Stratothrax
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Chapter 102
🕑 Added 2021-06-27 09:44:37 +0000 UTC◈ Chapter 102:
The ringing sound wasn't going away no matter how many times Opal put her fingers in her ears and twisted them around.
Making a sour face she flicked the collection of ear wax on her index finger in Lyra’s direction.
“Hey! Do you mind!”
“No? I wouldn't do it if I didn't mind.”
“That’s not how you're supposed to answer that!”
“I can answer how I like sheepy.”
Lyra huffed then shook her head. “This really isn't the time to get into this-”
Opal paused and glanced over at Lyra. She was pale faced and had a hand over her right upper arm where blood had run down onto her snow white arm fluff staining it red.
“-because I am actually injured you know.”
“Rub some dirt on it, it’ll be fine.”
“I’m not- I’m not rubbing dirt on my wound!”
Opal shrugged. “It's a good Gobbo trick. But suit yourself.”
Their escape from the arena had not been a pretty one. What felt like a bomb had gone off when Rugnor’s enormous anvil hammer had first come down to earth and it had taken precious moments for the two girls to recover from the shockwave, moments in which the hundreds of Orcs around them had started recovering too.
Opal had been first to shake it off and had half dragged half led the dazed sheep girl on all fours as Orcs around them drew blades.
Lyra had barely recovered in time to make them invisible before the furious Orcs descended, a scimitar raking across her arm, cutting a bloody line just under her deltoid. A fraction of a moment later they were invisible and the many Orcs were left looking around in confusion wondering if they’d somehow lost them in the blinding sand cloud.
It hadn't been easy to escape through the chaos and without getting touched but they had somehow managed it, slipping out the back of the wooden stands and away from the press of people.
Now they were free and alone.
Opal sighed. Honestly, was she this sheep girl's babysitter? “Fiiine. You got stabbed a bit or whatever and you need a healing potion? Well that weird merchant will probably have one, he had everything else I’ve ever seen in the world so I bet he has those too.”
Lyra blinked and then visibly brightened up. “Oh that's right! Braur has so much useless stuff that he surely must have something as important as that!”
“Swords aren't useless, but yeah, probably.”
They moved away from the wooden stands which were still enveloped in a storm of dust and sand. The camp itself was chaotic, the few Orcs outside the arena running in every direction clearly unsure what was happening, shouting about the cloud that lay over the arena and an earthquake, swearing they were under attack from some army or other, confusion and rumour were rife.
Opal and Lyra slipped through it all unnoticed, not even needing invisibility.
“You think Rain will be okay?” murmured Lyra as they walked.
“You think the Orcs will be okay with Rain?”
“Well no, not at all, this is very bad for them. But still, he is… alone, all by himself, maybe we should do something! R-rescue him? That is my Class you know, I am a Rescuer, I rescue… Rain, m-me and h-him, t-together.”
“You say ‘Rescue him’ because really you desperately want to bounce up and down on his dick again sheepy. I can tell, you’re like an open book, if I could read.”
“Wha-?! No! It's not like that!” said Lyra going as red in the cheeks as her wound. “He’s the only one who can protect me from the bounty on my head!”
“Mhmm.”
“Can we please focus on me being injured, that's the priority…”
“Just keep in mind that I'm the one sharing him with you. You owe me. Rain is mine.”
Lyra opened her mouth but unable to come up with a reasonable reply to the unreasonable Goblin slowly closed it.
As they walked they neared the merchant quarter of the camp and a familiar sight came into view, Braur the half-Orc half-Dwarf merchant’s multi-stall-spanning shop. The enormous emporium was still stacked with an unorganised and vast mess of merchandise, valuables, and random tat. Although, that was starting to change.
Braur was frantically throwing sack after sack, crate after crate of stuff into an enormous six wheeled wagon, and he was doing it quickly too, his body and hands moving with incredible efficiency and accuracy, clearly some Skill or other allowing for enhanced dexterity and strength and speed beyond what was natural.
