Company Unknown 5, page 35
Immensely powerful a few seconds ago, the duo now found themselves to be quite the opposite. Good thing they weren’t alone. Sometimes “the Savers need to become the saviors,” as Mom wouldn’t say. Garin would, though, so it was only fitting his apprentice used that thought to rescue him.
One second there was a very smug Sundover holding a very stinky One-Tooth, and the next there was a much less enthusiastic half-demon doing the same. In lieu of the thanks I knew I’d never get from the foul dwarf, I gave him a swift kick from behind. Hey, just because you’re in a battle for life and death doesn’t mean you can’t have a little fun. That was a lesson I’d learned from Garin too.
Another was not to hesitate, and neither he nor Dread Katie were about to forget that. As soon as they realized Sundover was no longer behind One-Tooth, their eyes were moving. That actually worked against them, as if they’d stayed still for a few seconds they would have seen me pointing to my former location. I yelled it instead when I realized they’d missed it.
Their feet were already moving before their eyes located their opponent. Sundover was on the move too, but they were working together. “Don’t be faster, be smarter” was Garin’s saying, and what he and his partner did. Sundover made a beeline for Dread Katie, and Garin intercepted him. The wizard’s blast from above seemed to miss, but Garin’s stab forced Sundover right into it. The big man lurched forward from the pain and right back into the coming katar. It was a yoyo of hurt.
But there was a reason Sundover had given Dread Katie’s and Garin’s old team so much trouble. Desperation and pure agony weren’t enough to keep him down. The loud roar he let out gave my heroes pause, but they were the kind of veterans that other veterans looked up to.
That pause was so short that it only gave Sundover a half second of reprieve. It didn’t break him free, but it wasn’t useless. A great noise came from all around as that roar was returned by hundreds of soldiers. Our gnoll and murder dwarf allies must still be there, or else a stream of our enemies would have poured forth already. The clashing of arms and spells ensued instead. Much as the rest of the Crew and Unknown wanted to watch the main show, they knew where their use lay. Before an order could come, all streamed toward the periphery.
Hobbling and struggling, Mom went with them. With all our mana and healing potions down, she couldn’t be brought back to a usable amount of health to help with Sundover anyway. But if she couldn’t help in this fight, that didn’t mean someone else couldn’t in her stead. I was shocked and proud beyond reason that person should be me. But there wasn’t time to explain her logic when she gave me the signal to stay behind—not that I would have wanted to know anyway. It would ruin that mysterious aura she’d spent my entire life, and then some, building. Familiarity and the unexpected in equal doses were what made a Mer tick.
It would have been nice to know what I’d be needed for, though. Despite Sundover’s health steadily dropping, neither I nor my two remaining companions doubted he would end that way. They might not have fought him before, but we all knew opponents like this always had a wrinkle or twelve when things got desperate. It was like they didn’t want to die or something. Some people just don’t know when to quit. “Die with dignity” had always been my motto . . . OK, it was really “Don’t die, but if you have to, do it kicking, screaming, and in the flashiest way possible,” but I’d been told that was completely a me-thing. Sundover had proven himself to be as opposite from me as possible, so it stood to reason he’d follow the other saying and not mine.
Garin and Dread Katie, however, were not going to waste any opportunity to milk their damage as much as possible before that trick came. They redoubled their efforts and poured as much offense as they could, throwing every ability and spell that could help faster than I could process even half of them.
Destroy Armor, Divine Blast, Bleed, Slow, Sky Dive, Bless Weapon, Leaping Attack, Mana Blast, Powerful Blow, Glue, Cheap Shot, and Flash were just a few of the abilities and spells on display. Like Garin, Dread Katie had picked up a few new magic items since I’d last seen her. Most of them seemed to be either buffs or mana recovery items, which were more important in a long slog like this, but a few extra bits of direct damage or debuffs on her opponent never hurt either.
