Return to Jorgaldur Volume V: Reunion (2)

A deserved rest

The leprechaun leaned back in the chair, put his feet on the table and took a sip of the steaming infusion. He savored it calmly, thus enjoying that moment of peace after a few exhausting days. He closed his eyes, and thought about nothing more than the soft minty flavor.

"Finally a little peace," he murmured, sighing.

In recent days, there had been more activity than usual in the corrupted area. There were also several fake clues about his great enemy, with the consequent deployment of troops, and the pertinent reports before and after.

"Knock, knock," he heard someone knocking on the door.

He frowned. He had ordered not to be disturbed. After all, he deserved a little time to himself from time to time. The leprechaun looked reluctantly at the pipe that was ready on the table, which he had not yet been able to light. He wanted to ignore the knock, but it was probably urgent. He sighed again, this time resigned.

"Come in," he responded, while snapping his fingers to inhibit the barrier blocking the door.

It wasn't actually needed to snap the fingers to do it, but he liked the gesture. It was a quirk that his family had decided to ignore, what was left of them. Thinking about those he had lost made his blood boil.

In fact, the only reason he had been in that job for years was to avenge them. In this place, there was a better chance of finding his greatest enemy, the ancestral vampire who was presumed dead. However, he was sure his enemy was hiding, waiting for his chance. He had no proof, but there were many clues.

Therefore, at first, the leprechaun had kept a close eye on another ancient vampiress who had appeared unexpectedly, a visitor. Although he now considered her an ally. Maybe, even a friend.

He stared at the figure opening the door and rushing in. Alhgojl was a muscular barbarian over two meters tall and fearsome looking, who hated fighting. Therefore, he was considered a disgrace in his tribe, from which he had been expelled. The leprechaun had rescued him in the past, and had offered him work as an assistant.

It had been a temporary measure, while waiting to find something better for the barbarian. Surprisingly, after learning to read and a little arithmetic, he had turned out to be quite efficient. He had been his secretary for more than thirty years.

"I'm sorry to bother you, sir. Gjaki has arrived. She's asked for you to come right away, it's urgent," the barbarian explained without further delay, with a respectful bow.

That surprised the leprechaun, and not because he had been thinking about her a moment before. The vampiress used to wait relaxed when she came, while eating something, without rushing. It was the first time she had urged him.

He didn't hesitate to get up and walk towards his destination. Of course, walking was the description of how he moved his feet, not how his body disappeared again and again. He was advancing with each Phantom Step much more ground than what could be done simply by running.

As soon as he arrived in the room, it wasn't difficult for him to realize that the vampiress hadn't been lazing. Her clothes were clean, but there were traces of dirt and blood on her hair and face, and multiple traces of mana around her, remnants of spells. However, it didn't appear that she had suffered any damage.

"Good morning, Gjaki. What's so urgent?" he asked as soon as he entered.

"You have to come with me to the Great Brotherhood, it's an underground city," she informed.

He raised his eyebrows. That name belonged to a lost city, which he hadn't heard of for a long time. That undoubtedly gave rise to many questions, but now there was a more important one.

"Why's it so urgent?" he took interest.

"A group of vampires wanted to set up a base there. We've reduced them. We've disabled the gates, but I'm sure you can analyze them, see where they led. There's no doubt that it's our friend work, whoever he is," the vampiress explained.

"Alhgojl! Mobilize the Gamma group! Have them ready in five minutes in room seven! Quick!" he ordered his secretary, before turning to the vampiress. "Let's go! Hurry up!"

As the secretary rushed, she looked at the leprechaun, about to say something, even wanting to laugh, but she stopped herself. Instead, she summoned a Gate that they both crossed.

As soon as they were given the signal, the dwarfs advanced towards their enemies. Until now, they had remained still, while blocking successive attacks with apparent difficulty. Now, they showed that it really wasn't that difficult for them, that they could solve them with ease. The dwarfs had been feigning weakness, so that their enemies wouldn't stop attacking. They wanted their enemies to believe that the victory was near.

They walked with their shields raised and their spears barely protruding, ready to skewer whoever came within range. Furthermore, the mana moved between them and their weapons with more virulence, threatening. No doubt, they were preparing a powerful joint spell.

Their enemies, who had believed they were about to defeat them, took a step back, surprised and intimidated. Some even wanted to run away. However, the dwarfs' spell prevented them from doing so. Both sides found themselves inside a huge box of mana and earth, which forced them to engage in battle. Nobody could flee.

The dwarfs continued to advance, without haste, in formation. Each step echoed within Fight to Death, as all the dwarfs walked at the same time, synchronized, as if they were one. Their enemies saw only a wall of shields and dangerous sharp spikes that threatened to crush and pierce whoever stood in front.

The vampires tried to counterattack, but the dwarfs' defense was firm. They barely managed to delay their advance a little, but not prevent it.

The worst thing was that the advance and Intimidation of the dwarfs had terrified the toads. They were trying to flee, and were moving frantically looking for an exit that didn't exist. This forced the vampires to attack them to avoid being crushed.

If they already had few chances, fighting among themselves only made their situation worse. Furthermore, the dwarfs had more weapons in their arsenal.

When they got close enough, their shields began to Vibrate as well as strike forward. Barely an instant later, the spears followed.

With almost no space or reaction time, the remaining enemies were overwhelmed by the dwarven formation. As if that weren't enough, the last line climbed over the bent backs and heads of their companions, armed with axes. They jumped over the shields and attacked the vampires, as if they weren't overwhelmed enough with shields and spears.

The vampires had believed that they could defeat the compact group of dwarfs, regardless of their weapons or armor. Too late they realized how wrong they had been.