Skink Chief
Qupakoco
Keeper of the Dice
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Here's a collection of my contest entries. I'll run through and add comments and responses.
From the "Chameleons" themed April-May 2015 contest.
From the "Hope/Vengeance" themed January-February 2017 contest.
From the "Chameleons" themed April-May 2015 contest.
Damn, it was hot. It was getting dark. Roderick looked uneasy. He was fiddling with something in his hands. A luck charm from his mother most likely. I knew he wasn’t comfortable in these lands. It was understandable however. My first expedition found me more nervous than anytime I could remember. The creatures here are something you only hear about back in Kislev. We are trained though. We know what they look like. We know how they fight. We know their weaknesses and their strengths. We know their abundance of gold. And we know to avoid them if at all possible. But that’s why my small detachment was sent inland ahead of the main force; to find them before they find us.
“The Chaos Moon in rising. We should have plenty of light for the watch.” I said softly, hoping to ease Roderick’s mind. No fire tonight. We can’t afford to be discovered this close to the ruins.
Roderick turned to me, meeting my eyes with his. In a quiet bewildered voice he said, “There are only five of us. I’ve heard that they have monsters as tall as three men. We’re… we’re doomed if they catch us.”
That sent an unnerving shiver up my spine. I’ve seen a detachment of Ogres in battle before. They were monsters in their own right. But the brutes here... they’re animals. They don’t understand words. They don’t speak. They bellow and roar. It’s terrifying. Stomping and biting with their toothy grins, only using their weapons when they realize there is something heavy chained to their hands. The memories of them are unpleasant, to say the least.
“Roderick, we’ll be fine. We have an army at our backs! Not to mention the finest Ungol archers that we’ve ever assembled. Those creatures won’t make it 10 paces out of the tree line.” Sometimes being a captain means lying to keep morale up. Being this far from home, this far South, makes it difficult at times. I decided to change the topic.
Using my rank to get things going, I asserted to the men beside me. “Asger, you’re up. You and Gunnar have the first watch. Let’s start the rotation. Torbjorn is next. Let’s get some rest.”
Asger responded, “Aye sir. Gunnar, get your bow.” Gunnar was as good of a shot as any. I’ve seen him fire 3 arrows into a target at 100 paces, the last arrow leaving his bow before the first arrow found its mark.
I laid down for my brief rest. 2 hours before it’s my turn to wait at the ready. I rolled to my side, seeing Torbjorn was already out. Roderick was still sitting upright, fiddling with his trinket. “Roderick, get some shut-eye.” He turned his head towards me one last time and nodded. He seemed fine on the ship. Heck, he was fine the first few nights in this blistering hot land. Ever since we found this ruin he’s been tense. I rolled my back to him and closed my eyes for the night.
----------------------------------------------------
Someone was shaking me… I sprung upright, my hand on my dagger instinctively. I had the blade pressed to his side before I realized who it was. Torbjorn looked amused. “Let sleeping dogs lie, hey cap’n?” He knew I couldn’t hurt him. The man was a giant. Chuckling he spoke again, “I couldn’t wake the greenhorn.” pointing half-heartedly at Roderick.
I shook my head. It was throbbing. Sleeping on this soil isn’t my idea of comfortable. Not that the sleep in this sweltering jungle is pleasant, but it should be Roderick’s turn. I reached over to Roderick and placed a hand on his shoulder… Something was wrong. He felt cold. I looked at Torbjorn, “Did he seem sick to you today?” Pulling a piece of jerky from his mouth, Torbjorn shrugged, “He seemed sick ever since we left the fjord.” He turned his back to us and returned to his watch. I looked to Gunnar. He was crawling into his sack already. He shrugged as well, then rolled his back to us. I placed a hand on Roderick’s neck. He had a pulse, but his skin was so cold. He wouldn’t make it through the night. I began looking for some water to try to wake him.
I was hunched over his body when I saw it. Roderick’s talisman. It’s wasn’t from Kislev. It was made of pure gold with emeralds peppering its exterior. It was shaped like a snake. I froze. I knew immediately what was going on. We weren’t alone.
