Introduction
Welcome back to Maledicturs Terra. This is a Chain Story between myself and @lex-zaiya, meaning that we each write the parts alternatively.
If you have not read Maledictus Terra Book 1: Mortis Custos yet, it starts HERE at Part 1 and ends at Part 101 HERE. At the end of the Part 101 post you will find links to all 101 Parts!
Maledictus Terra Book 2: Sanguifex started HERE with Part 1 and ends at Part 111 HERE
The previous part by @lex-zaiya can be found here!
Part 102
"I don't like it." Tiberos complained for probably the tenth time.
"It must be done. The whole point in bringing him along is to act as a guide." Adiran had told him.
"We will take every precaution necessary." Prince Adrian had said. "Besides. He told us to come out from the castle and travel west and that he would guide us from there. Using our senses from the castle would attract bad attention to Dragonshold. We will set up barriers."
Now he was standing outside the cave they had found on their third day of travel. Adiran and Adrian were inside and he was standing guard outside the cave with the Orc woman. "I don't like it." He complained again.
Gorma frowned at him in a way that made her seem more Orc and less green woman. Honestly, Tiberos saw at times why the Prince seemed to like her, but at other times he was reminded about how different she was to the womenfolk of the castle and the city of Dragonshold.
"It cannot be helped Mage." She rebuked him. "Our part is to stand guard while they interrogate the head carefully. Complaining about it will not help anything. Perhaps focus your mind on sensing danger before it comes to us."
The Orc was dressed in her light armor. Leather armor on her body, steel half helm, steel greaves and bracers and boots far bigger than anything Tiberos could wear. She had her axe in a loop on her side and had taken out a massive recurve bow.
The cave that they had chosen was uphill from the surrounding forest, with hundreds of paces upward clear of cover. Anything or anyone that wished to approach them would need to come up this way. It was a good defensible spot.
"Yeah, alright." He grumbled. "I have set up wards five paces into the treeline down there. I doubt anything would try come up here."
"Besides these wards..." Gorma began. She frowned as she stared down the hill. "A ward is like a point or place... it... these ones will sense fro you but they cannot stop something walking past right?"
Tiberos nodded. "Indeed. It is not a shield or a barrier. Some wards are good at keeping things out, like spirits. A Spirit Ward is something that can be used to deter any spiritual being or mage-sight. But it is not a physical barrier. There are barriers that could stop you from moving past as sure as though it were a stone wall."
"Why not put one of those up?"
"Well... because I am unable to!" Tiberos was annoyed at the question. He had no doubt that Adiran would have been able to erect a barrier that could stop an army or an avalanche. The Prince probably as well. "Barrier magic uses a lot of mana. I really do not even have enough to make one. Magic is not a free thing. If you want to raise something up, it will cost your arms energy to do so. It will cost energy to do so with magic too. So a barrier powerful enough to stop a person from moving past it would cost as much as stopping a person from moving past physically."
Gorma grunts. "What if that person is more powerful than you? I don't think any of the three of you could stop me from physically running into this cave."
"Sure. Probably." Tiberos admitted sourly. "Yet I said it costs the same amount of energy, not that it takes physical strength to do. Energy comes in many forms. A mage uses his mana to cast magic and control forces. This is what you will be up against. If I compare my magical ability to the physical ability of another man, then I would say that I am as powerful as a young but trained knight. Enough power to stop a knight who is a threat to this cave."
"Oh? And how would you estimate the strength of Adiran and Adrian?"
He snorted "I would not even be able to classify them. I have no idea what their upper level of capabilities are. Let's just say that when they are roused to anger or action, they make me sweat."
"Then why are you so nervous all the time?"
"Because that thing they have with them. It is every bit as powerful as they are, and twice as desperate and with zero morals." Tiberos grunted. "That's probably the difference. Adiran is willing to do what the Prince cannot but he still has morals and principles. But that damn head... it doesn't have anything holding it back. Not even the humanity of what it once was."
"Humanity you say?" Gorma arched an eyebrow.
Tiberos looked embarrassed. "A term generally used freely amongst humans discussing morality and conscience. I realize now that it might sound a bit bigoted. Its meant to speak of people's ability to think and feel and feel for others."
"Ah. We have this in the Mawland Tribes. You see, we are many tribes, more than just Orcs and Goblins and Trolls. We have loyalty to our Tribe, there is more than one Tribe of Orc in the Mawlands. Then our loyalty goes to that of the Mawlands. All tribes swore long ago to stop fighting and to protect one another. That is when Orcs became better than those ones you humans of today have to fight in the mountains. They cannot build, because they cannot feel anything."
"Fascinating concept! They cannot build because they do not care for others and this causes them to be unable to..." His head whipped round and stared down at the treeline.
"What is it?"
"Something has triggered my wards... many of them."
And so I shall leave this cliffhanger here!
Over to you Lex!
Thank you for reading!
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