The trek to the mine was a quiet one, though Sunset could quite literally feel the tension in the atmosphere. Not that she could blame the town militia, which was quite literally made up of twenty volunteers, ten of which were in her group, while the others were led by the town’s magistrate, one Henry Maleb .
She took a quick look around at the others, the group consisting of the her, the ten volunteers, Mandin and Sergeant Miller. Everyone around her was wearing a grim face, with the exception of the brother, who was wearing a gentle smile upon his face and giving words of encouragement to each member of the group, boosting their confidence with his blessings.
The plan was relatively simple. There were three groups, one group consisted solely of Sir Erik and his crew who would be the first ones charging into the designated encampment. Sunset’s group would back them up, while the magistrate’s will help take out any stragglers that would try to escape into the forest.
Hopefully, things will go as planned.
Truthfully speaking, Sunset was still a little queasy from all the killing she had done the other day. While she was not looking forward to the fight later today, she understood that it was something that must be done. After all, they were dealing with ‘beasts who kill for the sport of it’, as Helcular had put it.
You may not enjoy it, but a rabid manticore must still be put down. It was a phrase that Sunset’s history professor in Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns had used to explain why Celestia had to go to war against Gryphonia some three hundred years back. The actual reason eludes her now, but she remembered that it had something to do with arrogant birds and bits.
Running multiple spells through her mind, Sunset was unprepared for a voice to suddenly whisper in her ear.
“Don’t think too hard on how to fight the next battle, rather, think about how to come out from it alive.”
“Brother Mandin,” Sunset turned, actually glad that she was actually aware enough to notice that it was him. She was this close to tossing a fireball. “Don’t sneak up on me like that.”
“Apologies, Sunset.” The old man smiled, “and please, call me Mandin.”
Sunset was a bit miffed that the priest had seemingly decided for himself that they were on first name basis, but considering the fact that he helped her out when she needed it, Sunset was willing to let him have a free pass on that. Also, there was the fact that she was interested in this ‘Light’ that the captain and Helcular had been talking about during the planning. Apparently it was some sort of blessing that could empower their men.
It was also vaguely mentioned in some of the books in the library back at Dalaran, but Sunset had always chalked it up to mere superstition considering how superfluous most of the writing had been. After all, ‘The Paladins used the power of the Light to combat the forces of the darkness the horde employs, engaging them in epic duels along the Hillsbrad fields.’ did sound like it would fit an epic saga, but not really good material for the research paper.
There was also the factor that Kel’Thuzad had been rather dismissive of it, regarding it as mere religion and nothing compared to the magical might magi wield.
Now, that just made Sunset all the more curious as to Mandin’s powers regarding this ‘Light’ and how he would wield it.
It did not take long before they happened on the edge of the clearing, and Sunset could just barely make out, through the foliage, the shapes of the two bulky figures, probably ogres sitting around a fire that was not emitting any smoke. Magic at work, no doubt about that. Around them scampered here and there small hunched figures that were most definitely gnolls.
Apparently Helcular’s camouflage spell that Sunset had helped cast on the group earlier in the day was working out better than they thought.
They have found the camp, and the good news was, its inhabitants probably had not noticed them, or any of their group for that matter. Good, surprise was on their side. Though, if Captain Erik had wanted to stick to the plan, that would mean Sunset’s group would have to wait, something the young mage herself was okay with.
Any moment now, thought Sunset as she waited for the eventual order. Oh, it’s not like she had anything to worry about at the moment, just that the wait was pretty much killing her patience. With a hammer. Annnnny moment now….
“Attack!” The cry felt Sunset with such relief that she actually forgot her underlying anxiety at the upcoming combat. Gazing out of the foliage, she watched as the group of humans raced out into the clearing from the bushes opposite her position, their weapons of cold steel in hand laying about at the scampering gnolls, who were trying to beat a hasty retreat in their panic.
The figures at the campfire, definitely ogres, stood up and bellowed a challenge at the attackers. Levelling clubs that were little more than uprooted trees, they lumbered forward only to be met by Erik and his duo of armored knights. The closest one took a clumsy swing at the captain, and speaking as one who had witnessed such a blow knock Orys flying, Sunset was surprised to see the captain merely raise his shield and block the attack.
The reason why soon presented himself, as Sunset espied Helcular standing far behind the battlelines, flanked by two swordsmen, as he chanted and pointed at the good captain, evidently reinforcing him with magic. Still, the ogres were definitely the main threat here, so Helcular was surely not wasting his efforts helping the good captain hold his ground against them.
Then she heard the horn.
“That’s the signal!” Sergeant Miller roared as he waved his mace. “Charge!”
Sunset and Mandin hung back as the militia surged forward. The gnolls, or at least those who had been fighting were apparently too engrossed facing the foes in front of them to pay attention to those charging from behind, only taking notice when a couple of them had been cut down.