I slowly lifted my head and looked into the tree line. The moonlight lit the trees elegantly, but there was nothing there. Keeping my gaze locked and looking for movement, I said quietly, “Torbjorn, wake the others. We need to be prepared.”
A moment passed. Torbjorn didn’t respond. “Tor…” I turned my head towards his position. He was slumped over. This wasn’t good.
I slowly reached for my dagger. As soon as I placed my hand on the hilt, I felt something cold and damp grasp my wrist. I was paralyzed from fear.
“Nnooohh…” a raspy voice slowly said in my ear. Its breath was wretched. I felt a sharp point pressing against my side. I was in no position to argue. I eased my grip on my dagger.
The creature kept its position. “Sssotek…” it whispered. I didn’t understand. I wasn’t prepared for a conversation. I had no way of communicating. I responded, “So Talk?” This seemed pleasing to the beast, as it eased its grip on my wrist.
Suddenly there were four more figures in front of me! I did not see them approach; they just appeared as if they were some sort of apparitions! I was horribly underprepared for this! They were small, maybe a good foot or more shorter than myself. They were definitely of the draconian race, but they were uglier than others I had encountered before. Their eyes… they didn’t seem normal. They bulged out of their heads and were covered in skin. It was repulsive! And to think one was touching my wrist! Why was I not dead?
One of the figures approached my position. It walked so quietly, no wonder we didn’t notice their approach. And its legs moved like nothing I have ever seen. Slowly but quickly, as if jerking into place almost. It crouched down to my level, Roderick between it and myself. This one’s breath was no better than the others. “Ssssssotek…” it said, the beginning of the phrase sounding that of a snake hissing at its prey.
I looked downward towards Roderick’s talisman, then back at the creature. It seemed to grin slightly, as if it knew what I was thinking. I slowly reached my free hand down to Roderick, prying the talisman from his seemingly lifeless grip. The creature had one eye fixed on me and the other on my hand. How terrible it must be to have such an existence. I raised my hand slowly, with my palm open. With its eyes fixed in the same position, it gently reached out and took the golden trinket from me. With the item returned to its possession, it snapped both eyes back to me. I saw it grin and flick its tongue, before it stepped back towards its companions. As it did I felt the weapon at my side pierce my skin momentarily, then I was released.
I pulled my dagger out once my hand was free, determined to free the creature that apprehended me from its earthly bonds. I turned quickly with my blade ready to plunge, but it was gone! I turned back to my front only to see a glimpse of movement, then nothing. As if the creatures had become invisible! I was infuriated!
I stood to my feet and looked at my men. They were none wiser. I turned to Torbjorn to check on him when I felt it. My vision became cloudy, my head was dizzy. Then I collapsed.
----------------------------------------------------
It was hot. Someone was shaking me. I involuntarily gasped for air as I reached for my dagger, but my muscles felt like they were on fire! It was as if I had drank an entire barrel of mead by myself. I could hear Asger yelling desperately, “Captain! Captain! You’re alive!”
He pulled me upright and threw water in my face. I needed it badly. It helped stave off the heat momentarily, if nothing else. I regained my vision slowly.
“A…Asger.” I said. “We need to… need to report back to the main force. It’s not safe.” I could see the camp had already been cleaned up. There looked to have been heavy foot traffic since last I remembered.
“The forward troops are already here, sir. It’s too late to report back.” Asger said bluntly. “Roderick is dead. Tor and Gunnar can’t be woken. We must have stumbled into something that got the best of us. I couldn’t find it in me to leave you here to be eaten by some wild beast. I’m sorry sir.”
I looked at Asger. “It was no accident, my friend. They know. Prepare for war.” He looked back at me intensely. “Go tell the Commander, Asger.” I ordered. He got up and ran in the direction of the foot traffic. I plopped back onto the dirt, staring into the cloudless sky. Damn, it’s hot.
“The Chaos Moon in rising. We should have plenty of light for the watch.” I said softly, hoping to ease Roderick’s mind. No fire tonight. We can’t afford to be discovered this close to the ruins.
