The Savage Caves - Chapter 20
Rezrek bore down on the smaller man, swinging his warhammer hard. His arms were much longer than the little man’s and he kept him on his toes, constantly needing to back away from the bugbear’s approach. He pushed the other warrior closer to the wall, hearing the sounds of Ripper growling and snarling. Fidul’s strange yell was cut off suddenly but Rezrek didn’t care. He was fully focused on killing the man and knew that Ripper would deal with the little woman soon enough. Then they would both rip the man’s stomach open and eat his inside while he was still awake. The bugbear grinned at the thought. The man narrowed his eyes. The little one had thrown him his blade but it didn’t matter. Rezrek knew his warhammer was stronger. He was stronger. The man stepped back, wincing again as his leg continued to bleed. He was leaving footprints of blood all over the pit; fresh blood over old. Many goblins had died here and by Rezrek’s command. He’d add this creature to that count soon enough. Rezrek lunged, feinting a high strike. The man started to raise his weapon to block and the bugbear roared, swinging with all his might to bring the weapon down and around in a sweep at the wounded human’s leg. He dodged at the last moment, throwing himself back. He was off balance and Rezrek pressed. All he needed was one good hit - humans were weak and their bones broke much easier than his kind. He sneered as he bore down, swinging wildly. The man brought his shiny blade down, feebly blocking the warhammer and Rezrek reached out. His clawed paw gripped the man’s gauntleted hand and he squeezed, trying to warp the metal with his brute strength. The man shouted, tearing his hand back and punching out with his weapon. The other gauntlet connected with Rezrek’s chin, knocking a single rotting tooth from the bugbear’s head that skittered across the stone floor. Rage flooded Rezrek’s body and he surged forward, kicking out with his great boot and striking the man’s hip. He hissed in pain and Rezrek followed up with a powerful swing to the warrior’s armored chest. The warhammer struck home, sending the man flying back to slam hard into the wall. He gasped, blood dribbling from the corners of his mouth and he dropped his blade. His head rolled back and forth, as if the wall had knocked him senseless. Rezrek smiled. He wanted this to last. He backed away, whistling to get the attention of the man. His eyes seemed to focus and Rezrek smiled. “Come on, man! Rezrek tired of bad fights!” His voice dripped with derision. “I’ll give you a good fight, you ugly bastard.” The man said. Rezrek knew enough of the common tongue to get that. “Come on!” Rezrek screamed, beckoning the man forward. The bugbear let out a powerful roar and charged forward. The man snatched his blade up and Rezrek met his upwards strike with a two-handed downward attack. The warrior’s blade shifted suddenly, like an angry snake, avoiding the blow that would’ve snapped the metal in half. The man had stepped back, clear of the strike, and whipped the blade to the side. The flat of it caught Rezrek in the head, cutting a thin line against his brow. The bugbear roared again. Blood poured into his right eye and he drew his paw up to wipe at it. The man shifted to the side, narrowly avoiding another downward blow from the shouting bugbear. Rezrek gnashed his fangs and cursed the man. He was going to crush the life out of him. Drool and blood dribbled down Rezrek’s lower lip. He hissed as he turned, seeing the limping man back against the wall of the pit. Rezrek stormed forward, raising the warhammer high in one hand. He ignored the blood flowing into his eye and bared his yellow fangs at the man. The other warrior’s face was pale. He was weakening, Rezrek knew. His shifting was slower and it wouldn’t be long before the man wasn’t able to roll away from the bugbear’s attacks. He needed one good hit and the man would be finished. As he approached him, Rezrek smiled cruelly. “Gonna hurt you good, man. Share your meat with Ripper.” He gnashed his teeth at the wounded man. The armored warrior said nothing, though it was clear he was worried; fear wafted off the man like a carcass left in the sun. Rezrek could smell it. “Maybe Rezrek hurt man, not kill. Let man watch.” He let his words die there and the expression of rage on the warrior’s face let the massive bugbear know that he understood his meaning. He was going to enjoy hurting the little woman, doubly so because it meant it would hurt the man. He would teach them who was strong. Rezrek was strongest. No one came into his domain and tried to kill him. No one! The furious bugbear thought. He stopped a few steps from the warrior, who held his blade up in two hands. The bugbear reared back, ready for the killing blow. A scream to his left reached him and for a moment he assumed Ripper had killed the little woman. He smiled. Pain shot through his neck and instinctively he turned away from it, almost losing his footing on the man’s bloody trail. His yellow-orange eyes shot up to see Leden, standing outside of the pit and with her crossbow leveled at him. Rage exploded in the bugbear leader.
