Mercenary Tales 71.

Vexil. 

Lord Farque looks up at the ceiling above him, sensing those on the floor above. The undead warlord slightly nods his head, then he moves quickly down the hallway he's in. The lord and ruler of the Lands Farque glances up again, then he stops as he senses who is directly above him, moving slower than the others in the long hallway on the top floor of the residential building he's in. 

The large heavily armoured deathlord briefly closes his eyes, then bends his knees slightly, before he leaps straight upwards at the ceiling above him. 

Beldane the cleric doesn't know when it's going to happen, but he knows it is going to happen. And when he senses that Lord Farque is directly below him. 

The fighting cleric in the church of Glaine grimaces to himself as he prepares for what's about to happen. The powerful practitioner of magic braces himself. Just in time to, as the floor beneath him and the cleric of Goran walking beside him, bursts apart, flinging them off their feet as something comes up through the floor beneath them. 

Those at the end of the hallway, who are looking down at the rubble on the floor beneath them, spin around when they hear what's happened further back in the hallway they've cautiously  made their way down. 

There's more than a few winces on faces when they see who is standing down towards the other end of the hallway, near where the stairs are. 

"Shit" says Marcus the mercenary as he voices what they're all thinking as they see the large, dark, heavily armoured figure towards the other end of the hallway. 

Who moves quickly, and grabs the heavily armoured cleric in the church of Goran who is struggling to his feet. 

And before anyone can do anything, the undead being throws the cleric in the church of Goran out through the large opening along one side of the hallway, throwing the cleric in the church of Goran to his death. 

Then the undead creature, turns and looks in their direction. And they all see a flash of blue light in the eye slot of it's full helm as it looks towards them. 

Just then, the cleric Beldane who is getting to his feet, swings his magical mace at the undead being, shouting as he does so. 

There's a bright white flash that lights up that end of the hallway, and when it dissipates, they see the fighting cleric in the church of Glaine, standing there shaking his head as if to clear it. Of the undead creature there's no sign of him. 

Then the powerful practitioner of magic who hails from the kingdom of Nastell, hurries through the doorway to his right, the door of which has been smashed off it's hinges. 

"Hurry!" shouts Margin the wizard, who continues with "Help him!". Referring to the fighting cleric in the half plate armour who is taking on the undead creature single handedly. 

The two other clerics left, one in the church of Famal and the other in the church of Maëlle. Who aren't as far down the hallway as the group of so called mercenaries. 

Start hurrying back the way they've come from, to help the cleric Beldane, who they can hear shouting as he fights the undead being one on one. 

Margin the Vexillian wizard quickly says to the elven maiden Salinéll "If we face it directly, try the same thing again". 

The elven spellcaster from the principality of Alinlae nods her head to that, though she kinda hopes that the cleric Beldane can handle the undead creature, and that they don't have to face it head on. 

"Let's go" says Salinéll the elven maiden to the rest of the group as they see the two clerics, one in the church of Famal and the other in the church of Maëlle, rush through the doorway that the powerful cleric in the church of Glaine went through. 

Then as the group, who have been passing themselves off as mercenaries while here in the city of Vexil start hurrying back down the hallway, which along one side is open to the elements, on this cold winters day. 

They see the cleric Beldane come flying backwards through the doorway he went through, and land in the middle of the hallway, groaning after he hits the floor. 

The next moment the undead being walks through the open doorway and into the hallway, and stops and looks in their direction, staring at them as they've stopped again. Before he grabs the barely moving Beldane by the leg. 

And walks back through the doorway he's just come from, dragging the fighting cleric in the church of Glaine behind him like a sack of potatoes. 

There's no sign of the two other clerics. And when Margin the wizard and Salinéll the elven magic user sense for them, they're unable to sense the cleric in the church of Maëlle, and the cleric in the church of Famal. 

"Grab the sword" quietly says Lord Farque "I'd rather not" mutters Beldane the cleric who gasps as he's winded after being thrown out into the hallway. 

The Nastellian born spellcaster eyes the undead warlord's weapon more than a little wearily as he knows what it means to touch it. Instant death. 

"Fucking wimp" mutters the lord and ruler of the Lands Farque, who then wryly adds "It won't harm you". 

Then before the fighting cleric in the church of Glaine can say anything else, the lord of the death realm thrusts the massive blade at him. 

Beldane as he lies on the floor of the room they're in, trying to get his breath back, instinctively puts up a gauntleted hand, and tries to push away the sword. 

The powerful spellcaster who hails from the kingdom of Nastell grunts when he touches the blade and nothing happens to him. 

"See" dryly says the deathlord of Farque, who also has the name of Draugodrottin that the people of his lands know him by. 

Who then thrusts the massive sword into the floor, and quietly tells the cleric in the church of Glaine "Keep a hold of it" followed by "Don't let go". 

As he lies there on the floor, Beldane the cleric who has finally got his breath back, nods his head in understanding. While the undead warlord steps by the two dead clerics, one in the church of Maëlle and the other in the church of Famal, and heads back through the doorway into the hallway. 

The two spellcasters, Margin the wizard and Salinéll the elven magic user look at one another, as all of a sudden they can no longer sense the powerful fighting cleric named Beldane. 

Then from behind them they hear Mercer mutter "Fuck". They look ahead again, and they see that the undead creature has walked out into the hallway once more. And is just standing there looking right at them. 

"Hell" quietly says the local born wizard, next to him, the leader of the group, Salinéll the elven maiden nods her head in agreement. 

"We've got no chance against it" quickly says the wizard in the dark red robes. The elven practitioner of magic who hails from the principality of Alinlae is in agreement with that. 

As their only chance to defeat the large, heavily armoured undead being is with the help of the clerics. Especially the powerful cleric in the church of Glaine, Beldane. 

