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" Save the world? You ******** with me! Why should I care what happened elsewhere?!" Damion shot back, feeling his anger rising red and hot in his mind, hands gripping tight his weapon. Thus it was abit of a suprise to see a tree so suddenly flying at him, trailing its' lifeblood out behind it as it careened towards him. A strangled gasp and he was dropping, twisting on his heels and falling to flatten out against the steps, axehammer held across his chest like a shield as the leafy vegetation passed dangerously close overhead.

But laying on one's back on steps didn't put him in a good defensive position, and in a rush he was back up, swinging his weapon in a wide brutal arc through the air. There was no one to hit, and while he could see his assailants he was still shocked at the sheer size of the man.

" ******** me...."

The words were stolen from his lips, unbidden, but he didn't mean them any less, nor was the shock behind them feigned. But then he was moving, stumbling backwards from the darting figure of the female, her blades throwing sparks up from the stone haft of his weapon, deep gouges left from where her blades cut in.

((I don't think Chen put it at the back of Zaar's head execution style, Ecks. If he did, I think even using a rubber bullet at that range would be fatal if shot to the head.

Though, just how big are these orcs anyway?))



!

What the--!?

Tenkai stifled himself through his better judgement. Chen's actions were incredibly sudden, but something was off about it. There was no splatter of blood from the gunshot, and at that short distance there would definately be some noticeable head trauma. Tenkai wasn't an expert in firearms, but he had enough experience to know Chen had used some sort of false bullet.

But why was Chen deviating from his plan?

Wait...

The monk remembered how superstitious the other orcs were. Without the head orc to keep them in line, their morale would plummet! Their chain of command was shattered!

So that's how it its...Smart thinking, inspector!

Of course, with that lout bellow of rage and Chen's cries for help, the other orcs would soon be on the scene pretty fast. Now that their leader was out cold, it was time to up the ante on this puppet show.

Such a waste. If he had killed him, I would have at least seen blood...

Let's not lose focus.

Continuing the charade, Tenkai directed the false spectre to hover over the unconscious Zaar. Although the orc was simply unconscious and not dead, the presence of the ghost would make it appear as if it scared the life out of him.

Or, at least, scared the consciousness out of him.

Tenkai just hoped that Chen wouldn't try to make it as if the orc had been killed. The other orcs weren't very bright by their appearances, but they were probably smart enough to know that dead things didn't breathe. But it did look like the ghost had beaten their leader. Now it was time to deal the final blow to their morale.

Here we go.

The monk channeled a larger amount of spirit energy into the false spectre, almost as if he was playing ventriloquist with his own aura. The increase in spiritual pressure along with Muramasa's inherent killing intent. Once the other more superstituous orcs saw it, it'd hopefully send them into disarray.

Whether the orcs ran away in fear or simply became more cooperative after Chen "exorcised" the ghost, either could be used to get closer to that cargo.

((Chen was mainly aiming from some distance and delivered the shot. So he likely angled it upward before shooting.))

"Stay back," he said instantly to the orcs, though he surely wouldn't be able to stop their assault onto the scene of seeing the ghost hovering over their fallen leader.

"The thing took out your leader in one blow! If you guys get too close, it's going to do the same to you. We need to fall back and regroup or else we're going to die."

The detective was already moving backwards as if he was afraid of the ghost pursuing, though it was just one of his games of pretend. "Stick together and let's try to get out of here. I'm sorry, but we can't do anything about your leader. After all, you guys got a wagon to move, right? And if it gets too close, you'll lose more than a wheel."

((Tenkai, Warhammer Orcs are a match for Space Marines in size, which goes to say they are alot bigger than a normal human))

Damion was granted no response, and not a moments respite. Three knives scored along the heft of his weapon, and then a small tap was heard soft as a cats paw as its prey. The woman's foot hit the ground and launched her immediately upwards and away, swirling like a diagonally tilted white top, lengths of her garments flowing like a tempest. It seemed no sooner than a breath or two after her initial attack and now three blades were baring down on Damion, tossed from her impossibly thin pale hands.

A heartbeat after the knives flew there was a grunt, which sounded more closely related to a roar. To massive hands grabbed the base of the tree beside the demon possessed elemental, muscles audibly strained and pulsed, and the tree was moved. Or rather, swung, like a sort of wild and unwieldy club or bat meant to send the elemental careening back toward town, back down the stairs, and even farther away from Nikolai.

It all happened so fast, and Damion in his efforts to defend himself was not granted very much of a visual as to what had transpired. What the earth element would know as he finally came to rest and as a crimson rage swirled inside him, was that the tree had flown overhead, bounding down the stairs and rolling menacingly toward the crowd of zombies, and a particular Reaper.

But that was behind him. He had no time, or place for such things.

Ahead of him, were his opponents. No. His prey. A burly husband, with the head of hammer sticking out from his chest. The axe buried deep in his flesh, though the wound did not bleed. The axe head had penetrated about half of his length, slowed and then eventually halted in place. If the wound hurt, he did not seem to show it.

Gracefully on his shoulder sat his wife, her tattered ribbons still billowing in the wind along with aged white lines of loose hair. Another three knives had replaced those she had tossed.

The two sat. And they watched. They did not rush him as a predator might, but seemed content to wait. Poised and prepared.

Behind them, Damion would be able to hear and even feel Nikolai darting up the stairs. With every breath the old man got farther, and farther. Closer and closer to his unholy goals.

With a wet pop an earthen axe hammer fell from fleshy holdings, and was dropped unceremoniously on the ground. The next move it seemed, belonged to Damion.

" No no Nicolai, that just won't do. The parties just getting started!"

Said the earth elemental, his hand digging trenches into the ground and quaking the very earth. The stairs began to shake like the ancient things they were and Nikolai's footing began to rock. Before the stairs shattered, before the ground gave or anything was formed, he shouted back down the stairs.

Malythka! Byros!

And all at once they were upon him.

Damion now had options. He could continue to earth shape. But there was a flash of white cloth headed straight for his exposed face at lightning speeds bearing, not tossing, six blades that meant to dice his unprotected eyes and throat. Immediately behind which was a man, a man who did not charge, but who leapt, sending his massive figure careen downward with all the threat of a boulder smashing a bug, and who's form threatened to hit harder than even a tree could have. If he continued, Nikolai may be slowed...but it was unlikely Damion would be seeing the next sun rise.

The woman was unrelenting.

Her first attack was a double slash, right arm then left, clanging uselessly against Damion's guard. He back stepped and she pressed forward, her now at both sides of her person lashed forward across her chest in a vicious X shape. Again, it seemed purposely, aiming for the knife in his hand. And yet not. Mid attack, as her hands crossed, her fingers opened, and with a an open left palm she smashed at the knives protruding from Damion's arms aiming to send them deeper, even as her other hand continued its slash, testing the earth elemental's defense. Never letting it slack lest blood be drawn.

The attack did not stop. Shoving, forcing, pressing him back. Cross slash, left, right, thrust, double thrust, keeping a constant yet random rhythm as if goading him to defend. Until he, stopped her.

Nine steps down he came to a halt, thunder echoing across the small battlefield as her massive husbands feet smashed through stone as if it were wooden board. If Damion meant to charge, he had to get through her first. However her husband had no such compunctions as he bolted down the stairs with all the ferocity of a raging bull.

Meanwhile, up ahead, while tremors momentarily stole his footing Nikolai was rushing up the stairs as if his life depended on it. And surely it did. A few more steps and he would arc off at the top, passing between what appeared to be two massive totem poles in the shape of two angry worms.