"Listen carefully, I want my knights focus on pushing back the horde. I would ask that you adventurers aid in whatever capacity available; if you can fight on the front lines then please join my knights and if not, then please save as many people as you can. The Old District has been secured and now we must do the same for the others."
"While the knights are focused on dealing with the monsters, I want you, my fellow acolytes, to continue search and rescue, direct non-combatants away from the battle. Warrior Priests move with the knights and provide support, when you are no longer able to aid with miracles, then focus on rescue efforts."
The knights, adventurers, and the priests nodded their heads and were quick to disperse down the various streets to follow their given instructions. Sword Maiden and the King remained in the center of the staging area, each silent as they looked toward the still burning city and could hear the various roars and screams echo throughout the Capital. The King sighed as he checked his sword, pulling it out of the scabbard slightly before placing it back in, then looked toward Sword Maiden, she was slightly trembling.
"Are you alright?"
"I will be…yes."
"It's different but the same from back then isn't it?" The King had a small smile as he looked toward the knights and adventurers rushing around them. "You and your party were clearing out dungeons and happened to stumble upon the Demon Lords plans. You knew his army would attack the Capital and where he was hiding so we lead a two pronged attack."
"Yes, you and the armies would face his forces head on while my party and I would deal with the source of the evil." Sword Maiden tightened her grip around her sword and scales but too smiled. "I wish the others were here with me, even though I aided in the defeat of the Demon Lord, I was more accustomed to serving in the back ranks."
"My parents were lost and there I was…a young, unproven king; prior to that I was a simple adventurer and then I was thrust into a role of leadership." The King sighed as he looked at his city, not the burning sight it was now, but the grand structure it had become. "Just a little over ten years later and here we are again…when did we get so old?"
"Such a rude thing to say to a lady, no wonder you still haven't found a queen." Sword Maiden smiled as she enjoyed this bit of teasing, it helped to take her mind off the coming battle. "We're not old, just out of practice."
"Right, then let's show these "rookies" what two veterans of the last great war can do. I know a while back I said we couldn't go back to our old lives even though we wanted to, so now we've been given that chance." The King placed a firm hand on her shoulder and give it a gentle squeeze. "Even if the others aren't here with us directly, they're fighting spirit will see us through."
"Yes, your Majesty, let's finish this final quest."
The King moved toward his right, the mount his trusted steed his Captain of the Guards had been holding onto. Sword Maiden chanted her summoning spell to call forth her familiar, there was a bright flash of light and her giant, white alligator was there hissing and snapping its jaws. She calmly walked toward it, placing her hand atop its head, giving it the instructions needed to keep it focused on the monsters that roamed the streets, she too followed the King and mounted the creature. Both turned to see the small detachment of that would follow with them: seven knights including the Captain of the Guards and five warrior priests.
"Our goal is to push through to the center of the district, we must find the Highway Man and stop his direction of the monsters here! Fight bravely and die well!"
xxxx
"Jeez…they weren't kidding about it being freezing."
Hero and her party moved through the district, to their surprise they found much of the area covered in ice. The trio quickly dispatched the first monsters that approached them and managed to locate some scattered knights who were still trying to refocus their efforts to help others now that word of the King had spread around. The knights were now overjoyed with the sight of the Hero and her party present in the area, they warned the party of two large creatures they had seen moving around the area, these were the one responsible for the ice they were seeing. Further into the district they discovered people frozen in place, some had expression of shock or anger as they looked like they were ready to fight, but many had a fear plastered on their faces.
"These poor people." Sword Saint knelt down and placed her hand on the ice shell that surrounded a young child with some who must have been their parent.
"Sage…is there any chance that any of these people are still alive?" Hero frowned as she looked over the dozen frozen figures just in this part of the street.
"Doubtful. These poor unfortunate souls have been stuck like this for several hours if not days." Sage sighed as she bowed her head in honor of the fallen.
"Too many people have been lost. We need to end this tonight!"
Hero and her party continued to move through the streets, to their surprise they found the ice growing thicker to further in but the number of monsters attacking was diminishing. The ice itself had actually killed several of the monsters such as the rats, imps and harpies; the werewolves, abominations and goblin brutes were still active though their movements were sluggish. The only creature that seemed to have endured was the Hellhound, being able to breath fire kept them warm enough to function in this winter wasteland.
