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The ground gave way, then disappeared. In the pillar of blue light drifted the four companions, the warp portal churning them out into the ruins of Geffen. As they landed onto solid ground and the portal faded away, the usual wave of giddiness swept over them. But that ailment was swiftly overcame, for they were accustomed to such effects.

The ruins of Geffen remained intact; nothing remarkable was noted, except that the corpse of dead sorcerers were either piled into several corners unceremoniously, or undergoing a decomposition process. Some even had the flesh completely removed by flies and other scavenging predators, leaving behind a skeleton. Most of it was almost resembled a skeleton thinly wrapped with carrion. Just days ago, a concentrated and welcomed scent of magic lingered over every corner and hole. Right now, what had been replaced was an unbearable pungent smell of decay. No hint of any sorcery prevailed, except for the two mages among the four companions.

The white stones that made up most of the walls were charred and broken. It was difficult to walk among it, for major obstacles like pillars and collapsed buildings hindered entry to certain corners. The restless souls of the dead roamed the ruins, the four of them occasionally sensing a chilling touch past their scuffle.

Their search in the ruins was carried out only half heartedly, given the limited places to traverse. The ground was rather uneven; rocks and debris layered the once blue, cobbled streets, and corpse laid everywhere. Finding nothing of use that gave them knowledge on the current situation, the companions left the ruins to head south.

"We should find ourselves a place to camp, before we observe the orcs," Sagi said as they walked the open fields of Geffen.

Manald nodded her approval, while the other two morroc-born warriors kept silent to listen out for danger. Sagi gripped his Staff of Soul to provide him with the ease and satisfaction, as he kept a lookout for a suitable spot. Being a person who liked wandering, Maraulea assisted with much enthusiasm. Skull had told her to seek it sooner, for they were noticeable targets for the orcs.

That, however, was not the only matter he concerned himself with. He knew that the high officials were still on the move, and his heroic deeds might not be redemption enough to clear away his wanted status. Fortunately for him, the assassin's trained senses detected nothing hostile around them. Only the chirping of the birds or the soft screeching of insects populating the grasslands sounded.

Maraulea walked over to Skull, and grabbed him by the arm.

"What do you want?" the assassin almost shouted.

"Wasn't that what you did to Manald the last night, Immuonnas? Romantic, it was. Gave me goosebumps," she said cheekily.

Skull whipped out his assassin mask to hide his darkened cheeks. Jerking off her hand, he left for a dense wood he discovered located not too far to their east. Apparently Manald heard the rogue's excited speech, for she suddenly remained silent for a while. The priestess recalled the night before, how she walked off in embarrassment when the assassin grabbed her arm. When she thought it was over, the rogue came into the guest chamber where she slept for the night to further jest at the priestess whose blush would not go off. But at least she was glad that Skull did not find her a pest for once.

The weak sun was starting to be overwhelmed by the clouds. Skull led his other three companions into the woods, at the same time making sure that no malicious demons or orcs happened to be in the vicinity. Sure enough, Skull's discovery of the forest led them to a small clearing in it. Maraulea scouted a distance deeper into the woods, then returning to report nothing of harm that was around, confirming Skull's senses.

"We'll make do with this place," Sagi said, fiddling with his necklace that was nothing more than an ordinary white and black ring locked into each other. The black robed wizard cast a Sight-Thrasher during the rogue's absence, a ring of sentient flames forming to scatter into a distance, warding off possible hostility. The flames returned to him and faded, an indication that it did not put up a resistance to anything. The priestess, finding herself idling, went off to gather a bundle of firewood for this night's use.

The four companions sat down, Maraulea announcing that this spot was an ideal one, because of its proximity to Orcville, and the abundance of rations that could be found. As if to emphasize on the latter, she dumped a bag full of red berries, and some other fruits.

"I guess that would be redundant, priestess," Sagi said. "Our campfire would draw unnecessary attention from the orcs, and we'll use my Staff for illumination when night descends."

