Dragon Mage 3 Chapter 11: Unresolved Questions (Patreon)

368 days until the Arkon Shield falls

My spell of choice when it came to dealing with Hawthorn and Sashin was seeking flames. The pair were still holed up behind their silver shield—which, it turned out, offered scant protection.

I wasn’t sure who had cast it—Hawthorn or Sashin—but as the first ball of dragonfire I sent rushing out of my staff touched the shimmering curtain, it wavered visibly.

Both mages’ faces paled at the sight.

I snorted. Despite their expensive gear and toys, the mages’ Magic was truly paltry compared to mine. Their spells had barely made a dent in my own golden shield, yet I was already certain the next seeking orb I dispatched would destroy their defenses.

Something I did not hesitate to do.

Fueling the dragon magic spell with lifeblood and mana, I sent a second fireball coursing toward the pair. Arcing across the distance, it splashed down on the silver dome from above.

The shield dissipated with an audible ‘ploop.’

Dismay was written large on my foes’ faces. Nonetheless, they continued to try burning through my shield.

I shook my head. They’re taking this to the bitter end. So be it.

Summoning more dragonfire orbs, I pounded the two mages from afar. They had personal shields as well, I noted, but those didn’t fare any better than the silver dome had, and it was not long before Hawthorn and Sashin were lying dead on the ground.

There was one more mage to take care of. 

But I had no intention of killing him just yet. Trapped in stone, he would make the perfect subject for questioning. Lowering my staff, I swung around.

Only to be greeted by the sight of Borris disemboweled.

“Damn,” I muttered. The battlemage had killed himself—and in a thoroughly gruesome manner, too. It must have taken real effort for Borris to force his steel breastplate up and work his sword beneath. And for what? So, he wouldn’t be captured? 

What manner of fanatics are we dealing with here? I wondered.

Sighing, I glanced at the far end of the chamber where the shadowlion rested. But despite the fireworks display, the lair boss had not stirred.

Alright, I guess I better see what—if any—clues these fools left behind. 

✵ ✵ ✵

With Ash on overwatch, I systematically looted and sorted through the mages’ things—all six of them. The belongings of the two the shadowlion had mangled had been left untouched next to their bodies, and I had no compunctions about rummaging through them as well.

The first thing that became apparent was that whoever had sponsored the mages was not the orcs. Revulsion did not trigger. And I was freely able to handle all the gear on offer.

The second thing? The mages had been rich in magical goods. I’d known that already, but seeing the tidy pile of staffs, scrolls, armor, and swords I’d assembled, I couldn’t help but shake my head in wonder. They made for a veritable fortune, at least for the Forerunners.

Picking up Hawthorn’s staff, I ran my hands down its length.

The target is an enchanted bloodwood wizard’s staff inset with elemental crystals of fire and death. It can only be used by Hawthorn.

The staff was finely crafted, and it was a pity I couldn’t take it for my own, but I was sure I could extract its elemental crystals, and that alone made it valuable. Setting aside the Focus, I examined the other three staffs. They, too, were well made and would yield two crystals apiece.

Sadly, none of the mages’ garments had survived their deaths. My dragonfire had thoroughly burned away Hawthorn and Sashin’s robes, while the lair boss had shredded the robes of the other two.

The battlemages’ gear had fared better. Sadly, though, their equipment was just as unusable. Whoever had crafted all the enchanted gear had seen fit to attune each item to a specific player. It was a good strategy, admittedly, and would stop any enemy from profiting off the stolen gear—but only so long as they couldn’t disenchant items like I could.

In any case, all told, the six mages carried a grand total of sixteen elemental crystals. 

That was more elemental crystals than Captain Fagan’s entire company of a hundred orcs had between them. 

I shook my head again. Elemental crystals were not cheap nor easy to come by. I knew this for a fact after my conversations with Regna. So, why had the mages’ Sponsors showered them with such riches?

I didn’t know. Nor did the belongings of the six contain any clues as to the reason. 

Well, that’s not strictly true. 

I glanced at the waiting pile of scrolls. There were two scrolls in particular that drew my attention. They both held the same epic ranked spell. I snorted in disbelief, just thinking about it. 

Epic. 

That was one rank higher than any spell I had in my arsenal. And based on where we were and what the mages had been doing, I could think of only one reason they would be carrying such scrolls. The only mystery was why they hadn’t used them yet.

Perhaps, it’s because— 

“Jamie! Thank god you’re alive. Are you alright?”

Glancing up, I observed a small group approaching. Tara was at the fore, and it was she who had spoken. Behind her strode Arneson, Lance, Kellar, and Henk. 

“I’m fine,” I said, waving aside Tara’s concern. “What took you so long?”

The Sierra captain rolled her eyes. “You mean other than the lair boss lurking on the other side of the cavern?”

“He’s no threat,” I said dismissively. “And you were supposed to be here ten minutes ago,” I added, pretending to scowl. “What if I was lying dead in a pool of blood by now?”

“What? You mean like these six poor sods?” Arneson smirked. “We sent you here to talk. Why did you have to go and kill them?”