Regdar watched in amazement as a crossbow bolt appeared in the left side of the bugbear leader’s neck. It appeared from nowhere and when the exhausted warrior saw another, smaller bugbear standing outside of the pit holding a well-made crossbow and aiming it at what he assumed was his leader. The scruffy looking creature sneered down at Rezrek and said something in their harsh, barking tongue and Regdar didn’t let the distraction go to waste. He turned, using all of the strength he could muster to toss his blade up over the lip of the pit. He hopped, feeling the terrible searing pain in his calf as he did so, and caught the lip. His fingers were bloody from his scuffle with Ripper but he managed to drag himself up and over the edge before Rezrek regained his senses. He heard the bugbear scream but the warrior was already taking up his sword and hobbling away. He saw the other bugbear, which backed away from him and reloaded its crossbow. It didn’t move to attack him and the warrior was more than happy about it and he turned his attention to Lidda. She had a gash running down her arm. Ripper had apparently scored a hit and Regdar could tell the halfling was slowing; her steps were more labored and he could relate. He half stumbled forward, hearing Rezrek shouting and clambering out of the pit. Regdar reached the krenshar, which whipped its great head around and bared its fangs at him. It had several shallow wounds along its sides and the place Regdar’s bracers had struck still oozed bright red blood. But the thing seemed unphased by the wounds. It snapped at him. He brought his blade to bear, bringing it up in a swift strike that the creature dodged. Regdar was too slow, he knew. But the opening gave Lidda a chance. He watched her stab out, catching the beast in the flank and it whimpered. Yelping, it snapped at her and hobbled away - a bloody trail followed its bulk as it tried to get away from the two. Panting, it moved closer to where the pit was and Rezrek brought himself fully out of it. The other bugbear shot again - the quarrel struck true, digging into the bugbear’s huge muscled thigh. It didn’t slow him at all, nor did it break his stride and the look of fear in the smaller bugbear’s face was clear. It backed away but was too slow. Rezrek caught its shoulder in one great paw, pulling and dragging the smaller one to the ground. It whimpered and hit its head hard against the stone. Rezrek brought his great warhammer to bear and brought it down on the leg of the other bugbear. Bone shattered as flesh tore under the force. The scream that filled the cavern was deafening and Regdar, along with Lidda and the goblins, watched as the smaller bugbear’s leg was absolutely destroyed. It still remained attached but the creature would never walk again - if it lived long enough to worry about walking. Rezrek screamed at it, spit and blood spattering the whimpering bugbear’s upturned face. The larger bugbear slammed his booted foot down on the wounded leg, drawing another pained scream from the lips of the one beneath it. “Stop!” Regdar screamed at Rezrek. The bugbear leader turned to him, rage in his eyes. He lifted his free paw, grabbing the small bolt protruding from his neck and tearing it out. He stepped back, blood pouring down the side of his furry neck and stepped on the smaller bugbear’s ruined leg again, this time smiling as he did so. “Don’t like that, man?!” He shouted. He ground his boot and the other bugbear tried to sit up. Rezrek brought his elbow back, delivering a horrible blow to its face. The impact shattered teeth and the stifled grunt that came from the creature told Regdar that its nose was broken. It fell back, face bleeding and hit its head hard against the rocky floor. It stopped moving. Ripper whimpered and Rezrek turned his attention to it. He growled in anger. “Man and little woman hurt Ripper.” He smiled viciously and leveled Regdar with an intense stare. The krenshar growled, folding its skin back over its skull and letting its tongue flop out of the side of its mouth. Rezrek whistled and the beast padded slowly, hobbling over to him. The wound Lidda had dealt was bleeding severely and the warrior could tell the animal wouldn’t be nearly as maneuverable. If he could get it to charge him, he might be able to kill it with a stroke to the spine. But he’d need to time it well. And manage Rezrek. The bugbear growled something at the krenshar and it padded forward, a little uncertain but apparently loyal to the vicious master. Regdar looked at Lidda. “Get behind me,” he said, shifting