Allister reaches out for Zero, holding his arm. Suddenly, a bright glow emanates from his hand as healing energy radiates through Zero. His wounds begin to close, and the burns on his body are slowly erased. - Allister, healing a wounded Zero

“Are you sure we shouldn’t rent a carriage?”

Allister and Zero had both made their way outside of the City of Icota, traveling along the northern road past farmlands and villages on the outskirts of the city. In Eirland, there are thirteen kingdoms, each have a capital city by the same name where the Royal Families live. The thirteen kingdoms have all come together to form an alliance called “The Alliance of Eirland,” or “Eirland” for short. Icota is located in the far northeastern corner of the alliance’s territory, right in between two mountain ranges; the Savacord mountains in the north, and the Tepani mountains to the south. There is a narrow sliver of land in between called the Tepani Valley where Icota sits, meaning that trade between Eirland and its neighboring nation, Drakenlande, must first pass through Icota. It is because of this bottleneck of trade between the two nations that attracts so much unwanted attention, specifically, the Thieves’ Guild, where it is said that its main headquarters are located in the Icota Underground, earning the city the epithet of “The City of Thieves.” Allister and Zero are on their way to Copperidge village in the north to investigate the cause of its destruction. Zero insists that they travel on foot, but Allister is having none of that.

“Wouldn’t it be faster if we went by carriage? We could get there by dusk.”

“Do you even realize how expensive it is to rent a carriage just for one day and one night?” Zero retorts. 

Recently, dragon attacks have become more and more common, which have slowed down trade between the kingdoms significantly. As a result, prices in the markets, inns, and even carriage rides, are skyrocketing. The people of Icota are already a rowdy bunch, but the increase in prices is giving rise to unrest in the populace. The royal family of Icota is having a difficult time keeping the riots to a minimum, but they can only hold on for so long.

“Shouldn’t it be at least three copper per mile?” Allister says, somewhat with reduced confidence.

“I guess you really haven’t been paying attention since you got here, then.” Zero speaks with absolute confidence, perhaps from experience, and he does so without ever giving Allister one look. “Prices to hire a carriage along this route will most likely be five silver a mile, easily. With talks about increased dragon attacks, carriage riders would rather transport people within the safety of the walls rather than risk their lives for some people they don’t even know.”

Allister has no rebuttal to Zero’s explanation. Back in Allister’s hometown, Miliana, prices were a little higher than usual, at around five copper a mile, but for Eirland to charge five silver per mile? It would have cost the both of them over 150 silver, or fifteen gold. What a rip-off! With prices like that, no one other than adventurers and nobles could even afford to travel outside of the city, let alone those living outside of it to begin with. Allister looks into his own pockets, finding only a pitiful ten gold pieces in his bag. If I was alone, I definitely wouldn’t be able to afford a carriage ride all the way out here, let alone a carriage ride back.

“It seems you finally understand.” Zero observed Allister as he pondered this reality silently to himself. “In case you were wondering, I only have five gold with me. That’s why we’re heading on foot.”

“Alright… I get it.” Allister begrudgingly accepts Zero’s guidance, but he certainly wishes he didn’t have to.

As Allister and Zero follow the northern roads, they have a rather uneventful eight hours of travel, though the scene is quite beautiful. The outskirts of Icota is a large forest with many large trees. The sun’s light filters through the leaves, painting the road a nice shade of green, while god rays shine down from the open spaces between them. It’s summertime, with the sun’s heat beating down hard, but the shade of the trees makes the trip pleasant and cool. Zero is especially fine with this, seeing as how the two of them wouldn’t need to drink as much water to counter the heat of the sun. Ahead of them, beyond the veil of tree leaves, lies the Savacord mountain range, its picturesque peaks of white snow capped summits brings another layer of cooling against the heat of the sun. The various villages that Allister and Zero pass by on their way to Copperidge are mostly farmhouses with large plots of farmland for growing crops and raising animals. The stench of manure fills Allister’s nose, causing him to feel a bit nauseous, but to his chagrin, Zero seems unfazed by it.

As the sun begins to set behind the mountains they are after, they stop to set up a temporary campsite. Adventurers must come prepared for anything and everything the world has to throw at them, and that includes resources for camping in the wilderness at night during their travels. Thankfully, both Allister and Zero were prepared for this, pitching their own tents and setting up their sleeping bags. Zero gathers some firewood and sets it inside a circle of stones Allister put together. Then, Zero bends down, one hand in the air, and the wood is suddenly set ablaze. Allister was taken aback by this.

