A Legacy of Blades - An Epic Tower Fantasy

Razhik sat coiled, flanked by his newly appointed Shadow Guard, opposite Kewrok and a pair of his most talented hydromancers, cowards who had fled the battle the day before. The surviving Grokar juggernauts had shown themselves to be unexpectedly loyal, following Razhik around everywhere he went, clinging to his shadow like a thread to a better life.

Grodo was a pillar of the squad, taking the lesser mantle of leadership upon himself, always eager to please the King or his Champion. Froaky, Croaky, Hoaky, and Babblin the Small made up the other survivors. Anilith had not taken Razhik's demand to name the creatures too seriously, appearing doubtful that they would actually respond to names given in such a manner.

The biggest issue, he'd found, was that Babblin only responded to his full name, which was slightly irksome, as Razhik didn't really want to have to call him "the Small" every time he needed something from him, especially as he was anything but small. Well, compared to Razhik, he was small, but that was true for most soft-skins. It was a small price to pay, he supposed, and he was just glad he hadn't had to think of names himself.

A shiver went down his spine at the thought of having to name so many things. How anyone could deal with that, he might never understand. Still, he could rest easy knowing that a King always had people for these sorts of undesirable tasks.

It was good to be in charge, even if his friends didn't always act like he was in charge. He knew the truth of the situation and accepted their delusions.

Who was he to take away something so intrinsically linked to someone's worldview?

Razhik, by virtue of his kingly persuasion, had managed to get the amphibious men to understand their names, and they seemed to take pride in having earned them. He'd tried to explain to Anilith that they'd never had names before, only duties. Juggernaut was the word he'd chosen for them, but their title really translated to hit-taker-rock-pusher-smack-smack-hard-hopper.

Their language just didn't translate very well, being largely glottal throat noises. It lacked a certain nuance found in more finely crafted languages, bringing with it a dependence on overly literal conventions. It made enough sense to Razhik, but then again, he wasn't a foolish soft-skin.

Kewrok, if the creature's expression proved any basis, was less than pleased that his warriors had decided to ally with Razhik, but he made no comment on the matter. No, he was much more interested in boring conversation, as usual. Razhik had stopped paying active attention a while ago, trusting his retinue to make a fuss if anything actually important came up.

The last he'd heard, Kewrok was discussing how much of a success the trap had been, how all of the sacrifice was worth it for the serious dent in the enemy numbers, and something about it being the greatest advantage they'd ever…blah, blah, blah.

What good was all this strategizing and postulating if the Grokar couldn't manage, in gods only knew how long, what Razhik and his friends had managed in…days?

Their time below ground felt stretchy, like it could have been both longer and shorter than he thought, and neither answer would surprise him in the least.

His guards, as it turned out, were much more patient than Razhik.

With a sigh, he interrupted whatever reprehensible tangent the chieftain had been on, he said, "Alright, that's cool and all, but what are we doing next? Discussing all this past mumbo isn't exactly helping us with our goblin infestation, is it?" He fixed the lard-ridden thing with a one-eyed stare. "You do have a point, no?"

"Well…it's not like…surely, you must understand…it's just…Of course, there's a point to all of this! Do you really think I just like the sound of my own voice that much," the Grokar chieftain asked, clearly oblivious to the ridiculousness of the question.

Hardly waiting for a response, Razhik spat back, "Yes, and if I let you, you'd go on wasting even more time, time that I don't really care to spend pretending to list…I mean, considering the wisdom of your words," Razhik finished diplomatically.

"Never in all my years as chieftain," Kewrok said, his face aghast, "have I been so insulted as this."

"And never in all your years have you had such an opportunity before you. You're telling me you don't have any plans set in place? That, after all this time, you haven't found one exploitable weakness, and we're gonna just go lay siege to the keep's gates? Walls might not mean a lot to me," Razhik said, "but they do present an inconvenience to my friends."

Kewrok swelled with a massive inhale, bloating himself to nearly twice his normal, already considerable, girth. "Of course, we've found a weakness," he spat, "there's a tunnel that leads under the heart of the keep. We haven't taken the risk of exploring it too thoroughly, not wanting to throw away our advantage, but our scouts have reported goblin activity at the egress, so it's safe to say it bears promise."

"So, you're saying there's a chance," Razhik began, "that we might not have to go through the front door?"

"There's more than a chance, Serpent, I just can't confirm that it's going to be an easy route. Regardless, A siege is beyond our capabilities, even with the full strength of our forces. You and your friends are…impressive, but you don't exactly seem up to bypassing or destroying the walls." An expression that could only be described as a creepy grin came over the windbag's face as it finished, "Or you wouldn't need our help, here."

"Has anyone ever told you, your delivery sucks. You asked us for help, here, buddy," Razhik said with a side-eyed glance, "Seems to me, you'd have taken advantage of this 'weakness' if you could. Don't act like you don't need us."

"Well, of course, we need you, but we're risking a lot in the endeavor—"

"Gods forbid you have to risk anything," Razhik interrupted.

