Chapter 1: Two warriors
In a small fishing village known to men as cortalass, the average day was being played out.
Children chased each other through the streets, old men sat by the water with their lines
cast and beautiful aromas rose from every house as the wives of the fishermen cooked dinner
for when their husbands returned.
The first person to notice the orcs was a young girl, Charlene, she cried out in fear as
thirty or so, green skinned, pig-faced monsters rushed through the nearby forest and started
coming towards the village. Crossbowmen stood on the walls around the village and fired at
the beasts, only four fell to the ground, the rest kept charging on. The gates were knocked
down by the masses of orcs, the villagers ran for their lives. Orcs began to set fire to the
houses and began to slaughter the people who weren't fast enough. Charlene hid in a dark alley,
praying to whatever gods might be listening that the marauding creatures would not find her.
Obviously there were no gods listening, one of the green-skins spotted her. It was around seven
feet tall, with dark red eyes aand a face that would give a dragon a fright. Charlene closed her
eyes as the monster charged at her. She expected the bite of its axe any second... the bite never
came. Instead there was an inhuman scream followed by a heavy thud. Charlene opened her eyes to
see a tall man dressed in black and red armour. In his right hand he carried a silver sword. On
his left wrist was a leather bracelet with a small silver bird skull attached to it. His hair was
very short, it was strange but Charlene could not tell if it was black or a deep purple in colour
, it seemed to shift from one to the other. His face might once have been handsome but now it had
a huge, deep scar running from the top of his forehead, around his nose, across his lips and ending
on his chin. He walked out of the alley and into the centre of the village, a crimson cape billowing
behind him. Charlene was left with the slashed up corpse of her would be killer... In the centre of
the village was a fountain, the water had turned red, as the Orcs killed the innocent villagers and
tossed the bodies at it. The Orc cheif was a monster, even when compared to other orcs. He stood
somewhere around eight feet tall, had a fair share of battle scars all over his body, his fangs were
at lest four inches long and he carried a colossal double headed axe that was stained with human
blood. When he saw the armour clad warrior step forward he shouted a few words in rough Orcish.
The man stood still but didn't say anything. The chief began to snarl in crude comon language.
" I told da ladz ta hold back, coz you'z looks like a right gud fighta! Howz about ya fightz me,
I'z lookin' fur a challenge. Deez uvver 'Umies iz ded eazy to waste!" The chief began to roar
with laughter. The warrior gripped the hilt of his sword he smiled and said in a voice that
was surprisingly fair when compared to his features.
" Bring it on green-skin, there's not a warrior, human or not, on any plane of existence that
can defeat Gau Debolton." The Chief leapt up and swang with his axe. the warrior known as
Gau blocked the attack with his silver blade, and jumped in the air, turning upside down
as he did. He pulled his left hand back and formed a fist, the bird-skull on his bracelet began
to glow. The hand shot forward and Gau opened his hand, releasing bolts of lightning at his
opponent. The Orc chief screamed in agony as he was blasted with electricity, before he could
recover, Gau squered him with his sword, black blood oozed out of the wound. Gau lifted up
with the blade causing the body of his opponent to slide of the sword and sail overhead into
a burning building...
The other Orcs were obviously a bit unsetteled about the loss of their leader and began to
run back to the gates shouting coarse orcish, Gau could could only make out certain parts of
what they were yelling.
"Git! razzastugga Wasted da boss! Roggan warkan!!"
Gau began to walk in the oposite direction to the Orcs, towards the other gate and the mountains
beyond it.
It had been lucky that Gau had stopped of at the village because if he hadn't then the Orcs would
have taken it over, it was lucky that Gau had been in the alley when Charlene was about to get
attacked by the Orc. And it had been lucky that the Orcs had chosen to run away after their chiefs
death, because not even Gau would have been able to take on so many at once. That was where all
the good luck ended though. The Fishermen came back from their boats at sea when they had seen the
fires start and you can't really blame them for jumping to conclusions. When they arrived they
saw no sign of orcs, just the fire, the dead bodies, and a stranger with a blood covered sword.
"You killed our families!" One man shouted, grabbing a knife from his belt.
"You destroyed the village!" Another bellowed throwing a burning peice of wood at Gau. No matter
what the survivors of the attack said, the fishermen were to angry to notice and began to surround
Gau.
"MONSTER!!!" A rather overweight man shouted, throwing a large peeble that caught Gau on the cheek.
The tall warrior didn't take any notice of the cut that it had left. He didn't attempt to defend himself.
the villagers had formed a circle around him and were closing in.
Suddenly, the sun was blocked out as a huge shadow cast over the village. Gau and his attackers looked up
to see a huge airship descending. As it came closer, small turrets appeared out of holes in the sides of
the ship. The turrets began to fire off a hail of bullets down at the villagers, however none of them hit
as the fishermen retreated. The airship continued to descend and stopped a few inches from Gau's head, a
hole appeared in the bottom of the ship and a posh, elderly voice called out over the sound of propellers
and engines.
"Gau my dear boy! Long time no see Wot! Get inside!" Gau smiled to himself, jumped up into the hole and hoisted
himself up.....
