Paths Collide

The docks disappeared in a wall of fire, instantly consumed. Rue braced against the furious heat. Her eyes struggled to adjust to the blazing light and heat filling the air. She was barely able to hear the screaming over her own pounding heart.

Closer to the explosion, people were not so lucky to escape. She could see bodies peppering the docks in various states of dead or dying. Steeling herself with a few gulps of searing hot air, she ran for the survivors, unsure of how to help beyond getting them away from the leaping flames.

Then the rest of the port erupted in a pillar of black smoke. Rue and the woman she was half-dragging along were thrown forward by the force of the second explosion, skidding awkwardly across the gritty pavers. She dared a glance at the carnage. Dozens lay dead on the beach, more corpses beyond burning with the ships behind them. Precious few remained alive to try and escape. More people she couldn’t leave behind.

“Go,” she rasped, slipping the woman’s arm from over her shoulder, “Get past the barracks, you’re almost there.”

A rogue gust of wind blew the fire high overhead, setting the port guards' barracks alight. Rue caught a dark form in the tail of her eye. A cloaked figure stood at the far end of the burning docks, purple sparks swirling in the wind. Mage.

Several things happened at once. A ship careened out of the smoke, nearly colliding with the farthest docked and burning ship. A bright burst of magic from the direction of the city knocked it off course and onto the beach behind the mage. Before it could fully grind to a halt on the sand, a horde of undead poured from a gaping hole in its side and rushed the port.

Rue raced back for the remaining survivors, pulling them from smoldering debris as the growling undead shambled ever closer. They ignored the corpses littering the port and pounced on the living, wounded or not, and began dragging them back towards the ship from whence they appeared. Despite their rotting appearance, they moved dangerously fast. She herded what people she could between the burning barracks and yelled at them to run farther into the city. Those who weren’t injured were dazed by the smoke, and they stumbled into the streets as though drunk.

Positioning herself behind the corner of the closer barracks, she unslung her bow from her back, and blessed everything under the sun that she’d brought it. She aimed meticulously, desperate to make every arrow count. One undead fell. More and more injured were overrun and dragged away. Several turned in her direction and stumbled toward her.

She shot, and missed.

A fireball soared over the horde towards the mage, who countered it with a purple one of his own. With the undead effectively barricading the mage, he seemed more than content to stand by and watch the chaos unfold.

Rue’s confidence flagged as she realized she was fighting alone. She’d always had her crew around her before, and she needed them now more than ever. There was no one now to turn to, to know instinctively that they had her back.

She was only one person.

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“The docks are under attack!”

The declaration spread like wildfire and in mere moments a crush of people strained towards the town square, escaping to the farther reaches of the city.

Ides charged forward, the people parting like water around him. The smoke rose like a beacon, guiding him closer to the chaos. As the city buildings gave way to the port, the scene unfolded before him. Ships burning. A hooded figure standing in a whirl of purple magic. Few left standing.

He heard footsteps pounding behind him, running towards the port. Two others came up alongside him, one he knew: Guy, the metal-armed halfling proprietor of the inn he’d stayed at the night previous, and the other a grim-looking elf.

They looked on in horror as the remaining docks imploded in fiery fury.

Ides shielded his eyes with a paw then started forward, unable to stand by and watch the destruction.

A ship loomed suddenly from the smoke, hurtling towards the docks. A loud snap of magic shot from behind him and slammed into the hull, knocking it off course. He spared a glance over his shoulder to where the elf stood, hands up and frowning.

Instantly, the half-splintered ship spilled over with undead. The mage at the far end of the beach pointed to them, as if urging them forward.

With a yell, Guy bolted forward to take on the undead. The elf summoned a fireball that flew high over their heads only to be neutralized by the mage in a purple explosion.

Through the growing flames, he saw a girl standing alone at one of the outbuildings, firing arrows at the undead. She had caught their attention, and had no backup.

He changed directions to help her as the port rose up to greet him. She obviously knew her way around a bow, so he ran a few paces ahead to provide cover as she nocked another arrow. The opportunity was there for her if she chose to run but her determined stance did not make him think she’d be leaving.

He skidded to a halt and knelt, his back to the girl. He planted his shield in a pile of sand blown against the corner of the building, protecting them both.

“Keep shooting,” he ordered, “I’ll deal with this.”

She fired and the closest one fell, taking its head from its shoulders.

Ides cast a spell to control the nearest undead. He called over his shoulder, “Don’t kill that one, I’ve got it!” He could sense her suspicion but hoped she’d listen. The undead turned on its companions and started clawing at them in jerky swings.

The hooded mage turned towards Ides. He raised his hand and a white hot radiance emanated from his fingers. The blast slammed into Ides’s shield, and he took the brunt of the attack. The girl was still hit, however, and was thrown backwards out of his periphery.

She recovered faster, and was racing towards a pack of undead further down the beach by the time he could catch his breath and regain a non defensive position. It took him valuable seconds to blink away the light that had exploded behind his eyes and set his bones ablaze.

