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[Quaksna]

"Master, master, we have been ambushed!"



"What?!!" shouted Oströtakåtōz. "What do you mean by that?"

"A number of dwarves and underground pests alike has infiltrated the fortress!"

"But... But it's sealed!"

"They got past! We don't know how, they're in now!"

"Well don't just stand here! Go stop them!"



"You, Omot! Gather as many troops you need and dispatch the enemy force!"

"At once, Ukustmōklo."



"Wait... I sense... No way..."



"Seems I'll have to deal with this myself!"



"Push through, hold on!" cried Alak. "Wõrv, get your troops to the front line, don't stand back, Zodostshokmut!"

"There truly is one of us, hiding there!" said Kādol. "Guess you were right after all..."



"Scorch them, help the soldiers!" croaked the toad.

"Nonsense! We two have to keep our powers intact, reserve them for the boss!"

The toad thought over it, smiled and nodded. Finally, the firebeard is cooperating, he thought. But tension between Wõrv and Alak grew.



"They're just skirmishers, they can't hold the line themselves!" the amphibian man barked. "If you don't want to lose your precious dorfs..."

"Doesn't mean you can't use them right now, for crying out loud!" barked Alak.



Despite the arguing commanders, the dwarves and Wõrv's underlings held the line well, Urist especially, while Kādolites were bombing the enemy from behind. Regular goblins were falling fast, but trolls were giving our heroes problems.



After a while of fighting, a moment of respite. New goblin soldiers stopped coming, and Alak could advance deeper into the fortress. But the battle took its toll. Nirmek fell, alongside with two amphibian men, a kobold, and Duthnur was rather badly wounded. Rikkir didn't come out unscathed too, but was able to continue the fight. And he did need to, for another wave of goblins was coming.



"What if he himself comes?" asked Rikkir. "That fabled "boss" of theirs?"

"Don't burden your mind with that. He won't stand a chance against the two of us, should he try to cast a spell on you, the toado can counter it, and I'll smite him!" said Kādol.

"Wait a tick..." Alak whispered.



"That's the bloody bandit that cut off the route in Tetistinen! Oh, once I'll get to him..."

"Spread the trolls!" ordered Omot. "They have some fiery trickery taking on multiple targets!"



"Bomb them!" cried Alak. "Take the trolls down, they want to surround us full circle!"

"There's not much left!" shouted Lolor.

"Go and toss it, we need it now!"



With a blast, one troll went down. But the enemy force managed to reach the heroes, and it looked bad. Kādolites ran out of bombs and went to firejet the foes instead. That did well, but the dwarves were still overwhelmed.



Duthnur quickly fell, and some more kobolds, too. Urist was keeping the goblins back, but the last troll standing targeted him.

With ferocious charge, he trampled over the warrior, and began bashing him.



Kādolites attacked the troll, but Urist was lying motionless, just occasionally jerking, and trying to say something.

When Alak saw him fall, he entered martial trance, and went for Omot. He threw off his two guards relentlessly and began clashing with the goblin.

Omot was dodging successfully, but his martial abilities did not overpower the furious dwarf.



Alak slashes Omot in the neck and the severed part sails off in arc!

When he turned back, all the enemies were lying on the smoothed stone floor, red and cyan blood on their spots. He ran to Urist.



"I... I..." the crushed axedwarf uttered, and then passed out.

"No..." said Alak. "Luslemnod, do..."

"He's dead, I'm sorry." the toas croaked. "There's nothing we can do for him."

Rikkir was standing next to him, with bend back, panting heavily.

"He fought well." he said. "But we must go on. There might be more of them..."

The militia commander looked like he's going to join Urist anytime soon.

"At least give strength to Rikkir!" Alak pleaded. "Save what you can!"

Toad was going to say something, but Kādol interrupted.

"I suppose you could do that. Hm? That ain't much big of a deal."

The toad gestured and let loose a powerful croak.

Rikkir stands up.

"Let's go, the battle is not won yet." the macedwarf said.

"What about Urist?" asked Alak. "We can't leave him beh..."

"We did every other fallen..." said Ziril. "Nothing's gonna happy to him..."

"But..."



Kādol sighed, and picked the copperclad axedwarf up.

"Move now, move! I'll handle this!"

Alak's spirits were lifted a bit, so he went forth. But not a minute of progress has passed, Kādol put Urist's body down.



"Watch out. He's coming."

[Yellow Pixel]

"Watch out. He's coming."

... and he has the power of an entire army!

[mightymushroom]

I am surrounded by death. It is terrifying.

[Quaksna]

"Great work, move it, move it!" Urnūt was calling from distance.

"How's the trap?" Kin called back.