"Got them…blasted cold." Hero rubbed her hands up and down her arms in an attempt to keep herself warm.
"We were warned about it being cold, yet we didn't bring anything with us to help." Sword Saint kept a calm face but unconsciously shivered as the cold affected her as well.
"If we destroy the ones controlling this district, we'll stop this ice from spreading." Sage was calm as she looked around the area for any other signs of danger.
Hero and Sword Saint turned toward Sage and a small frowned crossed their face as they observed their comrade in her cloak and hood.
"What?" Sage looked toward her friends with a raised eyebrow.
"I don't suppose you have any more of those cloaks handy?" Hero had an incredulous look on her face as she continued to rub her arms.
"Oh…no sorry."
Hero and Sword Saint growled in frustration before the trio continued on with their quest, a small smile present on Sage's face. A sudden scream soon snapped them out of their temporary tranquil moment, the trio rushed ahead and soon discovered two dead adventurers lying upon the ground. They carefully examined the two dead bodies, they had their throats torn out and had been disemboweled.
"What the hell did this?" Sword Saint looked toward the dead bodies then spotted footprints within the snow and ice as well as a blood trail. "Footprints lead that way."
"Over there!"
Sage pointed ahead and both looked in the direction just in time to see something move behind the buildings. The trio quickly followed blood trail, whatever had killed the two adventurers was still keeping itself ahead of them, but they were determined to find and destroy the monster.
"Damn thing could be leading us into a trap."
"Trap or not, we need to stop these things before any more people have to die." Hero had a determined look on her face as she looked toward Sword Saint before looking ahead. "The next area opens up; we should be able to see…oh shit."
Hero and her party came to an abrupt halt, the open area may have acted as a place where vendors could see their wares to the people, but not it was littered with frozen bodies and high above perched on the rooftops on either side of the street were gargoyles, nearly three dozen of them. The gargoyles sat hunched over, keeping perfectly still it appeared they were watching the street below yet their eyes were closed.
"They're just sitting there. What should we do?" Sword Saint carefully eyed the monsters who remained motionless.
"There's the one who killed the two adventurers." Sage pointed to one of the monsters perched between the others, blood still present on its claws. "We can either fight them or try to sneak through. You could use Sun Burst to clear the area."
"No, the blast was enough to seriously damage the dwarf fortress, no telling how much damage can be done here or how many innocents will be lost in the attack. Let's see if we can sneak through, save our strength and magic for whatever is loose in the center of the District."
The women walked forward through the open courtyard, carefully walking over the ice while still keeping their eyes on the gargoyles above. They were roughly halfway through the area when Sword Saint suddenly stepped to heavily on a patch of ice and it cracked beneath her foot. The crack echoed between the buildings and all the gargoyles opened their eyes and looked down toward the three women, shrieking and growling as they jumped down to attack.
"Damn it, we're doing this the hard way then." Hero swung her sword at the closest gargoyle that lunged toward her.
Xxxx
The King rode through the monster, chopping away on either side of him with his sword in hand while Sword Maiden's familiar savagely snapped its jaws upon the creatures before it, shaking it head left and right easily tearing their bodies apart. With the area clear for the moment, the party took the moment to catch their breath and check their own casualties.
"Your Majesty, we've been fortunate so far, only minor injuries on our part, we'll get them wrapped up, no need to waste any miracles or potions on any of us." The Captain of the Guards smirked as he finished wrapping a cloth bandage around his wrist.
The warrior priests and priestesses went about treating any injured while Sword Maiden was tending to her familiar. She would pour a healing potion on the more serious of wounds for her alligator, to which it would let out a loud hiss. She herself could feel the creature's pain whenever it was injured, even if her body did not physically show this.
"Thank you for your continued service my friend, I am sorry that you have had to endure so much." Sword Maiden had a warm smile as she gently placed her hand atop its massive head. "Just a bit more and then you'll be able to rest."
The white alligator stared at her with its massive yellow eyes, it seemed to understand as it leaned its head towards her. The Sword Maiden was indeed happy with this, though the King was still a bit intimidated by the sheer size of the creature. Along the rooftops a massive figure ran towards the commotion, with the darkened sky and night on the way, his form was obscured from those below. He leapt across the rooftops, ever time he landed it was crack the ceramic tile covering the top and many fell to the ground. He soon came to a halt standing near several chimneys as it looked down at the figures below as a sinister smile crossed his face.
