Pax- The Hunt - MT CH 27th

[Ulder]

The part of Ulder that breathed and bled commander came bubbling up to the forefront as he moved into a position to support Talanwei and Trajan.

Blinking against the stinging, acrid smoke he shouted.

"The arrows are useless! Press forward hand to hand! Aim for the legs and arms! If they can't move or attack, they can burn where they lay!"

With that command given, he moved forward with sword and shield and aimed a savage cut at a leg of one of the shambling dwarves.

[Guido Cercatoro]

As Trajan had feared, choking as he was with the smoke and without time to prepare his prayer to Domincus, it received no answer. He was left reliant upon the strange sword. The dwarf with the remains of the charred spear protruding from its chest closed in and received the full force of Trajan’s swing. The sword cleft deeply into the dwarf’s torso and, once again, it felt as if the sword was drawing some poison out of the dwarf. Yet it only halted for a few flickers, flailing its smouldering arm in the legionnaire’s direction. The arm was easily blocked by the guard’s heater but the proximity of the noxious smoke made Trajan gag; his eyes felt red raw as if they have been scratched with a burning nail. He was in no position to carry out his plan to charge the second dwarf. Indeed, he could only dimly see the first dwarf who was continuing to bash his arm against the shield.

Watching Trajan’s encounter with the dwarf, Talanwei began to prepare his second weave. However, as the dwarves moved forwards the smoke intensified and he found it impossible to concentrate with his eyes streaming and throat blistering with the pain. It was clear that he needed to retreat from the worst of the smoke if he was to succeed. Moving backwards brought a measure of relief to the follower of Illuminatus. Yet, he would still need a few more flickers before he was able to attempt the weave. As his eyes cleared, he saw the second dwarf lumber past the legionnaire who was engaged in defending himself from the first dwarf. The second dwarf stopped a couple of paces behind Trajan and then turned, clearly intent on attacking the guard from the rear.

Ulder charged forwards. His speed carried him to within striking distance of the second dwarf before the smoke could seriously affect his eyes. His savage blow severed the limb of the dwarf behind Trajan and the undead figure collapsed in a smoldering heap. As the dwarf fell, Ulder could feel the acrid smoke entering his lungs, searing his throat as it did so. Two of his men had also moved forwards and were now only a couple of paces away.

Thrandil pointed his arrow at the place where he had identified movement. He was well outside the area covered with smoke and was able to concentrate on invoking the support of Pan. After a few flickers, he felt his sight zooming in on the area above the sheer cliff wall, as if his vision had been magnified. Almost immediately he saw a flash of grey and loosed his missile. It found its target. An arm jerked violently as the arrow pierced a grey-robed shoulder and Thrandil caught a brief glimpse of long, red hair framing the face of a pretty looking girl. Thrandil could observe no difference in the actions of the dwarves but he had obviously done some damage to the grey-robed girl who had now ducked back behind the rocks.

On the far side of the lake, three of Ulder’s men were now involved in a melee with the two burning dwarves. With a cry of pain, one of the men burst into flames and plunged headfirst into the lake. One of the dwarf’s was decapitated by a haymaker from another of the men and its body fell forwards into a small bush, setting it on fire.

[Talanwei Fortisse]

It was too much. The smoke was too thick and it was charging through the calm glade of his consciousness like a rampaging minotaur. Back, he had to move back. So Talanwei did and it brought him a measure of relief. The achadhiel’s blades found their sheathes, with Trajan locked in combat with a dwarf and Ulder engaging the other there was not a need (immediately) for them. Making sure he was a comfortable distance, Talanwei began to weave. He reached out with senses beyond his own. Clearing his mind of the cries of those battling, the crackling of burning flesh, he tried to find the quiet in the center of it all. The calm that resided in the place one had to cultivate when one communed with the Aether.

The achadhiel wanted to feel the wind, touch it with disembodied hands and whisper to it what his plan was. He would try to cooperate with the breeze where it would not budge and direct it where it would allow him to but the general direction he was going for was up. To blow the smoke above where it would do harm with a brisk breeze but not one that would throw off the balance of those fighting amidst it. If he could do this one thing, Ulder could easily dispatch the next dwarf and let Trajan come free of the potentially harmful entanglement. The follower of Illuminatus beseeched his god once more, his thoughts ringing more strongly than any voice.

Let your hands be my hands Illuminatus. Allow me to use the wind to carry this smoke above my allies so we may put these souls to rest.

[Trajan Constantine Aeneas]

Trajan had had a plan, but like any plan it failed to survive initial contact with the enemy. The legionnaire had intended to slash the first dwarf in an attempt to debilitate him and then charge the second to clear the smoke and even the odds against himself. But the smoke, the god damned smoke, was killing him. He couldn't see more than a few paces in front of him; his eyes felt like cracked marbles, his throat was raw and his lungs were blistering from the heat of that wretched chocking smoke, and once more his prayer had failed him. Trajan suddenly remembered the feeling of terrific loneliness which had enveloped him in the streets of Pax Balthasar after his fight with the ghostly legionnaire, and he felt something not too far removed from it now. Suddenly it was not only the smoke which was clogging his lungs. Something crushed on them like a giant fist and he gasped involuntarily, sucking more of that forsaken smoke into his already tormented lungs. Something, indescribable tore inside the him. And suddenly, his previously dry eyes were moist with fierce tears.

