Alaric could feel his heart pounding, as if it were struck repeatedly like drums of war. The situation was dire. The sun's blistering heat didn't help, either, as he could feel himself roasting alive in his chainmail—threatening to melt and brand his skin.
Alaric's knees trembled as adrenaline rushed throughout his body, chainmail and blade rattling.
It was his job to keep the party safe, to be the vanguard, the shield, the protector. So how could he be in this state of mind?
He shook his head and could feel the sweat from his hairline drop from his brow onto his spaulders and sizzle and evaporate in the summer heat.
The goblins cackled and snorted in laughter, as if they had just caught their prey. The hobgoblin joined in, bellowing an ugly pig-like laugh. They were closing in, and Alaric couldn't focus.
Alaric turned to his side. "Kaelrith?"
He was gone, leaving only dust behind as he beelined towards the hobgoblin with axe overhead.
Thwack.
The mighty swing of his axe would be to no avail, as the hobgoblin blocked it with its thick club, countering with its free hand and striking Kaelrith on his side, knocking him backwards.
"Dammit!" Alaric thought out loud as he rushed to Kaelrith's side.
He swung his arming sword at the underarms of the hobgoblin, where his armour lacked, spilling thick crimson.
The hobgoblin cried out and dropped its club—along with Kaelrith's axe lodged in it.
"The thing's big, but it's a total oaf!"
Kaelrith got back up on his feet and unlodged his greataxe from the hobgoblin's club, seemingly more aware of the threat at hand. Smoke hissed from Kaelrith's nostrils as his breathing intensified and his grip on his axe tightened.
"Two of them are coming!" Alaric shouted, signalling towards the two mail-armoured goblins, both armed with swords, coming at the sides of the distraught hobgoblin.
The two goblins began to seem to speak to the hobgoblin, as if reassuring him. But what they said to him, it worked. The hobgoblin looked fiercely at Alaric, as if it wanted to return the favour of injuring it.
The hobgoblin and two goblins began to approach, all three of them with the disgusting looks of gluttonous blood-lusting rodents spread upon their faces as they cackled in excitement.
In return, Alaric and Kaelrith both steadied their fighting stances, with Alaric taking the vanguard and raising his shield in defence, whilst Kaelrith readied himself in an unorthodox barbaric stance.
Alaric's feeling of nervousness and anxiety had subsided; more so, it turned into excitement. The thrill of battle. The adrenaline rush. The toil of life and death. The thrill of it tugged at his heart; he had his duty. Duty to protect those who stand beside or behind him. So why had he felt that way? The cloisters of the monastery were all that he knew of—or remembered. So why?
"Aggghh!" The hobgoblin rushed towards Alaric, and Alaric quickly dismissed the thought as he raised his shield upwards against the towering hobgoblin.
The hobgoblin's two fists slammed down upon Alaric's shield repeatedly; the pressure from each blow strained his forearm, and his knees buckled in support. Alaric quickly began stabbing as much as he could into the abdomen of the hobgoblin, only shallowly piercing its old rusted plate armour of blackened steel.
"Kaelrith!" Alaric shouted, signalling to strike down the hobgoblin and relieve him.
The swing of Kaelrith's axe was swift, lodging itself into the shoulderplate of the hobgoblin and digging an inch or two into its flesh.
The hobgoblin once more cried out in pain as it backed up.
Snap.
The handle on Kaelrith's greataxe split in two, and he was left with half of the grip.
In turn, the two goblins at each wing of the hobgoblin moved in for a pincer attack.
Alaric quickly reacted and parried the right goblin's blade, whilst Kaelrith struggled to move aside and was cut on his right side by the left goblin.
Kaelrith bore the wound no mind. Thick smoke hissed out from his nostrils, his eyes began to become more and more bloodshot.
Kaelrith roared as he slammed the freshly split wooden handle into the goblin's jugular, with blood splattering all over his face.
The goblin cried out in agony as Kaelrith began to stab the same place repeatedly.
Once. Twice. Thrice.
The splintered handle was drenched in crimson, and the goblin was left with a split-open neck with splinters lodged in the crater of its wound.
Alaric was caught off guard by the sudden brutality of it, but snapped back into the fight as he heard the nervous warcry of the goblin ahead of him and the childlike whimpering of the hobgoblin.
He began to circle the goblin slowly, counterclockwise so as not to get into the vicinity of the hobgoblin. He waited for the right moment, the right opening, the right timing. His breathing was unsteady, but that didn't matter to him right now. He steadied his stance, trying not to leave any gaps in his defence. He had to win this fight.
"Ragh!" The greyish-green goblin thrusted its rusted sword tip towards Alaric, and he parried with his shield and, in return, riposted.
His riposte was too uncalculated and too rash, only leaving a shallow cut on the goblin's shoulder.
