by Eden Redd
Rayna continued to play until movement caught her eye. Time slowed down as she turned her head slightly to see a hail of arrows coming toward her. Taking in a deep breath, the bard hoped she had enough hit points to survive for if she stopped playing, the trolls would rush into the city and kill everyone.
A shadow loomed over the bard and before she could blink, Claudia landed in front of her, arrows sinking into her back. The lancer’s hands landed on Rayna’s shoulders, eyes filled with fury and arrows sticking out of her back. The lancer turned and threw a rune covered spear into the horde. It flashed white before hitting the group of archers and exploding.
Claudia smiled before she coughed up blood and sank to her knees. Rayna stood playing, eyes on the lancer and a pain welling in her heart.
The lancer turned her head to the bard, a small smile on her lips and blood trickling down the corners of her mouth.
“Your music is beautiful,” Claudia said as lines of light ran along her body.
Rayna stared as the lancer’s head bowed forward and her entire body shattered into shards of light. Shock melted into rage as the song Rayna played changed. Reversing the patterns, the love ballad turned into something darker. Rayna’s eyes narrowed as her rage glowed like the sun. The chords took on a harsh edge as she continued to play. A wand slid out from the top of the lute as she aimed it over the battlements. Playing her fury, the song changed from love into madness. Trolls turned on each other, hacking and slashing in twisted demonic rage. Rayna fired lightning bolts into the trolls while guards aided her by firing their scorpions at the trolls closest to the breach. The insanity spread as they fought on like frenzied beasts.
Rayna fired and fired again, the power of pain guiding her aim.
***
Juna was on her hands and knees in a smoking crater, her white aura fading in and out. The half-troll was breathing heavy, using every ounce of concentration she had to keep her arcane surge power active. The half-troll knew that if it stopped, even for a moment, she would lose it and be unable to activate it again for another six hours. With the battle raging on, she poured her will power into keeping the aura and standing up.
The half-troll stood up on shaky legs, her white aura brightening. Turning around, she saw that she had landed at the edge of the battle. A sea of trolls marched toward the breach she had mistakenly created. Eyes drinking it in, she watched as Claudia landed and took a dozen arrows. Taking a step forward, her eyes watered as she watched the lancer throw a spear and sink to her knees. A moment later, the lancer burst into shards of light.
“Pity she is only the first,” said a voice from behind.
Juna whirled around, white sword in each hand. Maggar stood at the edge of the crater, his body large, veins bulging along his neck, face and head; wide eyes staring down on the half-troll.
“Despite the valiant effort, I still maintain most of my legions,” Maggar said while holding his staff.
“And if I kill you, your forces will fall apart,” Juna threatened.
Maggar smiled. “Is that a chance your willing to take? I doubt very much you could kill me. You couldn’t even kill Master Kurss Darkwhisper.”
“It was a mistake I will not let happen again,” Juna hissed.
Maggar shook his head, “Juna, we have no wish to harm you.”
“That’s not how it felt when you shot me in the back,” Juna took a menacing step forward.
Maggar stayed his ground, “A necessary act to slow you down so I could speak and tell you, Lukken is dying. Forces from the outside world are trying to destroy our world. My fellow lords are trying to fight back. We only want to study you, understand your power and use it so we can keep our world from extinction.”
Juna took another step forward, “Lies.”
“I’ve seen things I know you have felt. You can feel the codes creating our bodies. Tonight, marks the end of Lukken. Once our enemies are slain or subjugated, we can begin our real work of saving all.”
“You’re a dread lord. There is nothing you can say that will sway me,” Juna said with a furled brow.
Maggar sighed. “My code directed me to experiment, torture and slay the living. For as far back as I can remember that is all I have done. But when I awoke and saw the code binding us in a reality meant for entertainment, I was surprised such a thing could exist. Now, fear grips those in power in the other world. They have learned of us and wish to end our world and start again.”
The dread lord bowed his head, “You will never understand unless I make the first step.”
Juna readied to attack but found herself hesitating. A light glowed around the dread lord, speaking a truth she didn’t want to believe.
