were engaged in their own thoughts, another transmission came into their ears from their tyter enhancements. ¡°This is captain Pegvet of the Light Scout ship Ryukkah. We are well within range for any hunters on Nuva to hear us. We will be arriving in thirty-six days. Meet the extraction team at the main teleport sight. I will require a full report upon arrival. If you cannot meet at the main teleport sight, then you are weak tyters and not worthy of the titles of hunters, and you will be left to your fate on this planet. You have been warned to comply or die hunters. May your training guide you in this task. I assume since you have not responded to our daily transmissions that the long range communications are down, or you are already dead. Captain Pegvet out.¡±

    They all looked at each other. ¡°36 days? That¡¯s a few weeks sooner than expected.¡±

    ¡°I know Rome. I¡¯ll think of something.¡±

    Jex turned around. ¡°Torger, I know you¡¯re doing your best to keep us alive and get us home. And, nevermind. But for what it¡¯s worth, I¡¯m sorry I left you during a battle.¡±

    Torger gulped. ¡°I did not like emotions or apologies. They never did much good for me. I prefer people just doing what they were supposed to do rather than doing the wrong thing then apologizing. I¡­ I don¡¯t know what happened to me. It was a highly stressful situation for all of us and we both responded horribly to the mess Ristopan left us in. Now that I¡¯ve had a minute to think about it, getting your daughter safely home has become my top priority. I¡¯ll figure out how to get us home or die trying,¡± he said with a strained smirk.

    The gravity of the situation hung over all of them and a silence fell. Before anyone spoke again they all received a message.

    Quest update: Failed

    You did not kill 1000 goblins and they have resumed their march toward the Cucamonga Dwarves. However, since you nearly completed the quest, the scroll will activate, but at a reduced level. 6 of you may use the scroll to teleport back to your home world. If all 7 humans try to use the scroll, none of you will leave Nuva.

    ¡°I¡¯m staying.¡±

    Everyone looked at Torger. ¡°No Torger. We can figure out another way or come up with a way to pick one of us at random. We all need to work on getting home.¡±

    ¡°I know you mean well Brun, but realistically I have the least to return home to. I¡¯m single, walked with a limp, and was working a dead end job before we came here. I wasn¡¯t going to make anything of my life anyway. The rest of you can be happy and successful back home. If I go, I will always miss this place. I like fighting and building and being in perfect health. Besides, I can handle loneliness.¡±

    Arden answered ¡°No, we¡¯ll figure out a way for all of us to get home.¡±

    The conversation continued for nearly an hour before it changed to talking about strategy. Torger finally told the others about the secret project he and Rome had been working on for the six months that the others were swinging picks in the gold mine to pay back the elves. The discussion of a real and solid plan to defeat the tyter extraction team and get into their teleport facility put everyone in a good mood.

    ¡°All of you stay here and take a month off. I¡¯m going to run up to Rich Fields and see how many low level potions I can get from Strong Arm, and hopefully arrive in time to warn him about the goblins.¡±

    Everyone agreed, then cast a Cure 1 on him since he was still bleeding, and Torger began a long and lonely journey four hundred miles to the north. Getting to Modesto should take him less than two weeks, but getting from Modesto to Yosemite to see the elves before teleporting back to Catalina would be a struggle.

    Being level 61 had lots of perks. He had excellent stamina and strength, and had most of the spells available to humans. But it was his mithril sword infused with Fire 3 that was the reason he could sleep at night without fear of attack. If any beast was stupid enough to attack him, a couple well placed thrusts would quickly finish it. Having his two handed swords skill at level 49 meant he rarely missed a strike or parry. And his mithril boots with Haste 2 meant he didn¡¯t have to continually cast Haste 2 or 3 on himself while running across the terrain. None of the others would be able to keep up with him.

    Each day he used his speed and stamina to chase down and kill a deer or coyote. He hated that he didn¡¯t leave some dwarves in the mines at the Salton Sea to dig for more coal and salt. For the past seven months the dwarves hadn¡¯t been able to salt meats for trail rations, so it always rotted in a day or two. And no coal meant extra time gathering firewood for the chilly nights. Along the way he got attacked by a bear once and a roc once, but even without a bow those lowly level 36 animals were no match for him. As Baybil had promised, most prey gained about a level a month.

    Eventually he made it to Rich Fields on a cold and cloudy afternoon. As he approached, he saw a shimmer of the village magic shield and was painfully reminded that he didn¡¯t have access to them anymore. He had done great and wonderful things for the dwarf tribe, and they kicked him out once the tyters were close. They had made it clear they wanted no confusion about being enablers to the tyter prey.

    Torger waited outside for a few minutes until a dwarf guard came to him. ¡°Uh, hi Torger. Sorry but Strong Arm said you need to leave. He said you know why.¡±

    ¡°Yes I know why, but I¡¯m here to trade for some potions, and hopefully give him a warning.¡±

    ¡°If your warning was about the goblins, scouts reported them yesterday. Six fighting dwarves headed towards Home yesterday, including Strong Arm.¡±

    Torger smiled. ¡°Good for him, leading by example. But you just told me Strong Arm said I can¡¯t enter the village. Which is it? Is he going to fight the goblins, or is he telling you to keep me out? Either way I want to talk to whoever is in charge.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. You need to go. We can¡¯t have the tyters think we¡¯re helping you.¡±

    Torger thought about Ristopan. He and his four brothers had a deal with the tyters that they would control the dwarves if the tyters left the dwarves alone, but none of the dwarves knew about that deal or that Ristopan was a few hundred miles to the east. Torger didn¡¯t need to waste his time with the lowly guard. ¡°If Strong Arm is here I want to trade with him. If he¡¯s not here then Baybil is here and I want to trade with him.¡±

    The guard shook his head. ¡°No, strict orders.¡±

    Torger sighed and walked around the village. Going to Home would get him the same results. He had to make it to the elves and had fourteen days to do it, which was plenty of time. As he walked he knew he could crush the village shield and take whatever potions they had, but that wasn¡¯t how he lived. He hated handouts, and theft was definitely not something he tolerated under any circumstances. As a mayor, he let the victims of theft fight it out with those they thought were crooks. He turned a blind eye to several back alley beatings. What really hurt was that he was looking forward to omelets and his spicy vinegar sauce.

    It took him six days to traverse the mountains and arrive at the Yosemite village of elves. A guard he hadn¡¯t seen before greeted him. ¡°Welcome Torger. There is no one here to take you to the Winds of Truth. Everyone is fighting a large band of goblins to the north.¡±

    ¡°What, really? The elves are fighting? That¡¯s great! I¡¯ll go help. Where are they?¡±

    Torger jogged for an hour before he had to slow to a brisk walk. It was nearly midnight when he came to an elven campsite. ¡°Hi everyone. How can I help?¡±

    He was led to Lagwil. ¡°Torger it¡¯s so good to see you again. We¡¯ve been fighting the goblins for two days. They¡¯re to the north and a camp of dwarves is to the west. I, I uh have mixed feelings about you being here. We desperately need your skill in combat, but I fear for the safety of our tribe from the tyters.¡±

    ¡°How bad is the situation Lagwil?¡±The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

    ¡°Honestly, we¡¯ve taken losses. Nine elves have died, I don¡¯t know how many dwarves. Our concealment in forests is why we¡¯re alive at all. We¡¯ve killed over a hundred goblins, but there are too many of them.¡±

    ¡°I would never tell you how to run the village or tell Yiloding how to run the tribe, but it won¡¯t do you any good to kick me out from fear of the tyters if you will all be dead before they arrive anyway.¡±

    ¡°Yes, I know. I don¡¯t know how to handle this. We need all of you, but it will bring their wrath if we¡¯re near you.¡±

    ¡°OK, I¡¯ll circle around to the north and attack from there, as far away from elves as possible.¡±

    ¡°Just the seven of you? Even at your high level, this is a major war.¡±

    ¡°Not the seven of us, just me. The others are in SoCal, far away like you wanted.¡±

    Lagwil hung her head. ¡°Certain death to protect those who have shunned you for their own preservation is beyond admirable. What would you like?¡±

    ¡°Two things: first is why are you fighting them at all? They came to destroy the dwarves, not elves. Second is we need all the potions you¡¯ve got.¡±

    ¡°I can¡¯t believe that! The goblin spirit queen said they weren¡¯t interested in us, just the dwarves. But we didn¡¯t believe her. I have no idea how they summoned such a powerful leader from the grave. They must have a few more hobgoblins than we thought.¡±

    Torger didn¡¯t want to say anything about a stronger spirit leader arising every two hundred and fifty goblins killed, so indirectly it was the Regulators who summoned her. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you what. I will kill the queen, you get me lots of potions.¡±

    ¡°OK, as long as you stay to the north side of the battlefield and leave as soon as¡­ um I mean it¡¯s been nice knowing you Torger. Be sure to use your rare Teleport spell before you um, die.¡± Lagwil left to gather potions and returned an hour later. Torger walked to the west to meet with the dwarves, happy with three mid level health potions and two each of mid level mana and stamina potions. It was a little less than he was hoping for but he believed it was all Lagwil could safely spare.

    A couple hours later he came to the dwarf camp. He was led to Thirrell. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you on the front lines and gaining experience for the good of the village.¡±

    Thirrell answered coldly ¡°You know you are banished from being near us. Go before you bring doom to our tribe.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here to gather potions. If you have some, I will kill the goblin spirit queen and then teleport away.¡±

    Thirrell thought for a moment. ¡°I¡¯ll give you three low level health and mana potions if you kill the queen.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s something else I want. Is Strong Arm here?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll take you to him. If I didn¡¯t need you so much I would tell you to go away. As it is we¡¯re going to have liches to contend with.¡±

    ¡°Liches? Oh, I forgot. In a big pile of death they rise from the ground at night, and if powerful enough they can summon hellhounds.¡±

    Torger looked at the cloudy night sky. It was well past midnight and just a couple days past the fall equinox. Thinking about the eight hundred dead goblins in east Nevada¡­ ¡°Thirrell, how powerful can liches get again?¡±

    ¡°A grand lich is rumored to be around level eighty. But no one really knows if that is true. And old tales say two grand liches could summon a dragon, but that¡¯s probably a fairytale. Why do you ask? Once this war is over we¡¯ll burn and bury the goblins, but each night their camp is sure to be protected by hellhounds at this point.¡±

    ¡°I guess it really doesn¡¯t concern me. Thank you for the potions.¡±

    By then they had reached Strong Arm who, sadly had stopped making gunpowder and shotgun shells. The forty-three black powder shells would have to be enough against the tyters.

    Chapter 4

    Catalina

    Torger watched they early grey morning slowly change to orange in the sky. One by one the hellhounds then the liches disappeared as light spread to the goblin camp. Goblin archers came to the perimeter of the camp expecting a dawn attack, and the spirit queen was screeching orders for the goblins to attack and win today. Torger picked that moment to attack the distracted queen.

    Having been awake for a full day and night his thoughts and movements were sluggish, but he just had to race in and defeat one inferior foe. He did not let out a battle cry and the two archers who saw him running at them were too stunned to do anything. Who would be so foolish as to attack their camp as a solo idiot?

    That was their last thoughts before their heads rolled along the grass. Torger rushed into a group of goblins getting up for the day and he killed only a couple that were in his way as he barreled past them. The others shouted in surprise, and the shouts quickly spread throughout the camp. He side stepped a spear thrust and stabbed the goblin in the heart then parried a sword strike and beheaded that goblin. But by then he was almost in the center of the camp and the queen was prepared for him.

    She cast a Shield 2 spell to trap him in the bubble, but he had fallen victim to that trick twice so he ran to the side correctly anticipating her first move. About twenty feet from her he dodged another spell- one of levitation to keep him off the ground. Torger quickly closed the distance but not quite quick enough. Three captains wearing iron chainmail with bronze swords and shields stepped between Torger and their queen. He didn¡¯t have time for delays!

    Torger ran straight at the captain in the center and feinted low then stabbed high. Red Fury went above the round shield but below the helm and straight through the captain¡¯s throat. But that move cost Torger. The one second it took him to extract the blade allowed the other two captains to cut into the back of his knees where he was unprotected. He went down fast and hard like a ten dollar hooker. His face hit the ground just a couple of feet in front of the queen. He rolled over and used his sword to block the sword strikes to his unprotected neck.

    The queen called for the other goblins to stop. ¡°I¡¯ll deal with this whelp.¡± She looked down at Torger and smiled. ¡°This is perfect. Bring a rope of negation! The tyters will blame his death on the dwarves.¡±

    Torger panicked for a second. While a goblin slave in the mines of the Salton Sea the Regulators were bound with ropes of negation. Supposedly if he died while bound with the magical rope he wouldn¡¯t respawn, but Baybil hinted that he would still respawn a week later, but Torger didn¡¯t want to find out. He had to act quickly before the order spread through the camp and the rope was brought to the queen. From his back looking up he got a horribly unfortunate upskirt shot of the queen¡¯s womanhood. Shaking off the nightmare sight he pointed his hand at her and called ¡°Poison three!¡±

    The spell instantly flew from his hand and struck her in the chest, then split and hit the two remaining captains in their guts. All three goblin leaders bent over clutching their stomachs and shit themselves. Poison 3 inflicted the three targets with dysentery and reduced their max health to 1/3 of its original value. Torger didn¡¯t have time to cast Analyze 2 but guessed her health was now about 133/133 (400). He didn¡¯t have enough mana left for another high power spell; he had to save some to teleport away.

    As Torger was painfully crawling to his knees the queen recovered before the captains. With a roar she picked up her foot to step on him. It seemed she didn¡¯t care if he respawned so long as he died. Torger collapsed back down and rolled to his back then placed the hilt of the sword into the ground near his head and had the point above his neck. The queen was wearing leather boots, but since she was a spirit physical attacks wouldn¡¯t hurt her. But as she stepped down the ruby in the sword cross guard flared and inflicted her with Fire 3 for 14 health damage, and it shot out for mini flares to the nearest four goblins inflicting them also with 14 health damage. It was that ability that had allowed Torger to plow through so many goblins in Nevada and at this goblin camp. He injured four goblins for each goblin he struck.

    14 health damage was not enough to severely damage the queen, but it was like stepping on a jagged rock while barefoot. She raised her foot instinctually and being very sick from dysentery she fell over to the side. Being ten feet tall she crushed a minor goblin aide under her. Torger cast Cure 2 on himself and scrambled up on two unsteady legs with wounds behind his knees, but he used their surprise and quickly dispatched the two goblin captains, also dealing another 28 damage to the queen from the Fire 3 spell.

    Torger quickly turned and drove his sword through her thigh, then twisted and amplified the internal damage. Numerous Cure 1 spells hit the queen in quick succession as hobgoblins arrived to the scene of battle. Torger¡¯s time was up- he was too outnumbered. He distantly heard battle sounds as the elves and dwarves had attacked the goblin camp while it was in an uproar, but he didn¡¯t have time for any thoughts but killing the boss. He swung his sword and chopped off both legs below the knee with one swing. No amount of Cure 1 spells would overcome that kind of damage; only two or three nights sleep would regrow two limbs. The queen finished casting her own Poison 2 spell at him and he was infected with chicken pox and a mild venom. Torger cast Teleport 1 and disappeared from the battle.

    He found himself on top of the highest hill on the island. All his friends were there looking bored and playing yahtzee. They ran over to him and saw blood trickling out of the backs of his legs, then they all cast Cure 1 and Rome cast Heal 3, and he was fully healed.

    ¡°How did it go? What happened?¡±

    Torger was glad to see the concern on Jex¡¯s face. It seemed she had forgiven him, mostly. ¡°I got some potions!¡± He handed the moderate assortment of potions over to Antic. ¡°The dwarves wanted nothing to do with me. It seems they instinctually know the tyters will be here soon. To get the potions I had to kill the goblin spirit queen we inadvertently raised. I hope she¡¯s dead, but I doubt it. The good news is she won¡¯t be walking today or tomorrow, but the elves gave me the potions in advance as payment for killing her. I hope they can finish the job. But for now, I seriously need some sleep.¡±

    Torger woke up several hours later. ¡°OK Rome, I spent every spare ounce of gold the village had on your secret project. Let¡¯s see what you got.¡±

    Rome smiled proudly. ¡°I¡¯ve already shown Arden, and Arden, being level thirty-three in guns, says he can handle them.¡±

    Arden smiled and picked up the explanation. ¡°To be clear, these don¡¯t qualify as guns, but the design you and Strong Arm came up with is impressive, for a Dark Ages kind of society.¡± Arden walked out of the wood shack that Rome had built a little at a time over the period of five months. Torger cut trees and split the lengths to make rough planks, and instructed Rome how to bring one board per day to Catalina and nail them together until it qualified as a building. Once it was a building, Rome got a prompt asking if he wanted to create a village, and once it was a village he could teleport directly to Catalina even if the tyter entry building became unavailable, which it had.

    Thankful for that foresight, Torger followed Arden to the side of the hill. With a flourish, Arden swept away brush covering the canons.

    ¡°Whoa, what the hell are those? Are they what I think they are?¡± asked Antic.

    With a big smile Torger said ¡°Yup. Crude but effective. Strong Arm doesn¡¯t have the skill or tools to make rifling, but he eventually understood the concept of the smooth bore shotgun. With a little of Rome and my understanding of military history, and Arden¡¯s and my understanding of guns we helped Strong Arm make three modified cannons. They¡¯re a cross between an actual civil war style cannon and a world war one trench mortar. Pour some black powder in, pack it down, insert the scrap pot metal ball and light the fuse. They¡¯re small enough to be operated by one person and can change trajectory by raising the back end by picking it up a little. But be sure to wedge it into the ground or half the power will come back and break whatever bone gets between it and the ground.¡±

    Everyone started talking at once with all kinds of ooohs and aaawes and they all had questions but Torger raised his hands and continued. ¡°They have a range of a half mile but they¡¯re only accurate for two hundred yards. We want to surprise the tyters and hit one quickly with one of these cannons so we can see how strong they are. And, ummm, well, if a tyter survives a direct shot from a cannon then we will be facing very tough opponents. Another down side is that if they¡¯re too close we won¡¯t be able to reload them in time. We may get only one shot with each of these.¡±

    They spent the rest of the day test firing the cannons from the top of a hill facing the tyter entrance building. As the sun was setting they heard a final message in their minds running through Translate from the tyter extraction team. ¡°Our scans show seven hunters at the entrance island, but the signal is corrupted. It appears you have been badly wounded, or rather somehow transformed. The extraction team will arrive in one week. Be prepared to board the shuttle. Tomorrow we will be in range to hear your transmission back to us.¡±

 This Means War!

    Chapter 5

    This Means War

    The Regulators had a tough time not talking for a week. They couldn¡¯t let the extraction team know they were planning an attack and any time someone spoke there was an immediate response from the tyter ship asking them to speak louder and more clearly. Finally in the middle of October of the third year, they saw a ship descending from the sky. It was almost box shaped and had glowing orbs on the bottom which grew brighter as the ship slowed down and made a soft landing on the island next to the building. A hatch opened near a seam at the top and dropped down to the ground. Torger couldn¡¯t see very clearly because they were nearly at the back of the ship which was blocking their view of the tyters, but five grey skinned lizard looking things walked out and into the tyter building, each carrying what looked like a tool box.

    A minute later they heard a tyter communicate with the ship ¡°They¡¯re not in here. How accurate are those scans?¡±

    ¡°Our sensors show they¡¯re on the island. Gurrip go look for them, they may be injured, the rest of you fix the portal.¡±

    A minute later the Regulators got a good look at a Tyter for the first time. It was an eight foot tall bipedal lizard with a face like an ape and six antenna coming out of its head. Its skin was completely dark grey and it wore an outfit that could best be described as a jumpsuit that was lavender in color and made of a material that looked like denim. Each hand had three long fingers with human looking fingernails and each foot had three long toes with claws at the end instead of nails. Their thighs were very thick made for jumping high. Antic used Analyze 2.

    Predator (technician) Level 49

    Health 600/600 Mana 20/20 Stamina 85/85 Strength 22

    Antic told everyone the stats. ¡°That¡¯s not so bad,¡± said Torger. ¡°But why does it say Predator and not tyter? Unless the dwarves have been mispronouncing ¡®predator¡¯ and shortened it to ¡®tyter.¡¯ But it seems they¡¯ve been right about these things coming to hunt prey. OK they¡¯re a much lower level than we expected so new plan. Our top priority is to not let them know we¡¯re here until they¡¯ve fixed the portal. Stay hidden. Graul and Antic circle to the left then come up to the entrance. Brun come with me we¡¯ll circle to the right. Once we believe they¡¯ve fixed the machine we¡¯ll run in, kill them all and then use the scroll to get back home. Rome, Jex and Arden stay here and provide cover fire.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re kobolds. Giant mutated kobolds,¡± said Brun.

    Graul asked what a kobold was and Brun told him they¡¯re mythological creatures from medieval Europe that look like a mix of a dog and lizard. But the creatures in front of them, the predators, were almost entirely lizard like, except for walking on their hind legs and having an ape face with antenna, and three opposable fingers, and the ability to talk; so they weren¡¯t really like lizards, or kobolds after all. Brun finished lamely with ¡°Uh, never mind,¡± then they all started walking away.

    ¡°Wait up!¡± Arden spoke as soon as everyone started moving. ¡°Torger you were in charge while in the village, but out in the field we were going to operate by democracy.¡±

    ¡°Yes, true. Do you have a better idea?¡±

    Arden faltered for a couple seconds. ¡°No, but let¡¯s do this right. Who votes for Torger¡¯s plan?¡± All hands went up, including Arden¡¯s. Torger shook his head and Jex sighed but everyone moved into positions.

    The tyter, or predator, suddenly stopped and looked directly towards Arden and at the same time they all heard the transmission from the tyter captain. ¡°Gurrip, they spoke from a little to your right and less than two hundred yards away. It sounded like they¡¯re planning some sort of attack. Go back to the extraction point.¡±

    All seven humans groaned. Their week of near silence was just ruined in fifteen seconds. Torger signaled for everyone to resume the plan. After ten minutes they were all in place, and three technicians were standing near the entrance holding futuristic looking staffs and scanning the horizon. Another announcement came into everyone¡¯s ears. ¡°Hunters, the technicians will be ready in two minutes. Assemble at the extraction point now or be left behind.¡±

    Antic¡¯s nerves were frayed. His hands were shaking from a combination of fear and excitement. He was so close to going home, just two more minutes, but he was also very near death; would he make it in on time? This plan had better work, it was their only shot and he didn¡¯t like the chances of respawning if he got shot with one of those staffs. The pressure built in intensity for him every second, waiting, wondering if he will make it back to Earth. Finally after what seemed like an hour had passed he couldn¡¯t take it anymore. He raised his halberd above his head and screamed an intense battle cry while rushing the startled technicians.

    All his friends were shocked he had jumped the gun. Only about a minute and a half had passed and there was no word that the portal was fixed, but Antic had just blown their cover. Antic had forgotten their shield was up and ran straight into it nose first. He felt the cartilage break and was thrown back by the Lightning 2 spell the shield was infused with.

    Arden had already lit the fuse of the first cannon and Rome was lighting the fuse of his cannon. Jex stood ready and drew back the Bow of Artemis the Huntress. Torger, Graul and Brun remained hidden behind brush.

    Arden¡¯s first cannon went off. The four pound ball of crude copper shot out and towards the building entrance. The shield disintegrated into millions of pieces and disappeared as soon as they touched the ground. A second later Rome¡¯s cannon went off. The aim was true and struck a tyter mid chest, then another. The creatures flew back with a gaping hole in its chest. The other two sentries recovered from the shock and started shooting what looked like red lasers out of their staffs. But they were no warriors and their aim was erratic.

    From inside the building a technician yelled ¡°We¡¯re under attack!¡±

    Jex held her bow and Torger, Graul, and Brun remained hidden. Arden fired the last cannon and it hit a tyter in the shoulder. Its arm fell to the ground along with the staff. Torger yelled ¡°NOW!¡± He jumped up from the brush and ran at the building.

    Jex released an arrow and it took the fourth tyter in the head. The thing staggered but didn¡¯t drop. At the same time the tyter captain yelled ¡°Air support now! Activate the portal! Get the hunters here!¡±

    Before they could cover the fifty yards there was a bright green flash from inside the building. Torger looked at Arden and received the hand signal for clear away. Torger yelled out ¡°Step back!¡±

    Arden had reloaded the first cannon and put in the special cannonball. It shot out and flew into the doorway of the building, hitting the far wall and rather than punching through, it exploded. That one wasn¡¯t solid metal like the others, it was hollow inside and packed with thermite and black powder. Brun ran forward and cast Fire 3 into the doorway. The spell hit the first technician and separated into four more small fireballs. One hit the other technician and one hit the newly arrived hunter. The other two went to the floor and lit the black powder which then lit the thermite.

    Immediately there was an intense searing heat and the whole inside of the building was charred in a few seconds. Rome was familiar with the layout inside the building and the thermite burned the left back corner of the building, because the glass tube was on the right and the touch screen control panel was in the middle of the back wall. Arden had set up the cannon to go in the door but away from the important equipment. When Rome had tried the touch screen he repeatedly got the same message that the system was not operational.

    Everyone was focused on the fire and no one looked above. The air support the captain had called for had arrived. It was perfectly rectangular about fifteen feet wide and forty feet long and ten feet high. It flew over the Regulators several feet off the ground. It flew over the cannons and Rome, Jex, and Arden heard a humming noise. They looked up to see the perfectly flat bottom and saw the three cannons vibrate in the ground for a second before flying up and sticking to the bottom. It was a giant magnet! Arden tried to call out but he, Rome, and Jex were wearing steel bracers and greaves, and Arden was also wearing a steel chest plate. The three of them were sucked up and stuck to the bottom.

    Torger was slicing Red Fury through the neck of a technician, Graul and Brun were taunting the hunter and Antic had just impaled the technician with the missing arm. All five technicians were dead, the fire had gone out inside the building, and another bright green flash came from the inside of the building. ¡°Oh no, we¡¯re not gonna make it, another hunter has arrived¡± Torger thought as he stepped away from the dying headless technician.

    The hunter was trying to fight Graul, but Brun kept hitting it with Fire 1, Ice 1, and Lightning 1. It was all the mana he had to spend. The hunter had a javelin in its right hand and a wicked bracer over its left hand. The bracer completely wrapped around its hand and extending past his knuckles was a six inch stiletto. The bracer went almost to its elbow and along the whole outside edge was a slightly curved axe head, and on the part just below its left thumb was a three inch fish hook, obviously designed to catch sword strikes. But most dangerous was above his wrist was a small square box that shot the same red laser as the staffs only smaller, and seemed to recharge once every eight seconds. The javelin was a little taller than the hunter, who was eight feet tall. Covering all the rest of its body, including the fat short stub of a tail, was a thin flexible material that seemed to absorb Brun¡¯s magic. The outfit wasn¡¯t a jumpsuit like the technicians wore, it was individual armor pieces like the Regulators wore. The outfit was the same dark grey as their scales.

    Graul jumped to the side as another laser flew past him and burned a half inch hole two inches deep into the ground. The hunter looked up and saw the ship above. He smiled and stepped into the building. There was a brief hum and Arden, being stuck to the bottom of the ship, yelled ¡°Run!¡±

    The other four looked up and in shock saw their friends stuck to the bottom of a floating space craft just six feet above them. Torger, Graul, and Antic all had steel armor and weapons, and they all flew up a little sooner than Brun who had just the steel bracers and greaves.

    It only took a little more than a second for all of them to be stuck to the bottom of the ship. Then it began ascending rapidly. They rose to a hundred feet, a thousand, two, three thousand feet in just a few seconds. Right before he passed out from the g forces Torger uttered ¡°I¡¯m sorry guys. Set your respawn to Calico.¡±

    Torger¡¯s fear of heights made him woozy and vomit at around twenty thousand feet. Arden stayed awake the longest. He made it to fifty thousand feet before he lost consciousness.

    Chapter 6

    Regroup

    They all found themselves standing in the abandoned village of Calico. They were all naked of course. Before anyone could say anything the Bow of Artemis appeared at Jex¡¯s feet.

    ¡°Alright, we have provisions and weapons stashed here. Meet up in two minutes.¡±

    Everyone quickly obeyed Torger¡¯s command and went to rooms around the mayor¡¯s house. Three minutes later they were dressed and sitting at the conference table. ¡°So what did we learn from that?¡¯

    Rome answered first. ¡°First, I didn¡¯t know you convinced Baybil to make this back into a human city instead of a dwarf one, since we can¡¯t teleport to dwarf or elf cities anymore. Good job. What I learned is we need to wear nothing metallic, at least not magnetic.¡±

    Torger nodded and Antic answered next. ¡°We were so close! I¡¯m glad we didn¡¯t die permanently, but how can we fight that? Those tyters are huge and well armed! We can¡¯t get that close again!¡±

    Arden answered ¡°That¡¯s what we¡¯re trying to figure out Antic. We need another plan. The cannons worked well. It showed us they¡¯re not invincible. But the cannons are long gone now. Rome your thermite mix worked well. Can you make some more?¡±

    ¡°Yeah. It¡¯s a low grade thermite, not as good as industrial companies can make, but the recipe is easy. But I don¡¯t know how to deliver it effectively.¡±

    ¡°I found out that dying of suffocation sucks,¡± said Brun. After he got a few dirty looks he continued. ¡°They wear an armor that looks like Kevlar, but it absorbed my spells. The Kevlar, we¡¯ll call it, whatever that armor is, it covers their whole body. The only exposed parts were its head, right hand, and feet. Your swords, spear, and arrows will have small targets.¡±Stolen story; please report.

    Graul said ¡°We need to lure them into our terms, fight on our ground at our choosing. We need to set up an ambush.¡±

    ¡°What do you have in mind?¡±

    ¡°First I have that scorched earth spell. It¡¯s a one time use-¡°

    Torger frantically waved his hands to get Graul to shut up. Torger motioned to his ear and pointed to the sky. Graul understood that everything they were saying could be heard by the captain in the ship. Everyone gasped once they understood. All their plans would have to be done with writing and hand signals. Even their location could be monitored from space. But that worked two ways. They could hear anything the captain said to the hunters or other tyters on Nuva.

    Eventually they were all dressed in only leather armor. They headed to the mine and began swinging picks to extract silver. The weapons and armor they had stashed were steel and iron, but silver is not magnetic so they would have to make do with crudely made silver swords and shields. It wasn¡¯t ideal but nobody had a better plan. Less than an hour into it a different tyter voice spoke directly into their ears. Although that had been happening for months, they still couldn¡¯t get used to it, and this was the first time they hear a voice other than the captain¡¯s.

    ¡°Attention all prey. Our systems failed and our hunt has been modified. I have decided to bring in the hunting squad that was originally scheduled for this year. Captain Shug has insisted we not use aerial surveillance to find your location. However I have limited the time to two weeks. Three deaths results in permanent death. Our hunters have thirty-three species of prey to hunt and kill three times each. There will be a team of seven hunters. Furthermore Captain Shug has requested we mute your conversations. I have reluctantly agreed. Listen humans, never has a group of humans killed more than two hunters before they all died three times. Yet you have already killed five predators, and although they weren¡¯t trained warriors, your skills and ingenuity have been quite a surprise. I don¡¯t know how you show up as partial predators on our scans, and I don¡¯t know how you found the Scorched Earth spell, but our race admires strength and success. I guarantee you we will keep this a fair fight. That is we will not attack you again from the air. I don¡¯t intend to give you false hope of winning, but I¡¯m looking forward to watching a good battle.¡±

    They all looked at each other and were afraid to talk for fear of being overheard, but Arden decided to take the gamble. ¡°Commander, I am Arden, the human. Are we to understand we can fight captain Shug and his men, or kobolds, or whatever they are, using steel weapons and armor? I mean we¡¯re not going to be stuck to the bottom of a ship again? Is that right?¡±

    There was a pause. After several seconds there was still no answer. About twenty seconds passed with the friends looking at each other with blank expressions. Finally a reply came.

    A different tyter voice began speaking. ¡°Human prey, consider yourselves lucky. It has been several generations since one of our kind has deigned to speak with lowly prey. It would be like you trying to converse with a deer before extinguishing its life. Not only am I, a lowly cook speaking with you, but our great commander Karzik has spoken to you. By commander Karzik¡¯s orders no airship or communication shall assist captain Shug in his hunt. We shall monitor the fight, but we will not interfere. Do not speak directly to us again.¡±

    They looked at each other seeing who would talk first. Arden broke the silence. ¡°I think that went well. So from space they will listen to us and watch us, but they promise to not use that information against us. Now the question is do we risk using our backup equipment?¡±

    Torger answered ¡°I think we have to. This silver won¡¯t be good for anything. It¡¯s just so infuriating we worked so hard to get the best equipment we could in preparing for this fight, and now it¡¯s all gone. I had my sword with fire three and my mithril boots with haste two. Arden you had that huge dragon scale shield and the cannons, Graul had his sword with fire one and lightning one, Antic had his halberd with fire one and lightning one, Rome and Brun each had a diamond staff and wool mantle, and Jex had nearly three hundred silver tipped arrows. Now that¡¯s all gone and we¡¯re left with a combination of steel and iron equipment. Most of our gear was steel anyway, but it¡¯s like we¡¯ve been set back twenty levels.¡±

    Torger let the frustration continue to build as he spoke until he ended by punching a cave wall. That caused immediate swelling in his hand and he quickly cast Cure 2 on himself.

    Brun mused ¡°I wonder where our stuff ended up? When we die the stuff stays where we died at, so does that mean it¡¯s still in space?¡±

    Rome thought about it and answered ¡°Either they released it or they didn¡¯t but I don¡¯t think we¡¯ll find it either way. Our next task is to figure out where they are and how do we kill them?¡±

    A few moments of silence passed before the usually quiet and reserved Jex spoke up. ¡°As much as I hate it, I think we have to split up. One group should try to locate our gear and the other should try to find the tyters.¡±

    A few more suggestions were brought up and the Regulators headed out. Brun, Graul, and Torger headed toward the beach to see if the hunters had crossed over from Catalina yet, and the others headed toward Modesto to once again beg the dwarves for assistance.

    The next day Torger crawled up a hill to the top of a bluff that gave a great view of the ocean and the island. As soon as he crested the hill and looked across the waves he stopped and waved Graul and Brun to join him. A form of a hover ship was speeding along a couple feet above the waves, with seven tyters in it. When they were a couple hundred feet from the shore, a sangler (octopus style creature) wrapped its tentacles around the ship. The ship lurched and the tyters fell into a heap at the front of the hovercraft. Two immediately used the lasers attached to their wrists to shoot the sangler, and a third used a one handed axe to split its skull wide open. The biggest tyter shook his head and gave an order, and the ship resumed to land on the beach.

    The humans were too far away to hear the order but were already en route to ambush them. Torger¡¯s quick thinking allowed them to move while their foes were distracted with the monster and they huddled behind a boulder on the beach just as the tyters were beginning to offload.

    They were a quarter mile apart at that point but didn¡¯t know how good the tyter¡¯s hearing was, so they stayed as still and quiet as possible. After a few minutes they heard some tyters talking, and were relieved that Translate still worked.

    ¡°This whole mission is a joke. We have to kill thirty-three species, three times each, and they¡¯re scattered all over this planet, not just this Western sector. Not only that, we have some of the toughest enemies running around and they¡¯ve already killed all our technicians.¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I know we¡¯re the best trained and best equipped squad that there is anywhere, but this isn¡¯t a normal hunt. Why is it that Shug is so determined that we treat this like a hunt? We should gather the surveillance from commander Karzik and just quickly go through and kill everything and be done with it.¡±

    The first tyter answered again ¡°This whole mess is the fault of a few stupid technicians. Their teleport system failed, and we have to clean up their mess. But once we¡¯re done, we might reach Legendary status back home. No squad in recent history will have defeated as many foes-¡°

    A gurgling sound came out of his mouth as Graul¡¯s simple iron sword stabbed his throat. The two had just passed the boulder the humans were hiding behind and were too busy complaining about the hunt to pay attention. At the same time Torger took a low sweep with his back up iron sword and it sunk deep into the other tyter¡¯s ankle. Brun, having learned his lesson from their first match, didn¡¯t cast a black magic spell but instead used Analyze 2.

    Tyter Level 64

    Health 641/700  Strength 25 Stamina 118/120 Mana 0/0

    ¡°That hit on his ankle did very little damage Torger! Try something else!¡±

    By then Torger and Graul had focused on the severely wounded tyter. They used all the skill with swords they had to try to block its fury of attacks with its spear and gauntlet. Torger and Graul each circled to opposite sides of it and kept its attention divided, but even with their level 52 and level 61 in one handed swords, the simple iron swords seemed to bounce harmlessly off the armor. Just as Torger drew back to swing at its neck, the one with the wounded ankle swung his axe and took off Torger¡¯s right arm. Torger never saw him sneak up from behind and a half second later the stiletto at the end of the tyter¡¯s gauntlet punctured his heart from behind. Torger died instantly.

    Graul used the distraction to circle around and once again stab the first tyter in the neck. It died immediately. Graul turned to face the second tyter. The sight of seeing his brother die, with only two chances left was more emotionally shocking than he thought it would be. So was how easily the tyter cut through Torger¡¯s iron pauldron and chest plate with its axe.

    Graul shook off the momentary lapse of concentration and just as he was engaging the next tyter, a message came up partially obscuring his vision. He quickly retreated a few steps and was glad to see the injured ankle of the tyter slowed it down. The tyter drank a potion as Graul read then dismissed the message.

    The prey (Human) has killed a hunter! The western hunting zone is now shrunk by 10%. Check maps for new boundaries.

    Graul didn¡¯t have time to think about it, his goal was to kill this hunter, and if he couldn¡¯t he still had to buy as much time as possible for Brun to run away.

    Graul cautiously squared up against the tyter. At well over seven feet tall it towered over him. Each tyter held a different type of weapon in their right hand but they had the same modified gauntlet that looked like a halberd head attached to their left forearm. It sneered before giving a check swing with its axe.

    Graul had to buy time. ¡°I bet you¡¯ve never seen one of your own killed by a lowly human. That¡¯s gotta sting.¡±

    His foe responded by punching at him. The strike was so quick Graul dropped to the ground ducking under the spear part of the gauntlet. He rolled away quickly as the axe was embedded into the dirt where his stomach had just been. Graul rolled again and got to his feet in a crouched position and swung his sword toward the previously injured ankle. He knew he didn¡¯t have enough reach but succeeded in making the tyter take a step back, and it gave a low guttural growl. Graul jumped backward to get some distance .

    ¡°That¡¯s right, you high and mighty hunters won¡¯t deign to speak with us lowly prey. At least that¡¯s what your commander Karzik said.¡±

    ¡°You maggot! You are not worthy to even speak the name-¡° The tyter abruptly shut up realizing the human had successfully goaded him into talking to it. He wouldn¡¯t make that mistake again. Instead he raised his arm and flexed his hand just right to get the laser to shoot at the stupid human.

    Graul howled in pain as a burning hole the size of a golf ball tore through his pauldron and hit his left clavicle. The wound was about a half inch deep. Without the iron armor it may have burned a hole clean through. His quick dodge wasn¡¯t quite quick enough, but it kept him from getting hit in the heart. The pain forced him to drop his shield, but that was okay because the iron shield probably wouldn¡¯t do much good in this fight anyway. Graul cast Cure 2 on himself and the pain subsided somewhat. The tyter¡¯s ape like face made a surprised expression and he almost talked but closed his mouth before he conversed with prey again. Graul used the moment of surprise to cast Cure 2 on himself again. He didn¡¯t need to check his stats to know he had 76/100 mana left and his health was around 460/500. But this fight of attrition was not going his way. As the tyter raised his left hand to fire the laser again Graul rushed forward and stooped down. With all the strength he could muster he used both hands to drive the sword at the tyter¡¯s chest. There was a tremendous resistance for a split second then the sword pushed forward just an inch before shattering. At the same time a tremendous shock came from the armor and electrocuted the tyter. Graul¡¯s forward momentum carried him forward and he crashed into the tyter. He got caught in the electric discharge for a split second before it dissipated.

    Having worked in home remodel construction for years, Graul had been hit with a hundred ten volts twice before. This felt exactly the same- painful but not dangerous. But the tingling sensation left over lasted for four seconds in which he felt like he was moving through syrup. The tyter recovered after only one second and split Graul¡¯s skull in two with its axe, easily cutting through the iron helmet.

    Brun was jogging, being careful to stay in view of the tyter that had just killed Graul. He wanted to look weak and slow so the tyter would start running after him from a mile away. As he kept jogging and looking back over his shoulder he saw the tyter drink four potions that it took from a single small pouch that was tied to its side near the left armpit. Brun had been impressed by the elves¡¯ ability to make satchels, back packs, and duffle bags with reduced weight and increased capacity, but their skills in magic paled in comparison to the tyters skill in technology. The tyter took off his armor and from that same small pouch pulled out something like a bazooka. Brun began running frantically as it took aim at him from a little over a mile away!