his body and trying to ignore the numbness in his leg. He’d lost a good deal of blood, he knew; his vision was slightly blurry and the shadows of the cavern were deeper than they should be. If they didn’t end this soon, he was going to pass out. And that would be it. Lidda might be able to escape, though. “Like hells I’m going to listen to you.” She replied, holding her blade out and ready. “I can outrun the big bastard but even with the leg wound, that krenshar is gonna run me down if I try to run.” She scoffed. “I hate to say it but it's better to die standing up, I guess.” Regdar laughed mirthlessly. “Definitely not what I’d expect from you.” “Yeah, just another reminder that you don’t really know me - Ramdor.” She winked at him but he could tell she was scared. Her blade shook ever-so-slightly as she held it out at the approaching krenshar. The beast drooled, splattering bloody spittle onto the stone and a vicious growl rose in the back of its throat. Its skin peeled back again and it let out another horrible scream - Regdar shook his head against the fear that crawled over his skin as he watched it expose muscle and bone. Lidda scoffed next to him - good, he thought. She wouldn’t cower when it struck. The older warrior sighed, dropping into a ready stance, and pulled his weapon close to his body. If the beast jumped, he could punch out and try to stun it. A sword swing might be too slow, even wounded like it was. Ripper took a single step back, growling as its eyes shifted behind the two. Regdar looked back, just for a second, and saw the form of Naull slink out of the shadows holding a long scroll in her hand. She looked tired but stared defiantly at the much taller bugbear and his pet. Her face was set and for a moment, Regdar thought she looked like - no, she isn’t. He stopped his mind from wandering into that old, unused place where memories lay buried. He didn’t need a distraction. This wasn’t her. It was Naull. And she’d stepped out into the open. The gathered goblins held their breath as another person walked into the situation and the pause let Regdar look down and see the body of the other bugbear. He had been beaten, stabbed, and clawed. The warrior could see his chest rise and fall softly; still alive, though he was covered in blood. It bubbled at the corners of his mouth. The bloodied creature shifted an arm and Ripper immediately snapped its head to look at him. A dull, strange wheezing noise came from the broken mouth and he tried to shift his head up. Several teeth spilled onto the stone, jingling like coins as they rolled lazily away from the mortally wounded thing. “Fidul.” Rezrek said, turning his eyes away from the young mage. He growled. “Failed Rezrek.” Fidul made a whimpering noise that sounded as if were passing through a wet cloth. The noise made Regdar’s stomach turn. Ripper padded towards the downed bugbear, leaned into his face and opened his jaws. “Stop!” Naull shouted, holding the scroll aloft as if it were a tower shield. The krenshar didn’t move. It hovered over the bleeding bugbear, jaws ready to crush his swollen face. The bugbear was quietly sobbing, Regdar noticed. “Another woman,” Rezrek said, laughing to himself. As he chuckled, Regdar could see the trickle of blood from his neck wound. The fur there had been so thick that the bolt had not penetrated deep enough to kill him. At least not yet. He took in Naull and smirked. “Magic lady.” He scoffed, snorting towards her. How did he know that? Regdar thought. He shot his eyes to Ripper, eagerly waiting to crunch the head of Fidul. “Rezrek not care. Kill magic lady before. Kill magic lady again.” He smiled, leveling the warhammer at her. Naull didn’t back down. Regdar was impressed. The girl was young but gods, was she ever sure of herself. Let’s hope that doesn’t get her killed, he mused as he shifted his grip. Rezrek immediately turned his head towards the man and snarled, a biting word hissing from his lips. Ripper bit down hard on Fidul’s face, who weakly cried out in his garbled voice. There was a half second of moaning and then a sickly crunching noise. Fidul stopped moving. Ripper drew his gore splattered muzzle away from the fresh kill and turned on the party; its face looked almost like it was smiling. “Good boy.” Rezrek said. “Kill.” The krenshar dashed forward towards Regdar and Lidda as Rezrek stepped confidently towards Naull, whose lips were already moving rapidly in whatever spell she was calling down on the damned things. A hemisphere of shadows consumed Rezrek, plunging the tall monster into absolute darkness. It looked exactly like the shadows that the falling creatures had created and Regdar had a moment to question how Naull had done that. But Ripper was on him, biting and clawing at his half-plate. It gnashed teeth in his face and the warrior heard Naull cry out. Rezrek screamed as