Towers And Tieflings: ONC 2021 Longlist

8: The Spire

Warning: Chapter contains action/violence.

By the time the adventurers reach the pack of orcs at the ancient ruins known as the Spire, the dwarf is nowhere to be seen.

"Are we too late? Is the dwarf dead?" Orianna's voice is low as her eyes scan her surroundings in search of a body, careful not to trigger the orcs' attention through their 'Passive Perception'.

"I guess so." Adam's mouth twists into a grimace. "I was hoping we'd at least get here in time for me to have a chance at resurrecting them. They must've died quick."

"Lame," Seamus says, "you'd have thought they would've put up more of a fight. It took us what, a few minutes to run here?"

"Yeah, well they were outnumbered like ten to one." Kohl gestures at the cluster of orcs; some are seated around a campfire, ripping off large shreds of roasted meat from the spit. Some food flakes come flying out their mouths when one seemingly tells a successful joke; the others clap him on the back and laugh loudly. Seamus frowns, wishing that he was closer and that he spoke the orc language so that he could've heard the humor.

There's a few others a couple dozen feet away, sloppily clubbing a deer to death. Though they're missing the target about half the time, the job seems to be getting done. One of the deer's legs still twitches.

"Not to mention orcs are one of the most brutal races in the game. Well, what do you guys want to do now? Orianna was gonna explore here for a sidequest, but the orcs will definitely attack on sight. Are we all still up for a fight?" Adam says, looking around at each of his friends for input. He glances back at the monsters, stiffening as they take notice of a fawn wandering a little too close. The baby deer lets out a loud cry, seemingly searching for its mother. One orc breaks away from the other three and stumbles towards it, club in hand.

What was once a clear, blue sky suddenly darkens, numerous rain clouds forming over the Spire within a sixty foot radius. Lightening strikes down hard on the orc heading for the baby deer, vaporizing him where he once stood. The frightened fawn scampers away to a hopefully safer spot.

The group members look around at each other in amazement and bewilderment, just in time to catch Sage closing her spellbook through her character menu screen. She shrugs. "I vote they still die."

One creature cries out something in Orc, a language that only Kohl can comprehend, and tries to move towards his dead companion's disappearing body. The others look up at the rainclouds in utter confusion until it finally dawns on them that they're under attack. Now wielding their weapons, the monsters start scanning the treeline for spellcasters. Every member of the party receives a notification that combat has been initiated, and the background music changes once again to something more dramatic and dynamic.

"Come out, coward!" The aforementioned orc shouts in Common, the language almost every creature can understand. He appears to sway as he stands up from where his friend once was, and makes a hiccup-type sound before he speaks again. "I kill you now!"

"Gruumsh! Gruumsh! Gruumsh!" The remaining orcs thrust their maces, clubs, and swords into the air, continuing their chant. Sometimes the word comes across clearly, but most of the time it's the sound-equivalent of a pile of mush. Even Kohl has to listen for a minute to figure out the orcs aren't shouting gibberish.

"What the hell are they saying?" Seamus says, his confusion mirrored in the faces of his friends.

"It's a battle chant, Gruumsh is the orcs' god. Super evil dude. Anyway, they seem down to fight, so I say we give the monster people what they want, am I right?" Kohl winks at Seamus as she releases an arrow from her bow, nailing an orc straight through an eye. Blackish blood and white goo bubbles out of the socket, but the monster stays standing until Orianna's 'Magic Missile' finishes it off. Adam gives the wizard a high five.