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Party of Four

Aranis’s addition to the group was a well-needed moral compass to prevent their travel to slowly go down a darker path. For Jek, it was inevitable, given how there were two notorious and ruthless bounty hunters taking care of an unstable rat kid who would get ‘triggered’ by imagery of slavery and ended up killing the slavers and burn down the rest of them while refusing to help the slaves in need. This incident, unfortunately, was seen by Aranis, who was surprised by how ruthless Narati was, despite of his apparent politeness around the elf. When he found out that Aranis was keeping tabs on who he killed and his problems, Narati broke down in tears, saying that he couldn’t help it, knowing that it was wrong to deprive someone of their freedom.

One night, while Narati was sleeping, Aranis took a drink and some of her Elven Bread out. Jek was beside her, savoring some meat from their hunt (with the help of the wood elf). They began to talk about Narati and their previous travel, but it slowly becoming Aranis berating Jek for his bad ‘parenting’ who let Narati did what he want and let him kill without remorse.

“Hey, I can’t help it. It’s how things work around here,” said Jek.

“I know how things work around here, Jek, and you know if Narati loses control, you’ll be the one to blame.”

“Alright, alright. I know. But what are you trying to make him? He’s not a lost child. He has known danger and pain before meeting the two of us.”

“Yes he is, but he’s going the wrong way. You assume that he will learn himself, but you know he’s…different from you. You’re not a psychotic, destructive rat who had a twisted sense of justice, right?”

“No, but…”

“So help him overcome that before it gets worse. Let me help you with that if you can’t. I know many things about kids like him.”

Jek scoffed. “Sorry to offend you, but those kids back there don’t seem to try to light up a house and watch it burn, right?”

“Do you forget that I’m 500 years old?” replied Aranis with a smile. This made Jek speechless. He thought that his sarcastic remark would at least annoy Aranis and let him be for the night, but instead, he lost that night. It’s a dick move to say her age. It’s clear that she had years of expertise.

Aranis, despite of her perceived pacifism, did not care if the group took bounties. As she promised, she could defend and even fight back with bow and arrow salvaged from some ruins. She was proficient with it (presumably due to years of training and travelling), and she was also a good healer, which saved them muns in buying medical supplies in settlements and travelling merchants. There was this one incident where some humans, thinking that Aranis looked like an innocent elf, tried to seduce her. Jek and Raine, who was nearby, was ready to threaten them to leave, but Aranis convinced them to leave after one of them was taunted to attack her, during which she just threw him away like someone throwing a sandbag. While Narati was surprised, Jek and Raine did not seem to that as something special, though they were glad that Aranis’s skill wasn’t just healing.

But, with her in the group, the rest of the team could not get into a bar in other towns, being persuaded to accompany Narati. Despite of their reason of trying to find new jobs, Aranis forbade it. Her priority was for Narati’s care, and none other.

It wasn’t all that silent in the camp. Despite of the silence of their surroundings, Aranis soothed their souls with her musical instrument she called ‘Shega’, which looked like a flute, but sounded mystical and seemed old. Narati seemed entranced by Aranis’s playing, as if he was hypnotized by it. After her performance finished, Narati was confused as to why he felt so…light and happy.

“It may sound like I’m playing the Shega normally,” said Aranis. “But every note and tone is a story of its own. Shega cannot be played without constant magic flow.”

“Hey, I practiced magic, too,” said Raine when he heard that explanation. “Do you mind if I try?”

Aranis smiled. “I don’t,” she said. She handed the instrument to Raine, who concentrated and flow his magic through instrument. But, the moment he tried to blow it, it made out a high-pitched noise, which surprised and shock the rest of the group.

“Magic overflow is a common mistake for first-timers,” said Aranis while Raine returned the Shega back to her. “If you’re interested, I can teach you how to.”

“Is that how you conserve mana when dealing with your magic?” asked Raine.

“Control is key, Raine. I can see that you’ve achieved a degree of control on your enhancement magic, but then, like I said, you use up too much mana. I’ll be glad to teach you, both in playing Shega and your control in magic.”

Raine felt so embarrassed by how Aranis, an elf with hundreds of years of experience, talked to him slowly like a mother teaching her son how to walk. For someone who is half a millennium old, Aranis looked so young, but felt like a mother.

