Chapter 4.13 L
Published
February 17, 2018
Word Count
12,642
Link
Previous | Next |
|---|---|
Chapter List |
|---|
Chapter 4.13 L is the 14th chapter of Volume 4 and Book 5, The Last Light. The L stands for Liscor.
tl;dr[edit | edit source]
The Painted Antinium get more accepted by Liscorians. Anand and Belgrade get injured fighting the dungeon. Pawn looses Painted Soldiers and paints their markings on a wall.
Synopsis[edit | edit source]
- Pawn brings his soldiers through Liscor, and each day as the soldiers bring back the corpses of the monsters that they've defeated the people of the city have slowly begun to accept and recognise them. During their morning excursion Pawn passes by some old Drakes that always have something to say about the soldiers. One of the old female Drakes, named Shivertail, recognises the soldier with yellow paint splattered over his body, one of her companions takes notice of the soldier with purple slashes of color drawn on his arms. They continue to point out a variety of the other soldiers' patterns before arguing about their younger days.
- Pawn has the soldiers patrol towards a random mountain peak in the distance, he takes it slow to allow the soldiers to just experience the world. As they touch the grass and the snow Pawn thinks back about his faith and how Erin had told him about Christianity. Pawn thinks about his plan to make heaven for the Antinium. As they patrol Pawn walks into a shield spider nest and is saved by the soldiers. The soldier with yellow splatters on him suddenly uses a [Skill] to Pawn's and the other soldiers surprise. Pawn realises that the soldiers have levelled and begins to ask them questions that they can't answer. He tells the soldiers to use the skills if they have them.
- When they return to the hive Klbkch assigns Pawn and his soldiers to combat duty in the dungeon. Klbkch explains that he wishes to test the soldiers to see if they have levelled, and the Antinium also need every soldier available to defend the hive in order to avoid being overrun. Anand and Belgrade had been working without rest so Klbkch explains the change in circumstance to Pawn: the dungeon is waking up now that the adventurers have begun exploring it. For the first time the Antinium are losing more Antinium than they are producing. The latest clash has caused Anand to be injured and Pawn is going to fill the void that Anand has left. Pawn asks about whether the guest Antinium will help, but Klbkch tells him that he and the Queen have decided not to request their aid.
- Pawn visits Belgrade in the chess room. Belgrade is shaking and is curled in on himself. Belgrade shares his panic with Pawn, there are too many monsters attacking them underground and without Anand he's struggling to keep the dungeon at bay. Pawn tries to comfort him as Erin once did; Pawn tells him that he'll be there with him tomorrow with his soldiers. But Belgrade becomes worried for Pawn, but Pawn reassures him and reminds him about his soldier's levels and asks to be given the most dangerous area to defend.
- Tersk approaches Pawn once Belgrade goes to rest. He asks Pawn how his soldiers would fare against a similar squad from the Armored Antinium, which Pawn notices have weapons. Pawn says he doesn't know as he hasn't faced them before. Pawn informs him that he's an [Acolyte] and Tersk asks Pawn to instruct him on prayer. Tersk explains that as a Prognugator he needs to discover the value of entertainment as he gets bored.
- Tersk tells Pawn that he witnessed the monsters attacking the hive and while he did not fight himself he saw Pivr wounded when he underestimated their strength. Tersk thinks Pivr does not deserve the title of Revalantor and compares him to Klbkch, mentioning that according the the Armored Queen Klbkch is the most stable of the remaining Centenium.
- When Pawn asks Tersk about Prognugators he mentions that they require too many resources to justify the cost at the moment, but back on Rhir there would be up to thirty Prognugators per hive. Tersk's final question to Pawn is the significance of the paint in making Antinium individual but Pawn tells him that it's the choice that's important, that the soldiers must paint themselves and choose to be individual. Tersk isn't able to understand and Pawn likens him to Ksmvr which Tersk takes offence at. Pawn tells Tersk that he cannot understand because he has not experienced what it is like to be a worker or soldier and that if he wanted to he should take off his armor and fight barehanded like they do. Pawn storms off.
- Pawn goes to see Erin, but she isn't available and before returning to the Hive he tells Bird to mention that he wants to speak with her. Pawn gives a speech/prayer to his soldiers before the battle asking them not to die.
- During the battle Belgrade is struggling to cope with all the monsters especially since they could dig through the earth. He sends workers to reinforce a tunnel from Crypt Worms, but he knows that they will all die because of it as there were no more soldiers available. Pawn's group has been sent to the most difficult tunnel as requested and Belgrade agonizes over whether Pawn is safe. No reinforcements have been sent or received from there and then he orders a group to plug some more of the tunnels but one of the workers refusesm The worker begins to turns aberration and Belgrade has to kill him with his sword but during the struggle a Crypt Worm breaks through and heads towards them.
- The crypt worm hurls Belgrade and cuts off two of his arms, but before the final blow Xrn intervenes. Xrn begins destroying the other worms and she rallies the workers, including Belgrade, to fight back. Reinforcements arrive from the Silent Antinium, Tersk (unarmed and unarmored) and the Flying and Armored Antinium. Xrn heals Belgrade's injuries and they push onwards towards Pawn's tunnel.
- Pawn and his soldiers have survived, Pawn is uniharmed but is in dismay at the deaths of his soldiers. Twenty five of the hundred are dead, a tactical victory according to Belgrade but Pawn still grieves holding the body of one of his soldiers. Pawn begins to paint the markings of the dead soldier on the wall of the barracks in his memory and suddenly the other soldiers under his command follow his lead and paint the others. Pawn looks at the symbols and shapes of his people that he's lost and weeps.
Characters[edit | edit source]
- Pawn
- 100 Painted Antinium Soldiers (25 Deceased)
- Yellow Splatters (First Appearance)
- Purple Slashes (Deceased)
- Shoulders Eyes (First Appearance)
- Green Five-Pointed Star (Deceased)
- Cup of Brown and Silver (Deceased)
- ‘7’ in turquoise (Deceased)
- White, Blue and Orange, Speckled Egg (Deceased)
- Sun rising over a Green Horizon (Deceased)
- Green Flower (Deceased)
- Blue Rainstorm and Clouds (Deceased)
- White Snowflake (Deceased)
- Black Cat with Orange Eyes (Deceased)
- Red Circle mixed with Yellow (Deceased)
- 46252, each in a Different Color (Deceased)
- Picture of a Bee on a Plate (Deceased)
- Smiley Face (Deceased)
- Stick-Person with Four Arms (Deceased)
- A word. ‘Winter’ (Deceased)
- Hive Map (Deceased)
- Eight lines and a Curvy Wave beneath it all (Deceased)
- Two stones, one shaped like a face, the other like no stone ever seen (Deceased)
- A question mark, drawn out of brown and a pale blue so bright it could have been white. (Deceased)
- A line that looped and spun and dove (Deceased)
- Pink and Yellow Cloud (Deceased)
- Paw Print in White. (Memory of the first Soldier ever to be painted.) (Deceased)
- Cup running over with Water (Deceased)
- Sun and Four Moons (Deceased)
- A Blade of Grass (Deceased)
- Klbkch
- Belgrade
- Tersk
- Bird
- Aberration Worker (Deceased)
- Xrn
Locations[edit | edit source]
- Floodplains
- Liscor
- The Wandering Inn
- Liscor’s Magical Dungeon
Creatures[edit | edit source]
- Shield Spider
- Armor Golem
- Crypt Worm
- Poisonous Worm things with Wings
- Not-Gnolls
- Ghoul
- Zombie