"I thought I recognized your scent." The Highway continued to sneer as he opened his waistcoat, within were more than a dozen swords, though to him they were as big as daggers. "Time to introduce myself."
"How is everyone doing?" Sword Maiden moved toward her acolytes to check in.
"My Lady, we are all doing well and ready to…"
An object stuck the young priestess before she could finish, the object in question was a large sword that pierced through the young girl and pinned her to the nearby stone wall. There was a moment of shock from everyone before another sword was hurled forward this time striking the captain of the guards who managed a weak scream before he slumped to the ground. Everyone down below was in a panic as they looked up to determine where the attack was coming from when another sword flew down, this time strike Sword Maiden's familiar. Sword Maiden could hear the roar of pain from her alligator, and even if she couldn't see the attacks knew she needed to act, she quickly raised up her sword and scales and slammed it upon the ground.
"Protection!"
The barrier of light went up at just the right moment when another two swords struck the barrier before they clattered to the ground. Sword Maiden moved behind the barrier to calm her injured familiar while the others continued to try and find the source of the attack.
"I was wondering how many more you'd let die."
The King, Sword Maiden and the others looked upward toward the rooftops and thanks to a sudden flare up of flames, spotted the massive figure sneering down at them.
"The Highway Man." The King could not help but grit his teeth and tighten his grip on his sword as he looked up at the horrid monster.
"My two favorite people, I was so hoping I'd get the chance to meet you both again." The Highway Man chuckled as he slid his long tongue over his blades. "We have unfinished business, oh yes we do. Well, you better get a move on before I kill some more people you know."
The Highway Man turned and took off running, the King would not sit idly by and watch this murderous madman get away.
"Take care of the wounded and continue the push against these monsters, I'm going after him." The King gave the instruction towards the Sword Maiden before charging after the Highway Man.
"You can't go alone!" Sword Maiden removed the sword from her injured alligator before returning it back to whence it came. "Rest and recuperate. Thank you for all you've done."
Sword Maiden quickly rushed after the King, even with her eyes covered she could easily follow his shadow. The King constantly shifted his gaze towards the rooftops then towards the street before him as he continued to run down the streets not aware that the Sword Maiden was right behind him. He didn't know how long he had been running for when he was forced to come to a halt, the sight before him was too much to take in. The Sword Maiden finally caught up with him, though tired she could easily pick up on the foul odor that permeated the air, she looked upward and slightly raised her blindfold to allow her eyes to take in the blurry sight.
"What, what am I seeing in the trees?"
"Carnage…the sadistic imagination of a madman, Sword Maiden."
It was meant to be a lovely courtyard with tall trees who leaves would "rain" down upon the people. A place where musicians came to play their instruments and sings songs of love to the couples who would sit and listen or dance around the cobblestone courtyard. Now, it resembled more of a slaughter house than a place where romance would happen. Hanging from the branches were the bloody bodies, or in some cases the upper torsos, and running through the trees was intestines. There in the center, where musicians would play, was dozens of swords jammed into the ground, almost as if it was acting as a type of shrine. The Sword Maiden sighed as she lowered her blindfold back over her eyes, tears running down her face, it was times like this that she was thankful she could no longer see clearly.
"You made it." The Highway Man leapt down from the rooftops towards the opposite side of the courtyard and chuckled as he moved toward the center of the courtyard. "Do you like what I've done with the place?"
"You monster! I should have had you put to death the moment we found you guilty of your crimes!" The King was furious as he glared at the Highway Man.
"All the king's horses and all the king's men…won't be able to put ANY of them back together again." The Highway Man laughed then turned his attention toward Sword Maiden. "You know my dear, I was able to easily tell you were in the area."
"I'm sure your vile partner told you I was accompanying the King in this matter." The Sword Maiden steeled herself as she faced the inhuman monster before her.
"Truthfully he said nothing. No, I was able to pick up on your scent." The Highway Man took in a deep breath and smiled as he seemed to savor the aroma. "The scented oils you use when you bathe linger on you as well as…white birch, which I'm guessing you use to massage yourself with. You carried the same scent during my trial, hard to forget such a delicious taste."
Sword Maiden frowned though internally shuddered that this man could tell so much and seemed aroused by her scent.
