“And Jack made a shield!”

  His mom arched an eyebrow. “But I had his totem with me the whole time…”

  “Exactly!” he hollered excitedly. “Isn’t it great?”

  She smiled. “Indeed.” She turned to me. “So, your magic comes from within you. Are you sure you need the totems?”

  “I do,” I said. “At least for the time being. I don’t think I’m experienced enough to toss magic around without them. But this definitely opens up new possibilities.”

  She put her hand on my shoulder. “If you master your magic without the totems, you will be five times more powerful with them. That’s something you should keep in mind.”

  I nodded. “I understand. I’ll add some practice without totems to my daily regimen.”

  “Excellent,” she said. “I’m glad to hear it.”

  “By the way, I grabbed these stones and chiseled some runes into them.” I handed them to her. “I think I did those right?”

  She looked them over, turning them end over end in her hands. “Your rune etchings have improved dramatically. This one will give you some manner of control of the soil and rocks if I’m not mistaken.”

  I grinned. “That was the plan at least.”

  “You’ve come a long way in such a short time, Jack. I’m proud of you.”

  “Thank you,” I said. I turned to Burt. “I’ll be heading out tomorrow to run a personal errand for Count Broan.”

  “No worries,” he said. “Just be safe.” He stood and stretched. “Think I’ma turn in for the night.”

  “Good night, Burt.” I grabbed some of the clay.

  “You staying up?” he asked.

  I nodded. “I think I’m going to need another fire totem before I head out tomorrow.”

  “Probably not a horrible idea. Can’t be without a fire spell.” He winked at me. “Always need a fire spell.” He left the workshop and headed upstairs to his room.

  “I think I’ll head to bed as well,” said Mrs. Lennard. “Good night, Jack.”

  “Good night, Mrs. Lennard. Sleep well.” She closed the door as I began to mold my new totem.

  I followed the river’s twisting turns for several hours. The spot where I’d gathered clay was already behind me. I’d not been this far from the city before.

  Now was as good a time as any to test out the new ability I etched into the stone. I focused on the stone totem and willed the rune to life. I grinned as my skin hardened. I could feel thousands of pebbles pouring out of the ground and going up my body, providing materials to work with. The stone flowed over me. I felt a little sluggish, but it provided a ton more armor than my leathers did.

  Movement caught my attention. I turned toward the sound in time to see the techno-zombie swing the large branch at me. Without a second thought, I blocked it with my arm. The branch exploded as it smashed into my raised forearm. I didn’t feel a thing. I charged at it and punched it in the face. My fist connected with a wet, bone-shattering crunch. Techno-zombies or not, these things still ran on flesh and blood.

  A deranged Dwarf scurried out of a nearby bush.

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  “Yes, thank ye,” said the Dwarf. I released the Stone Skin spell letting my skin return to normal.

  “What’s your name?” I asked.

  “Gildrum.” He grinned. “What’s yours?”

  “My name is Jack.” I gestured at the now melting techno-zombie. “What is that?”

  “Hard to kill. Impressive.” He grinned. “Very impressive. Yes, quite very impressive.” His head snapped to the left. “I already said that!” His head snapped to the right. “I know! Tryin’ tae help.” His head snapped back to the left. “Well, yer not!” He turned back to face me and nodded. “Definitely well done, yes.”

  Wow, this guy is not stable by any stretch of the word. “I’m not even sure how many of those things I’ve killed, to be honest. I keep bumping into them every time I’m away from the city.”

  “Seventeen,” he said, all full of cheer. “Do you know how hard Bulgris are to replace? Hmm? Do you?”

  “No?” This was getting weird. Fast. I connected my mind to the stone totem and readied it. Now I was regretting releasing it. “What’s a Bulgris?”

  “Very difficult.” He frowned. “Expensive.” He grinned. “And ye had no trouble at all. It was impressive.” He pointed at the last bits of the corpse. “That’s a Bulgris.”

  “What exactly were you hunting out here, anyhow?”

  All the cheer and bubbliness instantly vanished. The grin turned into a sneer, and his face took on a menacing expression. “We be huntin’ ye, Jack.”