Then before Salinéll can even suggest that they get the hell out of here. The undead creature calls out something. In a language that none in the group recognizes. Which is only natural, as he's not calling out to them. But to someone else close by. 

He's been bidding his time. Standing there in one of the rooms, up here on the fourth floor of the residential building. 

Even when he first smells and hears who's out in the hallway. He's kept still and waited. Knowing that his time is yet to come. 

And when he starts hearing shouting, and an explosion. He continues to wait, though he does move closer to the closed door of the room, that leads out to the hallway. 

He sniffs deeply, and a wide grin appears on his broad, green brutish looking face as he continues to wait. 

And it's not too long before he smells and hears who it is that's stopped right outside the room he's been waiting in. 

The grin gets wider on his feral looking face as he continues to wait, and he doesn't have to wait any longer, for he hears a familiar voice out in the hallway, further back down it, towards the stairs, call out in his native language "Now cunt!". 

The door to the room they've stopped beside in the hallway, smashes apart, and something rather large, heavy, and very green, which smells rather disgusting slams into the group of so called mercenaries. 

It's Marcus who bares the brunt of it, and he goes flying sideways by bits of the smashed door, and whatever it is that's smashed into them. 

They're standing near the massive opening along one side of the hallway, and Marcus is flung out of it with force, shouting in panic as he does so. 

His shout comes to an abrupt end when he smashes into the cobblestones of the street four storey's below. 

It's Kynil the sword mistress who is also badly effected by what's smashed into them. And though she's not flung out the opening in the side of the hallway. 

She ends up half out and half in the hallway, with a broken leg, as she screams in pain, while clinging onto part of hallway wall that's still intact. 

Mercer comes off third worst, as he's clipped by what's run into them from the side. He goes spinning backwards like a top. And drops to the floor, utterly dazed, and groaning in pain with a broken left arm. 

As for the spellcasters Margin and Salinéll, who are out in front. They're jostled forward by Jarkellé the elven warden. 

Who is shoved forward when Marcus went flying out of the opening that runs along much of one side of the fourth floor hallway. 

"What?" says Salinéll the elven magic user, who quickly spins around to see what's happened. And while Margin the wizard stumbles trying to hold up a slightly dazed Jarkellé. 

The elven maiden who hails from the principality of Alinlae who leads the group who have set into motion plans that they hope will bring about a war between the city-state of Vexil and the kingdom of Girdane. Blinks in surprise at what, or to be precise who is standing in the hallway behind them. 

"What?" mutters Salinéll the elven maiden in surprise, who then scowls as she glances at Margin and Jarkellé beside her. "I thought he was dead" says the elven magic user in disgust. 

"What the fuck?" mutters a stunned looking Margin the wizard when he looks up and see who's now in the hallway with them. 

Who has his back to them, as he looking towards where the dazed and groaning Mercer is on the floor, cradling a broken left arm. 

Salinéll spins back the other way, and sees that the large heavily armoured undead creature is now walking this way, stalking them. 

"Flee!" shouts Salinéll the elven magic user who knows they have no chance of surviving this encounter with the the undead being and who else has suddenly appeared in the hallway with them. 

Ignoring the pleading screams of help from Kynil the sword mistress. Salinéll quickly glances out of the opening in the hallway beside them and teleports away. 

An instant later, she's followed by Margin the wizard, with the Vexillian born spellcaster teleporting himself away as well, taking Jarkellé the elven warden with him. 

Lying on his side on the floor, with his wits barely there. Mercer groans again as he cradles his broken left arm. 

The so called mercenary is pretty sure that there's something broken inside too. Most likely ribs by the feel of things. 

He screws up his face in pain, then opens his eyes when he hears what sounds like Kynil screaming in pain, suddenly come to an end. 

And though he's dazed, he sees the sword mistress who is half in, and half out of the opening along the side of the hallway, fall out to the street four storey's below. Suddenly Mercer isn't so dazed as he sees who it is that's just kicked Kynil in the head, killing her. 

"You're dead" gasps a disbelieving Mercer as he looks at the massive figure standing in the hallway who is now looking at him. 

"No me not cunt" says Dorc da Orc who grins as he looks at the so called mercenary, lying there on the floor, cradling a broken arm. 

"Oh you got a sore fucken arm?" says the large ork in a conversational tone, who then takes an axe from his weapon harness. 

Ironically, or unironically depending on your point of view. The exact same axe that was used to chop off the ork warleaders left arm not so long ago. 

"How?" mumbles Mercer in disbelief who is more than a little stunned to say the least, that the ork named Dorc is whole again, and alive. After he chopped it's left arm off, and shoved a spear through it's throat, pinning it to the wall of the underground chamber where he and the others left it. 

"Why don't me fucken fix it for ya" says the ork weaponsmith referring to the so called mercenary's broken arm. He grabs the prone Mercer, and with one lazy swing, chops off his left arm. 

Dorc da Orc or Dorkindle which is his given name, chuckles as Mercer lies there in the middle of the hallway, screaming in pain. 

The big burly ork from the southern polar region of the world then proceeds to take down his knee length grubby paints, telling the screaming Mercer "Cunt me told you what me's was gonna fucken do to you for cutting me arm off". 

Then as the large ork starts taking a shit on Mercer, who vomits. The so called mercenary in the last moments of his life. 

Blinks in disbelief, as he sees walking down the hallway to where he and the ork named Dorc are. The large heavily armoured undead creature, with the powerful cleric in the church of Glaine, Beldane, walking beside him. 

"What the fuck?" mumbles Mercer who in pain, losing copious amounts of blood, while shit is sprayed across him, continues mumbling with "What's happening here?" . . . . . .