Page: << 1 2 3 4 5 >>

I dashed across the grass toward the hut, careful not to trip on my robe or step into the flickering spots of smoldering grass. As soon as my burning warrior came into reach, I swung the huge orcish axe. One strike, and the broad edge divided the skeleton in two unequal heaps of blazing bones which fell to the ground with a rattle. The second warrior shared a similar fate when the Krush Pach shattered its yellowish vertebrae.

"Cav, where are the other two?" I shouted; he pointed at the far side of the hut, and indeed, there my minions were. One of them hacked its saber repeatedly into the roof's rim until my axe connected with its scrawny neck. The skull plummeted to the ground, raising a small cloud of dust, then the undead body collapsed with a harmonic jangle.
Hissing, the last warrior turned to face me. Its empty eye sockets met my angry gaze when I raised the axe…
I brought down my weapon hard, but it cut nothing but nightly air.
My minion had evaded the blow.
Under no circumstances would the skeleton make an attempt to strike back at its summoner, but neither did it wish to be banned from the realms of the living, so it sprang back, bones rattling -and with a mighty leap jumped onto the woodcutter hut's roof.
"Garland!!!" The hunter retreated to the roof's other corner while the skeleton warrior approached him slowly, blatant confidence displayed in its proud, puppet-like gait.
"H-h-help!"

It was of no use. I had to climb up there as well if I wanted to prevent the undead fighter from dispatching the scared hunter. Unfortunately the magician's robe had not been designed with physical feats such as this one in mind; it became entangled in the shingles.
"Curses, I am stuck! Run, Cavalorn, just run!"
The skeleton hissed and whirled its weapon, still advancing on the hunter who cowered at the roof's edge, his eyes as big as saucers… just like a rabbit before a snake. My riotous minion's sword hacked through thin air as if it was a demonstration of its prowess-
Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrripppp.
The fabric of my robe tore free of the shingle. With an energetic "Huzzah," I vaulted up on the roof; unfortunately the combined weights of two-and-a-half people were too much for the vintage construction.
The roof collapsed.
With a thunderous crash all of us - hunter, undead and mage - plummeted to the wooden floor of Cavalorn's parlor; I did not brace for the impact as I had not expected to fall, yet I did not hurt myself in the accident. It was enough to destroy my once-proud warrior's structural integrity, however. I saw it break up into at least a hundred differently-sized pieces of ivory…
Then a slab of the roof came down right on top of me.

"Garland? Garland?"
I awoke with a start when something cold and wet hit my face. Opening my eyes, I saw that I was spread-eagled on the floor of Cavalorn's hut, and the sky above me was still that of the night. The hunter knelt beside me, a half-empty bottle of water in his hand. His face was very pale for someone of a complexion as dark as his.
"Thank the Gods," he said, sounding relieved. "For a moment I thought you were dead."
"Killing me is hopefully not this easy," I replied with a groan; my back was hurting, but it did not feel as if serious damage had been done. "How long have I been unconscious?"
"A few moments; barely long enough for me to drag the ridging off you."
Sadly, I sat up and shook my head.
"Cavalorn... I am so sorry."
He sighed and rose from the wooden floorboards, rubbing his elbow. "Don't worry. I'll have the roof patched up in no time."
"Actually, I was talking about the… skeletons."
"Well…" The hunter bowed down and picked up his sword. "Up to this day I thought all those rumors of the walking dead to be cock-and-bull stories." He then started to collect broken bones off the sleeping mat. "I should apologize to the cock and bull, shouldn't I. - Which cemetery did you desecrate to make these… abominations follow you?"
It was meant to be a joke, of course, but the remark was too close to the truth for me to deem it funny. I bit my lip, examining the huge rents in the now muddy-blue robe so I didn't have to look the hunter in the face.
"I summoned them. These abominations are my creatures."

The bones hit the floor with a discordant clatter.
"You did what? But rumor has it that only - only those evil - I mean, only necromancers- - - my goodness."
Cavalorn swallowed hard, eyeing my shredded blue robe with sudden suspicion. "So they're into that over there at the New Camp."
"No, they - we are not." I was sure that my cheeks had flushed red, and for some reason I felt like justifying myself. "Actually, the matter is quite complicated-"
"-and the tale far too long to recount now," the hunter sourly completed the sentence while brushing the heap of broken bones aside with a booted foot. Then he gathered a few arrows which had been strewn all about the floor and mattress. "Well, just tell me one thing then- why did they attack us if they were your creatures?"
I shrugged unhappily.
"I am afraid they tried to defend me when Scorpio- drew - - - his sword- - "
All of a sudden an icy lump materialized in my stomach.
"Oh Adanos…!" I sprang to my feet. "Cavalorn, we do have to help him!"
"Which is why I'm gathering my equipment," he said, sounding a little less peevish than just a moment ago. "Do you want to take your axe with you, or would you rather trust on your doubtlessly impressive magical skills alone?"
"My axe…" I cast down my eyes, still feeling ashamed, while the hunter handed me the unwieldy Krush Pach. "Thank you."
"You're welcome." He cocked a thin brow while glancing down at me and my torn robe. "And if you want to, you can have a shadowbeast's skin as an additional wrapping. I'm afraid you'd break your neck tripping on anything I might offer you in terms of clothes."
"Well, the robe might be a bit impractical-"
"Indecent would be more like it," he said with a final peek at the rents and turned on his heel to stride out of the demolished hut. "Now let's get going before your friends hack our friend to bits."

Page: << 1 2 3 4 5 >>