Ch140: Confronting the Patriarch
“Aaaand...” A single scaled finger slowly slides a small, simply shaped stone piece across a checkered pattern so crudely scratched into the ground. “There. I win.”
“Rrrgh...!” The Were-Beast growls, her nose scrunching into a snarl.
“You did much better that time.” The barbarian reaches over and fearlessly pats Khalia on the head, affectionately ruffling that grumpy Greenskin’s black-brown hair before letting her touch trail down to squish a faintly flushed cheek. “A couple more games and you might finally win one~.”
Khalia glares at her Mate, amber-gold eyes narrowed into thin slits. Without a word, the Were-Beast begins to reset both sides of the board, moving the plain pieces back into their places.
This Orc may get rather frustrated when she loses, but that doesn’t stop her from wanting to try again and again. It is mostly stubbornness that is keeping Khalia competitive here, but the fact that she isn’t giving up is still fairly admirable. She is her Mate’s wrath made manifest, so no one would blame her for rage quitting after losing more than a dozen times in a row. But still this precious puppy perseveres.
Krvavy closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, lazily leaving the responsibility of getting their next game ready to her Khalia.
These past few days have been pretty tiring. Or, really, these past few weeks have been exhausting. She has been on her feet near-constantly, running here and there and all over the place... So it is nice to just sit back and relax like this, passing the time with a rather low energy game. Krvavy would prefer to be back home with all of her girls, but...
“Hrrnh!” The Were-Beast makes a soft sound, carelessly dropping the final piece that needs to be moved back into position as she suddenly straightens up. Her fluffy ears twitch slightly as she tilts her head. “Hooves...!” She excitedly whispers, tail thmping and thwcking around as she struggles to stay still. “Coming closer...!”
The barbarian lightly bites the inside of her cheek. Guess it is time. She isn’t sure if she should be happy that the wait is finally over, or if she should be nervous about the impending fight...
With a light shake of her head, Krvavy pushes aside her concerns and fears, steeling her resolve. She takes a sip from her waterskin, idly wishing that the leathery tasting liquid within was a bit more refreshing, and then rises to her feet. She briefly glances down towards their makeshift board, before wiping it clean with an uncaring kick. Her steady and stern gaze turns towards Khalia.
“Remember the plan?”
“Yes Mate!” The Orc energetically nods her head, shaggy tail whipping back and forth behind her.
Krvavy slowly nods back, basking in her precious puppy’s warmth as she pulls Khalia into her embrace. Their hug is spoiled slightly by the cold metal breastplate loosely hanging onto the Orc’s chest, but that mild discomfort hardly matters to either of them. Not right now, in this single moment. The Drakling’s mouth briefly presses against Khalia’s plump lips, sharing a second of gentle passion before they split apart.
“Remember what to do if it looks like we are about to lose? If I die?”
“Rrgh... Yes, Mate...” The Were-Beast’s expression darkens. “Run into woods. Fast, far. Cover tracks. Don’t lead enemies home.”
“Good girl...” The Drakling’s fingers glide through her precious puppy’s hair, gently scritching the side of Khalia’s head where those strands have been cut down into little more than fuzzy stubble. Her touch, naturally, finds a soft and fluffy ear, caressing it with all the love she has.
The sound of hooves clip-clopping across the old stone bridge grows louder and louder as their target approaches.
The anticipation is killing Krvavy.
A part of her wants to rush in and attack right away, to get this over with as quick as possible. But she also knows that doing so would be stupid. Pretty much suicide. This bridge isn’t exactly narrow, but it isn’t all that wide either. She doesn’t want to get bogged down fighting the guards while that damned lightning wizard stands out of her reach, free to blast her and Khalia with his damn magic...
And so she patiently waits as the horses grow ever closer, cautiously peeking her head out of this hiding spot beneath the bridge. A flash of anxious excitement fills her heart as she sees a wagon with familiarly armoured men riding atop it. This is the right target, no doubt about it.
“Ready?” Krvavy glances at her eager Orc, keyglyph in hand. She doesn’t bother waiting for Khalia to nod in response before pressing the small stone against the Were-Beast woman’s collarbone, sending a bit of mana through it.