Manald uttered a brief laugh of foolishness, and started the conversation.

"The orcs may not be leaving anytime soon, because of their recent attack on Prontera. I wish I knew how they were faring right now. I fear for their safety, especially those of the church. It must not be destroyed."

Seeing the priestess's tension, the rogue patted her on the shoulder.

"The church will remain intact, Man. For hundreds of years nothing had scratched it!"

The priestess smiled at her close friend's attempt to comfort her, but such news could only serve to make her utterly ill at ease. She could not imagine what would happen if the church fell; Prontera would be usurped by foul demons, and gradually the world would be plagued by their corruption and darkness. Her nightmares regarding the destruction of the church appeared vividly in her mind.

"You are being overly worried. As far as I gather, the worse that could happen to Prontera would be a great loss of men. What I heard back at St Caprina, none involved damaging of the church," Sagi reassured.

"I sense some orcs nearby. If they had defeated Prontera, they would not be idling here," Skull added.

Apparently the assassin's words soothed the priestess the most, for her concerned countenance was now of relieve. Either that perfectly made sense, or was it some other reasons, Manald smiled to indicate the abandoning of her worry.

"I will capture an orc," Skull suddenly broke the brief silence. "Either that, or I'll cause a distress."

"We will," Sagi corrected as he stroked the staff laid across his lap.

Shrugging in disregard, the assassin delayed no longer and darted off into the woods alone.

"Let him," the wizard said when he noticed Manald eyed after the assassin wistfully, until he was out of sight. "He had better learned his lesson."

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Skull ducked and leaped to avoid entangling into the hanging vines and loose branches. He skimmed through the woods at commendable speed, finally skidding to a halt when he heard distant rumblings and deep voices. Tip-toeing gingerly further down the receding woods, Skull watched two orc sentries arguing something in orcish tongue. He then proceeded to move even more cautiously so as not to step on a branch.

The two orcs argued for a little while more before deciding to return to their camp for food. But a sound stopped them mid-track.

"Who there!?" an orc sentry switched to common.

The orc who spoke cautioned towards the source of the noise, but his comrade held him back, saying something that he was hungry beyond measure. Muttering something under his breath, the orc turned to follow his partner who was already jogging back to camp. A clatter of a branch caused the orc to return with assurance that there was somebody spying the camp. A thick branch lying in the middle of the trail confirmed his hunch. Stopping over to look into the woods, he screamed as a red-tipped katar flew across his eyes, blinding him permanently.

"Quiet, before I slit your throat," Skull pointed his left katar up the orc's thick neck, hoping that his screams did not alert his partner. He held the orc hostage, and dragged him back into the woods near the camp. The orc flailed about, trying to touch his surroundings in frantic.

"Who you!? Who you!?"

"Tell me what you know," Skull demanded. "Otherwise…"

He pointed his katar a little harder into the green hide, demonstrating his promise to slay him if he put up any form of struggle.

"Speak! You're just blind, not mute!" the assassin half shouted in frustration.

"You… you cut my eye! Me blind! No! No want to live!" the orc merely replied as he tried to impale himself into the katar pointed up his neck. Lucky for Skull, he restrained that attempt as he flipped his hand, the orc's chin knocking into the flat of his katar instead. Skull put away his Infiltrators and wrapped an arm around the orc in a headlock.

"Spill it!"

Blood poured profusely down the orc's closed eyes, the green-skinned sentry bent on committing suicide.

"I will consider freeing you, and heal your eyes. Out with it, right now!"

Skull's last words seemed to have some effect on the orc. The cries had dwindled, and the orc began to speak in a guttural manner, like any other orcs did.

"Orcs under new lord of orcs. Orcs fear lord of orcs –"

"Who?"

"Big knight. Big silver knight with big silver horse," he answered in discomfort, more because of the mentioning of his new lord rather than his eyes.

Skull eyes widened. This can't be… he thought.

"Lord of Death…"

"Yes, big silver knight ordered attack on Prontera and Caprina."