Pistons pumped, engines vibrated, and strange whirring things made strange whirring noises as Gau stepped across
a metal walkway over the ships engine room. A loud bang rocked the ship and Gau would have certainly have fallen
into the gears if it hadn't been for the barriers on either side of the walkway. He muttered a few curses to
himself and carried on walking. He reached a heavy wooden door and cautiously opened it. He was now in a room
with a massive globe revolving slowly in mid-air, every now and again the globe would make small bleeping noises
and countries on it would light up. Gau wasn't very gifted when it came to technology so he just shrugged and
carried on walking, the next door automatically opened and he found himself in the cockpit of the ship.
"Thanks for the rescue professor" Gau said as a small, elderly man walked into view. His hair (or what was left
of it) was white and stuck out in all directions, he had a huge, bushy, white moustache and his grey eyes peered
out from behind thick-rimmed spectacles. He wore a lab-coat that was splattered with oil and thick black gloves.
On the lab-coat was a gold badge, with the words "Professor M. Omineon. Inventor extrodinaire". The old man smiled,
adding hundreds of wrinkles to his face, and laughed.
"Yes, yes. The auto-repeating-electro-magnetic-missile-weapon is a new addition to the ship and if I do say so
myself, is rather effective Wot!" If Gau didn't have so much respect for the professor then he would have been
battling for breath because of the hilarious accent. "I don't know what was going on in that village but it was
the perfect chance to repay the favour!" Professor Omineon carried on. Gau's thoughts travelled back to a few
years ago, in the middle of winter when the professor had been attacked by a band of kobolds and Gau had fought
them off. The professor had then given Gau the bracelet of shooting stars which gave Gau the ability to the powers
of lightning. He had also promised to repay Gau by helping out when he was in trouble. Gau remembered what the ship
(christened the "cloud titan") was like back then. It was alot smaller and had only a tiny engine room and a cramped
cockpit and no weapons, but it was alot faster than walking and allowed you to travel across the oceans. Now it had
to be about a half mile long.
"Gau dear chap, erm, there was something I was meaning to ask you..." The professor said fidgeting, showing that he
was nervous.
"Fire away!" Gau said, trying to put on a reassuring smile.
"W-well" He stuttered "I have to ask another favour." He looked scared, as if Gau would suddenly explode in anger.
But instead, the tall warrior continued to smile and nodded his head. Professor Omineon gained confidence and carried on.
"I need you and a small group to infiltrate Castle Snakir in the mountains."
"The undead fortress?" Gau interrupted.
"Yes, and I need you to rescue a colleague of mine, Dimitri Von Sukenheim. He was captured when trying to dig for
artifacts in the surrounding mountains."
"Dimitri von sukenheim?!" Gau shouted in disbelief "The Dimitri Von Sukenheim?! The world renowned conjurer and
researcher of other planes?!"
"Yes thats him! I need you and your group of adventurers to escort him from the dungeons in the castle."
"What adventurers did you have in mind...?" Gau asked suspiciously.
"W-well" the professor began to fidget again "Your a mercenary, you've fought alongside many capable fighters
and magic-users, I was thinking you could give me some names?"
"I could give you plenty," Replied Gau, "But what qualities are you looking for?"
"Your going to need a leader and competent fighter, so thats your part. Your going to need strength and brutality..."
Gau didn't have to think very long on this.
"Aagh" He sighed "That would definetely have to be Crag Headsplitter! The most brutal half-orc you'll ever see!
He's as strong as an Ogre and has the same intelligence and looks of one. He could take a cannonball to the head
and still hurl abuse and ask for more." Gau smiled. He remembered the battle that he had fought in, alongside Crag.
The big green barbarian had sent at least forty hobgoblins to their early graves before noticing that there were
three arrow shafts in his shoulder.
"I say! Sounds like a tough chap Wot Wot! We're going to need a magic-user. That'll help." Gau spent longer thinking
of this,
"Well the most powerful magic user that I can think of is Diesa, she's a half elf who lives in the forest to the north
of the village where you rescued me. Believe me, when it comes to magic, I've never met a more powerful person."
"Aha hmmmmm. Well, we are going against the undead so a priest is essential." Professor Omineon stated.
"I do remember a while ago, I got injured in a skirmish and I was looked after by a girl in the nearby temple, she
healed the wound on my face but it left this scar..."
"Spiffing! So thats everything, where do we start?"
"Well Crag lives in an inn only a few miles south of here (the landlord lets him stay free because he's such a good
customer.) so lets go there!"
"Splendid!" the professor shouted, "Tallyho!"
With that, the ship gave an enormous shudder and began to turn southwards.
"Who's flying this thing?" Gau asked.
"I am," A deep voice called out from a platform below them. Gau climbed down the ladder and looked at the squat figure
sitting in the pilots chair.
"Well, well, long time no see Forsythe!" He said.
"Long time indeed!" The dwarf said grumpily. He had bright red hair and a ring through his nose, he was chewing a
blade of grass. He used to be farmer in a small town close to the professors lab. He had a good mind for mechanics
so the professor hired him to fix things and be a pilot. The dwarf never seemed to be happy unless he was hacking
something up with his huge scythe. Forsythe continued his grumbling, "That damned scientist 'as bin gettin' into
mur trubble than yuh can shake a stick at!" There again was another hilarious accent, the country farmer voice really
didn't suit someone wearing thick overalls and aviation goggles.
"Good to see you too!" Gau laughed, "Right then, off to the drunk skunk inn!"
