Lazarus's city had become a war zone. The enemy Assassins fought their way to the hidden groove. They left any resistance units not in their way strictly alone. They had one mission and one mission only; to secure Lazarus's grave. Frostblade (Paladin), Phoenix (Paladin), Scarecrow (Thief), Drifter (Thief) and their armies would clear their path and be fodder if need be.

The Paladins and the Thieves had their hands full. Their Infantry and Calvary units fought bravely against the Beasts waiting for them in the city. Lazarus' crafty Battle Master had waited until most of them had entered the court yard before unleashing them. There was no turning back. Still, the gatekeeper's 1,500 hybrid Beasts and balance 4,500 still active fighting soldiers in the city were no match against the 30,000 invading mixed units. However, they were extremely well trained. They all died killing as many as they could.

Frostblade searched for the gatekeeper. Lazarus should have re-spawned by now. If he was in the city, it was his mission to capture and hold him prisoner until the Assassin teams could secure the grave site. Then the ultimate order would be carried out.

The Paladin scanned the area. Isis was nowhere to be found. Intelligence suggested she was somewhere on the high walls but none had spotted her. Dimitri, Lazarus' Battle Master was in the thick of things swinging his battle axe expertly. He was a force to be reckoned with. He fought among the remnant Infantry and Calvary units. The large man yelled constantly, directing the Beasts against the invading force. He did not have to, the fearsome hybrids knew what to do, but he did so anyway. The fighting around him was fierce. Both the enemy and resistance exploded as they clashed.

Frostblade returned his attention to locating the missing gatekeeper. Where was he? He was distracted when a griffin (Beast) noticed him and suddenly pounced on him. The griffin had an eagle's majestic head and it's sharp claws for its front legs. A muscled lions hind quarters and tail made up its back portion. The ferocious hybrid roared as it swiped at Frostblade with its wicked looking talons. The Paladin jumped back avoiding the sharp claws.

The Hero's great sword came out of its sheath in one fluid motion. He swung it bravely at the creature. The griffin flapped its huge wings, sudden gusts of wind buffeted all around. He staggered back and managed to keep his balance bracing against a pillar. Several soldiers nearby were caught off guard and were slammed against the wall.

The Paladin rushed the griffin, diving to the ground at the last second to get underneath at its exposed underbelly. He twisted frantically as the hybrid's sharp beak bore down on him. He did not duck fast enough. The griffin's deadly beak pecked at the paladin, gouging metal and flesh.

"Aaaaaahhh!"

Frostblade, Health 69 per cent

Damn! The monster was fast. He rolled out of the way clutching his bleeding shoulder. His steel plated armour was missing a few pieces of shoulder plating. Ignoring the pain, he got up. Raising his sword, he charged bravely, slashing at the Beast.

A few men had noticed their lord's predicament and ran over to help. The surrounded the Beast, attacking it from all sides. Frostblade yelled a battle cry and charged. His strong muscles flexed and bunched up as his blade sliced through feathers, fur and flesh.

The creature reeled back on its hind legs, flapping its wings, its front eagle legs clawing wildly in the air. It bleeding front body lifted up high as it roared in fury and pain.

"Shoot! Shoot!" Frostblade yelled at his archers. Immediate a volley of arrows struck the injured griffin from all sides. The paladin covered his eyes as exploding sparks covered the area. The griffin was no more.

The fighting had spread throughout the whole city. Everywhere the Paladin looked, both sides were engaged in fierce battle. Farms were trampled; town halls and logging camps were burning. Lazarus's ore mines had collapsed and his quarries smashed. Production in his city had grounded to a halt, and the fighting was still going on. Frostblade smiled.

A loud crash pulled his attention to the Keep. A wounded wyvern (half dragon, half reptile) had smashed into the Keep. Bricks and mortar gave way as a corner of the structure crumbled revealing a gaping hole. The wyvern retaliated by opening its mouth: flames shot out enveloping the soldiers as it moved its head from side to side. Enemy Infantry cried out in horror as they were engulfed in flames.

