[The Stranger]
The Stranger swooped down from the sky like a hawk on the attack. In less than a second, the bloody kennel... littered with the corpses of his canine army... went from a distant speck to a full panorama of violence. He was too late. The battle was over, and his troops had lost. Most of the women were gone... rescued by the same two interfering wenches that had been dogging him the entire night. The hounds were destroyed except for a few stragglers and a small group of males that had been trapped in the fighting pit.

Not good. He was down to the last of his potion, and there was no way to get more. He had enough left to create one... maybe two more hounds at most.

But they would not be necessary.

He would have to handle this himself. The women would pay. They would pay DEARLY for thwarting him. Neither of them was the Target, but it was now clear that he would could not continue until he had reduced these women to bloody red smears in the street.

The women could not be far. The last of the hounds that saw them was destroyed less than a minute ago in an alley near a edge of the kennel. He would start there.

The Stranger gathered the rest of his hounds. With a wave of his hand he smashed the walls and fences, creating a clear path for the mutated animals to gather around him...

---

[Zade]

Hiding at the top of a nearby building, Zade peered over the edge and watched as the Stranger descended.

"He looks mad," she mumbled to Val-keth.

[Val'keth]

"Mad?"

Val'keth watched as the destruction raged below them, and thought mad was an understatement. The same way the stranger had held her suspended in mid air, he was now tearing down the solid structures that surrounded them - and without so much as laying a finger on them.

"Unless you've got another one of those freezy things, it might be wise if we.."

Her words were suddenly cut off mid sentance as Val'keth flattened to the rooftop, pulling Zade down with her. She was sure the Stranger had glanced up at their hiding place, and her skin prickled alarmingly.

"We go, now" she whispered to Zade, glancing over her shoulder at the expanse of roofs behind them.

[The Stranger]

"There!" he hissed. The Stranger shot into the air like an arrow.

He hovered above the kennel and pointed a condemning finger at the dark rooftop.

"NOW YOU DIE!"

[Zade]

Zade tore herself away from the edge without a word. They'd been spotted, and the Stranger did not look pleased.

She had taken two steps when-

THOOM!

It felt like a cannonball had hit the building. Sturdy wood splintered like thin balsa, and the spot where she and Val'keth had been kneeling was now a jagged whole.

Zade kept running, her eyes locked on the opposite side of the roof. They could jump across, or maybe drop down into the alley...

THOOM!THOOM!THOOM!THOOM!

Suddenly it was RAINING invisible cannonballs... each one sending violent shockwaves through the sturdy structure beneath them. The entire building shook, and the roof rose and like the waves of an angry sea.

"JUMP ELF!!!!" Zade screamed. She launched herself into the air, her powerful legs propelling her tight, muscular body across the darkness....

THOOM! KRRRRA-THOOM!

And then the entire building collapsed behind her like a house of cards. A second later, Zade's boots touched the rooftop of the next building. She dropped into a crouch and prepaired to run... She turned to Val'keth-

THOOOM!

The building heaved like a chest of a sneezing giant. The shockwave threw Zade forward... she rolled and came up in a frenzied run.

[Val'keth]

Only a step behind Zade, Val'keth felt the blows shaking the building apart beneath them. Nearly there...

The parapet gave way as Val'keth leapt from it. She felt the stonework under her foot crumble, and her jump lacked the normal power - power that would have sent her sailing onto the far roof with ease. The next building was too far - but she held a single thought in her mind, blocking out all else.

'FLOAT'

It was just enough. Val'keth landed hard on the next building and cursed silently as the stranger pounded this one as well, rippling the tiles like some clay serpent. She tumbled forwards, staggering to one side as she tried to keep her balance on the slippery roof.

THOOOM!

Tiles slid in sheets from the roof, smashing on the road below. Rafters groaned and wailed as they flexed, and loud cracking noises spurred Val'keth on toward the next rooftop. She abandoned all attempts at stealth, choosing instead to run flat out toward the edge, leaping at the last moment, only a split second behind Zade now.

