Broonil and his tribe of warriors, alongside the Human girl Michelle Scheel, and the Dwarf man with the wild red facial hair, Groehl, managed to run along a dip in the terrain to get ahead of the Cartel convoy without being seen. They quickly set up a hasty ambush which they sprung the moment Nandi and her team of ranged fighters unleashed their first salvo of magical projectiles. When the explosions from the other team's attacks landed they all rushed out from their cover with a warbling battle cry as they slammed bodily into the various vehicles with more of the strange humans in them.
He reflected inwardly on the events of the last couple of months as he rammed his trident through the thin membrane of what his fellow humans called a car door, and subsequently through the bodies of the two men sitting in the back. Things like cars and time were new concepts to Broonil and his people. In the dark depths of his planet's oceans the passage of time is not readily measured. You are hatched, you grow, you become stronger and then you eventually die.
Cars, let alone any multitude of wondrous things he and his people had gawked at once gaining the surface were never even imagined by his people. There was a sharp crunch as his trident mate ripped the front door of the car from its hinges, followed by the stifled yell of the driver as he subsequently met the same fate as the door. The last man in the vehicle managed to shout a warning before a third tribe member was on top of the vehicle's hood, smashing his fist through the windshield and crushing the man’s neck. The man managed to open his own door and tumble out before dying in the middle of the road.
The metal crunching sound of another vehicle tumbling across the cement assaulted Broonil’s ears. He immediately turned his head towards the noise and saw that the dwarf man and human woman had chosen to shoulder check the vehicle with so much force it was lifted completely off it’s wheels.
Brogg, seeing the display by the Dwarf and human, decided to attack a single truck on his own. He used his tentacles to upend the truck and throw it from the ground where it tumbled lazily for a half a second before smacking into the nearest semi-truck. The truck hung against the cab of the semi for another half second before getting violently sucked under the trailer to be torn apart, the bodies within pierced in several places by various bits of glass, metal, and plastic.
The semi-truck didn’t go unscathed in the exchange as the impact unsettled its fragile stability. The driver lost all control when the truck finally spit out the back side of the trailer, shredding its rubber wheels as it passed through.
Another of the tribe leapt to the cab as it came to a screeching halt stabbing out with their daggers in three quick strikes that produced a spray of blood through the open window.
“It seems we have already secured one of these… trucks, let’s see-”, Korass, Broonil’s mate, was interrupted as the sound of impossibly fast gunfire erupted at the head of the convoy. A larger tan vehicle had spun around and was currently unleashing gouts of fire into the back of the large vehicle the Dwarf and human had taken down together.
That’s a minigun. It’s dangerous! Little Fish identified the strange human weapon for him as he started directing his people to assist in the fight. The sound of bullets ricocheting across the cement at his feet caused him to involuntarily flinch and pay attention to his own fight. The vehicles that remained at the back of the convoy were now closing on him while firing their guns in his direction.
The other two semi-trucks pressed on down the road as their escorts closed in to guard them closer. Broonil understood this behavior well, the great tentacled whales of his home did the same thing, circling their great mother to protect her. “We can’t get bogged down here, this will be a running fight to capture the remaining two prizes.”
His people understood his intent and quickly spread out to begin picking off the convoy defenders, using the rocky terrain to close on the quickly accelerating vehicles. They darted in with swords and spears, slashing at the fragile tires or stabbing in at the soft flesh inside. Nandi’s team kept up a steady stream of fire from the opposite side of the convoy, ending those vehicles in brilliant flashes of fire and ice.
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The ground suddenly shook up ahead as several large pillars of rock shot up in front of the large trucks. They locked up their brakes, the trailers sliding sideways as the drivers fought to not smash into the impromptu obstacles. Smoke billowed from the brakes creating a screen against the gun wielding cartel members.
“MOVE UP! NOW! USE THE SMOKE!” Broonil yelled to his people that had been darting in and out of the convoy.
