Aryn's chest was still heaving when Gregk vanished.
For half a second, panic flared.
'I swear, if he's gone just to come back and beat my ass again…'
Steel flashed.
A dagger slid out of the shadow cast by a dented trash can, catching the streetlight just long enough to be seen. A slender, athletic green arm followed, silent, precise and the blade punched into the right side of the Lesser Gnoll.
The creature shrieked and stumbled sideways, swiping wildly in response as Gregk rolled clear and came up in one smooth motion. He didn't retrieve the dagger. Instead, two throwing knives snapped into his fingers and left his hand almost instantly.
Two Wet impacts as the knives buried themselves in the Gnoll's leg, dropping it to one knee.
"Tch," Gregk muttered. "Too shallow."
The Gnoll wailed like a wounded hyena and charged anyway, rusted short sword swinging left, right, left, then a diagonal slash that finally nicked Gregk's side. Blood darkened his green skin.
Gregk hissed and flipped backward, throwing again. The Gnoll pounced and they hit the pavement hard.
The creature straddled Gregk, jaws snapping inches from his face as he strained to keep it back.
Aryn was frozen.
'Do I help him? If I do, what if he turns on me again? But… I summoned him. He shouldn't—'
"Forget it," Aryn hissed, tightening his grip on the metal pipe. "You better not kill me for this, Orc!"
Aryn sprinted, the pipe smashed into the side of the Gnoll's head with a nauseating crack. The vibration jolted through Aryn's arms, the sensation of flesh on metal turning his stomach. The creature toppled, stunned but not dead.
Aryn stood over it, pipe raised as his hands shook.
He had never taken a life. He hated killing bugs, deciding to always carry them outside instead. This thing deserved it, he knew that. It had butchered people and it would butcher him given the chance.
"Kill it!" Gregk shouted. "Now!"
Gregk rose, knife in hand, eyes locked on Aryn and Aryn met his gaze.
Then he shut his eyes and brought the pipe down like a sledgehammer.
The impact caved the Gnoll's skull with a wet crunch.
Aryn gagged, bile burning his throat as he hunched over.
"You'll live," Gregk said, resting a fist to his chest in salute. "A Lesser Gnoll is weak. Others won't be. Even together, it may cost us."
Aryn straightened slowly. "What the hell is happening?"
"We don't have time," Gregk said, already turning. He pulled a bow from beneath his cloak. "The gate must be sealed. If it stays open, this place will drown in monsters. Not just Gnolls. I am not an Orc General, I won't be able to take down many as one. But together with you, we may stand a chance."
Fear clawed up Aryn's spine.
'The cops will handle it… right?'
But he'd seen the bodies.
Gregk glanced back, irritation clear but even more so, confusion. "What kind of Orc hesitates when something must be protected?" Gregk took off in a brisk but sneaky walk toward the direction of the portal.
Aryn didn't answer instead he followed Gregk.
The street near the portal was a ruin.
Three Gnolls slaughtered a handful of retreating officers, gunfire cracking uselessly against thick hides. Two more prowled near the gate, one Gnoll larger than the rest.
Aryn moved through wrecked cars, his blood rushing.
"That big one… It's a Gnoll Initiate, it will be tougher than the smaller ones. Even for me alone…Careful." Gregk warned Aryn as he nodded.
'How does he know what these things are? Well he's a monster himself, so… Wait… Does that make me a monster too, he called me an Orc. I do look and feel a bit different since the damn thing decided to burst into the city. Whatever, this ish is world ending not really time to think right now.'
Aryn burst from cover. Pushing his fear and confusion to the back of his mind.
For half a second, there was nothing but the sound of his own breathing, ragged and loud in his ears. Then instinct took over. Aryn lunged forward, arms locking around the creature's midsection. The Gnoll Initiate snarled, claws scraping at his shoulders as it thrashed, but Aryn dug his heels into the pavement and lifted.
The weight surprised him. It wasn't just heavy, it fought back, twisting, trying to tear free.
With a guttural shout, Aryn heaved and brought it down hard.