“Dominicus,” he prayed silently but heatedly, “I've asked you, time and time again, to aid me.” The tears which were had sprung to his eyes boiled there and sizzled when they fell down his cheeks. What was more, the blow he had intended for his adversaries legs, instead ended deep in the creatures torso. Once again, he felt that the sword was drawing poison from the body, and he wondered not only what that poison might be, but how it was that the sword should do such a thing. The dwarf, for his part, attempted to counter-attack with one of his flaming appendages, but his young human opponent had anticipated that and had his shield firmly in place to block those blows. Even as the sword did it's work and the zombie flailed against his heater, Trajan gagged on the smoke and was shaken by another fit of coughing he spat one more gob of phlegm to try to clear his throat and burning lungs. His eyes were twin points of persistent agony in his head, and so he crushed them closed and with a wordless exclamation, pulled his sword free of the dwarfs chest.

“And despite that, you have failed to heed me. I abstain from the sins of the flesh, woman, strong drink, mind altering substances. What more could you ask of me?”

It was a different kind of torture for Trajan to open his eyes, but he did so as the zombie struck another blow against his heater, and Trajan aimed a vicious chop at the appendage in response. As the result of the blow became clear, Trajan cleared his sword and twisted down and back before reversing his torso and aiming the lower edge of his heater at the dwarfs head, at the same time he thrust his sword forward, aiming at, he hoped, the zombies midsection, intending by the force of the shield blow and the thrust of his blade to first drive the creature to the ground and then to pin it there with the weapon.

“So if you'll not help me now,” he finished, drawing his short sword if he had been successful in pinning the monster to the ground, “I say I will help myself.” If anyone would have been able to see, they would have marked a feverish intensity in the young man's gaze which had nothing to do with the smoke. It looked somewhat like determination, it looked a lot more like zeal, what it foreshadowed however, was madness.

[Thrandil]

So there you are... and female nonetheless. Let's see if we can ding you up a bit more then I already did... Thrandil thought, his eyes still on the cliffs, scanning for the greyrobes. His right hand ready to let go of the next arrow. His eyes fixed on the cliffs, he called out to the group that was battling the dwarves in melee. "Ulder! The cliff, above the illusionary wall! A Greyrobe! Pan's eyes have shown me and deceived not, for she is wounded now!" he shouted.

He could not see what was happening down there, but he hoped it was going fine. He hadn't heard any of them scream in agony yet. One of Ulder's men had fallen and the archer's lips moved once more, but the sounds got lost in his head. Mother, save the soul of those who fall under the hands of these abominations. Pan, let their deaths fuel my abilities to fight those who are responsible for this. Let my shot be as precise as the attack of a diving eagle, finding it's target from afar.

[Ulder]

The thick smoke reminded him of the caves where the caravan had stood against the orcs of Le Bois Noir. Memories of the burning torches and wagons and bodies came back to him in an unbidden rush. He coughed and spat and blinked away stinging tears to carry on against the next foe.

In his mind was the dance of death he knew so well. Even in the smoke his ears picked up sounds of the dwarf's shuffling gait and the clink and clatter of his men closing the distance. He didn't need his eyes to know Trajan and Talanwei were locked in combat as well. He didn't need his eyes.

But air was a different story altogether. He fought against the urge to hold his breath, knowing all too well that as soon as he did, he would breathe the smoke in deep and that would be a serious problem. Instead, he tried to inhale and exhale quickly, in brief, shallow breaths.

He left the dwarf he'd wounded behind and moved forward. The dwarf may still be able to move, but with one leg missing, it would be slowed considerably, and easy to avoid.

"Ulder! The cliff, above the illusionary wall! A Greyrobe! Pan's eyes have shown me and deceived not, for she is wounded now!"

He didn't reply, but he smiled inwardly. Thrandil's arrows were accurate and deadly, and perhaps the grey robe's wound might keep her from doing whatever it was she wanted to do.

Keep them under fire! He thought. Hoping that the Adhiel would be thinking the same thing.

With a grip of his shield, he turned to engage the dwarf attacking Trajan. Perhaps together he and the legionnaire could fell the poor creature.

[Guido Cercatoro]

Away from the front line of battle, Talanwei sought to clear his mind and seek out a measure of calm. Now that he was outside of the main area of smoke, he managed this successfully and began to assemble the weave to control the wind.

In the few flickers it took Talanwei to begin his weave, the battle moved on….

Trajan’s eyes burned; tiny burning needles of pain spread across his throat; his chest wheezed and he gasped for air. And yet….the severity of the pain lent weight to his desperate call to his god and, finally, he felt an answer. A brief moment of clarity when his senses pierced the smokey veil and guided his swinging arm towards his opponent as the dwarf aimed another clumsy blow at the legionnaire’s heater…

As Trajan’s blow arced towards the dwarf, Ulder closed in, moving past the felled dwarf who was now beginning to burn fiercely on the ground. The soldier's strategy of shallow breathing allowed him to reach the legionnaire with his senses intact. The smoke was in his lungs and burnt his skin but he was still able to function…

Trajan’s sword cut deep into the raised arm of the dwarf and scythed it asunder. The severed limb flew through the air and landed sizzling in the nearby pool, sending a cloud of scalding steam into the air. The dwarf staggered but remained standing, still smouldering with the evil black smoke. Trajan’s brief moment of clarity faded and he was hit by a wall of pain that forced him to his knees. He was now totally blinded by the smoke..

