Chapter 100
Griknar the Great
Two weeks later…
Allaria moved through the forest like a wraith. Every step was light and perfectly placed, ensuring that no snapping twig or rustling leaf betrayed her presence.
Moving this way came as naturally to her as breathing. Her home world was little more than endless forest surrounded by sea, so she had been born among the trees. Her father had been the hunt master of their tribe, and from the moment she was old enough to walk, he had drilled into her the skills of his trade: tracking, hunting, and moving unseen.
When her tribe had been dragged into the war that broke out between the two great lords of her world, Allaria had become a warrior. The ability to track your enemies, to move undetected, and to strike without warning was often the difference between life and death.
Kaelis and Voklum might have felt ill at ease in the forest, but to Allaria it was like coming home. In fact, she would much rather be among the trees than in the crowded streets of Stonehaven. To her, the forest was predictable – so full of life, yet so peaceful. Stonehaven, by comparison, was chaos. How could anyone feel safe surrounded by such a swarming press of bodies?
Winterclaw padded along beside her. Although he was a creature of the Great Frost Plains, he moved through the forest as easily as she did. She glanced down at him, and he met her eyes, his muzzle parting in that lopsided grin of his. She found herself smiling back.
In many ways, the wolf reminded her of Pete. Not the fur, of course. Well... at least not since the previous day, when Pete had finally visited the Trialist Accommodation Centre for a haircut and beard trim.
No, it was their nature. They were both friendly, warm, and easy-going, but when the time came, they could be utterly terrifying.
Winterclaw had been accompanying her, Voklum, and Kaelis for over a week now, and she had quickly come to appreciate the wolf's presence. She was even more grateful for it now that they were attempting their first Tier Four quest.
The three of them had visited the Expedition Centre the previous day and defeated the fourth-wave constructs. It had been close, but the weeks they'd spent questing together had paid off.
The wolf was currently in what Pete called his ‘don't want people to shit their pants when they see him’ size, with the top of his back level with Allaria's stomach. She reached down to scratch his head, and once again found herself thoroughly impressed by how soft his fur was.
Rel’ly Good Shampoo truly was remarkable.
She supressed a chuckle and opened her Quest Map. They were now well within the red circle that indicated the quest objective’s rough location. It should be around here somewhere…
She checked the description again.
Griknar the Great
Tier: Four
Rating: ★
Recommended Group Size: 3-5
A tunnel goblin clan led by the brutal warrior Griknar the Great has taken up residence in an abandoned mine roughly two hundred miles southwest of Stonehaven.
A skilled and feared warrior, Griknar is a devout follower of Suth'tath, an Avatar of War. In exchange for his patron's blessing, he must perform ritual sacrifices. Every soul offered upon the god's altar strengthens Griknar, making the him ever more dangerous.
The clan is nomadic, travelling from one location to another in search of victims for their rituals. They raid nearby settlements before moving on, disappearing before the local populace can mount any real organised resistance.
Having recently occupied the abandoned mine, it is only a matter of time before the surrounding villages come under attack.
Eliminate Griknar and his warriors before more innocent lives are claimed in the name of Suth'tath.
Rewards:
37,000 gold
120 Expedition Centre Points
Bloodborne Axe
*
Allaria found the quest's location a few minutes later. It was the careless talking of the guards that gave it away; she heard them well before she saw them. This ‘Griknar’ may have been a skilled and feared warrior, but such sloppy discipline among his soldiers suggested that his leadership skills left much to be desired.
She glanced back to see Kaelis and Voklum trailing a hundred or so metres behind and raised a hand to gesture for them to stop where they were.
The entrance to the mine was in what had once been a clearing but was now in the process of being reclaimed by nature. There were long structures that had likely once been the temporary homes of the miners, but little remained beyond the stone foundations and a few particularly stubborn timber frames. Even they were mostly lost from sight, with young trees, plants, and bushes growing within and around them.
Two goblins stood near the entrance, but there was very little guarding going on. Their spears lay forgotten on the ground, and they were taking it in turns to throw a knife into the trunk of a tree.
They were short creatures, perhaps five feet tall, with skin the colour of sun-bleached leather. They both wore sleeveless chainmail vests, the metal discoloured by rust. The muscles of their arms were lean and wiry, crisscrossed with dozens of pale scars.
Their faces were all sharp angles, with long, crooked noses, and ears far too large for their heads, ending in sharp points. There was an air of cruel savagery about the creatures, and Allaria had no trouble imagining them carrying out sacrificial rituals.
“Bullseye!” yelled one, his lips parting in a smile that revealed jagged, blackened teeth. “Pay up, Krek.”
