Chapter 22 - Kill Ten Hordelings (Part Eight).

Sehro was the first to react, even faster than Neeka. He drew a dagger from a bandolier around his chest and slung it at the leading Hordeling Spawn as it opened its mouth to screech at Ihza. The blade vanished into the toothy maw of the hordeling and a bright red -54 (critical hit) floated upwards. The hordeling stumbled and tripped over its talons as it rolled around on the dirt, trying to dislodge the shard of blue crystal that pierced the roof of its mouth. This forced the other two Hordeling Spawns to shift their course around the first, giving Ihza and Hari time to react.

Hari snagged his two-handed axe-spear with his claws, pulling it free from the baldric on his back, and charged towards the hordeling left of the cave entrance. He brought the chopping side of the axe-spear's blade downward and slammed it into the chitin armor of the hordeling. A -22 (resisted) floated upwards and Hari cursed at the monstrous spawn. Strik mostly faded away from sight as the scales visible around his clothing blended seamlessly with the stone behind him. He stumbled away from the third hordeling that was heading for him despite the camouflage.

Ihza grabbed her bow and a clawful of arrows before falling back behind Søren and Neeka. The arrows clattered to the ground at her feet as she dropped all but one of them. She strung the bow and took aim at the one stalking Strik. She loosed the arrow, but it scraped off the chitin armor and snapped against the stone of the mountain behind it. The shaft of the arrow had broken, but it looked like the arrowhead was still whole. Neeka took this opportunity to leap over the small fire that had been started in the middle of camp and brought her spear down over her head into the joint beside the first hordeling's talon. The screech in pain was cut off as a -122 (critical hit) spun away out of sight. The Speaker of the Water Finders kicked the hordeling off her spear and chased after the spawn hunting Strik.

*ding* 1 / 11 Hordeling Spawn slain.

Your group has defeated a Hordeling Spawn (Copper I). (1/11)

You have earned 10 TEK. (1000 / 2100)

You have gained 10 reputation with Water Finders.

You have lost 10 reputation with Umber Horde.

You have lost 5 reputation with The Collective.

Søren watched all this a little slack jawed at the display of martial prowess from Neeka, Hari, and Sehro. Hari's attack had looked powerful, but the hordelings chitin armor blocked most of the damage. I should help Hari, he decided quickly and dashed across the flat and dusty plateau towards the hordeling Hari had taken a defensive stance towards. Søren leapt onto the back of the Hordeling Spawn, his weight and size overbalancing it fairly easily. He wrapped his arms around the creature's midsection and heaved it onto its back, exposing the weaker underbelly of the hordeling to Hari.

Hari spun the spear around and jammed it, point first, into the gap between the joints of its smaller legs and the upper shell of the chitin armor of the hordeling. Another critical hit for the Fuervan's and Søren. He watched the hordeling squirm in pain as -57 (critical hit) floated upwards. Hari twisted the spear and both he and Søren heard something snap and crunch inside the hordeling.

*ding* 2 / 11 Hordeling Spawn slain.

Your group has defeated a Hordeling Spawn (Copper I). (2/11)

You have earned 10 TEK. (1010 / 2100)

You have gained 10 reputation with Water Finders.

You have lost 10 reputation with Umber Horde.

You have lost 5 reputation with The Collective.

Søren released the Hordeling and looked over to the last one left. It had launched itself at Strik, despite his camouflage ability. It was useless against the eyeless spawns. Strik was able to bring his spear up in time to deflect the talon attack from his chest, but it deflected it downward into his leg. The serrated edge sliced along the side of Strik's leg, shearing through the hide armor and scales as if they weren't there. Strik screamed in pain and stabbed downward with his spear, scoring a minor hit along the side of the hordelings shell and fracturing one of the smaller legs that had stuck out a little too far. -12 (resisted) floated past Strik's face.

Ihza turned her eyes towards the cave mouth and had an arrow nocked and ready in case anything else appeared. Neeka arrived behind the last hordeling, flanking it with Strik. She stabbed the spear beneath the hordeling and lifted upwards, toppling the hordeling onto its back. It screeched out in protest at the sudden change in its orientation to the ground.

Strik came to his senses and stabbed down blindly with the spear, scraping the point across the chitin armor before it lodged itself in the gap between two pieces of the underbelly. He leaned heavily on the spear and shoved downwards. The tip pierced through the tough sinews that help the different sections of the chitin shell of the hordelings together. A -14 slipped past Strik and Neeka, vanishing into the night sky above them.

The hordeling screeched in pain again and swiped at Strik blindly with both talons, only succeeding in knocking the Fuerven around a bit, bruising his leg. Two more Hordeling Spawns trundled out of the mouth of the cave. The first taking an arrow into its mouth as Ihza let loose. The strike pierced the tongue, dealing a moderate amount of damage -19, and exited the out the bottom of its jaw. The arrow was stuck in its mouth and caused the hordeling to wail piteously as it tried to dislodge the arrow.

