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Chapter 356 - The Foothold
🕑 Added 2024-07-03 01:37:36 +0000 UTC2.30am finish. Time to sleep...
Hump enjoyed his time seated on the walls, talking with Celaine and Dylan. After a while, Bud and Emilia joined them too. Together, they watched as an encampment was erected beyond the fort walls. There, the bulk of the soldiers and camp followers would stay. Even after they moved on from here, a garrison would remain to keep the fort secure. To lose control of the gate was to lose control of their supply route, and there was no coming back from such a position. An army marched on its stomach.
“High command will be hosting their meeting by now,” Emilia said. “They’ve set up inside the keep. I saw Anara heading that way before we came to meet you.”
“Do you think we’ll be mentioned?” Bud asked.
Hump laughed. “We damn well better be after all the shit we went through today.”
They all turned their heads as the smell of roasting meats reached them from the encampment. There would be a feast that evening. Alcohol was limited while they were in enemy territory, but General Korteg was sparing no expense in seeing that his soldiers were well fed. Smoke rose from roasting fires, clouds of smoke stark against a red sky.
Hump tilted his head, frowning as he noticed something. The sky had darkened to the shade of dried blood. “Is it just me, or is the sky getting darker?”
Celaine snorted. “Have you only just noticed? It’s been getting darker for a while.” Hump turned to her, along with the rest of his companions, the same look of surprise on their faces. “You really didn’t notice?” she asked.
They shook their heads.
“You didn’t think to mention it?” Hump asked.
“Didn’t seem important.” Celaine shrugged. “Night is night.”
“What causes it though?” Dylan asked. “It’s strange for a dungeon to have any sort of day-night cycle. I don’t see the point. There’s no sun.”
“It’s likely emulating our world,” Hump said. “That often seems to be the case with dungeons.”
“Or maybe the dungeon core also needs rest,” Emilia said. “I’ve heard they’re sentient.”
“I’ve never heard anyone suggest that a dungeon core might sleep,” Hump said. “Though the more I’m exposed to them, the more I’m coming to agree with the idea that they are sentient after all. Too much about them seems impossible if it were to be accidental.”
“I don’t like this dungeon too much,” Celaine said.
“Better than that bug one where the lich queen almost killed you,” Hump said.
“What was that like?” Dylan asked, leaning forward with interest.
“You’d have hated it,” Celaine said. “Dead trees everywhere. The soil was black and like sludge. Everything was covered in acid.” She nodded toward Hump. “Hump burnt the whole place down.”
“That’s an exaggeration,” Hump said. “There wasn’t all that much left to burn, and it was much smaller than this. Smaller than Bledsbury even.”
Dylan wrinkled his nose. “Sounds like you did the world a favour.”
“Are you feeling homesick yet?” Emilia asked Celaine.
Celaine thought for a few seconds then shook her head. “Not really. I feel a little guilty that I left so soon after the battle. Many died, and I would have liked to be there to help make sure everyone was okay. My sister especially was just starting to seem more like her old self. She was talking about taking over as Brood Mother after Janeen passed away.”
Hump raised his eyebrows. “You didn’t mention that. That would be brilliant.”
Celaine smiled and nodded, hugging her legs to her chest. “It would be good for her.”
“I’d like to meet her one day,” Emilia said. “And see Drakalyn."
“Me too,” Bud said.
“You sure you wouldn’t catch fire stepping into such a heretical place?” Hump asked. “There’s a,” he leant forward and whispered, “pagan goddess there.”
Bud glared at him. “I’ll be fine.”
They all laughed. Soon, food was ready, and hunger drew them from the walls and out of the fort gate to where the encampment was built along either side of the road that led to the demon citadel.
The army had settled considerably since earlier, the encampment fully established.
As Hump strode through the small paths between the tents, he nodded greetings to various soldiers that knew him by name. It seemed that wherever he went now, people recognised him, though he supposed Nishari didn’t help with that. There had been a time where such fame had seemed alluring, but now that he had it, he was not sure he liked it. It felt strange, as if they saw him for more than what he was. And there was a pressure that came with that, like great things were expected of him.
The Blackthorne company were set up on the east side of the road. Hump and the others joined them to celebrate first, but soon found themselves called away by Marcela to toast to their victory, and to honour Soren, Sorcerer of Osidian, that had fallen in battle. He had died atop the keep towers, ambushed as the demon reinforcements had arrived. Even at just a glance, Hump could tell how bitterly Owen and the rest of the party had taken the loss. The youthful cheer was gone from Marian, and despite their attempt at celebrating the triumph of the day, there was something missing.
That same sentiment seemed shared by all. They had succeeded, but this was just the first part of their assault of the Infernal Halls, and they had already lost many. It was almost unheard of for so many Chosen to die in a single day—their losses were keenly felt. But with them, there also came reward.
Throughout the evening, god pillars descended on the army. The gods granted new blessings to their Chosen, rewarding those that had shown their worth.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Bud said, watching as two more pillars descended from the sky, their divine light briefly shattering the blood red sky.
“So long as the gods are with us, our people shall not falter,” Marcela said. “Victory, and their presence will inspire many.”
