Jordi Villalobos - The Invasion Of The Sombers

The snake wasn't going too fast, but it didn’t allow to stop those who escaped from it, catching the ones who fell and didn't have time to get up again.

The persecution lasted for a while for which the pursued ones became eternal. Perhaps it was four or five hours, although it gave them the impression that they had been harassed for more than a day by the long monster.

Syriel saw in the distance as the squadron of the sombers that awaited them began to emerge and he desperately searched for something that could help him to free himself from the bonds. They couldn't stop and go on either. Lirieth guessed their restlessness.

“What's the matter," he asked. “Shall we approach the sombers? Try to find something to free yourself, you have to take off my hood. Do it, do it whatever it takes, but do it," the princess begged afflicted.

Syriel explored around him, though he saw nothing that could help. Suddenly he watched from the sky as a small but fast falcon descended straight towards him. As it approached, he saw that he was carrying an object in his beak and was surprised to see that it was dropping a dagger at his feet, taking flight again.

Syriel did not hesitate for a moment to pounce on the dagger and begin to rub its ties with its sharp steel.

Men and orcs ran in front of them, Baldrich had also stayed with the princes, they hoped to be able to do something once the time had come.

There was not much time left and in a few seconds the snake would reach them. Syriel rubbed his frenzied ligatures against the dagger, although the rope was very hard and difficult to tear apart.

Finally, he managed to get rid of the ties when the proud snake was only a few yards away. With desperation, the prince ran towards Lirieth to remove the hood, which was attached to her neck with a strap. With his fingers still half numb from the ties, it took Syriel more than a little while to remove the hood from the princess's head, just in time to be able to dodge the first serrated of the enormous reptile's frightening jaws.

With the sudden movement, Syriel had the ruby necklace detached from the chest and the snake stood still for a few instants, watching the red stone as if fascinated by it, as if the ophidian had seen it before.

Syriel and Lirieth took advantage of the small truce without wasting time.

“The rope, take the rope off me," Lirieth implored while putting the hands as far apart as possible in front of the prince.

Syriel grabbed the dagger and, with a precise stroke, cut the ropes with little harm to the discouraged princess, and just as the snake showed that it had lost interest in the stone and was about to attack them again, Lirieth moved her arms slowly and rhythmically from side to side as she spoke strange words with sweetness, but with determination.

Kasariviel stood surprisingly still staring at the princess and as Syriel released Baldrich, Lirieth asked nervously:

“Baldrich, what the hell do I do now?”

“First of all, keep calm. Don't let the snake see you fearful, speak to it with authority and self-confidence. Then, do as we do in our practices: inculcate in it what it must do. At this moment perhaps it would be good for us if it attacked the dark ones on the other side of the tunnel," replied the elf.

Lirieth concentrated on a mental struggle with the snake to force it against the sombers. She pointed at them, as if ordering the reptile to obey her. Then she pointed more insistently and ended with an imperative and thunderous "NOW!" that made the snake wince and carry out the order quickly and even with a palpable air of fear.

The princess dismissed Kasariviel shouting in restrained rage:

“That's it! Go get 'em! Go get 'em! Stupid fucking beast!”

A pleased Baldrich whispered to a perplexed prince with a furtive, underhanded smile:

“If I were you, I would never contradict her.”

The serpent passed through the tunnel with determination, flanked by the exhausted, frightened and still handcuffed men and orcs, who were surprised to see the monstrous serpent almost grazing them, but ignoring them, as if they didn't exist.

As the reptile emerged from the tunnel it lunged with unusually strong fury at the astonished sombers, which hurled arrows and spears at their attacker, though they did not seem to affect it much.

Already almost all the men and orcs were free from their ties and the serpent continued its fierce battle against the dark ones. Syriel, Lirieth, Baldrich, Hans and the two orc generals tried to analyze the situation.

“The serpent will not be able against all the dark and we’re disarmed to confront those who remain," said Syriel.

“Perhaps we could go back to Karbandur and get weapons," Lirieth proposed.

But a murmur of footsteps interrupted them and they saw their exit towards Karbandur cut by a squadron of about two-hundred somber ones that approached them very well armed and with two antimagic hoods prepared.

They went backwards until they realized that Kasariviel must have fallen, because lots of sombers began to appear at the other tunnel’s entrance.

Everything seemed to be lost: some two hundred sombers on one side and another one hundred and eighty on the other, and in the middle, inside a tunnel with no other exits, some two hundred and twenty men and orcs vulnerable. Only Syriel wielded a dagger which he was already gripping, threateningly holding it tight against the dark ones.

But suddenly there was a buzzing sound, and about sixty sombers of those with Karbandur on their backs fell inert or badly wounded. Behind the providential dwarf crossbow arose Garin and Bellamir accompanied by about four hundred dwarfs who grabbed axe in one hand and a sword in the other, which were given to both men and orcs.

Just as Syriel was about to receive a sword thrown at him by Garin, a somber suddenly appeared attacking him from the side. An instant before the somber wounded Syriel to death, Smolion's sword stopped the blow. A tenth of a second later, Syriel pierced the shadow's chest as he gave an expressive look of gratitude to the orc general.

In a short time, things changed a lot. With the newly arrived reinforcements armed with the swords received, they soon defeated the sombers, of which some two-hundred fell lifeless, badly wounded or captured and the rest managed to flee to the Badlands.

When the battle was over, Syriel went to meet Garin and embraced him warmly in thanksgiving.

“Garin, we are indebted to you. You have saved our lives and we will never forget it. What happened to your father?" asked Syriel with clear signs of relief.

“I'll start from the beginning. After I was locked up again, after a while, I heard a rumor spreading to the other side of the door and, as the door opened, Bellamir appeared again with all my dwarves released. All together we went to arm ourselves and went to the gates of the pass. At every level we captured the rebels we encountered and recruited those who declared themselves loyal, until we gathered considerable strength and filled the dungeons with rebels. When we arrived at the gates, you had already been expelled a while before and, after a dwarf versus dwarf battle, we managed to reduce the rebels and my father, who preferred to take his own life in order not to be captured. We opened the doors and came here as fast as we could, trying to bring weapons for you. So, you are indebted to Bellamir, because without him we would not be here," said the new dwarf lord.

“We are indebted to both of them. And I'm very sorry about your father, he was always a distinguished and loyal dwarf, but in the end, he was driven by hatred. Now, you will be the new lord of the dwarfs, I am sure you will know how to lead your people with greatness, wisdom and benevolence," said the grateful prince with conviction.