Law of the Devil

Chapter 20 [Half Horn City Warcraft Incident II]

Robert had a headache that the little master seemed determined to pay attention to having to go to the mountains to see what the beast looked like.

Robert looked at the Spanner in a slightly unfriendly way, and in his view, all this trouble was caused by this guy. If the little owner gets even a little hurt as a result… even if it's just a little bit of a shock, these responsibilities can be on their own!

Although the owner was quite fond of this small owner who had no shelves and was gentle with others along the way, he went to the mountains to see the beast. Such a decision still seemed to Robert to have some childish nonsense!

There was no way, Robert sighed, he could only decide secretly, after entering the mountain, he must stay with the master, with the sword in his hand, how can he protect the master's safety?

Moreover, there will certainly be no high demon beast in this plain land.

Robert comforted himself. It has to be said that his self-comfort has been quite effective. Because on the continent of Roland, creatures like Warcraft, there is a peculiar law.

Warcraft is a wild animal that is naturally endowed with magical abilities, and the level of strength of warcraft has a peculiar measure: according to most of the warcraft currently recognized, the degree of danger of these things is inversely proportional to their individual level.

In other words, the bigger the beast, the less powerful it is. The real danger is the little ones.

Now that this Spann said that there was a big guy in the neighborhood, I think I can handle my martial arts.

And Spann can't help but feel a little tired at the moment. What worries him more than the issue of the warcraft is the safety of the young master of the Rollin family.

However, Dewey has spoken and must see… Spann would rather not be helped by the dozens of other guards.

But Dewey spoke clearly, and even if Spann refused his good intentions, he would take people up the mountain with him! Measuring this, Spann thinks it's better to have people with him and them. It would be safer to have at least a few more people.

•

The mercenaries were still efficient, and half an hour later, more than twenty mercenaries were waiting heavily armed at the hotel's doorstep. And Dewey left a bunch of servants at the hotel, and he left with two cavalry teams himself.

Dewey was wearing a light coat, although he still looked a little weak, but at least that was reassuring. Jolyn knew it was a search for warcraft in the mountains —— a job she'd done before. Hunting monsters for gold coins in exchange for their prey is a source of money for many adventure teams on the continent.

Spann mobilized the last twenty men from the garrison camp in Pentagon. As a result, the total was barely eighty or ninety, although still somewhat weak, but Spann was relieved to see that Rollin's escorts were clearly armored and well-armed.

It was the Empire's local regular army, Spann and Robert, two of the highest-ranking knights, who negotiated and divided them into three teams. And the local army, the mercenaries, the Rollins' escorts, they were all scattered according to their ranks. In each of the three teams, there was a commitment to assign different types of troops, close combat soldiers, and archers, all of whom made some redeployments.

The other two were led by Spann's two deputies, while Spann himself and Robert Knight, the two most skilled men, remained with Dewey.

Spann has decided to pay attention, even if he fails this mission, he must ensure the safety of the young master of the Rollins! Otherwise, if anything happens to the eldest son of the Imperial Military II leader in his own hands, I'm afraid his life's career in the Army is over! By contrast, it doesn't matter if we catch the beast.

It is worth mentioning that the other two teams have only 20 people each. The pair, Dewey, left behind 40 men, 30 of whom were Rollins' escorts, while the other 10 were Spann's rare archers.

Spann even gave a precious military crossbow to Dewey for self-defense, because he saw that the young master was mostly unaware of arrows. A military crossbow could also increase his safety factor a little.

As such, Dewey has 40 of the most elite regular army fighters (the Rollins' guards are absolutely no worse than the regular army), two fourth-level knights, and an authentic magician.

Such strength is already quite considerable.

The three teams immediately left the city and entered the half-horned hills from three different mountain roads. The three teams searched in different directions, each carrying something similar to a signal bullet known to Dewey. As soon as any team discovered the beast, they were responsible for entangling it and sending a signal to summon their companions.

Finally, it was agreed that the meeting point for the three-way search would be the half-hearted valley in the most central part.

Dewey rode the horse into the half-horned mountains in crowds, as if he didn't realize that he had become a burden to everyone at all... or that he knew, but was playing dumb.

Forty men were heavily armed and, as soon as they entered the half-horned hills, scattered along both sides of the fan, carefully searching for all suspicious traces. Two knights, Spann and Robert, were closely guarded by Dewey.