Lyra waved for his attention and he slowly came to a stop, turning to see her. His face was covered in a sheen of sweat, his clothing soaked with heavy stains under the armpits. A shattered monocle hung from around his neck that hadn't been there before and the flesh around his right eye was burned and blistered, the sclera blackened, his iris massively constricted, only a pin of black compared to his other eye which was normal. Disturbing to look upon.
“Braur! I need help, do you have any healing potions?” said Lyra clutching the wound on her arm.
“You! Why are you here!? Gods don’t tell me that fucking thing is free already?!” His eyes darted around as though expecting an attack.
Lyra blinked at him. “Thing?”
“That monster! It’s- it’s!”
“My wolfy?”
He turned horrified eyes on Opal.
“What?” Braur’s shaking hand lifted and he held up the shattered monocle. “I s-saw, I saw it!”
“Saw what?”
“What's that?”
His hand fluttered like a leaf in the wind and he shook his head as though trying to clear his thoughts.
“...Like the others I thought of joining the brawl and winning the opportunity to kill the monster. I could tell just by looking at it that the monster was worth far more than most in levels, some monsters are just special like that, stronger monsters- you get a sense for it.”
His face paled as though recalling something.
“But then I caught sight of its eyes and I realised that something was off, we didn't know, we didn't know what we had. I rushed back and collected this, a lens of potentiality, it's used by levelers to see unknown Skills and magics and whatnot that other levelers or monsters are keeping in reserve. By the time I returned the fight was already on in the arena, at first I just watched, entranced by the capability of our Tamriel, but then curiosity got the better of me, I lifted the lens and peered through it I- I-”
“What?”
He touched a hand to his burned eye. I saw-, It's not a monster, it's something else, something worse. They wouldn't listen, I told them, I told them we needed to flee, to get away. I told them we haven’t trapped that thing in here, no, we're trapped in here with it and it likes that, it wants it that way, it means more prey.”
Opal squinted at him. “Wow you’re kind of a wimp. Never seen a really strong monster before huh?”
“I- I have, this was not that- I barely had a moment before the lens shattered, it was so dark, the teeth, but I- I felt like- like I was prey, hell, like how a little Goblin being hunted by levelers would feel, like there was something above me.”
“I’m a Gobbo and I’m not afraid, guess that makes you weaker than me.”
“I did try to warn them it was dangerous,” muttered Lyra. “Orcs like to fight way too much.” She shifted uncomfortably as her injury twinged. “Erm, about that potion?”
“Potion?” Said Braur, who seemed taken aback, his twitchy eyes alighting on Lyra’s injury, noticing it at last, “Oh yes, a potion, right.” He turned and grabbed a number of glass vials of various colours and dumped them in Lyra's hands. “The green one, probably. Now, I’m getting out of here, I highly suggest you do too. None of you understand what that thing is, nor do I, but I’m old and wise enough to recognise a very bad bet in staying.”
He shoved the last crate onto the carriage and jogged around the side then hauled himself up and with a whistle and a cry whipped at the horses. With a creak the wagon began to move away.
Lyra blankly watched him go. He had left only low value stock behind and they were surrounded by stacks of the stuff, blankets, furniture, equipment, tools, clothing, all abandoned now.
“Real cowardly that one,” said Opal, producing the rune covered broadsword named Rockheart that Braur had originally tried to sell her from behind her back. It was definitely not one of the low value pieces of stock. “Good taste in swords though.”
Lyra raised an eyebrow. “When did you sneak that- you know what, nevermind.”
With difficulty Lyra managed to put the random collection of potions the merchant had shoved into her arms into the dimensional bag, minus the healing one, with a bit of Red’s help.
“He was… scared.” Lyra fiddled with the green potion and after a moment managed to pop the cap. With a sigh of relief she poured it over the wound and it began to heal. “He saw something, and really, I just- Well, I get why he doesn't think Rain is a monster, that’s obvious, Rain used to be Human, it messed up that lens thing, probably… But don't you think something has changed in Rain since the Ranker? Those new shadowy things?”
Opal shrugged. “Lots of monsters can do magic. Gobbo witches, Hydra Sorcerers, Ogre hags, it's just the same thing as that.”
