A Collection of Stories

In Search of Alaagust

"Dedicated to A.C. SUTLIFF who inspired this short piece. Thank you, A.C.!"

The two men landed with a powerful thud, raising an unnatural cloud of dust. The last of the trio alighted as though on the air itself.

"Show off," the big one said under his breath.

"I heard that," she said, giving him a shove as she passed. She stopped on the cliff's edge, which spilled into an ugly canyon whose bottom was black as pitch; she shut her eyes, focusing on the surrounding sounds. "What can you see?" she asked her other companion

He stepped forward and penetrated the lofty stone walls of the cavern with glowing white eyes.

It didn't look good. The place swarmed with rougestags, a bloodthirsty race of infernal beings that was as hideous as they smelt. He scanned the hidden passages that intertwined within the cavern, one of which led to the captain, who was a prisoner somewhere within the foul place. Getting out was likely to be tricky-unless they stuck to the plan, which was unlikely, considering whom he had to work with.

He retracted his vision, blinking his eyes twice to readjust to his current surroundings. He looked over at Tretis, whose statue-like poise and detached expression told him she was elsewhere. She wouldn't be a problem to the plan, he was sure. The captain, he knew, trusted her clear thinking and diligence more than anyone-Brawzno, on the other hand, was hot headed and unpredictable.

"What's the holdup, chief? We know the plan: get in, get Cap and get out, then boom! -mission accomplished."

He shot the giant a sceptical glance, not at all surprised to see him flexing his biceps before dropping to do a couple of single hand push-ups. 'The idiot' as he often called him in his head, flashed him a white, debonair grin.

"You should get a couple of these in before the action starts, though, Udri."

His eye twitched at the pet name. He had hated it, but Brawzno made it his sole mission to have the name stick-the captain too began using it in an off-handed way that made him flush, all thanks to the fool of a giant.

"I've told you not to call me that," he said with a levelled look, though his blood was on the verge of boiling. "It is Udrian."

"Oh, yeah, right... but what's the difference?" Brawzno replied, pushing himself to his feet and letting out a lazy yawn while stretching his arms above his head. "I like Udri better. It's kinda cute, ya know."

Udrian clenched his perfect jaw and flushed crimson. Tretis' delicate smirk didn't go unnoticed either, and that further annoyed him.

"Brawzno," she said, facing them with a most composed expression, "what can you smell?"

The giant scoffed while stretching his side. "What do I look like? Your dog?"

Udrian closed his eyes as an imperceptible smile tugged at Tretis' lips.

"Well, you are the one with an unusually heightened sense of smell, so... shall I grace your question with an answer?"

Udrian's katana-like blade flashed in a blink of an eye as he put a divider between Tretis and the big guy who was ready to take her on.

"Focus. We have no time for this," his levelled tone could have fooled anyone, but the cold sharpness of his eyes meant business. The giant grunted before turning his back on them. He sniffed the air once and just as Tretis was about to speak, his whole body tensed and froze. Udrian refocused his penetrating vision just as a thick goo-like blob whizzed past his face with a gut-wrenching stench about it.

"Stags spit! Don't let it touch you!" but his voice was lost to the sudden crash of a rolling stone from above. He sprang to a nearby crevice just as the boulder crashed into the ground, shaking the foundation to the core. The deafeningly wild screeching of the roguestags cut through the air. Udrian scanned his surroundings and estimated about a hundred to be upon them in less than five minutes.

"Udrian!" Brawzno's hefty figure was some leagues away. Udrian rushed to his side. The giant struggled to raise a boulder that had pinned Tretis to ground. She let out an agonized groan when he shifted its position only slightly.

"It's no use, Brawzno," she said through clenched teeth. "You two must go on without me. Those filths will swarm this place before I'm up."

Udrian, with his weapon raised, knew she was right. The unmistakable smell of roguestags was a clear indication of their impending doom. He spotted a nearby cave which could possibly serve as a safe place for Tretis to lie in cover, but time was against them.

"Get that boulder off of her, and on my command, run for that cave," he said, indicating it. Tretis' eyes, despite the paleness of her face, were ablaze.

"Don't be a fool, Udrian! Brawzno, go! Leave me!" But the giant was unwavering and roared as he pushed at the great stone with all his strength. Udrian sped away into the throng of smelly beings that charged at his friends from all directions. His blade flashed mercilessly as it decapitated heads and glided smoothly through the little hairy bodies that encircled him. His agile frame flipped and glided out of the way of the odorous spit balls they aimed at him. For a time, he kept an open area around his friends, but the tables soon turned as the wrathful creatures' screech summoned reinforcements. He glanced over his shoulder in time to see Brawzno's powerful body alter as he pushed at the stubborn boulder. But more alarming was Tretis, whose long silver braid crawled and lengthened along the ground like roots. The movement of her fingers and lips and the empty look in her eyes sent a chill through him.

"Tretis, no!" The ground shook beneath him and he quickly stabbed his sword into the ground to keep himself balanced. An ungodly rumble came from below and in a split second, the ground tore apart, swallowing screaming roguestags all around. Udrian got to his feet, and dodging the trailing cracks beneath him, he rushed at Brawzno with unthinkable speed and force that they both flew several yards and landed at the very mouth of the cave.

The giant clambered to his feet, ready to rush back out.

"No!" Udrian held him back. Tretis, her whole body rooting into the ground, gave them one last friendly look.

"Go."

With another deafening roar, the ground beneath her caved in and after a moment, there was nothing but a cursed silence lingering in the air...