Traces of monsters in the half-horned hills were first discovered by hunters in a small village on the southern slope of the hill. According to Spann's introduction on the road, the local hunters initially saw footprints on the ground in the woods and mistakenly thought that a large beast had flown into the mountain forest. They also called several experienced hunters into the mountain to hunt, but found traces of the beast in the south of the mountain. These hunters understood that they could not deal with the beast themselves, so they simply ran back and reported to the city's guards. According to the hunter's introduction, this only discovered warcraft was large in size, as if it were a lion tiger. At that time, because it stood too far away to see what kind of warcraft it was. However, it was certain that the whole body of that thing could glow, obviously it was no ordinary beast.

After entering the halfway point along the mountain road, everyone got off the horse, including Dewey. The soldiers dispersed their searches on both sides, with five of the best martial arts fighters at the front of the queue.

In this case, Dewey, don't say what kind of warcraft you see... every step he takes, someone will help him flatten out! Not even a rabbit can be found in the grass.

Dewey couldn't help but look at the dense woods surrounding him and the chirping birds from time to time. Dewey glanced at the slightly nervous Spanner knight around her and smiled.

He knew exactly what was in Spann's stomach: “Mr. Spann Knight, have you ever seen a true warcraft? ”

Spann shrugged and pondered a little: “Yes, I was in the Imperial Storm Corps of the North for four years, when my army was stationed on the eastern side of the 'Frozen Forest' in the northern part of the continent, which is home to the most recognized warcraft on the continent. When we were on patrol, we had some encounters. Fortunately, however, activities on the outskirts of the forest are generally low-level warcraft, with limited threats to humanity, and when we patrol, we never dare to penetrate the forest. Because those advanced beasts in the forest, they're not something ordinary soldiers can handle. ”

Dewey thought, "So, what does the Beast look like? ”

Spanner sighed a little: “A warcraft, actually, is just some beast. It's just that they're more powerful than ordinary beasts. Ordinary beasts only hurt people with their claws and sharp teeth. But warcraft is naturally capable of using some low-level magic instincts, so it's a bit of a hassle to deal with. ”

“So, have you ever hunted a monster yourself? ”

Spann blushed and lowered his voice: “Young Master Dewey, I was only a second-degree knight. With my skills, it was not possible to hunt a warcraft alone. But when my team was on a patrol, it really hit a bad guy. It's a ‘storm wolf’ that lives in the frozen forests of the North. The guy is fast, the bows and arrows are missed, the fur can instantly freeze crystallize, the hardness is even comparable to our armor, the sword is damaged, and the wind blade can be sprayed out of the mouth by howling, which is hard to deal with. When one of our squad soldiers met that guy, ten soldiers were not his opponents... I remember that battle, my companion died four, and the last person alive, everyone was wounded. Later, our captain took a wind blade and cut off the tail of the wolf with one sword... the weakness of the wolf is on the tail, losing the tail, its magic will diminish. But after we stripped that wolf of its fur, it was worth a fortune, and its core sold it for a good price. Warcraft's nuclei are all things that magicians love, because the warcraft nuclei of all kinds of magic are good tools that magicians use to store their magic, and they are materials that make magic scrolls of all kinds. ”

When Spann remembered his youth, he couldn't help but feel some emotion: “Remember when he was in service at the Frozen Forest, many adventure teams made money every month hunting monsters despite our discouragement to enter the forest, but a third of them couldn't make it out alive. The people who died in the forest, they didn't know how many, or even some magicians, died in it. ”

Dewey sighed, and he glanced at Saliscaya.

Both know that magicians don't hunt monsters for money. But the magic nucleus of the beast has an unusual attraction to magicians, which can be an important raw material for magic.

Speaking, Spann split a forked branch from the road ahead with the sword in his hand and laughed. “Don't worry, Master Dewey, the larger the size, the less powerful the monster is. This guy we met, it shouldn't be too bad. With me... Well, and Lord Robert Knight, we will certainly not hurt you in any way. ”

Dewey nodded and he looked at Robert, who had been silent: “What about you? Robert, have you ever hunted a warcraft? ”

Robert's face was thick and he thought about it and gently opened his thick curly hair, revealing his neck.