“Is it? I don't know much about monster magic I admit, and it seems like the simple answer, but being able to create things like he does feels… not normal, and the way it makes living things react when touched...”
“That’s-
A flash of green and a cry of fright came from behind one of the nearby stacks and Opal lifted the broadsword anticipating an attack. Instead a Goblin girl raced out, a large and furious Orc chasing after her.
Opal’s blade wavered and drooped. “Grace?”
Lyra furrowed her brow. The Goblin pros- er, lady of the night from earlier?”
Opal didn't answer, instead breaking into a sprint after the Goblin.
“W-wait! Hang on Opal!”
Opal didn't slow, tearing after the Goblin girl through the camp, chaos on every side, a panicking Lyra in tow. Soon they arrived at the whore house. Someone had lit a fire somewhere in the wooden structure and there was smoke spilling from the windows.
Grace tripped as they neared and the Orc fell upon her with a cry of anger.
“Try to goddam collar me will you? The halves ain't gonna protect you from this Grace, I-”
Opal, furious, lifted her broadsword and brought it down on the Orc’s back. His tough skin held up momentarily under the runic blade but then the edge pierced through and he screamed. Opal stumbled as he twisted around, fury in his eyes.
In a flash he tried to backhand Opal but then a small fist struck him in the head, Grace, she scrambled back as two dozen Goblins poured from the whore house, male and female, various blunt instruments clutched in hand. The unfortunate Orc only had a moment to cry out before a hammer struck him around the head, then another, and another. Then a club caught him in the eye. The Goblins ruthlessly beat the Orc to death, long constrained fury in every blow.
Opal wiped a strand of hair away that had fallen across her face and smiled at Grace.
“Didn't expect to see you again so soon.”
“That-”
Grace was interrupted by a shout as Kel leapt from behind the nearest tent, his body now completely mobile, the centipedes apparently having been disintegrated from his armour by the shockwave they had all been caught in. He’d gotten a rock from somewhere and he brought it down, bashing at heads, scrabbling amongst the crowd of Goblins for one Goblin in particular, and then he found her.
I've got you, I’ve got you, I have what controls that thing!” he crowed.
Opal gurgled from around the hand wrapped around her throat, desperately trying to breathe. She lifted Rockheart to stab him but his free hand reached out and firmly grabbed hold of her wrist, keeping her in place.
“G-get off her Kel! She never did anything to you!”
Kel turned savagely on Lyra. “This Goblin is a monster! That giant fucking wolf thing is a monster! Why the fuck are you helping them!? Gods- It- It doesn't matter now. After the shit I've been put through I will be the one to kill the beast and not through some stupid fight, I’m going to execute it as it is powerless to do a thing with this Goblin in my hands, I-”
Click.
Kel blinked and then his gaze drifted down trying to see what had just snapped closed around his neck. In utter disbelief he dropped Opal and raised his hands, feeling at it. A bulky steel collar sat tight around his throat, a collar crafted with mechanical complexity, etched with enchantment runes.
“What- what is this...?”
“It’s a slave collar. The kind of thing you put on us Gobbos all the time. Well, a special version anyway,” said Grace.
Kel reached out, his hands instinctively going for Grace’s neck.
Grace gave him a displeased look and then pressed something in her hand. Kel let out a scream and fell to the ground thrashing in pain, eyes going round as steel needles ringing the inside of the collar punctured his neck and injected something.
“What the fuuuck,” he groaned.
“It’s a punishment collar.”
After a few failed attempts Kel shakily managed to climb to his feet, dishevelled, a spot of drool hanging from his lip.
“Why does a whore house have something nasty like that?” said Opal, wheezing a little, her hand on her knee.
Grace glanced at Kel already trying to reach for his previous improvised rock weapon and pressed a different button.
The Orc froze up and blushed beat red. His knees slamming together as his hands slapped over his groin.
“Oh, g-gawwd, wh-what is this! Hnnnn!”
“Because it has two modes. Obviously.”
“I... see...” said Opal looking the trembling moaning Kel up and down. Her eyes moved to the other Goblins eyeing Kel angrily and she seemed to realise something, “Hey, you came around to my idea? You want to escape? And build a safe place for monsters?”
