Little Fighter

Inspired by the song Little Fighter by White Lion

After the battle in Fields of Ruin, Grimcrotch got some time off so he took his pet, a carrion devourer, to relax and ‘play’ with other devourers behind Black Citadel. He didn’t know if it was actual playing, but Death and the others seemed to enjoy it, snapping at each other and tittering loudly. Grim got a laugh by Death tunneling away from the others; they seemed to get angry and ‘yell’ at him.

‘Hi Centurion!’ A cubs voice sounded off to the left behind him, as Grim sat on a rock watching his pet. He stood and turned to see Rafka Firemane running up. ‘Well hello there, cub. I am giving my pet some exercise, you can join me if you like.’ Grim sat back down on the rock, she sat next to him watching the devourers.

‘He doesn’t look very tough.’ She said of Death. ‘You haven’t seen carrion devourers in a fight, little one. Looks can be very deceiving; what you think is a weakness can be their strength.’ Grim picked up a snail and cracked it, then made tittering sounds to Death, who came running up and began weaving back and forth in anticipation of his treat.

The Centurion handed the de-shelled snail to the cub, who held it out for the devourer. The treat was snatched quickly and swallowed whole, then it ran back out to play. ‘Much like you, Rafka. Many charr would say you are weak because you are small. But you are not weak; you are strong in heart and spirit, strength will come through time, training.’ Grim looked back up at Death.

‘When did you start using an axe, Centurion?’ Rafka picked up a snail and cracked it. Death ran up, took the treat, then ran off again. ‘I was a little younger than you, cub. Why, are you interested in learning to fight with real weapons already?’

He turned his head slightly toward the cub with a measuring look, wondering if this little one was ready for rigors of weapon training. ‘Yes Centurion. But you probably think I’m too young, huh.’ She said with a dejected look and voice. Grim sat staring at her for a few seconds, wrestling with an idea. ‘Meet me in front of Black Citadel tomorrow at sunrise, Rafka.’

Grim and Rafka axe shopping at sunrise, Black Citadel

It was a hatchet, she was too small yet for an axe, but it was just as lethal in anyone’s hands. They trotted down to Hero’s Canton after they found the weapon from a vendor. The sun was rising quickly, soldiers from all over Tyria began rolling in, looking at the unusual sight of a cub carrying a hatchet with the Centurion.

They walked up to the practice dummies in front of the canteen. Grim beginning with stances, watching & improving her throwing movement, showing her the spin needed to make the blade stick in the target. The Centurion stood back observing; after thirty minutes a group of three soldiers wandered out from the canteen, having gotten an early start drinking.

They glanced at Grim but didn’t recognize him through whisky goggles, pointing at and discussing the cub for a few seconds. Then one spoke up. ‘What in Ascalon makes you think it’s ok for you to be here with a weapon, cub? I already have to watch my back with these drunks, but young ones now too?’

Rafka walked forward, pried the hatchet out of a target and walked back, silent. She glanced at Grim, who stood quietly watching with arms crossed, then turned, stood, and threw again. ‘Hey, I’m talking at you cub.’ He got an angry look. She grabbed the hatchet and turned. ‘What do you want old charr, you want to fight a little cub like me? I’ll fight you…’

When Rafka reached back to throw her hatchet at him, the Centurion pulled his longbow and fired, hitting the blade just under the head and splitting the handle, halfway between the cub and soldier. As the arrowed hatchet fell away harmlessly, Grimcrotch stepped over and punched the soldier in his face, breaking off one of his fangs and knocking him down with a thud.

He crouched over the charr on the ground, picked him up by his armored collar and got in his face. ‘If this cub wasn’t here I’d rip your throat out,’ Grim said quietly so Rafka didn’t hear. ‘Get up.’ Then he dropped him, a solid ‘thunk’ as his head hit the steel underneath followed by an ‘Oww..’ The charr got up slowly, tooth bleeding and rubbing his head.

Hero’s Canton practice dummies, Black Citadel

‘You have a problem with this cub being here throwing an axe, soldier?’ Grimcrotch asked, paws on hips. ‘Nn..no sir!’ he stammered, painfully saluting. ‘That’s good. Now, just to be sure no one else has a problem either,’ he said loud enough for all within range to hear, ‘when I am not here with her, YOU will be, making sure of that. Do you understand, ‘Toothless’?

