It was cold, cold and dark. In front of me I could hear something pulsing and thriving, but what it was I could not tell. I reached out to touch it and felt nothing but cold air going to and fro. It had no texture, but yet thrived in the dark.
A limp figure materialized where I was feeling. I jumped back and tried to cry out, but found I could not. The figure, illuminated by an odd black-gray light, spoke, 'It is useless to cry out.'
'You felt our presence your first night here. What you did not feel was our power. Your forces are by far way too feeble to take the fortress.'
My jaw dropped and I started open-mouthed at the figure. He raised his head and his cloak-shadowed face was partially revealed to me. I was horrified at the sight of his almost entirely flesh-ridden skull. He was a death knight! But what did he want?
'I want you to turn your forces away and leave this place, that is what we want, 'he said as he practically read my mind.
'Leave before you are caught in the destruction we shall cause.'
I found myself able to speak once again and choked out, 'What do you mean? What do you care if us your enemies perish?'
'Ahh, Roark, it has been along time since it happened. You have no doubt long since forgotten. I have brought you here to warn you against what will happen. You are not a foe and not a threat to my minions, and me, but if you do not leave soon we will destroy you in our relentless destruction along with our enemies. This fortress is ours, so begone!'
It jumped swiftly backwards into the darkness and I was left alone. A sudden pain smacked into my jaw and made me cry out. Light had returned and the world as I knew it returned. I had awoken from my dream when I smacked my jaw on the stone battlements as I fell asleep on watch duty that I had chosen to do. The dream seemed so real though. Could it possibly have been telepathic message via dream?
An axe suddenly whizzed by my head as I scanned the second wall for enemies. I loosed an arrow and a troll slumped over on the other battlements.
'Keep low,' I yelled to my men, 'their sniping at us.'
I crouched behind our newly acquired battlements and wondered about the dark figure again. While my mind was spinning rapidly in thought, I fell asleep...again.
* * * * * *
I awoke to the darkness once again, but this time the dark was from a natural nightfall. In the distance I heard what sounded like metal banging on stone. I rose to my feet in a low crouch and fitted an arrow into place. I was beginning to think that it was just the night patrol when I heard a muffled,'Ompf!'
Quickly I went in the direction of sound, still in a low crouch. The wall was extremely vast and the sound was very distant, indicating I had a ways to go. Where were all my men? As I rounded a tower, I bumped into a few elves. They were running as fast as they could in the opposite of where I was going.
I realized suddenly that they were running away from something. Acting quickly, I grabbed one of them as they went by with my free hand and pulled him aside. The Immediate thought of dying coursed through his brain as he shrieked in terror.
Excellent, I thought to myself, I picked the one who was enough of a fool to cry out and attract the others.
The shriek was shrill and hollow as it echoed over the battlements, filling every possible location with its eerieness. Reacting swiftly, several of the elves who were less terrified turned around to help their comrade who was thought to be in need of help.
'Quiet you fool, its just me, Roark,' I said sternly.
Inwardly I was grinning at his fright. The inward grin faded however when I saw they were scared of something else other then me.
'What are you running from?' I asked as I eyed them.
'Oh, its you sire. Sorry, we didn’t see yo..,' said one of the braver elves before I cut him off.
'I asked a question, and I expect a direct answer, soldier,.'
The soldiers winced nervously but stayed silent.
'Where are you bows?' I asked, continuing the interrogation.
'We all dropped them in our flight, sir...except him.' He pointed to the man I had pulled aside.
'Your flight from what?' I demanded.
They looked at each other uncertainly and shouldered their pikes. Elves always carry pikes or swords as a secondary weapon. Finally, after much uneasiness, the man I had frightened spoke up and reported the dishonorable deed.
'From the Orcs just beyond that tower over yonder. We had fallen asleep...,' he paused as he hung his head in shame. He quickly pulled himself together and continued, 'They grappled up the wall and were over the wall so fast we didn’t know what hit us.'
I was shocked inwardly. It was a lucky thread that they did not come over my wall while I slept.
'Continue,' said.
'...There were at least 50, and no doubt more now. They slaughtered a good deal of us, and word got around that we were under attack. Most ran back to the camp below, but some, like us, were going to make a stand at the gates...'
'You will do no such thing as long as I am here. Ready your weapons and follow me in a low crouch.'
A small murmur went through the elven group, but they followed with utmost care. Slowly we made our way to the next tower where Orcs were supposedly stationed now. We crept silently into the tower and looked out on the endless battlements. The harsh sounding noise of Orcs filtered to our ears and we knew we were close to them although it was too dark to see them.
Quietly I gave out orders, 'You with the pikes, get in front and shove them pikes forward so the battlements are blocked with them spears. You with the bow, get back here with me and notch an arrow. Everyone keep low!'
We marched swiftly forward towards the noises. I cursed silently and hoped that the chain mail on the elves would not give us away. Up ahead the Orcs were coming into view and my elven companions were getting fairly nervous. The chain mail strapped to the elves jingled softly and several of the hunting Orcs with excellent hearing turned and screamed with extreme excitement because of the fact that they had found prey.
'Prey! Get the...' the Orc was stopped short as an arrow pierced his chest.
Immediately the outlying band of Orcs charged. They were all grunts. The snarling beasts were moving with lightning speed and my men were extremely nervous now.
'Steady!' I shouted.
The Orcs did not notice that the elves were equipped with pikes and crashed smack into them. Blood spewed over all of the front line elves and the Orcs were soon turned into a heap of bloodied meat as the pikemen struggled to release their pikes from the dead bodies.
Several of the pikemen, sickened at the thought of having blood all over them, dropped their pikes and broke rank. I didn’t bother to stop them. We loosed two more rounds of arrows before we had more of the enemy running at us.
'Front line, charge!' I yelled.
Immediately the remaining men of the front line pikemen started into a quick trot towards the enemy. One man who was too anxious for battle stood to full height and sprinted towards the Orcs. They were taken back when they saw him but soon forgot as an axe sliced through his head.
The remaining pikemen clashed into the Orcs. The battle ahead raged as we watched horrified. I looked behind us to see if there was anybody else to throw into the battle. There wasn’t. Before I knew what was happening, Orcs appeared at the top of the tower, which was taller then the battlements themselves, and more Orcs vaulted themselves from over the wall to the top of the battlement behind us with lightning speed.
'Lookout!'
The Orcs didn’t waste any time, as they charged heartily into battle with us. The second line of pikemen turned and rushed to our aid. Quickly I dropped my bow and unsheathed my sword. It was a magnificent work of metal and it gleamed brightly in the moonlight as it flashed up and down upon Orc scalps.
We murdered wave after wave of them but their was no way we could hold as the line of pikemen behind us was broken by the rocs enraged rush to reach us suddenly. I grabbed up my bow and swiftly ducked into the shadows given off by the battlements and wrapped tight in my dark cloak as I waited for the Orcs to slaughter my men and go by...
They soon moved on to find more prey and I swiftly slipped away. I had to make it to the gate before the Orcs reached there. A fiery ball of stone and sticks suddenly crashed into the battlements in front of me. I stopped instantly. Where the hell did that come from? I turned my head towards the Orcish second wall just in time to see a newly constructed catapult launching a projectile. I had no time to move and the projectile struck home, sending me flying out into the night air where blackness engulfed me...
