Irwin's Journey chapter 12: The Linchpin (Patreon)

"Ukl ron daghrba!"

Irwin stared at the green humanoid, glaring at him, unsure what to do. He missed Greldo already.

"It sounds like one of those languages the sailors in port spoke," Daubutim said.

"Can you understand it?" Irwin asked as he inspected the odd boy.

Daubutim frowned and poked the chained-up demon, causing it to grunt what was probably a string of curses.

"Something about my mother and a dog," he said, showing no reaction but a slight frown. "Gurgin tar," he grumbled, his tongue stumbling at parts.

There was a moment of stunned silence from both the party and the tied-up green demon, then it barked a laugh and rattled off a few quick, guttural sentences.

"What did he say?" Irwin asked.

"I don't know. It's too fast. I asked where it's from… I think… but I have no idea what it replied," Daubutim said. He muttered something again, and this time the green demon waited before speaking slowly and carefully. Daubutim nodded and said something, and as the rest looked on, he spoke in short, halting words with the tied-up demon. After a minute or two, he nodded and turned to the others.

"He says he's an Arwk, or Orkh, or," the green demon hissed and shouted, "Orc!"

Daubutim looked at it, then continued. "Orkh," he said, butchering the word. "He was caught during a raid or attack on the Imp city, which they call demon-children. He has no idea about being in a portal, but he knows about them. He wants us to release him so he can return home…"

Irwin looked at the tied-up Orc, even dangling from the chains two heads taller and probably four times as heavy as him, and shook his head. That seemed like a bad idea. Besides, even if they released the Orc now, what good would it-

"Maybe they are the Linchpin?" Twintin whispered as she looked at Irwin. "I don't know much about these things, but perhaps…" she turned to Rachel. "Can you tell us what you were told about Linchpins?"

"I don't know that much more… but the other sorcerer said that most of the time, they are boss monsters that you need to kill or items like crystal orbs that need to be shattered," Rachel said slowly. "He did tell us that if there were neither, it was sometimes a special card- thought that only happens in uncommon or higher rifts."

"So, nothing about it being freeing captives?" Twintin asked sadly.

"No," Rachel said.

"So, what do we do now?" Oblan said surly as he gazed at the Orc. "We've killed all the imps in the tunnels and even those in this room, but if not this time, Jonathan will expect more progress when we go in again…"

A moment of silence hung in the room, interrupted by a few snapped words from the Orc.

"He asked to be released again," Daubutim said.

Irwin took one look at him, then at the others. "I don't think we should," he said. The others nodded, and he took one look at the Orc, saw the angry glint, and quickly moved out of the larger cave. The others followed him while the Orc began shouting and raging behind them.

"What if the Imps hear him?" Olban hissed. "Perhaps we should kill him?"

"Or…" Irwin began as his mind spun. "Or we use that to our advantage?" his eyes grew wide. "If Imps come and see what he is yelling about, we just kill them, and if it's too many, we stay hidden."

"Yeah! That way, we can just kill them until the cavern is empty," Olban said, a predatory smile on his zit-covered face.

It probably won't be that easy, Irwin thought, but he didn't say that out loud. "Let's find a good spot to ambush any Imps that come."

They moved into one of the tunnels that passed a path from the central cavern to the cave and readied themselves. They didn't have to wait very long until a group of seven Imps appeared, skulking down the tunnel. As Irwin prepared to ash them, he wished he hadn't released his flame, but there was nothing to do about it. He also missed Greldo, and he wondered if they would do as well without him. What if another one of them died?

His worry was ungrounded as, a minute later, the last of the Imps crumbled into black sooty chunks. Only Daubutim had been cut on his arm, but it was a surface wound, and they all had some of those by now.

Perhaps Olban is right, and we can keep doing this until the cavern is empty, Irwin thought.

