wounds its sharp teeth had inflicted on Elerian’s throat. Then the shape changer’s pleasure abruptly turned to panic when a pair of powerful hands suddenly seized it by the neck, and steely fingers, hardened by years of toil, closed off its windpipe. Squirming frantically to free itself, the lupin let go of Elerian and tried to reach over its right shoulder with its jaws in an attempt to rend this new enemy with its long fangs.
Clamping his powerful fingers tighter around the lupin’s hairy neck, Ascilius stiffened his arms, preventing the desperate shape changer from reaching him with its jaws. Pin points of red floated in his dark eyes as he continued to throttle his enemy, his hatred of the Goblins and all their allies lending even more strength to his immensely powerful hands and arms. Then, as if from a great distance, he heard Elerian speak in his rough panther’s voice.
“You can let go now, Ascilius, unless you mean to squeeze the creature’s head clean off its neck.”
Coming back to himself, Ascilius easily cast the heavy, limp body of the lupin off to his right. He frowned at the great cat crouched at his feet, a disapproving look on his face.
“I see you still managed to find trouble in spite of my warnings,” said Ascilius reprovingly. “It is fortunate that I was making the rounds of the sentries and heard the sound of your struggle with the lupin.”
“Say rather that trouble found me,” replied Elerian dryly, his breathing still labored from his exertions. Blood stained the sleek gray fur on the sides of his neck, flowing in crimson streams from the wounds the lupin had inflicted on his throat. Even as Ascilius watched, the deep punctures stopped bleeding and closed over as Elerian healed himself. Ascilius waited patiently until Elerian was done, knowing that his companion would be withdrawn and silent during the healing process. Abruptly, Elerian’s panther shape became fluid as his body flowed back into his native form. A moment later his Elven features were masked by the illusion he wore out of habit, so that once more Elerian resembled a middle aged man with dark, graying hair and clear gray eyes.
“I encountered a party of Goblins near the river that were making straight for your company of Dwarves,” said Elerian to Ascilius. “I slew three of them, but these two managed to reach the road. They killed this unfortunate fellow before I caught up with them.”
“His name is Bolanus,” said Ascilius sadly as he closed the dead Dwarf's eyes with gentle fingers. “It is a short season for some with an early harvest at the end of it. His death likely saved the rest of us, however, for if the lupins had not stopped to make a kill and feed, they would have been on their way back to their master by now with the news of our presence.”
“We will not be safe for long if there are other patrols,” observed Elerian in a troubled voice. “We have one more day before we reach Galenus, more than enough time for them to discover us.”
“You cannot find and destroy them all,” replied Ascilius warningly. “We will have to trust to luck to see us through to the castella.”
“We will not need luck if I can discover is a way to make the Goblins leave these hills,” said Elerian thoughtfully. A smile slowly quirked his lips as a solution came to him. “I am going to retrieve my knives from the forest,” he said to Ascilius, disappearing into the trees before the Dwarf could object.
Grumbling quietly to himself over Elerian’s recklessness, Ascilius wrapped Bolanus carefully in his cloak and carried him to the middle of the forest road before covering him with rocks from a nearby streambed.
“Those who follow us will pick up his body and bring it to Galenus,” he thought to himself as he completed his task. “If fortune favors us, he will be laid to rest properly in Galenus.”
After making the rounds of the sentries and warning them to be doubly cautious, Ascilius returned to
Clamping his powerful fingers tighter around the lupin’s hairy neck, Ascilius stiffened his arms, preventing the desperate shape changer from reaching him with its jaws. Pin points of red floated in his dark eyes as he continued to throttle his enemy, his hatred of the Goblins and all their allies lending even more strength to his immensely powerful hands and arms. Then, as if from a great distance, he heard Elerian speak in his rough panther’s voice.
“You can let go now, Ascilius, unless you mean to squeeze the creature’s head clean off its neck.”
Coming back to himself, Ascilius easily cast the heavy, limp body of the lupin off to his right. He frowned at the great cat crouched at his feet, a disapproving look on his face.
“I see you still managed to find trouble in spite of my warnings,” said Ascilius reprovingly. “It is fortunate that I was making the rounds of the sentries and heard the sound of your struggle with the lupin.”
“Say rather that trouble found me,” replied Elerian dryly, his breathing still labored from his exertions. Blood stained the sleek gray fur on the sides of his neck, flowing in crimson streams from the wounds the lupin had inflicted on his throat. Even as Ascilius watched, the deep punctures stopped bleeding and closed over as Elerian healed himself. Ascilius waited patiently until Elerian was done, knowing that his companion would be withdrawn and silent during the healing process. Abruptly, Elerian’s panther shape became fluid as his body flowed back into his native form. A moment later his Elven features were masked by the illusion he wore out of habit, so that once more Elerian resembled a middle aged man with dark, graying hair and clear gray eyes.
“I encountered a party of Goblins near the river that were making straight for your company of Dwarves,” said Elerian to Ascilius. “I slew three of them, but these two managed to reach the road. They killed this unfortunate fellow before I caught up with them.”
“His name is Bolanus,” said Ascilius sadly as he closed the dead Dwarf's eyes with gentle fingers. “It is a short season for some with an early harvest at the end of it. His death likely saved the rest of us, however, for if the lupins had not stopped to make a kill and feed, they would have been on their way back to their master by now with the news of our presence.”
“We will not be safe for long if there are other patrols,” observed Elerian in a troubled voice. “We have one more day before we reach Galenus, more than enough time for them to discover us.”
“You cannot find and destroy them all,” replied Ascilius warningly. “We will have to trust to luck to see us through to the castella.”
“We will not need luck if I can discover is a way to make the Goblins leave these hills,” said Elerian thoughtfully. A smile slowly quirked his lips as a solution came to him. “I am going to retrieve my knives from the forest,” he said to Ascilius, disappearing into the trees before the Dwarf could object.
Grumbling quietly to himself over Elerian’s recklessness, Ascilius wrapped Bolanus carefully in his cloak and carried him to the middle of the forest road before covering him with rocks from a nearby streambed.
“Those who follow us will pick up his body and bring it to Galenus,” he thought to himself as he completed his task. “If fortune favors us, he will be laid to rest properly in Galenus.”
After making the rounds of the sentries and warning them to be doubly cautious, Ascilius returned to
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