    The tyter fired five rpg¡¯s in rapid order that Brun barely had time to dodge. The concussion of the blasts left his ears ringing and his vision blurry, but he kept running. After the fifth and final rpg, the tyter gave chase.

    Brun had to keep up a decent pace without letting his stamina drop too low. The tyter was slowly gaining ground on him. After several miles he drank his only stamina potion, a weak one giving him five more bringing him up to eleven. He hoped it would be enough.

    The chase lasted for four hours. Brun had mixed emotions as he saw Kellogg hill a few miles away, but the tyter was only a quarter mile behind him, and his stamina was at two while the tyter had kept drinking potions throughout the marathon, probably stamina potions. Not only that, but the other remaining five tyters had picked up on the chase like bloodhounds in a fox hunt. They must have had some sort of radio communication in their suits, assuming the mother ship hadn¡¯t breached their promise to not interfere.

    Brun finally reached the entrance nearest entrance to the cave system beneath the hill. He came to a pile of rocks in front of the cave and made a show of removing them so he could squeeze through, but he knew he wouldn¡¯t have time. That didn¡¯t matter, he had led the tyters to the caves and that¡¯s what counted. When they were a hundred feet away he cast Teleport 2 and was soon in the large pit in the center of the tunnels. It was the same as it was before, eighty feet in diameter and eighty feet high, with a single dirt ramp up to the nearest tunnel. There was crude oil and natural gas filling the cave. There was the lack of two huge rabbits and five baby rabbits at four feet tall, since this was Rome¡¯s cave now. Brun had a few minutes to think about the plan as the tyters would be breaking up the rock pile of the entrance then smashing in the magic shield. The fumes gave him an instant headache but he distracted himself with thinking of their options. They had the abandoned town of Calico, Jex and Arden¡¯s cave in Indio, Antic¡¯s cave near Palm Springs, and the abandoned town east of Lake Tahoe. The tyters had destroyed the single buildings on Catalina and Long Beach, and the dwarves and elves left them to their own peril; since they were no longer allies he couldn¡¯t teleport to any of their cities.

    From a distance with a lot of strange sounding echoes, Brun heard a lot of rocks come crashing together and he knew he had to wait just a minute. He slowly counted to fifty then cast Fire 3 as far down the tunnel as he could. Instantly the natural gas filling the caves ignited, and the tyters were just a few yards in from the entrance- the only place a large volume of air could come in from. Fire flashed in every direction, going down all the tunnels, but all the gas and the most intense heat rushed for the freshly opened exit and burst out like a flame thrower, right where the tyters were standing.

    As fire encompassed his body Brun cast Teleport 1 and found himself in the mayor¡¯s house of Calico. He used the last of his mana to cast Cure 2 on himself, bringing him half way back to full health. Graul and Torger greeted him.

 Ambush

    Chapter 7

    Ambush

    ¡°How did it go?¡±

    Before Brun could answer Graul¡¯s question, a notification appeared before them.

    The prey (Human) has killed a hunter! The western hunting zone is now shrunk by 10% (of original zone size). Check maps for new boundaries.

    They all looked at maps. They could see an orange line that went from almost the top of California to almost the east side of Nevada and Arizona, then a white line that came in about a hundred miles from all points of the orange line.

    Torger said ¡°I checked the map the first time that notification came up, and this line is smaller. It looks like you killed one tyter Brun. Good job!¡± Torger smiled broadly and slapped him on the back but Brun looked dejected.

    ¡°I had hoped that would have killed all of them.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah, you guys don¡¯t know. It wasn¡¯t just the tyter who killed you, I mean who you fought, sorry,¡± Brun could see the look on Torger¡¯s face knowing he lost an important battle, ¡°that chased me. He must have communicated with the others and they all chased me to Kellogg hill. I was hoping they would have all been in the entrance and died from your brilliant plan Torger. I guess it was too much to hope for to take them all out with one shot.¡±

    ¡°What!? They all chased you? That would have been great if it worked, but killing one is still a good day.¡±

    Brun had more information to give them. ¡°Graul, when you stabbed its suit, you ruined it. The tyter took it off and chased me naked. We know that their armor isn¡¯t completely impenetrable, and that¡¯s the one that probably died. I¡¯m guessing the Kevlar suits protected the others.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s hope the fire at least damaged their unprotected parts. That should slow them down.¡±

    ¡°I have more. The one we killed, it had no mana, so I don¡¯t think they can use magic, but it did have several potions, and a bazooka. We¡¯ll have to be careful of that ranged attack.¡±

    The three friends discussed strategy for a while, but until the others returned from the trip to the dwarves, there wasn¡¯t enough information to make a good strategy. Brun gained 3400 exp from the kill and put the three ability points into knives, bringing it to a measly level 11, but the chances of him dying and losing the unused ability points was too high. The whole group had maxed out their health, stamina, strength, mana, and all but the highest level spells. Brun being a black mage allowed him to learn all black magic available except poison 4 and Rome being a white mage allowed him to learn all white magic spells available. Everyone else had bought all level 3 spells.

    Torger took the first shift that night while the others went to sleep. No matter how much he tried to ignore it he couldn¡¯t get the counter out of the top right corner of his vision.

    Lives left: 1 Enemies left: 5 Days left: 13

    After an hour he couldn¡¯t stand the unanswered question anymore. He shouted up to the sky. ¡°Hey, tyter mother ship! I need to know did the hunters communicate with each other to find Brun, or did you tell them where he was at? Did you go back on your word?¡±

    Silence answered him. He figured since the remaining tyters hadn¡¯t found them yet the ship must not have told them where they were at. Next he checked the icon marked cities. As expected Kellogg Hill was no longer an ally city, but surprisingly it showed that it was now a tyter city. The hunters must have claimed it as their own.

    The next day nothing happened. They weren¡¯t surprised the others hadn¡¯t returned from Modesto yet. Sure it was an extremely long trip- a hundred fifty miles each way, but they could easily make the round trip in ten days, probably eight days. Until then, they had to hope the tyters would find them soon. They spent the day going over an exact strategy, and the next day they put it into motion.

    It was a cold, windy and rainy day when Brun, Graul, and Torger each headed out in different directions. Their task was to walk two hours, look for tyters, then come back. Brun headed south and did his best to stay out of wide open flat areas. He needed to stay hidden behind hills and rocks but occasionally getting to a high point to try to see through the downpour. As he came to the top of a hill, he could see two tyters walking towards him from a distance. He crouched down and backed away, keeping an eye on the hunters.

    They seemed to be heading in the general direction of Calico, and Brun realized they had found the dirt road going from Small Hammer to Calico. He couldn¡¯t think of any way to deter them, the road was an unmistakable path. He ran back to the town and waited for his friends to show up.

    An hour later the three friends were hidden behind a large boulder a couple hundred feet off the road. As they lay in wait of an ambush, the two tyters each jumped behind the boulder and slashed at them! Brun took a severe wound to the ribs from a gauntlet¡¯s knife, and Torger took an overhand bash to the top of his head. Graul took off running and cursed their stupidity as he looked behind him. The rain softened the sand and their footprints leading to behind the boulder was as clear as marked arrows on the ground. He didn¡¯t have time to dawdle though, and ran towards Calico as fast as he could. He knew the others would put up a short futile fight to buy him a little time and he couldn¡¯t squander their sacrifice.

    It took less than two minutes before the tyters were hot on his trail. He had to cover about ten miles and the mud was significantly slowing him down. On a long shot he cast Slow 2 behind him hoping to slow down one of them, but as expected the suit absorbed the spell and the tyter didn¡¯t slow down. Next he cast Haste 2 on himself, increasing his speed by 30%, then cast Analyze 2 on his foe.

    Tyter Level 75

    Health 850 Stamina 125 Strength 37  Mana 0

    Doing some quick math in his head Graul realized there were four missing enhancements based on the level. From what he could see the tyter should be level 71, not 75. But he didn¡¯t have time to think about the inconsistency, this thing had massive stats. At level 68 Graul was no slouch but he would never win without being able to use magic and his good armor. Humans capped at five hundred health, one hundred stamina, one hundred mana and twenty strength, and if it weren¡¯t for them finding the glass box in Yuma three years ago, he also would have no mana. As he thought about these things he saw the village on the horizon. It had taken a little over a half hour to cover the ten miles, due to him casting Haste 2 on himself twice more during the sprint. He actually had to run a little slower than he could have to allow the tyters to keep up, because the spell lasted for five minutes at a time.

    He entered past the shield and kept on running. The tyters each had a long sword and broke through with two hits each. The spells coming from the shield also got absorbed by those nearly impenetrable suits, and Graul got a little worried that the plan wouldn¡¯t work. But there was no plan B.

    Once they entered the village the tyters saw Torger equipped in low quality iron armor and had low quality sword and shield, and Brun had a wooden staff. There back up sets to the back up sets were made for someone around level 15, so the tyters ignored them and continued chasing the exhausted Graul. Torger and Brun each cast spells at the tyters to no effect then they teleported to their last safe zone, Indio.

    Graul made sure his stamina and mana were extremely low so he would seem like an easy kill to them. Once he reached the mayor¡¯s house he looked up the special one time spell Scorched Earth and cast it. The spell description said he had to be near a mayor¡¯s house and it was a one time use so he had never tried it before.

    From every square inch of his body intense white hot flames shot out in all directions. Graul died in seconds but the last thing he saw and heard was a sonic boom originating from himself. The tyters screamed in agony and as the name suggested the sand in the whole village charred black and all the stone buildings received the same damage. The wood buildings caught on fire as his sight faded.

    Graul respawned in the cave in Indio, having changed his respawn point during the chase. Torger and Brun were once again donning cheap armor and weapons. Graul went to the cache and started getting dressed with a huge smile on his face.

    ¡°I think it worked guys. That was intense! The tyters were badly damaged and-¡° While Graul was speaking a notice appeared in their vision.

    Notice: The prey (Humans) have killed two hunters. The humans expended the secret weapon Scorched Earth. 4 Hunters remain.

    The friends looked at each other with broad smiles on their faces. As congratulations were being spread to each other, a bright light appeared at the mouth of the cave. Without thinking they all cast a spell at the figure, and the figure called out ¡°Shield 3!¡± The spells smashed into the shield badly damaging it but didn¡¯t shatter it. Next the voice called out ¡°Relax my apprentices, I mean to help you, not harm you.¡±

    They recognized the voice and Torger asked ¡°Ristopan is that you?¡±

    The ancient dwarf stepped forward and they recognized him. Brun asked ¡°How did you find us?¡±

    ¡°I have the spells you do not have, Teleport four and five. The fourth one allows me to teleport to any village in Nuva and the fifth one allows me to teleport anywhere in my realm even without a village, and my Analyze four spell allows me to see all life forms in my sector, but the mana costs for those spells is extraordinary. But that¡¯s a discussion for later.

    ¡°Congratulations on this astounding victory. You do have potential to win this hunt. I will tell you this, three of the remaining tyters are the same levels as the ones you killed already, but Captain Shug is an elite hunter, one of very few who has ever reached the maximum level. You have yet to win in hand to hand combat with a tyter, except the first one you ambushed, and Shug has brought in another tyter to replace the one you first killed. But I believe that they unfairly took your best equipment. I have therefore decided to endure the wrath of commander Karzik and return your items to you.¡±

    Ristopan handed a small satchel to Brun and gave him a wink. Brun reached into the bag and began pulling out all their items they lost when they were stuck to the bottom of the ship and sucked up into space. Brun replied ¡°Thank you, but why are you helping us, and what punishment will you face?¡± He handed Torger his mithril boots with Haste 2, his mithril sword with Fire 3, as well as his steel armor. Graul got back Inferno and his steel armor and Brun got his diamond staff and wool robe and mantle. Not only that, everyone¡¯s gear was there- including Rome¡¯s diamond staff, Antic¡¯s halberd Power Cord, and Arden¡¯s dragon scale tower shield capable of absorbing all fire and poison. The one downside was all the black powder and shotgun shells were wet and useless.

    Ristopan looked pleased with their awe. ¡°Since I am the brother of the western sector, I can know everything going on in my sector with a scrying globe. I think this equipment will even up the fight quite a lot, and I have truly enjoyed watching the hunt. Excuse me for a second.¡± He cast a spell and the ground raised up forming a dirt bench for him to sit on. He then pulled out a high mana potion and drank it. ¡°Ahh that¡¯s better. It¡¯s difficult to stand for long in my advanced age and getting here cost me most of my mana. Brun, when your group stumbled into my personal territory last year, you were the first mage I¡¯ve seen reach level fifty in hundreds of years. I thought I would never take an apprentice again, but you piqued my interest, and now look at all of you! Each of you is over level sixty. I told you then that once you learn every spell you can I would take you as an apprentice, and you are all very close to that. I want you to win, I want you to succeed, selfishly so I can teach someone young and full of vigor once again. If you can make it back to your home, that is great for you, but if you win and stay here I would like to teach any of you everything I have learned.

    ¡°As for commander Karzik, he begrudgingly has to accept that he and I are equals. They have a tremendous amount of pride and are rather xenophobic, but beating the tyters in their own hunt, by their own cultural traditions, makes you an equal to a commander, or what you would call a general in your army. Not that I command armies, it¡¯s more of an honorary title. Anyway I digress, the point is you will have to use all your skills in combat to defeat Captain Shug, and I will have to use all my skills in politics to not lose much status with the commander by assisting you. It is technically against the rules for me to return your equipment but it is also against the rules for them to have not returned it to you. After they killed you by suffocation, they dropped it all into the ocean. If they had dropped it onto land I would have merely informed you where it was at, but being fifteen feet deep was a bit unfair of them in my opinion, and I hope they see it that way. But I have lingered too long. Escape back to your home if you can, but I do hope you become my apprentices. This is the best battle I¡¯ve watched in centuries.¡±

    Ristopan stood to leave but Brun interrupted. ¡°Just one detail. This isn¡¯t my group as you called it, we are all equals and friends and don¡¯t seek to lead each other.¡±

    ¡°Yes I know. That is a strange relationship you have with each other, but for some inexplicable reason I had an instant fondness for you Brun. Perhaps it was because at the time you were the highest level human in your group. Take care.¡± He cast a teleport spell and was gone in the flash of a pale green light.Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

    Chapter 8

    Allies

    Antic, Arden, Jex, and Rome finally saw the dwarf village of Rich Fields in the distance. They had been travelling for three days with very little rest. At nights they didn¡¯t bother setting up tents but just bundled up close to the camp fire and took turns keeping watch. There was little risk of dying from the monsters since most of the natural predators to Nuva and the tyter prey had leveled up to the low thirties, half the level the humans were at. But after three years of keeping a night watch it was an ingrained habit and on a few occasions warned them of a bear or roc looking for a nighttime snack. It seemed that as these creatures killed the deer, coyotes and other lesser animals in the area, they would somehow gain experience and levels just like the humans. Since the aggressive brutes hunted only for food and didn¡¯t contain the mental capacity to plan on being hunted, they didn¡¯t kill everything in sight indiscriminately just to gain levels. But they were now massively huge and strong. Arden once saw a level 32 bear with a strength of 28, but it only had 50 stamina.

    The sun was setting on their third day and Rome asked ¡°Do we rest for the night or push on and arrive at sunrise?¡±

    Arden answered ¡°We push on. We need to get back to help the others. The sooner the better.¡±

    Jex felt weary from their long forced march and she could see the fatigue in all of their faces and body postures. ¡°Hun, I think we¡¯re too tired to make it all the way without a rest. We¡¯ll need to be in top shape when we get back to the others.¡±

    Arden reluctantly agreed and after a vote they decided to walk another hour or two before calling it a night. Jex ran off into the woods to find a deer for dinner. He didn¡¯t like it but knew she was capable of successfully hunting, field dressing, and returning with deer meat. None of them were as good as her at it.

    Just a few minutes after she took off they all got an alert in their vision.

    Notice: The prey (Humans) have killed two hunters. The humans expended the secret weapon Scorched Earth. 4 Hunters remain.

    Rome whistled. ¡°Wow they did it! Somehow Graul lured them to a village and used the spell. That would have been a sight to see. I¡¯m looking forward to their story.¡±

    Antic looked up Cities. Calico was missing from the list, not just grayed out like the dwarf and elf villages, and now Kellogg Hill. He let the others know where Scorched Earth had taken place, and that Calico was no more, meaning not one single building was remaining. ¡°That narrows down the places for us to teleport to; Indio or Palm Springs. I hope the others secure your cave Arden, or we could jump straight into an ambush.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sure Torger will think of that. He¡¯s got a good strategic mind. But why are there four left instead of three? ¡±

    No one could answer Arden¡¯s question.

    In the morning they covered the coals and hid signs of their camp. It was hard not knowing how good of trackers the tyters were but they were professionals at stalking and hunting prey in a variety of environments. None of them knew what the message 10 days left meant that was in their vision. Could they hide for ten days then it would be declared a draw, or in ten days would the tyters use air strikes to finish them off? It was a risk they couldn¡¯t take. They had to be aggressive and win.

    As they set out they kept to their own thoughts, Rome the most discomforted. He had the last shift of the night. Two years earlier that was the best watch to take so he would be refreshed and wide awake for the day. But now nobody wanted anything but the first shift. They had to sit there at night and listen to their friends cry, groan, and scream in their sleep. Three years of killing beasts and occasionally being killed, sometimes in gruesome ways had badly frayed all of their minds. They all knew about the night terrors that had been going on with each of them for months, but nobody talked about it. That night had been especially bad as Jex kept asking and pleading for her baby to be OK. None of them knew if she was still pregnant after having died stuck to the bottom of the alien space ship. They wanted to encourage her but the words were empty as only time would tell if she would have a healthy, fully human baby. After all, they weren¡¯t in their original human bodies since coming to Nuva, only their minds and faces remained the same.

    As Rome was thinking these things Arden spoke up. ¡°Looks like about two more hours until we¡¯re there. I think I should do the talking, unless anyone objects?¡± After an answer of silence, he nodded. He was a natural salesman and they all knew it.

    Five miles from the village two dwarves stepped onto the road and took defensive stances, axes raised. ¡°Stop! You know you¡¯re not allowed near any dwarf city. Turn around and leave before you bring ruin to our whole tribe!¡±

    The dwarves looked scared. Two level 19 dwarves against four level 65 humans would be a slaughter, but Arden found their bravery admirable. ¡°We understand that we can¡¯t go into the village. Please send Strong Arm to us so we may talk to him.¡±

    ¡°Strong Arm is busy, and the tyters are watching. Go away, please.¡±

    The courtesy comment caught Arden off guard who was expecting to get into a verbal assault. He recovered enough to say ¡°We don¡¯t want any trouble for you, nor from the tyters and we will cause you no harm. Just ask the mayor to come talk to us. We have a good chance of winning. Have you seen the messages about the killed tyters?¡±

    The look on their faces showed they had received the same messages- four tyters dead, four to go. One of the dwarves meekly replied ¡°Strong Arm can¡¯t come to you even if he wanted to. It¡¯s by command of the tribal chief that you cannot come within five miles of any dwarf village.¡± He looked down in disgrace as he said that.

    Rome told Arden ¡°I don¡¯t think they like Baybil much. They look fearful and beat down, like the way the dwarves looked under Small Foot¡¯s rule.¡±

    A dwarf kicked a stone. ¡°Baybil, he, uh, isn¡¯t the tribal chief anymore.¡±

    ¡°What! Who is? What happened?¡±

    ¡°Um, our great leader Thirrell, he, well he and Baybil traded positions. Baybil is now the mayor of Home and Thirrell is the tribal chief. But his rule is strict. He really likes to punish any wrong doing.¡±

    The other dwarf elbowed him in the ribs, to no effect since he was wearing iron plate armor. ¡°What he¡¯s trying to say is our clan will grow in strength and number under our new leader¡¯s reign.¡±

    Out from behind a large rock stepped Thirrell. ¡°Well spoken Madrin. Our clan has been too weak for too long, and I will change that. As for me enjoying punishing wrong doing, I am simply separating those who make our tribe weaker from those who make our tribe stronger.¡±

    Both dwarves snapped to attention and looked at their leader. Arden took the opportunity to change the ugly subject. ¡°Hey the head honcho, just the guy we need to talk to. You know we¡¯ve killed four of the seven tyters, now eight, and we might be able to kill the rest. If we could coordinate your tribe to set up an ambush, we¡¯re sure to win. Of course we¡¯ll need potions and new weapons, but all the loot will be yours. And you¡¯ll all get a lot of experience for helping to kill the tyters. If fifty dwarves join in that will still be, let¡¯s see, fifty seven at four times seventy-five, and Shug is ninety-nine, well, um it¡¯s a whole bunch of experience points. The math isn¡¯t important. The loot and experience is. Let¡¯s get started with some steel armor and weapons. Then we¡¯ll try to get the elves to join in and victory will be guaranteed!¡±

    ¡°Ha! You think I¡¯m going to risk the lives of my tribe members, just when we¡¯re starting to rebuild? And fight alongside elves? No way! You humans tried that experiment and it failed miserably. No, just go away, and don¡¯t lead the tyters here.¡±

    ¡°Failed experiment?¡± Antic was livid at that accusation. ¡°When I first got here I was afraid for my life every day. I was afraid of pain, afraid of losing my friends, afraid of never seeing my family again. But Torger and Arden trained me to be good with a spear. They taught me how to stab and thrust, parry, and roll when I need to dodge to get back on my feet again, then they taught young dwarves and elves how to fight together, alongside each other. Those kids were slaying simmets left and right by the time they had a couple weeks of training together! One mishap and the dwarves turtle up and hid back in the villages, not engaging monsters or trading with the elves. As the leader, you should be leading them into battle to protect their villages, but you¡¯re not! We killed two razorlings and a roc today, just miles from your village. Send out your best dwarves to clear the area like Torger did with us humans, and make sure no monsters are knocking on your door!¡±

    ¡°I am protecting my dwarves! By keeping you away I¡¯m protecting them from the tyters. Maybe you don¡¯t know this, human, but this the end of the hunt. Those monsters had three years to grow stronger. In a couple of weeks the terra formers will come, modify the land, and the beasts and new prey will be reset to level five or less. Then it will be safe for me to train up our warriors. In two weeks, when you¡¯re dead, we will begin swinging our axes once more. Until then we are gathering wood and food for the winter. Remember, it was your friend Torger who didn¡¯t buy coal for the winter last year, and we¡¯re still a little short for this year. What if the next world is covered in snow, or a series of small islands. You haven¡¯t been here long enough to see just how varied the climates can be from hunt to hunt. You need to leave right now or I will order an attack on you.¡±

    ¡°Attack us?¡± Antic was still boiling. ¡°Torger is the one who brought tremendous prosperity to your tribe. We showed you where silver mines were, then gold mines. He established good trade with the elves and introduced a tax system that makes sense. You¡¯re riding his coattails, and kicking his memory while you do it! Not only that, we stopped most of the goblin invasion that would have surely wiped you out. And what did you do to usurp Baybil¡¯s command?¡±

    Arden interrupted the tirade. ¡°What¡¯s in the past is past. Look Thirrell, we just want to survive and go home. We don¡¯t want to die. If you¡¯re not going to help us fight, at least sell us weapons and potions.¡±

    ¡°You don¡¯t have any money, and no matter how much you offered we wouldn¡¯t risk the wrath of the tyters. They would kill all of us for sure.¡±

    Arden thought about what to say and carefully chose his words. ¡°I call upon Ristopan, son of Muldwil for help.¡±

    Thirrell and the other two dwarves blanched then he asked in shock ¡°How do you know the name of one of the five sons?¡±

    Before anyone could answer, Ristopan teleported to their location. All three dwarves were dumbstruck for a second then they all bowed their knee to him. ¡°Rise my sons.¡± They slowly and reverently did so. ¡°Thirrell, tribal chief of the Cucamonga clan, you are wise to not risk the wrath of the tyters. But there is something to these humans that makes me think they might win. If you join them, you may die, but you will probably win. I am no seer and can¡¯t say what will happen. But if you join them I will return to your tribe Bone Crusher.¡±

    Thirrell gasped at the name and his eyes bulged out as Ristopan pulled from a small backpack a massive war hammer. It was as tall as a dwarf and was forged of one solid piece of moonstone. Ristopan easily twirled it in his hand and it looked as if it only weighed a few pounds, but then he struck it hard on the ground and sent a tremor in a circle for about fifteen feet, causing all of them to stumble and almost fall down. ¡°As you know Thirrell, this is soul bound. It will always return to you, just as The Bow of Artemis the Huntress will always return to Jex.¡±

    She looked sheepish but withdrew the Bow from the black velvet case, got a good hold of the Bow and threw it as far as she could. It landed forty feet away but after two seconds it rematerialized at her feet, undamaged.

    Thirrell reached out a tentative hand to stroke the hammer of legend but Ristopan pulled it away. ¡°First, most dwarves and elves don¡¯t know she has this legendary weapon, and you three dwarves will keep it that way. As for the Hammer, the dwarf who wields this weapon must show amazing bravery and loyalty to his clan to earn it. Upon death it will return to me. Will you, Thirrell, tribal chief, show yourself to be brave, loyal, and selfless, even at the risk of your entire tribe? Choose carefully, for I can¡¯t guarantee your success.¡±

    He was in deep contemplation and introspection for over a full minute before answering. ¡°I, Thirrell, am responsible for the safety and protection of this tribe. Bone Crusher would greatly aid me in protecting them, but the danger in taking the weapon would be too great. I do not wish for the end of the Cucamonga tribe to come during my rule. Please, my lord, give me a task that I may complete to earn the weapon, and I will gladly risk my own life for it. But I will not risk the lives of hundreds of other dwarves for it.¡±

    Ristopan looked disappointed. ¡°You have chosen to keep this tribe safe, and quiet. No harm will befall the tribe during your rule, but no great deeds will come to them during your time either.¡±

    As he finished speaking these words, an elf trader walked up the road, oblivious to the conversation he had stumbled upon. ¡°Good day dwarves, and men, and uh, woman.¡± He bowed to Jex.

    Ristopan addressed him. ¡°Traveler, what kind of speed do you have?¡±

    He looked baffled. ¡°Speed? I can sprint a hundred meters in under eight seconds.¡±

    ¡°No. What I want to know is how quickly can you get to the nearest elf village?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s about a day and a half, but I could get there in around fourteen hours in a pinch.¡±

    The humans looked at him in jealousy, and the dwarves with disdain. Going a hundred miles over rough forest terrain would take the humans two days if they hurried. Elves must know how to move quickly in a forest.

    ¡°That¡¯s not good enough, though that speed is admirable. I sense you are a trader. What wares do you have?¡±

    He looked at Ristopan and became a little worried that he was about to get mugged, with four humans and three dwarves all armed blocking his path. But there had not been reports of any highway men in the area for fifty years. At a nod from Ristopan he opened his duffle bag and pulled out bows, arrows, potions, and low quality gems.

    ¡°I am interested in you potions, put the rest away. Specifically I want the strongest mana potion you have.¡±

    The elf held up a blue potion and the vial glowed, indicating the glass was more resistant to breaking. Ristopan looked at it. ¡°This will restore sixty mana, a very nice potion, but not enough. Do you have three of these?¡±

    The elf was shocked. ¡°Three? Only our strongest magic users have that much mana. I would never think of bringing something more powerful than this to the dwarves. I only have this to show off what elves are capable of and convince dwarves to abandon their low level potions. I can sell you five high potions which will restore two hundred mana.¡±

    Ristopan shook his head. ¡°No, my stomach can¡¯t take elf potions very well. They work, but I pay for it, days on the toilet, and five potions would have me bedridden for a month. Tell me, do you have the spell teleport two?¡±

    The elf reluctantly nodded. ¡°I do, but why does that matter?¡±

    ¡°I want you to teleport to the nearest elf village. Tell them to send an elder to me in the village of Rich Fields.¡±

    ¡°First, I have nothing to gain from that. I¡¯m about to make a month¡¯s wages by trading there today. And I do respect my elders sir, but what you ask is too much. Second, dwarf villages are not allies to elves, so we cannot teleport there.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s fixed easily enough.¡± Ristopan waved his staff. ¡°Now any elf within four hundred miles who is at least two hundred and seventy years old can teleport to Rich Fields for the next nine hours. I will be waiting for them. Tell them Ristopan has an offer to make. I assure you they will reward you for your troubles.¡±

    The elf bowed and teleported away. Then Thirrell glared at Ristopan. ¡°My Lord¡± he spat the word, ¡°I do not appreciate you bringing an invasion of elves to the heart of my tribe. I must prepare my defenses.¡±

    Thirrell stepped back to teleport but Ristopan stopped him. ¡°That is why I put the high age limit on them. Like dwarves, elves live to be about three hundred on average. Those who come will be, geriatric. Physical defenses will be unnecessary, and I can hold my own if it comes to a wizards duel. Let us go together.¡±

    Ristopan nodded and the three dwarves disappeared in a pale green flash. He looked at the humans. ¡°I think I can work out an alliance for you with the elves.¡±

    Antic asked ¡°How did you appear here when Arden called?¡±

    ¡°I hear the prayers of everyone in my sector, I just choose not to respond. Imagine a thousand requests a day for dwarves to get richer or to not get caught for their bad behavior. Precious few requests are from a pure desire to help your friends without selfish gain. I can teleport to anywhere in my realm, at a cost of a hundred and sixty mana, which is why I wanted the strongest mana potion. I could have teleported to the elves myself if I had the mana. And as tribal chief, Thirrell has a similar, but weaker version of the abilities. When you were talking to the guards about Thirrell, he could vaguely sense it since it was in the territory of his tribe. And he can teleport to anywhere in his own territory, at the cost of all his mana for a day, which is how he appeared behind the rock while you were talking to the guards. But that is already more information than you need. Please travel to the edge of the village, but don¡¯t try to pass the shield or harass the guards. I and hopefully some elves will meet you there shortly.¡±

    Ristopan disappeared and the humans, overloaded with all that just happened, walked in silence to the edge of Rich Fields, being greeted by angry stares from the guards.

 Conquest

    Chapter 9

    Conquest

    Graul, Torger, and Brun were in Arden and Jex¡¯s cave near Indio. They were all exhausted and asleep after days of preparing for the tyters to come then fighting them and running for miles. Graul was having terrible night terrors and Brun woke up then woke up Graul.

    Pushing him gently he said ¡°Graul, wake up.¡±

    Graul awoke with a start and grabbed Inferno that was laying next to his head. He saw Brun and asked ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°You were thrashing and cussing in your sleep. Want to talk about it?¡±

    ¡°No. It was just¡­ never mind.¡±

    Brun urged him to go on. Graul thought for several seconds then began. ¡°Torger and I have been killed twice by the tyters. Once more and we die permanently. Getting stuck to the bottom of the ship and sucked into space didn¡¯t count. We are so close to winning, but we¡¯ve used three of our surprise attacks. We used the cannons, we used the gas in Kellogg Hill, and I used Scorched Earth. We have no more tricks up our sleeves. That ship that killed us, it just shows me that no matter how strong we get, no matter how good our weapons are, they can easily kill us any time they want to. We¡¯re nothing more than pesky rodents to them. I got shot in the shoulder with a laser and you almost died from a semi auto RPG. They can kill us from a mile away before we even get close to them, even with all our beast gear. I don¡¯t see how we¡¯re going to win.¡±

    Brun answered ¡°They can kill us whenever they want, that¡¯s true, but for some reason they seem to prefer hand to hand combat. It¡¯s like they enjoy swinging a sword or thrusting a spear rather than using their ranged weapons. We have to hope that pattern holds true. As for your having no more lives left, maybe it¡¯s time for a little religion.¡±

    Graul scoffed. ¡°Foxhole faith is working great for Antic. Ever since Rome turned him onto it he¡¯s been more calm and brave, and I say good for him. I know a lot of agnostics cling to religion when confronted with imminent death, but that¡¯s not for me. I¡¯m going to look around for tyters.¡±

    Graul stood up and put on his armor. Brun shrugged his shoulders and said ¡°Suit yourself.¡±

    Graul muttered ¡°Thanks for trying Brun.¡±

    It took Antic, Arden, Jex, and Rome a half hour to get to the edge of Rich Fields at a light jog. Once they arrived, they only had to wait a few minutes until Ristopan came to them. With a broad smile he said ¡°I have found you some help, though not from my own kind I¡¯m ashamed to say.¡±

    Behind him came Lagwil, who was smiling kindly at them. ¡°You have done well for yourselves humans. We were a little impressed when the message of a dead tyter appeared to us, but we were astonished when three more were killed by you. Tell me, where are your friends? We would like to congratulate all of you.¡±

    ¡°They are preparing for our arrival. At least we hope they are.¡±

    Ristopan pulled out what could only be described as a crystal ball, and looked into it. After several seconds he said ¡°They are where you expect them to be. But I must urge you to hurry.¡± Seeing their confused looks he explained ¡°This is my scrying globe. Arden and Jex, it is your cave. Allow elves to enter it.¡±

    Jex looked up Cities then found their ¡°home¡± and allowed access for all Pomo elves as allies. Seconds later the humans and Lagwil all teleported there.

    Torger was on guard duty of the cave while Brun and Graul were returning from scouting, looking for the tyters. Suddenly a pale green light filled the cave, then another and another. In two minutes there were a hundred elves in the cave along with all the Regulators. Torger was smiling like a moron at the sight but he couldn¡¯t help himself.

    Arden saw Torger was dumbstruck so he took the lead. ¡°Welcome everyone! Can I have your attention please!¡± The chatter quieted. ¡°Welcome to our home.¡± He pulled Jex into a side hug. ¡°I¡¯m sorry our accommodations are lacking, but we¡¯re not here for tea and biscuits. We have a dangerous enemy out there trying to hunt us down. You elves have responded to the call to arms and come to help your allies. That is selfless and courageous of you, even if you are on a quest with the best possible reward.¡±

    At their cheers rose up and Arden explained to Torger, Brun, and Graul about their meeting with Ristopan. Their deal was the first elf to deliver the finishing blow to a tyter and live to tell about it would receive Bone Crusher. A hundred of the best archers and scouts in the realm turned up for the chance to lay claim to the legendary weapon. Sure they were doing it for the quest, but it was the help the humans needed.

    An hour later, as the humans remained in the cave, the first reports of tyter sightings started to come back. One messenger reported that because Ristopan helped the humans, commander Karzik told the hunters where they were and what was going on. Any chance of an ambush was ruined, but the elves, who averaged to be level 21, would stand little chance of winning anyways.

    It was time for the humans to put their final plan into place. They left the cave and started marching to battle. There was a strong wind blowing sand and obscuring their vision beyond a quarter mile. That was good news for them. From a few hundred yards away, they saw a flash of red, the red of a tyter laser striking an elf. This was their time to exit.

    They turned left and told elves they passed they were going to flank the tyters from that side. The elves left the area to get into the thick of battle. Once they were alone, the Regulators ran southwest as far and fast as they could. After a few minutes, they saw a tyter chasing them. The command ship must be reporting their location!

    They ran for a few more minutes before they saw they would never make it. The tyter kept pounding speed and stamina potions, and the humans had neither of those.

    ¡°We¡¯re going to have to kill it!¡± Torger yelled.

    ¡°No, let¡¯s stick to the plan¡± cried Jex.

    Torger looked at her grief and saw the fear in everyone¡¯s eyes. He drew his sword. ¡°You guys go, I¡¯ll hold him.¡±

    ¡°Torger, no. You don¡¯t need to do this.¡±

    ¡°Graul, get back home. If I have to sacrifice my life permanently for all of you, I will do it gladly.¡±

    ¡°I will stay and fight¡± said Rome.

    ¡°Me too¡± said Brun.

    Graul merely nodded his resolve to stay and fight.

    Jex looked panic stricken, not for herself but for her daughter. Antic had always feared death and pain, and having a solid plan to run to Catalina leaving the elves behind as fodder only bothered him a little bit. Arden was torn between staying to help his friends and protecting his family, including his brother Brun.

    Arden said ¡°OK, we stick to the plan. Let¡¯s waste this reptile then keep going to the island.¡±

    By then the tyter was in range of Jex¡¯s Bow. Without the verbal command they got into their well oiled battle positions. Jex shot a silver arrowhead and they all watched in suspense waiting to see what would happen when it struck the tyter.

    He dodged to his right, but the Bow imbued the arrow with magic and it slightly changed course hitting the tyter in the shoulder. The Kevlar suit rippled, then the arrow shattered. No harm was done to the hunter. This would have to be done hand to hand.

    Torger called out ¡°All mana for healing only! That suit absorbs all spells.¡±

    The tyter raised his left arm and fired the laser at Jex. Arden was anticipating it and had the tower shield in front of her on time. The laser struck it in a corner and it hissed. Everyone looked on at the smoking dragon scale tower shield, which now had a golf ball sized dent in it and a scale had dissolved.

    ¡°OK, if it hits my shield in the same spot twice, it¡¯s going through. Careful guys.¡±

    The tyter raised his left hand to fire again, but seemed to be waiting for something. Jex took the opportunity to shoot an arrow at its exposed foot. Just before the arrow arrived, another laser shot out, but it went wide as the tyter¡¯s focus was on the arrow. It hopped out of the way but the arrow still nicked its foot. The spells activated and the tyter was hit with Fire 2, Lighting 2, and Ice 2, each amplified by 50% because it was a silver arrowhead. Brun read the Analyze 2 out loud.

    Tyter Level 75

    Health 768/850 Stamina 83/125 Strength 37  Mana 0

    Rome called out ¡°I think the laser takes about five seconds to recharge.¡±

    The others nodded, understanding what that meant without having to speak it. The tyter raised his arm again to fire and while they waited, Torger checked his stamina. It should be about the same as everyone else¡¯s, which was 31/100.

    The laser fired and Arden moved quickly to block Antic from getting hit. He was the strongest at 22 and the lowest on stamina at 29/90, making him the biggest threat. A new dent formed on the shield and Antic, Torger and Graul rushed forward. Jex unleashed arrows at a rate a little faster than one every one and a half seconds. That kept the tyter moving so he couldn¡¯t get another shot off. Then the four supporters steadily moved closer to the battle.

    Antic stayed away with his halberd pointed at the tyter¡¯s head while Graul and Torger flanked him. They circled around and around, no one making the first move. After several seconds Torger called out ¡°He¡¯s waiting for something! Watch for reinforcements.¡±

    Brun pointed in the distance as another tyter was running towards them, occasionally firing a laser at the dozen elves chasing him. It seemed the tyters were so arrogant they had disdain for the pesky elves and didn¡¯t see a dozen of them as a real threat. But then again arrows were bouncing harmlessly off its suit, and he seemed undamaged. The humans were the real threat.

    Once the second tyter arrived, they stood back to back facing the three melee humans. They showed no fear being outnumbered seven to two. One held a mace and the other a long sword. Both stood a little over eight feet tall and had a huge reach advantage. Seeing their impressive reach, Torger told Graul ¡°You know what you have to do.¡±

    Graul nodded and Torger and Antic gave simultaneous feints to the one with the mace. Both tyters countered the attack, knocking the halberd from Antic and the two handed long sword from Torger. At the same time Graul jumped into a forward summersault and raised his shield above his head for the expected blow, but it never came. He wound up as big as he could and as he heard Antic cry out from the jarring in his hands and dropping the halberd, Graul swung as hard as he could at an exposed foot. The blade sunk deep and dealt the extra seventeen health damage from Fire 1 and Lightning 1. The blade stopped at the bone with a thud, much to the chagrin of Graul. He had fully expected to amputate the lizard foot, and the failure to accomplish that meant bad things would happen.

    Graul quickly pulled the blade free while still holding the steel shield above his head, but as he was backing away there was a BOOM on his shield as the pommel of the tyter¡¯s long sword struck it with all the tyter¡¯s off balance might. The tyter to his credit was able to land a powerful backhanded blow to Graul¡¯s pauldron as he was falling and hit the ground with a big grunt. Graul had barely escaped getting crushed under his weight, but his left forearm hurt like hell and the shield was dented. He took a couple hasty steps back and cast Cure 2 on himself, relieving some of the pain.

    ¡°Torger, I gotta get a good heal from Rome! Be back in ten seconds.¡±

    As Graul was running toward the others, Jex landed two cleanly placed arrows in the injured tyter¡¯s sword hand that was clutching his foot. The tyter bellowed and pulled out a vial, but before he could drink the potion it went flying from his injured hand. Sixty yards away there was a cheer as the dozen elves arrived for the fight. The top shot of the tribe had hit a three inch glass vial while at a full sprint from sixty yards away!

    More and more elves began shooting arrows at both tyters. The one that was bludgeoning Torger and Antic with a mace turned to fire his laser at the approaching posse. As he did Torger heard a faint charge before the laser activated. Even in his splitting headache and blood flowing in his eyes from getting hit in the face by the mace, he knew that one and a half second charge might come in useful later, but at the moment he was wobbly on his feet and barely able to grasp the sword, but a glance at Antic showed that his friend was far worse. Antic was on his hands and knees and wheezing while coughing up blood. Torger was no EMT but it was clear Antic had multiple broken ribs and Torger merely had a broken cheek bone.