One of the ogres turned and swung his club at the humans, but only succeeded in making them dart backwards so as to not be hit by it. Unfortunately for it, by doing so, it had left itself open to Dame Finora, who skirted around the combat between Erik and the other ogre, and brought her hammer down on its leg.
Sunset winced as the ogre cried out in pain and stumble onto the ground, and was momentarily worried when the ogre started flailing about and unwittingly released a sigh of relief when Finora had stepped out of its range. Still, the scent of combat was beginning to make itself apparent and Sunset could feel another urge to keel over and retch again.
Think about how these things deserve it. The words repeating in her head, Sunset managed to quell the feeling, replacing it with a desire to let the beasts get their comeuppance. It felt better, somewhat, though Sunset was sure that it would be a long while before she would get used to the sight of blood.
Regardless, despite the ogres still going strong, the gnolls surrounding them were not faring so well. Those not fighting were already dropping dead or trying to escape, while the rest could only put up a futile resistance against superior numbers.
We are winning. The thought flashed through Sunset’s mind, but it did not last long.
“LOK-NARASH!” A guttural voice screamed as a green humanoid charged out of the tunnel, flanked by two gnolls. The unarmored green brute stood well over three meters tall and looked as if it was packed with muscles. It carried a double-sided axe easily in one hand and looked perfectly capable of using it with ease and skill. Its face was similar yet different to humans, with a flat snout for a nose and a heavily squared jaw that was currently snarling, not to mention its eyes, Sunset had never seen eyes so red and unnatural and full of hate .
Yup, there’s the orc.
The orc roared another battlecry as it swung its axe at a militiamen, who dropped to the ground headless, before turning to bury its weapon into another’s chest. The gnolls seemed to take heart in its arrival, and began to fight more ferociously against the assembled humans, who were taken by surprise.
I thought we were winning? Sunset watched in amazement and growing wariness as the orc began to slowly but surely turned the tide of battle. However, she soon found her attention grabbed by the second orc who had emerged from the tunnel.
The orc who emerged was draped in tattered robes and carried a withered staffin one hand. Truth be told, it looked old, and looked lean enough that Sunset was certain even she can break him. For all intents and purposes, this second orc should be a smaller threat than the first. However, there was just this wrongness that surrounded it like a cloak of shadows, and Sunset felt her point validated when the wizened orc raised a hand and bathed a nearby human in a stream of green flames.
Warlock, that’s the term of those orc spellcaster who wielded fel magic, chaotic magic that corrupts not only the user, but their surroundings. Sunset recognized the properties from what she had researched, a project she had initially started out of interest of learning it but discontinued her research into it when she realized that it was not more powerful than Arcane magic, just easier to attain at a higher cost.
Let it be said that Sunset would never trade her life or soul for more power. Though, she’s definitely open to ideas of keeping all three.
That’s our cue. Sunset raised a hand, chanting a phrase as she sent a trio of purple bolts at the orc caster. Unfortunately, the spell proved ineffective as the arcane spell dissipated against a wave of shadow the orc had conjured. The warlock looked at her, smiled and yelled something in orcish.
It sounded more like a command than a spell, and that theory was proven when a gnoll emerged from the tunnel, one that was twice the size of the others and unarmed, though it looked as if it could tear a human in half. Decorated in fearsome warpaint, the gnoll made for a terrifying sight as it howled its anger out into the sky before fixing its eyes on Sunset.
This was one of those times that Sunset hated being right.
As Sunset began chanting, the warlock pointed at her and the giant gnoll charged, crossing half the distance in an instance. Knowing that there was no time to waste, Sunset raised a hand and gestured, sending a fireball at the approaching creature as she continued her spellwork. The attack struck, but Sunset watched astonished as the beast merely shrugged off the spell, ignoring the new burns it had gained and continued its approach
I can’t complete it in time. The realisation struck Sunset hard, and she opted to drop her spellwork in favor of conjuring an arcane shield. She just barely got the words out but could only watch in amazement as the gnoll collided with the shield when it was forming, smashing the purple edifice into so many little crystals that dissipated before it rammed bodily into her.
“Oof!” Sunset felt the wind leave her lungs as she was knocked none too gently onto the ground. Opening her eyes in time to see the monster raise both its arms, Sunset quickly rolled out of the way, barely avoiding the fate of being turned into a meat slab as the two paws smashed downwards.
Boy was she thankful for those physical lessons that Modera was insistent that she attended.
Scrambling to stand upwards, Sunset eeped as she dodged another vicious strike from the gnoll’s claws. As the gnoll drew it back for another blow, Sunset, more out of reflex than anything else, tossed a handful of flames at its face. The effect was instantaneous, and Sunset used the opening created by the gnoll’s howling of pain to quickly make some good distance between them.
