TBOS Round 2 Part 2

TBOS Round 2
Magpie vs Rupert and Luka
Part 2

A scream shattered Rupert and Luka's peaceful dreaming. Luka stood bolt upright disrupting Rupert's sleeping and sending him rolling onto the black dirt; getting a sharp mouthful of sulphuric dust.

"Aw GOD!" his muffled voice came between spitting out the disgusting dust, "That is AWFUL!" It took the goblin around 2 minutes of grumbling and tongue scrubbing to finally notice he was somewhere different to where he had fallen asleep. "Hey…where are we?"

His question fell on deaf ears as Luka looked very concerned about something and stood rigid and tense, ears flicking to different angles; trying to pick up a faint sound of struggle that was coming from somewhere out of her vision.

"Hey Luka…" Obviously Rupert was more concerned with their sudden relocation than the scream that had awoken them to this foreboding desert of darkness. "…HEY LUKA!"

The Aspen spirit wheeled on him, despite her patient nature she was trying to find the source of the distressed scream and couldn't do so and couldn't hope to offer any assistance with a goblin jabbering in her ear.

However just before she was about to give the goblin a lecture, another scream rang out and this time Luka could tell the direction it was coming from. The goblin and the spirit exchanged glances before Rupert swung himself up onto Luka's back and together they were a rescue team. A confused and slightly woozy rescue team, but a team nonetheless.

"I hope we can get to her before it's too late," Luka panted out as she continued her charge with her green, sharp fingered companion on her back that rolled his purple eyes.

"Oh ya do know how to fill someone with confidence don't cha lumber skull."

It was only the spirits temperament that stopped her from rolling her eyes and tutting…barely. Though Rupert sensed her annoyance and gripped her horns, poking his head through the leafy foliage that decorated her head and putting his face in hers.

"Oh, am I wearing on your patience, I've already being eaten by a dragon and forgive me if I'm a little grouchy from Location, Location, Location!"

"Move your head Rupert I can't see!"

"Hey I want to have a serious conversation for once!"

"RUPERT!"

They both looked up at the same time to realize that they had come to an end of running ground and the momentum sent them both flying of the edge and through the air with nothing there to grab hold of.

"This can't be it; we've only just started…"

SPLOOSH!

SPLOSH!

Suddenly both of them were blinded by orange liquid and were momentarily submersed in its fruity odour and taste before survival instinct kicked in and they burst forth to the surface to gulp in the not-quite-air air. Luka had been lucky to land in the larger barrel that was deep and wide enough to accommodate her whole body, whereas when she rubbed juice from her eyes and looked left she saw a sodden goblin clambering out of a smaller barrel where his head had to be followed by the rest of his body through squeezing and pushing on the wooden edges. He must have maintained a dive bomb position in mid air to have even chanced landing in that thing.

Well it was convenient that the barrels were there.

Maybe it was a sign of good luck to come.

The scream rang out again, much clearer and louder and Luka jumped from her barrel along with Rupert and they saw that they were round the back of a farmhouse in the middle of nowhere.

"Well you're just asking for trouble if you're all the way out here," The goblin scowled and Luka shot him a glare before she dashed round to the front of the house.

Rupert puffed out his cheeks as he followed her reluctantly. "What?! I'm just saying I've seen waaaaaay too many films to know that if ya live in the middle of nowhere you're just gonna attract crazies."

They found the front door kicked in and laying in splinters on the porch so Luka tentatively padded inside.

"Because that's what you do when you find a wrecked house in the middle of the night! You naturally go inside!" Rupert's annoyance and slight fear at this place was quite clear, but he felt chilled outside on his own so he followed Luka, biting on his tongue to keep any more smart quips at bay.

He didn't have to keep up with the eerie quiet for long however as out from one of the doors in the house two men charged out and straight into Luka and Rupert. Anger and surprise flashed through their reptilian eyes and the smaller yet bulkier man's third hand went straight to a bag on his side defensively and his posture, along with his friends, squared.

Well…four can play at the fighting game if that's what you want to play.

But Luka and Rupert both would rather play monopoly or 20 Questions…

The first man lunged at the Aspen spirit and grabbed hold of her horns whilst the bulky one tried escaping through the wrecked door to safety. But the morality inside Rupert kicked in and he pointed a finger at the threshold.

"TWENTY SPARKS!" he yelled and the bulky guys exit was blocked by a carpet of sparks as if two dozen Catherine wheels had exploded in front of his eyes and he was forced to stumble backwards and have all four arms protect his face. The Goblin took the opportunity to climb the nearby shelf; avoiding the blind grab the bulky man made for his ankle and hauling himself to the top shelf where a load of heavy looking objects were stacked. Long fingers found a pile of horseshoes and with a good aim and sharp eye he threw them at the bulky mans scaly chrome dome where each bounced off with a clang and crunch.

Whilst Rupert's strategy of 'hitting it till it faints' was being successfully carried out, Luka was having a hard time wrangling the other henchman off her head. Summoning her natural, goddess given power deep in her chest she bellowed out her one spell; Roar of the Oak. Glasses shattered and the man loosened his grip and backed off with two hands clamped over his ears and the other two hands clenched in fists by his side. When the man could bear to open his eyes he saw to his horror a great white beast with its head down ready to charge.

He couldn't get out of that house fast enough.

No honestly…he couldn't.

Luka's horns sent the henchman flying through the flimsy wooden back wall and out into the backyard into one of the barrels, where he floated unconscious. Luka was triumphant but felt a little odd, as if her lungs were growing smaller and there wasn't enough oxygen in the world. The same was going for Rupert who was clambering back down unsteadily from the top shelf and hopped over the subdued man on the floor, picking up the object that had rolled out of the bag on his side upon his flooring. It must have been important as they had fought over it…but to be honest Rupert didn't find it…too…impre…impressive…

He didn't find unconsciousness too impressive either.

Neither did Luka for that matter.