‘Sir, how long will I be doing this, because I–‘ Grim punched him in the face again, breaking his nose. ‘YOU WILL BE HERE EVERY DAY WAITING FOR THIS CUB UNTIL I SAY OTHERWISE, AM I UNDERSTOOD.’ It wasn’t a question. A muffled ‘Sir yes sir!’ behind the soldier’s paws acknowledged, trying to stop his snout from bleeding.

‘Are you going to be here tomorrow, Rafka?’ Grim turned and asked the cub. ‘I will be here tomorrow, Centurion.’ she replied with a huge smile. He turned back to the soldier with a broken snout and tooth. ‘You will be here every day at dawn, soldier.’ The bloodied charr saluted as well as he could, but couldn’t see through watery eyes where the Centurion was.

They walked out of Hero’s Canton, Grimcrotch scruffing the cubs hair while telling her ‘You know you shouldn’t have done that, right.’ Rafka looked away at a war wagon in the prep deck, ‘Ya, I know. But he was mean.’ Grim stopped and looked at the cub, shook his head and laughed. Rafka turned, looked at him and smiled as they walked away.

‘What other weapon can I use since my hatchet is broke?’ she asked. ‘Let’s go see if we can find you another one, Little Fighter…..’

Blood and Iron: Aftermath

As they worked on mopping up Foulbear Kraal after the main fight, The Centurion told them he would return shortly, he had some business to take care of up north at Fangfury Watch.

When he arrived, he inspected Wrathclaw’s beefed up defenses that were implemented when his warband took the route from Bento Canyon fort to here, then back to Grimm Hills. Satisfied, he walked down the road to where Kailani the Foolhardy was still working on her flying contraption. Grim had ordered soldiers to stand guard over her before the fight; she didn’t approve, but had no choice.

He took off his backpack as he arrived. ‘Hello Kailani, long time no see.’ She turned from sitting on the ground near a pile of mechanical parts, covered in grease. ‘Well hello Centurion! Haven’t seen you since you were not long out of the fahrar, how are you?’ She stood and turned, about to give him a hug then remembered the grease and stopped.

‘Come here and give me a hug, cat…’ he said, walking up to his old friend and giving her a squeeze, not caring about a little grease after the unbelieveable fight they just had to the south. They talked for a bit, Grimcrotch scolded her for not going into Fangfury Watch down the hill, then inspected the infamous flying machine.

Grimcrotch and Kailani discussing her flying contraption, Fangfury Watch

‘I brought something for you I’ve had since my last trip here.’ he told her, and handed her the backpack, still full of griffon feathers from so long ago. Grimcrotch stayed for a bit and helped her work on the contraption’s motor, said he would stop by from time to time and unfortunately for her feelings had to leave the guards with her, and told her he must return to Grimm Hills.

As he ran off past the fort, the ground slowly started rumbling, small animals shrieked and ran or flew off, then the sound of grinding iron added to the din; he turned in time to see two war wagons rolling over a hill, followed by a huge mass of Blood Legion soldiers bounding toward him. Brimstone’s main force.

——

The Tribune waved from inside one of the war wagons, motioning him aboard as it continued moving forward. Grim found a foothold at the rear of the machine and climbed up then saluted, Rytlock returned it. ‘We got word of your fight, soldier. Damn fine job, as I knew it would be.’ Brimstone yelled over the engine, ‘Don’t worry about the rest of the Flame Legion and rebels, we will take over from here.’

‘How’s Kailani?’ the Tribune asked. ‘Fine, sir. I posted a couple of guards on her until things settle down.’ he replied. ‘Good call soldier, thank you.’ Grimcrotch nodded.

The war wagons were here to replace those in Grimm Hills canyon camp, they weren’t needed for the present campaign. Those at the camp would get basic repair, then escort back to the Black Citadel machine shop with Brimstone.

Grim stood in the mouth of the machine, watching the forces in front of them as they rolled past Warrior’s Crown and entered rebel charr territory south. Most of the enemy they encountered simply scattered, not volunteering for a suicide mission. Those that holed up for a fight were wasted then run over for good measure.

The welcoming committee began lobbing mortars at Brimstone’s force; that lasted all of a few moments as the entire Blood Legion main force literally walked through them, deliberately throwing enemy mortars and weapons under the wheels and tracks of the machines, to be destroyed.