Grace paused. A flash of irritation crossed her face that was quickly schooled away.
“An Orc clan is always at war so I thought things would end badly someday and I would need to leave this shithole, I just didn’t like my chances, that is until this collar idea was suggested by one of the girls when I mentioned your idea. Doesn't matter any that we’re not very strong if we can make them do everything for us I guess. The others liked the idea so much I turned around and we’d already collared three and killed most the half-Gobbos. Things spiralled from there.”
Behind her a dozen Orcs marched from the whore house. Each of them had extra bulky slave collars on their necks just like Kel. The group of Orcs looked decidedly unhappy about this arrangement, especially when the Goblins started to climb them, using them as steeds.
“This is perfect! We can go make a special monster town and no one can stop us!” said Opal looking up at the Orcs excitedly.
“Yes, we can do that.”
Grace put a hand on Opal’s shoulder. Then she head-butted her in the face. Opal dropped like a felled tree, blood sprinkling. Grace snatched Rockheart as it slipped from her fingers.
“We can make that place. But we are doing it without you.”
Opal sat up, a slim line of red running over her mouth from her nose.
“What?! Why the hell not?!”
“I get more freedom than most Gobbos, I can go wherever I like in this camp. I watched you and that wolf thing, what the Orcs did, I overheard you and this leveler talking, I heard everything.”
“Rain?”
“Yes. You… are with it. You want it to come with us. That is what you want, isn't it?”
“Well yeah, obviously.”
“Exactly as I thought. Terrible.”
“What are you saying, Rain’s great!”
“No, that thing is not great Opal. Are you blind or are you just stupid? That monster, that beast is the kind of thing that stalks the pitch black corridors of a dungeon, it’s a predator, a killer, just like a Panthara. I saw its eyes, that thing wants to kill and eat everything within a mile radius. That includes us. What do you think we are Opal? We’re Gobbos, in a dungeon that kind of monster hunts us every single day. You think we could live alongside a Panthara? It’s the same thing and it’s not going to happen.”
“It’s not like that! Rain is kindhearted!”
Grace made a face of disbelief. “Yeah right. And that’s not even mentioning the uncollared leveler you have with you. No. This will be a Gobbo only town, no other monsters, and one without you. Good luck Opal. You’ll need it.”
She gave Opal a dark look then grabbed hold of Kel’s armour, quickly climbing up his body she slung her legs over his shoulders and rested her arms on his head.
“Forward steed.”
Kel looked like he’d just shit himself in horror as the reality of his enslavement truly dawned on him.
“N-NOOO! This can't be happening! This c-can’t be happening again!! Not after the centipeeedes!”
Grace held up the collar’s controller and waved it in front of his face,
“Move Orc boy or I'll make you scream like your dick has exploded, in the good way and in the bad way, maybe even both at the same time if you really piss me off.”
Kel gave Lyra a wide eyed look, one last desperate plea for help.
“I’m sorry Kel, you're kinda stuck for now, like I said you should uhm, probably get used to it?”
After a moment, and after continued threats from Grace, a very unhappy Kel turned and stumbled away, a collection of enslaved Orcs being ridden by ex-slave Goblins following in his wake.
Opal sat cross legged on the ground and glowered after them.
“Is everything okay Opal?”
“No...”
“What do you want to do?”
“I was supposed to lead them, I was supposed to be the one to build the monster town… but they don't and won’t trust Rain. They think he’s all bad, like a Panthara. They don’t want us.”
“He is kinda intimidating…”
“It’s not like that- It’s not like that at all! That merchant, these Gobbos, none of them understands!”
Opal looked up at Lyra, her expression serious.
“I’m not leaving him no matter what those idiots think. I’m never leaving him.” She struggled to her feet and pulled The Sounder from her belt.
“In fact what the hell are we even doing out here? We should be in there fighting with him!”
“Erm, because I can’t fight very well and I don't particularly want to die extremely violently?”
“You’re such a scaredy sheep, come on, let's go help!”
“W-wait I’m not fighting an arena full of crazy Orcs! Opal!”
