Rampage, page 42
part #1 of Land of the Elementals Series
When Karria nodded, Palmine grunted once, then shuffled out of the room.
Only when the door closed did she allow her mask to drop. She let out a soft sob and felt hot tears spilling down her cheeks. She had saved her friend’s life, but she hadn’t been fast enough. Her heart may be beating, but she wasn’t truly alive.
Sylvester came to visit her later that day, and he told her the rest of the story, including Silver’s terrifying transformation, and how he’d completely obliterated Eletha. This part of the story gave her a sort of savage joy.
That psycho deserved what she got. She only wished she’d been conscious to see it.
When she asked about Kya, he just shook his head sadly.
“She doesn’t even respond to her own name when you call her, and only eats when the food is placed directly in her mouth.”
The news saddened Karria even farther, but she would have to see for herself.
Palmine kept her in bed for a few more days. The king and queen visited every day, making sure that she was being well cared for, and that her recovery was going smoothly.
She noticed that they always steered clear of their daughter whenever she brought her up, and this worried her more than anything.
On the day she was finally allowed to leave, she made sure that her first stop was Kya’s room. She knocked gently on the door, but when there was no reply, she opened it and walked in.
Kya was sitting by the window, a vacant expression on her beautiful face as she stared out into empty space. Karria approached her slowly and knelt down in front of her.
“How are you feeling?” she asked in a gentle tone.
Kya did not budge, staring out the window with the same vacant expression.
“Kya, I know you’re in there. You have to wake up!” Karria said, shaking the girl’s hands.
She could feel tears brimming in her eyes now, but the elf girl didn’t stir one bit. Karria grabbed her face and turned her to look into her eyes.
“Look at me, Kya! You have to snap out of it!” she screamed, as hot tears fell from her eyes.
She looked into Kya’s eyes, but they just stared blankly back at her, and Karria let her go with another sob. That may have been Kya’s body, but her friend was gone, and she didn’t know if she would ever be back.
57
Arbor stood on top of the wall and watched the sunrise. He could already see the gremlin camp stirring and watched as it slowly came to life. Hundreds of Gila lizards swarmed the open area where the fighting had been taking place, the smell of blood having attracted them during the night. He hoped that the monsters would deter the gremlins from advancing, but he wasn’t about to count on it.
Grak climbed up the ladder behind him, yawning widely, and came up next to him.
“Get any sleep last night?” Arbor asked.
“Not nearly enough,” she grumbled, covering another yawn behind her arm and rubbing at her eyes. “Those lizards really are a nasty bunch of bastards.”
She wrinkled her nose as they watched two lizards fighting over a gremlin corpse.
“Do you think they’ll stay once the gremlins begin their advance?” Arbor asked.
“Not likely.”
Arbor turned at the sound of the voice and saluted as Ramona came walking down the wall, flanked by Captain Tenor, who still had his arm in a sling.
“How can you be sure?” Grak asked, her tone frosty as she watched the Co-founder approaching.
Arbor still didn’t understand what she had against Ramona. Hord seemed to know the answer, but the stubborn dwarf had refused to tell him when he’d asked.
Ramona seemed not to notice the icy reception and motioned out over the battlefield.
“Notice how not a single lizard has even approached the camp.”
Arbor did notice that, now that she mentioned it. They were all staying well clear of the gremlin force, instead helping themselves to the abundance of already dead bodies.
“They’re not stupid creatures. They’ll kill when they have to, but a battlefield is full of easy pickings. Why would they risk death, when all they have to do is wait for night to get an easy meal?”
Arbor nodded at that. It did make sense to him.
If faced with a similar situation, any wild beast, especially an opportunistic one, would take the easy, risk-free choice.
“When do you think they’ll attack?” he asked, now noticing activity in the enemy camp as the sleeping gremlins were roused from their slumber.
“I’d say we have about an hour before the first attack begins,” Captain Tenor spoke up for the first time, peering out at the enemy camp.
“The enemy may not attack for another hour,” Ramona said. “However, we have a mission to complete, and I’d like to catch them off guard.”
Arbor turned to her, clearly confused.
Ramona laughed lightly at his expression and motioned him to follow her. Grak was about to follow as well, but Ramona stopped her.
“I have a special assignment for you, Grak. Captain Tenor will fill you in.”
Grak looked to Arbor, who just shrugged.
“Be careful out there,” she said, eyeing Ramona with distrust.
“You be careful, as well,” he called.
He’d half turned to follow Ramona, when Grak practically crashed into him. He was momentarily surprised when she wrapped her arms around him, squeezing him tight and burying her face in his chest. Her dark blue hair tickled his chin, and her scent filled his senses.
“I mean it,” she whispered. “You’d better come back to me alive. Understand?”
Arbor nodded solemnly, wrapping her in an embrace as well. The two of them stood there for a few long seconds, before they were interrupted by Ramona.
“Come on, you two lovebirds. We’ve got a mission to complete, so either make out or get a move on.”
Grak pushed back from him so fast he had to wonder if she had somehow acquired Perception magic, her already red complexion turning a deep shade of crimson.
