Chương 19: Gate Seventeen (4)

Dagan drove his spear down into the creature's neck. Blood sprayed across his hands. The ashback twisted, nearly wrenching the weapon from his grip, but Dagan held on. Then something shrieked from the right side of the tunnel. The third ashback had nearly forced its way through a gap near the edge. A guard there went down screaming as tusks opened his thigh. Two soldiers turned to help him. That pulled the line wider.

"Close the gap!" the scarred soldier bellowed. Teren shifted right to cover as the men in the front line moved further to the right. Dagan moved to the front instead as the wounded ashback in front of him pulled away from his spear and staggered along the shield line. Dagan tore his weapon free and followed it.

"Hold your place!" Teren shouted. Dagan ignored him. He stepped past the shields and drove his spear into the creature's side, intent on finishing it while it was exposed. The ashback collapsed, but Dagan had moved too far forward. His shield was no longer beside Teren's, leaving an opening where he had been standing. Four more ashbacks came around the bend.

"Dagan!" Teren snapped.

"Get back in line!" The nearest ashback ran straight for the opening Dagan had left. Teren shifted right, trying to close it, but the four monsters were already charging the line. One struck the center while another hit farther left. The scarred soldier and a second soldier caught that one between their shields and began stabbing from beside the rims.

"Dagan!" Teren shouted again. Dagan glanced back. He saw the opening and the ashback charging toward it. Then he looked at another monster coming toward him through the open space ahead. He could have returned to the line. Instead, he pulled his spear from the dead ashback and advanced to meet the new one.

"Dagan! Get back in position!" one of the soldiers yelled. A grin spread across the big lizardfolk's face as he lowered his gray-scaled shoulders behind his shield. He clearly trusted his own strength more than the formation. Ignoring the order, he drove his spear toward the monster's head and left the others to deal with the gap behind him. The third ashback reached Teren before he could fully cover Dagan's place. It struck his shield at an angle and shoved its head between him and the soldier beside him.

The soldier turned to stop it from forcing through, but the movement pulled his shield away from the man beside him and widened the gap. Another man had to turn with him to protect himself from the tusks.

"Keep the line together!" the scarred soldier bellowed. The next charge made that impossible. The fourth ashback struck the men who had turned sideways. One soldier fell, and the monster forced its way past him before the others could close the space. Men farther back raised their shields toward it, leaving them with their backs to the original line. Before long, the formation broke into smaller groups. The scarred soldier and another man fought together near the left wall.

Three soldiers surrounded the ashback that had gotten behind them. Dagan stood several steps ahead, fighting another monster alone. The ashback in front of Teren lunged again. By now, Teren was alone against it. He thrust at its shoulder. The spearhead pierced the thick hide, but not deeply enough to stop it. The creature slammed into his shield. The impact drove him backward and sent a sharp pain through his shoulder. His feet slipped on the blood covering the stone, and his back struck the wall.

One tusk scraped along the iron rim of his shield.

"I need help!" Teren shouted. No one could reach him. One soldier lay motionless near the wall, another was down with blood pouring from his leg, and anyone still standing was already fighting. The ashback shoved against the shield again. Teren planted the butt of his spear in the angle between the wall and the floor, then lowered the point toward the creature's chest. When it pushed forward, its own weight drove the spearhead in. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

The ashback shrieked and jerked sideways, but remained on its feet. The shaft twisted violently and tore free of Teren's hands. The ashback shook its head violently, wrenching the spear from the wound. It struck the wall and clattered across the stone several paces away. Too far to pick up. Dammit! He still had his shield, but nothing else between him and the monster. The ashback turned toward him again. Its small black eyes fixed on him as blood ran down its neck. Teren drew the short knife at his belt.

He did not remember being given it. Maybe all the candidates had been. Maybe he had taken it with the shield. He couldn't even remember right now, but it did not matter. The monster came low. Teren slammed the shield down on the ground to brace it. Tusks struck wood. The shield cracked. Pain shot up his arm. He stabbed over the rim with the knife, hitting the creature's snout. The blade scraped along bone and sank near one of the eyes. The monster screamed. Teren stabbed again. This time the knife stuck.

