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

  Mana: 2 -> 1SpellHealing Word1D3 + 3 = 6 (3)

  AttackD20 + 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 ed slightly to his grip. Without a sed thought, he swung it upwards into the crotch of the skeleton, causing the boo 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 excmation and had felt the healing energy emanating from him. They aimed their blows towards Adam, but one of their skulls found its the wall. Adam’s had swiped upwards with his warhammer, causing the boo bounce off the shield and off the raging Iyrman beside him.

  Dargon gnced back to see Jurot ba 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.

  Awo skeleton had slipped past the worried Iyrman, who was focused ohree zombies which had mao 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 thidead skin with his bde, cutting ea half.

  AttackD20 + 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 ba time.

  Adam ducked uhe bones, which cttered from his side against him and the skeleton he was fag.

  “Okay,” Jurot growled in response, pletely overe 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 thihanks to the Iyrmen and the guards shooting blunthead arrows.

  Health: 9 -> 7

  AttackD20 + 5 = 15 (10)Hit!1D6 + 1D3 + 4 = 12 (5)(3)Vulnerability exploited!24 damage!

  Health: 7 -> 3

  Tough Spirit2D6 + 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 st few, but he heard a scream in the distance, and he gnced aside for only a moment to see what had happened. In that moment of , the skeleton mao sm a mace against his side.

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

  Botered 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, whht up the warhammer to block the skeleton’s bde. In that moment, he mao gnce 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 everuck down. The rage within him tio boil.

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

  “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 mao bloe of them with his shield, striking their on aside. The bde cttered against his shoulder though, causing the grip on his warhammer to s slightly. ‘Fuck! That really hurts!’

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

  The guard didn’t o be told twice. He would go and help his people, and leave this elf to deal with the st two skeletons. Due to the screams, the attention of the vilgers 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

  AttackD20 + 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 smmed his shield against mace, whifortunately 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 fug,” 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 nding 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 mao roll over onto a knee, and he looked back quickly to see that no more skeletons were slipping through for the moment. He gnced aside to see where Jurot had gone, but saw all the vilgers still around him.

  ‘I o 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 wao 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 shrunts between one ahough their words held much deeper meaning than one would expect. A versation 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 mao smash his clubs into another, as two vilgers dragged an unscious, bleeding woman away from the se.

  “Good job,” Adam said.

  More screams emerged all around them, and a vilger rushed towards the tre.

  “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 poihere, dozens of undead had mao break through the barrier the vilgers had created. There were many more vilgers, 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 vilgers began to rush towards it, screaming the word to try and call the others. Some of the vilgers regrouped, whilst others were nursing too many injuries to assist, and decided to fall babsp;

  Crashing through the road was a lumberiial 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 vilge 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 cw.

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

  As Jon swung his warhammer, he hadn’t noticed the cw 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 ko cover the boy’s body, reag down to grab the boy in order t him away. His first priority was to make sure Jon was okay, even if it meant the skeletal beast would wound him or a vilger. 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 -> 0SpellHealing Word1D3 + 3 = 4 (1)

  XP: 1020 -> 1060

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

  “Ura!” Jurot growled an Iyrman war cry, smming 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 rge bestial skeleton, most of the skeletons could be dealt with by the vilgers, who were overwhelming the st few skeletons.

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

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

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

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

  “You’re wele,” 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 vilgers quickly approached the group of warriors, cheg 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 arm the vilges nearby. He was heavily wounded, a sirike 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 rades.” Jurot ed the bandages around Adam tight, before then cheg his own wounds.

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

  “Magpie, we-“

  Magpie rao them and spped 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 talk bae after what you did?” She snapped her head to Jon. “I’ll deal with you ter.”

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

  “He what?” Magpie turo 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, befiving Riother bad food measure. “Just you wait when this is all over!”

  The other members of her ente 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 t him up.”

  “You used yic?” Magpie asked.

  “Yeah, my st bit of Mana too.”

  Magpie’s eyes fell to Rick again. “What did I teach you for? How did someone else ma Jon back up before you?” Magpie ched her fist and Rick turned his head away, brag 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 bes, doesn’t it?” Adam smirked, chug behind his helmet.

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

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