by Tao Wong
When the Orcs made their way to the entrance, they were not charging but moving in a slow, steady and guarded formation. Like the previous patrols, the Orcs were wielding an assortment of weapons ranging from clubs to swords and shields. Surprisingly, few of the Orcs carried spears, bows or crossbows. When they reached the clearing, they stared at the group, letting out low snarls. As a crossbow bolt lodged in the chest bone of one of the few unshielded Orcs in the front line, they howled and threw themselves forwards as if the attack was a signal.
Daniel braced himself, judging the fast-closing distance before stepping forwards as they were nearing and triggering his Shield Bash ability. The attack smashed into a charging Orc’s shield and rebounded, throwing Daniel back as the combined effects of the monster’s Bloodrush Charge and Shield Bash overwhelmed him. As he scrambled to keep his footing, the next Orc was on him, lashing out with a spiked club that Daniel barely managed to block. Before it could continue its attack, Omrak stepped forward and brought his sword down in a double-handed overhand blow that split apart the hide helm and stuck halfway through the monster’s skull. Omrak reacted immediately, stepping forwards and kicking the dying Orc back, shoving it away from him.
As another Orc moved forwards to take the dead Orc’s place, Daniel finally recovered his footing and timing, blocking a strike and returning one against his original opponent. He kept his shield up, making sure to guard against attacks and only lashing out occasionally. Like Omrak beside him, the pair fought carefully, more intent on taking sure shots rather while keeping themselves safe rather than killing their opponents. In short order, the Orcs realised the difference and started to push forwards aggressively.
Rob, standing behind, raised his hands and released a Magic Arrow, the Mana-formed attack cutting through armor and injuring an Orc as it stepped forward. Taking advantage of the situation, Daniel hunched down and shattered the monster’s knee as the Orc reeled, forcing it to fall backwards and clogging up the entrance again.
Seconds turned into minutes as the pair of Adventurers continued to fight carefully. Even when the Orcs finally managed to pull their injured comrades out, the pair did not push forwards, content to injure and slow their opponents. And through it all, Daniel listened with half an ear out.
“Northeast!” Sava cried out in warning.
Daniel growled, unable to look away but knowing that the Orcs must be attempting to breach the circle in another way. It was one of the reasons they added Elisa to the guard post, giving the group another ranged attacker. As he blocked another attack, an enchanted spike popped up above his shoulder and swooped in to blind the Orc. The monster stumbled back, clutching its damaged eye.
“What is taking them so long?” Omrak panted, a new cut along an arm bleeding freely and forming a sticky mess beneath his fingers. Daniel eyed his friend, concern about the continuing loss of blood but unable to do anything about it right this moment. Surrounding the Northerner, a low red glow filled the man, a mark of the growing Rage ability.
“Should be soon…” Daniel said.
“Southeast!” Sava shouted.
“Damn it…” Rob cursed behind.
But Daniel and Omrak no longer had time to talk, as the Orcs threw themselves at the pair with renewed fury. Once again, they fought, careful not to trigger any of their stamina-draining Skills. They just had to hold. Hold…
“CLEAR!” Sava cried.
Immediately, Daniel triggered Perrin’s Blow, the strike coming in at an angle that caught his opponent on the weapon, sending it bouncing off the monster’s own chest. Forced to take a step back to absorb the impact, the Orc had to further edge backwards and duck as Omrak threw a wide overhand cut with his giant sword.
Disengaged, Daniel moved back as Rob clapped his hands together. From beneath the churned earth, buried enchanted orbs exploded, a cloud of poisonous gas flowing up. Daniel and Omrak both retreated immediately, the greenish-purple gas continuing to boil out of the spheres. Surprisingly, the clouds did not move much from their original location, instead staying concentrated as they continued to rise.
“Let’s go. It will only hold for a few minutes,” Rob said. Behind the cloud of smoke, the Orcs watched, staring as the Adventurers fell back. A glance over to the other entrance showed the entrance covered in sticky webs, one of which had the weakly thrashing body of an Orc captured within. As the Adventurers turned and ran towards the crumbled ruins, the Orcs let out a howl of anger.
