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Kruber swung across his body. His sword striking the head of his opponent. They teatered from the blow, leaning over to the ground. It hung suspended before snapping and standing above Kruber. Staring him down.
Unfazed, Kruber stepped with the enemy. He swung his sword from behind his back and yelled out in exertion as the next hit landed. His target dropped into the dirt. No momentum left to stand again.
"Well I think you killed it."
Kruber spun at the unexpected voice. Kerillian. She had managed to silently get behind him, standing just out of reach.
"Ever thought about not sneaking up on people?" Kruber snapped at her. "I left the training yard- Like asked." He gestured to the wall behind her, it separated the pool of water and spot of grass from the old training yard. What Kerillian had claimed as her ‘room’.
"I didn't sneak, you couldn't hear me over all that yelling."
"You're starting early," he mumbled, fully knowing her long pointed ears knew exactly what he said. He stabbed his training sword into the dirt before squatting beside the straw man he had been battling. "Come to kick me out of training? Again?" Kruber hefted it off the ground.
"Nooo-" Kerillian let the vowel hang. "Though I wouldn't mind if you found a spot a wee bit farther." She held up a single arrow in her hand, "I thought since you're up so early, I wanted to show you this."
Kruber didn't move forward, only squinting to inspect, "What of it?"
"It's a special set of arrows Kruber," The skin beside her ebony eyes crinkled, like she was grinning beneath her green mask. "I haven't used them since before you were a bulge in your father's pants."
"Gods-" Kruber flinched away.
"Probably before your grandfather's." She couldn't help adding.
"Stop. Please," he pushed a hand against his eyes trying not to picture anything. He needed to push the conversation on, "What of your arrows anyways, I've seen you turn em mid air millions of times."
She scoffed and leaned forward, "Didn't know it was such a high bar to impress you."
"Wouldn't say million's a high bar. Honestly, why carry a bow at all when you just shoot them however you want?”
“Oh, that's brilliant. Maybe I could just float myself around instead of using legs."
Kruber shrugged, "Seems smart to me."
Kerillian rolled her eyes, “The genius of Mayflies. Making already possible things even more complicated. Watch." She turned her back to Kruber and aimed her arrow at the wall.
"For Lilith!" She called out to her God, her voice echoing and yelling back and forth in his ears. She loosed the arrow.
Kruber kept his eyes on the arrow. It went straight into the stone wall. He flinched and blinked, expecting the arrow to shatter. Until he felt the wind on his cheek and the whistle by his ear.
Eyes open, he turned and his lips brushed the feathers fletching. It was lodged into the straw head behind him, missing Krubers own by the hairs on his mustache. He lifted a hand to feel if she had shaved off a portion.
She gave another barking laugh at him. "Impressive enough for you?"
"You're a prick, you know that," Kruber told her.
He picked up his training sword and turned to go the long way back inside. He was stopped by Lohner's voice as he left. "Good! I caught you both,” He said, oblivious. “I got a bit of a job. Or more of a distraction if you will."
____
Kruber closed the large double doors behind himself, shutting out the view of Helmgart below and the clouded sun above. Shutting themselves inside and away from the light.
Unlike Kruber, Saltzpyre did not wait for his eyes to adjust to continue further. His lanky steps confident he would not stumble, no doubt 'following in Sigmar's light'.
It was only a few paces until Saltzpyre kicked over a board of wood and his other foot thudded a stone that had been piled beside it. Kruber expected Saltzpyre would yell a curse, blaming whoever left their materials unattended, but Saltzpyre only quietly steadied himself. His long arms reached to grab around a post of scaffolding constructed inside the building.
"They died trying to protect this place," Saltzpyre said.
Kruber, unsure what he was talking about, followed Saltzpyres gaze to the floor. Ripped padding for stolen plate, the smallest shreds of cloth left where scaven had torn it, and dried blood in the grout of stone. Low silver light finally reached the ground beneath them, and a dozen men all laid dead in the entrance hall.
Kerillian stepped over them. She passed Saltzpyre with an arrow half knocked, checking each hall that branched off quickly.
Saltzpyre bristled at being overtaken. He turned from the dead to race past her again.
Beside Kruber Sienna, the fire mage with the hair to match, chewed on her lip. She shifted from one leg to the other, holding out her palm face up. She looked from the dead on the floor, to Saltzpyres back, and to the statue deep in the center of the church.
A statue of Sigmar. The source of a low silvery light, it reflected from a single open window. Sienna grimaced at the statue before she squared her shoulders. Her palm lit with fire and guided her way.