The legionnaire would have been at the mercy of the dwarf but Ulder had closed in and fended away the dwarf’s blow with his remaining arm. A pair of dull and lifeless eyes turned on the new arrival. The lips of the dwarf slowly parted and few words in broken common dripped out through the zombie’s mouth…”Tell Gersham….I love her…”. Some vestige of the old dwarf clearly remained inside the smouldering shell and he was managing to force some words through his blue, dead lips.

The smoke was rapidly weakening Ulder, but relief was at hand as Talanwei’s spell took effect. A light breeze blew across the clearing lifting a good part of the smoke up into the air. A dense cloud of smoke now hung a few feet above the clearing. Lower down the smoke was much less dense than it had been. Both Ulder and Trajan felt a slight easing of their discomfort. Two of Ulder’s men now joined him, one spluttering and almost overcome by the smoke. The other still alert and relatively untroubled.

The dwarf in front of Ulder began to burn more intensely, now little more than a human torch….

Thrandil kept his eyes on the top of the cliffs but he could detect no more movement. The injured greyrobe was now keeping her head down. However, the illusionary wall in the cliff face flickered out of existence. It revealed a small recess in the cliff wall behind which a few crude steps led up through a narrow channel, presumably to the top of the cliff. The unmoving body of a fifth dwarf lay sprawled across the lower steps.

On the far side of the river a second of Ulder’s men had fallen but the third cleft off a limb of the remaining dwarf who collapsed in a burning heap. The man who had flung himself into the lake had vanished beneath its waters.

[Thrandil]

Thrandil, by now acquainted with the guerilla style warfare that he had used in the hunt for Oneists before, waited patiently. He didn't want to give himself away and barely moved as he shifted his position slightly. The stairs sure were something that he should observe as well as the cliffs. A knocked arrow ready to be loosened, he kept his eyes on the rocks.

Knowing the heart of soldiers, Ulder would surely storm the stairs with the men he had. Maybe a few wounded men, if there were any, would stay behind to give them cover. The former general took slow, deep breaths, focusing on his senses. If a greyrobe or any other hostile would show, his arrow would strike target. Strike for the souls that had been ruined by them.

[Ulder]

"Tell Gersham….I love her…”.

The unearthly voice found its way to Ulder's ears through the smoke and fire and din of combat. The words were not lost on the former Captain.

I'd say much the same if things were reversed...

It was brief and fleeting thought, but its impact on Ulder was still profound and immense. He let the dwarf burn, hoping that the savage flames would cauterize the dwarf's soul, and cleanse his body eventually to peace. If there were any part of the dwarf that still understood, Ulder wanted to make sure that it knew he understood. He saluted the dwarf by bringing the hilt of his blade up to his forehead. Hopefully, whatever vestiges of the burning thrall would see and comprehend the gesture.

Not longer that a mere heartbeat, a fleeting glimpse of memory flashed behind his eyes. A vision of an orchard, and boys at play as they weaved between the trees and threw rocks at each other. Two of those boys were dead now, and for a flicker Ulder wondered if the One-ists had done the same to his brothers as these two grey cloaks had done here this day.

The leather of his well worn battle gloves creaked as he tightened his grip on both sword and shield.

The air was cleaner and cooler if he stayed low, so he crouched like some beast coiling to strike.

"Legionnaire...." His voice was low and full of implied menace, his words for Trajan and Trajan alone. "Fall back. We're going up there and ending this."

Then, to the men that joined him. "Up the stair. Follow me."

As he made his way to the rough, crude stairs, he pointed with his sword to loose arrows at the top of the hill. If his men could provide covering fire, they could make it up much better off.

Staying low and quick, he charged, his rage and blood boiling.

[Talanwei Fortisse]

It would be a lie to say that Talanwei was not exhilarated by battle. He had wanted, since youth, to become a warrior for his god. He was not surrounded by men that shared his belief but they were just and strong. It may have been a naïve generalization to another but to Talanwei the men with him were strong representatives that came from all directions. A former general in the Emerald Guard, a former Captain of the Purple Guard, a legionnaire who followed the One and most of this group bound together or soon to be so in the form of the Swordmark. To brandish his blade alongside a man he had looked up to immensely was an honor beyond belief. To be in the Western Kingdom fighting for those oppressed because of the practice of their religion was something that aligned with his values. In the Seven Isles, religious freedom was all but celebrated but here it was different. It was said that Pax was a place for religious freedoms but it seemed an exile for pagan belief. Talanwei would never understand oppression; his parents had never instilled anything but a solid nature of understanding in the young follower of Illuminatus. So when he drew his blade, it was with a sense of purpose and a firm hand.

