Part X: Can't keep a good Skabnoze down

"...ARDS!"

The Wizard came charging down the corridor, clutching his left hand which was dripping blood at an alarming rate.

"How much Gold did you get then?" asked Trogdar.

The Wizard fixed Trogdar with a look, his eyes shining like twin pearls as he healed his injury.

"Lots?"

"Best leave this one Trogdar," warned Short-arse.

"I was only asking," said Trogdar.

The Warriors entered a long chamber with pillars holding the vast roof bisecting the room. At the far end stood inside a vast circle carved crudely into the floor stood a lone figure, his arms outstretched, his head rolled back and pointing towards the ceiling. Slowly, he began to tilt it forwards, laughing as he did so.

"SKABNOZE!" yelled Trogdar, facing their nemesis once more.

"Hur, hur, hur, hur! Yooze lot are ded meat!" replied Skabnoze, clapping his outstretched arms together in front of him. There was a tremendous discharge of force which knocked the Warriors off their feet. By the time they were able to stand back up again, a small army of Orcs and Orc archers stood between them and their foe.

From behind them came a snort of hot air followed by a bellowing roar. Masked by the shadows, a Minotaur stood next to the wicked Orc shaman. A thin trail of blood seeped from Skabnoze's nose as he flung his head back and began chanting once more.

"Quick, use your lightning thingummy!" said Trogdar, indicating the monstrous beast.

"I believe it is out of power," replied the Wizard with a note of panic evident.

"Freeze 'em?" asked Trogdar desperately.

"I believe I too am out of power," said the Wizard dejectedly.

Trogdar and Short-arse shared a look before turning to the Orc horde with grim resignation.

"TROGDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!" yelled Trogdar, charging the nearest Orc. A flash of light streaked past him, Jandyr's first volley easily finding a target within the mass of greenskin muscle.

"Orc filth," muttered Short-arse as she drew her Axe of Slaughter and hacked at her opponent. The Orc ducked under the first blow but was caught on the backswing, it's head spinning as it flew over the enraged mob.

"It appears to be guarding him," said Jandyr over the din of battle, his keen eyes keeping watch on Skabnoze while his arrows kept finding their mark.

"We have to stop him before he summons another," grunted Short-arse, her furious axe swings taking their toll on the tough Orcs.

"I'm bloody trying!" replied Trogdar, his body glistening with blood and sweat.

The Wizard stood alone, watching the swirling movements of battle. Suddenly he darted forward, a gap opening in the crowd, and he disappeared behind the greenskin's line.

"Where's he buggering off to?" asked Trogdar, feeling berserk fury rising within his gullet.

"Oh dear..." said Jandyr, able to see the Wizard approaching Skabnoze.

The Wizard strode with purpose towards Skabnoze. Ignoring the hulking Minotaur at his side, the Wizard pointed a bony finger at the still-chanting Shaman.

"Foul fiend..." he said with a voice shaking with trepidation, "I sentence you to OBLIVION!"

The Wizard reached down as if drawing energy from the floor. His hands started to glow a brilliant bright blue as a gigantic ball of ice formed over them.

Skabnoze tilted his head forward to look upon the Wizard before looking up at the Minotaur in disbelief.

"Err..." he began.

The Wizard unleashed the comet of ice at Skabnoze and the Minotaur, blasting them apart from each other to separate corners of the room.

Skabnoze landed with a heavy thump, his summoning spell broken. Quietly, he slipped on his invisibility ring and slunk away.

The Minotaur crashed hard into the wall, bones breaking under a thundering impact. It lay there for a few moments more out of surprise than injury, before turning and roaring a deafening challenge at the Wizard.

"What's going on?" asked Trogdar, straining to look over the Orc archers he had battled his way through to.

"The Wizard's in trouble," replied Jandyr, firing another arrow into the Orcs.

"Usual then," said Short-arse.

The strength of the spell had left the Wizard weak and he collapsed to the ground, breathing shallowly. The Minotaur's footsteps shook the chamber as he walked over to the Wizard, picking him up in one giant hand and throwing him bodily against the nearest pillar which crumbled into dust.

"Wizard? WIZARD!?" shouted Trogdar, a note of concern evident.

The Wizard lay quite still, his neck twisted at a sickening angle. The Minotaur came once more, looking to finish its prey.

"TROGDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!" roared Trogdar, decapitating his two opponents before leaping high into the air and lunging for the Minotaur. His ensorcelled blade found a sweet spot and plunged through the back of the Minotaur's neck, piercing its way through its jaw. The Minotaur collapsed on top of the Wizard, who spluttered in agony.

"You're not dead then!" said Trogdar, kneeling down beside him.

"Drink," croaked the Wizard.

"I don't think now's really the time," said Trogdar.

"Potion," croaked the Wizard, "DRIIINK!"

Trogdar reached into the Wizard's robes and pulled out the yellow potion the Wizard had found earlier. He unstoppered it and poured it down the Wizard's throat.

"Aaaaaaaaaargh!!!" screamed the Wizard, the strange concoction burning a hole in his stomach. The brew took immediate effect, sending the Wizard into spasm which righted his twisted neck.

"Is he going to be alright?" asked Short-arse, wandering over after finishing off her Orc opponents.

"Has he ever been?" replied Jandyr.