A bloody glow flows through the rust-red runes painted all across Khalia’s body as they are activated, dimming into just the faintest unnatural shimmer after a few seconds. The runic markings look a little odd on Khalia’s fur, but the barbarian hardly pays attention to that thought as she tightens Khalia’s breastplate. Once she is sure that it is securely in place, the barbarian presses the keyglyph against herself.
A faint rush of power fills Krvavy’s body as her runes activate. She doesn’t feel stronger, but she definitely feels tougher. More resilient. She is tempted to look at her resistances, but... that can wait just a moment.
Khalia meets her Mate’s eyes with a wide and toothy grin as she pulls away, quickly hurrying to the other side of the bridge. Stepping from the shadows, the wild Were-Beast turns her head up to the sky. “AAARRWHHHHOOOOOOOOO~!!!”
The joyful sound of the Orc’s Empowering Howl fills the air right as Krvavy casts Oakflesh, a bark-like mirage spreading across her skin and scales as her body fills with magical strength. Unable to contain her curiosity, the barbarian allows herself just a brief moment to bring up her resistances.
Krvavy swiftly dismisses that popup, having hardly given it more than a glance. But just a quick look was all she needed for a rather maniacal grin to start spreading across her face. While she would love for those numbers to be even bigger, she is more than happy with what she has now.
Her grin grows even wider as she rushes out from beneath the bridge, axe manifesting in her hands.
There are only two vehicles on the road: that uncovered wagon laden with soldiers, which she already saw, and a single carriage following closely behind it. She had expected more. Perfect. There won’t be as many guards in her way.
“AARRRRRAAAAAAAAGHHH~!!!” Khalia’s Shaking Roar echoes around the bridge, immediately sending the horses into a panic. The two pulling the wagon rear up on their hind legs, hooves flailing around as they recoil away from the Were-Beast.
The other two horses whinny and, given no space to turn around, charge forwards... slamming straight into the back of the wagon with an uncomfortable crunch while the carriage they were pulling continues onward with its momentum, mercifully finishing them off. Splinters go flying as the uncovered wagon veers off to the side from the force of that collision, wheels catching on the rougher terrain at the roads edge as the whole thing nearly topples over, reins snapping as those two surviving horses break free and bolt away.
The Were-Beast, thankfully, doesn’t chase after those frightened beasts, focusing instead on the more dangerous prey before her.
“TO ARMS!” One of the soldiers shouts, rallying the others as they scramble to grab their weapons and jump to the ground. As expected, most of them rush to defend against Khalia’s frenzied attack, but unfortunately a few do spot the flanking barbarian.
One of those unfortunate soldiers decides to charge straight at Krvavy with his sword raised high, ignoring the cautioning shouts of his comrades. His defiant expression quickly shifts into one of fearful realization as the Drakling’s throat begins to glow a crimson colour. He hastily raises his shield in an attempt to block the violent plume of flames searing through the air. He is not fast enough.
436.94 Damage dealt to [Unfortunate Soldier]
His unarmoured face takes the full brunt of that blazing inferno, his head quickly getting engulfed in Draconic fire.
371.87 Damage dealt to [Unfortunate Soldier]182.62 Damage dealt to [Unfortunate Soldier]
The soldier’s agonizing screams quickly devolve into sputtered chokes as he drops to the ground, rolling and flailing around in a desperate attempt to put out those blood-red flames. But that is not enough to keep the Drakling’s fire from eating away at his flesh, from his face burning and melting into an unrecognizable mess.
159.53 Damage dealt to [Unfortunate Soldier]55.46 Damage dealt to [Unfortunate Soldier]36.85 Damage dealt to [Unfortunate Soldier]24.78 Damage dealt to [Unfortunate Soldier]
[Unfortunate Soldier] has been slain!+1,377.50 Experience
A metal bolt flies through the pillar of acrid black smoke, narrowly missing the barbarian’s throat.
Level Up! You have reached Level 18. As a Drakling blessed by a divine power, you have 5 attribute points to allocate and have gained +2 to Might & Toughness. If not allocated by the time you fall asleep it will be done automatically.
+1 Divine Favour, for growing in strength.
Krvavy immediately pushes that notification to the back her mind, dismissing it from her vision. She can’t risk getting distracted right now.
Putting her faith in Khalia, trusting that her precious puppy can handle those soldier, the barbarian lunges to the side. Away from the wagon and the crossbowmen atop it. A second metal bolt flies past her, so close to grazing her thick tail. She is saved from any further shots as the carriage comes between her and those ranged bastards, cutting off their line of sight.