As a group, the Adventurers reached the bottom of the crumbled stones where the Merchants stood at the top, only a few of them still waiting to make their way down. Sava who had called the ‘Clear’ was halfway up the ruins already when Daniel reached the bottom. The healer turned around, setting himself as he got ready to take the back. As Omrak came to a halt, Daniel snarled.
“Go!”
“I shall…”
“We need a fighter at the other end. Go!” Daniel snapped.
Omrak hesitated for a second more before he nodded and started scrambling up after the Selkie who had never even stopped. Daniel smiled briefly while the other group of Adventurers managed to make their way over, the squishy casters making their way first while Craig and the melee fighters waited for their turn.
“You should go,” Craig said to Daniel.
“I’ve got a shield…”
“And you’re the healer,” Craig said flatly. Daniel hesitated but grimaced, pausing only long enough to slap his hand and a spell on the injured Bjarne before he turned around to wait his turn. Finding himself standing beside Hjalmar, he eyed the Rogue.
“I’m fine. Nothing my healing potions couldn’t fix,” Hjalmar said.
Before Daniel could reply, a shout from the Orcs drew his attention back. Rather than wait for the cloud to disperse, the monsters had thrown themselves through it, picking up the poison as they charged the group. On the other side, the sticky magical webbing had been set on fire, the body of the captured Orc twitching feebly.
“Shit. They’re berserk!” Craig said. “Elisa, Vivian!”
In answer, magic and mundane arrows fell, harrying the rushing monsters. Hjalmar slapped Daniel’s shoulder, jerking his head to the broken rubble before he started scrambling up. Daniel sighed and took off, ascending quickly. As he reached the top, he looked back down to see both Craig and Uppulu caught in battle, the two Adventurers fighting to keep the swarming Orcs back.
“We need to clear some space,” Hjalmar said. He held his hand out, pulling his quiver and bow from his inventory before firing down at the group.
“Daniel!” Asin snorted, making the Adventurer look over. He turned and caught the crossbow that had been tossed to him and then the nearly empty quiver. Even as he watched, Asin reached for her knives and bunched her feet beneath herself.
“Asiiiin!” Daniel cried out, too late as the Catkin threw herself off the rocks. The Catkin fell, knives held in hand and landed right on top of a pair of Orcs, slamming both to the ground as her knives bore into their body. The Catkin, like her namesake, bounced right back up unlike her victims, pulling new knives from her sheaths as she cut into hamstrings of surprised monsters.
“Flame Serpent!” Vivian cried out. From her hand, a living snake of flame and smoke formed and flew down, ducking and dancing through the group. The Sorcerer staggered, her face as white as the petal of a baby breath flower as she drained her Mana in that attack. Combined with Asin’s distraction, the two Adventurers managed to end their attackers and swiftly begin climbing while Asin disengaged by tossing a Fan of Knives and then bounding up the rocks.
As the fastest recovering Orc started climbing up, Daniel finally nocked and fired his crossbow. The bolt arced down and missed its intended target, shattering the rock just in front of the monster. The explosive destruction made the Orc flinch backwards, a shard cutting an eye open and making the monster fall backwards. Rob, standing at the top waved his hands around, sending his enchanted spikes to harry the Orcs as w
ell as they attempted to climb up.
“I’m out!” Elisa said as she stored her bow.
“Go!” Daniel ordered the woman. Daniel looked over at Vivian who continued to look pale, then pointed at her to Bjarne as he managed to make his way up. “Get her down.”
Directing the group as he readied his own last bolt, Daniel stared down at the group of Orcs and thanked the stars that they continued to be bereft of ranged weaponry. Even with the harrying attacks of Asin, himself and Hjalmar, the Orcs continued to make their way up, a short ten feet beneath the others.
“Go!” Daniel said when Craig and Uppulu made it up to his level.
“I should stay…” Craig protested.