"Not well, need more time!"



"Here they come, dwarves, here they are!" cried Zeg.

"Hold them back! At all costs, just don't let them through!"



Soon the corridor was filled with creatures.

Troglodytes couldn't figure how to cross the boulders, and weren't that problematic. Kobolds weren't much of a threat, either. Trolls haven't reached the barricade yet, but the masked dwarves had. When they saw Zeg, they entered murderous rage.



"Not good." said Zeg. "Where are our army crundles? They would certainly be useful now!"

Adur the animal keeper whispered something to him.

"Ah."

"Why can't we use crundles?" asked Urnūt.

"Guess what, they're not ready. Would probably flee to the caverns..."

Urnūt was thinking, between the loud bangs of his pickaxe striking the ground.

"Ermis, go up. Send me here whoever could help."



Ermis nodded, and ran back above ground, panting.



The defenders of Kudarkalur started running out of luck. Once the enemy dwarves reaches the barricade, spears of our heroes stopped being such an advantage, as they had them, too. Ībmat got injured, so did Kin and Adur.

"They got through! Run! Run!" screamed Muz, and started to moonwalk back.

"Stay still, you fool!" shouted Zeg, right before he got hit by a stone axe.

Then, the trolls arrived, and the stone wall was no more.



"Agh... We must truly retreat now... Urnūt! We're coming towards you!

Urnūt was trembling, as he didn't think the cave-in is ready to be executed. But they had no choice.

The dwarves were fleeing from the battle, but the enemy force was fast enough to catch up with them. Kin turned back, only to see the foes right behind him.



"Blast 'ye!" he muttered, and stopped running. This confused the dwarves, but Zeg pushed them forward.

"Go, go! Don't look back!"

Kin has entered a martial trance!



The one dwarf stood up against all of the enemies. One dwarf has stopped the overwhelming force from reaching Kudarkalur. Getting hit from all directions, but didn't back a bit.



He fell, onto a pile of kobolds, vile dwarves, and a troll. But he bought the heroes enough time.



The warriors finally crossed Urnūt, who was still working on the trap.

"Stand back. This could work." the miner said.



When the enemies have crossed the line, he stroke the rock beneath him, terrible rumbles followed. He stroke a few more times, and the cave floor began to move, slide down.



A section of the cave has collapsed!



The enemies standing there fell to their deaths, those behind were forced to stop.



Urnūt was standing there, too, though. He managed to grab the ledge, but his sweaty hands were slipping. Zeg gave him a hand, and pulled him out. They didn't waste any time, and ran off to the fortress, planning what to do next.



"That went well enough..." said Muz. "But poor Kin..."

"Only if you could fight like he did, then we might stand a chance against this invasion!" said Zeg. "What can we do, now?"

"Isn't there some sealing mechanism in Kudarkalur?" asked Ībmat.

"There isn't even a mechanic, and now we pay because of it." said Urnūt. "Our only chance is to block the corridor manually, and whole."



"We could drop a hallway, couldn't we?" asked Zeg. "That shouldn't be too hard, and if we'll save the fortress, totally worth it!"

"If only Alak and our soldiers were here... But that is a good idea. We'll give it a shot."

[Yellow Pixel]

And now for more spectacular crushing!

[Quaksna]

Be ready for a few jumps back and forth between both fortresses.

A foul green mist started creeping over the hallways of the Mountainhome. As it reached our heroes, they started sweating, coughing, blisters and warts appeared on their pale skin.



The toad started channeling a protective spell, trying to disrupt this horrible disease.

"Show yourself!" growled Kādol.



The toad successfully dispelled the vile fog, and revealed Oströtakåtōz. He was rather shocked, seeing that there are two of his kind against him.



Kādol went straight to action, shooting firejets at the enemy. Oströtakåtōz was try to dodge or block them, but he received a number hits.

Hopelessly trying to turn the tide, he gestured and sent a spell towards the toad.



"Aaaaah!" the toad croaked, pushed by a powerful force, sliding across the chamber.



It was too late for Oströtakåtōz. Kādol cornered him.

"Fool... I am the Alsmustspås..."



The dwarven lord of fire crushed him with his two blazing fists, burning his body to cinder.



Simultaneously, the toad and Kādol chanted:

"By the power I wield, you're banished from this world!"

And the presence of the Oströtakåtōz, the Ukustmōklo, was no more.



"The day is won! The Mountainhome is ours!" shouted Alak.

"But only a handful lived to see our victory, that is, if we truly won." said Lolor. "What if there are still goblins out there?"

Alak thought for a moment.

"There is indeed way too few of us... Where is Wõrv?"



"Here, haul away this one, it's loose!" ordered Urnūt.