well but remained hidden within the sphere, the shuffling of his feet barely audible above the snarling of his pet krenshar. Regdar wedged his remaining bracer under Ripper’s neck, the snapping jaws only inches from his face. His long blade fell to the floor but was ignored by the warrior. He was being splattered with drool and blood and the fetid stink of rotting flesh still trapped in the creature’s teeth. He suppressed a gag and held it there, shouting to Lidda. “Stab it!” “I’m trying,” she yelled back, slipping from behind him and driving her blade into the krenshar’s side. The weapon dug into fur and flesh, eliciting a roar from the beast. Rezrek returned it and Regdar saw the head of the warhammer breach the shadows the bugbear was inside. He’d get out soon, the warrior knew. They had to kill the krenshar. Now. The sword was pulled from Lidda’s hand as Ripper twisted away, snarling and snapping at Regdar. The blade was half stuck into the thing’s neck but it refused to die - like its master. Regdar grabbed the blade hilt. Ripper rolled its head to the side, tearing free of the warrior’s forearm and bit down hard onto the man’s exposed shoulder. The pauldron there absorbed most of the force but the crushing pressure of the beast’s jaws pulled a scream from the old warrior’s lips. Rage filled his chest, his vision blurring slightly from yet another wound, and he screamed as he shoved the blade deeper into the krenshar’s neck. There was a whimper and the monster tried to pull away but Regdar grabbed it with his hand; gnarled, filthy fur twisted in his fingers and he held it as tightly as he could. He screamed again, driving the blade fully into the neck. The wolf-beast spat blood onto his face but he shoved it to the side, toppling it over. He was up, his calf screaming and his balance uncertain, but he reached forward and tore the short blade from its throat. A ragged, bloody line cut through muscle and flesh, fur and even the bones of its neck. The beast gasped a gurgling whimper. Regdar dropped the halfling’s blade, stooped to pick his own up and lifted it high above his head. He roared. Rezrek emerged from the shadows, finally able to escape the boundaries of it through blind flailing and watched as the warrior brought his bastard sword down onto Ripper’s neck. The strike was clean; the krenshar’s head cut from its body, Regdar kicking the thing away from him before turning to stare at the bugbear. His breathing was heavy and the weight of wounds, exhaustion and adrenaline made his knees weak. He could fall right there. But he needed to kill the bugbear. He needed to make sure Lidda and Naull and Jozan - wherever the hells he was at- were safe. He had to protect them. Regdar took an unsteady step towards Naull. “Get behind me,” he said in his gruff voice. The woman gave him a look over and shook her head. “We take him together.” She leveled her hand at the fuming bugbear, whose eyes were locked on the corpse of his pet. Drool poured down his bloody chin and the warrior could see, in the cold of the underground, the bugbear’s fur was - smoking? As if his body heat was so intense that it was misting off of him. “Less talk, more killing please.” Lidda chimed in, snatching up her sword and turning to the goblins there. She said something to them in their tongue but Regdar was focused. All he caught was “Tazerg”. Rezrek roared so loudly the entire cavern felt like it shook. He drew the warhammer up and threw himself forward like a madman, swinging wildly.
The priest stumbled off of the horse, cursing his lack of skill and watched the magical beast stare blankly at him. For a moment he thought to ask it to wait but the beast probably wasn’t planning on going anywhere. Nor did it seem likely that the phantom steed would be scared by anything that might wander past. Jozan worried it could be attacked but it wasn’t real, he mused. It was just more magic. His strength mostly restored, he’d doffed his armor as the thing had sped him closer to where Naull had traveled. The weight was still too much and he’d need time to pray for more of Pelor’s restorative blessings - healing he could manage but whatever that thing was pulled the strength right from his body. That was much harder to manage. And trying to fight against his fatigue in scalemail was ill-advised. He left it by the summoned creature and prayed to Pelor it would be there when they returned. Armor was expensive and he’d already lost his weapon. The area was littered with stalagmites; many were thicker around than Jozan’s waist. He was hesitant after their encounter with the rock monster but couldn’t delay. Regdar and Lidda were knee deep in trouble. Waist deep for the halfling, he thought without a trace of humor. He lay his hand against one to steady himself as he moved and was surprised at the chill which bit against his fingertips. The