An Adventurer's Story Ch. 01

"That's more like it." Sia says eyeing the long swords.

A low growl rumbles from the tunnel they entered from and the three follower hobgoblins charge Sia. The first to reach her chops down at her with its short sword, she sidesteps the attack. The next with a long sword swings across the middle of her, she is barely able to jump back and avoid this attack. The third stabs at her and misses her wildly, he also leaves himself open as he stumbles forward.

Sia hits his sword arm down and then punches him in the face. As he is reeling from the attack, she tears the weapon away from him and slashes him across the throat. He grabs his throat and falls off to the side. Sia turns to the wielder of the long sword next. She slashes him across the chest before taking both hands and driving the short sword to the hilt through its chest. She pushes him away from her with the sword and grabs his long sword. He stumbles backward and falls to the ground dead with the short sword sticking out of his chest. The creatures seem to be stunned by the brutality of her attacks. In their moment of hesitation Sia walks over and grabs the short sword from the corps and walks menacingly toward the closest hobgoblin. He attacks down on her. She blocks the attack with the short sword and stabs him clean through his chest with the long sword. He doesn't die fast enough for her, so she slashes him across the face with the short sword. She kicks the corps off her weapon and turns to the remaining hobgoblin.

His nerve is gone, he stares at Sia weighing his options. He doesn't get long to think about it as a large ogre breaks the tunnel entrance and smashes down a large steel mace, narrowly missing the hobgoblin. He grunts in displeasure and with great strength the ogre quickly smashes the hobgoblin in the chest and sends him flying into the wall, leaving his long sword lying at the ogre's feet. Bones are heard breaking when he hits, he lets out a deep breath and falls to the floor dead.

"Why are you here?" The ogre grumbles.

"I was exploring a cave and ended up down here." Sia replies, long sword in her right hand and short sword in her left. "You seem to be the smartest thing I have encountered down here. Why are you here?"

"To stop you and take you back to Delnerv." He answers. "Surrender and put down your weapons."

"That is not going to happen." Sia informs him gripping her weapons tightly.

"Good!" The ogre laughs.

"Good indeed." Sia smiles.

The ogre raises his mace to attack, but before he can Sia slashes his right leg deep with her short sword. She follows that up with a stab from her long sword which goes into his stomach on the left side. Then follows that with an upward slash with the short sword cutting deep up and across his stomach and chest. The injuries from the attacks are damaging and the ogre is slowed and stunned in pain. Sia sees he is going to fall but attempts to attack her anyway. She drops her weapons and as he swings at her from her left side, she catches the mace at the handle just above his hand and pulls it away from him. In his weakened state he stumbles forward to one knee. Sia gets a good grip on the mace and with both hands she swings the weapon around and bashes him in the face and throws him back and flat to the ground, head caved in.

Sia has always had amazing strength and is yet to find an enemy that could match her. She is slightly stronger than any normal ogre and would be a match for some smaller giants.

Sia checks the corps for useful items and finds little of worth. Everything in total, she finds the four swords, two long and two short, the ogre mace, and some coins. There is twelve copper, three silver and three gold altogether. As Sia examines the mace she is impressed how well it is made and feels in her hands, but she is not fond of two-handed weapons. She keeps it for now just in case it becomes useful. Lucky for Sia the swords also have sheaths for them. She puts the two long swords on her belt, one at each side and the short swords in her bag with the bottles of healing water and a small pouch with the coins. The mace she carries along with her torch as she presses on down the new tunnel.

She goes for a short distance before she starts to hear more noises. They sound like yells and cheers echoing through the tunnel, she continues cautiously. Putting out the torch and being as stealthily as she can she proceeds toward the light at the end of the tunnel. As she peers into the large chamber, she sees a small army of creatures, the bulk being goblins and hobgoblins, but there are several ogres as well. The captains and chiefs of each species are very evident. There are about twenty goblins, fifteen hobgoblins, and ten ogres.