Hari was busy trying to yank his axe-spear from the corpse of the first hordeling. Søren drew the pulse plasma pistol from his side and squeezed the trigger mechanism almost before it was no longer attached to his leg. The bolt of plasma flashed across the plateau, illuminating the area with a brief, burst of angry orange-red light. The bolt then struck the same hordeling Ihza had attacked and burned through the chitin shell, deep into the hordelings nerve cluster which exploded as the plasma caused all the moisture inside to flash into steam. -244 🔥 (critical hit, vulnerable)

"Holy shit!" Søren exclaimed loudly.

Congratulations Traveler! You have earned the [Quickdraw] perk for killing an enemy of a higher rank than you within one second of drawing your ranged weapon. This perk allows you to draw your ranged weapons more quickly and reduces the penalty for making a ranged attack within three seconds of drawing your weapon. Higher ranks of the perk further increases your draw speed and can negate the quickdraw attack penalty completely.

*ding* 3 / 11 Hordeling Spawn slain.

Your group has defeated a Hordeling Spawn (Copper II). (3/11)

You have earned 25 TEK. (1035 / 2100)

You have gained 25 reputation with Water Finders.

You have lost 25 reputation with Umber Horde.

You have lost 10 reputation with The Collective.

Søren swiped the notifications away and scrambled to his feet. Hari had finally ripped his axe-spear free of the first hordeling to attack and charged towards the fifth hordeling spawn that had exited the cave. Neeka spun her spear around and stabbed downwards before the hordeling between her and Strik could right itself. Her attack punctured the membrane between the top shell of the chitin armor and plunged into the innards of the hordeling. Her attack dealt a large amount of damage -54 (critical hit) and finished off the hordeling. Dark blue blood, black as night in the failing light of the evening sun, spilled out of its maw onto the stone.

*ding* 4 / 11 Hordeling Spawn slain.

Your group has defeated a Hordeling Spawn (Copper I). (4/11)

You have earned 10 TEK. (1045 / 2100)

You have gained 10 reputation with Water Finders.

You have lost 10 reputation with Umber Horde.

You have lost 5 reputation with The Collective.

Hari interposed his body and spear between the last hordeling and the rest of the group. It lunged forward with unearthly speed as it activated its [Adrenal Surge] ability. The Fuerven spearman was not prepared for the speed with which the hordeling struck however. One talon speared into Hari's upper thigh. The other buried itself in his gut. The pain caused Hari to drop his spear. Despite that, Hari had the presence of mind to reach out and grab on to the Hordeling to keep it from yanking the talons free and dealing more damage. Hari's health dropped over a hundred points, bringing him to roughly a third of his total health.

Søren slapped the plasma pistol against his leg, ran over to Hari, and scooped up the two handed axe-spear from the ground.

"No move Hari!" he shouted at the Fuerven. He swung the axe-spear downward, aiming at the joints of the hordeling's talons. The heavy blade chopped through the nearest talon, severing it from the body. Søren watched the -21 (resisted) damage from the attack float upwards. Both the hordeling and Hari screamed in pain from the attack. Neeka appeared on the other side and struck the joint of the other talon with a precise strike that severed it cleanly from the hordelings body. -20 (resisted) wafted upwards with the other damage notifications. Neeka saw Søren's gaze tracking the numbers and hissed at him sharply.

"Do not watch the numbers, watch the enemy," Neeka growled.

Hari staggered backwards after being freed from the hordeling and collapsed to the ground, unconscious. Strik faded into the stones again, a patchwork of rough hide armor, bloodied scales, and stone grey scales. Sehro drew two arrows from his quiver, dashed forwards a few steps to stand over Hari, and shot the hordeling, point blank. The arrows vanished into the toothy maw of the creature and silenced it with a pair of critical hits. -48 (critical hit), -52 (critical hit)

*ding* 5 / 11 Hordeling Spawn slain.

Your group has defeated a Hordeling Spawn (Copper II). (5/11)

You have earned 25 TEK. (1070 / 2100)

You have gained 25 reputation with Water Finders.

You have lost 25 reputation with Umber Horde.

You have lost 10 reputation with The Collective.

Ihza advanced towards the cave entrance, an arrow knocked in her bow. She peered into the shadows and listened as everyone else caught their breath for a moment.

"Look clear!" she called back a few moments later. Søren tossed down Hari's spear and moved over to the fallen Fuerven. He ripped his pack free from his back and started digging into the satchel. He set aside a jar of the antibiotic ointment, the bottle of water purification tablets, and a handful of bandages and the wraps.

"Get water," Søren shouted at the others, not caring who assisted. He ripped open one of the large bandages and pointed at the hordeling talon in Hari's leg. "Neeka!"

Neeka set aside her spear and kneeled next to Hari. She carefully wrapped her hands around the talon and sunk her claws into the chitin to increase her grip. She swiftly yanked the talon out of Hari's leg. Dirt -- no, his name is Søren -- slapped the large squares of white, gauzy cloth onto the wound and clamped his hands around the leg.