The vehicle with the minigun was still spitting fire at Groehl and Michelle, unfortunately Nandi’s group was on the other side of the convoy and unable to assist. This left the biggest threat for him and his party to handle. He looked at his mate, then to his clutch mate. Both gave a nod of confidence, even smiling at the prospect of taking down such a dangerous foe.
Korass skirted to his left, while Brogg peeled off to the right using the wreckage of the first truck they had taken out to hide his approach. The rest of his people engaged the trucks that had stopped behind them.
Broonil hopped over a truck and began running full speed towards the vehicle that Groehl and Michelle were taking cover behind. Michelle saw him coming and attempted to wave him off, “No no no no no no! It’ll tear you to pieces!”
He leveled his trident before activating two abilities, “[Water Shell], [Trident’s Plunge]!”
A plume of water erupted from seemingly nowhere to quickly surround his body, then he was airborne, soaring high over the road below, droplets of water raining down behind him as he went. At the same time Korass swept up from the flank of the mini-gun truck smashing into its side. The gunner was so startled by Broonil’s sudden appearance he didn’t see her coming. The vehicle rocked as Brogg slammed into the opposite side and ripped the back door off with a tentacle, then tossed the man in that seat in the next instant.
At the apex of his leap, Broonil turned the tip of his spear to point at the gunner. The energy of the ability took over launching him at impossible speed towards the bewildered man. When he impacted the truck, his trident shot straight through the man’s chest at an angle that skewered him to the road beneath. The roof of the truck collapsed at the weight of his impact, breaking the bodies of the ones who remained inside. Glass and debris flew sideways, adding to the violent display of power.
He wrenched his trident back, allowing the gunner’s body to slump over the crumpled roof of the truck. Korass and Brogg stood, smiling, as the sound of battle receded.Just as it seemed the battle had been won, a series of explosions peppered the space around him and his tribe. They were all thrown back in a flash of heat and fire. He felt his head hit the concrete, then the world went black.
“They’re not dead.” Broonil recognized the voice of the human girl, Michelle above him. He carefully opened his eyes to see her and the Dwarf man looking down on him.
“Oi! He stirs!”
“I do not stir, I wake. What happened?” Broonil snapped in response, “My tribe?”
Michelle looked over, nodding to someone he couldn’t see. He sat up, a wave of pain and dizziness rolling over him.
“Whoah there! Take it slow, yer’ still stunned from them blasted grenades. Bastard got away.” Groehl stepped over to place a helping hand on the much larger Europan’s shoulder.
“We are here, my love. Just slightly, uh… singed? Is the word?” He felt Korass’ tentacles slide around his, calming him long enough to allow the stun to wear off and stand.
“Mmmm, that is good. Did we lose any of our brothers and sisters today?”
“None. The tribe is still whole.”
Nandi came running up just then, “You guys ok?”
Broonil let out a warbling chuckle, “We are fine, Miss Nandi, just as your people would say, a bit shaken.”
“The man is a maniac! If he adn’t come when e’ did… I owe ye’, Broonil. I’ll fight at yer side anytime you need me.”
“Thank you, I am just glad that we were useful. This world is so different from our own. Did we capture our prize?”
Nandi’s smile was replaced with a frown and a sigh, “We did, we’re unloading the people now. Unfortunately the asshole that laid you guys out didn’t stick around, fired off them grenades and high tailed it out of here.” She pointed down the road to a trio of quickly disappearing columns of dust.
“However, the trucks are in no condition to drive out of here. We will have to walk them out. And we need to do it now. Already the high level beasties are starting to sniff around. We don’t want to be here when the lot of them realize how vulnerable we really are.”
“Yes, not enough weapons to go around.”
“Not just that, but we can’t remove the slave collars. They don’t have access to their abilities or skills.”
“Then let’s not waste anymore time. My people will bring up the rear, you lead us out, Miss Nandi.”