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Ridley Chapter 5 / Flik Chapter 6 / Viktor Chapter 7 Ridley hated having to send a letter of such serious nature only days after his son departed. Young Boris had been in town only a week prior, celebrating the day of his mother's birth. It had been a joyous occassion, a grand party all of the kobolds in Two River enjoyed heartilly. The best chefs in the region and the most beautiful dancers were on hand for the specticle, dancing the night of Emily Wizen's thirty-fourth year into a gorgeous memory. It was a shame her husband had missed the party. He hadn't really meant to; he had been drawing up strategies to batter back the Highland forces should they attack. He was trying to make sense of the senseless war. In fact, he was a mite embarassed when the messenger to bear Boris' letter told him, "General Wizen sir, your son has only left Two River but four days ago; shall we try to catch him before he reaches his destination?" In fact, the overzealous general had not known his son was in town. It served to open his weary eyes- he had been neglecting his duties as a husband and father to better serve as general and a leader of men. But not tonight. Desmond had seen to it that Ridley had tonight off, away from the bothers and worries of the impending war, away from the torturing plans which would not leave him alone. It was Desmond's idea, and one that Ridley fought every step of the way. He brought up every one of a rainbow of arguements from "I must stay on guard until Sir Flik arrives with the information I requested," and "But I must remain alert for any more messengers or informants who may be passing through." Desmond heard none of it. "As your respected advisor sir," he said gleefully, "I must tell you to remain with your wife for a time. It is not for many days that Sir Flik is to return, and if indeed this war finds its way onto the blades of your men, you may not have another night to spend alongside with your wife." The collector of stories nodded matter-of-factly and took his rightful place behind his journal. This one has ink for blood, thought Ridley. The general guffawed greatly, a hearty, throaty laugh which few folks have had the opportunity to hear. He then said, "Yes, Desmond, my trusted and worthy advisor, I do believe a short time spent with my dearest Emily would do me well. I tire of the awful cooking in this army..." "I shall inform you immediately if any trouble should arise. But I belive, my master Ridley, that you shall find your mood quite relaxed until Sir Flik returns, which given the immensity of his mission will not be for a good many moons. "I didn't want a fire rune!" "Yes you did." I insisted. "You told me as payment for falling sleep in front of your house, I were to get you a fire rune. And here it is." I took the rune and placed it in his hand. "No! I said I wanted a Magic Robe!" The scientist jumped up and down. "Whatever, you loon." I turned my back and started to walk out of his house. "I am not a loon! I am THE GREAT SCIENT..." I closed the door and headed back to Reuben's Rune's shop. Heading back, I started to think about what the future had in store. After all, we're going to war again. The last time I was in a war was three years ago. I started to think about the Gate Rune War, the Scarlet Moon War, The Liberation War, whatever you wanted to call it. It may has many names, but the story is still the same. Betrayed by his Empire, Teo McDohl's son turned a motley crew of rebellious soldiers into an army not to be reckoned with. With their help, they overthrew the Scarlet Moon Empire and it's tyrraneous leader, Emperor Barbarossa. Many of its members believed it was destiny. The one-hundred eight important members recruited each had a star. I forget what mine was. Tenen or Tenan Star or something like that. I never really was sure if I bought into it or not. Destiny or not, we're about to go to war again. This time, no stars of destiny to gather. No Tenkai Star or McDohl or mysterious magician seer to guide us. I opened the door to the rune shop. Time for me to get a new lightning rune. "Hey, it's just me again." "Ah, Mr. Flik. What can I do for you?" "I'm in need of a lightning rune." "A lightning rune? For Mr. Flik? Don't be rediculous." Huh? "For you, I have nothing but the best. Wait here." So I took a seat. I was curious what rune he had in mind. I'd probably accept it, out of niceness. Except if it's a blinking rune. I wouldn't be caught dead with a blinking rune. I've seen people use a blinking rune and wind up in the nameless lands when they were aiming for Seika. Rueben's dad came back holding a miniture treasure