  “Sorry to disappoint, but I’m not on the menu.”

  He chuckled.

  I heard the rustle of leaves from every direction. Oh shit. He distracted me while his minions moved to surround me. I hid my panic and chuckled, trying to act like I wasn’t worried. “You don’t really think I’ll be this easy to take down, do you?”

  “We’ll see.” He sneered at me and made a gesture.

  Instinctive Foresight went off. Just as I had figured, glowing green darts were already halfway to me, coming from every angle around the perimeter. I willed Stone Skin at the same time I sent a force field blasting at the ground. The impact sent me flying straight upward. The darts passed harmlessly below me. I sent a blast of fire at Gildrum’s face. He screeched and jumped back, patting his flaming, unkempt beard.

  I used the force field blasts to propel me toward the nearest Bulgris. I swung a stone-covered fist at his face and took him to the ground in one smooth movement. I rolled to my feet and jumped to the side as another dart zoomed past. Another dart hit me in the shoulder. It ricocheted off me with a loud ting. The impact still spun me around enough to lose my balance and hit the ground.

  A heavy weight landed on my back. Then another. And a third. I didn’t have the strength to push them off me. I focused on the stone totem and triggered the second rune as I flared it with as much willpower as I could. I felt the stone spikes explode out from me and impale everything on top of my back. The sound was deafening. I retracted the spikes, and the corpses rolled off me.

  Gildrum stood there, eyes wide, for several seconds. I took a step toward him, and he panicked. He turned and scurried back into the bush he had come out of.

  “Get back here!” I yelled. I paused to double-check my map. “Oh shit.” He was retreating toward the village where Count Broan’s sister lived. That can’t be good…

  I chased the little bastard for nearly thirty minutes. No matter how fast I ran, he seemed just a little faster, despite my legs being twice the length of his. In a word, it was frustrating. The longer I chased him, the farther he seemed to get.

  I cleared the brushes ahead and noticed a zombie running at me. I willed the fire totem to blast the zombie. He took the blast of fire in the face and kept running toward me. “Why. Won’t. You. Die?” I accentuated every word with another blast of fire. The fire had little effect, so I blasted it in the face point-blank with my shield. His flaming body arced gracefully through the air and landed in the river with a squelching hiss. Then he stood back up and began running toward me again.

  “Mother fu—” I blasted my shield at an angle away from me as Instinctive Foresight triggered. The flash of the green dart ricocheted off my shield and into another zombie. The force drove it to its knees, but this one also stood back up. I knew my Stone Skin was immune to the darts’ damage but not so much the physics of the hit. I couldn’t afford to be smashed into the ground like earlier.

  As I turned, a blast of fire slammed against my chest. The flames rolled around my hardened skin. I looked over at the caster. One of the zombies held a staff and pointed it in my general direction. The end glowed, and another sphere of fire shot out toward me.

  I thrust my left hand out while also focusing on my fire totem. My senses snapped to the sphere of fire as it neared. I could feel it as if it were alive. It zipped to my outstretched left hand as I pulled it in an arc around me. As soon as it finished a half orbit, I thrust my right hand out and returned it right to the asshole who shot it at me. I also used the stone totem to hurl a bowling-ball-sized boulder right behind it, hidden by the fireball.

  The zombie caster, not caring about the fireball, just stared. He caught the fireball with his face. He grinned—for a split second. The wet crunch that followed was quite satisfying. He dropped like a sack of bricks.

  I ran forward as two more of them jumped at me. I splattered one through a building with a well-timed shield blast. The other one tackled me like a linebacker. I hit the ground. Hard. Had it not been for the stone skin, it probably would have crushed my rib cage. Regardless, it still hurt like a bitch.