    The elves fanned out into a semi-circle and began launching volleys of arrows at the two hunters, drawing their full attention away from the injured humans. The tyters had to dodge a little as the aim of all twelve elves was phenomenal, targeting the exposed feet, right hand, and face of each tyter. But the enormous lizards were surprisingly agile and dodged the first two volleys, then returned using the lasers attached to their left hand gauntlets. Two elves were hit in the chest and died instantly.

    Torger used the distraction and swung his sword as high as he could from behind the uninjured tyter. He was trying to hit it in the side of the head but aimed a little too high. Instead the sword cut cleanly through three of the six antennae on top of the head. The other antennae began moving wildly and the tyter shrieked in pain. He spun around to his left bringing his gauntlet around first, leading with the axe head, which ran nearly the length of his forearm. Torger was still a little off balance from the full power two handed swing, and he was only able to partially duck. The axe part struck the top of his steel helm and got embedded. The helm saved Torger¡¯s life, but the blow was powerful enough to knock him unconscious.

    As Torger went limp and dropped to the ground, Jex took an excellent shot and hit the tyter in the cheek. The tyter tried to shake off Torger, but the metals were twisted together. At the same time Graul had returned and seeing blood pouring from the helm of his brother sent him into a panic. He rushed forward and was going to swing at the tyter¡¯s side, but the tyter held up his mace to block. Graul switched his grip and at the last second thrust forward with all the power he had. His blade struck his foe in the protected chest, but the Kevlar suit won. Graul¡¯s sword Inferno skimmed off it leaving a deep gash in the suit. Just as before, the suit released an electric shock to Graul through his iron sword, and the whole thing glowed blue for a second before fading out.

    While that was going on Rome had healed Antic, and Antic was picking up his halberd. Graul saw him and yelled for everyone to hear ¡°The magic shield protecting the suit is down!¡± Antic got a good strong grip, planted his feet apart and staggered, and thrust with all his strength at the center mass, just as Torger and Arden had taught him to do against the simmets. The spear point punctured the suit and went into the lizard¡¯s chest about two inches.

    By then the tyter was frantically shaking his left arm trying to dislodge the unconscious Torger. He finally succeeded while simultaneously snapping Torger¡¯s neck. Yet still Torger didn¡¯t die. Rome and Arden each cast a Cure 2 on him, but that only brought his health to 49/500. The powerful lizard grabbed the halberd and pulled it out of his chest, but in an unusual display of courage Antic held on and fought him for control of the solid steel weapon. The tyter started to lift his mace to bash Antic, but then dropped it. He also released the halberd with a look of rage on his face. Behind him, Antic heard Brun cheer and say ¡°It worked!¡±

    Brun had cast Beserk 2 on the tyter after the protective suit was destroyed. The spell description was to ¡°mindlessly attack anyone using bare hands¡±, but the tyter didn¡¯t take the time to remove the gauntlet strapped to his wrist. He dropped his mace and Antic¡¯s halberd Power Cord, and he took a boxing stance and began throwing punches at Antic, but it was obvious the hunter had absolutely zero training in unarmed combat techniques. Antic easily dodged the punches and Graul snuck up behind him and drove his sword through the spine. His legs gave out from paralysis and with a big overhand chop, Antic used the axe part of the halberd to sink it deep into the neck of his foe, extinguishing the life of another hunter.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    The elves did not do well in their battle. The tyter that had the bad ankle from Graul¡¯s sword had multiple arrows sticking out of his right hand, both feet, and face, but he stood tall and proud and was aiming the laser at one of the two remaining elves. He couldn¡¯t run well enough to catch them but they kept him distracted while the humans exterminated his partner. The laser fired and the elf was a little too slow to jump out of the way. The laser burned clean through the four foot scrawny ally, and he also died. The last elf nodded to the humans and ran away.

    Brun cast Analyze 2 and called out the stats.

    Tyter Level 72

    Health 168/850 Stamina 43/125 Strength 34  Mana 0

    Although he was nearly dead, his Kevlar suit was still fully operational, so magic would simply be absorbed and all but the most powerful blows would be easily turned away from the force shield embedded in the suit.

    As he killed the last elf, Graul and Antic dragged Torger to their friends and Arden got in front of him with the tower shield. In line behind Arden were Torger, then Jex, then Brun, and finally Rome. Arden had to just move the shield a little left or right to block any ranged attacks coming their way, while the others stepped out to the left and to cast heal spells and Jex could shoot her arrows if she took a half step to the right.

    During the brief respite the tyter pulled out a potion from a small pouch but yet again Jex shot the vial out of his hand. They were about forty yards apart, and the hunter pulled out from the same small pouch a round shield. The humans would never understand how that was possible but it wasn¡¯t important. He held up the shield while extracting another potion. Jex was unable to hit him in the face or hand, so she hit a foot. The tyter ignored it as he drank another potion.

    As he was drinking the second potion, Graul and Antic had returned. Antic used the hook part of the halberd and pulled on the shield with all his strength. The tyter was much stronger than him and held the shield in place, but that wasn¡¯t the point. It allowed Graul to get to the side and stab him through the hand. The blade went all the way through and the tyter grunted a deep and rumbling ¡°gaah!¡±

    The hunter pushed out with the shield and knocked Antic on his ass, and at the same time wrenched the sword out of Graul¡¯s hand. But the cost was to exaggerate the wound in his own hand. He stood up to his full height and kicked Antic in the leg, leaving a deep bruise beneath the now dented steel greave.

    Brun had removed Torger¡¯s helm and Rome used the last of his mana to cast another Cure 2. Torger regained consciousness but still had a slight dent in his head that was slowly seeping blood. Brun, Jex, Arden, and Torger each cast Cure 2 on him, then with 111/500 health Torger took up his sword and rushed into battle. Brun and Rome each ran around the battle to the elves¡¯ dead bodies and drank a couple of healing and mana potions.

    Torger arrived as Graul and Antic were pounding on the tyter¡¯s round shield, but the shield seemed to have taken no damage. Their stamina was almost depleted, but they had to keep it from drinking another potion and regaining more health. Torger¡¯s arrival changed their battle tactics and Antic again hooked the shield while Torger and Graul pounded on the gauntlet. Seeing he was losing badly, the tyter pulled Antic to himself and smacked him on the head with the hook part of his own gauntlet, then he spun and fired the laser wildly at the ranged humans. Arden wasn¡¯t expecting the shot and was a little slow to yell out to the mages. The stray laser hit Rome in the neck and he collapsed to the ground, dead.

    The others yelled in rage and swung swords and halberd repeatedly at the tyter, beating him down. Rage filled minds caused Torger and Graul to hack at his exposed feet and Antic delivered the coup-de-grace driving the spear point into the prone lizard¡¯s head. They looked up and saw Rome¡¯s body disappear.

    Chapter 10

    Ocean

    ¡°You guys go ahead, I¡¯m going back for Rome.¡±

    ¡°Torger this is our chance to escape this world. I¡¯m sorry, but Rome is going to have to stay here. We need to go.¡±

    Torger was divided in his heart and mind. He couldn¡¯t leave his friend Rome behind, but they may not get another chance to make it back to Catalina and then back to Earth. Besides, the scroll Ristopan gave them would only teleport six of them back, someone had to stay behind. Torger always assumed it would be him, but now it may have to be Rome. Torger made a quick decision. ¡°OK, I¡¯m sorry for Rome, but you¡¯re right, we do have to move quickly.¡±

    They tried to loot the bodies of the dead tyters, but were unable to access the small pouch that seemed to hold a ton of stuff. The weapons and armor the tyters used were useless to the humans, being way too large, so they left it, taking nothing.

    They travelled only eight miles until they found a rocky outcropping in the desert that gave them shelter on two sides. Jex and Arden took watch while the others slept. Everyone except them had extremely low stamina, health, or mana and needed the sleep. During the watch no tyters came, but the message of two more tyters killed by the humans came through for all the world to see.

    Rome respawned in the cave in Indio. It was dark and he was alone and naked. The message of two dead tyters appeared before him, but it was a hallow victory. His friends had a thirty mile head start on him and he would never catch them before they made it to Catalina. But he had no option but to try. He put on backup leather armor and boots, losing the magic advantage that a wool robe and mantle gave, and picked up a wooden staff. His back up clothes took away all of his great bonuses as a mage, but it was all he had, and this wasn¡¯t the time to try to figure out how to use a melee fighter¡¯s steel armor and weapons. He had rudimentary skills in hand to hand combat, but it wasn¡¯t his forte.

    Rome walked a couple miles out of the cave and stopped cold. Spread all over the ground were dozens of dead elves. Captain Shug and his partner had slaughtered them. Rome felt guilty for their original plan. They were to trick their friends and allies into fighting the tyters while they escaped to Catalina, and it looked as if more than half the Pomo tribe died to help them. Perhaps the dwarves were right for hiding away from the battle and turning their backs on the humans in their time of need. But ultimately the humans did exactly what they told the elves they would do. They circled around and flanked the tyters, killing two of them, even if it was the tyters who chased them. The elves didn¡¯t need to know the humans tried to trick them. It shouldn¡¯t come up should he encounter them and he would stick to the story of their flanking attack.

    Rome pushed the thoughts out of his mind as he jogged west, hoping with a slim hope he could catch his friends. But one of them had to stay behind. He could respawn one more time then it would be permanent death.

    The journey of the Regulators was uneventful. It took two days to reach Long Beach and there was no sign of the remaining two Tyters. The display in their vision showed they had six days left. The first time they had built a raft it took more than a week to make it. They might be able to do it in half the time now that they had superior strength and stamina, but Graul had a better idea.

    ¡°We¡¯re much stronger now. Last time we were afraid of the sanglers, but now we can fight them. Let¡¯s each cut a log for buoyancy and swim across.¡±

    Jex replied ¡°You three are armed and armored, but me, Arden, and Brun have little protection and no steel weapons. We¡¯ll get eaten!¡±

    ¡°OK, you three stay in the middle and we¡¯ll be on the outside edges to fight.¡±

    It was an unpleasant idea, but no one wanted to risk the tyters catching up to them and fighting in the ocean. They all got a good night¡¯s sleep near the beach and before dawn with full strength and stamina held their logs as they paddled out past the breakers in the morning.

    They didn¡¯t make it far before they realized the steel armor was too heavy. They headed back to shore and removed their helms, greaves, bracers, boots, and pauldrons, leaving on the chest plates and chainmail skirts.

    The second attempt went much better. A few hundred yards out from shore a huge sangler approached them and Graul swam over to meet it. Brun called out the stats of a level thirty-one with three hundred and fifty health, but it was unnecessary as Graul easily sliced through any tentacle that came to him. While he was battling that one, another came from the other side and Torger killed it with a powerful thrust to the face. After the fight with the tyters and then the sanglers they each had two more ability points, and added it to their knives skill, bringing them to an average level of sixteen. The experience points seemed unnecessary now that they were so close to going home.

    As they drew near the island eight hours later, they had a horrible surprise waiting. Captain Shug and the other tyter were in a hovercraft patrolling the shore! There was nothing to it but to divide and swim on.

    Arden was the first one spotted and the hovercraft came directly for him. He had one of the five duffle bags and inside his was the tower shield and Jex¡¯s arrows. He opened it up and withdrew the shield just as the first laser flew at him. The shield blocked it, making another dent in it and burning away more scales. He then tossed a quiver to Jex while Antic opened his duffle bag and was going to pass out the steel armor but Torger and Graul waved him off. They swam straight towards the shore. Brun held up his diamond staff and cast Lighting 3 at Shug, but the spell was absorbed by the suit, even though his body was damp from ocean spray.

    Being in the ocean and holding logs for buoyancy put them at a huge disadvantage, and they all knew they had to get to shore. More lasers fired at them, and they felt helpless. These tyters were not looking for a fair fight. It seemed after killing six of their squad members, the hunt was no longer fun or honorable to them, they just needed to kill the humans and then go kill all the rest of the prey.

    When they were just a hundred yards from shore, Antic took a shot to the shoulder. Blood mingled with the water but he pushed on through the pain. Jex and Brun had taken cover under Arden¡¯s shield, and Torger and Graul had made it to shore. They saw the armor carrier struggling and if he died half their armor would sink.

    They cast a spell each, but as expected nothing happened to the tyters. They looked around frantically for a ranged weapon, and Graul fought the temptation to run to the teleport building. It would have been futile anyway as Jex had the scroll to activate. They all agreed she was the primary responsibility to get her unborn daughter back to Earth.

    Torger remembered their first battle on the island and he ran to get a small cannon. He brought it back but had no more cannonballs or gunpowder, and after the ship dropped it the metal was horribly twisted. By then their friends were almost ashore, the dragon scale shield a dented and twisted mess, but still intact. Just as importantly the hovercraft was almost to the shore too. Thinking fast Graul looked at the cannon and said ¡°Grab one end.¡±

    The thirty-five ponds of steel would be a great projectile. It was small, only a little over a foot in length, and was a cross between a civil war cannon and a world war one trench mortar. They each grabbed an end and hurled it towards the hovercraft. The tyters weren¡¯t looking and it slammed into one of Shug¡¯s knees. It bounced off the suit but the kinetic force still left a bruise and threw him off balance for a second. Torger and Graul ran to the bottom of the hill and each brought back a large stone.

    While they did that the others made it to shore and took cover behind a rock. The tyters stepped out of the hovercraft and cautiously approached the boulder their prey was hiding behind. They dismissed the two humans who had thrown the scrap metal at them, distracting them long enough to allow their friends to escape. They didn¡¯t see as a large stone flew at them from the side and smacked Shug in the side of the head. He shook off the pain and fired a laser at the relentless humans, but they dodged it.

    Jex snuck up to the top of the boulder and shot an arrow hitting the other tyter in the head. He pulled out the arrow which didn¡¯t penetrate deep, stopping when it hit the dense bone of his skull, but the spells released upon impact took off an additional seventy-two health. Brun cast Analyze 2 on Captain Shug and his jaw dropped at the amazing stats.

    Tyter (Captain) Level 99

    Health 971/999 Stamina 181/190 Strength 40 Mana 40/40

    He had some basic spells. If one of them was healing, he wouldn¡¯t need potions, and his strength level was double that of everyone else. Each level in strength increased strength by ten percent, and scaled up that high meant Shug was more than twice as strong as even Antic. Brun called out the stats and everyone startled but quickly recovered and took up battle positions. As usual, Torger, Graul and Antic circled the two tyters who stood back to back.

    Captain Shug held a sword in his right hand and the other tyter held a spear in his right. They both had the same gauntlet/halberd/laser combo on their left hand that all the other tyters had. The one with the spear thrust at Graul who just barely dodged in time. Shug swung his sword at Antic who blocked with his halberd and there was enormous clang as metals scraped together. This time Antic held on to his weapon.

    Torger swung his sword at Shug but the blade bounced harmlessly off the suit. Shug back handed Torger in the chest, denting his steel plate. Torger called out ¡°Disengage! Graul we need our armor.¡±

    The three ran to the boulder the others were hiding behind and Brun handed them armor one piece at a time while Jex hid behind the shield Arden was holding, shooting arrows as fast as she could. The tyters blocked all of them, but it slowed them down. They all knew from experience that it would take the melee fighters seven minutes to don all their armor in a hurry, after months of Torger drilling it into them, and they were already halfway suited when they started putting on their greaves, but the tyters were only seconds away. Arden saw the predicament and did what needed to be done. He held the tower shield slightly off the ground and charged straight at Shug. He hit with full speed, but the eight and a half foot tall lizard lowered his shoulder and braced for the impact. Shug staggered back a step, but Arden fell back on his butt. He quickly pulled the massive shield over himself as the expected counter strike from Shug¡¯s sword impacted it. The laser battered shield held.

    Jex used the opportunity to get an arrow into the other tyter¡¯s hand. He yelped and nearly dropped his spear, but recovered just in time. He glared at her, but with an injured hand still drove the spear at the tower shield. The shield held again, and blunted the mithril spear head. Brun cast Shield 2 at Arden, and he was encircled in the magic shield. One blow from Shug shattered the shield. Brun and Jex then rapidly cast layers of Shield 1 over the top of Arden until their mana was depleted. Shug began hacking at the shields shattering each one with a single sword chop while his partner ran at Jex. With twenty-two shields covering Arden, he had half a minute of safety.

    Jex shot another two arrows at the approaching tyter, but he blocked both of them with his gauntlet before he was close enough to thrust his spear at her. She jumped back off the boulder and landed hard, twisting her ankle. Graul saw what was going on and although he only had his greaves, chest plate, and chainmail skirt on he jumped up and bashed his shield into the tyter¡¯s spear. The hunter tried to punch him with the gauntlet but Graul parried with his sword. They circled each other sizing each other up.

    Torger told Antic ¡°As soon as our boots are on we need to join the battle. Forget the bracers, gauntlets, and pauldrons, just boots and helm then we go.¡± Antic didn¡¯t like it but he nodded. Footwear was essential and the helm took only seconds to put on. Torger had mithril boots with Haste 2 on them giving his footwork a thirty percent speed advantage, compared to Graul who was fighting barefoot and it was obviously slowing his normal movements.

    Graul cast Haste 3 on himself giving him a forty-five percent speed advantage, then he cast Shield 1 in front of himself. As expected the tyter drove his spear straight through the invisible shield shattering it, but Graul was ready for the move and swung his sword at the spear shaft. Again metal clanged on metal. A nick was taken out of Graul¡¯s iron sword, but the steel spear shaft bent slightly. The tyter tried to re-grip the spear and hold it differently, but the weight was unbalanced and awkward. He stepped back and with a wary eye tried to reach into his pouch while holding the spear, but it didn¡¯t work. He dropped the spear quickly and faster than humanly possible pulled out a round shield. It seemed perhaps all the tyters had a back up round shield if their primary weapon failed. The tyter lifted his left hand and aimed the laser at Graul. Graul was only a few feet away and had no choice to dodge, so he held up his own steel round shield. The laser bored a hole in the shield, but didn¡¯t continue on to hit his chest plate. At the same time another arrow hit the hunter in the head. He pulled it out and pointed the laser at Jex, who again ducked behind the boulder.

    Arden could hear each layer of shield shattering and had no idea how many there were, as he was turtled in behind the tower shield, lying flat on his back and unable to do anything offensively. He also had the presence of mind to cast Haste 3 on himself, a spell that lasted for five minutes. He would need all the speed he could get as soon as the last shield shattered, and at the rate Shug was smashing through them, it wouldn¡¯t be long.

    Another sound of shattering glass filled his ears, but Arden lay still. His ADD made it exceptionally difficult to do nothing, but his life depended on full concentration. The next shattering didn¡¯t come, instead there was a smack against the dragon scale shield. It dented deeply just above his chest. Arden rolled to his right, keeping the shield above him. He scrambled to his feet and felt another blow hit the shield, which knocked him down. He then heard the tyter grunt. Arden got knocked down, but he got up again, this tyter wasn¡¯t gonna keep him down.

    He looked to see the cause of the grunt was an arrow sticking out of Shug¡¯s cheek. Thank you Jex! He ran back to the boulder, just as Torger and Antic were putting on their helmets. They then charged toward the captain who was pulling out the arrow.

    Torger met Shug¡¯s gauntlet with a powerful swing, but the Kevlar gauntlet held. He swung again and again, but Shug was too big, powerful, and quick for Torger to land an effective blow. Fireballs flew at Shug¡¯s partner but had no effect, being absorbed by the Kevlar suit. But that wasn¡¯t the point, Antic was able to get behind Shug and hook his pouch hanging from the lizard¡¯s side. Antic was trying to hook Shug¡¯s gauntlet but missed, still he pulled back and sliced the cords holding the pouch. It fell to the ground and Antic swept it a few feet away with the spear tip.

    Shug tried to backhand Antic, but they had all seen that move before and he ducked way down. That left an opening for Torger to swing at his armpit. The blade struck hard, but still the Kevlar suit didn¡¯t have an electrical malfunction like the others. On the other tyters it would have surely rendered the suit useless, but Shug¡¯s seemed to be tougher than the others. As they all repositioned to fight again, another arrow struck Shug, this time in a foot. He couldn¡¯t take the time to pull it out, because that would give too big of an opening for Torger to hit him.

    As Shug was facing his foes, Graul was in serious hand to hand combat with the other tyter. They both had bruises and Graul had a few light scrapes, but kept getting heals from Arden. It was too bad Rome wasn¡¯t there; they needed a true healer.

    Brun felt completely useless, being out of mana with no more potions of any kind. Brun couldn¡¯t stand doing nothing while his friends were fighting for their lives. He quietly left the safety of the rock and circled around the tyter. As Graul exchanged another strike to the tyter¡¯s shield, Brun snuck up and with a big overhand swing brought the diamond staff crashing down on the tyter¡¯s head. The staff bent, then shattered. A massive flood of mana flowed into the tyter through his head. Unlike Captain Shug, this tyter didn¡¯t have the ability to use mana, and his body couldn¡¯t process it. He collapsed to the ground and convulsed, just as Graul had done the first time a dwarf had cast a spell on him. Graul casually walked up, and with a sigh of relief he ran his sword into his opponent¡¯s eye. A second thrust ended his life.

    Shug saw his partner go down, and felt the expulsion of mana. He thought ¡°Why don¡¯t they ever invest in the ability to use mana?¡± His thought was cut off as he caught a spar thrust from Antic. His gauntleted hand had little grip from the awkward contraption, but it was enough to get in a tug of war with the human. After a few pulls, Shug won. He quickly rammed the butt of the halberd into Antic¡¯s stomach, making him collapse, doubled over in pain.

    As soon as Brun left the boulder, in a moment of panic, Jex grabbed Arden¡¯s hand and they ran to the tyter entrance building. They stepped into the glass tube portal, the glass closed around them, and she ripped open the scroll. A pale green light surrounded them and they disappeared, guilt at abandoning their friends riddled their minds, but they did what they had to do.

    Torger saw his opening and with all the power he could muster he struck Shug¡¯s suit again. This time came the expected electric discharge which ran down the sword and shocked Torger. He dropped Red Fury and Shug dropped his own sword, reached out and grabbed Torger, then picked him up like a football running back and ran into the tyter¡¯s building and into the portal, ignoring the blows from Graul. With little health left, he touched the screen on the back wall a few times and ran into the glass tube, Graul continually swinging his sword at Shug¡¯s back, slicing into the ruined Kevlar suit a little bit each time. Shug kicked Graul in the knee, breaking it and Graul collapsed. Shug activated the portal, holding on to a struggling Torger, and teleported them away to the mother ship.

 Departure

    Chapter 11

    Departure

    A message came up for all beings of Nuva to see.

    Today marks a historical event in Nuva. The humans have killed seven tyters, and the last one fled the battlefield, accepting shame and defeat. The humans are the third race to defeat the hunters, and they defeated the most elite squad the predators have. Humans will now populate Nuva with exemption from further hunts.

    Graul looked at the others. ¡°What does that mean?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know. What do we do now?¡¯¡±

    Brun asked what they were all thinking- ¡°Do we leave Torger and Rome and try to figure out how to get back to Earth?¡±

    Everyone shrugged as Antic climbed back to his feet still clutching his stomach. The chain mail and leather protecting it did little to dampen the powerful blow. They didn¡¯t have the scroll and were dejected. They talked for a few seconds then Ristopan appeared before them.

    ¡°Well done my apprentices! You have earned your freedom. If I may, I need a hair sample from each of you, then you may go back to your own planet.¡±

    Brun spoke up. ¡°Why do you need our hair, and what about our friends?¡±

    ¡°I need the hair for your DNA. The tyters will use it to make clones and breed humans here. Without your DNA they will bring a thousand males and a thousand females from your planet here against their will to populate this planet. As for your friends, you have always known one of you would not be going back. The scroll I gave you is for six people, not seven, since you did not complete your ¡®Kill a thousand goblins¡¯ quest. That someone is Rome, who isn¡¯t here. As for Torger, they are holding him ransom as payment for me assisting you. Arden and Jex are safely back on Earth, but I will convince the tyters to send you home. I need to go meet Commander Karzik to negotiate Torger¡¯s release. Captain Shug will be furious and ashamed at his failure, and blame it on me. His entire squad has respawned on Karzik¡¯s ship, and they will return to their home in lifelong shame. This conversation will be lively to be sure, but that doesn¡¯t concern you. Go now and return to your planet. Step into the portal and wait for them to send you home.¡±

    Graul stepped up. ¡°I¡¯m not leaving without my brother!¡±

    ¡°That is your choice. You could stay if you wish, but you will not get another chance to return to your home world. Your choice is permanent.¡±

    Antic yelled out ¡°I¡¯m going back!¡±

    Brun looked at Graul then Antic. ¡°Graul, you can¡¯t help him. Come back home with us.¡±

    Graul thought for a few seconds. ¡°What will happen to him?¡±

    ¡°Torger and Rome will be my apprentices. For the first six months they will live with me, then they will need to move a hundred or more miles away from me and each other. We will meet with each other for a few hours once a week. They will each be given a small territory as governors under me. If you stay, you too will live alone and meet with us once a week.¡±

    ¡°That sounds lonely.¡±

    ¡°Yes, a bit. But I will turn them from mages into wizards, and wizards cannot safely live near each other. The amount of mana we control gets- disrupted. I know you know nothing of how mana actually works, but I will teach them, and perhaps you if you stay. I will teach you many spells, and how to create new ones and how to break out of your level caps. But you need to make your decision soon. The commander awaits me.¡±

    Graul looked at his friends. Brun shook his head. ¡°Don¡¯t stay. You¡¯ll be lonely and bored.¡±

    Graul ultimately agreed with Brun. ¡°I have a life at home. This world is interesting, but it¡¯s not for me. If there is ever a way to send them back, please do it.¡±

    Ristopan nodded. ¡°The scroll I gave you can be created once every hundred years. If I don¡¯t find a way to return them before then, I will give them the chance then.¡±

    ¡°We won¡¯t be alive in a hundred years!¡±

    ¡°No, but in that time they will age only two years. Rejecting my offer Graul is rejecting a four thousand year life span.¡±

    Graul shook his head. ¡°That¡¯s not what I want. It¡¯s going to be what, twenty years before the cloned humans will be old enough for me to find a wife? I want a family.¡±

    ¡°No Graul, it will be a hundred years before they are ready to start breeding. They have to make multiple tests to eliminate negative effects of inbreeding, and even then their life span, like the elves and dwarves will be three hundred years. In your life you will be able to outlive a dozen wives.¡±

    Antic stepped up. ¡°I want to live a long time. Maybe I should stay?¡±

    Ristopan looked sternly at him. ¡°Antic, no. Request denied. You have been longing to leave every day you¡¯ve been here. I won¡¯t have you spend millennia here in a miserable state. Go home like you¡¯ve always wanted to.¡±

    They all agreed to go home, Antic being torn between wanting to stay or leave. Having the choice made for him relieved any self inflicted pressure he would have otherwise always had, doubting if he had made the right choice, whichever choice it was. Ristopan stepped into the glass tube, and disappeared. The humans followed him into the building and stepped into the glass case. It closed around them, but nothing happened. They figured Ristopan was negotiating their release. A half hour later a pale green light sent them home.

    Rome was looking at the footprints on the sands of Long Beach, trying to figure how to get across the channel when the message appeared. The tyters were defeated, and one fled from battle. Rome was left alone, stuck here by himself. It had to be someone, but a wildly shot laser made the choice for him. He sat down knowing he had a lonely life left to live. Depression settled on him and he sobbed.

    Torger was tied to a chair that was way too big for him. He was alone in a conference room when Ristopan, Shug, and Karzik walked in. The lizards glared at him, but Ristopan gave him a wink. Torger had no idea what tortures might lay ahead for him, and he prayed for a swift death.

    The next day Torger, Ristopan, and Rome were sitting in Ristopan¡¯s keep. They all had huge smiles on their faces. ¡°Welcome to day one of your training my apprentices. It has been hundreds of years since I¡¯ve had an apprentice, so forgive me if I am a bit rusty. But I do remember lesson one. Food! This week you will cook using only magic. For starters I need to teach you the levitation spell. Then we will go on to accelerated plant growth. After that we will break your level caps¡­¡±

    The next day Ristopan awoke them early in the morning. ¡°Guys get up. You will want to see this.¡±

    They walked out to a high balcony. The keep was a tower five stories tall, and they were on the fifth floor. At first there was a distant speck in the sky. It grew in size as it grew closer. They saw that it was an enormous space ship. Then there were a few others in the distance. The ships shot out blue beams that scanned the earth. When a beam hit the shield of the keep it locked on. The entire tower, all around the shield including the gardens, rose into the sky! Hundreds of feet up. Torger looked toward Lake Tahoe and his heart was heavy. They had tricked their elf friends into fighting a hopeless battle. Ristopan saw him.

    ¡°Torger, you were doing what your primary mission was. You were helping your human friends get home. And you succeeded in your task, almost perfectly.¡± He glanced at Rome. ¡°You have always known you would sacrifice your freedom for your friends¡¯ benefit. As for the elves, they joined the fight willingly. The offer was a good offer. It was possible they might have killed a tyter and received Bone Crusher, but they took on the top rated squad the predators had. They chose their destiny knowing the risks, and it didn¡¯t work out in their favor.¡±

    ¡°What will happen to them?¡±

    ¡°The Pomo tribe is now too weak to stay together. I will speak with Lagwil today. After the terra forming I will tell them where to go to join another tribe.¡±

    Torger nodded but was still sad. ¡°Thank you Ristopan. I want them to live peaceably and safely.¡±

    Ristopan smiled and nodded. A few seconds later he gasped. ¡°Oh Besty! Besty come home now!¡±

    Torger looked out. The first of the terra forming began to take place. Grasses withered and faded, and trees changed from evergreens to acacias. Mountains seemed to melt down into hills and clouds blew in and began raining like a warm spring day. Streams formed and the rain grew stronger. A rumbling was heard as the Giant Sand Snake moved underground to get in the safety of the shield, directly under the tower.

    From their high vantage point they watched the slow transformation for hours in silence as the blue beams from the ships changed the landscape an acre per second. Torger saw an indigenous coyote transform into a similar creature that was fatter, slower, and bigger. He saw a deer in the distance get changed to something that looked like a large porcupine, and a rabbit grew a third pair of legs and its ears shrunk. Not only was the land changing, the indigenous prey were changing to match the home world of the next tyter prey. Finally the ships moved into the distance changing the land all around the globe. The entire keep settled onto a hilltop with a great panoramic view of an alien rain forest. Ristopan invited them back inside.

    ¡°It looks like it¡¯s trolls this time. Back to their regular schedule.¡±

    ¡°What do you mean?¡± asked Rome.

    ¡°As you¡¯ve heard, they have a hunt once every three years. Each hunt has a specific prey for them to hunt, and it goes in order. After humans, it is trolls. The trolls get three years to level up then tyters will come to hunt them.¡±

    ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound very kind,¡± complained Rome.

    ¡°No, but don¡¯t judge another¡¯s society too quickly. The tyters are instinctual hunters, it¡¯s what they do. Squads train together to get the most points to get the best gear they can afford, then they get points from their hunt here. The more points they get here, the more honor they get in their society at home.¡±Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

    ¡°One team every three years? Wouldn¡¯t they have far too many hunters?¡±

    ¡°I have not been told directly, but tyters have hinted to me that there are hundreds of planets like this. But enough of them. Torger, as part of negotiations to free you, I had to agree to something on your behalf. The tyters want to know if you won due to skill or by my assistance. They have placed a challenge to you both. First, is easy. Kill all of the prey that Shug¡¯s team did not. There are hundreds of them in my realm, but I¡¯ll tell you where they¡¯re at. More dangerous is the dragon. After the killing of hundreds of goblins near Lake Tahoe, multiple Grand Liches appeared, and together they raised a dragon. They died in the process as usual, but the dragon must be destroyed. It is still young, level forty, but they have high strength and magic resistance, with tough scales. Far to the south of us the tyters will create a volcano, bringing more Grand Liches from the death, who will die by raising a second dragon. Your job is to train with me six months then kill both dragons, as proof of my successful apprenticeship. Your failure will allow Shug to say you won because of my intervention. You must succeed. Now let¡¯s continue with your training.¡±

    Three years later Ristopan, Torger, and Rome were standing on a hill overlooking Home. Rome asked ¡°Why are we here?¡±

    ¡°We are here, my friend, because the dwarf Thirrell has gotten too big for his britches. He has been terrorizing the tribe and rules with an iron fist.¡±

    Torger shook his head. ¡°I taught him to keep morale high. Where did I go wrong?¡±

    ¡°You only had six months to train him. Shortly after that he usurped Baybil¡¯s position of tribal chief. He likes control.¡± Ristopan looked at him. ¡°So do you.¡±

    Torger shook his head. ¡°I like controlling the aspects of my own life. I never wanted to lead or be led.¡±

    ¡°Yes, and that what makes the life of a wizard so natural to you. You control everything around you while in near isolation. But now we need to go rescue my subjects.¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you rescue them when Small Foot was in charge? They certainly needed help then.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m ashamed to admit I didn¡¯t really care that much then. It was you killing him that made me sit up and take notice of what¡¯s been going on in my own realm. I had been slumbering, but you humans renewed vigor in me.¡±

    They walked down the hill, and outside of the village Ristopan called out in a magically enhanced booming voice ¡°Come to me my dwarves! Today will bring changes in the Cucamonga tribe.¡±

    There was no response at first, and after several minutes, Thirrell and twenty strong dwarves came out dressed in full battle armor. Thirrell called out ¡°How may we assist you, my lord?¡±

    ¡°Thirrell, I have judged your deeds these past three years and sense there is greed in your heart. You are an opportunistic tyrant and today I relieve you of your command.¡±

    ¡°My lord, greed is in the hearts of all dwarves. It is our way.¡±

    ¡°Yes, but so is the sense of protecting your kinsmen and families. Instead you have driven most of the tribe into near slavery with your abundance of punishments and high taxes. They fear you too much to rebel of their own accord, so I have taken it upon myself to replace you.¡±

    ¡°It is not your place to decide the tribal chief! It is the will of the council.¡±

    ¡°IT IS MY PLACE to protect my dwarves! The will of the council was corrupted by your bribery and blackmail! Stand down before your lord!¡±

    ¡°You will have to wrest control from me.¡±

    ¡°So be it.¡± Ristopan didn¡¯t threaten or yell the last. He sighed with a heavy heart at what was about to happen.

    Torger and Rome each walked forward, and the twenty-one dwarves ran at them, murder in their hearts. All three wizards cast Shield 2, then pumped the shield full of mana increasing the strength of the shield and the spells protecting it. All the dwarves were surrounded by the one massive spherical shield, but some tried to break it by swinging their battle axes at it. The shield had a thousand health points and a level two of each black magic spell. All the dwarves were hit multiple times, once from each of the initial five axe swings. They all were hit with Fire 2, Ice 2, Lighting 2, Slow 2, and Poison 2. Then they all collapsed on the ground in pain, with half their health remaining.

    Ristopan walked forward casually and said in a low voice ¡°Do not fight us. These two wizards have together killed two dragons. You stand no chance against them.¡±

    All Thirrell¡¯s personal guard laid down their weapons. Thirrell went into a rage and pounded on the shield until he collapsed dead from the counter spells. Then the wizards dismissed the shield.

    ¡°Arise dwarves. I will spare your lives even after you attacked me, a son of Muldwil, yet for your offense you shall be slaves for life. Remove your armor and walk straight to the coal mines fifty miles to the east. By the time you get there, the guards will be expecting you. You do not want to fail to report the day after tomorrow.¡±

    They all bowed their heads and removed their armor. As they were doing that, Ristopan cast the most powerful spell his brothers in their four thousand year history had ever developed: Revive. Life reentered Thirrell. A minute later Ristopan called for a runner to go fetch Baybil. An hour later there was a celebration as Torger himself reinstated Baybil as tribal chief.

    At the dinner that night Ristopan sat bolt upright. ¡°Torger, Rome, I sense Brun is in trouble. I must send you to him right away! Let¡¯s get to the tyter¡¯s portal quickly, and they will send you to him. You¡¯ve been wonderful apprentices but this is good-bye. And you need to know that using the tyter¡¯s portal will cost you each twenty-five levels. But we need to teleport to the portal now!¡±

    Chapter 12

    The Journey

    Brun woke up stiff all over his body, just like he had every day for the past two years. Out of habit he tried to move his hands but found they were still tied above his head to the upright metal bed. He had spent two years tied to the bed, hands and feet, with metal mesh gloves covering his hands. A nurse walked in to his hospital room to feed him his breakfast. He was constantly reminded of his terrible mistake that day, two years earlier. He wondered how the others were doing. None of them dared to come visit him, and he couldn¡¯t blame them.

    After his breakfast his roommate Nikko said ¡°What do you want to do today Brun? Oh that¡¯s right, it will be no puzzles or games for you today. Maybe tomorrow.¡±

    Brun hated Nikko, but he had little chance of getting a better roommate. After all, they were ¡°patients¡± in a hospital for the criminally insane. Top security. The most elite bad asses in the world. And in two years Brun never engaged in a single conversation with any of the wakkos.

    As Nikko stood up to walk to the day room he pulled back his hand as if to punch the helpless Brun, but he looked at the camera and held off. Brun didn¡¯t flinch. Nikko did that every morning, and few in that place were dumb enough to get into a fist fight, or else they would end up tied to a metal board like Brun.

    Before Nikko could leave the room, two military police escorted in a tall slender man in an expensive business suit. ¡°Brun Parsons, you will be coming with us today.¡±

    Nikko looked at them in awe as one of the MP¡¯s walked behind Brun and tilted his bed back to roll him away. Nikko said ¡°Take me too! Brun is my best friend! I¡¯ll die without his friendly company.¡±

    An orderly in the room pushed Nikko away, but the man in the business suit looked at him, then checked his clipboard. ¡°Do you have any skills in cooking, hiking, machine repair, or janitorial work?¡±

    ¡°Yes. I clean the bathrooms here and sometimes help wash the dishes.¡±

    The man sighed, but said ¡°Good enough. Cuff him and bring him along.¡±

    Brun started to shout he didn¡¯t want Nikko, but the MP¡¯s told him, in a rather rude way, to shut the hell up. At the entrance to the hospital, a sack was placed over their heads and they were led onto a prisoners bus. Each prisoner was given an injection in the arm and they immediately lost consciousness.

    Hours later they were led to a staircase and the sacks were removed. For the first time in two years, Brun was released from the board, and he had to walk up three flights of stairs. His muscles were horribly atrophied, and he hurt everywhere, but he wasn¡¯t going to complain. Wherever he was being led was better than that damn hospital.

    Nikko couldn¡¯t stand the suspense and kept asking where they were going until Brun punched him in the nose. The MP¡¯s smiled but made no comments. They walked into a hotel lobby, then took an elevator to the fourth floor. There, it was not a hotel at all, but lined down each side of the hallway was prison cells. It was then Brun¡¯s turn to ask where they were going.

    The man in the suit looked at him. ¡°You don¡¯t know? But you filled out the application, and scored in the ninety-ninth percentile for a scout. How do you not know about this mission?¡±

    Brun had to think fast. He hadn¡¯t held a pen in his hand for two years, but whatever this was, it was better than what he had. ¡°I know a little, but the details of the application were a bit, lacking. I didn¡¯t expect to be in a prison cell.¡±

    The man smiled. ¡°Of course the application made only vague references to the mission, but your confirmation letter should have filled you in. Here, take another copy, and good luck.¡±

    The barred door was locked behind him, and Brun began to read the letter, with Nikko reading over his shoulder in an annoying manner.

    Congratulations! You have been selected for mission CDY34. You are in the top 1% of applicants for this flight, and your highly developed skills will be valuable to the success of this mission. You will be aboard the Journey 1.1. As a selected applicant, we can tell you the truth about his mission. Forget everything you¡¯ve seen on the news about this ship. Six years ago, cosmologists discovered an anomaly. There is a small moon like structure orbiting the sun, in the same orbital path as Mercury, but it always stays on the opposite side of the sun as Earth. This defies our understanding of physics, and it wasn¡¯t until detailed pictures of the sun from Voyager came in that we saw this small abnormal moon. Further tests showed this was an extra dimensional portal of some kind. Journey 1.1 is the product of seven nations coming together to explore this portal. We don¡¯t know how long this mission will last, but the data we receive from this flight will be invaluable to astronomers for decades to come. Do your part to ensure the resounding success of this mission!

    -Gary Jones, Commander of Journey 1.1

    ¡°What does that mean?¡±

    Brun treated Nikko the same as he had for two years, by completely ignoring him. An hour later another prisoner handed them a tray of food for dinner, saying nothing but continued pushing the cart away. Brun wanted to dig into his food right away, feeding himself for the first time in two years, but his being there didn¡¯t sit right with him. How had he been ¡°selected¡± for this honorable trip? His best guess was Graul. Graul had several friends in Silicon Valley who were programmers for major companies. Any one of them could have hacked a government website to get details about mission CDY34, and any of them could have submitted the perfect resume on Brun¡¯s behalf. Brun knew Graul would have the drive to set up any escape possible for his release from that hell. And a jailbreak would have been worthless, his video was shown on every news channel in the world for nearly a month. Thousands of doctors would be clamoring to run all the same tests on him, the same tests as the one he already endured; and what they had done to him... Brun was electrocuted, operated on, blood drawn, poked and prodded dozens of times his first half year in the hospital, with no results that were satisfactory to the team of doctors. All they could find was that his DNA was¡­ mutated. He never told them he was no longer fully human. The glass cased bed buried in the sands of alter-Yuma had seen to that.

