The Human From a Dungeon

Chapter 9

High Chief Ulurmak

Adventurer Level: N/A

Orc - Kirkenian

I gazed longingly out of my window at the mountains in the distance, a wall of gigantic snow-capped teeth separating the orcish high-chiefdom of Kirkena from the elven kingdom of Bolisir. As a youth I would trek those very mountains, hunting dangerous game and living in the rough. It was the best childhood the son of a High Chief could ask for, and my father had given it to me gladly. Mostly because he couldn't stand children, but also because he wanted me to be strong enough to take his place.

My gaze returned to the mountain of paperwork upon my desk. A much more difficult climb, with higher stakes as well. Paperwork is boring, but if it's done wrong or delayed many can suffer. I envy the chiefs of small villages, who rarely have to do any paperwork at all. Although they have to listen to complaints in person rather than reading a strongly worded letter, so we'll call it a draw.

A knock on my door alerted me to Rayzun's presence. One of many aids that help me keep things running.

I glanced at him and he said, "Sir, you've received a missive from Emperor Jak, Slayer of Demons, Savior of Dwarves, Destroyer of..."

"Yes, yes. Jak has many impressive and lengthy titles. A missive, eh? He finally figured out that I can read, then?" I asked with a chuckle.

"Looks that way, High Chief."

Rayzun gave me the envelope containing the missive, and I felt a tinge of dread as I noted its thickness. I broke the wax seal with a claw and pulled the contents out into the light. Twenty pages.

"Gods damn it, this had better not be about that damned mine or I'm gonna declare war, I swear!" I roared.

"Sir, it's almost definitely about the mine. You've been ignoring his requests regarding it for years," Rayzun said calmingly.

I turned to glare at him, "That's because he wants us to let his people mine the metal while giving us a percentage of the metal as a 'tax'. Considering that it is our mine and we know HOW to mine, I see no reason to pay him any heed!"

"C'mon sir, you know his people can mine better than we can. Most of our miners think that the dwarves will be able to pull more metal out than we can, too. Might end up with more as tax than we would doin' it ourselves."

"Is that right?" I said sarcastically. "And we might as well let the damned elves construct our buildings and the fucking gnomes run our economy, right? And what's left for us, eh? Dungeon running? Scavenging the wastes? And what do we do if the drow decide that they need to lengthen their border? Hmm? Will we be able to rely on the dwarves, elves, or gnomes to come to our aid?"

"No, sir," Rayzun stated with the attitude of someone dealing with a toddler.

"Exactly. If he wants to be involved in the mine he can teach our miners how to do it," I grumbled as an idea popped into my head. "Wait, that's not a bad idea. We can offer to hire his dwarves as supervisors and trainers, and give them a much smaller percentage... Have Palo meet with the miner's guild and come up with some numbers. Then have a missive drawn up in reply to whatever this garbage says."

"Yes, High Chief," Rayzun nodded as he left.

I nearly threw the missive across the room, but decided that I had better check it first. It was too polite to have been written by Jak, like most dwarves he can't help but curse constantly. I chuckled at all the titles they had for me, it felt good to be recognized even if it was just for flattery. The actual content of the missive was indeed about the mines, but it also contained a warning regarding the drow. They were performing military maneuvers again. I'd have to increase our presence on that border.

I made a note to include a gratuity to Jak for the information. Despite how annoyed we are at each other, our people are friends and what impacts us impacts them. The drow taking a bite out of us means less trade for them, and a higher risk of the drow taking a bite out of them as well. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean they'll fight them with us.

The dwarven empire of Calkuti was more into manufacturing than they were into warfare. There were other dwarven kingdoms that were more focused on warfare, but THOSE kingdoms didn't have an orcish high-chiefdom as their neighbor. If they did, their tune would likely change pretty quickly.

Well, so long as those orcs were fight-focused. There's plenty who aren't. My grandfather is considered one of the most peaceful mer to have ever lived. Actually, come to think of it, he might have been able to convince those kings to become peaceful just by his example alone. I chuckled at the thought, and another knock shook my door.

"What is it?" I demanded.

"High Chief, there's a messenger from Nuleva," Rayzun said breathlessly, as if he'd ran back here. "You're going to want to hear this in person."

Nuleva? The name was familiar, but from where? One of mine? Would have to be a small settlement then... Oh, don't tell me that one of the chiefs was dumb enough to make a village on the drow border!

Rayzun noticed my confusion and explained, "Nuleva is the village we installed at the entrance to the Delver's Dungeon."

"Oh? What do they want?" I asked.

My question was met with a look of exasperation. I returned the look with a glare, but Rayzun is as stubborn as a pregnant fat-horns. It occurred to me that we were both somewhat in the wrong.

"Fine, fair enough. Bring them in," I relented.