"Tell me, who was the last acolyte of yours that I killed? Not the little red head just now, but before I was caught. Was it the brunette with the honey-colored eyes or was it the blonde with the green eyes? I honestly can't remember." The Highway Man continued his mockery as he picked up three of the swords from the ground.
"You damn well know it was both of them you evil creature." The Sword Maiden wanted to shout but knew she had to keep a level head.
"You're right of course, I never forget a face. Just like the King over there, I remember him when he was but a wee lad, do you remember me though?" The Highway Man snicked as he began to juggle the three swords in hand.
"The circus. There was an expert knife thrower there who would juggle his blades before throwing them at the target." The King too frowned as he carefully watched the figure.
"Correct! It was a fun gig, but…hitting wooden targets and purposely missing people is no fun. No, my blades needed to taste the flesh and blood of live prey."
"Is that why you killed all the members of that circus?"
"I had to start somewhere…I'm only human after all."
"You were never human, you've always been a monster! The Necromancer has revealed your true identity!" Sword Maiden could picture in her mind all the lost acolytes who had been butchered and defiled by him.
"Your execution comes today." The King raised his sword in readiness of the attack.
"You think so? Well try and stop me!" The Highway Man laughed uncontrollably as he hurled all three swords towards them.
xxxx
"That's the last of them." Hero let a sigh as she gave her sword a quick shake to remove the blood. "At least the worked a good sweat so I don't feel as cold as before."
"We best focus on finding whoever is controlling these creatures." Sage ever calm walked toward Hero and Sword Saint.
"You mean the Necromancer or the one in this district?" Sword Saint looked over the bodies of the gargoyles at their feet then glanced upward towards the rooftops checking for any other threats that were coming their way. "At least I don't see any more…INCOMING!"
Hero and Sage looked upward to see a large object flying toward them, Sword Saint took hold of Sage and pulled her to the left while Hero lunged toward her right. The object struck the spot where they had been standing and shattered upon impact, the girls looked back to see the object was in fact a large boulder made of ice.
"Where the hell did that come from?" Hero looked at the ice fragments then back towards the rooftops for the attacker.
"Not sure, but judging by the size, I'd gather we're looking for something big." Sword Saint carefully scanned the rooftops for signs of the one who threw the ice.
"You're only delaying the inevitable!"
The trio heard the voice echo around them, they got back to their feet looking around the area for the voice went all they heard and felt was the wind blowing around them, bringing with it a cold chill.
"Coward! If you got that much energy to throwing ice at us, then get over here and face us!" Hero was confident as she moved into the open to face her opponent.
She looked ahead, waiting for the next block of ice to come flying at her, but instead another ice block came from behind.
"Behind you!"
Hero quickly moved to the side as the block of ice shattered along the ground and turned with sword raised in the direction the attack came from.
"Sagitta…Inflammarae…Radius…Firebolt!"
The blast of fire flew upward and struck something massive atop the rooftops, there was a bit of blood and a grunt of pain. The trio looked and saw a creature walk out of the shadows, it had a broad, muscular frame with thick, shaggy white fur, the only odd design about it was the top of its heads appeared hairless with an old scar around it.
"A yeti." Sage looked at the creature, her hand on her staff ready to use her magic the moment presented itself.
"So you finally decided to show your ugly face."
"Foolish girl, you need only die to allow our master to complete his goal."
"Your master? Why would a yeti owe any allegiance to that madman?" Sword Saint was confused by the statement made by this beast.
"We are no simple beasts."
The trio turned and found a second yeti staring down at them from, this one bearing the same scar around the top of its head.
"So you're the one who through the first block of ice." Hero glared at the monstrous mass of muscle. "What did you mean by not being simple beasts?"
"We are master's Faceless Men. His genius allowed us to take our brains from our human vessels and insert them in these bodies. More proof of his genius and we shall see his will be done."
"Genius? What your master is doing is nothing more than a perversion in the face of the gods or order." Hero readied her sword to strike down this abomination.
"Think carefully Hero, our master seeks to become a god that will unify the races of the world. How have you aided the world?" The yeti looked down at the hero both literally and figuratively.
"The Hero has vanquished the Demon Lord, prevented the forces of hell from breaking loose upon the world and defeated the Lich in the north!" Sword Saint was quick to defend the great deeds her friend had accomplished.