"Hold these please," Søren said to Neeka. He gestured at the bandages. She had only caught one word in three, but got the gist of what he was asking. She pressed down on the thick layer of bandages and tightened her claws slightly to hold them in place. Ihza brought over a gourd that the Fuerven used for carrying water and handed it to Søren. Sehro took up watch at the cavern entrance to replace Ihza.

Neeka watched the Traveler from elsewhere dig out the bottle full of tiny white stones. He focused his gaze on the bottle for a moment and then and shoved it into the gourd. Søren capped the gourd with his thumb and swirled the water around inside. He then waited thirty heartbeats before opening the gourd again and set it to the side. He grabbed the talon in Hari's gut and yanked the talon free. Blood pooled in the wound and spilled over the edges onto the stone beneath Hari. Søren lifted the gourd and spilled the water into the wound, letting it pour until the water ran out.

"More water," Søren asked. He dropped another tablet into the gourd and held it up for Ihza to take. Søren patted the wound dry with some bandages and then dipped his fingers into the jar of ointment. He slathered a fair amount into the wound on Hari's side, spreading some around the edges as well. Søren was finishing dressing the wound when Ihza returned with the gourd full of water. The process of dressing the wounds was repeated for the wound in Hari's leg and then the scrape that Strik had taken from the attack he had partially deflected away from his vital organs.

Neeka looked at the bars on the side of her view that represented the group's health and endurance bars. Strik's minor wound was already starting to mend as the power of the Lesser Ring of Health kicked in. Hari's had stabilized at about a tenth of the width, no longer dropping. Hari would have died, not for the ring, she thought. Close call. Surrin is good person.

Neeka crouched down next to Søren.

"Thank you Surrin," she said to him and then joined Sehro at the cave entrance.

Søren sat back against a small outcrop of rock that jutted from the side of the mountain and took in the scene. Bloody bandages were scattered across the stone, as were their packs and supplies. They had been knocked over in the first moments of the scrum and then kicked around during. Ihza knelt next to Hari, her forehead held to his as she keened softly. Sehro had taken up watch at the cave entrance and Strik was off to the side staring at Søren. Neeka crouched down next to Søren.

"Thank you Surrin," she said to him, before walking away. Søren just nodded, weary and a bit shell shocked with slightly glazed over eyes. He brought up some notifications that had stacked up during and after the combat.

Congratulations Traveler! You have learned the [Unarmed Combat] skill. This skill grants you basic proficiency with making unarmed and defending against attacks using parts of your body such as fists, claws, or fangs. Achieve a rank of Copper V to specialize in specific styles of unarmed combat. Congratulations Traveler! You have learned the [Ranged Attack] skill. This skill grants you basic proficiency with a large variety of ranged weapons such as bows, crossbows, pistols, and rifles. Achieve a rank of Copper V to specialize in specific types of ranged weapons. Congratulations Traveler! You have learned the [Melee Attack] skill. This skill grants you basic proficiency with a large variety of melee weapons such as small blades, long blades, spears, and polearms. Achieve a rank of Copper V to specialize in specific types of melee weapons. Congratulations Traveler! You have learned three of the five basic skills: [Melee Attack], [Melee Defense], [Ranged Attack], [Ranged Defense], and [Unarmed Combat]. Complete your training to increase your rank to Copper I. Congratulations Traveler! Your [First Aid] skill has ranked up to Copper II. Wounds you treat are less likely to become infected and heal 5% faster.

I really should figure out how to select a path, Søren thought, as he swiped the notifications away. Maybe in a few minutes. After I catch my breath. Off to the side, Ihza still knelt next to Hari, cradling his head in her clawed hands. She turned her head and both eyes to Søren and then lowered her head to her chest and held it there for a few moments.

Deep in the Mourning Cave, the nest of the Hordeling Monarch had grown to the size of a small boulder the size of a large boulder (or rather, elephant sized). The mottled brown carapace of the exterior shuddered and an orifice leaking a white ichor quivered. Moments later, a Hordeling Spawn in a milky white caul slid out of the orifice as it expanded with a ripping sound. The amniotic sac split open when it hit the floor and a foul, vinegar smell permeated the funerary chamber of the Fuerven Speakers. The newly born hordeling chewed on the remnants of the caul and other bits of flesh splattered on the ground around it.

Defeat the Hordeling Monarch

A Hordeling Monarch is attempting to gain control of a Resurrection Shard in the Mourning Cave. Stop her before it's too late for Caisleán. A monarch that gains control of a Resurrection Shard can convert it into a Hordeling Den and spawn an endless horde of Hordelings.

0 / 1 Hordeling Monarch slain

0 / 5 Hordeling slain

5 / 12 Hordeling Spawn slain

Rewards

• 100 TEK

• 3 settlement build points

• [Uncommon] engram