Chapter 343. On to the Keep.

  Thankfully, the second goblin siege engine was ready to go in minutes, but both Silas and I made sure we were nowhere near it when they started cranking up the tension on the weapon and loading the first spherical shell into the cradle of the trebuchet. The shell was cased in crude, rusting iron, with several six-inch-long spikes jutting from its surface at seemingly random points. Two more of the shells were lined up next to the siege engine, and when Silas saw that he risked walking over close to the machine to yell at the goblin in charge.

  “Hey, I paid for a full barrage from two siege engines. I expect to get what I paid for,” Silas growled as he approached.

  “That’s what you’re going to get bud, a barrage of three shells, just like in the contract,” the goblin said dismissively as he worked with the team to line up their shot.

  “A barrage from two siege engines, not one. It’s not my fault your machine broke down, that’s on you. Since we’re down to one machine, I expect all six rounds I paid for to be fired from this one,” Silas demanded. The goblin seemed inclined to argue further, but the murderous gleam in Silas’ eyes made him rethink the situation.

  “Fine, you’ll get all six rounds, but if we get hit by counterbattery fire since we’re stuck in place longer than I want, you’re paying for it,” the goblin replied.

  “Deal. If Bhalkur’s troops have some way to destroy your siege engine, I’ll cover the cost of it. I remind you that I’m willing to cover the cost of the one that’s still working, not the one that broke down,” Silas countered.

  “Good enough, we’re about ready and I’m going to start the barrage as soon as I can, I’m not waiting for your naga and these other weirdos to get their act together,” the goblin grumbled. Silas didn’t seem inclined to argue this point and instead turned his attention my way.

  “Rico, get your troops started, take the tower at the other end of the bridge, then we’ll regroup for the assault on the keep,” Silas ordered.

  I ran to the edge of the bridge and quickly set up the Portal of the Cackle, pushing some mana into the device to activate it. The portal flickered into existence, and the first gnoll charged out, heading toward the closest visible enemy. With the summoned gnolls doing their thing, and attracting the enemy’s attention, I ordered Elida, the Chixtani, and the goblins to begin their assault.

  My team hugged the left side of the bridge, trying to use anything they could as cover. Sadly, the Chixtani Infestor was riding an ogre, and the huge body didn’t lend itself to stealthy approaches. Right on the heels of my minions, several squads of naga moved up to support them. There was a total of thirty naga, and most were armed with spears and shields that were woven from jungle foliage. None of them wore armor, just a simple tunic, though their scaley bodies might grant them some protection.

  Leading the naga was the human girl, Misty, and the naga that Silas had called Nebram. After getting the gnoll portal working, and my minions moving, I joined Silas at the top of the tower on our side of the bridge. Already, I could hear occasional shots ring out from the man’s rifle. I had to admit that I was a bit jealous that Silas could operate modern weapons without them seeming to fail.

  From our vantage point, I could watch the progress of the assault. Part of me wanted to be down there with my team and be in the thick of the assault. I had to temper that desire to be stuck into the fight, with the knowledge that there were no more respawns waiting for me. My team was performing well, and it didn’t seem like they’d need my direct intervention.

  The gnolls provided the necessary distraction, and a few magic missiles and crossbow bolts flew from the opposing tower at the charging gnolls. One hit was enough to take down the low tier and rank gnolls, but every missile shot at the gnolls was one less fired at my team. Glurk was now in range with his longbow and was firing at a group of gnomes led by a single ogre that were charging out of the door at the base of the enemy tower.

  I heard a loud clack as the siege engine behind us fired. The shell was big enough that I could watch it arc over the bridge and land just behind the enemy tower. An explosion that I felt all the way across the bridge caused part of the enemy tower to collapse. Sensing their cover was about to bury them, the rest of the enemy forces poured from the tower and into my waiting team.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  Glem flickered into position behind the lead attacker, his spear impaling the corrupted gnome that was his target. Glamb and Elida arrived a second later. I could see a red glow appear briefly over Glamb as he activated his Blood Berserker ability, and his cleavers flashed in the afternoon sun. Elida showed remarkable skill, using her shield and mace to great effect. When the Chixtani arrived, each swipe of the ogre it controlled smashed a foe.