Crag Headsplitter was sitting down at the bar, downing a few pints and having a conversation with a burly man next to
him. Anyone listening would think that the Half-Orc was completely drunk, in fact, he was stone cold sober, it was
his normal conversation.
"Any wayz, Derz dis magicky git, dis Real smart 'uman and a dwarf, or was it a gnome? No, no it woz a dwarf. in da
middle of a desert. Dey comez across dis magic lamp, or was it a teapot? No, no a lamp, definuttly a lamp, cos theres
a genie inside. Anywayz da genie offers all free of dem one wish. So da magick bloke (Oo's real smart!) Sez "I wish
to be out of 'ere and in a pile of money!" Da genie does dat. Da smart 'Uman sez "I wish to be out of 'ere and in a
pile of bootiful women!" Da genie duz dat and the two blokez iz 'avin a whale of a time. And den da dwarf (Hoo ent
very bright) Sez "I'm real lonely now, I wish my two frendz woz back 'ere!"" The half-orc and the man almost collapsed
laughing. The inn's other patrons were not amused. A tall elf sitting at one of the tables shouted, "Do you mind being
quiet?! We're trying to play some cards over here!" Crag continued to laugh.
"Aah shut it ya whinin' cur!" He barked. The elf and his friends stood up and drew their swords.
"You dare to insult me?!" The elf shouted furiously.
"Yep! Dats about da jist of it! Na siddown and put away yur liddle butter knives Ya skinny runts!" Crag replied, a smile
forming on his face.
"Who are you calling a runt!" the elf retaliated, "I mean look at you! A half-orc!" Crags smile began to turn to a look
of fury. His human friend had known Crag long enough to know that this was about the right time to make his exit. He prayed
for the elf's soul and jumped over the bar crouching low. The elf continued his abuse. "I mean, what sort of a mother did
you have? What women in their right mind would have a sexual relationship with an Orc?!" Crag began to shiver, he was ready
to go over the edge, but one of the elfs friends, a short human really sparked it off, he laughed and said "Or was your dad
the only thing around that was willing to pay?"
There was now no-one but crag and the elfs group in the inn, everyone else had wisely fled. Crag's eyes began to open and
close rapidly, they changed in colour and the pupils, whites and irises were completely swallowed up by a cloud of scarlet.
His muscles bulged and he began to roar in primal, untamed fury. In his roars you could hear his voice, changed into an
almost demonic cry
"N-NOBODY.....TALKS THAT WAY, URGGHH, ABOUT MY MA!!!!!!!!!" Veins stood out on his neck and arms, the muscles on his chest
bulged, splitting his leather coat. The elf's group realised their mistake too late as Crags huge fist connected with their
leaders face, sending his head sailing off. Blood fountained from the neck stump and the body crumpled to the floor, the
head shattering through a closed window. The others looked at each other nervously but believed there were still enough of
them to take the raging beast out. A small halfling struck out with his dagger, only to see it shatter against the barbarians
shin. Crag lifted the midget off the ground and tore him in half with his bare hands, he then threw the two pieces to the
floor and drew his attention to a man who was rushing at him with a broadsword. Crag effortlessly picked the man up by the
throat and tightened his grip, snapping the mans neck. There were now four opponents left, an elven wizard, two men in full
plate armour with great swords and shields, and the snivelling wretch that had made the remark that had set Crag into this
rage.
"BROCK!" Crag roared, his friend behind the counter slowly lifted his head. "GET ME MY AXE!" The two men in armour charged
the Half-Orc, the wizard started muttering an incantation and the man who had sparked Crags anger began to hide in the corner,
covering his eyes, too scared to do anything else. Crag grabbed the two armoured soldiers and banged their heads together. The
Half-Orc's friend, Brock threw him an immense axe. It had barbs on one of the heads and a "C" was engraved on it in green
jewels. Crag caught the axe and quick decapitated both men in one stroke. He jumped up in the air and brought the weapon
crashing down into the wizards chest, he was now splattered with blood and began sniffing to find his last victim. The man
in the corner was rooted to the spot with fear. He didn't make a noise. Not even when Crag lifted him up. Not even when Crag
punched a hole through his stomach. Not even when his own insides began to pour out of him amidst torrents of blood. Not even
when Crag brought the colossal axe down and sliced him neatly in half............................
Brock stood up from behind the counter but it still wasn't over, the windows of the inn shattered under a hail of bullets.
Crag slowly began to calm down, his muscles shrank to average size, his eyes changed back to normal and he collapsed to the
floor, breathless. Brock watched confused as a tall, strong looking man kicked open the door of the inn and walked in.
"Crag!" Gau shouted. He tried to lift the unconcious Half-Orc up but Crag was too heavy. "You there!" Gau called to Brock,
"Help me lift him up!" After a few seconds, they managed to get Crag up and began to carry him outside. Brock stared in
amazement at the massive airship, they got Crag to a metal walkway that led into the ship. He was put on a stretcher and taken
further in.
"Where are you takin' 'im?" Brock asked
"Relax," Gau replied "Professor Omineon's just gonna patch him up and he'll be back to normal."
"Let me in,"Brock commanded, "I'm Crags best friend, where he goes, I go!" Gau sighed in exasperation,
"Fine..." He said quietly
Crag woke up before the professor could even start. He got up off the stretcher and began to look around.
