Читать книгу The Great Horror: Discovery - Patrick Mew - Страница 11

Chapter 11

“The Broken Tooth Ridge,” Rusga said, emerging from the brush at the roadside and looking the same direction as the wizard with cautious eyes. “They're quite a sight, aren't they?”

“You know them?” she replied, brow furrowing. “How?”

“Kida and I come from the forest on the other side of there. Our trip to Taft took us several days and we came through Orkrist Pass. It's to the northeast of here about two days' travel but it's the safest route through the mountains. My mentor suggested that path to ensure that we got to your village safely.” The catfolk sighed, gazing longingly toward the pass. “Someday we'll head that way again but until then all I can do is remember the forest in which I grew up.”

“Aww, don't be sad Ru-ru!” He winced as he heard that, as if it was painful to his ears. “We'll go back one day and we'll take these friends of ours with us. There's all sorts of neat things there, like the springs and the rockfalls that formed in the valleys. And during the winter the Fursha Falls freeze over and you can skate on the river! It's lots of fun!” Her eyes fluttered and closed as she smiled, thoughts of her childhood clearly dancing their way through her memories.

“I thought I told you not to call me that anymore,” Rusga scowled. “I don't like that name. I'm too old for it.” He grumbled under his breath, muttering about how it was too childish to use in front of people like this.

“Oh, you're no fun anyway. You're a big stick in the swamp. Kunya understands this, right?”

Kunya paused and her mouth hung open dumbly. “I ...err... I am not sure actually. What is this about and why is he so grumpy about it?” Kida looked confused. “I do not really know about this sort of thing. I was always alone as a child so I never understood the concepts of nicknames and teasing.”

“Oh goodness...” the kitsu answered. “I need to teach you the ways!”

“Oh gods, not another one...” Rusga mumbled, shaking his head. “This isn't going to turn out well at all.”

Kida sat down with Kunya atop one wagon and started with the basics. “Teasing and nicknames are one way that a girl can show affection to someone, whether that someone is a girl or a guy. I tease Rusga a lot because I like him and because he's a close friend of mine.”

“I see... and how do you describe being … close friends?” the human replied, tilting her head and trying to understand.

“Well... it's someone you care a lot about. Someone that you want to protect so that they don't get hurt. It's not just about protecting them in battle, either. Things can happen and sometimes people feel hurt deep inside themselves, in their hearts because of those things. When family or friends die, people hurt in their hearts and that's not something you can fix with magic. It's an emotional pain, a kind of pain that aches in one's very soul.”

“I … think I understand some of that. Like if my mentor were to pass away I would feel sad because he was a big part of my life and influenced how I perceive myself?” Kunya tried her best to hide something else, and to her relief Kida didn't notice it.

“Exactly, yes. Rusga helped protect me when I was younger until I learned how to defend myself better, and even then he still helps to keep an eye out for me. He's stubborn and temperamental but I'm glad he's around.”

“So even though he expresses himself negatively around you, particularly when you show your affection toward him, you still like him? That is beyond strange … why do you do that?”

“Well, I don't really know. All I know is that I do like him and that even if he says those things he's still glad to have me around. If he wasn't, he wouldn't have asked me to come along on this adventure, or have said that he felt safer with me than without.”

“That is similar to how Algan looks at me now, I think. He does not particularly like speaking to me, but he appreciates my help and my abilities. He scoffed at me at first, probably because I am a woman, but now he respects me. I think he respects you a bit too because of what I have done for him and because you have similar ability. He does not show it though.”

“I think so too. I wouldn't say you two are very close though. Just friends along for the journey with each other right now.” Kida nodded vigorously and smiled. “At this point I think you and I are closer than anyone else here, except maybe Ru-ru and I or Algan and Riun. Those two don't speak a lot but they understand each other and they'll defend each other to the death. Guys are a bit different. They don't say so much, but they prove their loyalty with their actions. They'll be together until the end I think.”

Kunya nodded. “I think I am beginning to understand... They watch each other because they enjoy having one another around. They drink and enjoy company together and understand each other on a level that I could never understand either of them. You and Rusga are different though. You two do not seem to get along on the surface but you both stay together despite how it appears. Why is that?” Her face looked steadily more puzzled as she spoke and she shook her head in confusion.

