William Jones
Stories
10
Chapters
3,868
Words
2.6 M
Comments
0
Reading
8 d, 21 h
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"My goodness, Runt, you don't have to do all of that. Washing all those dishes was a great help. And the floor was getting a little dirty. But I know Ozzy is probably looking for some help over at that flaming pit of his. I can wipe off the tables while dinner is cooking in the ovens. No need for you to keep working." Runt had been working since lunch was over a couple of hours ago. Betty had been glad for the help and made sure Ozzy's new helper got a big slice of apple pie when it came out of the oven.…-
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Runt was sitting in a mostly empty room on the third floor of the butcher shop. His room. Just this one thing meant a lot to him. It wasn't a handy hiding spot, or a cramped little area he could sleep without someone kicking him. He didn't have to hide the entrance. His room! Ozzy had offered him either the second or third floors of the shop. Runt had wanted the highest one. It let him look out over the town. Ozzy left to find him a bed and some other things that the Butcher thought he needed. Runt…
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"I think we had best time this carefully." Ben and Rolly had been debating several points in the agreement between ACME and its Contract Workers with input from Ozzy now and then. They were meeting on the 3rd floor of the tavern. Suzette had been in and out of the room, first to find out what was going on, and then to get plenty of hot tea and another plate of food for Runt. Suzettes entrance the first time had been the final thing that made Runt relax a bit. Whatever was in her smile worked on him. He…
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Ozzy had no intention of climbing several flights of stairs to talk to Billy. He found a large scrap of wood, a piece of charcoal from a burnt building, and left him a message by propping it up just inside the front door. "There, that should keep the Baron happy, and you and I can go get breakfast." Runt approved. The more people he ran into during a day, the more jobs he got assigned. Consequently, he and every other minion he had met got very good at avoiding Bosses and having a good excuse for not…
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An offer of food was something Runt rarely turned down, but he hesitated for an instant when Ozzy offered to "treat him to breakfast at the tavern." This was definitely a favor, and he'd owe Ozzy. No one just did favors in a dungeon for no return - especially with a minion. But turning down an offer of food could be seen as an insult, and after seeing just how crazy and violent this guy was, he wasn't going to take a chance. He had a nice, plump rat back in the pit, but that could wait for another…
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As Ozzy and his guide walked into the city, a strange transformation came over the boy he'd been following. Ozzy stopped and looked him over. He thought he'd been following a crippled boy of about 14-16 years old. The missing leg was still missing. But the illusion of humanity faded away. Runt was still only about four foot tall. He still had a peg-leg. But other things changed, most notably his face. When Ozzy tried to remember what he had looked like before, it was a vague memory, as if he hadn't really…
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In the frozen dungeon once called The Pit of the Butcher, most of the creatures were hibernating or dead and frozen, victims of the magic that once held the city in stasis and was slowly leaking away. Runt had avoided that same fate by way of his unique status as a minion. The same skills that made him forgettable, unnoticed, and part of the background had also fooled the spells that affected everyone else. An unfortunate part of Runt spending a few centuries on his own, had been developing the bad habit…
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Layla was relaxing - as much as she could right now. A comfy robe, a glass of wine...and an endless string of reports and forms that she had to fill out for her bosses. Sedgewick was the most profitable of the hundreds of small villages ACME had taken over. It was also leading in land acquisition, projected revenue, and building points. It didn't feel like it. This was how things worked at ACME. When you were on top, half the people wanted to know how you did it so they could copy your strategies, and the…
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Some time ago, in the northern city of Grultain, the Council of Five held their official weekly meeting to chart the course of the grand group of adventurers known far and wide as The Council for this week consisted of the following people: Princezz Valentina Argente: Guild Leader, priestess of Frey, Lord of Alfheim StrongArm TheRighteous: Assistant Guild Leader, Paladin of the Light! McTeeth: Treasurer for the guild. Rumored to be a thief. Possibly serving the dark. Absolutely a…
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Most Legion outposts in strategic positions had a teleportation pad. These were large, flat stones inscribed with a complex series of runes. Nearly indestructible, they were also hugely expensive. The size of the stone reflected how many people at a time could use it and how much mana it could hold when fully charged. They were notorious mana hogs, and the bane of many a commander’s existence. Each outpost was responsible for keeping their stone charged. Most of the cost of the spell was at the stone…
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