Roderick turned to me, meeting my eyes with his. In a quiet bewildered voice he said, “There are only five of us. I’ve heard that they have monsters as tall as three men. We’re… we’re doomed if they catch us.”
That sent an unnerving shiver up my spine. I’ve seen a detachment of Ogres in battle before. They were monsters in their own right. But the brutes here... they’re animals. They don’t understand words. They don’t speak. They bellow and roar. It’s terrifying. Stomping and biting with their toothy grins, only using their weapons when they realize there is something heavy chained to their hands. The memories of them are unpleasant, to say the least.
“Roderick, we’ll be fine. We have an army at our backs! Not to mention the finest Ungol archers that we’ve ever assembled. Those creatures won’t make it 10 paces out of the tree line.” Sometimes being a captain means lying to keep morale up. Being this far from home, this far South, makes it difficult at times. I decided to change the topic.
Using my rank to get things going, I asserted to the men beside me. “Asger, you’re up. You and Gunnar have the first watch. Let’s start the rotation. Torbjorn is next. Let’s get some rest.”
Asger responded, “Aye sir. Gunnar, get your bow.” Gunnar was as good of a shot as any. I’ve seen him fire 3 arrows into a target at 100 paces, the last arrow leaving his bow before the first arrow found its mark.
I laid down for my brief rest. 2 hours before it’s my turn to wait at the ready. I rolled to my side, seeing Torbjorn was already out. Roderick was still sitting upright, fiddling with his trinket. “Roderick, get some shut-eye.” He turned his head towards me one last time and nodded. He seemed fine on the ship. Heck, he was fine the first few nights in this blistering hot land. Ever since we found this ruin he’s been tense. I rolled my back to him and closed my eyes for the night.
----------------------------------------------------
Someone was shaking me… I sprung upright, my hand on my dagger instinctively. I had the blade pressed to his side before I realized who it was. Torbjorn looked amused. “Let sleeping dogs lie, hey cap’n?” He knew I couldn’t hurt him. The man was a giant. Chuckling he spoke again, “I couldn’t wake the greenhorn.” pointing half-heartedly at Roderick.
I shook my head. It was throbbing. Sleeping on this soil isn’t my idea of comfortable. Not that the sleep in this sweltering jungle is pleasant, but it should be Roderick’s turn. I reached over to Roderick and placed a hand on his shoulder… Something was wrong. He felt cold. I looked at Torbjorn, “Did he seem sick to you today?” Pulling a piece of jerky from his mouth, Torbjorn shrugged, “He seemed sick ever since we left the fjord.” He turned his back to us and returned to his watch. I looked to Gunnar. He was crawling into his sack already. He shrugged as well, then rolled his back to us. I placed a hand on Roderick’s neck. He had a pulse, but his skin was so cold. He wouldn’t make it through the night. I began looking for some water to try to wake him.
I was hunched over his body when I saw it. Roderick’s talisman. It’s wasn’t from Kislev. It was made of pure gold with emeralds peppering its exterior. It was shaped like a snake. I froze. I knew immediately what was going on. We weren’t alone.
I slowly lifted my head and looked into the tree line. The moonlight lit the trees elegantly, but there was nothing there. Keeping my gaze locked and looking for movement, I said quietly, “Torbjorn, wake the others. We need to be prepared.”
A moment passed. Torbjorn didn’t respond. “Tor…” I turned my head towards his position. He was slumped over. This wasn’t good.
I slowly reached for my dagger. As soon as I placed my hand on the hilt, I felt something cold and damp grasp my wrist. I was paralyzed from fear.
“Nnooohh…” a raspy voice slowly said in my ear. Its breath was wretched. I felt a sharp point pressing against my side. I was in no position to argue. I eased my grip on my dagger.
The creature kept its position. “Sssotek…” it whispered. I didn’t understand. I wasn’t prepared for a conversation. I had no way of communicating. I responded, “So Talk?” This seemed pleasing to the beast, as it eased its grip on my wrist.