That left only Kruber and Bardin. Bardin being a dwarf shouldn't have an issue seeing in the dark but he was standing still, tinkering with his gun. He peered down the barrel, squinting between a thick beard and metal helm before bending over and knocking the butt of the weapon against the floor. A small ting of a bullet rolled across the floor.
“That's better!” Bardin cheered himself and holstered the weapon on his hip.
They reached a wide set of stairs at the end of the hall. It separated the entrance hall from the Central worship area and Sigmar's statue.
Bardin’s boot knocked against that bottom step as his short legs misjudged. It was a near trip. "Pretty good craftsmanship for humans," Bardin played the trio off, looking about with a critical eye, "Seems kinda silly though to bring all this stone up when you could have carved into it."
"I like a good building," Sienna played along. "Nice use of the mandated tithes,” she coughed and corrected herself with a sly smile, “Sorry, taxes.”
Saltzpyre from the very top step looked down his nose at the two, "For the glory of sigmar no task is too difficult-nor cost too high.”
Kruber hid his eyes by tipping his head forward, but they were rolling. “Please, don't start anything. We're about to call in every scaven for miles." He said it quietly, though his companions would hear him.
“I think those dead by the door would disagree with you One-Eye.” Kerillian said, completely ignoring Kruber.
“Those men died defending with honor, Which you know so little about.” his lips curled in disgust
“Could have ran and lived. That's better than defending the statue of some barbarian.”
“Hold your tongue elf.” Saltzpyre took a step down from the very top, his grip on his Rapier tightening, ready to point in her direction.
"Why?" She shrugged, stopping halfway up the steps at an open platform. She pointed her partially knocked arrow at a pile on the floor, "Think he's smited every Ratman who took a shit in his courtyard?"
“Stop,” Kruber took a step between the two. He faced Kerillian only and blocked her next steps.
She scoffed, “You going to make me play along with the team Kruber?”
“I shouldn't have too.”
“No, you shouldn’t,” Kerillian side stepped Kruber, brushing her cloak against his arm. “I’m not one of your soldiers.”
Kruber flinched, before he turned with her. “The hell are you here for?"
Kerillian stopped mid step.
“No one’s making you stay." He continued.
She turned around to go down the stairs. Again she pushed her shoulder into Kuber and this time he had to take a step back to keep from falling.
Her steps echoed in the hall as she went, Kruber thought she might actually leave but instead she hopped and climbed the to
scaffolding halfway to the door.
Kruber looked to his other companions. Sienna shrugged, Bardin pretended he had not been watching, and Saltzpyre lifted a questioning eyebrow and by some miracle refrained from commenting.
"Let's get this over with,” Kruber finished the rest of the steps and cut in front of Saltzpyre.
At the top was the large cast copper bell they had came for. He pushed and rocked it twice before it struck. Bong. Bong. Bong. Bong. Bong.
"Form up!" Saltzpyre called out, herding the others together.
As the ring of the bell ended, a rumble started. Above them, the one streak of light that shined on the statue of Sigmar filled with dust. Screeching and scratching echoed. The weight above cracked the stone and rained gravel down.
The first scaven cut around a corner from a hall below. It was pink skinned and patched with blisters. It yelled angry curses, distorted by protruding front teeth. It skittered across the entrance hall and up the stairs, unable to decide on running with two feet or four.
No arrow from Kerillian, though she no doubt saw it. Kruber was sure she couldn't be bothered to waste on such a lowly rat.
With a loud huff, Kruber lifted his great sword. The rat didn't even try to dodge, flaying itself skull to abdomen on the dropping blade.
In moments more followed the little skaven. Kruber was swinging through the brittle bones, two or three pink bodies at once if timed correctly. His companions were smart enough to stand just out of his reach shooting, casting, and defending where his sword didn't face.
For long enough only the littlest of rats came though. Minutes of time bought for Olysea and Lohner to finish their task. The rot bloods came eventually, the men twisted enough to join the Scaven and chaos. Just as mindless. They ran into Krubers blade all the same. Scaven with armor were shot down by Saltzpyres crossbow. Plague monks were burned racing headfirst into Sienna's fire, and Bardin rolled himself into anything that he could get close enough to smash with his hammer.
Scaven pushed through the floor, ran through the halls, squeezed through the cracks. All Kruber's focus went to slicing from shoulder to shoulder, controlling his breath, and timing his movements with the waves of enemies.
“Chaos Knight!”
Kruber registered Bardins cry with the crashing of plate armor.
Only a few paces away the lumbering giant of a Rot blood was scraping its axe on the stone. A crossbow bolt pinged into the Warriors helm and ricocheted off. Unheeded the monster lifted its great ax.
