I awoke with a start. Something had disturbed my sleep. Could it be morning already? I looked outside my tent only to be greeted by a musty smell of cold damp night air. It was still dark. Most people had gone to sleep but a few fires surrounded by men still burned strongly and brightly into the night.
What could have disturbed me besides morning or something of an Orcish descent? Nothing... It had to be something to do with the Orcs... but what? What could have snuck past all the sentries and all of the jolly people wandering the camps? Whatever it was, it had to be very battle hardened to enter the camp, specially since it was giving my senses a very strong impulse that said it was near...
The jolly sound of music ringing and men laughing and singing lightened my heart. I strolled through the camp aimlessly. On my way, I ran into Bryz.
'Whoa, what are you doing up Bryz? Off to rally your Zenx troops for the battle tomorrow?'
'I wish it was so, Roark, but something has awakened me... and it was not the need to rally my troops. Can you feel it? The evil presence?'
'Yes, yes I can. It awakened me also.'
'What could it be, my dear friend?'
'I don’t know, but I have a strange feeling that the fight inside the evil presence is strong...'
'Indeed...'
A sudden explosion to the right erupted, almost knocking us down.
'What was that,' I exclaimed as I examined some of my skin that was shinged during the explosion.
'Goblins,' Grumbled Bryz,' Goblin sappers my dear friend!'
'Rise the Zenx footmen,' I shouted as another explosion farther rose farther to the right.
'You don’t plan to send them against those devils do you?'
'You have only heard tales of them Bryz,' I shouted over more explosions,' but I have seen them fight. They will not set off their explosives while in formation, which they are in now! You must trust me!'
'Very well!'
Bryz strode off towards his section of the camp, which was, strangely enough, not under attack. Meanwhile, I swiped my bow out of my tent and on the way out grabbed a quiver full to the brim with arrows. It was due time to snipe off those devils before the dwarfs awoke and did some explosions of their own. That would not be good. Explosions from both sides in our camp and a waste of our dwarfs were simply not acceptable.
A group of full-blooded elves ran by me, their bows slung on their shoulders and their swords unsheathed, gleaming in the moonlight ready for battle. There were seven of them.
I stepped in front of them and stopped them cold.
'You there, hold for a minute,' I said.
'Something you wanted, sire,?’ asked an elf stouter then the rest.
'Where are you going?'
'To arouse the dwarfs.'
'Who’s orders are you acting under?'
'Roarks, sir.'
'I have given no such order,' I said softly.
'Roark? How can it be?'
'Hold your tongue, young one, we obviously have an imposter somewhere. We will find him out later...,'I said as I dropped my hood of my cloak.
'By the essences! It is him! We are sorry sire, we thought...'
'There’s no time at the moment. You two, come with me, The rest of you make sure the dwarfs are not awakened or disturbed!'
The elves snapped smartly to attention, saluted, and ran off towards the northern branch of the camp. I took off towards the battle at a brisk pace. Surprisingly, the elves kept up without running, unlike most of their kindred.
As we turned around a parked wagon, a squad of goblins spotted us. They hurriedly readied their explosives, but it was too late. Three arrows found their marks causing their explosives to explode on themselves. At that precise moment, another group of goblins spotted us. This group consisted of about 28 stout goblins. Fortunately they had no explosives and me and my two elves loosed several volleys of arrows before they reached us.
There was still a good deal of them left, but fortunately we were skilled almost to perfection in the art of war. My companions drew their swords and clashed in open combat with the remaining goblins. I reached for mine but it was too late. I was forced to use my bow as a club. The goblins were stout lads and they put up a good fight, as we got a good many of cuts and a good deal of dents to our armor.
They were soon running, despite their strength for being goblins. We let them go. It was time to snipe.
'Over here,' I commanded softly as I readied some arrows.
We were situated behind two wagons parked close together facing the battle. Lucky positioning for the time being. Peeking through the small space between the wagons, we targeted our kills and let the arrows fly. Our marksmanship was most excellent and all arrows struck home. We started to ready more arrows.
A soft patter of feet distracted us and we peered around the wagons again, seeing if the goblins had spotted us. They didn’t. I turned around to tell my companions to hurry but instead of the two elves and I found a goblin war chief with six strong goblin bodyguards. They were holding my elven companions unconscious. Rendering the situation impossible and useless to resist, I lowered my bow. The war chief grinned broadly.
'Suchess a mightyyyyz army, falleeen to sooo fewers of uz hiddeneaus ones,' spoke the goblin war chief with great difficulty.
'How so,' I asked in a return challenge.
'Withssss youzzz deadie, theee armyy iz as nuttin,' taunted the chief.
I was silent. Those giant red eyes of his that flamed and blazed in the night. They were cold and paralyzing. His men crept forward, scimitars drawn, but I could do nothing, not even run. He was indeed a worthy foe, I was beaten. I had never seen anything like him before, not even a death knight could match his power.
'Killsss him, killsss him deadie,'he hissed.
I heard bows twang and the goblins closest to me fell dead. A band of archers had spotted me, fortunately. But there was not enough, because the goblins had won this area in battle already. More were closing in, cutting off mine and the new coming archer’s escape routes. All was lost. Dol Ackmar would not fall, not by my hand at least. The Orcs had won.
But I was wrong. At the last moment, just when I thought all was lost, the footmen of Zenx arrived. They cut down goblins right and left and hacked their explosives to firewood. The warchief lost his concentration and shifted his gaze. His body guards moved off to attack the archers, leaving him unprotected. Freed from his will at last, I grabbed my sword from its sheath and sprung at his unprotected side turned towards me.
My sword plunged deep into the chiefs side. I pulled it out and stabbed, jabbed, and stuck him over and over again. He bellowed in pain and fury, but there was nothing he could do. He was dying if not already dead. He collapsed and several footmen jumped on him and began the process of tearing him limb from limb and hacking him to mince meat.
I watched, slightly saddened that his power might never be taught to me with him dead and not a prisoner forced to teach. I was awoken from my thoughts when the footmen finished their job.
'Sir, some elves by the dwarven section told us there was an imposter. The goblins are either all dead or being hunted, so should we pursue the imposter if we can?'
'Eh. Yes, let us hunt down the devils who started this mess...'
The footman slumped to a heap. His companions had slain him.
'Imposters!' I shrieked.
A tall man stepped forth, making his surrounding men look small.
'Hahaha, it is over Roark. Your ridiculous quest to destroy the fortress of Dol Ackmar,'boomed the tall man.
'Not quite, stranger.'
Bryz had arrived! His men stepped up from behind them, ready to charge. I gained new hope from this sight and beckoned to the band of archers behind me. They came forward.
'I believe your game is over, soldier...'
'Soldier,' said the man, 'Ha. Elite soldier is more like it.'
'Whatever you prefer,' I said with new found courage,' drop your weapons and you and your lackeys will be unhurt.'
'The game isn’t over yet!'
He made a rush at us and fell at our feet, stuck so full of arrows he seemed like a pincushion. His men lost faith and threw down their weapons. The footmen moved forward and apprehended them.
A horn blew from the lookout post. Bryz galloped up to me.
'What is that?' he asked while holding his horse still.