“Ah!”
Only to fall, gasping in pain as she felt something cold and wrong struck her body, sucking all the energy from her. Through blurry eyes, she could see the wily old orc approaching her from behind the still thrashing and probably blinded gnoll, a hand held out towards her, glowing a sickly green.
Why didn’t my wards activate? Sunset had no time to ponder as she saw the orc’s hand glow again, and quickly rallied herself, hands already weaving a spell as she quickly stood upright. Thrusting her palms forward, Sunset released a blast of fire even as an orb of sickly green launched itself from the orc’s palm. Their spells met between them, and Sunset could only watch in fear as the orb dissipated the wave of fire into cinders and carried on into her.
When it collided with her, Sunset immediately lost track of her surroundings, she was even unaware of her own screams of pain until the world refocused about her. Shivering from the ordeal, more so from fear than in agony, Sunset fell onto her knees, eyes blurry from tears.
I don’t want to die… Those words flowed through her mind as Sunset looked upon the face of her tormentor. The orc seemed to be wearing a smile upon its wizened face, the open display of emotion making it much more fearsome than it already was. No, not fearsome, just downright terrifying.
Never before, had Sunset felt so scared for her life. Not when Celestia banished her, not when she woke up in this world, not even when the ogre stood above her, ready to crush her with a tree. She had studied diligently, but all of it was for naught, since she was probably going to die here.
“Have hope, Sunset.” A kindly voice said to her. Turning around, Sunset saw a figure of light standing beside her, and for a moment she thought that somehow Celestia herself had crossed the portal and found her, and now stood beside her, ready to protect her erstwhile daughter. Blinking away her tears, Sunset saw that it was not Celestia but Brother Mandin, the kindly priest emitting a warm glow as he stood there muttering an incantation of some kind.
No, not an incantation, a prayer. Sunset realized as she began to hear him, the warm light from him clearing her doubts, her fears. Sunset watched, at first in confusion, as he placed a hand upon her, then in astonishment as she felt strength return to her body.
This is the power of the Light? Sunset stood up slowly as she cleared her mind. The questions can wait for later, they have a battle to fight. The orc had not been idle when Mandin had been helping her, rather, it had brought its hands together and was chanting a spell of some sort. Sunset’s eyes widened when she saw the giant gnoll she had blinded suddenly screamed, filling the plains with its howls of pain and agony as the red markings that she had earlier thought were warpaint began glowing.
“An enslavement.” Mandin sighed, as he looked sadly at the spectacle. “poor thing’s probably the pack leader, that’s probably how the orc had gained control over the gnolls.”
“Any ideas?” Sunset snarled, the scene before her feeling her with an anger she never knew she had possessed.
“Kill the warlock, and we can put down the beast easily. But I fear that it will not be that easy, seeing that he’s empowering it.”
Kill the warlock? Now that’s something that Sunset could agree with. She may even have a spell that she could use for the occasion. “Cover me, I need time.” She said to Mandin as she balled one hand into a fist and clasped it with the other.
It was a risky spell to use now, given the timeframe in which she had to use it and especially considering how complex it was, but really, what other options did she have?
She began intoning the words and reached out with her magic into the air and the water within it. Sunset caught ahold of them and began molding them slowly as she tried to remember the steps detailed in the scroll she had memorized. Out of the corner of her eye, even as she focused her attention on weaving her spell, she could see Mandin drawing a long knife as he engaged the blinded, but clearly empowered gnoll. The orc warlock was not idle either, and were sending bolts of shadow at Mandin that dissipated upon touching the Light Mandin had surrounded himself in, though Sunset could swear that it was dimmer than before.
She watched as Mandin dodged a swipe from the gnoll and scored a series of slashes upon the beast, which seemed to enrage it more than anything.
It was grueling to watch and Sunset was thankful she never lost focus as she weaved the spell. Hopefully she would be able to finish it before Mandin was killed.
Captain Erik grunted as he blocked a particularly vicious axeblow from the orc with his shield, letting it glance off the magically reinforced metal harmlessly. This was one of those few moments where he was extremely grateful that Helcular was around. Magi do not tend to practice enforcement magics in these parts, preferring the good old fireball or frostbolts to deal with their problems directly.
Helcular, on the other hand, had actually saved his life quite a few times a normal mage could not, by reinforcing Erik with magic so that he could actually stand up to blows he normally wouldn’t be able to endure, like that ogre from earlier that he had killed moments ago.
Unfortunately, the orc was strong, and skilled enough that he (it was a he) was giving the Captain a harder time than the ogre. Not as strong as the ogre, luckily, but smart enough to know when to dodge or attack.
