Garilos: Hell on the Docks
Posted by: Garilos in Collaborations, Guest Authors, In CharacterWith a sigh, Garilos settled into a chair in Megaly’s apartment. After a rough day on the docks, he was bone-weary. Sinking back into the chair, Garilos reflected upon the events of the day.
The day had started out like any other day. He arrived at the docks just after sunrise and set his work crew to unloading a small merchant ship. He and his crew worked steadily, taking a small break mid-morning and another break for lunch. The rest of the afternoon was much like the morning. Then, near the end of his shift, chaos ensued.
Garilos was directing cargo when several members of his crew stopped, looked to the sky, and exclaimed “What in the Light is that!”
Turning to look, Garilos felt his blood run cold upon seeing the mighty frost wyrms flying towards the docks. “Run! Run for cover!” he yelled. He barely made it off the dock before the first frost wyrm hit the dock with a frost blast. He turned to see if any of his crew had been hit. Upon seeing no one hurt, he turned and ran toward the gates leading into the main part of the city. As he ran up out of the harbor, he yelled to several city guards, “The city is under attack! Raise the alarm!”
Upon reaching his destination, a small storage locker where he kept most of his armor and gear, Garilos quickly donned his full battle dress. He felt a surge of excitement as he buckled his scabbards to his waist. It had been a long time since he had fought in battle but he knew what needed to be done.
As Garilos stepped back out onto the street, he was immediately grabbed by a city guard, “You there! To the docks to defend the city!”
With a proud salute, Garilos yelled back, “Aye sir, I’ll be reporting for duty!”
As he ran back towards the dock, Garilos thought it ironic the surge of pride he now felt from rushing to the aid of Stormwind after deserting the Alliance forces several years ago. Back then, while serving at Honor Hold, he had felt no sense of duty while defending that unlivable rock. But now, he knew what he was fighting for and defending. This was his home, his people. And there was Megaly.
Garilos had barely enough time to wonder if Megaly was safe before he arrived at the docks. Looking about, he quickly found the ranking officer and ran to her. “Sir! Garilos reporting for duty, sir!”
The officer gave Garilos a quizzical look. “I don’t recognize you and you are not wearing a City Guard uniform.”
“No, sir. I served in Outland with the Alliance forces. I’m … on leave, sir.”
“Aye. I’ll take whomever I can get. Report to Corporal Standish over on dock 4.”
“Yes, sir.”
Running to the assigned dock, Garilos quickly surveyed the scene. Already several small merchant ships were sinking into the harbor. The war frigates were holding out only because they were heavily armed and already partially defended. Garilso saw several men dead on the docks. With a feeling of relief, Garilos determined none looked to be members of his work crew.
Spotting the corporal, Garilos ran up to and announced, “Reporting for duty, sir.”
The corporal looked Garilos up and down before saying, “You look like a veteran. Where did you serve?”
“Honor Hold, sir.”
“Good. You ever serve on a ship?”
“Yes, sir. I’ve sailed many voyages, sir.”
“Great!” Pointing to a war frigate, the corporal commanded, “Report to the captain of the Excelsior.”
“Yes, sir.”
Garilos felt his excitement rise as he ran toward the ship. He had worked on many merchant ships but had never served on a naval craft before. Running up the gangway, Garilos spotted several men fending off a frost wyrm. Wasting no time to report to the captain, Garilos leapt into battle besides the beleaguered men. After many minutes of intense fighting, the frost wyrm retreated out of reach before letting loose a frost blast at Garilos and the men. Garilos barely managed to dodge the blast as he ducked and rolled along the deck. Jumping to his feet, he saw the wyrm flying away with obvious wounds.
Seeing the captain near him, Garilos said “Captain, Garilos reporting for duty.”
“Good work there! Stay on the ship and fend off those damned dragons! As soon as I can get permission, we are going to sail out of here to protect the ship. We are sitting ducks in this harbor.”
With a nod, Garilos acknowledged the captain and returned to defending the ship. For the next few hours, he ran from one hot spot to the next, fending off the frost wyrms and lumbering abominations. Wave after wave, the attackers came and were pushed off.
After seemingly fighting for hours, Garilos found time for a break. Looking around, he saw bodies of frost wyrms, abominations, and city guards everywhere.
Realizing he was exhausted and seeing that reinforcements had arrived, Garilos decided it was a good time to make his leave. Looking over to the captain, he saw him leaning against a railing, an exhausted look upon his face. Seeing Garilos looking at him, the captain gave a weary smile.
“Aye, Garilos. It was a hard fight.”
“It was. We fended them off with the loss of only a few men.”
“We did better than other ships. Just as well, I never got permission to take the ship out of the harbor. Probably because the harbor master is dead.”
Nodding, Garilos said, “I’m gonna take my leave now. I’ve got to find someone. Make sure she is okay.”
With a knowing smile, the captain replied, “Aye. You did us well, Garilos. When you can, come on back. The skies are clear of those cursed dragons but no telling when they will return.”
“Ay, sir, I’ll come back as soon as I can.”
Looking around the apartment, Garilos realized Megaly probably had not returned here after their stay in Booty Bay. “Probably at her dad’s farm. She mentioned going there,” he thought to himself. As he sat there, wondering how he could get a hold of her to tell her about the situation, he felt his stomach grumbling with hunger.
“I need to get something to eat,” he muttered as he rose from his chair. As he strode toward the door, he grabbed his swords and buckled them to his belt. Taking a quick look around the apartment, he felt a twinge of loneliness. With a sigh, he pulled the door closed and strode down the street.
Several minutes later, he walked into the Blue Recluse.
