The Tales of the Wanderer Volume One: A Book of Underrealm (The Underrealm Volumes 4) by Garrett Robinson (elon musk reading list TXT) 📕

a great roar and pressed forwards, slamming his fists into the gate. The others gained new heart, and they crashed into it with all their fury.

It shattered with the sound of splintering wood and rending metal. The trolls poured into the gatehouse and straight into the second gate. It rocked on its hinges, but the soldiers in the bailey held. More trolls crowded into the space, though only a dozen could fit. The leader held his ground rather than enter the gatehouse.

Ditra turned to her soldiers atop the barbican. “Oil!” she roared.

The soldiers seized their cauldrons and heaved. The iron turned on great wooden wheels. I ran forwards to lend a hand, seizing the bottom of a vat and lifting with all my might. Soldiers thrust torches into the oil as it came pouring out, and a wave of blistering heat washed across my face.

Flaming oil poured down over the trolls like the spewing of a volcano. I saw one of them look up just as it came pouring down. Oil flooded her face, pouring down her throat. She fell to the ground, clawing at herself. It lasted only a moment before she stilled forever.

The oil coated everyone else who had entered the gatehouse, killing most in seconds. The others fled back into the open air, slamming into the rest of the pack, smearing them with flames. The trolls’ lines shuddered and began to draw back. I saw the first few begin to turn and run, and then it was like a bursting dam. As one they pounded away from the wall, separating themselves to avoid spreading the fire any more. Some did not make it back, the oil and flames claiming them before they could make it more than a few paces away from the wall. The trolls ran out to beyond throwing range again, lurking on the edge of darkness, pacing back and forth and licking their wounds.

Ditra was only a few paces away. Both of us were covered in sweat, leaning heavily against the wall. Her helm had come off sometime during the battle. I saw it two paces away and went to fetch it for her.

“Thank you,” she gasped as I placed it in her hand.

Mag approached. She strode between the soldiers who had collapsed in exhaustion against the wall, and she looked for all the world as if she were taking a stroll through the woods. She raised two skins in her hands.

“I have brought water.”

Ditra and I each took a skin from her and drank greedily. It was not quite cold, but it was a good deal cooler than the heat atop the wall, drifting up from the pools of burning oil and the flaming corpses of trolls below the wall.

“How did the gatehouse fare?” said Mag.

“Better than it could have,” I said.

Ditra’s mouth gave a grim twist as she pulled the helm on. “We do not have enough oil to refill the cauldrons. We will have only flasks and arrows when they return. How did the fighting go farther along the wall?”

Mag frowned slightly. “We lost some soldiers. The trolls flung rocks at them from below. I feel useless up here. All I could do was stab their fingers when they tried to climb up, like a wasp attacking a bear.”

“Enough wasps can ruin a bear’s day,” I said.

She pointed out into the darkness. “That only works if there are many wasps and just one bear. This is quite the reverse.”

“Yet even one sting can hurt. Mayhap they will give up and flee home.”

Ditra arched an eyebrow. “That is a poor joke, brother.”

I shrugged. “What other kind is there, on a night like tonight?”

Kaita, still in the form of Gatak, stalked up to Dotag. His right arm was curled up to his chest, and he probed gently at a nasty burn he had received in the fight around the gatehouse. As she approached, Dotag looked up, and Kaita was troubled by his resentful look.

“We have rested long enough,” she said. “We must attack again, before they have time to regroup.”

“Many died,” said Dotag. “We are not ready.”

“They cannot stop us,” said Kaita. “Some died, but we have many more.”

“The gate,” said Dotag. “They burned us. None will go back in there again.”

“That was most of the oil they had,” said Kaita. “They will not be able to pour such fire down upon you again.”

“How do you know that?” said Apok, whom Kaita had not noticed standing close by. Burns covered most of her chest, but her eyes were sharp, and she looked upon Kaita with suspicion.

“What?” snarled Kaita.

“How do you know of the humans’ oil, Gatak?”

“The Lord has told me,” said Kaita. “He knows many secrets. He has much power. He knows we will win.”

“I think your Lord is a meddling human,” rumbled Apok. “A human who wishes to control us.”

Kaita took a lunging step forwards and smashed her fists into the dirt. “You dare to speak ill of him?”

“Gatak!”

She froze at Dotag’s voice. He was scowling when she turned back to him. Immediately Kaita dropped her ears and stooped, making sure she stood almost a pace shorter than he.

“You may trust my words, Dotag,” she said soothingly. “The Lord assures our victory.”

Dotag gave a snuff. He looked uncertainly up at the stronghold wall, and then looked past Kaita to Apok.

“Why do you look at her?” said Kaita. “She would have us all turn and flee from this place. She would not have us take these mountains for our own. Does she lead the pack, or do you?”

“He does,” growled Apok. “Not me. Not you.”

But this was too much for Dotag. He pounded a fist on the ground. “I lead. We attack again.” He glared past Kaita to Apok. “I will attack the gate myself. And you will come with me.”

Apok’s nostrils flared, but she ducked her head and turned away. Dotag grunted and turned to Kaita. He spoke in a lower voice, so low that only she could hear.

“You said