“I’ve got a plan. Now, go!” Daniel snapped. A flash of loss ran through Daniel as he stared at the ropes. Once, a long time ago, he knew how to rappel, how to tie off knots and move with surety. But that time had gone, taken away by his Gift. Broken memories resided within him, portions of memories taken not just from his mind but his body. But, still, he knew in theory how to rappel down.
Craig hesitated a moment longer before taking off down the ropes, allowing the healer to fire his last bolt at the leading Orc and, finally, managing to land a shot. The impact of the bolt threw the monster back, sending it tumbling down off the hill and making Daniel grin savagely. By this time, Asin hopped up beside him, triggering one last Fan of Knives before she paused, panting.
“Get down,” Daniel ordered.
The Catkin did not even hesitate, gripping the nearest rope and climbing down with ease. In short order, the Beastkin was sliding down the rope, leaving Daniel alone on the top of the ruin. As the Orcs continued to clamber up, he grinned and released his last present.
The summoned Orc Warrior that appeared beside him glared at Daniel for a second before turning around and squatting, waiting for its living brethren to make their way forwards. While the Orcs were distracted by the summoning, Daniel checked and then cut the first empty rope before grabbing the second. Setting his feet against the rock wall, Daniel threw himself down the line, gripping and releasing the rope at intervals as he fell down the cliff. At the last few feet, his momentum grew too much and he found his fingers losing their grip and he landed awkwardly on his back, his breath driven from him. The Adventurer groaned, thankful that he had managed to avoid a concussion. Even as he lay on the ground, recovering his breath, Rob waved his hand. An enchanted, magical spike shifted, slicing the rope apart near the top and sending the now loose end dropping to land on the feet of the surprised Adventurer.
“What the hell?”
“No time,” Rob said, pointing upwards to allow Daniel to see the glowering faces of the Orcs that had managed to kill his summon. “Come on. Time to go.”
Daniel groaned, taking a proffered arm from Asin as he staggered upwards. He focused, sending a wash of healing magic through himself and clearing some of the bruises before he stored the rope in his inventory. With the easy access down cut-off, the Orcs could only glower at the Adventurers as they took off. So far, so good.
Chapter 14
Daniel quickly joined the main section of the group, moving up the line as he eyed the team with a practiced eye. The healer checked for injuries, layering a Healer’s Mark twice on those who most needed the spell, allowing the healing spell time to do its work. It was not as effective as the group was moving, but it was better than nothing.
“The ropes are cut?” Craig said when Daniel made his way nearly up to the front.
“Yes,” Daniel said. “Who’s leading us?”
“The Catkin and Sava both have an idea of where we need to go,” Craig said. “I have Hjalmar and Sumuhan at the rear, with your friend Omrak backing them up.”
Daniel nodded, lips pressed tight as he checked over the group. Because only a quarter of the merchants had been part of the fighting, the non-combatants were mostly in good shape. However, the fighters were all injured, many of them bearing hastily wrapped bandages and half-healed wounds. With barely fifty Mana left, Daniel knew he had to make sure to let his Mana regenerate, no matter how much he would want to fix their injuries.
“How long do you think we have?” Daniel finally asked.
Craig shrugged before he said, “That’s more a question for our non-present Ranger. Just run. Our lead will not be that long.”
Daniel nodded and fell silent, conserving his oxygen as he ran alongside.
Over an hour passed with no sign of pursuit, a surprising fact that made Daniel even more worried. They jogged, pausing every twenty minutes to slow down and rest. From his understanding, they had four hours before they reached the gorge. And, while Daniel dreaded the pursuit, he knew they needed it too.
“Faster,” Tula said, appearing from the undergrowth. Craig, who had been running alongside Daniel, jerked as the Ranger made her presence known.
“Where have you been?” Craig questioned the Ranger.
“Dealing with patrols and scouting,” Tula said. She ducked her head slightly, hiding her eyes for a brief moment before she added. “It’s good you escaped. But there’s a whole displaced clan coming.”
“Damn it,” Craig snarled. “I knew it.”
“They’re at the camp, taking what food they can and feeding their people. They were starving,” Tula said. “It’s good that you left some of the food for them. It should give us some time.”