"Grab it at the other side, Vśsh... There!" said Zeg, as they tried to lift the boulder. "Great, let's move!"



"Oh come on, a little bit further!"

"Let me catch my breath..." said Ermis. "I ain't the hauler I used to be..."

"What is going on here?" a voice spoke.



"Alle?" said Zeg.



"I thought there is a party going on! No one's at the entrance, there's dead silence all over the fortress... So what's going on?"

"Were at a war, sir." said Ermis. "Below us, a neverending horde of cave critters is pouring into the fortress."

"We manage to cut them off with a pit. But they have an ogre." Zeg explained.

The lord was nodding, listening carefully.

"You need to seal the fortress, then."

"We want to. Our substitute overseer Urnūt is currently preparing a cave-in that should shut the corridor once and for all."



"How many soldiers do you have at hand?"

"Currently, three. They're guarding the tunnel just in case. Till the cave-in."

"Only three? I better lend them a hand. Where are they?"

"Straight, then downwards." said Vśsh.

"Be careful!" called Zeg, but the lord already vanished from his sight, not wasting a tick.



"Hello there, mister Urnūt! I am going to help you in the fight."

"Oh, lord Dazelosric! Well, I'll take any help I can!"

"When is the cave-in ready? I'm curious."

"Want to damage the floor on five more spots. Can't say how long it will take."

"I see. Good luck!"



"Why are they sending over the pit one guy at a time?" said Ībmat. "They have a bloody ogre at disposal!"

"You shouldn't be complaining, as long as we're still alive, it's fine by me!" said Muz.

Regardless of the unused potential of the enemy forces, the three watchmen were exhausted, sweat and blood dripping from them.



"Greetings, dwarves! I am here to aid you in the fight!"

The dwarves exhaled in relief.



"Go to your master. I'll take it from here."

"What?!!" asked Muz. "We can't leave a man alone here, you don't know what you're dealing with! This is an invasion!"

"Return to the fortress, and tell your master to drop the hallway as soon as the trap is ready."

"But..."

"Trust me. I'll make it out in time. Now go!"



The enemy realized holes in their strategy, and sent the ogre forth.

"Here we go..."





"And you are surprised?" growled Kādol. "You thought we could trust the green scum?"

"Haven't seen him since we last fought with the goblins..." said Rikkir. "He's... Just gone..."

"You thought he wasn't a traitor? You thought he was genuinely help dwarves to reclaim the Mountainhome?"

"I..." said Alak.



"Why do you think he came here only with bodyguards and few skirmishers? You think that was all he could offer?"

"Why didn't you tell us earlier? You knew this?"

"I did not. But it is clear as day now... Why do you think an underground warlord residing right below your fortress would trick you this way?"



"Why did you leave him there?!!" screamed Zeg.

"For the last time, it was his wish! It was his plan!" said Muz. "He said he'll return in time!"

Loud banging and crashing noises were coming from below, sending chills through the dwarves.

"The ogre will tear the poor man in pieces, fools!" cried Zeg. "I'm going down there!"

The tribesman ran off, towards the stairs to the caverns, but soon came to halt, stopped by an unexpected seeing.



It was the lord, coming from the opposite direction. His blade stained with blood, his hair messed up by the underground dust, and his expensive clothing dirty. Apart from that, he looked rather sound.

"Stop right there and turn back." he said to Zeg. "You can do the cave-in, mister Urnūt."

"How did you..."

"Do it, quick."



A section of the cavern has collapsed!

The dwarves saw briefly field of corpses, with a gigantic pale one on top, being buried underneath loose stone, till it all disappeared, like if no dwarf has ever struck the earth there.



"We did it! Kudarkalur is saved! We made it!" Muz rejoiced, and the other dwarves with him.

"Alle... I don't know what you did down there, but you're gift from the gods." said Zeg.



"Lord Dazelosric, Kudarkalur is forever in debt for you." said Urnūt. "I'll make sure lord Alak..."

"I was glad to help out. Now, where is lord Alak. Or... Lolor for that matter? Did they fall repelling the invasion?"

"They're on a mission to reclaim the Mountainhome. We hope they'll return soon..."






Despite their target was vanquished, the dwarves were quite upset, disturbed by the implications of Kādol's speech.

"Is there something you are hiding from us, toad?!!"

"What do you mean by that?"

"You brought that traitor into our camp."

"I did not plot anything... Why do you think this is my fault? I did not..."



"Friends, there is no victory for us. As long as this toad stands among us."