At the end of the trip near Grimm Hills, as Grimcrotch and Brimstone’s force rolled up and the huge iron vehicles came to a jarring halt Dinky, Shredskin, Wrathclaw and their soldiers stood and cheered, then the entire Blood Legion force under Brimstone began cheering, slapping shoulders and shaking paws with the victorious warbands under Centurion Grimcrotch.

——

The Tribune and Centurion jumped down from the war wagon; Brimstone with a half smile, walked up to Dinky. He turned to salute the Tribune. ‘Soldier, I understand you’re responsible for that devastating firebombing over there.’ Rytlock said as he nodded toward Bloodgorge Watch.

‘Reports say there was over 400 ogres, Flame Legion and rebel charr, and you alone were responsible for nearly half of them with these barrels you created. Outstanding,’ he said as he patted Dinky on the shoulder. ‘Thank you, sir.’ the legionnaire replied.

The Tribune stuck his snout in Dinky’s face looking right through him, his hot breath blowing back the Legionnaire’s whiskers. Brimstone’s voice dropped to a threat, the men got quiet. ‘But if your craziness gets my Centurion killed, I will personally turn you over to the Flame Legion, and they know YOU did that.’ He poked Dinky in the chest, shoving him back at the word ‘you’, then thumbed toward Bloodgorge Watch. ‘Am I understood, soldier?’ Menacing fangs drove his point home.

War wagon prep deck, Black Citadel

Dinky quickly saluted, ‘Certainly, sir.’ He glanced over at Grim; they grinned at each other.

The Tribune put his paws on his hips and looked around. ‘Alright. Let’s take care of these body parts, get those boxes unpacked from the war wagons, then find some tables and chairs, logs, rocks, carcasses, whatever we can find to sit on, and spark up a bonfire. Move out!’

The soldiers set to work restocking munitions at the camp, bringing out vehicle parts, moving the boulders that fell in the fight to the sides, as seats and tables. A few minutes into the supply unloading, a cheer went up as they found the rest of the boxes were cases of some of the finest Black Citadel sour mash.

Blood and Iron Pt. 3

Elexus Shredskin had moved up quickly in rank in the Grimcrotch warband. When Steelbane sent him to recover supplies in Ashford plains, Grim found her about to be attacked by Flame Legion for refusing to join them. They dispatched the legion  and lost the supplies, but gained a loyal capable warband member.

Since then she had proven herself many times over with every weapon conceivable, but whenever Grim was walking to or from Brimstone’s office for one reason for another, he found her working over the training dummies with her daggers. In fact whenever she showed to train, which was at least a few times a day, they had taken to posting a soldier nearby with several more dummies to replace those she destroyed.

First sign of her leadership abilities was after then Legionnaire Grimcrotch sent her out with a dozen of the warband, to recover cannons from the Ascalonians in the Blasted Moors area of Diessa Plateau. They worked their way into the ruins and sent several cannons back out to their camp, but while three charr were away with more, her group became overwhelmed by the ghosts.

Each warband member was slowly overtaken; Shredskin had a deep slice in her upper right arm and an arrow in her side that dropped her to one knee. In a daze, she turned her head and looked at the other warband members, those that weren’t downed and groaning trying to dodge attacks to no avail, were slowly losing their control of the situation.

Centurion Grimcrotch and Legionnaire Shredskin discussing tactics pre – Fields of Ruin offensive, Hero’s Canton

Things were desperate; she got angry and refused to be taken. In a rage she stood and tore the arrow from her side letting out a roar that raised the hair of every warband member, pulled her daggers and jammed both into the nearest Ascalonian, lifted it a foot in the air & slammed it face first into the ground, then ripped it wide open. ‘Get up and fight, damn you!’ she growled to the downed group.

She proceeded to do that to every Ascalonian in her range, while the actions of this bloodied warrior inspired the others to see all was not lost, and they forced themselves up to continue fighting the good fight. After many other encounters Shredskin was in to require extraordinary leadership like that, it was clear to Grimcrotch this was no ordinary soldier.

So the day he was promoted to Centurion was a big day for the entire warband; he promoted Dinky to replace him as Legionnaire, and removed Elexus from his warband….to give the new female Legionnaire her own after another commander had been killed. An unusual move, since most warbands promoted from within, but with her record Tribune Brimstone knew leadership when he saw it, and made it so.

And with her reputation preceeding her, the new Shredskin warband was more concerned with training up to her level than arguing politics. They quickly became known for their specialized technique of overwhelming their opponent before there was a chance to respond, just the thing Grimcrotch wanted for the Fields of Ruin.