"Where am I?" He asked, obviously dazed. The professor began to splutter in astonishment.
"Wer-ee-er well..." He began. Crag began to walk around but winced in pain and clutched his shoulder.
"Datz a roight nasty banger Uze got!" He laughed. He took a small dagger out of his pocket and dug it into his shoulder. The
professor watched in both fascination and horror as Crag swivelled the dagger around and flicked out the bullets embedded
in his flesh.
"I say!" The professor gasped "D-doesn't that hurt?!" Crag looked at the professor as though he were an idiot.
"Of course it duz!" He shouted. Even so, his face remained expressionless as he used the dagger as a lever to fire the last
one out. He pulled out the blade, which was now stcky with blood and covered in stringly lumps of muscle. The professor
almost fainted. "So Why'd ya fire off dem bangers at me anywayz?" Crag asked holding out the blood soaked bullets.
"Bangers???....what in the world are b... OH! S-sorry!" The professor hurriedly apologised trying to get to grips with Crags
odd terms for technical devices,"My pilot Forsythe has a bit of a tendency to stage dramatic entrances." Crag continued to
look around and walked to the window. "A-are you alright? You look like you could use a bandage!" The professor pointed out.
The Barbarian just went down on one knee and began to unfasten a studded leather ring around his leg. He stood up and tied it
to his shoulder tight. So tight in fact that blood spurted out and hit the walls. "So Crag, I was meaning to ask you
something...." The now very pale professor started, but Crag wheeled around and stared at him.
"Ow'd you know my name?" He asked "You'z an alien entcha and you'z abdicated me!"
"No No No!" The professor said waving his arms, "I'm not an alien and I haven't abducted you. One of the men who bought you
in to the ship is a friend of mine and yours, he told me your name and said that you were a very strong fighter. His name is Gau
Debolton? That ring any bells?" Crag scratched his chin and looked at the ceiling thoughtfully
"Yeah," He said, " I fought next to 'im in da massacre of da raghikla...I mean da rashikackak... da... ermmm dat long river
wiv da funny bridges!"
"Ohhhhhh!" The professor said, understanding, "The raghikalnkolon"
"Yeah! Dats da one!" Crag shouted triumphantly "Da raghikolokak, anywayz, me and Gau fought against dem 'obgoblins!" At that
moment, Gau and Brock came into the room. Crag was a little different to how Gau remembered him. In the battle of the
raghikalnkolon, he had been a rookie with only a tiny scratch on his chin indicating that he had ever seen a fight. Now he
was a mass of walking stitches. There was a huge gash across his chest that had been crudely sewn back together. There was
a hole in his side which looked like it had been an infected cut, and he was blind in one eye from a scar that ran right
through his eyeball. He wore a tattered jacket of studded leather, and a belt with skins of various animals on it, bears,
wolves, the occasional humanoid head or other gory piece of anatomy. On his forearms and shins were tight bandages
that were slowly starting to rot away. Definitely someone who you wouldn't want to meet in a dark alley.
"How's it goin' Crag?" Gau asked, smiling.
"Not bad Gau!" Crag said, also smiling. He turned to see Brock, "Brock, sorry You 'ad ta see wot I did to dat elf an' 'is
mates but they woz askin' for it!" Gau didn't need to ask to find out what the barbarian meant, Crag had always disliked
elves, Gau thought it had something to do with his past but whenever he asked, Crag would say "Don't worry, I'll get 'em."
There were lots of greetings and shaking of hands before the professor popped the question "Crag I was wondering if you,
and perhaps your friend Brock, would like to join Gau and some others on a little expedition?" Crag looked suspicous
"Any money involved?" He asked.
"W-well, Castle Snakir is a very old castle, I wouldn't be surprised if there wasn't several kings ransoms worth of gold,
diamonds, rubies, artifacts in there."
"Who else is goin'?" Crag said, obviously more interested.
"As I said, Gau, hopefully you and sir Brock, Diesa Raveneye a..." The professor was cut off by Crags outburst of rage.
"WHAT!!! DAT SHE-DEMON!? BUT SHE'S HALF-ELF FOR GRUUMSH'S SAKE!!! IF SHE'S GOIN' THEN THERE ENT NOWAY NOT IN DIS LIFE OR ANY
UVVER DAT I IS, GOT THAT!!!???"
Gau decided to play his trump card.
"Phay's coming with us..." He said slyly. Gau knew for a fact that Crag harboured certain feelings for the female cleric and
that he would give his life for her if needs be.
Crag began to splutter.
"Wha- erm well I errr.." He scratched his head. Then looked out of the window. "Fine! I'll go!"
"I knew that would work" Gau laughed. Crag looked angry.
"No! Dats not why I'z goin', It'z coz...ermm... AHA!! Look down der!" He pointed out the window at the town below. People
were surveying the damage and trying to find Crags Ex-opponents in the rubble. "If I go back. Day Izn't gonna Ezaccly roll
out da red carpet for me now iz day?" Gau shook his head.
"Whatever," he sighed, "You coming Brock?" He called.
"Like I said," Brock replied, "where Crag goes... I goes!"
Well how was that? Chapters 1 & 2 were origionally one chapter but it was starting to get a bit too long so I cut it. But
this means this means Chapter 2 is already half finished! ^_^ Like I said before, please, please, PLEASE r & r !!!!!!