An hour later, they were sitting together, waiting. Another two groups of Imps had come, and they had killed both, but that was easily half an hour ago. The Orc had stopped shouting, and Irwin was wondering if they should start themselves. He didn't really feel like it, as it meant the Imps would get a better idea of where they were. Still, they should have killed a good amount of the Imps in the main cave by now… he hoped.

"I wonder what we will get if we finish this practice room," he muttered. It was something he'd wondered about before, but so far, it had seemed so unlikely.

"Common cards," Rachel said, looking at him in surprise. "Didn't Jonathan tell you? Though, it's highly unlikely that we manage in a single day."

"Cards?" Olban shouted before covering his mouth with his hands. "Sorry," he whispered as everyone glared at him.

Irwin shook his head. "Let's go to another place before the Imps find us." He'd hoped to stay here for a little longer to rest, but that wouldn't be safe.

He led them to the opposite end of the tunnel system, close to what he guessed was the Imp's city.

"So, how many common cards would we get?" he asked.

"One for each of us," Rachel said. "But-"

"It's highly unlikely that we will find the Linchpin," Irwin said. "Maybe. But we have two more chances after this one… I think we should try to find it!"

"I agree," Daubutim rumbled, causing the others to look at him in surprise. The big boy didn't react to them but looked at Irwin. "With more cards, we have a larger chance to survive the portal tomorrow."

"It could also mean that we get captured and tortured to death for a day," Olban said, shivering.

"I think we should try," Rachel said. "Even if the chance is really small, with another card on each of us…"

Twintin shrank into herself but nodded. "I'll help."

Irwin looked at Oblan, who sighed. "Fine, but if we get into trouble, I'm running away and hiding for the rest of the day."

Rachel snorted derisively, but Irwin didn't care. "Okay, but don't run if we are winning," he said.

"So, what do we do? Just continue shouting and drawing their attention?" Olban asked.

"Yes, let's try that for this time. I think we have been here for about half a day, so we-"

"Eight hours," Daubutim said. When the others looked at him in surprise, he shrugged. "I'm good with time and numbers."

"Can you tell us when we have an hour left?" Irwin asked. "That gives us time to rest and clear out as many Imps as possible while leaving time to check how many are left after that."

Daubutim nodded.

"Alright, let's continue then. Who is going to shout to draw them in," Irwin asked. Nobody responded, and Olban looked at him as if he was stupid. "Fine… I'll do it," he said with a sigh.

--

Irwin lay on his back, looking at the tunnel roof. He was dead-tired, and his back hurt like crazy from being kicked by an Imp, but they were still alive. The Imps had continued coming, mostly in groups between four and ten for a while, then larger groups had begun coming after them. Eventually, they had to flee, hiding in the tunnels for two hours before the Imps left. A few remained near the entrances, probably there to warn the others.

"So… we barely scratched their numbers," Olban said from the side, his voice grating on Irwin's calm.

"Daubutim, how much time do we have left?" Irwin asked, ignoring Olban.

"Two hours and forty minutes."

He's like those clocks in the crafter's district, Irwin thought. "We need another plan," he said. He'd tried to come up with something, but between being tired and hunted, he'd drawn a blank. He wished Greldo was here. Perhaps they should just give up on this run and try again next time. They should have made a lot of progress.

"Let's just rest until the next run," Rachel said, echoing his own thoughts. "If we keep going and return all tired, we will have to rest when we enter again. That would waste time we could use to kill Imps."

There was a mutter of agreement, and Irwin leaned back. He must have fallen asleep because he woke as he fell through the air and landed on the tiled ground back in the tower.

"Much better," Jonathan said, grinning at them from the side. "If you keep this up, you might just have a chance tomorrow!"

Irwin didn't know what to say but slowly got up and moved to Greldo, who was sitting at his customary spot against the wall.

"How far did you get?"

"Cleared the tunnels and tried to clear as many of those Imps in that city."

Greldo's eyes widened, and he nodded. "And those green things?"

"Orcs, apparently, and Daubutim seems able to speak their language," Irwin said.

Greldo looked at the larger boy who was sitting a few feet away. "Weird."

