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Armin immediately started barking out directions. "Toren, you an Strom git a couple o' them wagons turnt over. When they show, start throwin anythin ye kin find at em. Kendrac, check the lasses. Heal em if they be needin it. Rom...errr...yerself jus stand there."
Toren and Strom nodded, turning and running towards the wagon depot. With muscles bulging, the two each pulled on a wagon, towards the entrance to the cavern where the attack would come. Rom remained stationary, while watching his friends. Kendrac's head bobbed as he waddled over to the two females, checking them for wounds.
"Pretty ladies hurts?"
Wilhemina nodded, flexing her arm. "Aye, that stoneless bastard put a hole in me arm wit his pointy stick." to accentuate her disgust, she spat on the unconscious forms of the sleeping guards, kicking one.
Kendrac thumped his chest proudly. "Mesa Klerk. Fixes ye right up!"
Two levels below, Malchion was busy tearing into a hunk of meat. His orcish fangs slicing through the flesh easily. As he grabbed a glass of wine, an out of breath Feltan crashed through a door, falling to his feet. Malchion glared at him as his guards leveled their spears at the intruder.
"You have 30 seconds to live. Why have you interrupted my meal?" The half orc growled.
"P...pardon, my lord," The man panted, gasping for breath. "P..prisoners are...escaping! We are... under attack by dwarves!"
Malchion frowned, then drained the wine in the goblet. He rose to his feet, glaring down at the prostrating man. "How many, you worthless maggot? Twenty? Fifty? More?"
"I...I...don't know...I think more..." Feltan stammered.
Malchoin kicked the man in the side, then knelt down, grabbing his head, turning it to face his own. "Then gather the troops and go take care of them. Come back when they are dead, or do not come back at all! You know how She hates dwarves...GO!!" The Half orc gave the man a shove towards the door.
Feltan half stumbled and half ran out of his master's chambers, white as a sheet. He staggered around a corner, running into another man.
"Curses, Rayn. Gather the men. We are being attacked. Main chamber. Send half of the men through the south tunnel. and the rest will come with me, through the north tunnel. We will crush them between us."
Back in the cavern Armin hefted his axe, looking down the tunnel the man had fled through. He rubbed his beard, frowning. "They be a comin. yerselves ready?" He looked to his group, who nodded, save for Kendrac who was still fussing over Wil's wounds. "Come on, Kendrac! Heal them already. I be needin yer tent wearin arse ta be castin spells on em when they git here!"
Rom, Now making a poor attempt at hiding behind a small rock, snickered. "No tent. Mu mu!!"
The blond dwarf stuck his tongue out at Rom, then looked back to Wil, waving his hands and chanting one of his sing song spells.
You was in da cage and gots a poke
and you
gots some big boo boos.
But you be O K, cuz yer wif da KLERK!
an' Rum sez I wear moo moos.
Wil blinked as she watched her wounds began to knit. "Amazin..." she started, then stared at Kendrac, as did the rest of the dwarves.
Kendrac tilted his head. "What?"
"Yer...changin..." Wil said.
Kendrac started to reply, but was cut off as a swarm of soldiers started pouring through the tunnel mouth into the cavern. With an eep, he scurried off towards the wall, diving behind some barrels. Armin and the two females turned to face the incoming soldiers, weapons at the ready. The three stood waiting, as the group closed in on them, weapons high.
"NOW!" Armin shouted.
At the call, Toren and Strom stood up from behind their overturned wagons and began to hurl hammers and stones at the human soldiers. From their other side, a few large rocks came at them as well, Rom giggling as he threw. The sudden rain of pain had the desired effect, as the already sloppy charge broke down immediately, as some broke off for the dwarves behind the wagons, others heading for Rom, and the rest heading for Armin, Wil and Haldis.
Armin grinned through his beard. "Steady lasses...it be time fer yer revenge. ONE!!!"
The three darted forward, towards the charging humans, hammers and axes raised on high, each screaming a dwarven battle cry at the top of their lungs. The effect was immediately apparent. Some of the charging soldiers faltered, and were pushed down by their companions from behind, blindly crushing them underfoot.
"TWO!"
The three dwarves ran full speed into the knot of soldiers, closing suddenly, shoulder to shoulders, and bringing their weapons in close, forming a 3 dwarf wedge with Armin forming the point. Through the human soldiers they ran, knocking them out of the way, and off their feet, disrupting their charge completely, scattering those that remained standing.
"THREE!"
Armin, and the three dwarves moved away a few feet from the others, each facing outward. They moved, or circled, counterclockwise, weapons ready, each grinning as they lashed out to crush a head or arm of any soldier foolish enough to get close enough. Armin sliced across with his axe, spilling out the entrails of one soldier who dropped his sword and began holding on to his stomach, in a vain attempt to keep his insides where they belong. It was pointless, as the dwarves had circled to allow Wil's hammer to crush the man's skull. He dropped. Another tried to step in to stab at Wil with a spear, but only grazed her side as the point glanced off her armor. Her motion pulled the attacker into the oncoming axe of Haldis who sliced the spear off at the man's elbow. He shrieked and ran, leaving a trail of blood from his severed limb.
Rom readied his iron skillet as the soldiers approached him. As they neared, he reached into one of the many pouches, and grinned suddenly, beneath his bucket helm.
"Woo! right pouch" he giggled.
From the pouch, he pulled three live chickens, each clucking madly, wings flapping. He reared back and threw the birds into the path of the soldiers, who were understandably taken aback. using that brief distraction, Rom bellowed his own battle cry and charged into battle, clucking madly along with the chickens. His frying pan shattered a knee of one man, dropping him to a heap on the ground. Rom used him to gain height by standing up on him and pushing off, bringing his pan down on the head of another, permanently reducing the soldier's height as his neck literally compressed from the force of the mad dwarf's pan. Another soldier's sword curved in and clanked off the little dwarf's shoulder. Though unharmed, the force was enough to send Rom staggering a bit. He shook his head and charged, goring the man with the branches and propelling him backwards. Shaking his head vigorously , the dwarf managed to get the man's body off his head, though he lost a branch in the process. Another clang and the sound of cracking wood turned Rom around. Another soldier, with a hammer had managed to connect with the dwarf's head. Rom shook his head to clear it as the man raised his hammer to swing again, but instead shrieked in pain, his eyes widening. He dropped his hammer and grabbed his buttocks, turning around. There stood Kendrac, still only a bit over three feet tall, but complete with a long muzzle and horns, a long tail hanging down beneath his robes, and his visible skin covered in brown fur. He snorted and charged again, ramming his horns into the groin of the dumbfounded man, just as Rom smashed him with his frying pan.
Rom looked to Kendrac, puzzled. "Klerk?
Kendrac giggled. "Mooooooooo! hehehehehehehehe!"
Rom giggled as well as the two turned to face the others now approaching with a bit more caution.