Suddenly there were four more figures in front of me! I did not see them approach; they just appeared as if they were some sort of apparitions! I was horribly underprepared for this! They were small, maybe a good foot or more shorter than myself. They were definitely of the draconian race, but they were uglier than others I had encountered before. Their eyes… they didn’t seem normal. They bulged out of their heads and were covered in skin. It was repulsive! And to think one was touching my wrist! Why was I not dead?
One of the figures approached my position. It walked so quietly, no wonder we didn’t notice their approach. And its legs moved like nothing I have ever seen. Slowly but quickly, as if jerking into place almost. It crouched down to my level, Roderick between it and myself. This one’s breath was no better than the others. “Ssssssotek…” it said, the beginning of the phrase sounding that of a snake hissing at its prey.
I looked downward towards Roderick’s talisman, then back at the creature. It seemed to grin slightly, as if it knew what I was thinking. I slowly reached my free hand down to Roderick, prying the talisman from his seemingly lifeless grip. The creature had one eye fixed on me and the other on my hand. How terrible it must be to have such an existence. I raised my hand slowly, with my palm open. With its eyes fixed in the same position, it gently reached out and took the golden trinket from me. With the item returned to its possession, it snapped both eyes back to me. I saw it grin and flick its tongue, before it stepped back towards its companions. As it did I felt the weapon at my side pierce my skin momentarily, then I was released.
I pulled my dagger out once my hand was free, determined to free the creature that apprehended me from its earthly bonds. I turned quickly with my blade ready to plunge, but it was gone! I turned back to my front only to see a glimpse of movement, then nothing. As if the creatures had become invisible! I was infuriated!
I stood to my feet and looked at my men. They were none wiser. I turned to Torbjorn to check on him when I felt it. My vision became cloudy, my head was dizzy. Then I collapsed.
----------------------------------------------------
It was hot. Someone was shaking me. I involuntarily gasped for air as I reached for my dagger, but my muscles felt like they were on fire! It was as if I had drank an entire barrel of mead by myself. I could hear Asger yelling desperately, “Captain! Captain! You’re alive!”
He pulled me upright and threw water in my face. I needed it badly. It helped stave off the heat momentarily, if nothing else. I regained my vision slowly.
“A…Asger.” I said. “We need to… need to report back to the main force. It’s not safe.” I could see the camp had already been cleaned up. There looked to have been heavy foot traffic since last I remembered.
“The forward troops are already here, sir. It’s too late to report back.” Asger said bluntly. “Roderick is dead. Tor and Gunnar can’t be woken. We must have stumbled into something that got the best of us. I couldn’t find it in me to leave you here to be eaten by some wild beast. I’m sorry sir.”
I looked at Asger. “It was no accident, my friend. They know. Prepare for war.” He looked back at me intensely. “Go tell the Commander, Asger.” I ordered. He got up and ran in the direction of the foot traffic. I plopped back onto the dirt, staring into the cloudless sky. Damn, it’s hot.
My thoughts going into this one were largely influenced by watching the show Vikings. I wanted to emulate a new world, borrow some traditional Viking names, and demonstrate how hopeless it is to venture into the territory of the Lizardmen. I dropped the word "Southern" into the title to imply that they were venturing into The Southlands, making the trip from Kislev seem more practical. My main focus besides all that setup was to demonstrate the Predator type hunting abilities of the Chameleon Skink. Even though they're flimsy and pathetic in close combat, their strength is their ability to remain unknown. The commandos of the Lizardmen army. After that things just flowed.
From the "Hope/Vengeance" themed January-February 2017 contest.
Kytzl stopped suddenly on the path. The divining rod began to hum. “That’s new”, he said. He looked back at his lifelong companion, Trakzi. Her massive head was cocked to the side, listening to the unusual humming. She tried to mimic the noise, though her oversized vocal chords couldn’t quite reach that high of a note. The Oracle of the East smiled, yet felt uneasy. Usually the winds of magic were soft on his scales, feeling the gentle pull of the Old Ones guidance to a sacred item. But with this hunt the winds were strong. Sharp even. He could feel the presence in the air when he flicked his tongue, and it stung. “Is this treasuretainted? Where has Sotek sent us?” he thought.