The chamber is massive, a fifty-yard cube, with a large opening at far end of the room to Sia's left. The tunnel is fifteen foot tall and the same wide. There is a tunnel on the opposite side of the room that matches the tunnel she is in. There is a platform against the wall across the room from her but toward the far wall. It is raised up ten feet and stretches half the length of the room. It is twenty-foot-wide and there is a metal door, human sized, at the far end away from Sia which faces the room from the platform wall. The entire chamber is illuminated by points of white light spaced around the ceiling.

As Sia contemplates her next move the metal door opens and a human man walks out. He is dressed in mage garb and fits the description of a stereotypical wizard, minus the long white beard and pointy hat. The crowd goes quiet when he walks across the platform and looks out over them.

"Well, where is she?" He calmly says and then yells. "Where is our unwelcome guest?!" The crowd goes restless as they look at one another. "Grubak, come up here." He says looking down to an ogre chief, the ogre obeys. "Where is she Grubak?"

"Not here." The ogre replies.

"Not here." The wizard mimics. "Where is Dertis?"

The ogre grunts and then replies. "Not here."

"Not here either." The wizard replies. " So, I gave you an order and it was not carried out and you're still here." The wizard walks around to the back of the ogre. In a bright flash and loud crack of thunder the ogre launches off the platform and lands in the crowd. "Why is she not here?!" The wizard yells, no one can hear due to deafness from the lightning bolt. After a short time, the ogre starts to stir and the crowd around him looks back and forth between him and the wizard. "He has failed me. Kill him."

The crowd roars and swarms in on him, weapons slashing and stabbing him to death. The wizard looks to the opening at end of the room and gestures to the four hobgoblins standing guard. They quickly disappear as a loud growl escapes the tunnel. The chamber rumbles as if being struck by something a few times. Then the hobgoblins return pulling on chains and struggling to move deeper into the main chamber. A large twenty-foot cyclops emerges hunched over until he clears the entrance. When he stands, he lifts three of the hobgoblins off the ground. The cyclops starts to get riled up before seeing the wizard, then calms himself.

"Trython, take most of this force and kill her. Don't come back without her corps." The wizard commands, one ogre raises his long sword high and growls out a roar. "A few of you will stay behind along with the cyclops just in case. I want all the ogres, except you Trython, to remain behind, take the rest and do not fail me."

Sia's heart begins to race, this is going to be a viscous long battle. The wizard turns around and goes back to his chambers while the ogre grunts out a moral boosting speech for the battle. Sia pays little attention as she plans an attack. In the absence of the wizard the cyclops becomes restless but is still under the control of the hobgoblins. Sia leaves her mace and bag of items behind and starts to maneuver toward the chamber. One goblin gets over motivated and throws his axe at the cyclops. This immediately breaks out into a battle. The cyclops bashes several goblins and a couple hobgoblins before he is overwhelmed by the poison on the goblin arrows. His massive body falls partially blocking the tunnel's access. They will need to move him to get through quickly. As the crowd tries to pull and turn the dead weighted cyclops Sia sneaks back to her bag and takes a bottle of healing water, she drinks a few gulps and carries the rest in the room.

"I don't know if you're going to help me or try to kill me, but let's see what you can do." Sia whispers as she pours the remainder of the bottle of healing water on the cyclops' arm. She quickly tries to get back into hiding, but unknown to her she has been spotted.

Several goblins and hobgoblins climb up on top of the cyclops and start moving toward Sia's position. The ogres as well as the rest of the crowd begin moving around the cyclops. Just as Sia notices them from all directions in front of her, the cyclops springs to life. With a wide swipe of his hand he knocks most of the creatures that are walking on him off. With quick movements to stand the rest fall off. The focus of the crowd is off Sia and back onto the soon to be rampaging cyclops, which no longer has four handlers to steady him. Sia draws her two long swords and pushes into the room fighting anything that gets close.

She kills a few goblins and hobgoblins before the first ogre approaches her. The cyclops is laying waste to large numbers of goblins and hobgoblins, but the ogres have begun to slow his destruction. Sia fells the ogre and continues her push toward the platform with the end goal of the wizard's chambers. When she reaches the top of the platform, she sees the ogres are getting the upper hand on the cyclops. She grabs a short sword from a fallen foe and throws it at one of the ogres. The blade hits and sinks into its side, it staggers and falls dead. The other ogres turn their attention to Sia and that is all it takes for the cyclops to bash one with a heavy hand and grab another and throw it at Sia, narrowly missing her and hitting against the wall. When they turn back, the tide has again changed. Sia continues her way toward the steel door when two ogres climb up on the platform in front of her and another one comes up the stairs behind her.