Two minutes of a very one-sided fight passed, and they seemed like seconds—but even faster, everything changed. While we were all expecting it, the bright red light that emanated from Sundover still did its job. The Knockback we mostly handled, skidding to halts a couple dozen feet away. Our eyes were another matter. Blinking through the blinding effect took me more than ten seconds, and judging by his lack of reaction, Garin took almost twice as long.
Dread Katie was another matter, though more from her practice at fighting blind and less because she’d resisted. Her spell choice didn’t require much sight. A Barrier plopped down in front of Garin, it was almost immediately shattered, but that noise was what she really needed. A Glue spell landed on Sundover’s feet while just behind it another Doppleganger winked into existence.
This copy was stronger than her last one—not having the “Lesser” in front of its name—but the important part was that it didn’t have the debuff its original had. Primarily a spellcaster, it wouldn’t do nearly what Garin could against its more melee-oriented opponent, but it was still no slouch.
With no other members of the squad close to its target, the copy could finally unleash some of the other spheres of magic in Dread Katie’s arsenal. It quickly tagged Sundover with a moderate Chill and Shock. The spells didn’t hit hard, but their debuffs were no joke. His limbs dragging even more from the cold and convulsing nerves, Sundover couldn’t do much against her—yet even when slowed, he was still fast.
Just before he reached the copy, it sent him for a small ride with a nice Gale. After creating a new distance between them, it was time to finish the big man off with Lightning Storm. To make it even worse, the original doubled the fun with a copy of the same spell.
Spectacular and brilliant was the display of magic. Though the noise of the battle going on around us would be drowned by the sound of the lightning and thunder, I also knew that the soldiers on both sides had stopped to watch the unexpectedly bright display. A lot of them were ducking not to be hit by the crackling electricity. Most of the veteran soldiers in our squad understood how precise the spell’s range was, but that still didn’t stop many from at least pausing to watch or move out of the way. The damage to the landscape was a lot less predictable. No one wanted to survive hundreds of fights with deadly monsters only to be crushed by a falling tree.
The more immediate fight in front of me, however, conveniently combined the place where I’d need to be and where my eyes must focus. While some magical armor has enchantments that keep its metal from acting like a lightning rod or is composed of metals that can’t conduct electricity, Sundover’s followed neither exception. Each new bolt staggered him more and singed his exposed skin further. But that didn’t stop him. The more damage he took, the more determined he became.
The Storm still bought us time. Time Garin used to finally clear his eyes. As soon as Sundover cleared the storm, the older man landed on top of him. Jump and Katar combined for a powerful crash with point aimed perfectly to pierce skull.
Sundover, however, had a different idea that didn’t involve dying. Garin crashed hard as some sort of magic shield appeared between them. I thought it might be one of Warham’s but I could just see her Bounce being used far in the distance. She’d placed it perfectly to rebound the troll into the spikes of a fallen tree. Garin hadn’t bounced so much as splattered. Whatever Sundover’s ability was, it was something different.
Before he could reach up to exploit Garin’s temporary weakness, Dread Katie was on him with another spell. Mana Blast was one of the weaker spells, but it was fast. Sundover barely staggered and might not have taken any damage as the spell landed between his eyes, but it was enough to ruin his aim. His meaty paw slipped off Garin’s ankle and the brave warrior landed with a small splat instead of the mighty crash that was expected.
I took a few steps forward to finally join in but was quickly pulled back by a small but powerful hand. At least I’d finally found Lyre. Her face held a mixture of frustration at knowing this was too far above our weight class and desperation to help. Neither of us were the kind of person to just sit there, yet that needed to be our role. To see the much younger Lyre being the voice of reason was . . . well, not too unexpected, but exactly what I needed to realize the folly of what I had been about to try.
