Grouls in the Dark

"The name 'Dagren Warrens' is controversial. The vast network of caverns and tunnels under the earth has been in existence since time immemorial. Legends say that the first Dagren settlers made them and the Thralls just invaded. Others say the Thralls made them and it was the Dagren who invaded. Yet some legends say that bigger, far more ancient horrors made these mysterious catacombs. We will never know for sure. No one has fully explored them. The few surfacers who braved the challenge seldom returned to tell the tale."

-Lecture Series 227 by Edeorn Synestra, Paladin S-Class

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

Somewhere deep underground

Aramar 11 AE

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

"Crouch!" Erik cried. Yvaine sped her senses and the world slowed down. She dove to Cray's side as the arrows seemed to stop midflight.

Meanwhile, Cray inserted his left forearm behind the buckler on his chest and hoisted it forward while crouching behind it. The round shield covered his chest up to his head. Erik appeared in front of him a moment later. The shorter man also had his buckler shield up, covering Cray's abdomen. Yvaine rolled in just in time to cover their legs before the spray of arrows peppered their shields.

They were granted a brief respite from the onslaught and Erik dimmed the Yliastrium rod a little. Yvaine's eyesight easily adjusted to the waning light and she saw more arrows that were on their way. The snipers were not shooting collectively but in succession.

Erik nodded to Yvaine who simply nodded back in understanding. Erik leaped out of the formation, bringing the precious Yliastrium light with him and leaving Yvaine and Cray in the dark.

With the waning light, Yvaine was left to fend off the stray arrows that would try to target Cray's abdomen and legs. Erik gradually dimmed the Yliastrium light as he fled so her vision gradually adjusted to the growing darkness. The arrows deflected harmlessly to either side as she swept them with the buckle shield's rounded surface. Yvaine focused on deflecting arrows while Cray just stood still, trusting her to protect his lower body.

Erik finally switched off the Yliastrium and the world was plunged into darkness once more. A few seconds later, bright white light blasted on the tunnel again, this time originating a few meters ahead of where Cray and Yvaine were standing.

Unearthly shrieks and screams filled the air, followed by a loud sizzling sound, like bacon frying in hot oil. In a matter of seconds, gross popping sounds emanated near the Yliastrium blast as the Grouls began blowing up.

Erik was dashing from spot to spot, turning the Yliastrium on and off at precisely calculated moments to catch the Groul snipers unaware. He would turn the light off as he moved with uncanny speed. Then turn it on just before appearing before them, flashing the rod before their startled faces.

The light disappeared and reappeared several meters above them. More shrieks and screams. More bubbling and popping. The light disappeared and reappeared again several meters away. Shrieks and screams followed by bubbling and popping. This happened a few times before the light finally stopped moving.

The arrows likewise stopped coming.

Yvaine and Cray lowered their defense and slowly walked forward, towards the light that has now dimmed down but did not totally disappear.

"Ugh." Cray's face contorted at the overpowering stench. They passed by several deformed reptilian stout corpses that seemed to have popped open, oozing their entrails and black blood onto the ground. Coarsely constructed crossbows lay useless on the now mucky ground.

Yvaine's curiosity piqued at one of the less deformed corpses lying on its back. The other Groul corpses they previously passed by had their heads done in so she never really got a good look at their appearance. Teck did a rough job with that giant cleaver of his. This time, however, Erik's Yliastrium blast killed the creatures differently.

Yvaine had a crude understanding of how Yliastrium illumination worked against Grouls. The supernatural light would enter the body from the eyes and other soft tissues and from there adversely react with the Chaos and Tenebra that animates the creature. What results next is a violent spasming brought about by the literal boiling of blood from within.

Indeed, this was evidenced by the burned-out, still-smoking, eye sockets atop a contortedly silent scream of the creature's mouths. Or what appeared to be a mouth. It was more of a rounded hippo snout bisected horizontally from ear to ear and lined with sharp teeth.

The creature's face had a dark gray leathery skin so rough it reminded her of the underground geckos and iguanas that were the usual meat sources back in the settlement. Hard. Tough. No normal blade could cut skins that thick. She glanced at the crude daggers hanging on her belt and decided she will have to aim for the eyes if she ever faced these creatures in close-quarter combat.

But what struck her was the way the creature died. This particular Groul was a sniper, not a melee fighter. So it did not need full body armor. In fact, this creature was barely clothed. Only a loincloth, or what seemed to be a loincloth covered its groins. The only other body ornament it had on was the quiver of arrows that now lay on its side.

And it looked like its belly exploded from the inside. This was one of the few that died lying on its back with its chest and abdomen facing the open air. The others died with their chests on the ground.

