Chatper 9: Friend's Farewell
Oro's body lay on the ground, he was barely breathing as Bunemba reached him. Kanee gripped the pendant he took from Oro and tied it around his neck. "You, son of a Tauren." Bunemba used Oro's blood stained cloak to put pressure on the gnome's wound.
Explo stepped between Bunemba and Kanee. "Bunemba take Oro to safety I will take care of Kanee." Bunemba nodded and carried Oro towards the docks past the inn. Explo pointed the tip of his sword at Kanee. "What you did is despicable. How could you betray us like this? To the horde?" Explo saw Kanee grin and it made Explo's blood boil, he tightened the grip on his sword and changed his stance.
Katuul, already in his panther form, walked next to Explo to show his support. Katuul let out a powerful roar.
"Hmm, my friends could easily handle you two, I don't need to get my hands dirtier than they are." Kanee snapped his fingers and horde members ran past him. He turned around and began to confidently walk to the forest behind them.
"Explo, I got them, go take care of Kanee!" Explo nodded and ran after Kanee leaving Katuul to handle the horde. "Let's go, show me what you can do!" Katuul jumped up with a paw raised to strike one of the orcs closes to him. He extended his claws and thrust his paw down hard enough that it tore through the leather armor the Orc wore. As Katuul landed back down he saw Explo glance back at him, he gave Explo a smile, as best he could anyways. He could tell Explo understood as his partner gave him a smile back. The horde members surrounded him blocking his view of his friend and the fur on his back stood up on end. It was a honor Explo, Katuul said in his head. The horde around him all closed in.
"Kanee!" Xplod shouted as he cut off the rouge's escape. "I will not let you escape!" he stood in the stance he had shown before as he raised the hilt of his sword above his head with the blade behind him.
Kanee smiled, "How noble, you stay to kill your leader's killer." Kanee shrugged, "You know that if you try to stop me I will have to kill you too." Explo did not respond or back down. "So be it." The pendant began to glow and Kanee grinned once more. He vanished leaving a fading image behind. Explo swung his sword down as quickly as he could barely blocking Kanee's upwards thrust. The impact of the swords sent sparks that splashed onto the both of them. "Very good. But see if you can keep up with that big sword of yours." Kanee spun to his right to bring his other sword to strike Explo's right. Explo quickly turned his sword and once more blocked Kanee's attack, but the impact of Kanee's sword seemed stronger than before and knocked Explo off balance. The assassin kicked the warrior's side he meant to strike sending Explo to the ground weapon less as his sword fell from his hands.
"It's amazing isn't it? This tiny jewel amplifies a person's abilities. Now imagine if that person had all of them, what could that person do? If you were to ask me though, I would destroy them." Kanee kicked away Explo's sword. "No one should have the power that these gems could provide." That last statement left Explo confused. "My employers have found a way to dispose of these gems. I don't need this to defeat you, I don't need to kill you anyways, you pose no threat." Kanee placed the tip of the sword in his left hand to Explo's throat. "But if you were to survive you could interfere with the plans of my employers and that would be bad for business." Kanee put away his swords and reached down to pick up Explo's long sword. "So my allies will take care of you." Behind Kanee more Orcs and a giant ogre with a large stone club.
The ogre let out a loud battle cry and swung its club down on Explo. The mail armor he wore offered no protection to that sort of impact which slammed him into the ground creating a small crater. He felt very dizzy and his body was not responding to him, he was short on breath and he had no stamina left to defend himself against another strike. His vision blurred as it faded in and out while he tried to stay conscious. He saw the ogre raise its club to strike him again. I'm going to die, he closed his eyes, he couldn't tell if he did it because he was accepting defeat or if it was because he could no longer stay awake. He heard the Ogre roar out again but it sounded very different. Explo forced himself to open his eyes and he saw the Ogre drop its stone clob and reach towards its chest where a large sword stuck out from. The ogre collapsed and Bunemba was standing on its back removing the sword. Explo saw around him the horde members drop down and Katuul rush to his side.