Rayzun turned to the outside of the door and gestured to someone out of view, then fully entered the room. A minute later a monstrous orc in darkened full-plate entered and kneeled. It took me a second to recognize him. Alurn, son of Agurno. My nephew!

Alurn took a moment before finally saying, "Greetings High Chief Ulurmak, son of Grashgnaw the Giant, savior of..."

"That's enough of that Alurn," I interrupted. "My own kin shouldn't have to prostrate themselves before me. As I understand it, you have a message for me?"

"Yes, sir," Alurn said and looked up at me. "We've encountered some oddities in the Delver's Dungeon and Chief Gluhern sent me to apprise you."

I'd forgotten that Gluhern took over for his brother on the Delver Project. The thought of that hot head being a chief was enough to amuse even the most stoic orc. Unfortunately, my amusement was dashed by the stench of grief coming from Alurn. The boy who was normally cheerful and gentle was now robotic and stiff, his smile replaced by a grim expression that spoke of loss. I nodded to Rayzun, who grabbed a cushion and set it next to the boy.

"Sit and explain, Alurn. What happened?" I said gently.

"Yes sir," he replied as he sat cross-legged on the cushion. "A while ago a wall collapsed in the dungeon, revealing a previously hidden passage..."

He explained at length about what had happened, and with every sentence my concern grew. A sentient thing called a human had been found and removed from the dungeon, and a boss that killed two over-tens had been encountered. Gluhern's plan to seal the passage to the boss was a sound one, but it might be a stop-gap. Especially since it sounded like the dungeon had already shifted twice, and the hidden portion didn't change.

"Does Nuleva have any over-twenties?" I asked once he finished.

"No, sir. Delver's was labelled an entry-level dungeon. The only reason that Gluhern had over-tens at his disposal was because we... we became adventurers there," Alurn said, gritting his teeth to stifle a sob.

"I'm sorry about your comrade, dear nephew. He will be avenged. If you'd like to be on the team I send, I can convince the adventurers to allow it."

"No, sir. I would only be a hindrance. That beast is my exact counter. Just like Kirisaka was."

A fool would think this to be cowardice, but I saw it for what it was. A warrior who knew he was outmatched and responsible enough not to weigh down those who would be fighting. Little Alurn had grown into a very good orc indeed.

"Rayzun, have Elizat gather a group of over-twenties who are a good match for this thing and prepare to send them to Nuleva. Alurn, you'll rest here and travel back with the group we send. Let Gluhern know that they answer directly to me, and he is to provide them with food, water, and shelter. I'll handle their pay. Understood?"

"Yes, High Chief," Alurn and Rayzun said simultaneously.

Rayzun immediately set about his new task, and Alurn rose from the cushion. He picked it up and put it back, like the responsible mer I know him to be. He then turned back to me, waiting to be dismissed.

"How's your father, boy?" I asked.

"I wouldn't know, sir. Haven't heard from him in two years," He said, finally smiling.

I grinned back. Agurno, my little brother, was legendarily aloof. He cared but didn't know how to show it, and simply decided it would be best if he didn't. Alurn's not his only child, but since his mother has been patient enough to handle the long disappearances he's the one who's seen the most of his father's love. Which is probably why the boy couldn't resist chuckling at his father's foibles.

"Well, that's good news then. If something had happened, it would have been heard across the entire continent!"

We both laughed at the truth of that statement. Agurno had become an adventurer instead of a chief, and quickly showed onlookers why it isn't fair for someone of my bloodline to become one. His last big fight had been against a corrupted high dragon, and it had left scars in the landscape that still haven't healed. Even his son was a powerhouse, and was one of the youngest over-tens in history. If Alurn had turned out to be a bit faster, that monster in Delver's wouldn't have stood a chance.

We discussed the rest of Alurn's family, and how his career had been going. He recounted tales of fights in the wastes against gigantic beasts, and funny stories involving his comrades. Then we discussed how the nation was faring, and I was careful not to go into too much detail regarding the troubles with the drow. Finally, our conversation came to a close.

"I think I'll head to the chow hall. I've missed the fat-horn steak you have here," Alurn said with a chuckle.

"Right," I replied with a chuckle. "Oh, and Alurn, I understand that the human has been adopted into the Alta family, but I'd still like to know more about it. I don't mind how this happens, whether it be an informal interrogation or if we arrange a meeting. But I don't like mysteries."

"Yes, High Chief. I'll do what I can," Alurn nodded and left.

I rested my chin on my hand as I thought about the future of our nation. Was this human a good omen or a bad one? The latter seemed somewhat likely, considering what else had been found in that secret passage. I was distracted by this line of thought until my eyes once again rested on the mountain of paperwork on my desk.

Damn. Well, back to work.