With a quick parry and a feigned stroke at the body followed by three slashes, two across the chest and one across the neck severing the Quibs throat, Calin stood triumphant in his fight against the two Quibs. He was only slightly injured with a battered shoulder and in his time had learnt to control pain, knowing that more fights for him still loomed. "It will have to throb like a Jargolian bitch later", he said beneath his breath, though deep down he knew he lied inwardly to himself and also gave a rather embarrassed frown in case someone had overheard he’s ridiculously butch comment.
He looked around to see how the rest of the combat with the other men was going, seeking to help any of his comrades who looked in trouble.
His eyes first spotted Abe who lay on the ground dead. His face had been smashed in and he was hardly recognizable beneath the bloody mess. Besides him lay two dead Quibs, one which had been skewered through the heart by Abe's barbed spear. The other had three darts sticking out of it in various unpleasant places. In this case Calin suspected it was not the poison that killed the creature as one of the dart-shafts jutted out of the Quibs left temple.
Several yards from the prone position were Abe lay was Croll. He also lay on the ground though unlike Abe he was not dead, only badly injured from the attack from his two Quibs. Blood could be seen gushing out of various places of his body caused by the spiked clubs. The two Quibs he had fought lay near him, dead from his sword as he took out bandages from out of his back-pack. Although he would live, he would not be able to fight again in this combat.
Next he looked in the direction the two blood brothers had fought. Bill lay on the ground dead much like Abe. His body a pulped red mass from numerous sickening club blows. He had slain one of his Quibs but another still remained alive whacking it's club down into Bill's lifeless mutilated corpse.
As for Stan, he was running off while being chased by two Quibs that followed behind him in close pursuit.
"Coward", thought Calin. "Trust one of the island men to chicken out". In truth he was not surprised of this as the training and experience that Stan had had was nothing compared to the other men of the company. Although his blood brother Bill had been trained in the same way as him, though he now lay dead, he had at least shown some metal and fought against the enemy. Calin though half suspected still that he too would have probably done a runner if he had thought he could have gotten away with it once the realization of fighting a foe that out-numbered him had registered inside his soft islander brain.
Calin did not have time to look to were Haurick and Mulk had fought for the Quib that stood bashing the dead Bill sensed him and ran to meet him waving its club above it's head.
Calin charged as well, and as the Quib and he met, he jumped up into the air and drove a flying kick into its chest. Though the blow connected heavily the Quib still managed to grab his outstretched leg and take most of the force out of the blow, although to do so it had had to drop its club. They both fell to the ground and before Calin could act the Quib bit him hard in the knee causing him to grunt in pain as the sickly yellow teeth sank to meet bone. He jabbed out with his sword and took the creature through the top of the shoulder. The blade made a squidgy noise as it borrowed down into it's innards, ending the creatures life instantly.
He got slowly to his feet, his newly injured knee causing him to stumble slightly though this time he did not feel the pain. Adrenalin in his body had been released giving him new strength and an increased pain barrier.
He looked to where Mulk and Haurick where. Both still lived and the four Quibs that had attacked them lay dead upon the ground. However they now battled with a new terror, one which made Calin's eyes open wide in amazement. Haurick and Mulk battled a huge creature that stood over nine feet in height which Calin knew from the descriptions from Haurick to be the Delvock. The creatures body was humanoid although far more bulky and covered in long brown and black hair. Its face looked like a huge lizard with large powerful jaws filled with huge grey teeth in the shape of small curved dagger blades. It feet and hands were also reptilian, the feet with three toes and the claws which were its hands likewise. The large three fingered claws that mowed through the air dealing out blows that could knock through stone walls where it's main weapons. At times though it would give a kick, or a snap of it's powerful jaws at one of the two opponents it faced, each of which could still result in there deaths.
Mulk fought the monster toe to toe while Haurick fought slightly to the creatures left. Each dodged the huge blows as best they could while trying to deliver there own on the thing. Any of there blows which did connect seemed to cause it little harm, or even bounce off its body causing no harm what-so-ever.
Calin then saw for the first time the rainbow-mage come out of the tent. He was younger than Calin had imagined, around forty. He's sharp features and extremely pale skin showed he was not from the kingdom.
Calin was in two minds as to who to attack. "This rainbow-mage does not look that deadly at all" he thought. "In fact he looks like a complete wimp and compared to that monstrous Delvock...”. He then heard screams he recognized and turning saw the two Quibs that had been chasing Stan running towards him. One lagged behind the other from a large wound that it carried on its right thigh. His mind was now made up, he would dispatch of these two and then help kill the Delvock. Afterwards he could then deal with the other small matter and dispatch of the man in the brightly colored robes.