"The bastards do have soft bellies," Cray said her thoughts out loud. Talk about Grouls in the mines rumor them to have evolved thick skin on their backs that hardened into literal carapaces, but at the expense of their bellies. Grouls were said to explore the outside world before. Crawling on all fours to more effectively avoid the sun and hide in the shadows. It seems that the rumors were true.

No one in the mines has ever seen a Groul before. At least no one who has seen one and lived to tell the tale. Those who ventured deep into these Warrens never returned to the settlement. It would seem that they would end up with the same fate. Yvaine wondered if she made the right decision, dragging Cray with her into the Deep Warrens.

Yvaine finally lifted her eyes from the creature and turned toward the light where she could make out Teck and Erik's silhouette.

"Well boys, how's the baptism-by-fire going?" Teck cheerfully asked as they finally entered the safety of the light.

"Not. Entertaining," Erik said. He was covered in nasty grime and muck. Groul blood and matter. Being close to a mass of grease as it popped had its consequences. The blood and matter sizzled slowly into smoke upon contact with the light, making him look like steam was rising from his clothing, but some of the stains remained.

"You did pretty well with that rod, actually," Teck remarked. He tried to hide a grin but the struggle was obvious.

"Not. Funny. Merchant." Erik growled. "I was to be the light-bearer. You were to be the protector."

"Well," Teck finally grinned. "I didn't ask you to fight."

"If I didn't, we'd have been pincushions."

"That's because you didn't cooperate in the boy's lecture. I got a little distracted, is all."

"Admit it, merchant. It's simply because you couldn't handle a few Grouls on your own."

"What? No," Teck said, waving his hand before his smug face. "Gil and I did a good job. You just picked up the leftovers. You'll see." He beckoned for them to get moving.

*****

Yvaine nearly puked. What lay before them were piles and piles of dismembered limbs and body parts of corpses now barely recognizable as humanoid. Teck was not kidding when he said about doing a good job. The number of corpses here far outnumber all that she has seen so far.

"We stumbled upon an encampment," Teck said as they walked past the corpses. "Lucky it wasn't a nest."

"This was just an encampment?" Cray asked with a raised voice. He was unconvinced. "It's almost as big as the settlement!"

Yvaine had to acknowledge Cray's comparison as undeniable. If this encampment had decided to visit the settlement, they would have been long overrun. It was here all along. Only the Yliastrium light held by the sentry guards had kept them safe.

"Aye," Teck replied. "Gil told me about a nest not far from here." He thumbed at one of the crevasses on the wall. Yvaine could make out the shadow of the Gale seemingly lounging lazily on this cleft.

"We'd be wise to avoid that," Teck continued."Unfortunately, it's the only route to the closest Dagren Warren. Fortunately, there's a Dagren outpost nearby. We should be able to rest there."

"How big would a nest be?" Erik asked.

"About a hundred times bigger than this," Teck replied. He strolled leisurely among the piles of corpses, undaunted by neither stench nor sight. Yvaine can't help but respect the man.

"It's not the size I'm worried about. It's the other Thralls they have in their company."

"You mean, there's more?" Cray said.

Teck humphed in amusement. "The creatures you've seen so far are just Groulocks – their version of infantry and scouts. There are other kinds," Teck turned to look at him and winked. "So yes, there's more."

Yvaine and Cray gulped at the same time. What have they gotten themselves into?

"I knew I should have taken the twenty lashes," Cray muttered.

"Ha!" Teck snapped amusedly. "You'd be dead in a few years, if not a few months if you stayed anyway. Big lad your size, it won't be long until you can outrun Gil in the Reaping."

Yvaine had questions about that statement. She knew Cray had too. But they approached a fork in the tunnel and their questions would have to be stalled once again. The path to their left descended while the other was level with the ground. To Yvaine's surprise, Teck turned left.

"Won't the nest be further down?" Cray voiced his concern.

"No," Teck replied without looking back, continuing down the descending path. "Gil said the Dagren outpost's this way."

"You trust that Nagakin too much," Erik said.

Teck just shrugged. "His eyes are sharper than all of ours combined. And yes I trust him."

"He only answers to Yekob, you know," Erik retorted.

"Yekob's not here and I'm the next best thing."

The ground finally leveled and Teck stopped. "Shuck the light," he whispered, crouching low and gesturing for them to follow suit.

Their senses heightened at Teck's apparent caution. Erik obeyed and darkness engulfed them once more. The Gale appeared out of thin air next to Teck a moment later, also hunkered down.

"I took out three before the others noticed. Eight more snipers spread out," the Gale said in a low voice. He pointed at seemingly random directions in the air.