The goblin jumped back in reaction beside the hobgoblin and cried out, signalling the whimpering hobgoblin to get back into the fight.
"Kaelrith! They're going to regroup!" Alaric shouted towards the blood-soaked barbarian.
Kaelrith only glanced towards Alaric in return, smoke continuing to hiss every time he exhaled.
Alaric looked behind him to check up on Julius, only to find Rosa seemingly doing nothing but stare at Julius whilst Stoiarck and Ira were working overtime on protecting the siblings from the other two goblins.
What? When did those two goblins get over there? Hells. Alaric kissed his teeth, cursing himself for not paying attention.
"Kaelrith!" Alaric shouted, but no response. "Kaelrith, dammit!" This time he grabbed Kaelrith's shoulder and turned the brute towards himself.
"We need to regroup with the others; they need help!" He pointed towards Stoiarck and Ira, who were defending the siblings. "Come on! While those two dunderheads are distracted, we can take care of them later!"
Kaelrith grunted and shoved Alaric's hand aside and began to beeline towards Stoiarck.
Alaric followed suit.
The two goblins hissed and cackled, seemingly poking fun and teasing about swinging at Rosa and Julius. Stoiarck stood ahead of them, in a sweat, constantly parrying and blocking off the goblins' attempts.
Kaelrith hissed a great amount of smoke from his nostrils and came bashing onto one of the goblins with his shoulder.
The goblin was knocked back with great force, dazed, but stood back up.
Kaelrith rushed towards the goblin, swinging in an uncivilized manner, whilst the goblin hissed teasingly at Kaelrith as he dodged every single one by a thread of its hair.
Ira, caught off guard, fell backwards on his behind, witnessing Kaelrith's barbarism.
Alaric cried out and took a swing at the other goblin, separating Stoiarck from it.
"Why didn't you call for us?!" Alaric asked Stoiarck as he faced towards the goblin.
Stoiarck inhaled and exhaled. "I was dealing with having to defend these two from two goblins." He said, with slight distaste in his voice.
Alaric spat. "Just get Rosa to snap out of it so she can heal Julius! He's losing way too much blood right now!"
"Ira, come over here and help me with this one! We can take it down together."
Ira stood up from his behind and fixed his grip on his daggers. He then nodded to Alaric in response. Together they rushed towards the goblin, whose attention was focused on Alaric, whilst Ira rushed to its open left flank.
Alaric purposefully left his guard slightly open to bait the goblin into attacking him. It worked. Alaric halted as the goblin began its swing with its curved blade, parrying it with his shield and giving a short lunge forward with his sword.
The goblin stepped back in response, only to be met with two daggers sinking deep in its trapezius. Blood spat from the wounds, painting Ira's face as he released the daggers.
The goblin was now on one knee, struggling to get itself together. It was still in the fight.
Alaric rushed forward and lunged at the goblin's heart with all his strength; the momentum of his lunge was brash, causing him to fall forward as he impaled the goblin's heart.
Alaric lay on top of the goblin, looking at its face as its dead eyes stared daggers into his heart with its tongue lolled out.
Disgusted, Alaric mumbled "Cur," to himself as he stood up.
"Alaric, behind you!" Ira shouted.
Alaric looked back, only to be met with a large wooden club to his temple.
He was knocked sideways, his ears rang, and his sight became a blur. He tried to stand up but stumbled, only to fall on his behind. His eyes could barely make out the scene in front of him, only splodges in a dance with one another.
Alaric felt sick and lightheaded, as if he wanted to throw up his guts right at that moment. He couldn't think straight.
Why am I on the ground? Gods, what's happening to me? I don't want to feel this way.
His eyes rolled back as his vision began to be filled with black spots as he fell on his back.
The ringing grew louder, and all was dark.
Alaric saw two figures before him, male and female, adorned in the regalia of a bygone age. Their clothes matched exactly the descriptions of the books in the monastery. Beautiful robes with laurels upon their heads. These figures were highborn. Noble. A sense of warmth toiled over him as their gaze met his. A sense of belonging. He wondered if these were his parents, wondered if he-
"Al-"
Light began to seep between his eyelids.
"Alaric!"
Alaric's eyes shot wide open as his face was struck, leaving the burning sensation of a slap on his right cheek.
It was bright, as if he had just woken from a night's rest. He could not make up the figure before him; it was a blur.
The figure slapped him again as he was shaken back and forth. His vision finally cleared, and before him was a pale pointy-eared boy.
Alaric shoved the pale elf off himself. "Hells, Ira…" Alaric rubbed his eyes.
He looked around to assess the area, wondering where he was right now. Alaric quickly found two large men holding off a dull-armoured creature, as well as a passed-out blonde boy, around his age, passed out with dried blood all over his robes, and a pretty blonde girl sitting by him, laying out an empty stare.
