Most of the hobos and slaves fled behind him, led by Cork and Em. But Gunnar remained with a few to try to buy them time.

A Level 7 human wearing leather armor was the first mob to come into view around what was left of the barricade Grippa had made.

Gunnar took a breath, activating Mindful Moment, then let a Throwing Blade fly. His ability had improved considerably over the past few days, and even in the chaos and settling smoke, he nailed the man in the eye.

[Critical Hit! You have dealt +55 Damage to Red Cloak Level 7 (Undercover)!]

The soldier’s neck jolted back at the impact, and he collapsed at the entrance.

[You have defeated Red Cloak Level 7 (Undercover)! Here’s 15 XP!]

The goblin chick fired a crossbow at the next insurgent, a Level 8 Desert Orc. Her aim was a little off, and the bolt lodged in the beast’s thick carapace above the shoulder, dealing little damage. Gunnar launched another blade, and hit it in the sensitive neck, dealing +40 Damage. The beast staggered back, clutching its throat. A pair of low-level thieves tried to leap past, but the orc lashed out at them.

Grippa leapt forward, swinging his war hammers. One of the thieves dropped in one blow. The enemy orc wrenched the throwing blade from its own neck and lashed out with his blade, dealing a small amount of Damage to Grippa. The goblin chick fired another bolt, this time hitting the orc in the chest.

[You have defeated Desert Orc Level 8 with an assist from Luda the Goblin! Here’s 10 XP!]

Grippa made quick work of the remaining thief, crushing her skull with his hammer in a spray of bone, blood, and brain matter.

“Aha! My finest work!” Grippa roared.

Another pair of thieves appeared, and Gunnar dropped one with another throwing blade. Hank the Kobold leapt forward and finished it off, then traded blows with the second. But two more thieves were already turning the corner.

“Fall back!” Gunnar shouted.

Grippa finished off Hank’s mob, Luda fired one last bolt, and they all hurried back into the crypt after the others.

Darkness quickly engulfed them away from the entrance. All their torches had been extinguished in the blast. But Gunnar activated Dark Sight and led the way.

He could hear the mobs behind them struggling in the darkness, and he guessed they would need to pause to light torches. Hopefully that would buy them enough time.

Gunnar’s Endurance had improved considerably since his last flight in this place, and a little Mindful Breathing didn’t hurt either. Despite the exertion from the fight, he kept a strong and steady pace all the way back.

They ran as quickly as they could. This section of the crypt was clearer than when he’d last come. As they passed, they opened several doors to smaller burial chambers. To Gunnar’s knowledge, they didn’t lead anywhere. But it might serve as a distraction for mobs unfamiliar with the place, and at this point, every second counted.

The quest countdown was at: 11:03.

A timeframe that suddenly seemed possible, despite the surprise explosions.

But whoever was still inside the crypt when the souls untethered would have to be finished off before the Crypt Keeper could replant it someplace else in the city. It was doable. So long as Sheira and the others were ready.

Gunnar: How’re things looking up there?

There was no immediate response.

At the fork in the crypt corridor, Gunnar could hear the cries of approaching mobs coming from the main burial chamber. Just as Em had suspected, they had managed to blow through both entrances.

Torches still lit this part of the crypt, and several of his crew snatched them up as they went. They hurried back to the loot room, leaving the door open to draw in the mobs.

There was another way to the inner sanctum farther down the corridor, but they’d barricaded this off enough that he didn’t expect Kohli’s crew would have the time to explore it. Or the manpower, if Gunnar’s next move worked.

Within the loot room, tables had been tipped to provide them with shields to fire behind as the mobs entered the room. Then, if necessary, they would retreat to Angus’s old staging area.

The hobos and slaves regrouped and hastily replenished their ammunition, grabbing bolts and arrows.

“We’ve gotta hold this room as long as we can,” Gunnar ordered, grabbing a few more throwing blades. One of these days, he would have to get a higher capacity sheath. He had five, plus a pair of daggers on his belt.

