PROMPT – All paladins receive gifts from their gods shortly after pledging their allegiance. As a new paladin, you are worried about what types of gifts Avergus, God of Mediocrity, would give his followers when the fateful day arrives.

“Here!” Meredith shouted, her voice carrying the strain at its source perfectly between the trees of the dense forest. “I have one here!”

Charlotte raised her fist, signaling the others in their group to stop. Sound did not always travel the way you expected in the Colorless Woods. The way the leaves moved in the autumn breeze, the limbs of the trees brushing against one another. Many travelers left convinced there were spirits of one sort or another playing tricks on them. Charlotte grew up in the nearby village before leaving to pursue her path as a paladin. She knew better than to give any credence to those sorts of rumors. The world was filled with forces both natural and otherwise. But that did not mean every whisper on the wind was a ghost plotting death and destruction.

“What are we waiting for?” Clayton asked, hefting his axe over his shoulder.

“Can you tell where it’s from?” Charlotte asked.

“Try and remember that some of us actually grew up in the civilized world,” Evan said. The fellow paladin kept his eyes on the trees all around.

Charlotte ignored him. “She can’t be far.” Having spent the last eight years away from home she was forced to admit the tracking skills so prevalent in her youth were not as sharp as they used to be.

Clayton kept his mouth closed and his ears peaked. When Meredith called out again the direction seemed to have changed. Charlotte would have guessed further down and to the right.

“This way,” Clayton said and headed left. Charlotte followed with Evan trailing a few steps behind. Trips to the Colorless Woods were part of a weekly routine for the local craftsman. There were always repairs to be made, fresh fences to be built. As such, he was the first to report the sorcerer’s presence so close to the village. A threat that, according to the village elders, required two paladins.

Charlotte did her best not to let her frustration show when she was told. Everyone knew which god’s path she followed. Even so, it may not have been so bad had anyone other than Evan been chosen as that second paladin to accompany their group. The pair never got along well back in school. Evan seemed to do no wrong, able to pass each exam with little to no effort at all, the seamless connection with his god allowing him to tackle every threat the instructors threw their way. All the while Charlotte spent countless nights studying and practicing her prayers only to graduate as the epitome of an average student.

Alone, that would have been fine. The path chosen for a paladin was preordained long before they reached the doors of the parochial school. It was certainly not a reason to hate someone over. Unfortunately, this follower of Melior was not known for his sense of humility.

“At what point do we decide our dear Meredith has fallen and head back?” Evan asked. He had fallen farther behind and practically needed to shout to be heard. “A hard truth, sure. Not one I’m happy to accept, but there it is. One letter to the local garrison and I’ll have a score of mounted soldiers riding down on whatever beasts too foolish to stand in their way.”

Charlotte kept her pace, resisting the urge to round on him then and there. “She rode out with us. That means she’s our responsibility to keep safe. Same as Clayton, here.”

Evan mumbled something under his breath, too low for Charlotte to make out.

Seasons mattered little in the appearance of the Colorless Woods. Aside from the wet, heavy air of spring or the cold bite of winter there was nothing to take away from the veritable sea of white and grey that that stretched out all around them. As a child Charlotte used to think it was a land the gods forgot. A land left unfinished.

As quickly as they took off, the group came to a halt. Clayton crouched by a group of trees and signaled for the others to do the same. He pointed forward. Charlotte leaned out and away from cover. Meredith lay sprawled out on the ground, red hair free from under the hood of her cloak. A handful of dead goblins were scattered around her. Whatever trouble she had been in before, she was clear of it now. Whether or not she survived that trouble, though, Charlotte was too far away to tell.

“She’s alive,” Clayton said. “Hard to tell with that armor, but she’s breathing.”

“Are there any more of them?” Evan asked.

“Hard to tell,” Clayton said.

“I can see why we brought you along. Those goblins were with the sorcerer. Look at the marks on their cloaks. If she’s alive, she may have seen which direction he went.”

Blunt as he was, Charlotte knew he was right. The sorcerer knew he was being hunted now. They needed to pick up his trail and fast.

Clayton waited a moment longer until he appeared content that the area was clear. He stepped out from their cover behind the tree, took a single step towards Meredith, and a cluster of arrows rained down to pierce through the ranger’s armor as easily as her flesh. The woodwork turned around, words of warning on his lips. He could not utter a single one before three more arrows struck him in the back.