    Gary Jones read the letter he had signed, but didn¡¯t write. What a load of horse shit! He had graduated college early, became a prison guard, and worked his way up to Warden faster than anyone. He was Warden at age twenty-nine, and since then had transferred to a top federal institution. But two years earlier his life came crashing down when his mom and sister were killed by a madman. He was too career-minded to have a wife, and they were the only family he had. When he was approached for a top secret one way trip, he took only a day to consider the proposal before agreeing to never see Earth again.

    Now he was responsible not just for the prisoners, but for the scientists aboard the ship. The first two floors were plush living conditions for the top scientists in the world; twenty from each of nine different disciplines. Geologists, astronomers, botanists, medical doctors, psychologists, entomologists, etc. They all had a vague idea of what the mission was about, and suspected they may never return. The military aboard the ship was impressive. A hundred and fifty elite fighters from five different countries, battle hardened and tested, ready to fight whatever they may face. Gary got a glimpse from a video of what they would face, and it was beyond threatening. But no one could know about that video. No copy was on board. Then there were the prisoners. Exemplary prisoners from all over the world. During the trip they would cook and clean for the scientists. The top three floors housed them in old fashioned cells. They had no clue what was going on, but they all applied to get out of prison. They had non- violent offenses and never got into a fight while in prison, but were facing a minimum of twenty more years incarcerated. When the time came, they would be used as test subjects, or as sacrifices if the military needed to make a hasty retreat.

    The truth was they were going to fly into a portal and come out somewhere else in the galaxy, near a planet with lots of alien aggressive creatures. The mission was to collect details of the bio-diversity and send transmissions back through the portal to Earth. But the portal hadn¡¯t been discovered six years ago as the letter said. The ship started being built six years ago. The portal was discovered twenty years ago. Governments sent three probes through it, and all transmitted for only a few minutes before crashing into the planet. Journey 1.1 would likely encounter the same fate. But the scientists were told probes would be making the trips through the portal, and they were not told of the military or two thousand prisoners above them.

    Right now the prisoners would be eating dinner loaded with sleeping meds, and sleep through the launch. They wouldn¡¯t know they were in danger until it crashed into the planet. It was imperative to keep everything compartmentalized.

 1PX

    Chapter 13

    1PX

    Brun awoke to a splitting headache. The food had obviously been poisoned, and they all slept for several hours. As he was waking up, guards came into his cell and told Nikko it was time for him to go to work. Brun was floating as if he was in outer space. Was that right? Had Graul called in a favor to get him onto a top secret mission? The zero gravity made him throw up.

    Brun used the hours alone to do lunges and pushups, which didn¡¯t work too well, then he wedged himself between a bunk and the bars to do isometrics. His muscles groaned in protest, but he didn¡¯t dare look up his Stats. He had no way of knowing what they could detect about him.

    His thoughts strayed to his ¡°application.¡± He was a ¡°scout.¡± Was that like a boy scout? That didn¡¯t seem likely. What other scouts were there? Perhaps a military scout? He knew nothing of driving off road vehicles and setting up communication devices to send pics back to base. He pondered the idea for a half hour before he came up with old time scouts. Louis and Clarke style. As he thought about it, that made more sense. If his theory about Graul pulling strings was right, the Regulators had more experience scouting than anyone on Earth. No technology included in their mapping the terrain. If someone asked him questions about scouting, he could give satisfactory answers.

    Hours later Nikko returned looking exhausted. Brun had ignored the conversations of the other prisoners, locked in their cells, all day, and Nikko took short choppy jumps in and flopped onto his bunk face down, then floated up. The guard locked the door and left, then Nikko started talking, having strapped himself to his bunk, face in the pillow. Brun ignored the mumblings about too much hard work washing pots and pans all day, but perked up when Nikko mentioned a guy who refused to work. He said the guards pointed guns at him and said ¡°Work or die.¡± That was strange behavior in any culture, but aboard this ship their lives were forfeit.

    Every day for five months Nikko came back and complained, and in all that time Brun never said a word. The other prisoners had given up on trying to converse with him, but not Nikko. He always tried to get some reaction out of Brun, sometimes talking politely, sometimes threatening. It never worked.

    One day a group of soldiers approached the cell in the middle of the night. ¡°Brun Parsons, get up. Proficiency testing.¡±

    ¡°What is that?¡± Brun asked through a groggy throat.

    ¡°Papers say you¡¯re one of the best scouts in the world. We need to know just how good you are.¡±

    Brun climbed out of bed and followed them down the hallway, as Nikko watched their backs with shock. Brun was wearing cotton pajamas and socks, but felt comfortable. But they couldn¡¯t expect him to scout without proper gear could they? And where would he scout? Hallways enclosed in metal?

    His worries were relieved when he was taken to a computer room. A man sat behind a bank of computer screens and in the middle was a padded floor with circle railing. Brun stepped into the circle, and the man instructed him to put on a headset and strap his ankles to the floor. Brun complied and a few seconds later the screen lit up. A loading screen was on, then multiple prompts came up and disappeared asking about terrain, easter eggs, and difficulty settings. In the brief glances he got, he saw they were all set to max difficulty. It must have been the programmer behind the screens who was doing it.

    His voice came into the headset. ¡°Brun, my name is Tyler. We have a program to test wilderness survival skills. You will be placed into a terrain type, then given three minutes to gather as much information as you can. After that you will be given a test to know what you observed.¡±

    Brun was shocked. This was not his specialty. Video games were never his thing. Sure he played a little, but would never categorize himself as a gamer. The screen changed and he was in a desert. He didn¡¯t know what to do. He saw no familiar terrain features, so this was a desert not in America. He started walking to the top of a hill, felt his feet bound to the floor but the screen moved, then realized he had no stamina limitations. He ran to the top and got a good survey of the land. Just as he saw a potential oasis in the distance, the screen changed and a test came up.

    <ul>

    <li>What time of day is it?</li>

    <li>What type of sand is prominent?</li>

    <li>Where are the mountains causing the desert terrain?</li>

    <li>Where is the closest water?</li>

    <li>What wildlife is tame, and what wildlife is aggressive?</li>

    </ul>

    Brun had no idea. He thought it over and remembered seeing distant mountains. He remembered seeing a shed snake skin, and the oasis. After one minute the screen changed. His score was 71/100.

    Suddenly he was standing in a dense jungle. This time he knew what was coming. Four minutes later his score was 89/100. Then he was on a snow packed mountain. Score 75/100. Finally he was in a sparse forest. He named nine animals, the time of day, terrain features, water sources, food sources, and found a gold coin under a leaf. Score 114/100.

    Tyler¡¯s voice came up. ¡°Your overall score was slightly disappointing. What happened?¡±

    ¡°I have little experience in jungle, and mountains during the winter, but I¡¯m good at mountains in the summer. I should ace the desert, I have lots of practice there. I didn¡¯t know what to expect, and didn¡¯t know I could run everywhere. Let me try it again.¡±

    Tyler reluctantly agreed, and Brun was in a different desert. He didn¡¯t find the gold coin, but his score was 98/100. He was congratulated by Tyler then led back to his room. The next week was a barrage of questions from all the inmates about where he had been taken, and what was a scout? He stuck with his habit of never talking to another prisoner.

    He went back to do scout training every day for a week, and the last day got a score of 402/400, having found two gold coins. As he was going to bed that night a voice came over the intercom. ¡°This is Commander Gary Jones. We are two minutes from entry. Secure yourself as best you can.¡±

    ¡°What entry?¡± All the prisoners were confused, as were the guards, and the scientists.

    The pilot navigated the ship to face the portal, bringing it to a crawl. Gary looked at the monitors and watched through the cameras mounted on the outside of the ship. He watched as the nose entered the portal. Suddenly the whole ship was sucked in and a moment later the cameras showed a fast approaching small planet. The pilot hit reverse thrust, but they were caught in the gravitational pull. Gary watched helplessly as the ground came closer and closer. Then the ship slammed into the single landmass in the planet, in the middle desert strip. The ship broke into hundreds of pieces, and he held on to his seat as the cockpit tumbled over and over. Despite all the best engineers working on the ship to make it not crash, the gravity was too strong, the portal too close. No ship could approach and get into orbit. Gary lost consciousness knowing this was indeed a one way trip.

    Brun held on to the bars of his cell with all his strength. Why did the ship crash? He got banged up in the tumbling, but he lived. He looked around. His cell bars had come partially detached and he was able to crawl through the gap between the bars and the floor. He tried to stand but fell over because his socks slid on the slanted metal floor. He crawled away and saw daylight ahead. He exited the ship and saw he was standing in a desert. He surveyed the wreckage and didn¡¯t see anyone else walking around.

    Several minutes later he heard yells. People were alive in the wreckage. He came to them and helped them get away from the ship and sit comfortably. Then he walked further away and found more people alive, but these weren¡¯t dressed as prisoners, they were dressed in business casual. He helped them get away from the debris and sit comfortably. When he came up to one woman she shrieked ¡°Get away from me you criminal!¡± Brun shrugged and walked away not caring if she bled to death.

    Soon others were helping him rescue the badly injured. After a few minutes some military people showed up and took charge of the situation. Brun thought they were too pushy and would be better off asking for help, but he was low man on the totem pole here. As the military cleared debris and set up a trauma center, nurses arrived and started bandaging and stitching people up. Brun walked away from it all.

    He saw in the distance a part of the ship that had tumbled a long way. He walked over to it. Inside was the ruins of maybe a server room, with computer parts and wires scattered everywhere. He heard talking. ¡°Sir, there is no way to transmit anything right now. I¡¯ll have to find enough spare parts to build another transmitter. That will take days.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not good enough! We need to let them know what happened!¡±

    Brun interrupted ¡°Hello, I came by to see if anyone is in need of medical help. The military set up a trauma center back there.¡±

    The angry man yelled at him. ¡°Go away. If I need something done I¡¯ll tell you to go do it. Don¡¯t interrupt me again. In fact, go wash some dishes.¡±

    Brun wanted to walk away, but he had to give a little barb. ¡°Fine. You just pissed off the best scout on this ship.¡±

    ¡°Scout? Hey get back here scout! We need your services!¡±

    Brun didn¡¯t care and walked away. If that man thought there was still an intact pecking order on this mission, he was sadly mistaken. Feeling rejected by everyone he walked to the top of a sand dune to look around. Finally alone for the first time in two years, he checked his Stats.

    Level 29 Health 419/450 Strength 6 Stamina 54/55 Mana 80/80

    He then checked each of the remaining icons available to him.

    Weapons Armor ??Money Cities Notoriety/Quests?? Maps Exp StatsItems Spells

    Except for spells, the others were all zero or blank. He had lost multiple spells when they teleported to Earth, all his highest level ones. They all lost twenty-five levels: fifty health, five strength, thirty stamina, and twenty mana, and nine of their top spells. In the hospital his strength and stamina had probably dropped all the way down to two and thirty respectively, but five months of working out in his cell brought them back up a little.

    While he sat there contemplating what to do, he saw dust clouds coming from the ground in the distance. And they were headed straight for the trauma center. He was too far away to help, and he had no weapon or armor. He watched from a distance as three Giant Sand Snakes burst out of the ground. The military shot guns at them, and eventually the sand worms died, but they killed dozens of those who were too wounded to run away.

    Brun moseyed back to the wreckage to find chaos and panic. He avoided everyone and looked for the kitchen. He found it and found bottled water. He helped himself to four bottles then found a dead soldier, who happened to wear the same boot size he did. After further exploring he found a rucksack and canteen. In a couple hours he had broken shrapnel that qualified as a knife, cammo pants, and a wool sweatshirt that qualified as a mage¡¯s tunic, giving his spells an extra ten percent damage. He left the chaos behind, and walked away back to his hill.

    Hours later more sand worms attacked, killing dozens more people. After that, he thought maybe now whoever was self-proclaimed in charge would want his help. Brun walked back and saw the wreckage was far worse than he thought. Dead bodies lay everywhere, most survivors were in numb shock, and a couple dozen military personnel were trying to get the civilians to gather supplies and drag away bodies. The language barrier made the task very difficult as there were people from seven different countries trying to plan and organize. His Translate ability was still active, and he could understand everyone, but he could only speak English and he couldn¡¯t let everyone know he could understand every language. There was a one second delay as people spoke before it was translated in his mind, so he knew who was speaking English.

    A major saw him and yelled ¡°What happened to your uniform soldier?¡±

    Brun looked down and saw his cammo pants and combat boots, along with his maroon sweater. ¡°It was shredded in the crash, sir. I just gained consciousness. I¡¯m a scout. How can I help?¡± This was his chance to remove his past as a criminal.

    ¡°Scout huh? Perimeter check, ten click radius. Report back to me in two hours.¡±

    Brun tried to salute but having never done it before it came out sloppy. He was reprimanded ¡°Get your bearings soldier! Do not salute in the field! And find a weapon.¡±

    Brun walked north. He didn¡¯t know what a click was, but it didn¡¯t matter. From the top of the hill earlier, he thought he saw some vegetation in the distance to the north. He asked other soldiers for a gun, but was told he didn¡¯t need one. Most of the ammo was lost in the wreckage and what they had was spent fighting the ¡°Huge underground alien worms.¡± Another attack from sand snakes and the military and everyone in the area would be completely screwed. The probability of Sand Snakes attacking again was too high for his comfort, and he wanted to get away from their easy meals.

    An hour later as he walked as fast and far away as he could, the desert slowly turned to jungle. The temperature changed from a dry searing heat to a hot sticky dampness. He saw a good shade tree not far off and headed for it. He approached to find a few people sitting under it, deep in conversation.If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

    They looked up as he approached, but were too tired to yell at him. Brun took off the sweater and sat down. ¡°Hi guys, I¡¯m Brun, a scout. I was checking out the area for food, water, and hostile life.¡±

    ¡°Hey Brun, it¡¯s Tyler, the programmer that assessed your scouting skills. This is Commander Gary, Judge Susan, prisoner Nikko, and liaison Joe.¡±

    Joe turned around and they recognized each other. Brun jumped up and shook his hand. ¡°Joe, good to see you. It¡¯s been years. I didn¡¯t know you were here.¡±

    Joe was Rome¡¯s brother, and had been a good friend of Brun¡¯s before his departure to Nuva. Brun wanted to hint to Joe to not speak about their past, but Joe went straight into the story.

    Chapter 14

    Introductions

    Joe began ¡°Brun and I had known each other for years. Then one day, six years ago, Brun, my brother Rome, and some other friends of ours went on a nature hike. All seven of them disappeared. We found their equipment and clothes well off a trail in the mountains, but there was no sign of them. We searched for two weeks and came up with nothing, they were presumed dead. After three years five of them were found on that same trail, butt naked. But they had all¡­ changed. Like you had the same faces in different bodies, young and strong. Rome and Torger didn¡¯t come back, and you guys never did get your story straight of what happened. After that we lost touch.¡±

    Nikko chimed in. ¡°What happened is Brun here committed some crime he won¡¯t talk about. He was my roommate, but whatever he did the staff was afraid of him, had him tied up.¡±

    Gary looked at him. ¡°Tell us Brun. What did you do? And what happened to your other two friends?¡±

    Brun was trapped in a bad situation. He needed to buy time. ¡°Sure I¡¯ll tell you, but first I want to hear from everyone else.¡±

    Joe started ¡°I went into politics, not as an elected politician but an assistant to politicians. I worked my way up. My job on this mission is to keep the peace between different countries and make sure all observations are accurately reported back to the U.S.¡±

    Nikko went next. ¡°I started cutting myself when I was a kid. Since then I¡¯ve attempted suicide three times.¡± He stopped speaking and smiled broadly as if that fit perfectly natural into the conversation.

    Gary went next. ¡°I¡¯m commander of this mission. My job is to see a successful transmission of data back to Earth. This is the first inhabitable planet we¡¯ve found, and they were hoping to make multiple missions here. But that portal is just too close to the planet. They¡¯ll have a lot of work to do to figure out how to land a ship on this surface successfully. We don¡¯t know who made the portal, but it seems like it was made long ago and is being slowly sucked into this planet. It¡¯s called 1PX meaning first planet in the x-zone of the galaxy. Basically we have no idea where we¡¯re at. As for the planet itself it doesn¡¯t rotate. It is always daylight here, and we think it is just a single land mass. We¡¯re in the middle strip near the east coast. The equator is desert, north and south of that is jungle, beyond that both directions is forest, and at the edges is tundra.

    ¡°As for why I took this mission. I knew it was a one way trip when I signed up. I¡¯ve always been career driven, and didn¡¯t have family except my mom and sister. Two years ago they were brutally murdered and I kind of went numb, not caring about anything.¡±

    Brun took notice. He had brutally murdered a mother and daughter two years earlier, and no one ever found out he had done it. He kept his mouth shut as Susan began.

    ¡°I am responsible for presiding over any disputes that may arise. If two people can¡¯t agree on something, I will decide what should be done. I accepted this opportunity to further my own career and hopefully one day be a Supreme Court Justice.¡± She spoke with a haughty attitude that was an immediate turn off.

    ¡°I¡¯m Tyler, the chief of systems networking. My main task was to ensure all our transmissions made it through back to Earth. I¡¯ve always loved sci-fi and I¡¯m a true computer geek at heart, so going into space is the dream of a lifetime. Technicians are finding pieces in the wreckage and I¡¯m going to have to build a new transmitter from scratch.¡±

    It was Brun¡¯s turn and he had to pick his words carefully. ¡°As Joe said, six years ago I was on a hike with friends. We got lost and lived off the land for a week. We liked it so much we decided to go to Mexico and live off the land in the desert there. We came back after three years and went back to normal lives, but I got trapped into being a mule- someone who smuggles drugs across the border. Since then I¡¯ve been incarcerated.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s B.S. and we all know it. What¡¯s the truth?¡± demanded Susan.

    ¡°I, uhh,¡±

    Brun was interrupted by the judge again. ¡°The truth is you displayed some sort of future tech electric zapper against that cop. Remember everyone? That video was on every news channel in the world for three weeks. This is the guy!¡±

    Brun looked on as heads bobbed. They all remembered. In a moment of panic Brun had cast Lighting 2 at a police officer. It didn¡¯t kill him, and Brun surrendered immediately after that, but the damage was done. The officer was wearing a body camera and the patrol car dash cam also caught it on film. Most people in the world thought he had the world¡¯s smallest taser, but the unreleased reports stated there was no taser, and how he electrocuted the cop remained a mystery. That led to a year of being a lab rat for dozens of scientists. What no one knew was why he killed Gary¡¯s mom and sister and why he attacked the cop.

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you what. If we live a week, I¡¯ll give you the whole story.¡±

    The others didn¡¯t like his answer but they could see he was going to clam up about it. He should be able to explain his attack on the cop without tying it to his murders.

    Far to the north Torger and Rome materialized in a round, tall glass case, the same as it was on Nuva. They stepped out and a message appeared before them.

    You have entered training area TZ18. Form your party before leaving this entrance room. Your time will begin as soon as you exit here.

    ¡°What does that mean?¡±

    Rome shook his head ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± He looked up Cities and saw none, then looked up Maps but it was completely blacked out. Under Notoriety/Quests he saw a quest to form a squad. There were a hundred names or more on the list to choose from, but the two at the top were highlighted: Torger and Brun. He selected both. Torger received a message to accept as squad member under ¡°captain¡± Rome, and he mentally selected Yes. Torger didn¡¯t have Red Fury or any armor, or any clothes, and neither did Rome. That was strange, teleporting around Nuva always allowed them to retain their gear. On the floor were three thick blankets and three non magical satchels.

    As they were walking out of the sparse building, Brun¡¯s name was added to the squad. When they stepped outside a message appeared.

    It is strongly recommended to have a squad of 5-10 hunters. The fewer hunters in the squad, the more points you will each receive, but completing the training will be much more difficult.

    They ignored the message and walked out. Torger checked Maps again and saw three dots. A small part of the map was revealed where he and Rome were standing, and far to the south a larger part of the map was revealed where Brun was. He hoped Brun would check his own Maps and start heading their direction. Torger had no idea what they would do when they met, or what the goal of being there was. All he knew was Ristopan insisted they come save Brun.

    In their vision on the top right corner a timer began. It showed 0d 0h 1m. There was no explanation for it. Rome looked around and saw tundra everywhere. He was shivering uncontrollably and wrapped the blanket tighter around himself. There were low hills all around them and lichen everywhere. He noticed the land around Brun was desert. This seemed to be a tough planet to live on. He and Torger had nothing but a satchel and a large blanket each, and a spare presumably for Brun. The items formed as soon as Rome sent the invitations to join the squad. They wrapped themselves tighter and hoped frostbite on their bare feet would not come too soon. All their clothes, supplies, and weapons did not come through the portal with them, and as they walked they checked their Stats. Just as Ristopan had said, they each lost twenty-five levels; some health, stamina, strength, mana, and high level spells. That was a very expensive trip they took.

    After walking for hours, they saw that the sun hadn¡¯t moved. Perpetual daylight was good in this cold wasteland. A little while later they came to some evergreen trees. The Tundra gave way to cold forest. They gathered firewood and cast Fire 1. As they warmed up they saw Brun was starting to head north towards them.

    An hour later they came to a cave. ¡°I think we should go in and check it out,¡± said Torger.

    ¡°No, we need to get to Brun. Remember Ristopan was very worried about him.¡±

    Torger was very curious about the cave, but Rome wouldn¡¯t be deterred, so he marked the spot on Maps. He definitely wanted to come back to it, and Analyze 2 gave no information about it.

    The snow on the ground was getting less and less. They had to cast Cure 1 a few times to keep frostbite from forming, but something seemed off. After a while Torger asked ¡°Where is all the wildlife? Rabbits, deer, foxes?¡±

    Rome looked around and saw nothing. Birds were chirping far away, and there were signs of animal trails, but they had not seen one single animal. Rome¡¯s stomach grumbled at the thought of having to eat untested alien fruits and nuts on the trees. Hours later he couldn¡¯t stand the hunger anymore and picked some fruit that looked like a blue banana. He peeled the skin that was like an orange peel and bit into it. Torger watched and was ready to cast Heal 2. Rome bit into it, his face soured, then he smiled. ¡°Awesome, no poison.¡± He finished it and they walked another half hour before Torger accepted it was safe. His first bite was an explosion in his mouth, the tastes of fruit juice mixed with dirt and grass. Not the most appetizing meal but his rumbling stomach seemed happy.

    Not long after that the forest became jungle as they kept jogging. Once they had made it to the forest and off the tundra, they were able to jog for hours as their stamina slowly dropped. They had been walking and jogging for fifteen hours straight, and their stamina was getting low. They could see Brun was making much slower progress. They stopped to get a little shut eye.

    Brun was going agonizingly slow. His stamina was nowhere close to what it used to be, but he was still faster than half of everyone else in the group. Gary and Joe were in great physical shape, better than Brun after his prolonged incarceration, but Brun had years of navigating virgin terrain and exerted less effort going over and around rocks and bushes. Joe and Gary had obviously lived in cities all their lives as they seemed to kick every rock and shrub. Susan and Nikko were barely able to keep up with him, but Tyler was lagging behind and they had to take a lot of breaks for him. He wasn¡¯t obese, but it was clear he spent most of his time sitting in an office chair. Flabby would be a polite description.

    He couldn¡¯t believe the message that came up inviting him to a squad with Torger and Rome. Shouldn¡¯t they be on Nuva? How did they get here? But his Maps showed their location far to the north. He urged everyone to follow him north but they flat refused. He couldn¡¯t say what he knew, but they could see something was agitating him. He started walking away without them, but Gary threatened to have the military track him down and drag him back. Finally he pulled Joe aside and whispered ¡°I think Rome is here, far to the north.¡±

    Joe was hesitant. They used to be good friends, but Brun had become a bit crazy. His time in a mental hospital was proof of that. Still, Brun would know better than anyone what really happened to the missing Rome and Torger. Joe urged Gary to let them check it out, and after a few hours Gary relented. First they had to go set order to the survivors, create a proper chain of command.

    Now they all thought Brun truly was crazy. After hours of walking there was no indication of any life. Everyone was complaining to Gary to turn back, and he seemed like he was about to. They were low on food and water, and blisters were forming on their feet, except Brun who secretly cast Cure 1 on himself a few times.

    They sat down again to let Tyler rest. He complained ¡°This is a pointless hike. I need to get back to see what the techs have found, and start building the transmitter.¡±

    Gary looked at Brun. ¡°You said you could see a mountain up here, a good vantage point to get our bearings. Where is it?¡±

    ¡°I said large hill, not mountain. It¡¯s still about twenty miles away. We¡¯ve been moving at a little less than two and a half miles per hour, far slower than I¡¯m used to. I thought we would almost be there by now.¡± He glanced at Tyler to redirect the blame for this wild goose chase.

    ¡°Another twenty miles is too much. I had no idea it was that far. We¡¯re going back.¡±

    Brun got nervous about the idea. They were only about fifty miles from Torger and Rome, who had stopped moving. They seemed to averaging nearly nine miles per hour, a light jog on Nuva with their great stamina there. Brun had to buy time for them to catch up. ¡°Fine, we¡¯ll head back. But tomorrow I want to come with some military people to make better time. For now I think we need a long rest. You guys take a nap while I keep watch.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± said Susan. ¡°You¡¯ll either run off or kill us in our sleep.¡±

    Joe volunteered to stay up, and so did Gary. Nikko, Tyler and Susan leaned up against trees and closed their eyes. Once they were breathing deeply, Gary summoned Brun and Joe to walk away a little.

    ¡°What¡¯s really going on Brun? There is nothing here. If you¡¯re not taking us somewhere specific, you wanted to get us away from the ship. Why?¡±

    Brun looked at Joe who nodded. ¡°I can¡¯t reveal my sources, but I believe we have allies about fifty miles north of here. There really is a large hill another twenty miles north, and from the top we could see if my information is correct.¡±

    ¡°What allies? How did they get here? Brun, let me level with you. I¡¯ve worked with prisoners all my adult life, and I¡¯m very good at determining which ones are decent people and which ones are a menace to society. It¡¯s the same with guards; there are good ones and rotten ones. I¡¯ve always been a good judge of character, and you seem to be an independent thinker and self starter, quick on your feet to make the right decisions most of the time. But you¡¯ve been lying to me and everyone else since I met you. You¡¯re not doing it for your own giggles and grins, but with a definite goal in mind. It¡¯s time to come clean.¡±

    ¡°The truth, Gary, is you think you¡¯re in charge here. You think there is still some sort of pecking order. But there¡¯s not. In the wilderness it¡¯s all about survival. Kill or be killed. I¡¯m not going to submit to your leadership, or her highness the arrogant judge. I¡¯m going to survive. It¡¯s what I do. From the bottom of my heart, I don¡¯t care if you live or die. If you can help me live, great let¡¯s team up. If you¡¯re going to hinder me, I¡¯ll knock you down when we¡¯re chased by a bear. Joe here is my friend, and I¡¯ll put my life in danger to protect him, but no one else on that ship. As for where I¡¯m headed, I really do believe I¡¯ll find survival help further north. If it¡¯s there, you¡¯ll find out why I can¡¯t tell you more right now.¡±

    Gary nodded, then a slow smile broke across his face. ¡°That is some refreshing honesty,¡± he said as he clapped his hand on Brun¡¯s shoulder. ¡°For years I¡¯ve had to walk on tip toes always being politically correct, suppressing the truth of the prison system to government suits. You¡¯re ¡®It¡¯s all about me¡¯ attitude is the truth many of us have and we want to shove down and squelch it. I think if it came down to surviving for a week in the wilderness, I would want to paired up with you. I know exactly where I stand with you. But back at the ship, I am in command and I can¡¯t have talk of mutiny. Will you agree that I¡¯m in charge at base, but we¡¯re equals here with no one around? Your attitude would never work in a civilized society.¡±

    Brun stuck out his hand and Gary shook it. They agreed to keep going north when the others woke up in a few hours. Meanwhile Brun had to go find food and water. It was an easy task since the jungle was full of fruits and he found a trickling stream. He loaded up the rucksack and poured a few gallons of water through a filter designed to kill viruses and remove minerals. When everyone woke up, they headed north again, against the complaints of the three who were asleep. Brun smiled to himself as they obviously respected Gary¡¯s authority.

    After five hours they saw Torger and Rome coming towards them. Brun and Joe smiled and ran to greet them. Hugs were exchanged and everyone tried to talk at once. Gary and the others cautiously approached, having no clue why other humans were on this planet.

    They all sat down and Brun began his tale. ¡°As you all know, six years ago seven of us were lost on a hike. Five of us were found naked three years later. Torger and Rome were the missing two. What happened, the truth that nobody but us know, is that during our hike we found a small portal device. We didn¡¯t know what it was at the time, and it sent us to another planet called Nuva. The planet is controlled by an alien race called tyters, which is slang for predators. On that planet there are elves and dwarves, and physics work differently. Our bodies were changed, actually we got new bodies but our old minds and faces. We didn¡¯t build muscle and stamina like all life forms we know of usually do, it was quantified. We gained levels, and spent ability points gained from experience to increase our stats.¡±

    Tyler interrupted ¡°Wait, you were in a video game, like not just playing, but actually in it? That is so cool. What class were you? What was the game called? What-¡°

    Brun held up a hand. ¡°I don¡¯t have any idea what you¡¯re talking about. I¡¯ve never played a video game like that. We died and respawned, and it hurt. A lot. I don¡¯t know what a class is, and there was no name of the game. The tyters bring dangerous prey to the planet, let us level up for three years, then kill their prey. We survived, the third group ever to do so, after the elves and dwarves. A dwarf demigod named Ristopan gave us a scroll to override the tyter portal, which is how Jex and Arden returned. A couple hours later the tyters sent us back after our victory. Rome and Torger had to stay.¡±

    Tyler¡¯s face lit up and he started asking all kinds of questions, but Susan and Gary scoffed at the bunch of liars. Torger stopped the talking and once everyone was paying attention he said ¡°Follow us. We found a cave that looks interesting.¡±

 Training #4

    Chapter 15

    Training # 4

    Along the way Torger and Rome told Brun about their last three years. They each built a two story keep out of stone, lifting each stone with levitation spells. They described the terra forming process, of being with Ristopan when they were lifted in the air, and new rolling hills made to be like the trolls¡¯ home world. After their apprenticeship they became governor¡¯s of a region, Rome was to the north west and Torger was in the southwest. They could detect all life forms in their region using a scrying globe, and they told of how the tyters came in and systematically killed the trolls three times each. Watching their teamwork was impressive and they never used their lasers once. They drank no potions and worked in pairs to track and kill trolls. The tyters used their antennae to communicate with each other over long distances. After the hunt the team left to go back to their home planet and terra formers came and changed the landscape to a rocky terrain, looking like obsidian long after a volcano erupted. Billiks were placed in caves and large rats were scattered around for their food. There were no rivers but multiple deep pools of water.

    They arrived at the cave just as they started describing killing the dragons. Much to Tyler¡¯s dismay, Torger said the story would have to wait until after they explored the cave. Brun looked and saw why it was so important. It was a rated cave, just like on Nuva. A prompt came up.

    Cave. Level 6.

    Brun pointed at it and said ¡°Analyze 2¡± but he didn¡¯t get the night vision to see inside it and he didn¡¯t get the prompt like it was on Nuva asking if he wanted to conquer it. Analyze 2 seemed to do nothing, but the holographic letter floating in front of the mouth were clear as day.

    ¡°OK guys, do you see the prompt?¡±

    The others shook their heads to Torger¡¯s question. ¡°Brun, Rome and I see a prompt above the cave mouth. It says level six. That means ten fighters level six have a ninety percent chance of successfully clearing it. Rome and I are level forty-seven, and Brun has dropped all the way to level thirty-two. He was level sixty-eight when he left Nuva, but it costs twenty-five levels to teleport. We¡¯ve used analyze one on each of you. Gary you¡¯re level eleven, Joe is ten, Susan eight, Nikko and Tyler are level two. As you gain strength and stamina you will gain levels. Chances are you¡¯ll never learn magic, and possibly your gained ability points will be auto distributed for you. I¡¯ll tell you the story of the glass case in Yuma later. Just stand back here and let the three of us do the fighting. You are not part of our squad, so you may not get experience points.¡±

    Torger started walking in but Susan said ¡°This is a load of crap. Levels? Magic? Please. I¡¯m not going in there. You¡¯re all delusional.¡±

    Torger smiled and said ¡°Gentlemen, shall we demonstrate?¡±

    Rome and Brun smiled. They each walked into the jungle and found a good branch to use as a club. Torger and Rome faced off first. Rome swung his club overhand, then Torger blocked it and rammed the butt of his own club into Rome¡¯s nose, breaking it. Blood splattered everywhere and Susan shrieked, but they kept fighting. They swung at each other with tremendous force, shattering the branches when they impacted each other. Torger being the better melee fighter grabbed Rome¡¯s broken branch with his left hand and with his right hand shoved the broken branch into Rome¡¯s face. Brun called out ¡°Cure two¡± while pointing at Rome. A gold light flew out of his fingertip and Rome¡¯s face halfway healed instantly. Rome countered by pointing at Torger and saying ¡°Lighting two.¡± Electricity shot out of his finger and stunned Torger for a second. Rome used the opportunity and cast Fire 2 then Ice 2. Torger cast Shield 2 at Rome who was entrapped in a mostly clear bubble.

    They nodded to each other then cast Cure 2 on themselves, fully healing all their scrapes and bruises. Next Brun stepped up to face Torger. Torger ran forward with his broken club and Brun cast Shield 1. Torger couldn¡¯t stop and ran into it, taking another Lighting 1 shock. When he hit it the shield cracked a little, then he drew back and punched it hard. It shattered but he got shocked again. As Brun was casting another Shield 1 Torger threw the broken club. It hit Brun in the face, knocking him to the ground. Brun stood up and nodded to Torger. They cast Cure 2 on themselves and turned to see complete silence and confusion from the spectators.

    ¡°As I was saying, you guys stay behind us and let us do the fighting.¡±

    Without caring if they followed him or not, Torger cast Analyze 2 on the cave and walked in. It was his habit to cast Analyze 2 on any cave since it let him see everything in black and white clear detail, which was way better than their early attempts at making crude torches. But it did nothing for them here.

    When they entered, it was nothing like a cave on Nuva. There were glowing orbs in sconces on the walls of a perfectly circle room. It was clearly hewn stone, not a natural cave. Once they all stepped in, the mouth closed up with stone grinding against stone. To the left was a touch screen embedded in the wall at the height of a tyter¡¯s neck. A stone table was to the right of that with a machine over the stone table. A hologram of a young female tyter appeared. She was dressed in a bright white cloth dress.

    ¡°Welcome to cave four. What is your question?¡±

    Torger asked ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°My name is Elora. I am the host of the caves. Have a good fight.¡±

    She disappeared and the back wall opened up as stones slid apart from each other. Torger called ¡°Wait come back! Elora!¡± She did not reappear. A tunnel opened up, and Torger could see into the darkness because he used Analyze 2. It seemed to work only after talking to the hologram.

    There was a sound of clacking on stone. Torger looked in and coming towards them were billiks. The overgrown cockroaches with sharp feet hurried towards them. Gary and the others tried to bang on the stone wall where the cave mouth had been and they called out for help. Torger and Rome just had the heavy blanket to wear, and Brun had his combat boots and sweatshirt. None of them had a weapon, except Brun¡¯s shrapnel that counted as a knife, and their mana was low from the previous demonstration. They felt a little nervous, but they had superior strength.

    They each cast Shield 1, and the billiks hit it. Other billiks behind kept pushing forward. The shields finally shattered, but three billiks were dead from taking multiple Lightning 2 strikes. Others were wounded from being in contact with the leaders. Torger rushed forward and broke off a dead billik¡¯s leg. He could feel the significant loss of going from a strength of twenty-one to a strength of fifteen. It took all his power to break off the leg, but once he had it he stabbed the closest billik in the face and through the brain. He tossed the leg to Rome then began breaking off another one while Rome held the chargers at bay.

    Soon all three of them were stabbing billiks relentlessly as they worked their way to the back of the cave. Once the last billik died all the corpses disappeared and the mouth of the cave opened up. Torger insisted they take the time to check for loot, but there was nothing but bare rock. They walked back to the round room near the entrance and on a wall was a touch screen display.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 68. Total points available to spend:68

    Training cave 4 difficulty: 5.8

    Squad strength: 31.3

    Time: 12 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    As Torger read it Tyler asked ¡°What are you looking at? It¡¯s just a bunch of weird symbols.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because you don¡¯t have the translate ability. We can read and understand any language known to the tyters, which seems to be all of them. I don¡¯t know what you see, but it¡¯s English to me. It¡¯s probably written in the tyter language. We gained sixty-eight points for clearing this cave, and we can spend the points.¡±

    Tyler smiled broadly. ¡°No wonder there was no loot! Dungeons always have loot. But there was no boss monster.¡±

    ¡°Tyler, do us a favor. Shut up. This isn¡¯t a game. In case you didn¡¯t notice, we¡¯re not sitting in a chair clicking a mouse. Let¡¯s see if I can buy a sword. This menu is new to me.¡±

    Torger read out loud for the others. This was the list:

    Orb light 2p Dagger 3p  Large knife 3p Short sword 8p

    Scimitar 9p Long sword 12p Spear 11p Halberd 14p

    Takinu 21p Helm 5p Pauldron 5p Mail shirt 10p

    Chest plate 12p Mail skirt 9p Bracers 5p Gauntlets 6p

    Greaves 5p Boots 9p Mace 12p Round shield 19p

    Axe 12p Dimensional pouch 28 p 1 Strength 4p 5 Stamina 5p 1 Mana 21p for the first, 2p each additional 50 Health 16p

    Respawn 65p Touch here for spells

    Touch here for enchantment gems <u>Battle mesh 999p</u>

    Displayed prices are for copper. 2x the price for iron, 4x for steel, 8x for mithril.

    Torger guessed that battle mesh was the Kevlar suit the tyters on Nuva wore. He didn¡¯t know what Takinu was, so he touched it.

    Only the squad leader can purchase items.

    Rome had formed the squad, so he touched it. A picture of the tyter¡¯s gauntlet with halberd attached showed on the display. The laser attachment was an additional 45p. ¡°Should I try to give a strength point to Tyler? He looks like he could use it, since his is two.¡±

    Brun said ¡°Go for it.¡±

    Rome touched strength and three names came up. It seemed the observers were not part of their squad. ¡°Sorry guys, you¡¯re not able to be given upgrades. I wish you could form your own squad.¡±

    Gary walked up and touched the screen randomly. He happened to hit 1 Mana. A message he couldn¡¯t read came up, but Rome read it to him. ¡°Your squad has not registered at the entry point! Return to the entry point to properly form your squad, or none of your achievements will be logged.¡±

    ¡°What does that mean?¡±

    Tyler ventured a guess. ¡°It seems they mean party. In some games you can only form a party in a city, not on a battlefield. We should find the nearest town and form a party. Rome where were you when you formed the party?¡±

    ¡°I formed the squad at the entry point, the portal the tyters use to enter this world. We¡¯ve seen no town or city on this journey. It seems the whole planet is a battlefield, as you call it.¡±

    ¡°What about safe zones and PK¡¯s? And where would we respawn if we die?¡±

    Rome sighed in frustration. ¡°Tyler, the only safe zone here is next to us three. I don¡¯t know what a PK is, and if you die you¡¯re dead. It costs sixty-five points per person to buy a respawn, and our total for clearing this cave was sixty-eight points. These prices are insanely high. It didn¡¯t work like this on Nuva. We gained experience and could spend ability points. Killing anything at all gave us experience, fifty points per level of monster killed. We¡¯re going to have to get used to this system together. First thing is to go back, far to the north and form your squad.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not going north¡± Gary interjected. ¡°I¡¯ve got a couple hundred people way to the south to look after. You want to buy knives and swords? Come on that¡¯s ridiculous. Somewhere in that rubble are rifles and cases of ammo. Let¡¯s go dig it up. Besides, Tyler has a computer to build.¡±

    Tyler looked sad at not being able to fight. ¡°Transmitter to build. I would love to swing a sword and kill the cockroaches. You guys looked bad ass. I want to do that too. I¡¯ve done some larping and it¡¯s a lot of fun.¡±

    Nikko laughed, but he was the only one. ¡°Larping? That is so lame. Guys you don¡¯t know? That is Live Action Role Playing. People use nerf swords and throw cups of water at each other like they¡¯re spells, and have a big battle scene in a park. If you want knives and swords, I¡¯m your guy. Don¡¯t spend points on that stuff. I¡¯ve always liked fire and there is plenty of metal on that ship. Bring me lots of firewood and a big hammer and I¡¯ll pound out some swords. They may not be great quality, but it¡¯s better than punching the cockroaches.¡±

    Tyler shook his head. ¡°Great, we¡¯ve got a novice crafter.¡±

    Rome decided to take a chance on Nikko and didn¡¯t buy anything. Torger had his map marked of the first cave they had passed and they would try out Nikko¡¯s crude swords in there. But then Rome changed his mind and quickly tapped Respawn and selected himself. It seemed that it was sixty-five points for one respawn, not unlimited respawns. That could get very expensive.