Cork and Hank began barking orders for their company to split into two groups—range and melee.

“Range fires first,” Cork said. “The more we take down right away, the harder it will be to get through that entrance.”

“Then they come through us!” Hank said, salivating as he brandished his gladius.

The hobos and slaves all nodded with a fierce resolve.

But they all knew they could only hold for so long. And if the crypt was untethered with forty mobs trapped inside, they would all die anyway, with no possibility for escape. They needed to weed some of these mobs out.

Gunnar: We’re running out of time!

Sheira: Uh, yeah, I’ve got a timer too. My flame has been lit.

Gunnar: At every spot?

Sheira: I can only account for the Mermaid.

It would have to do. Gunnar motioned for the others to remain in the loot room. He armed his shield, and strode out to meet the oncoming army.

The chamber beyond the door was wide and well-lit near the entrance. The corridor echoed with the thudding of heavy footsteps and angry voices as the army came into view.

At the sight of Gunnar, alone, the first mobs slowed their pace, chuckling nervously to themselves.

“Koohliii!” Gunnar shouted.

“Yeh’ll have to go through us!” growled a swamp orc, whose hair looked like seaweed and smelled about as pleasant, even at a distance. The orc stepped forward to meet him, flanked by a pair of shield-maidens.

“How’s the Mermaid doing?” Gunnar asked.

This gave them pause, as more mobs gathered around them.

Confirming that at least some of them had open communication with Sykes.

“That was… you?” the swamp orc asked.

More of their comrades gathered at the edge of the chamber.

“What do you think Sykes cares more about? Me? Or every investment he’s got in this city?”

The shield-maidens grimaced.

“The Mermaid was the first target. I imagine it’s taking a good crew to try to put the fire out. But there’s more where that came from.”

“He’s bluffing!” Kohli shoved his way past the shield-maidens, a saber in his hand. His right eye was bruised and nearly swollen shut.

“You left Sykes a bit short-handed,” Gunnar said. “And the Red Cloaks too.”

This elicited a reaction from the shield-maidens and a few other human mobs in Kohli’s crew.

The timer was down to: 7:06.

Gunnar needed to get the mobs out of the crypt. Now!

“You’ll be hearing about more any minute,” Gunnar said. “The Red Cloak outposts. The hobos’ old place. Sykes’ training facilities.”

The mobs glanced warily at one another.

“He’s full of shit!” Kohli shouted.

One of the undercover Red Cloaks looked up, horrified. “We just got word about an attack on one of our outposts. The whole thing is in flames.”

The man started to back away.

“Don’t you dare leave!” Kohli shouted. “We’re in the middle of a quest.”

The man shook his head and motioned to several of the others. “Sorry, mate. Orders are orders.”

Seven or eight humans ran back up the corridors.

“That’s two hits,” Gunnar said.

“I’m out,” said a dusk elf.

“Need to stay on Sykes’ good side,” said another mob.

Kohli fumed. “THIS is what will keep you on his good side! Taking out the enemy threatening his investments.”

Another half-dozen left.

Gunnar was hoping to cut out more. But at this point, there was a good chance the doors would untether before they left anyway.

He backed toward the loot room.

Kohli barked an order at his remaining troops, then spun and let a dagger fly.

Directly at Gunnar’s head.

Gunnar raised his shield just in time. The dagger stuck in the thick wood with a jarring thud that sent pangs shooting up his arm.

Kohli’s eyes were pure fire as he drew his saber and pointed at the loot room.

His troops charged.

Gunnar ducked through the doorway as arrows and crossbow bolts pinged off the stone walls behind him. He launched himself over the barricade his crew had set up.

[4:09]

“Almost out of time!” Gunnar shouted, hurrying to the back of the room with the rest of the range attackers. “They’re down to maybe twenty mobs. Work together! Now, we fight for our lives!”

Hank the Kobold’s eyes went wide with excitement. “YEAAH!”