But despite of the wisdom of an old lady, Aranis still had her youth in her, in complement of her body. She was excited to know many things if they were not too disgusting or too weird for her. Unlike some elves that Raine had met in his journey, Aranis felt more like a child than a noble. It wasn’t surprising, given that she was a wood elf hunter. She was eager to take on jobs, but not the point of endangering everyone. She tried her best to support the group.

Then, three months had passed since their first meeting. They had grown close to each other, and were ready for another adventure.

***

Narati woke up inside his own tent, feeling somewhat refreshed and ready to take on the challenges that would come. He stared at the fading yellow roof, thinking of his adventure had taken a lighter, less traumatic direction since meeting with Aranis. But even if the elf gave them a more optimistic approach on the world that had been destroyed, he felt that the people who had changed him the most were Jek and Raine, the first people who trusted a Fa’ar and let him be a better rat person than he was. Gone was the time when he hid in battle and fought by throwing explosives. He became more of a risk-taker, often using his smaller body and physiology to run fast enough near his enemies. He could now easily deploy traps ever since he learned how to deploy them.

As he looked out at the bright morning, he felt something on his left hand. He then saw a maroon-colored shirt and pants made from old fabric. From here he realized what changed in his adventure. On the insistence of Aranis, Narati salvaged some clothes of his size, and changed his more tribal-natured clothing of a simple cloth wrapped around his loins to something more civilized. Aranis then modified it to be able to fit on Narati’s body, with the most important part being a hole for his long, worm-like tail.

Being called a ‘worm-tail’ was also a past he had almost forgot. Jek never said that term anymore, but he knew others who did not follow the group would. It had been half a year since meeting with Jek and Raine, and a month since meeting with Aranis. Things had change a lot.

He got out of his tent to be greeted with an herbal scent that made him curious. He saw Aranis cooking something in the pot, with meat and wild potatoes taken from their hunt before. Upon getting out and seeing his spear sitting nicely near his tent, he reviewed the things they were doing.

The four of them took a job that involved going to the top of an inactive volcano and get some herbs that could only be found there. Due to the danger involved in that time of the season, the herbalist giving them the job was not able to travel to the evergreen cave inside the volcano. It was the only place the herb could grow, sustained by an everlasting magic field that keep the place like it was before the war started. Aranis recognized the type of the magic, and it was like her brand of magic, except more refined and was obviously sustained by a crystal fueled with magic.

The elf noticed Narati near his tent. She then said, “If you’re asking where Jek and Raine is, they’ve already gone hunting.”

“When did they wake up?” asked Narati while yawning.

“When the sun first rose. You missed the sunrise, Nara.”

“That’s a shame…why didn’t anyone wake me?”

“Jek thought that you’re still a kid, so you need more sleep,” said Aranis with a gleeful smile.

Narati smiled back while feeling a little bit annoyed by the fact that Jek kept treating him like a child. Sure, he was still 15 and was not ready for a dangerous travel, but he was different than most 15 years old! But he knew why Jek thought about that. Bad first impression had a lasting effect. It felt like ages for Narati since that first encounter, where he threatened the young Fa’ar and his mistrust. How time flies, Narati thought.

The breakfast Aranis made was always something that could make someone felt energized. She had an extensive knowledge of herbs that was good for medicine and for food. She was also the one who would determine if the wild berries around a surviving forest would be edible or not. It had been long since the group had Elven Bread, which would keep them energized and full for two days, provided if there was no hard activity. Narati liked to ask about it, and she happily provided it.

“I’ve found some Valley Gingers in the forest we passed,” said Aranis. “I’ve never seen such uncontaminated plant around here, so I took it and tried it on this stew. Mother’s recipe always work the best.”

“So are you saying this is an elven food?” asked Narati.

“An elf can claim so in this time and age, right?” replied Aranis. “No one would object if an elf tells them. That’s what my view of how it works now.”

After a while, Jek and Raine returned. Both had undergone changes in appearance in their time together. Raine let his hair grew long and he started to grow beard with the same color as his hair. He was also more well-equipped with guns and swords instead of just a dagger. He looked like a middle-aged man despite of being a 30 years old human.

Jek, while virtually the same, had more of a personality change than appearance. He was no longer as grumpy as he was before, and he had toned down his sarcastic remarks. Apparently travelling with friends that he trusted changed him. He also became a playful jerk towards Narati, which Aranis commented how an older brother treated his younger brother. It wasn’t something bad, and it seemed to only make Narati and Jek closer.