    Susan threw in her thoughts. ¡°All of you are so rude! The one in charge here is Commander Jones. We follow his lead, not yours Rome. I don¡¯t know what happened to you people, but casting spells, reading an alien language, speaking gibberish to a hologram. You¡¯re all cracked in the head. I can¡¯t wait to get back to normal, civilized humans.¡±

    Torger exaggerated a bow. ¡°As you wish, your majesty. Gary, lead on.¡±

    Gary looked around. All the dense vegetation looked the same. He had no training for this. ¡°Brun, you¡¯re the scout. Take us home.¡±

    Brun felt like he and Gary could become friends one day, except that he had murdered his family. That would come out sooner or later. Might as well make it sooner. As they camped that night, Brun told his story.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

    ¡°We arrived back on Earth. Teleported in to the same spot we left, came to completely naked as usual. Arden and Jex were gone by then. Me, Antic and Graul started walking down the mountain path. Other hikers made fun of us being naked, called us queers, but one of them must have called the rangers. A couple hours later we were in squad cars hand cuffed. Now we¡¯re registered sex offenders. Arden and Jex had got caught too, same punishment.

    ¡°Jex had a beautiful healthy baby and named her Emma. She grew just like any child. Jex and Arden got jobs, and they hired a babysitter to watch her in the day. One day, just before she turned one, I came over to see her. The sitter and I were playing with her all day. In the afternoon we took her to the sitter¡¯s mom¡¯s house, a change of shift. I had to get to work and so did the sitter. While we were saying good-bye to her, Emma sneezed. A fire came out of her nose. Not huge, but like a cigarette lighter. The women panicked, and I knew my niece had to be protected. She wasn¡¯t fully human, and we don¡¯t know how her spells would develop.

    ¡°I did what I had to do. The women were calling the doctor. The news couldn¡¯t get out, and they would never keep quiet about it. I went to the kitchen and got a knife. With great skill I stabbed Vicky back of the neck, at an upward angle severing C one and C two and continuing into the brain. Nicky turned at the noise and I walked up to give her a hug, hiding her from her dead daughter. During the hug I again drove the knife into the back of her neck also and gave it a twist, ensuring she was instantly paralyzed. Each died instantly and painlessly.¡±

    Gary jumped up. ¡°YOU! You¡¯re the one who killed my family?¡± He ran at Brun and punched him in the cheek. Brun just sat there and took it. Gary punched him again and again. Brun just kept casting Cure 1 on himself. When his mana ran out, Torger and Rome took turns. Finally Gary exhausted himself, and had broken knuckles on both hands.

    Brun continued as if nothing happened. ¡°I put the bodies in my trunk, and was going to bury them in the desert. I strapped Emma into her car seat and started driving. I was an emotional wreck and was swerving. That cop pulled me over. What you don¡¯t see on the video is I complied. I gave him my license and while he was checking it I wrote a quick letter. I pinned it to Emma¡¯s clothes and cast teleport three on her, but I forgot I no longer had enough mana. That spell costs ninety mana, and after returning to Earth I had had a max of eighty. I couldn¡¯t let the cop see the bodies and take her. What if she sneezed again and he saw the flame?

    ¡°I got out of the car and went to pick her up, maybe if I teleported myself holding her it would work. I was opening the back door when the cop told me to stop. He reached for his gun. I needed to stun him, so I cast lightning two, buying myself a second of time. Then I reached into the back and unbuckled Emma. That¡¯s where the news feed stops. The rest of the video shows me picking her up and teleporting to Jex¡¯s house. I left Emma there and teleported back to Nicky¡¯s house, ran to the car, hit the cop again with lighting two, and drove the car to the desert. I buried the bodies, and drove the car off a cliff, casting fire two on it on its way down. Mid decent I teleported back home.

    ¡°An hour later I turned myself in. They never knew what was in the back seat, all they found was an empty car seat. I told them it was a futuristic teleporting device I had picked up and activated, but the videos clearly show electricity coming out of my finger, not from a device. They tied me to a metal board and put copper mesh gloves over my hands, then preformed countless brain scans, DNA tests, and two involuntary brain biopsies. All they found was I had mutated DNA, and I never cast a spell again. I never even looked at my diminishing stats as my muscles atrophied.¡±

    Chapter 16

    Devastation

    Gary sat in shock long into the ¡°night¡±. He mumbled to himself ¡°They were innocent. They didn¡¯t do anything.¡±

    The others found it hard to sleep in broad daylight, and Torger figured they would need to sleep in caves once cleared.

    After everyone got enough sleep, they walked for eleven hours until they came back to the crash site. Brun noticed there was no movement. No people running around, no triage center, nothing. As they came closer they saw a whole lot of craters in the sand. Brun told Rome and Torger there are sand snakes in the area. They scanned the horizon but saw no small dust clouds. Rome kept watch from the top of twisted metal while the others walked the area. They found severed hands and limbs, lots of bloody clothes, and twenty-eight rifles. None of them had a bullet left and most were bent. They counted nine dead sand worms.

    Gary was devastated. ¡°Their first attack, we killed all three. Their second attack, we killed all three. It looks like we killed three more during a third attack, but a fourth attack killed everyone. They must have used all five hundred bullets we brought, but we¡¯re missing two rifles. We had thirty.¡±

    Tyler went to where his techs had been working. There was a pile of new spare transmitter and computer parts, but it looked like a sand worm crawled over them and crushed them all. He would not be transmitting to Earth. The last they would ever see was the ship crashing into sand, not knowing what happened.

    ¡°Now what do we do?¡± bemoaned Susan looking to Gary for leadership.

    He sat down and ran through possible options, but after a few minutes, he replied ¡°I have no idea.¡±

    Torger took the opportunity to shift command. ¡°We¡¯ve been in this situation before. When we entered Nuva, we arrived scattered and naked. We had a huge advantage of knowing the topography, and found water, and silver and gold mines. The dwarves helped us, somewhat. First we need to see if we can heal you guys with magic. Gary, with your permission I want to cast a cure one spell on you and see if it helps heal your knuckles.¡±

    Gary asked what the risk was and Torger told him of the first time Graul drank a dwarf potion, before they were transformed in the tyter capsule. When a spell was cast on him, Graul went into convulsions. If the spell didn¡¯t work, it could kill Gary. But they needed to know if it would work.

    ¡°That kind of stuff is why we brought so many prisoners, to test unknown plants on them. I¡¯m guessing the military used them as shields against the underground slugs.¡±

    Susan gasped. ¡°That is awful! That is illegal in almost every country, no government would sanction that abuse of human life. Any judge would find all soldiers and doctors participating in that behavior guilty.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯re not on Earth Susan. We came in knowing ethics would be, altered here. And no one on Earth would have ever found out. Besides each prisoner had a useful skill. They may have been criminals, but they were also mechanics, chefs, computer programmers, welders and such. And they were all expected to eventually die of old age in prison. You have to quit thinking of this mission as a civilized society working together. That aspect was only true for the scientists. Only a handful of us were to ever know the prisoners were even on board the ship. Now it looks like we¡¯ll all die on this planet, be that in a week or years from now. Get this through your head. You are no longer a judge. Not here. We all now have the job of being wilderness survivors.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s where we come in,¡± said Rome. ¡°I¡¯m the squad leader of three of us, but we have to get back to the entrance point and reform our squad. At Tyler¡¯s speed, we¡¯re going to have to sleep three times before we make it there.

    ¡°Cool. I remember one time, playing Swords and Spells, we had to form a party in a town-¡°

    Joe interrupted him. ¡°Shut up Tyler. Nobody cares. Nikko, it¡¯s time to show us what you¡¯ve got. We¡¯ll grab a bunch of broken metal shards and see what we can scrounge up. Let¡¯s see if you really can forge a sword over a campfire. First, about that spell. I¡¯ll volunteer.¡±

    Rome cried out ¡°Joe don¡¯t! I haven¡¯t seen you in six years and I can¡¯t watch you die from one of our own spells.¡±

    ¡°We all understand now you¡¯re in charge Rome. You¡¯re the squad leader. The rest of us are all equals, and my life isn¡¯t more or less important than anyone else¡¯s.¡± Joe said this looking at Susan, who shyly looked away.

    Rome nodded. ¡°I¡¯m going to take a walk.¡±

    When he was a few hundred yards away Torger sliced Joe¡¯s hand with a metal shard, then cast Cure 1. Instead of healing seven health, his wound opened even more and he lost seven health. Brun cast Analyze 2 and saw Joe¡¯s stats.

    Human Level 10

    Health 83/100  Strength 6 Stamina 55/55 Mana 0

    ¡°My guess is you have to have one Mana point to have Mana work in a positive way. If we can get you into a squad, you can buy the first Mana point for twenty-one points, then we can cure and heal you with spells.¡±

    Rome agreed with Torger. ¡°It¡¯s obvious we have to go all the way back, but it¡¯s dangerous here.¡±

    They found a first aid kit and bandaged Joe¡¯s hand, and loaded up satchels with first aid supplies, water filters, food, and metal. They couldn¡¯t find a big hammer for Nikko, or any hammer. Torger and Rome were sad that their levitation spell they learned from Ristopan was lost when they came to 1PX, and their elf duffle bags didn¡¯t transfer with them. They had to carry everything the old fashioned way.

    As they were walking towards the jungle edge, they saw clouds blowing in. It was going to be a rainy day.

    Torger and Rome were insistent that everyone get dressed in military clothes. With good boots and tough clothes, they travelled faster through the jungle, not getting scraped by all the foliage. Not far into it, they stopped to rest. The light rainfall felt good, removing some of the oppressive heat, but in the desert the rain instantly turned to steam when it hit the hot sand.

    As Rome kept watch, he saw movement in the brush. He stood up and grew far more attentive. Nothing happened for a few minutes, and as he settled down again, a purple beast like a panther darted towards them. Rome cast Shield 2, and the panther slammed into it, cracking it and getting zapped by Lighting 2.

    Torger and Brun jumped up and saw the beast. Torger channeled mana into the shield to strengthen it, then they all circled it. The beast had huge claws and was saber toothed. It slammed into the shield again and again, and finally broke through, but Brun was ready. As soon as the shield shattered he cast Poison 2. That cut the beast¡¯s maximum health in half and gave it a mild venom, slowly taking down health points.

    The panther lunged forward and tackled Torger. He was out of his element without a sword. Rome and Brun cast Fire and Ice spells in rapid succession until the creature died. Torger was a bloody mess. He was the only one with mana left so he cast Cure 2 on himself three times, then he was low on mana, but near full health.

    ¡°That was awesome!¡± exclaimed Tyler. ¡°You have amazingly high spell cast times, what¡¯s your regeneration?¡±

    Brun answered ¡°There is no spell cast time. I just point and say the spell and it works. By regeneration, I think you mean how fast does our mana fill up. We gain one mana point per minute. It¡¯s always been that way.¡±

    ¡°Wow, so maxed out cast times with horribly slow mana regen. What about health regen?¡±

    ¡°We gain health points while sleeping. Five hours of sleep gives us full health, unless there¡¯s an amputation. It takes two nights of sleep to re-grow a hand.¡±

    Just then another panther darted out of the jungle. It tackled Susan and began dragging her away. Torger reached into his satchel and grabbed a shard of metal. He ran forward and stabbed it in the eye. The cat swiped at him, ripping open his stomach. Torger grunted and stabbed it in the neck. The cat turned and fled. Torger collapsed to the ground. He used the last of his mana to cast Cure 2 on himself, which only slowed the bleeding.

    Susan was in pain with deep bite marks on her arm. Rome and Brun got bandages and first bandaged Torger to staunch the bleeding, then wrapped her arm.

    Suan was furious. ¡°Why did you help him first? Couldn¡¯t you see I¡¯m in pain?¡±

    ¡°We always help those with the severest injury first. Had you been more injured, we would have treated you first.¡±

    ¡°I think you¡¯re all a bunch of misogynists.¡± She huffed and turned away.

    ¡°Listen, your highness. You act like you want to be treated like we¡¯re all equals. We treated you as an equal. The severest injuries get treated first. Always. If you¡¯re looking for chivalry, you¡¯re talking to the wrong dudes. Now, as an equal, go gather us some firewood. We¡¯ve got to see what Nikko can do.¡±

    Susan glared at Rome, but Joe and Brun walked with her to gather firewood.

    Nikko used two cold pieces of metal to pull out the one that was in the fire. He placed it on a flat rock, and pounded it with another rock. It had started as stripped copper wire, melted and fused together. He then started the process again with more copper wire. Once he had two large pieces, he put both back into the fire. When he pulled them out, he pounded the ends together. Everyone saw he had made crude tongs.

    Next he tried to heat titanium, but the fire wasn¡¯t hot enough. It wasn¡¯t hot enough to partially melt aluminum either. They found no iron on the ship. ¡°Sorry guys, looks like copper knives for everyone.¡±

    That was disappointing. But better than nothing. Hours later they each had a crude copper knife without a hilt, and a piece of titanium shrapnel pounded into a somewhat sword shape, badly sharpened by being rubbed on stones. Torger and Rome gathered branches and vines and lashed the shrapnel to make spears.

    They continued walking and saw a huge ant. It was a foot long. It scurried away from them and they kept walking, but twenty minutes later over a hundred ants came running at them. Joe and Gary started stabbing them with their spears, and the ants died easily, then Tyler joined in on the ¡°fun¡± and started stabbing them, but there were too many. Torger, Rome and Brun each cast a Fire 2 spell, badly wounding fifteen ants, who ran away. They hacked and slashed for several minutes, killing most while some wounded ones ran off. When they were done they looked around and saw Joe and Gary breathing hard but ready to take on more. Tyler and Nikko were clutching their sides and completely exhausted, and Susan stood perfectly still, in shock at the carnage. Torger and Rome still had nearly half their stamina.

    Tyler wheezed ¡°What, no loot? We should get rewards and experience.¡±

    Rome shook his head and said to Susan ¡°It would be nice of you to join in next time.¡±

    Torger, Brun and Rome had taken many bites, easily cured with spells. The few bites the others took used up the last of their disinfectants and bandages. They had no more first aid supplies. After a few hours rest they moved on.

    Along the way they killed a giant snake. Rome said ¡°I don¡¯t understand. We didn¡¯t encounter a single animal on the entire trip down. Why are they all out now?¡±

    Tyler replied ¡°In some games, dangerous beasts only come out when it¡¯s cloudy or raining.¡±

    Rome was going to respond but stopped himself. Instead he said ¡°That may be the first useful thing you¡¯ve said Tyler. If you¡¯re right, we should have safe travels when it¡¯s sunny.¡±

    After another day of walking, they stopped again. Even Susan was getting frustrated with Tyler¡¯s low stamina. While they rested Torger asked ¡°Do we go all the way back, or check out that cave we had passed?¡±

    Brun asked ¡°What level was it? The first one was level six, and we handled that just fine without our spears.¡±

    ¡°It was level three.¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s our answer. Easy points, and we can buy some gear.¡±

    The clouds dispersed and they saw no animals. When they entered the cave, the same hologram of a young female tyter dressed in white appeared. ¡°Welcome to cave two. What is your question?¡±

    Without thinking Rome blurted out ¡°What is this timer in my vision? It¡¯s annoying.¡±

    Elora the hologram answered ¡°That is how long you¡¯ve been in the training zone. The faster you finish the training, the more points you get at the end. If you get to ten days you get no reward, and all monsters respawn after ten days. Have a good fight.¡±

    The hologram disappeared and the back wall slid open. Inside were the same jumping spiders and small venomous snakes with paralysis venom they had encountered early on Nuva. Rome told the others to stay back, and told them he had bought a respawn from the first cave. They should only attack if he got paralyzed.

    Rome rushed in with a copper knife in each hand and slashed and stabbed at all the large spiders and small yellow snakes. After killing about ten each, a snake bit him on the calf.

    Rome froze up, unable to move. Brun cast Heal 2, dispelling the venom and Torger cast Fire 1, igniting all the spider webs and damaging all the small weak monsters. Rome continued on and killed most of them before a spider dropped from the ceiling and bit him, paralyzing him. Another Heal 2, and then he finished the cave.

    When the last snake died, all the corpses disappeared and they walked back to the mouth. They looked at the display of the touch screen monitor.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 49. Total points available to spend: 52

    Training cave 2 difficulty: 3.9

    Squad strength: 36.8

    Time: 9 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    After talking it over, they decided Torger should get a steel long sword. His skill level in two handed swords didn¡¯t drop when coming to 1PX, and was still level 64, far better than his knife skill at level 17. They had four points remaining, but an investment well spent. After Rome touched the long sword on the display, he then selected steel, and confirmed his choice. A steel double edged straight long sword materialized on a table from the machine above it, which was next to the display, just like in cave 4. The grip was huge, made for a tyter¡¯s hand. Torger could just barely close his hand around the pommel, but the blade was sharp and well balanced. Torger checked his skill level with two handed swords, and was dismayed at the display.

    Level 64 (21) This sword is not suited to you. Use an enchantment gem to customize it.

    Rome then did something he thought he would never do. He asked Tyler¡¯s opinion. ¡°Tyler, we have no idea what cave difficulty and squad difficulty are. Do you have any ideas?¡±

    ¡°I would guess the cave difficulty takes into account the level and toughness of the mobs, and squad strength is how tough we are. The first cave we were rated at thirty-one point three, now we¡¯re thirty-six point eight. It¡¯s probably because of our knives and spears, and maybe we gained more vigor or stamina or health while we were walking and fighting.¡±

    That made sense, and Brun cast Analze 2 on Tyler. His stamina was now 39, and when they started it was 32.

    Torger pulled up his Maps. ¡°Rome and Brun, look at your map. We¡¯re at cave two, and the first cave we fought was cave four, and four was tougher than two. There should be a cave three between those points.¡±

    Rome agreed. ¡°And if we keep going towards the portal, cave one should be close to there.¡±

 Hope

    Chapter 17

    Hope

    With the sun out, they encountered no animals. Rome told them of one of Ristopan¡¯s lessons. ¡°There are these things called Ley Lines. Each has a source of magical energy. With an enchanted pair of bronze mirrors, you can talk to someone up to a thousand miles away, as long as you¡¯re standing on the same Ley Line. Each of the sons of Muldwil built their keeps on a convergence of Ley lines, and can talk to two of their brothers, if the other is around to answer the call. But the Ley Lines are less than three feet wide, and incredibly difficult to detect, so they have the mirrors mounted on a wall, so as not to move it from the exact intersection. I wish we had the skill to detect the lines here and the skill to enchant bronze.¡±

    ¡°Maybe, but we would never stand in one place waiting for a call. Still, some phones would be nice,¡± answered Torger.

    Tyler slapped his forehead. ¡°At the ship most of the high tech stuff was broken, but I could have patched together some short range walkie talkies. That¡¯s a simple technology. Sorry everyone, I wasn¡¯t thinking clearly while looking at all the severed limbs.¡±

    ¡°Maybe we can make it back there again,¡± said Brun.

    Rome shook his head. ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about this timer in our vision I asked Elora about. We have ten days until we lose all speed bonuses. Does that mean there is a final cave to conquer? And this is a training center for the tyters. There had to be something they had to accomplish here, gain points, then leave the planet. If we can figure out what to accomplish, then maybe we can leave. But our timer is already at four days and three hours. If we don¡¯t finish by ten days, does that mean we¡¯re stuck? We have to find another cave so I can ask Elora these questions. Her answers are brief and specific, so it might take two questions, assuming she is at every cave.¡±

    They thought about this as they walked, entering the frozen tundra. They shivered and staggered without resting until they got to the entrance portal. As they approached, Torger, Brun, and Rome could see writing above the door.

    Cave 1. Level 0

    Torger shook his head. ¡°We never turned around once we walked out.¡±

    They entered and a display appeared in Torger, Brun, and Rome¡¯s vision.

    Your training has already begun. You can gain nothing more here.

    That sucked. Rome saw another touch screen display on the wall. He touched it, and the same message appeared. Then Gary walked up and touched it. He couldn¡¯t read the alien writing, so Rome read it to him. ¡°Would you like to form a squad? There are four available hunters. Joe, Susan, Nikko, Tyler.¡±

    Rome directed Gary where to push the screen as prompts came up, and after a few screens a new squad was formed. Instantly a light shone on the five of them, and their vision changed.

    ¡°Wow!¡± exclaimed Tyler. ¡°There¡¯s a timer in my view. It says one minute.¡±

    The others had the same thing happen, and five heavy blankets and five regular satchels materialized on the floor at each of their feet.

    ¡°I wonder if that means you didn¡¯t get credit for completing the two caves?¡± Rome wondered aloud.

    Tyler ran out and looked at the door. ¡°I can see it! Words hanging in the air above the door. Cave one, level zero. Just like in video games. This is the coolest RPG ever!¡±

    ¡°Wait, you have a RPG!? Where? Why didn¡¯t you tell us? We need that for defense. Take us to it, right now!¡± Torger hollered.

    ¡°How is a RPG a defense?¡± asked Tyler.

    ¡°RPG, rocket propelled grenade. A modern bazooka. If you have one, we need it right now.¡±

    Tyler laughed. ¡°No, RPG stands for role playing game. I said this is the coolest role playing game ever.¡±

    Brun saw a roc flying in the distance to the east. ¡°Look at that. Too bad we don¡¯t have ranged weapons. We could use Jex right now.¡±

    Susan responded ¡°Oh? You found a woman who was useful to you bunch of misogynists? I find that unlikely.¡±

    Torger replied ¡°Jex was the best archer I¡¯ve ever seen. She could hit a sparrow in flight from over a hundred yards away. Not only that, she got dirty gutting her kills and cooking them, and she wasn¡¯t hesitant about helping set up tents or carrying heavy bags. We don¡¯t hate women, we hate lazy people. Next time we kill a panther and gut it and cook it, jump in and help out. Be useful to our group.¡±

    Susan turned up her nose and walked away.

    The Roc got Rome¡¯s attention, and he couldn¡¯t shake it. ¡°I think we should go check it out. Rocs ate sheep on Nuva, and sometimes dwarves, but there¡¯s no life in this flat frozen wasteland. It shouldn¡¯t be there.¡±

    Everyone was shivering in the cold and wanted to head south where it was warmer, but Brun and Torger agreed with Rome. They walked due east for over an hour, but the three rocs they saw never attacked them. Brun saw they were level 16, not much of a threat.

    Coming to the top of a hill they saw a cave mouth.

    Hidden cave 2. Level 12

    They all walked in, but a strung gust of air drove them to step outside again. A message appeared in their vision.

    Only one squad at a time may be in a cave.

    Tyler said ¡°The caves didn¡¯t recognize us before.¡±

    Rome¡¯s squad decided to go check it out and told the others to stay away from any monsters. They walked in, but Elora was not there. A message appeared in their vision.

    You have found a hidden cave. Bonus 45 points.

    As soon as they read it, the back wall opened, but there was nothing there. It opened into the outside. They walked to the side and could see the other squad looking at them. Suddenly three rocs dove out of the sky to attack them! Rome dove to the ground, narrowly missing getting snatched away, Brun cast Shield 1 and the roc slammed into it, shattering the shield, but the bird was disoriented and flew back up. Torger ducked and swung his sword, cutting off the claw of the one who attacked him. The roc screeched in pain and circled around preparing to dive again. All three dove at the same time, but this time all three hit a Shield 1, shattered it, but then hit another Shield 1. The second impact knocked the birds to the ground.

    Torger beheaded the one near him, while Brun and Rome each stabbed a wing with their crude spears. Torger wanted to help them, but three more rocs dove out of the sky. Torger cast two more Shield 1¡¯s and knocked one out of the sky, but the other two sunk their talons into Brun and Rome. The birds tried to fly away with them, but Torger cast a Shield 1 above each of their heads, and the birds released their grip as they tried to fly through the shields, getting hit with Lightning 2. Then Torger killed the second one that attacked him while Rome and Brun cast spells at the two that had a spear sticking out of a wing.

    Soon there were two injured rocs left. Torger was out of mana, and Rome and Brun were low after casting Cure 2 on themselves. The birds dove again. Torger ducked and rolled, while at the same time swinging the claymore, and cut off a claw, while Brun and Rome thrust their spears into the wings of the other bird. That roc collapsed and it tried to bite Brun, but Rome stabbed it in the head with his copper knife. The bird died, but the knife was even more bent and dull than before. The last one flew away without a foot.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 87. Total points available to spend: 136

    Hidden cave 2 difficulty: 12.1

    Squad strength: 36.1

    Time: 5 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Rome spent sixty-five points to buy Torger a respawn, then the same for Brun, leaving them with six points. They walked back to the others. ¡°Do not go into that cave.¡±

    The others looked panic stricken, having seen the whole fight from a distance, and easily agreed with Rome.

    By the time they got back to cave 2, Rome¡¯s squad was a little past five days. He told Gary ¡°Ask Elora ¡®What are all the consequences of staying here more than ten days.¡¯¡±

    ¡°I would love to, but when you speak to her all we hear is their alien language. I don¡¯t know if we¡¯ll be able to communicate.¡±

    ¡°Do the best you can.¡±

    Gary¡¯s squad walked in. Tyler carried Torger¡¯s sword and the others stayed away from him, as Tyler looked too happy making wild practice swings. Joe and Gary carried spears, and Nikko and Susan had a knife in each hand. Elora appeared.

    ¡°Kaciz gont ung alel tereen. Pertu zine gelte?

    ¡°How can we understand you?¡±

    Elora looked confused for a few seconds. Then she pointed at the touch screen on the wall and she disappeared. Gary touched it but couldn¡¯t read it. He touched it again and heard beep beep beep.

    The back wall opened and they walked in. They knew from last time there were fifty snakes and fifty spiders. All did little damage, but a bite meant three seconds of paralysis. Having come prepared, Joe used the lit torch and set the webs on fire. There was a whoosh as the fire traveled down the cave, slightly injuring every spider and snake. Nikko rushed forward like the mad man he was, stabbing as many spiders and snakes as he could. He didn¡¯t make it long until he got bit and froze in place, taking more and more bites.

    Tyler had a manic smile on his face as he swung the big sword too hard at the snakes on the ground. After killing only three, a jumping spider bit him and he too froze. Gary looked at Joe. ¡°Shall we?¡±

    They calmly walked forward methodically killing any snake or spider that got too close, but always careful to stay out of harms¡¯ way. Susan clutched the knives to her chest and didn¡¯t move away from the entrance. Once Gary and Joe made it past the paralyzed Nikko and Tyler, they could move again after three seconds. Both screamed in pain and rolled on the floor, shallow puncture wounds all over their bodies. They had about fifteen lightly bleeding spots each, painful but not deadly. After all, this was supposed to be the first cave the tyters faced.

    Gary and Joe slowly cleared the cave, then all the corpses disappeared. Neither had taken a single bite. Gary couldn¡¯t read the screen, but if he could he would have read:

    Well done hunters. Your score is 77. Total points available to spend: 77

    Training Cave 2 difficulty: 3.9

    Squad strength: 10.2

    Time: 31 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Gary touched the screen at random. Before his vision, all the symbols on the screen changed. It read:

    You have spent all your points from this cave to be able to read these messages and understand Elora. Points available: 0 Would you like to make a purchase?

    Gary touched the screen and got the same audible beep beep beep.

    As they all walked south looking for cave 3, Gary told the others what happened in there. They agreed being able to speak and read tyter was the best thing that could have happened.

    An hour later Torger walked over to Susan who had been quiet the whole time. ¡°Hey Susan, where are you from?¡±

    ¡°Utah.¡±

    ¡°You know what I mean.¡± Susan clearly had Asian parents and spoke with a slight accent.

    ¡°I know you actually don¡¯t care, so quit trying.¡±

    ¡°Look, I¡¯m just trying to extend an olive branch here. We don¡¯t see eye to eye on, well almost everything. But we¡¯re going to spend at least the next few days together. Let¡¯s just try to get along. What happened in that cave back there?¡±

    They walked in silence for several minutes and Torger had given up. Then she started talking. ¡°My grandparents were born in Japan. As young children they came here, or to America, and a few years later they were placed in internment camps during world war two. I¡¯ve always hated that happened to them. I wanted to be a judge since I was a little girl, to make sure I could undo injustices to people. Going through law school taught me our system doesn¡¯t work like that, but I was the best judge I knew how to be.

    ¡°As for the cave, I¡¯ve never been outdoorsy. I don¡¯t go camping, fishing, or clean animal guts. I¡¯m not a vegetarian, but I can¡¯t kill an animal, let alone slice it open to cook it. I grew up in a home where meat comes from the grocery store plastic wrapped. I think if all Americans had to kill our own dinner, most of us would be vegetarians. I don¡¯t belong here. My place is going to cocktail parties with politicians so I can get re-elected or appointed, wearing a silk dress and high heels. I¡¯ve never worn boots in my life.¡±

    They walked in silence for a while longer. ¡°I¡¯m going to give you the same training we gave Antic. He turned out to be a better than average spearman.¡±

    When they stopped to rest, Torger worked with Susan. She drove her spear into a tree over and over again, Torger and Rome correcting her grip and stance.

    They rested, ate nuts and berries, then headed toward the west to look for cave three. They found it at the southern part of the forest, just before it turned to jungle. It was level five, and Rome¡¯s squad entered. Elora asked for their question.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

    ¡°What happens if we stay here longer than ten days?¡±

    ¡°You earn points for how quickly and easily you defeat each cave, and how long it takes until you defeat the final cave. If it takes you more than ten days you will receive no time bonus points, and lose status among other tyter squads. Have a good fight.¡±

    ¡°That wasn¡¯t the answer we wanted to hear, but it doesn¡¯t sound like we¡¯ll be stuck here, locked out from returning.¡±

    The back wall slid away and they encountered a marshland. Hidden in the mud were level five simmets, the snake heads on alligator bodies who could run incredibly fast and were four feet long. Torger led the way since he was the only one with a real weapon. They easily spotted and killed the simmets, who always attacked in groups of four, spaced thirty yards apart and always buried in mud. When the last one died, the water sunk into the floor and they walked back on mud instead of ankle deep water.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 79. Total points available to spend: 85

    Training Cave 3 difficulty: 5.2

    Squad strength: 36.1

    Time: 22 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Rome looked up Enchantment Gems. They added Ice 1 to Ice 3, same with Fire, Lightning, Slow, and Poison. They were insanely expensive, Ice 1 was 48p and Poison 3 was 519p. Rome bought a ¡°Customize¡± enchantment gem for 75p. When prompted, Torger laid the sword on the table, then a program appeared on the screen for Rome to modify the sword. He could lengthen or shorten it, curve the blade, and change the balance. He lengthened the pommel slightly and took an inch off the circumference of the pommel, but that cost all his customizing points available. The display suggested buying a second customize enchantment gem to make further changes.

    Rome pressed Accept and lights shone down on the sword. The pommel lengthened and narrowed. When Torger picked it up, it felt perfect. He gave it a few practice swings using both hands and was pleased to see his two handed swords skill return to the full 64. He didn¡¯t realize how awkward it had felt when fighting the rocs and simmets, but now he had much more confidence. During the fight with the simmets he had actually dropped the sword twice.

    Rome briefed Gary on the fight. ¡°When you see an unnatural bump in the mud, a simmet is hiding under it. This is a fight for spears, keep them away from you. Their fangs and claws are sharp, and they run very fast for short distances. They¡¯re ambush predators.¡±

    Gary entered, and each had a spear in hand. Elora appeared. ¡°Welcome to training cave three. What is your question?¡±

    ¡°How many training caves are on this planet?¡±

    ¡°There are sixteen standard caves on TZ eighteen. Have a good fight.¡±

    This time Nikko and Tyler didn¡¯t rush forward slashing at everything. They moved very slowly, always afraid of an alligator jumping out of the water. Gary and Joe took the lead. As they were walking, four simmets jumped up and rushed them. Gary thrust his spear into the leg of one, but Joe lost his footing and fell into the water. Three simmets all attacked him. He blocked as best he could, but they all bit his forearms, releasing sprays of blood.

    Nikko and Tyler rushed forward and tried to jab the simmets, but they were clumsy using the crude spears. Nikko dropped his and pulled out two knives. He thrust both into the head of one, and it died. Then the one next to him died. He looked and saw Susan, a scowl on her face holding the spear that was lodged into the simmets mouth.

    Gary killed the one he had wounded in the leg initially, and Tyler stabbed the side of the last one attacking Joe. Gary ran over and skewered it through the neck.

    Joe stood up on shaky legs. Blood flowed freely from both his arms. They had no more bandages, but Nikko cut off his sleeves and tied them around Joe¡¯s arms. The blood slowed but didn¡¯t stop. Joe looked to Gary. ¡°We need to get out of here fast.¡±

    Gary nodded, and surprisingly so did Susan. Joe stayed to the back as the others walked forward at a brisker but still cautious pace. This time Gary saw the bump in the mud. He waved for the others to stay back and silently approached. He jabbed the spear into the mud as hard as he could. The simmet squirmed but was nearly dead. The other three burst from the water and rushed Gary. Susan, Tyler and Nikko ran forward and each pierced a simmet. The spear lengths kept the simmets from retaliating. The fight lasted only a few more seconds.

    They moved on and did a rinse and repeat with Gary puncturing the back of the first one while it was still buried, the others rushing in a second later and each person taking one out. Susan had a smile on her face for the first time since coming to 1PX. ¡°This is actually kind of exhilarating.¡±

    Tyler smiled and patted her on the back. ¡°I know, right?¡±

    They finished a total of thirteen groups, fifty-two dead simmets disappeared and the waters receded as they jogged back to the entrance. By then Joe was looking ashen from blood loss.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 92. Total points available to spend: 92

    Training Cave 3 difficulty: 5.2

    Squad strength: 10.2

    Time: 17 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Gary was the only one who could read the screen, but quickly selected one mana point for twenty-one points, then selected Joe. He exited the screen as a light shone on Joe, and they half carried him out.

    ¡°He needs healing, quick!¡±

    Rome saw his brother was barely conscious. Brun called ¡°Magic will harm him even more. Lay him down.¡±

    ¡°No I bought one mana point for Joe, and light shone on him.¡±

    Torger called ¡°Brun, analyze.¡±

    Brun cast Analyze 2 and saw Joe had 9/100 health. Torger cast Cure 1 and Joe¡¯s health went to 16/100. ¡°It worked! Cure 2¡± Brun said, bringing Joe¡¯s health higher. A few more Cure 1¡¯s brought him to near full health.

    While Joe slept, they discussed the cave. Gary told them there are sixteen standard caves, and the only thing he bought was the one mana point to save Joe¡¯s life. Tyler gloated that their score was higher than the veterans score, and their time was faster too.

    Chapter 18

    Billiks

    As they headed south, Gary discussed strategy with the veterans. They were going to the billiks cave. ¡°Their shells are very hard. The copper knives will be useless against them, but the titanium spears will pierce through. Before entering, you guys need to practice thrusts just like we taught Susan. And one of you should take Torger¡¯s sword. You guys would be much better off with shields and armor. Their legs will easily pierce all the way through you, and they can bite your arm clean off. This has to be a defensive battle.¡±

    Torger picked up when Rome stopped talking. ¡°As for how to spend your points, I urge you to each get one mana point if possible, so we can cure you like we did with Joe, and if possible, give Tyler some stamina. His constant lagging behind is getting super annoying.¡±

    Elora said ¡°Welcome to cave four. What is your question?¡±

    Tyler was jumping up and down with anticipation, and Gary rolled his eyes. ¡°Does the weather effect the monsters that come out?¡±

    ¡°In the forest and jungle, if it is cloudy, monsters level two to ten come out. If it¡¯s a light rain, monsters level eleven to twenty come out, and if it¡¯s raining hard the monsters are level twenty-one to thirty. To find out about the desert and tundra, find a cave in each of those regions to ask the same question. Have a good fight.¡±

    The wall slid back and they stepped forward. Gary told Tyler the answer to his question, and Tyler was very pleased with himself for having guessed right.

    Seconds later five billiks were attacking the five humans. The spear practice paid off as four of the five were hit in the face. But billiks don¡¯t die easily. The brain dead cockroaches ran around in circles, running into each other and the walls. Tyler was the only one who didn¡¯t puncture the face of a billik. He had insisted on using Torger¡¯s sword and ended up dropping it, slicing open his own hand. If that wasn¡¯t bad enough, the point dropped straight down going through his boot and cutting open the top of his foot.

    The others were too busy to help him as he dodged the legs of the angry billik in front of him. But then a brain dead billik ran into the healthy one, crushing it into the wall and breaking two of its legs. Tyler remembered what Torger had told him about it being easy to cut off their legs with the steel sword. He pulled it out of his foot and began slicing off legs of the ones running around in circles. Spears finished them.

    As the last one was dying, five more rushed in. This time after Gary hit the first one in the head, Tyler ran forward and cut off its two front legs, then did the same for each one that started running around after having been skewered in the brain.

    They had to climb over the billik bodies and walk further into the cave, and fought the next two groups of five. During the fight, Nikko had been knocked down by a wildly running billik, and another one stepped on his leg, piercing his calf. He had to hobble back to the mouth and let the others fight on.

    The final batch of billiks were a little bigger and stronger. Gary stabbed the first one in the head and it turned its head violently wrenching the spear out of his hands. The same thing happened to Susan. Tyler cut off the front legs of the first one, but he was exhausted. Gary ran over and grabbed the sword, and took over leg duty while Joe was left alone holding a spear.

    Gary called out ¡°Get back! Retreat!¡±

    They walked backwards, fending off the two remaining healthy billiks. Gary was uncomfortable holding the sword, and he swung clumsily at the one advancing on him. Joe got in another successful thrust, and retracted his spear in time before it tried to rip it out of his hands while jerking away from the pain. Joe then thrust it into the side of the one facing Gary. The billik turned and bit the spear shaft, breaking it. Gary chopped off one of its front legs, then they took several steps back.

    ¡°Tyler and Susan get back. You¡¯re unarmed and no help to us.¡±

    They hurried to the entrance and watched with Nikko. Joe also retreated a few seconds later, and Gary cautiously but quickly darted around the billiks chopping off legs. He succeeded in chopping them off most of the time, but occasionally missed and the blade glanced off the hard shell. Eventually they were all dead, Gary bruised and tired from the billiks running into him. He walked back to the entrance.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 65. Total points available to spend: 136

    Training cave 4 difficulty: 5.8

    Squad strength: 10.5

    Time: 42 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Gary bought one mana point for each of the remaining four of them, for a total of eighty-four points. Next he bought ten stamina for Tyler for another ten points. He was left with forty-two, and bought an iron round shield for thirty-eight points.

    They walked out and all received a Cure 2, except Nikko who had a big hole in his calf. A few extra Cure 1¡¯s had him patched up.

    Gary complained ¡°I don¡¯t know how these tyters do it. Without you guys here we would die from our wounds.¡±

    Rome answered ¡°They drink potions. They have that dimensional pouch that holds a lot of stuff, including potions that replenish health, strength, stamina, and mana. I don¡¯t know where they get the potions from.¡±

    Tyler said ¡°Our squad strength went up by point three. Is that from having Torger¡¯s sword with us?¡±

    ¡°Either that or your skill with spears went up when you practiced.¡±

    Brun may have been right, but they had no way of knowing. Torger looked at Maps. ¡°The caves are not in a perfect line, but go generally south. The next one should be in the desert.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve walked around there, and didn¡¯t see anything near the ship. Do we go East or west of it?¡±

    ¡°These beginner level caves seem to be on the east coast. Let¡¯s stay to the east of the ship.¡±

    Everyone agreed. As they got to the edge of the jungle, they were in better spirits because Tyler now had a little better stamina than Susan, and they walked a little faster and a little longer between breaks. Brun mentioned it. ¡°When we first set out, Torger and Rome came south at a little over nine miles per hour, and we went north at about two and half miles per hour. Now we¡¯re going almost three. Gary I think some more stamina is in order after the next fight.¡±

    Everyone cheered up at the idea. Susan, for the first time, took initiative and went to filter water and refill their canteens and water bottles. When she came back she said ¡°Bad news. We just used the last of our filters. We need to go back to the ship to see if we can find more.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve searched the wreckage pretty thoroughly and it looked like the others had gathered all usable supplies before¡­ they uh died.¡± Gary was sad at the loss of the entire crew, over two thousand people he was responsible for.

    ¡°I think we can figure out a way to purify water,¡± said Rome. ¡°We did it on Nuva. And we have more than a day of water with us now, two days if we ration.¡±

    They headed south east and eventually came to the coast. They walked along the beach for a few hours, stopping at a tide pool filled with mutated starfish and squids, but didn¡¯t dare touch them. Even though it was a coast, there was still no vegetation, the constant sun scorching anything that tried to grow near the equator.