——

Shredskin looked over at Grimcrotch, he nodded. ‘GO GO GO!!’ she yelled above the gunfire and explosions.  The warband ran through the doorway into Bloodgorge Watch compound, quickly spreading out and choosing their targets. Her technique was simple but very effective: within range, dive past the target next to them, not at them directly, then roll. In the air, mid-roll, reach back and cut the leg tendons, landing beyond their reach, then turn to finish the kill.

The ogres were easier being slow and stupid. But the Flame Legion wasn’t and knew this, placing ogres between themselves and Grimcrotch’s influx of soldiers seemingly walking, or rather diving, right through them. All they knew was they had flaming barrels rolling at them from the east, and the quickest ground-hugging targets they ever barely saw coming at them on the west, and things weren’t looking good.

The last barrel from Mithric Cliffs side came rolling down the road at them, but this one wasn’t on fire. It simply bounced along and came to rest lodged on a rock off to one side near the remaining enemy. Grimcrotch and  Shredskin stopped and looked at each other, puzzled. There was a shout from Dinky that Grim could barely hear: ‘GET DOWN!!’ The Centurion turned and motioned for the warband to get to cover as he dove behind a boulder.

The other barrels were simply gun powder packed around a cylinder of war wagon fuel. This last barrel was gunpowder packed around a cylinder of war wagon fuel that had a gel mixture in it, on a timer. The slow motion effect of what happened next went down in Blood Legion history.

Mopping up Foulbear Kraal after Bloodgorge Watch and road are cleared of Flame Legion

There was a dull ‘Doooo’ type of sound as the gel blended fuel went off first, then the immediate explosion was so powerful that everyone hiding was nearly blown back, and everything not protected burst into flame. Mortars at the Grimm Hills canyon base and Mithric Cliffs bounced off target, soldiers grabbed walls and rails to steady themselves; Grimm Hills had to rush to the center of the camp to avoid huge boulders falling from the canyon walls, and even Fangfury Watch further up north saw the sky light up and heard the boom, weapons and tools rattling.

The road simply disappeared under the barrel, turning into a twenty foot deep, forty foot wide crater. The walls and ground along the road raged with fire. The remaining Flame Legion and ogres, about fifty total, no longer existed….for several seconds the dirt and rocks falling in a curtain of smoke were all you saw; then the flaming body parts began to rain down.

As Grimcrotch stood and looked around, then up, a burning ogre leg slammed him in the shoulder, knocking him back down in a daze. He lay there for a few seconds, then shook the dirt off his face in time to see Dinky come walking up. ‘How’s that for a wizz-banger?’ he said grinning, reaching down to pull Grim onto his feet.

Grimcrotch looked at him for a second as he lay there, then sat up and burst into laughter. Dinky joined him sitting as Shredskin and Wrathclaw walked up, the three commanders and their Centurion letting off steam laughing on the ground, their men walked up and joined them in the ruckus. A few moments later the Centurion stood, holding his longbow above his head and shouted ‘BLOOD LEGION FRONT LINE!!’, the soldiers adding a perfect chorus ‘HOORAH!!’, in the middle of the blackened burning wasteland.

‘Alright let’s get it together, we aren’t done yet. Check for wounded, move out….’

Blood and Iron Pt. 2

Grimcrotch sat at his box-desk going over several scouting reports, turned to the door guard. ‘Send in Legionnaire Dinky.’ The guard trotted off to round up the Centurion’s second in command. After a week of scouting the area himself and reports from the other Legions coming in, Grim decided this was going to be a little more complicated than he thought. The Flame Legion and other rebel charr were dug in very well, and the number of small arms and mortar weapons was unbelieveable.

In his command tent, the sound of small arms fire off in the distance sounded like electrical pops, but the mortar rounds incoming to Grimm Hills were landing literally feet away. Dirt clods were being launched everywhere and landing on his tent.

Another guard walked by and stuck his head in momentarily, ‘Sir, don’t you think it might be safer to move your command post a little further back into the canyon?’ Grimcrotch stood and turned to the guard with an angry expression and said, just shy of a yell, ‘It’s thinking like that that has gotten you into this forsaken mess here, soldier, and I’m here to bail your tail end out! Now get out there’, Grimcrotch pointed outside the tent flap, ‘and recon that canyon entrance before I have you swinging from a war wagon, am I understood soldier!?’