  Every hit that Elida landed caused a small spurt of healing energy to wash over the nearby allies. It was enough to keep my goblins in the fight, and for them to shrug off any stray hits that made it through their defenses and armor. I was a bit shocked when an arrow from Glurk struck one of the enemy ogres and a small goblin with a rusty dagger and a healthy dose of murderous intent appeared next to it. It was Glurk’s Longbow Summoner ability activating, and it was proving its worth as the summoned goblin distracted the powerful ogre.

  As the ogre crushed the goblin that Glurk summoned, Silas fired off a small burst that peppered the head of the ogre. Thick bone protected the small brain of the ogre, but the bone was no match for whatever system enhanced ammo the old man was using. Somehow still standing, the ogre’s battered and bloody head was knocked completely off its body by my Chixtani controlled minion.

  The ogre collapsed and the battle turned in our favor as the girl Misty and the naga warriors she was leading arrived. One by one the enemy were brought down, and with Elida and a pair of naga shamans on hand, we had plenty of healing support. As the battle for the other side of the bridge wrapped up, we were able to keep our losses down to just a few of the gnolls from the portal and the goblins that Glurk’s bow occasionally summoned.

  “Let’s go join them,” Silas said to me as he slammed a fresh magazine into his weapon. As we left, he ordered the goblins to shift fire onto the keep in the distance. The goblin siege engineer complained about the range, but Silas said that accuracy didn’t matter, he just wanted to hammer the shield down that blocked entry into the keep. A system prompt appeared as our troops wiped out the last of the bridge defenders.

  Your allies have secured control of the entire bridge. The final critical location, the keep, is now weakened.

  I could see the shield over the keep flicker and dim as the system did its work. One of the goblin shells landed shortly after, causing the shield to glow brightly under the explosive force of the siege engine. Though it resisted the goblin artillery attack, the shield dimmed further, and I thought I could see cracks running along its surface.

  “Good, with the rest of their shells, they should bring that shield down. I wasn’t looking forward to walking up to it and having our troops hack away at it while the enemy rained fire down on us,” Silas said.

  “So, the shield is one way? They can attack us through it?” I asked.

  “Yes, but it’s not without flaws. Outgoing missiles and magic weaken the shield, but only a fraction of what an incoming blow would cause. It’s well worth it for them to attack us at range if we get too close,” Silas warned as we joined the others at the end of the bridge.

  My remaining gnolls, all two of them, had their timers expire and winked out of existence as we watched the slow barrage dished out by the goblins. The keep was about a half mile from us, and there was little cover for an approach. While we waited, I cast Health Bloom over any injured troops. Just like Elida, the naga shamans under Silas’ command had a limited number of spells they could cast each day, and I wanted them to conserve what they could.

  Here, in this odd place, my mana seemed to regenerate quickly, so I wasn’t worried about a few healing spells running me dry. In the distance, another goblin shell, the fourth they’d fired, slammed into the shield, which finally shattered and winked out of existence. The keep lay before us, an imposing fortress that I had no idea how to breach. Silas must have some idea on how to break down, or climb over the walls, but he hadn’t shared it with us yet.

  Horns sounded out from inside the keep. It was a mournful sound that cast a pall over our mood. A gate at the keep, facing our bridge, slowly opened. The horns sounded again as enemies began to emerge from the keep. Another goblin shell fell on the keep, exploding somewhere in the center of the fortress.

  “Ah, they’re coming out to play. They must not know that we’re limited on the number of shells our siege engines can fire. Execute our counterattack plan,” Silas shouted. Misty and the naga Nebram began to move units of naga into position as Silas grabbed my shoulder.

  “Are you ready to get your hands dirty? It’s time for the real killing to start,” Silas said.

  In the distance, rows of corrupted gnomes and naga filed out of the keep and marched toward us. Behind them, more of the ogres followed. Unlike the ones we’d already fought, these creatures were twisted in both mind and body by Bhalkur’s influence. Each was a two-headed monstrosity with one or both its arms replaced by tentacles or huge crab-like claws.

  “Well, this is going to be interesting,” I said to myself as I began to plan how I could support Silas in the coming fight.