Kewrok's bulbous eyes narrowed as he continued, "Your group and your…appropriated warriors…will form the spearhead of our efforts. We might have found a way in, but you'd have to be a fool to think the enemy defenseless."

Kewrok swallowed, somehow deflating as he did. "If this fails, we won't have the force to defend our homes, let alone launch another assault. The only saving grace is that the enemy has already suffered a great loss. Don't think that means this will be easy, though."

"Man, if you knew my friends," Razhik replied, "you'd know that nothing is ever easy for us. Just kinda goes with the territory. You keep mentioning this 'force,' though. Not to be rude," Razhik continued rudely, "but I'd hesitate to call what you sent with us before a force. Did we do so much damage before you surrendered?"

Kewrok blinked rapidly, multiple eyelids closing over his eyes in a disturbing way. "I think it's time we showed you and your allies to the staging grounds."

Razhik sent a summons along Orion's connection as he and his Shadow Guard followed Kewrok and his two companions down a tunnel.

"This leads to a flooded cavern, granting covert access to the lakebed. Are you going to get your allies?"

"Oh, they're on the way already," Razhik replied, "but how are they going to join us in the lake?"

"My mages here," Kewrok said, indicating the hydromancers, "will make sure they're comfortable in a more proper environment."

"This ought to be good," Razhik said, grinning in anticipation of a good swim.

The light filtered through the water, diffracting in marvelous ways as it danced about the sub-surface of the lake, illuminating a world Anilith had never thought to behold. Her eyes saw clearly through the water, her vision not blurred as it had always been, aided by whatever working the hydromancers had fashioned.

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For everything her eyes appreciated, she felt blinded in a way that left her feeling hollow.

When she stretched her senses as she'd grown accustomed, there was no feedback. Logically, she understood, but she shivered in the warm water as the depth of that emptiness washed over her. When she shut the senses out, it didn't feel so dreadful. It was the difference between closing your eyes, knowing they were shut, and having them open, peering into a void, a nothing so great, it swallows all senses that venture forth.

To her supernatural comprehension, she was suspended in nothing, floating in an emptiness that stretched endlessly, even as her eyes could see the lakebed beneath her. On a whim, she swam down, putting her hands into the wet earth. It soaked up her yearning senses like spongey bread lapping up broth, and her world exploded into detail.

Instantly, she could see the depths of the earth, see the outline of flooded passages, evident in their absence, appearing as impenetrable veins in the earth. Some ran deep into the mountain, finding hidden springs and flooded chambers, but a few ran towards the keep. One of these likely provided the entrance that the Grokar chieftain had mentioned to Razhik.

As she anchored herself in the mud, Anilith contemplated the veins of nothingness, comparing them to her insensate immersion in the lake. The difference between observing the anomaly from within as opposed to how it appeared from an external view was stark, and more than a little disconcerting. As similar as they appeared, seeing the void of sensory input, being able to identify the edges, could never have prepared Anilith for the utter disconnect of being enveloped by the absence. From within, she would have no ability to see the end, and it would feel endless, if not for her eyes, a sense she'd come to rely on less and less, recently.

Separating herself from her lifeline, a severance that was more difficult than she wanted to admit, she floated back up, free from the earth and the awareness it provided

Still, she refused to shut herself off from her abilities, seeing it as just another important experience for her training. This wasn't the same as not wanting to witness the full devastation of the battlefield at once, but a sensation both more nebulous and deeply rooted in the underpinnings of reality.

For all of its alien nature, there was something so innately natural about the experience, as if she were being subjected to a primal force of existence.

She didn't know how that wouldn't lead to growth. Growth wasn't something that comes naturally from being comfortable, after all, but an inevitable response to hardship and change.

Allowing her eyes to guide her, a humbling experience after the prescience her abilities gave her, while embracing the feeling of sensory deprivation was a disorienting experience, and her head spun. It would have been about as far from ideal as a situation could be, were it not for the mitigating factor of the hydromancy that allowed her to breathe water as if it were atmosphere.

She gained a new respect for the dangers something as simple as water presented her with, especially considering her particular skillset. She was, it turned out, uniquely unsuited for underwater adventures.

Truthfully, she wouldn't have ventured into the lake whatsoever if it weren't for the Grokar magic.

The swamps she'd grown up in weren't a place for casual swimming. One never knew what was lurking in the murk, and the urge to go for a relaxing dip had been quickly banished from the Moorish people. Living around as much water as they do, though, it would be gross negligence not to at least teach children rudimentary swimming skills.

It never went beyond "keep head up, do not sink," but that was enough in a land focused on survival.

Orion proved to be a passable swimmer, moving adeptly through the water next to Anilith's floundering form. His scowl made it clear he'd much rather be on dry land, even if he wasn't entirely out of his element like Anilith. She couldn't help but wonder what trials he must have undergone to have developed such an intense aversion to the stuff, but those stories were rarely ones anyone shared upon request.