stone was knobby and smooth, worn down by the dripping from a cavern ceiling so far up that it might well extend forever. Under his boots the crunch of gravel sounded and the place was difficult to navigate without slipping. Jozan pushed forward, emerging into a small cavern that was connected to a much larger one. It was very dim here; the lichen was present but in smaller amounts, so much so that he had to squint his eyes to see more clearly. Blue twinkled at the edges of his vision but at least it was possible to see something. The smell of blood hit his nose almost instantly and a flash of his mentor crossed his mind. Calmet, standing over him - not as he had been in the dream. No. He was eyeless, blood spilling down his aged cheeks like rivers of pain and stolen power. The older man’s grip on the younger priest’s shoulders felt as if he were trying to dig his fingers into Jozan’s very flesh. He ran a hand over his shoulder but he felt only his vestments; dirty and smelling like they were in need of a very thorough washing. He shook his head, moving forward quickly. Weaponless, he wasn’t sure exactly what he might be able to do but he would figure it out. The priest burst through the smaller chamber, coming into the large open space and nearly collided with Naull. She’d been standing still, in the process of casting a spell, when he bowled her over and both dropped to the floor. She cursed, scrambling to stand. “Jozan!” She shouted, more startled than angry. He started to apologize but heard Regdar scream. The warrior was being held above the head of the largest bugbear Jozan had ever seen - maybe the largest bugbear that anyone had ever seen, he thought. It held the warrior up with a single, massive furred arm and wielded a beautiful but filth-stained warhammer. Jozan immediately recognized the symbol on it - Saint Cuthbert, The Battering Peace. This title was somewhat of an insult, Jozan knew. The god was combative, not only inasmuch as he was war-like but his clergy were known to be antagonistic even to allies. Challenge creates innovation, he’d heard one such follower say. Where did this creature get that? He thought. No priest would’ve given away such a weapon. There were no answers for the moment. The towering bugbear, which was several heads taller than even Regdar’s impressive height, slammed the old warrior onto the stone floor with such force Jozan was certain his back was broken. Regdar screamed, his head snapping back. It was covered in blood. The man lay still, groaning as he tried to arch his back and roll away. The bugbear slammed its boot onto his chest and Regdar coughed blood, dropping his blade and groaning. He punched feebly at the thing’s boot. Naull yelled for the fallen warrior. “Regdar!” She twisted her hand into a claw, calling words of necromantic power to her lips and rushed forward. “No, Naull, don’t!” Jozan urged. The girl had already cleared the distance though. She drew her hand back, blue-black energy enshrouding her clawed hand as she reached out for the beast. The bugbear half-stepped back, just out of reach of the crackling energy. He shifted forward swiftly, punching out with a paw almost the size of Naull’s head and struck the woman full on in the face. She grunted, crying out as she fell backwards. She pulled her hands up to her face, the energy flowing through her fading as swiftly as it had been conjured. The bugbear stepped over Regdar, who tried to grab his boot as he passed. A swift kick in the face knocked the warrior back a few feet and he lay still. Jozan thought he saw a tooth skate across the stone floor. Lidda appeared from a small group of goblins, rushing forward with her little blade and screaming. She stabbed the bugbear but the strike was weak; it seemed to get caught in piecemeal armor the thing wore. “Oh, damn.” She said. The halfling looked up and took a powerful backhand to the face. It sent her reeling, sliding across the floor towards a large pit in the middle of the cavern and knocking the blade from her hand. She groaned, trying to lift her head but seemed as if the blow knocked her senseless for a moment. The thing bore down on Naull, lifting the young mage up by her cowl and screaming at her. She gasped, lips forming arcane phrases and the bugbear delivered a headbutt that immediately silenced the girl. She was conscious but her head rolled to the side and her eyes were unfocused. A gash had opened on her forehead and blood flowed freely from it, dribbling down her face. The bugbear opened his mouth, looking like he was going to bite into her throat. Jozan screamed a spell, holding tight to his holy symbol and crying to Pelor for power. A brilliant burst of light exploded on a strange amulet the bugbear was wearing, bathing the area in intense white and golden radiance. The flash appeared so quickly that the bugbear didn’t have