[The Stranger]

The Stranger zoomed towards the remains of the first building, which he had demolished from a distance. As he did, he saw the fleeing figures on the roof of the next structure, and continued his assault. He hurled man-sized balls of telekinetic fury at the women. The first few missed them entirely, but each impact that followed grew closer and more powerful...

[Zade]

KRRR-THOOOM!!

The wood beneath her feet reeled and twisted... and fell away mere seconds after she had passed. Zade ran faster, and the destructive impacts came closer and closer. When she reached the edge of the building, she kept right on running...

"aaAAAAAAAA-OOF!"

Zade rolled and started to run, but her instincts told her to veer to her left. She did-

KRASH!

The area where she would have been running vanished into a gaping hole. The whole building shook. Zade threw herself down, rolled, and then-

BOOOM!

Half of the roof vanished in front of her. Zade slid right into the gaping hole, but managed to grab hold of the edge.

CRACK!

The wood came away in her left hand, but her grip with her right was firm. She flipped back onto the roof and immediatly threw herself to one side.

THOOOOM!

The entire building began to cave in on itself. Zade reached the edge of the at more of a clumsy stumble than a run.

"DAMN!"

Not only was the next building THREE stories high instead of two, but even if it were on the same level she wouldn't have the speed to jump it.

And there was no time for hesitation. Zade unfurled her whip just as the roof gave way beneath her.

KA-SNAP!

The long leather strand wrapped around the stone gargoyle at the edge of the next building. Zade didn't have any time to test it... she was already falling!

She swung forward, aiming for the window directly across from her...

KRASH!

She burst through the glass... taking much of it with her in her skin and leather outfit. She was inside. Even as the building behind her finished tumbling to the ground, the wall of THIS building suddenly exploded as the psionicist's fury slammed into it. Bricks pummeled Zade, sending her flying back.

Fortune smiled on her. Not only did she remain conscious, but she landed near the stairs!

"GOING DOWN!" Zade started down.

KRAAAA-THOOOOM!

The building jerked and danced with such fury that the rickety old stairway pulled away from the wall. The bottom half separated from the top-

CRASH!

- leaving Zade stranded with no way to go but back up!

"DAMMIT!"

Zade ran up the stairs and burst onto the collapsing roof just as the remainder of the stairs gave way. She took a running leap for the next building, knowing that she didn't have the momentum to make it....

[Val'keth]

The slim dark-elf twisted and darted alongside Zade, leaping as the building collapsed into itself and half jumped, half floated, rising toward the next one. She chanced a glance back, and saw nothing but a cloud of dust rising from where the building had stood a moment earlier.

As her feet touched the rooftop of the next building she heard glass smash. Zade had gone through a window, but Val'keth had no time to find out if she had survived. Another impact rocked the building, throwing her off her feet. The sharp tiles cut into her skin, slashing deep gouges as she slid

backwards.

"Hell take your soul, stranger," she cursed, breathing hard as she scrambled to her feet and ran up sloping roof. White hair sillhouetted against the night sky for an instant, then she jumped forward as the ridge gave way beneath her, slipping and sliding toward the edge.

A dark shape burst toward her, and she turned her head, her hands snapping to her weapons.

The stranger? she thought, then recognised the leather clad woman. Zade. As Val'keth's feet left the edge of the building, she realised Zade didn't have the speed or angle right to make it to the next roof.

"Nooooo...."

Val'keth did something she'd never done before in that instant, and poured all her energy into one giant effort.

'FLOAT... FLOAT.... FLOAT....'

It was barely sufficient to keep them both from plummetting to the ground, though Val'keth knew it wouldn't be enough for them to make the next rooftop. She altered course slightly, grunting with the strain of keeping the single thought strong enough in her mind.


"Grab... the... ledge" she forced out between gritted teeth, reaching one hand out toward the small lower roof that butted against the side of the tall building.

[Zade]

Zade was already bracing herself for the potentially fatal fall... but it never came. She was floating!

"Hot DAMN!" She reached out and grabbed the ledge. She felt Val'keth's levitation spell dissipate, and immediatly began scrambling up onto the roof-

[The Stranger]

The Stranger arced over the billowing cloud of debris from the collapsing building and saw his prey clinging desperately to the next structure.