  He reached down and grabbed my throat. With little effort, he picked me up and slammed me against the nearest building. My feet were dangling a few inches from the ground, so I punched him in the face with everything I had. The zombie flinched. He squeezed harder, so I punched him again. And again. I kept raining down blows with stone-hardened fists until he finally let go and went limp. Black blood flowed from his broken face. I stood and took inventory of my surroundings. Afew villagers here and there still fought the techno-zombies. I went to yell out to one of them as zombies swarmed over her and pulled her to shreds. I had seen some horrific things along my career, but my stomach turned regardless. Watching someone ripped to pieces was never something you got used to seeing.

  The zombies’ teamwork was incredible. Perfectly timed. Orchestrated. It is almost as if someone is controlling their every move. I looked around the area, but I could not find Gildrum. A nearby door exploded, showering the area in shrapnel and splinters. More of them poured out of the building. Great. Just great.

  39

  Aldus

  When the darkness had cleared, we stood at the outskirts of a town. Something in the air felt different as we crossed the small rotted fence that marked its beginning. “Something’s watching us,” I said.

  “Likely,” said D’rorthar. “Lilith does not take kindly to strangers.”

  I gulped. “Hopefully, she knows we’re here to help.” I looked around. A few of the buildings were still intact. Some of them had front doors that were open for whatever reason. More often than not, walls and balconies had collapsed, but many of them were salvageable.

  “I believe they call this town Murton. At least, that was before they erased it from the maps.”

  “Why did they erase it?” I asked.

  D’rorthar smiled. “The battle that happened in the spirit realm spilled over into this town. Drove some of the townspeople mad. They abandoned the town and erased Murton from history. They felt it safer that way.”

  “So,” said Noloren, “where’s yer sister at?”

  “In the lower level of that structure.” He pointed at a half-round stone house. It had windows randomly across the front. The second floor had two chimneys. It must get cold around here. We entered the house, and the cold feeling from outside changed to that of warmth and welcome.

  “Tha’s strange,” said Throssec. “Ye feel that?”

  “Aye,” said Noloren.

  Khargol huffed. “Outside feel bad.”

  Luna nodded. “Different feeling. Better inside.”

  D’rorthar chuckled. “As such is Lilith’s influence.”

  “Someone’s been here recently,” said Throssec.

  “Indeed.” D’rorthar moved to the fireplace. With a burst of shadow, the fire erupted to life. The room filled with a warm glow. “The prince, as well as a few wayward travelers, stayed here not long ago. It was they who left these provisions.” He gestured to the stacked firewood.

  Throssec nodded. “Glad they follow the ways.”

  “The ways?” I asked.

  “Aye, laddie. Ye see, if ye stop at a spot that many people frequent, it’s respectful tae refill the supplies and leave some as well so the next visitors dinnae have tae work as hard.”

  “Oh, yeah, that makes sense.” I grinned. “My father taught me something similar. I just didn’t know it had a name.”

  D’rorthar nodded. “It is most respectful and convenient. Even the Firstborn have a similar practice.” He turned to Khargol and Luna. “Am I safe to assume that it is followed across all of the races?”

  Khargol nodded. “Orcs do.”

  “Kobolds too,” said Luna. “Leave pressies too.”

  “Excellent,” said D’rorthar. “Something else we all share in common.” He stoked the fire. “Rest. I will hunt us a deer so that we may feast tonight. On the morrow, we shall meet with Lilith.” He nodded once and vanished.

  “Huh,” I said. “I thought only Noslen did that.”

  Khargol chuckled. “Wish Orcs could do.” He began to unpack his bedroll. The rest of us followed suit. Thunder rumbled, shaking dust from the ceiling.

  “Will rain hard,” said Luna. “Glad inside.”

  “Aye,” said Throssec. “Really glad.”

  I chuckled. “I hear it rains a lot in Glenarm.”

  “Aye, it does,” said Noloren. “Snows too. Wouldnae be shocked if it snowed by mornin’.”

  Throssec dumped his supply bag out on the ground. “Le’s maintain the equipment while D’rorthar is huntin’.”

  We spent the next forty-five minutes cleaning and polishing our gear. The rain had started as we worked. A loud thud came from the door.

  “I’ll get it,” I said.

  Khargol hopped to his feet and joined me as I opened the door. D’rorthar stood just outside the doorway, backlit by multiple lightning bolts. A deer rested across his shoulders. How he carried the weight, I had no idea.