"Yeah."

They kept their talking to a minimum, and when Jonathan forced them back in, Irwin and Greldo were the first to enter. As soon as they were back in the small cave, Greldo turned around.

"You got really far," he said, sounding excited. "I was out almost a minute before you and saw the symbol fill in. You cleared the training room halfway!"

The others appeared behind them, catching most of what Greldo said.

"That's really good," Rachel said. "We… my previous group, we only got to a third of clearing it."

"That means we have a chance," Irwin said as he suddenly felt a hunger to continue. If they could get more cards…

"Let's go and clear these tunnels," he said, grinning at the others.

Roughly three hours later, according to Daubutim, they looked at the three Orcs in the room. They had gone so fast that the Imps had only managed to kill and deposit half of their playthings.

"He knows nothing else," Daubutim said as he returned. "But he wants to be let free."

"What if we release them and have them help us kill those Imps," Greldo asked, focusing on Irwin.

"I don't think we should. Look at how they stare at us… almost as if we are prey," Rachel whispered before Irwin could respond. He agreed with her, though.

"Let's keep that for if we don't manage by ourselves," he said. "We have one more shot after this…"

"Do you think Jonathan is going to force the rest of us back in here if you two can't join?" Twintin asked, holding Rachels' hand.

"Yes, definitely," Greldo said. "Don't even think he won't."

"But-" Twintin began, her face pale.

"It's fine. We can do this without Irwin," Olban said, puffing out his chest. "We just have to draw in smaller groups."

The others didn't seem as certain, and as they walked towards their next goal, Greldo moved up beside him. The Orcs were shouting behind them, three strong this time, and he wondered if that meant more Imps would come.

"What do we do when they are back in?"

Irwin shrugged. "Hopefully, practice with our new cards… otherwise… rest?"

"You think we have a chance?"

Irwin wanted to say yes right away, then thought about it, recalling the size of the main cavern. Even with all of the Imps in the tunnels, and a lot of them from the city, they had only cleared half of them the previous attempt.

"Maybe," he finally said. "But we definitely have to try!"

They hid, and waited for the Imps to come and investigate, eventually killing five groups before the Orcs stopped shouting. After that, Irwin and Greldo took turns calling near the entrances, luring in another seven groups. Everything seemed to be going well until Greldo went for another group and came running back to get them. Now they watched the large group of Imps amassing on the other side of the bridge.

"I think we pushed them too far," Greldo whispered. "There's over a hundred there, almost all that remain if I counted right."

"Let's hide until they go back," Olban whispered. He was fidgeting at the back of the group, his hand covered in the thick, gleaming coat of gunk.

There was a round of agreement as everyone quickly moved back into the bloomy tunnel system, but when they reached the next intersection, Twintin muttered something.

"What?" Greldo said as he turned, eyes widening.

"Why don't we release the Orcs," Twintin said, looking at the ground as if fearing too much attention. "If we wait until the Imps are almost there, the Imps will go and kill them first… Then we double back and enter their city to find the Linchpin."

"And be killed like rats when they return," Oblan snapped.

It's not a bad idea, Irwin thought as he stopped walking. Even if only to give them time to find the Linchpin. That way, they would know where to go when they came back the next time.

"You can't seriously be thinking of going there," Oblan whispered.

"It's a good idea," Greldo said as he nodded slowly. "It will give us a chance to search for the Linchpin."

"What if it's one of the Imps that just came here," Oblan snapped. "Whatever… I'm not going there! If they capture us, they…" he shivered and fell quiet.

"I'll come," Twintwin said, and Irwin smiled at her gratefully. Though, then again, it had been her plan.

"I think it's too dangerous," Daubutim muttered, causing Oblan to look up with a grin. "But I'll come too."

Oblan wilted, and Rachel just shrugged when Irwin looked at her. "Let's find that Linchpin," she said.

"I don't think we have to release the Orcs," Greldo said. "All we have to do is get them to shout again. That cave is all the way at the other side of the tunnel system, and I think it's a better idea not to run back here."