The Stranger's lips, unseen beneath the telepathic mask, curled upwards, forming a sinister smile.

A deep breath and a sudden clenching of his muscles send an invisible hammer the size of a wagon wheel hurtling straight towards them...

[Zade]

BOOOOOOM!

The building shook, and the delicate ledge crumbled in Zade's hand, yielding her to the forces of gravity...

"Shhhiiiiiiii-"

KA-THUD!

Everything was dark. Zade had taken enough falls to know that without something soft to land on, a fall from ANY height could be fatal. At first she couldn't see, hear, or feel anything. Not the hard ground under her back or the leather armor on her skin. The the pain flooded her mind... forcing her eyes open.

That's when she saw the hail of debris falling towards her. She'd only been out for a fraction of a second, and... no matter what her physical condition... if she didn't move she was going do DIE!

Pushing through the pain, Zade rolled to the side... then forward into a crouch. She was up and running when:

KRAA-THOOM!

[Val'keth]

Fingers brushed the ledge, but couldn't find a firm hold. Val'keth tumbled to the street below, landing in a sprawl of legs and arms. Something sharp dug into her side as she rolled over, gasping for air, and one arm ached with a dull throbbing pain.

"Zade?" she croaked, not seeing the woman. Then, thunder filled the air again as the building shook and started to collapse beside her. Huge stone blocks thumped around Val'keth as she scrambled as fast as she could, the dust choking and blinding her.

She darted between the falling bricks and masonry, sensing them and diving out of their way at the last instant, heading deeper into the maze of buildings like a rat running for cover.

[Zade]

The storm of bricks and debris hit the ground just behind her.

She was in an alley that USED to run between two buildings. Now one was gone and the other was falling down around her. Val'keth was nowhere to be seen. Zade ran. She had no idea why her legs, arms, or back weren't broken. Her leather armor was good... but it wasn't THAT damn good! Zade's mind raced to get her bearings...

Where was she?

KRACK! BOOM!

More of the building collapsed as the Stranger tore it down around her. Zade emerged out into the street-

GRAAAAOOOOOOO-

HELLHOUNDS!!

"GODS DAMN YOU TO HELL!"

The first of them leapt at her. Strengthened by frenzy, anger and the wild ferocity that as welling up inside her, Zade grabbed the beast in mid air.. on hand closing on its neck and the other tangling in the coarse fur of its chest. She absorbed the beast's momentum, turning it into a complete spin... and then released it... throwing the beast right into the path of the second charging hellhound.

They collided, becoming a tangle of fur. Zade was already running towards them, hoping to get past them before they could-

KRA-THOOOOM!

Another impact shook the solid ground beneath her. The sound was like the end of the world... The building was coming down! And she was right in it's way!

Zade turned to run, but she paused long enough to square herself and-

BOOT!

Kick one hounds off of the other, sending the huge beast tumbling end-over-end straight into the path of the collasing wall.

NOW Zade ran. Behind her, one hellhound died silently as several tons of brick and morter crushed it into oblivion. The other was right at her heels as she ran across the street and vanished into the next alleyway.

[Val'keth]

AAAROOOOOooooo...

The howl chilled Val'keth to the bone. A hound. And where there was one, there were more...

Val'keth ran faster, glancing behind as she dodged the piles of stinking refuse that lined this back street of the city. Pools of fetid scummy water splashed beneath her feet, but she dared not hope that they would disguise her scent from the unnatural dogs. Her fingers gently probed her other arm as she ran, and she winced as she felt the swelling around her elbow. Not broken, but very badly bruised, and she doubted she had the strength to wield her sword effectively.

HaaarrROOOooooo....

FFFWOOOMPH!

A shudder ran underfoot suddenly, and Val'keth swung into another alleyway as the building beside her crumbled and disintegrated. The cloud of dust overtook her, and shards of glass and brick stung her legs as she surged onwards.

Where the hell was Zade... And where was December's from here...

[The Stranger]

The faceless mercenary flew through the cloud of debris and emerged in the open air high above the street. He didn't have to see where the women were to locate them... the hounds had already done that. They were both running down the same alley, separated by a distance... and one hellhound.