  “There is a table at the back of the building that is prepared for cleaning animals.”

  “Khargol take.” Khargol took the deer from D’rorthar’s shoulders as if he was lifting a pail of water. “Khargol clean.”

  “Um, excuse me, Khargol?” called D’rorthar. Khargol paused and turned as the rain soaked them both.

  “Yes?”

  “Would it be too much trouble for you to teach me how?”

  Khargol’s jaw dropped nearly to the floor.

  “If it is not too much trouble, that is.”

  Khargol nodded. “Come.”

  D’rorthar closed the door behind them, blocking out the sound of the heavy rain.

  “Huh,” said Noloren.

  I nodded. “Never saw that coming.”

  “Aye,” said Throssec.

  Luna laughed. “He surprises.”

  “Indeed,” said Noloren. “Maybe this isnae a trap after all.”

  “Who’s cookin’ the meat?” asked Throssec.

  I shrugged. “I guess I can.”

  Luna chuckled. “Not sure want Kobold to cook deer.”

  “I’m cookin’ the deer,” said Noloren. “Ye have to prepare deer steaks right or ye ruin the meat.”

  “Works fer me,” said Throssec. “I’ve got some taters. I’ll chuck ’em in the fire and get them cookin’.”

  “Have mushrooms,” said Luna.

  I dug around my bag. “I’ve got some carrots and parsnips.” I dug a bit deeper. “And some pressed walnut oil. I could probably use that and some of Khargol’s garlic and Luna’s mushrooms and sauté up something nice.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” said Noloren. “It won’t take Khargol long. We should get cookin’.”

  The door opened. Khargol and D’rorthar walked in each carrying five thick deer steaks. “That smells absolutely wonderful,” said D’rorthar.

  “Thanks,” I said.

  “Take,” said Khargol. Noloren rushed to them both and grabbed the steaks. She set them on the cheesecloth she had laid across the floor in front of the fire.

  “What will you do with them?” asked D’rorthar.

  “Easy,” she said. “First we take some sea salt and—”

  “May I?” he interrupted.

  “Sure,” she said. “Actually, why don’t ye all come over here and learn how to do this?”

  Luna and I jumped to our feet and rushed over to her. She handed us each a steak and a handful of sea salt.

  “Awright. First things first. Pour the salt across the slab of meat. Then rub it in. When the salt dissolves, flip the steak over and repeat.”

  “What’s next?” I asked.

  “Take the leftover garlic you crushed up and pass it around. We’ll rub down the steaks with it. Then, some pepper. And a sprinkle of that walnut oil ye brought.” We followed her instructions to the letter.

  Noloren stood and rinsed her hands in a water basin she had filled with rainwater. “Clean yer hands, all of ye. And someone please rinse the basin and refill it.” She oiled the cast-iron cooking sheet and slid it into the fireplace. It didn’t take long before it was smoking and bubbling. She nodded to herself and then took the steaks one at a time. She held each steak sideways and rotated it, searing the edges all around. When she was satisfied, she placed them on the sheet. They began to pop and sizzle. Before long, the entire room was filled with wonderful aromas.

  After she flipped the steaks, I poured the carrot, mushroom, garlic, and parsnip mixture onto the side of the sheet to cook. It didn’t take long before we were all drooling.

  “Smells like it’s done,” said Noloren. She used a pair of leather gloves to pull the sheet from the fire and set it down on the bricks in front of the fireplace. “Grab yer plates if ye will.” We took turns passing plates around, and Noloren served us.

  We dug into the meal. The sounds of contented people devouring wonderful food filled the room.

  D’rorthar grinned. “This is, by far, the most wonderful meal I’ve ever eaten.”

  I nodded. “Definitely great.”

  “I wonder, would we have the supplies to do it once again tomorrow?”

  “That good, eh?” asked Noloren.

  D’rorthar chuckled. “Indeed. It was most enjoyable. However, it was not solely for my benefit. I would ask that Lilith be treated to the same meal.”