"I can do it," Twintin whispered, her face turning pale. "I'm the fastest."

Irwin was about to ask her if she was sure, then swallowed the words. Of course she wasn't. Who would be?

"Alright, just go to them and throw a rock or something," Greldo said. "We will wait at the closest entrance."

It took a few minutes, then Twintin rushed away into the tunnels while the rest of them snuck through the tunnels. They had to double back twice, as the Imps had spread out, but after a precarious moment inside a dead-end tunnel, they reached the end of the tunnel that led out into the central cavern.

"They aren't shouting yet," Rachel whispered. She'd constantly been looking over her shoulder, and Irwin had almost thought she'd head back on a few occasions.

"She will be fine," he whispered, ignoring Rachel's glare.

"What do we do if she's caught," Greldo whispered.

"What does it matter," Olban hissed. "She will just be back after we return."

"After being tortured," Rachel snapped back.

"It was her own idea," Olban muttered, but even he didn't seem to buy his own words.

A minute later, the Orcs began roaring and shouting, and the sounds of battle echoed through the tunnel system.

"Did she free them?" Olban asked, getting no response.

I hope she's fine, Irwin thought as he suddenly and vividly recalled the times he'd been killed by the Imps.

Ten minutes later, he was about to tell them they were going to search for Twintin when she showed up. She was breathing raggedly, and blood was streaming from a bruised cut on her head, but a wide smile sat on her face.

"Those Orcs didn't hurt me," she whispered as soon as she saw them, almost like an I told you so. "They even helped me get away when four of the Imps blocked a passage! They are really strong."

"Strong enough to win?" Irwin asked as he got another idea.

"Not that strong," Twintin said as she wilted.

"We are wasting time," Greldo said. "Let's go. They won't be there for a long time."

There was a hesitation as everyone looked at the bridge beyond the safety of the tunnel, then Irwin stepped forward. He wondered why he'd become the one to constantly be the first to do things, but there was no sense complaining now.

As he stepped onto the bridge, he felt incredibly exposed, walking out into the open and away from the tunnels that he felt had been his whole life for the last few months. He knew it wasn't that long, but for some reason, it felt like that.

Shuffling behind him showed the others were following him, and he kept his eyes ahead. He saw a few movements, but there wasn't any shouting yet, and he hoped those that remained didn't expect anyone to actually go towards them.

The bridge ended on a massive, rocky outcrop that sat like a pustule on the side of the stone pillar. Smaller, crumbling ledges and bridges sat between it and the dozens of large buildings that hung from the sides, and as he closed in, he saw odd scratch marks and tiny symbols etched in some parts. Did someone carve this entire thing from the rock? he wondered as he snuck across the small open area before the nearest entrance.

"Let's go and search through the buildings," he said.

"Are you stupid," Oblan hissed back. "Anything worth holding will be in the most guarded building!" He pointed up at a building with a single path a hundred feet above them that hung partially between two of the pillars. "If there's anything here, it should be there!"

Irwin gritted his teeth at the other. He'd barely wanted to come, and now he was acting all high and mighty?

"He's right," Greldo whispered, and Irwin took a quick, deep breath, trying to release the tension and fear building up. He had known what to do in the tunnels, but here?

"Okay, this way," he said, moving along the building toward the nearest way up.

"No, that won't get us there," Oblan whispered loudly. "That would lead us away from where we want to go. We need to go there!" He pointed at a path that seemed to go away from the tower they needed to reach, but as Irwin was about to say so, his gaze followed the path and noticed it cured around the chaotic paths above to eventually lead to a platform next to the bridge and the building.

How did he see this so fast? he thought before snapping himself out of it.

"Alright, let's go," he said, staring at Oblan, who blinked and paled. "Lead us there," Irwin hissed. "You seem to know how to get there, so go!'

Oblan swallowed, looked at the others all staring at him, and puffed out his chest weakly. "Right, follow me," he whispered.