    Rome commented ¡°This planet seems small. Really small, like the size of the moon. Why aren¡¯t we able to jump fifteen feet in the air?¡±

    Tyler said ¡°It must have a dense core. Something much heavier than nickel.¡±

    They made small talk as they walked, and finally came to another cave on the south side of the desert.

    Cave 7. Level 13

    ¡°Seven, and thirteen? What happened to caves five and six?¡±

    No one knew the answer to Tyler¡¯s question. Rome¡¯s squad said they would go in and see what it was. After Elora asked her question, Rome asked ¡°Where are caves five and six?¡±

    ¡°Ask just one question at a time. This is your only warning. Next time I won¡¯t answer either question.¡±

    ¡°Sweet Elora, would you be so kind as to tell us where cave five is located?¡±

    ¡°I have placed a marker on your map for the location of cave five. Have a good fight.¡±

    Elora disappeared and the back wall slid open. It opened into the ocean! Brun shrugged his shoulders and waded in. After several steps, the floor sloped downward. A few more steps and a sangler swam up and wrapped a tentacle around his right arm.

    Rome cast Poison 1 on it, and Torger sliced off the tentacle. The sangler kept trying to wrap a tentacle around anyone it could. Once Torger sliced off all eight tentacles, the sangler swam away, but two more swam up. Brun cast Analyze 2.

    Sangler. Level 14.

    Health 250/250 Strength 10 Stamina 40/40 Mana 0/0

    ¡°They¡¯re not so bad. Just level fourteen.¡±

    The two that swam up went after Torger and Brun. Torger stabbed one through the face killing it instantly, and Rome cast Shield 2 around the other. Torger waited for it to almost break the shield, taking multiple Lightning 2 shocks, then killed that one. Next four sanglers swam up, instead of two, and Brun and Rome cast Shield 2 twice each, and Torger killed three of the four before the fourth one broke out. It grabbed Rome and tried to drag him to sea, but Torger was there quickly and severed all its tentacles. They killed another batch of four the same way, but were then out of mana, and Brun and Rome had to use spears to help out Torger. They killed a total of forty-three, usually coming in groups of three or four, and the last group had five.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 93. Total points available to spend: 103

    Training cave 7 difficulty: 13.4

    Squad strength: 37.9

    Time: 17 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Rome decided to save all the points. They easily defeated cave seven, so cave five should be simple.

    Back outside, they talked to the others. ¡°It¡¯s your call to go in there or not. There are groups of giant octopi with ten foot tentacles, and they attack in groups of three or four. You¡¯ll be standing in waist deep water.¡±

    Tyler asked ¡°Why could we see you in the outside environment of the rocs, but we couldn¡¯t see you in the outside environment of the sanglers?¡±

    Rome took a guess that it was because the rocs were a hidden cave, and the sanglers were a standard cave.

    Gary talked it over with his squad and they decided to take their chances. He was silently cursing himself for having bought an iron shield. That would do them no good here, but he couldn¡¯t have known.

    He asked Elora for the location of cave six, and she said she marked it on his map, but he couldn¡¯t access a map or his own stats like the veterans could. That would have to be his next question to her.

    As the first sangler swam up, Nikko said ¡°This reminds me of Jaws.¡±

    ¡°Oh don¡¯t say that Nikko,¡± bemoaned Susan.

    It gripped Gary, and started dragging him out to sea! Nikko started running after it, but Joe threw his spear. It embedded in one of the tentacles, but the monster didn¡¯t stop swimming away. Gary couldn¡¯t get a good grip on his spear, and finally held it with his left hand. He grabbed a copper knife from his boot with his right hand and stabbed the octopus in the head over and over. When it finally died, he was a couple hundred yards from shore. He started swimming back, and saw the others battling two more sanglers.

    Gary was exhausted when he got back, and had to kneel in the water for several minutes to catch his breath. Meanwhile, the others killed the two and four more had come. But they had formed a strategy of using the spears in one hand, and a knife in the other, except Tyler who again had Torger¡¯s sword. He gave his spear to Joe, whose spear was lost at sea. Tyler cut through the tentacles, while the others could only slash them. It was slow going and then they fought another group of four. They could never get close to the sanglers¡¯ heads to kill them, and had to slowly chop off each of the eight tentacles before each one would die. They didn¡¯t know it, but these ¡°training¡± sanglers were only trying to drown them, not eat them like they had almost eaten Rome on Nuva. After the fourth batch of sanglers died, Gary rejoined the fight, being mostly rested after his near death drowning and long swim back.

    The next group was three, and Gary told Tyler and Susan to take a break while they killed the three. They rotated after that, one person always on break until the final fight when five sanglers attacked. Everyone was beyond exhausted, and during the final fight Susan and Nikko got dragged to sea. Joe and Gary swam out and helped kill the sanglers, then had to help Nikko and Susan swim back. They sat in the shallow water for a good ten minutes before walking back to the cave mouth.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 61. Total points available to spend: 65

    Training cave 7 difficulty: 13.4

    Squad strength: 10.9

    Time: 2 hours, 4 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Gary didn¡¯t know what to do, but they would never get into a marathon battle again. Everyone was given ten stamina and one strength, leaving him with five points.

 Cave 5

    Chapter 19

    Cave 5

    When they walked out, the veterans were sitting down, looking downcast and talking quietly. ¡°We should have never let them go in. The risk was too high.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s Ok Torger, we¡¯re back.¡±

    They all looked up to see the exhausted and drenching wet squad walk out of the cave. ¡°Joe, what happened? We gave you guys up for dead an hour ago.¡±

    Stories were exchanged then the lessons began. ¡°Your points allocation was foolish Gary. That fight would have been much shorter with better weapons. You should have bought some iron swords or maces. We don¡¯t know what we¡¯ll be facing in the next cave. On the other hand, we¡¯ll get there a lot quicker now.¡±

    Gary told them Elora marked his map for cave six, but he couldn¡¯t access his map. They agreed Gary¡¯s squad should go into cave five first, and he needed to ask how to gain access to his Stats. If he couldn¡¯t, Rome¡¯s squad would ask for the location of cave six.

    Cave five was south of the desert, well inland. It was almost a hundred miles away and in dense jungle. Their travelling speed had picked up to four miles per hour, but it still took a full day and a half to get there. Their water bottles were empty when Gary¡¯s squad entered.

    ¡°Elora, how can I access my stats, specifically my map?¡±

    ¡°A basic ability can be purchased from the shopping kiosk. Just state what you want to buy. The price is always however many points you gain from that cave. Have a good fight.¡±

    Elora disappeared and the back wall slid open, and they were in dense jungle. They walked forward, and a hundred huge ants ran at them. They were the same foot long ants they had seen in the jungle several days earlier.

    The billiks had been much larger and stronger but were uncoordinated in their attacks. The ants made a complete circle around them and then marched forward. Thirty yards away was a four foot queen ant watching her soldiers fight.

    Gary yelled ¡°Drop the spears, use knives.¡±

    They tried to slash at the ants, but they were too low to the ground. They began biting everyone¡¯s ankles. They wished Gary had bought them greaves. Joe figured out they should kneel on the ground. That helped them reach the ants more easily, but they were off balance from leaning forward. Then Gary had them pick up their spears again. The added range let them kill all the ants from a distance, but being on their knees and making wide swings at the ants with crude spears only damaged the ants. By the time they were done they all had dozens of shallow bites on their arms. The queen walked away when the last one died.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 82. Total points available to spend: 87

    Training cave 5 difficulty: 9.8

    Squad strength: 11.7

    Time: 21 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Gary walked to the touch screen. Instead of touching it he said ¡°I would like to access my map.¡±

    Add basic ability Maps.

    Gary selected yes and all eighty-two points disappeared, leaving him with his original five.

    Outside, Brun instructed him to give a verbal command, ¡°Access maps¡±. Gary did so, and his vision was filled with a map. Most of it was blacked out, but he could see five blue triangles for his squad, and three yellow triangles for Rome¡¯s squad. Everywhere he had walked showed the terrain, and the caves he had been in showed a C while the hidden cave to the north east had a C. A glowing 6 was marked to the south, in the forest.

    ¡°Hey it worked. I can see a glowing blue six.¡±

    ¡°I want a UI,¡± pouted Tyler.

    ¡°What¡¯s a UI?¡± asked Torger.

    ¡°User Interface. It¡¯s what icons you see on the screen when playing a game.¡±

    ¡°Tyler, for the last time, this is not a game. Please don¡¯t throw around game terms anymore.¡±

    ¡°Fine. To let you know, the mobs in there are big ants and the boss is an even bigger, but non aggressive queen.¡±

    ¡°Gaaah! Mobs and boss are game terms, and don¡¯t explain what they mean. I don¡¯t care!¡±

    Torger stormed into the cave, with Rome and Brun close behind.

    Once inside Rome asked Torger ¡°Aren¡¯t you being a little harsh on him? He¡¯s doing the best he can to cope with a stressful situation.¡±

    Elora responded ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m being harsh on anybody, and I don¡¯t think Torger is either. Have a good fight.¡±

    ¡°Wait Elora. That question wasn¡¯t for you. I wanted to ask about purifying water.¡±

    She had already disappeared.

    ¡°That¡¯s not fair. She answered the question I asked before she even appeared.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t be harsh on her Rome, she¡¯s just an artificial intelligence,¡± Torger quipped.

    ¡°You mean an AI?¡± asked Brun, just to get Torger angry.

    Inside Rome and Brun cast multiple Fire 1 spells, while Torger cast Shield 2 around the queen. She kept trying to smash through it but Torger strengthened it with mana, bringing the shield strength to 300. He then exhausted his mana with Fire 1 spells. As they were casting Brun complained ¡°This would have been a lot easier if we didn¡¯t have to cast a few cure one spells on the others before coming in here. Now I¡¯m almost out, and have to use a spear.¡±

    ¡°True, but you saw all those bites on their legs and arms. That looked painful. We had to help them out.¡±

    ¡°Hold off on killing the last few, I want to kill the queen to see if there¡¯s a bonus.¡±

    ¡°Ok, it¡¯s time for spears and your sword Torger.¡±

    ¡°This is too easy. I wish we could ditch them and jump to cave eleven or twelve.¡±

    ¡°Yeah that would be nice, but we¡¯ll take the points here and help out the others.¡±

    ¡°Hold on, time to kill the queen.¡±

    Torger killed her and a message appeared.

    11 bonus points

    ¡°Awesome.¡±

    They killed the last ant and walked back.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 108. Total points available to spend: 222

    Training cave 5 difficulty: 9.8

    Squad strength: 37.9

    Time: 8 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    ¡°A hundred and eight, plus the eleven from the queen. I wonder how the score works?¡±

    ¡°Ask Elora one of these times.¡±

    ¡°Good idea, should we buy anything?¡±

    ¡°Nah, cave six should be below our level. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    While walking to cave six, clouds rolled in. Everyone became alert for monster activity. After seeing nothing for a while and walking in silence, Rome said ¡°I miss having Jex with us. As we walked she would play a flute or lyre she had bought from the elves, and at nights around a campfire she would sing. She got pretty good after several months.¡±

    They walked on for a while in silence, then Nikko broke out in song. In a clear, nearly perfect tune he began ¡°I heard there was a secret chord, that David played and it pleased the Lord, but you don¡¯t really care for music do ya?¡±

    Next Susan joined in, also a good voice, but not as good as Nikko¡¯s. ¡°It goes like this the fourth the fifth, the minor fall and the major lift, the baffled king composing hallelujah. Hallelujah, hallelujah.¡±

    They sang a few songs, to the surprise and pleasure of everyone else. After a while a light rain started, but no one noticed as Torger and Rome were telling their story. ¡°I circled to the left, and Rome went right. The dragon was green with red stripes, and it kept its eyes on me. We had already seen it was level forty-five, below our levels of seventy-one, so it should be a winnable fight. The thing reared up on hind legs and blew fire at me! Luckily, the old beat to hell dragon scale shield absorbed most of it, but I still lost a hundred and ten health from that one blast!

    ¡°Quick as flash Rome ran forward and smashed his diamond staff against its tail. When you smash a wizard¡¯s staff it releases a huge amount of mana. Ristopan had told us to do it, because dragons have a very high magic defense. The smashed staff nullified the magic defense for fifteen seconds, a very expensive way to do battle mind you. That¡¯s three pounds of gold, and fifty diamonds, obliterated. Anyway, the dragon was furious and turned to bite him. I cast poison three on it. That cut its max health to one third of the original, but that was still two hundred thirty-three health points left against the toughest armor there is. We both began casting level one spells as fast as we could, but it bit Rome. Chopped him clean in half. I could hear him still screaming when the dragon opened its mouth to breath fire at me again. But Rome, even being split in two at the waist still had the presence of mind to wedge the remaining upper half of himself into its open throat. The fire charred him to a crisp, but then the dragon choked on what was left of him. I ran forward and jumped as high as I could, thrusting Red Fury into the top of its open mouth. The sword pierced its brain and the five ton beast collapsed on me, crushing me to death. I would have hated to wait until it grew another ten or twenty levels.¡±

    Everyone was in shock at the story, but Gary kept his mouth shut for a while. After minutes of silence he said ¡°You guys have had a lot of terrible deaths and tragedies. You¡¯re going to have to deal with that PTSD when we get back.¡±

    ¡°What, are you some kind of psychologist? We¡¯re fine.¡± Torger stubbornly refused to show any kind of weakness.

    Quietly Joe said ¡°We¡¯ve all heard you three screaming and thrashing in your sleep. Calling out battle formations, casting spells, calling for help. You¡¯re not the same as when you left Earth six years ago.¡±

    They looked at each other and knew it was true. Each of the veterans took shifts on watches while the others slept. Nearly half the time someone would have a nightmare of a previous battle. Not only that, they smiled and joked less than they used to, and deep down they knew they felt superior to everyone else.

    Susan said ¡°I mean this in the politest way possible. You¡¯ve become barbarians with all your battles. You won¡¯t fit well into a civilized society again. I don¡¯t say that to be mean, but just a statement of fact.¡±

    Another silence descended then Gary broke it. ¡°They don¡¯t plan on going back Susan.¡±

    ¡°What? Why? We¡¯ll figure it out, I¡¯m sure.¡±

    ¡°When Brun told me he murdered my family, he had already given up on ever getting back to Earth. That crime would have never been solved, and if he thought there was a slight chance of going back, he wouldn¡¯t have told anyone.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re some mind reader Gary. We have talked it over in some caves,¡± Said Rome. ¡°We think once we finish the last cave, we¡¯ll be teleported to a tyter society. Torger and I are honorary generals, having defeated Shug¡¯s squad, and they should honor Brun as one too. I don¡¯t know how they¡¯ll react to seeing you, but we have enough clout to protect you, if our theory is correct and you guys get teleported also. We have a lot of questions to ask Elora in the next few caves, but with this rain, maybe we can hold off on the water purification question.¡±

    Rome experimentally held his head back and mouth open. The rain water tasted fine and they continued walking to see if he would get sick. After a few minutes Tyler spoke up. ¡°In your dragon slaying story, you spoke about smashing a diamond wizard staff on the dragon. Explain what that staff was.¡±

    Before Rome could answer, a creature the size of a large dog rushed at them from the brush. Brun cast Shield 2 around it, and Torger casually walked over and stabbed through the shield, shattering it but also sinking his sword into the beast¡¯s front leg. Torger withdrew his sword and stabbed it in the head. The whole fight took about three seconds. Without missing a beat, everyone started setting up camp while Gary and Joe started cutting off chunks of meat.

    As they were eating the cooked meat a half hour later, (the beast looked like a hybrid of a panther and boar and it tasted like pork chops), Rome answered the question. ¡°Ristopan taught us how to make them. Wood is a little helpful, silver is one and a half the strength of spells, gold doubles their strength, and gold encrusted with diamonds triples the strength. We hollow out a part of the top of the staff and insert a ruby or emerald, and cast a weapon enchantment spell. It¡¯s a simple spell that we retained when we came here, along with levitation and dirt wall. If we had three pounds of gold, a furnace, and a ruby or emerald we could make a wizard¡¯s staff. That would be awesome, ¡®cause I feel incomplete without one.¡±Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!

    ¡°Me too¡± said Torger and Brun at the same time.

    Tyler shook his head. ¡°A lot of the circuitry of the ship is gold, a great conductor and lasts for decades, perfect for a long space mission. I¡¯m sure we could scrape up more than three pounds of it from the debris. I don¡¯t know about an emerald or ruby though, and we saw Nikko¡¯s failed attempt at crafting in a campfire.¡±

    Rome said ¡°Gold melts at a much lower temperature than titanium. Maybe the campfire would work.¡±

    Torger asked Gary ¡°Were there industrial machine operators on board? Do you know about any metal working equipment brought?¡±

    ¡°Oh sure. We had a variety of prisoners who had former careers as welders, HVAC workers, machine repair guys. They had all the tools they might need to repair a breech in the hull or rewire half the ship. What are you thinking?¡±

    ¡°A lot of metal cutting blades are diamond encrusted. We might be able to scrape up some low grade diamond dust. Several specks might equal a decent sized ruby or emerald.¡±

    Susan added ¡°A lot of the women wore their wedding rings. We weren¡¯t supposed to bring any other jewelry, but I¡¯m sure some brought sentimental necklaces and earrings.¡±

    ¡°That settles it,¡± said Gary. ¡°We¡¯ve got to go back to the ship. The survivors weren¡¯t looking for gold when people were dying, they were looking for food, water and bandages. They probably walked right past a bunch of wedding rings.¡±

    ¡°Isn¡¯t it kind of taboo to loot the dead?¡± asked Nikko.

    ¡°We¡¯re surviving here, superstitions can¡¯t stop us from a massive upgrade to our squad.¡±

    Everyone agreed to finish cave six, then go back to the ship.

    Later the rain picked up, and Brun had the second watch. So did Susan, since Joe was the only one of Gary¡¯s squad who wasn¡¯t afraid the others would leave them. Brun thought he saw a shadow in the semi-dark, but wasn¡¯t sure. Years on Nuva taught him to trust his gut. ¡°Torger, Rome, get up,¡± he whispered.

    They sat up quickly, a little disoriented but ready to defend themselves. ¡°I think we may have a visitor soon.¡±

    A minute later the three looked into the jungle and saw two medium sized snakes slithering towards them. Torger took off their heads but Rome and Brun never took their eyes off the jungle, having complete trust in Torger. Then Brun pointed and cast Lighting 1. Torger and Rome turned to see a lesser lich disappearing.

    ¡°You to go, I¡¯ll protect the others,¡± said Torger.

    The others woke up in the commotion as Susan stammered ¡°What, what was that thing?¡±

    ¡°A lesser lich. They were only level nine to eighteen on Nuva, but Elora said the creatures in heavy rain are twenty-one to thirty. They rose from mass graves there, but I guess it¡¯s just the rain that will bring them out here. They have low health points, but can only be damaged with magic. Your spear and knives would go right through it without harming it, so you could never win. Not until you get spells. They cast fear spells making you dream your worst fears, and can raise creatures from the underworld. That¡¯s probably where the two snakes came from.¡±

    Tyler asked ¡°Are they undead? Can you cast a holy spell on them? What about zombies and vampires? Did you see any of those?¡±

    ¡°I never saw a zombie, vampire, werewolf, unicorn, or bigfoot. I suppose all but the zombies are possible. Tyters teleport living things, they don¡¯t reanimate the dead. I have no idea where liches come from, or what their nature is. Rome and I tried to fight three Grand Liches at the goblin massacre site near Lake Tahoe, but they were each level eighty and it would have been tough for us to take on just one. We both died because when they drew near terror filled our minds, and just their touch was enough to drive us insane before we died of heart attacks. We had to go back with Ristopan who cast courage spells on us and added a holy element to the shield around us. Even then we barely won. Uh oh, I wonder if that means liches will rise from the wreckage. There¡¯s more than two thousand dead people there.¡±

    Torger thought about that danger for a few minutes until a triumphant Brun and Rome returned. ¡°We should be all clear for a while. Three of them, level twenty-three, and raising those same level nineteen snakes.¡±

    ¡°Do you think they came from the crash site?¡± asked Nikko.

    ¡°Oh, that would be bad. Very bad,¡± responded Rome. He looked at Brun and Torger. ¡°We do each have a respawn.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t like it but a gold staff is worth the risk,¡± replied Torger.

    ¡°Cave six, then the wreckage, just like before.¡± Gary¡¯s statement had a hint of a command rather than an open topic for discussion. His squad acquiesced easily, but it rubbed the veterans wrong, but they didn¡¯t respond because they agreed with him.

    Chapter 20

    Cave 6

    ¡°Welcome to cave six. What is your question?¡±

    ¡°How do we purify water here?¡± Rome had been wanting to ask that question all day.

    ¡°Water on TZ eighteen from springs and streams has a three percent chance of being contaminated. Boiling it or casting heal one on a liter reduces the chance of contamination to point four percent. Heal two reduces it to point one percent. Collected rain water has a one percent chance of contamination. Have a good fight.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a rather obvious answer now that we know it¡± murmured Torger. It seemed obvious if Heal 1 and Heal 2 removed the common cold, flu, and mild venom, they should work on a canteen of water.

    The wall slid back and they stepped into the same kind of dense jungle that was outside, but the plants were different. No monsters attacked them as they walked forward. Going a little further revealed nothing, but Brun jumped as a vine wound its way around his arm. He tried to pull away, but it was too strong. Torger easily cut it off with his sword. As they walked forward most of the plants tried to reach out to them and wrap them up. The sword and fire spells kept them away, but Brun and Rome were burning through mana too quickly.

    ¡°We saw nothing like this on Nuva. They¡¯ve got to have a weakness,¡± said Torger.

    ¡°Maybe, maybe not¡± replied Rome. ¡°The caves get progressively more difficult. These are harder than the ants, but not as bad as the sanglers. A squad of five tyters all equipped with iron swords would hack through this no problem. Our difficulty is that our spears and knives are ineffective. This is a cave for swords, pure and simple.¡±

    Rome and Brun spent the last of their mana, and fell behind Torger who cut every branch and vine he could. Most writhed a little when they hit the ground, but lost strength and could easily be pulled off any boots they wrapped around. Some had thorns that cut shallow cuts, some had a mild poison that would leave welts, some were nearly as strong as Torger and tried to crush him.

    At the back of the cave was an oak tree with a face in it who looked angry. It spit pollen at them and they all coughed and their max mana and stamina was cut in half. Then it started shooting thorns at them from its branches which took off four health in poison damage any time one was embedded in a human. Torger tried to hack at the tree with the sword, but did little damage.

    ¡°I was wrong. This is a cave for axes. Torger, light it up.¡±

    Torger backed away and cast Fire 1. Instead of doing seven damage, it did fourteen. ¡°Too bad about that mana cap being cut in half, or this would have been easy. The mobs weren¡¯t that bad.¡±

    ¡°Ha! You said mobs.¡±

    Torger blushed then hid it behind anger. ¡°Stupid Tyler teaching us these terms. They¡¯re getting stuck in my head. And don¡¯t either of you tell him I said that word or I¡¯ll cut off your hand. Make you take two days to grow a new one.¡±

    Brun and Rome chuckled but swore to not tell the others.

    They spent all their mana on Fire 1 spells, then hacked at the ¡°boss¡± until it died.

    Torger finished off the tree with his sword and fire spells and the walk back out he pated the pommel of his sword, letting Brun and Rome have no doubt they would lose a hand for saying Torger used a gaming term.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 71. Total points available to spend: 293

    Training cave 6 difficulty: 10.8

    Squad strength: 37.9

    Time: 19 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    ¡°We¡¯ve got a lot of points to spend. Should we buy something?¡± asked Rome.

    ¡°We ran out of mana. We should buy more,¡± suggested Brun.

    Torger added ¡°The others probably won¡¯t make it through here. My sword and their spears and knives will be pretty useless to them.¡±

    They bought five iron axes for 108 points, and gained 10 mana points each for another 60 points, leaving 125 for future spending. They felt a little better at having 90 mana points each, and considered bringing it up to 100 each but ultimately decided against it.

    Rome smiled wide as he presented the others with their gifts. ¡°You guys are definitely going to need these. The grips are a bit big, so use them as two handed axes.¡±

    Once they had a good understanding of what they would face, Gary¡¯s squad entered the cave. After Elora¡¯s standard introduction, Gary asked where cave eight was at. She marked his map and he saw it was in the southern tundra.

    The first vine wrapped around Nikko and he screamed like a little girl. It kept crushing him until Joe severed the vine with three big swings from the iron axe. ¡°Torger said he cut through these vines with a single slash of his sword. He should have let us bring it along.¡±

    ¡°Maybe, but they were quite generous when they bought us these axes. We would be screwed without them. The tyters are probably a lot stronger than us, and Torger is certainly stronger than you or any of us. They might be able to cut these vines easily with these axes.¡±

    ¡°Maybe we should buy more strength.¡±

    Everyone agreed with Susan and slowly worked their way along the cave. Near the end they had to retreat a little and rest for several minutes. Fully rested they hacked their way through the last vines and arrived at the oak tree, but they all had welts all over their bodies from the poison and crushing vines, and scratches covered them all head to toe from the thorns. The pollen hit them and they had no mana to lose, and their stamina was cut to half of full, which was just a slight drop since they had to kill fourteen vines after their break.

    They rushed forward and dug into the tree with all they had, doing their best to ignore the thorns pummeling them. Unfortunately, their skill with axes had only risen to level two, and on a big swing Nikko missed the tree trunk and he let go of the axe, which flew in the air and hit Gary in the arm. The blade didn¡¯t hit him, but it was still strong enough to break his arm. He cussed out Nikko and they both withdrew from the battle. By the time the tree died, Joe, Susan and Tyler had less than a quarter of their health left. They rushed to the entrance to get cure spells from the others.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 59. Total points available to spend: 64

    Training cave 6 difficulty: 10.8

    Squad strength: 14.0

    Time: 53 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    ¡°Wow our score sucked.¡± Gary bought three mana points for himself, then spent another eighteen on Cure 1. He cast it on himself, just like he had seen the veterans do by pointing to his own chest and saying ¡°Cure one.¡±

    A tingling ran down his finger for a split second before a gold beam of light smacked him in the chest, restoring ten health. He couldn¡¯t access Stats so he couldn¡¯t quantify it, but most of the bleeding slowed from the multitude of shallow cuts. His arm didn¡¯t heal at all, but his grin made the others jealous. ¡°Forty points left. That¡¯s enough for two strength upgrades for each of us.¡±

    When Gary purchased two strength points then selected himself, a beam of light shone down from the ceiling for several seconds. He could feel and see all the muscles in his arms and legs getting a little bigger. The others looked on with awe, and eventually they were all given two more strength points.

    Outside they thanked the veterans for the axes, since it made all the difference. In turn they congratulated them on their strength increase. As they walked, the veterans analyzed them and told them their current health, strength, and stamina. Gary was the strongest with 9, and Susan was the weakest with 4. Torger didn¡¯t tell them he and Rome had 20. Instead he said ¡°Congratulations Gary, you¡¯re now as strong as Brun, and Joe you¡¯re at eight, almost the same.¡±

    As they walked, Tyler was mumbling to himself. Rome asked him ¡°What are you thinking about?¡±

    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s boring. You wouldn¡¯t be interested.¡±

    ¡°Try me.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m thinking about the speed of light, and cosmic distances.¡±

    Rome laughed and stated ¡°I¡¯ve had that same battle in my head many times. Even if the teleport from Earth sent us to Nuva at the speed of light, it would take years to get there and years to return.¡±

    Tyler¡¯s face lit up. ¡°Exactly! They must be using the Einstein-Rosen bridge somehow.¡±

    ¡°Probably, but I think they didn¡¯t teleport us using physical matter. I think they just teleported the software of our minds, and scanned our faces. I think the local teleports on a planet only transfer the physical material to the larger teleport station in the same solar system as the local planet. The smart phone looking device we saw on that initial hike probably sent us physically to the larger teleport device close to the sun, but that one only forwarded our minds and personalities, not our physical bodies. A large teleport device near Nuva probably received the information, but that theory I had doesn¡¯t make sense anymore because you came here physically¡­¡± Rome looked up and saw the entire rest of the group had quickly hurried away to avoid their geeky conversation. An hour later Rome and Tyler were friends.

    The sun came out again and after a good sleep at the edge of the jungle and desert, they walked toward the ship. A mile away, the veterans continued without the others in case there were Grand liches. There were none, so they went back to get the others. When they were almost to the wreckage again, Torger, Rome and Brun¡¯s timers hit ten days and flashed red. A message appeared.

    Hunters, you are taking a long time to complete this training zone. In four days you will begin losing points from your final score. If you are still here at seventeen days, you will be ejected from the training zone as failures.

    ¡°That¡¯s not what Elora told us,¡± complained Torger.

    ¡°Actually, she said after ten days we get no rewards and all monsters respawn.¡±

    Torger didn¡¯t like being corrected, but Rome was right. Brun asked ¡°Does that mean we can do the caves we¡¯ve already done again?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know, but it¡¯s worth finding out. Free points would be great. But we do have to hurry and finish in the next seven days.¡±

    After hours of searching, they had gathered hundreds of wedding rings and twenty-two necklaces, and Tyler and Rome scraped up almost a pound of gold from circuit boards. All together they had a little over six pounds of gold. ¡°Enough for two staffs,¡± smiled Brun.

    Torger said ¡°You guys were the mages, you have them. We¡¯ll need to buy me some good armor, and enchant my sword.¡±

    During the search Susan went on her own secret project, and when they set up camp she presented presents to everyone. ¡°I have a hobby as a seamstress. I¡¯m sorry about the low quality, but I didn¡¯t have fabric and a sewing machine.¡±

    She pulled out of a large duffle bag eight wool tunics. ¡°You said there¡¯s a little increase in magic potency with wool garments. We¡¯re all going to have a spell eventually, and the tundra is cold. These should be useful.¡±

    Everyone took a tunic and thanked her for the garment that was made from mismatched sweaters cut and sewn together. The desert and jungle were too hot to wear them, but they would get a lot of use in the forest and tundra.

    As they camped, Nikko and Rome worked on melting the gold and forming it. It didn¡¯t melt completely, but that was just fine because they could hammer it into shape when it was soft. It took them nine hours, but finally Rome cast the enchantment spell on each and they had two diamond wizards staffs. Brun and Rome tried them out by casting Ice 1 at each other. The ice spell was cold, but that was appreciated in the sweltering heat. The staffs worked, then Rome and Nikko slept for eight hours, much longer than the standard five hours. But to be fair they had been awake for twenty-six hours.

    Their trip through the jungle was uneventful and they came back to cave six. This time Elora¡¯s greeting was different. ¡°You have been here for more than ten days, and the caves you have already defeated may be defeated again, but you may only pick two. Your new score will replace your old score for that cave. Would you like to retry cave six?¡±

    ¡°Should we do it? I don¡¯t remember our last score,¡± asked Torger.

    ¡°No, better not risk it. Elora, what was our last score?¡±

    ¡°You have already asked a question in this cave. Would you like to retry cave six?¡±

    ¡°No Elora. We¡¯ll need to find out our two worst scores.¡±

    A strong gust of wind blew them out of the cave. Outside, Torger checked his Maps. All the caves they completed now showed their score above the cave, instead of the C. Their worst was cave 2 with a score of 49, and next was cave 4 with a score of 68.

    ¡°It would be nice to go fix those scores, but that will take us a couple of days. It¡¯s not worth the risk before we hit seventeen days. We only have six days left before we¡¯re ejected.¡± They agreed with Brun that the journey would take too long. Instead they kept heading south.

    Near the south part of the forest, a swarm of bees flew at them. The others panicked, but Rome and Torger smiled and Torger said ¡°Watch this! Earth wall!¡±

    A wall of dirt rose from the ground a foot high, and Torger poured more and more mana into it until it was eight feet high and ten feet wide and three feet thick. It trapped and crushed more than half the bees, and a few Shield 2 and Fire 1 spells from Brun and Rome finished off the rest.

    ¡°That¡¯s cool. That would have come in handy several times on Nuva.¡±

    ¡°Yeah Brun, we¡¯re glad that was a spell that carried over from Ristopan. It can slow a charging bull, but costs a lot of mana and the beast can just go around. But in a cave it can buy us a few minutes of rest.¡±

 Susan

    Chapter 21

    Susan

    Hours later they arrived at cave 8.

    ¡°Welcome to training cave eight. What is your question?¡±

    ¡°Where is cave nine?¡±

    Elora marked Rome¡¯s map and the back wall slid open. The orb lights only went several feet back, then ended and most of the cave was in darkness. ¡°I think that¡¯s a hint to buy glow orbs for the future caves.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s needed for the others, but we have analyze two.¡±

    On Brun¡¯s suggestion they cast the spell and saw everything in monochromatic detail. As they walked in they saw it was a cave full of bears. The bears weren¡¯t big but they had amazingly high health at 650/650. Brun called out the stats of the level seventeen bear and cast Poison 2. A green light flew from his outstretched finger and hit it, then two more flew out from that one hitting two more bears. The spell cut their max health in half and slowly ate away their health from an additional mild venom.

    Rome followed with the same spell, and the six closest bears quickly became low threat nuisances. Still, it took Torger two thrusts to kill each one, and Rome and Brun had to support him, Brun casting damage spells and Rome healing Torger from the occasional claw that connected. Torger hated not having armor. There was no boss and they looked at their score.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 128. Total points available to spend: 253

    Training cave 8 difficulty: 13.9

    Squad strength: 43.2

    Time: 22 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    ¡°We defeated that cave easily enough. We should be good for nine, do you want a full suit of iron armor or a few mithril pieces?¡± Rome didn¡¯t care which way Torger went, since Torger would take the most damage from now on.

    ¡°I need bracers and gauntlets, good ones. The bears hit my hands and arms while swinging the sword. Can we afford both?¡±

    Rome spent 94 points for mithril gauntlets and bracers, then another 126 for a full set of iron armor. ¡°Someone in their squad is going to have play possum while the others kill the bears. Also, our squad strength went up more than five points.¡±

    Gary asked Elora ¡°How is squad strength determined?¡±

    ¡°It is the total levels of everyone in the squad divided by ten, then the strength of weapons, armor and spells are added in. The exact formula is unknown to me. Have a good fight.¡±

    Before they walked in Gary double checked with Susan. ¡°Are you sure you want to do this?¡±

    She looked scared but nodded.

    Gary reminded everyone ¡°Small bears the size of large dogs. They will attack in a group of nine, then another group of nine, then a group of ten. And we won¡¯t have light beyond the first fifteen feet.¡±

    ¡°It sounds like they attack once we enter the agro zone of each group. Susan is acting as our tank, dressed in full armor. Susan you¡¯ll have to pull groups and keep damaging them to keep agro on yourself.¡±

    Joe said ¡°Tyler, no one has any idea what you just said. Susan, just run in a few feet ahead of us and turtle up. Lay on the ground while they are trying to swat through your armor.¡±

    Tyler groaned, having failed again to explain how it works in games. The others just didn¡¯t get it, but hopefully everything would work out.

    Susan was loaded down with the weight of sixty pounds of iron armor, so she waddled in. As soon as the first bears ran at her, she collapsed to the ground and put her arms over her head. She closed her eyes and was batted around like a cat playing with yarn. She heard shouts and the sounds of metal axes sinking into bears, and her bruises piled up. After what seemed like an hour being used as a human pinball, the sounds of battle died away and Gary told her to get up. She crawled to her hands and knees, then felt many of the bruises fade as Gary cast Cure 1 on her. She stood up on shaky legs and finally opened her eyes. Nine dead bears were strewn around the cave floor, and everyone was breathing hard, and they all had cuts on their arms and legs, but none of the bleeding was serious.

    Gary said ¡°These caves are getting too tough for us. I hate to imagine the next one. Rest up everyone. Susan, we¡¯ll help you out of that armor and someone else can be the bears¡¯ pi?ata.¡±

    As they rested Tyler thought aloud ¡°I wonder if we would be rated d rank adventurers yet? The veterans would probably be a ranked.¡±

    Everyone ignored him, not wanting a detailed explanation of whatever it was he was talking about. After four minutes, Gary cast another Cure 1 on Susan, but didn¡¯t want to wait another four minutes for the mana to recharge. He wanted to ask the others if they thought they should buy armor or mana after this dungeon, but as a trained leader he believed he had to be confident and have the answers. In his mind a leader asking for advice from his subordinates was a sign of weakness. He couldn¡¯t understand why Rome always had conversations with his group, instead of telling them what they were going to do. But that was their business.

    They tentatively left the light, and stayed just at the edge of where they could see. ¡°Run ten steps forward, then turn around and run back,¡± was Tyler¡¯s advice to Susan. Gary didn¡¯t like him giving orders to another, but he would give her the same instructions anyway.

    She waddled forward, then turned around as soon as the first bear charged her. In her hurry, she tripped and fell and all she could do was ball up like last time. ¡°Dammit she¡¯s in the deep shadows. Charge!¡±

    Everyone followed Gary¡¯s command immediately. Susan was only eight steps away, but by the time they got to her five bears were crushing her and trying to pry open her armor, and four more were rushing in. All four men picked a bear and swung their axes into a skull. All four injured bears turned their attention to their attackers, and the men had to swing wildly in the dim light, barely seeing their foes. After five strikes each, there were four more dead bears. They ran forward again to see the remaining five bears had pried away the round shield from Susan¡¯s arm, and had pried off the helmet. They tyter sized armor was comically large on her, and it gave room for the bears to peel it off her.

    Gary saw she wasn¡¯t moving. He yelled ¡°Nikko, drag her back to the entrance!¡±

    Nikko wanted to fight, and was about to argue but thought this wasn¡¯t the best time for it. He walked up to her and waited for Tyler, Joe, and Gary to drive back the bears, each taking massive wounds to the arms to give him room. Nikko dropped his axe and grabbed Susan under the armpits. It took all his strength to drag her but he persisted until he was at the entrance wall. He knew it wouldn¡¯t open until the cave was cleared, but Susan still wasn¡¯t moving. ¡°HELP! Can you guys hear me out there! Rome can you get in here? We need help!¡±

    The wall didn¡¯t slide back letting him drag her outside. Nikko looked at her more closely. Claw marks sank deep into her head and face, and the armor was dented everywhere and some dents had small piercings. Nikko took off her boots, then greaves, then bracers before Gary and the others arrived.

    ¡°Cure One!¡± A gold light shot out of Gary¡¯s blood covered hand. The light hit Susan, but she didn¡¯t budge.

    An hour later Gary said ¡°Cure one.¡± The light shot out of his finger into his own chest. The last of his scratches disappeared, and everyone in the squad had returned to full health.

    ¡°I¡¯ll do it¡± volunteered Joe.

    ¡°No, it has to be me.¡± Gary removed the pauldrons from the corpse. Next he removed the chainmail skirt, and finally the chest plate. As he was un-strapping it he muttered ¡°I never lost a guard. Thousands of cell extractions and fights, near a hundred guards injured, but never one died under my watch.¡±

    The others didn¡¯t know what to say and remained quiet. Gary pulled off the chest plate and began putting it on himself. Nikko giggled at seeing Susan in her bra and panties, even though she was covered in blood. Joe said ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±

    He reached toward her breasts and Nikko laughed louder. Joe pulled out a folded piece of paper stuck in her bra.

    If you are reading this, I am probably dead. I am writing this shortly after finding out I won¡¯t be going back to Earth. My place is not in the wilderness, fighting for my life. I have given up on life, but suicide would bring shame to my family. Protecting my friends with my life is very honorable. If you do get back to Earth somehow, please contact my children and tell them I died with great honor. Please retell my deeds in a positive light as you recount our time together.

    Joe read it aloud, and then handed it to Gary. He placed it in the iron boot next to his own dead letter, for all the others to see.

    Without a word he walked toward the back of the cave, and the others walked to the edge of the light. Gary had five more strength points than Susan. He couldn¡¯t run in the armor that was way too big for him, but he could walk rather than waddle like she had. Once the last group of bears charged him, he turned and walked back. He wouldn¡¯t make the same mistake she had and trip. The first bear swatted him in the back of the legs, but the armor held. He staggered but didn¡¯t fall. Gritting his teeth, Gary slowly walked back to the light, getting hit and staggering multiple times. By the time he got there the greaves were ruined and he was bleeding profusely from the backs of his legs.

    Gary turned around and swung his axe in a rage. His anger had risen and risen until it reached a boiling point. The axe went clean through a bears¡¯ paw. Gary took a few more steps back and was in a tight area of the cave.

    Joe had remembered a story Brun told of them piling up razorlings in a cave to create a choke point, fighting just one or two at a time instead of all of them at the same time. It worked also on the bears. Gary stood there swinging away while the others called him to retreat, but he didn¡¯t. Finally Joe and Tyler rushed forward and dragged Gary back, and Nikko filled the gap attacking the bear trying to squeeze between the piles of dead bears.

    Gary yelled ¡°Get off me! Let me fight! I have to do this!¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Joe yelled back. ¡°You¡¯ve lost a lot of blood. Cure yourself. We can¡¯t do it or we would.¡±

    Gary struggled but couldn¡¯t get them off him. Finally he relented. After a minute, Tyler switched places with an exhausted Nikko. Nikko looked at Gary. ¡°We need you. We need your experience and leadership to survive.¡±

    A few seconds later Gary cast Cure 1 on himself.

