by R. Malak
Biting back his fear and anxiety for the future, he nodded his head. While they were still alive there was hope.
One hour later
Talmen after regrouping with his squadron down by the firing range soon found himself inundated with work that needed to be done before the arrival of the Orcish WarHorde. First, they were sent over to the marketplace to help knock down the stalls and use them to create a second makeshift barrier around the tower. Then he was sent to trenches around the settlement to clear the bloated dead bodies floating in the water and flood it with more water. He was then ordered to find and evacuate all non-combatant personnel unable to fight to the top levels of the tower, which was then followed by a short break. After resting up his squad, he was then ordered to collect any mattresses and lug them over to tower’s lower level, where an infirmary was being made. Then he was off to the armory to ferry ammunition crates to the gates and up to the top of the tower, where the snipers were nestled.
By the time the defensive preparations were completed it was almost the next morning. The defenders bolstered by rangers and new recruits took up defensive positions outside the gates to defend the perimeter and slow the advance. While Talmen and his squad were positioned out in front the tower with the rest of United Nations troops and untrained volunteers.
Katie a worried frown on her face gazed around at all the volunteers equipped with pistols, knives and homemade spears hiding behind a barricade made up of broken down stalls. The people looked frightened and scared with more than a few kneeling down on both knees to start praying.
Katie turned to question him, “Tal, why aren’t we out in front with the rest of fighters?”
Greg nodded his head in agreement. “We’re trained soldiers, we should be out there,” he said gruffly and waved his hand towards the outer defenses.
“Our orders from the colonel were to guard the tower, in case the first line of defense should be breached,” he repeated for the fourth time. The words sounded hollow and empty even to his ears. It didn’t make sense to deploy almost three hundred United Nations troops to protect an indefensible tower. Katie and Greg were right they needed to be out there, actively slowly down the enemy advance not here dawdling about.
Standing up he faced his squad and slung the Ak-47 assault rifle that O’ Keefe had given him across the back of his shoulders. “I can’t stay here and do nothing. Not while everyone else is fighting to defend our homes.”
He gazed into each of their faces. “I can’t ask any of you to come with me, but I sure could use the help.”
Sarah with a sarcastic laugh stood up, “You know as well as I do, we were always going to come with you Tal.”
Donahue stood up with a big grin to slap him hard on the back.
Katie with a bright, cheerful smile leapt up onto her feet and kissed him on the cheek and said, “It’s the right thing to do.”
A wry smile on his lips, Talmen nodded his head and looked at Greg who sighed heavily and reluctantly nodded his head.
“Good, then we are all in agreement.”
Taking a deep reassuring breath, he began heading towards the frontline. Other United Nations troops seeing Talmen’s squad leaving the makeshift barricades to head to the outer defenses, shot him confused looks, but then they too slowly began to trickle out after him.
~ * ~
Kozan sat upon the throne he had constructed for himself out of black obsidian stone and stared around the tent. WarChiefs from all the Clans stood waiting silently for him to speak, their banners hanging behind them and two Orc Shields to either side of them. Standing at his right was Shaman Berzook in blood red robes leaning on his black staff, and to his left was Grul Han’s imposing figure.
Flexing his oiled-up biceps, Kozan bent forward upon the seat. “The human camp has finally been sighted. At dawn tomorrow, we begin our attack.”
Hogral WarChief of the Wolf Clan, who sported several wolf pelts around his shoulders and waist exchanged knowing looks with Raven of the Night Stalkers a battle-hardened veteran with hundreds of battle scars crisscrossing every part of body.
Stepping into the center of the tent, Hogral faced off against Kozan, his flame-colored eyes shining with hate: “With all due respect WarLord, how do you expect us to take this place from the humans? Our tunnelers are all dead or rabid. We have no half breeds left to swarm over their defenses and nearly a third of our goblin fodder has runaway.”
Kozan’s fists gripped the hands of his chair, a snarl on his face and replied curtly, “Are you Scared WarChief?”