Inside the wizard's chamber a battle is raging as well. The wizard and his chained captive are in a heated discussion. The wizard stands beside his bed and looks toward his female prisoner.

"Leanndra I am getting to the end of my patience with you!" He says sternly. "You can either join me willingly or I will find someone else. Maybe perhaps your friend who owns that shop. She seemed interested in me last time I was there."

"Fine! Find someone else and let me go you..." she snaps back.

"Careful what you ask for. If I let you go out there with those creatures what kind of a life is that for a beautiful woman like you?" He replies. "In my opinion death would be a better option then being there play thing."

Leanndra realizes she is running out of time. She has been able to stall him and remain a prisoner for near a week, but now it is coming to an end. I will make either him or those creatures kill me, she thinks to herself, I will not be a...

A thud interrupts her thought as a strong force impacts the steel door from outside the room. The impact nearly opened the door and it is barely held closed now.

"What is going on out there?!" The wizard yells as he makes his way toward the door. The sounds of the battle outside his room are not audible from inside.

As he reaches for the handle of the door, again a strong force smashes the door and it flies open. The opening door hits him and throws him backward into the room near the edge of his bed. Sia rushes in quickly and stands looking at the wizard lying on the floor leaned against the bed. With a smirk she looks around the room.

The room is about thirty-foot-long and twenty foot wide. The bed is large and has high quality linens on it. There is a small table next to the bed that has a small leather pouch on it as well an item radiating light. Against the far end of the room there is a basin with a fountain of water flowing into it. The water falls only about a foot and has a nice soothing sound to it. On the opposite side of the bed there is a large box, heavy and durable. Along the walls in various places there are books shelves or book cases holding all varieties of books. The whole surveying of the room takes but a short moment. When she looks behind her she sees Leanndra.

Leanndra is a human woman about Sia's age. Her clothes as well as her person are dirty and worn. The attire she is dressed in is ratty and barely covers her private parts. She has below her shoulder length brown hair and blue eyes. Her body is attractive even though she is dirty and malnourished. She wears no shoes and has an ankle shackle on her right foot chained to the wall.

Sia's smirk immediately goes away and she is evidently angry. When she turns back to the wizard he is starting to stand. Sia only takes one step toward him before Leanndra screams in fear. Sia looks back to see her looking at the door and trying to back away. The cyclops has his hand holding the edge of the door and he is peering in. Sia quickly rushes the door and slams it on the creature's hand. It howls in pain and withdraws its broken hand from the door. Sia closes and latches the door. When she turns her focus back to the wizard he is dropping a bottle, Sia can only assume it is healing water he has drank.

"Who are you and why are you hear?" The wizard asks Sia.

"I don't answer to you." She replies.

Sia raises her weapons, two long swords, and the wizard begins chanting a spell. He finishes the spell before Sia gets close enough to attack. She swings her sword across his chest with her right hand. The force of the attack knocks the wizard backward, but it does not cut him.

The blade bounces off him as do her next two attacks. As Sia contemplates her next move he casts another spell. As well as the lightning bolt he used worked against the ogre in making a point and showing power the thunder clap hurt his ears and caused disorientation to himself. This room is much smaller, and the effects would be intensified. He opts for a different approach while not wanting to kill his captive, yet. Eight balls of fire appear above his hands, these six-inch spheres are bright orange and swirl within themselves of fire. He waves his left hand toward Sia and four of the fiery meteors fly quickly at her. She shields her face as the spheres hit her body in various places, he launches the remaining four at her as well. Suffering no effects from the first volley she lets her guard down and the meteors hit her again doing nothing.

She charges him and unleashes three more hard viscous slashes with her swords, but they too bounce off. The frail form of this mage is tossed about with every hit.

He manages to get off another spell as his left hand begins coursing with electricity. The charge built up leads her to believe this is no low-level spell. With a wicked smile he lunges at her and attempts to grab her.