A hissing noise broke his line of thought. He looked back again to see Trakzi drooling. Her acidic spit was reacting with the foliage below her, burning away plant life and curdling leaves.
“What is it girl?” Kytzl quipped. The Troglodon kneeled and lowered her head, inviting her master to her back for safety. Kytzl took the cue and scampered up her spines. Trakzi straightened herself to all fours. Her spines frilled as her head became fixed in one area of the overgrowth. Although she was blind, Kytzl knew she had tracked something. Judging by her behavior they were in for a fight. Kytzl assumed his footing and tightened his grip. He muttered softly, “Get it, girl.”
Trakzi lunged forward, exploding with power. Her jaws made a quick snap into the overgrowth. Kytzl couldn’t see what it was that she had found but he felt that there was a creature in her grip. Trakzi shook her head side to side, violently punishing the poor beast that she had discovered. She took a few slow steps back from the overgrowth and tossed her broken toy to the side. It was a rat. A filthy scavenger. The foul vermin stood no chance against Trakzi. His body was completely shredded, yet cauterized from the spit that was foaming from Trakzi’s mouth. Kytzl was enraged. “How are they this deep into the jungle!” he exclaimed.
He moved to step down from her back, wanting to inspect the lifeless corpse. As he stepped he felt Trakzi’s body tense up. This wasn’t over. “She’s right,” he thought, “where there is one rat there are bound to be others…”
The divining rod’s humming was getting louder. It was making Trakzi restless. “Easy, girl” Kytzl said softly, attempting to calm his companion. Trakzi’s spines flared up. She swung her head to the path, casting a gazeless stare towards an unseen foe. That’s when he heard it. The relic. It was in his head. Kytzl closed his eyes and listened, seeing a plaque. Gold with white. Silver with red. Black yet clear. It was as if it didn’t exist on this plane at all. He focused harder, seeing, listening, tasting. He felt he could understand the symbols. He focused. Focus. Focus…
His body went limp. He slid to the ground beside Trakzi. She swung her head back to feel with her whiskers, finding her faithful and benevolent master sprawled on the ground. The divining rod was humming so loud that it was almost a scream. Trakzi could hear nothing but rod. Her mind was scrambled. But she could smell. And she smelled more rats. Lots of rats.
She turned her head back to the path. They were coming. She could smell them. She could feel them in the earth. She could taste them on the air. She reared up on her hind legs, letting her full height come to bear. She knew the rats could see her. She wanted them to despair.
Taking a large breath she fell back to her forearms and let out and ear shattering roar. The very leaves around her shook. Rocks on the path rattled and moved. She could smell the rat’s fear. She could feel the pitter patter of their feet as they ran. All ran. All but two. One small, one large. It was time to defend her master’s unconscious body.
First the footsteps of the larger rat were slow. Paced. Then they quickened. It was running straight towards her. She could feel the steps in the earth, step, stomp, stomp, similar pacing to the Kroxigor who washed her hide and fought alongside her in many battles. She straightened out in the direction of the stomps and spat. She mucous left her jaws and painted her target. The running became fumbled, clumsy. Now she could smell the rat without question. Two tail lengths in from of her. Perfect.
She lunged forwards with her claws first, slashing at the oversized rat. Her left forearm stuck low and she felt a warm spray on the bottom of her neck. Her right forearm struck high, but was met with a sharp unholy pain. This creature had more arms than she had anticipated. She could feel the breeze of the rats furied strikes before they came close to hitting her hide. If only she could hear!
This fight had gone on long enough. She opened her massive mouth and clamped. She was on one of the rat’s shoulders. It tasted foul. It made her angry. She shook her head violently and the creature struck desperately at her thick hide. A sharp stab in the left side of her neck only increased her anger. She shook harder yet and could feel the life of the rat fading rapidly. She shook until the beast was limp in her jaws. She needed to get back to Kytzl. She dropped the lifeless rat to the earth and turned back to her master.
