Attack
“Wait a moment, look! What’s that?” Doron was still indulging in his flights of fancy, so Jimmy had to pin him down to a muddy hill. A large amount of disgusting dirt entered his mouth, so rotten it could make one puke for days and lose their appetite for months.
However, Doron couldn’t care less about that. He hadn’t even gotten the time to clear the dirt from his mouth before he saw numerous shadowy figures approaching them at great speed.
The other party moved at great speed, reaching them almost within seconds. It was the Mounted Wolves, the nightmare of the north!
“ORCS! IT’S ORCS!” Jimmy shouted, his face warping as he saw the orcs. Their races had long been at war, killing each other even if they met accidentally.
*Whoosh!* The wolf rider arrived before them in a split second. Escape was not an option.
“Am I going to die here? Lina...” Extreme shock and fear caused Doron to turn dizzy, feeling like these were his final thoughts.
However, just as the poor souls got ready to sacrifice their lives for the north, the situation moved in an unexpected direction. The Mounted Wolves did indeed surround them, but they were not harmed. The riders instead parted, making way for a werewolf on a humongous mount.
“I am the Golden Ivory Warwolf, leader of the Mounted Wolves. I need to see your leader, right now…” he said stiffly.
Jimmy and Doron looked at each other as they heard this, feeling like they’d gained a fresh lease of life…
High up in the sky, Orc Emperor Saladin was looking into Alustriel’s eyes, “The survival of the orcs has been threatened by the colonies as well. The Lord has ordered us to stand on the same side as you, facing the threat of the Magi.”
“Saladin! Your hands are stained with the blood of the north! Your people are our arch enemies! Even if we’re wiped out by the bugs we won’t—” a wizard beside Alustriel tried to intercept them.
“This is an order by the gods…” Elminster expressed a different opinion, slowly taking a pipe from his mouth.
“My Queen...” the other wizard shouted eagerly, looking at Alustriel’s hesitant face. He seemed to hate the orcs greatly.
“I’ll have no more from you…” Alustriel waved the wizard off, turning to Saladin, “I agree.”
“Great!” Saladin nodded, “I’ve brought the Thunder God’s Hammer, and I’ll also send out the best of the Mounted Wolves and battle orcs. You’ll be grateful that you made this decision today…”
“I only hope you’ll keep to your promises,” Alustriel looked Saladin deep in the eye. “However, we still have been enemies for a long time. I need your army to take a different route, we can meet at the swamp.”
“You did well…” Elminster sighed in gratitude after Saladin left.
“No. I feel like I’ve changed a lot, becoming more cruel, more of a realist…” Alustriel’s reply was indifferent.
“Trust me, my good daughter, this is all part and parcel of our lives…” The Old Mage blew a ring of white smoke.
“So you thought I was a little girl for the past thousands of years? You’re such a pedophile!” Alustriel stared at Elminster, an unnoticeable redness covering her face.
……
An agreement was made with the orc armies, and Jimmy and Doron took the chance to return safely to their team.
However, Doron seemed to have his reservations about something. He tried to say something multiple times, but eventually stopped himself. He waited until everyone was asleep, moving close to Jimmy and asking him in an extremely low voice, “Hey captain, are the orcs really here to help us?”
Jimmy turned his body and replied in a blurry voice, “I think so. Nobody dares to disobey the gods in this world, except those demonic beings of other worlds…”
‘But aren’t we still at war with them?’ He wanted to say vendetta, but Doron didn’t recall any good friends or relatives dying at orc hands. Many had instead been killed by the town guard or in robberies, so it seemed even less applicable.
“Understand this, Doron, politics is complicated… Alright, I’m really tired today, stop irritating me!” Jimmy turned his body again. Doron just looked over the flap of the tent, an extremely complicated emotion in his gaze…
*Thud! Thud!* The wooden wheels of the carts hit the uneven surface of the ground as they moved along, releasing dull thuds due to their heavy loads. Doron was following Jimmy aimlessly, his beloved sword hung at his waist. The dark circles were obvious under his eyes as he seemed distracted, he obviously hadn’t rested well last night.
The army assembled into the dragon formation, all equipped with weapons and shields. It scared any predators away, making the trip relatively safe.
“Doron! Get back on your feet, do you want Lina to become a widow?” Jimmy patted Doron’s shoulder. Suddenly, the corner of his eye shifted.
“Careful!” Doron had noticed the shadowy figure speeding through the bushes at almost the same time.
A silver ray darted past him before he could act himself, shooting from Jimmy’s hand into the bushes. A shriek sounded out.
“Awesome!” “Haha, captain’s the best!” “We’ve got something!”
Everyone gathered around, looking at Doron with green eyes as he pulled a giant rat out of the bush. There was a silver blade stuck in its skull.
“Mmm, such great meat. You’re definitely treating us tonight!” Everyone’s eyes glowed as they stared at the prey in Doron’s hands.
Food was scarce in the Dark Ages, meat a dish only the higher classes could afford. Normal people hardly ever saw some.
“Of course!” Jimmy looked around, agreeing without hesitation, “Everyone is invited to our campsite!”
All the travellers cheer at his generosity, immersing themselves in a pool of joy. Doron looked at them with envy, ‘That’s right, I should be more hardworking, at least I’ve got to bring something back! The leaders will take care of the orcs…’
However, his determination was crushed the very next moment. A huge ball of fire shot out of the sky, aimed at Jimmy’s position. A great explosion tore Jimmy’s body apart in moments, charring his incomplete corpse.
Having run over to get the prey, Doron had escaped the worst of the damage. Still, despite avoiding death, a large amount of his hair was burnt even at that distance. Looking at that region swarming with victims of the disaster, his eyes glittered coldly.
“The Fireball spell… Wizard attack!” Doron knew from Holdman how powerful wizards were. Realising such powerful spellcasters were his opponents, he didn’t just go up wildly to avenge his captain, instead rolling into the bushes.
He’d made the right decision, as a wave of terrifying spells followed.
Cloudkill! Summon Monster! Ice Awl! Banshee’s Wail! Volley after volley of mid-ranked spells crashed down on the army, with dazzling light. The powerful spells reaped numerous lives.
“It’s an attack from the sky!” Doron’s eyes were wide open as he tried his best to raise his head. He saw huge pairs of wings supporting dark shadows in the air, obviously Flight of The Dragon.
The dark shadows were dressed in traditional wizard robes, but one thing was different— There was a pair of twinkling purple eyes on their dark robes, alongside a holy black emblem surrounded by a purple ring.
“Shadow wizards!” Alustriel and Elminster responded immediately. They had few high-ranked and legendary wizards on their own end— It was a slap in the face for the Silverymoon Union famed for its magic to lose in that field.
They got ready for the counterattack, but the shadow wizards retreated into a portal.
“This is just the beginning!” their leader warned before stepping into the portal.
The portal disappeared immediately. Alustriel and Elminster, who were both trying to cast Dimensional Anchor, turned a ghastly pale.
“Human wizards, why are they attacking our army?” Doron’s eyes were filled with fury. He couldn’t understand why they were attacking at all.
“Also... What the heck are the shadow wizards?” He thought of this new term he’d heard today. He looked at the scattered army and the burning remains of his friend’s corpse, clenching his fists tightly and swearing in his heart,
‘No matter what, Jimmy, I WILL avenge you!’