Chapter 21: The Gentle Poison

“Fall back!” Grunt ordered. “There are still too many of them for us to fend off.”

Leo and Grunt started to retreat but Lillin stayed behind.

Grunt noticed it and shouted, “Lillin! What are you doing? Fall back!”

“I’m not letting this village fall!” exclaimed Lillin. “Nature, please give me strength!”

Lillin charged up her rifle with all of her energy. The undead rushed towards her like a horde of wolves preying on a single sheep.

“Lillin, run! Your electric cannon will not work against them!” Grunt said while running towards Lillin to save her.

After completely charging up, Lillin fired her rifle. A strong gust of green cloud went out of the rifle which suffocated the undead. The raiders went down to their knees one by one, then died painfully and slowly. Only a handful in the rear survived the attack. Lillin collapsed due to exhaustion.

“Leo! Take care of her and make sure nobody comes near,” Grunt said. “I’ll kill all the remaining ones.”

Grunt easily defeated all the remaining undead then went back to see Lillin’s condition.

“Lillin is so strong! I never knew she had that ability!” Leo said with excitement.

Grunt nodded. “I was surprised myself. Perhaps, she is also one of the destined children.”

“Really? That’s great!!” Leo got even more excited.

“It’s still too early to say so, but at least we’re safe,” said Grunt. “Let’s go back to the woman’s house and let Lillin rest.”

Grunt carried Lillin and went back to the woman’s house together with Leo. He laid Lillin to a bed while Leo knocked on the floor where the small compartment is located. The lid opened slightly. When the mother saw that it was Leo, she slowly went outside and asked what happened.

“Are you sure?” asked the mother.

“Yes. The village is safe for now,” said Grunt. “The other villagers need not hide inside these small compartments at night and you can also ask the other villagers who left to return.”

The mother let out a sigh of relief and asked her children to go out of the compartment. “Thank you so much, adventurers! We will forever be grateful. You may come here anytime if you need anything.”

“Thank you so much, Madam. We will probably just rest here tonight and leave tomorrow once our comrade has recovered,” Grunt said politely.

Chapter 20: Against All Odds

Night came and it was very peaceful and quiet. The villagers who stayed behind went down to their small compartments to hide and sleep. Grunt, Lillin, and Leo waited near the village gate and prepared themselves for the arrival of the undead.

“Do you think they will come back?” asked Lillin.

Grunt shrugged his shoulders. “I am not sure but it’s better to stay here for at least one night. We might also find some clues.”

The three waited for several more hours. At around twelve midnight, silhouettes rose from a nearby field. Leo immediately prepared his widgets and scattered them outside the gate covering a large area.

“Judging from their figure, it looks like they are indeed, the undead,” Grunt said.

Lillin and Grunt hid behind the village walls while Leo remained visible from outside. The undead saw him and rushed towards him. Their numbers are overwhelming and their faces are terrifying. Among them are the Skeleton Knights, Zombies, and Shadow Bats. When the front was almost near the gate, Leo activated his widgets. A tremendous electric current ran through each of the small widgets, releasing a devastating electrical attack. The raiding undead were electrocuted and couldn’t move, but only the shadow bats died from the attack.

“Grunt! Lillin! Help!” cried Leo.

Lillin and Grunt immediately went outside and saw what happened.

“Since when did the undead become immune to lightning attacks?” Lillin asked in confusion.

“I don’t know but we have no time to waste!” Grunt said. “Kill as many of them as possible while they still can’t move.”

Almost immediately after Grunt said this, the undead started to move.

“Leo, can you activate the widgets again?” asked Grunt.

“I’ve only used it once at the most, but I’ll try it again,” Leo said.

The widgets then released another strong electric current.

“Lillin, continuously fire at them with or without the electric current!” Grunt ordered. “They are electrified for ten seconds at the most. I will kill as many as I can near the gate and return inside before they can move again. Leo, activate it once they start running again!”

All three followed Grunt’s strategy and were able to kill a quarter of the enemy force. However, when Leo activated the widgets for the fourth time, the widgets shattered into pieces. The undead rushed towards the gate with frenzy.

Chapter 15: Electricity's Current

“Leo, run with the others and find a safe place,” said a grim-looking Gremlin. “Promise me that you’ll protect your mother.”

The teenage Gremlin shook his head. “No! I’ve been working so hard on my toys. I should be able to help! I’ll protect the village!”