“Mind your own damn business!” she screamed, hiding her face behind her hands.
Before Arbor could say anything, she’d bolted from the wall, her hair fluttering in the wind as she was lost from sight.
“What was that all about?” he asked, turning to Ramona with a raised eyebrow.
He was feeling annoyed, with both himself and the Co-founder. He was annoyed with her for ruining the moment, and with himself, out of guilt for his dead fiancé. If he admitted it to himself, he really was hoping that the moment would become something more.
Ramona shrugged, unapologetic.
“There’s no time for theatrics. Now, are you coming or not?”
Arbor just rolled his eyes and followed her as they walked down the wall a small way, until they were out of the way of prying ears. Ramona stopped then and looked down the wall in both directions. There was a guard standing some way down, but not close enough to overhear them.
“Before I explain what we will be doing, I need you to confirm something for me,” she said.
“And what might that be?”
“I want you to look out over the gremlin camp and tell me where all the Mages are.”
Arbor shrugged, and after a moment of concentration, the world lit up in the brilliant colors of magic vision. He looked at the gremlin force, not spotting anything at first. He looked farther down the line, and finally spotted a clump of colorful specs near the back of the camp.
“There’s a large concentration of magic near the back of the force,” he finally said.
Ramona smiled in triumph, as if expecting this answer.
“Most Mages are, by nature, cowardly and spoiled,” she explained to his unasked question. “They’re used to people bowing and scraping to them because of their talents, so you can imagine that they’d demand the best tents at the rear of the camp, where they’re the least likely be attacked.”
Arbor nodded again. He’d heard from her before how Mages were treated in Laedrin, and it came as no surprise to him.
“Once the fighting begins, they will most likely just stay in their tents. I thought that it was odd that you hadn’t encountered any Mages yesterday and was afraid that they’d been planning some sort of attack in the night. However, it appears that they’re all just cowards that won’t do anything until they’re forced to,” she continued. “Either that or they’ve got something else planned that requires them to stay out of the fighting for now.
“Either way, we’re going to make sure that they don’t get the chance to carry out that plan. We’re going to take a wide arc around and come from behind. Once the battle starts, we will sneak into their tents and kill them all.”
Arbor wasn’t so sure about this plan and voiced his doubts.
“How many soldiers do you think we can sneak past without their noticing us?”
“That’s the best part,” Ramona said with a wicked smile. “It’ll be just you and me.”
“Isn’t it too risky for the general to leave on such a mission with just one other person? Who will be in command while you are away? What will happen to the Defiants if we fail and get killed?”
There were so many things wrong with this plan that he couldn’t even begin to count them. Like how two people could wipe out over a hundred, without getting caught. Or how they’d even manage to get into a gremlin camp unnoticed.
Ramona waved off his concerns.
“Captain Tenor is perfectly capable of commanding the Defiants in my absence. Yes, it’s a risk for me to go out alone with you, but if no risks are taken, then the battle is already lost.”
“Why don’t you at least take a few more guards with you? Why only me?” Arbor asked. “Surely there are better candidates for this mission.”
Ramona shook her head.
“I can cast illusions and make us appear to fit in with the gremlin force. Since our first meeting in your room, I have been able to make my illusions far more convincing. I can make us look, sound, smell, and even feel like gremlins. The problem is that I can’t cover more than two people at once for the time being. I’m sure that with practice I’ll be able to do more, but for now, that’s all I can manage.”
Arbor opened his mouth to ask another question, but she held up her hand to forestall him.
“As to why I’m taking you with me, well, that’s pretty simple,” she smiled here, her teeth flashing white in the sunrise, and her golden eyes sparkling with mischief.
“You’re the only person I know who can get us out of there alive once we’re done.”
58
Arbor ran over the open Flatlands, a small plume of dust kicking up in his wake. Ramona’s arms were wrapped around his shoulders, and his hands were under her knees, supporting her weight. They’d already made a wide circle around the gremlin camp and were now approaching it from the rear.
When Ramona had told him that he would be their mode of transportation, he’d been quite annoyed with her. He’d been holding his tongue so far, but he was far from happy. At least she wore armor, so he didn’t have to feel her soft curves pressing into him as he ran. That would just have been too much.
Finally, his annoyance bubbled over, and he just couldn’t hold it back anymore.
“I’m not a horse, you know,” he grumbled as the ground blurred by under his feet.
“What was that?” Ramona asked. “The wind is very loud. You’ll have to speak up.”
“I said, I’m not a horse!” he yelled, feeling her shift a bit in his grip.
“Why would you think you’re a horse?”
“It seems that all women I know think I am! First Grak, and now you. Is that all I’m good for, transporting people on my back because I’m strong and can run quickly? Sounds an awful lot like a horse to me.”
He shifted his grip as they continued running. His arms were beginning to cramp, despite increasing his strength. Ramona was a lot heavier than Grak had been. He’d almost said so when she’d climbed on his back at the beginning of their mission but quickly thought better of it. He may be dense, but even he wasn’t stupid enough to comment on her weight. Besides, he thought to himself, Grak wasn’t wearing armor at the time, and Ramona is taller.
