Dromos 26 – Therizo 5, Imperial Year 1644
The Northern Mountains, Mercia – Near the Orc Territories
The road north had grown colder and harder.
Elara Greenhill pulled her cloak tighter and studied the map by the light of a dying fire. The others slept around her – Roderick, Rosalind, Miku, Hikari, Kaito, Daiki, Natsuki, Rin, Fenric, Lyra, and Gregor. Reinhard sat watch at the edge of the camp, his sword across his knees.
They had been traveling for two months since leaving Gray Rock. The search for Grom Ironhide – Kenji Watanabe – had taken them through forests, across rivers, and into the foothills of the northern mountains. The rumors were consistent: a slave mining operation called Ironfast, run by a human overseer named Gregor Vance. Orc slaves worked the mines, digging iron ore for the kingdom's forges. Few ever escaped.
"We are close," Elara said, not looking up.
Reinhard nodded. "Another two days, if the weather holds."
"And if it does not?"
"Then we wait."
Elara folded the map. "We have waited long enough. Grom has been a slave for twenty years. Every day we delay is another day he suffers."
Roderick stirred, opening his red eyes. "We free him. We do not kill unless we must."
"Agreed," Reinhard said. "But Vance will not let his slaves go without a fight."
"Then we fight." Roderick sat up. "I have fought harder battles for less."
Therizo 2, Imperial Year 1644
The Mountains – The Approach
Ironfast was a scar in the mountainside – a gaping hole surrounded by wooden barracks, a smelter, and a high fence topped with spikes. Guards patrolled the perimeter, their torches casting moving shadows. The slaves were not visible; they would be inside the mine, working in the dark.
The class watched from a ridge two miles away, hidden among the pines.
"Twenty guards," Fenric said, his wolf eyes sharper than any human's. "Maybe more inside. They have crossbows on the towers."
"And the slaves?" Elara asked.
"I counted maybe fifty. Orcs, mostly. A few humans. They are chained at the ankles."
Gregor studied the compound. "A frontal assault would be suicide. We need a distraction."
"I can cause a rockfall," Rin said. Her voice was flat, but her eyes glowed faintly. "The mountain is unstable. A few well‑placed spells and the eastern slope will collapse."
"That will kill the guards," Roderick said. "And possibly the slaves."
"I can target only the empty slope. But it will draw attention."
Reinhard shook his head. "Too risky. We need to get inside, find Grom, and get out. Not destroy the mine."
Kaito raised a hand. "I have been working on something." He pulled a small device from his pack – a metal canister with a fuse. "Smoke bomb. Not gunpowder – alchemical. It will fill the compound with thick, harmless smoke. The guards will panic. We can slip in during the chaos."
"How long does it last?" Gregor asked.
"Five minutes. Enough time to cut the chains and run."
Elara nodded. "We do it tonight. Kaito, you and Daiki plant the smoke bombs on the windward side. Roderick, Gregor, and I will go in for Grom. The rest will cover the exits and take down any guards who get too close."
"And if Grom does not want to come?" Roderick asked.
"Then we carry him."
Therizo 2, Imperial Year 1644 (continued)
Ironfast – Night
The smoke bombs worked – at first.
Thick gray clouds rose from the eastern fence, drifting across the compound. Guards coughed, shouted, and stumbled. The towers fell silent as the crossbowmen could not see their targets.
Roderick led the way, his new sword silent. He cut through the fence with a pair of bolt cutters – another of Kaito's inventions. Elara and Gregor followed.
Then the alarm sounded.
Not a bell – a shriek, high‑pitched and piercing, coming from a small crystal mounted on the central tower. The smoke began to thin, blown away by an unnatural wind.
"Magic," Rin hissed over the communication spell. "They have a mage. He is dispelling the smoke."
"How long until it clears?" Reinhard asked.
"Two minutes. Maybe less."
Elara cursed. "We move now."
They ran for the mine entrance.
Inside, the tunnels were dark, lit only by sporadic torches. The sound of picks had stopped. Slaves were shouting, confused. Guards were rallying.
Gregor took down two guards with swift sword strokes. Roderick blocked a crossbow bolt with his shield. Elara followed the sound of chains.
They found the slave cavern. Fifty or more orcs and humans, chained in rows. At the far end, a massive orc stood apart. He was taller than Roderick, with broader shoulders and a scar across his chest. His tusks were chipped, his hands calloused. Even in chains, he radiated fury.
"Grom," Elara said.
The orc turned. His red eyes narrowed.
"Who are you?"
"My name was Yuki Tanaka. Class president. You sat in the back, near the window. You always wore a black hoodie and never spoke."
Grom's expression did not change. But his voice was rough.
"Yuki."
"We are here to free you."
"The chains are locked."
Gregor stepped forward with the bolt cutters. The chains fell away.
Grom rubbed his wrists. "The guards will come."
"We have a distraction. But it is failing. We need to go."
"Not without the children."
Grom pointed to a side tunnel. A group of young orcs – no older than ten – huddled together, their eyes wide.
"Vance keeps them separate. They work the narrow veins. If we leave them, they die."
Elara's heart sank. "How many?"
"Twelve."
"We cannot carry twelve children through a fight."
"Then we fight," Grom said. "Or we all die here."
The mage arrived before they could decide.
He was a thin man in blue robes, his hands crackling with lightning. Behind him, a dozen guards formed a line.
"Intruders," the mage said. "You will not leave."
Rin stepped forward, her own magic flaring. "I will hold him. Get the children out."
She and the mage exchanged blasts of energy – lightning against fire, the tunnel shaking.
Roderick grabbed two children. Gregor took two more. Elara and Grom each took one. The other slaves surged forward, breaking their own chains with picks and hammers.
Chaos erupted.
The class fought a desperate rearguard action. Hikari healed a wounded slave. Natsuki's axe cleaved a guard's shield. Fenric and Lyra covered the retreat with arrows.
But the mage was stronger than Rin. He sent a bolt of lightning that struck the tunnel ceiling. Rocks fell, separating Rin from the group.
"Rin!" Elara screamed.
"Go!" Rin shouted back. "I will find another way!"
They had no choice. They ran.
Therizo 3, Imperial Year 1644
The Forest – Aftermath
They regrouped two miles from the mine. Twelve children, forty‑three adult slaves, and the class – but no Rin.
Grom knelt, breathing hard. "The mage. He will kill her."
"She is a survivor," Reinhard said. "We wait."
An hour later, Rin stumbled out of the forest. Her robes were burned, her face blackened, but she was alive.
"I collapsed the tunnel behind me," she said. "The mage is buried. Vance is dead – a rock crushed his skull."
"And the children?" Elara asked.
"Safe. The other slaves are scattering. They will find their way."
Grom looked at the children – orphans now, their parents likely dead in the mines.
"I will take them," he said. "There is a settlement of free orcs to the east. They will be safe there."
"And you?" Elara asked.
"I will join you. After."
They parted ways – Grom leading the children to safety, the class heading south to recover.
Therizo 5, Imperial Year 1644
The Mountains – Dawn
Grom caught up with them three days later. He was alone, his face grim.
"The children are safe," he said. "Now I fight with you."
"Welcome," Elara said.
They walked south, the mountains behind them.
End of Chapter Thirty-Two