Four Horsemen: Chapter 3 Part 4 of 4 (Patreon)

Valter picked up his shield and Petor pulled out his spear.

Desari rested a hand on her sword, the other resting on Valter’s shoulder, she waited till Ornell was out of earshot, casting a glance around to make sure no one else could hear her.

“Looks like we’ve just found ourselves in a war between the gods of this planet. We need to be careful.” Her eyes passed over all of them.

“Are you saying we shouldn’t fight?”

“No, if we didn’t then the people of the city would begrudge us. Make sure you don’t use your full power, never go somewhere without someone else and don’t share anything with anyone without consulting the group.”

“Agreed, we need to learn just why we were down there and more about ourselves,” Valter tilted his head back towards the cathedral.

“The sooner we can get out of here the better,” Desari said.

Petor looked inwards, the crystal of bloody red gaining sparks of orange, the demons of shadow and flame looked darker and more solid. He opened his mouth, closing it at the sound of footsteps.

Petor looked over her shoulder as groups of mismatched mercenaries and guards turned the corner of the street. His grip tightened on his spear but he didn’t feel any animosity from them as they nodded at the group and headed for the wall.

The woman leading them wore a silver plate on a chain. The others wore copper plates, on chains, or added to their armor and clothing in some way. The guards wore a blue armband,

“Come on,” Desari said.

“What about the loot?” Mya complained.

“Grab what you can quickly, Petor help her then meet us up on the wall,” Desari tapped Valter’s shoulder and they joined the groups heading for the wall.

“I’ll make a looter out of you yet,” Mya grinned and winked, pulling out a hooked blade and moving to the bodies piled where they had been fighting.

Petor’s stomach turned at the thought.

“Isn’t that wrong?”

“Why you think people fight wars? It ain’t because it’s fun, its because of the shit they can steal from one another.” She expertly cut purses from the dead’s belts, shoving them into her storage device. “We need money to eat and buy new gear. Grab any jewelry or pouches that you see.” She used the hooked knife to cut through the bindings holding the armor down. “I’ll clear them of their armor. Check these ones over, and check their pockets and boots! Make sure you keep the loot separate from everything else so we can tally it all up later.”

Petor stored his spear pulling free coin purses, he worked quickly, feeling that he was leaving hidden secrets behind each time.

A whistle caught his attention as he stored an amulet. Desari waved from the wall.

“Dammit, not enough time for a proper job,” Mya pulled two purses free and ran for the wall. Petor joined her, running up the stairs to the top of the wall. It rose above the houses, in the distance he could see the remains of the cathedral, the dust coating the buildings around it as the mid-afternoon sun created orange hues of the city, almost peaceful as the mountain beyond was painted in orange and red hues, its peaks shining white.

“Lord Jorai, bless thy warriors that stand as you do, a protection against coming tribulations.” A priest guard had his hands pressed to a point infront of his head towards the mountain.

He shuddered and stepped backward, sweat dripping from his face, there was more there was fear in his eyes.

Petor hurried past him, the guards and adventurers on the wall, glancing past them on his way towards Desari.

Guards talked in low worried whispers, praying to their lord Jorai.

Over the wall were farmlands that reached out to the verdant forest beyond. Burnt patches marred the nearby fields.

Desari had a map out, looking at the terrain Valter nodded to Petor and studied the wall and forces on it.

Mya drew out a spyglass, looking over the wall.

“What are the burns?”

“The remains of a teleportation spell.”

“Priests are all on their knees praying near them. Got warriors all around them, they looks pretty strong,” Mya passed the spy glass over to Petor.

“Something must have gone wrong, they should have attacked with the others that were at the gates and inside the city,” Valter scratched his chin.

“Are you looking for something?” Mya asked Desari who was scanning a new parchment and then up at the mountains.

“Trying to figure out where we are.” She kept glancing, turning the map.

“Can I see?” Mya asked.

Desari looked at the map and her, passing it over.

“Just don’t rip it.”

“Don’t worry a hair on your head. Maps and me are kindred spirits,” Mya grinned as she unfolded the map reading it and handed it to Desari again. She drew out a sextant, moving the dials before licking her finger and raising it, taking in a deep breath and nodding.

“We’re in Soreli,” She pointed to a city on the map, putting her gear away. Desari folded the map back up to show the city.

“Just at the edge of the Rekouth mountain range,” Mya tipped her hat with a grin. “A navigator’s never lost.”

“Some of the warriors pulled out shovels, it looks like their digging?” Petor lowered the spyglass with a frown.

“May I?” Petor put the spyglass in his hand.

He let out a soft snort.

“Best of a bad situation. They’re digging in.” He slowly collapsed the spyglass, handing it back to Mya absently as he looked down the walls, then back to the cathedral.

“You have an idea,” Petor said.

“More like a hypothesis,” Valter turned his attention on the fields again.

“Which is?”

“That the gods are having some performance issues.”

Mya frowned at him and cocked her head as Petor dropped his gaze, thinking.

“We stand in a city holding a cathedral to Lord Jorai, but the priests haven’t been able to call down one blessing, or connect to his power,” Desari followed his line of thinking.

“Something happened that was able to cut off the faithful from Jorai, as well as these other gods.” She pinched the bridge of her nose, releasing a sigh-filled word. “Fuck.”

“Fucking Tuesdays,” Mya agreed somberly, rested her foot on a nearby crate, looking out over the farm fields.

“What day is it?” Petor asked.

“I unno,” Mya shrugged.

“Whichever god comes into contact with their people first will be the one to gain the advantage,” Valter said. “The strongest fighters of Lord Jorai are away, probably fighting these other god’s forces. While the strongest fighters from the other gods that aren’t their champions are the ones camping out there.”

“How do you know?” Desari asked.

“No one here seems surprised that they are being attacked by other gods, a sally isn’t getting prepared to go out to meet the warriors and priests camping out there even though each is a group of less than fifty. This fight must have been happening already, long enough for the strongest to be called to other places.”

“Are the gods dead?” Mya asked.

Petor didn’t miss the eager way she moved her fingers or the shine in her eyes. “The faithful would know if they were dead, it was why that first group of enemy god fighters we ran into couldn’t call on power, but the champion that arrive in the city still had his power. He’s linked to the god in a different way.”

“Aww.” She pouted.

More guards ran up the battlements and to their positions.

“Why would the gods be fighting?” Petor leaned closer to the others.

“Young gods? Still vying to carve out their own part of this world’s faithful?” Valter shrugged.

“Best way to win against another god, decrease the number of faithful they can draw from,” Mya muttered.

“Alright Adventurers head to the guild for your assignments, guards spread out to take their positions!” A woman yelled as she stalked down the back of the wall.

Those with the copper plates moved from the wall.

“Come on,” Desari said, leading them away from the wall.

“Loot!” Mya raced ahead.

“Bundle of energy that one,” Valter smiled as they joined those leaving the wall.

“We’re in a city surrounded by armies and under siege, not many places that we can go to now. We need to keep a low profile.”

“We could be fighting for the city?” Valter said. “Could ask them.”

“You think that if we were fighting for the city in their cathedral that we would be staying down here in the middle of their slums?” Mya’s eyes slid to him.

He grunted in acknowledgement.

“We need answers,” Petor said, touching his chest.

“If we left our horses at the Head Rages lets see if we still have rooms,” Desari continued walking. “Then we can have some privacy to check our gear for clues.” She clicked her tongue, her mount and the others wandering out of an alleyway towards them.