A rushing sense of accomplishment followed his weave. The majority of the smoke lifted and Talanwei hoped relief for Ulder and Trajan came with it. The achadhiel had been quite focused on succeeding in his casting so even if he were close enough to hear the dwarf’s utterance; his single mindedness would have kept it from his ears. Ulder and Trajan made short work of the remaining assailant and Talanwei saw Ulder’s mouth moving in speech to the legionnaire. It was not loud enough for the follower of Illuminatus to pick up but the former captain’s order for everyone to follow him was. The young swordsman drew his warden blade once more and hurried after Ulder. He gave care to both giving the burning corpses a sufficient berth and mimicking the human’s low stance to minimize or eliminate any inhalation of smoke. Talanwei looked to Trajan, for it seemed as if the legionnaire had been affected the most by the billowing cloud. The achadhiel was concerned for the man’s safety but he did not stop in following Ulder.

Or so he attempted. After his first step and midway into the second, Talanwei halted. Trajan was doubled over, coughing violently and he simply needed help. The follower of Illuminatus looked to Ulder’s swiftly gathering group that was to take the stair. For an agonizing flicker he debated over what to do. His mouth set in a grim line and with sword again sheathed, he rushed to the human’s side and slung an arm of the ailing comrade over his shoulder. His hands were firm and he was not in a mood to argue with the legionnaire.

"On your feet Trajan, honestly, you’re embarrassing us all," though a brusque jest, Talanwei could not keep a measure of concern from his voice, "Are you well enough to fight?"

The way he was coughing, it was hard to tell. Only Trajan, his abused lungs, and his god knew that answer.

[Trajan Constantine Aeneas]

It was a moment of clarity that was almost more painful than the all of the previous moments of obscurity. Trajan could see the dwarfs arm moving toward him, he could see his blade bite into the arm and then chop clear through it. The limb, carried by it's former owners momentum but redirected by the force of the legionnaire's sword stroke, went spinning off and fell into the emerald lake, flashing the waters into steam. As the violent his came to his ears, Trajan's sudden clarity disappeared and all the pain he had been holding at bay crashed back onto his shoulders and it was just too much. There was a bright, agonizing, explosive sensation behind his eyes, and Trajan collapsed to his knees, the crack of the bone hitting the ground scarcely noticed against the back drop of the torture his body had endured.

“This is it,” the legionnaire thought as he knelt there on the ground, all the strength gone out of his body, all of the desire to continue bled off. “this is how it ends.” Though he couldn't see it, he knew that the dwarf was still there, and he expected for each of the next flickers to bring the final darkness which was even now narrowing his vision. But the blow he expected didn't come, and suddenly he became aware that he was no longer breathing the smoke which had in the past few burns come to define his world. And someone else was there, Ulder the name came into his mind, and Trajan was surprised to know he remembered it.

Ulder was between him and the zombie which he had expected to kill him, Ulder was safeguarding him. A geyser of relief erupted in his chest and the young human, whose body had been been so ravaged, dropped his sword and his heater and collapsed forward, catching his weight on his palms. His lungs spasmed and now he made no effort to stop the fit which wracked his body. His frame convulsed savagely as his body reacted to the toxins which had invaded it, the coughing was violent and great gobbets of phlegm flew from his lips as he sought to clear his lungs. Tears, innocent and independent of any emotion flowed from his eyes, trying to wash away the pain which still impaired his vision, it felt for all things like someone had poured hot wax directly into his eyes and no amount of blinking or tearing was clearing his vision. Everything was hazy, the outlines of individual features bled out into the world around them like a wet painting.

“Legionnaire....” Ulders voice came to him as from a great distance, hushed and echoing, and dripping with venom. “fall back. We're going up there and ending this.” Trajan heard the command in the mans voice, but he remembered also the venom in the mans words, and the promise of violence which hung behind it, and wondered what had changed. Trajan had heard Ulder give the order for those amongst the party with bows to open fire against the dwarf-zombies, and his tone had been flat, professional, not hot and thick with intended violence as the voice which had just ordered him to remove himself. The wrongness of the discrepancy between the two orders was almost salient.

Trajan forced himself to sit back on his heels and scrubbed a hand across his face, a final attempt to clear his wounded eyes. He had heard Ulder issue another order, one for the remnant of their group to follow him up the stair, but that didn't make much sense, since there hadn't been any stair near the waterfall when they had arrived. And so, despite the protests of every fiber of his body, Trajan groped for his weapon and his shield, and then tried to get to his feet. If he managed that trick, he would look for this stair of Ulders and try to follow, but that was, he reasoned getting ahead of himself. The first step was getting to his feet...

[Guido Cercatoro]

Arrow poised in his bow, Thrandil waited, his eyes hovering between the top of the cliff and the stone stair…..

As Ulder saluted the dwarf, the flames completely consumed the poor creature and he fell to the floor, now little more than a burning heap. The other dwarves had already met the same fate as their comrade. Two of Ulder’s men had also fallen, one now deep beneath the lake and the other’s wounds were being tended to by the third man on the far side of the lake.

The stink of burning, putrid flesh enveloped the pretty clearing. It penetrated the airways and lungs of those still alive adding to the discomfort already caused by the smoke. One of Ulder’s men, who was standing close by his leader, gagged and bent over emptying his stomach on to the ground. He was clearly in no condition to fight. The other two men appeared to be in decent condition.

With a quick word to Trajan, Ulder ran to the steps accompanied by his two sound men. They all kept low to avoid the dissipating smoke and reached the stairs without incident. At Ulder’s command, both men drew their bows and loosed arrows at the top of the cliff. Accompanied by one of his soldiers, Ulder charged up the stairs past the dead dwarf. The second soldier lagged a little behind, sending further arrows arcing to the top of the stairway.