chest. "For Mr. Flik, this is for you. I came across this in a Rune Masters convention in Gregminster. I bought it instantly, and I had saved it for a special occasion." He opened it. "I'd like you to have it. Inside it was a Thunder Rune. "Sir, I cannot pay you for this. I don't have enough money." "Nonsense. For you, it's free. Come, lets get it on your hand immediately." Blue Lightning was back in action. "No. Listen closely, you crazy old coot. I do not have a magic robe. I have a sack of crystals from Tinto. I know you need these things to do whatever crazy scientist thing you do." I could have been speaking flipping Harmonian out of my arse for all that white-headed scatterbrained bonehead could have cared. I was about to clobber him with the damned sack; no matter how much sense I made the ugly beanpole kept spitting back something about a magic robe. I could imagine it if I were the freak's apprentice and not just some big guy with a sack of crystals. But before I could split his head like a log, Pohl dragged me out of the store. I still remember the half-brained whackjob flailing his arms in the air, screaming something about potatoes. Or maybe he was screaming about a great scientist. Not like it mattered, in my eyes scientists were about as useful as potatoes and visa-versa. "Let's just pawn these things off on the kobolds up in Two River, Vik," said Pohl Treybell, heaving the sack onto his back. The crystals clanked around, sounding a little like shattering ice. "By the Stars, Vik, I wonder how many of these fruitin' things are still in tact. C'mon, Flik's already left town. We have to catch up." I was taken aback by what Pohl said; that was an expression you didn't hear very often anymore. "What'd you say, kid?" Pohl stopped, looking kind of confused. Well, he always looked kind of confused; only now more so. "Well, Flik said he was going to leave for the rune shop, right? He's probably done there already..." "No, kid. You said 'by the Stars.' What'd you mean by that?" "The 108 Stars of Destiny, Vik. Don't tell me you didn't see that crazy slab back in Toran." You all probably already know this, but I might as well spit it out now. In the Gate Rune War, there were supposedly 108 people who were destined to fight against Barbarossa. Pretty much every ragtag, cutthroat, vagabond, renegade, rebel, and adventurer who played a role in the war were one of these 108; and then there were people who didn't do bo-diddly-squat like Window or Onil whose names just ended up there as some prank of twisted fate. I'm not going to tell you what I thought of the whole mess, because undoubtedly some day Lord McDohl will read this and I wouldn't want to hurt his feelings about believing in the slab. But I'll tell you this- if you think it was because I was born under a certain star or followed a specific path to where I ended up three years ago, you have another think coming. I fought because I chose to fight. I didn't answer Pohl. I just walked passed him and beckoned for him to follow. "C'mon. Flik's probably getting sick of waiting for our sorry butts. One thing that never changed about Viktor. He was always late. I already got the Thunder Rune attached, waited ten minutes in South Window, got directions to Kuskus, tackled a few monsters and made it to the dock in Kuskus. Lord only knows where Viktor is. My mind started to dawdle as I waited for Viktor. Whenever you beat monsters in Jowston, they leave behind potch. Whenever you beat monsters in Toran, they leave behind bits. I always wondered why that was. It's interesting how currency revolved around to what the monsters of that region dropped. I never understood why they dropped money though. I guess it's sorta like why the sky's blue. There's some sort of scientific explanation, but no one really cares. I touched the back of my head. The bruise was still tender, but its not as bad as it has been. Viktor must not have seen it, for he never asked about it. And knowing Viktor, he would have asked, had he seen it. I'd probably lie, and say some dangerous kraken gave it to me in a fierce battle. Or some deadly griffon gave it to me while trying to nest in my hair. Or something. I'd never live it down if I told him I was mugged. "Mister, we're leaving now." I was interrupted from my train of thought from the boat guy. "That's okay. I'll get another one." "Okay, don't know when the next one will be around though." He said, pushing himself off the dock. I continued to lean against a wall to a house. Man, I was bored. I missed Gasper's chinchirorin game. Of course, he always stole my bits, but at this point, I was bored as all hell. Marco's cup game would have been fun at