“Are you a spellcaster?” queries Allister. Even if Zero wasn’t a mage, there were simple spells that could achieve the same effect that are easy enough to be learned by anybody with enough patience to learn magic.

“... No.” 

Allister waits for more explanation, but gets nothing else.

“Uh… I-I mean, you just set the wood on fire. Wasn’t that a spell you just casted?” Allister fumbles over his words, surprised by Zero’s bluntness.

“... You don’t need to know.”

“But I mean, if we’re going to be—” Allister pauses in the middle of his sentence, struggling to say the next word. ”—partners — shouldn’t we learn each other’s strengths and weaknesses?”

“I’ll tell you if you need to know. Now shut up and get to sleep. We’ve got a long day ahead of us tomorrow.” 

As Zero harshly responds to Allister’s rather reasonable line of thinking, he gets inside of his tent, perhaps to fall asleep. What is with this guy? Allister is really starting to regret taking on this job, but he continues to tell himself that it’s for the sake of the people, not for himself. And with that final thought, Allister also finds himself drifting off. He heads back to his tent where he covers up inside of the sleeping bag.

***

At some point during the middle of the night, Zero finds himself wide awake. He hears a noise akin to the rustling of leaves. He heads outside, slowly, with his sword drawn. As Zero walks closer to the noise, it stops, and silence returns. Just as Zero thinks it really left, a giant boar comes charging towards Zero straight from the bushes. The boar is easily over five feet tall and nearly eight feet long. A direct hit from this creature would kill any normal person instantly. Zero had only a split second to dodge the attack, unable to make a counterattack. The tusk of the boar grazes Zero’s arm, enough to draw blood, but nothing serious that needs attention.

The giant boar continues charging past Zero, aiming straight for Allister’s tent. Allister, in the meantime, is still fast asleep in his tent, oblivious to the chaos that is about to ensue. Unable to catch up to the boar in time, Zero shouts towards Allister’s direction, hoping to wake him up.

“Allister, wake up! There’s a giant boar on the campsite! It’s headed straight for your tent!” Zero shouts loudly while still running towards the boar as fast as he could.

Thankfully, Allister was jarred awake from his slumber at the sound of Zero’s shouting, but just as he realizes what is happening, the boar tears through the tent and slams into Allister, who had enough reflexes to brace for impact and grab at the boar’s massive tusks. Even though Allister was prepared for it, he was launched forward as the boar came to a halt, slamming his back against the rough terrain of the forest floor. Allister took off his plate armor to sleep, leaving only a chain shirt underneath, so he took a much larger beating than he had hoped for. Still, Allister slowly gets back up to his feet, wiping the blood spewing from his nose.

“Damn it! First, it’s an apathetic hardass, now it’s a giant boar disturbing my slumber. This has got to be a joke.” Allister says with bated breath.

“Fight now, think later. Let’s go!” Zero shouts from behind the boar. Zero gives Allister no time to respond as he slashes a large wound against the side of the boar with his sword. The boar lets out a high-pitched squeal before preparing itself for another charging attack, this time aiming to hit Zero.

“You don’t have to tell me twice,” Allister mutters, running towards his now destroyed tent to search for his glaive.

The boar drags its right front leg a couple times before charging towards Zero with another attack. This time, Zero was ready for it, and expertly dodged out of the way, taking every opportunity to slash at the boar with his blade. The giant boar squeals in agony over every strike against its tough hide. The boar begins bucking widely, blood spewing forth from its wounds. It's going berserk, Zero thinks, readying himself for another charging attack. However, that attack never comes.

Allister appears behind the distracted creature with a bloodlust that even Zero feels a chill down his spine. Taking one decisive swing of his glaive, Allister cut straight through the boar’s neck, beheading it in an instant. As the ground underneath the boar’s corpse becomes a vibrant crimson red, Allister releases the grip on his glaive, letting it hit the floor with a muffled thump. Both Allister and Zero breathe heavily after that battle, but Zero breaks the silence between quick panting.

“Let’s… cook this… up, yeah?”