Kruber dived to his left and closer to the bell, tripping over a few of the smaller rats. The ax chipped into the stone as he rolled to his feet. The Knight flipped its blade, swinging it backwards from the floor. The flat of Krubers sword met the ax and he pushed against the Chaos knight to move his body away.
It worked. The Chaos knight whiffed where Krubers ribs should have been, and Kuber fell backwards, rotating awkwardly. With a crack his hip cornered into a step and he slid in pain onto the middle platform. Nausea pooled into his stomach and he thought he might be sick as his skin grew warm. He pushed his weight off his side flipping to sitting on his ass and watched above him as a line of fire shot from Sienna and into the Chaos Knight. Another wave of heat blew over Kruber as the knight crumbled and Sienna kneeled in exhaustion.
“Damit!” He yelled out to her, “Hold on Sienn-”
Cold clasped around his neck. Shallow metal points poking into the thin skin there. He stopped mid sentence, dropped his sword and grabbed in a panic between the ridged noose. With a yank he was pulled down the next flight of stairs. Each step his hip exploding with pain. He struggled just to breathe from the space his hands had given.
“Yes, Yes, Yes,” A raspy voice repeated. It coughed and laughed between muttering, “I caught it, I caught it!”
Kruber was tugged clear of the stairs. Now on flatter ground, Kruber focused more. He was being dragged into one of those branching hallways.
As they neared the pole on the metallic noose was cutting close to the doorway and Kruber leaned into it, using his shoulder to hook himself on the doorway. Desperate and awkward, he held on with just that. The muttering behind turned into screaming, tugging his neck over and over, but Kruber held.
Until his captor flung him sideways to the floor. All his weight crashing to his bad hip.
His mind shut off.
Kerillians voice woke him. A musical note, an echo of her magic dancing between his ears. His hands had loosened the metal around his neck, and in a suddenly conscious effort he pried the pincers off. He blinked frantically and laying flat on his back halfway down a hall he tried to look behind himself. The Packmaster who had caught him was on its back. The blue light of magic fading from the arrow in its skull.
The sound of the horde hadn’t let up, but this was the only corridor without them skittering about. A private place the packmaster could have had all to himself.
Kruber touched his own hip tenderly. No blood, but he still felt as if that area was melting off. He dragged himself backwards and pulled Kerillians arrow out. He gagged at the smell that came off the already rotten corpse, and tried not to think of the bits of bile that stuck to the arrow either.
He needed to get back. He Started towards the entrance hall, using the wall to first stand and then using it to help drag his back leg.
He turned the corner and saw the scaven that surrounded the central area above. A pillar of Sienna's fire magic shot up beside the statue as a beacon.
Olyseas portal magic pinged in his mind. Two or three stories down.
"Shit," he hoped Saltzpyre knew the way below.
He hopped mostly out of sight behind pillars. None looked his way, skittering up towards the central area. He got to the steps, his sword nowhere to be seen but didn't waste time looking for it. He fell forward onto his hands and started crawling up the steps.
“Over here!” he heard a hiss above him.
A rat jumped, small and pink. It cleared the steps, hovering above Krubers head with the small dirty piece of metal it was using as a dagger pointed down. Kruber jabbed the arrow up, piercing the things belly and scraping its spine. If flopped limp over his hand.
Other rats turned at the cry and Kruber panicked to pull the arrow entirely though the rat to be used again.
A loud bang went off behind him. He turned into a bright light from a shutter that had slammed open. He had to look away as his eyes were overwhelmed, but then almost just as quickly he adjusted. He felt the warmth of it on his skin.
Above him the Scaven and Rot Bloods doubled over. Protecting their senses and hissing against the light furiously.They were silhouetted by the statue of Sigmar behind them. It rose higher into the dome, its silver reflecting the light and removing any shadows.
Saltzpyres' voice rose with the statue, “You heathans shall be Judged by the light of Sigmar!” He found himself agreeing with Saltzpyre for once.
Kruber pulled the arrow through and made a break for it. Still his hip flared with pain, but he crawled his way to the top most step and shoved the rats down.
“Over here!” Kruber raised a hand to his companions as he used one of the curled up rats to stand.
"Kruber!” Bardin yelled.
Like a plow the dwarf pushed through the rot blood and scaven while Sienna sent out a wave of fire widening the gap. As they met, Kruber fell onto Bardin. The Dwarf grumbled but held no argument about being used as a crutch.
Sienna between the waves of her hands called out to him, “Get inside! I'll give them another light show!" Sienna motioned to the now open entrance that was directly below Sigmar’s toe.