Dewey, it turns out there's an amazing wound to Robert's neck! It was obviously a puncture wound, as if some verb had been slammed from the side of his neck when he was injured! Although this is an old wound, and obviously a long time has passed, the wound is still flesh-red, you can see how serious it was!

“This is what a warcraft left me.” Robert speaks low: “I used to go to the ‘Sunset Marsh' in the south, where our group met a bunch of vultures. ”

Dewey hasn't spoken, the Spanner knights beside him, and Solskaya, even Jolyn behind him, suck in a breath of cold air at the same time! "A bunch of vultures? God, how did you survive? ”

“The vulture? Isn't that something?” Dewey asked.

Solskaya shook his head: “Not only is it powerful, but the vulture is a flying warcraft. If you don't count the legendary beast, the vulture is one of the most troublesome warcraft in the world. This kind of thing is a bird warcraft, about the size of an ordinary eagle, but it makes a sound like a lion roaring, feathers are hard as iron, claws can easily grab our armor, its mouth can even peck the knight's sword... the most troublesome thing is that it can fly, and hard feathers make ordinary bows and arrows can't hurt it at all. And its ringing can cause people to panic, and a bit more powerful can cause people to faint. ”

“Psychiatric attack magic?” Dewey took a breath.

“Shit, this horrible thing doesn't matter if you just meet it alone... but it's the only one of all the warcraft... herd animals! In other words, this troublesome thing is a bunch of activities, and in the swamps of the south, even if a small army encounters it, it chooses to retreat! Because it's really hard to resist if there's a whole bunch of these amazing things coming together and attacking from the sky. ”

Jolyn looked at the wound on Robert's neck and frowned: "How did you survive? ”

Robert shook his head: “I thought I was dead. That time we went to the swamp, half the people died. I got caught in the neck by a lion vulture, and one of its claws almost pierced my neck. But then we found a huge tree hole in the swamp, and we hid in the tree hole for a day. The entrance to the tree cave was small, and those things lost their advantage in the air and could not attack us from the sky, so we were just a little better off. Leaning against narrow tree caves, we held on for a day before those vultures left. And I was finally taken back by the rescue team that my family came to, and I finally saved my life. ”

After a pause, Robert's face flashed in darkness: "My own brother died there. He, like me, was caught by a lion vulture around his neck, but without my luck, his head was caught off the spot. ”

Dewey looked at Robert and whispered, “Sorry, Robert Knight, I didn't know...”

“No, nothing.” The knight shook his head and smiled slightly: "It was many years ago, and since we pledged allegiance to the family, our lives were ready to sacrifice for the family at any moment. ”

The crowd couldn't help but pay tribute to the knight Robert, and even Jolyn couldn't help but look at him more. But Jolyn soon asked a question: "Lord Robert, Lord Spann, I have a question. ”

“What? Go ahead, Lord Jolyn Knight.” Spann still has great respect for the honorary knight next to this noble young master.

“As far as I know, warcraft mostly live in the forest, but they rarely live in the middle of the continent," Jolyn said slowly. Because warcraft need to replenish their magic, they will only live in strange places on the margins of continents, such as the frozen forests of the north and the sunset marshes of the south. These places are filled with all sorts of magic plants… the growth zones where magic pharmacists configure the raw materials of magic drugs. Or, in places that are rich in some particular minerals, they attract warcraft to live around. But... halfway up the hill, just one of the most common trees, there are no magical plants, there are some ordinary pine maple trees, and there are no special minerals here. So, all of a sudden, a warcraft, something like that, doesn't everybody think it's weird? ”

Spann and Robert couldn't help but stop and frowned even at Sorskaya, the sorcerer.

“Jolyn, do you know anything about warcraft?” Dewey's the one who said it.

“I have had quite a few adventures and have followed several mercenary regiments into the ice-covered forest to hunt warcraft.” Jolyn explains, "So I'm afraid I'm the most involved with warcraft here. ”

“Have you ever entered the frozen forests of the North?” The Spanner gave a surprised look. In his view, most of the female knights received the title of an honorary knight from the noble master because of her beauty. I had no idea Jolyn had ever been like this!

Even Robert revealed a different color.

Ruolin whispered, “Yeah, I've been in there a couple of times. ”

“I don't know much about this life habit of warcraft. If what Lord Knight Jolyn says is true... then we must think about it.” Robert sighed, “The appearance of a warcraft is indeed suspicious. ”

And Spann, although he didn't say anything, his expression was a little faint.