"What caused the Orc Lord's death?" Skull pursued with much interest.

"I talk too much… no!"

Skull could stand the orc's cries no longer. Whipping out his Infiltrators, the assassin punctured the orc's chest, and it immediately died down. After all, the orc was wasting too much time for revealing the information reluctantly. That was all he had to know so far. He had wanted to spare the orc, and threatened him to provide him with more information day in, and day out. But the risk was huge, for the orc did not trust him at all and he would blurt out about him. No orc must know his camp, and his intensions.

Bringing out the mindless killer in him, Skull raced out of the woods and into the orc camp. Noticing a few sentries with their back turned to him, he flew out of the woods and above them, plunging his Infiltrators precisely into their brain. Within a short moment, the sentries fell dead.

A score of orc warriors caught a glimpse of the orc sentries' death. Skull did not bother to hide himself. He would take on them. The orcs ran at him tightly clustered together, their axes gleaming as if eager to spill some blood. The first orc was about to thrust his axe into him, but the assassin had schemingly retracted into the woods. The orcs were not fools either. Replacing their axes with javelins, the score of orc warriors hurled a volley of it at where the assassin last disappeared, expecting to hear a dying scream. But what greeted them instead, was a flying dagger aimed at the first orc. The dagger hit true, burying deep into his neck. Groaning in pain, he fell dead.

The remaining stared wide eyed at each other, determined to hunt out the assassin for killing their comrade. A few swore in their native tongue, damning the assassin to the hells. Another volley followed, and they returned to usage of axes. The group edged slowly into the woods with axes brandished, ready to hit anything that came their way. A rustle of leaves brought them closer to a suspicious shrub, where the assassin might be hiding. One orc tried firing a javelin through it, only to find nothing behind it. Before they knew, another flash of silver had that orc wriggling in pain. A dagger similar to the previous was imbedded deep into his heart.

The rest had no time to do anything about it. Skull shot out of nowhere, slaying two orcs at the same time with the swing of each hand. One orc managed to steal a hit on the assassin's shoulder blade, but his reward was an instant death. The assassin blazed with madness, the pair of Infiltrators whirling in a frenzied dance to decimate the score of orcs. An orc had wanted to flee the scene to shout for reinforcements, but Skull flew an envenomed dagger into its back, causing the poisoned orc to die from the effects.

The insatiable killer felt that this score of orcs was not enough. The Infiltrators seemed to whisper into his ears, pleading him to feed them with more, and more blood he could ever spill. Skull succumbed to his subconscious self, dashing out of the woods to seek out more orc warriors.

He ran down the sandy trail that led to a large clearing with numerous tents, and further down an igloo-like structure could be seen. He immediately recognized it as the Orc Dungeon. But his foremost attention was on the closest group of orc sentries roasting a grand peco over a fire.

His initial intension to capture more orcs for information was overwhelmed by his bloodlust. The hungry group of orc sentries turned around just in time to receive a deep gash on their chest or other vital organs. Then, a horn blared, causing the whole sentry camp to come to live. Large groups of orcs ran over to the fire which was doused, but not the way the assassin expected. They had indeed become smarter, for some reason. Orcs began springing up from bushes all around him, while sentries had him trapped with spears aimed at him. Yet again, his recklessness had set himself up.

Defying death, Skull rushed into an empty tent as hundreds of javelins were thrown at free will towards him. The tent he took shelter in was pierced, then fell apart under the sheer pressure of the javelins, leaving him open for attack. He ducked and rolled over the ground to avoid as many javelins possible, even though it would be a miracle if none of these wooden missiles caused even a scratch on him.

Many javelins gashed his arms, thighs, and a couple even buried itself into his guts and ribs. Extracting them hastily, he went under the cover of another tent to shield himself from the spear-hurling frenzy that had a high chance of killing him. He hoped that Lord of Death would not come personally, otherwise things would definitely bode ill for him.