No, those were honors given to trusted allies who earned them. Better to let sleeping lowbacks lie.

Watching Razhik in the water, Anilith wondered how she'd ever considered him graceful on land. Here, under the rippling surface of the lake, she saw how he moved between the shimmering waves of light, how he danced among currents so miniscule, their touch was like the disturbance caused by a gnat's wings, and yet Razhik moved with them all.

Each current moved in step, enhancing the promenade of the king. She'd always seen him in a majestic light, but now she saw his regal bearing in full stride. With his shrouded entourage in tow, he was a sight to behold in that world below.

She still couldn't believe he'd had her name them, and shook her head at the ridiculous names he'd accepted for them.

The Grokar themselves moved with a grace they'd never shown on the surface, but for all their skill, they appeared as children learning to swim next to the King in his Domain, a realm of light, shadow, and water.

As Anilith adjusted to her environment, and her floundering attempts at mastering her body's movements became less abysmal, she allowed her attention to focus more on the details of the submarine setting, and less on her allies and the atmospheric backdrop.

A truly impressive assemblage of Grokar thrived in the lake. She could see the distant shape of Kewrok, amorphous blob of a creature that he was, organizing with a few slightly less bulbous beasts. How these things maintained command with their physique, Anilith might never understand, but there was certainly more to the structure of their forces than met the eye.

Plus, magic, she had quickly come to learn, changed conventional thoughts on what an ideal soldier may look like. Spouting an adage of her mentor, she unconsciously muttered, "A narrow-minded approach is a sure path to an early death. Never underestimate that which you do not understand."

Something about the hydromancers' spell projected her unwitting words more clearly and prominently than they would have traveled on land.

Turning in a nearly graceful spin, Orion shot back, "What was that, kid? Who are you underestimating now?"

Color rose in her cheeks, the effect at once more stark and more pallid from the water's touch. "Oh, just thinking about something my teacher used to say. Didn't realize we'd be able to talk like this, though."

"Can't say it ain't a shock here, either," Orion laughed with a cascade of bubbles, "but, damn, if it ain't convenient. Still workin' out the kinks with my most recent lesson." His face was overcome by an unpleasant expression. "Was a touch unpleasant when you shut me out, by the way. Felt like…a bowstring snappin' at one end, and, let me tell you, that ain't somethin' you want whipping across you. Like that, but a mite more personal, anyway. Give a guy some warnin' next time."

Anilith looked down as she responded, not wanting to dwell on her thoughts from back then, "Yeah, I don't know that I could have given you much warning there. It was…a lot. I'll keep that in mind, though. You two are just about all I've got in this world, and I'm not keen on hurting friends or taking people for granted. That's a promise."

"Yeah, yeah. Don't take it too serious, now. Gods only know Razhik don't think things through, more often than not, and that turns out alright, usually. Intentions mean something, kid," he paused a beat, "and I could tell, it was a lot." He put his hands up defensively as she shot him a wounded look. "I'm not pryin', though, trust me! Some things ain't meant for others. That's just another facet of my ability I'll have to figure."

The two looked out over the underwater space in silence, while Razhik expressed a freedom Anilith found herself envying. His squad was marked, different from the rest of the Grokar, and making no moves to rejoin their brethren.

"Seems we have some new hangers on," Anilith said, "What do you make of them?"

"Eh," the man replied, "Ain't gonna waste too much effort considerin' them until we've made it through this ordeal. Ain't at the finish line yet, kid. Let's see who makes it there with us."

A downcast smile graced Anilith's face at his words. "You may want to rethink that approach, Old man. It seems like Razhik is pretty attached already. They're already following him around like puppies, and I gotta say, I like them more than their friends." Her expression firmed, levity leaving it. "Might be good to have a few on our side, come the end of this all."

"Hard not to agree there," Orion nodded. "There sure are a lot of them down here. Makes you wonder why they only sent what they did with us before."

"Oh, they probably just wanted us to do the heavy lifting. Why risk a large force when we were really the threat? They've been here how long, and never breached the keep? If Kewrok's to be believed, anyway," Anilith replied, hair floating freely behind her, untethered from the tyranny of gravity.

"Yeah, maybe you're right, kid," Orion said, chewing his lip. "Can't go lettin' our—"

A commotion drew their attention to the front lines, where the commanders started barking out orders.

"Seems like it might be time to move out," Orion finished.

"Yeah, time to see where these charmers are leading us," Anilith replied, "Is it too much to hope they found a tunnel to a pleasant fountain pond?"

Orion kicked forward, shaking his head. "You just had to put that out there, didn't you?"

"Oh, come on, this place loves us! It would never…you know what? I'm not even gonna say it."

"Probably wise, kid. Might be the smartest thing I ever heard you say."

Swimming more comfortably than she ever could remember, Anilith grinned sheepishly as the sinking feeling in her stomach threatened to drag her to the lakebed.

Wouldn't she ever learn?