Sgt. Drake was a born tactician. He and James Murphy made a good team but he could see no tactical advantage for them engaged with 4 squads of Orcs. They spent most of their time watching each other’s back which they could not keep up forever. Help from Agent Carr was past due which was troublesome and neither of them had heard from Dan in the last few minutes. So he decided they needed to abort the mission and live to fight another day.
Right about then he heard a distant sound that he was very familiar with and his heart sank. All the Orcs, James, and Drake stopped what they were doing and looked up. It was soon about to rain arrows.
“James get out of here!” Drake yelled as he himself turned on the speed. Dashing through the crowd dodging Orcs both dead and alive he saw the only hope he had.
Once he got close enough he raised his grapple-gun arm and shot. Direct hit. The grappling hooks grabbed a hold of a solid chunk of wall of the closest ruins. As the cable retracted Alexander was pulled at great speed. He flew through the air even faster than he was running.
Drake repelled down the far side of the wall. Just before he was out of sight he looked back to the encampment. Over a dozen Orcs laid dead with several arrows sticking out of them each. But that wasn’t what bothered Drake.
James Murphy was running full out for the same ruins but never made it. Drake had seen comrades fall so many times but it never got easy.
Over the next few seconds Drake considered his options. He wasn’t sure which mystery was more puzzling; who was assaulting them with arrows or why they stopped?
Soon the answer was evident. “Sergeant, come out come out wherever you are click” Alexander recognized the Marr as his old adversary Ne-Gok-Sa.
He crawled out from the ruins he was using as shelter. Armed Marr drones were now all around. On the far side of the camp he could see Einar warriors completing the perimeter. The Marr were the Orc allies that were supposed to be away for a few hours. Apparently they were now the allies of General Einar and Einar had betrayed his team.
In the middle of the large circle of soldiers stood the Marr warlord Ne-Gok-Sa. He was waiting for battle. This meta-battle had been going on for as long as Drake could remember. He wasn’t even sure which of them were leading in the win loss columns. It didn’t matter. It was game time again.
In a blur of movement, Drake drew his 9mm pistol, aimed, fired, and sprinted for the center of the camp. Ne-Gok-Sa was prepared for this move. He half turned his body and reflected the bullets with the built in armor of his shoulders.
For a split second the Marr warlord was unable to see his charging friend while he hid behind his armor. This was the split second that Drake needed. Drake used that time to shoot his grapple gun at his opponent. The hooks of the grapple caught and dug into Ne-Gok-Sa’s exoskeleton. He was now being pulled to the Sergeant rapidly. Drake dug his heals in and held his ground. As Ne-Gok-Sa flew at him, Drake drew his blade and then first blood.
Drake spun to deliver a second blow but the warlord’s built in sword-arm blocked his blade. They locked stares for a second and the Marr smiled.
Drake started to feel his will slipping away. Drake knew this was coming. Ne-Gok-Sa had tried his mind-shackle powers before. If he failed to win the battle within the next few seconds the Warlord would posses him body and soul.
With new pressurized determination Drake managed to focus. He knew his opponents biggest weakness. Vanity. Drake also knew the warlord was severely wounded from his grapple hook and blade. “So Gok tell me, how long have you and Kaemon been working on this plan because I gotta tell you it’s brilliant. General Utgar is going to gain from this battle”
They exchanged blade against arm two more times. Drake’s focus was wavering. Ne-Gok-Sa wasn’t trying to hurt him. He was stalling. Soon he would have valuable pawn.
Ne-Gok-Sa was starting to grin. Drake knew he had to make his move. After a third strike and parry he altered his attack pattern. He knocked Ne-Gok-Sa back, dropped his sword and leapt at him to engage in very close combat. Wrapping his legs around his enemy’s torso he could see his objective.
Before Ne-Gok-Sa knew what was happening Drake had a good hold with both hands of the injured shoulder armor. Drake’s fingers dug under the armor and he pulled with all his might. Ne-Gok-Sa screamed and dropped to his knees with agony as the shoulder armor peeled away. Drake quickly released his legs, retrieved his sword and took the warlords head. Drake slumped to the ground.
The satisfaction of beating the Marr warlord in single combat was short lived. Drake was still surrounded by multiple squads of Einar and Marr. The tactician was out of options and out of time.
Ne-Gok-Sa dealt both of them their last card. When he dealt his card he drew from the bottom of the deck but was skilled enough for no one to see the deception. Almost no one. He held the card up to block out the sun and grinned a wry smile. “It looks like today click click is my lucky day click,” he claimed. When suddenly a very loud CRACK was heard from a distance. Immediately the card had a hole through the center of it with all kinds of sunlight shinning trough.
Agent Carr was instantly out of his seat with his weapon drawn searching the near by hills.
“Good ole Dead eye”, Drake said with a smile.
Raelin didn’t move but said “Dan has never liked cheats or back stabbers”.
James Murphy just grinned.
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