“The others?” Kruber asked, though he had nothing to offer should they not be inside.
“Heading to the portal already!” Sienna yelled at Bardin pushed him though the door.
It was a spiral staircase, straight down to where he knew Olyseas portal would be. Kruber realized after a few painfully slow steps it was too narrow to let anyone pass him, especially Bardin.
Across and down a level on the stairs, Kerillians green hood and Saltzpyres pointed hat bobbed down the steps. The two of them were slight enough to walk side by side, but it was weird that they were.
"Come elf, don't die on me now." Saltzpyre yelled at her. He was hunched over, holding Kerillians arm over his shoulder.
"You'd- love that," Kerillian punctuated herself by collapsing. They both fell, thankfully away from the shear drop in the center. She laid on her stomach, huffing short breaths with a cloak drenched in blood.
"Find your feet," Saltzpyre told her.
She pushed up to put an elbow beneath herself and pulled a knee forward. She slipped face first down a step.
"Stop." Saltzpyre reached under, cradling her shoulders and legs. "Grab on."
Kruber nearly lost his balance watching Saltzpyre of all people carry her like a child.
"Pick up your speed!" Bardin pressed Kruber.
"I think I made them mad!" Sienna's voice was already behind and waiting on Kruber. "We don't have time darlings!"
"I can't go any faster!" Kruber focused on the steps below him.
"Then you're going to have to jump." She spoke quickly, turning her head at the entrance above them.
"Jump? Are you mad?"
At the top steps, a ratman skidded off the edge toppling head over tail and to the opposite steps below. Sienna jumped first, disappearing into the blue glow of the portal spell. It was hard to see how she landed.
“We have to go now!” Saltzpyre ordered as he disappeared inside the spell holding Kerillian.
"I cannot make that!" Bardin said behind him.
They didn't have a choice. Kruber stepped off before Bardin could warn him not to. Feet first as he sped into the magic and stone below.
_________
Kruber grimaced, there was no readjustment that would make these stone benches comfortable. Of course he liked to lay on his side, and two broken hips made that impossible.
An inch to the right but still on his back, he laid his cheek on the pillow. Looking to Kerillian asleep on the other side of the chapel room.
Kruber wasn't gonna get any rest, so he reasoned with Bardin to not wake Lohner for the final watch. If Kerillian had survived so far, things should be fine for the next couple hours.
Kruber watched the small mountain of blankets she had been piled beneath rising slowly and falling just as steadily. She didn't have her mask, so he could see her lips, pale as a peach, parted ever so slightly.
"You're staring… again," she sounded exhausted.
"You're awake.”
She sighed and squirmed, finding herself unable to move much like Kruber. "How long?" She sounded groggy, her voice deeper than usual.
He pushed himself up, bending at his stomach to sit on an elbow. "Since you were last up, or since Helmgart?"
"I've been up before?"
Kruber nodded, "It's the second night. Well, nearly morning now. You feeling alright? Need me to get Olysea?"
She didn't answer him, "Stayed up to watch me?" She had no mask to block the smile she got teasing him. Her cheeks lifting the corner of her mouth up.
"No-" he denied what she implied, but- "Well actually yeah. It was me or Lohner, and he hadn't slept the night before."
While Olysea spent the majority of her time over Kerillian, Lohner had been more focused on Kruber. Though Kruber didn't know what, other than sharing a few bottles of Brandy, that Lohner had done to make him so tired.
"What happened to you?"
"My hips. Hit the floor pretty hard."
She scoffed, a clearly painful move. "Fell and broke your hip? Brittle bones of age."
"If it's about age then you must be glass by now?" He joked and gave her a smile.
She scoffed again, a habit she might have to quit for a few weeks. "Aye."
Krubers smirk lost its edge.
She kept quiet, eyes closing to slits. Or Maybe they were shut, and she had fallen asleep.
She proved herself awake, and half able to read his mind. "Don’t thank me." It wasn't cocky, or sarcastic. He didn't know how to respond to that.
Kerillian, as she aimed for the Pack Master, was stabbed. She loosed the arrow while the blade was still inside her back. Saltzpyre had recounted it, regretting he hadn't the reaction quick enough to shoot the rogue rat until it had gutted her twice more.
"Alright." Kruber nodded. "Then you don't have to apologize."
"Excuse me?"
He held up a waving hand, "I was mistaken. You only pretend not to be a part of the team."
"I've nothing to apologize to you, and I am not apart of-"
He interrupted her, "Don't worry, your secret's safe with me."