this point as well. Even Georges stupid memory-matching game for toddlers would have been entertaining at this point. I started to think about the Liberation Army members again. I remember one night Ivanov, the painter asked me if I wanted to color in part of the mural. He said "to make it a truly representational mural, I want everyone in the army to paint at least a bit of it." He regreted giving me the paintbrush. I had smeared McDohl's trademark bandana colors, gave him a neon-pink face, and gave him a polka-dotted tunic. Needless to say, no one was allowed to paint on the mural after that. I finally saw Viktor and Pohl walk up to the dock. "Well, it's about time Viktor." "We had some squirrell trouble," I said, perching on the wooden dock next to Flik. "Apparently a sackful of crystals is appealing to more than just kobolds. We must've attracted every caped rodent between here and Muse." I proceeded to tell Baby Blue about the pack of some twelve killer flying squirrells which bombarded us from all sides. One of the piddly furballs had lobbed himself from a nearby tree and dropped a bucket inconveniently onto Pohl's head. The poor kid shrieked out loud as the nuisance jerked the bagful of crystals from his hands and began scattering them about the countryside. This was the first real opportunity to use the Shiko Sword since I had gotten it from Tessai. I drew my blade and, with a hellish screm bellowing forth from my gut, split the mousey offender in half. The Titan Rune gleamed with a strange blackish-gold radiance, if such a color is possible, and the rune's true power made itself known. In the split second it took for Pohl to pull the bucket off his head and clobber the nearest caped goon, I had amputated two bushy tails, a red cape, and tacked another to a tree. The pitiful survivors grabbed what they could of the crystals, now laying willy nilly about the area, and scattered. It took us damn near an hour to re-sack the whole mess, and even then we're down a few squrrell-sized fist fulls of crystal. "We shouldn't worry, though," said Pohl, letting his feet hang over the side of the dock. "The next ship'll be along shortly; they run three a day to Lakewest. Best thing we can do is hit the tavern for a few hours." He paused. "I heard Kuskus carries Jowstweister now. I guesss anything beats the seafaring grog we're used to by now." Desmond nervously approached his master's tent. It had taken him so many hours to finally convince the general to stop working and find some time for much-needed relaxation, and he now felt apprehensive about disturbing that supposed forced vacation because Sir Flik had arrived back earlier than expected. Luckily, Ridley and Emily were simply stationed in their respective places at the general's dinner table, enjoying a quiet candlelight dinner alone. It seemed fortunate to Desmond that they were merely dining, and not engaging in certain other activities husband and wife may have been likely to have been doing this late into the evening. "Lord Ridley, sir, I hate to intrude..." stammered Desmond, the smell of the delicious meal hitting his snout full force. It wrinkled as Ridley looked up and responded: "Ah, Desmond, my trusted advisor. Have you come to enjoy a meal with us?" "No, my lord, it isn't that... but our wounded informant Sir Flik has returned frighteningly ahead of schedule." The grin on Ridley's face disintegrated. "So soon? But it's been not three days! Surely I overestimated his informational abilities... perhaps the stories of Blue Lightning of Toran were all exagerated." "It isn't that, sir... he has returned with a friend of his, the one called Viktor of North Window. They wish to speak with you right away, sir, if it will not lay to waste such a beautifully planned evening..." Desmond opened the tent door and nodded. Flik, a gigantic man, and a short red-headed kid entered. "Hello, General. Pleasure to meet you again." He guestured to the man with him. "Viktor, Pohl, this is the Kobold leader of Two river, General Ridley Wizen. General, this is my friend and war buddy, Viktor. This is his...um... accompanyment, Pohl." "Yes, these two are admirable warriors from Scarlet Moon," nodded Ridley, skeptical, slightly annoyed. "Please. Take your seats. Let us discuss what you have learned, Sir Flik." "Well, General." Flik paused and brushed his hand back with his hair. "I couldn't find nothing out from South Window, or Kuskus. The Highlanders all fled back to Highland. The ones that were around were all tight-lipped. They obviously know something is about to happen. As well as you and I do." Ridley's piercing gaze shot to Flik, then to the sneer cutting across Viktor's