“Yeah… I’m… hungry after… that…”

Time goes by as Allister and Zero share a roasted boar for the night, and before they know it, they pass out on their bedrolls again, only this time, Allister is without a tent. Luckily, nothing else comes to disturb their sleep this time.

“Zero, attack it now!”

After waking up in the morning, Allister and Zero continued their journey towards Copperidge village. The forest surrounding Icota ends and transitions into flat land without trees, where larger than average creatures are easier to spot. It is here that Allister and Zero find themselves in combat with giant frogs, and after blocking several attacks with his shield, Allister figured that Zero could attack when the frogs are distracted attacking his shield.

“Got it! Hah!” Zero strikes with a piercing thrust of his sword and punctures through the slimy belly of the frog, killing it. The frog let out a horrid screech before collapsing on the ground. That was the third giant frog they’ve killed since waking up in the morning.

“There’s a lot of these things here, huh?” Allister says with slightly bated breath.

“They’re an annoyance—” Zero wipes the slime and blood off of his blade. “—and an eyesore.”

“Well, we’re pretty close to the foot of the mountains. We should be reaching Copperidge pretty soon.”

“Then let’s waste no time. Although, we could take some of this frog meat with us. They’re edible.” Zero points to the large frogs with his sword, ready to cut into them.

“We can’t take all of it. It would take up too much space, and the meat would spoil before we could eat it all.” Allister has a stern look about him, but internally, he is grinning smugly now that he has a chance to reprimand Zero for something.

“I said SOME of it. Not only that, but if for any reason some of the villagers are still alive, cooked frog meat, while not the best tasting food out there, is packed with nutrients. I’m sure any survivors would be grateful for it,” Zero says, cutting into one of the frogs already. 

Allister sighs, realizing that there is no use arguing with Zero. Semantics seem to be everything to him, which is not really Allister’s strongsuite. Regardless, he too helps take some meat with them.

After a couple more hours of walking along the scenic road, they come across a village that seems to be destroyed. The roofs of the houses and buildings inside the village are charred black, most of it crumbled to the ground either off the sides of the houses or into the middle of the house. There are what look like stone foundations with nothing else on or around it, most likely from being either burned completely and leaving behind just the stone foundation, or destroyed by some other means. Debris is strewn about the village, stones and splintered wood litter the dirt roads that once connected the houses and buildings together. Some of the wood was plunged into the houses like spears, while some of the stones were lodged into them. Perhaps the most disturbing part of this scene are the charred remains of what seems to be the villagers, covered in a coat of black ash.

Allister wanders the village in search of possible survivors while Zero searches the village for any clues relating to what happened. Investigating the dirt roads and the burned grass surrounding it, Zero finds some odd footprints that seem to lead deeper into the village. As Zero follows the new path, he stumbles upon a stone, about 4 feet tall, with engraving etched into it in Draconic, the language of dragons.

“Allister,” Zero calls out. “This is it.” Allister meets up with Zero at the stone, finding the draconic engraving too.

“Let’s see…” Allister runs his finger across the word on the stone. “Dragon… shield?”

“I knew it.” Zero scowls. “So they really are protecting a dragon egg.”

“What’s a Dragonshield, anyway?” Allister asks, unsure if he wants to know the answer or not.

Zero begins to explain how the Kobolds operate. While Kobolds by themselves are weak creatures, when together, they become a threat large enough for even veteran adventurers and soldiers. The tactics used by Kobolds are dirty and cheap, using everything they have and taking any opportunity they have to attack. However, once in a while, a Kobold is born with a tougher constitution and greater strength. These Kobolds are given the rank ‘Dragonshield,’ a title granted to those who have the responsibility of protecting a dragon’s spawn and taking care of them after they hatch. Now under one rule of an intelligent leader, Kobolds under the control of a Dragonshield are much more confident and organized.

“They must be a major pain to deal with,” Allister adds after hearing Zero’s explanation.

“They’re not just a pain, they’re a problem. This is why we should get rid of them as quickly as possible.”

“Well, where should we start? We don’t exactly know where they are.”

“Hmm…”

Zero thinks to himself for a bit. There were footprints, but they all lead to this stone. If there were any more, Zero would have to spend some time searching for them and determining whether or not they lead back to this stone again. Didn’t Shamil say something about Copperidge being known more as something else…

“The mine.” Zero suddenly speaks up with a loud voice, startling Allister.

