The Hire 133.

The City Of Almaic...

As he hurries forward, commander Berric sees an enemy soldier on top of the wall get stabbed in the chest with a sword, and whacked across the back of the head with a cudgel.
The commander of duke Hargen's personal guard nods his head in approval.
Then he pauses as the large green form of what he incorrectly assumes is a troll. Appears, rolling over the top of the wall between two of the merlons. Where it crushes to death one of the defenders as it drops onto the top of the wall proper.
The commander's men behind him on the walkway, including the experienced guard Ludoc, all pause too. As what they think is a troll, gets up roaring in anger amongst the defenders on that section of the wall.
The commander of the duke of Phelm's personal guard, who is the highest rank commoner in the duke's court.
Is amazed to see an arrow sticking out of the face of the so called troll. And another arrow sticking straight up out of it's purple coloured top knot.
Commander Berric, who also happens to be a highly accomplished swordmaster blinks in surprise as he sees that it's also wearing, of all things, what looks like to be a rain poncho. On what's a hot and sunny, summer's day here in the duchy of Phelm, in the north of the kingdom of Nastell.
The swordmaster who hails from the northern city of Savariss. Also can't believe how big it is, now that he's relatively close to it.
What he wrongly assumes is a troll, is easily seven and half foot tall. And must weigh in excess of seven hundred and fifty pounds.
The commander of duke Hargen's personal guard is about to order those of his company with him, to attack. When he pauses again, as the so called troll. Moves a fair bit quicker than one would think it could ever move. And it slaps it's hands together.
On the head of one of the soldiers in the duke's army who goes to ram his sword at it.
The swordmaster Berric blinks in surprise, as that soldier's head explodes in a cloud of bone and brain matter between the massive, skillet sized hands of the large green creature, he thinks is a troll.
The headless soldier drops to the top of the wall, and the misidentified troll, rubs a bloody and brain covered hand down it's wide, green, brutish looking face. Licking it as it does so.
"Oh shit" is what the accomplished swordmaster hears behind him from the experienced guard Ludoc.
Then what they think is troll shouts something in a language none of them can understand, followed by a shout in the common language, which though a bit difficult to understand, the commander of duke Hargen's personal guard is sure was ""Get some ya cunts!".
"Careful" says commander Berric to his men, then realising he's probably the senior officer here, the swordmaster who is the commander of the duke of Phelm's personal guard, calls out "Those with bows and crossbows shoot it!". As he immediately sees that it would be best not to get too close to it.
Archers and crossbowmen go to shoot at what they think is a troll, while those close to it, duck down and try to get out of the way.
Arrows and bolts start hitting it, which only seems to enrage it even more. As it loudly roars. It roars so loud that those closest to it. Feel the roar reverberate through them.
"Keep shooting it!" calls out commander Berric, while behind him, Ludoc says "I don't think that's a troll".
The experienced guard, who has served in the duke of Phelm's personal guards for the last twenty five years. Infact duke Hargen is the second duke he's helped guard.
Has seen trolls before. Though none like this one. Which is about a foot and a half shorter than any troll he's ever seen in the past.
And is far more thickset than any troll he's run across. And the canines in it's mouth a way larger than a troll would ever have.
"Huh?" says commander Berric, who quickly glances back at Ludoc, and adds "What?".
"I don't think it's a troll" says the experienced guard who continues with "It's not like one I've ever seen, or heard of" then Ludoc shouts at those further along the top of the wall "Get down!".
As what he doesn't necessarily think is a troll, has picked up the headless soldier, and is going to throw him.
The body goes flying, a good twenty feet, where it slams into a crossbowmen, and another soldier, who are too slow to duck down.
Then it starts moving, roaring as it does so. Reaching under the rain poncho it wears for something. Which turns out to be a couple of weapons. An axe in one hand, and a hammer in the other.
And though the weapons look normal size in it's hands. It's obvious the weapons are what would be considered a heavy hammer and large axe if a human wielded them.
"Think we might be taking a section of that wall" says the field commander Tamric Drubine from a top of the archers platform in one of the makeshift fortifications the enemy built, that he's observing the attack upon the north wall of Almaic from.
"Well lets wait a bit" says Mira Reinholt the mage who is standing beside the nobleborn teenager.
The once powerful mage who has just pocketed the gold coin subcommander Waiamin just handed to him, then dryly says "This is Dorc remember, he still might fuck up".
Though the mage who is in exile from his homeland, the city-state of Vexil. Thinks it's highly unlikely the enemy will clear the large ork off the top of the wall by mundane means.
They'll have to use magic in some way. And if any enemy spellcaster does so, they'll have to be incredibly careful in how they go about doing it.
As the ork warleader is protected from all mind spells. Because he's an ork and they're immune to them due to their high levels of insanity.
Added to that, the ork warleader is protected from a lot of physical spells. Because of what he wears beneath the rain poncho he's got on at the moment.
As under it, covering his chest, and much of his ample stomach. Is a plate of natural dragon armour. A plate taken from the corpse of a dragon that the mage Reinholt knew well, and even considered a friend.
Until it bit his left arm off at the elbow. Then briefly killed him.
The once powerful mage who was brought back to life by lord Farque. Thankfully back into his own body. And not as undead.
Then says to the youngest of the field commanders in the Farqian mercenary army that's in charge of the campaign for the robber barons of the unruled lands in the Colevar Mountains, against duke Hargen and the duchy of Phelm "They've got spellcasters along that wall, one of them might get lucky and take Dorc out".
Mira Reinholt who in the past, when he had all his powers, during a fit of rage, tried to kill Dorc himself with a powerful blast of lightning that the big, burly ork miraculously survived, then dryly adds "Knowing him, if they do, they probably won't kill the fat lunatic".