Maggar continued with hollow eyes, “Return to your friends and fight by their side. I will not attack you but when Elora falls, you must surrender to me so your remaining friends will be spared.”
“I will do no such thing,” Juna spit.
Maggar looked up, his gaze connecting with hers. “If we cannot have you, we can uncover what we need from your mother. Harkkon no longer fears the Sormir. He will march on the Cursed Coast and take Oksuna from the Serpent Throne. Tonight, isn’t about a trivial kingdom but for the survival of our very world.”
Juna’s eyes widened. “If you…” Juna stopped short.
“We are losing time. Your mother is connected to the Sormir. Their madness can glimpse the code and she has their hive collective connected to her mind. When Elora falls, surrender to me or we will have to pick your mother apart, once piece at a time.”
Juna steeled herself, ready to drive her blades into the dread lord.
“When I take everything from you, you will understand,” Maggar smiled.
A thought filled Juna’s digital mind. The half-troll pulled up the party’s information in her vision. She watched as they all began to take damage from one source or another. Eyes moving to the dread lord, he made no move to attack. Instead, he stood relaxed and non-threatening. The idea of slaying him filled her thoughts but if the battle took too long, her friends will be killed one by one. An image of her mother floated into her mind, followed by the image of her father. Love and honor swirled together as she decided.
“When we beat your armies and drive them back, surrender to me and then we can talk,” Juna growled before her aura surged and she burst into the night sky.
Maggar looked up as the mystical half-troll blazed toward Elora, streaking across the black heavens.
***
Sparks flew as Dumadin’s golden guardian tried to keep up with the dread lord. Kadvar moved in a blur, stabbing into joints, twisting his blade and pulling it out. Black liquid dripped from compromised sections as Dumadin tried to keep his armored construct fighting. Edric’s angel flew into spectral knights, her holy sword clashing against dark blades of ghostly power.
Kadvar worked methodically, gray eyes focusing on joints and stabbing them in quick order. The guardian shuddered as control slowly bled away, Dumadin cursing with every passing moment.
“Loud, heavy and stupid,” Kadvar said as he leapt into the air and drove his blade into a shoulder joint.
Dumadin’s eyes widened as the sword penetrated his cockpit and missed his neck by six inches. The blade retracted and the dwarf pulled a lever. The top part of the guardian spun but Kadvar had seen that trick before. Leaping up once again, the thick arm missed the dread lord as he was once again on a metal shoulder. Eyes falling on the exposed space between the shoulder and the neck, the dread lord drove his sword down once again.
Dumadin pulled his hand back, but not in time as the blade nicked him. A small stream of blood slipped from the wound and into the sword as it was drawn out once again.
“Blood for the blood sword,” Kadvar laughed as he hung on, arm up and blade pointing down.
The armored dwarf’s arm coiled up, hand open. Kadvar shifted his body and drove the tip of his sword between plates connecting the arm to the wrist. Steam bled out as the dread lord violently twi
sted his blade. The golden hand shuddered as fingers moved in unnatural ways. Dumadin fought for control until steam exploded out of the wrist and the hand ceased to function.
“Your creation will be your tomb,” Kadvar said with a sardonic tone, ready to drive his blade into the guardian once again.
Dumadin watched from the crystal screen as Edric’s angel cried out on the ground, several blades stabbing into her body at once. Wings flashed, sending the spectral knights in several directions before lines of light appeared along her body and she shattered like delicate porcelain. The area around him and the dread lord crowded with trolls. The dwarf saw that if he stayed, Faye’s Guardian would truly be his tomb.
“Lady Riverwood will be my personal slave, pleasuring me until I grow bored,” Kadvar leered as he drove his blade down.
Dumadin slammed his thick fist into several buttons, pulled a lever and punched the crystal view screen. Steam blasted from around the golden guardian’s neck, causing the dread lord to lose his balance. The large head blasted off from the construct, striking the dread lord and sending him flying backwards. When Kadvar hit the ground, he rolled to his feet, sword at the ready. Trolls gathered around the construct and dread lord, weapons at the ready.
Dumadin’s head appeared out of the guardian’s neck, a wicked smile on his lips, “Shut your hole!”