I ignored the man. He was the last one to be casting aspersions, seeing how he’d wanted to slay the mages all along.

Tara, too, paid Arneson no heed. “There was some… debate as to who should come,” she said.

“Debate…” I mused, my gaze skipping to Arneson.

He frowned, not missing my pointed look. “It wasn’t me.” He jerked his thumb at Lance. “He wouldn’t stay behind like we agreed.”

“Lance?” I enquired mildly. 

He bowed his head, not meeting my eye.

My lips thinned unhappily. The plan had been for Arneson, Tara and the two scouts to investigate if I failed to report back in the allocated time. Lance was supposed to have remained behind to protect the rest of the party in case a stray shadowcat still hung around—a not-inconsiderable possibility.

“I was worried about you, alright,” Lance said at last. “After our conversation earlier, I didn’t think we could afford to lose… what you have to offer.”

Lance’s reference was not lost on me. Bowing my head, I pinched the bridge of my nose. Confirming his suspicions was a mistake, I thought morosely. Now, it seemed, Lance was becoming overprotective.

We’ll talk about it later,” I said firmly, not wanting to air the matter before the others. I turned back to Tara. “Where’s everyone else?”

“Just outside the cavern mouth,” she replied. “I had to bring them up because of…” Glancing in Lance’s direction, she left the rest unsaid.

“Of course,” I agreed. “All things considered, it is safer for them to be closer. And now you might as well bring them inside.” I pointed to the distant lair boss. “Like I said, he’s no threat, and we have a lot to discuss before we move on.”

✵ ✵ ✵

“So, what happened?” Tara asked once the entire party was safely gathered around the former mages’ campfire. 

By now, the lair boss had to be aware of our presence in the cavern. He hadn’t reacted, though, not even so much as to raise his head and stare at us belligerently—which only confirmed my suspicions that he was in no condition to do so.

“Jamie?” Tara prompted when I didn’t reply.

“Sorry,” I said. “I was lost in thought for a second there.” Drawing a deep breath, I told the others what had happened between me and the mages.

Arneson frowned when I was done. “None of them tried to surrender. Not a one?”

Shaking my head, I pointed out Borris. “Not even him.”

Tara’s gaze flickered to the dead battlemage. “He disemboweled himself?”

I nodded mutely.

Lance shuddered. “Yikes.”

I glanced at Arneson. He had more experience with warfare than any of us. “What do you make of the mages?”

He rubbed his chin. “Whoever they are, they are obviously dedicated to their cause.”

“But what cause?” Tara asked.

He shrugged. “It could be anything. I’ve seen people fight over the stupidest things.” His gaze drifted down to my left leg. “Did they recognize you? Could that explain their hostility?”

“I don’t think so.”

Tara tapped the side of her face with one finger. “You didn’t get anything useful out of them?”

She was trying hard not to show her disappointment, but it leaked through anyway. “Nothing, sorry.”

“Hmm.” Arneson pondered the small camp. “What about their things? Any clues there?”

I shook my head. “Hardly. We know that the orcs didn’t outfit them. And we know that they are richly supplied. Other than that, we know little. Not where they’re from, how they got here, nor what their ultimate goals are.”

“Or why they have so many mages,” Lance put in.

I nodded. “That too.”

“Maybe they’re just another gang of thugs,” the other mage said. However, despite being the one to make the suggestion, Lance seemed skeptical of the idea.

“That’s possible,” I admitted. “But hardly likely.”

Arneson shrugged again. “Well, there is no use speculating further. We simply don’t know enough.” 

“Agreed,” Tara said. She glanced at me. “We should question Jhaven about the intruders. He might know something.”

Arneson’s lips tightened at the mention of the orc shaman, but he didn’t protest Tara’s words.

“I’ll do that,” I promised. “As soon as we get back.”

Arneson turned to the pile of loot I’d gathered. “What do you intend to do about all of that?”

“Most of it is not immediately useful,” I replied. “The crystals can be salvaged, though. I’ll make a set of enchantment weapons for Sanctuary as soon as we return to the settlement.”

Tara nodded. “Good idea.”

Arneson’s eyes gleamed. “Thank you.”

I inclined my head in acknowledgment.

“What about the lore scrolls?” Lance asked.

“Those are for you,” I replied. 

Most of the scrolls contained rank one and two spells, and while having a backup cache of lore scrolls would have been nice, they would serve Lance better. He had far fewer spells to call upon, and while I was away, he would be the Forerunners’ primary mage. 

“All except these two,” I added, plucking out the two epic ranked scrolls.

“What are those?” Tara asked curiously.

“See for yourself,” I said, holding out one of the scrolls for inspection. 

The target is a single-cast scroll containing the Technique, capture beast. 

Additional information revealed by lore: Capture beast is an epic spell that can be used to bind any type of wild creature. A life magic skill of level 70 is required to use this scroll successfully. Even so, success is not guaranteed, and the stronger the subject, the more likely they are to resist the spell’s effects. This item is destroyed after use.