The divining rod was so loud that she couldn’t even hear her own heartbeat now. As she moved, she felt dizzy. The rat had hit a sensitive part of her neck. She could taste her own blood mixing in with the mucous and bile from the ratkin. Ratkin. Where was the other rat! She tried to hurry her pace back to the Oracle, but something was wrong. The ground was moving. What was happening? Suddenly, she was falling. Did she slip? She clawed in desperation, trying to find something to hold on to. She was panicking! What is happening!?
There was a stillness for a moment. Calm. She remembered being in the swamps with her master, soaking in the sun. She was calm. Then the earth slammed shut around her.
Kytzl felt a sharp pain in his heart. He opened his eyes to see that he wasn’t with his girl. Where was she. The divining rod was screaming in his hand. He looked up to see a rat with a staff standing near him. He sprung to his feet, holding the divining rod ready for attack. The Warpseer yelled in Lizard-tongue, “Your overgrown lizard is now a feast for the Great Horned Rat!” He pointed off to his right. Kytzl barely heard him over the screaming of the divining rod, but he understood. He looked over, seeing the twin tail of his loyal companion sticking out from the ground. His frill dropped. His colors went mute. Kytzl felt a feeling he didn’t understand. Loss.
The Warpseer took advantage of the distracted state of the Oracle. He clasped the plundered plaque that was hanging from his neck and began chanting the same spell he used to kill the Troglodon, closing his eyes. Kytzl saw the rat close his eyes and took action. As quick as lightning, the Oracle firmed up his grip on the divining rod and attacked. The Warpseer couldn’t react fast enough and took the full force of the divining rod to his snout. As it struck, the rod released a great white light and a loud ring. Kytzl couldn’t see or hear, but he continued his savage strikes on the Warpseer.
A moment passed and he could feel his hearing coming back. He slowed his blows and stepped back from the rat he was attacking. As his vision came back, Kytzl realized that the divining rod had finished the rat with the first strike, completely removing the top half of the Warpseer’s head. The rest of his strikes had landed on the body, none with the same effect as the first. The humming had stopped. The breeze of magic he had felt earlier was calmed. He saw the plaque hanging from the Warseer’s neck. He reached down and pulled the treasure off the thief. This was what he had seen. Not nearly as impressive as it was in his trance, but this was it.
Kytzl walked over to the remains of his love. Trakzi’s twin tails stuck straight out and hung over like a tree, offering some protection from the sun. Saddened, Kytzl sat on the ground and leaned against her tail. His vision began to blur as his tears swelled.
After some time passed he started seeing movement. He looked up to see a great swarm of snakes spill forth from the underbrush. Large snakes and small snakes alike. Then another shape appeared, outlined by the setting sun. undoubtedly a fellow Skink, but this one was large. He approached Kytzl and reached out a friendly scaled hand. Kytzl accepted and stood up. This was no Skink. This was the Prophet himself. Tehenhauin placed a hand on both of Kytzl’s shoulders and straightened his frill. “For Sotek.” He said softly. Kytzl straightened his frill in kind, responding, “For Sotek.” Tehenhauin removed his hands and continued his walk. Kytzl could see that he wasn’t alone. Cohorts of Skinks followed in his wake. Kytzl watched as they passed. He reached down and picked up his divining rod. He took the plaque and placed it around his neck now. He placed a hand on his companion one last time. He took a deep breath and followed the Skinks who had walked past. Kytzl had a war to fight. “For Trakzi.” he said under his breath.
A hissing noise broke his line of thought. He looked back again to see Trakzi drooling. Her acidic spit was reacting with the foliage below her, burning away plant life and curdling leaves.
“What is it girl?” Kytzl quipped. The Troglodon kneeled and lowered her head, inviting her master to her back for safety. Kytzl took the cue and scampered up her spines. Trakzi straightened herself to all fours. Her spines frilled as her head became fixed in one area of the overgrowth. Although she was blind, Kytzl knew she had tracked something. Judging by her behavior they were in for a fight. Kytzl assumed his footing and tightened his grip. He muttered softly, “Get it, girl.”