Now recovered from any effects of the smoke, Talanwei raced across the clearing to Trajan to find the legionnaire struggling to his feet. The smoke had badly affected the guard and he was still coughing and spluttering. However, the relief caused by the achadhiel’s dissipation of the smoke and the timely arrival of Ulder had saved the legionnaire from serious injury. His limbs felt weak but, with Talanwei’s assistance, the guard managed to lift his body upright. Every breath felt as if he was lifting a huge weight on his chest and his arms felt leaden and drained; yet, he could move and lift his sword, perhaps even defend himself if the need arose.

Trajan and Talanwei looked over to the bottom of the newly appeared steps; Ulder and his companion were half way up the flight and the third solider now charged after them….

******************************************************

The arrow thudded into her shoulder. A fierce burning pain consumed her briefly but she quickly sent out a thread of cooling energy to calm the inflamed area. With a nod to her brother, she turned away and he calmly pulled the arrow from the flesh. She ran her fingers over the gash and the skin slowly folded into place.

“The illusion has gone,” he muttered. “They will come…”

“More to use,” she replied grimly. ”Keep them alive. The dwarves were useless dead"

“More deaths. Must there be more?” There was a note of concern in his voice.

“It is for you brother. For your life.” There was a pause. “Now, shield us whilst I recover.”

******************************************************

Thrandil saw a shimmering flicker at the top of the cliff. He loosed his arrow but it shattered harmlessly as it hit the bright shimmering light that now encompassed the area in which he had seen the redhead.

As Ulder reached the top of the stairs, a bright glow dazzled his eyes for a flicker. He was confronted by a bright curtain of light that ran across a rough track that led off from the stairtop.

[Thrandil]

Thrandil, seeing his arrow shatter on light in front of his eyes was doubting whether it was divine intervention or magick that protected the greycloaks. If it was Magick, divine power would be able to get in between the strands. However, if it was divine intervention by the One, it would be a struggle between him and Pan or the Mother, if they even tried to help him at this point. It was now or never, he might only have one shot until his friends clouded the area and he wouldn't be able to get a clear view on the greycloaks again.

Acting as fast as he could, he spoke under his breath. "If we are your Blood, as our name suggests, show them that our Blood is mightier than magick or divine power by a lesser god, Pan. Your prowess, courage, valor and much more run through my blood. I act in your name. Show the One that we will conquer him" In the meantime, he took an arrow and made a rather deep cut with it on his forearm, clenching his teeth to suppres the pain. He smeared the tip through the blood, making sure it was all crimson when he knocked it. Taking aim for where he saw the light, he let go with determination, aiming after arrow when it was in the air until it struck something... or shattered again.

[Ulder]

The charge up the stair was a short one, and Ulder was surprised and momentarily blinded by the shining curtain that stood before him and his men.

He had hoped that the arrows from below would have distracted the grey priests so that they could not perform feats of magic such as this. He had hoped that the priest had been pinned down by the diversionary arrows, but it seemed that they had been more prepared than he imagined they could have been.

They must have known pursuit would be coming, and they took great care to address it... He thought as he blinked his vision back and surveyed the situation.

He glanced back down the hill and motioned for his men to join them. The arrows and the diversion were useless and futile now, and he thought it best to have his men close at hand for the advantage of numbers if nothing else. A quick glance also revealed Thrandil was nowhere in sight.

He gripped his shield and held it carefully before him, cautious of the curtain falling and a further ambush.

Would Tal-Alkeen have the power to cut through this? I can still feel the sword as if it still sings to me...Damn you Elvin, I needed you here...

For just flicker, he thought he could hear it then and there. His eyes traveled to Talanwei.

"Any chance you can bring it down?"

While he listened for the answer from his friend, he glanced at the rocks around them. Perhaps he could loose a boulder from above down into it and smash it.

[Talanwei Fortisse]

"Come, we’re going to get you together with the men firing at the Grey Cloaks," said Talanwei. He would accompany Trajan to the archers, he would aid him if it were a faster journey. The legionnaire was all right, weakened, but all right. He was in no shape to assault the Grey Cloaks entrenched beyond the stair, that much was clear. Talanwei looked to one of the men that were shooting at the summit the stairs went to. If he could get their attention with a look he would wave one over otherwise he would call to one to aid Trajan. Once the human was safely with these men, Talanwei would make his way to the stair.

"You are in no shape to attack these men. Grab a bow if you need to, but there is not need for you to swing that sword of yours as you are now. Take a burn or two to save your strength..." Talanwei was about to turn but stopped and gripped the human’s shoulder, "My oath to you still stands, if I can save these people without wielding my blade I will do so."

Talanwei smiled albeit grimly and with a nod he turned and darted for the stair. The metallic ring of blade on sheath had become common to the young swordsman. Its sound was comfortable; welcomed even, for it was one of the things that he was becoming adept in. Wielding a blade took a sense of calm and methodic state of mind that reminded Talanwei of meditation, except it was to be maintained during constant movement. It was exhilarating, it was rewarding, and it was something the Achadhiel wanted to master. When he bounded up the stairs, the achadhiel met Ulder’s gaze and his jaw set in a grim line as the former captain asked if he could bring down the barrier. He looked at it with one set of eyes and heightened senses. Looking for any weaknesses in the face of shimmering light he prepared himself. Should there be a point that could be exploited he would aim there. The follower of Illuminatus was not sure if he could, but with the power of his god, he was sure anything was possible.