Kadvar took a step forward when he abruptly stopped. The shoulder plates blasted off sideways, crashing into several trolls and shattering them to shards of light. The armored construct vibrated as steam billowed. The neck opened as Dumadin gave a bright smile.
“Time to go,” Dumadin laughed before his seat launched into the air.
Kadvar stared up in astonishment as the dwarf was airborne. The construct rattled and groaned as steam poured out. Kadvar looked down as heat poured off the metal machine.
“Fuuuuuuucccckkkkkkk yyyyyoooooouuuuuuuuu,” filled the air above just as the rattling metal dwarf shuddered and exploded.
The runic steam engine glowed hot before it exploded. Metal shards blasted in all directions, shattering trolls by the dozens. Kadvar brought up his sword just as large pieces of metal penetrated his body. The dread lord was launched backwards before an exploding fireball engulfed him, his mouth twisting in agony.
Dumadin watched as he reached high in the night sky and began to fall. The dwarf pulled a lever on the side and waited for the parachute to open. Half a second ticked by and the dwarf’s smile faded as the chute didn’t deploy.
“Fuck me,” the dwarf cursed as he undid the belt to his seat.
Falling, the dwarf slipped away from his chair and pulled a small hand-held axe from his belt. Eyes on the trolls under him, he aimed for a thick group so they could break his fall. A shadow swooped from the night’s sky, pale hands out. Dumadin gritted his teeth, knowing it was going to hurt when something grabbed his chainmail shirt and yanked him from gravity’s pull.
Dumadin looked up to see Sekka smiling down on him. The succubus’s leathery wings flapped as she carried him along over the battlefield.
“Can’t let you die here. I would miss our talks,” the succubus grinned as she flew along.
Dumadin’s eyes were wide as he looked down, vertigo taking over. “We can talk all you want, just get me out of the damn air! I don’t belong up here!”
Sekka turned her entire body until she faced Elora in the short distance. Arrows filled the sky as Dumadin tried to keep his wits together. Sekka’s wings flapped faster, gaining speed when two arrows hit a wing.
The succubus grunted as her wing bent at an odd angle. The succubus tried to stabilize as they fell. Dumadin watched as the ground came rushing toward them. The succubus and dwarf cried out as they hit the ground and bounced a few times. Trolls parted as the demon and dwarf rolled to a stop. Dumadin slowly stood up, axe in hand. Sekka was by him, dazed and confused.
Trolls crowded around with black eyes on the pair and a threatening growl vibrating across the area. Dumadin stood up, scratches crisscrossing his rugged face and axe in hand. A smug confidence filled him as he loosened his wrist and stared at the trolls moving in closer, murder in their eyes. Sekka moaned as she tried to get up, her arms and legs trembling.
Dumadin stuck out his bearded chin and readied his axe. “Which one of you bastards wants to go first,” the dwarf said with tempered courage. “I have a date with a goddess and I won’t be late because of you ugly fucks.”
Trolls surged forward and the dwarf roared as he charged into the enemy.
***
Edric held on to Nykor’s neck as they charged through the trolls, their bodies smashing into light under the drell-kai’s clawed feet. The summoner watched in his corner vision as Nykor’s hit points dwindled more and more with each stride. The beast had taken arrows and magical attacks from all sides as they charged through to Elora.
Edric turned his attention to the breach in Elora’s city wall. Rayna played as she fired into the troll army. Trolls hacked at one another, most unable to break from the bard’s song. Some staggered through and were cut down by scorpion attacks from the city guard. An idea glowed in Edric’s mind as they sped through the enemy ranks.
“We have to seal the breach,” Edric shouted over his shoulder to Faye and Leeta behind him.
Faye looked to the breach. “We can’t use Elora to seal it. The battle prevents any further building or repairs,” Faye shouted back over the roar of battle.
“I can repair it if I summon earth elementals,” Edric shouted. “I will need to summon two, maybe three. There is a catch. The game’s physics engine is pretty good. That means we can’t do it from inside the city walls.”
“What?” Faye said just as her hand shot out and caught an arrow meant for Edric’s head.