Alaric's mouth watered as a wave of nausea rolled up from his stomach and began to churn against his will. His throat began to tighten, and a rush from his stomach began to flow out from his mouth, pouring liquid all over his lower half.
A cough followed, "What the fuck?" Alaric mumbled in a daze, his head panging with pain.
Ira shot Alaric a look of disgust, "Cast some of that light on yourself, and get back in the fight already, you're needed!"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I got it!" Alaric groaned as he shooed Ira away.
Alaric pressed the side of his head, which was in pain, finding his hands bloodied. Blood poured down across his face from his temple. He pressed his hand over the wound, hissing in pain.
"Luminarch, bearer of Light," The nausea and pain welled over him, "…hear my plea, restore and make whole: Lesser Cure"
A warm yellow light began to shine from Alaric's palm, and with it, relaxation. The pain and nausea he once had flew away like a dream.
Alaric's eyes shot wide in realization, pulling Ira's wrist. "How's Julius? Rosa?"
"They're fine; Julius lost a lot of blood, but he's breathing, and Rosa's just in shock right now—unresponsive… But we should probably get out of here soon."
Alaric sighed in relief, gathering himself. He looked around the floor for his sword and shield, then armed himself and stood up.
"Ira, where's the other green cur that was with the hob?" Alaric inquired.
"Dealt with," Ira pointed to the goblin, whose body was bruised and battered, resting upon a rock.
"Kaelrith?"
The pale elf nodded.
Alaric sighed, "All right. Ira, just watch over the siblings; I'll assist Kaelrith and Stoiarck."
"Huh?" The elf raised an eyebrow.
"If we need you, we'll call you; just make sure they're both okay, especially Rosa."
Ira furrowed his eyebrow, "All right, but if you don't hurry it up-"
"Yeah, yeah, okay," Alaric interrupted as he began jogging towards the fight.
Alaric heard Ira mutter something but shrugged it off.
If we get this thing, we'll definitely have a good payday. We just need to finish it. We're so close.
The group had been struggling with making ends meet, and Alaric was determined to get the party out of that stump.
The Paladin's heart began to beat faster and faster as he drew nearer, the sounds of his clanking mail and spaulders drowned out by the sheer excitement and nervousness of the situation.
Alaric caught up to the fight, assessing the situation. Stoiarck was being pummeled, seemingly taunting the hobgoblin into focusing its attention on himself whilst Kaelrith snuck blows to its face. Whenever the hobgoblin tried to return the favour to Kaelrith, Stoiarck intervened, soaking up the force of the hobgoblin's heavy wooden club. This repeated, with fluidity. Alaric's heart stopped a bit, growing insecure about his abilities as the group's official tank. But he shrugged it off and rushed to the hobgoblin's flank when it began to attack Stoiarck once more.
This time, Kaelrith and Alaric both landed a hit. Kaelrith gave a brutal punch to the hobgoblin's left jaw. Alaric was sure he heard a crunch whilst he attempted to pierce the hobgoblin's rusted plate armour at the ribs, but was only able to shallowly plunge his blade.
The hobgoblin's face turned to meet Alaric's as it was punched by Kaelrith, giving Alaric a murderous stare, raising its club in return.
Alaric raised his shield, bracing himself. But no blow came.
Stoiarck had rushed in front of Alaric and soaked the blow into his forearms.
Alaric furrowed his eyebrows with irritation, kissing his teeth.
Alaric stepped back, positioning himself to attack once more, looking over to Kaelrith to synchronize their attacks. Alaric's eyebrows furrowed further, with concern. Kaelrith's eyes had grown even more bloodshot than he had last seen, and his breathing grew intense as smoke practically poured out of his nostrils as if his whole head was that of a Dwarven smithy.
Kaelrith rushed in between Stoiarck and the hobgoblin, pushing Stoiarck away with such force that Alaric had to snap out of it and dash aside, almost being caught underneath the crimson half-orc.
"Huh?" Stoiarck landed on his behind, with a look of shock on his face.
Kaelrith was now sending a flurry of blows the hobgoblin's way with such animosity. Kaelrith gritted his teeth, smiling with saliva pouring out at the sides, as if he was enjoying this. The punches kept on coming, brash and uncalculated, but with brute force. From above, the side, below, and right to the face—the hobgoblin was disoriented. Unrelenting, Kaelrith gave the hobgoblin a push kick to its abdomen, cracking the rusted plate armour underneath his foot, knocking the hobgoblin on its back, winded.
Kaelrith rushed forward and mounted the hobgoblin, locking its arms underneath his legs, as he began to ruthlessly punish the goblin's boorish face with his scaled fists. The hobgoblin's face began to bruise and blacken, with crimson splattering on Kaelrith's blood-lusted smile.
Alaric and Stoiarck watched. Unable to discern what they were witnessing. They had never seen such brutality before, such rage.
"It's as if the blood itself cries out to him," Stoiarck muttered.
