The Tower - Part II (381 hits)
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Submitted by <rolusdeplorium.at.hotmail.com> (View user info) at 2004-08-25 18:46:17 EDT
The Tower - Part I : http://www.ubersite.com/m/42771
The crude army, armed with pitchforks, sticks, poles, rods, and anything they could reach, gathered in the center of the town. In the front of the army, there was a strong-looking man. He had a double-ended spear strapped to his back, and a battleaxe in his hand.
"Ready?!" He called out to the army at his back. The crowd rustled with anticipation, and they began their trek up to The Tower. Many of the men hesitated.
"We need everyone we can get! Forward!" yelled Argin, wielding his battleaxe. The hesitating soldiers ran to catch up with the rest. As they approached it, they heard the yelping of hounds on the hill. They marched on, oblivious to the creatures awaiting them.
The army reached the gates surrounding The Tower, and stopped.
"Prepare yourselves. We must scale this. Anyone with dangerous weapons, throw them through. I'll go first." Argin began to climb the fence. The fence was slick, and his foot slipped. Luckily, though, he kept his grip on the top, and hoisted himself over.
"Careful, mates," he called. "It's a mite slippery." The army swarmed the gates, trying to get over. Argin turned around, to look at The Tower.
Drool dripped from gray, stony fangs. Gray eyes stared at Argin, hungrily. A low growl emanated from inside the jaws. Argin stepped back, reflexively. His hand snapped to his battleaxe, and he swung with all his might. Sparks flew when the axe made contact with the creature. It was stone!
"RUN!!" Argin yelled. Half of the Army, already over the fence, tried to scramble back over. There was chaos, as many of the men tried pushing over the others. Many fell, many died. The creature leaped upon Argin, and its jaws clamped centimeters from his face. He pushed with all his might, and the stone creature was thrown off his chest. Argin took a good look at his adversary.
Much like a dog, this creature had jaws, four legs, and a stumpy tail. Its body was a dull gray, and it had an evil look to it. He knew what this creature was, from stories he had read. Gargoyle, his mind told him. He just needed to remember its weakness...
"Gargoyles," his mind recited to him, "are stone statues. Magic wielders can turn these statues into living creatures. Living Gargoyles are fearsome foes, and can easily rip a weary adventurer to shreds. There is one weakness, however, that not many people know of. If a Gargoyle is submerged entirely in water, the process of erosion is accelerated, and the rock in it is eroded. The creature then seems to fall in itself, and crumbles."
Argin snapped back to reality. He hurriedly ran towards the fence, and scaled it with ease. When he touched down, he yelled to his army. "Men! Are any of you a mage? I need a spell made, fast!"
A thin man stepped from the back of the group. He looked to be about 18 years of age, and it appeared he never cut his hair. It hung, messily, down to his back. He was holding a short staff, with a blue sapphire adorning the top.
"What spell do you need, sir?"
"Well, my boy, I need you to cast a simple water spell on the creature. When the water touches it, it will crumble."
The mage nodded, and stepped up to the fence. He began waving the staff, and muttering strange words: "Aig Nerigna Aitchtoooh Firagna!" The sapphire became very bright, and suddenly a malefic cloud began to take shape over the gargoyle.
Suddenly, the cloud burst, and a torrent of water blasted down on the gargoyle. The creature screamed with pain, and began writhing on the ground.
"Alright men, lets try this again." Argin shouted, and began to scale the fence again. The army followed, and they began their journey toward the castle.
Argin turned, hearing the sound of rolling rock. There, in the pile of the remains of the gargoyle, a strange shape began to arise. Argin held his battleaxe, ready. Abruptly, a red wolf jumped from the rock pile. It was a large dog, with very sharp-looking claws and huge jaws. Its tail swung side to side lazily. It opened its mouth, and a high-pitched bark was heard. The men at Argin's back froze in place.
"Dammit!" Argin yelled, "What is this?!" He jumped, his battleaxe cutting the air. He knew he had hit his target; there is no way to miss. Suddenly, he was thrown forward, and the wolf was behind him.
He leaped up, and kicked at the wolf. It yelped, its nose bleeding. It leaped on Argin, claws flailing. He rolled to the side, and swung his axe. His blade cut the wolf's tail, and it fell to the floor. Instantly, it turned to ash. Wounded, the wolf darted to the side, and bit Argin's arm. It held its grip, and hung from his arm.
Argin yelled with pain, and chopped the wolf right in the back of the head.
The wolf leaped off Argin, with the axe still in its head. It's eyes turned blood red, and it dashed straight at Argin's chest. Argin sidestepped, and reached for his spear. The wolf was back on him before he had a chance to grab his weapon. He toppled to the ground, and the wolf leaped on him in a second. It jaws closed inches from his nose, and he kicked the beast as hard as he could. It rolled off him.
Argin grabbed his spear, and thrust it as hard and fast as he could at the creature's body. It impaled it, and the creature fell to the ground. Within seconds, it turned to ash.
He wiped off his spear, and strapped it on his back. He removed his axe from the pile of ash, and held it at his side. Suddenly, his men came to life, yelling and rushing at where the creature was several minutes ago. Confused, they stopped. Argin sighed, and the walked up to the front gates of The Tower.
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High above, a tall figure in a black cloak watched below.
"Hm..." the man said, "They seem to have gotten farther than I thought. I seem to have underestimated my foes... well; I suppose they will have to meet Shiven... heh, heh, heh...." He walked from the balcony, back into The Tower.
User Reviews
Submitted by jack11058 (user info) at 2004-08-25 20:14:11 EDT (#)
Ranking: 1
I tune in for the next installment...