It was a fine weather to start the day, and to resume their ascent to the preserved cave. They did not bother break camp, knowing very well that from their position towards the cave took half the day, and returning took another half. The four then walked up, climbing the steep path and each helped each other to get to the top. Narati’s tail, being the only one of the four that could wrap onto something, made him a very good climber (to be fair, this is a fictional story. I’ve not known a rat climbing with this method).

After the tiring hike, they resumed their journey. They liked to talk about things while being aware of their surroundings. They had become friends and learn to trust each other. Raine’s idea of forming a mercenary group, or at least an adventurer guild, still stood by. Aranis had no objection on that idea, but then, after all the talks about hiring people and convincing people that they were legitimate, they still need a name for it.

“How about ‘Roguish Bunch’?” said Raine proposing a name. “We seems to be roguish enough to stir trouble.”

“And you want to be the leader? It’s clear that it’s using your past reputation as one big advertisement,” said Jek. “I’d name it ‘Phoenix Fire’ or ‘Basilisk Gaze’ to make it sound cool.”

“Those are kinda…too fantastic in my opinion. I mean, we are not a mage guild, right? Hey, Nara. What do you think about the name?”

“Name? How about uh…Four Seasons?”

“Four Seasons is like a myth now, Nara,” said Aranis to the rat.

“Mythical sounds cool.”

“See?” said Jek. “Nara agrees with me.”

“But considering that we’re a group of mercenaries/adventurers, it doesn’t seem right. I’d like something simpler like the Travelers, the Wanderers, or the Fellowship. Those kinds of stuff,” said Aranis.

“You know, for a 500 years old elf, you don’t seem to have that much of an imagination.”

“Which is exactly the point. I’m ten times older than you lot. Those naming conventions are nothing but my past. And…we’ve arrived.”

The group could see the mouth of the cave. It was clearly brimming with magical energy (both Raine and Aranis could feel it), and it was apparent that the place was preserved. Surrounded by sand and rock, the cave was like a paradise for the people who had a long journey through the mountain. It was one of the rare uncontaminated nature they could still find nearby.

This, however, made Jek felt suspicious. He pulled out his rifle and tell the others to keep down.

“Hostiles? Raiders?” asked Raine.

“Something more dangerous. Narati, what can you smell?”

Narati smell the air and suddenly felt disgusted and gagging.

“I smell blood…and rotting flesh,” said Narati. “It’s not in the cave, but nearby. Something’s eating them.”

“This place has a guardian. Aranis, stay vigilant. We need your shield if something happens.”

Aranis nodded. Jek then also smell the same smell that came from nearby. It was dangerously close, but they could not find the owner of that smell or the corpse that’s emanating it. The Loup’s suspicions were that it was waiting behind the big rock on the right side of the cave mouth, or it was only a trap.

He quickly got the horrifying answer when the figure with the putrid smell came out from behind the rock. It was once a beast race, but in a decaying state, leaving the skull bare bones and most parts of its body rotting. From its mouth oozed out dark substances that quickly evaporated, as it struggled to walk. Its innards were black, like carbon. It was a uniquely horrifying living dead.

“W-what is that thing?” said Narati. “No one’s alive with that kind of damage!”

“Aether Zombie,” said Aranis. “That fellow’s body has been destroyed by Aether contamination, and is now a mindless zombie with feral tendencies.”

“Basically a living dead,” said Jek while cocking his gun, yet Aranis stopped him.

“That…thing…is different. You can’t just blast its head like necromancy-based zombies. This one’s a problem. I can help destroying it.”

“White magic?”

“Yes, but I need something exploding, like…”

Aranis turned towards Narati. “Narati, do you still have one of those magic grenades?”

“I…guess I have some that’s empty. Are you sure that’s how you want to use it? It comes out as a flashbang.”

“I know, but I want to try something different. I need you to throw the grenade near that zombie. You cannot rely on its explosion range. This magic is special.”

Narati wasn’t sure if that’s how he wanted to do it, but then, it was a problem for him. He assumed that the grenades he used would be big enough to have high area of explosions, but that means it could not be put inside a grenade launcher. What’s even worse, he had the worst aim with hand, and from the three of them Jek had the best throw, yet he never used high impact explosives in his strategy. It was simply not his style to use something with such intensity. He was a stealth-based person, not explosives expert.