Krek snarled, his yellow eyes narrowing as his fingers crept towards the dagger at his belt. Allaria was certain he was about to launch himself at his companion... then he laughed. It was a cold, cutting sound that made her shudder. He clapped his companion on the back before strolling over to retrieve the knife from the tree.
“Double or nothing?”
Allaria glanced down to see Winterclaw staring at her expectantly.
“If I take care of Krek, can you handle the other one?” she asked. “I want to do this quickly and quietly, so they don't have a chance to raise the alarm.”
Winterclaw nodded and padded away. A few moments later, he disappeared from sight, swallowed by the undergrowth.
Allaria drew a Troll Bone Blade and advanced on the goblins. She moved in complete silence, although she needn't have bothered. Krek had won the rematch, and a fight had broken out after he'd attempted to snatch the coin purse from the other goblin's belt.
By the time they realised she was there, it was too late. She grabbed a handful of Krek's long, black hair and yanked his head back, exposing his neck. Her blade opened his throat, and a fountain of blood erupted from the wound as the effect of Bleed activated. Releasing her grip, Krek stumbled forward a step before collapsing into a pool of his own blood.
The other goblin opened his mouth to shout but never had the chance. Winterclaw slammed into him from behind, driving the air from his lungs and sending him sprawling to the ground. Before he could react, the wolf was on him. Winterclaw's mouth snapped shut around the goblin's neck, and with one vicious shake, tore his head clean off.
Allaria knelt beside Krek and wiped her blade clean on his trousers. She checked him for system loot but wasn't at all surprised to find there was none. Enemies in Expedition Centre quests never seemed to drop any.
There was a loud thud, followed by the clattering of metal. Allaria’s head snapped up to see a wide-eyed goblin standing in the mouth of the mine opening. This one was a female, wearing simple, ragged clothing rather than armour. The tray she’d been carrying, loaded with two goblets and a large haunch of meat, lay at her feet.
Allaria shook her head in warning as their eyes met.
“Don’t.”
The goblin hesitated for a moment, then took a few terrified steps back. Allaria swore under her breath and drew back her arm, intending to launch her blade...
She let it fall to her side with a sigh. The goblin turned and fled down the tunnel, the echoes of the confined space amplifying her screams.
“Sorry,” she said to Winterclaw. “I only had to watch the guards for a few moments to know they were utterly despicable creatures. But her? I don't know. It didn't feel right. If it turned out she’s innocent in all this, I'd be no better than the people this quest sent us here to kill.”
Winterclaw simply smiled and bumped his head against her thigh. She reached down to scratch behind his ears as Kaelis and Voklum came stampeding into the clearing, their weapons drawn.
“I take it the stealth approach is no longer an option then?” asked Voklum, studying the two dead goblins with professional interest.
“I’m afraid not,” replied Allaria.
“That suits me,” said Kaelis. “You may have noticed that I’m not one for subtlety.”
“Not at all. In fact, on the way over here, I was very impressed by how gracefully you moved through the forest. It was like you’d been doing it your whole life.”
“Really?”
“No.”
*
The tunnel had fallen temporarily silent, but it was very short lived. The screaming was quickly replaced by shouting, war cries, and the thundering of armoured footsteps.
Knowing the goblins would heavily outnumber them, the party decided to take the fight to them. They advanced into the tunnel, which was wide enough for Kaelis and Voklum to stand side by side while still having just enough room to swing their weapons freely. They led the way, with Winterclaw close behind in case they needed support or a goblin managed to slip past them. Allaria brought up the rear, her bow ready with an arrow resting against the relaxed string.
The tunnel was well lit, the blazing torches lining the walls bathing the stone in an orange glow. When they caught sight of one another, both sides paused. Allaria scanned the goblins' ranks – there were at least thirty of them – but couldn't see any who stood out from the rest. She thought it was safe to assume Griknar was not among them. After all, anyone who referred to themselves as 'the Great' would undoubtedly be dressed far more elaborately than the rank-and-file goblins.
An order was bellowed from deep within their ranks, and several goblin archers stepped forward. They raised their bows and released a volley.
Voklum was ready. He lunged forward, bringing his warhammer around in a sweeping arc as he unleashed Avatar's Judgment. He had gained a not-insignificant amount of strength over the past month, and when the torrent of superheated air rushed out to meet the arrows, it was so hot that the metal arrowheads were reduced to molten slag and the shafts to ash.
The display inspired a moment of hesitation among the goblins. It was all the invitation Kaelis and Voklum needed. They charged, crossing the distance so quickly that they were among the goblins a heartbeat later. Voklum brought his warhammer crashing down on a goblin's head, caving in its skull. Another, clutching a serrated dagger, lunged at him, the blade driving towards his chest. Voklum twisted aside but couldn't completely avoid the strike. The goblins might not have been strong, but the vicious little bastards were fast.