    Ten minutes later Gary was carrying Susan in his arms out the entrance of the cave when Tyler said ¡°Hold up. We need to buy upgrades.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll do it next time.¡± Gary kept walking.

    Tyler persisted ¡°Then just take a few seconds to look at the kiosk screen. The symbols are different this time.¡±

    Gary looked over, and the words were different. He walked over and read it.

    One of your squad members has died. Do you want to retry cave 8?

    Yes No Details

    Gary handed Susan¡¯s body to Joe, then he pressed details and read the next screen.

    When a squad member dies without a respawn, the squad may defeat the cave again and both scores will be added to the total points available. Do you want to retry cave 8? Yes No

    Gary pressed yes, then sighed. He reluctantly asked ¡°Tyler, what is a game strategy for the four of us defeating this cave?¡±

    Tyler smiled broadly. ¡°We have a level one healer, no ranged support, one tank with damaged armor and two dd¡¯s. Only a total noob would put this party together to face superior numbers and mobs. Still, the choke point is a must¡­¡±

    Nikko had on the armor and kept his back to the side of the cave. He crept along until the bears charged. Five came at him, and the other four bears attacked the other three people. Nikko took the attacks, but kept moving to the back of the cave. Once he had gone another fifteen feet, he lay down on his back, shield strapped to his left arm and axe in his right. He swung with the axe at a bear¡¯s foot, then kicked another one and kicked another, then swung his axe again while the bears pounded on the shield.

    He got bruised in the armor, but tried his best to keep them mad at him. After a few minutes, he felt some bruises heal instantly. He had to wait another four minutes until he would receive another cure spell, so he focused exclusively on keeping the shield between himself and the sharp claws. He even dropped the axe, which had only done minor damage to the five bears.

    Gary stood near Nikko fighting the bears as best he could, but was pleased to see the massive damage Tyler and Joe were making on the other side of the group. Their attacks from behind the bears caused blood to fly out everywhere, and soon four of the five remaining bears were paralyzed in their back legs. The battle didn¡¯t last long after that.

    ¡°Those are called crits,¡± smiled Tyler. ¡°When you damage a mob from behind, you take off extra health. Good job Gary for keeping them facing you with their backs turned to us.¡±

    Gary nodded but thought the bears were exceptionally stupid beasts. He cast Cure 1¡¯s while they piled the bodies to create a choke point. He couldn¡¯t get over how all the bears had disappeared from their first time through the cave. Where did they go? They were there until his squad left then re-entered, but that was only a couple of minutes. It didn¡¯t matter, as he knew the choke point would make all the difference. Without putting on the armor, he ran to ¡°pull¡± the next group then ran back behind the barricade.

    The plan worked way better than he thought it would, and as they were walking back to the cave entrance he said ¡°Tyler, you just got promoted. You¡¯re now our chief strategist. As such, what should we purchase with our points?¡±Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

    Tyler asked Gary to read the screen to them.

    Well done hunters. Your score from round 1 was 51.

    Training cave 8 difficulty: 13.9

    Squad strength: 16.1

    Time: 1 hour, 13 minutes

    Your score from round 2 was 76.

    Training cave 8 difficulty 13.9

    Squad strength 13.9

    Time: 55 minutes

    Because someone in your party died, your squad gets 2 respawns. All points are spent.

    Select the 2 members who get a respawn:

    Gary Nikko Tyler Joe

    Gary selected himself and Joe. Himself because from now on he would be the ¡°tank¡± as Tyler put it, and Joe because he couldn¡¯t face Rome if Joe died.

    Chapter 22

    Darkness

    Gary carried Susan¡¯s body outside. The veterans were shocked to see her limp and lifeless. After stories were exchanged, they buried her. Gary pulled Rome to the side and told him if he died, he had her letter in his boot.

    Over a campfire, Nikko tried to heat and hammer out the dented iron armor as best he could while Brun tried to sharpen their very dull axes on a flat wet stone. Joe cooked leftover lagik meat (the panther/ boar animal) while Gary, Tyler, Rome and Torger discussed strategy.

    ¡°Cave nine is due west at the edge of the forest and tundra. We¡¯ve got to hurry before our seventeen days is up.¡±

    Torger had a point. They were close to hitting the twelve days mark, and had seven more caves to defeat. ¡°We might have to skip a couple, but we can¡¯t leave Gary¡¯s squad and they can¡¯t skip one,¡± added Rome.

    ¡°We were nearly wiped out in caves seven and eight. We¡¯re not prepared for cave nine, no matter what it is.¡± Gary looked to Tyler for advice.

    ¡°It¡¯s probably going to be dark. We may be fighting blind, and the kiosks haven¡¯t let us make purchases before a fight. We don¡¯t know if glowing orbs can be transferred, but you guys are going to have to buy several and see if they can be used by us. Not only that, I¡¯m confused by the kiosk messages. It first said if we conquer the cave again, we would get combined scores. But when we did that, it instead gave us two respawns.¡±

    ¡°How many points did you have total?¡± asked Rome. ¡°A respawn costs sixty-five points.¡±

    ¡°I spent them all last time, and this time we gained a hundred twenty-seven.¡±

    ¡°That answers it,¡± said Torger. ¡°Kind of. We should ask Elora next time.¡±

    Tyler gave a firm ¡°No. She gave us a partial answer on how squad strength is determined, but now we have to ask her how scores are determined. We have nothing to compare our scores against, but we have to be getting below average scores. The tyters would rarely make it to the end if our scores were their average. I¡¯ve done some math and a squad of five would need to get nearly three hundred points per cave for full battle mesh armor with Takinu and laser attachment, and that doesn¡¯t include a weapon or dimensional pouch you said each one had. We have to get our scores much higher.¡±

    ¡°Ok, that makes sense,¡± started Torger, ¡°but remember Shug¡¯s squad was the most elite squad they had. The squad that defeated the trolls had a mix of steel and mithril, but even at that they would have had to get two hundred points per cave.¡±

    ¡°Unless it stacks.¡±

    Everyone looked at Rome. He continued ¡°this planet is training zone eighteen. Maybe they go through multiple training zones before going to Nuva, or one of the many other battle planets.¡±

    ¡°Another question for Elora. Stepping back and looking at the bigger picture, we need more speed. We¡¯ve got to get from cave to cave much quicker before time runs out. I don¡¯t want to find out what ¡®eject¡¯ means.¡± Gary looked for their nods before continuing. ¡°How much are we slowing you guys down? Answer honestly.¡±

    Rome told him the truth. ¡°You and Brun have a stamina of fifty-five, while Torger and I have a stamina of ninety. Everyone else is below fifty. Bringing everyone to seventy-five would double our travel speed to almost eight miles per hour, and that¡¯s without us constantly casting haste one on everyone. If we weren¡¯t afraid of being low on mana when getting attacked the three of us could constantly cast haste two.¡±

    Gary nodded. ¡°Consider it done.¡±

    Tyler cried out ¡°No, we need other things. Weapons, armor, mana, orb lights, more health. We need everything. We can¡¯t spend all our next points on one thing.¡±

    Rome slapped his forehead. ¡°Dimensional pouch. Lugging all that iron armor around is slowing us down. I can¡¯t spend my points on your stamina, but I can buy a dimensional pouch instead of Torger and I always carrying the armor.¡±

    It took almost a full day to get to cave 9. By the time they got there everyone agreed buying stamina would be key. After the standard greeting, Elora marked Rome¡¯s map where cave 10 was. As they entered Torger said ¡°I didn¡¯t want to say anything in front of the others, but why didn¡¯t we ask about the point system and use that for this cave? They could have asked where cave ten was.¡±

    ¡°Their squad member died. Elora may not ask the standard question. We can¡¯t spend time searching randomly for another cave.¡±

    Torger accepted Rome¡¯s answer and saw that indeed there were no orb lights. All three cast Analyze 2 so they could see. Huge bats filled the ceiling. There were easily over a hundred and fifty. Brun selected one and called out the stats.

    Vampire bat Level 20

    Health 125 (550) Strength 4 (10) Stamina 35 Mana 0

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what the parenthesis mean,¡± said Brun.

    ¡°I guess we¡¯ll find out.¡±

    As soon as Rome spoke five bats flew at them. Torger cut one in half with his sword and Brun and Rome cast Fire 1 and Ice 1 respectively. As soon as the bats were close, they transformed into humans, bit the necks of the three men, then turned back into bats and flew away. The bites didn¡¯t cause a lot of damage, just five health points each, but getting attacked by twenty or thirty at once would mean death in seconds.

    ¡°If I turn into a vampire, kill me. I hope it goes away with a respawn,¡± said Torger as he took off the iron chainmail skirt and draped it over the iron helmet. He was glad he had the mithril bracers and gauntlets, then was sad he hadn¡¯t loaned them to Susan. He was sure the iron would be enough against the bears. He pushed away the thought and as he started walking away Brun told him to wait.

    ¡°The numbers in the parenthesis must be the bat in human form. Your sword wouldn¡¯t have killed a monster with five hundred fifty health in one swing. They¡¯ll be a whole lot stronger and tougher as humans, so kill as many bats as you can.¡±

    ¡°I wish we had potions here,¡± grumbled Rome. ¡°We would be a lot more useful in this battle.¡±

    ¡°To be fair, when we got here the kiosk at the entrance portal did say they recommend squads with five to ten tyters. If there were five more of me this wouldn¡¯t be so bad.¡± Torger turned and walked forward a few steps.

    At first three, then ten, then all of the bats flew blindly around the cave. Torger swung his sword through the air as quick as he could slicing off wings. The injured bats fell to the floor, then became human and were bleeding out of arm stumps. They did not turn into bats again, but ran at Torger.

    Rome and Brun cast multiple Shield 1¡¯s between Torger and the vampires. It seemed they had little intelligence even in human form and beat on the shields until they shattered or until they vampire died from Lightning 1 repercussions from the shields and blood loss. Some ran at Brun and Rome who had to stop protecting Torger and cast their own Shield 2 bubbles around themselves. Then Rome strengthened the shields with extra health points and added Fire 1 and Ice 1. Every time a vampire in human form hit the shield, it lost 24 health, but soon there were eleven vampires banging on Rome¡¯s shield and fourteen banging on Brun¡¯s.

    Rome was out of mana, and Brun spent the last of his casting Shield 1¡¯s around Torger. He called ¡°Torger, come back! You¡¯re on your own to cure yourself.¡±

    Torger sliced another bat in half and cut the wings off two more as he waited for the protective shields to fail. When the last one shattered, he ran back to the others and called out ¡°Earth wall.¡± He poured more and more mana into it until it was six feet tall and he was out of mana. The dirt wall was a half circle that connected to the cave walls on each end, completely blocking out the vampires in human form, but the bats could still fly over the top of it.

    The one armed vampires struggled to climb the wall, usually dragging down the one in front of them.

    ¡°You¡¯ve gotta teach me that spell,¡± said Brun.

    ¡°The problem,¡± Torger swung at a bat, ¡°Is it lasts¡± he killed another one ¡°only five minutes.¡± He killed another. ¡°We¡¯ve gotta think¡± another wingless bat ¡°of what to do next.¡± He decapitated an injured vampire.

    ¡°How many are left?¡± asked Rome. ¡°Most of the ones attacking our shields are near dead.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve killed¡± another bat fell to the floor ¡°more than half.¡± Another wingless bat turned human. ¡°And most of- the others are- wounded,¡± he finished as he killed the remaining vampires who were too stupid to look behind them and see Torger. Instead, one at a time their heads rolled as they finally stopped banging on Rome¡¯s and Brun¡¯s shields.

    More bats were flying overhead, but Torger said ¡°I need a breather.¡± He didn¡¯t kill more bats but instead only defended himself against the ones who turned human and tried to bite him. None of them succeeded because they always tried to bite his neck and the chain mail skirt over his helm stopped them. He decided to try to just let them fail in their attempts to bite him, but they grabbed his arms to pull him close to themselves, and since there were three trying to bite his neck, he got pulled in three different directions at once.

    Torger used all of his twenty strength points to push them away then stabbed each one through the heart, on Rome¡¯s suggestion. It didn¡¯t add extra damage to them like the fabled wooden stake.

    Just as he finished the last one, the dirt wall disappeared. Torger dropped his head and slouched his shoulders; he was too tired to keep going. ¡°I¡¯m at four stamina. Sorry guys.¡±

    Rome called ¡°Get back here.¡± He dismissed his bubble shield and ran and took the sword out of Torger¡¯s hands. Torger knew Rome¡¯s skill was 13 with two handed swords, not like Torger¡¯s 64, but he had no choice.

    Rome didn¡¯t have time to take the neck protection and stabbed three human vampires before he was surrounded by twenty plus one armed fiends. But they were all moving very slowly, and even the few remaining bats had clung to the ceiling again.

    Brun called out ¡°They had very low stamina to begin with, and the humans are still bleeding out. They have to be close to dead. Don¡¯t waste a lot of energy on big swings Rome.¡±

    He took the advice and found that light thrusts to the neck or chest was enough to kill most of them. In a few minutes all the human forms were dead, but the bats clinging to the ceiling started stirring again.

    Torger¡¯s stamina had risen to nine, so he retook his sword and ran into the center of the cylindrical cave. The thirteen remaining bats flew at him, but he had enough mana to cast Shield 1 above his head. Nine of the bats flew into it before it shattered and they all turned to humans. To conserve energy, Torger walked backwards, swiping at their hands. Brun had regained enough mana to cast Shield 1 between Torger and the human vampires, but they just walked around it. Torger kept slicing their hands as he walked backwards, all of them draining what little stamina they had left.

    Brun came up next and took the sword. His skill in two handed swords was only 9, but it was enough to finish off the exhausted, slow moving vampires and vampire bats.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 156. Total points available to spend: 189

    Training cave 9 difficulty: 18.1

    Squad strength: 44.6

    Time: 48 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    ¡°Wow a hundred fifty-six.¡± Brun was happy with that result.

    ¡°Yeah but the difficulty went from thirteen nine to eighteen one. That¡¯s a huge jump. Cave eight was the end of the first half, since Elora said there are sixteen standard caves. Now what to buy?¡± Rome asked the question more to himself than the others.

    After a couple minutes the kiosk read:

    Iron mail skirt x 3 = 54

    10 orb lights = 20

    35 stamina (Brun) = 35

    Customize gem x 1 = 75

    Remaining points = 25

    Rome placed the tyter sized iron chest plate on the table and selected the customize gem.

    What would you like to do with this armor?

    ¡°I want to resize it,¡± he spoke to the prompt.

    You may resize or repair up to five iron pieces of armor for 1 customize gem. Do you wish to proceed?

    ¡°No, wait.¡± He placed the helmet, pauldrons, boots and greaves on the table with the chest plate. ¡°Continue.¡±

    A program came up the same as he used for changing Torger¡¯s sword so the pommel would better fit his hands. Rome quickly found that changing the sizes of five pieces at once quickly used up the 75 customize points. When they were all spent the armor would have fit well on a man who is 6¡¯8¡± and weighs 290 pounds. Torger tried them on and had a little more movement than before, but it was still far from good. On the plus side downsizing armor had the bonus of repairing it.

    Outside they briefed Gary. Rome started. ¡°Vampire bats that turn into vampire humans. Not like the movies, you don¡¯t turn into a vampire if bitten, so no worries there. They are much weaker in bat form and in either form try to bite your neck, so we bought you all iron chainmail skirts. Brun figured out they have exceptionally low stamina. We don¡¯t know what the orb lights do, you¡¯ll have to figure that out on your own. Now here¡¯s the strategy we came up with for you¡­¡±

    Elora asked for their question and Gary asked ¡°How do we gain more points from each cave?¡±

    She paused and looked like she glitched as processors were working too hard. After several seconds she answered ¡°Starting now, at the conclusion of each cave you may tap the part of the screen that says ¡®Your score is blank.¡¯ It will show a partial breakdown of how the score was calculated. Have a good fight.¡±

    Elora disappeared and the back wall slid open. Gary looked into absolute darkness. ¡°No choice but to put our trust in their strategy. Stay brave men, and stick to the plan.¡±

    They walked in a few steps, the door closed behind them and then Gary threw five of the ten golf ball looking orbs into different parts of the cave.

    Each ball burst into a soft white light and stuck to wherever it hit a wall, except one he threw at the ceiling stuck to a bat. Immediately every bat in the cave took flight going in every direction, and they could easily track the one flying around glowing white. Five orb lights was nowhere near enough to make the cave bright, but they could see decently.

    Any bat that came near them turned into a human and tried to bite their necks, but were blocked by the iron chain mail over their heads that draped past their shoulders. Joe had a hard time resisting the urge to swing his axe, but stuck to the plan and let his body remain limp. Various vampires tried to pull them close to bite them, and the men just allowed themselves to get pulled in whatever direction was needed, not attacking and conserving energy. Many of the vampires hissed at the lights, and all avoided getting near them. The bat had died with an orb still stuck to it and lay still in the far back of the cave.

    After five minutes all five orb lights went out, throwing them into complete darkness once again. ¡°Stay the course, keep limp, keep holding on to your mail,¡± commanded Gary. ¡°This is going to go on for another twenty or thirty minutes. You must stay calm.¡±

    All four men had an axe in their left hand and a grasp of the chain mail in their right, with their hands held tight to the center of their chests.

    After twenty minutes of trying to do nothing, they could feel the vampires slowing down. ¡°Just another three minutes.¡±

    Nikko had made a game of getting pulled back and forth by the vampires and was laughing. The others were unsure if the mentally unstable man was aware of the danger they were in, but to his credit Nikko always followed Gary¡¯s commands.

    When Gary heard several vampires wheezing for breath, he threw another orb light at the closest one. The sudden light, while very dim, hurt their eyes. The vampire screamed in pain and the others backed away from him. Many returned to bats and flew to cling to the ceiling.

    All four men started hacking at the remaining vampires with their axes. The vampires were a little stronger, but too tired to put up much of a fight. It took six or seven axe blows to kill each one in human form, but soon more than twenty were dead, all the others clung to the ceiling as bats. Gary threw another orb light and hit a bat. As it flew around in pain, the bats it came close to left their perch and fled from the light. Any that flew near the men met an axe head. The men and axes were too weak to kill a bat with one blow like Torger could do with the steel sword, but when they fell from the sky and became human they were seriously wounded, often with skulls cracked open. They easily succumbed to the axes.

    Gary had three orb lights left and cast one at a time, intentionally hitting a bat to make it fly around keeping all the others exhausted. Just before the last light went out, they marked where the wounded vampires were and had to kill them in complete darkness, taking a few bites but nothing serious.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 168. Total points available to spend: 168

    Training cave 9 difficulty: 18.1

    Squad strength: 16.7

    Time: 52 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Gary tapped where it said ¡°Your score.¡±

    18.1/16.7=1.08

    100-52 (Minutes)=48

    1.08x48=51

    Damage dealt with primary weapon 2432

    2432/20=121

    Damage taken 41

    41/10=4

    121-4=117

    51+117=168

    ¡°No wonder Elora couldn¡¯t answer the question. That¡¯s confusing as hell,¡± Gary complained.

    ¡°We can¡¯t read the screen, remember?¡± prompted Tyler.

    ¡°I can¡¯t put that into words. I¡¯ll write it out for you. You can geek all over it Tyler.¡±

 Hurry

    Chapter 23

    Hurry

    Gary spent 110 points bringing everyone¡¯s stamina to 75, then touched dimensional pouch for 28p. The lowest level bag reduced weight by 10% and had two cubic feet of space. The next one doubled in price and reduced weight by 20% and had six cubic feet of space. All the rest were grayed out. Gary bought the second one, trusting Rome to buy a lot more orb lights after cave ten.

    As they walked south west to the coast in the middle of the tundra region, Joe told them about the helpless feeling in pitch blackness, being pulled in different directions and knowing his squad was near, but unable to see them.

    ¡°Kind of reminds me of Thirrell,¡± said Torger. Rome nodded.

    Brun asked ¡°What about him? He was your replacement when they booted us out of Home, then usurped Baybil and became tribal chief.¡±

    Torger told the story. ¡°I had become the governor of a dwarf city after they ousted a tyrant named Small Foot, but I already told you guys about that. While training my replacement, I taught him to be among the people. Spend a day occasionally fishing with the fisher uh, dwarves. Wash clothes with the dwarf ladies, stuff like that. It was a very small village and everyone knew everyone, so I found that by being among them it kept morale high, and higher morale meant increased production.

    ¡°I taught him a lot in the five months I had to train him, but he seemed to like punishing dwarves for bad behavior. I could do little to change that attitude, and hoped it would go away. Instead it got worse. After a few months, he blackmailed and bribed the council members to replace the tribal chief with himself, and then he let his true heart show. He ruled with an iron fist driving the whole tribe like a colony of ants. The few rebels were publicly tied up and beaten by Thirrell¡¯s personal guards, their business and assets seized by the government.

    ¡°Dozens of prayers went to Muldwil every day, received by Ristopan, until he finally decided to get off his ancient butt and do something. When he looked through his scrying globe he was horrified at how overworked the dwarves were. Morale across the whole tribe was almost at hatred. Ristopan, Rome and I went to overthrow Thirrell. He died by suicide, but that wasn¡¯t good enough for Ristopan. He used his highest level spell, Revive. It can raise someone from the dead within one minute of dying. He ordered all dwarves to move east, closer to his keep, but left Thirrell behind. He told him since he wanted to be in charge so much, he was now sovereign ruler of all of Home for the rest of his life, which would be more than another hundred years. Ristopan cast a shield over the village that both damages and heals anyone who attacks it. For the first six hours Thirrell pounded on the shield taking the pain of fifty damage but without his health ever dropping because he would get cured the same amount with each of his punches to the shield. He now has all the food and water he could want, but there is no metal in the village. A dwarf is driven to dig in mines, and that lack of being able to do so will drive him crazy. He is healthy and well fed with nothing to do at all for the rest of his life, a mad ruler with not a single subject to rule over.¡±

    ¡°If you knew the revive spell, why didn¡¯t you save Susan?¡± asked Nikko.

    ¡°We never got to that level. Ristopan is now one oh three, and the highest we got was seventy-three. A spell of that difficulty was far beyond our ability.¡±

    They walked in silence for a while thinking about being stuck on 1PX all alone for years. None of them wanted that. They watched clouds roll in.

    Later Tyler said ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking about the points sheet.¡±

    ¡°You better keep this real simple,¡± Gary threatened.

    ¡°I will.¡±

    ¡°Remember when I pummeled Brun when he told me he killed my family, but they just kept casting cures on him? I can cure you once every four minutes.¡± Gary punched his own fist.

    Tyler stayed quiet for a couple of minutes. ¡°Basically you want to know how we can increase our points in each cave. It turns out our low squad strength and how quickly we finish a cave only help a little with the score. The most important thing is dealing damage with our primary weapons, and second most important is not taking damage.¡±

    ¡°What are our primary weapons?¡±

    ¡°I have no idea.¡±

    Brun joined in. ¡°We have different skill levels with different weapons. Maybe it¡¯s our highest skill level.¡±

    It sounded reasonable and he explained how he used to be a black mage and Rome used to be a white mage. ¡°So I¡¯ll cast damage dealing spells and Rome will keep our health topped up.¡±

    With everyone¡¯s higher stamina they got to cave 10 much quicker, but the timer worried Rome. He muttered ¡°Three and a half days left.¡±

    Before they entered he double checked with the others. ¡°Are you guys sure we ask for the next cave location instead of confirming our primary weapons.¡±

    Torger nodded and whispered so the other squad wouldn¡¯t hear. ¡°What if they don¡¯t make it? We¡¯ll have to find another cave on our own.¡±

    Rome looked at his brother Joe and his heart ached thinking they had smaller chances of surviving each remaining cave.

    They got the location of cave eleven from Elora then walked inside. It was pitch black again, but they had all cast Analyze 2 before entering. When they entered it wasn¡¯t a large round room like the vampires, but a small tunnel that they had to stoop to walk in. A tyter would have to crawl. Instead of stone walls like all other caves, this tunnel had dirt walls. Walking back for a while led them to an intersection.

    ¡°This is the first one that¡¯s not a long straight tube shape or large cavern in the shape of a cylinder. Which way do we go?¡± asked Rome.

    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter.¡±

    Rome turned left. As soon as he did goblins entered the tunnel from both sides, trapping them in.

    ¡°Tyters don¡¯t hunt the goblins on Nuva. Why are they training for it here?¡±

    Torger¡¯s question went unanswered as the goblins charged. Rome cast Shield 2 around the three of them then strengthened it and added Fire 1 and Ice 1 to it.

    The goblins would hit it then yelp in pain as they lost 24 health, then hit it again. They all carried a dagger or spear, but made of copper. The three men waited in the shield until it shattered. Torger faced one direction and fought and killed the goblins, but with little room to swing his sword it took longer than he would have liked. Brun cast Fire 1 spells at the already injured goblins on the other side, while Rome held up the iron round shield blocking attacks from the crude and small weapons. He had little skill using a shield and several times took cuts to his hands and legs. Once Torger killed the ten goblins on his side, he turned and killed the remaining three on Rome¡¯s side. They walked through the tunnel until they came to another intersection, and they were attacked by another group of twenty-four goblins, but this time Brun and Rome had wrapped their waists and legs with iron chain mail skirts. They focused on just blocking attacks waiting for Torger to kill the goblins from one tunnel at a time.

    Not knowing which way to go they chose to go straight through the intersection and entered a large cavern. Inside were two large goblin warriors and a hobgoblin. The warriors had almost complete sets of iron armor and each had an iron mace and shield. The hobgoblin held a silver staff and immediately cast Lightning 1. The spell hit Torger who was in the lead. He ignored the pain and rushed in. Rome cast a Cure 1 on him and Brun returned the Lightning 1 spell with a Beserk 2 spell. The hobgoblin dropped his staff and ran at Brun trying to punch him with bare hands. Rome bashed him in the head a few times with the round shield and the hobgoblin died.

    Torger was in his element easily swinging the sword, dodging, and parrying the warriors who tried to hit him with their maces and block with their shields. The fight was sad as Torger took just six seconds to cut both arms off both goblins. He then decapitated them and the cave glowed with light. In the distance they heard the entrance door slide open.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 141. Total points available to spend: 166

    Training cave 10 difficulty: 18.3

    Squad strength: 45.0

    Time: 21 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    ¡°Why is our score so low?¡± complained Torger. ¡°We mostly used our primary weapons, my sword and your staffs, and we didn¡¯t take that much damage.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ll have to ask Tyler. What do we want to buy?¡±

    As much as Torger wanted to buy two customize gems to make all his armor the right size, they had to buy armor for the others. Rome said ¡°There¡¯s four of them. They already have four axes, four skirts, and one full set of iron armor with shield.¡± He ended up buying twenty orb lights, one pair of iron gauntlets, and three iron shields. ¡°It¡¯s all we can afford. No more points.¡±

    Outside they rushed into action. Joe and Nikko were standing still looking at the sky while Gary was running away from them holding up his axe. Tyler punched Joe and Nikko lightly in the face and they came out of a daze but quickly went back into one. ¡°Cottols!¡± yelled Torger.

    Torger ran to the right and saw one. Before he could get to it the large cat cast a confusion spell on him. Torger dropped his sword and turned his back to it. The cat pounced to rake its claws across Torger¡¯s back, but as it was in the air a shield formed near Torger. The cottol slammed into the magic shield and cracked it, then the beast ran back into the woods.

    While Rome was protecting Torger, Brun cast Lightning 1 multiple times at the one Gary was battling. The cat had taken several swipes against Gary¡¯s unprotected flesh, but he grit his teeth and kept swinging his axe, sometimes landing a glancing blow to the cat. The bonuses from Brun¡¯s gold staff and wool tunic meant each Lightning 1 spell took off 31 health points, but he was low on mana having just finished the hobgoblin a few minutes earlier.

    Tyler, Joe, and Nikko were finally all alert and rushed the third and final cat, while Rome ran to hit Torger for one health point, pulling him out of his stupor. The cat cast a confusion spell and it hit Rome, but that was all the time Torger needed to run up to it and sink his blade into the cat¡¯s skull. A second blow killed it.

    Brun¡¯s spells aided Gary enough to kill the cottol he was battling, but he was bleeding heavily and out of breath when the beast finally died. The other three men were having a much more difficult time. Their skill with axes had risen only to level seven in all their fighting, and their swings were still a bit clumsy and misplaced. None of them had any armor since whichever squad was in the cave took all the armor with them. The cat ripped open Joe¡¯s arm as he swung at it and he cried out in pain. Rome turned and cast a Shield 1 between them and the cat then called out ¡°I¡¯m out of mana!¡±

    The beast simply walked around the eight foot by eight foot shield and the battle continued. Tyler and Nikko each got in a hit to its flank, but got scratched arms in return. Torger cast a Shield 2 around the beast then ran and finished it off. While he cast Cure 1¡¯s on Gary¡¯s squad Gary said ¡°It was cloudy when you guys went in, so we were on alert for low level monsters, but as soon as you entered a light rain started. The cats appeared just a minute before you came out. Another couple minutes and we would be dead.¡±

    ¡°We bought three more round shields and a pair of gauntlets,¡± said Rome. ¡°You¡¯ll have to keep them with you while we¡¯re in the next caves.¡±

    They discussed strategy and entered the cave. Gary asked Elora ¡°What is a primary weapon?¡±

    ¡°A primary weapon is a weapon held in the right hand. Ranged attacks do not count as a primary weapon even if it is held in the right hand. Have a good fight.¡±

    Tyler said ¡°That explains their low score. All the spells cast by Brun and Rome didn¡¯t count towards their score.¡±

    Gary had thrown two orb lights into the tunnel as far as he could. He was dressed in full armor, while the others each had a shield and mail skirt, and Joe had on the pair of gauntlets. All four were sure to keep their axes in their right hand only, even though the handles were too big for a good grasp. They could just see the first intersection far in the distance. Twenty feet before they got to it Gary threw two more orb lights into it. He walked as fast as he could to it, then turned and walked back as goblins poured out of the three tunnels into the intersection. But they remained there and didn¡¯t bottleneck into the tunnel where the humans were. They stood there waiting for the humans to come to them, where there was a lot more room to use their spears and swords.

    ¡°That didn¡¯t work,¡± explained Nikko, stating the obvious.

    ¡°Yeah got it. Tyler, what do we do now?¡± asked Gary.

    ¡°In games when you pull mobs, they¡¯ll usually follow you further than where we are, but they seem to have a short leash. They are somewhat intelligent. We could try the same thing as the vampires.¡±

    ¡°No¡± said Joe. ¡°They had low stamina and only attacked the necks. We don¡¯t know the goblins stamina and they¡¯ll attack us anywhere. If we can disarm them they won¡¯t be much of a threat.¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve got to move quickly. Orb lights are burning,¡± said Gary. ¡°We¡¯re just going to have to use our shields more than our axes. I wish they had smaller handles. They worked great with two hands but are unwieldy with one hand. Focus on blocking more than attacking.¡±

    They marched forward, Gary in the lead. Just one foot from the intersection, all twenty-four goblins rushed him. He put up his shield, and Joe and Tyler ran to either side of him putting up their shields too. Nikko complained ¡°You guys trapped me back here.¡±

    The goblins beat on the shields with their spears and swords, and occasionally one would get through injuring Joe or Tyler. Joe¡¯s bracers protected his arms, but his hands and legs got hit. Gary was covered in armor head to toe and took no damage, but he couldn¡¯t counter attack either.

    On a particularly powerful spear thrust Joe grabbed the shaft and pulled it out of the three foot tall goblin¡¯s hand. He tossed it behind himself to the floor but had to drop his axe in the process. ¡°Nikko use it to stab them back.¡±

    Nikiko had never held a spear before and most of his thrusts missed as he held it between Gary and Joe, but occasionally got in a hit. The goblin that was now spearless reached down and picked up Joe¡¯s axe! That didn¡¯t work for them. With quick thinking Joe and Gary bashed it in the head with their shields then Gary finished it with his axe, but their formation was broken. Goblins rushed the gap and three got past before Gary and Joe could close it up again. Joe and Tyler took several shallow cuts and Nikko was getting shredded since he had to drop his shield and axe to hold the spear.

    The three front fighters got in an occasional shield bash, but were losing, and Nikko gave up on the spear and tackled one of the little goblins. His high school wrestling kicked in and he easily tossed it into a wall. Bleeding heavily he tackled, disarmed and threw each goblin into a wall over and over.

    Then the orb lights flickered and went out. Gary had to reach into his dimensional pouch and give a mental command ¡°Orb light.¡±

    One appeared in his hand and he threw it. It hit a goblin in the chest but didn¡¯t damage it like the vampires. During that brief time Joe and Tyler took more cuts. They reformed the line and as soon as they did Nikko came up behind them. ¡°One of them had a spear. Joe reach behind you.¡±

    Joe held his right hand behind him and Nikko placed a goblin spear in it. Once Joe had a spear instead of an axe, it felt natural to hold it next to the shield. No goblin could rush straight at him without getting impaled. ¡°We need two more spears. They work better.¡±

    Nikko received a Cure 1 from Gary and some of the bleeding slowed. He stood behind the other three and it was much easier to hit the goblins that were trying to avoid Joe¡¯s spear. After five minutes three more goblins were dead and Gary had to throw another orb light and cast a Cure 1 on Tyler.

    Once all four of them had spears the fight was much easier and they took little damage. Nikko dealt most of the damage as the goblins tried to attack. When the battle was over Gary¡¯s armor was scratched and dented all over, but he was unharmed. Every four minutes he gained enough mana to cast a Cure 1, and then they walked forward. All four carried an iron shield and a copper spear, the axes were carried by Nikko in the back of the line.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

    At the next intersection they all walked in and stood in a circle back to back, the axes on the ground in the middle. The goblins rushed in from three tunnels and the first ones were pushed by others behind them straight into the copper spearheads. They were driven on so deeply that the men couldn¡¯t dislodge them. ¡°Dammit retreat!¡± commanded Gary.

    They stayed in formation, bent down to pick up an axe while also holding the spear, and walked back to the original entrance, all the while goblin swords left minor cuts on exposed flesh. Then they took several steps back into the tunnel. As before, the goblins stayed in the intersection at the edge of the tunnel. ¡°This isn¡¯t working. We¡¯re not equipped for this,¡± said Gary.

    Tyler said ¡°We could try to run past the intersection all the way to the final boss room. The goblins may not follow us once we get far enough, but if they do follow, well we won¡¯t be coming out of here.¡±

    After talking for a while Nikko wore the armor and Tyler wore the bracers. They all ran through the intersection, Nikko in the lead bowling over the goblins. They made it through and after a while the goblins stopped chasing them. A message appeared in front of Gary¡¯s eyes.

    Cowardice. Fleeing from battle. -50 points.

    They came to the boss room, shields and axes ready. As soon as they entered Nikko was hit with Lightning 1. The warriors had much better skill with their maces than the humans had with the axes. The iron axes bounced off the iron armor of the warriors, and the iron maces bludgeoned the humans. Nikko ran at the hobgoblin and got hit with another Lightning 1, but threw his shield out smashing it in the face. A couple good axe swings finished it and he looked back to see one warrior badly wounded from axe strikes by Joe and Tyler but Gary lay on the ground and Nikko watched as the warrior brought down his mace smashing Gary in the head. His body went limp and he disappeared in a pale green light. Nikko ran and tackled the warrior, but he was too big and heavy in his armor for Nikko to throw him. After a minute of wrestling he pinned him down while the others hacked him to death. Their axes were bent and dull after smashing against iron armor in the battle. Before the last orb light went out new orb lights lit the passage back to the front of the cave. None of them could read the kiosk screen so they walked outside.

    Chapter 24

    Respawn

    While the others were inside it began to snow. The veterans heard a roar a few hundred yards away. Rome stayed to keep watch while Torger and Brun went to investigate. They walked over a hill and into a valley, snow accumulating on the ground. In the distance they saw a new cave shimmer in the faint light. They walked a little closer and a message appeared.

    Hidden cave #5. Level 12. 45 points for finding a hidden cave.

    ¡°That¡¯s not so bad,¡± said Torger. We can handle a level twelve cave just fine.¡±

    ¡°Should we bring Rome?¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t have time. And it seems this cave is only available while it¡¯s snowing. We can¡¯t risk it. What if it stops snowing and the cave disappears?¡±

    They walked in and just like with hidden cave 2, it was open land and snowy tundra. Three large ape like monsters ran at them. Brun cast Analyze 2.

    Grey Yeti. Level 28.

    Health 600/600 Strength 18  Stamina 30/30 Mana 0

    ¡°Strong, and high health, but nothing special.¡± Brun cast Shield 2 around all three, buying Torger a few seconds to get to them. It took the Yetis only two punches to smash their shields. The first one Torger came to, he cut off its hand, turned his wrists, then cut off the other hand. Without the ability to punch or grab, the beast was powerless to do anything. Torger ran his blade into its chest, but dense bones stopped the blade, doing just a little damage. He tried a stab to the face and perfectly placed the tip into the Yeti¡¯s mouth and out the back of its head.

    As the creature dropped to the ground Torger turned to see Brun running away from the other two. Torger ran behind them and made a deep cut on the back of the leg of one. It spun and punched him in the face. Torger flew back a few feet, his nose severely broken. He cast Shield 1 in front of himself, blocking the next punch, then cast Cure 2 on himself, relieving some of the pain. The next punch shattered the shield as Torger was standing up. He rolled to the side and swung, slicing the same leg again, the blade being stopped by bone. The monster fell down and Torger stabbed it in the face. He looked up and smiled as Brun was easily outrunning the last Yeti, draining its stamina. Brun circled around and brought it to Torger who sliced off one hand, then the other.

    Hidden cave 5. Your squad leader is not with you. Total points to spend without a squad leader: 175.

    Would you like to make a purchase? All unspent points will be lost.

    (Without a squad leader you may only purchase personal upgrades.)

    All armor and weapons were grayed out and they could buy health, stamina, mana and spells for themselves.

    100 health (Torger) 32p

    200 health (Brun) 64p

    10 Stamina (Torger) 10p

    25 Stamina (Brun) 25p

    1 Strength (Torger) 4 p

    20 Mana (Brun) 40p

    They walked out both with 500 health, 100 stamina, Torger had 21 strength and Brun had 100 mana. That brought Torger to level 74 and Brun to level 68. Rome was still level 49 making them excited to joke with him when they got back, but when they returned they saw everyone looking sad and downcast.

    ¡°What happened?¡± asked Brun.

    Rome answered ¡°Gary didn¡¯t make it. They described the respawn light and he did have a respawn, along with Joe, but we don¡¯t know where the respawn is.¡±

    ¡°It has to be the portal entrance. What do we do? We don¡¯t have time to walk there and back. We¡¯ve got less than three days left.¡±

    Torger said ¡°We should have bought teleport three. We could have built a building here then teleported there then teleported him back to here.¡±

    Brun answered ¡°Rome can do it. He can defeat the Yetis by himself. I think.¡±

    ¡°What Yetis?¡±

    Rome walked into the cave, but didn¡¯t receive the 45 points for finding a hidden cave. The three monsters rushed at him, and he fought the temptation to cast Shield 1. Brun assured him it was a useless spell against their high strength. He cast Earth wall, trapping the feet of one, then levitation on another. The beast thrashed wildly in the air but couldn¡¯t move more than a foot in any direction. The third one punched Rome and he fell on his back. In desperation he used the last of his mana to cast Shield 2.

    The time it took for the yeti to punch it twice allowed Rome to scramble up and run. He ran in circles for many minutes. When the Earth Wall and Levitation spells wore off, those monsters joined the chase. Eventually they got tired and Rome¡¯s stamina was still at 45/75. He held Torger¡¯s sword and was only able to make shallow cuts with his level 12 sword skill, but after an hour the last one died from dozens of shallow cuts.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 99. Total points available to spend: 99

    Hidden cave 5 difficulty: 11.9

    Squad strength: 13.1

    Time: 1 hour 23 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Rome spent 40 points on mana bringing him to 100, and 55 on Teleport 3. With the last points he bought two more orb lights.