Another soldier rushes towards Krvavy, intent on keeping her from reaching that carriage... only to be stopped in his tracks as a fully armoured man lands before him.
“Deal with the other beast!” An authoritative voice calls from within a solid helmet, cutting through the sounds of screaming and howled joy as the knight physically pushes that soldier back. “We will handle this demon!”
Another armoured knight jumps down from the carriage, standing beside the first. The two are near-identical in their matching suits of silvery armour, that perfectly polished metal partially covered by silken blue tabards decorated with ornate patterns. They each hold large two-handed swords, their blades shimmering faintly with power.
“For Volhynia!” The second knight lets out a bellowing cry, marching forwards alongside the first.
Krvavy scowls and sucks in a sharp breath of air, glaring at the two armoured knights in her way. The Drakling’s lungs burn with power and her throat begins to glow with heat. Her jaw snaps open as the scorching flames burst from her lips, raging towards those twin knights.
Crimson flames fill her vision as pain rakes through her throat, feeling as if her flesh is being peeled and charred as she spits out her Blazing Breath. But no damage notifications pop up, so she pushes through that pain. Though, speaking of damage notifications...
She doesn’t see any for the knights either.
Krvavy forces her flames to come to a sudden and abrupt stop, leaving her with an uncomfortably dry mouth and the urge to cough. In front of her is a wall of glacial ice, standing strong despite its half-melted state.
Without warning, that glacier violently explodes. Jagged shards fly towards the barbarian at such high speed that she has no hope of dodging them, leaving her with no other option than to brace herself.
-13.13 Health-11.92 Health-10.44 Health
Most of icy shards shatter against her body, though a few are able to leave shallow cuts or partially embed themselves into her flesh. But Krvavy doesn’t have time to worry about the already-melting ice. The twin knights are advancing on her.
The barbarian quickly steps backwards, dodging a wide swing from the left knight and a straight thrust from the right. Her expression darkens as her foot leaves the packed earth of the road. These two knights are moving in perfect harmony, covering each other and leaving no openings for her to exploit. As long as she stays on the defensive, there is no way for her to win this. She’ll just be left blocking or dodging attack after attack after attack, all while her target is out of her reach. She will be screwed if that lightning wizard joins in on this.
And so, rather than dodge the next thrusting attack, Krvavy lunges forwards.
-35.79 Health
The blade presses against her midsection, failing to penetrate her magically reinforced skin but still leaving a relatively shallow cut as it is deflected to the side. Tiny crystals of painfully sharp ice immediately begin to sprout from the edges of that wound, keeping it open.
-2.45 Health-2.71 Health
You have been inflicted with a Minor Wound: Light Bleeding. You will lose 0.25 Health per minute as long as the bleeding continues.
Krvavy grits her teeth as her axe crashes into the left knight’s shoulder, drawing out a screech of metal scraping against metal.
6.54 Damage dealt to [Left Knight]
The knight staggers back a bit from the force of her attack, but is otherwise unbothered by the slight pain it brings. A faint scratch is visible on his pauldron, but it looks small enough to be easily polished away.
The Drakling’s eye twitches in rage as she jerks her weapon to the side, swinging the neglected hammer on its backside towards the right knight’s chest. Rather than try to block or even dodge her attack, he simply swings his sword at her undefended side.
47.27 Damage dealt to [Right Knight]
The knight’s silken tabard tears beneath the jagged teeth of her hammer, and his shining silver metal of his breastplate warps beneath her violent strike. A single rib cracks and the air is forced from his lungs, but this is a manageable injury. He could push through that pain and carry on with relative ease.
Or at least he could if it wasn’t for the magic channelled through the barbarian’s weapon, paying him back for his arrogance.
Critical Hit! 2,936.86 damage dealt to [Right Knight]
The sickening sound of bones shattering and flesh being emulsified briefly fills the air, before getting drowned beneath the rending of metal. The knight’s body goes flying backwards as the force of a single Seismic Stomp overflows from his form, landing limply on the ground with a heavy thump.
[Right Knight] has been slain!+3,262.50 Experience
“RIKARD!” The remaining knight roars in rage, kicking his leg forwards into Krvavy’s thigh.
