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The Doomed Bastards: Reckoning (story complete)
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<blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 3879409" data-attributes="member: 143"><p>Chapter 290</p><p></p><p>THE CRESTING WAVE</p><p></p><p></p><p>Dar fell back toward the door of the mill, which gaped open invitingly ahead of him. Ghouls were all over him, tearing at his flesh. Nelan raised his holy symbol, and as the silver torch blazed with light, those closest to him dissolved into gray ash. It gave him only a moment’s respite, but one which he put to good effect. Allera was there by the door, casting another spell; he didn’t wait to see what effect it had, and simply wrapped his arm around her as he passed. Nelan darted through the doorway, and Dar was only a step behind, all but throwing the healer into the mill ahead of him. Dark energies flared around him as he reached the entry, but Allera’s <em>death ward</em> protected him. The ghouls on his heels drank up the potency of the <em>negative energy burst</em>, </p><p></p><p>The door slammed shut, and the two farmers who’d been assigned to that position hastily thrust the heavy dresser into place to reinforce it. Their haste was necessary; they’d barely secured the door when something slammed into it from outside, and they could hear claws tearing at the wood. </p><p></p><p>“Letellia!” Dar yelled. </p><p></p><p>“I’ve put up a <em>wall of ice</em>, but that won’t hold them for long!”</p><p></p><p>“What about the leader?”</p><p></p><p>“I don’t... wait, by the gods, it just <em>dispelled</em> the wall... it’s coming!” </p><p></p><p>The men at the windows cried out and fell back, leaving the shutters open behind them. Dar cursed and headed for the nearest, but before he could reach it several long gray arms appeared, clawing at the inside of the opening. Fortunately, it seemed as though the gap was too narrow for the ghouls to make it inside. </p><p></p><p>A <em>fireball</em> went off outside, close enough so that flames rushed in through the window, singeing him slightly. At the other window, Nelan unleashed the power of <em>order’s wrath</em>, and ghouls screamed as the energies of pure Law ripped through their bodies. </p><p></p><p>Dar glanced at him, and saw two gray forms struggling in the tight gap where the waterwheel shaft entered the building. “Nelan, the wheel!” The cleric turned, and seeing the threat, hastened off in that direction. </p><p></p><p>Dar heard tearing noises above, and looked up to see cracks appearing in the wooden slats of the roof. Some of the ghouls had clambered up the rough stone walls of the mill, and were trying to get in from above. Some of the cracks were opening above the loft, and several of the farmers screamed as the ghouls worked on widening the cracks. </p><p></p><p>Dar turned to Allera, to see if she could deal with that threat, but he never got the chance. He only got a slight warning, as the tearing at the door abruptly ceased, and then there was a massive crash, and the entire mill trembled as if hit by an earthquake. Stone cracked, and shafts of light stabbed through the wall as blocks were knocked free. Letellia was flung back from the window, and she nearly fell out of the loft. One of the roof beams groaned and sagged, and for a moment Dar feared that the entire structure would collapse. But the old building held together.</p><p></p><p><em>Not for long</em>, Dar thought grimly. </p><p></p><p>As if in answer, a mighty blow impacted the wall, followed quickly by another. The second caved in a five by five section of wall, and the cause of the damage broke through: an ugly spiked flail, its head as thick as Dar’s torso. </p><p></p><p>“We need to stop that thing!” Dar yelled. </p><p></p><p>His companions did their best to comply. Allera hurled a <em>mass cure critical wounds</em> through the gap, focusing the spell upon the deathbringer. The monster resisted the full potency of Allera’s magic, but still took considerable damage from the spell, and the nearest ghouls were simply destroyed outright. Letellia, perched tenuously on the edge of the loft, fired a <em>lightning bolt</em> through the gap a moment later. The electrical discharge struck the hulking undead creature on the arm, but it paid little heed to the blast. </p><p></p><p>Instead, the deathbringer drew back one long stride, before it lifted both arms and stormed headlong into the side of the mill. </p><p></p><p>Battered stone finally gave way. The doorway exploded into the mill, along with most of a ten-foot section of wall. Dar was struck by the flying dresser, and nearly went down; one of the farmers was hit in the back of the head with a piece of rock the size of a fist, and he crumpled. Several ghouls were trampled by the deathbringer, but dozens of others swarmed around it as the undead general trod forward into the building. </p><p></p><p>Dar roared and leapt forward to meet it. A flail crashed across his breastplate, but the enchanted dragonscale absorbed most of the force of the hit. He stepped within its reach and whipped <em>Valor</em> around in a blinding arc. The blade sang with power, and for an instant the terrible undead thing recoiled from the potency of that sound. The fighter’s sword bit through the armored plates covering the deathbringer’s torso, and bit deep into the ruined flesh beneath. But the deathbringer had a fearsome stamina, and a disembowelment meant little to a creature that did not possess life. It swept its flails down, the twin heads of spiked steel intersecting at Dar’s body. The fighter tried to dodge away, but the tight confines and poor footing made escape impossible. Both weapons connected, and Dar cried out in pain as they battered his body through his armor. He remained standing, but as he lifted <em>Valor</em> to strike again, the deathbringer unleashed a final surprise. It twisted one of its weapons, and jabbed the haft, which ended in a vicious spike, down into the neck of its foe. The spike caught on the edge of one of his shoulder plates, and bit hard into his flesh. Bright red blood spurted up into the air from the terrible wound, and the fighter crumpled to one knee. </p><p></p><p>Ghouls, pouring in around the deathbringer, descended upon him, driven to a frenzy by the sight and smell of fresh blood.