Sweet Revenge

The young mage opened the book with feelings of excitement and trepidation. It was a weird feeling he thought to himself. He was about to read a book about things that happened to friends of his but that was not the really weird part.

The really weird part was that the pages in this book could very well be his reality over the next ten or so days. He was noticing that thoughts along this line were giving him less and less pause these past few months. He smiled in spite of himself and wondered if that was a good thing or not.

He opened the book skimming through its pages until he had found the small piece of silk ribbon that he was using as the pages marker. Silently he began to read the pages within:

*****************The three friends crept silently up the side of the hill. The drums from last night's festivities still pounding fresh upon their mind. They were hoping that they would still find a camp in which most of its members were still asleep.

Pockets of inhabitants awake and talking would be ideal at this point as our newfound friend Syrus could actuate his Acumen spell to observe what was being said, reconnaissance at this point in our journey was as critical as a finely crafted weapon.

The three of us were shocked to find that the entire encampment had already been abandoned. The initial movement suggested that they were heading towards the small village of Aberdeen. This was some one hundred miles southeast of scorched earth (the Erinyes' normal scavenging grounds) but as we already knew it was not out of the question they would traverse this far south.

It was tough to say if this was their final destination or not but ***************************

Kyjus glimpsed over the next several pages as the party continued to track the progress of the renegade bands of birdmen, until he came upon an excerpt that caught his eye.

***********It had become obvious that Aberdeen was the destination so the group had separated, with the mage taking a speedier route towards the small village in hopes that he could warn the citizens.

Syrus, our lifelong friend was a most excellent mage, for he could in the blink of an eye, transport himself to the far edges of his sight, often times this could be a mile or more. He could do this a few times a day this trans-dimensional door stepping, so with any luck he could traverse the remaining fifty miles to Aberdeen that very day.

My brother and I were not that lucky however, as we had to follow this brood of birdmen over the somewhat open plains.

After two days of following them and keeping well out of sight, we had the distinct feeling that the Eerikye now knew they were being followed.

We crested a small ridge when we noticed the tracks separated into two groups; one group (the much larger group) continued onward toward Aberdeen.

The second (and much smaller group) veered off to the west; we immediately knew we were in trouble as the smaller party was no doubt a group that was sent out to double back on any followers.

Our first task was to try and decipher just how many birdmen we could expect; enter my brother the ranger. He spent several minutes examining the tracks during separation; we then moved further west following those tracks for almost a mile, stopping several times along the way when the trail broke off into different directions.

"Twenty give or take," my brother said after about twenty minutes of walking and studying the signs lain forth upon the trail.

"Shall we head back", I asked of him.

"Yes, but not directly," he responded.

I have known my brother for almost fifty years although most of our lives were not spent in the wild or on the run, I have still managed to learn a thing or two or four, about him and one of those is too never question him when it comes to trailing something, finding something, or trying to outsmart something in the wild.

My brother was nearly without equal when it came to those things or in most things occurring in the out of doors for that matter.

So, when he said this to me, I simply held my hand out palm up and requested he lead on.

***~~~***~~~***

My brother followed me for miles in a southerly direction. This was out of our way somewhat, but it served a purpose in the greater scheme of my plans.

Our pace had ever quickened so the threat of our enemy enclosing upon us from behind loomed large upon our minds but still there was time for a quick rest when I saw some movement off to the west of our current position.

Instructing my brother to remain at our present location I headed toward the commotion I saw off the west. I did not have to go far however as I noticed the commotion had noticed our position and was heading our way.

The weeds were high, so it was easy to see whatever it was as the weeds parted as they swiftly moved through them.

Moments later a leash of foxes came bursting through into the open area that my brother and I currently rested in.

Fur bristling and teeth barred the six of them growled as they circled around the opening surrounding my brother and getting into attack position.

I did not fear for my life at this time as a leash of foxes was no match for my skill with the blade or for my brothers skill with spells nor the use of his hammer. I knew the both of us were not destined to fall here.