"If you could stand aside a bit, I'm not entirely sure how this will work..." said Talanwei, holding the warden blade before him. The achadhiel gathered a weave of energy. If his water was moderate, his wind more subtle, this one would be gathering more energy than both. Talanwei would let it build in him as it normally did and he began to feel the nature of the steel of his blade. He was looking past the sheen, the forging, down to the grains in the very edge. What Talanwei would try to do is mingle the power of his god into the blade, to make it a keener edge than the arm of any smith could make. The achadhiel had heard tales of a paladin causing a sword to erupt into holy flame but he was unsure of how the energy would manifest if it did. A regular stroke would do nothing, the swordsman was sure. If he could empower it, Talanwei would bring the sword down to see if he could disrupt the shielding. If it proved too difficult he would try to use the force of the magick itself to break the barrier. With mouthed words of prayer, Talanwei attacked the barrier.

[Guido Cercatoro]

(OOC: I’ll operate Trajan as an NPC until his return).


Whispering his prayer to Pan and smearing the arrow in his own blood, Thrandil loosed off another shaft. As it flew through the air, the adhiel felt as if a part of his own being flew with the missile. The arrow found its target and then appeared to stall, almost frozen in the air for a few flickers before continuing its journey and vanishing through the light….

The arrow twisted its way past the light energy strands that interwove to form the shield, as if some intelligence was at work within the shaft. The blood glistened on the arrow head…and found its mark deep into the side of the man who stood inside the barrier…a shocked look crossed his face

“Brother,” she cried, reaching out to forestall his fall.

Thrandil felt a jolt in the place where he had made the cut in his body. For some reason, the words of the Spirit of the Cross blazed through Thrandil’s thoughts: Namaste, tuirdhiel, he waits for you beyond the green lake..

The shield of light flickered and dimmed slightly….

*******************************************************************************

Ulder had been joined at the top of the stairs by a second man. The third was about to follow but was distracted by Talanwei’s shout. The fighter ran back to take Trajan’s arm and escorted the weakened legionnaire back to where the guide still stood with the horses.

Glancing around the area at the top of the stair, Ulder saw that a narrow overhang of rock littered with small, loose stones lay partially above the barrier. It would be relatively easy to clamber up to the overhang.

Talanwei bounded up the stairs and joined Ulder and his remaining follower. Entering the aether, Talanwei centred his attention on the steel of his blade. He burrowed deeply into the blade until he sensed the very grains that lay along the edge. He pushed and the grains moved, forming a different pattern. He sensed the strength in this new arrangement. As the achadhiel finished preparing his weave, Thrandil’s arrow pierced the shield. The follower of Illuminatus immediately perceived a weakness in the magical barrier where the arrow had entered and he struck at the weak point with his sword.

The blade sliced through the shield in the area surrounding the weak spot. A small portion of the shield was carved open; a small dark spot on the surface of the still glistening ball of light.

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She saw the blade make its hole in the shield and let out a cry of despair.

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Talanwei heard the woman’s cry……and the words of the spirit floated through the air….Namaste, she waits for you beyond the green lake.

[Thrandil]

Thran's arm made an uncontrolled move when it was jolted and he cursed under his breath. He waits beyond the green lake? Tuirdhiel? I should be there, with them. It must be a test or something alike for me. Maybe a challenge to death, but none should fight him but me, whoever he may be the Panling thought.

He put down his bow and started dashing across the water, trying to go up the stairs, and, if possible, pushing his way through the ranks of his friends until he was in between the hostiles and his allies, his sword and the Horn at his side.

[Ulder]

Attacks came from different directions and caused the shimmering curtain of light to flicker and dim before him. Ulder gripped his sword and prepared himself for the eventuality of its collapse. The moment that shining thing of light was gone, he wanted to be ready to have a blade at someone's throat and stop them from anything else they had planned.

He nodded confidently as Talanwei continued to work his own art in bringing the curtain down. Thrandil's arrows seemed to be punching through, and the former Captain was impressed by their abilities from both near and far.

He watched and waited, and held his shield carefully to ward off any attack that might come through. If and when it dropped, he would be the first to jump in and finish them.

[Talanwei Fortisse]

The grains of steel reformed, moved and their pattern was strong. Talanwei could feel the strength and he gripped the hilt of his warden blade with a grin. As he brought his blade down, it was on the point where Thrandil’s arrow had pierced. It was an odd thing to see, the arrow hanging in the air, as if struggling to penetrate. A small part of the shield was destroyed by his stroke, but it would take more. Even as he readied another stroke, a woman’s scream reached his ears and a whispered reminder floated to Talanwei. His blade was stuck over his head as he listened. Namaste, she waits for you beyond the green lake… was it this woman? What was a woman doing here?

It was hard to determine what to do, was she waiting for him to help her? Or was she waiting for him to do him harm? Talanwei’s mouth was a grim line as he decided to give the two in the barrier a chance to stand down. He looked to Ulder and saw the readiness in the human’s eyes. The former captain’s expression by the water was an angry one and Talanwei could tell he was ready to end this with the point of his sword.