face, then to the unshapely bag laying on the floor next to Pohl's feet. "It seems, Sir Flik, that the information I have paid you to find for me is strangely similar to the information I have already recieved from Desmond's former travelling companion, the samurai Genshu." He squinted his gaze, a mesmerizing kobold trait that demanded the attention of everyone around him. His voice was deep and forboding, storm-like in it's pitch... "I paid you well to bring me information regarding Highland, and instead you are back here interrupting my vacation and introcuding me to your friends!?" Viktor and Pohl drowned their gaze from Ridley's, silently awaiting Flik's response. Ridley's was not an arguement you wanted to be against. Flik, however, remained cool. Flik was playing his cards exactily how he wanted them to. "Toto village has already been burned, General. Ryube could be next, and then Radat. With that side in their power, they could easily swoop up Muse and South Window. All of Jowston would be in jeopardy. It could take months to find out any information on what they could be doing. If anything, Jowston should be defending itself." There was a pause. Ridley nodded, relaxing his stern hold on the conversation. Pohl and Viktor let out their breath. "Strong words, exactly as I myself view things currently. It has been a plan of Granmeyer no doubt to fortify the regions surrounding Radat, but with Annabelle in whatever damned political stasis she's in, the entire eastern border region lay open to Blight's flames. We have the skills, materials, and manpower to place a small yet strong fort in that area, but not even I can force my people into providing these things for free." Ridley sighed, closed his eyes, and placed his forefingers to his temple. "Nothing short of a sack of Tinto crystal could coax my men into the task that must now be demanded of them..." Flik guestured to Pohl, not breaking his gaze onto Ridley. Pohl Treybell's eyes lit up as he and Viktor lifted their accursed burden into the air and spilled its contents across the table. Desmond nearly fainted at the sight; such beauty to a kobold could easily take ten thousand ledgers to describe. Viktor leaned forward, hand in fist, elbow firmly implanted on the table, and said, "Then we're in business?" Ridley was at a loss for words- these men were dangerously serious about helping him defend the land of Jowston. "Most definately..." he gasped, once he found his tongue. "I shall assemble what artisans are needed and one of my greatest men to serve as leader of the fort's soldiers. Plans shall begin immediately." "General." Flik continued to gaze onto Ridley with a smirk in his face. "I think my war record, though probably somewhat exaggerated, proceeds me. I would like for Viktor and myself to be in charge of the fort. I feel that we would be the right men for such a job, and more probable than sacraficing part of the military might of Two River." "Impossible. As heroic as the two of you are, you are from the land considered to be our mortal enemy. You may each command a regiment of troops stationed at the fort, but for all rights and purposes it shall be an outpost of Two River, lead by a kobold commander." Viktor matched the comment with little thought. "Fine. We go, we take our crystal with us." There was another, more tense-filled pause... Flik broke his gaze on Ridley and darted at Viktor. He gave him a look at said, "this better work, you baboon." Viktor could taste the general's uncertainty. For a drawn-out series of seconds, it seemed that the whole plan would crumble. Then the man-bear added, "And besides, you don't want to attract the attention of the other state leaders, do you? The quickest way to do that is to openly advertise your military muscle over on the east border." Ridley sighed. The great general peered across the plane of crystal on the table, the piercing, determined air of the two heroes across from him, the zealous smile on the face of young Pohl Treybell, then the calculating eyes of the collector of stories. "Desmond, my most trusted advisor. What do you say to this poison in this turn of events? Do the job you so graciously gave yourself- advise me. The bardic advisor merely glanced at his master before answering. "It is wisest for our friend Flik to lead this military endevour separate from Two River, my master. My advice is for you to give them the materials they need, and then step back." Flik turned his head back to Ridley and nodded with a smile. And with that, the bear and Blue Lightning began their second war, ignoring yet inviting the rolling tides of their destiny...
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