Summary
Drake waits atop the stone collapse, peering over the wall to look to the Lutin camps to the northwest, and begins planning his ambush. He uses a rune of replication to restock his supply of arrows, and rests for the night, waking only to stop a mountain runoff dripping on his helmet.
He awakes to hear a Lutin scout at the base of the wall. Over the course of a day, 100 more arrive, until early afternoon when they begin to climb the wall. They are slow-going, but 6 hours later, they are getting close to the top, so Drake nudges a boulder that one Lutin grabs, sending them both crashing to the Lutins below, killing over 20. The Lutins decide to try again tomorrow.
The next day, the giants help the Lutins up the rock wall. Drake waits until one of the Lutins slips and screams, and pries loose a boulder, causing an avalanche on the Lutins below. Over 100 Lutins are dead. Their human commanders urge them to continue, but when one of the giants howls in pain, Drake triggers another avalanche, burying 3 giants and killing 50 more Lutins. For the rest of the day, they stop to dig out 2 of the giants, the other presumed dead. The rock wall, however, is now shorter and less steep.
The next day, a little over 300 Lutins and 3 giants remain. Instead of climbing, they rebuild their base camp. He watches and reflects on the army below, and the cavalry he hopes will arrive from Metamor. His meat is starting to go bad, so he catches and eats a live rat.
On the fourth day, the giants have cleared the debris, and a party of 25 Lutins begins to climb. When the first Lutin reaches the top, Drake smacks it with his spear, sending it down onto three of its companions. Drake swats away the next two Lutins, and the human commander orders an attack. Drake takes out his crossbow, and quickly shoots down the giants and the lutins who recklessly charge the wall; the few Lutins who do reach the top are cut down by his spear. The Lutins try to fire arrows, but Drake is too high for them to hit with any force. The fourth day ends with no result.
Three more days pass. Drake continues to defeat the Lutins, but is getting exhausted and running low on ammo, while over 100 Lutins arrive to reinforce. On the eighth day, the Lutins begin installing bolts in the wall to climb up. Drake paces along the wall and keeps watch through the night, knowing tomorrow will be his last stand.
The next day, when the Lutins are 10 feet from the top, Drake fires a crossbolt at the smug commander below, and triggers another avalanche, this time leveling out the wall. Drake fires four cartridges of bolts into the Lutins, then whirls his staff into the Lutin horde. Scores of Lutins die before one clubs him in the knee. Kneeling, he takes out his sword and circles it around him, killing even more but unable to repel the attacks in his armor. Finally, a Lutin knocks him flat against the ground. Drake readies himself for death as the Lutin raises its spear.
At the last moment, the Lutin is knocked off, as the army of Metamor arrives to save him. Misha helps Drake up; Drake mistakes Misha for Misha's grandfather, who shares his voice and mannerisms. Drake laughs at his incredible luck, and is relieved that his two scout friends made it safely to the Keep. A soldier reports that the last of the Lutins are being killed, while Drake eats a travel ration, glad to be eating something better than lizards. Misha laughs that he'll fit in well in Metamor, though he understands that Drake won't want to stay there for long.
Characters
Main characters:
- Drake: A world traveler and adventurer. He single-handedly blocks a Lutin army from crossing a makeshift stone wall.
- He wears silver bracers along his shins and forearms, each with 3 spikes over his joints.
- He knows a complex rune that is able to replicate his arrows and cartridges six or five times.
- When he sleeps, his mind is dormant but his body is always ready.
- He has memories of an earlier life, a female golden dragon, soaring over the ravine. He has followed this memory, possibly intending to travel to the Keep as well.
Minor characters:
- Misha Brightleaf: A fox morph, leader of the Long Scouts. He leads the army that saves Drake. He wields a dark double-bladed axe.
- Rickkter: A raccoon morph, a battle mage who arrives with Misha.
- Daria: A female gendermorph, she leads the battle as Misha and Rickkter return to Metamor with Drake.
Important mention:
- Llewellyn Brightleaf: One of Misha's grandfathers. Drake travelled with him long ago. Misha's voice and mannerisms are much like his.
- Arla: A collie morph, a Long Scout. After reporting the location of the Lone Wolf's Gap, she nearly insisted on joining the army to rescue him.
- Finbar: A ferret morph, a Long Scout. He suggested the name "Lone Wolf's Gap" for the mountain pass, in honor of Drake.
Locations
- The Lone Wolf's Gap is where Drake held off the Lutin army for 8 days.