Teck just nodded in response.

"Also, the outpost seems to be under attack. I could hear fighting."

Yvaine marveled at the Gale's senses. The world was silent to her save for the occasional ruffle of clothes and armor their party produced when moving about. She may outpace him in speed, but the Gale has other powers beyond her capabilities.

"I'll take it from here," Teck whispered back.

He stood and once again threw his giant sword to the side. Before it could touch the ground, the blade dissolved into nothing. His sword hand then smoothly unsheathed a long curved dagger from behind his waist while his left hand deftly unfastened the dark leather cloak from his chest.

"Be a good servant and watch it for me, will you?" He tossed the cloak over to Cray. "Oh, and give me the rod, Guardsman. I wouldn't want your prejudice towards Gil here to get the better of you."

Erik reluctantly tossed the Yliastrium rod to Teck.

"If you want to duke it out," he paused to look at the two men. "Be my guest. But try to keep it down." Then he was gone.

Erik and the Gale stared at each other for a moment. Yvaine feared they might actually fight. How they would do that without making noise though, she had no idea. Both men were now armed with swords and daggers. To Yvaine's relief, Erik broke eye contact and looked onward, waiting on Teck. The Gale seemed satisfied to have avoided further conflict as well.

Ahead of them, Teck worked quietly with the dagger. There were no shrieks or screams. Yvaine could hear random muffled thuds and the occasional sound of a blade piercing flesh but that was it.

"Let's go," the Gale said, standing up. He did not wait for a response and just casually proceeded forward.

"Wait, that's it?" Cray whispered to particularly nobody. Erik followed suit and Yvaine relaxed from her crouch as well. She patted Cray on the shoulder and followed the two men.

"Really?" Cray shook his head in disbelief as he stood up. "You guys definitely have to teach me."

*****

Teck was waiting crouched on a ledge along a sheer rock wall overlooking a large cavern when the rest bent down next to him. In silence, they studied the landscape before them.

The cavern was vast. They could hardly make out its ceiling. The natural light that emanated at various points along the walls further limited the reach of their sight. It seemed like the wall was glowing an ethereal bluish-white light that is hardly noticeable to ever be there unless you look closely.

"I didn't think I'd find a lighted place down here," Cray said.

"Torrensium stones," Erik replied.

Yvaine saw a similar sight before. During her early years in the mines, the stone walls there glowed a similar hue, before the miners gradually stripped them away.

"Wow," Cray remarked. "So many."

"Aerium and Hydrium," Erik added. "The Dagren have an abundance of them. So they don't bother with these."

"There's our safe haven," Teck said. Below was a fast-moving river bisected by a stone island. Atop it sat what looked like a neatly carved stone fortress. Embedded on the ground a few meters from the walls of the island fortress were poles topped with Yliastrium crystals that gave the island its unnatural white light.

Two bridges connected the island to either side of the cavern walls. One of these bridges was not bathed in the protective white light of the Yliastrium. And that's where the commotion was coming from.

A fierce skirmish was going on between two armies on the bridge. From their vantage point, they could make out the attacking Groulocks with their creepy shrieks and guttural reptilian growls. The defending side was populated by splendidly armored soldiers. Their weapons shone brilliantly in stark contrast to the crude mauls and swords of the Grouls. But the defenders were outnumbered and they were gradually being pushed back.

Suddenly, a tower of flame erupted among the defenders. Screams of burned and dying soldiers filled the air. The explosion died just as soon as it came but left burning soldiers flailing about in its wake. Some fell to the raging waters while others rolled desperately on the ground trying to smother their flames. The Groulocks easily cut them down.

"There," the Gale pointed at the far end of the bridge. Clustered along the walls and nearly overflowing to the river were more Groulocks and their bigger kin.

"Groulems," Erik said, noticing the significantly larger Grouls. These towered over the Groulocks, standing at over 8 feet. Their size made up for their height, with bulging muscles that made even the biggest of men back in the settlement seem like children.

"That's the least of their worries," Teck said. "There's the leader." He pointed at the farthest side of the cavern making out the only cloth-clad Groulem among the group. This one wore robes and had a large wooden staff in its right hand. It seemed to be chanting and repeatedly pounding the ground with the heel of its staff. When it finally raised the staff, the tip of the pole glowed a bright red and another flame erupted among the defenders again.

More screams of pain and death. The Groulocks gained even more ground on the bridge.

"So what's the plan?" Cray asked.

"Stay and watch," Teck replied.

All eyes turned to the man. He smiled without taking his eyes off of the battle below. "While I secure our camp," he added.

Then Teck jumped. Down to the raging battle some hundred feet below.