Garin paid the price for Lyre’s intervention, though. Sundover was faster on recovery and finally landed his first real blows. Though tougher and braver than anyone I knew, it only took three solid punches to push Garin into Perception’s “near death” category. With one hand, Dread Katie pushed a Barrier out in the hopes the next strike wouldn’t knock him into full-on “dead.” Her other digits worked more directly in pushing his health up.
The warm healing worked its glowing white power, and Garin was back to his feet in just enough time to get a more mundane shield in front of him. From there, it was back to the familiar back-and-forth from before.
Sundover had a different trick in mind. Something he’d learned from Garin. Instead of subjecting himself to a continual back-and-forth, he opted for a different direction. Up was safe. Up was unexpected. Up didn’t hurt, but down sure did. Dread Katie had wisely levitated half a foot off the floor, like she usually did when she felt she might be directly engaged. Garin didn’t have such magic, and he paid for it as the massive pile of walking armor crashed not into him but a foot away. No direct damage was dealt, but the impact shook him from his feet.
Garin was too experienced to just lie there, except that even the second and a half it took for him to get his bearing was too long. Sundover decided he liked the way that graybeard bounced. He punched the prone form with his free hand and stabbed with the other. It was Garin’s time to be a yoyo of pain.
Dread Katie and Garin might have had their differences of late, but she wasn’t about to just let him die. The first few spells washed over the brute like they weren’t even there, but when Burn caused the slightest of twitches, she knew she’d found her element. She wasn’t the only one who knew she knew. Halfway through the longer cast of a Fireball, Sundover decided the cadence of his up and down wasn’t quite right. The better option was a much longer up followed by help from gravity.
If it were me, I would have timed the toss to land just as the Fireball emerged from Dread Katie’s long, purple fingers—but I wasn’t strong enough to throw a body a tenth of that distance, nor did I have more holes poked in me than a block of Swiss cheese. There’s a reason everyone wants to be a commentator and a lot less people want to be participants. And speaking of which, it was the perfect time for Lyre and me to put our plan into motion.
Instead of boldly charging and then getting boldly knocked into the next country, I stayed still and let Swap bring my opponent to me. Sure, it didn’t get my hair all handsomely windblown, but it was surprising. So surprising that Sundover didn’t even try to swat me like a fly for a whole three seconds after he was in range.
I did still get that windblown look on the left side of my head, but a split second before the blade blew more than just hair, my hammer made its own connection. My guess that I would hit skin instead of armor was correct. Knockback shoved him away.
Not nearly far enough for my safety, but fortunately part two of our plan was in play. Wounded and bloody though Garin was, he was still more than ready when Lyre grabbed him around the waist and catapulted him forward. It wasn’t a good idea for her to engage Sundover directly, but that had little to do with her speed. Once Garin arrived to turn the pain back around, Lyre let go and scurried away as fast as her paddling feet could take her.
Sundover pulled a few new schemes and abilities out of thin air to turn the tables, but by then Swap was off its timer. Lyre and I were more than ready for our next reversal.
Despite the ridiculous pace of his attacks, Garin managed to shout out a warning when Sundover hit his last few health. But again Lyre and I were ready. From a couple of hundred feet in the air—thanks to my mana finally recovering enough for Flight—I gave him the same airborne Swap that had finally defeated Scrotumio when he’d impersonated the big man. And Lyre grabbed Garin to rush him to freedom.
It was a gamble to leave Dread Katie to manage her own safety, but one I only slightly worried about. Lyre’s arms were too small to grab both our warriors in one go, and even she wasn’t fast enough for two trips. But I knew the cagey old mage well. Dread Katie always had twelve or so contingencies, backups, and escapes at the ready.
By the time the dust and raining debris settled enough, I was unsurprised to see Lyre and Garin digging themselves out of the ground while Dread Katie leisurely sat in a folding chair with a big umbrella, sipping some exotic concoction she wouldn’t share. She also didn’t offer to help clean up the mess after the battle. Her “rest to full mana was more important in case we were attacked.” And just like always, we’d plot as to how we would make her pay, and never follow through. There were a lot of things she could do with a full mana pool, and she was much more inventive than us.