Katuul reverted back to his night elf state and helped Explo to his feet. "Come on, were not out for the count yet." Bunemba stood in front of them facing Kanee.
Kanee glanced where he last saw Katuul and saw all the dead horde members. "Enough of this" Kanee grew frustrated. "I'm going to have to get rid of you all."
"Like hell you will." Bunemba took a step back and changed his stance to a defensive state.
"Bunemba." Explo managed to speak. "He's too fast we can't win."
Bunemba stared at Kanee. "We have to try."
"He's right, you can't win." Kanee showed up in front of Bunemba in a flash of a second. Bunemba could feel the assassin's hot breath on his neck. "You're all going to die." he quickly pulled out two daggers and stabbed the back of both of the larger night elf's hands making him scream in pain and dropping his sword. He then lifted his knee and slammed it in Bunemba's stomach. Bunemba dropped to the floor.
"None of you can fight anymore." Kanee dropped his daggers as he had no use for them anymore "Kill them." He commanded to the rest of the horde members.
Before they could run to finish off the group a bolt of lightning slammed on the ground, but in such a way that it did not damage the ground or create a shockwave. Explo could clearly tell it had come down purely to surprise. "Kanee!" a voice yelled from the shore behind everyone. Explo and Katuul turned around and saw a Night elf clothed in black leather armor with a staff raised in the air. There was a boat behind him and two dwarves were running to his sides.
"Gotian." Kanee said under his breath. He was disappointed in himself for not noticing the small elvin ship that sailed to the shore. "How convenient, i was going to go after you when I was done here, but it looks like I dont need to anymore since you came to me."
Gotian ran towards Bunemba, "Are you alright?" Gotian reached into his pocket and pulled out a vial with a red liquid in it. "This should help you to heal your wounds." Gotian saw the back of Bunemba's hands and that they were covered in blood. He wiped away the blood to try to clean the wounds and noticed the wounds were closed and healed. Surprised he gave Bunemba the healing elixir anyways.
"Gotian you came." Bunemba said as his friend helped him to his feet. "I was worried something was happening to you."
"You're all beat up and you're worried about me?" Gotian helped Bunemba walk towards Explo and Katuul who were being helped by Golmann and Silverfist. "You know we always go on missions together, but for once let me protect you."
"Gotian, what are you talking about? I'm fine, we can take him down." Bunemba said as Gotian passed him over to Katuul.
Gotian smiled at his friend. "Bunemba, we will see each other again, I promise." He placed his right hand on his loyal friends shoulder. "Golmann you know what to do right?" Golmann nodded. "Good, make sure to get Oro too." Gotian turned and walked over to face Kanee.
"You know, I don't like being ignored." Kanee said while grinning. He saw the orb on Gotian's staff begin to glow.
"Kanee! What are you doing?"
Kanee laughed at the smaller Night elf. "What I have to, what I've been sent to do. And now that I have what I came for there is no more use for any of you." Gotian saw around the horde members around and behind Kanee. 'Kill them all!"
"Everyone run!" Gotian Raised his staff in the air as the winds began to grow violent and the sky became cloudy and dark.
"Gotian, we are not leaving you!" Bunemba said firmly fighting his allies grip as they tried to pull him back towards the ship.
"I know what I have to do." Gotian said while keeping his eyes on Kanee and the on coming horde. "Please everyone, leave, live to fight another day. I will…see you later." Gotian opened his free hand and aimed his palm at the ground summoning large stone walls that separated his friends from the rest of them.
"Gotian no!" Bunemba broke out of everyones gripped and ran towards the wall slamming his newly healed fists against it. He continued slamming his fists knowing very well he could not help any longer.
"If you wish to get to them you have to go through me first!" From the sky massive bolts of lightning struck in the clusters of the horde members sending them flying in different directions while others were getting caught up in massive winds that threw them in different directions as well.