There was the screech of metal on metal as the dagger scraped across his armour, and Voklum roared in satisfaction when he saw that – other than a fine scratch across the surface – his armour was entirely unmarked. The Expedition Centre Points he'd invested in it had been well worth it.
He lashed out with an armoured fist, shattering the goblin's jaw and sending the creature staggering back into its clanmates. An arrow whistled past his ear, and he spun on the spot to see a goblin with its axe raised over his head, poised to cleave Voklum’s skull. The creature’s plan had been scuppered somewhat by the arrow buried in its eye.
*
Allaria fired arrow after arrow, finding the throats and eyes of any goblin that threatened to overwhelm her friends. Kaelis and Voklum fought like demons, but these were Tier Four opponents. They were formidable foes – fast and cunning, with very little regard for their own wellbeing – and they threw themselves into the fray.
They'd found some success. Kaelis had a nasty gash across his cheek where he'd failed to fully dodge a backhanded slash from a dagger. The blade must have been coated in some potent poison, as black veins spread outwards from the wound.
Allaria was sure that he'd slowed a little as the rot spread through his body, and she knew he'd need healing. With the unrelenting combat, he had little hope of drinking a potion.
She sighed.
She was going to have to cast Rejuvenating Touch. Despite Rel's best efforts, her progress with magic had been slow. It had been an incredibly frustrating experience, pushing her mind – and her patience – to its limits. It was like trying to pat your head and rub your stomach at the same time while contemplating a complex riddle and reciting the alphabet backwards.
Rel had assured her that by the standards of a ‘mere mortal’, she was making admirable progress, but she was not convinced.
Allaria re-slung her bow and took a deep breath. It was one thing casting the spell in the safety of the Trialist Accommodation Centre. It was another thing entirely casting it in the heat of battle. She was vulnerable while preparing the spell, but she trusted that Winterclaw would keep her safe. She knew the wolf was humouring them by following their lead. If he'd wanted to, he could have carved through the goblins like a scythe through wheat.
Right... the first step was constructing the rune formation in her mind. That was the easy part. Rel had made her draw it thousands of times until it was burned into her memory and she could reproduce it blindfolded. Not only that, but he'd taught her meditative gestures and incantations to support the process and help focus her mind.
As an ‘archmagus for the ages’ Rel himself did not need such crutches to support his spellcraft, but he was insistent that it was part of the standard learning journey. Eventually, she wouldn’t need to use them.
With the rune formation fixed firmly in her mind, it was time to move on to the tricky part: feeding mana through it. When she'd been a child, she'd often sit at the table in her family's cabin and paint. Her father had made the paper and paints himself using ingredients gathered from the forest, and drilled into her the importance of patience and a steady hand.
Forest animals had been her favourite things to paint. She'd always start with the outlines, and once they'd dried, she'd carefully fill them in. She'd sit there for hours, hunched over the table, her tongue sticking out slightly as she worked with intense concentration. She always set herself the same challenge: whatever happened, the paint could not go over the lines.
Casting a spell was much the same. Mana had to be channelled precisely for the spell to take shape, the formation acting as a sort of guide. Failure to control the flow would result in the spell unravelling, and she'd failed many times while practising. The mental effort and concentration involved had been incredible, but, rather surprisingly given his usually impatient nature, Rel had been remarkably patient, encouraging her to do it over and over again.
Due to the incredibly mana-rich environment of the Trial Zone, the only limiting factor had been her own ability. The first time she'd successfully cast the spell, it had taken nearly twenty seconds to form, which would, of course, have been entirely useless in combat. However, after a great deal of practice, she'd managed to cut that down dramatically.
With the battle raging in front of her, forming the spell felt like it took an eternity, even though in reality it was only around five seconds. When she finished, a sphere of golden energy hovered above her palm. It was only around the size of an apple. Far smaller than the one Rel had cast while demonstrating the spell, it would also be far less potent, but hopefully it'd be enough to purge the poison from Kaelis's body.
She fixed Kaelis in her mind as she unleashed the spell. Even though he was moving as he fought, the golden sphere tracked him before sinking into his back.
You have gained 1 intelligence.
Current intelligence: 29
As the first wave of healing energy pulsed through him, Kaelis let out a triumphant roar and redoubled his assault, and the black veins that had spread across much of his face began to retreat.
Allaria couldn't help but feel a surge of satisfaction as she witnessed her magic at work. Even with all the advantages the Trials provided – the stat system, the mana-rich environment, the access to tutelage and guidance from masters – learning the spell had been no easy task.
But moments like this? Curing her friend of the poison coursing through his veins and allowing him to fight on? They made every frustrating hour of practice worthwhile. She was more determined than ever to continue learning under Rel.