Strange Companions pt. 8

Dermott looked bad. Pale and coated in a sheen of greasy sweat, the barbarian trailed behind Jon and Dako. The rogue wasn't spry either, his face twisted in a grimace of effort as he led the way up an increasingly steep stone path.

Dako found himself using his hands at points where the tunnel felt more vertical than horizontal. His arms were burning with the effort and his fingers were numb, bloodied nubs from scrabbling at the rock. Jon claimed this was the way out, but other than the incline, there was no sign they were on the right path. The wizard prayed it was true and that Jon wasn't just blowing smoke. Even so, with kobolds and an angry dragon behind, there was no way to go but forward.

Fear of pursuit was one thing, but knowing that somewhere up this hellish slope there was an open sky and wind, sunlight - that was the best reason to carry on. If the wizard needed reminding, he had only to look behind him. Dermott held his fevered gaze to the path ahead with single minded determination. The barbarian had the right of it. Focus on the goal and not the path. Dako hoped that was enough to see them through, Dermott especially. 

If the barbarian fell, neither he, nor Jon could lift the big man. Dermott would be stuck here beneath the rocks and dirt in the darkness he loathed. It was not the kind of fate you wanted for a friend. It still sounded odd, to think of the barbarian as a friend, but after all they'd been through what else would he be?

I wish there was something I could do to help, Dako thought glumly. For all I know, there's a spell in this books that would have us to the top in a heartbeat. The wizard shook his head. Even if there was, it could take hours to research and they likely would not have the components to cast it. And, though Dako would never admit it aloud, he was loath to lose another spell from the tome. Dermott's life balanced against knowledge lost. The wizard felt a stab of guilt as he kept his pace and left the book where it was.

"Stop." Jon's voice came strained and sharp. Dako stopped immediately and behind him, Dermott stumbled. The barbarian slid a few steps back and caught himself with his hands. 

"Don't look at me like that, wizard," Dermott said. "I'm still holdin' and what're you ta do if I fall? Too bony fer a cushion and too dainty fer much else." He gave a wheezing laugh.

Dako tried to smile. "I was going to offer my hand but I see how it is."

"Damn right that's how it is," the barbarian grinned, sweat dripping off his nose.

Jon threw them both an angry glare. "If you're done flirting?" He waited a few breaths, and then nodded. "I heard something ahead. Sounded like a bird."

Dermott's face lit up, and panting, he scrambled a few steps higher. 

"Don't be so bloody excitable," the rogue said, harsh voice belied by the worried look he gave his companion.

"Don't mother hen me," the barbarian growled and motioned them forward. 

Jon scoffed and went back to the climbing with the other two tagging behind.

The wizard kept his head down, body moving and mind wandering. What would grandfather say if he saw me now, Dako wondered. He'd survived a dragon, kobolds, and this awful cave but what did he have to show for it? Nothing his grandsire would credit. It didn't matter. I'm never going back there, he thought. 

Dako had a plan. A better one than he'd had when setting off from home to find a teacher anyhow. He would track down the owner of the spellbook, Elhiaj Rykobel, and as a reward, ask to be taught. If the owner was dead, well, maybe he had family that could recommend a mentor, or an apprentice. It was the best lead he had in a quest he refused to give up. The need to know more burned hot in the young wizard, and it meant more to him than any other thing. Even Dermott, he thought guiltily. 

Behind him, the barbarian let out a wheezing whoop. It startled Dako so much that he slipped, barely catching himself. 

"Gods damn it, Dermott! Are you trying to bring every hungry beast down on us?" Jon asked waspishly.

"Light," the barbarian panted. "I see it." 

Dako looked up, but all he saw was Jon's legs and more unyielding rock. "I don't see anything?"

"Yer blind," Dermott groaned and surged forward. He scrambled up almost even with the wizard before his arms gave out. He fell heavily, sliding down aways before coming to a stop.

Jon gave an exasperated sigh. "Didn't I tell you not to get too excited?"

The barbarian didn't reply.

Dako watched him for a moment, breath held, but the big man didn't stir. "I think he's out," the wizard said finally.

"I told him, didn't I? He knows we can't carry him!" Jon slid down past Dako to the barbarian's side. He carefully rolled him over, keeping the angle right to stop any further slipping. Dermott's eyes were open and staring.

Jon jerked back as if slapped. "Well. Shit." 

Speechless, Dako felt hot tears well up in the corners of his eyes. I should have done something, he thought. I just let him die. 

"We need to keep moving," the rogue said, voice hoarse with emotion. Jon scrubbed a hand over his face, adopting a blank expression. 

"It's ok," the wizard said, feeling lost. What did you say when someone died? A companion, a friend no matter how strangely met. His own tears fell freely as the shock wore off.

Jon grimaced, "It's not ok! Nothing about this is alright. How dare you cry, you mincing little whelp?" He looked ready to do violence. 

Dako shrunk back from him. "Dermott was my friend too." 

The rogue took a deep breath, hands shaking. After a moment he nodded. "I know it. I just want someone to blame that isn't me."