Erik growled as he swung at the orc with his sword, only for it to merely step back out of striking range. As a knight who had fought in the Second War, Erik knows an exceptional specimen when he sees one. Most orcs were too reliant on their brutish strength to overpower their enemies, and were as a result easy prey for a soldier who knows what he was doing. This particular one was definitely a step higher than the rest of its brutish brethren.
“Damn it.” He muttered as he kept an eye on the orc, both stepping warily about each other as the battle raged around them. If only Finora and Redrick were fighting alongside him right now, but it seems that they were still too preoccupied with the ogre to come lend him any aid.
If only he had accounted for this. The orc warlock he could anticipate, having been warned of it by Helcular, but the appearance of an actual orc warrior, not any mere grunt, had thrown this assault for the worst. Not to mention that both his and the warlock’s presence had somehow stirred the neighbouring gnolls into a frenzy.
The orc roared as it swung its axe at Erik again, who met the blow with his shield. This time, however, Erik made sure the axe caught the edge of the shield, locking both combatants in place. And in prime position for the captain to stab at the orc’s unprotected belly.
Or at least that’s what he would have done.
Erik grunted in surprise as the weight of his sword, which had felt as light as a feather thanks to Helcular’s enchantments, suddenly multiplied tenfold, as had his shield. More out of reflex, he kicked out at the orc, making it jump backwards, its axe wrenching a good part of Erik’s shield with it.
What happened? Erik risked a look back at the Helcular, seeking a sudden explanation for the loss of the boost. Out of the corner of his eye, he could just make out Helcular repelling a gnoll lunging at him with a blast of arcane energy as the guards he assigned to the mage were nowhere to be seen. That would explain why he had lost the magical boost that Helcular had promised him for the fight.
Though that meant that his fight against the orc had became all the more harder. Erik growled in pain as he sidestepped a swing from the orc’s weapon, only for it to catch him in the side, bruising him through the chainmail there.
Retaliating with another stab of his own which the orc dodged, Erik swung his shield at him, striking him in the face. The orc, unfazed by the attack, merely balled his hand into a fist and smashed it into the captain’s chest, knocking him a few feet back. Erik managed to catch himself before he lost his footing and managed to block an overhead axe swing by the orc with his shield, though the impact of the blow was enough to drive him to his knees.
“Urrrghhh.” Erik grunted as he struggled against his opponent. It had been years since he had felt so backed into a corner, but he was not about to give up like this. However, he still needed a way to gain an edge over his opponent, and given the fact that Helcular was occupied, he wasn’t about to expect help from over there any time soon.
A sudden scream drew his attention. Sunset! Erik gritted his teeth as he tried to muster his strength to push back the orc, to no avail. Still, he tried. While he had no love for most magi, with the exception of Helcular and a few others, the captain had found himself growing fond of the redheaded teen despite the fact that they had barely communicated outside of greetings and briefings. Still, while he had no control over the Kirin Tor’s decision to send her on a combat mission, the least he could do was ensure that she at least made it back alive.
The thought granted him determination, but unlike the stories which the bards had always loved to sing about, it did not lend him courage or strength. Thankfully, Erik had not survived the Second War because he relied on either of those traits.
Leaning to one side, Erik released the strength in his shield arm, letting the orc drive the shield into the ground at his side. The captain bit his lip as he felt a wrenching sensation in his shield arm, something had definitely been broken. Nevertheless, he mustered his strength and thrusted at the orc with his sword, stabbing through its midsection.
It would have been a fatal blow, except that the orc had taken a step sideways, not fast enough to dodge the attack, but fast enough to make sure it pierced the side where there was no vital organs.
Drat. Erik cursed as the orc slapped his sword arm, knocking his hand free of the sword handle. Not that it would have mattered. The pain and fatigue of the constant fighting was catching up to him, he hardly had the strength to swing his weapon again.
The orc merely looked down at the human captain and grinned, as though mocking Erik for his efforts before hefting his weapon like an executioner’s axe and raising it to take his head. Erik looked at the weapon, its blade glinting in the pale sunlight and pondered.
Before deciding that he would have none of it and, with a burst of strength, tackled the orc. The orc, in his surprise, lost the grip of the axe and was knocked down to the ground, the human on top of him trying to pull out the sword in its side.
Still, a weak and injured knight like Erik was no match for an orc who probably thrived off war and bloodshed. The captain found himself quickly overwhelmed by the orc and pushed to the ground, the green brute’s hands around his throat, strangling him.
“LOK-TAR OGAR!” The orc screamed as it began to choke the life out of Captain Erik. The human, however, still struck at the orc feebly with his armored gauntlets, for all the good that it did him.
However, even as his vision blurred and his lungs felt like bursting from the lack of air, Erik was still awake enough to hear something like the sound of a geyser erupting