The hobgoblin's face began to sink into itself underneath Kaelrith's brutality.
Alaric snapped out of it, realizing they needed the hobgoblin's teeth and ears as proof to claim the bounty.
"Shit, Stoiarck, we need to stop him!" Alaric sheathed his sword and dropped his shield, rushing towards Kaelrith.
Stoiarck followed suit.
Alaric grabbed Kaelrith's arm, trying to subdue him.
Kaelrith glared at Alaric.
Alaric's heart dropped, and he broke out in a cold sweat. Instinctively backing off.
Kaelrith unmounted from the hobgoblin, towering over Alaric, kneeing him in the solar plexus, sending him backwards.
Alaric coughed out in pain, landing on his back.
Stoiarck rushed over to Alaric, meeting the same flurry of blows as the hobgoblin.
Alaric looked up, in pain and irritated. He struggled to stand, drawing his sword.
Stoiarck reacted to the sound of Alaric unsheathing his blade, looking behind him.
"Alaric, no!"
Stoiarck was knocked aside by a blow to the face.
Alaric brushed it off, raising his blade overhead.
Alaric's blade began to emit a bright light and crackled with holy energy.
Kaelrith began to rush towards Alaric in a low-stance sprint Alaric with bloodlust, his pupils peering into Alaric.
The pain was unreal; Alaric was sure he had broken something. But even so, he stood his ground, gathering holy energy into this blade, into this one strike. He needed to prove himself.
Kaelrith was now in front of Alaric.
Alaric brought down his blade on Kaelrith's head.
"RAAAAAAAAGHHH"
The ground beneath Alaric exploded with holy energy, light bursting from the sheer might of his smite.
"Huh…?" Alaric muttered. He had felt no resistance beneath his blade.
When the dust cleared, Kaelrith wasn't incapacitated. Instead, he was on the floor, with Stoiarck on top of him, struggling to keep Kaelrith in check.
Did he…? At the last second? He tackled him out of the way?
Alaric groaned, dropping to one knee. You've got to be kidding me…
He wasn't sure if he was irritated or grateful.
"I've got him down! Alaric! Do something!" Stoiarck shouted with slight panic in his voice.
Alaric groaned in pain, attempting to stand, but fell to his knees. The Paladin inhaled, "IRAA!"
He attempted to stand once more, but the pain throbbed even more, causing him to fall on his knees again.
He tried to stand again, using his sword as a support.
Stoiarck was struggling; he couldn't hold Kaelrith for much longer.
Alaric tried to move to Stoiarck's aid as fast as he could, but he felt lightheaded and moved slower than the sin of sloth itself, limping in pain.
He had to get there; he needed to. He needed to support Stoiarck, so that no one else is injured. It is his duty.
Alaric looked forward, seeing Ira and Rosa supporting Julius in the distance as they tried to get to Stoiarck and Kaelrith.
"Hells, what is he doing up?"
Alaric pushed himself further, through the pain and the nausea, eventually meeting Stoiarck at his side.
"Hurry up and take one of his arms!" Stoiarck shouted toward Alaric.
Alaric studied Stoiarck's face, now bruised and roughed out.
Alaric dropped his sword and grabbed Kaelrith's arm, but Kaelrith struggled and tried to shake Alaric off.
Come on, come on, come on!
He gritted his teeth as he poured out the rest of his strength into trying to lay Kaelrith's arm on the ground, coming close, with the enraged Drakenkin's left arm now hovering over the ground.
"...into the quiet deep…: Sleep"
A faint ray of purple haze flew towards Kaelrith's head, dissipating into the air once it made contact.
The Drakenkin's eyes began to grow heavy, but his strength still remained, struggling to break free of Stoiarck and Alaric's hold.
"...Julius!" Alaric said in surprise.
The resistance from Kaelrith grew weaker.
Alaric took a glance at Julius, his face as pale as a ghoul.
"Set him down and help us out here! He's almost knocked out!"
Rosa and Ira slowly set Julius down, with Ira rushing over to try and grab Stoiarck's free arm, which was still trying to pummel Stoiarck.
Ira looked at Kaelrith with fear and disgust, as if he were about to throw up, grabbing Kaelrith's arm and struggling to set it down.
Even with Kaelrith drowsy, his strength remained.
"Julius! Can you cast that spell once more?! One more time is all he needs!"
Julius gave a weak nod to Alaric and opened his mouth, "Let the heavy veil descend… where the waking thoughts must bend…" Julius wheezed, but continued, "Leave the daylight far behind, bind the eyes and still the mind. Sink into the quiet deep…: Sleep!"
The Drakenkin's eyes now began to shut for good, and with it, his strength.
Alaric dropped to the floor, staring at Kaelrith's face, then Stoiarck, then Ira, then Julius and Rosa.
And he too blacked out.