Trakzi lunged forward, exploding with power. Her jaws made a quick snap into the overgrowth. Kytzl couldn’t see what it was that she had found but he felt that there was a creature in her grip. Trakzi shook her head side to side, violently punishing the poor beast that she had discovered. She took a few slow steps back from the overgrowth and tossed her broken toy to the side. It was a rat. A filthy scavenger. The foul vermin stood no chance against Trakzi. His body was completely shredded, yet cauterized from the spit that was foaming from Trakzi’s mouth. Kytzl was enraged. “How are they this deep into the jungle!” he exclaimed.
He moved to step down from her back, wanting to inspect the lifeless corpse. As he stepped he felt Trakzi’s body tense up. This wasn’t over. “She’s right,” he thought, “where there is one rat there are bound to be others…”
The divining rod’s humming was getting louder. It was making Trakzi restless. “Easy, girl” Kytzl said softly, attempting to calm his companion. Trakzi’s spines flared up. She swung her head to the path, casting a gazeless stare towards an unseen foe. That’s when he heard it. The relic. It was in his head. Kytzl closed his eyes and listened, seeing a plaque. Gold with white. Silver with red. Black yet clear. It was as if it didn’t exist on this plane at all. He focused harder, seeing, listening, tasting. He felt he could understand the symbols. He focused. Focus. Focus…
His body went limp. He slid to the ground beside Trakzi. She swung her head back to feel with her whiskers, finding her faithful and benevolent master sprawled on the ground. The divining rod was humming so loud that it was almost a scream. Trakzi could hear nothing but rod. Her mind was scrambled. But she could smell. And she smelled more rats. Lots of rats.
She turned her head back to the path. They were coming. She could smell them. She could feel them in the earth. She could taste them on the air. She reared up on her hind legs, letting her full height come to bear. She knew the rats could see her. She wanted them to despair.
Taking a large breath she fell back to her forearms and let out and ear shattering roar. The very leaves around her shook. Rocks on the path rattled and moved. She could smell the rat’s fear. She could feel the pitter patter of their feet as they ran. All ran. All but two. One small, one large. It was time to defend her master’s unconscious body.
First the footsteps of the larger rat were slow. Paced. Then they quickened. It was running straight towards her. She could feel the steps in the earth, step, stomp, stomp, similar pacing to the Kroxigor who washed her hide and fought alongside her in many battles. She straightened out in the direction of the stomps and spat. She mucous left her jaws and painted her target. The running became fumbled, clumsy. Now she could smell the rat without question. Two tail lengths in from of her. Perfect.
She lunged forwards with her claws first, slashing at the oversized rat. Her left forearm stuck low and she felt a warm spray on the bottom of her neck. Her right forearm struck high, but was met with a sharp unholy pain. This creature had more arms than she had anticipated. She could feel the breeze of the rats furied strikes before they came close to hitting her hide. If only she could hear!
This fight had gone on long enough. She opened her massive mouth and clamped. She was on one of the rat’s shoulders. It tasted foul. It made her angry. She shook her head violently and the creature struck desperately at her thick hide. A sharp stab in the left side of her neck only increased her anger. She shook harder yet and could feel the life of the rat fading rapidly. She shook until the beast was limp in her jaws. She needed to get back to Kytzl. She dropped the lifeless rat to the earth and turned back to her master.
The divining rod was so loud that she couldn’t even hear her own heartbeat now. As she moved, she felt dizzy. The rat had hit a sensitive part of her neck. She could taste her own blood mixing in with the mucous and bile from the ratkin. Ratkin. Where was the other rat! She tried to hurry her pace back to the Oracle, but something was wrong. The ground was moving. What was happening? Suddenly, she was falling. Did she slip? She clawed in desperation, trying to find something to hold on to. She was panicking! What is happening!?
There was a stillness for a moment. Calm. She remembered being in the swamps with her master, soaking in the sun. She was calm. Then the earth slammed shut around her.