-0.09 Health
The barbarian is pushed back slightly, mostly because she caught herself off guard with how effective her own attack was. That surprise is short-lived though, quickly getting shaken off. She can’t let herself get distracted.
-7.3 Health
Shards of ice burst from the ground beneath Krvavy’s feet, climbing up her legs and locking her in place. Ignoring the stinging cold, she quickly raises her axe to block an incoming strike from the knight’s now ice-covered blade with her weapon’s wooden haft.
-7.69 Health
Chilling cold surrounds Krvavy as the knight pushes down against her. The ice continues to crawl up her legs as frost appears on her skin and scales, sapping away at her strength. Gritting her teeth, the Drakling begins channelling fire magic throughout her body, burning mana in a struggle to heat herself up.
“Stand back.” A worn and tired voice calls through the air.
The knight suddenly freezes in place. “S-sir!” He turns his head to glance back towards the carriage, where the Patriarch stands in its open door. “You–AGH!”
172.1 damage dealt to [Left Knight]
Krvavy stabs one of the anti-magic nails into a gap in the knight’s armour, driving it through the chainmail beneath his right arm. The ice clinging to her body cracks as she breaks free from it’s frozen grasp, diving to the side just in time to dodge a bolt of lightning.
“AAARRRAAAAAAAAWHHHHH~!!!” A triumphant roar rings out from the far side of the road. The Patriarch appears unfazed by the magic within the Orc’s voice, but still he turns his head to look Khalia’s way.
Panic fills Krvavy’s body at the mere thought of this damned lightning wizard targeting her precious puppy. Adrenaline pumps through the barbarian’s veins as her hand slides up the haft of her weapon, holding it just beneath its heavy heads. At the same time she lunges forwards, tackling the knight before he can recover.
155.67 damage dealt to [Left Knight]191.48 damage dealt to [Left Knight]
Panic turns to rage as Krvavy savagely thrusts her weapon’s spearhead into the gap beneath the knights left arm, breaking through the chainmail and stabbing towards his heart.
281.91 damage dealt to [Left Knight]273.54 damage dealt to [Left Knight]347.74 damage dealt to [Left Knight]
The wide blade digs through flesh and scrapes against bone as Krvavy forces the knight back, grabbing onto his armour to keep him upright. His ice-covered sword falls from his grasp as his blood flows from that growing wound.
463.37 damage dealt to [Left Knight]
The Drakling’s mana ticks back up as she absorbs the knight’s blood, recovering most of what she has spent so far in this fight. Rage burns through her mind as she closes the distance between herself and the carriage, keeping this body in front of her all the while, using it as a shield.
496.65 damage dealt to [Left Knight]572.51 damage dealt to [Left Knight]
Her spearhead stabs and stabs into a shrivelled mess of drained flesh, having so thoroughly destroyed the vitals within. No more damage notifications pass through her mind. The barbarian drops that desiccated corpse to the ground.
[Left Knight] has been slain!+3,335 Experience
Level Up! You have reached Level 19. As a Drakling blessed by a divine power, you have 5 attribute points to allocate and have gained +2 to Might & Toughness. If not allocated by the time you fall asleep it will be done automatically.
+1 Divine Favour, for growing in strength.
Less than a dozen paces in front of Krvavy stands her target, a ball of crackling lightning in his hands. A flash of recognition passes over the Patriarch’s wizened face, his tired eyes widening in surprise.
“You...!”
That single raspy word is all he can get out before Krvavy hurls the grenade at him. The ball of lightning in his hands explodes outwards, stretching into a net linked together by arcing sparks. The grenade halts in mid air, caught by the web of lightning. But, luckily, that magic is far from gentle.
A silent explosion rings out, erasing all sounds as a flash of utter darkness engulfs the wizard and his magic. The burst of nothingness nearly reaches the barbarian, stopping just a few paces in front of her before rushing back towards its center with a hollow pop.
Krvavy ignores the specs of inverted colours hovering in her vision and rushes at the dazed wizard, pulling a metal spike from the pouch on her hip. With as much force as she can muster, the barbarian stabs the nail towards the lightning wizard’s body, hoping to impale it into him before he can recover.
Sparks fly as the sharp point scrapes against some sort of barrier hovering above the Patriarch’s robes. The runes carved into the metal nail grow hot in Krvavy’s hand, almost burning as she presses forwards with all her strength. Static buzzes through her very being as she pierces that barrier and drives the metal spike into the lightning wizard’s gut.
