A Pleasant Lunch with the Forces of Evil

When Xan returned to the interior of the Inn both Yahn the Healer and Poole let out sighs of relief. The owner of the Inn wasn't sure why or how Xan came in through the front door, but seeing the weird door on his back he hoped it was their chance of surviving this nightmare. Xan ran to a wall near to where the Draugr was battling Yahn and Poole and turned the device on. He opened the door and joined the battle with the Draugr.

The Draugr didn't pay too much attention to Xan as he was too busy with Yahn and Poole. Xan pulled out a new weapon, another gun, from somewhere. He pushed a button on the gun and a red dot appeared on the Draugr. After he pushed the button, the red dot followed the Draugr where ever it went in the room. He pushed another button and the gun, more like an oversized rifle, split into three parts. It was as if it had three separate and independent gun barrels.

Xan pulled the trigger and the first thing he hit was the creature's foot which was instantly destroyed. The Draugr roared in pain, but seconds later the foot reformed. This didn't stop Xan, he continued to fire his weapon. Now, having felt the pain from the weapon the Draugr tried to dodge every shot. It soon learned it couldn't dodge all of the shots. What is didn't realize was even the shots it dodged were quickly pushing it to its doom. As the creature evaded the continuous shots; it was eventually forced through the Doomdoor. Once it went through the door closed. The creature screamed and it became little more than black smoke that eventually disappeared.

Outside the Inn, Luas felt the death of his Draugr. "My Draugr," he cried in pain. The effort he went through to acquire the creature couldn't be calculated. Now, it was gone. He lost too much in this battle. The remaining zombies were ineffective and he knew if they remained he would just lose more and more zombies. Barron Atticus commanded a retreat and the Fangs, Knights, and Zombies melted back into the night from whence they came.

"I guess we'll be calling on that young man tomorrow," Barron Atticus said. The other two merely nodded still reeling from all the losses they incurred that night.

Back in the room, Xan plopped down on his rear end. "They're leaving! All those evil creatures are leaving," cried the owner of the Inn. Xan's face was pale and sweaty. It really was a close call that night.

Xan, Poole, Yahn, and the owner of the Inn put together a table and a few chairs away from the other people. Many of those in the Inn left as soon as the battle was over to find their missing loved ones and check on their property.

"Young Lord Elam, you have saved the town," the owner said.

"We have fought shoulder to shoulder, don't you think you can tell us your name now?" Xan asked.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I never introduced myself. I am Bolivar," the owner said.

"It's very nice to meet you, Bolivar," Xan said.

"You as well, young lord, do you think things are over now?" Bolivar asked.

"It depends on how tomorrow goes," Xan said.

"Tomorrow, what's happening tomorrow," Bolivar asked.

"Tomorrow I will hold negotiations with the leaders of the monster horde," he responded.

"The leaders of the monster horde!" Bolivar shouted as he stood in shock.

"Mr. Bolivar, please keep your head. The young Lord has everything in hand. Didn't he save all of our lives?" Poole asked as he tried to calm Bolivar down. Finally, he chose to sit but he had a deep foreboding that the longer Lord Elam talked; the less he was going to like it.

"I have already made an appointment with the three leaders of the forces of evil whom we faced. They'll arrive here tomorrow, I would guess at around lunchtime," Xan said.

"When were you able to set an appointment with those monsters," Yahn the Healer asked.

"Just before I jumped through the door and past the zombies. We had a brief chat and I extended my invitation to them. Now, enough questions, I need to get some rest for tomorrow. Poole, please prepare something to eat I'll be upstairs, of course," Xan stood up and walked up the stairs.

The next day, the town was in a flurry as people worked to fix their homes and the town itself. The casualties were light thanks to the creatures focusing on the Inn. Xan spent the morning creating mysterious devices and neither Yahn the Healer nor Poole understood anything about what he was doing.

As he predicted the night before, Stanz, Barron Atticus, and Luas arrived at the Inn the next day. Of course, the three didn't look like monsters at all. In fact, no one knew who they were. They seemed like three exceptional young men. Stanz was in his human form, Barron Atticus was dressed like a noble but aside from his pale skin who could tell he was a vampire. Finally, Luas didn't look anything like a zombie. He looked like any other human being. The three asked the owner, Bolivar, to inform Xan of their arrival.

Xan, Yahn the Healer, and Poole came downstairs not long after. The half dozen people met in the partially restored restaurant and ordered lunch together.

"It always looks different from the other side," Stanz said.

"What's that?" Yahn asked slightly hostile.

"The places we attack. When you're fighting to get in, especially at night it appears one way to you, but when you enter it after the battle it seems much different," Stanz said.

"Ha-ha, it's the same for looking at the enemy flee in defeat but then having a cordial lunch with them after hostilities have been subdued. You three are our guests but I must ask you not to try and stir up trouble. People's emotions are still very raw, and provoking us will not end well for you," Xan said as he pulled out a strange device and tossed it on the floor. The device lit up with various lights, but Poole and Yahn the Healer couldn't tell what it was. The owner, Bolivar, was aware of who Xan was meeting with and kept glaring at them. When he noticed all three in pain or panic he grew excited.

"I hope we can have a pleasant discussion now," Xan said to his three guests.

"Yes, please, just deactivate this thing! Barron Atticus moaned.

With a wave of his hand, the device returned to him and he deactivated it.

"As you can see, we aren't here to beg you to cease hostilities. I assume you understand that if my intentions were hostile, I have the ability to end things with little effort," Xan said. The three monster leaders nodded their heads. None of the other humans present understood what Xan's device did but they could see how effective it was against these powerful beings.

"What do you want," Barron Atticus asked.

"I want the three of you to work for me," he said with a grin. The three monsters' faces turned flat and they began to become angry.

"You want us to do what?" Stanz said as he could feel his animal bloodlust building in his body. He had to take a couple of deep breaths to keep himself from changing into his wolfman form.

"Don't get agitated so quickly, I will, of course, compensate each of you. I believe you will all be more than happy with my arrangements. You have all seen I have the power to destroy your lives, but I also have the ability to improve your lives. I can bring you power greater than the powers of your commanders. All I need from you is to sign a contract with me to serve me.

After you hear what I have to say, you might grow angry with me for not making all of this faster," Xan said with a confident smile. The three monster leaders, Yahn the Healer, and Poole all looked at Xan with curiosity, anticipation, and a little dread.