Runeblade

Sitting atop his brother’s mountainous back, Kaius shifted his body in time with Porkchop’s gait as they walked down a wide dirt road. A forest surrounded them, blessedly lacking in red leaves and hungry monstrosities.

His team rode with the nobles, sitting tall atop the windsoul chargers that Julian had all but insisted they use on their return journey.

Kaius eyed one of the grey feathered creatures, remembering the discomfort of riding one of the beaked horse-like beasts for the first leg of their journey. Thank the gods that Porkchop’s Lesser Physique of the Deathless was faster at regenerating limbs than his own, and Ianmus had been able to hasten the process further with his second-tier Triage spell. By the time they’d returned to the pass where he and his team had first clashed with Julian’s, Porkchop had been fully recovered.

“Thanks,” he said, reaching through his bond.

“Bah, I can barely tell you’re there.”

Kaius smiled. His bond with Porkchop made it easy — he didn’t even need to think or anticipate, they just moved as a single whole. He’d gotten better at his riding skills, of course — practice and inordinate Dexterity had seen to that. It was still awkward, and the loss of so many mounts on the expedition had forced him and Kenva to share, which only made the problem worse.

Deep in the treeline, a broad-leafed bush rustled. Kaius snapped to the sound, ready to reach for his blade. A tall stag with white antlers appeared a moment later, freezing as its eyes locked on Porkchop. It burst away, sprinting through the trees as small columns of earth rose beneath its hooves to push it faster.

Some of the tension left, his hand drifting away from his blade.

“Touchy, it was only Iron,” Porkchop said.

Kaius rolled his eyes, staying aware of their surroundings. It paid to be careful, especially when so many of their party were still injured from their battle with Katarex. Kanmost was missing his legs, and both Adrian and Julian had persistent numbness from their temporary bisection that would need to be treated by a skilled physician. Hells, even Ianmus was missing an arm, though as a mage it mattered far less for his combat capabilities, and he was using their imperial prosthetic besides.

Honestly, Kaius was surprised they’d escaped from Vainblood without further injuries. After the shock of the phasechange, every single one of them had wanted to return to Baanswell as soon as possible. Though, not before securing the wyrm's carcass. Both Julian and Kel had emptied their rings completely, storing what they could with their teammates, and abandoning what they could not.

Kaius quirked a smile, remembering the small mountain of finery that had been left behind. Silks, pointlessly large tents, and a dozen bits of furniture — including a four poster bed with rose-embroided drapery. It was utterly ridiculous how much space the men had. Kaius wanted something like it for his own team to use. Still, the nobles had managed to store the remains, after carefully segmenting them in two.

They’d emerged into chaos, the world already changed by the next phase change. The wave of all-consuming power that had come with it had sent the population of Vainblood into a crazed frenzy. Avoiding every noise they could, Kaius had been able to hear beasts fighting for their entire journey.

The thought of the change made him frown. Kaius grabbed the scaled hilt of his blade, taking comfort in its solidity. It had been a few weeks and he still couldn’t believe it. Everything within him burned to tear across the land, searching for those ‘great gates’. It was a creeping panic that constantly clawed at his throat. They’d lost. For nearly two years, he’d done everything in his power to build on his lead, and secure every benefit he could.

It hadn’t been enough. Gods, he just wanted to know how? Of all of the triggers, someone breaking the rarity cap was not what he had expected. It was absurd! Both Xenanra and his classguide had made it clear that it was only possible by categorically reshaping your foundations to support more. Even walking the Path to the fullest extent he could hadn’t been enough for him to do the same.

Was it an elf, or maybe one of the risen houses across the ocean? Something stranger? Rotten roots, he didn’t even know what tier they were. Kaius bit the inside of his cheek. He almost hoped that they were a higher tier than him. If someone had managed to obtain an Epic class in the second tier, they had an advantage he could never best, only mitigate with Honours.

Even that was a shallow dream. Anyone who could achieve a bloody Epic was a talent for the ages! They would have mountains of their own achievements boosting their strength.

A faint wave of agreement passed through his bond with Porkchop.

“It’s certainly aggravating,” Porkchop said. “If only we could head straight for the gates, who knows what Honours and prizes we might miss simply because others found the Shardworld first!”

Kaius bit back the urge to sigh. What could they do? They had no way of knowing where these gates were, or how common. No matter his anxious need to move, they were far better off returning to the city. Word of gates would spread quickly, given they were scattered across the surface. Being patient would save them more time.

Besides, this Shardworld seemed like an even more dangerous version of the Great Depths. If they were to maximise this opportunity, they would need to prepare. Restoratives, long term supplies, and a thousand other things — all easily available thanks to the wealth brought by the wyrm’s corpse.

“At least we’ll be there soon,” Kaius said to his brother. “Julian was certain we’d see the Wyrdwall by noon, and that’s not far off.”

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If there was one small silver lining, it was that their return from Vainblood had been far quicker. Without having to painstakingly comb a massive swathe of the high-mana zone, they’d been able to take the shortest route out and speed back at pace.

They kept moving, their passage through the forest marked by the constant rumble of the chargers' footfalls. Kaius basked in the shining sun as best he could, though it was almost overwhelming after so long in the darkness of the Crater. Regardless of what happened, he knew that they would give this new development their all. He needed to be ready, and fretting needlessly did nothing to help that.