"And yet the world is still in turmoil. If the Hero was enough to save this world and keep if from harm, then the first Hero would have been enough. You are the 16th God-chosen hero, evidently…the gods themselves delight in continuing their games and creating new threats for you to fight. Surely, you realize that even you shall fall when the gods tire of you and then they'll repeat the same process." The second yeti smirked as he chuckled as he looked at the Hero and her party.
The Hero and her party stood there in the center of the court, there eyes on the two yeti's above them, yet Hero lowered her sword for a moment much to the surprise of her comrades.
"You may be right. Perhaps, I am playing into the game of the gods above. I know that I cannot keep this up forever." Hero breathed out a final sigh as a stern look crossed her face and she raised her sword. "But I am going to fight here and now. A good friend told me if all that was needed to become the Hero meant finding this sword then anyone could have done that, I'll show you the reason I was chosen to be the Hero of this world!"
"So be it." The two yetis roared before jumping off the rooftops to fight with the Hero and her party.
xxxx
Sword Maiden and the King hid behind the thick trees as the Highway Man continued to launch his "knives" at them all the while laughing.
"Come on you lowly worms! You'll never stop me by simply hiding!"
The King took three deep breaths before rounding the, knocking two swords out of the air as he tried to get closer to the Highway Man. The Highway Man continued his laughing but soon saw Sword Maiden moved from behind the trees to begin her chant.
"Sorry! No spells today!"
He launched more of his knives, as Sword Maiden readied for Holy Light one of the blades pierced her right leg. She let out a scream as she was forced to drop to her knee, blood running down her leg staining her white dress. Highway Man let out a horrid laugh then turned towards the King and readied his two favorite knives to attack. As the King struck the Highway man's knives spark flew, the two exchanged blows back and forth, the Highway Man may not have been as skilled as the King but his size more than made up for it.
"You damn, pile of excrement! Your evil ends here tonight!" The King pushed his sword forward while Highway Man blocked with his two knives.
"That's it, get mad! Let me see what your bloodlust looks like!" The Highway Man had a wide, sinister smile on his face as he looked toward the King. "Once I'm done here, I'll go to the castle and find your little sister! She should be of age now that I can enjoy myself…though even if she wasn't, that wouldn't stop me."
"You shut your damn mouth!"
The King knocked Highway Man back and rammed his sword into the monster's gut, he gritted his teeth as he pushed further and further, expecting Highway man to cry out but looked up to see his still smiling.
"It tickles."
Highway Man smashed his head forward, striking the King across his forehead knocking him to the ground. The King hissed as blood ran down his forehead but there no time to focus on just that, he looked up and saw the Highway Man rush towards him, stabbing a knife deep through his armor and into his shoulder. The King let out a brief shout before looking back at the ever smiling Highway Man.
"Oh don't you go passing out on me! I've only just begun your torture. Now, let's see how much you can edurAAAHHHHHH!"
Sword Maiden used her Arrow of Light spell, multiple beams of bright light flew forward tearing through his back and penetrating out his front. The Highway Man gasped before turning around toward Sword Maiden, his smile now a scowl as blood ran down his mouth.
"You stupid bitch! You should have just waited your turn and I'd be more than happy to play with you." The Highway Man stood but made sure to push his knife further into the King's shoulder. "You just wait there, and I'll be right back."
The King grunted as he struggled to remove the knife in his shoulder while the Highway Man stumbled forward.
"Just…just a bit more. Let me use my miracles…just a little longer." Sword Maiden struggled to stay on her feet, leaning upon her sword and scales. "I…will not run from a coward…like you."
The Highway Man struck her with the back of his massive hand knocking her to the ground where he towered over her. He lived for the fear his victims would show him, but even injured she refused to show him and signs of being afraid. He placed his blade on the center of her chest and slowly moved the blade to his right, cutting her flesh to which she cried out in pain. He then moved his blade toward her right arm and repeated the same motion, cutting into her exposed flesh.
"Tell me, you damn slut, how does that feel?"
"Even, if you kill me here…I won't give you the satisfaction of me begging for my life." Sword Maiden glared back at the monster that towered over her.