Kytzl felt a sharp pain in his heart. He opened his eyes to see that he wasn’t with his girl. Where was she. The divining rod was screaming in his hand. He looked up to see a rat with a staff standing near him. He sprung to his feet, holding the divining rod ready for attack. The Warpseer yelled in Lizard-tongue, “Your overgrown lizard is now a feast for the Great Horned Rat!” He pointed off to his right. Kytzl barely heard him over the screaming of the divining rod, but he understood. He looked over, seeing the twin tail of his loyal companion sticking out from the ground. His frill dropped. His colors went mute. Kytzl felt a feeling he didn’t understand. Loss.
The Warpseer took advantage of the distracted state of the Oracle. He clasped the plundered plaque that was hanging from his neck and began chanting the same spell he used to kill the Troglodon, closing his eyes. Kytzl saw the rat close his eyes and took action. As quick as lightning, the Oracle firmed up his grip on the divining rod and attacked. The Warpseer couldn’t react fast enough and took the full force of the divining rod to his snout. As it struck, the rod released a great white light and a loud ring. Kytzl couldn’t see or hear, but he continued his savage strikes on the Warpseer.
A moment passed and he could feel his hearing coming back. He slowed his blows and stepped back from the rat he was attacking. As his vision came back, Kytzl realized that the divining rod had finished the rat with the first strike, completely removing the top half of the Warpseer’s head. The rest of his strikes had landed on the body, none with the same effect as the first. The humming had stopped. The breeze of magic he had felt earlier was calmed. He saw the plaque hanging from the Warseer’s neck. He reached down and pulled the treasure off the thief. This was what he had seen. Not nearly as impressive as it was in his trance, but this was it.
Kytzl walked over to the remains of his love. Trakzi’s twin tails stuck straight out and hung over like a tree, offering some protection from the sun. Saddened, Kytzl sat on the ground and leaned against her tail. His vision began to blur as his tears swelled.
After some time passed he started seeing movement. He looked up to see a great swarm of snakes spill forth from the underbrush. Large snakes and small snakes alike. Then another shape appeared, outlined by the setting sun. undoubtedly a fellow Skink, but this one was large. He approached Kytzl and reached out a friendly scaled hand. Kytzl accepted and stood up. This was no Skink. This was the Prophet himself. Tehenhauin placed a hand on both of Kytzl’s shoulders and straightened his frill. “For Sotek.” He said softly. Kytzl straightened his frill in kind, responding, “For Sotek.” Tehenhauin removed his hands and continued his walk. Kytzl could see that he wasn’t alone. Cohorts of Skinks followed in his wake. Kytzl watched as they passed. He reached down and picked up his divining rod. He took the plaque and placed it around his neck now. He placed a hand on his companion one last time. He took a deep breath and followed the Skinks who had walked past. Kytzl had a war to fight. “For Trakzi.” he said under his breath.
This story gave me some writer's block when I first started thinking on the theme. I knew I wanted to avoid the "go to" lizards, mainly being Saurus heros and Skink Priests. The idea to use the Troglodon and Oracle was a fun challenge, so I ran with it. I wanted the "boy and dog" relationship as well as the "boy and girl" relationship, and I knew separating their bond would be critical to meeting the theme requirements. What better way to auto-kill a big monster than using Cracks Call! It was fun to think about how things would be described if you can't see them, but I also inadvertently made my task harder by taking away her hearing. I had to go back and rewrite the Trog/Rat Ogre duel to remove any references to her hearing ability. I would like to expand on these characters more, but really it's their relationship that's most intriguing.
The title of this one was supposed to be a play on what "Duty" means, as well as what things in life are "Sacred". In this case I was going for the duality of a godly ordained prerogative as well as a loving and trusting relationship.
The title of this one was supposed to be a play on what "Duty" means, as well as what things in life are "Sacred". In this case I was going for the duality of a godly ordained prerogative as well as a loving and trusting relationship.
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It is interesting to describe things around you without being able to see them. I tried to rely on my knowledge of how Dare Devil sees things in the Netflix series. Objects take shape but are ill defined, yet defined enough to decipher basic information.
