Chapter 15: The Monsters in the Cave, Part 2

Daniel Shen was Samira's son. Apparently, he and his friend Thomas had gone out for a ride, and been ambushed by bugbears when they'd gotten too close to the forest. Thomas barely got away, battered and bloody from his fall off his horse, but Daniel had been taken.

Samira wanted to get every able body in town into a party to go after him, and had already started giving orders to ring the city bell and call for volunteers when Arden reminded her that they were in the room. The headwoman wasn't particularly in the mood to entrust the fate of her son to strangers, but it would take time to rally together a rescue party from the townsfolk, and the outsiders were ready to leave now. In the end, she gave them her permission to go, though she continued to muster a force of her own.

And so the three of them set off, borrowing horses from the stable under Egon's name and riding off to where Thomas had last seen Daniel alive.

List had expected to have to follow Valerie and Arden's lead to know when they were at the spot, assuming it would take some sort of monster hunter's instinct to pick up the trail.

She was more than able to figure it out herself when she saw the blood.

The ragged remains of what used to be a horse spattered the dirt trail they'd been following, carrion birds tearing away at it. They were so engrossed in their meal, they didn't scatter until Arden sent a pulse of divine power rippling out from his pendant. The blood was everywhere, but much of it formed a dragging trail that led off the path, and into the hills and brush.

They pulled their horses to a stop, List having to fight to keep hers under control in the face of the carnage. Arden quieted his own mount with a prayer, and slipped out of his saddle.

"Valerie, get the horses tied down. The terrain won't suit them from here," he instructed as he strode toward the scene.

Valerie got to work immediately, leading her horse and Arden's far enough away from the mess that they wouldn't be agitated, and far enough away from the trail that an enterprising thief wouldn't stumble on them and get any ideas. List guided her horse over the same way, but as soon as Valerie had that in hand, List went to join Arden.

The scholar stooped low over the scene, his cane tucked under his arm as he crouched. His eyes swept over every bit of flesh and bone, scanning them for answers. Eventually, he stood back up.

"Valerie?" he prompted.

The blonde girl had only just come over from dealing with the horses. She looked over the scene with the same eyes Arden had given the scene, though she took longer, and her gaze lingered in several places. List found herself looking over the scene too, trying to see whatever they were seeing.

"Ambush," Valerie said finally. She gave the scene another once over, as if watching the events unfold as she described them. "Something caught them by surprise. Something strong. The horse had its legs wrenched out from under it in the attack, and the rider fell off. There were . . . "

She paused, staring hard at everything around them, as if the details she was reading were fuzzy. "Two, three attackers? The rider of the horse didn't get far after he fell, but he was alive when they took him. That direction."

"Well done," Arden said, tapping his cane. "And all consistent with a bugbear attack."

List didn't see how they'd gotten half of that, and said as much, and Arden inclined his head.

"The tracks and other indentations tell most of the story. The remains tell the rest," he stated. "Once you know the signs to look for—"

"Sounds fascinating," List said. "Can you find them?"

"We wouldn't be terribly good hunters if we couldn't," Arden said. "Bugbears are quite studious about saving some food for later. If we move quickly, we might even be in time to save the boy. Valerie?"

Valerie suddenly looked worried. "Dr. Siren, if we're trying to hurry, I don't think I should be the one following the trail."

"You would be surprised how effective pressure and stakes can be as an improvement aid," Arden said. "Lead the way."

Valerie's worry lasted only a moment longer before she steeled herself, nodded, and started off after the trail. The blood initially made things easy to follow, but to her credit, even once it stopped being so easy to spot, she worked quickly and confidently, and only twice paused to make sure she was still on the trail.

In only a few hours, they found themselves outside of a small cave nestled into the side of a hill, with a smell lingering in the air that reminded Valerie and Arden of a sewer, and List of one of the worst places she'd ever slept.

"Is that usually what a bugbear den smells like?" List asked.

"No. They're usually worse," Arden said. "Approach carefully, and stay quiet. Bugbears can be difficult to catch unawares, but it could be what makes the difference."

"Don't suppose either of you have a spare weapon I can borrow?" List asked.

Arden raised an eyebrow, and reached into his coat. "As it happens, I have a spare training implement for Valerie that I believe you can get some use out of."

And then he produced a whip, holding it out to List.

"You people know I know how to use other things besides a whip, right?" List asked, even as she smiled and took it.

"No," Arden said with a too-earnest smile on his face. "I did not."

List stopped, realizing that Valerie and Arden had, in fact, only ever seen her fight with a whip, a broom, and technically her teeth if Valerie counted their struggle against the mob that tried to hang them.

"Well, it'll have to do,"  she said.

And so they descended into the cave.

---

Daniel Shen was going to die, alone and bloody in a stinking hole in the ground. He'd just wanted to get out of the noise of town for a bit, go for a ride with Thomas, and clear his head. And then the world went upside down as monster from the hills killed his horse right out from under him. One of his legs was broken at the very least. His head was throbbing, and he'd been in and out of consciousness. He'd vomited at least once, though whether that was because of the head trauma or just the smell, he wasn't sure.

The cave he found himself in was actually fairly roomy, but it wasn't nearly big enough to make him feel better about sharing the space with four bugbears. The beasts were easily eight feet tall, with gangly long arms that came all the way down to the ground. Hair, matted with dirt and blood, covered their entire bodies, save for their gnarled, almost bat-like faces. And their eyes. Daniel was never going to forget those massive, golden eyes with their unsettlingly beady pupils.

He could still hear them crunching on pieces of his horse they'd taken along with him. He was next, he knew. The thought made him cry. Then he realized he couldn't hear them chewing anymore.