The Stranger gritted his teeth and sneered. Then he waved his hands and both buildings on either side of the alley began to collapse under his telekinetic assault.

The women would be caught between them and crushed.

The Stranger smiled.

[Zade]

Mere inches in front of the pursuing hound, Zade ran for all she was worth. She was reaching a sharp corner at the end of the alley when all hell started breaking loose around her. Again.

rrrrrRRRMMM-BOOM!

The ground shook, and the walls began to wave like thin cloth hung out in the wind. Bricks rained down around her. Zade rounded the corner saw the heavy wooden fence erected at the end of the alley. Zade ran straight for it without slowing down.

As the ground danced beneath her, Zade leapt and twisted into a flying side kick. She flew through the shadows like a sultry, leather-clad cannonball. She demolished wooden gate and rolled to a painful stop just beyond it.

The Hellhound was already sailing towards her.

[Val'keth]

Clouds of choking dust swirled around her as the slim elf pushed herself further, faster than she had ever run before. Val'keth's eyes streamed with tears from the dust, obscuring her vision, rendering even the heat sensitive sight useless.

KRAAAA-THOOOOMM!

The ground bucked underneath her, and Val'keth was catapaulted forwards. Bricks and tiles rained down around her, and she instinctively curled into a small ball, with her head tucked between her knees.

Ooomph!

Val'keth landed on rubble, felt every sharp corner bruise through her armour as yet more poured down on top of her. The weight pressed down on her, forcing her to take shallow rapid breaths as she gathered her strength. This stranger was going to pay for the abuse her body was taking tonight, she vowed. Anger surged through Val'keth as she flexed her muscles, the rubble sliding off her as she stood straight once more.

A quick glance behind revealed another building toppling toward the alley, then a pair of glowing red eyes pierced the dust behind her, driving her onwards - the hounds seemingly unslowed by the destruction that raged around the alley. Her feet slid and scrambled in the debris as she sprinted onwards, toward a smashed fence.

GRRRRRRrrrrrrr.

The low rumbling growl alerted her just a split-second before she ran through the fence.

Hound. ZADE!

Val'keth skidded to a stop, blinking blood out of one eye. Her sword grated as she slid it out of the scabbard, then she screamed and charged headlong for the hound and Zade.

[Zade]

Zade thrust her left hand out while reaching for her knife with right. The hound clamped down on her forearm, and Zade could feel her metal bracer yielding to its powerful jaws. Her flesh and bone tried to resist, but it felt as if the bite was about to go clean through...

"UNGH!"

Zade thrust the dagger into the side of the dog's head. Its grip loosened, but not enough for her to pull her arm free...its teeth had shredded her bracer, and were sinking into her arm like a high-tension beartrap. Zade yanked the dagger free and began stabbing at the beast's neck while its claws ripped deep furrows through her leather armor.

[Val'keth]

Val'keth snarled as she somersaulted onto the dog's broad back, balancing on its broad shoulders as she hacked at the snarling head.

Once, twice, and then Val'keth screamed in victory as the hound's head dropped and rolled to one side. The dog twisted beneath her in its dying spasms, and she slid sideways, landing hard on the ground.

[Zade]

"Thanks," Zade rolled to her feet. Her entire arm felt like an open wound, but they had to keep moving.

BOOM!

As if on cue, the building to their right began to rattle violently. Zade took a quick look behind them, and saw the Stranger emerging from a billowing cloud of dust...

She could see him... which meant that he could see them!

"RUUUUUNNNN!!!!!!"

Zade grabbed Val'keth's arm and pulled her down the alley just as the ground behind them shook. Enormous chunks of dirt and debris pelted them from the impact of the Stranger's telekinetic blast... which would have flattened them if they hadn't moved. The impact spelt doom for the building to their right, which began to collapse down towards them.

[Val'keth]

Val'keth glanced around as the bricks started to rain down on top of them. The building up ahead looked familiar - and she sheathed her sword as they drew level, then pulled Zade abruptly down a narrow side alley as another building collapsed.

