Steampunk Nights - Chapter 7

Record Author: Izyad Mishtan, Acolyte of Osiris
Location: Central Wilds

Our journey the first day was a non-event.  The weather was fine.  The road was clear.  And we saw nothing alive other than a few deer and birds.  As we had been told, the campsite that we stopped at for the evening was well marked and commonly used.  I had hoped that there would be a wooden picket or watchtowers at such obvious places of rest, but alas!  The townsfolk of Trat looked at me strangely when I commented upon this lack.  Ah, well.

It was during the second day's travel that Nihani spied the orc scouts.

No one else saw them at first.  My first clue that something might be happening is when Nihani urged her glass scorpion to a slightly greater pace, pulling out of position and drawing up next to Dhaja.  I thought nothing of this at first, since we often changed position or rode next to one another to trade a bit of conversation.

With a sudden cry, Nihani jabbed her heels into the flanks of her mount and the beast skittered at a run towards the rear of a hillock that the road was slowly rounding.  I had not yet seen her scorpion move at top speed and it was frighteningly fast!  As she moved, Nihani cried out: “Orcs!  Behind the hill!”

Antoro's head popped out of the door of his cart and he yelped, “What?  Orcs?  Here?”

In excitement I drew my magical weapon, my T-hand cannon, and gave a battle cry of my own.  I admit that I was filled with an almost-childlike excitement to see how the powerful device would perform in combat.

Dhaja stared intensely at Fabro, who was closer to the enemy, and suddenly a mist of orange vapors wafted faintly around Fabro's eyes, giving him a fearful aspect.  This, I would later learn, was the visible effect of the desert mystic's magic – a spell of vengeance.

Fabro energetically leaped from the front of his cart and ran towards the two fleeing orcs.  He drew his weapon as he ran.  Nihani's beast moved quickly towards the orcs, and even from my distance I could see their looks of dawning horror as they realized that they would never be able to out-run the huge animal with the snapping claws.

Dhaja continued riding at a leisurely pace, remaining at his post (a wise course of action – since the orcs might have been a lure to draw us away from the cargo).  Instead of charging after the scouts, he focused his attention on Nihani's scorpion and orange vapors of vengeance began to swirl around the beast's eyes.

I cried aloud, “The blessings of Osiris shall be upon us this day!  Justice for Angelina!”

The orc scouts stopped their headlong flight and aimed crossbows at the charging scorpion.  One bolt bounced off the armor plates on the scorpion’s chest and the other missed as Nihani caused her beast to side-step out of the bolt's path.

Fabro slid to a stop and took up an attack posture that I had never considered effective before, holding both hands on the weapon and peering down the top of it.  An explosion of sound!  The stance clearly was superior to my own method, since one of the orcs was thrown to the ground and began twitching like a dying dog.

Nihani urged her mount onward, and its tree-like tail darted forward, catching the orc under the chin with the stinger and lifting him right off his feet.  The scorpion shook the body violently to and fro.

And just that quickly the battle was over!  I felt a keen disappointment that I was not able to actively participate, but I did feel glad to be in league with such accomplished warriors.  The dangers of the wilds seemed further away after this excellent display.  And Osiris be praised, the murdering orcs were given what they deserved.

I do not know what I expected Antoro and the rest of the caravan to do during this fight, but I was definitely surprised by their actions.  Nothing!  Antoro did poke his head out of the door of the Steam Cart to yell at us…

“Chop their heads off and get back to your places!  I’m not paying you to mess up our travel schedule!”

So.  Antoro had not engendered any feelings of camaraderie.  I could not blame the teamsters for obeying their orders – they were working folk who must see to the livelihood.  But Antoro seems a bit callous about all of this.  The caravan soon left our view.

Nihani commanded her mount to snip off the head of the orc, and then she dismounted to inspect the body for valuables and clues to these monsters' plans.

Fabro knelt down beside the orc that he had taken down with a single shot and called out in surprise, “This one is still breathing!”

I hurried over to see what could be done, but Nihani and Dhaja didn’t seem to care about this.

Dhaja was very matter-of-fact about what should happen to the hapless orc.  “Slit his throat and be done with it, then.”

Fabro shook his head and muttered to me, “Never talked to an orc before – maybe this fellow can tell us where the rest of them are, eh?”

I shrugged and watched as he rolled the beast over and poured water into its ugly visage to wake it up.  This method worked, but the ork started thrashing about weakly and mewling in pain.

Fabro drew his T-hand cannon and aimed it casually at the monster to get its attention.

“Now listen to me, orc!  Where are the rest?”

“Rest?  Yah, me like ta rest now,” the beast mumbled in a slurred and barely coherent voice.

Fabro attempted to speak with patience. “No, I mean the rest of you.”

The orc put both grubbly hands on its wound and wailed, “Lookit dis hole ya put in me!  ‘Nd ya askin’ me whar de rest of me iz?  Some of me iz back dere, me tink,” it gestured to the blood-splattered grass behind it and saw the body of its companion for the first time, “‘Nd lookit poor Skumtoof!  Bitz of him iz everywhar!”

Fabro ran the fingers of his free hand through his hair in exasperation. “No, no!  Where are the others of your tribe?”

“Jist da two of uz out here.  Wotcha talkin’ ‘bout?”

“Your warband?  The boss orc who sent you out here today?”

A look of sudden comprehension lit up the orc’s brutal features.  “Oh!  Dem!  Why you not say so?”  The orc scanned the area, an attempt to get its bearings, I assumed.  “Duuuuh?  Hmm...  Me not sure…  Skumtoof wuz da smart un who knew where we wuz.  Um…  Me iz lost?  All me know iz we had ta run frum our town lotsa days ago.  So we iz lookin’ fer a new place ta live, see?”

Fabro frowned with disappointment and glanced at me.  I could only shrug.  It was only a poor, dumb brute of an orc – what did he expect? 

With a jerk, the wounded orc seemed to have some kind of epiphany.  “Hay!  Why you ask me such dumb questions, pinkie?  You tryin’ ta trick me?  Me never tell ya nothink!  RAAGH!”  And with this, the barely mobile beast tried to bite him on the leg!

The sudden lunge by the monster was responded to at once by Fabro.  He swung his weapon at the orc’s head and yelped, “Fool orc!”  There was a loud crack and then silence. 

Fabro wiped the barrel of his T-hand cannon off on the orc’s tunic while shaking his head in disbelief and disgust. 

“That was utterly pointless!”

“Not so, my friend.  It was just an orc,” was my only reply.

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