"There is a woman in there...the one the spirit told me was waiting for me beyond the green lake," said the Achadhiel. He had never ignored signs from the Aether and here his next action had a chance of clashing with what Ulder would want to do.

"I am going to try to talk to them," he said before turning back to the shield of light and into the hole he had created, he spoke, "Lady! I was told by a spirit that you were waiting for me...beyond the green lake. Should you cease attacking, you have my word I will not harm either of you! I want to know what this all means!"

The follower of Illuminatus meant what he said and even if Ulder, Thrandil or the men following them did not feel the same, he had to try. To emphasize this fact, he attempted to project his intent as a feeling through the Aether. Perhaps soften his aura, make the woman understand that he meant no harm. If he could translate this, she was adept at sorcery so the point would likely be made. The warden blade was lowered, it’s tip just a few inches above the ground. The scream could have been her getting injured and Talanwei knew what that could mean. An injured person would be inclined to one of two things; lashing out at their attackers or become more receptive to a call to cease the battling. Truthfully, the red haired woman may be enraged by Thran’s arrow striking her brother. The Achadhiel knew none of this for it was behind the curtain of light. In any case, Talanwei stepped away from the hole and listened for a response. Hopefully the response would not be in the form of a spout of flame or a bolt of lightning.

[Guido Cercatoro]

Setting down his bow, Thrandil made a dash for the stairs………Ulder waited, sword and shield at the ready……Talanwei lowered his sword and sent forth his words in both tether and aether……

“They are here brother. Those that the spirit spoke of.” She looked at him, sensing his exhaustion, unable to summon the energy to attempt to heal his wound.
“We must meet out destiny.” He closed his eyes and willed the shield away…

The shimmering shield blinked out of existence; at almost the same instant, Thrandil arrived at the top of the stairs.

They were huddled on the ground, arms supporting each other. Both in grey robes; both with long, red hair; both with pale, strained faces. Human? Or, perhaps a trace of adhiel in the blood somewhere? They wore grey robes, the cowls folded behind their backs. Blood speckled her robes and an arrow protruded from his side. They were little more than youths, certainly not fully grown or matured.

“We yield,” the wounded youth gasped, his face wincing in pain.

The red-headed girl turned her head to face Talanwei. She had a pretty, delicate face and deep-set eyes that coolly appraised the achadhiel.

“The spirit has willed our meeting….will you help my brother, he loses much blood.”

[Thrandil]

Thrandil blinked as he he saw the two and didn't hesitate at the girl's request. Rushing to the young man's side, he looked at him and said "I can not help you without being honest. The arrow is mine, but let me assure you, I swear on my Gods that I do not wish you dead. Now if you would let me try to tend to that wound, I'll do what I can, but I can't promise anything.". He then turned toward the girl, "He needs to lie down, to ease the pain and to have us a better way in tending to him.".

"Master Fortisse, you know magick. Do you also have the ability to heal?" he asked out loud, while he ripped open the robe around the arrow, whether or not they wanted him to tend to the young man. "Sir, I believe the Gods wanted us to get together for one reason or another. So please, tell me your name." he asked of the man.

The arrow had to be taken out of the body, but if Tal didn't know how, they were in for a hard time. Either way, the process would be easier if the arrow was broken first. "Look, I'm gonna break this arrow and it can hurt like hell. Here you got something to put between your teeth to bite on." he said and took one of his arrows from his quiver and held it in front of the young man's mouth. If he took it, he moved his hands to the arrow protruding from his side, and told the girl "Better look the other way for a moment if you don't like to see him in pain." and awaited her reaction for a flicker. Then, with a twist of his wrists, he broke the arrow in two, as close to the body as he could.

[Ulder]

Face to face at last...

Thoughts of a dozen ways for these young two to die filled his mind. Thoughts of his brothers, thoughts of the dwarves from the mine, thoughts of those back in Pax Balthasar. Faces of young and old alike who never received even a flicker of mercy at the hands of ones like this...

His hand itched to strike them down in a bloody red bath.

Yet as bad he as he wanted it, he relaxed and sheathed his sword.

Slaying them would make me the same as they are...

The former Captain gave Thrandil a reproachful look. Just a burn or two ago, the Emerald Guardsman was shooting to kill them, and here and now he was doing everything he could to save them. Between this sort of behavior, and what he saw back in the town with Draydis, he wondered if the Adhiel truly had the stomach for what was needed to fight for their home and make it free again.

Ulder said nothing, and stepped back a few paces to allow Talanwei and Thrandil their efforts to save the pair.

The spirit willed our meeting indeed... But for what purpose...?

[Talanwei Fortisse]

Talanwei felt the curtain of light drop a shade of a flicker before he saw it. As it winked away the Achadhiel looked at the two. It was madness that such young people were capable of such magicks. He remembered the feel of the dark weave in the dwarves bodies. His eyes took in their appearances, young pale and with heads of long red hair. The follower of Illuminatus was listening to the girl’s words but his eyes went to Ulder. He was holding his breath, waiting for the former captain to react. If the swordsman wanted them to die, it was likely none here could stop him. The last thing the Achadhiel wanted to do was leap in front of Ulder and his blade. Talanwei was holding his breath without even knowing as he silently hoped that the human would stay his hand. The desire to strike was nearly palpable from Ulder, as thick as the cloying smoke that had nearly laid Trajan low only burns before. For a breathless flicker, Talanwei did not know if there would be mercy for them. When Ulder’s sword was sheathed, he heaved an exhaled breath and smiled.