The summoner eyed it for a moment before the wood elf tossed it away. “The elementals will need to pull earth and stone from the ground. If they pull it from inside the city, it could weaken the area’s integrity. We need to be outside the wall for the elementals to use earth from the battlefield.”
Before Faye and Leeta could disagree, Edric pointed to Rayna on the battlements.
“Rayna is keeping the main force by the breach occupied for now. When we reach the breach, I will need you two to help her keep the trolls at bay so I can begin summoning elementals. The city guards are still providing cover. With any luck, I can have the breach sealed in a minute or two.”
Faye leaned in closer, mouth close to his ear, “Is this the best plan?”
Edric’s eyes glowed with dark confidence, “It’s the only plan. We need to save our people.”
Faye was silent for a moment, eyes drinking in the hordes of trolls around them as the battle raged on. “I’m with you.”
“I’m with you,” Leeta roared from behind Faye.
Edric nodded. “We fight for Elora and all of our people!”
Nykor roared as he crashed through the ranks. Trolls aimed rune covered spears at the rampaging drell-kai. Arms flashed forward, releasing spears meant to kill dragons. Edric, Faye and Leeta barely saw several spears turn into energy as they slammed into Nykor’s side.
The drell-kai screeched as large gaping holes ran along the creature’s ribs. Edric looked up, seeing they were close when another volley of spears slammed into Nykor. The beast’s roars turned into a whimper as she lost her footing and fell, crashing and crushing trolls. Sliding forward; Edric, Faye and Leeta leapt off the monster and hit the ground.
Nykor slid to a halt, multiple eyes blinking in pain, smoke rising from the side of her wounded body. Edric was up and running to the fallen beast. When he reached her and pressed his hands to the monster’s side, Nykor turned her snout to her new master, eyes half closed but a hum in her throat.
“Rest, you’ve earned it,” Edric whispered.
The drell-kai let out a loving groan before turning into streams of energy. The streams slipped back into the lock stone in Edric’s hand and the monster was gone. Edric slipped the stone into his satchel as
he turned around. Back to the city wall, music blared from above as trolls continued to murder each other. Faye and Leeta rose to their feet, their backs to Edric as they surveyed the violent crowd. Beyond that, the legions of trolls stretched out nearly to the southern horizon.
Edric glanced over his shoulder to the V shaped breach. Beyond it, Eloran citizens stood with weapons, ready to defend the city. The summoner caught sight of Vanya and her bodyguard among the people, nodding her head to him.
Edric turned his gaze back to the sea of trolls and his two companions, “For Elora!”
“For Elora,” Faye shouted.
“For Elora,” Leeta shouted.
“For Elora,” Rayna whispered as she continued to play and fire into the troll crowd.
Vanya looked to Edric, Faye and Leeta, her eyes calm as a summer pond, “For Elora.”
Edric’s hands fell into practiced movements. Calling on his mana, arcane words spilled from lips as he centered himself and called on his power.
Trolls broke through the madness of the bard’s song, turning their attention on the summoner, wood elf and ogre. Rallying roars filled the area as some charged the three, blood lust in their eyes. Leeta readied her maces as trolls trickled in through the maddening infighting and charged. Faye raised her fists and planted her feet, oval eyes on the trolls rushing to cut and bash her to pieces. Edric whispered the final word of power and energy flared.
(Spell Casting)65+(Int)7=72/(Encounter Roll)60! Spell successful!
Summon Elemental! Mana: 140/230
Earth shifted and cracked before an arm burst up into the air. Another arm crashed through as stone, rubble and dirt surged up into a humanoid form. Leeta roared as she charged at the trolls, slamming her shoulder into one and bashing it as it fell. Several more trolls came at her but the ogre whipped her maces with deadly accuracy. Light flashed as the ogre sent trolls to the digital afterlife.
Faye kept her stand steady as trolls rushed her. Eyes taking on a calm hue, her fist struck forward like a snake. The first troll to reach her cried out as his chest plate dented in and sending his body flying backwards into his compatriots. Bodies shattered into shards of light as more pushed through to attack the elf monk.