“I think it's because he and I aren't the same sex. Girls and guys tend to think differently and show their emotions differently from each other. He gets frustrated because I'm open and flagrant about showing my compassion. He would rather I act more like Algan and Riun act with one another, I think. A silent understanding. I can't be that way though. I have to express myself or I feel trapped.”

“I have noticed. You love to sing and dance and put yourself on display so that the whole world can see you for what you are. I … well, I don't know how to do that yet. Perhaps I think too logically or too much. Or maybe I'd prefer not to be noticed like that.” She looked down, staring at the earth quietly. Kida seemed to understand though and moved closer, embracing Kunya for a moment.

It's unusual, the wizard thought. But it's not a bad thing to relax like this. I'll have to do it more … wait, I'm thinking about this over my studies? She shook the thoughts free and lay flat on the wagon roof, eyes relaxed and half-closed. Kida had retreated to find other ventures.

The next five days of the trip passed uneventfully and the days went by mostly the same: Breakfast, break camp, march until midday, lunch, march until evening, camp again. It wasn't until they were a day away from Deswern that Rusga spotted something in the distance. Kida was continuing to teach Kunya about expression and the different forms of it when the catfolk called out. “Orcs! In the distance, maybe two kilometers away!” The elves among the caravan noticed also and readied their longbows as a dust cloud slowly came into view toward the horizon. The humans prepared shields and swords while the six of the hired party armed themselves as well.

As the orcs approached an increasing rumbling noise rattled the ground, shaking the wagons ever so slightly. Kunya and Kida opted to drop down from their perch rather than sit on a shaky surface as they came into view. No less than four dozen approached, about half armed with shields and cruel rounded blades while the rest carried massive axes. All wore crude armor made of stitched animal hides. About a hundred fifty meters from the caravan the archers fired their first volley of arrows, taking down a couple here and there.

About fifteen had been taken down in all when the melee began, the familiar clashing of steel and wood rising above the open plains and echoing back from the forest to their rear. Roars, groans, and hissing filled the air as the humans and elves fought hard to drive the orcs away. Kunya, normally excellent with her healing and protection magic, felt overwhelmed by the sheer number of combatants on both sides. Kida too was pushed on edge as the kitsu's mana reserves ran low after not more than a minute.

“There's too many! I can't keep up with the injuries!” the wizard cried, moving from wagon to wagon for cover as she fought to draw forth the mana that she needed. The orcs fell much more quickly but now and then one of the human merchants would fall to wounds from a lucky strike or from being overrun with numbers. It took a few minutes for the combat to turn decisively as soldiers from the Silver Flyer slowly began to push their foes back. A lack of mages on the side of the orcs meant that their numbers dwindled too fast and the dust began to settle from the air as fewer were still fighting.

Kunya, her reserves dry and energy totally drained, fell back atop the forward wagon and did naught but breathe heavily and sweat profusely as she tried to recover. Xron and Rusga, having been picking the orcs off from range, were equally tired and Kida was hiding under one of the wagons in an attempt to evade notice in case a spare orc found its way from the center of the battlefield. Riun and Algan, on the other hand, were still fighting where the other humans had worn themselves out. About a half dozen of the bestial humanoids remained, circled around the pair.

“It's just like back in that goblin lair, isn't it?” Algan grinned, his spear daring any of them to close in. Though heavy with sweat and blood, and short of breath, he was no less able or alert than at the start of the combat.

“Oh yes. Only these are a little bit tougher than those sorry things, wouldn't you say?” The tribesman's blade rose high above, ready to dispatch his enemies as the six orcs closed in at once. Each human cut one down before it got close enough to strike and dispatched another from normal attack range. Two left, one on each, and each of the two bore their great axes against the humans. It was almost elegant since both orcs connected and drew forth a stream of crimson, grinning momentarily before being slain. In their dying moments they continued to smile widely as if content to die in battle.

“The only thing that bothers me about orcs,” Kida said, looking the bodies over, “Is the way they look when they die. They always seem so ...happy to be killed. It's disturbing to me.”