64.46 damage dealt to [Patriarch Grigori]
The pain snaps the old man from his daze, his expression hardening as the crackling barrier begins to flow across his body, travelling towards his right hand in violent electrical arcs.
Krvavy scrambles to grab another nail, dropping a few to the ground in her haste. A violent mass of lightning collects in front of the Patriarch’s palm in the split second it takes her to bring a metal spike up. The sharp point digs into his shoulder just as the energy that he has gathered is discharged.
78.24 damage dealt to [Patriarch Grigori]
-391.98 Health
The Drakling skids back across the ground, nearly toppling backwards from the force of the magic crashing into her body. She can feel her muscles twitch and shake as the last few electric arcs dance across her skin. She pushes through that lingering numbness.
“Hhn!” The Patriarch sharply inhales as sparks dance across his fingers, the nail embedded in his right shoulder glowing as he tries to cast another spell. His brow furrows and he grits his teeth, but rather than try to remove the anti-magic metal spike, he simply raises up his left hand instead. A glowing circle with arcane text within its circumference appears before his fingers, a mote of crackling light in its center.
There is hardly a thought inside Krvavy’s head as she instinctively lunges forwards, her fingers tightening around her weapon’s haft as she furiously swings it down towards this damned lightning wizard’s hand, seeking to disarm him in the truest sense.
-7.27 Health
A loud crack rings through the air as the Drakling’s axe is wrenched from her grip and sent flying away. Krvavy does her best to ignore the sharp pain in her wrist, even as it leaves her right hand feeling a little tingly, and instead brings her left down towards the Patriarch, driving another nail through the top of his left shoulder.
77.82 damage dealt to [Patriarch Grigori]
“May Per... Perun grant me his strength...!” The Patriarch rasps those reverent words. “May the Lord Above, creator of lightni–”
5.36 damage dealt to [Patriarch Grigori]
Krvavy tugs on the nail, forcing it deeper into the wizard’s flesh as she pulls him down from the carriage, slamming her head forwards to meet his descent.
91.45 damage dealt to [Patriarch Grigori]
The Drakling’s upper horns strike his face with a wet crunch.
The lightning wizard hardly makes a noise as he crashes into the ground, rolling onto his back and gazing up at the dark clouds gathering above. He chokes on the blood gushing from his broken nose, struggling to breathe as the pain of his wounds becomes too much. Yet, despite that, a surprisingly peaceful expression fills his face. His trembling hands clasp together, bloodied lips moving in a silent prayer.
Krvavy hatefully glares down at the frail old man, her foot raised and ready to slam down with the force of an earthquake. She hesitates. It is almost a shame to kill this wizard in such a quick way, for him to avoid an agonizing and drawn out death like what he had subjected Krvavy to... If –
-1,002.87 Health
An arc of violent electricity jumps from the Patriarch’s clasped hands, charring his own flesh as it crashes into Krvavy’s chest.
The barbarian’s vision goes white as nothing but pain encompasses her entire being. Her body seizes up and goes stiff, her muscles clenching and tensing and twitching erratically. Her lifted leg is forcefully straightened with a painful jerk, inhuman foot stomping down and releasing the mana that had been gathered in her channels.
Critical Hit! 8,476.84 damage dealt to [Patriarch Grigori]
[Patriarch Grigori] has been slain!+14,645 Experience
Level Up! You have reached Level 20. As a Drakling blessed by a divine power, you have 5 attribute points to allocate and have gained +2 to Might & Toughness. If not allocated by the time you fall asleep it will be done automatically.
+1 Divine Favour, for growing in strength.
Level Up! You have reached Level 21. As a Drakling blessed by a divine power, you have 5 attribute points to allocate and have gained +2 to Might & Toughness. If not allocated by the time you fall asleep it will be done automatically.
+1 Divine Favour, for growing in strength.
Level Up! You have reached Level 22. As a Drakling blessed by a divine power, you have 5 attribute points to allocate and have gained +2 to Might & Toughness. If not allocated by the time you fall asleep it will be done automatically.
+1 Divine Favour, for growing in strength.
Krvavy feels her convulsing body collide with the ground, darkness creeping into the light as she struggles to remain conscious.