Tamric Drubine or Tam as he's more commonly called by those who know him well, nods in agreement with the once powerful mage.
For in the past he's seen the ork warleader get hit by numerous spells that should of killed him, and survive.
Infact one did not so long ago, when he was hit infront of the city gates by a shaft of white light that came out of the clear blue sky, which felled the large ork.
Who is now up on the top of the north wall of the city of Almaic, the capital of the duchy of Phelm.
As they see an enemy soldier go flying off the top of the wall. They see a number of soldiers and mercenaries in the robber baron Larimer's army putting back up one of the broken ladders that the ork weaponsmith just used to top the wall.
While the other is still up against the wall. And though it's missing a few of the rungs in it. Others in the army of the robber baron Larimer are now climbing it, as are a few of the goblins in the battalion that Dorkindle is the general of.
Field commander Drubine, the mage Reinholt, subcommander Waiamin, and others in the senior staff of the young field commander, continue to watch the top of the section of the north wall of Almaic, that the ork general is on.
"Use spears if you can!" calls out commander Berric, who then nods to his right and says to Ludoc "Get them" as there's a few spears and polearms up against a merlon close by.
The experienced guard does, and hands them to others in the duke of Phelm's personal guard.
"Attack it unison if you can" says the swordmaster from the northern city of Savariss to his men, as they watch what may or may not be a troll.
Wade through the defenders upon the top of the wall, killing and dispatching anyone who it comes up against, as it heads this way.
A city guard is chopped basically in half. While a soldier's legs are kicked so hard, that one can hear them shattering.
That soldier in the duke's army drops to the walkway screaming in agony. His screams abruptly come to an end, when the large right black boot of what might be a troll, stomps down upon his head.
The large green figure's head snaps back as it's hit in the face with a bolt from just six feet away, shot from the crossbow of a mercenary hired into the duke's army.
It growls in anger, followed by a loud roar. Then it swings the hammer it has at the mercenary who is trying to back away, while fumbling to reload his crossbow.
The mercenary goes flying sideways off the top of the wall after getting hit in the side by the heavy hammer in the left hand of what may or may not be a troll.
And as the mercenary, falls to the street directly behind the north wall of the city of Almaic. The large green creature that's topped this section of the wall, batters away a spear that's shoved towards it.
"Stab up at it's face" says commander Berric to his men who now have either a spear or polearm.
"Stab it in the face with your spears!" calls out the swordmaster to those infront of him and his men. Though those infront of them, are rapidly dwindling in number as the large green figure heads this way.
The commander of duke Hargen's personal guard draws his longsword, and says over his shoulder "Remember distract it" followed by "Go for it's face".
Then after an archer is grabbed and flung away through a crenellation between two of the merlons. And a soldier's head disappears from a hammer blow. And another soldier is split open from his left shoulder down to his hips by the large axe in the other hand of what may or may not be a troll.
Commander Berric says to Ludoc and the others of his company here on top of the north wall of the city of Almaic "Go!".
Two of the men, one with a spear, the other with a polearm move forward, and stab the weapons up at the face of the large green figure wearing a rain poncho.
The commander of duke Hargen's personal guard runs forward between those two, as the large green creature roars and jerks back to avoid the spear and polearm directed up at it's face.
Berric drops down, and slides forward, feet first, between the legs of what Ludoc thinks isn't a troll.
The swordmaster gags as it reeks beyond belief, especially as he slides underneath it along the walkway.
Nevertheless the commander of duke Hargen's personal guard slices across the exposed fleshy part at the back of both legs of the large creature, which roars after getting hit.
As the swordmaster comes to a stop on the otherside of it, then springs to his feet swinging his longsword.
What might be a troll has grabbed the polearm, and swung it, and the guard in duke Hargen's personal guards holding, off the back of the wall.
And battered away the spear the other guard is trying to stab at it's face.
Then it roars again, as a hand axe thrown by the experienced guard Ludoc, slams into it's face, and sticks in to it, on the otherside from where the arrow that's stuck in it. Below the left eye, next to it's nose and mouth.
Commander Berric slams his longsword across the back of the large green creature. Which roars again. And spins far quicker than anything it's size has the right to do. To face the swordmaster who is the commander of duke Hargen's personal guard.
Then the swordmaster who is from the northern city of Savariss hears a familiar voice shout "Berric get down!".
Which is easy enough, as he was going to do that anyway as the large green creature spun around to face him.
Then suddenly what might be a troll, but the experienced guard Ludoc doesn't think it is. Goes staggering backwards uncontrollably, roaring in anger as it does so. It does so again, this time more quickly, and it windmills it's arms, as it falls backwards between two merlons, and topples off the top of the north wall of the city of Almaic.
Commander Berric turns and looks behind him, and sees the sorcerer Dominic hurrying along the walkway towards him.
"Hell, i didn't think i could get it off the wall" says the sorcerer Dominic when he gets to the commander of duke Hargen's personal guard "Had to eventually hit it in the legs" adds the sorcerer who hit the large green creature with a number of air punch spells, which only worked when he started aiming the spells at it's legs.
"Well at least you killed the damn thing" says the swordmaster Berric who didn't know how he was going to kill it, as he was doing his best to try and disable it, or at least slow it down.
"I don't think the sorcerer did" says the experienced guard Ludoc who is looking down off the top of the wall "Huh?" says the sorcerer Dominic "What?" asks commander Berric.
"I don't think it's dead" is the reply of Ludoc who nods down to the ground infront of the north wall of the city . . . . . .