I also too knew that Baervan (god of nature and the God, to which many Ranger brother paid homage) would not be pleased that we killed creatures that fell under his realm of protection not when other options were so readily available.

I attempted to communicate with the dominant male of the leash.

At first the male tilted his head at me very confused but soon I had him understanding that I was no threat. There was still the fact that they were hungry, but I too had an answer to that query for him as well.

I had several pounds of smoked deer jerky left from a kill that occurred two days ago. The kill was necessary to sustain our lives and was therefore granted by Baervan. I blessed the bounty in his name and claimed it by rite, so it was mine free to give to whomever I desired. I thought it only fitting that I use the rest of the meat to appease the leash. I felt Baervan would be smiling down upon the gift, knowing that one of his children helped to feed almost ten others of his kind, if you were to include the leash and my brother and I.

Reaching into my pack I pulled out the wrapped brown cloth filled with meat. I then pulled out a large piece of the smoked meat and gently walked towards the male. He bristled and grumbled lightly as I knelt in front of him, his eyes were fixated upon my hands, or rather of their contents.

I reached toward him gently holding the meat scant inches from his nose; he sniffed and the hastily grabbed the meat with his teeth and backed up a few feet to enjoy his meal.

I fed the rest of the leash in much the same manner. When all was said and done the majority of my deer meat was gone but the hostility of the situation was removed.

When the alpha male of the leash was finished, I went to him and told him what I needed. He instructed his leash on what to do. I placed a small container around his neck a note neatly tucked within it.

I then whispered one final thought into his ear. The leash split up per my instruction, with each portion heading to a separate and distinct destination.

I smiled at the irony of it all.

***~~~***~~~***

Heading straight south for that was our general heading after my brother had dispatched the leash of foxes. I am still amazed in his ability to communicate with the animals.

It pains me to see the sorrow upon his face when a gift of nature dies, especially when the death is of his bidding.

Two evenings ago, for example he downed a small doe with his bow and arrow. He rationalized this as a kill of survival, for which it truly was he said that Baervan would not feel ill towards him knowing that one of his children had helped to sustain the life of one of his followers.

Still, I know the creature's death saddened him; it therefore saddened me.

Today talking with the foxes; which in truth I cannot understand as most of it sounded like gibberish to me, I realized that he felt great joy in saving the lives of the foxes; for that in truth is what happened.

I also saw great joy in the sharing of the previous kill of the deer; in turn this kill helped preserve many more creatures under Baervan' rule.

I know the deliverance of the leash from death at our hands and the feeding of the leash brought great joy to my brother; it therefore brought great joy to me

***~~~***~~~***

Finally, we came upon the stream, my intended destination. Our pursuers knew who we were following so they were at an advantage as they knew the ultimate destination.

What I was counting on was the fact that their instruction was to find out who was following them; overtake the group and dispose of them prior to our finding the rest of the Eerikye tribe.

I was counting on this as this fact alone could be our salvation. In order to find us they had to follow us, and this stream would help inhibit that ability.

We immediately began to run down the middle of the stream; it was not a wide stream the width as tall as my brother and I - combined.

Its depth was but to our ankles, but the base of the stream was mostly porous rock that had flowed down from a long ago dormant volcano.

These stones were perfect for masking our progress through the countryside. We ran through the stream for as long as we could but finally the stream ran a different course than our desired destination.

It was time we parted ways. I could only hope my new friends (foxes) and our traversing of the stream would be enough to slow our enemies down.

***~~~***~~~***

My bother quickly pointed out the water and its flow was against the way we were running. This he explained would mean the stream ran to the southwest.

We headed almost due east for more than a few hours; the stream only inched to the north on a few occasions.

Once we came to a turn that appeared to take the stream due north, we were inclined to vacate the stream for a pathway that lead more towards our intended destination.

It had been nearly a day since we had left the stream and headed in a more southerly direction. The stream had taken a turn to the north which we had anticipated.

We were now in full flight in an attempt to avert our followers and help the people of Aberdeen avoid the same fate as our village.