With the horde and Kanee distracted Gotian slammed the bottom of his staff on the ground sending a shock wave centering from him as he began to transform. He grew larger and sprouted feathers, grew antlers, fur, and a beak, the color of his fur and feathers turned to the color of his hair.
Kanee glanced through the confusion that surrounded him and saw Gotian. He took a step towards him and he was tangled in root up to his waist. Gotian ran up to him and slammed the top of his staff across Kanee's face then placed his palm on the slender night elf's chest. Gotian's feathered hand emitted a green energy that blasted Kanee out of the roots, stumbling along the ground. Gotian turned to face an oncoming group and aimed his palm towards them. The ground before him tore open and a massive wave of water rushed out slamming into the oncoming horde. As he turned again a massive stone club swung across slamming into his side which threw him into the stone walls he created. Gotian fell to the ground, he could hear his arm crack as his bones broke. He saw an Ogre carrying the stone club run at him as it swung its club down again to strike him.
Gotian rolled out of the way but the Ogre used its free hand to grab Gotian and lift him. It then slammed Gotian against the wall making him scream out in pain as it pressed him harder and harder against the wall. Gotian was not about to give up on his friends safety, he had to buy them enough time. Forcing himself, he lifted his staff and a pillar of purple energy slammed down onto the ogre burning every part of its body. In pain it dropped Gotian and not long after dropped to the ground itself.
Gotian began panting and his body reverted to his night elf state, he was no longer able to hold his transformation. Another ogre wielding a large tree stump angrily ran at Gotian, he knew he couldnt last against this many for much longer and that ogre would be it for him. I just hope they have had enough time, he sat leaned back against the wall and watched the ogre swing down. His staff lay next to him and he smiled. Bunemba please be strong, I'm sorry I can't keep my promise. The club struck him slamming him against the wall completely cracking it. All he could think of was how he had never got to meet his birth family and how Bunemba was the closest he ever had for a brother and was grateful for all the years he spent with him. Gotian's eyes closed as he lost consciousness.
"Why did you think you could win?" Kanee had a hidden sadness in his voice. He walked towards Gotian to remove the orb from his staff. "You fought just to allow them to escape, didn't you?" Kanee said realizing Gotian's true motive. So that's friendship, Kanee thought smiling. As he got closer the top of the wall behind Gotian Collapsed over him covering Gotian and the staff in a grave of stones and rubble. When the dust settled all that was seen was Gotian's hand which hung out the left side of the pile. Kanee chuckled as he saw the Elvin boat still at shore. Realizing that with his forces now shortened he needed to retreat as they could still pose a problem. He told the remaining members to retreat towards the woods and they all quickly vanished into the thick forest.
"Gotian!" Bunemba saw his friends hand under the pile of rubble and ran towards it, everyone else followed after once Oro was patched up. "Help me remove the stones!" Bunemba began to lift the stones from the massive pile that covered Gotian, no one moved to help him. "What's wrong with all of you people, help me!" His voice was frantic.
Katuul had transformed into his panther state and walked towards the pile. "Bunemba, I'm sorry don't hear any heartbeat coming from Gotian. there is nothing we can do for him."
Bunemba lifted a piece of the wall and tossed it with all his might the stone crashed into the ocean. "We have to get him out. He promised!" Tears rolled down his cheeks and the burly night elf dropped to his knees. "You promised me..."
"Bunemba, if we don't get oro to medical help, we'll be losing another as well, you think Gotian would want that after he bought us time to leave?" Golmann tried to consult Bunemba.
"Golmann why don't you all take Oro, me and Katuul will stay here with him." Explo pulled the dwarf away from Bunemba. "I know how he must be feeling, Gotian was the only family he had."
Golmann glanced over at Bunemba and a tear came down his own cheek getting lost in his brown beard. "Aye."
The dwarves left and took oro and arrived a few hours later as the sun began to set. They all boarded leaving Gotian's body behind with full intent on returning to retrieve his body for a proper burial. Bunemba kept to himself as he stood in the stern of the ship as they all left to Darnassus...