.
In a small fishing village known to men as cortalass, the average day was being played out.
Children chased each other through the streets, old men sat by the water with their lines
cast and beautiful aromas rose from every house as the wives of the fishermen cooked dinner
for when their husbands returned.
The first person to notice the orcs was a young girl, Charlene, she cried out in fear as
thirty or so, green skinned, pig-faced monsters rushed through the nearby forest and started
coming towards the village. Crossbowmen stood on the walls around the village and fired at
the beasts, only four fell to the ground, the rest kept charging on. The gates were knocked
down by the masses of orcs, the villagers ran for their lives. Orcs began to set fire to the
houses and began to slaughter the people who weren't fast enough. Charlene hid in a dark alley,
praying to whatever gods might be listening that the marauding creatures would not find her.
Obviously there were no gods listening, one of the green-skins spotted her. It was around seven
feet tall, with dark red eyes aand a face that would give a dragon a fright. Charlene closed her
eyes as the monster charged at her. She expected the bite of its axe any second... the bite never
came. Instead there was an inhuman scream followed by a heavy thud. Charlene opened her eyes to
see a tall man dressed in black and red armour. In his right hand he carried a silver sword. On
his left wrist was a leather bracelet with a small silver bird skull attached to it. His hair was
very short, it was strange but Charlene could not tell if it was black or a deep purple in colour
, it seemed to shift from one to the other. His face might once have been handsome but now it had
a huge, deep scar running from the top of his forehead, around his nose, across his lips and ending
on his chin. He walked out of the alley and into the centre of the village, a crimson cape billowing
behind him. Charlene was left with the slashed up corpse of her would be killer... In the centre of
the village was a fountain, the water had turned red, as the Orcs killed the innocent villagers and
tossed the bodies at it. The Orc cheif was a monster, even when compared to other orcs. He stood
somewhere around eight feet tall, had a fair share of battle scars all over his body, his fangs were
at lest four inches long and he carried a colossal double headed axe that was stained with human
blood. When he saw the armour clad warrior step forward he shouted a few words in rough Orcish.
The man stood still but didn't say anything. The chief began to snarl in crude comon language.
" I told da ladz ta hold back, coz you'z looks like a right gud fighta! Howz about ya fightz me,
I'z lookin' fur a challenge. Deez uvver 'Umies iz ded eazy to waste!" The chief began to roar
with laughter. The warrior gripped the hilt of his sword he smiled and said in a voice that
was surprisingly fair when compared to his features.
" Bring it on green-skin, there's not a warrior, human or not, on any plane of existence that
can defeat Gau Debolton." The Chief leapt up and swang with his axe. the warrior known as
Gau blocked the attack with his silver blade, and jumped in the air, turning upside down
as he did. He pulled his left hand back and formed a fist, the bird-skull on his bracelet began
to glow. The hand shot forward and Gau opened his hand, releasing bolts of lightning at his
opponent. The Orc chief screamed in agony as he was blasted with electricity, before he could
recover, Gau squered him with his sword, black blood oozed out of the wound. Gau lifted up
with the blade causing the body of his opponent to slide of the sword and sail overhead into
a burning building...
The other Orcs were obviously a bit unsetteled about the loss of their leader and began to
run back to the gates shouting coarse orcish, Gau could could only make out certain parts of
what they were yelling.
"Git! razzastugga Wasted da boss! Roggan warkan!!"
Gau began to walk in the oposite direction to the Orcs, towards the other gate and the mountains
beyond it.
It had been lucky that Gau had stopped of at the village because if he hadn't then the Orcs would
have taken it over, it was lucky that Gau had been in the alley when Charlene was about to get
attacked by the Orc. And it had been lucky that the Orcs had chosen to run away after their chiefs
death, because not even Gau would have been able to take on so many at once. That was where all
the good luck ended though. The Fishermen came back from their boats at sea when they had seen the
fires start and you can't really blame them for jumping to conclusions. When they arrived they
saw no sign of orcs, just the fire, the dead bodies, and a stranger with a blood covered sword.
"You killed our families!" One man shouted, grabbing a knife from his belt.
"You destroyed the village!" Another bellowed throwing a burning peice of wood at Gau. No matter
what the survivors of the attack said, the fishermen were to angry to notice and began to surround
Gau.
"MONSTER!!!" A rather overweight man shouted, throwing a large peeble that caught Gau on the cheek.
The tall warrior didn't take any notice of the cut that it had left. He didn't attempt to defend himself.
the villagers had formed a circle around him and were closing in.
Suddenly, the sun was blocked out as a huge shadow cast over the village. Gau and his attackers looked up
to see a huge airship descending. As it came closer, small turrets appeared out of holes in the sides of
the ship. The turrets began to fire off a hail of bullets down at the villagers, however none of them hit
as the fishermen retreated. The airship continued to descend and stopped a few inches from Gau's head, a
hole appeared in the bottom of the ship and a posh, elderly voice called out over the sound of propellers
and engines.
"Gau my dear boy! Long time no see Wot! Get inside!" Gau smiled to himself, jumped up into the hole and hoisted
himself up.....