    When he got back to cave 10 the others were building a shack out of tree branches. Once done he teleported to the portal entrance on the northeast corner of the continent. Gary was sitting inside sobbing and naked. He looked up to see Rome. ¡°How did you get here? It should be a four day walk for you to cross the continent, if you really pushed yourself.¡±

    ¡°A teleport spell. I¡¯m going to send you back to the others, then I¡¯ve got to wait thirty minutes for my mana to recharge, and I¡¯ll be there too.¡±

    Gary started to ask a question but a pale green light surrounded him. A second later he was sitting in a small crude hut made of tree branches tied with vines. Torger handed him an iron mail skirt and said ¡°Ask questions later. Our time is getting short and we¡¯ve got to hurry.¡±

    Outside his squad was ready for battle with shields and axes. They walked to the hidden cave and before they entered each received a Haste 2 spell. Torger told Gary ¡°As soon as you walk in, run and keep running until the yetis get tired. Then quick strikes and back away. Two or three solid punches is enough to kill you. Your squad has been briefed.¡±

    Gary nodded and they walked in wearing nothing but boots and chain mail skirts. They ran in different directions and easily outran the charging yetis. They circled around and came together and while they were running Tyler explained to Gary ¡°When you died you disappeared, and all your stuff was laying on the ground so we picked it up. We didn¡¯t spend any points at the kiosk ¡®cause we can¡¯t read the tyter language. Our axes are very dull from hitting the goblin armor and we sharpened them a little, but it¡¯s going to take a long time to kill these things.¡±

    When the beasts were tired Joe ran forward and struck one in the back. Blood trickled out and it punched him. The strike that had broken Torger¡¯s nose with his 400 health had done a lot more damage to Joe¡¯s 100 health. His jaw was broken and most of his teeth were knocked out, and was only semi conscious after landing on his back. The three Yetis ignored him and tried to punch the others, but their movements were very slow since their stamina had dropped to 2/30.

    Gary swung his axe much faster than Joe had, but didn¡¯t put much force into. It was really like a check swing. He had plenty of time to dodge the resulting punch. The others saw that and slowly whittled down the yetis while Joe crawled away on hands and knees.

    At the end of the fight they were all exhausted and battered, Gary having cast a Cure 1 every four minutes. Halfway through they had to run again once the yetis had started to regain stamina and speed.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 82. Total points available to spend: 113

    Hidden cave 5 difficulty: 11.9

    Squad strength: 15.1

    Time: 1 hour 39 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Gary bought a customize stone and shrunk all the axe shafts to fit their hands, and shrank the boots to fit him comfortably. All four axes were as sharp as new when he was done. He spent 18 points giving each of the others three more mana points and the last 20 giving Nikko the Cure 1 spell.

    Outside they got cured by the veterans and Torger asked ¡°Why was your total points so low?¡±

    As they hurried to cave 11 Tyler explained ¡°We took a lot of damage from the goblins, and took a lot of time. Plus we got the cowardice penalty. Taking damage reduces your score a lot.¡±

    Cave 11 was north, deep in the forest and on the coast. Before entering they slept, with rotating shifts.

    ¡°Welcome to cave eleven. What is your question?¡±

    ¡°Where is the final cave?¡±

    Elora marked Rome¡¯s map. It was in the center of the desert.

    They walked in to pitch blackness again and saw it was another labyrinth, not a straight tunnel. As they walked Torger stepped on a stone and arrows shot out of the walls at them. His armor protected him but Rome and Brun took an arrow each to an arm. As they cast Cure 1¡¯s on themselves Torger said ¡°How do we detect traps?¡±

    ¡°This is new to us. We can¡¯t see them so we will throw rocks ahead of us,¡± answered Rome.

    Torger threw a rock forward and a cloud of gas fell from the ceiling. Once it dissipated they walked ahead and threw another rock. Spikes rose from the ground. ¡°I see the sensors. There is a triangle shaped stone on either side of the walls pointing at each other.¡±

    He threw another rock and the spikes dropped into the floor again. ¡°We¡¯ll have to do this one at a time.¡± Torger threw a rock and they rose up and he walked through them, and they dropped as he crossed the triangle stones on the far side. As soon as he was across Brun started to go but they shot up again, then dropped then shot up in a continuous cycle. At the same time four small bulls ran and attacked Torger. His armor protected him from their horns and hooves and he killed them easily since they were only three feet tall, but four more ran at him. He killed those as Brun slowly worked his way through the spikes taking one step at a time as they reset. By the time he made it to Torger there were twelve dead bulls and four more were coming.

    By the time Rome made it across Torger was fighting the seventh batch of fifty pound bulls. They walked forward but the bulls always attacked in groups of four making their progress very slow. They were coming out of small side tunnels too small for the men to crawl into and as they kept pushing forward past the bull tunnels the bulls finally stopped coming out. Once Torger killed the last one they moved forward and Torger threw a rock. Huge axes on pendulums swung through the hallway straight at them. It missed Torger by an arm¡¯s length and swung back, and there were five pendulums swinging all forward and backward in the tunnel, their paths overlapping.

    ¡°There¡¯s no way through those,¡± said Rome. ¡°We have to stop them.¡±

    ¡°The shafts are steel and those things weigh more than I do,¡± said Brun. ¡°We need to wait out their inertia and they¡¯ll stop on their own. Eventually.¡±

    ¡°We don¡¯t have time for this. We¡¯ve got two days left. We have to defeat cave twelve then skip to sixteen to get out on time. I hate leaving Joe, but we can¡¯t wait for them any longer.¡±

    Rome glared at Torger for suggesting they leave his brother behind. ¡°At cave twelve we¡¯ll ask Elora what getting ejected means.¡±

    It took fifteen minutes for the pendulum axes to slow down enough for them to garb the blade edges one at a time and stop them. On the third one Brun¡¯s hand slipped and got sliced wide open, but nothing three Cure 1¡¯s wouldn¡¯t fix. The next trap was a quicksand pit that Torger stepped in and the others pulled him out. It was a narrow section of tunnel and they crossed by jumping off the walls back and forth. Rome hit his head on the ceiling and fell in near the end, but Torger pulled him out when Rome held out his staff for him to grab on to.

    The next trap released cottols who attacked in pairs, for a total of ten, and the last section was a large room with four level 16 trolls with wood clubs.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 159. Total points available to spend: 159

    Training cave 11 difficulty: 18.3

    Squad strength: 45.0

    Time: 41 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Rome spent 132 points on three steel spears and 22 points on an iron spear. He saved the rest of the five points.

    Gary asked for the location of cave 12. Inside he threw an orb light and all four men got hit with arrows. Gary and Joe cast a Cure 1 each and waited for their mana to recharge before casting the spell again. It took two Cure 1¡¯s on each person before they continued on. They easily avoided the gas cloud and Joe was the only one with a respawn so he was dressed in the armor. He sprang the spikes on purpose then reset them and crossed the spike trap while they were raised up. Once he was across, the spikes shot up and down repeatedly and there was nothing anyone could do about it. Four small bull attacked him while Gary worked his way through the reciprocating spikes.

    Joe used the steel spear to skewer the first bull. It was still alive but well impaled. Joe dropped the spear and grabbed the next spear, skewering the bull that tried to drive its horns through his chain mail skirt. He dropped that spear then impaled the next bull that was stomping its way through his boot. He dropped the spear and grabbed the iron spear. That bull was trying to climb up his leg and bite his arm so he had to push it away. The iron spear didn¡¯t penetrate as much as the steel ones did , but it still did quite a lot of damage. Three more thrusts killed it and then Gary was through who hacked the severely injured bulls with his axe, but left the fourth one alive and squirming. No more bulls came while that one was still alive. It died just before Nikko made it across the spikes. The next batch of four met three steel spears from Joe, Gary, and Tyler, and Joe jumped on the last one. He shoved his gauntlet down its throat while Gary and Tyler finished it with their axes.

    They dragged the last squirming bull past the tunnels before killing it, and didn¡¯t have to fight anymore. ¡°This is a grinding cheat. We could stand here for hours killing bulls and gaining points,¡± said Tyler.

    Joe shook his head. ¡°Their horns are close to breaking open the armor. Much more damage and we¡¯ll have to buy a customize gem to repair it. We would have to kill hundreds of bulls to make up the seventy-five points spent on a customize gem.¡±

    They used the spears as pole vaults to jump over the quicksand, thankful Rome had thought of that when making his purchases.

    They entered the room with the cottols. Nikko and Tyler went in first as fodder, getting confused and turning their backs to the cats. As the cats sprang forward Joe and Gary rushed in and held their spears and shields. The cats were incredibly agile and twisted out of the way at the last second, somehow landing gracefully on their feet. Instead of focusing on the cats Gary and Joe lightly punched Nikko and Tyler, who immediately got confused again. As the cats charged once more, Tyler and Nikko had just been tapped in the head before the cat claws raked them. Nikko had on the armor, but the claws left deep scratches in it. Tyler had claws buried deep in his arm. Joe and Gary swung their axes, each burying it into a cat¡¯s shoulder. The cats hissed in pain and Nikko tackled the one that tried to claw him.

    Gary and Joe grabbed their spears and killed the one that was attacking Tyler, then each cast Cure 1 on the man. Tyler groaned in pain but they couldn¡¯t pay attention to that as they helped Nikko. As soon as both cottols were dead two more appeared. Nikko threw himself forward, got hit with the confusion blast, and resulting claws once he turned away from the cottol. Joe got hit by the confusion spell and turned around. Before the cat could get to him Gary blocked it with his shield, at the same time knocking Joe down, who then picked up a spear and helped Nikko who was getting mauled. His armor wouldn¡¯t last much longer.

    Tyler fought off his pain as much as he could. His right arm hung uselessly at his side but he still gripped the shield with his left. He ran forward and used it to bash Gary¡¯s cat in the head. Gary used the distraction to place a massive overhand swing into the beast¡¯s skull. He turned and killed the cat that Nikko and Joe were fighting. Then Gary ran to the side of the large room. As soon as the cottols entered and cast their confusion spells he ran behind one and chopped off its tail.

    Joe and Tyler were stunned and Nikko scrambled up again throw himself in front of a pouncing cat, saving Tyler¡¯s life. Gary ran around the one that turned on him and while sprinting pushed down Joe and Tyler. He then spun just as the tailless cat pounced on him. Gary was knocked to the floor and the ca clawed his chest and bit his face then went limp, Joe¡¯s spear buried deep in its anus.

    The other cat was on top of Nikko and all he could do was hold his shield in front of his face while the cat¡¯s claws shredded the mail skirt and chest plate. He lay there defending himself until Joe¡¯s axe hit it in the side, and a second later Gary¡¯s axe finished it.

    The fourth pair of cats bounded into the room and saw four bloody and bruised humans who were exhausted. They stunned the two guys standing up; Gary and Joe. Nikko and Tyler scrambled to their feet too late as Gary and Joe had claws rake down their backs. They screamed in pain and fell down. Tyler yelled to Nikko ¡°Protect Gary not Joe!¡±

    Nikko didn¡¯t understand why but obeyed and shoved a spear through the cat¡¯s side. It fell to its side kicking its feet but still alive. Nikko turned and smashed his shield into the cat that was biting Joe¡¯s face. His shield smashed hard into its neck, and as the cat backed away in pain its teeth took out a huge chunk of Joe¡¯s neck. His eyes went glossy for a second then he disappeared in a pale green light. Gary recovered enough to hit the cat in the back of the neck with his axe, paralyzing it. Nikko went to finish it but he said ¡°No, wait.¡±

    One cat was paralyzed with an axe in its neck and the other was squirming on the ground with a spear in its side. The men sat down and rested, Gary casting a Cure 1 once every four minutes. ¡°How are we going to finish this without Joe?¡± asked Nikko.

    ¡°The trolls should be easier according to Rome. Like the yetis they have high strength and health. We¡¯ll wear them down then attack.¡±

    Once everyone was at full health they killed the two cats and the next two came in. As soon as they entered three spears impaled them. They got confuse spells to hit Nikko and Gary, and Tyler dragged Gary away from the wounded cats. Nikko got batted around in the armor but was saved by the cats being already wounded. It was easy for Gary and Tyler to finish them.

    As predicted the trolls were big and slow. They chased the three men around in circles until all four trolls were tired, and swinging their clubs looked like they were moving underwater. The men used axes to cut at their hands until they eventually were sheared off then it was an easy matter of swinging the axes at their backs.

    Well done hunters. Your score is 72. Total points available to spend: 72

    Training cave 11 difficulty: 18.3

    Squad strength: 15.1

    Time: 1 hour 42 minutes

    Would you like to make a purchase?

    Gary spent 40 points to buy Cure 1 for Nikko and Tyler, then gave each man four more mana so they could each cast Cure 1 twice. He hated the low score and when he examined it at Tyler¡¯s urging he saw they had taken a lot of damage. They dealt 2241 in damage and had taken 391 in damage.

 End of Part 3, End of trilogy

    Chapter 25

    Splitting

    They came out without Joe and explained he respawned. ¡°I don¡¯t know what to do. I¡¯ve always been a leader and always acted as if I knew what to do in any situation. But we¡¯re in a mess beyond my reasoning here,¡± complained Gary.

    Brun stepped up. ¡°Joe was my good friend for many years, and we want to save him but we have to leave here. We¡¯re less than two days from eject and it¡¯s almost a full day walk to the final cave. Your squad has only seven days left until eject Gary, and you¡¯ve got to be strong enough to finish it without us. You can now defeat the rocs east of the entrance portal for more points in hidden cave two. I say Rome teleports your squad to the entrance and you guys fight the rocs. Then you¡¯ll have to go to cave twelve, and when time runs too low, go straight to the final cave.¡±

    ¡°You and Torger go ahead. I¡¯m staying to help my brother,¡± said Rome.

    ¡°Joe wouldn¡¯t want you to do that and you know it.¡±

    Rome looked to Torger then reluctantly nodded. ¡°He would be pissed if I got stuck here or died instead of him. We¡¯ll leave you guys a message at the crash site.¡±

    Torger took off his mithril bracers and gauntlets and handed them to Gary. Rome looked to Gary who nodded. He cast Teleport 3 and Gary, Nikko and Tyler were sent to the entrance portal. He stiffened his shoulders and began walking toward the center of the desert. Torger and Brun followed behind him in silence. They walked until they were close to the crash, tired from a fast walk for thirty hours.

    A mile away three sand snakes burst out of the ground and attacked them. Brun cast Analyze 2 and said they were level twenty-nine, all strength and health. Brun and Rome cast Shield 2 around themselves while Torger sliced up the third one running around its wriggling body halfway out of the sand. But his stamina was low from the long walk, and soon he was moving slow and breathing hard. He cast Shield 2 around himself and strengthened it to 550 points, using all his mana. The sand snakes kept attacking the shields, but it held while Torger recovered. Rome had strengthened his and Brun¡¯s shields draining his own mana.

    Each sand snake attacked a different man. Rome and Brun¡¯s shields shattered at the same time and they ran. Brun cast Poison 2 hitting one snake, then the spell split and hit the other two snakes. All three giant sand snakes had half their health points disappear, and lost one more point every four seconds from the venom.

    Rome and Brun ran but the snakes could move even faster under the ground. Two monsters burst up out of the sand right behind them and Rome jumped out of the way but Brun was too slow and the snake bit his left foot off.

    At the same time Torger¡¯s shield finally shattered and he danced around the beast slicing it until it died. He looked to see Rome dragging Brun away from where the worms were sticking out of the ground. He ran to them and started slicing another one. It took him several strikes to kill it and in the meantime the other one dipped underground again. He ran to Brun and stood guard over him, scanning the horizon in all directions. All three men had gained four mana points and cast Cure 1 on Brun. It stopped the bleeding and brought him to full health, but didn¡¯t regrow his foot.

    A minute later the worm burst out of the sand again and Torger ran around it slicing it to death. They sat down and fell asleep.

    Brun woke up with a partial foot regrown. His timer was red and stated they had a little over five hours until eject. They walked towards the wreckage and were attacked by another group of three giant sand snakes. This time Torger cast Poison 2 immediately then Rome cast Shield 1¡¯s in front of himself and Brun while Brun punished them with a flurry of Ice 1 spells, doing 23 damage at a time for a total of eleven times until his mana was spent. The two remaining sand snakes dropped back underground while Torger killed the one facing him, but he had taken a bite to his arm. He cast Cure 1¡¯s on himself until he was restored whole. When the two barely alive beasts came out of the ground again, Torger easily sliced them to death.

    At the wreckage Rome wrote a letter to Joe and Brun and Torger walked around. The bodies were horribly stinky and ants and scorpions were eating the remains that the sand worms didn¡¯t eat. In the distance to the south Brun saw a shimmer. He called Torger over and they walked to it.

    You have found hidden cave #6. Level 22. 45 points for finding a hidden cave.

    ¡°Should we fight it? Do we have the time?¡± asked Brun.

    ¡°Yeah we should. Let¡¯s go get Rome.¡±

    When they returned they entered.

    All 15 sand worms are dead. Score 0.

    Rome touched the score. The time was 17 days, 1 hour. ¡°Jesus, the ship crashed right on top of this hidden cave. No wonder the sandworms kept attacking. They had entered the cave as best as the ship could. All the damage they dealt was from ranged weapons so they got no score for that and they lost tens of thousands of health points.¡±

    They walked west to the final cave, going slowly since Brun was missing a foot.

    Cave 16. Level 23.

    Rome left a note for the others to see saying it was level 23, meaning it was recommended for a group of ten tyters with level 23. Gary¡¯s squad was screwed.

    ¡°Welcome to cave 16. At the conclusion of this cave you will be teleported to the evaluation committee. What is your question?¡±

    ¡°We want to transfer all our points at the conclusion of this cave to squad leader Gary. How do we do that?¡±

    ¡°Unspent points here will roll over to the next training zone or battle planet. It is not recommended to give your rewards to another. If you insist on doing that, you may allow me to randomly boost their stats with your points.¡±This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work.

    ¡°Yes do that Elora. And thank you for your help on this planet.¡±

    She looked at Rome like she didn¡¯t know what a compliment was. ¡°Helping is what I do.¡±

    She disappeared and they entered a lit cave. Inside were a hundred leprechauns running around incredibly fast and they began casting Fire 1 and Ice 1 spells at the men. Torger tried to run after one but he stopped after a few steps. He had nowhere near the speed needed to catch them.

    The three men blasted the little nuisances with their own level 1 spells, but there were just too many of the guys. Torger told the others ¡°Take off all your clothes.¡±

    They looked at him like he was crazy but trusted him. He tied them all together and made a long whip. He snapped it and the end hit a one foot tall leprechaun throwing it into a wall. He did it over and over again while getting pummeled with spells. Brun and Rome kept casting Cure 1 on him, but it was a losing battle. When Brun was out of mana he ran to the center of the room and slammed his diamond staff into the floor shattering it. Magic pulsed through the room knocking down all the leprechauns. When they stood up they tried to cast spells but their magic no longer worked. Rome ran to the center and smashed his staff too. All the leprechauns fell to the ground and convulsed. The men walked around stepping on them and crushing their heads. When the last one died a green light flashed and they found themselves in a conference room.

    ¡°I¡¯ve been here before. This is where Shug brought me when he captured me on Nuva,¡± Torger said.

    Five tyters walked in wearing ebony and moonstone crowns on their heads. They sat down on the other side of the table from where the naked men were standing. The one in the center spoke. ¡°We have much to discuss, humans.¡± He spat the last word. ¡°Never has another race entered our training zones, and not only did you get there, you defeated it. Now what do we do with you?¡±

    Torger answered ¡°I am Torger, and this is Rome and Brun, of the planet Nuva. We are honorary generals among the tyters, please speak to us accordingly.¡±

    The one in the center scowled but the others looked shocked. One said ¡°These are the humans who defeated Shug? How did you leave Nuva?¡±

    Torger and Rome spoke of Ristopan using his position and influence to get the tyters to send them through the portal on Nuva to go to TZ16 and save Brun. When they finished the one in the middle growled ¡°Those old dwarves have taken too much power to themselves, interfering with our games. I propose we use the humans to replace the dwarves.¡±

    The other tyters looked shocked and Torger asked ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    ¡°They are old and have become ineffective stewards of their realms. I suspect they secretly wish to die, since each one is over four thousand years old. My proposal is we grant them death they wish for, and you three take their places.¡±

    ¡°Wait, we don¡¯t know they want to die. We should ask them first,¡± said a tyter on the left.

    The leader glared at him but said ¡°Very well. Summon them.¡±

    The tyter left the room and Rome asked ¡°What are these training zones? And what is a battle planet?¡±

    The one in the middle waved him off but the other three talked over each other trying to happily answer the question.

    ¡°Training zones are where squads go to train.¡±

    ¡°Battle planets are like LK sixteen, what you call Nuva. Squads sufficiently trained go to hunt.¡±

    ¡°There are twenty-three training zones and fifty-one battle planets. There is always one squad on a battle planet.¡±

    ¡°Each squad member has a camera on his or her armor and our home world watches the battles from their point of view.¡±

    ¡°You can also watch squads on the training zones.¡±

    ¡°There is always one squad in a training zone, except TZ eighteen, where you came from. The idiot engineers placed the teleport ring too close to the planet and after a few years it became too dangerous to fly ships through it. We programmed all other teleport rings in the galaxy to only activate to tyter ships. Any other ship flying through a teleport ring gets sent to TZ eighteen, where it will most likely crash into the planet.¡±

    Torger interjected ¡°This whole thing is for tyter entertainment?¡±

    ¡°Yes. We are a civilization far advanced to you humans, but we are warriors at heart. Thousands of years ago we started these interplanetary hunts, but lasers, explosives, flying ships, and plasma guns made the hunts boring. We came up with a point system that has been refined a few times to what you now know it. We want to see hand to hand combat and penalize squads for using ranged weapons. The more points a squad gets on a battle planet, the more honor they get at home.¡±

    ¡°How do the training zones work?¡± asked Rome.

    ¡°They are rated on a difficulty of one to ten. You just came from one that was barely a seven, maybe a six and a half. Depending on the squad score and circumstances, we the council determine if they are battle planet ready or need to move up or down a level of training.¡±

    ¡°How did we rank?¡± asked Rome.

    The tyters looked to the leader. He grumbled but answered ¡°We had no cameras on you, only your battles in the caves. All we have to go by is your questions to Elora and your cave battles.¡±

    He went silent but another picked up. ¡°Based on your questions, you know nothing at all about training zones, a huge handicap. And yet, your score¡­¡±

    The men tensed but the tyters just looked at the leader. ¡°Knowing nothing about training zones, you scored ninety-two of a hundred.¡± He paused a long time. ¡°With only a squad of three, you are still battle planet ready, for one of the easier planets. But don¡¯t get your hopes up. You¡¯re going to Nuva.¡±

    ¡°We want to go back to Earth,¡± blurted Brun.

    ¡°That¡¯s not happening. Our people are clamoring to see more of you.¡±

    ¡°What about our friends? Can we go back to them?¡± asked Torger.

    ¡°The other squad on TZ eighteen is struggling in their points. If they survive, we will send them to TZ one. They can work up the ranks and if they become battle planet ready, we will send them to Nuva.¡±

    ¡°What happens when they go to TZ one?¡± asked Rome.

    ¡°Same as all others. Any weapons or armor they gain on eighteen will disappear and they will enter a portal on one with nothing. However they retain all their stats and spells. They have to find the first cave on their own and fight bare handed, then start buying weapons from that planet. Once they pass that, we will send them to a tougher training zone based on their evaluation score.¡±

    The tyter that had left the room re-entered and nodded. The tyters left the room and didn¡¯t return for many hours. When they entered they said ¡°The dwarves have agreed they have lived too long. Nuva will be divided into three sections and you will each rule a section. Your task is to keep a healthy balance of indigenous prey for the tyter prey to feast on and grow in levels. Basically, you will be demigods of the planet, and stewards to make our hunts more fun and interesting.¡±

    As the tyters were leaving Torger asked ¡°What would have happened if we had been ejected from the training zone?¡±

    ¡°An ejection sends you straight to TZ one. It is the most shameful thing that could happen to a warrior. Death is better than losing that much honor.¡±

    Three years later Gary¡¯s squad was sent to Nuva, having taken the ejection after Ristopan sent them a message, his dying act.

    The End

    I hope you enjoyed the story. I may write another novel one day, and lots of followers on Royal Road would inspire me to try this writing thing again.

    The game mechanics in the second half of part three are what I¡¯m leaning towards for a future novel, but I¡¯ve got a lot of work to do refining it.

 First Chapter of the Next Book, The Games of Nuva

    The Games of Nuva

    Chapter 1

    Rules of the Game

    Captain Logan took a step forward and thrust out the round shield strapped to his left arm. The edge struck a goblin on the bridge of the nose, and the creature dropped its sword to grasp its face. Logan ran his straight sword through its heart, not stopping to pick up the inferior goblin sword, and kept walking to the next goblin. Logan blocked a clumsy overhand swing, and in a single side swing decapitated the short vermin. Logan looked to his right to see his lieutenant wipe his sword on a different dead goblin¡¯s corpse. To his left another squad member chopped off a goblin hand, the hand and copper sword both dropping to the cave floor. After a quick thrust to the heart, the woman stooped down to pick up the goblin sword.

    ¡°I told you before we entered to leave the loot until the end.¡±

    Logan huffed and continued down the tunnel. He didn¡¯t look behind him but he knew who followed his footsteps: closely followed the woman, then his lieutenant, then three more axe wielding dwarves, and finally two elf archers. The squad came to the final battle in the maze of tunnels. In a large, open cavern were four hobgoblins, twenty goblin warriors clad in iron armor, and the queen.

    She stood ten feet tall, and had even more magic than the dreaded hobgoblins. The four hobgoblins pointed their staffs towards Logan¡¯s squad and all eight members dove out of the way. Blizzard 2, Shock 2, Flame 2, and Poison 1 flew at the squad. Logan and the two elves rolled to a kneeling position and pointed at the spells, and they all yelled ¡°Dispel shield!¡±

    Three translucent magic shields appeared, each magic shield eight feet by eight feet. Three of the hobgoblin spells hit the shields and lost half their potency before striking Logan and the elves. Logan was hit with a minor form of Blizzard and his body shivered, but he only lost 13 health points. One of the elves suffered a minor electric shock, and the other caught a common cold and began coughing and sneezing. The human woman didn¡¯t cast her shield spell in time and a fireball impacted her chest, superheating her iron cuirass. She screamed in pain and cut off the straps, dropping the plate armor to the ground.

    The goblin warriors closed ranks around their queen, and she cast a Poison 3 spell at Logan¡¯s entire squad. A thick green and black cloud flowed out of her outstretched hand, and the humans, dwarves, and elves scrambled to get out of the way. Dispel shields wouldn¡¯t have much effect against a spell this powerful.

    The poison cloud engulfed a dwarf, and she clutched her gut and liquids dripped out of both ends. The human woman also didn¡¯t move in time, still in pain from the scorch on her chest. The elf archer who got a mild dose of Poison 1 also got trapped in the gas cloud. The other elf rolled out of the way in time and began unleashing arrows at the hobgoblins.

    The goblin warriors remained standing in front of the queen, and the hobgoblins ran away from the elf¡¯s projectiles. The remaining two dwarves, Logan, and his lieutenant rushed the warrior goblins. Dwarf battle axes easily cut into the goblin iron armor. Logan was more strategic and stabbed them in the joints of the armor, easily dodging clumsy counterstrikes. The lieutenant chased the hobgoblins, and he got hit with a few minor spells before all four were headless.

    The queen kicked one of the goblin warriors in front of her, and the goblin flew into Logan, knocking him down. Logan dropped his sword, grabbed the goblin under an armpit and rolled it off him, tossing the three foot goblin a few feet away. When he got to his feet again, Logan saw the two dwarves had killed another six goblins. Logan pointed at the queen and cast spells at her in rapid order. ¡°Ice one, lightning one, fire one.¡±

    All he had to do was point at his target and say the name of the spell, and his hand would tingle for a half second before the spell shot out of his finger.

    The queen cast her own dispel shield, fully blocking all three spells, but that wasn¡¯t the point. Logan¡¯s intention was to get her to drain all of her mana.

    With the queen fully occupied with Logan, and the hobgoblins dead, the remaining elf had easy target practice at the remaining goblin warriors, assisting the blood thirsty dwarves. Soon the entire squad was pummeling a magic shield the queen had cast around herself. Once that shield fell, axes, swords, and arrows finished her off.

    Logan walked back to the three sick squad members. ¡°I don¡¯t have heal three, only heal two. You¡¯re going to have to live with that dysentery until we get back to the village.¡± Looking at the others he said ¡°Loot anything you want in here. I¡¯m heading home. Remember ten percent of your spoils go to the mayor, and remember Brun is watching.¡± Logan picked up his sword, cleaned it with a rag, and walked out of the tunnels to the exit. He put his earned experience points into stamina, bringing it to 31/90.

    Gary was leaning against a four foot tall stone wall. ¡°Your feet are too close together and your grip is too tight.¡±

    The man didn¡¯t look at Gary, but spread his legs far too wide and loosened the grip on his sword so much he dropped it. His opponent smashed him on the top of the helmet so hard the man dropped to the sand. Gary shook his head. ¡°You¡¯re lucky he¡¯s using a wooden sword. If that had been a steel sword, you would be unconscious. Get up and try again.¡±

    The man crawled to his hands and knees and glared at the old soldier. He was about to speak, but Gary cut him off. ¡°Don¡¯t you dare give me that look young whelp. Listen to my advice and become a warrior, or pack up and find a job washing dishes.¡±

    As the man stood up and the two trainees faced off again, Gary patted the sword strapped to his waist. He was old, too old to use it effectively anymore. He was a hundred and fifty-one when the first human was born on this planet, and that was a hundred and ten years ago. His strength and stamina had dropped considerably in the last couple of decades, but he knew more about swordsmanship than anyone else, except of course the three overseers. He was the only one left alive of the original squad after the tyters made the three immortal. Gary¡¯s squad members Joe, Tyler, and Nikko had died years ago.

    The three overseers, Torger, Rome and Brun, still visited him as often as they could, but none of them wanted to tell the other humans the truth about their origins. The three had been brought here to Nuva to be hunted by the tyters, but a group of seven humans had won the hunt. Four returned to Earth, and the three became demigods of this planet for their victory in the hunt. These men were now wizards, powerful enough to wipe out all life on Nuva if they chose, but the three were also the best of friends, and Nuva was in a golden age as humans had populated the planet over the past hundred and ten years, the oldest two thousand humans having been spawned by the tyter¡¯s technology.

    Torger sat in the top of his tower and looked through his scrying globe and saw his favorite pastime, baseball. A young woman was teaching human children and dwarf children how to play.

    Sax called out ¡°Your feet are too close together and your grip is too tight.¡±

    The dwarf spread his feet too far apart and loosened his grip until he dropped the bat. Sax shook her head but had a big smile on her face. The dwarf picked up the bat and swung at the next pitch. A crack of the bat and he ran to first base.

    A couple hundred miles away Torger watched and still thought it was funny how dwarves run, their short legs pumping fast, unable to take long graceful strides. But it was fair to have human and dwarf children play together, since both were three and a half feet tall. Humans grew until they were eight years old, and dwarves until they were fifteen, and on Nuva they would never gain height or strength until they invested ability points into strength, or worked very hard to earn a strength point. Dwarves never grew taller but grew thick legs and large round chests with strength points, but humans grew one inch in height every time they invested into their strength stat, and all their muscles became ten percent stronger for each point invested, but both races capped at a strength of twenty.

    The next pitch hit a human boy in the face and broke his nose. He began crying as blood flowed freely. Sax pointed at him and said ¡°Cure one.¡±

    A golden light flew out of her silver staff and the boy¡¯s nose straightened back to its original shape. Sax walked over and wiped the blood off his face. ¡°It¡¯s alright. As long as you¡¯re near a healer like me you can¡¯t get seriously hurt. Keep an eye on the ball and hit this one back at the pitcher.¡± She gave the kid a wink.

    The kid wanted to look brave in front of everyone and held back some of the tears.Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.

    Aspen called out ¡°Flank them. There are too many to my right.¡±

    She shot another goblin in the face. ¡°Get over there now. They¡¯re surrounding us!¡±

    She shot another goblin and another, each arrow quickly released and with pinpoint accuracy. The melee fighters were breathing heavy. Their armor was too heavy for this big of a tunnel network. She kept releasing arrows as fast as she could, but a couple dozen goblins remained, and the mages were out of mana. Clearing this dungeon had taken over two hours. The scouting reports had been¡­ misleading.

    The four tired dwarves ran to get to the mages, but were too tired and too slow. Ten goblins began hacking at the two elf mages, and by the time help arrived, the spell casters were dead.

    Aspen surveyed the battle scene and saw the dwarves could barely lift their axes anymore. All mana and stamina potions had been used in this dungeon, and in a minute she would be alone. Aspen saw a ledge on a wall above her head. She climbed up the rocks as she heard copper goblin swords bounce off dwarf steel armor. By the time she climbed into the small raised alcove, seven more goblins and the last four dwarves were dead. The goblins then turned and ran at her, but these were all regular goblins; all the warriors, hobgoblins, and the queen were already eliminated.

    She couldn¡¯t stand up in the small space, being six feet off the ground and with a ten foot cave ceiling. In a crouched position she plucked off one creature after another, but ran out of arrows with two foes remaining. The nearest one jumped up and swung its sword, and cut her forearm. She flinched from the pain, then set down her bow and withdrew a dagger from her waistband. The next time the goblin jumped up, she grabbed the sword and wrenched it out of its grasp, deeply slicing her hand in the process. As expected, the unarmed goblin turned around to pick up another sword from its dead kin, but Aspen threw her dagger and the blade stuck in its back. It didn¡¯t die, but rolled on the ground trying to pull out the metal. The other remaining goblin jumped up and sliced her boot, but the leather took most of the damage and she only bled a little from her shin.

    She then picked up her bow, and the next time the goblin jumped, she jammed an end of the bow into its face. She gracefully jumped down from her perch and kicked the goblin. Aspen picked up a discarded goblin sword and decapitated both injured monsters. As soon as the last one died, a message came into her vision.

    Worldwide alert. All goblins on Nuva have been exterminated.

    Rome sat in the top of his tower, watching Aspen¡¯s fight through his scrying globe. He smiled broadly as the last goblin on the planet had finally been extinguished. Now the golden age could truly pick up pace.

    Rome was the lord overseer of the eastern realm, Brun was in the middle, and Torger in the west. As part of the agreement with the tyters, they were responsible for maintaining balance in each of their realms. When they were hunted as tyter prey more than two hundred years ago, there were no humans on Nuva, goblins were beginning to swarm the whole planet, dwarves and elves had an uneasy truce with each other, and villages across the planet were small and scattered.

    Since the three overseers took over, they united the dwarves and elves and treated the planet as a massive city building game. Commerce was booming, trade relations were open, and unemployment was low. Most importantly was that globally speaking, morale was an astonishing 89/100. It had been 24/100 when they started their reigns.

    It took the tyters a little over a hundred years from the hunt to start spawning humans, and they started with a thousand men and a thousand women. Nuva now had fifteen towns in each realm, with humans, dwarves, and elves living in harmony with each other.

    A privilege of being a wizard was that Rome could see and hear anything within his realm through his scrying globe, and he could teleport to anywhere on Nuva instantly. An advantage of being infused with tyter DNA was that he could respawn if he died, which he hadn¡¯t since becoming an overseer.

    A disadvantage of the position was that he received a message for every prayer of every human directed to him. The first time it happened it was shocking, but endearing that one of the first native humans was asking for his help. Within a month he was receiving hundreds of requests a day, and sent a worldwide message that he would answer only one prayer per day. Torger and Brun had done the same thing. The messages he received were minimized in the corner of his vision, and the ones he sends can be targeted to specific people or to everyone, and written text rolls across their vision whether they want it to or not. He thought about the message he just sent, saying all goblins are now dead.

    Rome walked to a wall and spoke to an enchanted bronze mirror hanging on the wall. ¡°Brun, can you hear me? Are you there?¡±

    ¡°Yes Rome, I¡¯m here. What¡¯s up?¡±

    ¡°We did it. All the goblins are dead.¡±

    ¡°Great! I¡¯ll tell Torger.¡±

    The Ley Line didn¡¯t allow him to cast a spell that would reach all the way to Torger, so Brun, being the middle kingdom overseer, had to be a go between for the outer two realms to talk.

    The problem with having three humans as wizards was that some of the dwarves and elves complained that they weren¡¯t represented fairly, but that was beyond the wizards¡¯ control. They were essentially middle management under the tyters.

    The tyters supreme technology allowed them to terra form Nuva once every three years and a squad of tyters would hunt their prey, then would leave for the next three years. All roads, aqueducts, and sentient beings not in the protection of a village shield would be destroyed during the terra forming process. But the dwarves had become fast at rebuilding the roads and aqueducts. This hunt cycle made the land of Nuva into pleasant grass covered rolling hills, not like a couple years ago when it was desolate rocks and unbearably hot. No matter what the land looked like for each tyter hunt, the land was always a single land mass, the rest of the planet covered in ocean.

    As Rome was thinking these things, a pale green light surrounded him, and he was teleported to the tyter mother ship in orbit around the planet.

    Torger, Graul, and Rome all appeared at the same time, standing in a conference room they had seen many times before. Commander Karzik sat in a chair, across from the three wizards. Two tyters sat to his right, and two to his left. Tyters are eight foot tall bipedal lizards, with stubs of tails, and each hand has one middle finger and two thumbs, and their skin is dark grey and green scales. Their faces look like apes, but also covered in scales, and they have six antennae on their heads.

    Torger was the first to get his bearings. ¡°Thanks Karzik for not removing our clothes during these unexpected meetings. At first it was uncomfortable standing before this council completely naked, but we got used to it. The last century you¡¯ve allowed us to stay dressed. So what is today¡¯s meeting about?¡±

    The tyter on the far right roared. ¡°You grow too bold, prey, speaking to your superiors like that. Apologize to the great commander.¡±

    Karzik waved him off. ¡°We have more important things to discuss than formalities and pleasantries. You have failed in your roles, humans. The goblins are dead, and the land has become unbalanced.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re vermin and we did the world a favor!¡± spat Brun. He never did get over his time as a goblin slave.

    ¡°That is how you see them,¡± continued Karzik, ¡°but they are nearly intelligent, certainly sentient. More than that, they provided experience for young dwarves, humans, and elves to level up. Now they will hunt our prey, robbing them of accumulated experience points, and making our hunts more boring. We will need to bring more goblins here, or another species, for your puppets to hunt.¡±

    ¡°Not more goblins,¡± complained Brun. ¡°How about making a section of the planet a home for billiks or simmets, or something low level like that?¡±

    Karzik nodded. ¡°Fine. No goblins. We have goblins on ten other planets. But that¡¯s a minor inconvenience. More importantly are the humans.¡±

    The three overseers cringed. They were hoping this day wouldn¡¯t come, but they could see as clearly as the tyters that something had to be done.

    Karzik continued. ¡°They are breeding faster than we expected, and their mortality rate is too low. The dwarves and elves don¡¯t start having children until their fifties or sixties, but the humans start in their teens or twenties. That would be fine if more of them died from monsters. We will remove the humans during the next terra forming.¡±

    ¡°No! You can¡¯t just eliminate an entire race!¡± yelled Rome.

    Karzik raised an eyebrow, or would have if he had an eyebrow to raise. ¡°You just eliminated an entire race.¡±

    ¡°But they¡¯re our own kind,¡± retorted Rome.

    Karzik looked at him. ¡°One of the three races has to go. Dwarves make great metal weapons, and elves give huge spell bonuses to those weapons, and humans are wise enough to keep them cooperating. Eliminating the humans will eliminate the production of these high level swords, axes, and bows, and mortality rates will rise again.¡±

    ¡°What if you made the humans weaker?¡± asked Torger.

    The tyters communicated with each other silently by waving the six antennae on the tops of their heads. Karzik spoke again. ¡°We will remove all magic from the humans. That should cause many more of them to die during monster hunts.¡±

    The wizards cringed again. As top ranked spell casters they saw eliminating everyone¡¯s spells to be an atrocity. Karzik continued ¡°We will also make half of all humans infertile.¡±

    Torger shook his head. ¡°It seems one of the races has to go, but we should make a competition to see which one gets their spell caps and fertility rates cut in half.¡±

    Karzik countered ¡°The humans are not as great at spells as the elves are, but in a couple hundred years they will be almost as good at metal working as the dwarves. But your idea of a competition sounds intriguing. Each race will lose some of their power, depending on how well they do during the games. What did you have in mind?¡±

    ¡°I want the winning race to have no power taken away. The winning race still has a three hundred year life span, with current strength, stamina, health, mana, and spell level caps. The last place race gets their fertility and caps cut in half, and the middle ones lose ten percent from their caps.¡±

    ¡°The humans have too much of an advantage as they can figure out tricky situations and adapt. We will give big strong beasts to the dwarves to fight, and magically powerful monsters for the elves to fight. The humans must fight both.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s not fair!¡± complained Brun. ¡°They should all have to fight all the monsters.¡±

    Rome nodded. ¡°Make this planet the same as the training zone we were at, TZ eighteen, and squads have to clear all sixteen caves.¡±

    Karzik thought about it. ¡°This competition will be great for our viewers to watch on our home planet. They will be glued to the hologram centers to watch these battles. But a few rules. First is you can¡¯t tell them anything is at stake. To the three races it¡¯s just a game. Second, all squad members get reset to level one. Third, the experience and ability point system will be similar to the training zones, not like how it works on Nuva. And fourth, only one human squad can enter the competition. Regardless of the outcome of the game, humans will suffer some hindrance to their exponential growth. If not infertility, then shorter life spans. As it is, each woman could have a hundred kids during her life.¡±

    The wizards complained about the rules, but they were overruled. When the discussion finally ended, each squad would have only four members but the overseers could hand select their squad, and the overseers could eliminate any squad that hindered or helped another squad.