Read Part 4 here!

Vorgen lay flat in the wet grass at the top of a small hill and studied the guards at the entrance of the valley. They were much stronger and more formidable looking than anything he had yet encountered, both on his journey and in the war. The four men stood in pairs at attention in shining armor and ceremonial helmets. There was nothing ceremonial about their weapons though. Each man held a long spear in hand that gleamed in the early morning sun. The valley they guarded was rather narrow with jagged gray granite edges running up the sides. Grass grew in great sweeping waves all over, and in the morning light the place looked less like an area for a tomb and more like a scene for a country picnic.

“Rush them quickly and you can catch them by surprise. Kill them all before they can raise an alarm.”

Vorgen hesitated. The wounds from the gnome had only recently healed and the encounter had left him shaken. He did not relish the idea of now fighting such dangerous looking foes.

“What are you waiting for? Charge down there on your horse and kill them. They stand in the way of the sword!”

“Maybe, maybe I could find a different way in, maybe a way where I don’t have to fight so many guards?” Even in his mind the thought sounded pitiful and cowardly. Well so what? It was him who was risking his life; Zakroth was safe inside the helmet. Or was he?

“Say, what happens to you if something happens to the helmet?”

“I do not feel pain, if that is what you are asking, though I do sense when the helmet is damaged in some way. If you are asking whether destroying the helmet will destroy me, I must admit I do not entirely know. It is not an idea I have had a chance to experiment with and one I would prefer to leave unknown.”

“Yea, okay, I guess that makes sense.” Vorgen wasn’t sure he understood but he agreed anyway to avoid Zakroth reprimanding him and calling him stupid again.

Vorgen crawled backwards down the hill until he could stand without fear of being spotted. He climbed into the saddle of his waiting horse and then took off in a wide circle to come at the valley from the side. He made sure to keep hills between him and the four guards at the gate and endured the criticisms of Zakroth the entire way.

“Shut it already! I know what I’m doing.” For once, Zakroth went silent.

Vorgen dismounted a short distance from the edge of the cliff that formed the valley. He unsaddled his horse, removed the bit and the reins and left the horse completely unencumbered. Sitting in the grass while his horse idly grazed nearby, Vorgen dismantled all of his riding gear in to as many long strips as he could before tying them all together into a useable, if poorly constructed, climbing rope. He even made a bit of a harness to sit in using a few random left over bits and buckles.

“What’s the harness for? You’ve got arm strength a plenty to make the climb.”

“Even the best climber takes precautions, especially when climbing in an unfamiliar area. Trust me, I’m the athlete, remember?”

Zakroth said nothing more as Vorgen moved towards the edge of the cliff. Having securely anchored one end of his rope to cliff top, Vorgen gave a quick look to the four guards. He was behind them now and felt confident he could sneak past completely undetected. Easing himself over the edge of the cliff, Vorgen gave a small sigh of relief as the anchor held his weight. Vorgen did not think the fall would kill him, but it would certainly cripple his legs and make him the easiest target the four guards had ever faced.

Vorgen made the climb easily, having only to endure the feeling of the makeshift harness riding up in uncomfortable ways during the descent. Reaching the valley floor, Vorgen removed the harness and made his way farther down the valley and away from the imposing guards.

“Well, I suppose that will do. I’m glad you are starting to learn not everything can just be smashed. I still think you should have killed them all. You need the practice.”

“I need to practice fighting, not killing. I want to be a great warrior, not a blood thirsty killer.”

“Still upset over those poor cubs you killed? Oh how foolish the young are. You want to be a great hero? A champion of the people? Of what people? Your people? Because I promise you that the people of your opponents will view you as an evil killer when you defeat their champions. It is the way of the world. You still think that there are good guys and bad guys in this world, as if it is okay to kill some but not others? Grow up Vorgen. Morality is all about perception. Which side of the sword are you on? The victor holding the blade or those crying out that life is unfair and they are being tormented by evil conquerors. You think the children of those gnomes you killed will sing your praises because you protected those cubs? You told me you wanted to be powerful, I will make you powerful.”

Vorgen felt his chest tightening at Zakroth’s words. “Shut up! I don’t need this from you now.” What Zakroth said made him a monster, a killer. It took away the glory of being a great fighter. It wasn’t right. But it was true.

“If you are done with your pity party, there is killing to be done.”

Vorgen had not been paying attention to where his feet had taken him. The valley curved to the right slightly and there built into the wall was a large metal door with a metal bar across the front. In front of the door stood two more of the honor guard, spears at the ready.

“Please tell me that you will kill these ones.”

Vorgen sighed yet again as he drew his sword.

The guards looked up in mild surprise at the bellowing warrior charging down the valley at them. The two guards lowered their spears as Vorgen closed the gap, his sword held high in one hand. In the last few feet, Vorgen launched a hidden rock from his hand, smashing into the face of one guard. Vorgen batted aside the other guard’s spear and quickly moved inside his reach. Vorgen delivered a vicious head butt and shattered the man’s nose. As he staggered backwards, Vorgen turned and opened the belly of the man behind him who was just recovering from the rock. With a quick spin Vorgen kicked the knee of the still living guard, instantly crippling him. The man went down with a cry of pain before Vorgen put his sword through the man’s eye. The other guard was screaming in agony and trying desperately to keep his insides inside. He was not doing a good job. Vorgen ended the man’s pain swiftly.

“Well done, except that stupid battle cry certainly alerted the other guards at the start of the valley. I don’t know if you noticed, but sound tends to echo in this place.”

Even as Zakroth spoke, Vorgen could hear the sounds of the other men running and calling out.

Vorgen turned back towards the door. It was heavily decorated and featured numerous scenes of warriors fighting each other and monsters and other performing other heroic deeds. Vorgen put his shoulder against the heavy bar and began to lift and then stopped.

“Wait a minute. Zakroth, why would they lock the door from this side? What kind of tomb is this?”

“I don’t think we have time for questions Vorgen. Those guards are coming. Open the door and get inside now!”

What will Vorgen do?

Written by: Garrett