[Yellow Pixel]

Oh! The foul green mist spreading like strips of wrapping tissue... Nothing that could stand against Ōvok, the magical toad! And the mighty Kādol with his scorching fire was indomitable and thus made short work of the pestiferous goblin! However, his impusilvity brought him to accuse Ōvok to be in league with Wõrv, this vile bastard! How could he unjustly blame a toad, such a cute and gentle jumping animal?

Talking about Wõrv: now I understand the big W on the head of the pale ogre, it's the symbol of this blasted cave lord! What did he think, that he could take Kudarkalur and the Mountainhome in one go? Then what, the whole universe?! Anyway, all things considered, this story part has been much fun!

[Quaksna]

"Why would you assume such a thing?!!" the toad croaked. "I came to help you, help you reclaim what's yours, not seize it for myself!"

"I don't believe you."

A moment of silence.

"Kādol..." said Alak. "Luslemnod has nothing to do with Wõrv's betrayal.

"How do you know? It's a toad."



"Is that all your reasoning?" the toad asked. "I tried to unite us, but if you're unwilling to..."

"Your idea of an union is a lofty one. But there are things you should never mix together."

"I wanted to help you."

"That's admirable. Still you're an obstacle."



The lord of fire leapt towards the toad, igniting his fists. He blinded everyone in the room by his flames, only Luslemnod was able to resist it, and the three Kādolite masters. A clash began.

"Why are you doing this? This shall not be to anyone's benefit." wept the toad.

"I disagree."



The toad was overpowered by Kādol, and vanished in the fire.

"By the power I wield, you are banished from this world."



When the dwarves recovered from the shock, the toad was no longer there.

"You monster!" Alak screamed. "Why?!! It wasn't our enemy!"



"It was a friend..."

Alak turns berserk!



The overseer tried to charged the lord of fire, but he easily propelled him, back with a force wave.



Alak stood up, unsheathed his other sword and tried it again.



And again.



"How can you do such things?" another angry voice shouted. But not from the militia ranks. From Kādolites. It was Lolor.



"Stop it! They both helped us, and you dare to treat them this way?"



The manager hit Kādol. As soon is hands touched him, though, a sudden pain went through his body.



Tongue of fire swirled and danced all over him, and he fell down, with a dying breath.



It was a lot to process for the other dwarves, only Alak tried to relentlessly attack Kādol, while he was constantly being flung back. The militia watched their crazed overseer, too scared to intervene. The overseer did cool down because of fatigue, when another Kādolite disrupted the silence.



"Why did you kill Sįkrith, is that what you do to those who rightfully defy you?!!" cried Kōn Keshan. "I'm not serving that kind o..."



And he met the same horrible fate. Ziril sighed.



"Alas, I am once again the last remaining Kōn. Are you happy now?"

"Those two wouldn't be of use with that attitude." Kādol growled. "They sealed a pact, those are the rules!"

"Why don't you kill these as well? They're not going to bow to your will."



"Because we're not toads, right?" Alak said, panting. "We're dwarves, you don't mind dwarves... Is that right?"

"He does have a point, Kādol."



"Well, I thought they may cooperate. But seems I might smite this one as well!"



"Don't. You've done enough wrong. I'll take it from here. For years, I've been keeping the order alive. Now, it can properly rise to its former glory..."



"You're both disgusting!" screamed Alak, and went back to his murderous rage.



Kādol tossed him back without a thought, but Ziril did not like that.

"Send them away. I can't watch their pain any longer... Send them away."



Kādol casted a spell, moving Rikkir, Otad and Alak outside the fortress.



"We're going to need new wizards for our new realm." Ziril said. "Come forth, Solon and Id."

"May I... Well..." said Id, trembling. "Upon reconsideration... Can I leave? Well..."



"Sadly, you've seen what happens to those of us who try to leave. I'm sorry."

"Very well then, I guess... *sigh* Give... Give me the secrets, if it has to be..." whispered the old miner, without the fascination and wonder he once had. He never regained it.














"What if he was right? What if the union was a lost cause?" asked Rikkir.

Alak was silent.



"Let's go home." he spoke at last. And the three of them left the war-torn place.

The End                               

Thanks for reading.

[Yellow Pixel]

Aargh! Ōvok has been banished from the world, Alak is utterly distraught and his army is broken... What a horrendous end! But at the same time, one can never expect the gravity of war outcomes. So it's sad but not unexpected!

I suppose also that owing to the kind hearts of our dwarven heroes and the teachings of Ōvok, a spark of solidarity and goodwill will survive at Kudarkalur. And maybe someday, possibly with an alliance of the dwarves, Ongongera (the golden deity) and Wįlim (the protector of the now deceased Exalted One), they will reclaim the Mountainhome for good and overthrow its new ruler, the brutal Kādol?

Be that as it may, these Tales are epic and I enjoyed them a lot!