Adam inhaled deeply, feeling the chill of fear start to overtake his heart. The villagers behind him gasped, one of them almost dropping their broom. Their confidence had fallen with the Iyrman, who had dropped from the skeleton’s brutal blow.

Mana: 2 -> 1

Spell

Healing Word

1D3 + 3 = 6 (3)

Attack

D20 + 5 = 13 (18)

Hit!

1D6 + 1D3 + 4 = 10 (4)(2)

Vulnerability exploited!

20 damage!

XP: 910 -> 940

Adam exhaled calmly from behind his shield. “Jurot!” His voice cut through the air, causing Dargon to step back towards the gate. “Get your ass up! Why are you letting these skeleton bastards drop you?”

Though his words were harsh, they were filled with the raw power of magic. Jurot’s eyes snapped open, feeling the hot wet at his side. His eyes remained unfocused for only a moment, but he naturally grabbed for the handle of the warhammer in front of him, which still felt dirty to him. The handle was still warm, the leather having conformed slightly to his grip. Without a second thought, he swung it upwards into the crotch of the skeleton, causing the bones to burst everywhere.

“You know magic?” the guard asked, striking with his two clubs, shattering one of the skeletons. ‘Of course he knows magic! He’s one of them!’

The skeletons had heard the half elf’s exclamation and had felt the healing energy emanating from him. They aimed their blows towards Adam, but one of their skulls found its way atop the wall. Adam’s had swiped upwards with his warhammer, causing the bones to bounce off the shield and off the raging Iyrman beside him.

Dargon glanced back to see Jurot back on his feet, gritting his teeth and ready to fight. “Are you okay?”

“Okay!” Jurot replied back, tightening his grip on the warhammer. He could still feel the warhammer in his hand, so that meant he was still okay.

Another two skeleton had slipped past the worried Iyrman, who was focused on the three zombies which had managed to stumble their way towards him. “You should have stayed dead,” Dargon growled, grabbing his sword and swinging it around in a circle around him, tearing into the thick undead skin with his blade, cutting each in half.

Attack

D20 + 5 = 9 (4)

Miss!

XP: 940 -> 960

“Are you alright?” Adam asked, managing to catch the skeleton’s spear with his warhammer, but with Jurot on his mind, he could barely pull his warhammer back in time.

Adam ducked under the bones, which clattered from his side against him and the skeleton he was facing.

“Okay,” Jurot growled in response, completely overcome within his rage again.

The guard had shattered the skeleton in front of him too, and they were all feeling it now. They had grown tired, though they could see just how much the undead had thinned thanks to the Iyrmen and the guards shooting blunthead arrows.

Health: 9 -> 7

Attack

D20 + 5 = 15 (10)

Hit!

1D6 + 1D3 + 4 = 12 (5)(3)

Vulnerability exploited!

24 damage!

Health: 7 -> 3

Tough Spirit

2D6 + 1 = 11 (4, 6)

Health: 3 -> 13

XP: 960 -> 980

Adam raised his warhammer towards the skeletons, which had slipped through once again. It seemed these would be the last few, but he heard a scream in the distance, and he glanced aside for only a moment to see what had happened. In that moment of neglect, the skeleton managed to slam a mace against his side.

“Don’t be,” Adam began, gripping his warhammer harder, “in such a rush to die!” As the skeleton brought its mace up to attack, Adam forced his warhammer across the mace, forcing it into the skeletons bones, slamming it apart.

Bones clattered as the guard blocked a blow with one of his clubs, before striking through the skeleton with both clubs, even managing to force the club against the skeleton at his side too.

The scream had unnerved Jurot, who brought up the warhammer to block the skeleton’s blade. In that moment, he managed to glance aside. He wasn’t here to kill skeletons, he was here to protect the people, and he was failing to do that. Not only was he failing in his task, he had even been struck down. The rage within him continued to boil.

There were only two skeletons now, enough for them to easily deal with, but that would cost them precious seconds. Adam knew the pain of losing someone by only seconds.