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Lazybones, post: 3879409, member: 143"] Chapter 290 THE CRESTING WAVE Dar fell back toward the door of the mill, which gaped open invitingly ahead of him. Ghouls were all over him, tearing at his flesh. Nelan raised his holy symbol, and as the silver torch blazed with light, those closest to him dissolved into gray ash. It gave him only a moment’s respite, but one which he put to good effect. Allera was there by the door, casting another spell; he didn’t wait to see what effect it had, and simply wrapped his arm around her as he passed. Nelan darted through the doorway, and Dar was only a step behind, all but throwing the healer into the mill ahead of him. Dark energies flared around him as he reached the entry, but Allera’s [i]death ward[/i] protected him. The ghouls on his heels drank up the potency of the [i]negative energy burst[/i], The door slammed shut, and the two farmers who’d been assigned to that position hastily thrust the heavy dresser into place to reinforce it. Their haste was necessary; they’d barely secured the door when something slammed into it from outside, and they could hear claws tearing at the wood. “Letellia!” Dar yelled. “I’ve put up a [i]wall of ice[/i], but that won’t hold them for long!” “What about the leader?” “I don’t... wait, by the gods, it just [i]dispelled[/i] the wall... it’s coming!” The men at the windows cried out and fell back, leaving the shutters open behind them. Dar cursed and headed for the nearest, but before he could reach it several long gray arms appeared, clawing at the inside of the opening. Fortunately, it seemed as though the gap was too narrow for the ghouls to make it inside. A [i]fireball[/i] went off outside, close enough so that flames rushed in through the window, singeing him slightly. At the other window, Nelan unleashed the power of [i]order’s wrath[/i], and ghouls screamed as the energies of pure Law ripped through their bodies. Dar glanced at him, and saw two gray forms struggling in the tight gap where the waterwheel shaft entered the building. “Nelan, the wheel!” The cleric turned, and seeing the threat, hastened off in that direction. Dar heard tearing noises above, and looked up to see cracks appearing in the wooden slats of the roof. Some of the ghouls had clambered up the rough stone walls of the mill, and were trying to get in from above. Some of the cracks were opening above the loft, and several of the farmers screamed as the ghouls worked on widening the cracks. Dar turned to Allera, to see if she could deal with that threat, but he never got the chance. He only got a slight warning, as the tearing at the door abruptly ceased, and then there was a massive crash, and the entire mill trembled as if hit by an earthquake. Stone cracked, and shafts of light stabbed through the wall as blocks were knocked free. Letellia was flung back from the window, and she nearly fell out of the loft. One of the roof beams groaned and sagged, and for a moment Dar feared that the entire structure would collapse. But the old building held together. [i]Not for long[/i], Dar thought grimly. As if in answer, a mighty blow impacted the wall, followed quickly by another. The second caved in a five by five section of wall, and the cause of the damage broke through: an ugly spiked flail, its head as thick as Dar’s torso. “We need to stop that thing!” Dar yelled. His companions did their best to comply. Allera hurled a [i]mass cure critical wounds[/i] through the gap, focusing the spell upon the deathbringer. The monster resisted the full potency of Allera’s magic, but still took considerable damage from the spell, and the nearest ghouls were simply destroyed outright. Letellia, perched tenuously on the edge of the loft, fired a [i]lightning bolt[/i] through the gap a moment later. The electrical discharge struck the hulking undead creature on the arm, but it paid little heed to the blast. Instead, the deathbringer drew back one long stride, before it lifted both arms and stormed headlong into the side of the mill. Battered stone finally gave way. The doorway exploded into the mill, along with most of a ten-foot section of wall. Dar was struck by the flying dresser, and nearly went down; one of the farmers was hit in the back of the head with a piece of rock the size of a fist, and he crumpled. Several ghouls were trampled by the deathbringer, but dozens of others swarmed around it as the undead general trod forward into the building. Dar roared and leapt forward to meet it. A flail crashed across his breastplate, but the enchanted dragonscale absorbed most of the force of the hit. He stepped within its reach and whipped [i]Valor[/i] around in a blinding arc. The blade sang with power, and for an instant the terrible undead thing recoiled from the potency of that sound. The fighter’s sword bit through the armored plates covering the deathbringer’s torso, and bit deep into the ruined flesh beneath. But the deathbringer had a fearsome stamina, and a disembowelment meant little to a creature that did not possess life. It swept its flails down, the twin heads of spiked steel intersecting at Dar’s body. The fighter tried to dodge away, but the tight confines and poor footing made escape impossible. Both weapons connected, and Dar cried out in pain as they battered his body through his armor. He remained standing, but as he lifted [i]Valor[/i] to strike again, the deathbringer unleashed a final surprise. It twisted one of its weapons, and jabbed the haft, which ended in a vicious spike, down into the neck of its foe. The spike caught on the edge of one of his shoulder plates, and bit hard into his flesh. Bright red blood spurted up into the air from the terrible wound, and the fighter crumpled to one knee. Ghouls, pouring in around the deathbringer, descended upon him, driven to a frenzy by the sight and smell of fresh blood. [/QUOTE]
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