"I do blame myself. I started all this and-" And I could have ended it too, maybe. But the wizard couldn't bring himself to say it aloud.

Jon shrugged. "Doesn't matter now." He started trudging back up the path.

"We're just going to leave him like that? If the kobolds find him, they'll eat him. Or worse!" Dako wasn't sure what they could do to Dermott's body, but his imagination was more than happy to come up with terrible ideas.

"You volunteering to carry him?" 

"I might," the wizard said. He closed his eyes and pulled a pinch of iron dust from his spell pouch. As he spoke the words of power, his body grew, swelling and changing until the wizard was as big as a troll. 

Jon raised an eyebrow. "Well?

Dako lowered himself down and tried to lift the body. 

The rogue watched him struggle. "Even if you're strong enough to lift him, how are you going to manage that and the hill? We are wasting time over a - a dead man."

The wizard ignored him, determined not to leave Dermott behind.

Jon heaved a sigh and rummaged in his sack. He pulled out a rope and began making loops in it. Once he was done, the rogue slid back down to Dermott's body.

"Is that a harness?" Dako eyed the rope and made a guess. 

"What do you think?" Jon gestured to the body. "Hold him still, will you?"

The wizard did as asked and then it was his turn to be yoked to Dermott. The rope went over Dako's shoulders and across his chest, pressing uncomfortably into his armpits. "Is it supposed to fit like this?"

Jon scowled. "It's supposed to fit however it needs to so you can drag this and still keep your hands free." 

"Alright," the wizard sighed and bent back to the slope. It wasn't easy even with new strength from the spell infusing his limbs. The body was an awkward weight that shifted and moved on its own as Dako climbed.

Guilt made the burden a penance. I will make it up to him, the wizard decided. Once they got to civilization, he'd pay to have the barbarian resurrected. Surely it couldn't be that hard to have done. Just find a cleric, pay a fee, and Dermott would be back to his old self. Of course, that meant getting the body to civilization too. How much does a cleric need? Probably the whole thing.

Dermott would be pretty unhappy coming back to half a body. Or would that get fixed too? Dako realized the depth of his ignorance. At home the clerics passed through on their way to more interesting places, never staying more than a night or two. Dako saw very little of their magic or how it worked. Prayer, he supposed. Jon would know, if he was willing to talk. The rogue should be more than happy to help if it meant getting his friend back. 

Dako was pulled from his thoughts by a cold, sweet breeze. I ruffled the hair of his eyebrows and sent a shiver up his back. It was hard not to hurry, but exhaustion and Dermott's heavy body kept the wizard plodding. The closer they got, the more excited Dako became. He watched as the cavern walls warmed from grey to ochre until at last the stone gave way to open sky. 

The first ray of sunshine nearly made Dako cry, and not just from the way it burned his eyes. He collapsed in the dry grass beside Dermott and stared up at the heavens. Red-stained clouds and golden light faded to royal purples and died in deep blue. The wizard was sure there had never been a sunset so beautiful, nor would there be again. 

I never want to be underground again, the wizard thought. As the stars came out to greet them, Dako felt his flesh contract, melting in on itself until he was small again. The feeling was unpleasant, but worth it. He looked down at Dermott and wished his friend could appreciate this moment with him. For all I know, some part of him is with me, the wizard thought.

Dako pointed up at the Eyes of Uelaereene, a constellation named for an ancient and wise elven queen. "She's watching us," he told his friend. 

"Are you talking to it?" Jon asked. He was crouched in a small dirt clearing, piling up dry grass and twigs for a fire.

Dako shrugged, "What if I am? Who's to say if his spirit is still here or if he has gone?" 

"He's dead. You're talking to a sack of meat." The rogue looked away, huddling closer to his work. Jon would grieve when there was no one there to see it.

"We can bring him back," the wizard replied. "We just need to get him to a cleric." Dako smiled. "I was hoping you knew how to go about it." He knew better than to try to comfort the surly rogue again. With any luck, Jon would jump at the chance to bring Dermott back. The rogue was silent for so long that Dako thought he wouldn't answer. He started to untie the harness and stopped as Jon spoke.

"First, we have to get him to a big city. All of him, if we can. The less there is, the more they charge. Then you've got to find a cleric willing to raise a filthy son-of-a-bitch like Dermott. That's harder. Temple of Umberlee, maybe, or Beshaba."

He stopped to blow on the spark and the dry grasses burst into flame. "It'll cost more than money, I promise you that. Then you need to worry about whether or not it will work. Dermott might've gone on. Sometimes there's no getting the dead back."

"I'm willing to pay the cost, whatever it is," Dako replied. 

Jon grunted. "That's 'cause you're a naive little whelp."

"But you'll help me anyway?" The wizard leaned forward, face full of hope.

"If you'll pay the price, I guess I can't say no. Just remember, you and that big idiot owe me. And if he doesn't come back, you'll pay double." The rogue sat back and crossed his arms. In the firelight his face looked carved from oak, hard and stern.

"Triple if I must," Dako agreed.