“Didn’t do it on purpose,” Sava said grumpily.
“I know. But it still works,” Tula said.
“Why are they in such a state?” Daniel said. “Shouldn’t they have hunters?”
“Many probably died when they were driven out,” Tula said. “The few they do have won’t be enough to feed the remaining tribe.”
“Ranger, what is the plan?” Sava said. “Do we still go to the gorge?”
“Yes,” Tula said with a nod. “I’ll lead us in. Follow my directions. We’ll be entering the gorge and sneaking our way through it as the best option. If all goes well, the raptors will be drawn to the Orcs as they follow us.”
“And if doesn’t?” Craig said suspiciously.
“Then I have a backup plan too,” Tula said. “But we must move.”
Under the suspicious gaze of Craig and Sava, Tula headed to the front of the group, taking over leading the group. Almost immediately, they shifted directions slightly as the well-travelled Ranger took over.
Another two hours went by, Daniel’s Mana slowly inching upwards. He eyed the third more that had increased in the time, debating if he should use some of it now or wait. Healing some of his companions would help speed up their escape, but it would reduce the amount of Mana he had if things went south. After briefly weighing the risks, Daniel decided to hold onto his Mana for now. Later, perhaps.
As he pushed his thoughts away, voices from behind him made Daniel turn. He frowned, realising that the muttering was coming from the rearguard. He slowed slightly, before remembering that he needed to keep to his position. His job was to keep an eye out for trouble coming in from the sides. Even if there was an attack, without a call for help, he should stay in position. After all, it could be a feint.
In short order, the noise of battle from behind fell away. Daniel turned his head, eyeing the guards who ran behind, many who were doing the same. There was no signal, no indication that there was anything further to be concerned about, and so, head down, Daniel continued to run. Thankfully for his fraying nerves, word soon came up via a Merchant denoted as a runner. The rearguard had clashed with Orc Scouts and had missed at least one. Potentially more, if the Scouts had stacked themselves in their search. In either case, they had been found.
The news was a shot of adrenaline that promulgated through the entire group, sending a burst of energy that resulted in a faster pace. Unfortunately, the faster pace could not be held for long, and the group started to slow, the marathon session taking its toll on the Merchants and Adventurers. Omrak reached into a belt-pouch, extractin
g an orange-colored flask from which he sipped on. Seeing the questioning glances shot his way, Omrak spoke.
“Stamina potion,” Omrak said. His words engendered a series of requests from the Merchants. The Northerner was obviously reluctant, but finally, he offered a few sips to those about. As he carefully watched his precious potion being passed around, Omrak said to Daniel. “I am surprised Sava has no such potions.”
“He had a few. But Sava was using low-grade healing potions in their stead,” Daniel said. He could understand the reasoning. A low-grade healing potion was not much more expensive than a dedicated Stamina potion, and both were, in the end, similar in their effects. While he had no understanding of how they were made, Daniel knew that Stamina potions basically provided a boost in nutrients and sped-up an individual’s metabolism, particularly around muscles, hearts, and the lungs of imbibers. Healing potions did much the same, but with a focus on blood flow and production of the healing chemicals and cells. It still meant that individuals felt better and gained in their stamina as a side effect, just not as effectively. For a Merchant though who only needed marginal improvements most likely, it was just as good.
“And now we must save them for… SNAKE!” Omrak called out in warning, causing a number of the Merchants to stumble. Before anyone else could locate the monster, the Northerner had lobbed his throwing axe at the creature that was in the midst of dropping onto an unsuspecting Merchant, catching it on its body and tearing it away from its wooden perch. As the injured monster dropped, Omrak drew his double-handed large sword and began to chop it apart, never allowing the monster to regain the momentum in the fight. Even as it emitted a freezing chill through the surroundings, the Northerner never let up, only hopping back when the monster was in multiple parts. Daniel slowed down slightly before he assured himself that his friend had the matter well in-hand and sped up to retake his post.
“Good job,” Craig said from behind to Omrak. “Now, get moving.”