Pistons pumped, engines vibrated, and strange whirring things made strange whirring noises as Gau stepped across
a metal walkway over the ships engine room. A loud bang rocked the ship and Gau would have certainly have fallen
into the gears if it hadn't been for the barriers on either side of the walkway. He muttered a few curses to
himself and carried on walking. He reached a heavy wooden door and cautiously opened it. He was now in a room
with a massive globe revolving slowly in mid-air, every now and again the globe would make small bleeping noises
and countries on it would light up. Gau wasn't very gifted when it came to technology so he just shrugged and
carried on walking, the next door automatically opened and he found himself in the cockpit of the ship.
"Thanks for the rescue professor" Gau said as a small, elderly man walked into view. His hair (or what was left
of it) was white and stuck out in all directions, he had a huge, bushy, white moustache and his grey eyes peered
out from behind thick-rimmed spectacles. He wore a lab-coat that was splattered with oil and thick black gloves.
On the lab-coat was a gold badge, with the words "Professor M. Omineon. Inventor extrodinaire". The old man smiled,
adding hundreds of wrinkles to his face, and laughed.
"Yes, yes. The auto-repeating-electro-magnetic-missile-weapon is a new addition to the ship and if I do say so
myself, is rather effective Wot!" If Gau didn't have so much respect for the professor then he would have been
battling for breath because of the hilarious accent. "I don't know what was going on in that village but it was
the perfect chance to repay the favour!" Professor Omineon carried on. Gau's thoughts travelled back to a few
years ago, in the middle of winter when the professor had been attacked by a band of kobolds and Gau had fought
them off. The professor had then given Gau the bracelet of shooting stars which gave Gau the ability to the powers
of lightning. He had also promised to repay Gau by helping out when he was in trouble. Gau remembered what the ship
(christened the "cloud titan") was like back then. It was alot smaller and had only a tiny engine room and a cramped
cockpit and no weapons, but it was alot faster than walking and allowed you to travel across the oceans. Now it had
to be about a half mile long.
"Gau dear chap, erm, there was something I was meaning to ask you..." The professor said fidgeting, showing that he
was nervous.
"Fire away!" Gau said, trying to put on a reassuring smile.
"W-well" He stuttered "I have to ask another favour." He looked scared, as if Gau would suddenly explode in anger.
But instead, the tall warrior continued to smile and nodded his head. Professor Omineon gained confidence and carried on.
"I need you and a small group to infiltrate Castle Snakir in the mountains."
"The undead fortress?" Gau interrupted.
"Yes, and I need you to rescue a colleague of mine, Dimitri Von Sukenheim. He was captured when trying to dig for
artifacts in the surrounding mountains."
"Dimitri von sukenheim?!" Gau shouted in disbelief "The Dimitri Von Sukenheim?! The world renowned conjurer and
researcher of other planes?!"
"Yes thats him! I need you and your group of adventurers to escort him from the dungeons in the castle."
"What adventurers did you have in mind...?" Gau asked suspiciously.
"W-well" the professor began to fidget again "Your a mercenary, you've fought alongside many capable fighters
and magic-users, I was thinking you could give me some names?"
"I could give you plenty," Replied Gau, "But what qualities are you looking for?"
"Your going to need a leader and competent fighter, so thats your part. Your going to need strength and brutality..."
Gau didn't have to think very long on this.
"Aagh" He sighed "That would definetely have to be Crag Headsplitter! The most brutal half-orc you'll ever see!
He's as strong as an Ogre and has the same intelligence and looks of one. He could take a cannonball to the head
and still hurl abuse and ask for more." Gau smiled. He remembered the battle that he had fought in, alongside Crag.
The big green barbarian had sent at least forty hobgoblins to their early graves before noticing that there were
three arrow shafts in his shoulder.
"I say! Sounds like a tough chap Wot Wot! We're going to need a magic-user. That'll help." Gau spent longer thinking
of this,
"Well the most powerful magic user that I can think of is Diesa, she's a half elf who lives in the forest to the north
of the village where you rescued me. Believe me, when it comes to magic, I've never met a more powerful person."
"Aha hmmmmm. Well, we are going against the undead so a priest is essential." Professor Omineon stated.
"I do remember a while ago, I got injured in a skirmish and I was looked after by a girl in the nearby temple, she
healed the wound on my face but it left this scar..."
"Spiffing! So thats everything, where do we start?"
"Well Crag lives in an inn only a few miles south of here (the landlord lets him stay free because he's such a good
customer.) so lets go there!"
"Splendid!" the professor shouted, "Tallyho!"
With that, the ship gave an enormous shudder and began to turn southwards.
"Who's flying this thing?" Gau asked.
"I am," A deep voice called out from a platform below them. Gau climbed down the ladder and looked at the squat figure
sitting in the pilots chair.
"Well, well, long time no see Forsythe!" He said.
"Long time indeed!" The dwarf said grumpily. He had bright red hair and a ring through his nose, he was chewing a
blade of grass. He used to be farmer in a small town close to the professors lab. He had a good mind for mechanics
so the professor hired him to fix things and be a pilot. The dwarf never seemed to be happy unless he was hacking
something up with his huge scythe. Forsythe continued his grumbling, "That damned scientist 'as bin gettin' into
mur trubble than yuh can shake a stick at!" There again was another hilarious accent, the country farmer voice really
didn't suit someone wearing thick overalls and aviation goggles.
"Good to see you too!" Gau laughed, "Right then, off to the drunk skunk inn!"