Hogral’s hand went to axe attached to his war belt, but withdrew it when Grul Han growled and advanced upon him, “Show respect to your WarLord! Or I shall teach it to you!”
Hogral snapped his teeth shut meeting Grul Han’s stare for stare until finally the Orc WarChief with a look of disgust, spat in the dirt and returned to his position.
Kozan seeing no one else was willing to risk their life to interfere with him, he continued, “Prepare your clans for battle and be sure your warriors remember to capture as many humans as they can upon the field.”
The WarChiefs grudgingly nodded their heads in acceptance and exited the tent.
With them gone, Kozan motioned for Berzook to stand in front of him. “Have you been able to decipher Lord Sezrath’s will?” he asked.
The old shaman placed both hands upon his staff head leaning tiredly upon it and shook his head. “No, the battle’s outcome is blinded by a mist and fog I cannot break. Sezrath’s will is unclear.”
Kozan grimaced, standing up and moving to stand in front of banner of the Stone Skins, which still hung upon the tent wall. “I will not fail here, we will win,” he stated.
Berzook nodded his head, but he did not care. The future of the WarHorde was all that mattered to him. Bowing his head Berzook left the tent.
Kozan still staring at the image of a crimson red fist bordered by a black background, spoke without turning, “Han, I will need you to lead the Berserkers and break the enemy.”
Grul Han nodded his head contorting the burn mark on his neck and face. “And my status as WarLord?”
“Have no fear, you will be WarChief again, once we have destroyed the human camp and hunted down the traitors. You will take your place as WarChief of the Stone Skins, until then be patient.”
Grul Han grunted in annoyance at the delay, but did not argue.
~ * ~
Eight hours later, Grul Han stood once again at the tip of the valley, never having expected to return here with the entire WarHorde at his back. The settlement lay just beyond him, better defended than the last time he was here, with hundreds of human insects in their flimsy armor waiting down in the valley below him clutching their cowardly weapons and hiding behind a thick line of stakes and a trench line filled with water.
Surrounded by eighteen hundred berserkers and thousands of goblins just ahead of him, Grul Han swept up his Warhammer he had taken to using and rested it upon his shoulder. The anger, hate and disappointment of not being renamed a WarChief immediately after Kozan’s rise to power; faded away, replaced with an unquenchable craving for flesh and bone. Eyes changing color to a deep red, he raised his Warhammer to the sky signaling the attack. Horns pounded the air with its furious sound. The goblin war host, their yellow eyes flaring to life, shrieked and ululated to the skies as they stampeded down the valley to begin their assault.
~ * ~
Rollo his heart beating like a drum was frozen with fear. He could see the goblins in their grass stained robes surging towards him and he couldn’t even raise his rifle. He felt like jelly wobbling but unable to do anything.
Lucy crouching down beside him at the eastern end of the defensive line, spoke softly without looking at him, “Rolly, you remember that first time you saw a stray dog and you got so scared I had to chase it away. Well, that’s what you need to do now. You need to push down that fear you are feeling and think about the people that you are protecting. If those creatures get
through here…”
Everyone would die. Closing his eyes, he tried to picture the people in the settlement behind him, but all he could see was one face. Talmen laughing his flame colored eyes dancing with unrestrained joy and the strong sense of family he had felt being around him. Feeling calmer he opened his eyes and tried to ignore maniacal screams of the goblins as they rushed downhill towards them.
The Goblins their spears waving in the air sped into the caltrops, the metal spikes piercing their feet causing many to tumble and fall taking out other goblins around them. Those that made it unharmed into the minefield were blown into bits in loud thunderous explosions that shook the ground and blew pieces of clay up into the air.
Rollo feeling more confident with so many goblins dead and large gaping holes in their ranks raised his rifle, ready to fire. The goblins ignoring their dead continued to race forward with more and more dying within the minefield. Snipers perched atop the tower within range now, began to open fire, plucking goblin after goblin backwards. The machine guns began to pump into action, thrumming loudly as a stream of bullets flew out to carve a bloody path of death through the enemy. The goblin fighters having lost so many of their warriors and unable to withstand the unending stream of punishment they were being dealt, broke and ran.