To Hump, it was a bittersweet sight. Yes, people were gaining strength, but the gods were also handing it out following the loss of many of their Chosen. It was as if they were restoring their ranks. If their blessings could reach even this demonic world, why not grant it to their Chosen before they died? Why not come here themselves and actually help rather than leave the work for the rest of them?
He decided not to share that sentiment. Let the Chosen have their hope. There was no convincing them otherwise, and there was nothing to gain by ruining their moment.
It was nightfall, or as close as one got to it in this world, when Hump noticed Wizard Aldric approaching their section of the encampment. He approached the fires where the Blackthorne company were gathered, drawing the eye of many.
“Good evening,” Wizard Aldric said, a rare smile on the inquisitor’s face. He leaned heavily on his cane as he walked.
“Wizard Aldric!” Bud said cheerfully. “Welcome. A pleasure to see you, sir. How fare you after the battle?”
“Quite well, thank you. Quite well. I trust you are all in good spirits?”
Affirmations went up from the men, and they exchanged briefly with the inquisitor before Hump and his party stepped aside to speak with the many more privately.
“Can we help you with something?” Hump asked.
“Before we get to that, I wanted to congratulate you on the day. I also thought you would be pleased to hear that Anara was most clear about the significance of your efforts. Many people are paying attention to you. Important people. You have been recognised.”
“Recognised?”
“Indeed. General Korteg has attributed the capture of the gatehouse to you and your party. The king will hear of this. The whole country shall tell stories of it.”
Hump’s face fell into his hand, a dread welling up inside him. “I don’t understand. It was only thanks to Drexel that Gorvol was slain. It was he who fought the Gatekeeper to a standstill in the sky. We do not deserve such credit.”
Aldric leant in and said quietly. “Drexel is one of the Shadows. He does not claim credit, and his name cannot be known. I believe General Korteg sees your party as the ideal candidates to take his place.” He took the silver flask from his robes, opening it with one hand and taking a swig. “All saw you upon the gatehouse.”
Bud clapped Hump’s shoulder. “You look more frightened than when we first entered the Infernal Halls. This is a good thing! You’re an adventurer. One day, all of Alveron shall know the name of the White Flame Wizard.”
“Don’t you say it too,” Hump said. He caught Celaine smirking and shook his head, letting out a sigh. He supposed there was nothing he could do about it, even if the credit didn’t feel fully deserved.
“He is right though,” Emilia said. “Career-wise, this is fantastic news for all of us. But Wizard Aldric, forgive my presumption but you did not come here only to speak of such things. You need something from us.”
Wizard Aldric’s face dropped, a seriousness coming over him that made Hump’s stomach sink. “In the morning, we begin the march to the demon lord’s citadel. I regret that I must lean upon your party once more when we do. It is why this conversation could not wait until another day, in fact.”
“There is no need to regret it,” Bud said. “We’re here to serve, however we are needed. What do you need of us?”
Aldric gave an appreciative nod. “A number of warlocks were captured this morning attempting to disrupt our assault on the Infernal Gates. Evidently, this attempt proved unsuccessful. We were able to capture a number of them, and have since gained information that the warlock infiltrators will target our supply convoys in the coming days.” He seemed to see something on their faces as he quickly reassured them. “This is good news. With this information, we are a step ahead of the warlocks for the first time in a while.”
“You have a plan?” Hump said, filling in the gaps.
“Indeed.” The man took another swig of his flask. “We intend to leave a convoy exposed in an effort to lure them out. And I would like to assign you, Wizard Humphrey, as lead on this mission, along with the Blackthorne company in support.”
The man paused, assessing their faces. Hump did his best to give nothing away. Such a mission was unexpected, but not beyond his expectations. To be assigned the lead on it, however, was a step further than anything he had done in the past.
“What more can you tell us of the mission?” Bud asked.
“You will disguise yourselves as ordinary guards. That dragon will need to find a place to keep out of sight, but you will have wagons available that should provide sufficient cover. Your path shall be the same as the rest of the army, but you shall experience a malfunction with a number of the wagons on route, causing you to fall behind the rest of the expedition. If all goes to plan, this is when the warlocks shall strike. Your objective will be to keep them in place until we arrive to support.”
“Why us?” Hump asked. “Why do you want me in command?”
“I’m sure you’re quite aware of your success record,” Aldric said. “You survive every challenge and come out stronger for it.”
“This one was almost too much for me,” Hump said.
“It is the ‘almost’ that pushes us to grow. With this, I offer you another opportunity. You will, of course, be appropriately rewarded.”
The danger of such a mission was not lost on Hump, but they had faced warlocks before. They were at least a threat he was familiar with, rather than the forces of the demons. And he had asked to be involved in this task. To turn it down now would be to go back on that. In the end, Bud was right from the beginning. They were in the Infernal Halls to do a job—to bring down the dungeon, and the warlocks that aided the demons.
“This reward…” Hump said. A grin that he couldn’t help spread across his face. “What are we talking?”
Comments
Alex Maher
Woops!
Jason Hornbuckle
Do they not know the great tree is dead?
George R
Amazing chapter
NameGame
I can almost see the gleam in Hump's eye as he rubs his hands together about the potential reward. Thanks for the chapter!