We made camp for the night in a sheltered cave not far from our chosen pathway. It was not long before we heard noises come up from the basin of the cave.

The noises were getting closer; my brother drew his bow and I my shield and mace. It was time to end this cat and mouse chase, or so I thought.

***~~~***~~~***

I heard a noise from the base of the ridge just outside the cave. I had guessed at what may have caused it but just in case I pulled down my bow and notched an arrow in it. My brother followed my lead only with his mace and shield.

We did not have to wait long as in through the cave mouth came bursting three of the foxes that I had earlier sent to do my bidding.

After a quick conversation I was satisfied with the answers they had provided me; I pulled the deer meat once again from my satchel and gave them all several pieces. I had to make sure I saved some, as I had the distinct feeling, I would be needing the rest of it before the night was through.

Not for my brother and I as we were eating the fish that I had caught in a few deep parts of the stream today. The cave was perfect at masking our fire and allowed us to cook our meal. I found some spices at the base of one of the foothills, some parsley, basil, and dill.

There were also some berry bushes not far from the stream so some of those were picked to go with our meal.

Our canteens were filled with the spring water that caressed down the rocks near the cave. Had it not been for our destination and our pursuers; my brother and I would have been enjoying ourselves.

I smiled as part of the leash of foxes ate their meal and then left. They looked back as they parted; giving thanks and I nodded in return.

I smiled as I sat down to enjoy our meal.

It was not long after we had finished our meal that we again heard a noise. I instructed my brother to remain seated as I would check this out on my own. I was fairly confident I knew who our visitors where again, as I now already knew where our pursuers where and when I could expect them.

Our guests were whom I suspected as I saw them bound up the western expanse of the trail to the cave.

I came in the cave and began digging thru my pack yet again. Pulling out the deer meat, my brother had now surmised who our guests were, so he relaxed.

The remainder of the leash entered the cave, the alpha male in the lead. He had located the target and delivered the message. I removed the collar that I had placed upon him earlier that day.

I took out the note that I had sent him. On the back of the note were the words 'message delivered - help is in route'.

I smiled nodding my thanks to the alpha male and his leash. I then removed the rest of the meat and laid it on the ground in front of the three of them.

When they were done the male told me of the location of the target and of some strange sort of feeling he had since his departure, almost as if he was being watched.

The feeling had vanished once he entered the cave.

I assured him the feeling would not return. He nodded. Looking at me as he left the cave, I smiled knowing that I had made friends this day with some of the creatures Baervan called his children.

***~~~***~~~***

My brother and I rose early that morning; he had obviously learned much from the leash of foxes yesterday.

He told me little and I did not press him for any information. I trusted my brother and knew that he was more than capable to plot our course. My ideas would most likely only slow us down; something we did not need at this time.

You see I am a deep thinker an analytical mind if you will. If my brother were to release to me the information that he had learned from the leash I would mull this information over to try and determine our best course of action.

In the end I would have little to offer that my brother had not already thought of; in truth we would probably still be in the cave as I tried to digest every small piece of information, I had been fed.

I chuckled at the thought, and I can say we are unequivocally better off with following his directed course of action.

It had been about three hours since we departed the cave. We were now at the top of a small rise. At the top of the rise were several Blackrock Trees and a copse of several thorny bushes.

The encampment made mobility poor but the enclosure itself also made it so that no more than five or six of the foul beasts could get to us at once.

I smiled as I had already come to the same conclusion as my brother. Throwing down my pack I knew this is where we would make our stand.

We did not have to wait long, my brother and I; It seemed like only minutes had passed when the group of Eerikye excited the woods below and began the ascent up the hill.

Weemus and I went to the edge of the hill, perhaps a few would never make the crest of the rise I thought to myself.

I could tell from his smile that he had been thinking the same thing.

***~~~***~~~***

I pulled my bow back taught and released my first arrow. The string twanged as it released the arrow propelling it towards it intended destination.

The arrowhead dug deep into the eye and then the skull of the unsuspecting birdman, dropping him to the ground silencing him forever.