Crag Headsplitter was sitting down at the bar, downing a few pints and having a conversation with a burly man next to
him. Anyone listening would think that the Half-Orc was completely drunk, in fact, he was stone cold sober, it was
his normal conversation.
"Any wayz, Derz dis magicky git, dis Real smart 'uman and a dwarf, or was it a gnome? No, no it woz a dwarf. in da
middle of a desert. Dey comez across dis magic lamp, or was it a teapot? No, no a lamp, definuttly a lamp, cos theres
a genie inside. Anywayz da genie offers all free of dem one wish. So da magick bloke (Oo's real smart!) Sez "I wish
to be out of 'ere and in a pile of money!" Da genie does dat. Da smart 'Uman sez "I wish to be out of 'ere and in a
pile of bootiful women!" Da genie duz dat and the two blokez iz 'avin a whale of a time. And den da dwarf (Hoo ent
very bright) Sez "I'm real lonely now, I wish my two frendz woz back 'ere!"" The half-orc and the man almost collapsed
laughing. The inn's other patrons were not amused. A tall elf sitting at one of the tables shouted, "Do you mind being
quiet?! We're trying to play some cards over here!" Crag continued to laugh.
"Aah shut it ya whinin' cur!" He barked. The elf and his friends stood up and drew their swords.
"You dare to insult me?!" The elf shouted furiously.
"Yep! Dats about da jist of it! Na siddown and put away yur liddle butter knives Ya skinny runts!" Crag replied, a smile
forming on his face.
"Who are you calling a runt!" the elf retaliated, "I mean look at you! A half-orc!" Crags smile began to turn to a look
of fury. His human friend had known Crag long enough to know that this was about the right time to make his exit. He prayed
for the elf's soul and jumped over the bar crouching low. The elf continued his abuse. "I mean, what sort of a mother did
you have? What women in their right mind would have a sexual relationship with an Orc?!" Crag began to shiver, he was ready
to go over the edge, but one of the elfs friends, a short human really sparked it off, he laughed and said "Or was your dad
the only thing around that was willing to pay?"
There was now no-one but crag and the elfs group in the inn, everyone else had wisely fled. Crag's eyes began to open and
close rapidly, they changed in colour and the pupils, whites and irises were completely swallowed up by a cloud of scarlet.
His muscles bulged and he began to roar in primal, untamed fury. In his roars you could hear his voice, changed into an
almost demonic cry
"N-NOBODY.....TALKS THAT WAY, URGGHH, ABOUT MY MA!!!!!!!!!" Veins stood out on his neck and arms, the muscles on his chest
bulged, splitting his leather coat. The elf's group realised their mistake too late as Crags huge fist connected with their
leaders face, sending his head sailing off. Blood fountained from the neck stump and the body crumpled to the floor, the
head shattering through a closed window. The others looked at each other nervously but believed there were still enough of
them to take the raging beast out. A small halfling struck out with his dagger, only to see it shatter against the barbarians
shin. Crag lifted the midget off the ground and tore him in half with his bare hands, he then threw the two pieces to the
floor and drew his attention to a man who was rushing at him with a broadsword. Crag effortlessly picked the man up by the
throat and tightened his grip, snapping the mans neck. There were now four opponents left, an elven wizard, two men in full
plate armour with great swords and shields, and the snivelling wretch that had made the remark that had set Crag into this
rage.
"BROCK!" Crag roared, his friend behind the counter slowly lifted his head. "GET ME MY AXE!" The two men in armour charged
the Half-Orc, the wizard started muttering an incantation and the man who had sparked Crags anger began to hide in the corner,
covering his eyes, too scared to do anything else. Crag grabbed the two armoured soldiers and banged their heads together. The
Half-Orc's friend, Brock threw him an immense axe. It had barbs on one of the heads and a "C" was engraved on it in green
jewels. Crag caught the axe and quick decapitated both men in one stroke. He jumped up in the air and brought the weapon
crashing down into the wizards chest, he was now splattered with blood and began sniffing to find his last victim. The man
in the corner was rooted to the spot with fear. He didn't make a noise. Not even when Crag lifted him up. Not even when Crag
punched a hole through his stomach. Not even when his own insides began to pour out of him amidst torrents of blood. Not even
when Crag brought the colossal axe down and sliced him neatly in half............................
Brock stood up from behind the counter but it still wasn't over, the windows of the inn shattered under a hail of bullets.
Crag slowly began to calm down, his muscles shrank to average size, his eyes changed back to normal and he collapsed to the
floor, breathless. Brock watched confused as a tall, strong looking man kicked open the door of the inn and walked in.
"Crag!" Gau shouted. He tried to lift the unconcious Half-Orc up but Crag was too heavy. "You there!" Gau called to Brock,
"Help me lift him up!" After a few seconds, they managed to get Crag up and began to carry him outside. Brock stared in
amazement at the massive airship, they got Crag to a metal walkway that led into the ship. He was put on a stretcher and taken
further in.
"Where are you takin' 'im?" Brock asked
"Relax," Gau replied "Professor Omineon's just gonna patch him up and he'll be back to normal."
"Let me in,"Brock commanded, "I'm Crags best friend, where he goes, I go!" Gau sighed in exasperation,
"Fine..." He said quietly
Crag woke up before the professor could even start. He got up off the stretcher and began to look around.