But then the only one Narati trust who could throw it on point was Jek. His instinct as a sharpshooter helped him many times, and now, with newfound confidence Narati had, he managed to convince everyone on the group that his explosives were useful in tight situations, even if it was a little bit dangerous.

“If this fails, and we’re dead, I’m gonna strangle you in the afterlife,” said Jek while pulling the trigger. “If that’s real. If not, then fuck you.”

“Hey!”

Jek threw it near the zombie, which exploded upon impact. While it was effective enough to cause damage, it did not actually ‘kill’ the zombie, only flinging it away from them. It gave them a considerable time to get into the cave, away from the zombie. If there was another zombie attack, then the grenades would deal with them.

“I can’t believe something like that walks near our camp!” exclaimed Raine. “There’s not even any Aether around!”

“We’re simply on the other side of the mountain, and that’s our luck, and apparently, the gatherers,” said Aranis. “Can’t say the same for the one out there, though. I can’t believe the magic did not kill it.”

“Not everything’s going to work, you know,” said Jek. “But more importantly…where’s the herb?”

Something did not feel right when they came into the cave. It was cold, dark, and lifeless. The supposed ‘preserved’ garden did not seem to exist, and Aranis did not sense anything that seems to be illusionary wall. The place seemed dead and more of a dragon’s lair than a preserved garden.

“You know, now that I think of it, that guy seems shady enough,” said Jek. “We agreed to be trapped, and now here we are. Trapped, like beasts in cage.”

“No, I don’t think that guy’s lying.” Raine turned towards Aranis. “Aranis, can Aether damage magic shields?”

“It won’t damage the shield, but if the shield itself is not powerful enough, parts of it would seep through and…oh, no…”

“Yeah, we’re not walking into a man-made trap. We are trapped by nature itself.”

Hastily, Narati pulled out a torch of sorts and turned it on. The crystal inside turned on a bright magelight that poured out and illuminate their immediate surroundings.

While it illuminated the cave, it also illuminated the danger within. Sets of eyes were reflected by the magelight, all drawn towards the light Narati made.

“Uh, guys…let’s back up, slowly…,” said Narati while backing up. “Slowly…”

“Not helping, Nara,” said Jek. “Besides, we can’t go back.”

“Why?”

“That zombie’s bringing friends.”

True to Jek’s words, they were surrounded by the unknown creature in front of them and the zombies blocking their way. They were slowly surrounded to the point that the four of them touched each other. Before long, the source of light they had was the magelight Narati had.

“If anyone of you have a plan, I need it now,” said Jek.

“Not gonna lie to you, Jek. We’re screwed.”

“Fuck. This world is fucking crazy. If not the people, then nature itself is trying to…”

He looked at Narati, who stared at the group of unknown creatures in front of him. He quickly threw something like a container of sorts towards the creatures, but nothing happened. What he did next, though, was something that the rest of them were trying to prevent.

Lighting up a matchstick, he threw it towards the creatures. All the sudden, blue flame burst out from the floor and engulfed the creatures. They shrieked in agony and pain, and it filled the whole cave.

“Shit, he’s triggered!” said Raine. “How the hell is he triggered? We are not…oh.”

He looked towards where Narati was staring at. The creatures that he burned were not ‘creatures’. The ‘eyes’ were just reflective surfaces that made circular reflection. The shriek, however, came from the sides of the room, where the actual creatures were. They were embedded to the wall due to the Aether solidifying around them. This, however, made the group realized another danger.

The wall of the cave was a trap and the only way to avoid that was to burn their way out or avoid touching the wall altogether.

The zombies near their exit, however, were a problem. Now that they were gathered, there was no way they could return to their camp. They need an alternate route that did not seem to be existent with them being trapped inside that cave. The only way out is forward.

Somehow, despite of the shield failing to protect the nature within from Aether, it was enough to keep Aether-contaminated creatures at bay. The plants that were creeping towards them were also contaminated by Aether, but since they were inside the shield, they were the only problem. As long as they did not touch the wall, they should be fine.