As soon as Grim started his tirade the guard knew he made a mistake looking out for his commander. ‘Sir yes sir! I’m very sorry sir! On my way sir!’ The guard saluted smartly then ran off toward the canyon entrance, nervously looking around.

Centurion Grimcrotch discussing the situation in Grimm Hills with the Legionnaire commander

A moment later the tent opening was pushed back as Dinky entered. ‘What’s the plan, boss?’ he said, a giant beef leg quickly disappearing between chomps. There was never any formality between Grimcrotch and Dinky, the Legionnaire only addressed Grim as ‘boss’ as his own acknowledgement to his lifelong friend’s promotion to Centurion. And Grim thought it would be strange dealing with his friend formally anyway.

‘These guys are dug in pretty tight, Dinky. Looking at the map,’ Grim pointed to Hunter’s Gorge next to Grimm Hills canyon, ‘this area has to be cleared out first. Ogres and Flame Legion. The first time we try to leave in force they will come in behind us and wipe this base. So get the warband and Wrathclaw’s group to Mithric Cliffs. Have him hit Foulbear Kraal on the north bridge from Ogre Road to keep them busy, while you and the warband start the party at the end of the road, toss a few shells their way from the fort then light ’em up. I’ll have Shredskin’s group with me.’

‘First sign of fireworks on your end and we will hit Bloodgorge Watch. Their forces will be scattered for a few minutes as they head toward you and plan to regroup when they get there, but when I hit them, there will be so much going on they won’t know which way to go. And hit them hard, Dinky.’ Grim looked up at his friend as he said that.

Dinky’s face had an ‘Are you kidding me?’ expression. ‘Look, boss. You already know when you send me an’ old Bessie here,’ (Dinky readied his Charrzooka and patted it gently like a pet) ‘on a mission, we’re gonna be the life of the party. I’ll even throw in a few extra wizz-bangers so you’ll know I’m holding up my end of the bargain.’ With a grin Grimcrotch put a paw on his friend’s shoulder as he directed them both outside of the tent. ‘Understood, soldier. Get the men ready to move out.’

——

Legionnaire Wrathclaw’s messenger ran up to Dinky with a simple note: started. ‘Light ’em up, boys!’ he yelled to the mortar operators at Mithric Cliffs. Dozens of thumps began to shake the birds and small animals from trees around the fort as the mortars fired; there weren’t many places in the Fields of Ruin tactical map that didn’t feel the pounding the rebel charr and Flame Legion took immediately after the shells launched. It was as if the sky broke open and began to rain death on a massive scale.

A force of 15-20 Flame Legion crouched and tried to run at the fort with a few mortars as backup; the carnage was so wicked that none of them could even die with their bodies intact, they were ripped to pieces by the impenetrable wall of lead so thick it was hard to see through. Legionnaire Dinky grinned; he lived for this stuff.

He walked back toward the fort commander, ‘Get the keg.’ The Legionnaire acknowledged and barked out a few commands; three charr engineers came out from behind a wall rolling a large barrel, end-to-end nearly his height, toward the gate, and stopped a few yards back and to the side of it. They heaved as they uprighted the barrel, then turned and saluted their commander and Dinky. ‘This will be fun,’ he said aloud to himself as he walked over to inspect it, the grin returning.

The Centurion at Mithric Hills fort, Fields of Ruin

After he shored up the Grimm Hills canyon defenses and turned toward the commander there, Grimcrotch heard the thumps of mortars being launched from the fort, then felt the ground begin to shake as the shells hit their targets. ‘Eyes open, Legionnaire. We’re on our way out.’ he told him. The commander saluted the Centurion then ran to his fortified front line and began yelling them into shape.

When Grimcrotch and Shredskin’s warband left out the front of Grimm Hills canyon, the fourteen mortars in the camp kept continuously firing into the road north of Hunter’s Gorge for a full five minutes, while riflemen with Charrzookas wasted anything that even considered getting within eyesight. The Centurion and warband waited at the west entrance, picking off the stupid or ignorant to come within doorway range.

Suddenly a huge explosion lit the sky down the road toward Mithric Cliffs, Grimcrotch ducked and shaded his eyes as the soundwave rolled over them. Some of his men, surprised, got knocked off their feet by the ground shake. Seconds later charr and ogre body parts rained everywhere from the fort to the canyon, the Centurion knocked backward a step by a shoulder chunk; he couldn’t tell if it was one or the other, heh.