"Where am I?" He asked, obviously dazed. The professor began to splutter in astonishment.
"Wer-ee-er well..." He began. Crag began to walk around but winced in pain and clutched his shoulder.
"Datz a roight nasty banger Uze got!" He laughed. He took a small dagger out of his pocket and dug it into his shoulder. The
professor watched in both fascination and horror as Crag swivelled the dagger around and flicked out the bullets embedded
in his flesh.
"I say!" The professor gasped "D-doesn't that hurt?!" Crag looked at the professor as though he were an idiot.
"Of course it duz!" He shouted. Even so, his face remained expressionless as he used the dagger as a lever to fire the last
one out. He pulled out the blade, which was now stcky with blood and covered in stringly lumps of muscle. The professor
almost fainted. "So Why'd ya fire off dem bangers at me anywayz?" Crag asked holding out the blood soaked bullets.
"Bangers???....what in the world are b... OH! S-sorry!" The professor hurriedly apologised trying to get to grips with Crags
odd terms for technical devices,"My pilot Forsythe has a bit of a tendency to stage dramatic entrances." Crag continued to
look around and walked to the window. "A-are you alright? You look like you could use a bandage!" The professor pointed out.
The Barbarian just went down on one knee and began to unfasten a studded leather ring around his leg. He stood up and tied it
to his shoulder tight. So tight in fact that blood spurted out and hit the walls. "So Crag, I was meaning to ask you
something...." The now very pale professor started, but Crag wheeled around and stared at him.
"Ow'd you know my name?" He asked "You'z an alien entcha and you'z abdicated me!"
"No No No!" The professor said waving his arms, "I'm not an alien and I haven't abducted you. One of the men who bought you
in to the ship is a friend of mine and yours, he told me your name and said that you were a very strong fighter. His name is Gau
Debolton? That ring any bells?" Crag scratched his chin and looked at the ceiling thoughtfully
"Yeah," He said, " I fought next to 'im in da massacre of da raghikla...I mean da rashikackak... da... ermmm dat long river
wiv da funny bridges!"
"Ohhhhhh!" The professor said, understanding, "The raghikalnkolon"
"Yeah! Dats da one!" Crag shouted triumphantly "Da raghikolokak, anywayz, me and Gau fought against dem 'obgoblins!" At that
moment, Gau and Brock came into the room. Crag was a little different to how Gau remembered him. In the battle of the
raghikalnkolon, he had been a rookie with only a tiny scratch on his chin indicating that he had ever seen a fight. Now he
was a mass of walking stitches. There was a huge gash across his chest that had been crudely sewn back together. There was
a hole in his side which looked like it had been an infected cut, and he was blind in one eye from a scar that ran right
through his eyeball. He wore a tattered jacket of studded leather, and a belt with skins of various animals on it, bears,
wolves, the occasional humanoid head or other gory piece of anatomy. On his forearms and shins were tight bandages
that were slowly starting to rot away. Definitely someone who you wouldn't want to meet in a dark alley.
"How's it goin' Crag?" Gau asked, smiling.
"Not bad Gau!" Crag said, also smiling. He turned to see Brock, "Brock, sorry You 'ad ta see wot I did to dat elf an' 'is
mates but they woz askin' for it!" Gau didn't need to ask to find out what the barbarian meant, Crag had always disliked
elves, Gau thought it had something to do with his past but whenever he asked, Crag would say "Don't worry, I'll get 'em."
There were lots of greetings and shaking of hands before the professor popped the question "Crag I was wondering if you,
and perhaps your friend Brock, would like to join Gau and some others on a little expedition?" Crag looked suspicous
"Any money involved?" He asked.
"W-well, Castle Snakir is a very old castle, I wouldn't be surprised if there wasn't several kings ransoms worth of gold,
diamonds, rubies, artifacts in there."
"Who else is goin'?" Crag said, obviously more interested.
"As I said, Gau, hopefully you and sir Brock, Diesa Raveneye a..." The professor was cut off by Crags outburst of rage.
"WHAT!!! DAT SHE-DEMON!? BUT SHE'S HALF-ELF FOR GRUUMSH'S SAKE!!! IF SHE'S GOIN' THEN THERE ENT NOWAY NOT IN DIS LIFE OR ANY
UVVER DAT I IS, GOT THAT!!!???"
Gau decided to play his trump card.
"Phay's coming with us..." He said slyly. Gau knew for a fact that Crag harboured certain feelings for the female cleric and
that he would give his life for her if needs be.
Crag began to splutter.
"Wha- erm well I errr.." He scratched his head. Then looked out of the window. "Fine! I'll go!"
"I knew that would work" Gau laughed. Crag looked angry.
"No! Dats not why I'z goin', It'z coz...ermm... AHA!! Look down der!" He pointed out the window at the town below. People
were surveying the damage and trying to find Crags Ex-opponents in the rubble. "If I go back. Day Izn't gonna Ezaccly roll
out da red carpet for me now iz day?" Gau shook his head.
"Whatever," he sighed, "You coming Brock?" He called.
"Like I said," Brock replied, "where Crag goes... I goes!"
Well how was that? Chapters 1 & 2 were origionally one chapter but it was starting to get a bit too long so I cut it. But
this means this means Chapter 2 is already half finished! ^_^ Like I said before, please, please, PLEASE r & r !!!!!!
.