Obviously, Spann doesn't believe Jolyn.

The experienced Spanner can see how the female knight is doing, and he can tell that the female knight is not smart. Most of it depends on her beautiful face... and those beautiful long legs.

Into the frozen forests of the north? How many times? Liar!

•

After one afternoon of searching, no one found anything, not even the trail of the beast or the dung.

There was no movement from the other two search teams.

Looking at the sky and the falling sun, Knight Span proposes to take a rest, then go back to the city while the sky is still lit, and come back in the morning to continue the search.

Such a decision was made solely because of the presence of Dewey.

Without this distinguished young master, Spann's original plan was to continue searching overnight. But now the team brings such a young master who can't touch, can't fall, Spann won't dare to build again, or safety is the top priority. Otherwise, the search for warcraft in the mountains at night increases the danger by a few points.

At rest, Robert arranged for a perimeter guard, while Spann dispatched two of his archers to climb onto the trees to observe the surrounding environment.

“Jolyn.” Watching Jolyn go to tidy the saddle, Dewey suddenly shouted at her knight.

“What can I do for you, master? ”

“I believe you.” Dewey whispered a sentence that shocked Jolyn. The female knight looked over her face and looked at Dewey.

Dewey had an unknown wildflower in his hand and a relaxed smile on his face: "I know the Spanner didn't believe you, he thought you were bragging. ”

Ruo Lin's face revealed a bitter smile.

Just bragging? I'm afraid he thinks he's a despicable woman who trades her beauty and flesh for knighthood.

Moreover, not only this Span, but even these followers of the Rollins, I'm afraid most people think so...

If Lynn felt helpless in her heart.

“I believe you.” Dewey whispered, slowly walking a few steps, looking at Jolyn's helpless expression on her face, smiling: “Because I happen to know that you are the legacy of the Moon. And just as well, I've read an ancient book that says that the Moons have a natural gift. If there's nothing wrong with what's in that book… I don't think it's hard for you to get into that ice-covered forest. Even if you run into a bunch of warcraft, it won't be too dangerous for you. ”

Jolyn got more and more surprised, and she lost her voice: “This... you know what? ”

“Books.” Dewey smiled: “Books are a source of human knowledge. It's always good to read more books. ”

Then this half-baked teenager walked up to Lauryn and patted Lauryn's shoulder gently. "My lady knight, we have to work hard. Otherwise, people will look down on you. Like today, don't you see? They all think of me as a burden. And you, my first knight of honor, we all have to do something about it. ”

If Lynn looks carefully at this half-baked teenager and thinks these two words fall into her ear, she can't help but stir up a warm stream in her heart!

They all think of me as the kind of woman who climbs up and down by sleeping with men! And truly respect me, trust me, is the little master in front of me!

If Lynn couldn't help but bow her head deeply to Dewey, lowering her voice with a slight trembling voice: "Yes, my master. Jolyn will work hard and never humiliate your honor! ”

•

Immediately after a brief break, Spann assembled and prepared to descend. He sent the signal, contacted the other two teams, and soon they responded, and there was another group of people, not far from Dewey, who, from where the signal was sent, were only about a mile away.

The two knights immediately ordered everyone to line up and rendezvous with their peers.

But just when we were halfway there, even the Robert Knight, who was at the top of the team, could already see that his companion was waving to his side...

At this moment, a loud roar came from the side! Then you see a big figure flying through the woods! The big guy ran all the way with the flames of the sky and the trees on both sides and the grass on the ground were burned by the flames!

“... Warcraft?!!!” I don't know who shouted the first voice, then the crowd startled!

“Line up!!” A steady drink came from behind the crowd, and the knight Robert had pulled out his sword and drank aloud: “Don't panic! Line up and cover it on both sides! Don't let it get away! Archers ready! Get your shields up ahead! ”

An order came out of Robert's mouth quickly. After all, more than half of these people were guards of the Rollins, and Robert's voice immediately settled down.

And Spann didn't move too slowly, he had assembled the archers and ordered all the archers to get to the trees immediately.

The beast didn't know what was going on, but suddenly came out at this time, as if he wasn't afraid of so many humans in front of him.

Dewey finally got what he wanted and saw the legendary beast with his own eyes.