“You two head to the screams!” Adam opened himself up, stepping back away from the skeletons. Seeing the easy hit, the skeletons struck forward, though Adam managed to block one of them with his shield, striking their weapon aside. The blade clattered against his shoulder though, causing the grip on his warhammer to slacken slightly. ‘Fuck! That really hurts!’

Adam inhaled deeply and flexed his muscles, regaining his lost health. “I’ll handle these two boney fucks! Go!”

The guard didn’t need to be told twice. He would go and help his people, and leave this elf to deal with the last two skeletons. Due to the screams, the attention of the villagers had been drawn away too, and some had broken their formation to flee either away or towards the screams.

Jurot, having seen Adam take a heavy blow, but then grow mightier, turned and bolted towards the screams. “Don’t die!” Jurot growled, rushing towards the screams.

Health: 13 -> 3

Attack

D20 + 5 = 17 (12)

Hit!

1D6 + 1D3 + 4 = 11 (6)(1)

Vulnerability exploited!

22 damage!

XP: 980 -> 1000

“I’m more than enough for the two of you!” Drunk on battle, Adam slammed his shield against mace, which unfortunately left his side exposed. The skeleton stabbed through his side, managing to force the rusted steel through his side. Stinging pain filled the half elf.

“Argh! That fucking,” Adam brought his warhammer back, leaving his side exposed to the skeleton, but before they could take advantage of it, Adam’s warhammer crashed through their spines, swinging his warhammer wildly with all his strength, causing him to fall onto his side, the bones landing all atop him. He quickly brought his shield above him to protect him from the raining bones.

His vision had begun to blur slightly, and he was hot with sweat. ‘Almost done. Get up, you idiot. Up!’

Adam managed to roll over onto a knee, and he looked back quickly to see that no more skeletons were slipping through for the moment. He glanced aside to see where Jurot had gone, but saw all the villagers still around him.

‘I need to go help Jurot,’ he thought. “That should be most of them!” Adam shouted to them. “I’m going to the screams! Support the Iyrmen!” It was just an excuse, he just wanted to go help Jurot.

Eshva and Dargon both retreated back to the gate, now that the undead were more manageable, and that their two charges seemed to be at their limits.

“End?”

“Soon. Okay?”

“Okay.”

The pair spoke in short grunts between one another, though their words held much deeper meaning than one would expect. A conversation of four words between life long friends held many hundreds. They could still hear the screams in the distance, but they would have to entrust their youngsters with the matter.

XP: 1000 -> 1020

Adam rushed to where Jurot had gone, only to find him crashing his warhammer into the back of a skeleton. The guard had also managed to smash his clubs into another, as two villagers dragged an unconscious, bleeding woman away from the scene.

“Good job,” Adam said.

More screams emerged all around them, and a villager rushed towards the centre.

“What’s going on?” Adam shouted.

“The undead broke through!” The man pointed behind him.

“What?”

Adam looked to Jurot, who caught his gaze, and the pair rushed off towards where the man had pointed. There, dozens of undead had managed to break through the barrier the villagers had created. There were many more villagers, but they were alive, and wished to remain alive, and were currently fleeing from the skeletons.

“Regroup!” shouted a guard, raising a spear with a white cloth tied to the tip. “Regroup!”

Seeing the white cloth, the villagers began to rush towards it, screaming the word to try and call the others. Some of the villagers regrouped, whilst others were nursing too many injuries to assist, and decided to fall back.

Crashing through the road was a lumbering bestial skeleton. Adam had seen quite a few bestial skeletons, but he had only faced humanoid skeletons thus far. It seemed the Iyrmen had allowed only the humanoid skeletons through for some reason.

Adam and Jurot rushed through the village towards it, only to find two heavily armoured men already engaging the bear.

Rick brought his heavy warhammer down against the skull of the beast, which was already mid swing with its mighty claw.

“Watch your left!” Rick shouted, but it was too late.