Eventually, their winding route led them around a series of low hills. Cresting the bend, a distant line of titanic bramble was visible through the gap in the canopy. Flowers of every type covered its every surface in splotches of pink, yellow, and blue. Kaius knew that each was as large as a wagon, but this far away their true scale was hidden. Only a league ahead, the forest fell away, replaced by a sprawl of fields surrounding the distant city.

Julian and the other nobles straightened as Baanswell came into view.

“By the gods, finally,” Adrian grumbled. “All this riding has left my legs tingling. It feels like they’ve been replaced by a damn beehive. The sooner we can visit the physician, the better.”

“Not long now, my friend!” Julian replied, beaming. “Let us halt.”

The noble twitched his reigns, the other following suit as they slowed to a stop. Kaius watched in confusion as the two remaining retainers dismounted, and moved to help both Adrian and Julian out of the saddle.

“We’re stopping?” Porkchop asked.

“Hmm?” Julian said, looking up from a brushed silver medallion he had retrieved from his ring. “Oh, yes. The second we leave the trees, we’ll be spotted from a league away. It would be improper to be seen without an escort — i’m calling for one now.”

An escort? Was that really necessary?

Kel glanced at him, cracking a smile as he noticed Kaius’s reaction.

“It's needed for appearances. If we return missing half of our men, one of whom was a baron in their own right, the entire city will be speaking of our crushing defeat within the hour. That is unacceptable, especially with the world being overturned again.”

“But,” Julian added. “If we return at the head of a regiment of ducal guards, openly carting the corpse of a dragon, the duchy will only hear of a daring and valiant battle, where the capable leaders of Baanswell prevailed against impossible odds. It’ll turn into a parade before we’re halfway to the palace.”

“That, and it will stir up a great deal of interest in the mounds of draconic material we now have in our possession,” Kel finished.

As much as he hated to admit it, that did seem like an understandable reason. A poor reputation could be just as dangerous as any blade to a lord. That said, he was not a lord.

Kaius shared a long look with his friends. Porkchop cared not a lick for a parade, and both Ianmus and Kenva looked like they were more than eager to get inside the walls. Plus, all that attention had its own problems. They had plenty to do within the city walls. Guilewind would need an update on their expedition, and Kaius had no doubt it would be all hands on deck at the Guild thanks to the latest phase-change.

Not to mention the wealth of secrets he and his team held.

“We’ll pass,” Kaius said as Kenva and Ianmus slipped from their saddles. A moment later, Ianmus helped his old teacher down too, taking the man to the base of a tree that he could rest against. “We’re not much for renown, and it’ll be a lot easier to get through the hubbub before half the city is crowding to get a look at the dragon.”

Julian just shrugged, unsurprised by their response. “Suit yourself. Though, I will have to mention someone aided us. I would undercut my own credibility trying to take sole credit.”

Before Kaius could protest, he noticed Adrian was staring at him, deep in thought. He hadn’t interacted with the lord anywhere near as much as Kel or Julian, but Adrian had proven himself to be far more direct than the rest of them.

“You’ll need to figure it out, one day,” the lord said.

“Excuse me?”

“Your distaste of attention. The four of you are too strong and too notable. First it was Deadacre, now you return to Baanswell within hours of us. Even if we say nothing, rumours will spread. Eventually, you’ll need to own it, or it’ll look like you’ve got something to hide.”

The man might have a point, but that did not mean he had to ride in at the head of a bloody parade! Still, perhaps they didn’t need to hide their involvement. Being known as dragon slayers could bring its own advantages. Given the entire continent would be interested in the gates to the Shardworld, it would be good to have a reputation of strength to lean on if things got messy.

“Fine,” Kaius sighed. “It was more about the parade, anyway.”

“Splendid!” Julian replied, a flash of mana igniting within the Silver medallion he held. “My father is sending some men now. I’ll keep your names out of any speeches, but assume that those of any real strength or influence will know we worked together. Better, I think, to position us as allies, before some mid-wit starts making assumptions about your involvement with a chartered Archivist who returned to the city missing his legs.”

By all the gods and all of their blessings, why had he ever thought it would be a good idea to get involved in a nobles scheme? He’d known their relative anonymity had a time limit, but it seemed it was going to be well and truly dead now.

“Honestly, this fiasco with the dragon might have come at a perfect time,” Julian said, checking the saddle of his mount. “The people will need a distraction after yet more bad news.”

Kenva snorted. “I’m not so sure about that. Better the change happened when we were already in the city. Far better we could have set off for the gates immediately."

“The world is rarely so kind,” Julian replied. “I’ll send a runner in the coming days to settle our accounts.”

That made Kaius grin — it was hard to be displeased at the promise of future wealth.

“Did you want to come with us?” Ianmus asked, focusing on his old teacher.

“Me? No,” the Archivist grinned. “I love a good parade, and it’ll only raise more questions if I’m seen entering the city with you instead of Lord Flowers.”

Ianmus gave the man a long look, before nodding. “Well, send a missive to the Ruby Crown once you’re settled. We still have a lot to catch up on.”

Ready to leave, they made the last of their goodbyes as quick as they were able, and set off down the winding road to Baanswell. Kaius had to hold himself back from breaking into a jog, his mind already filled with images of a guildhall overflowing with chaos. Had the gates already been found? He certainly hoped so.

“Kaius?” Julian called out from behind him.

He turned back. The man’s smile was a casual thing, but his ice-blue eyes shone with focused intensity.

“Don’t be a stranger. I think you’ll find that allies can be just as important as a good sword.”

Kaius nodded. Better an ally than another enemy. He had enough of those.