Ides gritted his teeth and tried his same control spell on the mage. The mage, his hood having slid off, turned his dark eyes to Ides and looked mildly bemused. The spell bounced off him in a spray of violet sparks.

That mage was really starting to piss him off.

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As the city alarm bells began to ring, the guests of Guy’s Place muttered in concern. Guy, the owner, wiped his good hand on a cloth and calmly ordered everyone to evacuate. Blank, staying seated, gathered Pina and held her tight as the rest of the customers pushed and shoved to get out the door. The crushing panic she felt beginning to rise around her was not something she’d relish getting caught in.

When the place was all but empty, she rose to leave as well. She spotted Guy giving quiet orders to his people who remained behind the counter, then he turned on his heel and strode quickly out. Blank followed, as well as an elf she’d seen earlier that morning. Guy stood for a moment, taking in the current of the people and rolling his shoulders. Then he and the elf plunged into the crowd, heading for the docks and pushing past people like fish struggling upriver. She watched, planting herself in the doorway as Pina wriggled free of her grasp and climbed to her shoulder, hissing at anyone to come too close.

Blank knew she should leave. She should leave and make it to somewhere quiet where she wouldn't be a danger to anyone. But something called her forward. She should help. Long moments passed as she stood frozen, pulled in both directions: left: fight, or right: flee.

Her boots took her left. She followed.

She wove through the crowd, ducking past flailing elbows and wide eyes. The crush thinned dramatically as she slipped past the limits of the Merchant’s Quarter, most were diverting to the east commons to get further into the city.

As her path cleared, she picked up the pace. Then the wounded began to spill onto the streets. All of them boasted burns and lacerations that caused her stomach to turn, and she could hardly believe some were still on their feet.

She followed the trickle of survivors until the streets gave way to the port. The smoke drew a hazy curtain over the morning sun, which made the orange flames glow menacingly. Far down the way a hurricane of purple surrounded a distant figure. A figure close to her stood rigid, weaving a spell in his hands. The elf from Guy’s.

“What’s going on? Blank yelled.

“Something very wrong!” he yelled back, casting the spell with a jerk of his arm.

Her fingers began to twitch. She pointed to the distant figure, “So, get rid of this guy then?”

The elf gave a snort of derision. “Yes! But be careful, he is one angry mage.”

She closed her eyes, feeling the magic build in her bones. Then, she thrust out her hands and a streak of blue lightning arced towards the mage. It hit home and the mage stumbled back a few steps. Even from this distance she could see his demeanor slip from cocky to cautious.

Behind her, Blank heard the city guard finally rally. They poured into the port and went to work on the nearest undead, freeing the terrified captives.

The storm of magic around the mage spun faster and he lifted off the ground, soaring high above the fight with an air of apocalyptic doom.

A fire spell shot towards Blank and the elf, who caught it full in the face. He glared at the mage and responded with a thunderous blast.

Blank readied another spell, grimly pleased. She was actually helping someone with her magic and as long as she could keep it under control, she’d continue to do so.

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Dodging frantically, Oda barely managed to stay ahead of the tidal wave of people running from the docks. She spotted a cluster of barrels against the side of a building and dove. Scrambling to get on top of the barrel, she discovered the lid missing and flopped ungracefully inside.

The world outside muted enough for her to only hear her own ragged panting. Her heart was racing, beating her ribs like a hummingbird. She placed a paw over her chest and squeezed her eyes shut. She couldn’t stop panting.

She was free. Her eyes popped open. She was free. And she had no idea where she was.

Slowly she stood and poked her head above the rim on the barrel, fear and panic dampered by curiosity.

The river of escapees surged steadily onwards. The buildings hemming them in were nice, well kept with large bay windows stuffed with goods and freshly painted shop signs. She was in a good part of town. Perfect for a little light thieving.

A tiefling woman stood across from her, sheltered from the crowd by a small stoop on the face of the building on the other side of the street. Her light blue skin was striking, drawing Oda’s eyes to her again and again. The woman pushed a periwinkle lock of hair behind her pointed ear, then took a deep breath and plunged into the crowd. Oda watched her dance through the press of people, following her progress in short flashes of pastel. She quickly disappeared down the street.

Oda hunkered back down, scratching her ear and thinking. She wasn’t ready to leave her barrel. It was too busy, even if this was an opportune time to do some pickpocketing… no, no, she’d be trampled by the time she found anything worth stealing.

A distant boom shook the barrel.

Her nose twitched and she paused scratching at her ear. Something important was going down at the port. And she, being important, should be there. Things were happening without her.

Nodding to agree with herself, she pounced out of the barrel and landed gracefully on the street. She was much slower on the way back to the port, picking her way along the sides of buildings to keep as far away from people as she could, skittering behind potted plants, running up support beams, bouncing from awning to awning.

When she reached the port, she stopped, eyes wide.

Things were definitely happening.

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Thanks for reading part two of my (as of yet unnamed) ongoing series! It chronicles the long-running D&D campaign that I've been participating in for over 2 years.

You can find Part One here and Three here!