Thank you Ulder...

It did not need to be said as Talanwei sheathed his blade and reached out and gripped the human’s shoulder briefly catching the reproachful look to Thrandil. There was no time to address what had brought about the look as he rushed to the side of Thrandil and the two young grey cloaks. Laying a hand on the Adhiel’s shoulder he knelt beside him. He addressed the fair skinned woman first.

"I will do all in my power to ensure this wound closes, we will save your brother," to Thrandil he turned his gaze, "before you break the arrow, make sure we can pull it through the other side. The last thing we want is to break that arrow only to leave the head buried in his body. If it is not through him yet..."

Talanwei took a breath let the thoughts gather.

"…we may have to push it through completely or if there are no barbs on the head, pull it out," Talanwei scooted next to the young man and put a hand on his shoulder, "this may hurt a great deal…"

It was not as if it had been his first time dealing with such a wound. The man, the sailor who had lain with his life in his and Ssinith’s hands outside of the Banner had a chunk of wood lodged in his throat. An arrow wound seemed almost simple to heal in comparison. Talanwei prepared himself and let Thrandil take care of the arrow. The follower of Illuminatus laid his hands above and below the arrow in the man’s side and closed his eyes. He tried to feel though his fingertips to what lay beneath. If the head of the arrow had pierced a mortal place he would want to close the wounds inside before closing those without. Without being overly intrusive he tried to gather threads of healing and cooling energy while seeing if there was any lingering magicks around the arrow. Should the arrow be removed successfully he would try to staunch the spurt of blood that would try to follow. The more blood that came out, the less chance the young red headed man would have at life. Talanwei waited and felt the situation out before attempting anything further than this. He felt in control, felt this was within his ability to heal but as he had learned all to often, things found a way of complicating themselves now and then.

"On the count of three Thrandil...you pull or push and I will hold back the bleeding," said Talanwei in adhiel to the former general and in human he continued, "One...two...three."

[Guido Cercatoro]

(OOC: timestamp now late tradetide)

The youth’s face grimaced as Thrandil and then Talanwei knelt by his side. It was evident that the youth was in considerable pain but he allowed his sister to lower him gently to the ground. She brushed back her red hair, revealing a drawn and exhausted face and yet she answered for them both.

“My brother’s name is Star and I am Moon,” she said, pulling aside the top of her robe to reveal a mark in the shape of a crescent moon on the lower part of her throat. The girl smiled; a sweet smile, somehow incongruous for one who had apparently played a part in animating dead dwarves…

The arrow had pierced a good way into the side of the youth’s body but had not exited the other side. Breaking the arrow would leave a good portion of the arrow, including the head, within the youth. From the pain on his face and the blood oozing out, it appeared that the arrow had done some serious damage, if not immediately fatal, and care would have to be taken in removing it.

As the youth bit down on the arrow offered by Thrandil, Talanwei laid his hands adjacent to the wound and sought to let his senses identify the source of the injury. He sensed a tearing of the energies inside the youth’s body; clearly the arrow had penetrated some vital part of the body, perhaps the gut. Yet, he sensed that the damage was not extensive and he could detect no lingering energies on the arrow itself. His attempt to heal the wound could achieve little until the arrow was removed and then, it would be essential to act rapidly.

“Take care,” urged the girl, with a look of concern on her face.

(OOC: ok guys, you need to both describe the exact sequence of events in which you are both going to remove the arrow).

Ulder contented himself with watching the scene, speculating on the behaviour of his companions and the words of the spirit. His eyes were attracted by a small clump of flowers that lay to the side of the wounded greyrobe, growing out of small crack in the mountainside. The flowers appeared to be the same as the flower he had been given by the spirit as a gift for Elaine.

Back in the clearing, Trajan coughed and spluttered from the effects of the smoke. His throat and lungs felt raw; his insides were burning. The guide tended to him sympathetically, with a look of concern on his face. I hope they finish what they are doing soon. This man needs a healer.

[Ulder]

The sight of the small patch of flowers was significant to Ulder. The rational part of his head would assume that these grew in various places all throughout this region on rocky outcroppings such as the one they had first seem them and standing here now. But Ulder had seen enough of portents and omens in his time to feel differently about it now.

Perhaps the spirit had willed them to meet this pair. Perhaps it was the spirit that stayed his hand and stopped him from striking these two down in a bloody rampage. Perhaps these two could shed some light on what had happened down in the city square next to the great stone cube. Perhaps they explain why a handful died at their hands, and they used their powers to bring the dead dwarves against them. Perhaps there was something more to these two.

Whatever it was, it needed to be damn good.

He watched his people tend to them with a careful eye. Any attack would be met with a swift and violent answer, but there was something in Ulder that trusted enough in fate and portents to think that was unlikely to happen. While Talanwei and Thrandil worked he would try and get some answers, especially from Moon, who was the lesser injured of the two.

"I am Ulder. You say the spirit willed us to meet. But for what purpose?"