Steven Burke - The Dark Tide

“Kill stunties!” roared the clearly enraged rock troll commander. He swung his long and deadly swords with great precision. Several heads were sent flying every which direction. Blood filled the air as the massive troll brutally attacked the dwarves.

“How dare you desecrate our home with your filth…I swear to you that I will be the last thing you ever see in what remains of your pitiful life!” roared a deep gruff voice from the midst of the dwarven archers. The lethality of the threat was profound; however, it would not be taken seriously.

Toan laughed as he watched a small, black haired dwarf rushed at him. The infinitesimal time it took the troll to laugh, the stout attacker had hurled two silver throwing axes at Toan’s shoulders. The simultaneous hits knocked back the giant warrior enough to unbalance him and distract him from the real threat. With an upswing of his silver war axe, Mason Bardomli split the vile monster from his nether region all the way up to his chest. Black blood and guts spilled out on the floor in gushes. All the dwarves around the scene backed away from the rock troll fearing the damage the dying brute would do to them.

A deafening roar silenced the hot battle as Commander Toan writhed in pain. Mason walked slowly to the side of the dying troll’s head. With both of his calloused hands he grabbed Toan’s head and forced his eyes open. Tears were streaming down the rock like skin as they stared at one another. The aged dwarf forced his way past the troll’s mental barriers and searched quickly for any useful information. He then released his psychic hold before addressing the helpless beast that lay before him.

“Commander Toan Aruwurd…I promised you that I would be the last thing you saw in this world and I like to believe that I am as good as my word” began Mason darkly. He muttered some dwarvish spells under his breath and then with force beyond his natural strength, he smashed the rock troll’s head in. It looked like he had merely smashed a cantaloupe.

Several of the dwarven archers rushed to the now still body of the late Commander Toan and hoisted him up on the ledge. As they dowsed the lifeless body with flammable liquid, Mason retrieved his silver throwing axes along with his massive war axe. He nodded his approval to light the beast’s body. Once the flames burst into existence, they unceremoniously shoved Toan over the edge. Commander Jabari’s stunned silence evaporated as he began to swear ancient blood oaths to the keeper of the underworld.

“Commander Jabari Ihana…leave this place before I do you too!” ordered Mason boldly. He winked to the dwarves around him as he waited for the proper response from the dangerous leader of the forces under the mountain.

“You…die…I…kill…now” stuttered Jabari in an absolute rage. He grabbed for a huge chunk of rock to hurl at the defiant dwarf. As he pulled ferociously at the wall without realizing how unstable the entry was now. His excessive usage of wall fragments had caused the tunnel to visibly shake in its weakened state. With a final tug at the rock he had selected, the arch gave way completely. Dust filled the killing field as the archway collapsed. Everyone close to the collapsed entry coughed roughly as the air filled with stone particulates.

“I wonder how the battle goes down below.” King Dagnolir wondered aloud. He had not slept well since the beginning of the siege and his exhaustion was becoming difficult to hide from others. When tired he was exceptionally irritable and he paced incessantly.

“If my information is correct, Mason has personally killed Commander Aruwurd. He also tricked Commander Ihana into collapsing the tunnel entrance” supplied the warrior druid placidly. He was looking out the window at the latest blizzard that assailed the mountain side. His face was inscrutable as he stood next to his friend.

“How do you know this?” The king’s exhaustion evaporated at this unexpected news. It was great news which was much needed. He just wondered how is mystic friend had gained this knowledge.

Nariko looked sideways at his friend before pouring water from a pitcher in his hands onto the floor between them. He closed his eyes and took a deep calming breath. As he opened his eyes he knelt down on the floor beside the pool of water. He then leaned gently to one edge of the liquid and blew softly over the surface. The water turned a silvery color and shimmered for a moment. Then the bowels of Dagnolir’s fortress came into view. There were several burnt trolls, dwarves, and goblins lying all over the floor. Mason appeared and looked directly at the king and druid.

“Can he see us?” asked King Jarvis quickly. He was stunned by what the druid had done right before him. He had not seen such obvious uses of magic before. He thought that this particular use of magic could prove very useful. I am so glad my friend is such a powerful druid. We could really use more druids like him.

“Course I can…what can I do fer ya?” asked Mason gruffly. His beard and face was covered in blood with a fine layer of dust on top of it. He looked like he had been through quite an ordeal. The mixture between blood and dust made him look as though he had just come from the underworld.

“Lord Neb taught me this trick. He felt that this would work better than sending runners up and down Dagnolir all day and night” offered Lord Nariko with a knowing smile. He knew that this new method of communicating will help the continued war effort.

“Mason, what is your status?” asked the king as he eyed his druid friend with a smile of relief. The king’s irritation evaporated at the news and the amazing magical communication method that Nariko had provided.

“We have killed all rock trolls who had entered the fortress…including that big bloke Toan. Jabari collapsed the tunnel through the force of sheer stupidity. We finally have a chance to regroup” reported the bloodied war hero. His armor was covered in black blood from his deadly encounter with Commander Toan. He was panting slightly from his latest heroics. He did not boast about what he had done…that was not his style. That did not mean he did not enjoy others showering praise on him.

“It seems that the gods are smiling down on us…we too have been afforded an opportunity to…” began the king slowly before Mason cut him off.

“If that is all, I best be getting back to work” Mason said indifferently. He then walked out of the sight of the shimmering two way mirror.

“Do not be offended my lord…he is all business. He has things under control down there” Nariko said with a sly grin. He chuckled silently at the gruff nature of his old friend Mason. He was definitely a dwarf of action and not one for talking. If there was work to be done then he would make sure it was attended to. He was not politician and did not waste energy on such endeavors like social interaction. He preferred to be left alone which also led to the mystic status given to him by other dwarves.

“I am not worried…I am just relieved for this break. Do you have any news from the guardians?” the king asked as he stared at the disappearing puddle of water. He chuckled slightly at his exchange with Mason.

“They will visit soon to assist with our fight. However, they are rather busy at the moment with the massive siege of Landen. We are not forgotten…I believe this weather has been their contribution. What do you plan to do now?”

“We can outlast these idiots, but that will take more time than we have. We need to help our brethren and friends in this fight against that vile witch Kana. I have some ideas…” began the king determinedly. His demeanor calmed as they began to talk.

The two dwarven leaders discussed strategies through the night as the snores from the brown bears of the north battled with the howling wind from the latest blizzard. General Yuki’s army had slid all the way to the base of the mountain and resigned themselves to waiting out this latest weather development. Nariko and Jarvis knew that they needed to make repairs in addition to planning new defensive stratagems. The warrior druid felt that they should use their furry allies to wreak some havoc on the unsuspecting trolls and goblins down below. By the following morning their plans had been laid and the fortress of Dagnolir came to life as their plans were put into motion.