The dark and cold cave was a contrast to what they perceived as ‘hidden paradise’. The four of them could see the remains of plants and other characteristics of a garden, like plant beds and water fountain. It felt sad that the place, told to be full of herbs, would be dead, like the rest of the mountains. It was so different from the forest at the foot of that mountain, which was still brimming with life, far from Aether contamination.

As time went on, both Aranis and Raine started to feel cold, despite of wearing thick clothing. Jek and looked towards them and said, “It isn’t that cold, you know.”

“Very funny, Jek,” scoffed Raine.

“I’m more concerned on the depth of this cave,” said Aranis. “We have been walking for ours, and the place does not seem to end.”

“There is an opening somewhere to the left, but I cannot be sure,” said Jek.

“What if it’s a dead end?”

“Trust the nose, Raine,” said Jek. “Besides, I’m not the only one with good nose. Isn’t it right, Narati?”

“Easy for you to say. I’m a rat, not a wolf.”

“You’re underestimating your own olfactory senses,” said Jek. “Besides, I think you need to train your ears more. Duck.”

Narati was confused by Jek’s monotone remark, but upon seeing him brandishing a gun and pointing it towards Narati, he instinctively lower down his body as Jek released a shot. It hit something behind the Fa’ar and it let out a shriek.

Narati quickly scrambled towards the group and pull out his grenade launcher, intending to protect himself, but Aranis stood in front of them and said, “Get behind me.”

A shield formed around them as the creature attacked. When it touched with the shield, it disintegrated, surprising everyone, even Aranis.

“That’s new,” said Jek. “They don’t disintegrate that easily.”

“Except if that thing’s not Aether,” said Aranis. “We should be more careful. This place has a far bigger danger than those Aether Zombies.”

“What are you suggesting?”

“It might be hunch, but there must be necromancy involved.”

Raine gasped from Aranis’s accusation. From the four of them, only Aranis knew of the necromancy practice. While after the war, everything concerning necromancy had all but forgotten, elves seemed to know the fact that it was a forbidden knowledge. Raising the dead with the aid of magic was taboo back in the days. But here, in the time of survival and no governing law, that practice might’ve returned.

But then it made something confusing. If necromancy was a magical teaching of raising the dead, then where did the Aether come from? Was it a necromancy magic? It was clear of their effect on people. Was there someone who screwed up back in the pre-war society that caused the world as it was. Raine wanted to know as he practiced magic, but didn’t know the consequences of using them except killing people or causing insanity. Aranis was the only one who knew the danger of magic, being someone who had practiced it for so long, thrice the age of man.

This dilemma seemed to be over the head for non-magical races like Jek and Narati, but for Raine, it was something he wanted to know. His aim for this venture may be for wealth and general well-being, but ever since he had become acquainted with an elf, he started to think about the risk. He wasn’t a child when he started practicing magic for the first time, and he used it generally for survival. Was it wrong to assume that enchantment had no risk involved, or was it?

All these questions could wait for later. For now, the group needed to find a way out of the mess they were in. Right now, they couldn’t do anything except for relying on Narati’s and Jek’s animalistic sense of smell.

While not all beast races had superior sense of smell, the two beast races leading the way clearly had it. A rat could make a difference between explosives and characteristic smell from illness or anything, while wolves, or in many cases canines, could be trained in many ways, especially detection by smell (not wolves, though). Jek, a Loup, and Narati, a Fa’ar, clearly came from a wolf and a rat, so it wasn’t surprising that they could direct the four of them through the dark caves with only limited lights.

Occasionally, they were being attacked by things in the dark, clearly a product of dark magic. But, they managed to go through and find their way out. Even then, that sense of smell had limits. After twists and turns, they were surprised and devastated when they realized that they reached a dead-end.

“A dead-end!” exclaimed Raine. “Are you sure this is the right way?!”

“Well, the smell seems stronger here,” said Jek while rubbing the surface of the rock. “But this can’t be the end. There must be a way…”

“No other way than blasting through, then,” said Narati while putting down his backpack. “I should’ve packed more firepower before coming up here, but let’s hope all my explosives blowing up at once can give us a way.”

“Whoa, wait a second there, kiddo. Do you realize what this place is? You blow your toys up; we get buried under layers of rock.”

“What other choice do we have? Both of our noses lead us here.”

“There must be an alternative way. We can just walk…”

“Jek, trust me. Between you and me, who’s the one with the trigger?”

