[originally published December 1, 2013]
They stood over the remains of the
black mountain's 'guard dogs.' Callista
wiped the creature's ichor from the blade of her battle axe as Bastian examined
the carcasses. They were great cats, but
unlike any she had ever seen before.
They had six legs, and from each front shoulder sprung a long
tentacle. At the end of each tentacle
was a murderous, taloned pad dripping with poison.
"Displacer beasts," Bastian muttered. "But different from what I remember hearing about from old legends."
The aasimar warrior prodded the greenish, serpentine scales that covered the creature with the tip of his rapier. They were supposed to be emaciated, and covered in fur as black as night. These had the look of six-legged snakes in the rough approximation of a panther. And the poison . . .
Callista had been wounded by the
taloned pads several times, and barely stood by the end of the fight as the
poison worked its way through her. They
were prepared for this, though. Before
entering the Madusilith's lair, they had each taken a draught of a potent
anti-venom Bastian had purchased in Mulmaster years ago. Despite the passage of time, the potion had
remained true. He had not counted on so
much of the anti-venom's strength having been spent before they had reached
their true foe, however.
The young warrior was weakened
badly, but there was no help for it now.
There was no going back, only forward.
After another moment's rest, they pressed on.
* * *
"There isssssss no passsssage
here for you, Aassssimar," the creature hissed from the darkness.
"You were foolish to come here again to tesssssst me."
"Be on you guard, little
orc," Bastian whispered quietly. "Remember your training, and do not
look into its eyes. No matter the cost,
the creature must be slain. No matter
the cost."
Callista gripped her shield tightly
and ducked low behind its protective rim.
This was the moment all her training had been preparing her for. She was ready.
* * *
Callista rolled forward, tucking her
shield under her as she went, and came up with her axe drawn. She had moved passed the Madusilith and
reached the creature's exposed flank, catching it by surprise. As it reared back to strike at her, Bastian
once again slipped his blade into the creatures ribcage, causing it to roar in
pain and anger. It whipped two of its
six arms around and sent the aasimar sprawling, his blade still impaling the
powerful creature.
It pulled the blade from its body
and tossed it aside as it continued to hiss its rage at the warriors standing
before it. Sensing that the tandem
attacks were meant to keep it looking in opposite directions, thereby thwarting
its petrifying gaze, the creature backed up and unfurled large, batlike
wings. It took to the air and drew forth
two mighty bows from where they were slung on its harness.
"Now that I didn't
expect," Bastian mused as he crossed the large chamber, picking up his
blade as he went and looking for cover.
Callista dove for cover as well, and
shouted "I thought you said you fought this damned thing before- what the
hell do you mean you didn't expect that?"
The aasimar laughed merrily in
return. "The last fight didn't last
long enough for it to have to fly!"
* * *
When Callista had returned fire on
the creature from her own massively built longbow and began filling it with
biting shafts, the Madusilith had become fully enraged. The fight had continued on for several
minutes more, as the combatants moved for a clean shot, or for cover as
needed. Callista bled from several
wounds, and had been hit at least twice by the deadly creature's poisonous
attacks. All of the combatants were
badly wounded, and the next few moments would determine the outcome of this
conflict.
The flying creature dove at Bastian
in desperation, trying a full on charge as a means of ending the fight
quickly. It swerved at the last minute,
though, and altered course directly at the young half-orc! The combatants crashed together in a
sickening thud, as bones cracked and wings splintered.
The demonspawn and the half-orc
rolled on the ground together, struggling.
The young warrior drew a cold-iron dagger from its hidden sheath and
began stabbing the creature as they fought, as the writhing snakes sprouting
from the creature's head bit back at her repeatedly.
By the time Bastian had raced across
the cavern to lend his aid, both combatants lay on the ground, unmoving. He rolled the Madusilith off the half-orc,
and spotting where his student's iron dagger protruded from deep in the
creature's neck. As a precaution, he ran
his own blade hard under the creature's chin until it protruded through its
skull.
Satisfied that the fiend was dead,
he dropped to his knees and lifted the half-orc's head into his lap. He could hear her shallow breathing still,
although it was clear she was dying from her poisoned wounds.
"Aha!" he exclaimed
reaching into his magic haversack and drawing out the vial of anti-venom and a
powerful healing potion. "Grimjaws
smiles down upon us, little orc! The
valkyrie will not come for you! Not
today!"
* * *
Years of preparation had culminated
in a running battle that had lasted less than twenty minutes. Twenty minutes that had nearly cost her her
life, she mused. The antivenom continued
its work, but she was still badly sick and felt weak as a baby razorboar. Bastian's healing potion had done enough to
lessen the pain in her fractured ribs enough for her to at least think
straight. Her arm was still broken
though. Hopefully, she would not need to
swing an axe again for a very long time.
As she moved about in the dead
creature's lair, a glint caught her attention from the corner of her eye. Making her way to the spot, she reached down
and pulled a deadly looking waraxe from a large pile of coins and jewels.
"Dwarven make," Bastian
said briefly in passing as he eagerly searched the cavern. "And made of
adamantine. Most likely a gift for some
ancient northern prince or knight."
The weapon had not served its last
master well enough against the Madusilith, or else she would not be holding it
now. Of course, she thought, maybe it
was the warrior who had not been up to the task.
"In any case, you're mine
now," she said out loud, admiring the unnaturally sharp edge.
"At last, I've found the
door!" Callista heard Bastian
exclaim triumphantly from somewhere off in the dark. "Oh, dear! Well, it appears the demon-serpent was not the only
guardian. En garde!"
Callista sighed. It seemed she would be swinging an axe again
sooner than she reckoned.
* * *
The creature was solid stone, and proved to be nearly immune to the attacks of Bastian's rapiers and Callista's waraxe. As she moved in for another strike, the creature swung its massive stone hammer at her in a wide arc, slamming hard into her shield and sending her sprawling. The pain in her ribs was almost unbearable, and she could not raise herself up as the golem closed on her.
It soon stood over her, and reached down for
her. The half-orc reflexively pulled the
adamantine axe she had just found from her belt and lashed out at the creature
as it attempted to throttle her. The
keen edge of the weapon bit through the golem's fingers.
The creature backed away from her in surprise,
looking at the stump of a hand that remained to it, and Callista gathered what
little strength she had left to raise herself from the floor and press the
attack. She desperately hacked at the
golem, spending her last reserves and brought the creature down.
Bastian grinned as he watched her stand over
the rubble that was all that remained of their final foe. His smile quickly disappeared when the young
half-orc collapsed next to the golem.
Racing to her side, the aasimar pulled the
last healing potion he had, and hoped that it would be enough.