This guy is bigger than Dewey imagined. He's got an elephant on his head and feet. He's got a big, weird horn on his forehead. His skin is rough and thick. His limbs and hooves are as thick as columns. He tramples on the dirt, he crashes straight into it, and he makes a terrible yell, and his whole body is in flames!

Such a strange and vicious big guy, his whole body was still flaming, making it difficult for everyone to intercept him. The soldiers who had lined up didn't dare to hold the shield in front of him. He could only flash the road helplessly, and the archers on the tree fired arrows, but the arrows shot at him, but they didn't seem to do much harm to him.

But fortunately, this guy was huge and he was running very slowly. Everyone screamed and immediately a soldier picked up the spear to intimidate him far away.

“Don't be afraid, it's just a flaming rhino.” Speaking to Jolyn, she seemed relieved, the knight stood beside Dewey and stepped half way in front of Dewey. Her voice was not loud and she seemed to explain to Dewey alone: "A flaming rhino is one of the lowest levels of warcraft, and there is nothing to be afraid of but igniting it with a little more strength. And it runs very slowly, and as long as it has a few hard bows, it's a fire target. ”

Jolyn's words were heard by Robert, who immediately ordered him out loud: "Raise the spear! Block it! ”

The flaming rhino ran a few steps, but found that the front and back were blocked by humans, and the row of spears stood up against itself, and the flaming rhino dared not really hit one side. After all, although it was thick in skin, it fell far short of the sword of the advanced warcraft. Weird shouting, he finally dared not hit the row of spears, but hurriedly stopped, then turned his body and fled in other directions, but his weakness in the slow pace of action was also revealed.

The soldiers quickly surrounded the past from both sides, quickly blocking its route, while the archers on the tree were still shooting arrows. Although those arrows did not do much damage to it, after all, they were numerous and several arrows were inserted on the back of the flaming rhinoceros.

Flaming rhinos have been blocked by humans for several times, and the range of motion is getting smaller and smaller, and the yelling is getting more and more agitated. That's when Dewey's magician, Solskaya, took the shot.

The magician had lifted his hands, beneath his robe, his sleeves trembling fast, and then, in a whistle, several fireballs quickly flew out of his hand and shot at the flaming rhino.

A loud bang! Just under dozens of pairs of eyes, several fireballs accurately struck the beast, and suddenly the flames ran wild, and everyone almost couldn't open their eyes because of the red light!

An angry and unhappy roar was heard in his ear, and then the flaming rhino suddenly turned red! Then, cheer up, right under the eyes of so many...

disappeared!!

Many soldiers stunned for a moment, but then they burst out cheering!

Looks like the magician is amazing!! Kill this guy as soon as you hit him!

And these ignorant soldiers did not find the magician Saliskaya's own confusion and confusion.

disappeared?

I use fireball technique, but even if I could burn this guy, I wouldn't have left the body behind!

Normal soldiers don't understand this, but Robert and Spann, the fourth-level knights, do!

At a moment when the flaming rhino suddenly disappeared in place, they gave a look of surprise and anxiety, and while the crowd was still cheering, Robert had shouted: "Everybody back off! Watch out!! ”

Dewey stood still, and when he saw the beast suddenly disappear, he couldn't help but ask: "Jolyn, will the body disappear after this beast dies? ”

“No!” Jolyn changed color too: “This thing... the body disappeared, I've never seen it. ”

At this moment, a blue flame suddenly swept up where the flame rhino had just disappeared! Then came a sharp howl in the flame!

It's a wolf howl!

Then, in this blue flame, a giant wolf jumped out of nowhere!

This giant wolf has ice blue fur and appears to be crystallized! And its body is huge and powerful, and its claws are as sharp as blades! But it's fast as a wind!

After seeing it flash, a few soldiers' painful cries have been heard...

Then the wolf howled and suddenly saw a wind blade burst out!

“Storm Wolf! It's Storm Wolf!!” Spann shouted, and the knight's face changed dramatically with a deep sense of fear.

The guy who suddenly jumped out of nowhere, as Spike said just now in conversation with Dewey and others, had met him himself and sacrificed several of his companions to kill a warcraft called Storm Wolf!

But what Spann feared was not the wolf itself... but rather, it was too weird!

Never heard of a flaming rhino that would turn into a Storm Demon Wolf after he died!