The creature twisted its head. The knife tore from his grip, leaving him without any weapon. Shit! With both weapons out of reach, Teren kicked at the ashback's snout, trying to force it back before it could gore him. It turned out to be a bad idea, as the monster gored his leg with one tusk. Pain opened along his thigh. Teren shouted in pain and fell sideways, shield still strapped to his arm. The stone struck his hip. His head nearly hit the wall. The monster backed up, shaking blood from its snout.

Someone screamed in pain somewhere. Teren dragged himself backward towards the wall. His injured leg burned. Warm blood ran under his trousers. The shield was half-splintered but still attached to his arm. He could not hold the ashback off much longer.

"Help! Dagan! Anyone!" he desperately yelled again as he looked around. But it didn't take him long to realize no help would be coming. Four soldiers already lay dead, several others were down with injuries and the rest were barely holding back the monsters which still kept coming. Dagan was across the tunnel, driving his spear at another ashback. A fierce grin showed across his face as he pressed the attack. He gave no sign that he had heard Teren over the shouting and the monsters' screams. I'm on my own now...

The ashback charged again. Teren rolled to the side. The tusks struck the reddish stone where his stomach had been, scraping loudly across the wall. The creature skidded, slammed one shoulder into it, and turned with terrifying speed toward him. Teren grabbed for anything as he scrambled back. His fingers closed around a fallen spear shaft. Yes! Relief surged through him until he saw that the spearhead was gone. He grabbed the broken shaft anyway. The monster lunged again.

Teren shoved the broken shaft toward its open mouth with both hands. The wood jammed between the tusks and the jaw. The creature's weight drove into him, crushing him back against the wall. Its breath blasted hot and foul across his face. Teren pushed with both hands, but the creature pushed back harder. His arms shook, and the broken shaft began to splinter. He looked around for anyone who could help. Someone shouted orders ahead.

Boots scraped on stone as a man screamed loudly, while a shield rang like a struck bell. It wasn't hard to realise no one was in a position to help him. Only one option left now... Teren reached inward. Not because he believed it would work any better than it had the last time in the alley. But because he was about to die, and a dying man used whatever madness he had left. Purple fire. Legendary mana. Corvadryn bloodline. Come on... anything. Help me!

The pressure inside him stirred faintly, but it felt far too deep and just as useless. He did not know what shape to give the mana. He did not know where to push, or how to pull it to the surface. Without an assay or Edras guiding him, Teren still had no idea how to bring the mana out on his own. The ashback kept crushing him against the stone, but nothing answered his desperation. The shaft finally broke. The monster's head snapped forward. One tusk punched into Teren's chest.

An excruciating pain shot through him, as his body locked up. He tried to scream, but no sound came out. He struck at the creature with the broken wood, again and again, knowing it would not kill it but desperate to make it pull back before the tusk tore deeper into his chest. The monster wrenched its head. The tusk tore free from his chest. Teren slid down the wall. His shield arm would not rise. The creature staggered back, wounded, bleeding from snout and one eye, but still standing.

Teren tried to push himself up, but his injured leg collapsed beneath him. The monster in front of Teren lowered its head again. Teren was unarmed, unable to use his magic, and completely alone against the monster. He looked past the creature. The formation was gone by now. Men fought in pairs or alone among bodies, broken shields, and fallen spears. Another soldier screamed as an ashback dragged him down. Watching the broken formation, Teren finally understood what had gone wrong.

A shield line only worked if the man beside him could be trusted to hold his place. He was too weak, that was the simple truth. But strength alone would never be enough in this world. Not if the man beside him chose himself and left others to die alone. The ashback charged once more. Teren raised the broken shield because it was the only thing he had left. The tusks hit. Wood shattered like paper. Teren's arm folded against his chest as the last line of defense.

He tried to pull away, but his back was already at the wall. Then the weight came through, and the dungeon took him.