/n/jackal-among-snakes-1520/c-50
chapter-49

Anneliese looked out the window of the carriage, her head resting on her hand. Her other hand played with her hair, which was splayed out on her thighs. The carriage rode across a field of lilies, leaving two trails behind in the pure white flowers. The fields seemed unending. As Argrave recalled, one could only see this field at certain times in the game—fall. They bloomed near the end of fall.

“A pretty sight,” Anneliese commented. “Like snow, but… alive.”

“Yes, very beautiful,” Argrave agreed, staring at Anneliese. “As we move ahead, they’ll begin to turn red, and beyond that, wilt. That means we’re growing closer to the cavern.”

Her amber eyes switched from the scenery to him. “Erlebnis told you this?”

“He doesn’t tell you so much as reach into your head and place things there,” Argrave responded. “Unpleasant yet convenient at the same time.”

She crossed her legs, placing her hands atop her knee. “For an agent of Erlebnis, you don’t seem to rever—”

“Now that we’re getting this close, we should really discuss the plan for these insects.” Argrave shut the book he held in his hand, changing the subject. “These bugs, they’re called Lily Lurkers locally. They’re the reason this field is so largely… undisturbed.” Argrave set his book on the carriage seat, and Galamon slowed the horses to hear his words better.

“The nearby village’s young couples would have late-night rendezvouses at this place when the lilies bloomed because the moonlight reflects beautifully off the white flowers. Now, at night, those bugs roam the field like supersized ants, ripping people apart.” Argrave pointed.

“You know, ants can carry…” Argrave paused, struggling to remember the number. “…100 times their own bodyweight… if I remember right. They’re strong. These bugs, they’re the same way, except they weigh about ten pounds and have a paralytic poison stinger. They’re around the size of my head.”

Anneliese nodded, a frown disturbing her face. “You mentioned they come out at night. We must’ve come here during the day to attack them while they’re in their… burrow. Burn them out, perhaps.” She waved her hand as she offered the example.

“A plausible solution,” Argrave agreed. “But the underground caverns are large enough it would be difficult to do either. Burning them out or using water might collapse the cavern, too. We need to go inside. This task requires precision.”

“Entering the cavern would be suicide,” Galamon contributed. “Tight spaces… perfect for those bugs. Impossible to kill when they’re in large numbers.”

“Both of you…” Argrave spread his arms out, shaking his head as though ashamed. He clapped his hands together, though the sound was muffled by his gloves. “Such mindless killers. Violence isn’t always the answer.”

Both of them looked at him like he was mental.

Argrave carried on, unaffected. “Fact is, we can’t butcher this whole colony of Lily Lurkers. Waste of time to even try. Would take weeks, maybe a month, if we tried to kill them off one-by-one without any casualties. Their numbers are too high. Originally, I had been thinking just the same as you two, and consequently dreading this task. But these bugs—they have to eat, no?”

“Poison,” Anneliese caught on quickly, and Argrave confirmed with a nod.

“Plausible,” Galamon commented. “Don’t think poisoning counts as non-violent, though.”

Argrave waved his hand. “Mere semantics.”

If it had been the game, no such option would be available to Argrave. One follows the quest marker, goes into the cave, kills the bugs—end of quest. That option would probably be much more fun… were this a game, naturally. Argrave would much sooner jump off a tower and be done with it than walk into a cavern infested with Lily Lurkers.

“Even ants have instincts,” Anneliese responded after some consideration. “These bugs, if they are like ants, won’t eat poison even if it is laced into something they will eat.”

“We use a slow-acting poison they don’t recognize. It’s all just trial and error.” Argrave spotted some discontent with that statement, and he quickly added, “All of the other ideas are terrible—this one is at least worth exploring.”

“True,” Anneliese agreed. “But we brought no poison.”

“Listen.” Argrave leaned forward. “I might forget some elven ruin’s name, or the precise name of a cavern, or the exact number of pounds an ant can carry. I can promise you, though, I definitely won’t forget a single recipe for poison. I wrote thousands of articles about alchemy, be it the ingredients or the final product. It was unimaginably tedious.” Argrave tapped his temple. “This mind of mine is all we need to make every poison creatable in Berendar. We’re deep in the countryside. Shouldn’t be much trouble to get what’s needed.”

“Why did you write thousands of articles?” Anneliese asked after a long pause.

“That’s a good question,” Argrave acknowledged with a nod. “I’m not sure myself. Masochism, perhaps. We’ll get back to that. For now…” Argrave turned his gaze towards Galamon. “Galamon, turn left. Hard to brew potions in the middle of a field. We should head for that village.”

Argrave peered out the carriage window. In the distance, he could see a field of red that made it seem as though the lilies had turned to roses. The sight set a flame of anxiety alight in his chest. This would be the first time he tried something major that was beyond the constraints imposed by ‘Heroes of Berendar.’ It could be said Mateth had already been an example of this, but Argrave did not feel that was his victory alone.

“A village, hm…” Argrave muttered. “It might be time to bring up the Blackgard name once again.”