The Highway Man raised his knife high, he'd stab her right through her face, but he suddenly gasped in pain. He struggled to get back to his feet, in his back was the knife he had used to pin the King to the ground. Before he could turn around another knife was lodged into his back then followed by another, he finally turned just in time to see the King rushed forward and plunge another large knife into his chest.
"Get away from her you ugly bastard!"
The King pulled his own sword out of the Highway Man's gut, and with a quick slash cut at the monster's knee. The Highway Man's body buckled under the massive weight and he fell backwards, the action caused the knives in his back to now protrude out of his chest. The Highway Man gasped and groaned and blood spilled from his various wounds, the King had gone to help Sword Maiden back to her feet while their opponent struggled on the ground.
"Are you alright?"
"I'll manage, your Majesty."
"Now then…it's time we finish this." The King looked down at the Highway Man, sword in hand ready to deliver the final blow but there was still a question that they needed to ask. "Where is the Necromancer?"
The Highway Man looked up at the two fabled heroes and began to chuckle, blood present in his evil grin.
"You…you can't stop him. The world is changing and he is the one to lead it in the right direction." The Highway Man chuckled weakly, even having to stop as he coughed a bit of blood but continued to smile. "No matter what you do…you're still going to die!"
"Where is he!?"
"The place your god would find the most disrespectful, just to prove how ineffective the gods truly are!"
"The Tower of Law." Sword Maiden was stunned by what she was hearing.
"Try…to stop him…I'll be waiting for you to fail, laughing from the very depths of hell!"
The Highway Man broke out into his final hysterical laughter until the King finally stabbed his sword through his head; the Highway Man let out a final scream of pain as its body spasmed for a bit but finally stopped, justice had finally caught up with the monstrous individual. The King removed his sword then turned toward Sword Maiden who was now looking toward the Tower of Law off in the distance.
"We need to get to the tower." Sword Maiden sighed as her eyes, even behind her blindfold, focused on the lone tower near the castle.
"You and I are in pretty rough shape, no telling what we'll find when we get there." The King sighed as he sheathed his sword then gently placed his hand on her good shoulder. "Let's finish this fight we started. We'll need a way to get over there though, and I have no idea where my horse would be."
"I have a means for us to use." Sword Maiden held up her staff and summoned forth her familiar. "Come forth…mighty alligator."
The massive alligator roared as it looked around the area, thought still wounded, the time away had at least stopped the bleeding. Sword Maiden calmly placed her hand on the creature, the creature let out a final hiss before lowering its body to allow Sword Maiden to mount its body.
"Are you ready?" Sword Maiden turned toward the King with a small smile.
"You want me to ride that thing?" The King looked toward the massive creature; he was still weary of it but relented as he mounted the creature behind the Sword Maiden. "Alright then, let's find the Necromancer."
xxxx
One of the yeti's shrieked as blood ran from its various wounds as it stumbled backwards, standing before it was Sage and Sword Saint ready to continue the attack if the monster wished to challenge them. The two showed minor injuries, mostly from the fragments of ice what would cut into their skin but stood firm despite the cold air around them. The yeti roared but it was for naught as its massive body fell forward, cracking the ice beneath its body, its body motionless as blood collected around its body.
"That's one." Sage let out a sigh of relief as she turned to check on her friend fighting the final yeti.
The Hero quickly jumped back as a large block of ice struck the ground where she had been standing. The yeti, or rather the Faceless man's mind within the body, was drenched in blood, its left arm missing at the elbow.
"St, stupid girl! Why do you seek to defy our master?"
"Because it is my job to keep this world in relative peace. Your master would plunge this world into utter chaos and misery and I will not allow that." The Hero frowned as she looked at the pathetic excuse of a monster before a gentle smile crossed her face. "I'm also hoping to earn the affection of a certain adventurer."
"What? You dare get in my master's way for such a trivial reason!"
Sage and Sword Saint both sighed yet smiled, even after two years of traveling with Hero, it was clear to them that she had not truly matured.
"She certainly has the heart of a pure maiden." Sword Saint smirked as she watched her friend stand before this monster.
"Indeed." Sage also had a small smile on her face.
The injured yeti let out a horrid scream as it charged forward to attack, it was a desperate action, and the Hero would show him no mercy. She rushed forward with her agility and with flash of her sword, cut off its other arm and one of its legs; the yeti screamed in pain as it collapsed to the ground, blood spurting from its severed stumps. The Hero turned toward the downed monster and she, along with her party walked toward the creature to look down upon it.