More soldiers moved in to take the place of the dead. They attacked with spears and pikes. Swordsmen ran right up to the overwhelmed monster, inflicting lethal injuries with their swords. The wyvern detonated upon death, hot sparks showering the units near it. Enemy Infantry died along with it, causing smaller explosions. Needless to say the Keep caught fire.

Meanwhile two Chimeras (mystical fire-breathing hybrid creature consisting of lion head/ front, goat's hind quarters and snake's head for a tail) were trashing in death. One had its snake tail cut off and was hamstrung. The other was dragging its hind quarters unable to stand. Both had spears and arrows jutting out their bleeding monstrous bodies. Enemy soldiers continued their assault.

Lazarus' city was being completely destroyed.

Too bad the gatekeeper's NPCs were hiding in the Catacombs, thought Frostblade. No doubt under Lazarus' orders. Killing them would have gained him some free XP points. Maybe if he could find where the catacombs was hidden, he could make it collapse, trapping the residents there. That would get him ahead in the game. With such a large city, there were bound to be many citizens. Lazarus' city had flourished indeed.

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Reaper, Assassin Level 62 and SubZero, Assassin Level 64 had led about twenty men each to the hidden groove. The rest of their troops were left to help with overtaking the city. God knows, the others would need all the help they could get. They were up against fearsome Beasts.

They made their way to the Keep. A side path led them around and behind the Keep. They came to a beautiful well-kept orchards and a colourful flower garden. Where was the grave site? Every lord had different designed graves. Some liked it in an open cemetery whilst others may want a more secluded spot.

Reaper smiled grimly. His own was hidden deep underground, in a Goth-like room. He had spent a huge amount of Gold to relocate the standard re-spawning site to a basement under his Keep. As long as it was within the City it was allowed by the system. He had redesigned it, tailoring it to match his avatar. His re-spawning spot now boosted an ornate coffin laid out on a pedestal, surrounded by flickering flames dancing atop white waxed candles. The Assassin had died once. He had looked like Dracula when he re-spawned. His 2D image had creaked open the heavy lid and sat up slowly. It had been so cool. He had saved the awesome video. Who said dying couldn't be a fun experience?

Reaper glanced at his mission companion. As far as he knew, SubZero had his re-spawning point in an ice cave somewhere in his city grounds. It would be cool (no pun intended) to see it but the guy was secretive as hell.

Ahead, SubZero signalled and pointed to a slight path leading to nowhere. It was a seldom used path about to disappear or a new path being trampled into existence. They followed it to some bushes. SubZero peered through and parted the shrubs.

"Bingo."

The shrubs snapped back into place as the assassin disappeared behind it. His disembodied voice came from beyond. "Follow me, there is something behind here."

The path led to a cosy hidden groove. A man sized open grave was set under a huge tree. Coloured petals were drifting lazily onto the ground covering it in pastel colour. Around the groove, various sweet smelling flowers and herbs were planted in clever designs.

"Nice."

"Eewwww! Disgusting!" Reaper said in disgust. "He re-spawns in dirt? This guy must love Mother Nature."

"Whatever. Now secure the area."

Their hand-picked men surrounded the groove. Two were stationed at the secret path, four at the open grave. SubZero and Reaper exchanged looks and took up their positions on either side of the grave. If Lazarus appeared, he would not get away.

"Stay alert."

"Relax. If he re-spawned now, we got him covered. Even a high level gatekeeper like him can't escape us however good he is," Reaper said confidently.

SubZero nodded. "We got him now. Inform Frosty."

Reaper grinned and pulled down his menu.

Reaper : We have secured the gatekeeper's grave. If you have him, you can kill him now. We will take it from there.

Frostblade : No sign of him yet. We will keep searching. I will alert the others.

Reaper : Okay.