“This is not a game, my son. You are still quite young to experience a grueling battle such as this,” the Gremlin’s father said. “My comrades will protect this village. You do your part to protect your mother and the other women and children. I have high hopes for you.”

Packs of wolves and giant bears are relentlessly raiding the village. Grunt and Lillin hurried towards Steeltop to protect the civilians. The battle near the front gate is so fierce, an untrained warrior would shiver just by looking at the battlefield.

“We have to hold our ground until all the villagers have safely evacuated! Fire at will!” shouted the Gremlin commander.

“Sir, there are still a lot of them! Our bullet supply won’t be enough!” said one Gremlin private.

The Gremlin commander gave a sad smile. “We won’t be able to kill all of them. All we can do is keep them from chasing our beloved families. Are you willing to do that, private?”

“Yes, sir!”

Lillin and Grunt approached the evacuating villagers at the rear gate, until they noticed that the Gremlin soldiers are slowly being overwhelmed. At a short distance came a shout.

“Father!!!!!”

It was Leo. His father was mercilessly killed by the wolves, and the other Gremlin soldiers suffered the same fate. It is only a matter of minutes before the raiders could catch up with the escaping villagers. In a desperate act, Leo ran towards the front gate.

“Wait, child, no!” Lillin shouted.

The boy did not hear Lillin, and instead continued running. When he was near the group of raiders, he threw several metal pieces which started to float.

“Are those… tiny widgets?” Lillin asked.

Almost immediately, the tiny pieces of metal started to conduct electricity.

“Father, I will avenge you!” was the tearful shout of the little Gremlin.

The electrical charges of the metal shards started to become larger and brighter. After a split second, the pieces gave a large discharge of electricity covering a huge area. All the wolves and bears were electrocuted and died. Leo fell down to the ground as the tiny pieces of metal started to fall one by one.

Chapter 11: The Final Command

On the way back to Ishrock, the group of adventurers noticed black smoke coming again from the direction of the village. They all hurried back, although they couldn’t travel very fast because Chris is still very weak and exhausted from the last encounter.

“Lillin, you take care of Chris and follow,” Grunt said. “I have to hurry back! I have to know what’s happening to my village!”

Lillin nodded. “I understand. Hurry now! May nature’s blessing be with you.”

Grunt hurried to his village while Lillin slowly walked with Chris. The battle seems to be very intense as the war cry and gunshots echo across Dustwind Valley.

“Hold your ground mighty Cyclops! Smite anyone who dares stain our village!” shouted one of the Cylcops captains.

Ishrock is being overrun by a much larger number of yetis and ice wolves. Casualties were minimal during the previous battle, but this one is different. Bodies of dead Cyclops lay alongside several of the killed raiders. When Grunt finally reached the village, he went straight to the village chief. He saw the village chief, preparing a scroll that contains sealed spells.

Grunt exclaimed, “The Scroll of Volcanic Embers! Chief, you can’t possibly be…”

“Yes I am,” the Chief interrupted. “The Discordians are wreaking havoc all over Uld. It is only a matter of time before our village is overrun.”

“No! We will protect this village!”

Gorlon sighed, “Brave warrior, it is inevitable. I have kept this scroll for this very moment. This moment when all villages will be attacked by the Discordians, and only a few brave souls will be able to suppress it.”

Grunt shook his head. “I don’t understand!”

“How was your journey with the human? Is my intuition correct?” Gorlon asked.

“Yes. Chris was able to manipulate the element of ice, but he doesn’t know yet how to use it properly.” Grunt replied.

Gorlon smiled. “I see. Chris, is indeed a destined child. According to the legends, four heroes will emerge, each controlling one of the four elements. Even the three elements, long-forgotten by many generations, will be revived. They will be the ones who will save Uld from the Discordians.”

Grunt remained silent. He couldn’t understand what the Chief was trying to tell.

“Where are your companions? Leave the village and go with them. Your task is to guide the destined child so that he’ll grow strong.” Gorlon ordered. “In your adventures, you may find the other three destined children who will save Uld. Promise me this, valiant warrior.”

“I understand,” Grunt replied.

Gorlon continued, “Go now! Meet with your new friends and be strong! The fires from this scroll will put a scar in the face of Uld that will never be forgotten. It will also mark the start of the four heroes’ destinies.”

Grunt ran back towards the direction of his companions. He slew the ice wolves and yetis that blocked his way. It was a sad moment for him to leave the chief and his village, knowing the fiery outbreak that will spell their demise. But the brave warrior moved forward, carrying with him his Chief’s last command.