It was a shaman that I had hit; they were by far the most dangerous of the foes we would be facing. The only problem is that I had killed only one and there were sure to be many more.

To further complicate things there were many more warriors in the mix all seemed thirsty for the taste of blood.

My blood; my brother's blood.

Deemus was getting into the mix of things. At the first sound of noise, he had put a light's beacon spell upon both him and me. This spell would help deflect some of the damage we would take.

He then peered over the edge. He had also presumed the shaman were the major threats in this fight and had placed upon one of them a blinding light. His target could no longer see; this was temporary we knew but it would certainly slow the creature down.

I loosed another arrow at a second shaman but as I suspected the foul creature had already placed upon himself a missile enchant. My arrows would no longer find their mark without a magical enchantment of their own.

Luck was with me on two accounts that moment as the deflected missile found another mark; it was deflected from its original target that much is true but, in its deflection, it lodged itself within the shoulder of a different birdman.

The creature shrieked in pain as the arrow's tip met his flesh. There was not enough force to penetrate any critical organs, but that particular birdman would have some difficulty in raising his sword any time soon.

That was the first account in which I found luck. The second account was that my brother; the ever-observant cleric had noticed that my last arrow did not find its mark and had guessed the reason why.

He hastily placed an enchant, upon my next arrow and instructed me to try again. I released my next arrow upon the same creature that had deflected my last attempt.

This arrow sizzled as it passed through the ward the creature had placed upon himself; the missile firmly lodged within the throat of his unsuspecting victim.

The shaman fell to his knees grasping at the arrow as he slowly fought for life. The creatures life could have probably been saved had the remaining shaman enacted a heal spell upon him.

It's true it would have been saved, but it would not be able to cast a spell for a long time and would have therefore been useless, because of this he was subsequently ignored and left to die.

I suppose that is the difference between good races and bad; the good see the beauty in life and note that all life has value, the bad see only the value that can be gained from actions and chose those actions in accordance with the benefit that is to be derived.

It was a sad thought indeed but the ever-approaching group of Eerikye pulled me from my philosophical contemplations. I had another arrow notched; it would be the last one I had time to fire.

In looking at my brother I chose the closest target to him and let the arrow fly. My aim was true as the tip of the arrow penetrated the temporal lobe of the creature, dropping him forever into the sleep of death.

I threw my bow at the first group of birdmen that crested the ridge. The first creature ducked the missile but only barely. The creature behind the first to crest the rise was not as fortunate as the bow struck him right in the face.

It did no real damage of course but it did cause that creature and another beside it to get entangled within it. Both birdmen went down in a heap leaving their colleague alone to face me.

I lunged at him falling as I went, a fine diversion. The creature saw that I was falling and stepped to his left. He then planted his feet and in a wide sweeping arc brought his long sword at what he had presumed to be helpless target.

I was the quicker as my fall was not really a fall at all; I tucked my head and rolled toward the birdman; he now noticed the rouse for what it was, but it was too late.

I pushed myself up from my tuck and roll and lunged, sword first at my ill prepared target. My small sword bit deep through the belly of the creature.

If fell to its knees in agony; the unfortunate birdman now put something critical within my reach. Turning my left shoulder toward the creature I brought my dagger across the creature's body.

With one swift motion I sliced its throat; with a thump it fell to the ground.

I directed my attention at the two that were entangled within my bow. The first was attempting to get to his feet; he was on his and knees.

I lunged at this creature as he was merely a few feet away. I buried my dagger deep within the skull of the birdman and it too slumped to the ground, lifeless.

It had only taken a few moments, but the other entangled birdman had gotten to his feet and had launched a chopping counterattack. I had seen this out of my peripheral vision and was able to pirouette to my right missing the chopping axe by scant inches.

I then became victim to my own devilish prank as I tripped over the very bow that caused the demise of several bird creatures. I heard a thud and for a second, I thought I may have been struck by one of the other Eerikye that had just crested the rise.