“I’m sorry you feel that way.
Arbor was snapped back to the moment as Ramona finally answered.
“Just know that I don’t view you that way. The reason I chose you is because you give us the greatest chance of succeeding in this mission. There is no other Mage or soldier under my command that can do what you do. I would have brought horses, but they’re too loud and also tire more quickly than you do, from what Grak told me.”
Arbor thought she was laying the praise on a little thick, but despite himself, he felt better about being used as a glorified beast of burden.
“She also told me that you can outstrip a horse if you really wanted to.”
That part was true. Arbor had tested it out himself on the way back from the gremlin camp. He’d wanted to see what the extent of his speed was, and found that as of right now, he could outstrip a horse at a distance of over three miles. The problem with that was he was soon too tired to continue, and his muscles started shrieking in protest. He hoped his body would continue building itself to support heavier use of his magic. He could only imagine being able to run faster than the wind or being able to lift a boulder weighing several thousand pounds.
Something Ramona had said struck him as quite odd then.
“When did you have all this time to speak with Grak?”
Ramona laughed lightly at this.
“The night you came back with your report.”
“When did you have time for that?” Arbor asked.
There hadn’t been any time for details and after they were finished with the meeting, they’d all gone to bed.
“I went to visit her in her room after I was finished with my captains. Oddly enough, she was still awake when I knocked on her door, and she was kind enough to offer a detailed report on your scouting mission.”
Arbor was about to ask another question when his sharpened eyes picked out the telltale signs of the camp.
“I can see the tents,” he said, beginning to slow down.
His legs were a bit sore, but not nearly as badly as he’d been expecting.
“Alright, I’m going to drop the illusion over us now, so try not to stumble when I do. After all,” she said with a light chuckle. “Gremlins tend to be on the short side.”
Arbor nodded, bracing himself as the strangest sensation washed over him. It felt like his entire body was being coated in a gooey liquid. Looking down at himself, he almost did stumble. His legs were moving way faster than they should, and not at all in time with his actual steps.
“This is very weird,” Arbor called back, but was once again surprised.
His voice was completely different, higher pitched, and a little whiny sounding.
“Yes, it is weird, isn’t it?”
Arbor did actually stumble this time, and just managed to catch himself before he sent the two of them tumbling.
Ramona sounded exactly like Grak!
He heard laughter then and felt Ramona shaking with mirth. It was so strange to hear Grak’s laugh, knowing that it was someone else. Ramona might be one of the Co-founders of the Defiants, but she had a twisted sense of humor.
“That wasn’t funny, you know!” he shouted.
When he heard her laughing even harder, he decided to get revenge. He sped up suddenly, digging his heels into the ground and leaning forward. He heard her laughter abruptly cut off with a shriek which caused him to smile.
He hadn’t taken Ramona as the shrieking type.
The gremlin camp was fast approaching now, and Arbor could make out the individual tents at the back of the camp. At the speed he was currently going, he could cover a mile in just over a minute. He knew this to be true, as though his perception magic were speaking to him.
“Arbor, you need to slow down, we’re moving too fast!” Ramona yelled as the camp seemed to speed towards them at an alarming rate.
Arbor wanted to keep it up for a little longer, but he could already feel the twinges in his muscles that told him he was overdoing it and would soon be paying a hefty price for his little joke. He slowed to a more manageable speed and felt the strain on his muscles lessen considerably.
A few minutes later, he slowed to a walk, and Ramona hopped off his back. Arbor sighed in relief and leaned back, hearing a series of pops and cracks. He turned to look at Ramona then. She did look exactly like Grak. She also had a very familiar expression on her face, and it made Arbor take a small step back.
“Am I really that heavy?” Ramona asked.
It was extremely disconcerting, watching Ramona giving her the same look Grak did when she was annoyed.
“No, not at all!” he was quick to reassure her, waving his hands in front of his face.
He was once again shocked when he saw red hands, tipped with small black claws, waving before his eyes. This was way too strange for him.
“Good,” Ramona answered, in the same satisfied way Grak did when she’d gotten her way.
Arbor found that this amused him very much and had to make a supreme effort of will not to laugh.
“What’s the plan?” he asked, looking at the cluster of tents a few hundred feet away.
“We walk into the camp, then we go from tent to tent, and kill all the Mages.”
Arbor raised an eyebrow at her.
“That simple?”
Ramona smiled then, in a very un-Grak like way.
“I never said it would be easy.”
Arbor just sighed in resignation. Here he was, caving into another woman’s crazy plan. He had to wonder if disguising herself as Grak had made Ramona pick up some of her traits.
They walked quickly into the camp, Arbor using his magic to find the tents of the Mages and heading quickly in their direction. The camp was oddly silent, with only the occasional gremlin walking by. He was even more impressed with Ramona’s magic, when not a single gremlin stopped them for questioning. Soon they were standing outside the first mage’s tent.