Too much time to think. As Spann said, this demon wolf is crystallizing his body fur and hurting his sword! And its speed was also incredibly agile, and with its apical claws, a few bursts, soldiers screamed and wounded under its claws.

And the wind blade came out, and the two soldiers holding the shield were immediately shot, and the shield in their hand burst, and the two soldiers were directly smashed out!

Dewey looked in the distance and couldn't help but sigh: what a great guy!

“Jolyn, will the beast transform? Will a flaming rhino become something else? But these two things look very different. ”

“No, master, something's wrong! The beast we encountered seemed to be... a kind I didn't know about. It's definitely not some ordinary flame rhino!” If Lynn looked gloomy, she held a sword in front of Dewey and stared closely at the wolf in the distance.

With a loud drink, Robert had already made great strides and plunged up, illuminating a silver light on the wide sword in his hand! Flying toward the wolf, he chopped it off.

Jolyn couldn't help but shine her eyes in the distance: "Qi Qi! ”

The wolf also seemed to feel the light on Robert's sword blade threatening him. He dared not carry it with his body, but jumped away as soon as his body trembled, and one side pounced and grabbed it towards Robert's chest shoulder.

Robert drank loudly, his body slightly bowed, the sword in his hand crossed over, a light split out of his blade, and he stabbed the wolf in the stomach!

This demon wolf is so profitable, he can still turn in mid-air! With its torso twisted, it actually dodged Robert's temper attack. After falling, it scratched Robert's arm quickly in front!

Robert snorted, and immediately more blood stains appeared on his arm. Fortunately, the Wolf estimated that his sword was not pushed, so the wound was not serious.

At this moment, a cry came and we saw Spann in the distance! He grabbed a soldier's spear and threw it out!

This spear turned into a shooting star, cruelly nailed to the back of the Wolf! But when the crowd heard a tinkle, it didn't stick in, but it was bounced off! You can see the crystallization hardness on this wolf!

However, although he carried Spann's spear attack, the wolf also seemed very uncomfortable. He was also beaten by the impact and rolled a few times. When he got back up, he also seemed to slow down a few points, and seemed to be slightly injured.

“Solskaya, do it!” Robert drank loudly, sworded and brushed several swords in a row to force the Wolf backwards in a row.

The distant magician was summoned and quickly lifted his hand, firing several fireballs again quickly.

Boom, boom, boom!

Continuous fireballs hit the past, some hit the surrounding ground, and only three hit the Wolf.

The wolf was obviously very repellent of this fire magic, howling and getting harder. Robert next to him catches up, sees a chance to chop down a sword and chop it on the tail of the Wolf!

Earlier in the conversation, it seemed that the Spanner Knight had spoken of the weakness of the Storm Wolf at its tail! Robert remembers.

Sure enough, after a sword cut off the wolf's tail, the wolf shouted and fell down as soon as he swayed, but then Robert saw his sword flash shine!

After the light, not only did the wolf's body disappear in the light, but even the tail that was cut off disappeared!

Disappear or play with this hand again?

Dewey in the distance shouted, “Be careful, I'm afraid this thing is about to turn again! ”

Robert is also a man of color, about to speak...

All of a sudden, a deep, low roar was heard from the sky! It's like a lion roaring!

Then this lion growled more and more, far away, not knowing how many lions were coming this way!

Is it the lions? Shit, this is the plains! How come there are so many lions?

Robert Knight listened to the voice from afar, suddenly as if he realized something, his face instantly twisted, and he suddenly opened his mouth and drank: “Careful! Careful, everyone. Here comes..."

He's not finished yet. Everyone has seen him! I saw a bunch of things in the sky diving down with their wings open! These things cover the sky! They have sharp claw teeth, hard as steel feathers, and... howl like a lion!

“Griffon!! It's a bunch of vultures!!! ”

As if years of nightmares had been repeated, the face of the knight Robert showed a sense of despair! What a terrible experience he's had facing a bunch of vultures!

With so many people now, encountering such a horrible group of creatures, it is almost a massacre to wait for everyone!!

But the knight's words are not finished, the screams have been heard, and the two soldiers have been thrown far away by the vulture's claws!

Flying flesh and blood, large swarms of vultures fell from the sky one after another...

Ruo Lin's face was hard to see, and she threw Dewey down on the ground...