Rollo let out a heavy sigh of relief and lowered his rifle, but the attack wasn’t over.
Coming up right behind the goblins to bulldoze their way through the surviving creatures were hundreds of naked Orcs with Warhammers and axes, charging towards them like bulls seeing red. With the field cleared of most of the caltrops and mines. The Orcs led by a giant grey skinned giant hauling a massive Warhammer, made easy gains down the valley without any loses. Snipers began to open fire once more, but these Orcs deep in the berserker rage with blood filling their nostrils ignored the bullets hitting them.
Rollo feeling his heart beating rapidly again, watched with fear as the blood crazed Berserkers drew closer and closer, with none of them falling to the blood-soaked earth. The machine guns began to thrum again, blowing over lines of Berserkers, but the beasts simply got back up and kept running. Despite the gruesome wounds to their bodies the Orcs continued to close in rapidly on their defensive perimeter.
Duncan standing atop the parapet brought his hand down signaling all squads to open fire.
Biting his tongue to keep his nerve, Rollo copied his sister and took aim, then fired at the nearest Orcs to add his bullet to the deafening crash of gunfire to whittle down the enemy from all sides, finally the Orcs began to take casualties, but not enough to halt their charge. The Orcs reached the ditch filled with water and bounded across to the other side with ease to smash into the wall of stakes.
Rollo beginning to worry they might be cut off from the rest of force, as more and more Orcs crossed to the other side of the ditch to drive their weight into the center of the stakes to try and break through, swung his rifle to fire at them.
The soldiers around him must have seen the same danger, because they too turned and began to pour their fire into the clump of Orcs pressing up against the sharpened wooden stakes. Combined with gunfire coming from above them on the parapet the Orcs assault slowly began to stall as bodies began to pile up. Just, when he thought the threat was over, the huge grey skinned Orc with burn marks on its body and pieces of dark metal embedded in its skin blasted into the line of stakes to burst it open like a hammer breaking a twig in half. The Orcs growling loudly with excitement at the prospect of blood on their lips tore into the ranks of the defending soldiers; shredding them to pieces within a matter of seconds.
Blood sprayed into the air and Rollo nearly dropped his weapon, as he keeled over to vomit from the sight of Orcs mauling men alive. With the defensive perimeter breached the siren atop the tower blared loudly once more, signaling a retreat.
Lucy her face pale with terror snatched Rollo by the arm and hurriedly began dragging him towards the gates that were starting to fill up with terrified soldiers that were fighting each other to get through the gates. Squished in from all sides by soldiers trying to retreat inside, Lucy tried to negotiate her way forward, careful to not lose her brother in the chaos.
Rollo glancing back one last time to see how close the enemy were felt his heart stop beating. Thousands upon thousands of Orcs in pitch black plate armor, banners flying high above them were thundering down the valley rapidly.
~ * ~
The sirens screaming above them and the heavy sound of gunfire ahead of them, Talmen and his squad sped up, when wave upon wave of disoriented and dazed soldiers in blue uniforms began sweeping past them in droves. Fearing the frontline had collapsed.
Talmen formed up his squad at the center of the former marketplace and knelt to prepare for the pursuing Orcs sure to be on their tail. Eyes stinging with tears from the thought Rollo and Lucy were dead. He waited, gripping his assault rifle. The United Nations troops that had joined him however, seeing soldiers fleeing from the gates and hearing the screams, panicked and turned to flee with the broken defenders. Less than a dozen soldiers in black and grey uniform stayed to join his line.
Katie quivering beside him, kept opening and closing her mouth to say something, but the words refused to come out.
Talmen with no time to mourn the loss of his friends, tried to focus on, what was in front of him. He patted Katie on the shoulder comfortingly. “We’ll be okay, Katie, just breath in and out, like I taught you.”