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Sagizeulus knew nothing good would come out of the assassin's lone adventures. Either the impulsive man would be doomed, or barely alive. Taking his Staff of Soul in his hands, he made an excuse to do some experiments with his staff. The priestess and the rogue paid him little attention as they chatted among themselves.

The black robed wizard held his staff high. Vines and branches that hindered the passage winded away from his path upon the magic radiated by the staff. He trudged the temporarily cleared ground, and soon he was led to an area with shrubs more than trees. Further past the plantations was a trail that led to a large clearing with many tents set up in a scattered manner. A brown structure in the distance marked the centre of Orcville.

There were very few demons or other signs of life, for this was the Lord of Death's territory. Though no orcs were seen so far, Sagi continued to keep a distance from the camp possible to survey it. He saw many dead orcs along the way, some with a silver dagger sticking out them. The wizard did not need to guess the obvious work of the assassin. Boot-prints of Skull could be seen along the way, and it stopped abruptly at the entrance of the clearing.

The wizard heard a commotion. It could only come from the orc camp, for there were no other settlements or signs of life around except for these green-skinned beasts. He risked being in range of the orcs' spears by stepping out into the open trail, to spot the assassin though the hulking orcs blotted out his vision.

"Stubborn fool," the wizard muttered when he saw a crowd of orcs gathering methodically, as if trying to trap a prey. And the wizard guessed the prey to be Skull. He edged closer, while none of the orcs spotted him yet. They were shouting to each other in their own crude language, indicating to each other to throw their javelins. One orc shouted, and the rest started hurling a volley of javelins at a particular tent, and it fell apart. An injured assassin within staggered to another tent as another volley flew at him. But it was too late for the assassin. There was no time to take shelter anymore…

A wall of ice erected around Skull, the javelins striking the cold pillars instead of the human. Hundreds of javelins were imbedded into the walls, and it shattered. The orcs diverted their attention to the second intruder, to find a black-robed wizard who carried a Staff of Soul. They roared in anger, and hurled their javelins at him.

Sagi added another layer of defence around him with an Energy Coat, then raised a firewall. The volley of javelins flew past the firewall –and practically melted after disgorging out of it. None of it even grazed the wizard. Realizing that their ranged attack was of no use, a small group brandished their axes, preparing to eliminate the wizard.

Uttering a short laugh, Sagi finally had the chance to bring out the arcane prowess of the staff he possessed. Waving it in an arc, multiple globes of electricity sizzled the group, eventually their charred body fell following the dwindling of the high current.

The remaining ran forward nonetheless, undaunted by the sorcery. The wizard waggled his fingers for another spell, but in the midst of it an orc flung his axe to his arm, causing a deep gash on his forearm, interrupting the incantations. The other orcs thrust at him, but the staff deflected all of it. The utterly surprised orcs stared in disbelieve as the staff managed to overpower their raw strength.

Sagi pulled out a blue gemstone, summoning a safety wall to guard him. The orcs hit fruitlessly at the pink pillar, as it nullified any form of aggressiveness. Sagi focused on the spot where the orcs stood, and raised a pillar of flame each. The green-skinned beasts roared in agony as the flames held them firm, consuming every bit of their flesh till their skeletons remained.

He gathered that taking out the orcs individually would mean the assassin's death, for he was delayed. Sagi extended a palm, erecting a plot of earth to pummel the orcs into the air. Soon, it was as if the skies were raining orcs. The wizard smacked nearby orcs with his staff, sending them sprawling onto the floor unconscious.

Seeing the assassin resting against a tent, he grabbed him and the two disappeared into the woods. Several orcs gave chase, while the horns blared without end. Sagi raised walls of ice along the route, hoping that the orcs' progress would be deterred. The two ran, but Skull's injury slowed them down greatly. They could hear the orcs shattering the ice walls, their heavy footfalls gaining on them if they did not pick up speed. Suddenly, the orcs stopped chasing. All was silent for a while, until a wooden missile whizzed past the air, and struck Sagi's legs. The two fell as the orcs stepped victoriously over them…