"Damn you!"
"Where is your master? Tell us what we need to know, and I shall end your suffering." The Hero readied her sword to deliver the final blow.
"You think I would betray my master?"
"Even if you refuse to tell us anything, we will discover his location. He can't hide from us forever." Sage once again returned to her stoic personality as she looked at the monster.
"Hide? How dare you insult him!" The yeti creature snarled at them but could no longer do anything to stop them. "You'll meet your true doom at the Tower of Law. Go…go and hasten to your death!"
Hero raised her sword and stabbed it into the chest of the dying monster, true to her word she would end the creature's suffering.
"Look, the ice is beginning the melt." Sword Saint smiled as she looked around the area. "Their magic undone, now this district can finally return to normal."
"Yes, but our job is not done yet." Hero turned her attention toward the Tower of Law, the lone structure still standing amidst the burning city. "Let's finish this fight!"
xxxx
Goblin Slayer and his party charged forward, even with the wagon at their disposal, his party rushed ahead on foot, both dire wolves at his side as they moved down the streets toward the Tower of Law, though the road was not entirely clear of danger. Heavy Warrior finished downing his strength and stamina potion, his wounds wound not slow him down as he and his party continued to cut their way through the monsters while trashing to reach their final destination. Spearman, Witch and the three young adventurers moved through the streets, even if Witch and Apprentice Cleric were out of spells they would see this mission through to the end. The King and Sword Maiden, riding atop her injured familiar, charged down the streets to reach the Necromancer as did the Hero and her party. Even though the parties were tired after hours of near continuous fighting, this quest would ne be over until the Necromancer had fallen, at this moment it came down to a race to see who would reach the tower first.
xxxx
From the Tower of Law he saw it all: to his right was the agonizing cry of the Chaos Kraken before slammed against the ground, though he could not directly see it he was able to hear the Arachnid Sovereign begging for her life, there was thick black smoke coming from every entry way to the sewers but no more monsters were emerging from this locations, he could hear the echoing laughter of the Highway Man before he let out a final cry of pain, and finally came the shrieks of his Yeti subordinates. The Necromancer frowned as he continued to look at the burning city, everywhere the knights and adventurers were pushing his creations back, there was no way of knowing just how many of his followers were still alive, but that frown was soon replaced with a small smirk. He started to chuckle to himself, little by little his smile grew as did his laughter until he placed his left hand over his eyes and laughed liked a madman.
"How delightful! Every theory of mine was proven wrong!" The Necromancer finally started to calm himself down then let out a final sigh. "To a researcher like myself, as much as I want to prove I am correct, I love a challenging problem. We as mortals only truly learn when we make mistakes and then adapt from them. My opponents are not to be underestimated; they have each undoubtedly discovered where I am hiding myself. Let us see who shall reach me first, will it be the King, the Sword Maiden, the Hero or…will it be Goblin Slayer?"
The Necromancer paused for a moment as a frown cross his brow, his brain already thinking of new things.
"I wonder…why does his name stick with me? He's just an ordinary adventurer, and I've only ever met him that one time in the village. There was nothing special that I could discern from him yet here he is, in fact he was the first one to charge into the Capital." The Necromancer continued to ponder this until a new thought came into his head, one that made him smile. "Of course, why did I not see it before? He and I are the same, tokens who refuse to listen to the whims of the Gods."
"Observation: My "Lieutenants", as they were, have been vanquished. Forces of good will now be on the move toward this location.
Hypothesis: Goblin Slayer will reach me first. The Gods will want the two of us to battle.
Theory: Goblin Slayer and I are two sides of the same coin. Both acting on our own, in direct contradiction of the God's will. In relation to my research…Goblin Slayer is the uncontrollable variable in my experiments."
Necromancer chuckled to himself as he eagerly rubbed his hands together in anticipation of seeing if his hypothesis would be proven true or false.
Author's Note: Alright guys, the lieutenants are out of the way and now it's time to focus on the main villain of this arc. Now for a bit of bad news, I'm thinking Howl of Vengeance will be over in the next three chapters. It's been a lot of fun and I'll go into more detail in Chapter 85, so for those who've been following along, thanks for all the support over these two years. Stay with me guys, we've got ourselves one hell of a fight on our hands.