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"Oh dear," a voice echoed in the darkness. "They've noticed us."

"Seriously? After all that talk about approaching carefully?"

"I did say this could happen."

"Dr. Siren, we can't fight if we can't see!"

One of the bugbears let out a low growl and barked at the others, who snarled in turn. Daniel heard movement, but it was too hard to see what was happening in the dark.

Then one of the voices from earlier shouted something in a language Daniel didn't understand, the entire cave lit up like daylight. The light hurt Daniel's eyes and gave him a splitting headache. The last thing he saw before blacking out again was three figures, rushing into the cave with what looked like a tiny sun behind them.

Daniel knew for sure he was dead then.

As the light of his prayer, illuminated the cave, Arden took in their situation, and began to shout commands.

"Valerie, List, wait for me to draw their attention, then circle around to protect the boy!"

Unfortunately, he only got as far as "attention" before List gave a battle cry of her own, and charged straight ahead. Valerie shot him an apologetic look as she loaded her wristbow, and Arden sighed. If nothing else, at least he would get to see how the girl fought for himself.

List was a whirlwind with the whip, lashing out at the bugbears as she tried to stay out of their own considerable reach. She caught one across the bridge of its nose, used her other hand to redirect the whip into another's chest, and then leapt out of the way of a third's attack while swinging wildly. So wildly, in fact, one of her backswings actually struck Arden's hat, but he managed to catch it before it tumbled out of reach.

She had the bugbear's attention, but had left little more than welts or minor gashes in their hides. But then her tattoos began to glow, and red lightning spread across the length of the whip.

List faced the closest bugbear charging her down, and with a crack that sent red lightning arcing through the air all around her, she sliced one of its arms off at the elbow. A victorious grin spread across her face, replaced by panic an instant later as the bugbear kept charging, and slammed into her with its entire body.

She fell to the ground, and had just enough time to register the maw of teeth looming over her before a beam of golden light lanced through the air, vaporizing the creature's head from the neck up.

List met Arden's eyes from across the cave, and the scholar gave her a small smile. She did not return it.

Valerie rushed along the edge of the battle, trying to go unnoticed as she made her way toward a—hopefully—unconscious Daniel at the back of the cave. When she was halfway, one of the bugbears noticed her, and ran for her, thundering along as it propelled itself forward with its arms.

She put a wrist bolt through its neck without slowing down, reloaded, and took another shot. The second missed her target, taking off the bugbear's ear instead of piercing it between the eyes. She groaned, frustrated, and reloaded her weapon one last time even as the monster beared down on her. She was fast, but so was the bugbear, and by the time she had her wristbow's arms locked back, the creature loomed over her. She shot at point blank range, sinking a bolt straight into its eye socket. She'd still been aiming for between its eyes, but when the beast fell over dead anyway, she didn't complain.

She caught sight of List on the other side of the cave, her whip wrapped around a bugbear's throat, clinging to the monster's back as it thrashed and clawed at her.

"If either of you want to shoot this thing, I won't stop you!" List shouted.

Valerie reacted, sinking a bolt into its collar bone. It didn't kill the bugbear, but List seized the bolt, ripped it free of the monster's hide, and started stabbing.

Arden stayed back, watching the girls work until one of the bugbears peeled away from List and came for him. The priest shook his head dismissively as the monster came. It swung for him, and he ducked beneath the blow. Its next swipe, he leapt back and out of the way of. He didn't give it a third attempt, bringing the head of his cane down on the creature's head, then against its jaw.

The blows left the creature dazed, and Arden took the opportunity to speak a prayer for strength. When he drove his cane forward, its end punched straight through the bugbear's chest and pierced its heart. The bugbear's roars died out in an instant, and it collapsed to the ground in a heap.

List's last bugbear took an inconsiderately long time to die for something with a dozen holes in its neck, but eventually, it too went crashing to the ground.

"And stay down!" she spat.

Arden watched as she stood panting over the body, the light from her tattoos long gone, stray sparks dancing across her skin, and a smile on her face. She looked like she'd just finished some particularly rewarding exercise.

She was sloppy, uncareful and unaware of her surroundings, and she desperately needed a proper weapon. But she took to violent, life and death situations like a fish to water, to the degree she seemed to outright enjoy them. Even he only typically felt a sense of quiet satisfaction after a battle was over. And that power she wielded. For a moment, she'd turned a whip into a weapon more lethal than a sword.

After observing List in the fight, Arden was reminded of Valerie. So much untapped potential.

And so much to be afraid of.

"Dr. Siren," Valerie called, already at Daniel Shen's side. "He's still alive, but he's hurt pretty bad. He's going to need healing to make it back to Shadefall."

With a word from Arden, healing power washed over the boy, treating the worst of his injuries and bringing him to stable condition. He could have used a more powerful prayer to restore the boy completely, but for now, Arden was satisfied with getting him out of danger. Even he could only channel so much divine power before it began to strain his body, and even though he hadn't neared that limit, it was important to pace himself.

"Keep an eye on him," Arden instructed.

"Shouldn't we just get him out of here?" List asked.

"You forget," Arden said, "we are researchers as much as hunters, and I'd prefer to examine as much of this place. The boy will live, though you can always take him out of the cave if you'd prefer."

List shook her head, marveling at the detachment in Arden's voice. She didn't even consider herself all that considerate a person, and even she would have thought the priority here would be getting Daniel as far away from here as quickly as possible.

But she wasn't in charge, so she left Arden to his work, and joined Valerie looking over the still unconscious Daniel.

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