I felt no pain and I shook my head; too soon for any of them to have reached me I thought to myself. In getting up I noticed what had made the noise as the axe that I had avoided ended up in the back of the bird creature that I had just killed.

The stupid creature was now trying to unwedge the axe from his comrades back. Had he simply left the axe he most likely would have been able to overpower me in close quarter combat.

That could have been the death of me most likely, but luck was with me again as this creature lacked the intelligence for that comprehensive thought.

Not being one to give up an advantage I regained my footing; taking my dagger I buried it deep within the creature's leg.

I wanted desperately to end the creature's life and enact further revenge for my people, but others were now fast approaching.

They cared not for the agony of their friend as they trampled his body. He may live I thought to myself, but he will not walk anytime soon.

***~~~***~~~***

I saw the arrow cross my path lodging into the head of the birdman closest to my position. I smiled as I knew that to be a courtesy of my brother.

The shielding and replenishment spells I had placed on my brother, and I were still holding strong. I had blinded one shaman and enabled my brother to dispose of the another by magically enchanting an arrow so it would penetrate the shamans avert missile spell.

It was a devious thing to do and not something normally done by a child of Callarduran (Gnome God of earth, good, healing and protection) but I was thinking that considering the circumstances he would not be too displeased.

I also knew that somewhere Garl Glittergold (gnome god of mischief, humor, and trickery) was rolling on the floor with laughter but then such are the lives of our Gods.

Several of the malevolent birdman had now crested the rise in front of me and while I am a formidable ally if I am aiding a party; I must admit that in general melee combat I am sorely pressed to hold my own.

Admittedly my brother is quite the soldier, ever cunning, quick, agile, and militantly intelligent. I knew he would fare much better in this engagement then me.

What I had to do in this situation was be a diversion; stay alive long enough to keep some of their attention on me, allowing my brother ample opportunity to take care of those that crossed into his path.

It was then that an idea caught my attention; I began concentration upon the target nearest to me. Saying the incantation of a spell that has long been known to me; my target stopped.

I could tell he was somewhat confused as to why his body would not move. I knew at that time that I needed to continue as I was not sure how long the spell would occupy its target; I casted another spell that I was sure would help cause quite a bit of confusion.

I did not have time to dwell upon this as I had to hastily duck the swordplay of my targets two friends.

The two were rather curious as two why the third of them had not joined in the fight being that he appeared to be the most physical of the three; I surmised that they were most likely counting on his presence to overwhelm me.

They could not have known that I calmed his mind opening it to ideas that he normally would have dismissed otherwise; I then planted the idea that I was his friend and lifelong companion and that these two were trying to harm me.

My new friend did not take kindly to this to say the very least.

With his sword in hand, he swung pommel end first down onto the forehead one of his unsuspecting tribal members.

I was not done however as I realized that my warrior would need help. Reaching into my robes front pocket I pulled out a small, enchanted rock. Using one of my rarely used incantations I cast a stoneskin spell upon him.

I knew this would afford him the ability to ward off many hits and with my plans for him he would need this benefit.

Next, I dug into my devious bag of tricks and cast a spell that most smart Clerics avoided but in this situation it seemed rather befitting.

I placed upon my warrior the will of reckless abandon. Placing thoughts of my endangerment within his mind he would now fight with reckless abandon to stop any from harming me.

Several other of the birdmen now crested the rise as near six or seven stood to face my warrior. The small copse we occupied was quite full indeed. Dropping the last help, I could give him I placed a healing regeneration spell upon him.

It would only last a few minutes; I could only hope it was enough.

***~~~***~~~***

I smiled as I watched the birdman stop, guessing what my brother was capable of I thought I had understood what was happening but seconds letter when the hilt of the enthralled birdman's sword came smashing down upon one of his kin's forehead, even I was surprised at the brashness of my brother's actions.

I hadn't time to relish the situation though as I now faced four new adversaries with many more, including a shaman, closing quickly upon my space.

With nearly a third of their force dead or injured in the first few minutes we were doing well but our element of surprise was now gone, and the numbers were now sorely favoring their side, not ours.