“We both are, just not to the same weapons.” Jek then looked towards Raine and Aranis, who nodded. The wolfman sighed and said, “Just…don’t make the whole mountain fall on us, okay?”

Narati made a smile and nodded, which could either be a good thing or not. The Fa’ar then returned to his explosives. He didn’t learn geology or the lay of the land, so he wouldn’t know if the bomb would either cause their death or lead their way out. Other than that, they could’ve just lead to another dead-end. This was the last straw. If not, then they would die.

But Narati wouldn’t want that. He needed to believe that behind the wall of rock, there was a source of the smell. He needed to believe his nose, like Jek did to his own. But then, only luck would determine their survival from his attempt.

After making sure that the explosives were set and the wires were long enough to reach behind Aranis’s wall, he walked back towards the others and primed the explosives. He looked back and said, “For luck.”

He smiled and pushed down on the handle, creating a powerful blast that threw debris towards them. Surprisingly and to their relief, the blast opened a hidden pathway behind it and did not cause the tunnel to cave in. However, another surprise was also revealed.

The pathway was well illuminated and clean. Unlike the tunnel system behind them, this place had mage lights lining the corridor across them, all the way to the other end, with stairs. The rock had been cleaned and flat, like a proper masonry. It was an uncanny sight in the zombie-infested place.

However, they soon realized the horror of the place. Upon stepping into the pathway, Aranis felt an overwhelming aura of dread. It was also apparent to the others that the place was like an underground prison, except that instead of prisoners that were being kept inside the rooms, they were abominations that could not even be called ‘humanoid’. They lost their forms and roamed their cages like mindless beasts.

Raine noticed Aranis gagging and was about to throw up. He walked to her and supported her while Jek and Narati were stunned by the abominations.

“Who’s mad enough to create these monsters?” said Jek while trying to shoot one of them. He unloaded some bullets, but then they just got absorbed.

“Clearly someone with knowledge to forbidden dark arts,” said Aranis while composing herself. “The air is full of the stench. Be careful, you three. We might’ve come across the worst possible situation of stumbling upon a necromancer’s lair.”

The four of them looked towards the entrance as the sound of echoing footsteps walked down towards the group slowly. They readied themselves to any danger, but when the figure came to their view, they all got surprised.

“Impossible…your kind is extinct! They have been wiped from the face of the Earth! How is it that you remain?!” exclaimed Aranis while pulling out her sword. “Answer me, wretched being!”

“Elves are…an exotic race with no tolerance to what they thought are evil,” said the humanoid figure. “But with wisdom comes…ego. And that ego is your downfall, elf.”

Aranis quickly shot an arrow towards the figure, who easily caught it. He then threw it aside and kept walking towards them. Only Aranis stood by and aimed her bow, but the rest were overwhelmed by the chilling cold presence the person had. It was as if something evil was lurking by and they were facing him.

“Rest, lowly beings, for your time has come,” said the figure. “Sleep…”

“I will not give in, vampire!” exclaimed Aranis. She muttered a spell that canceled out all effects on her, but unfortunately, wasn’t enough to let her friends awake. They soon lost consciousness.

“Such interesting magic,” said the vampire. “You are quite an interesting fellow.”

“I’ve been living in this hellish world for four hundred years, vampire. I know enough white magic to counter your abilities. I will not let your kind return to prominence, being cursed by the sun.”

“Your arrogance is extraordinary,” said the vampire. “However, a vampire…is immortal.”

“Unless they are killed,” said Aranis with contempt noted in her voice.

Her arrow went off the bow, and she quickly changed to using a curved sword she had with her. As her arrow flew towards the vampire, she ran swiftly near it like a wind, yet the arrow was faster. After the vampire caught the arrow, she swiftly twisted her body and attacked the vampire with a twisting sword attack. It hit the vampire’s bracer with a resonating sound of metal hitting each other. Their eyes met, each looking at each other with contempt and astonishment.

The elf’s hatred was very pronounced by her tone and her ferocity. If her allies were to see her like this, they would be astonished. Years of survival and possible combat training had made Aranis a formidable opponent. The vampire she fought thought the same thing, too.

“You’ll do well in my army of dead, elf,” said the vampire. “But you’ve yet to defeat me.”

Their fight soon went upstairs, where they determined the fate of each other.