“Down!” Charlotte shouted. The paladins clung to their trees as the deadly wooden shafts embedded themselves in the bark. She felt the vibrations like thunder in a distant storm.

“Looks like our sorcerer isn’t as far away as we thought.” Evan took up his staff in both hands, one of the few totems the paladin carried about himself. The prayer was short and ushered quickly. In moments the pair of them were illuminated in golden light.

Charlotte felt the familiar presence of a shield spell. A rather potent one, at that. The Colorless Woods seemed to not only absorb the light but spread it out even wider. Charlotte shut her eyes to the light and let its warmth flood her limbs as she started up a prayer of her own. Nothing special, but it would get the job done. She kept her totem close to her chest, its weight around her neck offering a sense of security matched only by the dagger at her hip.

Neither of the paladins moved for what felt like an eternity. They had no idea where their ambushers were hiding. The goblins, on the other hand, knew exactly where to find them. An advantage the pair was keen on taking away. It wasn’t long before they heard the sound of little footsteps crunching on the ground, moving towards them. Evan mouthed ‘ready?’ and Charlotte nodded. On a silent three-count they burst from cover.

Charlotte unleashed the prayer she prepared, causing the ground at the goblins’ feet to shift and crack. One of the creatures tripped over a newly formed divot, while another was forced to leap aside or share in a similar fate.

“Not bad,” Evan said, rushing forward with his staff held high. What once appeared to be a cloak of light slithered and swirled, becoming hardened blades of pure energy. One hand still holding the staff, he extended the other and sent the half-dozen spears of light flying forwards. Any goblins fortunate enough to have avoided Charlotte’s attack found themselves impaled by Evan’s magic.

“Good enough,” Charlotte said and drew her dagger.

Half a dozen of the sorcerer’s goblins still remained. Charlotte brought her empty hand to her mouth and whispered a few words into her fist. When she opened her hand again a flash of light burst free. The goblin nearest to her took the brunt of the spell, dropping his spear to rub desperately at his eyes. Charlotte seized the opportunity and ran it through with her dagger.

A spear blade sliced through the leather and cloth at Charlotte’s shoulder, the attack coming from behind and out of her line of sight. Blood started to flow. She turned on the goblin, then, mumbling through a curse only she and Avergus could hear. Charlotte was never the best fencer. Then again, neither were her adversaries. The spear-wielding goblin looked at the blood on the edge of its weapon and grinned. A flurry of words came to Charlotte, all of which would have made the priests and priestesses at the academy blush. She kept them to herself, deciding instead on a healing spell. The cut remained, but no longer as deep.

The goblin charged, leading the way with its spear leading the way. Charlotte adjusted her footing and parried the weapon aside. She moved with the momentum, dragging her blade along the length of the spear until she reached the layer of furs and pallid flesh at its base. The goblin squealed as Charlotte’s steel drove deeper into its side and the last gasps of life slipped away. She turned away from her target to see all but one of their foes writhing on the ground.

Evan’s eyes were closed, the paladin clearly concentrating on the mass of vines currently tightening around their necks. He wore a smile on his face when he opened them. Only a single goblin remained. “Where’s your master?” he asked.

The goblin’s focus shifted from Evan to Charlotte and then back again. It’s short sword waivered as its body trembled. Whether or not it even understood the question, Charlotte couldn’t tell.

“Very well, then,” Evan said and brought his staff to bear. Arcs of lightning sparked to life along the length of aged wood, waiting for the last word of a fresh prayer before lunging towards their final enemy. The goblin flinched, undoubtedly seeing their relatively short lives flash before their eyes. Except death never came. Evan’s spell fizzled and thinned until only sparks remained. Charlotte was not who looked more surprised, the goblin or her compatriot.

A cold wind blew from across the way. All sounds of wildlife fell silent, few as there may have been. The sorcerer stepped through the brush and the goblin dropped to a bow. He paid it no mind. Streams of sunlight broke through the canopy of leaves overhead, reflecting off the top of his clean-shaven head. Tall as he was thin, the sorcerer stood at least a foot above even Clayton. There was something unnatural at work here. Seeing it now, up close and in person, Charlotte wasn’t sure the four of them had been enough.

Evan readied another prayer. He moved his hands, making the necessary gestures before finishing the casting.

Nothing.