These adversaries were somewhat skilled warriors nothing like me or like the other highly skilled races such as dwarves or elves. They were still formidable just the same. (beings more formidable then goblins, kobolds, and the like)

The four in front of me paced themselves getting to me; they worked in harmony as they focused their attacks, not leaving me any opening to seize upon.

My strikes more often than not were left parried or blocked. To my credit most of their strikes were also deflected by my stature and agility but I was beginning to slow as we had been engaged for many minutes.

I risked a side look toward my brother, he and his warrior had downed a few and injured several more but I noticed that blood was flowing very freely from the creature my brother had mind controlled.

In addition, the creature offered my brother little protection as it was so enraged at the thought of someone harming my brother it savagely moved in and out of the crowds of his kin; often times disappearing over the side of the ridge.

I worked to reposition myself so that I was closer to my brother in the hopes that I could offer him some added protection. Also, if my guess was right, we would be getting help, hopefully soon; it was my thought that having their backs facing east versus north would play right into our helps hands.

I parried, lunged, and dodged as best I could; barely dodging a thrust of a spear that would have impaled my abdomen.

Nearly in position I heard a loud screech; in looking to my left, I noticed my brother's warrior with a sword coming out the front of his chest.

The corpse of the warrior exploded compliments of a spell my brother had imbued upon it would be my guess; the explosion showered all nearby birdmen with blood, gore and fragments of bone. It was not designed to do a significant amount of damage but was rather as delay tactic.

I could see that my brother was relying on me to win this fight and that he was using every possible spell and tactic he could think of to keep some of the Eerikye busy so that I could dispose of what was left in some semblance of a methodical manner.

The only problem was there was too many for me to handle. We had managed to eliminate several warriors and two of the shamans but there likely more left in the crowd not to mention close to fifteen of the bird men warriors and they were all closing in upon us.

I could see that my brother had enacted several of his blinding spells as several of the Eerikye were wandering about aimlessly clawing at their eyes.

Another narrow miss or perhaps the mace of a nearby birdman hit me but was absorbed by my brothers spell I could not be sure of which.

I was so winded now, my chest was heaving and wracked with pain from the nearly twenty long minutes of fighting.

Suddenly I felt immense relief as my chest no longer pained with the effort of trying to find my breath. I felt a renewed energy and comfort as the healing powers of my brother flooded my body.

I smiled relishing the fact that he and I were here together fighting for the revenge of our people. I could not think of anywhere that I would rather be.

I then felt an aura enter my body; it made me feel as if I were a god, strong and resolute. I also felt impervious to pain and fear, and I knew immediately that now was the time to strike.

My brother was just granted one of the greatest gifts that he could receive from Callarduran. He has so kindly bestowed the gift upon me; it would not last long, so I knew I had to act fast.

"It's now or never my brother" I heard him say from behind. This reemphasized what I already knew to be the truth.

I was saddened that our expected help had not yet arrived, but I hadn't yet counted my brother and I out of it despite that fact.

With a guttural growl I lunged forward into the four that were very near to me. A sword and a spear found their way into my arm and shoulders; I didn't notice.

The two beasts smiled and squawked at what they assumed was an apparent victory. I too smiled as my dagger penetrated the spear carrier's chest and delved deep into his heart.

I then reverse pivoted as I pulled the dagger out of the birdman's heart. With a chopping motion downward, I drove my sword deep into the knee of the sword wielding birdman. Dropping his weapon, the creature howled in pain; I cared not about the Eerikye writhing in front of me, but I was very concerned that my sword was imbedded into the creature's leg and was quite stuck.

Not wanting to listen to the screaming any longer I switched my dagger into my right hand and plunged it down the deserving creature's throat.

The two that now stood to face me were quite concerned about what they were going up against and I could see this concern mirrored in their eyes. I could also tell there was something driving these foes and it was a fear far greater than anything I was capable of generating; so onward they came, maces held high, and shields held tight.