“T-The mine?”

“Shamil said that the name ‘Copperidge’ is more famous as a mine than a village, right?”

“If they’re protecting a dragon egg, they need a darl and humid spot to incubate them,” Allister chimes in, a lightbulb coming from his head. “But then, where would the mine be? It’s easy to say ‘in the mountains’ but…” Allister gestures over the large expanse of stone and snows that is the Savacord mountain range. Mountains stretch for hundreds of miles, and some of the tallest mountains in Tempesta are a part of this range. “There’s a lot of mountain to search.”

“All we need to do is find some indication that something else was here.” Zero looks towards the mountains, then on the ground. “All the footprints lead to this stone, but there are other ways of tracking prey.”

Zero begins searching the ground for any clues to the whereabouts of the Kobolds. As he investigates, he sees wilted flowers, grass pressed down against the ground, and broken twigs. As smart as Kobolds are with making traps, they are not so good at covering their tracks. Not only that, but the clues seemingly lead towards the mountains.

“I think I found it,” Zero says, following the tracks.

“Nice. Just don’t leave me here,” Allister says as he sprints towards Zero in the distance.

A half-hour passes as the two of them follow the tracks, where they eventually lead to a cave opening by the foot of the mountians. A wooden sign covered in moss and dust has weathered words drawn on it, but it is legible enough still that they both can clearly see the word 'mine.' Allister and Zero gaze at each other briefly, nodding, then heading inside. However, Allister stops, realizing that something is wrong.

“Zero wait!” Allister shouts.

Zero stops dead in his tracks, where his right foot nearly stepped on a live tripwire that Allister spotted. Moving back a bit, Zero grabs the crossbow on his back and uses it to activate the trap from a safe distance. A hail of arrows suddenly shoots forth from small holes in the stone above the cave opening, towards the direction where Zero once stood.

“I-I was careless…” Zero says, somewhat shocked.

“Let’s keep moving,” states Allister, unable to contain his smug grin. He was finally able to one-up Zero and is feeling quite proud of himself.

Entering the cave, the two of them are met with lit candles that illuminate the naked stone walls, but nothing else. Zero moves through cautiously, not wanting to be caught in a trap again, but Allister’s proud moment clouds his thoughts. It isn’t until he steps on a hard-to-spot pressure plate that Allister realizes he did something wrong. Before he could react, boulders came crashing down from the ceiling, pinning Allister under them.

“Allister!” Zero shouts, just as a group of four kobolds arrive at the scene from the otherside of the newly formed boulder wall. 

The Kobolds themselves are lizard-like humanoids with snouts and claws like a dragon. They are short, the tallest among them no taller than three feet. They are wearing nothing but loincloths and carry slings with them. On their waist is a bag full of small pebbles. One of them is carrying a much larger backpack and a jug of something, though Zero can’t quite make out what’s in it. Their hysterical yipping is akin to them cheering, overly confident with themselves at taking out a human paladin with ease.

Zero grips his crossbow, readying it for combat, but the Kobolds see this movement and quickly dart underneath the boulder wall. Zero could leave Allister behind, but even he is unsure if he could travel through the cave alone. He grits his teeth in frustration, thinking of strategies to employ, but nothing comes to mind.

Just as Zero is pondering over tactics, the Kobolds rise from the boulder wall one-by-one, using their slings to throw stones at Zero at an unexpectedly fast pace. Most of the stones hit Zero’s armor, but it does little to protect him from the hail of stones. Their lack of strength is mitigated by their impressive dexterity. Zero has no choice but to run up to the boulder wall and hide behind it. Taking a second to catch his breath, Zero unsheathes his sword and prepares himself for a charging attack, but before he could make a move, an strong smelling fluid splashes over him. It must have been the fluid inside the jug one of the kobolds had, but Zero is uncertain what it is still. Just as he thought this, a lit torch is thrown over the boulder wall, and the fluid catches fire immediately. Zero screams as his body is engulfed in flames, dropping to the floor and rolling around to stop the fire. Over the sounds of his own agony, Zero can also hear the hysterical yipping coming from the Kobolds. 

Are they mocking me?

Finally, the flames dissipate as the oil burns away completely, and Zero pats himself down, trembling from the pain of his burn wounds. 

This isn’t good. I’m not gonna last much longer. 