He tried again. Slower this time, more particular with his movements.

Nothing.

The sorcerer laughed. “Useful trick, isn’t it? I had to work my way through a quite a few paladins before getting it right. Pray all you like, your gods will never hear you.”

Evan stared down at his hands, his mouth open.

“If you can take the goblin, I’ll rush the sorcerer,” Charlotte said. “Evan? Can you handle that?”

The paladin turned towards Charlotte with the same expression. “I can’t cast.”

“I know that. Neither of us can. You’ll have to get in close on this one.”

“You don’t understand,” Evan said. “All I’ve ever known is casting. It’s all I’ve ever had to know.”

Charlotte kept one eye on their enemies and the other on the man seemingly doing all he could to help the other two succeed. “Keep your stick between you and it and you’ll do fine.” Without bothering to see if Evan would listen, she charged.

The sorcerer launched a spell her way, tendrils of purple and blue energy missing Charlotte by no more than a hair. The heat was enough to singe the edge of her robes. She doubted she would get so lucky twice. She swung her dagger, aiming for his throat. The sorcerer brought his staff to meet the blow. The force of the blow sent vibrations up the paladin’s arm, but she never let go.

This is our best bet, Charlotte thought. Keep him busy. As long as he was focused on blocking her attacks, he wouldn’t have time to prepare another spell.

Her moves were nothing fancy. Certainly not something reminiscent of a master swordswoman. What they were, however, was serviceable. They made sure that Charlotte got the job done. Even so, she could not hope to avoid every one of the sorcerer’s attacks. One strike to her thigh nearly brought her to the ground, while a pair to her side knocked the air from her lungs and surely broke a rib. Charlotte pushed through the pain. She ignored the voice in her head telling her to give up, to throw down her weapon and just run.

The sorcerer feigned an attack from above and brought his crooked staff down low in an attempt to sweep the paladin’s legs out from under her. Charlotte saw the move coming. She kept her blade held close to her side until the last possible moment. Until she was sure the man had fallen for her ruse. Charlotte lunged forward with every bit of strength she could muster. Her dagger bit through cloth and leather, through skin and bone, until only the sorcerer’s heart stood in her way. Even then, it was only meat. The blade cleaved straight through it all the same.

The sorcerer’s swing still held enough force to lash out one final time, connecting with Charlotte’s shins and sending her crashing hard to the ground. He looked down at her, his eyes filled with bewilderment and something more. Fear. Charlotte’s dagger was still lodged in his chest. His staff slipped from his hand. He brought to the weapon’s hilt, desperately trying to take hold.

As the sorcerer’s strength faded, Charlotte felt her own connection to Avergus return. With a few words her hand was glowing with a familiar light, summoning just enough of a breeze to push the swaying spellcaster to the ground.

Charlotte dropped her head back down to the dirt and lay there. Any adrenaline still in her body was gone, making way for the pain of injuries both known and new to take center stage.

“He’s dead?” Evan asked. From the sound of his voice he was still on the way to regaining his own strength. That’s good. It meant he handled the goblin after all.

“Looks like,” Charlotte said.

“How?” Evan asked, and even then, the words took time to form. “Not the dead part. I understand a knife to the chest is as good a way as any to do it. It’s just…you were never more than average in our class. In all of our classes. Hell, Avergus practically claimed you from birth. No offense, of course.”

“Of course,” Charlotte said, letting the air rejuvenate her lungs in slow, steady breaths. “What’s your point?”

“What you just did, without the connection to our gods…” Evan looked as bewildered as he sounded. “We should be dead.”

“It’s one of the first lessons I picked up. When you’re chosen by Avergus, you learn not to rely on him too much.”

Evan opened his mouth to respond before holding his tongue and, as though finally understanding some great revelation, simply nodded.

“I don’t suppose anyone mentioned there being a reward for our…” Evan looked over the scene of blood and bodies and death, all standing out in stark contrast against the backdrop of dirtied greys and whites. “Services…here.”

“Get the horses,” Charlotte said. “I’ll prepare Meredith and Mr. Clayton.”

“We did good here,” Evan said. “The best we could’ve done, I’ll go so far as to say.”

Charlotte watched as he walked and then jogged towards their camp. A quick prayer came to mind. First of thanks, and then a wish. A wish, for the first time in a long time, that Avergus had allowed her to be just a little bit better.