“That's the way their culture is, Kida,” Kunya answered, turning a few over to check for valuables. “They revel in battle and enjoy combat, even if they die. To them, that just means that their opponent was worthy of fighting. Just like we enjoy protecting those we care about, they enjoy war and conflict.”

“It's still weird to me.”

“Worry less about what's weird and more about what we can salvage,” Algan piped up, rattling several of the crudely made blades together and carrying them to the wagon that the food and drink had been kept in. “We need to move again before any of their tribes come looking for these guys. I don't imagine a pack like this was more than a day's travel away, since they had little food on-hand. There's no way you can feed those sorts of numbers on hunting alone, either.”

“You're absolutely correct, young warrior,” Mr. Farstride commented, surveying the battlefield from nearby. His gray eyes looked troubled as they scanned the hills to the northeast. “I'd imagine they are gathering their forces together and trying to take whatever they can find to fuel their growing numbers. We must move swiftly. Gather up what is worth taking and let's go!”

Proper disposal of the bodies wasn't an option here; the party and merchants stripped any metal or usable leather from the orcs and piled their corpses some distance away from the road. The carrion birds would find them well enough, and altogether the six pocketed some fifty gold coins' worth of money. The caravan would keep the materials so that the adventurers needn't carry it. In exchange, any money raised from that would be split between the two groups.

Those with good vision kept their eyes open toward the northeast as they continued the march toward town through the day but nothing came about. Night swept over them as a bright, near-full moon lit the plains well enough for them to see anything substantial that might approach their camp.

“What should we do while we're there?” Kida asked, curious about the town. Despite her extensive traveling experience she'd never ventured northward to Deswern, and the hunk of hard bread she held steadily shrunk to the bowl of hot soup in her lap.

“Hmm... if I recall correctly there's a festival soon. The elves throw quite a party for themselves and their tourists, provided you're invited to stay for it.” Mr. Farstride's eyes, normally cold and gray, were lit by the fire. It was only here that the party could see the age and the weariness in his face and the ache in his bones.

“Really? Do you think they'll like us there?”

“Perhaps,” said one elf from across the flames. His hair, silvery-yellow and almost glittering under the starlight, was pulled back to show his angular face and bright emerald eyes. “This is the first caravan to make the entire trip from Taft in some time. Depending on what's here you might have a case to convince the council to allow you to participate.”

“Then a case I shall present! I want to party with them, dang it!” Kida seemed determined, though whether it was truly to enjoy company with the elves or to simply indulge in the revelry was unknown. The gleam in her eyes suggested that she didn't care much who was partying as long as she was invited.

“I think you just want to get drunk again,” Rusga shot in, chuckling softly. “You know you can't handle yourself like that so I don't know why you do it.”

“It's way fun, that's why!” She sounded angry now and the catfolk backed off from teasing her rather than actually risk making her mad. It wasn't clear whether Kida had a temper and Rusga knew it or whether he was erring on the side of caution but the stars and bright moon drew their attention back to the night. Meteors streaked into the chill blackness above as they fell into sleep, one by one. Only the night's guard would truly appreciate it though, for they had the longest view of all.

The next morning was frosty and crisp with a sweeping wind gently fluttering the canvas tents and coats of the caravan. While not a full breeze, the air was yet cold enough to slush a light ale if left unattended over the night and those that were up for the late watch were bundled up tightly. A light dusting of snow, probably from fog, covered the dirt and brown grass of the grasslands to the east and the frost on the road crunched underfoot as camp was broken. The aroma of food, mostly meat fried on iron skillets, drew drool from mouths as a steady stream of gulping circled the area.

“Alright, let's get moving. Breakfast should be done shortly so eat on the way. We don't want to lose any more time being here waiting for the orcs' reinforcements.” Mr. Farstride barked. His face took its familiar resolve again this morning as he circled the encampment and looked for things to help put away or organize. Progress in packing seemed to meet his standards and he sat down again after a few minutes. The horses, though chilled from the cold breeze, were up and lively for the trip and their breath hung in the air like so many small clouds. A few minutes more and the travelers were on their way, the elven town of Deswern slowly coming into view before them amidst the snow-capped firs and pines of the northern forest.