The impact shook the street. Concrete spider-webbed beneath them with a sharp crack, the force rattling up Aryn's spine and into his teeth. The Gnoll's body went slack for a moment, its jaw hanging open as a wet breath escaped its throat.
It didn't rise again.
A sharp, furious howl cut through the air.
Aryn barely had time to look up before the larger Gnoll raged forward, menace burning in its eyes at the sight of its fallen kin. Its feet pounded the pavement, closing the distance fast.
Gregk reacted instantly.
Two arrows snapped from his bow, the string singing as he fired in rapid succession. Both struck true, only to be knocked aside by the Gnoll's blade with wild efficiency. Rusted steel flashed as the creature veered away from Aryn and straight toward the orc scout as it grinned with menace.
"Shi—!" Aryn started toward the Gnoll Initiate. But the Gnoll was on Gregk in seconds.
Steel clashed. Gregk dodged once, cloak snapping as he twisted aside. He ducked a second swing, boots skidding across the asphalt. Then the third strike came faster than the rest.
Gregk cried out, pained.
The blade tore across his abdomen, slicing through cloth and skin. Blood spilled dark against green flesh as he staggered back, teeth clenched in pain.
Something in Aryn snapped. He didn't think, he moved with purpose.
Aryn charged, fear and anger blurring together as he threw himself at the fight. The Gnoll turned just in time, its sword sweeping toward him in a vicious arc. Aryn dove low, shoulder slamming into the creature's waist as he tackled it. The impact disarming the Gnoll.
They hit the ground hard.
Claws ripped across Aryn's back, fire exploding through his nerves as he screamed.
"AHH!"
The pain was blinding but it wasn't the only thing he felt.
Something ignited inside him.
[Spirit: You are trusting yourself more now, this is Pulse…]
Heat surged through his limbs, flooding his muscles like molten fire. The markings along his forearm flared to life, black etched in red, light spiraling outward in jagged patterns that danced across his skin. His muscles bulged and appeared more durable than a redwood tree.
Gregk stared at Aryn as he seen the spiritual power surge within Aryn.
Aryn roared and pushed.
The Gnoll struggled, snapping and thrashing beneath him, but Aryn's strength surged beyond reason. He wrapped his arms around the creature and lifted, muscles screaming as he forced it up and then drove it down again.
The street cracked beneath the impact and He didn't stop.
Aryn climbed onto the Gnoll's chest, fists rising and falling like sledgehammers. Each blow landed with a sickening thud, bone giving way beneath flesh. The creature tried to block, its arms coming up desperately but in the creatures astonishment, they broke.
Aryn felt it through his knuckles, felt the resistance give, felt the Gnoll's strength falter. In a life saving effort, the beast snapped at him with its massive jaws, teeth clacking inches from his face, but Aryn rolled away just in time, chest heaving.
The Gnoll writhed, broken and furious, dragging itself forward in pain and then it stood frozen.
Standing over it on a car was Gregk.
The scout's cloak hung torn, blood staining his side, but his stance was steady. He raised his bow, drew back the string, and aimed without hesitation.
The Gnoll opened its mouth to roar.
The arrow punched through its skull.
The sound was wet and final, the shaft driving deep enough that the tip scraped and bit into the cement below. The creature collapsed, twitching once before going still.
As the silence creeped around, Aryn stared at the body, then back at Gregk. Nodding slowly.
Gregk lowered his bow, breathing hard.
Behind them, the swirling portal pulsed and the remaining Gnolls, sensing the death of their leader, turned and fled. One by one, they vanished back into the green lit maw of a portal, their howls swallowed by the vortex.
Gregk gestured toward the portal with his bow.
"We need to destroy it," he said grimly. "To do that, we must go inside and defeat the dungeon's leader. It is green, so it should not be a big area to cover. And also enough for the two of us to manage."
Aryn wiped blood from his mouth, chest still rising and falling as the adrenaline faded.
"Just the two of us?" he asked. "We barely survived that."
Gregk tilted his head, considering him. "I doubt any will return to this side soon. You may rest for a couple hours and prepare. Does the surface truly lack warriors willing to enter?"
"Good question.. But this is the first time this has happened, well as far as I know." Aryn replied shrugging as he lifted both hands in the air and tilted his head.