Nodding her head, she took deep long breaths and adjusted her rifle. The peals from the sirens in the tower quieted, so he could hear the screams of agony and despair not far from him.
Duncan with bloody claw marks on his face, neck and shoulders came stumbling towards them, loosely gripping a pistol dripping in blood from one hand. Upon seeing them he exclaimed loudly, “Well fuck me over! It’s the fucking toy soldiers come to bleeding save us!” Blood spilled from his mouth to wet his already sodden uniform.
Katie jumped to her feet and raced over to help him, but he brushed her aside. “I’m fine girlie, get back into your fucking position.” He limped over to stand behind the thin line of waiting UN troops and began bellowing his lungs out at the fleeing defenders, trying to run past them. “Stop your running! You fucking cowards! And form up!”
Some of the soldiers recognizing Duncan’s voice turned and joined the growing line of men, until there were three ranks of waiting soldiers, ready to fire.
Orcs in black plated armor mixed in with soldiers they were chasing erupted into the marketplace, grunting and growling as they slaughtered the defenders too slow to run away.
Duncan waited for the Orcs to get closer before screaming, “Kill those fuckers!”
Talmen his breathing steady aimed and fired shooting with precision shots to the head and throat of the encroaching enemy.
Rifles and assault rifles all around him sprang into action firing into the Orcs, blasting holes in their throats and piercing their thick armor with repeated gunshots.
Talmen kept firing into the Orcs, and although they were taking serious losses, the Orcs continued to advance through the maelstrom of gunfire. But with more and more defenders returning to join the battle, Talmen thought there might be a chance for victory as the Orc numbers began to dwindle rapidly in the face of so much concentrated gunfire. It was then that the grey skinned Orcs the size of trees made their appearance, shoving aside Orcs around them to charge towards them with massive Warhammers and axes. The Grey Skinned giants un-impeded by the gunfire, which barely damaged their iron-grey skin, closed the gap with big lumbering strides with Orc grunts following closely behind them.
Duncan raised his hand again and shouted, “Fall back to the tower! Fall back to the tower!”
Talmen along with his squad and everyone else turned heel and fled from the incoming Orcs.
~ * ~
Grul Han, covered head to toe in blood, crushed the skull of another human fleeing from the WarHorde. Intoxicated by the smell and taste of blood, he came
after the humans one by one like a hound chasing sheep, reveling in their destruction. His brothers and sisters all around him whooped with excitement at the rivers of blood that washed over them. Meat, gristle and bone lay scattered upon the ground as they feasted. Gunfire flared into life again, coming from the tower. Hit by streams of bullets, Grul Han laughed and loped forward to continue his rampage.
~ * ~
Talmen and his squad, their breath misting in the cold air, had reached the defenses outside the tower. Followed by the squeals, screams and agonizing cries for help coming from the soldiers that hadn’t made it back. Their screaming gradually died away and were replaced with grunting as the Orcs tore into their flesh.
Duncan standing behind them with his hands on his hips watched the mayhem with grim bloodshot eyes.
Too few defenders had made it back to the tower and the volunteers looked extremely unsteady with more than a few edging backwards. The United Nations were troops were no better, casting fearful glances all around them and bunching up together to make their gunfire practically useless. Luckily for them, most of the horde had settled down to rip into the flesh of the dead soldiers that lay strewn about the ground with caved in chests and gaping wounds on their bodies. Only a few Orcs too lost in the blood haze to realize they had pulled away from the rest of the war host, came towards them, and they were promptly dropped by the snipers atop the tower scaring the volunteers, who were already shaking with fear. The smell of piss and shit wafted in through the air currents as men and women all around him loosened their bowels.
Gritting his teeth to stop himself from screaming, Talmen stared at his squad mates huddled up beside him. Sarah her eyes stained with tears, Greg, who was frozen with shock, Donahue, who kept mumbling under his breath and Katie, who stood silently watching the carnage with blank emotionless eyes.