Yet another seemingly impossible monster defeated by the Crew and the Unknown. Now, what would we face next?
47
BOREDOM
The familiar, it turns out, is only great when you’re thinking wistfully about the past. In your memory, there’s just the positive—with one terrible thing mixed in that somehow still makes you laugh. The present provides all those tiny wrinkles and bad moments you glossed over in your memory.
That crotchety behavior? Not as cute when it has fists and feet behind it. Voices that get on your nerves. People fueled primarily by spite and orneriness. Teamwork that might be perfect, but perfectly against you. A commander who was equal parts terrible mother and boss you hated because she was usually right.
Let’s not even get into the smells. Bad enough that the dead usually empty their bowels, but then you got a couple of shower-optional guys, a few who only pass wind into the wind, and the ones who sneak up behind you to “ask” you to sniff something by shoving it in your face. A battlefield is also a toilet, and we were its janitors.
In all, it sure was great to be home!
My sunny disposition and broad smile as I cleared the corpses, helped the filthy wounded to the healer, and buried the bodies drew more than the usual number of scowls and dirty words. If I’d known this was the key to pissing everyone off, I would have done it years ago. In this case, however, it was just the joy of having everyone back together. (Within reason, that is. Having even ninety percent of us survive something this big was a massive accomplishment.)
My happiness only soured when I saw Mom. But not for the usual reason. She was rarely ever cheerful after a battle, no matter how perfectly everything went. Now that I was a commander myself, I understood why. There was the mourning of the dead and second-guessing to work through. You were the one who gave the orders, so you got to ponder what you could have changed to prevent their deaths. But what? Which option should you have picked? Was there even one that would have worked? What if you’d given the right one but worded it wrong? Or been too slow? What if you’d put your points in a skill that could have saved them? Could someone else have done better? Were all the survivors thinking the same thoughts? Would they mutiny? Did you hope they’d succeed?
Or I’d thought so, anyway. While I hadn’t understood that look on her face the last time I’d been with her after a battle, I recognized it now, and this one was very different.
Make no mistakes, the familiar expression was still buried there. I’d learned recently that she’d just been great at hiding it. This new one, not so much. But I was her son, no matter how much I’d wanted to deny it over the years. I recognized this look because it had been written on my own face.
“You think this was all too easy,” I said. “That’s there’s something more that you’re missing.”
She blinked half as much as she usually would—meaning a tenth of a blink—before she caught herself and resumed her all-knowing stare. “Of course not. This is not one of those silly stories you like to read when you think no one is looking. In the real world, just because a fight is difficult does not mean it has to have a difficult ending. Battles end without twists or unexpected developments most of the time.”
“Am I really going to have to be the one to tell you to cut the cr—”
Her more intense glare let me know not to finish the sentence with such “vulgar language.” The goal was already accomplished, but it didn’t stop her from wagging her finger all the same. Our approaches might have been as opposite as possible, but our results were a lot closer. Subtle or beat-you-over-the-head, it was still sarcasm.
“My apologies, Most Revered Mother. What I meant to say was: ‘You can hide the truth from yourself all you like later, but do not attempt to hide it from me.’ We both know this isn’t right.”
This time I think her anger was more directed at herself than me. Not that it stopped her from pointing at her unusually innocent victim.
I made a vow to earn all of it later. For now, I just did my best to return some. My actions at least forced her to switch to pity.
She looked away with a sigh. “I will have Garin and Dread Katie gather our best and search. They likely will not find anything besides peace of mind. I cannot order you anymore, son, but—”
“I’d join them even if you hadn’t told me to. Especially if you hadn’t told me. . . By the way, do you mind ordering me not to? For old time’s sake?” I stood on my tiptoes and crossed my hands in the most exaggerated pleading gesture I could manage without breaking anything.