Sia easily side steps the attack and hits him three more times with her swords. In his flailing around he manages to grab Sia's arm. The discharge of electric surges through Sia and she tenses up her whole body uncontrollably before falling to her knees, dropping her weapons off to the side of her.

The wizard laughs for only a quick second before Sia lunges at him and tackles him to the ground. She begins punching him in the face quickly. The first hit from her right hand throws his head to the side, but still no blood. The next hit seems to break the spell along with his nose as her fist sinks into his face. The next hit breaks his jaw, yet another does structural damage and cracks his skull from the stone floor below. As Sia prepares to hit him again he dies beneath her.

Sia releases a deep sigh and then stands up and faces the prisoner. "Are you ok?" She asks.

"I will be once you free me and I get out of here." Leanndra replies. "The key to the shackle is in his robe."

Sia turns back around to the wizard's corpse and kneels beside him and starts searching his pockets. There are four pockets inside the robe, the first pocket she checks has a key, from the other three she finds a pouch of coins, some gems and a dagger, which Sia can tell is magical, she puts the dagger in her right boot. She doesn't move quick enough and Leanndra chimes out.

"Free me!" She yells. "You can look at his stuff later."

Sia stands up and approaches her. She kneels and tries to unlock the shackle. She can see bruises on her ankle where she was straining against the metal. Sia is hurt by the woman's suffering. As she slowly fumbled with the shackle again Leanndra speaks.

"What are you doing?" She scolds.

"I am having trouble..." Sia starts to explain but as she looks up she can see the sorry state the woman is in, hungry, scared, injured, and tired. Leanndra takes the expression on Sia's face and the lack of words the wrong way.

"Are you going to free me, or have I traded one monster for another?" Leanndra scowls down at her.

The word monster has taken a different meaning to Sia today. When it was used by the town's folk before they attacked her it changed. They called her a monster, yet they were the ones lying and treating her badly. They called her a monster, yet they wanted to kill her for no reason. Their words begin replaying in her head. Their yells and insults, their angry faces and waving weapons. Sia's anger begins to build and she sees that same look they had on Leanndra's face. I am here helping her, and she calls me a monster, comparing me to the wizard, or that cyclops. Before Leanndra can speak again Sia stands up quickly.

"You call me a monster!" Sia blasts back. "How do you judge a monster, by its heart?" She points to the wizard. "Or by its form?" She points to the door with all the other creatures behind it. Leanndra has no answer and Sia tosses her the key. "I am sorry. I imagine you have been through a lot. Remove the shackle and wait for me here while I clear the way."

Leanndra stands quietly while Sia picks up her swords and opens the door. Looking out Sia sees the cyclops milling around in the middle of the room, no other movement is detected. She readies her weapons and slowly exits the door closing it behind her.

The cyclops seems to turn irate and runs toward the opening in the chamber that Sia has not been down yet. He also has a large steel mace in his hand, Sia wonders where that came from. As he nears the cave entrance he bashes the wall above the opening. The debris from the wall begins to fall partially blocking the opening. Sia yells and rushes the cyclops trying to stop him before he seals her in, but with his growls, the noise of the mace and stone collisions, and the stone crashing to the stone floor he doesn't hear her. She finally gets his attention, by three slashes of her long swords across his legs, but it is too late. The remaining few openings are covered by chunks of stone falling in place. The injuries sustained by the ogres and others in addition to Sia's last attacks cause the cyclops to stagger and fall to his knees. With its last remaining strength, it slowly raises the mace with its right hand allowing Sia an opening to drive both her swords into his chest. He drops the mace, Sia withdraws her swords and he falls dead to the side.

Sia accesses the situation and not wanting to go back in the room with Leanndra so soon she decides to search the chamber for anything useful. She doesn't search all bodies. She looks for things that stand out. After a short time, she acquires several swords in good condition, six long and three short swords, but not much else save a few empty leather pouches, two small and one medium. She goes down the cave she entered the chamber from and gets her bag, torch, and the two-handed mace, then returns to Leanndra, leaving her things outside the door. When Sia enters the room Leanndra is still shackled to the wall and is standing there looking back at her.