"Zade! In here," she said, as she smashed the wooden shutter inwards. If she remembered right, this place had a cellar.

"Come ON!" she shouted over the noise of falling masonry. The floorboards rattled and jumped beneath her as she dived in through the window. The smell of rotting wood and damp stone rose as the building shuddered and swayed. The stranger was close, too close...

Val'keth ran through the building, not checking to see if Zade had followed. There. She yanked the door open and half ran, half fell down the stairs as the building shook again. The cellar was damp, the floor slippery underfoot, but Val'keth didn't care. She ran for the furthest corner, wedging herself between the two walls and curling into a tiny ball.

Suddenly, she realised she ached everywhere. Her breath rasped in her ears and her heart was pounding - and she had a myriad of stinging cuts that were seeping blood. Her vision swam hazily and she felt exhaustion hit her as her muscles started to tremble.

[Zade]

Zade ran behind the elf. She hoped Val-keth knew where she was going, but the deep, loud rumble of the destruction behind them made attempt to ask impossible. Zade couldn't even hear herself think!

Val-keth ripped open a window and leapt inside. Zade was following when

WHAM!!

Something struck her from behind. A piece of falling debris struck the back of her head... and immediatly afterward, another struck her between the shoulders.

UNGH!

She fell to the ground beneath the window. Everything was spinning around her, and Zade couldn't tell if it were because of the Stranger's assault or her own head injury.

KRUNK!

"AAAAAH!

A huge brick struck Zade's leg. Everything below the knee went numb... Zade couldn't even tell if it was broken or not.

Gotta get UP! Zade staggered to her feet and tried again to haul herself through the window. This time she suceeded, but the building began to collapse

as soon as she set foot inside.

"Where am IIIII-"

A sudden jolt knocked Zade to the floor. She could feel her leg now... and it hurt like Hell!

CLANK!

Things began falling all around her. Large, heavy things... This building had two floors, and the second floor was in the process of merging with the first!

A section of the ceiling collapsed right in front of Zade. The sound was so loud it hurt her ears... but that was the least of her problems.

She had to get to safety, but where was Val-Keth!

A door!

Zade stumbled towards it, but it wouldn't open! The last jolt had warped the frame, and now it was stuck!

"UNGH! UNGH!"

Zade pulled on the heavy wood... she felt it give slightly... and then

BOOOOOOOOMMMM!!!!

The room disintegrated around her. Debris rained down upon her head and shoulders. The door flew violently open, but before Zade could take a step.

CHOCK!

"AAAAAAAAHHHH!!"

The PAIN! Zade didn't know what this building was, but it contained somebody's stash of weapons... swords and other deadly implements slid down out of the rapidly growing hole in the ceiling directly above her.

And one blade impaled her previously un-injured leg right though the thigh.

"AAAAA-" Zade fell backward, and tumbled down the stairs. She felt her limbs twisting painfully in all directions, and the sword through her leg tried to tear itself free as she rolled and came to a jarring halt at the bottom.

Zade opened her mouth to scream... but her own voice was completely inaudible as the entire structure came down around them. The second floor collapsed into the first... and then they BOTH began to slide into the dark basement... right on top of her!

rumbleRumbleRUMBLERUMBLERUMBLEKRRRAA-BOOOOOO-

Zade didn't even hear the end of it.

[Val'keth]

Hunched in the corner of the dark cellar, Val'keth felt each huge tremour rumble through the foundations of the building. She shook and curled tighter as bricks and plaster smashed through the wooden planks above her head, reining down upon her in a torrent of debris.

Zade?

She thought she heard someone scream above the deafening roar, but then everything was drowned out as the floor above her head disintegrated. Enormous structural beams ripped free of their mountings and smashed into the cellar floor, and Val'keth squeezed her eyes shut and did something she never thought she would sink to - beseeching the dark-elven Goddess to let her live through this nightmare.

She never heard the reply, if there was one. Suffocating dust swirled into her lungs as the building collapsed in upon itself, burying Val'keth beneath beams carved from huge oaks, enormous pillars of masonry, and a deluge of boards, tiles and furniture.

[To Be Continued]