Just as the situation has taken a turn for the worst, Allister’s arm that was extended out from underneath the boulders starts to twitch.

“Allister! You’re alive?” Zero yells. The Kobolds all have their mouths agape, shocked that both Allister and Zero survived the ordeal.

Allister attempts to free himself from the rubble, and with the help of Zero, he manages to escape his boulder prison. His iron plated armor is dented in several places, some of the chain links of his chain shirt underneath torn off. Allister is bleeding in several places, and wounds, dirt, and grime cover his face.

“Damn… it…” Allister says, breathing heavily. “Stupid… lizards…” Allister observes Zero’s wounds before addressing it. “They got you bad too, huh?”

“Yeah…” Zero says through his irregular breathing. “Those stupid stones… hit pretty hard… harder than they look…”

Allister reaches out for Zero, holding his arm. Suddenly, a bright glow emanates from his hand as healing energy radiates through Zero. His wounds begin to close, and the burns on his body are slowly erased.

“I guess you can be useful for something,” Zero remarks, with the usual apathetic expression on his face.

“Shut up.” Allister gives a cold stare to Zero before doing the same to his own wounds. Turning his attention to the boulder wall, Allister wonders what to do in this situation. “So, what’s the plan of action here?”

Zero thinks to himself for a second. Now that both of them are up and healed, perhaps a charge attack would be best. Assuming the Kobolds have no more tricks up their sleeves, both Zero and Allister can handle just four Kobolds.

 “We charge them as fast as possible.”

“You think we can take them?” asks Allister.  It isn’t like he’s not confident about taking on four Kobolds, but rather, he’s apprehensive about any more traps or surprise attacks; he seriously doubts they’re out of any tricks, but they still have to do something.

“Absolutely.” Zero says, keeping his gaze at the top of the boulder wall, mentally preparing himself. 

The two of them take a few seconds to catch their breaths, while also listening to any movement or yipping of the Kobolds. All they hear are the mocking yips of the Kobolds, speaking an odd, accented draconic speech professing how weak Allister and Zero are and how great and mighty the Kobolds themselves are. It seems their shock dissipated after seeing how wounded the both of them were. It’s grating to the ears for Allister who can understand them.

Zero begins signing a countdown, to which Allister also prepares himself to attack. The moment he says “Charge,” the two of them quickly jump over the boulder wall and charge at the Kobolds who are surprised by their agility, given how weak they looked. With almost no time to react, Allister and Zero quickly take out a Kobold each, slashing straight through the chest. The other two drop their weapons out of blind fear and begin running away faster than Allister or Zero can keep up with. However, Zero knew this might happen and took out his already loaded crossbow, aiming it and firing at one of the Kobolds. The bolt crashes into the side of the Kobold’s head, ripping it off instantly as the bolt continues flying. It hits the back wall of the cavern and pins the head against the cave stone, painting it a splattering crimson red. The final Kobold managed to get away, rounding a corner further into the cave and out of sight.

Allister and Zero both immediately collapse on the ground, tired already from their first battle in the cave, perhaps the first of many to come. With bated breath, the two sit in relative silence, catching their breathing and resting themselves mentally, before Allister breaks the silence a few minutes later.

“We… We beat them…” Allister says, heavily panting.

“Yeah… What the… hell was… that all about…”

After a few minutes of resting, the two get up and dust themselves off, ready to continue down further into the cave. The opening in the back disappears into a corner, where darkness consumes much of the back. Zero lights a torch in preparation, though it is mostly for Allister’s sake; Zero can see in the dark better than most.

“Let’s go,” Zero commands, already walking further inside.

“W-Wait for me!” says a slightly dejected Allister.

As the two of them walk further into the cave, they encounter an opening into what looks like a ravine, though they are very high up. Standing in front of that opening, however, is a figure clad in green, leather armor and sporting a longbow and wooden staff on their back. The staff itself is nearly as tall as the figure, who stands at over six feet tall. Their long, luscious black hair flows beautifully down their back, and their facial features are chiseled and perfect. Their ears, while human in nature, are slightly pointed upwards. If the figure wasn’t a man, Allister might have fallen for them. Their eyes stare deep into Allister’s soul. In front of the figure are the now deformed remains of the Kobold that had fled from Allister and Zero earlier. With a soothing, sultry voice, the figure speaks to them.

“Are you the ones Shamil sent?”