“Hey, Gar. What can I get for you?”
“Evenin’ Joachim. I’ll take whatever stew or soup you got, a hunk of bread, and a pint of your light ale. Oh, and throw on bit of cheese with the bread. I’m famished.”
With a sigh, Garilos settled down onto a stool next to the bar. “It’s been a long day, Joachim. I was almost done with my shift when the harbor was attacked by dragons and these huge abominations,” Garilos said to the bartender.
Placing a pint of ale in front of Garilos, Joachim said “I’ve heard reports of an attack by the Lich King on the harbor. Is that why you’re wearing your armor?”
“Lich King, eh? That’d explain those beasts attacking us.” After taking a drink from his pint, Garilos continued, “Yeah, ran from the docks at the first attack to get my armor and weapons. As soon as I reported for duty, I was sent to defend on of the naval frigates. Spent most of the evening fending off the dragons who seemed intent on destroying all ships in the harbor.”
With a curious look on his face, Joachim asked, “You reported for duty? I thought you were done with the army.”
“I was. That is, I was done serving at Honor Hold. No point in defending that hellish hunk of rock. But this is home. If I can serve to protect my home, I’ll do so.”
When Garilos finished talking, Joachim disappeared into the kitchen and soon returned with Garilos’ food order. “Here you are. No mutton stew tonight. I think this is a pea and ham soup from the look of it. Haven’t had any yet so I don’t know if its any good.” Pointing at the cheese, Joachim continued, “This is Stromgarde Muenster. It’s a mild cheese. I’m sure you’ll like it.”
“Yeah, I will. After working all day and fighting after that, just about anything would taste good.”
As Joachim turned to leave, Garilos quickly said, “Hey, Joachim. You know where I could find a scribe and courier? I need to send a message to someone.”
“Oh, yeah. Hmm. Lemme think.” Scratching his head, Joachim’s face suddenly lit up. “I know! That fellow over there in the corner is a scribe for hire. He probably knows a reliable courier too. Just ask him.”
“Thanks,” was Garilos reply before he leaned forward and began shoveling the food down his throat. In a few minutes, the soup, bread, and cheese were all gone with only a few crumbs left behind. Letting out a loud belch, Garilos straightened up and relaxed a little bit.
Turning to look where Joachim had pointed out the scribe, Garilos saw the man was reading from a book. Next to him on the table was a small glass of wine and a plate of half eaten cheese.
Standing up from his stool, Garilos muttered to himself, “Well, let’s see what this guy can do for me.”
Garilos walked over to the man’s table and stood there momentarily before saying, “Good evening. The bartender says you are a scribe for hire.”
“I am. Won’t you have a seat with me? I’d stand and shake your hand but I’ve got a bad leg.”
“Thanks, I’ll do that.” After seating himself across the table from the scribe, Garilos continued, “I’ve a friend I need to get word to. I can read some but my writing is not good. How much do you charge and do you know a reliable courier?”
“I know several good couriers. How far does the letter need to go?”
“Just to Elwynn Forest.”
“Oh, then, there is no issue finding a courier for that. I charge two copper per word. The courier probably will charge a couple silver.”
Nodding, Garilos said, “Alright. Here’s the message…”
Garilos watched with interest as the scribe carefully wrote down his words. While it was true he could read, his writing was nearly illegible and he prefer not have Megaly see his poor spelling.
A few minutes later, the scribe was repeating Garilos’ message back to him, reading it from the sheet of paper in front of him. “Here you go. That’ll be a silver piece.” After Garilos handed him his payment, he continued “You can find a courier in the trade district near the front gate on the left as you face out from the city. Ask for Belkan or Neecher. Tell them scribe Cantrell recommended them.”
With a quick nod, Garilos stood up from his spot at the table and returned to the bar. Looking over at Joachim, he nodded and dropped a couple coins on the bar when he saw the bartender had seen him.
As he walked through the city towards the trade district, Garilos’ thoughts turned toward Megaly. He was glad she was probably safe, outside the city at the orchard, but he also wished she had been there with him. From looking at her and from seeing the ease with which she handled her equipment, he suspected she was a capable fighter. He would liked to have her there to share in the camaraderie of defending home. Also, having her with him meant he knew where she was and whether she was safe.
After Garilos had delivered the letter to the courier with instructions on how to find the orchard, he headed back towards Megaly’s apartment. He had his own places he could rent if he wanted but he hoped to find Megaly at her apartment.
As he walked through the neighborhoods of Stormwind, he occasionally saw troops and other fighters moving in the general direction of the docks. Yet, for all the action in the harbor, the neighborhoods themselves were quiet. If he was not already so weary, he would return to the docks to defend the city but he knew a tired fighter was a dangerous one, dangerous to oneself and to those around them. One tired, careless swing with a sword could easily harm more than just the opponent.
Garilos quickened his pace when he came within sight of Megaly’s apartment. He stopped just outside the door and gently knocked on it. After a few more unanswered knocks, he quietly opened the door. His heart sank with disappointment when he saw the place was empty. “Damn,” he cursed under his breath.
Garilos stepped into the empty apartment and closed the door behind him. As he slowly removed his armor, he felt the tiredness and aches of his muscles. It had been a long time since he had fought like that. He was glad his muscles still knew how to react but it was clear to him he had lost some of his fighting edge. “Is that what happens when you settle down? You lose your edge,” he thought to himself as he eased a boot off.
As Garilos lay down on the empty bed, he momentarily regretted laying on the bed while so dirty from fighting. He had no time to find a bath house before coming here. “I’ll make it up to her by sending the sheets out for cleaning,” he promised himself as he drifted off to sleep.
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