time to avert his eyes - he screamed as the world became a searing white pain in his eyes and he stumbled backwards, still clutching Naull’s limp body. Jozan had never had much skill with the spells of war. But a well-timed spell of Pelor’s greatest blessing, light? That he could do. “Get out of there Naull!” He shouted. “Oh, by Wee Jas, that’s BRIGHT!” She yelled back, closing her eyes tight. The girl’s head shifted and she struggled to pull herself free from the grasp of the yelling beast. His eyes were unfocused but it wouldn’t last long, Jozan knew. He had nothing that could free her and looked over to Regdar’s sword. He couldn’t wield it properly and shook his head. The blade would be more a hindrance in his hands than help. He shifted forward quickly, keeping the struggling mage in his vision as he did so. His limbs still felt so heavy. The bright light was intense but not painful to the worshiper of Pelor - his cloister, though still capable of being blinded, had no fear of The Shining One’s gifts. He got to the downed warrior. He watched Regdar blink at him, almost astonished. “H-help the girl,” he muttered and coughed more blood. “I’ll try, my friend.” Jozan said and stood, holding the great blade awkwardly. “I-I can’t get free!” Naull yelled, shaking blindly and slamming her fists down on the bugbear’s arm. He shook her violently and she screamed. He drew her back as if to toss the woman and suddenly, the girl was no longer there. Her clothing was still clutched in the beast’s claw but there was nothing there! Jozan watched a small ball, black as pitch, drop from the trousers Naull had been wearing - no larger than a children’s kicking ball. It landed gracefully, unfurling into a black cat with sleek fur. It wriggled away from the trousers, bolting to the corner like an arrow and for a moment the priest was genuinely stunned. “N-Naull?” He managed. Jozan had heard of nature worshipers capable of changing their shapes and becoming animals. But surely that wasn’t what Naull was - not in addition to being a necromancer? Legends of wicked shapechangers terrorizing the common folk, infiltrating and killing clergy, as well as all other manner of horrible acts perpetrated by such people were common knowledge. As he watched the ball of black fur escape, he had a fleeting thought. What if she leaves us right now? The bugbear roared, throwing the clothing to the side and turned his gaze at the priest - whose attention was immediately refocused. The light no longer stung his eyes, it seemed, but the creature tore the amulet from his neck and tossed it aside. The small stone attached to it clattered against the floor. Jozan looked up in time to see it bearing down on him, swinging the warhammer of Saint Cuthbert as well as any follower he’d seen. Unencumbered by his armor, Jozan was still not nearly as quick on his feet as Lidda. He backed away, holding his hands out towards the bugbear and trying to keep his eyes focused on the swinging death hammer that would surely crack his skull open if it struck true. He needed to keep distance between them. The bugbear seemed unbalanced, slipping slightly on what Jozan realized in horror was a great amount of blood from the severed head of some skinless wolf thing. Distracted, he ducked just in time to avoid a sweeping blow. He felt wind rush past him and cried out, stepping back and drawing his hands close to himself. The beast reached out with a huge claw and managed to grab a bit of hair on the priest’s head - though it was short, the bugbear found enough purchase to tear away a tuft. Jozan screamed. He tore his head away from the hand as fast as he could. The bugbear on the stone bridge had nearly crushed his skull and that was not an experience he wanted to relive - ever. He took another step back, catching the eyes of the small black cat that hid behind the wall of cowering goblins. Its ears flattened. The image of Naull fleeing and leaving them all to die filled his head and despair struck the priest’s heart. He didn’t know this woman. She was a necromancer and a shapechanger - two reviled and wicked things that his world had often maligned. How could he trust that she wouldn’t abandon them? Suddenly Jozan was falling. He landed on his backside, crying out from the impact and managed to roll backwards awkwardly. The pit was deep and also covered in gore, making getting to his feet harder than the priest wanted. He slipped but managed to keep himself from falling as he heard Rezrek approach the pit. He spied the little goblin, Tazerg, collapsed on the floor - he was face down, breathing slowly. Jozan heard a scream and suddenly realized Lidda was left alone with the bugbear. As he came into view, Jozan’s heart sank. He saw the halfling woman being lifted by one arm, held tight in the bugbear's grip.
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