The one on the left was closest so instinctively I charged at him praying that my brother's spell was still active upon me.

I dove headlong to the left side (my left) of the birdman, as I did not want to expose myself unnecessarily to the creature on the right. I was still vulnerable to the creature that I was diving at but with the spell I was willing to take that chance.

Arm and dagger extended I buried the first three inches of the blade into the ill prepared creatures leg. While he was not prepared for my brash actions this Eerikye was a warrior, and he was already preparing for a strike upon me.

Adjusting the trajectory of the downward blow of his mace he hit me squarely in the middle of my back. I heard a crack but did not feel the impact. I felt the hesitation in the birdman that I had just stabbed, almost like he was daring me to move.

I slowly and quite stealthily pulled a tiny dagger out of my boot, as my other dagger and small sword was still embedded into the last assailant's leg. With a lunge I sunk the blade deep into the creatures shoulder. The birdman fell to his knee and moaned in anguish.

I could now here the other creature shuffle near me; to presumably finish me off. I was not to be had that easy though, as I grabbed the hilt of my tiny dagger, I jumped toward the birdman that was on his knee attempting to pull out my primary dagger.

The creature was astonished and ill prepared for my movements as he had dropped his weapon and shield. In the end I was far too quick for the creature as my tiny dagger plummeted into the sockets of the birdman's eye.

Pulling the dagger out of his eye I immediately dropped to the ground and seized my hands upon my short sword, the one that was imbedded in the Eerikye's leg.

As I dropped to the ground, I saw out of the corner of my eye a mace hurling in my direction. I felt the air as it whipped by the back of my head; with a loud thud it made contact with the chest of the poor creature that I had only seconds stabbed in the shoulder.

Quickly gathering my poise, I rose to meet my newest challenger, unfortunately he was no longer alone as four new adversaries now presented themselves, one of them appeared to be the previously blinded shaman only the light spell had already run its course on him.

This creature was smarter than his friends as he decided not to engage without casting a few spells. As soon I understood what he was doing I tossed my tiny dagger in his direction. It hit him square on in the shoulders but really did very little in the way of damage.

I did interrupt his spell though but unfortunately; he had already gotten one off. My bothers spell must be waning I thought to myself, as I could feel the sting of the insects as they flew around me, disrupting my vision and my actions.

It was a stinging swarm of bees, jackets, hornets and the like that surrounded me. I cursed my luck in all of this. We had come so far and gotten so close, but it appeared that we were going to fall short.

I had to keep going if only to give my brother time to escape. Resigned that this would be it for me I turned to run toward my brother to help extricate him from his current situation.

As I did, I noticed a shaman, one of the last of the remaining four, was all too focused on my brother. In an effort to distract this creature from his current target I had thought to hurl my short sword that I had only moments earlier retrieved. Just I was about to let it fly I noticed a large sharp looking spearhead sticking out the front of the chest of this poor creature.

Obviouslym it was some sort of spell as no man could throw a weapon with such velocity. It was then I understood our help had arrived; we were saved.*****************************

"Young master," a voice said interrupting Kyjus from his story. The young mage looked toward the tents entrance to find Weemus poking his head inside.

"Well, I must say I am rather pleased to see you reading the book I gave to you," he said with a rather sheepish kind of grin.

"Yes, it is an excellent read, it's a bit scary considering we are about to live this, but then again some of us have already lived this haven't they," Kyjus said with a bit of pain in his voice.

The gnome said nothing but looked away from the boy almost as if he were ashamed.

"You could have told me the book was about you and your brother you know. I did not relish the fact that I had to find out from Syrus," Kyjus said as sincerely as he could.

"I am sorry young master; there was no meaning of deception in not telling you I promise. I knew with your curious nature that you would find out soon enough and honestly I thought that would be best for all," he responded.

"At any rate I wanted to let you know that our fish have been cooked and we are ready to eat, so if you would join us, we would appreciate it," the gnome said with a slight bow as he shut the drape of the tent, leaving Kyjus alone with his thoughts.