Cali has long ceased to think about what is happening. Body trained over the years of battles moved on its own.Turning around, her eyes picked out the new victim. She instantly a.s.sessed his weak points, and her hands send the blades by the desired trajectory of attack.
But there were so many enemies around that not all the blows could be deflected. No matter how fast Cali moved, strikes rained down from all sides. Swords, arrows, spears...
At first, she did not feel any pain, the Gorgon automatically created a reliable stone crust under her skin, protecting the owner from damage. But now Cali clearly felt how its strength was weakening. Arrowheads burrowed deeper in her flash. Even her forehead now was covered not only with sweat, but trickles of blood flowed down obscuring the view.
Enemies, seeing the first signs of weakness from Stone Warriors. .h.i.t with a new force.
"It"s time," - thought Cali, with a sharp shout, giving a signal to her comrades.
After receiving the message, Mark as if a solid mountain moved toward Chris. Lance followed suit, covering his friend"s back. Chris, noticing friends, send a torrent of flames towards them, clearing the way and moved by the path filled with ashes.
Walner watched the course of the battle from the top of the hill, trying to keep his rage in check.
"d.a.m.n Stone f*ckers!" - He cursed through clenched teeth once again.
Everything was not going according to plan, warriors with ladders could not even get close to the wall.
Red-faced men were waiting for time, when at least one of the Beasts finally fell, to plant explosive under the protection of mercenaries. Shifters were itching to rush into battle, annoyed Walner with their dumb whining and raving. Overwhelmed by his anger, Wallner almost missed a strange movement a bit to the left from the center of the battlefront.
Tossing out the mercenaries like b.a.l.l.s to all directions, an orc walked in front, followed by a flexible dark elf that was swinging around a War scythe. The group was closing a fireman, that left only the ashes of the burned foes behind him.
This small squad moved steadily toward the hill. Walner frowned watching their advances. Why did they need to break through here? Perhaps they wanted to return to their side? It is very unlikely though, judging by the enthusiasm, with what they chopped the Arians into pieces.
Maybe they wanted to get him? Walner looked at his personal guard with anxiety. Twenty best uncle"s guards now seemed to him not enough.
The Arians commander hastily called for his a.s.sistant and ordered him to go to the shifters. Let us give them the opportunity to partic.i.p.ate in the fun since they want it so much!
"Tell them to get those three any means possible! Even if they"ll need to bury Stone Beasts under their own bodies!" - Walner threw in the back of the messenger that was hurrying away.
***
Mark tried not to linger for a second. Vigorously working with his fists, the orc made his way through a solid mess of the bodies of the attackers.
But each new step started to cost more effort to him. He had not felt so tired for a long time. Nasty human arrows began to noticeably sting, and sword strikes left more and more deep wounds on the orc"s hard skin.
But he would not stop. The last wish of his leader should be fulfilled, even if he has to crawl up the hill on his stomach.
The pain receded as soon as he thought about what he saw today. The first smiles of his friends, odd, ugly but full of warmth. Cali, spoke to him without disgust or hatred, although she knew everything about him.
The rest exchanged friendly pats on the back.
Such a simple gesture, but Mark did not even know how pleasant this could be. Even if only for a couple of hours, he was not alone but among friends. The fanged maw itself stretched out into a smile, although judging by the cries of horror from the enemy, it did not look all that pretty.
But as soon as orc got a little distracted by an arrow that slashed through his ear, newly arrived shifter used this opportunity to jump from the back and slashed him under the knee, ripping off some flash and tendons. Mark roared in shock and fell to the ground. Not missing the chance, mercenaries attacked the big man like a pack of wild dogs.
Chris and Lance barely managed to fight off a friend from a mob of attackers. Chris tried to lift the orc while Lance whirled around keeping the enemies at a distance.
But the orc"s right leg was severely damaged, pieces of bones pierced the skin from the inside, and brown blood oozed from the open wound. There were only twenty steps to the hill, but it was no longer possible to make it together.
Chris wanted to say something, but Lance"s sharp scream cut him off. A large black shifter knocked the weapon out of drow"s hands and jumped at him, pressing the elf to the ground.
Mark did not hesitate to rush toward the fighters, pushing Chris aside. A metal fist with a squish and a crash smashed beast"s overturned head. But getting Lance out from under the corpse of a ma.s.sive creature was even more difficult task.
Chris was spreading the flames around them when Mark finally managed to drag out a heavily bruised elf from under a big corpse. But the fire warrior was noticeably exhausted and swayed even more with every new attack. Lance, in spite of wounds and shocks, instantly jumped to his feet and a.s.sessed the situation bent over to Mark.
"We have no choice, will have to shoot from here. I can do that, but I need your help. Can you do it, bro? "
Mark could only growl something not understandable, although the elf got him. Giving an orc a pat on the shoulder, the elf pulled a bow from behind his back and gave a signal to Chris. He understood the situation without words.
Then everything happened as if in slow motion. Cali, from her position against the wall, watched, with a shudder, as Mark jerked upright to his full height, lifting the dark elf figure on his shoulders. Chris ignited an arrow and Lance at the same moment fired it towards the hill. There was no need for the second shot. His goal - a warehouse of red-faced ammo instantly flared.
Lance only managed to throw up his hand triumphantly when he felt Mark buckle under him. Elf tried to push off from the orc, so as not to drop on him, but the second shifter was quicker, slamming in the drow from behind and knocked him aside.
And then everything was filled with fire. Cali watched in horror as the explosion of a red-faced warehouse, inflamed by Lance, covered the trio, turning everything within a radius of thirty steps into a blazing h.e.l.l.
Now, more than ever, she again wanted to become unemotional. The pain from the arrows that went deep into the back and chest could not surpa.s.s the pain in the heart from the loss of her friends.
She continued to fight as if in a trance, but her mind was filled with only one thing. Cali sent all her energy and pleas to the Gorgon.
"Protect them, d.a.m.n rock! Let them live! Live for them to survive! Live, you cursed Stone!"
Cali"s pleas were interrupted by a sharp blow to the chest. The metal bolt pierced the shoulder with such force that the girl fell back, nailed to the ground. The sky disappeared from view behind a ma.s.s of bodies around. And only a wild cry, calling her name somewhere above from the wall made Cali wince a little.
"Again I messed up everything. Paris must be enraged." - The last thought flashed in her head before Cali"s conscious plunged into darkness.