As Jon swung his warhammer, he hadn’t noticed the claw at his side, which tore through his helmet, and cut his face. He coughed as he fell to Rick’s side.

‘Shit! Shit! I shouldn’t have brought him here!’

Rick dropped his warhammer, dropping to a knee to cover the boy’s body, reaching down to grab the boy in order to drag him away. His first priority was to make sure Jon was okay, even if it meant the skeletal beast would wound him or a villager. However, as he reached back to grab the boy, he felt another hand. He looked to his side to see a familiar form.

Mana: 1 -> 0

Spell

Healing Word

1D3 + 3 = 4 (1)

XP: 1020 -> 1060

“Get up,” Adam said, filling the boy full of magic, whose eyes flashed open, staring at the helmeted face above him.

“Ura!” Jurot growled an Iyrman war cry, slamming his warhammer across the back of the creature, managing to shatter the creature.

“Look alive, kid,” Adam said. “We’ve got work to do.”

Unfortunately for Adam, with the death of the large bestial skeleton, most of the skeletons could be dealt with by the villagers, who were overwhelming the last few skeletons.

Jurot panted, hunched over, putting some of his weight onto the warhammer. Even now, he could still feel the phantom wound left behind from the skeleton.

Adam reached down to his own wound, feeling the light blood trickling. “Ooh. Ah.” He hissed as he felt the wound throb with his touch. He began to remove his armour, though glanced to Jon and Rick at his side, before getting up and walking over to Jurot.

“Looks like our job went well,” Adam said.

Jurot nodded at the half elf. “Thank you for healing me, Adam.”

“You’re welcome,” Adam replied, patting him on the back. “It was a good fight, eh?”

“A good fight.” Jurot nodded. He noticed the redness against Adam’s armour. “You are injured.” He had recalled Adam looking quite healthy when he had left the half elf.

“Yeah, I am. I was going to heal up, but I saw the boy was down, so.” Adam shrugged his shoulders.

The villagers quickly approached the group of warriors, checking on their wounds. A few brought over alcohol and bandages. Adam removed his armour quickly as Jurot grabbed onto the supplies, assisting in mending Adam’s wounds. He still wore his helmet, not wishing to alarm the villages nearby. He was heavily wounded, a single strike away from death, and even if he did help them, sometimes hate ran deep.

“You know how to treat people?” Adam asked, raising his brow.

“We of the Iyr learn this to assist our comrades.” Jurot wrapped the bandages around Adam tight, before then checking his own wounds.

“Jon!” called a familiar voice. “Rick!” Magpie rushed over to see the two of them being treated.

“Magpie, we-“

Magpie ran over to them and slapped the pair of them atop their heads. “Who told you to flee from the battle as you please?”

“We didn’t flee from the battle, we-“

Magpie grabbed Rick’s head and pushed it down. “Do you think you can talk back to me after what you did?” She snapped her head to Jon. “I’ll deal with you later.”

“You should leave him alone,” Adam said. “After all, he had gone down in the fight.”

“He what?” Magpie turned to Jon again.

“The half elf-“

Magpie whacked him across the top of his head again. “Not only did you run away, you were even knocked down? You damned fool!” She whacked him again, before giving Rick another backhand for good measure. “Just you wait when this is all over!”

The other members of her entourage remained far away from her wrath.

“It’s alright though,” Adam said, giving her a thumbs up. “I healed him when I came around.”

“You healed him?”

“Yeah, I used my magic to bring him up.”

“You used your magic?” Magpie asked.

“Yeah, my last bit of Mana too.”

Magpie’s eyes fell to Rick again. “What did I teach you for? How did someone else manage to bring Jon back up before you?” Magpie clenched her fist and Rick turned his head away, bracing for impact. However, Magpie marched off to Adam. “Thank you for your assistance, Adam, son of Fate.”

“I bet saving the future Magpie has its benefits, doesn’t it?” Adam smirked, chuckling behind his helmet.

Magpie stared at him for a long moment. “Yes,” she said. “Yes it does.”