"Worry not, Melas. We have contingencies in place. Karna should have barricaded himself off in a room if they found themselves surrounded."
"But—" I was halfway speaking, when I saw figures bursting out of the fortress.
About a dozen Goblins ran out of a side entrance. They were covered in grime and gore, and the lines of undead parted to let them through as they made their way to us. I sighed in relief, as I began searching for the familiar Goblin—
But he was not there.
"Where’s Karna?" I asked the nearest Goblin, as he slumped over in exhaustion.
The Goblin was still catching his breath, but I was already asking the question again. "Where’s Karna—"
"Calm down, Melas." Gerritt pulled me back gently, and faced the group of Goblins. "Report. Where’s your leader?"
A Goblin lifted a hand, pointing it back in the direction where they came from. "In… there…" He paused to inhale deeply. Then continued, "We were overwhelmed. They managed to organize themselves quicker than we anticipated. They tried to cut off our escape. He stayed back with a few others to hold them off— so we could get out."
"Hrmph—"
"Is he alive?" I spoke over the Dark Commander.
The Goblin nodded. "Last I saw? Yes. They were outnumbered. Tried leading them into a chokepoint to hold them off. But there was this big guy. Incredibly strong, and he led the soldiers well. Took out three of us by himself."
I froze. The Orc was just listening. He spoke seriously, but without a hint of panic in his voice. "I see."
"What do we do, Gerritt? We have to help him!" I said in a panicked voice.
"I know, Melas. But we can’t just send them back in." He gestured at the group of Goblins. "They’re too tired for that."
"But—" I was cut off again.
A Goblin strolled up to us from the side; a different Goblin. One that was less dirty and less tired. It was Ihsan.
"I can do it," he said.
The Dark Commander only thought it over for a moment. "Very well. But just extract Karna and whoever is with him to a safe spot. Don’t try anything foolish."
Ihsan grinned. "Well, I am generally foolish. The only exception being when it comes to my life. So that sounds good to me."
The two began discussing over what to do. Who he was going to go in with. And other quick strategies. I closed my eyes for a moment. Then I spoke up.
"Let me go with you."
"What?" the two exclaimed at the same time. I explained myself.
"I haven’t done much. And I’m less helpful once inside— my spells would hit as many allies as enemies in a large battle in an enclosed space. So it’s better if I go with a smaller group."
Gerritt sighed, while Ihsan stared at me incredulously.
"Please," I pleaded.
And after a moment of consideration, they acquiesced.
***
Karna dashed away from the flurry of gunfire, dodging the bolts of energy flying by him, and sidestepping the onslaught of projectiles.
They were fighting in a small space. It was not some narrow corridor where two people could barely stand side by side. But it was not the open area needed to employ these long ranged weapons. Yet the soldiers fired on.
Because Karna was quick.
He was followed by two other Goblins. Only two. More stayed behind with him at first, but they were dead now.
The large man— the Lieutenant— with the axe was powerful. His weapon worked as some sort of mana tool. It created a barrier. Like a bubble. That could protect at least half a dozen of his allies. And…
Karna whirled around, and fired an arrow. The arrow shone as it sped through the air. Straight at the Lieutenant. The axeman slammed the hilt of his weapon on the ground, and a dome covered him. The arrow impacted the shield, exploding—
The smoke cleared up quickly. The barrier only had a small crack where it was struck. Karna grunted in annoyance.
And it was strong.
It withstood everything Karna had thrown at it. It even slowly healed the damage it had already taken. Not quickly, but enough that it frustrated the Goblin even more.
He continued running down the hallway, following his two teammates. He stayed at the back, because he was the leader. He was the strongest of their group. So he had to ensure that they stayed alive.
But the hallway was winding, going in a straight line. There was a large door at the end of it. Was it the exit? Probably not. The soldiers had already cut off their exit long ago.
And because of that, they had no choice. They made a break for the door. They swung it open, slamming it shut behind them. Bullets passed through the opening as it got smaller and smaller.
Karna looked around the room. It was big. More spacious than where they were before. With beds lined up on either side. It was… the sleeping quarters.
"Barricade the door," he barked out the order.
The Goblins immediately got to moving anything heavy they could to the door, blocking the entrance with different kinds of wooden furniture. It would not have made much of a difference. Karna knew that. Yet, they had to delay their attackers for as long as possible. Until the attackers became the attacked.
The others had escaped. He took solace in knowing that more than half of his men made it out alive, even after things went bad. Although in the first place, this was supposed to be a hit-and-run attack. They were never supposed to slow down. But they got trapped. And it was… his fault?
No. There was always the possibility that things went bad. It was a dangerous job. Which was why they got their fastest and most agile men for it. To disrupt
